I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thank you for the reviews!
Surprise, cdub77! I hope you had a good flight and hope your wrist feels better soon so you can write some more ^^
Enjoy the chapter and I'm sorry it's a shorter one!
Chapter 7
The next morning the team was on their way to the prison in which Nicola Conti was serving his time for the drugs smuggle and killing of several people. He had been the business partner of Giovanni Vittoria back in the day and hopefully he would give them some information about the whereabouts of his former friend. Conti still seemed to care for Eva, even when he blew up her parents' car. But Tommy wasn't confident Conti would give them anything. It felt like a last straw in their search. Where would they go after if this lead went nowhere? He felt tired, exhausted. Even when he had slept for several hours last night, it felt like he needed much more. His concentration was failing him and bad thoughts kept flooding his mind. A quick glance on his watch told him Louis' funeral was starting soon. They were standing in some Italian prison while their boss was being buried. He was still angry with Rebecca for not being willing to wait a little longer, but he also understood it. There was no telling how long the search for Eva would take and Rebecca needed closure. A funeral was one of the steps towards that. The team could go to his grave after they had found Eva. They would get their chance to say goodbye.
Thinking of the Major's funeral made Tommy also think about doctor Anna Clarke, who was still somewhere in Europe, or maybe even somewhere else in the world, enjoying her freedom after killing Louis. Tommy couldn't stand the thought of her being free. She needed to be locked up. Especially after the games she played with them. She clearly needed help with her problems. That was the next case for the team: after finding Eva, the hunt for Doctor Clarke would start.
'Tommy…' Arabela started and he glanced at her.
'Don't ask me how I'm doing,' he warned her. He was tired of people asking how he was. He felt like shit and he knew he looked like shit. So they could just stop asking him and just continue what they were doing.
'I was just going to say that we have arrived at the prison.' Tommy realized the car had indeed come to a stop and he looked out of the window. The prison looked like a prison should look: not a fun place to be in. It was a sober gray building with a big fence and several cameras. Just a regular prison. The team headed inside where they were greeted by the warden.
'Hello, I'm Piccio, the warden of this prison,' the man introduced himself, shaking everyone's hands. 'Can I get you something to drink while we wait for the inmate to be brought to us?' They shook their heads and warden Piccio let them through several corridors to an interrogation room.
'Nicola Conti has been an average prisoner with limited contact to the outside world,' the warden told them. 'Also, he hasn't been willing to talk to anyone about any business related to the mafia. I don't know how he can be of any help with your case…'
'He could be,' Tommy answered curtly, which earned him a glance of Hickman. He took a deep breath and turned away from the warden. Maybe it was better he didn't hear the man speak.
'Any information he could give can be helpful,' Hickman explained. 'It isn't necessarily related to his business. We just have some questions to ask.' The warden shrugged.
'Could we get access to his files?' Sebastian asked. 'The visitors he received, the calls he made?' The warden nodded and gestured him to follow. Sebastian and Arabela followed the man.
Nicola Conti was sitting calmly behind the table, his hands folded on top of it. If it wasn't for the prison uniform or the cuffs, you would think he was at a business meeting. He offered Hickman a smile.
'I remember you,' he said to him. 'You were there when my daughter was kidnapped…you all helped her find her way back...not necessarily how I would have wanted it…but she's safe now.'
'Then maybe we can ask you for a favor,' Hickman said and Conti started to laugh.
'Favors are costly when you're in prison,' he replied. 'Much more than the safety of my daughter when I sit in prison. Prison is not a good place to be in. Not for a man like me.'
'A man with enemies?' Tommy asked and Conti stared at him for a while. Tommy stayed calm and kept his eyes on the man. They all knew the enemies Conti had and Tommy was sure Conti had heard the whispers of his former business partner rising from the dead.
'Tell me: why is the International Criminal Court here?' Conti asked. 'Asking for a meeting with me in this grim prison interrogation room.'
'We need information about the Vittoria family and its leader Giovanni Vittoria,' Hickman said.
'Giovanni Vittoria is dead and the Vittoria family is no more,' Conti answered but Tommy heard a little tremble in his voice.
'But you can still tell us about the family,' Hickman said calmly. Conti removed his hands from the table and he seemed to tense.
'I will be dead within a day,' he slowly spoke, 'if I betray the Vittoria family.'
'You already did when you blew up the man's car!' Tommy replied, getting annoyed with the man's avoiding answers. 'So you can just tell us and we'll get you protection.' Conti laughed.
'There is no protection from the Vittoria family,' he said. Tommy wanted to reply but Hickman stopped him, by putting his hand on his arm. Tommy took a step back and crossed his arms in front of his chest. Hickman looked at Conti for a while.
'We suspect that Giovanni Vittoria is still alive,' he said. He ignored the sigh Conti gave and calmly continued. 'And we believe he took his daughter. We're trying to find Eva. If you can help us in any way, we can help you.' Conti's posture seemed to soften at the mention of Eva and for a moment Tommy though they were getting somewhere.
'I'm sorry,' Conti then said, 'but the situation remains the same: I cannot help you. I'm very sorry. Eva was a good girl.'
'She still is,' Tommy growled as Hickman put his hand up, signaling the guard that they were done here.
Eva jumped up when the door was thrown open. One of her father's men walked into the room and his eyes were set on her. Her heartbeat quickened as she noticed the longing gaze as his eyes wandered over her body. She moved backwards, feeling like she couldn't do anything else. She couldn't move her left shoulder from where her father had burned the V into her skin and the lack of food was catching up with her. She felt weak and defenseless against the guy. With just a few steps he stood in front of her. He was at least a head taller than her. The space behind her was running out and soon she stood against the cold moist wall. It didn't take much from him to push her against it, the rough surface hurting her back and mainly her shoulder. He stroked her cheek and licked his lips. She whimpered, trying to get him away, but it seemed to make him more determined. His mouth came crashing down on hers, hungrily, and she felt his hands moving over her body. She tried to get away from those hungry and rough lips but he placed his hands around her neck and face, making her unable to move away. His kisses started to trail down her neck and his one hand moved towards her breast, grabbing it firmly. Tears started to sting in her eyes, but she didn't want to cry. Not for him.
When he looked up, Eva saw her moment and she slammed her head against his. He stepped back, staggering in his place and struggling to find his balance. Eva ducked underneath his arms and headed towards the door. But the man recovered too soon and grabbed her by her hair. She cried out in pain, as he slammed her on the table. The wind was knocked out of her and Eva struggled to catch her breath. The fact that she was face-down on the table didn't help. The man pressed her head against the table and stood behind her. She could feel him brush against her and she started to scream. Tears were rolling over her face. Futilely she tried to get away from him but he was just too strong. She sobbed as his hands moved up her thights. She could have handled it all but not this. She closed her eyes and found herself praying.
'Che diavolo?!' Never had Eva been so relieved to hear her father speak. 'We do not do this! I have told you all! Bastardo! Lei è mia figlia!' The hand on her head was yanked away. As Eva let herself fall. On the floor she could see the man being dragged away by two other guys. Her father stood in the room, looking shocked at her. He stepped towards her but Eva crawled into the corner of the room, against the bed and away from him.
'Principessa…' he whispered and he extended his hand towards her. Her childhood nickname wasn't going to work this time.
'Let me go,' she whispered at him and his face saddened.
'I cannot do that,' he told her. 'You know that. You need to be with your familia.'
'Let me go,' she repeated. Her father shook his head and got up. Without another word he left the room. As soon as she was alone, Eva broke down and cried. She couldn't do this anymore. She was done with it all.
TBC.
