Page 177 of Gunner

“Tell me what you want.”

“K-k-kill me. Please.”

“I can indulge you, but first I need answers, and don’t think you can lie to me. If you haven’t heard yet, we already have Getty in custody.”

“I won’t l-l-lie to you.”

“How did you get that woman, Candace, to work for you?” I knew it rested on Gunner’s mind, even though he never spoke about it. A man who valued loyalty would never forget the betrayal.

“Busted her for drugs and prostitution a few months ago,” Thoms said. “We had a deal. So long as she did exactly what I said, I wouldn’t turn her in.”

I glanced at Gunner. Hopefully, he felt better at the information. Candace hadn’t betrayed him for no reason. She’d been trying to stay out of prison.

“Is there anyone else in the club you had contact with?” I asked.

“N-no. Only the hooker.”

“Is there anyone else higher than Getty who’s involved in the baby farm?”

“No. We took orders directly from Getty.”

“Who’s we?” Gunner asked.

“The others.”

“Who are they? I need names.”

Thoms peered at me from one half-shut eye. “If I give you the names, will you make it quick? I can’t t-t-take anymore. That k-k-kid—” He dissolved into sobs. Gunner had done well to get Bloom involved. He seemed to have tortured Thoms to the point he craved death.

“Give me the names.”

I wrote down the names he remembered in my phone. Thank god only one other cop was involved. The rest of the department seemed squeaky clean. Other names jumped out, though, names of prominent businessmen in Smoky Vale. One was a doctor who worked at a small private practice.

“That’s it?” I asked.

“Yes, I swear.” Thoms closed his eyes and slumped against the cold concrete. “Now please, just kill me.”

I laughed, the sound harsh and bitter. “Just kill you? Need I remind you what you did to all those women? Of how your scheme ended my sister’s life and almost that of her child? Tell me, Thoms. Did you personally cut those women open and rip their babies from their wounds?”

“No. I was never there.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll ensure you understand what it’s like to have your body separate into two halves with no anesthetics. You’re going to pay, Thoms. You’re going to pay long and hard.”

I straightened. Gunner had a hungry look in his eyes as if he was turned on by threats of violence against Thoms.

“You don’t have to get your hands dirty, you know,” he said. “I can take care of it for you.”

I shook my head. “Not this time. When my nephew grows older and I tell him the truth about how his mother died, I must be able to tell him I ended his life. Not you. Me.”

46

GUNNER

I think I made a mistake and I don't know how to fix it.

The familiar feeling of anger and hurt were noticeably absent as I walked the graveyard at night. The moon, a silvery sliver in the night sky, cast long shadows over the quiet cemetery. A soft breeze rustled the leaves of the ancient oak trees, their branches swaying gently.

I wasn’t a superstitious man, but maybe this wasn’t a good idea. Not when the bloody scene of Ben grieving by taking out his frustrations on a man was still fresh in my mind. Thoms’s screams and the last gasp of his breath as life left his body echoed in my head.

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