Chapter 78: Chapter 78

C H A P T E R - - - - T H I R T Y - - - - F O U R

“Have you lost your fuckin’ mind?” Mic screeched.

My focus suddenly shifted to the commandos who were guarding the command post outside Ramona's office in Falcone's command center. Even though I wasn't convinced base was the best location for me, I had asked the girls over for an urgent meeting; Mic and Antonette were both unavailable, and Ramona was at work.

Furthermore, I had just told Mic what I needed.

“Keep your voice down,” Ramona ordered and I looked back at Mic.

“I need you to do it,” I whispered.

“First, babe, that info is not easy to come by and second, I pulled off that miracle and told you and the Feds lost their key witness in three big cases, I’d not only get my ass fired, I’d probably get it tossed into a jail cell,” Mic replied.

Shit. I hadn’t thought of that. Why hadn’t I thought of that? Shit.

Mic providing the intel on Isabelle’s whereabouts was out.

Ramona had moved to her computer. “Let me work on this,” she mumbled.

“Work on what?” Antonette asked.

“I’ll pull together a file, talk to some boys, see what they got in places I can’t look. There isn’t much I can’t access but Falcone kept the Isabelle shit and therefore the Roarke shit under heavy password. Zero access except him and Jorge. That don’t mean boys don’t know shit and Jorge disappeared this mornin’, off-line. He won’t know I’m tryin’ to hack.”

I turned to face the commandos once more. Though there appeared to be a small team, business as usual continued. They were unaware that their boss was hanging motionless and bleeding from his ear.

What does it signify when your ear was bleeding?

I looked back at Ramona after shaking my head to get this idea out of my thoughts.

“Do it,” I ordered. “But proceed with caution and if you think they can help, you give it to them and mobilize butonlyif you think they won’t go commando and put Falcone in jeopardy.” Ramona nodded her answer to me but she did it looking at the computer screen and I turned to Mic.

“But Magtanggol doesn’t know, nor Ryan.”

“Babe, I love you and I know you care a lot about Falcone but you gotta let the cops in on this,” Mic warned.

“No!” I snapped. “No cops. I’m already taking enough chance with you being here. They’re probably watching me.”

“Oh God, do you think that’s true?” Antonette asked.

“Yes,” I replied immediately and then turned to Ramona. “You get anything, call me, I’ve gotta go.”

“Where?” Ramona asked, her eyes not leaving the computer screen.

“Nightingale Investigations,” I answered.

“Shit,” Mic muttered.

“I’ll come with,” Antonette offered and I looked at her.

“No, babe,” I told her.

“I’m coming with,” Antonette repeated.

“No, Ton this is dangerous. Stay here, maybe you can help Ramona,” I suggested knowing this wasn’t true.

Ramona’s fingers flew over the keyboard.

“I’m coming with,” Antonette stated again.

“Ton –” I started but stopped when she grabbed my hand.

“I’m… coming… with.”

I stared into her eyes.

Then I whispered, “Okay.”

“Shit,” Mic muttered again.

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Antonette sat next to me in my car. I drove and tried to be focused as panic threatened to overwhelm me. Antonette was beeping buttons on her phone.

Then the beeping stopped and she put the phone to her ear.

“Enrico?” I heard her say and nearly ran off the road.

My eyes flew to her. “Ton! What are you –?”

She waved a hand at me and I looked back at the road.

Antonette kept talking. “Yeah, listen, now’s not a good time. You know those baddies who were after Isabelle?” Pause. “Well, they have Falcone.”

“Antonette!” I cried.

She ignored me. “I know, I know, they want to trade him for Isabelle and I need you to do your thing, find any properties owned by Derek roarke or any owned by any companies he’s involved with.”

Wow. That was a good idea.

That would also probably ping on some Federal Bureau of Investigation Super Nerd Computer in the basement of Camp Crame.

“Ton,” I tried again.

“No, of course we’re not going to do anything stupid,” she lied through her teeth.

I closed my eyes then quickly opened them and turned off Speer heading to Expressway.

“Okay, if you don’t want to help, don’t help. But if something happens to Falcone and Gia gains seventy pounds by going on a diet of pure cookie dough, don’t come to my place of work and expect to use my employee discount!” she snapped then flipped her phone closed and stated, “He’ll run the searches. He likes Armani suits.”

“I can’t believe you did that, Ton, he could get into trouble.”

“Well, sure, but Falcone could also get dead.”

This was true.

I whimpered.

Antonette’s voice got soft. “It’s going to be okay, babe.”

I pressed my lips together and turned on the entrance of Expressway.

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My phone rang when we were on the sidewalk; I saw it said Finn Calling so I looked at Antonette.

“Can you get us coffees? I have to take this.”

She looked at my phone then at me then she nodded and headed toward 7-11.

I flipped the phone open and put it to my ear.

“Finn.”

“Peaches, how long they give you?” he asked.

“They didn’t,” I answered.

There was silence then, “All right, babe, there’s bad news and that’s all I got.”

My heart squeezed so I squeezed my eyes shut too to try to block out the pain.

“What’s the bad news?” I whispered.

“We went in soft to every place we know Roarke works dirty. We got nothin’. We’re outta leads.”

Shit!

I opened my eyes. “I know someone who’s a mortgage broker. He’s checking databases now. If he gets anything you haven’t got, can I feed it to you?”

“Don’t wait, babe, get his ass on it and call me.”

“Thanks,” I whispered.

“Later,” he replied then hung up.

I looked in the direction of the street where Antonette had vanished.

I then came to a conclusion.

I opened my phone and switched to the text screen.

I then entered, I can't get to her but if you trade Falcone for me, you have Finn, Mayhem MC, Falcone's guys, and presumably Connor Magtanggol who will locate her and swap Isabelle for me. Nothing sly. The truth. In exchange for him, you obtain Isabelle. Deal?

After sending the message, I waited on the sidewalk. I could have missed someone walking by. I was just standing there, my phone in my hand.

It then made a chirping sound.

I flipped it open.

She’s at 83 JP Rizal. You get her, text. That’s the deal.

Shit! How did I get my sister out of an FBI safe house?

Shit!

My phone chirped again and I looked down at it.

Call off Mayhem or you’ll get a body to bury.

I closed my eyes.

Then I opened them, flipped my phone shut, flipped my phone open and headed to my car as I called Finn.

Antonette would find her way home. She’d be pissed but she’d find her way home. And that home wouldn’t be a penitentiary which was where I was headed.

If I was lucky.

I got Finn’s voicemail, left a message that called him off, flipped my phone shut, got in my car and headed to 83 JP Rizal.

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Two homes down from 83rd on JP Rizal, I was sitting in my car and glancing at the house. I thought it was a fairly lovely house and didn't appear at all like a safe residence. Not that I knew what safe homes looked like, of course, but anyway.

I opened my phone and accessed my texts.

Before I do anything, I want reassurance that Falcone is okay, I typed. No images. I'm eager to hear him speak.

I sent it after that.

I sat down and glanced at my phone as time stood still once more.

When the phone rang, I took in air, flicked it open, and held the device to my ear.

“Hello,” I whispered.

“Baby, do not do this shit,” Falcone growled in my ear and my eyes filled with tears as they closed.

“I’m doing it, Yago,” I whispered, the tears sliding down my cheeks.

“Do not do it, Gia.”

“I’m drowning,” I was still whispering.

“Gia –”

“In you and I don’t want to come up for air.”

“Fuck. Baby –”

I heard the phone jostle then a man told me, “Do it. Text.”

Then I got dead air.

My head hit the steering wheel but I didn’t feel it or see it. My eyes were still closed and tears were streaming down my face.

Baby.

That was burned on my brain too.

Baby.

“Oh God,” I whispered, opened my eyes and stared at my thighs. “If I pull this off, Isabelle, please, please forgive me.”

My breath hitched and it did it painfully, burning my throat.

Baby, do not do this shit.

Another sob tore from my throat.

Do not do it, Gia.

My hands went to the steering wheel and held on.

Do not do it…

My fingers were curled around the steering wheel but I didn’t feel the wheel, I felt fingers curled around mine, my hand was little and they engulfed mine. In my mind, I looked up and saw Melinda with her wedding veil over her face smiling down at me.

Her fingers squeezed mine, warm and tight.

I felt my tears wet on my jeans.

Shit. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t turn over my sister, my Dad and Melinda’s daughter for my man. I couldn’t do it.

I let the steering wheel go and covered my face with my hands as the sobs burned up my throat, so powerful, they shook my shoulders.

“Baby,” I cried into my hands that picture in the Polaroid all I could see against my closed eyelids. “Oh God, baby,” I whispered as my shoulders heaved.

The passenger door flew open, my back shot straight, my head turned and through my tears I stared in stunned shock as Isabelle jumped into the passenger seat.

“What the –?” I breathed.

“Drive!” she shouted.

“What?” I asked.

“Drive, bitch, drive!” she screamed.

I blinked then straightened, turned the key in the ignition and shot from the curb.