A Shadow of Scarlet (Book #3)

"Paul. Time to call your friends. The party is at Andrea's. We need to just set the date."

Paul smiled again. "I'm in."

An all male chorus echoed those words.

They all piled back into the cars. Karen got into the limo again and immediately began to repair her tattered appearance. To the relief of whoever had sat on the floor during Karen's random cruising spree. Once everyone was ready, they headed back to The Pit. They still needed to brief Howell and coordinate with the cops.

Eighteen

Wolfe sat with Callie and Fox at the far end of the conference room table. They were at the police station, having missed Detective Howell at The Pit while Karen had driven all over town. Wolfe had called and explained that they'd been delayed, agreeing to come to the station for the discussion instead.

Now, Karen and Andrea sat at the other end of the table near the Police Detective outlining what they knew about the theft and the drug dealing. They showed him the information from the file folder Wolfe had brought with her when they picked her up at the office.

They'd been there two hours already. Howell had someone he hadn't introduced to them taking notes. He'd photocopied the financial information they'd provided, as well as the phoney deed and the picture of Randy. There were notes about what T Rose had seen and heard too.

"So, the money was stolen to give them the working capital to buy drugs. They are using one of the businesses we manage as a place to distribute those drugs."

"Drugs and embezzlement. Not much of a crime." Howell leaned back in his chair.

"Leon Hartley was an employee of GreenWood. He was murdered. By these same people."

"You can prove that?"

"No, not yet. However, we strongly suspect it to be true. By the things that have been said and done by those who steal from us."

"Not enough, I, we, need proof.'

"I can get you that proof." Callie spoke up. "They think they know me. They know I'm not a cop. They will talk to me, deal with me. I can set it up. I can set them up."

Howell looked at Callie carefully. She smiled back neutrally. She knew who had really discovered who the dead guy, Leon, was. She had. With all their resources, the police hadn't been able to uncover much. In less than twenty four hours, she'd found out more than they had in weeks.

She'd tracked down someone who had known where to go to get information. From there, she had found out Leon's name and how his friends had been. She was the one who put it all together while the cops fumbled and stumbled.

Of course she'd told them what she'd learned. She'd had to for her own sake. But, would they resent her being able to do what they could not?

"Let me bring in my Captain. He may have some suggestions."

Howell's Captain had come in wiping his mouth. He was trailed by two others.

"Sorry, I was just starting to have some dinner. A sandwich."

Karen looked at him in surprise.

"Most of us don't have time to take a break to eat. We snatch what we can, when we can. It's the nature of the job." Howell told them with a shrug. "Lousy food, too much coffee - usually horrible, stress. It's what fills up our day. Every day.

"Anyway, this is my Senior Captain, Captain Rhines. These two are Lieutenants Peters and Connor. We all work in the Homicide Division. Sirs, this is Mrs. Harper, Andrea, Maria and Callie." Howell introduced them to the newcomers. He left out Fox, who was huddling behind Callie trying to be invisible.

Wolfe looked at Howell. Callie saw a small frown begin to form and disappear before it got started. Had she not known Maria as well as she did now, she'd have never seen it.

Callie looked around the room counting noses. She pulled out her phone.

"Paul? Can you bring us dinner for ten? Finger foods if possible but not fast food? Something edible and hot? Nutritious. For a working conference with a bunch of guys? And, just one? Ok, thanks."

Shoving her phone into her bag, she looked up. Howell and the other cops were staring at her.

"What?" Callie looked at Karen in confusion. "Did I miss something?"

Karen smiled back at her. "No. They just do not know you. Yet. If they are lucky, they will learn."

"And, if we're not lucky?" One of the lieutenants asked suspiciously.

Karen shrugged dismissively. "Then you are not."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

No one answered him. With a small cough, Rhines brought everyone's attention back to the discussion. He needed to be brought up to where they were.

They didn't get far before there was a knock at the door. It opened and a uniformed officer stuck his head inside.

"Excuse me Captain, there's a caterer here. Says he has a delivery for you."

"Oh good, the food's here already." Callie jumped up and began to make space on the table.

The door opened and a file of people entered bearing trays of food. They set up folding stands to hold the trays. There were china plates and cups and silver eating utensils too. Karen thanked them for coming so quickly.

"You're welcome Ma'am." One of the caterers told her as she set chargers, underplates, in front of everyone.

"Tea?" The suspicious lieutenant, Peters, asked incredulously as another of the caterers set a cup and saucer in front of him while a third poured steaming hot tea into it.

"Tea." Wolfe told him calmly as she sipped from her own cup. "It is the civilized drink the whole world over. It has more caffeine and less acid than coffee. It transports well. Tastes good either hot or cold. And, it doesn't burn into sludge sitting in a pot in the corner."

"Tea." Karen lifted her cup at them.

"So, we're not civilized?" Once again Peters sounded suspicious. With an additional tone of belligerence added in.

"Apparently not."

Karen spoke carelessly as one of the caterers placed a loaded plate in front of her. Lettuce wraps stuffed with roasted beef, onions, peppers, and a spicy aioli. Vegetarian spring rolls, sushi rolls, fried ravioli and cheese sticks filled the plate. There were tiny cups with dipping sauces too. It smelled and looked wonderful. Finger food indeed. She resolved to eat hers with her fork anyway.

Paul, wearing a white smock that matched the caterers, set a tiny gold and cream colored cardboard box next to Karen's plate.

Karen looked up at him.

"Just one. Miss Callie says only one. For dessert."

Callie nodded. "I'm sorry. For yelling at you."

"So, is this a bribe?" Karen pointed at the box. Wolfe saw the humorous glint in her eyes.

"Of course!" Callie responded instantly. "Do you accept?"

"Of course. Though it is a rather skimpy bribe." Karen opened the box. Inside was one solitary truffle nestled in silver colored paper. Karen looked at her loaded plate, then back to the box. Decisions, decisions. Oh the hell with it!

Karen ate the truffle in tiny bites closing her eyes in pleasure. Later, Callie saw Paul slip her another box. Callie didn't say anything, shifting her gaze studiously to Wolfe's. Wolfe smiled back at her. She'd seen it too. Karen hid the new box under a napkin.

As they all ate, Howell and the others digging in hungrily, they continued their discussion. Working out the details of how to record what was said, who would be where, backup support and logistics.

"One last thing. It will be, weird, I guess you can call it. In order for this to be believable, the scene must be normal looking. It must sound normal. It must be normal. Or they will suspect something." Wolfe told them carefully.

"So?" Rhines asked.

"The business is not what you, the police, would consider normal for a nightclub. It is not a nightclub. What goes on inside, unless you are already aware of this, is sex. Sex between consenting adults in a private club setting."

"So it's a strip joint. Big deal." Peters was dismissive.

"It is not a strip club. It is a sex club. The sights and sounds and smell can be a distraction if you are not aware that it will be there. You will need to brief and select men who will not be offended by what they see. Men who will not divert from the plan to chase shadows of offenses not being committed except in their own minds.

"It will be loud. There will be screaming and other things going on. The sight and smell of sex will be everywhere. There will be what looks like violence, but in reality is consensual role play. Your men will not be able to avoid being exposed to it. It will have an impact upon them. They must not let it distract them."

Howell looked at Wolfe. "Maria?" He asked incredulously. "You're a part of this?"

"GreenWood manages various business enterprises. What those businesses do is irrelevant to the management of those businesses. We are not involved in the day to day operations. We only manage them from a financial and security perspective." Karen spoke before Wolfe could respond.

"One does not need to play golf to manage a golf club. Nor is playing golf essential to understanding how to manage a golf club. What is essential, is to understand that the needs of the business come before personal preferences. You personally may not like golf. You may think golf is a waste of time and money. That doesn't mean you can't manage a golf club to profitability. As long as you can put your personal preferences aside that is, to follow established business principles and practices. This is the same."

"Maria?" Howell asked again.

"It is what we do. We do it very well regardless of the type of business being managed. I'm sorry if that information distresses you Steven." Wolfe looked directly at Howell.

Howell was shocked at learning that the beautiful brunette sitting calmly at the table with him was somehow involved in the dirty underside of the sex business. It wasn't like her. Not the Maria Wolfe he thought he'd known. Was it?

"Maria does not partake of any of the things that this particular business does." Karen told him. "She is not a player. Nor am I. We only manage their business needs. That is all."

"It's true. GreenWood manages our financial and business funding needs. They model their actions on our business goals. Before we hired them to do that, we were barely making ends meet. Since then, we turn a profit each year. It's small but it's a profit. Even after paying their management commission we still make a profit. It's an arrangement that works for us and our investment partners." Andrea told everyone at the table.

"GreenWood is a very smart business management and investment company. They hire only the best of the available talent pool. We hired them for that expertise. They are the best. We needed the best. We got it. From them."

"Still, hookers and drugs. What do you expect from hookers and drugs." Peters was stubborn.

"Lieutenant, I am not ashamed of what my company does, or what I do for a living. I also do not appreciate you inferring that I am a whore." Andrea's voice was cold. "If you cannot refrain, then I request that you be excused from further involvement."

"I agree." Karen told Rhines. "He is a liability because he cannot set his own prejudices aside for the good of all."

"He's one of the best officers I have." Rhines began.

"I do not care. If he is not excluded, then we will stop now. We will take care of the problem internally. Without law enforcement."

"Can you? Take care of it internally, I mean?" Howell looked at Wolfe.

Wolfe looked at Karen who shrugged.

"I can fire the man whom I believe has committed a crime against my company. I can fire those who have assisted him. I can do those things easily. Which solves the company's problem.

"The question is whether I do that and let the perpetrators go free to hurt someone else. Or, would you prefer to arrest the man responsible for the murder of Leon Hartley? Lieutenant Peters, seemingly, would have us do neither. Instead he'd rather think us prostitutes and not worthy of his help."

"I think that's enough of that sort of thing. We don't need to get into calling each other nasty names. Peters, I don't know if you can be objective enough for this operation. I do think it would be better if you stand down on this one. Sorry." Rhines was apologetic.

After Peters left the conference room, without even saying thanks for the food, and the caterers had cleaned up the remains of the dirty dishes and leftovers, they continued with their planning session. Rhines would select the men he felt were necessary. They would install the recording equipment the next day. Early enough that no one would notice them working on it.

Callie told them they had to be done before the guys who usually loitered outside The Pit showed up. Rhines agreed with her assessment. He went on to detail that the men selected would be briefed and shown the location well before then. It was a rush operation, but they knew they needed to move fast. To catch a murderer.

When things finally wrapped up, Howell took Callie aside.

"Thank you for ordering the food. It was very good, even the tea."

Callie looked at him.

"It was for Maria. She didn't like the thought of you being hungry and eating food that is bad for you."

"Did she say that? I didn't hear her mention anything."

"She didn't have to. I know her well enough I knew what she was thinking."

"Callie." Karen interrupted them. "Time to go."

"Later." Callie told Howell as she followed Karen from the room. Wolfe was the last to leave, staying until after Fox left to go home with her mother. Wolfe waited a beat, her face calm and smooth as she looked at Howell. Blinking once, she turned to follow everyone else. She did not say goodbye. Her walk as she moved away was graceful. She did not look back. She never would. For any reason.

The ride to Karen's was quiet. Everyone was tired and talked out. Callie escorted Karen up to her condo and told her goodnight. Mitchell thanked her for taking care of Karen. He'd been doing that ever since he'd kissed her that one time. Karen was amused by the whole thing.

In the car again to go home with Wolfe, Callie discovered Karen had left the truffle box behind. It was unopened. She held it out in a silent question. Wolfe shrugged.

"You told her just one. She listens. You know she listens. Especially to you."

"Huh."

Callie slid over to sit next to Wolfe. She held out her hand and Wolfe placed her fingers in Callie's palm. Callie rested her head on Wolfe's shoulder.

"Tell me about him. Howell."

Wolfe remembered the hot dusty days of her youth. The school just outside the reservation where she'd been raised after her mother had died giving birth to her and her father drank himself to death shortly afterward. Remembering her aunt, who never showed her that she was loved or wanted. The aloofness that was always apparent from her aunt and the others on the reservation because she was not one of them. Her brown hair, pale skin color and features were too white. She was not Indian enough regardless of her genetic heritage. Her appearance meant more to them than truth.

She also remembered the general overall shabbiness of everything. The homes, dirt roads and the dust. Always the dust. It made her hair gritty. Stung her eyes. Got into her mouth until she learned to always keep her mouth closed. Of all the things she remembered, she hated the dust the most. That and the fact they shunned her because of their own lack of understanding and acceptance. It made her angry. She'd lashed out at all of them before finally leaving at seventeen. She had never returned. She never would. It was a promise she'd made to herself.

"Steven and I knew each other. A long time ago. We went to the same school. He was bashful and I wasn't very pretty." Wolfe omitted all the rest. It was long ago in a different place. A different time. She'd been a different person then.

Callie snorted at Wolfe's denial.

"It's true. Acne will do horrible things to your appearance. It's worse when you are plain looking. Be thankful you suffer from neither condition.

"Go on." Callie ignored the attempt at diversion. It wasn't true anyway. Maria was beautiful.

"Steven always watched me. I thought it was because he was repulsed by the way I looked so I ignored him. Often quite rudely."

"And?"

"I grew up. We both did. We went separate ways as classmates often do. I haven't seen or heard from him in many years. It was a surprise to see him after the attack on Karen."

"And now?"

"I am happy he found a career for himself. He deserves to be happy. We all do."

"Yes we do." Callie stroked Wolfe's arm. "All of us."

Nineteen

Callie walked into The Pit again. She was met by Andrea and her new partner at the door. They asked her the same questions as the last time. Callie answered that she was only there to watch. They gave her a red wristband to wear and the same instruction that if she wanted to join in, she could always take off the wristband. Callie had no intention of doing that. Ever. Ewww.

It was still early. The place wasn't that busy yet. Thankfully for Callie's ears and nose. There were still some players there however. A couple of women were in the process of being used by several men. At the same time. Callie resolutely looked elsewhere.

Randy was near the stairway up to the office. Callie walked over to him.

"Hey sweety. Long time no see."

Callie skipped the small talk to get right to the point. "I hear you're the new man to talk to these days."

"Really? About what?"

"About getting some good stuff. My supplier is out, I need some."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Randy was evasive.

"Don't give me that line. I know you. I know you can get it. You know me. You know I'm for real."

"Ok, ok. Sorry. I just gotta be careful. You know?"

"I know. Just get me some stuff."

"Like what? I can get some good weed. That what you want?"

Callie just looked at Randy.

"What?"

"I need some meth. Not cut with crap either. I got one in my stable who needs it. He's got the shakes already."

"Ok. I can get some of that. It might take awhile."

"How long? He needs it soon. Or I'm going to have problems. I don't like problems."

"An hour? I can get a quarter gram in an hour."

"That's like not even one hit."

"So?"

"So, I'm not coming down here every day to get another present from you. Too risky."

"Ok, ok. How about I get you something larger? Say five grams? That's two weeks worth if you're careful."

Callie pretended to think about it.

"I can do that. How long?"

"An hour. I gotta go to my supplier to get it."

"I really don't want to hang around this hole for an hour waiting for you. Can you get him to come here instead? It'd be faster."

"I dunno. He's a pretty busy guy."

"So am I. So are you. You wanna make money or play games?" Callie dug a wad of cash out of her pocket, flipping it open before stuffing in back in again.

"Ok, ok. Lemme give him a call."

"Do that." Callie waited.

"What?" Randy looked at Callie expectantly.

"Are you gonna call him or not?"

"Not with you here!"

"I'm not going anywhere. This place sucks and I want outta here. So, either call your guy now, or I'm history. I'm about done with this anyway. Too much time and effort for zero return."

"Ok, ok. Just wait a sec." Randy turned away to dig out his phone. He began to tap a number into it, occasionally looking over his shoulder at Callie.

"Bro! I got this chick here who's looking to score. No, no. I know her. She's cool. Been here before.

"Yeah. Says she wants five grams of meth. Yeah, cash. Wants it now or no deal. She's impatient, ya know?

"Listen man, I told you, I know her. She's legit. Ok. I'll tell her. She should wait that long."