“It goes without saying, don’t speak to anyone until this is over,” Travis added.
“Thank you, Robert, for including us. I appreciate knowing in advance,” Rosa said.
“I need to get going,” Mack said as he stood. It seemed the meeting was over.
Taylor walked him to the lift, I watched him hug her and her body seemed to sag a little. I also saw him run his thumb under her eye. I had to look away for fear of breaking down myself. She stood for a while after the lift door closed, before straightening her back and heading into the boardroom. She was a brave woman. She had just sent her husband off to find a man scared enough to do something stupid. I closed my eyes at the thought.
The rest of the guys started to stand, to make their way out until all that was left was Robert, Travis, Evelyn and I. I hadn’t said a word the whole time yet my head was swimming with questions.
“Brooke, you okay?” I heard and turned towards Robert. “You haven’t said a word.”
I sat for a minute. “Give me the worst case scenario,” I said.
“I guess we get investigated by the FBI. I really don’t believe anything we found can incriminate us personally, but I imagine someone will want to ask questions. The stuff he has, it’s more about Joe than Vassago and he can only have got that from Joey.”
“Your brother would have kept notes about your dad? Is that likely?” I asked Evelyn.
“He was pissed at the time so, yes. I think he would have,” she answered.
“You need to remember, Joey wasn’t straight himself and he’s not around to testify against us.” Travis said.
“That’s the point though. If the FBI want to investigate, they’re going to want to speak to Joey first, can’t find him, the next best person is Gabby. She’s the one that took the photos on Rogers’ computer.” I said quietly.
“There’s no reason to connect Gabby to any of this. Rogers doesn’t mention her by name just that ‘she’ gave him the photos,” Travis said.
“Please, I don’t want to know anymore. Let me just go about my day as usual until I have to face it, okay?”
Robert dealing with Joey I could deal with, Joey had tried to kill me. Robert dealing with the FBI was another matter. He hadn’t shown me what the files contained and right at that moment, I wasn’t sure I wanted to know. I was concerned for Evelyn too, it was her family name about to be dragged through the mud. It was the activities of her father that could come crashing down on all our heads. I was an accomplice, I was complicit in the murder of another man and I was scared.
***
We drove home in silence, Robert glanced at me periodically. I would give him a weak smile but my hands were clammy and I felt sick to my stomach. Deep down, as much as I didn’t want to confront it, I knew what the outcome of the meetings that had been arranged was going to be. Two men were likely to die at the hands of my family. They had gathered, not just so Robert could be up front about what was happening but also, every person had knowledge and there was protection in that. Each had the back of the other.
The family was to close rank, to do whatever it took to protect the individuals and the entity itself. Vassago, Robert, the guys, us wives, each one had a role to play that was vital to the survival of us all. I recalled some of the words spoken and I took a little comfort that ‘we’ was used, not ‘you’. Rosa had said, “Can we be charged,” yet of all the wives, I was the one who knew the most, had been involved the most. I had stood up to the police when Robert had been hurt for one reason, I was running on adrenalin. I was desperate for the survival of my man. I only hoped that, should I have to sit in front of the FBI, I could conjure up that same strength.
“Brooke, are you hungry?” Evelyn said. We had pulled up outside the house without me noticing.
“No, I’m fine, thank you.”
She nodded before taking Travis’s arm and walking off to their apartments. Robert unlocked the front door and we climbed the stairs. I sat at the breakfast bar and Robert filled two glasses of wine from an opened bottle left on the side. He slid one in front of me. I sipped at it.
“Talk to me, Brooke. What’s going through your mind, right now?”
“I’m afraid, of losing you, of being questioned. I might have killed a man, Robert. If the FBI starts investigating that’s going to come up.”
“You didn’t kill anyone, Travis did,” he said.
“How can you know that? I fired that gun more times than he did.”
“The autopsy report, Brooke. The fatal shot was one to the heart fired from Travis’s gun. If you want the facts, the bullets from your gun mostly missed. You hit him in the shoulder and the leg, he might have died from blood loss but you didn’t kill him.”
“The autopsy said it couldn’t be determined.”
“The autopsy report given to the police said that, not the real one.”
I looked at him. “What did you do?” I asked quietly.
“Me? Nothing. There are many people that want to protect you and Travis, not just me.”
Was that why Gianfranco needed to speak to me? Who was he really protecting, me, Travis, Robert or Lucia? And what of Lucia’s family? Should I feel comfort that many families pulled together or worried because that meant more people knew, more tongues could wag? My body sagged with something close to relief. But then I felt the guilt. Travis had deliberately shot that man even after I had incapacitated him so I wouldn’t be implicated.
“Let me get you a sandwich, you didn’t eat your dinner. I don’t want you to drink that on an empty stomach,” Robert said.
I nodded as he made his way round the breakfast bar. A minute or so later, I smiled at the mess, a simple sandwich had caused what looked like a mild tornado to hit. The tension I had been feeling was started to tell and my shoulders ached. I rolled my head, trying to stretch the muscles in my neck. I nibbled at my sandwich, not hungry but I needed something to soak up the wine. Sandwich eaten, Robert took my hand and led me downstairs.
He took my head in his hands and his forehead rested against mine. I clung to the front of his shirt feeling the heat that always radiated from his body.
“You are never going to lose me, okay?” he whispered.
I needed him. I wanted his naked body close to mine, to feel his heart beat and his breath on my skin. I wanted to hear him call my name as he came. We fucked, it was feverish, carnal. He kissed, licked and bit every part of my body. I lost count of the amount of times I came, my body just a quivering mass of sparks and static and burning desire. We fell asleep with our naked bodies wrapped around each other.
Chapter Eight
My body ached when I woke, it was a pleasant ache reminding me of the previous night’s activities and for a precious few seconds I forgot. I forgot what had come before it. The knowledge that Rogers was still out there, that the family could be investigated came crashing down on me. I turned on my side, Robert was awake and looking back at me.
“You okay?” he asked. He had asked that question many times in the past twenty-four hours.
I nodded and smiled. “Sure, you?”
“I’m fine, just worried about you, that’s all.”
“Well, I ache this morning so you did a great job of taking my mind off things for a while,” I said with a chuckle.
“Corrupting you has become my all time favourite sport,” he replied, climbing out of the bed.
He took a quick shower while I lingered. When I heard him turn the shower off, I climbed out of bed. Twenty minutes later we were sitting at the breakfast bar drinking tea, coffee for him and waiting on Travis to start the car. Richard would be back and I was eager to know if he had completed all his meetings and the outcome. As I climbed in the car my phone beeped, a text had arrived.
“Rallying the troops, lunch at the club, 1pm?”
It was from Taylor and I wondered if ‘rallying the troops’ meant she needed some comforting. I showed it to Robert who smiled.
“She’s a tough woman, that one,�
� he said.
“Trav, are you okay? You seem a bit quiet,” I asked.
He looked at me in the rear view mirror. “Fine, Brooke.” Clearly he wasn’t.
Robert gave a slight shake to his head, his way of telling me to not ask anymore and I settled back in my seat for the rest of the journey. As we parted in the foyer and Travis made his way over to the lifts, Robert bent his face to my ear.
“He called Caroline again last night, she’s still angry. Told him she doesn’t want to see him any more, it’s over.”
“I can understand that, I told him it might be too late anyway. Anything I should or shouldn’t be telling the girls at lunch?”
“Use your judgement, just don’t spook Rosa.”
His lips brushed my ear and he headed off to the lifts. I passed Richard as I walked to my desk.
“Brooke, do you have a minute?” he asked. I followed him back to his office.
“Robert told me last night, about our possible troubles. I wanted to know how you were doing.”
“Okay thanks. Obviously I’m worried like the rest of the guys, I guess. Taylor has called a meeting,” I said with a chuckle.
“I’m meeting with Robert now but if you want to take a few days off, you don’t have to ask, you know that don’t you?”
“I just want to carry on as normal for now. I might head straight home after lunch though, I’m up to date on my work, if that’s okay?”
“Sure, I’ll speak to you later. Better go see what the boss wants,” he said with a smile.
Pete and I used Richard’s office to go through how their meetings had gone. He told me that he hoped all was okay, obviously the abrupt ending to their trip had him thinking. I played ignorant. At half twelve I met Gary in the foyer and we headed off for my lunch.
***
The car pulled up outside the club just behind an identical one. I noticed, as I climbed out, Taylor was standing by her car looking at her phone. The creases on her brow had me thinking that she was worried, she looked up and the worried face was replaced with the mask of a forced smile.
“Hey, how are you?” I asked as we hugged.
“Okay, I think,” she replied.
“Have you heard from Mack?”
“No, I doubt I will until, maybe, tonight.”
We didn’t say anymore, fear of being overheard by drivers halted the conversation. As we walked towards the club door, Taylor placed a hand on my arm.
“Isn’t that Caroline?” she asked. I followed her gaze.
Across the street I saw Caroline walk to a building. She seemed to stop and look at a discrete sign by the door before entering.
“Yes, it is,” I said.
“Do you know what that building is?” Taylor asked. I shook my head, trying to read the sign from a distance.
“That’s a Planned Parenthood Clinic,” she said.
“Maybe she’s getting a scan then.”
“Brooke, you go there for an abortion.”
“Shit,” I replied, wide eyed. “What do we do?”
“Nothing we can do. We can’t go barging in over there, let’s get in.”
We entered the club and climbed the sweeping oak staircase to the bar upstairs. Patricia and Susie were there and Patricia was filling Susie in on the meeting the previous evening. Rosa was yet to arrive and I hoped that she would, that she hadn’t got spooked again and run.
“We saw Caroline going in that place, over the road,” I said as we sat.
Patricia looked at Taylor.
“The Planned Parenthood Clinic,” Taylor confirmed.
“Oh, didn’t you meet with her? Did she mention she was going to terminate?” Patricia asked me.
“I met with her on Monday and I guess she kind of hinted at it. Travis did call her but she doesn’t want to speak to him. Should we let Travis know?” I asked.
“I don’t know, I mean, he has made it clear he doesn’t want the baby or her. What was he calling her for?” Susie asked me.
“I don’t know, Robert told me that he had called, she had told him to get lost.”
“Maybe they discussed this. Maybe she’s going in there for some other reason,” Patricia said.
“I get the impression, and I may be wrong, but he wanted to try to make amends with her. I’m not saying that he wanted the baby but he was trying to talk to her about it.”
“Maybe you should text Robert,” Susie offered.
“No, I know what I’ll do.”
I took my phone from my bag and sent a text.
“Hi Caroline, I’m in town, lunch?”
Her reply came shortly after. “Sorry, at mom’s, another time?”
“She lied, she has to be going there for an abortion, right? I mean, is there any other reason you would visit that place?” I asked.
The girls shook their heads. “It might just be a consultation. I think you have to do that first,” Susie said.
Henry, the bar manager, brought over our wine already chilled and left some menus on the table.
“Who thinks I should text Travis, let him know?” I asked.
Was it my place to interfere? I didn’t know what to do for the best. I believed Travis had a right to know, even if he was in agreement. He could at least support her, if she wanted that of course. But did I have the right to take the decision to tell Travis away from Caroline? I was damned if I did and damned if I didn’t, someone was going to be upset with me either way. However, my loyalty was to Travis, he was family. I typed a text and read it to the girls before I pressed send.
“Trav, I saw Caroline going into a Planned Parenthood Clinic opposite the club. Might just be a consultation but thought you would want to know. Brooke.”
I took a large gulp of my wine, wondering if I had made a big mistake. I had forwarded a copy of the text to Robert after I’d sent it and left my phone on the table, checking it constantly for a reply.
“You’ve done all you can, Brooke. It’s up to them now,” Patricia said. “Now, Taylor. Have you heard from Mack?”
The conversation shifted to our other problem. We had been at the club for nearly a half hour with no sign of Rosa. We wouldn’t call, it wasn’t compulsory to meet, perhaps she had something else on. Perhaps she wanted as far away from it all as possible and I couldn’t blame her for that. My phone vibrated on the table, I had received a text from Robert.
“That’s all you can do, I’ll speak to him.”
He was right, I had done all I could, it was up to Travis now. I listened to the girls, each telling what they had learnt from their husband’s about our predicament with Rogers and was pleased to see that they weren’t too concerned. I guessed they had been through this before. No one mentioned Fat Sam or what was likely to happen to Rogers once Tony caught up with him. Deniability. What we didn’t know, we couldn’t be held accountable for later. I ordered the usual club sandwich and enjoyed the solidarity of being in this family. It was with delight that I heard a voice.
“Sorry, I got caught up.” Rosa had arrived. “What did I miss?”
I filled her in on the Caroline situation. “If she was looking at the sign, it might be that was her first visit. She would have to go for a consultation first and a medical, Brooke. Travis might still have time.”
I liked being around the girls, they kept me grounded and from thinking too much. They obviously cared for me, making sure to ask if I was okay, if I was coping. We chatted back and forth for a couple of hours. None of us knew what those files that Robert had handed out contained, so all we could do was support each other until it blew over.
***
On the journey home I continually checked my phone, waiting to see if Travis responded. I reminded myself that I had to take a step back. Caroline was her own woman and I doubted she would thank me for informing Travis as it was. We pulled up on the drive as Evelyn was unloading shopping. I dropped my bag in the hallway and helped. Together we unpacked the bags as I told her about seeing Caroline and that I had texted Travis.
She agreed with me, that it was the right thing to do and we both hoped Travis would have at least called her.
I was taking a shower when Robert arrived home. I’d felt him as he came into the bedroom. As I stepped out of the cubicle he was standing there, holding out a towel for me. I reached to take it just as he swiped it away, holding it behind his back and leaving me standing naked and dripping wet.
I chuckled. “Can I have the towel, please?”
“Kiss first,” he said.
I stepped forward, raising my arms around his neck and my wet body pressed against his, soaking his shirt. He placed one arm around my waist, pulling me closer. His lips brushed against mine, across my jaw and down my neck. I could feel his erection straining against his trousers and I placed one hand over the bulge, gently rubbing him.
“Mmm, that feels good,” he mumbled.
I undid his belt, the button and zip and slid my hand inside his shorts, freeing him. My hand slid up and down his cock, massaging him. His lips found mine, our tongues tangled as his kiss deepened the more aroused he became. He pulled his mouth away and holding my hips, he sunk to his knees. His tongue trailed a path from my navel to my clitoris. I parted my legs, ready for him as my fingers twisted in his hair. He licked and sucked, his tongue probed inside me and my legs started to shake. I tried to pull his head up, if I came, I wasn’t sure my legs would hold me.
“I’ve got you, I need this,” he said.
My stomach knotted, my chest flushed with heat and my heart raced as my legs buckled with an orgasm. He held my hips, gently sliding me down as he rested back on his heels and I straddled his lap. As he brushed my hair from my face, I could feel the tip of his cock at my entrance and I slowly lowered. It felt so good to have him inside me and with his hands still on my hips, I rode him. His face was at my throat, kissing down my chest, biting, leaving his mark and claiming me. I rode him hard, I listened to his breathing as it became rapid and his fingers dug into my skin, he was close and with a growl, he came.
Fallen Angel, Part III Page 13