Laszlo Read online

  Minx yelped, “I did not.”

  “You didn’t want Mouse to leave.”

  “Of course I didn’t. He was leaving me.”

  Agnes nodded. “Exactly. And, at the same time, Lance was somebody who, if you paid him enough money, he’d do anything. And I mean anything. So not the best influence over Mouse and the two of them together were bad news.”

  Laszlo glanced at Minx’s face and realized how much of this was news to her. But then she’d been a young child, barely a teenager.

  “And that’s why nothing’s showing up in the news about him or from his family. And the name?”

  “It’s fake,” Agnes said. “His family has cut him off, completely disowned him. He’s changed his name, pretty well everything about his life. But, every once in a while, he still gets a hankering for Bart’s burgers. He comes in here. But he never comes in alone.”

  “Can you set up a meet?”

  Agnes frowned, her body stilling as she settled back farther into the chair.

  Laszlo was afraid the chair wouldn’t be strong enough to hold her bulk.

  She shook her head. “It wouldn’t be a good idea.”

  “Why?”

  “For one, I don’t get in the middle of anything. I don’t take sides, and that’s the way me and Bart stay alive. But, for another, he’ll want to show you who he is, or what he does, and he sure as hell won’t tell you anything. And our history has shown us that, a lot of times when somebody fails, their neck is on the chopping block. Lance has a good name in his particular industry. If he fails, he’ll get a second chance. If he fails in that second chance, then he could be in trouble.” She stared off at the blank wall, her expression hard. “I don’t like anything about this.”

  Minx said from across the table, “That just means he’ll send more people after me.”

  “Unless he cancels the contract,” Geir noted.

  “Not going to happen. And it won’t make a difference,” Agnes added. “Whoever is paying the handler will just find somebody else.”

  “What would it take for Lance to give up the name of the guy with the contract?”

  “Immunity and lots of money,” Agnes said succinctly.

  “I don’t have lots of money,” Minx said. “Neither do I want to prosecute him. I want the guy above him.”

  “Of course you do. The trouble is, Lance won’t take a chance on that.” Agnes shook her head. “It’s certainly not in our best interests to get in the middle of this. Especially not if we want to stay out of trouble.” She shrugged. “Just sit here for a minute.” She heaved her bulk off the chair and headed to the back room.

  Laszlo reached across and covered Minx’s hands. She had gripped them together so tight they were almost white. When he peeled her fingers apart, he realized she’d cut crescent-moon-shaped slices into her palms.

  She stared down at them and shuddered. “I didn’t like Lance. And I was terribly jealous. I was terrified of being alone, so I didn’t want Mouse to leave. But it’s not like anything I said made a difference. He did leave. He left with Lance.”

  “In other words, Lance not only has information about Mouse,” Laszlo said, “he also knows who put out the hit on you.”

  She lifted her gaze, and he could see the agony inside her eyes.

  “I don’t like where any of this is going,” she said. “I really tried to leave it all behind.”

  “I don’t doubt you did,” he said quietly. “But too often this shit just never lets go.”

  She pulled her hands free from his and slid back in her chair. “I don’t even know what to do now.”

  “Let’s see what Agnes says first,” Geir said. “I understand her position. She needs to keep her and Bart safe, but she would also want to keep you safe too. Plus she has information we need. She has a contact we need to make.”

  Bart walked over then and bent down toward them. “I just sent a message. We’ll see what he says.” He slid on past with a big cloth in his hand, wiping the tables behind them.

  Laszlo and Geir exchanged glances. “How long are we supposed to wait?” Geir asked.

  “We can leave,” Minx said wearily. “Chances are it’ll take forever.”

  They got up, and she grabbed her purse, throwing it over her shoulder.

  Laszlo stepped up behind her to walk her to the door, but Agnes called out, “Minx?”

  Minx turned to look at her.

  Agnes waved her hand. “Come over here please.”

  With a last glance over at Bart, Minx walked toward Agnes.

  In a voice too low to be heard easily, Agnes said, “He says he’ll talk to you but only you.”

  Chapter 14

  Minx sat on the park bench not understanding how her world had shifted so fast. Nobody was around, but she knew Laszlo and Geir were hidden somewhere close. She also wore a wire, even though where the hell they got shit like that when they’d only been here for a day or two, she didn’t know. But they wanted to make sure they knew exactly what was said. She had yet another cup of coffee in her hand. Mostly for the warmth because inside she was quaking and shaking with cold. The last thing she wanted was to see Lance. He hadn’t been her favorite person in the first place. But to know he’d facilitated a hit on her and was to meet with her meant he could be coming with a knife to take her out personally.

  Just as she worked herself up into a lather, a man sat down at the far end of the bench. “Long time no see,” he said.

  She glanced over and started. “I wouldn’t have recognized you.”

  “Nope, nobody does,” he said generally. “That’s what makes it work so well.”

  “And yet you accepted a hit to take me out?”

  “It’s good money.” He shrugged, completely disinterested in who she was.

  “I never hated you, you know? I wanted Mouse to stay, but that’s because I was a scared kid, and he was the closest friend I had.”

  “Whatever.”

  “The least you could do is tell me how to get out of this.”

  “You started it when you went to the cops about Andrew Conley.”

  “Do you have any idea how he treats his employees? What he does? What he demands in order to keep your job?”

  “Not my problem.”

  “I see. So, as long as somebody’s got the money, you just send out the hit, is that it?”

  “That’s it.”

  “What happens now that your men failed?”

  “Not an issue. I’ve got more men.” But an edge had entered his voice.

  Inside she felt such pain and confusion she didn’t know what to do. “And what am I supposed to do with that?”

  “Run?” He cackled. “Mouse always said you didn’t have the smarts to make it on the street.”

  That was almost a visceral hit. “Really?”

  He nodded. “He said you were too innocent, too naive. You were too trusting.”

  She thought about that. “Compared to him, maybe. But you took off with him.”

  “Not for long. He ditched me soon after.”

  “Really?” Something in his voice made her wonder. “Is that why you hate me so much? Because you were taken in by him too?”

  He gave her a hard glare. “I wasn’t taken in. I was happy when he left.”

  But she saw it in his eyes. She shook her head. “No, you loved him as much as I did.”

  “Not likely,” he said. “Besides life is different now.”

  She nodded. “It so is. But I still don’t know what happened to him.”

  “He decided he liked Poppy better.”

  She winced. “He stayed with that molester?”

  “And you know that he would have told you off if he heard you call him that.”

  “I know. I did once.”

  “But, yeah, the pedophile.”

  “Hell,” she said in disgust. “Then he probably ended up in some ditch somewhere, discarded by him too.”

  “Nope, not at all.”

  She stared at hi
m. “Have you seen him since?”

  “Nope. He reinvented himself. Just like I did. That’s the one thing the year we did spend together showed us. How to discard the old and create the new.”

  “You came from such high beginnings,” she said. “Why would you want to be who you are now?”

  He chuckled. “You see? You would never understand. It’s not even the money. It’s all about power. And growing up, living the life I lived, I had none. If I’d stayed where I was, I would never have had any. My grandfather is still alive. And then there’s my father and my younger brother. They all have the power. I had none,” he said cheerfully. “So I decided to change that. And now I have power.”

  “And you have nothing to do with your family?”

  “Not yet. I’m biding my time. Haven’t figured out my move, but, at some point, I’ll make a change,” he said with a sneer.

  “And take out all your family? Really?”

  He gave her a flat stare. “What do you care? Your life’s in jeopardy now.”

  She nodded. “It is, and I want to fix that.”

  “The contract is open. I’ve already been instructed to make sure two more men are sent out.”

  “And have you sent them already?” she asked, dread in her stomach. She tried to keep her voice neutral, but it was hard seeing the reality of somebody she knew as a child, somebody who had been idealistic and so in love with Mouse, somebody who’d come from Easy Street and had loved to slum it with them in their corner of the world. She just didn’t understand it and didn’t understand how he could choose this life over that one.

  “I haven’t yet,” he said. “When Agnes called me, I figured this was too much fun to pass up. Besides, a walk down memory lane just reminds me of how much I hated you. Maybe I’ll send three men after you and make sure they rough you up first.”

  She shook inside but hadn’t been raised the way she’d been raised for nothing. “And you might find yourself surprised at the reception they get,” she said. “Two went down. How many men have you got?”

  He laughed out loud. “There are so many out there, I will never run out.”

  She thought about that. “What if something happens to you?”

  “I’m sure somebody else will take my place,” he said with another laugh. “But it’s not going to happen.”

  “This asshole who put out the contract on me, he’ll talk. You know that, right? He’s one of those big blustery assholes, and he’s all about power too. But his idea of power is over helpless women. He doesn’t give a shit about anybody else.”

  “Yeah, I was thinking about that. He’s definitely a problem. He’s making lots of noise about you, and, if there’s one thing that’s golden in my world, it’s silence.”

  “So, what? You take the hit, get the money, and then turn around and take him out?”

  He glanced at her. “You want to hire me to do that?”

  “And why would I do that, when the only way you’ll get paid by him is if I’m dead?”

  He studied her for a long moment. “Besides, you don’t have the money.”

  “Even if I did have the money, why would I pay you to take out somebody after I’m dead?” she asked drily. “Especially if you won’t take money to call off the hit.”

  “Well, the only way I’ll be able to call it off is if I take him out, so essentially you’d be putting out a hit on him. The question is, which one gets fulfilled first.”

  This was the most bizarre conversation she’d ever had. She didn’t know what to make of it. She shook her head. “It still doesn’t change the fact I want to live.”

  “Then you got a problem on your hands. Talk to the two men you’re with. Maybe they’ll have a solution.” He grinned at her and stood. “And, if you think I didn’t know about them, you’re a fool. But then I already knew you were a fool. Because, of all the things I could trust about Mouse, he knew people. He could spot them a mile away. I don’t know where your two goons are, but you should know I’ve got at least four with me.”

  She wondered at that. “And so that’s it? I better watch my back, and you’ll keep throwing men at me until one of them finally succeeds?”

  “That’s not what I said, is it? I said, talk to your goons,” he snapped. “If you managed to pick people a whole lot smarter than you, they might have a reasonable answer here. Otherwise, yeah, that’s probably what’ll happen.” He got up and walked away.

  Just before he was out of earshot she called after him. “Is Mouse still alive?”

  He spun around, looked at her and shrugged. “I doubt it. He lived a risky lifestyle in a big city. Not sure that pedophile really gave a damn about him really.”

  “Do you know who the pedophile was?” she asked as an afterthought. They had one name, but confirmation would be helpful.

  He laughed. “Why? You want to sell him a little boy? Because he’s not into girls, you know.”

  “I know,” she said starkly. “He came after me once, and Mouse clipped him on the jaw for it.”

  Lance stopped and stared at her. “Really?”

  She nodded. “I don’t think he was after me sexually. I think he was upset at the relationship Mouse and I had.”

  Lance stood with his hands in his jeans pockets for a long moment and nodded. “That actually makes sense. Mouse was very much on your side. Nobody was allowed to hurt you. The trouble was, he also let himself be the beating stick others could tear up instead of you. And he liked that part.”

  “He liked what part?” she asked, confused.

  He chuckled. “You’re such an innocent. He liked pain. Mouse liked pain.” And he turned and walked away.

  Minx watched as Lance walked toward the woods on the other side of the parking lot. She could see shadows moving in the trees. But were they his men or her own? Not that she could call Laszlo and Geir her men. But she was grateful they were on her side. It pissed her off that Lance had the information she needed—not just needed, desperately needed. And that he wasn’t willing to call off the contract. He didn’t give a shit that he knew her. He didn’t give a shit about their history. If anything, he’d probably laughed when he took the contract. At the same time, she couldn’t let him get away with it.

  “Hey, Lance,” she yelled.

  He lifted a hand with a finger straight up in the air.

  “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

  He slowed, turned to look at her, and she watched as Laszlo came out of the trees and cold-cocked him, a hard hit that knocked him to the ground.

  She gasped and raced toward him. “Oh, my God! Did you just kill him?”

  Laszlo snorted. “Like hell I did. We’ll have a talk with Lance, and we’ll get this sorted out right now.”

  “And how do you propose to do that?” she snapped. “I already asked him. He won’t help.” She spun around, remembering what Lance had said about his men. “What about his men? Are we in danger here?”

  “I took out one. Geir is on the other two.”

  “He came with three? He said he came with at least four.”

  “He lied.”

  She snorted. “Of course he did. That would be so him. Where do you want to take him?”

  She watched as Laszlo tied Lance’s hands and checked him for weapons. He pulled out a handgun and stuck it into his belt, then he quickly pulled out Lance’s wallet and his cell phone. He dragged Lance out of the path and set him down on a rock, leaning against the tree. To any passerby it looked like he was sitting here, enjoying the outdoors.

  Laszlo quickly went through Lance’s wallet, checked his name, found several business cards, which he removed. He did the same for the credit cards. He laid them down on another rock and took photos of everything. Then he put everything together and popped it all back into his wallet, returning it to his pocket. But he held up the cell phone.

  She looked at him. “Can you download the information?”

  “I can get some of it. But, without a laptop, I can’t get it all.” />
  Just then Geir sidled through the trees. She stared at him. “You’re absolutely freaky. I never see you coming and going.”

  He sent her a brief look. “You’re not supposed to.” In his hand was a laptop.

  Laszlo nodded. “Let’s do this.”

  She watched the men handle two phones and a cable, doing something between them. “Already done?”

  Laszlo nodded. “You keep an eye on this guy. If he wakes up, he’ll try to get away. And he’s dangerous, even tied up like this.”

  Instinctively she stepped back.

  Laszlo nodded. “Smart.”

  Geir placed a hand to Lance’s neck, then nodded to himself.

  She assumed that meant he was still breathing. With the two men sitting down beside Lance, they turned on the laptop, now connecting Lance’s phone to it via the cable, and started downloading information.

  “Can you guys get all his texts and messages off there?”

  “It would be hard to get everything. But he has a memory chip. And that we are so going to take.” He showed it to her and quickly pocketed it. “We’ll transfer everything to the laptop as soon as Geir is done. But I don’t want him getting his phone back without us knowing what’s on it.”

  Just then they heard a moan come from Lance. She took a step back while Laszlo placed a hand on Lance’s neck and shoulder region. She couldn’t see what he was doing, but she could hear Lance cry out.

  Laszlo lowered himself slightly and whispered into Lance’s ear, “I’m the guy you should be worried about.” His voice was dark and hard. “Because you sent men after Minx. Now I want to know the name of the man who’s got the contract, or I’ll drop you at the police station and put the word on the street that you’ve turned tail.” He’d heard what Lance had said to Minx, but he also wanted it recorded.

  Lance’s gaze was wide and black with hate. “You wouldn’t fucking dare,” he roared.

  Geir reached over, and Lance froze. Minx took another step back.

  Lance started speaking. “You know, if you do that, my life is forfeit.”

  “Why do I give a shit?” Laszlo said carelessly. “You already forfeited Minx’s life.”

  “That bitch,” Lance snarled. “Mouse did anything for her.”