Refuge for Flora by Deanndra Hall
Chapter 9
The memoryof Flora in his arms … Her softness and warmth … How wet she’d been for him, how hard he’d been for her … “Damn. I’ve gotta get my mind in gear,” Barrett growled aloud to himself as he drove down the highway toward Barlow, wondering what he’d find when he got there. His phone rang, so he pulled over into the parking lot of an abandoned gas station and hit the button. “Quarles.”
“Barrett! Conor. You said you need to talk to me?”
“Yeah. How would you feel about coming here to help us find these bastards?”
“I’d feel really good about it if I can make a case to my superiors. Has there been some kind of development?”
“Oh, yeah. They’re here somewhere, and we figured out how they found Flora.”
“Yeah? Oh, I can’t wait to hear this. Spill it.”
Fifteen minutes later, he heard Conor sigh. “Thank god she ditched that damn bag.”
“Yeah. She told me last night that Darryl spent a lot of time ordering shit, things he thought he could use, like different kinds of alarms and trip wire devices and cameras. He fancies himself quite the tech-savvy modern criminal. She said he probably found some kind of tracking tag for cheap and stuck it in her bag when he realized she was going to bolt. They tracked her here, but the bag wasn’t with her, and he knows if she ditched it, she’s probably still around here somewhere.”
“Sounds plausible. So are you thinking what I’m thinking?”
“Yeah. Wanna buy some alligators?”
Conor laughed loudly through the phone. “Oh, yeah. Always wanted a bathtub full of the damn things!”
“Then it looks like Kentucky is the place to be.” Barrett could feel himself relaxing just a little bit. He had reinforcements coming and with Conor’s help, along with Kirby and some of the other conservation officers, they could probably make short work of busting the reptile ranch, wherever it was.
Flora would be safe. And their life together could truly begin. He’d realized during the previous day just how much he wanted to be with her, and he wanted to make it something more permanent than hanging out in the evenings and sleeping together. She fit into his life like the missing piece of a puzzle. Even better, while they’d been out in the backyard the day before, he’d been able to see the road as he looked forward past the back corner of the house, and he’d seen Jesse drive by slowly, most likely checking out what was going on. The two calls a day he’d been getting had slowed to one every few days, and that was good. His ex was finally taking the hint. Barrett had always thought he’d feel guilty, but he didn’t. He deserved to have a life.
And he definitely wanted Flora to be a huge part of it.
* * *
“Well?”
“I been askin’ around, but ain’t nobody seen her.”
Darryl Stevens stroked his chin. “She’s here somewhur. I don’t know whur, but she is. I can feel it. Have any luck with that farmer down there?”
“Nah. He don’t know nothin’, and he ain’t gonna move no alligators neither. Ain’t smart enough, I reckon,” Bradley spat.
“Yeah, well, we gotta find some buyers. They’s another truck comin’ from Texas in a few days, and them babies goin’ on it. That’ll make more room. Long as we don’t run into fish and wildlife, we’ll be okay.” He spat on the ground and hitched up his baggy jeans. “We need to find that bitch before she sinks us.” Darryl stopped for a few seconds before he asked, “You hear from Velma?”
“Nah. I can’t figure out whur the hell she is. She ain’t answerin’ the phone and she ain’t answerin’ texts. It’s like she disappeared off’n the face of the earth.”
“We know that ain’t happent,” Darryl snarled. If he knew what I’d done with her, he’d turn my ass in. He gets any hint, I’ll have to put him down like a cur. Bradley could never know that Darryl had fed his girlfriend to the gators. She was the first regular pussy the guy ever had in his life, and he’d worshipped the whore. “She’ll turn up, I reckon.”
“Yeah. I reckon she will.” It took everything Darryl had to stop himself from laughing at Bradley’s words. That idiot bitch would never argue with him again.
Never.
* * *
It always looked reallyneat and tidy, and everyone in the area stopped there at one time or another. When Barrett pulled up in the KDFWR truck, the old man and his wife both looked up and smiled. “Hey, young man! How’s life treatin’ ya?” the guy bellowed out.
Barrett picked up a tomato and took note of the beautiful color and firmness of the flesh. “Can’t complain, can’t complain. Business good for y’all?”
“Oh, yeah. Selling a couple bushel of tomatoes a day and all kinds of potatoes, cukes, squash …”
“Yeah. That squash looks mighty fine. Nice zucchini too.” The baskets of vegetables were filled to overflowing. “And those are beautiful carrots.”
“Yeah, I don’t like ‘em but she insists on ‘em. Says people buy ‘em to make baby food.”
“Well, they do!” his wife barked.
“Okay, okay! Ain’t nobody done that yet,” the man argued back.
His wife glared at him. “You don’t know that!”
Jesus, is that what Flora and I will sound like when we’re that age? The very idea made him smile. “I just get a bag and start filling it up, right?”
“Yeah. Just make sure you don’t mix the vegetables. They’re different prices, so keep ‘em separate,” the farmer instructed.
“Yes, sir.” He picked up a bag from the box nearby and put half a dozen tomatoes in it. In the next bag, he stuck in about ten yellow squash, then got another bag and put in two zucchini.
“You can put them together. They’s the same price,” the woman instructed.
“Okie dokie.” After he’d stuffed the zucchini in the bag with the yellow squash, he picked up another bag and started putting new potatoes in it. He loved those things! Boil them with a little butter and some salt, and Barrett could eat a whole panful by himself. “So anybody around here selling anything more unusual than what y’all got? Maybe some strange melons or weird fruit or something?”
“Not that I know of,” he heard the man say, but when he sneaked a glance from the corner of his eye, the wife was eyeing the old man with a frown.
“Dang. I was hoping for some pomelos or ugly fruit or something. Nothing weird anywhere?”
“Well … There was this one guy who come up here―”
“Floyd?” That made Barrett turn and look directly at them.
“Geraldine, the man asked me a question and I’m-a gonna answer him. So, there was this one feller come up here. Wanted to know if I’d like to buy some gators to sell.”
Play it close to the vest, he warned himself. “Gators? Like real live alligators?”
The man shrugged. “I reckon. That’s what it sounded like.”
“Seriously?”
The man―apparently his name was Floyd―nodded. “Yeah. I was afeared it was one-a y’all tryin’ to trap folks, so I said no. I don’t want no gators to sell, but I would like to see one. I mean, to see if they’s real and all.”
“Well, yeah. I think so. Did this fella have a name?”
“If’n he did, he didn’t give it to me. Tall, skinny guy with jacked-up teeth. Real bad. Looked like one-a them meth people.”
“Probably was. If he comes back, see if you can find out anything from him, like how to get in touch with him about some gators, but please don’t tell him I was here.” Barrett handed Floyd his business card.
“No, no, I wouldn’t do that. Tell him ‘bout you, I mean. But yeah, if’n he comes back, I’ll ask him. You reckon they’s real?”
Barrett shrugged. “Who knows? I’d just like to find out. After all, you guys don’t want that riffraff hanging around down here in the bottoms, do ya?”
“Oh, no, sir. We surely don’t. Kids go down there and mess around. Don’t want no kid gettin’ hisself chomped by a gator. That’d be awful.”
“It sure would be.” Boy, he’d freak out if he knew about Velma, Barrett thought. “What do I owe you?”
The woman had been weighing vegetables while the men talked. “Looks like thirteen dollars and fifty cents, so just make it thirteen dollars.”
“I’ll do you one better and make it fourteen. How’s that?” Barrett asked and gave the woman his sexiest smile.
She blushed, and he thought it was adorable. “Sounds fine, young man. I hope you and your family enjoy ‘em.”
“Oh, I’m sure we will. Thanks so much. Good talkin’ to you,” Barrett said as he headed to the truck with a wave.
“Good talkin’ to you too, son. You come back anytime!” the old fellow called back as Barrett slid behind the driver’s seat.
As he drove, Barrett ran through the conversation again. There was nothing said that would help him, but at least he’d confirmed what Flora had heard. He was headed toward Oscar when his phone rang and a quick look told him it was Conor. “Hey! Good news?”
“Yep. I’ll be there by the weekend. My captain said this sounds like something I could help with to stop them from coming into our state, so he’s all for it. He’s writing it up as a ‘joint task force’ and if your captain will sign off on it, everything will be fine.”
“I don’t think Captain Moss will even blink. He’ll just sign it and tell me to get to work. So as far as I’m concerned, it’s a go.”
“Are there some hotels around there where I can stay?”
“I’ll do you one better than that. You’re welcome to stay with me. I’ve got three bedrooms and only one is in use, so you’ll have plenty of room.”
“That’ll be great!”
“By the way, Bud Griffin and his wife were at my house yesterday for a little get together, and he said he’d love to see you if you wind up here.”
“We can definitely make that happen. I would love a chance to see for myself how well Martina’s doing.”
“She really is doing well, and I think she’s one of the nicest people I’ve ever met. So yeah, we’ll all have to do dinner or something. Flora would like that too. Can you bring your girl?”
“Nah. She has to work. But she’d come if she could.”
“So let me know when you’re on your way and I’ll make arrangements to get you here. You’re flying, right?”
“Yeah. Where will I have to come in? Your town doesn’t have an airport, right?”
“Oh, yeah, we’ve got one, but the only flights we have are in and out of Chicago.”
“I don’t need to go to Chicago!” Conor said, laughing.
“No. Nobody needs to go to Chicago! So you can fly into Nashville and I can pick you up, or―”
“No. Not necessary. I’ll rent a car and come that way.”
“Sounds good. Keep me posted.”
“Will do. Talk to you soon, Barrett.”
The call ended and Barrett smiled. It was all falling into place. Maybe in a couple of weeks they’d have the murdering asshole in custody and there would be no more alligators. If that happened, there would be no more threat to Flora. Did he want alligators in McCracken County, Kentucky? Hell no. Did he want Darryl to be gone forever so Flora was safe?
Oh hell yeah.
* * *
“I’m goingdown to Barrett’s to help him get ready for company. Is that okay with you?”
“Sure. I don’t give a crap. He got any candy down there?”
Flora chuckled. “I have no idea.”
“If’n he does, will you bring me some?”
“Yes, ma’am. I sure will. And I’ll bring back a plate too. How’s that?”
“Sounds good. I’m gonna sit here and take a nap.”
What’s new about that? It’s pretty much all she does, Flora told herself as she headed out the front door. Barrett was sitting in the truck, and she climbed in.
“She gonna be okay here by herself?” he asked Flora as soon as she had the door closed.
Flora rolled her eyes. “Oh, yeah. She announced that she’s going to nap. Like that’s something new. Told her I’d bring her a plate. She wanted to know if you have any candy.”
Barrett laughed loudly. “Well, yeah! I’ll give you some to take back to her. That should make her happy.”
“Bonus points if it’s chocolate!” Flora announced, laughing.
“I’ll remember that. So Conor will be here in about two hours. Think we can get the place whipped into shape by then?”
“Barrett, your house is not a mess. It’s pretty damn neat and tidy. We can scrub the bathrooms, clean around the sink, and make sure the laundry isn’t piled up, and it should be perfect. Got any of those nice candles?”
“No.”
“Oh, well. At least you’re not one of those stinky guys,” she said and made a face.
“Stinky guy?”
“Yeah. Some guys are stinky guys.”
The truck rolled to a stop in Barrett’s driveway and he turned to look at her, his brow furrowed. “Stinky guy? What’s a stinky guy?”
“You know. Stinky feet. Stinky shoes. Doesn’t bathe often enough. Hair smells funky. Fingernails are dirty. Dirty clothes everywhere, dirty dishes, garbage can running over―”
“Did you just describe Darryl?”
Flora chuckled and hiked up her eyebrows. “You know, I think I did!”
“That’s what I thought. Come on.” He was headed to her door to open it, but she’d already hopped out. “Please let me open doors for you and pull out chairs and stuff like that. Makes me feel useful.”
“You’re already useful, sweetie.”
“And not stinky,” he reminded her as they climbed the porch steps.
“Exactly.”
An hour later, she looked around at what they’d done. “Hon, this place is really in good shape.”
“I’m putting the last of the dishes away. Oh! I need to go through the refrigerator and throw stuff out!”
“Then let me finish with the dishes and you do that.” Flora pushed him out of the way and reached into the dishwasher. “So you’ve met Conor before when Martina’s daughter was missing.”
“Yeah. He’s a great guy. He’s one of those people I could be good friends with if he lived here. I could see us hanging out together, me, him, Zyan, Kirby …”
“Kirby’s a nice guy.”
“Yeah. He is. He really is. You haven’t met Jonas either.”
“You should’ve invited him yesterday.”
“I did, but he was working. We’ve never worked the same kind of shift, so we never seem to be off at the same time.” There was a sound like the front door opening and Barrett murmured, “Who the hell is that?”
“Barrett? You home?”
He shook his head and sighed. “Jesse.” In seconds, the man appeared in the doorway. “What are you doing here?”
It was obvious to Flora that Jesse was surprised to see her there in the kitchen. “I, uh, hadn’t seen you in a bit. Wondered how you were and all. Thought maybe we could … hang out or something.”
“I’m getting ready for a guest. Work-related. Don’t have time to hang out today.”
Jesse had taken a stance, leaning against the jamb of the door between the living room and kitchen, arms folded across his chest and ankles crossed with one toe down. “Looks like you’re already hanging out.”
“Actually, Flora’s helping me.” She wondered why it was necessary for Barrett to point that out. It was pretty obvious, or it would seem so.
Jesse’s voice was smoldering. “I could help too.”
“Not necessary. We’re almost finished.”
“So could I stick around and meet this guest?”
Barrett huffed out a sigh and Flora could feel her cheeks heating up. She didn’t want to be between them, so it was most likely time to leave, even though it would mean walking home. “I should probably go and―”
The conservation officer’s voice was pure molten lava. “No. Absolutely not. You’ve been here helping me, and you don’t have to go anywhere.”
“I think I’ll go in the bedroom and fold those towels on the bed, if you guys will excuse me.” Flora pushed her way past Jesse, who didn’t make it easy for her, and headed for the bedroom.
But being in the bedroom didn’t mean she was out of the conversation, not by a long shot. “So, what’s going on with this other conservation officer?”
“You know I’m not at liberty to talk to you about that.”
“You’re at liberty to talk to her about that.”
“You don’t know that and even if you did, that’s none of your business.”
“What, is she your girlfriend now?”
Flora almost cheered out loud when she heard Barrett say, “As a matter of fact, she is.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me. You went from T-bone steak to hamburger meat with that one.”
Flora felt tears pooling in her lower lids until she heard Barrett’s reply. “Yeah? Well, I went from T-bone steak to tube steak. Now I’m back, but this time, it’s filet mignon. So chew on that.”
“Wow. That’s pretty low.”
“So is coming in here and insulting my girlfriend. You need to go. I’ve got better things to do than argue with you.”
“You don’t have to argue with me. Just remember how good it was between us and I know you can―”
There was a fury in Barrett’s tone that shocked Flora. “I remember. I remember being married to a woman. I didn’t marry a man. I’m not attracted to men, Jesse. Not at all. And you knew that. This was your decision. This was your change. All I heard was, ‘Barrett, I know this is going to hurt you, but …’ or ‘Barrett, I know this isn’t what you want, but …’ You hid every damn thing you said behind a ‘but.’ You knew how this was going to affect me, and you did it anyway.”
“I want to be true to the real me!” Jesse bellowed.
“Yeah? Well, I want to be true to the real ME!” Barrett yelled back. “I’m not gay! I never pretended to be! You knew that! Why? Why are you pushing so fucking hard? Why are you refusing to let go? Why are you so determined to make both of us miserable?”
“Because I’m still in love with you!” Jesse screamed, and Flora shook all over. Would Barrett crumble and fall into his ex-wife’s arms? Or ex-husband? She wasn’t even sure how to think about Jesse anymore, especially since he seemed to be making the ultimate play for Barrett’s affections.
“Let me make this as plain as I can. I was in love with Jessica. Jessica isn’t here anymore. She’s gone. You’re not her and you know it. That’s who you were running away from, and you succeeded. I don’t know how to say this any clearer … Let. Me. Go.”
“But Barrett, I―”
“I. Said. Let. Me. Go.”
It got quiet, and Flora wondered what was happening. Just as she was about to peek out the bedroom door, she heard the front door open and close, and the sound of a vehicle leaving the driveway. Who had left? Jesse or Barrett? She was a little afraid to find out, but she had to, so she tiptoed out into the hallway and made her way silently toward the living room.
Barrett sat on the sofa, his hands tented in front of him, elbows on his knees, and index fingers pointed upward, his chin resting on his knuckles. He didn’t turn to look at her, just muttered, “I didn’t want you to have to hear that.”
“Kinda couldn’t not hear it.”
“I know.” His hand separated and he patted the sofa cushion beside him. “Come sit down.”
She moved in that direction, but when she reached him, she ran her fingers through that dark, thick hair and let them slide down his cheeks before she sat down beside him. All she could think to say was, “I’m sorry.”
“You have nothing to be sorry about.”
“I’m sorry I was here. That set him off, and I’m sorry.”
“No. Like I said, you have nothing to be sorry about. He’s just going to have to move on. I’m trying to, and I really resent him trying to pull me back toward him. It’s just not going to happen.”
She giggled. “I’m filet mignon?”
Barrett slapped a hand on her knee and gripped it. “Yes, beautiful lady, you most certainly are.”
“Well, that’s nice. At least I’m not tube steak.”
Barrett started to laugh and in just a few seconds, they were both shaking with laughter. “By god, no, you’re not!”
“I wish I could’ve seen his face when you said that!”
“I wish you could’ve too! It was pretty damn funny, but I was too mad to laugh at that moment. And now, looking back, yeah. Funny as hell!”
“So when will Conor be here?”
“Oh, shit!” Barrett jumped up from his seat. “I totally forgot he was coming with all that going on! What’s left to be done?”
“I folded the towels and I’ll go put them away. After that, nothing. The house is spotless and everything is neat as a pin. By the way, I really like this house. It’s very comfortable.”
“Thanks. It was one of the first things I bought after I started working for the state. I wanted to be out here somewhere near Mom and Dad, and when it came up for sale, I jumped on it. I had a friend in high school who lived here, so I’d been inside it, and I knew I liked it. It worked out perfectly.”
Flora stood and headed toward the bedroom to put away the towels in the hall linen closet. “So, what did you do until you landed this job?”
“I lived in northern Kentucky for two years and worked at the Cincinnati Zoo.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.” She could hear him in the kitchen, starting the dishwasher. “My degree qualified me to work with the animals, and I worked with a breeding program there.”
“What kind of breeding program?”
“Marsupials. I worked mostly with the Australian ones―wombats, koalas, quolls. Tasmanian devils too.”
“What’s a quoll? And are Tasmanian devils really mean?”
“Quolls are cute. Look them up. And TDs aren’t really mean, but they do have a strong jaw so they can do a lot of damage if they bite. Oh, and quokkas.”
“Aren’t they the ones who look like they’re smiling all the time?”
Barrett chuckled. “Yep. I actually went to Australia for two weeks, stayed with a zookeeper, and spent my days at Zoos Victoria. They operate three zoos, but they’re all about conservation. It was an amazing trip. I’ve stayed in touch with some of the people I met there.”
“I’d love to go there sometime.”
Barrett had wandered down the hallway and stepped up behind Flora, his arms wrapping around her waist as he hugged her back to his chest. “I’ll take you sometime.”
“You’d do that?”
Before she could protest, he’d spun her to face him, his lips an inch from hers. “I would. I’d take you anywhere. Haven’t you figured out by now that I’d do just about anything for you, girl?” When he pressed those lips to hers, Flora lost all sense of time and space. God, she wanted to be with him! She’d never met a man like Barrett, strong and yet gentle, country and yet sophisticated, hard-working and yet he had no trouble taking time for family and friends. Hell, he mowed Mrs. Murphy’s lawn! He had to be one of the best men, maybe the best man, she’d ever met in her life. She tipped her head to let him explore her mouth when suddenly, he drew back.
“What’s wrong?”
“Conor’s probably going to be here any minute. We can’t find ourselves in a compromising situation when he knocks on the door.”
“Ugh. Okay. You’re right.” Flora rose up on her tiptoes and gave him a peck on the lips. “I’m going in the kitchen to make some brownies so you guys will have something to snack on.”
“You are too good for me, Flora Stevens. You do realize that you’re about to snare my undying devotion, right?” he asked, chuckling as he followed her up the hallway.
“You’ve already snared mine.” The words hadn’t even left the air when he leaned out and popped her on the butt. “Owww! Boy, aren’t you a frisky one this afternoon!”
“If Conor wasn’t on his way, I’d take you right down that hallway and we’d … He’s here. Guess that’ll have to wait.” He winked at her as he headed to the front door.
Flora let out a laugh. “Promises, promises!”
She could hear the two men talking and laughing as she put the towels in the hall linen closet. As soon as she stepped into the room, they both turned to smile at her. “Babe, this is Conor Paxton. Conor, this is my girlfriend, Flora.” Hearing him say girlfriend gave her a tingling sensation in her chest.
“It’s so nice to meet you. Barrett has said really great things about you,” Flora said as Conor took her hand.
“Oh, lying again, huh?” Conor snapped at Barrett and then laughed.
Barrett was laughing too. “Yeah. I told her you were smart. That was a mistake.”
Flora play-frowned. “Oh, play nice! So what are you guys doing for dinner?”
“I thought I’d take Conor into town to somewhere near the mall. Want to come?”
“I can’t. I need to get back to Mrs. Murphy.”
“You can come with us another time then. Hungry, Conor?”
“Starving.”
“Let me drive you home and we’ll go on from there. After you,” Barrett said and opened the front door.
When Flora and Conor had cleared the doorway, he locked the door and they headed to the truck. Flora sat in the middle of the front seat and as Barrett backed out onto the road, she sat back and grinned. Look at me, sitting in a truck between two hunks! Wish asshole Darryl could see me now! Instantly, another line flew through her mind: No! You don’t want Darryl to see you! You don’t want him to ever see you again! Well, that was certainly true. They pulled up in Mrs. Murphy’s driveway and Barrett slid out, then reached for Flora’s hand and helped her down. It felt good to hold hands with him as they walked and when they reached the porch, she climbed a step before she turned and looked down into his face. “I’ll miss you.”
He grinned so widely that his eyes squeezed shut. “Baby, I’ll miss you too. This is only temporary. I just don’t want Conor to feel uncomfortable.”
“I get it. I do.”
“And if we pull this off, we’ll have all of this out of our way and it’ll be smooth sailing from here on out.”
He’d taken a step down, and Flora rested her forearms on his shoulders and stared into his eyes. “Good. Because I love you, Barrett.”
“I love you too, pretty girl. Get inside and call me if anything happens. If you need something, I’ll come and take you wherever, or I’ll get somebody to come, but don’t go by yourself. Hear me?”
“Yes. I know. I won’t.”
“Okay. We’re going to talk all of this over and see if we can get it set up. Not gonna be easy, but I think it’ll work. So get inside and I’ll talk to you tonight.”
“Talk to you tonight. Bye.” Flora opened the door, slipped inside, and closed it. She couldn’t stand to watch him drive away. She wanted to run down the driveway and leap into his arms, but what he was about to do was important to any future they might have. Time. That’s what he needed.
And she’d give him that.
* * *
It lookedlike a conservation officer party, except that they were all plainclothes and in their personal vehicles. Barrett, Conor, Kirby, Jonas, and Captain Evan Moss sat around Barrett’s dining room table, chatting, until there was a knock at the door. It opened to exactly who he was hoping would be standing there. “Wow. You’ve got quite the gathering here,” Frankie said as he stepped inside.
“You’ll be the only non-conservation officer in the mix. I don’t trust anybody else.”
“I’ve got a couple of coworkers you could―”
“No. Please. This is too dangerous. I think you know everybody here except Conor Paxton. He’s Texas Parks & Wildlife. This is Frankie Elliott. He’s a McCracken County deputy sheriff.”
Conor rose and extended a hand. “Good to meet you.”
“Okay, guys. Let’s get down to business.” Barrett told Conor to start, and he told the group about the seizure in Texas and how he’d called Barrett. From there, Barrett began the story of Flora―how she’d come to be there, the things she’d seen, what she knew about the men, and the fact that they’d managed to track her to the area but no farther. “So Conor asked his superiors if he could come here as part of a joint task force, and they jumped at it. Now comes the hard part―how we’re going to find these guys. And I think Conor will be instrumental in that. You’re the wild card, the one person they couldn’t possibly have seen before. Everybody else is local. Are you up for doing a little undercover work as a prospective reptile buyer?”
The Lone Star state officer nodded. “Sounds good to me. But how do we find them?”
“Good question. Anybody got any ideas?” From Barrett’s question, the ideas took off. Where would people like that go? What would they be looking for?
“If I were raising meat-eating reptiles, I’d go to packing plants and go through their garbage. I’d steal chickens too,” Jonas pointed out.
Barrett nodded. “That’s true. There’s that packing plant out in Hendron. Is there another one?”
“There’s a butcher shop over in Ledbetter. Might check there.” Kirby stroked his chin as he thought. “Restaurants by the mall, although that would be small potatoes compared to something large. They’d probably kill deer nearby and feed the gators those.”
“Oh. Yeah. I hadn’t thought about that. If they’re doing that, we’ll never find them.” Barrett was feeling a little helpless. Everything seemed to be a dead end.
“I think I’m going to check with Adam Howard out at Howard’s Meat Market. That’s out in that end of the county, and kinda rural. Somebody could go there and raid the dumpster without anyone seeing them.” Evan glanced around the table. “Probably won’t help, but it’s something.”
Frankie sighed loudly. “Okay, so let’s think about this. Where would guys like this hang out? And where would they go to try to find other people to buy their reptiles?”
No one said a word. Everyone was thinking. Finally, Barrett said, “They approached Floyd and Geraldine out there at the vegetable stand.”
“Okay. That’s a start,” Frankie announced. “A couple. Older. Alone. Selling low-cost items. A quick way to make some money.”
Conor rolled his eyes. “Reeks of desperation.”
“Or this is what they’re used to, working in a rural setting with very few people. Whatever we do, we’ve got to not only engage them, but also find out where their base is. Conor will pose as a guy wanting to buy reptiles as pets, but he’s going to ask all the right questions about raising them and breeding them. They might take him into their fold that way, and that’s what we want.” Barrett sat back in his chair. “The problem is, how do we get him there? How do we get them to notice him and ask him to come along for the ride?”
Kirby looked around the table and settled his gaze on Frankie. “Do you know if there are any reptile shows around here in the next few weeks?”
“There’s one that comes around every three or four months. Let me check.” Frankie whipped out his phone and started scrolling.
Conor was drumming his fingers on the table. “We just need to find a place for me to mingle, or to make a connection that’ll take me where I need to go.”
“Bingo.” Frankie looked around the table. “The reptile show is coming around in three weeks.”
“Okay. That gives us time to plan how we’re going to do this. We need attention to clothing, gait, speech, anything that will attract these guys,” Jonas said. “Want me to take point on that?”
“Sure. Works for me.” Barrett turned to his superior. “Cap?”
“No―Evan. Everybody in this operation needs to use first names. If we’re seen with each other, we have to look like good ol’ boys having a good time. We’ve got a location, a date and time, someone to set up the details,” he said, nodding toward Jonas, who nodded back, “and now we need to write a script. Cover all the details. Where he’s from, what he’s doing at the show, what he wants, what he’ll be excited about, how much money he’s got to spend. He’ll need a local car to drive, not that rental. And a low profile unless he’s working.” Conor nodded his understanding. “Ideas?”
Conor scratched one temple before he spoke. “Okay. I go to the show. I talk to the vendors. Ask about the animals. How hard are they to take care of? How much do they cost? How much do their supplies cost? And then I hit it harder―what about breeding them? Selling them? Is there money in it? I’m looking for a new business opportunity. What’s my old one?”
Frankie shot up in his chair. “Pot. It’s not going for what it used to because so many places are legalizing it. Hell, we can drive across the bridge into Metropolis, Illinois, and buy and smoke all we want. We just can’t bring it across the bridge, but nobody gives a shit about that. Any money anybody was making on it over here on this side of the river is drying up. There’s your lost revenue angle.”
“We need to find a person who died recently, someone who had a little money. Maybe from a farm, or some kind of small business. He inherited money from them, and he wants to use that to seed the business,” Kirby offered.
“This is perfect.” Barrett turned to Conor. “You’ll be staying with me, so we can practice this often. In the meantime, it’s got to be business as usual for me.”
“I guess we could use the woman as bait too,” Frankie offered.
Everyone at the table jumped as Barrett’s hands slammed down on its gleaming surface. “Absolutely not! I don’t want her involved in this in any way. I’ve already told her she’s to go nowhere without me or somebody else with her, but preferably me or Kirby. Maybe Zyan. She’s got to stay under the radar. If they find her before we find them, she’ll be dead and I’ll be forced to murder somebody when I find them, and I will find them. You can take that as my pre-murder confession right now.”
“I’m with Barrett on this. We’re not doing that. Absolutely not. From what I’ve heard, she’s been through enough.” Evan’s tone left no room for negotiation. “If we can’t do this unless we use her as bait, then we can’t do this. Period.”
Barrett tried to calm himself. “Thanks.” He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned.
Conor gave him a soft smile. “We’ve got this, Barrett. We’ll find them, and we’re going to keep her from ever being in danger from them again. You have my word that I’ll do everything in my power to make that happen.”
“Thanks.” Barrett glanced around the table. These were men he knew, men he’d worked with and around for some time. He trusted them. Hell, he even trusted Frankie, and that was saying a lot, considering how traditional law enforcement treated them. Conor would have questions later, but in that moment, every other man in that room knew him, knew what he’d been through, and it was time. “I’ve got something I need to say. You all know me. You know what’s happened to me over the last few years. I won’t lie―it’s been tough. He was over here yesterday, rattling my cage in front of Flora, even insulting her. This woman … She’s the closest thing to a tonic that I’ve found in a long, long time. I haven’t met anybody―anybody―I thought I could make a life with except for her. I lost the woman I loved. I’ve found the love of my life. I’m not letting something happen to her. I won’t. I can’t. I don’t think I’d survive that. This time … This is my go-for-broke moment. I appreciate every one of you sitting here in this room. I really do.”
“We’ll do it for you because we know you’d do it for us.” Jonas reached out a hand and patted Barrett’s forearm.
“That much is true,” Kirby whispered.
Evan glanced around the table. “We all know what our roles are. Frankie, get a list of those vendors for that show so Conor can plan his circuit. Jonas, start planning the details―clothing, hair, footwear, lingo, accessories, anything that will make him look authentic. Conor and Barrett, you guys run through the script over and over until Conor’s a natural. Kirby, see if you can scare up a car for him.”
Barrett looked up and grinned. “I’ve got the car. It’s a 1973 Buick Regal.”
Conor laughed. “Sweeeeeeet! Can’t wait to see that!”