Chapter 5 - The Midnight Drive
"Get in the back office," Frankie ordered Leo, her voice cold and absolute.
"Frankie—"
"In the office, Leo! Now!"
Leo didn't argue this time; the terror in his eyes was genuine. He scrambled back toward the small office, shutting the door behind him.
Frankie took a deep breath, picked up her heavy shop rag, and walked out through the side pedestrian door into the cool midnight air.
The black sedan was parked right beside the gas pumps. The rear passenger door opened, and Gabriel stepped out into the dim street light. He wasn't wearing a suit tonight; he wore a dark charcoal sweater, dark jeans, and a heavy leather coat that made his broad shoulders look even wider.
"You're working late, Francesca," Gabriel said, his deep voice carrying easily over the distant hum of the harbor traffic.
"I have a business to run," Frankie replied, stopping five feet away from him, her posture rigid. "I thought we had an agreement. No Costa soldiers on my street."
"I am not a soldier," Gabriel said quietly. "And I came alone."
Frankie looked through the clear windshield. He was right; there was no driver, no Marco, no armed guards in the back seat. Just Gabriel.
"Why are you here, Costa?"
Gabriel walked over to her F-150, leaning against the rusty tailgate, his dark eyes scanning her exhausted face. "Because my intelligence chief just informed me that a soldier from the Moretti crew was seen talking to your brother at an illegal card room in East Baltimore two hours ago."
Frankie felt her stomach drop into a dark, bottomless pit. Leo had lied to her. Again.
"What did he tell them?" Frankie whispered, her voice cracking despite her best efforts.
"Nothing important," Gabriel said gently. "Your brother doesn't know anything important. But the Morettis are desperate. They want control of Pier 42 before the new shipping union contracts are signed next month. They think if they pressure your family, they can force you to sabotage my crane maintenance logs, creating a safety shutdown that would strip Costa Vanguard of its port license."
Frankie stared at him, her chest heaving as anger, fear, and exhaustion clashed inside her.
"Is it true?" she demanded, taking two steps toward him. "Did your previous fleet manager end up in the Patapsco River?"
Gabriel’s expression didn't change. His dark gray eyes remained perfectly calm, holding hers with an intensity that felt almost physical. "Yes."
The admission hung in the cold night air like a blade.
"Did you kill him?" Frankie asked, her voice barely a breath.
"No," Gabriel said smoothly, taking a slow step toward her until he was standing directly in front of her. "Salvatore Vance was selling my equipment access codes to the Moretti family. When I found out, I fired him. He tried to run to Philadelphia to collect his payout, but the Morettis don't like loose ends. They put him in the river so he couldn't testify against them."
"And you brought me into this?" Frankie’s voice shook with fury. "You put my name on those manifests knowing there's a mob war happening over Pier 42?"
"I brought you in because you are the only person on the waterfront I can trust not to take a bribe from the Morettis," Gabriel said fiercely. He reached out, grabbing both of her upper arms, his grip firm and unyielding. "Look at me, Francesca."
Frankie glared at him, her brown eyes snapping with fire.
"I did not put a target on your back," Gabriel said, his raspy voice dropping to a low, intense whisper. "The moment your brother signed that marker, your family was already involved. The Morettis would have taken this garage, thrown you out onto the street, and used Leo until he died in an alley. I gave you a weapon. I gave you my protection."
"Your protection?" Frankie scoffed bitterly. "You're a mob boss, Gabriel! You're the dead octopus!"
Gabriel let out a low, dark laugh, his thumb softly stroking the side of her upper arm through her thick canvas jacket. "Perhaps I am. But I am your octopus, Francesca. And as long as you are under my contract, no one in this city touches you. Not the Morettis, not the feds, and not your useless brother."
Before Frankie could process the sudden, overwhelming heat of his words, Gabriel reached down, took her hand in his, and unlocked the passenger door of his sedan.
"Get in," Gabriel said.
May you like
"What? No! I have work to do—"
"Get in the car, Francesca," Gabriel commanded softly, his eyes searching hers with dark urgency. "The Morettis know where you live. You're not staying in this garage tonight."
