Deadly Escape: A Shelby Nichols Adventure (Shelby Nichols Adventures Book 11)

by Colleen Helme

  Josh chuckled. “Yeah. He’s going to be mad that he missed all the excitement.”

  “Yeah, that’s for sure,” I agreed. “I’ll be home as soon as I can. Maybe you’d better wake him up and fill him in before I get there.” I hoped that if Josh told Chris, he’d take it better than if it came from me.

  “Sure. See you soon.”

  I handed the phone back to Uncle Joey with a relieved sigh. “They’re okay.”

  He nodded and glanced toward the activity going on up inside the staircase. “I’m glad your detective friend called me to find out where you were, even though he got here first.” He was thinking that Dimples had my best interests at heart, since he was willing to work with a mob-boss, so the cop couldn’t be all bad.

  “Yeah, that’s what he said. I guess he was closer.”

  “Yeah,” Ramos growled. “And I got sent someplace else.” He was thinking that he could have made it here faster than either one of them, and Leo would be dead. It made him madder than hell that he still breathed.

  “Hey…it all worked out, right?” Ramos raised his brows, so I continued, “Well all but the dead part, which isn’t so bad because he’s going to die anyway.”

  That coaxed a smile out of him, and I grinned back.

  Dimples came to my side. “They’re bringing him out in a few minutes. Can I talk to you privately for a moment?”

  “Sure.” I glanced at Ramos and Uncle Joey. “I’ll be right back.”

  Dimples led me a short distance away where no one could hear us. “We need to get our story straight about how you got here. I don’t think it’s a good idea for Gerard to know that Leo kidnapped you to get to Manetto.”

  “You’re right. Why don’t we tell him I got a premonition that Leo and Uncle Joey were meeting here. We got here just in time to stop them from killing each other. That’s when Leo ran up the stairs to escape and fell through the rotted staircase. How does that sound?”

  “That should work. Will you update Manetto?”

  “Yes, I can do that.”

  “Good. I’ll be right back.” He returned to the staircase, and I joined Uncle Joey.

  “What was that all about?” Uncle Joey asked.

  “We need to get our stories straight.” I told him the story we’d come up with, and Uncle Joey agreed, grateful that Dimples was looking out for me.

  Just then, Dimples came back out, followed by another detective and a police officer. Dimples paused in front of our little group in his official capacity, glancing at me and Uncle Joey. “I’ll need a statement from both of you.” He turned to Ramos. “But you can go if you want.”

  I picked up that Dimples was a little worried that Ramos might still try to kill Leo as they brought him out.

  “He’s not going to do that,” I told Dimples.

  All of them turned to stare at me. Dimples knew that Uncle Joey and Ramos knew my secret, but they hadn’t realized that Dimples shared it as well. Oops.

  I heard a boat load of swearing from their minds, but it stopped as Gerard led Leo out of the stairway. Leo’s hands were cuffed behind him, and Gerard held his elbow. This was the first time Leo and Uncle Joey had seen each other face-to-face, and the animosity burning between them could have started a forest fire.

  Leo stared at Uncle Joey, thinking that it wasn’t right that he was the one on the outside, while Leo had spent his best years behind bars. Manetto was just as crooked as all the rest of them. Manetto should have died that night instead of his bodyguard.

  Uncle Joey was thinking that Leo had been stupid and greedy. He should have known better than to cross the wrong people, but he was too arrogant and full of himself to see the danger. Then Leo killed the woman he loved, along with several of his friends. Leo deserved every year in prison he got, and Uncle Joey hoped he suffered in the remaining time he had left. Then, after that, he hoped he suffered for eternity in hell.

  They reached the door, and Leo glanced back at Uncle Joey one last time before Gerard pulled him into the parking lot. I caught his last thought that there was still a slim chance that Uncle Joey could die.

  What did he mean by that?

  Dimples turned to me, taking in my pale face. “I think I’ve got enough to make my report. Why don’t you go home now? We can talk more tomorrow. I know what happened, so I can take care of any questions Gerard might have for you.”

  “Really? Because that would be great.”

  “Sure. I’ll call you tomorrow.” He sent me a warm smile, then nodded at Uncle Joey. His gaze kind of slid past Ramos, and I got the definite impression than he didn’t trust Ramos for a moment. Then he followed the others out. He wasn’t quite as upset with Uncle Joey as he was before when he’d wanted to take him down for my sake. But that didn’t mean it was off the table.

  Once he was out of earshot, I turned to Uncle Joey. “Uh…there’s something that you need to know, and it’s got me worried. On his way out, Leo was thinking that there was still a chance you could die. I have no idea what he meant by that, but maybe you should be careful for the next little while.”

  Uncle Joey’s brows rose. “Okay. Good to know. But I don’t think there’s much that can get past you or Ramos, so I should be fine.”

  I smiled, grateful that he wasn’t fazed in the least. “I guess you have a point.”

  “Good. Now let’s get out of here. This place gives me the creeps.”

  That brought a laugh out of me, and we all trooped out of the ruins to the parking lot. Dimples and Gerard were just pulling out of the lot, and most of the cops were getting ready to leave as well.

  Uncle Joey beckoned me to his car, thinking that I couldn’t go home with blood on my face. I’d forgotten all about my wound, and gently touched the bump on my temple.

  “I have a first aid kit in the glove box.” He pulled it out and rummaged through the kit, finding an alcohol wipe. As he dabbed it against my skin, I bit my lip from the sharp sting. Uncomfortable with the whole doctoring thing, Uncle Joey hesitated. “That should do it.” He glanced at Ramos. “What do you think?”

  Ramos lifted his brows. “You missed some.” He took the wipe from Uncle Joey and did a more thorough job, even using it on the smaller abrasions on my cheek. “There.”

  I let out my breath and thanked them both. It warmed my heart that both a mob-boss and his hit-man were happy to take care of me in such a personal way.

  Uncle Joey put the kit away and turned to me. “I have something for you from New York. Why don’t you come into the office tomorrow so I can give it to you? Around ten sound all right?”

  “Wow. Sure, I can do that.” I listened real close to see if I could pick up what it was, but he just grinned and shook his head.

  “See you then.” He slid into his car and shut the door.

  Ramos walked me to my car, and I suddenly realized I didn’t have the car keys. Leo had taken them after I’d parked. “My keys. Leo has them. Dammit.”

  Ramos’s brows rose. Didn’t I want a ride home with him on the bike?

  “Well, yeah, but…my husband and kids...I don’t want them to see me…with you…on the bike. They might get the wrong idea. You know?”

  “So that’s our dirty little secret?” He was thinking of the kiss I’d given him in the Potomac River. “Or just one of them?”

  “Well yeah…that too.” I caught his smirk and relaxed, grateful I could trust him. He was teasing me, but I knew he would never breathe a word to anyone. Our relationship was special to him, and he didn’t want anything to ruin what we shared.

  “You know I really wanted to kill Leo. I think that’s something I wouldn’t want anyone else to know, either. Can you keep that a secret too?”

  He chuckled. “I think so. It’s kind of nice to know there’s a side to you that no one else but me knows about.”

  “Then I guess we’re even,” I said with a teasing grin. “Because I know some things about you that no one else knows about either.”

  “What’s that?” he as
ked.

  “That you’re not as bad as most people think.”

  “That doesn’t count. You’ve never thought I was a bad person.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “I might have thought you were sort of bad at the beginning, and maybe you’re kind of bad now, but not the kind of bad that bothers me.”

  Ramos let out a breath, thinking it should bother me. He was a cold-blooded killer, and not someone many people would dare cross. The fact that we shared a special relationship gave me an advantage, but it wasn’t normal behavior for him, and I shouldn’t ever forget that.

  I wanted to tell him he was wrong, but the glint of steel in his eyes reminded me of a lone wolf who had no desire to be tamed. He liked his world just as it was. If he’d wanted more from me, I wouldn’t stand a chance.

  He’d have me panting and breathless in seconds. I was lucky that he had scruples where I was concerned. But he wanted me to know that it only applied to me, otherwise he was just as bad as everyone thought.

  My eyes widened. Just the thought of his ravishing mouth pressed against my lips left me a little dazed and breathless. Ugh! He was more right than I wanted to admit. I swallowed. “Uh…well then…I guess I am…lucky…I think.”

  He chuckled. “Come on. We’ll get your keys from the police station. I’ll bring you back here and you can drive yourself home. It might take longer, but you’ll get some time on the bike to unwind. Sound good?”

  “Yes. It sounds perfect.” How could I resist? I’d told him once that he was a devil in a black suit. Now I realized just how fitting that was.

  I got home later than I wanted to, but at least no one was worried about me. Chris hugged me tight, thinking that he couldn’t even take a nap without something bad happening to me. He was also upset that Leo had managed to find me and get into our house, all while he was sleeping.

  I had to explain the part about taking Dimples to meet with Erika, which then extended to Trey Cooper. “At least I picked up that Leo was going to target me while we were there. I wasn’t sure how quickly that would happen, but Dimples planned to keep an eye on me the whole time. Still, even though I’d been expecting it, it came as a shock to find Leo already here.” I glanced at Josh and Savannah. “How did he get in the house?”

  Savannah twisted her lips, thinking it was her fault. “He came to the door asking to talk to you. I told him you weren’t home, and he said he’d wait. Before I knew what was happening, he’d stepped inside and pulled out a gun.”

  My breath caught. “Oh honey! I’m so sorry.”

  She shrugged. “At first I thought it had to be some kind of joke. Then he told me to keep quiet or he’d shoot me. I kind of froze up. After that, he asked me who else was home, so I told him Josh was downstairs. He told me to call down and tell him that I needed him upstairs. I never did mention that Dad was home. We went into the kitchen and sat down, and you came home right after that. So he wasn’t here for more than five minutes.”

  “So tell us what happened after you left with him,” Josh said, wanting all the gory details. “Did you really take his gun away from him?”

  Chris didn’t know about that part of the story, so I had to start at the beginning. I also left out the part where I went up the stairs to shoot Leo, since it wasn’t one of my better moments. “I’m glad you told Dimples to call Uncle Joey so he’d know where Leo was taking me. That was smart.”

  “Yeah, but it kind of worried me too,” Josh said. “I mean, Uncle Joey’s a mob-boss, and Dimples is a detective. Aren’t they on opposite sides of the law? I wasn’t sure if Dimples would ask Uncle Joey for help. But I guess it didn’t bother him…because of you.” Josh thought that it was a good thing I had friends on both sides of the law, but it sure made things complicated for me.

  “Yeah, it does get comp…uh…interesting sometimes.” Oops, I’d almost answered his thoughts. That was close. “I’m glad they were both there for me today.”

  Josh nodded, but something about what happened bothered him. If I had premonitions, why didn’t I know that Leo was coming to our house?

  “Once I picked up that Leo might be after me, I came straight home,” I explained. “Too bad I didn’t pick up that he’d already be here, right? I guess sometimes my premonitions get a little out of sync.” That seemed to satisfy Josh, and he nodded.

  “So what’s going to happen to Leo?” Savannah asked.

  “They’ll put him back in prison, and I’m sure he’ll never get out again.”

  “Good.” Savannah wrapped her arms around me, and I held her tight. It scared her more than she let on, and I was sorry it had happened. She pulled away and smiled at me. “Good thing we’ve been learning Aikido, right? So show me how you got him to drop the gun.”

  I wasn’t sure Aikido had anything to do with it but, after running through my moves with her, I realized my training had sharpened my reflexes and had made a huge difference.

  “Wow Mom. You rock!”

  As I gathered my family around me, I realized that every day I had with them was precious. It was also a huge relief to know that Leo was behind bars and couldn’t hurt anyone I loved again.

  Later that night, I snuggled in Chris’s arms and told him how I’d almost shot Leo. “It scares me how much I wanted to pull the trigger while he was trapped and defenseless. What does that say about me?”

  “It says that you’re normal.” Chris pulled me tight against him. “He almost killed me, and he threatened our kids. Hell…I probably would have shot him if I’d been in your shoes. Don’t beat yourself up about it. You didn’t do it.”

  “Yeah, but that’s because I picked up that he wanted me to shoot him, so he wouldn’t die a slow, painful death. Since I want him to die slowly and painfully, it was an easy decision.”

  “True. But Shelby, I doubt you would have shot him anyway. You’re not a killer. You would have stopped.”

  I let out a breath. “I hope you’re right, but after everything that’s happened to me, not just with him, but with Cypher, I’m feeling a little off. Do you think I should talk to someone about it?”

  “That’s not a bad idea. But you’d have to keep the whole mind-reading thing out of it.”

  “Yeah, I know, but I could do that. Maybe Dimples could suggest someone.”

  “Sure,” he agreed. “Why don’t you ask him? But for now…” His voice turned low and sexy. “I have something better in mind.”

  My eyes widened. “Really? Are you sure you’re feeling well enough?”

  He chuckled, then nuzzled my neck just below my ear. His kisses spread to my collarbone, sending little shivers through my body. “Oh baby. Oh baby.”

  Chapter 14

  The next morning, Chris left for work, promising me that he’d come home early if he didn’t feel well. Josh and Savannah headed to school. I listened closely to make sure they were okay, and their thoughts relieved my worries. From Josh, I picked up that he had more confidence in himself because he’d been confronted with something hard, and had acted wisely and calmly under pressure.

  Savannah, on the other hand, couldn’t wait to tell her friends all the juicy details. She thought how cool it would be to tell them that an escaped criminal had come to her house with a gun and taken her mom captive. It would make her about the coolest kid ever.

  I almost told her not to say anything about it, but after what she’d been through, I kept my mouth shut. Talking to her friends about it might help her feel better. It might help me feel better too, and I realized talking to my best friend, Holly, would probably be better therapy than talking to a shrink, although I hadn’t ruled that out yet.

  After setting up a lunch date with Holly for the next day, I put another call through to my watch-maker and retired detective friend, Geoff Parker. I’d missed wearing my watch, and I hoped he could fix it. He asked me what had happened and, naturally, I had to tell him the whole, sordid tale. When I finished, he told me to bring it by, and he’d fix it as soon as possible.

  “With a
ll the trouble you get in, I’d better make it a rush job,” he said. “I’ll call Ramos about the tracker and make sure it still works.”

  “Thanks Geoff. I’ll be by later today.”

  With that accomplished, I showered and got ready to head to Thrasher Development. A little thrill went through me that Uncle Joey had a gift just for me, and I didn’t know what it was. That was unusual for a mind-reader. I entertained several ideas of what it could be, but I decided just to wait and see.

  I got off the elevator and entered the office. Jackie sat at her desk and, glancing up, her face broke into a smile. She came around her desk and gave me a tight hug.

  “It’s so good to see you,” I said. “Are you feeling all right?”

  “I’m still a little tired, but nothing I can’t handle. How’s Chris?”

  “He went to work, too. So he’s doing better. He slept most of the day yesterday.”

  “I did too.” Jackie shook her head. “I heard what happened to you yesterday. I can’t believe Leo came after you. Thank God, it’s finally over.”

  “That’s for sure,” I agreed.

  She gave me another hug. “Thanks for warning us about the poison. You saved my life.”

  “I’m glad I could.” Her eyes got a little misty, so mine did too. Not wanting to cry, I changed the subject. “So…Uncle Joey said he had something for me?”

  “Yes, go on back to his office.”

  I picked up that she hoped I’d like it, but she wasn’t sure. This made me more curious than ever. His door was shut, so I knocked a couple of times before sticking my head in. “Hey.”

  “Shelby. Come in.” He stood and looked me over. The scrape on my cheek was hardly noticeable, and my hair covered the bruise on my temple. But he liked that the sparkle was back in my eyes. “You look good. How are you doing?”

  “Pretty good, actually.”

  “Good. How’s Chris?”

  “He went to work today, just like Jackie, so I guess he’s fine.”

  “That was a close call. I’m glad that Leo is back where he belongs. I just wish he hadn’t targeted you and your family. But at least that won’t happen again.” He walked around the desk to my side. “Your gift is this way.” He couldn’t wait to show me, but I picked up his concern that I’d like it.