Perfectly Toxic

by Kristine Mason

  “I was clearing my throat.”

  The Russian’s blue eyes glittered with disappointment and anger. “Fine. Do not tell Vlad.” He turned, and led Polina from the ice cream shop. “Vlad and Polina walk home.”

  “Oh, for cryin’ out loud,” she muttered. “Vlad, stop. If you need a ride, I’ll give you one. But if that gator scratches up my upholstery, I’m making her into a purse.”

  He grinned and wagged a finger at her. “Ice Cream Lady act cold, but Vlad know.”

  She glanced around the shop. Satisfied the place was closed up for the day, she grabbed her purse, then met Vlad at the door. “You know what?”

  “Mel have soft place for Polina.”

  She stepped aside to avoid being hit by the alligator’s tail. “I don’t have a soft spot for Polina. I have one for you, you big goof.”

  Vlad stopped and rested a large hand on her shoulder. “Vlad sorry. Vlad like Mel as friend.”

  “Whoa, that’s not what I…wait, why don’t you like me in that way?” Why did she care? Except for sex, your own husband doesn’t even want you.

  The Russian sighed. “Vlad have broke many heart.”

  “You’re not breaking mine, I’m just curious.”

  “Vlad like blonde with big titties,” he said as if she should be aware of his preference in women.

  “Since I happen to be a blonde, I’ll try not to be too offended that you just called me flat chested.”

  His eyes shifted to her boobs. “Vlad like Mel’s titties, but Vlad have big hand.” He held one up, palm out. “See? Mel could not fill Vlad hand.”

  “Oh, my God.” She slipped on her sunglasses. “Someone needs to put a filter on you.”

  Laughter came from the entrance of the souvenir shop where tourists could also purchase their tickets for an hour-long airboat tour. Ryan Monahan, the owner of Cap’n Ryan’s Airboat Tours, stood in the doorway laughing.

  “Good, Ryan’s still here,” she said, honestly not offended by Vlad. She knew him well enough to know he’d meant no insult. “He can take you and Polina home.”

  Ryan stopped laughing and shoved off the doorjamb. “Why me? And why didn’t you go home with Harrison?” he asked Vlad.

  “Because Harry’s nagging him like an old lady,” she answered for the Russian.

  Vlad nodded. “Да. Harry watch Vlad like mother chicken.”

  “Is this about you quitting smoking?” Ryan asked.

  “Да. Vlad try. Vlad fail. Vlad try again. But Harry nag for Polina, too. Polina too big, Harry say. Vlad not allow to capture squirrel for Polina dinner. Harry say it illegal.” He shook his fist. “Vlad know Harry full of shit from bull.”

  “Dang,” Melanie said. “Harry’s got you pretty fired up, huh?”

  “Vlad fitness knotted.”

  Ryan frowned. “Come again?”

  The Russian sighed. “Captain Ryan know…Vlad ready to explode a seal.”

  “What?”

  Melanie laughed and touched Vlad’s arm. “Oh, honey, you’re too funny. Thanks, I needed that.” She looked to Ryan. “Fit to be tied. Blow a gasket. Get it? The Russian is seriously ticked off.”

  “Ice Cream Lady know Vlad well.”

  “What I know is that I can’t fit your gator in the back of my Camaro. But she’ll fit just fine in Ryan’s Suburban.”

  “Whatever. I have to wait for Lola to finish a few things in the office anyway.” Ryan pulled his keys from his pocket. “Put your gator in the back while I go tell Lola I’m leaving.”

  “Vlad sorry for tittie comment. That rude,” he said as he walked Polina to Ryan’s truck.

  “It’s fine. You’re not my type, either.”

  “What man can melt Ice Cream Lady?” he asked with a grin.

  Her husband. “When I find out, I’ll let you know,” she said, then headed for her car. Before she opened the door, her cell phone rang. Her stomach balled and her hand trembled as she glanced to the phone’s screen. Since the water calmed her, and she would need to be calm to have a civil conversation with Cash, she started for the boat docks, and answered.

  “Hey, babe. It was good to hear your voice,” Cash said. “I just wish you were calling to check up on me and Dolly, instead of Bobby.”

  She loved and hated hearing his voice, too. The sound of him stirred so many memories, along with misery. She missed him. She wanted to be with him. By now, they should have a couple of kids. Instead they’d spent almost their entire marriage living apart because of Cash’s selfish disregard for her and her needs.

  “Don’t call me babe,” she reminded him. Once they’d separated, terms of endearment were no longer allowed. The only exception to her rule was during sex, which they hadn’t had in nearly two months. No wonder she’d been ready to explode a seal lately.

  “Sorry, Melanie.” Dolly barked and she grinned. “Our dog misses you,” Cash said. “I can’t even say your name around her.”

  Her eyes misted as she pictured the German shepherd. “Tell her I miss her and give her a kiss for me.”

  “Are you missing anyone else?” he asked, hope in his voice.

  She sat on the step leading to the dock and stared at the canal. Stubbornness had nothing to do with not admitting that she loved him. Resentment did. She resented him for not giving up the repo business and being the husband she needed. She also didn’t want to hurt him—they’d both hurt each other enough. Still, misleading him by giving him any hope that they had a chance would be wrong.

  “I’m missing Bobby,” she said. “Have you seen him?”

  “I think you need to take a break from standing over coolers all day. Maybe it’ll help with the icy attitude.”

  “What were you doing when I called you? Repossessing someone’s car? Maybe their boat?”

  “Harley Davidson Fat Boy.”

  She instantly pictured the motorcycle she’d taken from Cash. It now sat in her garage, a dusty tarp protecting it. “Did they pull a shotgun or a knife on you?”

  “Baseball bat.”

  “And you wonder why we’re not together.” Anger and disappointment deflated her. She slumped her shoulders, rested her elbows on her knees and her head in her hand. “Do you know where I can find Bobby or not?”

  “I asked around before calling you. No one’s seen or heard from him in weeks. He did a job for me about a month ago. I paid him, we went for a beer later and that’s the last time I saw him.”

  “His phone is out of service and he hasn’t cashed the last two checks I sent him. Something’s wrong.”

  “Where’d you send the checks?”

  She lifted her head. “To where I always do, the garage. Didn’t you get them?” Bobby Scarlet was eight years younger than her. When he’d turned eighteen and had graduated from high school, he’d come with her to Tallahassee, where she’d had a job waiting and had eventually met Cash. Since Bobby hadn’t been able to find work, Cash had given him a job at his garage. But her cousin had no interest in working every day. So Cash had Bobby do the occasional repo job, gave him one hundred dollars, then her cousin would disappear for a couple days until he needed money again.

  She hadn’t been, and still wasn’t, always sure where Bobby lived, or how he could stand the lifestyle he led. The one constant with Bobby was that he’d always return to Cash’s garage, which was why she’d sent the checks there. Since she doubted Bobby had struck it rich and was off on a vacation, and no one had seen or heard from him in nearly a month, something was definitely wrong.

  “I’m meeting Jude later,” Cash said. “I’ll ask him if he remembers getting the checks. Maybe Bobby stopped in when I wasn’t around. Ross did say he heard Bobby was hanging in Frenchtown with Quinell Willis. I don’t know if you remember him, but he’s bad news.”

  Frenchtown was known for its prostitutes, drug dealers, addicts, homeless and the mentally ill. Quinell was known to pimp and deal drugs. She hoped to God Ross was wrong. Bobby knew better than to run with people like Quinell.

  �
�Yeah, I remember him.” She rubbed her forehead. “I have to go.”

  “Already? Just hang on a sec. Before you get upset about Bobby, let me talk to Jude. Ross is going to be with us. We can head to Frenchtown and start asking around.”

  Cash, Jude and Ross were, collectively, seven hundred plus pounds of pure testosterone and muscle. They’d killed for their country, had been shot at and assaulted as civilians, and were all quick tempered. They might be badass, but if something happened to them while they were looking for her cousin, the guilt would crush her. She loved her husband, and Jude and Ross were her friends.

  “Don’t you dare. I’m going to check with the police and hospitals. If I don’t find him, I’m coming to Tallahassee.”

  “Look, Mel, I think you’re being a little extreme. Bobby’s a grown man. He might’ve left town for a job or a girl. Hell, he could be drifting your way as we speak.”

  “Bobby’s a fifteen-year-old inside a twenty-five-year-old’s body. He’s concerned with what goes in his stomach and gaming. You know as well as I do that he’s not motivated enough to get a job on his own.”

  “I suppose you have a point. But if he did land himself into some trouble, it’s of his own making, not yours. I’ve told you before, you can’t keep bailing him out from his mistakes. The kid needs to grow up and learn to take care of himself. You coddle him too much. Instead of sending him checks, you should’ve told him to do what everyone else who needs money does—get a job.”

  Her daddy had told her the same thing, and while she knew it, too, she’d hated the idea of Bobby being forced to live on the streets to learn a lesson. Plus, she was responsible for him. When Bobby had been four, his mom had died. Her daddy had become his legal guardian and he’d moved in with them. She’d loved having him around. In a weird way, Bobby was like the puppy Daddy would never let her have because he’d worried the gators would make a meal out of a family pet. Bobby had been so dang cute, and would trail behind her whenever he had the chance.

  Since her mama had died when she’d been about Bobby’s age, Mel had been sure to give Bobby the love and protection any mother would give her son. What she hadn’t given Bobby was the courage to do right by himself. She’d enabled him to be lazy, had made too many excuses for his behavior, and now she had to deal with the young man she’d created. Or the guilt, if something terrible had happened to him.

  “I don’t need the lecture. I need to find Bobby. I’ll let you know if I’m coming to Tallahassee,” she said, then decided to be mature and say good-bye rather than hanging up on him like she had last week. Before she allowed guilt and worry to fester, she headed inside the souvenir shop. After passing cases of trinkets and shirts, she moved behind the counter to the office. Lola Tam, Ryan’s fiancée, and the head of their underground organization, Above the Law, sat at the desk, working on the computer.

  Mel knocked on the door. “Got a sec?”

  Lola turned and smiled. “Hey, I figured you left for the day.”

  “I needed to talk to you.”

  “It’s about that last assignment, right?” Lola sighed. “I seriously had the ’flu, otherwise you know I would’ve gone undercover as a prostitute.”

  Melanie held up a hand. “It’s not about the assignment, but now that you brought it up, I did question whether or not you were faking being sick. Until Ryan came down with it, too.”

  “Along with everyone else but you.”

  She shrugged and leaned against the doorjamb. “Maybe the ’flu gods decided to give me a break because I was forced to dress like a whore.”

  Lola grinned. “Wouldn’t the medical world be impressed if that was the cure for the common ’flu?” Her smile waned. “What’s going on? Is this about the ice cream shop or ATL?”

  “Neither. It’s personal.”

  Lola’s almond-shaped eyes widened a fraction. If Melanie’s stomach wasn’t knotted with worry, she would have laughed. She liked Lola—as a boss—but they weren’t close. She’d tried to make an effort to learn more about Lola, after all the woman was marrying Ryan, who she’d known since she could remember and was like a brother to her. But she’d grown up surrounded by men, had never had a girlfriend she could turn to, and didn’t trust easily.

  Growing up in a small town with a father who swore the Apocalypse was near, and the legacy of being from a family full of crazies hadn’t helped. When she was young, the kids at school had ruthlessly teased her, especially the girls. Thank God for the Monahan boys and Barney Newton. Ryan and Shane Monahan’s father, along with Barney, were Vietnam vets like her daddy. The men knew her daddy hadn’t come back from the war with his head on straight, and had taken it upon themselves to look out for her and her mama when her daddy found himself too busy looking for Charlie in the swamps of the Everglades. Ryan and Shane had been a staple in her life. They’d protected her and had taught her to protect herself. Too bad they hadn’t been around to help her influence Bobby when he’d been a teenager. If they had, maybe Bobby would have followed their lead, joined the service, learned the value of hard work and actually contribute to society.

  “If it’s personal,” Lola began, “I’d think you’d go to Ryan or Shane. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad you feel comfortable enough to talk to me, it’s just, you usually brush me off for the boys.”

  Melanie pushed off the doorjamb and approached the desk. “I can’t. Not with this.”

  “Can you tell me why?”

  “I’d prefer not to.”

  “I respect that.” Lola gave her a small smile. “Okay, so what’s the matter?”

  “My cousin is missing. I need Harrison to see if he’s in jail or in the hospital.” During the ten months she’d worked with Harrison Fairclough, ATL’s computer geek, she’d learned the man was a wizard when it came to finding information.

  “That won’t be a problem. Why don’t you want Ryan or Shane to know?”

  “Barney, too.” Barney was her surrogate uncle and ATL’s Jack-of-all-trades. He, along with Ryan and Shane, knew she’d once dated a repo man, but they didn’t know she’d married him. If they found out now, they’d be ticked off she’d never told them, then they’d likely head to Tallahassee to beat some sense into the man who’d broken her heart. The thing was, Cash hadn’t broken her heart. He’d disappointed her. Her daddy might be crazy, but one lucid day he’d talked about his marriage to her mama. He’d said that when it came to marriage, the only way to make it work was to put your spouse first. Always. When she’d met and fallen in love with Cash, he’d become the most important person in her life. She’d put him before everything and everyone. Too bad he hadn’t done the same.

  Lola made a slight nod. “Okay, we’ll keep this between us and Harrison. Vlad can’t keep secrets.”

  She chuckled. “That man is something else. Anyway, I also might need Harrison to go to Tallahassee with me,” Mel said, then explained her concerns for Bobby without mentioning her relationship with Cash.

  “That shouldn’t be a problem, but I think you’d be better off having Vlad go with you. If your cousin is on the streets and involved in something dangerous, no offense to Harrison, but I’d be more comfortable going with Vlad.”

  “I know plenty of muscle in Tallahassee, but if Bobby’s not in jail or the hospital, I might need Harrison’s brain and computer skills to help find him.” Which was the truth. What Lola didn’t have to know was that Harrison would also be the buffer she’d need between her and Cash.

  After the last time she’d seen her husband, and the weekend they’d spent together, it had taken her weeks to recover. She missed him, loved him, wanted to be with him every day, not just every few months when she’d found an excuse to see him. Thank God for ATL. Ten months ago, Lola had come to town to rescue her mom and the head of the private criminal investigation agency, CORE, which was ATL’s northern counterpart—only more legit—from a killer. Mel had been given an opportunity to help with the mission, offering her more to do with her life than pining over her husba
nd, fixing cars in her garage and scooping ice cream. Working for ATL not only gave her more purpose and money, it had allowed her to be part of something important.

  Lola picked up her cell phone, then tapped at the screen. “Let’s hope your cousin is fine and you don’t have to go anywhere. I don’t mind working in the ice cream shop, but if I can’t, Vlad will have to.”

  Mel cringed. While Vlad was capable of scooping ice cream and making change, his customer service skills needed refinement.

  “Hi, Harrison,” Lola began, “I need you to do a favor for me. Can you run a search for…” She looked to Mel.

  “Robert Edward Scarlet. Goes by Bobby,” Mel said.

  Lola repeated the information to Harrison, then minutes later ended the call. “Harrison said that if your cousin is a John Doe it’ll take longer to find him, but if he’s in jail or hospitalized he should have something for us soon.” She set the phone on the desk. “The problem with that is if you two are close, why wouldn’t he have called you?”

  That was her concern. If Bobby had needed bail money, she’d have been the first person he’d turn to. If he were sick or injured and hospitalized, she would have known because he was still on Daddy’s insurance. “I’m going to go home and let you get back to paying bills,” she said, needing something to do to avoid considering the real reason why she hadn’t heard from Bobby.

  “That works. I’ll call you when I hear from Harrison.”

  Mel thanked her, then headed out the door. Minutes later, she slid into her Camaro. As she backed out of the parking spot, she saw Lola waving to her in the rear view mirror. She stopped the car, kept the engine running, then opened the door. “You heard from Harrison already?” she asked as Lola met her at the car.

  Lola nodded. “He found nothing. He said he not only checked Tallahassee, but Pensacola and Panama City.”

  Mel met Lola’s worried gaze. “Did he…” She looked to the canal. “Did he check death records?”

  “Yes. He didn’t find anything in Florida, but said he could compare Bobby’s driver’s license photo to possible deceased John Does. I told him to go for it.”