Dark as Daylight Ch. 15

Not to be outdone, William did nearly the same thing in China. He purchased a two-year-old exclusive apartment building that was built at a cost of $300 million, or 19,064,000,000 Chinese Yan, at the bargain basement price of $91 million."

"How did you do that William?"

"Sometimes you have to be in the right place, at the right time, and that's what happened to me with this building.

The Chinese government decided to shake some trees to see what would fall out of them in the way of graft, government influence peddling, and outright thievery of government funds. This building just happened to be one of them. The bank who held the mortgage on this building was owned by the brother of the builder. He lent him the money to build this building at below market rates. At some point during the building process, money started disappearing from the bank. Some of the apartments were winding up with fixtures made of gold, floors of marble from Spain, and Italy. The most expensive things you could possibly buy, in the world, were winding up in this building.

When the government auditors began checking on what was happening, people started disappearing quickly. They showed up at airports with suitcases packed with money, before their heads disappeared from their bodies. Suddenly, this building went on the market, and no one was willing to flash any cash to purchase it, except me, for fear the government might want to audit their books first. The Chinese were always auditing me. They knew my business was as clean as could be; so when I made an offer, they took it. I was stupid, I should've offered them less, and I think they would've taken that."

"Don't you just love when people with silver spoons in both sides of their mouth complain?"

"I don't think they're complaining, I think they're just talking business, and how it could be made better."

"Thank you Joseph, very well said."

"Now, I insist we go to the living room."

No one dissented.

As they were talking, Alfonse interrupted them.

"Excuse me sir, you have an important phone call in the study."

"Excuse me everyone I'll be back shortly."

Laura said, "I'll bet you it's the Colonel, and he's packing his bags to go to Italy."

"Why are you always so negative about people?"

"Probably, because the last 18 years of my life the only people I've had to deal with, are the dregs of the earth."

"Do you mean the people at the FBI are really that terrible?"

"Joseph, when I get you back to the hotel I'm going to rip your lungs out. You know that's not what I meant."

"I may know what you meant, but that is not what you said."

"Are you going to be a pain in the ass all my life?"

"How long are you going to live?"

"Longer then you are."

"In that case, I'll be the last face you see."

"I hate you Joseph. I really truly hate you."

"Mom, she has it really bad."

"It's going to be a real shock to her, when she finds out about it."

"When I find out about what?"

"When you find out how fiercely you love him, and every time you are apart you are going to miss him. It's going to be like a piece of you is missing, until you are back together."

"That's nonsense. I've lived alone for 18 years, and the only thing I've missed during that time was my cat. When my first one died, I went to the vet and got a second one, when it died I got another one.

If Joseph dies, he dies, and I will be very sad that he went before I did. It will not be the end of the world for me. I will go on just as I have before."

"Mom, when Lenny moves out from next-door, let's buy that unit for her. If anything happens to Joseph, she's going to need a lot of help, and a long time to heal. There's no sense having to travel to see her every day. We might as well have her next door to us so we can keep an eye on her."

"You guys are nuts."

"I haven't married you yet, and you're planning on my funeral?"

William walked into the room looking a little pale.

"Laura, Joseph, you can get married anytime you wish. The decision was made, and action has been taken against Turner Stansfield. He is no longer amongst us. I have just received that information from a secure source.

Why couldn't he be happy with what he had? I will never understand him taking this action against our country, and against our own monetary interests.

No foreign nation would be so stupid as to try to take those two boys. It would not create an incident; it would start a war. What was wrong with that man?"

"Do you know if anyone spoke to him before he was terminated?"

"All I know is what I was told during this phone call. I didn't know there was going to be a meeting this soon. I told them to leave me out of the loop because of my friendship with him, and they did. It's the 'WHY' question that will always haunt me. When we saw each other, or talked with one another, there was never an inkling that anything was wrong with him. There was no hint that he was going behind my back to do something like this. It was always a positive conversation. Straight, good, forward looking visions for our projects. Nothing indicated he had a problem, or he was delusional."

"I know you said you have all the information required to convict him, and it's in the envelope you gave me. Is there any possibility you and the members of the board could be wrong?"

"No, the people we had working on this case are top notch. Former police detectives from all around the country worked on this for us for over two years. We kept breaking them up to make sure they did not become one clique, where one overpowering member could influence the others. Four of your former associates aided us in this task, and we didn't point them in any direction.

Each of us was a suspect, and we held nothing back from them. They are the ones that zeroed in on Turner. They are the ones that got the court orders to wiretap his home and business phones. They wiretapped his car and his cell phone. If you want to talk to one of the former FBI agents that worked on this case, that can be easily arranged. He can walk you through it to your satisfaction."

"Let me go through the paperwork first, then I'll make the decision."

"It doesn't matter to me Laura, whenever you want to talk to any of these people, it can be arranged."

Joe tapped Laura on the shoulder.

"What do you want now?"

"I'm sorry I bothered you. I just wanted to know when you wanted to get married?"

"You are such a pain in the ass."

"Well folks, it appears I am useless here, so I will go back to the hotel. When my fiancé is finished abusing you, as she is abusing me, you can send her back. Good night all."

He stood up, walked towards the door, and watched Alfonse's eyes. As his pupils began to narrow, Joe jumped straight up, tucking his knees against his chest. Laura flew under him, landing face first on the floor.

As Joe landed, he sat down on her back.

"When are you going to realize I have all your tricks memorized. I am supposed to get abject obedience out of you for 24 hours. So far I haven't received a minute of it. Stay here and enjoy the rest of your evening. I'm going for a walk in the park. I don't want you anywhere near me. If I want to be insulted by anyone, I can get it from a drunk. I don't have to get it from the woman I'm supposed to love, and marry soon. Good night Laura."

"Joseph don't go, please don't leave me."

"Maybe you should've thought about treating me a little better before asking me to stay with you. I'm tired of this shit Laura, I really am."

George opened the front door for him to leave.

He closed the door as Laura got there.

"Open the damn door, I have to get him."

"The only way you're going to get him tonight, is at the point of your gun. I've been in his position before, and if I were you I would stay away and let him cool off."

"Dammit."

She walked back into the living room and all eyes turned towards her.

"I apologize for my behavior, and for ruining this wonderful evening. I am not normally this way when I am a guest in someone's home. I don't know what came over me, but now I have to get myself together, go back to the hotel, and find out if I'm still getting married.

He's right, I did treat him poorly tonight, and many other nights. I'm so used to being superior to every man in the Bureau, I treat him the same way. I've never had a life outside the Bureau, and that's my problem.

I have never had a life of my own. It's always been work, and I've never known anything else. Good night Mr. Zabo. Jemma, Gwen, William, it was a pleasure to meet all of you. Patrick, until next time. Audra you were extremely quiet. I guess we will talk sometime in the future. Good night.

"Laura, I would rather you spend the evening here, amongst friends. I don't like the way you were talking. I've lost several friends because of momentary bouts of depression. I am not going to lose you. You have a very bright future ahead of you. You will work your way out of this problem with Joseph, because he loves you as much as you love him."

"Mr. Zabo, I'm fine."

"I know you are, but look to your left."

She did, and both George and Alfonse had their weapons pointed at her.

"Please remove the weapon from your hip first, and then the little one from your ankle. You may have them both back in the morning, after a good night sleep."

"I won't bother telling you there are half a dozen charges I could bring you up on, because you already know it."

Jemma walked over to her.

"Honey, give me your weapons, please. Don't make me smack you. I already said that you were going to miss that big lug, when you were separated from him. You're paying for it dearly. Let your body rest tonight, and you will see everything clearer in the morning."

"Did you see the way that jackass jumped?"

"He knew you were coming."

"I know he knew I was coming, but how did he know?"

"Tell her how he knew when Alfonse?"

"It beats the hell out of me Mrs. Zabo. I didn't say a word to him."

*********************************

Joe walked through Central Park, down Fifth Avenue and across town to their hotel. He walked slowly, with many stops in the middle for a hot dog here, and a cup of coffee there. He wanted her to be asleep, when he returned to their room. He was going to pack his things, leave her a note, and return to South Carolina. The decision was not an easy one, but it was one he had to deal with. He loved her, there was no doubt in his mind about it. The problem was she didn't respect him; not as a man, or as a prospective mate.

Numbers one through three respected him, but he didn't love them the way he loved her. There was no shame being single. If Tom didn't like him tagging along as a third wheel, then he wouldn't. He enjoyed his work. He made a great deal of money doing it, and he adored those two boys. What else did you need to move forward in your life. He didn't need anything else.

He was doing one hell of a job convincing himself he was right, until he walked into their suite, at 3 AM and she wasn't there.

"Damn bitch probably tried to find me in Central Park. All that FBI training made her think she could find a needle in a haystack. Fuck, what do I do now? I'll call the house and see if she's there."

"Zabo residence, this better be damn good, because this call is being recorded."

"This is Joseph Constantine; would you happen to know the whereabouts of Laura Burkart?"

"Mr. Constantine, she left here a little bit after midnight. She waited for you to return, and when you didn't, we called a cab for her. She said she was going back to your hotel."

"She probably went to the FBI building instead. She's more at home there then anywhere else. If you hear from her tell her, I'm on my way back to South Carolina. Would you do that for me please?"

"I will not. Take care of your own dirty work. Go to the Federal Building, and tell her to take a flying hike. If you are going to break up with her, break up like a man, not like a midget. Don't ask anyone else to do it for you, because you won't be able to look at yourself in the mirror tomorrow morning."

"Who said I wanted to?"

"She's probably feeling as good as you are right now. Go to sleep, you'll feel better in the morning."

"I just had two burritos; do you think I'm going to sleep anytime soon?"

"Good night Mr. Constantine."

*****************************

"Room service, this is Joe Constantine in room 2016, I need enough coffee for eight people and 2 cups please.... Yeah, you can throw some of those small Danish on there too. Thank you very much."

10 minutes later the coffee was there, and Joe was lying on the bed drinking his 2^nd cup, when the phone rang.

"Yes."

"I'm so sorry."

"We are not going to work Laura. I've been thinking about it all night and we are not going to work. I know you love me, and I sure as hell love you, but you have no respect for me, none at all. I knew something was wrong, but I didn't put it together until this evening. I am not going to be a floor mat for anyone, especially a wife."

"You're right, Joe and I have no defense for my actions. I will do anything, anything at all not to lose you. I will quit the Bureau in the morning, if that's what it takes, but I do not want to lose you.

You are the first spark of life I have ever found outside of work, and it scared me from the very beginning. I told you how afraid I was of you. Please don't throw me away. I know you want to, and you have every right to, but please don't, because I love you, and I do respect you. You are probably the only man I do respect, because you're not afraid of me. You're not afraid to look me in the eye, and tell me exactly what I am, even though I don't want to hear it.

You should have been a fly on the wall after you left. I got a lecture from everyone; your grandfather, Jemma, Gwen, William and your grandfather again. I knew I was wrong, but they pounded it into my head just to show me how wrong I was."

"Where are you, I will come and get you. This is not over. We have a lot to talk about, but if you're willing to work with me, I will work with you. I don't want to lose you either. Who wants to lose a midget as a girlfriend?"

"You do know I'm not going to allow you to go that far."

"I know. I just didn't want you to feel sorry for yourself. I wanted you to have something to look forward to when you got home. Do you remember the number of the suite we're in?"

"I thought you were coming to get me?"

"How can I possibly come to get you? You haven't told me where you are?"

"I'm being held hostage at the Zabo residence. They took my weapons and my clothes away from me so I could not escape."

"Laura, you amaze me. You need neither of those things to escape. All you need is your brain. Once you are free, that's when you look for assets to help you stay free."

"How many alarms does this house have?"

"Six."

"They also have to have burglar alarms on the windows and doors. So that would make it seven or eight. How am I supposed to get out of the third floor bedroom, in my underwear, safely to ground level?"

"Use your head Laura. You walk down three flights of stairs to the front door. You take out the guard at the door and walk outside. I'll be in the cab waiting for you."

"I can't leave without my weapons. It would be a breach of protocol."

"I'll meet you there 9 o'clock. That's when my grandfather has breakfast. Get some sleep, tiny. You are so lucky I love you."

"If I am lucky, and after they finish wiping your blood off the floor, we will work on my other problems."

"In our three matches, you are one for three. In baseball that is a decent batting average. In football it's a losing record. In wrestling it's a losing record. You have a lot to prove young woman, and you have to prove it to me."

"I have not heard prettier words come from your mouth in a long time."

"They have gyms all over the place, in New York. I would suggest we wait until Sunday to take advantage of them. The opera is tonight. I would hate for you to have two black eyes and a busted nose in the pictures we are sending to Italy, and giving my grandfather. I think it would be totally inappropriate, don't you?"

"Joseph, just in case you don't think I'm counting, that's number four. I don't believe I've ever let anyone get that high."

"That's what your problem is, Laura. I am not just anyone. I already have your number. I know everyone of your weaknesses, but most important I know everyone of your strengths. As soon as we start I take every one of your strengths away from you, and all your weaknesses are open to me. That's when I'll start spanking you, and biting your ass, and your ear, just to show you who was going to be the master of the household."

"I know you are going to be the master of the household, Joseph. I am going to be working and protecting your ass from enemies of the United States."

"I am so proud."

"You are such a pain in the ass."

"Get your beauty sleep, believe me, if anyone needs it, it's you."

"You are dead."

"Isn't life grand?"

"Joseph, I'm going to take you apart, bone by bone, starting from the inside. Your flesh will remain intact, but every piece of bone will be broken."

"I can't wait to see that trick done. If you wait until we get back to South Carolina, you may even impress the boys."

"Richard is almost 16, what are we going to do about him and girls?"

"He hasn't expressed an interest yet, but when he does we will find someone about your height and weight, and see what happens."

"Why are you doing this to me?"

"Because it's very rational; you're over there, and I am over here. I am as safe as I will ever be. Once we are married, I hope we are never this far apart again."

"What happens when I have to go to work?"

"You will hire me as your bodyguard."

"The Bureau doesn't work that way. They have someone from the protection department act as my bodyguard."

"Is he better than I am?"

"How would I know? I haven't met him or her before."

"Does he work as cheaply as I do?"

"Probably not."

"Is he going to have sex with you on your desk?"

"Absolutely not, and neither are you."

"Why would that be?"

"It's against policy."

"Do you get time off for lunch?"

"Yes, one hour."

"You will be on your desk for 59 minutes and 59 seconds."

"You are such a pain in the ass."

"You said you would think about it, for a very long time. Have you come up with an answer?"

"Yes."

"Was that the answer to the question, or just the answer to the question about the question?"

"I will leave that up to your imagination."

"You had better watch out when we are in bed, because my imagination could be your worst nightmare."

***************************************

Joseph was in his tuxedo waiting for Laura to make her entrance from the bathroom, in the gown. Carolina sent one of the seamstresses to their room to help her dress and make sure everything was perfect.

When she entered the room, the look on Josephs' face told her everything she needed to know.

"Holy shit, the Queen has arrived, all hail the Queen. Look at you, you are stunning!"

"Is it me or the gown?"

"The person in the gown, makes the gown perfect. You are stunning in the gown."

He kissed her lightly so he didn't mess her makeup.

"Take your clutch, we have to go downstairs for the pictures."

For the first time, she did not argue with him. She took his arm as he led her out of the room.

As they walked down the hall towards the elevators, people moved out of her way so she could pass by. She could hear them make remarks about the gown, and her.

As they reached the mezzanine floor, they looked for the area photographer said he would be set up. It was very easy to find. Standing there was the entire Zabo clan dressed to kill. When they saw Laura approaching they broke into smiles. Williams Senior walked over to her and kissed her.