by Geri Krotow
Nika didn’t argue with him. His presence had already melted away any remaining barriers she’d erected to protect her heart from how he made her feel.
*
Mitch wasn’t surprised by any of what Nika told him had occurred in Wise’s base camp. What took his breath away was how much he hated the fact that she’d been there with no ability to reach out to him for help.
You’re getting in too deep. Hell, he was already a goner when it came to Nika, but he couldn’t let personal feelings inform how he handled his part of the op.
“When they started pressuring us to proclaim ourselves as New Thought believers, I knew that I had to get out of there and take Rachel with me. She’s a strong young woman, Mitch. She came up with the period cramps ruse on her own and got us out of a very tense situation.”
“You would have taken those three lugs out.”
“Of course I could have, but it wouldn’t have been easy or pleasant. As long as they weren’t armed, I’d be okay.”
“You would have disarmed them. But do you think they were armed?”
“Yes. I saw the outline of a knife under one pair of pants and they had rifles leaning against the porch as we came in, under the overhang.”
“I couldn’t make that out from where I was perched.”
“So you really were in a deer blind?”
Mitch laughed at her wide eyes. “Yes, princess, I was in a deer blind. And, no, I’m not a hunter except for when I’ve had to, to keep from going hungry.”
“It was the perfect cover story for Rachel. Good thinking on your part.” Her eyes clouded with concern. “She’s the most important person in this entire op, Mitch. By saving her we’ll save potentially hundreds of young women that Wise and his cult want to hurt.”
“I wish this was only about saving people from being recruited by the cult, but there’s more, Nika.”
“I read the same reports you have, Mitch, at TH headquarters.”
“So you know Leonard Wise won’t be happy until he takes over an entire region? Until he justifies his maniacal beliefs that he’s the chosen one to lead people into whatever he thinks his kingdom is?”
She nodded and took a large swig of her cider, enjoying the hot beverage as if it warmed her not only from the snowstorm but the psychological chill of the case. He understood. Neither he nor she, from what he’d observed of Nika, used alcohol as a crutch or had a problem with it, but to be able to enjoy a warm mug of spiked cider on a cold night, as they faced an evil sociopath, was a welcome comfort.
“It was so damn disturbing, Mitch. Not how Wise behaved—I expected that. Heck, put on any news channel and it seems there are the same kind of crazy groups popping up in every state.” She put down her mug. “It was how everyone in that room looked at him, how they were enraptured by his words. He wasn’t making any sense but he was still able to exert an unnerving kind of power over them. They sensed they had to please him, to offer up new recruits. They knew that getting me and Rachel up on that tiny stage was what he wanted.”
“You handled it well.”
She shook her head. “I got us out of there, but Rachel broke us out from their grip.” Lines appeared between Nika’s brows. “I’m worried about Rachel. Since she’s legally an adult, I can’t make her go into the SVPD station. She still doesn’t know who I am, Mitch. I want to use our friendship to protect her, convince her to get out of her house. But she has nowhere to go. Her father’s abandoned her and her mother, and her siblings are older, living on the West Coast. She hasn’t told them how bad it’s gotten with Belinda.”
“She’s the adult in that relationship. The parent.” He understood all too well.
“You sound like you relate to that, Mitch.”
Images of his brothers and especially his sister flashed through his mind. His parents had been busy trying to run their tavern, the same place they drank together. Mitch, the oldest, had taken care of his three brothers and his sister.
Nika placed her hand on his forearm and he covered it with his own. It felt so good, so right, sitting with her at her tiny table as a blizzard raged around them. “You don’t have to say anything. I’m sorry if I’m being too personal.”
“Hell, Nika, we were as personal as two people can get right here at that counter. There’s nothing you shouldn’t be able to ask me.”
Her blush delighted him. “Well, we didn’t do everything. And that’s beside the point. Sex is one thing, emotions and memories are others.”
“I grew up practically raising my younger siblings—my parents were too busy with the family business to be there.” He wasn’t ready to tell her about the booze-fueled fights his parents had, or how he’d waited until his next youngest brother was old enough to take over, to make sure the rest were taken care of, before he left for the Marine Corps. “My three brothers were easy—as boys, they just needed someone to keep them in line. My sister, she was such a little princess.” He leaned back, rubbed the back of his neck.
“When she was in high school she started to get bullied. She didn’t tell anyone and let some of the girls in her class continue to bother her. Maria is gay and had just figured it out for herself. The bullying got so bad that she, she...attempted suicide.”
“Oh, my God, Mitch, I’m so very sorry.”
“Yeah, well, it sucked. I took emergency leave from the corps and came home to help everyone get through the crisis. Maria wasn’t successful, thank God, and is now an incredible, confident woman in law school. She wants to someday be involved in passing legislation to keep other kids safe.”
“What about your parents?”
“The good thing of all of it is that they both got sober. It was their wake-up call that they had to make a change in their lives. After they sold their tavern they found other ways to stay busy than drink.”
“Are you all close?”
He shook his head. “No. I mean, I spend holiday dinners with the entire family, but I tend to do more with my brothers or Maria when we can. It’s hard to mend all those years of neglect and dysfunction.”
“So that’s why you’ve taken on the Rainbows.”
“Yes. And because it’s an important group for the kids who need it. Did you know that half of the Rainbows identify as straight, but participate to support their classmates?”
“Yes, I figured that out on the first day. That’s something to be proud about, Mitch. I know it’s about the kids, but if they didn’t have a supportive faculty member like you, they might still be struggling to even start a group like the Rainbows. In all of this mess, you’ve lit a bright light.”
He tried to absorb her praise, with little success.
“The real gift will be if we can get to the bottom of the attacks by Christmas. Are you still certain Rachel isn’t involved in the blood writing or rocks?” He knew what he thought, but he needed to know what Nika believed.
Chapter 17
“Mitch, there’s no way Rachel did any of it. I know it’s easy to blame her because she’s given up on her schoolwork. But she’s doing the best she can with everything she’s got going on. If we can support her through to graduation, she can get into college and start a new life.”
“But it sounds like she won’t leave her mother.”
“There’s that. But I’m heartened that she won’t, and hasn’t, fallen for any of Wise’s traps. It proves her strong character. She’s told me that she’ll live alone before ever moving there.” Nika knew as well as Mitch that what Rachel said was one thing. Actually leaving her mother in the hands of harmful people was another.
Mitch’s presence next to her at the table made her feel so safe, so content. Nika almost didn’t recognize herself. Her usual idea of a good weekend was wrapping up a case, catching up on paperwork at SVPD. Taking in a movie with Ivy.
“What, Nika?” His voice teased her, his slight grin letting her know that he was having the same wandering thoughts. Thoughts of how they would pass the night as the snowstorm kept Silver Valley’s
roads impassable.
“We have to find out who it is. I think Rachel has a good idea who, might even know for sure. But she’s not telling me anything about it. All she’s said is that I’d be surprised if I knew what some of the students were really like.”
Mitch closed his eyes as if he were meditating. When he opened them, he shook his head. “It’s hard to imagine that any of those kids would fall for such a kook. It was simpler when I was able to believe it was the actions of your average hater, period.”
“The blood from the writing has been traced to a farm ten miles out of Silver Valley. It’s part of a larger conglomerate that provides pork to the entire northeastern corridor. There’s no going back with this evidence.”
“What else have you figured out?”
“The owner of the conglomerate isn’t local. But his CFO is. Daniel Donovan.”
“Amy Donovan’s father?”
“Yes. But I still don’t know if he or his wife were at the cult meeting. I didn’t have the blood results until tonight when I finally had time to go through my messages.”
“You mean it’s not like NCIS on television?” Lines radiated from his eyes as he smiled.
“No, I’ve never solved a case like this in a day. Or sixty minutes.” As she spoke she realized she’d never faced such a complex case. “I’ll bet you’ve solved way more complicated cases than this, in far shorter time.”
“When firepower and money is on your side, yeah, it’s easier to bring closure more efficiently. But that’s not always the best way, Nika.”
She wasn’t convinced.
“What’s getting your goat, Nika?”
“Whoever is committing the hate crimes and attacked you and me is escalating. They want to make a very clear message that the Rainbows aren’t going to be tolerated. It made sense to go after me, as a new student, as I’d just joined the Rainbows and it was obvious the attack was aimed at me. It was a way to make a statement that was deadly, but not to a life-long Silver Valley kid.”
“What do you think they’ll do next?”
“I don’t know, Mitch, but you have to agree that we’ve been very lucky so far. They haven’t injured a student, or anyone else.”
“You could have been killed.” His voice was a growl.
“Mitch, if you’d been standing at the right spot, you would have been badly hurt from the rock that crashed through your window. People die from head trauma caused by smaller objects.”
Her phone buzzed and she looked at the ID.
“Hi, Claudia.”
“Nika, I want to thank you for the good work you did today, and tonight. I wouldn’t normally call at this hour, but I wanted to verify your location for the storm.”
“I’m at home. Do you need me to go anywhere?”
“No, no. Is Mitch with you?”
Nika met Mitch’s eyes before she answered. “Yes, Mitch is here.”
“Good. Tell him to stay put. I need you both together, ready to go as soon as we get a break in the snowfall. We’ll either get a plow into your development or have SVPD on snowmobiles come get you.”
“Where are we going, Claudia?”
“You’re going to talk to Rachel Boyle and tell her who you are, let her know she can trust you both.”
“Why? What’s happened, Claudia?”
“Belinda Boyle never left the trailer park after the meeting tonight, along with several dozen other Silver Valley residents. There are reports that they’re staying there for the storm. This is the prime time for Wise to pounce, to try to put the final sell on his ideas about impregnating young women. He has them as virtual hostages. I don’t want Belinda Boyle to try to pull Rachel into this.”
“So Rachel’s alone at her house?” Nika needed to text her.
“Yes, but since no one’s going anywhere with the snow falling this heavily, she’ll be safe for tonight. It’s noon tomorrow when the blizzard is predicted to end that I’m concerned about. Once the storm clears and folks can get around with four-wheel vehicles and snowmobiles, Wise could send his cronies for her under the guise of keeping her safe until the roads are all cleared.”
“We’ll go over there first thing and talk to her, Claudia.”
“Good. Remember, she’s eighteen and a legal adult, but she’s still Mitch’s student. You have to let her know right away that she’s safe with you.”
“Got it.”
After they hung up she looked at Mitch.
He raised a brow. “What on earth are we going to do until the storm ends?”
*
The snow was falling so fast and the wind was so strong that he was stumbling, barely able to stand up. The force blew him off the shoulder of the road, but it didn’t matter. He’d followed her home from the Boyle girl’s house the other day. He knew where she lived. And he’d get there if he needed to, if his plans didn’t work out at the high school’s formal dance.
Tonight was supposed to be the day he’d take care of both of them. Eliminate that annoying new girl, the one who’d forced the Boyle girl to leave the meeting. If she hadn’t left the New Thought gathering she’d have stayed, just like her mother.
And he would have earned his place next to Leonard Wise.
No matter. He’d just have to take care of business on another day. This was what he was best at; having backup options. This was why he was out in the woods behind his development, training for all contingencies.
He stepped through the drifts and blowing snow for over an hour, practicing with his ski goggles and snowshoes. He could go anywhere on foot. But even he wasn’t willing to hike the five miles to the evil new girl’s house. Gaining attention from the Silver Valley losers who called themselves cops wasn’t in his, or the New Thought community’s, best interest. It was imperative that he remain below the radar, above suspicion. At least until he delivered the ultimate gift to Mr. Wise.
He’d almost blown it with the car bomb. That had been overkill. That new bitch hadn’t lost her cool at the wheel like she was supposed to. If he’d been the one dropping the rock, he’d have made sure it did more than smash her windshield.
The next time he would ensure real damage was done; an exploding car was kid’s play. He’d finish what he’d meant to accomplish in the first place, and play for keeps. Let SVPD try to stop him.
*
It seemed natural to Nika to be sitting in front of her gas fireplace beside Mitch, watching the flames, as if they were on a date and not searching for insight into the case.
As if they had hope for a relationship beyond the incredible sex, beyond her self-imposed love-’em-and-leave-’em policy. She didn’t even try to tell herself they were simply two law-enforcement officers taking shelter from a blizzard, not anymore.
It was getting too exhausting, arguing with her body. And now her heart was yearning to open up to Mitch, too.
Desire made her restless and as much as she tried to relax and tell herself they were enjoying companionable silence, her longing was like a snowball rolling down a mountain.
“We’re not going to solve this in one shot, are we?” Her voice came out softer than she’d intended. As if he’d already kissed her beyond reason, the way she wanted him to.
His hand covered hers and their thighs were inches apart as they sat side by side.
“No. Wise has his legal tracks covered and where he’s too stupid to deal with it, he’s hired experts to keep him far from an easy arrest. As much as I’d prefer otherwise.” Mitch’s voice was low and sexy.
“I’m excited and honored to be a part of Trail Hikers, but I have to admit that I’ve learned more than I want to about Wise and his cult victims. Even if, when we get him back behind bars—and we will—he’s infected enough people in Silver Valley with his venom that they might keep this new cult going. Hurt more people.”
Mitch squeezed her hand. “It’s easy to think it’ll never end, and in some ways, it doesn’t. There will always be another bad guy to take out.”
“I
know.” She couldn’t disagree.
“Nika.” He turned to her, put his fingers on her face. “Life still exists, even when there’s all this awful stuff going on. We have to take the joy where we can find it.” His eyes were dark and intent on her lips.
“It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know how you want to enjoy life right now.” She had to focus to keep her eyes open. All she wanted was to close them and let his lips meet hers.
“Hmm.” His thumb caressed her lower lip. “But what about after, Nika? Will you let me in then, or am I going to be another casualty of yours?”
She pulled back. “What do you mean by ‘casualty’?”
He ran his fingers along her jawline. “You leave men and the possibility of a relationship as quickly as they start. Ever since Ron, maybe before, as well? Am I right?”
Too right. His insight made her feel so exposed, so vulnerable.
It must have showed in her eyes because Mitch didn’t push her, didn’t insist on the kiss and what would come with it. He waited for her.
As she stared into his eyes she knew that no matter the very practical, very logical, reasons she used to convince herself she had to keep her emotional and sexual distance from him, she had to be with Mitch.
“Maybe. As you said, we’ve done enough serious talk tonight. It’s time to let go and enjoy the moment.” She leaned in and pressed her lips to his, knowing she’d never made such a smart decision.
*
Mitch’s heart felt like it was going to rip through his rib cage as he waited for Nika to make up her mind. He couldn’t pressure her to let him make love to her, not even with a kiss. Because kisses and even the lovemaking they’d done in the kitchen wasn’t enough any longer. He had to be inside her, be one with her.
When she finally kissed him his primitive self did a silent whoop-whoop fist pump while his erection strained against his jeans, needing release he only wanted to find with Nika.
He wasted no time once she opened her mouth, and he’d never tasted anything sweeter. Desire, craving and the need for consummation of the emotional bond they’d formed in such a short time melded into a molten desire.