Thank freakin’ goodness.
Luke tuned him out, making affirmative noises at the right points, just thankful to be out of there. Even Uncle Benny couldn’t get to him here. At least he didn’t think so. There was always the chance that Benny had certain cops on the payroll, but Laurel and Hardy, here, were hardly likely candidates.
In short, he was safe.
But what about Dani?
Luke watched the streets disappear behind him as the car pulled out, headed downtown he supposed. He may have gotten out in one piece, but in order to do so he’d had to leave Dani behind, and no matter how he tried to justify it out it never felt right. At least Benny wouldn’t hurt her; she was his niece in practice if not in fact. He gave her candy... he loved her.
Do you really believe that? Benny is one of the most dangerous mobsters in the country. You seriously think that there isn’t a person in the organization who isn’t expendable to him?
David... maybe he shouldn’t have been so hard on him last night, but he had to admit that the boy setting off alarms to piss through a third-story window had been hilarious. Was that where Dani had gotten the idea? He looked back toward the house, now barely visible over the wall behind him as the cruiser slipped through the streets into less-elegant surroundings.
Please be safe. Please. Your uncle is a madman, and your brother is every bit as insane. Please, please be safe, hold on as best you can. I’ll come back with help. I’ll get every cop in Atlanta to come with me.
“SIR!” the passenger cop yelled. “DO YOU UNDERSTAND THESE RIGHTS AS I HAVE READ THEM TO YOU?”
“Yes,” Luke said. Every cop except these two. The rest, those I will bring, I swear it.
“What’s your name?” The passenger was taking notes for the endless pile of paperwork that followed any arrest, even for pissing in public.
“Luke McConnell.”
“Occupation?”
Luke looked at him, raised an eyebrow. He was suddenly curious how far he could take this. “I’m a federal agent. Would it help if I gave you my badge number?”
The two cops looked at each other and the driver sighed. “Very funny, Mr. McConnell,” the passenger said. “Now tell us your real occupation.”
“I’m a flamenco dancer.”
“Like the bird?”
Luke sighed and watched the view through the car window. He let the cop ask the same question over and over, getting louder each time. It didn’t matter; it passed the time on the trip, and there was no point in answering if they weren’t going to listen to the answers.
He was processed and fingerprinted before he saw someone he recognized. When his identity was confirmed by a captain who’d shown up when he heard he was about to be escorted to debriefing, the two cops who arrested him suddenly seemed at a loss for words.
“Sir... uh... about that...”
“Listen,” Luke said with a grin. “I know, in that neighborhood, you have to be very particular about everything. Of course, in a place like that, it’s hard to call attention to your abilities, too. Let me see if I can help you boys out. Maybe I can get you transferred to someplace your abilities will be noticed and appreciated.” He paused for effect. “How about Grant Park?” he said cheerfully. Both their faces drained of blood.
“We’re fine,” one said.
“Thanks anyway, sir...” the other chimed in.
“We should get back...”
“Yeah, if there’s anything we can do...”
“There is,” Luke said. “Give me back that damn USB stick.” He held out his hand. It had been the only thing in his possession, and had been taken from him upon processing.
“LUKE!”
He knew that yell anywhere. Luke shot a glance to the agent that had come to escort him from the interrogation room. If anything, the agent, a man who looked too young to be out of high school, looked a little pale.
The patrolman dropped the stick in Luke’s palm and ran.
“Randy’s here?”
“He commandeered the chief’s office, sir.”
“I imagine the chief must be appreciative.”
The agent winced. “You don’t know the half of it, sir.”
“LUKE, GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE! I WANT YOU IN MY OFFICE! NOW!”
Out of the frying pan...
“HOW THE HELL DID YOU wind up here?” The deputy director glared at him from across the desk.
“Happy to see you, too, boss.” Luke slumped into a chair and took a deep breath. He was wiped. Mentally and physically. But it felt good to be back in familiar places. Even the soul-destroying furniture, government-issued, the same in every department across the country, was a welcome distraction.
“Just tell me how you got here,” Randy snapped.
“I bummed a ride with two of the city’s finest.” Luke waved in the direction of the squad room. “As for how I got out, Dani got me out during a distraction. I bolted and came here. Had to water someone’s yard to get a ride. But...” Luke waved that away as a minor detail, “I’m sure it will be in the arrest report.”
“Fine.” Randy propped his feet against the desk, sending his chair creaking far enough backward that it was a wonder it didn’t break outright. “I think I’d rather not know.” He stared at Luke a long moment and sighed. “You all right?”
He looked concerned. Like he even meant it. Luke nodded, though it took some effort not to look surprised. He stretched, folding his arms behind his head. Damn, it felt good to be out. “Yeah. A little in need of a good pizza and some beer, but otherwise okay. The cell was a five-star, but the guards were your general mouth-breathing knuckle-draggers.”
“So where did you stash the girl?” Randy reached for a pad and pen.
“That’s a rather personal question, isn’t it, Randy?”
Randy gave him a very dirty look and sighed. “Don’t give me shit, not today. Just tell me where the girl is.”
Luke shrugged. “She’s still back there, far as I know. I tried to get her out, but she wouldn’t come.”
The pad dropped from Randy’s fingers. He whistled slowly. “How long ago did you get out?”
Luke sat up straight. Something in the question didn’t set well, and the gas in his belly suddenly wasn’t just from his body trying to eat itself for nourishment. “Uh... figure a twenty-minute ride in the police academy car, another ten to convince them to drive me down here, time lost in the system till you found me... maybe an hour or two total.”
“He must have found you missing as soon as you left,” Randy said, shaking his head. “When I got the word, I thought maybe he...” Randy stood and walked around to the chair behind the desk. He sat down and leaned back. “He put out a word this morning. ‘She marries or dies.’ I got it about five minutes ago. I thought it was meant for her father, now I’m not so sure.” Randy laced his hands together over his belly and regarded Luke soberly.
Something didn’t sit right. Sure, Randy had informants, but it all seemed a little too neat. “You got word awfully fast.”