72. Dante

Chapter 72

Dante

“ W hat do you want to know first?” Larry asked as I settled down at my desk in the office.

“Detective Mellor,” I replied.

He began to look through his file of documents. “But before that, you do know a warrant has been issued for Zola’s arrest, right?”

I nodded. “I’m aware.”

“She’s also been declared as a missing person.”

“Hmmm …” I reached for the report he was holding out to me.

“You’re not worried they’re gonna find her in your home sooner or later?”

“We’ll be long gone by then,” I replied. Thankfully he didn’t push for an explanation.

“Good, I see you’ve got two private investigators on her tail day and night.”

“Yeah,” he replied. “You mentioned you needed this done immediately so they’re on full duty. So far, there’s not much to report. There has been no sign of her at her apartment so she might not even be there. But we’ll see. The investigator is on his way to Utah as we speak to search for her aunt.”

“That’s her only living relative?”

“Yup,” he replied. “I’m not sure putting the aunt in danger so she’ll comply will be effective at all. She doesn’t seem to be close to this aunt and the woman’s well-being might not be of concern to her. If she was close enough to do what she did to Zola then maybe she wouldn’t care about her aunt being in danger.”

I carefully considered his words.

“Maybe,” I said. “And maybe not, but emotions have a way of shifting when it’s your only living relative at stake. I’m also curious about the compensation she received for selling Zola out. She doesn’t have to report directly to Hudgens so maybe Ugo got to her personally. There might be a reason why she needs dirty money. Follow this thread as well so we can see what it uncovers for us within the next twenty-four hours.”

“Twenty-four hours?” he repeated doubtfully.

“That’s all I’ve got,” I replied. “Right now, Ugo is aware I have been injured which means I am currently at my weakest thus it will be the best time to strike. I’ve always liked to believe they don’t know the location of my hideout, but that might not be the case at all.”

“I can trail just about anyone, and I’m sure Ugo has probably already done the same to me. We need to get to him before he finds us unprepared and at a disadvantage.”

“Understood. I’ll work on this 24/7,” he agreed before he left.

My phone rang. I looked down at the screen and saw it was Hudgens. I wasn’t surprised he was still reaching out to me. He didn’t know I had figured him out and he was playing the role of the ever-vigilant officer.

“I just wanted you to know we’re preparing another warrant for your arrest. There are more than enough eyewitnesses to the stunt you pulled at the intersection so we have to bring you in. This time around we don’t think the possibility of bail will be given to you since it is now clear you’re more dangerous than any of us could have anticipated.”

I smiled at his words.

“Who is this we, you keep referring to? Yourself and Ugo?”

He went quiet for a few seconds but then tried to make up for the guilty silence by being super offended. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about, Hudgens. And to think we were actually somewhat partners for years. I guess that weasel paid you more, but I would have coughed up whatever you wanted, if you had just asked. Because you were too stupid to ask, I’m going to ruin you. I hope you’re ready.”

“Did you just threaten me?” he blustered.

“Take it however you want to. Just know that as of now I consider you a dead man walking.”

He shot back. “I think you’re forgetting I was the one who informed you about Ugo’s house location.”

“Of course, you did. To throw me off your stink. After which you told Ugo to expect me, which led to the ambush. If it wasn’t you, then who could it have been?”

“So, you’re just guessing and throwing groundless accusations around. Good luck getting the evidence you need to prove that,” he raged.

I smiled to myself. “You know, Hudgens, what made the mafia strong was what ruined it. Our code of silence. It was the foundation stone of our strength, but as soon as the first little crack appeared, the Mafia lost all its power and magic. And that’s why you’re going to be ruined because you’ve assumed every single person around Ugo is loyal to him.”

“Oh, and you better warn Detective Mellor as well that we’re coming for her. None of you are going to go scot-free for how you’ve handled this case.”

I ended the call and got to my feet. I had set things in motion and there was no going back.

I called Tommy.

“I’ve told you we don’t owe each other anymore,” he harangued as soon as the call connected. “Why the fuck do you keep calling me?”

“Don’t go with your guys,” I told him. “Go with mine.”

“What?” he asked.

“Ugo might have found out you were the one who ratted his location out to me.”

“What the fuck does that mean? I just gave the girl a few seconds to talk to you.”

“Ugo’s dirty cop would have told him I had a description of the address. Someone gave that to me. He wouldn’t hesitate to kill every person who came into contact with her. When you gave her the phone you were aware of the risk you were taking.”

“Of course, I was.”

“This is the last leg of this fight,” I told him. “So, you need to pick your side now. If you look just a few cars to the left of you, you’ll see my men waiting. Head over and get in. They’ll bring you somewhere safe.”

“Thanks, but I’ll take my chances with the devil I know,” he scoffed.

“This is your last chance, Tommy. Decide wisely.”

“You’re telling me to throw away the last thirty-five years because of a single call from you?”

“You should have done it sooner and you know it. Take the fucking leap, man.”

“What exactly do you want from me, Dante?” He sounded suddenly tired. In his head he knew Ugo couldn’t be trusted. In the end, Ugo would kill him.

“You are gold,” I said. “There’s no one alive who knows more about Ugo’s dealings than you do.”

“Walk away and cut a deal with the cops so you don’t end up holding the baby. You’ve already served your time.”

“I’m not a rat,” he muttered.

“You won’t have to rat on Ugo. He’s gonna be dead soon. I’m just extending my hand to be sure you don’t end up the same way.”

“And you gain nothing from this?’

“Nothing.” And it was true. Tommy had done me a good turn and I wanted to make sure he didn’t suffer for it.