Her Baby Plays Cupid

Chapter 4 Arrangements

Leah's POV cont.

I wasn’t given the opportunity to question him about my gut feeling before I was hit with another devastating blow.

“Leah, when the department sent an officer to notify Jake’s mother of his death, he reported she had a massive heart attack. By the time the ambulance arrived, she was gone. I’m so very sorry.” Greg broke the news to me, tears in his eyes and his voice. Bernice was like a second mom to Greg.

My vision went fuzzy. I struggled to draw a breath. I thought I was going to vomit. I reached out for Greg, knowing he was in as much emotional pain as me. We held on to each other, sobbing as the foundation of our worlds crumbled beneath us. Arms engulfed us as Carly pulled us to her in comfort. She had loved Bernice as much as we did. She had considered Jake her brother.

Now, in less than twenty-four hours, our chosen family had been pared down to just the three of us. The matriarch of our little family was gone, as was her only child. She was now with her late husband and her son. Their little family was together again on the other side, leaving us to mourn their loss, and somehow find a way to live life without them.

I don't know how long we huddled together, crying for the loss of the two people we loved. Eventually the practical, organized side of me surfaced. The part of me, the training from the blood family I had left behind was now front and center. Taking a deep breath, I released Greg and Carly, wiped my tears, found my voice and spoke.

"Jose, I know that two years ago during the Jones and Clowater debacle you spoke with Elio Moretti. Is it possible for you to contact him again?" I questioned.

"I can," he gave me a questioning look. "Can I ask why, specifically?"

"Can you please let him know, show him proof that my Jake was not the one involved with his niece? I know how those families work. I don't want Jeremy Cole sending his henchmen after me, or Carly and Greg. Let him know that I will meet with him and Jeremy in ten days. Let him know we are off limits."

Jose's eyes widened, then quickly narrowed in speculation. "Leah, I can do that. When and where do you want the meeting.?"

"Ten days from now if that gives you enough time to complete your investigation. Here in the secure room. Elio Moretti, Jeremy Cole, and Kaden Jones are to be here, as well as whoever 'Gary' is." I paused briefly. "And Jose? My biological brothers will be attending as my support."

Jose stared at me, shock flashing across his face before he was able to mask it. He knew exactly who my brothers were. He also knew that I have neither seen them or spoke to them in the past three years, and the reason for the estrangement.

Every head in the room whipped around towards me, stunned by my words and what they meant. I may have distanced myself from my family, with good reason I might add, but in times of need we had each other's backs. This was one of those times.

With that settled, I directed the conversation elsewhere. "About Bernice? What hospital was she taken to? I need to make arrangements for her and Jake."

"She's at the same hospital as Jake," Carly confirmed. "They are awaiting instructions from you as you are listed as the next-of-kin for both Jake and Bernice." I knew this to be true. Bernice had a by-pass done three days after Jake and I got married which was the reason for our delayed honeymoon. She had insisted that I be named as next-of-kin as she knew her son wouldn't be in the right frame of mind to handle anything.

"Okay," I responded, my mind working a mile a minute. "I need to go back to my apartment, then to Bernice's place to get documentation, then the funeral home to make funeral arrangements." I paused, my eyes filling with tears and my voice choking up. I had to take several deep breaths before I was calm enough to continue.

"Jose, can you speak to Mr. Moretti right away? I don't want Carly, Greg or I to end up dead because they didn't call their dogs off. I'll wait until this afternoon before I leave the building. I have phone calls to make in the meantime."

Jose agreed that he would get right to it, and then the meeting ended. Carly, Greg and I went back to our temporary living quarters to begin the hard task of notifying Bernice and Jake's relatives. I was not looking forward to this. Not one bit.

Jose Morales's POV

My heart was aching for Leah. That woman is one of the strongest people I have ever met. Her strength of character, and her utter determination reminded me of Anna Graystone, my boss and owner of Graystone International. They come from two totally different family backgrounds, but they are cut from the same cloth when it comes right down to it. I would protect Leah just as I had protected Anna.

With that thought at the forefront of my mind I waited for everyone except Francine to leave the secure room. I closed and locked the door behind them, then took out my encrypted phone, pulled up a contact, then placed the call. The phone rang twice before the call was picked up.

"What can I do for you, Mr. Morales?" No preamble, just right to the point. I was okay with that.

"Mr. Moretti. I'm calling for two purposes. First, my condolonces to you and your family on the death of your niece." I kept my tone respectful.

"Thank you. Her death has hit the family hard. I appreciate your sympathy. I am sure you understand we are extremely busy with arrangements at the moment. What is the second reason you called?"

I figureatively girded up my loins and explained. "Mr. Moretti, last evening the husband of one of my employees was shot and killed while on duty. We have video evidence that indicates your brother-in-law, Mr. Cole, was directly involved in ordering his death."

I heard what sounded like a growl, then words were spit out in barely contained anger. "What is this? Blackmail?"

I kept my voice calm as I responded. "Not at all. However, I wanted to let you know that my employee's husband is innocent of what he is accused of. I just sent you an email with proof of this. My employee's husband is, was, Officer Jake Matthew Turner. The man that is actually guilty is his first cousin, Matthew Jacob Turner. Once you look at the email, and the attached photos, you will see the difference between these two men is their names, and the tattoo's on Matthew Jacob Turner, and the lack of tattoo's on Officer Jake Matthew Turner."

I stopped talking to give Elio Moretti time to read the email, study the photos, and come to his own conclusions. Meanwhile, I sent him a copy of Jake's bodycam footage, with a notation that the footage is stored in a safe place on multiple servers. That fact would prove to be our 'insurance policy' so to speak.

Hearing an indrawn breath as the video played in the background I knew that Elio understood the ramifications. Finally, he spoke. "What exactly do you want?"

"Nothing too difficult. I want Mr. Cole to understand the mistake that has been made. I want him to call off his men," I didn't use the same term Leah did when referring to the people used to carry out the hit on her husband. "I want your family to understand that Leah Turner, Carly Sanchez, and Greg Sanchez are off limits. They are under my protection. Also, you personally need to do a little research on Leah Turner's background so you understand what could happen if any harm comes to her, and her friends. She is also concerned that her husband's reputation not be smeared as he has done nothing to warrant it."

There was a pause on the phone as Elio considered my words. "Leah Turner? That's her married name? What's her maiden name?"

"Murphy. Her parents were Patrick and Morag Murphy. I'm sure you've heard of them?"

Another indrawn hiss of breath revealed he knew exactly who Patrick and Morag Murphy were. Knew exactly who the Murphy family was, the influence they had in not only the city, but worldwide. Their power was as far-reaching as the Morettis and Barones. He knew that messing with the Murphy family was not something he was willing to risk.

"I will give the order that no harm is to come to Leah or her friends. Is there anything else you want?"

"Leah has requested a meeting in ten days. She has asked that you, Mr. Cole, Kaden Jones, and whoever this 'Gary' person is be present. She has specified the meeting take place here at Graystone Security in our secure room. And as to not start a war, I need to let you know that her three brothers will be in attendance, as will I and several of our security men. No weapons allowed."

My voice was monotone and undemanding as I didn't want to ruffle any feathers. It was best for all concerned to understand emotions were calm. We didn't need to anyone's knickers in a knot.

"Understood. We will be in touch about the date and time." Elio responded then ended the call.

I had done what I could with the information I had. Now to put my top investigators to work figuring out the identity of 'Gary', as well as finding Matthew Jacob Turner as well as information on the timeline of his affair with Andrea Cole.

I intended to have every little detail I needed when I went into that meeting with two of the biggest families in Canada.