Hustle (20 page)

Chapter 19

The three were wide awake now. They’d left Stinson Beach and were on their last leg of the journey to the lawyer’s house. Their anticipation had fueled a feeling of sobriety. Donny leaned forward in his seat; the morning’s drugs had worn off enough to where his pain from last night’s rape began to assault him all over again. Big Rich, nervous and not knowing what to do to prepare, pulled out a small glass pipe and took a quick hit before Bear could complain.

“What the fuck are you doing?” said Bear. “Blow that shit out the window, I don’t
wanna breathe it in. Fuck, can’t you guys hold off for a few hours while we get this done?”

Rich said,
“Sorry, man,” but it didn’t sound like he meant it. He then passed the pipe to his friend in the backseat. Donny took it gladly and repeated the same quick hit while Bear glared at him in the rearview mirror.

“Great, I’m going into battle with a couple of stone-cold junkie meth-heads. This’ll be fun. I should let you guys know, if there’s any hostage taking, I won’t be negotiating for your release.”

“You don’t even know if he’s there,” said Rich, lighting another cigarette.

“I already told you I think he is. Why the fuck would we
be driving all the way up here if I didn’t? What we’re about to do is some serious recon shit, like they used to do in the Nam.”

Donny finished blowing his hit out the
opening of his window and asked Bear, “You were in Vietnam?”

“Fuck, no. I was a kid
back then. How old do you think I am?” Bear shook his head. “Point is, we’re goin’ into a potentially volatile situation. We don’t know what’s up there, who’s up there. All we know is that Dustin fucker is a homicidal psychopath. That’s why we have guns.”

Big Rich interjected,
“I don’t have a gun.”

“That’s why
I
have guns,” Bear corrected. “I need you two to have clear heads. We’re depending on each other to come out of there unharmed. We need to think like soldiers.”

“You sure sound like you were in Vietnam,” said Big Rich.

“Well, I wasn’t, so stop askin’.” Bear spotted the turnoff for McKenna Road and made a right. The two-lane wound back and forth, forcing Bear to drive slowly. He saw several gravel roads on either side, but most of them looked like fire-roads, unused and not attached to any residence. The farther they drove, the narrower the road became. Bear rolled down his window to see if he could hear any signs of civilization because he sure as hell couldn’t see any.

The
y ascended a few more miles until Bear saw it. A lone mailbox perched on an oily wooden post. There was no name or marking on the box and it stood looking as unused as anything they’d already come across. The driveway beside it, however, was paved. Bear slowed the car down, then stopped.

“What is it?” asked Rich.

“I think this is the place,” Bear keeping his voice low now. A sense of caution enveloped them all.

“How do you know?” asked Donny
, also now at a whisper.

“I don’t
fuckin’ know, that’s what we’re here to find out, remember? Now stop askin’ so many questions.”

Donny felt stupid for asking.
He decided to stick close to Bear and follow his lead.

Bear put the car in neutral and rolled it back down the slope a ways, lodging it into some tre
es just a few feet off the road. It sat straddled in a makeshift ditch. He pulled the .38 out from under the seat and opened the car door.

“How come I don’t get a gun?” said Big Rich, “If it’s so
fuckin’ dangerous up there, then I should have a gun.”

“’
Cause I don’t need you shooting me. I trust your aim about as much as I trust his.” He hooked a thumb toward Donny in the back seat. “Tell you what, I still got the stun-gun in my trunk, you can have it if you promise not to electrocute yourself.”

“What about me?” asked
Donny.

“
You worried about stayin’ safe? If your friend doesn’t have a gun, then your chances of gettin’ hurt just dropped by about seventy-percent.”

Bear walked to the back of the car, opened the truck and rooted around for the stun-gun
. He found it and handed it to Rich with a serious look. “If you gotta use this thing, try to hit flesh with it. And hold it there till the fucker drops, he ain’t gonna die, so don’t be afraid to really zap him.”

“Okay, I know what to do.”

“Alright fellas, we’re gonna go up to the house. I want you to stay behind me and stay quiet. Let’s just see what the hell is up there. Don’t talk to each other and watch for my signal.”

As they moved up the tree-lined driveway, Donny was struck by the silence around them.
The air was crisp and fresh. He could smell the ocean, the trees, everything all at once. The serenity belied his nervousness; it only served to make his senses more acute. He felt sharp, wide-awake, and not the least bit high. He wasn’t sick with withdrawals either. Donny felt alive.

The
y edged up the paved drive, Bear first, flanked by Donny and Rich. They heard nothing but the wind in the trees. Then they saw it, a huge house with shining windows reflecting the sky. It looked like the sheer face of a cliff, but it was glowing sun-yellow and sky-blue. Bear had to squint his eyes.

“There she is,” he said
.

“And there’s the Bentley,” said Big Rich
, pointing to the black car parked in front of the house. It sat there, empty, unattended and sandwiched between a Jaguar and a Volvo. Further to the right sat a green Mazda with a bumper sticker that read ‘Goddess is my Co-pilot’. Seeing the old man’s car was a confirmation that they were indeed at the right place. It filled all three with a simultaneous sense of excitement and dread.

Bear turned and put his index finger to his lips
, shushing the boys, but they were already quiet. He waved them back down the driveway where they could huddle and discuss a plan.

When they were out of sight and in the cover of the trees, Bear said, “I’m
gonna go around back. Donny, you stand point, there on the right corner. That way, if anyone comes out the front, or if you hear anything at all, you signal.”

“What about me?” asked
Rich.

“You come with me. W
hen I know it’s clear, you’ll take my spot and I’ll go farther in, check out the back of the place. Donny signals you, you signal me. We’ll have a line of sight all the way around the house.”

The boys both nodded,
although they weren’t really sure what they were to do. Donny moved up to the mouth of the drive and watched the other two creep past him toward the back of the house. He chose a spot behind an untamed bush to squat. From there, he could see the front door and all along the right side of the house. If someone were to open the door, he’d still be out of sight. He crouched and waited there, keeping an eye on Rich who stood at the rear corner of the house while Bear disappeared around the back.

The first thing Bear saw was the big deck hanging from the back
of the house; it was elevated on support beams and had just enough room for him to slip underneath. He had to crouch, but he could fit. The whole place was built on an upward slope so he figured the deck was still attached to the first floor. It would be just off the main living area, whether it was a kitchen or living room. Now, whoever was inside was probably right above his head, only a few feet away.
He stood there a moment listening. He finally heard voices, too muffled to make out. All he could tell was that there was more than one. Several in fact, but there was no way to guess how many.

The glass door slid open above his head. He watched as two feet st
epped out on the deck above him, then he heard the door slide shut again. Bear couldn’t tell who it was; all he saw was the shadow cast down, breaking up the thin lines of light that shone between the boards. Whoever it was, they were a smoker. Bear heard the unmistakable sound of a disposable lighter being struck, followed by a cough. The sweet, skunky smell of high-grade marijuana wafted down followed by another round of coughing. Bear looked to the side of the house where Rich was supposed to be. He was nowhere in sight. The plan was already failing.

The person
above him getting high moved to the edge of the deck and leaned on the rail. Bear could see the blue-grey smoke being blown outward to the sloping backyard. Bear took a silent step forward and looked up. Now he could see the chin, a young chin. It wasn’t Dustin and it sure as hell wasn’t the old man. From what he’d gathered about Terrence, it wasn’t him either.

The smoker started to hum,
quietly at first, and then it escalated to a singing. The words were in Spanish. That made three; Gabriel, Dustin, and this guy. Bear had to assume that Terrence was up there somewhere, too. That would make four.

He waited f
or the smoking and the singing to stop. It didn’t. Bear figured it was now or never. He stepped out from below the deck and pointed his .38 straight at the head of the person standing at the ledge.

“Don’t make a
fuckin’ sound.”

Raphael made an audible squeak and dropped his roach. It landed right between Bear’s feet.

“Now, c’mon down here.”

“Who are you?” said Raphael, obviously terrified.

“I’m the guy who’s got a gun aimed right at your forehead, that’s who. Now walk to the stairs and come down here and talk to me. Don’t turn around, don’t shout or scream or nothin’. Otherwise, I’m going to shoot.” Bear was nervous, but he held his gun steady. He knew the sliding glass door was shut; odds were whoever was inside wasn’t listening or watching. “I’m only gonna ask once.” He cocked back the hammer for added effect.

Raphael had a hurt look on his face, but he did what he was told. He walked stiffly to the edge of the
deck and descended the wooden stairs. Once below, he took a deep breath for courage and faced Bear.

“Who is in the house?”

“
Que?
”

“Nice try, amigo. Who’s up there, how many?”

“Look, if you came about the crop, there’s nothing there. It’s not ready yet.”

“Crop?
What’re you talkin’ about? You think I’m here to steal weed? I want to know who’s inside the house, right now. Start talking or I start shooting, then I’m gonna go in and find out for myself.”

Raphael broke down. He f
ell to his knees and began mock-weeping. Bear wasn’t buying it. First this guy pretended he couldn’t speak English and now he was pretending to cry.

“How many?
Is Terrence up there? Is Dustin? What about the old guy? Where is he?”

Raphael’s shoulders shook and his chest puffed in and out with quick breaths. Bear realized he
really was sobbing.

***

Terrence watched Raphael go outside for a smoke. When things got too confusing for the boy, he liked to smoke a little weed. It didn’t help at all. Not ever. He inevitably ended up more confused than he started out. Terrence didn’t blame him for wanting to step out. The tension around the dining room table was palatable. Gabriel was reading over the deed transfer slowly while Dustin paced around behind him. Terrence figured the old man was stalling, but it didn’t matter, as soon as he signed the document the deal would be done. All they had to do was have it recorded in the city and there was no going back. Terrence leaned back in his chair and waited patiently.

When he looked back out
at the deck, Raphael was gone from his view. He didn’t think anything of it until a few more minutes went by. Usually Raphael only took a couple hits, then came back in. His young friend wasn’t one for spontaneous nature walks. Raphael wouldn’t leave houseguests unattended either—hosting was one of his only skills.

Terrence watched the empty deck and waited. His instincts started to kick
in; he got up and went to the front of the house, pulled back a curtain, and peeked through one of the many glass windows. Nothing out there, no strange cars, no movement. He still felt unsettled. He went back into the kitchen and reached down to one of the bottom drawers beside the sink. From it, he pulled a Glock 17 and a fresh clip. He slapped the clip into the gun.

Miranda saw the gun in Terrence’s hand and
looked like she wanted to say something, but fear kept her quiet.

Not Dustin, he saw the gun and h
is senses immediately sharpened. “What is it?”

“
Nothin’,” said Terrence as he racked it and put one in the chamber.

Dustin told Gabriel, “That’s enough
readin’, sign it
now
.”

Terrence stepped to the sliding glass door and
pulled it open. Without going through, he called out to Raphael. No response. “Shit.”