Aftermath Book Two Crash Series

Chapter Twenty-Three

Mason

            It took two days.

            Two days of reminders and pleas for pictures and details.

            Two days before I followed through on my promise to do something for myself.

            Kinda.  

            “This is different.” River looks around with raised eyebrows and a relaxed grin. He’s wearing his auburn hair up in a bun, his eyes are as wild, free, and green as the rain forest. I hardly notice his leather jacket, the same one he got back in college as he wears almost every day. How he managed to keep it alive and well I’ll never know but it does bring some comfort to know some things never change.

            “I have a strict obligation to do something fun well I’m here,” I can’t help but sigh and look around. This place is a dive, the paint is peeling everywhere which has it looking like a trashy dalmatian. Some lights flicker, while others are completely out, and the few remaining are shinning bright alongside the neon signs from behind the bar.

            “Are you a gimp? You have an obligation to do something fun?” He leans back in his chair with his arm slung to his side, his eye raised while he waits.

            Chuckling, my mind wanders to the answer to his question, Crash. I wonder what she’s up to. If she’s missing me as much as I miss her. We’ve texted and face-timed but it’s difficult being in two different time zones and both having pretty intense schedules. From what she says she’s been making it a point to go out more, she’s been to the soup kitchen and even went to lunch with Paul so they could discuss the foundation and what’s next. I’m interested to learn what they’ll organize, something incredible and thoughtful with Aria taking the lead. Whatever she does come up with, I’m hoping to use universally.

            I need to check in with Michelle in the morning, see if she got the contact information on the plot of land in Homedale, Idaho. It’s the poorest city in America and if I plan to curb the growing housing crisis, I need to build an up-to-date, safe, secure, and respectable apartment complex similar to Maverick Apartments. So far, the search for a plot of land has been virtually impossible. Any current plot would mean having to buy out a small business and although many have done that in the past I won’t destroy a small business when my goal is to grow the community not dismantle it.

            But this plot of land on the east side of town would be perfect if we could locate the owner or get a contract signed. I don’t want profit or anything from it. And I’m willing to pay fairly, I hope Michelle managed to get ahold of them.

            I started looking into the Native American reservations as well. It might be complicated and a long process but I hope to give them the funding and resources they need to build up their communities so they can thrive. An opportunity people like me have taken from them for centuries. It’s only right that I fix what I can.

            That’s another thing I need to talk to Michelle about. I grab for my phone in my back pocket wanting to make a note of all this before River moves closer so he can pull me back by the shoulder and get in my face with a cheesy, only slightly concerned smile. “You are a gimp! What have you done with my mate?”

            Shoving at his shoulder I chuckle, shutting off my head is hard when there’s an endless string of tasks I need to complete, some that can literally change the lives of generations of people. And Aria wonders why I don’t take time for myself unless I’m around her, the only person or thing that can thoroughly distract and dismantle me, I’m a slave to my work and the calling I’ve felt for years.

            And yet even Aria has only amplified that yearning, that need. That soul-deep resignation of understanding that my purpose on this earth and the position I was born into has always and will always be to right the wrongs of the world to my full capacity. I may not accomplish everything I wish, nor in my lifetime I may never see the world as I know it’ll become. But myself and the people alongside me can become a stepping stone for the people after us to prop them up and push them forward so they can create the world we all need and crave.

            Reigning in my thoughts I forgot about my phone, knowing I’ll remember in the morning anyway and I asked him here for a reason. A reason I need to stay present for. “f**k off River. I was thinking about work.” Glancing to the left of me I make sure Leo is still standing there. Usually, I would invite him to join us but tonight is different.

            “So, you asked me to meet you here of all places,” his head swivels from side to side with a bewildered look as he again takes it all in before swinging back to me. “to watch you think about work? Mate, I’d much rather be skiing the slopes or be balls deep in a woman.” He hits his palms on the bar top with fake exasperation. He’s more curious than anything else and I suspect he’ll be calling Jaxson tonight to gossip about my strange behavior.

            I met River in boarding school, I was too focused and controlling, even then. It didn’t take long to realize my teenage self wasn’t satisfied with just achieving academic goals and extracurriculars. I was longing for the liberation of escape, the peace of freedom, and the adrenaline of risk. River’s spirit has always matched that of an unbreakable horse. He’s bucked and clawed his way through any and every expectation or standard that’s ever been placed on him. 

            He comes from a wealthy family in Scottland but moved to London when his parents divorced when he was eight. His mother’s family has some royal lineage and his father has been running a real estate empire since his own father handed it over to him on his death bed forty years ago. And much to his father's disappointment River decided he wanted to enlist and after a few tours he joined the UK’s Special Operations team where he’s been for the past eleven years.

            His career choice may only have been shocking to his parents, for as long as I’ve known him, his life has revolved around the anticipation and adrenaline of what’s next and the unknowns. I once timed him to see how long he could sit still, he only lasted seven minutes before he needed to move on to something different. He likes to be busy but not in the way I do. I like structure and plans. He likes chaos and chance. It’s why we got along so well in school, we were able to balance each other out.

            We never talked about it directly but we both understood each other on a different level than the rest of our classmates. Where they we’re more than happy to go along with what mommy and daddy planned for them. Blindly accepting our parent’s version of our lives was never in the cards for either of us and that understanding was significant when you’re stuck in school 24/7 most of the year surrounded by other little shits that want you to conform to them.

            “Aria thinks I work too much.” Sliding my amber bottle of lager across the bar closer to me I wipe at the dripping perspiration with my thumb.

            “You do,” He inserts plainly before glancing at my beer with longing. The bartender with the short curly pink hair is down at the other end of the bar talking with a group of middle-aged ladies.

            “Regardless,” I stress the word and continue. “She made me promise I would do something other than work while I was here so here we are.” I nod behind me towards the opened lanes and outdated computer screens.

             It’s pretty busy for a bowling alley, every third lane or so is bustling with people shouting encouragement and sitting intense anticipation as they wait for their competitors’ ball to reach the pins. Their cheers and heavy bowling balls hit the overly waxed lanes only to collide with the white pins in a clattering clacking sound is only overshadowed by the low music playing through the speakers.

        “Mate! You could have just said you’re a fool in love. It makes a lot more sense than this nonsense.” I take a pull from my beer bottle with a grin as he looks on with another longing grin before he shoves his chair back. He heads around me to the other side of the bar where the bartender is still standing chatting with the ladies, where he intrudes much to the lady's delights.

            Grabbing my beer I go over to the lane I rented for the night happy to see the dark blue ball I selected earlier is still where I left it. I already set the computer up and have my bowling shoes on, I ordered an assortment of greasy as f**k food, my body will hate me for a few hours and if River waited a few more moments, he would know I already ordered a bucket of lager that’ll be here as soon as the waitress gets to it.

            “You ready to get demolished?” River asks a few moments later when he walks over, a beer bottle and bowling ball of his own in hand.

            “When’s the last time I lost at anything?” I finish off the last of my lager and place it on our table at the end of our lane just as someone from the kitchen brings out a full tray of steaming pub food, the waitress behind him with a full bucket of ice and beer bottles gripped tight. Looking to River I let lose a winning chuckle as I pat him on the back in passing.

            Scooping up my ball I position my fingers right and walk up to the lane. Looking down at my feet I spread them wide and picture River’s face of annoyance and my pure satisfaction to get me in the right mindset. I’m definitely winning this one.

***

            Spreading my arms on top of the chair I lean back with a groan. I’m full. Really full, like I ate too much because I drank too much after celebrating my win. For three consecutive games. Much to River’s dismay.

            Really, he just glares every now and again. He isn’t much of a sore loser. Yes, he would have loved to win, thank god he didn’t or he wouldn’t have shut up about it. Instead, he doesn’t take it personally moving on completely with a laugh and shrug. Too bad I’m about to get serious before we drink too much, as it is I should have started with this and ended with the drinks and game.

            Looking around the room it isn’t hard to tell that a lot of the people here have had a little too much to drink themselves and don’t give a s**t about us or who either of us could be. I got us the lane on the far side of the room for a reason and I’m glad to see that no one has requested any of the lanes closest to us. Even Leo isn’t over here, by request. I asked him to stay at the bar, have a drink or two, and not make it obvious.

            “I need to meet the woman that made you come to this place.” He’s leaning back too, relaxed. Aria was right it was a good time and needed. “I’ll have to come stateside before your wedding. I got the save the date, nice picture.” There’s a lot to question in that last part but my mind is already locked in and focused, I’m not willing to shift the conversation.

            “Come anytime Aria would love to meet you.” Pushing my shoulders back I hear the crack I needed to release the ache that was growing. “What happened with Zimmerman Construction?”

            Tipping back his head he drains the rest of his bottle before he sets it down with a clink on the metal table. He shifts his eyes around like I did a moment before, also checking for anyone that might be listening but shouldn’t.

            Here and now it’s more dangerous for him than me. Anyone around this dimly lit hole in the wall could know him or could be someone involved in what we’re discussing. Information that will be as valuable to the right ear as gold would. Could get him killed like it too.s

            Leaning on the table he keeps his voice low but his face relaxed, he’s skilled in the art of manipulation and acting through years of elite lifestyle and a life of service after. “Last minute pullback. Someone high up gave enough of a heads up. There was nothing we could convict them on. Not even through accounting.”

            “f**k,” I growl as I run my hand through my hair, tugging a little, hoping maybe one day it’ll actually work in relieving the constant pressure. “Do you know who?”  This was a critical, critical step. It’s the whole reason I flew to London last time.

            Really it’s the reason I’ve been flying to the surrounding to the UK for a while now. There’s always some form of attention Dixie requires over here, so it’s an easy excuse but for the past two years River’s been working with me to take down Edward and Stasevich. The whole reason he joined the special unit was to undermine and take down the biggest and baddest criminal organizations he could. He went in with his eyes wide open, meaning he knew that meant he would be taking down the rich and powerful. A lot of people we grew up with, or still, see in our circles.

            He’s kept me out of his reports for as long as he can, keeping me under the guise of a protected informant but I know it wouldn’t take long for anyone to get their suspicions especially when the pieces start falling. If they ever start falling. This was going to be our first gain, our first real move that would put us on the table and warn them we’re coming. We’re ready and prepared.

            Six months ago, he busted a drug addict with robbery and theft, he was facing a lot of years in prison but made a plea deal instead. Which led us up the string of corruption and criminals that ending at Zimmerman construction. They’re directly funded by Stasevich and Edward. They’re working together to buy up the big government and multimillion-dollar contracts, bid them out to lower bidding sub-contractors which leads to incredible profits, terrible work quality, and a huge opportunity for money laundering.

            But of course, they couldn’t stop there. All equipment and materials needed are transported by Zimmerman’s crew. Conveniently they have jobs over a vast region, reaching multiple countries. Hidden securely and expertly are drugs and weapons. We tied in an increase in crime to the start of any of their construction contracts. Finally, we had enough evidence to raid their main warehouse.

            I’ve been waiting for the news to break but it never did. And with the nature of the information and our discussions we never speak, text, email, nothing gets communicated via technology. It’s always in person so I had to wait till I could get away. And with Aria’s situation, it was difficult to justify leaving her for anything.

             He reaches for another beer popping the top off before handing it my way and grabbing one of his own. “I’m working on it. Did you see Abernathy went missing?” Swirling the bottle around in front of me I look to River in question. Abernathy is Marybeth’s cousin. She is Sanderson’s wife, he owns shipping yards and ports across the UK into Asia. We’ve long suspected Abernathy and Sanderson were involved with Edward and Stasevich since River found the paperwork tying them all together.

            Only it’s strung together through hidden corporations and encrypted emails. Oversea accounts and middleman. Precisely what Abernathy was, a middleman. He’s the guy they sent to meetings, with paper documents that we’re hard to trace or hack. He made the deals on behalf of all parties, therefore, making it almost impossible to point to what looks legitimate business deals but really are shell companies and fake personas.

            I don’t know how I didn’t hear about his disappearance, it’s hard not to give in to the guilt and failure that pulls from within. “I didn’t. You don’t think it’s a coincidence?” What will this mean? They can just put someone else in his place, someone we won’t recognize or be able to draw conclusions about. More so, where did he go and why?

            His tapping fingers on the table is the only sign that he’s getting antsy or excited, which has me curious. Sitting up taller I look at him more closely as I wait. “I know it isn’t. I know right where he is.” His eyes sparkle with pride, he’s been waiting the whole night to let me in on this important information.

            This is huge. If we can get him to talk, to flip on them all, he’d be detrimental. “What’s he told you so far?”

            “Nothing he isn’t talking and we don’t have a ton of resources. There are only a few guys on the team. We still need to show up for our regular cases so whoever the leak it doesn’t catch on. Give me a few weeks and hopefully, I’ll have something more useful.”

            I can handle a few weeks. Sitting back, I smile big and sigh heavily. Once we get Abernathy talking, we’ll be on a water slide after that. And I can’t wait till we hit the water feet first and walk out victorious.

            I’m coming Edward, better watch your back now.