Coming Under Fire

I wake the next morning to the sound of John's alarm going off on his cell phone. He quickly rolls over and turns it off before crawling out of bed.
"What are you doing? I thought you had the day off?" I ask.
"Some guy called in. I'm going in for him." He says, pulling his jeans on.
I watch as he grabs a shirt from the closet and pulls it on over his head. He grabs a hooded sweatshirt and walks over to my side of the bed and gives me a kiss.
"I'll finish in the other room. You sleep. I'll call when I can. Love you."
"Mm, you too." I mumble, rolling back over.
I hear him leave the room and move around in the apartment for a few minutes and then the click of the door shutting, before I fall asleep again.
When I wake up again, its two hours later and I'm feeling very rested and motivated. I have a full day of cases and I was hoping to get an early start, but sleeping in felt much better. I roll out of bed and stagger out to the kitchen to make coffee. While the coffee is brewing, I pour myself a bowl of Cap'n Crunch and eat it sitting at my tiny kitchen table.
After my leisurely breakfast, I take a shower and take my time on my hair and makeup, before getting dressed in jeans, a blue and black plaid button up shirt and my leather jacket. I also pull on my black cowboy boots on because I'm feeling especially kick ass.
My day is fairly uneventful and I spend most of it driving around. I finish up at the courthouse, then stop by my bosses office to pick up a paycheck, which I promptly take to the bank. Woo hoo, rent is paid. To celebrate my successful day, I stop by the grocery store and buy all the essentials: peanut butter, bread, box of Oreos, some ice cream, a bag of potato chips, a box of cereal, beer and a bottle of red wine.
I take all of my goodies home and am surprised to find Frank parked next to my usual spot. He gets out of his SUV when I park and I meet him at the side of my car.
"Whats up?" I ask, reaching into my car for my groceries.
"We need to talk upstairs." He says.
"That sounds serious."
"It is."
We go up to my apartment and I drop my grocery bags onto the counter and turn to Frank.
"So, what is going on?"
"Lets sit." He motions me into the living room. I sit on the edge of the couch. He sits across from me on the coffee table. Our knees are touching, but neither of us seem to notice. He starts on a sigh.
"Jesus, its been a hell of a day." I wait.
"This afternoon we got a call, actually two calls. One, reporting a shooting down at the peir. The second from the hospital, reporting a gun shot victim." My heart stops pounding and I try to suck in some air as he pauses.
"It was Dom."
"Oh my god, no." He holds up his hand.
"He's fine. He got hit in the leg. They operated on him and he's going to fully recover. If John hadnt gotten him to the hospital when he did, it might have been a different story."
"Wait. John? What does John have to do with this?" I ask, suddenly confused. He sighs again and runs his fingers through his jet black hair.
"John was on the scene at the peir."
"I don't understand."
"They were on the peir together, something happened, and they apparently got in a shootout with four other guys."
"How do you know all of this? Did you talk to John?" I ask. He ignores my question.
"The other four men were all killed, Isabella. They were all shot dead. And then, less then five mintues later, security cameras filmed John dropping Dom off at the hospital and taking off."
"You don't think John is involved in this. There must have been someone else there. Maybe Dom called John after he'd been shot." I'm rambling in my confusion.
"Iz, at this point we're placing John at the scene, along with his gun."
"His gun?"
"Shells from the same model were found on the scene." I don't say anything. I'm just so confused.
"When was the last time you saw or heard from John?" He asks quietly.
"This morning. He spent the night, but he left early this morning because he got called into work."
"We called his work. He never came in and wasnt scheduled to."
"That can't be right. Frank, there is something wrong here." I say, shaking my head.
"I agree, but I can't get ahold of John. And Dom hasnt woken up yet."
"I want to see Dom."
"You can tomorrow. You should know, he'll probably be arrested. He had priors."
"I don't care if he's in the hospital or in jail, I need to talk to him."
"You and me both."
I reach into my purse and come up with my phone. I find John's number and dial it. No answer. His voice mail picks up the call.
"Call me as soon as you get this. Its important." I say and hang up. Frank's mouth forms a straight line and I can see the stress in his eyes.
"Have you talked to Mom and Dad?" I ask.
"Yeah. I just came from there. Mom is a wreck." I drop my head into my knees.
"I just don't understand any of this."

"Has John ever talked to you about working with Dom. Ever mention anything that didn't seem right to you at the time?" He asks.
"No. John has always been very honest about his past, but has made it clear the past is in the past."
"This is just a shitty situation. I hate it for our family, especially you."
"I just don't think this is what it seems."
"It seems like mob, babe."
"I know... But John isn't involved in the mob. And I don't think Dom would knowingly involve John in something that was obviously dangerous."
"We'll find out as soon as I can talk to him. In the meantime, if you hear from John, or see him, you need to call me. At this time, he's only wanted for questioning. If he stays in hiding, it looks bad."
"I'll let you know."
"I'm sorry, Izzy." He says, hugging me. I hug him back and see him to the door.
My head is spinning. I drop down onto my couch and tuck my head down between my knees until the clanging in my ears stops and my brain clears. None of this makes sense. If John did in fact start working with Dom behind my back I would be furious. He knows that. He's always known my feelings about Dom's business. I think back to last night and how strained the two of them were at dinner. Could it have been a sign?
And could John have done this, murdered four men? If he felt his life was in danger, maybe. But, it just feels off. And now he's out there somewhere, hiding out. Where? And why hasnt he gotten ahold of me? I feel so betrayed and confused. I don't even know what to think or what I should do.
I pick up my phone and dial the hospital and ask for my cousin, Leah, who works ER. When she comes on the line, I ask about Dominic's condition.
"He's awake, in and out of conciousness, but he's on some heavy drugs." She reports. She also tells me my parents and Carmen are with him. I thank her and hang up.
I try John's number again. Once again, he doesn't answer.
"Call me." I tell his voice mail. After I hang up I toss my phone onto the couch cushion.
"Dammit, John."
One part of me is pissed he's leaving me out of the loop. Like he doesnt trust me to include me. And he knows what that does to me. He knows that if he leaves me out of the picture, I'll get pissed off and probably be done with him, when if he just told me what was going on, I could help.
The other part knows that John is smart. He's probably just distancing himself from his loved ones to keep them out of trouble. John isn't like Dom in that regard. If Dom was in trouble, he would bring all that down on me or others that he cared about.
I take care of my groceries and sit down with a beer and dial my parents phone number. No answer, so I hang up. Best to delay that conversation, because I can't even imagine what my mother is going through. My dad would probably just say Dom had it coming and John is a no good SOB for working with him. But my mother is more emotional. She's always hated Dom's business. Always feared for his life or that he would end up in prison.

I lay my head back on the couch and shut my eyes for a few minutes. Hopefully when I talk to Dom, things will be sorted out. John won't have to hide out anymore. Everything will go back to normal. But, I just have a feeling Dom's story is going to make everything more complicated.