CHAPTER 119: Tonight

POV: Avalon Pierce

Selene spoke up as soon as they stepped back into the apartment, her voice firm and reassuring, "You're not going alone."

“He said alone.”

"I don't care what he said," she snapped, her voice low and even, but with a hint of restrained fury. "A man who's likely responsible for two deaths just asked you to meet him in private - that's not a discussion, Avalon, that's a setup, a trap waiting to happen."

“I know that.”

“Then why are you considering it.”

He looked at her.

"He seemed to know a secret about Nene, something she had kept hidden. I was determined to find out what it was."

Selene suggested they could get the information they needed through the FBI, maybe by talking to Margaret or someone else they trusted. She definitely didn't want to go into a room alone with the guy who had her face plastered on his corkboard - that just seemed like a really bad idea.

He didn’t answer immediately.

She crossed the room and stood in front of him.

“Avalon.”

“I’m listening.”

"We're in this together, now," she said, her voice firm. "No more going solo. We made a promise to each other - complete honesty, no secrets. And that means we face everything, including danger, side by side."

He was quiet for a long moment.

“You’re right,” he said finally.

He called Agent Nunez instead.

Told her about the call.

"Wait, don't commit to anything just yet," Nunez advised. "Buy us some time, see if we can't stall him for a bit. If we're lucky, we might be able to track the next call and even set up some surveillance at the location he's going to suggest."

“He’ll know if there’s surveillance,” Avalon said.

"Likely," Nunez said, "guys like Reeves usually are. But we can't just sit back and let you go into a place we don't know much about without some kind of protection."

"Avalon spoke up, her words coming out slowly, 'What if I propose the location?'"

Selene looked at him.

"We need a place where we're in charge," he said. "A spot with cameras that are already set up. It should be public enough that he feels okay about coming, but not so open that we can't handle things if they go sideways."

Nunez was quiet for a moment.

“The foundation office,” she said.

“The foundation office,” Avalon agreed.

Reeves called back at six.

Avalon's voice came through the speaker, with Selene right next to him, while Nunez was listening in from a federal vehicle that was parked a couple of blocks away.

“Have you decided,” Reeves said.

"Avalon spoke up, his voice low and direct. 'The foundation office, 9 o'clock sharp. I'm going alone.'"

A pause.

“Just you,” Reeves repeated.

“Just me.”

“No agents in the building.”

“No agents in the building,” Avalon said, which was technically true. They’d be outside, not inside.

Another pause.

“Nine o’clock,” Reeves said, and hung up.

As soon as the call was over, Selene reached out and grasped his arm tightly.

“You are not doing this,” she said.

“I have to.”

"We don't have to take any action. The FBI can handle the situation on their own, and they can try to find him without putting you in a difficult position, like being in the same room as him."

Avalon's words were laced with a sense of urgency, "He's not going to stick around if he thinks the feds are onto him, he'll take off the moment he catches wind of it. This is our one and only shot to get to the bottom of what he's hiding before he vanishes into thin air."

Selene’s eyes were wet, though she wasn’t crying.

“I can’t lose you,” she said. “ Not now. Not after everything.”

He pulled her close.

He gave a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, you won't lose me," he said calmly. "I'll just walk into that office, and then I'll walk right back out. The whole time, there will be federal agents nearby, no more than a hundred feet away."

“That’s not a guarantee.”

"He nodded in agreement, saying, 'You're right, it's not ideal, but it's our best shot.'"

At 8:30, Selene drove him to the foundation office, parking exactly two blocks away, just as Nunez had told her to do.

“I want to be closer,” Selene said.

“You need to be where it’s safe.”

I want to be able to look at you, to see your face and know that you're really there with me.

Nunez, who was sitting in the front seat, turned to face them. "You'll be able to see what's going on inside the office from here," he said, nodding towards a screen. "There are cameras set up, so you can watch everything in real time, right from this seat."

Selene looked at the small monitor Nunez held up.

The office was empty, the only light coming from the desk lamp that Maya always seemed to leave on.

Selene spoke softly, "It's not the same when you're actually there."

Nunez nodded in agreement. "That may be the case," she said, "but it's the only option we have right now."

Avalon stepped out of the car.

Selene quickly reached out and caught his hand, stopping him from shutting the door.

“Come back,” she said. Simply. Just that.

“I will,” he said. 

She kissed him and then he stepped out of the car.

He took a walk, just two blocks, all by himself, and his heart was beating steady, even with everything that was going on. He couldn't help but think about his dad, and Nene, and how they'd all kept quiet for thirty long years, but now it seemed like that silence was finally about to be broken.

He reached the office at 8:57.

Unlocked the door.

Stepped inside.

The desk lamp shone down, its soft glow creating a cozy little pool of light in the same old spot it always lit up.

Everything else was dark.

He waited.

At nine exactly, the door opened behind him.

He turned.

David Reeves stood in the doorway, calm, composed, exactly as unremarkable as he’d been the one time Avalon had shaken his hand.

"Mr. Pierce," he said with a nod, "thanks for taking the time to come see me."

“Tell me about Nene,” Avalon said. “ Now.”

He gave a small smile and shut the door.

"It's not quite that easy," he said, his voice low and mysterious. "But I'll tell you the whole story, from start to finish. Let's begin with what really happened the night your father passed away - and what your grandmother's role was in all of it."