“Go sit down, put the bag under the bench. Then you sit there and wait five minutes, and then you walk away and don’t look back.”
“What about the pictures?” Valencia asked as she walked slowly toward the bench.
“Once I have the money and I’m sure that you didn’t try anything stupid, I’ll tell you where to find the pictures.”
“How do I know that I can trust you?” Valencia asked, trying to
keep him on the phone for as long as she could so Carla could get a location.
“You don’t. You simply have no alternative,” he ended the call, and Valencia sat down on the bench. She placed the bag with the money under the bench, and as she was instructed, Valencia sat there for a while before she got up and walked away.
Chapter Thirteen
Valencia walked away from the bench toward East Drive. When she got to the curb, Adrianna pulled up and she got in the car with her. She was so scared that Valencia was hyperventilating. Adrianna handed her a bottle of water.
“Here, drink some of that,” she said, and Valencia took a sip. “Are you alright?” she asked, and all Valencia could do was nod her head.
As soon as Valencia had left the area, Fantasy walked up and sat down on the bench next to where the money bag was. With the bag with the money clearly in sight, she took out her cell phone and made a call to no one.
“Hey, girl. What’s up?” she paused as if she were actually talking to somebody. “Shit, every complaint I ever had with him, I threw it at him. I told him I was tired of him drinking so much, and him embarrassing me in public was getting really old. I told him I was tired of carrying all the weight financially. That he needs to get off his ass and start making some money. I’m losing respect for him, Gina. And that’s not good,” she paused again. “Big raise, my big ass. You know they aren’t paying any money out there. Even with the raise, I still make twice what he’s making. He makes enough to pay for that Acura he didn’t need and his high-ass insurance. He can handle a bill every now and then. He’s always crying that he’s broke, but the nigga always got money to buy a bottle or hang out with his drunk-ass friends. But when I bring up his drinking or that car, he gets annoyed.”
It was right about that time when a man sat down on the bench. As Fantasy continued her conversation, she took several pictures of the man as he reached under the bench, got the bag, stood, and walked away.
“I have eyes on the target,” Fantasy said, taking several more pictures of him. “White male, approximately five-feet six-inches tall, one hundred eighty-five pounds, dressed in jeans, blue hoodie and a Mets hat. Heading toward the bridge.”
“Acknowledged, Fantasy. When target has cleared, proceed to pursuit vehicle.”
“Acknowledged.”
“I have eyes on him,” Marvin said as the man passed. “In pursuit.”
“Acknowledged. I have strong signal on the package.”
“Target is heading north,” Marvin said.
“Looks like he’s headed for Fifth Avenue,” Carla said.
Marvin kept his distance from the target, following as the man walked ahead of him, looking back periodically. As Carla predicted, the target followed the path around and exited the park on Fifth Avenue. When he got there, he went to the edge of the sidewalk and stood there.
“What’s he doing?” Carla asked.
“He’s just standing there,” Marvin paused, as a red Corvette stopped in front of the man. “He just put the money bag in a red Corvette,” he said as the car pulled off. “Heading south on Fifth.”
“Acknowledged, Marvin. Fantasy is on her way,” Carla said. “Geno?”
“We have a signal on the package. He should be passing our location any second.”
“Got him. Red Corvette,” Xavier said, as he pulled out into traffic, and turned left on Fifth Avenue to follow the Corvette. “In pursuit,” he said as the Corvette made a left turn onto East 36th Street, and then a right on 2nd Avenue, heading toward the Midtown Tunnel.
Marvin didn’t have to wait very long at the park before Fantasy picked him up and they headed for the tunnel.
“Looks like we’re headed for Long Island,” Geno said, and settled in for the ride.
“Car is registered to Brayden Henderson,” Carla began. “Get this, he’s a private investigator.”
“Turned blackmailer,” Geno said.
Keeping their distance, they were able to easily follow the Corvette on Interstate 495 to a house in Garden City. Once Marvin arrived with Fantasy, they took the back door, while Geno kicked in the front door.