The Untouchables (36 page)

“That’s what we’re trying to get at. There is no reason for anyone to kill your bodyguard. That bullet may have been for you, Mrs. Callahan. This type of shot was the same used on the President.” Scooter stood up straighter, as he grabbed hold of my car door.

“On the news they said that was the First Lady…” I started when he cut me off.

“It was, but she has an accomplice we have no information about. If you could just come down to the station, maybe help to find the connection—”

“You’re a cop, not a detective, if you have any more questions for us, please contact our lawyer. Goodnight, Officer,” Liam stated, helping me into the car before slamming the door closed. “Drive.”

Fedel didn’t need to be told twice. It felt odd leaving a man behind. Antonio had been with me for years—with Fedel for years. Antonio was a mentor to both Fedel and Adriana. I knew Monte must have called her. It wasn’t the type of news you broke over the phone, but Adriana would want time to separate herself from us.

Next to me, Liam was so tense he felt frozen, and all I could do was stare into the darkness of the night sky. Chicago was used to death. I was used to death. Neither was I grief stricken nor was I in shock; I was just fucking angry. I felt powerless, and it was a feeling I wasn’t familiar with. This was bad. We need to retaliate quickly or we would have anarchy. The reason our men trusted us and were loyal to us was for the simple reason that we were the biggest and baddest animals. Aviela was making us look weak. This has to end, I just wasn’t sure how. How could she be so fucking good? How could she kill, get into our house, know where we were going? Who knew that much?

I sighed as we pulled to a stop in front of the house. When Fedel opened the door for me, I didn’t even wait for Liam, or anyone else for that matter, to help me. Seeing Evelyn and Sedric along with Olivia and Neal all huddled in the middle of the foyer made me want to scream. I didn’t want to deal with this shit right now.

“Thank God you’re alright.” Evelyn sighed, making beeline for my stomach as I took off my coat and handed it to the maid.

“That depends on your definition of alright, Mother,” Liam stated, walking in and standing beside me. “May I ask what you two are doing back here?”

“We live here,” Olivia snapped.

“Olivia…”

“Liam, I’m sorry, it’s a force of habit. My father is done campaigning and is back in Chicago so we…”

Neal grabbed her hand, stepping forward in the hopes of shutting her up. “Declan and Coraline will be back in the morning. I figured you would want the family together before we get even with this bitch. Tell me what…”

I couldn’t listen to them for another goddamn second. They were just so fucking idiotic, why waste my energy on the waste of space. Walking past them, I pretended they weren’t even there while walking up the stairs. The bottom of my feet hurt like a bitch’s ass at a BDSM club. All I wanted was my bed, but sadly I knew I couldn’t go there just yet. I didn’t usually go to Adriana’s room. It was sort of beyond decorum, but what hell, I made the fucking rules. Pushing into her room, I knew wouldn’t see her.

Her bed was made, every book she surrounded herself with was stacked around the room like erected monuments, and her curtains were closed. Breathing deeply, I walked over to her bed and grabbed every one of her pillows and threw them to the ground, creating a makeshift bed for me to lie on. I felt like a damn penguin, but it was the only way I could see her. The moment I was on my side, I saw her curled up under the bed, her eyes spilling tears she couldn’t control.

This was Adriana. After everything she had been through, the only place she ever really felt safe was under the bed. It was a habit she couldn’t shake after being taken.

“He asked me to marry him,” she whispered, moving her hand so I could see the ring. Even in the darkness, I could tell it was small and forged into the shape of a teardrop. It was very much Adriana. “I told him I wanted to think about it. I told him I wanted to talk to you. But the truth was, I was scared. He told me to keep the ring, that it would help me think. I should have just said yes.”

“We all know you would have. So did he.” I smiled at her. Like me, she just wanted to be difficult.

She rolled her eyes, hoping to stop her tears but it didn’t work. “I can’t move. If I move, life continues on and I can’t…I loved him so much.”

“Then don’t move,” I whispered to her. The problem with loving someone that much was the fact that it hurt ten times more to lose them. Great love only equaled great pain eventually…that’s why Liam was going to have to die after I did.

LIAM

“What number are you on?” Neal asked, stepping into my office.

Staring at the glass in my hand, I downed it quickly before pulling out another bottle from my bottom drawer.

“I’m not counting. What do you want?”

Sitting across from me, he sighed and pulled out two cigars. “I want to help you. I want to be your brother again. I’ve spent weeks on a campaign, being asked how it feels to be a Callahan, what we’re like, what do I think about families on food stamps right after I bought Olivia another diamond necklace. Father told me that I would hate it; being without the family and having to actually pretend I give fuck almost drove me mad. Olivia ate it up. She loved it. We were like string puppets on stage dancing for everyone else; going where we were told, keeping our comments rehearsed, being the better fucking person to people whose necks I could snap off if I wanted to. Part of me had a hard time dealing with you as my boss, but I’d rather dance under your strings than anyone else’s.”

Staring at him for a moment, I handed Neal a glass and took the cigar. “Do you have a light?”

“As long as you don’t tell my wife.” He laughed, holding the flame at the end of it.

“At least you can lie to yours. Mel can sense smoke like a bloodhound. Truthfully, she knows me well enough that she just lets me slide on some lies for the sake of my pride.” We both sucked in smoke.

“You’ve both come a long way from trying to kill each other.” He had no idea how wrong and right he was. She still tried to kill me, except now it usually had us both naked. “What are we going to do about this Aviela bitch?”

“She’s one step ahead of everything. We make a play, she makes one better. Any thoughts?” Because I was all out of motherfucking ideas.

He sat back, leaning against his chair and scratching the back of his head. “None. I don’t get it. That shot… it was a fucking good one. It’s the type of shot I aim to take.”

“Get to your point.”

“My point is, she could have easily killed Mel. Just like she could have after the accident. She had Mel in her crosshairs, so why didn’t she?”

“That I understand.” I wish I didn’t, but I did. “She gets off on the physical torture. She poisoned Orlando for years. Now she’s making sure her daughter lives in fear. I want to know her end game. There is a bigger picture here. What’s going to happen when Colemen wins office? We both know it’s going to happen, that’s why you’re home early. He has a ninety-one percent likelihood to win. That’s higher than any test you’ve ever taken.”

“Fuck
you
.”

I grinned, downing the rest of my brandy.

“So? What do you want us to do?” he asked seriously.

Smoking, I thought about that for a moment before pulling out the phone in my pocket.

“Aviela called Mel right before she took the shot. I’m sure it’s a burned phone, but still, look into it for me.” Dropping it on the table in front of him, I put out my cigar and stood.

“Yes, boss.”

I didn’t trust him as much I as I wished I could. Moreover, I didn’t trust his wife. There was a rift between us that went beyond just our childhood. However, if there was anyone in the world able to gain my trust, it was him. After all, he was blood.

“Don’t finish all my brandy,” I directed before leaving. I hadn’t seen Mel in over an hour and my hands were starting to twitch. Every damn lock had been changed for a second time, we had added at least twenty different cameras and now had men checking the grounds every hour. None of that extra security really gave me any peace of mind when it came to her.

“Mel,” I called out when I entered our room. Our bed was still made. I had figured she would be asleep.

“In here,” she yelled from the bathroom. Following the scent of vanilla and the soft glow of candlelight, I noticed her dress and shoes in a pile next to the door. The sight of her soaking in our bathtub—the mounds of her breasts covered with suds, her hair in a messy bun, strands sticking to her neck and her eyes closed—was almost enough to bring me to my knees.

“Stop staring. I would invite you in, but it’s a little warm for you,” she said softly, not bothering to open her eyes.

“Yeah, sure. You and I both know you want that tub to yourself.” Rolling up my sleeves, I took a seat on the marble right next to the pearlescent tub, and rubbed circles onto her stomach. She took a deep breath, her breasts rising, before she relaxed into my hand.

“Antonio asked Adriana to marry him,” she whispered. “I’m not sure how she’s going to handle this, and I don’t have time to help her…I don’t know how.”

“We can’t. The only thing we can do is cut off the witch’s head.”

She smiled, her eyes only opening slightly. “Who gets what part? I want more than a pound of her flesh. One for me and one for my father.”

“You’ve been reading
The Merchant of Venice
to him again, haven’t you?” The kid was going to come out speaking old English.

“It beats you reading
Atlas Shrugged
any day.”

“That novel is—”

“A vision of what the world could be, blah, blah, blah. Thank God you read it while I’m sleeping.”

“Obviously you weren’t in a deep enough sleep…”

Before I could finish, she splashed the water with her hands, soaking my face.

“Couldn’t help myself.” She laughed.

“You’re lucky you’re pregnant.”

“Correction:
you’re
lucky I’m pregnant because I would so easily kick your ass. Again.”

“You beat me once.”

“Once is all you need.” She waved her hand over her stomach as if to prove her point.

I was too tired to even argue. Resting my head against the tub, we both sat in the calmness trying to unwind. But my wife didn’t believe in rest. She was always thinking about work.

“How much did Roy pay us?”

Sighing, I didn’t move. “We made just over 312 million, most of the money is going offshore, remember? Are you planning on taking the money and running?”

She shook her head and sat up straighter. “Nope, just thinking maybe we should go away when the baby is born.”

“We have a few weeks.”

“Actually, I think my water just broke.”

“What!” I yelled, jumping up. “Are you sure? How can you fucking tell? You’re in water!”

“Ahh…” she hissed, grabbing the sides of the tub. “I’m fucking sure, so stop panicking and help me out of this damn thing!”

Dropping a few towels on the floor, I grasped her arm and her waist, holding her to me as I pulled her out. I wanted to just lift her, but I doubted that I would be able to. Slowly, I walked her back into our room, and helped her onto the bed.

“Adriana packed a bag.”

“Got it,” I stated, running to her clothes. “Ahh shit, I just stepped on one of your fucking heels!”

“Liam, I need clothes, my soft sweats.”

Glancing around the rows upon rows of clothing, I had no idea where the hell any of her shit was.

Grabbing the black pair, I rushed over to see her breathing quickly. Looking up at me, she stared at the sweats in my hands. “That’s not the one.”

“Does it really mat—”

“Your son is trying to push his way through my motherfucking vagina! I want my bloody grey sweatsuit!” she screamed, before taking a deep breath, and rubbing my hand onto her stomach.

I felt myself freeze.
She’s in labor. Holy shit, my wife is in fucking labor.

“Oh, please, please don’t do this, Liam! Don’t be that guy who faints! I need my clothes!”

Nodding, I ran back into her closet, avoiding her damn shoes, and pulling the suit off the hanger before rushing back to her. Kneeling before her, I pulled her pants up around her legs.

“Ah, this really fucking hurts,” she hissed, grabbing hold of my shoulders as another contraction started.

“Just breathe, baby.” Holding the sides of her stomach, we stared at each other, breathing until it passed.

Sighing and cracking her neck, she put on her jacket.

“Thank God for baby books.”

“Dad,” I said into the phone. “Listen, Mel’s water just broke…”

“What?” he screamed before yelling for my mother. “Evelyn! Mel’s in labor…”

“Pop, listen to me! I need a barrier around us as we get to the hospital. We’re heading down now.” I think he got me, but I couldn’t tell with all the shuffling around the room.

“Of course you were going to come early and when I was exhausted,” Mel whispered to her stomach. “As if I wasn’t nervous already.”

Taking her hands, I kissed the palms of each of them. “We’re going to be okay. All of us are going to be okay, I swear.”

She nodded, her eyes drooping slightly; the clock on the dresser beside us seemed to taunt us, as it flashed,
2:04 a.m.

“I’m not ready for this. He’s early, Liam. He can’t be early because I’m not fucking ready. I can only do this when I’m ready,” she whispered through deep breaths, as who could only be my mother, knocked against our door repeatedly.

“Liam? Mel? Are you okay? Can we come in? How far apart are your contractions?” My mother knocked like she was fucking SWAT.

“If there is any woman on this planet that can do this, it’s you.” I waited for her to nod before calling out to my mother. “We’re good, come in.”

“Oh thank Jesus!” she yelled, running in with curlers still in her hair, while wearing a pair of sweatpants I didn’t even know she owned.

“ARGH!” Mel screeched through her teeth. “Can someone please get me to a damn hospital? No way in hell I’m having this baby here.”

MELODY