Return To Forever (18 page)

Melissa was tending to the baby when Joe called. Phil was due home for lunch, she told him, and she would pass on Joe’s message. “Take care of yourself, Joe,” she said as she hung up the phone. Joe had left the number at the Best Western for Phil to call when he knew something about Allison.

Joe led Mary to their room and they were surprised to find that room service was available and they were starving. Joe brought in their luggage while Mary ordered a couple of burgers. “Phil is a good cop, Mary. He’ll jump on this and I know he will call as soon as he can.”

The Lansdale patrol car pulled in to the Sherman driveway precisely at noon as always when Phil was on the day shift. Melissa ran out to meet him as he was getting out of the car and he could tell something was wrong. “Honey, your friend Joe called from Arizona. He says he thinks something may have happened to a girl named Allison and wants you to check out her house to see if she’s OK. Do you know who he is talking about?” Phil explained who Allison was then jumped back in his car with a note with Joe’s number and headed to Allison’s.

As Phil was driving to Allison’s, Joe thought he should contact Rick and let him know what had happened on all fronts. “Joe, where the hell are you?” Rick asked as he picked up the phone. “Did you find Mary?”

“She’s with me right now. We are in Tucson, heading to Nogales where we will cross the border and hopefully disappear,” Joe answered his old friend. “I just left a message for Phil. We think the mob has gotten to Mary’s sister and she may be hurt or even dead. Hopefully he got the message and is investigating. He’s supposed to call me when he finds out anything.”

Rick listened intently. “What about Mary’s husband? Did they get to him yet?”

“We don’t know.” Joe said. “If they took him out there should be something in the Arizona papers at some point.”

“OK, can I help in anyway?” Rick was the kind of friend you trusted with your life.

Joe knew he had to cut this call short. “No, buddy. If you have a chance, get ahold of Phil and get an update. I’ll call if things turn to shit.”

—

Jackie was pacing nervously in his suite, waiting for another call from Bobby after they dealt with the sister. Silvio was with him in the suite to see if his crew was still needed. When the phone finally rang, Jackie leaped across the room to answer. “Boss, she wouldn’t tell us anything else. She was a tough broad, I gotta say. We got outta there clean; no one heard or saw anything.”

“Son of a bitch!” Jackie screamed. “They got a head start on us and we got nothing to identify the car or the fucking boyfriend!”

Silvio listened to the exchange and then made a suggestion. “Jackie, I have an idea. We know they are heading to Mexico, probably using the wife’s car which we can easily get the info on. If they take the most direct route they will cross the border at Nogales. We can use my private plane and get down there right now and wait for them to show. Then bada bing, its over.”

Jackie was relieved that someone had a decent idea to bring this matter to an end. “Thank you my friend. At last someone shows a little fucking creativity.” Silvio made a call to have the plane fueled and ready for the short flight to Nogales. They would be there in less than an hour and in position to ID the Regal when it hit town.

—

Phil could see from the street that Allison’s front door was damaged, probably by force. Seeing no cars in the driveway or nearby on the street, he figured none of the bad guys were still around and did not call for back up. He pushed open the door with his foot and drew his weapon before entering. He found a light switch and immediately saw Allison’s body, two bullet holes in the head. He did a quick sweep of the small house then went back to his car to call in to get a crime scene team on the way.

Phil dreaded making the call back to Joe and Mary. A sweet young girl, loyal to her older sister had been brutally murdered. She had paid for her brother-in-laws sins with her life and who would seek retribution…no one.

“What did he say, Joe? Is Allison OK?” Mary had been in the bathroom when Phil’s call came in. Joe had hung up without saying a word but the look on his face told everything. Mary dropped to her knees and began crying hysterically.

Joe knelt beside her and took her in his arms. “I am so sorry Mary. If I had never reached out to Allison she might still be alive. I will never forgive myself.” They held each other, weeping softly now for their loss, but Joe had decided he was done running.

CHAPTER 34

K
ent Wells knew his career with the Marshall Service was over. You don’t lose a WITSEC asset without paying the ultimate price. Don De Laudanum was a disgusting person and Kent personally felt no remorse for his death. Professionally, he had been responsible for his safety and Kent failed…miserably. He felt differently about Don’s wife. She was a sweet gal who went through hell living with Don but she stayed loyal a lot longer than Kent would have guessed… and now she was gone and, hopefully, still alive.

The following day, the Marshall’s in Arizona got word of the killing in Lansdale and knew instantly that the two events were linked. In a way, Kent was relieved because they wouldn’t have killed Mary’s sister unless she was still on the run. The bad news…Torelli wanted her head as final payment. Killing Don was not enough.

Kent knew from the Lansdale PD report that a former boyfriend had rescued Mary and they were on their way to Mexico with the mob right behind them. Kent was responsible for two people and one was still alive but in danger. He still had a job to do and he was going to find Mary and her friend and protect them….once and for all. He had the number of the hotel that the Lansdale cop had called in Tucson. With a little luck they would still be there.

“I’ll get it” Joe yelled to Mary as the phone rang unexpectedly. “Hello?” Joe said with trepidation.

“My name is Kent Wells with the US Marshall Service. Is this Joe?” How did these people find us, Joe thought as he sat down to continue the conversation.

“How do I know you’re telling the truth?” Joe asked…a logical question that needed to be answered before this discussion went any further.

“Put Mary on” Kent answered. “She knows me. I was responsible for them in WITSEC”. Joe called Mary to the phone and she instantly recognized Kent’s voice. “Mary, thank God you are OK. We found Don’s body in your home. Clearly an execution by the Torelli family. You must have gotten out hours before they showed up. I am so sorry for allowing this to happen.”

Mary just listened but she had expected this result once she knew the mob was on to their location. Kent was right. Joe had plucked her out of the oven with little time to spare. “I guess I always knew in my heart this would not end well for Donald and me, but losing my sister is too much for me to handle…too steep a price to pay. When will it end?” Mary thought she had no more tears left but they began pouring out once again.

Joe picked up the phone. “Listen Marshall, I have decided to fight these fuckers until one of us is dead. If you want to play, now is the time to ante up. My guess is they are laying for us at the border so that’s where I’m heading…alone.”

“I’ve pulled your military file, Joe. You used to be a hell of a marksman. Still have the touch?” Kent did not expect Joe’s decision to take the fight to the enemy but liked his chances if he had a little help.

“Time to fish or cut bait Marshall. Are you going to help me?” Joe knew he had to get moving and wanted protection for Mary before he left. “At least I expect you guys to get someone to look after Mary when I leave, which is pretty damn quick.”

“I’m on my way Joe.” Kent replied. “I have a chopper ready to go. We will be picking you up in less than an hour at the Tucson airport so get over there right away. I also have deputies from our office in Tucson on the way to the Best Western to get Mary safe. Tell her not to open the door unless she sees a Federal Marshall’s credentials. She knows what to look for.”

—

Silvio’s plane was a little too small for the wide bodied dago’s and their arsenal but it got off the ground and landed easily in Nogales. They had a car waiting and drove to the Americana Hotel which faced the border crossing point and would be a perfect location to watch for Mary and her friend.

The manager was an ex-mobster who knew when to look the other way. He gave Silvio a room with a balcony facing the street and in a matter of minutes their sniper’s nest was set up and ready. “Go get us some sandwiches and beer”, Silvio instructed the manager who sent his young daughter to fetch the food. The beer might be a problem, he thought.

Jackie had his two palookas stay in the lobby to make sure the Regal didn’t slip past. They each had Uzi’s under their jackets which made them extremely uncomfortable in the desert heat. They were also instructed to keep any potential customers from checking in. “Tell them we have a health problem.” Silvio suggested.

Jackie had given his crew pictures of Mary but they were old and looked nothing like the blonde version of today. They had no pictures of Joe so the car would be key in spotting them before they crossed in to Mexico.

The Marshall’s chopper used the roof top heli port of the local ABC TV affiliate. Upon landing, Kent Wells led Joe quickly to the street where two Nogales PD patrol cars were waiting. “I’m Deputy Marshall Wells and this is my assistant,” Kent announced to the officers as they climbed into one of the cars. Joe had his bag with the sniper rifle and shotgun. His 1911 Colt was in his waist, locked and loaded.

“Gentlemen, we are looking for a group of mob executioners that have murdered at least two people and are looking to kill a third that has been in WITSEC in Phoenix for a number of years. She is back in our hands for now but these people will not stop until they get to her, which is why we have to strike first and decisively.” The police officers were locked on every word Kent said and were eager for some action.

“We have reason to believe they are already here, in Nogales and waiting to spot the car that our asset had been traveling in. We need you to sweep the most logical buildings that would be logistically positioned for their purpose. These men will be heavily armed and won’t hesitate to shoot anyone who gets in their way.” Kent continued to talk as they drove and upon reaching the station he instructed everyone to put on protective vests before making their sweep.

CHAPTER 35

T
he front door to Mazon’s Food Market was wide open to help let some of the heat out. There was no air conditioning and the ceiling fans were turning too slowly to have any effect. The hotel manager’s daughter wandered through the store, placing lunch meat and bread into her little cart. In the back she found the cooler where beer and wine was stocked and grabbed a six pack of the first brand she found.

At the same time, Kent and Joe were moving on foot, hoping they would see something or someone that looked out of place in this dusty border town. Standing in from of Mazon’s, Joe pointed to the Americana Hotel directly across the street. “If I were laying for someone that’s where I would position myself,” he said to the Marshall. Little did he know that his head was filling the scope of Silvio’s rifle fifty yards away.

Kent had a hand held police radio and called to the backup teams to move towards the hotel on foot. If Joe was right, the sight of two patrol cars might spook the shooters. “Let’s get a cold drink while we wait,” Kent said as he motioned for Joe to follow him in to the store.

“No Sofia, you are too young to buy beer. You will have to put them back in the cooler.” The store clerk was trying to convince the little girl to obey the law but she simply would not listen.

“I will be in big trouble if I do not bring them the beers,” she pleaded. “They are bad men and may hurt my father if I upset them.” Joe and Kent heard the exchange and immediately thought of the same thing.

“Excuse me for listening but it sounds like this little girl will be in trouble if she returns without the beer.” Kent spoke up to the clerk. “Why not just let her take it and it will be our little secret. OK”? Kent pulled open is jacket to reveal the holstered Glock and the clerk got the message.

“OK, Sofia but tell your father this is the last time, OK?” The girl grabbed the groceries and ran out the door.

Joe watched as the little girl ran across the street to the hotel. “I think we found what we came for.” Kent nodded in agreement. “Who sent that girl?” Joe asked the clerk.

“Her father is the manager of the Americana Hotel. They have a kitchen but do not start making meals until dinner time. Some guest must have been hungry.” The clerk knew something was going on and wanted no part of it.

A moment later two uniformed police entered the store and Kent pulled them aside to update them on what they had just learned. “We are pretty damn sure our friends are holed up in the hotel across the street. I don’t want to rush in with that little girl in there. Any suggestions?”

Joe spoke first. “If I can get to the top of this building I will have a perfect view of the second floor of the hotel. I have my sniper rifle and with a little luck, should be able to get clean shots on at least one or two of our targets and maybe see where the girl is at.”

“Is there a stair way to the roof?” Kent asked the clerk.

“Yes, in the alley behind the store. The roof is very old and unstable so you must be careful.” Seeing the uniformed police was reassuring to the clerk and he was no longer reluctant to help.