Triple Diamonds (Mystic Nights Book 2) (21 page)

He was unsure of what to make of the situation.
Should he mention it to Jewel?
That had not gone over well before. He knew she was doing the best she could, but did she know what else the boys were up to?
Their other extra-curricular activities?

Should he follow?
They were probably headed to school.
But what was in the envelope? Could he find a way to have them show it to him?
For her sake and theirs, he hoped they weren’t involved in drugs. But was he overstepping? Their future could be on the line.
This could be serious.
He needed to consider his actions seriously.

Joseph decided to head to work and not confront the situation just yet. He decided that perhaps he needed to hang out with the boys, earn their trust, and his thoughts of doing something over the weekend was going to be pushed up to tonight. Jewel had the night off. And he could spare one evening from the campaign trail to do a little digging. It was all he could think of at the moment. Whatever they were doing could be thrown back on her. He needed to find out what that was.

*

Before heading into
work, Joseph drove quickly to his home in Ledyard. He needed a shower and to come up with a plan for that evening. Something they could all do together, but something that would give him a chance to talk to Jewel’s brothers alone.

Pulling up to the house, which was next door to his brother’s, he quickly parked near the front and pondered what he could plan.

There was a comedian that the boys might enjoy at the casino, but then he had another thought. They loved sports. He knew there was a cage match at the
Mohegan Sun
. He was sure he could snag some tickets from some of his friends on the other reservation. They might not be the greatest seats at such late notice, but it was something the boys would most likely want to do if they hadn’t made other plans for the night.

Unlocking the door, he simultaneously retrieved his cell phone and made the call to Gerald Plunkett, a friend he knew that worked at
The Mohegan
. He was in luck. The tickets would be waiting for him at all call. He bartered with tickets to the opening night of his sister’s new club. Gerry had a bit of a crush on Dawn, and he hoped she didn’t get mad at him over it. But this was something he needed to do, and he didn’t want to waste any more time.

While making his way to his bedroom and master bath, he dialed Jewel’s number. She was surprised to hear he had changed his plans for the evening, but was more than eager to spend the extra time with him. She was also thrilled to hear about the tickets to the MMA fight. Her brothers were boxing fans as well as fans of mixed martial arts, and hadn’t been to see a match since their father had passed. She was sure they would be more than willing to change their plans, if they had plans, and promised to text him as soon as she got ahold of them.

He promised he would text her the information and would pick her and her brothers up for the fights at seven that evening.

Joseph made quick work of his shower. He heard his notifications on his phone the moment he stepped out. He had missed two calls. One was a text from Jewel saying the boys would love to go, but they would drive themselves there and meet them. They had plans but would push them back until later in the evening. They would go to the fight first. And the second call was from his brother. With the text was a picture. An ultrasound picture. The text beneath it said,
a boy!,
and there was something circled on the picture.

He grinned at the grainy image. He didn’t know what those ultrasound technicians saw to make that determination, but, hey, it was what they were trained to do. He was excited for his brother and new sister-in-law. Aliya was nearly five months pregnant. The thought of the soon to be new addition to their family made him think of Jewel, and seeing her belly swollen with his child. It made his smile widen even more. It also made other parts of his body react. He willed his libido to calm down. He had a long day ahead of him, and an evening where he planned to woo his future wife. But the evening also had another purpose—to help guide her brothers while hoping they were not involved in any serious kind of trouble.

*

The evening went
well. He was able to talk to the boys between bouts, and Jewel ran and got drinks while the boys talked about the matches, and the merits and strengths of each fighter. Joseph had been reluctant to be direct especially with Jewel around. He didn’t want to spoil the evening, so instead focused on warning the boys through stories of himself and some of the fighters, how stupid childhood mistakes could cost one of them their future. Mostly the boys were receptive, nodding their agreement, but he could sense they knew he was attempting to give them some kind of a lecture. So he toned it down. The boys assured them they wanted to be athletes, and role models. They weren’t going to screw that up.

He probed them about what they wanted to do if and when their athletic pursuits came to an end. Lesley wasn’t sure. He liked animals, and hoped to earn a degree in vet science. Wesley stated simply that he was going to become a teacher like his mother. He knew the money wasn’t great, but it was what he wanted to do.

Joseph saw the flash of pain in the young man’s eyes, but respected his candor, and his dream. It was a noble goal. He clapped the young man on the back and gave his shoulder a reassuring squeeze, and then noticed Lesley quickly changed the subject on behalf of his brother. Jewel arrived with more refreshments from the concession stand, and they all settled in for the last bout, the main event.

The last fight concluded just after ten, and the boys took off. They couldn’t be persuaded to get a snack with them. They had promised some friends they would join them for a study session for their upcoming AP sociology exam. With a nod of approval from Jewel, the boys each kissed her cheek, and then shook Joseph’s hand thanking him once more for the evening out.

Joseph watched them leave, and in his heart felt they were both good kids. He hadn’t been able to get any information out of them, but they seemed grounded. Focused on their current pursuits. Instead of the snack, he took Jewel’s hand and they decided to head to his house. They would have a few hours together and then he would drive her home.

He still wasn’t completely satisfied about the boys’ extra-curricular activities, and he hoped to have the boys talk more, but it was a start. He was laying the groundwork. He planned on doing something that weekend with them and perhaps they would be more talkative then.

*

The evening passed
too quickly for both him and Jewel. Shortly after one, she was dressed once more, and he was just donning his jacket to take her home when his cell phone rang. Answering it on his way down the steps after locking the door behind them, wondering who would call so late, he was shocked to hear his mother’s voice.

“Joseph, I need you at the casino.
Mohegan
’s was hit tonight. And so were we. Four guests were robbed. I want you to come look at the tapes we have. You are going to want to see this.”

With his heart sinking, he had a bad feeling. Something in his gut told him, he wasn’t going to like what he was going to see. Not letting on to Jewel what was going on so the evening wasn’t spoiled for her, he opened the door on her side of the car and helped her in before making his way to the driver’s side. The ride to her home was done in silence. Kissing her quickly, he explained that he would see her the next day and suggested a late lunch before her shift.

“Sure,” she murmured into his chest not releasing him right away. She’d had a great time tonight, and was reluctant to see it end.

Joseph’s unease grew as he parted from Jewel. The timing of the robberies set one worry to rest though. Jewel had been with him the entire time. But the boys, God, he hoped they weren’t involved. He gave her one final kiss at her door. He needed to go. Work, duty, and family called. He just hoped his suspicions that somehow her brothers were involved were not true.
Why did they have all this money? What were they buying with it?
Those questions just wouldn’t leave him as he pulled out of Jewel’s driveway and headed to
The Mystic
. He hoped he would finally get some answers.

‡

I
t was nearly
two AM by the time he arrived at the casino and his mother was waiting in the lobby for him. Her face was grim. Jonathan stood beside her. Both looked tired and unsettled. He saw the exchange between them as he approached. He knew something was up and whatever they had seen on the tapes was serious.

“What is it?” he asked wasting no time, getting straight to the point.

“We’re not sure. But you have to see it for yourself,” Tawny replied, hooking her arm through Jonathan’s and leading him to the bank of elevators. The casino was busy still at this time of night, but they weaved their way through the crowds of people coming and going through the lobby. Taking the service elevator, they didn’t need to wait in line after Jonathan swiped his key card. Joseph was on their heels as they made their way to the security suite on the second floor. His face a mask, but he knew whatever they had seen was not good.

Once inside and safely out of earshot of guests, Jonathan spoke. “We just finished watching the
Mohegan
video and think that whoever hit them earlier tonight was the same crew that came here.”

“They must move quickly. When were they hit?” Joseph’s question came swiftly. The timeline he knew would be important to erase his lingering suspicions.

“Around eight thirty, two rooms were hit. Then another room at 10:45. Three rooms in all at
The Mohegan Sun
. Then we had two rooms hit on the eighth floor. Just before midnight.” His world tilted. They had been at
The Mohegan
’s at the time of the first robbery, but the boys had never left his side. Only Jewel had left a few times, gone to the concession stand. She had been quite some time the first time they had sent her. He’d assumed it was long lines. He felt ill.

“They work fast,” he grumbled keeping his fears to himself.