Loose Ends (35 page)

“No. Even if this girl can't point a finger at The Suit, it won't make much difference. With what's happened, the coppers will soon piece it together, if they haven't already. I'll tell Wizard that The Suit is hot and to never deal with him again. If the cops roll him, they'll try to use him to get at us. Wizard's judgement has been clouded lately. I don't want him knowing about this kid and making another mistake. Once we find out who the rat is, make sure you clean the pig's apartment. It wouldn't be good if they found the bug.”

“Not a problem. We cut a spare key and he hasn't changed the locks yet.”

“I'm sure the rat is in the west-side chapter. I'll get Wizard to call a chapter meeting and pass on something juicy. Something that will make the rat want to meet with the coppers.”

“It's church night tomorrow for them. He could do it then.”

Damien nodded in agreement. “I'll meet with Wizard today and tell 'im what I want, so keep your ears tuned to that bug.”

“Sparks is doin' that as we speak.”

Damien gestured to the monitor and said, “Good job with this.”

Whiskey Jake appreciated the compliment and said, “Yeah, turned out pretty good. Didn't want to get much closer. On a farm like that, they could have a dog.”

“Stash it someplace safe.”

Whiskey Jake nodded to Thumper, who disconnected the camera from the monitor.

Thumper waited until Whiskey Jake and Damien left the apartment before making a telephone call to his friend in Montreal. The election was only five days away. Did his friend think that Wizard would become the new national pres?
Oui!

Thumper smiled to himself as he dialled another number. He was about to become a close friend of the future boss.

It was late afternoon and Sparks sat in the van reading a magazine while the sounds over the speaker told him that the pigs were putting groceries away. He sat bolt upright when he heard Danny yell from the kitchen, “Hey! Aren't we supposed to pay our friend tonight?”

Jack was in the living room, and his reply was easily heard. “Yeah, I'll slip out in an hour and do it. I have to go to the bank first. It won't take long. Why don't you stay and cook dinner?”

“Sounds good to me.”

Sparks was already using the portable radio. The timing was perfect. Within an hour they would have a complement of eleven vehicles. More than enough to follow this porker!

An hour later, Jack drove out of his underground parking stall and onto the street. The traffic was heavy, forcing him to drive slowly. The bikers followed him from a distance and watched him take money out of a cash machine.

Jack signalled a left turn but quickly changed lanes and turned right. Sparks squeezed the button on the microphone and said, “Did ya see that? Piggy is paranoid!”

Whiskey Jake's voice replied, “Everybody stay cool. We've got lots of wheels.”

The bikers watched as Jack made a variety of moves, including parking for a few minutes and watching traffic pass him before pulling back out onto the street.

After about twenty minutes, Jack's driving returned to normal and they followed him and watched him park.

“You got an eye?” asked Whiskey Jake.

“No problem,” said Sparks. “He's out and going into a restaurant called Giuseppe's. There's a place right out front where I can park.”

Seconds later, Sparks swore under his breath and kept his binoculars to his eyes as he radioed again. “I can see who he's meeting — but I don't believe it!”

Jack entered the restaurant and saw Stallion sitting by himself at a table. Jack walked over and sat down with him.

“Who the fuck are you?” said Stallion. “Get your own fuckin' table!”

Jack bent down and pretended to scoop something up off the floor and said, “Hey, buddy, I think this is your lucky day!”

“What the fuck you talkin' about?”

Jack held a rolled wad of money in his hand and said, “I saw this on the floor under your table. I presumed you dropped it.”

“What? Oh! Yeah! That's mine! Must've fallen out of my pocket when I sat down.” Stallion grabbed the money and said, “Thanks, man!”

“At least you could buy me a beer! Looks like quite a bit of cash there.”

Stallion thumbed through the money.
What a chump!
He chuckled and said, “Yeah, no problem. I'll have one too.”

Later that night, Lance anxiously hurried up to Jack and Danny in a small park near the pier where Wizard kept his boat.

“What's up?” Jack asked casually.

“I was hoping you would tell me! I'm supposed to meet Wizard on the dock in thirty minutes and bring a barrel. I've seen this picture before! Either I'm getting whacked or else they're gonna whack somebody else.”

“Trust me. You're not getting whacked,” replied Jack.

“And if they want me to kill someone? What should I do?”

“Do what you must to survive. We won't bust you for anything you need to do, but you also have to understand that you don't have immunity from any other cops.”

“Puts me in a fuck of a spot.”

“It's better than being in the spot of whoever's getting whacked.”

“You're sure it's not me?”

“It's not you. Meet us at the cemetery as soon as you're done.”

Danny passed the binoculars over to Jack and said, “I can make out Wizard and Rolly. Our friend is still sitting on the barrel by the gate to the marina. Looks like they're just talking.”

Jack peered through the binoculars for a moment, then said, “Here comes someone else pushin' a wheelbarrow. Looks heavy. It's … Stallion who's pushing it.”

Moments later, the four men boarded the boat and it slowly chugged out of sight. It was two hours later when the boat returned and three men got off.

Jack and Danny met Lance at the cemetery. His pale face shone in the moonlight as he leaned against a tombstone and folded his arms across his chest to try to stop the trembling.

“Was it quick?” Jack asked.

Lance slowly shook his head, then paused and said, “I guess it was quicker than it was supposed to be. Stallion didn't have a clue. He figured we were makin' a meet to whack someone else. When we were about forty-five minutes out, Wizard came up behind him and busted out half his ribs with a bat. I then hog-tied him. It was bloody awful. Rolly started blubbering like a baby and kept sayin' that he hadn't told him anything. Wizard didn't believe him. As punishment, he told Rolly that he would have to finish him off after.”

“After?” Jack asked.

“Wizard sat on his legs. He had a drill and started to work on his kneecap. I had to gag him after a few seconds because Wiz was worried about noise travelling over water, especially at night. Wiz barely got started again when Rolly lost it and put a slug through his forehead. Wizard was pissed off at him for killing him so soon.”

Jack caught the solemn stare that Danny gave him but looked at Lance instead and asked, “How are you doing?”

“I'm not exactly thrilled about it, but at least it takes the heat off me. Might do the same for you. With what happened, I think Wiz won't be so tight with Rolly. I could see it in Wiz's eyes tonight. Rolly's got no
respect now. He's lucky that Wiz didn't waste him too. I'm sure I'll be able to slide in there and find out who The Suit is. Maybe not before the election, but soon.”

Jack and Danny were silent until they got back to the apartment. Danny flipped open the sofa and then said he was going to call Susan tomorrow and move back to his own house.

“Do you want a drink?” Jack asked.

“No. I'm sick enough.”

Three hours later, Jack got out of bed and went to the bathroom to get a glass of water. He turned on the light and looked at himself in the mirror. He didn't like what he saw.

Natasha was more than a little surprised at the message she got from her receptionist. A moment later she stood to give Marcie a hug as she walked into her office. Marcie stiffened and turned away, taking refuge in a chair.

Natasha sat back down and asked, “What are you doing here? How did you get here?”

“I hitched.”

“Aren't you supposed to be in school?”

Marcie nodded her head.

“I bet the school has already called Liz.”

“I phoned the school and pretended I was Liz. Told them I was sick and she was keeping me home.”

“Why are you here?”

“Don't tell anyone. Especially Jack! He'd kick my ass. I mean, my butt.”

“No problem there. Jack and I are no longer seeing each other.”

“Yeah, I know. I heard Liz talking to him. That's why I came to see ya. I wanted to tell you that Jack's a really neat guy.”

“I guess I see him a little differently than you.”

“I don't understand why … and I got the feeling that it's got something to do with me.”

Natasha stared at Marcie for a moment, then said, “It's personal.”

“I want you to know that Jack is the only guy I've ever trusted. He cares for me. Even though he wants real bad to catch the guy who murdered Ben and Liz's kids, he's told me that I would never have to get involved. Like testifying or anything. He said that he would look after it himself. The same goes for the freak who hurt me in the cabin.”

“Interesting.”

“You don't believe me, do ya?”

“It's sweet of you to try to do this, but I think it's best that I put you on a bus and —”

“Sweet of me! Fuck you! Don't treat me like a little kid! I wouldn't be alive if it wasn't for Jack! And you're the one who is supposed to be a doctor!”

Natasha paused for a moment, then said, “I apologize. I didn't mean to imply that you were a little child. What do you mean that I am supposed to be a doctor?”

“Jack sees things. Things that you probably should, but don't.”

“Such as?”

“Such as the night you met me out on the farm. I was going to commit suicide.”

“Suicide! What on earth for? You —”

“As soon as you and Jack came into the loft, he knew it right away. In fact, I think he already knew.”

“I didn't see that. I thought you were just playing. What —”

“Yeah, I know you didn't see it. Maybe you should get your eyes tested. But Jack did. He's talked to me lots since then. I feel better about myself now. I would never think of doing something stupid like that again.”

“That's good. You know if you ever feel —”

“If you and Jack don't click, then so be it. But if it's got somethin' to do with me, then I'm really pissed off, because I think he's a really good guy. He really cares about people. I think you're pretty stupid if you don't know that.”

Thumper watched as Wizard let The Suit into the motel room.

The Suit gestured to Thumper and said, “I take it this is Lance?”

“No. I changed my mind on that. This is Thumper. He's … better positioned than Lance. Wait till you see what he has to show ya and you'll know why.”

“So now who do I contact if need be?”

“If you can't reach me, contact Thumper. Use Rolly only as a last resort. Forget Damien altogether.”

“This gentleman now makes four who know me. I don't —”

“I know how ya feel. There's no need for anyone else to meet ya. Thumper is from a different chapter. Gives us more knowledge about what's going on. At least until the election. Then everyone will report to me.”

“Provided you win.”

“I'll win.”

Moments later, Thumper hooked up the camera to the laptop computer. Wizard glanced at The Suit and said, “Take a look at who Taggart is meeting!”

The Suit's response was exactly what Wizard had expected.

“That little cunt! What's she doing with him?”

“I know. I fuckin' near had a heart attack when I saw it too. He's got her stashed out at his sister's farm. His sister is the ol' lady of the kids we —”

“I know who his sister is! What is this little cunt doing there?”

Thumper cleared his throat and said, “We think that maybe she can identify you. Taggart has got her stashed there for safekeeping.”

“Jesus Christ!”

“It's good that Thumper let us know. That fuckin' Damien wasn't gonna tell us!”

“Jesus Christ!” The Suit repeated.

“Now that the pigs don't have a rat anymore, she's the only other loose end,” said Wizard.

“Her and that fucking Taggart! He needs to be dealt with as well!”

“Exactly. I'll do 'em both, but we should wait until after the election on Monday.”

“Forget that! We could be in jail by then! Or from what I know about Taggart, we could be dead.”

“If we whack them, Damien will be pissed. If I don't win the election, he'll have me whacked for doin' it.”

“And me too,” added Thumper, looking at Wizard. “So you better fucking win.”

“You'll win — especially if you do exactly as I tell you,” said The Suit. “I've got a plan that will earn you enough — what do you call it? — class to become national president for as long as you want.”

“How?”

“Simple. Grab the little bitch when she's alone someplace. As soon as you do, I'll set up Taggart and O'Reilly so they're easy to kill. If Taggart's body is never found, and O'Reilly and the little bitch are killed with Taggart's gun, it'll make it look like Taggart
flipped out and shot them. Especially if there are no ligature marks.”

Thumper leaned forward in his chair and said, “I can handle six guys and not leave a visible mark on 'em. Ten, if I was in a locked room with 'em.”

“But how?” asked Wizard. “This will never work! They…”

The Suit raised his hand and gestured for Wizard to stop. “I have a plan. Don't you think I know how cops think? All you need is the proper evidence. This will work. If we have to, kill his sister and her hubby, too. Won't really matter. Use a shotgun on them, just like their kids. Leave it in Taggart's trunk and the police will conclude he was also responsible for murdering their children. Arrange for the appropriate evidence in his apartment.” He paused, then said, “It would be prudent to have one or two others to assist. How about this Lance fellow?”