Vendetta

by Jennifer Moulton

  Mark was considering this. He had to think very carefully about the Captains involvement. Maybe he could use this as an opportunity. Whether he trusted the Captain or not…he could use him to get information he wouldn‘t normally have. There was nothing he could really do about it now.

  “I don’t really have a choice, do I?” Mark didn’t like the idea, but in the end it’s not going to matter anyway. If there were dirty cops involved, it wouldn’t be a major surprise. If the Captain was legit, then it would definitely help to have all their support and contacts. Anything to get him closer to Leo...

  “I know you don‘t like the idea, but this is the best thing for everyone. You want answers right, proof? He can help. I think we should really head over now. Are you going to follow me over, or would you like a ride?” Williams said as pulled out his keys.

  Mark looked at his watch. “I‘ll ride with you, I walked this morning.”

  “It’s nine o’clock,” Mark thought. “I wonder where Nick is.”

  ~

  Julie had an overwhelming feeling of dread as she drove back to work. She didn’t know if it was fear or adrenaline that fueled it. She knew her husband was up to no good, and she felt compelled to get an explanation. Tires squealing, Julie abruptly turned the car around and drove to the restaurant.

  She parked in the back lot of a department store, hoping her car wouldn’t be recognized. It was just across the alley, from the restaurants back parking lot. She pulled the hood of her jacket over her head.

  “It’s show time Jule’s,” she said to herself. Julie walked across the parking lot, and headed towards the service entrance of the restaurant. She saw Nicks truck, and tried to pay close attention to the few other vehicles, but who was she kidding? She didn‘t know which people drove what, anyway!

  Suddenly, the metal doors swung open and hit the building with a loud bang, startling Julie out of her mind. A man carrying linen bags came out, instantly apologizing for the scare.

  “Hello, there! My husband works here... Nick Butler? Could you hold the door for me?” She asked sweetly.

  “Oh, yes, Mrs. Butler, go on in! He’s in Dom’s office I believe,” he said with a warm smile.

  She thanked him and wished him a great day. She needed to refocus on the task at hand. She didn’t know exactly what to say to Nick, but she would figure something out. She was determined to get answers.

  A young lady stood in the dining hall arranging the table settings, when Julie came walking out of the kitchen. She looked up from her silverware and noticed Julie.

  “Hello, Miss, can I help you?” She asked as she began to walk towards her.

  “Hi! I’m Julie Butler, Nick’s wife,” Julie said.

  “Oh, yes. Hello! My name is Sophia. I’m Dom’s niece, Anita’s daughter,” she smiled.

  Julie walked over to her and shook her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, I’m sorry to hear that your mother is ill,” Julie said sincerely.

  “Thank you,” she said quietly. She smiled warmly at Julie. Julie had never heard of Sophia before.

  “I’m looking for my husband, is he in your Uncle’s office?” Julie began to walk towards the hallway.

  “Yes, I believe so, but he’s in a meeting right now. Would you like to wait out here?” Sophia began to walk after her.

  “No, that’s alright. I’ll see him now, thanks,” Julie reached the hallway, continuing towards the office.

  “But he’s with my Aunt, and I have specific orders that they are not to be disturbed,” Sophia said persistently.

  Julie stopped and turned towards Sophia, “Your Aunt …Lucy?” Julie quickly turned back around and walked even faster and as she came up to the office, she could still hear Sophia’s protests.

  “Please, Miss Julie, you will get me in so much trouble!” She whispered harshly.

  Julie got to the door and stopped abruptly, with Sophia quick on her heels. Julie quickly turned and faced her, putting a finger to her own lips to silence the girl. Listening to the muffled conversation on the other side of the door, Julie was able to discern the two voices. Only able to make out certain words, she leaned in closer and focused harder.

  “You guys are going to protect me, right? You won’t let all this come back on me?” Nick was frantic.

  “Don’t worry so much!” Lucy said. “Everything’s going to work out, just as planned. You need to calm down and keep it together for just one more day. Do you think you can handle THAT?” Lucy’s annoyance was obvious.

  “Keep your wits about you, your acting like an idiot!” Lucy‘s tone was icy.

  “I’m sorry, I‘m trying! It’s just that I’ll feel better once he gets here and I know everything’s cool between us,” Nick said. Julie heard Nick plop down into Dom’s squeaky leather chair.

  “Trust me, Darling. He will be grateful for all you‘ve done for us. As soon as he gets here tomorrow, you will be properly rewarded,” Lucy lowered and softened her voice.

  “Until then, Lover, you shouldn’t worry about pleasing anyone… but me.” Julie heard what sounded like a moan from Nick. The sound of crinkling papers and the squeaky chair told her ears more than she needed to know. Lucy began to giggle.

  It became incredibly clear that there was something going on between them. Julie’s stomach churned and she covered her mouth. Stumbling back down the hallway with Sophia at her side, Julie turned and pointed in the office‘s direction.

  “Don’t you dare tell them I was here, you got it?” Julie scolded.

  Sophia nodded, but Julie didn’t see. She was already out of the kitchen and had bolted out the back door, sprinting across the parking lot. Just before she made it to her car… Julie stopped, and vomited in a bush.

  CHAPTER 9

  THINK FAST

  Mark and Detective Williams were seated in Captain Jack Haddock’s office. After meeting him, Mark had to admit, he seemed like an alright guy. Mark wasn’t paying any attention to Williams and Haddock‘s conversation, as it didn’t pertain to him. Mark was looking at the pictures of his wife and children on his desk. They seemed like a very happy family, even if they happened to be smiling for the sake of their pictures.

  “Nice, bright smiles,” Mark said aloud. “What are their names?” Mark asked.

  “Pardon me?” Captain Haddock looked puzzled. He glanced at Williams then back to Mark.

  “The names of your family,” Mark answered.

  “Oh! That’s my wife, Patricia, and our four children, Natalie, Michael, Amanda and Jack Haddock Jr.,” he smiled proudly.

  “Lovely family, congratulations,” Mark said politely.

  “Thank you, Mr. Anderson,” said Haddock.

  He wasn’t sure what to say to Mark, if he should say anything at all. Maybe something along the lines of… “I’m sorry to hear about your family, sorry they’ve all passed?” No, he decided. That wouldn’t be appropriate.

  There was an uncomfortable silence in the air.

  “Sir, you said you had information regarding the woman who had visited Mr. Vanzetti?” Williams asked, breaking the awkward tension and bringing up business at hand as the topic of conversation, once again.

  “Awe, yes! I received a photo that you requested from a security camera at the prison. I was also able to get another name, an alias, when we ran Christina L. Mazzo against a missing person’s data base,” Haddock stated.

  “Missing persons?” Mark asked.

  “Apparently, Christina L. Mazzo… simply disappeared one afternoon, after telling her husband that she was going for a walk, poor fellow,” Haddock added.

  Haddock opened a file that had been in front of him. “All though it seems to me, that Christina L. Mazzo is the alias,” he took a long drink of his coffee, finishing it.

  “Really,” Williams was fascinated. “Then what’s her real name?” he asked.

  Haddock handed Williams the print out, as Mark anxiously grabbed the photo. Williams began to read aloud….

  “Christina L. Mazzo, a.
k.a. Christina Lucia Vanzetti… is the only known living relative…” Williams’s voice faded as he looked up and noticed Marks reaction to the photo he held.

  Mark’s grip tightened, crinkling the paper print out and bundling it up in his fist. He placed it in front of the unsuspecting Williams to look at it. Mark sat back down swiftly, and fell forward, putting his head in his hands.

  “Christina Lucia Vanzetti is Leo’s older sister!” Mark said. He stood straight up out of his chair, causing it to fall backwards.

  Williams reached up to grab Marks trembling shoulder, and stop him from leaving, “Ok, calm down Mark, at least we know who she is now. Did you know her personally?” he asked.

  Mark looked up at the ceiling, put his hands behind his head and smiled eerily. Leaning over onto the desk, he slowly spoke to Haddock.

  “Yeah, I knew her personally and I know who she is… NOW,” Mark hissed.

  He put his finger on the blurred black and white photo that lay half crumpled on the desk.

  “Only I know her as, “Mrs. Lucy Angelo.”

  ~

  Julie was too upset to be driving… but she felt like she needed to get far, far away. Her first thought was to go to the police and tell them what she had heard back at the restaurant, and tell them about the phone call she had overheard the night before. She had too many questions and not enough answers for them. To her, it was obvious that Nick was cheating on her, but that didn’t matter to her now. She knew that they had grown distant over this last year… become different people even…but this?

  To her it sounded like the impossible, that Nick might have actually done it. Nick might have killed Allie. If he did do it, who was it for… Lucy? NO, that made no sense. No sense at all! Her head was reeling. Then suddenly only one thing was clear. She had to find Mark and tell him…now. It would be very difficult to tell him such bad news, but she had to.

  Julie pulled over at the busy gas station on the corner and parked. Dumping out the contents of her purse in the passenger seat, she easily found her cell phone, and called Mark.

  “Mark, where are you?” she said out loud. It went straight to voice mail. He must have turned his phone off. She hung up not leaving a message. She decided to text him, “call a.s.a.p.” Panic seized her stomach as she tried desperately to focus on what she needed to do next.

  “One thing at a time, Jules,” she whispered. She had to think fast. What if Sophia had already told them she was there? She would definitely have some explaining to do. She knew her life could very well be in danger if she told him that she knew everything… that she thought he had killed Allie and that she heard Lucy say, “Lover”…

  That was it! Julie had a plan. May not be a good one, but it was a plan nonetheless. She could play the victim for a moment, if it meant keeping Nick and Lucy from wondering what she might have heard while she was there.

  She took a deep breath and exhaled. “Okay, ASSHOLE. You want to play games… Let’s play.”

  Julie picked up the phone and this time… she called Nick. Except, this time, he answered his phone right away. Damn! This threw her off, but only for a second.

  “Hi! I came by the restaurant to see you, because I was thinking about how stressed you were about your meeting…and YOU were with LUCY in Dom‘s office. I want you to know, that I heard her call you Lover! LOVER, NICK! I didn’t hear anything else… but that’s all I needed to hear!” She sounded infuriated.

  “Wait, Julie! Let me explain,” Nick was panicking now.

  “Don’t expect me to be home when you get off work… and if you knew what was good for you, you’d let me cool off before you even TRY to contact me!” she growled.

  “Ah, shit! Julie, I’m sorry! I never meant for you to find out this way-” Nick tried to apologize, but Julie hung up on him.

  Shaking and half proud of herself… she now had a perfect cover.

  Julie immediately started driving towards the police station. They could at least help her get a hold of Detective Williams. And as for Nick, she had just busted him pretty good, that’s all that was on his mind for now. He wouldn’t be suspecting her of anything otherwise. She just bought herself some valuable time.

  CHAPTER 10

  UNARMED

  There was a knock at the door to Captain Haddocks’ office. The three men, on edge, stood as Deputy Hansen entered the room.

  “Excuse me, Detective Williams. A Ms. Butler is here looking for you. She says it’s pretty important,” Deputy Hansen added. The Deputy gestured towards a woman sitting next to his desk.

  “Julie?” Marks heart skipped a beat.

  “Excuse me, Officer,” Mark made his way around Deputy Hansen and went out the door towards Julie.

  “Julie, what’s the matter? What happened?” Mark was concerned to see his friend so visibly shaken and sitting in the police station.

  Unable to actually tell him, there was so much going through her mind, she ran to him and hugged him tight. Just seeing him made her burst into tears. How was she supposed to get this all out? She had no idea where to begin.

  “Please, come into my office,” Captain Haddock held the door open.

  Mark walked with Julie back into the Captains office and helped her into the chair where he was just sitting. He stood next to her, leaning back up against the wall. He was anxious to hear what she had to say.

  Captain Haddock asked his Deputy, that they not be disturbed. He shut the door behind him.

  With everyone listening closely, Julie began to tell them of her visit to the restaurant. She told them what she’d heard, and of her phone call to Nick. She explained how she used the claim of jealousy and rage to her advantage, to allow for time to speak with Williams. She spoke slowly, just trying to get it all out. It was very difficult for her. Haddock then asked Julie if she would agree to sign a statement, which she agreed to do, eagerly.

  “I’ll do anything that could possibly help,” she said willingly.

  “That was some quick thinking, Ms. Butler. You’ve done a great job,” Haddock was very patient and sympathetic with her. “Is there anything we can get you? A bottle of water perhaps-”

  Haddock was suddenly interrupted by a swift movement and a loud crash, as the door to his office had suddenly been torn from its hinges. A flurry of activity erupted in the precinct, outside of the now opened door. Mark was desperately trying to get out of the nearest exit, knocking over anything that was in his way. Detective Williams reacted quickly and ran after him. Another Officer saw this and managed to reach out and grab Mark’s arm just as he went by his desk, but Mark skillfully twisted the man’s arm back behind him and shoved him to the ground.

  “Mark, STOP!” Williams yelled, lunging for him. He had managed to get his arms around Mark, and hang on, using his bodies “dead weight” to keep him from going any further. Mark spun his body, flinging Williams’ to the ground.

  “Mark, don’t do this! Please stop!” Williams pleaded. He got up and ran after him again, jumping over a table and knocking papers and supplies onto the floor. He knew where Mark was headed. He was going after Nick.

  Yelling for help, Williams shouted to the stunned officers. “Block the entrance! Don‘t let him leave!”

  Other police officers began to grab at Mark and he fought them off too. One by one, they didn’t stand a chance.

  “He’s unarmed!” Williams shouted.

  Julie watched, horrified, from behind Captain Haddock, who stood in the shattered doorway.

  “No, he’s not Sir! He has two 9mm handguns strapped to his chest!” Deputy Hansen exclaimed.

  Williams paused. He honestly didn’t know that. Five officers descended upon Mark.

  “Just let me go!” he growled.

  One of them kicked his legs out from under him as they struggled to get Mark onto his stomach. They managed to get his arms twisted behind him to handcuff him. He continued to resist as they pressed his face harder into the floor. Mark suddenly felt a shocking pain in the side of his neck, as vol
ts of electricity pulsed through his body, temporarily paralyzing him. They stripped him of his guns.

  Williams suddenly appeared over him, telling the officers to get up. “You got him down, now hand him over to me. Come on; get off him … NOW!”

  Haddock tried to explain to his men what was going on.

  “He just found out, that it might have been his friend that killed his daughter. Please, restrain him, but give him the benefit of the doubt. He‘s a grieving father,” Haddock tried to diffuse the suddenly volatile situation.

  Marks ridged body jolted on the floor. He continued to fight, even with the effects of the second dose of the Taser coursing through him. Williams knelt down next to Mark’s head and breathlessly tried to calm him.

  “Now is not the time for revenge. Just try to hold on to that last little bit of sanity you got. I know it‘s there somewhere. Let us bring Nick in and question him. You can trust me, okay? Stop fighting us and they’ll remove the taser.”

  Williams tried to catch his breath and sat down on the floor. Mark stopped moving and lay still on the floor.

  “We can’t just let you go and kill someone, even if he does deserve it. We‘ll get him, and when we do, you bet your ass, you’ll be there to see it,” Williams stayed next to him and waved off the other police officers that stood nearby. He decided to wait a moment before he would un-cuff Mark. Mark didn’t say a word.

  Williams helped Mark, as he struggled to sit up. He looked like he was in a lot of pain. Williams removed the barbs from his neck. Marks red face was distorted, but not by the sting of the Taser. It was pure anger and turmoil. His icy glare was dark as night. Inside, the ominous betrayal that he felt burned into his very soul.

  Mark let out a stifled roar, like a beast being gutted alive. Trying to lean over towards the waste basket, he dry heaved several times. His guts constricted and squeezed him from the inside out.