Deceiving Bella: Book Eleven In The Bodyguards Of L.A. County Series

by Beauman, Cate

“I don’t want to talk about it. Keep me up to date on the case.” He hung up and sat back down, staring into the night.

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Reed rapped his knuckles against Vinny’s bedroom door and walked in, pausing mid-step as he stared at Vinny’s ghostly pale complexion. He exhaled a deep breath and shoved his hands in his pockets, studying the new IV catheter taped to Vinny’s bony arm and the addition of several blankets to his bed. Heather had mentioned Vinny’s request for pain medication during the night, but Reed hadn’t been expecting such a drastic decline. “Vinny?” he whispered.

  Vinny opened his eyes, making no attempt to sit up on his pillows the way he usually did.

  Reed moved closer. “How’s it going?”

  “I’m dying. How do you think?”

  “Is there anything I can do? Can I get you anything?”

  Vinny shook his head. “You didn’t answer my phone calls.”

  “No.” He sat on the edge of the comfy recliner and rubbed at his tired eyes. He hadn’t slept in two days—since Bella walked out on him. “I’ve been busy.”

  “You look like shit.”

  He felt like shit. Each morning, he’d gotten up and gone to work, then boxed until he almost collapsed, or ran the beach until he was forced to sit down in the sand or fall over. Nothing was easing the pain. His stomach was raw; his heart ached. Bella was done with him. “Thanks.”

  “Did you talk to her?”

  “Yeah.” He stood and started pacing. “We talked.”

  “And?”

  “And it’s over. We’re through.” He kicked the baseboard on his next pass. Never had he felt so helpless before. Bella walked away from him and he’d been given no other choice but to live with it. “It’s fucking over.”

  “Give her time.”

  He shook his head. “I could give her a lifetime and it doesn’t change the fact that I lied—that she doesn’t trust me anymore.” And it was killing him.

  Vinny exhaled a quiet, humorless laugh. “If she won’t forgive you, I guess I shouldn’t hold out much hope.”

  His gaze whipped to Vinny’s. “She hasn’t been by to see you?”

  Vinny shook his head, looking suddenly old and very vulnerable.

  “She’ll come. She loves you. She understands the situation.”

  Vinny struggled to reach for his cup of water and dropped his hand by his side. “We did what was right for her, but she’ll never see it that way. She knows about me now. Knows what I did. Who I am.”

  Reed walked over and brought the straw to Vinny’s dry lips. “Who you were. You haven’t been that man for decades.”

  Vinny sipped and swallowed. “It doesn’t erase the fact that I ended lives for my father’s honor.”

  Reed set the cup down and sat again. “You’ve done what you can to right your wrongs. You created a stunning daughter. On her worst day, Bella’s better than either one of us on our best. That counts for something.”

  Vinny smiled. “She’s a good girl. There’s nothing Kelly and I ever did more right than Bella.”

  “You didn’t have an opportunity to stay with her for very long, but she loves you. Her best memories are of you and her mom at the house in Ohio—the gardens and bike rides in the park.” Sweet family moments he and Bella were supposed to have created for their own children but never would.

  Vinny nodded. “Those are my favorites too. I’ve thought of them a million times over the years.”

  No matter how horrible this was for him right now, it was so much worse for Vinny. “I bet.”

  Vinny adjusted his blankets. “So, what about the case? What happens now?”

  “Skylar handed everything over to the DA yesterday.” Telling Vinny that the DA knew about Bella wouldn’t do him any good, particularly when Reed had every intention of making sure they kept her out of this entire mess. “We wait to see if he thinks there’s enough evidence to bring before the grand jury while Evidence Response keeps looking for bodies in the field.”

  Vinny frowned. “That’s it?”

  He nodded. “There’s no way this isn’t going before the grand jury. We’ll get our indictment. We’ve helped the prosecution build one hell of a strong case. But for now, it’s a waiting game.”

  Vinny grumbled. “What about Bella? How do we know she’ll stay safe?”

  “I haven’t heard anything new from my informant. No news is good news.” Although he wanted something: an update on the Walter Hodds situation and his inquiries into Nicoli’s kid. It had been nearly three weeks since their meeting in New York—completely unacceptable.

  Vinny grumbled again. “That doesn’t make me feel any better.”

  “I’m never going to let anything happen to Bella.” He leaned closer, staring Vinny in the eyes, making sure Vinny knew he meant what he said. “No matter how things have ended between Bella and me, I promise you I’ll keep her safe.”

  “Whether she likes it or not?”

  He smiled for the first time in forty-eight hours. “Whether she likes it or not.”

  “You’re a good man, Reed. That little girl loves you. Give her time.”

  He nodded, but he wasn’t holding out much hope. He’d seen the finality in her eyes, heard it in her voice when she told him they were finished.

  Vinny winced as he pressed his hands to his stomach.

  Reed rushed to his feet. “What?”

  “Nothing. I’ve been having some pain the past couple days. I’m tired. Dying’s hard on a body.”

  “Do you want me to get Heather?”

  “No. I just need to get some rest.”

  He nodded. “I’ll come by tomorrow.”

  “You don’t have to come by anymore. We’ve done what we needed to do.”

  He folded his arms. “I thought we were friends.”

  Vinny stared at him. “I guess we are.”

  “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Vinny closed his eyes. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Reed walked to the door, studying Vinny. Worrying. He hoped Bella wouldn’t wait too long. Vinny was running short on time.

  ~~~~

  Bella maneuvered through the heavy Thursday night traffic on her way to visit with Dad. Adam Levine’s smooth voice crooned through her speakers and the wind played with her hair as she drove with the top down—a scenario sickeningly reminiscent of Tuesday afternoon, except nothing was the same. Smoothies and chats in the garden certainly weren’t on the agenda. She wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. All she knew was that she and Dad needed to talk.

  Dad and Reed were constantly on her mind. Focusing on her job had been a chore. The last two days had easily been the hardest of her life. Never had she been so blindsided—so broken. More than once, she’d contemplated packing a bag and heading out of town with Lucy for a while—ideally to gain a little perspective, but she couldn’t be certain Dad had that kind of time. They’d lost precious moments when she stayed away yesterday. She couldn’t allow that to happen again today. There were plenty of issues to work out, but she wasn’t about to let Dad die alone.

  Slowing for her turn, she made a right and pulled into the hospice center parking lot, taking the first spot she could find. Eager to get inside, she hurried up the path and opened the door, sending the nightshift nurse a small smile as she stopped at the front desk. “Hi, Wanda.”

  “Good evening, Bella. Don’t you look beautiful.”

  She smiled again, still dressed for the day in the simple black pencil skirt and fitted white top she’d pulled out of her closet this morning. “Thank you. How’s Dad doing?”

  “He’s been in quite a bit of pain over the last twenty-four hours. Last night we inserted an IV catheter to administer some medication since he’s having trouble keeping things down.”

  “Oh,” she said quietly as waves of guilt swamped her. Dad was hurting and she hadn’t been there for him.

  “Heather administered another dose shortly after Reed left this afternoon.”

  She pe
rked up, trying to ignore the uptick in her pulse. “Reed was here?”

  “He was.” Wanda grinned. “Vinny certainly enjoys his company.”

  “Yes, he does. They have a very special relationship.” She cleared her throat and fiddled with her purse strap, not quite sure of what else to say on that subject. “Um, I’m going to go on down.”

  “Okay, honey. Vinny’s medicine will be wearing off soon. If he starts getting uncomfortable, just let me know.”

  “Thank you.” She turned and started down the hall, walking slowly, her nerves compounding with every step closer to the door. Taking a deep breath, she lifted her hand and gave a quick knock, then stepped inside. “Daddy?”

  He opened his eyes in the dim lamplight and tried to sit up. “Bella.”

  “Oh, Daddy, don’t. Stay lying down.” She hurried over, shocked by how pale he was—by how much a mere two days had changed his appearance. “Just stay lying down,” she soothed, quickly pulling over the wooden chair Joey had been sitting in on Tuesday.

  He let his head rest against the pillow, wheezing with every breath. “I wasn’t sure you would come back.”

  Her guilt compounded as she studied the man who’d been a starry-eyed little girl’s hero. Once upon a time, he’d been so strong and handsome. Now he looked old and fragile. His eyes were so dull, yet radiated a staggering vulnerability that broke her heart. “Of course I was coming back.” She took his hand, holding on tight as she fought to keep her voice steady. “I just needed a chance to figure things out.”

  “I’m so sorry about all of this.” He gave her fingers a squeeze. “Every bit of it.”

  She bowed her head and blinked rapidly, trying but failing to keep her tears from falling.

  “I’m sorry, Bella.”

  She nodded, unable to meet his gaze—unable to speak.

  “I wish I could have done things differently. I would have given just about anything to make that possible.”

  “I know,” she shuddered out.

  “When I met your mom, I saw my shot at a normal life—at having everything I was never able to in Brooklyn.”

  She met his gaze. “I wish I’d known—”

  He shook his head. “I didn’t want you to.”

  She plucked a tissue from the side table and wiped her nose. “What made you leave? Why did you go?”

  “I picked you up from preschool one afternoon. You were such a bright, beautiful girl, Bella. My pride and joy.” He smiled. “It was a couple days before your birthday. I took you with me to get some auto parts so Mom could run errands for your party. When we got to the shop, one of the guys kept staring at me. He told me I looked like Nicoli Caparelli. You piped right up and told him that I wasn’t Nicoli. My name was Vinny and you were Isabella Raine Colby. At that moment, I knew I had to go. How many more times would someone recognize me? What happened when the wrong person spotted me and I had my baby girl with me, or her mother?”

  “We needed you.” She held him tighter. “I needed you.”

  He closed his eyes. “I missed you every day, but I couldn’t risk you. I couldn’t drag you into witness protection with me—continually changing your name, having to leave your life behind at a moment’s notice, making you a constant target. I never wanted that for you.”

  She sniffled, remembering Reed telling her that there wasn’t anything her father wouldn’t have done to keep her safe. “You were always so good to me—the best daddy any daughter could ask for.”

  “You made it easy. You were my sweet baby girl—always so kind. Those few years I had with you and your mother were the absolute best of my life.” He kissed her knuckles. “Leaving you two was the hardest thing I ever had to do. I couldn’t at first. I followed you—kept an eye on things.”

  She blinked as a memory flashed through her mind. “The day at the park in Kentucky. I saw you standing in the trees by the monkey bars. When I ran over to tell Mom and looked back, you were gone.”

  He nodded. “I left after that. I wanted to pick you up and take you with me—both of you. I almost let you see me again, but I turned and left instead.” He squeezed her hand as his eyes watered.

  “I’m sorry you had to go.” She pressed her lips together as they trembled, collecting herself. “I wish so much that you could have stayed.”

  “Me too, but you had a good life. You and your mom. You had a good life.”

  She nodded, wanting to give him that peace, even if it wasn’t entirely true. He’d sacrificed so much for her. “We had a great life, Daddy. I had a wonderful life.”

  “That’s all I’ve ever wanted.”

  “You gave up everything.”

  “Because they’re dangerous. The Caparellis are very, very dangerous, Bella.” He tugged her closer. “They’ll kill you just because you’re mine. Reed’s keeping an eye—”

  She shook her head. “I don’t want to talk about him.”

  “He loves you. That man loves you to the moon and back.”

  She looked down, pressing her hand to the pain in her heart, and began sobbing quietly, as she hadn’t let herself since she shut Reed out of her life.

  “Bella.”

  She stared at the blankets.

  “Isabella.” He lifted her chin. “There wasn’t a single second during all of this that he wasn’t thinking of you—trying to protect you and put you first.”

  She shook her head as she cried harder.

  “There are few people I trust in this world. Maybe two. Reed’s the only one I trust with you.”

  “I can’t be with him.” How could she explain how deeply his lies had wounded—how much his betrayal hurt? “I can’t.”

  Dad wiped away her tears—the way he’d done numerous times when she’d been a little girl. “Maybe you can and maybe you can’t. But promise me that if you’re in trouble, if he ever comes to you and tells you you’re in danger, you’ll do what he says.”

  She sniffled, her rebellious streak breaking through the sorrow.

  “Promise me that, Bella. Promise me,” he said fiercely.

  The desperation in his eyes made her nod. “I promise.”

  “He’ll keep you safe. No matter how things work out between you two, I know he’ll keep you safe. I need to know you’re going to be okay.”

  “I’ll be okay.”

  “With Reed.”

  “If I’m in danger,” she clarified, not wanting to give Dad false hope. Clearly he wanted them to be together.

  He settled back against his pillows and cringed, gripping his stomach.

  She rushed to her feet. “Daddy?”

  He took her hand again. “I’m running out of time, Bella. I’m running out of time here with you.”

  She clutched him tighter. “I’ll get Wanda. She’ll bring you some medicine for the pain.”

  He nodded. “Okay.”

  She bolted down the hall, overwhelmed by a sickening sense of helplessness, knowing that there was nothing she could do to make this better for him. “Dad could use something. He’s really hurting.”

  Wanda stood. “We want to keep him as comfortable as we can.”

  She nodded, tucking her hair behind her ear with trembling fingers. “How much—how much longer do I have with him?”

  “Oh, honey, I can’t say. I just don’t have that answer.”

  “Of course not. I’m sorry.” She hurried back down to Dad and sat by his side on the mattress, settling a supportive hand on his shoulder. “Wanda’s coming, Daddy.”

  “I want you to go home,” he struggled to say as he clenched his teeth.

  She shook her head. “No, I’m going to stay—”

  “I want you to go. I don’t want you seeing me like this. I’m just going to sleep anyway. Please, Bella. Go be with Lucy.”

  “Okay.”

  Wanda walked in and injected something into the line on Dad’s arm. “Here you go, Vinny. This should kick in quick and help you rest.”

  “Thank you.” He looked at Bella again. “I’m going
to get some sleep.”

  She bent over and kissed his forehead—once, twice, then rested her cheek against his cool skin. “I’m just down the road if you need me.”

  “All right. I love you, Bella.”

  “I love you too.” She hesitated, wanting to stay, but needed to respect his wishes. “I’ll see you tomorrow. I’ll be back tomorrow,” she said, then rushed down the hall and outside, gulping in the fresh air as she got in her car and drove home as fast as the traffic allowed. Making quick work of letting herself into the house, she crouched down in the entryway and hugged Lucy, gripping her close as more tears fell. “Come on, Luce. I need to get out of here. I need the beach.”

  Lucy followed her to the car.

  As Bella opened the passenger side door, she looked toward Reed’s place, noting that his bike was gone and the lights were off. Sighing, she stared at his truck. There wasn’t a moment in the day when she didn’t miss him. Each night, she woke reaching for him. Even after everything that had happened between them, she found herself longing to hold his hand and walk by the water—to breathe him in as he held her close and let him make everything okay again.

  She flinched, surprised by her wandering thoughts. “Kneejerk,” she whispered as she got in and buckled up, then drove off, reminding herself that Reed didn’t belong in her life anymore.

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Reed spotted Bella’s car in the hospice center parking lot as he got out of his truck and shut the door. He took a step toward the building and hesitated, debating whether it would be better to avoid her and come back after his shift or go in and check on Vinny now. “Fuck it,” he muttered and hit the key fob, locking up as he went inside. Bella always went to yoga, then directly to work in the mornings. If she was here at seven a.m., something was going on. He wasn’t about to drive off without making sure everything was okay first. He stopped at the front desk, smiling at Heather. “Morning.”

  Heather smiled back. “Good morning.”

  “How’s Vinny doing today?”

  Heather’s smile faded. “He had a rough night. Wanda called Bella early this morning.”

  He nodded, reading between the lines easily enough. Vinny was down to his final hours. “I’m going to head down.”