Chapter Two-Hundred and Forty Five

Chapter Two-Hundred and Forty Five
London continued her story, “The police said she’d gotten mugged and her purse was missing but the robber had broken her neck.” She paused and gazed down at the table as tears formed in her eyes. Taking a deep breath, she told them, “My dad got the message. Then Ronnie brought her purse back and told him he took care of the leak and he’d better watch it from now on or he would be the next one.” Her words were low and heartbreaking. “How did I know all of this? I was in the kitchen when Ronnie came that night. I wanted to rush out there and start screaming at him but I knew I couldn’t. That’s when I started keeping track of what was going on around town.” She looked up at Hawkins and stated, “I can tell you right here and right now that I lost whatever respect I ever had for my father that night. He had to have told Ronnie and his group what my mom was saying. He made sure they knew their gig was up and they didn’t want to let it go, so they took her out. Ronnie didn’t even look sorry she was gone.” Tears rolled down her cheeks again as she looked angry. “Lord, I hate that man and what he’s doing with every breath in my body.”

Hawkins reached out and patted her arm. “Don’t you worry, girl. We’ll make them pay. We’ll make all of them pay the full price.”

A half hour later...
Cat, Wren, and Luna were talking at a table.

Hawkins and the others were standing off to one side, talking about the new situation they found themselves in.

“How the hell did Isabel not know the Brazo Cartel was in the area?” Hawkins asked.

“London said these five guys kept a tight lid on their operation,” Titan suggested. “Maybe they didn’t know she was here either. That would have caused some fireworks if they knew about the other one for sure.”

“Yeah, and if they have been here for seven years already, they damn well knew what she was up to.” Boots shook his head. “I don’t think they would have kept quiet about that.”

“They kept quiet only because they had to,” Kota reasoned. “I mean if they made too much noise, they might have gotten caught. No, they kept their nose out of things. All they had to do was keep making their drugs then get them in and out… all on the QT.”

Hawkins shook his head as he looked disgusted. “Well, whatever deal they had going is gonna come to an end and soon. To think this has been going on for the last seven years and we didn’t know it? That’s fucking unacceptable.”

“But how can we stop them if we don’t have all the information we need?” Cash shook his head.

“We’re gonna have to do some recon and find out,” Nash said.

“We just have to not get caught, that's all,” Brute agreed. “If they catch us, they’ll kill us and no one will ever find our bodies.” 

“We all have to be careful we don’t get caught while checking things out,” Wilder added. “If they catch wind that we’re looking into their little operation... they will come at us with everything they got. They’ll have to if they want to stay here and keep up with business.”

Hawkins looked around at them all. “We have to button this place down and be careful they don’t find out who’s watching them. But the first thing we have to do is verify everything London is saying.”

“And just how do we do that?” Nash wanted to know.

“We watch the river,” JuJu told them. “We put a remote camera out there and we can watch it for traffic. If they are shipping shit in and out, we’ll catch them.”

Wilder nodded. “That’s an idea and we wouldn’t need to be there all the time. Can you get a camera and get that set up?”

“Yep, we can,” JuJu replied. “I think we need to check out this farm too and see what these guys are doing. We should check and double-check her information and come to our own conclusion.”

“I hope you do,” London’s voice came from behind them. 

Hawkins and Boots turned to see her standing there. 

She looked pissed but resigned.

“You understand that we have to check this out, right?” Hawkins asked her.

London nodded. “Yeah, like I said, I hope you check things out. These guys are killing people. It hasn’t been just my mom either. I know of three people that have died by their hands and to protect themselves they will continue to kill anyone who stands in their way.”

Hawkins paused, then asked, “Who were the other three?”

“Georgie Kelper, as well as Harriet and Barnaby Oness.”

Hawkins shook his head. “The Oness’ ran off the road. The ME said old Barnaby had a heart attack and they died because they hit a tree. And Georgie missed the corner and flew off the ridge. Him and his bike were found all torn up.”

“No sir," London argued. "Georgie was trying to get away when they shot his tire out. He lost control and he flew off that ridge because they forced him off. Poor Barnaby and Harriet were out for a drive and they saw something they shouldn’t have. I saw their car after the accident and there was red paint on their bumper in several places. They were pushed off that road.”

“How the hell do you know all that?” Titan asked.

“I work for the police department in the impound lot. I saw the damage to both vehicles,” London told them.

Hawkins just raised his brows and didn’t say anything. What was there to say? She saw the damage for herself and he didn’t. “Did you tell anyone?”

London scoffed. “Who was I gonna tell? My dad? I’d end up like my mom, no thank you. I had to keep quiet for my brother’s sake. I wasn’t gonna leave him alone in the world. The police? Nope. Hal would tell his buddies and I’d still end up dead.”

“What were you going to do when you packed your bags this morning?” Cash asked her.

“Like I already told you…. I intended to leave and find a place that was safe for me and Chris. Then I was going to contact a friend of mine who works for the police in another town and tell him everything. Everything except where I was, that is.” London shook her head. “I’m not taking anything for granted anymore, not even my friends.”

“Does Chris know what’s going on here?” Wilder asked.

London shrugged. “I’m not really sure if he knows what’s actually happening.”

“Have you ever talked to him about it?” Boots asked.

London shook her head. “No, I haven’t. He’s so young, ya know? He was only eight when Ronnie killed our mom and for the longest time, he was afraid. He would hide in his room all day. He didn’t even come out for breakfast or lunch if Dad was home."