Chapter 4 - THE WOMAN WHO GOT CLARA OUT
Gabriel did not go to River North.
That was what Dorian would expect.
Instead, he drove to the security office on Ashland.
Owen Vale was waiting.
He was thirty-seven, broad-shouldered, former military, the kind of man who looked uncomfortable in expensive clothing no matter how well it fit.
He stood when Gabriel entered.
“Boss.”
Gabriel closed the door.
“Sit.”
Owen sat.
Gabriel placed Dorian’s phone on the desk.
Owen’s face changed.
Barely.
But enough.
“You recognize it.”
“Dorian’s.”
“The camera outside my service elevator failed three days before Clara disappeared.”
Owen said nothing.
“You submitted the maintenance order.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Dorian told me the feed was flickering.”
“Did you check?”
“I trusted him.”
Gabriel’s expression hardened.
“Wrong answer.”
Owen swallowed.
“I checked remotely.”
“And?”
“There were packet drops.”
“Natural?”
“I thought so.”
“You thought.”
Owen looked down.
Gabriel almost laughed at the word.
Everyone thought.
Nobody verified.
Not even him.
“What happened to the old camera?”
“Disposed.”
“Where?”
“Vendor took it.”
“Which vendor?”
Owen hesitated.
Gabriel leaned forward.
“Owen.”
“Lakeview Integrated.”
Gabriel knew the company.
They had maintained several properties.
“Who recommended them?”
Owen’s face tightened.
“Dorian.”
Of course.
Gabriel picked up the phone.
“Anything else?”
“No.”
“Look at me.”
Owen did.
“You have one chance.”
“I didn’t know they were taking Clara.”
Not denial.
Not exactly.
Gabriel remained silent.
Owen began breathing faster.
“Dorian said the apartment had a leak.”
Gabriel felt cold.
“What?”
“He said security needed a blind maintenance window because someone from the city was coming through and he didn’t want them seeing one of the storage areas.”
“That makes no sense.”
“I know that now.”
“When did you know?”
“After Fulton.”
“And you said nothing.”
Owen looked ashamed.
“Three of our men were dead. Clara was missing. You were tearing the organization apart looking for a leak. I realized the camera outage might matter.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because Dorian came to my house.”
Gabriel’s eyes narrowed.
“He knew my wife’s schedule. My daughter’s school.”
That explained fear.
Not innocence.
But fear.
“What did he say?”
“That mistakes happen to families.”
Gabriel’s jaw tightened.
Owen continued.
“I convinced myself it wasn’t connected.”
“You convinced yourself because the alternative required courage.”
Owen looked away.
Gabriel heard Clara in his own voice.
He hated that he deserved to.
“What else did Dorian ask you to do?”
“Nothing until tonight.”
Gabriel went still.
“What tonight?”
“He texted me after you went into the apartment.”
“From which phone?”
Owen slid his own across the desk.
Gabriel looked.
Dorian:
IF RUSSO COMES BACK ANGRY, LOCK DOWN ALL EAST-SIDE ACCOUNTS.
Owen:
WHY?
Dorian:
WE MAY HAVE AN INTERNAL PROBLEM.
Gabriel almost smiled at the irony.
Dorian was preparing to label Gabriel the internal problem.
“What are east-side accounts?”
“Operating cash. Two warehouses. Club accounts.”
“How much?”
“About twelve million.”
Enough to cripple Gabriel’s organization for days.
Enough to finance escape.
Owen said quietly, “I didn’t do it.”
“Why?”
“Because something felt wrong.”
Gabriel stared at him.
“Something felt wrong eight months ago.”
Owen lowered his head.
“Yes.”
Gabriel stood.
“You’re suspended.”
Owen looked up.
“What?”
“You are not touching another security system.”
“I can help.”
“You can help investigators.”
That word surprised him.
“Investigators?”
Gabriel did not explain.
Not yet.
But Clara’s warning had landed.
Expose him.
Stop him.
Not bodies.
Gabriel had spent his adult life treating law enforcement as something to evade.
Now he was beginning to understand that if he wanted to get Clara out of his world, he might have to stop solving everything inside its rules.
He left Owen under Vince’s supervision.
Then drove to the address where Sofia had taken Clara.
He did not go inside.
He parked across the street.
At 3:18 a.m., Sofia came out.
Gabriel lowered the window.
“How is she?”
“Not happy you’re here.”
“I didn’t ask if she was happy.”
Sofia leaned toward the window.
“I know your type.”
Gabriel almost smiled.
“Do you?”
“Men who use concern as an excuse for control.”
His expression went still.
Sofia continued.
“She is stable right now. Baby looks good. Her scar tissue is inflamed, and there are adhesions consistent with prior trauma. Her blood pressure concerns me. She needs rest, food, monitoring, and an actual prenatal plan.”
“Can she stay here?”
“For tonight.”
“Tomorrow?”
“We’ll talk tomorrow.”
Gabriel nodded.
“Did she say anything else?”
“Yes.”
He waited.
“She said you would ask whether she said anything else.”
Gabriel almost laughed.
“What did she tell you to say?”
“That her medical information is hers.”
“Fair.”
Sofia straightened.
Then paused.
“She also asked me about a woman.”
Gabriel’s attention sharpened.
“What woman?”
“The person who helped her escape.”
“What did she say?”
“Name was Elena.”
“Real?”
“Probably not.”
“Anything else?”
“A tattoo.”
Gabriel waited.
“A blue heron on the inside of her left wrist.”
That meant something.
Not immediately.
But somewhere.
He had seen it.
Gabriel drove away.
At 4:00 a.m., he called every quiet source he had.
Not soldiers.
Not enforcers.
Bartenders.
ER nurses.
Club managers.
Drivers.
Women who worked administrative desks.
People who saw things powerful men ignored.
By sunrise, he had one lead.
A woman with a blue heron tattoo had worked as a bookkeeper at one of Bell’s shell companies under the name Elena Cruz.
She disappeared three months earlier.
Same time Clara escaped.
The office had reported her as a thief.
Gabriel smiled grimly.
Another woman branded a traitor after disappearing.
Pattern.
By noon, Vince found a possible real name.
Mara Ellison.
Forty-two.
Former accountant.
No known criminal record before joining a logistics company later linked to Bell.
Last known address in Gary, Indiana.
Gabriel did not go personally.
He sent Sofia a message first.
TELL CLARA WE MAY HAVE FOUND ELENA. REAL NAME POSSIBLY MARA ELLISON. ASK IF SHE WANTS ME TO PURSUE.
Sofia replied fifteen minutes later.
YES.
Then:
SHE SAID DO NOT HURT HER.
Gabriel answered:
I WON’T.
He kept that promise.
Mara Ellison was alive.
Vince found her in a motel outside Milwaukee.
She had dyed her hair red.
Lost twenty pounds.
Kept a chair wedged beneath the motel doorknob.
When Gabriel entered the parking lot, he stayed outside.
Vince went in first.
Ten minutes later, he returned.
“She’ll talk to Clara.”
“Not me?”
“No.”
Gabriel expected irritation.
Instead, he nodded.
“Set up a secure video call.”
Clara appeared on a tablet twenty minutes later.
Gabriel stood outside the motel room, unable to hear the first half.
When the door finally opened, Mara looked at him.
Her blue heron tattoo was exactly where Sofia described.
“You’re Russo.”
“Yes.”
She slapped him.
Hard.
Vince stepped forward.
Gabriel raised one hand.
“No.”
Mara stared at him.
“That’s for believing them.”
Gabriel touched his cheek.
“Fair.”
“That’s all?”
“What would you prefer?”
“I don’t know. Men like you usually threaten people.”
“I’m trying something different.”
She laughed bitterly.
“Clara said that too.”
Gabriel’s throat tightened.
“What did she tell you?”
“That you listened.”
He looked away.
Mara became serious.
“Dorian Shaw knew everything.”
Gabriel’s face changed.
“How?”
“He met Bell every month.”
“Where?”
“Different places.”
“Bell worked for him?”
Mara nodded.
“At first, Bell thought they were partners.”
“At first?”
“Dorian had bigger plans.”
She folded her arms.
“He wanted you unstable.”
“Why?”
“Because nobody was going to follow him while you were strong.”
Gabriel stared.
“So he needed the organization to believe I was failing.”
“Exactly.”
Fulton Market.
Clara’s supposed betrayal.
The war.
Gabriel destroying profitable relationships out of rage.
All of it made him look less controlled.
Less strategic.
Less fit.
Mara continued.
“Bell wanted territory. Dorian wanted your chair.”
“What did he promise Bell?”
“Half the freight routes after you were gone.”
“And Clara?”
“She was insurance.”
Gabriel’s face hardened.
“For what?”
“If you survived the warehouse attack, Dorian knew losing Clara would keep you emotional.”
The simplicity of it was monstrous.
“He gave Bell the code?”
“Yes.”
“Camera?”
“Yes.”
“Phone records?”
“Bell’s people created them.”
“Account transfer?”
“Dorian moved the money using access he’d had for years.”
Gabriel closed his eyes.
He had given Dorian access.
Trusted him.
Mara continued.
“The woman on camera was wearing a wig. Her name was Sadie Kline. Bell paid her twenty thousand dollars.”
“Where is she?”
“Dead.”
Gabriel opened his eyes.
“Bell?”
“Probably Dorian.”
Loose ends.
“Why did you help Clara?”
Mara’s expression changed.
“Because I heard Bell tell Dorian the baby made her more valuable.”
Gabriel went still.
“They knew?”
“Dorian knew before Bell.”
“How?”
“I don’t know.”
Mara’s eyes narrowed.
“He said, ‘Russo’s going to have a son and never know it.’”
Gabriel’s chest tightened.
“Son?”
Mara shrugged.
“He assumed.”
Gabriel looked away.
“How early?”
“About five months ago.”
That meant Dorian had information from somewhere close enough to Clara’s captivity to know about the pregnancy.
Maybe Bell.
Maybe a doctor.
Mara continued.
“Then Clara tried to escape.”
Gabriel’s eyes returned to her.
“The knife.”
Mara nodded.
“Bell’s man Tomas caught her.”
“Where is Tomas?”
“Dead.”
“Who killed him?”
“I did.”
Gabriel stared.
Mara did not look proud.
“He was cutting her again.”
Again.
Gabriel felt violence rise.
He forced it down.
Mara saw the effort.
“I hit him with a tire iron.”
“And got Clara out?”
“After.”
“How?”
“Bell moved her to a house near Kenosha. I had bookkeeping access and delivery schedules.”
“You drove her?”
“First night. Then she refused to stay with me.”
“Why?”
“Because she thought anyone helping her would become a target.”
That sounded like Clara.
Mara looked toward the motel room.
“She left with two hundred dollars and a coat.”
Gabriel remembered the torn sleeve.
“Did Dorian know she escaped?”
“Not at first.”
“When did he find out?”
“Maybe six weeks ago.”
“And he waited.”
“He wanted Bell to find her.”
“Why?”
“Because if Bell killed her, Dorian stayed clean.”
Gabriel stared.
“Who gave Dorian the apartment address?”
Mara shook her head.
“I don’t know.”
Then she added:
“But Bell didn’t.”
That mattered.
Gabriel’s phone rang.
Sofia.
He answered immediately.
“What?”
Her voice was tense.
“Get here.”
Gabriel was already moving.
“What happened?”
“Clara’s blood pressure spiked. She’s having contractions.”
His entire body went cold.
“How far apart?”
“Not regular yet.”
“Baby?”
“Stable.”
“I’m coming.”
Sofia’s voice sharpened.
“Gabriel.”
He stopped.
“She doesn’t want you inside unless she asks.”
He closed his eyes.
Then nodded even though Sofia could not see him.
“I understand.”
He ended the call.
Mara watched him.
“Baby?”
“Yes.”
She studied Gabriel’s face.
Then said quietly:
“If you love her, don’t make her pregnancy another thing that happens according to your rules.”
Gabriel looked at the woman who had risked her life to save Clara while he was hunting her.
“I know.”
Mara shook her head.
“No.”
Her blue heron shifted as she crossed her arms.
“You’re starting to.”
Gabriel drove back to Chicago.
He did not know that while he was racing toward Clara, Dorian Shaw was sitting in Gabriel’s own office.
And across the desk from him sat Matteo Russo.
May you like
Gabriel’s cousin.
The sixth person who knew the code.
