“Sebastian is getting together ID’s for us, I’ll add you to the list. He said he would have vehicles ready for us if we ever needed to run. For now, he’s monitoring the situation, but he feels that we’re safe. Sean is the only other person that knows. We need to pick a location to go in case anyone comes for us. We should all be prepared that we may not get to leave together though. The most important thing is keeping the twins safe. Whoever is with them should leave right away if there is immediate danger. Call Sebastian and get out of town. No waiting around.”
“Shouldn’t I contact WitSec if I’m found?”
“It would take them too long to get here. Sebastian can get us out of town fastest. If the threat isn’t imminent, we could call WitSec, but I don’t know the rules. Would Cara and I be able to come along?”
“I’m pretty sure if I was married, you would be able to come, but I have no clue about Cara.”
“Then I think for now, it’s best if we stick with this plan. Sebastian will call us in a few days and we can all sit down and work out the details. I think we should ask Sean to be there also. Since he already knows, it’s best if he knows you’re involved.
“I can’t do this. I can’t ask you both to give up your lives to come with me.”
“First of all, you are going to be my wife and those are my kids. There is no way that I won’t be with you no matter what. Second, you aren’t asking anything. I’m telling you that I will gladly give up everything and anything to be with you and make sure you’re safe.”
“I may not be related, but you two are my family.”
“Then it’s settled. Let’s figure out where we’ll go if we have to run.”
✯✯✯✯✯
For the next few days, we looked at maps of the United States to find the perfect location. After much debate over weather, job prospects, populations size, and anything else that might sway us, we found a location. With that set, all we needed was to meet with Sebastian to put the final pieces in place. Drew asked Sean to be at the meeting and we decided to meet at Drew’s house so that no one at Reed Security grew suspicious.
When Sean walked in, he saw Cara sitting on the couch next to Sebastian.
“What is this? Are you two..” He waved his finger between the two of them and shuddered. “I do not need to know. We didn’t need to have a meeting over who you’re fucking, Cara.”
“We aren’t fucking, Sean.” She rolled her eyes at him and after much scrutinizing, Sean seemed to accept and took a seat. Sebastian stood and went to his bag, pulling out a large envelope.
“These are the new ID’s for all of you. It won’t pass an intense background check, but if you were to apply for a job, it should work for you. Just don’t land yourself in jail. I also included a burner phone that has one number. It’s my work phone and I always have it on. If you need something, you call me and I’ll take care of it. There are two vehicles parked in the basement of Reed Security. They won’t lead back to you in anyway and won’t be traced to Reed Security either. The keys are in the envelope, but I would prefer you contact me first so that I can make sure you get away clean. Have you chosen a location?”
“Whoa, hold on one fucking minute. What the hell is going on and why is my sister here?”
“If they leave, I’m going with them.” Cara didn’t look at Sean as she spoke softly.
“What? Cara, you can’t be serious.”
Cara stood and walked over to him. “Sean, I know you love me very much and you’ve given so much to help me, but this is my family, too. They’ve helped me so much and I want to stay with them.”
He looked a little hurt by that statement, but didn’t say anything. Drew stood and walked over to them. “Sean, we aren’t going anywhere. This is all just a precaution. We may not be able to say anything if we leave, but Sebastian would know.”
“Well, I hope for your sakes that you don’t have to go anywhere, but I understand that you have to be prepared. Just tell me one thing. How did my sister get involved in all this?”
“She’s been a part of our lives for a year now, day in and day out. I gave her an out, but she didn’t want it. Frankly, she’d probably be safer with us, though. If they found out that she was living with Sarah, she would be a target. I don’t think I have to tell you what they would do to her.”
“Fuck. I didn’t even think about that.” Sean ran his hand over his head and settled it on the back of his neck. “I’ve been listening for anything from New York, but so far, they aren’t having any luck in their search. There’s every possibility that this could go nowhere.”
“I just wanted to live a quiet life. I’m so sorry that I’ve done this to all of you.” My eyes filled with tears as this small group of people sat around and planned for the possibility of upending our lives and leaving this place I had come to call home.
Drew knelt in front of me and grabbed my hands. “Sweetheart, none of this is your fault and I wouldn’t change a thing about it. Well, maybe the murders, but even though your husband had to die, it brought me you and I’m selfish enough to be grateful for that.”
I gave Drew a small smile. I wasn’t happy that Todd was dead either, but he was right. Todd’s death brought me to Drew and I couldn’t feel sorry about that. “What do we do now?”
“You two need to get married now. You already planned on it, but now we need to move that timeframe up. That way, if you have to run, WitSec will move you together.”
“I can do fast. I’m ready to do this now.”
“Hold on there, cowboy. I still want to go pick out a dress and have a few flowers.”
“Why don’t we do it here at sunset? It would be beautiful.”
“But…wouldn’t that be a reminder of…Iris?” I didn’t want to be morbid, but that seemed weird to me that he would want to get married to me at the time of day that he used to cherish so much.
“I think it’s time to make new memories at sunset.”
And just like that, my heart melted. There was no denying how much Drew loved me. The fact that he was giving me something that had been so special to him meant everything to me.
“We would have to do it soon. It’s pretty chilly at night.”
“We can do it next weekend. I don’t know about you, but the only family I have is our friends. It won’t take that long to inform all of them. You can go shopping this week and find something to wear.”
“Can we get a marriage license that fast?”
“The state of Pennsylvania requires a three day waiting period. If you applied this week, you should have it for next weekend,” Sean said.
“Well, I guess we have a plan then. We’re getting married next weekend.”
✯✯✯✯✯
That night, lying in bed with Drew, I got the distinct impression that he was trying to work up the courage to ask me something. Irritated with his attempts, I turned in his arms.
“Just ask. Whatever it is, just ask.”
“Now that I know about your past, will you tell me about Todd?”
I sighed and looked at the ceiling. “I met him when I was just out of college. He was in the military and he was usually deployed six months at a time. I fell in love with him so fast, but I held back because I was afraid he would get killed over there. Eventually, he wore me down and I moved in with him. We got married and I finished school and got a job managing an art gallery. He was always a little different when he came home, but it was the adjustment period. He always had trouble with that. We decided to wait until he got out of the military to start a family. He was so worried about leaving a family behind.”
I huffed out a laugh. “Who would have thought he would survive war only to be killed by a crime boss at home?”
“I read in the testimony that he had some trouble when he came home.”
“Yeah. He was having a nightmare and I stupidly walked over to him and tried to wake him up. He was still in the throes of his nightmare and attacked me. When he woke up, he was devastated. A neighb
or heard and called the police. They took him in and he was ready to let them throw the book at him, but I wouldn’t allow it. He was suffering from PTSD. There was no reason he should have been in jail to begin with. Anyway, after that, he got counseling and he got better. He went to work at a security firm that he heard about from his buddies. He was so happy there, but it was like he was in the military all over again. He worked long hours and sometimes opposite schedules as me. We rarely saw each other. His job was important to him and I could appreciate that, but I was ready to start a family. He was so happy that night when I told him. He wanted to take me out to celebrate.”
Tears started sliding down my cheeks as I recalled that night. “We had a great night and then he was gone. I can still see his face. He wasn’t paying attention because he wanted to be sure I got away. He was a really good fighter, but I distracted him.”
“Baby, you can’t blame yourself. I’m sure that as soon as you stepped into that situation, he knew it would end badly. He wanted to give you every chance to get away and he did. It wasn’t your fault.”
“It might not have been my fault, but the look on his face will forever haunt me. I can’t make those images go away. That’s not how he should be remembered, but I’m not even allowed to talk about him. My kids will never know who he was because it could put them in danger.”
“You may not be able to talk about who he was, but you can tell them about the man he was. That’s what’s most important. They need to know that he was a strong man who loved you and them very much.”
“I wish he could have met them.”
“I know you do.”
He kissed my forehead and suddenly, I needed to know something. “Drew, when you were telling me about your wife, you said that she had made a decision on whether or not to keep the baby, but you never told me what she chose.”
“I didn’t, did I? She kept the baby.”
“Were you upset with her that she didn’t give herself a chance?”
“No. I wanted to be, but at our last doctor’s appointment, the doctor said that the cancer had spread so fast to her brain that chemo probably wouldn’t have helped. He said that most likely the cancer cells were already there. She would have been devastated if she’d given up the baby and when the doctor told us that, I was glad that she had kept it. It made her feel better that she hadn’t killed her child and I was grateful that she had that peace of mind when she passed.”
“Did the baby live until the end with her?”
“The baby died about a week before she did, but she was so out of it that she never knew. She never had to mourn the baby.”
“How did they deliver the baby?”
“They didn’t. She was so far gone, the doctors didn’t think she would last much longer. It would have been too hard on her body. Our baby is still with her.”
“Did you name the baby?”
“It was a girl. We had already talked about names and had decided on Hope. Iris always had hope that the child would survive. There wasn’t ever really a chance for her. The cancer hit Iris hard right away and she was so weak that the baby wasn’t developing at the proper rate. She was really small and that’s why they kept her in the womb so long. They hoped that as time went on, she would gain some weight and they could induce labor around twenty-five weeks, but she just quit growing. Iris was too weak and the baby wasn’t getting what she needed to survive. We both knew that our child wouldn’t make it, but I’m glad that Iris wasn’t coherent when the baby died.”
“That’s so sad. I’m sure that they’re in heaven watching you.”
“I know they are. They brought us together.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Epilogue
DREW AND I were married on a very cold day in October. There had been a snowstorm two days before our wedding and it made for a beautiful landscape. We decided to go ahead with the outdoor wedding. I wore a deep blue dress that would have shown off my eyes if I wasn’t wearing contacts. It had a boat neck and three quarter length sleeves with a lace overlay and a mermaid fit. It was absolutely beautiful. I probably should have worn a coat outside, but I wanted to enjoy the moment, short as it was. I did, however, wear fur lined snow boots.
Drew wore a classic tux that made him look completely dashing, but he also wore a black cowboy hat, true to his southern nature. The scruff on his jaw made him look absolutely delectable. We opted for the twins to be bundled up in fleece snowsuits that had hoods with little ears. They were so adorable. Some of our friends bitched about the cold weather, but when the ceremony started, everyone was quiet. The sun was setting just as we said our vows and I felt warmth wrap around me. I knew Iris was there and that Drew felt her too because his eyes teared up.
After we kissed and started walking back toward the house, I heard his voice. Be happy, baby. I’ll always love you.
Looking up at Drew, I knew I had made a good choice. No one would ever understand me like him or love me as fiercely. We shared something that no one could ever take from us.
✯✯✯✯✯
Four years after we were married, I got a call from Agent Sanders in WitSec.
“Agent Sanders, it’s been awhile. Is everything okay?”
“We’re just calling to check up on you.”
“I thought you said we wouldn’t be talking again unless something happened. Did something happen?”
“Well, yes. As of two weeks ago, the Cordano crime family has been wiped out.”
“Excuse me?”
“There was a war between two families and the Cordano’s were not the ones left standing. All of the major players have been killed, including Giuseppe Cordano and Marco Abruzzo, who were killed in jail. The rest of them are gone in the wind.”
My heart thundered in my chest. “What does this mean?”
“It means that you can rest easy. We’ll keep you in WitSec as a precaution, but it looks like you’re in the clear. The bounty on your head has been withdrawn and it appears no one is interested in you anymore.”
“Oh my gosh. You aren’t serious.”
“I’m completely serious.”
“Does this mean I can tell my friends who I am? Can I tell my kids about their father?”
“Well, don’t go crazy. Your kids can know, but you’d still be taking a chance with anyone else. We believe the threat is gone, but it wouldn’t be a bad idea to continue to fly under the radar.”
“I can’t believe this. I never thought I would hear this from you.”
“Enjoy your life, Sarah.”
I hung up the phone and stared at the ground for a minute. There was so much joy rushing through me that I didn’t know quite how to handle it. Drew walked into the room moments later and caught me staring at the ground as I rubbed my swollen belly.
“Sarah, is everything okay? Who was on the phone?”
“Agent Sanders. We just got our lives back.”
Ratings on Amazon help me to spread the word about my books and allow me to keep writing. Please take a moment and write an honest review of this book on Amazon. Watch for upcoming books in the series, For The Love Of A Good Woman.
Also in this series:
Jack: A romantic comedy
Cole: A romantic thriller
Logan: A revenge novel
Drew: A new beginnings romance
Sebastian: A mystery/thriller romance, Jan. 11, 2018
Sean: (release date TBA)
Ryan: (release date TBA)
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Drew Page 24
