FEEDBACK: It’s a good thing p.phair@comcast.net
by
phair
The only thing that surprised Deni about the slapping sound was the absence of pain which followed it. When the meaty part of another person’s hand connects solidly with the usually soft skin of a face, it hurts. But, Deni felt no ill effect from the blows she could clearly hear. In fact, she didn’t feel the blows at all as she struggled back to consciousness.
“Hope that asshole didn’t fracture my spine with his sucker punch. Cheap shot, Eugene, even for you,” Deni thought as she shook her head to rattle her senses back to work.
Deni was still naked but now duct taped to a chair. Next to her was an equally naked and duct taped Sawyer. Directly in front of Sawyer, Eugene stood in a bright white button up, dress shirt with the cuffs folded back twice. Still, blood stains had managed to mare the sleeves. Deni squinted a little and saw blotches of blood on his expensively tailored black slacks.
The thought sprang up on it’s own in Deni’s mind, “Mortician look.”
“Please, stop hitting me,” Sawyer choked on her tears.
Eugene chuckled and slapped her again. “Sure thing, babe. As soon as you tell me where my money is, I’ll stop smacking you! Now where the fuck is my money!”
Eugene accentuated the last word by backhanding Sawyer. Her head snapped to the left sending a splash of blood arcing through the air. Several warm droplets rained on Deni’s cheek.
“Knock it off, tough guy,” Deni croaked. “I’ll tell you where your cash is.”
“Oh, wife number one rejoins our family reunion. Did you have a nice nap, sweetheart?” Eugene crooned.
“Delightful. Thanks for tucking me in.” Deni sneered a little, “Now, how ‘bout untying me. I’ll tell you where your cash is and be on my way. You and the missus can sort our your marital issues on your own. Don’t need a third wheel getting in the way of true love and all.”
“Shut the fuck up!” Eugene nearly growled. “If you’re not going to tell me where my cash is then I don’t want to hear from you.”
“Sawyer transferred the money into my account with Citi. It’s under the name Agnes Moorehead. The account number is in my pant’s pocket,” Deni nodded to the clothes still piled on the floor. “Maybe you could let us get dressed before you do your banking.”
Eugene’s shoulders sagged. “As you can see, Sawyer, I didn’t marry Deni for her mind. It was her kick ass body that got me to the alter. That and she fucked like a mule in heat. But, she is one of the dumber cunts I’ve ever screwed.”
Deni stared drop jawed at Sawyer. Sawyer seemed almost as disappointed as Eugene.
“I didn’t call my bank. I called Eugene. He was at the gallery all along. Not out of the country. We heard about your untimely drowning before the news stations did. Eugene figured you were making a run for it.” Sawyer explained patiently. “You took me for some kind of bumpkin. I’m not. I knew who you where all along. We just didn’t think you’d be dumb enough to walk in the back door. Thought you’d be smarter than letting yourself get cornered. Pretty stupid coming here, Deni.”
Deni spat back, “Stupid? You think I’m stupid? Well, I’m not the one limping around with nine toes, am I?”
“Oh don’t start bragging yet, I can remedy your extra toe situation anytime I want,” Eugene made the claim like a promise.
“Fuck you!”
“No thanks. Been there, screwed your twat twice too many times. Besides, from the look of things when I walked in, you seem to have gone over to the other team,” Eugene smirked.
“Desperate times makes for desperate measures.” Deni grinned, “And, your wife fucks like a whore. Her pussy was running like a facet. Made she’s been loving her vibrator more than your stubby little dick stick.”
The subsequent backhand was well earned, Deni decided as her vision clouded with stars. Her eardrum had definitely ruptured and her jaw just might have cracked but the pain was worth it. Even Eugene’s foul breath huffing in her face when he wrapped his fingers around her throat didn’t wipe the grin from her lips.
“Did I hit a nerve?” Deni choked around his strangle hold.
Eugene snarled and nearly spit his reply. “You always had a big fucking mouth. Now what did you do with my money? Quit fooling around and tell me or I’ll get my power drill and start ventilating your kneecaps.”
“Sweet talker,” Deni hissed.
“Wrong answer,” Eugene grudging released his hold. “I’ll be right back. You two wait right here.”
Eugene ran a shaky hand through his salt and pepper hair. He took a deep breath before walking away from the bound women. He disappeared into the kitchen and the distinctive sounds of trudging down a flight of wooden steps filled the silence.
“He’s not bluffing. He’s going to really hurt us. Tell him where the money is before he cripples you,” Sawyer said in a low voice.
Deni laughed causing her companion to hush her. “Nice try. Good cop, bad cop, and stupid criminal. Only one problem with your fake out; I don’t know what you did with the money, Sawyer. So, you better tell him. How far do you think he’ll work me over before he realizes it was you who diverted the cash?”
“I did no such thing!” Sawyer strained against the heavy tape holding her to the chair. “The money should still be in the shared GMT account but it’s not. What did you do? You sent it some place else. It could only have been you. Where’d you send it? Tell him before he does something I’ll regret.”
Heavy foot falls sounded from the basement stairs. A soft whistle rose with Eugene’s ascent.
“He certainly is a man who enjoys his work,” Deni noted grimly.
“You’re an asshole, you know that? A real asshole,” Sawyer countered and settled back into her chair.
Eugene reentered the room. He stopped at the doorway and observed his prisoners for a moment. With a light press, the cordless drill in his hand buzzed to life.
“Okay, one potato, two potato who goes first?” Eugene asked with a broad smile.
Sawyer let out a soft sob. “Please, baby, I don’t know what she did. Why would I call you if I hid the money? It doesn’t make sense for me to play games with you. I’ve got too much to lose,”
“If you mean my idiot son then no worries there. I never planned on taking him with me when I moved onward to bigger and better things. Keep him. He likes you better than me anyway. He’s always trying to bite me,” Eugene noted as he examined an old scar on his hand.
“I knew he was a good kid,” Deni interjected. “He’s smart too. Smart enough to realize what a complete tool you are.”
“I guess that means Deni goes first because she so chatty,” Eugene strode across the room with purpose. “Here are the rules. Once I start drilling, I won’t stop until I hit bone. Even if you tell me who killed Kennedy, I’ll keep going until I make a nice little dimple in the bone. So, it would be best if you tell me what I want before the drill starts. Otherwise, you got to wait for a break in the action.” Eugene clarified, “Of course, you might pass out but I have smelling salts and ice and if push comes to shove I can keep the interrogation going the rest of the day and night and most of tomorrow.”
Deni glared at him but said nothing.
“Have it your way,” Eugene began to hum as he knelt at Deni’s feet. “Let’s start with that big toe you were bragging about.”
“Eugene, she’s not going to talk. Let’s try to bargain with her and cut our loses,” Sawyer said with a hint of panic entering her tone. “Come on, you tied this too tight. Cut me free and let’s just talk about it.”
Eugene glanced up at Sawyer and tisked. “And here I thought Deni was the dope. Smartin’ up, Sawyer. You’re next. I don’t buy for one minute you being an innocent bystander. If she got at that much money then you broke with the script and used the wrong account. Five point eight million, my ass! You were suppose to use the New Hampshire bank and keep the cap down to five hundred thousand. I would’ve let her walk with that much. That would have been a bargain.”
“Wait, wait, we only moved two point five not five point eight,” Deni tried to clarify.
“See,” Eugene said with a happy smirk, “it had to be you. Deni’s too stupid to even figure out how much she stole.”
The drill buzzed to life. The pain was instantaneous. Deni screaming like a school girl. She was taped too tightly to the chair to do anything else. The drill sent bits of toe nail and skin and blood skyward. It easily hit the bone and passed through cleanly to the hard wood beneath.
“Son of a bitch!” Eugene exclaimed. “Now I’m gonna have to re-sand the damn floor.”
Deni was gasping for breath. Tears poured form her eyes. She felt her stomach flip and knot before flipping again.
“I’m gonna puke.”
“Who cares?” Eugene said as he stood. “Now, where is my money?” The only reply was Deni’s sobs. “Okay, kneecap time.”
“Tell him where you put it, Sawyer!” Deni managed to shout. “It hurts like a bastard. You’ll wish he only hacked your toe off. So, tell him!”
“This is fuckin’ ridiculous! I don’t have a friggin’ clue what she did with the money. Eugene, for Christ’s sakes, what are you gonna do? Kill her?”
He paused and thought about the question. “First, I’ll cripple her. Then, I’ll cripple you. Then, I’ll kill you both.”
“Jesus! Tell him where the money is!” Sawyer screamed as she struggled against the duct tape.
Deni heard the urgency. “You really don’t know, do you?”
Sawyer shook her head.
“Seriously?”
Sawyer shook her head.
“Something’s wrong, Eugene. I mean something’s really wrong ‘cause I don’t know where the money went and Sawyer doesn’t either,” Deni tried to calmly explain. “Who else could be involved? Any ideas?”
Eugene fingered the drill again. “Don’t try to con me. There’s nobody else. Just me and my bitches.”
“And me,” the voice behind them startled everybody but Sawyer.
“It’s about fucking time,” Sawyer slumped in her chair.
Officer Catley was casually dressed in jeans and a pull over sweater. She strolled across the room with a gun pointed directly at Eugene. A slow smile spread across her face.
“Sorry for the delay, babe. The staties had lots of questions about the drowned prisoner. Apparently, her body will never be recovered with what I saw happen to it. Grisly end, getting hacked up in the mill’s hydro wheel. They figure the bigger chunks of her got sucked down the drainage pipe. Of course, the smaller bits will get eaten by fish or algae or some sort of friggin’ sea creatures in the cesspool of a water treatment plant,” Catley made a sour face. “Now Eugene, eject the power pack from the drill and toss it over toward the fireplace.”
Eugene complied before asking, “I’m gonna guess this is the part where one of them gets untied but I don’t know which one you’re working with. So, who’s the brains of the operation?”
“She’s right,” Sawyer hummed. “You are a tool. You two kind of deserve each other, you know that? But, Deni does fuck like a mule in heat. I’ll give her that. Eugene, you should have paid more attention to her moves. Maybe I wouldn’t have gotten bored with you.”
“Oh fuckin’ no way!” Deni exclaimed. “You, you set this up? What the fuck for? You got more money than you need. You got the kid. You got the guy. What more do you want?”
Sawyer waited for Eugene to sliced through the tape freeing her shoulders and left hand. She grabbed the knife from him and easily released her right hand. Leaning forward, she cut her ankles loosed with a sigh of relief.
“That’s better. Now, what were you asking? Why? Oh yes, you two would need an explanation because you’d never figure things out on your own. Okay, nobody ever has enough money. Especially, rich people. So, five point eight million was really tempting. And, Eugene had grown tiresome but a divorce would cost me money, time and, maybe, Charlie. He’s too much to risk to chance.”
“Please tell me you really care about Charlie and he’s not part of the con,” Deni nearly begged.
“I do care about Charlie. No con there. He’s my son.” Sawyer assured. “So, I did some checking around and found Officer Catley here. She was kind enough to make nice with you and help you plot your escape.”
“Wasn’t easy,” Catley snorted. “You are thick as a brick, Tyler. I thought I’d have to draw you a diagram. Wait, I did draw you a diagram. You thought you tricked me into helping you when I was the one playing you. Dope!”
Deni frowned in dismay. “I thought we had something going. Thought we were gonna take off together with some cash.”
“Oh, we’re gonna take off and I’m gonna get some cash but there ain’t no together, bitch. As far as cash, better luck next time,” Catley taunted.
Sawyer got up and limped over to her clothes. “Don’t be stupid, Sheryl. I’m giving each of them a little cash for a stake. Get them out of my hair and keep them out of my hair. Five hundred thousand each should be good enough to send you on your way, don’t you think?”
“Babe,” Eugene started to speak.
“Don’t babe me,” Sawyer growled and tugged on her sweat pant despite the pain in her foot. “This is the cover story. No editing. Raphael is flying off to Paris tonight. He’ll never return. I’ll alert the state department but the trail will grow cold. His lover, Sheryl, will remain in Europe searching for him but, sadly, he’ll never be found. Will Sheryl ever return to the United States?” Sawyer asked Catley knowingly.
“No, she won’t,” Catley grinned. “She’s going to Cape Verde. No extradition in Cape Verde.”
“Nice,” Sawyer observed. “Eugene, you and Deni need new identities. There’s a guy’s number programmed into your cell under the name Elizabeth Montgomery.”
“Hey, that’s funny,” Deni chuckled. “Somebody want to cut me loose now.”
Sawyer nodded to Eugene. He carefully picked up the knife and sliced the duct tape open to free Deni.
“So, we just walk away now?” Deni asked.
“Get dressed then limp away. The cash is in two gym bags in the trunk of Eugene’s car. Sheryl, your stuff is in my MG. Key’s in the ignition. You need to get to the airport. So go now.”
“Just like that,” Eugene sounded disappointed.
“Yes,” Sawyer said and headed for the stairs. “In twenty minutes the police will be here because of my silent alarm. They’ll find me upstairs passed out from the pain of my assault at the hands of three unknown intruders. I think they stole my sports car or maybe my husband’s Mercedes. I’m a bit delirious so they’ll put out an APB for both, I’m sure.” Sawyer paused at the foot of the stairs. “I suggest you get moving if you don’t want to get arrested. I have a back up plan if any of you get caught.”
Sawyer watched her three guests spring into action to leave her home.
When Deni pushed Sawyer’s bedroom door open five nights later, she was not surprised to be staring down the barrel of a Magnum. She kept her hands up with her palm open. Sawyer was on the bed with her bandaged foot elevated on a pillow. Even though her face seemed drawn with fatigue and pain, she was steady with the gun’s aim.
“Why would you come back?” Sawyer sounded weary.
“Couldn’t figure out what you needed me for. You could have done the same scam easier without me. Why’d you trick me into coming here?” Deni stopped walking when she reached the foot of the bed.
Sawyer lowered her weapon before answering. “Two reasons. First, you knew Eugene a lot longer than me. I wanted to see if you’d turn up any other bank accounts. You did, by the way. I only found eight. Nice work. You even did better coming up with a couple of his passwords. Again, nice work.”
Deni nodded. “What’s the second reason?”
“I wanted to meet Charlie’s mom. I wanted to make sure I was the better option for him than his birth parents.”
“Are you?”
“I think I am,” Sawyer said. “You love him but I don’t know if that’s enough.”
“You talking about money?”
Sawyer shook her head. “No, I’m talking about courage, bravery, responsibility, morality…”
“Morality? You just robbed a guy.”
“In a manner of speaking, yes,” Sawyer shrugged. “But, that guy made the money robbing other people. Me included. I’m not saying what I did was good but it was better than what you and Eugene were doing.”
“Sounds like you’re rationalizing,” Deni said.
“I am,” Sawyer readily agreed.
“So, what now?”
Sawyer answered, “I already told you what to do; leave.”
Deni nodded but did not move. “What if I want to stay?”
“You think that’s an option?” Sawyer snorted.
“No,” Deni eased onto the bed but kept her hands up, “I’m hoping it might be an option but I don’t know for sure.”
Sawyer chuckled. “How’s your foot?”
“I got orthopedic shoes. It feels pretty good in them. Of course, the shot of Novocain I gave myself an hour again may have a roll in my limited pain at the moment.” Deni crawled up the length of the bed to lay next to Sawyer. “I also got peroxide to dye my hair tomorrow. And, contacts to change my eye color.”
“How ‘bout ID? You got any ID?” Sawyer asked as she leaned over and put the gun back on the nightstand.
Deni pulled a wallet form her back pocket and removed a neatly folded birth certificate. “Meet Clara Peller of the Brooklyn Pellers. Brooklyn, Iowa that is. I’ve had the most dreadful luck of late with husbands. I decided I should spend time with my only living realative; my cousin, Sawyer Thayer-Roman. She’s just getting over husband of her own.”
“You don’t say,” Sawyer chuckled.
“Dreadful man. Ran out on her with some slag guard from the penal system.”
“What a lowlife,” Sawyer actually laughed and settled back into the soft pillows. “Is Clara staying long?”
Deni snuggled closer to Sawyer and was rewarded with the woman curling into her embrace. “Well, it was going to be a short visit. Six or seven months at the most but my poor abandoned cousin has a child and needs my support. Emotional and monitary, of course. I’ve recently come into a bit of money.”
“Have you?” Sawyer giggled and began to brush light kisses along Deni’s throat. “It wouldn’t by chance be about five hundred thousand dollars, would it?”
Deni shook her head. “Oh no. Twice that amount. Some careless man took the wrong bag out of my trunk at the airport.”
“Aren’t you afraid he’ll come looking for his bag,” Sawyer asked with a small amount of concern.
“No, not really. I saw him get on his flight to Paris with a one way ticket and not a dollar in his wallet. Oops, I mean my wallet now. Poor man doesn’t even have his passport. He’s going to have his hands full when they open his suitcase at customs and find all that pot stashed in his socks and he won’t be able to tell them who he’s suppose to be or where he’s suppose to be from He was going to study his documents on the plane.” Deni stopped long enough to place a warm kiss on Sawyer’s lips. “Nope, I think we’ve seen the last of Raphael and his evil twin Eugene.”
Sawyer grinned and whispered. “Well, I guess this means you’re not so dumb after all but then again, it doesn’t actually matter. I’m not really interested in your brains tonight.”
Deni reach between them and fingered Sawyer’s pussy. “Oh, so you don’t want me for my mind either.”
“Definitely not,” Sawyer moaned when Deni’s long fingers reached inside her. “Now shut up and pick it up from where you were just before you got popped in the mouth.”
“This is such a better plan. I guess there really was no need to kill Eugene after all.”
