the devil wears a suit and tie • billy russo

chapter 14

What a strange twist of events, Isabella thought as her and Billy waited to meet with Frank Castle on the pier. Following her confrontation with Dinah, the agent requested a meeting with Iz where she revealed that she did know Frank was alive, and of course Iz feigned surprise. It had become imperative that they found Frank before Madani did—if he so much as got the chance to spill anything to her, it would be over for them. After a few days of calling him on the radio, he finally agreed to meet with them.

She didn't feel good about exposing her husband to Frank again—they were both trying desperately to get past that part of his life, and Frank's mere existence brought it all front and center. She didn't fear for herself around Castle, but she did worry for Billy. If they slipped up just once, there would be nothing to control the man's rage.

"You really had to show up in a fur coat?" Billy raised an eyebrow, "I told you to go casual, subtle."

Iz shrugged, "It's chilly out, this coat is warm. You're acting like we didn't just drive here in a Rolls Royce."

"We need a sleeper car."

"Will a Land Rover do? I'll head to the dealership tomorrow. Going to need an SUV with the baby anyway."

"I was thinking a Volvo, actually. It's safer and doesn't make a huge scene."

"I'll have cash for it by the end of the week."

"I want to finance this one."

She tapped her nails on the picnic table out of boredom. She was feeling antsy. Her recent cigarette use had begun to effect her ever so slightly, "Works just as well for me." Her hands were itching for something to do. Is this son of a bitch even going to show up?

Billy was starting to get annoyed, not only at the fact that her hands couldn't sit still, but the fast that their meeting was running late, "Would you stop fidgeting?"

"I need to smoke," she mumbled.

"You can't smoke anymore."

"I'm well aware," she replied as her leg began to bounce.

He rolled his eyes, "Do you need to go wait in the car?"

She suddenly went still, mostly just to prove a point. She still felt jumpy. "No."

"Go wait in the car, Iz," he demanded quietly, "and sit in the backseat so he can't see you through the windows."

"You invited me to do this with you, and now you don't want me here?"

"I changed my mind. Now get in the car."

Iz narrowed her eyes, "Sure, whatever." Truthfully, she didn't actually have much interest in speaking with Castle and knew Billy would handle the situation just fine on his own, but she couldn't tell him that. She marched back to the car, fur coat swishing behind her. She lied down in the backseat of the car boredly. She was really trying her best to not fall back on her bad habits and smoke because she knew how worried Billy was about her being pregnant, but it was hard. She wanted to reach for the vape in her pocket so badly—she didn't even know why she'd brought it. She still hadn't taken a pregnancy test, but she was a few days late already and she just sort of knew. She had known for the last week. Maybe it was bullshit, but she felt like something had changed in her. She wasn't ready to tell Billy any of this, of course. She decided she had to take a test that night. She had to just get it over with and hopefully give her husband some
peace of mind by having a definite answer.

"How'd it go?" she asked when he got back in the car.

"I'm alive," he sighed, "so I'd say it went pretty well."