Life of a Fool (London Brothers Book 2) (21 page)

When we were on the plane, waiting to be cleared for
take-off, I had a small opportunity to reach for Keri’s phone.  I’d felt it as
soon as Antonio helped me from the car.  I was grateful that it hadn’t been
ringing or buzzing, giving away the fact that I had it.  I was lying back in
one of the chairs, my back to Antonio, who was steadily cursing at the men in
Italian about their grave mistake in hurting me.  I slowly reached into my
pants, pulled out the phone, and searched quickly for Craig’s name in Keri’s
texts.  I figured his name would be easiest to find.  I punched in a few words
and powered it off without being detected before slipping it back inside the
front of my pants.  Then, I closed my eyes and prayed.

Please, God.  Protect me.  Protect Jason.  Help him find
me.

“The phone is off, but the last known cell tower ping has
her at the Denver Airport.  Just like we suspected.  There’s nothing after
that,” Craig told me. 

It was early morning, and I was frustrated.  Antonio’s
number had produced a big fat nothing.  We couldn’t track it.  Most of the guys
had gone home.  Only Craig and I remained at the townhouse, and he was getting
ready to go pick up Keri from the hospital and take her home.  I felt like shit
for taking him away from her, but he said she insisted that he help me then
come back and get her to take her home.  I owed both of them a lifetime of
servitude. 

“Go home, man.  I hate that I’ve taken all your time from
Keri.  You’ve been a lifesaver, and I’ll never forget it.  Thank you.”  I
patted Craig’s shoulder as I shook his hand. 

“You sure?  You haven’t slept since this happened.  Why don’t
you go lie down for a few hours. You gonna be okay…here in this place?”

“Yeah.  I need to be here.  Reminds me of her.  Now, go.  I’ll
talk to you later.”

“Okay.  Call me if you need anything.”  Craig grabbed his
bag and walked to the front door.  “I mean it.  Don’t do anything stupid, like
take off for Italy on your own.”  He knew me well. 

“The thought crossed my mind, but I’m not going to leave you
guys here in the lurch after all you’ve done for me.  I’ll be here.”

“Good.  See you in a bit.  Everyone is planning to be here
about ten, after getting a few hours of sleep.”

“Got it.”  I stood there, waiting for him to leave.  I was
ready to be alone and try to wrap my mind around everything.  The last several
hours had completely jacked with my psyche. 

“You okay?”  I nodded.  “We’ll get her back.  You know
that.  She’s smart.  She’ll find a way to survive until we can.”

“I know.  Now, go.”  He paused for a few seconds, then
stepped through the door.  I closed it behind him and turned around, taking in
the emptiness of our place.  I closed my eyes and tried to see Lori Ann here
with me.  I could still smell her scent, and I thought I’d go crazy if I didn’t
touch her right that second.  But I pushed away from the front door, walked
into our bedroom, and called my brother. 

“Hey, man.  How are you two holding up?”  My younger brother
Derek and I had been keeping in touch with all that was going on with Lori Ann.
My whole family loved her, had since college, and they were worried about both
of us.

“Not good.  He took her.”

“What?”

“That wife-beating Italian motherfucker took her. And worse
yet, it happened right under my nose.  Craig and I were literally twenty feet
away.”

“What the hell happened, Jace?  I thought you had guys
watching the place?”

I rubbed my hand down my face.  “We did.  One of his men
shot them.  Two cops are dead, Craig’s girlfriend is hurt, and my woman is in
his clutches and flying out of the country even as we speak.”

“Holy shit.  Okay, so what now?”

“There are a lot of us working on it.  But I’m going nuts,
man.  You know me.  Having no control is not a good thing.” 

“I know.  But you have to try.  Don’t go off on your own and
make things worse.” 

“What the fuck ever, dude!  You’re just like me.  What would
you be doing right now?  And be honest.”  My brother would never just sit and
wait…never has.  He pushed his way into his wife Claire’s life from the
beginning and made damn sure she was his from day one.

“Shit!  I’d be on a plane to Italy.”  At least he sounded
humble about it.

“Exactly.  So, don’t even try to tell me you’d sit and wait
for fucking clues.  I’m leaving.  Now.”  I was already walking out the front
door, keys in hand, passport in my back pocket.

“How can I help?”  I knew Derek would ask.

“Honestly, I don’t know.  All I can think about is finding
my girl.  I have to get her back.  But if I need you, I’ll call.”

“Do you want me to go with you?  You know I will.” 

“No.  Stay and take care of everyone.  Don’t freak Mom out
about this just yet.  For now, let’s keep that between us.  I’ll call you with
any news.”

“Okay.  Be safe, Jace.”  Derek’s voice was more sincere and
full of emotion than ever before.  I think his near-death experience months ago
had really shed new light on how we are all one mistake away from being gone. 

“Always.” 

I climbed into my truck and took off for the airport.  Craig
was going to be pissed, but I had to do something, and he didn’t need to leave
Keri right now anyway.  I could at least get to Italy and try to figure out the
next step. 

Thirty minutes later, I was parked and making my way to the
American Airlines check-in.  The ticket was going to cost me a small fortune,
but it didn’t matter.  My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I struggled to get it
out as I weaved through the crowds of people.  I looked at the screen and saw
it was Craig.  If I answered, he’d know where I was.  Shit.  But I had to take
his call.

“Hey.  How’s Keri?”

“She texted me!”  What?  His voice was loud and crazy.

“What are you talking about?  Where’s Keri?”

“Not Keri, asshole!  I just saw that Lori Ann texted my
phone last night.  She used Keri’s phone and sent it to me.  She’s okay, but on
her way to Italy.”

“Oh my God!  She’s okay?  Tell me what the text said.”  My
heart was beating so fast, I had to stop and sit down on a bench. 

“It said, ‘I’m okay.  On his plane.  I told him so I’m safe
for now.  Don’t get hurt.  Need you, J.’ So, she’s okay.  I’m assuming she’s
talking about the baby.  She must have told him to buy some time.  Where are
you?”

Airport
slipped out of my mouth.

“Stupid prick!  I knew you would be.  I’m no moron, London. 
I know how you think, how you operate.  There was no way you were going to sit
still.”

“Yep.  I’m walking to the counter now to buy my ticket.  As
soon as I get the flight info lined up, I’ll send it to you.  I need to go now,
be there near her and figure out our next step.”

“I know.  The guys and I are flying out tomorrow.  Just be
safe.  Don’t get noticed.”

“Right.  Gotta go.”  I felt relieved knowing Lori Ann was
okay right at that moment and that Craig knew where I was headed, but I still
had such a bad feeling deep in my gut.  I stepped to the counter and bought my
ticket to Italy.  I had two hours until the flight left, so after trudging
through security, I found a corner, sat down, and tried to rest my eyes.  I
couldn’t get over the heavy feeling that I was missing something—something
huge.  I started thinking about every little thing that had happened over the
last eighteen hours.  Not once had anyone confirmed that it was Antonio’s plane
that left from the Denver airport.  Not once had anyone confirmed that that
same plane was going to Italy.  All we knew for sure was that Lori Ann was with
Antonio, and he was flying her
somewhere
.  And that information came
straight from her.  Even her text didn’t say they were going to Italy. 

The longer I sat there, the more I was convinced that I
needed to stop and rethink my current choice to leave the country.  I called
Ty.

“Hello?”

“Hey, this is Jason.  Question.  Did you ever find out where
that plane was headed that left out of DIA last night?”

“I was actually working on that this morning.  I can’t seem
to nail anyone down on specifics, but I know he had to file a flight plan.  The
more I’m looking, the more I’m wondering if he wasn’t taking her back to
Italy.  Do you know of anywhere else her husband might take her?”

I sighed.  “No.  But I think you’re on to something.  I’m
sitting here at the airport, Italy ticket in my hand, and nothing feels right
about it.  Have you talked to Craig?”

“No.  Why?” 

“He got a message from Lori Ann.  She texted last night
saying she was okay, but even she didn’t say they were going to Italy, and she
would’ve said those words if she’d have known.  She only said ‘on his plane.’ 
So, maybe start looking for his plane to land here in the States.  Hell, the
more I’ve sat here and thought about it, talked to you about it, that’s exactly
what I would have done.  He’s not an idiot.  Taking her back to his house in
Italy would be foolish.  He knows that’s the first place we would go looking. 
Call Frank.  See what he thinks.  I’ll call Craig.  I’m going to cancel my
flight.  There’s just something more that I’m missing, but I can’t put my
finger on it.”

“You’ve got it.”

I hung up, called Craig, and relayed the entire Ty
conversation.  “Shit.  I think you’re right.  He’s had time to contemplate
where to take her, plan it all out before he made his move.  So, what are you
thinking?”

“I just cancelled my flight, and I’m headed out to my
truck.  I don’t really know where to go or what to do yet.  All I know is we
need to find that fucking plane.  Now.”

“Mia moglie…” 
My wife.

The sound of Antonio’s voice startled me.  My eyes shot open
to see Antonio sitting beside me…on a bed.  Apparently, I’d fallen asleep and
now appeared to be in the small bedroom of the private plane.  “Antonio?  How
long was I sleeping?  Did you bring me in here?”

He reached his hand and cupped my cheek.  “Yes.  You were
sleeping, and you looked uncomfortable in the chair.  So, I carried you in
here.  You shouldn’t be curled up in a chair.”  His eyes slid to my stomach. 

I sat up carefully and stared at him.  I knew how violent he
could be.  I also knew he was a kind man at one point too. 
This
Antonio
scared me.  He was unpredictable.  There was no way he was going to let me get
away with running from him, staying away all these weeks.  But for now, I was
going to do what I could to appease him.  “Thank you.  I didn’t mean to fall
asleep.”

“It’s okay, amore mio.” 
My love.
  “We are almost to
our destination.  I needed to wake you so you could buckle in for our landing. 
I hope you don’t mind, but I laid here with you for a few hours and slept.” 
What?!?  He held his hand out to help me slide off the bed.  I thought for a
second, then realized we probably hadn’t been flying long enough to be in Milan. 
Oh God!  He’d taken me somewhere else. 

“Where are we?  I thought you were taking me…home.”  The
word was like poison.  He pulled me to him, pressed his body against mine, and
I could feel his arousal.

“No.  I made a last-minute change in our flight plan.  I am
very pleased with the news of our baby.  I would like to take you to a doctor
and have you checked on, if that is okay.”  He wanted to verify the pregnancy. 
Fine by me.

“Yes, Antonio.  I’m sure you want to see for yourself.”  I
gave a small smile and touched my stomach.  “Can I ask where we are?”

“Yes, but I want it to be a surprise when we land.  So, I’ll
wait to tell you later.”  He took his hands and held my face close to his.  “Sei
mancato.” 
Missed you.
“Ho bisogno di te.” 
I need you.
  He
leaned in and captured my lips, slowly licking and nipping my mouth before
pushing his tongue past my lips.  I let him kiss me and tried to remember the
man he used to be.  When he pulled back to look at me, he said, “Amore mio, I
am still angry with you about you leaving me.  But I understand that my temper
confused you and made you do it.  Ti amo.  Sei tutti per me.  Resta Sempre con
me.” 
I love you.  You are everything to me.  Stay with me always.
  “I
am very happy about being a father.  Your surprise has forced the rest of my anger
away.  Let me love you, mia moglie.” 
My wife.

I smiled as genuine a smile as I could.  I used to love to
hear him speak to me in Italian.  Now, it reminded me of the times when he
would beg for forgiveness after he had beat the hell out of me.  No, no matter
how much of the old Antonio that I saw seeping back in, he was the same man
that nearly killed me a few months ago. 

“Come.  Let’s get buckled in for our landing.”  He held my
hand, lifting it to give it a kiss a few times as he walked me back into the
main cabin.  “Sit here, close to me.”  I did as he asked, buckled myself in,
and tried to survey the landscape through the window, but it was still dark
outside.  I looked around for a clock and saw that it was a little after five
in the morning. 

“I must have slept a lot longer than I thought.” 

“What is that, amore mio?”

“I just saw the clock.  I must have been asleep for hours.”

“Yes, but that is a good thing.”  Antonio reached over and
took my hand, then leaned in and whispered, “And I rather enjoyed holding you
in my arms again and caressing the new small roundness to your midsection.”  I
gasped and looked down.  He was right.  Tears formed in my eyes before I could
stop them.  “What is it?”  He turned my face to his.  “Why the tears?”

“I’m not sure.  I wasn’t expecting to have a baby, Antonio. 
Things are so messed up between us, and you know it.  This baby won’t fix it.” 
I sniffed and kept blabbering on.  “I couldn’t even button my jeans today.”  I
leaned down and cried into my hands.  I wanted Jason, and the sadness of not
knowing when I would be with him again overwhelmed me.  But of course, I couldn’t
tell Antonio that.