“Is that how she became acquainted with Annalissa?” Vinny asked, his arm protectively around her.
“He introduced her to entertainers who needed her for their various engagements and traveling around the country was perfect for her to have a chance to movethe drugs. I guess one look at your harp and its case and she thought she was in heaven.”
“But I still don’t understand how she managed to get it done,” Annalissa wondered aloud.
Shane explained, “We don’t know the specifics yet, but what we could piece together last night with her and with Gordon, he would supply her with the dates, airlines, and travel times for you. She was with you in the hotel suites that would be booked and when everyone was asleep, she would carefully hide the drugs in your harp column. Then she made the arrangements with the airport handler in Dulles. The drug cartel used him for lots of jobs…she was just one of them.”
“And,” Tony added, “On this trip everything went wrong for her. She has spent the past month trying to figure out how to get the harp alone so that she could remove the drugs, assuming that they were still there. The gala provided the perfect opportunity so Gordon decided to arrange for her to be there and he wanted to cover his ass as well.”
“What will happen to her?” Annalissa asked.
“Right now, she is sitting in jail and so is Gordon. We’ve got her on possession, possession with the intent to distribute, extortion, robbery, kidnapping, assault, assault with a deadly weapon and attempted murder. Gordon, right now, is looking at accessory charges, but more may follow.”
“Oh, my God.” Annalissa, overwhelmed, leaned her head back on Vinny’s shoulder. “I don’t even know what to think about all of that.”
“She’ll probably be offered a deal, ‘cause she really issmall potatoes in the cartel, but that makes her life worth spit about now. I’m sure they want the larger fish to catch.”
Sherrie walked back from the kitchen with a glass of water and as she handed it to Annalissa, she also showed her the newspaper. “I know you hate crowds, honey, but you made the front page.”
The headlines screamed about the protégé harpist who had been threatened by a crazed woman at the gala for Professor Feinstein.
“I’ve been fielding phone calls from fans who want to wish you well and your manager who wants to capitalize on your notoriety,” Jennifer said ruefully.
Annalissa cut her eyes over to Vinny, seeing the angry tick in his jaw. Before she could try to appease his anger, Matt and Shane walked over and kissed the top of her head as they made their way out of the apartment.
Vinny looked back down at her and said, “You ought to know that your dad came to the hospital that first night when you were out of it.”
Her mouth formed an “O”, but nothing came out.
“He wanted to check on you and said he’d come by when you were feeling better. I gave him our address here and…well, we’ll see.”
She nodded slowly, impressed with that fact that her father actually came to check on her. She wanted to say more, but Vinny stood to let the others out. As Sherrie and Jennifer walked out, he faced Gabe and Jobe.
Jobe nodded toward the sofa where Annalissa stillsat, and said, “Take care of her, man. She’s a good woman.”
“You told me to give her what she needed. Someone to help without taking over her life. That’s not easy, but it was good advice,” Vinny admitted.
Jobe nodded, a smile on his face as he walked out, leaving the twins facing each other at the door. The silent communication that had served them from the crib all the way through Special Forces continued even now. Unspoken words of understanding.
“See you at mom’s next weekend?” Gabe asked.
Smiling, Vinny nodded. “Oh yeah. We’ll be there.”
With that simple exchange, they parted and Vinny closed the door, walking back to the sofa where Annalissa was still snuggled in the blanket.
Before she could protest, he bent and scooped her up in his arms, walking toward the bedroom. Holding her easily with one hand, he tossed the covers back with the other before placing her on the soft sheets. Toeing off his boots, he stepped out of his jeans and slid into bed, pulling her gently into his embrace.
“You got something on your mind, soldier?” she asked, an eyebrow lifted in question.
“Nope. Not until you’re healed.” Not paying attention to her pout, he focused instead on the dark circles underneath her eyes. “Now’s for resting, and I gotta tell you, babe, all I want is to lie here for a hundred years with you in my arms so that I can know you’re safe.”
As she burrowed deeper into his embrace, a tear slid down her cheeks. “I know I have so much to be gratefulfor and this is going to sound really dumb…but I hate that I lost Easnadh.”
“I know, princess. I know,” he whispered, the vision of the broken, bloodied harp once again in his mind.
Fatigue took hold, pulling them both under as they lay entangled in each other.
Much to her surprise, Annalissa’s father came to see her the next day. She stood awkwardly in the living room as Vinny let him in. He did not hesitate. He walked directly over and pulled her into a hug. Her eyes closed, tears falling as she realized she could not remember the last time her father had hugged her.