AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Before I had a chance to rouse him from his slumber, he opened his eyes, obviously sensing my presence. What I found interesting was that after his initial expression of utter terror, there was more than a hint of resignation in his eyes.
“Sabatino,” he croaked out. “You got my message. Thank God.”
I glanced at Miguel who’d immediately furrowed his eyebrows. “What message?”
“That I wanted to see you.”
“I didn’t get any message.”
His expression changed to one of confusion. Another red flag was raised. The man wasn’t lying. “I swear I… Maybe the pain medication.”
“That’s entirely possible. What did you want to see me about?” He did have me curious. It wasn’t often those I’d had conflict with were remorseful enough they were prepared to either apologize or provide needed information.
“The drugs. They weren’t for me,” Chase stated, the tremor of fear in his voice allowing me to believe he was telling me the truth.
“Who were they for?”
“I don’t know. Look, I didn’t want to do it, but they knew about my mother.”
“What about your mother?” I asked.
“She’s real sick. Cancer. She doesn’t have any insurance. I thought she did. She didn’t want to burden me. The bastards called me and said they’d ease her pain one way or another.”
I narrowed my eyes, taking another look at my brother. “You do realize I can determine whether you’re lying.” I didn’t expect him to grab my hand, his chest heaving.
“Please. They sent me pictures of her getting chemo inside a fucking hospital. Then one of her just outside her house.” He was becoming exasperated, which was another indication he wasn’t lying.
“Why the fuck didn’t you come to one of us?”
Chase turned his head toward Miguel after my brother had asked the question. “They said if I told anyone they’d also kill my family. All I had to do was to steal one bag of the white stuff and drop it off.”
“Where?” It was easy to tell when someone was lying in this situation. Chase was terrified, more so than I’d ever seen him.
“A park close to my house. I put it inside a trashcan and walked away. I thought that was the end of it.”
I’d been sent photographs of Chase inside the park. That’s how I’d known he’d betrayed me. I locked eyes with Miguel. We’d been dragged down a rabbit hole. “What else?”
“The next day they gave me money.”
“The same people?” Miguel asked.
“I don’t know for certain but that’s my guess. Money appeared in my bank account. At first, I thought it might have been a bonus of some kind. I was getting ready to call you when I got a note, another picture of my mother taken from inside her house. Inside.” He was having difficulty breathing.
“Calm down, Chase. We’re just having a conversation,” I told him.
He took several deep breaths. “You don’t understand. I installed a security system at her house. No one should have been able to get inside.”
“They were telling you in no uncertain terms they could get to your family,” Miguel growled.
Chase nodded, finally releasing his grip on my arm. Beads of sweat trickled down both sides of his face and by the way he was staring at the hospital room door, I could also tell he was nervous someone was watching him even in here. That pissed me off as much as everything else. The bastards had placed him in an impossible situation.
“And you were given additional instructions.”
“Yes. It was so simple I did it without thinking. I had to buy a stuffed lamb and drop it off at the warehouse.” His eyes were imploring.
The information hit me hard, more so than I could have believed. “What did you say?”
He repeated the statement and as with everything else he’d said, there was no doubt he was telling the truth. Fuck. Miguel had been right. The bastard wanted to keep me off my game.
