Chapter 7

“Stop playing Marcos. I know it’s soon but it’s going to be fine… still I think your making a bigger deal out of it then it needs to be.” I opened the back-door of the SUV I had illegally parked on the side of the apartment. I just really wanted to get the food in the door and avoid the long haul from the parking structure down the block.

“No, listen. You come or you don’t. Tony’s been gone for years and I’m finally ready to move on and I think its right. I don’t know why you’re getting booty tight, I know you guys were family but… you’re making it seem like Tony’s still here. He’s not Marcos; we gotta realize that, if not you then me. Listen do you, I gotta go, I gotta get the food in the house.” I threw the head-set into my purse.

If he was going to call back, he was going to get the voicemail.

“Ma’am? Do you have a moment?” A strange voice boomed behind me.

 I stopped and turned to acknowledge the man clearly speaking to me. I took in their appearance first and I could tell from the black and blue suits that they were clearly in law enforcement.

“Listen man, I’ll move my car.” I laughed and waited for them to join in but they didn’t.

“Marisol Garcia?” My eyes popped open when he said my name.

“What?” I asked crossing my arms over my chest.

“We need to speak to you about your brother.” My mouth dropped open.

“Why… you know where he is.” I turned my back on him then, I started to gather the bags and then he spoke again.

“Listen, that’s the thing ma’am… we don’t know where he is.” I stopped this time; I turned and sat on the bumper crossing my legs and then my arms over my chest again. I looked at him intently and I’m sure he was accessing my reaction in his head.

“Okay, now there’s a story behind this… I want to hear it. I want to know who you are and why exactly you are on my street right now.” I waited for his response, this time he looked at the guy behind him who shook his head.

“We should really take this inside.” He motioned toward the door this was the first time I saw Joey.

“Baby.” I stood up immediately and made my way to him. “Hey, listen grab the bags of food and I’m going to park the car.” I stood next to him while he leaned down and kissed my cheek.

“Is everything okay?” His eyes scanned the men in the suits and then looked at me.

“I-listen please just get the food, I’m going to park the car and then when I come back I’m going to fill you in. We gotta get this stuff done first.” I held my breath because it started to sink in.

Manuel was not in jail… my stomach curled and I had to hold onto Joey for balance he grabbed me this time.

“No. I’m going to get you in the house. These guys, they are waiting ‘til I come back before they go in the house.” I didn’t want to argue this time, I did want to give up and give myself a minute to steady.

“Ma’am, please?” The white man in the blue suit who had been speaking to me took a couple of steps closer to me and Joe.

“No sir. I’m sorry; she’s not going to be alone with. This is my house I don’t know who you are but you’re not allowed in there until I get back. She’s going to go into the house to wait for me, you” Joey pointed to the men while he pushed me behind him “are going to stay here until I get back.” He said it so firmly the men just shook their heads and backed away a few steps.

I turned and walked up into the doorway and then up the stairs. I pulled off my boots and threw them aside my mind was blank while I went through the motions of removing my jacket and then plopped on the couch.

He’s not in jail… why wouldn’t he be in jail? He killed Tony, I saw him kill Tony. It just didn’t make any sense, I saw him being taken away… I saw Manuel get in the car. Obviously I didn’t go to the trial, but they said it was open and shut it was so air tight… and now he’s just… out.

The door slammed downstairs and I could hear the foot steps of the men as the climbed up the stairs.

“Babe?” Joey asked as he reached the landing, saw me on the couch, the smile of relief came over him and came to sit next to me while the men filed into the living room, Joey motioned for them to sit on the couch the directly faced the light blue couch I sat on.

The men nodded and sat glancing at each other the whole way. It was odd; it was like communication of sorts. Like they knew what each other were thinking and acknowledging it. It was intriguing to me; it must have been developed from years on the job with the same partner.

“Sir, do you mind?” The white man asked. I looked at the man sitting in front of me, he was clearly Latino, the shaved head and pale complexion threw me off outside.

“Baby?” I looked at Joey as soon as he said the word, he tilted his head and I assumed he was wondering if he should leave.

“No, he’s my fiancé. If something’s going on I’m not going to hide it from him.” I squeezed his hand and watched as the white man looked at the Latino man.

“Okay… well like we were telling your fiancé ma’am we’re with the FBI, my name is Agent Travis Reynolds, this is Agent Jose Jimenez. As I told you before we are unsure of the whereabouts of your brother, it’s complicated…” He stopped slowly and looked at the Latino man.

“Mira, tu hermano nunca fey para la pinta.” My eyes gaped open as I heard him tell me that Manuel had never been to prison.

“What is going on? What are you not fucking telling me?” I sat up straight, glaring at Agent Travis.

“Listen your brother was into drug trafficking… heavily.  When your brother was taken away after killing your husband” I felt Joey’s hand tighten when he said husband. “He was detained in witness protection because he wasn’t going- we felt he would not be safe in the prison environment.” I read through that.

“You mean he wasn’t going to do you any good if he ended up dead by being a snitch.” I smirked while they chuckled at me.

“Yes ma’am, that’s one way to put it. We understand that it’s premature of us to be here but your brother… he moves… fast by the time we get there he’s usually gone. You see he’s been heading east and we last got word he was in Rochester, we think he’s coming to you. We think he’s going to make contact.” I swallowed the lump in my throat.

Contact? Please. He was up to something.

“Well if it makes you feel any better I haven’t seen him no contact has been made.” I shuffled to my feet. “I don’t like this, I’ll take your card and I’ll call you if something happens but I’m not ready for this I’d like you to leave.” I tilted my head towards the door as I walked out and into the hallway.

I walked quickly into the bedroom and pulled a box down from the closet. I traced the lid for a moment before I opened it. I grabbed the notebook and didn’t look at the contents afraid to bring back old memories. I wrote down everything that happened the night Tony died in my notebook. I hadn’t read the diary in years; I clutched it as I made my way into the bathroom and locked the door behind me.

I sat on the floor and opened it up going through the pages of the last year of my life with Tony.