Beautiful Bounty(79)

Luckily, he put the shit in Ronnie’s gear and not his own, and doubly lucky he managed to sneak away making it look like he was just going to the restroom. He had always been a fast thinker. He felt guilty passing it off onto Ronnie, but there was no way in hell he could do jail time. Poor Ronnie had no clue the shit he was into.

When her name and face were all over the news, his parents controlled and watched his every move. They’d yelled and screamed at him for getting involved with such a low life, and used their connections to keep his name out of the papers. If they only knew! But they didn’t. They were just as clueless as Ronnie was.

Even the Brimeyers ordered him to lay low for a while. He knew enough to listen to them and that’s why he followed his parents’ orders. Last winter, another dealer of theirs just disappeared. He considered calling them now, but then thought better of it. If they thought trouble was brewing they might think it wise to get rid of him too.

He pulled into his parents’ garage with the Toyota he was using. It was used by the servants and maid for shopping trips to town, and he closed the garage door. He then walked back to his cabin to think. Maybe they would make the next flight, he prayed. No need to panic and bring in the Brimeyers yet. A good night’s sleep, and a drive into town in the morning to make sure the car was gone would mean the coast was clear. Nobody had anything on him. Not even Ronnie.

If he flew the coop now that would only make things worse and bring suspicion down on his head. He didn’t want the Brimeyers to worry either or send someone looking for him. He still didn’t know how far their reach went.

He opened the door to the servants two bedroom cabin and made his way inside. Yeah, a good night’s sleep was what he needed. Maybe a smoke too, he thought, as he pulled out a little baggie he stashed in the butter compartment of the refrigerator. That would calm him and allow him to get a little sleep. He sat at the kitchen table to roll his joint, and to think.





Ronnie woke early. She was nervous, and as soon as she began to move, Nikko’s eyes fluttered open. She didn’t think she would ever get over the startling blueness of those penetrating eyes. His complexion dark, and his angular chiseled face broke out into a sexy smile. He was just too handsome. And, he’d told her he loved her again and again in the night. Each restless turn she had made resulted in him pulling her close to him and murmuring those words to her soothingly. And, she had yet to say it in return.

Despite their late night and their lovemaking, she was wide awake. His brothers would be here early to come up with a plan to get Gary to confess. It could all be over today, but she didn’t feel relief. Because it still could all come crashing down upon her. There was the very real possibility this plan of hers wouldn’t work.

“Good morning, beautiful,” Nikko smiled down at her. “You okay?” he added when she just smiled sadly at him.

“Just nervous,” she admitted.

“I understand,” he murmured and nuzzled his face into the top of her head drawing her closer. “Whatever happens, babe, I am here. I’ll be with you.” He tried to instill as much courage into his words as he could muster, but he was afraid too. For her. Her idea to get Gary to talk with her, to record a confession, was rife with risk. Risks he didn’t know if he wanted to take. But he, too, saw no other options at this time. She had no evidence, and no witnesses to testify she hadn’t put drugs in her gear other than Gary. Him testifying on her behalf was beyond a longshot at best. His family probably feared it would tarnish their name. The guy had no record, no priors, and was from an upstanding family with lots of money and lots of pull.

Last night, after Nikko spoke to his brother and uttered those concerns, he encouraged Ronnie to call her mother so she wouldn’t worry about her. Lou needed to keep their lawyer unaware of her daughter leaving the state for as long as she could. He also hoped to warn her the police may come looking around on occasion to ascertain Ronnie’s whereabouts on behalf of the prosecution. No one could know she had skipped bail.

Ronnie had done that. Her mother was greatly relieved to know Nikko was with her, and his brothers were also on the way, and planning to set up some kind of sting. She also reluctantly informed Ronnie her attorney had called again to report that Gary’s parents were successfully preventing the local PD from questioning their son. Her lawyer, Mr. Stimson, was working through the red tape, getting court orders to require him to testify and submit a deposition, but it took time to get the subpoenas signed by local Maine judges who were greatly influenced by the very generous Campbell family in their political campaigns.