Marcus and Maximiliano could clearly sense the battle of gazes between Dominick and the commander.
"You'd better calm down. Remember where you are," the man exclaimed, not even attempting to hide his annoyance.
"You're not going to tell me what to do when you're clearly obstructing me from exercising my rights! I demand that this complaint be filed!" he bellowed.
"You don't come here to tell me how to do my job," the officer hissed.
"Listen to me carefully. Even if I have to speak with the damn mayor in person, you will file that complaint," Dom threatened.
"Look, sir, come back when you have conclusive evidence. And since I see none anywhere…" He extended his hand toward the exit, inviting him to leave. "You may go."
"You can't do this!" Maximiliano exclaimed, irritated.
"And they talk about us…" Marcus muttered, referring to his previous line of work.
The men present looked at him curiously.
"This won't end like this," Dominick assured, angry.
The three left the station, descending the stairs, and Marcus said,
"There's something about that man that doesn't sit right with me. He's hiding something to defend that Campbell guy so fiercely."
"I think the same," Maximiliano agreed.
"We need to investigate them," Dom proposed.
They reached the car and got in.
"I'll take care of that. I'll write to Ivano right now. He's one of my most trusted men and will get us all the information we need," Marcus assured them. "If they fell in school or their moms hit them as kids, we'll know."
The car pulled away…
Marcus and Dominick were in Maximiliano's room, sitting while he showered.
"I'm going to make that man pay," Dom murmured, staring ahead with a clenched fist.
"We need to be careful, Dominick. You already saw he doesn't attack head-on. Are you sure it's him?" Marcus asked, turning to his friend.
"Completely."
"What have you learned from the investigation? We need to move carefully—more wisdom comes from age than cunning," Maximiliano emerged from the bathroom with a towel around his waist and another drying his hair. "That commander looks very clever. We have to do this right," he added as he entered the closet.
"Maximiliano is right," Marcus agreed.
"I know," Dom murmured.
Minutes later, Maximiliano emerged from the closet, almost fully dressed—just the jacket and tie remained.
"Remember what I told you," Dominick said seriously. Marcus and Maximiliano narrowed their eyes at him. "Be good to the girl. She's not at fault for anything. Learn from my mistakes."
Maximiliano rolled his eyes.
"It's not the same," he muttered, adjusting his tie and grabbing his jacket. "Let's go."
The three left the room and discussed the Campbell matter until they reached the restaurant.
"How will you recognize her?" Marcus asked.
"She's over there. I had already assigned a table," Maximiliano replied.
"Red hair. She's beautiful," Dom complimented.
"We'll talk after this," Maximiliano said.
Marcus and Dom went to find another table, ready to eat since they hadn't had much to eat all day.
Maximiliano reached the designated table and sat down. Looking at the woman across from him, he had to admit she was beautiful. Her hazel eyes revealed her nervousness, though she seemed to want to show otherwise. Her nose was well-defined, and her skin looked delicate, smooth, and soft. He furrowed his brow. "Where do I know her from?" "Why does she feel familiar…?" he wondered, dismissing the thought. He was here to close a business deal, not to figure out if he knew her.
"A pleasure, Maximiliano Anderson," he introduced himself out of simple courtesy, though he sensed she knew exactly who he was.
"The pleasure is mine, Mr. Anderson. Irina Nóvikova," she replied.
Maximiliano had to admit the girl had a melodious voice…
[....]
Marcus continued investigating, Dominick was in the infirmary changing his bandages, and Maximiliano was reviewing some papers at his desk.
He set them aside when he realized he couldn't concentrate. He thought of Irina, knowing something inside him was screaming that he had seen her before, but where…?
"I feel like that woman wants to make me suffer," Dominick complained, entering the office. He took a seat across from Maxi.
"Who?" his friend asked, frowning.
"The damn nurse," he rolled his eyes. "She's rough, looked like she wanted to strangle me with the bandage."
Maximiliano chuckled. A few minutes later, Marcus entered.
"We've got it!" was the first thing he said, a triumphant smile on his face. "I told you Ivano is excellent at what he does. He's only failed once," he added, knowing the information he had found about Genesis was false.
He handed the documents to Maximiliano.
"Sons of bitches…" Maxi murmured, reading. "Those bastards deal drugs in the Bronx, and they've got an entire network tied to several corrupt cops."
"Look at how well they hid it," Dom smiled.
"Right now, an internal affairs agent must be paying the commander a visit," Marcus informed. "It's safe to say that after a good citizen anonymously sent all the evidence of the illicit things those two are hiding, action will be taken."
"A good citizen?" Maximiliano laughed. "Sometimes you go too far. So, what's next?"
"Well, I don't know. What are you thinking, Dominick?" Marcus asked. "We'll do whatever you decide."
Dom was about to speak when Maximiliano's phone rang, interrupting him.
"Hello? Hi, how are you?" he said with a smile that quickly disappeared when he heard the girl crying. "Has he done anything to you?" He stood and grabbed his jacket. "Okay, okay. Calm down. Stay hidden, don't go out—I'm coming. Listen to me carefully, Alicia. Whatever you hear, don't go out."
He heard her response and hung up.
"What happened? Who's Alicia?" Marcus asked.
"I want to know too," Dominick frowned.
"Alicia is Jade's sister. Elías returned home. I think he knows he's in trouble. The problem is he's gone crazy—he's screaming and breaking things. Alicia's scared; I'm going to get her," Maximiliano explained.
Marcus and Dominick also stood.
"We'll come with you," Dom said.
Marcus nodded.
They left the office in seconds, rode the elevator in silence, and as soon as they reached the lobby, they requested Maximiliano's car immediately.
Maxi drove as fast as the speed limit allowed. He felt anxious and nervous. He wouldn't let anything happen to the girl.
Maxi parked and rushed inside. The door was open, which didn't sit well with him. Several items were broken on the floor—photographs, vases…
He saw some drops of blood and became alarmed.
"Alicia!" he called. "Come out! I'm here! Alicia!"
Marcus and Dom entered as well, taking in the mess. Dominick couldn't help but remember the first time he had been there—the things he saw, the feelings he had… That uncontrollable rage that coursed through him when he saw Jade lying on the floor, beaten and unconscious. That night he wanted to protect her from that degenerate, and he had been the monster who caused her the most pain…
Alicia appeared, coming down the stairs. She wore long pants and a yellow blouse.
"I'm so glad you came!" she shrieked, hurrying down and throwing herself into Maximiliano's arms. "It was horrible. He came back angry, saying things I didn't understand…" she sobbed. "He said we had to leave because they'd come for him. Mom freaked out, they argued, and he hit her—he hit her really hard!"
She continued crying, clutching Maximiliano's shirt.
"Calm down, I'm here now," he whispered, comforting her.
"That bastard ran off," Dominick hissed.
Marcus stopped typing on his phone.
"I already have Ivano investigating. He shouldn't be too far away," he assured.
"Are you alone?" Maximiliano asked, moving her aside and wiping her tears.
"Yes. Elías took Allison too. He practically dragged them both away; I saw everything without him noticing. Mom told him that I wasn't here, that I had gone to school," she said, her eyes watering again. "Do you think he'll hurt Mom? Will they come back?"
Alicia loved Janeth very much. Despite her many flaws, she had always been there for her. The problem seemed to be with Jade…
Maximiliano looked at his friends for help. He wasn't used to dealing with children; it was… difficult, in his opinion.
"I don't know. For now, gather your things. We'll go to the hotel. Later, we'll contact your aunt. What's her name?" he asked.
The young girl nodded.
"Martha. I'll come now."
She ran up the stairs.
"Things have gotten complicated," the brunette admitted. "With Elías around, we need to be more careful than before. I'm sure the commander will suspect us after Dominick's threats, I have no doubt."
"We just have to be smarter than him. My men are already looking for him, and it would be too risky for him to enter the hotel," Marcus said.
"Let's wait for news from Ivano. Hopefully, he's as efficient as he was with the documents…
Alicia packed clothes into her suitcase, putting in everything she could. The three men waiting for her were already half annoyed at doing it; Dominick grumbled at the girl's delay.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. I hope I didn't bother you," she murmured. Her nose was red, and the remnants of dried tears were still visible on her cheeks.
Dominick exhaled.
"I thought it would be a…"—Maximiliano's punch cut him off. The brunette knew perfectly well that Dominick was about to make one of his inappropriate comments, so he intervened. Alicia wasn't in the mood for that right now.
"Son of a…!" Dominick took a deep breath, stopping himself. He couldn't curse in front of the little girl. "You'll pay for this," he hissed.
"Whenever you want," Maximiliano smiled. "And be careful—you wouldn't want to break another rib," he teased, earning an assassin-like glare from Dom. Marcus got one too, but he couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing.
"Let's get out of here. Alicia, give me the suitcase."
The girl obeyed, closed the door, and they all went out. They got into the car. After a while, they drove in silence toward the hotel…
The days began to pass slowly, dragging on for some, filled with discouragement and sadness…
Twenty long, endless days. On that April 2nd, it would mark exactly one month since Jade had disappeared without leaving a trace.
Dominick, true to his word, hadn't had a single drop of alcohol. All his injuries had healed, his ribs were much better, and the two gunshot wounds were scarring nicely.
It was almost seven in the evening. He had taken a bath; today they would receive news about Elías' whereabouts, who had vanished.
Maximiliano had sent Alicia to stay with her aunt, who was taking care of her.
He spritzed some perfume on himself, left the closet, exited his room, and headed to Maximiliano's office. He arrived to find Marcus there, a folder on the table.
"We were waiting for you," Marcus said.
"What did you discover? Did you find him?" Dominick asked.
"Elías crossed the border, went to Mexico, and things didn't go well for him. He made enemies everywhere; I guess he thought people were looking for him. They found that woman, Janeth, dead in a ravine. She showed signs of torture," Marcus showed the photos. "The autopsy also revealed she had been raped and had a strong dose of heroin in her system, though that wasn't the cause of death.
"As for Elías, not much is known. But next to the woman's body, they found one of his fingers. Mexican authorities are still investigating. The girl—their daughter—is known to work as a prostitute. That commander is not to be messed with."
"The commander?" Dom raised his eyebrows. Maximiliano frowned.
"But he's in jail," a confused Maxi exclaimed.
"Money does a lot of things…" Marcus smiled. "And that old man blamed Elías for all his misfortunes."
"Anything you want to share?" Dominick asked, noticing that sly grin on Marcus' face that only appeared when he had done something.
"That man won't be able to do anything. I already gave him an ultimatum. If he values his life—and his family—he'll stay put," Marcus laughed.
"But you'd never touch his family—they're innocent, and that's not who you are," Dom reminded him.
"Of course. But he doesn't know that," Marcus chuckled. His phone rang—a message. "I have to go now. You know I only came back to deliver this. Yesterday's trip with Ketlan to Italy only benefited him; he recovered his nephews, but I…" He sighed. A bitter smile flickered across his face. "I still don't know anything."
"Don't get discouraged. You'll find her, you'll see," Dom assured him. His own phone buzzed with two messages—confirmation from the detectives he'd hired, telling him they were already at the restaurant. "I have to go now. I'll handle something and update you later."
Maximiliano and Marcus nodded in response. He left the office with a big smile, thinking that today, finally—after those long twenty days without hearing from the investigators, and a month without any word about her—he would have good news.
But his smile vanished when he arrived at the restaurant and saw the expressions on the two men's faces—they clearly didn't want to be there…