I laughed, almost spitting out a mouthful of salad. “Yeh, the FBI and I go back a ways. Some not very good, and some really, really bad.”
Mike tapped the table. “Back to the here and now. This second attempted attack at Wildacres sounds like a follow up effort to capture or kill you because of your activities in Charlotte. And something more.” He turned to Long. “Tell them the information you got.”
“All three men had been killed before the tripwire caused the explosion. A simple grenade with its timer removed made for an excellent booby trap after they were done. They’d been tortured fairly extensively before dying.”
“Any particular style of torture?” Dave asked.
“Good question,” Long said. “I’d say it was done by experts. Individual nerve groups were isolated that would give the most pain, according to the doctor who examined the bodies.” He scratched his head, a mildly puzzled look crossing his face. “This isn’t Crosby’s style. She tends to just kill people and be done with it. You think she’s hired some independents to look for Willie?”
I nodded. “I’ve been getting a feeling that there’s a third party searching for him, besides Crosby and me. You think she’s tapped into another gang’s resources?”
Long gave a quick shake of his head. “Not likely. Wouldn’t want to share the wealth if they recovered the counterfeit bills.”
“I’ve heard there are specialists for hire,” I said, taking a last bite of salad before pushing the rest away.
Mike gave a short nod. “And that’s what I’ve been thinking. Crosby’s found herself a team that’s good at extracting information.” He rubbed his neck, trying to relax. “This particular group is pretty good, too. The EOD team said the booby trap was done by real experts, not just wannabes like a lot of them are.” He turned to me. “What I’ve been wondering, is why Willie’s so hot to get his hands on you. Sure you foiled their attempt to kill Lenny, but there seems to be more involved. You got any ideas?”
I hesitated. “Not sure why Willie’d want to do more than kill me. Unless he thinks I’m somehow involved in his money disappearing.” I resisted the urge to look at Dave. Hopefully Mike bought my reasoning. Wouldn’t want him digging too deep after the money we’d scooped out of Willie’s accounts. We’d probably covered our tracks well enough, but didn’t want to test it.
Mike broke eye contact with a shake of his head and glanced at Long. “Well, I think we’ve gotten all we’re going to from these two unfortunates. Time to go chat with the State cops again. Stay close, guys, at least until tomorrow afternoon. Okay?”
“Will do.” I lifted a hand towards Agent Long. “We’ll be out in a minute, that okay?”
Dave and I remained seated as they left the restaurant at a rapid walk. “What’re your thoughts about this being a group of specialists who’ve joined the hunt?” I asked, swinging towards Dave.
“Doesn’t feel right, but I’m not the expert,” he said, tossing some money on the table as he stood with a shrug and headed out the door.
Once outside I stopped, watching the hustling bustle of traffic flowing by. My anger was still there, just buried at the moment. I wanted to kill them, just had to proceed cautiously. I started on, joining Dave and Agent long.
CHAPTER NINE
The eleven o’clock news was just tuning up when the phone rang. I hesitated, thoughts kicking in about all-knowing killers giving me a call before lowering the boom. “Damn imagination,” I grumped, picking up the phone. “Yes?”
Francis? This is Lenny.”
I breathed a relieved sigh. “Glad you called. My mind was getting too wound up. You still on the clock, or is this a social call?”
She gave a low chuckle. “You wish. No, I just got a call from Agent Hilyard. He’s on his way back to Charlotte, and wanted you to know you didn’t need to stick around anymore. Apparently nothing new’s come up.”
I stood, giving a stretch mixed with relief and fatigue. “That’s good, I guess. Why the change in plans?”
“The case moved on to new ground. Law enforcement traced the vehicle you and Dave reported to a storage yard, where it’d been stolen from. Car was spotted and pulled over. Unfortunately, the two perps escaped on foot. The locals said they’d have them in custody in short order.”
I sat back in the easy chair, staring through the TV screen. “And what’s your thought on that particular subject?”
“They’re full of it, in my opinion. If these guys are good as you and Mike think, they’re long gone.”
“My thoughts exactly. Any other news?”
“Yes, and it directly impacts you and Dave. There’s a large reward out on both of you, preferably alive. I’d suggest you dig a deep hole and jump in for awhile, at least until the heat on you lets up a bit.”
“Understood. Hey, I couldn’t convince you to come be my bodyguard, could I?”
“Uh-Of course not, that’s what Dave’s for.”
I perked up at the hesitation I’d caught in her voice. Hm, something to look into later, maybe. “Yeah, right. Spoilsport. You want us to touch base with you once in awhile?”
“Yes, give me a call about noon each day so we can share updates. Or anytime if the situation warrants. At least until all this blows over.”
“Will do. Until tomorrow.”
“Stay safe, Francis.”
I stared at the phone a few seconds before putting it down. I’d definitely felt a spark there.
Almost an hour passed before I was able to drift off, images of Lenny floating through my head.
* * *
Next day it was mid-morning when our plane took off. We’d gotten a non-stop flight to Washington, which took some of the suffering from the trip. Plus being in first class seats helped.
“This is great, man!”
