Rotten Apple by Natasha A Salnikova

Author:Natasha A Salnikova [Salnikova, Natasha A]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Amazon: B008MJHYWI
Publisher: NAS
Published: 2014-01-05T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter 35

Alexander sat in his car on the corner of State Road 84 and Ninth Street. There was a Winn Dixie store in that plaza and a bunch of discount chain stores like Big Lots and Payless Shoes, fast food restaurants like Wendy’s and Subway.

Alexander remembered going to these places with his mother when he was young, and had never stepped foot there as an adult. Julie hadn’t even known what these stores were about. These places were for poor people or penny-pinchers, like Scrooge. He’d always wanted to be rich, and he could easily imagine having two million dollars or more in his bank account.

He didn’t have two million dollars in his car, but fifty thousand, and a lot of pieces of paper between the real bucks. He was supposed to drop a bag with the ransom in a trash bin behind the Dunkin Donuts shop, according to the note. He waited for the signal.

He had a microphone in his shorts pocket for reasons unknown to him. It was not like he’d planned to have an intellectual conversation with anyone. He had some device behind his ear that bothered him and through which Green asked him about his wellbeing. What an annoying cop. There was a bum sitting on the ground by the donut shop. A few feet away, a fat guy talked on the phone by his car. Two young men stood by the strip mall wall, drinking coffee and talking. Everything was as usual. Burning Florida sun, shopping people, passing vehicles. Except the bum, the guy on the phone, and men with coffee were undercover cops who were here for the same reason he was. They waited for the person who sent the note. A person who possibly, only possibly, had Julie.

Time passed slowly. He had been waiting in the car for fifteen minutes and had ten more to go before the appointed time. He wouldn’t have come early, but that’s what Green wanted and Alexander followed all his demands rigorously. The detective was professional and knew what he was doing, right?

Two men stayed at his house the whole night, but no one had called. Alexander couldn’t sleep; he rolled from side to side, listening to muffled conversation. He wouldn’t have slept even if they had been quiet, just because they were strangers in his house. In the morning, they were replaced by two other men, but only Julie’s mother had called, asking for news and telling him they had nothing new for him. Alexander didn’t mention the ransom note as Green had instructed him. His secretary called him and asked nervously why he hadn’t come to work. Alexander forgot to warn his office and it was unforgettable. He had started to make mistakes and one small mistake could lead to others that wouldn’t be easy to solve, if solvable at all.

Alexander jumped when his earphones made noise and Green’s voice followed.

“You can do it now. Get out of the car, drop the bag in the trash, and leave.

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