CHAPTER 8

Matt clipped his LAPD ID on the collar of his t-shirt and along with Vince, took the stairs up to Michael's office. Both men stopped to grab a cup of coffee before entering. In just a few seconds Lee Jennings joined the group. "Roy sure doesn't waste anytime, does he?" The young cop was surprised by how swiftly the case was progressing.

"The sooner it's over the better." Vince took a swig of coffee.

"You haven't heard the latest..." Michael stood up and began pacing as he brought them up to date on the latest happenings.

Matt thoughtfully took a drink. "So he recruited Roy and Mama after already telling the other two about the job. Why do I get the feeling that he's planning on getting rid of somebody?"

"That's exactly what Roy and I were thinking."

Vince set down his cup. "If the other two accomplices are willing to testify, you've got Gallagher right there."

"That's why I'm waiting on an arrest warrant right now. As soon as it shows we're going to move on him."

Matt stood and went over to the window. "Are the others still with Uncle Roy?"

"Yeah."

He nodded and drank down more of the coffee. "Do we know why they did it?" He turned and looked at Hoyt.

"They told Roy they needed the money." The lieutenant shrugged. "Social Security isn't very secure these days."

"What kind of time are they looking at?"

"Don't know exactly – but Roy asked me to try to get the DA to give them immunity."

"You know he wouldn't ask without good reason."

"I know." All four men grew quiet and Matt stepped out of the office, pulling out his cell phone.

"Uncle Roy, are y'all doing okay?"

The elder Houston sat back down on the couch. "We're fine at the moment. Has Michael got the warrant yet?"

"Not yet. Look..." Wandering over to an empty desk the PI sat down. "Do you know why the two there with you pulled the jobs?"

"I'm putting it on speaker." Roy pushed the button and sat the phone down on the coffee table. "My nephew wants to know why you two joined up with Gallagher."

Looking at each other momentarily, both were silent until Rudy finally spoke. "My wife is in a nursing home...she's got Alzheimer's. When she had to be moved there I sold everything we had to put toward the cost of her care. It's gone now and I've just barely had enough the last few months to keep her there."

"Ted and I lost a good bit of money when the stock market took a nose dive. We thought we had our retirement years planned – the golden years is what he always called it. Social Security just barely covers the rent, let alone food, medicine..." She stopped. "Now he's gone and I just don't know what to do."

Matt sighed. "Lieutenant Hoyt is doing everything in his power to get the DA to give you immunity but at this point he can't guarantee it. But I'll do everything I can to help you myself as well." He thought about CJ's legal services but knew that at this point she wasn't in a position to take any cases. "We'll help you get through this." He looked up as Hoyt came out holding up the warrant and waving it at him. "Uncle Roy, we just got the warrant. Y'all stay put and don't open up the door until we give you the all clear."

"Matt, what if we went through with the job and you tracked Gallagher to his fence? If you could take him down as well and get back the jewelry it might help out these two."

"I don't know, Uncle Roy. Let me talk to Michael." In the elevator he passed on his uncle's idea to the cop who immediately started shaking his head no. "It could help the other two out."

"I don't want Roy and Mama in any more danger than they already are."

On the other end of the line Roy could hear the conversation. "Matt, put it on speaker, please." The PI did as he was asked. "Michael, the original plan was for us to pull a job with Gallagher. How is it any different now?"

"Well...it's just..." The cop looked to Vince who was nodding his head.

"He's right." The former cop looked to Matt who was also nodding.

"Damn..." The lieutenant chewed on it for a minute. "Oh, alright! But I swear if one of you gets hurt..."

Mama spoke up. "Don't swear, Michael – be a good boy." The entire group in the elevator cracked up.

"Just make sure that the others stay in your apartment, okay?"

Roy looked at the pair who nodded. "They agree. Rosa and I already have our "critters" on us so you shouldn't have any problems tracking us."

"Tell you what: Vince is going to deliver a package to you. I'm going to send you another critter with video and sound capabilities. That way we can know exactly what's going on."

"Good idea."

"Okay...and y'all be careful, you hear me?"

"We will." Roy hung up.

Down in the garage Matt pulled out another critter and got it ready, activating it before tucking it inside a box. When everything was ready, the group pulled out of the parking lot and headed toward the apartments, with Hoyt and Jennings parking in a nearby lot while Matt dropped Vince off about a block away. As he sat waiting for the former cop to return he called to check on CJ. "Hey, Lil Mama – how's it going?"

"I was hoping you would call. Murray just called a little while ago. Chris is in labor."

"Oh boy...was he in panic mode?"

"No, he seemed really calm. Bo is going to drive me to the hospital."

"I'm not so sure that's a good idea, Babe. You're supposed to be taking it easy."

"I'll just be there for moral support, hon. Don't worry."

"I can't help but worry."

"There's no need. So what's going on with the case?" She picked up her purse and followed Bo out to the SUV and got inside as he told her what the plan was.

"And here comes Vince back as we speak. Look, just do me a favor and..."

"Matt, everything is fine. I'm not going to overdo – I'm just going to sit with her and cheer her on, okay? Love you, Cowboy."

"Love you...and you better not overdo it." He hung up and Vince shot him a look as he climbed back into the van.

"Uh oh – what's she done now?"

"Chris is in labor and she's going to the hospital to be with her. On the up side, she said that Murray was calm when he called her."

"That's a major surprise."

"You're telling me." Both men cracked up and then went to join Hoyt and Lee in the parking lot, all four men crowding into the back of the van as Matt made sure that all of the critters were working before Roy and Rosa went up to Gallagher's apartment. The PI called Roy once again to let him know that all was in order and to let him know about Chris. "You two just keep playing your parts like you have been; you're very convincing as a married couple." He winked at Vince.

"Yeah, she's got the nagging part down – that's for sure." Roy laughed as Rosa swatted at him. "We're about to go to Gallagher's."

"Just be careful." Matt and the others watched the video feed as the couple made their way down the hall to the conman's apartment and knocked on the door.

"Hey, come on in...I was hoping you would be here soon." Declan stepped back as they entered. "If you'll step on into the kitchen I'll show you the plan." They followed along and saw the marker board on the refrigerator with a floor plan and map drawn out on it.

Inside the van Matt nodded. "Looks like they're going to hit Triton and Thorne near the corner of Santa Monica and Oxford." The four watched as Gallagher began going through the plan, explaining exactly where the security cameras were and what areas they covered.

"Now..." Declan turned back to the couple. "What is your story going to be?"

"We're looking for a ring for our granddaughter who is about to turn sixteen." Roy looked to Rosa who nodded. "But my wife here has been having a problem with some of her medication – she's feeling faint."

"Excellent." He beamed at them. "I've got a feeling that we're really going to do well today. Now, if you two would show me exactly what you have planned..." The couple got up and pretended that the kitchen counter was the jewelry case as Declan took on the role of the store clerk, and then proceeded to act out a fainting spell. "Perfect. Now the area that I'm interested in the most is here..." He point to the board. "That means that I'll need you two to be on the opposite side – right here – which luckily enough is where the rings are located. When you hear me ask to see an item and the clerk removes it from the case that's when you start your act, okay?" Both nodded. "Perfect. We'll meet in the parking lot outside at 1:30. I plan on getting there about 2:00 – the owners usually go to lunch then and that will cut down on the number of employees that we'll have to deal with."

Back in the van the four men continued to watch as Roy and Rosa went back to their apartment. As soon as the door was closed and locked Matt called his uncle's cell phone and put his own on speaker. "You two did great – you should be up for an Oscar. We heard the whole plan and Michael is about to notify the owners of the jewelry store so that they'll play along with it."

"Good. But I've got an idea: what if I tag Gallagher with one of the tracking devices?"

"Think you can do that without drawing attention?" Michael looked worriedly at Matt.

"I can try. The parking lot will be the best bet."

"Just don't take any chances."

Down the hall in apartment B-6 Gallagher tucked the revolver in the rear waistband of his pants and put on a jacket before opening the door. Checking to make sure no one was around, he quickly walked down the hallway to Judy's apartment and knocked quietly. When there was no answer he pulled a lock pick out of his jacket pocket and made quick work of entering. After quietly closing the door he removed the pistol and began walking through the apartment looking for the pair, only to discover that they weren't there. Cursing under his breath he opened the apartment door and slipped back out to the hallway and went down the stairwell to the laundry room. There he found another couple washing clothes. Where in the hell are they?! Casually he walked to the front door of the apartments and went out on the sidewalk, scanning the parking lot for Knowles' vehicle. He spotted the ten year old Toyota. Unless they were on foot his former partners were in the building.

Back inside he took the elevator back up to the second floor and went back to his apartment to pack a bag, making sure to remove anything from the apartment that could be the least bit incriminating. His next step was to close out his bank account after which he would return to meet the Harlans in the parking lot. He wanted to eliminate both Judy and Knowles, but that was proving difficult. As he got into his car it occurred to him that maybe Rudy had gone to the nursing home to check on his wife. He often walked there so it was a definite possibility. He gave a grim smile as he pulled out of the parking lot onto Manitou and then took a left on Workman.

"He just left the parking lot." Rudy pointed out Gallagher's Buick to Roy who then made a phone call to Michael and let him know. The detective was now back in his own car.

"Thanks. I'll have Lee tail him." The lieutenant sent the detective out in search of the conman. Matt and Vince were still in the back of the van and then called Houston to let him know. "Have you heard anything else about Chris?"

"No, not yet but I think I'm gonna call. I'll let you know." He hung up and dialed CJ's number again. "How goes it in the maternity ward?"

"Well I gotta say – it's a lot different than the barn." CJ laughed and the PI could hear both Murray and Chris laughing in the background. "She's doing pretty good. Oh boy..."

"What?" Matt had put the phone on speaker and both he and Vince were listening. On the other end of the line they could hear Murray.

"There you go, Pumpkin. You're doing great. This little girl is going to be beautiful, just like her mom."

Both of the men in the van exchanged an amazed look. Murray had never been known as a calm person and it was hard for the two of them to believe he was doing so well. Covering his friends phone the former cop spoke. "Do you think he's drunk?"

"Nope – trust me – a drunk Murray wouldn't be able to handle it at all." CJ overheard her husband's comment and started laughing uncontrollably. "Take it easy on the laughing, Babe – you don't want to go into hatching mode just yet ya know." The PI couldn't help but smile.

"I'm not, Cowboy."

"Okay. Gonna let you go and I'll call you in a little while. Love you."

"Love you, too. 'Bye."

Back in the van the PI blew out a breath and checked his watch. "You know..." Vince stretched and looked back over at Matt. "You're going to be playing labor coach again before too long." Nodding, Matt smiled but also looked concerned. "Not worried about it are you?"

"Yes and no." The younger man looked around the parking lot they were sitting in. "She did great before, but this time there will be two of them. Carol asked us if twins run in our families; neither of us know." He looked back at Vince. "CJ wasn't old enough to even think about asking her mom something like that before she died. And I..." He shook his head. "When Wade and I finally started talking, babies weren't exactly on my mind."

"She's gonna be fine, man." He watched as the PI nodded but the worry was still on his face as his phone rang.

"Yeah, Michael?"

"Lee just called – Gallagher is at a nursing home a couple of blocks north of here."

"A nursing home? Rudy Knowles said his wife is in a nursing home." He looked at Vince. "Call Uncle Roy and find out which one." He resumed talking to Michael. "If Gallagher is thinking about bumping off Knowles and Durst like we're thinking he might go after his wife, too."

Vince had gotten through to Roy. "She's at Lincoln Heights."

"That's where he is."