Page 78 of Turbo Twenty-Three (Stephanie Plum 23)

The second floor was Spartan. A large oak desk that had seen better days. Some folding chairs around a collapsible card table. A brown leather couch. A dorm fridge against one wall. A large shrink-wrapped pack of Bogart Kidz Kups also against the wall by the little fridge.

Kwan was at the desk. He was wearing a shiny bright blue suit with a black dress shirt. He was about my height, slim, black hair slicked back, forty-two years old according to the file Connie gave me. Not married. Three men lounged to the side of the room. They were all slim, wearing black suits with tight trousers and obvious bulges. Some of the bulges were due to large guns. A massive man stood behind Kwan. At least six foot five. Barrel-chested. Couldn’t see any bulges for the excess of flesh. I figured the skinny cubs were for amusement and the mountain man was security.

; “So nice to see you again,” Kwan said to me. “I would have been disappointed if Connie sent someone else out.”

“Connie doesn’t have anyone else.”

Kwan smiled at me, flashing a gold tooth in the front of his mouth. “Lucky me.”

“Would you like to come with me to get re-upped into the legal system?”

“Actually, it’s inconvenient for me right now.”

“No problem,” I said. “I’ll leave my card. You can call or text when you’re ready.”

“Thank you so much,” Kwan said. “Is there anything I can get you? Would you like my travel associate to arrange a trip to the Bahamas?”

“No,” I said. “I’m good, but thank you.”

He nodded. “Chewy will see you to your car. I hope you took precautions. The neighborhood is aggressively entrepreneurial.”

“Lula is waiting downstairs,” I said. “I haven’t heard any gunshots so I assume there wasn’t an issue.” I glanced over at the Kidz Kups. “Your Kidz Kups are going to melt if you don’t get them into a freezer.”

“A very good observation,” Kwan said. “I’ll have them moved immediately.”

The three-hundred-pound gorilla behind Kwan stepped forward and motioned me to the stairs.

“Chewy?” I asked him.

“Short for ‘Chewbacca.’?”

That made sense. I could see the hair curling out of the top of his shirt collar. We made our way to the first floor and walked past the travel associate, all of us smiling pleasantly. I reached the sidewalk and saw that Lula was out of the car and standing guard.

She looked Chewbacca up and down. “Who’s this?”

“Chewy,” I told her.

Chewy swept his hand under his suit jacket to his pocket and Lula went bug-eyed.

“Gun! Gun!” she said. “He’s got a gun!”

She jumped forward and head butted him in the midsection. They went off-balance and down to the ground. Chewy gave a grunt and flipped Lula off him. He got to his feet and brushed at his suit.

“I wasn’t going for my gun,” he said. “I was going for my banana.” He pulled a banana out of his pocket. “It’s all smushed,” he said to Lula. “You ruined my banana.”

Lula was on her feet. “Banana? Are you shitting me? Who packs a banana?”

“I like bananas,” Chewy said. “They’re high in potassium.”

I shoved Lula into the car.

“Sorry about the banana,” I said to Chewy.

“It’s okay,” he said. “I like your friend. She gives a good head butt.”

I didn’t know how to respond to that, so I smiled and nodded, got behind the wheel, and drove off.