“Don …” Grand said, finally coming forward. “This has to stop—my children, my family, your daughter, Jamie … They are in danger.”
“I know,” said Bailino, his expression softening slightly. “I feel responsible.”
“Is that a confession?” Wilcox asked.
The softness vanished, and a look of impatience replaced it. “For the last time … I had no idea what ToniAnne was up to, but, frankly, I should have.”
Wilcox leaned forward on the table until he and Bailino were inches apart. “But you do know where she is,” he said.
“Release Jamie Carter, talk to the press, and then we’ll chat,” Bailino said, leaning back in his chair as much as the chains would let him, as if he were calling an end to a meeting he had arranged. “I’ll tell you everything you need to know to apprehend her. You have my word. Once that’s done, I can get down to the business of spending the rest of my life behind bars.”
CHAPTER 33
ToniAnne videotaped her granddaughter feeding bread to a dirty white duck that had lost most of its feathers. It was just the kind of duck she expected to see in the middle of New Jersey, a stone’s throw from the black smog of one of the burgeoning industrial sectors. For all she knew, they were being bombarded with radiation at that very moment.
“Grandma, look, it’s taking it from my fingers,” Gina said with a giggle.
“Not too much bread now,” she said, zooming in. “We don’t want the duck to get too fat.”
“Then no man-duck will want her, right?” the little girl said.
“That’s right.”
The park lights blinked on as the sun continued its descent behind a spattering of trees, and ToniAnne clicked off the camera and placed it on her lap. She couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate the release of O’Connell’s video than by spending it with her granddaughter, but the truth was she was exhausted. Gina was a ball of relentless energy. She looked at her watch. Lorenzo was late. Again. She was about to call him when she spotted a lone figure coming toward them from the path leading to the parking lot.
“Well, it’s about time,” she said when Lorenzo reached them.
“Goddamn traffic on the Turnpike,” he said, flopping onto the bench beside her.
“Oh, please. When is there ever not traffic on the Turnpike? You stopped at Walmart, didn’t you?”
Lorenzo ignored the question and called to Gina. “Hey, Gigi!”
“Hi, ’Zo,” Gina said, skipping over. “We were waiting for you.”
“Did you have fun with Grandma today?” he asked.
Gina nodded, her face lined with dirt and red streaks from the icicle pop ToniAnne had bought her earlier. “Yep, we went for a walk. We collected leaves. Here, look,” she said, showing him the folded and crinkled colored leaves in her pocket. “And ate and walked again and went on the monkey bars and had an ice and fed the ducks …”
“All right, kid,” Lorenzo said, already appearing bored. “Not too many of those treats, though, because then you’ll have an ass like grandma.” He tried to pinch ToniAnne’s butt, but she swatted his hand away.
“Ready to go, Gina?” ToniAnne asked. She held up the little girl’s jacket, and Gina slipped her arms through the sleeves.
“Going? Already?” Lorenzo said. “I just got here. I’ve been sitting in the car all fucking day, following Bailino on his errands—Brooklyn, Delaware. Do you know how long it takes to get to Delaware? It’s a fucking long drive.”
“Language, please,” ToniAnne said, covering Gina’s ears. “Sweetie, go play on the swings for a bit longer, okay?” she said, zipping up the little girl’s sweatshirt, and Gina ran toward the playground.
“Guy drives three hours to hand a woman a duffel bag,” Lorenzo said with a shake of his head. “Couldn’t he do it in Jersey?”
“Yeah, and it got her arrested,” ToniAnne said with a smile. She had been concerned when Donny had left that morning—he didn’t seem like himself. When Lorenzo called to say he had seen Donny hand that Jamie woman the duffel bag with the IED parts, ToniAnne thought that all that fresh Western air had messed with Donny’s head, but she should have known better. Over the last few hours, as Gina walked, played, ate, and frolicked with dirty ducks, ToniAnne had been happily reading all the news on her cell phone about that slut getting arrested and getting what she deserved. ToniAnne should have never doubted him. “Genius,” ToniAnne said, putting the tips of her fingers to her lips and kissing them. “Where’s Donny now?”
“How the fuck should I know? I came home after I called you.”
Gina came running back, her arms spiraling around like a windmill. “Grandma, there are bugs by the swings.”
“That’s okay, Lorenzo’s rested enough. We’re leaving.”
“Back into the car …” Lorenzo said with a huff, getting up from the bench. “Why don’t I just live in the car, since I’m in there all the time anyway?”
“Good idea,” ToniAnne said, wrapping the video camera strap around her shoulder and taking Gina’s hand. “This way, I won’t have to pick up your dirty underwear from the floor. You can just toss it out the window as you drive on the Expressway.” Gina giggled.
They hurried along the path to the parking lot, since, as Gina had rightfully reported, the mosquitoes, gnats, or whatever they were, were out in full force, and ToniAnne strapped Gina into the backseat of her daughter’s SUV and got into the passenger’s side, placing the camera in the well of the seat.
“You really should get a new one of those things,” Lorenzo said, motioning to the video camera. “They sell ones now that you don’t have to carry on your shoulder, you know. Why don’t you just use your phone?”
“This one was my father’s, and it works fine enough,” she said.
“Suit yourself, old-timer.” He put on his seat belt. “Do you mind stopping at a McDonald’s? I’m starving.”
“Didn’t you get enough to eat at Walmart?” she asked with a laugh.
Lorenzo rolled his eyes.
“Is there a McDonald’s around here, Geen?” ToniAnne asked, turning around to look at her granddaughter. Although Anna had been living in Jersey for nearly ten years, ToniAnne had never really bothered to familiarize herself with the area. All the jug handles confused her.
“Ummm …” Gina tapped her index finger against her bottom lip. “I’m not sure.”
“Let me check my phone,” Lorenzo said. “I know there’s a McDonald’s around here somewhere …” He swiped his phone and poked around.
ToniAnne turned on the radio and, after a few minutes of watching Lorenzo stare at his screen, said, “What’s taking so damn long? Are you having a seizure?”
Lorenzo looked up at her, his tired eyes wide.
“What’s the matter?” she asked.
He turned the phone in her direction, and a photo of Donny appeared. “What the fuck?” she said, grabbing the phone and raising the volume. Lorenzo tilted it so he could watch with her.
“ … notorious Don Bailino—rumored to have been alive and in hiding for more than three years—was taken into custody by the Federal Bureau of Investigation today after surrendering in front of the White House.”
“What the fuck is he doing?” Lorenzo asked.
“Shhhh …”
“I can’t see!” Gina called from the backseat.
“Sources close to the FBI tell us that Bailino turned himself in in order to have Jamie Carter, who had been arrested earlier this afternoon, released. Carter—whom you may remember was abducted by Don Bailino more than five years ago and gave birth to his child—was arrested while visiting her brother, Edward Carter, in Virginia,” the news site displayed a photo of the house and street, “by retired FBI Special Agent Paul Wilcox, who is working on the investigation into the attempted bombings, reporting to the president. However, Jamie Carter was released not long ago, and the FBI issued the following statement: The investigation into the attempted assassination of the president of the United States
is a massive undertaking involving the work of hundreds of agents. Conducting an investigation of this size—having to chase down every lead and thoroughly examine every detail—can sometimes lead down erroneous paths. The Federal Bureau of Investigation was given incorrect and misleading information with regard to Ms. Jamie Carter, and, after a thorough interview, it was determined that Ms. Carter is in no way a person of interest in this investigation, nor is she a suspect. To be clear, she has committed no crime. The FBI apologizes for any distress or embarrassment this incident may have caused. We now have a live interview with a Mr. Robert Scott, who …”
ToniAnne pushed the phone away and sat back in the passenger seat.
“Wow …” Lorenzo said. “The guy went to jail for her … I told you your ass was too big.”
ToniAnne hardly heard him, the stock image of Donny that the media had a habit of using remaining in her mind’s eye like a camera flash. It was one of her favorites. She had been with him at the Knights of Columbus the night the Feds had taken it fifteen years before. She had been with him when they had gotten home that night too.
“Holy shit, Ton, look …” Lorenzo tilted the phone toward her again. This time, an image of her house on Staten Island flashed on the screen showing FBI agents stationed outside the gate. Lorenzo read from the screen: “Sources say ToniAnne Cataldi is wanted as a person of interest for a crime they are investigating. Whether that crime is related to the attempted—” ToniAnne grabbed the phone and tossed it out the window.
“What the fuck?” Lorenzo said. “I just got that one.”
“I’ll buy you a new one,” she said, digging into her purse and throwing out her phone as well. The events of the past twenty-four hours were circling her mind like puzzle pieces—Donny not telling her where he had been for more than three years, the duffel bag of explosive parts landing in the hands of Jamie Carter and then the Feds, the way he reacted when she brought up the kid, his kid, the way he recoiled from her touch the night before, the way Lorenzo said Donny reached for Jamie’s shoulder in Delaware, him kneeling on the ground in front of the White House, turning himself in to save … her. How could she have been such a fool?
“Grandma, are we going to McDonald’s?” Gina asked.
“Not tonight, honey. I’m going to have to drop you off at your friend Makenna’s house, and Mommy will pick you up from there later, okay?” ToniAnne couldn’t risk going anywhere near Anna’s house. If the Feds weren’t there by now, they would be soon. She put her hand on Lorenzo’s shoulder. “You up for another ride?” she said, and Lorenzo placed his hand on top of hers.
“With you?” he said, giving her hand a squeeze. “Anytime. What do you have in mind?”
“Looks like we’re heading south,” ToniAnne said, buckling up her seat belt. “The Feds want to play cat and mouse? Well, two can play at that game.”
CHAPTER 34
As soon as the taxi turned onto the block around the corner from Edward’s house, Edward was already waving it down in the middle of the street, standing with a man Jamie didn’t recognize. Her brother handed a fistful of bills to the driver through the open car window before opening Jamie’s door. “You okay?” he asked, helping her out.
Jamie nodded. “Is Faith all right?”
“Yes, she’s fine,” he said as the cab pulled away. “James, this is Chester, our neighbor.” Chester and Jamie shook hands. “Let’s hurry and get you inside before the press sees us.”
He took Jamie’s hand and guided her into a handsome Colonial-style house that was presumably Chester’s. The three of them walked through the front door and then in and around three large rooms in various paint colors until they reached a back door, which was open. Once outside, Edward shook Chester’s hand.
“I owe you one, man,” Edward said.
“Anytime,” Chester said. “Nice meeting you,” he said to Jamie and disappeared inside the home.
As Edward and Jamie crossed the backyard, Jamie wondered if Chester would have thought it was so nice to meet her had the FBI not made a big to-do and apologized for her arrest. The organization had released a convincing statement, which she had learned about only once her phone, purse, and pistol had been returned to her and she watched the news on the way to Edward’s house; at the detention facility, the agents who had been assigned to her had simply uncuffed her and said, “Go,” without any fanfare. She hadn’t even seen Wilcox again.
When they reached the four-foot chain-link fence that separated Edward’s and Chester’s properties, Edward got down on one knee. “C’mon, I’ll give you a boost,” he said.
“That’s okay. I can do it.” Jamie dug the toe of her shoe into one of the metal holes and climbed her way up. As soon as her feet landed on the grass on the other side, Faith was running across the yard. “Momma! Momma!” she called as Trish stood behind the screen door, watching her. When the little girl reached them, Trish went inside the house.
“Faithy!” Jamie said, picking her up and squeezing her. “How can you possibly look like you’ve grown in only a couple of hours?”
“Where did you go?” the little girl asked as Edward landed beside them.
“I had to take care of a few things, but it’s all over now. I’m back.”
The three of them walked toward the house, Faith holding both Edward’s and Jamie’s hands, and Jamie noticed a hole in the side fence just behind a trio of shrubs.
“Is that new? What happened?” she asked, worried that perhaps the press had damaged the property.
“Don’t ask,” Edward said.
“Lucky didn’t mean it,” Faith said, looking up at Jamie with her big brown eyes. “She was chasing a bunny and tried to squeeze through. She’s sorry.”
“Did she get hurt?” Jamie asked Edward.
“She’s fine, although I nearly broke a rib trying to get her back.”
A fire was roaring in the metal firepit, and a box of graham crackers, an open bag of marshmallows, and various utensils lay on the table near it.
“We’re making s’mores!” Faith said, letting go of their hands and reaching for one of the roasting sticks for the marshmallows.
“Not yet,” Edward said, gently taking the stick from Faith’s hands. “We have to wait for Sara and Peter.”
“Sara! Peter!” Faith called, charging up the deck stairs.
“I’m trying to keep things as normal as possible,” Edward said, going up the stairs behind her.
“I appreciate that,” Jamie said, walking up next to him as Edward opened the screen door, and they went inside.
Before Jamie made it past the threshold, Lucky was on her hind legs, pressing her big paws onto Jamie’s shoulders and licking her face, nearly knocking her over.
“She missed you too,” Faith said with a smile before running farther into the house.
Trish and Sara were sitting on the sofa in the living room, and Peter was standing near them, carrying Faith, who had jumped onto his back, piggyback-style.
“Aunt Jamie, did you see all the news cameras outside?” Sara asked.
“No, I must have missed it,” Jamie said, giving Trish a wink.
“We did too,” Peter said sadly. “Mom wouldn’t let us look out the window.”
“I’m so mean.” Trish stood up and mussed Peter’s hair. “It looks like most of them went home, finally. You okay?” she asked Jamie.
“Trish, why don’t you take the kids outside and get started on the s’mores,” Edward said.
“Yay!” Faith cheered, climbing down from Peter’s back, but then her face turned serious. “What about Lucky?” she asked. “Can she come too?” Again, at the mention of her name, Lucky sat up and stared at Faith and then Edward.
“I think Lucky is going to stay in for a while,” he said.
“Awww!” Faith grabbed Lucky by the neck and hugged her. “I’ll save you a s’more, Lucky, I promise,” she said as Trish escorted the children to the backyard. Lucky followed behind them anyway.
“I’ll p
ay for the fence,” Jamie said, putting her purse and cell phone down on the coffee table. Her pistol holder was digging into her calf, and she had the urge to take it off, but Edward didn’t like seeing it around the house, so she left it on.
“It’s fine. Please, one problem at a time.” He peeked out the window. “Trish is right. They’re just about all gone, although it’s hard to see in the dark. What’s going on, James? I had been on the phone with my firm trying to get someone to get you out—I know it’s environmental law, but they’ve got lots of connections. But no sooner had I found someone than you called to say you were coming home. Why? Is it true what they’re saying? Bailino surrendered to get you out?”
Jamie shrugged. “I don’t know.” She sat down on the sofa, suddenly feeling tired. It had been a long day.
Edward sat beside her. “They used you to get to him, right? Great … And now they’re looking for someone named ToniAnne Cataldi. Cataldi … I assume she’s one of them?”
Jamie nodded. “A daughter, niece. Bailino told me she was behind the whole thing.”
“Why?”
“Revenge, I guess.”
They sat there quietly until Edward put his hand on her shoulder. “James, I don’t think you’re going to like me saying this … but maybe you should think about changing jobs.”
“Changing—?”
“Hear me out. I know being the press secretary of the president of the United States is amazing and—”
“I won’t do that,” she said. “I won’t quit.”
“I think President Grand will understand. It looks like everyone is jumping ship.”
“All the more reason,” Jamie said. “I will see this out and be with the president as long as he needs me.”
“James,” he said in a voice that was probably meant to be comforting but came out condescending, “that’s commendable, but do you really want to risk putting your daughter in more danger? For your career?”
“It has nothing to do with my career,” Jamie said. “It has to do with my friend, Phillip Grand.”
Edward took in a deep breath and leaned back on the sofa. She could tell he didn’t agree, and that was fine. He didn’t have to.
Baby Carter (Baby Grand Trilogy, Book 3) Page 23