Page 102 of Quiet Protector
They’re hoping to use Bobby for a sting.
“I’m not okay with this, Phillipa. I willnothave my son used more than he already has been.”
“BJ—”
“No, Phillipa,” I interrupt, shouting. “I will not change my mind about this. If you want to know who Ophelia is working with, you’ll have to find a way to do that without using an innocent child as bait.”
With Phillipa and me at a stalemate, Melody jumps into the conversation. “Can you change the location of the drop? Henry’s men have full coverage of the Upper West Side. Even if Ophelia has arrangements in place, they’ll never get through Henry’s men.” Feeling my unease, Melody drifts her eyes to mine. “Henry values family ties. Bobby is like a son to me, so Henry will keep him safe.” She grips my balled hand with the one not clutching her phone. “This may be our only way to free Bobby from his mother’s clutches, BJ, so we have to consider all possibilities. If she flees the country with him, we may never get him back.”
My knee bobs out my agitation as I contemplate. I don’t want Bobby close to harm, but I guess, just like what happened to Melody, I’m too late. He’s already in danger.
That doesn’t mean I can’t protect him from hereon out, though.
A sigh vibrates Phillipa’s lips when I say, “We do this my way or not at all.”
“Okay,” she agrees rather quickly, relieved.
* * *
Four hours and fifty-five minutes later, I’m standing on a cold and windy corner, praying my good fortune of late doesn’t come tumbling down. I’ve worked hard for this. I’ve put in years of dedicated service, decades of training, and just as many hours of love. You’ll never call me cocky, and you’ll never see me fanning out peacock feathers and strutting, but I hope you think I’m deserving of happiness.
Bobby is the final piece of the puzzle I’ve been striving to complete the past year. If today’s sting backfires, my life will never be complete. I missed the first five years of Bobby’s life, but that doesn’t mean I love him any less. Our connection was as immediate as it was when my eyes locked on Melody for the first time. He was weary standing across from the stranger claiming to be his father, but like all five-year-olds, curiosity soon overtook his anxiety.
He asked if I had any other children, if I had ever been to Disney World, and if I lived in a house or an apartment. He was disappointed when I answered no to his first two questions, but his curiosity piqued when I told him about the ranch I grew up on. Unlike Melody, he has a fondness for horses. Although I hadn’t lived on the ranch for many years, hours flew by as we talked about all the different adventures he could have on a farm.
Then, out of the blue, he asked if he could visit the ranch one day. I told him I’d love nothing more than for him to visit Saugerties with me. Tonight, I might be able to keep the promise we made that day.
“Breathe out those nerves, punk. You’re going to be this boy’s hero, so show him that,” Grayson mutters in my ear when my nerves almost have me wanting to bend in two.
After breathing out my nerves as suggested, I ask, “Any visual?”
“They’ve left the hotel on foot. ETA is five minutes.”
I lift my chin, aware Grayson would have eyes on me as well. “What about the Sicilian’s Henry’s men contained earlier today.”
“Still holed up in Customs.” An ill-timed grin raises my cheeks when he adds, “Those fuckers will be walking funny by the time they’re released, Ophelia will be on her way to Milan, and your boy will be heading home with you and your girl.” Keys being stroked sound down the line before Grayson mutters, “What the fuck is he doing here?”
“Who?”
Grayson waits a beat before answering, “No one for you to worry about. Focus on your boy. They’re moving faster than anticipated, ETA is less than two minutes.”
As the click of him changing radio frequency dongs into my ear, I discover the cause for his worry. Isaac and Isabelle Holt are briskly walking down the sidewalk. This is the first time I’ve seen either of them since they paired with Grayson’s team to take down Kirill’s Hopeton operation. Half of me believes they deserve an apology for the things I said in anger that day, but the other half thinks Isaac deserved my wrath.
Bobby isn’t his son, but if he were, imagine what his reaction would have been to me placing money into his son’s trust fund every month? Even if he were being helpful, he stepped over a line he would have decimated any other men for.
If that isn’t a sign of a narcissistic personality, I don’t know what is.
My eyes drift from Isaac and Isabelle when Grayson’s gruff tone rumbles down the line. “Expect visual in five… four… three… two…” Just as my eyes lock with Bobby’s on the other side of the street, Grayson announces to the agents on the end of our feed to prepare for evacuation. Just because members of the Sicilian mob are holed up at Customs doesn’t mean we can get sloppy. Tobias taught us better than that.
When Bobby spots my inconspicuous wave for him to run to me, he slips his hand out of Ophelia’s grasp and dashes my way. “Daddy!” he shouts at the same time Grayson mutters in my ear, “Move in to secure target, mark removed. Do it quietly.”
“Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!” Bobby continues to shout as overwhelmed as me. We haven’t been in the same room for months, and I’ve missed him so much, I’m not ashamed to say tears are burning my eyes.
While Bobby sidesteps a frozen and stunned Isaac and Isabelle halfway down the sidewalk, Phillipa and Harvey slap a piece of duct tape over Ophelia’s mouth, throw cuffs on her wrists, then toss a black hood over her head.
“Hey, buddy. Come here. Good job.” I pull Bobby in close to my chest before twisting him away from the direction he sprinted to ensure he doesn’t witness his mother being placed into the back of a white van mounted at the curb.
As I walk Bobby in the direction of the hotel Melody is waiting for us at, Grayson’s deep tone vibrates my eardrum. “Target contained, commencing direct route to LaGuardia.” The familiar click of him switching radio signals is heard before he says, “Enjoy your vacation, punk. I’ll see you when you get back.”
