But that wasn’t what Sarah couldn’t comprehend. It was the fact that Jenny and her male friend were kneeling in front of the three men, whilst one of the younger men held a gun to their heads. Sarah had frozen in the doorway and no one had noticed her yet. It was then that the thug with the gun moved around behind Jenny and pulled the trigger before shooting the other guy, too.
Sarah let out an ear-piercing scream as her friend slumped forward onto the ground. Her lifeless eyes stared at Sarah as the blood flowed from the back of her head. All three heads turned in her direction. The thug with the gun then turned it on her.
Sarah felt a bullet whiz past her head, which jolted her out of her stupor. She spun on her heels, bolted down the corridor, and flew down the steps. More shots rang out behind her as she ran for her life. She quickly made it to the exit and with one last look back toward the men at the top of the stairs, ran out into the night.
Sarah ran down the street away from the warehouse as fast as she could. As she huffed and puffed down the road, she knew she had to hail a cab and get to the police before the men caught up to her. Finally she came to an intersection in the road and was able to find an empty cab. Jumping inside, she directed the driver to take her to the nearest police station whilst she shivered and cried in the backseat.
Sarah thought she might be going into shock, as she was so cold and her brain just wasn’t working. All she could think about was the way Jenny had slumped forward with the impact of the bullet.
Chapter Two
Sarah wiped the last of the spilt coffee off the machine and then washed her hands. She quickly filled out her time sheet and then grabbed her purse from her locker. It had been a long day at work and her feet were killing her. She really wanted to get home and sit down, maybe veg out in front of the telly for a few hours. She waved good-bye to her boss and left the café.
Sarah had been working at the café as a barista for months now, and she still hadn’t really gotten the hang of it. She had been a librarian before and didn’t know a thing about coffee. Her handler from the witness protection program had set it up for her, and Sarah assumed that was the only reason she hadn’t been fired yet.
She could handle serving the customers on the register, and all the food prep was simple enough. It was that damned coffee machine that always got her into trouble. The thing hated her. She was sure the blasted thing did it on purpose.
As Sarah made her way across the parking lot to her little car, another thing her handler had set up, she fished through her bag for the keys. She really needed to clean the thing out. She could never find anything in it and half the stuff she didn’t even use.
Sarah paused as she searched, not realizing she was standing in the middle of the car park, and let out a string of curses. Where were the bloody things? A squeal of tires had her jumping in fright, and she quickly lifted her head to see a dark sedan barreling toward her. It didn’t appear to be slowing, and she had just enough time to jump out of the way before it screamed past her and took off down the street.
Sarah picked herself off the ground and brushed off her knees, noticing she had wrecked a perfectly good pair of jeans, and looked around. No one else had noticed the car that had almost hit her. Maybe it hadn’t seen her until the last minute. But Sarah still had a bad feeling in her stomach.
Sarah knew that the drug cartel boss who she had seen shoot her best friend was still on the loose. The cops apparently had been after him for years, but could never pin anything solid on him. She was their only chance to put him behind bars, but they had to find him first.
Sarah had spent ages in the police station the night of Jenny’s murder. The police hadn’t said much to her, and she was starting to wonder if they even believed her story. It wasn’t until the federal police had arrived that she understood the ramifications of that horrible night. Her life hadn’t and wouldn’t ever be the same. She had to spend the rest of her life in witness protection, and though she was only in a temporary place now, her handler said he would set her up with a new identity and move her to a permanent location.
Even if Angelo Russo was found and tried for the murders, Sarah would not be safe. He would still try to kill the one person capable of bringing down his empire. Her. So Sarah had left behind everyone and everything she had ever known and gone into hiding.
She had strict instructions never to contact people from her old life and never to go anywhere near where she had grown up or used to hang out. Which wasn’t hard, as they had moved her into a completely different state. She didn’t know when she was going to see her parents or her younger sister again. That hurt almost as much as losing her friend. She was losing her family as well.
Sarah had a new name, new background, new home, new job, and a new car. She started dying her brown hair a deep red and had exchanged her glasses for contacts. Though her wardrobe had stayed mostly the same, she had bought new clothes. But old habits died hard, and she ended up with nearly everything the same style.
The only person that knew where she had been placed was her handler. Federal Agent Alexander Smith was a nice man. He was a good-looking man about forty years in age, and had close-cropped hair that was more silver than brown and a matching goatee. He had been very sympathetic when Sarah had been handed over to his care and had let her cry on his shoulder on more than one occasion.
When he had left Sarah for the final time, he gave her strict instructions to contact him if anything out of the ordinary occurred. Sarah guessed this qualified, and she reached into her handbag for her cell. Of course it wasn’t there, and she remembered that she had left it on the kitchen counter when she had rushed out the door this morning. Which meant she would have to go home and get it.
She jumped into her car and started it up. As she drove home, tingles of fear crept up her spine. She hated this. Constantly living in fear, she barely slept and was always looking over her shoulder. As the months flew by it didn’t get any easier, either. Instead it got worst, almost like she was waiting for the inevitable. Russo had people out searching for her. It was only a matter of time until they found her.
Alex was going to kick her ass for forgetting her cell. Never go anywhere without it, he’d said. His number was on speed dial, and he was the only one she was allowed to contact if in trouble.
“We don’t know the extent of Russo’s contacts,” Alex explained. “If you are in trouble and go to the local cops, we can’t be sure if he has them in his pockets, and your cover could be blown.” It had made sense, but it wasn’t really helpful when her cell was at home.
Sarah turned into her street and did a drive-by of her place. Everything looked to be in order, so she swung around the block and pulled into the driveway. She hopped out of her car and bounded up the stairs, threw the key into the lock, and slammed the door behind her.
As Sarah walked farther into her little home, she took in the destruction around her. The place had been ransacked, and not a single thing had been left untouched. This couldn’t have been a coincidence. Being almost run over and having her house broken into on the same day wasn’t something that would just occur.
Panic threatened to take over. Sarah rushed into the kitchen and searched through the rubble for her phone. Eventually finding it lying under the butcher’s block, Sarah grabbed it and checked it over. It still seemed to be working, which meant the people who had broken in might or might not have looked through her numbers. Alex was listed in the phone under Dad, in hopes of hiding the real purpose of his number in her phone.
Scrolling down, Sarah found the number and hit dial. As it rang, she chanted pick up, pick up, please pick up, in her head.
“Yo,” Alex said as he answered.
“Alex, it’s Sarah. I think I might be in trouble. My place has been trashed, and I think someone tried to run me over when I was leaving work today.”
“Shit! Where are you now?”
“Hiding under the butcher’s block.” She was lying on her stomach on the floor among al
l the broken plates and glasses, her head under the butcher’s block and her ass hanging out. Not really hiding, but she hadn’t got up since finding her phone.
“Get out of the house. Now. Go to the place where I said we would meet in case of an emergency. Don’t talk to anyone. No one will come for you but me. If someone else approaches you, run. Do you understand?”
Sarah fidgeted and had to take a big breath. Bile was stuck in her throat, and she choked out the word. “Yes.”
“Good, now I’m going to hang up. Keep your cell in your hand and go.” Alex disconnected and Sarah ran back outside and to her car. She didn’t even bother to shut the front door behind her. She just ran. With a squeal of tires, she backed out of her driveway and took off down the street.
Sarah decided to take the long way around to the museum, which was the secret meeting place. She kept an eye on her rearview mirror to see if she was being followed as she zigzagged her way through the streets. If she was being followed they were too good for her to pick up on, because she couldn’t see anyone.
At last she pulled up into the museum car park and chose a spot where her car wouldn’t be visible from the road. These were all things Alex had lectured her to do, in case a situation like this arose. Sarah got out of her car and made her way inside, and then she proceeded to the café. Alex had said to go there, as it was busy and something was less likely to happen in front of so many witnesses. That didn’t really make her feel any better, but she followed his instructions.
It wasn’t long before she saw Alex’s tall form striding toward her. She was flooded with relief at the sight of him and had to fight the urge to rush to his side. Alex casually approached her and sat down at her table.
“Are you all right, honey?” he asked as he gently squeezed one of her hands where it rested on the table.
“Better now that you’re here.” She smiled weakly at him and then stood as Alex pulled her to her feet.
“Let’s move. I’ll explain everything in the car.” They made their way back outside, and Sarah said a silent good-bye to her home. She wondered where Alex would send her now. Despite being afraid all the time, she had liked her new home. She had always liked her old life, too, so she supposed wherever he sent her she would just have get used to.
Alex bustled her into the front of a dark, plain sedan. It didn’t look like a cop car and she guessed that was purposely done. Alex remained silent as they pulled out into traffic. They drove for a while heading out of town, when Alex finally turned to her.
“Empty out all of your purse again, please, honey. Same as before. I’ll need everything and your cell phone, too.”
“How did they find me?” Sarah asked, and she proceeded to do as she was told.
“Put everything in that bag by your feet, please, and don’t leave anything out.” He put his foot on the gas as they entered the freeway.
“We have a leak in our department, that’s how Russo’s men were able to find you. We don’t know who it is. The locations of witnesses aren’t generally known to anyone but their handlers, but somehow yours got out.”
“Oh. I thought it might have been something I had done, but I’d followed your rules to the letter.”
“No, honey. You did well. But until I find out who the traitor is, you won’t be safe. Nowhere in this country will be.”
“What do you mean? Nowhere? Where are you going to hide me?” Sarah started to worry. She had never been out of the country, and living in a place by herself was hard enough, but in another country seemed impossible.
“I’ll explain more later. I can’t risk the car being bugged. You’ll find out soon enough. Close your eyes and get some sleep. It will take a couple of hours to get where we are going.”
Sarah closed her eyes and tried to get some rest. It was a long time coming. Her brain was full to bursting and she couldn’t shut down. Everything had happened so quickly, and she was once again in limbo. Uncertain of her future and still in so much danger, she didn’t know how to cope. Everything relied on Alex, and it was hard to put all her faith and trust into one man’s hands.
On top of all else, she was grieving for her friend. Jenny had been so full of life and vibrant. She never let little things get her down, and she always lived life to the fullest. But now she wasn’t going to have that chance. She would never go to another party or gossip about the latest goings-on. She would never settle down and get married, and she would never be able to start a family.
Sarah couldn’t help but feel that if they just hadn’t gone to that party, then everything would be okay. Jenny would still be alive, and her life would still be the same. She knew thinking like that wasn’t fair to Jenny or herself, but the thought still ran rampant in her head. She knew the only person to blame was Angelo Russo, and she did, but it didn’t make it any easier to know where the blame lay. Eventually exhaustion got the better of her and she drifted off to sleep.
* * * *
Alex looked over at Sarah, asleep finally. She had a rough ride ahead of her, the poor thing, and it wasn’t going to get any easier anytime soon. He’d been looking after witnesses for nearly ten years now, but none as complicated as this one. With a drug cartel as powerful and as all-reaching as this one, it was a wonder that they hadn’t found her sooner.
Alex always knew there was a mole in his unit. He could just never prove it. He had the proof now, but he didn’t know who it was. Maybe he never would, but he was going to take extra precautions this time. Sarah was the only witness they had, and probably would ever have. Russo was smart. He knew just whose palms to grease and whose to avoid, to stay ahead of his game. Sarah was their big breakthrough. They needed her more than they’d like to admit.
Alex knew of only one way to keep her safe. It wasn’t ideal, and once he had her there, he wouldn’t be able to contact her until Russo was caught and it was time for the trial. It was a risk he would have to take. Sarah was just too important, and not just to this case.
As Alex drove further into the afternoon, he smiled to himself. Sarah may not like where he was going to send her. The place was a bit out there from what he’d heard, but she would be looked after. No one knew of his association to this place. He’d always kept his private life just that, private. Most coppers had some elements of kinkiness about them, but none as extreme as Alex, and he’d met a few people into the same stuff along the way.
Sarah was in for a wild ride, all right. He almost wished he could be there to see it, but he had a drug cartel boss to catch and other witnesses to hide. But Alex knew without a doubt he was sending Sarah to the right place and maybe when the time came, she might not want to come back.
Chapter Three
U.S. Marshal Blake Hammond slammed his phone down and stormed out of his office. He was running late and didn’t have time to deal with adolescent idiots pulling pranks. Blake was the town sheriff in Merricks, Montana as well as a U.S. marshal, and he’d had about enough of the Fisher boys and their constant mischief making.
This time they had let down the tires of every car parked at Stephie’s Bar and Grill. Last week they had filled a whole street’s mailboxes up with cow dung. The effort it would have taken to collect that much dung was beyond him. When the brothers decided to do something they really went the full mile.
“Erik, can you go down to Stephie’s and take care of that, please?” Blake asked to his deputy. “Those damn Fisher boys are at it again.”
“Sure thing, Boss,” Deputy Erik Bozeman replied. Blake watched him walk out the door before turning to his dispatcher.
“I’m finishing for the day, April. I’ll see you tomorrow. Call if there’s a problem.”
“Of course, Blake. Will we see you at the barbeque later?”
“No, I’ve got a friend coming to stay from overseas, so I’ll need to get her settled.” Blake collected his coat and hat before turning back to face April.
“A lady friend, hey.” April smiled slyly at her boss. “It’s about time you started dati
ng again. Is she pretty?”
“Mind your own damned business,” Blake huffed as he hurried out the door. April’s laughter followed him out into the cold. He knew she only had his best interests at heart, but he wished she would lay off sometimes. April had been trying to get him to go out with every available female that strolled through town. It was damned irritating.
After Blake’s divorce from his first wife, Ellen, he didn’t date much. Yes, there was the odd woman in his life, but nothing permanent. He made sure they all knew from the start it was just sex and nothing more.
He and Ellen had married young, and while he thought that he would spend the rest of his life with her, she had other ideas, leaving him for an out-of-towner and moving to New York. Apparently small-town life wasn’t for her and he was holding her back.
Blake never had any intention of leaving Merricks. He loved the small-town life and always had. He had grown up here, only leaving briefly to go the police academy. As soon as that was done, he had come straight back.
A two-hour drive from Helena, Merricks was a great place to settle for people who were into alternative lifestyles. It was filled not only with ménage families, but people who wanted to live kinkier lifestyles and not be judged. It attracted some strange residents.
Blake made his way to his truck and quickly turned the heater on. It was cold out today and would only get worse as winter settled in. It hadn’t started snowing yet, but it wasn’t far in coming.
As Blake pulled out onto the highway, he thought back to the phone call he’d received a couple of days earlier. He hadn’t heard from Alex Smith since they’d met at the BDSM conference in Colorado a few years back. Blake had attended with his brother James, who was also into the lifestyle, and the two had hit it off from the start. Blake wasn’t as hardcore as his brother and Alex. He was happy to let the two enjoy their weekend together, while he explored the less extreme booths.
Foul Play [Merricks, Montana] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Page 2
