Page 103 of Mann Hunt
“If you owe them money, Luke, maybe I could help.”
“A hundred grand? Do you have that? Is business that good?”
“That’s a lot.”
“No one can help me, Declan. They said they had a way for me to pay off my debts. I just had to meet a guy and convince him to sell his building. So I met with Ian Mann, but he said no. When I told Monarch what had happened, they said I needed to try harder, or they would make things very difficult.”
Declan said, “For you?”
Luke scowled. “Not just for me, but for my dad too. They found out his little secret, and mine. They said they would reveal that he was gay and destroy his career. It would kill him. So I did what they said. I’m in way too deep, Declan. And I’ve got nothing left. They drained me dry and the interest keeps mounting and I keep thinking about my dad.”
Declan just had to keep him talking until help arrived. “How long have you been gambling?”
“Since high school. I’ve always had a thing for horses. It comes from being raised in the country, I guess.” He let out a weak laugh. “It got really bad in university. When I got out, I took out a loan against the condo my folks bought me, and now…”
“But, Luke, to kill Ian Mann…”
“I was just supposed to scare the shit out of him. I didn’t mean to kill him! It was an accident. He ran and fell and cracked his head open on a rock. He did it to himself.”
“But he wasn’t dead, Luke. The autopsy showed he drowned.”
“I thought he was dead. I panicked. I stripped off his clothes to make it look like he’d gone swimming, then threw the body in the river. And then I found his dresses and wigs in the trunk of his car and I had an idea.”
Declan moved in closer. “Why didn’t they use one of their thugs? Wouldn’t it have been easier?”
Luke replied, “Monarch had me over a barrel and I owed them. By using me they were extending their power into the police. I’m probably not the only cop on the force that they control.”
“Is McKeckran involved with Monarch?” Declan asked.
Luke thought about it. “I don’t think so, but it was easy to get him to close down the case because he hates queers. Imagine—McKeckran’s homophobia almost saved my life. And I would have gotten away with it if it wasn’t for him,” he said, waving his gun at Justin. “Monarch had someone on the inside who texted me about the party house where Ian went, and Justin saw me there. I didn’t know someone else was tracking Mann down.” He turned to face the boy. “If you’d only just minded your own fucking business…”
“Luke, you can’t hurt the kid.”
“I don’t want to. That’s why I called Monarch. They know how to clean up my messes.”
“Oh fuck, I don’t have time for this shit,” Declan said as he lunged towards Luke.
* * * *
Charlie could hear nothing from the doorway. He kept his eyes peeled for the police.What’s taking them so long?
He checked his cell phone again. Still only the first text from Declan’s father.
On the way. Keep yourself safe.
A crash came from inside the building. Charlie couldn’t wait any longer.
He followed the sounds coming from the basement stairs. There was another loud crash. Charlie leapt down the last few steps and into the basement room. Declan had Luke in a headlock on the ground. A shattered table lay beside them. Luke struggled free, kicking Declan’s right leg hard, just above the knee. Declan screamed in pain. Charlie spotted the handgun a few feet away. He dove for it and picked it up.
“Everybody freeze or I’ll shoot,” he yelled. The ball of muscles and fists on the floor stopped rolling. Charlie stood there, gun pointed towards the ceiling, hands shaking. From behind him, a calm voice spoke.
“I’ll take that,” the person said, plucking the gun out of his hand.
Charlie turned. Four police officers were standing at the foot of the stairs, guns drawn. The oldest one, who now held the gun, said, “You must have been trained by my son. He’s not so good at following orders either.”
Declan pushed himself up off the floor.
Sam Hunt walked past him towards Luke. “Face down on the ground, Fraser. Hands behind your back.”
