THE HEART TEACHES BEST (REAL ROMANCE COLLECTION Book 2)

by M. J. Schiller

  “You okay?”

  Her head spun around in surprise. “Hey! Good morning.” She smiled, but her mouth was still tight around the edges from the pain. “Did you sleep okay with me hogging the bed?”

  He smiled back. She was so beautiful in the morning, with her hair falling loose around her. He loved the smattering of faint freckles on her cheeks and upper chest, not to mention the way her soft curves were just visible where her camisole squared off. He reached a finger up and trailed it down her arm. “I liked having you here.” He gazed up into her eyes. “I think I could get used to it.”

  He loved that deer-in-headlights look she got whenever a spark of electricity passed between them. It made him feel powerful, and in control, until she did something to make him feel as wonderfully off-balanced. “Are you hungry?”

  “Starved!”

  He bounded out of bed. “Let’s get you some breakfast then.”

  * * *

  After breakfast it was decided Laney would go with Aidan and Cooper to headquarters. Jenna had to go to work, and was reluctant to say good-bye to the trio before they set off, the gruesome events of the day before having formed a bond between them, making it hard for her to leave.

  At the precinct house, they met up with Guido Sardoni. He was a heavy-set, sloppy looking man in his early thirties with wild, black hair and a bushy moustache under his long nose. Black, thick-rimmed glasses made him appear slightly bug-eyed. With the patience and delicacy of an archeologist uncovering an ancient artifact, Guido removed a razor-thin chip smaller than a dime from the inside of Laney’s cellphone.

  “See this—” he announced, holding it up with a miniature tool that was a cross between a tweezers and a set of pliers, “—is not supposed to be here.”

  “What is it?” Laney asked, fascinated.

  “It’s a tracking device,” Guido told his pupil, smiling at her.

  “That’s how he knew where you were,” Cooper added. “He’s been tracking you through your cellphone. Who has access to your phone?”

  “No one. I always keep it in my purse.”

  Aidan and Cooper exchanged a look.

  “Ever left it at home?” Aidan queried.

  “Yes, from time to time. You mean, you think he did it when he snuck into my condo?”

  “It’s a possibility.”

  Guido made a move to throw it into the trash can.

  “Wait! I’ve got an idea.” Everyone focused on Cooper. “We know how he’s been tracking Laney, but he doesn’t know we know. Why don’t we set a trap for him, lure him into a spot where we could nab him.”

  Aidan thought about it. “I don’t think it would work unless Laney was there. If he doesn’t see her, he won’t make a move.”

  “Trash it then.”

  Guido leaned toward the trash can again.

  “No, wait. Cooper—” Laney began.

  “No, Laney! It’s out of the question. It’s too dangerous.”

  “The way I see it, it’s my only way out of danger. He won’t just go away. I know that now. He’ll continue until he gets whatever it is he wants, which seems to be punishing me, for some reason. At least this way we even the field of play. We know he’s coming, and we’re ready.”

  Aidan smiled, putting a hand over her shoulder. “She makes sense.”

  Cooper glared at him. “I don’t like it.”

  “We’ll make it someplace public, with scads of people around. But, like on the beach, or at the hotel, he won’t be able to resist. We’ll have a bunch of undercovers with us and we’ll stay close. Laney will never be out of our sight. And we’ll have her wired so she can speak to us if she wants to.”

  “Aidan, even if I agreed, the chief will never go for it.”

  He paused, then, his eyes lit up. “But you’re no longer on the case.”

  “So?”

  He spread his arms wide. “You’re simply out for a walk in the park. Off-duty.”

  Cooper rubbed his chin. “But you can’t do it. You’d get suspended for using a civilian on an operation like this. I’m not gonna let that happen.”

  “I just decided to take the day off tomorrow, too.” He smiled and folded his arms across his chest, rocking back on his heels.

  “No. No! It’s not enough. I’m not taking a chance with her life,” he gestured in Laney’s direction, “with only the two of us to—”

  “How many?”

  “What?”

  “How many officers would it take, in your estimation?”

  Cooper thought. “Four or five. At least four off-duty officers.”

  “I’ll take care of it.”

  “You’ll take care of it?”

  “I’ll take care of it. Consider it covered.”

  They all thought it out in silence.

  Aidan’s face fell. “We couldn’t use equipment. There’d be a record.”

  Guido spoke up. “But you still have your wires from the Patroli bust.”

  Cooper smiled but Aidan didn’t catch on. “Guido, I turned those in last week.”

  Guido turned around and reached into a box on the table behind him. He pushed a mic set across the table. “No you didn’t, Aidan. You forgot.”

  Now it was Aidan’s turn to smile. “Oh! I forgot. Damn the luck!” He picked the equipment up and slipped it inside his jacket. “I must be slipping.”

  Guido nudged Laney. “I’m sure a lot of cops forgot, huh?”

  “Oh. Undoubtedly. Very busy, these police officers.”

  They all looked expectantly at Cooper. “I still don’t like it.”

  “But what choice do we have?” Laney asked. He stared into her determined face for several seconds and the others waited without speaking. He looked at Guido for help.

  “I’ll get you the best equipment ever,” he responded.

  Cooper sighed, gazing back down at Laney and brushing the hair back from her face. “I don’t like it,” he repeated. “But I guess I’m outnumbered.”

  * * *

  They returned to the apartment to change clothes. They chose an amusement park as the location for the trap, so casual clothing was required. While Laney was changing, Cooper and Aidan argued in the living room.

  “She’s not a goddamn piece of meat to be dangled in front of a wild dog, Aidan!”

  “Don’t you think I know that, Cooper!” he hissed back. “But she’s right. We can sit around and wait until he tries something again—in a place of his choosing, at his time—or we can take action and force his hand in a place of our choosing, where she’s surrounded by cops. And—”

  Cooper heard footsteps approaching and raised a hand, stopping Aidan in midsentence.

  “I’m ready.”

  They exchanged a wordless glance, and then both rose. “Okay,” Cooper said with a sigh. “Let’s go.”

  He was quiet on the ride over. He tried to keep his mind away from worst case scenarios. Tried, and failed. They pulled into a back section of a superstore parking lot a mile from the park. They got out and car doors began to open, people rising from the vehicles and strolling toward them. He was surprised by how many.

  “You got all of these people to help out?” he asked Aidan out of the corner of his mouth.

  “I had to turn some people away. Once word got out, everybody wanted in.”

  “Wow!” Cooper was touched but as they formed a loose circle facing him, his inner cop surfaced and he took command of the group of ten officers, including Aidan. After getting their orders, the group split off in singles and pairs to return to their cars, all of them wearing hidden radios.

  They filed into the amusement park lot and parked in different sections. When Cooper got out he placed his hand over Laney’s shoulder casually, but every nerve in his body was on alert. They entered the park under the big archway of lights and strolled through the grounds to the big carousel in the middle, where they would wait for the killer to show up. Laney swung up onto the back of one of the painted horses while he stood at her side.

/>   After fifteen minutes or so, she leaned down and whispered. “Aren’t you going to go now?” The plan had been to leave her seemingly alone, Cooper taking off to get some popcorn. But, in reality, he would be watching her, and other officers were posted within feet of the carousel.

  His eyes scanned the crowd, mentally checking people off. Couple with a child, they’re okay. Teenagers making out, harmless. Older couple…

  He saw one man by himself wearing a ball cap. Could he be their man? He wanted a better look, to see if he could identify the man, but she was leaning toward him again.

  “I trust you, you know.”

  He was sure her words were meant to reassure him, but, instead, they made him feel ten times worse. She trusted him with her life. Why, he didn’t know. So far, she had been watched over in her sleep by the killer while he was feet away. She had the maniac try to attack her in a hotel room, and had the crap beaten out of her on a public beach, all while under his care. Yeah, he was one trustworthy S.O.B., that was for sure.

  “If you see anything, recognize anyone, speak and we’ll hear you through the microphone.” She nodded, looking more put-together than she had a right to be, still harboring bruises from the man they were waiting for. He gave her hand a squeeze, then left, hopping off the carousel and striding purposefully toward a vendor. He tried to see where the stranger with the Dodgers hat had gone. He was straining his neck, peering around, taking mental photographs of every face he saw as he waited in line while a man ordered a lemon shake-up in front of him.

  Her voice broke through his thoughts. “He’s here!” She sounded terrified.

  His eyes flew to the carousel, but her horse was out of sight. “You see him, Lane?”

  “No. But I can feel him.”

  Cooper shut his eyes. He should have known better. She was too raw for this. Of course, she would jump at every shadow.

  Laney seemed to sense his feelings in the long pause before he answered her. “I know it sounds crazy, Cooper, but I swear, he’s here.”

  Another second passed. He made a decision, pushing his mike button. “Heads up, everyone. Our guy is here.”

  Aidan jumped on board the carousel from his nearby spot and started walking casually forward. Cooper’s heart was racing as he watched and moved in his direction. He could see Laney was alone. Aidan had almost reached her when he stopped and bent over, reaching into a stationary sled that was part of the ride. It offered a couple a spot to sit together, should they desire to.

  His voice sounded in Cooper’s ear. “He’s here!” He straightened up, a single red rose in his hand.

  Cooper searched the people that mobbed the area, zeroing in on a figure hustling off, wearing a baseball cap. “He’s headed toward the main entrance, wearing a Dodgers hat.” He ran around to the left. As he cleared the carousel, he saw the suspect rushing down a path toward the main gate. Cooper broke into a run, his blood pounding, screaming, Get the bastard! He hurdled the low chains that bordered the pathways wagon-spoking the carousel. He angled his path to intercept and timed himself, launching into the air. His arms wrapped around the suspect and brought him to the ground.

  The stranger grappled with him. “What the hell…?”

  Belatedly, Cooper warned him, “Police!”

  He secured the man’s arms behind his back as Aidan walked up, holding the rose. “He left this.”

  He wrestled the man to his feet.

  “What the hell is this all about?” The man sounded both angry and frightened. He looked at Aidan. “I didn’t leave that!”

  Laney hastened forward, book-ended by two officers.

  “Laney,” Cooper demanded. “Do you recognize this guy?”

  She peered at him, her face white. “No.” The word came out choked. “I’ve never seen him before.”

  Cooper got a sinking feeling. His gaze skimmed the surrounding area, seeking an answer. Many of the park visitors had stopped what they were doing to stare at the group open-mouthed, but he passed right over them looking for someone else.

  “What’s this all about?” the man he tackled asked.

  Aidan strode forward, getting in the man’s face, the veins in his neck bulging. “What? Do you get some kind of sick kick out of beating up on innocent women you don’t even know, you little prick?”

  “What are you talking about? I never…” The man looked from him to Laney, and seemed to notice the deep bruises on her cheek and the bandage above her eye. He began to stammer. “I-I s-swear…I…”

  “If you’re so innocent,” Aidan continued, his anger boiling over, “then why were you hurrying out of here like the place was on fire?”

  “B-because my wife’s having a baby!”

  The answer was so unexpected, everyone stared at him.

  “She just called. She went into labor.”

  “Oh, no!” Laney moaned.

  “Oh, come on.” Aidan sounded less confident now. “Why would you be at an amusement park by yourself without—?”

  “I came to meet my folks. They’ve got our son, Timmy, for the afternoon, so I thought I’d take half a day and meet them.”

  Aidan was stymied. Ted Waters, one of the officers with Laney, interjected. “What hospital, sir?”

  “St. Vincent.”

  “Your wife’s name?”

  “Virginia. Virginia Coltrain. I’m Peter Coltrain.”

  Waters stepped away and made a call.

  “But I was so sure,” Laney mumbled, dazed. “I felt him here. Or I thought I did, but I was wrong, wasn’t I?” She peered up into the stranger’s face, searching for answers.

  He stared at her, perhaps seeing the pain in her eyes, which went deeper than the bruises. He nodded.

  “You weren’t wrong, Laney.” Aidan showed her the rose.

  Her eyes flew to his. “He left it?”

  He nodded.

  Her hands went to her arms, and she began to rub them. “He was here.”

  “What’s with the rose?” Peter Coltrain asked.

  A female officer standing closest to him responded. “It’s sort of the killer’s calling card. He killed her sister,” she added, jerking a head in Laney’s direction, “and now he’s after her.”

  Coltrain absorbed the information without speaking, looking at Laney now with both curiosity and pity.

  “Sir,” Ted Waters said to Cooper, “his story checks out. There is a Virginia Coltrain at St. Vincent’s.”

  He closed his eyes for a second, letting the defeat wash over him. He turned to the man he tackled minutes earlier. “I don’t know how to tell you how sorry I am, sir. I thought—”

  “That’s okay,” Coltrain said. “I understand. We all make mistakes.” He glanced at Laney. “I’d want to get the bastard, too.”

  Cooper sighed, grateful the man was forgiving. “I can arrange for a police escort to St. Vincent’s for you.”

  The man smiled broadly. “That would be great!”

  Cooper nodded to two officers who moved to follow Coltrain from the park, but he hesitated. “God, I hope I don’t read about her murder in the paper this week.” Then he hurried off with the policemen.

  Aidan stepped forward. “I’m sorry. I overreacted.”

  “No, I’m the one who rode the man down to the ground.” He turned his hand over as he spoke to examine the scrapes on his palm that he’d received from sliding across the pavement.

  “Oh! Your hand’s hurt—” Laney began, coming out of her silent revelry, and taking his hand.

  He snatched it back. “It’s nothing.” What that bastard did to her is so much worse. And he’s still out there, thanks to me! “Let’s get out of here!”

  When they reached the ‘Vette, he turned to see Aidan walking with his arm over Laney’s shoulder. He helped her into the car while Cooper thanked and dismissed the other officers.

  A minute later, he stood leaning against the car with Aidan. “That was great!” he ranted. “We’ll be lucky if that guy doesn’t sue the damn department!”r />
  “I think he’s okay with it—”

  “Dammit!” Cooper turned around and pounded his fist on the car’s roof.

  Inside, Laney jumped.

  “Sorry,” he yelled through the glass. She nodded, but then turned to stare forward again with a blank expression on her face. He faced Aidan. “We almost had him.”

  Aidan’s jaw was tight. He nodded his head in Laney’s direction. “You need to take it easy on her, Coop. She’s near the edge.”

  “I know. I—”

  Aidan held up a hand to silence him. “When she was looking at your hand back there and you jerked it away, I don’t think you saw it, but she flinched.” He paused. “You kind of acted like an ass.”

  He exhaled, shaking his head and looking skyward. “I know. It’s so frustrating! This guy always manages to stay one step ahead of us somehow.”

  “I know,” Aidan responded with a measure of sympathy. He stepped forward and tapped on the window, bending down to peer into the glass. “See ya!”

  She waved and smiled halfheartedly. Cooper walked with him to his car, two empty parking spots away.

  “You know. We’ve had problems like this before on other cases, and you were able to keep your cool,” Aidan prodded. “What makes this one different?”

  Cooper turned back to look at Laney in the car. He shrugged, but then leaned against Aidan’s car with a sigh. “Everything.”

  “Or just one thing,” he said pointedly, looking at her, too.

  Cooper glanced at him. “Well, how would you feel if it was Jenna?”

  Aidan smiled. “Ahh! The Mighty Cooper Sullivan has fallen.”

  He punched him in the shoulder. “Shut up!”

  “She’s ‘special’ isn’t she?” he egged. “Isn’t she?”

  He walked away. “Shut up, you moron!”

  “She is special.” Aidan roared with laughter, taking great delight in his partner’s uneasiness.