The Shack series

Chapter 24

Delaney nodded in agreement, and even Tara had to shrug. Sheree's smile blossomed further.

Tara shook her head in amusement and continued. "Either way, this is nothing new for Franks, he'd just add it to the stack. He probably paid up, because he did the math and it wasn't worth arguing about. Whatever you think of... Charlotte, she thought it through and kept the money low enough to make it easier to pay than argue. I guess we know why Calloway went after Delaney, but honestly, to these guys, this is barely pocket change."

"It isn't Sharpton." Sheree leaned forward. "He's on the same high-end health insurance program as everyone in the firm."

"What does that mean?" Tara asked the same thing I was thinking.

"I asked some of my friends. A lot of my best friends are nurses." She said it fondly. "Sharpton had a vasectomy after his fourth son was born, a long time ago."

Tara sorted through a stack of paperwork and pulled a page out. "Nice to know everyone is following the HIPPA act. Still, that's probably why he never paid. He knows Delaney can't be his."

"That's all of them then. Calloway, Franks, and Sharpton. I tried not to sound as annoyed as I was.

Tara nodded looking over her papers. "There were... a number of others... but none with enough influence on the judge."

"Except..." Sheree looked up. "There's another Calloway."

"Why would he even be involved? He can't be her father, even Charlotte said that. She didn't even ask him for money."

"I don't know. But he's the only one left, right?"

Delaney huffed, frustrated. "Why is anyone doing this? Nobody actually knows s**t. Junior tried to kill me just because there was a chance I might get some of his money. But he didn't really know anything."

"You said Calloway junior owns—owned—that whole mountain and the valley. Do you think anyone knows about the wreck?" Sheree stared out the window thoughtfully.

"We can check. Why?"

"Because Delaney's right. Nobody really knows 'shit.' I'd think it's about time we fixed that."

*****

"Here it is; it's a rush job, but it's accurate."

Sheree took the package from 'Jasmine,' then slid it over to Tara without looking away from her friend. "I owe you one."

The serious looking nurse shook her head. "We both know who owes who, Sheree. I'll never be able to really pay you back."

Sheree looked down at the table. "You don't owe me anything, Sarah. I just tried to do the right thing."

There was a wordless exchange between them, something dark and heavy. Delaney caught it and looked at me. I shook my head at her. I didn't keep secrets from Sheree, and Sheree didn't keep them from me, but this obviously wasn't just her secret to keep. I knew she'd tell me if I needed to know.

Tara ignored the whole exchange as she looked over the papers. Lawyers probably get real good at not seeing things. "Couldn't use it in court, but we don't need it to. I'm going to Tiffany's, and we're going to have a serious talk with Mother about this. She's staying with Tiffany until she can get around on her own. Probably won't be very long, Tiffany isn't exactly happy with her. Can you give me a day or two?"

"Junior is dead, Stein and his men are dead. We probably have a few days. I've put some 1-inch boiler plate inside the wrecker doors, seat backs and floor boards, just in case anyone tries to get clever."

We'd gotten what we needed when we visited the crash site. No bystanders or police had seen it, so we just had to pick through the wreckage. The Chiron really had held together better than anyone could have expected, at least the frame had, but Calloway hadn't held together very well, at all.

I figured out his plan to stop us, though; he had a bright shiny Steyr AUG submachine g*n with two full magazines of black-tipped M995 armor piercing rounds. He wasn't planning on forcing us off the road, he was simply going to riddle us. There were more of the AUGs in the torn metal of the SUV. All new, and, I suspected, all bought with the intention of killing Delaney.

We'd quietly left the wreck. It was entirely invisible from the road, so I figured we'd have time.

*****

We stepped out of the brass and teak elevator and just strode past the extremely efficient looking secretary to the ridiculously expensive office. We ignored her protests and she followed us on in, berating us in as professional a manner as possible. The room was enormous and lined with bookcases full of leather-bound law volumes. It was dominated by a massive teak desk. The man at the desk waved his nearly panicked secretary back.

"Everything is okay, Maureen. I've been expecting them. Please close the door and see that we are not disturbed."

The old man stared at me with grim humor. "Good afternoon, Mister Dawes. I did tell Mr. Stein and his partner not to underestimate you. They didn't understand, of course. They've seen too many movies; they think Special Forces is just about being tough."

I nodded. "I do seem to remember a helluva lot of physical training."

"But that's not what really works, is it? Willpower, of course, but adaptability and brainpower is where most of the cuts get made in the selection process."

Delaney crossed her arms impatiently. "Why the Damn are you trying to kill me?"

He looked at her disapprovingly; clearly, attempted murder didn't warrant rudeness and poor language. "Darwin, Miss Dawes. Darwin. I'd think Mister Dawes would understand; it's about natural selection. Survival of the fittest. I don't need you dragging my son down in some dramatic court battle over paternity. Whether you're his unintended offspring or not. He's fit, he's smart, and I intend for him to reach great heights. You simply aren't worthy of my name."