Seduced by the Enemy (Blaze, 41)

by Jamie Denton

  “To get to me,” Jared told him. “They wouldn’t have resorted to implicating her in my alleged crimes if I’d been easier to get rid of.”

  Harry nodded in understanding. “Seeing as they couldn’t draw you out, Peyton became a necessary pawn in their deadly game of chess.” He reached for his mug, then leaned back in the cracked leather recliner. “Bastards.”

  Peyton tossed aside the pillow and reached for her own coffee, hiding a grin behind her mug. Harry had been her personal champion for too many years to count. If there was one constant in her life, it was Harry Shanks. In the days following her arrival at Biddeford, it was Harry who’d befriended the scared, scrawny little girl who’d worked too hard to remain in the background. The other girls had never been intentionally cruel, but after her constant evasions of their attempts to include her in their activities, they had given up and left her alone. Harry hadn’t given up on her, and with steady patience, he’d slowly befriended her. With clear hindsight, she understood Harry deserved most of the credit for slowly bringing her out from behind the walls she’d erected to protect herself, teaching her in his own way that trusting someone wasn’t as dangerous as she believed. Slowly, she’d begun to trust again, albeit with a great deal of caution.

  With her mug cradled in her hands, she looked over at Jared. “How far up do these…these lies reach?” she asked him. “You already said you suspected someone high up in the bureau. I’m guessing Senator Phipps, or someone in his office, is also involved, simply because you were investigating the senator at the time. What I haven’t been able to figure out, though, is what the two have in common.”

  Jared gave her a look that said he was impressed. As far as she was concerned, there was nothing impressive about simple, basic math. One and one always added up to two.

  “Until a couple of weeks ago, I didn’t know, either. Thanks to the information I received, the answer is now a whole lot clearer.”

  “Do you know for certain this senator is involved?” Harry asked.

  Jared nodded. “That’s about all I was certain of until recently.” He picked up the second stack of papers. Like a blackjack dealer in Vegas, he spread the documents over the surface of the table. “Take a look at these.”

  Peyton moved closer for a better view. The scent of Jared teased her senses, reminding her that concentration was a continual work in progress when she was near him.

  She peered down at the documents. The first was a computerized copy of a three-month-old article from the Post speculating on the unofficial retirement announcement of two U.S. Supreme Court justices. According to the article, formal announcements from Justices Middleton and Elliot were expected shortly after the Court reconvened in October.

  “Justice Elliot has already announced his retirement,” Peyton told Jared. “Last I heard there was no official word from Justice Middleton. However, there are rumors the president is going to appoint conservatives Ted Galloway and possibly David Boswell to the bench.”

  Jared gave her a sharp look. “How do you know that?”

  “Someone at the DOJ office told me about it last week. They thought I’d be interested, since I clerked for Galloway when I was a law student.”

  “Coincidence?” Harry picked up the article to read further.

  “Possibly,” Jared said. “But I have my doubts the connection to Peyton has anything to do with it. It’s the connection to Phipps that’s interesting.”

  “Interesting how?” she asked. So far as she knew, there were no connections between Circuit Court Justice Theodore James Galloway and Senator Martin Phipps.

  Jared indicated another article, this one from the Wall Street Journal, reporting on a case scheduled to be heard at the federal appeals court level. The case challenged a previous decision by the Supreme Court that allowed HMOs—Health Maintenance Organizations—to continue to pay their physician owners bonuses for keeping down health care costs. The newly filed case would challenge the constitutionality of the high court’s previous decision. Provided the Supreme Court even heard the case, in Peyton’s opinion, the battle would be an uphill fight under the equal protection clause allegedly violated.

  Jared tapped his finger on the article. “If this makes it to the Supreme Court, there could be a reversal of the previous decision.”

  “There’s no guarantee the Court would even hear the case,” Peyton argued. Not every case made it before the Supreme Court. There were qualifications to be met before a case could be heard, either in oral argument or through briefs.

  “True,” Jared said. “And it wouldn’t, so long as Middleton and Elliot remained on the bench. Unless the new appointees carry the same conservative views, there’s a chance the case could be heard, and possibly reversed. If that happens, a substantial cash cow would be cut off.”

  Peyton looked up at Jared, and her argument died on her lips. Lines of fatigue bracketed his eyes. They both needed to rest, but Jared looked almost haggard. Her heart went out to him before she could stop it.

  She shook her head, whether in denial of her concern for Jared or his argument, she wasn’t sure. “Galloway and Boswell are both conservatives,” she said, forcing her mind back to the discussion. “We have a conservative president in office. It’d make sense that he’d appoint them.”

  “I thought so, too. But this tells another story.”

  Jared handed her a memo. Unlike the other papers he’d shown them, which were relatively new and free of creases, this one was battered and faded.

  She stared in utter fascination at the official seal of the president’s office at the top of the document. Centered on the page was a list of names of several appellate court justices, many of them liberals, or the oxymoron of political labels, conservative liberals.

  “This is an unofficial short list.” She glanced at Harry, then Jared. “Where did you get this?”

  “I found it the night Dysert and Santiago were murdered. Once I figured out they were after me as their fall guy, I went to Dysert’s apartment. He had to know something or he wouldn’t have been killed. I found the list and suspected it could be important. I didn’t know exactly how much until a few weeks ago.”

  Jared stood and paced the small living room, finally coming to a stop in front of the fireplace. He kept his back to her and Harry as he stared down at the logs crackling in the hearth. “I know it’s the reason Jack Dysert was killed,” he said quietly.

  Harry reached for the document in Peyton’s hands. “Isn’t this list at least three years old?” the old man asked. “Why would it even exist then? There weren’t any anticipated vacancies on the bench until this year.”

  Jared glanced over his shoulder before turning around to face them. “That’s true,” he told Harry. He propped his foot on the brick hearth and rested his arm on the mantel. “But when a new president takes office, one of the things he does is create a short list for high court replacements in the event they occur during his term in office. Other than his top advisors, no one knows who makes the list, with the exception of the director of the bureau and a small band of handpicked agents, who are asked to discreetly conduct a background investigation on each individual named on the list. That information is gathered and given to the director, who then provides it to the president. Names are then discarded if there’s a chance an appointee wouldn’t be confirmed by the Senate Judiciary Committee.

  “Once someone on the list is formally announced as an appointee, then the extensive background checks that everyone knows about take place. As many as two or three hundred agents perform various parts of the investigation to create the whole picture. That information is then given to the head of the Senate Judicial Committee for the confirmation hearings. Before the hearings, the head of the committee passes the information on to the other members. During the hearings, any discrepancies are questioned, witnesses called if necessary, and after all evidence and testimony are presented, the committee then affirms or rejects the president’s appointment.”

  “O
kay, wait a minute,” Peyton interrupted. “Other than this secret investigation of the people on the short list, you’re not telling us anything new.”

  Jared grinned, but there was nothing comforting about his expression. “I was getting to that. What if someone wanted to guarantee a prior decision by the Supreme Court wasn’t reversed if it came before the Court again under the guise of a different lawsuit?”

  “Basically it’d be the same case with a new argument,” she replied. “It would have to bring into question the constitutionality of a prior decision. That’s not unusual. Think about how many times Roe v. Wade has been challenged since the decision was handed down thirty years ago.”

  “Exactly. But what if someone wanted to guarantee the new case was never heard?”

  “You couldn’t.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Jared, what are you saying? That someone is trying to set the balance of the Supreme Court? That’s ridiculous.”

  “That’s exactly what he is saying,” Harry said. “But it still doesn’t explain why you two are involved.”

  Jared walked back to the table. He picked up another set of documents and handed them to Harry. “The why is the easy part,” he said. “I know their dirty little secret. What they aren’t sure of is how much information I have, or what I’m going to do with it. As for Peyton, you said it yourself. She’s just a pawn.

  “It’s no secret that Senator Phipps is a strong supporter of HMOs. He rallies against anything that will even remotely limit their power. We also know the Court ruled in favor of HMOs. Still, there’s a case…” Jared riffled through more papers until he came to the face sheet of an appeal. “Here. This matter is before the appellate court now. It’s not expected to be heard for another couple of months. If the appellate court upholds the lower court’s decision, this is the case that will challenge the earlier Supreme Court decision. If the ‘new’ bench agrees to hear the case, it could cause a reversal. To ensure that it doesn’t make it that far, someone has to guarantee that the conservative balance of power in the Court isn’t altered.”

  “You’ve said that already,” Peyton argued. “It looks like it won’t be an issue if the rumors of Galloway and Boswell, both conservatives, are true. All it does is bring us back to square one.”

  “I don’t think so.” Harry stood and leaned over the table. He gathered all the documents and divvied them up into three stacks. Two of them he placed side by side, the other he placed directly beneath the first stack, forming a large white rectangle with one section missing.

  He looked up at them and grinned. “You pull all the pieces together, and your square is missing only one vital piece of information.”

  Leave it to Harry to simplify even the most complex issue.

  He tapped his fingers on the first stack. “We already know what this one means,” he said. “This is what tells us they’re stepping up their search and have dragged Peyton into this mess to get to you. Why?”

  He indicated the second stack to the right. “Because you know about the president’s short list. Now why is that so important?”

  He flicked his finger against the bottom stack. “Because of this case with substantial money to be lost, to the physician owners who receive the bonuses.”

  Harry leaned back in the overstuffed chair. “And what’s the one thing all three of those sections have in common?”

  “Senator Martin Phipps,” Jared stated.

  “No,” Peyton said to them. “Not if the only connection is the list that Jared found in Dysert’s apartment.”

  Jared shook his head. “No, sweetheart. He’s right. That’s pretty good, Harry. You should’ve been a fed.”

  Harry smiled. “Who heads the Senate Judiciary Committee?” he asked Peyton.

  She thought for a moment. “Phipps,” she said. “But we’re still missing something. How could Phipps assure the appointments of Galloway and Boswell? And how did he get his hands on the short list? Why is the Court’s decision, or the possible reversal, important to him?”

  “The Court’s decision affects Phipps personally,” Jared explained. “He’s been receiving kickbacks from HMOs for a long time now. That’s the reason Dysert and I were investigating him. Someone tipped off Phipps, and he had Dysert killed. My guess is Santiago actually pulled the trigger.”

  She digested his theory and had a hard time ignoring the logic behind his argument. “Okay,” she said, “but who killed Santiago?”

  “The same person or persons who provided Phipps with the short list and helped him assure Galloway and Boswell could be appointed to the Court.”

  Jared reached for the pad of scratch paper on the end table beside the telephone. “The answer to that goes right here.” He wrote on the pad and tore off the sheet, placing it in the remaining square.

  Peyton’s blood ran cold as she read the large block letters printed on the sheet of paper.

  FBI.

  9

  JARED TOSSED THE BUTT of his cigarette into the sand. He considered lighting another just to give him an excuse to remain beneath the twilight sky with his demons for a while longer.

  Harry had returned to his home in Biddeford, Maine, a little over two hours ago, promising to keep his eyes and ears open for a sign of anything unusual in the area. Biddeford was a small enough town where an unrecognizable black SUV encroaching upon the area would raise more than a few eyebrows and wag some tongues.

  Which left Jared alone with Peyton…again.

  Now that he had her in a place where she’d be safe for the time being, he planned to return to D.C. and confront the bastards trying to silence them. His plan, while bold, was far from strategic, but he was out of good ol’ American ingenuity at the moment. Keeping them alive remained his number one priority. As long as he continued to run, they’d continue to track him, and now Peyton. One woman had already died because of him. He refused to let them make Peyton their next victim.

  The time had come to turn and fight. While the information he had was based primarily on supposition and circumstantial evidence, he sure as hell had a lot more to go on than he’d had in recent months. With a little luck, it’d be enough to buy back his life…and Peyton’s.

  And then what?

  Whenever he’d dared to consider what he’d do once he’d regained his freedom, he’d envisioned returning to his former life, picking up where he’d left off. That’d been pretty naive for the simple reason that life hadn’t stood still. Not only had he changed, but so had Peyton. Had he really been stupid enough to think she’d wait for him?

  Considering the jealousy he couldn’t seem to let go of, the answer was a resounding yes, dammit. He had expected her to wait for him to come back. He sure as hell hadn’t expected her to let another man into her life, or her bed, no matter how many years Jared had been gone.

  The fact that he was operating under a double standard didn’t lessen his hypocritical feelings. Neither did the fact that she wore another man’s ring. As far as he was concerned, Atwood was nothing more than a minor obstacle.

  From the day Jared had met Peyton, he’d fallen hard for her. He supposed, in his own twisted reasoning, even he could make sense out of something completely senseless. But that still didn’t explain the clenching in his gut whenever he thought of a future with Peyton married to another man.

  Tired of his own company and questions he didn’t care to answer, he walked back into the cottage. When he’d stepped outside for a smoke, Peyton had been washing up the few dishes from their light supper of canned clam chowder and fresh salad. Now the cottage was dark, with the exception of the living room, illuminated by the flickering glow of the logs burning in the fireplace.

  Peyton was curled up in the overstuffed chair facing the fireplace, staring at the burning logs, deep in thought. Dressed in a pair of blue-and-pink plaid pajama bottoms and a matching pink crop top, she looked as sexy as any siren with seduction on her mind.

  He wasn’t surprised at his desire. Just watching
her walk across a room, wearing anything from the perfect little black dress to a pair of faded, baggy jeans, would have had him springing a raging hard-on in the past. Why should now be any different?

  A lot of reasons, he thought. Time, betrayal, the danger of their situation. Still, none of them had the power to lessen the sudden snug fit of his jeans.

  He walked toward her and sat on the arm of the chair, slinging his arm over the back. “What are you thinking about?”

  She shrugged. “The past. The future.”

  As he leaned closer, he almost felt as if he were locked in some sort of bizarre time warp. With everything going on, strangely enough, there was no awkwardness between them, as if their being together was as natural as breathing.

  Well, almost. There was some unease, but it was the kind sparked by sexual awareness. Sitting beside her, he didn’t have a doubt in his mind that the awareness was anything but mutual, based on the nervous glance she cast his way. The same type she’d been shooting in his direction since they’d left Roanoke the day before.

  She moistened her lips. The sight of her pink tongue darting out from between her lips sent his testosterone levels sky high.

  Worry filled her periwinkle eyes. “Do you think their search for us is going to turn into one of those nationwide manhunts?”

  “I wish I had an answer for you.” He itched to have the power to set aside her worries, but even he understood and respected his limitations. “It’ll depend on how desperate they’re feeling. With that formal Supreme Court appointment being announced soon, I have a feeling they’re going to try to move heaven and earth to find us.”

  “But they won’t find us here, will they? I mean, how can they?”

  He let out a sigh. “It’s hard to say, sweetheart. Anything is possible. No one knows about you coming to Harry’s, right?”

  “No,” she said with a shake of her head. “Not even Kellie knows this is where I come when I want to get away for a weekend.”

  He reached down and lifted her hand, settling it on his thigh while he smoothed his fingers over her silky skin. He came in contact with the sharp edge of Atwood’s ring. Irritation slammed into Jared. Irritation? Or jealousy? He knew the answer, and didn’t like it one bit. “What about Atwood? Surely you’ve brought him here.”