Girl Undercover 12: Showdown (2 page)

“Really? Why is he excluding you like that?”

“Because he thinks I’ll flip out too easily if something goes wrong. You know, because of my anger issues. He doesn’t believe I have the right temperament to be involved in something so important.” Jonah sounded like he was about to start crying now, sucking in a frustrated breath. “He doesn’t tell me that straight out, of course, because he doesn’t want to hurt my feelings, but I can tell that’s what he thinks deep inside. So I keep looking for ways to prove that I’m competent and that I’ve changed. You know, to make him feel confident that I
am
the right person to be his successor when he’s gone.” He exhaled. “When I tell him how I dealt with Carlos, he’ll realize I’m the one. He
has
to realize it.”

“Oh, Jonah, I’m so sorry to hear all this,” I said emphatically. “I’m sure he’ll come to his senses once the coups are over. If he didn’t believe you have what it takes to take over, he wouldn’t bother to have his psychiatrist work with you to manage your anger, right?”

“I’m hoping so. I’m really working hard to prove him wrong. So I used to have some problems controlling my emotions, but that’s history now. I’m thinking logically when I make decisions now, not emotionally like before. Eventually he’ll see that, too, and then he’ll have to accept that only I can be his successor. Only
I!”

I had to bite my tongue not to laugh. If his behavior these days was his idea of controlling his emotions, I couldn’t imagine how he used to be
before
he went into therapy.

“He will, Jonah, he will,” I said. Since his father wouldn’t let him participate in the takeover, I decided that I was wasting my time trying to pick his brain any further. So I said, “I’m so sorry, but I have to go to the hospital now. Can we talk more later?”

“Yeah, fine,” Jonah replied, not sounding pleased with my suggestion. I didn’t care; I really had better things to do than to sit here and listen to his whining.

“I should be back in New York in the next few days and then we can talk in person,” I said suggestively.

“That’ll be good. And we’ll do lots more besides talking… I miss you.”

“I miss you, too.” My stomach turned as I uttered those words; fortunately, my voice didn’t give away how unbearable I found him.

We said goodbye and hung up. I dialed Ian’s number next on my disposable, and he answered before the first ring had gone through completely.

“Did you speak to him?” Ian asked by way of greeting.

“Yeah, but he didn’t say much we can use. His father apparently thinks he’s not fit to be part of the coups, so he doesn’t tell him anything about the actual operation.”

Ian chuckled. “I’m not surprised.”

“Yeah, not me either. I do get the sense that Stenger really does love his son, though, so he’ll likely be upset when he realizes someone’s kidnapped him.” I proceeded to tell Ian about Carlos and how Jonah hoped that, after punishing the trainer, his father would finally realize he was a capable heir to his empire. “He must’ve been talking to Carlos when you overheard him,” I finished my report.

“Yes, most likely.” Ian tskd. “It’s hard to believe the bloke forgot when their New Year’s Eve is. As smart as the hybrids are supposed to be, you’d think they’d never forget something as basic as that.”

“Jonah claims he was drunk.”

“In the middle of the day?”

I exhaled. “Who knows what the reason is? The trainer probably just misspoke or something, and Jonah took it as him forgetting. He might just be looking for people to take out his frustrations on what with his dad not finding him fit to be his successor. I’m not too worried about what will happen to Carlos—he was one of the trainers involved in Nicki’s death, so he knows what’s on the menu for him after Jonah lost it on him. If he’s smart, he’ll go into hiding somehow. I doubt Stenger will waste too much time looking for him. As crazy as it may sound, I’m getting the sense that Stenger isn’t as evil and unreasonable as his son is. He has much bigger things to worry about than someone mixing up a holiday.”

“Yes, that’s very true.”

“What do we do now?”

“You should get your hands on Captain Brady and inject him with the Haldol. Hopefully that’ll undo whatever they did to him. We could definitely use his help. While you take care of Brady, I’ll find a way to make Jonah tell me where I can find Stenger.”

Chapter 2

Dante smiled at me when I entered his room at the Marina Del Rey Hospital. Wearing a sleeveless T-shirt, he sat propped up in a bed that was so big it dominated the white-painted, bright space. An IV drip was connected to his hand. He must have slept well and gotten every ounce of his lost blood replaced, because he no longer looked pale and exhausted. I had expected Ricki and maybe Enrique to be by his side, but he was all alone. A small TV was hooked up in a corner of the ceiling, and it was showing a newscast.

I walked up to Dante, took his outstretched hand and squeezed it, then leaned in to kiss his cheek.

“How are you feeling?” I asked him and took a seat on the metallic chair next to his bed.

“Not bad, considerin’,” he replied. “Did you hear what was reported on the news a little while ago? It’s on every channel.” He inclined his head toward the TV behind me. I turned around to see what the anchor was saying, but all I caught was her announcing that she would be right back with more news. A cat food commercial took over the screen.

I faced my friend again, who grabbed the remote control and switched off the annoying music accompanying the commercial. “No, I was, um, kinda busy,” I said. “What are they saying?”

“That Tim Dalton was once involved with Mayor Bottini.”

I felt my mouth drop open in surprise. “What? You mean involved as in
romantically
involved?”

“Yeah. Well, I don’t know how romantic it was, but at least they were hookin’ up. Apparently someone saw the two of them at an obscure gay bar somewhere in West Hollywood. Makin’ out.” Dante wiggled his eyebrows playfully.

“I’ll be damned… I had no idea Bottini was gay. Did you?”

He shrugged his tattooed shoulders. “No, but I can’t say I’m that surprised. I always thought he was playin’ the macho card a little too much. In my experience, dudes like that are often gay. But I’m glad that, for now, the media is goin’ crazy with this tip, taking the heat away from
Cuerpos
and me. Hopefully, there’s some truth to the gay rumor. That would mean I’m off the hook forever.”

“Yeah, let’s hope.” I thought back to the hostage situation. “Huh. Well, they sure did a good job covering up already knowing each other in that case. The thought never once entered my mind.”

“Yeah, I can’t say I ever suspected anything, either. But I’m
lovin’
it. Especially the revenge angle.” Dante chuckled to himself.

I tilted my head in confusion. “Revenge angle? What do you mean?”

“According to what’s being reported, Tim has carried a grudge against Bottini since Bottini dumped him for a younger model a few years ago. That’s what a waiter who knows someone who knows Tim claims. So Tim has been seeking to get back at him ever since.”

Dante screwed up his face, narrowing his eyes as he gazed off into the distance. “Maybe it was Tim
himself
who called in the tip to the station this morning…”

He glanced at me again. “You know, just to fuck with the mayor. It wouldn’t surprise me. I’ve heard he’s a dick.”

“You think? Well, if he did, we can be sure he’s still alive. Even so, I doubt he’s behind any of it.”

“Yeah, probably not. Either way, it’s great.” Dante grinned happily.

I looked around the room, taking in the stark whiteness of it. “Where’s Ricki and Enrique? I thought they were gonna be here.”

“Enrique never came at all. He’s been home with his grandma. No point in getting them to come here since I’ll be out in a couple of hours. Ricki left just before you got here to get some sleep. She needed it; she’s been up all night.” He gave an amused chuckle. “She was so tired she couldn’t keep her eyes open. I literally had to
beg
her to go home and wait for me there.”

I smiled, picturing Ricki sitting before Dante, struggling to stay awake while slurring her refusal to leave his side. That was just like her.

Dante took a closer look at me. “How are you doin’,
chica?
You seem kinda frazzled. You didn’t sleep well? How are our captives?”

I expelled a dejected breath, debating which one of the calamities taking place this morning to tell him about first. I needed to reveal all that had happened to Dante; postponing it only made it worse, which was exactly what I was trying to do.

“They’re dead,” I said bluntly.

His black eyes widened and he stared at me.
“De puta madre…
For real? How the hell did
that
happen?”

“Juback fell from the balcony as he tried to escape and Kelly was shot to death when he tried to climb out of his bedroom window. But that’s not the worst part.”

He managed to look even more incredulous. “There’s more?”

I told him about the bomb Ian had dropped on me earlier, ending my depressing account with how Ian and I had also concluded that Brady had become an untouchable involuntarily. “But the good news is that I have a pretty good idea how to cure him from whatever they did to him,” I added. I explained how Dr. Kelly had told me there was a drug I could inject directly into an untouchable’s bloodstream for that to happen. “Of course, Brady might die in the process what with his bad heart and all, but it can’t be helped. It’s all we’ve got.”

Dante just stared at me in silence as he digested all that I had broken to him. I couldn’t blame him for needing some time; it was a
lot
to swallow in one serving. Then he snorted, shaking his head, and said, “Damn… Only ten days before all hell breaks loose, huh... What are you gonna do? What are
we
gonna do?”

I squared my shoulders to convey more confidence than I felt. “We have a tentative plan. Ian’s gonna get his hands on Jonah and make him tell us where we can find Stenger. Since my ‘boyfriend’—I made quotation marks with my fingers—“isn’t clued in on the coups, his dad’s not gonna miss him for a while as busy as he is with the takeover, so it should work. I’m heading back to New York to help Ian as soon as I’ve fixed Brady.” I realized that the mere thought of having to inject my compromised captain with the Haldol, ending up killing him instead of curing him, made me want to weep. Surely, with my luck, I’d make him croak.

Looking at Dante, I sighed deeply. “I’d
really
prefer it if a medical professional could help me administer the Haldol to increase the chance of getting it right. Needles and I have never gotten along. If I have to do it, I’ll be nervous as hell.”

Dante frowned at me. “Haldol? What’s Haldol?”

“An anti-psychotic medication used to treat mental disorders. Like schizophrenia. It’s the drug Kelly says might fix the brain of an untouchable if administered correctly.” I licked my lips that seemed to get drier by the second. “Since giving injections isn’t my forte, it would be great if someone skilled in that area could do it for me. You know of any doctors we could convince to help out? Someone at this hospital maybe? A female doctor who’s taken a liking to you?” I winked at him, grinning desperately. “It wouldn’t be the first time a woman wants to get into your pants, and now we could
really
use it.”

Dante gave a lopsided smile.
“Chica,
I’d love to help you out with that, but I haven’t been here long enough to bond with any doctor. I only got here last night, remember? And even if there was a woman doctor here who dug me, I don’t know how we’d be able to convince her to give an LAPD captain a potentially lethal dose of… whatever the name was.”

“Haldol.”

“Haldol. Right. In addition to convincing her, you’re gonna have to explain why the subject’s tied up or knocked out while receiving the injection. You’ll have to do something like that in order to subdue him. Think about it. It’s not like Brady’s gonna be all cooperative and shit, right? Come on, Gabi. You’ll just have to do it yourself.”

I thought about what Dante was telling me and grudgingly had to agree that I’d never get a doctor to help me unless I made them do it. Did I really want to go through that? It seemed to me the likelihood of a doctor screwing up the injection was as big if not bigger if I held a gun to their head.

“All you need to do is get the right amount into his bloodstream,” Dante continued. “How hard can that be?”

I ran a hand over my face. “I guess I could do it myself. I’m just so nervous that I’ll fuck up. Hit an artery instead of a vein or something so the wrong amount reaches his brain.”

“How about we ask one of the doctors here how you go about administering it? At least then you’ll feel more confident about it. In the meantime, I’ll call Jose and he can fake a prescription of the drug. He could have it done in thirty minutes. He already has prescription templates in his computer, so it’ll go way faster than when he did your fake ID.”

“Yeah, as long as he’s done cleaning up the apartment after the disaster with the doctors, he can do it,” I said dryly. “Hopefully, he and Albert didn’t screw up
that
part.”

“I’m sure they did a fine job of it. I admit that bringing Albert wasn’t a good move. He tends to get nervous. But give him a break. It wasn’t like Jose had a lot of options yesterday what with all the shit goin’ on at
Cuerpos.
From what I can remember, he was supposed to bring some other dude. Something must’ve changed and Albert came in his place. Shit happens,
chica.
Remember how you screwed up when you tried to squeeze out the info about what Stenger looked like from the docs? You said yourself that someone with your experience should never have made such a mistake.”

That moment when I’d fucked up so miserably with the docs returned to me, and I had to laugh at myself for being so annoyed with Jose. I was glad Dante had reminded me of it, so I could get over it.