Just My Luck Ch. 12
The harsh ringing of the phone awakened a dozing Ron Williams. He sat back up, bringing his face up from his desk then looked at the phone, waiting for it to ring again while contemplating who might be calling him so early in the morning.
For most of the previous evening he had been pouring over the information that he had managed to find in the various files on one of Lance’s stolen laptops, but that wasn’t saying much since the vast majority of the files were password protected. He had business associates that he would be turning to in trying to break through the codes on the other two computers if he was still unsuccessful. He didn’t want Mr. Picatti to find out that he had any need of help, though. If he caught any wind of that kind of information, it could prove to the crime boss that he was not being useful enough, thus ending the need for his services.
Ron inwardly shuddered at that thought as the phone ended its second ring. When phone rang for a third then a fourth and finally a fifth time, Ron rubbed his face with one hand while picking up the receiver with the other, hoping that it was just a wrong number. If that were to be the case, he would take the chance to shut the computer down for a brief time…a hot shower and a quick nap sounded good. If not, he realized that his morning was only getting started.
“Hello?”
“You have any information for Mr. Picatti yet, Ronnie?” the voice of one of Mr. Picatti’s henchmen asked over the phone. Vaguely, Ron recognized the voice but he didn’t dwell on trying to and wearily answered the question realizing that his plans for some rest were short lived.
“I’m still looking,” Ron Williams answered in a voice full of frustration while running a shaking hand over his head. “Apparently Mr. Bass was a very careful individual. The kid used a ton of passwords on one of the laptops…got two more to go. I haven’t been able to find out who this woman is yet or where she might be or where those boys might be. It looks like this one computer was being used strictly for his business…umm…Freelance Entertainment. The other two might have some more personal information on them.”
“You need to keep looking. Mr. Picatti doesn’t want to be disappointed.”
“I know that.”
“We’ll be in touch again soon.”
Ron hung up the phone then in a fit of anger threw it across the room, feeling some semblance of satisfaction when it bounced off the wall and clattered to the floor. He watched the shattered phone drop to the carpeted floor before glancing back at the laptop computer sitting on the desk before him.
“Okay…where are you people?”
More than a thousand miles away, an expansive, two-story home was silent with the rising of the morning sun creeping through open blinds and parted curtains. A lone figure sat on the back porch swing savoring a mug of hot, strong coffee watching as the colors on the distant horizon slowly changed from a dusky purple to a red-orange haze.
“Humph…red sky at night…sailor’s delight…but red sky at morning…sailors take warning. Guess we’re in for some wet weather in a few days,” her tired voice breathed out before sipping from her mug only to swallow quickly before groaning as she looked at the offense liquid floating in her cup.
“Gosh…I made strong enough to grow legs and walk on its own,” she said with grimace before quietly chuckling to herself. “I guess I need it that strong since I won’t be getting any sleep any time soon.”
With a small shiver, Jan pulled her jacket closer to her body in an effort to ward off the cool morning air. Seconds later, she stifled a yawn and almost succeeded in spilling her coffee in her lap as she slightly stretched.
“Geez…I can’t be tired…they’re going to need me,” she said with a small groan as she stood up from the swing so that she could glance through a window into the living room at the sleeping figures lying scattered about…sharing pull out sofas and two mattresses on the floor.
“Oh…Jan…girlie…what are you going to do? You’ve got five grown men in your in living room…five young men who are absolutely scared out of their minds and looking for you to take care of them…and I don’t have a clue as to how to do that. Humph…now what are you going to do about that?”
Jan heaved a deep sigh when an answer didn’t readily come to mind. In times past, she had been able to help solve some of their problem…Joey’s nightmares…Lance and JC’s fears…but…gosh…”five of them…all at the same time?” she moaned aloud as she took one more lingering glance into the window at the sleeping figures. Frustrated, she turned her back to the window and continued to watch the morning take shape in the pasturelands below her in-law’s home.
More than 100 acres were spread out below her…soft, rolling hills that were losing their lush, green color with the introduction of cooler weather being replaced with a sunny, golden shade, much like dried hay. Surrounding the bottoms of the pasture was a wide assortment of tall hardwoods and hearty evergreens. Amid the dark greens of the pines, cypress and spruce, the leaves of the hard woods were beginning to change from their bright greens into their autumn hues. The gentle sunlight reflecting off of the various splashes of oranges, reds, and yellows down below caused a slow smile to cross Jan’s face…autumn was her favorite season of the year.
“Yeah…I’ll figure something out…I mean…we’re okay here. They’ll be okay…yeah…they’ll be okay,” she said with a small smile of confidence which unfortunately didn’t last for long.
The quiet ringing of her cell phone immediately erased the smile and she tensed as the phone rang again.
Only a few people knew her number…a very few and most of those were sleeping less than 20 feet away. The detectives had both warned and reassured her about communications with outside sources. They reassured her that it would be virtually impossible for someone to form a trace to their location via her cell phone, but at the same time, someone could possibly tap into someone else’s phone and learn of their location if mistakes were made during conversations. She and the few people that she knew would be calling would have to be very careful and keep things vague and conversations quick in order to keep the boys safe.
With those thoughts in mind, Jan found herself taking a deep breath before she reached for the phone to answer it, promising herself that she could always hang up immediately if it was someone she didn’t know.
“Hello?” she said, trying to keep her voice from shaking, but the voice on the other end caused her to breath a small sigh of relief.
“Ms. Scott? It’s Dr. Kenneth Shannon…I hope I didn’t startle you.” The doctor couldn’t help but hear the scared tone of voice that had greeted him.
Jan laughed a little uneasily at the comment before speaking, her voice slightly more at ease.
“No…no…you just caught me off guard and with virtually no sleep…but I’m okay and so are they,” she replied as she walked back over to the porch swing and sat down, her fear slowly melting away.
At those words, Dr. Shannon sat back in his desk chair and inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. Before him lay a detailed report of the helicopter trip that the group had taken less than 8 hours ago and, so far, what he had read made him regret sending the boys off so soon.
“Did you hear me? I said…they’re doing fine.” Jan’s quiet voice cut through the doctor’s thoughts and he quickly cleared his throat.
“Sorry, Ms. Scott…you aren’t the only one running on empty,” he apologized as he ran his hand over his thinning head of hair. “I’m glad that they’re doing so well.” ‘After reading this report on my desk,’ he added in his mind as his gaze once again flew over the portion of the report dealing with Joey’s sedation…something that he took full responsibility for. He had not anticipated the young man’s reaction, therefore Joey had not been properly prepared for the necessity of the tranquilizer and the doctor inwardly kicked himself when he read about the young man’s distress and fear. There was really no excuse…he should have been more sensitive to the possibility that Joey might react in that manner, but in his rush to get the group in the air to a safer location, he had neglected that fact. He knew that he would have to do some apologizing the next time he would see the young man fact to face.
Jan’s soft voice interrupted the doctor’s thoughts and he leaned forward in his chair, placing his elbows on the surface of his desk as he listened.
“They’re sleeping pretty well. Umm…it’s about 7:00 here and they all got to bed at around 5:00 or 5:30 so I’m not expecting anyone to be up until well into the afternoon at least,” Jan said quietly before sneaking a quick sip of her coffee while listening to the doctor’s reply.
“How were they last night when you picked them up?”
“Incredibly tired, but I’m sure that was just a side effect to the sedative they were given during the flight…at least that was what one of the paramedics said,” Jan replied quietly as she drew one leg up under her on the porch swing while slowly pushing herself with the other.
“How are they doing as far as their injuries?” Dr. Shannon asked as, his pen poised over a note pad, prepared to jot down any information that meant a change their conditions.
“Umm…Joey’s hand began to bother him, but once we reached the house, he took something for it and ate some toast before going to sleep,” Jan said quietly as she listened to the doctor’s quiet murmurings through the phone, realizing that he was busily writing what she was saying down. In the meantime, she looked out at the scenery about her, taking in the beginning of what might prove to be a beautiful day.
“Go on, Jan,” the doctor said quietly, and Jan slightly jumped at the sound before once again speaking.
“Sorry…daydreaming a little,” she apologized, her voice giving the message of how tired and slightly embarrassed she was.
“No problem…let me know about Lance and JC next.”
“Okay…umm…Lance and JC slept pretty much the entire 30 miles to the house, but Lance’s throat was bothering him a little and JC did complain of a headache when we got here. JC took some Tylenol and Lance a pain pill. After that, neither one had too much trouble falling back to sleep.”
“Alright…Chris and Justin?”
“Chris and Justin stayed awake during the drive, but I could tell that they were running on fumes. Once we got here, it really didn’t take very long to get everyone settled and in bed. I’d say that Chris was out like a light just as soon as his head hit the pillow…J was pretty much the same too.”
“That’s good to hear,” the doctor murmured. “Chris didn’t rest at all yesterday, which means he could possibly sleep well into the afternoon…possibly into this evening,” he added quietly while continuing to write down the information being given.
‘Humph…Chris sleeping 12 hours…I’d like to see that happen,’ Jan inwardly smirked as she waited for the doctor’s next question. She stood up and walked over to the back of the porch and glanced through the window to see that Chris was in the same position that he had laid down when he first went to bed.
Since the time that Jan had first met the group, she had never been known Chris to be a deep, still sleeper...something that the doctor was describing. JC and Lance belonged more in that category…maybe even Joey from time to time, but certainly not Chris.
Quietly, she chuckled and the doctor’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
“What’s so funny?” he asked, a smile evident in his voice.
“Oh…nothing,” she said, shaking her head as she walked back over to the porch swing. “Well…I guess just the thought of Chris staying so still…”
“Will probably never happen,” Dr. Shannon added, finishing her thoughts. “You might be surprised. He might just make it.”
Jan laughed again. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”
For a few moments, the pair quietly laughed, releasing some of the pent up tensions that they were feeling. The whole situation for the past few days had been highly stressful and now since everyone was seemingly safe and on the road to mending, it seemed okay to laugh and joke…that is, until Dr. Shannon glanced down at his list of questions and sigh at what he had to ask next. With a shake of his head, he picked up the pen that he had put temporarily put down and he made ready to write again.
“Well…let’s get back to the reason why I called. I’m burning up my nickel here,” he said, trying to refocus on the task at hand.
“Go ahead,” Jan replied as she picked up her feet and tucked them under her.
“Have there been any nightmares since this morning?” the doctor asked, hoping that the young woman wouldn’t have to deal with those possibilities but in all reality, he knew that eventually, they would come.
“Well…I don’t know if you could call it that, but…Justin woke up about 30 minutes ago and sat straight up in his bed. He asked a few strange questions that for the life of me I can’t even recall right now,” Jan said as she placed her mug on the nearby porch railing before rubbing her hand over her eyes tiredly. “I spoke to him for a few minutes without him ever waking up and got him to lay back down. It took a few more minutes of talking to him before he went back to sleep…I honestly don’t think he even realized what was going on. I mean…my nephew is known to sleep walk and talk, so…” her voice trailed off as Dr. Shannon’s quiet laughter filled her ear causing her to also slightly chuckle.
“Yes…I’ve been made aware of those facts before here at the hospital a few times. Well…I’m not going to keep you. I’m glad everyone is resting well. I’ll be in touch with you in about 6 hours. In the meantime…why don’t you try to get some rest yourself? You won’t be much help to the boys if you don’t take care of your own needs.”
“I know…thank you for your concern,” Jan said with a small smile on her face that radiated into her tired voice. “I’ll do that tonight…I just want to be awake, you know…just…just in case.”
Dr. Shannon nodded his head, understanding completely what the young woman was attempting to convey. The entire situation was stressful…the unknown frightening. He knew that Jan was the best person for the job. He just didn’t want her to tax herself in the process of taking care of the others.
“Just remember, Jan…don’t overdo it,” he said gently, using the woman’s first name in order to express how concerned he actually was for her well-being. The plan that had been formed involved Jan and Jan alone having to care for not only the physical needs of the five young men, but also their emotional needs and, for the moment, the doctor was unsure as to which would prove to be the greater burden. With a small sigh and a shake of his head the doctor continued speaking.
“In order for you to be there for them, you do need to take care of yourself and that means resting whenever the opportunity arises, Jan…doctor’s orders.”
Jan smiled then gave a tiny laugh. “I…well…okay…thank you. I’ll talk to you later today, Dr. Shannon.”
“In about six hours…and get some rest…bye.”
Jan laid the phone down beside here then picked up her coffee mug and poured the rest of the contents out into the grass before silently opening the back door to enter the house.
“Oh…this is going to be a long day, I’m afraid,” she whispered very quietly before walking into the dimly lit living room to check on her five charges.
Ron Williams pulled his cap down closer over his eyes as he pushed a large cleaning cart down one of the many the long hallways of the tenth floor of Mercy General Hospital. He was determined to find out where the five members of Nsync had been taken and who the woman was that had suggested moving them to Texas. He had tried obtaining information from one of the many laptops taken from the Bass boy’s home, but so far he had not had any luck and he was quickly running out of options. Hopefully, he would be able to get what his boss, Tony Picatti wanted through different means.
An office door opening and closing caused the man’s eyes to briefly dart upward and nervous anticipation hummed through the man’s body as he watched Dr. Shannon walk toward a bank of elevators further down the hall.
Ron turned his back to the man and kept his attention diverted to task of wiping down a window while at the same time listening for the telltale “ding” of an elevator alerting the floor of its arrival and departure. Seconds later, he heard the awaited sound and he waited several more before he dared to glance down the hallway.
“Gone…” he breathed out before trotting down the hall, being mindful to listen for both the elevator and anyone coming out of their offices.
“1011…1013…1015…” he said quietly aloud as he approached Dr. Shannon’s office door. “Okay…1019.”
He quickly glanced over his shoulders in either direction before tentatively testing the doorknob. With a slight grin, he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a leather wallet containing a set of lock picks. Kneeling down before the door, he selected the necessary picks and quickly set to work. A subtle shift here and a small movement there was all that it took before the welcome sound of a click let Ron know that he was now able to enter the office. Glancing over his shoulders to see that he was still the only figure in the hallway, Ron pushed open the door, walked through then quietly closed the door behind him.
“Okay…gotta be in and out…fast,” he reminded himself as he made his way to the phone sitting on the desk. With deft movements, Ron worked quickly to place the listening device in the phone. As he worked his eyes wandered about the desktop looking for anything that might resemble some information concerning where the boys were. Pens…some folders…short stacks of papers…journals…pads of paper.
“Hello…what do we have here?” Ron said quietly as he spied a phone number scribbled onto a piece of paper. The area code was one that he was unfamiliar with as was the three-digit prefix.
“Bingo…” he said with a steadily growing smile on his face. “I think this might help me out…I’m sure you won’t mind if I just take this, dear doctor.” Ron folded the small piece of paper and placed it in his shirt pocket before continuing to work on the phone. Minutes later, the phone was tapped and two more bugs were planted in the room before Ron gazed about the room making sure that he had not left anything out of place before moving to the door. Carefully, he leaned against its surface and listened, making sure that he heard no movement in the hallway. Finding the coast to be clear, he then opened the door only slightly before quickly opening the door all the way. He then shut the door then made his way back down the hallway...never realizing that he had neglected to lock the door behind him.
Jan had pretty well kept herself busy throughout the day while the boys continued to sleep on, seemingly unaware of her presence. Earlier in the morning after her phone conversation with Dr. Shannon, she drove into town to buy enough groceries to get them by for at least the next week. Although in times past, when she had stayed at Justin’s house and entertained all five for nearly a week, they had virtually eaten her out of house and home she felt fairly sure that this time would not be the case. Their appetites had been rather finicky at the hospital and she had no doubt that the trend would more than likely continue for the next several days. The medications that Lance and Joey were taking required them to eat, but both had only been eating enough just to have something on their stomachs. Chris and Justin were following their lead and that bothered her to no end but what she found even more disturbing was that fact that although JC had always been a light eater for as long as she had known him, from what she had seen at the hospital, his eating habits had become reduced even further. She only hoped that it was due to the fact that it was the idea of having to consume hospital food, or what Justin termed, ‘mystery meals’ and nothing more serious.
She would need to remember to speak with Dr. Shannon about her concerns and in order to make sure she didn’t forget, she began a short list of questions on a notepad posted near the kitchen phone. Six hours had long passed as her list of questions and concerns grew longer but the doctor had yet to call. Instead of becoming concerned, Jan figured that he had become very busy and would call whenever he had the opportunity. She would just continue to write down any questions or comments that periodically came to mind until that phone call.
Glancing up at the clock in the kitchen, she decided that it was nearing time to begin making supper. Jan moved around the kitchen, opening drawers and cabinets as she reacquainted herself with where the utensils, pots and pans were located when a sleep-filled voice surprised her.
“Aunt Jan?”
Jan stood up quickly and turned around then smiled at the sight of her nephew standing in the kitchen doorway wearing his pajama bottoms and a t-shirt and scratching his chest while stifling a yawn.
“Good morning,” Jan replied as she glanced at a nearby clock to see that it was now past 5:00. She then smiled as she continued speaking. “Or should I say, good afternoon…maybe even good evening.”
“Funny,” Justin said with a small smile of his own as he walked over to the kitchen table and sat down, leaning his elbows on the tabletop.
“Did you sleep well, J?” Jan walked over the slumped form and gently ruffled his sleep tousled curls.
“Yes, ma’am…I guess,” he said absent mindedly, giving her another small smile.
“J…you don’t look too rested,” she replied, her eyes narrowing as she took in her nephew’s tired appearance.
Justin ducked his head in an effort to avid his aunt’s scrutiny and spoke in a voice so quiet that let her know that he really didn’t want the conversation to go any further, but at the same time knowing that he couldn’t hide anything from her.
“Umm…I had…lots of dreams…my wrist hurts a little too.”
Justin attempted to bend his fingers as he rotated his right arm but found it nearly impossible. Jan noticed Justin’s slight grimace as he stared at his hand, but before she could ask any questions, her nephew sat up and gave her a smile that was a little bigger than before.
“Umm…I’m hungry, Aunt Jan. I guess I need to eat something before I can take anything for this,” he commented raising his right arm slightly off the tabletop.
Immediately, she knew that Justin was trying to further change the direction of their conversation and she allowed him to, if only for the moment.
“Well…there’s plenty in the fridge…lunch meats since it’s pretty late in the afternoon and I bought you some cereal but I could fix you some eggs or something like that, if you’d like…something to tide you over until suppertime.”
“Cereal would be fine,” he answered as he stood up and followed Jan further into the kitchen. “Have any of the others wake up?”
“No…you’re the first, J.”
“Oh…okay,” he said, his voice revealing his slight disappointment.
Jan reached into an upper cabinet and pulled down a bowl then handed it to Justin before moving to the pantry.
“Cereal’s in here…just make your choice.”
Justin stood behind his aunt and glanced over the different boxes on the shelves, noticing that some of the boxes contained the cereals that the rest of the group enjoyed.
“You remembered what I like,” he said perusing over three or four boxes on one of the shelves before him and after a few seconds he shrugged his shoulders and grabbed one of the boxes and headed back to the table while Jan went to the refrigerator for the milk.
Minutes later, the pair was seated at the table, Justin eating his bowl of cereal and Jan quietly telling him how she had spent her day while they had been sleeping.
“Dr. Shannon called this morning around 7:00…just wanting to know how everyone was doing.”
Justin nodded his head as he brought a spoonful of cereal to his mouth then slowly chewed as Jan continued her quiet monologue all the while watching her nephew eat.
Dr. Shannon slowly made his way down another long hallway toward his office. It had been a long day for him with many cases coming into the emergency department at Mercy General Hospital giving him little opportunity to call Jan as promised. He had intended calling her at about 1:00 her time, but just as soon as a chance arose, another ambulance would arrive causing him to push that idea aside.
Now, it was nearing 7:00 in Orlando…6:00 Jan’s time and he was ready to hear how the day had gone for her and the boys. As he neared his office door, he reached into his pants pocket for his keys then reached for the doorknob. As his fingers brushed the knob, the doctor’s stomach dropped as he stared in disbelief, the door slowly swung open.
“I know I locked it,” he whispered to himself as he took a small step back then glanced uneasily up and down the hallway. He bit the inside of his lip as he considered his options before stepping further back away from the doorway while at the same time reaching into his lab coat pocket for his cell phone. After scrolling through the phone’s menu he punched a few buttons and spoke while slowly beginning to pace back and front of his opened office door.
“I need security at my office, please…this is Dr. Kenneth Shannon. Umm…I’m standing outside my office…1019. I’ve had a possible break-in. Okay…I’ll wait in the hallway. Right…okay…bye.”
He quickly punched a few more buttons then spoke when someone answered the phone on the other end of the line.
“Yes…this is Dr. Kenneth Shannon at Mercy General Hospital. I need to speak with Detective Welsley, please. Yes…it is important. Thank you…I’ll wait on the line.”
Dr. Shannon paced back and forth in the small conference room that investigators had sent him to. He had felt relief in the fact that there was nothing missing from his office, but those feelings soon left when he was informed of the surveillance devices that had been found not only in his phone, but also scattered throughout his office. It was everyone’s hope that whomever had planted the bugs in the office had done so after the doctor’s early morning phone call.
Worriedly, he ran a hand through his thinning hair and before glancing at the clock on the wall to see that several hours had passed the time that he had promised Jan that he would call. He only hoped that everything was going much better there than where he was. The so far two hours spent waiting for any word from the investigators swarming over his office had been quite tense, allowing him the opportunity to mull over what information could have been heard during his early morning phone conversation with Jan.
Had he given too much information away during their visit, beside Jan’s name…had their location been traced? With a heavy heart, Dr. Shannon realized that having said Jan’s name in the course of their phone conversation may have put not only the young woman in danger, but the entire group. Hopefully, the person on people responsible for planting the devices had not had the opportunity to put them to good use.
The doctor let a deep sigh escape as he sat down and rested his elbows on his knees. He bowed his body over far enough that he could still run a hand nervously over his head as he continued to kick himself with his worries and fears.
He remained in much the same position until a knock sounded on the other side of the door before it opened.
“Dr. Shannon?” Detective Pierce said as he stepped through the doorway with two others behind him, whom the doctor had not previously met.
“Yes?” Dr. Shannon said, standing quickly. He rubbed his sweaty palms over his pant legs before shaking hands with the three men.
“Dr. Kenneth Shannon…this is Senior Investigator John Mullins and Detective Clark Martzen,” Detective Pierce said as the trio shook hands before moving toward the long conference table to sit down. Before the detectives had an opportunity, the doctor blurted out the questions that had been plaguing him.
“What did you find and do they know where Jan and the boys are? What could I have done to prevent this?” the doctor asked while intently studying the faces before him, but they remained virtually free of expression…a fact that didn’t sit very well with him.
Detective Mullins cleared his throat then leaned forward, his elbows resting on the tabletop as he gathered his thoughts together.
“Well…let me say this,” the investigator began. “Apparently, who ever did this knew pretty much what they were doing, although their equipment was not state of the art. The device in your phone as well as the two others in the office were free of prints, but we’ll begin a trace on where they may have been ordered or purchased using their imprinted codes.”
“You think you may be able to find who did this?” the doctor asked.
“We’re going to do our very best, Dr. Shannon.”
“So…in the meantime, what do I need to do? Will I still be able to get in touch with Jan and the boys?”
“Yes, but you’re going to use a phone that we’ll have set up to catch any methods of traces that may be out there,” John Mullins said.
Then, for the next half hour, the detectives and investigators answered any questions that Dr. Shannon had and made a concerted effort to allay any concerns that he had.
Jan glanced at the clock on the wall and slightly frowned as she walked quickly to her ringing cell phone. It was nearing 10:00 and she couldn’t imagine who would be calling so late without it being an emergency.
She grabbed the phone off the nightstand in her bedroom and spoke.
“Hello?”
“Raylene?” a friendly male voice said.
“Umm…no,” Jan answered quietly.
“This isn’t the Raylene Scott’s residence in Livingston?”
At the man’s question Jan suddenly feeling an unsettled feeling in the pit of her stomach. Something just didn’t feel right about the call and she wanted to hang up as quickly as possible. Not wanting to be impolite, she hurriedly attempted to end the phone call.
“Sorry…Raylene passed away a while back.”
“Well…may I ask whom I’m speaking to?” the pleasant sounding voice asked. At that question, the unsettled feeling flared within Jan, screaming that something was wrong and she needed to get off the phone as soon as possible. Thinking quickly Jan once again spoke.
“Like I said, sir…Raylene is no longer living here…good-bye.”
Before the man had a chance to speak again, Jan quickly turned the phone off then placed it back in its cradle. Nervously, she looked at the phone while rubbing her hands over her jeans before turning to walk back into the kitchen.
‘That was just too weird,’ Jan thought to herself. ‘Mom’s been gone for a few years now…’
“Who was that, Aunt Jan?” Joey asked in a quiet voice, interrupting her thoughts as he walked into the kitchen after her. “Was that Dr. Shannon?”
“No, Joey…just a wrong number,” she replied with a forced smile. “How about some supper so you can take your medicine and get a shower?” she asked looking over her shoulder.
Joey cocked his head to the side…it was obvious to him something was bothering Jan, but before he could even question her about it, Chris and Lance walked into the room and were soon followed by JC and Justin. The disconcerted feeling that Jan had just moments before slowly began to melt away as she busily prepared a late supper for herself and the boys.
Meanwhile, back in Orlando, Ron Williams sat smiling at the information that he had jotted down on the piece of paper that he had taken from Dr. Shannon’s office. From his short conversation with Jan, he now had a better idea of where he would be going in the next few days…a much better idea.
With the feeling that a weight had been lifted off his shoulders, Ron picked up his phone and quickly dialed Tony Picatti’s home.
A voice on the other end answered the phone and Ron began speaking.
“Hey there, Tommy…this is Ron Williams. I have some useful information for Mr. Picatti. Tell him that I know where they are and that the problems will be taken care of very soon.”