A Midsummer Night's Murder

by Colleen Helme

  “Hmm…” Dimples scratched his forehead. He wondered how Manetto fit in with all of this. Did Manetto have anything to do with the gangs in the city? Did he know about Scorpion, and his plans to take over the drug business? Is that why Ramos was involved? He glanced my way, hoping I’d answer, but not sure I would. Was I too wrapped up in Manetto’s organization to tell him, even if it was the right thing to do?

  Whoa! Talk about pressure. “Uh…I don’t know the answer to any of that. As far as I know, Uncle Joey isn’t involved. But, I’m sure he still likes to know what’s going on in the city.”

  “Sure. Okay. So what do we do now? How do we prove that Scorpion killed Molly May? Did you get anything from him about how he did it?”

  “Not really. We didn’t talk to him long enough. But…maybe if you bring him in for questioning, I’ll pick something up.”

  “Like what? Sure, we have motive, but, other than that, there’s no evidence. Angel’s gun was wiped clean. There’s nothing to tie him to the scene. He even called the police. Short of a confession, we’ve got nothing.”

  I thought back to his images of Molly. “Well, if he killed her, maybe he got her blood on his clothes? I didn’t see the police report, but you could check if the bullet wound would have left a blood splatter on him somewhere, right?”

  “Yeah,” Dimples nodded, liking the possibility. “I think she was shot at close range, so that might be something we could check into. I could get a warrant, and we could go through every square inch of his house and property. This could work, but we need to do it fast, before he’s had a chance to get rid of it. I’ll head back to the station and talk to the forensics team. Then I’ll get a search warrant.”

  “Okay,” I agreed. “Do you want me to come?”

  “I’ll call you when I get the warrant. If it’s within the next hour or two, Scorpion should still be working, and I can meet you at his house.”

  “Sounds good.”

  While Dimples hurried to his car, I glanced toward the building, and caught sight of a black sedan pulling up in front of the entrance. The driver got out of the car and walked toward the entrance with the keys. A moment later, Scorpion came out, carrying a briefcase. He took the keys from the driver, and got behind the wheel.

  Since I had time to kill, maybe I should follow Scorpion, and see where he went? Maybe I could learn more about him and his organization that would turn up evidence of Molly’s murder. I knew he was meeting with Ramos, and I didn’t think Ramos would mind if I was close by, as long as I kept my distance.

  I turned to make a mad dash for my car, and knocked into a person coming up behind me. My purse went flying and my keys fell to the ground. Ready to apologize, I glanced up to find the kid I knew as Casey, from the gang, staring down at me. Before I could utter a sound, he clamped his hand over my mouth and twisted my arm behind my back.

  The car Scorpion was driving pulled to a quick stop in front of us. Casey opened the back door, and shoved me inside the car. From the front seat, scorpion pointed a gun at me. “Keep quiet, or I’ll use this.” Fear rippled down my spine. It had a silencer on it, and he was dead serious.

  After retrieving both my purse and my keys, Casey jumped inside the car. As the door closed behind him, Scorpion stepped on the gas. I glanced out the back window, hoping that Dimples might have seen it all, but there was no sign of him anywhere.

  “Why are you doing this?”

  “Cuff her,” Scorpion told Casey.

  With more enthusiasm that I liked, Casey pulled my hands behind my back, and snapped a pair of handcuffs around my wrists. I glanced at him with the most guilt-inducing look I could muster. As he called me some really bad names in his mind, I realized that it hadn’t even fazed him.

  “Your mother would be so ashamed,” I said. That did the trick, and his tough-guy façade dropped for an instant before his jaw jutted out with contempt. I picked up his desire to hurt me, and my heart picked up speed. Lucky for me, he held back, thinking that I deserved whatever Scorpion did to me, and he hoped it wasn’t pretty.

  “I suggest you be careful about what you say,” Scorpion said. “If you value your life.”

  “I don’t understand,” I began. “Why are you doing this to me?”

  He shook his head. “It will all come together soon enough.” He was thinking that Casey had seen me leaving his office, and had told him I’d been with Ramos at Rod’s store the day before. When he added that I was Uncle Joey’s niece, it had all clicked. He realized that Ramos was the mysterious distributer he was meeting with in just a few minutes, and could hardly believe his luck.

  He’d immediately sent Casey to follow me, and was pleasantly surprised that I was still there, providing him with the perfect opportunity to grab me before his meeting with Ramos.

  Now he had to play his cards right. He still didn’t understand my link with the police, but if I was Manetto’s niece, he could use me as a bargaining chip.

  With me in his clutches, he was pretty sure the odds for taking over a large portion of Manetto’s territory were in the bag. Sure Manetto was a big deal, but his influence had spread further than Manetto knew, giving him the upper hand with two of the biggest gangs in the city. Not even Ramos could stop him now.

  I swallowed, and my stomach clenched with foreboding. This was bad. Then my rational mind kicked in, and I realized that, as much as Scorpion might think he had the upper hand, he didn’t know Uncle Joey, or Ramos, at all. And he didn’t know about me and my mind-reading skills.

  Then the other side of that equation helped settle me down. Dimples knew Scorpion had killed Molly and was, at this moment, getting a search warrant. Between Uncle Joey, Ramos, and Dimples, I knew one way or another, Scorpion was going down. I just had to make sure I lived long enough to see it happen.

  Chapter 6

  We arrived at our destination behind a Fast Money Payday Loan building. This one was located in a run-down neighborhood next to an old restaurant. Instead of entering the loan building, we followed Scorpion toward the back of the restaurant, and up the outside staircase to the second floor.

  At the top of the stairs, Scorpion unlocked the door, and ushered us inside to a large office space with a desk and filing cabinets on one side, and a couch and coffee table on the other. Scorpion headed through a doorway that led to a small apartment, thinking that he needed to gear-up before he met with Ramos.

  Casey propelled me toward the couch, and I sank into the soft cushion, but couldn’t get comfortable with my hands cuffed behind my back. While waiting for Scorpion, I figured now was a good time to get Casey talking, or rather, thinking.

  “Do you really think Scorpion can take on Uncle Joey?”

  “What?” Casey’s brows rose with alarm. He had no idea that was the plan. Then he realized he’d given himself away, and carefully schooled his features to a semblance of nonchalance.

  “Well…it’s your funeral, but I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes when Ramos gets here. Scorpion may think he’s got it together, but he’s got nothing on a hit-man like Ramos. Do you know how many people Ramos has killed? He wouldn’t think twice about putting an end to your sorry, double-crossing, two-timing life.”

  Casey swallowed. He’d only met Ramos for the first time yesterday, and he didn’t know much about Manetto, but he’d heard rumors that no one had ever crossed them and lived to tell about it. But maybe that’s all they were…rumors to keep people in line. He hadn’t heard of anyone showing up dead lately.

  “You might think those are just rumors,” I said, hoping to get under his skin. “But believe me, Uncle Joey can’t abide anyone who grovels, runs, or double-crosses him.”

  Casey’s eyes widened, then he thought about Kato, one of the gang members who’d disappeared recently. He’d thought the guy had just gotten tired of taking orders and left, but what if he was dead?

  I didn’t know anything about that, but I figured I might as well use it. “In fact, you remember Kato don’t you? He said some
thing he shouldn’t have, and now…well…let’s just say he’s pushing up daisies in an old mineshaft somewhere.”

  That rattled Casey, and his breath hitched. Maybe he had chosen the wrong side after all. His gaze went to the door and he thought about leaving. But before he could move, Scorpion came back into the room.

  He was dressed in jeans and black biker boots, with a hoodie to conceal the gun strapped to his waist. I picked up that he wore a Kevlar vest under the hoodie for extra protection, and had concealed more than one knife in his pockets.

  He was thinking he was twenty minutes late rather than his usual half an hour, but he’d already gotten a text from Rex telling him that Ramos was there, and he didn’t feel like waiting any longer.

  He glanced my way, wishing there was a better way to ensure my cooperation, but since he didn’t know how much trouble I’d be, the storage room would have to suffice. He took out his phone and snapped a couple of pictures of me, knowing he’d need proof that he had me in his clutches.

  “Let’s take her to the basement,” he told Casey. “And I’ll need you to wait with her until I come back.”

  Casey nodded and grabbed my arm, pulling me to my feet. Scorpion led the way back down the outside stairwell. At the back of the building, he pulled open a double-door and flipped a light switch. The light revealed steps that led downward into a dark storage space.

  I didn’t want to go down there much, but I knew Casey was having second thoughts, so there was still a chance I could talk him into letting me go. After Casey and I started down the stairwell, Scorpion shut the doors and locked us in. Casey jerked with alarm, and his breath hitched.

  He took one look at my knowing expression and shook his head before continuing down the stairs. At the bottom, he flipped another switch, lighting up the large storage space. A chill ran down my spine, and my stomach clenched. The last time I’d been in a basement storage area, I’d gotten shot, and fear gripped my heart.

  “I have a bad feeling about this.” I knew I was quoting a movie but, since it totally applied, I couldn’t help it. Piles of discarded tables and chairs littered the space. A few broken-down arcade machines rested against one wall, clouded by dust and rubbish.

  Another corner held cardboard boxes and a filing cabinet. Our feet left footprints in the dust, and I knew no one had been down there in a long time.

  The lone lightbulb hanging in the center of the room made a buzzing sound and flickered. I held my breath, waiting for it to go out, but nothing happened. I glanced at Casey. “How about you unlock my handcuffs, and we try and get out of here?”

  His Adam’s apple moved up and down as he swallowed. He was thinking that he could probably get out of there just fine on his own, and unlocking my cuffs was a last resort. He turned around and fled back up the stairs. He tried the door handle, even though it was locked up tight. Next, he heaved his shoulder against the doors a few times, but all that got him were a few bruises.

  I let out an exasperated breath. He was wasting precious time. “I know how to pick a lock.”

  That caught his attention. With reluctance, he came back down beside me. Taking the key from his pocket, he unlocked the cuffs. I pulled them from my wrists, and dropped them on the floor. Letting out a relieved breath, I gratefully brought my hands together and rubbed my sore wrists.

  I turned to tell him thanks, but froze to find that he held a gun pointed at me. “What? Are you nuts?”

  “Just shut up, and get that door opened.”

  “Uh…I need my lock-picking tools, and they’re in my purse. But maybe we can find something that will work in one of these boxes.” I hurried to a box before he could stop me and pulled it open, looking for anything that I could use as a weapon.

  Finding mostly dirty dishes, I kept looking until coming across a box of pots and frying pans. I grabbed the biggest frying pan I could see, and pulled it out. I could barely lift it with one hand, and realized it was made of cast iron.

  Before I could reach for a different pan, voices sounded from outside. A key rattled in the door, then it swung open, letting in a shaft of light.

  Startled, Casey froze, glancing at me with big eyes. Then he seemed to realize that he had nothing to fear, and I was the one making him nervous. I hid the pan behind my back and moved to stand beside him. “Scorpion doesn’t know you have a gun, so you should put it away.”

  With a jerk, he quickly slid it into the back of his pants, and tried to compose his features. It shocked him that I knew that little detail. How was that possible? He brought the gun to protect himself if something went wrong, but how did I know that?

  “After you,” Scorpion said, and I watched as black biker boots, then legs covered in dark jeans, and finally, Ramos’s handsome face came into view. Scorpion held a gun at his back, and followed him down the steps just out of reach. “See. She’s fine.”

  Ramos held my gaze, asking if I was all right in his mind. I gave him a quick nod and his lips thinned. He was thinking that he couldn’t believe that Scorpion had captured me. How did I get into so much trouble without even trying?

  Scorpion moved to the opposite wall where Ramos couldn’t reach him, knowing he had to be careful around the hit-man. “Here’s the deal,” he began. “It’s simple. Once Manetto and I come to an agreement, I’ll let her go. She could leave with you right now, and no one would need to get hurt.”

  “What’s the catch?” Ramos asked.

  Scorpion sighed, shaking his head like he was explaining to a six-year-old. “Like I said upstairs. In exchange for Shelby, you and Manetto agree to leave me and my operation alone. You no longer need to concern yourselves with the West Fifty-three’s or the South Side gangs.”

  “And if we don’t?”

  “Well, then things would go bad fast. People…” He glanced my way. “…like Shelby and her family, would start dying. You wouldn’t want that, especially when there’s plenty to go around for both of us. You stay out of my way, and I stay out of yours. It’s a mutually beneficial arrangement.”

  It sounded good, only he was thinking that he wanted it all. He was playing the long game. Once he got a toehold, he planned on increasing his influence until he had it all. Manetto wouldn’t last forever, and when the time was right, he’d take over everything Manetto had built. This was the perfect beginning.

  Ramos glanced at me, telling me in his mind to be ready because he wasn’t about to agree to anything. He wanted me to create a small distraction, nothing big, just something to take Scorpion’s attention from him.

  I gave him a slight nod, and turned to Casey. “Uh…Casey. I think it’s time to pick a side.”

  Casey couldn’t help looking between Ramos and Scorpion. They both scared him, but of the two, Ramos was the scariest. Still, Scorpion held a gun, and he couldn’t fight a bullet.

  Scorpion’s brows drew together and he shifted his attention to Casey, wondering what I was talking about. While Scorpion focused on Casey, I made my move, shifting the heavy iron pan into my right hand and swinging it for all I was worth.

  I’d planned on hitting the back of Casey’s head, but the pan was so heavy, that I ended up whacking his butt instead.

  A loud boom, followed by the yellow flash of a bullet, exploded from Casey’s gun. The bullet ripped through his pants, hit the cement, and ricocheted in my direction, hitting the pan I still held in my hands. Luckily, the cast iron deflected the bullet, causing the pan to fly out of my grip.

  Casey let out a scream and started jumping up and down like his pants were on fire. From the smoke coming out of them, it was probably true.

  My eyes widened with shock, and I glanced at Ramos, but he hadn’t made his move yet. Instead, he stared at me with his mouth open. Then all at once, he jolted into action and pounced on Scorpion like a bat out of hell. Scorpion’s gun flew from his hand, and Ramos attacked with lethal force. Scorpion had a few moves of his own, and managed to defend himself, landing a few punches on Ramos, and their fight turned deadly.
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  Casey stopped jumping long enough to take the gun out of his pants. I noticed a red stain spreading down his pant leg, and knew the bullet must have grazed him. Tears ran down his face, and he moaned in pain. Holding his butt, he raised the gun and pointed it at me.

  His hand shook, and I didn’t think he could see that well with all the tears, but I knew from his mind that he was still going to pull the trigger. I quickly dove to the side. The bullet struck the wall behind me, and I fell into a stack of boxes, causing them to tumble onto the floor around me. One of them missed my head, but two others hit my shoulders and thigh.

  As the dust cleared, I pushed them off me, and cringed to hear another gunshot. This one came from the other side of the room where Ramos and Scorpion fought. I couldn’t see Casey anywhere, but Ramos held a smoking gun in his hand. Scorpion took a few steps back, and then he fell to the floor, lying motionless on the ground.

  “Shelby?” Ramos said, coming to my side. “Are you all right?”

  “Yeah. I think so. Where’s Casey?”

  “He ran up the stairs.” Ramos quickly shifted the boxes away, and helped me stand. He looked me over, satisfied that I wasn’t hurt.

  “What about you?” I asked him. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes. I’m fine.” He glanced toward Scorpion. “But I’m sorry about Scorpion.”

  “Oh…don’t worry about him. He’s not dead.”

  Ramos’s brows rose with surprise. “How do you know that?”

  “He’s wearing a Kevlar vest. You shot him in the chest, right? So it’s all good.”

  Ramos wasn’t sure he liked that part, and he strode to Scorpion’s side to see if I was right. Since I didn’t want Ramos to shoot him again, I hurried after him. “Dimples is getting evidence on him for Molly’s murder, so I need him alive.”

  While Ramos checked Scorpion for a pulse, I searched his vest for the bullet. Before I could find it, Scorpion heaved in a huge breath, and let out a moan. His eyes fluttered open, and then widened in fear to find Ramos standing over him. He tried to get up, but Ramos held him down with his booted foot, right over the place where the bullet had hit him. Scorpion let out a strangled cry of pain.