Veil of Fear

by Judi Lind

  Mary heaved a sigh of her own. She was the one who had kept insisting that her intuition be taken seriously. She was the one who kept jumping at every shadow. So why was she now trying to decline the very help she’d been asking for?

  At that moment, the doorbell rang. Mary raised an eyebrow. To Jonathan she said, “Well, at least your bodyguard’s prompt. What did you say his name was—Armstrong?”

  “That’s right. Be sure to see his identification before you let him in.”

  “Jonathan, I’m not a child,” she said through clenched teeth. Honestly, sometimes his protective nature was a little confining. Before she could protest further, the doorbell buzzed again. And again.

  This Armstrong might be prompt, but apparently patience wasn’t one of his virtues.

  After finally breaking the connection with Jonathan, Mary ran her fingers through her hair, then grabbed her robe off the bed and stuffed her arms into the sleeves as she hurried into the living room.

  The hulking bodybuilder in the hallway had punched the doorbell twice more while she was en route.

  “I’m coming, I’m coming,” she called as she tiptoed up to look out the peephole. “Who is it?”

  “Name’s Trace Armstrong. Sent by a Bob Newland.”

  Mary couldn’t see anything through the peephole but a vague shadow. She unlocked the dead bolt, but left the brass safety latch in place and peered out the small slit. The man stood between Mary’s vision and the soft lighting behind him, casting his form into a backlit silhouette. But he sure didn’t look as large as she’d imagined. “Could I see some identification, please?”

  “At least you have some common sense,” he grumbled as he handed her a plastic card case.

  Mary looked at the state-issued identification card and shrugged. What was she supposed to be looking for? The card was issued to a Trace Armstrong and it looked official. Still, from his ID photo, Armstrong looked like an escaped felon. She passed his card case to him through the slit. “Just a moment,” she murmured as she shut the door in order to undo the security latch.

  The door opened. Expecting the muscle-bound hulk of her imagination, Mary started when the lean figure eased across her threshold. As the diffuse light from the overhead lamp illuminated his face, Mary’s breath stopped. Trace Armstrong wasn’t pretty-boy handsome, but he literally reeked of raw, masculine power.

  Closing the door softly behind him, he thrust his hand in her direction. “Mary Wilder? I hear you’ve been having a little problem.”

  Mary slipped her hand into his and looked up, losing herself in the most incredible pair of eyes she’d ever seen.

  Chapter Two

  Trace Armstrong leaned casually against the doorframe. Mary was caught in time, her gaze locked with his. His hazel eyes, reflecting golden light like those of a panther, flickered over her, cataloging and assessing.

  Trace wasn’t as large a man as she’d expected. Instead of blatantly protruding muscles on an apelike frame, he was as lithe and sinewy as a jaguar.

  Spare and rangy, yet wide-shouldered, he exuded a powerful catlike aura. A lush head of pitch-black hair fell in shaggy abandon, the ends curling against his collar. He wore black Levi’s, a creamy shirt and a charcoal sport coat. Mary thought the sport coat was a rare concession; like a tiger wearing a bow tie. He looked uncomfortable and a little surprised every time he moved his shoulders.

  When he tilted his head, Mary noticed sooty stubble darkening the bottom of his face, framing an angular, aggressive jawline. But his most arresting feature were those startling eyes that continued to study her with laserlike intensity.

  There was a gritty hardness about the man, a rugged unsparing toughness that made other men fade by comparison. And made Mary’s nerves jangle with an ominous premonition.

  She wrenched herself away from her thoughts and finally recaptured her voice. “Please, come into the living room, Mr. Armstrong. We can talk there.”

  She led the way into the dark room and flicked on a table lamp. Then two. She needed to flood the room with enough light to dispel this trance that had ensnared her ever since she’d opened the door.

  Mary curled in the corner of the sofa and waved a hand toward a pair of easy chairs a safe ten feet away. “Have a seat, Mr. Armstrong. I suppose you’ll want to ask me some questions.”

  Moving with the casual grace of the jungle cat he resembled, Trace tread lightly toward her, poised on the balls of his feet as if ready to pounce on unsuspecting prey. Mary had the fleeting sensation of being a field mouse, caught in a trap, unable to escape the advancing danger.

  Not taking the proffered chair, Trace asked without preamble, “Is that door the only access into this apartment?” His voice was low-pitched, velvety and shot with a hint of menace.

  Mary pushed a wayward lock of hair from her eyes. “No. There’s the balcony. But we’re on the eighth floor. I can’t imagine anyone scaling an eight-story brick wall to break in. There’s also a connecting door to the suite next door, but—”

  “Show me.”

  Taken aback by his brusque, almost rude manner, Mary decided two could play his game. Wordlessly, she uncoiled from the sofa and led the way down the hall, to her bedroom. Without turning on the light, she leaned in the doorway and pointed to a pair of white doors set in the pale blue wall. She didn’t bother to mention that one door connected with the adjoining suite, the other led to her closet.

  He strode through the maze of her shadowy bedroom, looking neither to the right nor left, yet avoiding the dresser, the foot of the bed, even the jumble of clothing she’d dropped on the carpet. Again, Mary had the image of a jaguar weaving its way through the underbrush without disturbing a single leaf.

  Trace grasped one of the door handles and tugged, pulling open the closet door. Undeterred, he entered the small walk-in and made a careful inspection of the interior. Then he stepped back outside and tested the connecting door to the adjoining suite.

  “We’ll need to put a reinforcing dead bolt on this side of the door,” he said. “A child could pick this lock.”

  Mary shook her head. “Jonathan—Jonathan Regent, my fiancé—owns this hotel. Both of these suites are reserved for his private use. No one ever uses the adjoining apartment. It’s always empty.”

  Trace snorted in disbelief. “If that’s true, it’s even more dangerous.”

  Mary’s forehead crinkled in confusion. “What do you mean?”

  “Anyone who knows that room is never occupied would feel pretty secure about using it without permission. How many people know about it?”

  Again, Mary shook her head in protest. “Hardly anyone.”

  With a cock of his eyebrow, Trace held up his hand and began ticking off possibilities on his fingertips. “Let’s see, you know it’s empty, and now I know, as well. Then, there’s Mr. Regent and his key people. Not to mention the entire hotel staff, and probably most of their friends and relatives. Any other people live full-time in this hotel?”

  Mary shrugged. “There are six penthouse apartments on this floor. Jon—my fiancé—retains two of them, there’s an old man who has a long-term lease, and a Japanese corporation keeps the fourth for when their executives visit the area. That leaves two penthouse units for visiting dignitaries. You’d have to ask the manager about the other floors.”

  Nodding, Trace counted along on his fingertips. “So, in addition to the old man and the Japanese corporation, we could add Regent’s friends and business associates, and former hotel employees, as well. All in all, I’d say more than a few people are probably aware of the easy access to that vacant apartment.”

  “Perhaps,” Mary said quietly. “But none of those people would want to harm me.”

  He continued to watch her from across the room. The only illumination was the dusky light that seeped in through the window. Yet from the intensity of his stare, Mary had the strongest notion that Trace possessed powerful night vision like that of his feline counterpart.

  Then, with a quick,
decisive movement, he stepped forward. Within a few strides, he closed the distance between them. He eased his body close to hers in the doorway, bringing his face only inches away from hers. Inexplicably, her breath caught in her throat and her heart started to pound.

  A shock of ebony hair fell over his forehead as he shook his head in disbelief. “You can’t be so naive that you think you’re safe in a city like Washington. Maniacs and stalkers thrive on sweet young things like you.”

  She wanted to cover her ears against his words. Against all the ugliness he’d seen in his life that was now mirrored in those gold-flecked eyes. Instead, she whispered, “I’m not that young. And certainly not that sweet.”

  Wordlessly, he raised a finger and reached toward her face as if to brush aside a strand of hair. For an eternal instant, his fingertip hovered just over her cheek. Mary’s skin flamed and she stood breathless, anticipating his touch.

  Then, with a sudden jerk, Trace yanked away his hand as if he’d been stung by a scorpion. “I’d say you were sweet. You have an air of virginal innocence that makes you vulnerable to that kind of creep. And you are an innocent, aren’t you, Mary Wilder?”

  When she refused to take his bait, Trace stalked past her, heading toward the living room and leaving a faint waft of musky scent in his wake.

  She felt weak with fear. Nothing in her existence had prepared her for the strength of her reaction and the sure knowledge that this man held the key that could unlock her innermost thoughts and release her very essence.

  But she was engaged to Jonathan. Steady, stable, reliable Jonathan. Even back in school, she’d never been tempted by the “bad boys” the way most of her female classmates had been. Mary had always been old for her years, more mature than her friends. This purely physical response to Trace had to be a case of delayed puberty. Raging hormones.

  Hauling her rebellious pulse back under control, Mary followed Trace into the front of the apartment.

  He was standing in the middle of the room, legs splayed widely, fists planted on his hips. “Let’s check out the balcony.”

  Afraid her own voice might betray her, Mary mutely nodded and jerked open the drapes.

  Twenty minutes later, Trace had managed to make Mary feel as if her apartment was wide open to anyone who wanted to trespass. Not only did he consider the balcony accessible, he also pointed out the false ceiling where someone could gain entry through the air-conditioning shaft.

  Mary stood in the middle of her living room, her arms wrapped across her chest as if to protect herself from the horde of intruders Trace’s graphic description had conjured up.

  “Now, before I get the details about your stalker,” Trace continued, “I need to lay down a few ground rules. For your protection. First, you’re not to leave this apartment unless you’re accompanied by either me or your fiancé, and preferably me. Second, I’m going to screen all your telephone calls and mail. I’ll give you my beeper number in case anything happens when I’m not around—use it. Then we’re going to arrange a telephone code system so that anyone calling—”

  “Just a minute, Armstrong.” Mary held up her hand, halting him in midsentence. Trace’s abrupt manner and bossiness had finally broken through the fog she’d been wallowing in since Jonathan’s phone call had snatched her from sleep.

  “The first thing I’m going to do,” she declared, “is go in the kitchen and make myself a cup of coffee. After that, we can either sit down like civilized human beings and discuss which of your suggestions I may or may not want to implement to enhance my security. But what we’re not going to do, Mr. Armstrong, is continue this little power play where you try to scare the living daylights out of me and then start telling me how I’m going to live my life. Do I make myself clear?”

  “What’s clear is that you’re the one who’s apparently in danger—not me. You arranged for your sugar daddy to hire me, Ms. Wilder. You need me, not the other way around.”

  Sugar daddy! Mary’s palm itched with a sharp need to slap the knowing smirk off this Neanderthal’s handsome face. Wrapping her anger in a coating of sarcasm, she said slowly, “Nevertheless, Mr. Armstrong, my ‘sugar daddy’ will be paying your salary. If I decide to engage your services—and that’s a very big if. Now, I’m going to fix that cup of coffee. Should you still be here when I return, then we’ll discuss the possibility of your employment—on my terms.”

  With that she whirled and strode out of the room in what she hoped was a confident, assured manner.

  Trace stood in the living room, moored in her wake. Whew! Ms. Mary, Mary Quite Contrary had a long fuse, but once it was ignited, that woman went off like a neutron bomb. Not that he hadn’t deserved the resulting explosion, Trace thought ruefully. From the moment Bob Newland had referred to his employer’s fiancée as “something of a gold digger,” Trace had felt the first pang of enmity.

  Too often in this business, he’d seen rich, powerful men brought down by “helpless” women whose only goals were to separate their lover from his money. Careers, families and even lives had been lost when private affairs suddenly became public fodder.

  Once, Trace had guarded a presidential candidate whose career was ruined by a single indiscretion. He’d been a decent man, and Trace had been an unwilling witness to the man’s shame and humiliation.

  Remembering that sad time, Trace’s first instinct had been to turn down this assignment. That would have been the smart thing to do. And he would have if he hadn’t been so busy playing head games with himself that he’d blotted out common sense.

  Still, there was no denying that by the time he’d arrived at this penthouse suite, he had built up a full head of steam.

  Then Mary Wilder had opened the door and her ingenuous face had pushed him over the edge.

  You should have walked out right then, Armstrong, Trace chided himself. He was no match for wide brown eyes glowing in an angelic face. Eyes that could make the strongest man bend to their will.

  It wasn’t too late. He should leave right now. He could send any one of a half-dozen competent ex-secret service agents to Bob Newland for this job. But even as the thought whispered through his mind, Trace knew he wouldn’t do it.

  Mary Wilder was afraid. He’d seen it in the faint blue smudges beneath her eyes. Seen it in the way she kept hugging herself, as if to ward off harm. Trace had seen the fear even when she’d lifted her chin in defiance just before she’d darted into the kitchen.

  Whatever he felt about Mary’s motives in becoming engaged to the wealthy and much older Jonathan Regent, one thing was clear: someone was terrorizing the bride-to-be. And Trace had had his fill of a world where the bullies ruled by intimidation.

  Turning on his heel, he followed Mary into the narrow galley-style kitchen. “Got any more of that coffee?”

  To her credit, she didn’t gloat at his capitulation. Taking a stoneware mug from a wooden stand, she raised a questioning eyebrow. “How do you take it?”

  “Black.”

  She handed him a steaming mug and pointed to a plate of sandwich fixings on the counter. “I didn’t have supper. Would you care for a sandwich?”

  Trace’s salivary glands shifted into overdrive. He hadn’t eaten dinner, and had only taken a couple of bites of a greasy burger at lunch. When was the last time he’d sat down and eaten a complete meal? Sharing a late snack with Mary suddenly sounded very appealing. “Here,” he said, setting his mug on the counter. “Let me give you a hand.”

  While Mary rustled up plates and condiments, Trace slapped together a small platter of sandwiches. By silent accord, they carried their bounty into the dining room and settled across from each other at the glass-topped table.

  For a time, they ate without speaking. Then, as Mary leaned back to sip her coffee, Trace polished off his third sandwich and wiped his mouth on the soft linen napkin. With a replete sigh, he picked up his own mug. “So, tell me about your stalker.”

  After a long pause, Mary lowered her gaze and recited dully. “I don’
t really remember the first time I felt like I was being followed. A couple of weeks ago. Just after Jonathan and I announced our engagement.”

  “How many times has it happened? That feeling of someone watching you?”

  She frowned. “Five. Six. I’m not really sure.”

  “What did you do about it?”

  “I talked it over with Jonathan and he said I should ignore it.”

  Trace’s coal black eyebrow lifted. “Ignore it? Strange reaction for a man whose future wife is being threatened.”

  Feeling it her duty to defend Jonathan, Mary sat up, and insisted, “Oh, no! It wasn’t like that. I mean, you see, at first Jonathan thought it was just my nerves.”

  “Are you prone to nervousness?”

  “No, but...but so much has happened in my life so quickly that...that I haven’t really been myself lately.”

  “I see. So if Mr. Regent thought you were a little overwrought, what changed his mind?”

  Mary raised her hand, lifting a thick fall of hair and letting it drift through her fingers back onto her shoulder. “Today I was certain I saw someone. Jonathan seemed to believe me, but...”

  “But what?” Trace prodded.

  “Jonathan was convinced that if I was being spied on, that it was an old, uh, friend of mine. Mark Lester.”

  “Friend? Or old boyfriend?”

  Mary shrugged. “We dated, but nothing serious.”

  It was on the tip of Trace’s tongue to ask if Mary and this Mark Lester had been lovers, but he sensed that she’d hate the intrusion. Besides, why was he so interested in her love life, anyway?

  Instead, he asked, “Is this the kind of stunt your former boyfriend would pull?”

  Mary squirmed in her chair, looking decidedly uncomfortable. Again, Trace had the impression that she was a very private woman, unused to divulging details of her personal life. Finally, she looked up and slowly shook her head. “I don’t think so. I mean, Mark was really angry when I broke off the relationship, but I think that was just his pride.”