by Bob Moats
Potter was silent, and then said his client would like to make a deal. Lynn said she was listening. In exchange for immunity, Nick would sign a statement naming everyone involved in the drug running operation that he knew about.
“Gee, Nick, I got statements from Aaron, Larry, Frank, Sue, and from the man himself, Kris Wallace AKA Fritz, although we are still looking for him. What could you possibly tell us they haven’t already?” She smiled.
Nick looked stunned, whispered something to his lawyer, and then Potter said, “We can give you the location of Wallace.”
“Give, and I’ll see what kind of deal we can make,” Lynn said.
Potter said, “I’ll take you at your word, officer.” He whispered in Nick’s ear, and Nick whispered back. “Wallace is in Nick’s home. A secret panic room off the bedroom is where he’s been holing up.”
Lynn said that we should all take a ride to Nick’s home and take a look. Lynn got up, and called for the officers standing outside the door to escort Nick and his attorney to a car and follow us to Nick’s home. She gathered us and said good-bye to Kline who was going to take Sue back to Kingman after she signed the statement. We all said, so long. Lynn called for more backup, and we headed out.
I think the gate guard was getting used to us by that time. He had the gate open as soon as he saw us pull down the street. Lynn actually waved to him as we passed. We came up to the house with four cars, pulled in and Lynn escorted Nick to the door. He opened it, and we all went in. We followed Nick up the stairs and into his bedroom. He said the panic room was off to the right of the bed and went to a panel in the wall that he slid open. Lynn had her men ready with guns drawn as Nick pulled a lever and the wall started to slide open.
Lynn yelled, “Wallace, if you’re in there, we have more gun power out here than you do, so come out peacefully!”
We heard nothing, waited about a minute, and two officers in protective vests, assault rifles at the ready, ran to the door and dove in, coming up ready to fire, but found nothing. They yelled “Clear,” and came back out.
Nick bellowed, “Well, he was in there!”
Lynn said, “Nice try Nick. We’ll have to re-evaluate my offer.”
The officers all went back out to their cars and waited for further orders. Lynn stood with Nick and his lawyer in the kitchen making deals while Deacon and I wandered outside by the pool.
“Well, this is getting annoying,” I said. “We have one more day here in Vegas, and I’d hate to leave without catching Wallace.”
“I have something to say, Jim.” He walked towards the pool and turned to talk. “I may be staying here in Vegas.” I was a bit surprised by his statement. He continued, “I’ve really gotten attached to Lynn, and my sister’s here, so it makes sense for me to stay. I’ll miss you guys, but you’ll probably find another big dumb guy like me to pick on.” He choked a little then caught himself. “I put a lot of thought into it for the last couple days, and even discussed it with Lynn. She could get me on the force out here so I’d have a job. She wants me to move in with her, and I’m not objecting. I hope you guys understand.”
“Hey, King Kong, I’d be disappointed if you didn’t hook up with Lynn. She’s a hell of a gal.” I was trying not to tear up, so I turned away and looked down the barrel of an Uzi being held by Wallace. He was standing in the poolside bathroom and held his finger to his lips indicating to us to shut up. He came out, pointed to the double doors to the old office, and said quietly that we should go in. We did, and he guided us to the kitchen where Lynn, Nick and Potter were shocked to see us with him.
“Hey, Nick, giving away my hideout to save your own skin? Nice fucking move, asshole.” He motioned us all to the other side of the kitchen island and said, “I was taking a siesta by the pool when I heard you idiots roll in. I hid down here until the time was good for me to make my move. Richards, you just don’t want to die, do you?” He laughed. “I give you a ten for getting out of the desert alive. I really should have shot you through the head. I’ll rectify that, but first I need a car. Nick, give me the keys to your Porsche. I want to escape in style.” Nick fished out his keys and tossed them to Wallace. Wallace grabbed for the keys just as Nick grabbed Lynn’s gun out of its holster.
He brought it up and fired a couple times as Wallace ducked and went low out the door behind him, firing a couple of volleys of bullets from the Uzi. We scattered and ducked, and then we heard a car start up. We ran out the side door in time to see Wallace just about mow down the four cops, all stunned by the gun shots and jumping out of the way of the Porsche.
Lynn grabbed her gun back from Nick, and we ran to her car to pursue Wallace. We got to the guard gate and saw that Wallace didn’t wait for him to open it, just rammed it. He turned on Green Valley Parkway and was heading for the freeway. We were in hot pursuit, and Lynn called in for more cars to join the chase. The two cars that were at Nick’s were already following close behind. We eventually got to the freeway. Wallace jumped on U.S. 93 and headed north towards I-95.
The Porsche was fast, but we kept up. He screamed up I-95 doing close to a hundred, heading out towards the desert where he’d dumped me. I was sitting in the back seat of Lynn’s car, looking behind us to see if we still had backup, when I saw a black car jetting up behind us with flashers hidden in the grill, signaling for us to move out of its way. I saw the high-speed Dodge Charger police interceptor blast past us and get up behind the Porsche. There was a blast of gunfire between the cars, then Wallace was weaving, trying to block the Charger from moving forward.
They met two semi-trucks running side by side on the two lane highway. Wallace was trying to figure how to get around them without going onto the gravel shoulder. The charger was pushing him. Wallace took a chance and went around to the right of the semi in the right lane, hitting the gravel at 120 miles per hour. He lost control, skidded in the sand and rocks and jetted out to the desert, skidding and spinning. He hit rocks, and the car flipped over three times, before it came to rest upside down.
The Charger hit the brakes and eased off the road, followed by us. All four cars stopped just off the shoulder, not wanting to get bogged down in the sand. We exited the cars and carefully walked over to the Porsche. I could see the gas line must have been torn by the rocks. It was leaking over the side. Wallace was hanging from his seat belt, released it, and fell to the ground. He was crawling out from the car when I saw him bring his gun up, pointing it toward us. The gas was leaking all around him, so firing a gun wasn’t the smartest thing to do, but he did it. The blast from the gun barrel wasn’t a tenth as loud as the gasoline igniting into a ball of hot flame, toasting both the Porsche and Wallace. We all fell back from the explosion and just sat watching the raging inferno.
An hour later firefighters were still quelling the blaze. They said there wasn’t much of Wallace left to find in the molten and twisted metal. Lynn remembered she had left Nick unattended at his home and called for a car to go pick him up.
We got back to the station, and Lynn went in to file her reports. She said the case was pretty much closed with the capture of all concerned and Wallace’s demise. She thanked me for everything I went through the last week and said she’d get a nice citation for me to hang on my P.I. wall along with the bullet. I was still feeling a bit sore from the last few days and said I was going to see Penny.
I told Deacon and Lynn to come by the suite later, and we’d toast to Deacon and Lynn’s moving in together. Before I left, Lynn got a call that they couldn’t find Nick at his house. They found the lawyer unconscious in the kitchen, but no Nick. That pissed off Lynn. I said it was her job now. I had solved my case. I smiled and left.
I got to the convention center and in to see Penny, Buck and Maria. We took a break and went down to the food court so I could tell them about my day. They were all happy that it was almost over. Nick needed to be found, but that was a minor detail. We returned to the booth, and I went out back to call Jamie to give her some closure. I talked to he
r for about a half hour, telling her what happened, and she thanked me.
I was just coming back around when Buck stopped me and said I over paid him to watch Penny. I said he earned every dollar of it, especially for saving Penny from the kidnappers. I told him about Deacon’s decision to stay, and he got all upset by it. He wondered how we would solve cases without Deacon now. I smiled and said we’d manage.
Maria had to work so we dropped her off at the Tropicana and I took Penny and Buck back to our suite. We were just settling in when the phone rang. Lynn and Deacon said they were on their way. I called room service and ordered our beverages, snacks and a bottle of champagne. Deacon and Lynn got there just about the time the drinks made it. They were fast in that place.
We all sat around enjoying each other’s company the rest of the night, and Deacon and I went to pick up Maria when she finished her show. Around 12:30 there was a knock at the door. It was the Flamingo stage crew followed by Wally and Jamie. We partied until about 5 a.m., and then everyone filed out. I asked if Penny could give me a back massage. She said she would do better than that, and she did.
*
Chapter Eighteen
We got up early and packed our bags, leaving the things out that we would need for the day. Our plane was to pick us up the next morning, and we wanted to be ready. I sat on the couch next to Penny who was daydreaming, I guessed. She kissed my cheek and said we’d have to come back for a real vacation, not a working one. I agreed. Last night Deacon had told us he would be going back with us to finish up details in Michigan, then he would pack a truck with his belongings and return to Vegas. Lynn asked if she could buy a seat on our plane back to Michigan, and Penny said her money wasn’t accepted, it was a free ride. Lynn was taking a long-delayed vacation from Metro and wanted to come back with Deacon to help him move. Penny said that would give us a chance to show her around the boring town we lived in.
Penny and I went to breakfast, the last we’d have there, then out to the car for our last ride to the convention center. Buck and Maria were spending their last day together exploring Vegas once they got out of the house. Penny got her booth organized, and her producer bounced up and said they were real close to signing up with the CW network. He was so happy, he glowed. Penny sat on my lap on the chair and whispered in my ear, “I love you.” I kissed her and returned the words.
The convention doors opened, and Penny was busy again greeting people. I sat there and suddenly realized in the last week, I hadn’t seen the convention. I asked Penny if she could do without me for a bit as I wanted to explore. She said to go get lost, but be sure to come back. I wandered around looking at all the shows and technology and could see why Deacon enjoyed exploring. About an hour later, just after noon, I managed to go around the whole thing and back to my starting point, Penny’s booth. Deacon and Lynn were there.
“Well, what brings Las Vegas’s finest police out for a visit?” I asked.
Lynn handed me a large manila envelope. I opened it and found a very nice looking certificate of appreciation from LVMPD for my help in busting up a drug and murder ring. I was thrilled. I thanked her and put the envelope with Penny’s personal things. Penny took a break, and the four of us went to the food court and had lunch. We talked about things in general, and then Lynn said they hadn’t found Nick yet. I didn’t really care. I knew he’d screw up and get caught eventually. After we got back to the booth, Deacon and Lynn said they were going to pack for the flight out tomorrow and would see us later, hoped we’d have a nice dinner.
I said the convention ended at 4 p.m. today, its last day. Penny and I would be back to our suite by 5 p.m. and we’d call them. They left, and Penny went back to her duties while I went back to my chair.
Just before 4 .p.m. we had all Penny’s stuff packed up and said our good-byes to her producer. He said he’d see us back in Michigan. He had business meetings with the network for two more days in L.A. and would take a commercial flight back. We left the center for the last time and drove back to the MGM Grand, going the long way around the strip for another look. We got to the room, and I called for reservations at the restaurant in the MGM Grand. I phoned Deacon and told him I had a table held at 7 p.m. He said they’d be there.
Penny and I had about two hours to kill so we made use of the whirlpool again. We toweled off and threw on the hotel robes that we were going to take with us. Penny went into the bedroom just as there was a knock at the door. I looked at my watch and saw it was just after 6 p.m., too early for anyone to arrive, and I didn’t order anything from room service. I looked out the peephole and saw the back of someone’s head. I opened the door and the person turned to me. It was Nick.
He grinned at me and brought up the gun he had hidden under his coat. I was beginning to think that I was doomed to have guns stuck in my face at least once a day. I backed into the room. He came in and closed the door.
“Richards, you annoyed me back when you worked for me, and then I find you were the big cause of my problems now. Just had to stick your nose in it and mess up my life, didn’t you?” he snarled. “I had such a good thing going. Now I’m hiding out from the cops. Thanks.”
“Nick, I wouldn’t have bothered with all this if Wallace hadn’t murdered one too many showgirls. Blame him, asshole,” I said. Probably shouldn’t call a man with a gun an asshole, I thought.
“Doesn’t matter. Everyone is gone now, and you are the only person I can get my revenge on, so say ‘good night Gracie’.” He sneered, smiling at the old joke.
He brought the gun up, pointing to my head. I thought about ducking, but before I could put the thought into action, I heard gunfire and saw Nick spin and collapse to the ground. I looked over and saw Penny standing at the bedroom door with my Glock in hand. I grabbed Nick’s gun as he lay there, still moving and howling in pain from the wound in his side. Penny ran to me and held on, handing me my gun.
“Is this going to stop now?” she demanded.
“I do believe so, my little protector,” I said and kissed her. Then I took out my phone and called Lynn. She came on the line. I said I had a present for her and told her what happened. She said Penny and I just couldn’t stay out of trouble, and she would have officers and EMS there shortly. I hung up, then Penny and I sat on the couch. I held my gun on Nick and listened with no sympathy as he bitched about the pain. I said it was too bad Penny didn’t shoot him in the head. He shut up then.
A half hour later, Nick was carried out by EMS. Officer Warren said he hoped we had a nice flight back to Michigan and Vegas would be a much safer place now. I thought about what he meant as he grinned and left.
Lynn and Deacon came flying into the room just as I was going to close the door. Lynn looked at us, still in our robes, and said, “Are you two going to a fancy restaurant dressed like that?”
We got to our table and had a real nice dinner then we went out to walk the streets of the strip, all the way up to the Mirage again. We watched the volcano erupt and then went to watch the water dance at the Bellagio. We walked through the New York, New York hotel, and I took everyone to show them the magic shop I first worked at.
There was no one working there that I knew, so we went down to the casino. I gave Penny a quarter and she put it in a slot machine and pulled the handle. It hit and gave her five quarters back. I said to pocket the winnings, and we went back out to the street. We walked down to the Luxor. I looked up to the beam of light emitting from the point of the pyramid and told everyone that I had sat up there this last week.
They all looked at me, wondering what I was talking about. I hadn’t told them about my out of body experience since I believed it was just a dream. We went back up to the MGM Grand, and they said they were going back to Lynn’s to get ready for the flight tomorrow. I said I knew what they were really going to do. They had Lynn’s car brought up at valet and drove off. Penny and I went back to the suite and celebrated our last night in Las Vegas.
The next morning we had our baggage all loaded i
n the SUV and drove over to Maria’s where we were going to meet everyone. Buck was saying his good-byes to Maria, and then Maria turned to Lynn and said she was glad that Lynn made Deacon happy and welcomed her to the family. Deacon smiled at me and put their bags in the car along with Buck’s. Deacon told Maria that they would be back in a week or so and would see her then.
I told Maria that she should stay away from energy drinks. She laughed. We drove down the strip one last time and got over to Russell Road and into McCarran, then over to the car rental. They took away our luggage, and we got the golf cart ride back to the commercial hangers. Our pilot and flight attendant were waiting. They greeted us and got us all seated and comfortable.
The plane taxied out to the runway as I watched the beautiful towers of the strip going by my window. We accelerated down the runway and up into the sky. I looked over to Deacon to see if he was all right. He was holding Lynn’s hand and smiling. I guess he didn’t need to think of me and cats anymore.
