Caliber Detective Agency Box Set 3 Read online

  Ian and Robby both wore ski masks and carried an AR-15. If all went according to plan, Kate Jordan would be dead in minutes. After checking to make certain that the reception area and restrooms were empty, the brothers headed for the elevator.

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Christopher hopped into a cab and asked the female driver to ferry him to the Caliber building. He was going there to pick up Velma and take her to dinner. However, his major reason for going there was to see Lauren.

  As he rode along, he thought about what he would say to Lauren when he saw her. What he wanted to do was to beg her to let him into her life. He couldn’t do that, because he was with Velma.

  That was going to change, at least, that was the decision Chris had come to after a night of tossing in bed. He loved Velma, but something had changed between them.

  She no longer trusted him after his affair with Rayne, not that he could blame her, but he doubted her as well. The resemblance between himself and his half-brother Sammy Sloan was remarkable. Chris had begun to wonder if he had been some sort of subconscious stand-in for Sloan in Velma’s mind.

  Regardless of the reasons, their relationship was floundering, while Lauren haunted his dreams and his waking hours.

  Thank God Rayne Carver has decided to leave me alone. Christopher thought. The last thing I need is to be involved with a third woman.

  Christopher thought about Lauren and imagined what it would be like if they were together.

  “You must be on your way to see your girl.”

  Christopher broke from his thoughts and looked at the female cabbie. She was an older woman with a kind face.

  “What makes you say that?”

  “That smile you had on your face. Admit it, you were thinking about a woman. I’ve got four sons. I know that look.”

  “I won’t deny it.”

  “This woman, are you dating?”

  “No.”

  “Why not?”

  “It’s complicated.”

  “Does she like you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then it’s not complicated. Tell her how you feel and that you want to be with her. Trust me, you don’t want to live with regrets.”

  Chris smiled at the cabbie, who could see him in her rear-view mirror.

  “I think I’ll take your advice.”

  Rayne and Pruitt’s latest case involved following around a nineteen-year-old named Jeffrey Walker. Jeffrey was a tall skinny kid with dark hair. He had been coming home with a lot of cash lately and his mother was worried that he was in over his head with “those druggie friends of his,” as she put it.

  Their assignment was to figure out what Jeffrey was into and to try to talk him out of it before the police became involved.

  After sleeping most of the day away, Jeffrey left his home. He and his mother lived in Long Island City, in the borough of Queens, and Jeffrey took a short bus ride into Midtown. After walking several city blocks, he entered a coffee shop on 40th Street. Rayne and Pruitt had followed Jeffrey by using her car.

  “This case is a dog,” Pruitt said.

  “I know, but it will help pay the bills and things have been slow lately,” Rayne said.

  “Is Sammy really leaving, or was that a ploy to get a raise?”

  “He’s headed back to Las Vegas.”

  “I’ll miss him.”

  “I thought you didn’t like him?”

  “He grew on me, and he was good to have for backup.”

  “Yeah, we may need to hire someone else when things pick up again,” Rayne said, then she studied Pruitt from the corner of her eye.

  “Why the stare?” Pruitt asked.

  “You haven’t hit on me all day. Does that mean you’ve lost interest… after last night?”

  Pruitt had been looking at Jeffrey Walker through a pair of binoculars. He sat them atop the dashboard, leaned over, and took Rayne’s face in his hands, to kiss her passionately.

  “I love you more than ever, Rayne. Don’t doubt that for a second.”

  Rayne smiled, then issued an order.

  “Pick up those binoculars before you lose sight of the kid.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “I’m not a ma’am.”

  “What you are is one hot mama,” Pruitt said, causing Rayne to giggle.

  Jake had returned from his lunch with Christopher and found that Kelli was still out shopping with her mother. After checking over the paint job he had completed that morning and touching up a spot here and there, he got to work on assembling the baby’s crib.

  The nursery should have been set up weeks earlier, but he’d been so busy on a case that he hadn’t had the time to devote to it.

  He was both nervous and excited about becoming a father but pleased that they were having a son. He and Kelli wanted more children, and Jake hoped the next child would be a girl.

  An hour after beginning on the crib assembly Jake was sweating and red with frustration. The damn crib seemed overly complicated and comprised of too many parts. He had put it together two times and the mattress wouldn’t lie level. Even worse, there seemed to be parts left over. He was aware that the manufacturer might include a few extra nuts and bolts, but he appeared to have a spare piece of crib railing.

  He was about to sign on to his laptop to search for a helpful video on crib assembly when he decided to take a break instead. After grabbing a can of beer, he returned to the nursey and took a seat in a rocking chair. While glaring at the disassembled crib, Jake called his mother to see how things were at work.

  Gail’s phone had rung. When she saw it was her son Jake calling, she answered, then placed the call on speaker phone as she held it.

  “Hello, Jake. I’ve put you on speaker so you could say hi to everyone.”

  “Who is everyone?”

  “I’m outside my office with Lauren, Kate, Velma, and a new employee named Hannah.”

  “Hello, everyone, do any of you have experience putting together cribs?”

  “You’re having trouble setting up the nursery, dear?”

  “I wasn’t until I started assembling the crib. It’s giving me a headache. I’ve been tempted to shoot the damn thing.”

  “You’ll figure it out, and you’ll make a good father—oh, the elevator just chimed. I wonder who’s here? The door downstairs is locked.”

  Gunfire erupted, followed by a scream, then came a male voice. “Drop the phone, lady, or I’ll drop you where you stand.”

  Miles away, Jake Caliber yelled into his phone. “Mother? Was that gunfire? Mother?”

  There was no answer, but Jake could make out two male voices and those of several women, although they were indistinct.

  Jake scribbled a quick note to let Kelli know where he was headed. After grabbing his gun and car keys he was out the door and headed toward his mother.

  Ian and Robby had stepped off the elevator and fired several rounds into the ceiling. When Ian saw that Gail was holding a phone, he ordered her to drop it, and she complied.

  Robby had spotted Garth cowering near a row of chairs to the left of the elevator. He prodded him forward and told him to join the women.

  “Looks like we missed one,” Robby said, “but he’s no threat. Pretty boy here looks like he’s ready to piss himself.”

  As Garth joined their group, Gail stepped forward to confront the two brothers.

  “What do you want here? Have you come to rob us? We keep no money here.”

  Ian ignored her and pointed at Kate Jordan.

  “You! Get over here.”

  Kate took a hesitant step forward, but then Gail motioned her to stop.

  “I’m in charge here. Whatever it is you want you’ll have to deal with me.”

  “Have it your way, lady,” Robby said, and raised his rifle to shoot Gail.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  “He’s on the move again,” Pruitt said.

  Jeffrey Walker left the coffee shop and began moving down the street at a slow pace, as he
did so, he checked out several cars that were parked along the curb.

  “I think he’s looking for a vehicle to steal,” Rayne said.

  Her words appeared to be proven true a minute later, as Jeffrey fiddled with the electronic door lock on a Mercedes sedan. Seconds after that, he had the car in motion.

  “He must have used some kind of electronic gizmo to override the security system. I’ll bet he’s done that before,” Pruitt said.

  “Now we know where he’s getting all the money his mother was worried about.”

  “Don’t lose him, Rayne.”

  “I won’t, and he’ll lead us right to the nearest chop shop.”

  “If that happens, we’ll have a talk with him afterwards. Maybe we’ll scare him straight.”

  “You think that will happen?”

  “No, this kid will wind up in a jail cell one day.”

  Rayne nodded. “That would be my guess.”

  At Pruitt/Carver, Sammy was looking over at the Caliber building with a concerned expression. He thought he’d heard the sound of muffled gunfire, and it seemed to come from that direction.

  He listened, discerned nothing but the sound of traffic, and was about to dismiss it when he heard what sounded like a single round being fired. A moment later, and several more rounds were fired.

  Sammy rushed from the office and out into the hallway. He might not think of himself as a Caliber, but their blood did flow through his veins. Not only did he have friends in that building, but family as well, and then there was Velma, whom he loved.

  When the elevator doors failed to open after he hit the down button, Sammy headed for the stairwell, where he flew along the stairs in a reckless fashion.

  I’m coming, Velma. Hold on, honey.

  Before Robby could fire at Gail, he was struck in the face with a paperweight that had been thrown by Hannah. The heavy decorative glass object was the size and shape of a baseball, and Hannah had thrown it for a strike.

  The paperweight slammed into Robby’s mouth, which was covered by the black ski mask he wore. Hannah’s throw had shattered two of Robby’s teeth and smashed his lower lip. In reaction, he whipped off his ski mask to feel the damage with his hand.

  Ian cried out a warning, “Don’t take it off!” but it was too late, and Robby’s damaged face was revealed.

  “Shit!” Ian said. “Now we have to kill them all.”

  As blood ran down his bearded face, Robby raised his rifle as he mumbled through his damaged mouth. “I only care about killing one right now.”

  He fired once, and the bullet struck Hannah. She weaved unsteadily as blood flowed from a wound near her temple, then collapsed to the floor behind a desk.

  Garth began screaming as his hands tore at his hair. He shoved Lauren out of his way and rushed toward the elevator.

  “No! Don’t kill me! Don’t kill me!”

  Garth sprinted past Ian and Robby before they knew what was happening. Ian recovered first, took aim, and sent a three-round burst at Garth. One of the bullets passed through the panel that controlled the elevator doors, but the other two hit their mark. After crying out a shout of pain, Garth slid down to the floor, while leaving a crimson streak across the elevator.

  When Ian turned back to look at the women he saw that Gail was herding them inside her office, to then lock the door. It amused Ian.

  The bottom half of the office walls were constructed of decorative faux wood in a walnut color, while the top half was all glass. Rounds from the AR-15’s would rip through the walls like they weren’t there.

  After staring at Kate Jordan, who was studying Robby’s face, Ian looked over at his brother.

  “Let’s do this.”

  The Mercer brothers raised their weapons and opened fire on the office.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Sammy heard the sound of dozens of rounds being discharged as he dashed through traffic to get to the other side of the street.

  At the curb, standing halfway in and out of a taxi was Christopher Caliber. He was staring up at the building with a shocked expression, after having heard the shots.

  “Caliber, what’s going on in there?” Sammy said as he reached him.

  Chris looked shaken, but he regained his wits and spoke to his female cabbie.

  “Call the police and tell them that multiple shots were fired inside the Caliber building. Ask for Lieutenant Delaney.”

  The woman held up her phone.

  “I just dialed. It sounds like a war is going on in there.”

  Chris headed toward the front door with Sammy following.

  “Is Velma still in there?” Sammy asked.

  “I came here to pick her up,” Chris said, as he slid his key in the lock. “My mother is here too… and Lauren.”

  The shooting had stopped, which was a relief and unnerving at the same time. When Chris pushed the elevator button, nothing happened.

  “It’s been disabled,” Chris said.

  “It doesn’t matter,” Sammy said. “If we rode up in that tin can we’d be sitting ducks to whoever is up there. We need to take the stairs.”

  Chris’s phone rang. It was Jake calling.

  “Something’s going on at the office, Chris.”

  “I know. I’m here with Sammy Sloan and we heard dozens of rounds being fired.”

  “I called Tommy Delaney and he’s on his way there with several cops. I’m on my way too. Wait for Tommy to show.”

  “Mom’s up there, Jake. I’m not waiting for Tommy.”

  “Are you armed?”

  “Damn it, no I don’t have a gun, but Sammy’s got a weapon.”

  “So do you,” Sammy said. He pulled up the cuff of his jeans and removed a Beretta Pico from an ankle holster. The silver & black gun was compact, but it held six rounds, with another in the chamber.

  “Sammy gave me a gun. We’re going up to Mom’s office.”

  “Mom’s office,” Jake repeated, and there was the sound of a smile in his voice. “Chris, this is before your time working here, but back when Velma, the older Velma, ran the office, an employee was held hostage by a jealous boyfriend. The guy brought a gun into the office and threatened everyone.”

  “What happened?”

  “Granddad took care of him, but it shook Velma up. She had been afraid that the guy was going to start randomly shooting people. Afterward, we called in a security firm and they suggested installing a safe room.”

  “The building has a safe room, right. I’d nearly forgotten about that.”

  “It sure does,” Jake said. “And I’ll bet you that Mother is putting it to use.”

  Ian ran a gloved hand over the windows of Gail’s office.

  “Sonofabitch! The damn room is bulletproof.”

  Robby came over and studied the chipped veneer of the faux wood their rounds had damaged. He could see what looked like steel plates beneath them. “We’re fucked,” he said.

  They had used nearly two full magazines of ammunition apiece to no effect. With their rifles empty, they took out the handguns they carried.

  Kate Jordan called to Robby from behind the glass as she dialed 9-1-1.

  “You’re related to Will Mercer, aren’t you? You look like a younger version of the man.”

  Ian let out a loud curse as he yanked off his ski mask.

  “That’s it! We have to get inside there and kill these bitches, or we are done.”

  Robby pounded a fist on the thick glass.

  “That damn Artie. If he had given us all the keys we’d be set. Maybe he wasn’t as stupid as we thought.”

  “He was dumb all right,” Ian said. “But I’m beginning to think I’m not as smart as I believed I was.”

  Robby pointed through the glass at Gail, Velma, and Lauren. They were separating the pages of a newspaper and had begun taping them to the glass.

  “What are they doing?”

  “They’re trying to block our view of them,” Ian said. “But why?”

  As they worked to co
ver the windows, Velma whispered to Gail.

  “Mr. Caliber once mentioned that there was a tunnel that led into the building, but I thought it was in the basement?”

  “That’s true, but it leads to an old wooden staircase. There’s a door behind the supply cabinet. We can access the staircase and leave the building through the basement.”

  “Who built the tunnel?” Lauren asked.

  “A man named William Gant built it so that he could sneak inside the building and frame Jake for a murder he himself committed. When Jake inherited the building, Gant constructed the tunnel during the renovation, then killed the contractor. This rear staircase was walled over when they installed the elevators, but they left the two doors intact, this one and the one in the basement.”

  “Gant? Why does that name sound familiar?” Velma said.

  “He was a cult leader out west,” Gail said.

  “In Texas, yes, I remember hearing about him as I was growing up.”

  “He and Jake battled for years, but Jake broke up that cult of his and killed Gant in the process.”

  “And now Gant’s scheme will keep us safe,” Lauren said.

  “I certainly hope so,” Gail said, “but poor Hannah, that girl saved my life by throwing that paperweight.”

  “If only I hadn’t left my gun upstairs when I came down. It would be a different story—oh my God!”

  “What is it, Velma?” Lauren asked.

  “Chris was picking me up today. He could arrive at any moment.”

  Lauren’s hand flew to her mouth. “Oh no.”

  “Work faster,” Gail said. “We need to get out of here before that happens, but we can’t let these men know that we have a way out.”

  Kate Jordan joined them. After calling the police she learned that officers were already headed to the scene. She had used postage stamps to adhere newspaper to the office’s side window while Gail, Lauren, and Velma used the roll of adhesive tape.