CHAPTER TEN: So Close, and Yet...

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"Adam, knock it off already," Hawkes barked.

Adam slapped the desk with his hand, letting his dancing fingers stay still. "Sorry," he said. In front of them, the A/V computers whirred with information as Sassone, Amanda ran through numerous databases. DMV, NY Housing, various employee databases..."We're just so close, we're like, right there," Adam said. "You know, I told Mac we needed to upgrade this system. It's like, prehistoric."

"Adam...this software was bought new last year."

"Yeah, and it already needs a patch and an upgrade," Adam replied. And since he was unable to do anything but sit and worry while the dinosaur walked-

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Then the computer beeped. "Yes!" Hawkes exulted.

Adam shot him a Look. "And I'm bad?" he asked rhetorically. But he couldn't blame him. The stress of the day was wearing on them all.

Hawkes picked up his phone and speed-dialed Danny.

"Danny? Yeah, it's Hawkes. There's a Sassone renting an apartment-#322 Hathaway Way, apartment 81A. I'll call Stella and Mac, they and Angell can meet you there."

"She put her own name on the lease?...Yeah, I got it, thanks buddy! Flack, turn here!" Danny hung up. "322 Hathaway Way."

Flack floored it, skidding through the stop light and almost throwing Danny out the passenger's side. Danny stared out the window, his features set in a grim line, his heart pounding. Hang on Montana, hang on baby girl. I'm coming.

Daddy's coming.

The phone rang just as Flack pulled into the parking lot of Queen of Mercy. If Amanda was watching, Danny didn't want her to see him coming. She needed to feel like she was still in charge. He hadn't done anything else by the book today but right now was where he had to. Danny saw CALLER BLOCKED on his phone and his arm lashed out, gripping Flack's forearm before his friend could exit the car. Flack raised an eyebrow, and Danny said simply, "It's her."

Flack motioned his friend forward, and they both started down the street. Some people stopped and stared as Flack drew his gun, but the flash of gold at his hip made them keep walking.

Danny hit SEND. "Hello?"

"Do you remember me yet, Danny?"

Wondering how much he should let on, Danny decided that honesty was the best policy. "Yeah, Amanda, I do."

There was a derisive snort on the end of the line. "You don't sound happy to see me, Danny," she said, losing the voice modulator and returning to the voice Danny had known growing up.

"Well, this isn't the best way to have a reunion, Manda," Danny said. "Can I…please, can I talk to my wife?" His voice broke and he hated himself for it.

There was a pause, the sound of some shuffling, and then his heart broke when he heard Lindsay scream, "No!" Lucy started crying, and Danny threw a hand to his eyes and blinked furiously. Flack looked pained.

Then, "Talk to him, already." Lucy was still howling in the background. "I ain't gonna hurt the kid, just talk to your goddamned husband!"

"Montana?" Danny asked into the phone.

"Danny."

A weight lifted off his chest and Danny let out the breath he didn't know he'd been holding. "Thank God, Montana, are you and Lucy okay?"

"I'm fine," Lindsay reported, and Danny could hear the tone in her voice. She was fighting hysterics. He knew her too well. She couldn't hide that from him. "Lucy's all right, too." Now she sounded pissed. That's my girl.

"We're comin' to get you, baby, okay? We're gonna be there in seconds. I'll be there-"

He heard Lindsay swear, and then Amanda came back on the line. "Time's up," she informed him coolly.

"Why, Manda?" Danny asked, purposely using his pet name for her. "Why would you do this? Did you kill Sal, too?"

There was a pause, and Danny decided it was time to get moving. He sprinted down the sidewalk, Flack hot on his heels as they dodged traffic. Up ahead, he could see police red and blue flashing in the sun. "Manda?" he asked, nearly breathless. Almost there. We're almost there.

"You're so lucky, Danny, you know that?" she asked him finally. "You got out. You got married. You had a kid. She's beautiful, by the way. Looks just like you."

When she says it, it sounds like an insult. "And, so what? You're jealous?" He stopped short in front of the apartment building. A few residents saw the police and made themselves scarce.

Mac Taylor could have guessed why, but they had bigger fish to fry right now. Mac tossed Danny a bulletproof vest; he caught it with one hand and Jess Angell helped him put it on.

The empty silence on the end of the phone made Danny realize just that...she was. The two of them had come from the same background. The same neighborhood. The same school. Amanda was beautiful, she was smart, she was funny. She should have had it all.

But not after that night...after that, her life was upended, and Danny's drove smoothly on. Would I have been a little jealous? Absolutely. Would I have gone off the fucking deep end?

He thought about all the calls he made to Sonny's, asking about Amanda. All the calls to Sal, who just drank himself into oblivion. All the rumors around school. All the times he'd stopped by the Sassone's house to hear Sonny yell, "Get the hell outta here Messer, she doesn't want to fucking talk to you!" To have your life shattered, to have it seem like no one cared, that no one had your back. To feel worthless, like you had no future...then watch your only family get put away for life...

...Maybe...

Mac threw a hand forward, and they moved into position. As they moved through the construction in the front lobby, Stella glanced down, spotted dirt on her heels that bore a striking resemblance to the trace Adam had found in Danny and Lindsay's apartment.

We're in the right place. I just hope, whatever happens, we aren't too late.