Chapter 29
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Luca
It felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders telling her about my past. After we made love, we climbed into the bathtub, and her body meshed with mine.
“This is the second bath I’ve taken today.” She looked up at me.
“But I’m sure this one has already far exceeded the one you took earlier.” I smiled as I kissed her nose.
“It definitely has.”
“I want to know how Wendy found out about what I had done. It’s really bothering me.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“My last name hadn’t always been Russo. My real name was Luciano Benedetti. The only people who called me Luca were my friends and family. After being found not guilty and acquitted of all charges, I officially and legally changed my name from Luciano to Luca and took my mother’s maiden name, Russo. I wanted no part of my father’s name attached to me,” I spoke as I ran the loofah sponge up and down her arm.
“I don’t blame you. You wanted a fresh start. Kind of makes me think about who I really am. Shit, Luca. My birth certificate is a lie. My last name technically isn’t even Williams. It’s Brooks.”
“Well, I happen to like your name, Miss Williams. I think it fits you very nicely.”
“Thank you, Mr. Russo.” A small smile escaped her.
“Do you think your mom is still in New York?” I asked.
“You mean Julia?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know. Maybe. She’s probably hanging out in the lobby of your building, waiting for you to walk through the doors.”
“Well, she’s going to be waiting a while because I’m not going home tonight.” I smiled.
“Does that mean we’re having a sleepover?”
“That’s exactly what it means.” I grinned.
“So, can we pop some popcorn and watch girly movies?” Ariana asked with excitement.
“We can watch any movie you want to. That’s if we’re not too tired from what we’re about to do.” My lips pressed against the side of her neck.
She let out a light moan as she tilted her head to the side, giving me more access.
Ariana
The next morning, I jumped out of bed and made a pot of coffee before Luca woke up. There was much work to be done this next week, and I needed every minute I could get. I sat down at the table and opened the case files.
“Good morning.” Luca walked over to me and kissed my head.
“Morning. Coffee’s ready.”
“Thanks. You should have woken me up.”
“You were tired, plus I couldn’t sleep. I have too much information rolling around in my head.”
He chuckled. “Welcome to the world of being a defense attorney.”
Luca poured himself some coffee and took a seat across from me.
“The one thing the DA can’t prove is that you had a motive because you didn’t have one.”
“Motive is irrelevant when I was caught with the weapon and her blood on my shirt.”
I got up from the table and sat on his lap, wrapping my arms around his neck.
“I will find out the truth. I need you to trust me.”
“I do trust you. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have hired you.” He kissed my lips.
“Good. No more secrets. So, if there’s anything else you’re not telling me, you better spill it now.”
“There isn’t anything else. I promise.”
“You said your record was expunged, right?” I asked.
“Yes. Why?”
“Do you think you can get your file from your grandfather?”
“Yes. I’m sure he still has it. I don’t understand why you’d want it.”
“I just want to look at it.”
“Why? That has nothing to do with this case.” He cocked his head.
“Listen, Luca. You have a past, and who knows, maybe I’m grasping at straws. But I think it’s important that I know about that case.”
“I’ll call him. Maybe we can drive out to his place tomorrow.”
“Sounds good.” I got up from his lap. “I have to go. I have a client to clear.” I winked. “There’s an extra key in the kitchen drawer. Make sure to lock up.”
As soon as I left my building, I pulled out my phone and called Sheila.
“Sheila, it’s me. I need you to come with me to Gina’s apartment.”
“What are we looking for?” she asked.
“Since she ran her own business, she had to keep a list of all her clients, and we’re going to find it.”
“You don’t think the cops already found it?”
“Why would they even look? They already have their suspect.”
“True. I’ll meet you there.”
When I got out of the cab that took me to the high-rise building in Tribeca where Gina lived, I saw Sheila waiting for me in front of the large glass double doors. When we walked inside and spoke with the building manager, Sheila flashed her investigator badge, and he let us into Gina’s apartment.
“Wow,” I spoke as I looked around the twenty-five hundred square foot luxury apartment. “The life of a call girl sure does pay off.”
“No kidding. Look at this place,” Sheila spoke.
It was professionally decorated in gray and white with a pop of plum thrown in. I walked into the primary bedroom and opened her walk-in closet, which was bigger than my apartment bedroom. It was filled with designer clothes, shoes, and handbags that practically matched every outfit she owned. On one of the shelves, there was a line of wigs. Short hair, long hair, medium hair, curly hair, and straight hair in brunette, black and red.
“What’s with all these wigs?” I asked.
“Probably for her clients. Depending upon what color hair they were into,” Sheila replied as she walked out of the bedroom.
“Ah.” I raised my brow.
On the left side of her closet, tucked in the corner, was a rack of long gowns. Pushing each hanger over and checking out the beautiful dresses that hung there, I noticed cuts that formed a square in the wall. When I jammed my fingers into them, the piece of the wall came out, and sitting inside was a laptop computer.
“Sheila,” I shouted. “I found something.”
I pulled the laptop out and set it on the table in the dining room.
“Where did you find that?” Sheila asked.
“Hidden in the wall in the closet.”
I plugged the plug into the outlet and pushed open the top. Instantly, the desktop screen appeared.
“Why wouldn’t she have this locked?” Sheila asked.
“Probably because she kept it hidden.”
“I don’t understand. The police have her laptop down at the station.”
“I can guarantee this is her work laptop.” I smiled.
I clicked on the documents file, and “Client List” came up.
“Bam!” I grinned at Sheila.
She sat down in the chair next to me as I nervously opened it, hoping that I wouldn’t find Luca’s name anywhere on that list.
“Holy shit. Look at who her clients were,” Sheila exclaimed. “Politicians, detectives, high-powered attorneys, CEOs of major companies. Jesus, Ariana, if this list ever got out.”
I frantically searched through the names and let out a breath when Luca’s name never appeared. Then I came across a name both Sheila and I recognized: Sam Butler.
“I’ll be damned.” Sheila shook her head. “I can’t believe Sam was involved with this woman. I always thought he and his wife were the perfect couple.”
“Goes to show things aren’t always as they seem,” I spoke. “Is there a printer around here?”
“I think I saw one in the bedroom. Are you printing that?”
“You bet I am. We may need this.”
I hit the print button and then clicked on the calendar icon.
“Let’s see if Miss Burroughs had any appointments the day of her murder.”