by Jennie Marts
Balling up her fist, she hammered it backwards as hard as she could, trying to hit him in the balls. She must have got close because he pitched forward, a groan of pain escaping his lips, and she twisted free of his grasp.
A shot rang out, the deafening sound ringing in her ears, and Pat clutched his chest and crumpled to the ground beside her.
He reached for her leg, his fingers skimming her ankles. She kicked at his hand and sprinted toward Mac, her feet flying as she raced to get away.
He was already running toward her, and he grabbed her in a fierce hug. After squeezing her tightly against him for just a moment, he pushed her behind him. “Go get Jake and the FBI guys. I’m gonna cuff this asshole.”
“He’s still got a gun,” she said, as she ran to the end of the alley. She could see her grandmother standing next to Jake on the sidewalk as the FBI marched the handcuffed men out of the warehouse.
Sirens wailed in the distance—an ambulance probably on its way now.
“Jake, we need you,” she yelled then turned back toward Mac.
She saw him kick Pat’s gun away, then lean forward, pressing his knee into the other man’s side. Pat howled in pain and swore at Mac.
Ignoring his screams, Mac pulled Pat’s arms back and slapped a set of cuffs on them as Jake came running into the alley, his gun drawn and ready.
He ran to Mac’s side. “You got this bastard? How can I help?”
“Just stay here with him. He had a gun on Zoey, and I shot him.”
Jake nodded. “Good. You did the right thing. If you hadn’t, I’m sure he would have killed her.” He gestured toward the warehouse. “We got the rest of them. They shot one of my guys, but only hit him in the leg. We’ve got an ambulance coming, so I’ll keep an eye on this guy until they get here.”
“Thanks.” Mac stood and walked toward her.
With no hesitation, she ran into his arms. “You did it. You saved my life.”
He held her tightly against him, and she could feel his hands shaking against her back. “I couldn’t bear it if anything happened to you. I came around the corner and saw him with a gun to your head, and I swear my heart stopped.”
“So did mine. I was terrified. I knew this time he was really going to kill me.”
He looked down at her, brushing back her bangs and examining her forehead. “You’ve got a cut on your head where he hit you with the gun.”
She shrugged. “Add it to the list. My poor body is so scraped and bruised. But I don’t care. I’m alive, and that’s all that matters. I’m alive because of you.”
He smiled. “You’re alive because your grandmother insisted on you taking self-defense classes. You had some pretty great defensive moves there.”
She laughed, more from nerves than from anything actually being funny. “I was running on total instinct.”
“Well, your instincts were good. You got away from him just enough to allow me to get a clean shot.”
“Zoey. Oh my Lord, are you all right?” Edna appeared in the alley, rushing to her granddaughter’s side.
Zoey let go of Mac and hugged her grandmother. “Yes, I’m fine. Thanks to Mac.”
Edna drew Mac into their hug. “I’m just going to hold on to both of you for a minute. I was so scared. This was nothing like it appears on TV. I was so terrified I almost wet my pants.”
Zoey grinned. “I’m glad you’re okay, too.”
Flashing lights accompanied by sirens filled the air as two squad cars and an ambulance pulled onto the street in front of the warehouse. Policemen and first responders poured from the vehicles.
Zoey pointed toward the chaos. “You’d better go talk to them.”
Mac nodded. “You gonna be okay? I want an EMT to take a look at your head.”
“Okay, fine. But let them take care of the more critical stuff first.” She pushed him forward. “Go on, we’ll be fine.”
He kissed the top of her head, then let her go and hurried toward the squad cars.
Edna pointed to a guy standing alone on the sidewalk in front of the warehouse. “There’s Scooter. Let’s make sure he’s okay.”
They crossed the street to where Scooter stood. “You okay?” Zoey asked.
In an uncharacteristic display of affection, Scooter grabbed Zoey and pulled her into a tight hug. “Dude,” was all he said, before he released her and shoved his hands into his pockets. He cleared his throat as if he were overcome with emotion. “The other grow guys took off before the cops showed up, but I wanted to make sure you were okay. I heard that Pat grabbed you.”
She smiled. “Thank you for staying. And for worrying about me. I’m all right. Pat did grab me, but Mac shot him.”
“Is he dead?”
“No. At least not yet.”
“Dude.”
“Yeah.”
Edna wrapped a comforting arm around Scooter’s shoulders. “You did good in there. They couldn’t have pulled this off if it weren’t for you. You placed the cameras in perfect spots.”
Scooter ducked his head in modesty. “That part was easy. I didn’t know they were gonna start shooting at each other, though. I wasn’t prepared for that.”
“No, I don’t think anyone was,” Edna said. “But we’re just glad you didn’t get hurt.”
“Thanks, Mrs. C.” He looked around at the clusters of people dealing with the aftermath of the raid. “What do we do now?”
Zoey leaned against the side of the building. “We wait.”
It took several hours for them to clear out Leon’s men and catalogue the evidence in the warehouse. Another ambulance had arrived, and both Pat and the injured FBI agent had been taken to the hospital.
A fireman had examined Zoey’s forehead and applied a butterfly bandage to her cut. She agreed to check in at her doctor’s the next day.
Johnny had arrived, along with the majority of the Pleasant Valley police department. They probably hadn’t seen anything this big in years and must have called the whole department in.
Zoey had insisted that Edna head back home with Johnny and get some rest. Her grandfather had agreed, and Edna had finally relented. She left Zoey with her bag again, though.
It was a good thing, too. With a dull throb pounding in her head, Zoey had dug through the bag and discovered more ibuprofen in the bottom. She downed three capsules with a small bottle of water she’d also found. She wished she’d had this bag with her earlier. She could have used her grandmother’s Taser on Pat.
It was after midnight, and Zoey slumped in a hard plastic chair next to the warehouse wall. Spotting Mac, she thought he looked even more tired than she felt.
The cops had set up tables and been collecting and cataloguing evidence in brown paper sacks. The sacks were lined up along the tables, their tops half-opened or crumpled in an attempt to close them. Her OCD was flaring up as she itched to organize and straighten the bags.
Mac crossed the room and dropped into the chair next to her. She handed him the bottle of water, and he took a swig.
She grinned. “It’s really bugging me the way those bags are disorganized and only half-closed.”
Mac laughed, resting his arm along the back of her chair. “Well, normally we staple or tape them shut, but someone forgot to bring the tape. Next time we do a raid, we’ll add that to our supplies list.”
She reached for Edna’s bag. “Never fear. Edna’s bag is here.” She dug through the bag, remembering she’d seen her high-heeled stapler from work still inside. Finding the pink stapler, she pulled it from the purse. “Look what I found. My stapler from my office. Edna still had it in her bag.” She snapped the stapler closed for emphasis, but it wouldn’t close.
“Oh great, it’s jammed. Something from Edna’s purse probably got stuck in it.” She opened the back of the stapler and gasped.
Instead of staples inside the chamber, a small device connected to a USB port had been inserted into the space where the staples usually fit. It was smaller than a dime, and she dug it out with th
e edge of her fingernail. “I think this is the flash drive from Teddy. In fact, I’m sure of it. I know this will have his evidence on it.”
A feeling like a vise squeezed her chest. In all the conversation overheard tonight, no one had said anything about Teddy. And she still hadn’t heard from him. She sent up a silent thank you to him for the flash drive and prayed that he was hiding somewhere and okay.
Mac held up the drive. “I’ll bet you’re right. I’ve just never seen one this small.” He stood up. “Jake’s got a laptop in the van. Let’s take it over and see if anything’s on it.”
They hurried across the street and climbed into the back of the van. Jake was inside, working on the recorded pieces and sending them electronically to the FBI and the police department. “What’s up, guys?”
Mac held up the tiny drive. “We think this is the flash drive we’ve been looking for. We were hoping to plug it into your laptop and see if anything’s on it.”
Jake took the drive and plugged it into the USB port of his computer. “Cool. I’ve heard they’re making these tiny flash drives now, I’ve just never seen one.”
A window opened on his screen with a list of dates. Jake clicked on the top date, and lines of information filled the screen. Data detailing funds deposited and cash transfers, corporate names, and dates.
This was it. The evidence they needed to put the Cavellis away for money laundering and fraud. Teddy had done it.
“I can’t believe I’ve had the evidence with me this whole time. I grabbed my stapler when we went into Cavelli Commerce the first day the body was discovered in my apartment. It’s been in my grandmother’s hand bag this whole time.”
Mac grinned. “We should have learned by now. When you need something, you should always check Edna’s purse for it first.”
She laughed. “Oh, my gosh. That is funny, but also kind of true.” She rubbed her tired eyes. “What I need right now is about ten hours of sleep. Think we can find that in there?”
Mac rubbed her shoulders. “No, but I think we’ve done enough that we can call it a night. I’m going to email this information to the judge, and he can issue a warrant for Cavelli Commerce first thing in the morning. Let’s go back to my place, and we can catch a few hours of sleep and a shower, then we’ll take down the Cavellis in the morning.”
Jake passed him the flash drive. “Sounds good. I just made a backup copy in case anything happens to this one. You guys head on home. I’ll stay here and finish up.”
Zoey leaned in and hugged Jake. “Thank you. We’ll be in touch in the morning.” She stepped out of the van.
Scooter had given her grandparents a ride home so Johnny could leave his vehicle for them. She crossed the street to the car while Mac told the other cops they were leaving.
Teddy had come through with the evidence they needed. Now she just hoped they could find him.
And that he was still alive.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Zoey stood in the lobby of Cavelli Commerce. It was just past nine in the morning, and Mac had just served Salvatore Cavelli with a search and seizure warrant and had informed him he was under arrest for money-laundering and fraud.
The whole thing took less than ten minutes. It would take the FBI ten days to thoroughly search the company property and records, though.
Zoey looked around at the building where she’d worked for the last two years. It looked like an average company with gray carpet on the floor and muted landscape paintings on the walls. It was hard to believe it had become a front for a multi-million dollar money-laundering scheme.
Mac had tried to convince her not to come. Told her that she didn’t need to be there. But she wanted to be. Wanted to see Sal escorted out in handcuffs. And she wanted another chance to search Teddy’s desk to see if she could find any clue as to where he might be hiding.
She slipped down the hall, hoping the accountant’s offices would be empty. They weren’t. A pretty woman wearing a snug skirt and high heels was digging through the drawers of Teddy’s desk.
“Can I help you with something?” Zoey asked, as if she still worked there and could help with anything.
Startled, the woman jumped and let out a little shriek. She turned around, her hand clutched to her chest, then let out a sigh of relief. “Oh, it’s you, Zoey. Thank goodness. I about had a heart attack. What are you doing here?”
Now that she could see her face, Zoey recognized the woman as Megan, Sal’s receptionist. But what was Sal’s receptionist doing looking through Teddy’s desk. Was she searching for the flash drive? Trying to destroy it before the evidence came out about her boss. “I could ask you the same question. What are you doing here? And why are you going through Teddy’s desk?”
She looked like a deer caught in the headlights. “Um, I was just looking for something.”
One of the financial advisors poked his head into the office door. “Hey, we’ve got to get out of here. They’re evacuating the offices.”
Dang. There went her chance to search Teddy’s desk.
She fell into step behind Megan, heading for the lobby of the firm. All of the employees were being herded out toward the elevators. She spotted Mac and waved.
He looked so official in his uniform. And ridiculously handsome.
They’d both been so worn out last night that they’d fallen into bed and gone right to sleep. But waking up in the circle of Mac’s arms had felt like heaven. So had the half hour they’d spent in bed after they woke up and the twenty minutes they’d spent in the shower together after that.
Her lips curved into a goofy grin as he walked toward her.
“What are you smiling about?” he asked.
“I was just thinking about this morning.”
His face lit with a naughty grin, and he leaned in to whisper in her ear. “Yeah, well all I can think about is tonight.”
Holy hot man-in-uniform. Fingers of desire trickled up her spine as his breath tickled her neck. “Now I’m thinking about that, too.”
He chuckled and dropped a quick kiss against her neck. “I have about another hour before I’m finished up here. Can you find something to do for a while, then we can head back up the mountain together?”
She’d have to since they’d ridden down to Denver together. They’d dropped off Johnny’s car that morning, and she’d grabbed a fresh pair of clothes. It felt good to be wearing jeans and a pretty floral top instead of the workout clothes and disguises she’d been wearing the past few days. “Sure. There’s a Verizon store across the street. I’ll go over and get a new phone then wait for you at the coffee shop downstairs.”
“Perfect.”
An hour later, Mac exited the building. She’d only been waiting a few minutes. She had a new iPhone and a tray of iced coffees next to her as she sat at an outdoor table in front of the coffee shop.
He smiled as she handed him a cup. “How lucky am I? A beautiful woman and a cup of coffee waiting for me.”
She tipped her chin up and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. “If you think this feels lucky, wait until we get back to your place.”
He laughed and wrapped an arm around her waist. “Let’s go.”
Halfway up the mountain, her new phone buzzed with a text message from an unknown number. Her heart leapt to her throat as she read the message out loud to Mac. “I just got a text that instructs me to come to a specific address on the south side of Denver and it says to bring Bruiser.”
“Who’s it from?”
“It’s got to be from Teddy. Don’t you think?”
“Either that, or it’s a trap. And somebody is still out there that wants to hurt you.”
She hadn’t even considered that possibility. She’d thought she was safe, now that all the bad guys were locked up. Her face must have looked stricken, because he picked up her hand and squeezed it.
“Hey, I’m a cop. I always assume the worst. But we can hope for the best. Let’s go pick up the dog from Edna’s, and I’ll go with you to this a
ddress. Just in case.”
“That sounds good.”
They drove to Edna’s and picked up the little white poodle.
“Havoc’s going to be sad to see his friend go,” Edna said. “They’ve become quite the little pals. Maybe I need to get a poodle.”
Johnny shook his head. “We do not need a poodle.”
Edna shrugged. “What does that have to do with anything?”
Zoey chose not to enter into the argument, instead she hugged her grandparents and carried the little dog out to the car.
Forty-five minutes later, she and Mac pulled up outside of a brick two-story home. The neighborhood was upper middle-class, with manicured lawns and new cars in the driveways.
“This is the address.” She studied the house. “It sure doesn’t look like a trap.”
They crossed the lawn and rang the doorbell.
The front door swung open, and Zoey couldn’t have been more surprised to see Megan, the pretty receptionist from Cavelli Commerce.
She stood back and motioned for them to come in. “Follow me.”
Zoey stepped in to the house. Could this be a trap after all? Why had Sal Cavelli’s receptionist summoned them to her home?
They followed her through the kitchen and into a large living room.
A tousled mane of curly brown hair was visible above the headrest of a recliner. A video game was on the television and she could see a controller held in a pair of large hands. Her heart leapt as a man’s voice asked, “Hey babe, could you bring in some chips on your way back?”
Zoey’s heart filled with joy as she recognized the voice. And so did the little poodle. It whined and wriggled in her arms as the man in the recliner spun toward them.
“Teddy!” Zoey rushed forward, dropping to her knees by his chair. “Oh my gosh, you’re alive.”
He grinned and pulled her and the little dog into a bear hug. Bruiser climbed up her shoulder, trying to get closer to lick Teddy’s face. “Yes, of course I’m alive. Not kickin’ much. But alive.”
She smiled back, so happy to see his face. “But how? What happened? What are you doing here?”
He looked up at Megan with affection in his eyes. “I needed help, but I knew they’d be looking for me at a hospital. I hid out most of the night trying to figure out what to do. Then I remembered that Megan’s sister was a doctor so I called her at work, and she picked me up and brought me here. Her sister came over and stitched me up. I was lucky the damage wasn’t worse. And I was lucky to have Megan to take such great care of me for the last several days.”