Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

Gabe

Sebastian's leg was finally healed enough to get him a new, more manageable cast.

Supposedly.

Without an x-ray to check how his bones were healing, there was no way for us to know for certain. Unfortunately, an x-ray was one form of medical care that couldn't be provided at the safe house by Newt or Frankie. We needed a hospital with proper medical machines.

It took some effort, but with Lily's help, I managed to get an appointment set up in a hospital far enough away from the safe house that our enemies would not easily be able to track us.

"Thanks again, Lily," I said into my phone as I sat in the hospital's waiting room. "I wouldn't have been able to set this up without you."

"Eh, this was nothing," her voice floated through the phone. "I wish all my jobs were this easy. Those lists of names you sent me are proving trickier than I thought."

"The lists we got from the Senator's new charity? What's so complicated about that?"

In the seat beside me, Frankie perked up and strained to listen to my conversation. He must have been able to hear enough to realize what we were talking about, but not enough to get the full detail though, because he looked confused. If we were in private, I would have put the phone on speaker so we could both listen, but the hospital waiting room was too public. Someone could overhear, so I just signaled that I would tell him later.

In the background of the phone call, I could hear Lily's pen tapping against her desk. "Well, the first two binders were exactly what you thought. There was a list of women who have used Love Without Limits's services, and a list of volunteers who work for the charity. I've got people investigating those names right now. However, the third binder I can't figure out. It's a list of names, addresses, and phone numbers like the other two, but none of these people actually exist. My bet is that they are either aliases, or it's some sort of code. I'll let you know when I figure it out."

I nodded, trying to keep the disappointment from showing on my face. "All right. If anyone can figure it out, it's you. Is that it?"

Although I couldn't see her, I could hear the laughter in her voice. "Would I leave you with just that? Have a little more faith."

I sat up straighter in my chair. "You've got something?"

"Two things that'll interest you. First, that guy you spoke with who was manning the charity booth. His full name is Ozias Wren. It's a unique name, and it sounded familiar, so I dug a little deeper into him. Mr. Wren has been a busy little volunteer helper, specifically this last year. Wanna guess where else his name popped up?"

I didn't need to guess. Just from her tone, I could already tell.

"One of the hospitals where children went missing?"

"Several of them, actually. The man has been all over the state of Louisiana, and even a few other states. I'd say he's either a part of this pedophile ring, or at least working for them."

Since my phone was occupied, and I didn't trust myself enough to start hitting buttons without accidentally hanging up on Lily, I pulled out a notepad from my pocket and wrote down the name Ozias Wren as well as any details I could remember about the man. Lily would undoubtedly send me the man's file later, but there was something about writing with pen and paper that felt more productive.

"Okay. That's one lead we can look into. You said there was a second thing I'd want to hear?"

"Yep. I saved the best for last. Love Without Limits is having a big charity event soon. The Senator's even going to show up. That would be a perfect time for you to do a little snooping."

"I'll mark it on my calendar. Thanks again. I'll keep you updated on how it goes."

"Not a problem. Helping you is certainly better than dealing with the chaos going on here since the Director was killed. Did you know some people are suggesting that I take over as Director? I said absolutely not and threatened to quit on the spot."

I made sure to keep my laughter at a reasonable level for a waiting room, though a few people nearby still gave me odd looks.

At my side, Frankie was practically bursting at the seams with curiosity.

"You'd be a miserable Director."

"I know," she groaned. "I'd much rather be the woman behind the power. I've got to go now. Give my regards to Mr. Roth. I hope his injuries are doing better."

After saying goodbye, I hung up the phone and turned to Frankie, expecting to be bombarded with questions. However, rather than immediately ask about the new information I'd learned, Frankie started with a completely unexpected question.

"What's the relationship between you two? You seem to trust this Lily woman implicitly even though she works for the FBI, who have recently tried to kill you and accused you of being a mole."

I studied Frankie's face for a moment and was relieved not to find any hint of jealousy or suspicion. My relationship with him was still new. We'd only been sleeping together for a few weeks—I refused to count exactly how many because I didn't want to put a quantifiable number on something that felt so natural—so there was still plenty of room for miscommunication.

Being with Frankie felt too good. I refused to let it corrode over something as illogical as jealousy.

"She was friends with my sister, Ariel."

At first, I was going to leave it at that. The simple explanation would be enough to satisfy Frankie's curiosity. However, I realized I didn't want to hide the truth from the other man, not even through omission. I wanted Frankie to know my full story. Even the unpleasant parts.

"The two of them used to hang out all the time. Then, one day, they were out having lunch when Ariel suddenly stopped breathing. She died before the ambulance even got there. The official medical report said it was an allergic reaction to something in the food, but that's a damn lie. My sister didn't have any allergies."

I pulled my glasses out of my pocket and fiddled with the arms as I considered putting them on. I really only needed them for things like driving and reading, but they added an extra shield between me and the world that I could hide behind.

In the end, I tucked them back into my pocket and faced Frankie without any barrier between us.

"Lily had just become the Director's secretary then. I'm certain someone tried to kill her and accidentally poisoned Ariel in the process. I don't blame her, of course. I blame the person who killed my sister."

Frankie's slipped his hand into mine and laced our fingers together. "Who killed her?"

I narrowed my eyes, the anger washing through me even just thinking about the name.

"David Russo. He wanted Lily to be his spy in the agency, and when she refused, he tried to have her killed. I could never prove it. Lily helped me get a job in the FBI so we could look into it together, but even the two of us weren't able to find the necessary evidence. The case is too cold, now. I don't think we'll ever prove it. However, there's no doubt in my mind. That bastard killed my sister."

The feeling of Frankie's head leaning against my shoulder was a pleasant weight. Especially, since it was my injured shoulder, yet I felt no pain. The wound was almost completely healed.

"No wonder you were so eager to help Sebastian and Damien," Frankie said. "They're victims of the head of the Mariano family, too."

I squeezed Frankie's hand tighter, though I was careful not to grip too tight.

"That monster has left too many victims in his wake. One day, I'll see him dead."

Anything else I would have said on the matter was cut short when I caught sight of Newt stepping through the door into the waiting room. Behind him, Sebastian followed a moment later, still in his wheelchair.

At first, I was filled with excitement and relief. Sebastian's full-leg cast had been removed and replaced with a smaller cast that only covered the bottom part of his leg. It was the same kind of cast he'd been walking around in right before the bomb went off in the apartment and put him on an even more difficult healing journey.

Surely, that must mean that he was ready to walk again.

A doctor also accompanied the pair and seemed to be explaining something to Newt as they walked. As a nurse, Newt kept a professional expression on his face as he listened to the doctor, however, Sebastian was a different matter.

"Ah, fuck," Frankie hissed at my side.

I stayed silent but agreed with the sentiment.

The sour expression on Sebastian's face told me everything I needed to know. The prognosis for his leg wasn't good.