Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fan fiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.
Chapter 8: Miller, Again and Butch's Contact
Kendra once again drove her car with Butch sitting next to her deep in thought. "So, who are we going to see?" Kendra asked as she darted around other vehicles.
"We are going to go speak with One Eyed Jackie." Butch answered.
"Interesting name." Kendra commented dryly as she made a sharp left turn that caused Butch to slam into the passenger door. "Sorry about that."
"Huh." Butch remarked about Kendra's driving. "He knows who is going to throw a fight and who is in debt because of their gambling. He knows who is running from the law and where they are hiding out."
"So, he's the man to see when you need to know what the criminals are up to." Kendra said as she zipped through a light that was yellow and was about a millisecond from turning red.
"Yup. Pretty much." Butch replied holding onto the dash to keep him from hitting the door again.
"Here we are." Kendra said as she parked the car.
"Thank the God of Boxing." Butch muttered under his breath.
They had parked before a bar called Lucifer's Right Hand. The wooden planks were vertical instead of horizontal. The boards were mix of a faded brown and black from the years of sun and wind exposure. The few windows in the front of the building were dirty and grimy and one of the panes of glass had a long curved crack in it.
They got out of the car and headed into a bar. From the rundown appearance on the exterior of the bar, Kendra had expected the inside to be about the same or even worse, but the bar was clean and well maintained. The long bar against the back wall was made from sturdy oak, but the booths, tables and chairs were all metal with black cushions.
"Not what you were expecting, huh?" Butch said and Kendra shook her head. "They leave the outside like that to keep unwanted people away."
"Makes sense." Kendra said and followed Butch as he headed toward a dark booth in one of the back corners.
"Butch McMann, what are you doing here?" A man with a patch over his right eye asked and he smiled when he saw Kendra. "Hello there, pretty girl. Please don't tell me that you are with Butch."
Kendra restrained herself from coming back with a remark and just remained silent.
"Not a talker, huh? I like that." Jackie replied as he looked at Kendra from head to toe.
"I need some information, Jackie; it's about a couple of friends of mine." Butch said.
"Well, Butch, I seem to recall that the favor I already owed you was used up awhile ago by that blond haired friend of yours. I told him to tell you that we were squared. He did tell you that, right?"
"Yeah, he did. But now I'm asking you a favor and I will owe you one." Butch said as he sat down across from Jackie.
"Really? You owe me a favor?" Jackie said as he stroked his chin. "All right, Butch, what do you need?"
"A couple of friends of mine have gone missing. Their names are Trent Malloy and Carlos Sandoval; they are the two PIs that own Thunder Investigations. They were working on a case for Dennis Miller. Have you heard anything, Jackie?" Butch asked.
Jackie rubbed his chin that had a five o'clock shadow. "I don't believe that I've heard anything about the two PIs going missing. I have heard about Miller's warehouses being ransacked, but that's about it. If I hear anything, Butch, I'll let you know." He said as he shrugged.
"Are you sure you haven't heard anything?" Kendra asked almost pleadingly.
"Now, listen, honey, what's your name?" Jackie asked as he looked at her features, again.
"My name is Kendra Stone". She said firmly.
"Well, pretty Kendra, I hear a lot of things, but I can honestly say I haven't heard a peep about those two PIs." Jackie said holding his hands, palm up and outward in an apologetic way and then he brought them together in the air and dropped them down onto the table.
"Have you heard anything interesting about Miller? Or about the people who have been stealing from Miller's warehouses?" Butch asked with some hope in his voice.
"Well, now, I've heard that Miller isn't exactly on the up and up. He likes to get money for nothing, if you know what I mean." Jackie said with a wide grin that was almost like the Joker's unnatural grin.
"Yeah, he likes to collect the insurance from what the thieves have stolen and he when his warehouse burned down back in L.A. he took the money and came here to Dallas. We already know about all of that." Kendra said with impatience.
"Yes. Now, the question is, why would Miller hire two PIs to find out who is stealing from him when he already knows who the thieves are?" Jackie replied tapping his forefinger on his head.
"Son of a…" Butch muttered underneath his breath. "Why didn't we see it before?"
"Let's go." Kendra said and turned to go.
As Butch stood up, Jackie spoke. "Don't forget, Butch, you now owe me a favor. Come again, pretty Kendra. Anytime."
Kendra turned around and gave Jackie a look that would cause a charging bull to stop in his tracks and head in the other direction. "Right."
"Thanks, Jackie." Butch said. He and Kendra left the bar quickly, headed back to Uppercuts.
Jackie watched them leave and then he whistled for a waiter and ordered a double shot of whiskey.
Walker walked into the fancy Italian restaurant and ignored the look of disdain the host had given him because of Walker's black jeans and simple cotton red shirt, but when the haughty host saw the Texas Ranger star, he gave Walker a smile with a silent message not to cause a scene.
"Where is Julian Miller?" Walker asked, scanning the customers out of the corner of his eye.
"I'm sorry, sir but…" the host began but Walker had just spotted the man he had come to speak with and walked away from the snooty host.
Walker walked up to the table where Miller sat with a blond woman who was about twenty-two and looked as though she was a model since she was about six feet tall with long, shapely legs, a narrow waist and a heart shaped face that photographers loved to take pictures of. "Excuse me, miss, but I need to speak with Mr. Miller here." Walker said politely as he took off his hat and held it to his chest.
The young woman looked at Walker from head to toe and smiled. She obviously liked his rough, cowboy look and she did like the fact that he was a Texas Ranger since she had seen the star. "Sure thing, I've got to go powder my nose anyway. I'll be back in a few, sweetie." She said to Miller as she rose on three-inch heels and strode away clutching a purse that matched her short dress that showed off her figure.
Walker sat down across from Miller and looked intently into the man's angry eyes. "What do you know about Trent Malloy and Carlos Sandoval's disappearance?"
"I don't know anything and how dare you come in here and disturb my date." He retorted angrily but in a low voice to not cause any unwanted attention from nearby tables.
"What do you know?" Walker repeated and continued his stare.
Miller tried to hide the fact that he was uncomfortable about Walker's piercing gaze but he was unsuccessful as he shifted around in his seat. "Look, I hired them to find out who was stealing from my warehouses and they gave me that information the other day and then they left my office. That is the last time I saw or heard from them."
"All right, I believe you." Walker stated and Miller almost gave a sigh of relief but he held it in. "But, I know that you know something about their disappearance." Walker said but with just a look, he told Miller that he wasn't going to leave the man alone until Miller told him what he wanted to know.
"Kenny Slade. Kenny Slade has something to do with their disappearance. Now, look, that's all I know. Okay? Can you leave now?" Miller said pleadingly.
Walker didn't believe that was all the man knew, but it was a start. Walker stood up, placing his black cowboy hat back onto his head just as Miller's date returned. "Have a nice day, miss." Walker said as he tipped his hat.
"You too, Ranger." She said giving Walker a dazzling smile with a lusty wink.
"Let me know if you hear or find out anything else, Mr. Miller." Walker said before he walked away.
The young woman sat down. "My, my, is that what all Texas Rangers are like?" She asked as she fanned herself with her delicate and manicured hand.
Miller growled and when his waiter came to the table, he ordered a martini.
Once Kendra and Butch had stepped through the door at Uppercuts, Tommy jumped off the bar stool and stood right before them. "Did you guys find out anything about Trent and Carlos?" He asked optimistically
Kendra shook her head as Butch placed a hand on Tommy's shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze. "No, kiddo, I'm sorry."
Disappointment and worry shone in Tommy's eyes. "We haven't heard from anyone else yet." Kendra said trying to give some hope to the young man.
"I want to help find them." Tommy declared with a look that said that he wasn't going to take no for an answer.
Kendra and Butch glanced at each other. "Tommy, Walker and his team, Kim, Kendra and I are searching for them."
"But…I want to help… I need to help find my brother and Carlos." Tommy pleaded with them.
"You know what you can do? You can alert the neighborhood and see if they have heard or seen anything that may give us some leads to finding Trent and Carlos." Kendra suggested.
"All right, I'll get right to it and I'll tell Reverend Jones who'll help get the word out to the congregation." Tommy said quickly and with determination. "I have to go tell my mother the news." Tommy said quietly.
"Hey, Tommy, tell your mother that there are friends who care about Trent and Carlos and are doing all they can to find them and bring them back safe and sound." Butch said as he patted his young friend on the back.
"All right, Butch, I'll tell her that and I'll spread the word to the whole neighborhood about Trent and Carlos." Tommy said and then he left the bar.
"Poor kid." Butch said shaking his head and sighing.
"Yeah, but it's good that he's going to let the neighborhood know about the guys disappearing. Someone may have seen or heard something that may help us find the guys." Kendra said as she sat down at the bar.
Butch sat next to her and ordered two whiskeys. "After this we should head to Ranger Headquarters and see what the others have found out."
"Yeah. I didn't even think that they would be there and not here. It always feels like Uppercuts is the meeting place. I guess that is just for us, huh?"
"Yeah." He said with a small grin as he drowned his whiskey.
"I sensed something was wrong the night the guys disappeared but I couldn't tell who or what the feeling was about. Ugh." Kendra said as she placed her face in her hands in frustration and guilt.
"There is no way you could have known that Trent and Carlos were going to disappear. Unless, of course, you are a psychic or something like that and you hadn't mentioned it." Butch said as he gave her a quizzical look.
"I'm not psychic, but I try to pay attention to my instincts." Kendra said as she removed her face from her hands as she leaned back and sighed.
"They will be all right. They're strong and they have been in some tough scrapes before." Butch said as he tried to reassure her and himself.
"Yeah." Kendra said but not with much enthusiasm. She leaned forward, drank her whiskey, and then slammed the shot glass down onto the bar. "Let's go."
guardianM3: I don't know what bar One Eyed Jackie usually hangs out in, I read the transcript for the first episode but it never said the name of the bar, so I made one up. I try to use places mentioned in either of the shows but sometimes you just gotta make some up. If some of those names that I've made up exist, than the disclaimer applies also, the Joker from the Batman series, movies, comic books, etc is owned by DC Comics and the disclaimer applies. I also have no idea if One Eyed Jackie wears an eye patch or not. I also don't know which eye is good or bad. If you know, please put it in a review and I'll make the correction. Thank you.