Mr. Parillo unlocked the door and motioned them in. "Mrs. Parker, what are you planning to use the building for?" He asked as they entered the warehouse. Before Lane could say anything, Ben said, "Mrs. Parker's not prepared to discuss her plans at this time. What are the zoning restrictions?" Ben continued to carry on a conversation, asking about Interstate access, and square footage, as he maneuvered them into one of the offices near the entrance; he worked his way deeper into the building. It was a two-story building and he knew as soon as they were away from the entrance door, Tanner would be in the building so he could work his way to the second floor. Ben kept his left hand on Lane's back as they walked; knowing that at the first sign of trouble, he'd be able to draw his gun and push her behind him where she'd be safe.
They'd been in the building about twenty minutes when his cell phone buzzed, signaling he had a text. He checked it. "Got Jeff - smack se corner 2 flr cld cops go now"
Ben handed his phone to Lane and looked at Joe Parillo. "Thanks, Joe. I think that's all we need today. We're looking at a couple of other places. I'll give you a call sometime next week."
They walked back toward the front of the building. Still keeping his hand on Lane's back, Ben hung back letting Joe walk in front of them. Joe is either ignorant about the drugs & kidnapping or he’s a good actor. Ben thought and he’d bet that it was ignorance not good acting; he'd been too willing to let them move around the building.
As they exited the building two men in suits, who flashed badges and addressed Ben and Lane by name met them. "Mr. Bellini, Mrs. Parker, we got a call from Roy Tanner."
Ben nodded and held up his hands. "Hello, detectives. I have a glock in a holster in the small of my back." He turned so the detective could get his gun. "I have a permit to carry concealed. It's in my wallet, left breast pocket."
Lane hadn't said ten words in the last twenty minutes and she just stood by dumbfounded as the detectives patted down both Ben and Mr. Parillo. She was surprised to find that Mr. Parillo also had a gun, however apparently he didn't have a concealed carry permit. At least he hadn't said a word.
The detectives looked at Lane "Mrs. Parker, I'm going to assume there's no need to pat you down."
Lane smiled as one of the detectives continued. "Your friend is alive, but unconscious. We have a bus on the way. We need for you to stay out of the building."
She saw the other detective return Ben's gun as she heard the click of handcuffs and one of the detectives recited the Miranda warning to Mr. Parillo, who indeed had no permit to carry the gun he had in his waistband.
While it seemed longer, it was only minutes later when the EMT's had Jeff, on a gurney with I.V. fluids started, out of the building and were loading him into an ambulance. They asked if Lane wanted to ride with them.
Ben brushed her hair away from her face and lightly kissed her cheek. "Go ahead, Red. Tanner and I have to stay her and chat a bit and I'll see you at the hospital in an hour or so."
Lane got into the ambulance with Jeff, leaving Ben and Tanner to work out the drug mess. After getting the okay from the EMT who rode in the back with her, she called Maggie to let her know they’d found Jeff, that he was dehydrated and unconscious, but his vital signs were strong and they were on their way to the hospital. She promised to call as soon as she knew more. Maggie was anxious to catch the first flight to Saint Louis. Through tears of joy, she said she'd call after she’d made travel arrangements.
The ER doctor checked Jeff over and ordered a CT scan just in case, but said he couldn't find any signs of a head injury. He'd ordered blood tests to be sure Jeff didn’t have drugs in his system and then sent Jeff to a room. Lane stood at the foot of his bed thinking how small and helpless the man, who when standing was six feet tall and athletic, appeared. He had a week's growth of beard on a face that Lane knew he usually kept clean-shaven. He had an IV and oxygen, either of which would make anyone seem helpless. He stirred a bit before opening his eyes. He blinked a couple of times and looked around the room before focusing on Lane.
"Aunt Lane? Where am I?"
Chapter 8
Never trust a stranger
"Hey, Jeff." She said as she patted his foot. "You're in a hospital in Saint Louis. Do you remember anything?" She stepped around to push his buzzer. Both his nurse and the police had said they wanted to know when he regained consciousness.
The nurse came in and asked Lane to step out of the room. It was 9:00 pm now and even though Ben had said he'd see her in a couple of hours, it had been more than four hours since she'd left him at the warehouse. She stepped into the hall and dialed his cell. He answered on the first ring. "Red." She heard an echo and turned to see him walking toward her. She hung up the phone as he swept her into his arms.
"Are you okay?" He asked.
She nodded. "You?"
She told him that Jeff had just regained consciousness and the nurse had kicked her out of the room.
"It's just as well. The police will want to talk to him before anyone else does. Poke your head in and tell them we're going to find the cafeteria."
As they walked to the elevator, he told her what they’d found at the warehouse. “There was actually a couple hundred pounds of meth in the warehouse, and the Saint Louis Police have the building staked out waiting to see who comes to claim it.”
They got into the elevator. “Luckily, Tanner had a contact that he'd called as soon as he'd found Jeff but we had still spent the last several hours giving statements. The police are still questioning Parillo. I’m still not sure if the guy knew about the drugs or not.”
The elevator doors opened and they made their way to the closed cafeteria. “Maggie said she’d call when she finalizes her travel arrangements, but it’s sounding like she can’t get a flight out until 6:00 am tomorrow.”
It was after 9:00 pm on Sunday night, so naturally, they found the cafeteria closed, but they had some vending machines. Ben walked to the Coke machine and inserted a couple of dollars. He looked to Lane and nodded toward the Diet Coke. "No Diet Dr. Pepper. Will a Diet Coke do?" Lane nodded. "Can or bottle?"
Lane looked around and located both a glass and an ice machine. "A can, please. I'm going to grab a glass and some ice. Do you want one?" Ben said he was caffeinated out and was going to grab a bottle of water.
As she sat down at a table, her cell phone rang. She looked a Ben as he approached and mouthed “Maggie.” When she’d hung up, she told him Maggie had confirmed her flight and that she’d arrive tomorrow.
Lane looked across the table at Ben, they'd had a very busy day, and neither of them had spoken a word about what had happened at the rest stop. This was Ben, and she thought of him as her best friend, but others from her daughter Jess to her assistant Meg often asked if she'd ever seen When Harry met Sally inferring that men and women can never be "just friends.” Lane just had trouble getting past the age thing. She was blessed with good genes and no one from the grocery clerk to her hairdresser ever guessed her to be over 35, but she knew the truth. She touched her fingers to her lips. She sure hadn't been thinking about the 12-year age difference when he'd kissed her.
Besides the age difference, Ben's babe magnet status danced in the back of her mind. She often said that every woman in the greater metropolitan area between the ages of 25 and 50 had either gone out with or tried to go out with Ben. He'd dated Kansas City Chiefs cheerleaders, politicians, and TV and radio personalities. She'd met a couple of them. He was 36 and had never been married; although there was a woman, he was seeing when she'd first moved to Kansas with whom she thought he'd been serious.