Laszlo Read online

  “That’s because she was the kid sister he never had,” Geir said. “What the hell were you, just a jealous boyfriend?”

  “Life was rough back then,” Lance said. “I’d have done anything to have had Mouse’s attention.”

  “You did have his attention,” Laszlo said. “He left with you, for God’s sake, leaving Minx to fend for herself at the age of fourteen.”

  “Yeah, but he wasn’t happy with just me. Once he got a taste of freedom, Mouse wanted it all. He wanted power almost as bad as I did. We were becoming very competitive about it. We chose different paths.”

  “Well, you went into the streets and became a thug,” Geir said with a sneer. “What the hell path did Mouse take?”

  “He went in a similar direction. But he had bigger dreams. He had techno guts and brains. I didn’t have any of that. I had brawn, and I knew how to make men happy,” Lance said. “I got into a network, drug smuggling, prostitution. But I wouldn’t stay on the bottom. I moved my way up very quickly. Now it’s my network, and I created a specialty for myself. Information. I buy and sell secrets. I take care of people. I do jobs that need to be done. Of course I don’t dirty my own hands. I hire other people.”

  “Until those people turn and talk to the police,” Geir said.

  “They know better than that,” Lance said confidently. “They would never have talked.”

  “Well, they’re in the police station. And you’re here,” Laszlo said.

  “Yeah, but you’re not cops,” Lance said. “I don’t know what your stake is in this. I don’t know how much she’s paying you, but, with your kind of skills, I can put you to work anytime you want. Just say the word.”

  Minx gasped. “Why? So you can take my bodyguards away from me? Hire them to do more of your dirty shit?”

  Lance shrugged. “You want something from me. Why the hell shouldn’t I?”

  “We’ll get what we want from you. We want to know who put out the hit on her. And my threat is real.” Laszlo stepped back and looked down at him. “Just in case you think I’m joking …”

  That same beady-eyed hate beamed out of Lance’s eyes. “I know assholes like you. You think you’re so full of honor and righteousness. But you’re nothing more than a thug, just like me. The same under the skin.”

  Laszlo shook his head very slowly. “We’re nothing alike. I’d never kill anybody who didn’t deserve killing. But I can see you do deserve killing.”

  Lance shrugged. “My guys are here.”

  “Nope, your guys were here,” Geir said. “But they aren’t any longer.”

  Lance looked at him. “Are they alive?” His words were harsh. And then he appeared to be unconcerned as he relaxed back against the tree. “Doesn’t matter if they are or they aren’t because I’ll just replace them.”

  “They’re down at the police station by now,” Geir said.

  Lance froze. “What the fuck?”

  Geir turned to look at him. “Everybody has a weak spot. You just have to know how to apply pressure to that spot.”

  “And what’s that mean?” Lance sneered.

  “Face,” Laszlo said quietly. “You don’t want to lose face. Your power is all about standing behind your brand. And your brand says, you can get it done. Doesn’t matter what it is, where it is, or how tough.”

  Lance nodded. “Very good.”

  “Which means, all we have to do is let everybody know you’ve turned. That you lost your brand because you failed. And you lied to your suppliers, and you lied to the contractor. And you turned it all into the cops because you’re dirty.”

  Lance shook his head, but she could see the panic developing on his face.

  “You can’t do that. I’ll be ruined.”

  “Not only ruined, you’ll be on the run,” Geir said. He turned off the laptop, closed it and stood. “So we have a couple things we need from you. First off, we want to know who the asshole is, and I want it on tape exactly what he’s done and how much he’s paying you to get rid of Minx. And then I want to know what the hell you know about Mouse.”

  He shook his head. “I’ll tell you one. But I sure as hell ain’t telling you the other.”

  “Then tell us the one you think you’ll tell us.” Laszlo held up a recorder and hit Play. “Anytime now, Lance. Keep talking.”

  Lance glared at him. “Okay, fine. It’s that stupid asshole she works for. Or worked for. He’s got a high deal going. Property investor with a daughter. He’s trying desperately to snag the daughter in marriage and knows that any talk about him and sexual harassment and trying to get the women to service him for his own needs at work will blow it all up in his face.”

  “Names, dates, times?”

  Lance readily filled in the details. Laszlo glanced over at Minx. “Anything else you want to know?”

  She stared at Lance with her jaw open. “That little weasel.”

  Lance laughed. “He loves you too, sweetheart.”

  As soon as that was done, Geir looked at Laszlo. Laszlo looked at Geir. And Laszlo grabbed Minx by the hand. “You and I are going to the truck.” But they stood there for a moment.

  Lance smiled. “Bye-bye, sweetie.”

  Only then did he realize Geir wasn’t going anywhere.

  “Hey, no, no, no. Don’t leave me with him, dude. This … this dude is scary,” Lance yelped.

  Minx scrunched up her face while Laszlo wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

  “I’m not going anywhere.” Geir’s smile was enough to scare anyone, and Lance shuddered, making Laszlo even happier.

  “We need to know everything there is to know about Mouse,” Geir said softly. Too softly.

  Minx must have wondered too what else Lance could tell them about Mouse. She studied Laszlo, then spoke to the man on the rock. “Lance, you better tell him. I know these two. You’ll be crow bait by the time they’re done.”

  He stared at her, shock in his eyes, then his gaze went from one man to the other. “What the fuck do you want to know? There’s nothing else I can tell you.”

  “I want to know exactly where you went, who you went with, from the time you left town with Mouse, and I want to know when you parted ways with Mouse, and if you’ve heard from him since.”

  “We stayed together for a year, that’s it. But he wouldn’t give up his bloody Poppy, the pedophile. He figured that guy would take him far. And he knew how to make him happy.”

  “Why would he think that?”

  “Because he was ex-military. He was an ex-navy SEAL or some stupid thing,” Lance spat. “And that’s what Mouse always wanted to be. And this guy was it, the real thing. Mouse idolized him. He believed everything Poppy said. Poppy worked at Coronado for a while. At least that’s what I heard. But he wasn’t active anymore. He got injured, and he was sidelined.”

  Laszlo didn’t know if he believed him. “Keep talking.”

  “What the hell? We went to California. We went to Coronado. Mouse hung around the base, tried to find somebody there who would make life easier for him because Poppy couldn’t get any of his connections to get Mouse in for a long time and for a lot of money. In the meantime, when it looked like Mouse might make it into the SEALs, he started to puff up like a rooster. He got really macho. Very un-Mouse-like. But he kept running home to Poppy. Anything to keep Poppy working to make Mouse’s dreams come true. And Mouse finally succeeded.”

  “And what was Poppy doing for him?”

  “Outside of filling his head full of dreams and getting him into the military, I don’t know,” Lance said, “because it was still the bottom line. Mouse hated water. And Poppy knew it. But he’d do anything to keep Mouse at his side.”

  “Including forging documents?” Geir said slowly, standing up. He glanced over at Laszlo. “Remember that scandal hushed up really quickly a few years back? They caught a couple servicemen with fake IDs. And, when they were done, six people were kicked out of the service. I don’t think they ever caught whoever was behind it.”


  Laszlo racked his brains, thinking about it. “So, what? Mouse just skipped all his training, and he’s all of a sudden in the navy?” He was horrified to even consider that.

  “Well, that’s what happened to the others. But most of them were land-based. They were supply clerks, etc.,” Geir said. “I remember knowing somebody involved in that.” He frowned. “I can’t remember who it was. But Mason will know. Mason and Tesla will know exactly who I’m talking about.”

  Laszlo stared at Lance. “How afraid of water was Mouse?”

  “I would have thought he was terrified, but you see? The thing about Mouse is, you never really knew where you stood with him. He was a liar. He was a cheat, but he was ever-so-sweet in bed.” Lance stared moodily at the ground. “I loved the man. Like, I really loved him.”

  Geir stepped back. “Anything else?”

  “I don’t think so. We did everything together, except for the days he was with Poppy. Find Poppy, and you should be able to find Mouse.” He nodded toward his hands. “You want to untie me now? I need to find out if there’s anything left of my organization.”

  “I will, but I don’t want you accepting murder contracts anymore.”

  Lance just looked at him.

  Laszlo smiled. “If you think we won’t hear, you’re wrong.” He motioned to Geir. “Let’s pack it up and go home.”

  Lance called out to him. “I’ll be sure to put the word out to the interested parties that you’re asking about Mouse.”

  Geir laughed, but he didn’t turn back. “No one gives a shit.”

  Just then a hard crack resounded through the air. Laszlo dropped to the ground, pulling Minx with him. In the eerie silence afterward, he rolled over, pulling her with him behind a tree. Geir was already up and running through the trees. But it was too late. Like they’d been too late at every stage of this ugly game so far. Laszlo held Minx close in his arms.

  She was shaking. “Who was that?” she whispered.

  “It could be one of several men,” he said. “From your old boss who put out the contract to someone in Lance’s own downline who thought this was a perfect opportunity to move up the line or even the asshole I’m after. The police will find out—eventually.”

  Minutes later Geir slipped around beside him. “Executed. Clean shot, center of the forehead.”

  Laszlo sighed. “At least the guy was kind enough to wait until we were done questioning Lance.”

  Chapter 15

  Back in the vehicle Laszlo drove out of the parking lot and said to Geir, “Now that the cops are here, and the sniper is long gone, what do you suggest is our next avenue?”

  “I want to go home,” Minx said painfully. “Just take a time-out from all this.”

  Without a word he took a quick right and then a left. Darkness was already falling. After Lance had been killed, Laszlo called Officer Carson Everett and waited until he’d arrived on the scene. Minx listened as Laszlo shared everything that had happened, but he’d been worried about Minx. Carson had said it was okay to take her away.

  Minx had heard all the comments. But she had to admit to being mostly on autopilot. It had been Laszlo directing her back to the vehicle and now it was Laszlo making the decisions.

  “Do you want to pick up any food?” Geir asked her.

  She shook her head. “I don’t want to eat.” She started to shiver. “I just want to go home. I want to get into bed. I want to curl up and try to forget how absolutely nightmarish my life has become.”

  “I’m not sure it will make you feel any better, but I doubt his execution had anything to do with your case.”

  “How do we know that?”

  “We don’t, but Carson also promised he would go and pick up your boss.”

  “Sure, but he hasn’t got him yet, has he? And then he’ll probably get bail. He’ll get out and torment me and or somebody else in the meantime. You know how this shit works. They create all kinds of chaos while they’re loose. There’s no guarantee I’m safe even now.”

  The men stayed silent.

  She sagged into the seat. “I’m sorry. I’m just not myself.”

  “Understandable.”

  They drove in silence to her place. With relief she saw her own car off to the side. Geir hopped out first, letting her out of the center seat. They walked into her apartment, but Laszlo insisted on going in first, and Geir insisted on her waiting until he’d given the all clear.

  She muttered, “See? You don’t think it’s clear and safe either, do you?”

  “It’s just a safety precaution,” he said gently.

  She shrugged, walked inside, took a look around and kept on going to her bedroom. Instead of getting changed for the night, since it was still so early, she threw herself on the bed and pulled the quilt over her. She’d almost shut the door, but it was still open a crack. She didn’t bother getting up. Maybe she’d hear what they were talking about. Maybe she didn’t care anymore.

  She curled up in a ball and thought about everything that had happened. It had been enough of a shock to see how much hate Lance had had for her and to hear what had happened to Mouse after he had left her. She really struggled with the concept of who Mouse had become. These men had said he was a good man. But any man who cheated, lied, paid, or did whatever he could to get into the navy and to become one of the elite SEALs without doing the actual hard work involved wasn’t anybody she could respect. And the fact she was thinking that about her best friend from her childhood really hurt.

  She remembered how needy she’d been, needing him. How he’d been very loyal to his mother. And maybe that was the only way he could survive. Minx certainly hadn’t done any better. But after Poppy had gotten his hands on Mouse, he’d changed in many ways. She hadn’t understood, being just a child. And she had kept him on that pedestal all these years. And now she realized he’d fallen from the pedestal. He didn’t deserve to be up there in the first place. She had only put him up there based on her own need to have somebody to look up to. And now it was just plain hard to consider who he had become. She wanted to respect the man he was.

  These men, both Laszlo and Geir, seemed to have cared a lot about him. And that, at least, was a saving grace. The fact was, her own world was tumbling down around her, but she still had the whole Mouse issue to deal with.

  She thought about her asshole of a boss and how he’d made life so difficult for her. And she knew it wasn’t just her. But how long before the cops tracked down the other women? How long before the cops took the time to interview the office workers? How long before they picked up Andrew for questioning? How long before they didn’t believe his bullshit? She knew now the cops had Laszlo’s two tape recordings and the data received off the two hit men’s phones and now Lance’s all copied on their own servers. She hoped it would be enough to pick up Andrew on the murder-for-hire plot too.

  He’d gone from harassment and sexual assault to a murderer. That certainly moved the case up in the ranks of priority for the cops. For that she should be grateful. But, until Andrew was tossed in jail, and his whole career was gone, and everybody else could see and hear what he’d done, she knew she wasn’t safe.

  Unable to sleep, she pulled herself up against the headboard, grabbed her laptop and checked the calendar. She had a lot of vacation days coming. She didn’t know what to do or where to do it, but she would take them. She needed some time off.

  She was required by law to give two weeks’ notice. She was pretty darn sure she had at least three weeks of vacation days left, but the company would pay her that time out. She had no idea if they’d let her use her vacation as part of her two weeks’ notice. Not giving herself a chance to think, she wrote a letter of resignation and attached it to her current supervisor’s email.

  Just then Laszlo knocked on her door, poked his head around it and asked, “Can we talk?”

  She looked up, nodded, looked back down again and hit Send. She closed the laptop, put it off to the side, pulled her knees up to her chest and asked, �
��What do you want to talk about?”

  “I just spoke to Carson.”

  Her eyebrows lifted. “I didn’t hear the phone.”

  “No, we’ve turned down the ring tones, in case you were sleeping.”

  Bitterly she looked around the room. “I tried, but I couldn’t sleep.”

  He sat down on the edge of the bed. “Carson has dispatched some men to pick up your ex-boss. He did say Andrew wasn’t at home, and he’s not anywhere to be found in his usual haunts. They’ll go to the office tomorrow morning and get him.”

  “If he’s there. He obviously had money to pay for my hit. So he could have run too,” she said, tiredness pulling at her. “Everybody else will protect him anyway.”

  “Not once they hear the tapes, see the texts. Not once they realize just what he’s done and how bad it’s been.”

  “What else did Carson say?”

  “He said he knows your boss’s potential father-in-law. And he’ll talk to him tonight. I think the wedding is set for ten days later.”

  She snorted. “Well, ten days of warning is better than being left at the altar or, in this case, better than marrying the asshole.” She scrubbed her face. “I’m so tired of all this.”

  “I know, and you must be careful tonight especially. At least until they pick him up.”

  She shook her head. “It won’t make any difference. If you can’t convince the father-in-law-to-be of Andrew’s guilt, he’ll post bail, and the asshole will be out on the streets again. He tried to kill me once. He’ll try again.”

  “We know that, and that’s why we’re staying here tonight, and we’ll be on watch for the full twenty-four hours. Geir will be upstairs. I’ll be here with you, and then we’ll switch out.”

  She nodded slowly. “Did I ever say thank you? Because I really do appreciate that you stayed to help look after me. I’d be dead a couple times over by now, I’m sure.”

  “It’s been a pretty rough go. But we are here,” he said firmly. “And life will improve once we get past this.”

  “What are you going to do?”