I remember you talking to me for hours. You loved to talk. Sometimes you’d talk too much and we know
where that got you.”
“I haven’t got all day. What is it you want?” Josh chose anger to disguise his fear.
“It’s not what I want, but what I can do for you.”
“And what can you do for me?”
“I can protect that life you hold so dear. For five thousand dollars, I can guarantee that your dirty little secrets don’t reach the ears of your family—or Dateline for that matter.”
“I paid you.”
“Yes, I know, but the cost of living is always increasing and money doesn’t go as far as it once did.”
“We had an arrangement.”
“We did, but you thought it required a one-time payment and so did I. Alas, we were both wrong,” she said with a sigh. “Now, all I need is another payment, which I might add is substantially smaller than the original sum. So you should consider you’re getting a bargain.”
Josh definitely didn’t think Bell’s sales pitch was a bargain. It was another shakedown and he hoped this wasn’t the start of many such requests. “And will this be the last payment?”
“Honestly, Josh, I don’t know.”
“What if I don’t pay?”
“Well, something unfortunate could happen. I’m
sure you can guess what that would be. But you don’t have to decide now. I’ll let you think about it and I’ll call you in two days. It’s so good to hear your voice again and it’s been wonderful to speak to you. I would say give my regards to Kate, but I can’t see you doing that. Ciao, Josh. It’s been real,” she said in an overly peppy, grating manner.
Josh said nothing and held the phone to his ear until he heard the dial tone. Bitch! He couldn’t believe it was starting all over again. He thought he had paid for his stupid mistakes. He’d fucked up once, then again, only to prove that two wrongs didn’t make a right. The sour taste in his mouth from the river became stronger and he thought he was drowning again.
Josh’s crimes had been significant. He never thought it would come to prison, but it would if the truth ever came out. He thought he’d done everything necessary to cover his tracks, but it hadn’t been enough. He stretched across his desk and brought the replica model of his Cessna CI52 closer to examine its detail. Will they let me keep this in my cell? He dropped his head into his hands.
The phone rang again. Startled, Josh’s head shot up.
He stared at the phone like it was a hand grenade with the pin missing. On the fourth ring, cautiously, he picked it up.
“Hello,” Josh said.
“Mr. Michaels?”
“Yes.”
“Hello sir, it’s Officer Dale Williams. My partner and I came to the hospital two days ago.”
Relieved it wasn’t Bell back on the phone, Josh’s heart slowed to a near normal pace. He got up from his desk and settled into the swivel chair. “I remember you, Officer.”
“I wanted to give you the latest on the investigation.”
“Have you found him?”
“No, sir. We haven’t come up with anything. There were no witnesses and there’s no physical evidence at the scene other than your tire tracks. There isn’t really anything for us to go on, unless you’ve remembered anything new or know of anyone who would have
done this.”
Josh hesitated. Could Bell have masterminded the
attack? Was this a warning to let me know what will happen if I don’t play ball? He fought the urge to blurt out everything—his mistakes, Bell’s blackmail. He wanted to make amends for what he had done, but
feared the consequences. He knew Kate would never understand. Somehow, he didn’t see Officer Williams as the priestly type who would let him confess his sins and hand out contrition in return.
“Mr. Michaels?” the policeman prompted.
“No, Officer.. I don’t know of anyone who would
want to harm me intentionally.”
“Well sir … to be honest, I can’t see us finding anyone.
There’s so little for us to go on,” the young policeman confessed, a little embarrassed. “Personally,
for what it’s worth, I think you came across some psycho.
You should count yourself lucky that things turned out so well. You wouldn’t believe how many cases like this we get.”
“Thank you for your honesty, Officer Williams.”
“Sorry I couldn’t do more, sir. If we find out anything, we’ll contact you. Good-bye, sir.”
“Thanks. Good-bye.”
Josh put the phone down. What are they thinking
about me? he wondered. Did Williams and Brady think it was an accident caused by two idiots fucking around on the roads or did they think he fell asleep at the wheel and dumped the car in the river himself? With his run of luck, he wouldn’t be surprised if they charged him with reckless driving. A headache climbed in behind his eyes and settled in for the long haul. The morning hadn’t gone well.
CHAPTER FOUR
The professional opened the door, took the do not disturb sign off the hook on the back of the door and hung it on the knob outside. The motel room was
clean, but lacked character or personality. It was a clone of the rooms on either side of it, furnished with two double beds, a television, a closet, a desk and assorted hotel toiletries. The room had been his home for
the past week, but it looked as if he’d yet to check in.
The maids rarely found any signs of disturbance to the room. The waste paper baskets were never used, the beds never looked slept in and the towels were always neatly folded after use. The only evidence of his existence was the locked aluminum briefcase and suitcase.
He liked the kind of strong and resilient luggage that couldn’t easily be tampered with. He didn’t like people knowing what he did.
Removing the briefcase from the closet, he placed it on the bed. He dragged a chair over to the bed and sat down. Adjusting the combination locks, he snapped open the case and removed some files, spreading them across the bed. He scanned for something he’d missed, something he could use to his advantage to complete his task, to kill the targets. The files had arrived in the usual manner, delivered to his Boston post office box without his name on them and no return address, as instructed.
This was more than the fiftieth such “care
package” he had received over the last two years. However, this was the first time a package contained data on two targets in the same city for simultaneous termination.
He didn’t like the situation. Sacramento was a
small city where murders were not that commonplace.
It would be possible for someone to link the incidents if they dug deep enough, so it was important the deaths appeared totally unrelated.
Of the two targets, the older one, Margaret Macey, should be the easier to dispose of, and he had a novel idea for her elimination. Putting her file to one side, he picked up the other. Opening it, he leaned over in his chair, examined the photograph and frowned. This target had survived his first attempt. Josh Michaels hadn’t drowned in the river. It was a screw-up that drew attention.
He would have to be more accurate with his next
attempt. He would dig a little deeper into Michaels’s life before he exposed his position.
He had spent the first week watching his prey, seeing what they did, when they did it and whom they did it with. Michaels had offered him an opportunity when he left for a business trip. The professional had followed his target to Bakersfield. Seeing Michaels preferred driving on the deserted roads gave him the
opening for which he was looking. He knew he would be chancing his luck on the open road when not all the conditions were under his control, but he liked his chances. An “innocent” road accident for Michaels on his return journey would be the order of the day. Except it was Michaels’s lucky day, and that allowed him to survive. According to the television report, Michaels had swum to shore even though his file stated he