The Pulitzer

"Your recommendation came through our department." He smiled and stole one, too.

"So, this is about an interview?"

"Yes, and no." His smile turned int a bit of a leer. "Sometimes it's what happens, and sometimes it's what doesn't happen."

"I, um, I don't understand."

"There was no background check with your referral. I asked myself why."

Sarah's contact was still up on my phone from the text. I glanced down and hit the dial button, setting my phone on the table next to my drink. It would go to voice mail, I knew that. I also knew Sarah would listen to the message as soon as she had a chance.

"Ok, is that unusual? I mean, wouldn't they call me before they ran one of those?" There was something very off about this whole thing.

"They'll do at least a preliminary first, but for you, nothing. That made me curious. So, I did a little looking on my own." He stole another fry. "Funny thing is Michael Benet's little sister, that would be you, died eight years ago while he was in prison."

There were no words. He knew. But why did he care? Why had he even looked?

"Another odd coincidence is that two days after your 'brother' Mike gets out of Joliette; Angelo Romano takes pictures of Vincent Scaletti shooting a man in the face and then just magically disappears. Not long after that, Antoinette Benet comes back from the dead and her big brother registers her in school in Phoenix."

"I'm not following you."

"Sure, you are, Angie. That's your real name, isn't it? I went back to your work at the seminar. Your techniques for finding that damned cat exactly matched the pictures of Scaletti that you sent to the Tribune. Like fingerprints, remember?"

"What do you want?" I was visibly trembling.

"It's not what I want. A friend of yours from your old high school would like to talk to you, and he was very generous in compensating me for helping make that happen. Now, just leave your things here and come with me. I'd hate to make a scene."

Making a scene didn't bother me at all. I threw my drink in Brian's face, jumped up, and tried to run. Unfortunately, I was still me, and Brian was a trained FBI agent. I got two steps before he had me bent over a table, handcuffing me behind my back.

"FBI, ma'am. Nothing to see here." Brian flashed his badge at my manager as he dragged me out to his car.

There wasn't much I could do with my hands cuffed behind my back as he shoved me into the back of his Tahoe and fastened the seat belt around me. "Brian, please. You don't have to do this." I was begging.

"You know I got a fifty dollar a month raise this year. Everything I do for the agency, and some bureaucrat, decides how much I'm worth. It doesn't matter what I do. Fuck that. Eric wants you bad, and with what he's paying me, I can do whatever the hell I want. Sure, I don't have to do this. I just want to."

"He's going to kill me; you know that right?"

"Toni Benet died eight years ago. Now shut up."

All I could do was hope as I sat in the back of that Tahoe and tried to get comfortable; hope that Sarah got my message in time and that she had some way of finding me and Brian, hope that maybe Eric didn't want me dead.

The past few years had been completely insane. Going from a nerdy outcast boy to hiding and living as a girl, hell becoming a girl. Having sex with Mike, then Randall, and now Greg. Seeing my parents and not being able to talk to them. Moving across the country and being adopted by a fricking FBI agent. Going to college. Getting engaged. All to have it come crashing down because some guy I barely knew was pissed about his salary and happened to have access to the only back door that could expose the truth.

Of all things, I started wondering if my mom would come to Boston to help me plan my wedding, if my dad would walk me down the aisle, would my grandfather even talk to me? And what about Sarah? Would she and my mom get along? Could they share the job of helping me plan my wedding? Would Greg and I get married here, or back in Phoenix? Maybe in Chicago with all my real family. What kind of dress did I even want, and who was I going to ask to be my bridesmaids?

All these questions seemed so much more important than whatever Eric wanted. Would Randall come? I got teary-eyed when I thought of him. I guess it's true you never truly get over your first love.

"Come on." Brian had stopped in some kind of industrial warehouse place and was grabbing my arm, trying to drag me out of the car.

I stumbled and fell, which pissed him off even more. When he jerked me to my feet, I saw a black Silverado pull over to the curb about half a block away. I don't know why it registered, but I smiled when I saw it. I guess it reminded me of Mike, but that would be too much to ask for. He drove away. He was halfway to wherever he was going by now.

Eric was alone inside the warehouse. Just him and me and Brian. I watched as Eric did something on a laptop he had with him. "We good?" He looked at Brian, who was checking something on his phone.

"She's all yours." Brian shoved me toward Eric and turned to leave. "Have fun."

"Little Angie, well, look at you. So, you're a girl now. How appropriate." He was walking around me, looking me over. "You know what's going to happen here, don't you? I'm going to do the same thing to you my dad did to that damned reporter. First, though, I think you and me are going to have a little fun."

He threw me to the ground and started tearing at my clothes. I kicked and screamed, but it's hard to fight back against someone so much bigger than you, especially with your hands cuffed behind your back.

"You can make this easy or you can make it hard. I'm fucking that ass of yours either way, and it's going to be the last thing you remember. Just like the real Toni Benet before I stuffed her back into that car and shoved it off the road into that river with her parents."

I heard the sound of two bodies colliding and suddenly, Eric wasn't on top of me anymore.

"You fucking piece of shit. I knew. I always knew, and now you're trying to do it again." Mike was on top of Eric, pounding one fist and then the other into his face.

How fucked up was that? Eric was in high school when Mike's family died, and he killed them for his dad. I almost felt sorry for him in a strange sort of way. He'd had less of a chance of a normal life than I thought I did at that point.

"Mike stop!" I heard Sarah shout. "We've got him on kidnapping and attempted murder. He's going away for a long time.

"Mike please. Don't be like him." I was begging him to stop, too.

Hands covered in Eric's blood, Mike got up and spit on Eric, kicking him once for good measure as an agent with Sarah checked Eric over and called for an ambulance.

"Toni, are you alright?" Sarah was kneeling next to me, unlocking my handcuffs.

"I am now." I rubbed my wrists for a second or two before wrapping her in a massive hug. "Does this mean it's over?"

"I wish it did." She brushed a stray hair out of my face. "Scaletti has a big organization."

"Crider, you need to see this." Another agent was at Eric's laptop, and he looked excited.

"Eric paid Brian from there." I chimed in.

"Get that to forensics, and now." Sarah was possibly more excited than the other agent had been.

I sat with Mike, catching up while Sarah and her team finished processing the crime scene. Eric was in terrible shape, and I found it hard to care. Mike seemed different, calmer. I guess the closure of knowing what happened to his family helped. Knowing the guy that did it was going to pay for it probably helped more.

Eric's laptop was a gold mine, a veritable Rosetta stone to the Scaletti crime organization. There were sweeping arrests all over the Midwest. Judges, cops, public officials, even two more FBI agents and a Senator. My pictures made the front page again, and oddly enough, my first task when I started with the agency was to analyze and verify some pictures on Eric's laptop. Greg was across the room, tracking financial transactions. The amount of money we confiscated from Scaletti was in the billions.

Eric tried to turn state's evidence, but there was no deal any prosecutor was going to offer that didn't include him being in a cell just down the hall from his dad. He lasted less than a month. From what I heard; his dad wasn't overly upset. They had found tons of fresh evidence. After the new trial, I guess he was more concerned about being moved to death row in Missouri than he was with his son being beaten to death in a prison shower. Something about killing a federal judge just pisses other judges off, I guess. I was there with Sarah and Mike for the sentencing.

"Now, it's over. Do you want me to help you tell Greg?"

"He's a smart guy. I think he's put two and two together by now. I'll cook him a lasagna and screw his brains out. Then I'll tell him. I might need some moral support with my family, though."

I was right. Greg had suspicions, and I confirmed most of them. He never knew Angie and Angie didn't exist anymore, so that wasn't an issue. Mostly he was glad that it was all over, and we could just be normal people. That meant I could stop dying my hair. Greg likes brunettes, too.

Telling my parents and grandparents was going to be more problematic and probably a lot more emotional. Sarah and Greg both went with me. It didn't go anything like I thought it would.

We picked midafternoon on a Tuesday, thinking it would be slow. We were right. My dad was busy restocking a cooler at the bar and didn't see us come in. I could hear my mom and grandmother 'arguing' in the kitchen. I think that was pretty much normal for them.

My grandfather came by the table right after our waiter dropped off water and took our drink order. He started to say something, but just froze. His eyes locked on mine, and he just stared at me. I could see the mix of emotions swirling behind his eyes. Tears building behind his eyes as he realized who and what I was. The last person I ever expected to understand; he just opened his arms and smiled as tears streamed down his cheeks. "Little Angie."

I stood up and hugged him as hard as I could.

"Little Angie!" This time he screamed it. "Vinnie, Marie, Sophie, Little Angie is here."

I think my mom knocked over a table as she ran out of the kitchen. "Angelo, let go of my baby." She took over the hug. Then Grandma, and finally my dad.

"So, this is how they hid you." He put his hands on my shoulders and looked me over from head to toe, finally nodding. "I'm just glad you're safe."

We moved to a bigger table in the back room, and it was my turn. I started at the beginning with the pictures. I talked about Mike and his idea for me to use his sister's identity.

They were all proud that I had gone to college, and when I told them where I was working, well, I thought my grandfather was going to burst.

It hit my dad hard when I told them me being a girl was permanent, that I was going to stay this way and had already started hormones. When I explained how different it was for me, he slowly came around. "Dad, look at me. I have a master's degree and I'm an FBI agent. I couldn't have done that before. Besides, my breasts don't come off."

He had his retort ready; I could see it in his eyes, but the comments about my boobs totally derailed him. He stopped, his mouth open, his eyes squinting as what I had said sunk in. God, I love it when he laughed like that. It brought back all the best memories of us as a family.

They were a little more understanding about my name now being Toni Benet, since the family name was now Ferrari. If I had to guess, my grandfather was the one that picked it.

Greg and Sarah had been sitting there quietly, listening as my family and I got to know each other again.

When the marshals set them up, it was my grandmother that put her foot down, demanding a restaurant. My grandfather had tried to protest, but she wouldn't budge. From what I could see, it was a good choice for everybody.

"So, Greg, right? How do you know my, um." He shook his head and chuckled, "my daughter, I guess?"

"We met in high school back in Phoenix, then again in college in Boston. I'm moral support."

We talked about it before we left Arlington and most of the way out here on the flight, agreeing to save the whole engaged thing for later. This was enough for one day.

My grandmother told our waiter what to bring to everybody. I knew better than to argue with her. The restaurant got a little busy, so my grandfather gave me another hug and went to take care of the dining room. My grandmother disappeared into the kitchen and my dad went to check on the bar. He came back with a nice bottle of Chianti to go with the massive servings of chicken parmesan the waiter delivered.

Sarah and my mom were talking like old friends when my dad sat down next to Greg. "More than just moral support if I'm reading things correctly."

"Yes, sir, you could say that. I know everything about her and there is no way I could love anybody more than I do her. I've already asked her, and she said yes, but it would mean the world to me, to us, to have your blessing."

"All I've done for the past six years was pray that my son was safe and happy. With everything that's happened, that's still all that matters to me, to any of us. To see my dad, accept her as she is without question. Well, how can I do anything less? You promise to take good care of her?"

"Yes, sir. Though it's more like promise to let her take good care of me."

"Little Ang..., I mean Toni, do you love him?"

"More than anything." I smiled at my dad.

"Sophie, what do you think? You ready to plan your daughter's wedding?"

"Sarah and I have already started. What do you think we've been talking about for the last hour?"

It wasn't anything elaborate. Just family and a few friends in that same little back room at the restaurant in Sacramento. It wasn't much of an aisle, but my dad walked me down it all the same. Sarah was my maid of honor and Randall, Greg's best man. Beverly was just as excited as my mom and Sarah were. I thought it was pretty cool that she even brought a plus one, who pulled Greg aside and asked permission to date her. The only person missing was Mike, but there were reasons he couldn't be there that I fully understood.

Greg and I spent two weeks cruising the Caribbean. We filled it with sun, sand and various carnal delights, most of which involved either him being inside me, or the strap on being inside him.

I'd enjoyed sex since the first time with Mike. Being that intimate with my husband was a whole different level of special. Just the promise that I would be only his and he would be only mine made it like the first time all over again.

We took our time. Slow and gentle, exploring every inch of each other's bodies, lavishing them with kisses and nibbles.

"Let me." Greg stopped me when I started kissing my way down his chest. "Let me take care of you first."

I laid back and surrendered to his desires. He loved my breasts, and I loved that he loved them. My hormones had taken what the fat transfer had given me and made them full and firm. My areolas had turned dark, and my nipples had grown large and prominent and become so tender. It was magic when he suckled at my breast.

His hands caressed my stomach as he kissed and nipped and sucked. My skin was more sensitive, too. His touch sent shivers rampaging over my body.

Moaning, I writhed under his touch as his kisses moved lower and lower until he kissed that spot where my cockette joined my abdomen. I knew what was next, and I had a surprise for him. Smiling, I opened my legs to give him access. His fingers traced delicate lines down the insides of my thighs before delicately cupping my tiny balls and moving further.

"You naughty girl." He smiled at me, tapping the plug I had in my ass and gently tugging on it. My moans grew louder as he toyed with me, moving it back and forth, in and out, just enough to drive me mad.

It wasn't what he had in mind, but in some ways, it was better. Using the plug to massage my ass, he took me in his mouth and played with my cockette with his tongue. It had been a while since I had gotten hard, but that didn't mean what he was doing didn't feel amazing.

I knew he was going to take his time, driving me insane with desire by keeping me right on the edge. Once I begged him to let me finish, he was going to pull the plug out and shove his cock in its place, driving me to another and then another orgasm. He had come so far since that first time. If nothing else, my nerdy husband was an excellent student.

The trick was for me to make it last as long as I could. It increased my pleasure and drove his desire off the charts.

I won. Greg caved first, yanking the plug from my ass and shoving his cock inside me. He came first, but I wasn't far behind. The interesting thing was, he wasn't getting soft. Every thrust hit my p spot. Electric feelings of incredible pleasure ripped through me as he came a second time and then a third. I wouldn't count what I experienced as multiple orgasms. It was more like one incredibly long one, with three or four crashing peaks.

I was exhausted and speechless when Greg finally collapsed next to me.

"Viagra and a cock ring." He laughed and kissed me hard.

The first two days of the cruise were at sea, and we barely left our cabin.

We spent the rest of the cruise soaking up the sun, shopping and drinking too much rum. At night, we snuggled next to each other, basking in the afterglow of our love, as the sea rolled under us. There were midnight walks along the deck of the ship gazing at the stars over the water, where we talked about our future together and revisited our past.

Our future. Those words were so powerful, especially together. So much had happened since I took those pictures. I had changed so much. My life had gone places I could never have imagined. Looking at Greg, knowing I had a future and someone to share it with, someone to build it with; the thought sent chills up my spine.

The flight home was uneventful. Sarah picked us up at the airport and took us home to our apartment. We ordered Chinese and told her all about our cruise. I let Greg open our wedding gifts while I wrote the thank-you notes. There weren't that many, so it was quick work. My parents got us a pasta machine which I knew I would use. My grandparents got us one of those Kitchen Aid mixers. I suspected some collusion on that. Dough for the pasta has to be mixed, after all. The rest were towels and sheets and stuff.

The last gift caught my attention. It was a Nikon DSLR with four lenses.

"Nice camera. I wonder who it's from." Greg smiled and handed me the card. "There's no signature and no address."

The note said, "Just do me a favor and stay out of the shadows."

I read the note and then read it again. Sarah gave me a knowing nod. She knew who it was from, too.

All the people that had touched my life since I lost my last camera and crawled into Mike's pickup flooded my mind. There was Mike, of course. Jimmy and Scarlet, Randall, Sarah, Beverly and Greg, especially Greg; so many people had reached out to help me, protected me, accepted me. Even my grandfather had accepted the new me without question. There were so many of them, touching my life in so many ways, a select few intimately. All of them helped make me who I was right now. My heart filled to almost bursting. I was so blessed in so many ways. My future was so incredibly bright.

"Stay out of the shadows." Yeah, Mike, I don't think that will be a problem.

***

I hope you had as much fun following Tony's adventure as I did while writing it. Please leave me a comment and let me know how I did. Your comments are my lifeblood and make me a better writer.