I guess.”
Jack decided to change the subject and asked, “Why $7 million in Canadian and then $3 in American?”
Damien shrugged and said, “Doesn’t really matter. If we can’t find The Toad and get the money back by Monday, Vicki and Katie are...” He stopped, unable to say what he was thinking.
“You’re telling me that you have all that coke and can’t come up with $3.5?”
“In a week, easy. But not in two days. Maybe half, I don’t know. But look what Carlos has done. You really think he’ll accept half?”
Jack glanced down at the cooler. It made him feel ill. He said, “I’m not so sure it’s even about the money. He runs one of the biggest cartels in Colombia. This is chump change to him. What he’s doing ... he’s a psychopath. This is entertainment for him.”
“I figure the same. That’s why I want you to find The Toad for me. You said you have a source close to him. I don’t care who that is. I just want the money before Monday!”
“The Toad likes a little female companionship,” said Jack. “I know someone. I’ll see what I can come up with.”
Damien nodded and said, “Thanks, I appreciate it.” He then took the cooler and placed it between his feet. For a while, both men were silent, absorbed in their own thoughts. The cooler eventually became a magnet for their eyes.
“They’re in this because of me,” said Damien, fighting back tears. “I thought the club was everything. How could I have been so fucking stupid?”
Jack didn’t respond. His own emotions were boiling to the surface as he stared at the cooler.
“After all these years of being in charge of the club, this happens ... and who do I turn to for help? A fuckin’ cop.” Damien paused, trying to regain control of his emotions before saying, “How could this have happened to me?”
“It didn’t,” said Jack. “It happened to Vicki and Katie.”
Both men returned to their own thoughts. Jack thought about Damien. I always saw him as a monster. Now he looks like any worried dad or husband would. Scared because the people he loves are being violated. Angry at himself because it was his lifestyle that put them there.
Jack then thought about his own actions. Charlie paralyzed ... his dad murdered. A war vet murdered because I made the price of speed go up. The O’Reillys. Now this! Consequences of my actions. What have I done?
“What have I done?” said Damien.
Jack looked at Damien in shock. Was I thinking out loud? He saw the tears in Damien’s eyes as Damien leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees while covering his face with his hands. His body started to shake.
“I think they’ve raped Katie,” he said, choking out the words. “She’s only eight years old.”
Jack had forgotten about the panties. He picked up the cooler and examined them. “These have been sliced off,” he said.
“I know. Oh, God, please ... what have they done to her? I know I don’t deserve a break ... but if you really exist, why would you...”
“She may not have been raped,” said Jack. “They were probably cut off because her ankles were bound together. He sent them to terrorize you.”
Damien sat upright and looked at Jack. “You really think so?”
“Cop’s point of view.” Jack shrugged.
“You’ve dealt with this kind of thing before?” asked Damien.
“Not really. I’ve been thinking a lot about the psychopathic mind, though. Especially since my partner’s family was attacked. Picture a mother tied to a chair for half an hour staring at a swimming pool that her baby had been tossed in.”
“Christ,” came Damien’s mumbled reply.
“We’re dealing with” — Jack paused to look at Damien — “real monsters. You help me catch mine and I’ll help you with yours.”
Damien nodded and said, “If The Toad met this British or Indo, you can bet he was involved in ripping off the cash. I’m not sure where Leitch fits in. He once offered to ... help me with my finances. I don’t entirely trust him, so I said no. Maybe The Toad is using his services.”
“How long has The Toad been dealing with him?” asked Jack.
“That’s just it! I didn’t know the two even knew each other.”
“But you will find out who the Brit is? Maybe through Leitch?”
“I’ll deliver him to you like pâté on a plate!” Damien nodded toward the cooler and started to shake. “I just have to make sure they’re safe, first. That’s all that counts.”
Natasha hurried toward the park bench. She saw the tears in her husband’s eyes as he tried to console the large man sitting beside him. “Jack?” she asked hesitantly. Both men sat upright and then stood. Their faces became masks. Hiding any appearance of weakness. As a doctor, it was a sight that she had seen often, but it was not something she respected. Be who you are, not what you think others expect you to be.
“Natasha,” said Jack, “this is ... an associate of mine. He needs help. His wife and daughter have been kidnapped. They sent this back,” he added, gesturing toward the cooler.
“My name is Damien, Mrs. Taggart,” he said, handing her the cooler.
Natasha set the cooler on the park bench and looked inside. She examined the bag containing the finger quickly and then said, “Good, it’s not frozen. You did the right thing. Any amputated digit should be quickly cooled, but not frozen or placed directly in any solution. I’ll take it to my clinic. It should be wrapped in a saline-soaked swab, then sealed in a plastic bag and placed on ice.”
She glanced at Damien and saw the anguish on his face. “There have been recorded cases where digits have been successfully reattached up to twenty-four hours later if the amputated part was quickly cooled.”
Natasha knew by the looks on their faces that this did not appear likely. “Barring that, a prosthesis could be made from an impression cast of this finger, making an exact match...”
Damien stared down at his feet.
“I’ll get going now,” she said, then looked at Jack and asked, “See you at home after? It’s almost four o’clock. I’ll make dinner.”
“Wish you would reconsider. The Brit is —”
“And if you never catch him, do we spend the rest of our lives hiding? As I said, I’ll see you back at our apartment.”
Jack argued with Natasha a little more, but it was to no avail. Neither paid attention to Damien, who opened the cooler one more time.
Jack knew he had lost the argument and handed the cooler to Natasha. Both men watched as she returned to her car.
