Stephanie
"Happy birthday, Isabelle," I shouted when she got home from school. Isabelle grinned. She looked around my office, hoping to find something for her birthday.
Lester laughed when Isabelle looked disappointed. "Izzy, follow me to the conference room," he said. Isabelle raised an eyebrow, then jumped onto his back. "So that's how it's going to be?"
"Yup. It's the price for laughing when I'm disappointed," she joked. "Move it, Santos."
"You're a demanding little one, aren't you?" Lester teased. I laughed at my best friend and daughter. The two had fun kidding around and pranking each other.
Who would have thought that Lester, who demanded proof I was Isa's mother, would become my best friend? Not me. That was for sure. Somehow, he managed to worm his way into my heart. Hector caught me smiling at Lester and Isa in amusement. He grabbed my hand and led me to the party.
I wasn't surprised the men had spoiled my daughter. She had enough gift cards to shop every weekend for a year. It was insane. Isa laughed and thanked the men. She got Lester and Bobby to agree to take her shopping at the mall the following weekend with her friends.
"Thank you for throwing a birthday party for me," Isabelle said. "Spending it with everyone here, especially my mom, made it more meaningful than all my other birthdays combined." I brushed a tear from my eye.
Carlos wrapped his arms around me. He lovingly placed his hands on my abdomen. "I can't wait," he whispered.
"Neither can I, my love," I whispered. Isabelle caught my eye and winked. She was having fun celebrating her birthday with the guys. They got Ella to make everything green. It was overkill, but Isabelle absolutely loved it.
Hector noticed Carlos stroking my abdomen. He raised an eyebrow in question. I shrugged. Nothing was certain. We had to wait for confirmation first. "Talk to him," Carlos whispered. Carlos kissed my curls and released me. I reached for Hector's hand and led him to my apartment on the seventh floor.
He waited while I unlocked the door. "What do you need?" Hector asked.
"To check a few things from my photographs. I know you put them in the closet safe. Did you look at them?" I asked. Hector shook his head. "Okay. I'm going to show you a few. I need to ensure that Isabelle and I are safe."
Hector waited for me to collect the photos. I returned to the living room and pulled him toward the couch. He sat beside me and patiently waited. "I took this one when I was with my father. I didn't know what it was at the time. The child is Joe Morelli. I think he was ten or eleven. His dad is the man handing the money to the Necromancer. I know he had a job to do, but I don't know what it was," I explained. "I can't see it."
"You want to know?" Hector asked. I nodded. Hector grinned. "Tank's cousin, Bubba, is Morelli's cellmate. He can get the information."
"Small world," I said, laughing. "Why is Bubba in prison?" I saw what had happened in my mind. Bubba murdered the man who sexually assaulted his sister. Tank never talked about his family. He was more protective of my daughter than the other men. It made perfect sense. I was proud to have him watching over my daughter.
"Tank will send a message to his cousin. Bubba will get the answers if Morelli knows," Hector promised.
"He knows because it's what killed his father, Anthony Sr, during a bar brawl when Joe was sixteen," I explained.
"Why can't you see?" Hector asked.
"Because I'm too close. I know Isa can't see either," I replied honestly. "She would have told Carlos or me."
I passed another photograph to Hector. "Do you remember this?" Hector asked. I shook my head. Helen, Anthony Sr, Joe and I were in the photograph. Someone took the picture. I'm not sure how I got my hands on it, but it got mixed into my pile of prized photos.
"It's at Alberto Mancuso's house. But that's all I could tell from the picture. I need to know who took the photo. My spidey sense says it has to do with Giacomo Pacini. Maybe his boss? I think he was the enforcer for a mob family, but I can't seem to narrow down which family."
Hector nodded. I suspected he would research the known mobs within Trenton. "I'll check the Italian families first," he suggested.
"Thank you."
"Do you have more?" Hector asked.
"Photographs? Yes. But those are the only ones I feel are unresolved. They feel like a warning," I attempted to explain. Hector studied the photographs before returning them to me. He didn't want to take a copy in case it got into the wrong hands.
"I'll help you," Hector promised. I kissed his teardrop tattoo. We returned to Isabelle's birthday party.
Isabelle raised an eyebrow when I entered the room. She quickly came to my side to ask if I was alright. "I'm fine, Isa. I told Hector about the photograph I couldn't get a proper read on," I quietly said.
"And the other one?" Isa asked. I could feel her body tense beside me.
"Yes. That one too. Hector will help us," I replied. Isabelle relaxed and thanked me for getting her Tio Hector to help. She ran across the room and jumped on Hector's back. I watched Isabelle whisper something into his ear. He grinned and nodded. Hector would get his buddy Puma to help. I knew there was more to the story, but I couldn't see it.
Carlos kissed my neck behind my ear. I felt my body react to the tender kiss. Whenever he sucked on that spot, it turned my legs to jelly. I didn't know Carlos for long, but it seemed like we had known each other all our lives.
Joseph
I couldn't do anything without Bubba watching my every move. He loaned me to his buddies whenever they had anything worth bartering. The things the men made me do were repulsive. I had never realized how uncomfortable my favourite sex position was for women. Thankfully, Bubba had not participated in that act.
The guard appeared outside my cell. "Morelli, you have a visitor," the man announced. I followed the orders to the letter. He guided me to the visitation room. I sat on my side of the plexiglass. I patiently waited for the guard to escort my visitor to the place on the other side.
One of Bubba's friends sat across from a Hispanic man. They were talking in rapid Spanish. Both men briefly looked my way and grinned.
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
"Delivering the news in person."
"What news?" I demanded.
"Valerie is no longer pregnant. Your divorce petition got processed through the courts."
"Did she abort my son?" My longtime friend better not lie to me.
"No. Valerie miscarried your daughter. She contracted gonorrhea."
"I don't have gonorrhea," I replied. I took the antibiotics. Valerie and I never had sex when I was infectious. The thought of getting Valerie tested had never crossed my mind.
"What about the daughter your ex-wife miscarried?"
"It was another girl. Good riddance. I only cared about having a son," I replied.
"You gave me gonorrhea, Joe."
"How? I never had sex with you."
"You had sex with my girlfriend. I mean, my ex-girlfriend. She confessed when I tested positive. Guard, I want to leave."
"Please stay," I begged.
"No."
"I'm sorry, Hawk. She said you guys broke up," I lied. The woman made no such claim. I got Tami drunk and took advantage. She wanted to ride the Italian Stallion. I couldn't refuse.
"Lies," Hawk replied. "She said you approached her."
"Hawk," I called. "Forgive me. Tami kept saying no, and I forced her after getting her drunk." Shit! I confessed to raping Tami. The prison was messing with my head.
Hawk shook his head. He whispered to the guard, causing the man to smile.
The guard on my side of the divider roughly grabbed my arm. He waited until we walked past the occupied cells in my block and said, "You confessed to raping a seventeen-year-old girl. The child was Hawk's sister, not his girlfriend. She told her brother after getting diagnosed with an STD."
"Tami was older. She probably contracted the STD from someone else," I replied. Tami was Hawk's sister? Shit! Siblings were off-limits. I never knew Hawk had a sister.
"No. You stole Tami's virginity. She had attempted to kill herself, knowing she couldn't get you charged. It's not easy to press charges against a cop," the guard said.
"Well, what do we have here?" Bubba asked. "A broken rapist who lost his son."
"It was a girl," I replied.
Bubba whispered, "He lied." What? Why would my Navy buddy lie? "He only wanted you to confess to raping his sister. You fell into his trap." Bubba laughed. "The judge would add another five years to your sentence. It gives us more time to get acquainted."
I moved far from Bubba. He had a strange sparkle in his eye that I had never seen before. Bubba removed his shirt and tied my hands to the top bunk. "No," I cried. I saw Bubba's massive cock when he masturbated. It won't fit.
Bubba asked, "Why did your father pay the man known as the Necromancer?" I shook my head. How does Bubba know about that day?
The chilly air in the cell block reached my balls. Bubba had removed my clothes. My pants had fallen to my ankles, and my shirt covered my face to muffle the screams. "I don't know," I cried. I felt Bubba yank my balls.
"Liar," Bubba whispered. His bare chest pressed against my back. My body shook in fear. Bubba stroked my cock. It had been too long since I had anyone touch it. My body instinctively reacted. Bubba lifted me until my feet rested on the bottom bunk. "I will go easy on you if you cooperate."
"I don't know anything," I whimpered. It would take more than Bubba stroking me to get me to reveal that secret. His cock rubbed against my ass. I was relieved when Bubba only ejaculated on me.
"Don't get complacent, Morelli. The best is yet to come," Bubba replied, laughing maniacally. What was that supposed to mean? It meant Morelli was about to have a rough night.
On his way back to Trenton, Hawk called his lawyer. "Did you get Morelli's confession?" Hawk asked.
"I did. Wearing a wire helped. How did you get it past the guards?" Alejandro Montez asked. He was Rangeman's criminal lawyer. Jandro agreed to represent Hawk and his sister, Tami when they pressed charges against Morelli for rape.
"Could we get this handled without Tami going to court?" Hawk asked.
"I'm supposed to meet the DA tomorrow. I'll present the case. Hawk, I promised to keep Tami safe. Trust me to do my job," Jandro replied.
"Thanks, Jandro. Do the other guys know?"
"Only Steph, Ranger and Lester. Stephanie convinced Tami to meet with a therapist," Jandro said. "Your sister is safe. I promise." Hawk wasn't surprised that Stephanie reached out to his sister. When she heard about Tami's suicide attempt, she contacted a therapist and visited Tami in the hospital. Hawk hoped he would find a woman like Stephanie someday. "I'll keep you updated." Jandro ended the call.
Hawk called his sister with the news. She was happy the man confessed, making it easier to live through her trauma. However, Tami was not out of the woods. There was always the chance she'd have to go to court to share her story. Tami didn't want to relive the experience. Hawk said Jandro would try to appeal to the DA to handle her case outside the public eye. Once her case went to trial, her rape would become public knowledge. She prayed for an out-of-court settlement.
The following day, Jandro met with the DA and Judge Judith Sterling. Jandro was relieved when they ruled without a trial. Sterling added another five years to Joseph Morelli's jail sentence. The warden would deliver the news to the prisoner. "Why did you settle out of court?" Jandro asked the DA.
"Tami deserves the right to live without harsh judgment from her peers. We received a confession from Morelli. Taking it to court was unnecessary." Jandro thanked the DA and Sterling for their expedient verdict. He met with Hawk and Tami to share the news.