by Diane Burke
She glanced back and smiled at him. “But at least he met my mother. And fell in love with her. That had to bring him happiness.” She sighed. “But he found himself accused again…and forced to run. My parents obviously loved one another deeply.”
“More than you know.”
Sophie turned to face him. The graveness in his expression made her pause. “What?” She tilted her head and stared at him when he didn’t immediately answer her. “What else do you know, Cain?”
“Your mother was so young, Sophie…naive…idealistic…sort of a Pollyanna. She told your father that the only way she would leave Promise with him was if he went to the authorities and told them what he knew.”
Sophie gasped. “She asked him to betray his own father?”
Cain sighed. “She asked him to do the right thing, to make the world a safer place, to protect the people being exploited by his father’s business.”
“Wow,” Sophie kneaded the clay faster. “Obviously, he did as she requested. She left with him.”
“He told her he would. That’s why she went with him. But when it came down to the wire, he couldn’t do it.”
“What do you mean?” Sophie was glad the candlelight wasn’t strong enough to reveal the mixed emotions racing across her face.
“He loved your mother…but he also loved his father, even if he didn’t approve of the things he did. When the feds first approached him, he turned them down.”
“Wow, my mom must have felt betrayed. Why didn’t she leave him?”
“I imagine she stayed because she loved him. And she understood the deep relationship between father and son. It’s one thing to be angry with a parent, to not approve of their actions, to close yourself off from them. It’s quite another to be the one responsible for putting that parent behind bars for the rest of his life. I think your dad kept convincing your mother that he would do the right thing he just needed time to work up the courage. But time slipped away and his promises became nothing more than empty words.”
“So what happened?”
“You did. The feds got wind about an internal battle in Vincent Gimmelli’s ranks. Some people thought it was time for him to retire, permanently. The feds approached your dad. They told him that the people trying to overthrow Vinnie might decide to use your dad and his family as pawns against him. The feds told your dad their sources had confirmed this and that he and your mother were in danger. With you on the way, Dominic felt he had no choice. He agreed to testify against his father and enter the witness protection program.”
“I don’t understand. My dad and I were never in the witness protection program. I know I missed a lot of things growing up, but I don’t believe I’d have missed feds appearing in our lives on a regular basis checking up on us.”
Cain’s eyes darkened and his mouth pulled into a tight, straight line.
“What haven’t you told me?” She noted his hesitation and placed a hand gently on his cheek. “Tell me,” she whispered. “I need to know it all.”
“Your parents did go into the program. But before your father could testify, your mother was killed.” He removed her hand, kissed the back of it and stared into her eyes. “You were told she had been killed in an auto accident.”
“Yes?” Her chest tightened and she could hardly breathe as she braced herself for what he was about to say.
“It wasn’t an accident, Sophie. She was killed in a car bomb.”
She blinked…tried to breathe…blinked again.
“Your parents, living under their new identities, were leaving an art exhibit. When they reached their car, your mother had forgotten something. She asked your father to retrieve it for her and said she’d pull the car up front and wait for him. When she turned the key in the ignition, the car exploded. Your father was close enough to be knocked to the ground with a serious concussion, but that didn’t stop him. The burns on his hands came from trying to pull your mother out of the car.”
Tears streamed down Sophie’s face. She remembered questioning her father about the terrible scars on his hands and arms. He made up a story about being injured experimenting with chemicals during an art project.
A car bomb? The pain in Sophie’s chest was almost too much to bear.
Cain brushed the tears from her cheek with his thumb. “I’m so sorry.”
“What happened then?”
Cain led her back to the swing and gently rocked it as if the rhythm would help soothe her. “Your dad knew then that witness protection couldn’t protect him…or you. And he believed he’d have a better chance protecting you on his own.”
“I don’t understand. If his father found him the first time, what made my dad think they wouldn’t find us again?”
“I don’t know, Sophie. Maybe someday we can ask him.”
His words caught her attention. “You think he might still be alive?”
“I don’t know. The feds think he’s dead. They believe that when the Mob caught up with him, they killed him. But they also don’t think they found the evidence your father had against them. They think your father left the evidence with you as leverage for protection. That’s why the feds believe the Mob is looking for you. The feds want to offer you their protection in exchange for that evidence.”
Sophie let the information sink in before speaking. She almost laughed out loud but realized Cain would think her insane. She already believed she was caught in a living nightmare…. Now this.
The Mob was targeting her for information she didn’t have. They must be the ones responsible for her near hit-and-run, her ransacked home, nearly being run off the road at the cemetery. Suddenly, the dark, evil eyes of the driver following her earlier today popped into her mind and her stomach roiled.
Federal marshals wanted her, too, for their witness protection program. Wanted to take her away from Promise, from Holly and Mrs. Garrison, from Cain. For the first time since this nightmare had begun she was grateful she didn’t have the evidence to give them.
Sophie stood up. She clasped her arms tightly around her body. “Well, it’s all over now, isn’t it? The feds are convinced my father is dead. And we both know I don’t have any evidence to hand over to them or to the Mob. So it’s over.”
Cain stood and faced her. “Over? Nothing’s over. What are you talking about?”
“You’ve solved the case. I don’t need your services anymore.”
“Are you out of your mind? The Mob is after you. You’ve never needed my protection more.”
He thinks I need his protection.
Not his love. Not him.
Sophie smiled and hoped the sadness that permeated her being wouldn’t show in her face. “Your job is done, Cain. You’re a detective, not a bodyguard. You found the information I asked you to find. Send me the bill.”
He recoiled as if she’d struck him. It took all the strength in her body to stand there and stare back into his angry, confused eyes.
That’s right, Cain. I’m not your client anymore. Maybe now you can admit your feelings for me without feeling guilty for crossing a professional line…without fearing I’ll hurt you like she did.
“Sophie.” He clasped her forearms. “You are the most infuriating, stubborn woman I have ever met.”
“What happened to ‘Sophie, you have a backbone of steel’?” She grinned.
He looked like he wanted to shake her. “Stop fooling around. This case is far from over and I’m not going anywhere. Someone has killed your father and now they are trying to kill you. Do you get that?”
“Of course, I get that. I’m not stupid, Cain. Or foolish. I know it’s a probability the Mob has killed my father. But there’s another scenario, too.”
“Really? And what’s that?”
“My father isn’t dead. He’s hiding. He’s running for his life. And there’s no way I’m going to have any part in leading anyone to him. I don’t want to know where he is anymore so no one can force me to do or say anything that could harm him. I don’t want to k
now where…or even if…he hid evidence.”
She stepped closer. Her fingers ever so gently traced the stubble on his face. She gazed into his troubled, exhausted eyes. “It’s over, Cain. As of this minute, I’m not your client anymore. Go home. Get some rest.”
“But you’re not safe….”
She held up the pepper spray. “I’m as safe as I’m going to be. You can’t be my bodyguard twenty-four hours a day. I hired you to locate my father.”
“But I didn’t.”
She smiled into his eyes. “You did more, Cain. You gave me back my life. You found out who I really am. Where I come from. Where I belong. It’s enough.” She pressed her lips lightly against his and smiled. “It’s everything.”
“I don’t like this,” he growled like a wounded bear.
Sophie laughed. “You don’t have to like it.” She gently pushed him toward the top step of the porch. “But you have to go. Get some sleep. It will seem clearer to you in the morning.”
He took a step away and then stopped.
“Before I leave, I want you to know that I’m not mad that you pushed me to confide in you about Lucy.”
“You’re not?” Doubt rang in her voice.
He stared into her eyes. “I’m grateful. It’s the first time I shared that information with anyone. All that pain and hurt and guilt was bottled up inside of me, festering, growing. And you helped me get it out.”
She smiled but remained quiet. Waiting. Letting him tell things in his own time, in his own way.
“I’m not saying it was a magic cure for me. I still have strong emotions I have to deal with regarding that time in my life.” He kissed her forehead. “But because of you, now I have a real shot at doing exactly that.”
“Cain, you can talk to me anytime, about anything.”
He brushed his fingers down her cheek and hugged her a little closer. “I know that, Soph. You’re a good friend.”
Friend?
The blood drained from her face and an unsettling feeling twisted her stomach.
“That’s why I threw myself into my work. My emotions were spilling all over the place. I’m not used to feeling that way and I needed the space to clear my head.”
“And did you?” she asked. “Clear your head?”
“I realized I was on the verge of making a horrible mistake. I was letting myself plunge headlong into another personal relationship with someone involved in a case I was working.”
Mistake? Her stomach clenched. This conversation was not going the way she’d hoped at all.
“Everything was happening so fast I needed to take a step back. I needed to assure myself I wasn’t doing the same stupid thing again.”
Sophie stepped away, hating the slight distance she put between them, already missing the warmth of his body as she broke their contact.
“And what great discovery did you make, Cain?” She surprised herself with how calm her voice sounded. Her insides were tumbling every which way they could but at least her voice wasn’t letting her down.
“No mistake, Sophie. I’ve realized you’re becoming one of my best friends. How can that be wrong?”
Her hopes tumbled to her feet. She looked into his stupid, grinning face and wanted to hit him.
“Friends?”
“Always and forever. I hope you feel the same way about me.”
She smiled weakly in return. “Believe me, Cain. You can’t imagine how I feel about you.”
“Good. Then you agree. We can be friends and still keep this situation between us professional.”
“Sure. Professional.” Tears burned at the back of her eyes but she’d die before she’d shed one in front of him. So he was giving her the brush-off. Because of Lucy. She suddenly understood why people swore.
Is it really that easy for you, Cain? To kiss me? To hold me? And try to convince yourself that nothing remarkable, nothing special is blossoming between us?
And then a lightbulb went on inside her mind and she smiled. He was still running. He did feel something special for her and it frightened him. Okay. She understood. After the horrible betrayal from Lucy, it was normal for him to be gun-shy. She’d just have to find a way to convince him he could trust his feelings again. That she wasn’t Lucy. She wouldn’t betray him…ever.
A peace settled over her. All was not lost. There’d be time for him to come to his senses. And firing him from the case was exactly what she needed to do if she wanted to release him from that “professional” wall he’d erected between them.
“I’m sorry I had nothing but bad news for you today.” Then he kissed her, gently, softly, almost as if he were trying to heal the aching hurt he knew she held inside.
“Leave, Cain.” She pushed lightly against his chest. “Go home and get some sleep.”
“I’ll leave…but not until I’m sure you’re safely inside.”
She started to speak and his fingers silenced her lips.
“A lot has been said here tonight. We both need to get some sleep. Clear our heads. We’ll talk again tomorrow.”
He led her inside. She stood in the doorway and promised to lock the door as soon as he made it to the car. Before he left, he turned on the top step and looked at her long and hard as if he was being compelled to say something more.
“Sophie, my mother called and told me what happened at the church today. I’m so sorry you had to go through that.”
She shrugged. “It’s over and done with.”
“Maybe so,” he said. “But I want you to remember when you think about everything that happened today, and you will—even though I’m hoping you’ll be able to get a good night’s sleep and not dwell on things—I want you to understand something really important.”
“What’s that?”
He stared at her long and hard. “People disappoint people. They do it all the time. I don’t want to ever disappoint you—I hope I never do—but if I do…” He shrugged his shoulders and gave her that lopsided grin of his. “Knowing me, I probably already have.” His expression sobered and his eyes darkened. “But God never will, Soph. If you can count on anything, you can count on that.”
FIFTEEN
Sophie pulled back the curtain and shaded her eyes against the bright morning sun. She’d slept poorly, tossing and turning most of the night, jumping at every creak and imagined sound she heard. So much for being the big, brave I-can-stand-on-my-own-and-don’t-need-anyone girl she professed to be.
As hard as she’d tried last night to rest her body, it had been impossible to rest her mind. She spent most of the night second-guessing her decisions. Should she have told Holly about receiving the threatening telephone call? Should she have told Sheriff Dalton about the black sedan following her yesterday even though she had no proof it really had been? And most of all, should she have told Cain? He’d left last night believing there’d been no further threatening incidents for over a week. She hadn’t lied to him. He just hadn’t asked her the right questions.
Sins of omission. Hmm.
Besides, he had to leave. She’d fired him.
The beginning of a smile twisted the corner of her mouth as she remembered the shocked expression on his face. She only hoped when he’d rested and had some time to think about things that he’d realize what she’d really done—opened the door to the possibility of more between them.
She took a morning shower, a cold one, and hoped the frigid temperature would shock her system awake. Toweling herself dry, she dressed in a red tank top, denim shorts and sandals. She pulled her hair back and fastened it in a bun on top of her head so she wouldn’t have it hanging on her neck in the heat.
This is just another day. Relax. Worrying never gets a person anywhere.
As she finished her breakfast and cleaned up the kitchen, she allowed herself to think about the devastating news Cain had delivered last night. Were the federal marshals right? Had someone killed her father? A wave of pain seized her heart at the thought she might never see him again.
Or was he on the run? Frightened. Hiding. Alone.
Although she still wished he’d confided in her, she understood now why he’d left without a word. He’d been trying to protect her—just as he’d done his entire life.
Sophie pushed back the curtain over the kitchen sink. Her eyes carefully skimmed the woods for any sign of danger and found none. No shadows. No people hiding in the brush. No obvious threats. But she knew someone was out there. She could feel it. She’d felt it every day she’d been in Promise. Someone was watching every move she made—or else she’d watched too many movies and was making herself paranoid.
Paranoid or not, she chose to be vigilant and err on the side of caution.
After all these years on the run, how had the Mob found them? And why now? Would a crime family actually search over twenty-two years for someone? That joke about the only way to retire from the Mob was six feet under wasn’t really a joke, was it?
She placed her dishes in the rack to dry and emptied the sink.
And now these evil men were following her. The memory of the man’s black, lifeless eyes in her rearview mirror flashed through her mind and chills slithered over her spine.
Maybe she should have told Cain about the whispered phone threat and the black sedan following her.
No. Bad move. Can’t do that.
She needed him to come back on his own…because he wanted to…because he needed to…because he needed her. Sophie touched her lips with the tip of her fingers. Their kiss had been meaningful, something special definitely blossoming between them. And she knew he’d felt it, too. He’d call. She just had to be patient and wait.
Yeah, right. Patient. Then why hadn’t she been able to take her eyes off the phone the entire time she’d spent eating her cereal and finishing her second cup of coffee?
She wasn’t his client anymore. No professional conflicts. Freedom to explore their budding relationship further. Freedom to find out if what they had could lead to something more…something serious and lasting.
He’d call.
She checked her cell phone for messages.