by Essa Alroc
Whoever this Sal was, she was more than a bartender.
She took a drag off her cigarette and eyed him with suspicion. “Who’s this?”
He reached out a hand to shake. “I’m Jesse Turnblatt, ma’am.”
She looked at his hand as though he’d extended a snake. “Ma’am?” She shot her gaze to the table across the bar, focusing on the dark-haired man with her same bloodshot eyes. “Gio, am I old enough to be a ma’am?”
“In my mind, you’re always twelve, Sally girl.”
Sal sighed, “Such is my life.” She looked Gabrielle deep in the eye. “Tell me, what is the point of being a criminal mastermind when you can’t even get the respect of your own uncle?” She turned back towards the bar. “So, what are you running from, pretty, pretty Gabby?” Sal took another drag off her cigarette.
Gabby let out a nervous giggle. “Who said I was running?”
Sal snorted. “I know the look of hunted prey when I see it.”
Gabby swallowed deeply and shot a look to Jesse. “Can we talk in private?”
Sal yanked up the partition in her bar and gestured Gabby in. “Sure thing. We can use my workroom. Thanks to my new assistant, it is almost 100% rat free.”
Gabby started to follow her and Jesse caught her arm again. “No.” No way was karma god ok with Gabby disappearing into the bowels of a criminal’s hideout. He was sure that’s where he was now. This was no regular bar and these were no regular people. His brief stint in unregulated boxing had taught him how to recognize the seedy underworld when he saw it. Gabby didn’t belong in it.
Gabby glared at him. “Listen, I’ve already forgiven you. It’s already in the past.” She waved a hand towards the door. “You can go now with your conscience completely absolved, ok?” She looked to where the clearly insane Sal was waiting to lead her down to her ‘rat free’ workroom. “She can help me now.” Gabby tried to tug her arm free. “You can’t.”
“I might be able to if you would tell me what’s wrong.” Jesse was no longer convinced that Gabrielle was a spoiled millionaire’s wife trying to get revenge on her husband. She was clearly scared and clearly in over her head, if she was considering mixing up with the likes of Sal.
Gabrielle let out a sigh, her face filled with tension and frustration. “Look, I’ll be fine.” Her voice was soothing. It was a voice she had used before, and it had always worked to calm Nick down when he got upset about something. Weirdly, Jesse wasn’t buying it. She tried again. “Its nothing you need to involve yourself in.”
Jesse was firm. “You’re not going anywhere without me.”
Gabby gave a heartfelt sigh and turned back towards Sal. “Do you mind if he comes?”
Sal watched Jesse carefully and took a drag off her cigarette. “I don’t care who comes, so long as I get paid.” She watched as Gabby nodded and walked down the stairs to her mysterious workroom. Sal threw up an arm and blocked Jesse’s way before he could follow her, the nonchalance gone.
“I know how to choke a man with his own shirt.” She turned to Jesse and sucked another drag off her cigarette. Jesse tried to shove his way past her and Sal gave him a smirk. He tilted his head and realized that the two men playing a game of chess were no longer playing. They were standing and watching him, waiting for his next move. “And I have Lyme in the basement.” Another drag. Jesse knew, just by looking at Sal – this was her house and he would play by her rules, even if he didn’t know what they were, yet.
Jesse clenched his fists, his entire body wanting to go into fight mode, despite the fact that he knew he was outmatched. Since learning that Gabby was in serious trouble, and not throwing a spoiled rich wife tantrum, something primal in him had woken up. Something that told him to protect her at all costs. His nostrils flared and he leaned down to meet Sal nose to nose, not caring about what she or her patrons could do to him. Not if she was going to keep him from Gabby. His voice was grave when he spoke again. “I only want to help her.”
To his surprise, Sal raised her arm and let him pass. Right as he began to move past her, she met his gaze dead-on and gave him a conspirator’s wink. “Haven’t you ever heard the road to hell is paved with good intentions?”
***
“I swear, she was completely faithful.” A terrified man sat in the wingchair in his living room, looking up at a furious Nick. Marcus, the man being interrogated, had been hired for one thing and one thing only. To follow his Gabrielle and to ensure that she stayed committed to Nick.
To date, all of Marcus’ reports had been mundane. Gabrielle went to the store. Gabrielle was learning how to paint. Gabrielle was learning Ukrainian.
That part had touched him.
But, in every single one of Marcus’ reports, ‘Gabrielle has taken a lover’, had never been a subject line. As far as the man hired to watch his wife was concerned, Gabrielle was as innocent as the driven snow.
Nick leaned forward, his dark eyes flashing. “Then why the hell is Lucia telling me that she took off with some man yesterday?” Nick was furious. On discovering his missing wife, he’d opened his own investigation, complete with every henchman at his disposal. He’d always had Gabrielle watched and she’d never disappointed him. She didn’t cheat; she didn’t flirt. She seemed entirely oblivious that other men existed at all.
He shot a furious look at his housekeeper. “Tell it again.”
Lucia clutched her napkin she’d been using to nervously clean his dining room table, despite the fact that it was spotless. “A man came to the door. He said something about the mailbox. Gabrielle left with him.”
Nick growled in frustration and grabbed a vase that had been sitting on the table. He studied it for a moment and then suddenly, tossed it across the room, watching in mild satisfaction as it smashed against the far wall. Everyone but Grigor flinched. Then, as quickly as his temper tantrum had started, it was over. He turned back to his quarry, Marcus, looking strangely calm. “So he destroyed my mailbox and stole my wife?”
Marcus leaned forward in his chair. “Mr. Yakiv, I swear, she never gave any indication.” Marcus swallowed as Nick’s furious eyes landed on him. “She only went shopping yesterday. I never lost sight of her once. She went to a few stores and then drove back home.” Marcus let out a nervous laugh. “I could even tell you every single one of the Christmas presents she got for you.”
Nick considered his statement. “Christmas presents?”
Marcus nodded, desperate to make his boss understand. “Yes. As far as I could tell, she was shopping for you all day yesterday.”
Nick swallowed as an idea started to form. “What time did she come home?”
“Around three. The housekeeper tried to help her unpack, but Gabrielle wouldn’t let her. She took all the bags she had and went back inside.” Marcus took a deep breath. “After that, I left, because it looked like she was home for the night anyway.”
He focused his dark gaze on Lucia. “It is true, Mr. Yakiv. She brought in gifts for you, but wouldn’t let me help. I think she was going to hide them.”
Nick cleared his throat. “Hide them where, Lucia?”
Lucia watched him nervously, still twisting the napkin in her hands. “In the attic, I think.”
Nick’s eyebrow shot up. It couldn’t be possible. He met Grigor’s eyes and nodded towards the second floor.
Grigor followed close behind him as he headed for the second floor. “Do you really think she saw?”
Nick didn’t answer him. Instead, he yanked down the attic ladder and ascended before Grigor could cut in front of him. The room had been cleaned, the body removed, but still, the metallic scent of blood clung. He looked around for a hiding place and his gaze fell on the brown slatted folding door of a closet that he and Gabrielle had never used. It was too inconvenient.
With Grigor hot on his heels, Nick yanked open the sliding door. Inside, he found a haphazardly stacked pile of presents. The arm of a brown wool sweater was dangling out of one of the bags; a new set of g
olf clubs was sticking out of the other. In the middle of the massive mountain of gifts, he saw a small indentation. It was just the size of Gabrielle’s curvy body. He pulled the door shut and peered through the slats to confirm his suspicion.
His wife had seen everything.
Chapter 3
Gabby focused a self-conscious look at Jesse. She was frightened over the reason she needed Sal’s counsel and she was hesitant to let anyone else in on her secret. Truth be told, she’d gone to Sal because she knew Sal could be discreet. The last thing she needed was Jesse getting involved in her nightmare. She stretched to make herself comfortable in the plastic beach chair Sal had offered and finally gave up. Jesse wasn’t going anywhere.
“I need to disappear.” She heard Jesse suck in a breath and ignored it.
Sal, at least, seemed less concerned over her statement. Instead, she filled a shot glass full of 151 and shoved it at her. “Don’t we all.”
Gabrielle swallowed, not wanting to share more of the story. She considered pushing the shot away, and then elected to take it. Feeling a little braver after she swallowed the fiery liquid, she went on. “Listen, it’s because…”
Sal held up a hand. “Trust me, if there’s something that makes you need to disappear, the less people you share it with, the better.” Gabby took another shot Sal offered gratefully; relieved she wouldn’t have to share her nightmare story. “I’m assuming you’re looking for credentials?”
Gabby tilted her head quizzically as she coughed over the 151. “Credentials?”
Sal let out a sigh. “You are not cut out for a life of crime.” She took her own shot and went on. “Credentials. Passport, driver’s license. All that jazz.”
Gabby nodded.
Sal stretched and stood. “Mooki, we got a job.”
Gabby spun around as a bleach blonde surfer boy appeared out of nowhere behind them. He clutched a bong in his hand and brought the distinct smell of marijuana with him. “What’s up?”
“We are in need of your artistic abilities.”
“Dig it.” He took a hit off his bong. “Passport, driver’s license? The whole shebang?”
“The whole shebang, times two. We need a male and a female.”
Gabby put up a hand. “I only need one.” She gestured to Jesse. “He’s not coming with me.”
Sal eyed Jesse. “Shame.” She met Gabby’s eyes again. “Regardless, they’re both for you.”
Gabby was confused.
“You clear customs as a male. People are less likely to look at you if they’re looking for the wrong gender.” She gave a nod to Mooki who went off to begin his work. “You arrive in Costa Rica a female. It’s like you never existed at all.” She gave another wink. “Trust me; if you’re looking to disappear, you’ve come to the right girl. According to the IRS, I died four years ago!”
Gabby took another deep breath, and another, and another. Soon, she was gasping. Somewhere, she heard someone say she was having a panic attack. She vaguely felt Jesse press a hand into her lower back. A bag was shoved over her face and she breathed into it gratefully, the sound of crumpling paper finally drowning out the sound of the electric carving knife.
“That’s right,” A hand continued rubbing small circles into her back. “You’re doing good. You’re doing real good. Just keep breathing.” The world around her started to come back into focus and she could feel Jesse’s lips brushing against her ear. She felt a small tremor of excitement at his closeness that she tried to shake away. Developing a crush was the last thing she needed. His hand continued to rub her back in small circles that relaxed her. She felt safe. For the first time since she’d found out her husband was a murderer, she felt safe.
“Thanks,” She gasped out as she sat back up again. “I’m sorry. Just… everything got to be too much.”
Jesse watched Gabby’s pretty face in concern. She was white as a sheet and her eyes were tight. He could tell she was trying to be brave, but that she was bone tired and terrified. “It’s ok.” He caught her chin and tilted her face towards his. “No one is going to let anyone hurt you, ok?”
Gabby nodded and went back to breathing into her paper bag. He could feel Sal’s red-rimmed eyes burning into the side of his face. But this time, when he looked up, her expression wasn’t filled with skepticism or suspicion. Instead, it looked like something akin to amused admiration. She waited until Gabby was under control before she spoke again.
“Do I need to do something besides getting you tickets?”
Gabby shook her head in confusion, clutching the paper bag in her hand. “What?”
“Are you in more trouble then disappearing can help?”
Gabby shook her head again. “No, I don’t think so.” Her face took on a stubborn set. “No, I’m sure. But I need a fake passport. Not tickets to anything.”
“Tickets are fake passports. If you’re going to embark on a criminal life, you could at least try to learn the lingo,” Sal admonished her. “They’ll be ready in two days.” She caught Gabby’s horrified look and gave a sad smile. “Sorry; if I could do it sooner, I would. But that’s just how long it takes for Mooki to make credentials that can fool a government official.” She gestured towards the door. “Of course, you’re welcome to stay here until that time.”
Both Jesse and Gabby watched as a rat the size of an overweight tabby skittered across the floor. Gabby gave a tense smile.
“I’m sure we’ll be fine.” She let out another deep breath along with another clutch of her brown paper bag. “What do I owe you?”
Sal shook her head. “No charge.”
“Sal,” Gabby looked at her in shock. “I insist.”
Sal shook her head. “Nope, I owed you a solid.”
“I gave you a three-block ride!” Gabrielle raised her head off Jesse’s shoulder and he watched her with amusement. “That is not worth ten thousand dollars’ worth of forged credentials!”
Sal quirked her lips. “So you haven’t forgotten everything I told you?” She let out a sigh. “Favors are worth whatever I decide they’re worth.” She pulled a business card out of her wallet. “I will see you in two days.”
Gabrielle took the business card and stopped arguing. No one had ever won an argument with Sal, and no one ever would. She had no illusions that she would be the first. “Fine, but I’m giving to charity in your name.”
“Do what you feel, pretty Gabby.” Sal winked again. “Just don’t forget to come back if you need me.”
***
Jesse held Gabby carefully as she climbed into the passenger side of his jeep. The trip to the Strangely Sober had taken a lot out of her. The whole day had taken a lot out of her, and she was starting to look drained. He brushed her hair out of her face and buckled her in, feeling oddly protective.
“Where to now?”
“There’s a motel down the street that will let me pay in cash. You can drop me there.”
Jesse’s hands tightened on the steering wheel. “I’m not leaving you alone.”
Gabby let out another sigh. “Listen, Jesse, whatever you did to me in high school, you’ve completely made up for it after this crazy night.” She pressed her face against the glass of his passenger side window as she absently wondered what her new life in Costa Rica would be like. “Just drop me off and move on. Trust me; you want no part of my crazy life.”
Jesse’s grip got even harder. “Until you’ve actually remembered what I did to you, and until you’ve actually punched me in the face for what I did to you, I consider my debt unpaid and I’m clinging to you like a barnacle.” He caught her tiny hand just as it was flying at his face. It was like being attacked with butterfly wings.
Jesse gave her a stern look. “First, that was adorable. Remind me to teach you how to throw a decent punch later.” He pushed her hand back onto her knee. “Second, the punch in the face doesn’t count if you don’t remember me.” He flicked on his turn signal. “And third, when you do decide to punch me in the face, please
don’t do it while I’m driving.” He could feel Gabrielle seething from the passenger seat and had to hold in a chuckle. She was cute when she was mad.
Finally, she calmed down. “So where are we going?”
“I’m getting us a room at a place that doesn’t rent by the hour.”
He could practically feel the tension pouring off of her. “I’m married.”
“I know.” And he’d already decided that they were going to discuss that situation further as soon as he got them settled in a room. Whatever she was running from, her husband was at the dead center. There was no way he was getting his hands back on her. “You’re safe with me, ok?”
Gabby felt his hand drop to her knee, but she had no desire to push it off. If his only ulterior motive was forgiveness for a crime she couldn’t’ remember, then she was fine with that. All she cared about was that when he told her she was safe, she believed him
***
“She was spotted in Liberty City.”
Nick sucked in a strangled breath. “Please tell me you’re joking.”
Grigor shook his head sadly. “She was seen there with a man who matches the description of your pool cleaner. We think he gave her a ride.”
“Into Liberty fucking City?” Nick slammed his hands down on the table. “That’s the most dangerous part of Miami!”
“She wasn’t there long. Only for a meet with the Salvatori crew.”
“The Salvatori crew?” The suggestion did nothing to soothe him. The Salvatori crew was small-time, but vicious. He knew that Gabby had a sort of friendship with their lead, but he’d chosen to discourage it. Angelica Salvatori, who Gabby called Sal, was rumored to be more than a little unbalanced. He thought of his fragile little Gabrielle, terrified by what she had seen, racing along for any kind of help she could get.
“She was in and out in less then twenty minutes. With the pool cleaner.”
Nick clenched his fists. “I want her returned to me. I want her returned to me unharmed and I want the pool cleaner dead for taking her.” He shot an icy cold look to his second in command. “Do you understand?”