“I still don’t understand. Why would Eli say he killed her if he didn’t?” Shay said mostly to herself.
“Eli is not going to get away with this,” Kodi hissed and began slowly backing out of the apartment.
Before she could make it to the open door, Shay had grabbed the handgun from Howard’s waistband and aimed it at Kodi’s face.
“I don’t know what you know, but Eli is my brother and I won’t let him go to jail.”
Shay had become a different person with nothing but darkness in her eyes. She cocked the hammer back on the gun as she gave in to her desperation.
“Shay, no!” someone screamed as the gun went off and Kodi was tackled to the ground at the last second.
Kodi didn’t even wait to recover from hitting the hard floor before throwing herself through the open apartment door. Eli picked himself up off the floor and closed the door before Shay could fire the gun again. Then he walked right up to his confused sister, grabbed the gun out of her hands, and shoved it into Howard’s chest until he took it from him.
“We’re going to need her,” Eli said without emotion, “and Sammi.”
*
Sammi got off the phone and the look on her face told Mack more than he needed to know. He knew Eli had to be in the area and he wasn’t about to let him get away again. He started to head for the stairs to grab a shirt and his pistol, but he stopped himself when he realized the look he had seen on Sammi’s face was fear.
“What happened?” Mack asked Sammi, breaking out of cop-mode and wrapping his arms around her, pulling her protectively against his body.
“We have to go get Kodi,” Sammi told him, practically mumbling into his bare chest. “Shay just threatened her with a gun and Eli was there.”
“It’s going to be okay. We’ll go get her and she can stay here,” Mack replied calmly, still playing the role of the boyfriend, and planted a kiss on Sammi’s forehead. “I just gotta run upstairs really quick.”
Mack then darted upstairs and returned only a few moments later tucking a handgun into his waistband behind his back. He had put on a snug-fitting black t-shirt and had a grey sweatshirt draped over his right shoulder.
“Here, I grabbed this for you,” Mack said and offered the hooded sweatshirt to Sammi. Sammi thanked him and wrestled it on, trying to keep up with Mack as he led the way to his car.
Less than twenty minutes later, Mack pulled the vehicle up to a pay phone six blocks away from where Eli was last seen. Sammi immediately jumped out of the passenger side and pulled her terrified best friend into a protective hug. Kodi had been shaking since she had been shot at, but she didn’t start crying until the immense relief of seeing her best friend still alive.
Mack gave the women a few minutes to comfort each other before interrupting. He handed the car keys to Sammi and told her to take Kodi back to his apartment, lock the door behind them, and not leave until he returned. Then he turned and headed in the direction of Shay’s and Howard’s apartment, but Sammi grabbed his arm and stopped him.
“Where are you going?” Sammi asked, looking Mack directly in the eyes.
“I can’t let him get away again,” Mack told her with total sincerity, returning her eye contact.
“Mack, he beat you last time. Don’t do this. I can’t lose you,” Sammi pleaded with the man she cared about as she squeezed his arm and pulled him closer toward her.
Mack continued to look into Sammi’s sapphire eyes and knew he would do anything she ever asked of him. He sighed in surrender and kissed Sammi on the lips before taking the keys back from her.
“I have to at least call it in,” Mack said once everyone was back in the car.
“Please do. I would rather anybody else have to deal with him,” Sammi told him.
“I really can’t wait to hear this story,” Kodi piped up from the back seat, looking back and forth between two people who had been trying to shoot each other the last time she had seen either of them.
*
By the time they had arrived back at Mack’s apartment, Kodi had been brought up to speed by Sammi with many interjected anecdotes by Mack—after he got off the radio with his precinct, of course. Kodi remained silent the entire time and just allowed the new couple to tell their story. She had calmed down completely before they were even standing inside Mack’s front door.
“Would you be okay bunking with me while she stays with us?” Mack whispered, his lips brushing against the top of Sammi’s ear.
“Of course! Let me take her up there awhile and clear my things out of her way,” Sammi replied, leaning into Mack so his face was in her soft hair.
“Mhmm…” Mack mumbled as he breathed in her scent. Sammi giggled and kissed his cheek before leading her best friend upstairs to the guest bedroom.
Once the girls were alone, Kodi closed the door to the bedroom, guaranteeing their privacy. Sammi wasn’t ignorant to her friend’s change in attitude and just sat cross-legged on the bed, prepared to be lectured instead of helping Kodi make herself feel at home.
“Sammi, your neck…” Kodi started, taking a seat on the bed, facing her best friend.
“I know, it’s hideous,” Sammi replied. “Now let’s go, say what you really want to say.”
“What are you really doing with this guy, Sammi?” Kodi asked. “He’s a cop and you’re a criminal!”
“I can’t explain it. There’s just an indescribable connection between us,” Sammi told her.
“Is it because of your past or the fact that you just almost died? Is he the only thing that makes you feel safe?”
“I can’t believe you’re saying this! He has been nothing but wonderful to either of us!”
“I know. And I’m glad he’s good to you. I just don’t want you to lose who you are.”
Kodi let the conversation end there and didn’t mention her doubt again. But that seed of doubt got planted and continued to grow in the back of Sammi’s mind.
Chapter Eight
From Here to Zero
Two months passed without a break in the case against Eli Krik. When officers had arrived at the apartment of Shay and Howard, the place had been cleared out and not a person to be found. Kodi remained as a guest staying with Mack and Sammi for safety reasons, but Sammi was grateful for her company once Mack returned to work full-time.
One day, Sammi and Kodi were watching a movie while Mack was at work when the house phone rang. The two girls looked at each other without a word before Sammi picked up the remote to pause the movie.
“I…I didn’t even know he had a house phone,” Sammi admitted. “Am I supposed to answer it?”
“I don’t see why not. You live here, don’t you?” Kodi replied.
“Technically, so do you,” Sammi said with her trademark sass.
“Fine, don’t answer it,” Kodi shrugged and the phone stopped ringing.
“Well, that takes care of that,” Sammi responded through a smile and resumed playing the movie.
Less than two minutes later, the house phone began ringing again. Sammi groaned, paused the movie again, and got up to find the never-before-seen telephone. The phone ended up being in the kitchen, on the wall between the counter and a hanging cabinet.
“At least it’s cordless,” Sammi mumbled to herself before picking up the phone. “Hello?”
“Oh, hi… Is Mack there?” It was a female’s voice.
“No, he’s actually working late tonight. I’m sorry.”
“Oh…okay. Uh, are you Samantha?”
“Sammi, yeah. Who is this?”
“It’s Lori…the ex.”
“Oh!”
“Look, I actually want to thank you. Mack finally signed the divorce papers because of you.”
“He told you about me?”
“Yeah, sorry, I’m like one of the only people he has to talk to. He is a piece of work, but he loves you. I wish you two the best of luck.”
“Uh, thank you.”
After Sammi got off the phone, she r
eturned to the couch and told Kodi all about the uncomfortable conversation she just had with her boyfriend’s ex-wife. Kodi agreed that it was strange that Mack had discussed his current relationship with his past partner, especially considering Sammi’s history and the fact that he wasn’t very open about anything from his own past. He was an expert at shutting down whenever he didn’t want to talk about something.
Sammi and Kodi were finally finishing their movie when Mack got home from work later that evening. Mack said a quick hello to the girls then went upstairs to change out of his work clothes. The end credits of the movie started rolling a second later, so Sammi excused herself and hurried after her man.
Mack was wearing only his black dress pants when Sammi found him in the bedroom. She crossed the room to him and wrapped her arms around him, snuggling into his bare chest. Mack hugged her tightly to his body and kissed the top of her head.
“So, Lori called today,” Sammi said, and she could feel Mack’s entire body tense up.
“Really? Did you talk to her?” Mack asked cautiously.
“Yeah, she seems nice. She told me about the divorce papers,” Sammi told him, planting a few gentle kisses on the soft skin of his upper torso.
“I signed them the day you moved in. It felt like the right thing to do.”
“Well, she’s grateful.”
Unfortunately, the conversation had made Mack uncomfortable and he became almost entirely unresponsive. Sammi squeezed his body to hers once before leaving him to finish getting changed. She headed downstairs to order dinner for everyone and asked Kodi to help her un-spook her boyfriend. But Mack was quiet the rest of the evening and Sammi regretted even mentioning the phone call from earlier.
Later that night, Sammi and Mack lay in bed pretending to sleep after not even saying goodnight. Suddenly, Mack shot up out of bed and turned on the bedroom light. Sammi sat up against the pillows and gave him a confused look, almost too afraid to ask him what was bothering him. Mack began pacing back and forth in front of the bed and Sammi was quickly filled with dread.
“What is happening?” Sammi asked nervously.
“I just…I have so many questions,” Mack answered her.
“For who?” Sammi replied, immediately realizing the answer to her question was obvious. “About what?”
“How did you not get caught before me?”
This could have been a romantic conversation had Mack been talking about Sammi’s heart. But Sammi had always known her past was going to come back into play. And she was not about to back down if this was going to be thief versus cop.
“Caught?” Sammi scoffed. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize I was a prisoner here.”
“You know what I meant,” Mack responded. He finally stopped pacing and faced Sammi.
“No, I don’t know what you mean,” Sammi said angrily as she climbed out of the bed. She walked over and stood by the bedroom door with her arms crossed in front of her chest. “Do you think you bested me that night?”
Mack stood in front of the bed with a bewildered look on his face. He had no idea how the conversation turned down this path and he did not know how to steer it back on track. But there was no going back now.
“Sammi, you were either going to jail that night or you were going to die,” Mack spoke softly but seriously. “I provided you with the third, life-saving option.”
“Well I lived, I haven’t spent a single night in jail, and I got to keep the money. How did I not win that night?”
“You’re right, you won…with my help. I guess we make a pretty good team.”
Mack had walked over to Sammi by this point, scared that he was pushing her away. He reached out a hand and ran it along one of her arms until she uncrossed them. Then he took her right hand and pulled her over to the bed where he sat on the edge and pulled her onto his lap.
“I thought you didn’t want to talk about my poor life choices,” Sammi said quietly, looking down at her and Mack’s hands.
“Your life choices, good or bad, make you who you are. And I want to know everything,” Mack told her. Then he placed his fingers ever so lightly under her chin and gently tilted her face to his for a kiss.
*
After that dramatic evening, there was an undeniable strain on the relationship. Not wanting to give it time to fester, Mack took off work the next day to spend it with Sammi. They spent the afternoon in Times Square and ended the evening with Mack introducing Sammi to Lori and their two children. His family was nice to her, but Sammi couldn’t ignore the heavy feeling that she didn’t belong amongst them.
The more time Sammi spent with Mack and the better they got to know each other, it became more and more clear to Sammi that she still had some pretty heavy secrets of which Mack was not aware. First, she was having a difficult time mentally adjusting to a life without crime. She seemed totally fine on the outside, but her insides were bursting with desire to get back to the job with so many new ideas. Sammi didn’t think this personal battle was anything to concern Mack with because she was doing well enough ignoring it and hoping it would eventually go away.
Sammi’s second secret, however, was going to have to come out and it was going to be soon. She and Mack had not been intimate yet and Mack was only going to let it go for so long before he started asking questions. It wasn’t that Sammi didn’t want to have sex with Mack; she was easily turned on by him. But her past had her seriously screwed up and she had to hope that sex meant something more when it was with someone who truly loved her.
The Friday after Sammi met Mack’s family, Sammi and Kodi went out to breakfast after Mack had left for work. When they returned to the apartment, they were surprised to find a gift-wrapped box outside of the apartment door. Looking up and down the hallway, the girls saw no possible suspects. Sammi reached for the package, but Kodi threw her arm in front of her best friend to stop her.
“Sammi! You don’t know where that came from!” Kodi scolded.
“Relax,” Sammi said with half a laugh, “that’s Mack’s handwriting.” She pointed to the gift tag emblazoned with her own name.
Once inside the apartment, Sammi put the pretty package on the kitchen counter and undid the large red bow. Inside the thin white box was an elegant blue cocktail dress and a single handwritten note.
“Mack is taking me to dinner tonight,” Sammi announced after reading the note.
“Well, he certainly knows your color,” Kodi replied, admiring the sapphire blue fabric of the dress.
When Mack got home from work, Sammi was still getting ready in their bathroom so he used the hallway bathroom to shower. He changed into black dress pants and a white collared shirt then headed downstairs to wait in the kitchen for his girlfriend. Sammi descended the stairs only a few minutes later, looking like she had just stepped off a runway. The lovers closed the distance between themselves and met each other with their lips.
Mack had made a reservation at a five-star restaurant and the evening started out beautiful and romantic. But halfway through dinner, the entire mood changed as Mack fell into a habitual shutdown. Nervous, Sammi tried to figure out what caused his switch to flip. They had not been talking about anything even remotely heavy all evening, so she didn’t have an answer.
“Are you okay?” Sammi asked after trying to give Mack some time to break out of his almost trance-like state. “You’re scaring me.”
“I’m sorry, I’m just a little nervous,” Mack said quietly, finally blinking.
Before Sammi could question him further, Mack was on the floor in front of her on one knee. He slid his hand into his left pants pocket and pulled out a tiny velvet box. His hands were visibly shaking, but he retained his composure. Sammi watched him with wide eyes, frozen in her chair.
“I know we only met a few months ago, and under very strange circumstances. But I’ve never been in love with anything as much as I love you. Will you marry me, Samantha?” Mack said from his heart.
Sammi was speechless. Marriage was not som
ething that she ever thought about, not even for as long as she had been with Eli. But she somehow knew that if she was going to spend the rest of her life with any one person, it was going to be Lieutenant Mack Johnson.
After a slight hesitation, Sammi nodded at Mack, agreeing to marry this man. The couple stood up and Mack pulled his bride-to-be into his arms, hugging her tightly. Sammi was so lost in her own thoughts that she didn’t even notice as Mack slid the simple, round-cut diamond set in white gold onto her left ring finger.
Back at the apartment, Mack was excited to share their news with Kodi. But Sammi hadn’t spoken a word since dinner and headed right for the stairs after mindlessly showing her best friend the ring.
“I love you,” Sammi finally spoke once the couple lay in bed together. She snuggled up against his side and held onto his arm that was closer to her, clutching it to her chest. Mack turned his head to smile at her, feeling warm under her touch.
“I am the luckiest man in the world,” Mack stated and kissed Sammi goodnight.
*
As weeks passed, Sammi grew more accustomed to the idea of marriage despite still not having had the talk with Mack about her not-so-pretty history. Neither she nor Mack were rushing any wedding planning, which was only letting her get away with keeping her secrets. Kodi did her best to be as supportive as possible, but she couldn’t help but feel like Sammi was making a huge mistake and that she was losing her best friend. She knew all about Sammi’s traumatic past and she was disappointed in her best friend for not coming clean to the man she intended to marry.
A few weeks after Sammi asked Kodi to be her maid of honor, Kodi took Sammi out for the day to start looking at bridal gowns. Of course, every single dress made Sammi look like a blonde goddess, making dress shopping the hardest part of wedding planning so far. They ended up returning home much later than anticipated and without having decided on a dress. Mack was watching the evening news in the living room when they got home, but he got up as soon as they walked through the door and went upstairs without a word. Sammi shot her friend a confused glance.
“I smell drama,” Kodi replied and rolled her eyes.
Love Against the Law Page 6
