At exactly 10:20 P.M. Liam opened his eyes, and he and Remi were still in the same position they had been four hours earlier. He didn’t want to move and most certainly didn’t want to go, but it was too late to back out. Even if he nixed the job and Weston tossed the deal, the issue with the DNA was still there, so his time was almost up anyway, and then Remi would be totally screwed because she’d be left to fight the charges on her own. Liam knew what he had to do. He started by carefully moving her arm off of him then pulled his legs out from under hers. He then slid off the couch and gently repositioned her then covered her up with the crocheted blanket. Pressed for time, he rushed to the bathroom to grab a quick shower, and get ready. Even if admittedly nervous before any job, this one was markedly different. Therefore, his nerves were to the extreme tenfold. He had to force himself to breathe. “You can do this,” he uttered as he stuck the 9mm magazines into his jacket pocket. He then carried the gun out to the living room, where Remi had just awoken. “Hey,” she said groggily while sitting up. “What time is it?”
“10:55,” he replied, putting on his jacket. Remi instantly flipped out. “What the hell, why didn’t you wake me up?”
Liam immediately went into placation mode. “I’m sorry, you were sleeping; I didn’t want to wake you.”
Furious with him, she jumped off the couch, but as she neared him, an attack of déjà vu struck seeing him dressed all in black, holding a gun in his hand. “Wow,” she remarked. “You look frighteningly like the man I was locked inside the vault with.”
He frowned as he zipped up the jacket and stuck the 9mm into the back waistband of his pants. She was standing there frozen, in her pink fuzzy slippers still attached to her feet, not saying a word, but the look of dread was written all over her face. “Are you going to be okay?” he asked, stepping towards her. She lowered her head to avoid his eyes. “I don’t know.”
He checked his phone and the time was 11:02, so he had to get moving. He placed his hand underneath her chin and lifted it up, forcing her to look at him. “Remi, I need to do this,” he said, softly. Her blue eyes gazed into his, pleading with him. “Will you please stay?”
He kissed her tenderly on the lips then embraced her. “I guess that’s a no,” she said while sliding her hand down his back and accidentally brushing the outline of the gun. She just sighed. “I have to go,” he said reluctantly, trying not to upset her. She peeled out of his arms but once again refused to look at him. He knew he better just leave, because he was already running behind and though she was obviously putting on a good act, he prayed she could a find a way to actually deal with all of this. “Call or text me later when it’s over, I’m going to go back to my place tonight,” she said. Liam nodded, but it pained him doing so, knowing full well, the odds of him getting in touch afterward were slim to none. She glanced over at the leftover pizza and stated that she would clean up before she headed next door. Liam said she didn’t have to but she insisted. He thanked her then motored towards the door or he’d never get out of there. “Be careful,” she said, offering up a sad, pathetic smile.
As his hand reached for the doorknob, he turned his head and just grinned. “Wait,” she called out, rushing to him, where she grabbed hold of his jacket and as her voice shook with emotion, she suddenly and finally declared, “I love you.”
Completely blindsided, his blue-green eyes immediately widened, but before he could respond, she kissed him and while her lips hovered over his, she whispered, “I don’t expect you to say it back; I just wanted you to know.”
At that moment, Liam was undeniably torn. The last thing he wanted to do was give her false hope. His head was telling him to do the job and face the consequences, but his heart was telling him just to take Remi in his arms and run away with her. As their foreheads touched, Liam decided to shove the selfishness aside and put Remi’s life first. And what could be considered to be one of the hardest things he’s ever had to do, with his body tense and his voice strained, he reluctantly said, “I have to go.”
He then kissed her forehead, and reminiscent of their goodbye on New Year’s Eve, Liam allowed his lips to remain firmly against her skin for a good few seconds. However, also like that night, he was soon gone. All Remi could do was watch him disappear into the stairwell, and hope that he was going to be all right.
CHAPTER 21
At police headquarters, Weston nervously eyed the clock while finishing off his second espresso, trying to stay awake and focused. All of a sudden DeGrazerio stormed in, shouting a resounding, “FINALLY!”
Shocked to see him in the station that late along with being concerned that the agent could possibly throw a wrench in Liam’s plan. “What are you doing here?” the detective asked. DeGrazerio waved a piece of paper in the air while gloating, “We got that smug bastard.”
“The DNA?”
DeGrazerio couldn’t stop grinning, as he handed the paper to Weston. “This confirms that the DNA on the velvet bag is a 99.9% match to Warren Liam Matthews, the third.”
Weston mumbled shit under his breath. He knew it was coming; he just wished it had waited a couple more days. DeGrazerio couldn’t contain his elation. “Let’s go arrest him!”
Weston leaped from his seat and said, “That won’t be necessary.”
“Excuse me?” countered the agent. Weston motioned for him to talk privately in his office. A highly suspicious DeGrazerio wondered what the hell was going on. Weston shut the door behind them then glanced anxiously at the clock. “You know how you wanted to know my source.”
DeGrazerio nodded.
“Matthews is the source.”
The special agent’s mouth dropped open, as he was a combination of both stunned and angry. “He admitted to you that he was involved in the heist?” he asked, his face turning beet red. Weston encouraged the agent to calm down and listen before jumping to conclusions. “Matthews knew the DNA was going to match, and that his time was running out, but he also knew we needed to know the identities of the Englishman and the mastermind, and without his help, odds of us figuring that out weren’t good, so he offered up a deal.”
DeGrazerio barked. “What kind of deal?”
“Full immunity for Remi.”
“Oh come on,” he shouted. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
Weston’s expression remained stoic.
“That just proves she knew all along, and that she lied for him, and then she gets away with it,” he ranted. “Un-fucking-believable.”
“No, she didn’t know all along, she had no memory recall, remember, it wasn’t until right before the incident with Schaffer that she got it back,” said Weston. “Matthews was the one who carried her to the bank exit, he saved her life, and he saved her life again by killing Schaffer, so two times he protected her, so how did she repay him, she protected him right back, by covering for him,” he explained. The two men’s voices were loud, so loud in fact that practically the whole precinct had congregated outside Weston’s office, trying to get a better view of the action going on between the detective and the agent.
“She still aided and abetted a known fugitive, lied to our faces, and interfered in a federal investigation,” DeGrazerio reminded. “This is moot, the deal is already done,” Weston said sternly, unwilling to budge. The agent grudgingly conceded, but then shifted to Liam. “You got a full confession then?”
“Not yet, but he’s going to give one.”
“And he’s going give up those names, just like that?”
Weston shook his head. “Not exactly, in just a short couple hours, he will be giving us one of those men along with himself.”
With narrowed eyes and a look of total confusion, DeGrazerio then asked, “Just like that, Matthews is just going to turn himself in and bring one of his cohorts in with him?”
Weston sighed. “No, he’s going to rob a jewelry store.”
A sudden burst of laughter erupted from the agent, as he could no longer handle the bullshit he was hearing. “He’s what?”
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“Matthews is no fool, he’s not going rat anyone out, he’s just taking down one of the others with him.”
“And what about the third guy in the scenario, where does he fit into this equation?” asked the agent.
“I have a feeling Matthews is convinced; the cohort will be the rat.”
DeGrazerio thought long and hard then surmised, “Let me get this straight, the jewelry store robbery is just a ruse to set up the other guy, but we also get Matthews in the process.”
Weston nodded.
“I don’t appreciate this all being done behind my back, considering I’m the lead agent on this case.”
“And I’m the lead detective,” he snapped back. “Does it matter how we got here, think about it, days to months we’ve put into this case, killing ourselves, and finally we’re going to be able to close it, and arrest not only the last two members of that crew but possibly the person who set that heist into motion.”
DeGrazerio hated to admit it, but he had no choice. “You’re right, this has been a long time coming,” he said. “You want to fill me in on what’s supposed to happen.”
Weston handed him the note from Liam. As DeGrazerio read it over, he said through gritted teeth, “I hate that this entitled fucker is calling the shots.”
“But we get a resolution, and I don’t know about you, but I’m more than ready for that,” remarked Weston. The agent couldn’t argue with that. He handed the note back and said, “Guess we better get prepared to make a couple of arrests.”
In the warehouse, Liam and Charles checked their tactical gear and made sure they had everything covered. “You used to get such a rush doing these jobs,” Charles pointed out while witnessing Liam’s somber attitude. “Yeah, well, maybe I get my rush other ways these days,” countered Liam. The two men had enough weapons between them, but for Liam, he was hoping not to have to use them. Though there was always that chance that something could go very wrong, as long as the timing was right, it shouldn’t come down to that. Inside the nervousness grew by the minute, but on the outside, Liam managed to appear unaffected. Charles was none the wiser. The man had no idea what was about to transpire. As Liam stuck a medium-sized glasscutter into a duffel bag, Charles suggested, “When this is done, why don’t we head to Europe, score a couple of real big jobs.”
Liam didn’t respond. So, Charles added. “Bring Remi along, could be fun.”
“Let’s just get this over with,” he said, not wanting to play Charles’ game. While he continued packing up the bag, Liam asked where Denton was. “He’s at his place, I’ll meet up with him sometime after we’re done and deliver the goods,” replied Charles. Liam glanced at the time. Five minutes, he thought, that’s all he had left in the way of freedom. As Charles gathered up everything, Liam scrolled through his phone’s photo gallery, which housed the selfies from the other night. He gazed at the one of he and Remi, concentrating on her image, especially the deep blueness of her eyes he thought to himself, please forgive me.
He then slipped the phone into his jacket pocket, and soon the two men were headed out towards Market Street. Originally the plan had been to rent a vehicle, but Denton wanted nothing to be traceable, so the men were forced to trek to the location on foot. Liam knew the protocol and had to keep the job looking legit, so he kept his mouth shut about it. The night air was freezing, but the fact that they were somewhat bundled up along with lugging the excess baggage helped keep him warm. It also helped that his heart was beating at a much faster rate, whether it was adrenaline, guilt or possibly both, he was definitely not the same heartless soul he was when he entered the Bank of Philadelphia on Columbus Day. The closer they got to the jewelry store, the more he thought how proud Remi would be that he had lost his edge for stealing and being a criminal.
Liam looked at his watch a couple of times, praying that Weston was going to follow through with the plan and deal. Soon a colorful neon sign that read: Market Street Jewelers came into view, and Liam’s reality did as well. No turning back he thought. The two cased the area to make sure no one was around the store or in the vicinity. Once the coast was clear, they went to the side of the store, in an alleyway where they could set the bags down. Liam removed the glasscutter while Charles grabbed an empty bag. “Let’s do this,” he said as he scurried around to a back window. They again looked to make sure no one was watching them then on the count of three, began cutting the glass. Though no alarm sounded, they were well aware they triggered a silent one per the security information they had acquired. As Liam continued to cut, he repeated, “Come on, come on.”
Charles told him to be patient, but what he didn’t know, was that Liam wasn’t referring to the glass, he was pleading for the police to get there. Thirty-seconds later, Liam had cut a hole large enough for the men to slip cleanly inside, to which they did. “Okay, we’ve got less than a minute to get the diamonds and whatever else we want to grab and then get the hell out of here,” snapped Charles. Liam nodded, as he watched Charles begin smashing the glass cases. Astoundingly, Liam wanted no parts of that. Five months ago, he would have been right in the mix and looting whatever he could get his hands on, but now, his desire had severely diminished. While Charles continued his frenzied state of pulling gems out, Liam pretended to look for cash in the register all the while counting the minutes for the police to show up. Fortunately, he soon spotted flashing red and blue lights through the front window. Charles saw them too and immediately looked at Liam. He then reached for his gun, and Liam instantly thought this wasn’t going to end well. He heard an officer yell, “The building is surrounded, drop your weapons, and come out with your hands up.”
Charles held up his gun, aimed it at the front window and said, “Fuck that.”
Liam just held his breath, but before Charles could fire the weapon, two officers had entered the store from the rear and had aimed their pistols at both men. “Put the gun down,” the one demanded, directing it at Charles, who grudgingly obliged. Weston and DeGrazerio entered the store, and after scanning the mess, the detective ordered officers to slap the handcuffs on both Liam and Charles. Soon they were taken outside and shoved into the backseat of two separate squad cars. As Weston drove the car Liam was in, DeGrazerio, who was sitting on the passenger side, turned around and snarked, “You think you’re so fucking smart, don’t you?”
Liam didn’t respond, as the agent warned, “You might have worked out a deal in regards to Catalano, but when it comes to you, all bets are off.”
Liam continued to ignore him while staring out the window. A part of him was glad the plan had worked. However, he knew this was going to destroy Remi and his grandmother.
Remi had barely slept a wink all night, as she continuously woke up, checking her phone to see if Liam had messaged her. He hadn’t, and by dawn when he still hadn’t, she sensed something awful had happened. At 6:00 A.M. she hopped out of bed and immediately ran next door to his apartment. She didn’t even bother knocking and used her keys to let herself in. She called out his name a few times, hoping for a response. It didn’t take long for her to realize he wasn’t there nor had he been back since he left last night. “Don’t panic,” she said aloud, trying to keep herself calm. “Remi,” said Melanie, who had heard her run through the apartment and followed her. “What’s going on?”
“Liam’s not here,” she said. A confused Melanie looked around and asked, “Did you two have a fight or something?”
Remi shook her head no but offered no explanation why she appeared somewhat disoriented.
Melanie suggested they go back to their place, get some coffee and talk about it. Remi reluctantly agreed to leave but texted Liam on the way back.
Please let me know you’re okay – Remi
Melanie brewed two cups of coffee while Remi sat on the couch, staring at her phone, willing it to ring or beep with a message. “You want to tell me why you are so worried that he’s not home?” asked Melanie while joining Remi on the couch. She cautiously sipped the hot mug t
hen went on to explain the entire story. Shockingly, Melanie remained quiet the entire time, without interrupting once. When she finished, she told her there was one more thing. “Right before Liam left,” she said. “I told him that I loved him.”
Melanie immediately hugged her. “I’m so happy for you.”
As they embraced, Remi tensed up. Melanie pulled back and with one eyebrow raised she questioned, “What was his response?”
Remi shrugged.
“He didn’t reciprocate,” she surmised. Remi shook her head as her eyes moistened with tears. “I honestly didn’t expect him to though.”
Melanie hugged her again and said, “Well, you know he cares about you, even him doing that thing last night was to keep that Charles guy from threatening you, and taking you to Miami and spending time with you, that all has to mean something, right?”
Remi smiled and thanked her for pointing all of that out. Melanie realized the time, “Shit, I have to get ready for work, but are you going to be okay?”
UNMASKED: Sequel to Behind the Mask Page 38