by S I Taylor
“I placed my career first. I mapped out my life. But now the thrill of everything is gone,” she said.
“I think finding a hobby should be good for you. Maybe hanging out with new people, making friends, and enjoying yourself outside of work and outside your routine will help.”
“Maybe.” She shrugged. “I think I need a vacation,” she chuckled.
“Yeah, I agree.”
She elbowed him at his side playfully.
“I’m over here drowning you in my worries when you have a place to be.”
“No worries, Michelle. I can always make time for a friend.”
“Thank you, Carter. I don’t think we’ve ever had a real talk until now.”
“You mean since every time we speak is usually about work or being a referee to you and Bill.”
“You’re hilarious, but you won’t have to referee Bill and I anymore.”
“Yeah, that’s only because of his fear of flying, otherwise I would’ve had to charge you both for my services.”
They laughed.
“I’m glad we had this talk. I think I know what I should do and what I want.”
“Yeah, what’s that?”
“I think I’ll keep that tidbit of information to myself for now,” she said mischievously.
“Say no more. Understood.” He held his hands up in defeat.
“I’m starving and I know you need to get going.”
McKinley looked at the time, walked toward his desk, and he gathered his things.
They both left his office. His adrenaline was pumping, his palms were sweaty, but his heart was hopeful. He was anxious and excited at the same time. He had his briefcase with everything he had on Monroe from the few times he’d been able to catch a lead. He was ready.
Chapter 53
Barbara couldn’t believe that she was back at the restaurant where she first met Junior and his companions. Flashbacks of the night tried to creep into her mind but she buried them deep in her memories. The psychologist she visited twice a week was helping her cope with the assault, the torture, and her new life.
Dr. Winthrop wanted to prescribe her medication to sleep without having nightmares or waking up panting with the feeling that her heart would leap from her chest. But she declined taking any drugs and opted for the cognitive behavioral therapy to treat her post-traumatic stress. She thought that PTSD was a disorder only military soldiers got after fighting a war, but Dr. Winthrop assured her that many traumatic events can cause PTSD.
She was determined not to become a victim and although one aspect of her new life hadn’t changed, she had taken drastic measures to change the Barbara from a few months ago. She was a toxic person to herself even though at the time, she wanted to believe otherwise.
However, she needed to do one last thing before she could truly be free from the old Barbara and move her life forward in a positive direction.
“You’re that girl from last time with Trivaldi Junior?” Crusher said.
She was grateful that they remembered her as that worked to her advantage. She didn’t have to explain who she was to them as they knew the reason for her presence.
Gianni and Tony both sat on either side of her and the same sketchy characters sat in the large rectangular table. She hadn’t noticed anything in particular about their features or about them until now. She was drugged then but she was lucid now. She sat across Crusher, who had a shaved head covered in tattoos and a habit of cracking his knuckles every five minutes. Lucas James with his mouth full of gold teeth sat next to Crusher and Dorian Devita, who had long blond hair and two piercings on his right eyebrow.
As Crusher spoke the echoing noises of cracking knuckles slightly distracted Barbara but she managed to answer.
“Yeah, now I’m the new person you deal with,” Barbara said.
“So Trivaldi Senior has girls dealing for him now, huh,” Dorian Devita said. The statement, which sounded like it should’ve been a question, was something that the old Barbara would’ve reacted to with rage but instead she remained calm and smirked.
“Funny you would say that as I was told that your sister handles your affairs uptown,” Barbara said.
Tony and Gianni both chuckled.
“She only handles the books,” Dorian Devita said.
“Of course, just as I only handle the books for Trivaldi.”
She watched Dorian Devita clench his jaw but remain speechless. He knew that if he said anything displeasing that this deal was going to be over for him and he’d be stuck with merchandise that he couldn’t get rid of.
“So, are we done with the interrogations so we can get our business started, gentlemen?”
They all nodded and Lucas James gestured for the waitress to bring food and drinks. Barbara declined but the others didn’t. She was not going to make a mistake tonight.
Crusher snapped his fingers and two large suitcases were brought to him and he placed them on the table.
She knew what would happen next and what she had to do. She sat there for a few minutes looking at the suitcase which she knew had the drugs she had to sample. How could she go through with it? She refused medications for her PTSD and now she had to taste drugs that could potentially get her addicted. She saw what they did to the people who became addicts. How they destroyed their health, families, and their sanity.
Moisture prickled through her pores, creating beads of sweat that ran down the length of her back, seeping through her white blouse. The room was cold but it felt like the heat index had spiked in the room.
She pushed herself up from the cushioned red-armed chair. She wiped her hands on her dark blue pinstriped pants and dragged the first suitcase closer to her. A million things were going through her head primarily how her body was going to react to a new monster trying to take control of her.
The distinctive smell of the drug hadn’t hit her nose yet but she knew the moment she opened the suitcase it would permeate her nostrils.
Her hands shook as it hovered over the shiny metal locking mechanism with the four rows of revolving numbers all locked on zero. Her thumbs scrolled the first row until it stopped on eight, then the next row until it stopped on three, the next six, and the last two.
With the loud unlatching of the locking mechanism her chest rose and her heart leaped. The room became silent, which amplified her senses. The throbbing of her heart ran the length of her fingers as beating drums.
She snapped the suitcase open and there lay four large wrapped packages of white powder waiting for her. She moved to the next suitcase and her thumbs scrolled the rows of number eight, three, six, two and the locking mechanism popped opened and now this time her heart was sure to jump from her chest. Inside lay hundreds of individually wrapped blue pills just as she had seen before.
The box of pills she stole from Trivaldi was locked away in a safe place. She wanted to dispose of it but she didn’t know how the drug would react if she dumped a massive amount of it down the toilet. Besides, she was gathering evidence against Trivaldi to get her out of this verbal work contract and out of her life so she kept it in a safe place.
Seconds seemed to be moving slower than normal or maybe it was her nervousness or probably an anxiety attack was trying to take over. She breathed slow and deep. She concentrated on the people in her life and how if she would go on with this she would finally be happy and free.
Her hand snaked to the left of the suitcase as she took the handle of the intricately designed gold and silver butter knife. She dug it into the powder, making a small horizontal slit. She scooped up a small portion of the substance which was probably a few milligrams on the butter knife.
She licked her index finger, feeling the ridges of her finger against her taste buds. She felt as if she was watching someone else in that instant like an out-of-body experience. Her free hand moved slowly toward the substance on the butter knife. Her mind disconnected from her body as her index finger slid across the butter knife picking up the white powder as each g
rain adhered to her wet finger. She smeared it against her gums and instantly she felt it in her bloodstream.
Although it was merely a sample, she felt it. She couldn’t explain the way it made her feel because it was surreal to her. Barbara felt pleasure as her dopamine levels peaked and more mentally alert than she could have remembered. The euphoria effect it had on her would not subside. She didn’t like that she could not get to a normalcy state. This thing affected her and she did not like it.
She smiled and quickly closed the suitcases, giving an approving nod to Tony and Gianni.
“They’re fine,” she said through gritted teeth holding on to the table as if it were to walk away.
They came closer to her and also took a taste of the drug. They were seasoned in this sort of drug she couldn’t tell if they were in the same state as she was but they also nodded their approval.
Lucas James and Dorian Devita motioned for their own suitcases to be brought to the table.
“I have the good stuff. Trivaldi knows that,” Crusher said triumphantly.
Barbara slumped on her chair. “Tony and Gianni, continue with the sample.” They looked at her and although that was against their agreement, she couldn’t bear to taste any more of the drug. She would have to take her chances with Trivaldi.
Moments later Tony and Gianni appeared with two suitcases each and a tall figure trailed behind them.
He came from around Tony and Gianni.
Dammit. She forgot how loyal they were to Trivaldi. They must have called him when they were fetching the suitcases with the payment from the car, she thought. A hint of fear would’ve flashed to her face but at this point she felt invincible, thanks to the drugs.
“Thought I would see this shipment through since my associate here failed to taste all the samples and this new drug shipment is bigger than the last,” Trivaldi said.
Barbara stood and time seemed to have frozen when he spoke and everyone in attendance watched as he strolled inside toward the suitcases filled with the drugs. He opened each one and moved from the first suitcase, taking the butter knife in his manicured hands and sampling a line of each bag.
Although her euphoria hadn’t dwindled yet she couldn’t move. She was in a trance, feeling her body mold with the drug.
“Come, let’s celebrate,” Trivaldi said. “I’ll deal with you later.” He turned to Barbara, who was sitting in the chair with a blank stare.
He reached inside the suitcase with the pills and handed one to everyone. He opened his first and the others followed. “These are going to make me an even richer man. The last shipment sold fast and the demand for these blue pills is increasing.”
“That’s good, Trivaldi, which means we have more business in the future,” Crusher said.
Noises and the chatter of them talking faded in the background. She didn’t want to do anything. She felt wrong, she felt like she had betrayed herself to consume something that she vowed never to do.
Clinking noises against the tile floor erupted. A bright flash sparked, blinding them, and then a mist of smoke filled the air. Barbara thought her imagination was going wild but as she tried to make out what was happening, the others in the room scrambled, coughing, and she too found herself in the same state of uncontrollable coughing.
“Don’t move, this is the FCCA. Everyone with their hands where I could see them,” a muffled female voice said.
Instantly the restaurant was swarmed with FCCA agents all dressed in black tactical attire with ballistic vests pointing long black weapons she assumed were rifles at everyone. She couldn’t make out what they were as she was still coughing uncontrollably, and her eyes seemed to want to pop out of their sockets.
They were all in a drug-induced coma-like state, unable to react quick enough to retaliate. The clicking of metallic handcuffs tightened around their wrists.
“I didn’t do anything. Do you know who I am? Let me go this instant,” Trivaldi demanded between coughs.
The agents said nothing and escorted them all outside, seating Trivaldi, Gianni, and Tony in one transport van, Crusher, Lucas James, and Dorian Devita in a second transport van. The few workers in the restaurant were also transported in several vans, while Barbara sat alone in a van, her coughing subsiding but her vision still blurry.
“Wolf, thank you for your cooperation with the FCCA,” Agent Martinez said.
“We wouldn’t have had enough evidence against Trivaldi if you hadn’t agreed to help us,” Chief Agent Buchanan said. “And with the drugs you gave us for safe keeping we can compare them to the ones found today.”
The day Chief Agent Buchanan came to her hospital room he made her a proposition, one that was too good to pass up. He promised that with her help she would be able to move to anywhere she wanted and live a normal life. Any involvement she had would be kept confidential and hidden. No one outside of the FCCA would know about her involvement.
She wasn’t sure how she was going to be able to get all the evidence until Trivaldi appeared in her hospital room and everything just fell into place. She was able to gather months of transactions between Trivaldi and his drug deals, his political ties which helped close Senator Richard Dempsey’s murder case in San Diego, and several deaths of innocent people. It had made sense to her why her hospital room wasn’t monitored by an agent or the deputies. That had allowed Trivaldi to find her. Although, they were nearby, just in case, Chief Buchanan knew Nicholas Trivaldi was going to come to her room.
She was glad that her new life would finally be free from her previous one. That Barbara was buried.
“Now would you please remove these cuffs?” Barbara said. Shoving her hands in front of Buchanan.
Chapter 54
Barbara was wearing a pastel pink dress with high heels. Even though she had vowed to never wear dresses again she had left her past behind in Huntersville. She was angry at the world and at herself for not understanding life and her parents’ relationship but now, it was different. She traded her rugged leather jacket, jeans, and sneakers for something fitting for the night. She straightened her curly hair and let it fall past her shoulders.
“Do you think he’ll like me?” McKinley asked.
She walked toward him in the bedroom and kissed him softly on the lips. His woodsy aftershave lingered in her nose and she loved to revel in his scent.
She pulled away from him, her face inches from his, she whispered, “My dad already loves you.”
“It’s going to be our first official meeting in the months that we’ve been dating.”
“I know. I talk about you all the time with him. Besides, our work schedule was pretty hectic and demanding for a proper introduction.”
“You’re right.” He kissed her, his lips lingering on hers as if she were to run away.
She stepped back.
“I need to finish getting ready. Lori should be at my dad’s house now picking him up.”
“All right.”
His hands moved to her waist as he pressed closer against her body, giving her one last kiss before she sauntered away to the mirror on the vanity.
She hadn’t imagined how her body would crave his when he left her in the hospital that night. She missed his voice, his presence, the way he made her feel special without particularly wanting something in return.
He was the first person she went to see when she left the hospital. She was nervous and didn’t know what to say when she knocked on his hotel room door. She wasn’t expecting her feelings to be all over the place but somehow it felt cohesively right when he opened the door.
She couldn’t put into words what she wanted to say to him. When she saw him her body instinctively went to his. She pressed her body against his as they both were enveloped in a tight embrace.
Nothing could compare to the feeling she had. She was finally ready to give in to love and to being loved. She wanted to rely on someone other than herself. She wanted to come home to someone instead of an empty mattress in a basement or an empty apartm
ent. She was ready for him.
That night they fell asleep together wrapped in each other’s arms tangled between the sheets. She felt his fingers run through her scars, inspecting them as if they were a roadmap guiding him to questions that he may be thinking to ask but preferred to just explore. She would answer all his questions, she thought, but not tonight. Tonight she just wanted to be held and to feel his warmth against her body. Since he had an early flight to San Diego the next morning, she didn’t want to waste it away talking. They would have all the time in the world to talk about their future, just not tonight.
She moved to Miami at the first opportunity she had when Trivaldi employed her to be closer to McKinley when he received the promotion to the FCCA Miami division.
McKinley had been worried that he wouldn’t be able to see her with Chief Agent Buchanan’s plan in place but she assured him that she could handle it on her own. Which didn’t sit too well with him after what happened with Nixon. However, if he wanted to end the Trivaldi drug empire she was the ideal person with access to do it.
She had convinced Lori and Reagan to move to Miami and even got Lori a job at Baptist Hospital—the hospital Barbara worked at as a nurse. She had a few semester to finish and was going to school while she worked for Trivaldi and managed to get her nursing degree.
Barbara couldn’t go back to Huntersville; that city brought her painful memories and she couldn’t bear to have her best friend hundreds of miles away when they had rekindled their friendship. It didn’t take too much convincing as Lori also needed Barbara for moral support.
McKinley stood a few feet from the entrance. He extended his arm for her and held her black clutch in the other. She briskly walked toward him. “Are you ready, Wolf?” McKinley said, bringing Barbara’s mind back to the present.