Dead Man's Hand (19 page)

He
checked the clock at th
e bottom of the computer screen
. Go home to an empty house or follow a lead while it was hot?

Not much of a decision.

He
grabbed the stack of papers and left his office.

“
Tommy, I need you to cross
-
reference every single phone number in here.
”

The man looked at the enormous stack of papers and then looked up at Dale.

Before he could speak, Dale did.
“
I know, I know. Just think of it as overtime.
”

Chapter 1
8

Calvin could now only deal with people he trusted—or
who
were too afraid of him to contact the cops.
He needed to make vital dec
isions about whom he could rely on
and who
might
backstab him by turning him in.

Cruiser
’
s Bar was a local watering hole for bikers and prostitutes. Those who would recognize him there were not likely to help the police.

“
Keep the cab running,
”
he told the driver.

“
It
’
s your dollar.
”

Calvin and Rachel walked past the Harleys and beat
-
up p
ickup trucks to the door.
Inside, h
e
approached the sticky bar.
The sounds of chatter,
‘
80s rock music and pool balls clicking together engulfed him.
A biker covered in tattoos wiped his hands and walked over.

“
What, Mack?
”

As the bartender got closer, his eyes widened.
“
Calvin.
”
He chuckled.
“
I
s that you?
”

“
Hey, Bernie. I need to talk to Mike.
”

“
Man! I didn
’
t
recognized you.
”
The man snorted with delight.

“
Yeah, this is a new look for me.
”

“
I
’
ll let Mike know you
’
re here. Hold on.
”
The bulky bartender entered a back room.

Calvin
surveyed the bar
. No one s
eemed
suspicious
or
ne
w. Rachel stayed close to him
. No one seemed to notice them and no one cared.

The bartender came back with a grin.
“
He
’
ll see you now. Man, will he get a kick out of you.
”

Calvin, leading Rachel, walked to the back room.

Mike squeezed out of a wooden chair behind his desk
and
limpe
d over.

“
Hey, Calvin.
”

If
his new appearance
surprised the bar owner, he didn
’
t show it.

“
Hey, Mike.
”
Calvin shook his hand.

“
Rachel.
”
The man nodded
toward
the silent woman.
“
Please, have a seat.
”

Calvin and Rachel sat and waited for Mike to do the same.

“
I saw the Chargers signed Jenkins. Wasn
’
t he your backup at USC?
”

“
Don
’
t remind me.
”

Mike snorted.
“
The world works in mysterious ways. What can I do for you?
”

“
I
’
m in some trouble.
”

Mike
picked up a note pad, flipped to a
fresh page and grabbed a pen. He
sat back and listened
. When Calvin was through, Mike spoke up.
“
I thought you went back to your college look for a reason. Man, does that take me back. You didn
’
t know your man back then, did you, Rachel?
”

She shook her head.

“
He was something. King of the campus.
”

Calvin shifted
in his seat as Mike continued.

“
I remember the day my nephew, my sister
’
s only kid, cal
led me here,
excitement in his voice. He told me how the great Calvin Watters came and sat at his table in the library with his nerdy computer friends.
Andy said they were as
nervous as h
ell. Boy, were they some surprised when you started talking shop with them.
What most people didn
’
t know, Rachel, not even his college teammates, is that our boy Calvin here used to hang around with the computer geeks in the library at USC. He asked them to show him some computer stuff, even skipped a football keg party one night
to hang out in their dorm room
.
Andy was fixated on
him
. The party, booze, drugs, sorority girls, that just wasn
’
t Calvin
’
s style.
”

Rachel smiled at Calvin as he said,
“
I think we heard enough, Mike.
”

“
No,
”
Rachel cut in.
“
Tell me more about Calvin. He never talks about his college days.
”

Mike ignored Calvin
’
s protests and continued.
“
All Calvin thought about was the NFL.
”

Calvin cut him off.
“
How is Andy?
”

“
Doin
’
great. Stuck around California working for some big computer company out there. I still help him out when I can. But don
’
t change th
e subject. You were a big part of
Andy
’
s life
back then. You protected him and kept him out of trouble. He was never the kind to make friends easy
and
you helped him. When you got to Vegas
,
I was glad to do the same.
”

“
And I owe you for that.
”

“
Non
sense. The first thing I did, before I agreed to help you, was a little digging. Rachel, did you know that Calvin here
scored 145 on an IQ test
?
I knew you were smart, but not that smart.
That categorizes him as highly gifted.
”

Calvin
held his breath. No one was supposed to know about that.

As if Mike read his mind, he said,
“
That
’
s right, I found out about it
.
”

“
No one w
as supposed to know
. In my line of work, brilliance isn
’
t an essential attribute
.
I
f no one knew, I knew I
’
d always be underestimated
,
which gave me an advantage every time.
”

“
I figured that. Modest too. That
’
s why I ag
reed to help.
”
Mike
winked at
Rachel.
“
We
’
ve been playing around with computers for three years now. Calvin
’
s almost the hacker that I am. But I have to admit, he
’
s a bit more aggressive, ready to take more risks.
”

Calvin intervened.
“
You taught me how to hack into any computer in any protected system in the world
,
which
is going to be an extremely valuable skill now. But you also have underground connections throughout the country. You can get anything for anyone
.
T
hat
’
s what I need.
”

Mike
turned back to Calvin.
“
Okay
, chitchat over. What do you need?
”

“
New IDs. The total package and by tomorrow.
”

“
Shouldn
’
t be a problem,
”
he said,
checking off items on a list.
“
Anything else?
”

“
Some added protection for me and Rachel. We need to secure my hideout. Rachel and I need every corner of that building protected.
”

Mike thought to himself for a moment.

He opened his desk drawer and pulled out a thick book. Calvin and Rachel pulled their seats closer to the desk.

“
This package is just right. Security alarms, motion sensors,
fail safes,
detectors an
d cameras inside and outside
. Since I helped you set up the computer system there, I already know the place inside and out.
”

As Mike continued to write, Calvin asked,
“
What about a secondary emergency exit plan?
”

Mike chewed the end of his pen.
“
I
’
ll have it tomorrow when I come out with all the gear. I
’
m assuming payment isn
’
t a problem?
It
’
s
$20,000, cash.
”

Calvin counted Pitt
’
s money out onto the desk. He could hear Rachel breathe in deeply and hold it.

“
Here
’
s ten thousand. You
’
ll get the rest tomorrow.
”

The bar owner slipped the bills into an envelope, sealed the flap and stuck it into the top drawer of his desk.

As they were leaving, Mike asked,
“
Do you think Pitt set you up?
”

“
I
’
m going to find out.
”

“
I bet you will. Just let me handle your security issues.
”

He
felt better hearing Mike say that
and
was starting to like his chances.

When the cabbie dropped them off again, Calvin said to Rachel,
“
I
’
ll walk
you to the door
and make sure you
’
re safe. Then I have one more stop tonight.
”

“
Where are you going?
”

“
I
’
ll be back soon.
”

“
What the hell are you doing here? I thought you said we shouldn
’
t be seen together until things blow over
.
”
Pitt
sat at
his desk and eye
d
the bathroom.

Ace
loomed
silently
in the doorway so
the bookie
would be even more on edge.

Pitt
poured some
scotch and twisted the lid back on. He threw the bottle
into the bottom drawer of his desk
, s
lamm
ing
it shut
,
and
rose
,
finger-
combing what was left of his
hair over his
bald head.

The bookie
wore nothing but a pair of white boxer shorts.
His
fat, hairy belly hung over the waistband
and a cigarette dangled
at the side of his mouth. He took a hit off the cigarette
and
then flicked it on the side of an ashtray.

Obviously,
Pitt had been trying to disguise his lifestyle, trying to persuade
Ace
that he could fit in with the rich and powerful. Now Ace was disgusted.

“
Don
’
t get up.
”
He
entered the office as Pitt
sank back in
to his desk chair.

“
How
’
d you get in here anyway?
”