“You have,” Tori smiled. “Young lady, my partner and I are going to get rid of that nasty Sheriff and put an honest man in office. Right now, though, we have to tangle with some dangerous snakes. Your job is to drive back and pretend you dropped me off at the bus station.”
“You don't understand,” Amy said. “Sheriff Call... he can make life for me and my family very difficult. Everyone is so afraid of him.”
“Not me,” Tori said. “I never liked bullies growing up and I won't tolerate them now. Yeah, sure, I got threw out of my apartment and my partner is crazy, but that's a different story. Right now, I have a job to do and I intend on doing it.”
Amy stared into Tori's brave face. “Okay.”
“That's my girl,” Tori told Amy in a proud voice. “By now that garbage can should have left the restaurant. You should be in the clear to go back.”
Amy watched Tori get out of the car. She waved a nervous hand at her and drove away.
Left alone, Tori casually walked into the gas station and purchased a soda. Back outside in the hot sun she downed the soda quickly, then walked to an old payphone and called her cellphone. Judith picked up on the second ring. “Where are you?” Tori asked.
“I'm pulling into the gas station right now,” Judith said.
Tori looked at the front road. The blue minivan appeared. Putting down the phone, she waited as Judith pulled up to her. Looking at a dusty white truck sitting in the parking lot, which belonged to the owner of the store, Tori knew she was in the clear to speak with Judith. “We need to hurry,” Judith said.
Tori studied the tall trees and rugged country surrounding the gas station. “Flint is with the Sheriff.”
“I saw,” Judith said. “Get in. We need to go to Edwin.”
“Edwin has to play ball with Flint for now,” Tori warned. “Flint knows where the gold is, Judith. You go tell him this and bring him to the Sheriff's Station in town.”
“Where are you going?” Judith asked.
“Nowhere. I'm going to stay right here. After you speak with Edwin, drop back by here and pick me up. Together, we'll sneak out to Gold Pot and wait for Edwin to bring Flint out.”
Judith studied Tori's face. She couldn't tell if Tori was lying or being honest. Forced to take a chance, she nodded. “Edwin promised to have a private jet waiting for me. We can make our escape.”
“Honey,” Tori said, “we're going to need a ship to carry all of our gold. You can escape if you want, but I'm not leaving without the gold.”
Judith thought about Tori's remark. “Are you saying we stay hidden until the dust clears and then make our move?”
“I'm saying let Flint lead Edwin to the gold and then Sheriff Call does his job. It's all planned out, Judith, and you and I are going to take down the last man standing. And then,” Tori smiled brightly, “we're going to wait a couple of weeks until the dust settles and get our gold.”
Judith couldn't help but be impressed with Tori. “I knew there was something special about you.”
“We ladies have to stick together. Now move,” Tori urged. “Oh, wait, before you go,” Tori reached into her purse and pulled out a gun. “Take this.”
Judith quickly grabbed the gun and tucked it beneath the driver's seat. “Thanks.”
“Be careful with that gun, Judith,” Tori warned, “it's lock and loaded. All you have to do it pop the safety off, aim, and fire.”
“Got it,” Judith said. “Give me a couple of hours.”
“I'm not going anywhere but over to that bench and parking myself down and resting my feet,” Tori said. “Call the payphone when you're heading back my way.”
“The payphone number is on the call list,” Judith replied and drove away.
Tori watched Judith drive out to the front street and speed away. Walking over to a wooden bench, she sat down and rubbed her ankles. “Okay, Flint, the pawns are on the board. I just hope and pray we know how to reach checkmate before anyone else does.”
Nearby, a raccoon appeared and began to claw at a plastic brown trash can. Tori looked at the raccoon and smiled. Way out in the wilderness, the only care an innocent animal had was locating himself a delicious dinner. A strange thought struck her then: It was man that made life complicated, dangerous, and difficult. It was man that imposed taxes, put limits on human freedoms, caused wars, death, disease and destruction. It was man that created criminals and crime. A raccoon could plunder through a trash can and find himself a meal, but if a homeless man was see doing so he would he run off. But criminals could attack the innocent and get away with their crimes because the human race was too beaten down to dare make a stand. “We'll make a stand,” Tori promised the raccoon. “Flint and I will win this card game because we're the good guys and good guys never lose.”
Looking away from the raccoon, Tori focused on the payphone.
Maybe I will make a call, she told herself. I think Flint and I may need a little help on this case.
*****
In town, Flint walked into a small Sheriff's Station that smelled of pine and cigarette smoke. Two fat deputies were sitting in black office chairs behind a wooden railing that separated the front lobby from the administrative part of the station, which was nothing more than four desks lined with phones and a paper coffee cups. Making his way across a wooden floor, Flint paused. “Who are the goons?” he asked.
Sheriff Call eyed Flint. “Vinnie and Dave are good guys,” he warned, “so watch your mouth around them or they might wrap your tongue around your throat.”
The two fat deputies looked at Flint and then went back to the box of pizza sitting on the desk before them. Flint rolled his eyes and followed Sheriff Call onto a carpeted floor and continued on to a small back office. A wooden desk and a metal filing cabinet were inside, along with a photo of Brooklyn hanging on the wall, and nothing more. Sheriff Call plopped down in a chair behind his desk. “Sit down.”
Flint shrugged and sat down in a metal chair in front of the desk. “What's your plan?”
Sheriff Call snatched a cell phone from the top drawer of his desk. Without answering Flint, he dialed a number. “Let me speak to Antonio,” he said after a couple of seconds waiting. “Who do you think this is, wise guy, it's Martino. Now put Antonio on the phone before I smack you a good one.” Flint waited. “Yeah, Antonio, I have this wise guy in my office that you need to get straight with.”
Sheriff Call threw his cell phone at Flint.
“Detective Flint speaking.”
“Why am I speaking with you?” an old man asked Flint in a voice that came out almost in a whisper.
“Gold... revenge... and protection,” Flint stated. “I know where the hidden gold is and I'm willing to show you in return for ten million dollars. Second, I want to help you take down the Fiore and DeDonato Families. Third, I want you to offer me protection from them. It's that simple.”
“Who are you to speak to me in such a way?” the old man hissed at Flint. “Do you realize who you are speaking to?”
“Antonio LaGana,” Flint answered in a steady voice. “Mr. LaGana, I know you need the gold to get your guns. Judith Morris spilled the beans to me, and she could only find out the truth from Edwin Wayberry. Now, if you want to take down the Fiore and DeDonato Families, I'm the man to help you.”
“In exchange for money and my protection?”
“Yes,” Flint answered. “I'll also help you take down Edwin Wayberry and clean the mess under the rug. You see, Mr. LaGana, I'm a homicide detective. As I told your friendly Sheriff here, I've pulled bodies out of dumpsters and from alleyways all belonging to the Fiore and DeDonato Families. But as Detective, I am slapped with red tape and told to look the other way by City Hall because money talks and criminals walk free.”
“Of course,” the old man said, “your position is understandable. Yet, I wonder why a cop would want to help me?”
“I could care less about you,” Flint answered. “All I want is my money and revenge and to be protected long en
ough to skip down to Mexico and vanish. But let me warn you right now, we're in a mess out here. Judith Morris has escaped from my custody and she knows where the gold is hidden. She's probably talking to Edwin Wayberry as we speak. I need to know that I can trust you before I act.”
“What do you have in mind?” the old man asked in a careful voice.
“I need to catch Edwin on tape,” Flint explained. “I need to a wire taped to me. But in order to catch Edwin, your errand boy here is going to have to play along and say exactly what I tell him because if he doesn't, Edwin Wayberry is going to get to the gold and then go after his enemies in full force. We have to knock the man's knees out from under him and quick.”
“Put him back on the phone.”
Flint tossed the cell phone back at Sheriff Call. “Yeah... uh huh... Are you sure... No sir, I'm not questioning you... Yeah, I'll help him take out the rat... I understand... Ten million and offer protection... I'll call you when the job is done.”
“Well?” Flint asked.
“Deal,” Sheriff Call answered.
Flint stood up. “When Edwin gets here, play along. Most likely he's going to want to take me back out to Gold Pot and eliminate me there. Allow him to take me and you follow close behind, but stay out of sight. Edwin won't aim a gun at my head until I lead him to the gold. When I take him to the gold, that's when you act.” Flint could see Sheriff Call wasn't following along. “I need time to for Edwin to make a confession and catch him on tape, got it?”
“Yeah, sure, I got it,” Sheriff Call said. “Hey Vinnie, bring me a wire from the back room and step on it.”
Flint looked down at his watch. “I say we have less than an hour before Edwin shows up... I hate to say this, but you better rough me up some. Edwin isn't stupid and if walks in here and sees me looking like a fresh flower, he'll become suspicious.”
“Gladly,” Sheriff Call said, and stood up, looking happy for the first time since he’d met Flint. For two minutes straight, he punched Flint in the face.
Bleeding from his nose and mouth, Flint held up his hands. “Good enough...” he said and sat down. Breathing hard, he watched Vinnie enter the office with a wire. “Let's hurry and get the wire on.”
Sheriff Call sat down back down behind his desk. “Do you own dirty work, cop,” he said and wiped his knuckles onto his shirt.
Flint resisted the urge to pull his gun and shoot the low lifes surrounding him. Instead, he attached the wire to his chest and made sure the connection was secure. “Okay, lock me up. But I keep my gun on me, understand. Also, there's one last plan I want to run by you.”
Sherrif Call listened to Flint's plan. “You just make sure you keep your gun out of sight,” Sheriff Call warned, then nodded at Vinnie.
Vinnie grabbed Flint's arm and walked out of the office. “No funny stuff,” he said, then pushed open a metal door attached to the back wall. Flint walked into a metal hallway lined with three jail cells. Vinnie snatched open a cell and pushed Flint inside. Slamming the door behind him, he looked at Flint with malice in his eyes. Then he spat on the ground and walked away.
Flint touched his beaten face. “The games we play,” he said and sat down on an old cot that barely managed his weight. Bowing his head, he prayed, something he did very rarely, then focused on his next move as storm clouds began to form outside. Hearing thunder in the distance, Flint knew that a storm was approaching. “Going to be some night,” he whispered.
Flint kept his eyes closed until he heard the outside door open. Raising his head, he saw Edwin Wayberry appear with Sheriff Call at his side. It was now or never, Flint thought. “Detective Flint,” Edwin said in a pleased voice, “how nice to see you again.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Flint said and forced himself up. “Your friend there didn't have to dance on my face like he did. I came back here to make a deal, not have my face smashed up.”
“Shut up,” Sheriff Call snapped.
Edwin raised a hand into the air. Instead of wearing the outfit he was wearing when Flint first saw him, Edwin was now dressed in a fancy gray suit with his hair neatly combed. “What kind of deal do you want to make me?” he asked. “I was informed that you know where my missing gold is. Is that true? Is that part of your deal?”
“Maybe,” Flint said and looked at Sheriff Call. “Ever touch me again and I'll kill you,” he warned and rubbed his split lip. Flint waited for a response. The response Sheriff Call fired back at him would inform Flint on how to proceed.
“I'll smack your head into the wall, cop,” Sheriff Call said. “Now shut your lip and listen to the boss man.”
Flint looked back at Edwin. “I've spoken with Mr. LaGana who has given me the green light to take you down. But his thug there is standing in my way. If you want the gold, take them out and do it now and we'll make our deal.”
“What!” Sheriff Call yelled and went for his gun. “Why you dirty rat, I'll—”
Edwin balled his right hand into a fist, swung around, and punched Sheriff Call in the face before the man could draw his gun and shoot Flint. Sheriff Call stumbled backward and crashed down to the floor. Vinnie and Dave came running. Edwin drew out a Glock 19 from his shoulder holster and aimed his gun at Sheriff Call. “Now boys, if you want your friend to live, put down your guns.”
Vinnie and Dave looked down at Sheriff Call and then back at Edwin. They dropped their guns.
“In the cell,” Edwin motioned, “and take your friend with you.”
Vinnie and Dave pulled Sheriff Call into a spare cell and closed the door. “Your guns,” Edwin said. Vinnie and Dave tossed out their guns. “His, too.” Vinnie grabbed the Beretta from Sheriff Call's holster and tossed it out. Edwin turned and focused on Flint. Patiently, he studied Flint's beaten face, unaware that Flint still had his gun hidden beneath his overcoat. Assuming that Sheriff Call had disarmed Flint, he unlocked the cell. “Let's take a ride.”
Flint stepped out of the cell and rubbed his neck. “Where is Judith Morris?”
“Let's take a ride,” Edwin told Flint again, this time in a stronger tone. “We need to talk. Judith Morris is playing a game with me.”
Flint followed Edwin outside. A black sedan was parked in front of the Sheriff's Station. Without saying a word, Flint walked around to the passenger side and got in. Edwin calmly walked to the driver's side. “We don't need to be enemies,” he said, sitting down in the driver's seat. “You're a very resourceful man. I can use a man like you.”
“All I want is to make a deal,” Flint said. “Get us moving and we'll talk.”
“Okay.”
Flint waited until Edwin aimed the sedan toward Gold Pot before he spoke. “I want ten million dollars of the gold for myself, you can keep the rest. In exchange for the gold, I want you to help me take down the Fiore and DeDonato Families in Los Angeles. That's what this is all about, Edwin. My department knows Judith Morris' parents worked for the DeDonato Family and that Henry Parsons’ wife worked for the Fiore Family.”
Edwin glanced at Flint. “Keep talking.”
“I talked with Mr. LaGana. I made a deal with him to take you down. Your time running guns for him is over. The only chance you have is to take the gold and run. I'm sorry that I had to push you into a corner, but it's the only way. After you help me take down the Fiore and DeDonato Families, the gold us yours... minus my ten million.”
Edwin dropped down to a slow speed. “Do you really think I'm afraid of Antonia LaGana? That old man is washed up. I'm in charge of the guns, not him. I'm charge of the drugs, not him. I'm in charge of everything, not that useless old man.”
“But Paul DeDonato, you don't care to cross him, do you?”
Edwin grew silent. “All right,” he finally said. “It seems that we have mutual enemies that need to be eliminated, Flint. You have my arm twisted here. But if I had known your intentions, we could have avoided all of this hide and chase business. We could have worked on the same team.”
“You know better than that,” Flint said. “Y
ou know as a cop I'm going to watch my back. Right now my partner is on her way back to talk with Paul DeDonato. He's not going to be very pleased with you.”
“You scratch my back, I scratch yours, is that it?”
“Yep,” Flint said in an easy voice. “Los Angeles is my town and I'm tired of being pushed around by a bunch of low lifes who pollute City Hall.”
“And you're tired of your pitiful salary or you wouldn't want money,” Edwin threw at Flint. “You're not as straight as you appear, Flint.”
Flint shrugged. “A man can live a good life in Mexico with ten million dollars,” he said and let out a slow breath. “There comes a point in a man's life when he has to walk away from the bodies he finds lying in alleys ways and in dumpsters and start thinking of himself.”
Edwin watched the first rain drop hit the windshield. “So now what?”
“Let's take a ride out of the Gold Pot and speak with Judith Morris,” Flint said.
Edwin glanced at Flint. “If you backpedal on me and don't deliver my gold, I'll hunt you down, Flint, and end your miserable life.”
Flint grinned. “I don't take back the wooden nickels I give people. Now drive.”
Back at the Sherrif's Station, Vinnie unlocked the cell door with a hidden key he had hidden in the cell. “Okay, Flint's plan worked. Now, what?”
“Now we deal with Edwin,” Sheriff Call said and rubbed his face. “And Flint. Tonight they both sleep with the fishes. Let's move.”
Back at the gas station, Judith pulled in and waved at Tori. “Okay,” she explained, “Edwin has gone to collect Flint and bring him back to Gold Pot.”
Tori looked into Judith's face. It was a shame the woman was a murderer. “Okay,” she said and climbed up into the passenger's seat. “Let's move.”
Judith got the minivan moving just as the sky opened and a torrential rain began to fall. “I spoke with Edwin. I've convinced him that I can make Flint tell me where the gold is hidden.”
“Good,” Tori replied as Judith switched on the windshield wipers. “Our main concern is making everyone turn against each other. But first make sure Flint confesses the location, okay?”
Detective Flint Box Set: A Detective Story Box Set Books 1-3 Page 37
