Every Good Plan Page 9

  “Good question,” Tanisha said. “Gabriel?” she spoke into the air.

  “I’m working on it. For now, proceed and see what you can gather.”

  “Affirmative,” she replied.

  “Okay, seriously, I feel like I’m that guy from Mission Impossible with all this spy talk. Do I also get a gun?” Lenny’s enthusiasm was evident.

  Tanisha’s eyes were quick to let him know the answer.

  He didn’t push back.

  “No guns, no weapons of any kind,” Adam added. “And, Lenny, we’re not spies or agents of any kind. Don’t go thinking you are and land us in trouble. Got it?”

  Lenny responded with a mocking salute.

  * * *

  Adam and Lenny arrived at the location an hour before sunset. The warehouse wasn’t what they had expected at all. Instead of it being a remote storage facility or manufacturing plant, it was a nightclub on the outskirts of Atlanta.

  “I guess these guys do know what they’re doing,” Lenny commented as they drove by the charcoal building with its name Warehouse 81 chalked across its wall in luminous pink.

  They parked the car on the opposite side of the road, one block up, and made their way to the entrance. As they stepped inside a doorman held up his hand and started patting them down, narrowly missing the hidden microphones that were strapped to their chests.

  “It’s my buddy’s birthday, man. Just here to show him a good time,” Lenny said jovially.

  Perhaps the false declaration helped because the doorman gave them a nod and let them through.

  Since it was too early for their usual nighttime trade, the club wasn’t very busy, much to Adam’s relief. His eyes caught the empty stage with the three poles lined up on it. Lenny spotted the shocked look on his face.

  “I get this isn’t quite your thing, Preacher, but don’t worry, the girls won’t come on until eight. We’re likely to get out of here before their routines start.”

  Lenny was right on the nose. The place left Adam uncomfortable and looking out of place.

  They made their way to one of the dark purple, circular fixed seats—one that had a vantage point to most of the other booths. In one of them to their left, a small party of five men were having fun with a scantily clad waitress as she popped down a fresh round of drinks. Adam looked concerned.

  “Ah, don’t worry, Preacher. Guys like that are harmless. Young and upcoming hotshots out for a quick drink after work. She’s used to it. You’d be surprised how well girls like that can handle themselves.”

  Adam studied Lenny’s face.

  “Is this a regular thing for you, Lenny? Coming to places like this.”

  “Not anymore. I won’t lie, you being a man of faith and all, but yes, there was once a time when I played a few regular poker games in a club like this one. Their rakes are much lower than the casinos’. Places like these are more often than not a front for a lot of high-stakes poker dens. See that guy over there?” He pointed discreetly to a man dressed in a black shirt and suit, seemingly casually seated next to a red velvet curtain.

  “That’s the pit manager—the guy who makes sure no one cheats when there’s a game in progress. Behind that curtain is where the games take place, but that’s much later in the evening.”

  “I never thought I’d see the day I’m stuck in a place like this,” Adam said shuffling uncomfortably.

  “You can’t bail now, man. Carrie needs us. This is the only lead we have.”

  “I won’t do that, Lenny. But let’s face it, it’s not as if I’m blending in here. Whoever’s going to be at this meeting will spot me from a mile away.”

  As if Adam couldn’t be more uncomfortable the waitress was suddenly next to them.

  “What can I get you two handsome lads?”

  “A couple of beers thanks, sweetness,” Lenny replied with ease.

  “Coming right up.”

  Adam hadn’t looked up once. Lenny on the other hand, allowed his eyes to linger on the waitress as she walked away.

  “Seriously, Lenny? Get a grip, man. Don’t you have any shame?”

  “Sorry, Preacher, you’re right, I shouldn’t be so blatant about it.”

  It wasn’t what Adam had meant but he let it go. He glanced at his watch and scanned the room.

  “Gabriel, do you copy?” he said.

  “Loud and clear, Adam.”

  “How long do we sit here?”

  But before Gabriel could answer in Adam’s ear, Lenny interrupted.

  “Apparently not long at all. I have eyes on—”

  Lenny froze. He dropped his chin to his chest and quickly popped his hand in front of his face.

  “What? Who did you see?” Adam urged showing care not to talk too loudly.

  “That’s him. That’s the guy who drugged me and stole the package,” Lenny whispered, his head still bowed.

  “You sure?”

  “Look at him! Would you forget a guy who looks like that?”

  Adam stole a glance. The man was tall, at least six and a half feet, his physique more powerful than any athlete he’d ever seen. And muscular—like the Hulk.

  “If he sees me, it’s over, Adam,” Lenny whispered.

  Seconds later the waitress placed two beers and a basket of pretzels in front of them.

  “Thank you,” Adam said, still not looking at her.

  “Okay, we have a job to do. I say we just bear down and get it over with. We need to stay cool, Lenny. You stay here and keep your head down.”

  “Where are you going? Have you lost your mind?”

  Lenny was highly strung.

  “I need to get the camera on his face. The lighting’s too poor and I don’t have a great angle from here. Just stay put.”

  Adam didn’t give Lenny any time to object. He was already on his feet and moving past the table where the man had squashed his enormous frame into one of the booths. When he neared the table, Adam paused directly next to him. Pretending he was looking for signage on the walls, he discreetly angled the camera that was hidden in his coat’s button onto the man’s face.

  “Move on, buddy,” the man barked, his voice deep and low.

  “Sorry, I was just taking in the decor,” Adam said, making sure he kept the camera focused long enough.

  “Walk away, man!”

  “Fine, fine,” Adam replied then hastily made his way back to the table where Lenny, by now, looked like he had a serious case of indigestion.

  “Gabriel, did you get that?” Adam asked.

  “Affirmative. Great work, Adam. Stand by.”

  Adam had switched places with Lenny who now sat with his back pinned against the booth’s back cushion. He had turned his body sideways too—in a futile attempt to become invisible.

  “We should get out of here now while we still can,” Lenny whispered from behind the menu that he held in front of his face.

  “We have a name,” Gabriel announced in their ears. “Meet Jerome Palmer aka The Midget.”

  “Oh, how original, the man’s anything but a dwarf,” Lenny snickered as he waited for Gabriel to continue.

  “He’s been linked to some of the country’s most notorious fraudsters, mostly hedge fund fraud, corporate fraud, and cybercrime—no direct involvement it seems. If he is the guy who drugged Lenny, then I suspect he’s a runner slash bodyguard. Is he on his own?”

  “Yes,” Adam said. “No sign of any packages either.”

  “Let’s wait it out. Keep your cover.”

  Even in the dull red lighting, Adam could see the look on Lenny’s face.

  “I think it’s too late for that,” Lenny announced.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Carrie’s body shivered uncontrollably. Every fiber in her body ached from the cold. Her red coat was drenched in mud and rain from the night before. Frozen half to death, she blew whatever warm air she had left inside her body into her near-purple cupped hands. It had no effect.

  The hand that the glass had sliced into had stopped bleedi
ng on its own—presumably from the freezing-cold night.

  She had followed the train tracks throughout the night and that entire day, never once stopping. And yet she still found herself in the middle of nowhere with nothing but vast emptiness stretched out all around her. When the man had captured her in the alley he had pulled a hood over her head before he threw her inside the trunk of his car. They had driven for a while but there was no telling how long, or where to. She could be anywhere.

  She looked up at the weak sun that was about to set. If she didn’t find shelter very soon she would have to spend another night out in the freezing cold. She wasn’t sure her body could handle that.

  Through purple lips and with a quivering voice she hummed away at the lullaby she’d usually be singing to Maribelle at night. She couldn’t remember all the words, she was too cold. But it was what had kept her going this far. She sang the same verse over and over, her voice trailing off as she battled to catch her breath under the cold.

  With her eyes fixed on the train track ahead of her, she kept moving—one foot in front of the other. There hadn’t been a single train on the line since she’d found it—in any direction. Logic told her it was either abandoned or a route not often used. But it was her only hope. It had to lead somewhere. All her mind needed to focus on now was putting one exhausted leg in front of the other. As long as she kept walking, she should be fine. As long as she kept walking, she would eventually find her way back home to her husband and daughter.

  The black Subaru pulled up outside the mobile office on the abandoned construction site. When Diaz stepped out of the car he immediately spotted the shattered window. He snapped his fingers at two of his men who promptly rushed toward the office trailer. Moments later one popped his head out of the window and announced that the woman had escaped. But Diaz had already suspected that. By now another one of his men had started tracking the droplets of blood that trailed away from the broken window.

  “She couldn’t have gotten far. Keep looking!” he shouted after him.

  But as Diaz sat next to the small pool of dried blood on the ground, he knew she’d been gone for some time already. At least twelve hours, if not longer, for it to have dried already. He turned facing the direction of the blood trail, sticking his nose into the air as if trying to pick up her scent, then suddenly, he spun around and got behind the wheel of the Subaru.

  “Search the perimeter!” he commanded the two minions near the office.

  Diaz slowly pushed the vehicle in the direction of her escape, picking his tracker up en route. With all four windows down their eyes scanned across the open space.

  It didn’t take him long to hit the railway track.

  A quick inspection of the tracks showed more blood; evidence that he had successfully managed to find her escape route. He glanced at his watch. The sun was about to set, and it was predicted the night would push far below zero degrees. If she was still out there, hiding somewhere, she would never survive the cold. He couldn’t risk that. He needed her alive. Or at least for Lenny to think she was still alive.

  As the last of the sun’s rays dropped behind the horizon, Carrie was dangerously close to giving up. She had relentlessly been following the railway track that seemed to be never-ending. Nightfall was fast approaching and the temperature had already dropped significantly. She had long since stopped praying. Her faith simply wasn’t strong enough. And although she felt guilty for lacking faith, she figured God might forgive her considering her circumstances. But as her body grew weaker by the minute, and the darkness set in, she no longer believed she would survive the horrendous ordeal and get back home to her husband and little girl.

  Unable to walk one more step, her legs caved beneath her exhausted body. She collapsed in a heap onto the track. So severe was the cold that it had numbed her to the point where she didn’t know if her mind and body were still connected. She didn’t even feel the pain when the hard steel bars slammed across her shins and instantly left a massive swelling on each leg. Her limbs seemed to belong to someone else, had a mind of their own that she had no control over. And she battled to stay awake.

  But her near slumber state was soon interrupted when humming vibrations pushed up from the steel track beneath her cheek, growing louder and louder by the second. She managed to lift her head, just. By now it was too dark to see anything that far away. Realizing she was sprawled across the train tracks she pushed her body up with as much force as she could muster, and rolled herself off onto the muddy soil alongside it. In the distance, she was certain she saw lights. The tiniest flickers of hope rushed through her frail body. If it was a train surely they would see her. She forced her body off the ground into an upright position and took a few wobbly steps back—for fear of being hit by the train. The lights drew nearer, but the familiar sound of a train hitting the tracks wasn’t there. When the lights were almost on top of her, she realized it wasn’t a train, but a car. At first, she was excited at the prospect of being rescued. But as her mind made sense of it all, she suddenly realized they had caught up with her.

  Adrenaline flooded her frozen veins as she turned and pushed her tired legs as fast as they could go. She didn’t dare look back. Across the open plain, her eyes frantically searched for a place to hide. But there was nothing but open, flat dirt in any direction. She heard the roaring of the car’s engine, saw the lights bouncing up and down over the ground from the corner of her eye, then her foot slipped on the loose soil, before her ankle twisted sideways, and she hit the ground hard with a loud thud.

  Suddenly the man from the alley’s voice was right beside her.

  “Going anywhere?”

  Carrie raised her head, her muddy hair hanging in strings across her face.

  “What do you want from me? Just let me go.”

  She heard him snap his fingers and seconds later two of his men had their large hands in her armpits. They dragged her body toward the black SUV, her eyes fixed on the man’s sharp face.

  “Let me go, please. I’ll give you anything you want. Please!” Her voice had no strength to it. She was pleading, sobbing.

  “I don’t want you or your money. In fact, you’re a thorn in my flesh and quite honestly I don’t have the time to babysit you. But, unfortunately, it’s the only way I can get your good-for-nothing brother to take me seriously. Your life is in his hands, princess.”

  The man’s words shocked her into submission as they tied her hands together and shoved her into the back of the car.

  “No, there has to be some misunderstanding. I haven’t seen my brother. I don’t even know where he is!” she yelled as he got into the passenger seat in front of her and the vehicle sped off.

  “Don’t get angry with me, sweetheart. He’s the one who got you into this mess.”

  He checked the time on his watch.

  “Don’t worry, it should be over very soon. He has about thirty-six hours left to get me what I want.”

  “And if he doesn’t?” she dared.

  “Then you both die.”

  * * *

  When they got back to the site they shoved her up the steel stepladder and pushed her inside the mobile site office.

  “This time nail the door and window shut,” he barked.

  They forced her down into the corner and dropped a brown paper bag and a blanket on the floor next to her.

  “You’re no good to me dead so make sure you eat,” he said.

  The man turned and left her alone on the floor, her hands still tied together with duct tape. Once he had left, she heard his underlings hammer pieces of wood outside the door.

  She wasn’t sure how long she sat there in the corner crying. Her mind was too busy trying to understand how Lenny had got involved in a mess of this magnitude and why he had to drag her into it too. He had problems with gambling and bookies, but this wasn’t that. This man wasn’t a bookie. He dressed like a business tycoon. What had her brother gotten himself into that she had to pay for it with her life?

&n
bsp; She hadn’t seen or heard from Lenny since the day she visited him in prison. He had told her it was best she didn’t come there again, forgot about him, got on with her life. What if her brother didn’t care enough to save her life? He could be long gone for all she knew. Run off and left her for dead.

  But deep down inside, Carrie knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Lenny would never do that to her. He would never turn his back on her. All he had ever wanted for her was a better life. A life their parents weren’t prepared to give them. He had covered for her too many times. Protected her, saved her life. No, her brother might have his flaws, and he might have lived his life in a way she knew he’d much rather have preferred not to, but if there was one thing she knew about her brother, it was that Lenny would sooner die for her than have her killed.

  Chapter Seventeen

  The man everyone called The Midget was suddenly towering next to their table. With one swift move, he had picked Lenny up by the scruff of his neck. Feet dangling off the floor, the huge man’s nose shoved into his face, Lenny found himself at the mercy of a giant.

  “Why are you here?” he demanded menacingly.

  “I’m not exactly happy to see you either, you big ape! You stabbed me in my neck. You’re a scumbag thief!”

  Adam whispered the safe word into his mic, repeating it several times.

  “We copy you, Adam. We need you to bait him for more information,” Gabriel announced.

  Adam wasn’t in a position to respond and blow the entire operation. He had also never found himself in a high-conflict situation like this either. His insides squirmed with fear. What do I do, Father? What do I do? As brave as he attempted to sound, his words of warning instead sounded feeble.

  “Leave my friend alone! We’re minding our own business.” The Midget ignored him and shook Lenny like a rag doll.