Page 91 of Jam and Jingle Bells
“The rest? The other guy?” I asked and he nodded, his head bobbing while he swallowed.
“The other guy, the Thunder Vipers, and the people in Bells Pass who were helping them.”
I scratched my head. “People who were helping them?”
“There were a few informants for the gang living in the outlying communities, apparently. They were feeding the gang information about who to target.”
Ellis held up his finger. “Something has been bothering me. They attacked my business long before they would have seen us together. Why me?”
Wilson leaned forward to answer. “They were under the impression you were gay.”
All Ellis did was laugh. “Yeah, I get that a lot. It’s the yoga thing.”
Gabe held up his hands. “Obviously misinformation,” he said. “Which they figured out when they were cruising through town one night and saw the two of you here. They decided you were two birds with one stone if they could get you together. They continually cruised town looking for you.”
“And then they found us,” I said and he nodded. “Twice.”
“He told us during the bottle incident the guy’s gun jammed so he tossed a bottle just to scare you, but they made a plan to come back. Apparently, you get promoted to a full-fledge viper if you get a twofer.”
“Two murders at one time,” Ellis said.
Wilson nodded grimly. “The guy who turned himself in wasn’t exactly feeling it, though. It started out he was pissed at his parents and took off, got hooked up in the wrong crowd and dragged along. All initiates are sent out with another member of the gang, for obvious reasons. He was afraid they’d kill him if he didn’t go through with it, but he swears he missed on purpose Wednesday night. He could have had you if he’d wanted.”
Ellis sighed. “I wondered when we found the bullets in the wall twenty feet from us.”
“Exactly,” Gabe agreed. “The way he tells it, the two of them were arguing in the truck when Wilson pulled them over. The gang official already had his gun out and pointed at him while he drove. Things went bad and after they shot Wilson, they both bailed and took off in different directions. The kid couldn’t live with himself after seeing Wilson go down. He sang like a little jaybird. It’s taken us two days, but we have them all rounded up. Nothing to worry about now. Merry Christmas.”
I leaned back in the booth and sighed, my hands to my lips. “This is fantastic news. You got the gang, too?”
Gabe motioned between himself and Wilson. “Not us specifically, but the Saginaw Gang Taskforce did.”
“Who were the informants here?” Ellis asked. “Who did we think was part of the community but wasn’t?”
“There were three guys here in Bells Pass. Other communities had bigger groups, but we’re tighter knit than most. These guys lived on the outskirts, didn’t socialize much, but definitely went to enough community events to know who was who in the ethnicity department.”
Last Saturday’s interaction with Cameron flashed through my mind and I groaned. “The kid from the sleigh!”
Ellis tipped his head. “What kid from the sleigh? There were about four hundred.”
I glanced up at the two guys in front of me. “The boy’s name was Cameron. He was in Holly’s class so he was maybe eight or nine. He told me his dad said elves can’t be girls and they can’t be black.”
Ellis put his hand over mine. “I remember, he wouldn’t let you touch the boy, kept grabbing him before you could help.”
“That’s him,” I agreed. “Mel told me he’s a jackass and Holly doesn’t like Cameron either because she’s afraid of his dad.”
“How come you didn’t say anything about this guy to me? You should have reported him,” Gabe said, his brows furrowed.
“It was just a weird interaction.” I gave him the palms up. “I forgot about it right after it happened. I bet he was one of them.”
Wilson shifted his eyes to Gabe who sighed. “Sounds like a guy we arrested. Lodi James. He has a son in the school district, but there’s no mother involved. He waved his hand. “Let us do the police work, but from now on, if something is off, please, for the love of God, report it. We don’t care how minor you think it is.”
Wilson pointed at him. “I agree with him for once in my life. Deal?”
Ellis and I nodded as Becca set the mug of hot cocoa in front of Ellis. “You guys want anything to eat? On the house, Ivy says.”
They shook their heads. “Thanks anyway, but we gotta fly. I haven’t slept in two days,” Gabe admitted, the bags under his eyes telling me that was the truth. “And this guy is supposed to be in bed, so I better get him back to his apartment before his mommy finds out he’s not following doctor’s orders.”
Gabriel stood and held Wilson’s crutches until he was out of the booth. I hugged them both and thanked them again. When they were gone, we slid back into the booth and grinned at each other.
