30. Val
THIRTY
VAL
“Whoa. Where do you think you’re going?”
Gemma’s face twisted as she walked toward me. “With you.”
I stopped her with my hands on her shoulders. “Gem, no.”
“You said that Evan was looking for Parker. If he’s in trouble, I have to go. I’ll go crazy staying here, and I don’t feel safe alone.” Her eyes pleaded with me. “Please. Please don’t leave me here by myself.”
I chewed the inside of my lip. The only thing we were doing was driving around Tipp to see if we could find Evan and talk some sense into him. Maybe he’d even listen to Gemma.
I weighed the options and sighed. “Fine. We’re just looking to see if we can find Evan. Talk him out of doing something stupid. That’s it.”
“Yeah. I’m good with that.” Gemma grabbed her coat and headed toward the Silverado. Once we were settled into the cab, we pulled out onto the highway and headed toward town. “Where do you think he’d go? ”
I shrugged, energy radiated down my arms, and I forced myself not to speed. “He’s angry and worried about you. I’m hoping he’s just in town asking around.” The quick drive through town produced nothing. I pulled into a parking spot near the Rasa.
“Maybe they’ve seen him.” I tilted my head toward Gemma, signaling her to follow me. We walked into the bar, scanning the crowd. I went straight to Al, who was wiping down the bar.
“You just missed your boy.” Al barely looked at us as he continued cleaning.
“How long ago? Do you know where he was headed?”
He nodded. “Not sure. He was looking for his kin, but I’ll tell you what I told him. His brother ain’t the one to be watching out for.”
Gemma took a step forward. “What do you mean?”
Al raked a hand through his wiry beard. “It wasn’t him that was asking the questions, but another dude. Tall, skin had scarring on it.” Al looked at us, his mouth grim. “No soul behind his eyes.”
“Was it acne scarring?”
Al considered. “Coulda been.”
Gemma gripped my arm. “That’s Michael. He grew up with Evan and Parker. He and Parker were pretty close, I think. They did a lot of jobs together.”
Michael.
Evan had told me about their childhood friend who’d also been brought up alongside the Mafia.
Clearly, no lost, impressionable boy was safe around the Chicago Mafia.
They gathered them, providing safety, security, and power.
Evan believed he was full of darkness, but I knew in my heart it was more shades of gray.
Michael, on the other hand, had become ruthless.
The few stories Evan had shared had turned my stomach until I couldn’t stand to know more.
“The other man, Michael. He was here?”
Al pointed between the two of us. “He’s the one who’d been asking around about you three. Up to no good if you ask me. He wasn’t welcome here.”
I leaned across the bar and pulled Al into a quick hug. “Al, thank you!” I tucked my arm into Gemma’s and moved toward the door. “We have to go. Thank you!”
Gemma ran with me back to the truck. “You think you know where he’s at?”
“I don’t know. Not really, but there’s got to be somewhere around here an outsider can go and not be noticed.”
We drove for what felt like forever, winding down endless country roads. Cell service was spotty, per usual, so attempting to use the maps was practically useless. I crisscrossed through the county, using the looming mountain to get my bearings.
Old farmhouses. Abandoned buildings.
He could be anywhere.
Doubt crept in. Gemma stayed silent and stared out the window.
My gut was screaming that Michael was here.
Close. That the people I loved were in danger, but I had no proof except for a sinking feeling in my stomach.
My whole life I’d trusted that feeling. I couldn’t stop now.
If I could find places where someone like him would hide— something— maybe it could help Ma and the other agents look into it.
Farther down a county road, Gemma grabbed my arm. “There! ”
I looked to the side of the road but didn’t see what she was pointing at.
“Tire tracks in the mud. They turn and go down that little dirt road.”
I slowed, seeing the tracks Gemma had noticed.
They veered off the highway onto a dirty road that disappeared beyond the trees.
My ears pricked and goose bumps erupted on my skin.
I turned the truck onto the road, bracing myself against the bumps of the uneven surface.
I looked again but couldn’t see anything but road and patchy forest.
This is stupid.
“Okay, Gem. We can let everyone know. Let’s turn back.”
She gripped her arms and nodded. I continued forward, looking for a place to turn around, and spotted a clearing. An old church was long forgotten in a patch of dying grass.
“You see that, right?”
I nodded at Gemma. A newer-looking car was tucked under the awning at the side of the building.
Illinois plates.
My heart beat a war drum rhythm. I pulled out my cell phone.
Please have cell service. Please, please.
“Do you have service?” Gemma pulled out her phone but frowned. I pulled up Scotty’s number.
Me: Went driving to find Evan. No luck but found something odd. An old church building, Cedar County Baptist? Looks abandoned but there’s a car here. It may be worth checking out. We’re heading back.
With the message, I tried to drop a pin to my location, but the little bar at the top seemed to stall. I prayed the message had gone through. It wasn’t worth getting killed over, so I slowly shifted the truck to reverse to back down the dirt road.
Movement at the window caught my eye at the same time Gemma said, “Did you see that?”
Fuck .
If this was Michael and he was hiding out, there was no doubt he’d seen us. If we’d spooked him, he’d be gone.
“We need to go. I need to get you back home.”
“Val, what if he leaves? Or what if he has Evan tied up in there or something?”
I clenched my jaw. That was highly unlikely, but now that she’d spoken the words, I couldn’t get it out of my head. Our window of opportunity to question this person was rapidly shrinking.
I pointed at Gemma. “Stay in the car. Lock the door behind me. Keep trying the phones to get through to anyone on the ranch. Tell them where we are. I’ll make a loop around the building, and if I don’t see anyone, we’re leaving.”
She swallowed hard and nodded. I reached into the glove box and pulled out the service weapon and handcuffs that I’d gotten since being back on duty, and her eyes went wide. I reached across to squeeze her hand. “Back in two minutes. Keep calling.”
I quietly got out of the truck, checking my surroundings and creeping slowly toward the old building.
The white structure stood stark against the cloudy afternoon sky.
Its gray shingles were peeled at the corners, and the north side of the roof was covered in slick, emerald moss.
The paint, once a vibrant white, had long since faded to a dull, smoky alabaster and was peeling on every side.
The windows that were broken had plywood on the back.
It had been ages since this building had been loved .
I watched for any movement inside the church, but there was only the swaying of the trees.
I listened, the sounds of the forest and leaves rustling at my feet.
I crept forward and sent up a silent prayer that this didn’t end in disaster.
I would have given anything to have backup—Scotty, Ma, even Evan—anyone to watch my back and Gemma’s, but that wasn’t an option.
I would rely on my training to investigate any possible threats and get the hell out of there.
I glanced at Gemma, who gave me one curt nod as she clicked the locks on the truck.
I straightened my shoulders and moved quietly around the side of the building.
The car was poorly hidden under the sagging awning, but the entire building was sheltered from the main road.
It was a desolate, abandoned church. The perfect place to hide.
A cursory glance showed the inside of the car was spotless.
I placed my hand on the glossy black paint of the hood.
Still warm.
The cool fall breeze kicked up, and I could smell overpowering cologne just before a large frame stepped forward and grabbed me from behind. One arm was tight around my neck, and the other wrenched the gun from my hands. I watched in horror as it bounced away in the grass and dirt.
“Stop! Police!”
I had startled him, and he tightened his uneven grip around my neck.
I turned my face just enough to see a smirk play on his lips.
His face was calm as he struggled to hold me.
As Gemma had recalled, it was riddled with small pockmarks, likely from years of acne.
Another scar ran down the side of his neck, definitely not from acne.
It was jagged and ugly. His eyes were green and reminded me of a serpent. Evil rolled off him in waves.
“Can I help you with something?” His cocky smirk turned darker as he glanced over my shoulder. I shifted my weight to block Gemma from his view.
“You are under arrest.” My voice was hard and commanding despite the hold he had me in.
“Doesn’t much look like it to me.” Humor danced in his voice. “For what charge, sweetheart?”
“Stalking. Obstruction of justice in a federal investigation. You’re being brought in for questioning. Let me go and I won’t add assaulting an officer to the list.” It was total bullshit. At this point I was making it up and praying he didn’t know the law well enough to see right through me.
I assessed his hold on me. I needed to break free to control this situation and get Gemma the hell out of there.
Using my training, I reared my hips back to make him unstable.
I slammed my foot down on top of his. The surprise loosened the grip around my neck, and I flung myself forward toward the gun.
My head reared back, and stars exploded behind my eyelids as I was yanked backward by my hair.
“Fucking bitch!” Michael roared as he dragged me closer to the building by my hair.
He tipped my head up, the cloudy afternoon sun blinding my eyes.
Gemma’s scream had a newfound source of energy pouring out of me.
I hooked my leg around his in an attempt to make his grip unstable. He was too fast, too strong.
I watched in horror as Gemma, being lifted by another man and fighting to get free, came around the corner. Tears streamed down her face, black mascara running tracks down her cheeks. She kicked and screamed as the man moved her toward us as though she weighed nothing.
“Bruno, shut that bitch up!” Gemma continued to struggle, and Michael added, “Tell me where he is.”
“Go fuck yourself.” I pulled and fought to be free .
Michael rubbed his face down mine, his breath hot against my cheek. “Well, that’s not very nice.”
I knew we were in trouble. The men didn’t have guns on them, or at least they couldn’t access them.
If they had, they would have used them already to intimidate or shoot us.
There had to be a way to break free. My eyes met Gemma’s, and I willed her to calm down.
She needed to understand what I was trying to communicate to her.
You can do this. You know how to break free.
Over and over, I sent those thoughts to her, and I watched as her breathing slowed. With a gulp and a slight nod, I knew it was time. “Now!” I shouted and tried to wrench myself free.
Gemma lowered her stance and lifted her arms. The swift action threw Bruno off-balance, and she almost got away. I struggled against the hold at my waist. The man grabbed Gemma’s wrist, his grip so strong his knuckles turned white.
Just as we’d practiced, Gemma dropped in the horse stance. She gripped her fist with her hand and jerked up, popping her arm free.
“Run!” My voice was raw with emotion. She had to get away. I could handle myself, but Gemma needed to get to safety. Instead of running toward the truck, she lunged forward toward the tree line. “Gemma, run!”
She bent into the grass and stood, the gun that had been tossed aside in her shaking hands. “Let her go.” She was so brave despite the waves shaking her entire body. If she tried to shoot Michael, there was a good chance she’d miss and hit me instead.
The crack of a single shot rang out and I flinched, waiting for the pain. I kept struggling.
“Consider that your warning shot. I won’t miss next time. Don’t think I won’t shoot you in designer clothing.”
Johnny?
Another shot rang out as Al sidled up beside Johnny, a shotgun at his shoulder. “Already been to prison and don’t mind going back. Health care sure was cheaper.”
In a stream of cars and chaos, plumes of dirt rose down the path leading to the main road. Michael still held me. Bruno was stunned into silence as he held up both hands. A vehicle skidded to a stop, and Scotty launched out of it, weapon drawn.
“Let her go. You damn well better believe I will let them shoot you.”
“Lots of places to hide a body in the mountains.” Al’s grin spread across his craggy face. Johnny tipped his chin in solidarity.
Scott moved toward Gemma as other agents filled in, surrounding the group.
Cars continued down the dirt road as more and more familiar faces from town exited their cars.
Each had a weapon, from guns to baseball bats to shovels.
They surrounded the group like a ragtag band of outlaws.
Adrenaline coursed through my body. Gemma’s arms were still raised, the gun shaking in her hands.
Scotty gently placed his hand over hers and lowered the weapon.
With nowhere to go, Michael released me as he was brought to the ground by a marshal. I sank to my knees. “How did you know? My texts wouldn’t go through.” I sucked in ragged breaths as my skittering nerves started to settle.
“Al put the call out that he thought you girls were going to run into some trouble. We were all out looking when your text location finally came through.”
I stood, wrapping my arms around Gemma.
Al leaned against the butt of his shotgun. “What did you expect? This is Tipp. When one of our own is in trouble, we come running.”