She listened for a moment, nodding, before she smiled slightly. “Tell APS I had the privilege of seeing Brooke’s infamous temper up close and personal today. Bust out the popcorn, baby. Forsure, this is a woman you never want to piss off. Frankly, I’m surprised Reflex still have their balls attached.” She laughed at the response from the other end, then said, “We’ll see you in a bit.”
After closing her communications with Shae, Indi turned to Brooke. “Here’s another question, Brooke. Why was Vonn souninterestedwhile we were there? Playing the wide-eyed ingenue apprentice meant I had plenty of opportunity to observe them and their reactions closely without attracting attention. That man didnotwant to be there. His whole demeanor was one of having bigger fish to fry now, and this particular scam is beneath him. So, tell me, what does he all of a sudden have going on that’s more important than their embezzlement and money laundering scheme?”
“Something he thinks is going to make him a hell of a lot more money,” Brooke said slowly as they approached the APS complex. “If it’s another embezzlement opportunity, it has to be pretty big, and not necessarily linked to the craft microbrewery industry. He may be cutting his Reflex partners out of his new scam, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have another associate in a completely different business sector lined up.”
“Money laundering would be more lucrative than embezzlement, though, with the timeframe he’s working in. Especially if he’s on the layering and placement end of things.” Indi was pensive. “Vonn is sniffing aroundsomething. Every instinct I have tells me whatever it is goes beyond embezzlement and money laundering or grifting wealthy marks. I don’t seehow, but maybe the body brokeringisin play with him, more than we’ve been thinking. When we get back to the APS complex, a brainstorming session is definitely in order. I have a feeling we’re not going to be happy when we piece it all together either.”
?ω?ω?ω?
“Good evening, Shadow.”
“Cyb3rmoon. To what do I owe the pleasure?”
“The pleasure is all mine, darling. However, I must admit, the more I wander around, the more I realize David Copperfield would be quite at home in Purgatory.”
“What do you mean?”
“Here is the most legendary illusionist of our time—who, in essence, blurs the line between magic and illusion—with grand-scale trickery swathed in grand and glorious trappings. His audience, his ‘marks,’ are rarely capable of piercing those splendid, breathtaking illusions enough to view the actual deception and deceit underneath.”
“And?”
“The failure of most ‘operations,’ shall we say, is because an illusion has failed…in much the same way a magician may find his magic act has failed. The audience ceases tobelieve, darling. If a mark lives happily within an illusion—not any the wiser—an operation’s success becomes within reach, most especially when the target has been led to believe there is a noble cause involved. If not—”
“This is of interest to me, why?”
“Do the math, darling, and recall our last conversation. Sometimes, what appears to BE is not necessarily what IS. ‘There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.’ Sleight of hand is far more thana parlor trick, Shadow, especially when there is substantial wealth to be gained.
“The enemy of my enemy is my friend, as they say. Personally, however, my philosophy is that the enemy of my enemy deserves the exact same knife to the kidneys as my adversary does, depending on what is in play.”
“My little moonchild is bloodthirsty, it would seem.”
“Perhaps. All I know is that an illusion that fails in an operation—much like impulsive action, as we have previously discussed—is what can get you killed. I suspect you would do well to remember that as well. Having feet of ‘clay’ has been the downfall of many prominent players on the chessboard.”
“You play dangerous games, little one.”
“Ah, but the thrill of the chase is what never ceases to fascinate me. Victory is indeed sweet. But closing in on your prey, narrowing the gap, drawing ever closer, breathing down their neck, can be even sweeter…particularly when well-deserved retribution is the motivator.Audaces fortuna iuvat, lover. Fortune favors the bold.”
“Quite true. However, not checking your six has also been the downfall of many a player, Cyb3rmoon. At times, it’s not what’s in back of you or in front of you that’s the greatest threat. What creeps in from the side below your peripheral vision can be even more deadly.”
“I can’t disagree.”
“As interesting as this conversation has been, however, I must go. Stay out of trouble, little moonchild. I may not always be around to rescue you if you step in a pit of quicksand.”
“So must I. Regretfully, however, trouble always seems to find me, I’m sorry to say. Nonetheless, I find that I do much better as the rescuer than the ‘rescuee.’ Perhaps I’ll be the one to pullyouout of the quicksand for a change. Until the next time, my Shadow. Sweet dreams.”
?ω?ω?ω?
“I’m going to kill that little bitch.”
“The fuck you are, Jack. What kind of bullshit was that, telling her she was going to do as she was told without giving us any lip? Way to piss her off so she tries to pull out of the project, idiot.”
“You think I care, Berber? Still, the little cunt and her boring, useless assistants are the least of our concerns right now. What I want to know is why the dumbasses we hired to move the merch have bailed all of a sudden.And where the hell is Rob?This is the second time that motherfucker hasn’t bothered to show up for a meeting. Shit’s getting critical, and his ass is nowhere to be found.”
“Clay, didn’t you say he texted you and said he was trying to track down what the hell is happening with the men we hired?”
“He did. Rob will get to the bottom of this. I’m betting a job came along that paid more than ours so we got kicked to the curb. These sleazy jackasses will go for the money every single time. Unfortunately, we now have to figure out a way to make up the time we’ve lost because we have to hire a new crew. Tonight, we’ll hit The Hideout and see who’s around.”
“When this is over, the fuck I amevercoming back to the Tampa area again. This entire scam has been a clusterfuck from the word ‘go.’ Bashing that Marino cunt’s head in on our way out the door would be my preference to make up for it, but I guess ruining her and that pussy Gene Wheeler will have to do. Let’s get out of here. Christ, I need a beer.”
