Fix It Up - Mary Calmes Page 0,12

there was no one hiding in the bathroom. Through the open archway, I found a shower big enough for six people but no one in it, nor in the walk-in closet that contained a chaise. I scoffed…probably put there in case he had to rest while he was trying on his clothes or shoes. Not that you’d want to do anything in the room but go straight out onto the balcony and revel in the scene in front of you.

From there I could see the whole of his property, as well as a panoramic view of the valley. It was breathtaking.

“This is wasted on you,” I grumbled, turning from the vista back to the bedroom where the naked man was passed out. God only knew how long he’d be asleep.

Leaving him, closing the doors behind me, I went back to the front of the house, where the bodyguards and Brent were waiting for the cleaning crew. Having seen the grounds and how neglected they were, I had a question for Brent. “Do you have a gardener on staff?”

He looked confused, like the question made no sense. “There’s a service, and they come twice a week, but why do—”

“And who takes care of the pool?”

“It’s cleaned by a company, also twice a week because of all the parties, but I don’t understand what—”

“A good environment, either a clean one or a cozy one, factors into the rehabilitation process. When everything is kept a certain way, the expectation is that the person who is getting well will contribute to that.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really, Mr. Donavan,” I barked at him, annoyed at being questioned. “I’m not here to fuck around. I’m here to keep Mr. Madison clean, and for him to stay that way, the first step is for this place to feel like a goddamn sanctuary!”

“Oh…yes, yes of course,” he whispered, taking a step away from me.

Pivoting, I faced the bodyguards, who, though all bigger than me, took an instinctive step back as well. “Okay,” I said, looking at each one. “I only need three of you, so talk to me.”

It was nice that they decided themselves. One of them, Rick something, just wanted away from the circus that Nick Madison ran. His wife didn’t like him around the women and drugs, and since I arranged, on the phone with Rosalie, to give him a month’s severance and promised a good letter of recommendation, the culling was quick and easy.

Isaias Ortiz had been in the army, and came home and went into private security. He left his company to work for Nick but was on the verge of quitting because it was, he told me, completely out of control. Cliff Connelly was a security guard as well as Nick’s bodyguard, and Tony Long had planned to become an MMA fighter before his wife got pregnant with their first child. He was keener to be a good father and provide for his family than maybe get hurt badly enough that he could not. All three men were trained in hand-to-hand combat, all had CCW licenses, and they all had various auxiliary skill sets. Isaias had planned to become a NASCAR driver before giving it up and going into the army. Cliff was a fifth dan black belt in Taekwondo, and Tony had competed in the Olympics in fencing.

“Well,” I told them as they stood around me, “we’re going to do eight-hour shifts from now on, and you guys can decide who does which, and what days. You just need to email me a schedule so I know who’s supposed to be here, starting tomorrow.”

Lots of nodding.

“I need you all here right now to supervise the cleanup, and I need the police called so we can turn over whatever drugs are in the house. After that’s done, you guys are free to go until tomorrow morning at six, when I need someone here.”

Everything was straightforward. I made sure everyone knew how to get ahold of me, I got their full names, cell phone and social security numbers, and then let them get to work. I put Brent in charge of finding a company to install a new front gate, and then called Owen after I saw the sad state of the security system they were using. Only four of the nine cameras were operational, and the fact that they were connected to a single monitor with tiny screens in black-and-white, and that the recording device was a VHS player, had him so quiet on the other