Marc (Bowen Boys, #4)(38)
Moving slowly, he went to the sofa in his office. He had to move like this every two hours or he got so stiff that he wouldn’t be able to stand to piss. He was glad to see that his urine was a great deal less red now, and it didn’t burn like he was on fire when he did. He sat on the sofa and took a pain pill. Christ, he was hurting.
The phone ringing startled him awake, and when he jerked, he cried out in pain. Sweat covered his body, and when he reached for the phone, pain tore into him. When he answered, he sat here for several seconds before what the woman on the other end was saying registered.
“Are you listening to me, Roy? I said do you want to make a deal? I want you out of my life and that of my parents, and if I do one job for you, will you leave me the f*ck alone?” Jonny, Jonny had called.
“One job?” His voice cracked and he tried again. “You’ll do one job and you’ll do it the way I say?”
“Yes. But I want it in writing that if you come near me and my family again, I’ll come for you.” She sounded different, more confident. He wasn’t sure he liked it, but he was desperate and could use the extra money she’d bring him.
“Yes, okay. You come here tomorrow and I’ll have it all set up. Then when it’s done I’ll sign whatever it is you want.” He tried to stand to go to his desk, but he had to hold on or fall. “Just let me get to a pen and some papers to get the number you’re calling me from.”
Something occurred to him, but he was in so much pain that it over-rode anything that might have filtered through his mind. As he shuffled to the desk, he heard her talking, but again couldn’t concentrate.
“What the f*ck is wrong with you? You sound like you’re running a marathon or something. You were in better shape before you hooked up with Anita.” He stopped moving. She knew. She knew was all he could think about.
“Anita? I don’t know what you mean. She’s just away on holiday, that’s all. And when she gets back here, I’ll have her call you.”
“I saw you kill her.” He started to deny it. Roy opened his mouth to tell her that he hadn’t killed her, not yet at any rate. That her father had said he’d take care of it, when Roy remembered the day that Jonny had left.
“I didn’t kill her. We were going to use that against you, try to get you to see reason, or I would scare you with it. But you’d left before I could. She’s not dead.” He laughed, then moaned in pain. “I wish to Christ she was, but she’s very much alive.”
“And you know why she came to you, don’t you?” He told her he did. “Well, guess what, so do I. And I have enough on you right now to convict the both of you. You really should check your filing cabinet to see if it’s locked before you let people run around your house without supervision.”
The line went dead, and he ended the call. He looked at the filing cabinet where he kept everything. It was never locked, and as far as he knew never had been. She’d been through it, and even if she took simply one file, it would be enough to put him away for a very long time. Something his father had said to him many years ago came to mind.
“Son, the only advice I can give you if you want to earn money on the backs of other people is never keep a record. Because no matter who you think you can trust, no matter how safe you think you have it stored away, somebody sometime is going to get it, and when they do, you might as well put a bullet to your head, because you’re going down.”
Maybe he was, but he sure as hell wasn’t going down alone. He turned on his computer and began compiling information. Not just on the scam he was running with the exotic pets, but everything and everyone he’d ever dealt with. And he ended it with the information on Anthony and Anita Kidd.
“Take that, you motherf*ckers.” He saved it to two discs, then put it on a thumb drive as well. The discs went into his safe, which he left unlocked, and the drive on his key ring. Someone somewhere would find it and they’d be hitting the jackpot. Roy Dawson was done making his peace.
Chapter 13
As soon as she hung up the phone she stepped out onto the deck. Marc started to follow her, but Jack stopped him. She nodded to Monica and Caitlynne as she went out to be with her. Jack was pretty sure she knew how Jonny was feeling.
“You did well. I’m thinking old Roy is pissing himself about now.” Jonny didn’t turn but kept looking out at the woods. “It’ll be over soon and you’ll look back on this as a bad dream.”
“Is that what you do? Pretend that it was all a bad dream and it’s not real?” Jack didn’t answer because she liked Jonny and didn’t want to lie to her. “I don’t think you do that at all. I’m betting when I get up in the middle of the night and see you wandering around the house, you’re thinking of every hurt that has been done to you and the people who did it.”
“I do that, yes. But I’m not going to let it beat me. Every day that I can sleep a little better or a little longer without being woke from a dream, I feel like I’m winning.” The door opened behind her, and she saw Caitlynne come out onto the deck as well. “You think any of us can live with every choice we’ve made?”
“I don’t expect you do, but these people hurt what’s mine.” Jack was impressed with her answer. “And I’m going to make them pay.”