Chapter 16: A Second Introduction

After the Vivian Baller job, Cody did not hear from Elaine for over a month. He enjoyed the uninterrupted time with Jewel even if she did not realize there was ever an interruption. In the final week of November, Elaine made an appearance just to tell him that he was doing good by not using any of his enablements and keeping a low profile.

After Thanksgiving the weather turned colder than normal which meant Jewel and Cody were happy to stay inside over the weekend and binge-watch a streaming show. They had gotten hooked on television series from the 70s and 80s and were currently watching M.A.S.H. for the first time.

“I mean, it’s OK, I guess, but I don’t quite get the hoopla around the show,” said Jewel after the series finale ended.

“Yeah, I would agree, but never, ever, say something like that to my dad. He will disown you. And probably me, too,” said Cody. Jewel looked at him and realized he was not joking.

“Understood,” she said with an almost disbelieving shake of her head. “We’ve been watching television for way too long. I need a shower. Why don’t you order some dinner and I’ll be out by the time it arrives.”

Cody went to the kitchen to look at the menus they had accumulated over the past few months. He could use his phone to find something but he liked to look at the printed menus in a stack versus having to search for each restaurant in turn. He thought Chinese sounded good and called out to Jewel.

“Chinese OK?”

She replied, “Yes! Haven’t had that in quite a while.”

Cody reached for his phone when time stopped.

“Good choice. I like Chinese, too,” said Elaine as she materialized in the kitchen.

Cody startled and said, “Can’t you come up with some kind of knock or ring that will announce your arrival and not just show up and scare me?”

“What’s the fun in that? I mean, I have so little to look forward to that a surprise visit just makes my day.”

Cody’s scowl was all he needed to say.

“It looks like there’s a great small job in here in town. It will give you a chance to work again, and for us to monitor any reaction from Orion.”

“What!” Cody exclaimed. “You’re going to use me as bait?”

“No, nothing like that! Well, maybe a little like that. We’ve been monitoring you as closely as possible and have not found any trace of Orion’s presence. We want to have you do a nice short job that requires little help from enablements to see if there is any change.”

Cody did not reply. He just stared at Elaine.

“Well, the job is easy. Other side of town. A new guy to town is trying to take over some of the drug scene. To lower his prices he started to cut his product with boric acid and caffeine but he recently switched to fentanyl. There have been at least four deaths related to his stuff and we want him taken out.”

Cody nodded his agreement. Elaine gave him a name and address.

“Shouldn’t be hard to make it look like an accident. Personally, and with a sense of ironic justice, I’d have him overdose on his own stuff. It’s your call, though. And if possible, just use one enablement and for as short a time as possible.”

Cody frowned again. “What does that mean? As short as possible?”

“Not sure. I wasn’t told a number. Probably no more than 10-to-15 minutes. That should be plenty of time to get the job done. Any other questions?”

When no response came, Elaine said, “OK, then, happy hunting.”

She disappeared and time restarted.

A few minutes later Jewel appeared with one towel wrapped around her body and one on top of her head.

“I feel much better,” she said. “Did you get dinner ordered?”

“No, actually, as I looked at the menu I thought we could go out.”

Cody went to her and put his arms around her waist. He bent down to kiss her while tugging at her towel.

“Nope, not now. If we’re going out it’s a shower for you, and then dinner,” she jokingly teased as she spun out of his grasp.

He laughed in response and trudged off to the bathroom. Even though Jewel would never know, he felt bad with the sudden change of plans. Their path to the Chinese restaurant would take them within a couple blocks of his target.

Cody flicked on the blinker and took a left turn at the light.

“Where are you going? The restaurant is just a few blocks ahead.”

“It is, but I thought I’d swing around behind it so I can take a right and then a right into the parking lot. Sometimes the traffic can get so backed up and people won’t let us into the lot.”

Jewel did not seemed convinced as she frowned at Cody. He went two blocks and took a right and then started to watch the passing house numbers closely. When he saw 716 he tented his fingers.

He stopped time just as the car approached his target’s house. It was in need of repair. In fact, there was no front door. A large four-by-eight sheet of plywood was nailed across the opening. The edges of an old comforter could be seen providing limited insulation to the outside weather.

Cody walked to the back of the house and found a screen door hanging off the frame. The backdoor had a cracked window but was functional. He let himself in to find the rest of the house in similar disarray. Two large gentlemen sat at the table. Each had a handgun in front of them as they sipped a beer and played cards.

“They must be the receptionists for this establishment,” thought Cody with a grunt.

Between the kitchen, at the back of the house, and the living room in the front, there was a small dining area. Off to the left of the dining table were stairs leading to the second floor. No one was in the living room so Cody proceeded upstairs.

At the top of the stairs, a folding table took up much of the landing. This time, the man at the table held an automatic weapon. He was not playing cards, nor did he seem to have any distractions.