Life of a Fool (London Brothers Book 2) (2 page)

“Always.  And Jason?  She’s going to be fine—even if we have
to go drag her home, okay?”

“Thanks.”  I hung up feeling a little better.  Craig and I
were pretty good at talking each other into or out of situations.  We’d know
each other a long time and both had pretty good instincts.  I felt better
having him on board with possibly going to get
my girl
.

Shit! 

Lori Ann wasn’t my girl.  I didn’t have a claim to her,
right? 

Like hell, I didn’t!  She would always be
my girl
,
even if all she could ever be was my best friend.  It pissed me off to have to
wait until morning to talk to her again, but I’d have to get over it.

I slept like crap. 

Three hours to be exact.  That was all my mind allowed me to
have.  I watched the clock, took two showers, researched flights, and even
looked up information on The Italian.  I couldn’t find anything other than a
few minor traffic violations and stories about his company.  I knew the guy was
wealthy, since I’d thoroughly looked into his background years ago when Lori
Ann told me she was getting married, but damn…now the man was loaded.  He’d
taken a small cobbler shop his grandfather and father had owned in a little
village outside of Milan and turned it into a multi-million dollar shoe company
that had gone international.  And all in the span of ten years.  It was a real “rags
to riches” story and had me wondering if the success had gone to his head…changed
him somehow.

By 5:00 am, I’d had enough.  I knew there was a nine-hour
time difference, so I dialed Lori Ann’s number hoping my timing was good and
her husband was long gone at work.

“Ciao?”

“Time’s up. Talk to me, Lori Ann.  Now.”

“Jason, I’m fine.  Really.  Antonio and I were just
fighting.  I’m sorry if you worried.”

Her voice still sounded wrong.  She was lying and a damned
fool if she thought I couldn’t hear it in her voice.  But she just kept
talking, trying to convince me and probably herself too. 

“We tend to get really passionate and animated when we
argue.  I was upset last night and missing home, that’s all.”

“We both know you’re lying, but I’m gonna drop it for a few
minutes and ask…why haven’t you tried to call me for the last several months? 
That’s not like you…like us.  What’s really going on?  Are you in trouble?  Has
something happened that you need to tell me?”

She was quiet for several very long seconds.  I could hear
noises in the background, so I knew she was still there on the other end of the
phone.  Then, I heard a faint sniffle.  That was all I needed to confirm my
suspensions and get my feet moving.  My Lori Ann was in trouble.  I was online
and booking an expensive-ass flight within minutes.  I shoved some clothes into
a back-pack, not wanting to mess with any kind of heavy cumbersome luggage, and
threw on a pair of jeans and a gray graphic tee shirt.

“I’m on my way, Legs.  Hang on, okay?”

She gasped.  “NO, Jason.  You can’t.  That’s not a good
idea.  Please.  I’ll leave, but I need time.  Anton…”

“What the fuck did he do, Lori Ann?  Tell me now,” I barked
into the phone and heard her sobs gets louder. 

“Stop, please.”  I’d never heard her voice sound so broken,
and I felt fear creep up my spine and panic start to set in with how far away I
was from my girl.  “No more.  I can’t deal with anyone else being angry, Jace. 
Please.”

I took a calming breath and said, “I’m coming to get you and
bring you home, and you can’t stop me.  I need to protect you from whatever is
going on.  I’m booking my flight now, so I’ll be there as soon as I can.  Okay?”

I wasn’t sure what she might say.  Lori Ann was
strong-willed and independent, but with a quiet, sad voice I heard her say, “Yes,
Jason.  Come get me.  Hurry, please.” And I was shattered.

Those two words stopped me in my tracks, stole my breath,
and caused heavy grief to settle in my chest.  This was bad. 

“Listen to me.  You need to go somewhere safe until I can
get there.  Leave now.”

“I can’t.  There’s nowhere to go that he won’t find me. 
Everyone here protects their own.  I’m not one of them.”

Fuck.
 I took a breath, trying to think quickly.  “Okay. 
Do what you have to do to protect yourself.  I’m coming to get you.”

“Thank you, Jason.  I’m sorry.”

“Why the hell are you sorry, babe?”  She was breaking my
heart.  This wasn’t my strong, independent girl.

“I wasn’t strong enough to protect myself.  I didn’t pay
attention…refused to see the signs, and let you and myself down.”

“Oh, Legs.  You could never disappoint me.”  I couldn’t
shake the feeling that she was trying to say goodbye, and it scared the holy
hell out of me.  “It’s easy to miss signs.  We all do it.  What’s important is
that you are doing something about it now.  Okay?  Everything is gonna be
fine.  I’ll make sure of it.  You trust me, don’t you?”

“Yes, Jason.  Always.”  Her voice sounded stronger.  “Thank
you.”

“Lori Ann, you’re my girl, always have been.  You don’t need
to thank me.  Ever.  I’ll text you with the flight info as soon as I know. 
Please, just…”  I didn’t know what to tell her to do.  My chest felt like it
had a boulder pressing against it and my legs were made of rubber bands.  It
was excruciating. 

“I’ll do all I can, Jace.  I’ll wait for you to come for me.”

I sighed.  “Already out the door, Legs.”

“Okay.”  I hung up with Lori Ann and immediately started
calling Craig as I was climbing into my truck.  I needed him to come with me. 
I sure as hell hoped he would, at least.

“Jace, what the hell is it now?”  He was always so pleasant
in the morning.

“I’m going to get her, Craig.  She practically begged…told
me to come get her and to hurry.  If you’re in, get your ass on a plane, man.”

I heard him suck in a deep breath.  “Shit, really?”

“Yes.”

“I’m up and moving.  Fuck, Jace!  For Legs to ask for help,
it must be bad.”

“Don’t call her that.  You know better.”  “Legs” was my
nickname for Lori Ann.  Craig damn well knew that and did it just to piss me
off…usually.  I’m sure it was a slip of the tongue this time, but still. 

“Right.  Whatever.”  He paused.  “What time is your flight?”

“It’s at 8:10 am and will take me like fifteen hours to get
there.  I have a two-hour layover at JFK in New York…flying into MXP, Malpensa
International and with the time change, I won’t be there until tomorrow
morning.  Sucks, man.  But it’s all I can do.”

“Okay.  I’m booking now.  I’ll try to catch up with you
somewhere.”  I could already hear Craig’s fingers typing in the background.

“I appreciate you going with me.  You know you don’t have
to.  I can handle it just fine.”

“Yep, I know.  But I want to help.  Besides, I’m the only
one that can keep you out of trouble.”

I let out a tight laugh.  “You know it, man.” I paused.  “Hey,
I’m checking a bag.  Have to since I’m packing my gun.  Be sure you declare
yours, or we’ll be in deep shit.”

“Okay.  Got it.  See you there.  Keep me in the loop for
where you are.”

“Done.”  I hung up and waited until I was at a red light to
text Lori Ann.

Jason:  On the first flight I could get.  Leaving here
about 8am.  Will be in Milan by 8 in the morning.  You okay?

Several minutes passed before I got her reply.  It made me
nervous as hell.

Lori Ann:  Yes.  I’m fine.  Just do what you can.  I’ll
be here waiting for you.

I couldn’t get over the heavy feeling deep in my chest that
my Lori Ann was actually asking me for help.  That just wasn’t her.  She was
too strong, so this had to be really bad. 

Jason:  I’m coming, babe.

I pulled into the airport, quickly found the Long-Term
parking, and jumped on a shuttle to get to the terminal.  I was flying American
Airlines from San Diego to New York’s JFK then on to Milan.  Security was
fairly light, and I was seated at my gate by 7:30 am.  I tried like hell not to
think of every awful scenario I could be facing when I stepped off the plane in
Italy.  My mind kept picturing Lori Ann bruised and beaten.  So help me God, if
she’s hurt…I won’t be able to keep my temper under control.  That was one of
the reasons I didn’t fight Craig coming along.  He was calm and level headed,
but also emotionally involved enough with Lori Ann and her situation that he
would actually
care
and not just see this as a job. 

I boarded and flew the five hours to New York.  I busied
myself with learning the layout of Milan using some maps I’d downloaded that
morning.  I didn’t want to be going into anything blind.  I’d never been to
Italy, so I knew having some basic knowledge would come in handy, just in case
we needed to make a hasty departure.  I didn’t see Craig anywhere during my two
and a half hour layover at JFK and I hadn’t heard from him, so I was assuming
he was in transit somewhere. 

Just minutes before I boarded the eight-hour flight to
Milan, I took two of the sleeping pills my doctor prescribed for my occasional
insomnia.  It was part of the job.  Being a homicide detective, I saw too much
crazy shit to not have a nightmare or two here and there.  The department
shrink was a former detective and was pretty great at handling all of us that
were required to see him.  Our chief was adamant about keeping our heads clear
of any residual shit.  Made opening up to Dr. Vaughan a lot easier.

I made my way to my First Class seat—yes, First Class
because I bought my ticket last minute—and waited for the flight attendant to
come by with a blanket.  I knew I had about twenty-three minutes before the
pills kicked in and I’d be out for several hours.  I made sure to always tell
someone when I took them, whether it was my mom, dad, my sister
Melissa—whomever.  This time, it would be the nice-looking woman handling First
Class.

“Excuse me, ma’am?”  I needed her attention.

“Yes, how can I help you?”  She was tall and thin with long
blonde hair, manicured nails, and perfect makeup.  Hmm, Barbie came to mind
when I looked at her, and it made me smile.  She was a little too perfect
looking.

“Well, this may sound strange, but I wanted to inform you
that I took two sleeping pills about ten minutes ago.  I’m a detective and have
to take them on occasion to sleep.  I’ve formed the habit of telling someone
when I take them…paranoia, I suppose.  So, I guess that someone would be you
this time since I’m traveling alone.”  My lips curved into a slight smile.

She smiled, and all her perfect teeth gleamed at me as she
gently patted my arm.  “I appreciate you telling me.  And, not to worry…you
aren’t the first passenger to let me know those kinds of things on these long
international flights.”

“Thank you.”

“A detective, huh?”

“Yes, a homicide detective with SPD.”

“Wow.  Must be tough sometimes.”  The concern on her face
was genuine.  I’d gotten really good at reading people’s expressions, and hers
was the real deal.

“It certainly can be.”

“So, what takes you to Italy?”  She was attempting to
lighten the conversation, but little did she know, her question made my chest
tighten.

“Actually, I’m headed there to help a friend.  I think she’s
in trouble.”  I heard a slight gasp before “Barbie” put her hand to her chest.

“Oh, I’m so sorry to hear that.”  She reached down and
grabbed my hand, holding it to her as a way to comfort me.  It was odd, but
nice.  She was nice.

I gently removed my hand and ran it through my hair.  “Thanks. 
I just hope it’s not anything like the crap running through my head.”  I didn’t
really intend to tell her that, but she was easy to talk to.

“I’m sure she is just fine.  She’s one lucky girl to have
you running there to help her.  Now, let me get you a pillow and blanket so you
can drift off to sleep.  I’ll keep a close eye on you as we fly and make sure
you’re awake before we land.  Okay?”

“That would be really nice.  I’m Jason, by the way.”  I
stuck my hand out to shake hers.

“Nice to meet you, Jason.  I’m Kim.”  Huh…not the name I
would have picked for her, but still fitting.  She smiled, then leaned down and
whispered, “Let me go find a few things to make you comfortable.  I’ll be right
back.  Don’t go drifting off on me just yet.” 

I laughed.  “I’ll do my best.”

Kim was very nice, and although she wasn’t exactly my type
with the perfectly coiffed package, her genuine kindness and caring attitude
made her into a truly beautiful person. 

I laid my head back and felt the deep relaxing feeling of
the sleeping pills kicking in.  By the time the airplane doors were shutting
and we began to taxi down the runway, Kim had set me up with two brand new
pillows and a nice thick blanket.  I shut my eyes and could’ve sworn I heard a
sweet voice whisper “sweet dreams” in my ear as I drifted off into a deep
sleep.

“Hey there, Sleeping Beauty.  We are making our final
descent into Milan.”  I heard a woman’s voice talking to me, but couldn’t place
it.  I forced my eyes open and was jolted back to reality. 

“Oh, God.  Sorry.  Man, I slept the whole flight?  I’ve
never slept that long, even with the sleeping pills.”  I rubbed my hands down
my face and looked over at Kim’s smiling face.

“Well, apparently you needed the rest.  Now, you’ll be fresh
for whatever you are facing here.”  I saw a slight twitch of her eyebrows like
she was concerned about this stranger in front of her.

“Thank you, Kim.  You have been incredibly kind to me.”

“You’re welcome.  All part of the job.”  She patted my
shoulder and started to turn and walk back toward the cockpit, but I placed my
hand on top of hers.  Shock or maybe fear registered on Kim’s face before she
looked at my smiling face and realized I was about to say something else.