Chapter 5

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Beth kissed Rio back and the world fell away around them. They kissed for what felt like an age, tasting each other, making up for lost time. She loved the way he kissed her, rough and gentle all rolled into one.

God what the hell am I doing she thought. She pulled away and looked at him, then looked down at the floor, their foreheads met affectionately. "What are we doing, Rio? I thought we said no more games?"

Rio tilted his head back slightly, and took a good look at her, his eyes smoldering. "Do I look like I'm playin' Elizabeth?" he said. Beth sighed, fuck it she thought and moved in for another kiss.

Things were getting hot and heavy, she started unbuttoning his shirt, he slid his warm, strong hands under her hoodie, caressing her back and attempting to unclasp her bra.

Suddenly a loud shriek pierced the silence, followed by a deadpan "Aw heeeeell no". Beth and Rio looked up, shocked. Ruby and Annie were stood watching them, mouths agape, eyes wide.

"Doesn't anyone know how to use a doorbell anymore?" cried Beth irritably.

Soon after, Beth and Rio were sat on the sofa, looking like two shamefaced teenagers who got caught by their parents. Ruby and Annie were pacing back and forth. Rio cast a glance at Beth who couldn't help but giggle. Rio snorted as he tried to stifle a laugh.

"Oh! Oh! You think this is funny?!" yelled Annie, clearly agitated. She crossed her arms and tapped her foot as she glared at one and then the other. "Yo, Rubes they think this is funny!"

Ruby looked at Rio, and then at Beth. Arms crossed, she let out a disapproving Mmm-mmm-mmm noise, shaking her head.

Rio covered his mouth, trying to hide a playful grin but his whole body was shaking as he attempted to stop laughing. Beth gave him a nudge "shhhh" she said. "Look, ladies, I'm sorry. But y'all just giving off that whole angry mom vibe right now and it's kinda funny" Rio grinned from ear to ear.

Annie eyes narrowed and looked at Beth, "you agree, Elizabeth?"

"No… I mean yes, it's a little funny, but I understand this must be a huge shock to you both. It was to me too."

Ruby glared at Beth "how long have you known?"

"About… a week… or so?" replied Beth, cringing.

Both women erupted in a cacophony of shouting:

"A week?! A whole fucking week?!"

"Girl what is wrong with you?!"

"How could you lie to us like this?!"

"What were you thinking?!"

"You're as crazy as he is!"

"Shut uuuup!" Beth had stood up and yelled at the top of her lungs. Finally, silence filled the room. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry" she continued, emphatically. "When I first saw him, I thought I'd imagined it. I thought I'd had a… a stroke or something. Please. Sit down so we can talk. Please?"

Ruby harrumphed and sat down on the sofa opposite. Annie scowled at Rio but also sat down.

"Agent Turner told me Rio was dead. Agent Turner lied. He's the one who saved him", Beth explained.

Ruby and Annie looked at each other, shock and worry painted on their faces.

"What does this mean?" asked Annie, anxiously, staring at Beth and then Rio.

"That's why Rio came over… to talk to me about it" replied Beth.

"Mmmm-hmmmm", said Ruby, eyeing Rio suspiciously, "talking – is that what they call it now? You guys have no self-control", she tutted.

Rio chuckled "hey don't blame me, she's got that whole mama glow thing goin' on… it's hot"

Beth blushed like a school girl.

You're a pig in pants!" Annie blurted out. She then gave Beth a funny look, narrowing her eyes and gesturing her head towards the kitchen.

"What?" asked Beth, puzzled, thinking. I am not getting up off this sofa just to gossip in the kitchen.

Annie rolled her eyes "You told him?!" cried Annie

"What?" asked Beth

"That the baby is his?" hissed Annie, jabbing her finger in Rio's direction.

"Well- I can hardly lie about that!" spluttered Beth, looking shocked. "Besides once the baby is born it might be kinda obvious", she said, rolling her eyes.

Ruby took a deep breath and closed her eyes in despair. "Enough. Tell us about Agent Turner".

Rio explained how Agent Turner had recruited him as part of a new undercover team to root out organized crime, focusing on Rio's former turf in Michigan. He had a solid cover story for his recent absence and went back to work on some of his regular business dealings.

The feds had set him up with some capital to maintain cover. Rio being Rio, managed to hold some of that back, for deals he did on the side, unbeknownst to the feds. He targeted rival crews with insider info, set them up, then Turner would scoop in and arrest them. But each arrest allowed Rio to slowly scrape back more of his territory.

"'Bout a month ago, Turner starts talkin' 'bout you again, Elizabeth. Wants me to make an appearance… um… rekindle our arrangement."

Beth raised her eyebrows at the potential double-meaning behind this statement.

"He wants to take you down, Elizabeth… I think he's gunning for a big promotion and you're his unfinished business."

The ladies sat in silence for several minutes, stunned.

"OK. What do we do?" asked Ruby finally. "Rio, you always have a plan"

Rio raised an eyebrow and sat back, managing to look both smug and in complete control of the room.

"I dunno. Turner's smart. And he's focused. Y'all been living the high life, you forgot 'bout him but he did not forget 'bout you. You made him look foolish. He ain't about to let that go. He wants that score settled."

"So… do you have a plan?" asked Beth.

Rio looked at Beth, and then the other two. "I may have an idea… but you guys need to get one thing straight. None of this messin' around, changing the rules, doin' your own thing, okay? You guys pull that shit all the time and I'm tellin' you I ain't going down for you again. If you pull any of your shit, I am done. I will let Turner have your asses"

The women looked at each other, taking it all in.

Rio chuckled "You see, I can see all your cogs turnin' right now… you thinking you be able to outsmart me, pull a fast one, get me out the way… I'm tellin' you right now to put that out your head. If you want a chance of getting' ahead of Turner, you need to trust me and stop fuckin' about"

Beth looked at Rio and gave him a crooked grin "you told me to never trust you…"

"That was before, Elizabeth. We have a common enemy now. We gotta stop with these games. There's too much at stake here…" he glanced pointedly at her swollen belly. Beth instinctively cradled it, he's right, she thought.

Rio turned to the others "and you two… you got a helluva lot to lose too… Your man got his job back? Your kid ain't sick no more? If you go down, you could lose all that" he nodded to Ruby. "And you…" he shot Annie a dangerous glance, "you don't wanna lose your kid, do you? You wanna tell him he's cut off from his meds?" Annie shook her head and stared at the floor.

"Besides…" said Rio with a grin he knew would rile Annie, "we practically family now, sis" Annie rolled her eyes and made a scoffing noise but didn't argue with him.

Silence fell on the room, indicating some sort of truce had been met. "So, is everyone on the same page?" asked Beth, suddenly feeling exhausted.

"I have a caveat" said Ruby, holding her hand up. Rio rolled his eyes. "No, this is good" said Beth, the natural born mediator, "let's get it all out in the open." Ruby gave Rio a look dripping with sass and continued, "I think, we should get a say… we don't blindly accept just any plan. If we have a better idea, we should speak up and we get a vote on which option is best. You know… one without a high body count".

Rio groaned and closed his eyes. "Don't you be groanin' at me gang friend" snapped Ruby, "if you think about it all the best jobs we did was when we worked together".

"She has a point, bro" said Annie, raising her eyebrows at him. Beth chimed in "yes, she does".

"You bitches are killin' me" moaned Rio. "This ain't no PTA! You don't get to vote on the plan! You do know I didn't have to come here, right? I coulda just let Turner have your asses and I'd not be questionin' my sanity right about now?"

"But you didn't" said Beth quietly. "You're here… and we need to work together to take down Turner". The ladies looked at each other and then at Rio, who sighed "fine, but I have final veto".

"Okay…" said Beth. "Let's get to work".