Simon Says_. Walk (Kate Morgan #6)(22)
Author: Dale Mayer

 

“He’ll be even more unhappy when he realizes how many other guys are gone.”

 

At that, Ricky raised an eyebrow. “We’ve been short a couple guys,” Ricky noted.

 

“Are you telling me that’s the super’s work?” Simon asked Ricky.

 

“Yep, sure is. You can only work with him if he likes you, and he sure doesn’t like anybody.”

 

“You mean, nobody likes him,” Simon corrected.

 

Ricky grinned. “True, I’ll give you that one,” he said, with an easy smile. “Honestly the guy’s an asshole, and, if you want me to work again, as soon as that paycheck hits my bank account, I’m up for it—but not, … not with Joe and not with that super.”

 

“Why not Joe?” Simon asked, as the kid turned to walk away.

 

Ricky pivoted on his heels and called back over his shoulder. “Because Joe hired the super, and, even though we told Joe that his super was no-good, Joe kept him on payroll. That means Joe’s judgment’s lacking too, and he didn’t stand up for us. So, hell no, not Joe either.”

 

It was a fair statement, but it would cause Simon some headaches now because, however many other people wrongfully fired must be replaced, and nobody would trust Joe anymore. He gave Joe a few more minutes and then phoned his number back. “So who’s the super?” Simon asked in a conversational tone.

 

“My fucking brother-in-law,” Joe snarled. “And before you ask, … no, I wouldn’t have hired him because of that, but he’s got quite a bit of history in the industry.”

 

“I’m not sure it’s good history though. Did you check into that?”

 

“No, I didn’t,” he said, with another snarl. “I’m in the process of kicking his ass out of the company,” he stated, followed by a groan at the end.

 

“You’ll also find a whole lot of other people wrongfully fired won’t show up again. Ricky will be at another job because he won’t work with you anymore because you hired the super, then dismissed their complaints about him,” Simon added, with a harder note. “You know how I feel about employment issues becoming something that stops the work being done.”

 

“Yeah, I know,” Joe replied. “I know. I’m trying to find a way out of this mess now.”

 

“Is there a problem finding a way out of this mess?” Simon asked forcefully. “I’m not sure what problem there could be.”

 

“I can’t find my damn brother-in-law.” Joe swore again. “He’s not answering his phone, and he didn’t show up for work.”

 

“Is he a drinker?”

 

Joe sighed. “Yes, but I can’t leave the site because we’ve got concrete coming in the next hour. I need him here.”

 

“Chances are, he ain’t coming.”

 

“Yeah, I already got that message,” Joe snapped. In a calmer voice, he said, “I’ll have to run past his place when I get off work,” he muttered. “Damn asshole.”

 

“I didn’t think you needed to be told this, but that’s what happens when you try to give somebody a break,” Simon spelled out.

 

Joe hesitated before speaking. “I screwed up this one. Are you pissed off at me enough to fire me?”

 

“Hell no, not for bad judgment.” Simon took a deep breath because Joe needed to hear this next part. “However, I really, really won’t be happy if you do it again.”

 

“Yeah, got it. My sister ain’t gonna be happy either.”

 

“No, I’m sure she won’t.”

 

“And unfortunately, when it comes to shit like this, there ain’t no way to keep them happy.”

 

“Are they living together?”

 

“They were. I talked to her this morning. She said he didn’t come home last night.”

 

At that, Simon froze and turned to look around, with a sense of doom settling at the back of his mind, so far off. “What’s his address?”

 

“He lives up in the commercial district,” Joe replied, a bit alarmed. “Why?”

 

“Maybe I’ll take a swing past there.”

 

“My sister’s there, and apparently he didn’t come home. So I don’t think that’ll do you any good either.”

 

“Right.” Simon considered that for a moment and then asked, “Has he got any favorite haunts?”

 

“Lots of them, but the pool hall is one of them,” Joe said, clearly exasperated. “I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he were there. Sometimes he stays there when he’s drunk. And, if he can’t come home, he hangs there until he sobers up.”

 

“Which is still better than him driving home and having a car accident and killing somebody else.”

 

“True enough. It probably wouldn’t be a good idea if you’re the one who finds him though.”

 

“Why is that?”

 

“He’s … He can be belligerent.”

 

“He can also be a flat-out asshole, according to Ricky.”

 

“Yeah, … apparently he doesn’t have very much in the way of friends when it comes to this industry, but I’m only just finding that out now. My sister told me that he had a hell of a rep, but I didn’t check into it because she believed him. And I believed my sister.”

 

“Love can be blind,” Simon remarked gently. “Since you can’t find this asshole, give me a phone number or a street address for the pool hall, and I’ll go find him myself.” When Joe hesitated, Simon came on strong. “I mean it. We need to sort out wherever he is and bring this to a close. He’s off my team, and we can’t have this shit continue.”

 

“No, no, I understand. I don’t know where he’ll be.”

 

“What pool hall did you say he goes to?”

 

“The one down here.” And he gave him the address. “He won’t be too far off that.”

 

“Fine, I’ll wander around. I think I know the joint you mean.”

 

“Doesn’t mean he’s there though,” Joe noted cautiously.

 

“No, he probably isn’t. Chances are, he’s sleeping it off somewhere.”