“Only smart thing Dex is doing is finding some poor schmuck to be the go-between with an uncertain exchange,” Titus declared. “That said, everything else about this is dumb as fuck.”
“They don’t think Duane is a poor schmuck. They think he’s a dufus. And because they do, they figure he’s scared of them and wouldn’t go to the cops, or someone like us, or just take off with the cash,” Shanti said.
Titus gave her a look.
Shanti held his gaze and sipped her cocktail.
Luna, who clearly had cottoned on to what was happening between Titus and Shanti, gave me “what the fuck is going on?” eyes.
I sucked in my lips.
Titus spoke. “Problem with dumbfucks is, they don’t know they’re dumbfucks.”
“Right,” Shanti replied.
Titus shook the papers again. “This is what’s goin’ down. They’re gonna give your guy a shit ton of money. He’s gonna take it to this player, and this player is either gonna take that money, shoot him dead and no one is ever gonna find the body, or he’s gonna take a shot on giving Dex a chance, and he’s gonna hand over a shit ton of pharmaceuticals. My money would be on option one. And if I took that bet, I’d bet big.”
Oh boy!
“So, if you know these players…” Raye said.
“Yeah,” Titus sighed. “I’m goin’ with you.”
We all perked up.
Except Raye.
“That wasn’t what I meant. You don’t have to…” Raye began.
“I do, baby,” Titus cut her off gently. “This player we’re dealing with?”
We all nodded.
“Solid guy. Dig him. He’s good people. Unless he’s doing business. Then he’s a snake. And this guy can be a cobra, quick strike, poison injected, you’re dead. Or he can be a boa, putting the squeeze on you until you wished you were dead, then you’re just dead, and he eats you whole.”
Yuck.
Titus wasn’t done.
“And I can guarantee you, he’s heard of the Angels. And because he has, he’ll take you seriously, but he might also not be a big fan of yours, so he might take it somewhere else.”
Eek!
“So I’m going with you,” Titus concluded.
“I think that’s a good call,” Gemma said quietly.
“So what you wanna do?” Titus asked Raye.
“Well, I’ve been thinking on it,” Raye started.
We all listened.
Hard.
“And I think Duane should get the money from Dex. And then he gives it to us and he’s out,” she carried on. “We have the money, and we take it to whoever this person is. We just give it to him and thank him for his time. He can have the money, and the pharmaceuticals. That way, he lands on top, Duane is out, and Dex has lost all his money.”
“Give this guy the money minus some to give to Duane for pain and suffering and so he can hire someone to paint his house,” I said.
