Chapter 27
“She’s lying. I never gave her the passwords,” Sandford bellowed.
“That’s true, he never did give them to me, so I had to ferret them out on my own. This man is the cheapest bastard in the whole world. I knew the day would come when I’d need a hold of some kind over him. I guess this is it.”
“Don’t you dare, Fiona! I’m warning you,” Sandford said as he tried to lunge for his wife. Harry reached out and shoved him deep into the chair.
Abner flexed his fingers again.
They all waited to see what Fiona Sandford would do.
“It’s reciprocity. It’s his favorite word, for some reason.”
“Well, damn,” Abner said as he typed in the word. A blizzard of numbers raced across the screen. “Man, this is more money than I’ve ever seen in my whole life. We are going to have a great time doling this out. A really great time.”
“I want a big chunk to go to the Wounded Warriors,” Maggie said.
“I want millions to go to no-kill animal shelters,” Dennis said.
“I want to fix up the whole Southeast so people are proud to live there,” Jack said.
“Millions to disadvantaged children,” Harry said.
“Scholarships,” Abner said.
“I’ll think of something,” Espinosa said happily as he smacked his hands together.
Sandford cursed long and loud as he struggled to get out of the chair, only to be restrained by Harry again.
“And to think this guy seriously thought he was going to be governor of Virginia. Not,” Jack said. “Okay, let’s get them out to the van and hightail it out of here. I’m going to turn off all the lighting, batten down the house, then I’ll meet you outside. If that crud even blinks, hit him with the Taser.”
“Where are you taking us?” Fiona yelped.
“To a place you’re going to love. Your husband and you, too, own the property. It’s condemned but you, Marks, your husband, and the rats will enjoy your stay, which will last through Christmas Day, at which point the three of you will be relocated. Enough talking already. Get going, everyone.”
Harry hung back to help Jack. “That went well. Surprised me, though, that the wife knew the passwords. I have to say, Jack, nose or no nose, I don’t think the guy would have given them up. That’s just my opinion.”
Jack looked at Harry. “Tell me you aren’t serious. You really believe Sandford would have let Maggie cut off his nose.”
“Yeah, Jack, I believe that. The wife now, women are vain, and no way was she giving up those lips. No way in hell.”
“Whatever, we won in the end. I’m loving this.”
An hour and twenty minutes later, Ted pulled the van to the curb. Luther and his three colleagues rushed to help unload the cursing passengers.
“Welcome home, Mr. and Mrs. Sandford,” Luther said. For effect, he and his friends wore black ski masks with holes cut out for the eyes, nose, and mouth. They looked scary evil.
“How’s Marks doing?” Jack asked.
“Man, that dude is something else. He’s about ready to explode. That dude hasn’t shut up for even a minute. I think he’ll be glad for some company.”
Jack grinned.
Sandford stood on his own two feet, and Harry’s grip on his arm was steely hard. Ted and Espinosa each had one of Fiona Sandford’s arms. Both were cursing and struggling to no avail. Maggie reached over and slapped Fiona, the sound loud in the clear night.
“God, I cannot wait to get rid of these two,” Jack said as he led the way into Sandford’s building. “You see anything you like here, Mr. Sandford?” The man’s response brought heat to Jack’s cheeks. “Okay, there is just no talking to some people. Dump him, Harry, and lock the doors. We’re done with this scum.”
Harry needed no urging. He dumped Tyler Sandford inside the door and gave him a shove with his foot. He stepped aside as Espinosa gave Fiona a good push, causing her to land on top of her husband. The rats started to squeal, and Marks bellowed, albeit hoarsely, about being bitten twice. Luther yanked the door closed and fastened a brand-new padlock on the reinforced door.
As one, the group looked at one another and shouted loud enough to be heard through the door. “Merry Christmas!”
A round of robust handshaking took place. Luther and his friends were all smiles when they announced that they had the dudes and dudess covered. “Come back tomorrow and don’t forget my granny and the pastor are expecting you for the big party. Starts at six. Granny don’t like people when they’re late, so be on time.”
Dennis assured him they would all be on time. “You guys wrapped all the presents for everyone? No one got left out? Were there enough toys?”
“Yeah, yeah, and yeah. Way too much,” Luther said.
“We’re outta here, guys,” Ted said as he marched over to the van, which he’d left running. “All aboard that’s coming aboard!” A wild scramble ensued.
“Now what?” Abner asked as Ted pulled a U-turn. He gave the horn a soft tap and waved.
“Now we go home, go to bed, and when we wake up, it will be Christmas Eve. I have some shopping and wrapping to do. I want to talk to my wife, too. Then I have to go out and buy our Christmas Day dinner. What about you guys?” Jack asked.
“I’ll buy the stuff for dinner if you give me a list,” Dennis said.
“Turkey and all the trimmings,” Jack said.
Ted and Maggie looked at one another. “We’re going to try to get a bead on that drug company Nikki’s firm is going up against. Abner is going to help. Harry has to get home to help with Lily, as Yoko is exhausted. Like Luther said, we’ve got it covered.”
Back at the BOLO Building, the little group separated with hugs and claps on the back.
“It is soooo good to have my family back. Merry Christmas all,” Maggie cried happily as she hugged everyone one more time.
“Merry Christmas!” the guys shouted. Their happy cheers rang out in the crystal-clear night.