Fortune Favors The Bold

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN: THE PERFECT ALIBIS

Adonis could no longer bear the suspense. It had been almost an hour and Uncle Elijah hadn’t come out of the room yet. His heart was beating so hard that he could hear the pounds in his temples. Or was that an incoming migraine?

His mind could not help conjecturing the worst. What if Alaya used her position to incriminate his uncle? What the hell was going on inside? And why the hell were his lawyers taking such a long time to barge inside the precinct. He’d been completely unprepared for Alaya to find Uncle Elijah so soon.

What if his uncle was unable to keep his mouth shut as he’d feared? Adonis just wished that the old man had enough brains to not speak anything until Mr. Grayson and his team was here. He should have taken the time to warm Uncle Elijah about not saying a word without a lawyer, but the truth was he’d been shattered by the confession.

Elijah Artemis Fortune declaring undying love for his mother was a bad thing for his family. Irrespective of the fact that his father was dead, and the line was clear for them, it would be a catastrophe if his grandmother found out about it. The old lady was an orthodoxically pure Christian who would never accept the fact that his daughter-in-law would get married again, forget the fact that it would be to his other son.

That was an episode Adonis would be too glad to miss. He was about to freak out when a swarm of footsteps invaded his peace. He immediately stood up to greet Mr. Grayson who was followed by at least ten men.

“Mr. Fortune, we heard what happened. I came as soon as I could,” the man greeted him with a handshake, and Adonis was grateful that he didn’t mention the fact that it was a Sunday.

“I…I don’t know what’s going on. The police is sitting with him, and I just hope that he’s kept his mouth shut,” Adonis roared by raving a hand over his head, his disheveled sartorial appearance a clear indication that he was out of his element.

Right on cue, the door opened to a stoic Alaya who didn’t even meet him in the eye and marched straight to her colleagues. Mr. Grayson withheld Adonis with one raised hand, and he watched as the lawyers surrounded the detectives.

It became a frantic debate, and Adonis was too tired to join in. He wished he could see his uncle for the moment, even if it was just a glimpse.

Engrossed in his worried state, he nearly jumped when a cup of coffee was thrust in his direction. “Here you go, something to comfort you,” Alaya said, and he took the cup without protest. It was only now that he realized he hadn’t eaten anything yet, hadn’t had the time.

“Thanks,” he grimaced before staring at the dark liquid in fascination – she even knew how he liked to take his morning coffee. He longed to ask her questions, but somehow managed to retain himself. He didn’t want to give her the pleasure of seeing him squirm. He would speak to his lawyers soon enough anyway.

“I have a good news and a bad news,” she said at his side as they sipped their coffee together in comfortable silence. “Which one do you wanna hear first?”

He let out a dry laughter. “I could use some good news right now,” he said in a dark gloomy tone.

“Your uncle’s off the hook,” she commented over the rim of her coffee cup as she was blowing the hot liquid, and he turned towards her so abruptly that he nearly spilled the hot beverage.

“What?” he exclaimed in shock as he tried to process the news. Was she playing with him? “What are you saying?” he cleared his throat when his voice same out too husky.

“Well,” she drawled silkily, not even bothering to hide the fact that she was boasting. “We got him a solid alibi and he’s good to go after the paper works.”

He gasped open-mouthed. “You lied?”

She moved the coffee cup down her lap and stared at him like he’d lost his mind. “What? No, of course not,” she frowned down at him. “I wouldn’t lie,” she stage-whispered dramatically to him by blocking her mouth with her hand like she was telling a state secret.

“So, what happened then? How did you manage to establish his alibi?”

“It turned out he was with Benjamin Foster all night. They played chess until early morning. So, there’s a chance that I could clear your uncle’s name. Of course, I would have to call Benjamin in to check his statement,” she announced in a voice so calm that Adonis’s hackles raised.

“Benjamin? You wish to speak to him?”

“I would have to confirm your uncle’s version, of course,” she again used that cagey voice which spooked him.

“Alright. You can talk to him in the presence of our lawyers,” he retorted back. Somehow, the game had changed between them, neither was leaving anything to chance now. It seemed that a k****e of mistrust was enough to set their nascent relationship to ashes.

She sighed and shrugged. “Fine. I guess since we don’t trust each other, there’s no point in us working together. You will deal with Detective Bosco from now on, he’s going to assist me on the case.”

Adonis snorted derisively. “In your dreams. We are still in this together whether you like it or not. You cover for me, and I look out for you. You struck a deal with the devil and there’s no getting out.”

“Don’t you want to hear the bad news?” she changed the subject.

“Oh yeah,” he remembered with c****d eyebrows. “What’s the bad news now?”

“We got your cousin in custody too and he’s a potential suspect. We believe that he might have used your uncle’s momentary relapse to murder your father himself. Is there anything you can think of?”

“Woah! Wait a minute. Wait a damned minute. You’re now after Kenneth?! And I thought that this would be over soon. When did you call for him? And how come I didn’t get the news?”

“Well, we called him in this morning, and I didn’t want to inform you until I was sure of his motives. For the moment, I think it was money for he was drowned in debts. But we have no concrete proof.”

Adonis groaned as the nightmare started all over again. Clearing Uncle Eli was no good if Kenneth was implicated. Trading a Fortune for another had not been part of the agenda for him. “Are you asking me to help you nailing him?” he muttered incredulously.

“No, but if there is anything you can do to help us, it will be great,” she replied with a fake bright smile, crushing her paper cup and throwing it in the bin from the distance. “The sooner you realize that I, or the police is not your enemy, the better it will be.”

Adonis rolled his eyes. “I already apologized for going behind your back. Are you going to make me pay for this forever?”

Alaya’s smile faltered. “It’s not personal. I don’t mix business with pleasure. You should learn to trust me. That’s all I need from you. When are you going to accept that I’m just doing my job, and if you don’t freak out every time I call in one of your family members for questioning, it will help a lot?”

“Well, anyway, I don’t have a hand in that part because the FBI is taking over Kenneth. They really believe he’s the culprit and you’d better pray they can’t get anything out of him. Your lawyers are with him right now.”

Too distraught by the latest news to react, Adonis could only stare in dumbfounded horror as Alaya walked away from him after dropping that bombshell. With the FBI, he had no control over the situation whatsoever. Even if he offered money, he could never buy the loyalty that Alaya had shown to his family’s regard. With hindsight, he realized his mistake, but he feared it might be too late.

It was hard to admit that he had indeed been using Alaya for all the wrong reasons thinking that all along she needed his help. Acknowledging that he needed her more was a real ordeal.

After a few hours of nail-biting suspense, Adonis was informed that Uncle Elijah was free to go, while Kenneth was till in the FBI’s custody. Benjamin Foster had been called over to the station to clear his uncle’s name, but Kenneth had no alibi after the fight. He proclaimed to have gone home and slept right away since he was drunk.

Adonis asked Ben to take Uncle Elijah home, while he stayed at the headquarters waiting for the verdict. Surely, they couldn’t keep him if they didn’t have any evidence?

Truly enough, after a few more hours, Mr. Grayson walked out of the room with a proud smile on his face and it was only then that Adonis could breathe again. The counsellor confirmed the news that they were not keeping Kenneth due to lack of evidence, but eh should remain in Seattle Washington until the case was still ongoing.

A look at the haggard face of his cousin caused him to hurry over to give him a hug. That i***t had acted impulsively, and he was praying a higher price. “How are you holding up, kiddo?” he asked.

Kenneth sighed with fatigue, the heavy bags under his eyes prominent. “I’m still alive,” he replied weakly. “Look, Ad, I’m really sorry for what happened. I should never have ratted Uncle Elijah out…”

“It’s okay,” he reassured quickly. “We’ll talk at the house later.”

“Are you coming?” Kenneth asked with a frown.

“I’ll be right behind you. I have something to do first,” Adonis said glancing at the woman working at her desk. She was right, he should trust her more. He had a sincere apology to offer to that wonderful woman who’d left no stone unturned to help him at every instant of that ordeal.

“Hey,” he said to her desk, glad that the office was almost empty now that the buzz had died. Everyone had been pretty eager to get back to their families given it was a Sunday, but not Alaya. She was still writing some reports, drowned in paperwork, and not even complaining about it. “Can we talk?”

“Sure,” she replied giving him her undivided attention. “What can I do for you?” her brown eyes glazed over him with an impersonal glint.

“Alaya, look,” he sat down next to her and took her hand in his. “I’m really sorry for not trusting you. You’re right. You’re doing your best to solve the case, but there’s a certain limit you can go. And you must understand that I’m doing the best I can to protect my family.”

She nodded. “I understand you Adonis. Better than you think. But what happens next time one of your family members is called at the precinct? Are you ready to help me without reserve? I don’t think so,” she said in a defeated voice.

“No, I promise I will,” he vowed sincerely this time, He’d screwed up, there was nothing he could do to cover for a murderer. He should have let the police do their job without interfering.