In Too Deep: A Romantic Suspense Novel

by Landish, Lauren

  "Yeah, we're good. We need to check the feed in about three hours. According to his schedule he'll be there by himself."

  Tabby made a right turn and headed away from the airport. "And if someone else is there?"

  "It shouldn't affect anyone on the other side of the desk, but we can take our time," I said. "We just trigger it when he's in there by himself for the added margin of safety. I'll tell you a rule that one of my teachers had told me. Indiscriminate killing only works to paralyze your enemy in the short term. Targeted eliminations though, they create long term effects."

  Tabby thought about it, and nodded in understanding. "I learned something similar in business. If you just throw more money across the whole company that you need to turn around, all you end up doing is strengthening the things you want to get rid of along with the things you want to keep. So you end up with just a more expensive crippled company. But if you can target your changes, you can create a long term effect that reforms the company."

  "I knew I hired the right person to run MJT," I said, leaning back and rubbing my eyes. "Now if you don't mind, I need to grab some sleep. Wake me up when we get back to the base?"

  Tabby nodded. "You got it. Sophie told me to tell you she's going to take care of some stuff as Sophie Warbird today, to keep the public image up and everything. She's actually scheduled to meet with the mayor this afternoon."

  "I remember," I mumbled, letting my eyes close. "If I have time, I'll crash the meeting. Marcus Smiley hasn't grabbed too many headlines in the past week or so."

  I think Tabby said something in reply, but I was already mostly asleep, and didn't answer. The next thing I was aware of, Tabby was shaking my shoulder. I came awake instantly, a side effect of my training. I can turn it on and turn it off pretty much at the drop of a hat. "Hey, we're back. This is the place you wanted, right?"

  I sat up and looked around, recognizing the small mobile home that I had about thirty minutes outside the city in the middle of some pretty crappy scrub land that developers hadn't touched yet. It was listed as a hunting cabin, and I usually stayed there about one week a year just to keep up appearances. Tabby had already parked the car under the tree around back, and I could see my SUV parked nearby. "Yeah, you found it again. Not bad, considering we came out here at midnight."

  "I thought for sure you'd have woken up when I hit that pothole about a mile back, but you just slept like a baby. I didn't think a hitman would sleep so deeply."

  I smirked and got out of the car. "You'd be surprised. But there was a simple reason I didn't wake up. I knew you were in control, and I trust you. Now, let's get back to Mount Zion and get ready for the day. You've got to go in and start handover of your accounts that aren't related to MJT, and I've got a meeting with the mayor to be late for."

  "Good deal. You want to drive or sleep?"

  "What time is it?"

  "Seven thirty. I got caught in some roadwork coming out of the city. Morning rush hour is starting, so it's going to be an hour at least before we get back to Zion."

  I yawned and ran my hand through my hair, and reached into my pocket to toss her the keys. "You drive. I can use another hour of sleep."

  * * *

  "Mr. Smiley, the Mayor is in a meeting right now," the flummoxed secretary said to me as I came in wearing what was perhaps the most obnoxious looking suit ever. A black suit jacket with red contrast stitching paired with a silk wine colored cravat and white shirt was bad enough, but the custom tailored red and black plaid suit pants put it over the top. I'd copied it from an Australian food critic and television personality, although I think I looked a lot better in it than he did.

  "But of course, lovely girl!" I said in my boisterous and overly loud Marcus Smiley voice. "But what you forget is that the person the mayor is meeting with is my lovely fiancee and assistant."

  "Well, her and and five other business leaders," the secretary countered, her eyes pointedly flickering towards the clock on the wall which declared I was thirty minutes late for the meeting. "His Honor...."

  "Wouldn't dare think of having an assembly of local financial movers and shakers without the largest private investor over the past twelve months in the city, would he?" I replied, giving the secretary a disarming grin that I love to call my Han Solo and a bit of a basketball double fake to get around her.

  Before she could say anything else I threw open the double doors to the conference room, causing two of the security guards near the podium to reach for their guns before they realized who I was.

  "My friends, so sorry for the tardiness," I said, while the secretary fluttered behind me ineffectually. The Mayor, I had to give him credit, played it pretty cool, waving the guards and his secretary off. Sophie, who I had texted ten minutes before and was aware of my arrival, hid a small smile behind a polite hand while I made my way around the large round table and sat down. "My my, what a table. I think I'll sit here between Queen Guinevere and Sir Galahad, if you all don't mind."

  "Thank you for joining us, Mr. Smiley," the Mayor replied. "And I have to love the subtlety of your suit for today. Are you going to a bagpipe concert after this?"

  "You know how it is, Mr. Mayor. Being understated is my strong suit," I said, breaking the tension and letting things continue. "But please, continue. What did I miss?"

  "The Mayor was discussing the recent news reports about increased tension on the streets and how it might affect community relations," Bill Franklin, the president of the largest bank in the city said. He was part of the old guard, and while I knew he personally was clean, I also knew that his bank served as one of the various filtering mediums for both the Confederation and Owen Lynch. Hell, I even had an account there under one of my alternate identities. "He's also concerned about recent economic shifts that might affect employment in the city. With an election coming up soon, he'd rather not have a poor economy being a distraction from the important social issues he wants to focus on."

  "I see," I said, looking around at the other people seated at the table. They represented the apathetic monied interests that frustrated me, but couldn't fight against yet. I needed leverage, and my war with the Confederation and Owen Lynch was the tool I needed. "Well, please go on."

  The Mayor continued, and I listened with half an ear as he droned on, while I scribbled a note on the legal pad that Sophie had out. Anything of importance?

  Not really. BTW, how was your nap?

  Useful. Will tell you about it later.

  OK.

  I listened as the rest of the meeting went on, the other so-called financial and business leaders blathering on, using big words to basically say they didn't want to do anything other than cover their own asses. Finally, when I couldn't stand it any longer, I spoke up. "Mr. Mayor, no offense, but this meeting seems like a giant waste of time."

  "I beg your pardon, Mr. Smiley?" Francine Berkowitz, who represented one of the city's unions sputtered. I had cut her off in the middle of a long winded speech where basically she was saying the unions were going to play ball with the status quo, which I knew meant with either Owen Lynch or the Confederation, depending on which union she was talking about. "How dare you..."

  "No Ms. Berkowitz, how dare you," I interjected, cutting her off for a second time. "Let's speak honestly for a moment. This city is on a razor's edge because the criminal elements that have controlled the streets for so long are at each other's throats. Just before coming here, I saw on the local news that a bomb just went off at an airport warehouse, killing one man at his desk. Instead of terrorism, the first idea out of the news reporter's mouth is that it was another strike on whoever is trying to control crime in this city, I didn't have a chance to listen to the theory before coming over here. The fact is that crime controls this town, and all of you have either ignored it, condoned it, or are actively working with it. As a result, while you may have lined your own pockets, the life blood of this city has been slowly choked off for far too long."

  I turned to the Mayor, looking hi
m in the eye. "Nobody here has the, excuse the term, the stones to do a damn thing about it. So here's what's going to happen. Me and Sophie here, we're leaving. But before we leave, we're making sure that in the next election, this city gets a Mayor that will actually stand up and try to make things better. I don't give a damn about the party, or what their stance is on Common Core education standards, or whether they like their pizza crust thick or thin. What I care about is if they are willing to do what is needed to break the stranglehold that the criminals in this city have on it."

  "That's a lofty goal for someone who's going to cut and run," Berkowitz retorted. "And just how are you planning on accomplishing this goal?"

  "The same way that I went from being a nobody in this city to being able to arrive a half hour late for a meeting and get more done in fifteen minutes than you have in years," I said simply, standing up. "By the way, Ms. Berkowitz, how is it that a simple community organizer and union member can afford a custom tailored suits with handmade Italian leather high heels for a business meeting? Mr. Mayor, we can talk later. Have a good day."

  The room rumbled while Sophie and I left, and I heard comments behind us. As Sophie and I were making our way through the marble halls of the foyer, I heard someone calling my name behind us. "Marcus! Marcus Smiley!"

  I turned and saw the Mayor walking with a purpose towards me, trying not to look like he was rushing after me, but not doing too good of a job. "Mr. Mayor. When I said we could talk later, I didn't think you would want to five minutes later."

  "You pissed off a lot of very powerful people in there, Marcus," the Mayor replied, as we turned and kept walking. Coming out into the sunlight of the mid afternoon, we walked across Civic Plaza, stopping by a hot dog cart to grab some food.

  "Four big dogs," I told the cart vendor, while Sophie pulled some cash out of her purse. Nodding to her, I turned my attention back to the Mayor. "I know I pissed them off, Mr. Mayor. But those people need to get pissed off. They've been sitting in ivory towers for far too long, meanwhile the very foundation of their towers are sinking in a flood of sewage and shit."

  "You have quite a way with words, Marcus," the Mayor replied. "By the way, outside just call me Joe. That Mayor stuff can be saved for the press and official duties. I hope one of those dogs is for me."

  "Of course, although don't think I'm trying to influence you with it," I said with a smirk. I handed one to Sophie and one to the Mayor, and all of us put our toppings on. The Mayor was a chili and ketchup man, not too bad in my opinion. You can tell a lot about someone by their taste in hotdog toppings. "So what did you want to talk about?"

  "Walk with me," the Mayor said, indicating towards the rest of the plaza. I nodded, and the three of us walked and ate at the same time, a rather impressive feat for Sophie who was wearing one of her sexy suits and carrying a purse and briefcase along with eating a hot dog. "You pissed off some people, but I agree with you overall."

  "Then why did you have the meeting with them?" I asked, not mentioning the fact that his very own deputy mayor was one of the biggest criminals in the city. The time wasn't right yet. "You look like a hypocrite doing so."

  "Most politicians have to be," the Mayor replied. "But I'd like it to be different."

  "I'm sure, but I'm afraid it might be too late for you," I said, looking around. I could see that while a few people were looking at us, there was nobody who might be eavesdropping. "You know that the biggest criminal in the city works for you. Or do you work for him?"

  The Mayor looked at me with a moment of panic on his face, and almost choked on the last bite of his hotdog. I, on the other hand, finished off my first dog and started on my second. "So you know too."

  "For quite a while," I said, stopping and casually tucking another bit of hotdog into my mouth. I don't know what the City Hall hot dog vendors used for their product, but it was the best damn dog in the city. "And I know something else, too."

  "What?" the Mayor said shakily, still recovering from the news that I knew.

  "Owen Lynch is going to be caught up in all this, very soon now. If you want any chance of surviving this politically, you need to distance yourself from him immediately. Tell me, who is honest and has the balls to take him down in the state level?"

  "At the state level? Nobody. Owen's got connections up there too, he's tied in with all the movers and shakers all the way to the governor's office. But if you're looking for a cop or prosecutor who's willing to take him down, Bennie Fernandez at the DOJ is your man. He's as clean as a whistle, and Owen hates his guts. If it wasn't that Bennie is kept busy chasing the small fish, Owen would have had him taken out long ago."

  "I know who Fernandez is," I said. "And you're sure that he can take Lynch down?"

  "If there's any evidence. But Owen didn't get to where he is without being slippery. Guy makes Teflon look like super glue."

  "I know. Okay, Joe. Thanks for the information. Trust what I said though, you need to dump Lynch now. As for me and Sophie, we're leaving town tonight. We won't be back."

  The Mayor nodded, and held out his hand. We shook, and the Mayor turned to leave. About halfway there, he turned back, a questioning look in his eyes. "Who are you, Marcus Smiley? Really?"

  I shrugged and gave him a grin. "It's not who I am underneath that counts, but what I do that is important."

  The Mayor looked at me quizzically for a moment before turning and going back towards City Hall. Sophie, who had watched the entire exchange silently, watched him go. "You think you can trust him?"

  "Yeah. He knows he's in league with dirt, but he's tried his best to be as clean as a politician can be in this city. Besides, he was legit on Bennie Fernandez. Sal Giordano hates that guy too. I'm only worried about one thing."

  Sophie watched the Mayor start up the steps to City Hall. "What's that?"

  "How anyone can consider themselves worthy of leading a city and not get such an obvious Batman reference. Come on, let's go home."

  Chapter 49

  Sophie

  The news reports were buzzing when Mark and I came home that evening. The bomb at the airport had gotten the attention of Homeland Security and the FBI since it happened on an airfield, and rumors were already swirling that there were things found in the warehouse that were connected to Owen Lynch. I sipped at my tea and looked at Mark. "Had you planned on that?"

  "No, but I'm not surprised. Actually it's a bit of a setback," I said. "While it hurts Lynch, the problem is it takes heat out of the Confederation. We're going to have to really make sure the next one goes smooth."

  Tabby came in, dressed to kill in a business suit that looked more appropriate on Sophie Warbird than Tabby Williams. Still, she filled it well. "Hey you two, you need to make your departure."

  "You're right," Mark said, sighing and finishing off his own tea. He was dressed in cargo pants and a sweatshirt, and I had a moment of deja vu as I thought of the night that Mark and I had first fled the city, the clothes were so similar. "You ready?"

  I nodded my head and got up. "I'm going to miss the purple hair," I said, running my fingers through it. As part of our plan to disappear, I was going to go back to my regular shade of brown while also getting a short haircut. "I kinda felt like a superhero with it."

  "You did give off the Psylocke vibe," Tabby said. "By the way, you like the suit?"

  "You can raid that part of my closet all you want," I said in way of reply. She did look good, and the red was perhaps even more striking than the purple I'd been rocking. "Just remember that you're not officially President of MJT until two weeks from now, so until then, just be normal Tabby."

  "I know, but I figured I'd send you two off with a good feeling that things are in good hands," she said, spinning on a heel. "I know you'll be gone only a few days, but still."

  Mark came over and wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly. "We'll miss you too. Watch the fort, and you'll have us back before you know it. Just lay low, okay?"

  "I will. I'm planning
on my last trip to the old office tomorrow, to do final handover of my accounts to Donna. She's a good girl, and this bumps her out of the intern pool. She's going to be one to keep your eye on, she's smart as all hell." Tabby released Mark's hug and came over to me, wrapping me up as well.

  I could feel her holding tight, and I clung back. "It's just a few days, sweetie. Then you get to boss me and Mark around, at least in public," I whispered in her ear, patting her back. "You're strong, and if things get scary, you know how to reach us. Just chill for three or four days, we'll be back."

  Tabby nodded, then kissed me on the cheek. "Do me a favor while you're gone," she said when Mark left to go out to the garage.

  "What?"

  Tabby looked over her shoulder towards the door to the garage, then turned back to me with that familiar Tabby grin. "Take at least one night and rock that man's world. You both deserve it."

  I couldn't help it, I laughed. Nodding, I kissed Tabby on the cheek and stepped back. "Damn right. What do you think we're going to do besides rest up during the next few days?"

  "And your tummy?" Tabby asked, looking down. "Everything okay down there?"

  "We'll check while we're gone. I'll tell you when we get back."

  I heard the SUV that we were using start up, and I patted Tabby on the shoulder again. "Okay. See you when we get back. We'll text you when we get there."

  Tabby followed me out to the garage, where Mark was already sitting behind the driver's seat. "See you in a few days," Mark said, hitting the garage door opener. "Don't eat all the ice cream."

  "I won't," Tabby said with a laugh. The door rattled up, and we pulled out. Down at the street level, we could see a few paparazzi, exactly as we'd planned. Marcus Smiley's leaving town wasn't going to be front page news, but it did establish that we were leaving.

  "Mr. Smiley!" one of the reporters, from the local ABC affiliate yelled.