Ghostly Serenade

by Colleen Helme

  “That works for me. What about Milo Bilotti? Will you arrest him too?”

  Martin’s eyes narrowed. I must really want that guy, and he hated to give me bad news. “Eventually, but probably not right away, unless Tony talks… which I can practically guarantee won’t happen. Milo could always blame everything on Tony, and say that he had no idea he was running drugs. So arresting Milo might be tricky, but we’ll see if we can charge him with something. After all, it’s his boat line.”

  Martin checked his watch. “The team is ready to go.” He caught my gaze and made his decision. “Do you want to come? We’ll be in a boat nearby during the operation. After the exchange, the team will move in and make the arrests. We’ve got undercover police ready to board the boat as well, so it should go smoothly. What do you say? We could use your help if you get a premonition while the operation’s in progress.”

  How could I turn that down? It was exactly what I wanted, even if it made me a little dizzy. “Okay. I just need to let my husband know I’m helping you out so he won’t worry.”

  “Of course.” He glanced at Hawk. “Hawk’s coming along, so he’ll be in the boat with you.” He was thinking that Hawk wasn’t in any shape to be in on the action. He glanced my way, taking in the sling on my arm. What was up with that? Had they roughed me up too, and I’d left that part out? “What happened to your arm?”

  “Oh… it’s no big deal. I fell and hurt my shoulder. It’s not that bad. I just need to wear the sling for a few days. It’s mostly there to help me remember that I need to be careful.”

  “Right,” he said, thinking that I was lying. But why would I do that? Who was I protecting?

  Geez. I didn’t know I was such a terrible liar. Before he could question me further, I blurted. “So when are we leaving?”

  “In about forty-five minutes,” Hawk answered, knowing it was better to keep the chief in the dark about my injury. “Come on, let’s get something to eat.”

  “Okay.” I eagerly followed Hawk to his desk, relieved to get out of the chief’s office and his scrutiny.

  “There’s a deli around the corner,” he said.

  “I should probably stay here… you know?”

  “Oh, right. Of course. I’ll grab something and come right back.”

  After asking for my sandwich preferences, he left me to sit at his desk. I took out my phone to tell Chris what was going on. Regret that I had to disappoint him and the kids again washed over me. Of course, with an assassin after me, a nice dinner at a restaurant with my family was out of the question anyway.

  Chris picked right up. “Hey honey, I was just about to call you. We thought we’d eat at the hotel tonight, so that you can take it easy. That way, we don’t have to worry about anyone trying to kill you. We should be there in about forty-five minutes.”

  “Oh… that’s great but… well… that’s actually why I’m calling. I’m at the police station helping them tonight, so I won’t be able to come. I’m really sorry. But, look at it this way, after tonight, it will all be over. At least that’s the plan.”

  “Helping them with what? What plan? What will be over?”

  “Oh… I guess you don’t know. I’m going on a drug bust with the police, because we found out there’s a deal going down tonight on the Bilottis boat. But you don’t have to worry, because I’ll be with the police on a different boat to observe from a safe distance.”

  “Whoa. When did you figure all of that out?”

  Oops. I forgot he didn’t know what was going on. “Uh… it’s kind of a long story. Can I tell you when I get back?”

  Chris huffed out a breath. “I guess. But what about the hit on you? And Manetto? Does he know about this?”

  “Uh… he knows I’m with the police, so I’m perfectly safe. I haven’t told him what I’m doing tonight, but he knows I wanted to bring the police in on it. Guess I’d better call him.”

  “Yeah… that’s probably a good idea.”

  “Maybe I’ll just send him a text. I’m a little worried about how he’ll take it, since he’s not very happy with me right now. I kind of snuck out of the hotel against his wishes.”

  “What?” he said.

  I cringed, not knowing what to say without going into a lot of details I didn’t have time to share. He muttered under his breath, and I was sure if I could hear his thoughts, he’d be swearing up a storm.

  “Okay,” he said, pulling himself together. “I have a feeling this is another one of those stories that I won’t like hearing.”

  “Well… I’m not going to lie, you probably won’t. But, if all goes according to plan, the last two days of our vacation will be police and mob-duty-free.”

  “Uh-huh,” Chris replied. “Well, I hate to break it to you, but we only have tomorrow left. We’re going home the next day.”

  I could hear the censure in his tone. I’d basically missed our whole family vacation. That made me a terrible wife and mother. “Really? For some reason I thought we had more time.”

  “Yeah… well, I guess that’s what happens when you’re a superstar. I have an idea; why don’t we go camping one of these weekends? It’s not New York, but we’ll be away from everyone, and we can actually spend some time together for a change.”

  “Sure,” I agreed, wanting to make this right. I didn’t like roughing it much, but, I had to admit, it sounded good to be away from mob bosses, assassins, murderers, and drug dealers. “That would be nice.”

  “Good. Then, after that, you and I are taking a trip. Just the two of us. You still want to go to Italy?”

  “Yes. That sounds wonderful.”

  “Good,” he said. “Let’s do it. So what time will you be done tonight?”

  “Probably late. The party boat leaves at seven and docks again around nine-thirty or so. Hopefully, we’ll have made our arrests by then, but I might need to help with the questioning afterward, so probably not before midnight. Either way, I’ll let you know what’s going on.”

  He heaved out a sigh. “Okay.”

  “I love you, honey.”

  “Love you too. Be safe.”

  “I will.” We disconnected, and I sat there in a daze. What was I doing with my life? Why was I here instead of with my family? On days like this, I wasn’t sure it was worth it. My arm started to throb, and my nervous stomach didn’t feel so good either.

  There was so much that could go wrong. What if Tony changed his mind and didn’t go through with the drug sale? Or what if he told Milo? What was Uncle Joey going to do? Would he make his move, even though I’d told him not to?

  Since he hadn’t promised me anything, had I just set things up so that he’d get caught by the police when they went to arrest Milo? Now that it was happening, I needed to make sure Uncle Joey knew.

  I pushed his number and waited for him to pick up. It went to voice mail. He was probably still too angry to talk to me, so I called Ramos. He picked right up. “Hey babe, are you ready for me to pick you up?”

  “No, not yet. I just wanted you and Uncle Joey to know that I’m staying to help the police with the operation tonight.”

  There was a long silence before he answered. “So you’re helping them get Tony?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Hmmm, I guess that means we should wait to make our move on Milo.”

  “Yes, that’s exactly what it means.”

  He heaved out a sigh. “Okay. But keep me posted. I want to know what’s going on.”

  “I will.”

  “Shelby…”

  “Yeah?”

  “Be careful.”

  “Thanks. I will.” We disconnected, and I let out a relieved breath. Ramos might be mad at me, but at least he still cared. I could only hope that Uncle Joey felt the same way.

  “Sounds like you might be in trouble,” Hawk said. He’d been listening to my side of the conversation and heard me mention Uncle Joey. “Was that your uncle?”

  “No. It was Ramos. After the attack, they both wanted me to stay
at the hotel. So they’re not too happy I’m helping you.”

  “Did they know you were involving me and the police?”

  “Yes. I think they’re okay with that part, just not that I’m here helping you out.”

  “Makes sense.” Hawk pulled a chair from behind someone’s desk and sat down beside me. “I brought you a Turkey and Ham Special.”

  “Sounds great.” I relaxed my shoulders and took a bite of my sandwich. It was amazing. “Wow… this is so good. Thanks.” Hawk sent me a nod, and we ate our sandwiches in silence, happy for the reprieve.

  “Hawk.” A detective approached us. “There’s a call for you on line one. He said it was important that he speak with you right away.”

  “Okay, thanks.” He picked up his phone. “This is Hawk.” I listened to his thoughts, catching some of the conversation. It sounded like the man calling wanted to stay anonymous, and he had a lead on a drug sale going down tonight. He said he was taking a big risk by calling Hawk, and they’d probably kill him if they found out.

  Hawk’s heart picked up speed. The man gave him some of the same information that I had, along with some I didn’t. Once Hawk had the details, he asked the informant for his cell number. The guy said no, but he was willing to take Hawk’s cell number, and said that he would only talk to Hawk. No one else, or he was gone.

  “Sure. But can you give me your name?”

  “No,” the guy answered. “I like living.”

  “I’ll keep this quiet.”

  “I gotta go.”

  The line went dead, and Hawk caught my gaze. “An informant. This is great. I’m going to tell the chief.”

  Wow. I didn’t see that coming, and it relieved me that I didn’t have to shoulder all the responsibility for this operation. He came back a few minutes later, exhilarated to have a second confirmation of the exchange.

  It gave me even more credibility with the chief and, I had to admit, I was grateful. But some small part of me questioned the coincidence. Here I was, working with the police against the Bilottis, and right at this moment, an informant had come forward to help us out. Did Uncle Joey have something to do with it? Why would he do that? It didn’t make sense, but I hoped it was a good thing.

  Hawk drove us to the docks, explaining what the informant had told him. “He said the exchange won’t take place until after dark, when the boat is on the way back to the dock.”

  “That’s good to know.”

  “Yeah. It helps a lot. The police boat we’ll be using is docked a little further up the river from Chelsea Piers,” he continued. “The plan is to follow the party boat from a distance, but we’ll be in radio contact with our people on the boat. Another police boat will be out as well to monitor their movements, but we’ll be sure to give the target a wide berth until we know when to move in.”

  “Makes sense,” I agreed. “I sure hope this works.”

  “Yeah… no kidding.”

  A few minutes later, we pulled up in front of a small dock. Two thirty-five-foot patrol boats were moored there, with NYPD emblazoned on the sides. The chief was already there and directed us to board the boat he was on.

  Another officer furnished us with blue wind breakers that had NYPD across the back, along with orange lifejackets. I kept my purse across my shoulder underneath everything, but I had to take off my arm sling to get the jackets on. Hawk helped me out, and I soon had my arm back in the sling over the lifejacket.

  Since no one knew where the rendezvous boat would come from, the chief needed the patrol boats to keep watch on the target without looking like a threat. The first boat left to stay on the ocean side of the party boat, while our boat stayed on the river side.

  Soon, we were out on the river, getting jostled by the waves. The patrol boat took it easy, but it could move fast when it needed to. Most of the officers had binoculars that were trained on the target, and I picked up a few transmissions about other boats in the area they were watching.

  I wasn’t in a position to see much of what was going on, and I didn’t have any binoculars anyway, so I spent the first hour and a half enjoying the view, and trying to pinpoint famous buildings from my vantage point. At least it wasn’t cold, but I knew that would change once the sun went down.

  Everyone had been briefed that the exchange would take place after dark, and Hawk assured me that the police were prepared, so I tried not to worry that we’d miss it. A small hope blossomed that maybe this would work out and it would all be over soon. I could hardly wait.

  An hour later, the sun set with nothing to report, and everyone sharpened their focus on the target and anything that approached it. After another hour, the party boat turned from its course up the river, and began the trip back toward the pier. In anticipation, all eyes turned to the boat.

  Hawk ushered me to the inside of the boat, next to the wheel, to get a better look, and it surprised me how many boats were out on the water. From here, our vantage point wasn’t as good as those up on top, and I hoped they could see what was going on better than we could.

  The party boat had tons of lights on it, so that was a plus. But there were similar boats on the water as well, so it was more difficult to keep an eye on the right one. The long distance between our boats didn’t help either.

  After many long minutes, the captain got the message to move in closer because something was happening. My heart picked up speed. This was it. With a forward thrust of the engines, we neared the target, leaving several other boats in our wake.

  A shout sounded from above, and the radio squawked to life, telling us to head toward a small life boat that drifted in the water. From here, it didn’t look like anyone was onboard. As we got closer, the police turned on a spotlight and caught the boat in its light.

  I rushed to the side of the patrol boat to get a better look, hoping that this wasn’t a dead end. A figure with blooming red blotches on his white shirt lay inside the boat, and my breath caught.

  It was Tony.

  CHAPTER 14

  The captain maneuvered the patrol boat next to the smaller boat, and two officers jumped in. “He’s still alive,” one of them called. “Let’s get him onboard.”

  They moved Tony from the smaller boat, loading him onto an aluminum stretcher and hauling him into the patrol boat. Another officer picked up the duffel bag from Tony’s boat and brought it aboard as well. He took a quick look inside and whistled. I glanced over his shoulder to see it stuffed with cash. It had to be Tony’s getaway money. So what had happened?

  As we sped toward shore, one of the officers opened an emergency medical kit and did what he could to staunch the bleeding. He was thinking that Tony had lost a lot of blood, and he wasn’t sure he’d make it to the hospital alive.

  Anger and sadness washed over me. Deep down, I knew it was probably my fault that Tony had been shot. I’d involved the police when he’d asked me not to. Maybe Milo had found out and set a trap. But why would he leave the money with Tony?

  Tony groaned, and his eyes fluttered open. I knelt beside him and spoke close to his face so he could hear me. “Tony, we’re taking you to the hospital. Who shot you? Can you tell me what happened?”

  His vacant gaze landed on mine, and I heard lots of swearing in his mind. My face came into focus, and he couldn’t quite grasp what I was doing there.

  “Who did this to you?”

  He took a breath to answer, but couldn’t get the words out, thinking that Milo had been waiting. Somehow Milo knew he’d met with Manetto. He should have known Milo had a tail on him. Still, after everything he’d done for that bastard… this was how it ended.

  “You can testify against him… then he won’t get away with it.”

  Tony focused on my face and tried to speak again. Why was I there? Had I told the police after all? It figured. He never should have agreed to help Manetto. Now look at him. The cold breeze cut through his skin and into his bones. With a pang of regret, he could feel his life ebbing away.

  Pain and remorse
swamped him for all the terrible things he’d done. And for what? So he could die like this? What a fool he’d been. Fear coursed through him. He’d never been a believer in God, but he would surely go to hell for his murderous ways.

  I felt his remorse like a tangible thing, and it caused an ache in my chest. I wanted to comfort him, but what could I say? I thought he’d probably go to hell too, and, in some ways, he should. Killing those women… and who knew how many other people… it wasn’t right.

  Tony closed his eyes, concentrating on breathing. Deep down, he wasn’t ready to die, so he fought with all he had. His thoughts turned to Uncle Joey, and he glanced up at me with a strange light in his eyes. If only Manetto would kill Milo. Then he could die in peace.

  “Tell Ma…net…” He took in a strangled breath to finish, but the last of his strength left him, and his thoughts went blank.

  My breath caught with dismay. What was it with these guys and revenge? I’d been working too hard to ever tell Uncle Joey that, even if it was Tony’s dying wish. Not that it would do any good. I had a feeling that Uncle Joey was ready to kill Milo anyway.

  Fearful that he’d died, I watched Tony’s chest expand with shallow breaths, and relief washed over me. He wasn’t dead yet. If he could just hold on, he might live long enough to tell me something that would help us get Milo for this.

  The boat docked at the pier. On the street, the blinking lights of the ambulance nearly blinded me. The officers lifted Tony’s stretcher onto the dock, and the paramedics took charge, loading him carefully onto a gurney.

  The paramedics rushed Tony toward the ambulance, and I followed behind, knowing I needed to stay with him if he regained consciousness. Milo may have pulled the trigger, but I didn’t know what he planned to do about Uncle Joey, and Tony might be the only one who could tell me.

  “Shelby, where are you going?” Hawk asked, trailing behind me.

  “I need to be with him. I might still pick up something.” I reached the ambulance, but the paramedics didn’t want to let me inside.