by Ursula Dukes
Her body returned her to the present and she let the vomit eject from her, then her world went black. When she awoke, she did not remember. But it was only for a moment as it all came rushing back.
“I want to see them,” she said to the officer who was told to remain at the house.
“Honey, Rob went to identify them, it’s okay, and you don’t have to put yourself through that. Just lie down and try and get some rest.”
“NO! I want to see my boys Pam, why won’t they let me see my boys please! I’m begging you officer, take me to see my baby and my husband PLEASE! Why won’t you help me, I just want to see them one last time.” Sobbing uncontrollably Dominique fell to her knees as she begged the officer to take her to see her boys.
“Please officer, if you have children of your own, you’ll understand why I need to see my baby!”
After helping her up, the officer who had children of his own, wiped his eyes and was heartbroken. Holding her as she continued to weep, he told her something that he hoped would calm her down.
“Ma’am, I do have children and believe me; you don’t want to remember them like that. You want to remember how they looked yesterday or how they looked in this wonderful photo here. This is what you need to remember, not seeing them today at their worst. Trust me,” he said as he handed her a photograph of Stephen holding Teddy on his shoulders.
Pam sat down next to her friend and whispered to her that a friend of theirs was a doctor and that she was on her way to give her something to help her rest. She felt like anything above a whisper would be the end of her dear and fragile friend. Dominique, felt helpless, and numb. She hoped that the doctor would leave her with a bottle full of pills. Her first moment alone she was going to swallow them all and fall asleep so she could see her boys. That’s all she wanted, one more chance to see her boys and tell them how much she loved them.
Chapter Four
When they had gotten back into Boston, Brandon had to make another call. Nick got out of the car and all but ran towards his own as he got in and drove away. Brandon knew that he could trust Nick with his secret, after all, he’d seen Nick do some pretty nasty things to people, including murder, so he was confident Nick would keep his mouth shut.
“I did what you told me and we’re back in Boston. But why did you tell me to write that stuff down anyway?”
“Because you killed a father and son tonight Brandon, that means somewhere there is a wife and a mother mourning the loss of not one, but two of the most beloved people in her life. I told you to retrieve the information so that I can find out who she is and make sure that nothing ever comes of this Brandon. Because of what you did, I now have to make sure that this woman never finds out who killed her husband and son, and I need to make sure that she doesn’t have to struggle too much financially as well.
I don’t want to find her with idle time on her hands, because that means more free time to involve herself in an investigation Brandon, one that if pursued will be the end of you and your stupid friend Nick. You stupid son of a bitch, why couldn’t you be more like your brother Adam? He’s successful, got an excellent head on his shoulders. Where did we go wrong with you Brandon? Did we not take care of you?
Did we not send you to the best schools? Whatever you wanted your mother and I gave to you and this is how you repay us? Do you realize that something like this could ruin my career, ruin us as family? I’m a senior partner in my law firm for Christ’s sake! DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS COULD DO? Of course you don’t because you’re selfish, you’re a selfish kid Brandon, always have been. That’s why I’m sending you away.”
“What? What do you mean you’re sending me away? Where?"
“You’re leaving the country Brandon, I’m sending you to your grandparents in Italy, you’ll be safe there and there’s plenty of people around who I guarantee won’t let you out of their sight! This is not up for debate, get home NOW and pack your bags.”
“Dad wait, well can you at least tell me for how long? How are you going to find out who that guy's wife is and take care of her financially without her finding out dad?”
“You let me worry about that, and I’ll tell you when I think it’s safe for you to come home, now hang up the phone, come home and Pack your bags, you’re on the first flight out this morning.”
Six months after the accident, Dominique Greenway wanted answers; she wanted to know who had caused the deaths of her husband and son. The police were clueless; they had no answers to give her. All they knew was that there were two extra sets of footprints at the scene and there had been tire tread marks from that of a large SUV. Dominique was sure that since Stephen had been employed as an Intelligence Analyst for the FBI office out of Boston, that they would launch a full investigation into his death but they did not, they told Dominique that her husband and sons death was a horrible accident, and that the investigation was being led by the New Hampshire state police and it was not in their jurisdiction. Dominique knew the deaths of her husband and son had nothing to do with Stephens job, however she was told by the police that whoever had caused the accident had stopped, but for whatever reason, chose not to help and to Dominique, that was inexcusable. It was also inexcusable to Stephen's best friend Rob, who also worked for the FBI And when Rob told Dominique that he would do anything he could to help find Stephen and Teddy's killer she was grateful for the help.
He told her that it would take time and a lot of it before he would be able to tell her anything simply because he was going to have to investigate on his own and without the Dept. knowing. He could lose his job he told her. Dominique told Rob that whatever he could find out without putting his job in jeopardy would be fine with her, and where ever he left off, she would hire her own investigators if need be.
“I want justice for Stephen and Teddy,” she told him, “and when I find out exactly what happened and who did it, I'll seek revenge as well.” It took a little over a year before Rob came to Dominique with the results of his investigation. In order for him to be able to investigate at all he had to do it in spurts he told her, a couple hours here, a couple hours there until finally he found out some information. Rob sat Dominique down before telling her everything that he was able to find out.
“Rob, I’ve been patient and waited over a year, the least you can do is give it to me straight,” she said while nervously wringing her hands together.
“I know you have Dominique.” Taking a deep breath, Rob told her what he found out.
“Dominique, I got a hold of a file which held the foot prints and tire treads. We knew that there was a large SUV involved from the tread marks at the scene. Well it looks like the same night that we lost Stephen and Teddy, there was some illicit drug dealing going on several miles from where they were hit. A couple of low-life drug dealers had met with an out of town dealer to buy a kilo of cocaine. It appears that the suppliers were from Boston.
“Okay Rob, but what does this have to do with my boys?” she sighed.
“I'm getting to that Dominique, just be patient please. It’s complicated.”
“So the dealers from Boston exchange the drugs for the money, everybody’s happy and each goes on their way. Now the two lowly dealers get pulled over here in New Hampshire. Once the cops search the car and find the coke, they get hauled in, not wanting to go to prison; they immediately give up the name of their supplier, two names to be exact, but first names only. They told the cops they bought the coke from Brandon and Nick who are from Boston. Now the cops need to find out the last names so they trace the cell number that one of the dealers gives them, turns out the cell is listed under neither of those names but a DiNunzio instead. Now the cops know who DiNunzio is.
“Who is he Rob?”
“Dominique, Peter DiNunzio is said to be the head of one of the largest most dangerous crime families in Boston.
So upon hearing this, the cops gotta involve the FBI because they have been investigating DiNunzio for years and this is just another charge to add to their a
lready long list. So now the FBI gets involved, and all the evidence from that night gets handed to them and Stephens and Teddy’s accident goes unsolved.
“Rob forgive me but you haven't told me how this helps finding out who killed my boys.”
“I'm getting to that Dominique, now here is where my investigation gets a little easier. See once the FBI took over the case, I was able to gain access more easily, and I checked the time that the dealers were pulled over with the time of the accident. Now the dealers got pulled over at around two in the morning here in New Hampshire. Now the coroner’s report states that Stephen and Teddy's time of death was roughly between one and two in the morning. If the drug deal went down at around 1 am and the dealers parted ways at the same time, one going north and the other going South back to Boston then that would put them on Route 101 about the same time Stephen was heading home Dominique, don’t you see? Those dealers were from Boston, and they are more than likely the ones who caused the accident. It all made sense the second I thought about the times, it all coincides and if there is a chance that I’m wrong and it wasn’t them who caused the accident, then at the very least they witnessed it.”
Dominique sat quietly for a minute before speaking.
“Rob I don’t know how to thank you,” she said. You've given me hope that now I can find out who is responsible and make them pay for what they did Rob, what's next?” Her heart was racing.
“Now listen Dominique, these aren’t your average everyday people, if it was them than that means they are involved in some pretty dangerous things. Now the FBI knows these guys Dominique, but like I said, they aren't concerned with the accident, they only want to gather more evidence against DiNunzio, so don't expect any help from them. I found out their last names and some other pertinent information about them, but before I give this to you, you have to promise me that everything I’ve done remains between the two of us.”
“Of course Rob.”
“Dominique I am not sure your understanding me, what I mean is you can't go to the police with this information, it was obtained illegally, do you understand? The FBI is not investigating the deaths of Stephen and Teddy; they are investigating DiNunzio and DiNunzio only. What happened to Stephen and Teddy is totally irrelevant to them Dominique.”
Dominique knew what Rob was trying to say, the police had all but closed the case and the FBI was not interested in it. So unless she came up with a plan of her own, there was no way she would get justice for her boys.
“Rob I understand completely what you're telling me, go ahead and give me the information, I’ll take care of the rest Rob, again, I want to thank you for everything that you've done. I know that Stephen would have been grateful.”
“Stephen would not want you getting involved in this Dominique but I made a promise to you to help and that's what I’m doing. Now you also understand that whatever you decide to do from here on out, I cannot help you, you've got to do this alone or with someone who you can trust completely, but I cannot help you.”
“I understand Rob, I do, this is my burden and I have to carry it alone, I understand. You have been a great help, thank you for everything.”
When Rob handed her the manila envelope containing all the information that would lead her to her husband and son's killers he also handed her a gun, a gun that he knew she was able to use because Stephen had taught her how years ago. Before leaving, Rob wished her luck in whatever it was that she was going to decide to do.
I can't wait to get out of here, she thought to herself as she stood in Teddy’s now empty room. It had taken her almost two years to complete the task and despite Pam and Rob’s offer to help, she had decided to do it alone. She wanted to be able to say goodbye little by little. Some days after work, she'd spend hours just smelling little Teddy’s clothes and stuffed animals, others she’d spent determined to get through it all without paying much attention to anything in particular, those days were the hardest. But she had finally gotten through it and everything was packed. She would be donating most of it, including the furniture to good will. Perhaps another little boy will be able to enjoy these things while he grows up, she thought to herself as she stifled back tears.
It had been much harder to pack up her son’s belongings than her husband’s. She had kept a few articles of Stephens clothing and on nights when she was feeling especially lonely, she would spread one of his sweatshirts out on the pillow, and sleep next to it. Sometimes she would cry into it and imagine that he was still there holding her, and there were times she felt as if he really was.
Time to move on, she told herself as she sat in the kitchen and poured another cup of coffee. A lot about Dominique had changed over the past year. She was always a tea drinker when Stephen and Teddy were alive, but now she only drank coffee, and lots of it. The longer she stayed awake the better, less nightmares, she told herself with every cup that she drank.
She had also gotten a lot thinner, and started drinking more. She no longer looked at the world as beautiful and hopeful. She knew that her beautiful and hopeful world ended on October twenty fifth, the night Stephen and Teddy died. And what made it worse was that the police never found out who had ran her husband and son off the road. Oh, some had called it a terrible accident but Dominique wasn’t convinced.
Even though the police found two extra sets of foot prints at the scene along with partial tire marks that they were able to conclude came from that of a large SUV, it seemed that the evidence had disappeared right about the same time that the FBI took over the case. Even though Stephen worked for the FBI, it didn't seem to make a difference to them. They had told Dominique that although they were very sorry for her loss, it seemed that there was not enough evidence to prove foul play and, that Stephen and Teddy just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and that it was simply fate.
But thanks to Rob's tireless investigating, he had told her that someone was there, someone could have helped but instead they walked away like cowards, filthy mother fucking cowards. But now Dominique knew exactly who they were and there was no way she was going to let them get away with it. No, she'd been waiting for almost two long years and now the time had finally come for her to do what she needed to do. Armed with Brandon’s last name and possible whereabouts in Boston, she would find out the rest by doing a simple search on the internet. Finding out about Nick Kilarmo was a bit trickier than she'd hoped but her main concern was Brandon.
Brandon was the son of a high profile attorney named Jonathan Caruso. Jonathan was the top partner of his law firm, Caruso, Lawson and Dorr. He had another son who was also an attorney at the law firm and his name was Adam. While Brandon was considered the black sheep of the family, Dominique concluded that Adam Caruso, who was shown in a photograph, was incredibly handsome with his dark looks and by all appearances seemed to be the successful golden boy.
She thought it funny how with his dark wavy hair, green eyes and chiseled features that he looked more like the black sheep of the family rather than his fair haired blue eyed brother. Adam Caruso is extremely handsome. She thought to herself as she stared at the photo of Adam, Brandon and Jonathan Caruso.
As far as she was concerned, Jonathan and Adam Caruso had nothing to do with the deaths of Stephen and Teddy but she needed a way in, and getting a job at the law firm would be perfect she thought to herself. But just how would I be able to do that? She wondered. She realized that she needed to ask Rob for just one more favor and “It should be very easy,” she said when they spoke over the phone.
She had simply needed Rob to use his connections to try and land her a job at the law firm. “Something menial Rob, nothing that would raise suspicion, I don’t want anyone to know who I am.”
“Alright Dominique but I’m gonna need you to post a resume using your maiden name and then send it to them, apply for something secretarial alright?”
“Consider it done Rob and thanks.”
Once again Rob came through and before long, Dominique was grante
d an interview for a clerical position.
Dominique knew the police had all but given up trying to find out who caused Stephen and Teddy's deaths so it was up to her now, and after half a year of no leads, the police told Dominique that the case was now cold and that she should try and move on, that’s when she gladly accepted Rob's offer of help. Even if she wanted to move on she wouldn’t be able to, not until her husband and sons killers were brought to justice, but Dominique knew that the only way her boys would receive justice would be if the killers confessed, and judging by their past actions she knew that it would be a long shot, so if she couldn’t get justice for her boy's, she would get revenge, and she’d have a much better chance of that happening once she moved to Boston and got herself right in the heart of things.
Chapter Five
Dominique couldn’t wait to get out, get out and leave this place. There was nothing left for her here and she had wanted to distance herself for a long time now and the sooner she was able to do it the better. All she was waiting on was a call from the movers to go over everything and confirm her move – in date.
The idea of moving to Boston had come about so fast, but once she was offered the job at the firm, she knew there was no way she would commute back and forth every day like Stephen, who didn't mind the long commute at all. It was well worth it he'd told her, and besides he always had coming home to see her and Teddy to look forward to, and oh how he loved coming home.
Anyway, it seemed to her to be the perfect place to start over; the hustle and bustle of a big city would be just what she needed to start a new life, away from the quiet and the bad memories. No more would she have to pass by where the accident had occurred and stare out into the empty space and wonder where her son’s body had landed, no, she would try and leave the bad memories behind and take only the good with her.