Secrets That Kill: A Shelby Nichols Adventure

by Colleen Helme

  When it came my turn to order, I got one fish taco, some fries, and a drink. Ramos was thinking I was nuts to only get one but didn’t say anything. He ordered five, thinking that after I tasted mine, I’d want at least one more. I tried not to shudder and took my cup to the drinks machine.

  We found a small table near the back and settled in to eat. Ramos dug in, closing his eyes in pleasure with the first bite. He swallowed and glanced at me. “These are even better than I remember.” Noticing I that I hadn’t started eating mine, his brows drew together. “Aren’t you going to eat it?”

  “Of course.” I smiled brightly. Unable to put it off any longer, I took a small bite. A burst of cilantro and lime with a tangy sauce coated my tongue. I chewed, surprised that I couldn’t taste that fishiness that always repelled me. I took another bite, but the same great flavors came through, leaving me a little shocked. “This is really good.” I finished it off like a starving person.

  Ramos smirked. “Good thing I got an extra one for you.” He pushed it toward me.

  “I guess you could tell I usually don’t like these,” I confessed.

  “The thought had crossed my mind,” he agreed. “But you probably already knew that.”

  I nodded and took a bite of my second taco, savoring the flavor almost as much as Ramos had. Who would have thought I’d ever like these? Chris would be so surprised. A pang of remorse hit me in the chest. How would he feel knowing I was sitting here enjoying myself while he was probably worrying about me? I checked the time. It was after eight. I should have called him before now.

  “What’s wrong?” Ramos asked.

  “I promised Chris I’d call him, and it’s getting late.”

  Ramos nodded in understanding. “It’s not too late. Let’s get back to the hotel and you can call him there.” He was thinking I needed some privacy to talk to my husband, and he didn’t especially want to hear what I had to say.

  “Sounds good. Thanks Ramos.”

  We finished up and got into the car. Ramos flipped on the radio to some salsa-type music, which surprised me. It wasn’t his usual fare, but with the flavor of the tacos still burning my mouth, it seemed to fit.

  “What time are we going tonight?” I asked.

  “Around one or so,” Ramos said. “Do you mind if we drive around the restaurant one more time? I want to see what it looks like now that it’s getting dark.”

  “Not at all,” I agreed. When we arrived, the crime-scene tape was gone. “They must have cleaned the place up to be ready to open tomorrow.”

  “Yeah,” Ramos said. “It’s a good thing we’re going in there tonight. No one will suspect if we leave the cleaning supply closet a little messed up from looking for the thumb-drive.”

  I nodded and Ramos continued to drive around the block, slowing to check out the fence. He was thinking it might be a little too tall for me to climb over if we had to leave in a hurry, and he didn’t want me to get stuck. “I’ll take you back to the hotel and you can call your husband while I visit the hardware store for some wire clippers.”

  I couldn’t hide the relief in my voice. “Sounds good.”

  Ramos dropped me off at the hotel with my purchases, and I hurried to our room, eager to call Chris. “Hey sweetie,” I said. “How’s it going?”

  “Pretty good. How are you? Where are you staying?”

  Guilt flooded over me, but I couldn’t really lie could I? “You’ll never believe it, but I guess Uncle Joey has connections or something because I’m at the Ritz-Carlton.” He didn’t answer right away.

  “Wow,” he said.

  “Yeah, I know. Pretty crazy, huh? But anyway, I’ve got my own room and everything, so that’s good.” That wasn’t exactly a lie.

  “Um…good.” He said it like he didn’t expect anything less, so why did I bring it up? Or was that just my guilty conscience speaking? “So,” he continued, “Did you get the thumb-drive out of the cleaning closet?”

  “We drove by the restaurant a couple of times and it’s shut up tight, so Ramos thought later tonight would be a good time to get the thumb-drive.”

  “You mean break in?” he asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “You and Ramos are going to break into the restaurant?” he asked, his voice edged with incredulity. “Wait…no. That’s a bad idea. If he wants the thumb-drive, he can do it without you.”

  “Yeah, exactly,” I said, trying to reassure him. “He’s going while I wait.”

  “At the hotel,” he clarified.

  “Um…probably, unless he needs me to drive the car.”

  “Shelby…” he sighed.

  “Chris…I’ll be fine. Don’t worry so much. This is what Ramos does, and he’s very good at it. I’ll be home tomorrow and we can get back to normal.” Oops, maybe that wasn’t the best thing to say since our ‘normal’ wasn’t like anyone else’s normal.

  “Yeah…okay,” Chris said. “I’ll try not to freak out. It’s just…” he paused. “Well, let’s just say I’ll be glad to have you back where I can keep an eye on you.”

  “Right, because otherwise I get into so much trouble.”

  “I didn’t say that.”

  “It’s okay,” I relented. “This isn’t what you signed up for.” Suddenly, I needed to know how he felt. “Chris…are you ever sorry you married me?”

  “What? You’re joking, right?”

  “No, I’m totally serious,” I said.

  “Shelby…of course not,” he answered. “I love you. I couldn’t imagine my life without you. Sometimes you drive me crazy, but I can live with it. I just worry about you. Wouldn’t you worry about me if our roles were reversed? If I was the one who could read minds and had to work for a person like Manetto?”

  “Well…yeah,” I said. When he put it that way I could totally understand his feelings. “I get it. It’s just that sometimes you seem more annoyed with me than anything else. I really don’t blame you. I just wish you’d cut me some slack. I really am doing the best I can.” My eyes filled with tears. “Today…a man I was trying to help died. His last thoughts were about me. He felt bad he’d involved me, and then just like that, he was gone.”

  I sniffed and wiped my eyes. “I feel bad about it, but with everything else that’s happened, I’ve had to push it to the back of my mind. Without you here, it’s going to be hard to sleep tonight.” I needed his comforting arms around me.

  “Babe…I’m so sorry. I wish I were there. Don’t cry…it’ll be all right. After you get home tomorrow, I’ll have something special planned, and tomorrow night…I’ll make it up to you. I’ll always be there for you, Shelby. Don’t ever forget that. Okay?”

  “Okay,” I said.

  “I’ll do better, I promise. You’re worth whatever I have to do. Just…don’t give up on me either, okay?”

  “I won’t,” I smiled through my tears. “I mean, if you think about it, if I hadn’t been protecting you from Kate…I never would have met Uncle Joey. So…in a sense, this is all your fault.”

  He chuckled. “Fine. I take full responsibility.”

  “Good. I’m glad that’s settled. Now I don’t feel so bad about staying in this gorgeous hotel room.” I fell back on the bed. “I’ll miss you though…but I’ll try to get over it.”

  “Fine. Just call me if you need me…I’ll keep my phone on all night.”

  “Thanks Chris. I’m looking forward to tomorrow,” I said.

  “Love you babe.”

  “Love you too.” We disconnected and I kicked off my shoes, then laid back and stared at the ceiling. It had been a long day and I was exhausted. Hopefully, stealing the thumb-drive from the restaurant later would go smoothly.

  It was great to talk to Chris. He grounded me, and right now I needed that. I enjoyed being with Ramos, maybe more than I should, and that worried me. Not that anything would happen between us, but I had to admit, I was attracted to him. I could totally get why women fell for the “bad boy” types. That element of danger held a certain
appeal. It was like throwing caution to the wind, which for me was not an option. Not when I already had a wonderful man in my life.

  Chris loved me. Besides being ruggedly handsome and a great husband, he was stable and loyal. He was the perfect partner for me in every way. With our two great kids, we were a family that belonged together. We just needed to have a little more fun, and not be so serious all the time.

  Thoughts of how we could accomplish that brought a smile of anticipation to my face, and I looked forward to getting home tomorrow, especially when he was planning something special. I’d have to get all dolled up and wear something out of the ordinary, but it would be worth it to see the look on his face and hear him say some of my favorite words… “Oh baby, oh baby.”

  Chapter 5

  “Shelby. Wake up.”

  I opened my eyes, shocked that I had fallen asleep. Ramos stood over me, dressed in black and ready to go.

  “What time is it?” I rose to my elbows.

  “Two in the morning,” he said, walking to the door. “Your black shirt is on the bed. I’ll wait out here for you.”

  “Okay. Thanks.”

  The door clicked shut and I sat up, yawning widely and stretching my arms. I changed into the black shirt and visited the bathroom. After brushing my teeth, I pulled my hair into a low ponytail and slipped on the black cap. I looked kind of pale, but at least the dark circles under my eyes came in handy for a change.

  I grimaced, thinking about how I’d told Chris I wasn’t going with Ramos, but what he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him, right? Besides, I needed to see that closet in order to find the spot where Warren had visualized hiding the thumb-drive. Otherwise, going through the closet from top to bottom might take too long and be too much of a risk.

  My stomach twisted with anxiety, and I wished I’d bought some antacid at the store when I had the chance. That was definitely something I needed to survive, and I had totally spaced it. Oh well, not much I could do about it now.

  I joined Ramos, and he quickly surveyed my appearance before giving me his nod of approval. “We’re taking the stairs to the lower parking level. I don’t want anyone to see us.”

  “Okay,” I said.

  He checked the hallway and then beckoned me out. I followed him to the stairwell and tried to keep my footsteps from echoing too loudly off the walls. How did Ramos manage to be so quiet? We made it to the parking garage, and it was a relief to climb inside the car without anyone spotting us.

  As we drove away, the soft music from the radio kept us company, and I tried to focus on the words of the songs to keep my nerves under control. It wasn’t long before we pulled off the road, and Ramos backed the car into the alleyway by the fence. He cut the engine, and in the sudden silence, I took a quick breath and clenched my fists. This was it.

  “Babe…chill,” Ramos said. He was thinking he’d be amused if he weren’t a little insulted as well. “We’ll be fine. You don’t need to worry.” He grabbed a bag from the back seat and opened it. “Here are your gloves. Under no circumstances should you take them off.”

  I opened my mouth to say “as if” but shut it before I could. I mean…I may be an amateur, but I wasn’t stupid. I pulled on the gloves and glanced at Ramos, who pursed his lips to hide a smile.

  He pulled on his own gloves and glanced at me. “You’re not so nervous now, are you?” he asked.

  “Nope. Now I’m just mad.”

  “Good.” He grinned, reaching up to turn off the inside light of the car. He opened his door and got out, setting the bag on the seat, and proceeded to empty the contents. He handed me a small flashlight that was attached to a lanyard. “Put that around your neck,” he instructed, doing the same with another one.

  Next came an eight-inch compact bolt cutter, which he put in his back pocket, then a sheathed knife that he clipped to his waist. Last, he pulled out a gun. He put a clip of bullets into it and stuffed it into the waistband of his jeans.

  “I sure hope you have the safety on,” I said, only half joking.

  He huffed and shook his head. “Let’s go.”

  I gulped down my fear and scrambled out, shutting the door as quietly as I could. I followed Ramos to the fence, where he efficiently cut the links in a line from the bottom up, and rolled the sides open wide enough to allow us to slide through. He left the bolt cutter by the fence, thinking he would pick it up on our way out. Grabbing the fence with his fingers, he swiftly slid his body feet first through the opening and crouched on the other side.

  That didn’t look too hard, so I tried to slide through like he did, but only got about halfway, and had to turn over on my stomach and push myself backwards until I cleared the chain links. I stood up, and my black clothes were covered in a layer of dirt. Not only on the front of me, but the back as well.

  Ramos was amazed and wondered how anyone could get so dirty so fast. Even my chin had dirt on it. I rubbed the dirt off my chin, then slapped at my knees and chest where most of it seemed to be.

  Ramos just shook his head. “Come on, we gotta move. Stay behind me.” He glanced toward the restaurant, looking for the best route, but the path to the back door was pretty much out in the open. I hoped no one was watching right then, because even with our black clothes on, we were sure to be spotted.

  At the door, Ramos took a couple of picks out of his pocket. “Shine your light on the lock,” he whispered. I flipped it on and within seconds, he had the door opened. We hurried inside and Ramos checked the nearby wall for an alarm system, ready to disable it. Not finding one, he shrugged and glanced at me. “I don’t like this. We’d better be fast.”

  A soft overhead security light enabled us to see where we were going, and after passing through the kitchen, we found the hall with the cleaning closet. It was dark in the hallway, so Ramos switched on his flashlight and opened the door.

  I glanced inside, but it looked so different from Warren’s visualization, that I had a hard time figuring out what I was looking at. “Can we turn on the closet light?” I asked.

  “I think so. This hallway has no windows so we should be okay,” Ramos said.

  I flipped the switch and breathed a sigh of relief, recognizing some of what I was looking for. “His attention was on this part, where all the brooms and stuff are.” I moved a few long handles out of the way and found an aluminum dust mop. “I think this is it,” I said. It was lightweight and the color matched what I’d seen in Warren’s mind. “Is the thumb-drive taped to it somewhere?” I asked.

  Ramos took the mop and examined it. “No, but look…it comes apart.” He twisted the top off and shone his flashlight down the tube. “There it is. It’s taped inside.” He reached his index finger in and tugged it out, ripping off the tape with it.

  As he examined it, the hairs on the back of my neck rose, and I clamped my fingers around his arm. “Someone just came in,” I whispered, panicked. “He’s thinking his guys won’t be here for about ten minutes, but he doesn’t want us to get away. He’s going to wait by the door and ambush us when we leave. No…wait. He’s coming this way.”

  Ramos flipped off the light. “Keep this and stay in here,” he said, slipping the thumb-drive into my hand before stepping into the hallway and softly closing the door.

  My heart raced with panic and fear. I couldn’t hear any thoughts with the door shut, and the darkness terrified me. In the silence, my heavy breathing seemed too loud. What was happening out there? What if Ramos needed my help? Maybe I should open the door a crack so I could hear what was going on. I stuffed the thumb-drive into my jeans pocket and placed my hand on the doorknob, ready to pull it open.

  The sharp blast of a gun firing had me jerking away from the door with a little scream. Two more blasts followed, and I backed into the furthest corner of the closet, crouching as low to the ground as I could. I covered my ears while several more shots sounded. Then it stopped, leaving a profound silence that scared me to death.

  I sat as quietly as I could, afraid to move. Wa
s Ramos alive? I swallowed. I should go out there and see if he needed me. What if he was lying on the ground bleeding to death? As I rose to my feet, the door flew open and I cringed back.

  “We need to leave.” Ramos said. He grabbed my arm to help me up, pulling me out of the closet.

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  “Yeah.” He was thinking the other guy was dead and his buddies would be here any minute, unless the cops got here first, which was a definite possibility with all the gunfire.

  He held onto my arm, leading me out of the hallway and through the kitchen to the back door. I tried to keep my attention focused on getting out, but couldn’t help glancing at the body as we passed. I recognized the bald head before I caught a glimpse of the snake tattoos. “That’s the guy who killed Warren.”

  “Yeah. I figured that.” We made it to the door, and Ramos slowed to glance through the glass for signs of movement. “Can you run?” My legs were a bit rubbery, but I nodded anyway. Ramos grabbed my hand and pushed out of the door at a running crouch. I did my best to keep up with him, pleased to find that my legs were working after all. It also didn’t hurt that Ramos was holding my hand.

  We got to the fence, and Ramos pulled it up so I could crawl under it. As I stood, he came through, grabbing the bolt cutters with one hand, and my hand with the other. He pulled me forward until we got to the car, then he let go of me. I scrambled to the door and jumped inside. Ramos threw himself in and started the engine.

  Without the car lights on, he pulled the car forward and turned onto the deserted street. About thirty feet further on, he flipped on the headlights and settled back in his seat. As I pulled on my seat belt, I heard sirens approaching and glanced at Ramos, my eyes wide with concern.

  “Don’t worry,” he said. “I got this.” He turned onto another side street, cruising slowly until we came to a main road, and pulled onto the street.

  “There’s enough traffic here that we won’t be conspicuous,” he assured me. “The freeway’s not far. We’ll be back to the hotel before you know it.”