by Karen Fenech
“We’re about ready to close,” the woman said. Deep grooves dug into the sides of her mouth and brow as she spoke. “Grill’s been cleaned.” She tilted her head and the purple stones in her earrings twinkled in the light. “The best I can offer you at this point is a cup of coffee and a sandwich.”
“That’ll be fine,” Burke said.
The waitress ticked off the choices on her fingers. “Ham and Swiss or Tuna Salad.”
“Tuna,” Eve said.
“The same. And the coffee you mentioned would be great. Black, for me. Eve?”
“Black for me, too - Bu - John.”
Clearly she wasn’t any good at this cloak and dagger stuff, but if the waitress noticed that Eve had almost called her companion by the wrong name, she didn’t react.
“I’ll be right back with your coffees,” the waitress said.
Eve stretched out her arms on the wooden tabletop and linked her fingers in a tight grip. By this time tomorrow night, she should be on her way back home. That Richard had used his skill to harm anyone angered her. She could not comprehend how he would have done this. As much as she was angry at Burke for refusing to listen when she told him she was innocent, she was glad that he’d learned what Richard was planning before he could sell the formula.
She focused on Burke. “How did you find out what Richard was involved in?”
Burke raised a dark eyebrow in a mocking gesture. Eve leaned as far forward as the edge of the tabletop allowed. “Can your sarcasm for a minute and answer my question.”
Burke leveled his gaze on her. “He let it be known that he could be hired to develop chemical weapons. He answered a personal ad on a website we’ve been monitoring for terrorist activity. That ad was a cover for a request for a chemical weapon.”
“That’s how these people contact each other?”
“That’s one way.”
Clearly Burke had no intention of elaborating. She would not have credited Richard with knowing how to initiate such contact. Again, she was struck by the fact that she’d been clueless to what was going on right under her nose.
The waitress arrived with their coffees. Eve sat back as the steaming cup was set in front of her. When they were alone again, she asked, “Do you know why Richard got involved with these people?” A terrible thought occurred to her. “Richard wasn’t married. His parents are his only family.” Eve’s stomach tightened at the thought they might have been threatened. “Could it have been about more than money?”
“A great deal of money, Doctor,” Burke said. “If you’re thinking he was pressured or threatened to cooperate, he wasn’t.”
The waitress returned and placed their dinner orders in front of them. She left the check by the plates in a not -so- subtle hint that their time was limited.
Burke picked up his sandwich and dug in. Eve took a couple of bites but found she wasn’t as hungry as she had been a few moments ago. The gravity of her situation struck her again. She picked up her coffee and held it between both hands as she took a long sip. The air conditioner in the diner kicked on making a loud hum and a middle aged man wearing a white T-shirt molded to his lean body started a floor polisher. The combined sounds made conversation impossible, which Eve was glad of. She had nothing to say to Burke at the moment and nothing she wished to hear from him.
Burke pointed to her plate and raised an eyebrow. “Problem with your sandwich?”
Eve shook her head. “It’s fine.”
Burke didn’t press. The next few moments were passed in silence as he finished eating.
“You done?” he asked.
Eve nodded. Burke placed one of the twenties he’d taken from his wallet on the table to take care of the check. Eve got to her feet and preceded him out of the diner.
A third vehicle was parked in the lot when Eve and Burke reached it. An early model mini van. The windows were covered by curtains patterned with grinning cows.
An elderly couple strolled around the Porsche. The man was tall with a full head of silver hair. He smiled as he reached out and patted the rooftop.
“Good evening to you,” the man said. His accent was unmistakably southern. “My wife and I were admiring your very fine ve-hic-le.”
That’s right.” The woman nodded. She wore a straw hat with a ribbon bow tipped back on her head. “We had an early model way back when, didn’t we Harry?”
“My, yes. It has been some time.” He released a deep breath and without taking his eyes from the car asked, “Mind if we take a look inside?”
“Be my guest,” Burke said.
Eve glanced at her watch. They really had to be on their way.
“This sure does take me back,” Harry said from behind the wheel. He sighed long in appreciation and caressed the leather wrapped steering wheel as if it were a lover. His wife slid into the passenger side and the couple sat together in a companionable silence.
The man reached out and clasped his wife’s hand then brought it to his lips. Her light blue eyes grew warm on her husband’s face.
Despite her impatience to be on her way, Eve couldn’t help but be touched by them, touched and a little wistful. Once, she too, had expected to share a lifetime with her own husband.
“Maybe we ought to just get ourselves one of these again? How about that Mary?” Harry winked at his wife.
She laughed.
With a loud and obviously reluctant sigh, Harry stepped out of the car. He extended his hand to Burke. “Thank you, kindly. Appreciate you letting us reminisce.”
“My pleasure,” Burke said.
Harry turned to Eve and shook her hand as well.
“Drive safe,” Mary added.
Eve watched them enter the diner. “That was a nice thing you just did, Burke.”
“I can be nice.”
“I’ll reserve judgment on that,” she said.
Without replying, Burke got behind the wheel.
They buckled up and left the parking lot. Night had fallen and the moon roof showed the sky lit with stars. Moonlight illuminated the inside of the car. Burke popped the Van Halen CD out of the player, and selected a radio station that played fifties and sixties rock. At the moment, Rick Nelson was singing about “Mary Lou”.
Eve rested her head back against the seat. Lulled by the soft purr of the engine and the music, she felt she could fall asleep. She couldn’t believe that, given what was going on in her life now, and, given that she was in the company of a man she’d known for only a few hours.
Burke slid his wallet out from under the driver’s seat. Not his wallet, Eve realized, this one was brown.
She sat upright. ”That’s not the wallet you stashed under the seat before we went into the diner.”
Burke met her gaze. “No.” He flipped open the wallet revealing a driver’s license, passport, social security card, and an assortment of credit cards. The name on each piece of identification was Richard Patterson, but the photos verifying the ID were all of Burke.
“Then how did you--” Her eyes narrowed as she figured it out. “The elderly couple.”
Eve tapped the wallet. “This was why you wanted to stop here. Those people delivered new ID for you. They work for you, Burke.”
“Not Burke. Richard. From here on, I’m Richard Patterson.”
* * *
They arrived at the cottage in Rowland in the early hours of the morning. For the most part, the streets they’d driven by were all dark, Eve noticed. Apparently, the residents of Rowland were not people who stayed up into the wee hours of the morning.
As described, the cottage was on an isolated stretch of land. It looked to be built about forty years back when land could be had in abundance for a reasonable price, as opposed to the near postage-sized lots available now and sold at a premium.
Burke parked in front of the small dwelling and they left the car. He unlocked the door to the cottage. Apparently when he and Lanski searched Richard’s body earlier, they came up with more than the notes on the formula, Eve obser
ved. They’d also found the keys Richard had received from the agent he’d rented the cottage from.
Burke switched on the overhead lights and Eve followed him into one large room. Curtains on the windows were open, letting in the moonlight. The place was inviting with a large couch filled with thick-stuffed cushions. A brick fireplace took up a large portion of one wall. A framed photograph of a bird poised for flight was centered above the fireplace. The photo was slightly askew.
From where she stood at the door, Eve could also see the kitchen. The room was painted a cornflower blue with medium oak accents that gave a warm and homey atmosphere. She took a step, intent on checking out the two bedrooms, but Burke placed his hand on her arm.
“Give me a minute,” he said.
Without waiting for her reply, Burke strode into the nearest room. She supposed his training had him looking under table cloths and peeking around corners. When she’d been on the police force, she’d maintained an awareness of her surroundings, but several years out of that life had taken the suspicion off and she’d gotten out of the habit.
Still, in their case, she wasn’t sure it was just carefully honed habit that had Burke checking their surroundings.
“Well?” she asked when he was back in the living room area with her.
“All clear.” He slid the gun he’d drawn back in his shoulder holster.
“Any reason to think it might not have been?”
Burke remained silent for an instant, then met her gaze. “Richard Patterson died abruptly. We won’t know what caused his death until the autopsy results are in.”
“You think Richard may have been murdered?”
“I don’t think it. I’m just being cautious. I can’t see anyone killing him and not taking the formula. Like I said, I’m just being cautious.”
Burke was right. It made no sense for the accomplice or buyer to kill Richard and not take the formula. Besides, Burke said that Richard had never met the people he’d entered into this alliance with.
“I’ll get our bags,” Burke said.
Eve followed him to the car. It was late. She didn’t plan on unpacking now.
All she wanted was the garment bag that held the suit she planned to wear in the morning for the conference and her make-up case and hair dryer.
When Burke would have grabbed her suitcase as well as his own, she shook her head. “I just want what I’ll need for the morning.” She followed up her words by swinging out the garment bag and grabbing the make-up case and hair dryer, then returning to the cabin.
She chose the first room off the short hall and shut the door behind herself.
* * *
Burke watched Eve walk away from him. Against his will, his gaze lingered. He took in her straight back, the sweep of her dark hair across her shoulders, the narrow curve of her waistline. With a scowl, he looked away from her.
He was angry, his body tense with it. This investigation that should have clicked into place had blown apart. Richard Patterson was dead and now, here Burke was, forced to take Patterson’s place. What should have been a cut and dried apprehension had become complicated. And, instead of overseeing the investigation, where he needed to be, he’d had to hand over that responsibility to his second in command Lanski while he was now stuck in the middle of nowhere impersonating Patterson and guarding his accomplice.
Burke pulled out his cell phone and called Lanski.
“Hey, boss,” Lanski said an instant later. “Are you calling from the road?”
Burke’s cell phone was secure so his location could not be determined. “No. We’ve arrived.”
“You and the lady doc all settled in?”
That comment brought on another scowl. Burke ignored the question and asked his own. “Are we set for tomorrow night?”
“All set, sir,” Lanski said, all humor gone. “We’ll have the cottage covered with land, sea and air surveillance. Just like you ordered. The buyer won’t get away from us.”
Burke expected nothing less. “Dr. Collins still has her cell phone in her possession.”
“You let her keep it?”
“Yeah. I want you to monitor her cell phone calls. Incoming and outgoing. I want to know who she calls and who calls her.”
Lanski paused briefly then said, “You want to know if she tips anyone off about Patterson?”
“Yeah.”
“Good thinking. She might not be expecting that we’ll be listening, and have her guard down. I’m on it. Anything else?”
“That’s it for now.”
“See you tomorrow night.”
“Tomorrow,” Burke repeated.
This would all be over then. He couldn’t wait.
Chapter Four
They were on the road at seven-thirty the next morning. If this had been another day, Eve would have welcomed an additional couple of hours of sleep. She wasn’t a morning person to begin with and topping that with the sleepless night spent worrying over her situation had left her edgy. But, this was the day the true accomplice would reveal himself and exonerate her. She couldn’t get the day started early enough.
They stopped for breakfast at a restaurant in Rowland then resumed the drive to the conference. Burke didn’t ask for directions to the hotel where the conference was being held. It was clear that he knew exactly where he was headed. When they arrived, he pulled into the valet parking. The act was so typically Richard that Eve glanced over at the man behind the wheel. The hotel allowed for patrons to park their own vehicles, but Eve had never known Richard to do that when someone else was available to park his car for him. She wondered if Burke was acting as Burke or if he was mimicking Richard’s behavior. He was falling into impersonating Richard well.
Her door was opened by the hotel attendant who offered his hand to help her out. Eve placed her hand in his and stepped onto the asphalt. The day was overcast, but despite the clouds covering the sun, the air outside was warm and sticky.
Burke - ah Richard - she had to remember to call him Richard - joined her and they made their way through the double glass doors that accessed the hotel lobby.
The conference coordinators reserved the same rooms for the event each year. For the first time since she’d embarked on the trip with Richard, Eve knew where she was heading.
She spotted Matt Deligne making his way toward her. Deligne was a big, bold Texan, topping six feet by several inches. His shaggy hair, beneath a white Stetson, was sun-streaked, attesting to the time he spent outdoors on the cattle ranch he lived on.
“Why hi y’all,” he said, when he reached her. He swept her into a bear hug that squeezed a cough from her.
After Eve extracted herself from Deligne’s hold, she said, “Richard, this is Matt Deligne. Matt, my business partner, Richard Patterson.”
“Matt,” Burke said.
Burke and Deligne shook hands.
“Never did see you out this way, Rick,” Deligne said. “Have to say, I was starting to believe Eve had made you all up as an excuse to deny going out with me.”
“As you can see, Matt, Richard is very real.” Eve had to force the smile that she needed to go along with that statement about Richard.
“Well, I’ve never been one to back away from competition,” Matt said.
She added softly, not wishing to cause Matt hurt. “Richard isn’t the reason you and I will go on being just friends.”
Beside her, Burke tensed. Maybe in anticipation of Matt’s reaction, but Eve had never known Matt to be anything but good-natured.
Matt laughed now, loud enough that patrons at the other end of the long hall way glanced in their direction. “I think the lady just hit me dead-on with a solid right hook. I’m bleeding all over this fancy carpeting, darlin’.”
She’d been less than tactful and her words hadn’t come out as she’d intended. She was sorry for that. The last thing she wanted was to cause her friend hurt. “Sorry, Matt. It isn’t you, it’s me.” God, she was making things worse with the trite line.
&n
bsp; Matt laughed. “Easy. You can quit dancing now. My heart’s bruised but still beating.” He winked at her. “And here comes Allie. I know you’ll be glad to see him.”
“Allie” was Alasdair McHampton, a Scotsman who emigrated to the United States from Edinburgh in the nineteen fifties. He’d retired from researching pharmaceuticals years back, but missed being able to discuss his passion for chemistry and sought out the conference and like-minded individuals each year to indulge in conversation he was no longer able to have elsewhere.
