by anna snow
He made my skin crawl, and his greasy hair made me want to offer him the travel-sized can of dry shampoo I knew Mona carried in her purse, but now was not the time.
He reached back with his foot and closed the office door.
"This isn't what it looks li—"
"Can it, sister. I'm on to you," he said.
Can it, sister? I had the brief thought that this guy had seen one too many wise guy movies, which would explain his seventies-inspired suits and his dress shirt opened to his belly button. His extremely hairy belly button.
"It took me a while, but I finally figured out who you are." He eased deeper into the room, careful not to remove the gun from Cindy's side and keep her between himself and us.
"I thought I recognized you the other night when you filled in for one of my girls. The wig threw me, but I couldn't shake the feeling that I knew you from somewhere. Then it hit me. You were in here poking around at the start of the summer. Barbara Jackson." He nodded. "That's who you are, isn't it? That nosey as hell private eye?"
"Actually, it's Barb. Just Barb, not Barbara."
Mona slid me some extremely heated side-eye. "Do you really think now is the time to correct the man about your name?"
I shrugged because honestly, what else could I say or do at that very moment? Besides, I hated when people got my name wrong. Why was it so hard to believe I was a Barb and not a Barbara?
Come on, people. Get it together.
"I knew the moment I saw you in here that you would go poking your nose where it didn't belong. I can't allow that. I can't let you ruin all that I've worked so hard to build."
I stared blankly at him for a moment. Then it hit me like an out of control train.
I'd known all along that the person who had killed Tammy and Kiki had to be able to move about the club without raising suspicion. No one would've questioned Roy being backstage or even in the dressing room.
The more I thought about it, the more it made sense. Roy would have known the times when everyone was backstage and on stage, when the dancers usually took their breaks, and where the ladies would be at all times. It all fell into place.
Roy killed Kiki and Tammy! But why? They were obviously making money for not only themselves but for Roy as well. Why kill your money-makers?
"You killed Kiki and Tammy," I voiced my thoughts.
When he didn't deny it but simply smiled at me with a big greasy grin and that stinking gun rammed against Cindy's side, my skin crawled.
"Why? What reason could you possibly have to kill Kiki and Tammy?"
"I thought you was a smart broad." he said lightly. "Guess I was wrong."
Broad? Really?
"If you're going to kill us, you can at least explain to us why," Mona said heatedly.
I shot her a look, hoping she'd take my hint to stop being so snarky to the crazy person with the gun against our friend, advice I needed to follow myself, but I'm sure she didn't get the message. Mona didn't do subtle.
Roy looked between Mona and me for a second and chewed his bottom lip then shrugged.
"Okay, you want to know? Fine. Who could you tell anyway once you're dead?"
He seemed to be happy with his twisted logic. I, on the other hand, was racking my brain trying to figure out how in the heck we were going to make it out of this situation alive, especially with that gun sticking into Cindy's side. It wasn't like we could rush him. Cindy would be shot for sure.
"Fernando needed a way to take care of the cash he was bringing in on the trucks. Turns out those Mr. Frosty-Heroine trucks are a gold mine." He chuckled. "We go way back, and he remembered how much money the club brings in, so he came to me for help."
"You mean he came to you to launder his money through the club," I said.
"That's right." He nodded. "Then that nosey little witch, Kiki, overheard us talking one night. Fernando assured me that she wouldn't talk, but I didn't believe him, especially after they broke up. I knew she'd be running to the cops in no time, and then I'd be sent to prison. So, I went to Kiki and talked to her then ended up paying her off."
So that was where the money in the shoebox came from!
"So, you bought Kiki's silence," Mona said.
"Yeah, but then she started acting kind of strange. She wouldn't look at me or talk to me, and I just knew she would be wanting more money soon. She was a woman after all, right?" He chuckled at his own chauvinistic joke. "Money I couldn't part with, so I waited until she went on break, hid behind the divider curtain, and when she was within reach, I grabbed her." He shook his head. "That broad was a lot stronger than I expected, and she fought back. Caught me a good one right in the stones." He grimaced. "I reached out, and the first thing I grabbed was the blow-dryer. A few minutes later she was dead, and no one was the wiser."
"Did Kiki know that you and Fernando were working together?" I asked.
"Oh yeah, she knew. She didn't like it, and she didn't like that he was in the drug business. They got into a huge fight out in the parking lot about it all. I had to send one of the security guys out to get rid of them before someone overheard and sank our boat."
That would explain the fight businessman Chad said he had seen in the parking area.
"Does Fernando know you killed Kiki?" I asked.
"What he doesn't know won't hurt him."
"But why did you kill Tammy? From what you're saying, she didn't know anything about the money," I said.
"She started watching me. I think she was suspicious. Then she came to my office and straight out asked me if I knew who killed Kiki. She was a smart one. Too smart for her own good. I told her I didn't know anything and acted the appropriate amount of sad, but she saw right through it. About a week later I heard her on the phone to that boyfriend of hers. Turns out Kiki left a note for Tammy explaining everything. Tammy finally found it and said she was going to take it to the police."
"So, you waited and killed her just like you did Kiki," I finished his story for him.
"Yeah," he said lightly and shrugged his round shoulder. "Then I cut the lock off her locker, found the note in her purse, and burned it. I did what I had to do," he defended himself. "It's not like I like killing women. I mean hey, I love women." He moved his head around, motioning to the club we were standing in. "But I got to do what's best for business, and it looks like knocking the three of you off is just that."
He pressed the barrel of the gun into Cindy's side harder than before, and she whimpered.
"You can't shoot us in here. There's customers out there. They'll hear you, or did you forget that little fact?" Mona asked, clearly aggravated at the entire situation.
"No, smart mouth, I didn't forget. Here's what we're going to do. First, you two are going to walk out of here slowly toward the back door. Then me and Cindy here will follow. If you try anything, I won't hesitate to shoot. Got it?"
"Got it," Mona and I agreed.
"Now move." He jerked his head toward the door.
I wanted to turn and rush him or scream out to the club that there was a maniac with a gun, but either one would end with Cindy dead on the floor and risk the lives of Mona and the club's customers, so I kept my cool the best I could.
When we reached the back door, Roy said, "Get outside and straight to the red Camaro. Don't try anything, or she gets it."
I glanced back at Cindy, and she gave a barely perceptible lowering of her head, but I caught it.
I didn't chance a look at Mona. She would spring into action as soon as our eyes met, and all of us would wind up with bullet wounds or worse.
I grabbed the doorknob and hauled the heavy metal door open. Rain was pouring from the sky much heavier than when we'd entered the club.
"What are you waiting for? Move it." Roy prodded us.
I took a deep breath and stepped out into the pouring rain. It only took a second for my black thermal top to become drenched. Thunder boomed overhead louder and louder with each rumble.
I stopped just a few steps past
the door. Once Roy stepped out, he took a second to look back and kicked the door completely shut with his foot.
When he looked back to Cindy, she took the opportunity to bring her elbow up and crack him in the nose as hard as she could. He instinctively grabbed his now bleeding nose which allowed Cindy to break free of his hold. The three of us dove for cover behind one of the closest cars.
The rain was so heavy it was nearly impossible to see more than a couple of feet in front of us. We were crouched down beside a blue Buick sedan. I looked over at the girls and asked as loudly as I dared, "Are you alright?"
Mona and Cindy each gave me a quick yes.
"Where is he?" Cindy asked.
"I don't know," I said.
The three of us turned to face the car and then went up far enough to see over the trunk.
A shot rang out. I felt the breeze from the bullet as it zipped through the air right beside my head.
"I see you, you stupid witch!" Roy yelled. "Don't make me hunt you down like an animal. Come out here, and die with some honor."
I chanced a peek over the car again and spotted Roy hurrying toward our hiding spot.
"Die with honor?" Mona said with a huff. "What's this guy think he is? A ninja or something? Like letting ourselves be killed by a drug-dealing murderer would be such a huge honor."
I couldn't see her expression well through the downpour, but I knew without a doubt that she was rolling her eyes.
We couldn't run without putting ourselves directly in the line of fire, and we couldn't stay in our current hiding spot since Roy could simply walk right up and shoot us now that he knew exactly where we were.
There was only one thing left that I could do if I wanted us to get out of this situation alive, and I didn't like the idea, but when you're being shot at, you can either cower down and be shot, or you can buck up and return fire.
I chose the latter. The former just didn't appeal to me.
The rain stung my eyes. After quickly wiping it away, I grabbed my gun from the ankle holster and gripped it tight with both hands.
As I chanced a peek over the trunk of the car, another bullet whizzed past my head. I dropped back down and turned toward Mona and Cindy.
"I have to return fire. When I do, Roy will duck for cover. When that happens, I want you two to run to my car." I motioned to my black Cadillac CTS four cars away then handed my keys to Cindy. "I want you to drive to the end of the block and call the police. Tell them everything and to get here immediately."
"But, Barb, we can't just leave you here all alone with that lunatic," Mona argued.
"She's right, Barb. Please come with us," Cindy pleaded. "Surely someone has heard the shots and called the police by now. Maybe we should just wait here until they arrive."
"No." I shook my head. "With this storm growing, it's likely people are mistaking the gunfire for thunder. You have to go."
Roy shot twice more. This time the bullets hit the car we were crouched down beside.
"Don't argue with me," I snapped when the two just stared at me. "I have to hold him off while you get out of here. I can hold my own while you go get help. Besides, if I leave with the two of you, Roy could tuck tail and run. Then we'd never find him, and he would get away with murder. I can't allow that. Now go," I said heatedly.
"But—"
"Go now!" I shouted. Then without wasting any more time, I swung the barrel of my gun over the trunk of the car and fired off three shots.
Roy seemed stunned for a split second, probably because the only women he saw with a gun on a daily basis were also wearing buttless chaps and boobie tassels, but the surprise quickly wore off, and he then dove behind the nearest car.
Mona bit her bottom lip and looked at me one last time then grabbed Cindy's arm, hauled her to her feet, and they sprinted toward my car.
Roy hunkered down along the side of a truck bed but stood every few seconds and fired in my general direction. I chanced a glance over my shoulder and spotted Mona and Cindy jumping into my car. A moment later the car started, and the tires squealed as they sped past me, the headlights blinding me momentarily. My car hit the small dip in the road between the street and the parking lot. The back bounced up and down violently then turned the corner and disappeared out of sight.
"Your girlies ditch you, blondie?" Roy shouted over the pounding rain. "You're all alone now, princess!"
Streaks of lightning flashed across the sky like a spider web, followed by a boom of thunder so loud car alarms sounded off, and the ground vibrated.
I took a long, deep breath and blew it out slowly. I had a few more bullets left, but with my spare clip in the car, if I didn't conserve what ammo I had left, I'd be a sitting duck. I sent up a silent prayer to anyone in the universe who might be listening that Mona send help soon.
"Ahh," I said playfully, even though I felt anything but. "I know you've gotta be running low on ammo by now, Roy." I reached up and wiped the rain from my eyes once more then crab-walked a couple of steps to take a look around the rear of the car.
"Don't you wish you knew for certain, blondie?"
The rain wasn't letting up, and the thunder and lightning were worsening with each passing second. Fat raindrops pelted me in the face, making it harder and harder to see anything in front of me. The thunder rumbled again, and I felt the vibration in my bones. Kneeling down beside a metal vehicle in a storm filled with lightning wasn't the first place I needed to be, but at the moment I didn't really have much of a choice.
"I'll tell you what," Roy shouted. "How about we stop all this shooting at each other and talk about this like adults?"
Talk like adults? No way. I'd seen enough movies to know that either he was out of ammunition or he was just trying to lure me out so he could put a new bullet wound in me.
I didn't feel much like getting shot, but then again, I didn't feel like sitting crouched down like a crab while wearing soaking wet jeans, about to freeze to death, much longer either.
I wasn't sure what the right move was. As much as I hated to admit it, I was still a rookie in the private-eye game. Yeah, I had a couple of big cases under my belt, but that didn't make me Magnum, P.I.
I weighed my options for a moment longer then came up with an idea.
I pointed the gun toward the bed of the truck Roy was crouched beside and fired off two rounds then waited. I had three shots left.
"Come on now, girly. Let's talk about this. I'll tell you what," he shouted. "Let's just put the guns away, go inside, and have ourselves a drink. I'm fairly certain I can toss out a number that would make you change your mind about taking me to the cops."
"Are you trying to bribe me?" I called back.
"Bribe is such a harsh word," he called out, but I was barely listening to him. The fact that he didn't return fire and instead resorted to bribery told me that either he was out of bullets or he wanted to lure me out into the open and blast me. I tried to think back at how many times he had shot at me. He had to be out of ammo. At least that was the prayer I sent up. This was my opportunity to catch my crook.
"Alright," I called out. "Step out from behind the truck, and stand by the tailgate."
"You do the same," he responded.
Thunder cracked overhead.
I took a deep breath, sent up another little prayer that I didn't get my butt shot off, and stood, gun raised at the ready, pointed directly at Roy, who also held his gun aimed directly at me.
"Well, here we are." He grinned with rain dripping off his face and beading up before rolling off his greasy hair. "Looks like we have ourselves a little Mexican standoff."
I couldn't help but groan. "Mexican standoff? What do you think this is? A John Wayne movie?"
Mona was right. My death would be caused by being sarcastic at the wrong time. Either that or tripping over Mickey and choking to death on a spoonful of whatever I was eating at the time. Peanut butter, most likely.
"You're a sassy broad," he said. "I kind of like that. Too bad we have
to kill you."
We? I frowned at his words.
A loud pop sounded, and a split second later, an intense burning pain ripped through my upper-right bicep. The impact of the bullet knocked my gun out of my hand. I didn't know who had just shot me, but I knew it wasn't Roy. Not unless he was a freaking magician.
All I cared about was not getting shot again.
"She's between the van and the Buick! Get her, and let's get this done before someone comes out here!" Roy shouted.
Who in the hell was he talking to?
My arm burned, and moving it was out of the question, so I draped it across my midsection.
"I got her," I heard a second voice call out. A woman's voice.
Without a gun and injured, I was up a creek without a paddle. If I was going to die, I at least wanted to know who in the heck was killing me. I shuffled between the car and van to the front and around to the opposite side of the van then crab-walked down the side of a small black car. If I lived, my quads were going to be sore as hell in the morning.
The movements caused the wound in my arm to intensify, but I gritted my teeth and moved on. Movement is life. Just keep moving, I told myself.
I wiggled my body in between the front of the car and the building. Just as I hid myself again, I spotted the second shooter. Her flame red hair soaking wet and clinging to her face. The black top and jeans she wore sagged under the weight of the rain.
Rena.
"Where did she go?" she shouted over the sounds of rain and thunder. "She's not here."
It only took a minute for Roy to come into view, and the two of them started jogging up and down the rows between cars. I didn't have much time before they found me. My only hope was reaching the door of the club, slipping inside, and locking them out while I screamed for someone inside to call for help. Speaking of help, where in the heck were the cops? I was sure there'd been plenty of time for Mona and Cindy to call and for the police to arrive.
I took a deep breath, gathered what courage remained within me, and sprinted toward the door. I was halfway there when Rena stepped out from between two cars and leveled her gun at me.
