Sometimes a Man has to Do a Thing

"They got my wife and daughter!" Douglas was heard hysterically screaming as four more officers arrived and dragged him out of the men's room still kicking and snarling.

***

"I'm out." Marvin stated flatly, slapping what was left of ten thousand dollars cash onto the gold flecked marble counter top. "Minus a few bills for expenses of course."

"Now wait a minute." Donald started off with hostility as he stared down the hired henchman in his own kitchen. "We had a deal."

"Shhh." Marvin put his gloved finger to his lips. "Easy there counselor. See I figure either the cops have Frank holed up in a motel somewhere until the trial, or whatever he saw scared him enough to catch the next train out of town. Both scenario's leaving him out of my reach."

"You people are all the fucking same." Donald chuckled, while pouring himself a shot of Dalmore single malt scotch. "That was Curtis' problem too, got greedy, then got thrown off a roof. And here you come, what, tryin' ta pimp me for moe chedda?" The old white man mocked in his best hood impersonation.

"I should beat yo ass for the implication alone." Marvin threatened balling his fists up in anticipation, stretching the Mechanix gloves over his sledgehammer like hands.

"I've had my ass kicked before but I've never been beaten at anything my whole life." Donald stared back at him while downing the shot of liquor. "Come on if you're coming but you better kill me."

Marvin smiled and respectfully nodded his affirmation, before shrugging his fleece lined denim jacket off, and carefully laying it over the padded bar stool beside the marble island.

"That's enough, put your dicks away." Came the calm request of Claudia Hughes as she entered the kitchen coolly and took her place beside her husband. "Pour me one darling please, then take a breath outside."

Donald glowered at Marvin another beat before looking to his wife who took his face in her hands and gently blew her peppermint scented breath into his mouth. The flight or fight mechanism inside the aging lawyer ground to a halt as his wife continued to blow into his face, while stroking his hair.

"Go on dear, let me explain to Mr. Woodall just how dire these circumstances are, for all of us." With the end of her sentence she fixed her cold stone eyes on Marvin.

Stunned, Marvin watched Donald finally relent and angrily stalk outside onto the back patio. He himself took a few cleansing breaths inhaling through his nose and exhaling out his mouth, to quiet the demons.

"Have a seat please. Would you like a drink?" Claudia offered, grabbing a second crystal tumbler from a display box near the stove. "You probably should, considering your ignorance to the full scope of the situation you are now in."

"Suppose you're here to educate me right?" Marvin laughed, taking a seat.

"Doesn't really matter to me, you can die stupid if you prefer." She bit back. "My husband answers to some powerful people."

"I can imagine. Thanks." Marvin took the drink and knocked back the two fingers of scotch. "Sorry... uh, cheers." He saluted with the empty glass.

Claudia offered an empty smile while pouring the rude black man a second drink. "These people expect things to run smoothly and when they don't they make their own phone calls to very bad men."

"I saw your husband at his office bullying that big dumb bouncer from the Foxy Hole earlier, that's why I came here." Marvin said, ignoring her veiled threats. "Also felt like somebody was watching me or something, really freaked me out."

"If you listen that's what I'm trying to explain to you." Claudia offered pleasantly, pushing the half filled tumbler back toward Marvin. "That girl was my husband's responsibility, and now she's missing."

"Trying to get me drunk Mrs. Hughes?" Marvin joked while taking a sip. "This shit is exquisite."

"Everything we own is." She pointed out the luxuries of their multi million dollar estate. "Donald and I are two of the fiercest attorneys in middle Tennessee right now. His firm handles a lot of civil matters while I tackle criminal cases at mine. Once upon a time we struggled at a single law firm together, fighting tooth and nail for every penny we earned. Back when we still put our faith in the justice system."

"You're saying you don't believe in what you do?" Marvin asked, surprised by the woman's lack of empathy.

"I'm saying it doesn't matter." She simply put it. "A trip to Bacalar Mexico opened our eyes forever. It started with the Bacalar Lagoon and all the beautiful native girls."

"Wait, wait, hold up a sec. Is this what I think it is?" Marvin asked, disbelieving what he was hearing.

"Toward the end of our vacation a man named Miguel approached us claiming they needed gringos like us to help maintain a smooth traffic flow."

"Of fucking people?" Marvin spat sourly.

"Among other things as well." Claudia tried to justify. "The point I'm trying to make is that this system reaches to heights you just won't believe in this country, our country. Miguel was some filthy nobody they used for recruitment and muscle sometimes, the real power was being wielded by some of the very same people we once looked up to."

Marvin wordlessly walked over to the giant farmer's sink and poured out the rest of the single malt scotch. "Go on bitch. Tell me my role in this bullshit." He sneered over his shoulder at her.

"As threatening and powerful as my husband seems he's the lowest man on the totem pole." She licked her lips. "We took the money they gave us and built a fucking empire. Now I can offer the carrot and make promises to bring you along with us but I can clearly see your distaste about all this. We're not evil, nor do we take pleasure in any of this. My husband keeps them clean, even gives them an allowance, freedom to come and go for short periods of time. Just business, keeping your employees happy. We know we've sold our souls but the devil doesn't do refunds."

"Get to the fucking point! I don't give a fuck about either of you." Marvin shouted. "So what, now they got me on their radar?"

"I'm not entirely sure who put that girl at the strip club but I do know Donald is responsible for most of the girls there, at least the ones who get planted there. Then they get shipped off somewhere else eventually." Claudia explained. "The point is she's missing, if we had a body it'd be different. As it stands she could tell things, but we don't know the extent of her knowledge about the system."

"Thought her name was Haley." Marvin asked, in an attempt to humanize the victim.

"Right, sorry. Haley could have gone home and tried to put all this behind herself, or who knows." She shrugged her shoulders. "But Donald and I don't get to write the fairy tale, just do as we're told. This is a problem until she's found dead or alive."

"But I was sent to find some bum." Marvin shook his head in confusion.

"Speaking with the DA I learned they fully intend to indict our son Richard on Haley's disappearance and suspected murder, with the sole testimony of this bum and a few grainy images from a shitty security camera." Claudia further explained. "The call we received told us that also would be a problem as it might draw attention to our family, and in extension our hidden partners."

"They're hoping that girl's dead and they want this whole investigation to go away" Marvin spoke his thoughts aloud. "Are you sure your son didn't do it?"

The scowling henchman read the answer in her cold unwavering eyes. "Doesn't fucking matter." He answered himself softly.

Claudia fixed her lips in a smirk that still didn't reach her eyes, shrugging her shoulders and downing her scotch. "You will now be solely responsible for that problem. Now I'm pretty sure I can get that shitty parking lot footage tossed out but it's on your shoulders to erase their star witness. The stick my friend is that people higher than us have your name on a piece of paper, as well as... three babies' mamas now?"

Marvin stiffened with blind rage but before he could take a single step Claudia's phone chirped, alerting her that she had a new text message. She quickly viewed it while holding up a finger to halt the gloved henchman's violent outburst, then turned the screen so that he could see it.

The effect was like dousing a flame in cold water, his spirit nearly leaving his body. A single picture of Keisha Woodall, Marvin's sister at the self checkout at Walmart.

"Read the time stamp they left in the corner." Claudia softly recommended. "They could easily send their own people out to clean up this mess. But then that would mean that they don't need us anymore right? These assholes love suffrage. I know we don't owe you anything but please help my family, hell, help your own family. You and I are the same now, take my husband's money back on your way out. Told you already the devil doesn't do refunds."

***

Richard Hughes blinked his eyes against the harsh fluorescent lighting of the interrogation room he was seated in. He had hastily slipped a few weed gummies into his mouth and chewed following the bizarre incident at the Foxy Hole, before he was escorted to a squad car and brought in for questioning. Riding the euphoric wave he managed to stifle most of the panic that bubbled inside his stomach, as he looked around the sterile empty room that confined him.

After nearly twenty minutes the door finally opened and in walked Detective Katrina Pearson, once again professionally dressed in a navy blue pant suit with the hint of a slim gold chain peaking out of the collar of her cream colored dress shirt.

"Wanna talk about it?" She asked gently, sliding a can of Sprite across the cold steel table to him.

"I like your necklace." Richard smiled, accepting her peace offering and cracking it open to take a drink.

"Like your's too." Katrina pointed to the fresh mottled bruises covering the victim's neck. "I know you told the officers on scene what happened but I'd like to hear it in person if you don't mind."

"Sure." Richard croaked. "Crazy fucker tried to kill me."

"Any particular reason? As I understand it the two of you were actually pretty good friends."

"Naw that gorilla bastard just happens to work at my favorite titty bar." He said holding the cool soda can against his still throbbing throat. "Thought you learned your lesson last time Detective, when my mother tossed your smart ass out of our house."

"It's obvious that you still haven't learned anything either, like just how serious this situation is." Katrina said behind a chilling smile that masked restrained violence.

"Fuck you, I'm not saying another word without my parents here." Richard whined.

"Fine but listen to me carefully, because your buddy in the room next door is singing a beautiful song and I'm sure you know some of the lyrics." She leaned her elbows on the table, leaning forward in her chair. "Daddy makes his money in more ways than one, handling civil cases is just a side hustle."

"Careful." Richard laughed. "He's very good at his job and what you're about to say might be considered defamation."

"Think the monsters he answers to will really let him sue me for slander? I have a mountain of a man next door in tears and shaking telling us everything he knows, like his role in all of this, and who he personally answers to."

"That ginger dumbass don't know shit. He's in custody right now, he'll say whatever you wanna hear."

"Maybe. But so far we can't seem to find his wife and daughter." Katrina leaned further into his face, embracing her bad cop role. "How hard do you think we'll have to look before we find one of those dancers willing to corroborate his story?Someone tired of the slavery and abuse? Matter of fact whose watching them now since we have their handler in a holding cell right now?"

Richard licked his lips, uncertain of what to say before remaining silent and taking another drink of his soda.

"Okay let's try this. Your dear friend Dougie also puts you there at the club Sunday night when Haley went missing. Including the pathetic love story to go with it." The Detective snickered while rolling her eyes. "He's damn near got me convinced that you either faked her disappearance so the two of you can run off together later, or you murdered her in a fit of jealousy. Which one would seem more plausible, to a jury I mean?"

"I want to call my lawyer." Richard stated, sticking his chin up in defiance. "I didn't do shit to that girl."

"Easy, easy calm down. I'll get you a phone in here in a minute, believe it or not I'm on your side here kid." Katrina said, sitting back in her chair and switching to her good cop persona, after establishing a viable threat that she could hold over him. "Just here me out, one more thing and I'll let you call your mommy."

"Fuck you." Richard snapped.

"You really loved that girl didn't you? Despite it all you still respected her and felt the two of you could really make a life together. Who knows that beautiful Eastern Kentucky sweetheart probably did have every intention of running off with you, and why not? She deserved better than what your asshole father forced on her."

"You don't know..." Richard began before tearfully choking off his words.

"Wrong I do know, I know that Haley started acting differently after she met you, refusing clients and displaying some strange form of optimism. Almost like she was, I don't know, in love."

Richard just put his head down and wrapped his arms around himself, rocking back and forth in his seat.

"Did you hear me? From what I've gathered you got through to her, she might have actually fallen for you." Katrina pushed on. "Guess who else noticed, and guess who ratted you out? That's right Dougie finally confessed to Papa. Wait do you call him Papa? Anyway can you imagine how that conversation went, 'cause I can?"

"What'd he say?" Richard asked with red rimmed eyes.

"Who?" She toyed with him.

"Papa?"

"Your father called her a liability." She stated plainly. "That old heathen was threatened by what the two of you had, said it wasn't good for business. Especially if he lost track of you both."

Richard broke inside shutting his eyes, a single tear tracing down his cheek.

The Detective waited a beat before pressing further. "He couldn't very well murder his only son could he? But he had to squash that bullshit especially after another girl had run off the year before. Haley was well liked by you and the other dancers, so he didn't want to spook them with her body washing up in the Cumberland. If she disappeared it would just mean it was her time to get shipped off to her next sexual prison, and business as usual. Except the higher powers consider her a loose end, which Donald Hughes did not anticipate."

"Are you fucking with me?" Richard asked, sniffling back tears.

"Nothing's definitive, and you would know which scenario fits better than me. Besides Dougie I got a second pair of eyes that saw you that Sunday at the Foxy Hole. Know a local panhandler everybody calls Flathead Frank?"

"Yeah I know Frank." Richard grinned fondly. "Shared my weed gummies with him sometimes, his favorite was Pineapple."

"Up to you, got two witnesses ready to testify against you. Or start telling me a different story. Don't mind telling you I'm partial to the second story, 'cause big picture, I would love to break your father's gotdamn neck."

***

Marvin Woodall pulled his red Kia Sorento into the overflow lot beside the jail. Recognizing his favorite bail bondsman, Kenneth Waters, also Kim Waters' husband he threw his hands up in salute. The aging white hippie was perched on the hood of his based solid black dodge charger near the side entrance where the prisoners were released.

Kenneth raised a bony white fist and smiled. A giant red bearded country boy stood beside him nervously. The kind bondsman patted the brute on his wide beefy shoulder while saying something meaningful and reassuring no doubt. Douglas nodded his head while listening, anxiously twisting the bag with his belongings in it.

Strings were pulled and Douglas Berkowitz was granted a bond hearing early the next morning following his arrest, represented by Claudia Hughes, to everyone's shock.

"Mr. Waters vouched for you, said you two were close." Douglas said approaching the short black man.

"Like family." Marvin smiled big, showing teeth. "I was told to pick you up and babysit until they can set up an exit route for you."

The bouncer paused with his hand on the passenger side door handle. "Wait they expect me to run? I gotta find my family."

"Get in big guy we can help each other."

Douglas paused another moment assessing the smaller man, wondering how quickly he could break his neck if he had to. "Help you how?" He finally asked skeptically.

"You know you fucked over a lot of people in there with all that snitching." Marvin said, climbing behind the steering wheel and starting the car so he could roll down the passenger window. "Lot of folks want you hung upside down and bled out I imagine. Get your big ass in the fucking car and maybe I can help keep you alive. Don't nobody feel sorry for you." He demanded, leaning over the seat.

Douglas reluctantly complied. "Hey you got an iphone charger my shit died while I was locked up?"

"Us poor folks rock with Androids, sorry. Maybe we can stop off somewhere and grab one on the way." Marvin said buckling his seat belt and checking his mirrors.

"Sorry about being skittish and all. I know I fucked up but what would you do if you came home and your family was missing?" Douglas asked rolling his window back up as they turned onto the main road. "Where are we going?"

"Making some moves. You really fucked me up by fingering their loser kid as a suspect." Marvin admitted. "If I can help them get you out of the country I won't have to kill you. But this other fucker you're gonna help me find and deal with first."

"Seriously? How tall are you?" The amused bouncer took up the entire front left side of the Kia SUV. "You're short and wide but I'm tall and wide you really think you can take me?"

"Do you not realize the extent of the damage you have caused in just one night?" Marvin asked looking at him, before quickly putting his eyes back on the road. "You were going to get violated in there at least a couple weeks before some cowboy punched a dozen holes in you with a shiv. He'd probably turn around and frame some brother for it too. Donald paid your bond for Kenny to get you out personally, I was there."

"Don't mean nothing." Douglas griped bitterly.

"I hate both of you but I can say he came through for you even after you throttled his son and implicated both of them in a kidnap or murder. So just cool your tits Big Red we're trying to keep you functional." The smaller henchman said stopping the car at a red light. "And I absolutely think I can take you, you're a big pussy."

They rode in awkward silence for the next fifteen minutes until the red Kia Sorento pulled into the smooth freshly repaved parking lot at Dino's Spaghetti Warehouse.

"You know Flathead Frank right?" Marvin asked, cutting the car off. "He's trying to pull a Berkowitz and testify against little Richard."

"Fuck you." Douglas growled, squeezing his massive frame back out of the Kia's passenger side door. "I'm not eating here the food sucks. Calzones gave me the shits a week ago."

Ignoring his protests Marvin walked past him, and entered the authentic Italian restaurant. Douglas took a big sigh and looked next door at the Foxy Hole which was still closed, before shaking his head in defeat and stomping up the steps to Dino's.

"Giovanni, my man." Marvin cheered slapping the counter as he entered. "Let's try that gluten free Rotini again but with the meat and marinara sauce this time."

"You got it playboy." Giovanni the cashier responded, throwing his hand towel over one shoulder. "Wait a fucking minute." He paused looking at the red bearded brute that had just walked in.