He watched as she ran her fingers across her lips. What is that statistic people quote? The average man thinks about sex every seven seconds. He didn't know about average but that statistic certainly fit him today.
"So, counselor, mind telling me what was up with that gun this afternoon?" She'd been thinking about it off and on since she'd watched him clip that gun on. It was a side of him she'd never seen and while she had felt safe with him in the warehouse, she wasn't about to let the incident go without notice.
"I defend the criminal element, you know that. Sometimes I have to go places where it would be foolish to go unprotected. Maybe I could have mentioned it to you, but I guess I just thought you'd always suspected."
"Maybe I should have, I wondered why the console was locked. Heaven knows I read enough crime fiction that I should have deduced it. It just was a side of you I didn't know existed. It made you seem dangerous in a way, and I've never thought of you as dangerous."
There were many things they'd never discussed. Kansas City was a mob town and he was a first or second generation Italian American, depending on whether you looked at his mother’s or father’s side of the family. Both sides had come from a little island called Sicily. He'd heard rumors about his family being connected his whole life, but it wasn't as if he grew up living scenes from the Godfather. Sure, his father owned an Italian restaurant frequented by other Italian families, but he had no reason to believe his father was "mobbed up."
He ran his fingers over the back of her hand as he spoke. “So, have you spoken to the kids today?”
I talked with Jake earlier; he told me how far west they’d gotten today.” She laughed. “He said they’re still getting along - God knows that being cooped up in a car together can bring out the best or worst in people.”
Bringing out the best or worst. Was that what was happening between the two of them? Lane's cell phone buzzed before she could muse about it any further.
She hung up, explaining that her call was from one of the detectives that they'd met at the warehouse. “They talked with Jeff. They say I can see him now.”
She’d just hung up when Ben's phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID as he answered, "Bellini."
Lane stood and picked up her soda can and Ben's water bottle and tilted her head toward the recycling bin. She left Ben alone to have his conversation, tossed the bottle, and can into the appropriate bins. When she returned to the table, Ben was ending his conversation. "That was Tanner. There's some been activity at the warehouse. Someone came to claim the stuff and there was an arrest. I need to go back to the station." He reached into his wallet and offered Lane some cash. "You left your purse in the SUV. It's been hours since we had lunch, and you might want something before I get back."
She took the bills he offered. "Thanks. I'd forgotten all about my purse. Any idea how long you'll be gone? Depending on how Jeff is feeling, I might want to take a cab to the hotel. Maybe I should just go with you to the SUV and get my purse."
Luckily, Ben had made reservations online before they'd left Omaha and they'd checked into the Ritz Carlton before meeting Parillo at the warehouse. He handed her his keys. "Just take the SUV. I'll go upstairs with you. Maybe I can catch a ride with the detective. If not, I'll call Tanner. If he can't pick me up, I'll take a cab to the station." He put his hand in the small of her back and guided her toward the elevators.
When they got to Jeff’s room, Detective Boyer told Lane that even though they'd made an arrest at the warehouse they were stationing a guard outside Jeff's room. “We’ve told the guard that you and Ben are the only people allowed in the room.”
Ben spoke with the detective who agreed to give him a ride to the station.
“What can you tell me about what happened to him?” She asked as they stood just outside Jeff’s room.
The detective smiled. “I’ll let him tell you about it, Mrs. Parker.”
“I’ll see you later at the hotel.” Ben said as he brushed a kiss on Lane's cheek then turned and followed the detective toward the elevators.
Lane nodded a greeting to the uniformed police guard and opened the door to Jeff's room.
"Hi, Jeff."
"Aunt Lane. I suppose you have questions too."
Lane smiled at him. "I sure do, you've been missing for over a week. But, if you're not up to talking, I'll understand. I'll leave it up to you."
"Have you talked to Mom?" He looked younger than his 25 years. She imagined her own son, Jake, lying helpless in a hospital bed.
"Yes. The first flight she could get leaves at 6:00 in the morning. She'll be here before noon tomorrow. Do you want to talk about it, or would you rather wait until Maggie gets here tomorrow?"
Jeff sighed. "Maybe it'll start to make sense the more I talk about it, because it doesn't make a lick of sense to me right now."
Lane sat down in the chair next to his bed and patted his hand. "Let me tell you what I know and you can fill in the blanks. Would that help?"
She told him what Maggie had related about the breakdown of his truck and about Blake talking to the Triple A driver who had jump started his truck, about pinging his phone and finally about Tanner finding him in the warehouse.
"I was in Gretna checking out a building site. I missed my turn to get on the interstate and ended up on a gravel road. My truck died. The battery on my cell was dead too, so I felt pretty lucky that the truck died close to a farmhouse. I walked to it and knocked on the front door. There was no answer, so I went around back and knocked. No answer there either." He paused and took a drink water. “I tried the doors and windows to see if anything was unlocked. You know, so I could go in and use the phone. When I was sure there was no way in, I walked back to my truck and opened the hood."
He gave a little laugh. "I really don't know why, I don't know much about car engines. I had just closed the hood and was wondering how far and in what direction I needed to walk to find a phone. I looked up and saw an SUV had stopped a few feet behind my truck. I walked back to it and a really hot blonde was behind the wheel. She offered to give me a ride.” He smiled. “I remember thinking that I really shouldn't get in a vehicle with a stranger no matter how pretty she was, so I asked if I could just use her cell phone. But, she said she didn't have any bars. And so I got in the SUV with her." He took another drink of water. "She drove me back to Gretna. The gas station didn't have a pay phone, but I was able to buy a charger for my phone. I went into the bathroom to use the electric outlet there to charge it."
Lane had decided just to let Jeff tell his story and she didn't ask any questions.
"After a while, someone banged on the door, so I had to leave the men's room. Luckily, the phone had charged enough for me to call Triple A. I'd gone outside to wait where I found another outlet. That's when I sent Mom the e-mail. I guess I waited about half an hour before the tow truck showed up and gave me a ride back to my truck. He checked everything out and jumped the battery. My truck started, so the guy followed me back to Interstate 80." Jeff took another drink.