to Punta Gorda. He’s due to call me again in a few minutes, and we’ve heard nothing from Jade. What do you want me to say to him?”
“The truth. That Jade hasn’t contacted you yet, but that when she does we can follow his instructions.”
“On the level?”
“Yes. He knows who I am. We can cut our losses and let the kid go. Then we find out who he is, locate him and kill him, the girl and her mother.”
Nick ended the call, drained the glass and went over to the bar in the living room and poured another shot. He was seething. No one threatened him and got away with it. He picked up his cell again and called Vince. Explained what was going down and told him to take care of it.
“No prob’, boss,” Vince said with only a trace of his East End cockney accent. “I’ll give Larry a bell and sort it.”
“Keep me up to speed, Vince. Whoever this guy is, he’s a threat to us. Find him, hurt him, and then waste him.”
“My pleasure, boss. Consider it done.”
CHAPTER SIX
LOGAN watched and waited. It wasn’t long before the Dodge appeared, made a left and sped off.
“Why aren’t you following them?” Debbie said.
“Because I know where they’re going.”
“Where?”
“To the roadhouse that I ate at. The manager told me where it was when I checked in, and he’ll have seen me leave to go there. They’ll hope that I used plastic to pay with, or that I got into conversation and gave my name or any other personal details to someone.”
“Did you?”
“No.”
“So what will you do?”
“They’ll come back this way, and we’ll follow them. While we’re waiting, tell me exactly what happened.”
“I was just about to put a meal on the table when a man and a woman came in the kitchen door. They just broke it down, like you did at the motel. My mother must have heard the commotion. She appeared with my late father’s gun and pointed it at the man, and…and he shot her…”
Logan listened to her tear-filled voice as she told him everything. He wondered if they had known that she was divorced. It had been a planned operation.
“The bastard that shot my mom said that I would be sold for body parts, and that Kelly would probably be sold to a childless couple,” Debbie continued. “You saved my life Mr. Logan, but I need to get Kelly back. If I don’t, then I’ll have nothing left to live for.”
“I’ll do everything I can to get her back. And drop the mister, I’m just Logan.”
After several minutes a vehicle’s lights appeared and grew closer, and the Dodge swept by at speed, heading back the way it had come. Logan gave it a few seconds and then followed with the pickup’s lights off. He needed an edge, and got one when the cell phone rang again.
“Yeah,” Logan said.
“We have a slight problem,” Larry said.
“I’m listening.”
“We don’t know where the fuck Jade and the kid are. You probably took her cell, so she can’t contact us.”
“But you’ll know where she would go.”
“She’ll probably head for home. We’re on our way there now. We need more time.”
Logan didn’t think that he was being stalled. It was probably true. He had the woman’s cell, so she was out of touch to everybody. There had been no ID in her bag, so his best course of action was to keep following them to wherever she lived, and then work out the best way to deal with the situation without Kelly becoming a casualty.
“Where does she live?” Logan asked.
“Fort Myers,” Larry said. “But I’m not about to give you her address.”
“I’m already through Punta Gorda, so I’ll be in Fort Myers before you” Logan lied. “Call me back when you get there and I’ll tell you where to take the child.”
“I’ll do that,” Larry said as the line went dead.
Twenty seconds later Larry’s cell rang.
“Where are you?” Vince said.
“On our way back,” Larry said, slightly irritated to know
“The truth. That Jade hasn’t contacted you yet, but that when she does we can follow his instructions.”
“On the level?”
“Yes. He knows who I am. We can cut our losses and let the kid go. Then we find out who he is, locate him and kill him, the girl and her mother.”
Nick ended the call, drained the glass and went over to the bar in the living room and poured another shot. He was seething. No one threatened him and got away with it. He picked up his cell again and called Vince. Explained what was going down and told him to take care of it.
“No prob’, boss,” Vince said with only a trace of his East End cockney accent. “I’ll give Larry a bell and sort it.”
“Keep me up to speed, Vince. Whoever this guy is, he’s a threat to us. Find him, hurt him, and then waste him.”
“My pleasure, boss. Consider it done.”
CHAPTER SIX
LOGAN watched and waited. It wasn’t long before the Dodge appeared, made a left and sped off.
“Why aren’t you following them?” Debbie said.
“Because I know where they’re going.”
“Where?”
“To the roadhouse that I ate at. The manager told me where it was when I checked in, and he’ll have seen me leave to go there. They’ll hope that I used plastic to pay with, or that I got into conversation and gave my name or any other personal details to someone.”
“Did you?”
“No.”
“So what will you do?”
“They’ll come back this way, and we’ll follow them. While we’re waiting, tell me exactly what happened.”
“I was just about to put a meal on the table when a man and a woman came in the kitchen door. They just broke it down, like you did at the motel. My mother must have heard the commotion. She appeared with my late father’s gun and pointed it at the man, and…and he shot her…”
Logan listened to her tear-filled voice as she told him everything. He wondered if they had known that she was divorced. It had been a planned operation.
“The bastard that shot my mom said that I would be sold for body parts, and that Kelly would probably be sold to a childless couple,” Debbie continued. “You saved my life Mr. Logan, but I need to get Kelly back. If I don’t, then I’ll have nothing left to live for.”
“I’ll do everything I can to get her back. And drop the mister, I’m just Logan.”
After several minutes a vehicle’s lights appeared and grew closer, and the Dodge swept by at speed, heading back the way it had come. Logan gave it a few seconds and then followed with the pickup’s lights off. He needed an edge, and got one when the cell phone rang again.
“Yeah,” Logan said.
“We have a slight problem,” Larry said.
“I’m listening.”
“We don’t know where the fuck Jade and the kid are. You probably took her cell, so she can’t contact us.”
“But you’ll know where she would go.”
“She’ll probably head for home. We’re on our way there now. We need more time.”
Logan didn’t think that he was being stalled. It was probably true. He had the woman’s cell, so she was out of touch to everybody. There had been no ID in her bag, so his best course of action was to keep following them to wherever she lived, and then work out the best way to deal with the situation without Kelly becoming a casualty.
“Where does she live?” Logan asked.
“Fort Myers,” Larry said. “But I’m not about to give you her address.”
“I’m already through Punta Gorda, so I’ll be in Fort Myers before you” Logan lied. “Call me back when you get there and I’ll tell you where to take the child.”
“I’ll do that,” Larry said as the line went dead.
Twenty seconds later Larry’s cell rang.
“Where are you?” Vince said.
“On our way back,” Larry said, slightly irritated to know
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