Sin City Assassin (The Bill Dix Detective Series Book 3) (3 page)

“What do you mean lucky to be alive?” snapped Michelle. “Is this all a big joke to you?”

The comment stung, but Dix knew it was best to just let Michelle vent.

Within a minute or so, she regained her composure. The news that her husband was expected to have a full recovery finally set in. She was still shaken, but tried to make sense of everything.

“Sorry, Bill,” she apologized. “I really am. Thanks for getting him here and giving me the update. I just really want to see him.”

Dix hugged Michelle tightly. He was very thankful that he too wasn’t lying in a hospital bed. “No worries. We should be able to see him soon. I bet he’ll be happy to see you.”

Chapter 5:

Petersen’s head pounded when he came to after surgery. He felt numbness in his shoulder and lifted his left hand to see it was in a cast.
Well, at least I’m alive
, he mused to himself. Images of the gunfight crept back into his mind. He wondered what had happened after he lost consciousness. Within seconds he was worried about what his wife must be going through. He also felt a nagging need to know if Dix was okay.

He looked to his left to see a red emergency button and pushed it.

A nurse entered the room and smiled. “What’s up, Sugar?”

Petersen chuckled from the ‘Sugar’ comment and felt serious pain in his shoulder. It hurt so bad, it caused him to lose his breath. He relaxed his muscles and caught his breath. “Any way you can track down my wife, Michelle, or Bill Dix? They should hopefully be out front, and I really want to see them.”

“Sugar, they’ve been outside the whole time waiting on you. Let me go get them.” She turned and hurried out of the room.

A moment later his room door burst open as Michelle ran to the side of his bed. They cried and kissed each other. “Babe, I’m so glad to see you,” was all he could muster to say to her.

Michelle cried while shaking. “You jackass, we get married, and the first thing you try to do is get yourself killed?” She continued to hug him lovingly, teary eyed.

Petersen knew she was joking with him and he was happy to be around to hear it. “Honey, can you lessen your grip just a little? You’re hurting me.”

“I will not, I’m never letting you go again,” she replied defiantly.

Petersen managed to roll his body in such a way to alleviate some of his discomfort. He was content just holding her. They must have embraced for at least ten minutes. Not many words were said, but the strong bond between the two felt even stronger now. After awhile, Petersen wondered about Dix.

“Babe, how’s Bill? He okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, he made it through the gun battle and was shaken up a bit, but he’ll be glad you’re okay.” As she spoke, Dix poked his head inside the room. Michelle didn’t see Dix, but Petersen tried to wave him in.

Dix shook his head and turned around to give them space once he could see Petersen was awake and being well taken care of. He was ecstatic to know his partner would be all right. Without hesitation, Dix’s mind changed gears. He vowed to spend every moment of every day he had left on Earth tracking down whoever hurt Petersen.
So much for retirement,
he thought. He secretly determined he’d treat the assholes responsible like animals once he found them. His blood pressure skyrocketed and he clenched his fists.
Calm down, you’re no use to Steve if you can’t get it together
. His wife was always able to calm him down. Dix walked around the corner and saw her. He did calm some, but all he could think about was tracking down and apprehending the crew that had shot Petersen.
It’s gonna be a long couple of days
.

Chapter 6:

Dix hugged his wife while his mind worked overtime trying to analyze the shootout. His cell phone began vibrating in his pocket. His wife felt it too and gave him a look like don’t you dare answer it.

Dix needed answers, however, and he knew he had to take the call. “Honey, I have to grab this call. Someone’s gonna pay for what they did to Steve.”

“I know. I just don’t want to be dealing with what Michelle’s dealing with right now. Promise me you can catch these jerks, and not get hurt.” She knew how close her husband was with Steve. She also knew whoever it was that put Steve in the hospital would be hunted to the ends of the Earth until they were located and dealt with.

Dix grinned, but his eyes showed fierce determination. “Honey, you know I’ll try, but these guys are some real bad apples.”

With a stern look, Jessica coolly answered him. “You get yourself hurt, and you’ll have to deal with me. I’ll make these guys look like playful kittens.” Dix cringed and she smacked him on the arm and went to sit down in the waiting area. As she walked away, she looked back and smiled at him. He knew she’d support him, but it was comforting to know she’d given him the green light.

Dix retrieved his cell phone from his pocket. He entered the unlock code and saw he had three voicemails from Sergeant Randy Frazier with the Las Vegas Metro Police Department, his old friend who’d helped him at the scene where Petersen was shot. He glanced up at the TV as he dialed his voicemail and noticed the local news had interrupted the programming to show an unmarked police vehicle completely ablaze on Las Vegas Boulevard. He listened to all three messages, and then quickly called Frazier back.

“Randy, it’s Dix, what’s the status?” He braced himself for some news, any news, that would help him locate the people responsible for shooting Petersen.

“Bill, the bad guys just killed two of our men with automatic weapons right on Las Vegas Boulevard. They got away. I’m sorry, man. We’re doing everything we can. How’s your buddy?”

Dix shook his head and let out a breath. “Damn it, these guys are crazy. What do you mean they got away? You guys can’t find one damn car loaded full of shooters?”

“Calm down, buddy, we are trying. We haven’t seen anything like this before and we got caught with our pants down,” he replied defensively. He noticed Dix didn’t even mention his friend who’d been shot. He knew from experience that the man was probably okay since Dix rarely talked about stuff unless it needed mentioning. He continued. “I’ve got everyone looking for, and talking to, their confidential informants to see if we can get a beat on this crew. High-powered rifles, reckless abandon, sounds like professionals for hire to me.”

Dix agreed with Frazier’s assessment of the suspects, but wondered what his people were up to at the time Petersen was shot, and if whatever it was they were doing could give him some leads. He also realized he needed to call his lieutenant and report that he and Petersen were in a shooting while on vacation... again.
The lieutenant can wait,
he thought.

“How the hell did you guys get to the scene so quick?” Dix asked Frazier.

“We had a panic alarm from our undercover agent. He’d been shot by the guys with the briefcase.”

“What?” Dix was confused. He wondered how the suspects would know the undercover officer was actually an undercover officer. He also wondered how they would have known he’d have a briefcase, what was in it, and have the tenacity to steal it.

“You heard me right. Our UC was supposed to meet a supplier of pharmaceutical pills, but instead he was shot and robbed by the thugs you ran into.”

Dix’s mind worked frantically. He knew it was rare for a UC to get robbed, although it does happen. He wondered if the thugs worked for the supplier or a competitor, or if they were completely unassociated. “Is your UC okay?” Dix asked.

“He lost a lot of blood, but he had the will to survive,” Frasier replied. “He was wearing a vest, but the round still penetrated his chest. He’s gonna recover, though.”

Dix shook his head and whistled. “Guess it makes sense he works in Vegas with luck like that. I bet he’ll want to locate these bastards too.” Dix figured if the UC was anything like him, he’d want to personally find the men who shot him.

“He’s already bitching about getting back into this one. Something about he’s fine and the fact he was shot gives him an even greater cover.”

Dix chuckled and raised an eyebrow. “He’s right, you know.”

“Yeah I know, but he’s gonna need to be on the sidelines for awhile.” Frazier would love nothing more than let his UC get the guys who shot him, but he also had an obligation to make sure he was healthy and ready to get back in the mix.

Dix contemplated his next move. “Randy, I gotta tell you, I was about to retire. We were out here on vacation. I haven’t told my agency what happened yet, but I’m pretty sure they won’t let me get involved.”

“Stop right there, Bill. I know where you’re headed with this, and it isn’t necessary. You’ll be in on every step of this investigation. With or without the support of your agency.”

Dix nodded in relief. “Randy, I really appreciate this. Consider us even.” The two discussed where to meet and how to get Dix involved with the investigation. Dix left Michelle and Petersen at the hospital and drove his wife back to their hotel to get a change of clothes and cleaned up.

He walked her to their room and she gave him a huge hug.

“Why don’t you come inside for a few minutes, you know, to get a change of clothes?” she asked with a wink.

Dix could see passion and love in her eyes. He figured he might not see her for a few days so he’d better take advantage of the opportunity. He was wound up tight and could use the stress relief to help him think things through with a calm approach. He kicked the door shut with his foot.

Fifteen minutes later, Dix emerged full of energy with fierce intent in his eyes.

Chapter 7:

Robert Blass, the only child of infamous Canadian gangster Richard Blass, poured a glass of expensive scotch. He replaced the cap and gently swirled the two ice cubes while pacing in his suite at the Ritz-Carlton. His view overlooked the Toronto Inner Harbour. It also had a clear line of sight to the Toronto City Centre Airport. He chuckled how beautiful and peaceful things appeared outside. His mind, however, was torn and brutal. Blass tapped his index finger on the glass, and then checked his Audemar watch. The hands indicated it would be ten minutes before his girlfriend and potential business associate, Marie Roy, landed at the airport with a quarter-million dollars body-packed around her waist and back.
If she has the money, I’m going to ask her to join the inner circle,
he decided.

Blass grabbed the phone and dialed the concierge desk.

“Yes, Mr. Laurin, how can I help you?” asked the call taker, oblivious to ‘Laurin’s’ true identity.

Blass smugly answered. “Please have the car ready, I’m coming down.” He'd never met his father, but he’d read how Raymond Laurin and Roger Levesque, two men in his father’s gang, had ratted him out during a bank robbery. Blass had used the fake name of ‘Laurin’ to cover his tracks for years. He’d also kept it as a reminder about rats, and how they were unacceptable and should be killed on the spot when located.

“Sure, where are we headed?”

“The airport. Make sure the car has ice and bubbly.” Blass hadn’t seen Marie in a week and he was horny. He knew she had a thing for champagne and he was hoping they’d be celebrating her accomplishment if she showed up with the money.

“Will do. See you in five minutes.” The concierge buzzed Mr. Laurin’s driver, the car was prepared, and both the car and the driver waited in front of the hotel entrance.

Blass and his two bodyguards exited the hotel quickly. The guards scanned the area and walked in such a manner to ensure Blass was in between them, making it very difficult to get a shot off had someone wanted to. The two men were armed, but their weapons were concealed. They made it to the limousine, opened the door for Blass, and he climbed in. Once he was secure, the men moved to the other side. One man walked up to the front of the limousine while the other followed them in an armored SUV.

As the caravan with Blass pulled alongside the front of the ferry building exit, Blass could see Marie sidling through one of the sliding glass doors. He smiled and noticed she looked slightly nervous. Right behind her, Blass saw three Royal Canadian Mounted Policemen (RCMP). They were clearly having a discussion with Marie. His smile left his face and he felt his pulse race. He motioned to the man in the SUV to move in front of the limousine and told the driver to be ready to move in an instant. Blass peered through the bulletproof glass and saw that the RCMPs were rolling Marie’s luggage and one was carrying her dog carrier. He began to chuckle once he realized Marie had created several excellent diversions to keep the RCMPs preoccupied. In doing so, it was very unlikely they’d notice Marie had money strapped around her body.
She’s a smart one, that’s for sure.

Blass wanted desperately to kiss and hold Marie, but he could not be seen, at least not by police. The secret to his amazing success had been his anonymity. His aliases and varying forms of identification always kept people guessing. He’d learned at a very young age who his father was and what he did for a living. Blass studied where his father had gone wrong and made every effort not to repeat the same mistakes.

The driver of the SUV got out and immediately began helping Marie and the RCMPs load her luggage and the dog carrier into the SUV. Blass could see one of the RCMPs appeared smitten by Marie. He flirted with her and she flirted back. After a few minutes, everyone said their goodbyes and the SUV pulled away.

One of the RCMPs looked back and noticed the SUV carrying the pretty lady was being followed by a limousine. He had no idea Canada’s most sought after criminal was riding in the backseat contemplating his next target.

The limo and SUV pulled into the underground structure at the Ritz-Carlton. While the bodyguards dealt with the cars and luggage, Marie ran over to embrace and kiss Blass.

“Hello, you crazy man.” She kissed him passionately. She could feel him getting aroused and rubbed herself on him harder.

Blass laughed and pushed back against her. “I missed you. I can feel something wrapped around your body. Is it the money?”