Tainted Waters

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Four

"Dori? Hi. It's George."

"Oh. Hi. What can I do for you? Did I forget something at the funeral?"

"No. That's not why I'm calling. It was great to see you—"

"Good to see you too, George. I know it's been a while."

"It's all right. I didn't do a very good job of keeping in touch either—"

"These things happen. I've been busy and I'm sure you have, too."

"Yes, my business is rather demanding. When the deceased rest, I don't." It was an old joke, but he knew it was okay when she responded with a light chuckle.

"That was a nice service you had for Mrs. MacNeil. She was a lovely lady. Funny that she roped her kids into thinking—"

"Dori."

"—she was with her sister when she was really living out at the lake. She—"

Frustrated that she wasn't listening to him, something that hadn't changed with time, he stood up quickly. His leg protested his sudden movement, buckling on him, jerking him forward into his desk. Swearing softly, he sat back down. "Yes, she was something. Look—"

"She was a true pioneer. That woman could outwork any man I ever knew. She cut her own wood, harvested her garden, canned it all, still at the age of ninety. She was someone I admired very much. She—"

"Dori, I called because I want to take you out to dinner." The silence was loud.

"Oh … I …"

If he'd known that would have shut her up, he'd have started with it.

"I just thought a nice dinner."

"I … I really don't date, George. Thank you for the invite. That was nice."

"I didn't think it would be a date, just two old friends getting together to talk. To reminisce. To catch up. Since my wife, Jean, died, I don't really have anyone to talk to. Thought it would be nice." He held his breath, waiting for her answer.

"All right, but just dinner. Friends. Okay?"

"Great, Friday night at Le Chance."

"Oh, I was thinking something a little less formal."

"I will not take you to McDonald's."

She laughed. It was the sound he'd wanted to hear.

"Let's treat ourselves. Who knows when we'll do it again? I'll pick you up at around 7:00, okay? I have to run. See you soon, Dori." He hung up, knowing that if he didn't she'd talked herself out of it. He had until Friday to come up with how to broach the subject that he knew she wouldn't want to discuss. What he really feared was that the answer would still be no.

~~~~

"Is the shipment taken care of?" Mr. Ozz tapped his index finger on his desk.

"Yes. No problems. Trucks loaded, plane packed, and the second stop on their journey has been is completed."

"Excellent."

"The next delivery is arriving in three days, early Wednesday morning 12:32 a.m."

Ozz sat up straight. His fist thumping the arm of his chair. "That's not the scheduled time."

"Right. We had to change it. Sorry, I was about to call you. The weather report isn't good. There's a bad storm moving in. So, we have to go with it coming in earlier. It was then or we cancel until the storm passes."

"No. That would not have been okay. Next time, don't make decisions without first consulting with me."

"Got it, Mr. Ozz, but I tried several times. You weren't answering. The people wanted an answer, now. I didn't think you'd want to lose this contract."

"Never do it again. No matter what. You stall until you've talked with me."

"Got it, sir."

"Everything's arranged then?" Ozz sat back, smiling. Even if people figured out what he was doing, they'd never catch him. He didn't exist.

"Yeah, all set. The plane touches down at 12:32, the load will be transferred from two three-ton trucks to the plane and the stuff from the plane to the trucks. The aircraft takes off at 12:43 a.m."

"Is Officer Magnon on shift?"

"Yes. That's why we're doing it in three days and not tomorrow night. He also has two other policemen on our payroll on shift that night. He'll patrol the immediate area, and they'll stay in town and area but are there if he should need backup."

"Excellent. Good job, Steele." Ozz smiled. "You've had someone check out the other cabins. No surprises?"

"We've been through them all. There are no signs of anyone. Each cabin has at least one locked room, but since you told us the one had stuff locked in the bedrooms we haven't broken into those rooms. Do we need to?"

"No. Just make sure we don't find any more surprise visitors out there. I would hate for another person to die for just being in the wrong place." Ozz settled back into his chair. It might draw a little too much attention if too many people were found dead out there. If they only knew how many there had really been.

"We're short-staffed but we can—" Steele sounded frustrated.

"If there's no sign of life, don't waste your time. Just have someone check now and then. No more surprises. Wednesday is your priority. Make it go off without a hitch." Ozz was getting a feeling that let him know he'd been too settled.

"Will do." Steele hung up.

Steele was an excellent replacement for his previous assistant. For two years, he'd been very loyal and had never made a mistake. Never stepped out of line. And that's what bothered him. Too perfect. He'd done a thorough check on the man and he'd had him followed since day one. Everything on him was tapped—his car, his phone, his house, everything. And nothing. That was what made him uneasy. At least with Jaico, he knew his mistakes and knew the man couldn't keep it in his pants. But he was loyal and, since he knew his secrets, he could keep him in line. The guy wouldn't betray him because he liked his lifestyle just a little too much. However, it was almost time for new replacements. Once this new operation was up and running, he'd do just that.