"That must be my brothers" Tracy announced as the door opened and two men, a tall sturdy one and a slimmer black man stepped in. Both were dressed casually in large t-shirts and worn out jeans, the taller one wearing a baseball cap and holding a small paper bag.

"Come on in" Tracy said as she rose and took the bag from them.

"I bought some fruits, I know how you like them" the taller man said as he hugged Tracy.

"Pardon my manners, these are my brothers. Dave and Austin. They just arrived from Connecticut and will be staying for the night" she said as she offered them both the seat on either side of her.

Pete smiled tightly at the men, the knot in his stomach tightening by the second, he wished terribly that he hadn't shoved his handgun in that suitcase yet, it gave him a certain confidence when he was with the steel in hand. Nick too sat straighter on the couch, his eyes trained on 

"Don't play dumb. I saw it on TV, the Senator's baby in Washington DC, it's that baby, it's  Moses, how could you! You took an innocent child from the mother, you heartless monsters!" Tracy said and burst into tears.

"You're delusional woman" Pete replied flatly, his eyes on the suitcase under the couch, washing he could just get to it at once.

"Really? I trusted all of you! You betrayed me! Well, I had to do the right thing, I can't let you monsters harm that poor child" she continued and wiped fiercely at her tears.

"We'll have to take you in for questioning" the black man said.

"Please put your hands behind your head and move to the door"

Nick complied and rose from the couch.

"Slowly, we have the permission to take you dead or alive" the taller guy advised.

"Thank you Tracy, you did the right thing" the black man said and Tracy nodded eagerly.

Just then, Valeria emerged from 

Pete smiled fondly at the unpleasant memory, swinging his legs off the bed, he moved to the small drawer by the bathroom door where he had dropped his wrap of weed, he picked it up, searched his Jean for a lighter and took one long drag of it, exhaled dramatically and closed his eyes for a second or two. The gang. He could still remember when he'd first found Valeria, a known and almost busted hooker with a record of stealing that preceded her. From gold to diamond to lamps, wedding rings, shoes, cars, even priced books. Valeria had a way to her that endeared her to Pete. At her age, she still had the school girl heart that made her value the materialistic things of life. While he'd gathered more than three Ferraris, two yachts, a jet, eight helicopters and enough gold bars that he lost count of, Valeria had instead collected diamond encrusted earrings, artworks and artifacts from renown

"That must be my brothers" Tracy announced as the door opened and two men, a tall sturdy one and a slimmer black man stepped in. Both were dressed casually in large t-shirts and worn out jeans, the taller one wearing a baseball cap and holding a small paper bag.

"Come on in" Tracy said as she rose and took the bag from them.

"I bought some fruits, I know how you like them" the taller man said as he hugged Tracy.

"Pardon my manners, these are my brothers. Dave and Austin. They just arrived from Connecticut and will be staying for the night" she said as she offered them both the seat on either side of her.

Pete smiled tightly at the men, the knot in his stomach tightening by the second, he wished terribly that he hadn't shoved his handgun in that suitcase yet, it gave him a certain confidence when he was with the steel in hand. Nick too sat straighter on the couch, his eyes trained on the men that now began to chat away with Tracy.

Valeria entered the room at the worse time ever, cl

Chapter 13