by Marie Force
For the first time since that awful day, she took his hand and held on tight to him. His heart contracted with what felt an awful lot like joy. The accompanying swell of emotion had him fearful that he might break down.
“Later you found out he’d had complicated feelings for your friend and employer.”
Shelby nodded, the inner light that was so much a part of her dimming. “It hurt me that everyone kept that from me for so long. I felt stupid because I had no idea.”
“Do you believe Avery when he tells you nothing of any consequence ever happened between the two of them because she was happily married when he met her?”
“I know all the parties involved, and I absolutely believe that nothing happened. Sam would never be unfaithful to Nick. They’re crazy about each other and don’t care who knows it.”
“They do give off that vibe,” Rosemary agreed. “I’m glad to know it’s authentic.”
“It’s so authentic.”
“Do you understand that this information was kept from you by three people you care about because they care about you and didn’t want to hurt you with information they felt was irrelevant to your relationship with Avery—and with them?”
“It took me some time to understand that, but I do now.”
“We were well past that when I made the huge mistake of saying her name at the worst possible time,” Avery said, grimacing all over again at the thought of that moment. It still made him sick to think about how much pain he’d caused the woman he loved.
“Avery and I have talked a lot about that event,” Rosemary said. “We’ve rehashed it from every possible angle, and I’ve tried to help him see that sometimes our brain behaves in ways that make no sense. For instance, did you know that Sam reminds him of a woman he loved when he was in college?”
Stunned, Shelby looked at him. “No, I didn’t know that. You’ve never told me…”
“I never told anyone until Rosemary got it out of me.”
“Who was she?” Shelby asked.
God, this hurt, even after all this time. “Her name was Jennifer. We met at a dance when I was at the Citadel. She went to a local high school in Charleston. I was crazy about her from the minute I met her, and she felt the same way. Every time I saw her, my feelings for her multiplied until she was the most important part of my life. You haven’t lived until you’ve tried to have a girlfriend while attending a military college. Over time, she got tired of waiting for me to be free to see her, and she moved on with someone who had time for her. When we broke up… That was the closest I ever came to leaving school. My parents got involved with the school counselor and they got me through it, but it was the first real crisis I ever had.”
“And Sam reminds you of her?”
“I’d never made the connection until Rosemary connected the dots for me, but Sam does bear a striking resemblance to Jennifer. I never realized it because I worked so hard to bury all thoughts of Jennifer that I didn’t make the connection. But once Rosemary did, a lot of things made sense to me.”
“Wow,” Shelby said. “That’s…”
“It’s crazy, darlin’. I know it is. I’ve always known this thing I had for Sam was ridiculous, but it was like I couldn’t control it even when I knew I had to. Rosemary thinks that was driven by the unfinished business I had with Jennifer more than anything directly to do with Sam.”
“I like that theory a whole lot better than you having a secret burning love for my friend and boss.”
“I do too.”
“Do you know whatever became of Jennifer?”
“I don’t, and I don’t want to know. I have no interest in anyone but the woman who’s going to be my wife, if she’ll still have me after the mistakes I’ve made.” A few weeks ago, it would’ve been impossible for him to say something so intimate in front of Rosemary, but she no longer felt like a stranger. She’d helped him to make sense of a lot of crap, and he was grateful to her for that.
He hadn’t thought about Jennifer or the devastation he’d experienced when their relationship ended in years. Rosemary had asked him to describe her, and after he did, she’d said, “You could’ve been describing our second lady.” That had been the ultimate lightning rod moment for him.
“Shelby?” Rosemary said after a long silence. “How do you feel about what Avery said?”
“I…I want the same thing he does. I want to be married to him. I want him to formally adopt Noah. I want us to raise him together and maybe, if we’re super lucky, we’ll have another baby that belongs to both of us from the beginning.”
That was the first time he’d heard her say she wanted him to adopt Noah. His heart ached with love for her. “Noah has belonged to both of us from the beginning,” he said, “and I’d love nothing more than to formally adopt him.” He put his arm around her and kissed her temple, fairly shaking from the relief of hearing her say she still wanted the same things he did.
“You’ve made great progress today, but if you’re amenable I’d like to continue to see you both to make sure we’ve laid a strong foundation for your life together.”
“That’s fine with me.” Avery would always be thankful to Rosemary for helping him put his life back together.
“Me too,” Shelby said. “Whatever it takes.”
They left a few minutes later and went down the stairs holding hands. Outside, Avery said, “Go ahead and check your phone. I know you’re dying to.”
“Only a little.” She pulled the pink bedazzled monstrosity from her pink purse, her face lighting up with joy. “Look.”
Nancy had sent a selfie of herself with a sleeping Noah in her arms.
“Has he grown since we left? Tell me the truth.”
“I’ll tell you the truth, darlin’. You’re losing it.”
“What a way to go,” she said with a happy sigh as she gazed at the baby like she hadn’t seen him in a year.
“I asked Nancy if we could go to lunch after our appointment, and she said to take our time. Do you think you could relax enough to enjoy a meal with your fiancé?”
Shelby bit her lip. “I could, but there’s something else I’d much rather do.”
“Name it.”
She dropped the phone into her purse, took a step closer to him and put her arms around his waist, looking up at him with the big expressive eyes that had looked at him with such adoration until it had gone so very wrong. For the first time since that dreadful day, she looked at him the way she used to.
He wanted to drop to his knees and give thanks to whatever higher power had made it possible for her to forgive him.
“I want to go home and be alone with my sexy fiancé.” She punctuated her words with kisses to his neck and jaw. “If he can take the afternoon off, that is.”
Avery turned his head ever so slightly, just enough to bring his lips into contact with hers. “Your fiancé can think of nothing else in this world he’d rather do than take an afternoon off to spend with you.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
WELL RESTED AND equipped with the knowledge that their lives weren’t about to become more complicated anytime soon, Sam returned to work, ready to close the case that had been such a vexing source of frustration. Upon arriving, she met with the Missing Persons detective leading the search for Captain Wallack.
“What’ve you got for me, Detective?”
“We’re zeroing in on the stepson from his first marriage.” Detective Jacqueline DiMaio had gorgeous long dark hair and sharp blue eyes. Sam hadn’t worked with her before, but had heard about her because she was good at her job. “Curtis Moore. He was an infant when his mother married Wallack. He’s been in and out of trouble for close to a decade. Wallack washed his hands of the kid after he and the mother split. Word is they split because of the kid.”
“Where’s Curtis now?”
“No known address.
We’re looking for him, but I wanted you to be aware of where we are.”
“You have a picture of him?”
“Nope. His files were sealed for some reason.”
“Could that reason be a favor his stepfather did for the kid’s mother?”
“That’s one possibility we’re looking into.”
“Keep me posted?”
“Absolutely. I heard about the funeral home plan. That’s brilliant.”
“Thank you. I have my moments.”
“From what I hear you have more than a few moments. Have a good day, Lieutenant.”
“You do the same.”
Sam spent the rest of the afternoon hunkered down with her team, making their plan for the funeral home tour. Angel had been released from the hospital and was resting at home until they picked her up at six to prepare her for what they needed her to do.
Roberto had been understandably hesitant to allow his Angel to be exposed to the men who’d hurt her, but she’d prevailed, saying she wanted to do whatever she could to get them.
Sam had always admired her protectiveness of Roberto. But now she admired Angel’s strength and determination too. She went with Freddie and Gonzo to pick up Angel at the home she shared with Roberto.
Everyone had agreed that Sam should be part of the preparation, but Green would be the one to escort her into the funeral homes. He and Angel would be wearing wires so they could be monitored from the van that would transport them. Sam would be in the van with Freddie and Gonzo. Green would escort Angel with Jeannie following them through the line for additional backup, and they’d have Tactical Response teams on standby to help apprehend the suspects if Angel spotted them.
Angel had made an effort with her hair and makeup that went a long way toward hiding the bruises and abrasions on her face, but she moved slowly, grimacing in pain on occasion.
“It’s too soon for her to be doing this,” Roberto said to Sam. “She just got out of the hospital.”
“If we’re going to grab them at a wake, it needs to be now,” Sam told him. “I promise my team will take very good care of her and bring her back to you in a couple of hours.”
“She acts tough, but she’s broken. They broke her.”
“She’s too tough to be broken. She’ll bounce back. It’ll take some time and patience and all the love you can give her, but she’s going to be okay. Someone who was broken wouldn’t be capable of what she’s doing tonight.”
“You bring her back to me, Sam. I’m trusting you with the most important person in my life. You ain’t never let me down before. Please don’t start now.”
“I won’t. I promise.” Sam planned to make sure she kept that promise by surrounding Angel with security every step of the way.
Green walked Angel through two wakes, expressing condolences to grieving family members before emerging into the heavy humidity, shaking his head.
They got back in the van and moved on to the third one, the group more subdued after two strikeouts.
“This next one is one of ours,” he said, referring to the Greenlawn Funeral Home on Georgia Avenue Northwest. “I’ve known the funeral director for years and gave him a heads-up that we’d be by.”
“And he knows not to acknowledge you?” Sam asked.
“Yes, I talked to him.”
“Why the hell is there so much freaking traffic at this hour?” she asked.
“The Feds are in town,” Gonzo said.
“Whose idea was it to have a baseball team in this notoriously congested city?” Sam asked.
“Don’t let Scotty hear you saying that,” Freddie said.
“How’re you holding up?” Sam asked Angel.
“I’m okay.”
“Are you hurting?”
“A little, but I can handle it. I don’t want to stop until we find them.”
Sam gave her arm a gentle squeeze and nodded. “You let me know if you need to go home.”
They knew it was possible they might not get this finished tonight. There were other wakes they could check tomorrow. But she hoped for Angel’s sake and the sakes of the other victims’ families that they could finish this up tonight.
Gonzo, who was driving, brought the van to a stop in the parking lot.
“Here we go again,” Green said to Angel. “Are you ready?”
“I’m ready. Let’s go.”
Green got out first and helped Angel. She moved slowly and carefully, making Sam feel terrible for putting her through this so soon after her first ordeal.
“She’s a trouper,” Freddie said.
“She is indeed. If she spots these guys, we’ll have her to thank for closing this one.”
“And you,” he said. “It was your idea to do this.”
“She gets the credit.”
After that, they were quiet, listening to the feed coming from the wires.
“Take your time,” Green said in a low, soothing tone. They’d agreed ahead of time that he would keep an arm around her in case she needed the support and to better sell their cover as a grieving couple.
Sam listened intently, sitting on the edge of her seat waiting to hear something, anything that might indicate that Angel had seen someone she recognized.
After a long period of quiet, a sharp gasp echoed through the interior of the van.
“She’s got something.” Sam keyed the radio to convey the news that Angel had seen someone she might recognize to the Tactical Response team that was standing by, waiting for the word to go in. She waited breathlessly for the single word from Green that would trigger the next stage of their operation.
Seconds and minutes passed in agonizing silence. Sam listened so hard she began to hear things that weren’t there. A full five minutes after the gasp, Sam heard the word she’d been waiting for from Green.
“Go.”
“Move in,” she said into the radio.
Everything happened fast after that. Officers swarmed the funeral home from all sides. Sam, Freddie and Gonzo followed them inside, where two men dressed in black suits with Greenlawn name badges on their lapels ushered stunned guests out of the building.
In one of the rooms, Sam saw Green directing the teams while Jeannie had an arm around Angel as she walked her toward the door.
Sam reached for her and wrapped her arms around the sobbing young woman. “You did good,” she said, stroking Angel’s hair and back while making eye contact with Jeannie. “Let’s get you out of here.”
She had no sooner said the words when a shot rang out behind them. Sam held on tight to Angel and ran for the door, determined to get her to safety.
Angel stumbled and nearly fell, and only Sam’s tight hold kept her standing and moving forward.
Jeannie followed and between the two of them they got Angel into the van and out of harm’s way.
“Stay with her,” Sam said to Jeannie.
“Yes, ma’am.”
With Angel in good hands, Sam ran back into the funeral home, where Gonzo and Freddie had two young men on the floor, their knees pressed to their backs as they cuffed them and advised them of their rights.
“This is outrageous,” another man said. “You can’t come into my sister’s wake and arrest my nephew!”
“Looks like we just did.” Sam tried not to look at the woman laid out in the coffin at the front of the room. It was a wonder she wasn’t rolling in her coffin from the goings-on at her wake. The powerful smell of too many lilies in one room made Sam feel a little sick.
“I’ll have your badge.”
“Okay.”
He lunged at her, and Cameron Green intervened. Before the man knew what hit him, he too had been cuffed and was on his way to be processed at HQ.
“You’re going to pay for this,” he screamed as he was hauled away.
Gonzo and Fredd
ie followed with the two young men they’d been looking for. They walked with their heads down as they were escorted from the building and placed in squad cars for the ride to HQ.
“Good job, Detective,” Sam said to Green.
“Thank you.”
“Who fired the shot?”
“One of the perps pulled a gun and got off a wild shot.” He pointed to the ceiling where the plaster had been shattered by the impact. “We neutralized him before he could get off another.”
“What do you want to bet that the bullet in the ceiling is going to match the ones from the shootings?” Sam asked him.
“I’d bet the farm.”
CHAPTER THIRTY
LEAVING THE FUNERAL home in the hands of the Crime Scene detectives to process, with orders to get the bullet from the ceiling to the lab ASAP, Sam and her team took Angel home, delivering her to a relieved Roberto. He was waiting outside for them after Angel texted to tell him she was on the way.
Sam leaned in for the hug he offered. “Thank you.”
“Thank you for letting me borrow your Angel. She did a good thing tonight. In fact, I think she’d make an excellent cop.”
“Don’t even say it,” he growled.
“I gotta go process the scumbags, but I’ll be back in touch soon, okay?”
“Thank you,” Angel said. “For everything.”
“Thank you. We might never have gotten them if it hadn’t been for you.”
“I want to go to bed.”
“Come on, baby.” Roberto rolled his chair to follow her into their building. “Let’s get you tucked in.”
Sam watched them until they were safely inside, and then jumped into the van. “First thing when we get to HQ, I want the addresses of the perps. We’ll raid their homes and maybe find Wallack.” She placed a call to Detective DiMaio from Missing Persons. “We’re fairly confident we’ve got our shooters,” she said without preamble. “I’ll have an address for your boy Curtis Moore in the next few minutes if you’d like to ready your team to search for Wallack.”