Love Undercover

by Nana Prah

  Sarita snorted and shifted in her seat a little unnerved. “That’s ridiculous. We know so little about each other.”

  Marianna leaned in close to Sarita. “Love does not need time or knowledge. Only recognition.”

  Aba with wide eyes asked, “How do you know this Marianna?”

  “Yes how?” Sarita couldn’t help the sarcastic tone.

  “I have a gift.”

  Aba scowled. “What gift?”

  “The gift of sight.”

  Sarita pinched the bridge of her nose. “None of us are blind here. We’ve all been blessed with that.”

  Aba ignored Sarita. “Are you a prophetess? Can you tell me what’s going to happen to me when I get back to Ghana?”

  Marianna’s smile was gentle as she shook her head. “I do not see the future. I see love connections and a little bit of what is.” She focused her obsidian-colored eyes on Sarita. “I see true love.”

  Now thoroughly uncomfortable with the conversation, Sarita diverted her attention to Hana, inches away from touching foreheads with Otoo. What could those two be talking about? They were as different as day and night. Curiosity won out over Sarita’s unease. “What does true love look like?”

  Marianna clasped her hands and rested them on the table. “Let me explain it this way. There is a link between soul mates. I can see it. Before you ask what this link looks like I will tell you. It is similar to being in a fog where only the two of you stand. When you are together, the fog encompasses both of you and is quadruple the size of when you are alone. When you are apart, as you are now, the fog stretches. You are each surrounded by your own fog, but are connected in between.”

  Sarita couldn’t help herself. She stood and swiped her hands down her body as if bees were attacking her. “There, the connection is severed.”

  Marianna and Aba laughed. “No, Sarita. The connection is still there.”

  “Not that I believe what you’re saying, but what about when I’m in my cell? Doesn’t the door cinch the bond?”

  “The link does not know matter. It is still there.”

  “What about when he goes home?”

  “It is still there. The bond does not know space.” Marianna sounded so sincere, wise, and unlike her normal cheery self that Sarita wanted to believe her.

  Aba asked the question that sat on the tip of Sarita’s tongue. “What breaks the connection?”

  “I do not know.” Marianna glared at Sarita. “I have never encountered anyone stupid enough to disunite the connection of true love.”

  Sarita picked up a green house from the Monopoly box and fiddled with it. “What about lies and deceit?”

  “It depends on the reason and its impact. If the lies were intended to hurt the individual on purpose, then the connection may weaken but it will not break. Love is stronger than any human action, positive or negative.”

  “Afternoon rec is finished ladies. Back to your cells.”

  Sarita jumped at Greene’s loud pronouncement. Darn Marianna and her spooky talk.

  She helped them gather the pieces of the game.

  When Aba walked away, Marianna stopped Sarita. “I know you are more than you say you are and Carter senses it too, even though it is not clear to him. You two are destined to be together. Trust that you are his destiny, and he is yours. Any lie or deception will pass like the gas from the beans we eat on Wednesdays and Saturdays.”

  Sarita grimaced. “There you go again with the odd comparisons.”

  “That one was to lighten you. Do not worry. Love is with you.”

  Sarita didn’t believe all that Marianna had said. But as she looked at Matt and her chest tightened, she knew the woman’s last sentence was true.

  Chapter 18

  Sarita propped her chin on her knees at the window seat, attempting to calm the whirlwind of activity in her head. Marianna’s words about love and connection kept replaying. The woman had to be only a few years older than her, but she’d sounded knowledgeable and passionate. Sarita sighed, not sure who was crazier, Marianna for sharing her wild ideas or herself for desiring to believe them.

  “I am leaving tomorrow.” Hana’s soft voice barely penetrated into Sarita’s consciousness.

  She summoned a smile. “Good for you. You weren’t in here long.”

  “I never thought I would be in jail. It was a very long time.”

  Sarita believed that any behavioral problems the young woman might have had would now be a thing of the past. “I’m leaving tomorrow, too,” she announced.

  “That is good.”

  “Yes, it is.”

  She hoped Hana wouldn’t be too upset when she revealed her true identity. The girl had grown on her. The long flight to South Korea would be endless if they weren’t on speaking terms.

  “What time is your flight?” Hana asked.

  “A little after seven-thirty in the evening.”

  “So is mine.”

  Big surprise there. “What were you and Otoo talking about?”

  “Did you know she is the daughter of a king in Nigeria?”

  The two had something in common after all. Would Hana have shared her father’s position with her new friend? “How did this topic come up?”

  “I do not know. She sat next to me and began speaking. I did not pay attention to her words until she mentioned this.”

  That sounded like Otoo. The woman could talk anyone’s ear off and she didn’t even care if they listened. All she needed was a breathing individual.

  “She told me how her father had been very demanding of her as the first born child and how she rebelled by running away when her father arranged a marriage for her.”

  “What happened?”

  “She could not stay away from home for long. She loved her family. She went back and asked for forgiveness.”

  Why hadn’t she heard this story from Otoo? “Did they forgive her?”

  “Yes. She married the man her father chose. He ended up being a bad person who beat her, but she never told her parents because she desired to redeem herself in their eyes.

  “He travelled to the US to work for a five-year period and brought her with him. When it was time to go, she ran away. She said she would no longer be abused.”

  Sarita had heard the rest. He’d called Immigration on her when he arrived home. “What will she do in Nigeria?” She remembered Carter’s intense dark brown eyes when he’d asked her the same question.

  “She told her father what the man had done to her. Her father banished him from the kingdom.”

  “That’s wonderful.” Sarita wished a better life for Otoo. “Did they have children?”

  “No. She did not want his children so she took precautions. She is a very strong woman.”

  Sarita nodded. “It seems that’s true about everyone on this unit. They’re all stronger than anyone truly knows.”

  ***

  During dinner, the scowling blond-haired friend of Matt’s came to the unit. He spoke to Greene and Matt in hushed tones.

  Greene then called out, “Cerez, you have a visitor.” A murmur went through the inmates. Only religious leaders and lawyers were allowed to pull an inmate out on non-visitation days. Sarita tore the meat off of her chicken and stuffed it in her mouth before glancing at Hana. She’d be fine. Only an emergency would make Corinth separate them. When she reached the guard’s desk, she returned the blond guard’s glare, expecting him to escort her to the visitation room.

  “I’ll be taking you down.” Matt’s statement raised both of her eyebrows.

  She chewed as fast as she could while he rattled off a short report to his colleague. He unlocked the door and off they went into the bowels of the prison.

  “Who’s coming to visit you at this hour? Is it your lawyers to inform you of your release into the US?”

  His hopeful expression constricted her throat. She hated to squash it. “I doubt it. I don’t know who it is.”

  “It must be someone important.”

  “Mu
st be.”

  As they walked down the first flight of stairs, her breath caught when she glanced at him. She missed her footing and would have gone head-over-ass down the steps if he hadn’t grabbed her.

  The heat emanating from his body seeped into her. “Thanks. You saved me from a nasty fall.”

  “You are so beautiful, Sarita.” His whispered words feathered over her cheek.

  She moved forward as his lips came down on hers in a crushing kiss. The impact brought tears to her eyes and a whimper to her throat. He eased the pressure. She took the light pecks as his apology.

  She desired his passion over such teasing gentleness. Her hand moved to the back of his head and held him against her mouth, opening for him as his tongue thrust in. She hung onto him for fear of tumbling down the stairs.

  Swinging her around, he lifted her onto the railing, wrapping her legs around him. His hardness met the juncture of her thighs. The need to feel more of him suffused her. She rocked her hips and squeezed him closer when he moaned.

  The sound of whistling broke through the haze. She eased her feet to the steps and they continued down the stairs as if she hadn’t been about to rip off his shirt

  She held onto the railing so her wobbly legs wouldn’t slide out from under her. She chanced a glance up and saw the camera. How could she have forgotten where they were?

  He looked back at the space they’d just vacated and raised an eyebrow. “Blind spot,” he whispered. “Didn’t you know?”

  “How would I have known?”

  “You knew about the one on the unit.”

  “Gladys told me about it. I don’t think the inmates know about any on the stairwell.” She’d never share that pertinent information either. Not only would it cause issues for the guards, but how could she explain how she’d learned without getting Matt into trouble?

  He rubbed his chin. “But you tripped at the exact spot.”

  “You distracted me. Honestly, I had no idea.”

  “No matter. I had intended to stop there anyway.”

  Heat suffused her face. She had half a mind to wipe the smug look off of his face with another kiss. She squinted at the camera. “Your facility has a lot of security issues.”

  “It’s the only blind spot on the staircase. You really didn’t know?”

  “No.”

  They encountered the guard who’d been whistling on the second flight. His pace so slow that she wondered if he’d heard them and tried to give them time to recoup. He and Carter exchanged a brief greeting.

  “Sarita--”

  “Matt--”

  They spoke at the same time when they’d reached the hallway to the visitation room.

  “You first,” they said in unison.

  He indicated with his hand that she should speak first.

  “Um. I just wanted to say thank you for being so kind to me.” Suddenly becoming a chicken bound her from stating how much she loved him.

  “Thank you for being a good inmate. It’s like taking a vacation when I work on the ICE unit.” His gaze wandered over her. “My colleagues are jealous.”

  Rather than sharing the truth in her heart, she went on with the mundane conversation. “How did you get such a cushy position?”

  “The roster rotates. It happened to be my turn.”

  “How often does the schedule get around to the same place you started?”

  His eyes shifted up and to the right. Funny how everyone did that when they thought. “It’s a large facility so about every four years or so.”

  The coincidence of him working on the ICE unit at the same time she’d been stationed there astounded her. Marianna’s talk of connections popped into her mind.

  Lombardo waited at a table when they walked into the room. She chanced a brief glance at Matt and found him sizing up her colleague. She didn’t want to leave his side, but Lombardo must’ve come for an important reason. When she reached him, he stood up with arms open ready to hug her.

  “Don’t you dare,” she hissed. She extended her hand for a handshake. No need to flare Matt’s jealousy tonight. “No flirting.” Her words brooked no argument.

  “Good to see you too. So he’s the one, huh?”

  She wouldn’t be baited. “Why are you here?”

  He leaned back appearing as relaxed as if he were on his couch. “Why do you look like you’ve been good and thoroughly tousled?”

  She threw a quick glance at Matt. He stood far enough away so he couldn’t hear them. That didn’t prevent him from staring.

  “I have not been tousled.”

  “You’ve been doing something naughty. Your lips are all swollen. Your hair is a mess and you look ravishing. Or rather ravished. I’m actually envious of him.”

  She smoothed her hair. There was nothing she could do about her lips, except remember the heat of the kiss. “You have absolutely no right to be jealous. Anything in a skirt would do for you.”

  “First of all, I have never seen you in a skirt. Okay that dress you wore on assignment that one time was hot.” His eyes glazed over. “Sorry, where was I? Oh, yeah. Secondly, what’s wrong with liking women?”

  “Why are you here?”

  He leaned forward against the table. “I dropped off your luggage. The captain is holding your piece, badge, and passport. You’re one lucky lady, jet setting off to South Korea.”

  “It’s not a vacation, Lombardo. That doesn’t explain why you called me away from her.”

  “We just got word that North Korea is aware of our runaway.”

  No need to ask how they found out. She’d learned long ago that the politics of her chosen field were far beyond her.

  “And you have me here talking about silly things instead of guarding her?” She got halfway to her feet when he pulled her down.

  Matt stepped forward and she turned to give him a reassuring nod. He moved back into his previous position, but the scowl remained.

  “She’s in no danger while in here. And besides, the threat is minimal. It’s unlikely they will or can do anything to the girl. The consequences would be dire for North Korea if something happened to her at their hands. The whole non-communist world would come down on them. Corinth wanted to make you aware.” He jerked his head towards Matt. “He’s a protective bastard isn’t he? He’d better be worthy of you or I’m going to kick his ass.”

  Sarita’s annoyance with Lombardo faded. The man knew how to charm his way out of trouble. “Stop calling him a bastard. You’re a good friend, you know that?”

  “You’re only seeing this now? I don’t understand how you’ve lasted this long in the field. You sure are slow.”

  She snorted. “It’s hard to see through all of that crap you fill the room with.”

  “Watch yourself when you’re on the outside.” Not a trace of his jovial nature revealed itself. “The risk is low, but they don’t want to take any chances. They’re sending another one of us with you to South Korea.”

  “Is it you?”

  His wink made him even more adorable. “I know you’d love to be with me for hours on end in close quarters, but I’m not going. You know I’m not far enough up the ladder to be given more information than on a need-to-know basis.”

  They existed as peons in the system. “Do you have any other news or are you going to sit around staring at me all night?”

  “If you don’t mind, I’ll stare.”

  She pointed a finger at him. “One day, some woman is going to come around and remove the flirtatiousness right out of you.”

  “I don’t see that happening,” he snarled. “Unless she happens to be the best lay in the world, and even then, it’s doubtful.”

  Downright incorrigible. “Are we through here? I’d like to get back to Hana.”

  “Nothing more to report. Make sure you stay safe.”

  “Don’t I always?”

  “Well there was that one time when I had to come in and save your ass.”

  She flung up an index finger. “One time compar
ed to the many I’ve snagged yours from trouble.”

  “Stop exaggerating. It happened twice, and I happened to be new.”

  “You say tomato, I say whatever.”

  He got up and dragged her into a hug. “Uh-oh. I may have poked the bear. He really has a thing for you. His face is red, his nostrils are flaring, and he looks like he wants to come and ram his fist down my throat.” He waved at Matt.

  “Stop provoking him. Get out of here. I’ll see you when I’m back.”

  Since the exterior doors wouldn’t open to let him out until she left, she went to Matt who reminded her of a riled bull ready to gouge his victim. “Are you going to strip search me?” Pretty please with a cherry on top.

  His gaze roamed down her body. “I wish,” he mumbled. “Since it was an approved visitor, no search is needed.” He opened the door leading to the hallway. “Who is he?”

  “A coworker.”

  Matt’s expression seemed dubious. “He’s a bodyguard?”

  “You could say that.” Another lie averted.

  “How did he get access to see you outside of visiting hours?”

  “He knows people in high places.” They climbed the stairs as if they were in the park taking a stroll on a beautiful sunny day.

  ***

  Her evasiveness fueled his jealousy by the second. How could he make her expound on her answers?

  The man who’d come to see her had to be the same visitor as yesterday. Ryan’s description hadn’t left out a single detail. The visitor interacted with Sarita as if they were lovers. Matt couldn’t hear their conversation, but he noticed that Sarita didn’t respond to her co-worker in any way other than professionally.

  She tilted her head up at him. “What are you smiling about?”

  “Nothing.” Other than you not engaging with your visitor like you do with me.

  “Hmmm.”

  “Are you excited about leaving tomorrow?” The bottom fell out of his gut. How did he allow this to happen? Love happens. Get over it.

  “I’m looking forward to getting out of jail.” Again with the incomplete answers.