She didn’t take the bite of pizza that was already on the way to her mouth. “Where should he have been?”
“Nowhere in the park itself. He was backup, and was assigned to be at one of the park entrances. He certainly shouldn’t have put himself in a position where Milo could have seen him. Remember, Silas was supposed to pose as the buyer.”
Julia gave that some thought, hoping that it didn’t blow the meeting. “So why was he there?”
“I’ll ask him as soon as he’s found.”
A few moments later, the CD showed Silas ducking out of sight. More time passed, and she could see the images of when the shooting started.
Russ panned around, and even though it seemed as if the shots were coming from the trees, Julia couldn’t be certain of that.
“Is it possible Silas was the one shooting at us?” she asked.
“I don’t know, but he’s got some serious explaining to do when he gets back.”
If he gets back, Julia silently amended. If Silas was the shooter, if he’d gone rogue, then it was possible the person who’d hired him had already killed him. That could be the real reason he was missing.
Russ’s phone rang, and he set aside the rest of his pizza so he could take the call. He glanced at the caller ID, frowned, and when he answered it, he didn’t say his name. He only said, “Hello.”
“Sylvia,” he said, a moment later, and he put the call on speaker.
Good. Because Julia wanted to hear what the woman had to say. It was because of Milo’s threat and the shooting that Emily had to be rushed away to a safe house, and Sylvia probably had answers about what was going on. Of course, the question was, would Milo’s assistant share those answers?
“How did you get my number?” Russ asked.
“Someone contacted me. A friend of yours, he said. And he wanted me to call you.”
Julia hoped that friend was an agent, and she remembered Russ telling the Asian man in the car to try to get in touch with Milo or Sylvia.
“Who tried to kill Julia and me?” Russ demanded.
“We thought you might be able to tell us that,” Sylvia countered.
“Why would I know?”
“Because the man who did the shooting was the same person who arrived at the Wainwright Hotel this morning. He went inside and stayed for over a half hour.”
She was talking about Silas and the meeting with the Richardsons. It didn’t surprise Julia that Milo knew about that, but she wondered how he’d interpreted that meeting. Had he been so suspicious that he’d ordered those shots to be fired?
“What makes you think my visitor had anything to do with the shooting?” Russ wanted to know.
“Because I saw him in the area after you left. Milo saw him, too.”
“Maybe because Milo hired him to fire those shots?”
“Impossible,” Sylvia insisted. “Milo has no reason to want Julia Howell or you dead. This is simply a business deal, and fired shots and a police investigation would only delay things.”
“Does that mean this business deal is still on?” Russ asked.
“It is if you still have a buyer,” she replied.
“I do,” Russ assured her.
Sylvia didn’t respond immediately, and Julia heard someone else talking in the background. “Could you hold on until I step outside?” Sylvia asked. “There’s something I need to tell you, and I don’t want an audience.”
Julia looked at Russ to see if he knew what this was all about, but he only shook his head. They waited for what seemed an eternity, but Sylvia finally came back on the line.
“Look, Milo wants the deal to be completed at noon tomorrow at the city golf course,” the woman continued. “He wants both Julia and you there. You provide him proof that the money is in the offshore account, and he’ll give you the location of the baby.”
“I don’t want Julia at the meeting,” Russ countered.
“That’s not negotiable.”
Russ mumbled some profanity. “Everything’s negotiable. Just tell him. While you’re at it, tell him that he’ll only get half the account number for the deposit. And one more thing—I want the meeting to take place here in the lobby of the Wainwright Hotel. No more outdoor venues where people can be in trees to shoot at us.”
Sylvia hesitated. “I’ll tell Milo what you’ve requested and I’ll get back to you.” More hesitation. “Just how much do really know about what’s going on here?”
Russ pulled back his shoulders. “What do you mean?”
“I mean we should talk. Face-to-face. Just you, Julia and me.”
“Right,” Russ mumbled. “Is that because you want a second chance at trying to kill us?”
“I didn’t try to kill you!” she practically shouted. “I didn’t try to kill anyone.” When she continued, her voice was considerably softer. “Look, this is just a job, and I didn’t sign up to be an accessory to murder. That’s why we have to talk. There’s something I have to show you before you walk into that meeting with Milo.”
He glanced at Julia and shook his head. “How do I know this isn’t some kind of trick?” Russ asked.
“You don’t. But I’m willing to meet with you at the police station. I’d be stupid to try to kill you there.”
Russ stayed quiet a moment. “Are you a cop?”
“Hardly.” Sylvia’s answer was fast and loaded with disbelief that he would even suggest it. “I’m just someone who’s concerned about Milo and what’s going on. Be at the police station in one hour, and maybe what I show you will help keep us all alive.”
Chapter Ten
Russ hoped Sylvia’s meeting wasn’t a ploy to draw Julia and him out of the hotel. That’s why he arranged to have a security detail follow them in the unmarked car that had been delivered to the hotel for him to use.
Still, even with a security detail, there was the possibility that something could go wrong.
Julia was obviously concerned as well, because she kept a white-knuckled grip on the arm rest, and she spent the entire ten-minute drive glancing all around them. Russ wanted to reassure her that they were safe, but he knew that wasn’t true. If the person who’d tried to kill them wanted to make another attempt, the only thing that would keep Julia out of harm’s way was to send her off to the safe house.
Russ was going to work on that.
He could find an agent to guard her while he had the big meeting with Milo. But if the meeting didn’t go as planned for, on the following day with Milo, then he had no choice but to get Julia out of San Saba. Hell, he should get her out immediately, but he was positive she wouldn’t go, despite the drained color on her face and her raw, exposed nerves.
“What do you think Sylvia wants to show us?” Julia asked.
“I don’t have a clue.” And he didn’t.
This meeting had come out of the blue, and Russ didn’t know if that meant Sylvia was getting cold feet about the deal, or if she had something else in mind. It was that something else that put a knot in Russ’s gut. He didn’t want Julia in any more danger, but he hadn’t wanted to leave her at the hotel either, because no one would go as far as he would to protect her. And it didn’t seem to matter if he didn’t want to feel that way about her.
“You okay?” he asked her, as they pulled in to the parking lot.
“Don’t worry. I’m not about to have a panic attack.”
He caught onto her arm and turned her to face him. “That wasn’t what I asked. Are you okay?”
She moistened her lips, pushed a wisp of hair from her cheek. “I just want this to be over so I can be with Emily.”
He wanted the same thing, and he wanted it sooner than later.
Because Russ thought it might help them both, he leaned into her and gave her a quick kiss. It felt comfortable, as if quick, reassuring kisses were part of their normal lives instead of something he’d just started to experience.
“You’re not going to put your hand up my dress to stop me from going nuts, are you?” she as
ked.
Russ thought she was only partly serious, so he kissed her again, and he wished that they were at a place and time where he could figure out where the hell they were going with the dirty thoughts and long, lingering looks.
“Maybe later,” he told her, but it wasn’t as much of a joke as he wanted it to be.
“Let’s get inside,” he said. “And make it as fast as you can.” The parking lot seemed secure, and there were two uniformed officers milling around outside on what appeared to be a smoke break, but Russ didn’t want to take any unnecessary chances.
San Saba wasn’t a big city, and neither was the police station. It was a single-story, yellow brick building with a covered walkway across the front.
“I don’t see Sylvia,” Julia said.
Neither did Russ, and that tightened the knot in his stomach even more.
He’d had his badge delivered with the car, and he stuck it in his back pocket, just in case someone inside questioned him. He locked his weapon in the glove compartment because it would never make it through the metal detector. The trick would be to keep Julia safe and meet with Sylvia without letting her suspect that he was a federal agent.
Julia and he walked past the two smoking officers. Russ made eye contact with him and nodded a greeting before he ushered Julia inside. As expected, there was a metal detector just steps past the door, and they walked through it, thankful they didn’t set anything off.
Sylvia was there in the waiting area across from reception. The reception desk was manned by a female uniformed officer, and when she gave him a questioning look, Russ tipped his head to Sylvia.
“I’m here to pick her up,” Russ lied.
That seemed to satisfy the officer, and Julia and he made their way to Sylvia. Russ took the seat directly next to the woman, and Julia sat beside him.
“This had better be worth my time,” Russ told her, right off the bat.
“It will be.” But Sylvia didn’t make a move to show him anything—other than her nerves. The woman’s hands were trembling, and her eyes were red—she’d obviously been crying or had somehow faked the look— and she was gripping her purse as if were a lifeline.
“Well?” Russ demanded.
“First of all, I’m in love with Milo, and this meeting is a last resort for me.” Her voice was barely audible. “I’ve tried to reason with him, to talk him out of this deal, but he won’t listen. He insists on going through with it, even though I think it’s dangerous.”
“It is dangerous,” Russ told her. And he thought about how he should phrase this. “But we can bypass Milo if you know where the baby is.”
“I don’t.” She met his gaze. “But I don’t think it’s safe for anyone to carry out this deal.” Sylvia pulled in a weary breath and opened her purse. “I don’t know what’s going on, but I hope you can find out.”
Julia moved to the edge of her seat, probably so she could see what Sylvia was taking from her purse. Photos.
She handed them to Russ.
There were two of them, both black-and-white. Grainy shots, obviously taken from a long distance, and perhaps only seconds apart. Two people were in both photos and Russ immediately recognized one of them. Milo.
Julia’s soft gasp let him know that she recognized the other person, as well.
Sylvia stood. “My advice? Before you show up at that meeting tomorrow, you find out why those two are together.”
Russ intended to do just that.
Because the second person in the photos was none other than Tracy Richardson, the “stolen” baby’s mother.
“I WANT SYLVIA HARTMAN FOLLOWED,” Julia heard Russ say to the agent he’d phoned the moment that Sylvia was out of sight. “And have someone call me with the financials on Aaron and Tracy Richardson.”
Russ was talking to the agent who’d accompanied them to the police station, and while Julia didn’t like the idea of driving to the hotel without backup, she didn’t want Sylvia to get away. Not after what the woman had just given them.
She glanced at the photos again before Russ folded them and slid them into his pocket.
“You think they’re real?” Julia asked, in a whisper. “Or did Sylvia doctor them?”
“I don’t know, but I intend to find out.”
Julia only hoped that it was possible before the meeting. She hadn’t exactly felt comfortable about going another round with Milo, but this would make things even more questionable. And perhaps more dangerous.
“How long will it take you to get the financial information on the Richardsons?” she asked. “Not long.”
Good, because that might give them some important pieces to this puzzle.
“Is there a place in here to get some coffee?” Russ asked the officer at the reception desk. “Our friend had to run a quick errand, and we need to wait for her to get back,” he lied.
She pointed toward a side hall. “It’s from a vending machine and tastes like sludge. There’s a café across the street if you want something better.”
“Sludge is fine,” Russ mumbled, and he didn’t say anything else until Julia and he were out of earshot. “I want us to hang around here until another security detail arrives.”
Julia was thankful for the precaution and equally thankful that the small room with several vending machines was vacant. She had a dozen things she wanted to ask Russ, and she didn’t want anyone around to listen in.
While keeping watch around them, he threaded several one-dollar bills into the machine and got them each a cup of coffee. The officer was right. It did taste like sludge.
“So what’s going on?” Julia asked. “Why do you think Sylvia really wanted us to meet her?”
“Could be several things.” There were four metal chairs lined up across from the machines, and she and Russ sat.
“The pictures could be a hoax. Milo’s man could have seen Tracy Richardson at the hotel, followed her and then orchestrated the photos to make it look as if she knows Milo. Heck, Milo and Tracy might have never even met.”
“But why doctor the photos to make us think that?”
“Milo could have done it to see how we’d react. This could all be some kind of sick test just to see what we’ll do. He might think we’ll panic and do something stupid.”
Julia couldn’t rule that out. “But Tracy could actually know Milo. And that means he could also know that she’s the baby’s mother.”
Russ nodded. “Milo could have figured that out. Or maybe he just suspects she’s involved with us. If that’s true, it goes without saying that he’ll be more suspicious of us.”
Yes, he would. And it could be worse than that. “Milo might know you’re an agent. Tracy could have told him.”
“She could have,” Russ readily admitted. “But if she did, I think Milo would have already confronted me about it. He’s not shy about saying what’s on his mind.”
True, but Julia didn’t like the possibilities. Sylvia could be playing her own game, maybe so she could turn Russ and her against Milo and then somehow collect the money for herself. Or it could be Milo or Tracy playing a game. A dangerous one.
Russ sipped the coffee and grimaced at the taste. He tossed the cup into the garbage can beside them. “We have to wait and see what all of this means. Maybe Milo wants us off kilter when and if we walk into that meeting. Hell, he might even have Tracy show up so she can get in a bidding war with my buyer.”
“That’s assuming Milo still believes you have a buyer,” Julia pointed out. “Since Sylvia knew Silas had shown up at the hotel this morning, Milo and she probably also know the Richardsons dropped by for a visit, too. So maybe they now assume that the Richardsons are the ones behind the two-million-dollar offer.”
“Entirely possible.”
Julia thought of something else. “If Milo knew he could get this much money from the Richardsons, then why didn’t he just hold their baby for ransom?”
“Good question, and I don’t know the answer. Maybe he thought the buying process
would keep him safer, one step away from the authorities. He can definitely control this situation better than he could if he risked going to the birth parents. Hell, maybe there is no actual Z, and he’s the real seller.” He checked his watch and settled deeper into the chair, as if this might be a long wait.
And it just might be.
Even though she grimaced, too, at the coffee taste, she continued to sip it. She needed the caffeine to stay alert, since the fatigue was starting to catch up with her. “You said if we walk into the meeting with Milo. I thought we’d gotten past your argument that I shouldn’t be there.”
“We haven’t gotten past it.” He leaned his head against the wall and looked at her. “I don’t want you there. I want you safe.”
“That’s your libido talking. You need me there. The Richardsons’ baby needs me there.”
He blew out an audible breath. “And if something goes wrong? If you’re hurt?”
She tried to shrug. “It’d be worth it if the baby was safe.”
Russ cursed. “The baby might not be safe because his own mother put him in danger.” Since he hadn’t exactly said that in a whisper, he looked around to make sure he hadn’t drawn any attention. They still had the room to themselves.
“I’ve been trained to do this kind of thing,” Russ said, continuing, his voice quieter but definitely not calmer. “You haven’t been. And you shouldn’t have to take the risk. I’ll just tell Milo that you’re sick. Or indisposed. Or that you refused to come. He’ll have no choice but to back off about you being there.”
Julia wasn’t at all sure that would work. Milo was calling the shots, and he could continue to do that as long as he had the baby.
She stared into the cup and wondered if she should even bring this up. The timing was wrong, but then it might not be right for a while. “What are we going to do?” she asked.
“About Emily?” Russ didn’t wait for her to answer. “We’ll work out an arrangement. Maybe split custody, or something.”
“Wow.” She took a moment to let that sink in. “You’ve had a change of heart. Just yesterday, you were reminding me that you were the best choice to raise her.”
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