Free Trawling for Trouble by Shelley Freydont Page A

Zimmerman sisters. He probably thought “fish” was code for “a hundred HDTVs” or “two hundred cartons of cigarettes.” Whatever contraband had brought them in contact with Jimmy the Snail.
    And now the sisters and Liv’s dog were being held at gunpoint and it was pretty much Liv’s fault.
    Whiskey must have seen her, because he suddenly barked and wriggled out of Miss Ida’s arms. He sped across the linoleum floor toward Liv.
    At the same time Manny whirled around, gun bobbling in the air, and Chaz dove for his feet.
    The gun went off again, this time into the ceiling, spraying plaster down on all of them.
    Seamus had risen out of nowhere and was helping Chaz subdue Manny, which he accomplished with a fist that exploded into Manny’s jaw. Manny slumped to the floor.
    Chaz and Seamus both stood up. They looked down at the body and nodded brusquely to each other. The best of a tag-team match.
    Everyone began to talk and move at once. Liv saw Gus lying on the floor, and she hurried into the kitchen. At first she was afraid he was dead, but a groan told her he was still alive.
    â€œWhat happened to him?” she asked as she knelt down beside him and Whiskey sniffed at his clothes. They smelled like dead fish and poor hygiene. Doggie heaven.
    Liv stood. “Why was Manny here? What did he want?”
    Edna leaned over to look down at Gus. “Seamus and Gus came to tell us that they needed the fish. They’d promised it to someone else, and they’d bring us a bigger one.”
    â€œObviously they didn’t really mean the fish,” Ida added. “I mean, no one in their right mind would hold hostages at gunpoint over a fish.”
    â€œOf course not, they weren’t talking about a fish,” Edna said. “But we were about to go get it, to humor them, you know, when Manny Corada burst in, flashing that pistol around, saying he saw your message and he wanted the goods and to stop holding out on him.”
    â€œThat’s when we figured out that Seamus and Gus must have stolen something,” Ida said. “But it didn’t make sense. Liv, you didn’t bring anything else over, did you?”
    â€œNo,” Chaz said, coming over and looking at Gus, who was beginning to stir. “But they’re mixed up with some nasty people and we need to get you out of here until Bill arrives.”
    â€œI’ll get my purse,” Miss Ida said.
    â€œNo time. Liv, take the sisters out the back now and don’t stop anywhere, just walk to the next street and keep walking away from here.”
    â€œBut you stopped Manny,” Edna said. “We can keep him trussed up until Bill gets here.”
    Chaz shot Liv a desperate look.
    â€œRight. Come on Miss Ida, Miss Edna. We don’t want to take any chances.” Liv shepherded the sisters toward the door while Seamus and Chaz pulled Gus to his feet.
    They never made it.
    Halfway across the room, Liv pulled up short. It was like Manny had spontaneously generated. Now there were two of them. Two more. Manny was still on the floor. But the two new guys were standing in the doorway and holding guns a lot deadlier than Manny’s pistol.
    The sisters stopped. Liv heard Chaz breathe out an epithet from behind her.
    Whiskey barked and planted his feet, growling at the newcomers.
    â€œShut him up,” the taller thug said and aimed his gun at Whiskey.
    â€œNo,” Liv yelled and scooped him up. Whiskey continued to bare his teeth at the man and growl. He knew a bad guy when he saw one.
    So did Liv.
    The men were dressed all in black—not the black of sophisticated New Yorkers, but the black of every gangster movie she’d ever seen.
    And she was hit by a gut-level understanding of how clichés came into being. The two newcomers carried their parts to a tee. Down to the wiseguy Chicago accents. Maybe by way of Poughkeepsie, but they’d perfected it.
    Liv took a breath. Her mind