Pearce Hudson: #1 My Italian Devil

35. What Now

"So how do we figure this out?" I asked.

"We start from the beginning. The first team that worked on Capaldi's case. Team members."

"Jones and Viv are the only ones from the original team."

Ross choked on his coffee. "It can't be Jones or Viv...can it?"

I pulled at my hair. "It's either everyone or no one. This is too much. We need start ruling out people."

"Let's start with Brad. He joined the academy when we did. Before that he was at UPenn. He didn't have any contact with Dante so far."

"Brad doesn't have motive either," I added. "What about Will?"

"He takes pride in being a DEA agent. But he's physically fit to take on Jack. But he was in hiding with Brad when Jack was supposedly at your apartment."

"Yeah but what real motive does he have to help Dante?"

"Money?"

"We're going to have to go through the bank statements then."

Ross went through the bank records after forcing me into bed, pointing out if both of us passed out in exhaustion no one would be looking for the mole. I pulled the covers to my chin but I couldn't fall asleep. I'm pretty sure I'd turned into an insomniac but there were too many thoughts in my head but most of all I was worried about Jack.

Ross let me sleep for three hours before waking me up to show me his find. "No large cash deposits but I did find a purchase for the night James escaped. It was at a local Chinese restaurant."

"We found take out all over the floor of the warehouse."

"Exactly. I think Viv got James dinner. But if she is the mole I think she threatened James."

"Yeah but Jones was there too. He would've been on the phone with Witsec. I checked the call records. Jones called you nearly 2 hours after he spoke to Witsec. But that isn't the weird thing. He had called Viv first, but call records indicate that Viv never picked up. Also all our SUVs have GPS, hers has been disabled since that night."

"But it can't...Not Viv..."

"She never had a solid alibi for anything. She was alone during the hiding. She was always alone at the office."

"She would've known everything because she reported everything back to Gibson. Oh God. Viv did her University Major in Spanish. She has a black belt in tae kwon do and krav maga. She could've easily handled James and Jack."

"Yeah but what would her motive be? She just a liaison."

"She wasn't always. She become liaison after she had her son...ah...Eric. Eric is eleven now, he would've been six when the FBI had a warrant for Dante. Look into her bank records again this time look for payments to hospitals. I think I remember her saying something Eric being sick."

Ross punched in a few commands. "Eric was diagnosed with Juvenile Huntington's Disease at the age of 2."

Mole or not I felt bad for Viv. "Looking after Eric will become expensive then."

"It has. She's in debt with the bank because she can't pay of her mortgage loan. Viv and her husband bought an apartment in New York. Hello what's this?"

I looked over Ross's shoulder. "Eric got into a clinical trial six years ago. That's why they bought the house, it's in New York."

Ross clicked the link to the website of the clinical trial and placed a search out on Dante Capaldi after a few moments we got a hit. "Dante helped fund that clinical trial. There's your motive."

I did a sharp intake. Everyone else was innocent. Jake was innocent. "What now?"

"I don't know."

"We get Dante to confirm that he has a FBI mole."

"How by asking him."

Even with the sun out, the weather was freezing. I zipped up the rest of my coat and took a seat on the bench. I had called Dante and told him to meet by the Charles for a coffee date. I blew into my hands for warmth.

"Black coffee two sugar," Dante said, two Starbucks cups in his hands. He offered me one. Given that I had consumed 5 cups of coffee I really shouldn't drink another cup I still took to warm me up.

"Surprised you remember."

"Surprised you remember this spot."

I looked around. Of course I couldn't forget. He proposed to me on this very bench, 7 years ago. He slung an arm around me and pressed his lips against my forehead. I bit down on my cup as a sign of restraint.

"Can't forget."

"So how was your morning. You look tired."

"Yeah I've been at the office the whole morning. Working."

"Mm. That's my hardworking wife."

Gag. "Dante. Have you seen the news?"

"No. Why?"

"Your bodyguard, James Gomez. They found his body in Charles last night."

Dante sipped his coffee calmly. "Any leads?"

"Well our job was to find Gomez but I did get you the autopsy report." I handed the file to him and he looked over it.

"Boston's finest are working on it. I'm sure they'll discover who killed him."

"Also your other bodyguard Jack Bloom? I tried to contact him but I couldn't reach him."

"Bloom's been on vacation for the past two days."

Oh I'm sure.

"I got you something." He produced a ring box from his pocket. My heart jumped, for a second I thought he was going to propose but we were already married. He opened it up and inside on a bed of velvet was a simple gold wedding ring. Just like my old one.

"It's just like your old one," he showed me the Pearce Capaldi carved inside. I left him slip it on my ring finger. I didn't like. It felt foreign. "I know you didn't want to move fast but I'm entitled to call my wife. So..."

"You still wear yours." I picked up his left hand. A matching gold band was around his wedding finger. He interlocked our fingers together.

"Of course."

"Dante there was woman that came to see me this morning."

Dante sat up. "Who?"

"Before I tell you. You have to tell me something."

"Okay."

"Are you...what are you doing here in Boston?"

"I came back to you."

"I want to believe you. I do but this woman...she was with the FBI."

I looked at Dante's face for a emotional change but it stayed neutral. His face showed no signs that he knew about the FBI woman. "What did she say?"

"A lot things. That you were trafficking girls and arms. That you're a drug dealer. That you've killed people."

"You can't believe her. She just wants to use you to get to me."

"I've heard this song before Dante. When you left DC the FBI raided the house. They took me into interrogation, they told me, they showed pictures. They told me you left me to save yourself."

His grip on my hand tightened. "I didn't mean to leave. I'd never leave." He locked his gaze on me. "I love you Pearce. I love you with my whole heart."

"I-"