“How do you know that he never sold it?”
“Because, I was his partner the night he stole it.”
The room was quiet as we all took that little nugget of information in. Here we thought that he wouldn’t know much about it, but here he was a part of the whole thing.
“Sir, I have to remind you that I’m a detective and you’re incriminating yourself. Would you like a lawyer before we continue?”
Brian laughed in amusement. “Detective, my body is riddled with cancer. I have at best a few months. What are you going to do to me now? I’ll be dead before you ever put the case before a judge.”
“We were led to believe by the nurse that you weren’t of sound mind anymore,” Cap said warily.
Brian scoffed. “I just act like that so they’ll leave me alone. They walk in here and want to talk all the damn time. Can’t a man just die in peace? I remember every damn thing about my life, so if you’d like answers, you’d better get them before I croak.”
“How did you know Harold?” Sean asked.
“I met him when I was in my 20’s. We ran into each other about a month before the robbery. He was telling me about this man, Lockley, that had cut him out of a business deal. Harold was just trying to get his feet under him at the time. Anyway, Harold told me about how this man had given his wife all this expensive jewelry and how she was always showing it off to her wealthy friends. That’s how it all started. We planned out the robbery the rest of the month, taking turns watching his house. The couple was gone most nights to parties and they were always gone late into the night. Back then, it wasn’t difficult to break into someone’s home. We were in and out in a matter of fifteen minutes. It wasn’t until a few weeks later that the police started questioning Harold.”
“But why did they even suspect him? There’s was no paperwork that we could find that connected Harold to Lockley,” Cap said.
“Harold and Lockley didn’t have a formal arrangement. It was all based on a handshake. There wouldn’t be any connection between the two of them.”
“Then how did the police come to suspect Harold?” I asked.
“Word of mouth. By the time the police came to talk to Harold, he was back home, trying to find the next great business deal.”
“Why didn’t he try to sell the jewelry right away?” Sean asked.
“He sold a few smaller pieces, but the one that was worth the most was too big, too eye catching. It was a diamond necklace. He was stupid to take it. It wasn’t a piece that could easily be sold off without anyone whispering about it. When the police came around and started asking questions, Harold got nervous and hid the diamond necklace. Everything else had already been sold off.”
“And he didn’t share with you,” Sean surmised.
“No, he did. I took my share of the smaller pieces, but we were going to split the sale of the diamond. It just never worked out that way. With the police breathing down his neck, he decided to hide it where no one could find it. But Lockley was adamant that Harold had been the thief and the police never really gave up their investigation over the years. Lockley even hired private investigators to watch Harold. When a few years had passed and he was still being watched, we both knew there would be no way to sell off the diamond. Then in the 80’s, jewelers started having serial numbers etched into diamonds. It just made the whole situation more difficult. We had always planned to go back and get the diamond, but even a few years ago, Lockley’s son was still looking for that damn diamond.”
“So, Harold never took it from his original hiding place,” Sean said.
“No, both of us wanted to wash our hands of it by the mid 60’s. It wasn’t worth the trouble.”
“Where did he hide it?” Cap asked. “His house on Lake Street has been thoroughly checked.”
“That house was built with bricks. He dug one out and hid the necklace in the wall. No one would have ever noticed.”
“We need the location,” I insisted.
Brian nodded. “I’ll be glad to be rid of the damn thing. Even I was followed over the years because of my association with Harold.”
“The location,” Cap said firmly.
“Got a pen and paper?”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Isabella
“WHAT DO YOU mean it’s over?” I asked Gabe.
“I mean, we found out where the necklace was and Cap returned it to the owners. He told them to call off the men that were searching for it and he did.”
“So, there are no more men looking for us? I can go back to work and do my job?”
“Yes,” he smiled.
“And you’re not going to follow me around any more?”
“Not unless you want me to.”
“And we can go back to our house,” I smiled, realizing too late that I would be hurting him by sounding so happy.
“I’ll take you back as soon as you’re ready.” He tried to hide it, but I could tell he wasn’t happy about us leaving.
“Thank you for all you’ve done.” I kissed him, trying to show him how much I loved him. “Just because we’re going back to our house doesn’t mean that I don’t want to be here someday with you. When the time is right, you won’t be able to get rid of me and then you’ll be sorry.”
“I really doubt that.”
“You haven’t even seen the worst of me yet. I’ve been hiding the worst of it from you.”
His face lit with an amused grin. “You mean that there’s something worse than your hairy legs?”
“So much worse.”
“Maybe I do need some time to think this over.”
I smacked him on the chest, laughing along with him. “I’m sure I haven’t seen the worst of you yet.”
“If you didn’t run away when your brother walked in on us watching porn, I’m pretty sure I’ve got this in the bag.”
Knocking at the door broke the lighthearted moment between us. I glanced at my watch and sighed.
“Matteo is here to get the kids.”
Gabe sighed but walked to the door to let him in. He was really struggling to share my kids, which I found funny. It was so strange that a man that I had known less than six months was more attached to my kids than their own father.
Matteo walked in, nodding to Gabe. “Isa, before you get the kids, I was wondering if we could talk for a moment in private.”
Gabe narrowed his eyes at Matteo. There was no way I was talking to him in private. Knowing how uncomfortable Gabe was with Matteo being near me, I knew he would be pissed off if I asked him to leave.
“Gabe can stay. There’s nothing you can’t say to me in front of him.”
Matteo looked irritated, but didn’t push it. We went into the living room and sat down. Matteo looked anxious and Gabe picked up on it. He was just seconds from kicking Matteo out of his house.
“What’s going on, Matteo? Why do you look so nervous?”
“I want to talk to you about what’s going to happen with the kids.”
“Okay,” I said hesitantly.
“This time with them has been…a real eye opener.” Here it comes. “I don’t want to miss out on any more time with them, but I need to work.”
I nodded, guessing where this was going. He was going to go home and he was leaving the kids behind. He didn’t have a choice if he wanted to earn money. He couldn’t just leave all his stuff behind and live in that apartment forever.
“I get it. You’re going home.”
“Well, yes, but it’s not what you think. I want to move here.”
I stared at him in shock. “I don’t understand. You want to move here? Why? I mean, no offense, Matteo, but you’ve never given up anything for your family. Why now?”
“Because I lost everything,” he said quietly. Gabe growled lowly in his throat and I gripped his hand to let him know he needed to calm down. “I didn’t do what I promised. Sure, I took care of you financially, but I wasn’t the husband you deserved. And I know it’s too late for us. You’ve mad
e that clear. But I can still be the father those kids need. I want to go home and pack everything up and sell the house.”
He took a deep breath and raked his fingers through his hair. “This is the hard part and I’m not sure you’ll agree to it. I know that when the divorce goes through, we should be splitting things down the middle. That’s what’s fair.” I nodded. “I was hoping that you would let me keep that money as a personal loan.”
“No,” Gabe barked. “You’re not taking anything else from Isa.”
“Gabe, let him finish talking.”
“I’d like to get a house here, which I can get on my own, but I would like to use the money to start my own accounting firm. I want to build something here that will keep me close to my kids. The closest accounting firm is in Pittsburgh and I’ve been looking into the numbers quite a bit over the past two weeks. I think it could be really profitable to start a firm here.”
My head was reeling as I considered what he was saying. It was a lot to take in, but there was one thing that I trusted and that was Matteo with finances. He may have lied to me about the women he was sleeping with, but he was being honest with me right now. The earnestness on his face was what really got me.
“I think the kids would really love it if you were around.”
“What?” Gabe said in shock.
“Gabe,” I said quietly. “He’s their father.” His jaw clenched but he didn’t say anything else. “If you’re willing to commit to the kids, then I would love it if you were around for them. But you have to promise that you’re willing to put in the time with them. You can’t just get them for a night here and there or a weekend when you decide you want them.”
“I can do that. We can work out whatever kind of arrangement works for you.”
“And when the kids get older and are involved in activities, you have to be there for them.”
“Done.”
“And one last thing.” I looked over at Gabe and smiled. “Gabe is going to be a part of their lives forever. We’re not going to be living with him anymore, but it’s going to happen eventually and you’re going to have to accept that another man is part of their lives. I need the two of you to get along. I don’t want the kids to ever feel like they have to choose between the two of you.”
He swallowed uncomfortably. I knew he didn’t like the idea of another man being seen as a father figure, but accepting that was part of life. “I can learn to accept him if he can do the same.”
Gabe nodded, even though his jaw was clenched in anger. He still didn’t like Matteo and probably never would.
“Then go ahead and do whatever you need to do.”
“I’ll have my lawyer draw up the papers,” he said, smiling slightly. “I really appreciate this, Isabella. I’m going to head back on Monday and get everything settled. I’m going to have to talk with my boss since I’ve been working out here. I’m not sure if he’ll want me to stay on until they can find a replacement or not.”
“Okay.”
“Well,” he said, slapping his knees and then standing. “I guess we’d better get out of here and let you get on with your weekend.” He walked toward the door while I called the kids. They came running immediately, looking more excited now to be going with their father.
“You guys listen to Daddy and do what he says, okay?” They both nodded. “And Vittoria, if you come back with money that you shouldn’t have, I’m going to take it away from you.”
“What does that mean?” Matteo asked in concern.
“Let’s just say she’s in the business of keeping secrets.”
Vittoria smiled sheepishly as Matteo raised an eyebrow at her.
“Just as long as you let me keep the books,” Matteo smirked. “Oh, and, I won’t be calling you for help this time.”
They walked out the door, and for the first time since he got here, I wasn’t apprehensive about them going with him. Strong arms wrapped around me and hot air hit my neck as Gabe peppered my skin with kisses.
“Did you really mean that? About me being a part of their lives forever?”
“Yes, I told you that I just need some time to adjust.”
“It took you long enough to finally get there,” he smiled. “I thought I was going to have to resort to kidnapping you and taking you to Vegas where I would pay an Elvis minister thousands of dollars to make you marry me.”
“No need to go that far.” I narrowed my eyes at him. “And you tell Knight that he and I are going to have words about his little plan.”
Gabe barked out a laugh. “Yeah, I’d like to see you having that little talk. Just make sure there’s a witness.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Gabe
ISA WAS ADAMANT that I meet her sister, so we were taking a road trip to visit her sister, husband, and kids. Apparently, meeting her sister was like an invitation into the family. I had seen some of their texts. If she was like that in person, I had a feeling this trip was going to be quite informative.
We were all packed and ready to hit the road. I hadn’t realized it, but going on a trip with kids required a shit load of bags and I had no clue what they were for. But I did what she asked and I packed the fucking trunk. When she walked outside with a giant, plush unicorn that was at least the same height as Vittoria and a puppy that was the same size as Enzo, I had to draw the line.
“No, no fucking way. There’s no way that shit’s fitting in the trunk.”
“Gabe, you’re going to have to find a way to make it fit. If we don’t bring it, there’s going to be a lot of crying the whole drive and then at bedtime also.”
I looked back at the trunk of the minivan and sighed. It was bad enough that I was having to drive a fucking minivan, but now I was shoving all this shit in the back and it still wasn’t going to fit. I had one fucking duffel bag. How the hell did the three of them need this much shit? We were only going to be gone a week. After some more reorganizing, I managed to shove some bags on top of the unicorn and puppy to hold them down so I would at least be able to see out the back window.
Finally, an hour later, Isa was locking up the house and we were hitting the road. I swear to God, not five minutes into the drive, Vittoria and Enzo were fucking arguing in the backseat. I wasn’t going to survive this trip.
“How long is the drive?”
“About six hours,” Isa grinned. “Sure you want to do this?”
“Can we tape their mouths shut?” She looked at me like I was nuts. “What? That’s what we do to hostages. It works fine with them.”
“My kids are not hostages. I have this CD they like to listen to. It always calms them down.”
She fiddled with the radio and soon some weird ass song about cows came over the speakers. They were singing about being incredible cows. What the fuck? When a song about Philadelphia chickens came on, I hit the button to turn off the radio.
“No, sorry. It’s not going to happen. There’s no way that I can listen to that shit. I’m a man. I listen to football games and rock n’ roll. I don’t listen to songs about cows.”
“I want cows,” Enzo screamed.
“Put it back on,” Vittoria whined.
Over and over for ten fucking minutes, they cried and they complained about needing to hear their music. I finally pulled over on the side of the road and shifted into park. Turning around, I hit them with my meanest glare. “We are not listening to songs about cows or chickens. We may be in a fucking minivan, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be cool. Now, you’re going to sit there and be quiet for the rest of the trip. I don’t want to hear you so much as complain about being hungry. The only reason you will open your mouth is to tell me you have to go to the bathroom. Understood?”
“You said a really bad word,” Vittoria stated, as if I hadn’t just fucking told her to be quiet. She held out her hand and wiggled her fingers.
“Fine.” I pulled out my wallet and slapped a five dollar bill in her hands. The sassy little lady smiled evilly and gestured that she would k
eep her lips sealed.
When they didn’t say anything else, I turned around in my seat and pulled back out onto the highway. Glancing over at Isa, I smiled. “That’s how it’s done.”
She laughed at me and I had the feeling that laugh was somehow cruel.
2 hours later…
“Come on, Gabe! It’s your turn. Please, please, please!” Vittoria had a way of making me do anything she wanted. Knowing there was no way out of this, I put on the damn song and started to sing along.
Belly belly button you’re oh so fine
Ooh belly button I’m so happy you’re mine
A tummy without you just wouldn’t be right
Little belly button you’re a beautiful sight
Belly belly button. Yeah
The kids were laughing in the backseat and even though I was pissed that I had listened to this song long enough to actually know the words, I couldn’t help smiling when I saw their happy faces. Isa was fucking laughing in the passenger seat. She knew that I wouldn’t win this one. Damn, I had a lot to learn about kids.
Patty pat pat Patty pat pat
Baby fat baby fat
Patty pat pat baby fat
Itty bitty button in the middle of that
By the time we got to Isa’s sister’s house, I knew every song on that damn cd by heart. And honestly, I actually liked it. In fact, when we stopped at the rest area and I was waiting for Isa and the kids to come back, I downloaded the cd from iTunes onto my phone. I told myself it was so I didn’t have to worry about having the cd with me if we switched vehicles. Yeah, that was it.
We pulled into her sister’s driveway and the kids were yelling in the backseat so loudly that I could hardly hear myself think. I needed some damn earplugs. Isa let the kids out and I stayed in my seat, strapped in and ready to drive off.
“What’s wrong, Gabe? Afraid of my sister?”
Gabe Page 23