Shadows of Doubt (32 page)

“It’s all fine, please don’t panic, Please listen to what Caroline has to say then we will get to everything, I promise.” He looked her tenderly in the eyes as he spoke and gently squeezed her hand to reassure her. She didn’t know why it helped her to not freak out, but it did. He did. He nodded to Caroline to start.

“Okay sweetie, well, you remember how I had dinner with my uncle and my parents the other night and how I told you I had food poisoning?” When Lou nodded at her she continued. “Well, I didn’t really have food poisoning and I am so sorry I lied! But I had some seriously heavy shit laid on me by and about my family that I had to deal with and couldn’t talk to you about it until now.” Caroline looked at Max and he nodded to her with a smile. “What I need to tell you is pretty heavy duty but it involves you similarly to how it involved me. But it also has stuff to do with these cases and all kinds of things that I just know you will be glad for afterward. But I need you to have an open mind and remember it’s me that’s talking to you and telling you all this. Can you do that for me?” Caroline took the same tactic that her uncle had in explaining the Sanguinostri to her and when Lou said okay, she told her the whole story. The same story her uncle had told her with a few minor modifications here and there that suited Lou’s logic better.

When Frank came with the pitcher of mojitos, Lou barely noticed he was there and sat staring at Caroline, absolutely rapt with interest. She hadn’t noticed when he poured them, when Max slid a glass into her hand or when she had drunk half of it. In fact, she hadn’t noticed much of anything as every word Caroline uttered sank in and made connections in her head. It was only after Caroline had explained that Joe’s family had been Sanguinostri since well, forever, that Lou finally spoke up.

“So Joe opted not to turn or tell my mother any of this to protect her and me? For all these years?” She looked at Max when she asked and he simply nodded. “So this is what he is talking to her about right now? Is that what you meant earlier?” Max nodded again and remained quiet. “Go on.” She said as she looked back to Caroline. The implications of everything slowly sinking in. It was then that Caroline started a cursory explanation of the vast infrastructure of the Sanguinostri and how mucked up the West Coast had gotten, thus Max and the Aegis Council shifting bases. She explained how they all worked as a single unit regardless of what actual agency they worked for in the normal world, as it were. That they all held justice in the highest regard without political bureaucracy or red tape of any sort. When Lou raised her right hand to drink from her freshly refilled glass, she realized that Max had been holding her other hand, and she his, but for how long she really couldn’t say. She started to think when it was they had started holding hands but something Caroline had just said snapped her back to the real situation at hand.

“Wait a minute!” Lou pulled her hand away from Max and looked at them. “Did you just say that the LAPD detectives that are handling all three of those cases are your people? Sanguinostri people?”

Max leaned back in his chair now and looked at Caroline. “This is where it might be best if I take over, Caroline.” She nodded at him, then gulped her drink nervously. “Yes Detective, we arranged for Sanguinostri officers to take charge of the cases. Due to ineffective management, which I am in the process of rectifying, we do not have such a solid presence within your agency. Only a few select people who have risen in rank to more administrative positions.”

“Then why the hell can’t I work on the cases? If you’re the grand poohbah with all your higher standard, black and white justice without loopholes and red tape and all that other crap that I am sick to death of! You’re obviously telling me all this for a reason, so fix it!” She actually poked him in the shoulder in a demanding gesture and heard someone snort and laugh inside the suite.

“Well, it isn’t all that simple now, is it?” He cocked his head sideways and smiled at her.

“Well it should be! Just make it be!” She mocked him and cocked her head in the same manner he had at her.

“Lou, we are talking about my people here...” He placed his hand gently on her knee as he leaned in to speak carefully to her. “...an entire genus of people that I must protect and keep secret from the masses at all costs. I need you to understand that and be clear about exactly why it is we are telling you all of this.”

“Lou, sweetie.” Caroline interrupted for a minute. “These are my people too. My family. That was why my parents came into town. I had to learn and accept that and vow to hold them above all others. I couldn’t do that, even though it’s my parents we are talking here, unless it included you, too.”

“We hold humankind in the highest regard. We are all intrinsically linked, but our people...” Max gestured to Caroline and himself. “... must come first for the sake of our most basic survival. The secret must be kept and protected. We must be kept and protected and in turn a great part of that is the protection of the average person as well.”

“So you want me to swear my life for the protection of the Sanguinostri? Above all other oaths including as a police officer?” She looked at him intently.

“It’s not necessarily one or the other. It’s in addition to. Of course with ours being the first priority.” He made it sound so simple.

“So I would have to lie to Vinny.” Her partner sprang to mind instantly and she got up to pace.

Max sighed. “We need good people but that is something you need to consider carefully before you ask me to involve him. It’s a domino effect so to speak.”

Lou thought about her partner, his wife and their baby on the way. When she thought about him she understood Joe’s reasoning for keeping it all from her mother and her for so long. She understood it all, oddly enough, and it made perfect sense to her.

“I need to talk to my mother. Now.” She spun towards Max and demanded.

Max nodded, understanding. “She and Joe are on their way as we speak. She demanded the exact same thing of him before she would make a decision.”

“What about my uncle? My cousins?” She hated the thought of ever lying to her uncle.

Max had thought of all this before Caroline had come up with her plan, which he had to admit was working out brilliantly. But he had come to terms with himself, and admitted to Frank, Abby and the others that he would pretty much agree to whatever terms Lou set for him in order to have her agree to be indoctrinated. “That will be for your mother and you to discuss and decide. But I am open to whatever you need to be true to you’re heart in all of this.” He stood up and walked to her, taking her hands in his. “I want you to be happy, Lou. I don’t want to make your life miserable or more complicated than it already has been. I am not going to force you to live a life you cannot be content with. That is the exact opposite of what I want for you.”

She looked up into his eyes and knew without a shadow of a doubt that he meant every word he was saying. God help her, she trusted him completely.

“Tallulah.” The sound of Lou’s mother’s voice had her spinning around so fast she got dizzy, but she saw Abby leading her out onto the terrace.

“Momma!” She ran to her mother and threw her arms around her.

“Are you okay, sweet pea? I know this is all a bit hard to take in.” Shevaun smoothed Lou’s hair back and tucked a few stray strands behind her ear, looking at her with great concern. “Joe is so worried that you hate him now!”

“What? That is ridiculous!” If anything, Lou had a greater love and respect for Joe given everything he sacrificed to protect her mother and her.

“Let me give you ladies some time to yourselves and I’ll see to Joe and perhaps some dinner.” Max brushed his hand across Lou’s back ever so lightly as he walked past her and smiled softly to Shevaun as he turned for the door.

Lou grabbed his hand before he could go and he whipped around, wide eyed at her gesture. “Please make sure Joe knows I love him? And don’t go too far away, please?”

His heart skipped several beats at her requests and he flashed her such a smile that he felt like the sky wouldn’t be able to contain it. He nodded and squeezed her hand before she let go. He caught a glimpse of Caroline before he crossed the threshold and she was bouncing in her chair, grinning from ear to ear.

Shevaun dragged Lou to the table, holding her hand tight as they sat, then she took Caroline’s hand in her other. Are you girls alright? Caroline, Joe told me you took the Oath, are you okay? Your parents must be so relieved!”

“I am wonderful, truly Mrs. McAllister. Especially now that you and Lou are here. You two were my only deal breakers on this.” She pulled her chair in to sit closer to them.

Lou pushed her glass in front of her mother then took Max’s and drank deeply.

“So I guess we need to make a decision here, don’t we?” Shevaun spoke up after taking a healthy sip from her drink. “Quite an intense whammy we got tossed in our laps. The funny thing is, it’s not as overwhelming as it probably should be, ya know what I mean? The truth is, and I don’t mean this to put any pressure on you baby but, you’re the only hitch in the giddy-up here.”

“What do you mean me?” Lou goggled at her mother.

“Well its your willingness to put this above your job and all. Even thought it’s the whole ‘protect and serve’ thing but on such a more ginormous scale now, isn’t it?” Shevaun looked over at Caroline. “Who knew? But anyway, for me its simple if you’re taken out of the equation.” She shrugged her shoulders then took another sip of her drink.

“Again I ask, what do you mean, Momma?”

“Sweetheart, Joe has been carrying this around with him as a secret to protect us for over twenty-five years. He loves us that much and has sacrificed for my sake and the sake of my daughter. You and I know what a good man he is and if he holds the Sanguinostri in such high regard, well it’s just a no-brainer for me. Bring it on I say! Plus all the good they do, protecting us from them and ourselves. I think we could learn a lot from them if you ask me.”

That was something Lou had been thinking about since Caroline started telling her the story. Over the years, Lou had seen the true depravity that humans were capable of. The greed and lack of conscience that surrounded her on a daily basis even on mundane levels. Animal testing, litter bugs, kids stealing other kid’s shoes, crappy tippers. Hell, in Hollywood alone she was sure there were women who would murder to get their hands on one drop of Max or Abby’s blood if there was a chance at chasing one wrinkle away for good. How sick was it for that to have occurred to her? All of this may have been tossed at her mere minutes ago, but some things were always crystal clear to Lou.

“Yeah but too many normal humans are so greedy and power hungry they would exterminate them while trying to get what they have.” Lou said with a tone of disgust. “We have to protect them Momma, don’t you think?”

“I do! I absolutely do!” Shevaun patted her daughter’s hand. “Not sure about the whole turning thing although Joe says they have a test they can do to see if you’re blood is favorable to it and all.”

Caroline nodded “Yeah they are actually running mine now even though my family line has a ninety-eight percent survival rating.”

“I’ll tell you it sure wouldn’t suck having to not see another wrinkle crop up on this face again!” Shevaun and Caroline laughed.

“You would turn, Momma?” Lou asked. Her mother’s statement confirmed her own argument she was having in her head.

“Oh if I knew I wasn’t going to croak in the process? Live a thousand lifetimes with Joe? You bet your ass I would!” She answered without hesitation.

Lou considered the possibility of her mother and Joe never getting ill. Always being as they were in her life. Never having to face the possibility of losing them. It really was a no-brainer. All of it was when she really considered. Okay, having to keep the appearance of proper protocol might be tough but being able to handle her cases with all those resources at her disposal? No red tape or bureaucracy?

“Excuse me a minute, I’ll be right back.” Lou got up from the table as both women looked at her oddly but Caroline squeezed Shevaun’s hand and gave her a nod.

Before Lou got to the door, Max walked out and looked directly at her, as if he had known she needed him. It was amazing how Lou felt her chest loosen, as if she could breathe again as soon as she saw his face.

“I need to ask you...” She started.

“Anything.” He smiled down at her.

“What about Vinny? I don’t want him put in the same position that Joe was put in when he met my mom.” He could tell this was weighing on her. “I can handle lying to him but I need him protected somehow. Can you help me with that? Lou looked at him in earnest.

“I’ve thought about that while considering all of this. His wife is expecting their first child, correct?” Lou nodded and he continued. “And he is going to be taking the Lieutenant’s exam? So he’ll be relegated to desk work as your superior, is that correct?”

“Yes, that’s the plan at least.”

“Well, I can make certain that plan succeeds. Even fast track it if you wish. Perhaps down the road you’ll see him as a viable asset, but until you say so, and no one else but you, we can make sure he is safe and happy behind a desk.” He brushed the back of his hand gently across her bruised cheek.

“You would do that? You would do that for me?” She placed her hand over his and held it to her cheek a moment.

Max sighed. “Let’s face it Lou, there isn’t a whole hell of a lot I wouldn’t do for you and I think you know that, deep down in your gut.”

She smiled up and him then bolted over to her mother.

“Okay, so we do this together then? I’m not sure about the whole turning thing but I can decide that whenever right?” She looked at Caroline first, then back to Max.