Chapter 33

Edited by Barney R

Yes, I was suicidal on Sunday. But then I always am after that kind of Saturday night. By Monday I was myself again. The only difference was that I had done some good with my ill gotten gains, so I felt a lot better about myself, a lot sooner than usual.

I also had lost the death wish by the time I woke up on Monday. Since I no longer wanted to meet with Ivan in the middle of the night, I checked my security system. The wide angle camera I had installed on the post at the entrance to my drive was still working. I hadn't used it for months. It didn't do the job I really needed, but it was still working. I knew that my motion sensor flood lights, the ones hidden in the trees surrounding the cabin, worked as well. I knew it because they lit the small yard like daylight, whenever I came home at night.

I decided that it was time, at the very least, to install a gate at the entrance to my place. I also wanted to put more security cameras in place. I had seen the boy wonder's security camera system at the office. He could check them from his laptop anywhere he happened to be. I wanted to be able to check the whole compound, before I went through the nonexistent gate. If Ivan came, I wanted a chance to at least do some serious damage.

Once I got to the office, I set Lucas the task of adding a gate and cameras. "I do not want the gate to be a bank vault, just something to keep the average guy out. If they come at it with a blow torch, let them in, but let me know they are there. However if a guy comes to pick me up for a date, I want it to look like a cattle gate."

"Nobody is going to pick you up for a date, ‎ ‏because you better not be telling anyone where you live," Ed said from across the room.

Also that Monday shortly after noon I finally realized that I didn't get my answer about the Reverend's past. Lucas had the security plan drawn up by 1PM, so I put him on the Reverend's trail. I had given the man a thousand dollars, now I wanted to know exactly who it was that profited from my mouth and ass.

"‏You might not like this Boss," Lucas said ten minutes later.

"‏Why not Luke?" I asked.

"‏Because he doesn't exist," Lucas said to me.

"‏Sure he does, I was at his church yesterday," I knew what he meant, but my reaction was that of a normal person, not some kind of jaded bitch.

"‏Jason Archer just appeared here last year. He set up that ministry, but his ordainment must be from the back of penthouse or something akin to it."

Shit, I have been conned, I thought. "So what's his scam?"

"I can't find one.‎ ‏He isn't putting money in the bank anywhere. His income from the church will barely cover his expenses. He actually seems to be dead broke."

"Well, ‎ ‏let me do some checking," I suggested.

Lucas went back our real work. He got ready to serve papers, while I put in a call to Anya Bostic. "I need some information," I suggested to her.

"‏Me first, she demanded."

"My ass Bostic, ‎ ‏you don't have the high ground here. I'm not some terrified CI. We trade or you go fuck yourself."

"I'm a cop, ‎" ‏she said. "You can't talk to me like that. I'll come over and jack your ass up," she insisted.

"‏Well then you might want to expect a visit from internal affairs about ten minutes later." I hung up on her.

Two minutes later the phone rang. "You can't prove anything," she said.

"‏Want to listen to my amateur recordings? They aren't RCA quality, but you can recognize the voices."

"You recorded me‎?"

"I might have been born yesterday bitch, ‎ ‏but it was early in the morning."

"Alright, ‎ ‏what do you want to know?" she asked

"I want the full background on Reverend Jason Archer.‎ ‏I want to know what his scam is."

"That could take a while.‎"

"Nothing I learned Saturday night requires immediate action, ‎" ‏I suggested. We left it at that.

Lucas had taken the time to get the work for the afternoon scheduled. We served papers most of the afternoon. After we finished all the court orders we traveled to the house of one Tyrone Marshall. We didn't want to see Tyrone. We wanted to see Tyrone's girl friend. Tyrone's girlfriend was a fellow named Everette. Everette aka Eve was known to write checks without any money in the bank. Most of the time he/she caught the kite before it fell to the ground. He/she had missed a few kites three months before. She was out on bail thanks to a bondsman in Tryon. He called us earlier that Monday morning with the information download.

"‏Tyrone Marshall, my name is Maxine Stone. I'm looking for your friend Everette Thomas." I really should have done the delivery scam but I doubted that it would work. Mostly because I felt like a confrontation. I could never have pulled off the subdued delivery person that day.

"‏I ain't seen him," was the reply from Tyrone.

"‏Then you won't mind, if I come in and look around?"

"You got a warrant‎?"

"I don't need a warrant hon, ‎" ‏I said handing him a copy of the Supreme Court ruling. The one that authorized a bondsmen's agents to break and enter to take a fleeing fugitive into custody.

"‏Eve ain't here," he said.

"‏Tyrone, you seem like a nice enough guy. Everette has been declared a fugitive by the court. Aiding a fugitive is a criminal offense. You could well be doing his time, if you are indeed hiding him. So do you want to rethink that?" I gave him a couple of minutes to think. "Will your boss hold your job for a month, while you are at the farm?"

"Come on in, ‎" ‏he finally said.

I put the plastic wire tie on Eve's hands. Since Everette was dressed as a woman, Lucas and I called him Eve. It just made things easier.

It was after seven when we got through getting Everette into the county lockup. Like using the bathroom, we had to get the paper work done before we were finished with the job. I hadn't had dinner, so I was short tempered by the time we got to the parking lot.