Surviving Brooklyn (Brooklyn Series Book 1) (10 page)

Kate growled and took out her cell phone to call a cab. Mark would not look at me, and I knew his intention was to say goodbye. I had thought that was what it was in the first place, but now I had confirmation.

I started to walk away, but turned around and walked back to Mark. Finally, he straightened up and opened his arms for me. No words had to be spoken as he held me. We both knew how the other felt. I started to pull away when he placed a kiss on my cheek and whispered in my ear. “I have always loved you.”

I wept as Kate and I walked out of the parking garage. Would I be able to put it behind me to continue working with him? Would my boss let me step down if I couldn’t? So many questions with no answers.

Kate hooked her arm around mine and laid her head on my shoulder as we walked up the incline to the parking garage. As we reached the top, a cab was waiting for us. Climbing in the back, we headed for the hotel.

Within minutes, we were followed by the police in marked cars to show that I still was not by myself even though I felt very much alone.

“Talk to me, Brookie,” Kate whispered so the cab driver would not hear.

“What’s to say? You heard and saw how he acted.” I responded through sniffles from my tears.

“I thought you two were just friends. I leave you alone for a couple days and this turned into something else. Catch me up.”

I proceeded to tell her the entire story before we got to the hotel. I didn’t want his fellow officers to hear what happened or how he broke my heart. When I finished the story and wiped my tears, I looked to Kate to see what she thought.

Before she could get a word in the cab driver spoke up.

“Sounds like he is playing
games
with you.” I looked through the glass and saw the glimmer of green eyes in the rear-view mirror.

“How do you keep following me?” I asked as I grabbed Kate’s phone.

“Technology is a simple yet dirty thing,” he replied, as I texted Mark to tell him our cab driver was the killer. “Just like that text you are trying to send won’t send until you are out of the cab.”

He smiled through the rear-view mirror at me and I felt sick. Then he held up the cell phone I had given to the little boy.

“It’s fully charged. I thought you might like it back,” he said.

“Am I going to be dropped off at my hotel or is this where you cut me and play with me before covering my body in blue flowers?”

It was at that moment that Kate realized who he was and pulled out her PDA to send an email. It was an older PDA and didn’t bounce off the same towers as the new cell phones, but sadly he had been prepared for that. Kate pointed at the no signal sign on her PDA. She couldn’t send a message, but we could record whatever was said in the cab.

“Brooklyn, I assure you I have no interest in killing you unless you decide not to play along,” he answered.

“Why me?” I asked.

“You were the first girl I cared about. The first one to play a game with me.”

I had no clue who this guy was and yet he knew me. Even his answers were somewhat cryptic because they seemed to carry a hidden meaning I just wasn’t getting.

“Did you hurt that little boy?” I asked and then held my breath for the answer.

“No, he is fine. I am not an animal. Is that what you think of me? That I would hurt anything I came across that resembled you?” he asked, anger lacing his tone.

“I don’t know you. I don’t know what you are capable of, but I do know that every time I see a photo of a victim they look like me.” I spoke softly, hoping not to piss him off  while I was in the car.

“You do know me, Brooklyn, you just don’t remember. You will remember everything soon.”

As we pulled closer to the hotel I was tempted to get out and run with Kate, but he hadn’t done anything to threaten me and yet again I felt threatened.

“Brooklyn, I don’t ever want to hurt you. I would never hurt you the way Detective Stone has hurt you. I merely want to rid the world of the girls who try to be you.”

I was stunned by his admission. I felt like this was a pet bringing me a dead animal and feeling proud for catching and killing it. He seemed to think on that same line as well.

“Similar DNA or a box of hair dye and colored contacts are not acceptable reasons to kill people,” I said boldly. “Mark may have hurt me, but I went into the situation knowing he would. Those women, those victims, went into their day thinking they wouldn’t be hurt, that they would be able to wake up and live another day. I will have days after Mark, but will you have days after I am done with you?”

I opened the door and stepped out of the cab. Kate stepped out with me, and he drove off without another word. The police car pulled up and I motioned for him to roll down his window. We told him the cab driver was the killer as we read off the cab number, and he took off into traffic following a river of cabs. There was no way to see which one it was now.

Kate used her PDA to send an email with the voice recording to Mark as we entered the hotel. I dropped her phone, my phone, and the PDA into a large envelope with the front desk and asked them to call the police to pick it up and leave us undisturbed.

We were going to dance the night away with a bottle of wine and a handful of cops.

Chapter 10

Days passed in a blur. Kate only left me alone to go to work over the weekend. It was Monday morning and a decision had been made to have me step down from the case. I had refused to leave the hotel and Mark hadn’t come around, so it was for the best.

I took a shower and dressed in a black jacket and black pencil skirt with a silk lilac halter top. I put on my knee high heeled boots and fixed my hair in long loose curls, then did my make-up.

I stepped out of the bathroom to find my dad and a half dozen cops keeping him away from me. I told them to let him in and my dad came forward, gracing me with a kiss on each cheek.

“Lyubov moya, you look tired. Is everything all right? You are not eating,” he added, noticing the trays of untouched food. The truth was, I wasn’t hungry. My emotions and the case had me drained.

“I am fine, Nikolas, just not sleeping well these days,” I retorted.

“Please, how many times do I have to ask you to call me
dad?
” He pulled back a chair at the dining table where I joined him. I heard the sound of tearing paper, and Nikolas and I both looked under the table to see a copy of the note. The one Mark had dropped that night.

My dad picked it up and read it, then looked at me and read it again.

“Lyubov moya, who wrote this?”

“We don’t know, but it doesn’t matter to me because I am stepping down as the prosecutor on this case,” I responded.

No one can seem to give me what I want. You won’t walk away and continue to play the game you were not invited to. If you continue to play, I will make you part of the game.

There is one thing I want and she is like the sun over Brooklyn. Her hair is dark as night and eyes as blue as the ocean. Bring her to play and you may live to see another day.

My dad read the words out loud and I shivered with their meaning and intent. I watched as concern covered his face, and despite all that crap as I give him for being a criminal, I could honestly tell he cared for me.

“I used to say that to your mother.” Nikolas sighed. “I want my men with you today.” He spoke softly so the officers in the room would not hear him.

“I am covered,
Dad
,” I said, attitude dripping off the word
dad
. “What was it you used to say to Mom?” I asked, suddenly unsure what he was talking about, and wondering what the connection was.

“I used to tell her she was as beautiful as the sun over Brooklyn. It is partly how we got your name. Seems like it was yesterday when it was really a long time ago, Lyubov Moya.”

Maybe he really missed my mom. He wasn’t there when she got sick and died, so my sympathy for him ran thin when it came to her.

“I am uneasy about today,” I said.

“Then let my men come, too. It is the least I can do to keep you safe.”

“No, I have some things to say to Mark and don’t want any extra ears around.” I wiped at the tear that was betraying me as I brought up his name. My dad looked venomous at the mention of Mark combined with the look on my face.

“You tell Mark, a deal was a deal. After today, he doesn’t see you again!” My dad gritted his teeth angrily. I got up and walked into the bedroom and wiggled my finger to tell him to come inside.

“Explain!” I demanded as I put my gun back in the holster and placed it on my waist. For added protection, I had a pocket sewn into my boot so no one could tell the pepper spray was hidden just inside.

“Lyubov moya, my love, why do you want to know these things that will make you think poorly of me?” Nikolas responded.

“Are
you
the reason?” I screamed at him without realizing my voice was that loud.

“Reason for what?” he asked, confusion on his face.

“Are you the reason he won’t be with me? Are you the reason why I will never be good enough for him?”

I didn’t want to admit it out loud, but it was the truth and I wanted to know if my dad had anything to do with it.

“Yes,” Nikolas snapped. “He asked for a favor, and when I do a favor, I expect a favor. I did something for him and in exchange he had to stay away from you.”

I felt the tears welling up inside me again. I turned my back on my dad and whispered words into the air that penetrated the thick silence. “I love him.”

“Lyubov moya, you don’t love him. You merely see him as your protector.” Nikolas started to wrap his arms around me, but I spun around and spit in his face.

“I have loved him since we were kids. While you spent your days behind bars, dreaming of life on the outside, I was dreaming of a life with him.”

Nikolas wiped the spit off his skin and took a step back. His face turned red when he shouted. “Ask him why I was in prison. I didn’t do that for me!”

The cops took the opportunity to burst through the door due to all the yelling. I waved them away, letting them know everything was all right. As they backed out of the room, I turned to my dad. “If you are the reason I cannot have him in my life, then I do not want you in my life, either.”

I watched as shock reverberated through my father over what I had said. He almost looked stricken. I felt sorry for him for a moment. I knew what it felt like to love someone so deeply and know it was not being returned. I know that was how my dad felt about me. I always knew he loved me, and I did a poor job of showing him I loved him because of the life he chose, but he was still my father.

I would always love him even if he wasn’t in my life. Fifteen years in prison proved that. I grabbed my purse and headed out of the room. I was escorted by all but a few officers who stayed to keep my room safe while I was gone.

I was led outside and into a waiting Escalade. I was shocked to find Mark and Taylor up front in the vehicle when I got inside.

“You ready, Ms. Montgomery?” Taylor asked.

When Taylor acted as my boss he was a stubborn, arrogant man, but when I caught him outside of work, he was a wonderful, understanding person. It didn’t take much after hearing the recording on the PDA to get him to allow me to step aside. Lately, he was more of a friend and confidant than a boss.

“Ready as I will ever be,” I answered.

We were waiting for the rest of the convoy to be loaded when my dad came out of the hotel. He looked at the tinted windows and blew a kiss before walking down to the valet.

That was that. My dad blowing a kiss was the equivalent of a goodbye. I would miss his Russian pet names for me, but I wouldn’t miss being investigated because of him.

“You okay?” Mark asked, when he saw the expression on my face.

“Yeah, it’s just time to make a few changes in my life.”

I wasn’t going to discuss it with my boss in the car because I didn’t know what kind of favor my dad did for Mark.

We rolled down to the courthouse and I was carted inside by an army of police and FBI. All of them looking for the same man who, in my experience, did well blending in with his surroundings. He could be one of them, for all I knew.

After a meeting with the commissioner, the mayor, and the deputy director of the FBI, I had to brief the other Assistant District Attorneys on the case and where we were. It seemed like I had been at this for days when it had only been a few hours.

Everywhere I went, my body was on alert and I never went anywhere alone. I even had four officers stand outside the bathroom while I peed. This was just another reason to step down.

The five o’clock hour was coming up fast, and at five-thirty all the local news networks would be live while I told the city of New York that it was somehow my fault this psycho was killing their loved ones. There had not been any more victims, but that didn’t mean he was done.

I finished briefing the paralegals and going over details when I pulled the torn paper from my briefcase and read it aloud to the staff.

Mark was standing guard at the door and we stared at each other as I read it. Remembering that night was beautiful yet painful. I had come to find that a little pain was worth it if it brought pleasure, and Mark definitely delivered. But the pain I felt at losing him now overrode that pleasure.

That was the thing about life. No one ever asks you what you want. You merely have to pave the path and hope no sinkholes open up to deter you from where you are headed.

I stood inside the glass doors of the courthouse and stared at the forming crowd on the stairs. My nerves were starting to fire up and the butterflies swarmed in my stomach. My palms grew sweaty and my mouth went dry. I tried to clear my throat, but sudden dehydration made it hard to function.

I felt my palm grow warm like fire and looked down to see that Mark was holding my hand. He was always there when I needed comfort, even when he was the reason I was upset.

“Mark, you should have told me,” I whispered.

He took the opportunity to study my face, and he realized I knew something. He pulled my hand and dragged me inside one of the briefing rooms where lawyers and clients went to try to discuss cases or option plea deals.

Once the door was shut, he walked up to me and pushed me against the wall. He pinned my arms above my head and spread my legs with his. I felt the throb behind my clit as his lips fell over mine and I opened to him. I had missed him and missed this. I didn’t realize how much until I tasted the coffee and whipped cream. I would never be able to stomach a coffee shop without him in my life. I moaned as his tongue penetrated my mouth and caressed my tongue.

He released my hands to run his hands up and down my body. I grabbed his brown silky hair and stood up on my tip-toes to get more. Mark wrapped his arms around me and held me tight. It was all so surreal I thought I was dreaming again. Only instead of a nightmare it would be a dream to beat all dreams.

Mark pulled back and laid his forehead on mine as he caught his breath. A single tear rolled down my cheek when I saw the redness in his eyes. I felt empty and needed him to fill me back up. I wasn’t whole unless I was with him.

“Brooklyn, I love you. I think the sun rises and sets with you. There is never going to be another like you. I will never be half the man I am when I am with you. I would do anything that was possible to ensure you are happy. I crave every second I can steal with you, but it is an ill-gotten victory because I know that moments like this one will become a distant memory. I made a promise that I cannot break or I would lose you anyway.”

I didn’t get a chance to say anything before he walked out the door. My nerves were unraveled now, yet I felt a smidgen of confidence peeking through. Mark had a way of making me feel as if I was Wonder Woman. Now it was time to put that confidence to work.

I pulled out a mirror from my purse and fixed my lipstick. Then I walked out and saw they were all waiting for me. The mayor was making her speech, and I was up next. I stared at the glass, making the people turn blurry while I tried to remember what it was the state wanted me to say.

I heard my name and opened the door to make my descent down the stairs. As I neared the microphone, I saw Mark watching me and I locked eyes with him.

“My name is Brooklyn Montgomery. I am the current Assistant District Attorney assigned to oversee the progress and prosecution of the Cut-Me-Not case.”

Now came the hard part. I took a deep breath and looked back up to see bright green eyes smiling at me. He was here. He stood a foot away from Mark and my dad was on the other side. All I needed was Kate and my dream would come full circle around me. I focused in on the killer so he would know I was speaking to him.

“It was brought to my attention that I was assigned to this case at the request of the perpetrator. This is not how the State of New York works. We as a nation do not negotiate with terrorists, so it would stand to reason that the State of New York would not bypass the standard in which things are done because a local terrorist has demanded that I take over the case.”

I definitely had his attention now. His smile faltered and he looked murderous. He pushed up so that I could see the knife that hung on his belt. He was very good at blending in because no one noticed him.

“As of today, I have briefed both the NYPD and the FBI and every ADA who will be taking over this case. To ensure that it will be done correctly, there will be three prosecutors looking over this case instead of one and they will remain nameless for their own safety.”

I knew my time was nearing an end, but I wasn’t quite finished while I had everyone’s attention.

“I know most of you will insist on calling me the ‘Mafia Lord’s Daughter’ or something to that effect. I want you all to know when you print the article you should print the truth. You can even quote me on this. Everyone who works in this job does it for the pleasure that comes with the pain. It is devastating to hear the stories, and relate to the victims’ families, but we do it every day because the cause is greater than our own needs. It is painful to come to work each day knowing that we only have a job because of the bad out there in the world. I don’t think I could function if this job were only pain. The pleasure we get is when we see victims get justice. While it may not help the victim or their family, we get pleasure knowing one more criminal is off the streets, and this helps us sleep a smidgen easier at night.”