by Anna Lewis
“I feel better now, but this is just one huge nightmare that I can’t wake up from. I don’t know if life will ever be normal again, and I hate that.”
She bit her lip, looking at one twin, then the other.
“I don’t want to think about this mess for another minute. That’s all I’ve been doing for weeks and it’s too much. I need to forget all this ugliness, even if it’s just for the night.”
They were watching her, and she could tell them moment when Trevor realized what she was saying.
“We can stay with you tonight,” he said softly. “You don’t have to sleep alone.”
She nodded, moving to the center of the bed and making room for them both. Trevor slid into bed in front of her, lying on his side to face her. He reached out, pushing the hair away from her face, and kissed her swollen lips softly.
Spencer dimmed the lights then got into bed on the other side of her, sliding up against her and pulling her close so that her body was cradled against him. She sighed, leaning against him and letting the warmth of his embrace drive out the ugliness of the dream.
She reached out to Trevor, running her finger over his bare chest and trickling her way down his flat stomach to the waistband of his pajama pants. He sucked in a quick breath when she slipped her fingers into the waistband, knuckles brushing the top of his pelvis.
She bit her lip and looked at him, boldly daring him to stop her.
“Are you sure?” Trevor said quietly.
“Didn’t you say that you guys do everything together?” she asked, her voice husky and raw with need that had been simmering just below the surface for days.
“I did,” he said.
She felt Spencer kiss the back of her neck, pulling a sexy grin from her. Spencer might not be talkative, but he'd understood her. He knew exactly what she was asking. And he was willing to give her what she needed.
Spencer trailed sweet kisses down her neck and shoulders while Lara toyed with Trevor, teasing him until she saw the soft smolder in his eyes build to a vibrant flame.
“You’re playing with fire,” he growled.
“I know,” she said. “I just want to forget, and I’ve been thinking about... this, for a while now.”
“You have?”
“Haven’t you?” she asked, arching an eyebrow in surprise then smirking when her hand went around Trevor’s stiff member, causing him to catch his breath. “As often as you touch my hand when it isn’t necessary, and the times I’ve caught you staring at me with a hunter’s look in your eye, I can’t believe that you haven’t been thinking about it, too.”
“I have,” Trevor said.
“We both have,” Spencer said.
Spencer’s hands slid up her soft belly, pulling her loose shirt over her head and discarding it on the floor behind him. His hand went around and he worked his fingers into the band of her pants, sliding them down her hips until she could kick then off, then descending to the folds of her sex.
Spencer stroked her slowly, gently at first while she held Trevor's penis in her hands. Spencer’s fingers were building a raging fire within Lara, her hips pumping against his hand as he stroked her tiny, sensitive nub of flesh.
Trevor’s hands were on her breasts, squeezing and kneading them almost roughly. She arched her back against his touch, her round ass pressing against Spencer’s rigid shaft in the process.
She moved again until the head of his penis teased her opening, still stroking Trevor in her hands and rubbing him into a frenzy. Spencer moved her until his hardness slipped between her legs, then into her body, burying himself to the hilt in her tight heat.
She moaned with pleasure. Trevor’s hands continued to caress her breasts, and Spencer inside her felt so good that she could already feel the orgasm building within her.
Spencer’s hand cupped her sex from behind, stroking the tender flesh between her folds as he thrust into her, his movements gaining momentum in response to her moans.
Lara struggled to concentrate on Trevor, his hips pumping against her hands as she teased the pleasure out of him, his hands rough on her breasts. She laughed, throwing her head back a little and closing her eyes. She was there, just moments away from orgasm, her head already spinning with the pleasure that they were bringing her, their skillful hands working her nerves until the pleasure made them raw.
She was whimpering now, orgasm so close that she could almost burst with anticipation. Then it hit her. It slammed into her with such a force and intensity that caught her off-guard. She screamed in pleasure, and when she stopped all she could hear was the shuddering breath of both her lovers, seeking release. She writhed and bucked against Spencer’s thrusts, her hands still wrapped around Trevor’s shaft and stroking him frantically.
Two manly groans followed and all at once, they joined her in the crashing waves of pleasure.
Spencer thrust into her roughly while Trevor fell apart in her hands. She called out to them, their sweet names on her lips as she thrashed and moaned. Moans turned to screams of ecstasy, her lips meeting Trevor’s in a deep, passionate kiss as Spencer emptied his passion into her in one final, deep stroke.
They fell back to the bed as one, panting and laughing as their raw nerves twitched and trembled.
When Spencer withdrew himself from her, she turned and Trevor moved forward to cradle her against his body as Spencer had done. She wrapped one had behind herself, resting her hand on Trevor’s thick hair and holding his head against hers in a tender motion. She kissed Spencer deeply, opening her mouth to him and tasting the heat of him.
She snuggled between them, her body hot with their loving. Her sigh was content as she settled in to sleep, finally feeling safe now that she was between them and surrounded by their strength and their love.
She felt Trevor’s arm go around her waist and Spencer’s hand reach out to cup one supple breast as she was drifting off to sleep. She smiled, letting the exhaustion claim her and thinking to herself that they would definitely have to do this more often.
***
They were just finishing dinner the next night when Spencer’s phone rang, interrupting the silence and making them all pause. Trevor and Lara were silent as he took the call.
“Agent Spencer Hart,” he answered.
Lara watched him intently, but as usual, he facial expressions masked his thoughts.
“I understand, Sir. Yes, I have a secure line on my laptop. I’ll sit with her and see what I can get. Thank you, Sir. Yes, Sir.”
He hung up, going upstairs and returning with his laptop. He set it on the dining room table and motioned to Lara to join him at the end of the long table while Trevor cleared away their plates and made room.
“We got the DNA back on the burn victim, and that led to the name of the last juror left.”
“So, we got him? I can leave?”
“No,” he said. “The FBI showed up at the man’s house and he was dead.”
“They got to him,” she whispered.
“They did, but he was dead long before you met him. He was murdered some time ago, at least two weeks before the trial even started.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Whoever killed him, killed him in order to let someone else step into his place. Our missing juror wasn’t who he was supposed to be.”
“That makes sense. There was one guy that was always saying ‘not guilty’ no matter how many times the rest of us agreed that Jimmy was guilty.”
“You don’t know who it was that was voting not guilty?”
“No idea. It was a secret ballot and everyone put their folded papers into a basket.”
“Well, the victim’s name is Gerald Thompson. Did anyone give their name?”
“No. We were all numbers. It was the most annoying thing. I felt like a little kid.”
Spencer opened an email while she spoke, pulling up eleven pictures.
“Here are the men that are murdered. Someone is missing from here.”
She took a mome
nt to look through all the pictures, then nodded.
“I know who’s missing. He sat in the corner. Glasses, greasy comb-over, wore a sweater vest. He never made eye contact.”
“Did you get a good look at him?”
“I did. He gave off this weird vibe, and I felt a little like I’d seen him somewhere. You know, like those people that you run into at the supermarket all the time, but you don’t know them; you just recognize their face?”
“You recognized him?”
“Not really. It’s hard to explain. I guess he reminded me of someone, and I kind of latched onto that. So, I paid attention to him more, and I got a few good looks at him. I never thought that he was the dissenter, though. He was always saying things that made me believe that he was all for convicting the guy.”
“The point was to make sure that you never suspected him,” Trevor offered, coming back from the kitchen and sitting on the other side of Lara.
Spencer opened a program on the computer and a blank face came up.
“Do you think that you could describe the man?”
“I can, but I don’t know what good that will do.”
“Trust me,” Spencer said. “It can do a world of good. Let’s start with the eyes. Let’s just start with the color.”
“Blue. Definitely blue.”
“And what about the shape?” Spencer asked, clicking a button on the mouse and cycling through all the options. “You don’t have to pick the perfect pair right now, just get as close as you can.”
“There! That one,” she said.
He stopped, and they moved one. They worked piece by piece, slowly building a face one feature at a time. More than an hour passed before Lara finally stopped.
“That’s it. That’s the man.”
“Is there anything that could be changed?” Spencer asked.
“No. It’s perfect. It looks just like him.”
“Good. Now, here’s my next question: Do you know him?”
“No,” she said, shaking her head.
“Are you certain? Take your time. It could be anyone.”
“No, I don’t know him.” A look passed between the twins. “What?” she asked.
“Your information was found in Gerald Thompson’s house. It didn’t look like it belonged there, but almost like it got knocked out of the killer’s pocket when he struggled while killing Gerald, or even while he was wrapping him up in plastic sheeting. I think that’s why it took them so long to find you. They lost the paper with your name and address on it.”
“Seriously? Why wouldn’t they have it somewhere else?”
“It looked like it was scribbled down in a hurry. Whoever gathered the information was unorganized, and that probably saved your life.”
“Or scared,” Trevor added. “A lot of the people that work for the mob don’t start out killers.”
Lara looked at the picture again, but it didn’t change anything. She shook her head.
“I still have no idea.”
“That’s alright,” Spencer said, reaching out and squeezing her hand. “I’ll send it to a buddy of mine and we’ll see what he can do with it.”
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I feel like I’m letting you down somehow.”
“It’s probably a disguise,” Trevor said. “I’m sure that he’s wearing some Hollywood-worthy prosthetics on his face or something to that effect. But Spencer’s got a guy who is a whiz at facial recognition from these pictures. If this man can be found, Jerry will find him.”
***
Lara woke up the next morning to an empty bed and cold sheets. Since that first night of passion, one or both twins had slept in her bed. Their presence had made sleeping that much easier for Lara, and she was no longer beset with nightmares.
Her watch said that it was just after sunrise, the skylight just brighter than the gray light that signaled the impending dawn. She got out of bed, going down the stairs quickly and stopping short when she saw a group of men in the kitchen with Spencer and Trevor. Trevor waved her over, introducing her to the men around the table and pulling out the chair beside him with one hand.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“One of the big players in the mob flipped,” Trevor said excitedly.
“Really?” Lara asked, excited. “Does that mean that I don’t have to testify and I’m done with witness protection?”
Spencer shook his head.
“No. We’re still missing a big part of the puzzle and Jerry was only able to get one hit off the facial recognition system. It’s blurry and it’s from another crime scene. The man was never identified and he’s wanted for more than just a few crimes.”
“Can I look at him?”
“The picture is blurry, and the video is not much better,” Spencer said.
“It couldn’t hurt to look, right?”
“I suppose not,” Spencer said, turning his laptop so she could see it and pulling up the video. “I’ll put it on a loop, since it’s only about ten seconds. It’s alright if you can’t figure out who it is.”
Lara watched the screen, waiting for the video to play, then paying close attention to every minute detail; the way the man walked, his face, and even how he held his hands at his sides.
The video was on its fifteenth loop when she suddenly gasped.
“Do you know this man?” Trevor asked while every agent at the table waited for her to answer.
“I do. I can’t believe I didn’t see it before.” She closed her eyes and visualized the man that she had known only as juror number six. “How could I have missed it? He was across the table from me the entire time and I didn’t recognize him.”
“Seeing people out of context often throws us,” Spencer said. “That’s why you’ll see someone that you’ve met in a library at the grocery store and not know why you know them. That’s what that nagging feeling was you were talking about yesterday. Who is he?”
“Remember the box plant I worked at? He’s the boss.”
“You’re boss?”
“No, not my direct boss. He’s the guy in the office overlooking the assembly line floor. I know it’s him. He worked at Haley’s Corrugated for twenty years before his promotion and he holds his hand that way when he walks because he didn’t treat his carpal tunnel syndrome. And he always makes the same expression when he’s walking onto the floor and he’s about to fire someone. His name is Joe Belcher.”
“Are you sure it’s him?” Spencer pressed.
“Completely sure. And now, it all makes sense. There were a few times where he just acted odd around me. Maybe he was afraid I would recognize him. But how did anyone know about me, or any of the other jurors? I was one of over thirty people taken into that room. How could they know that I was going to get picked for the twelve? And how did they know about Gerald Thompson?”
Trevor chuckled, shaking his head.
“You went to federal court. It’s a little bit different than your average jury selection. When you respond to a federal summons, it might seem random, but they have already done background checks on everyone that shows up, and they have decided who they are going to have on the jury. Especially in cases like these.”
“No way,” she said, incredulous. “That’s so dishonest.”
Trevor shrugged.
“It’s been that way for a long time.”
“But, why?”
“It helps the outcome of the case. The lawyers can argue to dismiss a juror, but the judge makes the final decision. If the juror was already not in the final running, then it’s allowed and the lawyer is left feeling victorious. It keeps people from noticing what’s going on.”
“How did the mob get that information, then?”
“It’s very easy,” Spencer said. “Easier than it should be, anyway.”
Lara shook her head, “I can’t believe how easily something like this can happen. Now what?”
“Now, you stay put,” Trevor said. “You gave us the information we need to connect the dot
s with our informant’s information. That’s more than we had and you unlocked a piece of the puzzle.”
“I can’t leave and go back to my life?”
Spencer shook his head.
“You’re actually in more danger now,” he said.
“How is that possible?”
“Because you know the man who the mob sent to make sure that the jury didn’t reach a guilty verdict. The chances of you knowing more, even if you don’t realize it, are pretty significant.”
“You’ll have to go into the permanent protection program,” one of the agents said. “You won’t ever be safe as Lara Fox again. You have to walk away from your life, move somewhere new and live under a new name. You can’t have any contact with anyone you know, and you can’t tell anyone who you used to be. We’ll take care of faking your death, and you might get a choice of states, but that depends on what’s open when you’re done with the trial.”
Lara closed her eyes against the wave of tears that threatened. She stood up, then, taking a deep breath and turning to walk out of the room. She heard Trevor call out to her, but Spencer stepped in, thankfully.
“Let her go,” she heard Spencer say. “She needs her space.”
That’s an understatement, she thought angrily, taking the stairs two at a time and fleeing down the long hall and through Trevor’s room to her own room. She closed the door, sitting down hard on the bed and letting herself fall back on the pillows. She had been a fool, thinking that this would be over in a few weeks and she could just go back to her life. But that was never going to happen. Her home was gone, her old life ruined except for her business. There was nothing left that was hers; not her life, not her name, and not her freedom. Somehow, she’d thought when she found the answers they needed, things would magically go back to the way that they once were.
Boy, was she wrong.
***
Eric sat in his car, watching the warehouse as the last of the workers left for the night. Haley’s Corrugated was open from six in the morning until six at night, the workers doing three days of twelve hour shifts a week. The factory was only open six days a week, and they ran the same teams each week. Joe Belcher worked every day, sitting in his office six days a week, half asleep most days.