by Desiree Holt
“What about friends?” He frowned. “How was I so self-involved that it didn’t occur to me she lived in a vacuum? Who does that?”
“You’d be surprised. Besides, you had more things to worry about than Annemarie’s personal life.”
“Yeah,” he grunted, “selfish ass that I was. I kept her busy all the time. All I was concerned with was getting my stuff taken care of.”
“I’d say that just means you were focused and depended on her to take up the slack so you could do your thing. Don’t keep beating yourself up, Blake. This is not your fault.”
“So you say. Try telling that to Sharon Kennelly.”
“Okay, look at me. Guilt is normal in a situation like this, but you have to deal with it. We have to deal with it, difficult as it might be. You have a career you’ve worked hard to establish and a signing tour to prepare for. Let’s tackle it one thing at a time. Getting you rattled is exactly what this jerk wants. Anyway, they’re going to continue digging, because to Avery this is like a puzzle she needs to solve.” She rose and picked up their plates. “Why don’t I get my tablet, pour us some more wine, and you can start schooling me on what’s required to be your assistant.”
“Sounds like a plan.” He knew the grin he gave her was positively lecherous. “Except you might have some additional duties that weren’t on Annemarie’s list.”
She stopped with the plates in her hand and turned back to him.
“Just so you know, I might need a lot of practice in those ‘extra’ duties.”
He nodded. “I’m counting on it.”
Chapter 7
The stalker could hardly keep from laughing out loud. Who did these Vigilance people think they were, believing they could fool him? He was ten steps ahead of them. Smarter than they were. And he’d bet good money his electronics were every bit as good as theirs. Hell, maybe even better. His degree in computer engineering and ten years developing surveillance software gave him the skills he needed now. Hell, if he could hack the United States government, he could certainly hack Vigilance, no matter how superior they thought they were.
Perhaps that gave him the greatest satisfaction of all, the knowledge that all their so-called state-of-the-art electronics couldn’t keep him out. He was lucky to get a reservation on their same flight, but if necessary he’d have deleted someone else’s to make room for himself. So what if some stranger showed up at the airport and discovered he had no seat on the plane?
Before Morgan had hired his bodyguard, he’d done an electronic search of all the hotels in Charlotte using a program he’d written. She had told him they always made the hotel reservations way in advance so searching for them was easy. He’d learned where Morgan and the woman were staying, and in a suite, no less. Of course, that prick had more money than God. He could afford it.
Money he hadn’t earned honestly. Money that belonged to someone else.
The thought made his stomach cramp and anger wash through him. If not for the asshole, she’d be alive today, and probably a celebrity.
He deliberately clamped down on his rage. It affected his thinking and he had to stick to the plan. He couldn’t make a mistake, not when it was working so well.
He had never believed himself to be a violent person, at least he hadn’t thought so. That made it all the more amazing to him at how easy it had been to beat the shit out of that old man. The idea of going to the Morgan house had been spur of the moment, after he learned the man was not registered at the B and B. He’d seen it as an opportunity to create more mischief and misery for the asshole.
He’d thought his disguise had been perfect, a cable service repairman with orders to work on their system while they were away. He’d even used his laptop and portable printer to create credentials for himself. But no, the old fart had insisted he was calling the cable company. Said the Morgans would never let anyone in their house while they were away. He’d wanted to pull out his trusty knife he always carried and slit the guy’s throat, but knifing was always chancy. If they didn’t die right away they might still have time to scream for help. Instead, he gave him the full power of his fists, an uppercut to the jaw that knocked him out at once. Then he added some insurance by banging his head on the concrete porch and kicking him before picking him up to carry back to his own yard. Man, that felt good. He could have kicked the shit out of the old guy all day long.
He’d never known that physical violence could be so satisfying, even sexually stimulating. He’d gone back to his hotel room, stood in the hottest shower possible, and brought himself to an incredible climax. More than any other woman had done for him.
Hiding the old man in his hedges had used up a few minutes. Then he’d had to be quick about his work, unable to take as much time as he’d wanted. But at least he was sure he got the message across.
He’d considered taking a different flight from Tampa to Charlotte, but the urge to watch Morgan had been too great. Besides, the man had never seen him. Probably didn’t even know he existed. And the stalker was becoming a master of disguise. They’d never seen him following them to the airport or even given him a second glance at the gate. Why should they when they had never seen him? Of course, he’d arrived five minutes before boarding and then made sure to sit in the back of the plane. They hadn’t noticed him walking down the aisle, dressed in his sloppiest clothes, baseball cap pulled low on his face.
While they went to pick up their rental car in Charlotte, he’d cabbed to the hotel and checked in. The trick was leaving the envelope for Morgan at the front desk without anyone identifying him or describing him. In his room, while he changed clothes, he ran the program to see what suite they’d been assigned. When nothing came up under Morgan’s name he tried the bodyguard. Did they think he wouldn’t find all this out? He was too fucking smart for them. But it frustrated him that Samantha Quenel’s name popped up with no room number associated with it. Had they worked out a deal with the hotel not to list the suite number in the registry? That was the only thing he could figure out.
Well, no problem. He’d move to Plan B, pulling out one of the many disguises he’d brought with him. Today it was a wig with longish hair, totally different than his close-cropped cut. He took off the jeans and plaid shirt he’d flown in, an outfit, by the way, that the clerk nearly turned up his nose at. Instead he pulled on tailored black slacks and a grey shirt.
The clerk at the front desk barely gave him a glance when he asked if he could leave the envelope for his friend who was checking in today. The man just nodded, took the envelope and propped it up where it was sure to be seen.
Back to his room, another quick change and then he was hanging out at the lobby coffee bar, nursing the tall coffee he’d just bought. The fact that little tables and chairs encouraged people to hang around made it just that much easier for him to watch people coming in. Watching for Morgan to arrive. He wanted to rub his hands with glee.
This is for you, my love. All of it. I’ll lay it all on Morgan’s shoulders. He has no idea how sorry I’ll make him. They’ll know everything when I finish with him.
* * * *
The flight for Blake had been anything but relaxing. Despite Sam’s assurances, he still had the feeling someone was watching him. It took a lot of discipline to keep from looking over his shoulder all the time and checking people around him. Finally, when they were seated at the gate, he’d slipped on his sunglasses. Hiding behind the dark shades, he could keep checking the area for anything that tickled his senses. Of course, all his senses were slightly out of whack due to the stalker, so he could have been seeing trouble where there wasn’t any.
He was pretty sure he was driving Sam nuts, but he’d never been in this situation before. Like he’d told her, living it was a lot different than writing about it.
“It’s apparent this guy has massive cyber skills,” Sam told him. “He had to have hacked into the passenger manifests to see
what you reserved and what hotels you were staying at. Avery says it’s the only way he could have all the information from the first leg of this tour. How else would he know anything except the city and store? You can be sure he did the same thing this time.”
“Great. Just fucking great.”
“I know you’ve got that hinky feeling.” She nodded. “I completely understand.”
He’d tried to relax, but his brain would not shut off. For one thing, his parents had returned from their cruise while he was still in town. They were devastated to hear about Grant Kennelly, and Blake felt like ten kinds of shit.
“It’s not your fault,” his father kept telling him each time they spoke. “You aren’t the psycho here.”
“But I obviously did something that set this all in motion.”
“Blake, listen to me. I’m sure every one of us has done something at some time or other that a slightly off-balance person could take as a major crime. It’s very difficult to know how someone will react to something you don’t even know you did.”
Blake knew his father was right. Still, he couldn’t shake the feeling of guilt that dogged him. And it had rolled around in his mind all the way from Tampa to Charlotte.
When they picked up the rental car he kept checking the immediate area nonstop while Sam completed the paperwork.
“We’re going to be prepared for him, no matter what,” Sam assured him as she drove into the city.
“I hope.” He was glad that she was driving since he was too edgy.
“Let’s get registered,” Sam said as they pulled up to the hotel. “Then I’ll come back for the car and park it myself. I’ll tip one of the bellman to keep an eye on it for a few minutes, just in case.”
“Good.”
They carried their own bags into the lobby. Sam stepped up to the desk with her Vigilance credit card. The reservations were in her name, just in case.
“Oh, yes, Miss Quenel.” The clerk pulled the information up on his computer. “A suite with two bedrooms, just as your office requested.” He busied himself entering her information then coding two key cards for them. “Oh, and your friend left an envelope for you.”
Blake froze. He had no idea how Sam managed to pull it off as casually as she did, but she smiled at the clerk and said, “Thank you. Do you know which friend? Did he give you his name?”
“No.” The clerk frowned. “He said you were expecting this, so I just assumed…I’m sorry, but if someone chooses not to give their name I try to be courteous and not ask.”
And it could be a serial killer instead of a friend, Blake thought. Not much security here.
“Did he say if he’d be back and when?” Sam asked.
The clerk shook his head. “No. He just asked if I’d make sure you got the envelope.”
“Oh, of course.” Sam was cool and collected. “Well, I’ll read his note. Maybe he won’t be able to join us after all. Thank you for making sure I got this.”
“No problem. I hope you enjoy your stay. Please let me know if there is anything we can do for you.”
“Thank you, I will.”
She used two fingers to slip the envelope into the tote and picked up her bags. Nodding at Blake, she set off toward the elevators. He followed her with his own luggage but when he would have said something to her she shook her head.
“Let’s just put the stuff in the suite,” she said. “Then I’ll run down and park the car.”
He was ready to bite nails by the time they reached the suite. But even then, Sam touched her finger to her lips, then held it up signifying to wait one minute. She opened her tote and took out something that looked like a handheld wireless radio. She spent five minutes checking out the living room and both bedrooms. Then she tossed the gizmo back into her tote and blew out a breath.
“Okay. Now we can talk.”
“What’s that little thing you carry with you? What were you doing?”
“It detects hidden microphones and cameras.”
Blake was stunned. “You think he knew what room we’d be staying in and bugged it before we got here?”
She shrugged. “Anything is possible. He obviously knew the reservations were in my name so that ploy didn’t work too well. We aren’t discussing secret plans but others often do, so it’s standard for Vigilance agents. Never take a single thing for granted.”
Blake forced himself not to freak out. “Nothing is going to keep this guy away from us.”
“I think we can agree on that.”
“I want you to open the envelope.” He didn’t think he could hang on to his patience another minute. “Now.”
“Yup. Just what I’m about to do.”
She lifted it from her tote and placed it on the little desk near her. Using the letter opener from the desk, she slit the envelope and eased out the contents.
“Another envelope?” What the hell?
“This one’s got your name on it.” Sam held it up. “Obviously he came prepared for anything. This is a guy who from all appearances has incredible hacking skills. He has to be pissed that the hotel isn’t listing your room number.”
“But how does he even know who you are? Just because he saw us together doesn’t give him that information.”
“Child’s play for someone like him. He could have taken my picture, maybe at the Driftwood, and run it through facial recognition software. If he’s able to get all this other information about you—about us—that would be easy enough for him to do.”
“So what does it say?”
Holding it by the edges, even though they both knew the chance of fingerprints was slim to none, she laid it out on the desk.
Blake stared at it. “Fuck.”
I know what you did and soon everyone else will. Even if I have to kill someone to prove it.
“Yeah,” Sam agreed. “What you said. Alright. Let me take care of the car and then we’ll get with Avery.”
Blake did his best to keep it together while she was gone. Damn! He didn’t like her running around by herself with that nut job out there. Then he had to remind himself who the professional was here.
He paced, constantly checking his watch. It felt like an hour by the time she let herself back into the suite at last. He shoved his hands into his pockets to keep himself from grabbing her again. Instead he just said, “Well?”
“I can’t say for sure if he’s hanging out or not. Nobody the least bit questionable rode up or down with me in the elevator. And I don’t think the mommy with the two little girls who rode the elevator in the parking garage with me are who we’re looking for.”
Blake hunched his shoulders. “I agree. But what about in the lobby? Wouldn’t he be looking to see what we do next?”
“I did my usual look around as if I was trying to find someone. Even went up to the coffee bar, described a fictitious woman and asked if she’d been around. That I was supposed to meet her.”
“And?”
She shrugged. “And I can’t tell if he was one of the people sitting there or not. There were four men, all average, any of whom could be him.” She tossed her purse on the couch. “Anyway, the car is parked and locked. We’ll see if there are any mementoes left for us when we go to get it tomorrow.”
“You know the chances are better than even there will be. He seems to be everywhere, leaving notes everyplace.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “And I could still swear he was on the plane with us.”
“Then he didn’t check any luggage and he got a super speedy cab to get here before us, check in, and leave the note, because we got through the rental car desk in record time.”
He frowned. “You’re sure he’s staying here?”
“Of course. Otherwise how could he be right in the thick of the action? But we’re alert and watching for him.”
At that moment, his newest cell phone chi
med. Blake looked down at the screen. Unknown caller.
“It’s him.” He held out the phone to Sam. “Look.”
“Okay,” she soothed. “But it’s just a message like before.”
“Just a message?” He ground his teeth. “He wants to drive me nuts.”
She nodded. “Most likely. Pull up the message.”
You can’t run away or hide. I know what you did.
Blake wanted to smash the phone on the floor but Sam pried it out of his hand.
“We’ll send this to Vigilance and activate another one.”
“At this rate, we’ll be out of phones before the tour is over,” he grumbled.
She smiled at him. “But remember, we can always get more. Okay, let me take care of business here. I’m going to set up my laptop and get Avery on Skype.”
Avery was on another call when Sam texted Vigilance to get her boss set up. But ten minutes later there she was. Blake didn’t know how she did it. She had to manage at least a dozen situations like this or worse, yet she looked calm and composed.
“Let’s have it,” she said after the greetings were out of the way.
Sam told her about the envelope at the desk, about it being addressed to her with another one inside. Then she held up the sheet of paper with the note on it.
“Alright,” Avery said. “Here’s where we are. Whoever this person is, he has incredible cyber skills. He could have hacked into our system to get his information, but I’m not willing to go there yet.”
“Damn.” Blake wanted to throttle someone. “And he says he doesn’t care if he kills someone to get his revenge. Jesus.”
“Yes. That concerns me, because maybe it’s not an idle threat. Sam, I’m going to meet with whoever of the team is around and see if we can come up with a plan of some kind. Blake, we’ve been in worse situations and come out on top. I’m going to ask you to trust me and Sam—especially Sam—to make sure he doesn’t carry out his threats.”
“Maybe if I knew what I’m supposed to have done I could figure out who it is.”
