“Nancy! What’s wrong?”
Nancy was beside herself. “He’s in there with her; he’s hurting her, I know it … oh God. Oh God …”
Tommaso pounded on the door and could hear shouting from inside—an English man’s voice—Inca’s screams of pain—and he went cold. He threw himself against the door twice before it caved in, and he tumbled in.
Kevin had Inca by the throat, his free hand curled into a fist and driving into her stomach. Inca choked, unable to fight the huge man off. Blood poured from a cut above her eye. Tommaso, with a roar, threw himself at the man, dragging him away from Inca. Tommaso launched a fearsome attack on Kevin; the other man was completely blind-sided, still staring at Inca, who was on the floor, gasping as Nancy rushed to help her.
“Get off me …” Kevin tried to free himself from Tommaso’s grip. Olly and his deputy burst into the teahouse then, brought by the screams and shouts.
“Tommaso, drop him,” Olly ordered, and, although half-crazed with rage, Tommaso did, breathing heavily. Kevin’s face was a mess of blood, his nose broken. But Olly took one look at Inca’s stricken face and he merely put a hand on Tommaso’s back. “Step back now, Tommaso. We got this.”
His tone was gentle and broke through Tommaso’s rage. He blinked then and darted to Inca’s side. Nancy relinquished her daughter into his arms, a grateful look on her face. Tommaso could feel Inca’s entire body trembling. Nancy gave a squeak of distress as she moved around the counter and he looked at her.
Nancy looked over at Olly. “Olly, would you come here please?”
As Olly’s deputy wrestled Kevin out of the teahouse, Olly came over. He looked at what Nancy had seen and his face paled. Tommaso shook his head.
“What? What is it?”
He felt Inca shiver, and when the answer came, it was from her.
“He had a knife,” she said simply. “He had a knife.”
“I’m going to cancel Paris.”
Inca shook her head as the doctor made a face at her for moving. He was pressing butterfly stitches to the cut above her eye. She apologized to him, but looked back at Tommaso. “No, don’t. I am fine—even better now that Kevin’s in jail.”
“Olly says that at the very least they’ll charge him with attempted murder.”
“There you go, see? The best thing is not to let him dictate our lives anymore.”
Tommaso sighed. Since he had brought her to the medical center, Inca had rallied and seemed to be too okay for his liking. The doctor told her the shock would probably come later, but she shrugged. “It’s over; he’s caught.”
“Lay back for me, Inca. I want to check your other wounds.”
Tommaso closed his eyes briefly, not wanting to see the cuts and scratches on her lovely body. Kevin had tried to stab her, had come close, the tip of the knife making contact with her skin a few times, but she’d managed to disarm him before he could stab her. But then he’d started to choke her.
Tommaso opened his eyes and took in the damage. Blood oozed from the scratches on her belly, her stomach, her arms, and her hands where she’d fought him. There was an inch-long graze on her throat and a deeper slash on her left shoulder.
God.
The doctor was cleaning them, Inca wincing as the alcohol hit her skin.
“None of them are deep, thank God,” he said. “But perhaps a course of antibiotics wouldn’t go amiss, to fend off any bacteria from the knife.”
Tommaso waited until the doctor left them alone to get Inca’s prescription. “Maybe you should stay overnight.”
Inca shook her head. “No way. I’m fine, honey. I promise. I want to be with you.”
Tommaso kissed her. “I wish I had been there.”
“You can’t be there every minute, and it’s my own damn fault for not locking the door when Nancy went out.”
“He could have killed you.”
“Yes. But he didn’t.”
She gazed up at him and he saw something strange in her eyes. Freedom.
“I feel released,” she said, reading his mind. “Like a weight has been lifted. Now I can annul the marriage and get Kevin deported if he doesn’t go to jail.”
“Oh, he’ll go to jail all right.” Tommaso looked fierce.
“As long as I’m free of him. God, I feel so relieved.”
He stroked her face. “I’m glad. Look, Olly asked us to come by if you’re up to it, to answer some questions.”
“Of course. I’m fine. Let’s get it done.”
He pressed his lips to hers. “Warrior woman.”
She chuckled. “Hardly. You saved my life, Tommaso.”
“I love you, Inca Sardee. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you.”
She wrapped her arms around him. “Then let’s go do this thing and then go home.”
“How you doing, kid?”
Olly looked up, startled. Tyler stood at the door to the office, smiling sympathetically at him. Olly grinned and offered him a coffee. When they were seated, Tyler pulled his cap off and scratched at his head as Olly indicated the paperwork on his desk.
“Paperwork out the wazoo, and yet no one’s telling me anything. It’s kinda frustrating.”
Tyler nodded. “Well, you made your bed.”
“Yup.”
They sat in silence for a while, then Tyler sighed. “Indulge an old man. Tell me what you got so far.”
Olly hesitated, then shrugged. “All we can charge Kevin Harnett with is attempted murder at the moment. I say all, though attempted murder will put him away for a good long time. But we’ve still got to try and tie him to the other murders.”
“You?”
“City homicide has it. They came and got him this morning. He admitted to coming here to kill Inca … Sorry,” he added when Tyler winced. “From what I understand, Kevin Hartnett has a record for beating his women. Inca told me that this isn’t the first time he’s tried to kill her.”
Tyler put his head in his hands. “She never told me any of that.”
Olly leaned forward, his expression intense. “She never told any of us, Tyler. Which concerns me. What if she finds herself in the same situation with …”
Tyler shook his head. “No. Winter saved her life.”
“You didn’t see him, Tyler. He was in a frenzy. He almost killed Harnett.”
“I would have done the same thing, Oliver.” Tyler’s voice was firm now. “Don’t let your dislike of Winter get in the way of the facts. He saved my daughter’s life, and I will be forever grateful to him.” He studied the younger man’s expression and Olly looked away from his penetrating gaze. “You still love her.” A statement.
Olly cleared his throat. “Let’s get back to Harnett. We found the knife he intended to use. Look familiar?”
He tossed over a photo and Tyler blanched when he saw it. “That looks like the one that was stolen from me last year.”
“Yep.”
Tyler shook his head. “I don’t understand.”
“You think it could be your one?”
He sighed. “I don’t know. I hope it is just coincidence. Is it the murder weapon in the other killings?”
“Forgive me, but I’m not up on the forensics on all of them. When I talked to Homicide, they hadn’t identified it. All they know is that it’s not your everyday kitchen knife. The wounds are jagged, but don’t match a serrated or hunting knife.” He gave a frustrated hiss. “Man …”
Tyler was watching him carefully. “Oliver … take it easy. You did your job. Inca is safe now. We can all move on.”
Getting his subtext, Olly nodded. “Tyler, I am moving on. You’ve met Molly?”
Tyler smiled then. “She’s a good girl, that one. You’re a lucky man.”
Olly returned his grin. “I know.”
Tyler got up. “Well, kid, if you need someone to blow off steam to, you know where I am. Try to remember why you left Homicide, though.”
Olly looked bleak. “Hard to do when it seems to be following
you around.”
He watched Tyler walk across to the Sakura to chat with Nancy and Scarlett. The thought crossed his mind that he would have enjoyed working with Tyler as Chief. Curiosity piqued, he grabbed the report of Tyler’s robbery from the file. He read down the inventory of stolen items: cash, passport, war memorabilia, jewelry. Petit larceny at best.
He shoved the folder back in the drawer, frustrated again. He wondered again if he should ask if he could question Harnett again. God, when he’d stepped into the Sakura that day and had seen Inca all bloody and in pain, then watched Tommaso beat the shit out of her attacker, all Olly could think was, That should have been me saving the woman I love, whaling on her would-be killer.
He’d realized then that he was still in love with Inca.
God, you fool, Rosenbaum. You utter fool.
You should never have let her go.
Inca finally persuaded Tommaso not to cancel his trip to Paris. “It’s four days, my love. If we can’t make it four days apart, then we have bigger problems.”
After a night of passionate and definitely kinky lovemaking, she drove him to SeaTac herself and kissed him goodbye. Tommaso stroked her hair back from her face. “Ti amo, Inca Sardee.”
She felt strange leaving him at the airport. She drove into the city and went to see Mindy, her realtor. Luckily, the tension between them had dissipated; Mindy believed her when Inca told her she hadn’t been the one who was rude to the signage guys.
“Did you ever confront the witch?” Mindy asked her now, passing Inca a mug of hot coffee.
“I haven’t even seen her, which is why it was so weird. Olly tells me he’s seen her in town, but not to talk to. If it wasn’t her, then I have no idea. Still.” Inca sipped the hot coffee. “That’s all in the past. So, I’m in the market for a new place.”
Mindy gave her a sly smile. “From what I hear, you already have the best place in town.”
Inca almost spit her drink out. “Holy hell. Does everyone know about me and Tommaso Winter?”
Mindy laughed. “What do you expect? I’m surprised the nationals haven’t got a hold of it. The Billionaire and the Girl Next Door. Headlines write themselves.”
Inca sighed. “Whatever. Look, I’m still in the market for an apartment somewhere in Willowbrook so …”
Mindy patted her hand. “Of course, sweetie. I’ve got a bunch of prospects for you.”
Raffaelo Winter felt edgy. Two phone meetings with his investors had not gone well, but that was mostly because he hadn’t been engaged in them. Snapping that he’d call them back, he had hung up, then changed into his running gear and gone out into the cold Washington morning.
The roads were clear of snow now, most of it piled at the roadside, and he found his rhythm as he ran towards the town. He wanted his head clear to think, to try and gain some clarity on what he was feeling. But, almost automatically, he found himself outside the Sakura, cursing himself for being so weak.
However, when he went inside, Inca was nowhere to be seen. “Hey.” Scarlett smiled at him as she appeared from the kitchen. “Haven’t seen you here much.”
Raffaelo, never one for socializing, thought about turning around, but he didn’t want to be rude to Inca’s friend. He half-smiled at her. “I have heard good things about your tea.”
Scarlett grinned; obviously, his ruse hadn’t worked. “She’s not here. She decided to go to the city after dropping Tommaso off at the airport.”
Raffaelo had a denial on his tongue, but then shrugged. “Okay.”
“But stay anyway. I’ll make you some tea –our house blend. “
“Okay.” Say something more than okay, idiot. “Thank you.”
The tea was light and refreshing. Scarlett was studying him. “You are very different to your brother.”
Raffaelo shrugged. He heard that a lot. “Tommaso is better at talking to people than I. I find myself … how do you say it? Tongue twisted?”
Scarlett hid a grin. “Tongue-tied.”
“Yes. Tongue-tied. I feel I haven’t anything to say that other people will want to hear.”
Scarlett nodded slowly. “I’m sure they will. Inca likes you a lot, you know.”
“She does?”
“Of course.” Scarlett lowered her voice. “She told me about the night she sleepwalked, you know. Thank you for finding her in time.”
Raffaelo felt a little awkward. “Just a coincidence.” He didn’t know what else to say to the young woman. She went to serve a customer and he finished his tea, calling his thanks to Scarlett before leaving. He wondered when Inca would be back from the city. Maybe he should ask Diane to cook something for their dinner that night.
Or maybe he should eat alone and stay away from temptation. He ran back home and showered, and, as he was dressing, he heard a light knock on his door.
Inca was outside, and she smiled at him. “Just wanted to tell you I’m back.”
She was adorably flushed from the cold outside. Raffaelo tucked his T-shirt in for the need of something to do with his hands. “Good.”
“Listen. I have to go into the city again tomorrow to go to my lawyers. They called today and asked me to go in. So I wondered if you were free to go have our day out?”
God, she was lovely, that hair tumbling over her shoulders, the flush of pink on her honey-colored skin …
Stop it. She’s not yours …
“Of course. I look forward to it.”
She smiled, and Raffaelo wanted to take her in his arms so badly that it hurt. “Listen,” he said. “I already ate today, so you’ll be alone for supper. I hope that’s okay?”
“No problem. I ate in the city. I’ll see you in the morning?”
“Good night, Inca.”
“Night, Raff.”
He closed his bedroom door. It was the first time she had called him Raff, and he loved the sound of his name in her mouth.
You’re obsessing.
No. Stop it. She belongs to Tommaso. She wants Tommaso. It can never be.
Tomorrow they would have a good day as friends.
Yes. Friends.
But the next day there seemed to be a tension between them all morning that neither could understand and, when they arrived at her lawyer’s office, things came to a head.
Inca stared at the secretary.
“So you’re telling me the paperwork isn’t ready?”
The secretary looked between Inca and Raffaelo, a bemused look belying the polite smile. “Ms. Sardee, it’s not that we haven’t got it ready. It’s that, as I explained, you called here yourself and canceled the paperwork some weeks ago.”
The implication was clear: Hey, nutso, don’t bring your crazy around here.
Inca flushed and turned away from the woman’s gaze. Raffaelo put a hand on her back and smiled kindly at the receptionist.
“Ms. Sardee hasn’t been well … Do you think you could reschedule the paperwork?”
Inca opened her mouth to speak, but Raffaelo shook his head at her. “It’s okay, Inca. I’ll sort this out.”
Irritation spiked in her chest and she turned away and walked out of the office. On the street, a freezing air blew up from Elliott Bay, a faint spattering of drizzle hanging on it. Inca squinted out to Alki Point, the outline of it muzzy and undefined. The adrenaline was starting to fade now and she felt foolish. So what if Raffaelo had taken charge? He was trying to be a friend, trying to protect her.
Deny all you want, the small voice in her head said. You know it’s more than that. Inca shook the thought away, but her irritation remained.
She felt a hand on her back and turned to look at Raffaelo. He was frowning.
“Why did you leave? We were just dealing with—”
“Raffaelo … I’m a grown woman, and I can speak for myself. Why did you think it was appropriate for you to say that to that woman? You made me look like a total idiot.” Her tone was snippier than she’d intended, but she couldn’t shake the annoyance she felt.
Raf
faelo went very still and when he spoke, his own voice was hard.
“That wasn’t my intention, I can assure you. I was merely trying to help. Hey …”
She’d turned away from him and started walking away. He grabbed her wrist, twisting it around as he stopped her. His fingers bit into her skin and she winced.
“Raffaelo, you’re hurting me.”
His grip didn’t lessen. “Then don’t turn your back on me when I’m talking to you.”
She turned back to him and nearly recoiled at the anger in his eyes, eyes that had darkened from his usual green to a dark hazel. Anger that turned to desire. They bored into hers and she felt her stomach flip, her breath catching in her throat. She froze. He dropped her wrist and took a deep breath. When he spoke again, his voice was softer.
“I apologize. I was just trying to help.” He touched her face. “What is going on today? Why is there this tension between us?”
She flushed, not wanting this conversation now, here, out on the street. He dropped his hand.
“Inca, we need to talk about what is happening between us.”
She said nothing, but looked away, down the busy street. She felt an overwhelming need to be alone, to shake off everything and everyone in her life. An idea occurred to her and she turned towards the city, not looking at Raffaelo.
“I’m going to see my realtor.” She didn’t elaborate, and Raffaelo said nothing, just walked beside her. He slid a hand up her back and rested his hand on the back of her neck. It felt good, a comfort, and so she didn’t pull away. A couple of blocks later, she pushed open the door to Mindy’s realty office and smiled thinly at her friend. Mindy greeted her warmly. Inca rather stiffly introduced Raffaelo to her. They shook hands and the small blonde woman frowned slightly.
“Have we met?”
Raffaelo smiled back at her. “I’m afraid not, but I am pleased to meet you now.”
Mindy was still frowning when she offered them a seat. “What can I do for you, Inca?”
Not looking at Raffaelo, Inca got straight to the point. “I would like to see some more apartments. In the city, rather than Willowbrook.” She felt Raffaelo look at her in surprise, an expression that was mirrored in Mindy’s face.
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