Chapter 18

On the ride home, Alex told his story to the three girls.

“While I made a deal with the Russians to take the bounty off my head, that doesn’t mean the Philly Crew doesn’t still want a piece of me. On top of all that, everyone’s still looking for my dad, including law enforcement,” Alex said to wrap it up.

“So, I can’t dig into your true identity?” Lyric asked.

“Not unless you want to get me killed or worse.”

“There’s a worse?” Maddie asked.

“The Russians tied me to a chair and beat me until I was unconscious, but that was kid stuff compared to what they usually do. They are masters at removing body parts slowly enough that you never quite bleed out.”

“Are you trying to scare us?” Dawn asked.

“No, but you deserve the truth,” Alex said, then paused. “I promise I’ll protect all of you.”

“How can you say that when you can’t protect yourself?” Lyric asked.

“Everyone after me knows I’m a planner and damned good at what I do. You always plan your escape first. But what I’ll make clear is that this time, I’m not running. That was what my talk with Steve Calhoun was all about. I told him Conclave was off-limits because it’s my turf.”

“I doubt he was scared of your declaration,” Maddie said.

“But he does fear the Russians,” Alex pointed out.

“How did they know to come to save you?” Dawn asked.

Alex looked down at his hands and shook his head.

“I honestly don’t know.”

“And that doesn’t bother you?” Lyric asked.

“It bothers me greatly because I don’t know anyone in Conclave who could get the Russians to cowboy up and be ready to take out the ex-sheriff. That was a serious escalation that I don’t think anyone around here is capable of. Honestly, I can only think of one person that could’ve pulled that off,” Alex said.

“Who’s that?” Maddie asked.

“My dad.”

Stretch had listened to Alex’s conversation with the ex-sheriff and the girls Alex had brought to the job. He had to admit that he would have pissed himself when he was fifteen, especially when the Russians had shown up.

If Mickey and Sonny had witnessed Alex facing down six heavily armed men with Russian military training, they’d be grooming him to take over someday.

All Stretch could think was it was for the best that he was halfway across the state planning a job, or he would’ve blown his cover trying to rescue his son. As it turned out, a son who didn’t need any rescuing if today’s performance was an indicator.

It also saddened him because it showed how much Alex had been forced to grow up on his own over the past year and a half. Someday, Mickey and Sonny would pay for turning on him and his son. Stretch was proud of how Alex had given his old crew an FU by turning off their access to his software.

The poor bastards were lost without him and Alex planning jobs for them. Two of their old crew had died and six were in jail due to inadequate preparation. Alex didn’t know it, but Tones had gone missing when the last job had gone horribly wrong.

The way he heard it, Sonny had chatted up an ATM repairman at a local bar. Sonny then hooked Tones up with the guy to plan the robbery. The heist occurred in north Philly, where the repairman placed all the money from the machine into a bag and put it into the backseat of his unlocked car.

Tones had asked one of his classmates to help him with the job. They’d opened the car and taken the bag. The problem was that the car was parked where three security cameras could catch the theft. One was a high-definition model that clearly showed Tones and the other kid.

The police were suspicious about the unlocked car, so they arrested the repairman. He fingered Sonny to cut a deal. The crew boss was out of jail in a couple of hours with the new catch-and-release policy the DA’s office was now offering criminals. Within a few hours, the repairman recanted and said he was mistaken about Sonny’s involvement.

Stretch would advise the ATM guy to take an extended vacation and disappear because of what followed.

The police made a plea to the robbers to turn themselves in before the video was released. With the video, the public would know that the two teens had a bag with $82,000 in cash on them, and every criminal in the metro area would be out hunting for the money. Two days later, the police released the video, and the classmate’s mother gave him and Tones up in the first thirty minutes.

It wasn’t long before police received a call of gunshots fired and found blood at the scene that matched the two kids, but no bodies. Police assumed they now had a double homicide on their hands. Honestly, Stretch guessed the police wouldn’t look too hard. It wouldn’t surprise him if Mickey ordered the hit due to the colossal fuck-up of allowing the robbery to be filmed.

Stretch’s phone chimed to let him know he had a message. The truck they would rob was ten minutes out.

The Aldriches were shipping a semi-load of cannabis to their wholesaler. Stretch had used Alex’s plans as a guideline for pulling the job. He felt terrible using Alex’s intel as a shortcut. Still, his conscience was clear when he read that the Aldriches would be paid at pickup, not delivery.

The ex-sheriff’s team had stolen a big black SUV for the job and installed strobe police lights inside it. When they saw the truck, Stretch pulled onto the road and turned on the lights. The truck slowed down and pulled over. Stretch parked the SUV behind the semi, and Rusty Scruggs and Bobby Slade got out and approached the driver.

“Step out of the truck!” Rusty ordered.

“What did I do wrong, Officer?” the driver called out the window.

“I won’t say it again. Get out of the truck!”

The driver climbed down, and Bobby cuffed him and threw a black bag over the man’s head. He pulled out the driver’s wallet.

“I now have your name and address, Mr. Johnson. When the police come, it would be in your and your family’s best interest to be vague about who robbed you. Stuff happens fast, making it hard to remember details. Are we clear?” Bobby asked.

“Yes, sir. I don’t know anything.”

“Good answer.”

Bobby sat the driver down on the side of the road as Rusty climbed into the truck, put the still-running vehicle into gear, and drove away. Bobby trotted back to the SUV and got in.

A quarter mile up the road, a farm was up for auction. Rusty pulled the semi into the barn and shut it off. Steve Calhoun, Carl Cooper, and several of Carl’s men were waiting for them.

Stretch got out of the SUV, shook up a bleach bomb, and closed the doors. A moment later, it exploded, effectively removing all trace evidence that Stretch had been there. He had another one for the semi’s cab, which he set off.

He came out, and Steve had a duffle bag waiting for him.

“Quarter million, as promised,” Steve said.

“And worth every penny,” Carl added with a huge smile.

It was apparent Carl was hurting for money.

“I wanted to personally thank you for not roughing up my boy today,” Stretch said.

“How did you know he stopped by?” Steve asked.

“You pay me to know stuff.”

“I thought it was amusing until the Russians showed up. I think it was your kid that kept me from getting roughed up. Looking back, that’s one tough boy you have there,” Steve admitted.

“Who are you talking about?” Carl asked.

“Alex Turner,” Steve said.

“Bullshit. That kid’s a pain in my ass, and I just might put him down the next time I see him,” Carl said.

Steve touched Stretch’s arm to let him know he would take care of it.

“You touch that kid, and I’ll put a bullet in your head. Your short-term thinking has always been your downfall. If you mess with Alex, it’ll bring more heat than you’re prepared for, and you’ll either end up in jail or dead. Maybe even dead in jail. So quit running your mouth and unload this truck,” Steve said, clearly pissed.