“Where?”
“Anywhere. When this meeting is done, we’re all dead.”
“Why would he kill you?”
Julie’s eyes were cold as she smiled and shrugged. “Why would he share?”
Vanessa shook her head as if she couldn’t believe anything. “Why are you like this? What could have happened in your life to make you behave like this? And Max?”
“You don’t want to know, believe me. But if you want to get back to that charmed life of yours, you’d better come with me, now.”
“There’s no way I’m letting you walk away,” Luke said to Julie. “Not after what you did to me, and not after what you did to Vanessa. You knew about the bomb?”
Julie looked toward Vanessa and then nodded, albeit with a hint of regret. “I knew, but there was nothing I could do to stop him. He would have just killed me, too.”
“Always thinking of yourself first, as usual,” Luke spat.
“Maybe so. But for what it’s worth, Luke, your employee, Marcus Yates? The one who killed himself? I’ll do you a favor and let you know it wasn’t a suicide. He was there to keep an eye on me, and when I was done, Max had him killed. A loose end.” She looked at her watch. “Which is what we’ll be in about fifteen minutes, or less, if we don’t leave now. We can still make it. I have a car hidden by the road.”
Luke’s mind blanked. The man he’d mourned, whose family he’d seen grieve, and whom Luke had felt responsible for all these years, he had been part of it? Marcus had never killed himself at all. He’d been a traitor, and he was murdered for it.
He felt a hand on his shoulder, squeezing.
Vanessa.
“Luke, come on. We have to get out. That’s what we need to focus on right now. Okay?”
He raised his hand to cover hers, nodding.
“Are you armed?” he asked Julie.
“Yes.”
“Got something for me?”
She actually laughed. “No way. I get you out of here, and then we go our separate ways and hope we get off this island alive. That’s the deal.”
Luke couldn’t argue. Right now, Vanessa’s safety was the most important thing. If he had to let Julie loose in order to save Vanessa, then that was what he had to do. But if he could stop her from leaving after they were clear, he would.
Taking Vanessa’s hand, he nodded at Julie. “Okay. Let’s go.”
It took them mere seconds to make it out of the basement and then the house. He didn’t want to trust Julie, but they had no choice. She was their way out.
Once they entered the thick trees that surrounded the property, they heard men shouting, and Luke knew that they’d been made.
“Where’s the car?”
“Down that hill, at the bottom, on the road,” Julie said. There was no doubting the fear in her eyes, and Luke believed her. She needed to get out of here as much as they did.
“The men are getting close,” Vanessa said, out of breath as she struggled to keep up. She had a concussion and she wasn’t used to the heat. Luke didn’t think he could move as fast carrying her, but he might have to try.
“She won’t make it on her own,” he said to Julie. “I have to lead them off. Meet you at the car. You make sure nothing happens to her, do you hear me? If she’s not at that car—”
Julie snarled at him, “Just go. I’ll get her there.”
“No!” Vanessa objected, reaching out to Luke.
He grabbed her hand and squeezed. “I’ll be fine. I’ll meet you at the car. Go.”
With that, he took off, leaving Vanessa with her sister. He only looked back once to see them continuing down the path, Julie supporting her sister with one arm. Maybe Julie did have some heart left. Some caring for Vanessa.
He blanked the thought as he crashed through the trees, making sure he was heard, and making sure the men coming after them were following him—then he started moving faster, back toward the house, where he planned on ending this once and for all.
* * *
VANESSA’S LUNGS WERE on fire and her head was aching so much she could barely see, so she didn’t have much choice than to cling to Julie on the way down the hillside.
Her sister supported her and her voice was kind as she urged Vanessa along.
Within minutes, the car came into sight.
“Is he there? Is Luke there?”
Vanessa tried to see, but the sun glaring off the car blinded her.
“Not yet. C’mon, we have to go.”
As soon as they were on flat land, Julie raced toward the car, and Vanessa limped along behind, making it to the vehicle as quickly as she could. Adrenaline kicked in, clearing her head somewhat.
“Get in.”
“We have to wait for Luke,” Vanessa objected.
Julie looked at her as if she was speaking an unknown language. “You can wait for him. I’m leaving.”
Vanessa couldn’t believe what her sister was saying. “He put himself in danger to save us, and you’d just leave him?”
“He wanted to save you—he could care less about me. He should be here. Since he’s not, he probably got caught. We have to go, or we’ll be caught, as well.”
“No. We can’t leave him.”
“Suit yourself. I’m out of here.”
Julie got into the car and put the key in the ignition. Vanessa scrambled to think of a way to stop her, to make her understand that they had to wait for Luke or help him.
“At least make a phone call. Call the police for him,” she said, opening the passenger door.
“We’ll call once we’re free of the property. Get in, or I swear, Vanessa, I’m not waiting one more second,” her sister threatened, her fearful eyes scanning the woods for anyone who might be coming.
“Okay, okay,” Vanessa said, her heart squeezing as she got into the car and shut the door. Julie had left her only one choice, and she didn’t have more than seconds to make it. Luke could be in terrible danger, and she refused to leave him behind.
Before Julie started the engine, Vanessa summoned what strength she had and grabbed her sister’s gun.
“No,” Julie yelled, fighting her for the weapon. During the struggle, Vanessa swung just as Julie faltered and let go. Julie’s head snapped back, hitting the headrest. She was out cold.
Vanessa didn’t waste any time and searched Julie’s pockets for a phone. When she found it she was thrilled they had a signal. She called the operator and was connected directly to the police—within minutes, they assured her that help was on the way.
But would it arrive in time?
Getting out of the car, she maneuvered Julie, who was stirring, over into the passenger seat. Vanessa took the driver’s seat and drove them back toward the house.
14
LUKE EXITED the Federal Building in Tampa near dinnertime. He’d started his day with the feds right after breakfast. He couldn’t eat much, his ribs still ached from the fight he had with Max.
Max hurt more, though.
Vanessa’s brother—it didn’t even seem right to call him that—was nursing his wounds in the infirmary of a federal prison. It was where he’d spend the rest of his years.
Some bruised ribs and a sprained shoulder were small prices to pay for the end result, and it had gotten better over the week since their confrontation. Max and Julie were both apprehended and the software was off the black market for good.
Luke hadn’t spoken to Vanessa since she’d raced into Max’s house as he and Luke had fought, with the Puerto Rican police right behind her. Julie was already in custody at that point—apparently, she and Vanessa had come to blows, and Vanessa had come out on top.
The memory made Luke smile. And then frown. After that day, he’d barely seen her except a few times on the isla
nd. They’d taken separate flights home, both of them detained for medical treatment and questioning by a number of agencies. Luke’s work with Homeland Security had gone on even longer. It had consumed almost every minute since he’d returned, but his software was in the right hands now.
He checked his phone again, on reflex, but there was no call, no message.
He supposed that was the message, and he was surprised how much it hurt.
Checking his watch, he arrived at the café where he was supposed to meet Jonas, his cousin from Philly. Jonas was in town on another job, and no doubt, had orders from Garrett to check in on Luke. His cousins had been concerned when they heard what had happened. They’d read him the riot act for not asking for their backup, and Luke knew they’d been worried. And they would have been there; they always had his back.
Considering his relationship with his cousins, he understood the deep drive that had kept Vanessa hoping that she could find Julie and ultimately reconcile. It was why she probably hated him right now for testifying against her sister.
He couldn’t blame her, but he wished things were different.
He spotted Jonas standing near the bar about the same time his cousin saw him. The two met halfway, sharing a brotherly hug and handshake.
The hug made Luke wince, and Jonas stepped back, taking a long look. “Ribs still hurt?”
“A bit.”
“Let me buy you a beer, and you can fill me in on the details. We’ve only got some of the story.” He crossed the room, grabbing one of the few open tables.
“I tried to tell Garrett on the phone, but he was too busy yelling at me for not asking for help,” Luke said drily.
“Which you deserved. What we heard coming out of Puerto Rico sounded pretty hairy. If you’d called, we would have been there.”
“I know. It means a lot to me, but it was something I had to handle on my own.”
The guys lifted the beers that were delivered to them just a few minutes later.
“But you weren’t alone, right? Tell me the rest,” Jonas said, sitting back in the chair.
Luke took a deeper drink from his glass and then did so, filling in as much as he could for Jonas, who listened patiently. Jonas always had been the brother that Luke had related to best, probably because they were about the same age. But Jonas had a way about him, as well, something that drew people out. Made them talk. It had made him a heck of a cop before he’d been a bodyguard.
“So that’s pretty much all that happened,” Luke finished, grabbing the menu from the holder on the table, suddenly hungry.
“Wow, that’s all? You stopped a significant black- market sale of your stolen software, and arrested the major figures of a crime ring that left at least one person in your company dead. Not bad for a week’s work,” Jonas said with his trademark sarcasm, but there was also a gleam of admiration in his eyes. “You kicked ass, Luke. Congratulations.”
“Thanks,” Luke said, staring at the menu.
“You going to order?”
“Huh?”
“Food. Are you going to order?”
Luke’s appetite went as quickly as it came. He pushed the menu over to Jonas as his eyes drifted to his phone yet again.
“I don’t think so. It’s early yet.”
“She hasn’t called you, huh?” Jonas said, shaking Luke out of his blank stare.
“What?”
“Vanessa? Don’t even bother denying it. Every time you said her name in the last half hour you looked down at your phone on the table. You two have a date? Don’t worry about leaving me on my own. I need to eat and get back to work.”
Luke frowned. “I didn’t think I was so obvious.”
Jonas grinned. “Not obvious, just stupid in love.”
Luke’s head snapped up. “Love? No. I just wish it could have been different. We had good chemistry.”
“Why past tense?”
“I’m testifying against her sister, Jonas. I still want Julie to pay for everything she did, and then some. That doesn’t exactly endear me to Vanessa. She’s back and has had time to think, and you know, she probably hates my guts about now.”
Jonas stared, his eyebrows lifting. “Probably? She told you that?”
“No. I haven’t seen her except in passing since everything went down on the island.”
“And you didn’t call her? Check in on her?”
“I’ve been caught up with the feds, but even so, I thought it was best to give her some space. I figured if she wanted—”
“Wait, so you just expected her to come to you, and you’re going to use her not doing that as your out. I guess I was way off. You sounded like you cared about this woman.”
Luke’s frown deepened. “I do care about her, but I don’t want to assume—”
Jonas made a sour face. “You know what they say about assuming. Only in this case, it’s just making an ass out of you.”
“Funny.”
“It wasn’t supposed to be funny. It’s true,” his cousin said, sitting forward, his hands folded on the table. “Listen, if you want her, you need to let her know. You have to find out for sure, or you’ll wonder forever if you let something good go.”
“I don’t know about that. I—”
“I’ve been there, take it from me,” Jonas interrupted. “I almost let Tessa go, pushed her away, hard. Would have been the biggest mistake of my life if she hadn’t had the good sense to keep coming back. So don’t assume, and don’t make excuses because you’re afraid.”
“Afraid? Of what?”
“Of being burned again. I guess I can’t blame you for being cautious with Vanessa—she not only looks like her sister, but now her sister—the one who messed you up last time—is back in the picture. It’s a disaster. You know, forget what I just said. I think you’re probably smart to stay out of it. Being with this woman is asking for more trouble. Crazy seems to run in the family.”
Luke shook his head. “No. You don’t know her. She’s not like Julie, not in the least. For sure she’s nothing like Max. Vanessa has heart. She’s sweet, generous, kind. Sexy. She’s...” Luke’s voice drifted off, as if he heard himself for the first time. “I have to go. Rain check on dinner.”
Jonas chuckled. “Yeah, I figured.”
Luke stood, pausing to look down at his cousin. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Go get her, man. Make as big of a fool of yourself as necessary. Don’t worry, we’ve all been there.”
With a sense of reinvigorated purpose, Luke slapped Jonas on the shoulder and left the restaurant, flipping open his phone. He had no idea where Vanessa might be, and thought the tracker he’d planted on Vanessa might be offline by now. To his surprise, a small blip showed up on his app screen.
She was at the school.
Running down the street toward where he parked his car, he hurried to get there before she left.
* * *
VANESSA WAS EXHAUSTED but still excited as she waited for Mr. Edwards to show up for their afternoon meeting. They’d agreed to meet in her old classroom, where she was still packing up some things she’d left behind.
Several days of being grilled by men in suits was no fun at all. She’d flown back to the States almost immediately, keeping track of Julie and wanting to make sure she was there for her. Her sister refused to see her, wouldn’t talk to her. She was angry and afraid. Vanessa understood and was determined to see it through. She’d spent a few days getting an apartment and reassessing her life. That’s what she was here to talk to the principal about.
“Ms. Grant, thanks for waiting. Sorry I’m late, I had to meet with some parents,” he said, his eyes traveling over her face as if assessing her current state compared to the last time they’d spoken. “You look better. Things have improved?”
Vanessa nodded. “Very much so. The danger has passed, and I’ve got a new place to live, but...I think you were right. There’s still a lot I need to work through, and I’d hoped I could take the next few months off and start again in January, as we discussed before.”
Edwards noted the box on her desk. “I thought you’d be here asking to return immediately. Not that we wouldn’t be thrilled to have you, but I think the time off will be a good idea. How are you doing?”
His gaze was piercing, as if he could tell if she was answering honestly or not. Probably what made him an effective principal, she thought with a smile.
“I’m better. But I have to straighten out some things first. I need to see my parents, and I know the papers covered some of what happened in Puerto Rico, but I found my sister. We were separated when we were young.”
“Yes, I remember reading something about that. It sounded complicated.”
“It is. She’s had a difficult time, and I want to be there for her, to help her and maybe to rebuild our relationship. I know that it’s going to take some time, and I want to be able to give the students, and the school, my best. So it would be better if I could focus on my life for the next few months, and then return to work. I don’t expect to be paid for that time off, but—”
“Like I said, the paperwork for a paid leave has already been processed. You wouldn’t want me to have to redo all of that, would you?” he asked with a humorous glint in his eye.
“Well, if you put it that way,” she said with a smile of her own. “That’s very generous. Thank you.”
“You’re one of our best teachers, and you deserve our support. And I find it admirable that you’re going to be there for your sister. I hope that all works out.”
“I hope so, too. But I don’t have any illusions about it, either. I know there’s a chance that it won’t. She’s...been the way she is for a long time. I don’t know if she’ll change, but at least she’ll know I’m here if she does.”
“And we’ll be here if you need us, too. Feel free to come by my office anytime, if you need to talk, or if something changes. I’m always willing to listen, or to help in any way I can. Like I said, I know about the kind of trauma you’ve been through.”
Unexpected Temptation Page 17