Breaking Beckett

Chapter 31

-Beckett-

Using Ellie to get to Mickey seemed to fair us well. I'd play him like a game of chess, but I would always make sure that I would have a trick up my sleeve. Ellie's life was on the line here and I wouldn't let him so much as breathe in the direction of her perfume.

Cash, Ellie and I packed the truck to go to Oregon, while I gave specific instructions to Kenny and Hunter to go to the bus station in Manelo and wait for Mickey. We followed behind them for the 2 hour trip to Manelo but we passed them when they took their exit.

I'm not stupid, I knew that Mickey would have the place surrounded, so I instructed them to go and wait for Mickeys car to come and then follow it home.

You see, any smart man would send a "lesser" man he could spare to a situation like that, in case things got shady. But not Mickey James, this was too personal for him to allow anyone else to deal in his business.

I didn't care about the money. Taking Ellie, loving Ellie, protecting Ellie has never had anything to do with her financial stature. I chose to love her because I never had any say in the matter, I loved her because she was who I was suppose to love.

"Are you okay?" I asked her before we left in our old beat up pickup truck.

"I'm ready, ready to be relieved of this anxiety that's trapped inside this place." She said as she fixed the collar on my jacket.

"I love you, Ellie. I'm sorry for what's been done. " I said to her.

"I love you, Beckett. Don't you worry about the things that have happened. I understand, I would protect you, too." She said before she kissed my lips.

We drove in silence for a while, the 3 of us, listening to the lowness of Mumford and Sons pouring out on the radio, watching the yellow lines pass through the windshield, the flicker of head lights, the whip of the wind through the cab, and relief.

That's exactly what it felt like, relief.

Ellie placed her fragile head on my shoulder and interlocked her arm around mine and rested her hand on my leg. I love her, I thought to myself.

She glanced at me, her brown doe eyes filling up my heart and I understood her to say the same thing about me. I love him.

Mickey had dropped the duffle bag of money off at the bus station at 8:55pm and waited for someone to come to the locker, 6B.

Hunter kept checking in with Cash as Ellie slept peacefully, rested against me.

At precisely 10:15, when no one showed, the "under cover" police and Mickey rounded up, had a brief talk and sat out into the parking lot.

"Tell Beck, Mickey is in his town car. They are headed North out of Manelo." Hunter relayed.

"Tell him to trail him, fall back but trail his car." I spoke to Cash.

"Turning left on Carlisle." Kenny said.

"Carlisle?" I questioned.

"Yeah. We are stopping down the block from Sargentino's Bakery." He replied.

"Marcus." I spoke.

"He's going to see Marcus." I told them.

"What do we do here boss?" Hunter asked.

"Take a look around, follow Mickey when he leaves." I said.

I knew, I knew I should have put a bullet between his eyes. I should have sat up a meeting with Mickey just like the meeting I had with Frankie this morning.