Blue Steele - Box Set - Captures 1-6 (9 page)

Deke pointed to the bank of elevators and told the lab boys to have at it.

In less than five minutes, they had found not only the jewels and wallets, but also the two numbered T-shirts and the guns, hidden in a false control panel box on the roof of the car. All of it was atop the elevator car marked number three.

Deke turned and smiled at me.

“Your daddy would have been impressed Blue, I know I am.”

“Thanks, but it only made sense once you told me about his former profession. An elevator repairman would think of an elevator as an elevator car, and I remembered reading somewhere that they had brakes, and so it was worth a look.”

“The kids off the hook and you’re five grand richer.”

I smiled as I reached over and took Gary’s hand.

“Now we can go shopping.”

When we left, we took the stairs.

I
was seated across from Ron Tenney, my boss, and owner of the AAAAAAAAAA Bail Bonds Company.

Ron was in his fifties, had a full head of white hair and a ready smile. The smile was quite a contrast to most people in this business. Dealing with criminals tended to make you sour on humanity, and a frown often came easier than a grin.

Yet, Ron seemed to always be in a good mood. I suspected it was because of his wife, but having never met the woman, it was only a guess.

The AAAAAAAAAA Bail Bonds Company, or Ten A, as most people called it, was in a storefront on Lanchaster Avenue in Fort Worth. The building was old when Ron was born and the office was crowded with filing cabinets and desks.

Ron handed me a flyer.

“That’s Joe Harmody, a bank robber; he’s worth four grand if you catch him.”

The man in the photo was handsome and beefy looking. If I hadn’t known he was a bank robber, I might have guessed pro wrestler instead.

“Any known associates?”

“He’s a mystery, but a buddy at the county jail told me that a woman stopped in to see Harmody once. My buddy said that he’s sure she was one of the waitresses at Bongo Bongo.”

Bongo Bongo was a restaurant that served burgers, burgers brought to you by women in skimpy shorts and tops.

“Do you have a description of her?”

“Blonde, large breasts and leggy, but the name on the visitors log was Deanna Andrews,”

I sat and stared at Harmody’s photo. Four thousand was good money, but bank robbers tended to be violent when confronted.

Ron arched an eyebrow. “So Blue baby, do you want it?”

I nodded.

“I’ll give it a week. If Harmody doesn’t make contact with this Deanna Andrews by then, then I’ll assume he’s left her behind.”

“Sounds like a good plan, now, what’s this I hear about you dating a defense lawyer?”

“His name is Gary Dent.”

“Dent? As in
Goldman, Harper, Rogers & Dent
?”

“That’s him.”

“I met him once; he seemed like an okay guy.”

“He is,”

“Well good, but I hope it’s not serious?”

“Why do you say that?”

“If you married a guy with his bucks you might quit, and you’re my best bounty hunter.”

I shook my head.

“Oh, we’re a long way from marriage,”

“Not if Dent’s as smart as they say he is. A smart man would scoop you up quick.”

I stood and waved Harmody’s picture.

“Thanks for the compliment, but right now this is the only man I’m interested in being handcuffed to.”

Ron laughed.

“Good hunting, Blue, and hey, be careful,”

***

F
orty minutes later, I parked my pick-up truck in a back corner of Bongo Bongo’s parking lot. The restaurant was located in a shopping center and shared the lot with a supermarket, a sporting goods store and an electronics repair shop.

I had binoculars hanging around my neck and whenever someone that could be Harmody walked toward the bar, I checked them out.

I had been there for two hours when my phone rang. It was Ernesto Roberts, a man I’d been paid to bodyguard a week ago.

“Mr. Roberts, how can I help you?”

“Blue? Blue there’s a man here trying to get into my house. I called the police but they haven’t gotten here yet.”

I started my engine as I answered him.

“Is your door locked?”

“Yes, but he’s kicking at it. I think he’ll soon kick it open.”

I was only a few minutes from Ernesto’s house and I floored it as I got on the highway.

“What’s the man look like?” I asked.

“He’s Hispanic and very muscular. Oh God, I can see a gap in the door now.”

“Stop looking at the door and run, go out a window if you have to, but get away from him and get to a neighbor’s house.”

“But my nearest neighbor is a half mile away,”

I could hear a banging noise in the background that was accompanied by the sound of wood splintering.

“Run!” I shouted into the phone, even as I neared the exit on the highway.

When I arrived at Ernesto’s, the front door was wide open. As I walked inside with my gun drawn, I heard the screaming. When I got to the back of the house, I could see Ernesto running away from a man. The back of his large property was fenced in, and once Ernesto reached the fence, he fell against it and cowered.

I ran outside and headed straight for them. I didn’t need to be stealthy, Ernesto’s blubbering and begging covered the sound of my approach.

Ernesto spotted me first however, and the look of relief on his face made his pursuer aware that they were no longer alone. The man turned and raised his gun at me, but a moment later, he dropped his weapon to his side and smiled, as I did the same.

“Hey, Chica, what are you doing here?”

“I was going to ask you the same thing, Ramón.”

“Hold on a second Chica,” Ramón said, and then he turned and knocked Ernesto unconscious with one punch. Afterward, he threw him over his shoulder and started walking back toward the house.

“Follow me Blue, you and I gotta do some catching up, eh?”

I shook my head, let out a sigh, and followed Ramón into the house.

***

W
hen we went back inside, Ramón laid Ernesto on the sofa and then walked over to the door and closed it as best he could, considering that the wooden frame was splintered. When he was done, he turned and grinned at me.

“It’s good to see you Blue, but we don’t have much time; there’s a man coming here to kill our friend on the couch there.”

“He thought you were here to kill him.”

Ramón looked offended.

“I’m not a killer. I find people, same as you. I was asked to find this man and—”

A motorcycle sped into the driveway. When its engine died, in the background, very faintly, I could hear the sound of an approaching siren.

Movement caught my eye and I saw Ernesto sit up on the sofa with a dazed look on his face.

The man outside got off the bike. He was dressed in black leather and wore a mirrored helmet. He took a gun out from behind his back and ran toward the door.

Ramón stood to the left of the door and I took the right side. The man hit the door hard, expecting it to be locked. When the door flew open without any resistance, he tumbled into the foyer, lost his footing and slid across the hard wood flooring in the living room until he was five feet from the sofa, where Ernesto, now fully awake, let out a shriek of fright.

Ramón got to the intruder first and wrest the gun from his hand, a second later, and I yanked the helmet from his head to reveal a young face with a mop of blond hair.

Ramón stared down at the man and pointed his gun at his face.

“Don’t move Chico, don’t even blink,”

The once faint sirens now came screaming into the circular driveway and within seconds, the sound of the police car’s doors opening reached us.

I pointed at Ramón while talking to Ernesto.

“This man is your friend.” I then pointed at the man on the floor. “This man is not, understand?”

Ernesto nodded his head wildly.

“Yes, yes, thank you Blue, thank you for saving me.”

Then Ramón placed a heavy boot on the back of the motorcyclist neck and stuck the guns in his belt. I placed my gun behind my back and we had just enough time to put our hands in the air, when the two cops entered with their weapons drawn and ready.

***

I
t took over five hours and eight different cops to straighten things out, but when the dust settled Ramón and I were free and the motorcyclist was in custody. It turned out that he was hired by the fiancé of Ernesto’s niece.

The fiancé learned that Ernesto had named his niece in his will and that Ernesto had also been in a land dispute with a reputed mobster.

His plan was to kill Ernesto, frame the mobster, and when the wedding took place next month, he’d be sitting pretty. However, Chaney, the mobster, learned of the hit and hired Ramón to babysit Ernesto until he could have the hit cancelled.

Needless to say, the wedding was called off.

***

R
amón and I were sitting in Bongo Bongo, and each eating one of their famed Bongo burgers. The interior of the place was brightly lit and there were TV’s everywhere with sporting events playing on them.

And while the shorts and tops of the waitresses were revealing, they weren’t as skimpy as I imagined they would be.

Ramón watched as a particularly well-endowed waitress walked by, and then he smiled at me.

“I’m surprised you picked this place to grab a bite, but I have no complaints.”

“I’m working. There’s a bail skip who might show here, and I figured why not kill two birds with one stone.”

“How is my little Amy?”

“She’s good; Becca says she still talks about you.”

“Tell her I said hi when you see her.”

“Actually, Becca’s been bugging me to bring you to dinner one night; she and her husband Richie want to thank you personally for saving Amy.”

Ramón blanched.

“What?” I said.

“I’m not used to normal people wanting to spend time with me, that’s all.”

“What do you mean normal? You’re not normal?”

“Both my parents died before I was ten, and after that I was a gangbanger. I broke free from that life and have been on my own ever since.”

“Don’t you have any other family?”

“Yeah, but we never talk,”

“What about friends?”

He shook his head.

“I consider myself your friend.” I said.

“Thank you, Chica, Blue; that means a lot to me.”

“So, when can I tell Becca to expect you?”

“Never. Whenever I get around normal people, it makes me nervous. I can’t imagine working nine to five, coming home to the same woman night after night, and the kids, all that responsibility, it isn’t natural.”

“I think you’re an adrenaline junkie, but I warn you, I promised Becca that I’d bring you by some day and I never break a promise.”

He grinned. “This one might be your first.”

“So how long have you worked for Chaney?”

“I don’t. I’m freelance, if you want somebody found; I’ll find them. The bodyguard bit today was a one-time thing. So, who’s this guy you’re looking for?”

I told Ramón about Joe Harmody and his connection to Bongo Bongo.

“Four grand? That’s good money, but if he’s smart, he won’t come back here.”

“Yeah I know, but I—”

“Gotta check it out,” Ramón finished.

I laughed.

“That’s right.”

“You got a picture of this guy?”

I passed him a copy of the flyer with Harmody’s picture on it and he studied it.

“Bank robbers, short term thinkers every one of them. There was a guy in California years ago who robbed banks for twenty years and got away with over three million. When they finally caught him, he had less than a thousand dollars to his name.”

Our waitress came by and asked if we needed anything else. She had big blond hair, obvious fake boobs and long, shapely legs. I told her that we were good and asked for the bill. Before she left the table, she sent Ramón a bright and lingering smile.

“It looks like our waitress likes you.”

“All women find me irresistible; in fact, it’s probably taking all of your self-control not to reach across the table and fondle me.”

“The thought has crossed my mind, but I’m seeing someone.”

“That guy Gary you told me about?”

“Yes,”

“Good for him. Now tell me, which of these girls is Harmody’s?”

The waitress walked back towards us with our bill in her hand and her eyes on Ramón.

“Here she comes now.” I said.

***

A
t closing time, Ramón left the restaurant with our waitress, otherwise known as Deanna Andrews. He was going to try and get her to open up about Harmody. I appreciated the assistance but doubted that his only motive was to help me; after all, Deanna Andrews was a good-looking woman.

I followed them to her apartment and searched the street for any sign of Harmody. There was none. It was quiet. It was after two and the street was deserted.

A light came on in a third floor apartment and a second later, went off.

I thought it odd, but harmless, that is, until I saw the two struggling figures bang against the window.

I jumped from my car and raced up the stairs to the third floor. Just as I rounded the corner, a shot rang out, followed by a man yelling, “No!”

I tried the door and found that it was unlocked. As I eased it open, Ramón called my name.

“Blue?”

“It’s me.”

I found the light switch.

Joe Harmody was on his knees in the middle of the living room crying his eyes out; lying on the floor beside him was Deanna Andrews, with a gunshot wound that entered just beneath her right eye. There was no need to try for a pulse, the brains and blood splattered about the room told me she was dead.

“What happened?”

Ramón looked a bit shaken, but his voice was strong and unwavering.

“When we entered, I hit the lights and she shut them off and then kissed me. I heard a sound behind me and found him coming at me with a gun in one hand and a blackjack in the other. I threw the girl, Deanna, at him and reached for my gun. As I was taking it out, she grabbed my wrist and we struggled for a second before I could throw her off me. As I pushed her away, Harmody fired a shot at me and hit her instead. When he realized what he’d done, he dropped the gun and rushed over to her.”