Moonlight Warriors: A Tale of Two Hit Men (3 page)

BOOK: Moonlight Warriors: A Tale of Two Hit Men
4.01Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

A couple of minutes later both men completed the assignment that Marcus had given them.  He briefly examined the two lists.

“Fortunately for both of you, these two lists agree,” Marcus said.  “You gave me the same names.  There are a couple of minor differences in addresses and phone numbers, but I should be able to resolve that problem.”  Marcus paused and looked closely at the two men.  “I’m going to allow both of you to live --- at least for now.  However, you must not do anything else to harm or threaten anyone in this neighborhood.  And you must not tell anyone about the information that
you gave me.”

“There’s not much chance of us telling anyone,” the second man said.  “We don’t want to be called snitches.”

“You’ve done the right thing,” Marcus said as he began walking toward the street.  “You both can still turn your lives around and get on the right path.”

The third man glanced down at Scott’s body.  “Here is a dead man.  You killed this man.  What makes you think that you are on the right path?”

Marcus returned his pistol to its holster.  “I’m not on the right path yet, but I’m searching for it.  Good luck.”

The two men watched as Marcus departed from the alley and turned the corner onto the street, vanishing from their view.

                                          .

In the following week, Marcus completed his mission.  The three cell phones had proved to be gold mines of information.   The numerous voice mail messages to which he gained access provided him with many valuable insights into the gang and its activities.

Marcus tracked down, set up, and eliminated the three key leaders of the gang.  After doing a short investigation, Marcus conclusively determined that one of those leaders had personally murdered the teenage girl who had planned to testify against the gang.

Marcus did not enjoy killing, but he had to admit to himself a certain amount of personal satisfaction at delivering justice to this man who had murdered the young woman.  That gang leader thought that he had escaped the justice system by murdering her, Marcus reflected.  However, justice caught up with him anyway, and he got what he richly deserved --- a bullet in the head.

Marcus was glad that he did not need to kill any of the lower-level gang members.  Marcus correctly reasoned that the gang would fall apart without any leadership.

As soon as he was certain that his mission was complete, Marcus logged onto the Internet and used a travel website to book a Caribbean vacation.   He left his own cell phone back at his expensive condo in Clayton.  Marcus wanted and needed two weeks of complete relaxation --- sailing, snorkeling, sand, and sun.

Chapter 3

Jenny Jawbreaker

 

It was a little, neighborhood diner with a big reputation.  Angie’s Place was noted for its first-rate hamburgers, seafood, and several types of soup.

The diner was located in southeast St. Louis about a quarter-mile from a popular Mississippi River casino.  In addition to its good food, Angie’s Place had a reputation for being a meeting place for persons engaged in various illegal activities.

Elaine
Sandhaven parked her red Porsche about a half-block away from the diner.  If things went badly inside, she did not want anyone in the diner to be able to get her license number.  Although she only planned to be in the diner for a short time, Elaine carefully set the car alarm; the expensive car was a tempting target for a thief.

Elaine was a tall, attractive tan brunette in her late thirties.  She strode down the street confidently, but hesitated for a couple of seconds at the diner’s entrance.

Mustering her resolve, she went inside and headed toward a booth in a far corner.  This was Elaine’s third visit to this diner.  The two previous visits had merely been reconnaissance missions; today, if the opportunity presented itself, she was going to place her plan into motion.

Just a few seconds after Elaine slid into the booth, a waitress approached the table.

“Welcome back,” the waitress greeted her.  The waitress was a slender young woman with light brown hair.

“Thanks, Jenny,” Elaine replied without glancing at the woman’s name tag.  Elaine had a good memory for names.

“Jenny Jawbreaker,” the waitress said with a smile.

“What?” Elaine asked.

“That’s not actually my last name.  It is just my new name.  I recently joined the local roller derby team.  Now I’m Jenny Jawbreaker, but I haven’t actually broken anyone’s jaw yet.”

Elaine laughed.  “Well, have fun.”

“So far it has been fun.  However, I’m the least experienced player on the team, so I need lots of practice to get up to speed.”

“I’m sure that you’ll do well.”

“Thanks.  But I’m guessing that you didn’t come here to hear about my roller derby adventures.”  Jenny placed a menu on the table.  “What can I get for you today?”

“Actually, I don’t need the menu.  I’ll just have a tuna fish salad sandwich to go.  But I wanted to talk to you about something.  Do you have a couple of minutes?”

Jenny glanced over her shoulder, then sat down next to Elaine in the booth.  “Sure.  It is pretty quiet in here now.  We are between the lunch and dinner crowds.”

“That’s why I came here at this time of day,” Elaine said with a slight grin.

“So what’s up?”

“This is a very delicate matter.  Can I count on your discretion?”

“Absolutely,” Jenny assured her.

“Good.  As you have probably guessed from our conversation during my last visit, the problem is my husband --- my soon-to-be ex-husband.”

“I figured that this was about him.  He must be an awful man.”

“In the past couple of days, I have discovered that he is even worse than I thought when we talked previously.”

“How so?”

“I know that he has been unfaithful to me, and he has been verbally and emotionally abusive, but I never considered him a violent man.  However, last night he punched me in the
stomach.”

“That’s terrible!” Jenny declared, keeping her voice down so that none of the diner’s other customers or employees would hear. 

“He didn’t hit me in the face because he did not want anyone to see bruises on me.”

“That is absolutely diabolical.”

“Yes.  When I married him eight years ago, I never dreamt that he would ever hit me.  He seemed like such a nice, gentle man.   Either he has changed very much or I never really knew him.”

“What are you going to do now?”

Elaine shrugged.  “For now, I have to go home and hope for the best.  We have a little boy.  I have to protect him.  I have considered taking our son, moving to my own apartment, and getting a restraining order against my husband.  However, I know that a piece of paper won’t keep him from coming after me and probably killing me.  I recently heard on a television news channel that many women are found murdered with restraining orders in their purses.”

“I have heard the same thing,” Jenny said.  “I would suggest contacting the police.  They might be able to help you safely get away from him.”

Elaine shook her head.  “No.  I won’t run and hide.  I am going to defend myself.  I want to hire someone, perhaps a private investigator, to confront him forcefully.  It might even be necessary to rough him up in order for him to understand that his behavior has consequences.”

“That might create some legal problems for you.”

“I’m willing to take that chance.  Do you know a man who could help me with this?  I can pay him very well.”

“I do know someone who you could talk to about this situation,” Jenny said. “His name is
Ch …”

At that moment Elaine’s cell phone rang, cutting off Jenny in mid-word.  With a look of annoyance at the interruption, Elaine pulled the phone out of her Gucci purse.  She glanced at the caller ID on the phone.  The annoyed expression was replaced by a surprised one.

“Jenny, would you excuse me for a minute?  I have to take this call.”

Jenny quickly stood up. 
“Of course. I’ll go get your tuna fish salad sandwich.”  She walked toward the kitchen.

“It’s about time that you returned my calls,” Elaine said. “I’ve been leaving messages on your voice mail for a week.”

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Sandhaven.  I’ve been in the Caribbean for the past two weeks.  I left my cell phone back at my condo so that I would have two weeks of peace and quiet.”

“Your little Caribbean vacation almost caused you to lose a lucrative job.  It almost cost you a lot of money.  I was just about to hire someone else to do this job for me.”

“Sounds like I called just in the nick of time.”

“Hmmm.
If you didn’t come so highly recommended, I would tell you to get lost and hire the other man.”

“Easy, Mrs.
Sandhaven.  I’m back now.  Everything is cool.  We can’t discuss your case on the phone, but based on the voice mail messages that you left, I should be able to help you resolve this situation.  This is the sort of case that I especially like.  You’ll be very pleased with its resolution.”

Elaine was mollified and a satisfied grin appear
ed on her face.  “I’m glad.”

“We need to meet in person.”

“Yes, and as soon as possible.”

“Do you know where Sister Marie Charles Park is?”

“Yes.  It’s on the riverfront, right off of South Broadway.  At the moment I am only a few miles from there.”

“Good.”

“Can you meet me there in about twenty minutes?”

“That will be perfect.”

“Then I’ll see you there, Mrs. Sandhaven.  Goodbye.”

Upon seeing Elaine hang up and place her cell phone back in her purse, Jenny walked back toward the table. 

“Here is your tuna fish salad sandwich, Elaine.”

“Thank you, dear.”  Elaine paid her for the sandwich and gave her a generous tip.  “As it turns out, I won’t
be needing the services of your friend after all.  Another gentleman is going to help me resolve this situation.”

“I still believe that it would be a good idea for you to speak with my friend, Elaine.  He can help you.  He is a very good man.”

Elaine laughed as she walked away from the table.  “My dear, I don’t need the help of a good man.  I need the help of a bad man --- a very bad man!”

She waved goodbye to Jenny and strode out of the diner.

 

A few minutes later Elaine was driving her Porsche down South Broadway.   It was mid-afternoon and traffic was light.  She drove past
Bellerive Park, another small park with a good view of the Mississippi River.

She turned into the parking lot of Sister Marie Charles Park and selected a spot at the far end of the lot.  Elaine was glad that there were no other cars there.

Less than a minute after she parked, a Lexus pulled onto the lot and stopped a short distance from her.  A tall, athletic man in an expensive suit got out of the Lexus, strolled out onto the grass, and looked out at the river.

This has to be him, Elaine thought.  She got out of her car and walked toward the man, stopping at his side.

He did not say anything.  His attention seemed to be entirely focused on a barge slowly gliding down the Mississippi. 

Apparently he wants me to speak first, Elaine reflected.  “This park certainly has a nice view of the river,” she remarked.

“Yes,” he replied. “I’ll have to bring my camera here sometime.”

“Are you Marcus?”

“Yes, Mrs. Sandhaven.”  At last he turned and looked at her.

She opened her purse and pulled out a thick envelope, which she handed to him.  “This envelope contains a photo of my husband and his weekly schedule.  Your down payment is also in the envelope.  You will receive the rest of the money after the job has been completed.”

Marcus accepted the envelope and, without looking at its contents, tucked it into the inner pocket of his jacket.  “You are a very well-organized person,” he commented.

“Organization is the key to success.”

“True.  But even the best organized plans can go awry.”  Marcus looked toward the river again.

“So you accept the job?” Elaine asked, wary of this dangerous man.

“How did you find out about me, Mrs. Sandhaven?  And how did you know how to contact me?”

“One of the computer programmers at
Sandhaven Software Solutions lives in an apartment in a neighborhood that was being terrorized by a gang.  Her apartment is above a small store whose owner she knows quite well.  The store owner is a member of the neighborhood association that hired you to solve the gang problem.  The entire neighborhood was impressed by you and grateful to you for destroying that gang.”

“So the store owner told her how to contact me, and she told you?”

“That’s correct.  Was that okay?”

“Yes. 
Fine.  All right, I accept the mission --- the job.”

  

Chapter 4

A Trip to the Zoo

 

At about ten o’clock on Saturday morning Dennis
Sandhaven came out the front door of his Central West End home.  He picked up the morning paper and tossed it into the front hallway.

Marcus was waiting in his car parked near the corner.  Seeing Dennis step back out onto the front porch, Marcus placed his hand on the silenced pistol that was on the seat next to him.

However, Marcus was surprised when an eight-year-old boy dashed out of the house, slamming the front door behind him.  The child ran up to Dennis, and the father and son went over to their car in the driveway.

Damn, Marcus thought.  His right hand moved away from the gun and back onto the steering wheel.

He followed them as they drove along Lindell Boulevard.  Marcus hoped that Dennis was merely dropping the boy off somewhere, perhaps for a music lesson or at the house of one of the boy’s friends.

When Dennis and his son turned into Forest Park, though, Marcus sighed, realizing that the pair probably planned to spend the day together.  They parked in a lot near the zoo, and Marcus found a parking spot on the lane near the lot.

He pulled the cell phone out of his jacket pocket and called Elaine.

“Hello,” she answered promptly.

“I will not kill a man in front of his child.”

“I understand.  I’m sorry.  I didn’t know that Dennis was planning on taking him out today.”

“I might as well go home.”

“No!  I doubt that Dennis is going to spend the whole day with him.  Where are they now?”

“At the zoo.”

“They probably won’t stay there long.  Since Dennis has had a special project underway at his company, he usually goes into the office for at least a few hours on Saturday.”

“My time is valuable,” Marcus said.

“Yes, and that is why I am paying you very well!” Elaine snapped.  “I need this situation resolved as soon as possible!”  She paused and then added in a calmer voice, “Please stay with them.  If you are patient, Dennis will likely drop our son off at home and then head to the office by himself.  That will be your perfect opportunity.”

Marcus sighed.  “Very well.  I don’t have anything else planned, so I might as well follow them.”

“Thank you, goodbye,” Elaine said and hung up.

Because it was a Saturday and the weather was nice, the zoo was crowded, so Marcus was able to follow the father and son with little chance that they would notice him.

In spite of Elaine’s assertion that the visit would likely be brief, Dennis and the boy spent about three hours looking at the zoo’s most popular exhibits.

They walked through the River’s Edge exhibit, a mythic waterway through four continents that featured many animals from around the world in a lush, natural environment.  Hippos glided gracefully underwater while elephants enjoyed a waterfall above them.

At the Red Rocks exhibit, Marcus especially liked seeing the tigers, lions, and other big cats.  Nearby zebras, antelope, and giraffes wandered in a natural setting.

Like me, Marcus reflected, those big cats are predators who cannot reach their prey.  They are constrained by physical barriers while I am constrained by my moral code.

Marcus casually followed the pair into the Fragile Forest area featuring gorillas, chimpanzees, and orangutans in a naturalized outdoor setting.  Visitors were able to look through large glass windows into the habitat furnished with tall grasses and live trees.

This zoo has certainly changed a lot through the years, Marcus thought as he recalled a childhood visit to the zoo with his father.  The apes have much nicer living quarters now.

Marcus smiled as he remembered returning home and telling his mother that he wanted a gorilla for a pet.  He was so insistent that she pretended to call a pet store and order a gorilla.  

Chuckling at the happy memory, Marcus wandered over to the Lakeside Crossing outdoor restaurant, purchased a Pepsi, and sat drinking it while he waited.

Meanwhile, the father and son rode the
Zooline Railroad over to the 1904 World’s Fair Flight Cage.   After walking through the huge cage and looking at the birds, they headed toward the exit with Marcus following at a distance.

When they pulled out of the zoo’s parking lot, Marcus was already in his car parked on the nearby lane.  He stayed about a hundred yards behind them as Dennis drove out of Forest Park.  Marcus expected them to head back toward their home in the Central West End neighborhood, but instead Dennis turned onto Highway 40 and drove east.

Where on God’s earth are they going now?  He speculated about their destination as he followed them across the Poplar Street Bridge over the Mississippi River into Illinois.  Marcus considered turning around and driving back home to his condo, but curiosity propelled him forward.  I have nothing better to do this afternoon anyway, he decided.

Dennis and his son turned onto the driveway of some attractively-landscaped grounds.  Upon spotting the sign that read “Our Lady of the Snows,” Marcus realized that he had arrived at Belleville’s most popular tourist destination.  He had never been here previously, but he had often heard about the impressive Christmas display that the Our Lady of the Snows religious shrine had
every year. 

Marcus chuckled with grim humor.  This is getting worse and worse.  Now Dennis
Sandhaven is on holy ground.  I won’t kill anyone in the presence of a child, and I won’t kill a person in a church or on holy ground.

After parking, Marcus walked past a reflecting pool with a fountain in the center.  The reflecting pool also featured four large copper bells encased in Byzantine turrets that were tolling to signal the start of a new hour.

He followed Dennis and the boy as they walked through a grove of evergreens and pines.  Marcus had the impression that Dennis was familiar with this place; Dennis moved with the decisiveness of a man who knew exactly where he was going.

Numerous other persons were also heading in the same direction, apparently heading toward the same event.  As he came over the crest of a hill, Marcus saw that a priest had begun leading visitors along the fourteen Stations of the Cross.  Each station had a hand-painted background scene that provided a realistic, three-dimensional effect.

Dennis and his son joined the other visitors as they followed the priest from station to station.  As the group proceeded down the path, at each station the priest would say some prayers, then provide some personal reflections.

“Saint
Alphonsus Liguori teaches us that ‘God is very ready to give us His help, but we must ask for it in prayer.  It is the lantern which lights our way to eternity.’

“I recently read a book entitled
The Reed of God
by Caryll Houselander, who comments upon the Book of Revelation written by St. John the Evangelist.  Houselander writes that John saw Mary ‘standing in heaven, clothed in the sun and with her feet upon the moon.  Facing the sun, she received its light and gave it back as the moon does.’”

“Using another image,
Houselander writes that Mary ‘was a reed through which the Eternal Love was to be piped as a shepherd’s song.’ ” 

When the group arrived at the station depicting Veronica wiping the face of Jesus, the priest said, “Just as the holy face of Jesus was imprinted onto Veronica’s cloth, we need to have his face imprinted upon our souls.”

As they reached the final station in which Jesus was placed in the tomb, the priest said, “A couple of years ago I heard a Franciscan priest at St. Anthony of Padua parish in South St. Louis talk about a reverse Stations of the Cross.  This priest had once seen a nun do the stations in reverse order, beginning with this one.  He had never previously seen anyone do this and was fascinated.  When the priest asked the nun why she did the stations in reverse order, the nun replied that Mary had to walk home after watching her son be crucified.  In all likelihood, she walked back into Jerusalem along the same road that Jesus had carried the cross.  So this nun would reflect upon what Mary might have been thinking as she arrived at each station.”

At the conclusion of the Stations of the Cross, Dennis and his son wandered the grounds for a few minutes,
then returned to their car.  Apparently attending this religious ceremony was the main purpose for their visit here today, Marcus realized.

He watched them drive away, but he did not follow.  There was no reason.  He was already fairly certain that he was not going to kill Dennis
Sandhaven.  Perhaps I will test his character before I make a final decision, Marcus thought.  In any case, I will never again accept any assignment as a hit man.  I’m tired of all the killing.  I’m going to become just a regular private detective.

Marcus sat in his car for another fifteen minutes, soaking in the peaceful atmosphere of the place. 

             

BOOK: Moonlight Warriors: A Tale of Two Hit Men
4.01Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

Other books

Angel of Mercy by Lurlene McDaniel
And Mom Makes Three by Laura Lovecraft
Razor Sharp by Fern Michaels
Riding Rockets by Mike Mullane
Money to Burn by James Grippando
Palindrome by Stuart Woods
Blood Men by Paul Cleave
Impossibility of Tomorrow by Avery Williams