by Rose, Karen
And I actually tried to get inside and failed. Which, now that his face was all over the TV and the Internet, might make someone at the nursing home remember him anyway. Dammit.
Feeling helpless, Rafe met Tom’s gaze. ‘Mercy is my friend. So is Gideon. I’d do anything to keep them safe, and finding Burton will keep Mercy safe.’
‘Then help me.’ Tom lifted his tablet. ‘What else did you notice about Burton last night?’
Rafe scowled, then reconsidered. Tom hadn’t told him specifically not to get involved. Only that he wasn’t supposed to. I can work with that. ‘He didn’t really seem shocked when I called him by name. More . . . angry and a little resigned. Like he’d been afraid of it happening.’
‘The locket,’ Tom murmured. ‘We allowed CNN to show Eileen’s locket in the hopes that other Eden escapees would see it and come forward. But if Burton saw the locket . . .’
‘He’d be worried that we know what’s inside it.’
Tom shrugged. ‘It’s the most likely scenario. Anything else?’
‘Just that I’m still wondering how he knew she was flying to Sacramento yesterday. I know he was in New Orleans for almost a week, but that doesn’t account for how he knew she was leaving – and he took the flight before hers, so he couldn’t have followed her to the airport.’
Tom sighed softly. ‘I didn’t think anyone had called Dr Romero yet.’
Rafe stiffened. ‘What do you mean?’
‘I figured her family would call her, but when I saw her sitting at your mother’s table I could tell that no one had. Her aunt, actually her great-aunt, I think, was found dead in her apartment sometime during the night. Whoever did it tried to make it look like a robbery, but the timing is very suspicious.’
‘Oh no,’ Rafe breathed. ‘Poor Farrah. But what does this have to do with Mercy?’
‘Mercy and Quill Romero were next-door neighbors.’
‘Oh God.’ Rafe’s stomach began churning all over again. ‘Why has no one told Farrah?’
‘I don’t know.’
Rafe surged to his feet, grabbing his cane to pace the length of the office, then stopped when a thought occurred. He dialed his next-door neighbor, Ned, who answered on the first ring.
‘Rafe, what’s wrong?’
‘Why would you think something’s wrong?’
‘Because men in black visited your place about an hour ago.’
They had tried to tell Farrah, then. ‘Are they still there?’
‘Hold on. I don’t think so, but I’ll look.’
Rafe looked over at Tom. ‘I think the Feds came by my house. Hold on, Ned’s back.’
‘The black suits are gone, but there’s another guy outside, sitting on the hood of his car, watching your house. Big guy, like a football player. African American. Looks kind of sad, actually. He’s not a cop, at least he’s not wearing a uniform. Or a suit. He’s wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. Looks like . . . Oh, it’s one of those golden fleur-de-lis things. New Orleans Saints, I guess.’
‘I think I know who he is – probably the fiancé of one of my houseguests. Can you do me a favor? Take your phone down to the guy and let me talk to him or at least give him my number?’
‘Sure thing, Rafe. Hold on. Gotta find my shoes.’
Rafe rubbed his hand over his face while he waited for Ned to go outside. Finally, he heard Ned say, ‘Excuse me. Are you looking for the homeowner?’
A deep voice rumbled, ‘Yes. Do you know how I can get in touch with him?’
‘He’s here, on the phone,’ Ned said. ‘Wants to talk to you.’
A second later that deep voice was talking to him. ‘Where’s Farrah?’
‘She’s safe. This is Rafe Sokolov. Are you her captain?’
The man huffed a gruff chuckle. ‘Yeah. Captain André Holmes. You’re Mercy’s guy?’
Rafe sucked in a breath. ‘Not yet, but I hope to be. Listen, I have a Fed here telling me that Farrah’s aunt’s body was found. She doesn’t know.’
‘I know. I came to tell her in person. She loved Quill.’ He cleared his throat. ‘So did I.’
‘Give me your number and I’ll text you the address. She’s here with us at my folks’ house. It’s about forty-five minutes from where you are with traffic.’ He put Holmes on speaker, typing André’s phone number into a new text as the man recited it, then adding his parents’ address before hitting SEND. ‘Did you get it?’
‘I did. Thank you. Can you keep her away from TVs and computers for the next forty-five? And her phone. I’ve been calling her for the past two hours. I don’t want her to see all my messages and freak out. Not till I get there.’
‘Will do. See you soon.’
Rafe pocketed his phone and limped back to Tom. ‘Thanks for letting me know. Farrah is a really nice person. I hate for her to get bad news like this.’
‘Her fiancé is coming?’
‘On his way. So, I guess that explains how Burton knew Mercy’s plans. I get the impression that the Romeros are like us – nothing stays a secret for very long. The aunt must have known and told Burton before he killed her.’
‘My family is the same way. My mom was disappointed that I didn’t get assigned to the Chicago field office for my first post, but I was a little glad. I love my family, I really do, but they can be . . .’
‘Suffocating?’ Rafe suggested, and Tom made a face.
‘Exactly.’ He stood up and adjusted the knot of his tie. ‘I’ll get out of your hair now. You take it easy, okay? No chasing after Burton?’
‘I will take it very easy,’ Rafe promised. And I will chase Burton as soon as the opportunity presents. And I won’t clock him with my fucking cane next time. Next time, I’m pulling my gun.
‘I, uh, noticed that you didn’t promise part two.’
Rafe shrugged. ‘I make it a practice not to promise things I can’t deliver.’
Tom gave him a long, hard look. ‘Molina will be very displeased if you go after Burton on your own.’
‘I really don’t care how much she’s displeased,’ Rafe said mildly.
Tom sighed. ‘Look, I’m just the junior G-man here. Don’t be getting me into trouble, okay? I’ve got a few ideas about how to get someone into that nursing home, but Molina has to okay it.’
‘And maybe she’ll even think it was her idea?’
Tom shrugged. ‘I’m pretty good at suggesting things to higher-ups in ways that don’t piss them off and boot me off the case. Give me a little time to present my ideas to Molina before you go off on your own, okay?’
Rafe nodded grudgingly. ‘Okay. Thank you.’
Tom started to leave, but stopped a foot away from where Rafe stood, leaning against his cane. ‘I would have done anything to keep my fiancée safe, so I know what you’re feeling right now. But Mercy needs you alive. Please don’t do anything she’ll regret.’
‘All right. And thanks for the straight talk on the therapist. I’ll make an appointment tomorrow.’
Tom shook his head. ‘You didn’t distract me about you hunting down Ephraim, Rafe. But I’m glad you’re going to make the call to the doc. You won’t be sorry.’
‘Hey, Tom? My mom made extra cake. You want a slice for the road?’
He grinned. ‘I never say no to cake.’
Rafe opened the door to see his mother edging away from the door guiltily, her hands filled with the tea tray. ‘Mom,’ he groaned.
‘I didn’t listen,’ Irina claimed. ‘Much. I’m on my way back to the kitchen.’
‘Allow me, ma’am.’ Tom took the tray and followed Rafe’s mother.
Rafe brought up the rear, hoping that his mother hadn’t heard them talking about Farrah’s great-aunt. He was going to ask her to keep it to herself, but she was already interrogating Hunter.
‘Do you have any family here, Agent Hunter?
’
‘Um, no, ma’am. A dear friend, but no family.’
‘Then next week you will join us for dinner. And you will bring your “dear friend” as well. Yes?’
Tom smiled down at her. The guy was taller than any of the Sokolovs, which now made sense considering he’d been in the NBA. ‘Yes, ma’am. If it’s not any trouble. I miss Sunday dinners with my family, and my friend just came back from the Middle East. She served four years and now she’ll be going to nursing school at UC Davis.’
‘That is a good nursing program,’ Irina declared. ‘My alma mater.’ He’d put the tray down in the kitchen and she slipped her arm through Hunter’s. ‘You will tell me about your family. Please.’
Rafe smirked when Tom gave him a Help me look. ‘You’re on your own, pal.’ But his smirk became a smile when he saw Mercy at the table. She was smiling back, which settled some of the worry swirling in his mind.
But then he saw Farrah chatting with Sasha, and remembered what was coming. He flicked a glance at his mother and saw she was giving Farrah a sad look of her own. Dammit. Rafe hoped she wasn’t going to let the cat out of the bag before Captain Holmes arrived, but his fears were put to rest when she met his eyes and gave him a brisk nod before cutting a generous slice of bird’s milk cake for Tom.
Rafe came up behind her and pressed a kiss to her temple. ‘Love you, Mom.’
Her smile was tremulous. ‘Of course you do. I am awesome.’
‘Yes, you are.’ He dipped to peck her cheek. ‘Save me some cake, okay?’
She laughed now, shooing him away with her apron, a sweet blush staining her cheeks. ‘Go. Make your goo-goo eyes at Mercy,’ she whispered, making him blush.
‘Yes, ma’am.’ He straightened, pasted a Nothing wrong here expression on his face, and, obeying his mother, sat next to Mercy while his mother invited Tom to sit.
It looked like Tom would agree, but he checked his phone and sighed. ‘I can’t. I have to get back to the office.’
‘Please, take the cake,’ Irina said firmly. ‘I will wrap for you.’
‘Your mother is a force of nature,’ Mercy whispered. She looked perfectly normal, perfectly calm. Except her voice became worried when she leaned in, her lips brushing his ear. ‘What’s wrong?’
Shit. He was pretty good at his Nothing wrong here face. He’d spent a lifetime perfecting it, in fact. But she saw right through him. ‘I’ll tell you later. Trust me for now?’
She pulled back enough to study his eyes. ‘Yes, I trust you. Not just for now.’
Leaving him speechless. Trust was a rare commodity for Mercy Callahan. He’d known that from the moment he’d first heard her name. He’d been comforting seventeen-year-old Gideon when he couldn’t break through his sister’s shields. Rafe had known it every one of the minutes she’d sat by his side after he’d been shot. She was instinctively wary. But she trusts me.
He wasn’t ever going to make her regret it.
Twelve
Granite Bay, California
Sunday, 16 April, 5.15 P.M.
Rafe kept an eye on the clock, glancing at Mercy and Farrah every few minutes. Neither woman had her phone and he’d already pulled Gideon aside, giving him the heads-up on Farrah’s aunt.
‘I’m glad you told me,’ Gideon had murmured. ‘I was about to call John with Mercy. He’s probably heard already, if it’s on the local news, and he’d tell her. I don’t want Mercy to have to put on a brave face until Farrah’s fiancé arrives. She’s had to fake being okay enough for a lifetime.’ He looked torn. ‘She and Farrah were talking about the Romeros while you were in with Hunter, and Mercy mentioned how much she loved the old lady. They had dinner a few times a week and Mercy would take her to her doctor’s appointments. She was kind of like Mercy’s grandmother. I hate to keep this from her, even though I know we have to.’
‘You can plead ignorance. In case she’s too angry with me to let me help her, she’ll still have you.’
Gideon had given him a slightly chastising look. ‘I think we should stick to the truth, don’t you? I don’t want to give her a reason to distrust either of us. She’s been told enough lies in her life.’
Rafe closed his eyes, ashamed. ‘You’re right. That was stupid of me.’
‘No. That was generous of you. You were willing to be the bad guy to keep the door open for me, even though you clearly want her for yourself.’
‘I . . .’ The denial had trailed away. Because it would have been a lie, too.
Gideon had rolled his eyes. ‘I’ve seen this coming for weeks. And, for the record, I hope it works out. She’s good for you and vice versa. So let’s not underestimate her, okay? Now we should get back or we’ll have to answer questions and I don’t want to break my own no-lying rule.’
Now, back at the family table, Rafe was glad that Gideon had kept his head straight. But it had been forty minutes since Captain Holmes had called and Rafe knew he needed to tell Mercy now, away from the group. If she was going to fall apart, he could at least give her the privacy to do so.
He nudged her shoulder with his. ‘I need to talk to you about something,’ he said softly. ‘Come with me.’
Sasha let out a low whistle. ‘Is that what you’re calling it now? Talk?’
Irina leveled Sasha with a glare. ‘Show your brother some respect.’
Sasha huffed, looking a little hurt at the rebuke. ‘Okay, Mom. I’ll rein it in.’
‘Thank you,’ Irina said, but Karl looked concerned.
‘Is everything all right, maya lubimaya?’ he asked, sliding his arm around her shoulders.
Irina’s smile was brittle. ‘I’m just tired. I didn’t sleep well last night.’
Sasha’s face fell. ‘I’m sorry, Mom. I didn’t think . . .’ She got up and, standing behind her mother’s chair, wrapped her arms around her. ‘After all that talk of the past, I should have been more considerate.’
‘You’re fine, Sahinka. I’m a little on edge.’
Farrah began to gather the dessert plates and cups. ‘Then you sit and relax. I’ll clean up.’
‘Thank you, Farrah,’ Irina said faintly.
Rafe hoped Captain Holmes would get there soon. He didn’t think his mother could hold her composure much longer. He tugged on Mercy’s hand, leading her down the hall to the first-floor guest bedroom.
‘Um, Rafe?’ she asked, and he looked back when she stopped walking. ‘Where are we going?’
‘Trust me?’ he asked, and she sighed.
‘You’re pushing it, pal,’ she said lightly.
He might have smiled at any other time, but his heart hurt for what he had to tell her. ‘I’m sorry.’
She immediately sobered, stopping outside the guest-room door. ‘What’s wrong?’
He pressed a finger to her lips. ‘Please.’
She gripped his hand so hard he winced. But she said nothing more, hesitantly sitting on the edge of the bed while he closed the door.
He joined her on the bed, threading their fingers together. ‘Hunter gave me some bad news.’ He wanted to kick himself, phrasing it that way. It wasn’t bad news. It was horrific. ‘I . . .’
She squeezed his hand. ‘Just say it, Rafe.’
‘Quill Romero is dead.’
She jerked back like she’d been slapped, the color draining from her face. ‘What?’
‘Her body was discovered sometime during the night.’
Mercy’s eyes were filling with tears, her breaths shallow and too fast. ‘How?’ But he could see she already understood. She covered her mouth to muffle a sob. ‘Because of me.’
‘No, honey. No.’ Rafe gathered her close until she was halfway on his lap. ‘We don’t know that yet. It appears to have been a robbery.’
Mercy’s body shook as she tried to quietly cry. ‘Why? Why would someone rob her?’ She clung to him, both arm
s around his neck, and he pulled her fully to his lap. One of these days he wanted to hold her like this when her heart wasn’t breaking, but that wouldn’t be today.
‘Did she know that you were leaving for Sacramento yesterday morning?’
Mercy could only nod against his neck. ‘And now she’s dead because of me.’
‘No, it’s because a sonofabitch is obsessed with you, baby. You can’t blame—’
She shoved away, glaring at him. ‘Don’t you dare tell me not to blame myself. I loved her. I loved her, Rafe. And she’s dead and it’s because of me.’
‘You aren’t responsible for anything Ephraim Burton has done.’
‘Aren’t I? If I’d cooperated six weeks ago and helped Gideon’s boss find him, then he couldn’t have killed her. And if I hadn’t fought him in Eden, he wouldn’t have hurt me so bad and Mama wouldn’t have tried to smuggle me out and she’d still be alive, too.’
He stared at her. ‘Mercy. Listen to yourself.’
‘I am,’ she hissed. ‘I am listening to myself and maybe I don’t make sense to you, but this is how I feel, so don’t you dare tell me it’s wrong.’
‘You’re right. I don’t have the right. I might have the right to my opinion, but not to force it on you.’
Mercy’s gaze lingered on his for a long moment, so full of pain that Rafe felt his own eyes sting. ‘I have to tell Farrah,’ she whispered.
‘No. Her captain is on his way. He flew out first thing after Miss Romero’s body was found. He wants to be here for her.’
‘How much longer will we need to wait? I don’t think I can keep this from her.’ Then her eyes narrowed. ‘Your mother knows. That’s why she snapped at Sasha.’
He nodded once. ‘Mom overheard Tom and me talking in the office. I didn’t want you to hear it in front of everyone. I thought you might need some quiet to process things, and that’s hard to do with an audience.’
She pursed her lips as the tears began to flow again. Clearly, her anger was gone, and it looked like it had been replaced by a sadness that was bone deep. But there was something else there, something soft and grateful. ‘Thank you. I appreciate it. That can’t have been an easy secret to keep.’
