Out of Time

by Shirlee McCoy

  “Still cold?” Levi put down his coffee and rubbed her arms, the brisk motion doing little to ease the chill that had settled deep into Susannah’s soul.

  “I’m okay. Thanks.” She stepped back, knocking into a chair, her cheeks heating as Captain Fritz offered a sympathetic smile.

  “Why don’t you have a seat, Ms. Jorgenson? This won’t take much time, and then you can go on with your day.”

  “I’m fine. Really.” And if she said it enough maybe she’d convince herself of the fact.

  “We’ve done some research on Aaron Simons. There’s nothing to indicate he had any involvement with the Lions of Texas or in drug trafficking. Does that coincide with your knowledge of him?”

  “Yes. He had high moral ideals.”

  “He tried to kill you. What kind of moral ideal allows for that?” Levi growled the question that Susannah had been asking herself for months. She’d found no answer. Couldn’t bring the Aaron who’d been a counselor at Christian youth camp, who’d volunteered at homeless shelters, who’d led men’s Bible studies into alignment with the other Aaron. The one who’d stalked her. Attacked her. Would have killed her.

  “I don’t know. I only know what I observed. He didn’t smoke, didn’t drink, never swore. He lived an upright life.”

  “An upright life that hid a black soul,” Captain Fritz intoned, and Susannah nodded. “So, no involvement with The Lions, but someone who knows you is involved with them.”

  “It seems that way.”

  “You said the knife the guy was carrying tonight matched the one Aaron used?”

  “It looked exactly the same.”

  “I have it here. Want to take a closer look?” He pulled a plastic bag from his evidence kit. Tagged with a number, sterile-looking but for the knife it contained.

  Susannah’s pulse leaped at the sight, her breath catching as she tumbled back in time, fell into her nightmare. Knife slashing. Blood pouring.

  “Sit down, Susie. Before you fall down.” Levi’s tone was gruff, his hands gentle as he pushed her into a chair. He stayed behind her, his fingers brushing ends of her hair as Captain Fritz passed the bag across the table.

  “It looks exactly the same.”

  “So we can assume that the person who brought it knew the kind of knife Aaron used.”

  “I guess so.”

  “Any idea who might have that information?”

  “Anyone who watches the news. They flashed pictures of it every night for a week. Every time I saw it, I wanted to scream.” She stood, walking away from the table, the knife.

  If only it were as easy to walk away from the memories.

  “Offhand, are there any Alamo Rangers who you think could be bought? Maybe someone with financial troubles? Someone who feels he’s owed more than what he’s been given?”

  “All the Rangers are vetted, Captain Fritz.”

  “Understood, but I’m not asking about vetting. I’m asking about your gut thoughts.”

  “Marcus Portman has a wife who’s been in and out of the hospital for the last couple of months. He mentioned that medical bills are piling up. Other than that, I don’t know anything about the finances of the people I work with.”

  “You don’t spend time together outside of work?”

  “No.”

  “What can you tell me about the perpetrator, Susannah? Height, weight, features?”

  Susannah gave him the information as succinctly as she could, resisting the urge to point out similarities between the man looking in her window and Aaron. There were plenty of men with the same lean build. Plenty of men with the same height.

  By the time the interview was over and Captain Fritz left, she felt drained, her head pounding with fatigue as she watched his Jeep disappear from sight.

  “You all right?” Levi stood behind her, not touching her, not even close to touching, but she felt his presence as surely as she felt the warm sun on her face.

  “I will be.”

  “It’s just a few more days. That’s all you have to make it through. Then this will be over. The Alamo anniversary celebration will be in the past.” His hands wrapped around her waist and he pulled her back into his chest. Firm muscles pressed against her shoulders, his chin brushing her hair.

  She let herself lean back, let him support some of her weight as she closed her eyes, inhaled spicy aftershave and Levi.

  And it felt so much like coming home.

  “What are you thinking?”

  She shivered, but didn’t have the strength to move away.

  “That being here with you feels…good.”

  “Yeah? I was thinking the same thing.”

  “No, you weren’t.” She laughed lightly, turning in his arms, looking into his eyes.

  “Then what was I thinking?”

  “Probably deep thoughts about knives and Lions and drug trafficking. Probably even deeper thoughts about how to keep trouble away from the opening ceremony at the Alamo.”

  “You’re wrong. I wasn’t thinking about any of those things.” He pressed his lips to her forehead, his hands sliding up her back, cupping her neck.

  “Oh.”

  “I was thinking that I could stand here with you forever. That if this was the last moment of the last day of my life, I’d be happy to spend it with you.”

  “Levi—”

  “We’ve come full circle, Susie. First together. Then apart. Now together again, and I’m thinking that’s because this is the right time for us. The right place.” His lips traced a line from her temple, to her cheek, to the corner of her mouth.

  “Levi—”

  “If you want me to stop, I will. If you want me to leave you alone, I’ll do that, too. But I won’t stop caring about you. Not this time around. You were in my heart when we were kids, and I’m beginning to think you never left it.” His lips hovered over hers, and she wanted to tell him to stop, wanted to pull him close.

  And somehow she was leaning in, feeling the warmth of his lips pressed to hers, the heat of his body seeping through her sweater. Her hands clutched his waist, her body humming with awareness. No nightmares. No fears. Just Levi.

  “Probably we should stop,” he mumbled against her neck, his lips finding the tender spot behind her ear.

  “Probably.” But it felt so right to be standing there with him, so right to slide her arms around his waist and hold on tight.

  “When does church start?” The question registered through the dreamy haze Susannah had fallen into, and she pulled back, glanced at her watch.

  “A half hour.”

  “Then we should probably get going.”

  “Right.” She took a deep breath, stepped out of Levi’s arms. “I’ll get my Bible.”

  “You don’t sound all that thrilled about it.”

  “It just gets tiring sometimes.” She led him through the house, grabbed her Bible from her bedroom.

  “Church?”

  “Pretending that I’m okay. That everything is just like it used to be.”

  “Why would you do that?”

  “Because the church I attend is filled with people I’ve known since I was a kid. They don’t want to see me hurting, and I don’t want them to worry.”

  “You still attend Faith Christian Church?”

  “Yes.”

  The same church. With the same people. People who all wanted her to just be Susannah again. Sweet and happy and vibrant Susannah. She’d been told that so many times in the past few months that she thought she might drown in it.

  “How about your folks?”

  “Moved to Arizona a few years ago. My brother is there. He got married. Had a couple of kids, and they wanted to be closer to their grandchildren.”

  “They were great people.” He held the car door open, waiting while she got in.

  “They still are. They just don’t live as close to me as they used to.”

  “Did they come back—”

  “Last summer? Yes.” She cut him off, not wanting to hea
r Aaron’s name. Not wanting the thought of what had happened to mar the beauty of the morning, the peace she felt sitting in Levi’s car.

  “It must have been nice to have them around.”

  “They hovered, but I was glad. I needed that then.”

  “But not now?”

  “Now, I just need people to forget.”

  “That may take a while.”

  “It may take a lifetime.” She sighed as they pulled into the parking lot of Faith Christian Church. “You remembered where it was.”

  “How could I forget? I spent every Sunday of my childhood here. Now I’m attending a church closer to my apartment, but I’m suddenly remembering just what was so special about this place.” He took her hand, and she didn’t bother trying to pull away. Walking into church with Levi felt as right as stepping into his arms.

  That should scare her. It should make her want to run the other way, but all she could do was walk down the hall, shoulder to shoulder with the man who’d once been the boy she’d loved.

  “Susannah? Susannah Jorgenson! Hold it right there, my girl. I can’t walk as fast as I used to.”

  Susannah dropped Levi’s hand like it was a hot poker, blushing as she turned to face Charlotte Calgary. The oldest member of the congregation, Charlotte was as much a part of the church as the hand-hewn wood floors and scuffed wooden pews.

  “Good morning, Ms. Charlotte.” Susannah greeted her with a gentle hug.

  “It is, my dear, but you’re running a little late for service. I hope you didn’t have any trouble last night. I heard there were problems at the Alamo, and I’ve been worried about you.”

  “Who did you hear that from?”

  “My niece works for the sheriff’s office. She said there was a bomb scare.”

  “We did find a package on the premises, and the bomb squad was called, but it turned out to be nothing.”

  “Thank goodness. I’d hate for anything to happen there just a few days before the big celebration.”

  “Me, too.”

  “Have you heard that the vice president will be here?”

  “Yes.”

  “And the governor. It really is just so wonderful!” She hurried away, and Susannah watched her go.

  “What’s wrong?” Levi nudged Susannah toward the sanctuary.

  “Just thinking that Zarvy won’t be happy to know that the bomb threat is no longer a secret.”

  “It never was. He should have known better than to try to keep it from the media. Word of mouth can spread information just as quickly as the news.”

  “Maybe we can use that to our advantage.”

  “What do you mean?” Levi paused with his hand on the closed sanctuary door, his gaze dropping to her lips for a heartbeat. Her pulse responded, leaping up. Jumping with joy.

  “Captain Fritz seems convinced that an Alamo Ranger is working for the Lions.”

  “It makes sense.”

  “I wish it didn’t, but I can’t argue. So, maybe we just start asking around, talking to people that know my coworkers. Someone, somewhere knows something. We just have to find out who.”

  “It’s a good plan, Susie, but our time is limited. I’m not sure we’ll be able to cast our net wide enough to reel anything in.”

  “We can’t just wait around for him to strike again.”

  “We won’t. I’m going to set up interviews with your coworkers. We’ll see who’s willing to take a lie detector test and who isn’t, and we’ll go from there.”

  “It just seems like we should be doing more.”

  “My office has been working overtime for months. We’re doing all that we can, and I know that your people are doing the same. When are you scheduled to work next?”

  “Marcus asked me to take his shift for a few hours tomorrow morning. I’m also working tomorrow night.”

  “Just what I thought.”

  “What?”

  “We have a long week ahead of us. We need to take some time to recharge.” He opened the sanctuary door, his fingers brushing Susannah’s back as she walked past, his warmth seeping through her, stealing her anxiety away.

  A long week?

  It had been a long few months, but settling into a pew next to Levi, his arm pressed to hers, Susannah could almost believe there was an end in sight. Could almost believe that she and Levi really had come full circle, and that this really was their time.

  TWELVE

  Three in the morning wasn’t a good time to be awake.

  It was an even worse time to be walking from her car to the Alamo. Dark shadows stretched across the road, chasing Susannah as she hurried across the street. Just a few more feet and she’d be inside the compound. A few more seconds and she’d be safe.

  Something scuffled on the pavement behind her, the sound making her blood run cold. She didn’t want to look. Didn’t want to face whatever was behind her. Then again, she’d rather face death head-on than die with her back to it.

  She swung around, her heart leaping when she saw a man moving along the sidewalk a dozen yards away. Briefcase in hand, focused straight ahead, he moved with a purposeful stride, going to prepare for an early-morning meeting or heading into the office to get an early start on the day. Nothing on his mind but the job.

  That’s the way Susannah wanted to be. Focused on the task, not afraid of what lurked in the shadows. Confident of herself and her surroundings.

  Obviously, she had a long way to go before she got to that.

  She took off her hat, ran a hand over her hair. A long week ahead. That’s what Levi had said, and Susannah had no doubt he was right. Six days until the opening ceremony to launch the celebration of the 175th anniversary of the Battle of the Alamo. Six days to make sure that whatever the Lions had planned wouldn’t come to fruition.

  It wasn’t a lot of time to come up with answers.

  She unlocked the chapel door, calling out as she entered the dark building. “Hello? Anyone here?”

  “Me. I’m in the office wondering if I’m going to die of boredom or hunger first.” Jeremy Camp appeared in the office doorway, his hangdog expression making Susannah smile.

  “No action tonight, huh?” She poured a cup of coffee, then dumped cream and sugar into it.

  “Not even a cat running through the courtyard.”

  “That’s good news, right?”

  “Not if a man wants to stay awake, but I suppose quiet nights are good for the Alamo.”

  “They’ll make the Alamo Planning Committee and Chad happy, anyway.”

  “Guess as long as we make it through the next few days without any trouble, we’ll all be happy. I don’t know about you, but this change in the schedule is eating into my social life.”

  “It’ll be over soon enough. Who pulled shift with you?”

  “Luke Bristol. He’s out doing final rounds. We’ll take off when he gets here, and then it’ll be you and…” He lifted a sheet of paper and frowned. “You’re not scheduled until tonight. You know that?”

  “I’m filling in until Marcus can get here.”

  “More trouble with his wife?”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  “Too bad.” He didn’t sound like he thought it was, and something passed behind his eyes. Irritation or dislike.

  “He can’t help that his wife is having pregnancy complications.”

  “I guess not, but he’s never been consistent, even before his wife’s troubles.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Just what I said. You don’t pull shifts enough with him to know it, but he misses a couple of days a month.” He shrugged, grabbed a jacket from the back of a chair and put it on.

  “I’m sure he has good reasons.”

  “His reasons don’t matter to me, Susannah. We sign on and agree to work when we’re scheduled. Seems to me, we should work. But maybe I’m just old-fashioned. How long will you be here?” He changed the subject, and Susannah wondered if there were more he could say. She’d mentioned Marcus to Captain F
ritz, but she hadn’t really believed he could be capable of working for The Lions.

  Then again, she didn’t want to believe any of her coworkers were capable of that.

  “Just a few hours. Who am I working with?” She glanced at the schedule, frowning when she saw that the name next to Marcus’s had been crossed out. “Sara’s not coming in?”

  “She told Chad she wouldn’t be able to. She’ll pull a double tomorrow to make up for it.”

  “So, who’s coming?” Please, please let someone be coming. She did not want to work the shift alone.

  “Don’t know. Chad said he’d arrange it. So, someone will be here.” He paused, eyed her with a mixture of pity and concern. “You know, I can stick around for a while if you want. Make sure the replacement shows up. That way—”

  “And have you blame me for your less-than-impressive social life? I don’t think so.” She kept her voice light, forced herself to smile. Forced herself to be the woman she’d once been, happy and relaxed and excited.

  “You sure?”

  No.

  “Of course I’m sure.”

  “All right, then. I’m heading out. Supposed to go over to Texas Rangers headquarters later today. Get myself polygraphed. I’d better rest up before then. Wouldn’t want fatigue to throw the test off.”

  “You’re having a polygraph test?” If so, the Rangers were working quickly, moving forward with Levi’s plan.

  “I’m not the only one. They asked Luke to come in, too. I wouldn’t be surprised if they asked everyone. Someone dropped that box off in front of the barracks. The video doesn’t show anyone but our security team entering the compound. Makes sense that it was one of us.”

  “Any ideas who it might be?” she asked, her heart beating a little faster.

  “Wish I did. Wouldn’t mind being the hero of the hour. I’m going to radio Luke and tell him you’re here. Bet he’s as anxious to get out of here as I am. I’ll see you tomorrow. We’re working back-to-back shifts.” He offered a quick salute and walked out of the office.

  Susannah sipped her coffee, listening as Jeremy radioed Luke and let him know that their shift had ended. For a moment, the chapel was filled with sounds as Luke entered from the compound and the two men greeted each other. A door opened. Closed. A lock turned.