Maxwell sat in the passenger seat. He had no words of wisdom. In fact, he just kept shaking his head.
I glanced his way. “You must have some advice.”
“This is a puzzle for me.” Maxwell shrugged. “A wise man said, ‘the truth will set you free.’”
“But then Ava will put two and two together and realize my dark associations.”
“She probably already knows.”
“No. If she did, it would scare her.” I gripped the steering wheel. “And I don’t want her scared, when it comes to me.”
“You may not want to hear the other option then.”
“What’s that?” I quirked my eyebrows. “I’m open to almost anything.”
“You could kill her grandmother.” With both hands, Maxwell rubbed his face, telling me he wasn’t a fan of that option. “In fact, forget what I said. That’s fucked up. I’m just looking at this from the outside.”
“No.” I tapped the steering wheel. “Let’s walk down that path for a minute.”
Air traffic control led the plane forward.
Maxwell cleared his throat. “You should be wary with my advice. I never had a grandmother, but I heard they rock.”
“Both of my grandmothers were dead, before I was born.”
The plane parked. We would still have ten minutes to wait for the pilot to turn everything off, and the staff to prepare for everyone to leave the plane.
I’d ordered a limo.
It pulled in beside us.
Maxwell gave me a nervous glance. “If we kill the grandma, it would need to be now. This would be the best time. Fucked up, but the truth. At this point, no one really knows you took her, except her. In fact, you could go see Ava, while I dispose of the body.”
My head hurt.
Ava’s face came to my mind.
“I couldn’t do it.”
Maxwell nodded. “Good.”
“Good?”
“Yeah. It would’ve been messed up.”
“Then, why offer it?”
“Because you asked for my help. This is your soul, not mine.”
I glanced at him. “But your hands would’ve been bloody too.”
“I don’t mind blood on my hands.”
I turned back to the plane.
The door opened.
The stairs lowered.
“So, killing Ava’s grandmother is not an option.” I took off my seatbelt. “Maybe, I could keep her for a few days in a hotel and make sure she remains on my side.”
“That just sounds like drawing out the kidnapping.”
“Then, we’re back to the bag of money.”
“How much is in it?” Maxwell asked.
“Quarter of a million.”
Maxwell whistled. “Grandma might keep her mouth closed for that.”
“And if she doesn’t?”
“You know what I say. Move on. Get a new chick. Another ballerina even.”
“As I said, that’s not an option.” I opened the door and got out of the car.
Maxwell climbed out with me and gestured to the limo. “We’re riding that back?”
“Yeah. There’s water and snacks in there just in case she’s hungry,”
“She may be, if he had her duct taped the whole time.”
I winced.
“Sorry. Just stating the facts.” Maxwell buttoned up his new jacket and then brushed down one arm. “Thanks for the suit by the way.”
“No problem.” My phone buzzed.
My heart roared in my ears as I checked it.
Ava texted.
Ava: The interview went well.
Me: Congratulations. I knew it would.
I could’ve called, but I was too nervous to talk to her.
I placed the phone back in my pocket. “Here we go.”
We walked toward the plane.
Maxwell added, “You could just call up Ava and tell her everything.”
“That’s not a conversation I want to have.”
“You may have to.”
“I’ll do everything in my power not to have that talk.”
Maxwell looked ready to say something else, but Fuego stepped out of the airplane and a small older black woman walked out with him.
Dear God. What is she thinking?
Terror enveloped her face as she frantically scanned the area. She wore a purple housecoat with small gray elephants all over it. The bottom was ripped. A bandage was on her cheek. Some sort of brown stocking topped her head. Gray fuzzy slippers covered her feet.
“At least, the duct tape is gone.” Maxwell sighed. “It looked like he got her right as she sat down to watch tv, before heading to bed.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Her wig is off.”
“How do you know she wears a wig?”
“Stocking cap.”
Fuego spotted me and widened his eyes. His pace hurried. Meanwhile, Ava’s grandmother’s hands shook as she lowered one step at a time.
I leaned Maxwell’s way. “On second thought. Go ahead and kill him.”
Maxwell nodded. “Yeah. I can do that. She looks like a nice woman. If I had a grandma, that’s what I would want her to look like. Although she’s pretty good-looking. . .sort of. Got to see her with the wig on.”
“This is bullshit. It was a simple command. Why did he fuck up so bad?”
“Some guys fuck up simple tasks.” Maxwell pointed to the airplane. “Maybe I’ll take him on the plane and choke him in the back. Dump the body in the bathroom. Do you have people to get rid of it?”