An Insignificant Case

Chapter Twenty-One

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Charlie had told Guido to expect his friends, so Guido continued to paint when he heard the growl of two Harleys driving into the yard in front of the barn. When his bodyguards walked inside, he put down his paintbrush.

“Hey, Guido. This is Bob, and I’m Gary. Charlie sent us to keep you safe.”

Guido beamed at the Barbarians. “I welcome your assistance, and, with your permission, I would like to paint your portraits to show my appreciation.”

“That would be nice,” Gary said, “but let’s table that gesture until our job is done.”

Guido shrugged. “As you wish.”

Gary and Bob walked behind Guido and studied his depiction of a peaceful valley with a waterfall as its centerpiece.

“You’re really good, aren’t you?” Gary said.

“I had the best teachers.”

“Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, right?” Gary said.

Guido smiled.

“We Googled you,” Bob said. “You’ve got a checkered past.”

“How so?” Guido asked.

“Don’t be shy. We know all about your adventures in the world of gambling. Any tips?”

Guido smiled. “Yes. Don’t gamble. I never did when I played poker or blackjack.”

Gary smiled, and Bob threw his head back and laughed.

“I’m going to walk the perimeter, and Bob will stay inside,” Gary said. “You go back to doing what you’re doing and try to forget we’re here.”

Guido turned to his easel and examined his evolving nature study.

Three hours after Charlie met with Bridget Fournier, two of the detectives who were working the sex trafficking case drove Bridget to Guido’s farm. They followed Charlie into the yard and parked next to him when he stopped in front of the barn.

When Charlie got out of his car, he looked for Gary and Bob. When he didn’t see them, he thought they might be in the barn watching Guido paint, but Guido was alone. Bridget and the detectives followed Charlie into the barn.

“Hey, Guido,” Charlie said. “How is the painting going?”

Guido frowned. “I am being defeated by the light. Try as I may, I cannot get the correct effect of the sun as it is setting.” Guido shrugged. “It is a challenge that I must rise to.”

“This is Bridget Fournier. You probably recognize her from the arraignment in your case.”

“A pleasure, Miss Fournier. Are you French? I have never painted scenes from France, but I intend to expand my horizons someday.”

“My ancestors were from Aix-en-Provence.”

“Ah! Have you been there?”

Bridget nodded. “I spent a semester in France during my junior year in college.”

“ Bien! ” Guido said with a smile.

“So, Guido,” Charlie said, “we’re here because we’re worried about you. Your farmhouse and your studio were searched, and so was my office. Bridget and I are certain that the people who searched were looking for the items you took from Miss Hall’s safe, and we’re worried that you’re in danger as long as you have these items.”

Guido opened his mouth to reply, but he didn’t. Instead, he shifted his eyes toward the entrance to the barn. Charlie turned his head and saw three masked men armed with automatic weapons.

Charlie’s adrenaline kicked in, and everything moved in slow motion. One of the detectives swiveled toward the front of the barn and drew his gun. Several gunshots echoed through the barn, and the detective staggered and fell. The second detective fired a shot that hit one of the gunmen in the leg before the other two killed him.

Bridget froze. One of the armed men raised his weapon and pointed the barrel at her. Charlie picked up Bridget and dove behind the stack of hay bales on which Guido’s paints rested. They hit the ground just as several paint cans exploded, spraying them with a rainbow-colored cloud. The gunman walked toward the bales. Charlie covered Bridget with his body. The gunman looked down at Charlie, and their eyes locked. The killer aimed at Charlie’s head.

On a few occasions, Charlie had wondered how he would feel at the moment he died. It was probably the adrenaline working, but now that his death was imminent, he was perfectly calm.

This is it , he thought as he gave himself over to death. Then two explosions rocked the barn. The gunman arched backward, and his weapon flew from his hand. There were several more explosions. Then there was no noise at all.

“You can come out now, Charlie,” Gary Schwartz said. “These fuckers are down.”

Charlie felt Bridget’s breasts pushing into him, and he realized that he was pressed against her. He flushed and rolled off. “Are you okay?” he asked her.

Bridget didn’t answer. She seemed dazed. Charlie weighed over two hundred pounds, and he’d fallen on her. He helped Bridget to her feet. She looked down at her clothes. They were spattered with paint, and straw was stuck to her suit in places.

“How you doin’, Charlie?” Bob Malone asked. He and Gary were carrying sawed-off shotguns.

“I’m alive, thanks to you two.”

“Sorry we were late to the party,” Bob said. “We were bored, so we decided to take a beer break when we saw you and your friends drive up. We’re allergic to cops, so we made ourselves scarce until we heard the gunshots.”

Charlie stared at the carnage. The man who was going to shoot Charlie and Bridget was sprawled on the barn floor. Part of his head had disappeared. A second killer had a gaping wound in his chest. The third hit man had been shot by one of the detectives. He was alive, but his breathing was ragged.

Charlie bent over and threw up. Bridget helped him sit on a hay bale and gave him a handkerchief he used to wipe his mouth.

“Sorry,” he apologized.

“Don’t be. I’d be dead if you hadn’t tossed me over the hay bales.” Bridget took out her phone.

“Who are you calling?” Charlie asked.

“We need an ambulance, a crew from the crime lab, and homicide detectives.”

Charlie looked alarmed. “What about my friends? I don’t want them to get in trouble.”

“Didn’t you tell me that you hired them to protect Mr. Sabatini?”

“Yes.”

“Then they did their jobs, and they saved our lives too. No one is going to come after them.”

“Gary will see to your man until the ambulance arrives,” Bob said. “He was a medic in the marines.”

Bridget started making calls, and Charlie noticed Guido. He had a wide smile on his face, and he was working on his painting.

“What the fuck, Guido? Were you just standing there while everyone was shooting?”

Guido shrugged. “God protects me.”

“Are you an idiot? You could have been killed.”

“Not while I have the items from the safe. No one shot at me.”

“That’s because they wanted you alive so they could torture you to force you to tell them where you hid the stuff you took from the safe. If you give the items to Miss Fournier, no one will have a reason to hurt you, and you can paint in peace.”

Bridget turned toward Guido. “Mr. Sabatini, do you have a list with the names of men who had sex with women at Leon Golden’s estate and a film of one of these girls being murdered?” she asked.

“Maybe.”

“That’s evidence that can put evil men behind bars. Don’t you think God would want you to help me punish these men for what they did?”

“The ways of the Lord are mysterious. I don’t know why he has saved me, but I believe it is because I have kept the items from the safe.”

Charlie could see that Bridget was getting frustrated.

“You know I can have you locked up for obstructing my investigation?” she said.

“Do what you think is right,” Guido said.

“That’s not going to work, Bridget,” Charlie said. “Guido will sit in your jail cell until hell freezes over.”

Bridget sighed. “You’re right.” She turned to Guido. “At least let me put you somewhere where you’ll be safe.”

“I am perfectly safe here.”

“Will you be okay with my leaving people to protect you?”

Guido shrugged. “Do as you wish. As long as they do not interfere with my painting, I don’t care.”

Bridget shook her head. Then she went over to the wounded detective and stayed with him. When she heard sirens, she walked into the yard. Two ambulances followed by a marked and an unmarked police car stopped in front of her. Charlie watched her talk to the officers, detectives, and medics. A minute later, the medics carried the wounded detective and gunman to different ambulances.

Bridget walked over to Bob and Gary. “One of the officers was upset about the sawed-offs. I told him you two saved my life and no one could touch you. But they do need your statements. Would you be willing to tell one of the detectives what happened? I was on my back, staring at the ceiling, and I have no idea.”

“No problem,” Gary said.

Bridget led the two Barbarians over to a man who was standing next to the unmarked car and introduced them. Then she walked back to Charlie.

“I told the lead detective what I knew. I also said that we were really shaken up. He’s going to let us give a full statement tomorrow. Is that okay with you?”

“You bet.”

“I came with the detectives, so I don’t have a way to get back to town. Could you give me a lift?”

“Definitely.”

Bridget looked embarrassed. “In all the excitement, I never thanked you for saving my life. You were very brave.”

Charlie turned red. “Brave is when you know what’s going on, you weigh your options, and do the right thing. Honestly, Bridget, I can’t even remember what I did. I just reacted.”

Bridget smiled. “Don’t get all modest on me, Charlie. A coward would have saved himself. I’d be dead if it weren’t for you.”

Charlie’s flush deepened.

“Hey,” Bridget said, “I don’t know about you, but I’m starving. Do you think that’s a normal reaction after what we went through?”

Charlie smiled. “I don’t know what you’ve been through in your life, but this is my first time being attacked by homicidal assassins, so I can’t answer your question. But I could go for a stack of pancakes.”