Superbia (Book One of the Superbia Series) (8 page)

“Who the hell’s
banging on my door like that?” a male voice said from within.

“UPS,” Vic shouted
through the door.
 
“Package for Mr. Helen.”

The door opened
and Billy Helen stepped onto the porch, scratching his behind and yawning until
Vic stuck the barrel of his gun against Billy’s forehead.
 
“Move and you’re dead.”
 

He grabbed Billy
by the collar and yanked him away from the door, sticking his gun under Billy’s
nose, using it to lift his whole head.
 
“Keep
your voice down.
 
Who’s in there?”

“Nobody,” Billy said.
 

“Where’s your
wife and kid?”

“Come on, man,
they don’t have shit to do with this!
 
Leave them out of it.
 
Please, for
God’s sake, I’m begging you, just take everything you want and go.”

“What’s
everything?” Vic said.
 

“All of it.
 
I’ve got two ounces of coke under the sink, a
quap of weed, and a whole script of Percocet.
 
It’s all yours if you take it and go before they get home.
 
I’ll show you where it all is.”

“The coke’s under
the sink?”

“Right,” Billy
said.

“Where’s the rest
of it?”

“The weed is in a
shoebox on top of my closet and the Percocet is inside a baggie in my
pillowcase.
 
Listen, I’m being straight
up with you.
 
I’ll even get it for
you.
 
Just don’t hurt my family.”

“How about the
money?” Vic said.
 
“Where’s that?”

Billy’s eyes
teared up and he said, “Come on, man.
 
That’s not my money.
 
It’s Paris’s.
 
If you take that, I’m a dead man.”

Vic shrugged and
said, “Have it your way.”

“Christ,” Helen
muttered.
 
“It’s under the dryer.
 
Laid out in the tray.”

Vic nodded and said,
“You did good, Billy.”
 
He reached into
his pocket and pulled out the folded search warrant.
 
“This is for you,” he said.
 
Vic tucked the gun back in his holster and
said, “Frank, keep Mr. Helen on the porch while I go search the premises.”
 

Billy opened up
the warrant and said, “You guys are cops?
 
Jesus Christ!
 
I thought you were
gonna shoot me, you son of a bitch!”

“If you don’t
stay out on this porch while I get everything that’s listed on that warrant, or
attempt to interfere in any way, I will.”

Billy grabbed Vic
by the arm, “You can’t take that money.
 
Paris
will kill me.”
 

“Paris who?”

Billy’s eyes
narrowed, “You don’t even know Paris?”
 
He watched Frank come up the porch steps and smirked, “You guys are just
rent-a-cops, aren’t you?
 
I want to talk
to my attorney.”

“No problem,” Vic
said.
 
“Go find a payphone.”

Billy reached
into his pocket and said, “Believe it or not, there’s this new technology called
cellphones.”
 
He pulled his phone out of
his pocket and waved it in front of Vic’s face.
 
“I realize you guys haven’t caught up to the rest of the world out here
in Mayberry.”

Vic looked at the
phone and said, “Is that the Verizon phone that ends in 6642?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s listed on
the warrant,” Vic said.
 
“Give me that.”
 
He took Billy’s cellphone and dropped it into
his pocket.
 
“You’re free to go.
 
The house belongs to us until we’re done the
search.”
 

Billy looked at
them in confusion.
 
“Free to go?
 
Aren’t you going to arrest me?”

“Nope,” Vic
said.
 
“You can stay on the porch here or
go wherever you want.
 
Just not inside
till we’re done.”
 
He retrieved his
toolbox and opened it on the porch, removing a camera and a stack of paper
bags.
 
“You’ll get a receipt for anything
we take.”

“You guys have to
arrest me,” Billy said.
 
“This isn’t
funny.
 
Put me in handcuffs.”
 
He held out his hands toward Frank and said,
“Please.”

Frank cocked his
head for Vic to meet with him at the end of the porch.
 
They kept a careful eye on Billy, who was now
burying his face into his fist.
 
“We are
gonna arrest this guy, right?”

“Not
necessarily,” Vic said.

“Why?
 
He’s a drug dealer.
 
He’s got drugs.
 
We arrest drug dealers.
 
I thought that was the whole point.”

“Frankie, my boy,
we’re not gonna run down this hill.
 
We’re gonna walk down, and screw ‘em all.”

“What the hell
are you talking about?”

“Let me
guess.
 
You never saw
Colors
, either, did you?”

“No!” Frank
said.
 

Billy’s head
popped up and he said, “It’s that scene with Sean Penn and Robert Duvall.
 
Sean Penn’s this young punk who wants to just
beat the shit out of everybody and lock up every gangster he sees.
 
Bobby D.’s this old head who tells him
they’re gonna go slow and take out everybody at once when the time is right.”

“See?” Vic
said.
 
“Even this guy saw the movie.”

“It’s a classic,”
Billy said.
 
“Is that what you’re doing
to me?
 
Waiting so you can take me out
with everybody else?”

“If you live that
long, maybe,” Vic said.
 
Vic flashed a
smile at Billy as he went into the front door and lifted his camera, snapping
photos with every step.
 

“You have to
convince him to arrest me,” Billy said.
 
“There is no way Paris will believe you took all my shit and all my
money and didn’t lock me up.
 
He’s going
to think I ratted him out, and cut me into tiny little pieces with a chainsaw.”

“Nothing I can
do,” Frank said.
 

“Paris will kill
my family,” Billy said.
 
“He’s not some
local yokel you guys are used to.
 
He’s
got connections all the way from New York to Florida.”
 

“Why don’t you
start by telling me who he is, and I’ll see what I can do,” Frank said.

“Yeah, right,”
Billy sniffed.
 
He jabbed his thumb
against his chest, “I’m into the game so much higher up than you, it’s
pathetic.
 
I’m at, like, the federal
level.
 
Get me the FBI.
 
I’ll talk to them.”

“I wouldn’t know
how to reach them if I wanted to,” Frank said.

“You guys are a
joke,” Billy said.
 
“I’ll get full
immunity and witness protection.
 
You
watch.
 
I’ll be laughing at you douchebags
when you’re out here shoveling snow and the US Marshals are paying for my condo
in San Jose.”

Frank ignored
Billy long enough that he stopped talking and the two of them watched through
the porch windows as Vic walked around the house.
 
Vic finally emerged carrying a handful of
paper bags.
 
“Does your wife use?” Vic
said.
 

Billy’s back
stiffened.
 
“Never.”

“Good.
 
She won’t miss the bundle of heroin and works
I found in her nightstand, then.”

“Shit!” Billy
said.
 
He smacked himself in the head
with both fists and paced back and forth on the porch.
 
“Can’t you at least leave her a little so she
doesn’t get sick?”

“No,” Vic said.

“How’s she going
to take care of our daughter if she’s going through withdrawal?”

“Look on the
bright side,” Frank said.
 
“When that guy
Paris finds out, you won’t have to worry about either of them for much longer.”

Both Vic and
Billy turned to look at Frank.
 
Neither
of them spoke.
 

“What?” Frank
said.
 
“It was a joke.”

“Dude, that’s not
funny,” Billy said.
 

“That was pretty
dark,” Vic said.

“Oh stop it.
 
I was just kidding!”

“About my wife
and daughter getting murdered?”

“Well…you were
the one who said it first,” Frank said.

“Just get the
bags,” Vic said.
 
He watched Frank scoop
up the bags in his arms and start trekking them back to the car.
 
“How serious of a threat is this Paris guy?”

“Pretty goddamn
disturbingly serious,” Billy said.
 
“I’ve
been with him when he shot people before.”

“No shit?” Vic
said.
 
“Around here?”

“Hell no, not
around here.
 
Nobody shoots anybody
around here except you guys when it’s some kid just trying to steal
jewelry.”
 

Frank stiffened
at the comment, but Vic drew Billy’s attention by reaching into his wallet and
pulling out a business card.
 
“If you
decide you want me to help you, get a hold of me.
 
The station is right up the street.
 
Doesn’t matter what time of day it is.”

Billy took the
card and looked at it.
 
“Thanks, but I’m
going to call the FBI.”

“Not without a
phone you aren’t,” Vic said.
 
He handed
him the search warrant receipt.
 
“Sign on
the bottom.”

Billy started
reading the receipt and said, “I’m not signing this.
 
It’s a confession that you found drugs in my
house!”

“I already found
the drugs, dummy.
 
I don’t need a
confession.
 
It’s just a receipt for what
I’m taking.”

“I’m not signing
shit without my lawyer.”

“Fine.
 
Have it your way,” Vic said.
 
He folded up the receipt and stuck it in his
pocket.
 
“I’d tell you to take care, but
really, what I mean to say is ‘Enjoy the next forty-eight hours, because you
probably don’t have much more than that.’
 
The next time I see you, you’ll probably look a little different,
Billy.
 
Have fun with Paris.”

Frank watched the
Detective storm across the lawn and said, “Tell me that wasn’t dark.”

“Shut up and get
in the car, rookie,” Vic said.

“I’m not a
rookie,” Frank said.

“You’re a rookie
until I say otherwise.
 
Did you watch
‘Colors’ yet?”

“I’ve been
standing here with you for the past hour.
 
How the hell could I have watched a movie?”

Vic put the car
into drive.
 
“Typical rookies,” he
said.
 
“Always making excuses.”
  

***

They carried the
evidence into the station and tried to hurry past the Staff Sergeant’s open
office door when Erinnyes bellowed, “There you are!”

Frank stopped and
turned to see Erinnyes sitting at his desk, smiling.
 
There was a bit of food on his second chin as
he folded his hands on the desk and waited for Frank to salute.
 
Frank shifted the bags under his left arm and
saluted.
 

Erinnyes saluted
back and said, “I need you to suit up right away.
 
Someone has to cover the school
crossing.
 
The crossing guard is sick.”

“I can’t,” Frank
said.
 
“We just got all this evidence and
are waiting for the bad guy to come in for an interview.
 
Can’t the guys on the street do it?”

“I need them
available to answer calls,” Erinnyes said.
 

“Don’t we have
people around the station that are available if a call comes out?” Frank said.

“You mean, like
me?” Erinnyes said.
 
“And what happens if
I start to do that?
 
Then the Chief can
handle my responsibilities?
 
Or is he
supposed to drop what he’s doing and go answer calls as well?
 
Do I all of a sudden exist just to keep you
from having to do any police work?”

Frank held up the
evidence bags and said, “I guess this isn’t police work?”

“It can wait,” Erinnyes
said.
 
“Unlike the school crossing.”

Frank bit his lip
and turned to get out of the office before a flood of expletives erupted from
him.
 
As he left he heard Erinnyes say,
“Better get there quick,
patrolman
.
 
You don’t want to be late.”

6.
 
Frank heard a car screeching around the
corner and put his hands up to keep the mother and group of kids on the
sidewalk.
 
His eyes widened as Vic’s
unmarked police car came to a sudden halt at the stop sign.
 
Vic jumped out of his car and shouted, “What
the hell are you doing?”

Frank blew his
whistle in Vic’s face as loud as he could to silence him and shouted, “I’m
trying to cross these children without some maniac running them over!”