by Wilder, L.
“If you had tried to intervene, then they would’ve killed you too, sweetheart. You did the right thing,” I tried to assure her.
Still clinging to me, she cried, “Josue is a monster, just like his brother.”
“Yes, he is.”
I was still holding her when an officer walked over to us and said, “We’re going to need you to come down to the station to answer a few more questions.”
“Oh, okay,” she answered as she released me from our embrace. “Can he come with me?”
“That’s up to you, miss.”
“Will you go with me? I really don’t want to be alone right now,” she pleaded.
Before I could answer, the schmuck from the diner volunteered. “I’ll go with you, Reece. Besides, I’m sure the police will have some questions for me too.”
Ignoring him, I slipped my arm around her waist. “I’ll be more than happy to go with you, doll.”
“Thank you, Myles.” Then she looked over to him and said, “Hopefully, it won’t take long.”
“Don’t you worry about that,” he replied with a sappy look. “I just feel terrible about all this. You wouldn’t have even been here if it wasn’t for me.”
Before I could ask what he was talking about, the officer motioned over to Reece, “You guys can either ride with me, or just meet me over at the station.”
“We’ll meet you at the station,” I answered.
He gave me a quick nod. “Sounds good.”
Before we turned to leave, Reece said to the schmuck, “Hey, Myles. My … umm … car is around back if you want to ride with us.”
Myles glanced over at me with a disapproving look, making me want to punch him in the throat before he answered, “Thanks, but I think I’ll just meet you over there.”
“Suit yourself.” I took Reece’s hand in mine. “We’ll see you there.”
The street was still covered with cops and nosy neighbors, so it took a minute for us to make our way over to Reece’s car. She was about to get into the driver’s seat when I said, “I’ll drive.”
“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.”
She dropped the keys in my hand and walked over to the passenger side. Once we were inside, I sent a message to Blaze and let him know I was leaving with Reece. As soon as he responded, I started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. I had a million questions racing through my mind as we headed towards the police station, but I figured she’d talk when she was ready. I was right.
We’d only been riding for a few minutes when she started rambling, “My source called me a few days ago … He told me that my uncle had been at Jason’s apartment a few days prior. I went there to see if I could find out anything, and that’s when I met Jason. I asked him a few questions, and even though he answered them, I knew there was something he wasn’t telling me. I could feel it.” She let out a deep breath as she continued, “I actually thought it was a good idea when Myles suggested that we try talking to him again. But I also thought I’d have a better chance of getting more out of him on my own, so I came a little early.”
“How did you end up on the fire escape?”
“That’s the thing. I knew something was up when I saw that limo and the two black BMWs parked in the alley, and in my infinite wisdom”—she rolled her eyes and shook her head—“I decided not to wait on Myles and went around to the back. That’s when I saw the fire escape.”
“And you’re tellin’ me you thought it was a good idea to use it to get up to Jason’s apartment? Fuck, Reece. What were you thinking?”
“I was just going to look through the window. I didn’t think I’d actually see anything.”
“Do you have any idea how bad this could’ve turned out? You could’ve gotten hurt or worse … you could’ve been killed.”
“You’re right. I just wasn’t thinking.” She dropped her face into the palms of her hands as she grumbled, “I should’ve just stayed in bed an extra hour. Then I wouldn’t have to testify.”
“Testify?”
“Well, yeah. I’m a witness. I’ll have to testify. It’s the only way they’ll be able to keep Josue behind bars,” she explained. “Although, there’s just one problem. Josue has a habit of killing off witnesses, so if he’s going to pay for killing Jason, I’ll have to find a way to survive long enough to make it to the hearing.”
14
Reece
I’d found myself in some pretty precarious situations in my life, but I’d always managed to finagle my way out of them. This time was different. This time, there was no way out. While I was determined to see this thing through with Josue Navarro, I was a nervous wreck. I was trying my best to keep it together as I sat in one of the interrogation rooms and waited for Detective Rayburn to return. He’d been questioning me about what had happened at Jason’s apartment when he noticed my hands were trembling. He offered to get me a bottle of water, although I sure could have used something stronger. When he returned, the sound of the door opening startled me and I flinched. His smile was sympathetic, and he said, “This shouldn’t take long Ms. Winters. I just have a few more questions and then we can wrap this thing up.”
“Okay.”
He placed the water bottle down on the table and sat in the chair across from me. I watched as he started flipping through a book filled with mugshots, and once he found what he was looking for, he slid it over to me. “I need you to take a look at this.”
“Okay.”
“I need to know if you can identify the man who shot Mr. Brazzle.”
I looked down at the headshots, and as soon as I saw his beady little eyes staring back at me, I pointed to his picture. “That’s him. That’s Josue Navarro … the man who pulled the trigger.”
“You know Navarro?”
“I don’t know him, but I know who he is. He’s been in the papers more times than I can count.”
He nodded, and after writing something down in his notes, he asked, “Do you think you would recognize any of the other men who were there in the apartment with him?”
“It might take a minute, but I’m sure I could.” We went through several pages, and it wasn’t long before I’d identified all but three of Navarro’s men. “I’m sorry, but I just don’t see them here.”
“That’s fine. We can try again a little later.” He pushed the book to the side, and as he reached for his notepad, he said, “For now, let’s focus on what happened today. Let’s start with why you’d gone to Mr. Brazzle’s apartment this morning.”
“I was following up on an interview I’d had with him a few days prior.”
“What kind of interview?”
“I had some questions about an article I was writing for the Memphis Metro, and Myles and I were going back to talk to him.”
“Myles?”
“Yes. Myles Dixon. He’s a freelance writer for the paper and was supposed to meet me there, but I arrived a little earlier than we’d planned.”
“So, you were supposed to meet this Myles Dixon fellow at Mr. Brazzle’s apartment, so you could follow up on an interview you had with him about some article you were writing.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Okay, so how did you end up on the fire escape? Is this something you would typically do?”
“No. Not typically.” I took a sip of my water before I said, “I was just trying to get a look inside to make sure everything was okay.”
His eyes narrowed as he asked, “And what made you think you needed to do that?”
“There were a couple of BMWs and a limo parked out front. They didn’t seem to fit the area, and it made me a little suspicious.”
“Why didn’t you just wait for your reporter friend?”
I shrugged my shoulders as I answered, “I guess I wasn’t thinking.”
“I know this may be hard for you, but it’s better to talk about it when it’s fresh in your mind. Can you tell me exactly what you saw from Mr. Brazzle’s window?”
“I’ll try my best.” I pause
d for a moment before continuing, “Jason was bound to a chair with his hands tied behind his back. He was bloody and bruised, and it looked like he was struggling to keep his eyes open. Two of the men kept hitting him over and over while Navarro kept asking him questions.”
“Could you hear what they were saying?”
“No, sir, but it was pretty obvious they weren’t happy that Jason wasn’t talking. He just kept taking it. No matter how hard they hit him, he wouldn’t say a word.”
“Then what happened?”
“When they heard the police sirens, Navarro raised his gun and shot Jason in the head.” I reached for my phone as I said, “Here. I took a picture right when it happened.”
I wanted to take a full video, but I was just too nervous. I kept fumbling with my phone, but I did manage to get one image that showed everything the police would need to see. A surprised look crossed his face as he looked down at the screen. “You’ve gotta be kidding me! This is incredible.”
“I’m glad it’ll help.”
“Absolutely, but I’m going need our tech guy to download that picture off of your phone, so we can submit it as evidence.”
I paused when I remembered the video I’d taken of the surveillance footage. “Can’t I just send it to you?”
“It’s not that simple. We’ll need the time stamp and the number it was taken from.”
“But I have some personal pictures on it … some I’d taken for my boyfriend that I wouldn’t want anyone else to see,” I lied.
“We’re not looking to snoop through your phone, Ms. Winters. We’ll only need to get that one image.”I
“Okay, great.” Before handing it over, I quickly deleted the video I had saved, then handed it over to him.
He shook his head in disbelief as he took the phone from my hand. “I still can’t believe you actually got a picture of him pulling the trigger.”
“Yeah, but if I had I known that’s what I was going to see when I got up there, I would’ve never gone up that fire escape.”
“Well, it’s a good thing you did, otherwise we wouldn’t have apprehended one of the biggest cartel bosses in the country. We owe you a great deal for helping us make that happen.”
“I just hope you can actually keep him behind bars. I know men like Josue Navarro have a way of beating the system.”
“We’re going to do everything we can to keep that from happening, and with you as an eye witness, he won’t stand a chance of ever being released.”
“I hope you’re right about that.”
He gathered up all his paperwork, then stood up and said, “I think that will do it for now. Let’s get this picture downloaded, and then you can be on your way.”
I stood up and followed him to a small office where his computer guy was located. We both waited as he pulled the file from my phone, and once he was done, the detective returned it to me and led me back into the waiting room. As soon as Jackson spotted me, he got up and started in my direction, leaving Myles sitting there alone. Just as Jackson had approached us, I turned to Detective Rayburn and asked, “So, what happens now?”
“Navarro will be charged with first-degree murder, and once we get all the paperwork filed, there will be an arraignment hearing. I’m sure he’ll have himself a fancy lawyer, so that will probably be sooner than later. Considering Navarro’s history, the prosecutor will push for no bail.”
“When will you need me to testify?”
“I’ll be honest with you. It’s going to be a while.” He sighed as he said, “It takes months to get these kinds of cases through the court system, but we’ll do whatever it takes to ensure your safety. We need you at that hearing, so we may have to consider putting you into protective custody.”
Jackson gave the detective a fierce look as he said, “I’ve got her covered. I’ll see that she gets to the hearing.”
“You do realize that we’re dealing with the cartel here,” he remarked in a condescending tone.
“I’m well aware of that, and like I said, we’ll see that she’s at the hearing.”
“If you say so.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out one of his business cards. As he handed it to me, he said, “Call me if you need anything.”
“I will. Thank you, Detective Rayburn.”
I followed Jackson outside to the parking lot, and when we reached my car, he asked, “Where’s Tate?”
“He’s at daycare.”
“Which daycare?”
“Tiny Tots off of Sycamore. Why?”
I could hear the concern in his voice. “We need to go get him.”
“Why? What’s wrong?”
“You gotta remember who we’re dealing with here, Reece. Navarro is going to do everything in his power to keep you from testifying at that hearing.”
I felt an overwhelming tightness in my chest, making it difficult to breathe as I gasped, “You really think he’d go after Tate?”
“Absolutely,” he answered flatly. “He’ll go after anyone and everyone who might sway your decision to go up against him, but don’t worry about that. I’m going to do everything in my power to keep that from happening.”
“And what if you can’t?”
“I will, Reece. You’re gonna have to trust me on this.”
I wanted to push for more information, but I knew the whole trust thing was clearly important to him. With great hesitation, I kept my reservations to myself and got in the car. Before he turned on the engine, Jackson reached for my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “I won’t let anything happen to you or Tate.”
“You promise?”
“Yes, Reece.” I could see the sincerity in his eyes when he said, “I’d die before I let anything happen to either one of you.”
“Okay.”
“Now, let’s go get Tate, and then we need to talk to Gus.”
“Who’s Gus?”
“He’s the president of my club. He’ll help me find a way to keep you and your family safe.”
With that, he pulled out of the parking lot and drove over to Tate’s daycare. Once we’d picked him up, we headed over to the clubhouse to find Gus. When we arrived, several of his brothers were gathered in the parking lot, and as soon as Jackson parked the car, one of them came over to speak with him. He was a big guy with blond hair and a thick beard. At first, I found him a little intimidating with all his bulging muscles and tattoos, but there was a kindness to his voice and that set me at ease when he asked, “How did things go down at the station?”
“As well as could be expected, I guess. Navarro is still behind bars, so we have that going for us.”
“Good. That’s what I was hoping to hear.” The man looked over to me and smiled as he extended his hand. “You must be Reece. I’m Blaze. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Nice to meet you, Blaze.”
“And this must be Tate.” He smiled as he looked back over to Jackson and said, “Good-looking kid. Thank God he takes after his mother.”
“What are you talking about? He looks just like me. Look at those eyes, brother … and that nose. Spittin’ image if I ever saw one.”
Blaze chuckled as he shook his head and said, “Nope. I don’t see it. That youngin’ right there looks like his mom.” His smile quickly faded as he asked, “You’ve had quite a day. How are you holding up?”
“I’ve been better, but I’m hanging in there … and Jackson has been really great.”
“Good. If you need anything at all, just let us know.”
“Thank you. I really appreciate that.”
Before he turned to leave, Jackson asked Blaze, “Have you talked to Gus?”
“Yeah. I told him about what went down and that you were headed this way. He’s waiting in his office for you.”
“Thanks, brother. I’ll catch up with you in a bit.”
Jackson reached for my hand and led me inside the clubhouse. With Tate still propped up on my hip, I followed him down the hall and into a spacious office where a man was sitting a
t a large wooden desk. My entire body grew tense as I stood there staring at Gus. He didn’t seem all that bad, nothing like the rumors I’d heard. In fact, he looked nothing like a cold-blooded killer. His salt and pepper hair was brushed back away from his face, revealing beautiful hazel eyes, and while he was muscular and broad, he wasn’t as big as Blaze. Gus walked over to us, and with a warm smile, he extended his hand. “Reece. I hate that it’s under these circumstances, but it’s good to finally meet you. And Tate, too. Handsome boy you got there.”
“Thank you. It’s nice to meet you too, Gus.”
He walked back over to his desk and sat down, and once we were seated in front of him, he asked, “So, how did it go down at the police station?”
“They want her to testify against Navarro,” Jackson answered.
“I figured that much. Did they give you any idea on whether or not he’d be released on bail?”
“Detective Rayburn said the prosecutor would do his best to persuade the judge not to offer bail, but there are no guarantees.”
“I don’t know. The prosecutor might be able to pull it off,” Gus replied sounding optimistic. “Navarro’s got a lot stacked against him, and the fact that he’s a flight risk doesn’t work in his favor either.”
“Let’s hope that’s enough, because the last thing we need is for him to be back on the streets. When he finds out that Reece is planning to testify, he’ll come after her, for sure.”
“He’ll come after her, regardless. A man like Josue Navarro doesn’t like loose ends, and Reece is one loose end he’s never had before.” Gus looked over to me, and his voice was low and firm when he said, “I don’t want you worrying about Navarro. We’re not going to let anything happen to you or your boy.”
The tears started burning my eyes as I asked, “What about my parents? He might try to—”
“We’ll watch after them too, darlin’. You don’t have to worry about that.” He looked over to Jackson and said, “I’ll send a couple of the prospects over to get their things. Once everything’s sorted, we’ll need to take them up to Jed’s cabin. We’ll keep them there until it’s time for her to testify.”
