ONCE UPON A TIME IN NEW YORK

Chapter 1


The Bronx, New York
December 15th, 1924   


“We are so very sorry for your loss Miss Gabrieli.”

Rosabel Gabrieli sat very still before the man from the Bureau of Investigation.
For weeks she had been under their care. For weeks she had done nothing but listen to the radio, play cards alone, sleep and cry. Every morning she woke up in the same blandly decorated hotel room. And every morning she woke up to find that the nightmare she’d had the night before wasn’t a nightmare at all but her life. And now another government suit sat before her apologising yet again. She clenched her fists tight on her lap and simply stared at the chequered pattern of her tweed skirt. She was sick of hearing their apologies. It wouldn’t bring her family back.

The room was silent for a moment before the older man spoke again. The empathy in his voice made her feel all the more sick to her stomach. He leaned forward in his chair and took one of her hands in his.

“Your father did his city and his country a great service. We are doing everything we can to find those responsible for his death and that of your family. I know this has all been very difficult for you, but you must be strong.”

Strong? Hadn’t she been strong enough when she walked home from the movies to find her home surrounded by police, or when she had been held back by officers as they took away the bodies of her parents and her three brothers? Had she not held herself together at the funeral when officer after officer shook her hand and gave her their condolences? The sheer fact that she sat here at this moment knowing perfectly well she was completely alone meant she was strong. And she would continue to be so until either Rizzoli received true justice or she lay dead.

“Rosabel, you must listen. We’ve done as much as we could. But even with what we’ve done and with Rizzoli in prison, your life could still be very much in danger. You have to get far away from New York.”

She nodded, angry with herself when her voice came out shaky and soft. “I’ve made arrangements to live with grandmother in Italy.” She lied. She certainly had no intention on leaving her home and everything her family had worked so hard for.

“Good, we’ll have one of our agents escort you and Miss Pasternak to the airport. And please don’t worry, we’ll make sure you get there safely.”

Why was that name familiar? Russian. It was Russian. Her father was working with a Russian man. She overheard them speaking one evening a few months back.
“Pardon me Mr. Davis, who is Miss Pasternak?”

“Vladimir Pasternak’s daughter. She’s about your age. A year or two older I believe. Her father worked with your father providing evidence against Rizzoli. Unfortunately, it left her in the same position as you. She’s also leaving the country to stay with relatives. Come, I’ll escort you downstairs where Agent McKinley will be waiting for you.” He stood and led the way to the door.  

Quietly she followed him out of the room and down the hallway. It had been so long since she’d seen anything other than that room, she was certainly glad to get away from it. They stopped before a very large man who stood guard before the elevator doors. He gave a small nod towards Mr. Davis then stepped aside. As they went from the top floor of the hotel down towards the lobby Rosabel figured she couldn’t be completely ungrateful to them. They’d done everything they could to protect her since that night. And then she remembered. They’d also made her a ghost.

As far as Rizzoli, his men and the rest of the United States of America were concerned, Rosabel Gabrieli was dead. She had been killed with the rest of her family. She’d have to start her life over, a new name, a new look, a new her.   

The elevator pinged and the doors opened into the small quiet lobby. With a quick scan around the room, he led her out and towards a man in a long black coat and fedora

“This is Agent McKinley, he’ll be driving you. Good luck.” With one last sympathetic smile, he nodded and left her.

“This way Miss.”

McKinley ushered her out the door and down the marble stairs towards a black car waiting in front of the building. She couldn’t deny she felt rather nervous now that she was actually leaving the hotel behind. The back car door was opened for her and she slid in next to a pretty blonde girl who she could only assume was Pasternak’s daughter. It was obvious from the girl’s appearance that she came from a world far different to Rosabel’s, a world filled with champagne and pearls. Secretly Rosabel had been hoping that meeting Miss Pasternak might mean she was no longer alone. But again she tucked away that hope, and waited for the next one she could hang on to. The door closed at her side and she sat quietly looking out her window.

They drove away from the hotel and down towards the Harlem River and High Bridge. She didn’t have much time before they were in Manhattan and then the airport. But as hard as she tried to concentrate, she couldn’t block out the hundreds of questions that she wanted to ask Miss Pasternak. Like how she felt about the fact that Mr. Davis and his men insisted that they were unaware of Rizzoli picking up the pieces of his operation from prison and sending out a death warrant to both of their families? That two good, honest men and their innocent families had been killed for trying to rid their streets of a terrible monster? It was all so horribly unfair.

Rosabel felt her eyes well up and she did her best to keep the tears from rolling down her cheeks. She wiped at them with her sleeve and straightened. She wouldn’t allow herself to get swept away by despair. She would find a way to finish what her father had started.

The stretch of woods outside her window snapped Rosabel out of her thoughts. How long as she been lost in thought? She’d never been to the airport, but she thought it would have been much closer than this. They had been driving for what seemed like hours, and after a while she wondered if they were even still in New York. She’d been so lost in thought she hadn’t really been paying attention to what was outside her window. Looking now, she didn’t see any road signs or anything else that might indicate to where they could be. Suddenly she felt a hand squeezing hers and she looked down to find Miss Pasternak’s white-gloved hand around hers.

Rosabel tried to hold down the overwhelming sense of panic that was starting to course through her at the sight of the anxious blue eyes staring at her. Rosabel held her gaze. “My name is Rosabel Gabrieli.”

Just as she’d thought, there was a look of complete recognition in the girl’s eyes.

“Zaria Pasternak, it’s nice to meet you.” She gave a small nod and Rosabel knew.
They weren’t being driven to the airport.

They had to think of something, their lives depended on what they did next. Rosabel leaned forward between the seats and mustered her calmest most innocent voice.

“Mr. McKinley, will it be very far now? I’m feeling awfully carsick.”

“It’s not far now. Just sit back and breathe deeply,” he replied calmly.

His voice was kind and very soothing. The bastard.
Rosabel put her hand to her chest and shook her head. “Mr. McKinley pull over please, I think I’m going to be sick!”

“What? Now?”

“Yes, I feel dizzy and—“ She covered her mouth with her hand and groaned. To her relief he quickly pulled the car over to the side of the road. She had no idea what they were going to do. But getting out of the car was a start.

She sat nervously and waited as Agent McKinley came over to her side and opened her door. He grabbed her wrist as she got out and with a thin smile closed the door behind her.

“I’ll accompany you, it could be dangerous.” He leaned down to the window and tapped on the glass. “Stay in the car Miss Pasternak.”

Rosabel’s mind started racing. She had to think of something. This man had been sent to kill her. She wasn’t about to go down without a fight. She walked towards Zaria’s door and stopped just to the right of it, agent McKinley in tow. He released her wrist and she bent over, her hands on her knees and started breathing hard and coughing. There was a creaking sound and then a loud thump followed by a string of swearing as Agent McKinley flew forward and landed hard on the ground. Rosabel stared in disbelief as Zaria jumped out of the car and kicked him harshly in the groin. Not waiting around to enjoy the look of sheer pain on his reddened face, Zaria grabbed her by the arm and pulled her.
“Run!”

Rosabel started to run as fast as she could. She didn’t look back, not even when she heard the gunshot echo through the air. All she could do was pray as she ran through the trees. Another shot echoed through the air and shattered the wood of a tree to her right. The trees began getting thicker and it was harder running through all the leaves and branches. A third shot sounded and she heard Zaria scream from behind her.

“Rosabel, lookout!”

Before she could turn, she was shoved to one side. Rosabel stumbled forward, losing her footing she tripped and fell onto her knees. Quickly she scrambled to get up when she was jerked to her feet by her hair. A sharp pain shot through the back of her head but she stifled her scream and lashed out with her nails scratching him across the cheek.

“You little bitch!”

The back of his hand made full contact with her face and a horrible stinging pain shot through her cheek and down her neck. Tears welled in her eyes but still she continued to claw at him as he wrapped an arm around her waist. Despite her kicking and struggling, he was much bigger and stronger. He began dragging her back towards the car. When they reached it a lump formed in her throat at the sight of Zaria lying slumped in the back seat, her head to one side and her blonde curls falling over her closed eyes. There was a large pool of bright red blood on the seat where it had seeped through her pristine white coat.

“No! Zaria! No!” She felt the tears streaming down her cheeks. It couldn’t end this way. She kicked him as hard as she could in the shin. He swore loudly and loosened his grip enough for her to swing her fist and bloody his nose. But just as she managed to slip out of his grasp, she heard a loud crack and everything started to go black.

She tried to fight the darkness, but it was overwhelming. It looked like Rizzoli had won. Somehow, a part of her had hoped that the world wasn’t as dark a place as it seemed, that everything happened for a reason and she would set things right. How wrong she had been. Rosabel closed her eyes and let the darkness consume her.



“Rosabel.”

Someone was calling her name.

“Rosabel!”

Her head was throbbing. She moved her head slightly and felt a sharp pain course through her. Why couldn’t she move her hands? Slowly she opened her eyes to find them handcuffed. Suddenly it all came back to her. She bolted up straight to find her hands handcuffed to the car door. To her relief she looked over to find Zaria alive. She was incredibly pale and shaky from the loss of blood but she was alive.

“What happened, what’s going on?” As Rosabel said that she felt the car swaying from side to side. She quickly turned to the window and realised then they were in the river. He had pushed the car into the river and left the front windows down. The car was also sinking quickly, faster than normal. He must have done something to it.

Rosabel turned to look at the injured blonde as she held her side and sat forward. Why was she still here? Why hadn’t she left when she could?

“That bastard, he’ll never get away with this!” Zaria shook her head and crawled into the front seat. Rosabel watched her as she struggled to windup the windows as quickly as possible. The water was pouring in now and only one window was closed.

“I can’t get it closed!” Zaria sputtered as the water came crashing onto her. She climbed back onto the seat beside Rosabel and pulled a pin out of her hair.   

“You should get out while you can,” Rosabel insisted. She couldn’t let them get away with killing both of them.

“What?” Zaria stared at her and shook her head. “What are you nuts? I’m not going to leave you here to drown. We’re going to get out of this and those bastards are going to pay.”

Rosabel pulled at the handcuffs until her wrists began to bleed. There was no way she was going to get them off. Zaria leaned over her and stuck one end of her hairpin into the handcuff lock.

The front of the car was now completely under water and the back was starting to sink. A part of her had really thought they’d be able to get out of this. But at least she had a few moments of knowing Zaria. She’d never known anyone who would risk their life for someone they didn’t even know. Zaria was sweating and shivering from her wound yet she continued to pick the lock.

“Zaria,” Rosabel called softly. The blond looked up at her and with fresh tears rolling down her cheeks she shook her head.

“No. I’m not giving up. I’m going to get you out.”

In no time at all, the car was completely under water. Rosabel tried to remain calm as the water swirled around her and continued to rise higher and higher. She tried pulling her wrists again, but it was no use. The water was now at their necks and Zaria couldn’t see the lock without putting her head under the water. Franticly she looked around the car. And suddenly the water flooded in and there was no air. They were completely underwater.

Rosabel tried to remain calm. She shook her head at Zaria and nodded toward the front. She had to leave her. She had to save herself. But Zaria simply sat beside her and wrapped her arms around her. Rosabel shut her eyes tied. She had never been so scared. She wished for it to be all over. Her eyes shot open when she felt Zaria pull away. She struggled against the blackness and turned to see a dark arm around Zaria pulling her out of the car. What was happening?

A hand grabbed her chin and turned her face. Her vision was blurred and the water dark. All she could see was a shadowy figure with what seemed like gold eyes. But it was for a split second before her mouth was covered and she had air in her lungs again. The chain between her handcuffs suddenly split and she was pulled out of the car. What was happening? Where was Zaria? Before she could get answers she felt her mind and body slipping into unconsciousness. They’d been… saved. There was hope after all.