With the front fender smashed and a major dent in its bodywork, Lock’s Audi limped down the ramp and into the parking garage of his new apartment building on Wilshire Boulevard. He and Ty had deposited the teenage gang member with Orzana, along with a warning that if this wasn’t over it soon would be.
Lock had the leverage of Orzana’s involvement in the kidnapping and Orzana knew it. His final piece of advice to the auto-shop boss was “Take your money and enjoy it while you still can.”
Orzana had bluffed and blustered and claimed no knowledge of the attempted attack on Li Yeng. Lock knew he was lying. So did Ty. But they let it go with an assurance that Orzana would ensure there was no repeat.
Lock pulled into one of the apartment’s two designated spaces. He and Ty got out. Lock stopped for a moment to assess the damage.
“You know cars are never quite the same after a crash,” said Ty.
“I was thinking of trading it anyway,” said Lock. “I’ll speak to the insurance company in the morning.”
“What you gonna tell them?” said Ty.
Lock mulled it over. There were some laws he didn’t mind breaking, as long as there was a compelling reason. Insurance fraud didn’t really fall into that category, and he wasn’t sure his policy covered fishtailing another vehicle off the road. “Maybe I’ll just get it repaired on my own dime.”
Ty grinned. “It’s not like you don’t have the money. I mean, look at you, cold chillin’ in a condo on Wilshire.”
A car horn sounded behind them. They turned to see Carl Galante leaning out of a brand new black Mercedes.
“I guess working for a billionaire does have its advantages,” Lock conceded, as he directed Galante towards the visitor parking.
They waited for him to turn off his engine and get out. He paused to check out Lock’s damaged Audi as he walked over to join them.
“Let me guess, you let Ty here drive?” said Galante.
“No, that one was on me,” said Lock.
“Everything good?” Galante asked him.
“Yeah. Just had to tie up some loose ends. Emily and Charlie are on their way home. What are the LAPD saying?” said Lock.
“I’d keep a low profile for a while, if I were you,” said Galante.
“We plan on it. Isn’t that correct, Tyrone?”
“Yeah, sure. Hey, I don’t go looking for trouble, it just has a habit of finding me.”
The three men walked toward the elevator. The doors opened, and they got in. Lock hit the button to take them up to the lobby. They’d catch the next elevator in the lobby that would take them up to the sixteenth floor and the new apartment Lock was going to share with Carmen.
When they hadn’t been able to agree on whether she should move in with him or vice versa, a new place had seemed like the obvious compromise. Lock hadn’t lived with anyone since his fiancée back in New York, but this seemed like a natural next step. Life went on, and he loved Carmen. The housewarming party had been her idea, and he’d been happy to go along with it.
“One other thing,” said Galante, as they stepped out into the plush lobby.
“What’s that?”
“They got the autopsy back on the kid’s biological father, Tang Bojun.”
“Why’d they have an autopsy? Dude must have been shot like seven or eight times,” said Ty, his comment drawing an alarmed look from the building’s concierge.
Lock directed an apologetic “What are you gonna do?” look in the direction of the concierge. “Go on, Carl.”
“Guy had a tumor the size of a melon in his liver, plus some others scattered around his major organs. All of them malignant. If he hadn’t been shot, he maybe had only a few months left. If that. Could have been weeks. He must have been taking steroids or something to function like he was.”
“That’s why he didn’t want to wait when he got the news,” said Lock.
“Looks like it,” said Galante.
They got into the elevator.
“Sorry,” said Galante. “Here’s me talking about this stuff when you and Carmen are all set to start your new life together. I don’t mean to be a downer.”
“It’s okay,” said Lock. “I feel better knowing.”
They settled back into the silence that for some reason was customary in an elevator. Lock took the time to say a silent prayer for the man who’d laid down his life for a daughter he’d never been able to know. He wasn’t sure what lessons could be drawn from it. Maybe there weren’t any, except that it was no bad thing to count your own blessings.