Real Love 4 (If Loving You is Wrong)

by H. H. Fowler

  “Levi…,” Sasha called out. “Let me come with you.”

  “I don’t think that is such a good idea,” he said stiffly. “You and I have done enough damage to each other. So please, let today be the end of the misery between us. Besides, you have a husband at home and I have a woman to save.”

  ****

  “You sneaky little whore,” the gunman growled at Yasmine. He pulled her up by her hair until she tumbled out of the trunk. “How the hell did you get your hands free of that masking tape? I knew my ears weren’t deceiving when I heard that knocking in the trunk. I will teach you a lesson about trying to break free.”

  The gunman retrieved a long thick rope from the floor of the car and then proceeded to bind Yasmine as if he were mummifying a dead person with linen strips. Her hands were locked to her sides, making it impossible for her to even move her shoulders. Thankfully, by then, she’d already shoved the cell phone back into her pocket and the gunman hadn’t any idea that she’d made contact with the one person she knew would be able to help her.

  Chapter Twelve

  8:11 a.m.

  Mitchell and his team arrived in Tampa on that first flight and they were already on the compound, inspecting Yasmine’s apartment and the apartment next to it – the one where Albert was assigned to monitor the witness. Mitchell’s plan was to show up unannounced and hopefully glean information he would not have gotten if he’d stayed in Devin’s Cay. However, it seemed as if they were the ones to be surprised. Although the apartments still showed signs of habitation, neither Albert nor Yasmine, for that matter, were anywhere to be found.

  Now Mitchell’s initial thought was that Albert had taken Yasmine out for an early breakfast. That appeared to be highly unlikely, because for one, Albert’s car was still in his driveway and the engine was cold to the touch. Secondly, it would be against Albert’s nature to disregard the rules that Mitchell had put into place, which was that if there was any movement of the witness outside the walls of the compound, Albert’s job was to alert Mitchell about it.

  “Come and take a look at this, sir.”

  Mitchell followed one of his team members toward the front area of Yasmine’s apartment. There were shoe marks smudged on the tiles. Some furniture appeared to have been moved out of place, along with a trail of red dirt that led to the back door.

  “Signs of a scuffle,” Mitchell commented. “And if that red dirt is one and the same that surrounds the palm trees on Yasmine’s lawn, what is it doing in here?”

  “The signs of a scuffle is one thing,” the young officer said to Mitchell’s rhetorical question. “But no witness. No Albert…I think we have a very serious problem, sir. What is our next move? Should we get the US Marshals involved? You know they are very skilled at tracking down fugitives on the run.”

  “Are you assuming Albert to be a fugitive?”

  “Of course not, sir. I was referring to Ms. Strummer. Isn’t she supposed to be in jail for falsely accusing a man of rape?”

  “And she is also our star witness,” Mitchell said, reminding the young officer. “That is why we placed her here in the witness protection program to begin with – in exchange for her testimony against Dewey.”

  “Well, maybe she’s gotten cold feet and Albert is out looking for her.”

  “That is a nice theory you’ve got there, young man, but it’s highly improbable that Yasmine would be able to escape under the watchful eye of Albert Hummington. Besides, Albert would have contacted me a long time ago, if that were the case.”

  “Then maybe we should call him – to see where he is.”

  Mitchell had been thinking the same thing; he pulled out his cell phone to punch in Albert’s number. However, his attempt was interrupted by another call coming through from the Devin’s Cay Police.

  “Yes?”

  “Officer Mitchell,” a female voice said. “A man by the name of Levi Johnson is sitting in front of me, stating that Yasmine Strummer called him and he is convinced that she is in a lot of trouble.”

  “Yasmine has been warned to cut off all ties from that island,” Mitchell spat. “Why on earth would she call anyone, releasing sensitive information?”

  “I think you will want to talk to him,” the woman went on. “He said Yasmine told him to tell you that Albert has been killed.”

  Mitchell felt like the wind had been knocked out of his body. Even if this was a prank call, Mitchell wouldn’t be too happy about it, because for one, Albert was a dear and trusted colleague and it would mean that Mitchell was right all along to assume that some strange plot was going on behind his back. But why in the world would Yasmine call Levi about such news and not contact the police directly?

  “Put Mr. Johnson on the phone,” Mitchell barked. “Let me settle this nonsense.”

  “I heard her repeating over and over again that Ronnie’s men were in Tampa and that they were coming to check on her,” Levi said without preamble. “Doesn’t that sound like she is in some sort of trouble to you?”

  Mitchell knew better than to reveal his current location or information of Yasmine’s whereabouts for that matter. “Tell me why you were in communication with Ms. Strummer in the first place.”

  “That’s irrelevant. A man is dead and Yasmine could be next.”

  Levi was right, but Mitchell wouldn’t dare allow his ego to be bruised. “Listen, young blood, I’m calling the shots and I’ll tell you what’s irrelevant or not. Now tell me: What time did Yasmine call you and try to tell me exactly what she said.”

  “It could not be more the twenty minutes since I spoke to her. She said I should contact you because you would know what to do. She said that Albert had been killed…that he had been shot...”

  “Did she specifically say that it was Ronnie’s men who shot Albert?”

  “She sort of alluded to it…”

  “Did she say it or not?”

  “The way she said, ‘they’ it was obvious that she was referring to Ronnie’s men – the same men who could be after her.”

  “Did she say anything else?”

  “She was breaking up and it was hard for to me make out everything she was saying.”

  “You’re wearing my patience thin,” Mitchell said, raising his voice a few notches. “Think, man, think!”

  “Under the circumstances, I’m doing the best I can,” Levi snapped. “I was gonna tell you it sounded like Yasmine said that Albert had been killed three days ago –”

  Three days? Mitchell didn’t even bother to end the call in a decent manner. He had just spoken to Albert within the last twenty-four hours. How could it be that he’d been killed three days ago? And although Mitchell had questioned Albert’s recent behavior, he was not ready to accept that Albert was involved in some sort of shenanigans involving the witness. Something definitely wasn’t adding up and Mitchell was about to get to the bottom of it with one phone call to Albert. But before he did that, he wanted to be certain to catch Albert in the act, just in case the man was indeed a traitor.

  He rounded up his team and began spitting out orders like a madman. The cell phones that Albert and Yasmine were given were secure, but not foolproof. Mitchell could still have them tapped, using the Pen Register / Trap and Trace technique – which could be converted to real time data needed to reveal the target’s location at the time of each call event. It took Mitchell less than half an hour to enlist the intelligence of a team of US law enforcement agents, who from time to time, assisted the Devin’s Cay Police with their investigations. Thank God his superior had alerted them in advance. They were all positioned at various points of action, ready to move upon command.

  ****

  Twenty Miles to Daytona Abortion Clinic

  Albert cast his weary eyes to the passenger seat where his partner in crime had finally embraced the pull of a deep sleep. They’d been taking turns behind the wheel, driving at the start of dawn toward Daytona Beach, which was almost 160 miles from where they had been in Tampa. However, when it came time
for Albert to take the wheel, like it was at the moment, his partner would doze off for ten minutes, only to stay awake and yap continuously about his excursions in prison. So Albert was quite relieved to finally have some peace and quiet and to think about what he’d done.

  Where would he even start with this mess? The only reason he’d risked his career and maybe even his life was because Ronnie had made the deal so sweet that Albert couldn’t resist. Two hundred thousand dollars was a lot of money to be given in one lump sum. And if that wasn’t enough, Ronnie promised to put him on a retainer of four thousand dollars a month if Albert agreed to be his eyes and ears within the Devin’s Cay Police. Four thousand dollars. That was eight hundred dollars more than Albert’s monthly salary.

  Because Ronnie knew that it would have been next to impossible to get to Yasmine once she was tucked away in a witness protection program, he needed an inside man. And so to prove that Albert could be trusted, Albert’s first test was to make it easy for Ronnie to gain access to Yasmine by infiltrated the security measures that had been put into place by the Devin’s Cay Police. That was why Albert volunteered not only to accompany Yasmine to the United States, but to be her personal guard, to monitor her, so that he could collect information that would be beneficial to Ronnie and his men.

  Albert’s second test was to accompany one of Ronnie’s men to ensure that Yasmine got an abortion at a clinic that was several hours away in another state. Yasmine was also to be confined and placed into the trunk. It was brutal and totally unnecessary. However, Ronnie did this for two reasons: To gauge Albert’s reaction, because Ronnie knew that no self-respecting cop with a conscience was going to endure that. Also, with Yasmine hidden in the truck, it protected Albert from being seen by her until they were sure she hadn’t any form of contact with the outside world. Because as far as Yasmine was concerned, Albert was supposed to be dead.

  But as long as Yasmine remained alive and by some slight chance she knew Albert had deceived her, there was always a slim chance of word getting back to Mitchell that Albert was a traitor. And Ronnie couldn’t afford to have Albert’s cover blown – not when he had so many criminal charges pending for Albert to manipulate. Ronnie and the men whom Ronnie hired were uncivilized in their approach to everything and Albert may have gone along with their foolishness, but that didn’t mean that Albert fully agreed with it.

  Albert knew they were testing him, especially with Yasmine being stuffed into the trunk like she was already dead. It didn’t matter that she was three months pregnant, which would soon change anyway, as they were on their way to the abortion clinic to have her gutted. But still, it was the principle. That was why every opportunity he got, Albert used wisdom to convince his partner to let Yasmine out of the trunk to get some fresh air. He reasoned that Yasmine could be dead before they got the chance to torture her and what fun was there in that? And even though Albert had to hide somewhere in the meantime, that simple action gave Yasmine a little hope that she would probably live to see another day.

  Shortly after nine in the morning, Albert felt his cell vibrating in his lap. He didn’t have to look at the caller ID to know that it was Mitchell.

  “I was expecting your call,” Albert said into the phone.

  “I said that I would call, didn’t I?” Mitchell quipped. “I need to have a word with the witness.”

  “Sir, you do realize she has a phone of her own?”

  “She’s not answering. But for some reason, she only speaks to me when I call your number. And I wanna know why that is.”

  Albert grew quiet as his partner began to stir in the passenger seat. His eyes suddenly popped open, pinning Albert with a suspicious look.

  “Who the hell are you talking to?” he spat.

  “My backup...” Albert noticed the man reaching for his pistol, but Albert’s moves were much quicker. He swiped the pistol from the man’s side like the trained professional he was and pumped two bullets into the man’s forehead. Albert had one last thing to say to the man as his body slumped toward the dashboard. “How foolish of you to forget, you heartless bastard, that I am the police…and a darn good one at that.”

  Mitchell was yelling into Albert’s ear at this point. “Albert, what the dickens is going on?”

  “Sir, I’ve just handed you Ronnie’s head on a silver platter. We’ve finally gotten him.”

  “Allow me to express what I believe you’re saying to me...” So stunned Mitchell was that it was impossible for him to conceal the incredulity in his tone. “You mean to tell me that you singlehandedly set up a sting operation without going through the proper channels of approval and then put the entire Devin’s Cay Police force at risk to play superman? Do you know the repercussions behind such an action?”

  “I am aware of that, sir. But I had to work alone or Ronnie would have found out that we were on to him. He’s a pretty smart man. As a matter of fact, it was Ronnie who approached me with an offer that very few people would be able to turn down. However, I saw it was an opportunity to ensnare him in his own mess and I simply seized it. Now, I’m prepared to accept my punishment, but know this, sir: Ronnie is going to jail for a long time.”

  “What is your exact location?” Mitchell asked as a test question. Intelligence had traced the call to a tower some one hundred miles away in the vicinity of Key West Village.

  “I’m five minutes outside Daytona Beach, but I’m turning around to head back up to Tampa. I will explain everything in person and give you all the physical proof you will need to seal this case shut.”

  A feeling of relief washed over Mitchell, as Key West Village was in Daytona Beach. But more importantly, Albert had not betrayed his colleagues as he had been led to believe. “Well, if it was left up to me,” Mitchell said, “I would put you in charge of the investigation, simply for the huge risk you’ve taken upon yourself. It was stupid, but I can’t say that I’m not impressed. Excellent job, Albert. And can I safely assume that Ms. Strummer is alive and well?”

  Albert suddenly pulled the rental car to the side of the road because he’d forgotten that Yasmine was still in the trunk. Heart pounding, he popped open the trunk, fearing that Yasmine and her baby may have lost their lives at the expense of him pursuing justice. He almost cried when he saw how that fool had bound her with a rope. It was unthinkable for a man to do this to a pregnant woman. But thankfully, it appeared as if the breath of life was still present. And as Albert began to untie her, he spoke back into the phone to Mitchell.

  “She’s a little bumped up, but she is alive and well, sir. We will see you guys in a few hours.”

  Albert could hear the shouts of celebration in the background as he disconnected from Mitchell.

  ****

  Love comforteth like sunshine after rain.

  William Shakespeare

  “Hi Levi. Officer Mitchell is asking for my phone so that it can be submitted into evidence. But before I release it to him, I just wanted to send a quick message to let you know that I’m doing okay.”

  Levi gave a deep sigh of relief when he saw Yasmine’s text. For close to four hours, he’d been waiting on pins and needles to hear the good news. He couldn’t even go in to work that evening because of how worried he was over the situation. By the time he responded to Yasmine, his eyes were stinging with tears.

  “You have no idea how relieved I am to know that you’re okay. Where are you now? I want to see you.”

  “I’m still in Tampa, getting checked out at the hospital…I wish you were here with me right now.”

  “Do you really mean that? Because I will try to find a way.”

  “Lol…you are such an amazing man. How did Sasha ever choose Drake over you?”

  “I care not to talk about that coldhearted woman. This is your moment and I don’t want anything interfering with that.”

  “I’m just saying, you are an awesome catch and I thank God for the day you walked into my life.”

  Levi allowed those words to marinate a bit before he
returned with a question. “In that moment, when you felt as if you wouldn’t see me again, you told me that you loved me. Did you mean it?”

  “I meant every word of it. I just didn’t know how to tell you before today. And I can’t wait to kiss you and tell it to you in person.”

  “Well, that settles it, girl. There’s no looking back for me. I intend to make you a very happy woman.”

  “Lol…remember, you said no promises.”

  “Promises are made to be broken – especially the ones that made no sense to begin with. Hurry and come home to me, girl. My arms are waiting to hold you.”

  THREE DAYS LATER

  Epilogue

  Sunday Morning – 7:11 a.m.

  The news stations were blowing up with excitement, as clips showed Ronnie and several men being carried away in handcuffs from the Supreme Court. It was a sight that the entire island of Devin’s Cay had been waiting to see. The terrorizer, who had set a church on fire and was making a mockery out of the Devin’s Cay Police had finally been knocked down off his high horse and now the island felt safe. A young, vibrant anchorman had this to say of the celebratory event,

  “Once again, the Devin’s Cay Police has proven that it is indeed a force to be reckoned with. With the help of one courageous officer, Albert Hummington, the Devin’s Cay Police were able to infiltrate the ranks of one of the most ruthless gangs that ever existed within the island’s history. John Dewey, also known as Ronnie has finally been charged and convicted of dozens of crimes, some recent and some dating back some eighteen years ago – including rape, extortion, kidnap, murder and attempted murder.