“Sure thing, Bodie, I’ll get right on it. When do you need it?”
“The sooner the better. If you can stay late that would be great. A friend of mine is in trouble and I’m sure what’s on that flash drive will get her out of it.”
“No problem. I’ll let you know when it’s finished.”
Cathy was only a few years older than I was, but she was the best we had at managing data.
Walking into my dad’s office, I saw he was on the phone. He motioned me to sit down. A minute or so later he was done with his call.
“That was Bill. He finally got to see Karma. He said she hasn’t said anything, which is impressive knowing what the police can be like.”
“She’s stubborn and for once it’s working in her favor. So, what now?”
“Bill said she’s going to be booked into the holding facility and he’ll find out the next step. How are you holding up son?”
“I’m doing better than Karma. Please tell me after this that we’re done doing business with the Pagano’s. I know they are responsible for this fucking mess.”
“Yes, we’re done with them.”
“Good.”
“What are you working on?” he asked me.
“I just gave a shitload of data to Cathy. It’s all the money transfer information. There’s like fifteen hundred transactions. I know the answer is in that data, I just have to figure out what it is.”
“Have you talked to Anthony?”
“Why the fuck would I do that?”
“I just thought he might have some insight into the situation.”
“For all I know, he’s behind it.”
Dad looked at me for a minute, but didn’t say anything. Then I got what he meant. I needed to pay him a visit. I got up and started to walk out of dad’s office.
“Don’t go alone,” dad said.
I nodded and went to find Scott. He was our resident martial arts expert and all around badass. He was in the breakroom and didn’t hesitate when I asked him to go with me. On the way out I made one more stop.
“Dave, I need you to pull up everything on Anthony Pagano. Traffic tickets, credit cards, associates, anything you can find, and I need it in the next twenty minutes.”
“Consider it done,” he said and started typing.
Scott and I went to the company garage and got in one of the SUV’s. I looked up the address for Pagano Imports and gave it to Scott. On the way there I was getting bits of information from Dave. So far, there was nothing I didn’t already know. It’s like the guy was a model citizen, but I knew better than that. I had a thought and called Dave.
“What’s up?” he said, when he answered.
“I need you to check and see if there is a police report for Anthony Pagano for a carjacking. Happened in the last half of January.”
“Hang on.”
I heard him typing. “Nothing. There are no reports of anything like that happening.”
“Son of a bitch,” I muttered. “Okay, thanks. Keep digging.”
“This guy is dirty,” I said to Scott. “I can feel it. What I don’t know is if it’s just him, or his father, too. I never liked the guy from the first time I saw him.”
Scott pulled up in front of Pagano Imports. It was a two-story office building with a huge warehouse behind it. We got out of the SUV and went in the front door.
“We’re here to see Anthony Pagano,” I said to the receptionist.
“Do you have an appointment?”
“Nope, but it’s extremely urgent we see him. Call him and tell him it’s about Karma.”
She picked up the phone and made the call. “He’ll be out shortly.”
“Thank you.”
So, we didn’t make the poor girl nervous, we each took a seat in the waiting area. I pulled out my phone to see if there were any updates from Dave. Nothing.
“What are you doing here?” Anthony asked when he walked into the reception area. I could tell he wasn’t thrilled to see it was me.
“We need to talk. In private,” I said.
“I have nothing to say to you.”
“I think you do.” I got right in his face. “I know the carjacking was all a lie. Now, do you want to continue this here, or somewhere else?”
His face paled a little. “Follow me.”
We ended up in a boardroom at the end of a long hallway.
“Talk,” he said.
“Do you know what happened to Karma this morning?”
“Yes. My father informed me that she was arrested for stealing from us. I can’t believe I fell for her lies. That bitch …”
“I’d be very careful what you say right now. We both know she’s innocent and what you say from here on out will depend on what Scott here does to your face. Got it?”
He looked over at Scott who was blocking the door. Anthony nodded.
“Good. Now we’re going to start with something simple. Why did you fake the carjacking?”
“I wanted Karma to get closer to me. It felt like she was on the fence about our relationship and I couldn’t let that happen.”
“Why?”
“I just couldn’t.”
“That’s not an answer. Scott.”
Scott went over to Anthony and backhanded him across the face. Blood formed on his lip.
“Fuck,” Anthony yelled, and touched his fingers to his lip. “What the fuck was that for?”
“Not answering,” I told him. “Next one will be worse. So, try again, why did you fake the carjacking?”
“My mom was all over me about getting a suitable girlfriend. I wanted to piss her off by being with someone who wasn’t like us, okay?”
I didn’t believe him for a second. “I think you picked Karma because she was someone to take the fall for you. Either that or you and your father are in this together and using Karma as the scapegoat.”
Anthony didn’t say anything, so I assumed at least part of it was true.
“I want you to know that I will figure out what you’re up to Anthony. I will prove Karma is innocent and take you down in the process.”
A smug look came over his face. “You can do whatever you want, but everything points to Karma, so good luck with that.”
I moved to punch him, but Scott was faster than me. He grabbed my wrist and stopped me. “He seems like the type to press charges and we don’t need that right now.”
“Fine.” I looked Anthony right in the eye. “This isn’t over,” I said, and stormed out the office.
Chapter 35
Karma
That was the longest night of my life. I didn’t sleep at all; I was too scared. Even though I was alone in my cell, I could hear other people yelling. I was actually glad to see the guard come with breakfast. I think it was supposed to be scrambled eggs and toast, but I wasn’t sure. I ate the toast and took the water.
It was Saturday morning, and I was supposed to be at the swim meet, instead I was sitting in jail wondering if I was ever going to see the light of day again. The guard came and took my breakfast tray. When it was gone, I noticed a folded-up piece of paper in its place. I quickly grabbed it and went back to the bed.