The Devil To Pay (Hennessey.) (150 page)

Lando told himself that the break in his voice was caused by all the unfamiliar talking he’d done and hoped the other men thought so too.

All three men certainly looked taken aback by Lando’s vehemence. Montayne kept his eyes for a long while then picked up the piece of hair, put it back in the bag and handed it to Lando who didn’t attempt to take it from him but just stared at it. ‘She might want it, as a memento perhaps.’ Montayne said softly.

Lando doubted that but guessed that Montayne knew he was the one who would keep it as a memento
. Keeping his expression blank he reached out and took the bag from his hand.

Montayne said, ‘there was one other there too wasn’t there, at Glissando’s place, a friend of yours.’

Lando tried to prevent the surprise from showing on his face. He knew Sheriff Lomax wouldn’t have told the FBI about “Marcus Brutus,” so how had he known that someone else was there? He said, ‘yeah, that’s right, a friend.’

‘Name?’

‘Is it important?’

Montayne shrugged, ‘not really, not as long as he knows to keep his mouth shut and doesn’t blab about his exploits to anyone who would listen.’

‘He won’t do that, he don’t mix well with people. He’s very shy.’ Lando could almost hear Hennessey’s howls of laughter at this.

Montayne studie
d him for a moment, ‘that’s good to know. Anyway, you mentioned Detectives Sullivan and Leyton, you might be interested to know that Leyton has regained consciousness and by all accounts is going to be okay. He’ll be permanently scarred from the whipping he took, but apart from that there’s no reason to believe he won’t make a full recovery.

Lando closed his eyes with relief; he owed that guy, he owed him a hell of a lot. He wondered if they had told Leyton about the woman, probably not yet. Maybe he should tell him.

Montayne was speaking again, ‘of course we’ll take into account what you’ve said about him and we’ll make sure he’s taken care of. He’ll get whatever he wants, a promotion, or if he wants to take early retirement he’ll get all the benefits due to a cop who’s served his time.’

Lando knew that all the consideration for Leyton was not totally philanthropic, they didn’t want him going around telling all and sundry what he had seen and done. The rewards would come with a proviso, the carrot rather than the stick.  Montayne was saying, ‘and Sullivan’s wife, and more than likely his ex- wives, will get the benefits he would have gotten had he lived and stayed with the department to retirement age.’

Lando nodded and said, ‘and the woman?’

Montayne leaned back in his seat and regarded Lando intently before saying, ‘Miss. Faraday is of course free to do whatever she wants when she is recovered and released from the hospital. She can go home,’ he ti
pped his head to one side thoughtfully, ‘or maybe stay, ‘when Lando eyed him warningly Montayne gave him a speculative look and finished ‘to continue her vacation. Whatever she decides she can do it unmolested by either us or the Mississippi P.D. And please extend to her our thanks for her contribution and our respect for her courage.’

Lando looke
d surprised but nodded, ‘so how will you explain what happened at Glissando’s place?’ Montayne looked uncomfortable for a moment and Lando smiled wryly, ‘I see. The official line will be that Glissando was taken down in a shoot out with federal agents. Then you discovered these documents and tapes implicating several influential people in his home.’

Montayne’s discomfort was replaced with one of imperiousness and
his tone was unapologetic, ‘I’m happy that you see things our way, Mr. Lando,’ as he leaned forward his eyes were ice hard, ‘it would be a mistake to try to alter that. It wouldn’t pay you to go to the press or something stupid like that. You are after all a convicted felon and there is still the little matter of your killing at least one federal agent.’

Ah, thought Lando, I get the stick. Though he knew this was an empty threat, they were loathe to prosecute him for killing the fed because then this would all come out, corruption in the highest places, even in the
FBI. Nevertheless he said, ‘don’t worry; I had my fair share of publicity back in the day. Didn’t want it then and sure as hell don’t want it now.’

Montayne leaned back a smile splitting his face as he said with some relief, ‘good to know, thank you, Mr. Lando. Of course you’ll be reimbursed for any expenses you might have incurred. Rebuilding your cabin or your attorney’s fees, things like that.’

‘Thanks, but I can take care of the cabin myself and…

He was interrupted
by Berringer, ‘I’m doing this pro bono.’ Lando looked at him and opened his mouth but Berringer quietly but firmly said, ‘he’s a friend.’

Lando closed his mouth but his eyes conveyed his gratitude.

Berringer said, ‘well if that’s all gentlemen, my client needs to sleep.’ He stood up as did the two agents. Lando stood too but almost staggered with exhaustion, plus he was still reeling from everything that had been said in this room. He couldn’t quite believe that he was not in lock-up awaiting arraignment.

Montayne pu
t out his hand to Lando, ‘thank you, Mr. Lando, you’ve done this country a great service and you can rest assured that the guilty will be brought to justice.’

Lando knew he was telling him that that included Hennessey too. He wished them luck; they were going to need it. He said nothing but took the man’s hand and shook it. Montayne said, ‘go get some rest; you’ll need to be refreshed when you see Miss. Faraday again.’

Lando’s eyes narrowed but Montayne’s smile grew wider. Lando with Berringer beside him walked to the door but stopped with the door open as Montayne said, ‘oh, Mr. Lando.’ He picked up another envelope from the table and handed it to him, ‘I almost forgot, you might find these interesting.’

Lando looked at the man his brow furrowed but took the envelope from his hand.

Montayne said, ‘goodbye, Mr. Lando, and good luck.’

Lando nodded and walked out of the room followed by Berringer. Once outside Berringer laugh
ed his hearty laugh, ‘well I seen everything now, I never saw that coming. I thought for sure your goose was cooked.’

Lando was still too stunned to reply but he silently agreed with Berringer.

Berringer drove Lando to a small but clean motel and booked him in dismissing Lando’s insistence that he couldn’t pay by saying, ‘pro bono, my friend, ya know what that means don’t ya.’

Lando was too tired to argue so instead shook the man’s hand and said, ‘thank you, for everything.’

Berringer almost shook Lando’s hand from his wrist, ‘hey, that was fun, it’s not every day my client gets thanked by the FBI for doing their job for them. Although seems unfair to me that you do all the work and they get all the glory.’

Lando said, ‘fuck fair, I was prepared to go down forever, they can have the glory, I just want to go home, what’s left of it that is.’

Berringer’s expression suddenly took on a rare seriousness as he said, ‘I think you’ll find you’re going home to more that you had when you left, Jonas.’

Lando frowned perplexed but Berringer just slapped him on the bac
k and once more laughed, ‘if you ever find yourself in trouble again you know who to call. I’d be very interested to see who thanks you next, maybe the president himself.  See ya, Jonas old pal, take care now.’

Then he was gone leaving Lando alone. He found his room and the first thing he did was call the hospital to enquire about Adela’s welfare. He asked the receptionist if Sheriff Lomax was still there and when she said he was asked if he could speak to him. He waited only a minute or so before Lomax came on the phone. Without preamble he told Lando that Adela was still unconscious but was responding well to treatment. She had been upgraded from critical to serious.

Lando closed his eyes and let out a breath of relief before enquiring after Leyton, Lomax told him the same thing Montayne had.

Lomax asked about the feds and Lando told him that everything was okay but he would fill him in more thoroughly when he got home, but if he couldn’t wait that long then he was sure Berringer would be only to willing to oblige. Lomax laughed at this and said since he couldn’t wait he would give his old friend a call. Lando thanked him for asking Berringer to be there for him and for watching the woman but told him to go on home now and he would join him in Alban shortly. Lomax said he didn’t want any thanks and to get some sleep, he sounded dead on his feet, which was a very accurate description of how Lando felt. He said goodbye and hung up.

He lay down on the bed but as tired as he was sleep would not come. His mind was a whirl of confusion and bewilderment and worry.

He couldn’t quite get his head around what Hennessey had done. How had he come across that information? The tapes he could understand, he had obviously recorded his conversations with Glissando and probably all his other clients too. Smart guy. But how the hell had he gotten hold of the other stuff, the names and places and everything else.

But did it really matter how he had gotten hold of them? The point was that he had and had used them to help him and the woman. That of course got him thinking about Adela.

He reached across and picked up one of the two envelopes Montayne had given him.

He tipped out the long length of hair and ran his hands down it, feeling the soft silkiness between his rough fingers. He sniffed in the scent, it smelled of the outdoors, a clean fresh smell, and of her. He put it against his cheek and closed his eyes. With the hair gripped in his fist and lying against his cheek he fell into a deep sleep.

                                                      *********

Lando didn’t know it but at the exact same time he awoke Adela regained consciousness. She awoke to a pounding skull crushing headache and moaned aloud which brought the nurse, who had been checking her vitals, swiftly to her side.

‘Hey,’ she said, ‘you’re awake at last. Welcome back. My name is Zara Chapman.’

Adela stared at her, or rather at the shadowy, unfocused figure standing by the bed. She blinked trying to bring the owner of the nice cheerful voice into focus. But even blinking hurt so she gave up and closed her eyes again.

The nurse said, ‘I’ll get you some ice chips, your lips are very dry.’ The next thing Adela new there was an icy sensation on her lips and she winced but then decided she liked it. This time when she opened her eyes she could just make out the other woman’s face. It was black and round and smiling. Adela tried to speak but realised she couldn’t there was something slimy in her throat and it was hurting her. She tried to raise her arm to remove whatever it was but the nurse prevented her saying, ‘no, Miss. Faraday, please leave it for the doctor to remove. He’ll be here any minute.’

Too tired and weak to argue Adela let the other woman put her hand back on the bed.

Just then another figure appeared this one male but just as cheerful as the nurse. He said, ‘hello there, Miss. Faraday, I’m Dr. Richard Jackson. So you decided to join the rest of us in the land of the living at last did you?’

Adela didn’t answer remembering what happened last time with the slimy thing in her throat. Plus, she didn’t know what he was talking about.

He was looking at something and frowning then he smiled at her, ‘right, I’ll take that pesky thing outta your throat now.’ He did and Adela retched and gagged as he did it.

If she could have talked she would have told him to leave it there…permanently.

Eventually he said, ‘there we are; all out. Now Nurse Chapman will get you some water.’

As she drank Adela thought, so that’s what the nectar of the gods tastes like.

When she had drunk some of the water, although not enough in Adela’s view, she was able to speak. ‘I hurt.’

The other two laughed and the doctor said, ‘I’ll just bet you do. Now you need to take it slow and easy and most of all, rest.’

But Adela asked the inevitable question, ‘what happened?’

Doctor Jackson hesitated and Adela
added, ‘please.’

He nodded to the nurse who after patting Adela’s hand left the room. Jackson sat down on the chair next to her bed and said softly, ‘do you recall anything that happened before you arrived at the hospital?’

She closed her eyes and a rush of memories came back to her. She and Ellis Leyton in Glissando’s chamber. Leyton screaming in pain. Lando and Hennessey coming to save them. Glissando with a knife against her throat. Dogs. Running. Fear and pain.

Oh yes, she recalled all right. She just wished she didn’t.

She turned swiftly to him then moaned as agony shot through her shoulder to her neck and down her arm. Jackson said, ‘take it easy, try not to move your head and neck too much. You have a dislocated shoulder.’ She hardly heard him as she said with great urgency and fear, ‘Ellis!’

‘Take it easy now. I can put your mind at rest about that at least. Detective Leyton is doing fine. He’s awake and being chatted up by just about every unmarried nurse on the ward, and some married ones too.’

She didn’t smile at this but her eyes filled with relief. He went on, ‘Detective Leyton must be some kinda cop, he’s in his own private room, some bigwigs from the Alabama P.D, and the Mayor’s office no less arranged that.’