Her Regret, His Resolve; Bouncing Back, Book 2

19

"You didn't finish the job," a woman's harsh voice rasped through the phone.

The hooded figure looked around the outside of the phone booth, anxiety creeping in now that he knew the guy had lived through both the crash and being stabbed. "I thought he was dead. I did as you asked, and he was on the phone when it happened."

“Well, he wasn’t dead, now, was he?! I want this screw-up fixed or else." She snapped darkly.

Pulling down the hood of his black sweatshirt, he rubbed the back of his neck. His thick accent made it a little hard to understand what he was saying, so he spoke slowly. "They are just going to chalk it up to distracted driving."

"I don't care what they do. I am paying you to remove an i***t who thought he could betray me when I needed him the most. Find a way to get it done, or I'm giving the cops your name." The woman snarled.

"Please, don't," he pleaded, tearing at his short brown hair. "My sister, let me talk to her, please? Let me talk to Caroline a moment. I want to know that she is okay."

"Miserable excuse for an assassin," the woman snapped darkly. "Get rid of him or kiss your sister goodbye, understand me? Do not fail me a second time, or she's getting shipped to Brazil."

Losing some of his fire, the man slumped against the side of the booth and sobbed. Clutching his heart, he grew even more anxious when he heard the sounds of a shipyard in the background. "You promised!"

"And you promised me a kill!" Her shrill accusation seared him.

The next thing he heard was the sound of the line disconnecting before the long, steady beep of the payphone rang in his ears. All he wanted was to protect his sister, and that woman had promised she would watch over the little girl as long as he got rid of one person. One man had to die for him and Caroline to live in peace.

Now he was trapped between getting the job done and ratting himself out to the mafia. Grabbing his bag off the concrete, he walked out of the booth and started down the nearly empty street toward the hospital.

******

Ambrosia was trying her best to stay awake, but as midnight drew near, she could no longer hold her eyes open. Sitting in the chair in her office, she glared at the door where her guard was stationed. Checking the time, she picked up her cell to call her son in Italy. When the other line was picked up, it was her daughter-in-law that answered. "Scusami, mia bellissima figlia, is my brat around?”

Giggling, Andromeda said, “Si! He’s training with Papa. It’s very funny how slippery he can be in a fight.”

“Yeah, that sounds like my son. This isn’t a social call, I’m afraid. Tell him a Knight has fallen. He will know what it means,” she murmured, her voice heavy with concern.

There was a sudden commotion on the other line as Andromeda relayed the message. Phoenix’s voice came through, tense and urgent. “Go ahead, Mom. Tell me what happened."

“Your Uncle Russell is in the hospital, Nix. There was a hit made on his life, but we got to him before it was too late,” she replied, her heart aching with the weight of the news.

The line fell silent, then, “Mom, are you okay, and do the kids know?”

“I’m fine for now, and no. Your siblings and cousins don’t know yet. Keep this information to yourself as well. I don’t want it getting out until we got the people responsible.” She answered in a clipped tone.

“Understood,” he said without further questioning.

Yawning, Ambrosia felt her eyelids grow heavier as the stress took its toll. She got up, grabbing a blanket from the closet before lying down on the couch. Her mind raced with worries, but exhaustion was pulling her under.

“Just hold on, Russell,” she whispered to herself before sleep claimed her.

******

In the hall outside his brother's room, Declan sat with David on the hard plastic chairs. Their orders were explicitly clear, but something about the situation bothered them.

"I'd love to know who the f**k is behind this, man," David said lazily as he played a game on his phone. "Luke and Jax have been helping Trace pick apart the tape from earlier, but they haven't found anything yet. Bastard kept his face covered and didn’t look up."

"It's going to be hard for them," Declan countered, watching as a male orderly moved along the hallway while he cleaned. Something was off about it. Why is he so nervous? Declan thought.

"Janitors must have a night off if an orderly has to pick up the slack."

David looked up from the game he was playing and frowned. "Look closer, Dec. He's not an orderly. He’s too nervous, and he keeps glancing over here."

"Oh, I know,” Declan replied. “I noticed when he walked into the hall. I think we just found the hired gun."

Getting to his feet, he called the young man over. "Hey, man, any chance of getting another blanket for my brother?"

Swallowing, the young man nodded his head and pulled a blanket off the trolley. As he opened the door to the room, Declan and David watched closely, their eyes narrowing with suspicion. The man spread the scratchy white blanket over Russell's prone form, but his hand moved toward the oxygen mask’s cord.

Before he could pinch it off, Declan slammed him into the opposite wall. Gasping for breath, the young man struggled against Declan's grip while David quickly searched his pockets.

"Damn, no ID," David hissed. "Start talking and you get to live. Is that a deal?"

"She has my sister, please, I didn't want to do this, but she threatened to sell my sister! To deport us back to Turkey," the guy pleaded, desperation filling his eyes.

Grabbing the guy by the hair, Declan yanked his head back. "See that guy in the bed? He's my little brother. I want to know who's behind it, and I want to know now. Start talking before I start breaking bones."

The younger man dry-heaved, his empty stomach rolling as he realized he was backed into a corner. "I'll tell you everything but, please, I beg you to save my sister?"

David winced, thinking that the ploy would probably work on Declan's softer side.

"Does it look like I give a f**k who you got left in this world? You tried to kill my little brother, be glad that I don't take it out on your sister."

"No! Please, God, don't hurt her," losing his will to fight, the man slumped against the wall. "Please, do not hurt Caroline because of me."

Nodding to David, Declan zip-tied the young man's hands and forced him to his knees. Turning on his phone’s recorder, he said, "Start talking."

"She called me over while I was peddling and told me she would pay a lot if I took out a guy who betrayed her. I do not know anything about her, I swear. She gave no name, and her face is always covered."

David looked down at the man trembling on the floor. Compared to them, this guy was nothing more than an amateur. Crouching, he said, "You said it was a woman, and she wanted him dead because he had betrayed her? I guess that b***h got paroled. Ambrosia’s going to have a field day when she finds out.”

Declan's eyes widened as he slowly understood what David meant. "Call Callum. Fill him in while I check on my sister."

As the door clicked shut, David fished out his cell. "We got the guy who tried to kill Russ. He stupidly tried to finish him off in the hospital. Declan's gone to check on Amber, but we got even more bad news."

When Callum spoke, his voice held a commanding edge to it – sharp, cruel, and cutting. “I see.

A tremor shot through David’s body as he recognized the tone. Like his father before him, Cal had mastered ways of making sure his men stayed loyal. Not that he had anything to worry about when it came to his long-time friends. "Whoever is behind this told the guy they hired that Russell betrayed her in the past. We know his file inside and out, Don Callum. There's only one person that would want him dead."

Listening as his friend and boss expelled a heavy breath, David waited. Finally, Callum asked, "His own mother?"

"Dec and I came to the same conclusion. As hard as it is to believe, all the pieces fit into that explanation. I’m thinking Amber might love to get her hands on this b***h, too."

Cursing, Callum barked a few orders. "Damn it all to hell. I knew we should have killed her. I f*****g knew it, but no, we had to go legal in order to save the f*****g lives she ruined. Yeah, my wife was pregnant the last time Cindy f****d with our lives, so she’s going to enjoy dishing back several years worth of torment."

David glanced down. His heart went out to the guy, but he couldn’t afford to feel sympathy for him until they knew the truth of the issue. Taking a breath, he said, "I feel the same. Cindy is using the guy's baby sister as leverage."

Snarling, Callum told David to get the guy back to base and have him sealed in one of the rooms in the basement.

"Yes, sir. What about the little girl?" David asked.

"I'll have Trace and Thomas track that b***h down. Pull in some old favours from your buddies on the force. I want that girl found before Cindy makes a move. I want her detained before Russell wakes up," Callum growled. “He deserves retribution, and it’s about time he got it.”

Hearing the words, the guy on the floor looked up. “The shipyard! That’s where she took us. That’s where she is.”