Chapter 41: Alone

Franco was at the apartment, restlessly waiting for Chris to come back. She hadn't answered the numerous phone calls he'd made to her cell. He had no idea where she could have gone. He didn't have the time nor the patience to deal with her and her need to break the rules and do her own thing during this op. He knew that she didn't want him to be "in charge" but this wasn't acceptable. He was already dealing with losing contact with one asset and now she was MIA. When she finally walked in the door, he was seething.

"Dónde demonios has estado?" he asked angrily (Where the hell have you been?). She held up the bag and tray in her hand.

"I got coffee and bagels" she said nonchalantly. "What's your problem?"

"I called you four times" he yelled.

"Sorry" she said with a shrug.

"¿por qué haces esto a mí?" (Why do you do this to me?)

"qué?" she asked confused (What?). She took down a plate from the cabinet, got a knife from the drawer and sat down at the kitchen table.

"volverme loco". (Drive me crazy)

"I went for a walk and got breakfast" she said taking a bagel from the bag and sitting it on the plate. "What's the big deal?"

"I'm supposed to be looking out for you" he said still raising his voice. "How can I do that if you don't answer my phone calls?"

"Well, I'm here now" she said taking a bite of her bagel. "You want a bagel?" she asked, her question slightly muffled by the food in her mouth. Franco put his hands on his hips and shook his head.

"You need to take this seriously Christina".

"I am" she said simply. She continued eating her bagel, unbothered by Franco's sour mood. He walked over and joined her at the table.

"What are you doing?" he asked, putting his arms on the table and interlocking his fingers.

"I'm having breakfast".

"You know what I'm talking about" he said angrily. "You can't be going out all….half cocked".

"I got breakfast Franco" she said annoyed. "Nobody's gonna kill me for buying bagels and coffee".

"You don't leave this apartment without telling me where you're going" he said firmly. "Entiendes?"

"Nah" she said shaking her head, "it's not working like that. Not this time. I don't answer to you. I answer to Schiller in two weeks and Benson two weeks after that" she said finishing the last of her bagel. "You wanted my help. I'm helping. But I'm not taking orders from you".

"So what, you're gonna do this whole op on your own? I know you talked to Monte earlier" Chris took a sip of her coffee and eyed Franco over the rim of her cup. "He called me; said he already talked to you about meeting up".

"Yeah so?"

"Were you gonna tell me?"

"Nope" she said honestly. The feeling in her gut wasn't going away and she wanted find out sooner rather than later if she was right or not. She was diving in head first and she hoped to find out what happened to Elena in the process. If her feeling about Franco was right, he wouldn't be much help to her.

"So you are? You're just gonna do this on your own, huh?"

"Is that a problem?"

"Yeah, it is" he said simply. "Qué estás pensando? These are the same people that Elena was working with". (What are you thinking?)

"I'm well aware of that".

"Then why would put yourself in a position to end up just like her?" he asked confused.

"How'd she end up?" she asked, noticing his choice of words. "I thought that's why you wanted me here; to help you figure out what happened to her. How do you expect me to find her if I don't get into the same crew she was in?"

"I just don't want you doing this alone" he clarified.

"Well, Monte does; told me to come to the club tomorrow night" she said with a shrug. "Alone" she added. "This isn't your op anymore. It's mine". She got up from the table and took her coffee with her to the bedroom, closing the door behind her. Franco sat at the kitchen table more upset now than he had been when he didn't know where Chris was. He slammed his fist down on the table in anger. He'd brought Chris in thinking he'd be able to keep some sort of control over her. Who was he kidding? Nobody controlled Christina. Now he had to figure out how to adjust his plans. While Franco sat at the kitchen table thinking, Chris did the same while lying in bed. She had a lot on her mind and there was only one person she wanted to talk to. She wanted to call Amanda again more than anything, but she couldn't. Her phone vibrated on the bedside table and she reached over and grabbed it. It was a text from Ernesto asking her to meet him later that day.

There's someone I want you to meet

Give me a minute. I'll ask Franco.

No. No Franco. Ven solo (Come alone)

She hesitated for a minute before replying, asking when and where. He replied seven that evening and sent her the address. She said she'd be there. It was starting to worry her that both Monte and Ernesto had contacted her about meeting them and neither wanted Franco to come. After a few more minutes of lying there, she got up and went to get the case files that had everything they knew so far. She studied them again to prepare herself for tonight's meeting. Franco was still upset that she wasn't including him what she was doing. They argued about her doing this on her own but she eventually started ignoring him. He finally gave up trying to talk to her. At six o'clock she went in the bathroom, showered and then got ready to meet Ernesto. By six forty she was walking out the door. Franco asked where she was going but she pretended that she hadn't heard him and left the apartment. She walked to the address Ernesto had given her and arrived right on time. She went up to the apartment and knocked on the door. A minute later, the door opened. Ernesto stuck his head out, looked down the hall both ways then ushered her inside. A guy she didn't recognize stepped forward and patted her down. She didn't offer any protest.

"Has venido solo?" (You came alone)

"Si. Eso es lo querías" she answered. (Yeah. That is what you wanted)

"Lo que le dijiste Franco a dónde te ibas?" (What did you tell Franco about where you were going?)

"Nada (Nothing)" she said simply.

"Nada" he repeated. "Verdad? (Really?)"

"Si. Nada" she said again. He didn't seem to believe her but he moved on without asking anymore questions.

"Ok. This is Manny. He's going to give you an assignment. I need it done tonight. Puede manejar eso? (Can you handle that?)"

"Si. No problemo (Yeah. No problem)" she said with a shrug. Ernesto turned to Manny and nodded his head towards the hallway.

"Vamos (Come on)" Manny said before turning and heading down the hallway. Chris hesitated for a moment before following behind him. He opened the door to a room at the end of the hall and she followed him inside. He shut the door behind them before going over to the closet. He opened the door and in the corner on the floor was a safe. He put in the combination and took out a black bag. He unzipped it, checked the contents and zipped it back up again. He walked over to the desk and grabbed a small piece of paper and handed it to her along with the bag. She looked at the paper and saw there was an address written on it. She looked back up at Manny thinking he had some instructions for her but he just stared back at her. "Se puede ir (You can go)" he said gesturing towards the door.

"Oh. Ok". She put the bag on her shoulder, the note in her pocket, opened the door and walked back out to the living room. Ernesto was sitting on the couch with a woman, another person Chris hadn't met before. They were doing drugs off the coffee table. She paid them little attention. Just headed for the door.

"Oye" Ernesto said getting her attention. She stopped just short of stepping out the door and looked over her shoulder at him. "Knock three times and ask for Alonzo. Diles que te envié" he said (Tell him I sent you). She nodded her head in understanding. "Don't fuck up" he said sternly.

"No haré" she said confidently (I won't). She stepped out into the hallway, shutting the door behind her. She stood there for a minute, taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, then headed out of the building to the address Manny had given her. It took her twenty minutes to get there, walking as fast as she could. She checked the paper one more time to make sure she was in the right place. She was. She walked up the stairs to the house and knocked three times like Ernesto had told her to. A moment later she heard a voice on the other side of the door, asking who it was. "Es Christina" she said back. She heard voices but she couldn't make out what they were saying. A moment later the door opened and a young Latino stood in front of her.

"Qué quieres?" he asked looking around to see if anyone was with her. (What do you want?)

"Estoy aquí para ver Alonzo. Ernesto, él me envió" she said looking him in the eyes (I'm here for Alonzo. Ernesto, he sent me). He noticed the bag on her shoulder and turned to an older, very handsome Latino standing behind him.

"Ella tiene una bolsa; uno de los nuestros" he said quietly. (She has a bag; one of ours). The man in the background nodded and the young Latino turned back to her. "Entra" (Come in). She stepped through the threshold and stood in the entryway. There was muffled music playing from upstairs. She glanced up the stairs but couldn't see anything. She turned her attention back the men standing with her. The man who'd made the call to let her in, gestured for her to go into the living room. She went over, taking the bag off her shoulder as she went, and took a seat on the couch. They walked in the living room behind her and stood there, looking her over.

"Alonzo" the older, handsome Latino said introducing himself. "Mi hermano, Juaquin. You have something for me?" She held the bag up to him and he took it from her then passed it to his brother. Juaquin took the bag over to the table and emptied out its contents. He checked through everything twice before looking to his brother.

"Todo está aquí" he said with a nod. (It's all here). Alonzo nodded before going over and sitting next to Chris on the couch. Juaquin repacked the bag and took it up the stairs. She heard the music from earlier get louder and then quiet again.

"So, how do you know Ermesto?" he asked.

"I just met him yesterday while I was out. He invited us to the club last night" she explained.

"Us?"

"Me and my boyfriend" she clarified.

"Boyfriend, huh?" She nodded. "Estoy decepcionado" (I'm disappointed). Chris gave a coy smile and light laugh. "So where's this boyfriend now?"

"Home" she said simply.

"Why didn't he tag along?"

"Ernesto asked me to come alone".

"And he let you?" he asked surprised.

"He doesn't let me do anything" she said confidently. "He's my boyfriend. Not my father". He smiled and nodded his head.

"Me gustas" he said looking her seductively. (I like you).

"Si" she said arrogantly. She stood up from the couch and headed for the door. She'd opened the door and stepped out onto the porch when Alonzo called out for her to wait. He walked outside with her and shut the door behind them. He closed the space between them, taking glances back at the house as if he was worried someone was watching them.

"Este novio, es serio?" he asked (This boyfriend, it's serious). He was close enough to lean down and kiss her if he wanted to. Chris wondered if this was how things had happened with Elena. There was only one way to find out.

"Depende" she said with a shrug (Depends). She stood there for a moment longer then walked down the stairs and headed down the street. She was sure that he'd calling her soon. All she could do now was wait. She walked all the way back to the apartment, getting hit on from close up and cat called from far away. When she walked into the apartment, Franco was sitting on the couch. There were three empty beer bottles on the coffee table and a fourth in his hand. She looked at him but didn't stop to speak. She just continued into the bedroom. She took off her shoes then her jacket and shirt and was standing there in just her jeans and bra when he walked into the bedroom.

"The hell have you been?" he asked. She ignored him and continued to get undressed. "Where the hell have you been!?" he yelled. She looked at him standing there in jeans with no shirt on, beer still in his hand.

"I went out" she said simply. "To meet Ernesto" she added.

"Alone?"

"He didn't want you to come" she said putting a t shirt on. She climbed into bed and got under the covers. "You, you're making this hard. It doesn't have to be. Nothing's personal, Franco. This is the job. Let it be a job". She laid down and got comfortable, then closed her eyes to go to sleep. Franco left the bedroom and went back to the living room to continue drinking. It'd been about twenty minutes and Chris hadn't fallen asleep yet. She turned over and propped herself up on her elbows when she heard him arguing with someone, she assumed on the phone. He was slurring his words and she couldn't hear everything he was saying but she got bits and pieces. First she heard, "we agreed to take things slow" followed by "you're already getting too carried away with her" then mumbling and more slurring. Finally, she heard him say, "if you want to use her for something else, run it by me first". She guessed he had to be talking to either Ernesto or Monte. They were the only two who'd asked her to do anything so far. She laid back down and turned over to stare at the wall. A minute later, Franco came in the room and climbed in bed next to her. She kept replaying the things she'd heard Franco say over and over in her head. The feeling in her gut, the one that said something wasn't right, was stronger than ever now.