The Cain Casey Series

Chapter Thirty-Eight

The walls of the third-floor conference room in the Federal Building were plastered with crime-scene photos of the first-floor bathroom located in the airport. Rick resembled a large broken doll as he sat with his eyes and mouth open, his hands crumpled on his lap.

Annabel Hicks came in and sat at the head of the long table and waited for everyone to follow suit. “A few months ago we thought we had a war on our hands when the Bracato and Casey families squared off. What we ended up with was a stealth operation conducted by Cain Casey, resulting in the disappearance of Bracato and his four sons. A lot has changed in a few months, but what we avoided then I’m afraid will soon be a reality, considering how many players we’ve added to the game.”

Shelby used a laser pointer and aimed it at the picture of the stall. “The death of Rick Greco yesterday might be the fuse that starts it.” She then gave a brief history of Rick’s work record. “Because of where in the airport this happened and how exposed it was, none of us had someone inside. The closest team was Mark Pearlman’s from DEA. Mark.” Shelby turned it over to him.

“We’re mostly assigned to major players in the city but are reassigned whenever Rodolfo Luis is in town. The street vendors are one thing, but Luis is one of the big heads of the snake. Cut him off from moving his crap in and we put a serious hurt on supply.” He turned on the projector connected to his laptop, and one of his guys dimmed the lights. “Yesterday we followed four of Rodolfo’s men to the airport. When security sounded the alarm, we started to move a group in to pick these guys up on their way out, since video from their exit shows one of them in different clothes that are too big for him and a bundle under his arm.

“But that’s not the only thing we captured on surveillance after the pandemonium that this caused.” Mark advanced to the next picture. As soon as it came on the screen, Annabel and the rest of her agents leaned forward. Anthony Curtis and Juan Luis were getting into a car on the lower level of the airport.

“Anthony was in there when this happened?” Shelby asked.

“If he was, we didn’t pick him up with the other four, but we weren’t really looking for him,” Mark said. “We spotted Anthony and Juan seconds before security called for help. Having Juan come back so soon leaves us with more questions than we have answers.”

“Like what?” Joe asked.

“The name Juan Luis appears nowhere on the manifest from the flight he took, he hasn’t gone anywhere near his uncle since he came back, and neither have the four idiots who probably did this. I don’t think Rodolfo knows his nephew is back. I just don’t know why, so we let everyone go and stepped up the surveillance on them.”

“He’s splintered off from Rodolfo, that’s why,” Shelby said.

“There’s no way that’s true,” Mark said. “Rodolfo runs that family with no tolerance for dissension in the ranks, and Juan will be lucky to keep control once the old man goes down.”

“But Rodolfo sent him home why?” Shelby asked.

“From what we could gather,” Mark said, “because your guy’s gotten in the way.”

“Rodolfo, probably for the first time, hasn’t given in to Juan’s whims, and because of Anthony he feels emboldened to defy his uncle,” Shelby said. “You’re right. Rodolfo doesn’t know he’s back, but it’s only a matter of time before Juan does something to announce his arrival. When that happens, Juan and everyone who helped him will get off easy if all that happens to them is a bullet in the head.”

Mark turned off the projector and the lights came back up. “You’re doing a lot of guessing, and we can’t afford to be wrong. You may know your subjects but we know the Luis family. After watching this guy, we’re positive Rodolfo won’t put up with anything from anyone, especially his nephew.”

“Juan may love and respect his uncle,” Joe said, “but something stronger is pulling at him now.”

“Since you two have all the answers, how about you share with the rest of us,” Mark said.

“His hatred of Cain Casey, that’s why he’s back, and in Anthony he’s found the perfect ally.”

“Find Anthony and bring him in. If he was there yesterday and stood by while this went down, that’s his ass,” Annabel said. “And Shelby,” she added as the meeting started to break up, “make sure your team reads him his rights as soon as you find him.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“At this point it might be better to leave him on the street with the rest of them,” Mark said. “If your guy’s been able to get close to Juan, he’s going to be easier to squeeze when the time comes. Pick him up now and we blow the opportunity.”

“I want regular reports, if that’s the case,” Annabel told Mark.

“You got it, since we’re putting a team on Juan.”

Joe placed his hand on Shelby’s arm and led her to an interview room while Annabel finished up with the other agency. “If Sabana Greco told Cain that you asked about Anthony, we better find him first.”

“There’s no way Cain goes after an agent.”

“Shelby, are you crazy? Anthony was standing next to Juan when he confronted Cain. In her mind that changed the rules of the game.”

“That goddamn moron,” Shelby said, letting her anger out. “If something does happen to him, it’s his own fault.”

“At this point I’m not sure who he has to be more afraid of,” Joe said as he scratched the top of his head, “Cain or Hicks.”

“You know the answer to that one, Joe.” Shelby stared at the chair Cain had occupied recently when they’d brought her in. “Hicks might reprimand or maybe fire him, but Cain…that’s a different punishment, isn’t it? If Cain puts him there, Anthony’s going to be joining Giovanni and his sons, wherever that may be. We’d have better luck finding Jimmy Hoffa or having tea with space aliens.”

*

“You’re looking smug today, mobster,” Emma said as they descended the stairs together the next morning. “Not that you shouldn’t, considering what you’re able to do to me most nights,” Emma teased until she saw her father waiting for them on the first floor.

“Have I ever mentioned how beautiful you are when you blush?”

“Don’t you bruise easily?” Emma shot back, smiling the entire time. “Morning, Daddy.”

“Morning.” Ross opened his arms to Emma and kissed her cheek. “You look beautiful this morning.”

“It’s always a good day when everyone’s this nice to you,” Emma said, feeling happy. “Do you want to do some sightseeing today, Daddy?”

“I’d rather go start on some of the house repairs Cain told me about.” He nodded when one of the women who worked for Jarvis held up a carafe of coffee.

“We didn’t invite you for that,” Emma said. “Tell him, honey.”

“Ross, you aren’t here to repair our house,” Cain said dutifully.

“I know this place is huge, but tell me you both aren’t ready to get home. And you know I built the majority of the house you grew up in,” he told Emma. “Besides, Hayden’s birthday’s in a couple of days. He’s going to feel more comfortable having his friends over if he’s home.”

“If you promise not to work yourself into the ground and take some help with you,” Emma said, “then knock yourself out.” She put her hands on her hips and tapped her foot on the floor when she heard Cain laugh. “What’s funny?”

“It’s good to see where that well-developed stubborn streak of yours comes from.”

“Ha.” Emma picked Hannah up when she ran to her. “I’m mildly persistent compared to you.”

“Compared to Mom you’re not what?” Hayden asked. He was dressed for school and Mook was right behind him, carrying his book bag.

“I’m not stubborn,” Emma said.

“Uh-huh.” Hayden dragged out the phrase. “She’s got a good sense of humor, huh, Granddad?”

“Good imagination too.”

“What happened to the highly complimentary group from earlier?” Emma said.

“You’re stubborn, lass, but incredibly beautiful.” Cain kissed the side of her neck. “I’ve got to head to the office, but I’ll call later to see if Ross needs any help.”

“Are you putting on a tool belt?”

Cain didn’t answer but did gently swat her on the butt. “I’m heading over to Rick’s funeral as well.”

“Are you sure you don’t want me to go with you?”

“I’d feel better if you kept low for a few days.” Cain kissed her again and headed out.

On the way to the riverfront warehouse Cain took out the list of passengers from the day Rick was killed. She would find the answer to what had happened in one of the names, she was sure of it. Lots of Juans, Muriel had been right about that, but not one Jorge. She had no idea about this situation yet, but at least Dallas Montgomery wasn’t such a mystery anymore.

Instead of having the driver go into the building as he usually did, Cain had him stop in front. “Cain, this isn’t a good time to break with routine,” Lou said. It was the first time he’d spoken all morning.

“I want to grab a cup of coffee, not dare someone to take a shot at us.”

“There’s coffee inside,” he pointed out. “All Rick was doing was picking up a bag and look at what happened.”

“I’m working on that because I don’t want it to go unanswered, and not because of the insult to me. Rick was a good kid and deserves to be avenged.”

“Still, there’s coffee inside.”

“But our friendly federal agents aren’t likely to wander into our kitchen, are they?” Before Lou could wave out some backup, Cain put her hand on his shoulder. “Just you and me, Lou. We don’t want to scare the timid things away.”

The café across the street was crowded with guys who worked at the various docks close by, but the waitress wiped off a table in the back corner and smiled at Cain as they took a seat. She ordered a sweet roll to go with the coffee and acknowledged every greeting the other patrons offered.

“What’d you get Hayden for his birthday?” Lou asked. After Cain cut her sweet roll and offered some to him, he picked up half of it.

“A hunting trip he asked about a couple of months ago. I told him how much my brother Billy liked the sport, and he wants to try it out.”

“You’re going hunting? When was the last time you did that?”

“I’ve only been once, so it’s been awhile. Hayden seemed excited, and I didn’t have the heart to let him down.”

“He’s excited about spending time with you, Boss.” Lou accepted a refill and another roll.

“I spend time with him,” Cain said as she brought her brows together, not understanding what he meant.

“I know you do, but he’s got to share you now. When Emma and Hannah moved in, he didn’t have you twenty-four-seven like he did before.” He brushed his hands off and finished his coffee. “Not that he’d change things, but I think he still misses it a bit.”

“Thanks for telling me, and I’m glad we’re going away for a few days. The trip’s not until the fall, but maybe we can squeeze some fishing in when it gets warmer.”

Lou’s face became devoid of emotion as he nodded. “You’re about to get a bite now.”

“I sure made that intro easy for you,” Cain said with a short laugh. Throughout their talk she’d kept her eyes on Shelby and Lionel, who were seated at the counter returning the favor.

“What do you think it’d take for these guys to stop watching?”

“That’s an easy one too, Lou. They’ll stop when I give them what they want, but that won’t be today.”

“Cain, could we join you for a minute?” Shelby asked. The two empty chairs at their table had their backs to the door and were in the way of the wait-staff traffic to and from the kitchen. They were the worse seats in the place, making Cain smirk when she pushed Shelby’s chair out with her foot.

“Are you here for the sweet rolls?” Cain asked, and Lou smiled slightly.

“Good place to get coffee.” Shelby sat down and laid her hands on the table.

“Just happen to be in the neighborhood, or are you planning to join the longshoreman’s union?”

“Could we call a truce until we finish our coffee?” Shelby asked. “You know why I’m here.”

“Sure, what can I do for you?”

“We wanted to talk. I don’t know if you’ve met—”

“Special Agent Lionel Jones, computer guru and boy genius? No, we haven’t met, but I’ve heard so much about him.”

“How did you...” Lionel acted like he didn’t know how to finish the question.

“I’ve always believed if I have to show you mine, you have to give some up as well.” Cain shrugged, then folded her arms in front of her chest and sat up straighter. “Maybe once Shelby starts on her second career as a longshoreman I’ll do something new as well. I might try my hand at writing. Think anyone would be interested in a book about what FBI agents do on their days off? What cute little sites on the Internet their boy geniuses visit when no one’s looking?”

Cain had to laugh when Lionel blushed visibly, despite his deep olive complexion. Sometimes she really enjoyed these guessing games that took only a little information and a lot of imagination.

“Stop picking on Lionel,” Shelby said as she looked from Cain to her coworker.

“If I do, will you return the favor?” Cain said, her smile not diminishing. “And to save time, don’t bother to tell me you can’t. We both know it’s your life’s work to follow me around skulking in shitty little vans and dark rooms. What’s brought you out of your cocoon next door?”

“We wanted to give you our condolences for what happened to Rick Greco. I realize you had nothing to do with it, but you did visit his family yesterday.”

What Shelby had said made no sense to her, and because it didn’t, Cain stayed quiet as she sorted the puzzle pieces in her head. No matter their past dealings, Shelby didn’t often crawl out of her hole to interact with her, so something had spooked her. Cain might’ve crossed the street to fish, but so had Shelby.

“Do you mean if Lionel here meets some tragic end, you wouldn’t bother to visit his family to offer your respects? Tsk,” Cain shook her head slowly, “I thought you were raised better than that, Agent Philips.”

“I didn’t say it was wrong.” Shelby seemed hesitant.

“You must’ve found something objectionable about it, considering you were most probably listening in, which reminds me.” Cain turned her attention to Lionel. “What’s your favorite song, Lionel? You don’t mind me calling you Lionel, do you?”

“No, I don’t mind,” Lionel stopped to clear his throat, “and the theme from Bonanza is my favorite song.”

“How manly of you, but back to Shelby’s problem.”

“I don’t have a problem, Cain,” she said, sounding as if she was losing patience.

“I went to the Grecos’ to reassure them they won’t be thrown out on the street after what happened to Rick. After his father died he was supporting his mother and sister, and I’m sure that was worrying Mrs. Greco. You beat me over there, but Sabana didn’t get the impression you came to hand off a list of government agencies ready to help them pay the mortgage.”

“Rick worked for you,” Shelby said.

“As do a lot of people. Lou here works for me,” Cain said, tired of their cautious verbal dance. “What does that have to do with me wanting to help out? That’s supposed to be part of your life’s work, to protect and defend, or whatever your slogan is, but you didn’t do such a bang-up job when it came to Rick, did you?” Then it hit her why Shelby was here with the most unintimidating member of her team, and the shock stopped her cold.

Shelby wanted the answers to the questions she’d asked Sabana, and bringing Lionel was supposed to make Cain relax enough to give them to her. Cain couldn’t believe she was right this time, but there was only one way to find out.

“We weren’t watching Rick,” Shelby said.

“You and your friends weren’t watching him, but somebody was, weren’t they? Do you allow an agent to sit by and let someone get killed? Or was he there to participate?”

The café was noisier now, but from the way Shelby blanched Cain knew she’d heard the question. That’s not what surprised her, though. She was shocked that Anthony Curtis had been at the airport and that’s why Shelby had asked Sabana about him. Cain didn’t know what he was doing there or if he actually had anything to do with Rick’s murder, but obviously neither did Shelby.

“What are you talking about?” Shelby finally asked.

“Curtis was there, and since we all know how he regards me, I’m sure he felt justified in taking out someone tied to me.” Cain stood up. “Don’t bother denying it.”

“Cain, wait, this isn’t a game. You have to tell me how you know that.”

After she handed their waitress a twenty, Cain turned around, and Shelby and Lionel were both standing. “If we’re playing a game, the rules have changed, don’t you think?”

“No one’s going to give you the benefit of the doubt for going after an agent, no matter how justified you think you are,” Shelby said.

“Not like they would you for going after me and mine? Don’t worry, Agent Philips. I’m not known for stupid flights of fancy.” Before Cain walked out she saw Shelby’s lips move, and even though she couldn’t hear her, the word “fuck” was easy enough to make out.

“See, Lou, now we know who we’re fishing for,” Cain said to him softly as they walked toward the office. “Get with Katlin and find him.”

“Will do, boss. You want us to bring him in for a chat?”

“You heard Shelby. No one’s going to forgive us for taking care of this problem. I’ve got other plans for him.”

“Anything else?”

Cain stopped at the door of the warehouse and glanced at the window across the street where the feds were lurking. “You heard the man, cue up Bonanza for him.”