by Kathy Ivan
“Anyway,” she continued, wanting to get through with this, “I went to the other car to see if they needed help. The driver was hunched over the steering wheel, and didn’t respond when I tapped on the passenger window.”
“Why didn’t you call for help?”
“I did—well, I mean, I started to, but he pulled a gun and told me to toss my phone on the ground.”
Antonio leaned in closer, his intent stare boring into her like a laser, focused and unreadable. “What happened next?”
“He got out of the car and stomped on my phone. Twice.”
“Did you recognize the driver, Serena?”
She nodded, her fingers picking at the satin edging of the blanket covering her. “Yes. I wasn’t sure at first, when he was slumped over the wheel, but once he turned toward me, there was no doubt.”
“Who?”
“Jonathan Drury, my uncle’s attorney.”
Antonio’s brow rose at the name, and he pulled out his cellphone and began typing, then laid the phone on the mattress. “Go on.”
“It was weird. He talked about my being his ticket out. Said my uncle was crazy, and he needed to get away from him. None of it made any sense.” She didn’t want to say the next part, but knew Antonio would get it out of her anyway. Might as well bite the bullet and say it. “He said my uncle knows where I am, and he’s put a hit out on me.”
Antonio leaned his head back and stared at the ceiling, and exhaled a deep breath. “We kinda saw it coming. I checked with Rafe earlier, and there weren’t any fingerprints in your townhouse, no fibers, nothing to show anybody was there.” When she started to speak, he held up his hand. “I believe you. Somebody was there, they’re just good at covering their tracks. A pro.”
Serena wanted to throw up. She’d been so careful, hiding in plain sight, and now everything had crumbled into a pile of ashes. Jonathan showing up hadn’t been a coincidence; her uncle knew she was in Shiloh Springs. Her hands gripped the edge of the blanket until her knuckles turned white.
“Antonio, I have to leave.”
“No, sweetheart, you’re not going anywhere. No more running or hiding. Rafe’s going to have somebody outside your door until the doctor releases you. I’m going to talk with Williamson today. He’s going to want to talk to you too.”
“I can’t believe I’m going to have to go through all this again. I wish…”
“Big Jim is still behind bars, and he’s going to stay there until his appeal goes before the judge. In the meantime, we’ll fight to come up with something to keep him there. I’m going to talk to Drury.”
Serena rubbed her forehead, the dull throbbing pain intensifying into a full-blown headache. “Don’t let him fool you. He seems laid back and disarming, but it’s all an act. A façade he’s honed to perfection through the years. He comes across as an Average Joe, but the man is a shark in the courtroom. And my uncle pulls his strings like a master puppeteer. If Big Jim says jump, Jonathan will be hopping before he even asks how high.”
“Shh. Let me do my job, I’m pretty good at it. In the meantime, you rest, and do what the doctor tells you.”
Serena closed her eyes, blinking back the tears threatening to spill. “Antonio, I’m scared.”
He stood, moving closer until he was by the head of the bed. She felt his lips brush against her forehead in a gentle kiss. Such a simple sign of affection, but it unleashed the waterworks, the tears flowing down her cheeks, great, gulping sobs wracking her body. Antonio sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her into his arms, cradling her against his chest, his strength like a bulwark against the world.
All the pent-up rage, despair, and anxiety unleashed in a barrage of tears, and she wrapped her good arm around him, needing the feel of his embrace like a lifeline, the single constant she could latch onto as a tsunami of feelings flooded her, crashing through her with the ferocity of a tidal wave. One hand cradled her head against his chest, while the other moved in soothing strokes along her spine, as her sobs devolved into teary hiccups.
When the torrent began abating, he leaned back and stared into her eyes, studying her with an intensity which shocked and thrilled her in equal measure. It felt like he could see clear to the depths of her soul. She felt raw and exposed beneath his perusal, flayed open to reveal every secret, every hope and desire. When his hand cupped her cheek, she leaned into his touch, trusting him not to abuse the trust she was putting in him. She’d been hurt so many times in the past, betrayed and used. With Antonio, she prayed for a new start. A tiny kernel, if tended and nurtured, might grow into something—wonderful.
“I promise I won’t let anything happen to you. You’re safe now, and I intend to make sure you stay that way.” His thumb stroked across her cheek, the touch light and gentle. “It’s too soon, I know, but I…care about you.”
Serena’s eyes widened at his words, but even more at the emotion behind them. Did he mean what she thought he did, or was she reading too much into the statement? Deciding to throw what little pride and dignity she had left to the winds, she blurted out, “Antonio, I…I care about you too.” She changed what she’d started to say at the last moment. Saying those three little words shouldn’t be so hard, but she’d never said them to anybody before, and was terrified he didn’t return her feelings. It was too soon and she was still feeling exposed, filleted to the bone, with all the revelations over the last couple of days.
“When I get back, you and I are going to talk. No more hiding and no excuses. Got it?”
She swallowed past the lump in her throat. “Got it. Antonio, please be careful.”
“Don’t worry about me, sweetheart. Drury’s not going to hurt me, and I’m going to find out exactly what he knows, and what Big Jim’s plans are. This will all be over soon, I promise.”
“I can’t help worrying. You don’t know my uncle like I do. He’s dangerous. Just because he’s behind bars doesn’t mean he’s incompetent or impotent. He still yields a lot of power. It’s honestly been a miracle I’ve stayed off his radar this long.”
“Well, you’ve got a whole lot of people looking out for you now, and we’re not going to let anything happen to you. Now, you do what you’re told and I’ll be back, depending on how things go with Drury.”
“Call me after you talk to him?”
He smiled, and touched her nose with the tip of his finger. “I will. Get some rest.” He reached forward and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. “Even if it wasn’t my job, I’d still watch over you. Keep you safe. I’ll do everything in my power to never let you get hurt again, Serena. Haven’t you figured out how much I care about you? Seeing you here, knowing I wasn’t there when you needed me the most, it’s tearing me up inside.”
“Antonio, stop. None of this is your fault.” Her brown eyes stared at him, damp with unshed tears.
“Then let me take care of you. Before you say anything else, I know you aren’t helpless, just the opposite. You’ve done a magnificent job of keeping yourself safe for a long time with nobody’s help. You are smart and savvy and independent, and know how to do things nobody else can. It’s different this time, because you aren’t alone. You’ve got so many friends in Shiloh Springs, more than you can imagine. You’ve got Momma and Dad, and all my pain in the backside, overprotective brothers. And you’ve got me.”
Serena weighed each word, letting them sink in, and she finally gave a watery smile. “Alright. I’ll let you wrap me in bubble wrap and sock me away at the Big House this one time, if you’ll promise me you’ll be careful. You don’t know the people you’re dealing with, but I do. Big Jim, Drury, they’re not going to stop until I’m no longer a threat.”
“Then I’ll have to make sure they don’t have a reason to come after you.”
Leaning over her prone form, he stared down into her face, and she stared back, memorizing every inch, committing to memory his dark hair, eyes that seemed to see straight through to her soul, and yet didn’t find her wanting. Every time she saw him
, whenever he’d been in Shiloh Springs, watching him around his family, made her want him more. Being this close to him made her breathless, giddy, and infatuated with a fire she didn’t think would ever be quenched.
When her lips parted slightly, her tiny pink tongue sweeping along the plump bottom one, she gave in to impulse and cupped the back of his head, pulling him in and pressing her lips against his, tasting the intoxicating sweetness of his kiss. Felt his tentative response as her lips brushed against his. He deepened the kiss, and she felt a tingle of sensation at the brush of his mouth against hers. Barely noticed when her fingers threaded through his hair. As much as she wanted to take things farther, deeper, now wasn’t the time or the place.
Reluctantly, she pulled back with one last sip at his lips, breathing in his intoxicating scent, and gave a rueful smile. When she started to lower her hand from where the fingers had been tangled in his hair, he caught it, placed a gentle kiss against her palm, and folded her fingers inward, as if to capture the kiss and hold it forever.
After what seemed far too brief a time, he pulled back, his eyes searching her face before he straightened to his full height and took a step back. “I really have to go. Rafe’s got one of his deputies posted outside, if you need anything.”
With a last lingering look, he turned and walked out the door. Serena’s fingertips traced her lips, still feeling the tingle from their kiss. Drawing in a deep breath, she laid back against the pillows.
“I am in so much trouble.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Antonio knocked on the front door and glanced around, surveilling his surroundings. He’d made the long drive from Shiloh Springs to Oklahoma City, the entire way marked by construction and detours. US 75, normally a nightmare to drive on the best of days, especially going through downtown Dallas, today had been almost impassable. The whole trip ended up taking him two hours longer than anticipated, and he was tired, cranky, and he really hoped Jonathon Drury didn’t give him an excuse to lose his temper.
He’d left Serena in the hospital, bruised and scraped, with her sprained wrist bandaged, after her run in with Drury. So he was running on coffee, adrenaline, and anger, not a good combination when questioning a suspect. While he hadn’t seen Drury attack Serena with his own eyes, he had no doubt Drury had been behind running Serena off the road and chasing her through the woods with a gun. Balling his hands into fists, he fought to control his temper. He had to keep his cool, do everything by the book. Drury was smart, as evidenced by his manipulating the judicial system to get Big Jim Berkley a new trial. He couldn’t afford to underestimate his quarry, but he planned to make sure one way or another Drury didn’t get away with hurting Serena.
The front door swung inward, and a heavy-set woman stood in the opening, a perturbed scowl on her face. Oily, dark hair hung limply around her face, and glasses with thick tortoise shell rims covered a good portion of her face. Somehow, she didn’t resemble the picture he had of a successful attorney’s wife. Instead, she looked more like—well, he wasn’t going to go there. She looked as unhappy to see him at her door as he was to be there, but he had a job to do, and he wasn’t leaving without answers. If he wasn’t happy with what he learned, Drury would be in handcuffs, headed for the police station.
“Mrs. Drury?”
“Yeah. Can I help you?” Her gaze swept over him from the top of his head to his toes, and back up again, and she blinked a couple of times before plastering a smile on her lips.
Antonio pasted an answering smile on his face and turned on the charm, burying his seething anger down. He hoped a little kindness might loosen Mrs. Drury’s lips, get her talking, and if he was lucky, she’d implicate her husband in Serena’s accident.
“My name is Antonio Boudreau. FBI.” He pulled his shield, showing her his identification. Watched her eyes widen in surprise. “I’d like to speak with you and your husband. May I come in?”
“I guess so.”
Oh, boy, she doesn’t sound like a happy camper.
She led him into the living room, and he couldn’t hide his surprise. From the outside, the house didn’t appear to be more than a modest ranch style in an upper middle-class neighborhood. Inside, it looked like the Liberace Museum vomited all over the living room. Shiny brass, silver, and glittering crystals covered every surface. An explosion of pink in every shade imaginable assaulted his eyes. Zebra print sofas sat pushed back against two walls. Armchairs with scrolled arms covered with gold velvet and crystal-studded nail head trim anchored the corners. A blinding hot pink rug lay centered between all the furniture, and mirrored glass end-tables flanked the sofas. He found himself rendered speechless from the overabundance of bad taste and extravagance crowding the space.
Mrs. Drury sat primly on the edge of one of the sofas, her hands folded demurely in her lap. She presented an incongruous sight, with her mousy brown hair which looked like it could use a good shampooing, and tortoise shell, thick-lensed glasses. The huge bright orange and violet flowers on her blouse clashed with the zebra print, and her yellow capri pants practically burned his corneas.
“Mrs. Drury—”
“Please, call me Corinne.” She gave him a shy smile, her words a bit flirtatious, and battered her lashes at him. Or maybe she was having trouble with her vision, he couldn’t tell because of the thick glasses. Didn’t matter, he couldn’t afford to let his surroundings or her odd behavior distract him from getting the answers he needed. The plan was to ease into the conversation, get her talking, and prove Drury didn’t have an alibi for the time he’d been in Shiloh Springs. Thinking back to Serena’s poor bruised and battered body had his hands fisting. But he needed to keep it together and let Mrs. Drury confirm his suspicions.
They’d found Serena’s stolen car over an hour away from Shiloh Springs, abandoned in a shopping center parking lot. Drury had taken it, making his getaway while Rafe and Antonio had been rescuing Serena in the woods. Though Ridge had chased after Drury, he’d lost him in heavy traffic outside Austin. Currently the car was being gone over with a fine-tooth comb, the FBI crime techs searching for fingerprints, fibers, or anything else to prove Drury drove it, because the only person who’d gotten a good look at him after the accident was Serena. All Ridge could tell was the man running away was approximately the right height and build for Drury, but he hadn’t gotten a good look at his face.
“Corinne, is Mr. Drury home? I’d like to ask him some questions as well.”
“Jonathan isn’t due back for a while, Mr. Boudreau.” She coquettishly curled a clump of oily hair around her finger, and gave him another simpering smile, which didn’t do anything except turn his stomach. Was she seriously trying to flirt with him? He needed to get her focused and answering questions, and made an effort to get her attention off him and back onto her husband.
“I see. Well, I do have a couple of questions you might be able to answer. Where was your husband yesterday?”
The hair-twirling finger stopped mid-twirl and she sat a little straighter. “He was here at home. Why?”
“Was he here all day, Mrs. Drury? Did he leave at any time?”
“What is this about, Mr. Boudreau? My husband hasn’t done anything wrong.”
“I’m following up on an accident. Looking for potential witnesses. You understand.” Antonio didn’t want to come right out and tell Corinne he wanted to toss her husband under the jail for hurting Serena. Or that FBI agents didn’t normally go around looking for eyewitnesses to car accidents. That was handled by the local cops.
“You think he saw an accident? Oh, I don’t think so. He was here—”
The front door swung open hard enough to bang against the wall, and Drury raced inside, red-faced and out of breath. His eyes frantically scanned the room before spotting Antonio. In a surprising move, Jonathan stalked across the room and got right up in Antonio’s face, his anger an almost palpable thing.
“Why are you bothering my wife?” He slung an arm around Corinne, pulling her against his
side. She slid both arms around Drury’s waist and rested her head against his chest, hugging him close.
“Honey, it’s okay. He’s with the FBI. He wants to talk to you about an accident.”
Drury ran a gentle hand over his wife’s head before cupping her cheek. “I’m sure it’s a mistake. I don’t know anything about an accident. I’m afraid I can’t help you, Mr. Boudreau.”
The tiny hairs of the back of Antonio’s neck tingled at the mention of his name. Neither he nor Drury’s wife had mentioned him by name, simply he was with the FBI. Somebody must have snitched to Drury about a stranger showing up at his house. The neighborhood grapevine moved quickly when it wanted to and small-town suburbs, like this one, meant neighbors watched out for each other. Guess somebody must’ve called Drury when they’d seen Antonio show up on his doorstep. Didn’t explain how he’d known Antonio’s name, but it did mean Drury knew a whole lot more than Antonio expected. Apparently Big Jim’s mouthpiece was neck deep in his conspiracy and his attempt on Serena’s life.
“Mr. Drury, where were you yesterday?”
Drury glanced at his wife before answering. “Here. All day. I never left the house.”
Antonio watched the imperceptible stiffening of Corinne’s body at Drury’s lie, but she didn’t contradict him. “Can anybody confirm your story?”
“Of course. My wife can. Right, sweetie?”
“That’s what I was telling Mr. Boudreau. You were home all day. With me.”
“I have witnesses who claim you were in Texas yesterday, Mr. Drury. And you were involved in an automobile accident with another car. Are you denying their account?”
Drury nodded. “Absolutely. Whoever told you that is either mistaken or a bald-faced liar. I emphatically deny being in Texas or anywhere else yesterday, except for right here, in my home.” He paused, defiantly staring at Antonio. “Am I being accused of anything, Mr. Boudreau? I have to assume it’s serious, if they’ve sent the Federal Bureau of Investigation to interrogate me.”
