by Ali Vali
“You’re absolutely right.” Cain took a deep breath to keep from hanging up and leaving this bitch to the two men that wanted her dead. “But your daughter’s blood is precious to me, even if I’ll never acknowledge her. That alone is why I picked up the phone.”
“I’m listening.”
“Good. Start packing.”
Chapter Twenty-four
Finley and her brother Neil sat in the SUV Cain had temporarily provided her with and watched the warehouse during business hours to see if anything was off aside from the fact the front door had a hole cut out in the glass close to where the lock was. They’d sent Lou’s nephew Dino to the places close by to let them know they’d taken care of it so they didn’t need to call the cops.
“You want to go in or what?” Neil asked.
“You guys wait here and let me go in first,” Finley said after a few more minutes of looking around the parking lot.
“No way,” Neil said, and Dino agreed. “Cain will have my ass if something happens to you the first day out. We’re coming with you, so live with it.”
The front office was just like she remembered it but did appear drabber in the light of day. Whoever had broken in had gone through the door to the back space, and that’s what she was interested in seeing. If it was something to do with the Antakovs, then they’d have done something to sabotage the crates she’d walked around when she’d come in through the back door.
She found only a few sheets of some kind of plastic material that seemed in keeping with what the business was supposed to be. From the time Cain had found out about the break-in to now, no one could’ve moved all the stuff in there unless they’d brought major help. Maybe this had nothing to do with her situation at all but just someone looking to make a big score with stolen booze.
“You might want to take a look at this,” Dino said as the security-closet door appeared to be pried open. The system Cain had in place seemed to be top-notch, but the essential parts they’d need to see who had come in were gone. Whoever had pulled it off knew their stuff.
“We’re dead in the water without the three missing components,” she said.
“Sis, if you’re going to work for Cain, you should know a little about her anal-retentive side. Dino, what do you have?” Neil asked him, since Dino was flipping through a set of keys.
“She said if this place had stuff missing to go to the backup site.” He found the keys and walked out the back. “Neil’s right about Cain’s overlapping security measures. The other thing, though, is her sense of humor.” The small building not too far away had a shed that seemed to hold all the maintenance and lawn-care stuff and a bathroom for those workers to use. Inside the bathroom was another door with a simple deadbolt.
“That doesn’t exactly scream secure,” she said, figuring she’d pick that in nothing flat with or without her FBI training.
When Neil opened the door, the one right on the other side wasn’t so easy to get through, since it appeared to be some sort of almost vault-like door. “Two keys and a pass code with a fifteen-digit pin would take considerably longer than the first door, true,” Neil said, punching the code in. “But by the time you tried breaking the code you’d have company.” He pointed to the camera right above their heads.
She took her laptop out and downloaded the security-tape footage of two people walking through the space slowly, as if searching for something that had nothing to do with liquor. They took the recording devices of the security system, and one seemed to leave something else out of sight. She had a feeling they’d just tripped it.
“Okay, lock us in and close the other door,” she said, realizing whoever had gone in didn’t have to sit around watching for who showed up. They’d left the best lookout ever. “Can we get a call out?”
“Why?” Neil said and laughed. “You’ve been watching too many movies lately. Our life is never that exciting.” Right as he said it they heard the loud explosion from close by. “What the fuck was that?”
“Give me the number to the house,” she said to Dino, and to save time he dialed it. “Don’t send anyone to the warehouse, and we’ll find a way home. Whoever broke in left a motion tracker, and if we’d lingered we’d be toast.”
“Where was it?” Cain asked.
“In the security closet, so whoever cleaned the place up should be glad they decided to stay out of it.”
“I trust you implicitly, but the Antakovs not at all, so I couldn’t take the chance with what was in there if someone decided to come looking for where Yuri and Victoria went wrong.”
“Cain, I’m so sorry,” she said, and meant it. Her problems weren’t going to die with Yury and his wife.
“For what? You fell for a woman with a few problems, and you have family that’ll help you solve them. Nothing to get in a twist about, and certainly not anything I didn’t expect. If you didn’t, review the file you compiled on these people. You should’ve seen it coming a mile away.”
“So now what?”
“Tell Dino to give Beaver Jones a call, and he’ll get you all back.”
“Do I want to know who Beaver Jones is?” she said and guessed no when Neil and Dino laughed.
“He cuts the grass over there, but he’s not the best driver in the world, so hang on to your ass. You’ll never look at River Road quite the same way ever again.”
“I’m going to be saying thanks until I’m old and deaf, huh?” she said and needed to get back to Abigail to make sure she was okay.
“Only if I was an asshole,” Cain said and chuckled. “But I’m more the good-looking, pragmatic type.”
“We all know Neil is the prettiest one in the group, so we’ll wait for Beaver and talk about it later.”
“Check on Abigail and the kids first, and then worry about all that. If they’re watching, they’re watching everybody. But if they’ve got their eye to the scope they’re going to learn a valuable one-time lesson.”
“What?” she said as Dino spoke quietly into his phone.
“Seeing the bullet up close isn’t going to change the outcome of surviving it. You destroy something of mine, and I’ll make you pay. This time it’s personal because of who they’re aiming at, so I’ll show no mercy.”
*
Carol was too worked up to fold anything so she simply shoved everything into her suitcase and tried to not make any noise, afraid it might attract attention to her room. After what she’d done, sleep had been impossible, and Newsome wasn’t answering any of her calls. Her brother had told her to come home, but to not take a plane. He’d left the night before since he knew the authorities would have her in custody in minutes after she showed her ID at the airport or train station.
She wanted to go back home and pray about what to do next. The door opening made her scream, and Elton was on her quickly before she could make another sound. “You stupid old bitch,” he said, so close she could smell the alcohol on his breath. “I told you to stay put and I’d handle everything, but you had to go and fuck everything up.”
“Don’t talk to me like that, and you had no intention of giving me what I wanted most.”
“With time and with Casey in jail, you would’ve gotten all those brats, but no. You couldn’t wait that long. Now Casey’s going to bury you so deep under all the police and judges she knows, you’ll be lucky to get a slice of bread a day. I could give a shit about that, but you had to drag me down with you.” She cried out again when he threw her on the bed. “So now what? You’re running back to that crazy son of a bitch you live with?” He picked up the blouse at the top of the suitcase, wadded it up, and threw it at her.
“Morris will be here to get me so you’ll never have to look at me again. Get out of here. I’ll fight for Hannah on my own. You’re drunk, and you’re no gentleman.”
“That’s rich,” he said and laughed as he grabbed her by the chin and squeezed. “I fucking hate Casey, but now I could give a shit about that. What I need to do is find a way to untangle myself from you.”<
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“Fine.” She tried to pull back, but he only increased the pressure. “Get out and do whatever you want. I want no more to do with you.”
He didn’t let go of her and reached behind him for something. “You think it’s going to be that easy? You can’t be that stupid, can you?”
“What do you mean by that?” she said and started really struggling when she saw the cuffs in his hand. “You get out of here, or I’ll gladly call the police no matter what happens.”
“I am the police, Carol,” he said, and acted as if he’d told the best joke ever when he laughed hysterically. “And you have the right to remain silent.” He cuffed her to the sink in the bathroom and turned on the television to muffle her cries.
“You can’t leave me here,” she yelled as she heard him talking to someone, so she stopped to listen through the door.
“Yeah, my wife’s not feeling well, so tell the maid to skip us until I call back. No sense in all of us coming down with whatever this is.”
“Don’t do this,” she said when he opened the door again.
“If you know what’s good for you, keep your mouth shut until I get back. I need time to think.”
He left and she started crying, hoping someone would hear her or check eventually. If not, maybe Morris would be here in the morning and they could leave. All she wanted now was to not have Elton come back until then.
“My Lord, I may not understand all these trials you set upon me, but give me the strength to get through them. I’ll gladly do it if you punish my enemies.” She’d lived a righteous life, so she deserved for the wrath of God to be aimed at those she hated.
Elton stood outside and listened to see how loud Carol could get and felt like an idiot for falling for what this woman was selling him when she got to town. The only way Carol Verde was bringing Casey down was if she shot her square in the chest.
He made sure the Do Not Disturb sign was in place and headed out. This had gotten way out of hand, and he had to think of a way to come out with his pension intact. The elevator bell made an idea germinate in his head, and it was the only real way to not sink with Carol tied around his ankles. “If I couldn’t get you to make a mistake if Carol got custody, there’s one sure way to pay you back, Casey.”
He had the perfect way to rid the world of Cain Casey, and she was cuffed in the bathroom. “Who’ll give a damn if the one thing you’re convicted for is the one thing you’re innocent of?”
*
The front drive was full of cars, so Remi let Simon drop them off for dinner. “Did you tell them the surprise?” Dallas asked as they walked to the front door.
“No. Everyone’s here for a family dinner for Colin, one of Cain’s cousins. He was the loud, funny guy at the wedding.”
“He was certainly memorable.” Dallas said, tugging on Remi’s fingers.
“Yeah. You seldom forget anyone who can drink that much and still walk out. He’s a good guy, though, and Cain is like his godmother even though they’re close in age.” She handed their coats over and headed to the den, since that’s where all the noise was coming from.
“Welcome, you two,” Emma said and screamed when Dallas held up her hand. Remi’s mother, Marianna, and her sister-in-law, Sylvia, ran over.
“Quick announcement, Colin, so please forgive me for stealing your spotlight,” Remi said. “I asked this beautiful woman to marry me, and she said yes.”
“What’d we miss?” Muriel asked as she came in with Kristen.
“Nothing except that my sister’s getting married,” Kristen said, joining the others who were admiring Dallas’s ring.
Carmen came in with some of the others on staff not long after with bottles of their best champagne, so Cain could make the first toast. “To my friends, Remi and Dallas. If you’re even half as happy as I am, you’ll have a long and joyful life. But since I’ve known Remi from the time we were five, I realize what an overachiever she is, so I hope you’re ready for one hell of a ride, Dallas, because she’ll move mountains to make you happy.”
“Truer words, my friend.” Remi lifted her glass but kissed Dallas before taking a drink.
They enjoyed the company and relaxing atmosphere and told old stories the kids had probably never heard, but the night was for celebrating, not business. The large dining-room table Cain had inherited from her mother was just big enough to fit everyone, so if for once the feds could hear every word, they would’ve had to turn the volume down.
“No cigars for you,” Emma told Cain as they were about to head back to the den and the others to the sunroom, since so many people were there that Cain’s office was out.
“You know,” Cain said, and smiled at the way Hayden walked around carrying his little brother. “That tone of voice gives me ideas I have no business having right now.”
Emma kissed her and moved her hand down over the curve of her ass. “Too early for me but way late for you, so don’t take all night.”
“At this rate, she might be pregnant again already,” Colin said, and Cain smiled at Emma’s blush. “Sorry,” he said, but Cain could tell that was about as far from the truth as Colin could manage.
“Come on before you encourage him anymore,” Cain said, kissing her again. In the sunroom they all grabbed a drink and lifted it toward Remi. “I really am thrilled you’re joining the best club in town, marriage. Congratulations, and I hope you don’t mind they’re in there planning your future.”
“Complete with nose ring, I’m sure,” Ramon said, and they all laughed. “I keep mine in my wallet, so I can’t say anything. I get out of line, and Marianna pulls it until I’m on my knees.”
“We need to get a few things out of the way before we give you a hard time again.” Cain sat and accepted another small whiskey from Katlin. “I met with Hector about the condo we found in Remi’s building. He caught a clue as to who stole from him, so I put him on the hunt.”
“Do you think we need to meet with Jasper and Vinny and give them the information?” Ramon asked, glancing between Raul and Remi. “I’m not sure what that does to his business, but if it’s anything like ours, it’s going to take time to come back. If that’s the case he might go looking for filler where he has no business looking.”
“I think we have another year of rebuilding before you see things level off. That we’re taking that time to rebuild will eventually pay off big,” Remi said. “But you’re right about Vinny and Jasper.”
“If we can do anything from our area, you know I’m a phone call away,” Colin said.
“My boy says the supply chain has a kink in it somewhere and no one’s talking,” Vincent said.
“With careful planning, Jasper and Vinny can only get a better hold on their business, but let’s set up that meeting and make sure they don’t need any muscle to keep things together,” Cain said, and the others nodded. “The kink is coming from Hector’s end, but I haven’t figured out what happened in Colombia.”
“From what Jasper and Vinny tell me, someone burned his fields to the ground. That they won’t be back as soon as they thought has put the market in flux,” Vincent said.
“Maybe here, but in California the Mexican cartels are filling the void. Hector and his problems have caused the price to go up, and the cartels are using that excuse to control the supply and keep it right under demand,” Colin said. “We tried to get into that action and were doing pretty well until we hit a snag.”
“What?” Vincent asked, and Cain shook her head a little where only Colin would notice.
“It’s an internal thing. If you want I can hook your guys up for now until things level out.”
“I appreciate the offer, but let’s hold off on bringing in any more players than we can handle,” Cain said. “Right now I’m worried about keeping Vinny and Jasper whole until all this stuff is over because, if I know Hector, he’ll start killing and won’t stop until even a perceived threat is dead.”
“He does that, and I have the word of both of you that we’ll h
it back, right?” Vincent said.
“With everything we have. Together is the only way to survive,” Ramon said.
“Not only survive but succeed,” Cain said, and everyone lifted their glass to that.
*
Cain and Emma stood at the door and bid Remi and Dallas good night. The others had left earlier, giving the friends a chance to sit and talk about the upcoming ceremony Dallas and Remi wanted. “The day I first saw you together I knew this is where we’d end up,” Emma said, and Dallas hugged her.
“I’m so glad I listened to your first lecture about this one.” Dallas pointed her thumb over her shoulder at Remi. “As thrilled as I am to tie my life and future to her, though, your friendship, both of you, has been one of the best things that’s ever happened to me.”
“We love you both so that goes both ways. In all these years I never thought Remi was capable of smiling this much,” Cain said. “Once you’re through with all your announcements, we’d love to throw you guys a party to celebrate that ring.”
“I’ll call you as soon as the new filming schedule comes out, but thanks for inviting us tonight.” Dallas hugged them both again and took Remi’s hand.
“Colin’s being here, everything okay with that?” Remi asked.
“He needed advice on something, but I think we can reach some agreement that’ll give him what he wants. If not, I’ll call you.”
They went upstairs and checked on the baby before heading to the bathroom for a shower. “What advice does Colin need?” Emma asked, slapping her hands away so she could unbutton her shirt. “He didn’t seem like his usual over-the-top self, so for a minute I thought he was sick.”
“He thinks Judice is stealing from him and Salvatore, so he wants to take care of the problem but remembered my call before our wedding. He’s here for my blessing.”
“He wants to kill Judice? Seriously?”