rolled side to side.
Nick joined Joe in the kitchen. He helped Joe swallow two more OxyContin. Nick tore off four more strips of duct tape. From behind Joe, Nick cut the shoulder and waist tape.
“I’m going to slice the tape away from your wrists, Joe. Put your hands behind your back immediately. If you don’t, I’ll push you forward, right on your knees, understand?”
Joe nodded. Nick sliced the tape away from his wrists. Joe leaned forward, crossing his hands behind him. Nick put two of the strips around Joe’s wrists. Nick sliced the tape off Joe’s ankles and duct taped them together.
“Okay, Joe, time to go in the van. I’m going to ease you forward onto my shoulder and do a fireman’s carry out to the van. Don’t make this hard, or I’ll throw you on the floor and drag you out by your knees.”
Nick pulled the man over his shoulders, lifting with his legs to a standing crouch, and slowly trudged out to the Dodge van. He eased Joe inside the cargo area. Nick retrieved his duct tape and wrapped each man two full times around their chests and arms, immobilizing their upper bodies. Craig’s eyes verged on insanity. Nick patted his cheek.
“You’re lucky I don’t have time to play with you, Craig.”
Chapter Eleven
Nick closed the van doors. An hour later, Nick had bagged all the men’s personal items, and cleaned the living room and kitchen meticulously. His gym bag was repacked. One black garbage bag was tied closed near the front door. He walked to the staircase.
“I’m sure you all are hungry and thirsty, so come on down,” Nick called out.
When they were all sitting in Suzan’s kitchen, drinking sodas, and eating chips Suzan had served, Nick waited until they were through before speaking.
“Rachel, Jean, and I have to leave. I have a couple more errands to run. Tomorrow’s Sunday. Rachel and I would like to have you all over for the barbeque we missed today. Once we leave, this bad stuff will all be in the past. We’ll talk tomorrow, Suzan. Talk to no one until then.”
“I won’t,” Suzan promised.
“What if those guys come back?” Kelly asked.
“They won’t be coming back,” Jean told her with exasperation. “Are you stupid?”
“Jean!” Rachel rebuked her daughter. “You apologize right now!”
“Sorry,” Jean sighed. “I didn’t mean that, Kel.”
“It’s…it’s okay.”
“Can we go tomorrow, Mom?” Garth asked Suzan.
“Yes, I think we should,” Suzan answered, exchanging glances with Nick and Rachel.
Nick stood up. “C’mon you two, it’s almost dark. I’ll go out through the garage and get the van out of Suzan’s way. I packed an extra soda, and the Oxy, Suzan. I’ll bring back what’s left.”
“Keep them.”
Nick went out to the van with the garbage bag and his gym bag. He heard the loud grunts and groans from Craig as the man now thrashed around the cargo area. Nick opened the rear door. He used the stun gun on Craig until the man vibrated. Nick made a silencing motion with his finger to his lips for Joe, who was staring wide-eyed at him. Joe nodded his head energetically. With the trash and gym bags up front, Nick started the Dodge and backed it out to the street. He then put it in park and walked over to the Escalade driver’s window. Rachel had already opened it.
“Follow me. When you see me turn off into the dirt, stay where you are by the street. I’ll hike out to you. It won’t take me long.”
“Okay, Nick.”
“Don’t get caught speeding, Nick,” Jean called out from the back.
“Oh…Jinx! Thanks a lot, Jean.”
Nick waved and went to the Dodge. Half an hour later, Nick had driven the van out into the desert on the East side of Las Vegas until the wheels stuck. He took the garbage bag, gym bag, and cleaning supplies out of the van. Nick put on Nitrile gloves from his gym bag, and went to work with the bleach and paper towels, working around Craig and Joe in the back when he finished with the front. Satisfied the van was clean, Nick took out Carl Brewster’s weapon, which he had already packed earlier, wiped it off, and set it aside. He repeated the process with both weapons taken from Craig and Joe. With his stun gun and Joe’s weapon, Nick went in the back. After leaning the squirming Craig up into a kneeling position against the side of the van, he stunned Craig senseless. Nick crawled around behind Joe, helping him up so he was seated, leaning into Nick. Nick cut Joe’s hands free. Joe cried out as Nick forced his numb right hand up and wrapped it around Joe’s gun.
“Ready, aim, fire,” Nick joked, triggering the silenced auto with Joe’s numb finger twice. “Nice shooting, Joe – right between the horns.”
Nick propped Joe against the passenger rear seat after taking the weapon back. He used the old tape to bind Joe’s hands behind his back once again. Nick went out and brought back Brewster’s silenced auto. He cut all the tape off the deceased Craig, balling it up and putting it aside. Nick positioned himself behind Craig’s corpse, fitting Brewster’s weapon into Craig’s hand and aiming it at Joe.
“Say cheese, Joe, c’mon big smile now.” Nick fired two shots into Joe’s head with Craig’s finger. “Man, you two guys can really shoot.”
Nick left Brewster’s gun in Craig’s right hand and added Craig’s own Glock into his left hand, allowing them to rest on the dead man’s legs. Nick repeated the process with Joe, wadding up all the tape, and makeshift knee bandages, leaving Joe to stare off into eternity with his weapon in hand. He closed and locked the van after a final cargo area wipe down. With his gym bag in one hand and the garbage bag in the other, Nick jogged at a slow pace out to the road, nearly two miles away. When he reached the Escalade, he walked in front where Rachel could see him. He heard the doors unlock. After dropping his bundles off in the rear, Nick hopped into the front passenger seat. He took deep breaths and enjoyed the air conditioned air. Jean was fast asleep on the back seat.
“You look like you could use a beer.”
“Absolutely,” Nick said, leaning back with a sigh.
“It doesn’t get as cool in the desert at night as I thought it would.” Rachel handed Nick an ice cold mug. “I’m surprised you’re out here in the backyard.”
“There’s a breeze,” he replied, hanging on to her hand for a moment after taking the mug. He kissed her palm. “I like looking at the stars out here. Jean never stirred when I carried her to the bedroom. She was really out.”
Rachel sat down in the chair next to him, her own mug in hand. “We’re not going out in the desert at dawn tomorrow are we?”
“No, I think we should stay in tomorrow and wait until we talk to Suzan. I’ll check out Jim Benoit, then go through those bozos’ personal effects for names and addresses. We need to keep watching the news for updates on the roadside intervention I pulled in Bakersfield. We’ll stay apprised of any dead bodies being discovered around here too. I should be doing it now, but my batteries need charged.”
“You were amazing today. How many times have you done something like that?”
“Counting today, once.” He smiled over at Rachel. He could see her watching him, even though it was dark out on the patio. “I trained for hostage situations extensively when I was with Delta, but Delta doesn’t conduct hostage negotiations in the manner I did today.”
“Maybe they should.”
“Oh, you don’t go along with the ‘we have to be better than them’ line of thinking?” He shook his head in a disapproving manner. “By the way, you did exceptionally well today. That was one hard episode for an on-the-job training session.”
