by Erin Wade
“You’re married to a woman?”
“Yes, I am!”
“Good. You should have always been married to a woman. I was wrong to dissuade you from your involvement with Stacy. She’s a jewel. If you’d married her instead of Tom—”
“That’s all in the past, Dad, and I’m very happy with Kadence. I’ll find a way to get Tom to renounce the inheritance. You can change your will and the trust to leave everything to Stacy and the girls. Stacy will take care of them until the day she dies.”
Daniel nodded. “Excellent idea.”
Faith checked her watch. “I must go now. I have a plane to catch. Get several burner phones from the various countries you visit. You can call me on them, but don’t call on any line that can be traced back to you.”
Daniel’s blue eyes clouded. “You’re really serious about the danger still lurking?”
“Yes, Dad, I am.”
Chapter 34
The girls helped Faith carry her luggage to the car and hugged her tightly as they said their goodbyes. Stacy hugged her the tightest of all. “If things don’t work out, you know where to find us,” she whispered.
Faith felt an aching emptiness as she drove through the Crawford Ranch gates. For their own safety, she knew she’d never see Stacy or the girls again.
When she reached Stephenville, her phone locked onto a cell tower and began to download messages and phone calls. Seven of the messages and calls were from Kady. She pulled into a convenience store parking lot and called her wife.
“I’m telling you, woman, it’s a good thing you called.” Kady laughed into the phone. “I was on the other line arranging for a private jet to fly me to DFW—actually, Alliance Airport. I was coming after you.”
“Oh, Kady, I love you so much. I’m headed to the airport now. My flight gets in at eleven tonight. I’ll text you the flight number. I can’t wait to see you.”
“Faith, I’ve been so worried about you and missing you and . . . I love you so much.”
“I know, baby. I love you too. I’m going to hang up now. I don’t want to miss my flight.”
“Go, go,” Kadence said. “I can’t wait to see you.”
##
It was still dark when Faith awoke and snuggled deeper into Kadence’s arms. “Umm, you’re awake,” Kady murmured.
“I didn’t mean to wake you,” Faith whispered, kissing her wife’s naked skin. “I was just thinking what an incredible lover you are.”
“Really? Is there anything I’m not doing that you’d like me to do?”
“Um, maybe a little more of that thing you do with your tongue.” Faith liked pillow talk in the darkness with her wife. They exchanged things that made them blush—things they wouldn’t discuss in the light of day.
Kadence ran her hand down Faith’s back. “You are so silky. I love the way you feel.”
“I love the way you feel me.” Faith giggled. “You know all the right places to touch. You know just what I like. I can’t tell you how much I’ve missed this.”
“You don’t have to tell me,” Kady mumbled. “I know.”
Kadence shifted from her side to her back, pulling Faith onto her stomach. Faith placed her ear over Kady’s heart. “I love the sound of your heart beating,” she cooed, running her hand down Kady’s arm, glorying in the way the blonde’s heart rate increased. “I love the way it begins to race when I caress you.”
“Don’t torture me until it explodes.” Kadence pulled Faith up so their lips met. “Did I tell you how much I love your lips?”
“I don’t remember.” Faith kissed her, slowly moving her full, soft lips against Kady’s as moans escaped their throats.
“Then I’ll tell you again.”
“Later. Right now, I’d like a little more of that thing you do with your tongue.”
##
The aromatic smell of coffee tickled Kadence’s senses. She inhaled deeply, keeping her eyes closed. The sound of Faith placing coffee cups on their nightstands made her smile. “I’m glad you’re home,” she said.
Faith lifted the covers and slid down beside her. “Me too, and thank you for the homecoming party last night.” She snuggled onto Kady’s shoulder as her wife slipped her arm under her neck.
“Stop wiggling or our coffee will get cold,” Kadence warned her. “Besides, we need to have a serious discussion.” She pulled herself up and leaned back against the headboard.
Faith joined her and handed Kadence her coffee. “What do you think we should do?”
“I think we should talk to Mecca and Jericho,” Kady advised. “They seem to know what’s going on in the world of politics.”
Faith sipped her coffee, weighing their options. “I could appeal to Tom’s sense of fair play.”
“You’d have to get through the sharks circling him first. I doubt Faith Pride could even get an appointment with the president.”
“I’m sure you’re right,” Faith grumbled. She took Kadence’s coffee cup and placed it beside hers on the nightstand. “For right now, I’d like a replay of my welcome home party.”
Chapter 35
“I guess Faith got home safely last night,” Jericho said, slipping her arms around Mecca’s waist and kissing the back of her neck. Mecca turned to face her and kissed her good morning.
“Either that or Kadence was having a hell of a good time by herself.” Both women laughed as they recalled the sounds that had come from the apartment above them.
“We really should tell them how clearly we can hear them,” Jericho said.
“I can’t believe we hear so much,” Mecca said. “These are well-built apartments. They’re supposed to be soundproof.”
“You forget that’s your old apartment,” Jericho reminded her. “I removed all the insulation between our apartments so I would know every move you made.”
Mecca blushed. “Oh. So, you could hear when I . . . uh, used the—”
“Yes.” A crooked grin slowly spread across Jericho’s face. “You have no idea how much self-control it took to keep from knocking on your door and offering you my services.”
“I’m sure I would have accepted,” Mecca said, nipping at her neck. “Who could resist a gorgeous Amazon in the middle of the night?”
A knock on their door interrupted their foreplay. Jericho growled and released Mecca. “That must be our noisy neighbors.”
She opened the door, and the hugging commenced as they welcomed Faith back from her trip. “We were about to cook breakfast,” Jericho informed them. “Please join us.”
Kadence’s enthusiastic nod made everyone laugh. “I’ve worked up quite an appetite, mate,” she admitted.
Over breakfast Faith related the information she had gleaned from Daniel Devon. “I’ve got to find a way to meet with Tom in private.”
##
After their friends left, Mecca and Jericho tried to call General Carson again. They had called every day for the past week and always reached the recording.
“We should go to Washington,” Jericho said. “Something’s wrong. I’ve worked for General Carson for ten years, and I’ve always had instant access to her.”
“I’ve only known her for seven years,” Mecca added, “but I’ve always been able to reach her. I’m never to speak with her secretary or give her my name. I just give her the code when she answers the phone, and I’m instantly connected with the general. She’s the only one who knows I exist.”
Jericho scowled. “Same here.”
“She instructed me to never visit her office.” Mecca nibbled her bottom lip, trying to decide what to do. “How can we find out where she is?”
“She can’t just disappear,” Jericho grumbled, scowling. “She’s a retired four-star general, for Christ’s sake.”
“What about her husband? What was his name?”
“Roland.”
Mecca nodded. “Yes, Roland Carson. He’s a pediatric surgeon. Let’s go to DC and make direct contact with him.”
Jericho walked
to her desk, unlocked it, and pulled out three burner phones. She handed one to Mecca and put the other two in her pockets. “You call him on this burner phone and make an appointment to see him. Tell the appointments secretary your daughter is eight months old.”
“Okay. I need his office number.”
Jericho found the number on the internet, and Mecca made the appointment. “I can’t get in until Wednesday.” Mecca furrowed her brow. “That’s the earliest he can see us.”
“That’s good. It will give us time to go to that company that sells lifelike dolls and purchase one. We’ll bundle it up, and I’ll carry it into the doctor’s office.”
They purchased the doll and clothes for it then returned home to pack for their trip.
Mecca laughed as Jericho carefully placed the doll into her suitcase. “It’s a doll,” she teased. “You won’t break it.”
“I’m not crazy about kids,” Jericho said. “They make me nervous.”
“So . . . you don’t want children?”
Jericho folded a shirt and laid it in her suitcase, buying time as she tried to decide how to answer the question. “Maybe we should have discussed this before we married.”
“Yes, we should have,” Mecca said. “We’re lucky we both feel the same way.”
“Whew,” Jericho said, letting the air swoosh from her lungs as she sat down beside Mecca. “You really scared me. I’m weak in the knees.”
“Our lives are too dangerous for children,” Mecca declared, and honestly, I don’t want to share you with anyone else.”
“We’re on the same wavelength,” Jericho leaned down to kiss her. “I do want all your attention.”
Chapter 36
It was dark when Jericho pulled their vehicle into the hotel parking garage and asked the valet to keep it close. “We’ll need it for dinner. We’re checking in, putting our luggage in the room, and dressing for dinner. Shouldn’t take longer than an hour.”
They held hands as they rode up the elevator. Jericho kissed the back of Mecca’s hand. “This is certainly nicer than the last time we were here.”
“Yes, we get to sleep together tonight.” Mecca tiptoed to brush Jericho’s lips with hers.
“Dr. Carson’s office is a thirty-minute drive from here,” Jericho said, showing Mecca the Google Map on her phone. “Let’s check it out when we go to dinner.”
“Shower together?”
“It will save time.” Jericho pulled her sweater over her head. “We can kill two birds with one Storm, so to speak.”
“One stone,” Mecca said, laughing.
“No, one Storm.” Jericho grinned as she dropped her clothes on the bathroom floor.
##
Jericho parked across the street from the stand-alone building that housed Dr. Carson’s practice. “We should have no problem speaking with him,” she noted. “If you sense something is wrong, thank him for his time and walk out. I’ll do the same.”
They dined in a quiet place Jericho recommended and then returned to their hotel. Mecca removed the doll from Jericho’s suitcase. “These are extremely lifelike,” she said as she held the doll up for Jericho to inspect. “The face is almost human.”
Jericho grimaced. “Whoever makes those things is really good.”
Mecca hung up their clothes for the next day. “Where are your pajamas?”
“I . . . uh, I didn’t pack any.” Jericho smiled sheepishly. “You know how I like to feel you against me when I sleep.”
“What if there’s a fire?” Mecca teased her.
“I’ll wrap the sheet around me.”
Jericho’s impish grin made Mecca laugh. “Okay,” she said as she slid between the sheets. “If there’s a fire, you take the sheet, and I’ll take the comforter.”
Jericho joined her wife in bed and turned out the lamp. She wrapped herself around Mecca’s back and sighed deeply. She buried her face in Mecca’s luxurious, soft hair. “I love the scent of you,” she whispered. Mecca pushed back against her.
She moved her hand down Mecca’s silky side, over the smooth skin of her ribs to the dip in her small waist and up the curve of her firm hips.
“This is what it’s all about,” Jericho murmured into her ear. “The soft warmth of the woman you adore. Just the feel of you drives me crazy.”
Mecca turned in her arms and kissed her lips. She pushed the softest parts of her against Jericho. “Isn’t this better?”
“Yes, but I wasn’t trying to incite you. I just love to touch you.”
“Jericho Parker, if you think you can run your hands all over my body and then go to sleep, you’ve got another thought coming! Now, pony up!”
##
Jericho and Mecca parked across from Dr. Carson’s office before sunup. “If he gets here early, maybe we can speak with him before anyone else arrives,” Jericho said.
“No such luck.” Mecca pointed out a short, dark-skinned woman walking to the door of the doctor’s office. She tried the door, but it was locked. She looked around and then walked to the end of the block and leaned against the building. The woman looked more like a child than an adult.
“Honey, no matter what happens, do not get out of this car,” Jericho warned. She slipped from the vehicle, walked to the opposite end of the building, and crossed the street before disappearing down the alley.
Mecca watched the woman leaning against the building and was surprised when a gloved hand flew across the woman’s mouth. In a flash she was yanked out of sight.
A short time later, Jericho joined her wife in the car.
“Who was that?” Mecca asked.
“Covert operative,” Jericho mumbled. “Assassin for hire. We arrived just in time to save Dr. Carson’s life.”
“Looks like the doctor is here and so is his staff.” She nodded toward a small group unlocking the office door. “Is the baby ready?”
Mecca nodded. “Finally! It’s been crying ever since you left the car.”
Jericho glared at her.
“I’m just teasing,” the brunette said, grinning. The look in Jericho’s eyes told Mecca she was in no mood for banter.
As they crossed the street, Jericho took the doll and covered it with the blanket. “Don’t want it to get cold,” she quipped, trying to lighten the mood.
A cheerful chime sounded when they opened the door. “We have an appointment with Dr. Carson,” Mecca said to the receptionist. “I’m Mindy Stone. My child is very congested and having difficulty breathing.”
They were ushered into an examination room, and a nurse appeared, ready to check the baby’s vitals.
“I’d rather speak directly to Dr. Carson,” Mecca said.
“I’m sorry,” the insistent nurse said. “I must weigh the child and check her temperature.”
Mecca placed her hand on the nurse’s arm. “I understand. Now, if you’ll kindly take us to Dr. Carson.”
“Please follow me.” The nurse opened the door and led them to Roland Carson’s office.
“Dr. Carson,” Mecca said as the nurse closed the door.
Jericho pushed the doll into Mecca’s arms and turned to the doctor. “Roland,” she said, beaming as she extended her hand to him. “Long time no see, buddy. Thanks for agreeing to look at our daughter on such short notice. I know you only checked her over last week, but she’s still having difficulty breathing.”
Mecca placed the doll on the examination table and held out her hand to Dr. Carson. The man shook her hand and smiled. Mecca wrapped both hands around his. “Where is Dr. Carson and his staff?” she asked.
“My brethren have him,” the man answered.
“Where’s General Carson?”
“We have her too. Female pigs should not be allowed to command a man’s army.”
“Where are they?”
“In the Anacostia warehouse district, in the abandoned Purina warehouse on the Anacostia River.”
“Have you ever killed Americans on American soil?” Mecca asked.
The man
snorted. “Many.”
“You will forget this conversation,” Mecca instructed. “Ten minutes after we leave you will inject yourself with enough phenobarbital to kill you. You really should write a suicide note. Tell how many Americans you have killed, and provide any information you have on cells and terrorist activities.”
Mecca picked up the doll and walked from the office with Jericho in tow. “Thank you, Dr. Carson,” she said over her shoulder.
##
“You left him hypnotized,” Jericho said as they buckled their seatbelts. “Shouldn’t you snap him out of it so his nurse won’t notice?”
Mecca shrugged. “It won’t matter. What about the woman on the corner? What happened to her?”
“A paid assassin,” Jericho said as she started the car.
“How did you know?”
“She was packing a gun. I didn’t care how short she was. I figured she wasn’t selling Girl Scout cookies.”
“What did you do with her?” Mecca queried.
“Neutralized her,” Jericho huffed.
##
Mecca tossed the doll into the back seat and pulled up the location of the Purina warehouse on her cell phone.
They parked behind a huge dumpster a block away from the site, got out of the car, and watched for any sign of life in the old building. The door opened and two men walked out. They lit cigarettes and talked and laughed as they blew smoke rings in the air.
“I wonder if there are more on the inside or if they are the only guards here?” Jericho whispered.
“We need to get close to them,” Mecca muttered.
“We are two good-looking women,” Jericho noted. “Let’s see how close we can get. Act drunk.”
They stepped from behind the dumpster, leaning against each other and laughing loudly. As they got closer to the two men, they stumbled and held each other up.
“Where are we?” Mecca looked around and pretended to notice the men for the first time. “Can you tell us where, hic, we are?” she slurred.
