Freefall

by Traci Hunter Abramson

  With a sigh, she picked up the phone and ordered a pizza and then turned her attention back to the game. Twenty minutes later the doorbell rang and Amy grabbed a few bills from her wallet to pay the pizza delivery guy. Her jaw dropped open when she pulled the door wide and saw Brent standing just over the threshold.

  For a moment, Amy just stared at him. For nearly two weeks she had worried and wondered about Brent. Now he stood in front of her looking like a regular guy. He was dressed in khaki shorts and a white polo shirt, his tanned arms looking even darker against the light color. All of the worry of the past two weeks melted away, leaving only a remnant of doubt and insecurity. When the pizza delivery boy walked up right behind him, she struggled to regain her composure. She exchanged cash for the pizza and turned back to Brent. “I’m sorry. Come on in.”

  Brent only hesitated a moment before he stepped into the open foyer. An oversized picture of the temple dominated the wall, the round table beneath it adorned with a basket of silk flowers. He followed her into the enormous living room, where she set the pizza down on the coffee table.

  “I hope you don’t mind me just dropping by,” Brent said when she turned back to face him. “I managed to find your address, but I didn’t have your phone number.”

  “Of course I don’t mind.” Amy motioned for him to sit down. “I’m just surprised to see you.” Her insecurity crept in when she added, “I wasn’t sure I would see you when you got back.” Before he could respond, she stepped toward the kitchen. “Can I get you something to drink?”

  “Just water, thanks.”

  When she came back in and handed him his drink, he pointed at the pizza box. “Are you going to share some of that?”

  “Maybe.” Amy’s eyes brightened. “I suppose that’s the least I can do since you drove all this way.”

  He looked around as Amy opened the box. “Where’s your family?”

  “Charlie headed for Ocean City this morning, and Mom and Dad are at a friend’s for dinner.” She tore off a paper towel from the roll she had set on the coffee table and pulled a piece of pizza from the box. “I hope you like mushrooms.”

  “As long as there aren’t any anchovies.” Brent reached for a slice, using the top of the box for a plate. “Can I assume that you didn’t have any plans for tonight since we’re sitting here eating pizza?”

  Amy nodded. “This is the first time since I’ve been home that my family has left me alone. They’ve been driving me crazy.”

  “I can leave you alone too if you want.” His voice was almost sincere.

  “That’s not what I meant.” Amy rolled her eyes. “They’re hovering, you know? It’s like they’re afraid that if they can’t see me I’m not going to be here when they get back.”

  “I’m sure that’s normal.” Brent took another bite. “Sometimes the families of hostage victims are actually more traumatized than the victims themselves. They get so worked up over what might happen that they have trouble accepting the actual outcome of the situation.”

  “I suppose,” Amy agreed reluctantly. “I guess I’m just tired of being the center of their attention. I’m ready for them to get back to their own lives and let me live mine.”

  “What’s next for you?” His voice was casual, but his eyes sharpened as he waited for her answer.

  “State Department offered me London, but I turned them down,” Amy replied. She knew she should tell him about her new job, but her insecurity held her back. Would he be happy that he would see her often, or would he hate being around her every day? Well aware that he would find out eventually, she kept her response neutral. “It looks like I’ll be sticking around here for a while after all.”

  Brent just nodded and glanced up at the television when someone struck out.

  Amy pulled her feet beneath her as she settled back on the couch. She had hoped Brent would be happy that she was staying in Virginia, but his expression was unreadable. He pointed to the TV and made a comment about the game.

  With a little sigh, Amy let herself be content to sit beside him and talk baseball. When Matt’s game started, she changed channels, flipping back to the Nationals game on the commercials until the Nats went down by five runs and Brent decided it was too painful to watch.

  When the Marlins game went to a commercial during the seventh-inning stretch, Brent finally asked, “Is it weird watching your brother on television?”

  Amy shrugged. “Not really. Maybe a little at first, but it isn’t really much different from picking up a newspaper and seeing Dad’s picture.”

  “That just seems so strange to me.” Brent stretched an arm out along the back of the couch, his fingers playing with the ends of her hair. “I think the only time I’ve ever seen anyone in my family in the newspaper was when one of us made all-area athlete. None of us have ever been on TV.”

  “I don’t know what it’s like to not have cameras around.” Amy smiled. “The funny thing is that the paparazzi seem to love my family, and we never doing anything to really talk about. It’s not like any of us have ever gotten arrested, or done something really stupid to embarrass Dad.”

  “No, you just survive a hostage situation and then help save the country from a terrorist attack.” Brent nodded, not quite able to keep a straight face. “And let me see if I have this right. Your brother Matt married someone in the Witness Protection Program right after she exposed a huge smuggling ring, then he made the major leagues. Your sister-in-law medaled in the Olympics, and Charlie just graduated at the top of his class and is heading to law school.”

  Amy shrugged. “And then there’s me.”

  “Yeah, let’s talk about you.” Brent shifted closer. “You were the player of the year in basketball your senior year of high school, you went to BYU on a full scholarship and graduated in the top ten percent of your class.” He shook his head, his eyebrows drawing together. “Definitely an underachiever.”

  Amy couldn’t help laughing. “Sounds like you’ve done your homework. Is this what you do when no one is trying to blow up the country?”

  “It was slow yesterday.” Brent wound a lock of her hair around his finger.

  “I see.” Amy’s eyebrows lifted. “I guess I sound pretty good on paper.”

  “You’re better in person.” Just as he started to pull her closer, the rumbling of the garage door sounded. With a sigh, he shifted away from her. “I gather that’s your parents.”

  Amy nodded, turning toward the kitchen when she heard the door open from the garage. The moment Katherine stepped into the living room, just a step ahead of her husband, Brent stood up. Amy followed suit, focusing on the surprised look on her mother’s face rather than the annoyance on her father’s.

  “Mom, you haven’t met Brent Miller,” Amy said as Brent shifted from behind the coffee table. “Brent, this is my mother, Katherine.”

  Katherine moved forward and took Brent’s outstretched hand. “Thank you so much for what you did for my family.” She covered their joined hands with her free one, her expression welcoming. “We can’t tell you enough how grateful we are to have Amy home.”

  “I was just doing my job, ma’am.” As Katherine released his hand, Brent nodded to Jim. “Hello, Senator.”

  “Lieutenant.” Jim moved forward and shook Brent’s hand, but only because his manners were so ingrained. “I didn’t expect to see you tonight.”

  Amy didn’t give Brent a chance to respond, instead drawing everyone’s attention to the television. “Hey, Dad. Matt’s coming up to bat.”

  Katherine hurried over to sit down so she could watch. Reluctantly, Jim turned his attention to the television as well.

  “Brent, come sit back down,” Amy suggested. She felt his hesitation and reached for his hand and pulled him down beside her.

  As soon as they were sitting, Brent pulled his hand away, careful to keep his distance. They all watched together as Matt managed a single, then a teammate struck out to end the inning. When the game ended, Brent stood up. “I should get
going.”

  Amy stood also. “I’ll walk you out.”

  When they stepped out onto the front porch, Brent pulled out his cell phone. “Any chance I can get your phone number?”

  A smile slowly crossed her face as she reached for his phone. She put her number into memory for him, and then handed it back as she looked up at him. “Brent, I’m glad you came by.”

  “Me too.” Brent glanced over at the living room window and stepped back. “I’ll try to call you tomorrow.” With that he turned and disappeared into the night.

  CHAPTER 20

  Brent pulled up in front of the Whitmore home, as intimidated by its size now as he had been last night. Quite simply, the house was huge. Logically he knew that Amy came from money. He had just never considered exactly how much money. Huge oak trees stood like soldiers next to the street in front of the house, and a circular driveway arced in front of the main entrance.

  He had waited until nine o’clock this morning to call her, grateful she had given him her cell phone number so that he wouldn’t have to worry about waking up the rest of the house on a Saturday morning. He hadn’t gotten home until midnight, but for the first time in weeks he actually slept well. By seven o’clock he was up and watching the clock, counting down the minutes until he could call and make plans with Amy.

  He had hoped to at least talk her into going out to dinner, but when she had suggested going horseback riding to Great Falls, he had thrown a change of clothes in a bag and was now looking forward to spending the day with her.

  Their time together the night before had not been what he imagined. He had expected her to demand answers from him about why he had left so suddenly in Italy, or why he hadn’t called her when he got back. He hadn’t realized how much he had dreaded those questions until he was on his way home from her house and recognized that she had never asked them. Could she really understand that his job was like that sometimes—here one minute and gone the next?

  That they had been able to just hang out and watch a ball game, or two ball games, actually, had been so normal. He couldn’t remember the last time he had just hung out with friends like that except with the guys in his unit. Amy expressed her opinion about baseball just as forcefully as any of his buddies, but Brent found he enjoyed bantering with her a lot more than if he had been debating with Quinn or Tristan.

  Brent stepped from his car and jogged up the steps to ring the doorbell. The smile on his face faded when Jim Whitmore answered the door rather than his daughter.

  “Good morning, Senator,” Brent said as he watched Jim’s tension level shoot up. “Is Amy ready?”

  “Ready for what?”

  “We’re going for a ride this morning.”

  Jim leaned against the doorjamb rather than inviting him inside. “Do you really think this is a good idea? Obviously my daughter has developed some sort of infatuation with you, something I understand is quite common in a rescuer-hostage situation. I had hoped you would be smart enough to keep some distance between you, at least long enough for Amy to sort out her feelings.”

  Brent braced against the truth of the senator’s words, afraid to reveal that he had gone through this same argument in his head a dozen times. Each time he came back to the same truth: he couldn’t stop thinking about her. He kept his voice low and even when he responded. “No one is more sure about their own feelings than Amy is.”

  “How can you say that? How can you possibly think you know my daughter?” Jim asked bluntly. “You were only with her for a few days.”

  “I realize there are a lot of things I don’t know about Amy. That’s why I’m here, so that I can learn what she’s like when life is normal.”

  “Your life isn’t ever going to be normal,” Jim pointed out. “I can’t say I want that for my daughter.”

  “With all due respect sir, that isn’t for you to decide.” Brent stood up a little straighter. “If you know your daughter at all, I think you realize that Amy doesn’t want ordinary. I don’t think she ever has.”

  “She doesn’t know what she wants right now.”

  Stung by the cold reception, Brent turned to walk away, but something pulled him back. He looked back at Jim and took a deep breath. “Did you know that Amy stitched me up after I was shot? Did she tell you that she went out by herself to cover up my blood trail to make sure no one would find us?”

  Jim’s eyes widened, but he remained rigid. “I know that Amy is intelligent and that she did what she needed to in order to survive.”

  “It was more than survival with her,” Brent said, realizing the truth of his words as he spoke them. “She thrived when we were out in that desert. You saw for yourself how she performed during the subway attack. She will never be ordinary, whether I’m a part of her life or not.”

  Before Jim could respond, his wife appeared at his side. “Good morning, Brent.” She nudged her husband aside and reached out a hand. “Please come in. Amy will be down in a minute.”

  She gave her husband an admonishing look and pulled Brent inside before he could decide he didn’t want to spend the day with Amy after all. As soon as Jim closed the door, Katherine continued, “Amy mentioned that you were going to ride down to the falls today.”

  “That’s right, ma’am.”

  Katherine smiled, beauty and elegance exuding from her. “We haven’t ridden up there in quite some time.”

  “You’re welcome to join us,” Brent suggested and had the satisfaction of seeing the surprise on the senator’s face. “As I was just mentioning to your husband, I’m looking forward to finding out what Amy is like when she isn’t in crisis mode.”

  Amy descended the stairs a moment later, grateful that her mother was keeping her father in check.

  Jim turned to her and said, “Brent just invited us to ride along with you to the falls. Do you mind?”

  Amy glanced over at Brent and suspected that he was waging a battle her father didn’t know how to fight. “That’s a great idea. It’s supposed to be gorgeous out today.”

  “Why don’t you two go saddle up the horses while we go change,” Katherine suggested. “I’ll pack a lunch for us.”

  “Sounds good.” Amy turned to Brent and motioned to the kitchen. “Come on. It’s this way.”

  Brent followed her out the back door and up a narrow path through the trees. “I hope you don’t mind that I invited your parents along.”

  Amy just grinned. “Trying to get on Dad’s good side, huh?”

  Humor lit Brent’s eyes. “After the way we first met, it feels like an uphill battle.”

  They stepped into a clearing where the stable was situated next to a large pasture. In the corral next to the stable, a bay gelding stood in the shade of the building. Amy turned back to Brent. “I know you can ride, but do you know how to saddle a horse?”

  “Yeah, just tell me which saddle you want on what horse,” Brent said as he followed her through the stable and into the tack room.

  Amy pointed at a western saddle. “You can put that one on the palomino. She’s in the second stall.”

  Rather than reach for the saddle, Brent just stared at her. “You know, I don’t know if I’ll get a chance to be alone with you again today.”

  Amy smiled slowly, turning toward him. Just as Brent moved closer, Jim’s voice echoed through the stable.

  “Hey, Amy. Can you hand me a lead rope?”

  Brent let his head drop, fighting back a combination of frustration and laughter. He reached up and grabbed a lead rope that was hanging on the wall. Turning, he stepped out of the tack room and held it out to Jim. “Here you are, sir.”

  “Thanks.” Jim was dressed in jeans and a plain T-shirt, but he still carried an air of authority.

  Brent turned back and picked up the saddle Amy had indicated along with another lead rope. By the time Katherine arrived, they had finished saddling up four of the horses. Katherine divvied up portions of their lunch to be put into saddlebags and then led her horse outside to mount.

>   They started off at an easy pace, Brent and Amy both appreciating the ease of riding with a saddle and bridle rather than just makeshift harnesses. The day was warm, broken up by an occasional breeze. The trail narrowed in places, forcing them to ride single file. Finally they arrived at a clearing across from the falls. Water cascaded down the rock face, the sound a distant rumble.

  Jim spread out a blanket for them to sit on, and Katherine started setting out food. When they all settled down, the conversation flowed easier than Brent had expected. Jim was even cordial, making him wonder if Katherine had warned him to behave or if he was finally warming up to him.

  When the conversation turned to his profession, Brent concluded that the politician was just setting him up.

  “Is your father in the military, Brent?” Jim asked casually.

  Brent reminded himself to stay at ease and took a sip of water before answering. “No, he worked for a government contractor in DC before he retired last year.”

  “What made you decide to join the Navy then?” Jim persisted.

  “My mom, actually.”

  “Your mom was in the military?” Amy asked now.

  “No, the CIA.” Brent leaned back, a little more willing to share information now that Amy was asking the question. “She quit working before I was born, but I got a glimpse of the kind of work she did when I was a teenager. It made me decide I wanted to be part of protecting the freedoms we enjoy in this country.”

  “You are in a very honorable profession,” Katherine stated before her husband could continue his interrogation. “I’m sure your parents are very proud of you.”

  “Most of the time.” Brent shrugged. “Although I think I’m still in the doghouse with Mom since I mowed down her garden last month.”

  Amy laughed, trying to imagine him doing something as simple as mowing his parents’ lawn. “I hope she didn’t have much planted.”

  “The chives took the worst of it.” Brent bit into one of the finger sandwiches Katherine had packed and nearly managed to hide the spark of mischief in his eyes. “The good news is that my nephew gets to do lawn duty from now on. It will make a good summer job for him.”