Can't Remember to Forget You

Chapter Thirty-One

Owen

Finding the pricks address wasn't hard.

He works out of an old tired loft in queens. I walked in, bypassing the fat receptionist and going straight to where I could see the asshole taking photos of some other girl. His face was shocked as he saw me coming. "Can I help you sir?" His mousy voice asked.

I grabbed him by his shirt collar. "We need to talk." I said through gritted teeth. "Where can we go?"

He looked like he might just piss his pants. "My office, right over there." He pointed to a door across the room.

I walked him over and shoved him inside. "You've got some pictures of my friend that I want gone." I told him. "I'm here to make sure that happens."

"I can't do anything about that sir." He said nervously.

I punched the wall right next to his face. "Do I need to say it again?"

"Who are we even talking about?"

"Cassie Clark." I answered. He walked behind his desk and fiddled around on his computer. "I want to watch you trash them all."

He sighed but continued anyway. "There." He said. "They are all gone."

"I'm sure you keep back up files, and hard copies." I said.

He turned to rifle through his drawers, and then a file cabinet. "Here." He said handing me a couple of flash drives. "This is all I have, I promise." I gave him a hard look but he didn't waiver.

"I better not have to come back here, or I swear I will tear you apart." I threatened him on my way out the door.

When I was back outside I laid the flash drives on the sidewalk and stomped them a few good times, ensuring that they were destroyed, and then I tossed them in the trash. I hopped on my bike and pulled my phone out to call Troy.

"What's up man?" He answered.

"I need to know if that P.I. is still working for us." I told him.

He paused for a second. "I'm pretty sure we are still in contact with Geff, why?"

"I need him to look into Cassie, find out anything he can for her." I explained.

"I don't know man, I wouldn't bring her up to anyone right now." He said.

"What are you talking about?" I asked concerned.

"I was going to come by there tonight to talk to you." He said. "I am hearing things."

"Where are you?" I asked him.

"Meet me at Hallstop." He said quietly. He must be around someone important.

***

Twenty minutes later I parked my bike outside of the dilapidated building that houses Hallstop, the best hole in the wall burger and beers place that Donovan, Troy, and I discovered years ago. I walked in and headed for the back booth where I knew Troy would be waiting for me. He nodded his chin to me as I sat down.

When Troy is being serious there is trouble.

"I think they are on to you guys man." He said hushed even though no one was around.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"I told you Holloway was back, right?"

"Yeah but I haven't seen him around, I assumed he headed back out." I explained.

"Dude, no." He whispered. "He's keeping low profile because he didn't want to tip anyone off." Troy took a swig off of the mug in front of him. "He's been asking questions though, about Donovan's death and about Cassie."

My heart dropped. "What does he know about her?"

"I don't know really." He said. "I heard today though that he was going to the hospital to talk to the docs himself. I don't think he is taking your word for what happened."

"If they tell him what they told me, he is going to take that information back to Barker and we will both be death." Saying it out loud was even worse than when I thought it.

"The only hope we have on that is that they may not release the information to him. They thought you were her boyfriend, so they talked to you. It'll take him some time before he can get someone to talk to him. I don't think they can give patient info away to just anyone, but who knows what connections a guy like Holloway has."

"Why the fuck did he have to come back anyway?" I asked pissed. "He may have been Donovan's uncle, but he damn sure never acted like he gave a shit about him before."

"What really happened that night anyway man?" Troy asked.

"I don't know. I was late and when I got to the spot where we were supposed to meet, I only found Cassie half dead, and Donovan with a bullet between his eyes. I have no clue what went down, the only people who do are Kurl's crew, and Cassie, but she can't remember." I explained to him. "Nobody has even retaliated against them because we are too afraid of starting a war. I can't let any of them get to Cassie." I said thinking hard about what I should do. "You know what kind of sick shit Holloway does when he interrogates someone."

"What should we do man?" Troy asked.

"I won't let you involve yourself in this dude, it's too dangerous." I said. My phone started ringing in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw the name of the last person I wanted to talk to right now. "Barker is calling me." I told Troy.

I answered quickly, you don't ignore Barker. "Sir?"

"The girl still staying with you?" He asked gruffly.

"No Sir." I lied.

"No?" He repeated.

"She went home." I said. "Why?"

"I had a friend who was hoping to speak with her, do you know where she lives?"

"No Sir." I lied again. All this lying was going to come back and bite me. "She didn't say."

"You wouldn't lie to me, would you kid?"

"No Sir." I said again. "That's the truth."

"Very well." He said and then the line went dead.

"I've got to get Cassie out of here." I told Troy.