Chapter 2
The next day he stood by his car waiting. His investigation had revealed that the woman that was having an affair with Swift parked her car in this parking garage every day. He had waited until he could park next to her car and had then pulled into the parking spot next to her car. Within minutes after getting out of his car he saw her walking toward her car and he put his key in the lock; like he was getting ready to leave.
As she stuck her key in the lock he looked over at her and said, "Nice car. I've always had a thing for BMWs. Are they really as good as they say they are?"
She got a big grin on her face. "I love it. I'll never own any car other than a BMW. Once you own one it spoils you."
Don flashed her a big grin, "Well once I get a job like yours I'll get one. I don't make anywhere near the money you do."
She grunted like she knew a secret that she wasn't going to share with him.
"Do you work around here?" she asked.
Don pulled back his coat and showed his gun that he was now licensed to carry, "No, I'm a cop."
Don saw the look. Some women have a thing for cops. He never figured out if they just wanted to be around someone with authority or if they loved being around danger.
She stopped getting into her car, "Are you working right now?"
He flashed her his best smile, "Just finishing up an investigation. I'm going to get something to eat and then go home."
She hesitated getting in the car and Don made his move, "I hate eating alone. If I'm not being too pushy would you consider having dinner with me? I promise that I won't hit on you. Just a nice dinner and some pleasant conversation, I promise."
She smiled at him, "Where do you have in mind?"
"You name it. Cops don't get to eat out that often."
"My name is Don Clark," he added.
"Hannah Wright."
She started to get into the car, "Follow me."
He had trouble keeping up with her after they pulled out of the parking garage. She led him to a nice restaurant several miles out of town. She pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant much too fast and almost hit the car in front of her parking spot. Don figured that she was trying to impress him with her BMW.
As they got out of their cars she asked, "Can you afford this one?"
Don grinned and nodded. He thought to himself that Mrs. Swift was going to pay for it anyway.
They sat in the cocktail lounge and had two drinks before they went into the dining room. When Don saw the prices he was glad that he had gotten an advance from Mrs. Swift. He ordered another drink for them and asked the waiter to give them a few minutes before taking their order.
"You sure you can afford this?" she asked.
He smiled, "Who do you think is paying for this?"
She looked at him for a minute, "You mean that you're going to make the police force pay for this?"
He nodded and gave her a sly smile, "Sure, you look like a dangerous criminal and I'm going to see if I can get any information out of you. I'll probably have to arrest you right after we finish eating."
She chuckled, "Isn't charging this to the police force illegal?"
"Not if they don't know about it. I'm sure that you know that cops don't make a lot of money. I take care of myself. I'm not hurting. You have to look out for yourself. No one else is going to do it for you."
"You sound like me," she said, "I look out for myself. A woman has to look out for herself. It's a man's world."
It was her third drink and she was already getting loose.
"You know I'm a cop. What do you do?"
"I'm a receptionist. I answer phones all day and try to make people think that I really care."
"Yeah, sure," he said feigning incredulity, "That's how you can drive a BMW."
"That's what I do. Like you said, you have to look out for yourself. There's this old guy that thinks that I'm pretty special. He likes to buy me things. He bought the BMW out there."
The waiter came back and they ordered dinner and he searched the menu for something that would take a while to prepare. Don asked that a bottle of wine be brought to the table while they waited for the meal to be prepared. The waiter brought the bottle of wine and then left. Don poured them each a glass of wine.
"What are you, a beat cop or a detective?" she asked.
"I found out real fast that the money just isn't there for a beat cop. I made detective as soon as I could. The opportunities are so much better for a detective."
She looked at him seriously, "I've never met a cop like you. What do you mean that there are more opportunities?"
"Like I said, you have to watch out for yourself. A detective comes across the right opportunities and makes the right contacts. Let's just say that I've got a nice start on my retirement fund."
The conversation was making him uneasy. He had never taken any money illegally but he sensed that this was what she wanted to hear.
She put her chin in her hand and rested her elbow on the table, "Are you investing in any property? That's how you can make the real money. Once you own a piece of property free and clear you can leverage your money."
"I just own the house that I live in; that is, me and the mortgage company."
She drained her wine glass, "I'm getting ready to start leveraging my properties. I figure that in a few years I'll be set and not have to..."
He saw that she wasn't going to continue so he asked, "You sound like you're Donald Trump. How much property do you own?"
"I have a nice condo and a small vacation place in the Catskills."
"Damn, how the hell do you do that on a receptionist' salary?"
She was getting a bit tipsy now, "Friends. That old man buys me stuff. I've got more jewelry than I can use. He thinks I'll marry him some day. In his dreams!"
Don smiled. He knew that all of this was being recorded on the recorder in his car via the wireless mike in his tie clasp. He just hoped that she kept talking.
"The trouble is that a lot of my money is in cash. I can't be flashing big wads of cash around on a cop's salary. If I start buying stuff I'll leave a paper trail," Don said.
"I ought to introduce you to my friend. He's hiding tons of money from his wife. He owns houses in the Caribbean, New York State, France and California. Like I said, he thinks that I'm going to marry him."
"No chance of that?" Don asked.
"Nope, when the well runs dry I'm out of there. Why the hell would I want to marry an old man?"
She stood up, "I've got to run to the little girl's room. Be right back."
She walked toward the back of the restaurant and Don saw that she was a little wobbly on her feet. He saw that her checkbook was resting on top of the other things in her purse and he grabbed the checkbook and pulled a deposit slip out of the back of it and stuck the slip in his pocket. He slipped the checkbook back into her purse. He figured that she probably kept her checking and savings accounts at the same bank.
She came back to their table just as their food was being served. They ate and talked but he was disappointed that she added little to what she had already said. After the meal was finished he asked if she wanted another drink and she shook her head. Don paid the check and they walked out of the restaurant.
When they got to her car she melted into his arms and kissed him passionately.
"Do you want to see my condo?" she asked demurely.
"Lead the way!"
Once in the car Don took off the bug that had been recording their conversation all night and shoved it under the seat. He figured that she drove slower than she had on the trip to the restaurant because she was tipsy and because she thought Don didn't know the way to her condo.
As Don pulled into the parking garage under the condo building he slipped the slim digital camera into his coat pocket. She got out of her car and motioned for him to hurry up and follow her into the building. On the elevator she held him and kissed him until the elevator stopped. She had trouble opening the front door so she handed him the key and asked him to open it.
Once they were inside she asked him to fix them a drink while she got out of her work clothes. He fixed her drink stronger than his. He turned with the drinks just as she walked back into the room. He handed her the drink and she drank half of it and then sat it down and grabbed him and kissed him.
He found that she wasn't wearing anything under the robe that she had changed into. She took his hand and led him into the bedroom, shedding the robe as she walked. She began to undress him. They fell on the bed and she murmured that she wanted him right away. She reached for him and guided him into her. She fucked him passionately and fell asleep almost immediately afterward.
Don waited until he was sure that she was asleep and then nudged her
couple of times to see if she would wake up. She was so drunk that she
didn't wake. He slipped out of bed and put his clothes on. He opened
every drawer softly and checked the contents for anything that would
give Mrs. Swift more ammunition against her husband. He found the
electric bill for her Catskill property and put it in his pocket. He
found her jewelry box and took several pictures of its contents. In a
trash can he found a used airplane ticket for a flight to France and he
put that in his pocket also. His accountant hadn't found out about the
property in France but he now had an idea of where the property, that
she had alluded to, was. On his way out of the condo he checked the
mailbox and found the summary of her account from her stockbroker. He
had everything he needed now.