“Shhh. Everything’s going to be fine, but I need you to talk your parents in going back to Lake Forest. I have an entire team searching for Collopy, Fallon. I know she attacked you, and trust me, she’ll pay.”
That makes me feel even worse, or maybe not. And that unsettles me even further. “What am I supposed to do? Who found me? What if she finds me before you find her?” I wipe my eyes with the white cotton sheet, avoiding the area around my nose.
“You’re scared and confused. Calmati. Calm down. Listen carefully to me. A soldier is guarding you at the hospital. Your parents won’t know because he’s discreet. But, and I don’t know how yet, Detective Wade knows you were attacked. He’ll visit you, and you must say in your statement that you didn’t see the person that attacked you and that he – yes, you will imply it was a man – only asked for money. Wade will come to the conclusion that it was just a random break-in for money—”
“But—”
“I know it’s a lie, but it’s the easiest way right now, and Wade can’t do anything if that’s your official statement. My man that was watching you saw Collopy leave your apartment, and then he found you and called the ambulance. He also made it look like a robbery. I want you to stay in the hospital until I come pick you up, but that might take a while. I can probably be there by the end of the day.”
I’m not looking forward to staying here the entire day, but the smartest and safest choice for me right now is to follow Luca’s orders, which he can so beautifully disguise as requests. “I’ll wait for you, but what do I tell my parents? I actually do want them to leave because I don’t want them involved in any of this, Luca. My father’s lawyer instinct is already on high alert.”
“Hmm… What did your father say?”
“Not much, but I saw the suspicion in his eyes. He knows I’m in trouble somehow.”
“You’re not in trouble. Call Jason, and have him come to you. I’ll have Calderone mention that you need rest – which you do need, then you tell your parents they can go home and that Jason will stay with you.”
“I’m not sure that’ll work.”
“Try it. Do you have your own phone?”
I look up at the doctor. “Do I have my phone here?”
He points to my bag on a chair by the window. “Your mother brought your belongings.”
I answer, “I have my phone.”
“Keep it with you because I’m going to call you.”
It feels so nice to have him take care of this mess. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
I can’t refrain from asking about his date. I may have been beaten, but the jealousy I feel pains me more. “Is she your girlfriend, Luca?”
His exhale sounds loud in the receiver. “No, she’s nothing to me.”
We’re silent for a long time and just listen to each other’s breathing before he ends the call, and I hand the phone back to Dr. Calderone. “Can you get my bag?”
“Sure.” He gives it to me. “You need to rest now, Fallon.”
“I will. I just need to make one call, and then we need to convince my parents to leave this place.”
***
An hour later, the same people from this morning, including Jason, surround my bed.
Everyone is listening to the doctor speak. “Rest for a week, and that’s all.”
Jason, as instructed by me, tries to lighten the situation. “So she’s fine, just needs some rest. We can do that.” His lips curl up.
My father offers, “She can come home with us. Doctor, thank you. I’m glad to hear she’s fine physically.” My father moves his attention from the doctor to Jason. “But I’m a little concerned about this robbery at her place.”
Of course my mom agrees.
Before I can, Jason replies, “Noah, it’s also happened in my apartment building. She’s having new locks installed this afternoon, and I really think Fallon wants to go home.” He looks at me.
“All I’ll be doing is sleeping. I feel bad that you have to hang out around here.”
“You’re my child,” my mom counters indignantly. “We’re not leaving you right now, Fallon.”
I blow out air through my mouth, causing my nose to sting, and I grimace, which intensifies the pain. “Okay, sorry, Mom.” She means well, and I’m hoping they’ll leave anyway after they see I’m asleep the entire time.
My dad’s eyes thin at me, and I’m kind of dreading the moment when we’ll be alone and he’ll be firing his questions at me.
But thankfully, it doesn’t come to that because I am indeed knocked out for the rest of the morning and afternoon due to the pain medicine.
***
When visiting hours end that night, Luca hasn’t arrived, so Dr. Calderone comes to my aid.
“Mr. Michaels, because of her repeated vomiting, I want to keep her overnight. Visiting hours are, unfortunately, almost over.”
“You can go, Noah, Elise. I’ll come pick her up tomorrow and drive her home,” Jason suggests.
My mom and dad catch each other’s eyes then look over to me as I send them a sweet smile in spite of my freaking nose which is still throbbing.
“Fine.” My dad caves and strokes my hair lovingly. “Call me first thing in the morning, okay?”
“I will.” I feel guilty for lying to my parents, but I want them far away from here until Luca has dealt with Collopy.
They leave with the doctor and Jason.
Dr. Calderone comes back ten minutes later and removes my IV. “I’m not sure what time Luca is coming, so I’ve already finalized your release papers. When he gets here, you can just leave. I’ve made sure you can stay in this room until he arrives, even though you’re already officially released from the hospital.”
“Thanks, Doctor.”
I scoot back down in the bed to wait for Luca, but it’s not him who enters my room next. It’s Detective Wade with a repentant flicker in his eyes.
“Detective—”
He shakes his head. “Don’t say anything. You’ve been released from the hospital. I’m here to take you into custody.”
I sit up instantly. “Why?”
“Kelli Ann Collopy was found dead last night.” He scrutinizes my reaction. “You were the last person she called, and you were attacked yesterday. This is pretty odd, Fallon.”
Shit! If only the doctor hadn’t released me yet!
She was killed last night? By whom? Oh my god, please don’t let me have trusted the wrong person again – since I really have a talent for that. Luca wouldn’t lie; he already made the threat that she would pay, so he wouldn’t lie to me if he already killed her. Would he? No, and Luca is too smart to kill her and let it lead to me.
Wade holds out a pair of handcuffs. “Come on.”
“Is that necessary?”
“I’m afraid so.”
Climbing out of bed, my sore body protests as I turn my back to him. At least I was already dressed in my grey sweatpants and long-sleeve cotton shirt.
My arms are pulled back, and the cold metal is locked around my wrists. “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you. Do you understand these rights as they have been read to you?”
“Yes.” My trembling lips relay my anxiety.
Wade’s fingers curl around my arm, and he picks up my bag to head out.
I’m searching desperately for Dr. Calderone while we step through the quiet hallway of the hospital, but I don’t spot him.
I’m an official suspect in a murder case.
***
In the interrogation room, which is dark except for a single bright, white light that’s pointed directly at me, Wade sits across from me after handing me a cup of black tea. I’m thankful that he took off the cuffs as soon as we entered this depressing, small room. My head is pounding in anxiety, my nose is aching, and I’m completely wound up because I
don’t know what to reveal.
Wade points to the mirror over my shoulder. “There’s no one behind that. We’re alone.” He brings his ugly purple mug to his lips. “Look, I know more is going on here than what we all seem to be thinking. I know Kelli was a crooked cop. And I think you knew it too. I don’t believe you had anything to do with her death, just as I don’t believe you had anything to do with Alex’s death. But she was a cop nonetheless, and therefore, this case has been given high priority. There was an anonymous caller that gave us your name, and a tiny fragment of your DNA was found under Collopy’s fingernail. This all gives you motive, Fallon. Your name keeps popping up, so I’ve been digging a little deeper into your recent past.”
I stay quiet because I’m in way over my head, and I blink back the gathering moisture. I’m clueless as to what is going on in my own life, and the tears gush out as my walls instantly break down.
Wade’s eyes round, and he stands to hand me some tissues. “Talk to me, Fallon. I’m in your corner. I’m one of the few good ones in this entire precinct, and I know how many are paid off by the Chicago Syndicate. I’m just lacking any tangible evidence. And I know you’re somehow connected to the Syndicate.”
I press my hand to my forehead as if I can hold the pieces of my shattered mind together.
Where the hell is Luca?
CHAPTER 17
Luca
I slide into Adriano’s car to visit Security Simplicity – since it’s Saturday, the place will be deserted, so we can work quietly from the office. “Doc took Fallon as a patient last night, and I talked to her right before I left the house. She’s cooperating because she doesn’t have a clue what to do herself.” I pause before I disclose, “I won’t be able to keep my distance anymore. She actually listened to my orders on the phone.”
The corner of Adriano’s lip lifts slightly. “You’re just getting a hard dick because she’s obeying you.”
I grin at him. “I’m glad she’s finally opened up to me. She tends to anchor onto her initial impression of a situation and has such a hard time forming a new one, but I have faith that we’re at a turning point.” A turning point I didn’t think would come; that’s why I left with Brenda. But after speaking with Fallon this morning, I was pleasantly surprised at how cooperative she was and how much trust she was putting in me. “Even after all these months, the need to protect her hasn’t diminished. It’s only intensified, and seeing her hurt makes me want to kill someone. After work, I’m off to the hospital.”
Shaking his head, Adriano switches lanes and maneuvers through traffic easily. “You can’t. We have to attend the Conversion Gala.”
“Gala?” I hate those events with all the pretentious wealthy people. I try to avoid them whenever possible.
“Seriously, do you ever read the e-mails our directors send us?”
I laugh. “No, I have you for that.”
“Fuck you!” Adriano throws back. “I’m not going alone.”
“Did I just completely forget?”
“Apparently, because I did inform you weeks ago. The company has run a successful conversion program for the Swiss bank where they converted historic data from one administrative system to another new system – the new system for which we built the security software. The gala is huge; our directors are giving a speech, and we need to attend because we haven’t shown our faces at a public event in a long time.”
Bringing my fist to my mouth, I cough before agreeing. “True… Fuck! I was planning to go to Fallon right after we were done. Why the hell is it called a gala anyway?”
“I don’t know. They want to be fancy?” He chuckles loudly.
“Enough about the gala. Tell me you’re close to finding Collopy.”
“We’re not, but two teams are looking for her: Damian with my soldiers and Alessandro with his soldiers. She can’t be far.”
“I expect our best soldiers to be on this until she’s found,” I demand.
“They’ve been instructed.” He checks his rearview mirror and turns the steering wheel. “By the way, how do you feel? Doc seemed pretty worried about the waterboarding incident last night.”
“I feel as normal as every other day, only my throat is a little sore. I’m used to having bruises anyway.” In our Syndicate life, we’ve had broken bones, lacerations, bruises, and even a few bullet wounds, but it’s of utter importance to hide it from the outside world. And an entrepreneur in an expensive, clean-cut suit is the most perfect, yet simplest, disguise. Our society likes to label people, put everyone in a neat box. Looks can create an entire identity; it’s what the entertainment industry is built on, and it’s what the Syndicate has adopted. “I forgot to tell you that the man holding the watering can slipped up because I noticed a pendant hanging slightly off his black collar. The pendant was a silver cross with a red stone in the middle that I also saw at Club 7 when we were in the fight club. Unfortunately, I didn’t see the man’s face. I just distinctly remember seeing the pendant hanging out of his pocket in the club. And the pendants are pretty common – I Googled it.”
Adriano shudders dramatically. “That place gave me the fucking creeps.”
I turn my head toward him. “We need to go back to that club.”
Adriano groans, not hiding his discontent in the least.
“My capture and Fallon’s attack are too coincidental, and the pendant could be a dead lead, but we need to exclude it first. It fucking irks me that when it comes to her, I’m always chasing after the facts, and now she was the victim. First, I want Collopy found, and second, I want to know who captured me. You and I will focus on finding the men who took me while the soldiers hunt for Collopy.”
***
Abandoning the file I’ve been studying on Collopy, I lean my face into my hands and decide to call Fallon, but I’m informed by the doctor that she’s asleep.
I glance over my screen at Adriano, who’s typing away hurriedly behind his laptop. “Do you know Detective Richard Wade?” Wade is one of the few cops not on our payroll; he’s clean. But he has shown too much interest in Fallon, and that worries me immensely.
“Doesn’t ring a bell,” he replies without looking up.
I cock my head sideways. “What are you doing?”
His eyes snap to mine and back down.
“Are you still searching for Camilla?” I ask.
He ceases typing and raises one brow.
“I knew it. It’s understandable that you’d want to find her. Did you?”
Bracing his neck with two hands, he answers, “She’s untraceable.”
I wonder whether Adriano has genuine, deep feelings for Camilla. “Did you ever bind Camilla into silence?” Usually, only Syndicate members are bound into silence by committing murder; therefore they can never break the code of silence and secrecy without facing murder charges. We were supposed to bind Fallon and Camilla into silence in a more lenient way, so I told Fallon she was connected to the crimes we committed in the parish, but at that moment, she was too shocked to even comprehend what I was implying.
“Did you bind Fallon into silence?” he retorts.
“No, I didn’t see the point. She thinks I did though and that she can somehow get into trouble over the shooting at the Parish of the Blessed.”
“Before I could figure out a way to do it, Cam was already missing,” he clarifies.
“Don’t let James or anyone else know that you’re still looking for her,” I warn.
“I won’t. So the building you were held at yesterday is owned by”—he moves closer to his screen—“an unpronounceable Russian name.”
Getting up, I stand beside his chair. “Let me see.” The name is unfamiliar. “Let Henry cross reference the name through his system. Did he already check the camera feed of the parking garage and the industrial area to see if the license number of the van might be on it? I do believe there’s a connection between Club 7, Collopy, and my capture last night.” The men who captured me probably had the cameras from the parki
ng garage disabled, but I want Henry to check it nonetheless.
“He’s on it as we speak,” Adriano confirms and pulls his phone out of his pocket to answer a call. “Henry,” he greets and looks at me.
Returning behind my desk, I contemplate how to get out of the gala function but come up blank because it’s imperative to show our faces at these public events once in a while.
Adriano puts his phone on speaker so that Henry can update me.
“Luca, I don’t think this was pre-meditated because the cameras weren’t disabled in the parking lot, or they’re really stupid to have forgotten.”
“They’re stupid,” Adriano remarks.
Henry continues, “It was a black Mercedes Sprinter Cargo you were taken in. License is registered to a Justin Belfort. Criminal record consists of misdemeanors and DUIs. And he’s a registered offender.”
“Anything else?” I ask.
“No, he’s a small-timer. I tracked him down quickly.”
“Text me where we can find him, Henry. Thanks.”
“Will do. Later.”
Adriano eases back in his chair as my phone alerts me of Henry’s incoming message. This guy is fast; I’m quite pleased with him.
“Get Justin Belfort to the warehouse today. We’re going to have a chat with him.”
“I’ll have two soldiers bring him in,” he answers with a playful salute.
***
Around dinnertime, I receive confirmation that my soldier has captured Justin Belfort, and Adriano and I head up north to the warehouse where Damian meets us.
Entering the enormous brown-brick space of the warehouse, we immediately turn right toward the private rooms just as Damian is exiting the third room.
“Any trouble?” I ask.
Damian shakes his head in denial. “He was found easily, and I drugged him, but he’s conscious now.”
Adriano orders Damian, “Stay at the door. Where’s the second soldier?”
“He had a money pick-up in Lake Forest.”
For Luca (Chicago Syndicate Book 2) Page 11