by Rena Koontz
He extended his hand to display his credentials and identified himself, apparently not making the connection. “Hello. I’m Special Agent Demond Crews. And you are?”
The minute she said her name, he remembered. She could tell by the quick jerk of his eyebrows. She offered him a confident smile. “I think you’ll be happier with my observations this time, Agent Crews.”
Chapter 6
Jake spread his notes across the kitchen table and grimaced when he burned his tongue on the fresh coffee. Once his paperwork was caught up, he’d meet Courtney in a public place and hand off the information. Although the office was off-limits, the paperwork remained a requirement so his reports found their way to the boss via his handler. Today, Jake arranged the meet at the mall coffee shop where he’d seen Kenna, even though it was unlikely she’d show up there again in the middle of the day. But the locations for these meetings changed regularly so no one would be the wiser. And who knows? He might get lucky.
Just as he opened his laptop, Courtney rang his cell phone. “Did you hear the news?”
“What news?”
“The Good Neighbor bank was robbed again. Different branch but same teller. Your little friend might not be so innocent after all.”
“What?”
“Yep. Sorry to burst your bubble, partner. Two branches in a little over two weeks with the same teller at both windows. What does that tell you?”
“You mean Kenna? Why was she at a different branch?”
Courtney chuckled. “Exactly. That’s the seven-thousand-dollar question because that’s about what the guy’s take was today. Seven thousand and some change. Smart enough to know about the bottom drawer. Or did your friend clue him into that? It’s a nice haul for about five minutes of work. And a handsome hourly rate if you ask me. I’m definitely in the wrong profession.”
On the surface, the same teller in two robberies was highly suspicious. He couldn’t imagine that Kenna was a co-conspirator with a criminal. On the contrary, the word victim popped into his mind when he thought about her. Which he’d been doing a lot lately.
“Did the bank robbery squad interview her? What was their take on the hit?”
“I don’t know any more than what I just told you. Demond called in from the scene looking for the boss and I picked up the phone. I think they’re still there. You sound surprised, Jake.”
That was an understatement. “And you seem amused.”
“Well, I do find humor in this. Once again, your track record with women exceeds all expectations. She’s a criminal, and you have the hots for her. Gotta run. See you at the meet.”
Courtney disconnected the call before he could challenge her claim. He stared at the blank phone screen while a gazillion questions launched in his head. Why was Kenna at a different branch on the exact day it was robbed? What were the odds that the robber targeted her again? Didn’t he worry that she would recognize him? Or was she part of the scheme? Was it the same robber today as last week? With any luck, the bank surveillance photos would be clear and give them a good facial shot, which they’d compare to the surveillance tape from the first robbery. They’d also study Kenna’s mannerisms during both robberies. And run a background check on her now. Why her twice in a row?
He wanted answers but he couldn’t call Kenna, primarily because he didn’t have her phone number. But also, he couldn’t blow his cover and how else would he know she’d again been the target for a robbery? He’d been in the bank the first time as a legitimate customer and hadn’t participated in any of the official police interviews to maintain his cover. Instead, he stood on the sidelines, an extra pair of eyes observing the aftermath for his fellow agents. Kenna couldn’t be involved. Her eyes were sad, not sinister. He’d have to talk to Demond.
~ ~ ~
The mound of paperwork in front of him wasn’t shrinking, despite the two solid hours and his full attention devoted to it. He’d relocated temporarily to Brighton City to work undercover on Courtney’s fraud and public corruption case and that was still ongoing. It had allowed him to work closely with Courtney and they’d even shared a few happy-hour beverages together. She was a good agent with a dry sense of humor and he liked her. More importantly, they trusted each other.
Yanking Vinny out of his wrecked car and gaining access to the Cabacolli family had been a bonus but that assignment was still in its infancy. Although Vinny befriended him, Jake hadn’t been privy to the Cabacolli inner sanctum yet. His primary assignment remained the public corruption scam, which required detailed documentation of his activities for the case to hold up in court. This was the part of the job he hated most.
Jake welcomed the interruption when his cell phone rang, even though the display revealed an unfamiliar number. At this point, even a telemarketer would be eagerly received. “Yeah?”
The woman’s voice on the other end sounded tentative. “Hello? Um, is this Jake?”
“Who’s this?”
The caller exhaled into the phone. “My name is Mackenna McElroy. I’m the bank teller at Good Neighbor bank who you kept bothering. I was going to throw this piece of paper away but I didn’t. Hello? Are you there?”
He bolted upright. His colleagues likely were looking into her background at this exact minute, searching for a connection between the two bank robberies. So far, she was it. They’d be dumping her phone records too and see this call.
“Sure, Kenna, I know who you are. I’m surprised you kept the number.” Why was she calling him? Did she know he was a federal agent?
“Me, too. I almost didn’t. Listen, I’ve had a hell of a day so please don’t turn into the jerk I think you are. Actually, the last few weeks have sucked.” Her voice caught in her throat as if she suppressed a sob. “Remember that guy in the grocery store? The one you told me to let you know if I ever saw again.”
Holy hell.
“I think he’s following me. No, I’m certain he is.”
His pulse skipped. “Why do you say that?”
“Well, unless it’s a coincidence that he has business at the discount store, and that he needed something from the drugstore and now, he wants to pick something up at the mall, he’s following me. I’ve been to all those places and so has he.”
Why the hell was Vinny following her? “Are you sure it’s him? Vinny?”
“Yes. I saw him sitting in the back seat of a black car with tinted windows. The window was down while he spoke to another man and then that man came into the discount store. The behemoth didn’t buy anything, just searched the aisles until he spotted me, then he walked back to the car. I didn’t think anything of it until I saw the car in the drugstore lot, parked way down at the end. And now, it’s outside the mall entrance, waiting three lanes over from my car.”
She’d described Vinny’s bodyguard. The man resembled an Army tank on steroids and Vinny never went anywhere without him. He detected an edge in Kenna’s voice, like she was ready to lose it.
“I don’t know who he is but, I gotta tell you, I don’t need any more stalkers. If he’s your friend, I wish you would tell him to back off. I think I’m in trouble with the FBI and I don’t need more complications in my life.”
She couldn’t see him but he raised his hand in the air anyway. “Hold on, Kenna. You need to tell me where you are and you have to promise me you won’t move until I get there.”
“You’re kidding, right?”
He’d grabbed his keys and rushed out of his apartment toward the elevator. “No, ma’am. I’m dead serious. Where are you?”
“The last thing I need today is you giving me grief. I’ve had a terrible day. I was robbed again. All I want to do is go home and, I don’t know, throw myself out the window.” Her voice trembled. Was she afraid of being caught or upset about the situation she was caught in?
“Don’t drive ho
me. Not if he’s following you.” Vinny likely already knew where she lived if he’d seen her car. He would have noted her license number. The administration suspected Old Man Cabacolli had someone within the local or state police departments on his payroll. Maybe even more than one cop. The Cabacolli family had come out clean on too many attempts to take them down not to have a mole on the inside. Crap. Jake didn’t even know where Kenna lived but he’d bet his last dollar Vinny already did.
“Please tell me where you are, Kenna.”
Another loud exhale, as if the day exasperated her. “In the department store.”
“Where in the department store?”
“Women’s purses.”
“Promise me you’ll stay there. I can be there in fifteen minutes. I’m getting in the elevator now so I’m going to lose this call. But I’m on my way. Just stay there. Please.”
The call dropped.
Once inside his car, he called Courtney. “I’m heading to the mall. We’ve got trouble. Kenna just called me. Vinny is following her.”
“Vinny is tailing your bank robbing babe? Do you think there is a connection?”
“I don’t think she’s a bank robber or that Vinny is in any way related to the robberies. Vinny is dicking with me because he thinks I like her. That’s the real question. What game is he playing with me and why? Tell the boss what’s going on.”
“What exactly is going on?”
“I’ll call you as soon as I know.”
~ ~ ~
Relief washed over him when he spotted Kenna standing at a clearance table, so much so that he rushed to her, grasped her face with both hands and kissed her. Her eyes widened and she planted both hands on his chest and shoved him backward.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
Well, the kiss surprised him too. “Sorry, sorry. I’m just glad to see you. Are you all right?”
She wrapped her arms around herself and took one step away from him. “Look, I don’t like you. I don’t like anything about you. I’m also not fond of being manhandled by strangers and followed around. So go tell you buddy to leave me alone and you do the same, okay?”
Dark circles ringed her eyes, either from lack of sleep or mascara smeared by tears. Growing up with three high-maintenance sisters had taught him more about women’s grooming than he cared to admit. But the shadows under Kenna’s eyes were difficult to identify. She looked haggard.
“Will you let me buy you one of those chocolate coffees you like first? You look beat up. You said you were robbed again? Man, that’s rough.”
Her chin quivered and she caught her breath.
His most charming smile might win her over. His face slowly creased in half. “I’m not that bad, honest. Let me buy you a coffee. Have you had lunch? I’ll even throw in a sandwich. Maybe by then, Vinny will have given up.”
He doubted it. More likely he’d send his henchman in to locate Kenna and he’d wait her out. But why?
~ ~ ~
At the mention of lunch, Mackenna’s stomach growled. And her mocha coffees were an addiction so a simple reference to one kicked her taste buds into salivate mode. But she wasn’t up to dealing with Jake the Jerk today. He misinterpreted her hesitation, stepped forward, and gently placed his hand on her arm, rotating her toward the department store exit. The mocha triumphed.
“I promise I’ll be on my best behavior.” With his hand placed on the small of her back, he nudged her toward the food court. “You said on the phone that your name is Mackenna. That’s really different. I’ve never heard it before but I like it. I wondered if Kenna was short for something. Which do you prefer?”
They walked side by side toward the coffee shop and she was keenly aware of his hand riding her waistline. Arthur rarely touched her when they were out. He shunned public displays of affection. Why was he thinking about her? “Most of my friends call me Kenna.”
He winked at her. “What am I allowed to call you?”
Okay, he could be charming when he wanted to be. A light laugh escaped her. “You’ve been calling me Kenna, why change now?”
He guided her to an empty, round table-for-two in the corner and slid back a chair. “Thank you, ma’am. What can I get you besides a coffee?”
Her appetite disappeared the day of the first robbery. “Nothing, thanks.”
He texted while he stood in line. This would be the perfect opportunity to stand and walk out of the coffee shop. Just go straight to her car and drive home. Except, there was nothing for her at home, not even furniture. At least here, surrounded by people, she didn’t feel like such a loser.
Jake returned with two coffees and a supersized chocolate chip muffin. “I know you said nothing but I skipped breakfast and lunch.”
He settled across from her and split the muffin in half with a plastic knife. Placing a napkin in front of him, he relocated his half to it and eased the paper plate toward her. “Help yourself, please.”
She broke off a tiny bite, conceded she was hungry and it was truly fresh and tasty, and reached for one more bite. Likely it wasn’t a portion big enough to make her sick and what did it matter anyway? The way things were going, maybe she should try to overdose on the stuff.
She moved her muffin half to the side and sipped her coffee, peering at Jake over the rim of her cup. He appeared engrossed in his treat.
“Why is your friend following me?”
Jake’s royal-blue eyes locked onto hers. “I plan to ask him about that. He’s not my friend, more like a business acquaintance. In my opinion, he’s not a good guy, Kenna. I wish he wasn’t tailing you.”
“What does he do?”
“He’s what you might call a shady businessman.”
“And what are you?”
He blinked twice and swallowed. “I’m in security.”
“Like a guard some place?”
“Yeah, something like that. Must be why I’m a little overprotective. Tell me about getting robbed again. It might help if you talk about it. Why do you think you’re in trouble with the FBI?”
Her stomach dropped at the recollection. “It was like a bad dream that I already had. A note written on an envelope just like the first time, and the same neat printing. I was stunned. But it wasn’t the same man. This one had a gap in his teeth.” She touched her own front teeth to show where. “And he wore glasses. He had a bad tan, close to looking jaundiced.”
The details flooded to the front of her mind and she straightened in her chair, bracing for their attack. “It felt like I was in a trance, having an out-of-body experience. I watched myself emptying my cash drawers and sliding the money into the envelope, just like the first time. He smiled at me but I didn’t smile back. And then, like he did at the Mound Avenue branch, he aimed at the ceiling and fired his gun. The explosion scared the hell out of everyone in the bank but I didn’t even flinch. Like I viewed a familiar movie and expected it. And then it all hit the fan.”
All the air left her lungs and her shoulders sagged. Her confession was over but her hands still trembled when she again raised her cup to her lips. Jake’s expression remained blank. “Did you tell the police all that?”
She nodded. “I paid better attention this time and I thought they’d be glad that I remembered so many details. But the way they grilled me, their skeptical looks, I think they think I’m in on it.” Saying it out loud made it real and unchecked tears began a slow stream down her cheeks. What did it matter if she cried in front of this man? She was losing everything.
“I could tell by the questions they asked this time, they don’t believe me. I think I’m in trouble.”
Jake stared at her for at least thirty seconds before asking, “Are you in on it?”
The question didn’t even surprise her. She only felt numb. “No, God no. I swear t
o you I’m not.” And then she cradled her head in her arms on the table and wept. The crying jag was overdue and the culmination of splitting up with Arthur, coming home to find every possession she owned stolen, looking down the barrel of a gun, and being followed by a man she didn’t know but sensed she should fear. She’d no idea how long it lasted but it was cleansing. When she raised her head, Jake wore a sad smile and extended a handful of napkins.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “How embarrassing for you. You must think I’m one wacked-out woman.”
He shrugged. “I’m not the least bit embarrassed. I have three sisters and one of them was always crying about something. Do you feel better?”
“A little. I should go home.”
Jake reached across the table and gently grabbed her forearm. “Listen, Kenna, why don’t I give you a ride home. That way Vinny won’t follow you. I’ll get a buddy and we’ll come back for your car. I’ll feel much better if you let me do that.”
Hell’s fire, she couldn’t let him do that. What if he wanted to walk her to her apartment door? He’d see she had no furniture, nothing.
“But then you’d know where I live. Sorry, but I don’t know you Jake and I’m not comfortable doing that.”
He grinned and wagged a finger at her. “That’s good, ma’am. You can never be too careful. How about this plan, then? I’ll take you to my place and call Courtney. You remember her, don’t you? She’ll meet me back here, drive your car back, and then you can head home.”
It was likely she was in shock from the day’s events because his so-called plan made her laugh outright. “That’s the worst pick-up line I’ve ever heard. Come back to my place and wait for my girlfriend. Sheesh, Jake, I thought I was pathetic but you might have me beat.” His eyebrows shot up in surprise and then his face relaxed into a laugh.
“It didn’t come out the way I meant it to sound.”