“I really don’t like this,” a man said. The echo of his footsteps clanked across the floor. He must have been pacing. His voice was different, high-pitched and nervous, not like the other men she heard in the car.
“Come on, Charlie. You know it’s business as usual,” the familiar voice said.
Her ears perked up, willing him to say more. Where had she heard that voice before?
“I don’t want no trouble here, Al. I try to keep this place underground, and since that other broad, the cops are comin’ ’round, tryin’ to find out ’bout that girl.” The pacing stopped.
“Charlie, this is my place, and I’m not worried about the cops. I got them on my books.” She recognized the wheezing voice from the car. The infamous Al, perhaps?
“I just can’t be a part of it again, Al. You know I have a family to take care of. Margaret is expecting again, and I just can’t have this hangin’ over me,” the voice pleaded.
The room was silent, even the orchestra music had stopped. Then there was a deep sigh and the blunt sound of footsteps moved across the floor away from her. The nausea swirled in her stomach. Something wasn’t right, and she couldn’t put her finger on it. The silence was eerie. She held her breath for what might come.
In an instant the sliding sounds of feet against the wood floor echoed in her ears. A scuffle began, but with who? And why? The men grunted as the sound of objects banging rippled throughout the room. Seconds later, the boom of a Tommy gun cut through the air. She screamed, tucking her head between her knees. Her heart pounded like a hoofer stomping the Black Bottom and almost tore through her chest.
Dear Lord this can’t be it.
“Geez Al, did you have to do that?” the familiar voice asked. Then, it dawned on her. She recognized the tone of the shrill voice—didn’t want to believe it.
“I can’t pay a man to be weak. Just like I can’t let someone put one over on me. Governor McNey owed me money for my services, and he didn’t deliver. I played nice. I gave him a chance, but he didn’t follow through with his end of the deal. I even humored him to deal with that dumb bitch. So...I…you took care of that problem. You did what needed to be done. You know why, Anton?”
Norma froze. Anton Perugi had not just attacked but murdered Elsie and had been purposely deterring Henry from following the story of her disappearance. The nausea spun like a motorcar tire at full speed when she further wrapped her mind around the truth. It was this; she would die just as Elsie had with no one to see or believe.
“Why, boss?” Anton’s voice sounded much more sinister than the smooth tone he’d used at the Daily.
“Because you are loyal and believe in justice.” Al wheezed in between his chuckles.
“How could you do it, Anton?” Norma blurted out, the sack muffled her words. The heat crept up her neck and to her cheeks. Fear morphed into anger. She felt betrayed.
How could Anton deceive Henry? The Chicago Daily News? All legitimate reporters everywhere? He made a mockery of the profession.
Anton laughed. His secret was out. Respected crime reporter by day, mob assassin by night.
“So…” Anton ripped the sack off her head in one motion. The rough material burned her face. “Now you know.”
“Yeah, and I’m going to report you!” she screamed back, tears stinging her eyes. If she was going to die, then she’d give a piece of her mind first.
“Well, sweet patootie, you can’t report me if you’re dead. Can you?” His eyes slanted. The bastard mocked her.
A single light hung from the low ceiling, and the room was lined with wooden crates and brown sacks piled up against the walls without windows. She hardly recognized Anton once she got a load of him.
He had traded his neat work attire for a dark suit and wool coat and fedora hat. His shiny shoes showed her reflection. He also held a cigar between his thumb and index finger. He looked like a wise guy all right, and more than that, he looked like a mob assassin. Just as he did at the Jazzy Cat. Apparently that was his playground for deceit and evil-doings.
Al stood back, watching the exchange. His lips quivered as if he were waiting for the right moment to chime in. He was a portly man with a jagged scar on his cheek, and his lips were full and red. Eyes…were pure evil. She shivered and looked away from the glowing green stare.
“She’s pretty.” Al walked over to her. “A little mousy, but I see some potential.”
She couldn’t stand to look at him. He brought his sausage-like finger to her jaw. It smelled of gunpowder and murder. She cringed. Was she next?
“Maybe we could have a little fun first?” Al stated more than asked. His finger ran the length of her tightening jaw and then over ridges of her dry lips.
There were a slew of things she would have loved to do to his disgusting finger—bite it clear off for instance—but she was certain it would push him over the edge. And based on the poor sap who just got shot, she would fare no better.
“What do you think, doll face?” The sides of Al’s mouth were moist with saliva.
She didn’t answer. Shutting her eyelids so tightly they hurt, she gulped down the knot that formed in her throat. She couldn’t cry, perhaps she’d accepted she wouldn’t make it out alive. Only one thing that mattered to her.
Henry.
All she could do in that moment was think about Henry. She wished she had spoken to him at the Daily. She wished she had let him clarify why Annabelle was in his office when he attempted to. If she wasn’t so stubborn. She didn’t want to leave the world knowing she didn’t give him a chance to explain. She didn’t want to leave the world without telling him she loved him. Why did she have to expect the worst? Why didn’t she realize he and Charles Hill were worlds apart?
“Okay, you can play coy, sweet lips. Be my guest.” His belly shook with laughter, as he motioned Anton to grab her.
Anton scooped her up like a rag doll.
The button on her jacket popped off and rolled across the hardwood floor. It rolled under a wooden table. That would be the only evidence of her ever being there.
She thrashed about, kicking her feet and pulling at her bound arms. None of that would help. Not even the screaming would help. It only made matters worse. Before she could stomp on Anton’s foot, he brought a shiv to her throat. The sharp blade cut her delicate skin. She stopped screaming, becoming limp in his grasp. I’m going to die.
“You’re not fighting now, huh?” Anton whispered in her ear.
Every hair on her neck stood. She whimpered.
“You couldn’t stop prying, could you? Was it so important to prove yourself to that joke, Chapel? God, I hate that bastard. Was it enough to die for?” Anton spit in her ear.
Norma trembled and spoke barely above a whisper, “You going to kill me like you did Elsie?”
Anton glanced over to Al, who traveled to the other side of the room and laughed.
“Why, yes, I am, Miss Hill. I’m glad we understand each other,” Anton said without a touch of sarcasm.
With those words, the door burst open. Pieces of the wooden door flew across the room. A dozen police filled the room in an instant.
Norma fell to the floor, looking up at Henry running to her.
His eyes were shadowed. Lines etched on his forehead made him look ten years older.
Norma’s heart rose to her throat, and tears immediately flooded her vision. The fear melted away when Henry hugged her. In his arms she was protected from harm and felt light as air. In his arms, it would all be okay.
She cried. What else could she do? Her body shook with the intensity from the need to cry. Never had she felt such a need. She couldn’t remember the last time she cried. As she did, Henry held on tightly, soothing her with sweet words. He stroked her back, kissed her forehead. Then he kissed her lips as they quivered. He kissed her tears. The more tears that fell, the more kisses he gave.
“How did you find me?” She finally found her voice, lifting her gaze to his. Tears formed at the corners of his
eyes. Her heart sank.
“A miracle, I suppose,” he answered low and soft, bloodied lips quivered. He quickly untied her wrists.
“What happened to your lip?” She scanned his face. “And your eye?”
He shrugged. “Nothing I couldn’t handle.”
“Did you get hurt because of me?” She couldn’t stand it if he did.
“I’m everything because of you.” The whole world fell away when their gazes met. And in his eyes, he gave her the world.
“I’m sorry, Henry. I’m sorry I didn’t trust you. I’m sorry I jumped to conclusions about Annabelle. I’m just not used to feeling like this.”
Henry brought his finger to her lips. “We don’t have to talk about this now, doll.” He leaned in to kiss her.
Once the police apprehended Anton, he tried to escape a policeman’s grasp. He struggled but was held down by another uniformed man’s knee who handcuffed him. “You’ll be sorry for this!” Anton barked. “I swear you will, you stupid bitch!”
“You’ll never work in this town again. I don’t think you’ll be working for a long time,” Henry spit back.
If he wasn’t holding her, he probably would have beaten Anton to smithereens.
Norma scanned the room. Anton’s boss was long gone. As if he were never there. “The other man escaped!” She found the strength deep within and stood, waving an accusatory finger at Anton. “Where is he, Anton? Where is Al?”
“There was no other man,” Anton said, his voice somber. He was completely transformed. No hint of the man who had put the shiv to her throat existed.
“Yes, there was another man.” She couldn’t believe Anton was covering for that disgusting man. Excitement took over as her arms flailed about. “His name is Al.”
“Al Capone?” Chief Aleiss asked.
“No!” Anton said with much conviction. “I did this alone. I killed Charlie, and I kidnapped her.”
“What about Elsie, Anton?” Her heart raced as the fastest horse at the Kentucky Derby.
Henry pulled her back from lunging at Anton.
“Are you admitting guilt to two counts of murder and one count of kidnapping?” Chief Aliess asked Anton, who had been brought to his feet, one officer on each side of him.
“Yes,” Anton finally said after a beat. His voice was low again and wasn’t convincing.
“Guess there’s no need to bother McSwiggin about this one,” the chief joked with the officers. The men laughed. It must have been an inside joke.
Chapter Twenty-One
Norma was taken to the hospital in an ambulance. She’d never been in one. Though she could walk out of the storage shed without a problem, she let the medics place her on a stretcher and slip her into the back of the dark olive automobile with a white circle and red cross painted on the side. Inside the cabin was dark and colder than outside. All she had to do was think about Henry to stay warm.
Upon arrival at the hospital, a nurse took her to an examining room immediately upon Chief Aliess’ orders.
Norma was treated for the small cut on her throat, which felt more like a gash, and the rope burns at her wrists.
After all was done, the doctor entered the room, clutching a brown board. He scanned the paperwork and indicated she would be fine. The injuries were minor and wouldn’t scar. Though, he didn’t mention the mental injuries from which she would be scarred for life.
In the silence of the sterile hospital room, she stared out the small square window. The snow had stopped with only the shimmer of the dark sky left behind. Her stomach clenched as she pondered the night’s events.
How could a man disappear into thin air? Why would Anton take the fall for everything? All was unsettling. Anton would be put away for a very long time, but would Al recruit a new set of goons to finish the job? Would they even bother to kidnap her or would they just shoot her on the spot? She gulped down a lump forming in her throat. She didn’t want to die, not when her future was so promising.
Moments later, Chief Aleiss poked his head in the room.
“How are you feeling, Miss Hill?” His raspy voice echoed in the sparse room.
“I’ve been better, Chief.” She sighed.
“I bet. Are you okay to give a statement?”
She looked down at her knotted hands, sighed again. “Yes.”
Taking the small wooden chair pushed up against the wall near the window, he dragged it over to her bedside. “Can you tell me what happened?”
At first, she couldn’t organize the events; they clobbered her brain all at once. The walk home, the speeding cars, the sting of ice pellets on her face, the sack over her head, and the knife at her throat. Too much.
“Take your time, Miss Hill. I know this was traumatic for you.”
She sucked in a fortifying breath, and from some unknown source of power came her words. “I was walking home, and before I knew it three cars pulled up, almost ran me over.” She gulped and continued. “Then two men jumped out and grabbed me. They tossed me in the back seat.” Her voice trailed off, getting through the next part would be hard.
“You’re doing good,” the chief encouraged her.
Her eyes watered. “Then they…put a sack over my head and tied my wrists together. I thought I was dead for sure.”
She licked her dry lips with an even drier tongue. Recounting the incident called for her to relive the torture. Looking away from the chief, she counted to ten and searched for the words to go on.
“The men took me to a place, which we know was the storage shed, and a fight ensued. Then, I heard a gunshot. A man named Charlie was shot because he didn’t want to go along. Then I realized Anton was one of the assailants, but I don’t know what happened to the other men who kidnapped me, and I never got their names.”
“Was Anton Perugi one of the men who kidnapped you?”
“Yes. Anton and a man named Al, who may or may not be Al Capone,” she said definitively.
Chief Aleiss sighed as he scrubbed his ruddy face. “Al has been a suspect for a while now. He’s aiming to take control of the illegal alcohol distribution from other mob bosses. He’s a greedy bastard.” His voice was far off, may as well have been talking to himself. “We haven’t been able to catch him.”
Norma’s stomach fell for miles. “Do you think he’ll come back for me?”
“I wouldn’t worry, Miss Hill. Anton has taken the fall for all the crimes, but some men will patrol around your residence during the night for a while if it makes you feel safer.”
“Yes, please.”
The chief nodded and stood, returning the chair back near the window. “If you remember anything else, please come and see us. We’ll keep in touch anyhow.” A faint smile crossed his face before he turned on his heels.
She was deep in thought when Henry poked his head in the room not long after Chief Aleiss left. With glimmering, beautiful green eyes and full lips in a loose smile, he looked more like himself. He had changed his shirt and donned his black wool coat, and donned his more formal hat. Somehow, his face looked completely healed.
“Hello, doll face.” His smile opened to the corners of each ear. Lord he was a looker. From behind his back, he presented her with a box of chocolates.
She smiled at his large fingers handling the delicate gold foil box. “Are those for me?” She reached out.
“Who else?” His voice smooth like an angel calling from heaven. “Sweets for my sweet.”
Her gaze lifted to his. “Where did you get those this time of night?”
“I have my ways.” He winked. Her heart fluttered at the sentiment. He sure had ways about him.
“Great news,” Henry said after a beat of silence. “There was an eyewitness to Al leaving the Jazzy Cat where we found you in the storage shed. He was spotted getting into a car headed west with John John, the bastard. Police are on the case. You’ve opened up a whole can of worms, doll face.”
“That’s wonderful. I hope they get them.” Norma tried not to relive the night
’s events, becoming solemn in the process. “Poor Elsie. I can’t imagine what she must have gone through.”
He set the chocolates on the metal side table and sat at the edge of the stiff hospital bed. He reached for her knotting fingers, warming them as he drew them to his mouth and kissed the tip of each digit. He didn’t say anything, only caressed her hands and kissed her raw wrists until he cleared his throat.
“I’m sorry I didn’t believe you, Norma.” He held her hands. His eyes caught the light from overhead. “I should’ve believed the woman I…love.”
Her heart skipped. “You love me?”
“I do and I don’t care who knows.” His voice trembled. It would appear Mr. Chapel was capable of emotion after all.
“Oh, Henry.” Tears formed again in the corners of her eyes and when they bubbled over, they spilled down her cheeks. “I love you, too, Henry. And I forgive you.” Her voice cracked. Sitting up, she bumped into his chest and held onto him as if her very existence depended on it.
“What about Annabelle? What about New York?” Though she intuitively knew Annabelle wasn’t in the picture, she wanted to hear him say it to her.
“She’s nothing to me. I told her I have a woman in my life.”
“You told her that?”
“I did.”
“Did you see her after we…” Made love. The words wouldn’t come out.
“No!” His eyes widened along with his heightened tone. Then his voice turned soft and intimate. “It was always you, Norma. Since I met you…it was always you.” He chuckled, his head shaking. “I knew you’d be the end of me.”
“So what about New York?”
“There will be no New York. I really can’t believe my mother went behind my back and told her about that.” He dragged a hand through his neat hair, inadvertently messing it up. He was sexier with disheveled hair—if that was possible.
She raised her eyebrow.
“The New York Post wanted me. It was going under, and the consortium heard about my overnight success at the Daily.”
Love Easy Page 19