Page 26 of Nightcrawler
He sighed. “Anyway, I’m really sorry about that.”
“Don’t worry about it. You have every right to be upset and when you get to know me, you’ll realize I have a thick skin.” I’d known what he was about to say about money even before he said it. From the humbleness of his neighborhood and his apartment to the older model truck I’d seen parked on Vine Street the day we’d first met at Capitol Records; I’d known money was an issue. I let it drop.
If we were to become friends, the last thing I wanted to do was to embarrass him or push him to confide in me. I had an inkling that’s what was going on with him simply by the way he’d behaved about not only losing out on the bounty for Lyle Trench but then by losing out on the commissions he would have earned for the recovery of Gemma Monroe’s boobs. My phone rang and I picked up as I drove out to Ventura Boulevard to find a parking lot with a sign.
“Hello?”
“Where are you?” the irritated voice asked. “She won’t calm down, Raven. You need to get here so she can see you in the flesh, not just hear your voice over the phone.”
“I told you, I’m on the way, Ned. I’m in the Valley, so I’ll be there as soon as I can. Probably about an hour and a half.”
“An hour and a half?” The voice of Ned Jeffries, rose. I couldn’t blame him. When we’d spoken this morning after Vonne took Miguel out into the hallway to have a chat, I told him it’d be an hour. I hadn’t planned on making any stops along the way. He could be such a needy, whiny bitch sometimes. I wanted to let him have it, but if I had to be honest, he’d been doing me a huge favor over the last twenty-four hours.
“Like I said, I’ll be home as soon as I can.” I hung up the phone and glanced over at Miguel who was studying something out the passenger window. He couldn’t help but overhear myhalf of the conversation and I hated the thought that he was getting the wrong idea. Then again, it was my own business, and I didn’t feel all that much like sharing. Besides, Ned drove me crazy with his possessiveness at times. I said nothing more and pulled into the first restaurant we could find. Sure enough, each of the four parking spaces had signs fastened to the wall with a towing company’s name and phone number. Miguel wrote it down and dialed the number as I idled in the drive, unsure where to go.
“How much?” he asked after he read off the make and model of his truck as well as the street where it had been parked. “And this isn’t just a ticket because?” He paused while someone on the other end of the line explained something to him. “Gimme your business hours and address,” he barked, writing it down, nodding as if the person could see him. “Fine, thanks.” He paused without hanging up. “Today?” He glanced over at me before turning away to look out the window again. “I’ll let you know.” He sounded utterly miserable, and my heart squeezed just a little. He disconnected the call, saying nothing.
After a minute or so, he turned to me. “I’m so sorry. I know you have something to do but I need to go home.”
“You’re not picking up the truck?” I asked, almost angry with myself for asking. I already knew the answer.
“I don’t have that kind of—they want—I’ll—” He stopped talking, covering his face with both hands. “I need to just go home.” He turned to look at me. “I’m sorry. It’s not your problem.”
“Itismy problem, Miguel.” I held up my hand. “It’s my fault you had your truck towed. If I hadn’t gotten shot, you wouldn’t have been parked there this morning. Just, let me pay for the tow fees and help you get your truck back.”
He rounded on me so fast, I flinched. “Do you think I can’t pay my own towing fees? What kind of a pussy do you think I am?” He was yelling and it freaked me out.
“I didn’t say anything about that,” I rushed to explain. “And I don’t think you’re a pussy at all. Shit happens, Miguel. All I’m saying is that none of this would have happened if I hadn’t been shot. I hope it’s obvious that I want us to be friends. I offered to pay the towing fees because I feel responsible for what happened…and before you say it, what I mean is, at least in part. Please…let me do this for you.” I didn’t want to give him any excuse to say no. “Let me do this for you and if you want, we can call it a loan. Okay? Pay me back after your next job.”
He was silent for a full minute and when I looked over, I could see the muscles in his jaw working as he mulled over my offer of a loan. “Okay,” he finally ground out.
“Good. So, where is this place?” I was watching where I was driving but I could feel him flinch.
“They’re on Wilshire in downtown. I know it’s really out of your way but—”
“It’s totally fine like I said, but I have to make a stop at home first. It’s kind of important.”
“Of course. I’d be a real asshole if I said no to you. I just feel terrible because you need to get home to rest, not cart me all over the place.”
“It’s no trouble at all. I’ll handle my business, grab some painkillers, and we can even have some breakfast. After that, we can go get your truck out of hock.”
He snorted at that. “That’ll work.” He seemed to hesitate. “I need to call my boss and the conversation isn’t going to be a happy one. I’ve been ignoring his calls and texts since yesterdaywhen I should have checked in to tell him the outcome of our little escapade at Passantino’s house. I also need to find out if James or Gemma mentioned us by name.”
Yeah, I wanted to know that too. I had scanned the local news and police blotter for Encino when I’d woken up this morning, but I’d seen nothing about it. Surely the police would have been around to my place by now if they had my name. And Ned hadn’t mentioned anything like that. It was just the juicy type of drama he’d thrive on. “You should call him. Sorry, I can’t give you your privacy at the moment.” I pulled onto the freeway and headed home.
“It’s fine and there will no doubt be yelling involved.”
Concerned, I glanced over at him. He was smirking, so I realized he was either used to his boss’s reaction to all this or had resigned himself to it. As I turned my attention back to driving, he called him. Even with the phone pressed to his ear, I could hear the obnoxious voice on the other end as the yelling started the minute he picked up the phone.
“Where the fuck have you been? Do you have any idea what kind of a shit storm you left behind in Encino?”
The man hadn’t even greeted Miguel. What a dick.
“I’m sorry, Jamie. I know. It’s…we got caught and there was gunfire and then Raven got shot and that’s been a cleanup type thing.”
I glanced over at him, and he was looking at me with wide eyes. He shook his head and mouthed,“You know what I mean.”I nodded and went back to driving.
“I heard about the gunfire, and I know you were there at the same time Raven Mathis was but not because I heard it from you, Trigg. Oh, no! I had a call from Don Woolworth. Do youknow who that is?” He didn’t let Trigg answer. He just kept yelling. “He’s a fucking son-of-a-bitch legal counsel for GMS Insurance. And he’s throwing me and my company under the bus. He wants my license pulled and has threatened to turn you into the police.”