A Hero to Love

by Gail Chianese

  “What are you thinking?” Casey asked.

  “Either we’re missing something, or Rossi is smarter than I gave him credit for.”

  “Jax,” Casey warned.

  “I know; leave him alone. Got the memo, damn it. But he’s still our best suspect.”

  Casey tapped his fingers on the desk as if the action spun the wheels in his brain. Jax knew him, knew the signs, and waited. The guy had a great mind, when he used it.

  “When did all of this start?”

  “Seven, eight weeks ago? Right after Bella’s accident.”

  “So when you walked into her life?”

  Jax stopped his pacing and swung around. “You think I’m behind this?”

  “No and yes. Not you personally, but maybe an ex-girlfriend who sees Risa as a threat.”

  Jax shook his head. “I don’t see it. Two of them are married now and forgot about me the minute we broke up. Maria didn’t want it to end, but she doesn’t have base access that I know of, and how would she know where Risa lives?”

  “Things change, and you can find anyone on the web.”

  “I don’t know, but I’ll look into her.”

  “Your ex-fiancée?”

  “Keri? You’ve lost your touch, man. That woman never wants to see me again. Plus, I haven’t seen or heard from her in years. She doesn’t even know where I am, nor do I know where she is. No, this isn’t about me. The only one that makes sense is Rossi.”

  “Maybe so, but without solid proof, you can’t go after the guy.”

  “Tell me something I don’t know.”

  “Why don’t you let that local cop who responded to the call know? He can always pull Rossi back in for questioning.”

  “Yeah, except Deputy Dawg made it clear he didn’t need or want my help. If I called, he’d toss the message in the trash.” He just needed one piece of concrete evidence on the guy, and then Jax could have Rossi’s ass hauled back in.

  “You’d better convince Risa to report the calls, then. Besides, you have other more important things to worry about.” At Jax’s “don’t screw with me” look, Casey pointed to his desk. “You’ve got a test to take.”

  Jax stalked to his desk and scooped up the message Kelly had left for him. If he hadn’t been solely focused on Risa, he’d have seen it as soon as he sat down.

  NCIS had taken the next step and scheduled his polygraph test. He had no qualms about passing. He had nothing to hide—his record spoke for itself—and generally he had a high tolerance for bullshit questions. For the moment, he allowed himself to feel the thrill at the prospect of getting his dream job.

  There’d be no sleeping in the back of his truck or on his mama’s couch. He could get a house and have a place for Bella to run and play. Plus, he knew they had an opening coming up at the Groton office, which, if he snagged it as his first assignment, meant he could continue to see Risa.

  For the moment, the path ahead of him was crystal clear. He could see a future, one that wouldn’t bore him to sleep in five seconds, and he liked what lay ahead.

  “You ready?” Casey’s question cut into his internal thoughts.

  “Piece of cake. Hey, when are you due to report into Pensacola?”

  “Not until February. Gives me time to train your replacement right this time.” Casey grinned his smart-ass smile.

  “Yeah? Good luck with that. I heard it’s going to be Alec Simonson.”

  Casey groaned. “You’re kidding, right? I can’t stand that guy. He’s so full of himself. January is going to be the longest month of my life.”

  Jax let out an evil laugh of delight. He almost wished he’d be around to see Simonson bring the mighty Casey Thomas back to earth. It was a tough job, keeping his friend grounded, and sometimes he needed help. His replacement was the perfect person for the position.

  “Have you heard any more from Colette?”

  “Come to think of it, January can take its sweet time passing.” Casey scrubbed his hands across his face, before squeezing the bridge of his nose. “A quick text.”

  “Anything life-shattering?”

  “Nah. A picture of some restaurant we used to go to. She thought I’d like to know it’s still around.”

  “Sounds like someone is taking a trip down memory lane and wanting you to come along for the ride. Maybe more.”

  “Yeah, so she can rip my heart out and drag it behind her through the mud and gravel before shoving the battered, torn-up lump back in my chest to leave me to slowly bleed to death.”

  “Tell me how you really feel, man.”

  “You brought it up.” Casey punched the keys on his keyboard with enough force to shove them through the desk and floor beneath.

  “Lighten up, Case. Maybe she’s genuinely sorry for what happened and still has feelings for you. Stranger things happen all the time.” Like him wanting to be tied down and picturing life five, even ten years down the road and seeing Risa by his side and a menagerie around their feet. Even weirder, the idea didn’t freak him the hell out.

  “That’s what I’m afraid of,” Casey said.

  Mike stuck his head in the office. “Faraday, in my office now.”

  “What did you do now?” Casey asked after Mike walked away.

  “Hell if I know. Guess I’ll find out in a minute.” He grabbed the note with his test time and shoved it in his pocket.

  “Jax, to get back to what we were talking about earlier… let me give you one more piece of advice. Don’t risk it all for something that won’t amount to more than a good time in the sack. Trust me, it’s not worth it, buddy.”

  As soon as Jax walked into the senior chief’s office, Mike pointed to the chair. Jax shoved Casey’s cynical comment to the back of his mind. His friend meant well, but damn, the guy needed therapy or something. Jax turned his focus front and center. There was no mistaking this man in front of him as his friend. He had been called on the carpet before his boss.

  “Does the name Officer Browning ring any bells?” Mike asked.

  Probably not the time to call him Deputy Dawg. “Big guy, grumpy.”

  “Seems he’s a fan of yours, too.” Mike’s eyes narrowed and tapped the desk. “He called SECOP to file an official complaint against you for interfering in a police investigation. Be glad the lieutenant is out and I got the call.”

  “Bullshit. Sorry, Senior, but I did no such thing, unless you call sharing information interfering.”

  “Did you try to bully him with your, and I quote, federal authority?”

  Jax snickered. “What do you think? Of course not.”

  Mike sighed. “Tell me your side.”

  “Not much to tell. Doc Reynolds’s place was vandalized and two of her animals went missing. She was kind of freaked out and called me to come help her find them.”

  “Why you?”

  He hesitated long enough that Mike glared at him. “We’re friends.”

  “So what happened next?”

  “I got there first, she was a little shaken and hadn’t called the local yokels yet. She did. They showed up. We tried to explain. The older of the two, Browning, was more interested in his dinner than details. They left, and I stayed to help find the rabbits.”

  “Rabbits?” Mike waved a hand. “Never mind. I really don’t want to know. Did you bring Rossi’s name into the conversation and tell this Officer Browning or his partner that they needed to bring him in?”

  “No, I did not. He asked Risa for a list of enemies. She gave him Rossi’s name. I shared with him and his partner what had happened on base. Nothing more.”

  “I don’t get it, Jax. You’ve worked for the better part of a decade to become the ideal candidate for federal service, and in the last two months, it’s like your common sense broke free and escaped for greener pastures.”

  Jax refused to rise to
the bait.

  “Let me ask you something,” he continued, “and I want you to think long and hard before you answer. Is this woman worth jeopardizing everything you’ve worked for? Are you willing to give up your dreams for her? Because the feds want team players. Not guys who don’t play by the rules.”

  That was two for two calling him a fool. Maybe they were right. Then again, maybe they didn’t know squat. But Jax couldn’t argue that two complaints against him in under a month wouldn’t score him any points with prospective employers. He’d back off of Rossi, play good cop, and wait. Sooner or later, the guy would screw up and then Jax would nail his balls to the floor.

  It didn’t mean he couldn’t keep a close eye on Risa.

  “I swear, Mike, I’m following your orders.”

  “Fine. I’m dismissing the complaint, but Jax,” he held up a finger, “one more and you go in front of SECOP. Understood?”

  Jax nodded, and Mike told him to get the hell of his office. He walked back to his empty office and stood by the window.

  Screw it all. If I’m going to get my ass chewed out for doing the right thing, then I might as well make it worthwhile.

  He grabbed his keys and headed out to do a little extracurricular surveillance.

  Chapter 16

  They’d been at it for a good hour when the polygraph examiner told Jax to sit tight and excused himself. Sitting in the small office, with two bands around his chest, a blood pressure cuff on his arm and more wires hooked up to his fingers, Jax felt a little like Frankenstein’s monster. They just needed to hook a couple of bolts to his forehead and neck, and he’d be all set.

  Instead of sweating over the test, Jax thought about his surveillance of Salvador Rossi, which he’d conducted on the sly for the past week. Either the guy was innocent or he was the world’s best covert operative, which meant the Navy was underutilizing his skills. Risa had received more calls, but when he matched up her call log to Rossi’s activities, they didn’t sync.

  He was missing a vital link.

  Closing his eyes, Jax reviewed everything he knew about Risa, Rossi, and the harassment. No matter how hard he tried—or wished—the details didn’t line up like he thought they should.

  The test examiner returned.

  “Are you doing okay, Chief Faraday?”? Before sitting, he checked all the wires to make sure Jax was still hooked up.

  “Happy as a clam at high tide.”

  “Okay, then. I apologize for the interruption and delay.” The examiner made some quick notes as Jax waited.

  Whatever. He knew they’d play mind games with him today; figured this was all part of the plan to see if they could rile him up by stalling and making him wait. The examiner ran him through the basic questions—name, age, address—along with the test question before getting back down to business.

  “Have you ever lied?” the examiner asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Have you ever been approached by a foreign government?”

  “No.”

  “Have you ever sold classified info?”

  “Hell, no,” he said in the same even tone.

  Or maybe not, given the examiner’s lopsided frown. “Yes or no only, Chief. Have you ever sold classified info?”

  “No.”

  “Have you ever stolen anything?”

  “Yes.” But Jax doubted they could try him for the pack of gum he’d taken at six.

  “Have you ever helped anyone steal classified intelligence?”

  “No.”

  “Did you ever cheat on a test in school?”

  “No.”

  Another lopsided scowl. What did that mean? Was the man impressed with his morals or thinking Jax knew how to work the test? It could be done—there had been documented cases—but Jax played by the rules. Except when it came to a long-legged blonde with caramel-brown eyes.

  He blew out a breath and focused.

  “Do you need a break, Chief?”

  “Nope, doing fine. Next question, please.”

  “Have you made any large purchases with cash lately?”

  “No.”

  “Have you ever disobeyed orders?”

  Damn. He hesitated, and the examiner repeated the question.

  “Yes,” Jax said.

  He should have been expecting that last one, especially given how many times he’d been asked if he’d ever lied, stolen, or cheated.

  “Did you disobey orders for personal gain?”

  Yes. No. Sort of, but not really. How the heck did he answer?

  “Chief, do you need me to repeat the question?”

  “No.”

  “No, you don’t need me to repeat?”

  Now the guy was really screwing with him. “No, I do not need you to repeat yourself and no, it was not for personal gain.”

  The examiner watched his screen and smiled. “Thank you, Chief Faraday. We won’t need anything else.” The guy flipped a switch and removed all the wires and paraphernalia. “I’m sure you’ll be hearing from the agency soon. Have a nice day.”

  Jax tried to see over the examiner’s shoulder to the test results, but the machine was dark. Great. So what did the examiner’s comment mean, that they didn’t need anything else? He hadn’t lied. Not really. He’d disobeyed orders for Bella’s well-being. He’d further disobeyed orders to keep Risa safe.

  Would he break the rules again for the same reason? Hell yeah.

  Not ready to go back to the office—where nothing waited for him except a desk and boring reports—he swung by the clinic. He’d made it this far in the process; telling Risa his news wouldn’t jinx his chances any more than what he’d done on his own. Besides, he owed her the truth.

  He pushed through the door to find Corrie playing with Totes and Harle.

  “Chief Faraday, did you come by to pick up the kids? I told Risa I’d take them for the night.”

  That made no sense. Risa would never leave the little ones at work. “Where’s Risa?”

  “Oh, you didn’t know?” Corrie climbed over the gate to join him in the reception area. “She’s on the way to L&M. Her dad was rushed to the ER.”

  Jax yelled thanks as he raced out and jumped into his truck. He called the office on his way as he weaved in and out of light traffic. He sailed through green lights and swung into a prime parking spot. For the first time that day, he felt like luck was on his side. He prayed he wasn’t the only one with a guardian angel watching out for him.

  The nurse refused to tell him anything other than Mr. Reynolds was with the doctor and she’d let his family know Jax was waiting. He didn’t really know what to do, so he sat in the beige chairs opposite a television tuned into some kind of daytime drama. There were a few people scattered around the room, most of whom stared at the screen like mindless zombies.

  Every time the door slid open Jax looked up, expecting to see Risa. After thirty minutes of disappointment, he finally sent her a text to let her know he was there, if she needed him.

  A few minutes later, Risa dropped into the empty seat next to him. She snuggled up to his side and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

  “You didn’t have to come,” she said.

  “How’s your dad?” He assumed her comment was more out of manners than her actual desire.

  “The doctors think he had a mild heart attack. They’re running a bunch of tests right now. Mum is with him.” A tear slipped down her cheek, and she rubbed it off on his uniform.

  “If you want to go back there with him, honey, that’s fine. I’ll wait here for you.” Jax kissed the top of her head. “Just tell me what you need.”

  “Hold me. Lie to me and say it’s all going to be bloody fine.” She sniffled and wiped away more tears. Man, he hated tears. Tears meant he’d failed to protect.

  “From what I’ve seen
of your dad, he’ll be walking out of here on his own two feet before the day is over.”

  “I wish.” She laughed. “You’re right. My dad is strong and determined and hates to be kept down. But that man back there, lying in the hospital bed in that ridiculous pale blue gown? That’s not my dad… at least not the one I know. That man is weak, and confused, and a good twenty years older. How can he have aged so much in one day? How can he be digging fence post holes and nailing boards one day, and the next be knocking on death’s door?”

  Hell if he knew, but Risa looked up at him through long, dark, wet lashes with her heart in her eyes. She needed answers he didn’t have. He did the only thing he knew how; he held on tight and lied to her that everything was going to be okay.

  “Tell me about him.”

  “He’s crazy in love with Mum. They’ve been married forever, and he still acts like they just got married. He loves his submarines almost as much as her. He served on them, you know. ‘Giant tin cans,’ he called them.”

  “Is that how your parents met, when he was in the Navy?”

  “Yes. Dad got transferred to a command in England, and one day he wandered through a park and he saw the most beautiful woman he’d ever laid eyes on, painting.” She laughed a little. “He knew he had to meet her, so he came up with an idea to compliment her work and offered to buy it. Figured that would earn him some points and then he could ask her out.”

  “What happened?”

  “The painting wasn’t quite what Dad expected. Mum had painted a naked man in a meadow. Why, I still have no idea.” She stopped for a minute, glancing at the doors leading to the exam rooms. “Dad didn’t look before he made the offer. So, when he saw the canvas he turned about ten shades of red, and Mum lost her heart to him.”

  Jax chuckled. “Does he still have the painting?”

  “It’s in his study. How about your parents? How did they meet?” Risa snuggled in closer, and he realized he’d never really told her much about his family before.