Starting Point


"Just whatever you do, don't fuck all your money away." Punk nodded to his brother, walking into the cigar club in the inner city as Dean scoffed.

"Tell yourself, buddy. You're the reckless one." Dean reminded him.

"We're here for information. Not the poker game." Punk said, walking through the club with his brother towards the back, private room where Vincent and some other guys were. It made them a little nervous. They weren't clued up with this world anymore. It felt like walking into the unknown, but there was still some level of trust and respect there.

"Hey, you never told me how things went with Jude." Dean said.

"Not good." Punk said bluntly, opening up the door to the private room where he saw Vincent and the others sitting around the table.

"Hey, look who it is." Vincent stood up, thrilled, "You made it." He smiled, walking over to them and giving them both equally large hugs.

"Hey." Punk laughed a little.

"What's up, man?" Dean nodded, patting Vincent on the back.

"You guys remember everyone, right?" Vincent asked, "That's Paolo, Marina's brother." He pointed as Punk looked over at the man with a cigar hanging out of his mouth looking at them both, "And that's Tommy, Deedee, Jeff and Treg." Vincent pointed as Punk and Dean nodded.

"Haven't grown out of your gang names, huh?" Punk joked as they all looked at him.

"Doesn't look like it." Deedee shook his head, "Punk." He raised his eyebrows as Punk scoffed, turning to Dean who just shook his head.

"Take a seat." Vincent pointed, sitting back down at the table as Punk took his cap off, running his hand through his hair as he sat down beside Dean, "Y'all know how to play, right?" He hoped, "All that good family life hasn't wrecked your brain, has it?" He smiled.

"We know." Dean scoffed, lighting up a cigarette as Punk looked across at Vincent, his eyes catching onto the gun on the edge of the table. He immediately nudged Dean who turned to him. He made a gun gesture with his hand under the table as Dean noticed and turned around, also noticing the gun on the table.

"Serious game of poker, huh?" Punk looked at them all.

"Yeah, why don't you both bet your wives. They're fine as hell." Tommy nodded as Punk and Dean looked over.

"I'll bet if you say anything like that again, I'll knock you on your ass." Dean nodded calmly as Tommy looked across at him, "Start dealing."


"I don't think I've ever used this before." Cassie said, sitting on her bed in her room with her laptop in front of her, skyping Jude who had surprisingly asked to call her.

"Tilt it up a little, I can't see your face." Jude said, sitting in her kitchen with her own laptop to speak to her sister.

"What about now?" Cassie asked, tilting the laptop up.

"Yeah, that's better." Jude smiled, "Are you just home from work?" She asked, noticing her sister still in her cop attire.

"Yeah, my feet are killing me." Cassie said, "How are you? It's nice to see your face." She smiled.

"Yours too." Jude smiled, "I'm ok." She nodded, "How is everyone?" She asked.

"We're ok." Cassie said briefly, "I heard you got a visit from dad." She said, "How'd it go?" She asked.

"Not great." Jude said, "Cassie, you gotta stop them from going to Puerto Rico. They're gonna make it worse for themselves. They're gonna end up hurt or… worse." She shook her head.

"Me and mom had a fight a few days ago and we've not really spoke much since. Dad isn't even here right now, actually. I don't know where he is." Cassie said suspiciously, "I know they're just trying to make it better and help but… this isn't the way." She said as Jude agreed.

"Just make sure they don't go to Puerto Rico." Jude nodded.

"Well it's a little easier said than done, Jude." Cassie reminded her, "If they're gonna do something, you know they'll do it." She said.

"They can't go by themselves. She'll kill them." Jude shook her head, "I know that they want to protect us and they just want it all to end but-"

"Do you?" Cassie asked, "You're not here. You have no idea." She said.

"Yeah, well it still affects me." Jude said.

"You're not seeing what it's doing to us." Cassie said, "Thea's drinking again."

"What?" Jude sighed immediately, "Seriously?"

"Yeah, seriously." Cassie nodded, "I'm not supposed to tell anyone. She's not in deep yet but… she's struggling big time and I… I'm a rookie with all this stuff. It's you who knows what to say and do." She said, "I'd be lying if I said we didn't need you."

"You gotta make sure she stops drinking. Right away." Jude said, "I'll send you the number for the AA meeting she used to go to. It's still in my phone." She said caringly. She never stopped caring.

"It's ok, I got it." Cassie assured her, "She's gonna be ok. She's just terrified." She said, "I've been staying with her for the past few nights. Hence the braids." She showed her sister her hair.

"You look cute." Jude nodded as Cassie smiled, "God, I just have a bad feeling about this-"

"You've just got one?" Cassie asked, "We've been living with that bad feeling for six months." She nodded.

"Yeah well you shouldn't have to. Why aren't the cops doing anything? Why haven't they found her yet?" Jude asked.

"It's a lot more complicated than just finding her." Cassie sighed.

"You gotta stop mom and dad from going over there." Jude nodded.

"And you think they'll listen to me?" Cassie asked, "The only one dad listens to is you."

"I told him not to go but I know it just went over his head." Jude said.

"They think you hate them." Cassie said as Jude shook her head.

"I don't hate them." Jude shook her head, "I'm just trying to protect my own family. Dad's acting like a spit on his face and told him to never talk to me again." She said.

"Well you may as well have." Cassie mumbled, "Mom and dad just want to protect us. I can tell they feel guilty and… they shouldn't. It's not their fault. I feel awful for fighting with mom."

"What were you fighting about?" Jude asked.

"She wanted me to ask Theo about what he found out when he was undercover." Cassie said, "And I got mad, but… only because it's Theo, I guess-"

"You still not talking to him?" Jude asked.

"No… it's weird right now." Cassie shook her head, "I'll talk to mom and dad, but they're… they're living in their own world right now." She said, "You know once they have something in their head there's no stopping them." She said.

"Yeah, I know." Jude said worriedly, "How bad is Thea? You can tell me." She said, her heart hurting to suddenly see just how damaged her family were.

"She's ok. It's not bad yet but she needs to stop now. And she knows that." Cassie said, "She's gone to work today and I said I'd stop by later tonight to see how she's doing." She nodded, "I think she'd like to hear your voice."

"Yeah, I'll call her." Jude promised.

"Everyone just feels so divided right now." Cassie shook her head, "And I hate that you and dad are fighting."

"Yeah, me too." Jude nodded, "Do you think I'm being selfish?" She asked her sister, "Moving out here away from it all."

"I wouldn't say it's selfish." Cassie shook her head, "You're looking out for your family. We've all been through shit and we're all scared." She nodded, "But… we do miss you. And I know mom and dad think you're trying to cut them off-"

"God, I'm not trying to do that." Jude sighed, "I don't know, it's just… it's easier to block it out. Maybe that does make me selfish." She shook her head, "I just don't want anyone to get hurt."

"Me neither." Cassie shook her head.

"Mom and dad going to Puerto Rico on their own is not a good idea." Jude said.

"Maybe you should talk to them about it then. They'll listen to you more than me and Thea, let's face it." She said, listening as she heard her mom get home, "Ok, mom is home… I gotta go." She said, "Love you bye." She said rapidly, closing the laptop over as she heard her mother coming upstairs.

She tossed her laptop over onto her bed beside her, watching as her mother opened up her room door. They hadn't really talked a lot since their fight. Cassie had been staying with Thea a lot.

"Hey, you're home." AJ said as Cassie nodded.

"Yeah, where is dad? I thought he'd be back." Cassie said.

"He's gone out with Dean." AJ said briefly as Cassie nodded, looking over at her mother, "I uh… I'd like to apologise to you for what I said, about asking Theo for information." She nodded as Cassie got off the bed.

"No, mom… I need to apologise to you." Cassie nodded, "I made it out like you guys are the problem and that's just so untrue. I know you're just desperate for this to be over and you wanna protect us. You've always protected us." She said, "I shouldn't have acted the way I did."

"I just can't help feel guilty." AJ shook her head.

"This is not your fault. You just wanted to grow up like everyone else. You didn't ask for any of this." Cassie shook her head, "And I'm sorry if I made it seem like I blame you. I really don't." She assured her mother, "You've always kept us safe." She nodded as AJ smiled.

"I just don't want anyone to be scared anymore." AJ shook her head.

"You can't go to Puerto Rico." Cassie said as AJ sighed, "You just can't. It's too dangerous. We're safer when we're all together." She said, "You and dad going over there might just be what she's waiting on and I… I don't know what I'd do if you guys weren't… if she-"

"Hey, nothing's gonna happen to us, baby. I promise you." AJ nodded, cupping her cheeks as Cassie sighed, "Don't you worry about me and your father." She said, "We're all gonna be fine." She nodded, wrapping her arms around Cassie, hugging into her daughter tightly.

They were beginning to step on each other's toes through the stress and worry. It wasn't personal. It was just getting to them and affecting them all differently, driving them further apart than together. AJ could only see one solution now.


"So… I take it you guys didn't come here just to play poker." Vincent said, sitting down in the main bar after playing some games in the private room.

"No, we didn't." Dean said, "I'm down a lot of money now." He shook his head.

"Yeah, well what'd I tell you?" Punk said brotherly as Dean folded his arms.

"What's the matter? What do you guys want?" Vincent smiled, amused by them.

"You know anything about the Mendez family? In Puerto Rico?" Punk asked as Vincent looked across at him.

"You mean… the Mendez family as in… your wife?" Vincent asked, confused, "I'm pretty sure she might know more about it than me-"

"You'd be surprised." Punk said, "Look, I know you were close to Rio back in the day and… you still got connections, right?"

"Yeah, I guess I'm still in the loop with things." Vincent nodded, "Didn't you shoot Robert Mendez?" He questioned.

"Yeah, it's… it's Janet we're looking for." Punk said, "You got anything worth telling me about her or how she's working? You heard anything about her?"

"I got the address she was working from in Puerto Rico but that was over a year ago. She was moving in things from the states onto the island." Vincent nodded, "Drugs and guns."

"Write the address down for me." Punk nodded, grabbing some napkins and getting a pen from the bar, "Anything else? You have any idea who she's working with?"

"No clue. I know who runs yards in Chicago. Not so much in Puerto Rico." Vincent said, "But that's the last address I know she was in." He said, passing the napkin over, "Hey, isn't your kid a cop? Wouldn't she be able to get this information for you?"

"Yeah, you'd think." Punk said.

"What you up to?" Vincent asked curiously.

"Nothing that concerns you." Punk assured him.

"Maybe not but… I'm here to help if you need it." Vincent nodded.

"I appreciate that." Punk said, "You've helped enough with this. It's a start." He nodded positively.

"That's alright." Vincent nodded, "You know if you're looking for some information, quickly, I got a number for a PI. He's good." He said.

"A PI?" Punk questioned as Vincent nodded.

"Yeah." Vincent said, "Here's his number if you're interested." He said, writing the number down.

"I don't think anyone wants to get mixed up with PI's." Dean shook his head cautiously.

"He's good. Quick." Vincent said, "Tell him you know me and he'll be sweet." He nodded.

"I'll think about it." Punk nodded to him. But having an address was a good enough start for him. He knew by next week he and AJ would be in Puerto Rico. There was no stopping now. They were going to end this.