Behind the Mask (MIRA)

by Metsy Hingle

  “I’m not going to let you kill him. Let him go, Adam. He has nothing to do with this.”

  Adam laughed. “Oh Elisabeth darling, that is a good one. You honestly believe he has nothing to do with this? Who do you think told me where to find you in the first place? Sullivan works for me.”

  “You’re lying,” she said. “You’re lying.”

  “If you don’t believe me, ask him.”

  “Michael?” she said, turning to him. When she looked at his face and saw the guilt reflected in those blue eyes, pain slashed through her with the swiftness of a laser. She hadn’t thought it possible for a heart to actually break, but in that moment she felt her own heart shatter, then crumble into tiny pieces.

  She knew Adam was telling her the truth.

  Michael watched the emotions race across Lily’s face. He thought he had known guilt and self-hatred after Pete’s death. It was nothing compared to what he was feeling now. “Lily, I can explain.”

  Something, some spark, died in her eyes. “Then it’s true. You work for him.”

  Frustrated, and at a loss as to how to make her understand, he answered honestly. “Yes, he did hire me to find you. But I walked away from the job because I fell in love with you. I love you, Lily,” he said, and wished he had told her before now. “I wanted to tell you the truth. I planned to tell you everything when I came to your house yesterday, but you were getting ready to bolt. And I was afraid if I told you then, you would have run and refused to let me help you.”

  “You dare to fall in love with my wife, Sullivan?” Adam asked, his fury evident by the dark expression on his face. “I ought to shoot you for that alone.”

  “Adam, don’t,” Lily screamed.

  “What does it matter to you if I kill him? He’s nothing to you. He’s a bounty hunter I hired to find you. He’s served his purpose. It’s time to dispose of him.”

  “You think you can shoot me and just walk out of here?” Michael countered, buying time. If he’d had any doubts before about the man’s sanity, he no longer did. Adam Webster was insane. “My brother’s a federal agent. He may not be right outside that door, but he won’t be far away. You won’t make it out of the hotel.”

  “I’ll make it out of here the same way I made it in. With my costume. And, of course, Lily already has hers.”

  “It’ll never work.”

  “Won’t it? Do you really think your brother or anyone else will be able to find us among the hundreds of thousands of people partying out there in the streets right now? I think not.”

  “I found you, didn’t I?” Michael reminded him.

  Webster glared at him. “And you think that makes you clever, Sullivan? I should have realized that Elisabeth would be foolish enough to leave a trail even a Boy Scout could follow.”

  “I’m not a Boy Scout. And I was clever enough to find your wife when you couldn’t.”

  Webster glared at him. “Yes, but I hope you aren’t expecting to collect the rest of that fee I promised you.”

  “I don’t want your money. And if you want to go on breathing, you’ll put down that gun and let us walk out of here.”

  “Us? There is no ‘us’ except for the one in your fantasies, Sullivan. Elisabeth is my wife. She belongs to me. Come over here, Elisabeth.”

  Lily hesitated a moment, then obeyed him. He slid his arm around her waist, yanking her back so that her body was pressed against him.

  “She’s not a piece of property, Webster. You don’t own her.”

  “Ah, but that’s where you’re wrong. I do own her. And she knows it. Don’t you, darling?” he asked, and slid his hand up from her waist, closing it over her breast.

  Michael shook with rage as he saw the revulsion and shame come into Lily’s eyes. “Let her go, or I’ll kill you with my bare hands,” Michael warned him.

  Webster smiled. “Such gallantry, Sullivan. I do believe you’ve taken on the character of your costume quite literally,” he said. “She’s mine, and I’ll do whatever I want to her,” he spat out and then he crushed the nipple of Lily’s breast between his fingers. Lily whimpered.

  “You bastard,” Michael raged as he started to come at him.

  “Don’t,” Webster said, raising the gun. “One more step, and I’ll pull the trigger.”

  “Adam, please. I’ll go with you. Just let him go.”

  “You know I can’t do that, darling. Not now.”

  “No,” Lily screamed, and shoved at Webster’s arm, causing the gun to misfire.

  Quickly Webster swung the weapon back and aimed it at him, prepared to fire. Lily threw herself in front of Michael.

  “Lily, no,” Michael said, holding her, trying to move her out of harm’s way. When he looked up, he saw Webster watching them. Saw the speculation come into his dark eyes. Saw the blinding rage as realization dawned.

  “You’ve fucked her,” Webster spit out the words. “You’ve fucked her, haven’t you?”

  Michael remained silent.

  “Answer me, you bastard! Did you fuck her?”

  “No,” Lily answered as she came to her feet. She hiked up her chin, faced him defiantly, and in that moment, Michael realized he’d never known anyone more beautiful or brave.

  “Fucking a woman is what you do, Adam,” she told him. “He and I made love. For the first time in my life I actually made love with a man. A real man. Not…not some animal!”

  “You filthy whore. I gave you everything. Everything,” he ranted. “I clothed you, fed you, educated you. I even got rid of that worthless mother of yours and married you. And this is how you repay me? By allowing this scum to touch what’s mine?”

  “You bought me,” Lily told him. “And the price I had to pay was too high.”

  Webster backhanded her, knocking her to the floor. “You worthless bitch.”

  “You bastard,” Michael shouted, and lunged at Webster.

  Webster fired, and Michael felt the bullet graze the flesh at his temple, felt the trickle of blood seep down near his eye.

  “Adam, stop,” Lily screamed, once again placing herself between him and Webster.

  “Lily, don’t,” Michael said, trying to urge her to move aside, not trusting Webster.

  “You’re right, Adam,” Lily told him. “I don’t know what got into me. You’ve been so good to me all these years. You gave me everything and I should have been grateful. I can see now how wrong I was,” she continued. “Please, let’s go home. Let me try to make it up to you.”

  “Do you really think I want you now?” Webster asked. “Now that I know he’s had you? You’re nothing to me now. Just another worthless cunt. The only thing I want from you now is that disk.”

  “What disk?” Michael asked, his gaze going from Lily to Webster and back to Lily again.

  Webster laughed. “What’s this? She allowed you to screw her brains out, but she never told you about the disk she stole from me? Why do you think I was willing to pay you so much money to find her?”

  “I thought you wanted her back,” Michael answered honestly.

  “I did want her back. After all, I’d invested a great deal of time and money in her. But I knew I had to get the disk back since there was, let’s say, some damaging information on it. Naturally, I couldn’t allow Lily to make a mistake and have it get into the wrong hands.”

  Michael thought of his conversation with his brother, how Travis had been convinced Lily was hiding something. While he’d eventually suspected as much himself, he hadn’t believed Travis was right at first. Because he hadn’t wanted to believe he was wrong. Just as he hadn’t wanted to believe he was wrong all those years ago about Pete.

  “I’m not surprised she didn’t tell you, Sullivan. Elisabeth has always been one to keep secrets. Even from me—despite everything I did for her.”

  But he could hardly blame her for not trusting him, Michael thought. Because he hadn’t trusted her, either. He’d kept his own secrets because he didn’t want to lose her, didn’t want to come clean abo
ut his own deception. He could see that now—now that it might be too late. Even if they got out of here, the chances of her ever speaking to him again were slim. After all, it was because of him that she was in this mess now. Somehow, he had to make it right.

  “But none of that really matters now, does it? I’m through with both of you. All I want now is my disk.” He turned his gaze on Lily. “Where’s the disk, Elisabeth?”

  “Don’t tell him,” Michael told her. “You tell him where it is and he’ll kill us both.”

  “I’ll kill you right now if she doesn’t,” Webster countered, aiming the gun at Michael again.

  “No,” Lily told Webster. “Don’t shoot him.”

  “Forget about me. Think of Timmy. Don’t give him the disk.”

  “Where is it, Elisabeth?” Webster demanded.

  She hesitated, her gaze bouncing between Webster and him.

  Suddenly Webster grabbed her around the neck, held the gun to her head. “Tell her to turn over the disk, Sullivan. Tell her, or I’ll shoot her. I swear it!”

  Michael bunched his hands into impotent fists. He wanted to rip the man apart, but couldn’t afford to risk him shooting Lily. As it was, Webster’s gun hand was anything but steady. The arm he had wrapped around Lily’s neck was so tight, Michael feared he would crush her windpipe. From the way her fingers clutched at that arm, he suspected she was having trouble breathing. Worst of all was the look in Webster’s eyes.

  “All right,” Lily told him, her voice strained. “But I don’t have it with me. I have to take you to it.”

  “You’re lying,” Webster shot back.

  “I’m not,” she said, and coughed. “I swear, I don’t have it here. I hid it. It’s someplace safe. But I—I’ll have to take you to it.”

  After a moment, Webster loosened his hold around her neck. “All right. But no tricks, Elisabeth. You double-cross me and I’ll not only kill you—I’ll kill that brat you love so much. Understood?”

  She nodded.

  “Lily, don’t do it. He can’t hurt Timmy. Timmy’s safe. And he’ll kill you the minute you give him the disk.”

  “I’ve had about enough out of you, Sullivan.”

  “No,” Lily protested. “I’ll take you to the disk, but you’ve got to leave Michael here alive.”

  “You’re not in a position to bargain, Elisabeth,” Webster snarled.

  “Yes, I am,” she insisted. “Michael’s right. You might kill me, but you won’t get Timmy. I know he’s safe where you won’t be able to touch him. If you want the disk, you’ll let him live.”

  “What’s to stop me from just killing you both now?”

  “Because you don’t know where the disk is or in whose hands it will end up. You need me to take you to it.”

  Webster studied her a moment, appeared to weigh his options. “All right. I won’t kill Sullivan. But he’s going to place a call to his brother, and have him and his minions let us pass.”

  “And if I refuse?” Michael replied.

  “Then I’ll kill her right now. And we both know that while you might not be afraid of dying, you don’t want her death on your conscience. After all, you already have your partner’s death on your head.” Webster laughed. “And we both know that you’d rather die than have to live with the guilt of knowing you caused another death.”

  “I’ll make the call,” Michael told him, hating that his Achilles’ heel was so apparent, and even worse, knowing that it was true.

  “I thought you would,” Webster said. “And tell Agent Sullivan that if anyone so much as approaches us when we leave here, I’ll kill her on the spot.”

  Webster tossed Michael the cell phone, and he placed the call to his brother. “All right, it’s done. When she gives you the disk, don’t add a murder wrap to your sins. Let her go, Webster. She doesn’t deserve to die.”

  “Giving me orders, Sullivan?”

  “Making you a promise. You harm a hair on her head, and I swear to God, I’ll hunt you down like a dog and kill you.”

  “You know, I do believe the man loves you after all.”

  “I do love you, Lily,” he said, willing her to look at him, but when she did all he saw was the pain of betrayal.

  “Come on,” Webster told her. He tightened his arm around her neck again and began backing up toward the door. “Unlock the door,” he ordered.

  And once she had done as he’d ordered, Webster took the gun away from Lily’s head. And he aimed it at Michael.

  “Adam, no!”

  He fired, striking Michael in the leg.

  Lily screamed. She struggled to break free of Webster. “You promised,” she accused as he shoved her through the door.

  “And I kept my promise. I didn’t kill him. I’m just making sure he’s in no condition to play hero and come after you.”

  Eighteen

  “Jesus Christ, Mike, let me get you to a doctor,” Travis argued as he met him on the stairs of the Regent Hotel.

  “I’m all right,” Michael insisted, ignoring the pain in his leg as he hurried down the last flight of stairs.

  “You’re not all right. You’ve got a bullet lodged in your thigh, and that damn thing wrapped around it isn’t going to stop it from bleeding if you keep moving like this.”

  Michael swung around, met his brother’s concerned gaze. “I’ve got to stop him, Travis. If I don’t, the minute she turns that disk over to him, he’ll kill her.”

  “I’ve got a team of men following them. He’s not going to get away.”

  They exited the hotel to a city that had fallen under the spell of the Mardi Gras. The crowds, partying and parades showed no signs of slowing down. If anything, it appeared to have grown more wild and crowded during the last hour. “Your people know to stay back—not let Webster see he’s being followed?”

  “Are you kidding? In this crowd, Webster could have a whole battalion following him and he wouldn’t know if they were after him, or just more of these nuts out looking to party.”

  Michael tried to find some comfort in his brother’s explanation. It was true, he reasoned. The crowds and celebrations were so massive, he couldn’t help but worry they would work in Webster’s favor. “Which direction did they head in?”

  “Back down toward the Saint Charles Court where you were staying,” Travis told him. “You have any idea what’s on that disk?”

  “No, but I think it might have something to do with the federal sting that was going down in Florida—when that agent was killed. It’s the only thing that makes any sense. You said Logan told you the woman who called him had information about the murder. Maybe there’s something on the disk that can tie back to Webster. Why else take this kind of risk? It has to be something that would put him in the pen for a long time.”

  “Could she have hidden the disk at the hotel without you knowing it?” Travis asked.

  Michael thought about it, recalled the hours he’d spent there with Lily, making love, talking, laughing. Then he recalled how frantic she’d been when he’d come out of the bathroom and seen her on the phone with Webster. Her movements had been too panicked for her to remember something like that disk. “I guess it’s possible, but I don’t think so.”

  “Any ideas where she’s hidden it?”

  Michael tried to think as they moved along in the crush; people laughing, dancing and drinking while beads, cups and doubloons were landing all around them. Holding his leg, Michael managed to get through a group dressed like space monsters. He thought about the car they’d left in a garage. “Your people went over everything in her car?” Michael asked, remembering how she’d hurriedly packed her belongings yesterday. Yesterday? God, had it only been a day ago that they’d escaped Webster’s goons? He felt as if he’d known her and loved her for a lifetime.

  “Nothing there that we could find.”

  If Lily had had the disk in her car, she wouldn’t have agreed to abandon it in the parking garage as she had—not without at least insisting they go back for her c
lothes or Timmy’s. “What about her house?”

  “Nothing.”

  With effort, they made it past one street corner. As they did so, Travis flipped out his cell phone. “This is Sullivan. I need an update.” When he ended the call, he said, “They’re three blocks ahead of us. They’ve passed the Saint Charles Court and are headed toward Canal Street.”

  Someone bumped into his leg, and Michael groaned, seeing stars as the pain shot through him.

  “Mike, your leg’s bleeding again. Let me get you to a hospital. My guys will follow Webster and Lily. He won’t get away.”

  “No,” Michael told him. “I can’t take that chance. I’ve got to get to them before something happens to her. I have to do this, Travis. I have to.”

  “All right. But let me lead for a change, and see if I can’t scare our way through this madness.”

  And as Michael allowed his brother to bulldoze through, he couldn’t help thinking it felt good to connect with his family again. He just wanted the chance to make things right with Lily. Webster had been right. If anything happened to Lily, his conscience would make his own life a private hell.

  “Quit stalling, Elisabeth,” Adam commanded, and dragged her up from the ground when she stumbled. He closed his fingers around her arm like a vise and pulled her with him along the street.

  “Adam, wait. My shoe,” she protested.

  “Hurry up,” he told her and loosened his grip just enough so she could retrieve the sandal she’d deliberately thrown off in her efforts to stall him. “Put the damn thing on, and let’s go.”

  She did as he ordered, but continued to hang back, despite Adam digging his nails into her upper arm until it was raw. She still didn’t know what she was going to do, or how she could possibly escape. She only knew that she wasn’t going to meekly give him the disk and allow him to kill her.

  Not now. Not when she had so much to live for. Her heart ached as she remembered Michael’s face when he’d told her that he loved her. She’d wanted to tell him she forgave him, that she’d understood why he had done what he had. But with Adam watching her closely, she’d known if she had even given Michael so much as a look of understanding, Adam would have made good on his threat to kill them both.