“Sweetheart, when your place was tossed, it was tossed. But there was special attention paid to the mattresses. They were decimated, all the beds were.”
Oh God.
He was right. They were.
“Has this Otis guy been in your space at work? Giving you extra attention? Giving you any attention at all?” Mitch asked and I shook my head.
“No,” I added my negative answer verbally. “He doesn’t come to the showroom. Mr. Pierson doesn’t let him. He turns off the customers because he’s creepy.”
And he was.
Totally creepy.
Probably even creepier to two little kids.
God, how was this happening?
Mitch told me.
“He’s into something. He hid something in the mattresses. Made a mistake, lost it, whatever it was. Yours got delivered, he thought it was in them and he came looking for it. It either was or it wasn’t. My guess is it wasn’t seeing as he started with the mattresses, thought you found it and moved through the house to try to find where you hid it. If he hasn’t been in your space, he’s probably since found it. Would he have access to your home address either in employee databases or deliver records?”
“Yes,” I answered. “Not employee databases but he’s responsible for getting the product onto the trucks for delivery. He has access to all information pertaining to deliveries.”
“Shit, Jesus, f**k, I shoulda showed you that sketch,” Mitch muttered, looking back at the sketch.
I pressed my hand into his chest again and got his eyes back. “You couldn’t know. I didn’t know anything that was going down with Bill. How could you know this had any connection with where I worked? That’s crazy.”
“I should have shown it to you,” he kind of repeated.
“Mitch, I told you I didn’t know anything about Bill and his life but even if I didn’t tell you, you knew when you walked in his house with Bud, Billie and me. I was freaked and you notice everything. You couldn’t know I’d know who was visiting. It’s a one in a million connection.”
“Mara, honey, you dot all the i’s, you cross all the t’s. It’s basic police work. I should…have… shown you.”
His voice was growly and not in a good way so I decided to reply quietly, “Okay.”
“His last name is Pierson?” Mitch asked instantly and I nodded. “How long’s he been workin’ there?”
“Not as long as me. Three years. He moved to Denver from Kansas City, I think. Mr. Pierson helped him out, gave him a job. I don’t know why he moved. I just know that he didn’t have any marketable skills so Mr. Pierson took the hit of taking him on for the family.”
“Outside of him being creepy, you feel any bad vibes from this guy, see any bad guys hangin’ around him, see him actin’ strange, cagey, wrong?”
“No about the bad guys but he’s creepy because he’s always acting strange and cagey. I didn’t get bad vibes other than the sense that he’s clearly the f**k up of the family but I thought he was just kind of an idiot. Saying that, though, a while ago, he over-ordered a bunch of Spring Deluxes. Like, a bunch. Mr. Pierson was not pleased. They’re our highest end model. We don’t move a lot of them so it was more stupid than normal, him over-ordering Spring Deluxe. I could see him over-ordering the Dream Weaver, even the Slumber Excelsior, we move loads of those. The Spring Deluxe…?” I trailed off and shook my head.
Mitch gave me a half-smile and then noted, “You know, that doesn’t mean shit to me.”
“What I’m saying is, we never sell a lot of Spring Deluxe so that’s a huge f**k up. Even on sale, they’re hard to move. The others, on sale, they’re awesome bargains and affordable for a lot of people. So if you’re going to over-order something, it would never be the Spring Deluxe.” Mitch stared at me and I finished on a mutter, “Just trust me. You know mattresses, you know what I’m talking about.”
“Right, baby, how ‘bout I just trust you. I’ll also look into this Otis Pierson. I’ll also be sendin’ someone in to have a closer look at him and keep an eye on him. And I’ll also be makin’ certain my woman does not get within ten feet of him. You have reason to go to the warehouse?”
I shook my head.
Mitch nodded his once. “Good. Don’t change that. He gets near you, you get away from him. You are never around him in a place that’s not public and that includes the break room. You see him in the parking lot, you get in the car, lock the doors, get your car in motion and call me as soon as you can. I’ll talk to Bill.”
Oh great.
That wasn’t going to work and Mitch knew it. We knew this because Mitch already tried it after Billie had her bad night. Bill didn’t give up anything.
Still, I reminded him of this fact.
“I’m not sure that’s going to work, honey.”
“It doesn’t then Slim will talk to him. He doesn’t talk to Slim, Eddie’ll talk to him. Eddie doesn’t work, Hank will. Hank doesn’t work, I’ll call Tack.”
I blinked at a name I didn’t know.
Then I asked, “Tack?”
He nodded. “Tack, that’s his club name. He was born Kane Allen. He’s the president of the Chaos Motorcycle Club and I know he’s got a boy in lockdown right now. Tack gets a word to his boy, his boy corners Bill in lockdown, I get the info I need.”
I stared at him.
Then I whispered, “You know the president of a biker gang?”
His arms gave me a squeeze. “Baby, I’m a cop. I know a lotta people and a lot of the lotta people I know aren’t one hundred percent solid citizens.”
“Um…” I started hesitantly, “does this president of a biker gang perhaps owe you a favor?”
“No,” Mitch answered which meant if he did this, he’d owe the president of a biker gang a favor.
“Is that a good idea?” I asked quietly.
“No, owin’ Tack is not good. But I also got a woman and two kids who sleep on three almost brand new Spring Deluxes. Since she got them delivered, my ass, most nights, has been in her bed and the kids have been off school so my Mom’s been here watchin’ ‘em if you and me aren’t. The windows for another break-in have been rare and he probably knows your boyfriend is a cop so if he’s lookin’ for a chance, he’s probably bein’ cautious. I can’t know if he’s found what he was lookin’ for and I’m not takin’ any chances. Even if he has, I wanna know why he destroyed everything you owned, how he’s connected to your cousin and I want to ascertain you, Bud and Billie are under no threat. And I’ll do what I gotta do to ascertain that. Even owe a favor to the president of a biker gang.”
Oh God.
He was right. They were.
“Has this Otis guy been in your space at work? Giving you extra attention? Giving you any attention at all?” Mitch asked and I shook my head.
“No,” I added my negative answer verbally. “He doesn’t come to the showroom. Mr. Pierson doesn’t let him. He turns off the customers because he’s creepy.”
And he was.
Totally creepy.
Probably even creepier to two little kids.
God, how was this happening?
Mitch told me.
“He’s into something. He hid something in the mattresses. Made a mistake, lost it, whatever it was. Yours got delivered, he thought it was in them and he came looking for it. It either was or it wasn’t. My guess is it wasn’t seeing as he started with the mattresses, thought you found it and moved through the house to try to find where you hid it. If he hasn’t been in your space, he’s probably since found it. Would he have access to your home address either in employee databases or deliver records?”
“Yes,” I answered. “Not employee databases but he’s responsible for getting the product onto the trucks for delivery. He has access to all information pertaining to deliveries.”
“Shit, Jesus, f**k, I shoulda showed you that sketch,” Mitch muttered, looking back at the sketch.
I pressed my hand into his chest again and got his eyes back. “You couldn’t know. I didn’t know anything that was going down with Bill. How could you know this had any connection with where I worked? That’s crazy.”
“I should have shown it to you,” he kind of repeated.
“Mitch, I told you I didn’t know anything about Bill and his life but even if I didn’t tell you, you knew when you walked in his house with Bud, Billie and me. I was freaked and you notice everything. You couldn’t know I’d know who was visiting. It’s a one in a million connection.”
“Mara, honey, you dot all the i’s, you cross all the t’s. It’s basic police work. I should…have… shown you.”
His voice was growly and not in a good way so I decided to reply quietly, “Okay.”
“His last name is Pierson?” Mitch asked instantly and I nodded. “How long’s he been workin’ there?”
“Not as long as me. Three years. He moved to Denver from Kansas City, I think. Mr. Pierson helped him out, gave him a job. I don’t know why he moved. I just know that he didn’t have any marketable skills so Mr. Pierson took the hit of taking him on for the family.”
“Outside of him being creepy, you feel any bad vibes from this guy, see any bad guys hangin’ around him, see him actin’ strange, cagey, wrong?”
“No about the bad guys but he’s creepy because he’s always acting strange and cagey. I didn’t get bad vibes other than the sense that he’s clearly the f**k up of the family but I thought he was just kind of an idiot. Saying that, though, a while ago, he over-ordered a bunch of Spring Deluxes. Like, a bunch. Mr. Pierson was not pleased. They’re our highest end model. We don’t move a lot of them so it was more stupid than normal, him over-ordering Spring Deluxe. I could see him over-ordering the Dream Weaver, even the Slumber Excelsior, we move loads of those. The Spring Deluxe…?” I trailed off and shook my head.
Mitch gave me a half-smile and then noted, “You know, that doesn’t mean shit to me.”
“What I’m saying is, we never sell a lot of Spring Deluxe so that’s a huge f**k up. Even on sale, they’re hard to move. The others, on sale, they’re awesome bargains and affordable for a lot of people. So if you’re going to over-order something, it would never be the Spring Deluxe.” Mitch stared at me and I finished on a mutter, “Just trust me. You know mattresses, you know what I’m talking about.”
“Right, baby, how ‘bout I just trust you. I’ll also look into this Otis Pierson. I’ll also be sendin’ someone in to have a closer look at him and keep an eye on him. And I’ll also be makin’ certain my woman does not get within ten feet of him. You have reason to go to the warehouse?”
I shook my head.
Mitch nodded his once. “Good. Don’t change that. He gets near you, you get away from him. You are never around him in a place that’s not public and that includes the break room. You see him in the parking lot, you get in the car, lock the doors, get your car in motion and call me as soon as you can. I’ll talk to Bill.”
Oh great.
That wasn’t going to work and Mitch knew it. We knew this because Mitch already tried it after Billie had her bad night. Bill didn’t give up anything.
Still, I reminded him of this fact.
“I’m not sure that’s going to work, honey.”
“It doesn’t then Slim will talk to him. He doesn’t talk to Slim, Eddie’ll talk to him. Eddie doesn’t work, Hank will. Hank doesn’t work, I’ll call Tack.”
I blinked at a name I didn’t know.
Then I asked, “Tack?”
He nodded. “Tack, that’s his club name. He was born Kane Allen. He’s the president of the Chaos Motorcycle Club and I know he’s got a boy in lockdown right now. Tack gets a word to his boy, his boy corners Bill in lockdown, I get the info I need.”
I stared at him.
Then I whispered, “You know the president of a biker gang?”
His arms gave me a squeeze. “Baby, I’m a cop. I know a lotta people and a lot of the lotta people I know aren’t one hundred percent solid citizens.”
“Um…” I started hesitantly, “does this president of a biker gang perhaps owe you a favor?”
“No,” Mitch answered which meant if he did this, he’d owe the president of a biker gang a favor.
“Is that a good idea?” I asked quietly.
“No, owin’ Tack is not good. But I also got a woman and two kids who sleep on three almost brand new Spring Deluxes. Since she got them delivered, my ass, most nights, has been in her bed and the kids have been off school so my Mom’s been here watchin’ ‘em if you and me aren’t. The windows for another break-in have been rare and he probably knows your boyfriend is a cop so if he’s lookin’ for a chance, he’s probably bein’ cautious. I can’t know if he’s found what he was lookin’ for and I’m not takin’ any chances. Even if he has, I wanna know why he destroyed everything you owned, how he’s connected to your cousin and I want to ascertain you, Bud and Billie are under no threat. And I’ll do what I gotta do to ascertain that. Even owe a favor to the president of a biker gang.”
