This must be the part Josie didn’t want to tell. From experience, he knew to ask open-ended questions and simply wait for the answers. Let her talk her way through a difficult situation.
“How so?”
Her head fell back with a long groan, her gaze on the ceiling and decidedly away from him. “I held her as she told me about the thumb drive and not to trust anyone. Then she…you know…left. In real time it must have all happened very fast, although it felt like it was all in slow motion. But our neighbor must have heard Amy screaming or something when the men were running away. She came to the door and turned on her porch light so she could see. And what she could see was me hovering over a bleeding Amy as she passed away. She started yelling that I was a murderer and she was getting her gun and calling the police. I realized I didn’t have much time. I had to grab a few things and get out of there or I was going to be arrested for killing Amy.”
Fuck. Evan felt like he’d taken a punch to the gut. No wonder Josie was terrified. Not only had she seen her friend murdered but she was a suspect.
“The neighbor had a good view of your face? You said the building was twenty feet away and it was the middle of the night.”
“Good enough, apparently. She always hated me and Amy. Said we were bad for the building because we were out late at night. Of course I was out late at night. I was at work.”
“So you ran, but you retrieved the thumb drive first. It must not have taken you long to find it.”
Josie lifted her head and took another drink, her eyes watery and red-rimmed from crying. “Amy and I had exchanged keys so getting into her apartment wasn’t an issue. She never cooked so her saucepan was in the same spot in the cabinet that it always was, and the drive was just where she’d said it would be. I grabbed it and shoved it in my pocket, then went to my place for my backpack. I didn’t have time to take much as you can see but I got the hell out of there before the cops arrived. Headed to a cheap motel outside of the city to spend the night and figure out what I was going to do. But that didn’t turn out like I thought it would. I ended up leaving in the middle of the night.”
If she’d taken her own car, it wouldn’t take long for the police to catch up with her.
“I assume the cops showed up and you had to run again?”
Leaning forward, she buried her face in her hands and took several deep breaths as if trying to steady herself. Evan wanted to reach out and comfort her but her body language was too forbidding at the moment. She didn’t look as if she’d appreciate being touched while she was recounting her story.
“That would have been bad enough, but no, they didn’t show up. Although I guess they might have later after I left. No, it was the guys who ran from the scene. The ones who killed Amy. I couldn’t sleep and I heard some noises from the parking lot. I peeked out of the curtain and saw them getting out of their car, guns drawn. I didn’t know what to do so I called the front desk yelling about men outside with guns. The manager ran out there with his shotgun and threatened to call the cops. It gave me a few minutes of cover to run. I left my car there and caught a city bus a few blocks over and it took me to the bus station. From there I emptied my checking account from a nearby ATM and boarded the next bus that was leaving fifteen minutes later. And here I am.”
Evan’s brain was putting the puzzle pieces together and a few were missing. “Wait. How did they find you? They didn’t even know your name, did they?”
Josie sighed and shook her head. “Not originally, but when I got to the motel room I turned on the television. My name and picture were on the news. There was a hunt for a person of interest – me – and so my identity was blown. Stupidly I’d used my own car as a getaway vehicle and even paid the motel with a credit card. I’m not the brightest fugitive on the block. If it weren’t for the dumb luck of exiting the bus here in town and meeting you, well, I’d have no luck at all.”
Thank heavens that she had. Who knew what someone else might do with this information? Evan was absolutely going to help and protect her, his mind already working on all the possibilities. But he needed to make sure of one thing.
“Is that everything? Do I know it all?”
Chapter Fourteen
Josie wished with all her heart she could answer Evan’s question in the affirmative. She wanted that to be the whole story but sadly, it was only the beginning of a very sordid tale. One she herself didn’t know all the details to.
“There is more.”
He quirked an eyebrow and lifted up the bottle. “Like let’s have another drink more or it’s just a little thing more?”
“I think we better have another drink.”
This time both brows flew up but he did as she’d suggested, pouring his own quite generously since she was already one drink ahead of him.
“I want to help and protect you, Josie, if you’ll let me. But I do need to know everything. So what else is there?”
Josie rubbed her forehead and temples, the pounding becoming intensely painful. “Sex.”
“Sex,” Evan repeated dutifully. “Can you be more specific?”
“Until last night I didn’t have access to a computer. After you fell asleep, I used your laptop to see what was on the thumb drive. Thank you for not password protecting it, by the way. I was of two minds about seeing what was on it, thinking that maybe if I knew I would be in more danger, but hell, they want me dead and there isn’t much more danger than that.”
“And they want the thumb drive, I assume?”
“Probably, but perhaps they think killing anyone who knows about it is good enough.”
Evan rubbed his chin and nodded. “Okay, who is having sex?”
“I don’t know who specifically, actually,” Josie sighed. “It’s former Senator Lydell and an unidentified female doing some very raunchy things to one another. I don’t think his wife would approve.”
Rearing back, his mouth fell open and his eyes went wide with shock. Despite not having a television it appeared he was keeping up with current events.
“The guy that’s rumored to be the next Secretary of Defense? Isn’t he married with like four kids or something? Are you sure it was him?”
She heartily wished she was wrong. “You can watch it yourself but yes, I am sure. It’s him. And it looks like he’ll do anything to keep that video from going public. A video like that could ruin him completely, not to mention hurt his family who are innocent in all this.”
Taking a big gulp of whiskey, Evan scraped his hand down his face before he spoke. “How did Amy come into possession of this?”
She took her own fortifying drink, letting the heat burn all the way to her belly, the pain distracting her from the equal hurt in her heart when she thought about her friend. Amy had been such a good person and she didn’t deserve to have an end that violent and ugly. Josie was just glad she’d been there those last few moments even if she couldn’t have stayed to see that a proper burial was planned.
“I’m not sure,” Josie admitted. “Amy worked as an administrative assistant for the Department of the Interior. I can’t imagine how she would get something like this in her possession. She was so sweet and a really good person. When she convinced me to come down here she said she was going to help me find a new job as a designer. She said she had contacts with important people who had money.”
“So that part was true? You were a designer?”
Josie curled up on the chair, pulling her knees to her chest and resting her chin on top. “I tried to be as honest as possible so I wouldn’t have to keep track of the lies.”
Evan played with his now empty glass and she waited quietly until he was ready to speak. She could practically see the wheels turning in his head as he took in everything she’d told him tonight.
“Why did you end up staying with me? What made you trust me?”
She had to be honest even if it was scary.
“First of all, I wouldn’t say I trusted you. I didn’t not trust you. I was open to trying t
o trust you. Second, it helped that you didn’t have a television and you seemed to have no interest in the news. That was a big plus. You lived way out here all by yourself and you were willing to pay me cash. Something I desperately needed because I wasn’t exactly flush with it when I fled.”
“What was your plan when you were done here? Where were you going and what were you going to do with the recording?”
Grimacing, she hid her face again, hating to admit just how clueless she was about all this. “Honestly? I have no idea. None. Until last night I hadn’t even seen what was on the thumb drive. I was thinking about heading to Dallas where I have an old college friend in journalism there. I was hoping he could help me but I hadn’t decided to go for sure. The fact is nothing in life has prepared me to be on the run from bad guys and the law, Evan. I don’t know what to do. I only knew I couldn’t go to jail for a crime I didn’t commit and that I needed to keep a low profile to stay away from the people who want me dead. Oh, and I needed money and a roof over my head. That’s about as far I’ve gotten in the last week. I know that sounds pathetic but there it is. I’m not a good felon and I don’t think well on my feet.”
He seemed to ponder her words, rubbing his chin as several expressions flitted across his features – none of them anger and disgust, although one of them looked a great deal like frustration. But then he wasn’t the first person to feel that way around her. Not in the least.
“Actually, for a civilian I think you’ve done pretty well. You did the right thing coming here to Cypress Corner, which is out of the way, and then getting a job to make more money while you figured things out. You told me just enough truth not to be tripped up by your own story. You kept yourself safe and that’s the most important thing. But now I’m here to help you and that means we do what I say and follow my rules. I can help and protect you, Josie, but you have to help me. From now on you have to be one hundred percent honest with me no matter what. Can you do that?”
It kind of sounded like he didn’t think she had been honest. She’d told him the awful truth and every bit of it.
“Of course I can,” she said a bit defensively. “I just did. Do you not believe me? I didn’t kill my friend, Evan. I would never do that to Amy. She was my best friend in the whole world. I didn’t hurt her no matter what the police think. I’m innocent.”
If he didn’t believe this one fact then she would have to leave right then. Because if he thought she was guilty there would be no doubt he’d call his old law enforcement cop buddies and her ass would be sitting in some dank cell somewhere while she waited for her court-appointed lawyer who wouldn’t believe her either.
Because she looked guilty. She’d been there when Amy died and even the thumb drive didn’t clear her. A good attorney could make it look like a reason to kill.
“I believe you. I don’t think you could murder anyone, honey. But I can’t help you if you don’t trust me.”
“I wouldn’t have told you the truth if I didn’t trust you.” Josie hopped up from her chair and the room spun, making her grab onto the table for support. The whiskey had done its job quite well. “I want your help, Evan. I don’t know what to do or where to go. And I’m scared all the damn time.”
Evan stood and pulled her into his arms, pressing her cheek to his chest where she could hear the steady beat of his heart under her ear. It was oddly reassuring and she relaxed in his embrace despite all the worries on her shoulders.
Or maybe it was the booze.
Either way it felt good to have someone hold her and tell her everything was going to be okay. Except…wait…he hadn’t said that. Shit, he’d said he would help her but he hadn’t said he could keep her out of jail. She probably should have brought that up first thing.
“Hey…are you going to turn me in?” she asked, the words sticking in her throat and a shudder running through her body. She wasn’t prison yard material. She was more the My Little Pony and Strawberry Shortcake type.
His hand rubbed her back in circles, drawing a small sigh from her lips that she couldn’t hold back. “No, honey, I’m not going to turn you in. I don’t think the greater good would be served by doing that. But we do need to be careful because I can’t speak for everyone else we might come into contact with.”
“Thank you,” she said, her words muffled by the cotton of his t-shirt. “I don’t want to go to jail.”
“We’ll do everything we can to keep that from happening. Now first things first. I need to see that recording. We also need to investigate this Lydell guy. Find out if he has any weaknesses other than pretty young women. If I were a betting man I’d say that he does.”
Almost dizzy with relief, she finally allowed herself to lean on someone else, even if only for a few minutes. Evan was always solid and dependable but now he was also smart and resourceful. He knew what to do and she would follow him anywhere.
Just not to prison.
Chapter Fifteen
Watching a sex tape never had the potential to be the most comfortable and enjoyable thing Evan had ever done and he’d dragged his feet about doing it, instead spending his time on the laptop digging up anything he could find about the former senator. Eventually he couldn’t put it off any longer and he’d popped the thumb drive into the port and sat back and cringed, grimaced, and winced as the smarmy senator seduced the pretty young girl into the sack. Apparently, Josie had watched no farther because the last five minutes of the recording showed the kinky asshole smacking the crap out of the young woman when she wanted to leave and he wanted her to stay when it was all over.
What a slimebag.
Evan would admit to having a kink or two in the bedroom but his encounters with females were strictly consensual. If a woman even hesitated then the answer was a firm no.
In his career he’d spent more time than he liked to remember with low-life assholes who abused females. He liked this situation even less because Lydell was pretending to be an upstanding family man who was a good person, someone the public could trust. The lack of genuine emotion on the man’s face in the video turned Evan’s stomach. It was as if the girl was a thing, not a human being. Evan had seen it before in the eyes of the suspects that had paraded through the Marshal Service and this one was no different. Except that his suits and shoes were more expensive along with a well-practiced veneer of civilization.
After Lisa – no, Josie, he’d need to remember that – spilled her guts he’d had so many questions, none of them answered by watching the recording. If anything, it only spurred him on even more.
How did Josie’s friend Amy get the recording?
Why did she have it?
What had she been planning to do with it?
How did Lydell find out she had it?
How in the hell did Evan get pulled back into the life of an investigator and cop?
Honestly, he’d thought that was all behind him but now here he was digging into people’s backgrounds and planning protection details. Like he had never left the job.
Reaching for the phone, he did his best to ignore the troubling voice inside of his head that kept repeating the same thing over and over.
You’re getting pulled in again. Run while you can. You don’t want to do this, do you?
His head was saying no but his heart… His heart was a whole other deal. He couldn’t leave Josie to the tender mercies of a man like Lydell who would kill to keep this video under wraps, nor could he hand her over to the authorities and let her take her chances with their protection. It had to be him. It was the only way he could be sure to keep Josie safe.
“Mitchell.”
Reed Mitchell’s usual terse greeting came through the phone loud and clear. Just as the sheriff had intended, Evan was sure. Reed was a member of the group of lawmen that Evan had been a part of before he quit. They banded together and shared knowledge as much as possible, making their jobs much easier.
“It’s Evan. How are things in the cold north?”
“It’s a chilly
spring if that’s what you’re asking,” Reed replied with a chuckle. “How the hell are you, man? How’s Florida? And most importantly, when are you coming back?”
The last one was a doozy of a question that Evan had no answer for.
“It’s hot and humid but other than that it’s good. It’s a nice change, if you know what I mean. How’s Kaylee?”
Kaylee was Reed’s wife and a bestselling erotic romance writer. Boy, did Reed take a lot of shit because of that but he smiled through it all, probably because he loved his wife and worshipped the ground she walked on.
“Kaylee’s good. Busy, actually. She’s on a deadline and that means we eat a lot of frozen pizza but I don’t mind.” Reed cleared his throat. “It’s great to hear from you but I’m guessing you didn’t call to catch up. If you’re looking for a job, I actually know of one. The guy who took over Logan’s town is stepping down due to family issues back east. The mayor is looking for a replacement. I think you’d be just the man for the job. I know Logan would recommend you in a heartbeat.”
The mere thought of going back to small town law enforcement made Evan shudder. He wasn’t ready to give up his freedom. Not yet, anyway. Of course, that all might change when the money ran out and he had to support himself somehow.
“That’s really generous of all of you,” Evan hedged, hoping to find a polite way to say thanks but no thanks without pissing off a good friend. “I’m actually not looking at the moment, although it sounds like a wonderful opportunity. Logan had good support from the town, which is important.”
“He has excellent things to say about the job. Are you sure you’re not interested? I could make a call to Logan. Just say the word.”
“Not right now. I’m still working on that project for my family.”
“Well, let me know if you change your mind. So if you didn’t call to catch up and you didn’t call for a job…”
The sheriff let his voice trail off so that Evan could fill in the blanks.
Justice Reborn (Cowboy Justice Association Book 8) Page 9
