attorney for nearly twenty
years. This is a new tactic, Helen. Are you trying to
make me so paranoid that I won’t even trust a man I’ve known most
of my adult life?”
“ Why would he file an
injunction with the court to keep me from consulting on a case we
opened for the express purpose of protecting Celeste? I mean,
c’mon, Danny. I know you hate me. But I suspect that
you love your wife more than you could ever hate anybody, including
me.”
He gritted his teeth. “Why would I
want someone with a vendetta against my family allegedly protecting
them?”
I leaned forward. “Because that’s what
Celeste asked me to do.”
Some of the tension bled out of his
jaw. “She’s very trusting. When it comes to
understanding people like us, Celeste hasn’t got a clue.”
“ She refused to speak with
the police tonight, Danny. She specifically asked to talk to
me. Do you know what she told me?”
Wary eyes impaled
me. “What? And why would she need to talk to the
police?”
“ She told me that she
wanted my help because there are only two people in the world who
understand your distant kin – us, Danny. You and
me.”
Panicked breath sucked into his lungs.
“I thought you said she was fine.”
“ She is.”
Dawning crashed down over his head.
“Oh God. The baby?”
“ She’s missing. I
find it odd that your lawyer is in chambers with Judge Gates right
now trying to bar me from helping the police find your daughter,
Danny. Can you think of anyone else in this city with more
experience looking for missing children?”
His olive skin faded to the color of almond
milk. “Get me a phone.”
“ Celeste wants to talk to
you, Danny.”
“ Not yet. I need to
call Carlos and tell him to knock it off.”
Devlin’s shock crowded me from behind.
“Are you playing us, Datello? What’s with the abrupt change
of heart about Helen’s help?”
“ My wife, despite her age,
is a very wise soul, Detective Mackenzie. Helen and I can
hate each other for reasons well deserved until the stars
fall. This is my child we’re talking about. Celeste is
right. So is Helen. There isn’t anyone else better
equipped to find our baby.”
I slid my cell phone across the table.
“Make the call. Then I’ve got a few questions for you.
When we’re finished, Officer Thomas will take you to a phone and
you can call Celeste. As much as it sickens me to say this,
she deserves the comfort you can offer her.”
Stefano agreed to cooperate with Datello’s
order – a moot point as it turned out, since Judge Gates pointed
out the fact that Devlin and I were the ones who recognized that
the threat against Celeste Datello was legitimate.
“ Now,” I stuffed my phone
back into my purse. “Who in Sully’s organization could still
be hanging around outside the hospitality of my former federal
brethren to be involved in something like this?”
“ Franchetta would be my
first bet,” Datello said. “But rumor has it, he’s still in
lockup. I know you don’t believe me, but I genuinely have had
very little to do with Sully’s business interests for more than a
decade.”
“ Hmm,” I nodded.
“Nice last act you committed, Danny.” We knew full well what
it had been. The day he offered my former husband to his
uncle with a nice juicy insurance policy – me, the brand new FBI
agent.
“ He knew what he was
getting into, Helen. He wanted in. I didn’t hear you
complaining when you were living an affluent comfortable
life.”
I gritted my teeth. “Are you sure that
this is related to Sully?”
“ You heard that phone
call. Sullivan’s Boutique? They were sending a
message.”
Hard to disagree with that one.
“Still,” I said, “he’s usually far more subtle than that.”
“ And he’s not pulling the
strings on the outside anymore.”
“ Do you know if he has any
operations on this side of the country?” Dev asked.
Datello
years. This is a new tactic, Helen. Are you trying to
make me so paranoid that I won’t even trust a man I’ve known most
of my adult life?”
“ Why would he file an
injunction with the court to keep me from consulting on a case we
opened for the express purpose of protecting Celeste? I mean,
c’mon, Danny. I know you hate me. But I suspect that
you love your wife more than you could ever hate anybody, including
me.”
He gritted his teeth. “Why would I
want someone with a vendetta against my family allegedly protecting
them?”
I leaned forward. “Because that’s what
Celeste asked me to do.”
Some of the tension bled out of his
jaw. “She’s very trusting. When it comes to
understanding people like us, Celeste hasn’t got a clue.”
“ She refused to speak with
the police tonight, Danny. She specifically asked to talk to
me. Do you know what she told me?”
Wary eyes impaled
me. “What? And why would she need to talk to the
police?”
“ She told me that she
wanted my help because there are only two people in the world who
understand your distant kin – us, Danny. You and
me.”
Panicked breath sucked into his lungs.
“I thought you said she was fine.”
“ She is.”
Dawning crashed down over his head.
“Oh God. The baby?”
“ She’s missing. I
find it odd that your lawyer is in chambers with Judge Gates right
now trying to bar me from helping the police find your daughter,
Danny. Can you think of anyone else in this city with more
experience looking for missing children?”
His olive skin faded to the color of almond
milk. “Get me a phone.”
“ Celeste wants to talk to
you, Danny.”
“ Not yet. I need to
call Carlos and tell him to knock it off.”
Devlin’s shock crowded me from behind.
“Are you playing us, Datello? What’s with the abrupt change
of heart about Helen’s help?”
“ My wife, despite her age,
is a very wise soul, Detective Mackenzie. Helen and I can
hate each other for reasons well deserved until the stars
fall. This is my child we’re talking about. Celeste is
right. So is Helen. There isn’t anyone else better
equipped to find our baby.”
I slid my cell phone across the table.
“Make the call. Then I’ve got a few questions for you.
When we’re finished, Officer Thomas will take you to a phone and
you can call Celeste. As much as it sickens me to say this,
she deserves the comfort you can offer her.”
Stefano agreed to cooperate with Datello’s
order – a moot point as it turned out, since Judge Gates pointed
out the fact that Devlin and I were the ones who recognized that
the threat against Celeste Datello was legitimate.
“ Now,” I stuffed my phone
back into my purse. “Who in Sully’s organization could still
be hanging around outside the hospitality of my former federal
brethren to be involved in something like this?”
“ Franchetta would be my
first bet,” Datello said. “But rumor has it, he’s still in
lockup. I know you don’t believe me, but I genuinely have had
very little to do with Sully’s business interests for more than a
decade.”
“ Hmm,” I nodded.
“Nice last act you committed, Danny.” We knew full well what
it had been. The day he offered my former husband to his
uncle with a nice juicy insurance policy – me, the brand new FBI
agent.
“ He knew what he was
getting into, Helen. He wanted in. I didn’t hear you
complaining when you were living an affluent comfortable
life.”
I gritted my teeth. “Are you sure that
this is related to Sully?”
“ You heard that phone
call. Sullivan’s Boutique? They were sending a
message.”
Hard to disagree with that one.
“Still,” I said, “he’s usually far more subtle than that.”
“ And he’s not pulling the
strings on the outside anymore.”
“ Do you know if he has any
operations on this side of the country?” Dev asked.
Datello
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