Marked for Murder

by Colleen Helme

  “No.” I shook my head. ”I can’t go yet. I have to see how Ramos is first.”

  “Okay. Let’s see what we can find out.” He helped me up, and I leaned on him to walk out. We asked one of the nurses where we could wait to hear about Ramos, and she told us where to go.

  We arrived in the waiting room to find Uncle Joey and Jackie. Uncle Joey stood, holding his arms out to me. I shuffled to him, and he held me close. His worry about Ramos warred with his gratitude that I was all right.

  He helped me settle onto the couch beside him, wincing at all the blood on my shirt and pants. “Can you tell me what happened?”

  I explained how Beal had taken me, and was ready to kill me before coming up with his plan to call Uncle Joey for a ransom. “How did Ramos know I was in trouble?”

  “That’s an interesting story,” Uncle Joey said. “I’m not exactly clear myself. From what I could gather, a friend of yours called Ramos. Apparently he lives in the condos.”

  “Oh. You mean Jerry?”

  “Yeah, that sounds right. He was there when he noticed you leaving with one of the security guards. He thought it was strange that you’d leave. With everyone so focused on the bomb, none of the cops had time to listen to him. He suspected the guard was up to no good and called Ramos.” His brows rose that Jerry had Ramos’s number, and he wondered how that had happened.

  Instead of asking, he continued, “Jerry met Ramos on the other side of the building, and let him inside. Using the tracker from your watch, they figured out where Beal had taken you. By then, Beal had contacted me about the ransom. I called Ramos, and he hurried to get you out of there. I think he told Jerry to get the police while he went after you.”

  “That makes sense,” I said. “After Ramos freed me from my handcuffs, Beal came in, taking us both by surprise. He started firing and… a bullet hit Ramos in the chest. Ramos shot Beal a couple of times, but it didn’t stop him.

  “When Beal fired again, I stepped in front of Ramos.” Uncle Joey inhaled sharply and I quickly continued. “I had on a Kevlar vest, so it only cracked my sternum, but Ramos and I both went down. Beal was yelling and screaming, but what scared me the most was Ramos. He wasn’t moving. Then Beal crawled closer, and I knew he wanted to kill Ramos. He would have done it too, but I grabbed Ramos’s gun. I shot Beal… I… I killed him.”

  Uncle Joey put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close. I rested my head against him and tried not to cry. “You did well, Shelby. I’m proud of you.”

  After a moment, I pulled away. “Not well enough. If Ramos dies… I don’t know if I can live with it. It was my fault he was there.”

  “No. No. Don’t say that.” Uncle Joey patted my arm, and I dropped my head back to his shoulder. “None of this was your fault. And Ramos isn’t going to die. He’ll pull through, you’ll see.”

  But I caught Uncle Joey’s passing thought that Ramos was a warrior. He was no stranger to death. If he died saving me, well, Ramos would say it was a good way to go.

  Hearing that brought fresh tears to my eyes. Maybe Ramos did feel that way. I knew he’d want me to see it like that if he died. But, right now, I couldn’t bear the thought of losing him.

  Time passed in slow motion. Each minute seemed like hours. Uncle Joey and Chris helped me get more comfortable on the couch, and Chris took Uncle Joey’s spot beside me.

  After just twenty minutes had passed, I caught Chris’s gaze. He sent me a smile, but I could tell he was getting restless just sitting there. “Hey, do you think you could do me a favor?”

  “Sure. What is it?”

  “My purse is still at the precinct with my phone. Would you mind getting it for me?”

  “Yeah. I can do that. Is your car there too?”

  “Yes, but we can get it tomorrow.”

  “Okay. I’ll be back soon.”

  “I think I’ll get some coffee,” Jackie said, thinking she needed a break. “Do both of you want a Diet Coke?” Uncle Joey and I agreed to her offer, and she left, grateful for something to do.

  With her gone, I told Uncle Joey that Beal had gotten my secret out of me, and that’s why he’d decided to ask Uncle Joey for the ransom.

  “I’d figured as much,” Uncle Joey said. “Is that how you got those bruises on your neck?”

  I absently rubbed my neck. “Yeah. He was choking me, and he really wanted to kill me. So I told him.” I caught Uncle Joey’s gaze. “I’m glad he’s dead.”

  “So am I.” Uncle Joey was thinking that if I hadn’t killed him, he would have done it himself.

  That brought a smile to my lips.

  “I know you probably feel bad about it,” he continued. “But you did the right thing. Just remember that, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  Jackie came back with our drinks, and we settled in to wait.

  True to his word, Chris made it back forty-five minutes later. With no word about Ramos, a sudden need to call my kids and make sure everything was okay washed over me. I told Chris and he dug my phone out of my purse.

  I put the call through. Just hearing their voices soothed me. After giving them a shortened version where I skimmed over the bad parts I finished up, telling them we’d be home as soon as we could, and slipped the phone back into my purse. Guilt washed over me because of everything I put my kids through.

  “How did they take it?” Chris asked.

  “They’re fine, but maybe you should go home. I’m sure Uncle Joey will give me a ride.”

  Chris nodded. “Sure, but I’ll wait a few more minutes.” I picked up his worry about me, and about what would happen if the news was bad. He didn’t want to leave me to face this without him.

  My heart burst with love and gratitude for such a great husband. After everything I put him through, I wasn’t sure I deserved it. “Thanks honey.” I squeezed his hand, unable to say more without crying.

  A doctor entered the waiting room, and we all froze. Was this it? He wore green scrubs with a cap over his hair and a surgical mask pulled below his chin. “I’m looking for Alejandro Ramos’s family.”

  Uncle Joey stood. “That’s us.”

  The doctor nodded, then pulled a chair toward our little group, motioning for Uncle Joey to sit down. “He made it through surgery. We repaired the damage and retrieved the bullet. It was rough. But, if he can make it through the next few hours, he has a good chance to completely recover. That said, I have to warn you. He lost a lot of blood and he’s in critical condition. I can’t guarantee that he’ll make it, but we’ll do the best we can.”

  “Thank you,” Uncle Joey said. “When can we see him?”

  The doctor shook his head. “Not for a while. He’s in intensive care. If he makes it through the night, we’ll re-assess his condition. You can see him once he’s more stable.”

  Uncle Joey nodded. “I want to be notified if there’s any change.”

  “Of course,” the doctor agreed. “I’ll send someone out to get your information.”

  It was late evening by the time Chris and I left the hospital. Uncle Joey and Jackie stayed behind to fill out all the forms. I’d noticed that he’d put “step-father” under “relationship to patient.” Sorrow filled my heart. Ramos’s brother should be here. He should know what was going on. What if Ramos… I couldn’t even think that he wouldn’t make it. Still, Ramos deserved to have Javier by his side.

  With a heavy heart, I decided to call Javier tomorrow and tell him everything. Tonight, there was nothing more we could do. I made Uncle Joey promise to call me the minute he heard anything, no matter what time it was, and Chris took me home.

  The minute we got home, my chest began to hurt, so Chris left to get my prescription. Josh and Savannah were relieved to see us. I held them loosely, careful of my bruises. I told them most of the details I’d left out earlier. But I couldn’t tell them the part where I’d killed a man. It wasn’t something I wanted to think about.

  Right then, I just wanted to take my pain pills and go to bed.
After changing into my night shirt, I realized I still had blood on my hands, so I took a nice, hot shower. By then, Chris had returned with my prescription.

  I took my pills and got into bed, closing my eyes. Worry for Ramos left me restless. Fear that I’d get a phone call from Uncle Joey with bad news kept me from sleeping deeply. It wasn’t until the gray light of dawn lightened the sky that I finally slept.

  I woke around nine the next morning. The realization that Uncle Joey hadn’t called brought tears to my eyes. Yes. Ramos had made it through the night. I put the call through to Uncle Joey and waited for him to pick up.

  “How’s Ramos?” I blurted.

  “He’s hanging in there. They’re hoping to move him out of intensive care today if he continues to improve, so it looks good. I’m headed to the hospital soon. Do you want to come?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’ll pick you up in about an hour.”

  While I got ready, I realized my chest didn’t hurt quite so bad. I still had to be careful, but at least I could breathe. Chris had gone to work, but he’d left a note to update him on Ramos’s condition. I sent him a quick text, then I told Savannah and Josh that I was headed to the hospital. Josh had work this afternoon, and Savannah asked to have her friend over, reminding me that I needed to get my car from the police station.

  With everything settled, I still had twenty minutes before Uncle Joey came to get me. Enough time to call Javier. I swallowed my nervousness and found Javier’s information. My heart pounding, I put the call through. He answered after the second ring.

  “Hello?”

  “Javier? This is Shelby Nichols, remember me?”

  “Of course,” he said. “How are you?”

  “I’m good, uh… well. I’m well.” My nervousness came through, making it hard to talk. “Uh… I’m calling because your benefactor needs to… uh… he needs to meet you. I know we’ve had to change things a few times, but, under the circumstances, I… we… need to speed things up.”

  “Okay,” Javier responded. “Is something wrong?”

  Now came the hard part. “I don’t know exactly how to tell you this, and it wasn’t supposed to happen this way, but it’s your benefactor. He’s… well… it’s your brother. Alejandro is alive. He’s your mysterious benefactor.”

  Hearing nothing from Javier, I rushed to continue. “It’s a long story, but he thought you were dead all these years. When he found out that you were alive, Ramos… he goes by Ramos now… didn’t want to hurt you again, so he decided to help you anonymously.”

  Javier’s breathing was heavy, but he still said nothing. “Javier… he’s wanted to meet you for weeks now, but it was never the right time. Now I’m asking because yesterday… he was shot. He almost died. He saved my life. But he’s barely hanging on, and I think he needs you. He’s all alone. He has no one, no family.” I held my breath. “Will you come?”

  A long silence answered me before he spoke. “You’re telling me my brother is alive?”

  “Yes. Yes—he is.”

  “Then, of course I will come.”

  I closed my eyes and sighed with gratitude. “Thank you. I’ll arrange your flight, along with everything else you’ll need, and I’ll call you back.” Before disconnecting, we spoke for a few more minutes about the details I’d need to book his flight.

  A black car pulled into my driveway. I called goodbye to my kids and walked out. I couldn’t move as fast as I’d like because of the pain, but inside, my heart was bursting. Javier was coming!

  Uncle Joey sat in the driver’s seat, surprising me. He usually came in a limo, and I’d never seen him drive. I stepped gingerly to the passenger door but had trouble opening the handle.

  He opened it from the inside, and I climbed in. “What kind of a car is this?”

  “Do you like it?” He was brimming with enthusiasm.

  “Of course. You always have the best cars.”

  “It’s a Tesla.”

  “Oh wow, I’ve always wanted to take a test drive in one of these.”

  He smiled. “Put on your seatbelt. This thing can move.”

  I had to admit it was the smoothest ride I’d ever had. I guess with no engine, or gears to shift, there was nothing to slow it down. We got on the freeway and he punched it, taking it to sixty in seconds. I’d never been pushed back in my seat like that in a car before. I could get used to it.

  “How’s your injury?” he asked, worried he’d overdone it. “Feeling better?”

  “It still hurts, but not as much. I think that it might have something to do with the fact that Ramos made it through the night.”

  Uncle Joey nodded. “Yeah. Let’s just hope he continues to improve. I can’t imagine not having him around.” He was thinking that Ramos had filled that empty spot in his life. Their relationship wasn’t that of father and son, but it was close.

  “There’s something I want to talk to you about,” I began. At Uncle Joey’s nod, I told him all about Javier. “Ramos will probably kill me, but I had to call him. Javier is his brother.”

  “Does he want to come?”

  “Yes. He does.” I smiled at Uncle Joey, relieved and pleased. “I told him I’d make the arrangements.”

  “Good. I’ll have Jackie get on it right now. He can be on a plane this afternoon.” He put the call through the car’s speaker phone, and I spoke with Jackie. She took Javier’s information and promised to call me back to finish setting it up.

  After the excitement of Javier’s news, we entered the hospital full of hope. On Ramos’s floor, they told us he’d had a rough night. He was holding his own, but they’d had a scare during the night. I picked up that he’d stopped breathing once, and my breath caught.

  “Can we see him?” I asked.

  The nurse nodded, but I picked up her reluctance. She knew that loved ones needed to be together at times like this. It could help the patient’s recovery to know someone was nearby. “He’s still in intensive care, but we’re hoping to move him out later if he continues to improve. Follow me.”

  As she took us down the hall, she reminded us of washing our hands, and how important our support and love could be, as long as it didn’t tax the patient. She took us through some double doors to the intensive care unit.

  The walls between the patient and the nurse’s station were clear glass, and we could see Ramos lying motionless on the bed. She introduced us to Ramos’s nurse, who directed us to use the disinfectant gel before entering.

  “He needs rest and peace to get better,” she said. “But he’s making progress. We were able to take out the breathing tube this morning, so he can talk, but he needs to stay quiet and calm.”

  “Of course.” I started inside, but Uncle Joey stood rooted to the spot. Seeing Ramos in this condition broke his heart, and he wasn’t sure he could handle it.

  I glanced back at him, and he said, “You go ahead.”

  I sent him a nod and went inside. Sitting beside Ramos, I took his hand. He was hooked up to all sorts of machines that monitored his heart rate and blood oxygen levels. An IV dripped into his arm, and his face had lost that rough edge in sleep. At least his color was good, not pale or sickly, and that helped push away my fear.

  I didn’t want to disturb him, but there was so much I wanted to say. Maybe if I spoke softly, it wouldn’t wake him up. That way, I could tell him all the feelings in my heart, and he’d never know. This might be the only chance I’d ever get to do that, so I had to take advantage of it. I glanced back toward Uncle Joey, but he wasn’t there. With no one around, I could speak freely.

  “Hey there,” I began. “I just wanted to tell you that I… well… I love you, Ramos. I have for a long time, and I will till the day I die. So you hang in there, all right? Don’t leave me… us. Uncle Joey would be lost without you. We all need you. So you have to get better.”

  I rubbed his hand with my thumb, while tears filled my eyes. “Thanks for coming after me. You saved me again. I know you do that a lot, but if you�
�ll just get better, I promise that I’ll stay out of trouble from now on. You’ll never have to save me again.”

  “Shelby,” he rasped.

  My eyes widened, and my gaze jerked to his. “Ramos?”

  His lips tilted. “Yeah. I’m here.”

  My breath whooshed out. “Good. Uh… don’t try to talk. You need to conserve your strength.” He smiled again, but closed his eyes against the pain. “Do you need me to get you anything? Water? The nurse?”

  He was thinking I thought you said I wasn’t supposed to talk.

  Now I smiled. “I guess that works.”

  Yeah, not tiring at all. Don’t worry, Shelby. I’m not going anywhere. But… in the future, you shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep.

  “You heard that?”

  Yeah. His eyes closed, and he let out a contented sigh. Hmm… it was nice to hear you say that you love me. Go ahead and tell me that… anytime.

  My jaw dropped, and my face flamed red, but Ramos didn’t see it. His mind was lost in contented sleep. I sat there for a long time just watching him breathe. From the corner of my eye, I caught sight of Uncle Joey returning. He stepped toward the door, but still couldn’t come inside. I gently set Ramos’s hand on the bed and stepped into the hall with him.

  He took in my smile and sagged with relief. “Did he talk to you?” he whispered.

  I nodded. “Yes. Mostly in his mind, so it didn’t tire him. I think he’s going to make it. He’s going to be all right. Why don’t you go inside and sit down for a minute?”

  “Maybe later,” he said. “You need to call Javier. Jackie’s got everything set up. If it all works out, he should be here tonight.”

  My heart thumped. Now that it was really happening, I hoped I’d done the right thing. Ramos would be happy to see Javier, right?

  Under a ray of relief and gratitude, Uncle Joey and I left the hospital. I waited to call Javier until we got to Thrasher Development where Jackie had all the information. I gave Javier all the details of his flight with an open return date, and told him I’d pick him up from the airport. From there we’d go straight to the hospital, and he would stay at the hotel across the street.