There was no time to waste. It was hard to say how long Santiago would be gone. He seemed preoccupied and distracted, like something big was about to go down…maybe something big like having Hamilton killed. That something big had already happened. No, Santiago couldn’t be involved, Angela reasoned with herself. A bad feeling began to burn in the pit of her stomach, erupting like hot lava from an agitated volcano, its inferno oozing up to her chest. Then fear washed over her, drowning what little bit of sanity she had left.
There was no way for Santiago to know that she knew Hamilton was dead. Hell, she didn’t know if Santiago knew. She was making assumptions because that was all she could do at the moment, but her moment of sanity took over. She was going to walk off of this compound and go to North Carolina.
Angelica pulled the cell phone from between the cushions and punched in Ari’s number. He answered on the first ring, and before he could say anything, Angelica started in. “Hey, Ari, this is Angelica. Were you able to get the car?”
“Yes, a friend of mine has secured one. How do you propose we get it to you?”
“We don’t have much time.”
“I gathered.”
It was crystal clear to Angelica. She was going to get her purse and walk out. Only two bodyguards had been seen with Santiago at any given time and both had left with him. There was the guy sitting at the booth at the entrance to the house, but she would distract him and then get in the car that Ari sent for her.
“I have an idea that I think will work,” Angelica said before sharing it with Ari.
“Too dangerous,” Ari said. “You’ve got to come up with a better plan than that. You risk the car being seen, and I don’t want my friend to take any bigger risks than he’s already taking. I don’t know why I’m doing this for you anyway.”
“You care about me,” Angelica said very matter-of-factly.
“Don’t fool yourself. I would never be in love with a fool.”
“Who said anything about being in love?”
“We’re wasting time,” Ari said. “We need to move or forget it.”
“You love me, Ari,” Angelica said in a seductive tone. “I heard it in your voice. If it makes you feel any better, I feel something, too. I can’t say it’s love, but it sure feels like something close to it.”
“What’s your plan?” Ari interrupted. “We need a better plan.”
“I hid a piece of mail in my bag that has Santiago’s address on it. Let me get it so I can give you the address.”
Angelica went to her room, got her bag and retrieved the envelope. She gasped when she looked at the names above the address.
“What is it?” Ari asked with concern.
“This piece of mail is addressed to Santiago’s aunt and uncle. Maybe they’re fronting for him. He is still a fugitive.”
“A fugitive? What kind of mess are you involved in?”
“Later, Ari. I know for sure I’ve got to get out of this house.”
She gave Ari the address to the house. There was no other recourse than to go with her first idea, if she intended to leave right away. Angelica would wait until she received a call from Ari’s friend, who would drive the car. He would park as close to Santiago’s residence as he dared. He would call her at ten-minute intervals.
“You have thirty minutes to get to the car, unless I hear from you,” Ari said. “After that, consider our task done.”
“Thanks, Ari. I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t have to. I knew I could depend on you.”
“This is the last time.” He hesitated. “Good-bye and good luck.”
Fear gripped Angelica again and sent beads of sweat dancing on her forehead until the sweat broke into a waterfall and leapt from her face onto the floor. So Uncle Jorge and Aunt Maria weren’t so innocent. They didn’t have to want for anything because their nephew was greasing their palms while they kept him hidden from the feds. His time would be soon.
It dawned on Angelica that she had not been careful. What if there were cameras in the room recording her every movement? If there had been, Santiago would have known about the phone calls, and he and his goons would have returned to the house by now. She casually walked to her room and got a few belongings that she could easily tuck away in her bag and that wouldn’t cause questions to arise.
35
The housing market in the U.S. was taking a plunge, but neither Margo nor the real estate company she worked for felt the effects. In fact, sales couldn’t have been better. An estimated twenty thousand military troops and their families were expected to converge on the Fayetteville area in the next two years, and real estate deals were for the asking.
Margo sat in her office, preparing showings for two of her clients. She had sold over two million dollars in property this month and made a nice piece of change doing it. She picked up the photos of the homes she would show that afternoon and thought about how happy the families would be if and when they decided upon any one of the dozen properties she had chosen for them to look at.
She glanced at the picture of her family that sat on a corner of her desk. Those had been good times—times when she knew what a happy home meant. Over the past few weeks, she was trying to make it a home again. She and Jefferson were back to sleeping together, but her body wouldn’t respond to what her brain chose to ignore.
Glancing at her watch, Margo shoveled the photos and specs together and put them in a file folder. Thankful for the privacy screen that surrounded her office space, she grabbed her purse, took out a tube of lipstick, and painted her lips. Before she had time to bring her lips together to make sure they were covered, she heard voices and then a face soon peeped into her cubicle.
She froze upon seeing him. Avoiding Malik had been easy, except on Sundays while at church. They would turn away from each other, if one happened to look in the other’s direction, especially since Jefferson was attending every week.
Eyebrows arched, Malik approached and stared at Margo as if she was the goddess Venus, the one responsible for love, beauty, and sexuality, not to mention marriage, procreation, and domestic bliss. Still holding the lipstick, Margo sighed and looked away.
“You’re beautiful, Margo,” Malik said, his stare searing her flesh and going through the garments she wore.
“You shouldn’t have come here, Malik,” she whispered. “Jefferson may show up anytime, and right now I’ve got to see a client.”
“When will you be finished?” Malik asked, not willing to let go so easily.
“I don’t know. It could take a couple of hours or more. And I’ve got another client to see after that.”
“Why don’t you cancel…reschedule your late appointment? I need to see you, Margo. It’s been weeks since we’ve talked, since we…”
Margo put her fingers to Malik’s lips.
“You’ve got to forget it, Malik. I’m trying to make a life with my husband. I promised that I would stand by him.”
“Did he stand by you, Margo? Think about all the time you lost while he was sitting in prison, unable to support you because he comprised his right to be with you. Embezzling from your own company and having an affair with your married next-door neighbor shouldn’t qualify you for a second chance.”
Margo stood up. “Listen to you, Malik. The pastor spoke about forgiveness on Sunday. You’re better than Jefferson. Please, please don’t try and put me in a position to choose between you and my husband.”
“Oh, so I might stand a chance?”
“Cut it out, Malik, and leave. I’m going to be late.”
“Is something going on that I should know about?”
Margo and Malik jumped at the sound of Jefferson’s voice. “No, Jefferson,” Margo managed to say. She looked like a ghost. She wasn’t sure what he might have heard. “I’m on my way to meet a client.”
“I hope he isn’t it,” Jefferson said as he controlled the urge to do harm to Malik. “I received a call about an hour ago from my attorney.”
“What is it?�
�� Margo asked.
Jefferson kept his eye on Malik, who had yet to move. “Hamilton was murdered today in Central Prison.”
Malik and Margo reacted at the same time.
“My God!” Margo said.
“Damn,” was all Malik could come up with, although he had relaxed a bit now that he was sure Jefferson hadn’t heard his exchange with Margo.
“Do you know who did it?” Margo asked.
“Another inmate. They believe Hamilton had a mark on him.”
Margo dropped down in her chair. “I don’t believe it. No matter how awful Hamilton was, he didn’t deserve to die that way.”
“Someone believed he did, and it has me a little worried.” Jefferson scrunched his face. “Do you mind if I speak with my wife alone?” he asked Malik.
“I was on my way out anyway,” Malik said and walked away.
“I don’t like him, Margo. I don’t like the sight of him, and I best not catch him hanging around you again. Today was his lucky day because I didn’t feel like a fight with Hamilton on my mind.”
“Jefferson, I can’t keep him away from here. This is a public place,” Margo said and sighed. “You have nothing to worry about; I’m not going anywhere.”
“I’m not worried about that right now. I’m afraid, Margo. I have to find out who killed Hamilton. Robert Santiago is still out there somewhere, and this sounds like him. Why now? Why today?”
“Hamilton’s death may be entirely the work of someone else. He probably pissed someone off in prison—you know he could do that well. I think you’re reading more into it, Jefferson. Try and relax. I wonder where Angelica is? Even though she and Hamilton had a rocky marriage, she loved that man.”
“She did.”
“Were you ever in love with her?” Margo asked as if it were a routine question. It was quite obvious to her that she caught Jefferson off guard.
Jefferson stared at her. “I’ve never been in love with Angelica, Margo. She used people to benefit herself, but she loved you more than you believe.”
“Well, it’s all relative now. I tried to do the Christian thing by her, love thy neighbor as thyself, but she ran off to who knows where, and I’m done being the nice person.”
“She’s probably somewhere making someone else’s life miserable. I’m glad she’s out of our lives. But I’m worried, Margo. Hamilton’s death has Santiago written all over it. Mark my words.”
36
Curtains closed, Angelica sat on the edge of the chaise lounge in the room Santiago had designated as hers. It was strange that he did not insist that she stay in the room with him when she had made such a big protest about not doing it. For the first time in a long time, she held onto her soul—the memory of her morning with Ari not far behind.
Two hours had passed since Santiago and his goons left the house. She had to get out now or she never would. Deep in thought, she jumped at the sound of her cell phone. She grabbed her phone and answered it, pleased it was the call she was waiting on.
Grabbing her Hobo bag, Angelica tiptoed from the room as if someone could hear her on the thick carpet. She stuck her head out into the hallway, cautiously, looking first to the left and then the right. Anyone who might have seen her would have thought it was a scene from a movie, The Great Heist, except Angelica sought to steal nothing but her way out of the house. Seeing no one, she tiptoed through the lifeless house and out onto the grounds.
Getting past the guard would be the hard part, but she had a plan. Her nerves were in a shambles, but nothing was going to keep her from going through with it.
“Damn,” Angelica said as the phone began to ring. That was her first signal. Ten minutes had passed and she had only twenty minutes left to get past the guard. It was now or never.
She walked halfway down the circular drive and pulled out the book of matches she had thrown in her purse while at El Conuco. With amazing swiftness, Angelica tore two matches from the book, lit them and threw them into a nearby bush. A flame erupted and climbed the bush, catching a whole row in one gulp. Angelica ran to the guard and pointed to the fire.
“Fire, fire,” Angelica screamed, coughing as she continued to run toward the gate. “Look over there,” she pointed.
“Yes, ma’am, I see it,” the guard said. “Move to the sidewalk while I call the fire department.”
“Maybe turning on the sprinklers will do it,” Angelica suggested, looking at her watch.
“Go to the sidewalk, ma’am. I’m calling the fire department and I’ll see what I can do.”
“All right,” Angelica said, walking through the open gate.
She watched the guard run in one direction while she ran in the other, locating Ari’s friend in a car sitting off on a side street halfway down the hill. Her lungs were full of air, and she coughed uncontrollably but found enough strength to knock on the window.
The gentleman looked over at the passenger window and unlocked the door. Within seconds, Angelica jumped in the car and put her head down for fear of being seen. This was déjà vu. There was a time five years ago when she was bent down in Jefferson’s car and bullets were raining all around them, yet she survived.
“Hello,” the gentleman said, trying to keep from laughing at the sight of her.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I’m Angelica. A little paranoid at the moment, but once we’re out of here, I’ll be all right.”
“I’m Nicholas, or Nick, as my close friends call me. Ari and I go way back. Our families were close, and there isn’t anything we wouldn’t do for each other. But I knew you were Angelica the moment I saw you running down the hill. You are exciting, like Ari said.”
“Ari said that?” Angelica was surprised.
“He did.”
“Well, I don’t know whether to be flattered or take that as an insult, but seeing as how I’m all scrunched down in this car, it really doesn’t matter. Please tell Ari thank you for me.”
“You’ll be able to do it yourself. We are going to meet him in Queens, and then we’ll take you to Jersey and the freeway to help you start your journey. My car is parked at a hotel in Jersey, and Ari and I will pick it up and ride back to Manhattan. He must really like you.”
Angelica was silent. It was hard to believe that he would do all of this for her after the way she had hurt him. If she could ever turn her life around, Ari would probably be the one person she’d like to be with.
There was very little chatter until they reached the outskirts of the city. Planes were flying low overhead, and Angelica knew they were in the vicinity of an airport. Before Angelica could react, Nick followed the signs to LaGuardia; however, instead of going to the passenger/ticketing terminal, they followed the signs to baggage claim. Standing on the median outside of the American Airlines terminal was Ari, dressed in his work uniform.
Angelica smiled, and Ari hopped in the back, beckoning for Angelica to do so as well.
“Ari, thank you,” Angelica said softly.
Ari held Angelica’s face and kissed her passionately. There was no fighting the urge as Angelica kissed him back. To the casual observer it appeared that CPR was being administered, although there was no clue as to who was resuscitating whom.
“You could have waited until I pulled off,” Nick teased.
“No time to waste,” Ari said in between kisses. He looked into Angelica’s eyes.
“Did you mean what you said when you told me you didn’t want to leave and that you were feeling something for me?”
“Yes, I meant every word of it,” Angelica said, tears welling up in her eyes. “I thought to myself that, if my life wasn’t in such a shambles, Ari would be the man I’d like to be with.”
“I’ve thought about nothing else but you. I don’t know what kind of hold you have on me, but I like the way it feels. It has nothing to do with the wonderful sex…”
“Not for my ears,” Nick shot back.
“You’re not supposed to be listening,” Ari said. “Drive the car.” They laughed.
“Ari, we didn’t have sex,” Angelica began. “We made love to each other. I’ve not felt that way with someone in a long time. You were warm and tender. I felt safe in your arms.”
Ari looked at her and kissed her again. They held each other and kissed until they reached their destination.
“I hate to leave you, baby,” Ari said with a smile on his face. “I’m sorry I acted the way I did.”
“You don’t owe me an apology, Ari. I probably don’t deserve all that you’ve done for me, but I’m so thankful that you didn’t close the door completely. I hope this isn’t the last time I see you. I’m having mixed emotions, but I know I must get to North Carolina.”
“This won’t be the last time, I promise. Angelica, I feel something for you. It may be love. For sure, whatever it is, it has kept me from eating and sleeping—it’s kind of what people say when something gets in your system.”
“I’m falling for you, too, Ari. Ever since leaving your house, you have consumed my thoughts. It’s not infatuation because I already know what that’s like. I do…love you.” Angelica put her arms around Ari’s neck and cried.
“I wish you would have flown, but you know best. It’s time. The days are longer, but I still worry about you on the road. Call me if you need me, but for sure let me know when you’ve reached your destination.”
“I will,” Angelica said.
She and Ari got out of the car first. They leaned on the car like love-struck teenagers. They embraced and found each other’s lips and kissed like there was no tomorrow. Ari let his arms roll down her shoulders, her back, and her backside, holding her nicely shaped behind until he had to make himself release her.
Nick stepped from the car.
“You need to let her go, Ari,” Nick said. “She needs to get as far from New York as soon as possible because, when the boyfriend discovers she’s gone, it’s going to be hell to pay.”
“You’re right.” Ari turned to Angelica and kissed her lips softly. “This won’t be the last time.”
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