Look Alive Twenty-Five (Stephanie Plum 25)

That got a small smile from Wulf. “This won’t take long.” He glanced at my laundry basket. “I see you have a full morning.”

My windows were closed and locked and my door was double bolted, but here was Wulf. No point in asking how he got in. There were three men in my life who had seemingly supernatural skills when it came to getting into my apartment. Wulf, Diesel, and Ranger weren’t stopped by the locks on my door. Morelli wasn’t stopped by my door locks either, but that was because he had a key.

“As you know, I’ve been engaged by a friend to find someone,” Wulf said.

“Ryan Meier.”

“Yes. Ryan is my friend’s son. He was in this country on a student visa. He left school, overstayed his visa, and took an illegal job working at the deli. Shortly after taking the job he disappeared.”

“Leaving a shoe behind in the parking lot.”

“Correct. Everyone is busy trying to solve the kidnapping mystery, looking for the kidnapper. I don’t care about the kidnapper. I want to find Ryan Meier.”

“Isn’t it all the same?”

“Different focus. Different process. Five men are hidden somewhere, dead or alive. My focus is on finding those men. Three had already been kidnapped when I came on the scene. I watched the alley and was present for the fourth kidnapping.”

“Wayne Kulicki.”

“Yes.”

“You could have saved him.”

“I wasn’t interested in saving him. I was interested in where they took him.”

“And?”

“They loaded him into a van. I followed the van to the top deck of a parking garage. They off-loaded Kulicki, put him into a helicopter, and that was the last I saw of him. The stolen van was left behind. The three men in the van left with Kulicki.”

“Wow. It’s like a movie.”

Wulf smiled. “Yes. I like when there’s some drama involved in a crime.”

“Did you recognize any of the men?”

“Victor Waggle. It was dark and they were all wearing hoodies, but there was a moment on the roof when Waggle’s hood was blown off by the rotor wash.”

“I’m surprised you know Victor Waggle.”

“The trail goes from Ernie Sitz to Leonard Skoogie to Victor Waggle. There are others involved, but I haven’t identified them. I’m telling you this because it’s gone cold. Every time I had a good lead, either the police or Ranger bungled in and it went away. And now you’ve eliminated the deli.”

“I had nothing to do with that fire!”

“You’re a magnet for disaster. You’re also inept but lucky. And at this point I need some luck. Hanging out in the deli, waiting for someone to snatch you, didn’t work. You need to go proactive. I think the five men are still alive, but that could change if the principals panic.”

“Do you have any suggestions on the proactive thing?”

“Just be your usual annoying, bumbling self. Leonard Skoogie is dead, so he’s not going to be any help. There’s a good possibility that Ernie Sitz is back in the country, but I haven’t seen him. You should go after Waggle.”

“I’ve tried.”

“Try harder.”

“What about you? What are you going to be doing?”

“I’ll be watching you.”

“Great. Just what I need. One more man watching my every move. Did you see them take Hal?” I asked Wulf.