The Final Shortcut (18 page)

“We haven’t decided yet, maybe we’ll stay a little while. That is if we don’t smell any heat. Looking for stolen goods eh? Have any been seen of them around here?”

“No just in Brayton so far.”

“Maybe we need to chill for a few days. You still got that house on the side of the hill?” Fudd opened his eyes and waited for her answer.

“You know I do and you’re welcome to use it for as long as you like. I keep it for a peaceful retreat once in a while.” She grinned broadly at the thought of her son staying on an extended visit, regardless of the reasons why.

An ex-hooker and ex-cocaine addict, she couldn’t pass any judgment on her son’s choice of a career. She was at her parental worst during his childhood years. He learned his trade from the dope dealers and her friends. She didn’t ask many questions because she didn’t want to know everything. It was enough that he would visit occasionally and that they genuinely liked each other. “I think I heard Fernando setting the table, shall we eat.”

“Yes, please.” Taipei beat them both to the dining room.

“We’ve got a little more business to take care of, but then we’ll take it easy for a while. Can’t work all the time. What do you say Ti, how about a couple weeks in the mountains instead of the hot nasty old islands?” Taipei barely nodded his head to answer. “Besides we’re just in time to watch the seasons change.” Fudd pulled out a chair and sat down, “I think I might look into this Federal thing a bit.”

“Now don’t get cocky and get caught, you’re smart but these are the feds.” Mom put her hand on Fudd’s arm in concern. “We can pull out of here anytime and never look back; nobody has to take any chances.”

“I may just look into it. I can find out a lot from my laptop. And I know people. You would be surprised what I can find out.” Fudd started filling his plate from a platter full of roast beef. “I won’t have to leave the lodge.”

They talked and ate for another two hours, sometimes laughing, but mostly talking about the federal investigation. Fudd was fairly certain they didn’t know about him but he wasn’t too sure about Faruk. He couldn’t afford to leave any loose ends dangling, and he wasn’t going to leave until all was safe. His cell phone began to ring and he got up from the table to answer it.

“Hello… and only fifteen minutes late… I sure do. I want you and Reverend to meet me at the scenic overlook at twelve fifty, and nobody else. Don’t be late.” He laughed as he put his phone away. “I wonder if any of those guys have a watch?” Fudd looked at Taipei who was shaking his head at him. “What?”

“You love to tease them don’t you?”

Fudd just grinned a little wider and sat back down. The overlook was only ten minutes away. He hoped his former gang members would be late so he could have a little more fun. “I brought you something too Mom.” Before he could finish, Taipei was already on the move to the car to fetch her gift, he served Fudd like a butler but he was in no way ruled by him. He was bright and literate but Fudd had an intuitive sense that was uncanny. His ability to feel trouble had saved them many times.

Chapter 12

“All right, we’re on.” Drago flipped his phone closed and slapped the table hard. “The man is in town and we’re off to get the goodies.” He stood up and moved to the end where the Reverend sat. “And the man sayeth that we two go alone into the lion’s den.”

“Thus sayeth the man!” Reverend got his name honestly, a former Episcopal Minister, he stood tall and lean with a trusting face. When he drank, he began to quote scripture, whether he remembered them verbatim or not. Drago was a founding member of the gang and the current leader. He and Fudd had started the crack, crystal meth manufacturing business eleven years ago. And as a front, a small working farm with four houses surrounded their laboratory.

“Somebody wake up Wolfman; get him and the rest of you back to the farm, time to get back to work. Rev and I are going to do the do.” Drago didn’t wait for them to move. He just headed for the door and Reverend fell in beside him. The supplies Fudd brought could be turned into many kilos of crack cocaine, which would then get delivered by Fudd to another customer. The wanderers could turn twelve thousand dollars into two hundred thousand without leaving the farm. Sweet.

“Why do you think Fudd asked for us two alone?” Reverend posed the question as he sat in the passenger side of the black Ford pickup.

“I don’t know, but he had to have a reason. He usually wants to see the whole gang. Maybe he’s in a hurry.” Drago started the truck and pulled off. There was plenty of time but he wanted to make sure he wasn’t late.

A long-legged scruff called Snake was the first to hit the parking lot. He and Wolfman were the only two that still rode a bike everywhere. The other eight piled into a long custom van and a second black pickup just like the other. Wheezer was disappointed at not getting to meet the man, and so was Crazy Mary.

“Well I like that!” she planted her hand on her hip protesting. Her stringy red hair clung to her neck and you could still see the imprint of the table in her face. Wheezer helped her in the van and sat down beside her.

“You like what?”

“He always comes by to see me when he’s in town. We been friens’ a long time.” Her eyes were red, swollen and obviously painful, having just woken up a few minutes ago. And she was obviously still drunk. Wheezer seized the opportunity and tried to find out more about the ones no one would talk about.

“A big time operator like that, why do you think he would let you down?” He moved in close, talking softly, the rest of the passengers were too absorbed in their own hangovers to listen.

“I don’t know, he always comes to see me, unless he gets spooked.” She closed her eyes and kept talking, for the moment. He could tell it wouldn’t be long before she fell back asleep. “Unless who gets spooked.” Wheezer chose his words carefully, taking full advantage of her cooperative state.

“Fudd, he’s the man, he can smell a cop a mile away.”

“Fudd?”

“Yeh. And sometimes he’ll change plans jes ‘cause he got a funny feelin‘. He always like to party with me tho‘.”

“They call him Fudd?”

“Yeh, but don’t ever call him Elmer…whew…it’s hot in here.” Wheezer aimed her head at the open window next to her and not a second too soon. She vomited on the glass, the curtains and herself. Some actually went out the window. The van whipped in at the next corner and everyone piled out gagging and coughing. Dolly had been driving and was the only one not retching. She was married to Drago and assumed a dominant role when he wasn’t around.

“Listen, if you guys can get her out of there, I’ll get the van cleaned up.” Tree tied a bandana over his mouth and reached in for Mary. She wasn’t very tall but her Sara Lee thighs made him grunt a little as he hefted her over his shoulder.

Dolly spoke up. “You might not want to throw her over your shoulder like that. She’s just gonna…” Before she could say it. Mary had done it, again, all over Tree’s back.

“Well?” Tree stared back at her. “What do I do with her now?”

“Well…dumb ass, take her across the street to Mom’s. She’ll let you give her a shower, and you can take one too.” Wheezer stepped away from the van to catch his breath.

“I was lucky enough to see it coming, and I’m still clean.”

Dolly clamped a strong hand on his arm and laughed. “Good, then you get to help me clean the van.” It was twenty-three miles to the farm and Dolly was not driving another foot like this. A coin-operated car wash provided enough hot water and vacuum power to do the job well. It was more or less clean but very wet; once it dried out for a while they would head home. Dolly knew there was no big rush so she decided to check on Crazy Mary and maybe get a shower herself. Wheezer eased away from the bunch for a walk, and a quick call to the boss. It hadn’t been very long since they talked, but it was a good idea to make contact whenever it is safe.

Half a block away was a gas station/truck stop with everything a traveler could want. Fortunately for him that included a bank of payphones. He tucked into a corner stall and dialed quickly, keeping watch over his shoulder.

“Jenkins.”

“Hi’ it’s me again.”

“What are you doing calling again so soon? Are you ok?” The surprise in his voice came through loud and clear. But in the intelligence world, surprise is not a good thing.

“Yeh I’m fine. I just had a chance to call. I didn’t get to go on the meet, so I’m back to square one. I did get a name on one of the traffickers though, Fudd, one of the girls has warm fuzzy relations with him.” He looked around carefully, trying not to attract attention.

“Fudd? Like Elmer Fudd?” Jenkins would have thought anyone else was joking. But Ray never joked while on assignment.

“ Yes. I’ll have to verify that one. Do you have anything for me?

Jenkins was busy typing into his laptop and listening at the same time. “Not right now, can you make it to…let’s see…Bontonville. It’s about ten miles away. I’ll have a drop for you. On Wednesday, at the city park, as close to two p.m. as you can.”

Wheezer was already trying to think of a way to get there two days from now. “If at all possible. Next time I want to be a banker or a lawyer, what do you say?”

“Cute, but you don’t look the type. Do you have a description on him or would that be too much to ask?”

“Nothing but the name.”

“I’ll send anything I find down to you Wednesday, good luck.”

“Thanks, I’ll be in touch.” Wheezer walked out of the station with a big bag of popcorn and a two-liter grape soda. When he returned, he didn’t want to be empty handed. Whatever happened next, he had to stay in character. The investigation was turning up all sorts of criminal indictments, but none were close to the source of the missing trucks. Dolly met him on the sidewalk and told him they were going across the street to clean up. And for him and Cochise to hang out and wait for them. Snake and Wolfman were going to watch over the van as it dried.

From the parking lot at Mom’s, Junior could see a van across the street with all the doors and windows open. Two biker types were seated on the curb next to it. Anywhere else it would seem odd, but not here, anything goes in Kitty City. Junior had driven through town several times, wanting to stop and hire a girl for the night. But he never did. He hadn’t had much luck with women in his life, and he hadn’t tried very hard to change it. Sex didn’t hold the allure for him that it did for most men. Definitely hetero, but somewhat asexual every since his childhood sweetheart had betrayed him. But today he was ready to enjoy himself, he had plenty of money and he knew Mom’s reputation for gorgeous girls. When he entered, he was shown to a waiting room where two more guys that looked like they belonged to the pair across the street, were seated. One had a big bag of popcorn and the other stared at the ceiling with dark glasses on, probably asleep. Mom greeted Junior with a smile.

“Well good afternoon, you’re the first customer of the day, what can I do for you?” He took another quick look at the bikers and then back at Mom. She leaned closer and took his arm, “Those guys are just visiting, they had a sick friend to take care of and Mom never says no.” She cackled out loud. “To anything!” She cackled again and put her arm around him before leading him into the next room.

Around the room were several couches, three girls were scattered among them seated, and two more were making their way in still shaking off the sleep. Junior looked over them like a hungry wolf in a sheep herd. He was almost a virgin, having only had sex twice in his life, and his juices were flowing overtime. One of the girls, a busty redhead, winked at him and he was about ready to make a choice. When off to the left another girl entered sleepily and she took center stage. Junior knew she was the one. She was petite, blue eyes and long curly blond hair, and she could pass for sixteen at the most. He pointed her out and Mom gave the nod for her to take him upstairs.

“Celeste, it’s you.” Junior looked at her and his eyes took on a dreamy stare.

“No my name is Sandra, but you can call me anything you want, lover.”

“You’re beautiful as ever Celeste.” They headed upstairs and entered a room just big enough for a bed and a bathroom. Junior hadn’t taken his eyes off her since they met and as she began to strip, she could see his desire growing rapidly. They wasted no time getting started, his clumsy lovemaking told of his inexperience and Sandra was tickled to have a grown man virgin between her thighs. But before five minutes passed, Junior began to cry a little and started talking under his breath.

“Now why did you go and leave me like that? You know Wesley ain’t the right guy for you, and you ran off with him any way.” He began to get angry and his words got louder. “You ran off with that preacher’s boy and got pregnant…. and then you had to sneak up on me that night.” And with that sentence he got up and started pacing the floor at the end of the bed. “And then you died…you aren’t supposed to be here, you’re dead!” Sandra had already pressed the panic button. She could hear heavy footsteps speeding up the stairs toward her.

“You can’t be here. You need to go back in the pit.” His eyes were crazy now, Sandra was getting genuinely scared for her life. Then Junior reached into his boots and retrieved a long thin dagger with a seven-inch blade. She didn’t wait to see what he had in mind. “BERT! HELP!”

Bert was the head bouncer and had been three steps from the door when she screamed, and as if on cue he burst through the door blind-siding Junior. His two hundred forty pounds were all muscle and he easily tackled Junior sending them both to the floor. Sandra ran as soon as she had a clear shot at the door and kept screaming all the way downstairs. Bert had knocked the wind out of Junior and quickly pinned his arms behind his back. Then he yanked him off the ground like a sack of flour and dragged him down stairs. Every few feet he would fake a trip or pretend Junior was struggling so he could punch him in the gut. But Junior wasn’t struggling, his mind had taken a long trip from reality and he was very confused. He was aware of what was going on around him but it was as though it was in a film. Some bizarre scene being played out right in front of him.