“I need to run an errand downtown.” He sighed. “We have to bring Liliya and Tatiana, but I don’t want them in the shop with me. That would just lead to another flare-up from Tatiana.”
“They can watch the front and rear doors of the shop,” Evelyn suggested.
Ben nodded. “Sure.”
He went to the safe and opened it to select some diamonds, placing them in a small paper envelope. This went into his pocket. “Okay, let’s go see the ladies.”
They took Ben’s truck and parked before Two Ashburn Court. They walked up to the front door, and Ben rang the doorbell.
Almost a minute later, Tatiana opened the door to stare at Ben. “Yes?” she said with a dull voice.
“I’m running an errand downtown,” Ben said.
She rolled her eyes and turned to walk back inside. “Liliya! Our leash is here!”
Ben remained at the door as he needed to calm himself.
Liliya arrived and sent Ben an apologetic look. He just nodded and stepped outside to walk to the truck. Tatiana locked the house behind her and was last into the vehicle. The Sergeant didn’t wait for her to buckle up before getting them back on the road. That wasn’t missed by the brunette.
The drive downtown was quick, and Evelyn got them a spot on the street a few doors away from the shop.
Evelyn looked over the seat toward the two ladies in the backseat. “Liliya, if you could watch the front door, Tatiana can watch the back door. Twenty-eight twenty-eight is the address. Jahal Jewelry Design.”
Tatiana’s eyes jumped to Ben then she was out of the truck and walking toward the alley leading to the back of the shop.
The others got out, and Ben headed for the front door. Evelyn touched his arm to make him wait as she went inside first.
Liliya was at his side immediately. “I’m sorry, Ben. I should never have mentioned the diamonds to her.”
“It’s fine,” he sighed. He didn’t want to talk about it again.
Liliya would have continued, but Evelyn opened the door and indicated he was free to enter.
Ben nodded to the Sergeant and stepped into the shop. He’d done his research and read the reviews before choosing this business. They did excellent work at decent prices. He approached the counter and saw a woman in her late thirties, maybe? She was watching him with wide eyes, so she probably–
“Mr. Shepherd! It is an honor to have you in my shop!” the lovely East Indian woman gasped.
Ben glanced around at the small space and smiled. It was intimate with something interesting for the eyes everywhere he looked. “It’s lovely, and your reputation for quality work brought me here. Are you the owner?”
A smile flashed across her face. “Yes, thank you. I’m Jahal Mannan. What can I do for you today?”
Ben nodded. “I need a ring designed. I have the diamonds, so I need a setting for them. A central stone and smaller stones on either side.
“I can do that.” She looked into one of her jewelry cases and pointed out some examples. “Something like these?”
Ben examined the rings and pointed at one he thought was close. “The one in the center is like what I was thinking about, perhaps not quite so… linear?”
“Slightly offset perhaps?” she suggested.
“Yes!” he agreed. He pulled the small envelope of diamonds from his pocket, and she placed a black velvet cloth on the counter. He poured the stones out, and she smiled in appreciation.
“I can make a lovely ring with these. When do you need it by?” she asked.
Ben realized he was likely to be away next week overseas. “Two-three weeks?”
She smiled in relief. “That’s definitely possible.” She arranged the stones on the cloth in roughly the order they would appear on the band, and Ben nodded his approval. She made some notes and gestured for Ben to put the diamonds back in the envelope. He handed it to her, and she wrote out a receipt.
As she handed him the slip of paper, there was a terrible crash noise from the rear of the shop. Evelyn was immediately through the staff-only door and returned quickly.
“Something metallic struck the rear exit door. It’s still secure, but I can hear screaming in the alley,” she reported.
The shop owner looked worried, but Ben just sighed. “I have one of my security detail back there. We’d better get out there before she kills someone.”
“Oh!” Jahal exclaimed. She rushed to the front door, locked up, and flipped the Open sign over. Evelyn made some hand signals to Liliya through the front window. The Russian quickly headed for the alley entrance.
Evelyn led the way through the shop to the back door, followed by Ben and Jahal. The Sergeant pushed the back door open and discovered it was blocked by an unconscious male. Ben put his hand on the door, and they shoved him out of the way and stepped out into the alley. Tatiana was standing amongst four men on the ground. Two were moaning in pain. The other two were out.
Ben spotted movement in the corner of his eye, and his hand was moving before he registered it was a sixth man sitting on the ground leaning back against a dumpster. He was lifting a gun to point it at Tatiana. Ben’s fist struck the man’s swollen face with a sick crack sound, and the gun fell from the lifeless fingers.
He stared at the dead man in shock as Evelyn quickly moved the weapon and checked the man’s pulse. She looked up at Ben with a grim expression and shook her head.
“Shit! I didn’t hit him that hard!” Ben muttered.
He looked at Tatiana, who was looking back at him in shock. Liliya joined them and said something quickly to Tatiana. Without taking her eyes from Ben, she gave her partner a report, gesturing to each of the men.
“Shakti!” Jahal exclaimed as she lifted a hand to cover her mouth.
Ben saw she was staring at the dead man with recognition. “You knew him?” he asked.
She nodded shakily. “Yes, but he was supposed to have gone back to India. I-I filed a restraining order against him. He wasn’t to come within one hundred yards of my home or business.”
Ben glanced at Liliya. “Tatiana was confronted by that man when she approached the shop’s back door. He used harsh words against her, so she returned them. Then he grabbed Tatiana’s wrist.”
“I struck his temple with the pommel of my blade. Hard. He should have remained unconscious,” she frowned as doubt passed over her expression.
Liliya continued. “These others left the van and rushed to the man’s aid, beginning with the man on the ground by the door. She put them all down.”
Ben looked at Jahal. “Do you recognize any of the other men?”
The woman shook her head in confusion. Ben walked back to the door and examined the man on the ground. He was unconscious and had a nasty bruise on his cheek. His jaw looked crooked, so it might be broken. He grabbed the man’s collar and dragged him over with the others.
As he gently laid him back on the road, Jahal gasped, and eyes turned in her direction.
“I do know this one! He works for Shakti,” she exclaimed.
“Why would he have come to your place of business, to the rear entrance with a group of men?” Ben asked.
“Two months ago, he tried to convince me to return to New Delhi with him to get married. I refused, and he became violent. I called the police, and he left when they arrived. That’s when I filed the restraining order. I heard from a friend of the family that he went back to India. He must have come back with them to abduct me.”
“You won’t have to worry about that anymore,” Evelyn said as she put her cell away and pulled out some zip ties.
A few minutes later, a police cruiser pulled into the alley, and Evelyn waved to them.
“I called Catherine to reschedule until tomorrow. I believe we’ll be occupied this afternoon,” she said to Ben, and he nodded with a grim look on his face.
His eyes lifted once more to catch Tatiana watching him. He realized he’d killed for her. Unintentional, of course, but he wondered what she made of that.
Louis Klein contacted Ben late Monday night, so bright and early Tuesday morning, Ben was out on the sidewalk before Beth’s old house watching the demolition equipment rolling into the neighborhood. He grinned as he saw the familiar smiling faces of Dominic’s crew. Hector Ramirez hopped out of his truck and walked over to shake Ben’s hand with a big smile.
“How’ve you been?” Ben asked.
“Really good! Glad to be back in the hood, though. The new job has me on the road more than I like,” the younger man sighed.
Ben nodded to that. He’d wondered if they’d have to make the drive to the next city for the job transfer.
Hector got a look in his eye as he glanced back at his crew, who seemed to be waiting on something. “So… we were wondering if you’ve made lunch arrangements.” There was hope in his expression.
Ben laughed and nodded. “Yes, they were available, so I booked them for the week.”
“Yes!” Hector cheered and raised his fists. A cheer rang out from the other men.
Ben noted a few unfamiliar faces, smiling but looking at their coworkers in confusion.
“I see you brought some new friends,” Ben added.
Hector nodded. “Yeah, we lost some of the old team when the bossman retired. The new guys are good.”
“That’s good enough for me,” Ben said with a smile.
Jayden joined them, and Hector rolled his eyes.