Just then the door at the end of the hall opened and Ramos stepped out. He wore his usual jeans with a button-down shirt and blazer. His hair was wet, so he must have showered, but the darkness along his jaw showed that he didn’t have time to shave.
With a slight scowl on his face, he exuded danger along with that sexy predator vibe he carried so well. He glanced up and caught me staring at him. His scowl turned into a smirk, then a lopsided grin. Then he did a little head nod in my direction and thought I looked cute in my “I Love New York” purple t-shirt.
“Good. You’re here,” Uncle Joey said. “Let’s go into my office, and you can tell us what happened last night.”
At the mention of last night, Ramos’ grin faded into a dark scowl. I listened real close to find out what was bothering him, but his thoughts were shut up tight. The only thing I could pick up was discouragement and a hefty dose of annoyance.
I waited for him to come to my side before we both followed Uncle Joey to his office. “Not going so well?”
“You could say that.” As much as he didn’t want to involve me in his problems, he couldn’t see a way around it. “I’m afraid I need your help.”
“Is that right?” It was on the tip of my tongue to chew him out for being ‘afraid’ to ask for my help, but I kept my mouth shut. Still, it rankled just a little that he’d asked like that. “I’ll see what I can do.”
My tone caught him by surprise, and he realized he was taking me for granted. He was so used to me wanting to help, and sticking my nose where it didn’t belong, that he never imagined I’d turn him down. Then he realized I’d just heard that and did a mental head slap.
“It’s okay, Ramos. I know this whole thing is frustrating, but we’ll figure it out.”
“Yeah… sure. Uh… sorry.”
“Fuhgedaboudit,” I answered, then couldn’t help snickering. Ramos lifted an eyebrow, so I shrugged. “It’s how they say it in New York.”
He shook his head, but the tension left his shoulders, and he cracked a smile. “How did it go?”
“Well… let’s just say it was a little crazy.”
“You’ll have to tell me about it sometime.” He’d heard that Miguel got the part, and that I’d met the family. Since that was a new development, he thought the crazy part was probably an understatement.
“Yes it was,” I agreed, nodding my head as we entered Uncle Joey’s office. Uncle Joey sat down behind his desk, while Ramos closed the door behind us. Then we took our seats.
“So what did you find out?” Uncle Joey asked Ramos.
“I haven’t been able to track Dusty down, but I found out those pills he gave me are homemade. They’re fake pain pills made with fentanyl. That’s a synthetic opioid that resembles powdered heroin. My source told me that just one kilogram of fentanyl can be made into a million phony pain pills. And they sell for a lot of money.”
“You think Dusty made them?” I asked.
“Yes. And it gets worse. I’ve been asking around, and I found out the pills are out on the streets here. Dealers from some of the gangs are selling them like hotcakes. I found out Dusty is Jodie’s road manager. So last night, I went to the arena where Jodie’s performing, hoping to track him down. All the trucks for her show are there, along with a few motorhomes, and I managed to slip inside the gate, but nobody seemed to know where Dusty was.
“Then as I left, this dude pulled a gun on me and asked me why I’d missed the drop. When I didn’t answer, he said he’d give me twenty-four hours to get the money. If the money wasn’t at the drop by midnight tonight, he said he’d kill me and anybody I cared about.”
“What?” I sat up straight. “What does that mean?”
“I don’t know… only that I’ve been set up. And it’s all because of Dusty.”
Uncle Joey hadn’t said a word, but I picked up his fury that someone had the audacity to come into his city and set up shop without his permission. Most people knew better than to come into his territory without a proper introduction.
Just thinking that one of Dusty’s men had the gall to threaten Ramos brought his blood to the boiling point. Threaten Ramos? How dare they? They might as well have threatened Uncle Joey and his whole organization. Well… he wasn’t going to stand for it. They’d gone too far.
“I think Dusty’s crossed a line,” Uncle Joey said. “And we need to teach him a lesson.” He glanced at me, not sure he wanted me to be privy to how he was going to do that. “I think Shelby should go with you to the concert tonight. You can corner Dusty and find out what the hell is going on. No more beating around the bush. I want to know everything.”
Ramos nodded, convinced that was the only way to handle it. He glanced at me. Was I in?
As much as I hated the idea of violence, I agreed that someone needed to stop Dusty from spreading his drugs. It only surprised me that it was Uncle Joey, and not the police, who would be doing the stopping. “What time do you want to go?”
“The meet and greet is before the concert,” Ramos replied. “But I’d like to show up earlier than that so we can have some alone time with Jodie. Probably around six o’clock. After that, I’m hoping she’ll help us track Dusty down.”
“Okay. I’ll meet you here at the office at about five-forty-five.”
Ramos nodded. “That should work.”
“Now Shelby,” Uncle Joey said. “If you’ll excuse us, we have some planning to do.”
“Uh… sure.” They both kept their minds blank while I exited the room, and I was grateful to be out of the loop. There were just some things I didn’t want to know, especially since my next stop was the police station.
I said my goodbyes to Jackie, telling her I was off to visit Chris. She reminded me about my luggage in the trunk of the limo, so I told her I’d be back to get it after lunch.
Next, I texted Dimples and told him I was on my way. He replied that he’d meet me in the parking lot, because we were going to the drug dealer’s house. Did that mean this was a surprise visit? I couldn’t imagine that Dimples had made an appointment. So I hoped the guy was there and this wasn’t a waste of time.
I also hoped I could find out more from the police that might help Ramos and Uncle Joey with their side of things. Hmm… did that make me a double-agent? Maybe… but it was all for a good cause, so it couldn’t be a bad thing, right?
Since it was a beautiful, sunny day, I didn’t mind the short walk to the precinct. As I reached the precinct parking lot, Dimples waved me over to his car. He smiled, but it wasn’t enough to make his dimples do their magic dance, so I knew something was bothering him.
“What’s up?” I asked.
“Get in. I’ll tell you on the way.” I listened real close to his thoughts, but all I got was that he was worried about something. “So how was New York?”
“It was great. I got to see Aladdin on Broadway and the Statue of Liberty and some other great things.”
“Nice,” he said, only half listening.
“Yeah it was. Okay… spit it out. What’s bothering you?”
He chuckled. “Can’t keep much from you, can I? Okay, here’s the deal. Billie’s freaking out a little about the wedding. I was wondering if you could talk to her.”
“What’s the problem?”
“Well,” he said, scratching his chin. “It’s only five weeks away. I think she’s finally realizing that three months to plan a wedding wasn’t enough time. It’s kind of scary because she’s the most organized person I know. If anyone could pull it together, it would be her, right? But she’s all stressed out, and it’s starting to stress me out.”
“I can understand that.”
“Do you think you could talk to her?”
“Uh… yeah… I can do that.”
“Thanks Shelby.” He let out a relieved breath. “Maybe you could go to lunch with her, so you can pick up if there’s something else besides that, you know?” He was hoping it wasn’t him, but he didn’t know for sure, but I’d know and could tell h
im what it was. Then maybe he could do something about it.
I smiled. “I’ll do that, but try not to worry too much. I’m sure it’s not a big deal.”
“Yeah, I’m sure you’re right. Thanks, Shelby.” He sent me a smile of gratitude. A few minutes later we pulled up to the curb. “Here we are.” I glanced out the window to see an older, red-brick, single-family home, probably built in the nineteen-forties.
It was just off a busy street and close to the ball park on the west side of town. A front porch with two windows on either side of the front door was littered with several empty beer cans, newspapers, and a couple of cheap plastic chairs.
I followed Dimples to the door, noticing that the screen door was crooked and hanging off the top hinge. Dimples pulled it open and knocked on the wooden door, which promptly squeaked open. He froze with alarm, then held up his hand to warn me. “Stay back.”
My breath caught, and fear raced down my spine. As he pulled his gun, my heart sped up, and I froze in place. With practiced ease, he held the gun in front of him and pushed the door open. He disappeared inside, shouting that he was the police, and I suddenly wished I could back him up like a real partner. What if someone took a shot at him; what was I supposed to do then?
A crash, followed by a yelp, came from inside, then a gunshot exploded. My heart jerked in my chest, and I dashed inside without thinking. I ran through the living room toward the back of the house and found Dimples slumped on the floor and rubbing his head.
“Are you all right?” I couldn’t find any blood on him, but that didn’t stop my knees from knocking together.
Just then, a man-sized shape bolted out the back door, slamming it open in his haste to get away. Dimples lurched to his feet, thinking that he needed to run after the guy. He swayed with dizziness. “I need to… stop him.”
I caught his arm to steady him. “I’ll go.” Since I was his partner, I knew it was up to me. I just hoped the guy didn’t have a gun.
Before Dimples could hold me back, I ran out the door, grateful I had on my comfy jeans, t-shirt, and running shoes. I rushed around the corner of the house as fast as I could go, and caught sight of the guy on the other side of the street.
He shoved the gate open into the neighbor’s backyard and disappeared. I ran after him and made it into the backyard in time to see him climb over the chain-link fence, and land on the other side. Great! I wasn’t sure I could make it over, but I ran to the fence anyway and started climbing.
I got to the top and grabbed the bar, then used my feet to push me up the rest of the way. I got a toe-hold in the chains and glanced up to see how far ahead of me he’d gotten. At the same time, the guy turned to see how close I was, and I caught a glimpse of his face. Shock lodged in my chest. I knew that kid.
“Hey! Come back here!” I yelled.
Keola’s eyes widened as he recognized me, and he stumbled a little. I knew I had to hurry if I was going to catch up with him. I pulled my body up and threw one leg over the top of the fence, but those darn twists at the top of the chain dug into my pants and caught hold.
Stuck, I pushed up on the bar and tried to swing my other leg over the fence. Instead of getting clear, the twisty part of the fence chewed a hole in my pants and twisted the fabric, making it worse. Desperate, I lowered my leg, which left me straddling the fence with the chain still caught in my pants.
My arms started shaking with exertion, and visions of major damage to my tender parts sent terror racing through me. In a panic, I decided to try going back the way I’d come, knowing I’d just have to catch up with Keola later.
With a mighty heave, I shifted my balance and pulled my leg up, hoping to get over without drawing blood. The stupid chain wouldn’t let go. In desperation, I jerked my leg over the top and lost my grip on the pole. Falling head first, I heard a big ripping sound and stretched my arms out to the ground so I wouldn’t land on my head.
I hung there suspended upside down, with my legs poking up and my hands inches from the ground. Then my pants started to slide off my hips, and I frantically grabbed at them, worried they’d come right off.
Hanging upside down, I pulled and struggled with them, then heard another ripping sound. All at once, the material gave way, and I flopped onto the ground like a rag doll, landing on my back. I sucked in a few deep breaths and lay there winded and dazed.
“Shelby? Are you all right?” Dimples stood over me, worry tightening his eyes. “What happened?”
“Oh… I’m okay.” I sat up, still clutching my pants, grateful I hadn’t left them on the fence. “I got caught on the fence and it ripped my pants.”
“Here. Let me help you up.” He held out his hand and pulled me up.
Once on my feet, I took stock of the situation. My New York t-shirt was a little dirty and roughed up, so I was grateful I hadn’t worn my Aladdin shirt. My pants had a big hole in them just below the crotch closer to the front. At least it didn’t look as bad as I would have thought. I dusted the dirt off my knees and straightened, then tried to look at my butt but couldn’t see anything from this angle.
“Holy sh… uh…”
“What? Am I bleeding? It doesn’t hurt too much.”
“No, no. I don’t see any blood, just a few red marks. You’re fine.” But he was thinking that was a pretty big rip in my pants and… he sucked in a breath and tried not to think about anything.
Suspicious, I reached back and touched my jeans just below the back pocket. An inch further down and my fingers touched bare skin just above my back thigh, obviously exposing a big chunk of my butt. The gaping rip went all the way across my leg, then split at the side, and continued down my pant leg all the way to the back of my knee.
Yikes! I couldn’t even feel my panties. Had they ripped too?
“Uh… here, take this.” Dimples took off his jacket and handed it to me.
I grabbed it and wrapped the arms around my waist and tied them in a knot. “Uh… thanks.”
He scratched his head and nodded, trying hard not to smile. “I guess he got away.” The image of me hanging upside down popped into his head, and he held back a snort of laughter.
“You saw that?” I asked, groaning with mortification.
“Yeah. But… I won’t tell anyone. Hey… at least you’re not bleeding. Could you imagine getting stitches on your… uh…”
“Yeah… I got it.” He was having way too much fun, and it was his fault I’d run after the kid in the first place. “What about you. What happened back there? Did he have a gun?” After he’d laughed at me, it was tempting to rub it in.
“No.” Humiliation flowed over him in waves. “He… uh… hit me with a frying pan.”
“Oooo… I’ll bet that hurt.”
“Yeah.” He shook his head, sighing with disgust. “And it was my gun that went off. I’m glad the bullet didn’t hit anyone.”
He reached down, picked up my purse, and handed it to me, hoping I wouldn’t rub it in. As I slipped my purse over my shoulder, his gaze caught mine and his lips turned down. “Uh… I won’t tell anyone about the fence, if you won’t tell them about the frying pan.”
I chuckled at the irony of our mishaps and smiled. “Deal.”
He let out a breath. “Thanks. Let’s get back.”
Just then, two police cruisers pulled up, followed by a white van that had “Crime Scene Investigation” on it. “Why is that here?” I asked.
“Because I found our drug dealer… and he’s dead.”
“What? You think that kid did it?” Would Keola really kill someone?
“I don’t know, but the dealer’s been dead a while. It probably happened during the night sometime. Maybe the kid came to buy drugs and found him dead. But whatever happened, if he didn’t kill the dealer, he might know who did, so we need to find him.”
“Uh… right. Well, that might be easier than you think.”
“What do you mean?”
“I recognized him… he’s the nephew of one of my clients.”
“What?” For a second, Dimples wondered why I hadn’t told him that sooner. I wasn’t sure about that myself, so I acted like I hadn’t heard that part.
“Yeah. I can get you his contact information and everything.” Keeping Keola’s identity from the police wouldn’t help him, and if he was in trouble, it was the right thing to do.
“Uh… great. Come on, we need to get back to the house.”
We crossed the street, and I was grateful to have Dimples’ jacket around my waist. Still, even with it on, I felt a big draft back there. “Are you sure I’m covered up?” I asked, before we got to the house.
He glanced at my backside, thinking that the main parts were covered up. There wasn’t much he could do about the piece of pant leg flapping in the breeze unless he tried to fix it. But he wasn’t touching that with a ten foot pole. “Yeah, you’re good.”
I let out my breath. Now that the adrenalin rush was gone, my legs were a little shaky, and I needed to sit down. As we started across the lawn to the front porch, another car pulled up and Detective Bates jumped out. “Whoa, what happened to you?”
I quickly turned around before he could look too closely, and realized that my deal with Dimples wasn’t going to work for me. “Uh… I was chasing a suspect… and…” I stopped talking because Bates was thinking that I had no business chasing a suspect. I was a civilian, not a cop. What was I thinking?
“Yes?” Bates prompted, wanting to hear the whole story.
“Dimples got hurt and asked me to chase the kid who hit him, so I did. I just didn’t expect to have to climb a fence.” That sounded a little lame, even to me.
“A fence? You did all of that just from climbing a fence?” He swallowed a laugh, holding it back behind tight lips, his eyes crinkling with mirth.
I rolled my eyes, and then turned around to head toward the house, needing to sit down in one of the plastic chairs before my legs gave out.
Bates and Dimples watched me climb the stairs. Bates watched carefully, hoping for a glimpse of how far up the rip went. Dimples hoped not to see more skin, but even then, he couldn’t pull his gaze away from my bare leg. As soon as I sat down, they both started moving and hurried inside.