13
Agents Grey and Kadyrov.” Max Stallings reclined in his office chair, steepling his fingers. “What brings you to my establishment?”
The establishment to which he referred was a sports bar on the ground level of his three-story building on the Canton waterfront. The second story housed his office and the third a luxury apartment, where he occasionally stayed with lady friends while his wife, Ramona, maintained their sprawling six-thousand-square-foot home in Hunt Valley. Maintained with the help of a maid, housekeeper, and full-time nanny, of course.
“We’re looking for Lennie,” Declan said, getting straight to the point as his partner, Alexis “Lexi” Kadyrov, stood beside him. Now that they were dealing with a man they often investigated, it was only appropriate for Declan to pull his partner in, even if this case was only theirs until Monday.
Max frowned, though it was hard to distinguish from the almost permanent scowl he normally brandished on his full jowls. “What do you two want with Lennie?”
“We need to speak with Lennie in reference to his fingerprints being found at a missing woman’s home.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. This missing woman have a name?”
“Skylar Pierce,” Lexi said.
“Skylar’s missing?” He sat forward, something akin to concern skittering across his furrowed brows. “Since when?”
“You know Skylar Pierce?” That didn’t bode well for her.
Max exhaled and reclined again. “We have an . . . arrangement.”
So Max had nothing to do with Skylar’s disappearance or he’d never have admitted the arrangement in the first place.
“What kind of arrangement?” Lexi asked.
“That’s between me and my client.”
“We’re not here for you,” Declan said. “We’re just looking for Skylar, who if I’m guessing right owes you money, so it’s to your advantage to help us out.”
“Off the record?” he asked.
Declan looked at Lexi, got the head tilt, and then nodded an affirmation at Max. An entire task force had been assigned to Max Stallings for the last two years, and the most they made stick was racketeering, which resulted in nothing more than time served and two years’ probation. Basically a slap on the man’s thick wrist. Declan had no interest in getting sucked into another exercise in futility.
“Skylar needed some funding,” Max said.
“For?”
“Gambling debt. She and her pals got in over their heads at a bachelorette party. Skylar dug herself the biggest hole and needed help crawling out. She assured me she had a way to pay me back.”
“Which was?” Lexi took a seat in one of the swivel chairs opposite Max’s desk, crossing her legs.
“She didn’t say, but she hawked an item of value to give me a sign of good faith.”
Lexi’s green eyes narrowed and her throaty voice conveyed her suspicion. “Hawked what?”
“Some item of jewelry. Something her mom gave her, I think. I told her to go to Modell’s. He gives the best rates, but I heard from Vinnie that she held out on me.”
“Meaning?”
“She held back some of the cash.”
Declan exhaled a sigh. “That couldn’t have gone over well.” Not with a man like Max Stallings.
“I called her in, asked her about it.”
“And . . . ?” Declan feared the worst, but it’s not like Max Stallings would admit to anything.
“She said she needed the money for a safe deposit box. It was part of the score she was working on to pay me back my money.”
Declan leaned against the tall black metal filing cabinet, crossing his arms over his chest. “When was the balance due?”
“Tomorrow.”
Maybe Skylar didn’t come up with the funds and had to take off. If Skylar had taken off and not even bothered to give Avery a heads-up, that was just cold.
“So it really is in your best interest to help us find Skylar,” he said.
Max smiled, the creases in his forehead smushing together. “So it would seem.”
Lexi lifted her chin. “Where’s Lennie?”
“Downtown.”
Which meant collecting in the projects Max owned. He really was a piece of work.
Avery and Parker were headed for Sebastian Chadwyck’s home in northwest Baltimore when Declan called.
“Hey, Declan, you’re on speaker with me and Avery,” Parker said.
Me and Avery. She loved the sound of that.
“Same with me and Lexi.”
“Hey, Lexi,” Parker said. “How was the game last night?”
“Machado hit it outta the park in the bottom of the ninth for the win. It was awesome. Thanks again for the tickets.”
“My pleasure. So how’d it go with Max? Did he tell you where Lennie is?”
“Shockingly, yes. Said Lennie’s down in that diner he likes by Patterson Park.”
“I’m shocked he told you where to find him—not that it’s any big surprise. That’s Lennie’s ‘office.’”
“Yeah, it turns out it’s in Max’s best interest to help us find Skylar,” Declan said.
Avery looked at Parker, not liking where this was going.
“Why’s that?” he asked.
“Because according to Max, Skylar owes him a hefty sum from a gambling debt.”
“What?” Avery’s pulse increased. “I know Sky likes to play a game of poker now and again, but she’s a lightweight.”
“Max said she was at his club with a bachelorette party and got in deep.”
Oh, Sky.
“Did he say how much she owes?”
“No, only that she hawked a piece of her mom’s jewelry to give him a show of faith. A down payment, of sorts.”
So that’s where Sky’s ring went. If a three-carat diamond was just a down payment, she hated to imagine how deep Sky was in to Max.
“Unfortunately, she went to Modell’s,” Declan continued, “and when Max talked to Modell, he learned the good faith money she gave him was not the full amount.”
“What?” Panic surged through Avery’s chest, Modell’s name bringing back a flood of unpleasant memories. Did Vinnie Modell work for Max Stallings?
“That couldn’t have gone over well with Max,” Parker said.
“It didn’t.”
Dear God. Had Max killed Skylar? Or had Skylar killed?
“He had her brought in,” Declan said.
“And . . . ?” Parker asked before she could form the word, her heart lodged in her throat.
“She said she’d kept a small amount from the money Modell gave her because she needed to purchase a few items for a scheme to pay Max back.”
Parker brows furrowed. “What kind of items?”
“What kind of scheme?” Avery asked.
“I don’t know anything, except he said she’d gotten a safe deposit box.”
“A safe deposit box?” Avery frowned. “For what? I mean, she’d hawked the only thing she had of any worth.”
“Max just said it was part of her plan to get him the money she owed.”
“So she was working a con?” Parker asked.
“Sounds like it,” Declan said.
“Do me a favor,” Parker said. “Give Kate a call and see if, when they’re done interviewing Connor Davis, she and Griff can track down which bank the box is at. Avery and I are on our way over to Sebastian Chadwyck’s now.”
“You got it. We’re heading down to Patterson Park.”
“Good luck.”
“Same to you.”
Parker disconnected and looked at Avery. “Want to run by Modell’s first?”
He really could read her mind—well, part of it. She prayed he couldn’t read the other part that was nearly sick at the thought of returning to Modell’s, but she had no choice. “Yeah,” she said, with little enthusiasm.
Parker turned the car around without hesitation.
She couldn’t let the one thing that meant the most to her friend be sold off.
They pulled up to Modell’s, and her stomach lurched as images of the items she’d hawked over the years played like a bad movie through her mind.
“You all right?” Parker asked. “You just turned green.”
“Fine.” Maybe Vinnie wouldn’t be in. It’d been years. Maybe his staffers wouldn’t know her. Maybe Parker wouldn’t find out how desperate she’d been for cash when she and Sky ran away and were living on their own.
Entering, she spotted Vinnie at the cash register and her stomach flipped. She was so thankful Parker was with her for support, but she hated he was about to learn of this side of her past.
Taking a deep, fortifying breath and saying a quick, desperate prayer, she strode to the counter.
Vinnie glanced up and then did a double take. “Avery Tate.” He laughed. “Didn’t think I’d see you again. What’s it been . . . ?”
“Eight years.”
“Back in the neighborhood, are we?”
“Just helping out a friend.”
“Ah, you’re here about Skylar’s ring.”
So it was true. Skylar must be in deep to hawk the one thing that meant so much to her.
“Is it still here?” she said, twitching her leg back and forth, her anxiety sky-high.
“Yeah. She said she’d be back for it yesterday, but she never showed, so it’s up for sale.” He lifted his chin at the front counter.
There it sat, on crushed red velvet—cheap as the fabric could possibly come. No doubt, Vinnie Modell’s idea of an elegant display.
“I’ll take it,” she said, her heart humming.
“It won’t be cheap.”
“With you it never is. How much, Vinnie?”
A dash of shock momentarily danced across Parker’s handsome face, but he quickly reined it in. Now he knew—at least part of it. Shame engulfed her.
“Two grand.”
“I haven’t got two grand.”
“Then I’d say you’re out of luck, sweetheart.”
“Don’t call me that.”
“You never minded back in the day.”
“Times change. I’ve changed.”
“You know the saying—a tiger never changes his stripes.”
“Well then, good thing for me I’m not a tiger. Now let’s talk price.”
Vinnie smiled. “Still feisty. I love that.”
“Then give me a price break.”
He looked to Parker, who was impeccably and expensively dressed.
Vinnie rubbed his chin. “I’m thinking, no.”
Parker pulled out his wallet. “We’ll take it.”
“No credit here. Only cash.”
“Of course.” Parker looked around. Was he really going to—
“There’s an ATM out front or a Western Union on the corner.”
Parker looked to Avery. “I’ll be right back. You’ll be okay?”
She nodded. “I’ll be fine, but are you sure? It’s a lot of money.”
Parker smiled. “I’m positive.”
“I’ll pay you back.”
“I know you will, even if I tried to dissuade you from doing so.” He winked and exited the building.
“He your new beau?” Vinnie asked.
“None of your business.”
He lifted his hands. “Just trying to make pleasant conversation.”
“Let’s not.”
“Suit yourself.”
What was she doing? Sky knew Vinnie well. Maybe she’d shared what she needed the money for—all of it. “Did Sky tell you what she was going to do with the cash?”
“Oh.” Vinnie linked his arms across his chest with a smug grin. “So now you wanna talk?”
“Cut it, Vin. Just give me the deets.”
“What’s in it for me?”
“I don’t kick your rear.”
“Seriously?”
“Sky’s missing. Really missing.”
He didn’t budge.
“Please.”
“There’s the magic word.” He rested his forearms on the glass countertop, leaning in toward her. “Sky said she owed a gambling debt.”
“And the rest?”
Vinnie laughed. “Max said someone would be along asking questions. Just didn’t realize it’d be you.”
“So?”
“So she said she had a gig lined up to pay Max back.”
“Old days?” Vinnie laughed. “I don’t know what Sky’s been telling you, but there ain’t no old days. She never stopped pulling gigs.”
Avery didn’t even have time to react to the disturbing news before Parker strode back in and laid the cash on the counter, and Vinnie wrapped up the ring.
As they turned to leave, Avery thought to ask him about Gary. “So, Vinnie, has Gary Boyd been in here to pawn anything recently?”
“Gary, huh.” He gave her a smarmy grin. “Are you still hanging around with that lowlife?”
“No, but he told me he pawned a ring recently. If he hasn’t been in here, do you know where he might have gone? Could you make some calls for me?”
“Sure, doll.” He leaned over the counter, and Avery could barely resist lurching back. “How do you plan on thanking me?”
Avery sensed Parker stepping forward behind her and prayed he wouldn’t say or do anything. “How about you consider it a favor for an old friend, Vinnie?”
He straightened and crossed his arms. “I suppose I can do that. I’ll call you if I learn anything. You still at the same number?”
“Yes, and thanks.”
“Sure.” He lifted his chin a notch. “And I hope you find Sky.”
Avery’s eyes narrowed.
“What?” He shrugged. “I can’t be concerned?”
“About someone other than yourself? That’d be a first.”
Max’s “neighborhood” consisted of housing projects and a strip of businesses ranging from overpriced grocery stores, laundromats, and beauty salons to less savory establishments—all of which were owned by Max Stallings. All of which he ran via his thug Lennie Wilcox.
Max would send Lennie to find the downtrodden, the homeless, the evicted and promise them a better life. He arranged work for them that paid practically nothing, then loaned them money to purchase their necessities at a huge markup. In the end he basically owned them. It was a horrific cycle that was nearly impossible to break out of.
Max knew how to work the system. He wasn’t technically doing anything illegal—that they could catch him on—and he had the top defense lawyers just sitting on his payroll. The appalling and complete perversion of justice made Declan sick, and he knew it would affect Tanner too when she made it down here. Now that she knew about this place, nothing would keep her away, but at least she’d promised him she would bring someone with her.
He was just trying to protect her. He wanted her to help others—really, he did—but seeing her nearly die mere days after they’d met . . . He knew he was too heavy-handed at times, but he was simply trying to keep her safe—though he was doing an awful job at it and completely alienating her in the process.
Declan held the door to LuAnn’s Diner open for Lexi and lifted his chin at Lennie sitting at his usual table in the rear.
The scent of tuna fish and burnt coffee wafted around them as they moved toward the lanky man seated at the back table.
“Grey and Kadyrov.” Lennie smiled like this was all some sort of a game. “Always a pleasure.”
Declan indicated the empty seats. “May we?”
“Be my guest.” He looked at the woman behind the counter, her hair pulled back in a ponytail, wisps of brunette strands slipping loose across her brow. “LuAnn, some coffee.”
She nodded. “Be right there.”
Declan pulled one of the empty chairs back, the metal legs scraping across the tile floor. Lexi took the chair beside him.
LuAnn brought their coffee over.
“Thanks,” Declan said as she sat his cup in front of him on the table.
“Thanks,” Lexi added.
Lennie looked at LuAnn impatiently, and she quickly retreated to the counter.
“So,” Lennie said, dumping sugar packet after sugar packet into his cup, “what brings you two down here? Not that I ever mind seeing you, hon.” He fixed his gaze on Lexi.
“Sorry to say I don’t share the sentiment,” she retorted.
He grabbed his chest. “Ouch.”
“We’re here about Skylar Pierce,” Declan said, getting straight to the point.
“Skylar.” Lennie smiled. “She’s quite the looker too. What about her?”
Lennie was a lech. And that was exactly why he didn’t want Tanner down here. Lexi was an agent. She had to put up with this stuff—it was part of the job—but Tanner . . . He wanted her nowhere near a man like Lennie Wilcox.
Despite what Tanner did for a living—which he admired the heck out of—and despite the horror she’d battled, he saw purity and innocence when he looked at her. And something deep inside him yearned to protect that. Making her feel belittled or incompetent was never his intention. But she never worried about herself, never looked before she leapt. He half loved that about her, but it also terrified him.
“You were in her place,” Lexi said, pulling Declan back to the conversation. “Why?”
“We had a business transaction to discuss.” Lennie took a sip of his coffee as his focus moved to a man entering the diner.
“Max told us,” Declan said. “Did he send you to bring her in when he heard she was holding out?” Max had said she was brought in, but not by whom. If Lennie had seen her, maybe he knew more.
“Now, you know better than that.” Lennie set his cup down. “Max has said all he’s going to say. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got another meeting.” He signaled to the waiting man, who was shuffling his feet anxiously back and forth.
“What do you think?” Lexi pulled her hair back into a ponytail as they stepped outside. Another scorcher at ninety-five degrees and 100 percent humidity.
“I think that’s exactly why Lennie went to Skylar’s—to bring Skylar in to Max. Max wouldn’t trust anyone else. Question is, what did Lennie do with her afterward?”