by DiAnn Mills
She made it to the door and stood to one side of it. “Who’s there?”
“Your friendly HPD officer, a real crime fighter.”
Laughter bubbled from deep inside her. Just the man her heart wanted to see—not her logic. She opened the door. The man before her had combed his brown-and-chrome hair back, sported a gold earring, green eyes, a tattoo, and wore a black knit shirt that showed every muscle. “You must have eaten ego cereal for breakfast.”
“With tiger’s milk.”
She gestured him inside and closed the door. “What’s your name?”
“C. W. Krestle. Driving a black BMW.” He looked around. “Don’t you ever turn on the lights?”
“Not when I’m in a mood. Believe me, after this morning, I refuse to be pried or peeled. Just dark and sour.”
“Sounds like vampire candy.”
She laughed again. “Where do you get these?”
“Just being my charming self.”
She tilted her head to study him, really see him. “Thank you. Even if you are dressed as Wilmington’s bodyguard.”
“Are you doing okay?”
“I’m a friendly FBI special agent, a real crime fighter.”
The rumble of laughter deep in his throat warmed her. “Good one.”
“I’m all right. Hate the idea of a life wasted.”
“Can I help? I’m an Eagle Scout.”
“Be my friend.”
“That’s easy. I would like coffee and a frozen Snickers.”
“Coming right up. Wilmington’s supposed to call at eight. He’s arranging a meeting with Cayden. See if I passed inspection.”
“What about the punk who attempted to run you down?”
She hadn’t shaken it off yet. “I learned a few things from SSA Preston. Have a seat. This case gets muddier and muddier.” She pressed the button on the coffeemaker and pulled out a pod.
Daniel eased onto a chair. “Same gun that pumped a bullet into your shoulder?”
“No.” She frowned at him. “But the bullets matched the ones fired into your truck. So I may still be dodging fire if Wilmington isn’t successful.”
“Josie Fields?”
She nodded and allowed his cup to fill. “She came on to you. You refused. She’s seen us together with you in your police uniform and doesn’t trust me.”
“I was her alibi, but I made her mad when I didn’t play her game.” He smiled. “Maybe you should have shot me?”
“Then I’d have to deal with Abby.” She pulled a Snickers from the freezer and handed it to him with his coffee.
“You’re not indulging?” he said.
“Stomach is queasy. Comes with the territory.” She’d been lucky. Daniel had been lucky. But that could change in a flash. “Here’s what I learned. Trey Messner, the shooter from this morning, was with Josie Fields at the bakery.”
“Lovers?”
“Worse. Half brother and sister. If she wanted me dead before I killed her brother, imagine her vendetta now.”
Daniel unwrapped the candy and set it beside the coffee. “No wonder your stomach isn’t cooperating. Not sure Wilmington can buy you credibility with that history.” He peered into her face. “I care for you, Laurel. I’d do anything to keep you alive.”
Her eyes moistened. “You have no idea about my past.”
“Let me be the judge of who you are.”
If only she could change the filth. “You’re good and kind, Daniel. You deserve better.”
“I’d like to tell you something. Got another minute?”
“Fire away.” She cringed. “Poor choice of words there.”
“This is personal. Do you mind taking a seat?”
“Okay.” Her pulse sped. Could she handle this?
When she sat, he took her hand and gave a thin-lipped smile.
“Daniel, what’s wrong?”
“I hope everything’s right.”
She’d not overreact. “Go ahead and spill your guts.”
“Is this how you handle an interrogation?” His eyes sparkled, and she wanted to melt into them.
“Depends on what I want to know.” Great. She was flirting. “Me as an interrogator? I can get real nasty.”
“We all can be unlovable.”
Her thoughts bolted to what she’d done with Wilmington. “What made you decide to be a cop?”
“I wanted to be in law enforcement ever since I can remember. My idea of a career meant keeping people safe, fighting crime.”
“Were you a superhero fan?”
“Even wore a Superman cape. Had the neighborhood convinced I was a hero.”
He hadn’t changed, but she wouldn’t tell him. She tossed a smile his way. Her heart raced like Phantom when she loosened the reins. “What did you want to talk about?” Relationships cratered when truth surfaced. She should end any hope for both of them.
“I visited my mother in prison yesterday. First time since I was a toddler.”
She inwardly startled. “That must have been hard. Why now after all these years?” His body language was open.
“I needed to square things with her.” Daniel told her about the woman serving a life sentence for murdering his father.
How could a woman abandon her son? Or refuse his forgiveness after pulling the trigger on his father?
“Not sure I’d have the same courage,” Laurel said. “Honestly, I’d be bitter. She’d be the last person I’d ever want to see.” She paused, thinking over the last few days.
“Gramps says we should never say never because then we’ll be forced into walking through our fears. Ready for a family story?”
How ironic. He was about to spill his guts, and his history couldn’t be any worse than hers.
“My dad grew up doing everything opposite of what his parents wanted or instructed. According to Gramps, he showed remorse only when caught. When he was ten, he vandalized a neighbor’s house. The judge determined Dad was the victim of poor parenting and ordered Gramps to spend three days in jail.” Daniel shrugged. “So untrue. Dad went on to brutalize animals, steal, bully, and break the law every chance he could find. He quit school his senior year after beating up a teacher and went to work at a fast-food restaurant. His rebellion grew from using drugs to selling them. In and out of jail. He hooked up with my mother, and together they made and sold meth. Then I came along. When I was eighteen months old, my parents got into an argument. Both were high. Mom shot Dad and pleaded self-defense, but the courts didn’t buy it. She received a life sentence, and Gran and Gramps raised me.”
“Why did you want to tell me this?”
“I realized I’d never be free of Mom’s influence until I forgave her.”
Laurel studied the man before her. He’d stated his mother wasn’t in the picture, but she had believed it was a small hitch in an otherwise-pristine life. Perhaps she hadn’t wanted to consider anything else. “And you wanted to do this?”
“Want had nothing to do with it. I had to. The hate was eating me up, a barrier to my faith. I claimed to be a Christian, and yet I couldn’t forgive. And then there’s you.”
She grew warm. Here it comes. The end before the flame is snuffed out. End it, Laurel. Do him a favor. You’re selfish to lead him on. It’s—
“Laurel, I’ve seen the odds of a cop and an FBI agent succeeding in a relationship. We’ve only known each other a short time, but I want to get to know you more. I want to put my past behind me and give my best to a relationship with you. The case needs to be solved first, but I wanted you to know how I feel.”
Confusion soared through her. She heard the words, dream words, and stared at the strong hand wrapped around hers. “I don’t understand.”
“In the past, when I dated a girl, it lasted at most three weeks. Then I broke it off before she rejected me. Got myself quite a reputation as a player in college.” He hesitated. “Afraid to trust. Afraid to take a chance on me or her. I don’t want the same thing to happen with us.”
A rela
tionship? It couldn’t happen. “No,” she said, pulling back her hand. “You don’t have a clue about who I am. I’ve done things you’ve never dreamed of. My faith is zilch. You know exactly what I did for Wilmington to propose. We lived together. You need a woman who’s in church, a good woman who doesn’t have history.”
Not a muscle moved on his face, but the warmth in his eyes unnerved her. “Yes, faith must be mutual, but we can explore your questions together.”
“I’m not interested. My list of sins is far too long. Your God isn’t interested.”
“There’s no such thing as God not wanting anyone. No matter what they’ve done.” He stroked her arm. “Your eyes tell me so much more. I have no idea who or what has hurt you, but I’m not those things. And neither is God.”
Laurel failed to control the tears slipping over her cheeks. “This has to stop. Now. I’m glad you have resolution with your childhood and—”
“I’m not giving up.”
“Daniel, I . . . Please go.” Her heart threatened to shatter, but she held her resolve. “We’re two people dealing with a criminal case. That’s all.”
“When you’re ready, I’m right here.” He startled and rose from the chair. “Someone’s coming up the stairs.”
CHAPTER 34
7:48 P.M. MONDAY
Abby listened to Earl’s steady breathing. The TV blared a rerun of Perry Mason, but she refused to snatch the remote and turn it off. Lack of sound would wake Earl, and she enjoyed the alone time.
She dropped a stitch in her knitting, reworked the piece, and continued to let the needles fly through her fingers. Arthritis still evaded her as well as mind glitches, but her heart failed to join forces with her mind to live to one hundred. She must outlive Earl so Daniel wouldn’t have to bear the burden of his grandfather’s care alone.
Please, Lord. Daniel’s been through enough.
He’d stopped over earlier. Seemed preoccupied. No doubt whatever he planned to do over his presumed vacation wound him up like a top.
Putting her knitting aside, she reached for today’s mail. Not much ever there but sales circulars and funeral-planning dinners. She covered her mouth to stifle a laugh. Earl had received a coupon good for forty-five dollars off his next Botox treatment. A greeting card–size envelope lay in the mix with her name and address stamped in black ink. Who’d mailed a feel-good message? She opened it gingerly. The green-leafed Thinking of you embossed lettering touched her. How kind. Marsha must miss her at Silver Hospitality. She opened the card, one of those in which the sender writes her own message. It too was stamped in black ink.
Hi Abby,
The big day’s coming. Are you looking over your shoulder?
How sad Daniel has you locked inside your own home. He must care for you very much to have police officers around the clock. Ah, he forgets you and Earl must die naturally.
Did you enjoy the flowers? Remember our deal.
Thinking of you.
Abby flipped the envelope to check for a return address and where and when the postage had been canceled. Only the downtown post office insignia gave any indication of the sender. Could Daniel trace this? Probably not. The scammer hadn’t been successful without being smart. She tucked the card back into the envelope.
Instead of letting the card frighten her, she felt anger swell. Much like the time in Africa when a lioness charged her and Earl. All she’d done then was pull the trigger. And the big cat didn’t die naturally.
Tomorrow, when Daniel stopped by, she’d share the card. Her gaze flew to the foyer. Best she let the officer on duty be aware of a potential problem.
Abby shook her head. The danger had arrived wearing a cloak of heart attacks and natural deaths.
7:55 P.M. MONDAY
Daniel slipped to Laurel’s apartment door, gun in hand. Heavy steps moved closer and stopped.
He motioned for her to speak.
She grabbed her Glock from the kitchen counter. “Identify yourself.”
Nothing.
Daniel pointed at Laurel to repeat her question to whoever stood outside her door.
“Identify yourself?” she said.
“Morton here.”
Daniel lowered his gun, and Laurel placed hers on the table. He looked through the peephole before opening the door. “You nearly got yourself full of holes.”
“Good to see you too. Guess I should have called to alert you.” He walked inside. “Glad both of you are here. We need to strategize.” He made his way to the kitchen table and eased down, his forehead a mass of lines.
“Since you were to call me, I take it tonight’s meeting took a nasty twist.” Laurel sat across from him, and Daniel seated himself beside her.
If the look on Wilmington’s face was an indication of a failed mission, they were starting at ground zero.
“Give me a moment to regroup.” He buried his face in his hands. Was he praying—or just giving the impression to deceive him and Laurel? “I’m sure Cayden had someone follow me.” Daniel thought he heard Wilmington swear under his breath. “And I’m glad Daniel is dressed as my bodyguard.” He focused on Laurel. “Do you have a Starbucks pod?”
She nodded. “I’ll get you a cup, but first tell me if this is over.”
“Not yet. Depends on who Cayden believes.”
She pulled a mug from the cabinet and proceeded to brew the coffee. “Believes what? I killed an FBI agent.”
“Solidifies your position with Cayden but not Josie.”
Daniel leaned back in his chair. “What are we dealing with?”
“Two highly intelligent people. Cayden’s intelligence propelled him through Delta Force. His medical resignation has made him angry and greedy. Josie is brilliant but a psychopath. If she has any reason to dislike you, then she’ll send you on to the next life.”
“The hitch is her,” Daniel said.
He nodded. “You hurt her pride when you refused her as Liz Austin. She followed you enough times to see you take your grandparents to the FBI and then later visit Laurel. A cop who isn’t interested is one mark against you, strike two is your grandparents purchased two life insurance policies and that’s money in her pocket, and strike three is you’ve been seen with my girlfriend.”
Laurel set the cup in front of Wilmington with a spoon and a carton of half-and-half. “So she doesn’t trust me.”
“Josie and Cayden got into it tonight, and I’m not sure who will win out. Cayden calls the shots and yet he has this love/hate relationship with her.”
“Then I killed her half brother.”
He poured the creamer. “Another point of contention between her and Cayden. Josie ordered the hit on you without Cayden’s knowledge.” He paused. “She also sent Mrs. Hilton the flowers and note. Not sure who shot you with Phantom, but I’ll find out.”
“Thanks.”
“Cayden says he’s the boss. It’s his account in Switzerland, and he holds the money over her head. I learned about the financials when Cayden visited me in prison.” He paused. “Had to be Cayden who took the four mil. It was a means to get my attention.”
“How can you be sure?” Laurel said. “Why not Josie? Or any of the other enemies you’ve made?”
“Calm down, Laurel. It’s all money with him—how I used to be. Green does the talking. It’s power and he used it.”
She closed her eyes. “You’re right. I knew that. What about Messner?”
“His death was no loss to Cayden. From what I gathered, Josie and Messner might have been trying to double-cross him.”
Daniel analyzed the information. “Is there proof she and Messner were working against him?”
“No. Cayden accused her of it. He understands taking me on as a partner includes Laurel. He might agree just to make Josie mad.”
“And I’d have to sleep with an assault rifle,” Laurel said.
Wilmington sighed. “I made it clear that after my release from prison I lost a few bodyguards, but I’d recently enlisted one—C. W. Kres
tle. Your ID is intact, so we’re good there.”
Daniel regretted the danger for Laurel. “I keep thinking you should have shot me instead of Thatcher. Might be easier for Fields to digest Laurel’s role.” He forced a smile at her. “Want to get rid of a cop?”
“Too coincidental,” she said. “Don’t cross me, though.”
He chuckled. “Wondering how I could keep low as Officer Hilton on vacation and Krestle the bodyguard.”
“Why not stay at my condo in the Woodlands?” Wilmington said. “I can put a couple of men on your grandparents. Daylight hours you can check on them and in between be Krestle. Like the silver, by the way.”
Could he be walking into a death trap by living with him? “SSA Preston has men watching them, but I appreciate the offer. The sooner we’re working with Cayden, the better. So if staying at your place helps cement my role, I’m game. When will he make a decision?”
“We have a meeting tomorrow at one o’clock. I’d like for you to go with me. Something big has to be in the works for him to move this fast.”
“You could ask him,” she said.
Wilmington drummed his fingers on the table. “I need to find out if October 15 means anything.”
“Why?” she said.
“Heard it mentioned tonight on a call Cayden received. He indicated invitations had been sent for the fifteenth.” He shrugged. “Something’s in the works. That’s in a little over three weeks.” He sighed. “I tried to get my hands on something for his DNA, but it didn’t happen.”
“I’ll see what I can do tomorrow,” Daniel said. “It takes a while for the lab to process it, and time is something we’re lacking.”
“Even if we get a DNA sample, that doesn’t mean the FBI has what it needs to arrest him.” Wilmington said.
Daniel looked at Laurel for a response. “If Cayden isn’t calling all the shots, then we need the partner.”
Wilmington blew out obvious exasperation. “It’s not Josie Fields. She can’t be trusted, and Cayden has no use for a hothead.”
CHAPTER 35
8:30 A.M. TUESDAY