Serial Story: Jasmine Betrayal, Part 21
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 |
Jasmine Betrayal
Part 21
“Yeah.” The man who answered Genevieve’s call sounded vaguely familiar, which was good, she supposed.
“I have the diamonds,” she said without preamble. “Meet me at the diner in three hours, and they’re yours.”
The man chuckled. “No need, sweetheart. I have a man there now. Just give him the goods and we can all just forget this ever happened.”
“Your guy is down,” she said, hoping it was still the truth. “And he’s too low on the food chain. Since Jenkins is dead you’re up, and I’ll only hand them over to you. Either show up in three hours, or I’m calling the authorities and putting the whole mess on them. Your choice.”
She hung up before he could say anything else, her heart beating fast as she looked out the window toward the back of the diner. Shadows moved inside the window, but she couldn’t tell how many there were, or if Max was one. When he finally came out the back door and jogged to the trailer, she breathed a sigh of relief.
“Did you make the call?” he asked as he entered the trailer again. She nodded, handing him the phone.
“Was the guy still out?”
Max shrugged. “He was conscious, but cold. Now he’s just cold.” He dialed a number and waited. Genevieve could hear the ring tone at the other end of the line until finally it cut off.
Rattling off a string of letters and numbers into the phone, Max waited again, and then repeated the sequence. Another minute on hold, and Genvieve finally heard the sound of a human voice come on the line.
“Three hours. Pete’s Diner out on the frontage road. Westlake - that’s right. Thank you.”
He disconnected the call, nodding at Genevieve. “It’s done. They’ll be here, if they can. And as soon as we hand over those diamonds, Jenkins’ men will be taken into custody. Now we just wait.”
Genevieve sat down on the couch, weariness seeping through her bones.
“If this works, it will all be over, right? All those men will go to jail, and I’ll finally be out of danger.”
“Yep.” Max sat down beside her, close enough for her to feel his body heat. “You should even be able to keep the diner, if you still want it.”
She shook her head, relaxing back into the old hard cushions. “There’s no point in staying here now. Everything about it is tainted, and I’d always be looking over my shoulder, wondering what would happen next. I think it’s time to start over somewhere else. Maybe I’ll move into Little Rock, get an office job or something.”
“What did you do before the diner?”
She shrugged. “Odd jobs, mostly. I graduated with a degree in business, but it’s surprising how truly useless that is without the experience to go with it. I’d been trying to find something when Dad died and left me the diner, so...”
Max took her hand, laced his fingers with hers. Could he feel the quick beat of her pulse where he touched her wrist?
“Maybe you could start a shop of your own. A little cafe, or a tourist shop of some sort.”
She smiled. “I have always wanted to open a tea shop, actually. I’ll have to wait and see what kind of capital I can come up with from selling the diner. Maybe I’ll even relocate. Somewhere boring, like Kansas or Oklahoma.”
He laughed, squeezing her hand. “Somehow I don’t think boring suits you. But if you want to move north, I might have a few suggestions...”
Tires crunched on the gravel outside, and Genevieve looked at Max.
“It’s way too early--”
He held one finger to his lips as a car door slammed, and then another. Going to the window, he peeked out around the blinds, replacing them quietly as he went back to her and reached out a hand.
Taking it, Genevieve let him pull her up and into a close embrace, his lips against her ear.
“It’s a couple I don’t recognize - elderly, probably harmless. Stay here and keep quiet - I’ll get rid of them.”
She nodded, his heady male scent infusing her senses and making it hard to focus. When he turned to go and his words finally registered in her brain, she reached out to stop him.
“Wait,” she said, grabbing his arm. “I probably know them, if they’re regulars. Let me go.”
He shook his head. “No way - it’s too dangerous. I wouldn’t put it past either Jenkins’ men or the FBI to have snipers moving in for cover. Stay here.”
Two shots rang out just as Max reached for the door.
Enjoy
this post? Support your author:
format every Friday right here on the blog for free. When the story is
done, it will be edited, polished and available for sale at all your
favorite online retailers.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 |
Jasmine Betrayal
Part 21
“Yeah.” The man who answered Genevieve’s call sounded vaguely familiar, which was good, she supposed.
“I have the diamonds,” she said without preamble. “Meet me at the diner in three hours, and they’re yours.”
The man chuckled. “No need, sweetheart. I have a man there now. Just give him the goods and we can all just forget this ever happened.”
“Your guy is down,” she said, hoping it was still the truth. “And he’s too low on the food chain. Since Jenkins is dead you’re up, and I’ll only hand them over to you. Either show up in three hours, or I’m calling the authorities and putting the whole mess on them. Your choice.”
She hung up before he could say anything else, her heart beating fast as she looked out the window toward the back of the diner. Shadows moved inside the window, but she couldn’t tell how many there were, or if Max was one. When he finally came out the back door and jogged to the trailer, she breathed a sigh of relief.
“Did you make the call?” he asked as he entered the trailer again. She nodded, handing him the phone.
“Was the guy still out?”
Max shrugged. “He was conscious, but cold. Now he’s just cold.” He dialed a number and waited. Genevieve could hear the ring tone at the other end of the line until finally it cut off.
Rattling off a string of letters and numbers into the phone, Max waited again, and then repeated the sequence. Another minute on hold, and Genvieve finally heard the sound of a human voice come on the line.
“Three hours. Pete’s Diner out on the frontage road. Westlake - that’s right. Thank you.”
He disconnected the call, nodding at Genevieve. “It’s done. They’ll be here, if they can. And as soon as we hand over those diamonds, Jenkins’ men will be taken into custody. Now we just wait.”
Genevieve sat down on the couch, weariness seeping through her bones.
“If this works, it will all be over, right? All those men will go to jail, and I’ll finally be out of danger.”
“Yep.” Max sat down beside her, close enough for her to feel his body heat. “You should even be able to keep the diner, if you still want it.”
She shook her head, relaxing back into the old hard cushions. “There’s no point in staying here now. Everything about it is tainted, and I’d always be looking over my shoulder, wondering what would happen next. I think it’s time to start over somewhere else. Maybe I’ll move into Little Rock, get an office job or something.”
“What did you do before the diner?”
She shrugged. “Odd jobs, mostly. I graduated with a degree in business, but it’s surprising how truly useless that is without the experience to go with it. I’d been trying to find something when Dad died and left me the diner, so...”
Max took her hand, laced his fingers with hers. Could he feel the quick beat of her pulse where he touched her wrist?
“Maybe you could start a shop of your own. A little cafe, or a tourist shop of some sort.”
She smiled. “I have always wanted to open a tea shop, actually. I’ll have to wait and see what kind of capital I can come up with from selling the diner. Maybe I’ll even relocate. Somewhere boring, like Kansas or Oklahoma.”
He laughed, squeezing her hand. “Somehow I don’t think boring suits you. But if you want to move north, I might have a few suggestions...”
Tires crunched on the gravel outside, and Genevieve looked at Max.
“It’s way too early--”
He held one finger to his lips as a car door slammed, and then another. Going to the window, he peeked out around the blinds, replacing them quietly as he went back to her and reached out a hand.
Taking it, Genevieve let him pull her up and into a close embrace, his lips against her ear.
“It’s a couple I don’t recognize - elderly, probably harmless. Stay here and keep quiet - I’ll get rid of them.”
She nodded, his heady male scent infusing her senses and making it hard to focus. When he turned to go and his words finally registered in her brain, she reached out to stop him.
“Wait,” she said, grabbing his arm. “I probably know them, if they’re regulars. Let me go.”
He shook his head. “No way - it’s too dangerous. I wouldn’t put it past either Jenkins’ men or the FBI to have snipers moving in for cover. Stay here.”
Two shots rang out just as Max reached for the door.
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