UNMASKED: Sequel to Behind the Mask Read online

  UNMASKED

  Sequel to Behind the Mask

  Heather Carnassale

  Disclaimer: This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2018 by Heather Carnassale

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN-13: 978-1985767676 (CreateSpace-Assigned)

  ISBN-10: 1985767678

  Cover Design by Peter and Caroline O’Connor at BespokeBookCovers.com

  For my Grandmom, Millie,

  a true inspiration

  Table of Contents

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  PROLOGUE

  While Remi Catalano sat, having her hair and make-up done, she mentally prepared herself for what was about to come—her television debut. It had been a few days after New Year’s when she finally agreed to be interviewed for a local news station.

  As she tried to remain calm and not let nerves get the better of her, she couldn’t help wonder if this was a huge mistake. Never one to seek attention, she was willingly putting herself out there for all of Philadelphia and the Tri-State area to see. It wasn’t as if most didn’t already know who she was; it was just now she was admitting on live television that she shot a man and witnessed his death. Of course, as soon as she recalled the latter, the tiniest of smirks crossed her lips. In her eyes, Tom Schaffer was beyond reproach, and still found it impossible to have any sympathy for him. All she had to tell herself was that he killed Jenna and Wendy, tortured Steve, and was only seconds away from murdering Liam. So, pulling the trigger, unleashing that bullet into somebody so vile, felt justified. Even though her shot wasn’t the fatal one, she never once regretted her role in his death.

  The hairstylist had just finished applying an exuberant amount of spray to Remi’s hair when one of the show’s producers informed, “Miss Catalano, they’re ready for you.”

  Remi smiled then quickly looked at her outfit, which consisted of a plain white turtleneck sweater and a dark gray woolen slim fit mini-skirt. She looked and felt confident as she trekked down the hall towards the studio. Jack Monahan, the family’s lawyer, accompanied her.

  Vanessa Kelcher, a television reporter, with perfectly coiffed shoulder-length bleached blonde hair, and almond-shaped green eyes, greeted them and announced she’d be conducting the interview. She then advised, they would rapidly go through some questions, seeking approval on whether or not they were acceptable. Remi tentatively nodded, suddenly feeling a tad on edge.

  The first five questions were fine until the reporter read the sixth, “What can you tell me about Liam Matthews?”

  Remi immediately clammed up, so the reporter quickly added, “The public is curious about him.”

  “I get that, but he’s not here, so with all due respect, I’d prefer to keep him out of this,” said Remi. Ms. Kelcher knew Liam was serious news bait. With such mystery surrounding him, getting the scoop would have been enormous, but so was scoring an exclusive interview with Remi, and she didn’t want to screw that up. Therefore, she backed off. A few minutes later, Remi hopped into a chair that was seated directly in front of the cameras and got promptly fitted with a tiny microphone, placed onto her sweater.

  Her Mom, Dad, and best friend, Melanie stood nearby for support.

  The intense heat from the lights made Remi a little uncomfortable, but she shook it off and handled the interview like a pro. After recalling what she remembered about the heist, Remi then answered every question as honestly as she could, throwing in a few half-truths every once in a while.

  When the interview switched to the recovery of the diamonds and Tom, the reporter brought up Liam, in a casual, non-threatening way. “When you and your friend, Liam Matthews arrived at the warehouse, Tom Schaffer ambushed the two of you,” the reporter surmised. Remi just nodded.

  “Did you know at that time that he was one of the bank fugitives?”

  Inside Remi cringed, as the half-truths continued to flow out of her mouth with alarming ease. “No, I didn’t know who he was until he started flaunting the pink diamonds and proudly declaring how he had scored the gems during the heist.”

  “Why did he threaten to shoot you and Liam?”

  Remi swiftly replied, “Because he was crazy!”

  The reporter then asked, “Does it worry you that two of the fugitives are still out there somewhere?”

  Knowing who those two men were, Remi responded by simply stating, “I’ve moved on with my life.”

  She then grinned and added, “I have a great job, a loving family and wonderful friends, no need to live my life in fear.”

  Ms. Kelcher smiled and told Remi it was good she was doing so well. After thanking Remi for doing the interview, the reporter faced the camera and warned the viewing audience that the two fugitives were still considered dangerous and if anyone had any information regarding them or the heist to call the Philadelphia Police or the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

  While Remi waited for an intern to remove the microphone from her shirt, she asked her parents and Melanie, “How’d I do?”

  In unison, they all replied, “Great!”

  She giggled, appreciating their praise, but felt she came off timid. Tony slipped his arm around his daughter’s shoulders and gave her a reassuring squeeze. He then suggested they all grab some lunch. She thought that sounded good but first had to run back to the dressing room to pick up her things. When she got there, she took a moment to regroup. While standing there, she caught a glimpse of herself in the over-sized vanity mirror. And for the first time in a very long time, she no longer looked like the downtrodden sap that constantly wallowed in self-pity, she finally felt good about herself. Her overall demeanor was one of positivity and hope.

  Beth peeked in, noticing Remi deep in thought. “Are you okay?”

  She released a huge smile. “Yes, Mom, I’m fine.”

  Beth gave a concerned look, making Remi laugh. “Stop worrying. I’m really okay,” she insisted. “But I’m also starving, so let’s get outta here!”

  As they headed out, the ill-timed and unwelcomed sight of Special Agent Lou DeGrazerio, halted their exit. “Good afternoon, Miss Catalano,” he said, extending his hand. “Hi,” she said curtly, reluctantly shaking it. Just then Detective Walt Weston walked up along side the agent, putting her at ease. “We’d like to talk to you for a few minutes,” said the detective. “If that’s okay,” he added, treading carefully. She immediately turned to her dad and Jack, who on cue, inquired, “What’s this about?”

  The agent replied, “The warehouse shooting.”

  Jack was quick to remind, “She’s been cleared in that case.”

  “Yes, but because it involved one of the gunmen from the bank heist, we just want to talk to her about it,” the agent stressed. Weston chimed in to assure Remi, as well as her family t
hat this was just a routine follow-up. Her dad asked if she was all right talking to them. Deep down she wasn’t, being that she already lied about Tom’s death, about her real association with Liam, and withheld information. She internally sighed, because it had only been a week since Liam had left, but she hadn’t heard from him, and now once again in a matter of an hour, his name was repeatedly mentioned.

  Figuring if she didn’t speak with them, she was just prolonging the inevitable, so grudgingly she agreed. The two investigators escorted them into a diner across the street. After the two men, Remi, Jack, and Tony had sat down at a table, a waitress asked if they wanted anything, but DeGrazerio told her just to bring over a pot of coffee. Beth and Melanie sat at a booth nearby.

  “So, Miss Catalano,” the agent said before she politely corrected him. “Please, call me Remi.”

  “Okay, Remi, I’ve been informed that your memory returned but that you didn’t quite recall everything that happened during the heist,” he explained. “Has that changed?”

  “Are you asking if I remember more than what I already told Detective Weston?” she countered, which DeGrazerio didn’t appreciate her flippant attitude. “Yes,” he replied then questioned, “What can you tell us about being in the vault with one of the gunmen?”

  She waited until the waitress poured the coffee while also quieting the tiny voice inside her head that was telling her to monitor what she divulged. “There isn’t much to tell. He wore a ski mask the entire time and barely said two words to me.”

  He then asked, “What did the two of you do while in there?”

  “I sat on one side while he sat on the other.”

  “Did he threaten you?”

  Without one ounce of hesitation, Remi stated, “No.”

  The quickness of her response set off a red flag for the skeptical agent. “He didn’t cause your head injury?”

  She uttered an emphatic no then explained, “A different man pushed me into a concrete pillar.”

  “Was it Mr. Schaffer?”

  She shrugged. “Since I never saw any of their faces, how would I know?”

  He smirked. “But you are one hundred percent positive it wasn’t the one who you were inside the vault with?”

  “Yes, because that one had vacated the lobby when my injury occurred.”

  Remi watched as he wrote in a small notebook.

  As he continued to write, he probed, “How did you get to the exit?”

  Right away the instinct to lie was strong, but before she could even attempt to convince herself not to, the embellished scenario spilled from her lips. “I had blacked out, and when I briefly came to, I found myself there.”

  The agent seemed satisfied with her explanation until he brought Liam into the fold.

  “We’ve been trying to reach Mr. Matthews, but can’t seem to locate him, do you know where he is?”

  “Uh—yeah, he….umm…went on vacation,” she conjured up, not very convincingly.

  “Where’d he go?” Weston questioned, finally joining in on the conversation.

  “He didn’t tell me.”

  “He just took off?” asked DeGrazerio. She nodded then casually sipped the hot coffee.

  “Have you spoken to him?”

  “No.”

  “Well, if and when you do speak, please tell him that we’d like to talk to him.”

  “Okay,” she said smiling facetiously, but inside feeling as if she could puke.

  Jack then inquired, “Is there anything new in the heist investigation?”

  Weston was about to blab about finding the underground hole, and tunnel, but DeGrazerio coughed, nudging him in the process. The agent then remarked that it was still an active investigation, and they were currently following up on some promising leads but nothing tangible yet. Remi tuned out the agent while pondering about calling Liam to let him know the feds wanted to talk with him. Though an ominous reason to call, it would give her an excuse. Not that she felt she needed one, but also didn’t want to appear needy or desperate. Remi thought this little impromptu interrogation was over, but the annoyingly, persistent DeGrazerio once again, brought up Tom. “Right after the shooting, you told Detective Weston that Schaffer confessed to you that he wished he had been the one locked inside of the vault with you.”

  Remi nodded but silently cursed, shit.

  The agent was obviously trying to trip her up, but Remi refused to play along.

  “We are just trying to figure out why he would have gone to the warehouse, which is owned by Matthews,” he commented with a slightly sardonic tone. Jack interceded, “He most likely followed them there.”

  Weston was quick to agree, but DeGrazerio wouldn’t let it go. “So, he followed you and Matthews to the warehouse then just revealed himself for what reason exactly?”

  Remi shrugged. “I have no idea.”

  He glanced down at his notes then stated, “You also said he was taunting you two with the diamonds, right?”

  She nodded.

  “And he admitted that he stole the diamonds from the vault, correct?”

  “Yeah, that’s what he said,” she replied, growing more aggravated by the minute.

  “It just doesn’t make sense that he would incriminate himself when he had the diamonds and could have gone far away without ever being caught,” he surmised. Remi just shrugged again. DeGrazerio closed the notebook then looked her directly in the eye and remarked, “It’s almost as if he was exacting some type revenge or something.”

  “On me?” she asked.

  Before the agent could respond, Weston warned, “Don’t scare her.”

  “I’m not trying to, but there are two other mercenaries unaccounted for, so if Schaffer sought her out, what would stop the other two?”

  All Remi could think of, was get me the hell out of here. Tony felt this had gone on too long, so he abruptly ended by announcing, “We’re done here.”

  Weston apologized if the questioning was too upsetting. Remi assured it wasn’t; she was just tired of rehashing it all. To which he completely understood and wasn’t happy with DeGrazerio’s lack of tact. “I can’t promise that we won’t need to talk to you again,” the agent said, sticking a few dollars on the table. “And don’t forget to let your friend know we want to talk to him.”

  Jack walked the two men outside while Remi remained seated. “You okay?” asked her dad.

  But before she could answer, her mom joined them. “I hope they didn’t upset you,” commented Beth. Deciding to placate instead of wallowing, Remi said that she was just fine. But when they asked if she wanted something to eat, she politely declined, stating she had lost her appetite and just wanted to go home. Once again her parents were worried about her, something they had grown accustomed to. Though she did her best to pretend that nothing ever bothered her, they both felt Remi lived in a perpetual state of denial. “I’ll talk to you guys later,” she said as she hugged them both goodbye then left with Melanie, who had driven Remi to the studio. On their ride home, the conversation mostly consisted of the interrogation. “I should call Liam,” said Remi, who then immediately added, “But I’m not going to.”

  “Do you think that’s wise?” questioned Melanie.

  Remi thought for a moment. “I don’t even know where he is.”

  “No, but you have his number.”

  “He left for a reason; he obviously doesn’t want to deal with all of this shit.”

  All of a sudden, Melanie slammed on the brakes. “Hey, what gives?” barked Remi.

  “That’s very admirable of you not to want to burden Liam with this crap but remember he left you to deal with it on your own!”

  Remi knew Melanie was right, but of course, she was still going to defend him. “He didn’t know they were going to interrogate me again.”

  “Why are you going to give him a pass?”

  “What’s with the harsh attack, thought you were okay with him now?”

  Melanie started driving again but couldn’t stop hamme
ring her point. “Yes, I am grateful that he saved your life, but the fact that he just left with total disregard for you, kind of pisses me off!”

  “I appreciate you having my back, but I’m fine,” she said. “And if I hear from him, I will let him know, but I’m not seeking him out.”

  “It’s your life, but I think if he knew that they were harassing you that he’d be concerned,” she said.

  “Wait, I’m confused, are you pissed at him or want him to ride in on his white horse and rescue me?” joked Remi. “Both,” laughed Melanie, while pulling the car into the apartment complex lot, where her boyfriend, Justin was standing out front of the building waiting for them. Not wanting to be a third wheel, Remi opted to hang next door at Liam’s place. So, after quickly grabbing a few necessities, she unlocked the deadbolts, which always made her grin thinking it was more like Fort Knox she was entering instead of Liam’s apartment. The moment she stepped inside and closed the door, an instant sense of security enveloped her. Not just physically but emotionally. And yet at the same time, there was a haunting emptiness. However, there was no point in dwelling on the fact that he wasn’t there. It was just something she had to accept, whether she wanted to or not. She released an exhaustive sigh then walked over to the painting that still hung on the wall. Studying it, she noticed something she hadn’t before. His grandfather’s name etched in the bottom right-hand corner. “Warren Matthews,” she whispered. A smile erupted on her lips as she imagined calling Liam by his birth name and guessed that at one time he was probably proud of it until his relationship with his father disintegrated.

  There was so much about Liam she didn’t know or fully understand and often wondered if she would ever get the opportunity to do so.

  She plopped down on the always comfortable, big cushioned couch, curled up her legs, and took out her phone. Looking at the contacts list, she stared at Liam’s name, and the temptation to call him was intense. Just to hear the smooth sound of his baritone voice would be worth it, she thought. She then giggled at how silly she was being and decided against contacting him. Instead, she was grateful that he allowed her to stay in a place she found much solace in.