by Matt Lincoln
Justice has never been strictly about the bad guys being behind bars, Header. Rosa met my gaze. We all know that sometimes, the right thing can’t always be proven in a court of law. Rosa was choosing her words deliberately and with great care. Maybe that’s where we go from here.
“Finding and correcting the things that slip through the cracks, you mean?” Doc smiled at the sound of that. He took a sip of his coffee and nodded in agreement. “Maybe that’s the best way that we and our skill set can help in situations like this. Finding the loose ends and… either tying them up or at the very least, keep them from fraying all over the place.”
I liked Doc’s metaphor. I looked over at Xavier, who was the last one to chime in with his opinion on this turn of events. He looked very solemn and thoughtful. Then he reached for one of the cookies off of Doc’s plate.
“I’m good with that,” he agreed. “Discovering the solutions to problems that others haven’t been able to… that’s not the worst way to earn a paycheck, I guess.”
“We all agree, then?” I nodded, not wanting to speak for them. “We try to find a better, more concrete way to prove that the Judge is working with the DEA and the drug dealers? That means that right now, we just sit on this other stuff and let her think that she’s still in control? Are we all okay with that aspect of it?”
I knew that I was going to have a challenging time, but I could wait. Patience wasn’t known to be my strongest virtue, but still, I could exercise restraint if I was properly motivated to. I thought back to LaShawn and how he was doing his part in his own way. Maybe that was the way for me to go about this as well…
My team and I all made one more visit to see Arik before we got that much-needed break. He was still being kept safely in seclusion at George’s place and receiving the kind of care that he needed. I was very pleased to find the young man up and taking short walks around to build up his strength again. When he saw us, he beamed and couldn't wait to talk to us.
We gathered in the aquarium room that we knew all too well and started to discuss everything that had happened. Arik’s memory was coming back in small spurts, and we were all trying to help him out with what we could. He recalled little bits of his time in the Azores, mostly stuff with Mia, and he remembered Chorley. When Chorley was brought up, a change came over Arik, and he tried to explain the things that had taken place at the airport. He sat on the couch with Rosa and Doc while Xavier sat at the table, and I stood by. I was kind of tired of sitting.
“Chorley found out that I’d grabbed a bunch of the stuff my mother hid in her safe and that I’d put them in with my clothes. He made me get a new bag at the airport and switch it all out. I didn’t know why, but I did it, and then he took my blue one and locked it up.” He was indeed having a hard time piecing his memories together, but we were patient with him. We had to be.
“Why did you take all of that stuff from your mother’s safe, Arik, and how did you get it?” Doc was doing all that he could to make this make sense for us going forward, but any extra information would help.
“Her combination is the day she passed the Bar Exam. All of her important passwords are like that.” I could tell that although he was used to that sort of explanation in regard to his mother, it was still a sore spot to his ego and relationship with her. I felt bad for him, but there wasn’t much that I could do about it now. “And I took it because I knew that it was important to her. She was always telling me not to get into her stuff. That it was all for work, no matter what.”
That was starting to fit with what we already knew about the phones. This confirmation was going to go a long way in proving the Judge’s corruption with the DEA and the Yabut drug ring. Arik was looking at each and everyone one of us and smiling. Then he settled on me and spoke.
“I remember that night, on the boat, you were trying to get to me,” he said earnestly. “You were trying to save me, right? From the… guys... the ones that took me?”
I nodded at Arik, also recalling that night back in the Azores. “We were all trying to get to you, Arik, to rescue you. I’m sorry that we couldn’t do it that night, and I'm sorry that it took so long to get you.” I returned the smile to let him know that I was sincere in my words and intentions.
“I know,” he nodded. “And I can never thank all of you enough for that. I thought, well, I just knew that after the airport that my time was up. And then when I saw you and Kippy, I knew that I was going to be okay, finally. I was so relieved because…” Arik stopped talking, and he got a very pained look on his face. He wiped away a tear with the back of his hand and shook his head to clear away whatever was bothering him.
“What is it, Arik? What was going to happen to you after the airport?” I hated to press him too hard, but maybe now we could find out what the Yabut's plans were after they’d gotten the items and intelligence in the duffle bag.
“I heard them when they were driving me to the airport the other day, and well, they were talking to my mother. I mean, I could hear her voice on their phone and she…” He was choking up with emotion, and I wanted to reach out to support him if I could. “She told them… when they threatened to kill me if she didn’t give them what they wanted, she said…” Arik started to cry, even though he was trying hard not to.
Rosa moved and sat right next to him on the couch. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders to comfort him. He took a couple of deep breaths and shakingly continued. “I heard my mother say that… if they did kill me, they’d be doing her a favor. All she wanted was the duffle bag back. And then… they hung up on her and started to talk in Spanish or whatever language they always spoke in. Like Mia, you know?” He looked at me for understanding.
“Portuguese?” I offered, feeling sick to my stomach at what I’d just heard from him. I looked to my team, and I could see all their faces in similar expressions of anger and empathy as mine was. This was worse than I’d ever thought it would turn out to be. And now, I just didn’t know what to do to help this kid.
He couldn’t, wouldn’t ever go back to his mother if this was true. We had no reason to disbelieve him when all of Judge Fu’s actions had yet to reveal any kind of motherly love or concern for her own son. It was still going to be his word against hers, and now we had even further reasons to never trust her again. If she was willing to sacrifice her own son, to keep her dirty secrets, then we had to do whatever we could to make those secrets known.
It was going to take some time to find the best way to do it, but with a team like mine, there was no question that we were going to get justice for Arik. Right now, his protection was paramount above all else. Once he was somewhere safe and sound, then it would be time to make the Judge pay, and she would pay. I could promise Arik that much.
Chapter 35
Eve
I woke up totally in the mood to kick butt and take names. I was determined to make today the first day in a whole new adventure for me, and nothing could keep me down. That was until I realized that I had misplaced my plane ticket back to Chicago. I’d also accidentally switched on the tiny, dry coffee pot in my hotel room the day before, and it had probably burned it out. That would definitely be reflected in my final credit card bill.
Still, I had every other cause for this to start out as a good day for me. After my shower, I packed up my toiletries and double-checked that I didn’t leave anything behind. I did a fancy, twisted ponytail thing to my hair and put on the most annoyingly tropical sundress that I could find. I had bought it last night from the boutique next door to this hotel.
My plan was to step off of my plane in Chicago and head straight to my old office to pack up my belongings. That was if they let me in the building. Not that they shouldn’t. The resignation letter I had sent in the day before had been vaguely polite and understandable without giving any impression that I was disgusted by my former employer. It also failed to mention that I was working on obtaining the evidence needed to prove that she was working with, and possibly masterminding, the Yabut drug
ring out of Miami. No, I’d made sure that the letter was boringly acceptable by any standard.
I kept looking for my plane ticket and trying to get everything packed away and ready to go. I checked in all the drawers, under all the chairs and tables, and even in between the duvets and sheets. I was always a little scatterbrained when I was getting ready to fly, but this was just ridiculous.
There was a knock on the door, and I rushed to answer it. There, I saw the handsome black-haired Mr. Header, who was to be my brunch date and my ride to the airport.
“You’re early,” I joked. I was actually running behind and still needed to finish packing. I hated to have people wait on me.
Jake kissed me and closed the door with his foot on the way in. It was kind of a cool move. “This wouldn’t have been a problem if you’d just stayed at my place last night.” He looked around as I hurried to throw everything into the open suitcase on my bed. I found the plane ticket under the fried coffee maker, which was most likely how it got turned on in the first place. At least I found the ticket.
“Yeah, but if I had stayed with you last night, we’d be having different challenges this morning.” I’d gotten this hotel room simply because I needed some time to think about my future. Jake had offered to let me stay with him, but I just didn’t feel right. Luckily, he understood. I grinned at him as I threw the last of my clothes and junk into the luggage and tried to zip it all shut. I grabbed my wallet to pull out a tip for housekeeping and left it by the coffee maker.
“Good challenges. Fun challenges,” Jake reminded me as he went for my cases on the bed. “Maybe next time you come to Miami, just forget the hotel and stay with me. I still have a lot to show you in this city. We never did make it to the Coral Castle.” I knew what he was hinting at, and I was glad to at least get the invitation to come back to Miami.
“I know!” Missing the Coral Castle figuratively broke my heart. “I promise to come back for a visit as soon as I settle everything at the office, find a new job, and figure out where to go from here.” That sounded more complicated and intimidating than I had intended it to. It also made me super worried, now that I’d said it out loud.
“I’m not even going to respond to that last one.” Jake met me at the door as I took a last look around, just in case I was missing something. “Any preference for a late breakfast, early lunch kind of meal? Or did you want to get to the airport and grab something there?” He headed out the door, and I followed him, thinking it over.
“It’s up to you since you know so much about everything around here. I leave the choice in your capable hands, Mr. Header.” I laced my arm through his and leaned my head on his shoulder as we walked. “I hope this all works out. Not just my work stuff, but your team’s new direction and location. How long do you think you’ll be in Puerto Rico?”
When he’d told me about it, I got a bit worried that they were all heading off to lie low under things blew over. Then he explained his decision to stay in Miami and try to work through the Yabut drug thing. He only needed to go to Puerto Rico to settle some things first. I got the impression that he and his team weren’t giving up on exposing Judge Fu and the DEA.
“Not too long. There're some things I have to settle up there, some transfers, making sure that I have the right people looking after my affairs, that sort of thing.” He looked a little unsure, saying that aloud. But he quickly recovered and kissed me on the forehead as we walked to his car.
“Sounds like we’ll both have plenty to keep us busy,” I realized. “And your team? Are they all moving to the Sunshine State as well?” We loaded my bags into the back seat and then climbed into his Mercedes. Jake started the engine and pulled out of the hotel parking lot.
“There were some undecided votes cast last time I heard. Xavier’s got the yacht that lets him go anywhere, and just between you and me, I heard that he and a certain nurse are keeping in close contact once again.” Jake was grinning as he said this, and I knew there was probably more to the story than he was willing to let on.
I let the details slide as something else occurred to me. “I thought Mia had run off to work with Kippy since her work visa was being blocked by a certain Judge that we all know? Did something new happen?” That was one more thing I had to work on once I got back home. I needed to figure out how Judge Fu had the sway to nullify one singular visa request without a valid reason.
“Not as far as I know,” he informed me. “I just know he’s happier talking to Mia. Also, this time, I’m keeping my nose out of his business.” Jake seemed happier about that, as well. “Now, as for Rosa, she’s asked for some time off but has said that she’ll be looking for a place in Miami in the coming months. Only on a rental basis, though. She’s still very much in love with the island way of life.”
“And Doc? He’s been lying low since the airport.” Not that I knew the guy all that well, but even I could see that he hadn’t been in the picture much in the last few days, or since Arik had been saved. Maybe Jake’s team were all needing a break from what they’d just been through. I had heard a particular story about him and where he was off to, but I hesitated to bring it up to Jake with so much else going on. I’d like for him to confirm or deny it without me prodding information out of him.
“Doc is… going through something,” he said cagily. “Something kind of personal, and I promised that I wouldn’t say anything about it to anyone else. He’s also going to be taking some time away, and he’s asked for me to look into some property for him.” Jake tried to play it off. “Of course, I was looking for a full-on bachelor pad with a Jacuzzi and strobe lights running through the walls, but then I thought, that’s maybe not so much his style. So, I’ll keep looking.”
“That gives you something to do, see? It’s all going to work out,” I teased. Then I brought up the harder points of the previous days. “Has there been any word about Arik? I mean, other than George’s medical updates?” That guy was good at the updates, that was for sure.
“Arik’s doing okay, actually. I called in a friend of mine to talk to him, and LaShawn’s really good at helping out people who have nowhere to go. I think that he’ll be able to help Arik with some of his demons, anyhow.” There was a relieved tone there, and it would have been easy to miss it if I didn’t know what to listen for when Jake spoke about things like this. “As it turns out, Arik’s birthday is in three months, and I am planning one helluva party for him. You’re invited, naturally.”
I couldn’t help but lean over and kiss him on the cheek. “That is very, very great.” I knew that sounded silly, but I didn’t care. At eighteen years of age, Arik could step away from his mother’s control if he wanted to, and he could choose for himself what to do and how to do it. I just hoped that he would be influenced by better people in the coming years. I wanted to have some hand in seeing that happen.
We had reached the airport by this time, and so the next hour was busy with unloading, doing the pre-checks, the walkthroughs, the scans, and all that other stuff. However, we still made time to share one last bite to eat together.
“What about the Yabut?” I asked as I dug into my meal. “I saw a tiny news blurb about a bunch of drug busts at the docks the other morning, but then it all got shut down. What was up with that?” I was busy eating my ropa vieja with a very flimsy spork and trying not to dribble the excess strands of beef down my chin.
“I tried looking into it and got nowhere,” he sighed. “That’s probably going to be the norm for a while now. But I plan on keeping an eye on things. And I promise to let you know if something of a mutual interest comes up.” Jake was watching me eat, which made it even harder not to make a mess.
“Well, when you get into trouble, at least you know an attorney, right?” I offered him some of my spiced tostones as a bribe. I was so ordering a crate of these when I got home. I was discovering a whole new appreciation for the banana and plantain family.
Before I knew it, Jake and I were standing at my departure gate, or at least,
as close to it as he could get without buying a ticket for himself. I hugged him for a good, long time, and then I kissed him for a lot longer. I slipped him my new phone number, going old school on a piece of paper, complete with a little heart after my name. Somehow, I’d lost my old cell with all of my information and tracking capabilities still on it. I just didn’t know how that could have happened.
Chapter 36
Jake
I cruised Wraith back into my private harbor on my property and took a moment to appreciate that there was no other feeling in the world quite like coming home. Puerto Rico was still the beautiful paradise that it always had been and always would be. The lush vegetation never got old to my eyes, and the sounds and smells of the island brought to mind the kind of serenity I usually longed for.
The dock entrance was a little messy and overgrown, as I hadn’t been around to maintain it for a few weeks now. It was nothing that a few solid hours of work couldn’t fix. After pulling into the hidden entrance beneath the cliff, I exited Wraith, tied her down securely, and took a minute to appreciate the fresh air. One of my neighbors was barbequing a pig upwind of my location, and my stomach ached, just smelling it. Then my mouth began to water. I’d have to order in something for tonight.
The air carried the usual breeze of damp earth, fish, and wood smoke right to me. I had missed this. However, I needed to be headed elsewhere for a while. I had plenty of unfinished affairs to sort out.
I closed the dock door and got Wraith protected for the night. The walk up to the house was a slow one, as I wanted to enjoy the feel of stretching my legs and of being back. I came in through the back porch and door, looking over everything with a cautious eye to see if anything was amiss. Here too, the leaves and debris scattering the area needed consideration. I knew what I’d be doing first thing tomorrow morning.
