Chapter 24
Mallory glanced into the crowd, hoping to catch Brad's eye, but he was no longer standing across from her. s.h.i.+t. This was all about to go down. She knew it as sure as she sat there. Amy had said there was a 60 percent chance that Silas had drawn the full house. She bit her lip and stared at the cards.
What the h.e.l.l, she'd been going against the odds her entire life. It wasn't time to get conservative. She leaned back a bit and crossed her right leg over her left, then said a silent prayer.
There wasn't a sound inside the casino. The only noise at all was the steady humming of the boat's engine as it chugged through the Gulf. No one moved a muscle. All eyes were fixed on the table. There wasn't even a murmur when Jake pushed chips onto the table to match Silas's bet. "Call."
Mallory held her breath as Silas flipped his cards over and it was all she could do to hold in a shout when she saw the two pair staring back at her. Jake paused for a moment, staring at Silas's cards almost as if he couldn't believe what was about to happen. Then he reached for his own hand, pulled the cards up from the table and turned them face-up.
Before Mallory could even let out the breath she'd been holding, there was a booming shout at the back of the casino. "This is ATF - no one move!"
Contrary to the order, the entire room of grown men scrambled like a bunch of kids busted at a high school party. Men leapt over chairs and crawled over tables, heading for the nearest exit. The entire lot of them couldn't possibly be guilty of what the ATF was charging, but apparently they were all guilty enough of something to want the h.e.l.l out of the room.
Mallory watched in amazement as men and women she'd thought were cooks, dishwashers and waiters pulled weapons from their waists and dashed after the fleeing players. No wonder Reginald had said they were safe on the boat. The place was filled with feds.
A familiar voice shouted out at the table across from her, and she looked over just in time to see an ATF agent handcuff Walter Royal to the table railing. Before she could even wonder what was going on, she caught a glimpse out the window and spun around, hoping she hadn't seen what she thought she had. s.h.i.+t, s.h.i.+t, s.h.i.+t! Perched on the endless waters of the Gulf of Mexico, she saw a cigarette boat, not fifty yards from the casino. There was no doubt in her mind that Silas had never intended to get off the casino at the dock.
She spun back around to the table just in time to see Silas Hebert slink off into the fray. Jake was standing on a chair, probably trying to figure out if he could a.s.sist with the mess. He hadn't noticed Silas leave.
"Jake! He's getting away." Mallory cried. "And there's a boat just off the casino."
Jake glanced outside, then anxiously scanned the room, looking for Silas. "He's headed out the rear doors."
Mallory launched into action as soon as Jake pointed out Silas's exit, kicking off the high heels and skirting the edge of the fray in the casino as she ran toward the rear exit. She could hear the pounding of feet behind her and knew that Jake wasn't far behind. When she reached the rear door, she yanked it open and dashed into the lobby, catching sight of a figure just as it slipped around the corner of the hall to her right. He was headed to the storerooms. And the storerooms had a huge outside exit to allow for freight receipt. It would be a perfect way to get off the casino and onto the getaway boat.
Jake burst through the doors and she pointed down the hall. "That way," she shouted, and took off after him as he sprinted down the hall she'd identified.
"Which door?" Jake asked as they ran.
"Left. There's a freight dock in the storerooms. It's an easy way off the boat."
At the end of the hallway, Jake shoved open the storeroom doors and ran inside, scanning the room as he entered. He could hear Mallory hurry into the room a step behind him. He stopped in the middle of the entryway and put one finger to his lips. Mallory nodded and glanced over to the right, pointing at the freight doors.
Jake was relieved to see the freight doors were not yet opened. Silas hadn't been far enough ahead of them to have exited the boat already, and even if he had, there was no one behind him to close the doors. Based on his earlier talk with Reginald, Jake knew there was no other exit from this room. Silas Hebert was somewhere inside.
Jake ceased all movement and worked to control his breathing. There had to be a noise somewhere to indicate where Silas was hiding, but all he could hear was the hum of the boat's engine. He scanned the room, trying to decipher the most likely place to hide-the most likely place for an ambush since Silas would certainly know they had followed him from the casino.
Finally, Jake pointed to a row of shelves over to the left and motioned for Mallory to follow him. He knew it would be faster if they spread out, but Jake wasn't about to risk Silas getting his hands on Mallory. And Mallory, for all her strength and toughness, was still no match for Silas even if there were no guns involved.
Besides, there was a d.a.m.ned good chance that Silas had found a suitable weapon somewhere in the storeroom. Plenty of metal and gla.s.s could easily be fas.h.i.+oned into something deadly.
Jake took a single step toward the shelves, and Mallory fell in behind him. Step by step they crept toward the shelves, Jake straining to make out any sound that would indicate where Silas was hiding. They were only a couple of feet from their goal when Silas Hebert stepped out.
Holding a gun.
"I'm so glad you could join us," he said with a smile. "Did you really think this was about laundering money or winning a stupid poker tournament?"
Jake drew up short and glanced briefly over his shoulder to ensure Mallory was directly behind him. "I know Mark set me up, if that's what you're implying. He's been working for you all along."
There was movement over to their right, and Mark stepped out from a row of shelves, his weapon directed at Mallory. His partner's hands seemed almost shaky, and as Jake studied the other man's bloodshot eyes, he knew Mark was far from normal.
"I'm sorry about this, Jake," Mark said, and the look on his face was genuine. "But I knew you'd keep looking for answers. We couldn't afford to have you d.o.g.g.i.ng us the rest of our lives. We still have business in this country - and family - we couldn't risk you waiting at the airport every time we came back."
Jake stared at the man he thought he'd known. What had pushed him over the edge? "What happened to you, Mark?"
Mark stared past Jake at the wall. "I had to, Jake. I'm sorry it came down like this, but there was no other way."
"Oh yeah," Jake said. "Says who-the man who kept you locked in an empty apartment?"
Mark flinched and glanced from Silas to Jake. "It was just temporary... until he was certain he could trust me. It was just business."
"Okay," Jake agreed. "So you've got me, but this has nothing to do with her. Let her go."
Silas laughed. "No way. This has turned out beautifully for me... my final vengeance on the St. Claire family. She's going the same
Mark looked over at Silas. "Your plan never included the woman, Silas. Let's just get this over with and get out of here while we still have a chance."
Silas smiled at Mark. "Oh, we're getting out of here. I just have to lighten the load first."
The shot rang out and Jake involuntarily ducked, Mallory right alongside him. He checked himself for an entry wound, then looked at Mallory, who stared over his shoulder in surprise. Jake whirled around and found himself looking down the barrel of a smoking gun.
Held by Mark's wife, Janine.
One glance over at his partner let Jake know the score. Mark lay on the ground, his chest barely rising, the blood seeping from the center of his stomach.
Janine smiled at Jake, then looked over at Silas. "I told you Mark was too weak. He would have been a liability."
Jake stared at Janine, the woman he'd previously viewed as helpless, trying to wrap his mind around what was happening, when his conversation with Brad flashed through his mind. Janine, who had grown up around New Orleans. Janine, who had worked for a bank.
Janine turned back to face Jake. "Mark was more than a little disturbed that the woman he'd been in love with for fifteen years was a money launderer, especially when he found out that my partner was the man the two of you had been chasing."
She laughed. "Why do you think you never caught Silas? Mark was a carefully selected husband. I knew every move the two of you were going to make before you took one step out the door."
Jake's mind whirled. "So Mark wasn't in on this from the beginning, but he was posing as Silas's employee at the casino. He stopped making his check-ins at the bureau."
"What were his options - arrest the mother of his child? I don't think so. Mark wasn't very smart, but he was loyal, and you know I always came before his job. She glanced over at Mark's body, now still on the concrete. "Besides, who would have believed him if he'd turned me in? He would have gone down right along with me, and I don't have to tell you how prison is for federal agents."
She shrugged and turned away from her husband's body, not an ounce of remorse on her face. Jake felt his skin crawl.
"Oh, well," she continued. "Collateral damage can't be helped. Silas tried to get him on board, but Mark worried too much about everything. He would never have handled the pressure long-term."
Jake stared at Janine, his mind racing to come up with a way out of this and finding nothing. The only option was to stall for time, hoping that he either came up with an idea or someone from the ATF came looking for them. "How did you manage to get guns on board? I thought the ATF screened everyone before entry."
Janine gave him a bored look. "Yeah, but you know how it is - people never look too hard at servants... daily help. I've been working in the kitchen the entire tournament, with no fewer than five undercover ATF agents, and no one has even blinked at me. We're invisible. It was a simple matter to come in with the freight one morning and stash the guns in my locker."
She waved one hand toward Jake. "I'm done with the entertainment portion of the afternoon. Send your girlfriend over here, nice and easy."
Jake felt Mallory stiffen and he knew that if there was any chance of either of them coming out of this alive, he had to come up with something and fast. He looked back at her, saw the fright in her eyes, but knew she wouldn't back down if he called her into action. They would have only one opportunity out of this and that was a one-on-one battle, him against Silas and her against Janine.
He would have given them a decent shot if the guns hadn't been in the equation.
As Mallory walked slowly toward Janine, Jake heard Silas move up behind him. "Don't do anything foolish," Silas instructed. "I'd hate for your mother to arrange a closed-coffin funeral, or St. Claire for that matter."
Jake clenched his teeth. "You won't get away with this. Too many people know why I'm here."
Silas laughed. "You think I care how many people know? You're the only witness who can prove that money came from me. Now, you've got a chunk of counterfeit cash, probably tucked away in one of Reginald's safes, and Janine hid the plates in his storeroom this morning while she was getting more stock for the kitchen. When the FBI gets done tearing this boat apart, the only person left holding the bag will be Reginald St. Claire.
"And do you know what the best part is?" Silas asked. "The best part is it was feds that made all this possible. Without the ATF and their player's list, do you really think Reginald St. Claire would have ever let me set foot on his casino? I've been waiting for this opportunity for thirty years."
Jake looked over at Mallory, who stood just in front of Janine, a gun pressed to the back of her head.
"These FBI guys think they're so smart," Janine said with a laugh. "Let's get this over with." She grabbed Mallory by the arm and pushed her into a stack of empty crates, then stepped back a couple of feet and took aim at her with her pistol.
"Don't touch her," Silas yelled as Janine grabbed Mallory's arm, but his warning came too late.
A second later, Janine squeezed the trigger and Jake braced himself for the worst, but only a click emitted from the weapon.
"Stupid," Silas ranted. "I told you not to touch her."
Janine studied the gun for a moment, then lifted it again, pulling the trigger back again and again, but the gun never fired.
Mallory glanced at Jake for a millisecond, but he read everything he needed to in her eyes. As she lunged at Janine, he swung around, his fist connecting with Silas Hebert's face. Before Silas could gather himself, Jake kicked the gun from his hand and sent it sprawling across the storeroom floor.
As Jake squared off in front of Silas, he heard a crash behind him and Janine cried out in pain. He set himself up for the second punch, but before he could land it, Silas grabbed a can off the shelf behind it and clocked him in the side of the head.
His ear felt like it exploded from the impact, and his vision blurred. He took a step back, ensuring Silas couldn't connect with him again, hoping his vision would quickly return to normal. Everything was gray and white and seemed to swim in front of him. He could dimly make out Silas's form and he braced himself for another hit, but the form grew smaller and Jake realized Silas was moving away from him.
In the direction of the gun.
He rushed toward the gray figure, his only hope to tackle him before he reached the weapon, but Jake came up several feet short. His vision cleared just as Silas smiled and leveled the weapon at Jake's head. "I think my business here is done."
Jake looked over at Mallory, who was standing over a somewhat battered Janine. He hoped this final connection between them told her everything he wanted her to know. How much he respected her, how much he had come to love her, need her, and how very sorry he was that things were going to end this way. She stared back at him, her eyes full of the same emotion, and Jake regretted the things he'd never said to her, the future they'd never have.
He heard the shot as it fired and waited for his body to register the bullet's entry, but as he looked back at his nemesis, he saw the look of shock on the other man's face and the blood beginning to trickle out of his side. Silas clutched his side, dropped the gun and turned toward the storeroom door.
Jake ran over and grabbed the gun off the floor before turning to see who their savior was. He blinked in surprise at the sight of Father Thomas standing in the doorway, a pistol peeking from the sleeve of his robe. He heard shouting in the hallway and a second later, Brad and two other ATF agents burst into the storeroom.
Brad quickly a.s.sessed the situation and directed his men to handcuff the still-bleeding Silas and a very subdued-looking Janine. He looked around the warehouse, studying their faces. "You all right?"
Everyone nodded, and Father Thomas smiled. "Never better," the priest said.
Brad nodded and motioned to his men, who lifted Silas and Janine from the floor and followed Brad out of the storeroom. Jake watched them leave, then looked at Mallory, who stood staring at Father Thomas, shocked.
"Father Thomas?" Mallory said. "What in G.o.d's name?"
Before he could answer, Amy and Scooter burst through the door, followed closely by Reginald. Amy rushed across the room and flung her arms around Mallory. "Oh, my G.o.d, I was so worried. I was afraid you were dead." She released Mallory and sniffed. "Scooter and I saw you on the cameras, running down the hall. We went for help, but it took too long."
Scooter shuffled over next to Amy and gave Mallory a grin. "Gave me a scare, Mal."
"Got that right," Reginald seconded, and pushed Amy aside so he could give Mallory a hug. "I'm glad you're still with us." He released Mallory and looked over at Father Thomas. "You've still got it, you old bird," he said, and grinned.
Father Thomas smiled. "The Lord works in mysterious ways."
Mallory looked from Reginald to Father Thomas. "What the h.e.l.l is going on here?"
Father Thomas stepped closer to Mallory and placed his hand on her arm. "Don't let it vex you so much, dear. Everything in life is not what it seems. Or maybe I should say everything in life is not always what it seems."
Mallory blinked and stared at the priest in amazement. "You had a gun. You shot Silas."
Father Thomas nodded. "It's only an entry wound. The son of a b.i.t.c.h should be fine to stand trial and hopefully spend a long, long time paying for what he's done to people."
"An entry wound?" She stared at the priest, wondering what manner of creature had a.s.sumed the body of the drunk she knew and loved.
Father Thomas smiled. "I spent some of my younger years serving this country in an, ah, sort of weapons-based role. When I returned to Royal Flush, I spent a great deal of time hunting with your uncle."
Mallory shook her head, trying to wrap her mind around Father Thomas in the military, with weapons, knowing what an entry wound was and exactly how to create one instead of blowing someone away. "But you've been drinking like a sieve. How in the world..."
The dismay on the priest's face was almost comical. "Alas, one of Reginald's requirements was no drinking. His bartender has been pouring me only regular c.o.ke." He glanced at his watch. "It's been exactly five days, two hours and sixteen minutes since my last drink."
"Now, that's just not right," Scooter said, and shook his head.
"But you've been drunk," Mallory said, her head swimming with confusion.
Father Thomas shook his head. "Not drunk, just pretending. I was a pretty good actor in my high school days. When Reginald first told me of the ATF situation and asked for my help, I thought it would be better if I went as my usual self-or at least pretended to be." He shrugged. "People will say anything in front of drunks, you know. I gathered quite a bit of information that helped Reginald's dealers and provided a bit of distraction from time to time."
Jake laughed. "Distraction is certainly one way of putting it."
Father Thomas nodded. "Reginald is an old friend who was in a bad situation. I was happy to help. And when Mallory took the job cooling, Reginald and I were both relieved that I'd be there to monitor things - especially with Silas Hebert at the table." He gave them both a smile. "I'm glad I got here before it was too late. Who else could we get to shut down the Yankees at J.T.'s Bar?"
"Unbelievable," Mallory said, unable to stop smiling.
Father Thomas gave her arm a squeeze, then looked over at Reginald, Scooter and Amy. "I think we should give these two a moment, don't you?"
Scooter threw one arm around the priest's shoulder. "Now, you're talking. Let's head to the restaurant. I'm pouring you the biggest d.a.m.ned Jack and c.o.ke ever."
"I'll drink to that," Reginald agreed.
Amy watched the three of them walk away and smiled. "I'll wait for you in the restaurant," she said to Mallory, then followed the others out of the storeroom.
As soon as the door shut behind Amy, Jake gently grasped Mallory's hand and pulled her close to him, wrapping his arms around her. "I thought I'd lost you," he whispered. "Thought I'd lost us, or I guess the us that could be."
Mallory tightened her arms around him and buried her face in his neck, allowing herself to escape, if only for the moment, in the fantasy that she and Jake had a future, a real future. But even as he took her face in his hands and kissed her gently, she knew there was no way she could subject this man that she loved so much to her cursed life.
CHAPTER NINETEEN.