Chapter 20
Ashia
‘Novocaine’ – Too Close To Touch, Bad Omens
“I still don’t understand what the hell we’re doing all the way in Williamsburg,” Zeke complains and crosses his arms over chest as he leans back in the passenger seat.
It is pretty late, and we’re all tired. Well, except for Daisy.
She’s sitting next to me in the back seat with her tongue hanging out of her mouth, enjoying the ride.
It’s been a long day between searching for leads and renewing the contracts with the side businesses.
I got to visit Emmett at home, and while that was nice, it only made me feel guilty.
He had asked another one of the barbers to take over Cut Me Down’s operations, and while I feel bad that I couldn’t fulfill my promise to Emmett, I’m grateful for it.
There’s no way I would have time to run the barber shop and look for Damien as intensely as I need to.
When I heard John was heading out to interrogate someone, I demanded to come. That pretty much volunteered Zeke to come as well, because he won’t let me go anywhere without him. At this point, I’m lucky I can go to the bathroom without someone glued to my hip.
John turns to look at Zeke and scowls.
“Are you daft?”
“Well, that’s hateful,” Zeke retorts sarcastically. John then turns a little more to look at me before looking back at the road.
“How is my son friends with him?”
I just shake my head.
“Zeke’s great. He’s just a little out there,” I point out. “Plus, he’s my brother. So, that’s another reason to put up with him,” I joke and smirk at Zeke.
“Clearly,” John retorts, completely unamused.
“Hey, alright. Listen here, old man—” Zeke points in his direction, but John snaps and grasps his finger in his fist. He twists violently, and Zeke grimaces. “I’m kidding, damn!”
I can’t help but laugh when John lets his finger go.
“As I’ve said, now for the third time, I was looking up some old contacts from my casefiles. Everyone except the man we’re going to talk to now is either dead, in prison, or out of the country,” John says aggressively.
“And this guy is related to DeLuca and Saconne how?” Zeke asks as he massages his finger.
“He was a hardware dealer.”
“Hardware?” I inquire.
“Yes. He would supply things like chains, cuffs, restraints, locks, and cell gates. They were all made with a tungsten alloy, and while it’s almost impossible to break, it’s also very hard to work with due to its melting point. The craftsmanship of whoever he gets it from is unmatched.”
“Great. So, pretty much anything to hold someone captive, this douchebag had,” Zeke interjects.
“Precisely.”
“Well, it would definitely take a lot to contain D’s big ass. He’s strong as hell.”
I roll my eyes at Zeke.
“Exactly. And when it comes to DeLuca and Saconne? They only go with what, and who, they can trust.”
“Which could be this guy,” I conclude.
“Most likely this guy, from the sounds of it,” Zeke corrects me.
“Yes. Plus, I find it strange he’s in the state again.
We lost track of him after I retired, and now he’s suddenly within a couple of hours from the city?
I don’t like it,” John seethes, and I suddenly get a little nervous.
This could potentially be a lead, and it has to go perfectly.
If this is a chance to find Damien, we have to get everything we can out of him, and that means doing whatever it takes to get that information—whatever it takes.
We continue to drive in heavy silence, and now that we’re only about ten minutes away, we’re all getting antsy.
John’s grip on the steering wheel is so tight that I can see the veins in his hands, and Zeke’s leg is bouncing again.
Daisy, who was at one point relaxed, is now starting to twitch in the seat, like she knows what’s about to happen.
I keep fidgeting with my hands, and I hate that I know how it feels now.
Whenever the guys have gone out on missions before, I always wondered how the hell they stayed so calm until the action started.
Now, I realize that they weren’t calm at all.
“You’ve got your silencer, right?” Zeke asks John, and he looks back at him like he got dumber in the past few minutes.
“She’s carrying my grandchild, and you don’t think I packed a silencer?” John asks, completely dumbfounded.
“Well, she’s my sister. I have to check,” Zeke argues back.
“Alright. Enough, you two. I am fine, and the baby is fine. We’ll work with whatever we have.
Stop focusing on me. Let’s get what we need and head back.
” I sit up a little straighter and try to stretch out the best I can, because I don’t know how this is going to go, but I imagine with people as volatile as John and Zeke are, that this is about to be really interesting.
We pull into a rundown neighborhood, and I notice John focusing on the houses to the right of the street.
Zeke sits up straighter, and his gaze bounces across both sides of the road, on high alert.
Their reactions make it clear that this is where we need to be, but I’m curious how they can see if something is out of the ordinary when we don’t even know this place.
We have no prior surveillance, no information other than an address, and then of course, John knows what he looks like.
But apart from something that screams ‘danger,’ I’m not sure what to look for.
The car finally stops in front of one of the more decrepit homes, and John turns in the seat to face me.
“You stay right here until it’s safe,” he demands, and I can tell by the seriousness in his tone that any argument is out of the question.
“Yes, sir.”
John gets out and storms up to the front door. Just when I think he’ll try to sneak inside or at least look around, he acts in true Hartley fashion and thrusts his heel into the door, busting it down. He sprints inside, and my heart starts to beat out of my chest.
“Huh. So that’s where D gets it from,” Zeke says in a smartass tone, and I can’t help but chuckle nervously. I know he’s trying to lighten the mood, but I’m still trying to gear myself up. This kind of thing isn’t new to him. I just hope he remembers that it’s new to me.
We suddenly hear a loud crash from inside, followed by shouts, and then a man that isn’t John runs out of the front door.
“Fuck!” Zeke yells and practically jumps out of the car.
I try to do the same, but this little belly makes it kind of difficult, and I’m already a solid few seconds behind Zeke.
I keep the door ajar and let Daisy land beside me before I focus back again.
Zeke takes off just as John is exiting the front of the house, and I have half a mind to chase after the man as well, but he’s so fast that I’ll never catch him.
I know who can, though.
As Daisy’s fur rubs against my leg, a lightbulb explodes in my head.
I frantically reach for my keys and pull out the laser pointer Darnell gave me.
When he insisted on keeping it on me at all times, I didn’t really understand why.
Now, I do. I point the laser at the man’s back as quickly as I can, and before I can even speak, I hear Daisy growl—obviously ready for the action.
“Daisy! Engage!” I command her. She takes off like a rocket and zooms past Zeke in a matter of a second.
I’ve seen dog shows and ‘Cops,’ but actually witnessing a monster like Daisy firsthand is astonishing.
I mean, she was just drooling and begging for scratches twenty minutes ago. Now, it’s like she’s a different dog.
A snarl comes from her throat before she pounces, and then she jumps up and wraps her jaws around his side, towards the back, near where his kidney would be.
The hardware dealer falls to the ground, and Daisy fully jumps onto his back, never unclenching her mouth.
He screams and jerks from side to side, but I know that Daisy won’t let go of him until she’s told.
“Hell yeah, Ash!” Zeke yells as he runs up to them. I quicken my pace so I can catch up quickly, and John reaches them at the same time as I do.
“Shut up and get him inside. We don’t need to draw any more attention than we already have.”
“Daisy. Heel,” I demand. She finally releases him and moves away enough for John and Zeke to stand him back up.
I kneel down to Daisy’s height and take in her happy face.
Her tongue is hanging out of her mouth again, and I don’t even question it when some blood drips down with her drool.
“You did so good, Daisy! You’re such a good girl,” I coo and scratch under her chin, letting her know she did exactly what she was supposed to do.
She tilts her head to the side and closes her eyes like she was just playing fetch, and not about to rip someone’s organ out.
When they manage to drag the dealer closer to the house, I stand up and walk Daisy in the same direction.
She patters along beside me as we catch up, prancing like this is just any walk in the park.
Her cute little nails clink against the sidewalk, and she continues to look up at me as we step up to the entryway of the home, like she’s already about to beg for more scratches.
After a quick look around to make sure no one saw what we just did, we all step inside.
Well, the man gets thrown back inside, but it’s the same concept.
The moment I close the door, I instantly regret it.
This house smells horrible. It’s moldy and musty, and there’s a strong kick of body odor that could only come from the worn-down furniture.
There are clothes, trash, and decaying food sprawled out everywhere, and it makes my stomach churn.
I actually gag a little. John must see the look on my face, because he gives me a concerned glare before he whips around to face the man.
“I take it you weren’t expecting visitors, Marco?” John asks him.