by Liz Wolfe
“I’ll give you a ride. There’s a good motel down the street. Nothing fancy, but it’s clean and comfortable.”
“Works for me.”
Paige woke the following morning when the sun slanted through the gap in the curtains and fell across her face. She took a few minutes to lie in bed and enjoy the sensation of having a clean body covered by clean sheets. And no Hunters looking for her.
But finally, nature called loudly enough to get her up and moving. She pulled on the same grungy clothes she had been wearing for way too long. She looked like hell and suspected the clothes probably smelled worse than they looked.
Paige called the front desk and asked for a cab. Her first stop was a drive-through coffee stand. She sucked on the life-giving elixir while the cabby chatted and drove her to the local Wal-Mart.
An hour later she left the store dressed in a clean white shirt, new jeans and sneakers, and took another cab to the hospital. Detective Mason could cool his jets for a while. She trudged through the lobby with her packages and asked the nurse for everyone’s room numbers. The nurse seemed a little taken aback that Paige had so many friends in the hospital at the same time, but she wasn’t about to explain to the woman.
Paige visited Aleisha first. She was sitting up in bed watching television, wearing a hospital gown.
“Hey, thought you might want some clean clothes.” Paige dropped the bag on her bed. Aleisha pulled out the khaki pants and light blue short-sleeved shirt.
“Paige, you’re the best. I was ready to walk out of here in this damn gown rather than put those skanky clothes back on.”
“I got you a toothbrush and toothpaste, too.”
“You’re an angel,” Aleisha breathed, then jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom. She came back out in a couple of minutes, licking her lips.
“They said I can go home today.”
“Good. What are you going to do?” Paige asked. “Well, at first I thought I’d go back home, rest up a bit and get back to work.” Her fingers pleated the bedcovers. “Now, I don’t know. I mean, it’s not like I want to go back to work at Eastland. Actually, I wouldn’t dare. And I guess since they shot at us, they aren’t stuck on the island like we thought.”
Paige reached over and patted her hands.
“I guess I’m just a big fraidy cat.” Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“And with good reason, Aleisha. These are men to be afraid of.”
“What should I do?”
“Are you thinking of taking some time before you look for another job?” Aleisha nodded. “Go somewhere. Wait for it all to settle down.”
“What did the police say?”
“Not much.” Paige shrugged. “I’m not sure they really believed my story.”
“Damn.”
“Exactly. I think you’d be better off somewhere they can’t find you until we get this wrapped up,” Paige suggested.
“I could go to visit my cousin in Georgia. We were real close when we were kids, and she’ll be okay with me hanging out for a bit.”
“Sounds like a great place. Leave me your phone number, and I’ll call when this is all taken care of.”
Aleisha nodded and sniffled. “God, who would have thought we’d end up in such a sorry mess?”
Who, indeed, Paige thought. Her next stop was to see Alex.
Paige knocked and poked her head into the room, surprised to see Ty in the second bed. “Hey, guys!”
“Paige,” Ty waved her in. “They released me this morning.”
“Good. How soon are they letting you out of here?” she asked Alex.
“Not today, probably not tomorrow.” Alex looked a little depressed.
“That sucks. But when they do, I brought you some clothes. And in the meantime, there’s a toothbrush, razor, that kind of stuff.”
“Gracias.” Alex smiled. “Usted es demasiado amable.” Paige looked puzzled, and Alex translated. “Thank you. You are too kind.”
She grinned at him and tossed a bag to Ty. “There’s stuff or you, too.” He caught the bag and grinned.
“Thanks, Paige. I think I’ll go change now.” Ty ducked into the bathroom, and she turned to Alex.
Paige looked at his foot, freshly wrapped in clean bandages. “It’s infected I hear.”
“Evidently. They want to keep me for a few days and pump me full of antibiotics.”
“Then what?”
“I think I’m ready for an extended vacation with my family. They live out in the middle of nowhere. And that sounds good right about now.”
“I agree.” She told him about the interview with the local police, suggested he stay out of sight for a while, and got his mother’s phone number.
“You done good, Paige.” Ty stepped out of the bathroom dressed in Khaki pants and a red rugby shirt. “Would have been embarrassing getting on a plane looking the way I did.”
“No doubt. Where are you headed to?”
“I’ve still got a couple weeks leave. My in-laws have the kids with them in Hawaii. I thought I’d go there. Spend a little time with my kids doing nothing.”
“I think that’s a good idea,” she agreed. “I don’t know what’s going to happen with this. Obviously the Hunters got off the island, since they tried to sink us in the ocean. I think if everyone stays out of sight for a while, it’d probably be a wise decision.”
“No problem with that. Call me when you know something.” Ty wrote his cell phone number on a slip of paper and handed it to her.
Next stop, Nick.
“Hey, Paige!”
Nick was being cosseted by an attractive young nurse’s assistant. She smiled and patted his hand, then excused herself. Paige hid a grin and dropped the bag on a chair.
“Hey, Nick. You going to be here for a while?”
“Nah, they said I can leave tomorrow. The cuts aren’t that deep, but I did get about thirty stitches.”
“That’s impressive,” she agreed.
“Yeah, it’ll make for a great story.”
Paige gave him her standard spiel about staying out of sight for a bit.
“Yeah, I was thinking of just hanging with some of my buddies in Colorado, but maybe I should go visit someone for a while.”
“I think it’s a good idea. Just until they catch these men.”
“You really think they’ll catch them?”
“I’m not stopping until they’re all behind bars,” she assured him.
They traded phone numbers, and she gave him the bag of clothes she had bought for him.
Paige had saved Connor for last. Kind of like eating the cake first and saving the frosting for last. Cake is always good, but what she really wanted was the rich, creamy frosting.
He was lying in the hospital bed, a big bandage on his side, the sheets barely covering his crotch and revealing his muscular legs and chest. No hospital gown for this guy.
“Isn’t there a rule about wearing a gown?” Paige asked.
“I’ve never been much for rules.”
“I see. I brought you some clothes. Any idea when you’ll be able to wear them?” She set the bag on the foot of the bed.
“Later today. I’m checking myself out.”
“Against doctor’s orders?” Paige asked.
“If I stay here, I’ll probably get a staph infection. The bullet was just under the skin. No damage. Didn’t even put me under to dig it out.”
“Ouch.”
“What about you? What have you been doing?”
“I spent a couple of lovely hours with the local police. One of them doesn’t seem to believe the story at all, the other one hasn’t committed to an opinion yet.” Paige propped a hip on his bed, dangerously close to all that exposed skin.
“So, what happens now?”
“I’ll go see the detective again. Then I’ll go back to Portland.”
“You’re not telling me everything. Like what you’re going to do in Portland.”
“You sound suspicious.”
“I am suspicious.”
“Well, then, when I get back to Portland, I’m going to find those men and bring them to justice.”
“All alone?”
“You got someone in mind to help me?”
Connor grinned and pulled her down for a kiss.
After they had indulged in some inappropriate behavior for a few minutes, Connor pulled away and reached for the bag. He pulled the clothing out and tore the tags off, then rummaged through the toiletries.
“Hey, you thought of everything. I’d have given my left nut for a toothbrush and a razor.”
Paige lifted the corner of the sheet and gave the aforementioned area a discerning gaze. He answered the look by jumping to life.
“I’ll collect later.” She grinned.
“Now is good,” he insisted, tossing the clothes aside and hauling her body on top of his. She objected feebly, while making sure her knee wasn’t crammed into his wounded side. He pulled her down for a mind-bending kiss while his hands worked on the buttons of her new white shirt.
“Mr. McKinnon, I understand you want to check yourself out against my orders.”
Paige jerked out of Connor’s grasp and turned to look at the white-haired doctor standing a few feet from the bed.
“Normally, I’d object, but obviously you’re feeling better than you have any right to. However, in the interest of maintaining my malpractice insurance, I’m still going to insist that you sign these papers.” The doctor flipped through the papers attached to Connor’s chart.
Paige jumped off Connor and away from the bed, turning her back to the doctor to re-button her shirt while Connor signed the papers. She turned back to the doctor trying to look unabashed, failing miserably.
“Here’s a prescription for some antibiotics. Take them all. Change the dressing once a day and have the stitches removed in a week.” The kindly doctor turned to Paige. “I’ll count on you to make sure he does just that.” The doctor smiled at her, which made her blush. Paige never blushed.
CHAPTER
TWENTY-NINE
SHELBY MADE HER COFFEE EXTRA STRONG, figuring she’d need it after only four hours sleep. She finished dressing and checked her watch. Seven-fifteen, which was nine-fifteen in Denver. Ethan would be at his desk, and there was no point in putting it off any longer. She poured a cup of coffee and punched in a speed dial number on her cell phone.
“Ethan, Shelby here.”
“Shelby. Good to hear from you. How’s everything going with the agency? You ready to give it up and come back?”
“We’ve been through that before. You know my answer.”
“Yes, I do, but I still have to ask.” Ethan chuckled. “So, if you aren’t asking for your job back, did you simply call to chat?”
“I wish I could say that was the case. But it’s more.”
“You have a problem?” Ethan asked, concern deep in his voice. “Anything I can help with?”
“I certainly hope so.” Shelby sipped her coffee. “I got a new client recently. Investigating some employee theft of software source code.”
“That should be child’s play for you.”
“It probably will be. But the problem is that while I was investigating, I ran across something that’s more up your alley.”
“What?”
“The company that hired me is EasTech, a subsidiary of Eastland Industries. They develop a lot of software programs, but they have also been working on developing a Mobile Anti-Radar Device.”
“Right, MARD,” Ethan said. “I’m familiar with it.”
“While I was snooping around, I found a copy of the plans on the personal drive of the General Manager, David Howell.”
“That’s not exactly illegal.”
“I know, but there was no reason for them to be there. I checked. He isn’t doing any work on the plans. He doesn’t even have a background that would enable him to understand them.” Shelby paused, but Ethan waited in silence.
“Then I had a chance to look at Howell’s PDA. He had an appointment at two in the morning in an empty warehouse.”
“Well, I’m fairly confident you attended the meeting without his knowledge. What did you find out?”
“He met a man and showed him part of the plans for the device. They talked about how the final plans were to be delivered and how the payment was to be made. The name Scoresby came up. He’s the CEO of Eastland Industries.”
“When is the deal going down?” Ethan’s voice was terse, and Shelby could almost hear his mind working.
“Friday. I don’t have a time or a place, but I’m pretty sure it’s going to be at the warehouse.”
“Damn!”
“Yeah, I thought that would be your reaction.” Shelby waited while Ethan mumbled to himself for a moment. “There’s something else.”
“What?”
“The guy Howell met with mentioned The Order.”
“You mean like an order he was placing?” Ethan asked.
“No. Like a group. The Order. Sound familiar?”
“Dear God! You think the Dominion Order is involved in this?”
“I really have no idea, Ethan. But it just struck me as kind of weird. I mean, it stands to reason that anyone buying this device has a lot of money and power. You know any other groups calling themselves The Order?”
“No. Not that I know of. And, before you ask, we haven’t gotten anywhere on tracking them down. We’ve had a few leads, but they’ve all fizzled out.”
“Great.”
“Listen, Shelby, I know you don’t want to come back, but I need someone on the inside there, and I don’t have time to set it up for another agent.”
“No problem, Ethan. I’m your girl.” Shelby chuckled. “Did you really think I’d say no?”
“With you, I’m never really sure.”
“Hey! Have I ever let you down?”
“Well, you won’t come back to the agency.”
“Besides that, Ethan?”
“No, you haven’t. And I appreciate it.”
“Good. Now, I need to get to work at EasTech. I’ll call you when I find out something.”
“You need anything?”
“Actually, you can send me a few items. Overnight them to my office.” Shelby rattled off a list.
“It’ll all be there by eight tomorrow morning,” Ethan said. “Do you have a plan?”
“Don’t I always have a plan, Ethan?”
“Not that I’ve ever noticed.”
“I was hoping you’d come by.” Detective Mason gestured Connor and Paige into his office and closed the door.
“Why is that? More questions?” Paige asked.
“Actually, I have information for you. Although I don’t think it’s what you want to hear.”
“Shoot.”
“We called Belize, and they sent their police out to the island. The house was there, like you described, but no people. The boat was gone, and there were no dead bodies in the freezer.”
“Damn. I was hoping it was only Wade on the plane that fired at us,” Paige said. “And how did they move the boat after we cut the fuel line?”
“Fuel lines aren’t that hard to fix if you’ve got the right parts,” Connor said. “Wade obviously had someone pick him up. He could have brought the parts to fix the boat.
“I should have blown the thing up,” she muttered.
“Look, I believe the story you’re telling me. But some people don’t.”
“Why in the world would we make up a story like this?”
He ignored her question. “The thing is that none of this happened here, and none of you are residents of Florida, and we don’t have any jurisdiction in the Caribbean anyway. It was one thing for the MPD to fly over there and check out the situation, but since they didn’t find anything, this isn’t going to go anywhere.”
“I see.” Paige sighed at the bureaucratic red tape that had reared its ugly head.
“I’d suggest you contact the FBI when you get back to
Portland.”
“Sure. Good idea,” she agreed. Or appeared to. She wasn’t convinced the FBI was the best place to go. She had her own resources in the Portland Police Department, and she would try them first. She knew once the FBI got involved, she’d have no hope of being kept in the loop.
Mason promised to call her if anything turned up. Paige promised to call him with an update. She didn’t think either of them meant it.
Connor looked like he was about to pass out, so Paige took him back to the motel room with a quick stop at the pharmacy to get his prescription filled. He took the antibiotics and a pain pill and fell asleep.
Now what? Paige considered her options, which took about thirty seconds. The Hunters obviously thought they knew something worth killing for. But, what could that be? She knew that her father had been investigating the murder of an executive at Eastland Industries when he was killed.
If her father and Ellie Sullivan had been on to something, it wasn’t in the case files, because she had checked them out thoroughly. Even their deaths were cold cases now. Cold, but not forgotten. Ty had said he still checked up on it once every week or so, just to keep it in front of someone. And Paige had been looking at it for the entire fourteen months since her father had been killed. Even after she’d left the department.
The investigation her father and Ellie had been working on had to be the connection between her and Ty. They were both sticking their noses into the murders of her father and Ty’s wife. Which probably meant they had been killed because they were getting too close to discovering who had murdered the Eastland Industries executive. It wasn’t a quantum leap to surmise the Hunters had been responsible for the executive’s murder as well as her father’s and Ellie’s. And then there was the last missing person case she’d been working on. Lisa Johnston had been an Eastland Industries employee when she’d been kidnapped and murdered. Was that just a coincidence, or had she been killed for a similar reason?
Paige didn’t have a clue about that or why the others were involved. It had to be something connected to Eastland, but what?
Not that any of it really mattered right now. The Hunters thought they had drowned at sea. The Hunters thought they were safe from what Paige and the rest of the group knew or might know. They would never find out unless Aleisha went back to work at Eastland or Alex went back to work at the cargo company, which was unlikely. Or if they checked to make sure none of them ever surfaced again. Her heart sank. The bastards would probably check.