A Family Affair
Disclaimer: I don't own the Witchblade characters. I'm just playing around with them. Enjoy!
Chapter. 29
It started practically as soon as Sara Pezzini crossed the threshold of the 11th Precinct's stationhouse.
"Hey, Pez! How's it going?" Ed Lesczynski, the desk sergeant, called to her in his booming voice. "What's this I hear about you and a tall, dark, and mysterious new boyfriend?"
Inwardly, Sara cringed, sensing that every eye was now on her. Outwardly, she smirked at the burly sergeant.
"Hey, Ed, good news: he's not my boyfriend. And although I don't think you're his type, I'll be happy to give him your number!" she cracked, prompting an outburst of laughter from all of the uniformed officers within earshot.
"Ha, ha, very funny," said Ed, who was married 25 years with five kids. "I dunno, Pez. Mac swore you two looked pretty chummy when you left outta here last night. He said you were even holding hands!"
There was a chorus of "Ooooos" from the peanut gallery, which eagerly awaited her comeback.
"Yeah, well, don't believe everything you hear, Lesczynski," Sara said. Then she leaned closer to him conspiratorially, before saying in a loud whisper "It's okay, Eddie. I really don't mind if he gives you a call. By the way, he likes taking long walks on the beach, Green Apple Martinis, and anything by Elton John and Tim Rice. I think you two would make a really cute couple."
This drew more laughter, and several of the officers started razzing the hapless desk sergeant, who grinned good-naturedly.
'I think my work here is done,' Sara thought. "Later, ladies," she said, getting while the getting was good and sprinting up the stairs to the second floor.
When she was a few steps away from the office she shared with her partner, Danny Woo, she heard Jake McCartey's voice and paused to listen.
"Rut-roh, Danny," Jake said. "Did you happen to notice what Pez has written down on her desk calendar for next week?"
"No. What's it say?" Danny responded.
"'Get Tampax.' I'm thinking it's a very, very good thing we're about to get buried by a blizzard. With any luck, her PMS will be over by the time we get back in here!"
'Note to self: Never write personal stuff on your freakin' desk calendar again!' Sara thought, fuming,
"So, you noticed that she tends to get a bit grouchy around that time of the month, have you?" Danny asked, and Sara could hear the smile in his voice.
"Dude, 'a bit grouchy' is what Ms. Po gets; Pez gets positively vicious. Velociraptor vicious."
'Gee, he says that like it's a bad thing!' Sara thought wryly, squirming a little where she stood. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw that Captain Bruno Dante was eyeing her suspiciously from his office.
"Amen to that," Danny replied. "We've been partners going on eight years, my boy, and it never ceases to be a challenge during that, um, period of the month."
"Tell me, oh Wise Asian Pun-Master, how doth thou tame the savage Pez beast?"
Sara chose that moment to step into the doorway of the office.
"Don't get caught sitting at her desk reading her desk calendar, for one thing," Danny murmured, spying her.
Jake leapt out of Sara's chair as if he'd been jolted with electricity.
"Hey, partner! You're here bright and early this morning," her partner observed, trying unsuccessfully to hide a grin behind his hand.
She grunted a response at him, and then glared at Jake McCartey. Irritatingly, he looked well rested and bright eyed despite having pulled overtime down at the docks the night before.
"Oh, hey, Pez," Jake said, nervously, face red. "I was, uh, just waiting for you to get in so I could tell you the bad news about last night's --"
"Yeah, yeah," Sara cut him off, taking off her down jacket and stuffing her hat, scarf, and gloves into the sleeve before hanging it up. "I already know the bust was a bust, Rookie."
Jake raised his eyebrows at her. "Oh, yeah? How'd you find out?"
"Danny'll tell you about our contact in narcotics. I gotta go talk to Dante." She stalked across the hallway and knocked on their captain's open door.
"You're still on desk duty, Petzini, so save your breath," Bruno Dante sneered at her before she could say anything.
"Uh, okay, but I thought you might want to know about some info I have on the Gutierrez murder case before I pass it along to narcotics and the DEA," Sara said.
The captain eyed her as though she'd just asked for an extra two weeks paid vacation and a pay raise. "I'm listening," he finally said grudgingly.
His expression grew progressively stormier as, without revealing her informant's identity, Sara told him about locating Alonzo Brown last night and squeezing him for information, as well as what she had learned from him. When she was done, Dante looked mad enough to spit.
"Why is it that you think you can get away with disobeying my direct orders, Petzini?" he asked her. "And don't bother giving me any crap about reaching out to this informant on your own time. You were conducting police business, which means you were on the clock."
"I guess that means you'll put in for overtime for me, right Captain?" Sara said, and then immediately wished she hadn't when a dull red flush of anger colored Dante's face.
"If this pans out, I'm gonna overlook your insubordination, Detective," he spat the title as if it were an insult. "I'll call the C.O. in narcotics and relay your info myself. But you better pray this leads to a collar, and don't even think about leaving your desk today. Dismissed."
Feeling as though she'd gotten off fairly easily, Sara returned to the office she shared with Danny. Jake was sitting in Danny's guest chair, as though he wanted to put as much space between himself and her as possible, given her current mood.
"So, you and Danny reached out to someone in narcotics," Jake said tentatively.
Sara plopped down in her chair, scrubbing her hands over her face wearily.
"You're not going to give me a hard time for not telling you about that, are you, Jake? 'Cause I don't think I can handle any more shit from anybody right this minute," she told him, peering through her fingers at him.
"Nah. But spill. What did you just tell Dante that has him looking like he wants to kill somebody?"
"Yeah, Pez. Do tell," Danny said.
Sara told them about the information she had gotten from her informant and about calling Mike Morgan to inform him of the location of Angel Medina's new drug den, as well as the predicament of the undercover detective virtually being held hostage there.
"My snitch is supposed to call me the minute Angel calls asking him to perform lookout duties," she finished by saying.
"Wow, that's really great," Jake said, obviously impressed. "You're some detective, Detective."
"Yeah, Pez. Even I'm impressed," Danny said, but there was a look in his eye that said her story had raised more questions than it had answered for him.
"Yeah, well, Captain Dante isn't. I'm pretty sure I've earned another week of desk duty off of this."
Sara's phone rang.
"Detective Pezzini."
"Hey, Pez, it's Mike Morgan. Your captain just called over here. Just to let you know, my C.O. is probably gonna want you to be in on this bust, whenever it goes down. He's already cleared it with the DEA."
"Good luck with him clearing it with Dante," Sara said. "He's not a happy camper that I disobeyed his orders about being restricted to desk duty."
"Can't he see that your talents are wasted behind a desk? Don't answer that," he said quickly, bringing a smile to Sara's lips. "Say hi to the Woo for me. We all hope to hear from you soon."
"Yeah, me too, Mike. Bye." Sara hung up and looked at her partner and Jake. "Mike says hi, Danny. He's our contact from narcotics," she told the rookie detective. "He also says his C.O. is gonna ask me to ride along when they finally move on Angel. I just hope it all goes down after 4:00." She explained about Joey and his plan to visit Amanda in rehab.
"Will you ride shotgun with me when I go pick him up, Danny?" she asked her partner and best friend.
"Sure, but how will we explain to Dante why we're signing out an unmarked car, not to mention that you're leaving your desk?"
Sara frowned, not having thought of this. "I'll cross that bridge when I come to it," she muttered, taking a folder from the stack of paperwork in her in-box.
The homicide department continued to be slower than normal, so Sara, Danny, and Jake were actually able to get caught up on their paperwork, something all three had thought would never happen. Sara and Jake even had time to make a few phone calls chasing down leads on the four active cases they'd been working. Unfortunately, none of leads panned out, which didn't surprise either of them as they had been slim to begin with.
As the day wore on, Sara became increasingly restless. She couldn't stop thinking about Joey and the terrible vision of his death the Witchblade had shown her. Thoughts of her Protector also troubled her, and she found herself wondering if he was managing to stay warm wherever he was. It irritated her that she continued to worry about the assassin even though she knew he'd received the antidote and was no longer sick. So, despite the fact she hadn't consumed anything but about a gallon of coffee since waking up that morning, she decided to work off her nervous energy on the heavy bag in the precinct's gym during her lunch hour. It had been a few days since her last workout and she really felt the need for one. Sara had worked up a good sweat by the time Danny appeared. He, too, was dressed for a workout.
"Here, let me hold that for you, partner," he said, taking the towel that had been draped around his neck and tossing it onto a nearby weight machine. He steadied the bag as Sara continued to jab furiously at it.
"So, tell me, how is it I've never heard about this informant of yours before today, Pez?" he asked.
Sara stopped punching the bag, and stared at him in dismay. Although she'd known this confrontation was coming, she had hoped to avoid it until later -- much later. She decided that she owed her longtime partner at least part of the truth.
"After I left Joey's house the other night, I decided to go down to the vacant lot where he said he confronted Paco and Amanda, just on the slim chance I could find one of the bullets that Amanda fired from the gun, which was pretty crazy, seeing as it was dark out and all," Sara shook her head ruefully. "I was so worried about Joey, I wasn't exactly thinking too clearly at that point. I know I shouldn't have gone down there by myself at that time of night, but I didn't want to ask you to come with me, Danny, 'cause I figured you and Lee were probably celebrating getting the new house. Anyway, my presence attracted some unwanted attention. A group of local thugs confronted me. I flashed my badge and weapon at them. But when the others ran off, my informant stuck around. We came to an agreement," Sara said, picking up her own towel and wiping her face with it.
"And why didn't you tell me about him before now?"
She shrugged. "I didn't think we'd need him after last night's drug bust operation, so I didn't bother mentioning him to you. Plus, after what almost happened to me, I felt pretty stupid about going down there alone."
"Yesterday, before you left here, you practically admitted you were going to stake out the docks. What made you change your mind?" Danny asked curiously.
"I got to thinking: What if my presence scared off Angel? I decided I just couldn't risk it. Ironic, hunh?"
"And yet, even though you had no reason to believe the operation on the docks was gonna fail, you decided to lean on this guy, just on the off- chance that it did," Danny said, his dark, almond-shaped eyes regarding her skeptically.
Sara shrugged again. "I just want to stop worrying about my nephew's safety, Danny. I had a hunch this guy would know where Angel's drug den was, and I decided it couldn't hurt to have a plan B."
"I can't help but notice that these hunches of yours are almost clairvoyant, partner. If you believe in that sort of thing." He turned to pick up his towel, and Sara heaved a mental sigh of relief that her explanation had appeared to satisfy him. "How's the situation with your stalker?" he caught her off guard by inquiring.
"What do you mean?" she asked sharply, before belatedly realizing that her partner had no idea who Nottingham really was.
He glanced at her curiously. "You know, the guy who, based on your phone conversation with Gabriel yesterday, sure as hell sounded like he was stalking you."
"Oh, him. I don't think that's a problem anymore. I haven't seen him lurking around in a couple of days now."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I think he got the message. What made you ask about him?" Sara asked him.
"Well, there's a rumor floating around that you showed up here late last night with a guy that you seemed pretty friendly with. I just wondered if maybe you hadn't decided to say what the heck, and go out with your stalker," Danny shrugged.
"Um, no, I'm not that hard up yet, Danny," Sara said firmly. "The guy last night was just a friend."
"Okay, whatever you say. Hey, I've got an idea how we can sign out the unmarked car from the motor pool no questions asked," he told her, thankfully changing the subject.
"Do tell."
"Well, in a couple of hours, you're gonna go to Dante and say your informant called and is refusing to talk unless he gets some compensation for his trouble. Of course, he'll only trust you to make the payment," Danny said. "And you and me have to deliver it to him and then sit on him until Angel calls him."
"That's one of the things I love about you, partner. You've got a devious mind," Sara grinned.
"I try, Pez, I try," he grinned back at her.
"I'll even give all of the money Dante vouchers to my guy, even though I'm tempted to use some of it to get you and Lee a nice housewarming present."
"Awww, you'd do that for us? I'm touched, Pez."
She watched as the handsome Asian detective began to warm up with some Tai Chi, openly admiring his graceful movements and beautifully sculpted physique.
'Hmmm, I wonder what Nottingham would look like in just a tank top and sweatpants?' she found herself thinking. 'Or better yet, his birthday suit. I'll bet there's quite a body hidden beneath all those layers of black clothing. Mmmm, I'd like to unwrap him like a present.'
Sara blinked, as if coming out of one of the Witchblade's trances, and shook her head in a vain effort to clear the fog of lust from her brain. 'Whoa! What the f---!?! Oh, God! Must get laid soon. Must get laid soon.'
She kept repeating this mantra to herself as she headed for the showers.
****
Ian Nottingham stood on the roof of the building across from the 11th Precinct, observing the comings and goings on the street below. Earlier, he had watched through his high-powered rifle scope as Sara Pezzini had spoken to her captain, no doubt informing him about what both Alonzo Brown and Detective Tommy Fuller had told Ian the night before. Even from a distance, he picked up on not-so-subtle body language cues that told him she was not enjoying the tête-à-tête at all. But then the loud sound of grinding gears had distracted him. Glancing down, he'd seen a Wonder Bread delivery truck passing by the precinct, and when he looked back up, the Wielder had left Captain Bruno Dante's office.
Opening the thermos of peppermint tea she had so thoughtfully provided for him, Ian poured himself a cup. As he sipped the steaming beverage, he wondered if the brevity of the meeting meant that Sara had gotten off lightly despite disobeying her superior officer's direct orders yet again.
Ian found it more than a little odd that the Wielder's numerous prior acts of insubordination had resulted in nothing worse than her being restricted to desk duty and, once, a temporary suspension. He knew there was no love lost between Sara and her commanding officer. It made Ian wonder if perhaps the Bruno Dante was the cop that Kenneth Irons' had on his payroll in the 11th Precinct. It certainly made sense that it would be him. Who better to control than the man who had direct supervision over Sara Pezzini? Ian had long suspected that his master had several puppets on the New York City police force, at least one of which was much higher up on the chain of command than Dante. There could be no other explanation for the way attention was routinely and conveniently deflected away from some of Mr. Irons' more shady dealings, several of which Ian had figured prominently in. And then there was the fact that in the weeks after the Witchblade had chosen her as its Wielder, Sara had been assigned to a number of cases in which she had ended up being forced to wield the ancient weapon. Nottingham was almost positive this hadn't been a coincidence. During those first few weeks, his master had repeatedly expressed his desire for the beautiful homicide detective to utilize the Witchblade, preferably in as violent a manner as possible.
A rumbling sound below drew Ian's gaze, and he saw a delivery truck with Entenmanns's Baked Goods written on the side drive by the stationhouse, followed closely by yet another truck that said Hostess on it. His thoughts turned to the Witchblade's vision in which young Joseph Siri, Jr. had been murdered. Ian could not shake the feeling that, as the vision had foretold, something was going to prevent Sara from picking the boy up from his school. Furthermore, there was no doubt in his mind that, in his impatience to see his beloved again, the teenager was going to break his promise to his aunt and head to the rehab facility alone. Whatever was going to keep the Wielder from escorting the boy uptown was going to happen within the next few hours, and he presumed it was going to have something to do with the effort to capture Angel Medina. The call from Alonzo Brown could come at any minute, instantly mobilizing the combined DEA and narcotics squad personnel to take down the murderous drug lord. And knowing Sara, she would be in the vanguard of the force that stormed the abandoned ice factory on 7th Street.
Ian was faced with a dilemma. On the one hand, Kenneth Irons had ordered him to do whatever was necessary to make sure that Joaquin Medina did not kill the boy; on the other hand, he was duty-bound to protect the Wielder at all costs. He simply could not be in two places at once, and he had the distinct feeling that his employer had guessed that he would be forced to choose. So, Ian began to formulate a plan of action that would ensure that both the woman he loved and the boy he had grown very fond of would remain safe from harm. But in order for his plan to work, he would need assistance. Downing the last of his tea, he headed for the home of his ally, which conveniently happened to be located nearby.
More to come. Thanks for continuing to inspire me with your encouraging feedback. Keep it coming, please!
Disclaimer: I don't own the Witchblade characters. I'm just playing around with them. Enjoy!
Chapter. 29
It started practically as soon as Sara Pezzini crossed the threshold of the 11th Precinct's stationhouse.
"Hey, Pez! How's it going?" Ed Lesczynski, the desk sergeant, called to her in his booming voice. "What's this I hear about you and a tall, dark, and mysterious new boyfriend?"
Inwardly, Sara cringed, sensing that every eye was now on her. Outwardly, she smirked at the burly sergeant.
"Hey, Ed, good news: he's not my boyfriend. And although I don't think you're his type, I'll be happy to give him your number!" she cracked, prompting an outburst of laughter from all of the uniformed officers within earshot.
"Ha, ha, very funny," said Ed, who was married 25 years with five kids. "I dunno, Pez. Mac swore you two looked pretty chummy when you left outta here last night. He said you were even holding hands!"
There was a chorus of "Ooooos" from the peanut gallery, which eagerly awaited her comeback.
"Yeah, well, don't believe everything you hear, Lesczynski," Sara said. Then she leaned closer to him conspiratorially, before saying in a loud whisper "It's okay, Eddie. I really don't mind if he gives you a call. By the way, he likes taking long walks on the beach, Green Apple Martinis, and anything by Elton John and Tim Rice. I think you two would make a really cute couple."
This drew more laughter, and several of the officers started razzing the hapless desk sergeant, who grinned good-naturedly.
'I think my work here is done,' Sara thought. "Later, ladies," she said, getting while the getting was good and sprinting up the stairs to the second floor.
When she was a few steps away from the office she shared with her partner, Danny Woo, she heard Jake McCartey's voice and paused to listen.
"Rut-roh, Danny," Jake said. "Did you happen to notice what Pez has written down on her desk calendar for next week?"
"No. What's it say?" Danny responded.
"'Get Tampax.' I'm thinking it's a very, very good thing we're about to get buried by a blizzard. With any luck, her PMS will be over by the time we get back in here!"
'Note to self: Never write personal stuff on your freakin' desk calendar again!' Sara thought, fuming,
"So, you noticed that she tends to get a bit grouchy around that time of the month, have you?" Danny asked, and Sara could hear the smile in his voice.
"Dude, 'a bit grouchy' is what Ms. Po gets; Pez gets positively vicious. Velociraptor vicious."
'Gee, he says that like it's a bad thing!' Sara thought wryly, squirming a little where she stood. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw that Captain Bruno Dante was eyeing her suspiciously from his office.
"Amen to that," Danny replied. "We've been partners going on eight years, my boy, and it never ceases to be a challenge during that, um, period of the month."
"Tell me, oh Wise Asian Pun-Master, how doth thou tame the savage Pez beast?"
Sara chose that moment to step into the doorway of the office.
"Don't get caught sitting at her desk reading her desk calendar, for one thing," Danny murmured, spying her.
Jake leapt out of Sara's chair as if he'd been jolted with electricity.
"Hey, partner! You're here bright and early this morning," her partner observed, trying unsuccessfully to hide a grin behind his hand.
She grunted a response at him, and then glared at Jake McCartey. Irritatingly, he looked well rested and bright eyed despite having pulled overtime down at the docks the night before.
"Oh, hey, Pez," Jake said, nervously, face red. "I was, uh, just waiting for you to get in so I could tell you the bad news about last night's --"
"Yeah, yeah," Sara cut him off, taking off her down jacket and stuffing her hat, scarf, and gloves into the sleeve before hanging it up. "I already know the bust was a bust, Rookie."
Jake raised his eyebrows at her. "Oh, yeah? How'd you find out?"
"Danny'll tell you about our contact in narcotics. I gotta go talk to Dante." She stalked across the hallway and knocked on their captain's open door.
"You're still on desk duty, Petzini, so save your breath," Bruno Dante sneered at her before she could say anything.
"Uh, okay, but I thought you might want to know about some info I have on the Gutierrez murder case before I pass it along to narcotics and the DEA," Sara said.
The captain eyed her as though she'd just asked for an extra two weeks paid vacation and a pay raise. "I'm listening," he finally said grudgingly.
His expression grew progressively stormier as, without revealing her informant's identity, Sara told him about locating Alonzo Brown last night and squeezing him for information, as well as what she had learned from him. When she was done, Dante looked mad enough to spit.
"Why is it that you think you can get away with disobeying my direct orders, Petzini?" he asked her. "And don't bother giving me any crap about reaching out to this informant on your own time. You were conducting police business, which means you were on the clock."
"I guess that means you'll put in for overtime for me, right Captain?" Sara said, and then immediately wished she hadn't when a dull red flush of anger colored Dante's face.
"If this pans out, I'm gonna overlook your insubordination, Detective," he spat the title as if it were an insult. "I'll call the C.O. in narcotics and relay your info myself. But you better pray this leads to a collar, and don't even think about leaving your desk today. Dismissed."
Feeling as though she'd gotten off fairly easily, Sara returned to the office she shared with Danny. Jake was sitting in Danny's guest chair, as though he wanted to put as much space between himself and her as possible, given her current mood.
"So, you and Danny reached out to someone in narcotics," Jake said tentatively.
Sara plopped down in her chair, scrubbing her hands over her face wearily.
"You're not going to give me a hard time for not telling you about that, are you, Jake? 'Cause I don't think I can handle any more shit from anybody right this minute," she told him, peering through her fingers at him.
"Nah. But spill. What did you just tell Dante that has him looking like he wants to kill somebody?"
"Yeah, Pez. Do tell," Danny said.
Sara told them about the information she had gotten from her informant and about calling Mike Morgan to inform him of the location of Angel Medina's new drug den, as well as the predicament of the undercover detective virtually being held hostage there.
"My snitch is supposed to call me the minute Angel calls asking him to perform lookout duties," she finished by saying.
"Wow, that's really great," Jake said, obviously impressed. "You're some detective, Detective."
"Yeah, Pez. Even I'm impressed," Danny said, but there was a look in his eye that said her story had raised more questions than it had answered for him.
"Yeah, well, Captain Dante isn't. I'm pretty sure I've earned another week of desk duty off of this."
Sara's phone rang.
"Detective Pezzini."
"Hey, Pez, it's Mike Morgan. Your captain just called over here. Just to let you know, my C.O. is probably gonna want you to be in on this bust, whenever it goes down. He's already cleared it with the DEA."
"Good luck with him clearing it with Dante," Sara said. "He's not a happy camper that I disobeyed his orders about being restricted to desk duty."
"Can't he see that your talents are wasted behind a desk? Don't answer that," he said quickly, bringing a smile to Sara's lips. "Say hi to the Woo for me. We all hope to hear from you soon."
"Yeah, me too, Mike. Bye." Sara hung up and looked at her partner and Jake. "Mike says hi, Danny. He's our contact from narcotics," she told the rookie detective. "He also says his C.O. is gonna ask me to ride along when they finally move on Angel. I just hope it all goes down after 4:00." She explained about Joey and his plan to visit Amanda in rehab.
"Will you ride shotgun with me when I go pick him up, Danny?" she asked her partner and best friend.
"Sure, but how will we explain to Dante why we're signing out an unmarked car, not to mention that you're leaving your desk?"
Sara frowned, not having thought of this. "I'll cross that bridge when I come to it," she muttered, taking a folder from the stack of paperwork in her in-box.
The homicide department continued to be slower than normal, so Sara, Danny, and Jake were actually able to get caught up on their paperwork, something all three had thought would never happen. Sara and Jake even had time to make a few phone calls chasing down leads on the four active cases they'd been working. Unfortunately, none of leads panned out, which didn't surprise either of them as they had been slim to begin with.
As the day wore on, Sara became increasingly restless. She couldn't stop thinking about Joey and the terrible vision of his death the Witchblade had shown her. Thoughts of her Protector also troubled her, and she found herself wondering if he was managing to stay warm wherever he was. It irritated her that she continued to worry about the assassin even though she knew he'd received the antidote and was no longer sick. So, despite the fact she hadn't consumed anything but about a gallon of coffee since waking up that morning, she decided to work off her nervous energy on the heavy bag in the precinct's gym during her lunch hour. It had been a few days since her last workout and she really felt the need for one. Sara had worked up a good sweat by the time Danny appeared. He, too, was dressed for a workout.
"Here, let me hold that for you, partner," he said, taking the towel that had been draped around his neck and tossing it onto a nearby weight machine. He steadied the bag as Sara continued to jab furiously at it.
"So, tell me, how is it I've never heard about this informant of yours before today, Pez?" he asked.
Sara stopped punching the bag, and stared at him in dismay. Although she'd known this confrontation was coming, she had hoped to avoid it until later -- much later. She decided that she owed her longtime partner at least part of the truth.
"After I left Joey's house the other night, I decided to go down to the vacant lot where he said he confronted Paco and Amanda, just on the slim chance I could find one of the bullets that Amanda fired from the gun, which was pretty crazy, seeing as it was dark out and all," Sara shook her head ruefully. "I was so worried about Joey, I wasn't exactly thinking too clearly at that point. I know I shouldn't have gone down there by myself at that time of night, but I didn't want to ask you to come with me, Danny, 'cause I figured you and Lee were probably celebrating getting the new house. Anyway, my presence attracted some unwanted attention. A group of local thugs confronted me. I flashed my badge and weapon at them. But when the others ran off, my informant stuck around. We came to an agreement," Sara said, picking up her own towel and wiping her face with it.
"And why didn't you tell me about him before now?"
She shrugged. "I didn't think we'd need him after last night's drug bust operation, so I didn't bother mentioning him to you. Plus, after what almost happened to me, I felt pretty stupid about going down there alone."
"Yesterday, before you left here, you practically admitted you were going to stake out the docks. What made you change your mind?" Danny asked curiously.
"I got to thinking: What if my presence scared off Angel? I decided I just couldn't risk it. Ironic, hunh?"
"And yet, even though you had no reason to believe the operation on the docks was gonna fail, you decided to lean on this guy, just on the off- chance that it did," Danny said, his dark, almond-shaped eyes regarding her skeptically.
Sara shrugged again. "I just want to stop worrying about my nephew's safety, Danny. I had a hunch this guy would know where Angel's drug den was, and I decided it couldn't hurt to have a plan B."
"I can't help but notice that these hunches of yours are almost clairvoyant, partner. If you believe in that sort of thing." He turned to pick up his towel, and Sara heaved a mental sigh of relief that her explanation had appeared to satisfy him. "How's the situation with your stalker?" he caught her off guard by inquiring.
"What do you mean?" she asked sharply, before belatedly realizing that her partner had no idea who Nottingham really was.
He glanced at her curiously. "You know, the guy who, based on your phone conversation with Gabriel yesterday, sure as hell sounded like he was stalking you."
"Oh, him. I don't think that's a problem anymore. I haven't seen him lurking around in a couple of days now."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I think he got the message. What made you ask about him?" Sara asked him.
"Well, there's a rumor floating around that you showed up here late last night with a guy that you seemed pretty friendly with. I just wondered if maybe you hadn't decided to say what the heck, and go out with your stalker," Danny shrugged.
"Um, no, I'm not that hard up yet, Danny," Sara said firmly. "The guy last night was just a friend."
"Okay, whatever you say. Hey, I've got an idea how we can sign out the unmarked car from the motor pool no questions asked," he told her, thankfully changing the subject.
"Do tell."
"Well, in a couple of hours, you're gonna go to Dante and say your informant called and is refusing to talk unless he gets some compensation for his trouble. Of course, he'll only trust you to make the payment," Danny said. "And you and me have to deliver it to him and then sit on him until Angel calls him."
"That's one of the things I love about you, partner. You've got a devious mind," Sara grinned.
"I try, Pez, I try," he grinned back at her.
"I'll even give all of the money Dante vouchers to my guy, even though I'm tempted to use some of it to get you and Lee a nice housewarming present."
"Awww, you'd do that for us? I'm touched, Pez."
She watched as the handsome Asian detective began to warm up with some Tai Chi, openly admiring his graceful movements and beautifully sculpted physique.
'Hmmm, I wonder what Nottingham would look like in just a tank top and sweatpants?' she found herself thinking. 'Or better yet, his birthday suit. I'll bet there's quite a body hidden beneath all those layers of black clothing. Mmmm, I'd like to unwrap him like a present.'
Sara blinked, as if coming out of one of the Witchblade's trances, and shook her head in a vain effort to clear the fog of lust from her brain. 'Whoa! What the f---!?! Oh, God! Must get laid soon. Must get laid soon.'
She kept repeating this mantra to herself as she headed for the showers.
****
Ian Nottingham stood on the roof of the building across from the 11th Precinct, observing the comings and goings on the street below. Earlier, he had watched through his high-powered rifle scope as Sara Pezzini had spoken to her captain, no doubt informing him about what both Alonzo Brown and Detective Tommy Fuller had told Ian the night before. Even from a distance, he picked up on not-so-subtle body language cues that told him she was not enjoying the tête-à-tête at all. But then the loud sound of grinding gears had distracted him. Glancing down, he'd seen a Wonder Bread delivery truck passing by the precinct, and when he looked back up, the Wielder had left Captain Bruno Dante's office.
Opening the thermos of peppermint tea she had so thoughtfully provided for him, Ian poured himself a cup. As he sipped the steaming beverage, he wondered if the brevity of the meeting meant that Sara had gotten off lightly despite disobeying her superior officer's direct orders yet again.
Ian found it more than a little odd that the Wielder's numerous prior acts of insubordination had resulted in nothing worse than her being restricted to desk duty and, once, a temporary suspension. He knew there was no love lost between Sara and her commanding officer. It made Ian wonder if perhaps the Bruno Dante was the cop that Kenneth Irons' had on his payroll in the 11th Precinct. It certainly made sense that it would be him. Who better to control than the man who had direct supervision over Sara Pezzini? Ian had long suspected that his master had several puppets on the New York City police force, at least one of which was much higher up on the chain of command than Dante. There could be no other explanation for the way attention was routinely and conveniently deflected away from some of Mr. Irons' more shady dealings, several of which Ian had figured prominently in. And then there was the fact that in the weeks after the Witchblade had chosen her as its Wielder, Sara had been assigned to a number of cases in which she had ended up being forced to wield the ancient weapon. Nottingham was almost positive this hadn't been a coincidence. During those first few weeks, his master had repeatedly expressed his desire for the beautiful homicide detective to utilize the Witchblade, preferably in as violent a manner as possible.
A rumbling sound below drew Ian's gaze, and he saw a delivery truck with Entenmanns's Baked Goods written on the side drive by the stationhouse, followed closely by yet another truck that said Hostess on it. His thoughts turned to the Witchblade's vision in which young Joseph Siri, Jr. had been murdered. Ian could not shake the feeling that, as the vision had foretold, something was going to prevent Sara from picking the boy up from his school. Furthermore, there was no doubt in his mind that, in his impatience to see his beloved again, the teenager was going to break his promise to his aunt and head to the rehab facility alone. Whatever was going to keep the Wielder from escorting the boy uptown was going to happen within the next few hours, and he presumed it was going to have something to do with the effort to capture Angel Medina. The call from Alonzo Brown could come at any minute, instantly mobilizing the combined DEA and narcotics squad personnel to take down the murderous drug lord. And knowing Sara, she would be in the vanguard of the force that stormed the abandoned ice factory on 7th Street.
Ian was faced with a dilemma. On the one hand, Kenneth Irons had ordered him to do whatever was necessary to make sure that Joaquin Medina did not kill the boy; on the other hand, he was duty-bound to protect the Wielder at all costs. He simply could not be in two places at once, and he had the distinct feeling that his employer had guessed that he would be forced to choose. So, Ian began to formulate a plan of action that would ensure that both the woman he loved and the boy he had grown very fond of would remain safe from harm. But in order for his plan to work, he would need assistance. Downing the last of his tea, he headed for the home of his ally, which conveniently happened to be located nearby.
More to come. Thanks for continuing to inspire me with your encouraging feedback. Keep it coming, please!