The Witness (Harlequin Super Romance)

by Style, Linda

  He’d thought he knew her. He’d been certain there was a future for them. But she was right. He didn’t know her at all, and this new revelation made him shake with anger. He felt stupid. Betrayed. She’d been with him, with Samantha, and never said a word about her past.

  If his judgment was that impaired, how could he make a sound decision when it came to doing right by his daughter?

  He pulled in next to the center, got out, unlocked the door and went inside the cavernous room. In the darkness he kicked a box in his way and the noise echoed off the twenty-foot ceilings. He was about to flip on the portable lamp when he saw a light coming from one of the back rooms.

  What the…

  Holding his breath, he crept down the hall, picked up a two-by-four on the way, and stopped near the door to listen. Not a sound came from the room. If some teenagers had come in looking for a place to party, he’d hear them. Maybe one of the boys had left a lamp on after finishing work. Cautiously, he peered around the door.

  Somebody was lying in the corner of the room underneath an old army blanket. A homeless person, maybe. He didn’t know if he had the heart to disturb him. But he couldn’t house the homeless when there was a shelter just a couple blocks away.

  He walked over and tapped the guy’s shoulder with his toe. “Excuse me.” He reached down and pulled the blanket lower revealing a head of dark hair.

  “Tomás? What the devil are you doing here?”

  “Go away,” the boy groused and pulled the blanket up over his head, obviously not quite awake. “I’m sleeping, leave me alone.”

  “Yeah. I can see that. But why are you here?”

  A small delicate boy, Tommy lifted his head, prying his eyes open as he did. Surprise registered on his face when he saw Alex. “Mr. D. I—I didn’t know it was you,” he said sleepily. “I thought you were one of the guys.” He rubbed his eyes with his fists. “I don’t have no place to go.”

  “Where are your parents?”

  “I don’t know. I lived with my brother, but then he went to jail. I stayed at his place till they kicked me out.”

  “And where have you been staying since then?”

  He shrugged. “With friends sometimes. Wherever.”

  Wherever meant the streets. Damn. And that was probably the reason the boy hadn’t been going to school.

  “You ain’t gonna put those welfare workers on me are you? I’m not going to one of those foster homes.”

  Alex didn’t know what to do. There had to be a shelter for kids, but it was too late tonight to find one. “I guess you’ll have to come home with me. We’ll figure something out in the morning.”

  Tommy stood and pulled his blankets together. It was cold in the building and the boy was shaking, his expression anxious, like he might run. “It’s okay. I’m not going to call anyone. We’ll get you a shower, something to eat and then a good night’s sleep.”

  The boy’s eyes lit up. “Okay. As long as you don’t call those welfare people. My brother’s getting out in a couple weeks and we’re going to find a place.”

  “It’s a deal.” Alex held out his hand to shake on it.

  Later, after Tommy was settled in at Alex’s place and sleeping soundly, Alex went into the library and poured a drink. A double. Standing at the bar, he downed the whiskey in one swallow and poured another. Tonight he’d heard that someone wanted to kill him. Navarro was just the hired gun. If someone inside the police department was involved as Navarro had said, who could Alex even talk to about it?

  Crista had heard everything. He could talk to her. And maybe he’d also find out how she’d gotten mixed up with that creep. Maybe he’d misunderstood and it wasn’t what it seemed?

  His phone rang and he went to pick it up. Who’d be calling at this time of the night? “Hell—”

  “Alex, it’s Crista. I need to talk to you.”

  His nerves tensed.

  “I’m sitting in my car outside.”

  “Do you want me to come out there, or would you like to come inside? It’s warmer in here and everyone is asleep.”

  “Okay.”

  They hung up and he went to the door. She was standing on the steps, looking as if she hadn’t slept in days. Dark smudges under her eyes and worry lines around her mouth confirmed she was strung out. He had the crazy urge to pull her close and comfort her. Instead he said, “C’mon in.”

  He led her into the library. “I’m having a drink. Would you like one?”

  She nodded. “I could use something strong right now.”

  He poured her a shot of cognac, handed her the glass and motioned for her to sit. He brought his own drink over and dropped into the leather chair next to her. He felt as weary as she looked. “I’m sorry about your brother’s involvement with the Syndicate. That must have hurt you.”

  “Well, the good thing is that he was trying to get out of the gang. But it’s not easy to leave.” She glanced away. “I guess you know all that.”

  “So what happens now?”

  “If Diego testifies against Navarro, we can put the creep away for a long time.”

  Alex winced at the mention of Navarro’s name. “But that’s not going to solve anything. Navarro said someone inside the department had given the orders. That’s pretty frightening. And if Navarro goes to jail without revealing who it is, nothing has changed.”

  Her head tipped back as if in resignation. “I know. Believe me, I know.”

  “So what happens now?”

  After a moment she sat up and squared her shoulders. “I need to find out who’s behind it. And in the meantime, we need to ensure your safety. Sam’s safety. Whoever’s pulling the strings inside the department is going to be lying low. I doubt they’d try anything now and risk exposure. But I still recommend being cautious.”

  He nodded. She was still worrying about them. But he felt as if he were talking to a stranger. She was all business, as if they’d never been close. Never been intimate. “I still have security on payroll, and he’s good. I’ll hire more if necessary.”

  She nodded.

  “What about Diego?”

  “I need to make sure he’s safe, too, but it’s tough when I don’t know who I can talk to in the department. And Diego is being stupid about the whole thing. He refuses to go into hiding.”

  “Where is Diego now?”

  “I wanted him to stay at my place, but he wouldn’t. He’s at home.”

  “Didn’t you tell me the chief of police was a friend of yours from the academy? Can you contact her for help?”

  “I could, and I probably will—but first I need some solid evidence.”

  “Can’t someone get Navarro to talk?”

  “He’s a gangster, a convicted felon. His word isn’t going to count for much, and right now he’s not going to give up anything. I’m sure he believes his connections will have him released by morning. I need to get some other evidence to support what he said at Diego’s.”

  “Can you do that?”

  “I have a pretty good lead.”

  All the talk about Navarro grated on Alex’s nerves. How could Crista have been with such a lowlife?

  She stared into her glass and swished the amber liquid around.

  Dammit, he couldn’t sit here and talk about everything but that. “Crista.”

  Her gaze caught his.

  “I can’t pretend I didn’t hear what Navarro said.”

  “I didn’t expect you would.”

  He wanted an explanation, dammit.

  She held herself very still, her chin high. “I’m sorry about what you heard, Alex. Maybe I should have told you all the gory details of my past, but none of it is relevant to who I am now. So I chose not to say anything.”

  The air left his lungs. He felt as if he’d been sucker-punched in the gut. He loved her and she didn’t feel the need to be honest with him.

  “I never thought we’d get as involved as we did, and when it happened…” Her voice cracked with emotion and she stopped ta
lking. She inhaled deeply, then exhaled, regained her poise. “Well,” she said, her voice a soft whisper. “I don’t think any of that matters now.”

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CRISTA FELT as black and as empty as the night. As she drove home, tears ran down her cheeks. For a girl who never cried, she was doing a spectacular job of it.

  How could her past matter when there was no future for the two of them? They lived in two different worlds. As much as she loved Alex and Sam, she couldn’t be the kind of wife he wanted. She couldn’t be the kind of mother Sam needed.

  More than once she’d fantasized that if they truly loved each other, they could make it work. But tonight had ended those fantasies.

  How could she explain her past to Alex when there was no explanation? She couldn’t erase it and she couldn’t excuse it. She was who she was.

  Finally home, she went into her apartment and lifted Calvin from his cage. She held him against her chest and felt his heartbeat thumping wildly. Still holding him close, she sat on the couch and stroked his back feathers, feeling terrible that because of her he’d been a victim of Trini’s rage. “You’re a good bird, Calvin. I’m so sorry you were hurt, but you’re safe now.”

  What she’d told Alex was true. She didn’t feel anyone would try something now, and with Trini in jail, she felt enormous relief. The police had impounded his truck and in it they’d discovered several cans of oil and, on the right front fender, red paint that matched her Jeep. Trini admitted stalking Crista, but wouldn’t admit to anything else. Which left more than one question unanswered. If Trini wanted Diego to carry out the hit on Alex and Diego had refused, who was the shooter on the two drive-bys?

  It could be Trini, but it could have been anyone. Maybe even Marco. She hoped that the CSU would find enough trace evidence in Trini’s vehicle to prove he was involved in the shootings. Even without that, the D.A. thought they had enough to convict him on stalking and attempted murder.

  There would be a hearing and a trial and everything about her past would come out. Everyone would know. Her co-workers, Alex, Elena, Risa, Lucy, Abby, Mei Lu, Catherine—everyone. Her friends knew more about her than most people, but they didn’t know all of it. She couldn’t imagine what they’d think of her.

  She leaned back against the couch pillows, exhausted. She’d thought her past was behind her, that her life had new direction. But it was obvious now that she could never escape. The past was always there, like a latent virus waiting to attack when your defenses were down.

  But thinking like that wasn’t going to help with anything. If people were going to judge her for past indiscretions, let them.

  She wrestled her thoughts away from her personal problems and directed them to where they should be. She might be on leave pending investigation, but she had to find out how Castillo’s gun got into Marco’s hands. If she didn’t, an innocent man would be convicted and a murderer would be allowed to remain on the streets to commit more crimes.

  Settling Calvin back into his cage, she pulled the large Encanto file out of her briefcase. She went to sit at the kitchen table and flipped through the pages. Nothing in the documentation indicated anything was amiss. While Fontanera had made the arrest, there’d been other officers on scene. Garcia, Hanover and Munez. Garcia and Munez, she remembered had been on scene when Castillo was arrested.

  Just then her cell phone rang. She didn’t feel like talking to anyone, but was relieved to see on the caller ID that it was Josey. “Hey, Josey.”

  “Sorry for calling so late.”

  “No problem. I was up. Are you still at work?”

  “No, I’m at home. I thought it best to call from here. I didn’t want this to get to anyone but you.”

  “What’s up? Did you get a match on the print?” Crista’s hope mushroomed.

  “I did. You won’t believe whose it is.”

  EARLY IN THE MORNING, Crista called Catherine and asked to meet her. After an hour together, Catherine shook her head and laughed. “The newspapers are going to have a field day with this one. One more thing for the media to latch on to and give credence to the rumors of corruption under my administration.”

  “But if corruption is there and you clean it up, that ought to give the press a different perspective, don’t you think?”

  Catherine, sitting model-straight, blond hair perfectly coiffed and clothes impeccable, steepled her long fingers. “I’ll reserve an opinion on that one.” She smiled and then her pale blue eyes fired up with determination. “We need a plan. Getting IA involved won’t work. And we can’t just go in and make an arrest based on a fingerprint that might be explained away.”

  “I have a plan,” Crista said. “But implementing it will be difficult. I’m going to need to talk to Navarro and Marco Torres, but given my situation, I don’t have authority to—”

  “I’ll make it happen.”

  Her adrenaline coursing, Crista left Catherine’s office and took the stairs down to the CSU so she wouldn’t run into anyone. Like a small town, gossip in the department spread faster than the speed of a bullet. By now everyone knew she was on administrative leave, and everyone knew about her relationship with Trini—and with Alex.

  After getting the records she needed from Josey and meeting with Marco and then Trini, she made one last stop. Captain Englend’s office.

  “You’re not allowed here, Santiago.”

  “I’m a citizen. I’m allowed.” She entered his office and stood, arms akimbo, in front of his desk. “I believe I have some information that might interest you.”

  “I don’t have time for this. I’m due in a meeting.”

  “I just spoke with Navarro and I think you’ll want to make time to hear what he had to say.”

  His eyes narrowed. “What’re you talking about?”

  “Mr. Navarro seems to think someone in the department is hooked up with the Texas Syndicate and has a nice little side business going.”

  Englend bolted to his feet, rounded his desk and closed the door. He stepped forward, in her face. His usual mode of intimidation. Towering over her, he said, “He’s scum. A convicted felon. He’ll say anything to save his ass. But I guess you would know that better than anyone.”

  “You won’t get any argument from me there. But the fact remains, there’s a dirty cop in this unit.”

  “You’re crazy, Santiago. I know my men. They’re above reproach.”

  “There’s evidence to back up Navarro’s testimony.”

  His eyes turned dark. “If there was evidence, I’d know about it.”

  “The gun evidence. Apparently the gun used in the two recent drive-bys is the same one from a case three years ago. The gun was impounded, so it seems strange that it would turn up again.”

  “Are you saying someone lifted impound evidence?”

  “Let me back up a little, Captain. Since this case also affects me and my job, I want to mention something else first.”

  “I don’t have time for long, sad stories, Santiago. I have a meeting.”

  “This involves you.”

  “Everything in this office involves me. And I don’t give a rat’s ass about you or your job.” He barreled past her and headed down the hall toward the parking garage.

  Undaunted, Crista followed, talking while they walked. “When I was assigned lead on the Encanto case, I was pleased. Even when I found out the case was urgent, I was still pleased. I thought the assignment showed your confidence in my abilities.”

  At his car, he rounded on her, his mouth a grimace.

  “By the way, nice ride you have there. Not quite as nice as the Mercedes roadster you have at home, though. I hear the SL600 goes for over a hundred grand. I didn’t realize a captain’s salary was big enough to cover those kinds of luxuries.”

  His jaw clenched and he reached for the door.

  “Wait. You really do want to hear the rest of this. If not, I might think you don’t care that you have a dirty cop in your unit and I’ll have to go somewhere else
with the information.”

  He stopped cold.

  “Anyway, when I realized you had no intention of letting me solve the case, I thought it was because you didn’t want a woman on your team. But then I discovered you didn’t want the case solved. When the mayor got on you about the case, you gave him a warm body. Marco Torres.”

  As if what she’d said didn’t faze him, Englend said, “You’re full of crap, Santiago. The gun was in his possession.”

  “Exactly. The same gun used in the Castillo robbery three years ago. Hanover made the collar.”

  Surprise lit his eyes as she went on. “You had Hanover write the report as if the gun was never found.”

  His laugh was terse. “And if you could prove any of this garbage, you wouldn’t be standing here right now.”

  “Hanover was with Fontanero when Torres was arrested. Hanover was backup on the Castillo arrest.”

  “Speculation isn’t evidence.”

  “Evidence? You mean like your fingerprints on the gun used in both drive-by shootings? Oddly, your prints are also on Navarro’s gun. A gun which was impounded from another crime and which mysteriously appeared again—in Navarro’s possession.”

  Englend’s face twisted into an angry knot. “You’re going to regret this, Santiago.”

  “Is that a threat, Captain?”

  “Damn right it is! You don’t know what you’re getting into.”

  “Why? Because you have a deal going with the Texas Syndicate and get a nice cut by ignoring the Syndicate’s activities? Extortion and drugs pull in big bucks. Enough to pay for that expensive car you have at home. Enough for you to want Alex Del Rio gone so you could put your own man in his place and keep the business running smoothly.”

  Almost before she spit out the last word, Englend pulled his gun.

  “What are you going to do? Shoot me? I’m not the only one with this information.”

  Englend reached for her throat.

  Big mistake. Crista kicked Englend’s knee, throwing him off balance. At the same time she grabbed his arm, turned her body and threw him over her back.

  His weapon flew. He landed on the floor, grabbed her leg and pulled her down. She hit the floor with a thud and her head cracked against the concrete. Stars burst in front of her eyes. Her vision blurred and doubled and she thought she saw Englend scramble for his weapon. The next thing she knew he was standing over her with a gun barrel directed between her eyes.