Vow of Justice

by Lynette Eason

  Allie didn’t feel back to a hundred percent, but it was still one of the best days of her life. She lay in the hospital bed reliving everything, feeling her muscles bunch, flashing on the fear, but able to push it aside with the knowledge that her family had justice.

  It wouldn’t bring them back, but now maybe Allie could really and truly let it go. The fact that she’d started to do so even before Nevsky and Gregori had been caught gave her comfort, and hope, that in time, the past would truly be in the past.

  Nevsky was dead and so was Gregori. She almost wished she felt more . . . something . . . knowing her brother was dead, but while she grieved the child she’d known, the man he’d become was a complete stranger.

  So, yes. Justice had been served.

  Now they just had to find Henry.

  Her muscles tightened once again at the thought. Would he run? She had no doubt he had numerous false documents and hidden bank accounts, even though the ones they’d found had been frozen. And as good as he was with disguises, he could stay hidden forever—or he could pop up any time to continue his twisted plan to keep her locked up in some escape-proof fortress.

  Which meant Allie would constantly be looking over her shoulder.

  The thought nauseated her.

  The door opened and Linc stepped inside, followed by his mother and Ruthie, Izzy, and Chloe. Then Daria, Derek, and Brady.

  Allie pushed herself into a sitting position, wincing at the tug on her back. Apparently, she’d undergone minor surgery to clean out the wound and restitch it—minus the tracker this time.

  Daria slipped over to the bed, leaned over, and hugged Allie. Allie held the girl and fought tears of relief. “I’m so glad you’re okay,” she whispered.

  “Me? I’m fine. It was you we were worried about.”

  Allie swallowed and gave Daria one more tight squeeze. How this sweet girl ever came from someone as awful as Nevsky, she’d never comprehend. Maybe the fact that her father had ignored her was actually a blessing in disguise. “I’ll be good as new in a few days.” She pushed stray strands behind the girl’s ear. “I’m so sorry about Gerard.”

  Tears hovered on Daria’s lashes. “I know he wasn’t a good man, but . . . he was when I needed him to be.” She sniffed and sighed. “He said he regretted his choices, and if he had it to do all over again, he would’ve made different ones.”

  Choices. Allie nodded, so glad she’d made the choice not to shoot Gregori. She realized now she’d never regret it.

  Daria stepped back and Allie’s gaze found Linc’s. “How’s Catherine?”

  “Recovering. She’s surrounded by her family, and her husband has publicly expressed his gratitude to the Bureau and the CPD. Everyone’s happy with that outcome.”

  “Good.” She licked her lips and Linc handed her a cup of ice water. After she finished taking a few swallows, one by one Linc’s siblings hugged her and Allie’s emotions threatened to break free, leaving her blubbering all over these wonderful people.

  When the hugging session ended, they all stood around her bed, and her gaze landed on each one before she bit her lip and sighed. “I’m sorry for everything.”

  Tabitha St. John frowned at her. “Sorry for what?”

  “For putting you all in danger.”

  “Henry and his obsession—and Nevsky—are the ones responsible for any danger we might have been in,” Izzy said. “Not you.”

  “And besides,” Linc said, “I don’t think anyone was ever actually in danger. I think it was all a setup to make you think they were. Henry knew you’d do anything to protect me—us. He gave those pictures to Nevsky, who planted them in the unlocked drawer. It was just all part of his plan to convince you to stay dead.”

  “But I wasn’t even ‘dead’ at that point.”

  “I think he planned to fake your death somehow, using Nevsky to do it. I’m pretty sure it was supposed to happen in the house and then Henry was supposed to come to the rescue. The pictures were to convince you that I and my family were in danger, and I was supposed to believe you were dead just like it played out after the drone explosion.” He slid her a sidelong glance. “Because, if you remember, he did actually convince you to go along with it.”

  “Only because I thought you and your family were truly in danger,” she shot back. Then sighed. “So, yes, it worked. I was so stupid, wasn’t I?”

  “No, not at all,” Linc’s mother said. “You wanted to protect those you care about. Just like we all do.”

  Allie rubbed her head. “That’s true.” She’d always been that way. And after she’d failed to protect her sister—

  She put the mental brakes on, refusing to go there. “Who knows what he was thinking?” She paused, then shook her head. “I wasn’t supposed to get into the locked drawer, was I?”

  “Probably not,” Linc said. “But Henry and Nevsky worked it out to make it look like Henry had a big bust in Charleston to add to his stellar record. He really did put away a lot of the little people, but they were the ones who had no knowledge of Nevsky or Henry or anything.”

  “So, they were expendable.”

  “Yes, and couldn’t offer any pertinent information that could do any harm to the organization or Henry. It really was a brilliant plan. Because he was right there, Henry knew exactly when to tell Nevsky to walk into the office and ‘catch’ you. Daria wasn’t supposed to be there.” He shot an apologetic look at the teen.

  Daria narrowed her eyes. “I’m glad I was.”

  Brady tucked his phone into his pocket and patted Daria’s shoulder. “Hey, my wife, Emily, just texted. She’s down in the cafeteria and wants to meet you.”

  Linc nodded to Derek, who straightened from his casual stance against the wall. “I’ll go too.”

  “If you want to talk privately, just say so,” Daria said. “I don’t need an escort.”

  Allie caught her hand. “Henry’s still alive, Daria. He was after me the whole time. Not your father.”

  “And you think he may come back for you.”

  “Maybe.”

  “And so I get bodyguards because he may decide to use me to get to you.”

  Izzy and Chloe exchanged startled glances, and Allie huffed a small laugh. “Yeah.” The more this family was around Daria, the more they’d realize how special she was.

  Daria nodded. “Okay then. Bodyguards it is. I think I could use some ice cream.”

  Once she, Brady, and Izzy were gone, Linc’s mother squeezed her hand. “I’m going to get out of here and let you get some rest.”

  “Thank you.”

  “No, hon, thank you.” She shot Linc a knowing look, and to Allie’s amusement, red tinted his cheeks.

  “If you need anything,” Chloe said, “let us know.”

  “I will. I appreciate it.”

  And finally, she was alone with Linc.

  “I’m glad you’re okay,” he said, his voice low.

  “I wouldn’t have been without you and the others.” The fear she’d kept so under control threatened to consume her.

  “I’m here, Allie.”

  “I know.”

  “You’re not alone anymore. Never again.”

  She wanted to believe him, wanted to grasp that promise with everything in her.

  A tear slipped down her cheek, and he frowned as he brushed it away with a slightly swollen, cream-soaked hand. “What is it?”

  “I once apologized to you for trying to live a life I was never meant to live.”

  “I remember.”

  “The truth is, I may not have been meant to live it, but I want it.”

  He sat on the bed next to her and pulled her into a hug. She rested her head against his chest, relishing the feel of being in his arms.

  “I love you, Allie,” he said, his voice husky with suppressed emotion.

  “I love you too, Linc.”

  He tilted her chin up and she met his gaze. “My first inclination is to kiss you, but I need to know why you sound so sad when you say t
hat.”

  A kiss would be lovely, but . . . “Because Henry’s still out there, and as long as he’s still a free man, you’re a target—and it’s because of me.”

  “You? You’re not the cause of this. You’re the victim.”

  She froze. “Oh no. No, no, no, no, no.”

  He sat back and frowned. “What? What is it?”

  “I won’t be a victim. I swore I’d never be a victim again and I’m not starting now.” Allie pulled into herself, drawing on the coping mechanisms she’d learned as a teen and then kept as a protective mantle whenever the memories threatened to be too much. She met Linc’s gaze. “I’m not his target, Linc. You are. And I will do everything in my power to make sure that no one I love is hurt if I can do anything to stop it.”

  “Allie, that’s not—”

  “What? Reasonable?”

  “Well . . .” He sighed. “Look, every single person on this floor is an agent and you better believe that every single one of them wants to be the one to bring Henry down. He’s responsible for this. He betrayed us all.”

  She shook her head. “I appreciate the protection, but you know as well as I do that Henry’s not going to come here. He knows the procedure. As long as we’re here, we’re safe, that’s true. But the minute we walk out of this hospital, we’re not. I really think he’ll go with what he originally thought.”

  “Which is?”

  “He has to get rid of you, because as long as you’re alive, there’s no way I’ll ever be his.”

  Not that she would be anyway, but she was trying to think like Henry would. Because no matter what everyone else thought, she knew he was coming back for her. And this time she’d be ready.

  Linc stood in the hospital cafeteria line and decided if he never had to set foot in a medical facility again, it would be too soon. But Allie had asked for a milk shake and he was determined to get it for her.

  Quelling his impatience, he spent the time studying the people around him. Those at the tables. Those in the line. The doctors and nurses, worried parents, patients well enough to leave their rooms to eat but too sick to go home. And others. Fortunately, he didn’t see anyone that he thought might present a threat to Allie or him or anyone else in the cafeteria.

  When his phone buzzed, he grabbed it almost desperately. Mark King. “Yeah, what’s up, Mark?”

  “How’s Allie?”

  “Recovering. She should be able to get out of here tomorrow.”

  “Good.”

  “What have you got?”

  “Someone who may have been Henry Ogden was seen sitting outside your home in a cable van.”

  “Was it him?”

  “When the agents watching your house went to confront him, he left. They followed and found the van abandoned and the driver gone. There’s no security footage that can tell us the man’s identity.”

  Linc’s blood chilled. “So, Allie was right on in her assessment.”

  “How’s that?”

  “She said he’d come after me.”

  “I’ve asked the interim SSA if we could work with the locals to keep an eye on your place and Allie’s. He told me to arrange it. I figured since you’re related to everyone on the CPD, you could take care of it.”

  “Not quite everyone, but yeah, I’ll handle it as soon as I hang up and take Allie her milk shake.”

  “No sign of him at the hospital?”

  “No. Allie doesn’t think he’ll come here.”

  “She may be right. He might be crazy, but he’s smart.”

  Linc stepped up to the counter. “Hold on a sec, Mark.” To the woman not so patiently waiting, he said, “I need an Oreo shake, please.” His stomach rumbled. “Better make it a large.” She turned to make it and he tuned back in to Mark. “Allie doesn’t need to know he’s been spotted and especially not where, okay?”

  “Your head’s going to roll when she finds out.”

  “I know.”

  He hung up and paid for the shake, then sipped on it while he headed back to Allie’s room. A plan to catch Henry started to percolate in the back of his mind, and eager to share it with Allie, he took the stairs instead of the elevator. At her room, he knocked. When she didn’t answer, he pushed open the door slowly, not wanting to wake her if she was asleep.

  Only she wasn’t sleeping. She was sitting up, talking on the phone. “Right. Okay, thanks. Bye.”

  She waved him in and he handed her the Oreo shake. “What was that all about?”

  “Annie. They just got word that Henry chartered a private plane. He’s on his way to Mexico.”

  Linc frowned. If Henry was on his way to Mexico, who’d been sitting outside his house?

  A decoy.

  Henry had planted someone on Linc’s house, keeping attention there, while he slipped away.

  Allie tucked her phone into her pocket as the convenience store came into view. It seemed like every muscle in her body was sore, but with her adrenaline pumping and her energy level fueled by sheer determination, she figured she’d manage. Because while she ached, the fever was gone, and she felt stronger than she had in a while.

  After being released from the hospital, Allie debated the wisdom of the plan that was slowly taking shape in her mind. Henry might have managed to get out of the country, but that didn’t mean he got to escape the consequences of his actions. She was going to have to go after him. For several reasons. The main one being that she was done.

  Done with being a victim.

  Done with being a pawn.

  Done with looking over her shoulder.

  The smell of freedom was an irresistible lure, and freedom would only come if Henry were behind bars—or dead.

  The Uber driver pulled to a stop. “This is good, thanks,” she said.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  She climbed out and stretched carefully. Yes, the last thirty-six hours of rest had definitely done her some good.

  With a wave goodbye to the driver, Allie made her way to the back of the convenience store and to the path in the woods that would lead to the back of her apartment. When she came to the place where she’d been shot, she swallowed and kept going.

  Finally, at the tree line, she paused. After a quick scan of the area, she darted across to the steps and took them up to the screened-in porch. Looking at the place from this side, she thought it didn’t look too bad. Did she dare hope the key was in the plant? A quick search turned it up. Bless Daria’s little heart. She’d used it to get in, then returned it to the hiding place. Not that she needed it. From what Linc had said, she could probably go around to the front and enter through the shot-out sliding glass doors.

  But then she’d be taking a chance—more of a chance—on someone seeing her. And she wasn’t quite ready to explain her resurrection from the dead to her neighbors. Especially Roland Carter. Although the man’s eagle eye had her confident that no one was inside the apartment, or the local police—or Linc—would have heard about it.

  Not that she wouldn’t double-check.

  Once inside, Allie stood still and took a moment to breathe, get her thoughts together, and take in the destruction. Destruction that looked like it had been cleaned up. Bless Roland’s heart. It had to be him.

  Allie reached into her pocket, pulled out the remains of the little silver tracker, and placed it on the counter in the kitchen. Then she grabbed the biggest knife from the butcher block and held it in front of her.

  A few minutes later, after a thorough search of her home, she lowered the knife and drew a forearm across her forehead before the sweat could drip into her eyes.

  Moving quickly, she slipped back into her bedroom, ignoring the plywood that had been nailed over her sliding glass doors, but noticing the glass had been cleaned up from the floor. No doubt she had Roland to thank for that as well.

  She opened the closet. Her safe, bolted to the wall on the left, held two weapons. A Glock 17 and a SIG Sauer P226. She grabbed them both, checked to see they were loaded, and shoved one into
the band of her jeans at the small of her back and simply held the other in her right hand.

  Arming herself helped calm her racing heart.

  He’s gone. He’s in Mexico and he probably will stay there for a while.

  Linc texted her.

  Are you all right?

  She tapped back,

  I’m fine.

  I’ll be over in a bit, I just have to finish up some paperwork.

  No problem. I’m just going through my apartment, trying to figure out what needs to be done.

  All right. See you soon.

  After a second, the word “Thai?” came across her screen.

  She laughed, already feeling her muscles relax a fraction.

  Perfect.

  Allie shoved her phone into her back pocket and planted her hands on her hips. Mentally, she ticked off the things that needed to be done, such as the phone calls to start the process of getting her apartment put back together.

  Every so often, she’d check the window, glancing out the front, checking the back door. She couldn’t help it.

  She downed some ibuprofen and went back to cleaning. The sofa and most of her den furniture would have to be thrown out. Walls needed repairing and some of her dishes in the kitchen were broken, but overall, the damage wasn’t anything that couldn’t be fixed with some elbow grease.

  An hour passed. Then another.

  How was she supposed to just move on with life while he was still out there?

  Her stomach had twisted into one big knot of tension.

  “He’s gone,” she muttered. “It’s time to get back to the land of the living and move on.”

  But Henry was in her head and he wasn’t leaving anytime soon. She carried her weapon into the bathroom, locked the door, and took a shower, her mind spinning. “He’s gone,” she whispered.

  Then again, what if she was wrong? What if he wasn’t gone? Or, even worse, what if he was and she’d have to live the rest of her life looking over her shoulder, afraid he’d return to finish the job? Oh no. No way. She couldn’t give him that much power. Not this time. She would not be a victim again.

  She stepped out of the shower, dressed in comfortable sweats and a T-shirt. Her shoulder holster completed her outfit. Allie drew in a deep breath. She should just fix some tea and get ready for Linc to arrive with the food.