And with that, Grant lay down on the floor and went to sleep.
I glanced over at Sam, who was luckily fast asleep. Rage pulsated through my body. I didn’t want to be alone, but I didn’t want to be anywhere near Grant right now. Whatever his fucking reason, he owed it to me, to Sienna, to tell me anything he knew.
What was he keeping from me? And what did he take care of?
I grabbed my phone and scrolled through the messages Ashley had left. I had to admit, she’d really stepped up for me. Dropping work, racing to Anaheim, and then to Vegas to see if she could help.
I called her back, and she picked up on the first ring.
Like an angel, her words warmed my stone-cold heart. “Hey, baby. I miss you.”
4
Ash
THE SOUND OF MITCH’S VOICE broke me. Just a few weeks ago, we were mortal enemies. My, how everything had changed. He went from someone I’d detested, to my bad boy lover, to someone who I was developing genuine feelings for. Of course, like any person with a heart, I had compassion for his situation with his daughter, but it was more than that. More than pity. I liked him for him. I missed him. I cared about him.
And I normally cared about no one. Not even myself.
“How you doing, baby? Did you find anything?”
I didn’t know what to tell him. I refused to keep anything from him. But I didn’t want to overwhelm him, tell him things that weren’t related to finding his daughter. He didn’t need to know that right now, I questioned Joaquín’s guilt. He didn’t need to know that I had a weird resemblance to his ex-wife. All of these things didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered was Sienna. So, I would focus on what was relevant to finding his daughter.
“Well, I’m not sure if this is anything, but Mia went through some photo albums and noticed that April doesn’t look like her parents.” She looks like me. “Is she adopted? Does she have some biological grandparent somewhere?”
I waited for his answer on bated breath, stupidly wondering if somehow April was connected to my missing sister.
“She was adopted. But it was a closed adoption, and she had never met her birth parents. But definitely a good lead, babe. I’ll tell the FBI. Let me call the agent. I’ll call you right back.”
“Okay. Bye.”
He hung up. I relaxed back on the hotel bed. Mia was in a room across the hallway. We didn’t think it was appropriate to spend the night at April’s house, even though I had slept there a few nights ago with Mitch. But everything was so different then.
I needed some downtime. I wasn’t spiritual like Mia, so instead, I drew myself a long, hot bath, taking my phone with me just in case Mitch called back.
The hot water seeped into my soul, and I let out a long exhale. I rarely took time for myself. I was consumed with anxiety and guilt. If only I worked harder, if only I had dug deeper, I could find the truth.
But I was doubting I would ever find the answers I was looking for.
The phone rang. I picked it up, still in the bathtub.
“Hey, babe. What did they say?”
“They said they will look into it. April is in a coma, so I don’t know how far they will get. We can start doing our own work.”
“Yup. I have a hair sample from Sienna. Mia will be sending it to the lab. We can also enter the results on a genetics site. Try to get some answers.”
“Thanks, Ash. You’re the best.”
I pursed my lips. I didn’t feel like the best. I changed the subject. “What about you? Any new leads from the police? That sketch of the grandpa?”
“Nope. Nothing. Just an agonizing day of hating myself. If it wasn’t for Sam, I don’t know if I could go on.”
His words chilled me. Mitch was a proud man. A Navy SEAL. Invincible. Strong. Alpha male to the nth degree. “Don’t say that, babe. We will find her,” I lied. I had never found any leads about my sister. I could be possibly wrong about Joaquín. My word wasn’t worth shit.
“I want to believe that. I have to believe we will. No matter how much of a fuck-up I’ve been, I always, always had my kids. They are my world. I was a shitty husband to April. My career means nothing to me if I don’t have my kids. Everything I do is for them. When I was about to give up and quit during BUD/S, I pushed through because of them. If I don’t have them, I don’t want to live.”
Wow. I had no idea his heart ran so deep. I had always dismissed him as a cocky SEAL, a player, a jackass. But now I knew, not just from his words but from his actions, that deep down, Mitch was a great man. Loyal. Loving. And fiercely protective of the ones he loved.
I would do everything in my power to bring Sienna home, but I knew I couldn’t guarantee that.
But I could at least do one thing. For the first time in my life, I could tell a man how I felt about him.
“Mitch, I know this isn’t the time for this. But I need to tell you something.”
“What? I know you’re trying to help with Sienna, and I’ll appreciate that to the day I die. You have truly been there for me, and you didn’t have to be. But I’m a fucking mess. My life is a joke right now. I get it if you want to end things with me. Actually, that would probably be for the best. I need to focus on my family.”
Sorrow swept over me. This was my chance to run. The chance to back away like a coward and hightail it out of there when the feelings got real. A chance I always took. The second a man was real and raw with me, I bounced away like a pogo stick.
Not this time.
I exhaled.
“No. That’s not what I want. I can’t stop thinking about you. The truth is, I’m crazy about you. I just wish I was with you now.”
“Really? You don’t need to say that.”
“I know I don’t. But I want to. I mean it. Actually, I’m naked in a bathtub right now. Thinking how much I wish you were here with me.”
His tone turned from sad to gruff.
“Yeah, baby?”
I smiled.
“Well, first, I kiss your neck, breath in your scent.”
“And then what.”
“I’d whisper into your ear about how much I wanted you. How wet you make me. How much I can’t wait until I suck your cock.”
And with those words, I did actually get wet. Imagining Mitch’s muscular thighs, his incredibly tight ass, his huge cock. He was ridiculously sexy. And I wasn’t just teasing him—I meant every word I said.
“And then, baby, I’d undo your belt buckle and release your cock. I would tease you, blowing kisses on your tip until I took you in my mouth. And I’d suck you off until I could taste your hot cum dripping down my throat. Would you like that?”
“Damn, Ash. Come back to me now.”
“I can’t, babe. But we will be together soon. Tomorrow, Mia and I are going to sniff around here a little longer and then come back to you,” I lied.
I constantly lied, which was definitely not the best basis for a fledgling relationship. I could not tell Mitch what we intended to do.
We were going to head up to Marin and pay Mr. Cruz a visit in prison. My throat dried, and guilt overtook me, but I wasn’t trying to be shady. Mitch needed to stay in Anaheim and focus on finding Sienna. And Mia and I would follow our own leads.
Because I was certain that my new information about Joaquín would shed some light on this case. I had no idea what my game plan was. No idea if she should try to talk to him or if I could get any information out of him.
But I knew one thing. I wasn’t going to stop until I broke Joaquín. And I found out once and for all, what kinds of secrets the Se7en Deadly SEALs were hiding.
5
Mia
AFTER SEARCHING EVERY INCH OF April’s house last night, Ash and I had come up empty-handed. Nothing. No leads. Though Ash had grabbed some hair from April’s brush and given them to me to send into the lab—I guess she wanted DNA profiles on everyone.
I checked in with Grant this morning. No new updates with Sienna. Julián was safe with our friends back in San
Diego. I was desperate to get back to him, get back to Grant, get back to my family. Seeing what Mitch had lost had reinforced in my mind what was important.
It wasn’t my NCIS job. It was my family.
And that family included Joaquín. Until the day I die. Until my dying breath. Joaquín may not be my flesh and blood, but I carried him in my heart.
Ash drove up the freeway. We had another long drive ahead of us. This one was even worse than Anaheim to Vegas. I had begged Ash to go with me to visit Joaquín.
And for some reason, she had agreed.
“Oh, there’s an In-N-Out up ahead. Let’s stop there.”
I groaned. “Nope. Let’s go to Taco Bell. They have vegan options.”
She bit her lip. “Right. We can hit both.”
Ash was uncharacteristically nice to me today. No snarky remarks. No side-eye. Just banal conversation. It was almost if we were friends. Wow, it had been so long since I’d had a close girlfriend. I realized that I really craved that female attention—maybe part of that was because my mom always seemed distant, which now made sense after I’d found out that she wasn’t my biological mom though that wasn’t any excuse.
And I still didn’t know who my birth mother was.
I still seriously had doubts that Ash was my sister, but wouldn’t know for sure until we got the DNA results. But even so, I wanted to bond with her.
Like the time we had on the way up to meet Tiffany’s mom. Where I had seen Julián for the first time since he had been kidnapped from me.
I ordered my vegan Mexican pizza and then went across the street where Ash ordered a Double-Double, Animal Style.
I smiled at her, despite the fact that the scent of animal flesh made me want to gag. “So, do you know what would be fun? We could pretend we were Ksenya and Autumn. Just for old times’ sake.”
“Like omg! This road trip is going to be so epic.”
I laughed. This was the Ash…er, Autumn I liked. “It will be fun to go together with you.” I busted out my best Ukrainian accent.
Ashley broke into a smile. “Did you know that Tiffany was working for NCIS? She was actually pretty cool. I miss her.”
My jaw literally dropped as I almost choked on my Mexican pizza.
“You are fucking with me. You never told me this.”
She rolled her eyes. Well, Ashley was back. “Of course, I didn’t. Why would I? I just thought Grant would’ve told you.”
This time, I literally choked on my food. I grabbed for my water. “Excuse me? Come again? What the fuck are you talking about? Grant knew that Tiffany worked for NCIS? Are you sure?”
Her lips spread into a smug grin. “Positive.”
“Really, how so?” I wanted to slap that expression off her face.
“Because,” she took another bite of her own food, “I told him.”
Heat rushed to my head. What did this mean? If Tiffany worked for NCIS, did she tip Joaquín off about something the night she was murdered? Did Joaquín really kill her? Yes, he confessed, but he also admitted to raping me, so at this point, I didn’t trust anything he said.
Grant knew this and didn’t tell me? Why?
Granted, I kept plenty from him. But I had my reasons. He still rolled his eyes when I talked about Joaquín. For the sake of our marriage, we had agreed to disagree.
“Are you fucking kidding me, Ashley? When did you tell him?”
“I told him the same time I told him that I was Ashley, not Autumn. Right before he married you.”
That bastard. I was going to murder him when I got home. How could he not tell me when he knew that this case has been my life? When I still spent hours searching for clues to the questions that I would never have answers to? And even worse, if he was keeping that from me, what else was he keeping from me?
But I wouldn’t let Ashley get under my skin if that was what she was trying to do. Normally, I would assume that was definitely her purpose, but I was trying to give her the benefit of the doubt. That she wasn’t telling me this to put a strain on my marriage. But that she had a deeper reason.
I was going to call her out.
“Why, Ash? Why did you just tell me that? To piss me off? Get me upset at my husband?”
Ash shook her head. “No, Mia. Not at all. I’ve been working on the corruption within the Navy SEALs for years. I have looked everywhere for answers but have come up empty-handed. You are smart. You know Grant and Joaquín better than anyone. If anyone can get answers, it’s you.” She exhaled loudly. “And I’m trying to trust you. I thought by now, after all you have been through, that you deserved to know.”
I sat there in the hot car, completely stunned. Furious at my husband for keeping this information from me. Furious at my brother for lying repeatedly. Furious for constantly being blindsided by my loved ones.
“And what did she do for NCIS?”
“She had been arrested for prostitution. She had been asked her to wear a wire to talk to Joaquín about his possible involvement with a drug cartel. I wasn’t her handler because I too was deep undercover. But Joaquín disabled the wire before he killed her.”
“If he killed her.” A lump grew in my throat, and my lips burned impossibly hot, and it wasn’t from the hot sauce.
What had she said to Joaquín? What did he know? Did he kill her? If not, who did?
There was so much more to this story, but as usual, I couldn’t even think straight.
“What was she like?”
“She was very smart. Really nice girl. I was heartbroken when she died.”
It shocked me to even realize that Ash had a heart.
“Well, I’m going to ask Joaquín about this. He better tell me the truth.”
She laughed at me. “Sure, he will. He’s so forthcoming and honest.”
I didn’t argue back with her. Because, dammit, she was right, as much as I hated to admit it.
I reclined my seat and dozed off for the rest of the long drive. Ash was driving on this leg of the trip.
After the longest stretch of road, we finally crossed the Richmond bridge into my hometown of Marin County. I winced when I saw the bay. I had so many happy memories here, to think they had all been replaced by confusion and horror. And even worse, that my brother was languishing away here in a jail cell.
We checked into a decent hotel and prepared to visit Joaquín. After all the times I had seen him, this time would be different. This time I was armed with a truth he couldn’t deny—he had not left the base the night I had been raped. He didn’t rape me.
Then who did?
We drove to the prison and went through the gates. San Quentin had million-dollar views. At least my brother had something to look at when he was let out daily into the exercise yard.
Ash and I filed into the waiting room. I knew the drill, though my visits had become infrequent, mostly because Grant didn’t like me seeing Joaquín.
When we filled out the paperwork, the guard checked his record. “Sorry, ma’am, you are going to have to come back tomorrow.”
“Why is that?”
“Because Joaquín already has a scheduled visitor.”
I rolled my eyes. “Oh, really? Who?”
“I’m not at liberty to say, ma’am. But you cannot seem him today.”
I turned to Ashley. “That’s weird. Who else would visit him?”
“His lawyer?”
“Nah, he’s not even doing any appeals.” Another thing that was odd. I had begged him to do appeals, but he refused. As if he had another plan for his time here. One thing I knew about my brother is that he would not spend the rest of his life in prison, like an animal. I worried every night that I would wake up to a call that Joaquín had taken his own life.
“Well, the person could be here now, since this is visiting hours.”
I scanned the room, hoping to find someone that I recognized, but of course, I knew no one. Which wasn’t shocking, I knew nothing about Joaquín’s daily life. I hadn’t even written to him that I was
going to come visit. At least, I was happy that someone was visiting since I had abandoned him. I should’ve moved closer to him. But he had insisted that I go on with my life, focus on Grant, concentrate on my Julián. He was right, but I still struggled with the guilt.
I turned back to Ashley, her face now pale.
“What? What is it? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“I did.”
I wrinkled my face. “What are you talking about?”
“They just took a girl back. I’m not sure if it was to see Joaquín.”
“So, what are you talking about?”
She turned to me, her lips quivering. “The girl looked just like Tiffany.”
6
Ashley
MIA WAS RIGHT—I HAD seen a ghost.
Tiffany Reynolds. In the flesh.
Were my eyes deceiving me?
I knew that I wasn’t taking care of myself, as usual. Married to my work. Living off fast food and Red Bull. Sleep? What was that? Hell if I knew.
This case—Sienna, Mitch, Joaquín, the Se7en Deadly SEALs—consumed me. I ate, slept, and breathed them. Hell, I’d even slept with Mitch. I was now part of their world. And after this latest “Joaquín may be innocent” revelation, one thing had become abundantly clear—I was making mistakes. Crucial mistakes. Mistakes that may have cost Joaquín his freedom.
Mistakes that could cost Sienna her life.
And this latest mistake could be the deadliest of all. Was Tiffany alive?!
I flashed back to the night of Tiffany’s murder. I had been told that Agent Meeks had fitted her with a wire. She had been offered a deal to go undercover after she’d been arrested for prostitution with a SEAL.
Deadly Lies (Deadly SEALs Book 4) Page 3