He would have been lying if he’d said the case was what was keeping him up. Because even though it occupied a very large part of his mind, what he couldn’t stop thinking about was that kiss. And Danni. And the fact that Danni had kissed him and left him wanting more.
Trying to focus on work was supposed to make the wanting easier, but it was doing the exact opposite. One of the officers assigned to sit outside the coffee shop had called to report there had been an incident between Pie and Carlo, and then Danni and Carlo outside the coffee shop. The news had him on edge. Apparently, she had things under control. At least, that’s what he hoped. Since she wasn’t calling for help, all he could do was wait and worry while he tried to piece together the final pieces of their puzzle.
* * *
Danni sat upright in the center of the queen-size bed. Her knees were pulled up to her chest, her arms wrapped around her legs. The house was quiet, which was actually disconcerting after the constant commotion she’d grown accustomed to while staying with Ginger and Pie. After their pizza dinner, Carlo had made them Orange Crush ice cream floats for dessert. Then they had watched that Netflix movie, something starring Morgan Freeman and Gerard Butler trying to save the president. He seemed to enjoy the action, and she had dozed off and on throughout the entire film. They had talked about her possibly going back to school, and she’d told more lies about searching for a job to help pay her bills.
He’d called it a night earlier than anticipated, wishing her sweet dreams as he’d retreated to his own bedroom. She had gone upstairs to the room with a view of the front yard and street and had locked the door. Now she was still wide awake, trying to put it all into perspective.
Running from him earlier had made her seem vulnerable. His running after her had been a test of his resolve, to see if he still trusted her cover story. For the moment she felt confident that she hadn’t been compromised. She was fairly certain that Ginger hadn’t told them anything she might have suspected.
Danni wanted to call Armstrong but knew that wasn’t an option. She couldn’t risk the conversation being overheard. Or that Carlo wouldn’t check her phone to see whom she was communicating with. She had used the bus ride back to delete her call history and was glad that she had. As she’d unpacked her duffel bag, searching for a pair of sweatpants and a tank top to change into, it had been obvious that someone had already gone through her personal things. She wasn’t sure whom to suspect of committing that infraction when she’d found her possessions out of place, but she was also grateful that she hadn’t had her gun in her bag. Trusting her instincts had served her well in that regard.
Danni tightened the hold she had around her legs, leaning her chin against her knees. Thinking about the case, and Carlo’s possible role, kept her from focusing on the kiss she’d shared with Armstrong.
Kissing the man had been the most impulsive thing she had done in quite some time. But in that moment, it had felt like the most natural thing for her to do. And from the moment her lips met his, it had been everything. If she could have described it, Danni thought, the words would have been too sweet and much too pretty for anyone to believe. His full lips had been like soft, plush cushions against hers. The exchange had heated quickly. His tongue had been quick to search out hers, teasing the line of her teeth to push its way past her lips. He’d tasted of peppermint, remnants of a stick of gum he’d chewed minutes earlier. His tongue had danced against hers gently, his touch drawing the air from her lungs. She had welcomed him eagerly, excitement rising with a vengeance that had consumed them both. If time had allowed, she would have gladly lingered in his embrace, but the bus door had closed and she’d had to pull herself from his arms to chase after her ride.
A sudden ripple of heat feeling like a volcanic eruption intent on implosion moved her up and out of the bed. Danni eased her way down the stairs, needing ice-cold water to help calm her nerves. She found a glass in an upper cabinet and water in a plastic pitcher in the fridge and also found a bag of Pepperidge Farm cookies. She leaned across the butcher-block counter, her thoughts shifting back to the case and away from the heat that was her partner.
Despite the reservations she and Armstrong both had about the man, she wanted Carlo to be one of the good guys. He always said the right things, and on the surface he seemed to be upstanding. She liked him, and even after that display of anger there was something about him, something she couldn’t quite put her finger on, that made her want to trust that his gestures of kindness were genuine. It might have been nothing more than wishful thinking, but it was something.
The door to the basement swinging open startled her. And him. She saw from his expression that Carlo hadn’t expected to find her standing there in his kitchen.
“Danni, hey! What are you doing up?”
She smiled sweetly. “Sorry, I got thirsty and then I saw these,” she said, gesturing with the half-eaten cookie in her hand.
He laughed. “Makes sense to me.”
“Why are you up?” she questioned curiously. “I thought you’d be sound asleep.”
“I had some paperwork I needed to do.” He moved to close the basement door, securing the lock and depositing the key into his pocket. He sauntered to the counter and reached for his own cookie.
Danni nodded. She gestured toward the door with her glass. “Is that where you keep the bodies?”
Carlo looked from her to the basement door and back. Danni laughed to ease the sudden tension that seemed to billow up out of nowhere.
“It was a joke, Carlo!”
He laughed with her, his head shaking from side to side. “Sorry, I’m more tired than I thought. But no, there are no bodies down there. Not today, anyway,” he said with a wide smile. “It’s just my office. I keep it locked because Pie has a key to the house and he has been known to come over and rummage through things. It keeps me from coming home to a mess that I have to clean up. It also keeps us from coming to blows with each other like today, because if he screws up my office I would have to hurt him. I keep things very organized down there.”
“You’ll have to show me one day.”
“Anytime,” Carlo answered. “Anytime.”
“Why are you being so nice to me?” Danni suddenly asked.
“Do I have to have a reason?”
She shrugged. “Something is motivating you.”
He took a deep breath. “I suppose there is. But there’s nothing sinister about it if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“I don’t know what to think. That’s why I asked. Most men usually aren’t so nice unless they want something.”
“You already made it quite clear that’s something you don’t have to give.”
“Like that has ever stopped a man before.”
“I’m not that kind of man, Danni. I don’t want any woman who doesn’t want me. And I don’t want a woman who’s more like a little sister to me than anything else.”
Danni stood staring at him, nothing coming to her to say. “I should head to bed,” she said softly.
Carlo smiled. “Good night, Danni. I’ll see you in the morning.”
* * *
It had been a few days since Danni had moved in with Carlo. The two had fallen into a quasi-comfortable routine with each other. She didn’t have the luxury of coming and going as she pleased, because unlike his brother, Carlo seemed intent on knowing where she was at all times. He woke her each morning, insisting she ride with him to the coffee shop after they shared a quick breakfast of toast and cereal. At the coffee shop she’d become quite proficient at serving up coffee and wiping down tables. Working the register and becoming acquainted with the regular customers was quickly becoming second nature. She worked an easy six-to-eight-hour shift each day until Carlo was ready for her to ride home with him. And then nothing. Home was movies, board games, casual conversation, fast food for dinner and then bed. No one in his family visited, n
or did he talk about any of them eagerly. He also hadn’t offered her a key, which meant he always needed to be there to let her inside if she left. Under different circumstances she would have asked why.
Twice, she’d lied and said she had errands to run, and twice, one of Pie’s goons in black had tailed her, leaving her with no other option than to run to the store and dip into a restroom to check in with Armstrong and the team before heading right back to the coffee shop. It was unnerving, and Danni said so. She and Ginger shared a corner table. The coffee shop was empty, the space quiet. Outside it was pouring down rain, a bad storm keeping people away. Pie and Carlo had disappeared to run an errand, leaving Ginger to keep an eye on her. Both women relished the few minutes they had to themselves, without the men hovering over them.
“I need you to talk to me, Ginger,” Danni persisted. She cut an eye toward the door.
The young woman shook her head. “You really are a dozen shades of stupid!” Ginger quipped, her own gaze following Danni’s.
“Why? Because I want to help you?”
“Because you don’t have a clue what you’ve gotten yourself into.”
“So you keep saying, so why don’t you help me understand? If you talk I can protect you, Ginger.”
Ginger laughed. “Says the cop who walked right into the lion’s den! You can’t even protect yourself, and you don’t even know it yet.”
“What does that mean?”
Ginger leaned across the table, the gesture feeling conspiratorial. Danni leaned with her, meeting her halfway.
“Look, the last time you tried to help, I lost three girls back to the streets and Pie won’t let them come back. Then cops popped Angel and her handler. Pius hasn’t let that go yet. He lost money. Big money. All the girls are paying for that now. I can’t risk things blowing up and getting worse for them. I can’t. You might not believe me, but I care about them. I’m trying to protect them the best way I can.”
“Then help them get out of this life.”
“To do what? You’ll ship most of them back to foster care, where they’re from. They age out, no job, no education, and they’re right back here on these streets with no one to protect them. It’s a vicious cycle, and it’s not going to stop because you want to be a Good Samaritan.”
“It’s not about anyone being a Good Samaritan. It’s about doing my job, Ginny!”
“Your job will get people killed, and I don’t plan to be one of them. I’ve been surviving this damn game since I was eight years old. I plan to keep surviving.” A tear rained down Ginger’s cheek. She swiped it away with the back of her hand as she took a deep breath.
“You deserve better,” Danni said softly. “All of the girls do. Pius needs to be stopped.”
Ginger shook her head slowly. “Don’t you know that every time one guy like him goes away, there’s always another ready to take his place? It’s never going to stop as long as men rule this world. Pius is able to do what he does because of all the men with money who keep him in business. Men who don’t care about anything except themselves.”
“Not all men are like that.”
“Well, all the ones I’ve met are. Judges, lawyers, teachers, politicians...all of them. Even some of our own damn fathers.” Ginger’s bottom lip quivered as she struggled to hold back her tears. She sat back in her seat, a look of defeat on her face.
“How did you get in this life?”
Ginger took a deep breath. She crossed her arms over her chest, extending her legs out as she crossed her legs at the ankles. “Same sad story. Molested by my favorite uncles before I was six. Then my father sold me to some guy he knew when I was seven. That guy sold me to a lot of other men. I was fifteen when I met Pie. He had his own problems, but he was nice to me. He liked me. It didn’t take rocket science to figure out that my life could be different if I attached myself to his little red wagon, so I did. As long as I keep him happy, then I stay on his grandfather’s good side, because he’s even scarier than Pius could ever be. That’s who you need to be going after.”
“Then help me make a case against him! Everything you know that you could tell me will help!”
There was a lengthy pause as Ginger fell into her own thoughts. When she spoke there was an air of finality in her tone. “Before Pie I didn’t have anyone to help me and I wasn’t given a whole lot of choices. I just did what I was told and took whatever got thrown at me. I’ve met too many girls just like me. Same sad-ass story. But once I realized I had Pie’s ear, I’ve been working hard ever since to give those girls options. To maybe make things just a little bit better. So understand me when I tell you that I...can’t...help you!”
“That’s why all the girls could come and go from the house without anyone bothering them.”
Ginger nodded. “They work the way they want to work. We all do. Sure, it isn’t all on the up-and-up, but they rarely have to do something they aren’t willing to do. They work their own way if they want to stay. But they have to work to keep Pius off our asses.” She took a deep breath before she finished. “You want to take those choices from them. Your way risks putting them back into the hands of men even worse than Pius.”
“I’m going to take them down, Ginger. With or without you. But with you would be so much easier.”
Ginger stood up. “Take them down first. Put them behind bars and I’ll see what I can do.”
“You’ll testify against them?”
“Take them down first. Then we’ll see!”
Danni nodded. “Can you at least point me in the right direction?”
The other woman stared at her, the intensity of her gaze compelling.
“Please,” Danni said, eyeing the girl just as intently. “Please!”
Ginger rolled her eyes skyward. “Pius hasn’t been able to get his hands on Angel, and that’s a really good thing. The police told him she took off from the hospital and they don’t know where she went. If you, or one of your associates, should find her, you should ask her about the doctor.”
“The doctor?”
Just then the door to the café swung open. A young couple came hurrying into the space, shaking water from their plastic raincoats. They waved and greeted the two women warmly.
Ginger stood up. “Yeah,” she said. “But you need to promise me one thing,” she said, her voice dropping to a whisper.
Danni nodded. “What’s that?”
“If, and that’s a really big if. If Angel tells you, you’re going to need to protect her because they will come for her when they find out.”
Ginger turned from her. Her smile widened, her expression shifting moods. “Coffee’s on the house,” she said to the husband and wife as she moved behind the counter. “You two earned it coming out in this weather!”
Rising from her seat, Danni feigned her own bright smile and followed. “You should try the coffee cake. It’s to die for!”
Chapter 16
Angel was eating Jell-O and watching an old episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air when the officer guarding her door allowed Danni inside. Monitors clicked and beeped, and tubes ran from them to various parts of her body. There was an IV hook with a bag of saline attached, and both of her arms were heavily bandaged. When the little girl looked up, there was a moment of hesitation and then she broke out into the widest smile.
“Danni!” She sat forward, her excitement spilling out of her eyes like water. “What are you doing here?”
“Hey, Angel!” Danni said as she moved to the side of the bed and pulled the girl into a deep hug. “How are you doing?”
Angel shrugged, her head waving from side to side. “They say my heart’s bad. Something to do with the drugs Pius and them gave me. They messed me up and now I’m on a donor list for a new one. The doctors say if they hadn’t found me when they did, that the drugs would probably have killed me.”
“I’m so
sorry, Angel.”
“No, it’s all good. My mother was looking for me, and she’s found me and I don’t have to...well...you know. I’m officially retired.” She grinned brightly.
“I’m happy for you, Angel. I really am.”
Consternation suddenly folded the girl’s face in a deep frown. “How did you find me? And why did they let you in? Did Pius send you?” Fear suddenly blessed her expression, and had she not been hooked up to the monitors that were tracking her vital signs, Danni imagined she would have taken off in a fast sprint.
Danni shook her head vehemently. “No, Pius doesn’t know I’m here. No one does, and they can’t ever find out. If they did, it would blow my cover.”
Angel’s brow furrowed, a question mark piercing her stare. “Your cover? I don’t understand.”
Danni took a deep breath as she dropped a warm hand against Angel’s knee. “I’m a police detective. I’ve been undercover trying to find something on Pius and his business. We know he’s been trafficking young girls across state lines. We also know he murdered your friend Crystal, but we don’t have enough evidence to prove it and put him away. It’s why I came to see you. I need you to tell me everything you know so we can get him. I need your help.”
“You? You’re a cop?”
Danni nodded. “Yes, I am.”
Angel slowly eased back against the pillows that supported her slight frame. She pulled at the white sheets and cotton blanket, pulling them up under her chin. Fear lingered in her eyes. “I don’t feel well. I think I need to rest now.”
Danni persisted. “He was going to kill you, Angel. He was sending you away because he wanted to make you disappear. We need to stop him from doing that to another girl. We need to save the next Crystal before he can hurt her. You don’t have to be afraid, Angel. I’ll do whatever it takes to protect you.”
Tears welled in Angel’s eyes, deep pools of water tainting her view. She shook her head, no words needed to voice her refusal.
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