Reckless Whisper

by Barbara Freethy

  "Is she single?" Alan asked.

  "That's what she said, but that's not important."

  "What is important?"

  "Johnny Hawke."

  "I should have figured his name was coming after you mentioned Bree." Alan glanced around, making sure that the other bartender was taking care of the customers and then leaned forward. "Does Johnny have something to do with the kidnapping? Is Bree going to take him down?"

  "I don't know if he's involved, but someone is messing with Bree, someone from our past, and Johnny is a good suspect. Unless you can tell me he's in jail now, or better yet—dead."

  Alan frowned. "Sorry, but from what I hear, Johnny's business is better than ever. He's taken over his dad's boxing gym on Hayward. He and his brothers also run an automotive shop. I heard he operates his side gigs out of there—drugs, guns, gambling…the usual. He's made the family more powerful than it used to be. I don't think he lives in the old neighborhood anymore, though. He has other, more expensive, properties."

  He sighed. "Not what I wanted to hear, but thanks."

  "He's living with Sierra Littman now. Remember her?"

  "Sure." Sierra had been friends with both Josie and Bree. She had always been looking for love in all the wrong places, and apparently, she'd found it in Johnny. "I'd like to say I feel sorry for her, but she was not a nice person. She was always lying and stirring up drama."

  "That's true."

  "Do they have kids together?"

  "Not sure. His family has been expanding, but I don't know if they're his kids or his brothers' kids."

  That was interesting. While Bree didn't think Johnny was involved, if he was, he probably had access to all kinds of kids who could pull off a con job like the girl on the train.

  "Don't mention to anyone I was asking," he said.

  Alan gave him a disgusted look. "You think I'd do that? I know what Johnny did to you. My advice is to do what you've been doing: stay out of the neighborhood, stay out of the past, and stay away from Bree. She almost got you killed once."

  "It wasn't her fault."

  "You were protecting her."

  He tilted his head, giving Alan a speculative look. "I never told you why Johnny beat me up."

  "It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure it had something to do with Bree, especially since she disappeared around the same time. Hey, if Bree is an FBI agent, maybe she can arrest Johnny's ass and put him away for good. Unless you think she still has feelings for him?"

  "I don't think that, but I also don't think she wants to go anywhere near Johnny."

  "Probably wise if she doesn't. Speaking of women, how are things going with the tall blonde you brought in a few weeks ago?"

  "Damn. Adrienne," he muttered, looking down at his watch. He'd told her he wasn't going to do dinner, but she was still waiting to hear from him about drinks, and the last thing he wanted to do was hang out with her and her college friend when he was completely and utterly distracted.

  "She went right out of your mind when you saw Bree, didn't she?"

  "I didn't say that."

  "You didn't have to. Do yourself a favor, Nathan. Figure out what you want from Bree once and for all. And then go get it."

  "It's not that easy."

  "It might just be. You won't know until you put it all on the line, but that's not something you've ever been willing to do with her."

  "I didn't think I'd ever see her again." His phone buzzed, and as he took it out of his pocket, he saw Bree's name on the screen. "It's Bree."

  Alan smiled. "Maybe this is your second chance to get it right."

  "Or screw it up again."

  "Looks like you're going to have an opportunity to find out." Alan moved away as he took the call.

  "Hello?"

  "The security camera caught the back of the little girl as she left the train station. She went into a café down the street, but I never saw her come out," Bree said, excitement in her voice. "I'm heading there now. Someone might have seen her or know who she is."

  "I'd like to go with you. Why don't I pick you up?"

  "I'm sure it's out of your way."

  He was sure, too, but he wasn't letting her do this alone. "I can be at your office in about fifteen minutes."

  "I'll meet you in front of the building."

  "Stay inside until I get there. I'll text you." Getting up, he took a ten out of his wallet and put it on the bar. "I'll see you soon, Alan."

  "That's way too much."

  "It's cheap for the therapy session you just gave me."

  Alan laughed. "Good luck."

  "Thanks. I think I'm going to need it."

  Seven

  Despite Nathan's suggestion that she stay in the office until he arrived, Bree packed up her things and walked quickly to the elevator.

  The Chicago team was even less happy with her now than they had been earlier. When she'd returned to the office, she'd had a rather heated discussion with both Tracy and the ASAIC. They didn't like that the kidnapper had called her or that she'd gone down to Park Station on her own. They were happy that she'd recorded the call, but that analysis was still going ongoing and the trace had led to a café that was miles away from Park Station. No phone had been found dumped in the trash or anywhere else in the café. So, once again the kidnapper had played his hand very well.

  One thing she had omitted from her story was what had happened on the train with the little girl. When she'd requested access to security cameras around the train station, everyone had assumed she was looking for Hayley. And, of course, she had looked for Hayley, but she had also looked for the brown-haired, green-eyed girl in the ragged gray sweatshirt and ripped jeans.

  Maybe it was wrong not to have come completely clean with them, but she hadn't been able to summon the will to confess her personal secret to people she barely knew. Plus, she had as much experience, if not more, than anyone on the Chicago team, and the second she thought her secret would save Hayley's life, she would tell it, but right now she needed to play things out on her own and try to find the girl on the train. If she could get to her, she would be one step closer to the kidnapper.

  When she got downstairs, she waited in the lobby for Nathan, her thoughts turning to the man who had played such a pivotal role in her life at various times. She probably shouldn't have gone to him this afternoon, but he had seemed the perfect person to turn to.

  It wasn't just that he knew about the baby; it was because he knew her—the real her, the person that no one else knew.

  And it had felt so damn good to lean on him. Even now, she could feel his arms around her, and the memory made her nerves tingle. She and Nathan had had odd moments of attraction over the years, but they'd never acted on them. They certainly couldn't act on them now.

  She really shouldn't have called him. She was pulling him into a dangerous situation.

  Was that fair? Hadn't she already put him through hell once before when Johnny had almost killed him because of her?

  But it was too late now. She could see his truck pulling up in the loading zone, and her phone buzzed with his text. She typed in a quick ok and headed out the door.

  When she hopped into the truck, she gave him a nervous smile, and felt another jolt of attraction as his brown-eyed gaze met hers. This was not good.

  She looked away and fumbled with her seat belt, reminding herself that she needed to focus on finding the girl and nothing else.

  "Are you okay?" Nathan asked her.

  She forced a neutral expression onto her face. "I'm fine."

  "Did you tell the other FBI agents about your experience?"

  "I shared the call with them, but not the rest. I will tell my secret if it will help Hayley."

  "I know you will," he said evenly.

  "You do?" she asked with a bit of surprise. "You haven't always liked my decisions."

  "That's true, but I'm okay with this one. I know you won't jeopardize Hayley's life for any reason, not even to protect your secret." />
  "Thank you. The one good thing about this sick game is that I'm pretty certain Hayley is alive, and that gives us a chance to find her."

  "I hope you're right. What's the name of the café we're going to?"

  "It's called the Hummingbird Café. I looked it up, and it's open til nine; they serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It's owned by Viola and Jonas Montclair, a middle-aged, African-American couple, who opened the restaurant five years ago."

  "You did your research. Is that important to know?"

  "I have no idea. But I'm trying to find a way to get ahead. Since the girl went into the café and never left, she's either still there or there's a back door."

  "If that's the case, she could have gone through the place in two minutes, and it's possible no one saw her."

  "That would be depressing, but I'm hoping that's not the case. The girl was no more than ten or eleven, and she was alone, so I'm thinking she lives nearby, knows the area. She walked with confidence."

  "Interesting that you said earlier that she spoke with purpose and now you say she walked with confidence. It doesn't really sound like she's scared or in trouble."

  "No, it doesn't, but maybe she's too young to know she's being used."

  "True." He paused. "By the way, I saw Alan Craig earlier. Do you remember him?"

  "I do, but I thought you said you didn't see anyone from our past."

  "Actually, I do see Alan now; I ran into him last year after not having seen him since we were teenagers. He runs a bar in River North. He named it Craig's after the one his grandfather used to run in the old neighborhood. He has a girlfriend he lives with. Beth is a sweetheart."

  "You were good friends with Alan. How come you let that end?"

  "Because once Johnny beat the crap out of me, I didn't want to hang out with anyone who might get hurt in my wake. Alan knew what had happened to me. I actually stayed at his house for a night before I was able to get Josie and move out of that neighborhood."

  As Nathan was telling the story, she sensed there was a reason behind it that she wasn't going to like. "Where are you going with this?" she asked, pretty sure she knew.

  Nathan gave her a quick look. "I wanted to find out if Alan knew anything about Johnny's current activities. I know he has a few friends who still live in the neighborhood."

  "Did you tell him why you were asking about Johnny?"

  "Not really."

  She didn't like his answer. "You told him I was in town, didn't you?"

  "I told him you were looking for the missing girl."

  "And then you asked about Johnny. Dammit, Nathan, he's going to start putting things together. You said he knew you got beat up. Did he know why?"

  "No. I told you I didn't tell anyone. He did say earlier tonight that he figured it had something to do with you, because you disappeared, and Johnny was going crazy trying to find you."

  She shook her head. "I wish you hadn't brought him into this."

  "He's not into anything, and aren't you a little curious as to what he said?"

  She really didn't want to be, but if it could help the case… "Fine. What did he say?"

  "Johnny has taken over for his dad. He's grown the family business of criminal activities. He's very powerful now."

  "Awesome."

  "He's with Sierra Littman."

  "Well, things really haven't changed all that much, have they? She was always trying to get Johnny's attention. Are they married? Do they have kids?"

  "I think they're just living together. But Alan said there are a lot of kids around. Could be Johnny's or they could belong to his brothers."

  "Johnny always talked about having sons, carrying on the family legacy. I tried to tell him that he could be better than his family. I thought there was more good in him than there was in his brothers. He used to say I was crazy; there was nothing better than power, and that's what his family had."

  "And what he wanted more than anything."

  "I suppose so. But isn't that what we all wanted back then? We were in our late teens, looking at adulthood. We wanted to control our destinies, but we still needed money and school and opportunities." She turned her head, looking out at the city streets passing by. "Do you remember all those nights we used to just walk around? Especially in the summer when it was so hot? It seemed like we'd walk for miles, but we never got anywhere. It was like we'd run into those invisible fences that keep pets from leaving their yard. We couldn't step beyond a particular curb, go past a corner. The future was always just beyond where we could get to."

  "That's a good way to describe it." He paused. "I know you don't think Johnny is part of this, but he would know how to get a kid to play a con like this. He used to do this kind of shit when he was a kid."

  She frowned as she turned back to him. "I still don't think it's him. But I take your point."

  "Just something to consider."

  A moment passed, and then she said, "I feel like I should apologize again for what happened to you after I left, Nathan. I was caught up in my own problems, but I should have seen how much danger you put yourself in for me. I shouldn't have called in my debt."

  "You kept Josie out of jail; I owed you. I paid up."

  "Yes, you did. But you paid more than you owed. And I shouldn't have forced your hand like that."

  "Well, maybe someday I'll need a favor, and you can pay me back."

  "I would try, Nathan. You probably don't believe that, but I would."

  He looked away from the road to meet her gaze once more. "Actually, I do believe you."

  His words warmed her heart. "I'm glad."

  Their gazes clung together for a long moment, and she felt as if whatever had been holding them apart suddenly fractured.

  Then Nathan squared his jaw and turned his attention back to traffic.

  Maybe there was still a wall between them after all.

  As they neared Park Station, she realized how close they were getting to the old neighborhood. They weren't there yet, but it was only a mile or two away. She was quite sure the station had been picked for a particular reason, and perhaps that was it.

  It took Nathan a few minutes to find a parking spot. Then they walked down the street and under the train tracks. As the train rumbled overhead, her mind went back to earlier that day. She could hear the girl's voice so clearly, see the question in her eyes, but then she was gone.

  "I assume the café is the building with the bird on it," Nathan said, waving his hand toward the end of the block.

  "Yes."

  As they headed toward the restaurant, she wondered if someone was watching them, if someone was waiting, and she found herself moving closer to Nathan.

  Or perhaps he was moving closer to her…

  His hand suddenly covered hers, and she jumped, startled by the unexpected touch, by the surprising heat.

  "I just want to keep us together," he said, in answer to her unspoken question.

  She should let go, but her fingers seemed to have a mind of their own, curling around Nathan's. And it felt right…better than right, if she were being honest.

  She was so used to being on her own but at this moment it felt really good to have Nathan with her.

  When they reached the café, Nathan opened the door for her, and she stepped inside. Despite the fact that the restaurant was bright and charming, with a dozen or so tables and a glass display case by the register filled with cakes and cookies, she felt as if she were walking into a trap. She scanned the restaurant quickly. There were about fifteen people seated at various tables, but no girls of the right age.

  She moved over to the counter, where a young woman in her early twenties greeted her.

  "Can I help you?" the woman asked.

  "Yes. I'm looking for this girl." She took out her phone where she'd captured a screenshot of the little girl. It was of her back, but she was hoping the woman might recognize her from her clothes. "She was in this café a few hours ago, between one and two o'clock. Were you working then?"<
br />
  "Right. Yeah, I saw her. You're her mom? The FBI agent?"

  Her pulse leapt at the question. "Who told you that?"

  "The kid. She said you'd be in, and I should give you this." The woman reached underneath the counter and pulled out a piece of paper.

  She took what appeared to be a flyer out of the woman's hand. "What's this?" she asked in confusion.

  "Beats me. The kid gave me $20 and said to give it to her mom, the brown-haired FBI agent with the green eyes. The kid looked just like you." She paused. "If you don't mind, I have some other customers..."

  Bree stared down at the flyer in confusion but stepped to the side as the clerk helped a young father and his son.

  "Open Heart Refuge," she murmured, her stomach twisting into another painful knot. She felt hot, sweaty, dizzy, weak… "I have to sit down." She stumbled a few feet away to an empty table.

  Nathan sat down across from her and took the paper out of her hand, a deep frown crossing his lips. Then he lifted his gaze and met hers. "He is pushing all your buttons. Someone is seriously screwing with you. Someone from your past—our past," he added, a hard light entering his light-brown eyes. "Open Heart Refuge is where we met."

  "I know. I was twelve. I was there with my aunt. You were thirteen, and you were there with Josie and your mom."

  "One of several times she tried to leave my stepfather," he said, a harsh note in his voice. "It just never lasted longer than a few weeks. She always went back, and she always took us with her. But for that short time…"

  "Everything felt almost normal," she murmured, meeting his gaze. "We played cards after school—hearts and spades."

  "And poker," he reminded her. "I taught you how to play seven card stud."

  "And you made up stories to entertain Josie, so she wouldn't be scared. There were a lot of tales about soldiers and white knights and magical spells that would protect us."