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That was when it hit me like a freight train. I dropped the phone and put the SUV in drive, pulling out from the house and heading over to the office. The worst had finally happened. Josie must have been on her way to the station to turn herself in, but the mob got to her first. They must have taken her from the scene and dragged her off somewhere. God, why was she so stupid? She should have stayed with me where it was safe. She was all alone, trying to do what she thought was best for everyone, and the mob had gotten to her. They didn’t have patience for someone who didn’t do what they were told, and I knew her life was now in grave danger.
I pulled into the firm’s parking lot and jumped out of the car, running for the door. Anderson looked up as I entered the office and quickly stood, seeing how frantic I was. I ran into his office and shut the door, telling him to sit down. I took a second to catch my breath before starting.
“I just got a call from the cops,” I began. “They found my car flipped and another car that had hit it, but there was no one at the scene from either vehicle.”
“Shit,” Anderson said. “That means—”
“That the mob got her,” I said, finishing his sentence. “We have to do something.”
“Blaine, I know she didn’t want it, but I think it’s time we go to the FBI,” he said. “Her father is dead now, so he is no longer in trouble. They have an organized crime unit that is very familiar with these guys. They can help us.”
“You’re right,” I said, sighing. “And really, we should have gone a long time ago.”
We got our stuff together and headed out of the office. Anderson called one of his contacts at the FBI and let him know we were on the way and we had information on one of their cases. They met us at the doors when we arrived and took us straight upstairs. I sat there nervous as the agents stood around, waiting for the agent in charge. Apparently, the information we gave them was a big deal, and this wasn’t the first time they had heard of the Giorntino family.
“We are pretty sure, and we have some witnesses, that Josie is being stashed in the back of Ricardo Deli off the main strip,” Roger, the head agent said. “But this is where it gets tricky. I can’t waste years of work, years of Intel, and blow our cover. We have Paulie on the run, and he knows there is something going on. If we send in agents now, we might as well pack it up, because they will be gone, and Josie will be an afterthought.”
“Okay, use me,” I said, watching Roger shake his head. “Look, I’ll go there, and if I’m wrong, you haven’t blown your cover. If I’m right, I'll be wearing a wire, and you can sit on the place until you hear confirmation that they have Josie held hostage. Then you can bust into the place and arrest them. It’s a win-win for you.”
“But not for you,” Roger said. “If you are wrong, they could put out a hit on you. If you are right, they could either shoot you where you stand or discover the wire and then shoot you where you stand.”
“I don’t care about that,” I said. “I am not going to just leave Josie there to die. You can’t ethically do that, either.”
“This meeting was off the record,” Roger said, standing up. “We can do whatever is necessary.”
“God damn it,” I shouted, banging my hands on the desk and catching his attention. “I don’t think you get it, Roger. I am going to the place, with or without you. If you know what’s good for your investigation, you will go with me. Otherwise, when I walk in there, I am going to tell every motherfucking mobster in the joint about your little operation. I’ll use it as leverage to get Josie back. Either way, I’m going there now. It’s your choice.”
Roger stopped and turned around to look at me, studying my face. He took a deep breath and sat back down in front of me. He tapped his pen on the table before speaking.
“You know this is an arrestable offense,” he said. “Telling the mob about an official FBI investigation. You could get our inside men killed.”
“And you know I don’t give two fucks, as long as Josie gets out of there alive,” I said quietly but sternly.
“You’ll have to sign some paperwork,” he said.
“I’ll sign any waiver you put in front of me if you want, but I am doing this,” I said.
Roger sat there for several moments staring at me, thoughts obviously running through his head. He motioned for the guy behind him to step forward and then whispered into his ear. Turning back to me, he put his hands on the table and laced his fingers together.
“Fine,” he said. “But you are going to do this our way, and we are not liable for your safety in any way. This is not an official bust until we have the mob in our grasp, so if you die, no one will ever know the real reason. You understand?”
“Perfect,” I said.
“You can’t just walk in there blind, so go across the hall,” he said. “We will brief you on the building and set up a plan for your entrance. And good luck. These guys are the real thing.”
I nodded my head and shook Roger’s hand. He walked out of the office. I looked over at Anderson, who had wide eyes. He’d never seen me assert myself like this. He chuckled as we stood up and were escorted across the hall where they were already busy at work, getting prepared for the operation. I didn’t want it to take all day, so I jumped right in, letting them know what my intentions were. Despite Roger’s resistance to the idea, the other guys were more than happy to help me save Josie’s life. Many of the young guys had seen more death than most elderly people, and a chance to save someone’s life was really exciting to them.
As we prepared, I thought about Josie and wondered what she was going through. I was going to get her out of there. There was no question in my mind, even if I had to kill every single one of those bastards on my way. I was tired of laying down and letting them walk all over us. Their time was now.
Chapter 30
Josie
I rolled my neck, trying to get the cramps to go away. Being tied to a chair was not a comfortable situation at all, and that was exactly what had happened to me when I got there. The car had been pulled around the back of a deli of some sort, and Harry had grabbed me out of the trunk, dragging me inside with her hand over my mouth. They took me through the meat lockers and into a small room off of the office where they tied me to a chair and tied my arms around my back. The place smelled terrible, like rotting meat and old food, which was making my stomach turn. It didn’t help that my arms and legs had gone numb, and the ropes were tied especially tight. There was literally no way that I was going to get out of that chair, and even if I did, with the way my legs were feeling, I would hit the ground before I could take two steps. The panic in my chest was gone for the moment, but I knew that eventually, it would return.
They had all ignored me so far, walking past me without even so much as a glance. Harry had come in and given me some water, but before I could swallow, she shoved my chair hard, sending me toppling over. She picked me back up and laughed before leaving the room again. I knew it was only a matter of time before they came back in. They were waiting for someone, and I could only assume it was Paulie. I hated that guy with a passion, and I spent the long hours thinking about what I would do to him if I had the chance. He had taken everything from me, and now, he had me right where he wanted me.
By now, I assumed that Blaine had caught on to the fact that I wasn’t home. I knew that he would come looking for me, going to any lengths necessary to find me, but that wasn’t what I wanted. I left to keep him safe, and the last thing I wanted was for him to walk straight into the fire. I figured it was going to be difficult to find me, but being who he was, he had a lot of contacts. But I loved him so much, and I didn’t want to see anything happen to him, even if it meant that I met my end at the hands of the mob. He was stubborn, though, and I knew that eventually he would track me down. I just hoped he didn’t come alone. No one could take on the mob on their own, especially not the kind-hearted man that Blaine was. I was sure his partner, Anderson, would let him know that, but that didn’t mean Blaine would actually listen to him.
