Secret Lover

by Shawna Delacorte

  Andi leaned forward, resting her cheek against his head as she gave him an affectionate little hug. Her voice was a mere whisper. “I’m so sorry you’re having to go through this. I thought it would all be so straightforward. You’d listen to the tape and then we’d know how to proceed from there. I knew things would not be easy, but I hadn’t anticipated any of this. I wish there was something I could do to make it easier for you, but once it’s over you’ll see that it was worth all the hassle.”

  “That’s what I keep hearing. So sorry...wasn’t supposed to happen this way...trust me.” He could not contain the sigh of despair combined with a hint of apprehension. “I don’t know, Andi....”

  “What is it, Jim? What’s the matter?”

  “I...” He stood up and carried his empty glass to the kitchen, placing it on the counter. “Let’s go for a walk on the beach.”

  “You know what Steve said about our being seen outdoors.”

  “Yes, I’m well aware of what Steve said. Steve, however, is not here. In fact, we don’t even know where Steve is or what he’s doing. Besides, isn’t it pretty foolish of us to believe that no one knows we’re here? It doesn’t take a genius to see that you’re no longer out of town, that the house is being lived in.”

  He took a calming breath in an attempt to force his anxiety back down to a manageable level. “We certainly aren’t protected here.” He did not like the sound of the sarcasm that forced its way into his voice and words. “They could take us any time they wanted to and there’s not a damn thing we could do about it. In fact, I don’t understand why they haven’t tried. And unless you’re hiding a gun somewhere, we don’t even have anything to defend ourselves with other than some kitchen knives, a mop and a broom. So, there’s really no reason why we can’t go for a walk along the beach.”

  “We haven’t heard from Steve yet. He said he would call. I need to talk to him, to find out what to do about setting up a meeting with Benny for tonight.”

  As much as he hated to admit it, she was right about talking to Steve. And then, as if on cue, the sound of the ringing phone intruded into the room. Andi raced to answer it.

  “Hello.”

  Steve clipped his words as he rushed through what he needed to say. “Call Benny right now. Feel him out about Ross Durant without mentioning the name, see if he’ll offer any insight into Durant being dead. Stall him about the money. Tell him you need another twenty-four hours to have the cash in hand and arrange for a meeting tomorrow night. Make it midnight at the same place as before by the Los Angeles airport. I’ll call you tomorrow afternoon.”

  “Steve...wait a minute. Don’t hang up.”

  His impatience clung to each word. “Make it quick, Andi.”

  “How am I supposed to stall Benny, especially in light of what happened to Durant? He’s not going to want to sit around and take a chance on being the next victim of an accident.”

  “You’re the creative one. Think of something. I’ve got to go. I can’t stay on this line any longer, I’m not sure it’s secure.”

  Steve replaced the phone receiver in the cradle. He had been staring out the window of his motel room as he talked to Andi and he did not like what he saw. The same nondescript dark sedan drove slowly down the street for the third time, apparently circling the block. Were the feds watching him? He had been keeping an eye out and this was the first possibility he had noticed, but that did not mean it was not so. Was his carefully constructed web beginning to unravel before he was ready? There were too many things up in the air and he was running out of time.

  Andi stared at the receiver for a second before replacing it in the cradle. She tried her best to appear calm. Jim was already impatient with the turn of events, and she did not want to do anything to further exacerbate the situation, even though she was uncertain about what was happening.

  Jim was at her side instantly. “What did Steve have to say?”

  “He...uh, he said to call Benny and set a meet for tomorrow night instead of tonight. I’m to stall him about the money, tell him it will take another twenty-four hours.” She looked up at Jim, slowly shaking her head, as if turning several thoughts over in her mind before she continued. “Steve was rushed and concerned about staying on the line for too long. I could hear the stress in his voice. That’s not like him.”

  Jim spit out angry words, his patience totally exhausted. “I’m putting a stop to this right here and now. I’m being set up for something...” A shudder moved quickly through his body as he thought of the possibilities. ”And if Steve thinks I’m going to just sit here and wait for everything to crash in on top of me, he’s crazy. I don’t owe him anything and I have no reason to trust him. He’s playing too fast and loose with my life. This is a two-way street. If he wants my further cooperation, then he needs to give me some answers about what’s going on here.”

  His words were heartfelt and exacting as he tried to explain his position. “My reason for being here in the first place no longer exists. No tape, nothing for me to listen to, no reason to hang around making myself a target. Catch the bad guys? We already know who the bad guy is. It’s Milo Buchanan. My staying here isn’t going to change that or cast any new light on it. The government agent who sold me out? Ross Durant—recently deceased, thanks, I’m sure, to Milo Buchanan. All the loose ends neatly tied up and disposed of...all, that is, except for me. If I continue to hang around here, I’ll never live long enough to see that Buchanan goes on trial for his deeds.”

  He took her hand in his, his outer manner softening somewhat. “And it’s not just me, Andi. Someone ransacked your house because of me. I’m staying at your house and you’ve been personally involved—against my expressly stated wishes—in a meeting with an informant on my behalf. That puts you in the middle of my mess and that can’t be altered. You’re in danger, Andi. I want you out of here, too.”

  He carefully turned the thoughts over in his mind before giving them voice. “I’ll never be able to forgive myself if something happens to you because of me.” He placed a tender kiss in the palm of her hand, searched her eyes for some sort of truth. “Come away with me, at least until I’m confident that you’ll be safe.”

  “I’ve got to stay and see this through. I can’t let Steve down. I’ve given him my word. It’s true that I don’t know what Steve is doing, but I trust him and I know he wouldn’t betray that trust.” She closed her eyes for a second as she took a calming breath. She gently touched his cheek. Her voice carried all the emotional turmoil that churned inside her. “Please don’t ask me to choose between my word and my desires.” She choked back a sob. “Please don’t leave. Just another twenty-four hours...”

  Jim pulled her into his embrace and held her tightly against his body. He made yet another uneasy decision. The first questionable decision had been to leave Vancouver Island and go with her to hear the tape. And this one was even more questionable in its validity.

  A withering sigh of resignation escaped his throat. “All right...a little longer.” He touched his fingertip to her lips as he tried to quell the uneasy feeling resulting from his decision. “But not much.”

  They each savored the moment of togetherness, then Andi pulled away. “I have to make that phone call to Benny.”

  She dialed the number of his pager and punched in her number. Less than five minutes later her phone rang. She grabbed it before the second ring.

  “Benny?”

  “Yeah. So, you got the money?”

  “I...uh...I don’t exactly have it in my hands at the moment, but I’ve made arrangements for it.”

  Benny snapped out his anger. “What the hell are you tryin’ to pull here? I told you twenty-four hours—no more. I ain’t got the time to hang around L.A. waiting for you to figure somethin’ out. I’m outta here right now.”

  “No! Wait a minute, Benny. I’ve got the money. I just don’t have it in my hands yet. It’s my publisher... he gave me a hard time about it. He’s on the East Coast, three hours later than
it is here. By the time I’d convinced him that he’d get his money’s worth, the banks were closed. He’s wiring the money to me tomorrow. I can meet with you tomorrow night, same place by the airport, but not until late—about midnight.”

  Her offer was met with silence. She held her breath, waiting for Benny to say something...anything. He finally broke the silence.

  “Well...I guess one more day won’t hurt. You sure you’re gonna have the cash?”

  “I’ll have the cash...and you’ll have the name of the federal agent, right? And where to find him?” Then she added a thought that had just popped into her mind. “And information about anyone else who was involved and paid off?” There was a moment of silence before he responded to her questions.

  “I know you ain’t researchin’ no book.”

  A twinge of apprehension swept through her. “I don’t know what you’re talking—”

  Benny’s impatience cut straight through her attempt at a denial. “Don’t try to hand me no line of bull. I know what I know. Fact is, I’m looking to take a little trip and could use some extra spendin’ money, so for an additional—”

  Andi’s stern voice conveyed a toughness born of experience. “We had a deal, Benny. Ten thousand for the identify of the federal agent and not a penny—”

  “But for another ten grand I can supply you with another name...somebody else who took orders directly from the man and passed them on, somebody who was in the know on what was going on and gave information to the man. You show up with the additional cash—and James Hollander—and I can deliver that name, too. But I ain’t dealin’ with nobody but Hollander. If he ain’t there you ain’t gonna get that other name. Call it my insurance policy, if you want.”

  “What makes you think I have any idea where James Hollander is hiding?”

  “Oh, you know, all right. And if you don’t, then you better hurry up and find out. No Hollander...no name.”

  “But wait a minute. How am I—” The line went dead before Andi could finish her question.

  The look of shock that covered her face as she hung up the phone spoke volumes. She turned toward Jim, her eyes wide with surprise. She glanced back at the phone, then at Jim again.

  A sense of urgency and concern surrounded his words. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost. What did Benny want?”

  “He...” She plopped down into a soft chair, the shock still running rampant through her consciousness. “He said there was someone else in addition to Ross Durant. I took it to mean that someone else who worked for the government and was connected with the original case had been bought off by Buchanan.”

  Jim felt the blood drain from his face and his body turn momentarily numb. Had he heard her correctly? His words came out in a hushed whisper as if he were afraid to even say them out loud. “Someone else? Someone in addition to Ross Durant?”

  “Yes. He also said he didn’t believe the story about my research for my book. He told me that for another ten thousand dollars and a personal appearance by you that he’d give us the name of the other man. He said he would only deal with you directly, referred to it as his insurance policy to make sure we weren’t setting him up.”

  Jim could not force his mind to make any sense of what she was saying. He shook his head in an effort to clear out the bewilderment. “You mean someone high up that everyone thinks is legitimate but who’s really in Buchanan’s pocket? My God! Where does it end?”

  “There’s no telling how many people he’s corrupted along the way and how many of them have a connection to you and to the case.”

  “So, I really can’t trust anyone. We’re confident that the agent who sold out my location was Ross Durant. But even if this Benny person confirms that, it won’t mean anything, because Durant is dead. And now we find out there’s someone else who was pulling Durant’s strings five years ago and that someone is still around. Maybe two or three someones, not just one.”

  He looked at her as the feeling of utter helplessness swept through him. “Where do I even begin? This other person could be anywhere. And after him, who else? Someone working in the police department, the U.S. Attorneys office, the FBI, the U.S. Marshals office or maybe the federal court?”

  He abruptly turned away from her. Should he add investigative reporter to that list? The shudder caught him off guard. Did he dare think in terms of the possibility of Andi’s involvement? The last prospect cut through to the very core of his heart.

  He paced up and down the room like a caged lion. His pent-up frustrations threatened to explode as the nervous energy churned inside him. It was the same feeling that hit him when he had agreed to enter the Witness Protection Program—that he was better off on his own. He should have listened to his gut instincts back then, and he should be listening to them now.

  He abruptly stopped pacing and turned toward her. “It’s time for me to get out of here.”

  Her body stiffened. Her voice bordered on panic. “But you can’t leave. The end is so close... Steve said so.”

  The scowl quickly covered his face and a hint of bitterness crept into his words. “Yeah...Steve said so—the absent Steve.”

  Andi felt the cold fear welling inside her. She knew if he really wanted to leave, there was no way she could physically stop him. “Please, Jim...don’t leave.” She leaned her head against his chest as she circled her arms around his waist. “I...I don’t want you to go.” She felt his arms tighten around her. “I know what we said, what we both agreed to, that there wouldn’t be any promises or commitment—no strings attached.”

  She raised her head and looked into his eyes. Her voice was hesitant. Her words came out as a mere whisper. “But I—”

  His mouth came down hard against hers, infusing her with all the heat of his passion and tenderness of his unspoken love. The pain and despair dug into his gut. He was not sure what she had intended to say, but he did not want to hear it. He had never felt so unsettled about a decision. When he had made the choice to reveal Milo Buchanan’s activities, he knew it was the right thing to do. When he had chosen to slip out of the custody of those who were supposed to be protecting him, he knew that decision had also been correct. He also knew the only expedient thing to do was get out of Andi’s house, out of La Jolla and out of Steve Westerfall’s reach. He feared for Andi’s safety if he stayed and feared for her safety if he should leave. It seemed to be a no-win situation.

  Chapter Ten

  Benny nervously licked his lips and quickly shifted the phone receiver to his other ear. “I did like you said. I told her I’d only talk to Hollander, no one else. She tried to say she didn’t know nothin’ about where he was, but I could tell she was lyin’ to me. I didn’t need to change the meet because she told me she couldn’t get the money for another twenty-four hours. So that’s just what we wanted, right? That part’s good, right? Ain’t that right?”

  “Calm down, Benny. You sound like you’re starting to come unglued. You’ve done your part. You can come on back home if you’d like to.”

  “No...” He slowed down his response. “She...uh, she said they’d only show themselves to me ’cause they already know me. They wasn’t gonna show themselves to no strangers. That was part of her deal.” As much as Benny wanted to extricate himself from the entire plan, he did not want to leave without his money—not only the original ten thousand dollars, but the additional ten thousand he had demanded. He had to get his money before anyone found out that he had passed on information about the existence of another highly placed person on Milo Buchanan’s payroll. He thought about Ross Durant and a little shiver of fear darted up his spine.

  “That will be fine, Benny. Once you’ve drawn them out into the open so Hollander can be positively identified, you’re free to leave.”

  “But I ain’t never seen this Hollander guy before. How am I gonna know it’s really him?”

  “That’s not for you to worry about, Benny. Your job is to get him to the meeting site.”

  “Uh...wouldn’t it
be easier if you just went to her house and made her talk? Grab Hollander if that’s where they got him hid?”

  “No, it wouldn’t be easier. She lives in a quiet residential area, houses rather than apartments. That indicates a neighborhood where people have known one another for a while and are familiar with the natural rhythm of the street as far as normal comings and goings are concerned. It’s not exactly a secluded location, and after the break-in at her house, her neighbors just might be a little edgy. They could be keeping an extra sharp eye on any strangers. It would be too easy for someone to spot a vehicle or make an identification. No, Benny...it’s much better for them to meet us in a dark, isolated location without the possibility of any witnesses.”

  “Yeah, I can see that now.”

  “You’ve done a good job, Benny. I’m sure we can find a little bonus for all your hard work.”

  “Yeah...thanks, Mr. Buchanan.” Benny heard the click of the receiver on the other end, then he hung up. He wiped his shirtsleeve across his sweaty brow as he peered out the window of the small motel room. The sound of the jumbo jet coming in for a landing caught his attention, causing him to look upward in search of the plane. Being so close to the airport had caused several interruptions to his sleep...not that he had been able to sleep all that well, anyway.

  Again, his mind flashed back to what happened to Ross Durant when he had tried to push Milo Buchanan for more money. It was the reason he had chosen to grab additional money from the writer instead. He would be glad when he had his money in his hand and was on a plane out of there—and definitely not back to Chicago. His hand trembled slightly as he poured a shot of bourbon in a water glass and downed it in one gulp.

  “PLANE TICKETS, GORDON. We need to go to Los Angeles tomorrow afternoon. But first we need to pay a little visit. Call our friend and tell him we’ll meet at the usual place—” Milo Buchanan looked at his watch “—tell him two hours. I have a couple of calls to make first.”