by Vaughn, Ann
Unable to resist, she lifted the receiver to her ear.
“He doesn’t deserve you,” the voice repeated.
“He’s just a friend.”
“You kiss all your friends the way you kissed him in the parking lot by your car?”
Alarm spread through her. “Who are you? Why are you spying on me?”
“Don’t you remember me, Miss Lainey? You sent me a letter. You told me I had a nice smile.”
Her mind was racing. Someone she knew? She met so many people through her work. Someone she’d sent a letter to? Her mind simply couldn’t focus on anyone.
“I’m sorry...we’ve met?”
“I love you,” he said simply.
“Who are you?” Lainey demanded.
“An admirer. Stay away from the Rich Guy. He doesn’t deserve you.”
“Why are you...?”
“I’ll kill him if he touches you again.”
The line went dead. Terror seized Lainey. She immediately dialed Kevin’s number. It rang then went to voicemail. Hands shaking, she tried again and again and again until he finally picked up.
“Jeez, Lainey, I just -”
“Kevin! Thank God! Call the police!! Tell whoever you’re with to call the police and whatever you do, do not go outside until the police get there.”
“What the hell are you-”?
“LISTEN TO ME!!” she cried. “There’s someone out there, watching you!” She told him about the phone calls.
“Son of a bitch!” Kevin swore. “Yvette, call the police. Lainey, I’m coming...”
“NO!! Kevin, do not leave! Whatever you do, don’t even go near a window until the police arrive,” she repeated.
“You don’t need to be alone,” he protested.
“I'm calling my dad as soon as we hang up,” she said. Her father was the Springfield Police Chief.
“OK, but call me back as soon as you talk to him.”
“I will,” she promised, then hung up and called her father.
Within minutes, her house was filled with police, and her parents. Lainey called Kevin back to check on him, and where he was, it was the same.
“Pack your things,” her father told her, “you’re coming to stay with us.”
“That isn’t -,” she began but he cut her off.
“I’m not asking. I’m telling you. You are not staying here.”
“He didn’t threaten me, he threatened Kevin. He’s the one -”
“Kevin’s an Adtkisson,” he said, referring to the town’s founding family, “he’ll have top notch security around him at all times. You, on the other hand, won’t. I can assign cops to you but face it, we’re a small town, we can only handle so much.”
Realizing defeat, Lainey nodded and leaned into her mother’s embrace for support.
Paperwork was the bane of Mike's existence. He hated it. Not that he couldn't do it. He just didn't like sitting still that long. The wife of his former team member, Melissa Zigler, handled a lot of the company's paperwork, as did his former tac specialist, Tessa McCanton, but neither of them lived here in Springfield. As Orion Securities grew, it was becoming painfully obvious that he needed to hire someone to be there in the offices to handle things. He wanted to bring Melissa there. She was the perfect fit for the job and for him and his team. The only problem with that was, she wasn't ready to leave the home she'd shared with her husband; and that Mike could perfectly understand. It had been two years since Zig's death. He knew that as close as Zig and Melissa were, she may not ever be okay with leaving the last home she'd shared with him. Which meant, as much as he hated to, he might have to seriously consider hiring someone to handle the office full-time.
He'd just finished off the last of the invoices when his cell phone rang. Glancing over, he saw that it was Riley. Curious as to why he would be calling while he was on his honeymoon, Mike picked up the phone.
"Riley? Is everything all right?"
"Lainey just called. I need your help."
Mike sat up a little straighter in his seat. "What's happened?"
"She didn't go into full detail, but from what I can understand, she's picked up a stalker." Riley relayed all that Lainey had told him in their conversation, which wasn't a lot but was enough to have her entire family running scared. "She's staying at her parents place right now, but she can't stay there forever. Lainey likes her independence and she isn't going to handle not being able to go home very well. Can you get Colt on designing and installing a security system to her house?"
"Absolutely."
"For her offices as well. She and Kacee Adtkisson have offices downtown in a building Kacee's father owns. It's a nice building and it has a security system but I would feel better if it was one Colt designed, and God, please don't ever tell him I said that," Riley said, knowing that he'd never hear the end of it from the big man if he knew that Riley actually thought his stuff was good.
"Your name won't come up," Mike promised, humor in his tone.
"Thanks. I'd really like it if you could do a sweep of her house, too. Make sure there aren't any more bugs or cameras...and just, keep her safe, man."
"I'll take care of her, I promise."
"Thanks, man. Jenna and I will be home as soon as we can."
"Don't cut your trip short. I'll get Colt on the security system and we'll take care of her. Everything will be fine. Just enjoy the rest of your honeymoon and we'll see you when you get home."
"Yeah. OK, thanks, Mike. I appreciate it."
"No problem. Send me a text with her address."
When he ended the call, he placed his phone down on the desk and took a deep breath. Lainey Riley. Her face had haunted him for nearly ten years. In the last few weeks, he ran into her a few times at Riley's girlfriend's house and again at their wedding. She was even more beautiful now than she'd been as a teenager.
His phone rang again, this time he saw that it was his uncle, Brad Chandler, his mother's brother.
"Uncle Brad," he greeted him, "what can I do for you?"
"I need your help," he said, echoing Riley's words from earlier.
"Anything. What do you need?"
"The daughter of one of my long-time associates is in need of your services. She's picked up a stalker and..."
"Her name wouldn't happen to be Lainey Riley, would it?" he asked, shaking his head at the coincidence.
"Yes. How did you know?"
"My friend is Riley Stanton, remember? Lainey is his cousin. I just got off the phone with him."
"So, you'll be looking out for her?"
"Yes...Riley wants me to install a security system to her home and upgrade the one at her offices. You can help me, there. I understand Jack Adtkisson owns the building."
"Yes. I'll talk to him and clear the way for you to do whatever you need. Take care of her, Mike. I've known her since the day she was born, she's really special to me as well."
"Yes, sir. I will do my best."
When he hung up, he saw that Riley had sent her home address to him. Closing his computer down, he got up to head to her house. He called her father, Gavin Riley, who was the Springfield police chief to meet her at the house and let him do an electronics sweep.
The neighborhood she lived in was an exclusive, gated community. He was pleased with that, but her house was at the end of a cul-de-sac that backed up to a heavily wooded area, and that part did not please him. As he waited for Gavin to arrive, his eyes scanned the woods behind her house. Easy for someone to hide in there and not be spotted by neighbors.
Gavin pulled up behind him on the curb in front of her house. Mike got out and shook hands with him.
"Thanks for doing this, Mike," Gavin said, "I know you are busy with Riley being gone."
"Nothing that can't wait. Has she received any more phone calls?" he asked, following Gavin up to her front door.
"Not that I know of."
Mike sat his equipment bag on the floor just inside her foyer and took out an electronic device that w
ould indicate if any surveillance equipment was present in the house. Gavin cursed when it began beeping and Mike began collecting hidden bugs and cameras.
"We did a sweep of the house and removed everything last night. We couldn't have missed this many!"
Mike didn't speak as he began removing bug after bug. Gavin was correct; there was no way his guys missed this many. That indicated that the stalker had been back inside the house since the police left a few hours before. And these weren't just any bugs, either. This was top of the line, high dollar equipment. Someone knew what they were doing.
"Did you make a sweep of her office?" Mike asked after he'd finished removing bugs from the house.
"No. We should go there."
"Where is Lainey now?"
Gavin glanced at his watch. "Still at her office."
"OK, but I need to call my guys first, get them mobilized."
"Yeah, go ahead. I'm going to call Lainey and check in on her and let her know we're on our way to the office."
Mike watched Gavin walk away and then called Colt.
"Hey, Boss, what's up?"
"Are you in the middle of anything you can't walk away from right now?"
"Not in the middle of anything at the moment. What do you need?"
Mike filled Colt in on the basics and what he would need for her house and let him know he'd have more information for him once he got to her offices.
"Can you get down here and do the installation personally? I'd feel better if your hands were on this."
"Yeah, sure."
"I'll send a jet for you. Can you be here tomorrow?"
"Yeah. I'll send the specs to Melissa and make sure she can get all that I need overnighted. Probably need to bring Coop in to help me since Blondie is still on his honeymoon."
"I may call Tessa in as well. I need these systems installed quickly."
"Tessa wouldn't be my first choice to help install an alarm system, Boss," Colt chuckled.
"No, but she can keep an eye on Lainey while I help do the install."
"That would be good. How old is Lainey? Riley always talked about her like she was a little girl."
"She's not a little girl," Mike said, simply. "I'll send you details on when the jet arrives. Contact Coop if you want him. I'll call Whit and Tessa."
"Yeah, OK, Boss. See you tomorrow."
Gavin came back in, shaking his head. "Ready?"
Mike nodded, following Gavin out and watching him lock the front door behind them. He scanned the neighborhood but his eyes kept returning to the woods. When the team was assembled, before they began installations, he was going to have them sweep every inch of those woods.
Lainey placed her phone gently down on her desk and closed her eyes. Her dad was on his way there...with Mike Casiano. Her nerves were shot, and her dad's and Riley's solution was to bring Mike Casiano in. Mike. Freaking. Casiano. The man had haunted her dreams for the last ten years. She ran into him a couple of times last month at Jenna Blackwell's house; the first times she'd seen him since the night she'd first saw him at the Founders Day Ball when she was seventeen years old. He and Riley had been wearing their dress whites and he'd looked like a movie star to her.
When she'd seen him at Jenna's, she'd noticed scars on his face that hadn't been there all those years ago. She'd seen a coldness in his eyes that hadn't been there back then, either. Maybe that was because she'd been too naive to see it back then. Maybe, at that time, the atrocities of war hadn't infected him yet
. Now, however, his eyes carried within them the horrors he'd lived through. She'd seen the same look in Riley's eyes, just to a lesser degree. From what Riley had told her, though, Mike had been through a thousand times more than the rest of the unit had.
Her office phone rang, pulling her from her thoughts. Taking a deep breath, she reached for the receiver.
"Lainey Riley," she answered.
"Why are you so sad, Miss Lainey?" that same voice from last night asked.
"Who are you?" she asked, frantically looking around her office for hidden cameras.
"There's no reason for you to be sad. I would never hurt you."
"You are hurting me. By calling me and threatening my friends and placing surveillance equipment in my home...and apparently in my office. THAT is hurting me!"
Her raised voice brought Kacee running across the hall and into her office.
"Hang up the phone, Lainey," Kacee told her. When Lainey didn't move, Kacee took the receiver from her hand and hung it up. Lainey took several deep, calming breaths, trying to calm her racing heart. Kacee embraced her, stroking her hand over her hair to help calm her. "It's going to be OK," she whispered.
"He has cameras in here, too," Lainey whispered. "He asked why I looked so sad."
Kacee looked around the room, alarmed, but remained steadfast. "Your dad will take care of it."
Lainey drew a deep, ragged breath. "Riley called Mike. He's on his way here with my dad."
A slow smile spread across Kacee's face. "Mike's coming here to look after you?" Lainey nodded. "There? See? Something positive. High school crushes aside, Mike will take care of all of this."
"I just want this all to stop," Lainey whispered.
They heard the front door buzz as someone stepped in, and then she heard her father's voice calling out to her. She stood and she and Kacee walked up to the reception area of their offices...and she felt her heart momentarily stop when that piercing gaze settled on her.
Chapter Two
As soon as Lainey stepped into the reception area, Mike knew something was wrong. Her eyes were as big as the moon and she looked like she was ready to snap. She met his gaze momentarily, then looked up at her father.
"He just called the office line," she told her dad, "he could see me. My office is bugged, too."
Mike immediately stepped forward, pushing past them and into her office. They all followed him in and watched him pull his electronic sweeper device from his bag and begin to sweep the room. She watched in shock as he pulled several bugs and cameras from around the room.
"Daddy? How?" she asked, looking up at him for answers.
"I don't know, baby," he replied and she could see the anger and frustration on his rugged face. She'd always been proud of the fact that her father looked younger than his age of fifty-eight. Honestly, he looked like an older version of Riley. He'd been thirty-two when she was born; just slightly younger than Riley was right now; slightly younger than Mike Casiano, who was now pulling something up on her computer.
"He'd tapped into her webcam," Mike told her father. "Whoever this is, he's good with electronics." Mike's gaze shifted to Lainey and she felt a chill run through her to be under his close scrutiny. "Can you think of anyone you have come in contact with who this could be?"
She shook her head. "I deal mainly with children and mothers. It's rare for men to come in with their families. The ones who have...I just can't imagine it's one of them."
Gavin Riley shifted so that he was looking down at his daughter, concern on his face.
"Baby, I know you like to think the best of people, but this is obviously someone you have had contact with. He said you sent him a letter."
Lainey raked her fingers through her hair in frustration and began to pace the length of the room, well aware that both men were watching her.
"I've been thinking about who it could be ever since that call came through last night. I just don't know."
"Who would you have sent a letter to?" Gavin pressed. "And why would you send someone a letter?"
"I get thank you notes all the time, Daddy. I usually send a standard acknowledgment back to them."
Mike spoke then. "Do you keep the notes you receive?"
She looked over at him. His face was unreadable, his eyes a bit softer but still assessing.
"Yes," she answered, crossing over to the credenza behind her desk. She opened a drawer and gestured to it with a sweep of her hand. "They're all in there."
Mike loo
ked down into the opened drawer and was stunned by the amount of envelopes. The drawer was fairly deep and she had the envelopes bundled together in stacks...at least a dozen stacks all as tall as his hand.
"I need you to go through all of these. Find the ones from men and..."
"Those are all from men," she replied. "The ones from women and kids are in the next drawer."
Gavin stepped closer and picked up one of the stacks. "You get this many letters from men??" he roared, actually causing Lainey to laugh.
"Ever since Kacee and I were interviewed on Raven's news show, we get "fan mail". Most of it is harmless. We get a good laugh over them."
"You get fan mail? Damn it, Lainey! The person who is doing all of this has likely made contact with you this way. What were you thinking, responding to these?" Gavin admonished.
Lainey folded her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes at him. "Yelling at me isn't going to solve anything, you know. It's common courtesy to acknowledge the receipt of a note with a note in kind. Most of these are just harmless little flirtations. I thanked them for their kind words and left it at that. Besides, I don't think this guy is in these stacks. He said I told him he had a nice smile, which means at some point, I have been face-to-face with him."
"Do you keep mail from clients separate from these?" Mike asked, heading off another explosion from her father.
"Sometimes. I put them in the patient files. I just haven't had time to think this through, to figure out who this may be."
"You haven't had time?" Gavin sputtered. "You've had all day!!"
"I've had patients all day," she countered.
"You need to cancel your appointments for the next few days, until all of this is resolved," her father barked.
"Not going to happen," she snapped.
"Lainey, you -" Gavin began, but Mike cut him off.
"I don't see any reason for her to disrupt her work because of this. We will need to alter her daily routine some, but she can still do her work."
She shifted her narrowed gaze from her father to Mike, and to his amazement, Mike actually found her gaze a bit jarring.
"What do you mean, alter my daily routine?"
"You have a stalker. They tend to learn your routine and arrange to be where you are going to be in order to watch you."