Initiation in Paradise

by Deborah Brown

  “You’re going to need two car explanations, since you let your family believe that you got rid of the Hummer. How are you going to explain its reappearance?”

  “I’ll think of something inane. I’m more worried about explaining this new ride to Creole, since when we left, it was on a paperwork job and I haven’t placed a frantic call.”

  Fab laughed wickedly. “I’ve got advice for that.”

  “No thanks.” I turned and looked out the window.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Fab dropped me off at my house and drove the short distance to her house.

  “Honey, I’m home,” I yelled, banging the door behind me. I spotted Creole sitting on the couch, appearing faintly amused as I twirled toward him, curtseying and flinging myself into his arms.

  He kissed me and set me back on my feet. “We don’t have time.”

  “Are you sure?” I scowled at him.

  “Harder came to town for some reason I’m not privy to and stopped by the office. He suggested that we go to dinner, and instead, Didier invited him over. Harder then asked that Help be included.” Creole slapped me on the butt. “You need to change.”

  “It must be important for the big gun to come to town.”

  I showered and changed into a black dress that I’d gotten while out shopping with Fab, pairing it with slide heels. When he saw me, Creole whistled and put his arm around me, walking me out the door and helping me into his truck.

  It surprised me that he didn’t comment on the absence of the Escalade, but he probably figured that Fab had absconded with it, as she was known to do just that. It was rare that Fab’s driveway was full of vehicles, but when we pulled in, Help’s truck was parked there, along with a Mercedes sedan and the SUV that was the Escalade’s replacement.

  Fab stood in the doorway and waved. “Did you know anything about this?” she asked as I walked into the entry.

  “Last-minute invite. Let’s hope the food is good,” I teased.

  Creole greeted Didier and Harder, while Help, who was tending bar, held up a couple of bottles.

  The doorbell rang. I turned to Fab, who shrugged, then walked over and opened the door.

  Mila charged into the room, flowers in hand, which she presented to Fab. Brad came in immediately behind her.

  “They’re gorgeous,” Fab gushed, picking her up and swinging her around.

  “My brother?” I said to Creole, who shook his head; he hadn’t known Brad had been invited either.

  “Where’s my baby girl?” a deep male voice boomed from behind Brad.

  “Caspian.” Fab rushed toward her father, and he enveloped her and Mila in a three-way hug, which the little girl loved. She held out her arms to the man.

  “Caspian’s the party crasher; I’m along for the fun.” Brad laughed. To the questioning stares, he said, “Caspian stopped by the office—looking for anybody but me, I’d guess—and when I informed him of Didier’s furtive dealings and the dinner I’d overheard plans for, he said, ‘they’re always saying stop by anytime.’ So here we are.”

  “Everyone is welcome anytime,” Fab assured us, backing it up with a look that defied anyone to challenge her, and when no one contradicted her, she headed to the kitchen, Mila skipping next to her.

  “You’re getting worse than Mother,” I said to Brad.

  He hugged me and kissed my cheek. “Speaking of…if you don’t want Mother to know about this, you better be tight-lipped; she won’t be hearing it from me.”

  Didier made the introductions, leading us into the living room/dining room that was the focal point of the u-shaped house. It had a breathtaking view of the pool area and the water beyond. Creole took drink orders.

  “If this dinner has anything to do with the goings on in Card Sound, I should’ve been invited.” Brad huffed in annoyance, his eyes full of amusement. “I played an instrumental role on the day the security system went in.”

  “How so, dude?” Help questioned, handing him a beer.

  “I did my best to stay out of the way. When called on to check out the nearby mangroves for dead bodies, I didn’t say ‘hell no,’ which was my first thought.”

  “You’re a team player,” Help said, the corners of his lips quirked.

  “That’d be me. Helpful dude.” Brad grinned.

  “Thank you for hosting this impromptu get-together.” Harder tipped his glass to Fab and Didier.

  After dinner, we stayed seated at the dining room table. Dark clouds had rolled in late in the afternoon and loomed on the horizon, threatening a downpour. The sliding pocket doors had been pushed back, and a breeze wafted in across the water.

  Fab had filled an oversized chair with pillows, making it comfortable for Mila to stretch out in. Headphones on, she watched a cartoon on the television that hung on the wall.

  Harder stood and excused himself, coming back to the table with his briefcase.

  “That reminds me,” Didier said, eyeing the paperwork the chief was shuffling through. He left and came back with a manila envelope that he placed in front of Fab. “Special delivery from Toady. I’m to hand it to you directly. Not sure what else he thought I’d do with it. But now I have witnesses.”

  “Oh good.” I clapped. “Let’s hope it’s full of cash.”

  “Is that why Toady said to tell you, ‘I didn’t threaten the man, but he knew I meant business’?” Didier asked.

  Fab opened the envelope, peered inside, and smiled. “I thought I was going to have to put Bostwick in the freebie column. Thank you for dealing with this for me.” She nodded at me.

  “Cheap bastard thought he was going to trick you and stiff you. I don’t think so,” I said fiercely.

  Harder’s eyebrow shot up. “Make sure it’s not counterfeit; it’s on the rise again. We had a lull, but now twenties are showing up around town.”

  Didier related the rodent-on-a-leash story, which had everyone laughing. “Toady told me that he’d made acquaintances in the neighborhood and booked a pony-sitting gig that he and the kid are going to take care of while the owners take a short trip to Europe.”

  “Ponies? Star Island?” I said to Harder.

  “Really rich people.” Harder shrugged. “You can bet that if there’s an ordinance against it, and there probably is, one of the neighbors will get hot on the phone to report them and then, hopefully, said pony will be moved to more appropriate surroundings.”

  “Hopefully, it’s house-trained.” I laughed, trying to picture that.

  “You’ve had too much to drink.” Creole covered the top of my wine glass.

  “I’d like to meet this Toady person,” Caspian said.

  “He’s quite enamored with your daughter, and I believe he’d do anything for her,” I said, winking at Fab.

  Fab’s cheeks turned pink.

  “I’m working on rehabbing Toady’s appearance so he’s not an ad for thug-wear,” Fab said. “I convinced him it was better to come as a surprise to unsuspecting people, so he could lay them out on the concrete in a split second.”

  “That’s a good idea. It’s exactly what Mother did for Spoon,” I said.

  “I’ve met Toady a couple of times,” Harder said. “He’s got friends in the department that speak highly of him, and no rap sheet, which is a good thing.” He opened his briefcase and took out five photos, setting them on the table. “Recognize any of these fine criminals?”

  The pictures were passed around.

  Help recognized three of the four young men. “I’ve seen them around Card Sound, but not lately.”

  “This one—” I tapped the photo of the only woman. “—is Addy Clegg, creepy woman who got rid of the Hummer in record time. Since it ended up with that criminal Deuce, they must have had a business relationship, and considering the speed of the disappearance, it wasn’t the first time.”

  “If Addy had her way, we wouldn’t have gotten out of there alive,” Fab said. “She didn’t think twice before pulling the trigger.”

  Brad finger
ed the photo of the last man. “He’s the driver who cut me off where the road merges with Highway One, then slowed, rolling down his window to flip me off. I turned in the opposite direction, not wanting any trouble.”

  “If these are cretins from the mangroves,” I said, “you should hit up Cootie for a rundown on the neighborhood.” I went on to tell those that didn’t know how we’d met.

  “You make interesting friends,” Harder said with a hint of humor.

  “I rather like the old guy, and he did help us when we needed it without expecting anything in return. I can make the introductions, but I’d appreciate it if you didn’t arrest him for cooking moonshine.”

  “Distilling,” Creole corrected.

  Harder laughed and made a choking noise. “I’d be honored to meet Mr. Cootie.”

  “It’s Cootie Shine. It’s one of those deals where we’d need to show up at his trailer and knock, see if he’s around. He probably would be, since his truck is waiting on a part. I should check on that,” I said, more to myself than them.

  “What’s the story on the guys in the pictures?” Help asked Harder.

  “They’re members of a tight little club, The Bangers.” Harder’s eyes narrowed. “The initiation requires one to bring a victim and murder the unsuspecting person in front of the group.”

  Most of us sucked in a shocked breath. That kind of activity happened in other parts of the country, not in laid-back South Florida.

  “How did you catch this break?” Creole asked. “I’m assuming they’re not in custody.”

  “Got lucky with the arrest of this young man in Homestead.” Harder pointed to one of the pictures. “He drove the getaway car in a failed robbery, and low and behold, blood was discovered in the trunk. There were rumors about his affiliations, but he was a tough cookie. His so-called associates must have been worried he’d talk because he was attacked in jail, beaten up, and left for dead… He survived, and at the behest of his mother and a lawyer from the old neighborhood, a deal was brokered for him to turn state’s evidence. He’s currently in protective custody. With his help, we’re going to put this group in prison.”

  “Did he murder someone?” I asked.

  “He did not. Driving the getaway car was a test, one of many, which would’ve escalated to murder if he hadn’t gotten arrested. There were two other guys involved in the robbery, neither pictured here.” He flicked at the pile. “One’s body was dumped in a bay at a car wash. The other disappeared, and time will tell if he’s dead, but if he isn’t now, then he probably will be when one of the group catches up with him.”

  “I know the department has made deals with the devil for the greater good,” Creole said. “This guy isn’t so hard to take. Hope he takes his second chance and doesn’t waste it.”

  “Another thing.” Harder zeroed in on me, Fab, and included Help. “You need to stay away from Card Sound until we have everyone in custody.”

  “You don’t have to tell me twice,” I said. “That place gives me the creeps.”

  Fab agreed without having to be strong-armed. “About Addy, is she part of this club?”

  “She’s the mother of these three.” The chief pushed three pictures forward. “It’s hard to believe that she doesn’t know about her murdering spawn. But maybe not. There’s a lot of stupid people wandering around unattended. We’d like to have a long chat with her and ascertain for ourselves her involvement, or lack thereof.”

  “Addy didn’t come off as the picture of stability,” I said. “I have enough experience to know. She did fire that shotgun of hers a few times—the first two at us, but the last couple were, I think, a signal. Just my guess. Living out in the wilderness like that, there’s no one to complain about noise, and if someone did hear, they’d mind their own business.”

  “Do you have a place to stay?” Creole asked Help.

  “I’ve got vacation time coming and my plan is to sign on to a fishing boat that’s getting ready to pull out for a few days. Giving it a test run for a future second career. I know if I show up last-minute, I have a good chance of replacing a no-show,” Help told him.

  “If you run into any problems, give me a call; I can make it happen,” Brad said. He still owned the majority interest in his fishing boat, though it had been a long time since he’d captained it, leaving that to his partner. “If my boat’s getting ready to pull out, we’ll take you on; we can always use an extra hand. If not, I’ve got plenty of connections.”

  “Much appreciated,” Help said. “I’ve been meaning to talk to you about the fishing business, and there hasn’t been a good time.”

  “I don’t like finding out how dangerous this situation is,” Caspian glared at his daughter. “You’ve had plenty of opportunity to tell me, and you haven’t.”

  “After the initial confrontation, my only involvement has been setting up the cameras,” Fab said. “Like Madison, I have no desire to go back out there.”

  “Anything else to share?” Caspian’s brown eyes intensified on his daughter.

  Fab and I exchanged a who’s going to tell them? look.

  “This ought to be good,” Brad said.

  I rolled my eyes at Brad and kicked him under the table. I held out my hand to Fab, thumb poised as if to flip a non-existent coin.

  Fab waved my hand away. “I always lose these coin tosses of yours. I’ll tell them. We were rear-ended.”

  Nothing like jumping into the middle. “You might want to start at the beginning. Once upon a time…” Fab and I laughed.

  The men stared, unamused.

  “And I thought I was kidding,” Brad said.

  “It started out as a good deed.” Fab chuckled and went on to give them the detailed version of the day, not skimping, even though we were in the company of law enforcement.

  “So, your friend got real cops to show up and…” Harder said.

  “I didn’t ask. I did say that we needed the two detained long enough to make our getaway,” Fab said.

  “It was a good idea to swap out cars,” Creole said. “Felon couple, as you called them, will be on the lookout for the wrong vehicle. In addition, the window tint, which is illegal by the way, gives you some anonymity.”

  “You have interesting friends,” Harder said.

  “This particular connection is a friend of hers.” I pointed to Fab. “He’s been slow to warm up to me and tolerates me at best. No matter how much charm I unleash.” That got a laugh from Creole.

  “Anytime you need a car, I can have one here in an hour,” Caspian said. “Better yet, it will come with a driver that has a license to carry and the ability to kick ass.”

  Didier hugged Fab to his side. “It’s a full-time job keeping an eye on her.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Fab talked me out of the house with a bribe of coffee. It took the promise of extra whipped cream. She whisked me off to the Bakery Café, where I claimed our favorite seats. She went inside and ordered, coming back with a tray and, for once, her own danish and not just an extra fork to pick at mine.

  “I need to go to the office today, and if you’re a really good friend, you’ll come along without any grumbling.” Fab pulled out a chair, appearing ready to blurt out what was really on her agenda.

  “You’re in luck. I want to check on our assistant and make sure he’s none the worse for wear after hanging out with Toady all that time. I didn’t expect Toady to stay, but it seems to have worked out.”

  “Toady reported that they had a good time. Who’d have thought, when we first met him, that we’d end up working together?”

  “I think he fell in love with you when he pointed his gun at the windshield and you got out of the SUV and got in his face. From there, a yarn for the diehard romance reader could be spun, except no happy ending. At least, not for the two of you.”

  “Too much coffee already,” Fab tsked.

  “Thief,” someone yelled.

  We both looked up as a young guy barreled down the sidewalk, familiar
pink box in hand. Just as he passed our table, he tripped, face-planted in the box, and didn’t move.

  Fab shook her foot and stuck it back under the table.

  “He’s dead,” a woman two tables down shrieked.

  Fab extended her leg and kicked him in the butt…hard. “He twitched,” she yelled back as she straightened in her chair.

  The bakery owner, who I recognized, ran down the walk. Keeping her distance, she pulled out her phone.

  “I’d never have thought of sticking out my foot,” I said. “He’d be long gone. Maybe you’ll get your picture on the Internet. Hot, sexy woman stops pastry thief. Let’s hope he doesn’t die,” I whispered theatrically and got a glare, which amused me.

  “I don’t know what happened to the poor fellow, do you?” Fab asked with fake sincerity.

  I shrugged. “I was minding my own business when he fell…not on my feet, thankfully. Close enough.”

  “We should leave.”

  “We’re eyewitnesses.”

  “That don’t know anything,” Fab reminded me.

  “Wouldn’t be the first time.”

  A siren could be heard in the distance, getting closer.

  Fab’s phone rang, and she flipped me the screen before answering.

  Gunz. Again. I frowned, but knew this wasn’t the place for speakerphone. And besides, she wouldn’t do that for one of his calls anyway.

  A cop car double-parked in front of the café and Kevin got out. I waved.

  “It’s been a while,” he said as he got closer and checked out the not-so-dead guy, who was beginning to stir. An ambulance rolled up. Kevin left the thief to the EMTs and went to talk to the owner.

  Fab finished her call. “We have a job.” She sighed. “Another favor that Gunz has delegated to me.”

  “I’m afraid to ask.”

  “Welfare check.”

  “The last time, or maybe the time before…” I made a face. “Anyway…the kid—who wasn’t so young; grown adult, as I recall—turned out to be a mental patient and his girlfriend had outstanding warrants.”

  Fab gave me an are you finished? look. “In this particular case, it’s a woman in her nineties. Her daughter, a cousin of his sister’s cousin, had dinner with her mother last night, and when she called this morning, as she always does, the line was busy and has stayed busy. The daughter thinks her mother left the phone off the hook, as it’s happened before.”