Chapter Three: Dan's POV
As soon as Tina was off the phone I called Ben, my police lieutenant friend, telling him about Menard's visit and Tina's call.
"Dan I'm sorry that all this shit's come down on you, I really am. You're a great guy and you don't deserve it. That asshole Menard... he deserves all those Colombians are planning and more. If I was playing this by the book I'd have to warn the bastard... hell I'd probably have to arrange some sort of protection for him."
"You can't do that..."
"You're too damn right I can't. There's no way I'm letting that backstabbing, murdering piece of shit walk away from this one. I'm very tempted to turn blind eye and wait until the Colombians take him out of the picture"
"But will Menard wait? He said he was coming back in a few days for the money. I can't let Katie and Lily be put at risk. I should just take them and run off for a three week holiday where Menard can't find us."
"Sounds like a plan."
"Trouble is, what happens to Tina if we disappear? That evil asshole could well go through with his threat and kill her. He's already attacked her at least once. Can your guys protect her?"
"Not unless I kick it upstairs and tell the Chief the whole story. I don't have the resources to guarantee her safety on my own. But if this case goes up to the big boys, who knows what will happen. If they believe Tina's story they'll have to step in and save Menard's ass."
"No! They wouldn't would they?"
"He's an innocent man as far as the law's concerned Dan. But they may not believe Tina... they could see it all as a story made up by a bitter bar girl. Either way Menard gets tipped off and Tina's in big trouble."
"Maybe I should convince her to come with us... pick her up at her apartment and we could all disappear."
"Hmm... maybe... but all of you running off at the same time...Menard's going to want revenge. He might not be able to track you down but the Colombians could. If he told them that you've run off with their money... "
"Damn! You think he'd do that?"
"It's what I would do in his place... take the heat off himself and put it on you. And those big cartels... they've got lots of money and muscle...plus they're ruthless. They won't think twice about getting to you via your family and friends... it's what they do. You can't take your Mom, Katie's family and all your friends into hiding."
"So what do we do?"
"For the moment there's not a lot we can do. We sit tight and hope the cartel acts sooner rather than later. In the meanwhile we try to find some way of stalling Menard."
The next day passed normally, without any incidents and the next day as well. I was still on edge but Katie seemed less anxious than I was. She had only seen Menard's good side. On day three I returned home after a long hard day in the operating theater. Katie had a chilled beer waiting for me and there was a half empty wine glass on the table, which was unusual, as Katie seldom drank alcohol or even coffee while she was breastfeeding. She seemed excited and a bit nervous.
"Dan honey, I've got some news and you're not going to like it."
Now I felt more than a bit nervous.
"Robert came round this afternoon, about 2pm."
When he knew I'd be at the hospital! The asshole was showing me just how vulnerable Katie was.
"So what happened?"
"He was very charming and polite... and I wasn't breastfeeding." Katie grinned. "I think he was disappointed. He asked how you were getting on with the money. I said you were still working on it. He told me that he was doing his best to protect us from the loan sharks... he used a couple of French words which I imagine were very rude. He made it sound like he was doing us a big favor rather than trying to steal our money."
I played the sweet, simple wife. I brought him coffee and cake. When he flirted with me I responded nicely. Anyway, long story short, he's joining me for a walk in the park with Lily... tomorrow afternoon."
I jumped to my feet.
"No! No way! That's crazy. I forbid it!"
Katie looked surprised and annoyed.
"Since when do we have a relationship where you "forbid" things?"
"We don't. We have a relationship where we discuss things and decide on them together. I don't remember discussing this or agreeing that you'd meet up with a dangerous criminal."
"Dan, I had to think fast and it was the only way I could think of to distract him. He doesn't scare me and I really don't think he'll try to hurt me. It's only a walk, in a very public place"
"He'll try to seduce you."
"Of course he will... that's what we're counting on. He wants me and I can use that to our advantage. All I have to is lead him on a bit for a couple more dates and it's over."
"A couple of dates! That might be all it takes. Honey, the guy's very good at manipulating people... look how he managed to get Tina."
"Tina wasn't prepared for him, I am. She was on her own, I have you right here, backing me up. I'm going into this with my eyes wide open. I want to do it to protect our family and Tina. It's not like we have another plan."
"Katie, I really admire your courage... what you're trying to do... but I still think it's a very bad idea. I'm not prepared to expose you to risks like that."
"But if I ring Robert and cancel it now could be bad for all of us. Why don't we call Ben, get his advice before we make a final decision."
I rang Ben at home and explained the situation. He was silent for so long I thought we'd been cut off but he was thinking hard, weighing up the options. Finally he spoke to me.
"Dan, I think we should go with Katie's plan. Sure there's a risk but it's minimal and not as risky as doing nothing. Menard's not planning to hurt Katie. I'm sure he wants to seduce her, humiliate you and get the money. He thinks he has enough time to do all three. That's his style; he's a gambler."
"Well I'm not... and I don't want that fucker getting his lecher's hands on my wife!"
"I hear you brother, but Katie's a strong, capable woman. She was fending off guys for years before you came along. She can keep him at bay for a couple of dates. Plus I can get a wire from Dave at the DEA... they've got some very smart bugs. That way we can hear what goes on and if anything remotely bad happens I can jump in."
"Did Dave tell you anything about the Colombian cartel?"
"Yeah... I was coming to that. The DEA's well aware of their presence here and their intentions to expand. I think they may have someone undercover in the organization, but of course Dave couldn't tell me about that. They knew about Menard owing them a lot of money but they didn't know about the hostile takeover, so Tina's information was very useful. Right now they're trying to find out when the hit is planned. I'll see if Dave has any news when I get the wire tomorrow morning."
The next day I had a demanding operation scheduled which would take over four hours. The patient had been waiting for months and I couldn't cancel. I had to put my worries about Katie out of my mind and concentrate on the challenge in front of me. At least I knew that Ben was on the case and wouldn't let things get out of hand. I just wished that Katie was with me in the theater and not out with a skillful and determined lecher.
When I eventually got home Katie seemed completely relaxed. Menard had been a total gentleman and had seemed to enjoy the simple pleasure of a family walk in a beautiful park, eating icecream and chatting with a lovely woman. Katie, bless her gentle heart, had started feeling sorry for him.
"At one stage Robert was pushing Lily's buggy and he was looking so sad. He said he really envied you having such a wonderful wife and family. I felt really guilty that I knew what was going to happen to him and I couldn't warn him."
