Love Inspired Suspense June 2015 #1

by Margaret Daley

  “Beaten? What do you mean? How bad is it?”

  “I don’t want to talk on the phone, but you’re so far away. It was…bad. Can you come?”

  “Is he going to…?”

  “Live. He’s going to live, but he’s asking for you.”

  Oh, how she’d missed her family. If she’d gone into WITSEC, she wouldn’t have the opportunity to see them ever again, even if someone took ill or was near death. But then again…maybe if she’d left for good this wouldn’t have happened. Was the attack against her father from Santino, too?

  “Why? Why would someone do that?”

  God, please let it be for some reason other than the obvious.

  “The police don’t know. It appears to be a random beating.”

  “I’m coming. Text me the details.”

  She ended the call, hurt and anger boiling inside.

  “What is it? Tracy, tell me what’s going on.” David’s voice barely registered, but she was grateful for his presence.

  “It’s my dad. Someone beat him—he’s in the hospital. I have to go.” The police might have thought it was random, but Tracy knew this nightmare would never end for her unless she could somehow wake up. “Santino has targeted my family now, too.”

  And waking from this nightmare meant someone had to die.

  Tracy or Santino had to die.

  SIXTEEN

  David righted his seatback as the 747 prepared for landing in St. Louis, Missouri. Tracy’s seat next to him was empty—she’d gone to the restroom. He stared out the window, watching as they approached the city. The flight seemed to have taken much too long to get there.

  He’d been surprised that Tracy hadn’t balked when he’d insisted on coming with her. But she’d had no one else and was too shaken up to travel alone. David imagined she’d agreed because she’d been so distraught upon hearing about her father and hadn’t had much fight left for anything else. Besides, she’d known he wouldn’t take no for an answer.

  All it had taken was grabbing a few essentials. Billy had already been waiting to fly them to Juneau, where they’d bought tickets to travel the rest of the way.

  He scratched his rough chin, thinking he might have forgotten his razor. He really didn’t know what he was doing in all this. The moment he’d learned she was in danger, he’d assigned himself as her personal protector. A woman he’d wanted to avoid. A woman who seemed determined to push him away.

  David wondered who would be his protector when it came to his heart, because he wasn’t doing a good job.

  Seeing her anguish at the news of her father had twisted his gut into a knot. He was into her in a way he’d never intended. But it wasn’t as if he could bail on her now. He’d see this through and keep her safe.

  The plane shifted, angling to the right. Where was Tracy, anyway?

  He frowned, wishing she would come back to her seat. He rubbed his forehead, feeling the exhaustion of the past few days pressing down on him.

  She was still in danger. What he didn’t know was how to keep her safe, how to stop the man running things from prison. Why didn’t the authorities have more power to stop this? One of the problems was getting them to believe it was all connected in the first place. Law enforcement, along with any government entity, seemed to move with the speed of a raft across the Pacific.

  She’d told him that if something else happened—someone else was hurt—she would leave Mountain Cove for good and go into WITSEC. He didn’t know if this event counted because it hadn’t even happened in Mountain Cove.

  God, please let it not count.

  But what was he thinking? He was being selfish.

  Tracy returned to her seat and buckled in. When her gaze bounced off David and then went to the window, he saw the torment in her eyes. Reaching for her hand, he held it and squeezed. There weren’t any words for this situation, and holding her hand was all he could think to do. She squeezed back and seemed to take strength from him.

  With his other hand, he gripped the hand rest as the plane came in for the landing.

  “David,” she said.

  “Yeah?”

  “Thank you.”

  He turned his face to her. In her eyes, he saw her gratitude, and it nearly undid him. When this was all over, he didn’t have a clue how he would extricate his heart, but he knew it would be painful. Maybe even for her, too.

  “You’re welcome.”

  After they landed and disembarked, Tracy’s sister, Carol, met them outside the terminal. Carol was a tall, slender woman with black hair who didn’t look as if she could be related to Tracy.

  Tracy introduced David. “He’s…a friend and, well…”

  “I didn’t want her to travel alone. I just came along to help,” he added. But he could tell by the look in Carol’s eyes she thought something was going on between them. Regardless, she didn’t say anything as she drove them directly to the hospital.

  David and Tracy followed Carol down the sterile hallways and up the elevator. Once they approached the door to Tracy’s father’s room, David hesitated. This was a family affair.

  He decided he wouldn’t join her in the room and she didn’t even look back as she entered. Her focus was on her father, as it should be. He prayed the man would recover quickly. Though he should wait to hear more news about what had happened, he chose to head to the waiting room area and make the calls he hadn’t had a chance to make.

  He called Cade first. He told him everything, suggesting he keep an eye out and check on Jewel and on Tracy’s dog.

  Then he called Winters. “Warren, I don’t have time for you to call me every day. We’re wrapping up this investigation, anyway.”

  “I’m in Missouri with Tracy. This isn’t over yet.”

  “What happened?”

  “Her father was brutally beaten within an inch of his life.”

  “I’ll contact the investigating officer and find out what they know, but obviously that’s out of my jurisdiction.”

  “Tracy thinks it’s related. That her family has been targeted.”

  “Tracy should go into WITSEC, if it’s not too late.”

  David blew out a breath. Not what he wanted to hear.

  “Anyone with eyes can see you have a thing for her, but if you want what’s best for her, you’ll talk her into it. It’s the only way for her to be safe.”

  “But you assured her that the Mountain Cove police would protect her.”

  “And she’s not in Mountain Cove anymore, is she? For that matter, neither are you.”

  David was surprised to note that his hand shook. He couldn’t believe what Winters was telling him. Maybe David had known this was the only way all along, but his mind hadn’t wanted to go there. He glanced across the waiting room and saw Tracy searching for him. Before he could react, her gaze found him and she closed the distance.

  For a third time, Tracy pressed her face into his shoulder and sobbed.

  *

  Tracy sat in the chair next to her father’s bed.

  When she’d first seen him earlier in the week, he’d reminded her of how Jay had looked in the hospital. So many bandages she could hardly recognize him. One side of her father’s face remained bandage-free and was black-and-blue.

  “Oh, Dad,” she whispered, tears in her throat.

  It had been all she could do to hold it together at the sight of him, though Carol had warned her about the severity of the injuries. Fortunately, her own gunshot wound was safely bandaged and easily hidden beneath her clothing, so no one asked her any questions.

  But nobody could have prepared her to see her father this way. Someone in the family remained by his side at all times in case he needed anything, despite the nursing staff. She’d given her mother and sister a break to go home and shower and eat, and then they’d be back. David was staying with Carol and Tim, in their extra room, and Carol would bring him to the hospital later this morning.

  Tracy still couldn’t believe he’d come with her. He’d promised to
stick with her until this was over and, apparently, he was a man of his word. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that. One thing she did know: she felt safe and protected with him near her.

  “Tracy.” Her father’s voice was weak. He held out his hand.

  Tracy reached for it. There was none of the usual strength in his grip. “Dad, I’m so sorry.”

  “Not your fault.”

  She wasn’t so sure. She didn’t want to argue with him, and maybe he already knew. “Who did this, Dad?”

  “Already told the police. Don’t know.”

  “Did you see a tattoo?”

  “Happened too fast.”

  She squeezed his hand again. She wouldn’t ask him more questions. She already knew—this was part of Santino’s retaliation. When she was in protection while waiting for the trial, she’d agreed to be a witness, regardless, but she’d extracted a promise that she could go into WITSEC at any time after the trial should it become clear that Santino would try to harm her or her family. Her father, however, had never agreed. Would he now?

  “Dad, there’s something we need to talk about.”

  “I can guess what that is.” He coughed.

  Oh, God, help me to convince him.

  “Santino sent someone to Mountain Cove to try to kill me.”

  Her father squeezed her hand. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I know I should have. Then maybe you could have avoided this. Been more alert. But the man was killed. And now this. Dad…”

  “I won’t live in fear. I won’t lose everything I’ve worked for.”

  “What about your life?” David’s voice surprised her.

  He came all the way in the room. In his gaze, she saw his apology for interrupting.

  “Dad, this is my friend from Mountain Cove. David Warren.”

  Her father’s one-eyed bloodshot gaze looked at David. Sized him up. “What are you to my daughter?”

  “Dad!” Tracy stood, feeling the heat creep up her neck. “He’s my friend, that’s all. He’s a fireman and search-and-rescue volunteer in Mountain Cove. A real hero.” He’d come along to protect her and didn’t deserve to be grilled by her father. But she’d said more than she should, making it sound as if they were more than friends, her words defensive, protesting too much.

  The way David looked at her, with appreciation and something much more, as though he could reach across the room and wrap her in his arms with his gaze alone, sent warmth and longing through her. What they had between them was much more than friendship, but she had to shut those feelings down. The ways things looked, she would always live in fear of her life. And caring about him was a big mistake. She couldn’t go through losing someone again.

  “Back to what David said, Dad. Your business isn’t worth your life.” Or her mother’s. Or her own. Didn’t he understand that she wouldn’t change her identity and life without him? He was risking all their lives.

  The nurse came in to check his vitals and Tracy took the opportunity to leave the room with David. Out in the hall she said, “Where’s Carol? Didn’t she bring you?”

  “No. I rented a car. Didn’t want to be in the way, and I wanted to be free to come up here when I needed to.”

  Tracy shook her head. “I’m sorry about all this. You don’t have to stay, you know. You have a job to do in Mountain Cove.”

  “This is more important. I want you to be safe.” He enclosed her hand in his. “What are you going to do?”

  “I don’t know.”

  His gaze emanated more concern for her than she deserved. More than she could handle. That first day when she’d seen her father, she’d kept it together until she’d left his room. All she could think about was finding David and losing herself in his protective arms. And then she’d sobbed into his shirt. Again. She wanted to be in his arms right now, too. But she had to maintain her composure, and she was getting too attached to this guy. Something she couldn’t allow.

  “All I know is that I want this nightmare to be over.”

  David took her in his arms then and weaved his fingers into her hair. With his arms wrapped around her, she felt as though she was cocooned in protection. That he cared deeply for her was evident. Even though she’d warned him they should keep their distance, he was here, helping her through this. And she hadn’t resisted.

  Somehow she had to regain clarity. Think things through. Figure out what to do about her family to keep them safe. Figure out how to protect her heart.

  She pulled away. “I need to splash water on my face, freshen up. Would you mind hanging out here until I get back or Carol or Mom gets here?”

  “Of course not.” Studying her, he frowned. “You think someone might try to harm him while he’s in the hospital?”

  She stared at the floor. “I hope not. But try convincing the police to put someone at his door when they think it was a random act of violence.”

  The investigative wheels moved much too slowly to make a difference for Tracy and her family, and anyone else who dared to get too close, such as David.

  Tracy watched him go back into her father’s room and she went to the restroom, washed her hands and brushed her hair. She looked a mess and that embarrassed her, though she shouldn’t care what David thought of her. Closing her eyes, she took a few calming breaths and headed back to the hospital room. Tracy peeked in on her father and David, deep in a discussion about the oil business, and decided to head to the first floor to grab coffee for her and David. In the elevator she was alone until the second floor, when a woman stepped on, dressed in long-sleeved scrubs. Behind the woman’s ear was a tattoo. Numbers. What did they mean?

  Heart pounding, Tracy tried to slow her breathing. The tattoo could mean nothing. Or everything. She wished Derrick had never gone so deep in his research. Wished he’d backed away from his article. Tracy wished she knew nothing at all about gang tattoos. That way she wouldn’t be wondering if those numbers behind the woman’s ear had anything to do with the number of people she’d harmed.

  Glancing down, Tracy stared at the floor, allowing her gaze to flick to the woman’s wrist. She caught a glimpse of the tattoo.

  Tracy couldn’t breathe.

  SEVENTEEN

  Carol and Gina, Tracy’s mom, entered the room. Tracy’s father was sleeping. David had grown impatient for Tracy to return, but she’d appeared to need a break and he’d given her that. Surely she was safe in a hospital. But she hadn’t answered her phone. He knew she’d be upset if he left her father for even one second, so he was glad to see her mother and sister.

  “Where’s Tracy?” Gina asked.

  “She went to freshen up.” David stood. “I’ll find her.”

  He didn’t see her in the waiting room or down the hallway, so he knocked on the door of the women’s restroom. Finally another woman approached the entrance and frowned at him.

  “Could you check for me? Ask if Tracy is inside.”

  Her frown softened. “Sure, I’ll look.”

  A few seconds later she returned. “Sir, there’s no one in the restroom.”

  He hadn’t thought she’d stay in there so long. David hurried to the elevator. Maybe she’d gone down to grab snacks or coffee. But he would think she would answer the phone. The hospital elevators took entirely too long.

  He made the first-floor main lobby and hurried to the small shop where they’d spotted the snacks and coffee. No Tracy. Unsure if this was an actual emergency, he opted for calling the police detective who’d left his card on the side table next to Tracy’s father’s bed in case the man thought of something more. David had snagged the card on his way out of the room in case he needed it. He wasn’t all that sure that the police were the right entities to handle this. Organized crime, including gangs, warranted the attention of the Department of Justice or the FBI at the very least. But the police were always the first to handle things until they escalated.

  So what about now? What about the attempts on her life? Winters was right. She needed to run an
d hide.

  Phone to his ear, he stood in the lobby, watching for her and praying.

  The elevator door swooshed open.

  A woman stepped out—hospital staff, by her dress—but no Tracy.

  David got the detective’s voice mail and ended the call. He wasn’t sure what he would say. Not yet. He tried her cell again and got no response. All he could think was that her phone had better be dead. She might be back in her father’s room by now. Unwilling to wait on the slow-moving elevators, David took the stairwell this time and on the second floor stood Tracy, pale-faced and huddled in the corner.

  David grabbed her shoulders. “Tracy, what’s wrong?”

  “They’re here.”

  “Who? Who’s here?” But he already knew the answer.

  “Members of Santino’s gang. There was someone dressed in scrubs, either working at the hospital or pretending to work. She had the tattoo.” Tracy appeared dazed and shocked, which concerned David more than anything at the moment. “She got on the elevator with me. I don’t know if she wanted to harm me because a security officer got on the elevator at the next floor. I got off just as he got on.”

  “And why are you in the stairwell?”

  Her gaze locked with his and a small smile seemed to shake off the dazed look. “I could ask you the same thing.”

  “The elevators are too slow.”

  “You don’t have to tell me. Those were the longest three minutes of my life. When I got off the elevator I just wanted to hide, so I slipped into the stairwell.”

  “I was worried about you when you didn’t come back or answer your phone. I had to find you.” He hugged her to him. She could have been killed on that elevator, right here in the hospital. “We need to call the detective, tell him everything. Your dad needs protection.”

  “I tried to call but the cell won’t work in the stairwell,” she said.

  That explained why he hadn’t been able to get through to her. He tightened his hold on her, fearing he could lose her forever. He couldn’t go through that again. He planted a kiss on the top of her head, hoping she didn’t mind, but it wasn’t exactly a real kiss, as they’d shared before. The kind that he’d promised never to give her again.