by Kris Calvert
“Polly?” Mac interrupted. “Go pack. Dan’s gonna set you up with an agent. Meet us back here. Celia?”
“Yes, baby.”
“Dan’s gonna give you an agent too. Get home and pack and get back as soon as you can. We’ll need help packing up the children.”
Celia nodded and walked to the door to meet her agent.
“King, go back with Momma and Miss Mimi and get them settled in. Have a nurse to help them pack. If they can’t, I’ll buy them clothes when we get there.”
King stood still, clearly unhappy that Mac was dishing out orders to everyone, including him.
“Do you need to pack, King?” I asked, feeling horrible about the situation and how Mac was treating everyone.
King shook his head in quiet disgust. “I have clothes there. I’ll need medical supplies but I can find them at my office. I’m fine by myself. I don’t need an agent.”
“If you’re going with us,” Mac ordered, “you’re taking a agent with you tonight. End of discussion.”
“Mac,” I gasped. “Quit telling everyone what to do. We’re not your field agents. You can’t just boss us around.”
“Sam, follow directions like everyone else. Okay?”
I kissed the baby and asked Dax to stay with Polly. He was already half asleep on the couch. “Dax, I’m gonna pack you up for the honeymoon.”
“You mean I get to go too?” he asked sleepily.
“Yes, you do. We’re all going.”
I shot Mac a look as I walked out of the room. In one day I’d gotten married to the man of my dreams and had my worst nightmare come true.
“Sam, wait up,” Polly called to me as I climbed the stairs past three FBI agents. Suddenly I was amazed at the number of agents who were at the wedding in an official capacity. The house was teeming with them, and as I passed each one I became more angry and afraid.
I wanted to get my suitcase, go to Dax and Katy’s room and pack. I knew Miss Celia needed to pack for herself and not just the children.
I stalled on the landing and gave a heavy sigh. I was afraid if I opened my mouth the tears would begin to flow and I wouldn’t be able to stop them. I nodded to Polly and waved my hand for her to hurry. “I’m so sorry,” I whimpered as she hugged me.
“What do you have to be sorry for?”
“Everything. Nothing. I don’t know anymore.”
“It’s all going to be okay. Everyone is safe, you are finally married and we all get to go on vacation.”
“Yeah. Some honeymoon,” I lamented as we climbed the stairs together.
“If I know Mac Callahan, and I think I finally do know Mac Callahan, you’ll still have your honeymoon. It’ll just be a little later than you planned.”
“Take the kids while I shower?” I pleaded. “I’ll be quick. I feel terrible leaving you and Miss Celia to pull the kids’ things together.”
“Shower? Why –” she began as we walked into Mac’s bedroom where we were immediately overwhelmed with agents dusting the room for prints. The flashes of light from the bathroom let me know right away I’d have to find another place to shower and change.
“I know why you need a shower,” Polly whispered with a grin. “You guys were up here doing the deed while creepy-ass Hector was writing on the bathroom mirror with lipstick. Can I see it?” she asked, barely taking a breath between thoughts.
“I guess,” I sighed. “I really haven’t looked at it that closely. Mac had me out of here before I had a chance to do anything.”
Polly and I pushed our way past the three agents in the doorway while the two that were escorting us stood in the bedroom and waited.
“Remember me?” Polly read from the mirror. “Where’s the lipstick?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t look for it,” I uttered, trying to catch my breath. The whole evening had riddled me with anxiety and I didn’t know how much more I could take or how much more I wanted to know. I was furious with Mac for not telling me the truth, but at the same time now that I was completely immersed in Hector’s games I didn’t know how I would’ve reacted while pregnant.
My body shook with the adrenaline still pumping through my veins.
“Where’s the lipstick?” Polly asked the agent who was dusting for prints on the mirror.
“We haven’t found it yet. Mrs. Callahan?”
“Sam?” Polly nudged my arm as I stared at the mirror.
“I’m sorry,” he continued. “I just want to make sure we have everything we need from you since Agent Callahan is taking you off grid.”
“He’s taking me where?” I asked.
“Mrs. Callahan?” he patiently asked again.
I paused, thinking that it was the first time anyone other than Mac had actually referred to me as Mrs. Callahan. Standing in the middle of a crime scene wasn’t the way I pictured the lovely moment would happen.
“Sam?” Polly urged me again.
“I’m sorry.” I was in a daze. None of it seemed real to me. My heart was racing and my vision was blurry. “I need to sit down,” I murmured.
I walked to a skirted seat in front of the vanity mirror in the large bathroom and sat, putting my head between my knees. “Just give me a minute.”
“Someone get Agent Callahan up here. Pronto!” someone shouted from the doorway.
I lifted my head and stared at the words on the mirror. What did Hector really want? Did he want to kill me? And why had did he wait almost a year? Maybe he just wanted to scare us. Maybe he just wanted to ruin my wedding day. So far he was two for three.
“Sam!” Mac shouted from the doorway. “Baby, are you okay?”
I nodded as he knelt at my feet. Taking my tear-stained face in his hands he lifted my chin. “Samantha, look at me.”
I stared into the eyes of the man who was my dream come true. He was everything I’d ever wanted and I suddenly worried that our life together wouldn’t be as long as we’d planned.
“Samantha, I promise you everything will be alright. I’m not going to let anything happen to you or the kids. I’ve waited my whole life for this. Nothing and no one, especially a hood like Hector Quintes, is going to ruin that for us.”
He pushed the falling curl from my face and nodded until I joined him.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“I just feel, I don’t know–overwhelmed.”
“Sir!” an agent shouted from the bedroom. “Sir, I think you need to see this.”
Mac kissed my forehead and stood with me. My legs were quivering, but Mac stayed with me until I was stable on my feet.
“I’m coming,” he said over his shoulder. “You okay for a second?”
“Mac, I want to shower before we go. You can stay in the room with me, but I’m showering before I get on that plane.”
“Sweetheart, I’d love to watch you soap up,” he whispered into my ear.
I shook my head as he turned to meet one of the many agents now covering the house from top to bottom.
“What’s the plan?” Polly asked, coming back to the bathroom to check on me.
“I’m going to shower and then we’re going. I guess.”
“Sam!” I heard Mac shout from the other room. “Sam, can you come out here?”
Polly took my hand and together we went back into Mac’s bedroom to find him standing by the writing desk that sat like a distinguished gentleman in the dark corner of the room. I knew he rarely used it as he’d made himself at home in the study.
“What is it?”
“Sam, is this your lipstick?”
I looked down to the table and saw the black tube as it caught the light of the bright chandelier overhead. Chanel. I knew it was Chanel by the top of the cap with its connecting and mirrored C’s. The golden tube lay on its side, the tip ruined.
“What color is it?” I asked.
“Red,” the agent replied flatly.
“I can see that,” I smirked. “I need to see the bottom of the tube to tell if it’s mine.”
&nb
sp; “What?” asked Mac.
“It’s true” Polly agreed. “She wears ninety-eight. I wear ninety-seven.”
“It’s a different color,” I explained.
“Red’s not red?”
Polly and I looked at each other and shook our heads. “No,” we replied in unison.
“Get me some gloves!” Mac shouted.
“I’ve got it, sir,” said an agent.
Turning the tube on its side, it was easy to see the ninety-seven in gold on the bottom. It was not my lipstick. It was Polly’s.
“Where did you leave your things today, Polly?”
“In the bedroom where Sam and I dressed.”
“Where your mother stayed later today?” I asked.
“No. She was in an empty guest room.”
Polly curled her bottom lip inward and held it with her teeth. I knew something was wrong.
“Mac,” Polly stated calmly. “I didn’t bring that with me to Lone Oak today. That lipstick is from Sam’s house.”
I backed away from the table and sat on the bed, putting my head back between my knees. “We’ve got to go. We’ve got to get out of here. He’s been everywhere.”
Mac picked up his phone and started making calls. I looked to Polly and shook my head. “I’m so sorry, Polly.”
“He’s been at your house and Lone Oak today, Sam. He’s been…” Polly trailed.
“He’s been busy,” Mac finished her sentence. “Polly, is there anything you must have from Sam’s house before we leave? Any prescription meds? Anything?”
“I need my clothes and makeup,” Polly replied.
“If you had to, could you survive on what you have with you and buy clothes when we arrive at our destination?”
“You mean New Orleans?”
“If that’s where we go.”
I could tell Mac was going to fight King’s offer tooth and nail, but he knew it was the best option for Mimi and his mother.
“I guess,” Polly mumbled, clearly shaken by the idea that someone had been going through her things.
Mac nodded, silently thanking her for taking one thing off his plate for the evening.
“I’ve sent a team to sweep your house, Sam. In the meantime, let’s keep moving. I want us out of here. Where’s King?”
“He left with Mimi, Nancy and his agent to pack and get medical supplies,” Polly sighed. It was clear that the events of the day were wearing thin on everyone.
“Polly, can you help Miss Celia gather the kids’ things?”
“Sure,” Polly said flatly.
“Mac, may I please take a shower?” I begged.
“Let’s go,” he conceded as he grabbed an agent to tag along. “You can stand watch outside the door.”
“Yes, sir,” he said.
9
MAC
Sam and I took the elevator from the second floor to the basement. The most modern floor of Lone Oak, it was equipped with a gym, weight room, indoor pool and steam shower.
“Do you have to have your gun out and ready to shoot?” Sam’s voice trembled. As she grabbed my hand, I felt even worse about the events of the day.
“Yes.”
As we reached the large bathroom, I turned on the lights and watched them illuminate the dark marble floor. The room seemed cold and masculine, and I immediately kicked on the under floor heating system. Sam had been padding around in my old sweats and in bare feet. It was no way for my bride to have to exist. Especially on our wedding day.
I walked through the room and checked each corner. Opening the shower door, I turned on the water for Samantha and turned to give her the best smile I could muster.
“It’s all clear. Get your shower.”
She nodded to me and then tilted her head to the agent still looking around the room.
“I’ll take it from here,” I ordered.
“Yes, sir. I’ll be right outside the door.”
I nodded to him and shut the door.
Turning to Sam, I watched as she leaned against the vanity and looked at her own tear-stained face in the mirror. “How did this happen, Mac?”
I walked behind her, slipping my arms around her waist and pulled her close to me. I looked at her reflection and had an overwhelming urge to beg for her forgiveness. But I didn’t. “Hector’s a bad guy. That’s all. I’ve dealt with assholes like him for a long time.”
“Not one who wanted to kill your wife.”
Sam’s tears were more than I could handle.
“And I thought my biggest fight was going to be keeping you out of my panties on a seven hour flight to Paris. Instead it’s staying alive.”
“I think Hector is long gone.”
I turned Sam to face me and pulled her close for a tight hug. I could feel her breath in short bursts as she wept. “Hector’s got a lot going on and a lot of territory to cover. I’m sure he’s still trying to get his drug operation secured. I think he just wanted to ruin our day. But I’m not going to let him.”
“It’s too late for that,” Sam whimpered as she wiped the tears from her eyes, smearing what was left of her mascara.
“Oh no,” I chuckled, taking her hands in mine. “Nothing and no one can change the fact that I married the woman of my dreams today. Nothing. Now get in the shower.”
Sam nodded and quickly slipped the sweatpants that swallowed her tiny frame to the floor while simultaneously pulling the old shirt of mine over her head.
“Baby, even with a crazed drug dealer hot on your trail, you are fine,” I drawled, hoping to lighten her mood.
She didn’t return my smile and merely nodded, dropping her head as she stepped into the shower roaring with steam.
I paced the room with nervous energy. I knew I needed to be with my family, but at the same time I needed to stay here or go back to headquarters in D.C. to oversee the takedown of this bastard.
By keeping Hector’s notes from Sam, I’d saved her months of anxiety. Now I had no choice but to find him and put him away.
The door to the shower opened and Sam appeared, wet and glistening. Her toned body was beautiful and I couldn’t help but smile.
“What?”
“Can’t a man be proud?”
She shook her head at me. “You’d better take a quick shower too. Give me your gun. I’ll guard you.”
“I’m getting in. But you won’t need to guard me for the one minute I plan on being away from my gun.”
I placed my Glock on the marble counter and quickly dropped my pants. I walked closer to her wearing just my t-shirt.
“Get that thing away from me,” Sam quipped.
“What?” I asked as I pulled the towel from over her shoulder off of the warming rack.
“Oh. Sorry. I didn’t. I thought–”
“‘Get that thing away from me’ is exactly what every man wants to hear on his wedding night, Sam.”
I pulled the shirt over my head and dropped it to the floor.
“I’m sorry.”
“No. I’m the one who should be sorry,” I apologized as I pulled her close and removed her towel to briefly nuzzle her nakedness.
Kissing her shoulder, I nodded to the corner where two large fluffy robes hung. “You can wear that back upstairs to get dressed.”
“I’m not leaving without you.”
“Give me one minute.”
I was in and out before Sam could even get a robe on and skipped the towel, opting to go straight for my own robe.
“Let’s go. We’ve got a plane to catch.”
We were dressed and downstairs in ten minutes. Sam and I went to the study hoping to find most of our family. It was almost ten o’clock and we were scheduled to leave at nine thirty for Paris. I wanted to keep with the original flight plan as much as possible. I wasn’t taking any chances.
“Where’s Miss Celia?” I asked as we wheeled our luggage into an open corner.
“Just got a call,” Dan explained. “She’s on her way. Dr. Giles is en route as well.”
“What about my mother and Sam’s grandmother?”
“The agents are with them. We’re going to Autumn Valley to collect them. It’ll be the last stop on the way to the airport.”
Polly walked in carrying Katy and walking a sleepy Dax to the couch to lie down.
Sam took Katy in her arms as she yawned and stretched her tiny body. At least one Callahan wasn’t on edge tonight.
“Mommy, when are we leaving?” Dax asked, rubbing his eyes. “Polly said I could wear my jammies.”
“I think that’s a grand idea,” Sam sang softly, trying to conceal the fear in her voice.
“Mac,” Dan continued. “We’re going to need to spend some time at Sam’s house. Is there someone who can meet us there?”
“Sam’s cousin Richard came into town for the wedding. Have you called him yet?” I asked Sam.
“No.”
“Sam, honey,” I sighed. “Let’s tie up loose ends. And quickly.”
“Fine.”
I took inventory of the room and did my best to show a calm exterior to the crew. It was going to be an interesting few days. I needed to get everyone settled and make my way either back to Shadeland or D.C. to follow up. FBI would be working with DEA and I wasn’t missing the party.
As Celia walked into the study with an agent by her side, Sam finished her call to Richard and turned to me with a nod.
“What kind of detail did you give him, Sam?”
“What do you mean?”
“Did you tell him what was going down?”
“Did I tell him a crazed drug lord that I shot to save our lives has been after me for over a year and just surfaced again at my wedding reception to scare us and cause us all to leave for New Orleans?”
Polly stifled a laugh and looked away from me. She knew I wasn’t amused.
Dropping my head, I placed my hands on my hips, wanting to be angry but knowing Sam had every right to be upset.
“Yeah. Something like that, I guess.”
“Yes. He knows there’s going to be an agent at the house too.”
“There’ll be more than one,” I muttered as I turned to begin packing the cars. “Let’s get everyone loaded. We’ll get Momma and Mimi on the way.”
