The next morning when Chris woke up, Franco was already gone from the apartment. She knew something had to be up because it was eight thirty. Franco wouldn't get up that early for no reason. But she didn't call him or try to figure out where he'd gone. How could she? What right did she have to manage his comings and goings if she'd told him not to worry about hers? So she tried not to think about it. She grabbed a bag of potato chips from the kitchen and sat on the couch to channel surf. An hour and a half later, she'd eaten the entire bag of chips and still hadn't settled on anything she wanted to watch. She was about to go take a nap when she got a text from an unknown number.

¿Estás ocupado? (You busy?)

¿Quién es este? (Who is this?)

Tu futuro esposo (Your future husband)

?

Es Alonzo hermosa. ¿Ocupado? (It's Alonzo beautiful. Busy?)

No.

Recibirme al de Alicia's en el mediodía (Meet me at Alicia's at noon)

¿Por qué? (Why?)

No podemos casaríamos si no lo hacemos fecha (We can't get married if we don't date)

Christina laughed to herself. Alonzo was a handsome guy but of course she wasn't interested in dating him. But, as usual, she had to play along as if she were interested. She texted him back saying she'd see him at noon then went in the bathroom to shower. While she was in the shower, she thought about her family and how they were doing. She hoped Jeza was doing okay and that her father and Robbie were taking good care of her. She thought about Amanda and Frannie. She thought about how things were going back in the squad room. Then she turned her thoughts to Franco and the job she was there to do; Ernesto and Monte and how they were connected to Elena's disappearance. Finally, her date with Alonzo, the handsome, smooth talking Latino who didn't care at all that she already had a boyfriend. She thought about playing it sweet and coy versus feisty and confident. She decided it'd be best to play it by ear. She finally got out of the shower and went out to the bedroom to get ready. She was sitting on the bed wrapped in a towel, texting Monte, when she heard the front door open and close. A moment later, Franco walked into the bedroom.

"Where you off to now?" he asked. "You even gonna tell me?"

"I have a date" she said continuing to look do at her phone.

"With who?" he asked forcefully, his tone full of jealousy.

"Doesn't matter" she said putting her phone down. She got up from the bed and walked over to the dresser to pick out something to wear.

"It does matter" he argued. "I'm supposed to be your boyfriend. You going out on dates around here is gonna make me look like a fool". Chris ignored him and took her clothes with her into the bathroom, shut and locked the door. Franco walked over to the bathroom door and kept talking. "Is it with Ernesto or Monte?" he asked as if it could only be one of them. "Tell me Christina". He heard nothing from inside the bathroom. He went over, sat down on the bed and waited impatiently for her to come out of the bathroom. She came out ten minutes later, dressed in jeans, a tank top, and a nice jacket. She didn't acknowledge him at all. Just finished getting ready to go on her date. "You are being really fucking childish" he snapped. She looked at him as she slipped her cell into her back pocket. Then, without saying a word, she left the room and headed out to meet Alonzo. As soon as he heard the front door shut, he took out his phone and called Ernesto.

"¿Que dije?" he asked angrily (What did I say?). Ernesto didn't know what he meant. "I said if you want to use her for something, you ask me first".

"I'm not using her for anything today, Franco" he said nervously. "Juro hombre. Nada". ( I swear man. Nothing).

"Well where the hell is going, huh? Talking about she has a date". Even though he and Chris weren't really dating, he was taking the fact that she was going out to see someone very personally. He felt cheated on and more than that, she was making him look bad to the crew. "What the fuck is going on!?" he yelled.

"No sé" he said quickly (I don't know). "Ask Monte. He wanted her for something today, not me. Juro, Franco". (I swear, Franco)

"I find out your giving her jobs without asking me first, we're gonna have problems". He didn't wait for him to say anything back. He just hung up the phone. His next call was to Monte, asking the same questions. Where was Christina going and who was she with? He said he didn't know either. He'd told her to come to the club later that night to help with some of the girls. But he didn't have anything for her to do during the day. Franco hung up the phone, more pissed off now than he was before he'd made the phone calls. Christina was involved with someone else that neither he, Ernesto, nor Monte knew anything about. Meanwhile, Christina arrived at Alicia's to meet Alonzo. Alicia's was a pizzeria in the neighborhood. They got a booth and ordered a pie to share. Alonzo didn't waste any time getting the conversation started.

"So tell me about this boyfriend" he said leaning forward interestedly.

"What do you wanna know?"

"Who is he? How long you two been together? Do I have a shot?" he asked boldly. Chris laughed. It wasn't something they'd worked out beforehand, the length of their relationship so avoided giving a number.

"His name is Franco" she started explaining. She noticed a change in his body when she said Franco's name and wondered if he already knew him. "We've been together for a while. Do you have a shot?" She shrugged. "I don't know. You'd have to take that up with him". Alonzo laughed uncomfortably and leaned against the back of the booth.

"You're Christina?" he asked. "Franco Avila's Christina?"

"I guess my reputation precedes me" she said not giving away any indication of how pissed off she was. There was no way that Alonzo should know who Franco was.

"Yes. Yes it does" he said nodding his head. "Franco's been hyping you up a bit. Not to me but it's small circles so…..word gets around. I should've put two and two together".

"I guess you're not my future husband anymore, huh?" she said with a smirk. He laughed.

"Depende" he said using her words from the night before (Depends). "What did he say when you told him that you were coming here to meet me?"

"I didn't" she said simply.

"So he doesn't know you're here with me?" She shook her head no. "So you just do whatever you want to, huh?"

"Es correcto" she said confidently. (That's right).

"Well, that's one thing that'll have to change" he said leaning in again. His voice had changed from sweet and flirty to serious and authoritative.

"¿De Verdad?" (Really?)

"Si, verdad. No puedo tener gente pensando mi novia lleva los pantalones". The waiter came and sat their pizza on the table between them with two plates. "No puedo verse como un tonto. Entiendes, ¿no? " (Yeah, really. I can't have people thinking my girlfriend wears the pants. Can't look like a fool. You understand, right?). He'd just voiced the same worry that Franco had. Typical man thing; not wanting to look bad in front of his boys. She continued to play along.

"Si, entiendo" she said taking a slice of pizza and putting it on her plate then added grated cheese on top. "Pero mientras yo sigo siendo sólo un amigo….." Alonzo started to laugh before she finished her sentence. (Yeah, I understand. But while I'm still just a friend...)

"Need to get in all the sass you can?" he asked still laughing. He took his first bite of his slice of pizza.

"Well, might as well" she said with a shrug. She picked up her slice and took a bite. Alonzo finished the entirety of his side of the pizza. Chris packed the rest of her side to go. They sat and talked for a couple of hours. Alonzo did most of the talking, mainly about himself. He bragged on his reputation and his crew and how much respect he got in the neighborhood. It was his way of impressing her. She couldn't help but wonder why he thought talking about running a drug operation would accomplish that. Of course, he didn't say outright that he was the leader of a drug ring but he didn't have to. Christina got the gist. They finally left the pizzeria and Christina walked back to Alonzo's house with him. She went inside and saw his brother Juaquin again, met his sister Laila and their cousin Eduardo. She liked them a lot, especially Laila. She was a lot like what Chris expected Jeza would be like once she'd finished maturing. This was the harder part of the job; meeting good people who were doing the wrong things to get by.

Christina stayed at Alonzo's until early evening when she finally said she had to go. She made a joke about being in trouble with Franco for being out all day. Alonzo told her if he got out hand to give him a call. He was more than ready to take care of him and her. She left and made her way home to get changed for the club. Franco wasn't home and, to her surprise, he hadn't called her all day. Since her talk with Alonzo, she had more to go along with the feeling that'd be growing in her gut. She headed back out at seven thirty to meet Monte at the club. The bouncer let her in without question this time and she went straight to the back room.

When she walked in, Franco was already there playing a game of pool. Ernesto, Monte, and Manny were there along with some of the others she'd met the other night and some she hadn't. Franco walked over to her and kissed her softly on the lips before whispering in her ear to behave. She chuckled softly and strained not to roll her eyes, pretending that everything between them was just fine. There was a table in the corner where all the women were sitting. Monte told her to go over and join them, introduce herself. She did as he said and five minutes later he came over to her. He gave the keys to his suburban and a note with an address on it. He told her to drive them to the address and that she was in charge of the girls, getting them to the house and bringing them back. He looked at her and gave her the same instruction that Ernesto had the night before. Don't fuck up. She left out the back with the girls and drove them to the house. They were all patted down as they entered and then sent to the basement. There were multiple tables around, some with money other with drugs. Chris finally knew what they were there for. The girls, had obviously been there before because, without any orders, they stripped down to their underwear and got to work on either counting money or bagging the different products for distribution. Chris sat in the corner and read a magazine that was sitting on one of the tables. Then she got on her phone then read another magazine. She listened to the girls' conversation but didn't participate until she was invited.

"Así que usted es la chica de Franco?" she heard from across the room (So you're Franco's girl?). She looked up to see who'd said it but all eyes were on her. "Así, ¿verdad?" (So, are you?) This time she could see who was asking. It was Navia, the most talkative of the group from what she could tell so far.

"Si, yo soy" she answered. (Yeah, I am)

"Hum" she mumbled. She had a sly smirk and gave her a side eye. Chris could tell she was a gossip.

"¿Por qué?" she asked. (Why?)

"Nada" she said with a shrug, "Solo me preguntaba". (Nothing. Just wondering)

"¿Por qué?" she asked with more attitude this time. She knew she'd get a straight answer out of her, and the other girls too, if she was forceful. After all, they were the ones in their underwear counting money and cutting drugs and she was fully clothed reading magazines.

"I was with my boyfriend earlier, en el barrio" she said more seriously, "I saw you walking with Alonzo".

"And?"

"Yo sería cuidadoso si yo fuera usted" Yolanda said speaking up. Chris pegged her for the oldest of the group. Not because she looked older but she had an attitude that was more mature than all the others. (I would be careful if I were you)

"¿Qué demonios se supone que significa?" (What the hell is that supposed to mean?)

"You don't want to end up like Elena" Navia said simply. Finally Chris was hearing something about Elena. She should've known this was the place to get her intel; from other women. She'd probably never get close enough to the boys to find out anything. But in the trade, most always, women stuck together.

"Elena? Quien es Elena?" she asked pretending to oblivious.

"Franco's girl before you" Yolanda answered. "She started coming like seven months ago, doing the same job you're doing now. Ella era agradable. We liked her. Then she started hanging out with Alonzo. Few weeks later, she was gone". (She was nice)

"Ido?" she asked. They all nodded. "Ido a donde?" Yolanda shrugged. (Gone? Gone where?)

"Nadie lo sabe. She was here one night and gone the next. Ella simplemente desaparecido" Navia said looking over at her. (Nobody knows. She just disappeared)

"You watch your ass with that one, chica" Yolanda suggested.

"Franco or Alonzo?" she asked for clarification.

"Ambas" she said simply. (Both). The room was quiet for a minute as Chris let everything she'd just heard sink in. Something wasn't right. If Franco had something to do with Elena's disappearance, why would he bring her in to help find her? It didn't make sense. She took a deep breath and let it out quietly.

"Vuelve al trabajo" she said opening her magazine back to the page she'd left off. The women went back to counting and bagging. "Gracias" she said softly. She looked up over her magazine to see Yolanda give a small nod and Navia with a slight pleased smile on her face. She looked back down at her magazine and continued to read. They girls were done with their job by two in the morning and Chris drove them back to the club like she'd been told. Even though they'd been searched before leaving the house, they were searched again before leaving the club. Chris gave Monte back his keys and she and Franco headed out of the club together. Before they were out the door, Chris turned to Ernesto.

"Hey, what's up with that Alonzo guy?" she asked. Franco's head snapped towards Ernesto who was suddenly extremely nervous.

"Uh…I….nada" he stuttered. Chris looked at Franco who was clearly pissed off.

"O…k" she said conveying her confusion by their reactions. She stepped out the back door and headed out to the street. Franco stayed behind for a minute. When he came out to meet her, he was flexing his hand open and closed and his knuckles were torn. Chris' suspicions of Franco were only getting stronger. She didn't want to believe that he could be involved with whatever happened to Elena but everything she was learning was leading her further to that conclusion. They walked home, went upstairs to their apartment and got ready for bed, all in complete silence. They'd been laying down for a few minutes when Franco spoke.

"We got a job tomorrow so….we'll have to get up early" he said into the darkness.

"How early?"

"Not crack of dawn early like you do for your morning runs" he said with an attitude, "but early".

"Fine" she said simply. She had a lot on her mind. The conversation she'd had with Alonzo, the conversation she'd had with the girls, and now Ernesto and Franco's reactions to the mere mention of Alonzo's name. The pieces of the puzzle were coming together and she didn't like the picture they were creating. She'd told Amanda and the others that she'd call tomorrow by two o'clock. She didn't know how this job Franco had mentioned would affect that timing but she had to make that call. If she didn't then they'd be coming in after her and she knew that it was too soon for that. Now that she was in, she didn't want to get out until she had all the answers she wanted.