Chapter
10: Repercussions
Everyone
was quite as Sara, Van, and Deaq drove back to the Candy Store. All were lost in
their own thoughts, or wallowing in their own fears. Sara continued to close her
eyes and replay the scene in her mind, wondering how should could have let Van
see her use the Witchblade against those men and why he had covered for her when
he knew what had happened. Maybe he was trying to figure it out himself.
Whatever the case, Sara had a lot of explaining to do, but now was definitely
not the time.
She looked
into the rearview mirror to see that the Escalade was following them again.
Looking down at her wrist, Sara could see the Witchblade swirl those warm colors
telling her that Ian was near. Boy, did she really need to talk to him now. Why
hadn’t he helped them like she thought he would? There was probably a good
explanation, but for now, she remained angry at him for letting the situation
escalate to a shootout that nearly got her killed, even worse, exposed.
After Deaq
had pulled up to the warehouse and everyone had left the car, Van pulled Sara
back into a dark alley. “What the hell happened tonight?” he asked softly,
the confusion present in his soft blue eyes. She could see them even in the pale
moonlight.
“Not
now,” Sara said. “I’ll tell you later when we have a little more time on
our hands.”
Van
continued to hold her back. “At least tell me what I saw was real because
I’m having one hell of a time trying to convince myself that this wasn’t a
dream.”
“It was
real. And I promise I’ll tell you everything when I get the chance. Right now,
we have to get inside so we can explain all of this to Billie and make it sound
believable. Whatever I say, you agree, okay? Otherwise we’ll both be in a lot
of trouble, me more than you,” Sara explained as she pulled away from him and
waited for his answer.
“Alright,
whatever you say goes,” Van finally answered as he led them back into the
warehouse where Billie was waiting for them with Deaq at her side.
“Where were you two?” Billie asked as Deaq tried to suppress a smile. “Never mind, don’t tell me. I don’t even want to know. I just want to know what happened at the club tonight."
“It was
all Gallo,” Sara began. “He led us to the loading dock where he had several
men positioned waiting for us. When the ambush started, Gallo pulled me away
from Van, giving me a chance to draw my own gun and hold it to his head. Of
course, there was a short tense standoff until we heard people screaming in the
club and knew that it was you. That’s when Van and Deaq took the opportunity
to knock out a couple of guys and the fire fight began. I don’t really
remember what happened afterwards. I just remember getting out from behind my
hiding place to see all these dead bodies lying on the ground.”
Billie
stared at her skeptically. Sara knew her story was under scrutiny, but when
Billie finally spoke up, she relaxed. “Until the autopsy reports come in,
I’ll take what you say at face value, but only until then.”
“What
about the money?” Van spoke up. “Aren’t you going to start tracking it
tonight to see where it is?”
“Yes, I
was just about to do that,” Billie replied as she limped into her office. The
pain in her ribs was really getting to her. She wished that tonight would be
over soon so she could go home and go to bed. Tomorrow would bring relief in the
form of a long deserved vacation.
Sara, Van,
and Deaq followed her. Billie sat down in her chair and turned on the tracking
device that was charging on her desk. As the screen popped up, she could see
that the money wasn’t moving. It was located somewhere in the Beverly Hills
Hotel.
“So,
what are we gonna do now that our cover’s been blown?” Sara questioned,
leaning against the desk to get a clearer view of the screen.
“I
don’t know. That’s up for you to decide because as of this moment, I’m
officially off duty,” Billie answered, seeing that the clock had just struck
Sara’s
mouth hung open as she stared at her retreating boss. She was now in charge of
the Candy Store and she didn’t even have a clue as to what to do next. Sara
shot a look over at her partners to see that they had basically the same
expression on their faces. “Now what?” she asked, sitting down in Billie’s
chair.
“You’re
asking us?” Deaq replied. “You’re the commanding officer. We do what you
say, well, most of the time.”
“Then I
say we get out of here and get some rest so we can clear our heads,” Sara said
as she leaned back on the chair. “Anyone know where I’m supposed to be
staying?”
“I’ll
take you,” Van offered as he stood from his seat in front of her.
“Thanks,”
Sara softly replied. She followed him out and got on her bike. “I’ll stay
behind you. Just show me the way,” she yelled as he got into his car. “Deaq!
Lock up, okay?”
“Okay,”
he yelled back as she started the engine and pulled out of the warehouse,
following Van’s car.
It
didn’t take long to get to Sara’s new apartment. It was only a couple of
blocks away from the warehouse. As they pulled up into the alley and parked, Van
grabbed her stuff from the car and handed it to her. “Come on, let’s go up.
I believe you have a lot of explaining to do,” he said as he took Sara’s arm
and led her up the stairs to the second floor of the two story building.
Sara
looked through the bag of clothes until she found her jeans and grabbed the keys
from inside the pocket. The door unlocked easily and both she and Van stepped
inside to see that the place was nicely decorated in contemporary style. It
wasn’t as large as her loft in
The entry
way was small and plain, only accommodating a table with a mirror above it. It
veered off to the left into the living room, which had two dark red Ikea couches
up against two of the walls, a small glass coffee table, a fireplace with a
sixty inch plasma screen TV handing above it, and an entertainment center hidden
behind a glass armoire. Sara set her stuff down on one of the couches and
continued to make little discoveries about the living room.
Walking
into a hall, she discovered her office, complete with desk, home computer, and
laptop, all as modern as the rest of the apartment. Sara continued her search of
the place. Beside the office was her bedroom, which was just as contemporary as
the rest of the house. It was simple, with only a queen sized bed wrapped in
white sheets and very fluffy pillows, two small nightstands on either side, a
closet, and a door that led to her own private bathroom. Sara only stole a
glance inside to see that it was just as simple as the rest of the apartment,
nothing too fancy or ornate.
As she
turned around, Sara found the kitchen nestled across from the office and just
behind the living room. It contained a simple table with chairs, and all the
appliances that she would absolutely need to keep her in comfort during her stay
in LA, including her prized coffee maker.
“This
place is great,” Sara said as she joined Van in the living room. He was
sitting on the couch closest to the door waiting for her. She knew it was time
that she told him about the Witchblade. As she sat down beside him and leaned in
close, an annoying knock came at the door. Sara stood up to answer it.
“
“I came
to tell you I have more information on Gallo,” Ian answered. “May I come
in?”
“Oh, my
God. This is a first. I don’t ever think you’ve asked me to let you into my
place before,” Sara replied. She pulled him in and said, “Van’s here. I
need to talk to both of you about something that happened tonight while you
weren’t around.”
“He
knows about the Witchblade, doesn’t he?” Ian questioned, knowing almost
instantly what she would say. He had felt Sara activate the Witchblade that
night, and that afternoon also. It’s something that came with the bond the
wielder and protector shared, it’s just that Sara didn’t know, and probably
never would if she continued to shut him out like she had been.
“Yeah,
he knows,” Sara barely whispered as she gained a sudden interest in her shoes,
which were beginning to kill her feet. She grabbed Ian’s shoulder and slipped
them off before they caused any more pain. He looked at her in surprise. Ian
knew it was just a casual, something she did with everyone, but just feeling her
hand over the layers of his clothing sent a strange shiver down his spine. The
moments they actually touched were rare, and this was definitely one of them.
Her hand
quickly slipped away and Ian was left standing in the entry way, staring at her
as she walked into the living room. “Well, are you coming or is this
conversation going to take place by the door?” Sara called. Ian made his way
into the living room where he found Van sitting on the couch before him, staring
with wide eyes.
“Van, I
think you already know
“How
does he always seem to find you?” Van questioned, picking up on the fact that
the man standing before him had something for Sara.
She
shrugged. “So,
“Gallo
is staying at the Beverly Hills Hotel,” Ian began.
“Tell us
something we don’t know,” Van retorted as he stretched out his legs and got
comfortable on the couch. Ian shot him a murderous look that quickly shut him
up. Van had to admit, the guy was intimidating, if not downright scary when he
was standing before him.
“We
already know,” Sara repeated. “Billie had the money tracked with a
radioactive dye. So far, it hasn’t moved, but I know that won’t be the case
tomorrow. What else do you know?”
“Seeing
how your cover has been blown, I would like to offer my services to help you in
solving this case,” Ian answered, sending two pairs of eyes gazing in his
direction.
“What
makes you think Gallo will let you into his little group?” Van questioned,
keeping his eyes from meeting Ian’s. He knew he’d be scared shitless if he
even dared to look at him. “It took us nearly six weeks to get a meeting with
the man face to face. And even then he had a problem with us. How do you plan on
getting so close in such a short amount of time?”
Ian knew
that Van was deliberately avoiding eye contact with him. He had every right. He
could see the fear all over his face. Ian laughed inwardly as he said, “Gallo
is looking for bodyguards. He and Irons were… associates, so that put me into
his little circle from the start. I merely tell him that Irons is no longer in
need of my services, and he’ll hire me as his new bodyguard.”
“Why
doesn’t that surprise me?” Sara asked to no one in particular. “So
basically all you have to do is drop in or something and tell him that you need
a job and he’ll give it to you?”
“I’m
most certain,” Ian replied.
“Sara,
do you have any idea how much trouble you’re going to be in when Billie finds
out?” Van said from the sideline. “You’re putting someone’s life in
danger.”
“Oh,
“Clarify
‘this stuff.’”
“Van,
you really don’t want to know,” Sara warned.
“What
could be so bad?” he shot back.
“Trust me, Van. You don’t want to know,” Sara reiterated. And the subject was dropped. She turned to Ian and asked, “So, smarty pants, what’s you plan?"