The Chase

by Jesse J. Thoma

  “Do you ever get used to it?” Isabelle asked, trying to see the ugly parts of Holt’s job in a slightly more noble light. She supposed someone had to do Holt’s job, as long as there were people who broke the law and declined their invitation to court. If she were the victim of a crime, and the offender skipped out on justice, she would want someone as capable and upstanding as Holt responsible for bringing them in. She couldn’t imagine anyone else protecting her all this time. Maybe everyone else deserved the same.

  “Nope,” Holt said. “I’ve been at this for ten years, and it’s still weird to me. Still scares me sometimes. The saving grace is that in ten years, I’ve only tried to bait one other person into coming after me. It’s not part of my day-to-day work. Mostly, we’re staring at computer screens, combing through police reports, and making phone calls. That’s true of me even more than the others. I have to run the business side of things as well. My ass is going to start looking like my office chair pretty soon.”

  “Your ass looks pretty good from where I’m sitting.”

  “You could see it without my jeans or boxers. Just say the word.”

  “The word is still no, baby. After Decker’s in jail, we’ll stay in bed naked for days. Just catch him first.”

  “You do know how to provide motivation.”

  *

  Decker waited anxiously in the back booth of the all-night slots casino where he had asked the mystery mechanic to meet him. It was three thirty in the morning, and he hadn’t slept in over twenty-four hours. Thoughts of the pictures of Holt Lasher with Diamond, looking friendly and conspiratorial, were consuming him.

  He berated himself again for being stupid enough to trust one of the most important parts of his scam to a barely sober drug addict. Diamond was a friend of Gary’s, and he had all the right connections on the street that they needed to move the Done. If Diamond was in bed with Holt, there was no telling who he could trust. Gary was the wild card. They were the only three who knew the scope of the Done operation. Holt answering Gary’s phone had him spooked. He hoped meeting Holt’s turncoat buddy would ease his mind. Decker didn’t deal well when things didn’t go his way.

  “You liked my pictures I take it,” Jose said, sliding into the booth across from Decker.

  “No, I didn’t like them, you stupid fuck, but you knew I wouldn’t. What do you want from me?”

  “You okay, man? You look a little strung out. I’m not into doing business with a junkie. Too hard to trust.”

  “I’m clean,” Decker said, not hiding the hostility in his voice. “What do you want?”

  “I figured we could help each other,” Jose said. “I’ve got a problem with Holt, and you’ve got a bigger problem with her. I want my fair shake on my business dealings, and you, well, you’re screwed if she goes to the cops.”

  “Fuck the cops,” Decker said, “I’ve got myself well protected.”

  “Not against someone like Holt. You do know who her parents are, right? Shit, the whole city would throw her a parade even if she arrested every member of the Red Sox. You think your little pissant payoffs are going to be enough to keep you out of the pokey? Please.”

  Decker hadn’t considered how Holt’s clout in the state matched up to his. He was a businessman and used to getting his way based on his reputation and presence. This mechanic was right, though. He was no match for Holt Lasher.

  “What does she have on me?”

  “You saw the pictures. How much does your boy Diamond know about your state funding and Done redistribution?” Jose asked. “I can’t get too close during her meetings, but they’ve been poring over a spreadsheet with all sorts of weird shit on it for weeks. Three days ago, her whole team was toasting and drinking champagne, saying stuff about finally breaking the code. They don’t pay attention to me because I’m just a lowly mechanic, you know?”

  “That stupid fuck Gary,” Decker said. “I told him his dumb code wasn’t a security system. My whole operation is on those spreadsheets.” Decker was furious, panicking, and talking to himself. He had almost forgotten he was entertaining a visitor.

  “What about Gary?”

  “What do you mean what about Gary?” Decker asked.

  “Can you trust him? I know Holt. That’s her next stop on the way to the top. You took a shot at her girlfriend. Bad move, partner. She’s coming for you, and she’s gonna go through him.”

  “I didn’t take a shot at that accountant. That was Gary’s idea. He sent the wrong file to her for my taxes and I told him to fix it. That was his solution. None of this would be happening right now if he hadn’t overreacted. Fuck. What do we do?” Decker knew he shouldn’t be telling all this to a stranger, but he was tired and afraid.

  “I just want my share of my business. Can you get some guys to rough her up a little? Maybe force her to sell you the mechanic’s shop?”

  “She’s a golden gloves boxing champion, you idiot. My roughing her up will end with me getting my ass kicked.”

  “You’ve got guys, right? Send them. Make it an ambush.”

  “No way. I’m not getting more people involved. She’s like a damn octopus, tentacles everywhere. Besides, roughing her up isn’t going to keep her from talking. It’s not good to kick a dragon. How do you know all this stuff about my business?”

  “My shop’s right next to Holt’s office. We share a bathroom. I see shit on my way to the can. She trusts everyone she works with, including me, so she usually doesn’t cover up what she’s working on. Besides, you pissed her off so the entire team is working on catching your ass. Now, you’re the boss here. You tell me what we should do,” Jose said, leaning in, waiting for Decker’s response.

  Decker thought for a while and ran option after option over in his head. He wanted to have the solution be as simple as Jose had implied. Just teach her a lesson. But he knew about Holt Lasher. He knew her past. The only way he was going to avoid everything she knew being made public was to silence her for good. As he mulled over the thought, his excitement grew. He had never killed anyone before. Holt Lasher seemed like a worthy victim for his first time. He debated whether he should trust this stranger after such a short time, but he was in no position to bargain. He would protect himself, and hopefully take out Holt while making a new friend. Maybe the Done business was over, but there was good money in cars too.

  “We kill her,” Decker said. “Get some papers drawn up saying in the event of her death, you get the shop. Don’t go to a cut-rate forger either. Make it legit.”

  “Who you gonna get to do the hit?” Jose asked.

  “No one. We do this ourselves. Nice and clean. No loose ends. You good?” Decker asked.

  “Shit, man.” Jose looked hesitant. “This the only way?”

  “You said I’m the boss, so trust me. I’m a hell of a lot better at being an asshole than you are. This is the only way.” All Decker needed to do was convince this guy to help him carry out the murder. If this guy even looked at him funny, Decker planned on killing him too and framing him for the job. That way he was home free. Cut off the head of the snake and the rest dies too. Holt’s team would never bother him again.

  “I don’t know,” Jose said.

  Decker pulled a pistol out of his pocket and laid it on the table. “You were the one who stuck your nose in my business.” Jose looked panicked, exactly the reaction Decker wanted.

  “Okay. I’m in.”

  *

  Holt sighed, ran her fingers through her hair, and looked around her loft. She felt helpless. She didn’t like leaving the most important details of her plan to get Decker Pence up to Jose, but she didn’t have much choice. If she really thought about it, she didn’t like much of this plan at all, but it didn’t seem like she had many options.

  She was a woman of action, and turning over the silly spreadsheet to the police, telling them of her suspicions, and waiting for months, only to see the case thrown out of court was more than she could stomach. She was in the shitty position of knowing what D
ecker was up to but not being able to nail him for it. Unfortunately, Isabelle also knew what Decker was doing, and her being in danger was enough to push Holt to a risky plan she normally wouldn’t even consider.

  Sometimes, her life was crazier than a comic book plot. Although she couldn’t remember Batman sitting in his living room, waiting for his friend/untrained accomplice to return from carrying out the most important part of the grand plan. Isabelle was asleep in the other room, and Holt hadn’t turned on the living room lights so as not to wake her. She was restless and moody, and sitting in the dark seemed appropriate.

  Two quick knocks, followed by Jose peeking his head in her front door, finally ended the interminable wait.

  “Moose cleared you?” Holt asked from the couch.

  “I would never put you in that kind of shit,” Jose said, sounding offended. “We drove around a while. No tail. That’s what took so long. The meeting was fucking quick.”

  Holt didn’t say anything. She waited while Jose picked his way through the dark and sat on the couch next to her. She could tell he wanted to turn on a light, but she didn’t, so they sat in the dark.

  “He went for it,” Jose said.

  “Already?” Holt was surprised. This was only the first meeting. It was only supposed to set up Jose and Decker as a team. Jose was trying to build trust and subtly suggest options.

  “Yeah, almost immediately. We went from ‘hey, maybe you can send a guy over to rough her up a little’ to ‘we kill her’ in about five minutes. This dude is scary, Holt. You sure you know what you’re doing?”

  “Oh sure,” Holt said, too strung out emotionally to hide her sarcasm. Jose would have been able to call her bullshit anyway, so she was saving them both time. “I have a good plan for tricking a psychopath into trying to kill me without him actually succeeding.”

  “Does Isabelle know this has you wound so tight?”

  Holt sighed. “I don’t know. I’ve been trying to keep some of the stress from her, but she’s pretty good at seeing right through me. She’s freaked out enough without me dropping my shit on her too. She asked me if I was sure this was going to work. I really have no fucking idea.”

  “Did you tell her that?”

  “Hell no. I didn’t want to make her more nervous.”

  “I’ve got three things to tell you, and then I’m going out to find a fruity drink and a cute boy to flirt with. I can’t stand all this anxiety.”

  “Will you just ask Moose out already?” Holt said, knowing Jose had been in love with him since high school.

  “One,” Jose said pointedly, making his view of Holt’s suggestion clear, “you need to tell Isabelle how you’re feeling. That woman is the best thing that ever happened to you, and you won’t keep her by treating her like a porcelain doll. If you get yourself killed and she doesn’t know that’s a possibility, she’s gonna reincarnate your ass so she can give you a piece of her mind. And then she’s gonna do you in.”

  “Jose―”

  “Shut up, Holt. I’m only on point number one.”

  With anyone else, Holt would have been angry. But she and Jose were long past that.

  “Two, Decker agreed way too easily. Either he’s a world class creepy dude, or he’s got other plans. I don’t know if they involve me ending up dead next to you, or he’s going to string me along and then run his own game, but he came up with this plan too quick. So point number three is, call Bogota. You need a new tux.”

  “I’m not getting a new tux. The one I have is fine. You think that won’t scare Isabelle?”

  “I don’t give a shit, Holt. She’s going to freak out no matter what you do, but a new tux might help a little bit. And I’m not above getting your whole team to nag you.”

  “Are you trying to blackmail me?” Holt asked, her voice rising a little as she tried to control her temper. Jose could get away with a lot, but he was pushing it.

  “Why is Jose blackmailing you, baby, and why are you both sitting in the dark yelling at each other?” Isabelle asked, appearing from behind the partition separating the bedroom from the rest of the loft.

  “It’s nothing, sweetheart,” Holt said, jumping up to walk Isabelle back to bed. She didn’t disagree with Jose that Isabelle should know about the plan, the danger, and their progress, but it was the middle of the night.

  Isabelle and Jose however, had other plans.

  “I’m up now and I don’t believe it’s nothing,” Isabelle said, turning on a light and flopping sleepily on the couch between Jose and where Holt had been sitting. “Jose, what’s going on?”

  “Jose,” Holt halfheartedly warned him. She knew he would ignore her and tell Isabelle everything.

  “Decker Pence is a bad scary dude,” Jose said, waving his hands dramatically, “and he agreed to our plan in about thirty seconds. I don’t trust him and I was trying to suggest that your beautiful lady over there take every precaution to keep her fine form bullet free.”

  “He wants me to wear a bulletproof tuxedo to the gala,” Holt said. “Occasionally, I wear bulletproof clothing if the situation is really dicey. In this case, I would prefer not to because there is some limitation on movement and I would really rather be fully mobile.”

  “You make it sound like you’re going to be in an armored tank. Your vital organs will be protected. It’s not exactly a straightjacket.”

  “You can really order a bulletproof tuxedo?” Isabelle asked.

  “From a designer in Columbia. Rumor has it he suited President Obama for his inauguration,” Jose said. “Every employee and customer has to be shot while wearing one of his designs so they trust what they are wearing or selling. Totally freaking awesome, and crazy.”

  Holt didn’t need to hear Isabelle’s measured, highly organized, logical plea. She just needed to see the fear in Isabelle’s eyes, and know that it mirrored her own internal anxiety. Jose was trying to protect her. If it gave both of them a measure of security, she would go shopping.

  “Fine,” Holt said. “Call Bogota. They should still have my measurements. They’ve gotten suits to me in less than a week before. I know you think my job is crazy, but those dudes make bulletproof clothing and shoot people. I don’t even carry a gun.”

  “You let someone shoot you?” Isabelle asked.

  “Hey, the suit works. Only one way to find that out. Best marketing gimmick ever.”

  *

  “Is this the rehearsal dinner?” Holt asked when she walked into the main room of her offices. “Leftover pizza is the best you could do for the eve of my big day?”

  Everyone had been practically living at the office the past week. Except Jose, who worked as usual, in case Decker was watching. It was the night before the gala, and Holt looked like her nerves and emotions were settling into pre-chase mode.

  Isabelle, on the other hand, was getting more anxious as the big day approached. It didn’t matter that her only job at the gala was to have a good time and stay with Holt until the final moments. How was she supposed to have a good time when her date was wearing a bulletproof tuxedo?

  She studied the blueprints of the building where the gala was being held, taking in the labels for each door. The door they were to enter at the beginning of the evening was D North. Every other door was labeled based on that premise.

  Even though Jose and Decker had been in constant contact planning this event, the details of what was actually going to happen still seemed far too sketchy to Isabelle. Holt’s life was on the line and they were using words like “hopefully” and “just in case.”

  “Go over it one more time, Jose,” Holt said. Isabelle felt like she might vomit if she had to hear this plan, and all the ways it could go wrong, one more time.

  “There is an alleyway behind D South. It’s dark, secluded, and there are no video monitoring devices in a one hundred foot section that is approximately three hundred feet from D South. My job is going to be convincing you to follow me to the alley. Decker will be waiting there, along with two other m
en he recruited. Once I get you to the agreed upon spot, I will retreat behind Decker and get out of there as fast as I can.

  “You have to keep Decker talking long enough to explain his intention to kill you. Moose set up the surveillance devices himself. When Decker speaks, it will be recorded. Lola and Max collected and printed a pretty good set of bread crumbs back to what Decker’s been up to the past few years, but the more you get in his own words, the better.”

  “The nine one one call to police will be made as soon as I see you leaving with Jose,” Moose said. “Your cousin Danny will already be at the party and is ready to come aid the damsel in distress.”

  Holt didn’t seem to like being called a damsel and she glared at Moose. “I can’t believe after planning this obsessively, this is the best we could come up with.”

  “It’s Decker,” Jose said. “Man’s a bad dude, but he’s got no imagination. He looked at the area, saw an alley, and figures it always works in the movies. He’s a little bit of a control freak. I can’t suggest too much without him flipping out about who’s running the show. I don’t think he’s ever done anything like this before.”

  “All right,” Holt said, “the plan is the best we can do. You all go home, get some sleep, get dolled up tomorrow, and have a good time. Remember, the gala is actually for a good cause. Our favorite juvenile delinquent is joining the program. Peanut deserves our full attention. See you all in the morning.”

  Holt thought about what a fuckshow this had all turned into. She also missed Isabelle who had opted to stay at Holt’s loft with Lola providing security outside. For the first time in ten years of doing this job, Holt felt truly vulnerable. She had something to lose now, something more valuable to her than her own life. She couldn’t afford to mess this up, but in truth, this plan sucked.

  Even if she somehow pulled it off, got Decker to admit to what he had done, and didn’t get shot in the head, this was pretty much Isabelle’s worst case scenario when it came to her job. She had no idea what would stop her from walking out the door once she was safe again. She thought about talking to Moose or Jose about what she was feeling, but she knew they would just worry. Everyone was already anxious enough. She was just going to have to fake her usual confidence and hope everything went well. She knew she needed to focus on what needed to be done tomorrow, but Isabelle was, more and more, constantly on her mind. If Isabelle walked away when it was done, she’d have to deal with it, although she had no idea how.