Padme wanted to argue, but he was right. “God.”
“I have been offered a pass into witness protection, but I don’t want that.”
Padme gazed at him, distressed. “If it keeps you alive, why not?”
There was a long pause. “Because now I have someone who I cannot be parted from, Padme, and they wouldn’t let me see you again. I cannot live with that.”
“Oh, Enver …” Padme felt her body go cold at the thought of it. She took a deep breath. “I can’t be the reason you get killed. I can’t.”
“You wouldn’t be. I’m saying I don’t want my life curtailed by Freddy Ingles—and he is the one who would come after you as well as me. He’s a sadist. Without him at the helm, the rest of them would crumble. They just want to be comfortable and get as much money as they can, without being bothered by scandal.”
Padme chewed this over. “I wouldn’t hesitate to put the asshole down. God, killing a pregnant woman?”
“And they knew it, too.”
“Cocksuckers,” she spat. “Just let me get a whiff of Ingles, and I’ll end him myself.”
Enver’s expression was hard. “I don’t want you within a million miles of that psycho.”
She gave him a lopsided grin. “It’s kind of my job, Enver.”
He nodded, his expression concerned. “What made you go into the FBI, anyway?”
“I wanted to help people,” she said simply. “It was either this or the military for me.”
“Did you go to college?”
She nodded. “A degree, then a Master’s in Political Science. When Cosima … wait, do you know Cosima and Arlo Forrester?”
He nodded. “I do, a little.”
“Well, Cosima was shot and seriously injured a few years ago by her FBI handler. We didn’t know if she was going to make it. But because of it, the restrictions on protecting foreign nationals have been tightened up. I decided to join up to make sure they were, and now look where I am.”
“Isn’t that what you call irony?” Enver grinned at her, but she shook her head.
“More like … heartbreak. God, what am I doing?” Padme closed her eyes. “I’ve worked so hard to get where I am, Enver; you don’t know the half of it. Orphanage kid, mixed race, female. I’ve had to overcome a lot of discrimination to get here. If something happened to you, not just on my watch, but at all … I don’t think I could survive it.”
Enver stroked her face. “I feel the same. And I don’t want to compromise your career. That’s not the kind of man I am.”
Padme gazed at him. “You would be easy to fall in love with, Enver Toscano, but I can’t risk it while your life is in danger.”
He nodded. “And I won’t risk anything happening to you, not for me. But know this … I’m not done with you, Padme Kaur. Not at all.”
The trial started on a Monday morning, three weeks after Enver had been transferred to the safe house. Padme flew with Enver in the helicopter, while Dale and some other FBI agents organized the decoy vehicles. Padme’s boss, Henry, had insisted on coming with them, which Padme was grateful for. She tried to put aside her terror that something would happen, that someone would get close enough to Enver to hurt him, but she couldn’t help feeling sick the whole journey to the courthouse.
Only when they stepped inside its heavily guarded confines did she allow her shoulders to un-bunch. She regarded every person she didn’t know as a suspect, even some of the newly recruited agents. Henry smiled at her. “That’s my girl,” he said to her quietly, “always watching.”
She nodded back at him. “Do we have any intelligence of a specific threat today?”
Henry shook his head. “We have eyes on Ingles and his associates.” He nodded at Enver, who stood a little way away talking to Brian Dedalus. “How’s it going with the protectee?”
Apart from wanting his cock inside me all day, every day, you mean? Padme swallowed a sudden giggle. “Good. He’s a smart guy, does what we want him to do.” God, that didn’t even cover it.
“Big thing he’s doing, taking them on all on his own. Brave guy.”
Padme smiled. “Yes.”
She walked over to Enver then, nodding at Brian. “Court says you’re first up, Enver.”
He smiled at her. “So, maybe this will all be over soon?”
“Doubtful,” Brian butted in. “Your testimony could take days, even weeks.” He looked at Padme, his eyes cold. “Wouldn’t it be better to allow my client to live in a hotel adjacent to the court, rather than risk anything happening on the journey back and forth?”
Padme sighed inwardly. She really didn’t like this joker. “Local hotels would be the first place any assassin would look for Enver. Yep, great idea.”
She was rewarded by Brian’s face turning red. He excused himself, and they watched as he went to talk to Henry. Enver chuckled. “He’s gonna tell Papa on you.”
Padme shrugged, dismissive of the lawyer. “Where on earth did you find that guy?”
“Tinder,” Enver said with a straight face, and Padme laughed.
“Yeah, well, you should have swiped left.”
“Got it.”
Padme looked at him. “You nervous?”
Enver nodded. “Just want to get this show on the road.”
“You’ll nail it, baby.” The epithet came out of her mouth before she could stop it and Enver smiled.
“I heard that.”
“Shut up,” she hissed, and then laughed. A moment later, the court clerk called Enver in. Padme watched him walk inside the courtroom and mouthed ‘Good luck’ to him. He winked at her and disappeared into the courtroom.
Padme let out a sigh of relief. The public gallery in the courtroom had been shut off, and even the journalists covering the case had a gag order until Enver was safely out of the country. There were armed guards in there with him—he was safe.
“Hey.” Dale came up behind her, and she turned. “We got him here alive. Feels pretty good, huh?”
Padme smiled. “Sure does.”
Dale grinned and lowered his voice. “He’s a good guy, Pads … I’m really happy for you.”
Her eyes widened, and she felt a cold fear spike inside her. “What?”
Dale put his hand on her arm. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to say a word, but it’s pretty obvious to me that you two are …”
“We are not anything,” Padme lied, “He’s just a friendly guy.” She hated to lie to Dale like this, but she didn’t want to risk being thrown off Enver’s case.
“Girl, after everything we’ve been through, don’t you think you can trust me? I’m not saying a word; I think it’s a great thing. But you want to deny it, go right ahead.”
Dale walked off, and Padme felt awful. Dale was right—she should have trusted him. She caught up to him and pulled him into a corridor. “I’m sorry, D. You’re right, Enver and I have … history. But we’re not together, at least, not while this case is going on. It’s too risky for him. For us.”
Dale’s expression softened. “I know. Listen, I meant what I said. I won’t say a word. And hey, just for the record, you’re a great agent. End of discussion.”
Padme relaxed. “You are the best.”
“Oh, I know.”
Enver looked drained after a day’s worth of questioning, and he was quiet on the trip back to the compound. Padme, sitting next to him, surreptitiously squeezed his hand and he gave her a weary smile.
“Bad day?” she said, but he shook his head.
“No, just draining. They talked a lot about Max and Julia’s murders. They showed the court photographs of the crime scene … and their bodies.”
“Oh God, Enver, I’m sorry.”
He nodded, and she could see the pain in his eyes. She wanted so much to hold him, kiss him, make him feel comforted, but in this small confined helicopter, it was impossible without being seen by the pilot.
They landed back at the compound. The lights in the main house were out, and Padme narrowed her e
yes, feeling suspicious. They had left Chaley and two security guards at the property. Padme drew her weapon. “Enver, stay inside the copter with Mac and Wiley. Mac, if you hear shots, take off and go to the emergency safehouse. Got it?”
“Got it, boss.”
Enver leaned forward. “What is it?”
“Probably nothing, but Dale and I and the rest will do a sweep. I’ll come get you as soon as we give the all clear.”
She stepped out of the helicopter, but Enver grabbed her hand. “Stay safe, Principessa,” he whispered, and she nodded.
Padme and Dale entered first, guns drawn, flashlights on. Padme flicked the lights on at the main switch, and the whole house lit up. There was silence. “Chaley? Chaley Sanders? Gary Holder? Kevin?”
There was no answer. Padme peeled off to search the living room while Dale took the bedrooms. Silence hung heavy over the whole compound and Padme could only hear her heart beating heavily. Something was wrong. She could feel it in her bones.
“Agent Kaur! We have two men down, kitchen area. Repeat, two men down.”
Fuck. Where the hell was Chaley? She turned into the study and flicked the lights on.
She recoiled immediately. The furniture in the room had been pushed to the sides of the room, except for one chair in the middle of the room. Tied to it, bloodied and unconscious—Padme hoped—was Chaley. Padme darted to the young woman’s side and felt for a pulse. Still alive—just. She saw the vicious stab wounds in the young woman’s abdomen, and her heart ached for the sweet young assistant.
Padme drew her gun and fired two shots into the roof, causing plaster to drop down on them. Dale and the other agents burst into the room as Padme untied Chaley and picked her up. God, she was tiny, probably less than a hundred pounds. Dale took her from Padme as Padme saw a note had been placed under Chaley’s limp body.
“Let’s get her to a hospital now,” she ordered, as outside she saw the helicopter carrying her love take off. Relieved, she followed Dale out to the car and sat in the back, cradling Chaley, who was coming around. Padme was focused on pressing her hands down on Chaley’s wounds to keep the blood loss to a minimum.
“Chaley? That’s right, sweetheart, stay with me. Keep breathing. We’re getting you to a hospital right now, darling.”
Chaley opened her eyes and looked up at Padme. “Pad?”
Padme smiled. “That’s right, sweetie, we’re taking you to get help.”
“They told me it wasn’t personal. Don’t let them win, Pad; don’t let them hurt him …”
Padme moaned as Chaley’s head fell back, and the girl went limp in her arms. “Dale! Fucking step on it!”
Dale got them to an emergency room in record time, but it was too late. The emergency room doctor declared Chaley dead on arrival. He was sympathetic, but matter of fact with Padme and Dale. “She didn’t stand a chance, I’m afraid. Her abdominal artery was severed in multiple places. She simply bled out.”
Padme felt hollow. Over the few weeks she’d known Chaley, she had grown to like the young assistant very much—she didn’t deserve to die like this. No one did.
“Fuck,” Dale said, his face pale. “Fuck.” Padme followed him out the ambulance. Dale put his head in his hands and then screamed. “Fuck!”
Padme sat down on one of the benches outside and felt herself grow numb. Chaley had been murdered, and their safehouse was blown. Enver had been spirited away and now she wondered if she could even trust the people who had taken him. She remembered the note under Chaley’s body and pulled it out of her pocket, wincing at the blood that soaked the paper. She smoothed it out and read it.
Dale rubbed his hands on his head. “So, they know where we were keeping Enver. Someone must have blabbed. Who the hell else knew apart from a very few of us? They knew about the house!”
Padme looked up at him, her face pale as she held up the note. “And they know about me.”
Dale took the note from her and Padme watched as his eyes widened as he read the message on the paper.
Next time, we’ll gut your pretty Indian girlfriend.
CHAPTER FIVE
Padme sat in Henry’s office. It had been two days since the murder, two days since she’d seen or spoken to Enver. After they had read the note, Dale had pleaded with her to tell Henry about the threat.
“You don’t have to say anything about your relationship with Enver. Just take this threat seriously. If what happened to Chaley ever happened to you … I could not live with it, Pad. Neither could Enver.”
So, here she was, waiting for Henry to tell her what her next steps were. She had decided she would tell him everything, take her punishment, and ask if she could be put with Enver.
“Well,” Henry came into the room, shutting the door behind him. “I guess we now have two people to protect. The threat on that note was very real, Padme. The Ingles won’t think twice about killing you to get to Enver Toscano.”
“How did they know about us? I mean, about Dale and I being Mr. Toscano’s protection detail?”
Henry’s face was stern. “We are looking into it. Believe me, when I find them …” He sighed. “So, assuming that you don’t want off this case, I propose we take you to the same safehouse as Toscano. You’ll keep your badge and gun, but for all intents and purposes, you’ll be treated as a protected witness also.”
Padme sighed. “The babysitter becomes the babysat.”
Henry’s mouth hitched up in a smile. “Suck it up. Mr. Toscano’s lawyer tells me he thinks his client will only be questioned for one more day. After that …”
“After that, what? We just let him walk into a viper’s nest? They will kill him on sight, whether he’s testified or not. They can’t stop that now, but Freddy Ingles won’t just let it lie.”
Henry sat back in his chair, studying her. “We’ve offered Mr. Toscano permanent relocation in the witness protection program, but he says he doesn’t want it. Rumor has it he’s in love with a woman here in Seattle. You know anything about that?”
Padme prayed she didn’t flush as she kept a blank expression. “No, sir, the protectee hasn’t mentioned anything.”
Henry’s eyes never left hers. “I only ask because I know you and Mr. Toscano seem friendly.”
Padme nodded. “I would say that, sir. Within the confines of our roles, of course.”
“Of course.”
He didn’t believe her, she could tell, but she was too deep in the lie now. Jesus, she really had laid it on the line for this man, hadn’t she? “Is Mr. Toscano safe where he is?”
Henry nodded. “He is. We told him about his assistant, and he’s obviously very upset. He asked if you or Agent Fortuna were hurt and we told him you were fine. So, what I think would be best is if you pack a bag and we relocate you to where Mr. Toscano is. He obviously trusts you, Padme, and in his position, that’s not an easy thing to do.”
“Will Dale come with me?”
Henry hesitated. “Agent Fortuna is being reassigned.”
Padme was shocked. “Why? He did nothing wrong.”
“I know that, Padme.” Henry’s voice was kind. “He asked to be reassigned. Said he felt guilty for not protecting you.”
“No!” Padme was distressed. “I’m fine, nothing happened to me. Chief, please, don’t punish him for nothing. It wasn’t his job to protect me.”
“Calm down, Agent. Go talk to him, but he seemed pretty set. If he changes his mind, of course, let me know.”
Padme sought Dale out immediately. He was eating a bowl of ramen in the mess. She sat down opposite him and glared at him until he looked up. He gave a resigned sigh. “You heard.”
“What the hell, Dale?”
Dale glanced around the room, making sure they weren’t overheard before leaning closer. “They know we’re a team. Maybe, by being separate, I can throw them off the track.”
Padme rocked back. “You are not putting yourself up as bait. No freaking way, Dale. No. I’m not some fragile little woman you have to sav
e, Captain America.”
Dale rolled his eyes. “Putting aside the fact that I would take a bullet for you any day, Pad, I’m not that much of a Neanderthal. I’m talking about working together, playing cat and mouse with them until someone slips up. Then we’ve got them, even if we have to take them down one operative at a time.”
“We do not know who we are dealing with, Dale, or how many of them there are. And someone,” she hissed, lowering her voice, “is on the inside. I know it.”
“Paranoia, much?”
“How the fuck else did they find the safehouse?” Padme felt tears in her eyes. “How else did they kill Chaley?”
Dale studied her for a long time. “Pad, do you think I ever want to see you like that? Do you honestly not know how much you mean to me?”
She looked up sharply, misunderstanding him, and he laughed. “Slow your roll. I meant as a sister. A best friend.”
Padme relaxed. “Good. I love you too, Daleywhaley.”
“A hell-no to that nickname.”
Padme grinned, the banter cheering her. “So, Daleywhaley, what’s the plan?”
Dale laughed, shaking his head. “Pain-in-the-ass woman. Well, first thing, you do as Henry is telling you and get your ass over to Enver. He needs you right now—in every way.” He waggled his eyebrows, but Padme shook her head at him.
“I lied to Henry, told him nothing is going on.”
“Well, it isn’t, is it? Not during the investigation, anyway.”
Padme blushed, and Dale’s eye widened. “You didn’t?”
“Once,” she admitted, “when everyone was asleep.”
Dale considered and smiled mischievously. “Nicely done, Kaur.”
She giggled but told him to shut up. “I cannot believe I risked everything for a jump.”
“Except it was more than that, right?” His voice was soft now. “You’ve fallen for him.”
Padme hesitated and then nodded. “Maybe I should quit.”
Dale made a siren sound. “Emergency, call the Sisterhood, emergency.” His lame imitation of a robot made Padme laugh, and soon they were both crying with laughter.
Vengeful Seduction_A Submissives’ Secrets Novel Page 29