Code of Silence

by Heather Woodhaven

  Rodrigo moved closer, a menacing grin spreading across his face. “I think you know where it is.” He raised an eyebrow. “Something in that stack gave you a clue, didn’t it, honey?”

  The dangerous gleam in his eyes accompanied by the term of endearment sent an involuntary shiver down her spine. She took a step backward, and her back bumped against the gun safe. The metal in her back waistband pushed into her flesh enough to make her cry out. Rodrigo tilted his chin, confused at her exclamation of pain. “I don’t know. I haven’t had much time to look at the papers.”

  Luke sprang from his hiding place, a gun leveled on Rodrigo’s back. Oh no. It wasn’t time yet.

  “Drop it,” Luke yelled.

  Rodrigo spun so fast Luke had no time to react. Crack!

  The bullet pierced Luke’s left shoulder. He slammed against the back wall. His features crumpled, but he still gripped the gun in his right hand.

  Rodrigo’s fingertips grabbed the back of her neck and shoved her half in front of him as he aimed his own weapon at Gabriella’s temple. His left hand moved around her back and gripped her shoulder. “Make another move and she dies.”

  Her teeth chattered. Her bones trembled. They’d lost.

  Luke’s eyes widened, full of rage and indecision. Whatever he did, he couldn’t lower his weapon. She could accept dying, but Luke needed to get out alive. This was her fault, all her fault. Her misguided stubborn agenda hadn’t saved her aunt. She couldn’t bear it if it killed another innocent person.

  Gabriella balled her hands up in fists and tensed every muscle in her body until she regained control of her emotions. Her mother had forced her to take self-defense classes every summer from high school through college. Maybe for such a time as this.

  “Was this the kind of life my mom grew up with? The life you grew up with?” Gabriella challenged. Her voice shook, but she needed time. Time to clear her head.

  Rodrigo laughed. “I chose this life, darling. And as soon as I get what I want, it’s going to be pretty good. Now, whether you’re alive or not is up to your little boyfriend here.” He jutted his chin toward Luke as he took a slight sidestep. Only the left side of his body remained behind her. “Lower your weapon or she dies,” he said. “Then you’re next.”

  “What about my mom?” Gabriella pressed. “Did she choose it?”

  Rodrigo’s arms stiffened against her back. “Seems she did all right for herself, now doesn’t it? Not everyone gets raised like a princess, like you.” His voice shook with rage. It was a wonder he didn’t spit. He shoved the tip of the gun harder into her temple. She pulled her head away from the stinging, but Rodrigo only pressed deeper. She cried out.

  “Enough,” Luke yelled. His face paled.

  No. She couldn’t let Luke surrender. The moment he dropped the gun, Rodrigo would shoot him dead. Please, God, no.

  Luke dropped the gun. It clanged against the ground. Rodrigo loosened his hold and shifted his own gun away from Gabriella’s temple, moving it toward his new aim. Luke held his arms out, renounced.

  The mafia wouldn’t take another person she loved!

  She twisted her hips, shoving her right foot behind Rodrigo’s left. Her kneecap connected with the back of his lower thigh while her hip vaulted his center of gravity forward. At the same time, Gabriella shoved her right elbow into Rodrigo’s torso.

  He cried out, but the momentum of her move threw his torso backward, over her knee, to the ground. The gun flew out of his hand, and a bullet shot into the ceiling.

  Luke’s eyes widened and he dropped, presumably to grab his own weapon. At least she hoped it was to do that and not due to the bullet in his shoulder.

  Gabriella hopped backward before Rodrigo could grab her legs. Her right hand grabbed the gun from the back of her pants and aimed it at Rodrigo’s outstretched hand. “Don’t even go for your weapon, or I won’t hesitate to shoot you.”

  Rodrigo composed his slack jaw and narrowed his eyes. “I’m supposed to believe that?”

  Why wouldn’t he believe it, as they were standing in her mother’s shooting range? Ridiculous. Maybe Rodrigo’s attitude explained why her mother was so hard on Gabriella about doing her best, pushing herself and always exceeding expectations. Her mom had likely lived most of her life with the men in her family belittling her abilities. Gabriella reached with her left hand to the other gun stuck in the front of her waistband.

  She kept her eyes locked on Rodrigo. “Please stay down a second, Luke.” In her peripheral vision she could see the paper target to the left. She twisted her left arm and shot three rounds, then moved the second gun to aim at Rodrigo’s chest.

  His eyes widened and his arm pulled back from its current trajectory.

  “You said my mom was a wily one,” Gabriella said. “Well, she raised her daughter to be the same way. With the added bonus of making sure I was always overprepared and extra cautious.”

  Rodrigo glared at her but remained silent.

  “Luke?” she called out.

  His shadow crossed in front of her. Good. He could stand. “Get his weapon?” she asked. Luke kicked it to the far corner of the room instead of picking it up. Did that mean he was scared to use his left hand?

  “Are you okay?”

  He moved his fist—gun still in hand—to provide pressure to his left shoulder. “I’ve been better, but I think I’ll live.”

  Gabriella peeked. Three bullet holes had hit the center target. Muscle memory had worked to her advantage.

  “I noticed some rope upstairs,” she said.

  Luke nodded. “Good idea.”

  Gabriella nodded at Rodrigo. “We need to finish our little chat. Upstairs. Now.”

  The moment Rodrigo stood and headed for the door, Gabriella’s blood pressure spiked. They were about to enter the darkness, and Rodrigo was twice her size. What was the likelihood he would cooperate?

  “Stop,” she ordered. Rodrigo turned around. “Luke, can you hold him here while I get the rope?”

  His face paled slightly, but he nodded. She sprinted upstairs and grabbed the rope hanging on one of the beams. She flipped on the bathroom light and looked under the sink cabinet. An old plastic box still held a first-aid kit. For all she knew everything in it had probably passed its usefulness. She sighed. Beggars couldn’t be choosers.

  At the sound of a holler she held her gun out and jogged back downstairs. Rodrigo sat on the floor once again, holding his head. Two feet away sat a fizzing but unopened can of soda.

  Luke had a gun pointed at Rodrigo. “He tried to make a move when I bent down for another drink.”

  Gabriella’s gaze drifted to the knife sticking in the wall, a foot above the mini refrigerator. She blinked. So Luke had used the can of pop as a self-defense move. “Resourceful,” she muttered. “You’re blessed he didn’t shoot you,” she told Rodrigo.

  Luke half smiled in response. “If he came one step closer, that would’ve been next.” The red circle on the edge of his shoulder increased in circumference by the minute. It proved hard to look away. He grabbed his drink. “I can’t seem to drink enough.”

  She dropped the first-aid kit at her feet. Rodrigo needed to be neutralized before she could think straight enough to help Luke. The excessive thirst wasn’t a good sign. He had lost too much blood.

  Rodrigo caught sight of the rope in her hands. “Let’s not be hasty. We can work out a deal.”

  “Why should I even talk to you?”

  “Because we both know there’s no way the Mirabella family is going to let you and your aunt walk away from this.”

  * * *

  Luke blew out a long exhale. The adrenaline must have kept the pain at bay until now. The hard floor looked nice. If only he could lie down and give the dull ache in his shoulder and the sting in his leg a rest. His eyelids drooped, but Ga
briella needed him alert.

  Her brown eyes stared at him and heat filled his chest. She’d called him resourceful. He wasn’t about to let her down now. If she tried to tie Rodrigo up while he stood or even while he was down on the ground, like cop style, that would give Rodrigo too many opportunities to get the upper hand. “He needs to sit in that chair before we secure him.”

  He kept his left hand lax at his side. Any time he moved those fingers, the throbbing and bleeding increased. But it looked as if he’d need to risk that to tie Rodrigo up.

  Gabriella’s gaze drifted to his side. “Just talk me through it. Keep the gun pointed at Rodrigo. If he gives me any trouble, shoot him.” She pointed at Rodrigo. “After I know you aren’t going to try anything else, I’ll hear you out.”

  Rodrigo flashed a smug grin at Gabriella. Luke gritted his teeth and tightened his fingers around the gun.

  Gabriella ordered Rodrigo to stand up. She dragged the chair across the room so it sat in the center of the shooting lane and instructed Rodrigo to take a seat. Luke took a stand in front of Rodrigo, the weapon aimed at his chest. Gabriella stepped behind the chair and held up the rope. Her eyes met Luke’s briefly. He’d have to remember to thank his brothers for playing so many cops and robbers games, complete with tying each other up.

  “Make sure his palms are facing each other as you cinch them together.”

  She nodded and bent down to get to work. Rodrigo squirmed but said nothing as she tied his hands. A moment later, she stood. “Let’s get you patched up,” she whispered to Luke.

  So that was why she’d moved the chair so far away. She wanted to talk. Gabriella insisted Luke take the leather recliner. The soft padding almost put him to sleep the moment he sat. His leg finally found relief.

  “I’m afraid I need you to take the flannel shirt off.” She helped yank the sleeve off so he could keep his left arm as straight as possible. The navy shirt underneath was more moist than he realized. He closed his eyes, fighting sleep, but he knew he wouldn’t make it if he saw the blood.

  The crackle of plastic and paper meant she’d found something to help stop the blood flow. She tugged on the shirt’s collar, and he felt her fingers work. “I’m trying to clean you up a little first,” she said. “Do you think he’s right?”

  Luke cracked open one eye. She meant Rodrigo and his prediction that Benito wouldn’t let them live anyway. He wanted to soothe the worried lines between her brows but couldn’t lie to her. “It’s crossed my mind.”

  She pressed her lips together. “I’m going to apply pressure.”

  The sudden agony brought colors to his vision. Without the warning, he would’ve screamed. The pain dropped to an ache. His skin pulled against something sticky. She’d bandaged him tight. “Sorry,” she whispered. “I wanted to make sure the bleeding slowed.”

  He nodded but couldn’t speak yet.

  “I knew it was a risk but thought... I mean, Aunt Freddie has Alzheimer’s, I thought they’d leave her alone.” Her voice remained hushed. Rodrigo likely heard her voice but probably couldn’t make out her words. “And I don’t even know what to make of this whole coin issue.”

  He coughed and cleared his throat. “If there are really gold coins from the early nineteen hundreds on this property, they’d be worth millions. Coins are hard to reproduce. That’s why they hold their value.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “My dad had a coin collection. Nothing big. Started with coins he’d find on the construction site, and then he bought the state quarters.”

  She pursed her lips. “So if the rest of the mafia finds out about it, they’ll never leave us alone.” Her mouth parted as her eyes widened. “What if he has a phone? Can you check him?” Gabriella held out a hand.

  Luke sighed. So much for the short reprieve. He set down his weapon and accepted her hand. The rocking motion of the recliner helped him up with relatively little additional pain.

  Rodrigo stiffened when he saw Luke, likely nervous about retribution. The temptation to punch Rodrigo was strong, but Luke shook it off. If he truly believed the Lord was his defender, then he’d have to let go of the desire to have vengeance. Dust and sand fell on his hand as he rifled through Rodrigo’s pockets.

  Success! He found a smartphone and a set of keys but not their own keys. “You have a vehicle. Where?”

  Rodrigo frowned. “In the foothills.”

  Gabriella grabbed the phone from his good hand before he got a second look. She held up the cracked screen. “Let’s hope it still works.” She hit the power button. Luke looked over her shoulder, praying it would power up. A red bar on the top of the screen lit up. Only 10 percent battery left.

  “You don’t want to do that,” Rodrigo said. “We can work out a deal.”

  “It’s almost three o’clock,” she muttered. “We don’t have much time.” Gabriella met Luke’s gaze as she clicked the recorder application, then slipped it into her pocket as if she’d turned it off. “Explain the evidence,” she said.

  Rodrigo rolled his eyes. “The less you know the better, sweetheart. Let’s talk deal.”

  “No deal until I hear exactly what my mother risked everything for. Tell me everything.”

  Rodrigo shrugged, but he stared into her face. “Your funeral.”

  For the next ten minutes, Rodrigo rambled on about crime bosses, drug dealings and the murder of Gabriella’s grandfather.

  Gabriella blinked back tears. “His own brother suggested they put a hit on him?”

  “Claudio knew being family only went so far,” Rodrigo muttered.

  Luke couldn’t imagine. Family meant everything to him, but the crime family described it more like a cult. The moment he got out of this, he was taking a long overdue trip to Northern California to see his parents, with a stop in Oregon to visit with David and his new sister-in-law, Aria. His eyes drifted to Gabriella. He’d always hoped he could introduce her to the family as something more than a friend. And for a split second when they kissed, he’d thought it a possibility.

  Gabriella questioned Rodrigo further about the evidence spread out on the cabinet. Luke’s hands itched to get back to the ledger on top. It wasn’t related to the Mirabella family. It was part ledger, part work diary of the sand and mining business. Gabriella would be glad to know her mother seemed to run an aboveboard business—she even filed taxes for the business underneath her pseudonym of Samantha Radcliffe. But after Gabriella’s reaction at finding out he’d read the journal, maybe he’d let her discover that tidbit herself.

  Gabriella crossed her arms across her chest. “I think you’ve answered all my questions.”

  Rodrigo raised an eyebrow. “So you let me go, show me to the coins and I’ll take care of Benito. I’ll make sure your aunt and yourself get a nice little stipend from the coins and are set for life.”

  “Why would I believe you over Benito?”

  He narrowed his eyes. “I told you. Your uncle trusted me. I know about the coins. That’s why.” He shrugged. “I’ll even let you keep my weapon as a sign of good faith.”

  Gabriella pulled the phone out of her pocket and turned off the voice recording application. She sighed. “I have a better idea. I give Benito the evidence, don’t tell him about the coins and give the authorities this to take care of the whole lot of you.” She shook the phone at him.

  Rodrigo’s face turned beet red, and he burst upright, taking the chair with him. “He’ll kill you if I don’t beat him to it first!”

  Gabriella jerked backward and wrapped herself in her arms. She still shivered.

  Luke kicked Rodrigo in the stomach and he fell back, the chair landing upright but tilted back. “Next time I’m using the gun,” Luke growled.

  Rodrigo’s face contorted as he screamed at Gabriella.

  If they had any more rope, he’d tie both
of Rodrigo’s legs to the chair, but he figured they should be thankful to find any at all. He comforted himself with the fact that it’d be near impossible for Rodrigo to move fast or travel up the stairs with a chair attached to his back.

  Gabriella’s face paled.

  “Are you okay?”

  She blinked rapidly and nodded. “Before the battery dies...” She pulled up the email application and attached the voice recording to send to her own email address.

  “Good idea,” he said.

  Her hands shook as she handed him the phone. “Call your mom. Please. If she’s anything like you, then I can trust she’ll know the right person to call. I should’ve let you do that in the first place. Rodrigo is right. I’m out of my league.”

  Luke didn’t take the time to argue with her. He’d understood her reasons to wait until now, but not only was time running out, the phone’s battery was down to 3 percent. Never before had he been so thankful that his parents had kept a landline. The same phone number he’d memorized as a young man. In fact it was the only phone number he knew by heart. Every other contact was inside his smartphone and computer.

  The phone rang two times. Please don’t let it go to voice mail. Please let someone be there, Lord. It rang once more. After the fourth ring he knew it’d be diverted to the recording.

  “Hello.” His mother’s voice rang through the phone more like an exclamation than a greeting.

  “Mom, it’s Luke.”

  “Hi, sweetie. It’s good to hear your—”

  “I don’t have much time. I need you to use your network to find law enforcement you trust in the Treasure Valley. Send them to the Radcliffe Ranch.”

  Gabriella didn’t waste time while he spoke. She stacked and shoved the evidence back into the deposit bag. Luke placed a hand over the ledger as she reached for it. “This one isn’t part of the evidence.”

  She tilted her head.

  “You can find out yourself later,” he said. “Mom, we’re dealing with the Mirabella crime family. They’ve insinuated they have moles inside the police or FBI. I don’t know which.”