by Macy Largo
She jumped, startled. “We’re in here!”
As she climbed off John, Del raced into the bedroom, gun drawn.
“What the fuck’s going on?” John asked.
Frantically looking around, Del kicked the door shut behind him and threw his robe and John’s at them. “Get dressed. Now. We’ve got company coming. He raced out again, shutting the door behind him just as they heard other vehicles roar into the driveway.
She felt fear take over, but John was already scrambling to get dressed. She didn’t miss his grim look as he added his gun to his ensemble. He leaned in and kissed her. “Get dressed,” he said. “Now.” He left, closing the bedroom door behind him.
Ten minutes later and shaky as hell, she emerged from the bedroom to find an armed trooper standing guard in the hallway. He nodded to her. “Ma’am, they’re in the living room.”
She spotted John sitting on the couch and looking enraged. Del stood next to him, fear mixed with his anger. The house seemed filled with law enforcement, and through the windows she spotted more in the yard, including a K-9 team heading out back.
“What’s going on?” she managed, her voice feeling very thin and tight.
They’d set up a laptop on the kitchen table. John’s face softened when he looked at her. He stood and limped over to her, taking her hand and leading her to the table.
One of the computer techs, his name badge identifying him as Scott Basil, turned the laptop to face her. The screen was opened to her old Gmail account and an email message that had been sent only an hour before from DF.
No text in the body, the subject was Family Photos.
The photo email attachment was taken of her and John sitting in the backyard while they ate their sandwiches.
Her hand flew to her mouth as she struggled not to throw up. “He was watching us!”
She felt John’s arm slip around her waist as Del gently gripped her shoulder. “You have to go to Miami,” Del said.
Her tears flowed, and she shook her head. “No! I won’t leave you!”
Glancing around, John led her to the office, Del a step behind them. They closed the door for privacy. “We can’t protect you here, sweetheart,” Del softly said as he tried to brush her tears away. “It’s not safe for you here.”
She shook her head. “No! I won’t go! I won’t leave you! I love you!”
John laced his fingers through hers. “It’s not forever. Just for a few weeks. Let them try to draw him out. They’ve got an agent who normally works over in Rapid City. She looks a lot like you. They’re going to bring her in, and we’ll see if we can smoke him out.”
The thought of another woman in her house with her men filled her with anger. “No! Please, don’t make me leave!”
Del’s blue eyes looked cloudy with pain. “Honey, we’ve already got a chopper standing by to fly you to Sioux Falls. They’re going to use a charter plane and armed agents to get you to Chicago, and from there, a commercial flight to Miami International. They’ve checked out the neighborhood. There’s no one around. We have to move you right now, before our window of opportunity closes. Even if he did follow us, he won’t be able to know where the chopper takes you. Anyone who follows us to the airport here, they’ll be stopped and questioned. This will work.” He hesitated. “I already called your uncle and told him what’s going on. He’ll meet your plane there.”
Her tears freely flowed. “Please! Don’t send me away.”
John cradled her face in his hands and kissed her. “We’re not sending you away, babe. And we’ll come down to see you in a couple of weeks if he’s not caught. We promise. And we’ll talk to you every day. It’s not forever.”
“But what if they don’t catch him? I hide down there forever?”
The men exchanged another glance. Del spoke. “It’s not a perfect plan, but everyone agrees it’s the safest bet right now. If they can’t catch him, then John and I will sell out and move down there and be with you. I can resign from the Highway Patrol. Maybe I can get a job down there with FHP or Fish and Wildlife. It doesn’t matter.” He took her from John and stared into her eyes. “This is not forever. You belong to us, and I promise you, we will be together. Forever. But you have to trust us. We have to get you someplace safe, and we have to do it while he’s on the run and can’t watch the house. You have to pack. Now.”
She closed her eyes and cried. They were right, and she knew it, and she hated it. They’d been so happy, and now this. She never saw this coming. Why hadn’t her freaky little whack-o-vision warned her about this? All she’d felt was love and happiness with them, a future.
Together.
“John’s going to go with you as far as Sioux City,” Del said. “They’re waiting for you both. Take whatever you can pack in the next ten minutes. We’ll send you anything you need. We’ll also send you a new cell phone on our account so you can call us anytime you need us.” She felt him kiss her but still wouldn’t look at them. If she did, she’d cry. “Babe, I’m so sorry. I hate like hell to do this, but I’d hate even worse to lose you to this fucker.”
She nodded and sniffled. When she finally knew she could without sobbing, she opened her eyes and looked at them. “Promise me you won’t leave me there and forget me?”
They both nodded and crowded in again to kiss her. “We promise,” Del said. “I swear to god, we’ll all be together. But we have to do this now, or we risk him killing you.”
“What about you two?” she softly asked. “Who’s to stop him from hurting you two?”
Both men looked equally grim. “He won’t kill us, babe. He wants you, because you’re a witness. You got away. And if the fucker shows up here, he’s dead.”
“But you don’t know who he is. He could be someone you both know!”
* * * *
John didn’t have an answer for her. He knew she was right, but had hoped she wouldn’t put that thought together this soon and worry even more. “Then he already knows we’re not men to fuck with. Go on, go pack your clothes. I’ll take care of your laptop.” He finally got her to go to her room and start packing. One of the troopers would stand guard over her while she did.
Del softly shut the office door and watched while John packed her computer. John found her address book tucked into its usual place beside her laptop and packed that for her as well.
“This sucks,” he angrily told Del. “Why can’t I go to Miami with her?”
“You damn well know why. And don’t think it sucks any less for me than it does for you. I thought for sure I’d get home and find you both fucking dead. You didn’t answer your fucking cell!”
“It was on silent! I’m sorry, but I didn’t know whackadoodle psycho boy was going to find out where she was!”
The men glared at each other for a moment before they both slumped into each other’s arms, tightly holding each other.
“I’m sorry,” Del whispered. “I’m sorry, but I was so fucking scared he’d got you both. Mark called me, and said he was scrambling units and I barely beat them here. I can’t lose you two.”
“It’s okay. I’m sorry, too. I’m sorry we scared you. I know this sucks for you as badly as it does for me. At least you’re able to actively help catch him.”
“I mean it. I’ll resign, and we’ll move.”
“You’ve only got five years left until you can draw pension. You can’t resign yet.”
“I’m not going without her for five fucking years!”
He cupped Del’s face in his hands much the same way he’d cupped her face just a few minutes earlier. “You guys will get him. It won’t take five years, either.” He kissed Del. “We’ll go see her in a couple of weeks, just like you said. Maybe it’ll be to bring her home with us. Just keep thinking that. Okay?”
“Okay.”
They hugged again before stepping away from each other. John shouldered her laptop case and grabbed his cane, leaning on it, and walked out to the living room.
* * * *
Del c
losed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. This sucked. This wasn’t fair, and it made him angrier than hell and scared. He hoped he never again felt that level of fear when they called him and he couldn’t get John on the phone. He’d already been en route to the house anyway, having dropped a speeder with an outstanding warrant for his arrest at the Mitchell PD station for booking.
Every possible horrible scenario had flashed through his mind when he couldn’t get John on the phone, and he knew in his gut he’d get home and find them both dead. He never expected to find them fine and fucking.
His only regret was that he couldn’t join them.
The only time he’d ever felt relief that strong was the night John woke up in the ICU and spoke to him.
He stifled a nervous laugh. Ironic, they were connected, in a way. This whole fucking, insane thing was connected to that poor murdered kid.
He thought he caught a flash of movement in John’s large widescreen monitor, but when he turned, it was dark.
Funny, he could have sworn it looked like—
He ended that thought and rejoined everyone in the living room.
* * * *
Sarah went to use the bathroom before they left. After splashing water on her face, she stared at herself in the mirror. She felt Robbie’s energy close by and closed her eyes. When she did, she was standing there, in the bathroom, but he was next to her.
“It’s okay,” he told her. “They’ll be okay.”
“What about me?”
He nodded. “You’ll be okay. They love you something fierce, Sarah. They really do. That’s why I like it here. There’s so much love.”
She felt like crying. “Will you keep an eye on them for me?”
He grinned. “I’m coming with you! You won’t be alone, you’ll have me. I promise. I’ll always be there for you. They don’t need me here right now. You need me. If they need me, I can come back.”
She opened her eyes and stared into the mirror. A little peace settled over her. Maybe it would be okay. Not the same as having her men with her, but if it meant the killer would go to jail and not kill her, she’d sacrifice being without them for a while.
She unlocked the bathroom door and returned to her men.
Del drove them to the helicopter in the Explorer after he changed out of his uniform. He still wore a shoulder holster. The thinking was it might be best not to draw a lot of attention to the move, and a caravan of law enforcement vehicles would draw attention. John and Sarah rode in the back seat, holding hands. She wished she’d had time to finish what she’d started with John, and to have time with Del, too, but knew it would have to wait.
He pulled into the airfield and turned to look at them over the seat. “Please, babe,” he said, his voice sounding choked, “just stay there and keep your head down and your eyes open.” She leaned forward and kissed him, trying not to cry.
“Don’t forget me.”
“Fuck that, we’ll call you every day, and we can do that video IM thing, right?”
She smiled. “Yeah, we can do that.”
He stroked her cheek. “I love you. I love you so damn much, and I refuse to lose you. Got it?”
“Got it.”
They got out, and Del walked them over to the waiting helicopter. As they lifted off, she stared down at him leaning against the Explorer and watching them fly away. She wondered how long until the next time she got to see him.
John laced his fingers through hers and squeezed. Too loud to have a private conversation, she leaned her head against his shoulder before she started crying.
At Sioux Falls they were able to have a private good-bye in an empty office. John held her while she cried again. She was sick of crying and had done more of it in the past day than she had in years.
“It’s okay, baby. I love you, and believe me, we’ll come get you and bring you home.”
“Or should I start looking at houses for us down there?”
He laughed. “Don’t underestimate Del and our fellow troopers. It’s personal now, more than. He’s trying to come after one of our own. He’s upped the ante, but he’s going to find out he doesn’t have the money to stay in this game. Trust me.”
“I hate poker.”
He laughed and kissed her. “Got you to think about something else though, didn’t I?”
She didn’t want to move from his arms. “You’re tricky.”
“Just wait until we’re all together again. Baby, what a party the three of us will have.” He kissed her one last time.
“I love you,” she whispered. “I’m going to miss you so much.”
“Aw, baby, it’s okay. We’ll wait up until we hear from you that you’re in Miami. Your uncle said he’s got Wi-Fi, so you should be able to connect okay. We’ll talk every day, okay?”
“Okay.”
Holding her hand, he led her out to the waiting plane as several armed troopers flanked them. She stared at John through the window as long as she could, until it taxied away from the terminal and headed for the runway.
Closing her eyes, she felt Robbie’s presence. That one comfort was the only thing standing between her and shedding more tears.
Chapter Twelve
It was almost two in the morning when her flight touched down in Miami. She had felt simultaneously mortified and safe when four armed Chicago PD officers met their charter flight and escorted her onto the commercial airplane as the other passengers stared at her. Then four equally well-armed Miami PD officers met the plane at MIA and escorted her off before anyone else was allowed to debark.
They got her luggage for her too, which had been stored up front in the cabin, and took her to a private conference room where Uncle Eddie awaited her.
That’s when she did cry again, and she swore to herself it’d be the last time for a while.
She hoped.
He opened his broad arms, and she fell into his warm embrace. It’d been a while since she’d seen him, her father’s funeral, actually, and she’d forgotten how much like her dad he looked.
“Hey, Sar-Bear. How’s my girl?”
She laughed through her tears. How could she have forgotten that nickname? “I’ve had better days, Uncle Eddie.”
His green eyes shone with merriment. “I bet.” He handed her a cell phone. “Call them, right now. They’ve called me fifteen times in the past hour to see if you’ve landed yet.”
She laughed again. “Really?”
“Yeah, just hit the green button. They were the last to call me.”
She did, stepping to the far side of the room. Del immediately answered. “Sar?”
“I’m here. Safe and sound.”
“Oh, thank god. You all right?”
“I miss you guys. I love you.”
“We miss you too, babe. Love you. Here’s John.”
He handed the phone over and John’s voice filled her ear. “Sweetheart, you okay?”
She fought the urge to laugh again. “I’m okay. Miss you. Love you.”
“Miss and love you, too. Remember, this isn’t permanent, all right? We promise.”
“I know.” That threatened to bring the tears back. “Just hurry up and catch that bastard.”
“We will. Now go home and get some sleep. Call me when you get up, okay?”
“Okay.” She ended the call and when she handed the phone to Uncle Eddie, she didn’t miss his playful smirk. “What?”
“I can see I was right on the mark when I figured you were involved with both of them.”
Heat filled her face. “Do we have to talk about this right now?”
He roared with laughter. “Honey, it’s okay. Believe me, I’m open-minded.” He snickered. “I’ve had a threesome a time or two myself, although it was with two women—”
“Uncle Eddie, that’s TMI, I’m sorry.”
“Sorry, Sar-Bear.” He hugged her. “Ready to go home?”
A sad pang touched her soul. It wasn’t really her home. Her home was a few thousan
d miles away. “Yeah.”
* * * *
She awoke the next morning to painfully bright early morning sunlight hitting her squarely in the face. Uncle Eddie’s condo faced the Atlantic Ocean, and on the tenth floor on Miami Beach, she admittedly had a gorgeous view of same said ocean.
Sitting up, she stared at the vast expanse of blue. She’d seen the Pacific, but it didn’t look like this. She couldn’t explain it.
It was eight o’clock, but she realized her body clock hadn’t reset yet and according to it, it was only six.
Her boys would be up, if they’d even gone to sleep.
She’d slept only in her panties, too tired to root through her suitcase for pjs. She dug out a T-shirt and shorts and followed the smell of coffee to the kitchen.
Uncle Eddie sat there, reading the paper and had the Today Show on the small under-counter TV, the volume turned down low. He smiled when he spotted her. “Morning! Can I interest you in some breakfast?”
She made herself a mug of coffee and slipped into a chair. “Not right now.” She propped her chin in her hand and stared at the paper. “I don’t know what I want to do.” She didn’t just mean breakfast. She went from her life being up in the air, to knowing her life’s path, and now back to turmoil.
He laid down the paper. “Let’s go out sightseeing today. What do you say? Let me show you the sights, get you a real Cuban sandwich, some cafe con leche. We could even drive down to Key West, spend a few days down there.”
“I can’t afford that,” she mumbled.
He snorted. “Honey, I’m not broke myself, but your boys wired me five grand for you. They also wanted me to take you car shopping, on their dime, but that’s where I put my foot down.” He smiled. “I’ve been thinking about getting a new car, and I was going to trade mine in. It’s paid for. So I might as well give it to you.”
“I can’t let you do that.” The Honda Accord was only four years old and looked new. He took good care of his vehicles.
He waved her objections away. “Sar-Bear, you’re my kin. I don’t have kids of my own, and those other cousins of yours are uppity shits.”