Page 62 of Finding Love in the Clouds

“We’ve got some time,” Gabriel answered, kissing her on the cheek before reclaiming his seat, Anthony following right behind him. “What’s on your mind?”

“Actually, this is likely more Anthony’s territory, but of all our contacts, you are the only two we can actually talk to about this, so I’m hoping you will have some advice,” Sophie confessed, wringing her hands nervously until Fernando reached over to hold them.

“Shoot. I’ll help in any way I can, and if I can’t, we’ll find someone who can,” Anthony stated confidently.

“I know you’ve been informed of my little RC problem,” Sophie whispered, pausing until the men nodded their confirmation then took a deep breath, looking over at Fernando for support. “Well… I…”

“Wewere wondering,“ Fernando interrupted, smiling at Sophie, “what your suggestions were for providing a safe, educational environment for… our son?”

Chapter Sixty-Two

“I’ve got news,” Enrique said the moment Fernando answered his phone.

“That’s good, on what front? I’ll take either, but I really want to know about one in particular,” Fernando replied, turning from his computer to stare out his office windows. The smog in LA was pretty thick today, so visibility was limited, but it still felt good to look out at the part of the skyline he could see.

“You can propose to Sophie; she isn’t a married woman anymore. I’ll save the rest of that story for when you’re together. I thought you might want to use this short window of time to make it a memorable event that she isn’t expecting. You can let me know when you’re ready for the rest of the information. It’s still not a complete picture, so our security plan isn’t fully developed, but we’re getting closer. Next, Sophie and her family can move back home, at least for a few months. I can say with one hundred percent certainty that the cartel had nothing to do with the explosion and won’t be looking at her or Javier as a potential target should they try again.”

“So, itwasan attack, not an accident?” Fernando interjected before Enrique could continue.

“Certainly was. Julio has a team on the hunt for the suspect as we speak.”

“How did you figure it out? It’s been nearly a month. I had almost given up hope,” Fernando confessed, emotion clouding his voice as all the pieces of his messy life started to fall into place.

“Man, don’t ever doubt me. Sometimes, it takes a while to get all the tiny little crumbs to fall into place and create a trail that law enforcement can follow, but Ialwaysget there. And we had a lot of information to sort through. Between Mr. Mac, Els, Ara, and, don’t forget, her husband Ted, I had a lot of hateful criminals and pissed-off employees to data source. Not to mention, we want this to go to trial, so I had to do everything by the book and on the record. If you had been okay with the punk getting deep-sixed by J, we could have had this wrapped up a day or two after it happened.”

“So, who was it, and why did they do it?”

“Won’t know for sure until Julio gets him in a box and starts asking questions, but the threat came from Mr. Mac’s past. Apparently, there was a fire twenty years ago where a residential house burned down. Mr. Mac was able to save one little boy around nine years old, but the rest of the family perished. Fast forward a few years, and there is a string of industrial building fires. Mr. Mac catches the kid at one of the fires, and he eventually goes to juvie. Turns out he has a rough time and comes out meaner and madder than ever. He gets a job as a delivery driver and ups his game by burning houses all over the state...with people in them. Mr. Mac is, of course, the one who recognizes his MO when he burns a few back in his hometown, and he gets charged with arson and attempted murder. Mr. Mac gets together with some firefighters from other towns at an annual barbeque, and they start sharing storiesabout crazy arsonists trying to burn down the state, and Mac once again puts the pieces together. Before long, the kid is looking at fifty years in jail. He escapes and makes a beeline for the McKenzie family. I’m assuming he wanted to make Mac pay before he got thrown back in the slammer. We’ll have to wait and see what he says, though.”

“Is there any doubt it’s him?”

“None. Once the evidence photos were finally shared with me, I was able to do a search, and the kid has a very distinct signature. The small pieces of metal and plastic picked up at the scene wouldn’t have looked like much of anything to the locals in LA, but they popped up immediately when I ran them through our database. He always uses a mixture of gasoline and propane. This will be the first fire where the tank didn’t blow, causing catastrophic damage. He also prefers a specific remote firing system to ignite his fires. Every fire has the same signature. This one was different because he stole the tank from someone’s grill instead of buying it new, and it was almost empty. He either didn’t notice or didn’t have time to fill it. If it had been full when he put his plan into place, all the McKenzie kids would likely be dead, and the cast and crew out of frame would have been injured. I have this kid dead to rights on all sorts of surveillance camera footage. He’s a small-town kid from New York. He didn’t have the skills to avoid the ‘big brother’ surveillance happening in L.A. Give it a week, and OSHA and the Insurance company will be off your back, and FKM will be back in business full speed ahead. Gotta run. Tell Sophie hi for me, and make sure you get her a nice big diamond the size of a cherry.”

“Yeah, right! Do you want her to marry me or run?” Fernando chuckled at his brother’s antics, knowing he was joking.

“Whatever you gotta do to make her happy. She’s a keeper, and I can’t wait to meet my nephew. He’s big enough to toss a ball around with. Love ya! Later.”

Fernando smiled down at his phone, picturing his brother for a moment, his heart overflowing with emotion. He was one blessed man. Now, to finalize his plans to get his lady.

***

“Good morning, Mr. Mayor; I was wondering if you were available for a late lunch meeting today, say two o’clock. That would be great. See you then.”

Fernando grabbed his suit coat off the stand before making his way to the door connecting his and Sophie’s offices.

“Hey, Soph, I have an impromptu meeting with the mayor and have no idea when I’ll be back. Would you like to go on a dinner date this evening?”

“Oh, sure. That sounds like fun. Most of our time seems to have been spent with the family lately. I’ll call Mom and let her know so she doesn’t make quite so much dinner.”

“While I’m gone, will you see if you can reach M.C. and verify her interest in the collaboration? It looks like things will be figured out soon, and we need to get those meetings on the calendar before my schedule fills up. Also, need to finalize the job descriptions and work delegation list for the COO, Emily, and perhaps the future Personal Assistant replacement if you decide to go back to school after we marry. If you would please draft those so we can think about them and add to them over time asdifferent tasks pop up.”

Jotting down each task on a pad of paper, Sophie commented, “I’m going to reach out to Enrique before I make that second phone call to verify we have the green light to do so. The last thing we need is another complication.”

“Probably a good idea. I’ll collect you from here, so freshen up in my private office bathroom, and I’ll see you around five if I don’t return before then,” Fernando said, rounding her desk to give her a kiss. “I love you. See you later this evening.”

Chapter Sixty-Three

At five o’clock sharp, Fernando called Sophie. “Meet me on the helipad as soon as you’re ready.”

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