Chapter 3 Ben #2
Ben hadn’t wanted to leave and had actually contemplated staying the night.
He’d missed his family, missed their easy conversation and unwavering connection.
For some reason he felt like he needed that now more than ever.
Later this evening he would cling to that fact and swear he was having a premonition.
His cell phone chimed and Ben reached into his pocket to retrieve it.
“Ben Donovan,” he answered, his normal greeting no matter who might be calling.
“Ben, it’s Noah. I’ve got some bad news.”
Ben stood immediately, walking off the terrace and over the grass toward the pool.
Noah Hannity was a homicide detective. He was also Ben’s sparring partner at the gym and a friend from undergrad.
The fact that they generally operated on the opposite sides of the law didn’t stop them from being close friends.
Outside of his family, Noah was the only other person Ben trusted in this world.
So if Noah said there was bad news, Ben took him seriously.
“What’s up?” he asked, dread forming a ball in the pit of his stomach.
“I’m sitting at my desk holding a piece of paper in my hand. The paper has your name and address on it,” Noah immediately responded.
Ben inhaled slowly, let the breath out quick and asked, “So what does that mean?”
“The piece of paper was found in a car that had been run off the road. Or driven down into a ditch is more like it. There was also a body.” Noah paused.
“Okay, there’s a car and a dead body. What else, Noah?” That dread he’d felt seconds ago now had his temples throbbing. Waiting for Noah to drop the rest of this news on him wasn’t going to go well. He needed him to spit it out right now.
“It’s Ebony, Ben. She’s dead,” Noah said.
Not in a million years would Ben have been ready to hear those words. He cursed and it must’ve been loud because behind him he heard a lull in the conversation with the rest of the family. He walked a little further down toward the pool.
“What the hell do you mean she’s dead? She was just in the office on Thursday.
She was scheduled to be off on Friday, but I just figured she had a long weekend planned.
Are you sure it’s her?” He lifted his free hand to massage his temple.
This pain seemed like second nature now, at least it had for the last six months.
“Yeah. Family reported her missing Saturday morning and we put an APB out on her car this morning,” Noah sighed. “I’m sorry, man, but it looks like a hit. One shot above her left eye. Two behind the ear.”
“Fuck!” Ben cursed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“I’m concerned about this note with your home address.”
Through clenched teeth Ben said, “I should’ve been more concerned about the note I received last night.”
“What? You got something to tell me?” Noah asked.
“Yeah. But I can’t talk here. I’ll come in.”
“Okay, bring your note with you. I’ll be in my office.”
“I’ll be there in about twenty minutes,” Ben said before disconnecting the call.
“What is it?” he heard before he could even turn around.
It was Max and Trent. They’d been the chosen ones to come and see what was going on.
Luckily they were most likely the first two he would’ve gone to with this.
Ben wasn’t stupid enough to try and keep secrets from his family, not the men in his family anyway.
The women, well, he dealt with them on a situational basis.
And this situation, he definitely didn’t want them to know about.
“Ebony’s been killed,” he said, the words leaving a sour taste in his mouth.
“Ebony? Your assistant?” Max asked.
Ben nodded.
“How? When?” Trent questioned.
“I don’t know when. But she was shot.” Ben took a deep breath and kept his gaze focused on Trent’s. “It was a hit,” he said solemnly.
Trent stared at him steadily. “Were you threatened?”
Ben slipped his hands into his pockets, his lips drawn in a tight line.
He would have never brought this up because he hadn’t taken it seriously himself.
Foolish, he knew, considering who he was dealing with.
But now since he’d made the first move, Ben would be damned if he sat back and waited for him to make another one.
“On Thursday, after I was served with the motions from the DA I decided not to represent Vega again. I drafted the papers to strike my appearance and was on my way to file them when Vega met me in the parking garage. I told him about the new trial and that I wouldn’t represent him.
He wasn’t happy. I didn’t give a damn. So I left.
I filed to strike my appearance a half an hour later.
Another two hours of work then I let Ebony go home around three-thirty.
I left the office at five, went straight home to change, then went to the gym. ”
“Did he threaten you?” Trent asked again, his brown eyes already growing darker, broad shoulders squared like he was ready to fight.
“Dammit Ben! This asshole threatened to kill you!” Max yelled.
“No. He didn’t say those exact words. And keep your voice down,” Ben told Max.
“You want Mama and Daddy to know about this? I didn’t think it was a big deal.
I’m a public figure, and not just because of his case, but because of the reputation I’ve created.
If something happens to me, he’s gonna be one of the first people they look at. Then, he’ll be on death row.”
“You’re giving him too much credit, Ben. Vega doesn’t give a damn who you’re related to or how well you’re known in the criminal arena. He’s a killer remember?” Max was pissed.
Ben couldn’t even be bothered by his brother’s reaction because his was the same. But he hadn’t seen his brother this angry in he couldn’t remember how long. He didn’t like upsetting his family, didn’t like doing anything to worry them.
“I just didn’t think any more about it. Until last night,” he said, wishing he didn’t have to tell them more about this, but knowing there was no way out of it now.
“What happened last night?” Trent asked.
“There was a note on my car. It said think again and it gave an address. I thought about Vega briefly before I went to bed, but then I let it go. He’s a pompous ass.”
“And he’s a killer,” Trent stated evenly. “You know he’s a killer and that’s why you declined to represent him again isn’t it?”
“I’m a defense attorney, Trent. It’s my job to represent criminals,” Ben said sure of his words, his job, his goals. What he wasn’t sure of was what would happen next.
“I’m heading down to the station to compare my note with the one Noah found at the crime scene. I need you to tell Mama something but not the truth. Just that I had to go take care of some business or whatever,” he said to Max.
“She’s gonna know something’s wrong,” Max argued.
“They’re all going to think something is wrong. Especially since I’m going to the station with you,” Trent said.
“That’s not necessary,” Ben told him. “I can handle going into the police station alone. I’ll call you guys later and let you know what happened.”
“You’ll go to the police station with me standing by your side. I’m not arguing with you Ben. I should be kicking your ass for not calling me last night with this information. But I’ll save that for later.”
“Trent, it’s not that big of a deal. It’s nothing for you to get involved in.” But Ben wasn’t sure of that. Ebony was dead. Vega’s vague threat had been serious. And Ben shouldn’t have thought otherwise.
“For you to have gone through all that schooling, you’re not all that smart. Go to your car. I’ll meet you in the driveway.” Trent had already turned to walk away so Ben couldn’t argue his case further.
Trent was and would always be a warrior.
He craved a good fight and fought with the elite training of his kind.
Ben, on the other hand, fought with his own training.
He wasn’t a Navy SEAL, but he was no slouch either.
He was in impeccable physical shape and had called boxing a serious hobby for at least ten years now.
In his line of business he’d also thought it prudent to take lessons at the gun range and he was licensed to carry a concealed weapon.
So he felt pretty confident that he could protect himself.
He simply wished he could’ve protected Ebony, too.