Innocent Lies

by Robin Patchen

  Unfortunately, his footprints in the snow would lead them right to him.

  He kept running, ran until the shouts faded in the background.

  Deep in the woods, there were spots free of snow, thanks to the thick canopy created by the trees. He jumped from barren spot to barren spot, trying to hide his route. Thank God for those bare spots.

  North Texas was flat and empty. But here in beautiful New Hampshire, there were hills and trees everywhere. He'd never loved them more. He found a good-sized hill, went up one side, down the other, and caught his breath behind a tree.

  Now what?

  CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

  All her running, all her attempts at staying safe, at keeping Eric and Daniel safe... All of it had been for nothing.

  Kelsey pressed as far from the man in front of her as possible, but it was no use.

  When she'd burst out of the cabin a few minutes earlier, she'd had no idea what to expect. But she had expected a car to be waiting for her.

  There hadn't been a car, though.

  She'd immediately been grabbed by a man she'd never seen before. He'd started running. She'd stumbled along beside him, surprised when he turned not toward the main road but in the opposite direction.

  Magic was still barking. A door opened. Then a gunshot.

  She stumbled, turned.

  The man gripped her tighter. "Don't worry. That was a warnin' so the cop doesn't follow." Based on his accent, he wasn't local. "Nobody wants to kill a cop."

  Eric was a cop. Did that extend to him? She hoped so.

  She doubted it.

  She didn't speak. Neither did he has they bolted through the snow past cabins along the lake's shoreline. She was freezing. She had no coat, no hat, no gloves. On top of that, her ankle ached, and the pain increased with every step.

  She'd almost been safe.

  Almost was the story of her life.

  The man yanked on her arm and angled toward the lake. What in the world? She was confused until she saw where he was headed.

  A snowmobile was hidden in the trees between two cabins.

  The man yanked her to its side. "Don't go jumping, lady, or I'll havta chase ya." The man pulled a gun from the inside pocket of his warm jacket. She shivered in the cold, more focused on the jacket than the gun. "I don't wanna hurt ya."

  "I surrendered willingly. Why would I escape now?"

  He shrugged. "Fear can make a person do crazy things." He turned his back to her and climbed onto the snowmobile.

  In the distance, sirens wailed. If she could just...

  Her captor grabbed her arm. "Get on."

  She wrenched out of his grip and climbed onto the snowmobile

  He started the engine, and the machine roared beneath them. They shot forward, down a hill, and onto the frozen lake.

  On the far side, the man angled between two deserted lake houses, across a narrow road, and sped into the woods. The snow was spotty out here, but the snowmobile sped across the frozen ground with little problem. Her captor seemed to be aiming for the dirt, not the snow.

  So he wouldn't leave tracks, she realized.

  Another few minutes passed before he stopped in a small clearing and powered down the snowmobile. They were far from any houses or roads. Surely this man wouldn't hurt her. But what was he doing?

  He stepped off the snowmobile and waited.

  Minutes passed in the silence.

  The man checked his cell phone. She watched him, wished she could get her hands on it. And do what? Call the police and say she was in the woods with a bad guy? They already knew that. The problem was, the woods went on for miles and miles and miles.

  The distant whine of an engine had her turning in the direction they'd come from. A moment later, another snowmobile entered the clearing. He stopped maybe twenty feet from them, facing away, which gave her a good look at the rifle slung across his back. He must have been the one to keep Donny from following them.

  The man stepped off the snowmobile and turned to face her. "Kelsey. It's been a long time."

  Her teeth were chattering, and she had to focus on not stuttering her words. "How are you, Mateo?"

  He closed the distance quickly. "Still recovering from prison."

  "That's what you get for protecting Carlos."

  He shrugged. "I suppose that's one way to look at it." He took off the harness holding his rifle in place, then slid out of his jacket and handed it to her. "You must be freezing."

  Mateo. Ever the gentleman. She slid into the oversize jacket and hugged herself and forced out a "thank you."

  He put the rifle back on and looked at the other man. "Any problems?"

  "Nope. She did just what you said she would."

  "Good." Mateo pulled his phone from his jeans' pocket. He snapped her photograph, then pressed a few buttons.

  He was sending her photo to Carlos.

  Any minute, she'd see him again. She swallowed the bile that rose at the thought.

  Mateo returned his phone to his pocket and gestured toward his snowmobile. "You'll ride with me."

  She walked the distance with him silently. When they reached it, rather than climb on, he turned to face her, leaned in, and lowered his voice. "Why didn't you run on Saturday? Surely you got my message."

  Mateo had sent the man to warn her? He'd been behind the attack on Eric? But... "Why?"

  "My dear, you've done us nothing but harm. Why Carlos doesn't see it, I cannot understand. He can be very focused, very determined, even when it is not in his best interest." He shook his head. "It's too late now, I suppose. I am tempted to kill you right here just to keep us all safe from your schemes, but if I want to retain my position, and keep my life, I'd better get you back safely."

  It made no sense. Not only had Mateo warned her, but now he'd given her ammunition she could use against him. "Why would you tell me?"

  He sighed, smiled slightly. "I suppose I wanted you to know I tried to help you. When you're back by his side, you'll have the opportunity to help me."

  "I'll never be by his side."

  "Perhaps if you'd run, that would be true. But now, I don't see another option."

  She tried to laugh, but the sound was more sob than chuckle. "I'll die first."

  He shrugged. "You did whatever he asked of you to save your sister. Would you not do just as much for your husband and child?"

  The nausea rose again. Death, she could handle. But to be Carlos's slave again...

  No.

  She swallowed, tried to think. Mateo had said something... "You're hoping I'll do you a favor, assuming I ever have that power. But you just told me you want to kill me."

  "I don't want to kill you, my dear. I also don't want to go back to prison, and the last time I saw you, that's where I ended up. I hope you won't do that again."

  "I doubt I'll get another opportunity."

  "True," he said. "So it hardly matters." He brushed off her words with a flick of his gloved hand and climbed back onto the snowmobile.

  She climbed on behind him.

  "Hang on tight."

  The machine shot forward. She wanted, needed, to see Eric. She wanted to protect her friends back at the lake house. But the thought of facing Carlos had her itching to run. It took all her will power to stay still. She was here because she hadn't been willing to risk Rae's life or Donny's for her own safety. Otero had Eric, and nothing she could do would protect him now. But she wouldn't let him die alone. And she wouldn't be Carlos's slave, no matter what he threatened. She couldn't. And Eric wouldn't want her to.

  She prayed she'd get to see her husband one more time. To tell him how much she loved him. To tell him that unlike him, she did have regrets. Big regrets. She'd give anything to have the last ten years back. Anything to have raised her son by Eric's side.

  At least Daniel was safe. Maybe that couple, Nate and Marisa, would adopt him. Maybe they could give him a good home, a home she'd never been able to provide—and now, never would be.

  Tears
streamed down her face. She knew how futile they were. It was too late for tears.

  Mateo seemed to be in no rush. His confidence stirred her fear. Was Otero really so good that he could get away with all of this? He'd blown up a building, killed a man. How could he possibly think he'd escape?

  But Otero was slicker than a greased pig. She'd tried to put him away once, and he'd escaped prosecution and let others go to prison in his place. Nobody'd ever been able to pin anything on him. Maybe that would work in her favor. Maybe his confidence would hurt him this time.

  Maybe he'd be held to account for her murder and Eric's. She could only hope.

  CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

  The night had grown silent.

  Eric had never known true silence until he'd experienced his first snowy night in New Hampshire. The snowfall muffled every sound. The animals were quiet, safe in their dens and hollows. The few birds that hadn't flown south were huddled, waiting out the storm. No bugs buzzed by his ears. The only sound was the occasional rustle of leaves in the breeze.

  Tonight, the silence was unnerving.

  What was happening back at the house? They must have been searching for him, but Eric heard nothing. Had he lost them? Must have. If he wanted, he could stay right here and never be found. But without the surfer's phone, he had no way to contact Brady and get help. And Otero had claimed he knew where Kelsey was hiding.

  Eric thought he knew roughly where he was. They'd driven over the bridge that led toward Eric's home, then turned about a mile before Eric's driveway. These woods were dark and empty. He'd never come this far from his house, had never discovered the little house. Otero and his men had no idea that Eric knew where he was. They'd imagine him running blindly into the forest.

  Eric faced what he thought was north. If his calculations were correct, his house would be that way, probably less than a mile. At home, he'd have access to a phone, not to mention a sizable arsenal.

  But if he was wrong, if his house was further, or if his internal compass was off by just a few degrees...

  He blew out a breath and turned back toward the house he'd just escaped. Trying to be as quiet as possible, he picked his way through the forest. He had to find out what was going on.

  In the silence, every move he made was amplified. He scanned the forest for signs of his captors. As he neared the house, he saw footprints, but nothing else. Surely they hadn't quit looking for him. If he could find one of them first...

  Eric heard the hum of motors.

  He closed his eyes, focused on the sound. These weren't car motors. The pitch was too high, and the sound was coming from the wrong direction.

  He looked to his right, peered into the dark forest, saw nothing.

  But it wasn't a coincidence. Whoever that was had to be headed this way. Maybe Brady had figured out where he was. Maybe...

  No. Brady would come in a car. Unless his friends were coming from multiple directions. Unlikely, but it didn't hurt to hope.

  Eric crested a hill. The rundown house sat in a small depression in the distance. He dropped to the ground behind a bush. His dark blue jacket wouldn't blend into the gray-and-white landscape. He peered between the bare branches. Through a window, he saw the woman from earlier pacing, chewing a fingernail. One man was carrying things to the cars out front, packing up. Seemed Carlos was worried Eric would make contact with someone. He was running.

  The motors were getting close now. Eric watched as two snowmobiles came into view through the woods to the east. A woman was riding on the back of the snowmobile in front.

  Her hair flew out behind her.

  Kelsey.

  CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

  Vanessa had watched through the window as Mateo led Kelsey to the door.

  The woman looked old and tired, scared and angry. Vanessa, on the other hand, was young and vibrant and beautiful and willing.

  How could Carlos ever choose Kelsey over her?

  She stood back and sighed. She'd done it. She'd helped Carlos find her biggest rival, but Mateo would be the one to get the glory. She'd been the one to discover the lake houses owned by the Messenger woman. But Mateo delivered her, and Mateo would be rewarded.

  Vanessa had returned to her room when Eric escaped, afraid of what would happen if Carlos realized she'd disobeyed him. Nobody had checked on her, and she wasn't surprised. She wasn't a threat. She didn't matter.

  One of Carlos's men was still in the woods trying to find Eric, but the fact that Carlos had called the other one back told her he didn't believe Kelsey's husband would be found.

  She looked out the window again. The man who'd been with Mateo loaded the snowmobiles onto a trailer attached to a pickup truck, then came inside. She could hear their voices as they called commands to each other—wipe this down, remove that. Preparing to leave. Mateo would take charge of that activity, too, now that he was back. He'd always be Carlos's right hand man.

  She chewed her cuticles and tried to think of a way to remind Carlos of her value. Would he ever see her as an equal, as a partner? Perhaps she'd be wiser to escape, to try to make her own way, try to raise her child alone. But with Carlos, she had access to everything she needed. Food, shelter, clothing. She'd seen what it was like to go without those things. Better to be a slave than to starve on the streets. On the other hand, with her looks, with her body, perhaps she could find someone else to take care of her.

  Ah, what was the expression? The evil you know...

  And anyway, she was carrying Carlos's baby. She'd seen how desperately he wanted Kelsey's child. When he knew about the baby Vanessa carried, would he be devoted to her? To their child?

  The sound of a car door slamming had her glancing out the window.

  There'd been three men besides Mateo and Carlos. Two of them were in the car. The engine roared to life, and they drove away.

  Interesting. The evacuation had already begun. There was one car left. Mateo, Carlos, Kelsey, and Vanessa would have to share it. The man with the red parka, who knew what had become of him? But if he returned... Would the five of them fit in the small car? And what about Eric? If they found him, would he be leaving with them, or would they leave his body here?

  She turned away from the window, angry at herself. What difference did it make which car was there, what people were left? She had to focus, find a way to help, to show Carlos he needed her. Because now that Kelsey was back, Vanessa feared she'd be the one riding in the trunk.

  She rubbed her belly again. Her hands were trembling when she gripped the gun she'd taken from Eric. She would do something. Somehow, she would find a way to help, to prove her worth, to secure her place at Carlos's side.

  CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

  The snow was falling faster now, making it more difficult for Eric to avoid leaving footprints. But it wasn't the worry it had been before, since the men who'd come looking for him had tromped all over the place. His footprints would be indistinguishable from theirs.

  After Kelsey disappeared into the house, Eric had watched, had seen the men loading the cars, then watched two of them drive away.

  That left the guy Kelsey had ridden with on the snowmobile, the surfer dude, the girl who'd flagged him down, and Otero.

  Four against one. Not the best odds.

  He had no idea what he was going to do, but he had to do something.

  He heard the snap of a twig, then the words, "Got 'cha, dude."

  He spun, prepared to fight, but the man was yards away. Eric spied the handgun pointed at him and lifted his hands. "You got me."

  Surfer Dude didn't look good. A huge gash on his forehead was caked in dried blood. It was hard to tell in the dim light, but Eric imagined his face would be good and bruised tomorrow. Concrete verses face—concrete always won.

  Served him right.

  The guy motioned not toward the house but toward the woods. "Start walking."

  The woods? If Eric were taken to the house, he might have a chance to...to do something. But the woods? "Do you know I'
m a cop?"

  The guy blinked. "Uh, no. But, like, it doesn't matter now."

  "Well, assaulting a police officer is bad news, but shooting one—"

  "Look, I just do what I'm told." Gone was the bravado from earlier. The man's hands were shaking.

  Bravado would have been easier to handle. Fear made people do crazy things.

  "Doing what you're told," Eric said. "That'll hold up in court. You killed a cop because somebody told you to. Good plan. Inside, Carlos will no doubt murder my wife, too, when she doesn't give him the information he wants. An innocent woman who wanted nothing more than to escape him. And then when you guys all get caught—and I promise you, you will get caught—Otero is going to make you take the fall. He's done it before. Just about his whole organization went to prison when my wife testified against him, but not Otero. He's got a knack for ducking behind his underlings to avoid prosecution. You'll spend life in prison for this."

  The man said nothing. Maybe beyond the bleach-blond hair, something was seeping in.

  "If you help me," Eric said, "I'll put in a good word for you."

  Surfer Dude thought a minute, or maybe he only pretended to, because then he smiled. "Otero's got an extra fifty grand for me if I do this. I'll risk jail. Let's go."

  "Ah." Eric kept his hands up, nodded as if he had inside information. "You're betting on him, on a guy like Otero, paying you extra after you let me escape?" Eric forced a chuckle. "Dude, at this point, jail's the best you can hope for."

  A muffled ding—an incoming text, Eric would guess. Surfer Dude glanced toward his jacket pocket but didn't reach for his phone. His eyes narrowed.

  "He won't let you live," Eric said. "You don't help me, and you'll have ridden your last wave."

  Surfer Dude ran a hand through his hair. It got caught on the stupid sunglasses, and they fell into the snow. He seemed to be thinking extra hard. Eric figured any minute he'd see smoke coming out of the guy's ears.

  Then Surfer Dude shook his head. "Carlos is a good dude. We're tight. And when this is over, I'm outta here. Nobody'll ever connect me to this." He motioned again toward the woods. "I'd rather not have to drag your body out of sight, but I can shoot you here just as easily. You wanna live another couple of minutes, start walking."