Dangerous Betrayals

by Dover, L. P.

  Kennedy turned her attention to Buttercup and sighed. “Did you find anything out last night?”

  Resting my elbows on the wooden fence, I huffed. “No. Your mother’s file was pretty simple. She lived in North Carolina all her life and went to college at Appalachian State University where she got her teaching degree. Her parents died when she was nineteen years old from a car accident.” I peered over at Kennedy and she nodded.

  “That’s what sucks. I never got to meet any of my grandparents. They all died before I was born. Now that my mother’s gone, I have no one. My dad has a sister, but I haven’t seen or heard anything from her since my dad died when I was five.”

  I couldn’t imagine not having family. I’d grown up surrounded by brothers, friends, aunts and uncles. “Don’t worry,” I told her, “there may not be a connection to you, your mom, and the killer. Who knows, it could all be just random, but with the circumstances, I don’t really think that’s the case. Either way, I can find what we’re looking for.”

  She looked over at me. “How?”

  I hated seeing the concern in her beautiful hazel eyes — with the sun shining they just sparkled. I needed to give her assurance. “Through the government’s computer systems and satellites. It might take some time, but I’m pretty damn good at finding people. There are only a select few in my group who have that kind of access.”

  Her gaze narrowed. “Satellites, huh? Does that mean you can go back and see what all happened at my mother’s house the night she was killed?”

  “Not exactly,” I replied. “We can’t see inside someone’s home, but I’ll be able to see anyone who went in and out.”

  She gasped. “I want to see it all.”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” I replied truthfully. It’s not that I didn’t think she was strong enough to handle anything, she’s certainly proven that, but why take yourself through all that pain over and over again. Reliving that kind of trauma takes its toll. “You might see something you don’t want to see.”

  Her eyes blazed with anger. “Why didn’t John tell me this could be done?”

  “Because he doesn’t know,” I answered. “Not many people do. We use special government technology. With only a handful of people knowing how to access the satellites. Even so, we can’t figure out every single murder case. There’s just not enough time in the world. It’s important we keep this knowledge contained otherwise it could be used against us.”

  She scoffed. “So what you’re saying is that in order to get the special treatment, I have to be someone high up? Like the president or someone with a butt ton of money?” Her hand shook and I could see the rage behind those hazel eyes of hers.

  All in all, she was right, but I couldn’t tell her that. But mostly it was because of the safety issues of this type of technology getting into the wrong hands. “That’s not what I’m saying, Kennedy,” I said, hoping to deflect her anger and not sounding like I’m appeasing her. “I’m sorry this happened to you, but I’m here to help. Even looking at the satellites doesn’t guarantee we’ll find the killer. It takes a lot of calculated guesses and that’s where I come in. I go with my gut.”

  She blew out a frustrated breath and her eyes softened. “I’m sorry. I wish you knew how hard this was for me.” I understood what she was going through as I’d seen it time and time again. Being a victim, and trying hard not to be one is exhausting and I could see it was taking its toll on her.

  I placed a hand over hers, and something about it felt right. “We’re going to find that piece of shit, I promise. Once my package gets delivered today, I’ll set up the cameras around your property so we can keep an eye on everything while we’re gone. And as soon as we get to Wyoming, I’ll use every single resource I have to figure this all out.”

  Standing up straighter, she lifted her chin and nodded. “Good. And I want to be right there to help you.”

  She looked at me expectantly and I narrowed my gaze, wondering what she had on her mind. I already knew it was something she wanted to keep from John. Didn’t know if that was a good or bad thing, but I had a feeling it was the latter. “Yeah, about that. What do you want exactly?” I asked.

  Her eyes darkened. “I’m not waiting for that psycho to hunt me down again. I want you to teach me how to kill. That way, the next time I see him, he’ll be on the receiving end and not the other way around.” She looked down at the river, her body tense. “I want to look him in the eyes when I kill him. You’re the only one who can help me get away with it.”

  Yep, it was definitely the latter. I stared at her in disbelief, but also in complete awe. I could get into some serious trouble for helping her. Was it good to give in to revenge? No, but in her case, I’d be the same way if someone killed my mother. She deserved to get her revenge and the killer deserved everything she could dish out and then some.

  If it was anyone but Kennedy, I wouldn’t do it. But for her, it would mean closure — I could see that now.

  The decision was made.

  Chapter Eight

  Kennedy

  Reed had a package delivered to my house which ended up being a box full of tiny cameras and high-tech machinery I’d never seen before in my life. He spent the entire afternoon placing them all around my yard and in the house while I worked in the kitchen making us some homemade beef and vegetable soup. If anyone were to sneak around or try to break into my house, we’d be able to see them all the way from Wyoming.

  Once Reed was done outside, he walked through the back door, bare chested with his T-shirt draped over his shoulder. His jeans hung low on his hips, revealing those sexy indentions we all loved on men. The breath caught in my lungs and I prayed to God he didn’t hear the gasp that came out of my mouth. I focused back on my soup, trying my hardest not to look over at his washboard abs.

  “Everything’s done outside. After dinner, I’ll show you how you can tap into the cameras anytime you want while we’re gone. We’ll also get alerts if anyone comes near them.”

  I quickly looked over at him and smiled, but then focused back on my soup. “Thank you for doing that.”

  He cleared his throat. “Do I have time to take a shower before dinner?”

  “Yep,” I said, wishing like hell I could look at him and not give away how flustered he made me feel. “The beer bread needs just a few more minutes anyway.”

  “Beer bread?” he said, chuckling. “I like the sound of that. I’ll be right back.”

  He turned toward the hall and I watched him hurry up the stairs, the muscles in his back flexing as he moved. He had tattoos all over his back, but I couldn’t tell what all they were from my distance. Shaking my head, I focused back on the stove. It’d been way too long since I’d been around a man, especially one that was intriguing like Reed. Dean was masculine and strong, but he came nowhere close to Reed’s caliber.

  I pretty much kept to myself ever since I moved to Vermont. A couple of teachers I worked with at the local high school became good friends, but they were married with families of their own. I never hung out with them outside of the school setting. The only real friend I have at the moment is Amy and I missed her terribly. She’s visited me multiple times the past few months, but with moving to Wyoming I doubt I’d be able to see her for a while.

  A few minutes passed and the timer went off for the beer bread. I pulled it out of the oven and it had the crunchy, buttery top and edges like I wanted. The edges were my favorite. I could hear Reed’s footsteps in the room above me and it wasn’t long before he made it down the stairs, dressed in a light green T-shirt that matched his eyes and a clean pair of jeans. He reminded me of someone and it took me a while to figure it out.

  He smiled at me and it was the strangest thing. To be an assassin, someone who had to kill people for a living, he sure did seem like a happy kind of guy. In my mind, when I thought of people like him I pictured them broody and mean, definitely not cute with a sexy smolder.

  “Everything okay?” he asked, sitti
ng down at the bar.

  I couldn’t help but smile, but I could feel the flame burning my cheeks. “Yeah, sorry. You remind me of someone and I thought it was kind of funny.”

  His grin widened. “Oh yeah? Who?”

  I waved him off like it wasn’t a big deal. “Just someone from one of my favorite TV shows,” I said, turning away from him to grab two bowls out of the cabinet.

  Reed chuckled. “Don’t stop there. You got me curious now.”

  I filled his bowl up and set it in front of him along with a spoon. It was strange how comfortable I felt with him; almost as if I could tell him anything. “Okay, fine. You remind me of one of the vampires from The Vampire Diaries.”

  He leaned his head back and burst out laughing. “I can’t believe this. Let me guess … Damon?”

  That caught me off guard and my mouth gaped, making him laugh even more. I didn’t know any man who’d watched The Vampire Diaries. “Have you watched it?” I asked.

  Still smiling, he shook his head. “Hell no, but I know who you’re talking about. My two best friends are women. You wouldn’t believe the kind of shit they tell me about.” I had a feeling he had a lot of female friends. He had a charm about him that even drew me in. I had no doubt it was like that with everyone else. He brought the bowl of soup closer, inhaling the aroma. “The soup smells pretty damn good.”

  I ladled out some soup for myself and cut us both a piece of beer bread. “I know it’s June and not soup weather, but I can seriously eat homemade soup any time of the year.” I placed his piece of bread on a plate along with some butter. “Besides, we’re leaving tomorrow and I wanted to use up as much stuff as I could in the fridge.”

  Reed looked down at his steaming bowl and chuckled. “Works fine with me. Anytime I can get a home cooked meal, I’m happy.”

  I sat down across from him. “Guess you probably travel a lot, don’t you?”

  He lifted a spoonful of the soup to his lips and blew off the steam. “Now that my brothers have all settled down and taken a different role with the FBI, yeah. I’m the only one who can come and go as I please.”

  “What does your girlfriend say about you being gone all the time?” I asked. There wasn’t a ring on his finger so I assumed he wasn’t married.

  Reed smirked at me. “I thought I was the one who was supposed to ask you questions.”

  I shrugged. “We’re basically going to be living together for a while so …” The thought was still strange to me, but also completely intriguing. Tomorrow, I’d be in Wyoming at his home. Just me and him.

  He chuckled. “I’m kidding, Kennedy. You can ask me anything you want.” He took another bite of soup and closed his eyes. “Although I do have to say you, hands down, have my sister-in-law beat with this soup and beer bread.”

  Thinking about family made my chest tighten. I envied him for having a large family. I may never know what that is like. “Tell me about your family,” I said, taking a bite of my bread. “Who all do I get to meet tomorrow?”

  His lips tilted. “You’ll meet my brother, Ian, and his wife, Grace, tomorrow morning. Ian’s going to fly us home in our family jet. We’re meeting them at a private airfield not far from here.”

  I was about to eat another bite of soup and froze. “Seriously? You have your own jet?”

  Reed shrugged. “I’ve only been in it a handful of times. Here recently, I’ve been flying commercial like everyone else.” He stared at me and smiled. “You and Grace have a lot in common. I think it’ll be great for you two to meet.”

  “Is she the one who can cook?” I asked.

  He nodded. “Yep. My other sister-in-law is Layla. She’s married to my other brother, Bryce, who is also Ian’s twin. Bryce met her when he was undercover in New York posing as a mafia leader.”

  It was all so surreal. “The mafia? Have you ever had to do anything like that?”

  He laughed. “Actually, I did. I just got back from New York two months ago from pretending to be part of the Corsino family. My friend Faith is getting ready to marry Dominic Corsino.”

  The name sounded so familiar and it didn’t take long to figure out why. I’d seen the Corsino name all over the news a few months ago. “You’re friends with some high profile people,” I noticed. “Not to mention you’re a part of the Chandler family which is a huge name in itself.”

  He shrugged. “It has its advantages at times. I’m the youngest out of all my brothers. Right now, Ian and Bryce train other agents to become members of the Circle of Justice. Since we have a lot of private land it’s easy to practice long range shooting.”

  That made me smile. I’d never been more ready for anything in my life. “I want to learn what they do.”

  Reed shook his head. “Sorry, sunshine, that’s not going to happen. Ian would probably be okay with it, but Bryce is a ‘play by the rules’ kind of guy. I probably shouldn’t have even agreed to bring you into this. It’s dangerous.”

  “Sitting back and doing nothing is dangerous,” I said, all humor gone. “I can handle anything you put me through.”

  His gaze narrowed. “Sure about that?”

  “Try me.” I held out my arms. “I’m in great shape. I have amazing endurance and I can run for days. In school I played tennis, soccer, and ran cross country. I can do this, Reed.”

  He studied me for several seconds and sighed. “Something changed in you last night. You’re different now. What happened?”

  Looking down at my soup, I swirled it around as images from my dream stayed vivid in my mind. “For the past eight months, I’ve had the same dream,” I said, meeting his gaze. “I’d be at my mother’s house and when I walk in, I could feel her death. The killer would be there, taunting me, and all I want to do is fight him, but I can never move. He comes at me with the knife and then I wake up.”

  I peered over at Reed and his eyes softened. “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be. Everything changed last night in my dream. For the first time, I was able to fight.” Tears sprung to my eyes, but I blinked them away.

  “What happened?” he asked.

  I tried to keep the tears from falling and failed. “I saved her, Reed. In my dream, I got to my mother’s house in time and saved her. When the killer came, I fought him off. I wasn’t scared at all.”

  Reed sat forward and stared right into my eyes. “Are you going to be scared when you come face to face with him? Because I can promise you, we will find him. When we do, I need you to be ready if you’re really going to do this.”

  There was so much anger in me that it overpowered the fear. “With your training, I’ll be ready for anything.” And I think Reed was contributing to the change in me. With him by my side I felt like all things were possible. I felt stronger. I felt safe. I felt invincible.

  “What if this guy is someone you know?” he asked. “Can you look them in the eyes when you kill them?”

  Visions of my mother flashed through my mind. “Yes,” I hissed low.

  He stared at me for a few more seconds and then nodded. “All right. We will see.” It was clear he had his doubts, but I was going to prove it to him. I knew what I wanted and I wanted my mother’s killer to pay for his crimes.

  We finished our dinner in silence and all I could think about was what if the killer was someone I knew. I couldn’t think of anyone it could be. When we thought it was Shawn, I didn’t feel the same need to end his life. I really do believe now, I never did think he was the one that committed the crimes.

  Once Reed finished his food, he picked up his bowl and joined me at the sink. I washed the dishes and he rinsed them off, placing them on the drying rack.

  “What’s the worst thing you’ve seen?” I asked him.

  He released a heavy sigh. “That’s a hard one.” Once all the dishes were done, he leaned against the counter with his arms crossed over his chest. There was a haunted look in his eyes when he met my gaze. “I’ve seen murdered women and children of all ages. People killed by complete strangers
and some by their closest friends. A lot of the people I hunt are scumbags who’ve gotten away with rape, molesting children, and worse.”

  “How do you kill them?” It felt like a raw, personal question, but I wanted to know. Reed’s jaw clenched and I could see the hesitation on his face and the tenseness in his body. “You can tell me,” I said, “I promise you’re not going to frighten me.”

  His shoulders relaxed, but only a little. “Nobody’s ever asked me that question, not even my closest friends. It’s not something I’ve talked about with anyone who wasn’t part of my inner circle.”

  I dried my hands off and held them up. “It’s okay, you don’t have to answer. I’m just curious about your life.” And I was. I wanted to know what I was in for. Not that it mattered. One way or another, I was going to get my revenge. Turning back to the sink, I looked out the window. It was obvious he didn’t want to answer, but then I could see him out of the corner of my eye, watching me.

  I looked over at him and he huffed. “If you really want to know, I shoot them in the head,” he admitted. “There are times when I want to make them suffer, but usually, I have to get in and get out. Shooting them right between the eyes is the fastest way.”

  My throat and chest tightened. There was so much anger in me, I could feel it eating away at my soul. “I don’t want it to go fast with this guy,” I confessed. “I want to hurt him for as long as I can.”

  Reed nodded. “I know, I get it. You want your revenge. Just make sure you don’t lose yourself in the process.” He stared at me and I couldn’t look away. It was as if he could see my inner struggle. Sometimes I didn’t know who I was anymore.

  Reed’s phone buzzed in his pocket and it broke our connection. He pulled it out and I saw the name on his screen. John.

  “John, what’s up?” he answered. I could hear John’s voice through the phone, but I couldn’t make out what he said. Reed’s eyes shot to mine. “Yeah, she’s right here. I’ll put you on speakerphone.” By the sound of his voice, something was wrong. He pressed the button and set his phone down on the counter. “All right, you’re good,” Reed said to him, “we can both hear you.”