Beautiful Stranger (Completed)

CH 37

Xavier

I honestly hated Gino Rivera. But on some level I sympathize with him. He lost Charlie and he wanted her back. I could understand to a degree because if my wife left me, I'd want her back too.

"Beer?" He offered Nolan and me.

"No. We need to finish this." I told him.

We were sitting in the kitchen of the safe house. I just wanted to finish this with him and get back home to Charlie.

"Bunny's not coming?" I knew he was pissed about that.

Nolan tried not to smirk. When I told him on the way over here about her nickname, he couldn't stop laughing. I thought it was a cute nickname and wished I had thought of it myself.

"No. My wife won't be here."

He took a swig of his beer. "She's not coming back to you. You need to let it go." I told him.

He took another swig of his beer. "I really hate you." He said.

"Feelings mutual." I told him.

He didn't say anything. He looked away before sighing heavily, "She's different with you. I never got that side of her. The way she looks at you," he looked back at me. "Let's finish this."

I nodded, moving the computer towards him.

"What am I looking for?"

I told him. I wanted him to check over the list of names that were there the day his father got killed. I knew he'd be able to find that one name that stood out from all the rest.

It took awhile but Gino went through the names crossing them with the names of those who were inside the prison the days the other lieutenants died.

"Whose Freddie Pope?" He looked up from the list. "His name is mentioned a few times."

"I think he's just a traffic cop." Nolan looked over his list. "Yeah, he works at Charlie's precinct."

"Is there a picture?" Gino asked.

"We'd have to pull up police records." I said.

I took my laptop back, opening the list of the cops on record at Charlie's precinct. A few minutes later, I showed him a picture of Freddie Pope.

"Are you sure that's him?" Gino asked.

"Yeah, it's in the database. It's him."

Gino shook his head. "This name sounds familiar. And....I don't know. I don't think that's Freddie Pope." He scratched his head, his eyes thinking.

He was looking at the list again. "Most of these names are just traffic cops, right?"

"Yeah, that's right." I said.

"I don't think we're going to find it here." Gino said.

Crap. "Okay." I didn't even know where to go next.

"That list I gave you with the alias. Those ten names. I think one of them killed my father." Gino said.

"Are you sure no one else knew who those men were?" Nolan asked.

Gino nodded, "My dad wanted it that way." He looked back at me. "Is this all you have?"

"Yeah...it was the last thing I could think of." I told him.

"Okay." Gino got up. He went to his refrigerator, grabbing another beer. "I want to talk to Bunny."

"Not happening." I said, closing my laptop. "She's afraid of you in case you haven't realized it."