Nothing To Lose: Part 4

Desperate for answers, with more questions than he started with, Jonas makes a play that puts him in danger.

Part 4

Jonas and Danny left the medical examiner's office with more questions than answers. Unfortunately, he had little idea what to make of the amount of blood loss. The body being that drained would have been messier than what he saw. He began to question what he thought he knew.  

"Was she killed somewhere else," asked Danny?  

Hmm, thought Jonas. Maybe the kids got the right instincts for this. It was day one, and he was asking the right questions. That was more promising than showing up for your first day assigned to an investigation wearing your street blues.  

"There wasn't anything at the scene to suggest a body dump. It was her house. So that would lead to the question; why would anyone move the body. She was killed at home. Body drops are usually to hide the body from being found," explained Jonas.  

Jonas thought to himself, what the hell is going on?  

Jonas took Danny back to the station. He was his typically short-tempered self when he dropped Danny off. There was someone he needed to see, but he wasn't ready to share all his connections with a new partner. Some people require a level of trust before they share information. Others required a degree of "finesse" before they would talk. Putting a new face in the mix was only going to complicate things.  

It was just turning to night when Jonas pulled up to the Montgomery Club. He parked in front and rushed to the door, the skies starting to pour rain again. He slipped the valet a twenty to leave his car on the street. He wasn't planning on being long.  

Cal Montgomery wasn't the usual type people went to for information. He ran one of the more notorious nightclubs in the region and wasn't someone that Jonas considered trustworthy. But from time to time, they found their motivation aligned. For some reason, Cal liked Jonas enough that he could be the one person in Bay City, or the state for that matter, who could interrupt his night without feeling the pans of doing so.  

Cal was usually at the bar or his private table. As Jonas walked through the crowd, the music blaring overhead, and people dancing without a care in the world, he looked toward the private table. He was entertaining someone, but Jonas didn't recognize the face. He hung his badge inside his shirt, not wanting to let on to Cal's new guest that he'd dare cooperate with the cops.  

"Ah," Cal sighed, noticing Jonas getting close to his table. "The party's over if this guy's here."  

As two of Cal's men stepped in front of Jonas, waiting for Cal to wave him forward before they moved, Jonas stared tensely at Cal's guest.  

"New friends?"  

"Old friends, actually."  

Cal made an excuse for his guests to excuse them for a moment. As they tensely stared at Jonas in the face, gradually making their way away from the table, Jonas felt that he'd interrupted something. He'd done deals with the local organized crime boss in the past. This time, he felt like he was stepping on something. As Jonas sat across from Cal, he asked him about the two burly, well-dressed fellows with the need for a better tailor.  

"Tell your friends to have their jackets let out a little, maybe their guns wouldn't be so obvious," he commented. "Is this anything that's going to spill over onto my plate?"  

"Nah," sighed Cal. "They're just visiting. Trying to gage whether or not they can get a piece of the local action."  

"And?"  

Cal laughed, "You know I don't like to share."  

Jonas put his hands on the table, looking across at the reputed crime boss. While Cal had gone mostly legitimate over the years, Jonas knew it was a life that was hard to completely escape from. Things had been quiet for three years when it came to the local scene. Part of him believed that Cal preferred the legitimate ventures to the seedier side of life. And as a club owner, investor, and businessman, he was doing well for himself.  

"Did you hear about the murder yesterday," he asked Cal? 

"Bits and pieces," admitted the sixty-year-old boss. "It sounds like a grizzly affair."  

Jonas admitted that Cal didn't know half of it. He shared some of the details, including that it was Danica.  

"Oh, Jesus. I'm sorry to hear that kid. I know she was a friend," admitted Cal.  

"That's why I'm here. If this was something tied to your world, I need to know," he urged. "Maybe because of her mother's work."  

Cal looked at Jonas, a puzzled look on his face. He hadn't dared face off with anyone carrying a badge, much less take a beef at them through their families. It wasn't a smart approach, even in the old days when he was using more brutal approaches. But he knew Jonas was on the job and looked at every angle.  

"It wasn't us, or anyone connected to me," Cal promised. "Things have been quiet on the home front for more than two years."  

Jonas breathed a sigh of relief.  

"I won't take up anymore of your time then," promised Jonas. "I am curious, have you ever heard of a hitter that bleeds his targets dry?" 

"Dry?"  

"Yeah, like she bled out at a rate that left even her organs nearly drained," admitted Jonas.  

"No, kid. But I'll ask around."  

Jonas appreciated the offer. But even Cal might find himself in the crosshairs if he got too involved. Then there were the feds that stopped by his place. If Cal suddenly started inquiring about things, the feds might take an interest in him.  

"Don't. Too many questions from the wrong place, on this one anyway, might put a crimp in how we do things," he admitted.  

He stared at Cal, making sure that the old boss knew what he was insinuating. As Cal nodded, the two mutually recognized the need for looking out for each other's interests. Cal wasn't one to back down, however, and promised to proxy his involvement.  

"I'll grease some other wheels, and see what they turn up," he suggested.  

"Just be careful," sighed Jonas.  

"You too, kid. You're not looking too healthy."  

Jonas walked through the crowd and headed toward the front door. As he cleared the crowd, one of the men who met with Cal followed him outside. Jonas got to his car before being pushed face first into the passenger side and feeling someone with some punching power lay a couple of blows into his kidneys. He turned and pushed back, laying a punch against the large man's jaw.  

As the large man stood there, barely phased by the punch to the mouth, Jonas hit him again.  

"You interrupted our meeting," says the man in the suit, as the two lock up and roll over the top of Jona's car.  

When they hit the ground, Jonas lands on top, and punches the man as hard as he can before reaching back and pulling out his gun. Pushing it into the man's mouth, knocking out three teeth in the process, Jonas pulled him to his feet.  

As he did, he saw Cal and his business associate, along with club security as they came rushing out the front door. Jonas looked at Cal, looked at the crowd, and remembered the game.  

"Out of respect for Mr. Montgomery, I won't empty this into your skull. Come at me again, and all bets are off, he screamed! 

He threw the man to the side, put his pistol away, and walked around the car to the driver's side. As it rained, he peeled away from the curb, leaving the crowd in front of the club staring at his taillights.  

To be continued....