The Good Daughter

by Jean Brashear

  That night with Vince, she’d felt whole. Known a oneness with him that she’d never experienced in her life.

  Now Vince had turned his back on her, leaving her empty and cold. So cold.

  She struggled to cling to that one second when he’d first spotted her. The rush of joy she’d seen in his eyes.

  Roger and Don couldn’t be right. He was only trying to protect her, wasn’t he?

  But she needed him so much. She’d endured and risked everything, counting on that moment when he’d sweep her up and share the joy of his release.

  Instead, he’d left without a word.

  Chloe slid to the floor, curling up the way a sea creature seeks refuge in its shell. But her shell had vanished with the awakening she’d found in Vince’s arms, and without it, she was vulnerable and naked. Revealed as a fool.

  Doubts swept over her faith.

  She’d put herself on the line for Vince, and he’d rejected her in front of everyone, exposing her to the harsh glare of everyone’s pity.

  I’ve got to get back to work, Doc. Once before he’d only wanted to use her. And now?

  What hold does he have on you? Has he blinded you so much that you can’t discern who he is? Instinct curled Chloe into a tight ball on the cold tile floor. Desperately, she nurtured the tiny flame of hope.

  But that hope flickered in the too-thin air of loneliness.

  And a devastated Chloe wept.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  SHE AWOKE into darkness, realizing she still lay on the floor of the bathroom. Stiff muscles protested as she sat up. Her head ached from crying so much, and her throat hurt. She grasped the vanity to lift herself to standing and reached for the light switch.

  A floorboard creaked. Chloe froze, listening for footsteps. When nothing else happened, she clasped the doorknob and turned it, opening the door to her bedroom with exquisite care.

  Don’t be foolish. No one’s here. She’d locked the doors behind Mike.

  Another board protested someone’s weight. The knob on the door to the hallway began to turn.

  Heart racing, Chloe crossed the floor to her bedside phone, removed the portable receiver and returned to the bathroom. Quickly, she punched in the numbers for 911, terrified that whoever it was out there would hear the beeps.

  “Nine-one-one operator,” she heard a voice on the other end of the line say.

  “Someone’s in my house,” Chloe whispered.

  “I’m sorry, I can’t hear you. Please speak up—”

  The door flew open, knocking the phone from Chloe’s grasp just as a hand clamped over her mouth.

  Chloe tried to fight, but he was too strong. Her elbow connected with his stomach, and he grunted, then a sickening, sweet odor clogged her nose.

  “I’m sorry—he has to be stopped” was the last thing she heard.

  VINCE COULDN’T FIND Tino anywhere, and Leticia and Tino Junior were gone. He needed answers about Balderas, and he needed them now. He didn’t trust the investigators not to be in Newcombe’s pocket. Someone inside the department was the common denominator in all this, and no one seemed more likely than Newcombe.

  He slammed a fist on the steering wheel.

  His cell phone rang. “Yeah?”

  “Vince, it’s Akers.”

  “What the hell do you want? To rat me out again?”

  “Up yours, Coronado. I’m trying to do you a favor. It’s about your girlfriend.”

  “What?”

  “The doc. I just heard it on the scanner. Nine-one-one dispatched patrol to her address when a woman said someone was in her house. She didn’t answer after that, but there were sounds of a struggle. The unit searched the place, but she’s gone.”

  Vince’s stomach took a greasy slide into fear. “I’m headed over there now.”

  “They won’t let you in, but I’ll keep you posted.”

  “Why are you helping me, Akers?”

  Akers swore. “Forget it. Doc was good to me, and I thought you might care. Maybe I was wrong—”

  Vince was silent for a moment. “No. You weren’t wrong. I’ll be there in ten.” He disconnected and hit the gas. Dear God. Who had her?

  And what would they do to her now? Hang on, Chloe, he thought, wishing like hell he hadn’t abandoned her at the jail. If he’d gone to her, she’d be with him—and safe.

  He’d tried to shield her, thinking distance would be her armor. That she was only in danger if she was near him.

  Now she was gone, and—

  His phone rang again. “What?”

  “Vince, it’s Tino. He’s got your woman.”

  “Who? Moreno?”

  “Yeah. He wants a meet.”

  “When? Where?”

  “Alone. You don’t bring no one or he’ll kill her.”

  Vince struggled to keep his head. “All right. Where?”

  “Remember the old warehouse off Comal we used to sleep in sometimes?”

  “Yeah, I remember. When?”

  “One hour. And he’s serious, carnal. No cops. Come unarmed and don’t tell a soul.”

  “I understand. Where will you be?”

  “I don’t know if he’ll let me inside, but I’ll be in the area.”

  “Doing what? Aiming a gun at my head?”

  “Vince, he’s threatened Leticia and Tino Junior. I got to walk a fine line.” His voice turned sad. “I know you tried to help, carnal, but me, I ain’t gonna get free of this, ever.”

  Once Vince might have argued, but now all he could think about was Chloe. “She’d better not be hurt when I see her. You tell him that, Tino. He harms one hair on her head, and there won’t be a place on earth for him to hide.”

  “Just be there, bro. I’ll do what I can.” Then Tino was gone.

  Vince tried to shut his mind down cold, because logic and careful planning were his only weapons to save Chloe now. Even if he was prepared to risk contravening Moreno’s condition of silence, he wasn’t sure whom to trust. Someone inside the force was connected to all this, and he couldn’t be sure how deep the corruption went.

  The last sight he’d had of Chloe shimmered before him, her face pale with exhaustion and worry, her eyes filled with welcome.

  And he’d turned his back on her, on all she’d done for him.

  Now he might never have the chance to make it right.

  His phone rang again. A glance at the display made his jaw clench as he answered. “Mike, what the hell happened?”

  “I wish I knew. Christ, man, I’m sorry.”

  “You were supposed to be with her.”

  “She wanted to be alone. She begged me, Vince. So I made sure all the doors and windows were locked, and I had a unit patrolling the area and checking in with me.”

  “Then what went down?”

  “I don’t know.” Mike’s voice was thick with remorse. “And I need some answers from you, buddy. This isn’t something Newcombe would do. What aren’t you telling me?”

  “Nothing—” Vince raked fingers through his hair, wishing he could bring Mike in on it.

  “Bullshit. Does this have something to do with Moreno? The guy they said you killed, he was from Los Carnales. I thought you’d dropped that.”

  “I have to make a stop now, Mike. I’ll get back to you.”

  “Vince, wait—”

  Vince punched the End button and threw the phone on the seat.

  The phone rang again. Mike. Vince ignored him.

  Instead, he made one call himself, to Sally. Playing on past association, which he’d sworn never to do again, he arranged a quick meet at her place to secure a weapon. They might frisk him, and if so, he’d deal with it. He wouldn’t go in with a weapon visible, but he wanted the odds as even as he could get.

  Then, lies told to distract Sally, pistol strapped to his ankle to augment the knife in his pocket, Vince headed east.

  Praying that no matter what went down, he could still save Chloe.

  AFTER A CAREFUL casing of the block surrounding
the warehouse, Vince stepped inside. The heat was stifling, the air choked with dust spiraling in the dim light. Overhead, a turbine creaked, making a futile effort to vent the staleness, the smell of decades of men and machines…and now dust and mice and despair.

  Deep shadows shrouded much of the interior. The small windows high up on one side were caked with layers of grime, letting in only weak bars of sunshine. Waiting outside on the ancient, cracked asphalt would be cooler than suffocating in here.

  Nerves jangling, his thoughts clicked and whirled as he tried to ignore how naked he felt without a weapon in hand. If he failed Chloe, there was no one in reserve.

  Something behind him crackled. Vince started to turn—

  The blow came fast, jagged pain piercing like shrapnel into his head. Vince staggered but quickly recovered, lashing out with a powerful kick. A grunt told him he’d connected.

  He was trying to spot his assailant, when he heard a clearly feminine sob.

  “Stop or I’ll kill her.” A familiar voice.

  “Tino?” Vince blinked past the swirling dust. “Is that you? What the hell—”

  Then his vision cleared, and Vince faltered.

  Tino held Chloe tightly, the barrel of his pistol jammed into her side. Her eyes were huge and round and terrified.

  And suddenly Vince knew. “You’ve been playing me, you son of a—”

  “I’m sorry, man. I tried to tell you it was crazy to go after Moreno. None of this had to happen—but you didn’t let things drop.”

  Metal-cold fear tainted his tongue, vying with incandescent rage.

  Only a cool head would save her. He jerked on the reins of his temper and shoved down paralyzing fear. “Tell me why you betrayed me.” He held his friend’s gaze. If he looked too long at Chloe’s eyes, he’d lose the control he desperately needed.

  Then another voice came from the darkness. “Your friend has more important loyalties than a futile quest to avenge the death of a man who did not understand the meaning of the word.”

  Vince’s fingers clenched into fists. “Moreno.”

  The man he’d been dogging for months stepped into the light, inclining his head in acknowledgment. “Detective.” He glanced toward Tino. “Also, your friend is ambitious. To rise in the organization, he offered to trade upon your past relationship to remove you as a problem.” His expression hardened. “Of course, he also promised that the solution would be permanent, and up to now he has failed.”

  “Too bad.” Vince shrugged with indifference he wished he could feel.

  “Your quest has cost you. Regrettably it will now cost your lady. Was it worth the price?”

  “She’s innocent. Let her go.”

  “You’re far too intelligent to believe that can happen. So tell me—was Carlos worth it?”

  “He saved my life,” Vince said. He glanced at Tino with contempt. “Tried to save yours, too.” Vince moved a step to the right, shifting the angle between him and Tino to take Chloe out of Vince’s line of fire.

  “Quixotic fools, both of you,” Moreno scoffed. “Carlos turned his back on family for his ideals.”

  Vince frowned. “Family?”

  “You didn’t know he and I were cousins? Carlito thought he was better than the rest of us. Too good and pure to be stained by the family business.” He waved a hand. “I let him go and good riddance.”

  Vince shifted his weight, slowly edging another step closer to Tino. One more and he would be in shadows that might give him cover to draw his weapon.

  Eyes staring into the past, Moreno continued. “For years we kept a truce. He stayed out of our way, and we left him alone.” Dark eyes flashed. “He was the one who broke the agreement.” He shook his head. “But none of that matters now.”

  Vince needed to buy time. Tino was nervous, he could tell. The hand with the pistol wavered now and then. Tino’s eyes darted around.

  “So why did he break it?” Vince asked.

  “He’d discovered my source in your department.”

  “Who was it?”

  “I will not mention names, only that it was someone whose taste for gambling outstripped his skill.”

  Vince wanted to ask more, but he had to force Tino to let her go somehow. To focus on him.

  “So Carlos turned on you. Some people just don’t understand loyalty, do they?” Vince sneered, his eyes locked on Tino. “You save someone’s life, give them a chance and they stab you in the back.”

  Tino’s gaze flickered. “You always thought you were better. You walked away from me, carnal. All you cared about was pleasing some cop.” He practically spat the word. “You and me, we were supposed to be family, but you left me hangin’.”

  At another time, Vince would consider that angle, hearing, for just one second, a hurt young boy in Tino’s tone. In the end, he had latched on to Carlos like a life-line, a boy exhausted from the strain of keeping both Tino and himself alive.

  But only Chloe could matter now. She was truly innocent, and Tino had made his choices. Vince moved another step. “So you walked into his arms—” he nodded toward Moreno “—to show Carlos and me that you didn’t need us.” Slowly, he shook his head, making his pity clear, knowing Tino would hate that most. “Never understanding that you were merely a pawn in a game between Carlos and your new master.”

  “That’s not true.” Tino shot Moreno a glance. “I earned my way into Los Carnales.”

  While Tino’s attention was splintered, Vince caught Chloe’s gaze and mouthed Faint. She frowned, then her eyes went wide and she gave a tiny nod.

  Vince immediately shifted his focus to Moreno. “You going to tell him the truth? I mean, sure you need punks at the lower echelons to pull two-bit burglaries and run numbers or drugs, but those guys are a dime a dozen.” Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tino’s agitation increasing. “But there was a special satisfaction, wasn’t there, in luring someone Carlos wanted to save?”

  Before Moreno could answer, Vince shrugged. “Too bad this punk decided to play you, too.” Moreno frowned.

  Vince feigned surprise. “You didn’t know Tino asked me for help to go into Witness Protection?”

  “That’s not true—” Tino shouted, eyes darting desperately. “He’s lying, jefe. I was only—”

  Now, Vince mouthed to Chloe.

  She collapsed. Tino lost his grip.

  “Run,” Vince yelled at her, charging Tino, grabbing for his weapon as he slammed into Tino’s chest. The pistol skittered across the packed-earth floor. Vince rolled and went for the ankle holster. He came up to a crouch with the gun in his hand, sighting it on Moreno.

  “Stop right there, Vince,” said a new voice off to his left.

  Tino was doubled over, retching and gasping for breath. Vince kept his aim on Moreno but readied himself to fire at Tino if needed. He scanned the shadows for the source of the voice.

  A man stepped from the darkness near the door where Chloe had halted.

  “Akers.” Vince frowned. “What are you—”

  Then he saw Akers aim at Chloe.

  And it all clicked. “You. You’re the inside source in the department. I thought Newcombe was the one after me.”

  “He is. I just gave him a little help.”

  “But Gloria—I saw him with her—”

  “I threatened her son if she didn’t recant. He took the bait, he and Barnes.”

  “Let Chloe go, Akers. She has nothing to do with you. You told me you liked her.”

  Akers shrugged. “I do like her. Put down that weapon, and I’ll let her leave.”

  But Vince didn’t believe him. He watched Akers while directing his comments to Moreno, making his tone casual. “You get around, Moreno—I’ll give you that.” He edged a step to the side so that Akers would have trouble keeping both him and Chloe in sight. In his peripheral vision, he checked for Tino. Still on the floor, doubled up. “But your standards have hit an all-time low with him.”

  Akers reacted to the jab, taking his eyes off C
hloe for a second. Vince prayed she’d run.

  Instead, she darted toward Tino’s weapon.

  Akers swiveled toward her motion.

  “No, Chloe,” Vince shouted. He got off two quick rounds, knocking Akers backward.

  Just as a bullet slammed into his own chest.

  Thrown off balance, Vince tried to ignore the hammer blow of pain, whirling toward Moreno and squeezing his trigger.

  Moreno had drawn a weapon from beneath his jacket. He fired at Chloe.

  “No,” Vince shouted. His arm wouldn’t respond. His knees crumpled before he could see if she—

  “Police—freeze—”

  Moreno fired again. Shots rang out, and he fell.

  Finally, Vince spotted Chloe on the ground, and agony ripped through him. He staggered to his knees to go to her.

  Tino got to his feet.

  “Police, I said. Stop right there—”

  Tino ignored them, aiming straight at Vince.

  Shots slammed into Tino. He dropped like a stone.

  “Vince—” All of a sudden Chloe was up and running toward him.

  “Get down, Chloe. Don’t—” He tried to lift his weapon to protect her.

  A new voice intervened. “Stay there, Chloe.”

  Newcombe. What the hell? Vince’s vision wavered.

  “He’s hurt. Can’t you see that, Don?” Chloe sank to her knees beside him.

  Vince gathered one last bit of strength, pulling her into his body and rolling to protect her even as she struggled. “Stay down,” he gasped. “What are you doing here, Newcombe?”

  “I had a tail on you the minute you left the courthouse. Ditch your weapon, Coronado. Chloe, get away from him.”

  Vince’s weapon slipped from nerveless fingers. He stared into the face that was all the future he wanted. “What the hell were you thinking?” he asked her. “Why didn’t you run?”

  Her smile was a little wobbly. “I couldn’t leave you.”

  “Chloe,” Newcombe said.

  “Get him some help. He’s hurt.”

  “It’s not that bad,” Vince said. He tried to rise. His legs had a different idea. Darkness edged in.

  “Vince,” she cried out. “Don, he needs someone now—”

  “He’ll get his turn. First I want some answers.”