Deadly Interpretations

by Andie Alexander

  “But if you do what they ask, you could be killed. You’re stuck between a rock and a hard place.” He was silent, still holding my hand. “I have to think of a better way.” He turned toward me. “Do you have any ideas?”

  “Yes. I just want to go to bed and forget all of this happened.”

  “I understand.”

  He turned the key and pulled back onto the lonely highway. We drove for a while and I nodded off. I woke with a start as soon as the car turned off.

  “We’re in Vermont?” I asked.

  “Yes. This is a safe house, just crawling with agents. You won’t see most of them, but I just thought you needed downtime from the city. Your clothes will be here in about a half hour.”

  “Don’t forget my tampons and pads.”

  He sighed. “I’ll get you some more. I forgot.”

  He really was a nice man. “Thanks. For everything. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  He leaned closer. “That’s like music to my ears. You’re growing on me and I really do care about you.”

  Chapter 20

  Armed agents opened our car doors. I jumped, still spooked from the party. The men helped us both out of the car, watching all around us, even though we were inside the property of a gated mansion.

  We entered the house and I was ushered into the huge living room, where a man was sitting, reading some notes. Jim joined me a moment later, after having a conversation with some pretty female agent, not that I noticed or anything.

  “Harley, this is Doctor White,” Jim said. “He’s a psychiatrist for the agency.”

  “A psychiatrist?” I stared at the man. “What are you doing here?”

  He reached up and shook my hand, then pointed to a seat on the couch beside his overstuffed chair. “I’m here for you.”

  “Me? I’m fine.”

  “I know. You’re very stable with a solid personality, but we all feel that you need to talk to someone.”

  I glanced over at Jim. “But I have been talking to someone. Dr. Bond’s been very helpful.”

  “He’s not a trained psychologist, but he does have some coursework toward that. No, we felt you needed to be reassured that you’re not in this alone.”

  “Good to know.” I stood up because this psycho session was over and I was still exhausted. “Where’s the bedroom, because I’m really tired.”

  Jim pulled me back to the couch. “You’re not done yet.”

  “Yes, I am. I don’t need a shrink,” I whispered.

  “Yes, you do,” Dr. White said. “I understand you knew about the murder tonight before it happened.”

  What did this man know? Who filled him in on everything? What happened while I was asleep in the car?

  “Was it a murder?” I asked. “They never said for sure if it was.”

  Dr. White sat back with a smirk on his face. “Now you’re toying with me. You knew she was going to be killed before it happened and now you’re worried the same thing will happen to your friend Felix. But if it doesn’t happen, then you could be killed. Am I right?”

  “Yes, sir, but I’ve done my job, right?”

  “Yes, you have, if you’ve told Jim everything.” The man’s beady eyes bored into my head. I could feel it drilling, inch by inch, into my brain, I swear.

  I nodded, feeling like I was being grilled. I hated that feeling. “Yes, I’ve told him everything from tonight.”

  “What were you going to do the instant you saw Elizabeth’s body under that chandelier?”

  “I had to make sure she was dead.” I glanced over at Jim then back at the beady-eyed doctor. “I also wanted to avenge her death. I was half-tempted to go to Boris and Mr. Wing and beat them up.”

  Dr. White smiled, his fingers tented in front of his chest. He was slimy and that controlling movement with his hands told me volumes. I’d had enough coursework in psychology to know he was blowing smoke and thought he was all-powerful. The brat.

  “Interesting reaction,” he said. “What did you do instead?”

  I looked toward Jim, and then turned to Dr. White. “Exactly what Jim told me to do. I cried and acted like a female.”

  “How did you make yourself cry?” He picked up a very thick folder and lifted it. “You aren’t known for that, in your dossier.”

  I pointed toward the folder. “I have a dossier? It actually says that?”

  He nodded and laid the folder back on the table with a thud. “Yes, it does. You never cry, even if you’re hurt or scared. What made you cry?”

  I looked downward. “I thought about my new nephew and his awful name.” I addressed the doctor. “They named the kid Jonquil. Can you believe that?”

  “So children are your weakness?”

  “Why?”

  Dr. White leaned forward. “If these people really wanted to make you suffer, they’d hit you at the weakest spot. If they tortured a child in front of you, you’d do anything to make them stop. They’re going to find your weakness and make you do whatever they want using that information.”

  It made sense. I stored it away in my head, but it didn’t frighten me. “What other weaknesses do I have?”

  “I’m not sure, but Jim mentioned pets after Elizabeth told you both what happened to the animals in her apartment. What do you think?”

  “I don’t know because I don’t have the letters after my name like you do.” I didn’t like his tone one bit and hated when anyone asked me what I thought when it was their job. “How do I even know you are who you say you are, anyway?”

  “Untrusting. Are you suffering from paranoia?” He seemed so calm that I wanted to hit him just to see if he was human.

  I sat up, not afraid of this man in the least. “Tell me this, Doctor, how would you behave if you went through what I’ve been through in the past two or so days?”

  “I’d be as angry as you are. If you do feel as though people are following you, they are, from various countries. You’re the one they all want, and they’ll stop at nothing to get you alone.”

  “That’s reassuring.” I was ready to roll my eyes. “Now, I’m really tired. Am I allowed to go to bed?”

  He sat up and stared at me, looking as if I’d told him a national secret or something. “You slept all day, slept most of the way here, and you’re tired?”

  I clenched my jaw and leaned closer, hoping he’d realize I wasn’t happy. “It’s how I cope. Get over it.”

  “Snotty, too.” He wrote something on his paper.

  “No, that’s normal for her,” Jim said. “It’s that time of the month and I’m working on that for her,” he whispered.

  “Do you have to tell everyone that?” I snapped at him.

  “Just doing my job,” Jim said with a grin.

  “How does that make you feel?” Dr. White asked me. “Do you feel like you’re a weak woman when he brings that up?”

  Condescending, much?

  I had to keep it in check. “Not at all. When I think about it, it makes me want to kill someone, so don’t press your luck.”

  “A touch of psychosis.” He wrote some more. What a pain.

  “It was a joke,” I said. “You really need to lighten up.”

  His expression darkened. “This is no joke. Your life’s in danger and you could die because of who you are and what you know. If something is giving you a personality disorder, we need to remedy that, or you could snap at the wrong time. Do you understand that?”

  “Yes, I do, doctor.” I shot him a determined look right back. “But if I don’t lighten up the situation, I’ll be worse off. I have to take it for what it’s worth at the moment so I can deal with it. I don’t feel threatened here, not even by you, so I can joke. Now, I’m very tired and want to go to bed.”

  He crossed out all his other notes. “Normal. You’re fine. I was just testing you. Go to bed, work it out in your head and you’ll feel better tomorrow.”

  “Thank you.” I stood up. “Where’s the bedroom?”

  Jim grabbed
my hand and took me up the stairs to a room that I was sure was the master bedroom.

  The place was huge, with a king-sized bed on the left-hand wall and a bathroom door off to the left past the bed.

  “This place is bigger than my apartment.” I touched the white bedspread of the huge bed. The walls were dark green and the carpeting tan.

  Jim pulled me into his arms, shutting the door behind him with his foot. “I don’t believe a word you said to Dr. White.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I think you’re denying everything that’s happened to you and are shutting down. It would all make sense, and any normal person would do that. It’s not every day you’re targeted by more than one country as subversive, or every day you get to see the birth of your new nephew. Then adding Elizabeth’s death, your past with Dieter, the pens with the hidden papers and Billy’s threats on top of it all, it’s almost too much for you. You’re allowed to cry. You’re allowed to react to this, and really don’t have to shut down.”

  I crossed my arms, backing away slightly. “Never.”

  “Never Say Never Again.” He hit his forehead with the palm of his hand. “Now you have me doing it. Bond movie titles. I hate that.”

  “It wasn’t me.” I studied his blue eyes, trying to figure him out. “Why aren’t you affected by all this?”

  “I’ve had training and have been in worse situations before. I’ve been kidnapped, tortured, and who knows what else, all for my country. Just remember that whatever you do, it’s for your country and for the people who really matter—fellow Americans.”

  I walked away from him, looked around the room and peeked into the bathroom that was so large, I could get lost in it. “You sound like a patriotic commercial.”

  His arms were around my waist from behind, his mouth at my ear. “And you feel the same way, deep down. I can read you like a book, Harley, and you’re one scared little girl right now. You should be. It’s all right to be scared.”

  I spun toward him and studied his eyes. I saw a very compassionate man in a very sexy tuxedo standing in front of me, his soul-massaging blue-eyed gaze reassuring me that everything was going to be just fine. I did feel like a little girl, and was just as terrified as he described.

  Chapter 21

  I reached up to his mouth and kissed him, as gently as I could, for a proper thank you. No words or other actions were necessary, because his eyes and smile told me he felt loved. I did love this man. He was more than I’d ever hoped for in a friend, at least. He was able to read my thoughts, or so it seemed, and could anticipate my every need.

  “Want to fool around?” he asked.

  I backed away and crossed my arms. “Men. That’s all they think about. I was just in the moment, considering you to be my friend, and you went and messed everything up. You’re no better than Billy.”

  He reached out and touched my cheek. “Your friend? Is that all?”

  The compassionate man with the gentle tone was back. I bit my lip and stared at him. “I can’t tell you anymore.”

  “I know what that means. You’re in love with me and I can’t blame you. I’m a real catch…a cop doctor in a tuxedo, a friend, a personal chef. Next, we’ll be watching soap operas together and you’ll be pouring out to me in a bonding moment, right?”

  I turned toward the windows in the bedroom and stared into the darkness of the night. “Your name is Bond. Bonding kind of fits, right?”

  “Look at me, Harley. Are you in love with me?” With a touch on my shoulder, he spun me around, but I lowered my eyes. I knew if I looked up, he’d be able to read my thoughts. He lifted my chin with his fingertips, meeting my gaze with a smile. “Not only in love, but head over heels. I don’t think you’ve ever been this much in love before, and you don’t know how to handle it. Am I right?”

  I stood still, unable to talk. His voice was mesmerizing while his blue eyes twinkled in the soft amber light. I leaned up and kissed him again. For an agent, he was even more attractive than a cop doctor in a tuxedo, and they were very, very hot.

  He rested his forehead on mine, just staring at me. “It’s bad, huh?” he whispered.

  “Yep.”

  “Want to marry me now?”

  “Marriages have to be based on both parties loving each other. Once this is over, I know you’ll be gone to find another crisis, just like Chris does with his women. I can’t chance getting hurt again.”

  He kissed the tip of my nose and backed up an inch. “Not going to happen. I’ll never let you get hurt. If we get married, you’d come right along with me.”

  “But what would I do? My job is here. My only skill is languages, and I have to deal with Billy.”

  “I’ll take care of Billy, but I think you’re selling yourself short. You have tons of skills. At least I’ve gotten what I’ve set out to get.”

  “Which is?”

  “Your heart.” He kissed me again with extreme determination, inching me toward the bed.

  A knock at the door had both of us jumping. “Sir, I have what you requested.” It was a woman’s voice, and Jim smiled. He moved away from me and opened the door, while loosening his bowtie for his tuxedo. I backed away, thankful for the interruption. What was I doing?

  “Thank you.” He wheeled two suitcases into the room and threw me a bag.

  I opened it and sighed at all the womanly paraphernalia. “You know, you don’t have to tell everyone about me. There are some things I’d rather keep quiet.” I lifted the bag. “Ridiculous.”

  “I’m a doctor. It’s no big deal, and I’m sure it was no big deal to Dr. White, either.” He shut the door. “At least you’re not pregnant like Elizabeth was.”

  Sadness filled my thoughts. “I miss her.”

  He approached me. “You’re going to cry?”

  I looked up at him. “Is that a bad thing? I don’t know because I never cry.” A hot tear fell down my cheek, burning the whole way to my chin. He wiped it away with his fingertips.

  “Not bad at all. It shows you’re more human than I thought. I miss her too, if that’s any consolation.” He undid a few buttons on his shirt and pulled me closer with his arms surrounding me. “Now where were we?”

  I still thought about Elizabeth. “We’re nowhere.” I inched closer to the bathroom. “I’m getting changed.”

  “What did I do?”

  I smiled. “Nothing.” I took my suitcase into the bathroom and opened it on one of the huge counters. Whoever packed my clothes was very smart. They seemed to know a lot about what I’d need.

  After I took my hair down from its bun on the top of my head, I removed a t-shirt and shorts, and undressed. Right when I pulled on my clothes, Jim walked in and stood behind me.

  I watched him in the mirror.

  “You need help,” he whispered into my ear from behind.

  “No, I really don’t. I can—”

  With his hands on my shoulders, he nibbled on my neck then up to my ears. I leaned back against him. My ears were very sensitive, and my knees turned to jelly as soon as he started to nibble on my right lobe.

  “Ah, another weakness,” he whispered into my ear. “I like this, knowing where you’re vulnerable. I bet you have a bunch of those places.” He wrapped his hands around my stomach.

  I covered his hands with mine and closed my eyes. I was putty in his hands and couldn’t shake myself free from him.

  Just as he spun me toward him, his cell phone rang.

  “Hold that thought,” he whispered. He removed his cell phone from his pocket and put it to his ear. “Bond here.” He walked out of the bathroom and I took a deep breath. I couldn’t let him get to me like this, but how could I stop it? He was the definition of masculinity, so confident and sure of the power he had over me. I couldn’t stop my response, and couldn’t stop what I felt for him. It was a cross between lust and love. I’d never met a man like him before, and knew I’d never feel the same thing for any other man. It made me wonder if his X-factor we
nt with the name.

  However, reality set in and I realized that when this was all over, I’d be alone, probably sitting on my couch that was still wet, waiting for him to call. I refused to be in that position ever again, but it seemed inevitable.

  I brushed my teeth, then grabbed the bag and went into the closed room with the toilet so I could be alone. This man was going to be dangerous to me, and I had to give myself some space. It was as if he could read my mind and knew my every need. He’d found my earlobes, so I was doomed.

  I walked out of the bathroom, fully dressed for sleep, and crossed the room to the bed. Jim was still on the phone, but kept his eyes on me while I slipped between the sheets and turned away from him. I had too much to think about and couldn’t allow myself to be distracted.

  “I understand,” he said over the phone. “At least we’re out of town. Keep an eye on everyone and we’ll be back before Monday.”

  Without even turning around, I could feel him staring at me, his eyes boring into my head.

  He ended the call and shut the cell phone. “Harley.” He stepped close to the bed.

  I didn’t turn around. “Yes?”

  “Are you okay?”

  “Sure. Just trying to sleep.” I closed my eyes, to prove it to myself more than anything else.

  I felt a warm hand on my cheek and opened my eyes. Jim was kneeling in front of me. “Are you even tired?”

  I forced myself to stare into his eyes. “Yes. I am tired.”

  “Are you sure you’re not just escaping?”

  The hot doctor was back. “Do you have a problem with that?”

  He smiled. “Attitude. We’ve got to work on that.”

  “Like my food, my alcohol, my cigarettes, and the rest of my life?”

  “Yes. You need someone to take care of you.”

  I threw my legs over the side and sat up. He’d said the magic words and I could finally break free from his spell. “No, I don’t. I’ve never needed anyone to take care of me, and I resent that you feel that way. I’m not to be pitied and I’m not an invalid.”

  “But—”

  “And don’t ever think of me like that. I’m an adult and I’m the one who takes care of others.” I clenched my jaw, giving him my full force of anger. “Don’t you ever think of me like that, buddy. From now on, I’m in charge and don’t ever forget it.”