“I take it this is your fiancé.”
“Yes. That’s Tommy.” She leaned over and took the picture from him.
“As you can see, Tommy was—is—” she corrected hastily “—very good-looking. He could be very charming...when he wanted to be. He’s always had a kind of boyishness about him.” A gentle smile played around her lips. “You can see it even in this picture. I’m not the only woman who found that appealing.”
“Boyishness, huh? For me a look of boyishness in a grown man shows nothing but his ignorance of the real world. And what you see as boyishness, I would read as helplessness. I did my best to knock that kind of boyishness out of any recruit that came into my training program.”
“The SEAL program?”
“Yes. The training is tough. Most of the candidates washed out early. By the time they left me, the rest weren’t boys anymore. They were men. And the only thing one could see in their eyes was sure confidence in their own abilities.”
Her mouth thinned. “Sure confidence in their abilities to maim, to kill.”
“If you want to put it that way. I wouldn’t.”
“That’s how we differ,” she said coolly. “I try to help people. You’re in the business of hurting them. At least, you used to be.”
“You’re dead wrong, Doctor. I was in the business of keeping our people alive. I gave my men everything I knew to help them come out in one piece from situations people like you can’t even conceive of. And, yes, if that means killing an enemy, then to kill. Better the enemy than one of our own.”
At first he thought. she was going to continue to argue with him and mentally started to line up his own verbal counterattack. He didn’t mind an argument. Anger felt safer than some of the other feelings she provoked in him. But instead, she tilted her head and studied him for a long moment. The look of cool disapproval left her face.
“I understand what you’re saying, Commander. We do have different ways of going about it, but at bottom we both try to take the best care we can of the people entrusted to us. I didn’t take real good care of Tommy. I want to correct that.”
She put the picture down on the desk and reached across to lay her fingers lightly over his. Just as it had yesterday, the direct skin-to-skin touch shot such a sharp stab of pleasure through him that it made him catch his breath.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I had no call to say what I did to you, just now or yesterday. I don’t know what it is, but you seem to bring out the worst in me. Forgive me.”
The grace of her capitulation left him nonplussed. “Don’t worry about it, Doctor. I’m sure my worst is a whole lot worse than your worst.”
Her bubble of laughter was the most delightful sound he’d heard in quite a while.
“You’re a challenge for me, David Reid. You surely are. Now why did you show up in my office today? I guess we can rule out the possibility it was to get a medical checkup.”
“The one thing in the world I don’t need is another medical checkup. I came to have another try at convincing you that this mission you’ve set for yourself is a dangerous one. If you were going to South America just to check out the usual tourist sights primarily in one of the big cities, no problem. But if your search leads you into the drug trails out in some of the rural areas, you could run into real trouble.”
“Like what?”
“Like bandits, competing bands of guerrillas, unsavory characters running around with guns they aren’t afraid to use.”
She arched a delicate brow. “You mean I might run into something like what goes on here every day in Baltimore, or for that matter in any other American city.”
“No, Cara. You know the rules here. You know the places to stay away from. Here you can speak the language, read the signs, printed-and otherwise. Do you speak Spanish?”
“Very little.”
“So there you won’t enjoy those advantages. You could very easily and very quickly stumble into something you can’t handle.”
“You’ve already convinced me of that, David. I don’t have much faith in detectives anymore, but I intend to hire a guide in whatever country I decide on.”
“The usual tourist guide isn’t going to cut it. Not in the places you might have to go.”
“How do you know so much about South America, David?”
“My parents had friends and business interests in several of the large capital cities. Ten years ago they died in a traffic accident in Rio. Sometimes they took me along on their trips. Later on, I did a lot of backpacking in the Andes and journeyed partway up the Amazon in a boat.
“So you really do know the area.”
“Not all of it. Some of it.”
“It’s kind of you to be concerned, but you really don’t need to worry about me. I’m pretty good at taking care of myself. Since my days in med school I’ve donated time at a free clinic in a very rough section of town. It seemed only prudent to take a course in self-defense.”
He threw her a brisk salute. It was growing surprisingly easy, he admitted, to drag up a grin when with her.
“My mistake, Doctor. You could probably teach me a thing or two.”
“I doubt that.” She leaned forward eagerly. “So, does that mean you’ve changed your mind and you’ll come with me?”
He shook his head. “I still don’t think I’m the man you need.”
“I’m sorry about that, but with or without you I’m going to look for Tommy. Can you at least give me some idea about where to start?”
He didn’t even want to consider the first place that sprang to mind when she mentioned South America and drugs in the same breath.
“According to what you told me, Grant could be anywhere.” He skidded his gaze away from her to a diploma hanging on the wall. “Lots of Americans go to Rio. Tommy could be one, especially if he likes to party. Buenos Aires would also be a good bet.”
“I don’t have the time to cover more than one city. I was thinking of Rio. I just wish I had a more solid indication of where he might be.”
The way she so worriedly chewed on her lower lip pricked his conscience. The least he could do for her was to try to narrow down the lead she was bent on following. Maybe his instincts about where Tommy might be were wrong.
“Tell me more about your private investigator’s last report.”
“There really isn’t anything more to tell.” She absently fingered the smooth wooden edge of the desk. “Funny, though...”
“What?”
“That last phone call from him was kind of strange. Normally he’s a talker. Usually I couldn’t get him off the line. But that final call lasted no more than a minute or two. I thought he sounded—I don’t know—a little nervous. Edgy. I had the impression he wanted to be done with me.” She brushed away the idea with a little laugh. “Probably I was imagining things.”
Maybe she was, David considered. Maybe she wasn’t. “Is his office here in Baltimore?”
“Yes. Downtown.”
He grabbed the cane and levered himself carefully to his feet. “Let’s go have a talk with—what’s his name?”
“Warren Baker.”
“Let’s go have a talk with Mr. Baker.”
“You mean, right now?”
“Why not?”
“Well, I just...” She grinned. “Why not, indeed? I’m beginning to have a greater appreciation for your painfully direct attitude. But shouldn’t we call first to see if he’s there?”
“No point in alerting the enemy to our position.”
“‘The enemy’. Good heavens, David. Is that how you look at people?”
“Let’s just say I have a naturally suspicious nature. You drive.”
According to the lettering on his office door, Warren Baker offered Investigative Services, Divorce, Missing Persons, Discreet, Affordable. The detective was in. And he was not happy to see them. Not happy at all.
“I told you, Dr. Merrill, I can’t give you any further information on the whereabouts of your fiancé.�
�
David strolled around to the detective’s side of the desk. Even the limp didn’t keep him from looking strongly intimidating, Cara noted. The way he used his cane made it seem more like a fashion accessory than a necessity. With its brass handle, he carefully shoved a stack of papers out of the way, parked himself on the desktop and smiled down at Baker.
The thin smile didn’t seem to relax Baker any.
“How about repeating that information for me?” Reid said quietly, slowly twirling the cane between the palms of his hands. Cara couldn’t figure out why the innocuous action should hold an undertone of menace. But, oddly, it did. “How do you know that Dr. Grant is in South America?”
“I don’t know it.” Baker eyed the cane warily. “Like I told the doc here, I just heard a rumor that Grant may have gone there.”
“A rumor.”
“Yeah.”
“Where did you pick up this rumor?”
The detective squirmed in his chair. “In ... in Miami.” “From whom?”
“Look, I don’t have to—”
“From whom, Mr. Baker?”
Reid didn’t so much as raise his voice, but Baker nervously licked his lips. “From a junkie who used to shoot heroin with the doc.”
Cara gave a strangled groan.
“Go on, Mr. Baker.”
“Said he talked about going to South America.”
“South America.”
“Yeah.” Baker angled his head around David to face her. “Nobody can search the whole of South America, Doc. Give it up.”
David didn’t give her time to respond. “Wouldn’t Grant have had a little trouble springing for the hefty airfare from Miami to any South American country?”
From the way Baker nervously swiveled his chair from side to side, it was clear he wasn’t thrilled with David’s questions.
“Said a friend was paying his way.”
“What friend?”
“My source didn’t have a name. Apparently it was a guy Grant met in some kind of street accident. That’s all he knew.”
“Good, Mr. Baker. We appreciate your cooperation.”
This was a side of David she hadn’t seen before. A lot different than simple rudeness, the unnerving mildness in his voice and the coldly approving smile he bestowed on the man veiled an implicit threat. She didn’t much like the tactic, but it was certainly working a lot better than her own polite questioning on the telephone.
“Go on,” he said. “Exactly where in South America was Grant going?”
“Look. I don’t want to get involved in this, okay?”
“Involved in what?”
Baker pulled out a handkerchief and mopped his florid face. “Involved in what?” David repeated with quiet but deadly persistence. He tossed the cane up a few inches and caught it again between his hands.
“The user,” Baker mumbled, “said Grant mentioned something about Colombia.”
Cara’s heart sank. She knew as well as David did that Colombia meant drugs.
She glanced at David and did a double take. He’d gone strangely quiet and tense. His hands were vised tightly around his cane. The gaze that pinned Baker to his chair slitted to icy coldness.
“Colombia,” David repeated.
“Maybe. He... he wasn’t sure. Look, mister... uh ... Commander...”
“Commander Reid.”
“Yeah. Well. Both Grant and my informant are users. Who puts any faith in the ravings of an addict?”
“What has you so scared, Mr. Baker?”
“S-scared? Who’s scared?”
“You are. Why?” David gave Baker’s shoulder a gentle prod with the cane.
“Okay. Okay.” Baker angled his head toward Cara. “Look, Doc. I like you. You’re a nice lady. Drop this business. You don’t want to get mixed up with whatever Grant has got himself into. It’s bound to bring you nothing but trouble.”
“Who threatened you?” Reid asked.
Baker flopped back in his chair. “I ...I don’t know who he was. I guess my snooping around rattled some cages. This guy caught me in an alley near my hotel in Miami. Told me to knock off asking questions about Grant.”
“He leaned on you?”
“Not much. Didn’t have to. Look, pal, I been in this business a long time. I don’t scare easy. But this character was real big and real scary. His meaning was plain enough. Hey.” He shrugged. “I dropped the case. So sue me.”
“This man, your attacker.” David pressed on. “What did he look like?”
“Hispanic. As I said. Real big. Bald. Ugly.”
“Thank you, Mr. Baker. You’ve been very helpful. We’re finished here, Dr. Merrill.” David got up from the desk and took her arm to lead her to the door.
“If you’re smart, Doc,” Baker called after them, “you’ll forget about Grant. The kinds of people he’s mixed up with play for keeps.”
In the elevator, David dropped his head against the back wall. “Colombia,” he breathed in little more than a whisper. “Colombia.”
She felt the same way, but it surprised her that David seemed to be taking their discovery so personally.
Out in the parking lot, she clicked open the locks with the remote and didn’t bother to wait and help him into the car. She’d already learned that he wanted no help except for what little he absolutely couldn’t handle for himself.
He yanked open the passenger door, sat down and carefully lifted his bad leg inside.
“Baker wasn’t just whistling Dixie about the dangerous kinds of people you’ll find in Colombia,” he said, his face grim. “But I don’t expect you’ll have sense enough to pay his warning any mind.”
She snapped her head around to him, her eyes flashing.
“Excuse me?” she said, through gritted teeth. “I can do without you talking to me that way, Commander.”
“Somebody sure needs to talk sense to you, lady. Looks like I’m it. I intend to keep on doing it. You’ve got yourself a partner.”
Chapter 3
Cara had her mouth open, ready to continue her blast. Her irritation skidded into a hundred-and-eighty-degree turn. “You’re what?”
“I’m going to ride shotgun with you on your crazy mission to Colombia. I understand your motivations well enough by now to know that what Baker said isn’t going to stop you. You’re sticking to idiot Tommy like a barnacle sticks to a boat. Or in this case, to a sinking ship. I sure can’t let you go there alone.”
Her eyebrows arrowed upward. “You can’t let me go?”
“You heard me.” Her satisfaction that Reid had agreed to accompany her was shot through with annoyance. “Look, Commander, you may be accustomed to giving orders, but it isn’t up to you to let me do anything I want to do.”
“Take it any way you want to. I’m going with you.”
“Fine,” she snapped. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Why did her nerves always end up wound as tight as harp strings around David Reid? The man had agreed to do her a very large favor and she was all but yelling at him.
“Hey, David.” She gave him a sheepish glance. “Thank you. Glad to have you aboard.”
“Sure.”
“You can stay over at my place tonight.”
His mouth dropped open. “Uh...” For some reason, the idea seemed to make him very nervous. “Uh... No. I don’t think—”
“You can’t drive all the way back to your mountain again today,” she said, amazed that he’d contest a suggestion so reasonable. “Your leg would conk out on you before you were halfway there.”
The alarm on his face provoked her soft laugh.
“I’m trying to save you some pain, Commander. Why are you looking at me as if I’ve stolen your wallet? Has word of my near-total helplessness in the kitchen leaked out? No problem. There are plenty of restaurants in my neighborhood. Or we can pick up takeout at a good health-food deli I know.”
From the sound he made, she gathered that his appreciation of health
food might not be as high as her own.
“I’d prefer to go to a hotel.”
“We have a lot to talk about, David. Easier to do that at my condo than in a hotel dining room.”
“Fine. We’ll talk over dinner at your place. Then I’ll find a hotel.”
She shrugged. “Have it your way. If you change your mind, I have a perfectly good guest room. No complaints about it so far.”
“What have you got in your fridge?”
“Fruit, a carton or two of yogurt in the refrigerator. Maybe some milk. Chicken and frozen vegetables in the freezer. I’m no great cook, but I can manage to sauté a couple of chicken breasts.”
“Got any white wine?”
She’d forgotten his drinking habit. Might that become a problem on their trip? she wondered. “I have wine.” He was asking about wine, but he probably wanted something stronger than chardonnay. “I also have a bottle of scotch. Not quite as good as what you’re used to, but you’re welcome to it.”
“Chicken in white wine sauce tastes a lot better than chicken in scotch,” he said dryly. “At least, I assume so. I’ve been known to down a whisky or two in my time, but I can’t say I’ve ever poured it over chicken.”
“Oh, I thought you meant...”
“I know what you thought. Don’t worry, Doctor. My admittedly excessive fondness for the bottle is of fairly recent origin. I’ve never yet gone on a mission drunk. I’ll cook.”
“You’ll cook? They teach you cooking in the SEALs?”
“No, they don’t teach you cooking in the SEALs. I’ve had plenty of time to learn on my own lately. Throwing steaks on the barbecue is easy, but it gets a little boring.”
“You shouldn’t be eating a lot of steaks, anyway. Too much red meat isn’t good for you.”
“It’s not enough that you criticize my life-style, you’re going to take on my diet next?” She almost missed seeing the twitch of a smile accompanying the remark.
Unbroken Vows Page 4
