by Tina Donahue
Chase squeezed Hallie’s knee. “Would you like me to contact my government friends, have them get your dad to pay up for you and your sister?”
She waved her hands. “I don’t want any contact with him. I’d starve before taking his money, if he has any. Felice, my younger sister feels the same. She’s working on her Master’s in nursing home administration. Has a great job at a facility in Miami. She supports Mama, too. I’m talking too much, aren’t I?”
He eased her close and captured her mouth. After a tender kiss, he brushed his lips over hers. “Not at all. Saved me asking a thousand questions. Believe me, I wanted to. Wasn’t sure if you’d answer, though.” He traced her sad smile. “I won’t push you on sex, dating, or anything else, okay? Whatever you want to do let me know. We’ll take things at your pace.” He hoped she didn’t want to go home.
She moved into him. “How’d you get to be so nice? Is your dad a psychologist or therapist for battered women?”
“Retired Army Ranger.”
“Wow. Your mom must be the gentle soul. You take after her, huh?”
He laughed. “Hardly. Dad’s the easygoing one. Rolls with the punches, as they say. Mom’s more intense and keeps us in line. Good thing. We’d be barely civilized if it wasn’t for her.”
“They’re still together?”
“All the time now. Since Dad retired, they travel the world and spend my inheritance. Good for them.”
She hugged him.
Chase embraced her gently. He would have asked why the sudden tenderness on her part but didn’t want to scare her away. She’d been through too much shit already and proved what he’d sensed instinctively. She was a good woman any man would be lucky to have.
He held her close and pecked her ear. “Ready for a nap?”
“No. Kiss me, please.”
They enjoyed each other like lovers and friends should, an easy exploration that fed their need to bond on a deeper level. Not since high school had Chase necked with another woman as long.
Hallie broke rank first and cradled his cock.
Pleased, he cupped her breast and let her lead the way.
She nestled close and drifted off.
He did, too.
Chapter Three
Being tucked within Chase’s embrace gave Hallie the best night’s sleep she’d enjoyed in years. She woke to glorious scents: bacon frying and something baking.
Naked, he prepared a huge breakfast that also included eggs, ham, pancakes, biscuits, juice, and coffee.
Pleasantly shocked, she couldn’t find words.
“Nothing to worry about, I know how to cook. Mom taught me.” He winked. “Wasn’t sure what you liked so I made everything.”
No kidding.
Eating in the nude seemed normal somehow. True to his word, he didn’t press her for sex, conversation, or anything else. His respect for her feelings allowed Hallie to relax enough to enjoy his company. They shared stories from their pasts and discussed politics, agreeing on most things. Like old friends, they finished each other’s sentences, kidded around, and dissolved into laughter.
The best freaking time she ever had and wanted more even if she didn’t trust her feelings.
Unfortunately, she had to get to work.
During her shift, Dick and Edward treated her with what she considered kid gloves. Gone were their snide or crude comments.
Having a “boyfriend” who was physically bigger than they were and pure muscle in comparison to their flab made a huge difference. Too bad Chase couldn’t stay at the prison forever to make her and the inmates’ lives easier. Such a simple solution and divorced from reality.
The mission, as he called it, concerned bringing Kim’s killer to justice and stopping the guards, Gatekeeper, and others from forcing the inmates into longer sentences for monetary gain and raping them, literally and figuratively, during their incarceration. With that accomplished, everything would end and Chase would take off for his next assignment.
She’d miss him like hell.
After her shift, she got ready for their strategy session then drove to his place. He promised to show her his “toys.” His cock and remaining Trojans came to mind, but she wasn’t about to mention them.
Chase greeted her at the door with a broad smile. “Hey.”
He’d showered, his skin and clothes fresh and enticing, hair slightly damp.
She ached to press her face to those midnight strands and crawl over him. Too bad she couldn’t voice her desire. Every word she knew evaporated. Her knees went so weak she locked them to keep standing.
“What’s that?” He inclined his head to the large sack she carried, big enough to hold several jeans, tees, underwear changes, and toiletries for an extended stay.
Before she got too excited and daunted at the prospect, or he did, she cleared her throat and hoped her voice wouldn’t shake too much. “Dinner. So you wouldn’t have to bother. You didn’t, did you?” She sniffed and smelled him. Dizzy, she fought for control.
“No, I didn’t make anything. Thought we’d order delivery.”
“This is better.” She lifted the bag. “I brought pastelillos, that’s meat or cheese stuffed pastries, and albóndigas con papas, meatballs and potatoes. My mom’s recipes. Best stuff in the world.”
“You cooked after work?”
Kept her busy and distracted so she wouldn’t worry about them being together tonight. “Yeah. Do it all the time. Can I come in?”
“I thought you’d never ask.” He wiggled his eyebrows.
His teasing thrilled her nearly as much as his previous caresses had. Her heart wouldn’t stop pounding. Unsteadily, she followed him into the kitchen. “The stuff’s barely warm. It’s better eaten hot. We could heat it in your oven while you show me your toys.”
“Sounds good.” He turned the preparations over to her and opened two beers.
“Thanks.” She pressed the cold bottle against her throat.
“Want me to lower the thermostat?”
She wanted him nude and on top of her, behind her, beneath her, the whole enchilada. “Nope. I’m good.”
He regarded her curiously but nodded. “This way.”
They passed his bedroom. Hallie didn’t dare glance inside. Too much temptation. Chase stopped at a room down the hall and flicked on the lights.
She’d expected a half-dozen or so surveillance tools, not several tables filled with equipment she couldn’t possibly identify. “You’re using this stuff at Zephron?”
“Just a few devices. You will, too.”
“What? Why? Better still, how?” There were things that resembled walkie-talkies but probably weren’t. Boxes with blinking lights. And oddly enough, several eyeglasses. “I don’t know how to operate this equipment.”
“Nothing for you to do. Stuff basically runs itself. Before we get too far into this, I spoke to Grey and Athena about your fee.”
“Why? Do they want more?” Hallie’s stomach clenched. “I can’t come up with extra funds right now. Will they accept a payment plan?”
“Hey, relax.” He rested his hands on her biceps. “I meant the fee you’re going to earn for this.”
“What?”
“You’re going undercover, so to speak, same as me. No way should you do that gratis. You deserve a fee and to have the money you’ve already paid returned. The agency made the transfer to your bank account an hour ago.”
“No. I can’t accept that.”
“Sure you can. Use the bucks to help out your mom. Besides, another client’s paying for this. Remember Athena telling you I’m at Zephron for that person? Everything’s settled. Let me show you something.” He slipped his arm around her waist and led her to the eyeglasses. “Which pair do you like?”
“For me?”
“Yep.”
Then that would be none. They were blah, the lenses square, frames thin. They were also unnecessary. “I have twenty-ten vision in each eye.”
“Not any longer.” He picked up a
pair with maroon frames and tapped the left hinge in front. “See this? Inside, there’s a DV camcorder with audio function.”
She held the specs to the light and examined the front and back. “That can’t be possible. This part is smaller than the nail on my little finger.”
“Exactly. No one at Zephron will see it. Put them on. They have clear glass. Your vision won’t be affected.” He crossed to a computer and keyed.
This room popped up on the screen and showed him typing.
Hallie joined him. With each step she’d taken, his image got larger on the computer. “Wow. I’ve seen stuff like this on Shades of Blue and other cop programs, but I thought they were a Hollywood invention.”
“Nope. They’re the real deal. Look around and talk. Everything you see and say is recorded. Like the way you’re staring at my mouth now.”
She blushed hotly and stepped back.
He fought a smile. “In a few minutes, I’ll play the recording and show you what you’ve seen.”
Studiously avoiding him, she browsed his toys and lifted what looked like a cellphone. “What’s this do?”
“Makes and receives calls, among other things. It’s my smartphone.”
She laughed and handed it to him. “Why the eyewear for me?”
“To record conversations you have with inmates and guards. You’d be surprised how much people reveal without meaning to. Use skillful prodding and they’ll tell you everything you need to know.”
“But why the specs? They’re too obvious since I’ve never worn them before.”
“Given your scrubs at work, there wasn’t anywhere to put a camera and recording device without someone seeing and questioning it. For me, it’s different. He pulled his uniform shirt off a chair. “See this?” He tapped the pen in his pocket.
She leaned in. “There’s a camera in there?”
“Yep. Directly above the metal clip. The microphone’s behind that. I’ve also put several surveillance cameras around F cellblock, in the bubbles, and the dormitories Edward and Dick oversee. Devices that are smaller than my fingertip and blend in with the background so no one knows they’re there.”
This was like starring in a James Bond film. “So F doesn’t have surveillance equipment that Gatekeeper put in?”
“Actually, it does. However, when Jacqui hacked into the recordings, she found several gaps. Someone’s turning off the feed or scrubbing it when monitoring isn’t convenient for them.”
Like when Kim died. Hallie sank into a chair. “How is that possible? Shouldn’t an alarm go off when someone messes with that stuff?”
Chase hunkered down next to her. “In a perfect world, it would, but the security at Zephron sucks. My guess is Gatekeeper’s CEO doesn’t want to pay what he considers an unnecessary expense for the good stuff and hopes nothing bad will happen.”
Her stomach churned. “Did you get Kim’s autopsy results yet?”
“Jacqui sent them while we were at work.” He handed them to Hallie.
She scoured the first several pages and sagged. “Suicide? Are they kidding? The huge bump on her head, documented here, should have been a dead giveaway for homicide.”
“If you read to the end, the medical examiner said Kim most likely sustained the injury when she either lost her footing or deliberately jumped from the bed. She smacked into the wall before the noose tightened around her throat and killed her. Enough time, according to the report, for her to have bruised and bled a little.”
“Bull. Even a first year nursing student would know that’s not possible given how Kim supposedly died and the fact that there wasn’t advanced decomposition for bruising to show. The medical examiner is either a fool or has to be in on this.”
“We’ll find out.” He took the report from her. “Let me show you something.”
She rolled her chair next to his at the computer. The screen split into three parts, showing F block and the bubbles. Chase enlarged the confinement area. “Watch.”
Seconds passed, the hall empty, and then Dick lumbered into the scene, his back to the camera. The time-and-date stamp showed ten forty-five on Wednesday when he worked the night shift. He stopped at the last door, opened it, and disappeared inside.
Hallie tensed. “That’s Barb Valez’s cell.”
“I know. Twenty-one. Pretty. Up on bad check charges. In confinement for fighting with another inmate. According to the report, Barb resisted the guards when they pulled her off the other woman. Sound plausible?”
“No.” Hallie gripped her chair. “Barb’s quiet. Doesn’t mix with anyone. My guess is the other inmate messed with her first and Barb defended herself.”
“Watch.” He fast-forwarded the recording. At eleven-thirty, Dick left the cell. Smoothing his clothes, he strolled off camera.
Hallie seethed. “Bastard. He raped her.”
“That’d be my guess.” Chase closed out the screen and brought up another with inmate photos. “Which of these women are into Dick and Edward? Either because they find those pricks attractive or need favors only guards can provide?”
She shuddered. “I can’t imagine any woman could stomach them clothed, much less naked, even if that woman was starving.”
“Ever hear the term there’s a lid for every pot? Being in prison with a thousand other females and less than two hundred men lowers expectations quickly. So, which ones?”
“Why?”
“We’re looking for the weakest link to exploit.”
“In what way?”
“Maybe this will help to explain.” He pointed to an unattractive inmate sporting a red buzz cut and acne scars on her cheeks. “Let’s say she’s in love with Dick. Thinks he’s Prince Charming. Since he’s actually scum, he’s already got another babe on the side. This one.” He pointed at a young black woman, her features delicate, beautiful eyes lushly lashed. “Since Dick’s smitten, he makes no effort to hide his feelings around the first inmate. How do you think she’d react?”
“She’d be hurt, jealous, and would probably want to castrate him with her teeth.”
“Exactly. That’s the kind of person you get to talk to you. Draw them out. Learn their secrets, which will lead you to the ones Dick and Edward have. Right now, we’re concentrating on them because of your suspicions and from what I’ve observed. They’re the ringleaders. The other guards follow along to keep their jobs and the graft flowing. Given that Dumb and Dumber aren’t subtle in what they do at Zephron, they’ve surely pissed off more than a few inmates by using them then tossing them aside. So, which ones do you think fit that scenario?”
“I can’t say for certain. I’ve only heard rumors.”
“We’ll start with that, but we need a list.”
Hallie chose three inmates.
He transferred their photos to another file. “Of these, who do you think messed with Barb so she’d get confinement?”
“Because Dick told her to?”
“Exactly.”
“Where do these people come from?” She hit her seat. “What is the matter with them?”
Chase shrugged. “In Dick and Edward’s case, my guess is they’re psychopaths. Not the Silence of the Lambs kind, but people who don’t have a conscience and will do anything for a buck. There are a ton of them in government.”
She wanted to scream.
He stroked her jaw. “If you clench your teeth any harder, you’re going to break your molars. Let’s catch these bastards, okay?”
She squeezed his hand and pored through pictures. “Her.” Hallie moved the cursor to Patricia Ullman’s photo. In high school, Patricia deliberately drove her pickup into a rival who’d made a play for her boyfriend. The girl survived but wouldn’t walk again and had to relearn how to speak and feed herself. Plain and stocky, Patricia needed a man to make her feel worthy and would have done anything to keep one interested in her.
Chase regarded the photo. “Starting tomorrow, find an excuse to get Patricia in the infirmary. A scheduled check-up. A shot she needs
. Show your concern. Commiserate with her. Get her to open up.”
“While I’m wearing these.” She touched the eyeglasses.
“The powers that be barely trust video evidence that’s irrefutable. They sure as hell won’t believe your word or mine over the guards’. It’s the only way we can learn what happened to Kim and expose what’s going on so the other inmates are safe.”
Uneasy, Hallie needed reassurance more than she ever had, even in the darkest days when she, her mom, and sister were on welfare and barely surviving. “I’ve never done anything like this. What if I mess up?”
“You can’t.”
She slumped. “Couldn’t you sugarcoat it a little?”
“No. We’re up against a powerful group, including Gatekeeper and everyone who’s getting kickbacks. They don’t want things to change. You and I are the only ones fighting them. The odds stink. We have to be smarter than they are.”
“Given their hiring practices, that shouldn’t be too hard.”
Chase laughed. “That’s the spirit. Now to the next problem.”
“Crap, there’s more?”
“For the inmates. Not us.” He brought up other photos. “These women are close to release. Choose the ones Dick or Edward would likely frame to get their sentences extended.”
“You mean ones without family, outside resources, anyone who’d fight to get them out?”
“Exactly.”
She touched his arm. “Who’s the client you’re working for? The inmate he or she is trying to protect would be the first one I’d eliminate. Anyone who can pay the agency isn’t likely to have a loved one Edward or Dick can exploit.”
Chase stroked her fingers. “Can’t tell you. I’m not being mysterious or difficult. I have to honor client confidentiality. When this is over, if the client agrees, I’ll let you know who it is.”
Hallie didn’t want to consider the end. Success wasn’t assured. The only certainty was that she’d never see him again. Saddened, she scrolled through three dozen mug shots and chose the most vulnerable women. “What do we do now? Wait for something to happen to them?”
“Nope.” He put her choices in a folder. “I’ve made certain I’m on duty when Dick and Edward are so I can monitor what’s going down. Jacqui’s watching the camera feed and knows to contact me immediately should anything happen. The moment they make a move, I’ll block them any way I can.”
