by Ali Vali
“Don’t worry about me, and I’ll be around for a while since you’ve become so popular,” Finley said softly, as if not to wake anyone.
“They can sleep through a hurricane, so don’t worry,” she said, glad when the doctor finished the stitches she needed. “And don’t worry about having to babysit us. After this we’ll be heading home. I can take a hint.”
Finley didn’t say anything, but Abigail knew it wouldn’t be that simple.
“There you go, Dr. Eaton. I’ll get your meds brought down from the pharmacy to save you that hassle, and then you’re free to go,” the doctor said as he finished her bandages.
“We’ll talk as soon as you’re done,” Finley said, as if uncomfortable doing so with the doctor in the room. “How are you?”
“It’s a first for me, and being shot wasn’t on my bucket list, so I’ll have to add it and write a side note to avoid it at all costs in the future,” she said, making Finley laugh. “The drugs make it bearable, but it’s going to be a bitch when they wear off.”
“I’ll keep that in mind since I’ve avoided bullets up to now.”
“Lucky you,” she said as she closed her eyes.
Finley stayed quiet and watched Abigail’s breathing even out in sleep. They’d been rushed in at her insistence, and Abigail had barely flinched as the young doctor fixed her up. She shifted the boy in her arms and fished her phone out of her pocket to call Roberta for an update. Strangely there was no answer, but she wasn’t worried. Some of the police building limited cell services in certain spots, so she’d have to wait.
“Could you send a few people to help me get Dr. Eaton back to her hotel?” she asked Russell when he answered. “I think we should move her to play it safe.”
“Did something else come up on the daily special?”
“I’m not sure what you’re talking about, but nothing yet. The two shootings are too close together to be coincidence, so I want to be sure. If she witnessed something, retaliation isn’t out of the norm had she gone to the police, but she didn’t, so coming after her doesn’t fit the case unless these guys want to be sure too.” The little boy shifted and kicked the younger girl in the head, but she did in fact sleep through it.
“Where do you want to order from?”
“You’ll find plenty of places close to the Marquis, so pick one. Once she’s safe in a hotel room I’ll get back to work. If this follows her home she might not be so lucky next time.”
“I’ll call you back with what I want,” Russell said, and he seemed to have his mouth pressed close to the phone, as if he wasn’t alone.
“Do you want me to take care of it?” she asked, wondering if she was actually the one asleep and was trapped in some bizarre dream.
“Yeah, go ahead and pick that up, and I’ll pay you back when you get here. Make mine on sourdough.”
She was confused, but this wasn’t the time to clear it up. “You got it, and I can make the run myself, so forget my request.” The day had veered off into the strange, and it still wasn’t over. She watched Abigail sleep until the doctor came back with a small bag and a sheet of instructions. He woke Abigail to have her sign her discharge papers and to offer her his personal phone number. Finley laughed again softly when Abigail rolled her eyes when the guy turned to leave.
“You think you can make it out of here under your own steam?” Finley asked when they were alone again. “I need to get you and the children to a new location until you’re ready to travel, and hopefully we can talk once you’re safe.”
“Do you have any idea what today was all about?” Abigail asked as she sat up, clutching her arm. “And we haven’t had a chance to introduce ourselves, so hopefully you really are who you say you are.”
“I’m Detective Finley Abbott, and I think I’ve got an idea what today was about. We need to have that talk later on, though.” She placed her hand gently on the older girl’s back and shook her awake. “I don’t want to do that here, so if you’re ready, we can go.”
The girls stuck to Abigail, and Finley carried the little boy out to her car, where the older girl took over for her. Finley took off once everyone was strapped in, and she circled the streets for over thirty minutes to make sure they weren’t being followed. There was no sense moving them if she led danger right back to them. After slogging on this case for almost the four years she’d worked for Russell, she was ready for a break.
“Haven’t we passed this spot three times already?” Abigail asked softly, probably not wanting to scare her children more than they already were. “Did you fail the taxi exam and fall on police work as a second choice?”
“I want to make sure nothing else happens to you, so if you don’t mind humoring me, we won’t be much longer.” She took a turn into the park and glanced back more than she looked forward. She didn’t see anything familiar, so she headed to the center point of the day’s action, the last place she figured these assholes would think to look.
“Hey, Finley,” one of the security managers said when she drove to the lower level of the Plaza. Whenever someone who didn’t want to be seen arrived at the fabled hotel, they always found someone like him down here to meet them.
“Ready for us?”
“Got you fixed up, and we took care of what you asked for. You should know there was a small fire at the Marquis on the floor you mentioned, and in the chaos we saw a few guys watching to see who headed for the stairs.”
“Thanks, man, and I’ll let you know how long we’ll be by tomorrow.”
“Stay however long you need. Boss said for you there’s no limit.”
Abigail followed, and Finley noticed that her upper lip was beaded with sweat, probably from pain. The room was a suite, and a row of bags was waiting in the main room. At any other time Finley would’ve enjoyed exploring the space, but this wasn’t the night for it.
“A cop with lots of friends,” Abigail said as Rick closed the doors. “Maybe my bad luck is over.”
“Hopefully so, but until we know for sure, how about you let me help you?”
“Don’t you have bad guys to catch instead of babysitting us?”
“If you don’t want me to stay, I’ll only go as far as the hall.”
“You should give my mother lessons, trying to guilt me like that,” Abigail said and seemed to hold her arm tighter. “Let’s all get comfortable then.”
“Thanks for not subjecting me to a long night out there, even if it’s nicely decorated,” she said as she put the little boy down in the crib that’d been brought up. “You’ve got a beautiful family, and I want to keep it that way, so please believe you can trust me.”
“Right now I’ve got few choices but to do just that.”
Chapter Four
“You understand, right?” Captain Brian Baylord said to Russell as they met at police headquarters with a young representative from the district attorney’s office. The young woman with Brian, who hadn’t introduced herself, sat quietly and didn’t seem to have anything to add.
“If you’re asking me to put the brakes on a joint investigation we’ve been working for this long—that’s not going to happen,” Russell said as he spread his hands out and shook his head. “Is the commissioner aware of your request?”
“I spoke to him and he understands our concerns,” Brian said, pointing between himself and the woman. “Some things that are at times uncovered in these cases are understood incorrectly, and it causes problems to friends of the department. You have to admit that’s the truth in things like this.”
“In my experience,” Russell said, standing up and ready to walk, “the facts lead us where they lead us for a reason. If that’s a problem for anyone, then I’m sure someone like you two can smooth things over. For reference, should I get a call from the DA’s office, your name is?” he asked, staring at the woman.
“I’m sure you won’t need that,” the woman said as she stood and calmly walked out. It was smart, since it’d take him a while with a staff as large as the d
istrict attorney’s office to identify her, if need be.
Russell and Brian watched her go, and Brian wasn’t getting to his feet. “Anything else?”
“No, I think we understand each other,” Brian said with a smile.
“I think so,” Russell said, not believing he’d wasted this much time with this ass, since it was dark when he got outside. When Finley had called, he’d used the ruse of fumbling with his phone to photograph both of the public employees who’d demanded an audience.
He wanted to talk to Finley but would wait until he heard from her and had a better understanding of what all this crap meant. “Hey,” he said to Peter Stanley, Finley’s partner in his unit, over the phone after texting Peter the woman’s picture. When Finley had gone undercover, Peter had volunteered to assist another field office with some technical problems they were experiencing. “Can you find someone for me and keep it quiet?”
“Sure. You got a starting place?”
Peter was almost as good as Finley when the pressure was on. “Check your messages. She works for the DA, supposedly, and he gave his name as Captain Brian Baylord, with an office in police headquarters.”
“Give me an hour and I’ll give you what I’ve got.”
When he scanned the area again from the spot where he’d stopped, he noticed the woman he’d met with staring at him with her hands buried in the pockets of her coat. “How about I call you, and, Peter, make sure you don’t share this with anyone. I’m serious about that part.”
“Don’t worry—our little secret.”
He ended the call and looked the woman straight in the eye. The woman glanced away first, but with a laugh, so he didn’t think it was a test of wills. “We’re not the only ones with secrets.”
*
“Who are you?” the older girl asked Finley when Abigail excused herself to change out of her bloody clothes. All three children were awake now and surprisingly subdued.
“My name’s Finley Abbott and I’m a police officer. See,” she said as she held up the gold shield she’d been issued. “I’m here to make sure you’re all okay until you get home. What’s your name?”
“I’m Sadie, she’s Victoria, and that’s Liam,” Sadie said, her hesitancy coming from fear, Finley guessed. “Why did that man hurt our mom?”
“I’m not sure, but we’ll figure it out. I promise.”
Abigail came out in jeans and a T-shirt, combing her hair back. It was the first time Finley had realized how attractive she was and how much all three of her children resembled her. They all seemed to share Abigail’s reddish-blond hair, bluish clear eyes, and fair skin.
“Come here, my beauties,” Abigail said as she sat on the sofa and opened her uninjured arm to them, prompting all three children to run to her. “Everyone okay?”
The question started another jag of crying, so Finley took the opportunity to make a few calls. Forty minutes later a hotel staffer was at the door with bags from McDonald’s, which seemed to take everyone’s mind off the day’s events. Finley set up a picnic on the floor and waited until they were done, knowing she wouldn’t be able to speak to Abigail until the kids were asleep.
That took a few more hours, and she waited for what seemed to be a familiar nightly ritual between Abigail and the kids. When Abigail came out again, she was still dressed the same but had removed her shoes. Those bare feet brought back memories of her own childhood and her mom’s assurances as she headed to the adventure of her dreamscape, as she put it.
“How’s the arm?” she asked when Abigail sat on the sofa across from her and closed her eyes. It was strange that Abigail wasn’t a little more freaked out with her presence in her room.
“It hurts like a bitch, actually, and I’m pissed about it, so now that we don’t have an audience, you’re going to tell me why this happened.” Abigail’s bluntness made more sense and was easier for Finley to relate to.
“I’ve got some theories, but can we get through some questions first to see which one might be right?”
Abigail lifted her feet off the ground and folded her legs under her. “Let’s see, Detective. Which one of us got shot and needs answers?” Abigail rubbed her face and grunted. She sounded like a woman whose bad day had just crashed down on her.
“Okay, this morning you and the children walked into a total anomaly, and that started a domino effect.”
Abigail opened her eyes and stared at her like she’d just said she was there from Mars and was about to suck her brains out with a small straw.
“First of all, anomaly sucks as a description,” Abigail said and put her feet back down a little too fast to be from anything but fear. “And how did you know what happened this morning?” Abigail put her hands up and shook her head. “Wait, I can see you’d know what happened, but how do you know I was there?”
“Dr. Eaton, I’m not going to hurt you, so please calm down.”
“Do you know what pisses me off more than anything?”
“Someone telling you to calm down?” she said and bit her bottom lip trying not to laugh. “Or is it the word ‘anomaly’ for the massacre that happened this morning?”
“We’ve only known each other a few hours, and already you’re a faster learner than my late partner. She never could quite understand that first one, but I don’t want to give you the impression I’m a total bitch by speaking like that about someone I loved.”
“I get the impression you’re a woman who knows what she wants and realizes you have to speak up to get it.” She opened one of the soft drinks the kids had left and took a big swig. “How about you ask the questions and somewhere in there we both find what we’re looking for?”
“Why me?” Abigail asked.
It was the only question Finley had no answer for.
*
“Did you get that other location open for tonight?” Linda Bender asked the mountain of a man standing in front of her desk. Boris St. John scared her, but she tried never to show her nervousness around him or any of the other guys so as to not lose any of the hard-earned respect she’d fought for from her first day.
“We opened three more,” Boris said as he crushed a handful of pistachios in his fist.
“We’ve got that much inventory?” She glanced down at her manifest.
“Boss brought in double in anticipation of what happened. He didn’t tell you?” He threw the nuts into his mouth and laughed. “I thought you were the teacher’s pet.”
“I knew he was upping the numbers, but usually there’s a break-in period for the women.”
“That’s not always the case.” He placed his hand on the ledgers she concerned herself with more than anyone else in the business did. “Where do you think your bonuses come from, baby?”
“Call me baby again and I’ll shoot you in the ass,” she said as she knocked Boris’s hand off the book. “And what the hell are you talking about?”
Their boss, Yury, spoke up. “These women fight their fate only so long, and plenty of people pay for the privilege of breaking them.” Yury had come in while she and Boris stared at each other. “Once the fight’s beaten out of them, it’s off to the trailers, where the more unimaginative fuckers line up to take care of that itch. Lazy, if you ask me.”
Linda now fought off the urge to shiver at that kind of fate. Every so often she had a case of conscience, and only a look at her finances helped it pass. She cursed her late father for deserting the family too soon and leaving her no choice but to accept her Uncle Yury’s offer of a job. In their family there was no such thing as charity, even if the death of her father, his brother, had been totally his fault. At least that had always been her opinion, and her education on the family business had cured her of any grief she’d wasted on her father. He’d not only condoned this type of behavior, but he’d also reveled in it.
They traded people like animals and always preyed on the most vulnerable and weak. She was supposed to learn the lesson to never be that fucking exposed. Only the strong enjoyed life and powe
r, so she was lucky to be the eldest of Victor Antakov, and even luckier to be the niece of Yury Antakov.
“Do you disapprove, Linda,” Yury asked as he sat in the seat she’d vacated and ran his fingers down the crease of his pants to the knee. As always, he was impeccably dressed in a suit it’d take the women under their control months to purchase, if they had the decency to pay them even minimum wage. They weren’t that decent.
“My job isn’t to approve, Uncle Yury. It’s only to make sure things run smoothly and that our secrets stay within the family.” She heard Boris chuckle and came close to shooting him, the consequences be damned, since Yury depended on Boris to keep his operation running smoothly. “Isn’t that what you always say?”
“Boris,” Yury said, and in an instant the big man was gone. “I sense something’s bothering you.”
“Don’t worry about me. I’m sure you’ve got plenty on your mind.” She wanted out of this oppressive building that smelled of moldy paper, cigarettes, and dust.
It was the first piece of real estate her grandfather had purchased in his new homeland, and the old warehouse held every one of their sins on all that yellowing paper. To her it was nuts, but the men in her family believed in the ledger. There nothing could be hidden or lost, like in a computer, and anyone who came with thoughts of taking them away added to the lore and dust of the old place when they were eliminated to keep the books safe.
“Spit it out already and cut the shit.”
“There’s nothing to discuss,” she said in the same bored tone she always tried to use at work, since men tried their best to read something into the smallest things.
“Is this about Boris and what you were talking about before?” Yury asked, slapping his hands together.