Barber Shop Ink - Book 3: Riverworth

by Penny Blush

  “You were out Jupiter,” Charlie sighed sitting in the chair behind his desk. His office was huge and could only be characterised as very Oxford, all dark leather and wood. “You were out, and you had moved on with your life.”

  “Between you and Georgiou,” I said shaking my head. “You both need to stop talking like I’m dying. I’m not, none of us are, which is why we plan and don’t go rushing into things like a bull in a china shop.”

  Charlie lent back in his chair resting his head on the backrest staring up at the roof. I got up off the dark brown leather lounge and walked over to his desk resting my hand on the padded top.

  “Charlie, we will get him, but for now call Georgiou, check up on Gianni, let them know we are thinking about them and that we have this handled. Then get a drink, something to eat, shower and then try to get some sleep.”

  Charlie nodded, and I turned to leave the room a million different thoughts running through my head.

  “Goodnight Miss Morningstar,” Malcolm said as I reached the door way. “Tell Miss Jupiter to come find me when she has a moment. She knows where to find me.”

  “I will Malcolm. Get some rest Charlie.”

  I headed to my old bedroom to change. I was covered in Gianni’s blood, dirt and ash from the explosion and Jupiter was knocking pretty bloody hard wanting to be let out.

  So, I would go to my room change let her out, power down for a while and then I would start hunting Vex.

  Chapter 32 Hedge

  I had been in the shower for a solid thirty minutes and I still didn’t feel clean. As I stripped out of my clothes I felt the shroud of Morningstar slip away, but my emotions were still on lockdown.

  I turned the water on as hot as I could stand it and scrubbed myself clear until my skin was red. I scrubbed and scrubbed until Gianni’s blood washed from my skin. As the last of the blood tainted water disappeared down the shower drain I let go of my last bit of control and I broke.

  I cried, and I cried, and I cried until there was nothing left. I just stood under the flow of the water exhausted. All I wanted to do was crawl into bed and forget the last twelve hours. I couldn’t though. I had to eat and keep my head in the game and plan my next move. I needed to find my uncle and find out how Gianni is doing.

  I walked back into the bedroom I didn’t even register when I walked through to the bathroom. Uncle Charlie had kept everything the way I had left it. My clothes were in the closet, my books were in the bookshelf, my knickknacks and souvenirs from my travels were where I left them. It was as if, even though he knew I couldn’t come back, that Uncle Charlie was still hoping I would.

  I changed into some black yoga pants and tank wrapping myself in an oversized cardigan. I slipped my feet in to some thick fluffy socks and made my way to the kitchen to find something to eat.

  “Great minds think alike,” I said entering the kitchen to find Uncle Charlie making a sandwich.

  “Get the juice would ya.”

  I grabbed the orange juice out of the fridge, two glasses from the cupboard and sat down at the butcher block island bench. Uncle Charlie slid a plate stacked with cheese and apple sandwiches across the bench.

  “You are the only person I know that eats fruit on a sandwich,” he said pulling the ice tray from the freezer.

  “What you’ve never had a banana sandwich before?”

  “Well yeah, but who eats apple on a sandwich?” He asked adding ice to my glass of juice. “I figured you still like it ice cold.”

  “I do, thank you,” I took a healthy bite of my apple and cheese sandwich and moaned appreciatively. “God, I have missed these.”

  “You don’t eat them anymore?”

  Okay so I guess it was time for us to have this conversation.

  “When I left and went home, I changed everything,” I said pushing my half-eaten sandwich away. “I wanted to forget. I didn’t want to be that person anymore, so I changed. My clothes, my hair, I styled my apartment different to how I had my room styled here. I changed everything.”

  “Not everything,” Charlie whispered. “You’re still a hairdresser, right?” He asked when I gave him a questioning look. “Stella would have loved that. That after everything, you went back to something you loved.”

  “It had nothing to do with the life, you know. I love hairdressing and it helped me to rediscover myself, without losing myself, if that makes any sense.”

  “I get it. I know I never said this before but…”

  “Uncle Charlie you don’t have to do this,” I said interrupting him.

  “No, Love, I need to say this. I am sorry for everything. I should never have turned you into Morningstar. I should have gotten you help, counselling. I should have called Jaxon. I should have sent you home, anything. And then by the time you wanted out, you were too far in for me to just let you walk. If I did, we both would have been dead within days. I’m sorry Jupiter and I will go to my grave hating myself for what I did to you.”

  “It’s not all on you,” I said lowering my head into my hands, my elbows resting on the butcher’s block. “I have to take some of the responsibility. I could have stopped, I could have said no.”

  “No Love, you couldn’t. At the time you were too weak, traumatised by what you saw, and you shut down. You wanted someone else to take control. Someone else to decide for you. No matter which way you slice it I took advantage of you when you were at your most vulnerable. That, my dear Jupiter, is all on me.”

  We sat in silence for a while lost in our thoughts. I never thought I would see the day when Charlie ‘The Boss’ Benedetto would apologise for anything. But then again, sitting across from me in the kitchen he was just Uncle Charlie. He looked up and gave me a small smile. In that moment, I saw Charlie, just Charlie. My uncle who loves me and who is just as haunted by what happened as I was.

  I wasn’t kidding when I said it wasn’t all on him and that I had to take some of the blame. That realisation helped some of the burden I hadn’t realised I was still carrying around to lift. I don’t think I will ever forgive him fully, but I could at least let go of some of my anger.

  “Have you heard from Georgiou? Is there any news on Gianni?” I quietly asked after we had sat in silence for a while.

  “I spoke to him briefly about an hour ago. Gianni is still in surgery, they’re trying to save his leg. But it’s not looking good.”

  “Let me know when you hear anything more,” I said taking my now empty plate and glass to the sink.

  “We have to talk about what we plan to do.”

  “Not now,” I sighed.

  “We can’t let this go.”

  “And we won’t, we will talk about it, just not tonight okay. It’s been a long day and I’m tired. Too tired to think about how I plan on killing someone. So, please Uncle Charlie for tonight can we just let it go?”

  “You’re right Love. I’m sorry. Go get some sleep and we’ll talk about it tomorrow.”

  “Thank you. You need to rest yourself, goodnight Uncle Charlie.”

  I walked out of the kitchen with every intention of falling into bed and sleeping for a solid twelve hours. But instead of heading to the stairs, I walked past them and towards the gym. I reached the door but didn’t go in. I watched Malcolm going through his training routine.

  “Miss Jupiter are you planning on coming in or are you just going to dance around outside the door?”

  “Hi Malcolm,” I sheepishly hovered outside the door.

  “Are you coming in?” He asked again.

  I tiptoed into the gym and sat down on a stack of crash matts, bring my knees up wrapping my arms around them, hugging my knees tightly to my chest and dropping my head to rest on them.

  “You hiding from me Little Bird?”

  Little Bird was the nickname he gave me after the attack in Scarlet. He said I was like a frightened little bird with a broken wing.

  “Yes. No. Maybe. I don’t know,” I mumbled.

  “Talk to me Little Bird,” Malcolm said dr
opping his gloves beside the heavy bag, coming to sit next to me.

  “It’s nothing. I’m just tired is all.”

  “Who are you lying to Little Bird me, or yourself?”

  “Probably both,” I sighed leaning back against the concrete wall resting my elbows on my knees. “It’s just this place I guess. And with what happened with Gianni, I just, I don’t know,” I buried my face in my hands taking a deep breath feeling tears stinging my eyes. “I did everything right Malcolm. Everything,” I said dropping my hands turning to look at him. “I did my research, I planned, I checked, double and triple checked everything, and it wasn’t enough. Gianni still got hurt.”

  “You did everything you could. Gianni getting hurt is not on you, that is on Nicholas Vex.”

  “I just feel so lost. This used to be my life. I could switch it on and off but now all I want to do is cry,” I swiped at a tear that slid down my cheek.

  “It’s because last time you have anything or anyone that was worth loosing, from what I hear this time you do.”

  “I’m engaged Malcolm,” I said with a small smile as more tears spilled down my face. “I have a life and people who care about me. I have a job I love and a man who is my world. I’m getting married. I can’t be doing this. I should be at home wrapping up the plans for my wedding but instead I’m here. If I don’t come up with a plan to deal with Vex, he will kill him. I love Memphis so much it hurts. I would die without him. I can’t do this. I’m getting married,” I sobbed looking at Malcolm tears streaming down my face.

  He looked at me and tapped his shoulder. I dropped my head to his shoulder and he brought his arm around me hugging me to his chest and I broke. Everything I had been holding in came out in body racking sobs. I thought I had cried it all out in the shower but that was nothing.

  I cried, sob, wailed and howled until I was hollow. The whole time I purged myself of my emotional baggage Malcolm stayed silent and just held me.

  “Do you feel better?” Malcolm asked when my sobs became the occasional shudder and hiccup.

  “A little,” I said wiping my face on a clean towel that Malcolm handed me. “I’m sorry.”

  “Little Bird, you need to stop apologising. You’re not a machine. You’re allowed to feel, it’s what makes us human.”

  “I can’t be. For me to finish this I can’t feel, I can’t be human. I can’t put a bullet in Vex and then just go home to Memphis and play happy families. Every time I do this it takes a part of me.”

  “Not to be an asshole here or anything but what do you think will happen to you if you don’t do it. You will spend the rest of your life looking over your shoulder, jumping at shadows. What kind of strain do you think will put you under? Vex is a piece of shit that doesn’t deserve to live.”

  “You make it sound like I don’t have a choice.”

  “You have a choice Little Bird.”

  “What should I do?”

  “I can’t answer that for you,” Malcolm said giving me a squeeze. “But I know you will do the right thing and you know I will help you any way I can.”

  I got up and walked over to the small fridge grabbing two bottles of water handing one to Malcolm.

  “I need to think,” I said handing him my half-drunk bottle of water and my cardigan.

  I went to the equipment locker and retrieved my gloves and wraps that Malcolm and my uncle had kept. I got to work on the heavy bag punching and kicking my way to a clear head. Even when my mind had cleared, and I had a solid plan I kept going. I kept going until my muscles were so spent and fatigued that I fell to the floor mats breathing heavily.

  “So Little Bird what’s the plan,” Malcolm asked standing over me.

  “We’re going to Thomas Crown Affair his ass.”

  Chapter 33 Hedge

  “Exactly how many of those have you had?” Uncle Charlie asked waving at the coffee in my hand.

  “I don’t know like five,” I asked my leg bouncing on the rung of my stool.

  “Did you get any sleep?”

  “Ummm…”

  “That would be a no,” Malcolm answered for me taking a seat at the kitchen bench. “What did you do after I sent you to bed last night?”

  “I had another shower. I called my family. I planned!”

  After I worked out all my swirling emotions on the heavy bag, I lay on the mats and laughed and laughed until tears streamed down my face again. But this time they weren’t sad tears they were determined, happy tears.

  Malcolm pulled me to my feet and sent me off to bed to rest but not before handing me a new smart phone.

  “No one has touched any of your things since you left. Do what you must do to lock this thing down and call your boy. The car bomb would have made the news. Your family needs to know you’re okay.”

  I had a good fifteen-minute shower where I washed away the sweat from my work out and the guilt from not thinking about by family until then. I redressed in comfy clothes, fired up my old laptop and upgraded all the software and fire walls, then locked down my phone and called Jaxon.

  I let him know the abridged version of what happened and that I would need to be here for a little while longer. I reassured him that everything was okay, and that I was okay, but he may need to sit on Memphis for a while longer.

  Then I called Memphis and told him a sanitised take on the abridged version of what happened at the meeting. He was disappointed that I wasn’t calling to tell him I was on the way home, but said he understood especially when I told him that Gianni was in the hospital.

  I let him know I was staying with my uncle, which didn’t go over too well, but reassured him I wasn’t in any danger. I explained that was the reason I couldn’t video call him; my laptop was still at my flat and I wasn’t willing to go back there until it was all over. I didn’t want to risk being followed and putting Sam and Kelly in danger.

  We had a good long talk. He made me promise to call him every day. I let him know I may not be able to call, but I would – at the very least – text him to let him know I was okay.

  We took our time saying goodnight.

  Once I got my breath back and my heart rate returned to normal I set to work on my plan. I moved into the kitchen made myself an extra-large coffee and fired up my laptop. Which is where Uncle Charlie found me hours and few more coffees later buzzing.

  “So, what’s the plan?” Charlie asked.

  “We are going to Thomas Crown Affair his ass,” I said with a megawatt grin on my face.

  I have gone over every aspect of the plan and there was a little evil genius-ness about it.

  “Love it’s too early for me to try and figure out your cryptic shit,” Uncle Charlie said running a hand over his face.

  “Fine, spoilsport,” I huffed. “So, I thought about what to do for a long time and I decided that we needed to do things different to anything we had done before. We need to change things up. Every other time that Morningstar had gone an assignment it was quick, clean and painless. The target was picked up given the opportunity to right the wrong and if they refused, a bullet to the head, simple. After all the shit that Vex has put my family through, after what he did to Memphis, trying to start shit between you and Georgiou and then what he did to Gianni, well, simple is too good for him. Vex needs to pay for what he did.”

  “So, Little Bird what’s the plan?” Malcolm asked.

  “Vex deserves to be tortured before we end his miserable life. Hence the Thomas Crown Affair. You know the scene where they are in the art gallery. There are hundreds of bowler hat men walking around and they can’t figure out which one is the real Thomas. Well, we do something similar.”

  “You want to what, flood the streets with Morningstar’s?” Uncle Charlie asked laughing.

  “Not exactly, but I want to do is make him think he is seeing us everywhere. He assumes we will react immediately, that Morningstar will come straight for him. So, we do the exact opposite. We let him go about his life thinking nothing will happen, that there will
be no retaliation. We want him to think he got away with it, that he has the upper hand and then we fuck with his head. Every time he turns around he will see one of us. You, Morningstar, Georgiou, even Malcolm until he is seeing us in his sleep.”

  “But if we do that he will be so paranoid, he will beef up security and then you’ll won’t get anywhere near him,” Uncle Charlie said not quite seeing the plan.

  “Nicholas Vex is an arrogant prick who thinks he is untouchable. By placing the bomb in Gianni’s car, he thinks he won. The bomb was meant for Georgiou, Gianni was to be collateral damage.”

  “How can you tell?”

  “The blast was a directional charge. I ran through everything in my mind about the blast and then I accessed the cameras I checked the footage. The blast was designed to kill the person in the passenger seat. The blast blew out and to the left. So, the passenger was the target. If the blast killed anyone else in the car it was just a bonus.”

  I let them mull that over while I went to the sink rinsed out my coffee cup and grabbed an ice-cold bottle of water from the fridge. A thought occurred to me when I sat back down.

  “Uncle Charlie, just before we left the basement you called your driver.”

  “Yeah, so?”

  “You arrived at the meeting with Georgiou?”

  “Are you planning on making your point Little Bird?” Malcolm asked.

  “Were you planning to catch a lift with Georgiou and Gianni?”

  “Yes.”

  “Oh shit,” Malcolm said catching on.

  “Exactly.”

  “Georgiou wasn’t the only target.”

  “It wasn’t an assassination attempt it was…”

  “A motherfucking coup,” Uncle Charlie finished.

  “Exactly. If you hadn’t decided that you and Georgiou would take your town car cause needed to talk some more, you would have been in Gianni’s car. Even with the directional blast you all would have been killed. The only thing that saved Gianni was that he was still a few feet away when he hit the central locking and there’s still a chance that he might not make it.”