FRAUD: A Romantic Suspense Novel

by R. C. Stephens

  “Hey.” I smiled. “I promised the kids a bike ride and the park,” I explained.

  “Aw . . . that’s too bad because I just brought home some froyo,” he said, his lips spreading cheek to cheek. He was too calm, very unlike himself.

  “What kind, Dad?” Liam’s voice was almost a cheer.

  “You know I don’t like them eating treats before dinner,” I chided because that was me behaving normal, only my chest felt too tight, each of my small breathes did not provide me enough air.

  Mark’s lips pursed and I wanted to say it looked like he smiled, but it was more like a sneer. Something was definitely off. The conniving look in his eyes told me he knew something, but why would he think I had anything to do with it? It didn’t make sense. When I came home today, I could not tell anyone had been there. Mark was nowhere in the vicinity.

  “Mom, please.” Lily pushed out her lower lip and held her hands together, pleading.

  I rolled my eyes at Mark. “What?” he asked, feigning innocence.

  He always liked to make me out to be the bad one.

  “Fine. I thought you wanted a bike ride, but frozen yogurt clearly wins.” I waved my hands in surrender, and the kids turned their bikes around and began to ride home. Liam muttered something about not ever saying no to the Snickers flavor. To my dismay it was delicious.

  “Give me your phone,” Mark said once the kids rode past us.

  “Excuse me?” My voice came out too high. A chill ran through my body. My gut was right.

  “Your phone, Nat. Now,” he snarled.

  “I’m not giving you my damn phone. What is wrong with you?” My brows furrowed, and I gave him a look that said I thought he was bat-shit crazy.

  “Lily, Liam . . . wait!” he shouted, since they’d already made it to our driveway.

  “What has gotten into you?” I looked at him like I thought he’d lost it.

  “Well, beautiful wife, it seems you’ve been talking to some people you shouldn’t be talking to.” He raised his left brow.

  My stomach sank and bile rose in my throat. “W-what do you mean?” I tried so hard not to stammer.

  “I liked you better when you were just a dumb blonde,” he responded.

  “Excuse me?” Despite my fear, my anger boiled.

  “You were oblivious for so long. There is no way you figured things out on your own. Who helped you? Shay’s stud muffin cousin? I could tell the kid had the hots for you from the start. He’s a little young though, don’t you think?” My husband stood in front of me, but it felt like he was a stranger: cruel, mean, and bad.

  “What are you talking about, Mark?” I figured playing dumb was the best route.

  “We’ve spoken enough.” He reached down and grabbed my cell phone out of my hand. He looked through it a minute. He clearly didn’t find anything as I watched him open “Find my iphone” app. He turned off the settings and pitched my phone in the bushes in front of our house. I moved to catch it, but he took hold of my upper arm, pulling me close to his body.

  “Uh uh.” He shook his head. “You’re going to be a good girl and listen. I don’t want to scare the kids.” He pressed his lips into my hair and whispered gently against my ear. A cold chill ran down my spine. “Do you understand?”

  I nodded, my body shaking despite the warm temperatures.

  “Good, girl.” He gave me a rough shove toward the front door. I walked into the house with Mark close behind, the kids were waiting for their frozen yogurt at the kitchen table. “Go get the kids settled in Lily’s room.” He tilted his chin standing close to me.

  “Why?”

  “Dammit. Just do it, Nat.” He had that damning wild look in his eyes, but I also saw he was scared. He must have known the FBI was closing in.

  “What are you planning on doing? I can’t just leave the kids in their room. They need to eat; they can’t be alone. Mark, please be reasonable. I know you love them,” I rambled, and he gritted his jaw, shooting daggers at me with his dark eyes.

  “Shut the fuck up. Put out some food and water. Hurry,” he barked.

  I moved to the kitchen quickly. I’d made burgers earlier so I plopped them into buns and grabbed a bunch of snacks and extra water bottles. I hid the portable house phone between the two plates of burgers.

  “Would you hurry?” Mark came out to the kitchen to see what I was doing. “Take that to Lily’s room,” he barked.

  I set up their plates quickly and turned on the TV for them. I whispered in Lily’s ear that the phone was under her pillow and she should call Immy five minutes after she hears me leave through the front door. She looked startled when I said it, so I kissed her cheek and told her everything was going to be okay. It was the first time I lied to my daughter.

  “Hurry the fuck up,” Mark shouted at the door to Lily’s room. Lily and Liam both jumped.

  “Hey, I want Snickers yogurt,” Liam whined, looking at Mark expectantly.

  “Sorry, buddy. I’ll grab some when I get home later,” he said.

  My eyes narrowed on him. Where was he taking me? Why did he think he’d be home later? I shook like a leaf, wondering if this would be the last time I saw my children. Did I say goodbye?

  “Bye, love you.” I kissed them both on the forehead. There were so many things I wanted to say. Words of advice about life, but there was no time, and they were too young to understand.

  “Don’t leave this room,” Mark snapped at them. Fucking bastard.

  Mark pulled me by the arm. “Move fast. When we get outside, you better get into my van like a good girl; if you don’t, Nat, things are going to get ugly fast, and you don’t want the kids to see it. Trust me.”

  My heart hammered in my chest as words failed me. I nodded to let him know I understood.

  “Good girl.”

  I headed to his old van, the smell of must-filled dormant air wafted up my nostrils. Mark started the engine and pulled out of the driveway like a bat out of hell.

  “Where are we going? Why are you doing this? I’m your wife, the mother of your children,” I muttered, hoping to reason with something inside him.

  “Shut the fuck up. This is your fault. Everything was fine, going smooth. You were a good little wife. I shouldn’t have expected it to last forever,” he said, pinching his lips together like he was chastising himself. We drove off our street, and a few minutes later we were on the ramp to the freeway.

  “Where are we going?” I asked while contemplating if it was a smart move to jump out of a moving car. We were going too fast. I was damned.

  “That doesn’t matter now,” he said solemnly.

  “Please let me go, Mark. I’ll take the kids and leave. I really don’t know much anyway. Nobody needs me, please, just take me back to Lily and Liam, and you’ll never hear from us again.”

  “They’re my fucking kids, Nat, you can’t have them. Fuck!” He smacked his steering wheel. “I thought you’d make a good little wife. You were so taken by me. You did whatever I wanted, why did you have to go and change?”

  My gut twisted at his words. I was once young, naïve, and hurting.

  “What is that supposed to mean?” I growled as anger ignited inside me like poison burning through my insides.

  “You became demanding, wanting more of me, moping around like a poor unhappy housewife, all depressed.” His annoying mocking tone made me want to smack him. I thought of grabbing the steering wheel and running us off the road.

  “You treated me like shit and you clearly didn’t want me, so why couldn’t you let me go?” I wanted to know where his head was all those years now that the truth was out.

  “Because it made for a good image. Fuck! You’re so boring, I was dying inside.” He cringed. I was in shock. My entire life was a lie. I fell in love and married a kind and giving soul. As the years progressed we had problems and he retreated away from me, but never in a million years did I think he married me to keep his criminal activity below the radar.

  “You had children
with me, you bastard. I know you don’t care about me, but what about them?” I couldn’t hold back the tears that fell. His words were painful, piercing through my heart like a jagged blade. My poor children would be devastated to learn who their father was. I was repulsed.

  “I love them. Don’t be an idiot. They are my flesh and blood, and you’re a good mother. I definitely wouldn’t have chosen one of the whores I fuck to mother my kids. I’m no idiot. You have class Nat, you’re smart, good genes, I chose well. I’m not sorry about that. I’ll send the kids to LA, my mom will take care of them.” I knew he intended to kill me then.

  “Mark, please.” I couldn’t stop the tears of overwhelming dread. My mind was muffled. “The kids need me. You can’t send them to your mother.” I wanted to add that the woman helped him sell his drugs, but I didn’t because neither of us had breathed a word about what was really happening, and I didn’t want to anger him further.

  Construction cones on the freeway caused him to slow down. Red flashes of firetrucks and EMS blared in the distance. Must have been an accident. He eyed me, “Don’t come up with some stupid plan. Sit tight and keep your trap shut, or I swear I’ll call Mateo and tell him to get the kids,” he said, a maniacal laughter escaped him. His whole body shook from the movement. “Do you remember when you insisted on inviting Mateo for dinner? Fuck. Once wasn’t enough for you. You had to have him over once a month.” He shook his head like I was the crazy person. I held my tongue, even though I was on my last thread. I wanted to scream how dare he bring a murderer into our home with the children there? He was made of the same vermin as Mateo.

  I didn’t say a word as we passed the sight of the accident. I wanted to jump out of the car. We were only going about twenty miles an hour. I’d probably survive. I touched the door handle.

  “Uh uh.” He shook his head and leaned over to the glove compartment and pulled out a handgun with a silencer and tucked it under his thigh. My hand fell from the door handle. “Wouldn’t it be crazy if you end up being my first kill?” he asked as if the thought intrigued him. “Fuck, I’ve always kept my hands clean. I’d hate to do it myself.” We passed through the accident zone, and he began to speed up. My mind drifted to Hayes, wondering if he saw my message and if Lily was able to get a hold of Immy. She knew her number by heart, thank goodness.

  “Where are you taking me?” My voice shook as I watched him, seeming like he got off seeing fear in my eyes.

  “Aw! It wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you.” His tone sounded playful. Sick. Very, very sick. His cell rung. “Lopez,” he said after one ring. “I see,” he continued, his gaze darting sideways for brief moments. “Okay. Thanks.” He closed the call and looked at me instead of the road. “There’s a change of plan. Seems you managed to alert your boyfriend you’re missing. You can relax, the kids are with that bitch friend of yours.”

  I breathed a little easier, knowing Immy had the kids. I couldn’t let Mark kill me. I wouldn’t leave this world knowing he was here and could hurt them. No way. He took a sharp turn and swerved off the highway. “Feds have been alerted. We need to ditch the car,” he explained. We’d been driving a good hour. How would they know where to find me? This part of the turnpike was pretty empty. No more towns, only swamps and more swamps. There was a sign for a gas station, but it was a few miles out. He turned the wheel abruptly and drove off the road. I couldn’t imagine he knew where he was going. He was a wanted man. The van jolted as we hit bump after bump over uneven ground. Mark swore. “Fuck! Fuck.” He jeered. “We aren’t going to make it through this.” He informed me what I already knew.

  I was wearing a pair of flip-flops, shorts, and a tank top. I was not dressed to walk through the mess. We hit a wet patch and the wheels of the van turned, but we were definitely stuck. I turned my head to see a small house that looked more like a hut in the distance. It was most likely abandoned. My heart beat too fast.

  “Get out of the car. We’re walking and don’t fucking try anything or I’ll shoot you on the damn spot,” he hissed, his tone stone-cold and heartless.

  I wanted to fall to the ground and cry, I was shaking so hard. I wanted to hit myself in the head for stupidly falling for such an evil man. My heart shredded into small fragments as my mind spun. Dizziness overwhelmed me. I needed to keep my shit together. I couldn’t fall apart. My kids needed me. I had to be there to see them grow. To protect them and watch over them. I had to kill Mark before he killed me.

  “Move,” he shouted and shoved me in front of him. The handgun waved in his hand, threatening. He pressed it into my spine, and I held my breath, praying as hard as I could. My feet sank into the wet ground, the high grasses scratching my uncovered skin. My flip-flops stuck with each step forward. “Walk toward that little house,” he barked from behind me. “Fuck, it’s going to be a real shame,” he quietly muttered to himself.

  The brush around us was high. We passed a small pond with bulrushes around it. It looked like a place where alligators might live. I was doomed. If I didn’t get shot by Mark, a freaking alligator would eat me. I prayed that Hayes would find me. I remembered his promise to keep me safe. He said he would always be nearby, but where was he this afternoon? Why wasn’t he watching the house? Especially after the FBI went in. We passed the pond, safely making it to the front door of the hut. It was definitely abandoned as I predicted.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Hayes

  I saw her message and my gut dropped. I had been close by all day when Immy called to say Shay had been in a minor car accident. He was fine, but his car wasn’t. She had to pick him up, so she asked me to fetch the kids from school. I didn’t want Natalia out of my sight, but I had three small kids with me I couldn’t exactly take them to stakeout Natalia’s house. I figured I would drive them home, and Immy would be home shortly after. Sure enough both Immy and Shay walked through the door half an hour later, a few minutes after I received Natalia’s message about Mark. I was too far away to get to her. I alerted John Higgins, our contact at the FBI. He said they were dispatching the police to Natalia’s house, and he was on his way too.

  As I drove like a maniac down the streets to get to her, Immy called. “Hayes, the weirdest thing just happened.” Her voice was shaky.

  “Go on.” I couldn’t keep my nerves still.

  “Lily called and said her mommy and daddy left her and Liam home alone. Something is very wrong. What is happening, Hayes? Shit! I could feel it this last week. Something was off.” Her voice trembled.

  “What else did Lily say?” I tried to keep my tone even. I couldn’t break my confidentiality to the FBI.

  “That I should come pick them up.”

  I tried to think fast.

  “I think you should go to pick up the kids then. They probably need you,” I said. I didn’t tell her I was also close to Natalia’s house, because I wanted to go look for Natalia, not babysit her children.

  “Okay! I’m heading over there,” she said, and I hang up.

  When I pulled onto her street there were red lights flashing everywhere. Natalia’s kids were sitting in the back of an EMS truck. They both looked fine.

  “Hey, guys.” I walked up to them. They both looked pale and scared. “Everything is going to be okay.” My lips tugged at the corners, wanting to ease their worry.

  “No.” Liam shook his head. “Daddy took Mommy. He’s really mad. He said the f word. He was being mean,” Liam said, and he looked so scared. His eyes rimmed red.

  I looked to him and Lily. “Don’t worry. Immy is on her way to get you. I’m going to find your mother.” I gave Liam a pat on the back. “Take care of your sister, mate.” I tried to smile for their sake. Liam smiled back to me and nodded.

  I charged up to John Higgins. “What do you know?” I asked.

  He stood tall, removing his sunglasses. He was dressed in civilian clothing like the first time we met. “They found Natalia’s cell phone outside. Tracking device was turned off, not that it would help anyway. They w
ere spotted going north on the freeway. We got police searching for them even though we think he’s probably going to ditch the car. We’ve got choppers around too,” he said with a frown.

  “Fuck.” I ran my fingers through my hair. “I have to find her.”

  “Man, we’re using all our resources,” Higgins said, but it didn’t make me feel any better. Mark must know Natalia knew the truth. He must have been alerted that the FBI was in his house.

  “Do you know where Mateo Nunez is?” I asked.

  Higgins shook his head.

  “He’s AWOL.”

  “Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.” I cursed. That wasn’t good.

  “I’m going north on the turnpike,” I said. “I can’t just sit around and wait.” I turned around and walked back to my car just as Immy pulled up. She left her car in a rush, tears streaking her cheeks.

  “What’s going on?” She held a hand to her mouth, her eyes darting all over the place.

  “Mark took Natalia. Take Liam and Lily home with you,” I said curtly, feeling bad I didn’t have time to console her. I began to walk away. The minutes were ticking by.

  “Wait,” she screamed from behind me. “Why?”

  “I have to go find her. Take the kids and calm them down. Try to find out if they heard anything that can be useful to where Natalia might be,” I explained. Even though I was freaking the fuck out I had to keep my head clear so I could focus on what I needed, to find her.

  “Okay.” She nodded. She was shaking like a leaf. Jesus.

  I stalked back to my car. “Wait,” Higgins shouted.

  “Come with me. I’ll be able to get to wherever faster.” He tilted his head and waved for me to follow him to his unmarked car. “Put this on the roof.” He handed me a red flashing light and took off toward the freeway.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight