by C. M. Sutter
“Now what?”
Lutz shook his head. “Looks like one by one, the people who played a role in Tina’s murder are falling by the wayside. Pretty soon, the only people left will be John and Curt, and the FBI wants the kudos for their takedown. With nobody left to arrest, we might be back in the same boat we were before, letting the FBI and the Mexican police find John Vance.”
I stood to leave. “Then I guess I’ll call it a night. Frank and I are stopping at Wild Willy’s for a beer. Want to join us?”
Lutz rubbed his forehead, which made me think he was about to decline. “You know, why not? I don’t have anyone waiting for me at home, and we’re kind of at a standstill right now. I’ll tell Maria about Mauricio and Antonio tomorrow and see if Conway has any input. He’d probably know if the hit orders came down from John.”
After making a stop at home to tend to Bandit, I met up with Frank and Bob at Wild Willy’s just before seven. We would unwind over our standard two beers and maybe have a bite to eat. The bar was busy, and we were lucky to score three stools just as a group of people got up. I suggested grabbing some wings as we took our seats. Frank and Bob were on board, and I placed three orders.
My phone buzzed just as our first round of beers were slid across the bar to us. I took a gulp and checked the screen. The call was coming from Jared Bell. “That’s weird.”
Lutz frowned. “Who is it?”
“The attorney.” I swiped the green phone icon to the right and answered. “Jesse McCord speaking.” With my hand cupped over my right ear to block the bar noise, I tried to hear what he was saying but couldn’t. “Hang on. I have to go outside.” I pointed at the exit and told the guys I’d be right back. As the door closed behind me, I continued, “Okay, I’m outside, so what’s up? Does Conway or Maria have more information for us?”
“No, Detective McCord. I just got a threatening call from John Vance.”
“What! Why?”
“I don’t know, but he has a car parked outside with two men watching my house.”
“Son of a bitch. So they’d follow you if you came to the police station?”
“They’d probably kill me before I exited my car. I’m worried for my family, Detective.”
“Okay, hold tight. I’m going back inside to talk to Lutz and Mills. We were about to have a few beers and wings. I’ll call you back, so stay by your phone and away from the windows. Don’t answer the door, and don’t alarm your family.”
“They aren’t home right now, thank God.”
I clicked off the call and rushed through the crowd, back to Frank and Lutz’s side. I leaned in closely to talk—they needed to hear clearly what I was about to say. “That was Bell, and he said he just got a threatening call from John Vance.”
Lutz’s eyes bulged. “Damn it! About what?”
“Not sure yet. We need to speak to him in person, but Bell said there’s a car sitting along the curb. Vance told him he had men watching his house.”
Frank piped in. “We need to have his statement on record. It’ll be proof beyond doubt that John is calling the shots.”
“Right, but he’d be followed as soon as he left. Coming to the police station would be like signing his own death warrant,” Bob said.
“Unless—”
Lutz looked at me with raised brows. “Unless what?”
“Unless we go to him. We need to know if there’s another way to get into his house.”
“Go ahead and call him back.”
I tapped Bell’s name on the recent calls list, and he answered before the first ring ended.
“Detective McCord, what should I do?”
“First, take a breath. What I need to know is if there’s a back way to get to your house.”
“There is. Alleys are behind all the homes in the neighborhood. Most people have detached garages in the back with a walkway that leads into the rear of the house. Mine is no exception.”
“Okay, can you check if Vance has somebody back there too? I don’t want anybody to see you looking out, though.”
“I’ll go upstairs, make sure the lights are off, and look out the window.”
“Sure. Do that now while I’m on the phone with you. I’ll wait.” I heard every footstep as he raced up the stairs. He was back on the phone seconds later. “The alley is clear. I don’t see any vehicles except the ones parked in the driveways.”
“Good, then text me your address. We’re on our way, but don’t answer the back door until I tell you we’ve arrived.” I had Frank check the distance from Wild Willy’s to Jared Bell’s home. “Looks like we’ll be there in under a half hour. Remember, don’t answer the door unless it’s us. When do you expect your wife and kids to be home?”
“After ten. They went to the movies.”
“Okay. Hold on. We’ll be there soon.”
With our wings order canceled and our beers guzzled, we rushed out. Bob, who had an SUV and the largest vehicle between us, offered to drive.
Chapter 47
We were getting close. Only two miles remained on the GPS route before reaching Bell’s house.
“What do you think? Should we drive down his street and then circle to the back?” Frank asked.
“Damn right we will. I want to know who Vance has sitting on the attorney’s house. We’ll pull the plate number as we pass and see who the car belongs to.” Moments later, Lutz turned down Bell’s street.
“His house is the fifth one on the left,” I said as I enlarged my phone’s map.
“Good. That means if the car is still there, they’ll be looking toward us, and my headlights will shine on the plates and their faces, but they’ll also be blinded as they stare out the windshield.”
“Just make sure you don’t look at them as we pass,” I said. “I’ll check them out closer from the back seat’s tinted windows.” From our location, I could already see a dark sedan parked at the curb ahead. I pointed. “That has to be them. Don’t slow down, or they’ll get suspicious. Frank, take a picture of the plates when we get close, but make sure your flash is off. Tech can always enhance it for us if necessary.”
Bob drove the posted speed limit as we passed the car. I wrote down the plate number even though Frank caught it and the men’s faces with his phone’s camera. He checked the images in his gallery.
“Not the best, but Tech can brighten it up.”
Lutz continued on and turned in to the alley behind the house. Other than the homeowners’ cars in driveways, the alley was clear, just as Bell had said.
“Pull farther down and park, and then we’ll walk back.” It was better to spend a few extra minutes being cautious. I didn’t want any regrets later on. I called Bell as we exited the SUV and walked in the shadows. He said he’d be waiting for us at the back door, and he reminded us that his address number was above the overhead door on the garage.
We reached his house without encountering anyone. Jared opened the door, looked both ways, and quickly ushered us in.
“Is there a center room where we can sit that doesn’t have windows?” Lutz asked. “Better safe than sorry.”
Bell tipped his head to the left. “Right this way. The dining room sits between the living room and the kitchen. You can’t see the table from any windows.”
“Perfect.” I led the way behind Bell as we followed him through the mudroom, kitchen, and into the dining room.
“I just put on a pot of coffee.” Jared looked at each of us as we sat. “I’ll bring out four cups.”
Since I had been home and changed clothes, I didn’t have a notepad with me, but Frank did. It and a pen were sitting on the table when Jared returned and pulled out his chair.
“You need to tell us everything Vance said and why he called you at all. Have you ever represented him?” Lutz asked.
“Never, but you do know the Vasquez family uses my services all the time.” He checked our expressions for confirmation, and I nodded. “Anyway, I’m sure John had my contact information since several of
the Vasquez boys worked in his organization. Knowledge is king in the world of crime.” He straightened out the place mat in front of him. “If it wasn’t, I wouldn’t have a job.”
Frank tapped the pen against his notepad. “And we wouldn’t either.”
As Lutz rearranged himself in the chair, he let out a long sigh. “Go ahead from when you got the phone call.”
“He was to the point. The call only lasted five minutes at most. He knew where I lived, my wife and kids’ names, and mentioned that he had men stationed outside my home.”
“What did he want?” I asked.
Pressing his temples, Bell shook his head then answered. “Since I’m the attorney for both Maria Vasquez and Mark Conway, and the only person with private visitation privileges, he wants me to kill them.”
“What! The nerve of that bastard!” Frank yelled out. “He doesn’t want a single person left alive that had a part in his disappearance or can find him, and one by one, they’re dropping like flies.”
Jared wrung his hands. “What am I supposed to do? Vance made it clear that my family will be in danger if I don’t kill Maria and Mark before their arraignment on Monday.” Tears welled up in Bell’s eyes. It was clear that he feared for the lives of him and his family.
I didn’t understand John’s logic. He had to know that Jared would be convicted of the murders. No one else had that kind of access to the inmates. “You do realize that if you kill them, you’ll go to prison yourself, that is unless John gets to you first. He’s tying up loose ends, and everyone is fair game.” My statement gave me pause. Was John gunning for me, too, or had enough time passed? I wondered if his only focus was the current threat to his freedom and those people involved or whether I was in imminent danger as well. A life-threatening blindside might be headed my way.
“How exactly did he want you to kill them?” Lutz asked. “It isn’t like you can take weapons with you inside their jail cells.”
Jared’s hands shook as he poured a round of coffee for all of us. “He suggested poisons like strychnine and aconite and said both were readily available on the internet.”
“Jesus!” Lutz locked eyes with Jared. “I need to put you and your family in protective custody right away.”
“But how does that get those hired guns outside off my back? They’ll follow me wherever I go, and if not them, it’ll be someone else. Vance reminded me how far of a reach he has. That’s not to mention his unlimited amount of money. He said he’d pay me one hundred thousand dollars to do the job.”
I closed my eyes and mentally calculated who would be left if Maria and Conway were dead—no one other than Jared Bell and Abraham Cruz, who was in the wind. John’s hatred for me wasn’t tied to Tina Morton’s murder or the people who helped him escape. It was all about Jake. John and I would eventually do our dance, I was sure of it, but in that moment, all that mattered was making him believe Jared Bell had carried out his wishes and killed Mark Conway and Maria Vasquez.
An idea was forming, and I needed to get it down on paper before it vanished like smoke in the wind—I was just that tired. But if the plan worked, we could draw John Vance in and put him back in a cage where he belonged. That time, little brother Curt would join him, and they would both spend the rest of their lives behind bars.
Chapter 48
The hour passed with more coffee and brainstorming. Our plan was about to take on a life of its own, and the pieces would be put in place tomorrow. The confirmation of Maria and Mark Conway’s deaths wouldn’t reach John until Sunday, though, since moving too quickly might make him suspicious. To be convincing, Bell needed John to think it had taken time to buy the online products and have them sent by overnight delivery.
“How were you supposed to contact him with proof of death?” I asked. “You can’t sit in Mark and Maria’s cells all day, waiting for them to die just so you can take pictures of their bodies.”
Frank snickered. “Plus, that would sort of incriminate you as the killer.”
“He said as their attorney, I could request the forensic pictures of how they were found. He texted me a random phone number to send the photos and the autopsy reports to, and I assume everything will pass through a dozen other phone numbers before it ever reaches him.”
“How did he call you?”
“From a blocked number.”
“First things first,” Bob said. “You’re leaving with us, and we’ll set you up in a hotel near our district police station. I want you to call or text your wife and have her and the kids meet us there. Now go pack some things. You’ll be in too much danger if you come back to the house later to get necessities.” Lutz gave him a nod. “It’ll all be okay. Go ahead.”
While we waited, Frank conducted a DMV search for the plate number of the car outside. He found that it was registered to a corporation and not an individual. We had no reason to detain the men sitting inside unless we found out who they were and whether outstanding warrants were in the system for either of them. Frank forwarded the photo of their faces to Tech. If we were lucky, facial recognition software would get a hit on at least one of them.
I glanced up from my phone as Jared reentered the room with a packed suitcase in each hand.
“I hope this is wrapped up in a few days. It’s all I packed for.”
Lutz stood. “Grab your house keys, phone, charger, and wallet, and let’s go.”
I checked the alley for cars or people that hadn’t been there before. We were clear to leave. Moving quickly, we returned to Lutz’s SUV, tossed the bags in the back, and climbed in. Finally taking a breath, Jared texted his wife and told her to meet us at the Holiday Inn Express Wentworth, and there, in the safety of the two-bedroom suite, we would explain everything we intended to do to shut down John Vance once and for all.
Elizabeth and the two kids joined us at the hotel at nine o’clock. With the children tucked away in the second bedroom with their video games, the five of us sat in the living room area, and Jared explained the phone call he’d received from John Vance.
With tears in her eyes, Elizabeth blurted out her fear. “I thought defense lawyers were safer from harm than prosecutors. You’re defending the criminals for God’s sake. Why is that man threatening you?”
I tried to explain to Elizabeth how the mind of a sadistic maniac worked. “He wants to cover his tracks, so he’s having everyone killed that’s associated with him. Honestly, a madman like John Vance not only lacks empathy but also the ‘telling right from wrong’ gene. He kills as easily as he orders a meal at a restaurant and feels no remorse afterward. It’s what’s in his best interest that matters. He’s a dangerous man, and the best and safest place for you and your family is right here at the hotel, and our station is less than five blocks away.”
Elizabeth pulled the curtain aside and looked out over the half-full parking lot. “This isn’t home, that’s for sure.”
Frank poured a glass of water and handed it to her. “With any luck, you’ll be back home before Monday. Just consider it a weekend getaway for the kids, and try to make the best of it. There’s a nice restaurant downstairs, a game room, exercise room, and of course, the swimming pool. I think the kids will like it here. Temporarily, I mean.”
She gave Frank a weak smile. “I’ll do my best to keep my anxiety to myself. The kids don’t need to know the real reason we’re here.”
With that comment, we wrapped up the night. Frank, Lutz, and I said our goodbyes to Jared and his wife. We still had to go back to Wild Willy’s and pick up our cars, and tomorrow would be a full day of getting the paperwork in order, confirming our intentions with the chief, and going over the fake “coroner’s findings” with Don. Everyone had to be on board in order to pull off the deaths of Maria Vasquez and Mark Conway and make them seem believable to John Vance. Our plan to get him back behind bars had to go off without a hitch.
Chapter 49
I planned to spend a half hour of playtime with Bandit while my thirty-minute freezer-to-table stro
ganoff baked in the oven. Since eating wings at the bar had been a bust, I was starving for food like Bandit was starving for my affection, which I happily gave every chance I could. With my busy schedule, taking on a dog hadn’t been at the top of my to-do list. It wouldn’t be fair to a pet, but because of our history and the fact that Bandit was Jenna’s dog, there was no way I wouldn’t do my damnedest to make it work out for both of us.
“Where’s your ball, buddy?” I watched as Bandit searched the living room for his favorite tennis ball. He had no idea it was squeezed in my fist. When I finally tossed it across the room, he leapt into action and skidded across the hardwood floor like he was on ice skates. I laughed out loud—probably the first time I’d laughed in days—and it felt good.
I hoped the beer I drank with my supper would help me sleep. Thinking about the plot we would put into action tomorrow would not only keep me awake, but also, I’d probably outline every step of the process on paper too. I needed to close my eyes and turn off my mind.
“Okay, Bandit, one more break and then it’s lights out.” I opened the slider, and the motion-sensor lights came on. Everything was working just as it ought to.
I was in bed by eleven thirty and would be lucky to get six hours of sleep, but that would do me fine—I’d lived with much less throughout my life as a cop.
“Come on, boy. Hop up here and get comfortable.” I watched as Bandit jumped up on the end of the bed, did three spins, and settled into his spot. I turned off the table lamp, sucked in and blew out a deep breath, and finally felt my body relax.
I woke to the alarm buzzing on my phone, and the fact that it was Saturday didn’t change a thing. I was up by seven and in the shower by ten after. The coffee perked, and Bandit gobbled down his bowl of kibbles while I got ready for work. My standard bagel and coffee would hold me over until lunch, if there was time for one, and dinner would happen whenever it happened, if at all.
