“We’re leaving here now. You call out or step one fucking toe out of line and you’re dead.”
His heart jolted, but training kicked in and he instantly assessed the situation. Grimacing at not having a service revolver with him, he shifted slightly, moving to the side, and waited. The door opened and Claire stumbled out, her face pale and hands shaking. The man behind her, obviously not expecting trouble since his hands were down at his sides, never saw Levi coming. With a swift kick and punch, the man crumpled soundlessly to the floor, his gun knocked out of his hand.
Claire whirled, her dark eyes wide and mouth open. “Levi! Oh, thank God!”
Levi secured the man’s weapon, dragging him back into the room. Standing with his hands on his hips, he leveled her with his glare. “I gotta deal with him, but you stay in the room. When I finish, it’ll be time to start talking, Claire, because I wanna know what the fuck is going on!”
She opened her mouth then snapped it closed again, nodding. She plopped down on the edge of the bed, her hands clasped in her lap and her gaze following his movements. He pulled the wallet, phone, and keys out of the man’s pocket, and, standing at the door, he pressed the fob, glad the man’s car was directly outside her room. He made a quick picture of the driver’s license, then put the wallet back into the man’s pocket.
Jogging out, he opened the back door of the car, then hefted the man over his shoulder in a fireman’s hold, and with a quick look up and down the sidewalk and seeing no one, he carried him directly to the car and dumped him into the back seat. Keeping the phone and keys, he walked back into the room.
“Get your stuff.”
Claire stood and lifted her hands. “Levi, I promise I can explain—”
“Oh, you’re going to explain, sweetheart, but we don’t have time right now. I’m taking you with me. So, get your stuff.”
Glad she didn’t argue, he watched as she grabbed her overnight bag and purse, did a quick scan of the bathroom and room, then hurried to stand in front of him. They walked briskly around the building and climbed into his SUV. He ran to get his bag and was back within minutes.
As soon as they were on the road, he said, “Okay. Start talking. And I’ll warn you, I’ve got ways of checking. So make sure it’s the truth.”
Chapter 5
Claire stared out of the passenger window, the view a blur as she blinked away the tears that were forming in her eyes. She lifted a shaky hand and pressed it against her temple in an attempt to rub away the pounding in her head. Was it only a week ago that my life was normal? Average? Even boring? And now, on the run, with no real plan in place, she had no idea where her life was going.
Yesterday, stuck on the side of the road, she couldn’t believe how her horrible luck changed when Levi approached. Tall, dark, dressed in jeans and a tight navy t-shirt showcasing muscles. For a millisecond, she’d focused on the loose-limbed walk of confidence he had, then noticed the way he held his hands up slightly. He didn’t want me to be afraid. And after being terrified for the past day, it was nice to have a few seconds to just enjoy the vision walking toward her.
And his offer to assist was so kind she felt guilty that she didn’t explain her predicament. But how would I tell a stranger that someone might be after me… including the police?
As the day progressed, it was easier to see him as the proverbial knight on a white horse. Not one to give over to flights of fancy, her imaginings still seemed apropos as their conversation was easy on the road. And the reality was that dinner with him last night was better than any date she’d ever been on. Lying in bed last night, she’d gone to sleep with thoughts of the possibility they might stay in touch beyond Boston. If I was able to prove my innocence and not end up in prison.
She was so sure it was Levi when she heard the knock on her door this morning, she didn’t even look out first. Throwing open the door, she was stunned when the burly man forced his way in and pointed a gun at her. A gun… oh, God… I’ve never even seen a gun up close. Her chest depressed as the air rushed from her lungs, remembering the stone-cold fear staring at the weapon.
As soon as he asked for what she’d taken, she knew exactly why he was there. Closing her eyes for a moment, she could still feel the helplessness as he forced her out of the room and the hopefulness when Levi suddenly lunged from the side, disarming the man and knocking him unconscious.
The sound of his throat clearing jerked her back to her present situation—in a vehicle with a seriously pissed-off man who had every right to be pissed off. Turning back toward the front of the vehicle, she was very aware of Levi. Her rescuer with dark hair and dark eyes, a brooding expression in place until he smiled, and then his face lit with warmth. But now, that warmth was replaced with angry vibes directed at her. So hot she was uncertain how her skin was not seared.
Cutting her eyes to the side, she could see the tension in his hands as he drove, and yet he was waiting, giving her a chance to explain. She sucked in a ragged breath and her shoulders slumped as exhaustion weighed heavily.
Without looking toward him, she licked her dry lips and began. “Everything I told you is true. My name is Claire Loman, and I worked for Martins and Lee Investment. It was a midsize firm with about twenty-five employees, sixteen of those investors, like myself. After four years, I was no longer the newest hire but had proven that I could handle my clients. I liked my job well enough, my coworkers, my bosses. Everything was fine until a week ago.”
Casting her mind back to the previous week, she sat silent, trying to discern the exact moment everything began to fall apart.
“And?”
The one word from Levi cut through her thoughts and she startled. Lifting her hand to her forehead again, she mumbled, “Sorry. It’s all so overwhelming.”
He didn’t say anything else, so she continued. “One of my coworkers was in a car accident and ended up in the hospital. It wasn’t life-threatening, but he did need surgery and was going to be out for weeks. Mr. Martins said that he’d take over Perry’s accounts until he came back. I thought it was a little strange for a senior partner to take over the accounts of a junior investor, but it didn’t have anything to do with me, so I didn’t give it another thought. Then, suddenly, Mr. Martins was called out of town for a family funeral right when some of Perry’s accounts needed reviewing. My direct supervisor asked me to handle it. That was a week ago.”
She leaned her head against the headrest and closed her eyes. I’m so tired. So fuckin’ tired.
“You haven’t rested at all in the past week.”
Realizing she’d spoken aloud, a rueful snort slipped out as she shook her head. After a moment, she chanced another glance to the side and stared at Levi’s profile. Strong jaw with dark stubble. It was hard not to have fantasized about what his stubble would feel like against her skin. Now I’ll never get the chance to know what it would be like to be held by a man like him.
When he’d turned his intense gaze toward her yesterday, she felt as though she had all his attention. She still did but knew it was because he wanted information. She couldn’t blame him; after all, he’d incapacitated a man and saved her this morning. Finally, answering his question, she replied, “No. Sleep has been elusive as things went from curious to bad to worse.”
Her stomach growled loudly, and he shot his eagle-eyed stare over toward her. They hadn’t had breakfast, but she wasn’t about to ask him to stop somewhere. As far as she was concerned, the further away from Chicago they got, the better it was for her. She reached into her purse and pulled out a pack of cheese crackers left over from yesterday. Ripping them open, she handed several to him, grateful when he reached out and took them. Unscrewing the top on a fresh bottle of water, she handed that to him as well before getting one for herself.
After a moment of nibbling to ease the hunger, she took a long sip of water. Wiping her mouth, she screwed the top back onto the bottle and sighed. “I stayed late after doing my own work so that I could review Perry’s accounts.
Everything looked to be in order except for one. That one account simply did not add up. At first glance, there was nothing wrong with it, but, because it was so similar to one of my accounts, I couldn’t figure out why Perry’s numbers were off by five hundred thousand dollars. By the time I went home that evening, I had convinced myself that I was simply tired and needed fresh eyes to look at it the next day.”
“I take it the next day it didn’t look any clearer?”
“No. There were withdrawals from one client’s account and the paper trail led into a virtual forest of companies, none of them part of our portfolios. By the third day, my suspicions were heightened but I didn’t know who to trust. You see, each of those withdrawals and company investments were signed off by not only Perry but Mr. Martins.”
“They were embezzling.”
She noted Levi had made a statement, not a question. Nodding slowly, she said, “The evidence was in front of me, but I didn’t want to accept it. And then I didn’t know what to do about it. If I was misinterpreting and made an accusation that was wrong, I could lose my job or be buried as a junior investor for the rest of my career. But, if I wasn’t misinterpreting, then I was looking at embezzlement by not only a junior investor but a senior partner. Plus, I didn’t know who to go to. Did I bring it to my supervisor? Did I go straight to Mr. Lee? Did I go to the authorities? I had no clue what to do.”
A sigh of air rushed from her lungs and the weight on her shoulders seemed to intensify. “I thought I had another day to take one last look at things before Mr. Martins came back. But he showed up at work, made a beeline into my tiny office, and, with a big smile on his face, thanked me for assisting but told me that I was no longer responsible for any of Perry’s accounts. The way he was acting… the way he was staring at me… I knew my suspicions were right. So, I did the only thing I could do at the moment and that was slap a big smile on my face and simply agree.”
Munching on another cracker, she washed it down with water. So far, Levi was listening with little interruption, but she had no idea what he thought of her story. Afraid that his patience might wane and he would decide to drive her straight to a police station, she continued.
“By the end of the day, I was a nervous wreck. I knew something wasn’t right. I knew Mr. Martins, as well as Perry, was involved. I knew it was obvious to Mr. Martins that I’d gone through the accounts. I planned on staying late yesterday, but he showed up at my desk and said that I should take the afternoon off since I’d been pulling double duty with Perry out. I felt like it was a ruse to get me out of the office, but what excuse did I have?”
“What happened next?”
“A stroke of luck.” She watched as Levi’s unflappable demeanor fell away and his head jerked to the side to stare at her. Quickly explaining, she said, “On my way home, I stopped by my bank to get some cash. Imagine my surprise when I looked at my balance and discovered an extra five hundred thousand dollars sitting in my account.”
“Fuck.”
Another snort erupted as she agreed. “My thoughts exactly. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that Mr. Martins knew I must’ve looked at everything and he was afraid I’d go to the authorities. Because I have direct deposit with my paycheck, it was not difficult for him to be able to put the money in there.”
“So, you ran.”
“Yes. I ran.”
“What was your plan?”
She lifted her shoulders in a little shrug and shook her head. “All I wanted to do was get away. I had no idea what Mr. Martins’ plans were for me. Call the police and claim that I had embezzled? Maybe keep me under his thumb with the threat hanging over my head? For all I knew that’s what had happened to Perry. So, I got home, packed everything I could into my car, and hit the road yesterday morning. I thought if I could disappear for a little while until I had a chance to figure things out, I’d be safe.”
Levi was quiet for another moment, and Claire decided she was too exhausted to keep talking. She let the silence move around them, finding her eyelids growing heavy.
“If everything you’re telling me is true, why was that man in your room this morning, threatening you?”
Rolling her head to the side, she once more stared at Levi. If men were described in romance novels as tall, dark, and handsome, she’d never truly understood that description until she laid eyes on him. A woman alone with a disabled vehicle should have been very afraid, but fear was not what she felt. If the truth was known, a bolt of lust hit her as he approached. But, with his hands held out in plain sight, his past as an FBI agent, and his offer to help, she tamped down her lust and focused on the warm ease that moved through her at being rescued. With everything that had happened, she hadn’t even thanked Levi for saving her.
Sighing her millionth sigh that morning, she replied, “I have a copy of all Perry’s dealings. I know that I should never have taken client account information out of the office, but as soon as I discovered discrepancies, I wanted backup. Mr. Martins must have discovered that I have the records. That’s why he didn’t call the authorities and try to blame the embezzlement on me. Instead, he sent someone after me.”
Turning to face him more fully, she added, “I’m ashamed that I didn’t even thank you for what you did this morning. But it’s now hitting me… you placed yourself in danger. I think the best thing you can do is to pull off at the next exit and let me out. Right now, Levi, you’re in danger because of me.”
“Did you get all of that?” he asked.
Looking at him sharply, she had no idea what he was asking her. Before she had a chance to say anything, a male voice coming from his phone replied.
“Got it. Checking out her story now.”
She gasped, opening her mouth then snapping it closed as her gaze dropped to his phone as though she would be able to see who now knew her secrets. Levi obviously had called someone and had them on the line the entire time she was speaking. Her stomach clenched as she wondered who now knew that money was in her account and what they were going to do with that information. Her hands began to shake, a combination of anger and nerves, and her heart pounded a drumbeat so loud it was all she could hear.
“Claire. Claire!”
Hearing her name, her body jolted. “What?”
“You went pale, and I wasn’t sure you were breathing. Don’t pass out on me now.”
With everything that had happened, it was ridiculous to be angry at him, and yet anger was the only emotion she could identify. “You didn’t tell me someone was listening.”
“Nope.”
“Why not? I was talking to you, not just anyone. I’m trying to stay safe while figuring all this out, and I don’t even know who was listening to this information—”
“I’m the one trying to keep you safe. I’m the one that disarmed that man this morning. I’m the one who needs all the information to figure out what to do. And that started by me finding out what you’re involved in. And if I can trust you.”
She wanted to argue with his words but couldn’t. Everything he said was true. Pinching her lips together, she turned and looked out her window. She had not been paying attention to the highway signs and had no idea how far they had driven. Doubt slowly wormed its way into her mind as she realized she had no idea who Levi truly was. Maybe he just wanted—
“Don’t go there. I can tell that right now you’re doubting everything you’ve told me. But, Claire, if what you told me is the truth, I can help by looking into this mess.”
“It’s true. It’s all true.”
She had no idea what kind of looking into he meant, but, considering it was more than what she had, she was willing to go on a little faith.
Chapter 6
The entire time that Claire offered her explanation, Levi had listened carefully. Not only to her words but also her body language while multitasking by focusing on his driving. It was easy to see she was exhausted, and while he had a lot of experience with sleepless nights, he wanted to keep on the road, pushing
forward. Whatever was going to happen, they needed to get far away from a possible risk.
At the hotel, once she was secure in his SUV, he’d run back to his room to grab his gear—and call LSI. Giving a quick explanation of what happened, he told the Keepers he would put them on speaker once he got her talking.
Now, he glanced to the side and saw that her eyes were closed, her eyelashes forming dark crescents resting on her cheeks. Her face was pale, even her freckles.
Ever since he first met her, his emotions had run through the gamut. Concern over her car accident had morphed into interest. By the time they had traveled together and had dinner, his interest had moved into possibilities. After discovering the news that she’d left her employment under a cloud, he dismissed all thoughts of wanting to get to know her further. Then, seeing her threatened had kicked in his protective instincts. And now, hearing and believing her story, he wanted nothing more than to make sure she was okay. Hell, she’s a lot braver than I gave her credit for.
His phone vibrated and he held it to his ear as he answered, wanting to keep the conversation private. “You’ve got me. Go ahead.” He recognized Tate’s voice and kept his eyes on the road as he listened.
“Initial information shows that what she’s told you could be right. The car belongs to the man in the room, registered to Clarence Tolson, same name as the driver’s license you provided. Digging into him, he’s a small town heavy for a bookie in Chicago. Looks like he likes to take jobs on the side, and I can see where five thousand dollars was recently deposited into his bank account from a business buried in paperwork but eventually owned by Mark Martins. Now, what that doesn’t tell us is why. Maybe she actually stole the money and Martins sent someone after it. But then, if that were the case, an honest businessman would have contacted the authorities.”
Danger and Desire: A Romantic Suspense Anthology Page 31
