Deadly Treatment (16 page)

B
efore they left Lucky’s Diner, Daniel made a quick phone call back to Malone and Taylor. Since they weren’t home, he left a message on the machine. ‘Hi guys, it’s just me. Look, I’ve met with my mom and she’s great, she’s telling me everything and I mean everything. I’m gonna stay the night with her, then I’ll fly back tomorrow and tell you all about it. Oh, how are things going with…’ the machine cut his call short.

They took a cab back to Shannon’s house; once inside, Shannon told Daniel to put his bag down and she’d give him a tour of the place. She was being facetious, the place was tiny. Living room with kitchen attached, one bedroom, and a small bathroom. The house was livable and the furniture looked lived in, drab, and inexpensive. Daniel noted the house was only just big enough for one; and the furnishings, although they were nasty, had a female feel about them. ‘
So where is my dad, DC
?’ he thought.

‘The couch is a pull out,’ she told him as she pointed at one of the faded, red, two-seaters. She went to the kitchen, lit a cigarette, and put some coffee on; when it was ready, she walked the two steps back to join Daniel in the living room.

‘So enough about me; what have you been up to for the past twenty-odd years?’ she asked as she handed him a mug and filled it with coffee.

Daniel desperately wanted her to carry on with her stories, but he knew it was time now for him to speak so he brought her up to speed with his life so far. He told her about Sister Elizabeth, but not about the letter he’d received. She looked fondly at him as he spoke about how good the Sister had been to him. He told her about his brief and rubbish flirt with crime: ‘Guess it’s in my genes,’ he joked. He told her how good Malone had been to him, and once again she smiled.

‘Sounds like he’s a great guy,’ she said, but she quietly pondered the name Malone.

And when he told her about his successful design business, Daniel missed the way her eyes lit up at the talk of money.

They had talked for hours before Shannon finally yawned and said, ‘I think it’s time for me to call it a night.’

Daniel checked his watch and was amazed to see it was after eleven. Shannon pulled out the couch and made up the bed; then she gave him a quick hug and retired to her room.

Restless and unable to sleep, Shannon tossed and turned in her bed. Thoughts of her past filled her head, and she returned to a time she had tried so hard to forget.

‘Quickly, kiss me,’ DC told her.

She was about to ask why, but his lips were already on hers before she could speak. They were in the reception area of the Marriott hotel in downtown San Francisco. DC had asked her to dress extra special and she had really gone to town — a tight-fitting, low-cut, black number that never failed to draw attention. As they embraced there in the foyer, more and more eyes were drawn to their presence; she could feel the smile on DC’s face grow as they kissed.

‘Can I help you sir?’ The concierge had left his station to come over and greet them.

‘That you can,’ he replied in a slightly raised voice, then quickly lowered it. ‘We have a table booked for eight o’clock and I understand that you can put us in a discrete area.’

She looked at him open-mouthed as he slipped a fifty into the concierge’s hand and winked.

‘I’m sure we can sort that out for you, sir. If you’d like to follow me.’

He introduced them to the maitre’d
saying, ‘This is Tessa; she will be able to take care of you for the evening.’

‘Thanks a lot.’ DC responded and turned his attention to Tessa.

‘If you’d like to follow me, Sir and Madam,’ she said as she moved off through the restaurant towards the far end by the window. Once they were seated, she smiled and left them alone.

‘Okay, no more games; what the hell is going on?’ Shannon’s voice was quiet but her tone was tense.

He leaned over and grabbed her hands as he quietly said, ‘Casually look over my shoulder at the couple in the corner.’

She gently leaned to one side and looked past him.

‘Who are you talking about? The fat guy with ginger sideburns?’

He smiled ‘Yeah, that’s him. He’s a lawyer; actually, he’s a senior partner with one of the big firms in the city; and the woman he’s with is the wife of one of his junior partners.’

She looked blankly at him.

‘You’ve got me all excited and dressed up, just so we can spy on some fat guy having an affair. You’ve got to be kidding me.’

He shook his head. ‘Give me a bit more credit than that. Yes we are spying on him, but it’s much more than that. Not only is she married to a guy that works for him, but he’s married too. We’re going to get some photos of them together in compromising positions. Not just in here either. I’m thinking in the elevator and maybe even going into the room; shame we won’t be able to get in there with them… maybe if…’

‘What are you talking about?’ she interrupted.

‘Blackmail. I’m talking blackmail. And not just him either — although he has the most to lose — her too.’ The lopsided smile was back on his face.

‘Blackmail – are you serious?’

‘Of course!’

‘So, what’s the plan?’ she asked when the waiter left earshot.

‘Like I said, he’s one of the senior partners in a firm in town. I had to go and take care of a bit of business in their office…’ He didn’t elaborate on the reason.

‘Anyway, I was talking to another of their associates in their goldfish-bowl style meeting room when out of the corner of my eye I spotted old ginger, talking to Missy there and a guy who I found out was one of the juniors. There was something about the way they interacted, particularly missy and ginger; it seemed odd — you know how I am at reading people.’

She nodded; he definitely did have a gift when it came to summing up people; it was a skill honed by years of seeking and manipulating suckers.

‘Right then I knew they were at it. A few calls provided all I needed to know about old ginger: married with two sons, been with the company for fifteen years, blah, blah, blah. All I wanted to know was that he was rich and blackmailable. The junior was a different story though, only been with the firm a couple of years, and really hardworking. In the past few weeks, I didn’t see him leave the office before midnight; and he’s always there before six. They live in a modest-sized home — a bit above their means, if you ask me — and she doesn’t work. Spends a lot of her time meeting friends for little coffee groups or wines with lunch; that, of course, is when she’s not with ginger.’ He looked a little bitter.

‘They get together more or less three times a week; they mix it up a bit, but always flash places. This place is their favorite though — every Thursday, like clockwork.’

‘Wow, you really have been busy,’ she said, impressed.,’

‘Like I said, she and the junior don’t have much in the way of money, but she does have a good life and a potentially big future to lose. I say we go after her first; make sure we get it right before going for the bigger ginger fish. What do you think?’

She gave him a huge smile and asked ‘Did you bring the camera?’

‘Right here in the palm of my hand,’ he replied as he opened his hand to show her the tiny device.

She leaned over and kissed him on the lips, the lopsided grin reappeared, and he called the waiter over to order.

Her memory flashed forward.

‘Why hasn’t she called?’ Shannon was pacing by the payphone near the wharf. ‘The message with the photos said not to be late, so why hasn’t she called us?’

‘Calm down, she’ll call. She’s probably trying to work out what she’s going to do. There’ll be the initial shock of opening the envelope and seeing herself in print with old Ginge — great shots by the way. Then she’ll read the letter telling her what we want and what will happen if we don’t get it. She’s got a lot of things to think about before she calls us.’

‘Do you think we asked too much?’

‘Nah. Ten grand ain’t chicken feed to them, I admit, but it’s about small enough for her to get away with. Plus, let’s not forget what she’s got at stake here.’

‘What if she calls Ginger?’

‘I’m counting on it. She’s probably trying to get hold of him as we speak. It’s gonna help us find out what type of guy he is and how best to handle him.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Well, if she calls and has the cash, then he probably helped out. If she calls and needs more time to raise the cash, then he has declined assistance and she has to find another way to get the money.’

‘But what if she doesn’t call?’

‘She’ll call.’

DC sent her along the pier to get some coffee and a Danish, and almost immediately upon her return, the phone rang. They looked at each other and DC picked up the phone. She listened intently to his side of the conversation.

‘Hello?…’

‘Yes, that’s us…’

‘I’m sorry you feel that way, but then it’s not me that’s getting it on with your husband’s boss, is it? Look lady, I don’t have time for all this abuse. Do you have the money and do we have a deal — or does this have to turn ugly?’

‘That’s more like it,’ he responded and then told her exactly what he wanted her to do and when.

He answered a few of her questions — mainly about getting all the photos and negatives back, and then finished with, ‘One last thing: I’m sure we don’t have to remind you that it’s not in your best interests for us to see any police — or if it looks like you’ve been followed.’

He hung up the phone and turned to Shannon, ‘We’re on!’

Again, her memory fast-forwarded.

‘There it is, duck down.’

They were on the second floor of the parking lot in the downtown Mall.

Missy’s Saloon had just come into view and circled the lot as it waited for a space to come free in one of the central rows. As a car left, Missy swung her car into the space while it was still warm and jumped out. She closed the door, but as instructed, didn’t lock it and made her way towards the mall without looking back. The drop went perfectly, the money was under the seat as expected, and there was no sign of police or trouble of any kind.

They pulled up at home, having made several detours on the way. Inside the house, DC opened the bag and poured the money on to the kitchen bench.

‘Ten big ones honey. What did I tell you? Easiest ten grand we’ll ever make!’ His smile filled his face as he spoke.

‘Baby, you’re the best,’ she yelled as she grabbed handfuls of the money and threw it in the air.

‘And this is only the start. Wait till old Ginge really has to put his hands in his pockets.’

‘I love you, baby,’ she said as she planted a big kiss on his lips.

‘I love you too, honey. Let’s go and score some coke to celebrate.’

Her memory skipped forward again.

The setup had been pretty much the same. Photos and letter had been sent to old ginger and they were eagerly waiting for the telephone call. Of course, a few things had needed to be changed. First, they were now standing beside a phone booth outside the zoo. They weren’t sure if old ginger had any connections with the phone company, but it paid to be a bit cautious; especially since they’d added another zero to the blackmail demand. Of course, old Ginge had the money; and based on their previous encounter, he was willing to be exploited.