Love Lost (16 page)

The captain asked, “Do you think this is Selene?”

Jason did not take his eyes off the medical examiner as he opened the chest and stomach area to check the internal organs. “Jane Doe has some scar tissue in the abdomen area.”

Jason balled up his fists, shaking away what he was hearing.  “It’s not her.”

The medical examiner looked at the body and uttered, “Dam
n it.”

The captain ran over to the microphone before Jason could reach it.

“What did you find?”

“The female victim was pregnant at the time of her death.”  All eyes fell on Jason.

Jason pushed the captain aside and yelled into the microphone. “Check again!”

The examiner tried to protest.  “Detective, I’m sorry-”

“Don’t apologize.  Just do your job.”

Jason walked back with his head shaking, tears rolling down his cheeks.  The captain tried to reach for him, but Jason pushed him away. “I was supposed to protect her. She can’t be dead.  This isn’t happening.”

“Jason, I’m sor…”

“Save it. I don’t need your apologies, but he will.”

“Who will?”

Jason walked out of the room, his brother running behind him to catch up. 

“Jason, hang on.  Let me drive you home.” 

“Selene is probably home waiting for me and I need to be there.”

He tossed his keys to his brother, who was stunned at his reaction.  “Jason, I don’t-”

“Drive me home. Please.” 

This was a dream that he desperately wanted to wake up from.  “She’s probably home waiting for me.  She is probably sitting in the baby’s room right now.”

Julian looked at his brother with a sad expression.  “She was pregnant?”

Jason looked at his brother angrily.  “Not was.  She
is
pregnant.  That wasn’t Selene.  She wouldn’t leave me.”

They pull
ed up to his apartment and Jason ran inside.  Julian followed him as he burst through the door.

“Sel?! Sel?!  Babe, you home?!”

Jason looked around, but heard no response.  He just noticed a ring sparkling in the distance next to a single red rose.  Julian watched him and cautiously walked behind him.

“Jason, what is that?”

Jason looked in Julian’s direction and headed into the bedroom and saw a note next to the rose.  He managed to open it despite his shaking hands.

It read: 

Jason crumbled the paper in his hand, and punched the mirror, shattering it to pieces.

Jason grabbed everything he could get his hands on and started to throw it.  Jason felt the anger grow inside of him, like a pool of boiling lava.

He opened the closet and sitting there on the floor was a box.  He grabbed it and opened it to find baby clothes.  Selene had written a card and left it at the very top of the clothes.

“To the world’s best dad!  I know you will be the best father our baby will ever have.  This baby is very lucky to have you.  I know I am.  I love you with all my heart!  Sel.”

Jason grabbed the box and fell to the floor.  Julian ran to him as he fell apart.  She was gone and so was his child.

“He took her from me, Julian.  He killed Selene and my baby.”  Jason looked at his brother, who had tears in his eyes.  “Not Selene.  It can’t be her. Please tell me it’s not her.” 

“Jason, I’m sorry.  She’s gone.”

“NOOO!  Get out!”

“Jason, I don’t think you should be alone.”

Jason pushed his brother away from him.  “Leave!”

Julian stood and stared at his younger brother on the floor.  “Jason-”

“LEAVE!”

Julian nodded and left him alone in the apartment.  The laughter shared in this apartment was now gone.  In its place were the screams and cries of a man who lost the love of his life. 

Lucio sat in the car and watched as the building burned.  He smiled as the cop arrived and the pain inflicted was evident.   After Lucio drove to his club to finish the last part of his plan, he smiled at how everything worked out. 

“We can finally go home now.”  He spoke to the non-moving figure in the back seat.  “I just need to wrap one thing up before we go.”  He removed some bags from the trunk and walked into his business.  Lucio unloaded them and set everything up by the window.  After he returned to the car, he parked it in the alley next to the building and carried the limp body to the building that was a few houses down from the club.   Kayhill was waiting for him in the building. 

“What the hell are you doing?”

“Worry about doing your job, not about my business.”

“What do you plan on doing with her?”

“You’re going to drive her to a private jet that will be waiting for me tomorrow.  One of my men will be there to take her inside.”

“What if she wakes up?”

“She won’t wake up.”

Kayhill shook his head and picked up the body, leaving from the back door.  Lucio pulled out the camera, pointing it in the direction of the club.

“Let the fun begin.”

Several days had passed while Jason isolated himself in his apartment, drinking his grief away.  Julian walked in with Jesse and it looked like a tornado had hit the place.  Everything was tossed around, if not broken.  Bottles of Hennessy were everywhere.  In the corner, holding a picture frame, was Jason.  He hadn’t shaved and barely looked alive.  Jesse slowly walked over.

“Jason, you ok?  Bro, you need to eat something, and possibly shower.  Come on,
Man.  She wouldn’t want you to be like this.”

Jason looked up and grabbed the nearest bottle of henny to take a long drink.

“Well she’s not around anymore, is she? She’s gone.”

Julian looked down at the mess that was his brother.  “Don’t do that.  Don’t blame her.”

Jason tossed the bottle at him, almost hitting his head.  “She’s gone!  I don’t know how to live without her.  She’s was my whole life, Julian.  It hurts to even breathe without her!” 

Julian looked away from his bother. “Jason, you can’t do this to yourself. 
When was the last time you slept?”

“Can’t remember.  I don’t want to sleep anymore.  All I do is think about her and dream about her.  It hurts too much.  I don’t want to hurt anymore.”  Jesse walked into the bedroom to assess the damage.

Jason managed to stand up and place the picture frame on the table. It was a photo of him and Selene with the ultrasound.  “Why are you guys even here? I want to be alone, so just leave.”

Jesse punched the wall hard
, surprising Julian.  “Well tough shit, asshole.  You look like crap, and you sound like you’re planning on doing something stupid.  I refuse to watch my older brother waste away to nothing in front of me.”

“So leave.”  Jason reached for the bottle of henny again when Jesse grabbed him by the collar and practically dragged him to the bathroom.  Jason was pushed into the shower and cold water hit him like a ton of bricks.

“She’s gone, Jason, and no one is saying for you to not grieve for her, but you’re wasting away.”

Jason looked down at his wet clothes, noticing how loose they were.  Jesse stood up from the tub. “Her funeral is tomorrow and you will be there, showered and sober, even if I have to stay to watch you myself.  Watch him until I get back, Julian.”

Jesse slammed the door as he left the apartment.  Julian leaned against the door frame as Jason slumped against the tub.

“We all miss her
, Jason.  We know how much you loved her, but destroying yourself isn’t the answer.  You know that.”

Jason looked at his brother and noticed for the first time how disheveled he looked.  Jason knew he looked like crap
, but it was unusual for his brother to be like this. 

“What’s up with you?”

Julian shook his head.  “Not important.   Do you think you can manage a shower?  I’m not really into the idea of watching you shower, but I will if I have to.”

Jason stood and gripped the handle.  “I’m good.”

Julian backed away and left the door open.  “I’m going to make you something to eat.”

Jason took off his wet clothes and washed off the grief and liquor from the last couple of days.

Jason walked into the kitchen as Julian started to clean up some of the mess he made.

“Julian, you don’t have to do that.”

“Just worry about eating and not what I’m doing.”

He sat at the table and managed to eat whatever Julian had put on his plate.  He tasted nothing, but he still ate it.  How long would this last?  Would things ever go back to being normal?  Did he want them to be?

He knew what he wanted more than life itself was to have Selene in his arms and that was never going to happen. 

“Are you going to tell me what’s going on with you, Julian?”

“Don’t you think you have enough on your plate, Jason?  It’s nothing. Just let it go.”

“I need the distraction and you’re my brother.  We have a tendency to always be in each other’s business.”  

Julian stopped sweeping and grabbed a broken bottle of wine that was on the floor.  “Before Selene…before shit went to hell, I got some bad news from my boss.”

“What news?”

“One of the lawyers that worked with our firm was killed.”  Jason was confused as to why his brother appeared saddened by the news.  He never mentioned being close to anyone he worked with but Julian was pretty private about his life, even with his family.  “Daphne Berkowitz.”

Jason was stunned.  His brother knew Daphne?

“She was Selene’s best friend.  You knew her?  How?”

Julian nodded.  “I put all of that together after all of this.  She worked with our firm on some cases and we went on a few dates.  It wasn’t anything serious
, but not because we didn’t want it to be.  Our busy lives always kept us from seeing each other.   It hurts, Jason, I know that, but you need to remember that you still have people here that care about you.”

Jason wiped at his face.

“I didn’t know, Julian.  I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.  If anything, this just showed me that I need to make time for what’s important in my life.”

Jason looked around and reached for the garbage bag.   He picked up the bottles scattered around his apartment as Julian made a fresh cup of coffee.  His life would never be the same, but he would need to figure out a way to push through it.

Selene’s funeral was hard to sit through.  Between all of the condolences and tears, it was becoming difficult for Jason to keep it all together.   As they walked to her burial site
, he felt his brothers by his side.  He tightened his grip on the rose in his hand until the thorns pierced his skin and he started to bleed.  After a final prayer and goodbye, Selene’s casket was lowered into the ground.  He kissed the rose in his hand and tossed it into her grave. 

“I promise I will finish what you started, Selene.”

His brothers stayed behind until he was ready to go, refusing to leave him behind.  Jason turned and walked toward the exit.

Jesse spoke up first.  “Why do I have the nagging feeling you’re going to do something reckless, Jason?”

Jason turned to face him.  “Reckless?  When did you become my guardian angel?”

“Yes, reckless.  Like dangerous and could get yourself killed kinda shit.  I never claimed to be an angel, but someone needs to watch your ass when you don’t seem to give a shit about anything anymore.”

Jason clenched his teeth.  “It has nothing to do with you, so just stay the fuck out of it.”

“I can’t.”

Jason turned away from his brothers and continued to walk toward the cemetery exit.  “I need to finish this so I can do right by Selene.  She wanted Lucio to be put away and I’m going to make sure he can’t hurt anyone anymore.”

“Oh, is that what you’re gonna do.  Are you going to arrest him?  Cuz you look like you’re ready to put a bullet in him, Jason!”

Julian grabbed Jason’s arm.  “Do it the right way, Jason.  Any other way will only destroy her case and everything she worked for.”

“What’s the right way, Julian?  The right way has this piece of shit loose on the street and Selene in the ground.”

Julian let go of his arm and Jesse waved a piece of paper in front of him.  “Here’s an early birthday present for you.”

Jason reached for the paper and read it.  “How did you get this?”

Julian answered him. “Selene requested it the day she died.”

Jesse inched closer to his brother.  “So what are you going to do, Jason? Are you doing this half assed or are you going to be smart about this?”

Jason simply replied,  “There’s an arrest warrant for Lucio Cardoso.  Let’s go pick him up.”

They reached the station and Jason and Jesse went to change and put on their Kevlar vests.   His captain was not in the station and Julian stayed in his office to make some calls to ensure Selene’s case against Lucio held up.  He had looked over Selene’s notes and evidence on the case to verify the charges to be brought against Lucio.  He wanted to help bring Jason some closure and this was his way of doing it.

“Jason, be careful.  He knows that he’ll face the death penalty based on everything Selene has on him. Lucio won’t come willingly.”

Jason grabbed his gun and placed it
in his holster.  “I’m counting on it, Julian.”

Jesse came up behind him, ready to go.  Jason looked at him and raised eyebrow.  “Will your boss approve of you helping me on a case?”

“I transferred to this station while you got yourself together.  Kayhill approved it.  You need someone to watch your back, and I’m taking that position.”

“Let’s go.”

Jason pulled up to The Pink Bunny and saw Lucio’s car parked in the alleyway.  Several police cars pulled up behind him and he motioned for them to make their way into the club through the side entrance.  He pulled out his gun to go in through the front.  As Jason reached the door, he saw through the glass a timer with seconds to spare.  He clicked on the radio. “GET BACK! THERE’S A BOMB!

A loud explosion blew the club, sending Jason flying to the hood of his car, shattering the windshield.  A buzzing sound echoed in his head as he looked up to see Lucio leave the building next to the club. He took off in a run and Jason tried to follow him.  Lucio tried to turn a corner but Jesse tackled him to the ground. 

“Where are you going so fast? We need to have a little talk at the station.  Jason, do you want the honor?”

Jesse cuffed Lucio and dragged him to his feet.  Jason got closer to Lucio.  “You’re under arrest.”

As Jesse read Lucio his rights during the walk back to the car, Jason couldn’t shake the feeling that this was all too easy.