They shook hands and Jack wished he had more than a handshake and a pat on the back to offer his friend. “Be careful out there,” Jack told him. “These guys mean business.”
“Don’t worry about me. I needed a little excitement in my life to stir things up. Getting engaged last week wasn’t enough.”
“Engaged? To Becky?”
“No,” A.J. said, laughing. “I met a new girl last week and proposed the next day, what do you think?”
“I think congratulations are in order.” Jack shook A.J.’s hand and patted him on the back. “Becky’s a great gal. It’s about time.”
“So everyone says.” A.J. stepped outside and said, “If we can keep you alive and out of prison, I’d love to have you as my best man.”
Jack smiled. “I’d be honored.”
“I’ll be in touch.”
Chapter 11
Kate stood beside Jack and watched A.J. pull the car out of the garage. A.J. seemed like a nice guy, but she had avoided him on purpose. She wasn’t here to make friends.
She waited just inside the door. It was time to hit the road, take care of unfinished business. Jack would only get in her way if she stayed. The thought of getting a good night’s rest held a certain appeal, but she didn’t come to the States to catch up on her sleep.
Jack hit a button to shut the garage door and stepped inside the house.
Kate set Barney on the ground, picked up her bag and said, “It’s been fun, Jack. But it’s time for me to head off.”
His eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?”
“Don’t do this, Jack.”
“Do what?”
“Make a big deal out of my leaving.”
“Where are you going?”
“I don’t know yet. I would have left this morning if those cops hadn’t shown up at the hotel. I have business to take care of, remember?”
He stared at her, but he didn’t say a word.
“Besides,” she added, “you have problems of your own.”
“Your problems are my problems,” he said, placing a hand on his chest for emphasis. “Nobody was trying to kill me before I hooked up with you.”
“Thanks,” she said, clutching her bag tighter to her side as she tried to get past him. “I feel much better now.”
He blew out some hot air and reached out to stop her. “You can’t go. Running off isn’t going to save me. Although the thought that you don’t want to endanger me is heartwarming, it isn’t going to make the bad guys disappear. Besides, I’m a fugitive just like you, remember?”
“I wasn’t leaving to save you.” She looked him in the eyes. “Did you ever stop to think that maybe I just don’t want to be around you?”
He looked puzzled. “The thought never crossed my mind.”
Their gazes remained locked, neither of them blinking, as if doing so would be a sign of weakness.
He pointed a finger her way and suddenly his features softened. “You’re mad at me for this morning in the hotel, aren’t you?”
Her laugh came out as a snort. “You’re amazing. Every time I think you can’t possibly get any more arrogant, you prove me wrong.” She shook her head. “I don’t know what kind of crap your mother has been feeding you for the last thirty-eight years—”
“Thirty-two.”
“Yeah, whatever. The point is...you’re not that great.”
He looked amused.
“For starters,” she added smugly, wondering why the hell she didn’t just leave well enough alone, “you have-er-uh-a big nose...”
He laughed.
“...and a very irritating laugh.”
A dimple appeared near the corner of his mouth and his blue eyes sparkled with a self-righteous pompous glee that egged her on.
“And your ears,” she blurted, pointing at the one on the right, “are very small in proportion to that big head of yours.” She waved a hand through the air. “And that’s just the begin—”
His laughter bounced off the walls, cutting her off in mid-sentence as he went to the kitchen, opened the refrigerator door and pulled out two cold Coronas. “You want one?”
She shook her head at him. “If I stay, you’ll get in my way. I’m used to doing things my way.”
Jack nodded. “I can handle that. Whatever you say goes.”
She narrowed her eyes and pointed a finger at him. “That would mean we don’t contact anybody without discussing it first.”
“Got it.”
“Nobody...not even Harrison.”
Jack twisted the cap off one of the bottles and handed one to her. “I can deal with that.”
“And no more kisses,” she added. “You’re a tease.”
“I’ll work on it.”
She lifted a brow.
Jack tapped the neck of his bottle to hers. “Here’s to finding Kate Huntley.”
After they finished their beers and found the keys to the truck, Jack took Kate’s hand and led her down the carpeted hallway. At the end of the hallway was a set of double doors leading to the master bedroom.
The bedroom was large, exquisitely decorated with plump chairs and a marbled top tea table set off to the side. The focus of the room was an antique bed covered in brocade and silk. The thought that Jack might throw caution to the wind, toss her on the bed, and make them both forget all the evils of the world, even if only for a short while, sent a thrilling shiver up her spine.
“I want you to relax,” he said, killing the feverish anticipation with five words.
She opened her mouth in protest, but he put a finger to her lips. “Take a long hot shower...or a bath,” he said, gesturing toward a porcelain tub separated from the rest of the room by a glass-enclosed fireplace. He left her side long enough to start the fire with the push of one button. Afterwards, he disappeared inside a walk-in closet and returned with a silk robe. He tossed the robe over the arm of a cushioned chair. “When you’re done, dinner will be waiting.”
A part of her hated the idea of him bringing her in here and telling her what to do, but another part of her nearly melted at the idea of Jack taking care of her. No one had taken care of her since her father. She had a feeling Jack would ready the tub if she showed any sign of wanting him to. Being with Jack made her wonder if there was more to life than looking over her shoulder and getting even. Being with Jack made her think of Sunday barbeques and long walks on the beach...things she hadn’t thought about in a very long time.
When Jack reached the door, he looked over his shoulder at her. “By the way,” he said, a devilish glint in his eye, “you know what they say about guys with big noses, don’t you?”
“No,” she said, “what do they say?”
He looked disappointed at her answer. His feeble attempt to flirt had backfired, but the fact that he attempted at all lightened her mood.
“To tell you the truth,” he said, “I don’t recall...something about big noses being synonymous to the size of a man’s brain.”
She smiled. “Cute.” Jack could be downright boyish one moment and all male testosterone the next. He confused her, and the candid gaze he was shooting her way at the moment made her toes curl. Oh, man! At moments like this she was tempted to forget why she was here, to let her guard down once and for all and surrender to whatever life had to offer.
He turned his head so she could get a better view of his profile. “You really think my nose is too big, huh?”
“Definitely.” She smiled. “But the ear thing...I made that up.”
Kate wasn’t sure how much time had passed by the time she stepped out of the tub of lukewarm water and slipped into the silk robe. As she towel dried her hair, she gave her short brassy blonde locks a couple of shakes before glancing into the mirror. She examined her teeth, impressed with their sturdy whiteness considering she hadn’t been to a real dentist in years. Her robe fell partially open, prompting her to open it wide for a full frontal view of her body. Her breasts were small and her hips non-existent. Wrinkling her n
ose, she pulled the sash tight around her middle.
Her face could use some color. For a moment she considered digging through her bag for the lipstick she’d recently purchased. Who was she trying to impress?
She frowned. “Next thing you know,” she muttered to her reflection, “I’ll be asking Jack how I look.” With a snort she stepped into the large area of the room in front of the bed, dropped to the floor, and began doing push-ups.
There was a quiet knock before the door came open and Jack stepped inside. “Dinner’s ready when—”
“Fourteen, fifteen, sixteen—”
“What are you doing?”
“What does it look like? Twenty-one, twenty-two...”
Jack crossed the room, plunked down on the edge of the bed, and watched her. “You’re too hard on yourself.”
“You’re making me lose my concentration. Twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one—”
“I’ve been thinking about what you said about finding your father’s killer.”
She didn’t respond. She’d only been in the States for a few days, but she was softening faster than a cube of butter in the middle of a desert. It had to stop. “Thirty-three.”
“If we do find out who is responsible, I’m hoping you’ll remember that you have choices. Don’t do anything you’ll regret. You don’t want to spend the rest of your life in jail, trust me.”
“It’s not up to you,” she said. “Thirty-six.”
“No, it’s not. But do you really think revenge is going to make everything better?”
“Yes. Thirty-eight, thirty-nine—”
“How?”
“Forty. Because as soon as the people responsible for my father’s death are dead and buried,” she ground out, “I’ll be able to sleep again...forty-four...I’ve slept in a lot worse than a cold hard cell. Forty-six. I know the sounds of pain and suffering, the smell of death, the cold bitter feel of being touched by filth. Fifty.”
She dropped to the floor and took a long deep breath before she pushed herself to her feet. “Someone is going to pay. And when it’s over, I’m going to feel great. Trust me.”
Jack nodded, but it didn’t take a rocket scientist to see that he wasn’t paying attention to a word she was saying. Her silk robe had slid open and Jack had no qualms about taking a good long look.
“Aren’t you a little old to be gawking?”
He raised his heavy-lidded gaze to hers. “A guy would have to be dead and buried not to notice you.”
She let out a huff.
“And, as far as my age goes,” he said, “I’m in my prime.”
She rubbed her palm over his finely stubbled jaw and ignored the heat pulsing between her legs. “And you’re letting it all go to waste.” She made a tsking sound as her hand dropped back to her side. She pulled her sash tight, and then swept past him.
Chapter 12
The AIDS event had netted one million, three hundred and fifty one thousand dollars: a record night for CFAF. At the sound of footfalls, Dr. Elizabeth Kramer looked up from her mahogany desk, surprised to see her assistant, Amy, still haunting the office this late in the day. Amy had been her assistant for nearly a year now. She was a quick study and a dream to work with. Elizabeth had befriended the young girl when she visited the women’s shelter in San Francisco, offering Amy a job along with schooling and a place to live. Amy had come a long way since their first meeting. Uncharacteristically, the poor girl looked exhausted and pale.
Elizabeth tilted her head. “I thought you had school tonight.”
“I do and I won’t be late if I leave in the next few minutes, but I wanted to show you something I found.” Amy placed an open ledger in front of Elizabeth. Then she pointed to the third column and frowned. “See this amount here...fifty thousand dollars went to LCC Labs in New Jersey five years ago.”
Elizabeth waved a dismissive hand through the air. “Those are old ledgers. Wherever did you find them?”
“We were running out of room for the files, so I was cleaning out one of the closets when I found these books.” Amy continued to point at the third column. “The fifty thousand donation isn’t so odd in and of itself, but then two months later another fifty thousand dollars went to the same lab.” Amy placed another ledger on top of that one, once again pointing at the third column under “funds paid.”
“Hmmm. This is a puzzle, isn’t it?”
“It’s more than a puzzle, Dr. Kramer.” Amy held up three more ledgers. “It’s the same for each ledger, some worse off than others. These findings show that CFAF has been vulnerable to significant fraud and abuse over the past five years, maybe longer. Who knows how much of your hard-earned donations have been siphoned. Judging by what I’ve seen already, the total amount of misplaced funds is potentially astronomical.”
Elizabeth watched the girl with renewed focus. Amy’s cheeks pinkened, most likely caused by the adrenaline pumping through her veins after touching upon such a scandal.
“I called Bernstein and Grayson, last year’s auditors,” Amy went on. “I wanted to see what, if anything, they knew of this problem but everyone in the office had gone home for the day. If you don’t mind, I think I’ll come in early tomorrow to get a head start on this situation. Not only do the books show dozens of instances of duplicate funding, I’ve also dug up almost as many fraudulent applications for funds. A number of payments appear to have been sent to addresses that are showing up on internet satellite photos as vacant lots and nonexistent buildings. It’s mind-boggling.”
Elizabeth took off her reading glasses and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “I’m afraid I’m speechless. This is staggering news to say the least.”
“If you’d like,” Amy said, “I’d be happy to miss my class tonight and work late...as long as necessary to get this straightened out. I’m sure you’ll want everything in order before you call the authorities.”
“You’re such a thoughtful girl, Amy. I only wish I had found you years ago.”
“I’ll stay then.”
“No, no. You go to school. You’ll never reach your dreams of being a CPA if you skip class.” Elizabeth sighed as she peered up into Amy’s big blue eyes. The girl was like the daughter she never had. “Did you tell anyone else about your findings?”
“No, of course not. I wanted to talk to you before we called the authorities. I shouldn’t have called the auditors without talking to you first but it was a knee-jerk reaction.”
“Good. Let’s keep this between the two of us until morning, shall we? I want to look over the books myself, check the numbers, and then prepare a press release in case this gets out before we’re ready.”
Amy set the rest of the ledgers on the desk and then came around to where Elizabeth sat and wrapped her arms around Elizabeth’s shoulders in a compassionate embrace. “I’m so sorry this has happened. I plan to fully cooperate with the authorities so that we can keep CFAF on its feet while they get this all straightened out. So many people respect and adore you for all the good work you’ve done for AIDS research. It’ll all work out in the end, I’m sure of it.”
It was nearly midnight by the time Jack climbed out of the shower. He and Kate had eaten dinner in silence before Kate settled on the couch in the family room to watch a movie. He headed that way now as he wondered what was troubling her. He didn’t know her, and yet he wanted to...wanted to know what made her tick. Yeah, he knew she wanted revenge, but did she have any hope at all for a better future? He’d thought about asking her, probing her mind, finding out more about her, but he could tell by the stiffness of her spine and the tightness around her mouth during dinner that she wasn’t in the mood to talk.
The television was still on, he noticed, and George Bailey was running like a madman through Potterville. But Kate was fast asleep with the dog curled at her side.
He set off back down the hallway and pulled a blanket from the hall closet. As he tucked the blanket around her, he couldn’t imagine anyone wanting to hurt her. The dog licked his hand,
prompting Jack to give the dog a pat on the head.
He couldn’t stop thinking about what Kate said earlier about knowing what it felt like to be touched by filth. An urge to find every bastard who ever laid a hand on her and give him something to think about swept over him.
A breeze came through the window and touched the back of his neck. The smell of pine prompted him to suck in a deep breath of fresh air. He straightened, listening for a moment to the distant hoot of an owl. He shut the window and as he made his way around the house, he checked the locks on every window and door. When he was done, he looked out the sliding glass door. Even in the darkness he could see the shimmering lake. The tree branches danced in the breeze, but for the most part, the night was calm. He checked the lock again, pulled the curtains closed, grabbed the laptop A.J. had left for him and made himself comfortable in the leather chair next to the couch.
To his left was the front entry. Kate was on his right. If he reached out, he could touch her shoulder. The dog would bark if someone tried to get in through the sliding glass door. In his lap was his 9 mm, loaded and ready.
The more he thought about it, the more restless he became as he realized he needed to take matters into his own hands. He couldn’t wait around to see what fate had in store for him or for Kate. He’d been framed, and he needed to find out why. Opening the laptop, he turned it on and waited for the screen to light up. In a few days, he would contact Harrison again and arrange a new meeting place. Kate didn’t need to know. She didn’t need the added stress. Besides, he would take precautions, maybe set a trap to see if Harrison was, in fact, a traitor working on the wrong side of the tracks.
After what happened at the hotel, he’d have to be more careful from here on out. If he got himself killed or ended up in jail for a murder he didn’t commit, Kate would end up right where she started ten years ago...alone. Although she talked a tough talk, he knew she was scared. He could see it in the haunted look of someone who hadn’t known a good night’s sleep in years. Kate was special. She deserved to feel safe. He’d not felt this close, this connected, to a woman in a long time. More than anything, he wanted her to learn to trust him.
Finding Kate Huntley Page 10