Page 12 of Mother Parker
“What are you laughing at?” I told him before he glared at me with his menacing bushy eyebrows. “Anyway, I came to talk to you.”
“What can I do for you? Shoot,” he asked.
“Well, you did promise me a job here. And Ford let me in on the details.”
According to Ford, Wyatt returned to his hometown after retirement to find it riddled with crime and corruption. In fact, Ford and Shepherd brought down a forfeiting couple that had flooded the island’s market with fake bills. And as far as I knew, Shepherd had aided Wyatt and the island with more criminals.
Wyatt nodded and leaned forward on the lower counter behind the bar.
“Sure. I can hook you up. I’ve got plenty of folks who need an extra pair of hands,” he said.
I tilted my head and narrowed my eyes, the sip of coffee tasting even more bitter than it should.
“What do you mean extra pair of hands? I thought you’re taking down scumbags,” I said.
Wyatt’s eyes flared and he shushed me, looking behind me in panic before lowering his voice and turning back to me.
“Keep it quiet, will ya? Yes, thatisthe plan, but it’s not like my operation is above water and all. We have to keep a low profile, and we can only deal with what we know.”
“I don’t know what that means,” I said.
Goodman huffed and walked away from the bar. He swung the kitchen door open and beckoned me over.
“Autumn, keep an eye,” he said.
My sister nodded from a table and carried a tray of empty glasses to the bar.
Wyatt walked to the other end of the kitchen and turned his back to me, so I followed him and stood face to face.
“I’m trying to protect my island. I want to, but it’s not easy. I’m trying to gain the people’s trust, but I’ve been away from home a long time. It’s not exactly easy for them to trust me, even for those who’ve known me all my life. And a lot of the younger kids have never even met me, only heard of me.”
“So what? Catching those forfeiters was a fluke?” I asked.
“In a way. We were lucky Autumn was in the right place at the right time to give us a clue.”
I crossed my arms and watched Goodman. I didn’t like the idea of my sister being caught in the middle of some dangerous people.
“So, what’s going on here? If you think crime’s gone up, surely you must have some leads to investigate,” I said.
He leaned against a big stainless steel table in the middle of the room and pursed his lips.
“I’m sure there’s a drug cartel operating on the island, but I can’t exactly follow their trail. They know who to approach, and they’re steering well clear of here. And I’m almost certain there’s a loan shark, but it’s all whispers in the wind,” he said.
My eyebrows knitted together in deep concentration, coming up with a plan.
“Okay, now that I’m here, maybe we can go after the cartel. It shouldn’t be too difficult to track. I can go around and ask people—”
“That’s too dangerous, Hawkins.”
“Danger is our middle name, old man!”
“Not for you. For everyone else. You go around asking questions, and not only are you going to attract attention, but you’re going to put the spotlight on the innocent people caught up in this,” he said.
“Why would I attract attention? I can be discreet.”
The look Wyatt Goodman gave me could have cut me in two. It had in the past, during training and missions.
“Look at you. I don’t even have to know you to know you’re a soldier. Leave me to worry about the cartel. For now, like I said, I’ve got plenty of people in need of spare hands.”
