Double-Crossed

by Ali Vali

  “I told Mike to check it out since neither of these guys seems to have an open wound.”

  “Let’s go do the worst part of this job, kid.”

  “What?” Corey asked, staring at the bodies as if memorizing them.

  “The death notification, and this one should be especially interesting since it’s the Terzo family.” He hadn’t dealt with the connected families much in his career since they fell under the jurisdiction of the Feds, but he hated these bastards. It was hard to dredge up any sympathy for those who lived to piss on everything he stood for. When he saw horrible shit, like the situation with Naomi Williams and her child, he sometimes thought it would be better to let the bastards kill each other off. It would at least save the taxpayers. He couldn’t bring himself to break the law though—it just wasn’t who he was.

  “You think Mr. Terzo is going to retaliate?” Corey stepped back as the forensic team started setting up.

  “Is it fucking hot in Vegas in August?”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Brinley opened her eyes and blinked against the morning sun shining through the curtains. The house was quiet and she wondered what the day would hold. It had to be better than the last few, and with any luck, Reed would let her call her mom. She also wanted to get to know Reed better, which sounded ridiculous, but there was something about her that she felt she could help with. Considering Reed had kept them alive, it would be her way of returning the favor.

  Perhaps she was being naive, but Reed seemed like someone who’d done their best to survive the hand she’d been dealt and had gone off in a direction not everyone would choose because it was her only perceived option. Maybe if she could get Reed to let go of the violence she’d embraced, and show her another way to live, there’d never be another mother and child in her crosshairs.

  Granted, survival was her main goal, but Reed deserved to have the pain that had penetrated her soul eased—like taking a thorn from a lion’s paw. When they parted, and they would eventually, they could both find something good in all this, and that would help them each get back to something normal and safe.

  All she had to do was stay calm and keep Reed talking, and they might get back to where they’d started, but changed for the better. There was no way there wouldn’t be repercussions that would follow her out Reed’s door when that time came, but that she could handle. Being alive with the ability to run was the only way to keep moving forward.

  Finn was still where she’d put him, but he’d thrown off the blanket she’d taken off the sofa and covered him with. “We’re going to be okay, big boy,” she whispered as she gazed at him.

  A noise made her look up, and her knees went weak.

  She looked around for something to defend herself with when she saw the guy coming in. Whoever it was had either broken in or had a key, but Reed hadn’t mentioned any visitors. The only thing she could think of was the baseball sized marble balls she’d hidden in the sofa to keep Finn from breaking anything, so she reached into the sofa cushions and armed herself. With the way she was shaking, she might not have very good aim, but she had to do something.

  “Hey,” the guy said, and the voice was familiar. “You’re not thinking about clocking me with a knickknack, are you?”

  “Reed?” she asked, staring but still not believing it was her. This was the kind of guy who made you cross the street if you saw him heading toward you. “Wow, you must really rock Halloween.”

  “It’s a way of confusing live witnesses who need to be convinced it’s in their best interests to talk. The bushy mustache and long hair do most of the work for me since people think I have a biker gang waiting outside if they don’t cooperate.”

  Reed placed a briefcase on the counter and smiled, showing off two gold caps Brinley hadn’t noticed before. Of course there hadn’t been a lot of smiling since they’d met, but that look seemed to be out of character.

  “Did I wake you?”

  “I was too nervous to sleep, I guess.” She stared at Reed’s face, resisting the urge to touch it. “Did you have the same problem?”

  Reed’s phone buzzed before she could answer, and she nodded when Reed put up a finger. “Hey, Oscar, how’s Reno?”

  She stayed where she was since Reed didn’t ask her to move. The call let her study the disguise, and she had no problem imagining there was a man standing before her. If Reed’s success came from blending in, she’d have a long career stealing and completing contracts on people’s lives. It was a thought she kept pushing away, no matter how insistently it clamored for attention. The time now was to accentuate the positive since the negative could lead to a bullet in the head.

  “Let’s meet at the same café as before.”

  “Is something wrong?” she asked, following Reed to the garage door. It didn’t seem like she was leaving again, but Reed wasn’t exactly communicative.

  “Just a friend who likes to run around yelling about the sky falling. I’ll have to go out later and talk him off the ledge.” Reed carried another box in and placed it on the kitchen table. “I did get some answers for you, though.”

  “What is all this?” She put her hands on the box but didn’t open it.

  “Dean Jasper had a trove of information, but more importantly, the answers to what put you and Naomi in danger.” Reed brought in the briefcase and placed it next to the box. “He’s a strange little guy.”

  “Is he dead?” That question was getting repetitive, but no less horrifying.

  “Remember, that’s not my only job,” Reed said, sounding tired. “There’s only so many answers we can get from the small slice of the pie you have. Those files you kept aren’t going to help you, so it had to come from someone like Jasper, and he was in a talkative mood. He had all the answers in his house.”

  “Really?” She sat next to Reed and gave in to the urge to touch the droopy mustache. “That feels real.”

  “It has to if it’s going to work,” Reed said, not moving and barely breathing.

  “And it worked on Dean?” she asked, and Reed nodded as Brinley put her hand down. “I’m not surprised. He always struck me as a weasel.”

  “Like I said, he had an answer as to why Wallace wanted you both dead. Our conversation was stressful for him, but I wasn’t planning to kill him. He didn’t know that, though.”

  “What did he say?” Brinley wouldn’t readily believe anything Dean said only to save himself.

  “The audit had two purposes—to buy Wallace time, and to set up a new deal with the cartels. That was all. You and Naomi were setting up his proof that he could handle the money side of it, and he was gunning for the product end too. The only way to get that was to cut Terzo out and get a sweeter deal with his new partners. You were right on about the money laundering operation, but it was bigger than that.”

  “And we paid for that with our lives? Well, at least Naomi and her daughter did.” She covered her face with her hands at the terrible reality that someone would think so little about the life of an innocent woman and her child.

  “That’s the reality.” Reed got up and got them each a bottle of water. “The woman you saw with Jasper the day you had lunch with your friend is Caterina Terzo, and her father is one of the powerhouse Mob guys in town. That’s who set Wallace up at the Moroccan, which means he owed old man Terzo. The problem is those types of debts don’t ever get canceled, except by death.”

  “Okay,” she said, wanting Reed to talk faster. “What does that have to do with me?”

  “Dean Jasper should’ve done the audit since it involved their real numbers, but he said he was swamped. Without Wallace’s permission, he gave you and Naomi the assignment. When you noticed the difference between what they were reporting and what they were actually doing, that signed your death warrant. Wallace couldn’t risk having people out there who knew exactly how much money he was moving for the Terzos, and his plans for upgrading his bosses. The buzzards in the desert would’ve been full for days if Terzo had found out Wallace was
getting ready to double-cross him. For all he knew, you would go and tell Terzo. Paranoia breeds in bastards like Wallace.” Reed drained the bottle as if she wasn’t used to talking this much.

  “Why didn’t you kill him?” she blurted out. She wasn’t a violent person, but Dean deserved to die for what he did. His actions not only caused the death of her friend and an innocent little girl, but he’d also blown her world to hell. Now she didn’t see a way back to it, since these were the type of people who wouldn’t ever let her live.

  “Because you asked me not to, but he’s not going to keep the life he’s used to.” Reed stood again and motioned her up. “Will he be okay?” Reed pointed to Finn.

  “At six thirty he’ll be wild, but until then he’ll sleep through a stampede.” She smiled at the way Finn slept with total abandon. She’d long lost that ability herself.

  “Come upstairs so I can take all this off and we’ll finish talking.”

  She followed Reed to her bedroom, noticing the same tasteful decorating that held no personal touches that would distinguish it from a nice hotel room, although the bathroom had some things that weren’t the small bottles that would’ve made it seem like a resort. What had Reed said? I own everything in here, but none of it’s mine.

  “Have you lived here long?” She sat on the lid of the toilet and watched Reed strip off the wig and smear something around her mouth that removed the facial hair.

  “A couple of years,” Reed said, rinsing her face with water. “I had a condo for a few years, but I like the quiet of this place.”

  “I don’t play golf, but you’ve got a great backyard.” There was only so much small talk she could come up with, and she was running out.

  “I don’t play golf either, but it adds to the quiet.”

  Reed unbuttoned the denim shirt she was wearing and threw it in the hamper. Thankfully she had a T-shirt underneath, since she didn’t seem shy and Brinley wouldn’t have been able to keep from staring. Not that she was terribly successful now, either. Reed’s physique was impressive.

  “Back to your problem.”

  Brinley chuckled. “You’re a good problem solver, aren’t you?”

  Reed stared at her like she was dissecting her brain. “What do you mean, besides the obvious?”

  “You’re certainly laser focused.” She stood to put a little distance between them and waited to see how Reed would respond to her observation.

  “That’s my job,” Reed said. “It’s what I’m good at, and all I know.”

  “I’m sure, but I don’t see a way out of this one. This guy Wallace knows I’m walking around with knowledge I shouldn’t have, even though he hired me to do it. No matter how focused you are, nothing will change that.”

  “There are always more solutions than the obvious.” Reed never seemed to get overly upset or unhinged, but then, she was the predator in most situations.

  “I don’t want you to kill for me, Reed. I’d never ask that of you.” She thought Reed would if she asked, but she couldn’t live with that on her conscience.

  Reed nodded thoughtfully. “That would be the easiest route, though. If I kill the guys who hired me, it kills the contract.”

  “What’s the hard way?” In what world was murdering people the best option to keep her and Finn safe? The thought was chilling.

  “A good game of domino drop.” Reed made a flicking motion with her index finger, but Brinley still didn’t understand. “All we need to do is line them up correctly, and all of them will fall once the first one goes down.”

  There was more of that logical talk, and it was the matter-of-fact tone that undid Brinley. That same casual manner was probably what the guy who hired Reed had when he’d ordered her death. And Naomi’s.

  “What’s wrong?” Reed asked.

  She started crying and it didn’t take long for her to become hysterical. There really wasn’t any way out of this, and it wouldn’t matter as much if she didn’t have Finn, but she was totally screwed. Her tears continued, and she was surprised when Reed didn’t push her away when she practically fell into her and hung on to keep from drowning in her fear.

  “I’m sorry,” she said much later when the emotions burned off like dew in the Vegas heat. Reed was still holding her, and her T-shirt front was wet.

  “Did you forget our promise?” Reed asked softly. She might’ve been a hardened killer, but she was solid and smelled good.

  “I know you’re not going to kill us,” she said, not moving.

  “I promise I won’t let anyone else kill you, either.” Reed hesitantly placed her hands on her back and held her. “You may not believe me, but I promise you and Finn are safe as long as I’m breathing.”

  “This is so bizarre, but I do believe you.” She inhaled a few times before stepping back. “What are we going to do?”

  “That’s easy,” Reed said, opening her mouth and taking the gold caps off her teeth. “I sent Jasper running for his life, and his panic should make Wallace and his people easier to handle.”

  “I’m sorry, what?” Moving away from Reed made her cold, which could only mean she was losing her mind.

  “I convinced your boss that Wallace had taken out a contract on him, but I traded his life for the information he gave me. Jasper thinks that’s the only reason I let him live,” Reed said, running her tongue over her teeth. “The other part of the deal we made was for him to leave town. He thinks I’m going to use all that stuff downstairs to shake Wallace down for more than the contract amount.”

  “I’m not sure why you’re doing all this, but thank you again.”

  Reed smiled, and the little lines around her eyes crinkled. Her smile softened her, made her look like someone Brinley would gladly have met for a date sometime.

  “You know, I’m not sure either, but it is what it is. You don’t have to keep thanking me for it.”

  “Is there something I can do for you?” She wanted Reed to answer yes, though she wasn’t totally sure why.

  “Don’t give up.” Reed lost her humor and Brinley knew the reason lay in Reed’s history. “You quit, and people like Wallace and Jasper win. I’m no saint, Brinley, but there has to be a limit in a life like mine, and for me, you and Finn are it. You should’ve never been placed in a situation that cost you everything.”

  Brinley had lived her whole life playing by the rules, and Reed exemplified the complete opposite of that. In a black-and-white reality, Reed was no different than Wallace, Dean, and everyone else who’d put her in this situation. There was a difference though—a thin line that separated Reed from the total evil she was facing. She caught glimpses of it even though they weren’t readily apparent. Reed had a code, and she stuck to it.

  The deeper truth was, no one who was totally detached, vicious, and rotten would’ve held her the way Reed had, and they wouldn’t treat Finn the way Reed did. In a very strange way, Reed was the most genuine person she’d been around in a long time.

  “Believe me, I’m doing my best.”

  * * *

  Sofia stared at the two detectives and couldn’t believe what they were saying. Even if the police eventually believed she hadn’t killed Caterina, Francesco wasn’t ever going to buy it. She was dead, which would give Caterina what she wanted, even if she wasn’t around to see it.

  “Are you accusing me of something?” she asked as her attorney placed his hand over her forearm as if in warning.

  “Mrs. Madison, let me handle this,” Ezra Brayden said. “Detectives, is this a criminal matter?” Ezra asked, but Wamsley and Grant didn’t say anything. “Either answer the question or we’re leaving.”

  “This is only a fact-finding session,” Wamsley said and shrugged. “We’re not accusing Mrs. Madison of anything. It’s just that discovering two other people dead in the same exact way as Mr. Madison and his young mistress makes us curious. Both of you have to admit it was a bizarre way to die.”

  “Why would I kill anyone?” Sofia asked, and Ezra squeezed her arm again.<
br />
  “I’m sure you remember our visit the other day.” Wamsley tapped his finger on the file he’d brought to the house. He took the sheets with the texts on them and fanned them out. “Your husband was planning to kill you.”

  “Mrs. Madison had no prior knowledge of that,” Ezra said. “The first she knew of it was when you showed her those pages, and you redacted the names.”

  “Are you sure?” Wamsley asked. “My problem is that Victor was planning Mrs. Madison’s murder with Caterina Terzo, and now both are dead. Not only dead, but killed in the same manner.”

  “If she had no knowledge of Victor’s intentions, how in the hell would she know Caterina Terzo was helping him?” Ezra asked. “And why in the hell are we just hearing about this now? If Terzo was planning something against my client, we had a right to know.”

  “We were building a case against Ms. Terzo, but there was no proof Mr. Madison had actually hired anyone to make a hit before his death. There was no imminent danger.”

  Sofia needed to get out of the small room. The walls were getting darker and closer.

  “Are you arresting me?” Sofia asked a bit too loudly, so she took a breath and closed her eyes.

  “We’re talking, Mrs. Madison, that’s all,” Corey Grant said.

  “If you’d like to talk to her again, you’ll have to go through Mrs. Madison’s new criminal attorney. I’m here in her best interest, but criminal law isn’t my purview.” Ezra stood and helped her up. “Unless you’re legally holding her, we’re leaving. Mrs. Madison is still in the process of laying her husband to rest, and today’s command visit wasn’t appreciated.”

  Ezra shook his head when she went to say something, so they moved to the car and he gave her a ride home.

  “What the hell happened, Ezra? Caterina Terzo is really dead?” The police had picked her up at the mall as she was shopping for something black to wear to the funeral, and they’d made it sound like she had no choice but to go with them.