“Did you get a divorce?”
“Dante attacked the convoy on the way to the federal courthouse for the first of a series of testimonies I was supposed to do on camera. Thea had stayed behind. When I woke up in the hospital Ben was there, and Grant. Thea left me with divorce papers. Grant said he’d relocated her because she didn’t want to stay with me. I testified, and they offered me a new life in Sanctuary.”
He sent her a small smile when all he felt was regret. From the beginning he’d taken the wrong path and messed up his life. He’d put his wife in danger, the business he’d wanted to save he’d sold. He’d ended up in Sanctuary, little more than an upscale prison surrounded by impenetrable mountains and people he’d tolerated—okay, a few he’d called friend. But never, not once, had Bolton been the person he’d thought he could be. Never had he lived the life he’d thought up in any kind of dream.
Not once.
“So what now?”
Her question was a simple one, and the answer was anything but. “Dante is going to go after Thea. He’s trying to destroy me, and when he’s taken out everyone I’ve ever cared about, then he’s going to come after me.”
“You’re leaving?”
When Ben had told him, Bolton hadn’t known whether to laugh or get mad. “You’re not going to believe me when I tell you.”
She dipped her head to the side. “Tell me what?”
“There’s another Sanctuary. In Hawaii.” Her jaw dropped. It was so cute Bolton almost laughed. “If Thea didn’t hate me so much I might’ve actually gotten a vacation out of this.”
“Yeah, so terrible. I’m sure going to Hawaii will be awful.”
He smiled. “You’re only saying that because you’ve been stuck in Idaho for years.”
She actually smiled back. “Hey, I like our mountains. But I’ve got a bone to pick with Grant if there’s a Sanctuary in Hawaii, and no one ever told me.”
He chuckled.
She frowned at him then. “You told me that you hated Sanctuary.”
Bolton nodded, wondering what more she wanted him to share. “I did.”
“I want to go back there. It’s where my home is.”
“I’m glad for you. Knowing what place to call home is a powerful thing.” He leaned across the table, closer to her, and laid his hand over hers. “I want that for you, more than I want anything else I want you to be happy. I’m sorry I dragged you through this. I should never have done that, not when I knew what it might do to you. But I was selfish, I wanted someone with me. One day maybe you could find it in your heart to forgive me for what I did.”
Bolton wouldn’t try and forgive himself. If he could do it all over, he would do the same thing. Grab her hand and run. Get lost in the world together, just the two of them. It had been frustrating and hard, but they’d spent more time together in the past few weeks than they had in years.
He wouldn’t trade those quiet moments for anything, even if he’d been on edge and she’d been scared. She’d even been scared of him. But some part of Bolton understood that was reality. He was the kind of man who caused the people he cared about to fear him, to misunderstand what he was attempting to do and walk away because—for some reason—they would never fully know him.
It was simply who he was: a man who, even at his age, didn’t really know who he was.
“Bolton—”
“You don’t have to say anything, Nadia.”
He didn’t want her to try to explain what had gone wrong or all the ways he’d ruined whatever tiny thing had been between them. Bolton wasn’t blind enough to not know a spark when one ignited in his face. But that had happened with Thea, and it had been way more volatile. With Nadia it felt…fragile, gentle, and in need of care.
Something he didn’t have the ability to give.
“As soon as I know Thea is safe, I’ll be gone.”
“You’re still going after that stash?”
Ben cleared his throat. “The two of us need to talk about that.”
Bolton shot him a look, stood beside the table like he hadn’t just appeared out of nowhere. Couldn’t the man tell he’d been having a private conversation with Nadia?
“Now that I know you have brothers, it makes way more sense that you talk to me like I’m your kid brother.” Bolton shook his head. “Though it still ticks me off.” He stood and faced Ben. “I’m going to do what I need to do, and then I’m gone.”
“After we talk about that stash, I might let you.” Ben’s gaze flicked to Nadia and then back. “Even if you are being an idiot.”
“You think I’m giving you my only insurance?” Okay, so he probably would if he didn’t need it. But Ben didn’t have to assume.
“If your plan is as good as you think, you won’t need it. Not if Dante is dead or back in prison for good.”
“We’ll see.”
Bolton touched Nadia’s shoulder and walked out. There were way too many variables to promise Ben would get what he wanted. Way too much to go wrong or get mixed around. Bolton had to finish this, and then after that he would be sure of what the future held. A future where he figured out, for the first time in his life, what he wanted to do.
Who he wanted to be.
**
“Everything okay?” Ben wasn’t sure he was equipped to help, but he still asked.
Nadia left her coffee untouched and got up. “You really helped him that much?” She shook her head, a small smile on her lips. “Scratch that, of course you did.”
Ben felt his own lips curl. “Of course.”
“Can I ask you something?” When he nodded, she said, “What will happen to those girls? I mean, they’re out, right? She does that, takes them from that life and sets them free?”
Ben nodded. “They have a long road ahead. Sometimes it’s hard for them to believe it’s over, or that they can truly be free. But she’s good at what she does. She’ll give them what they need. Schooling, counseling. Fun. Help. Things some of them have never experienced in their entire lives. It’s a long road, but she’ll get them there.”
“Wow. That’s an incredibly noble thing.”
“Nobility is something people dream up to make themselves feel better. The truth is that none of us can claim to be noble, not if we’re honest about who we are.”
Nadia leaned closer and peered up into his eyes so that Ben couldn’t look away. “That’s because you’ve never been the recipient of someone else’s noble action.”
“Maybe that’s true.”
Nadia leaned up and planted a kiss on his cheek. “Tell her I said thank you.”
Ben watched her walk away, and at the same time he tried to recall if anyone had ever been noble on his behalf. Perhaps Nadia was right. He expended himself over and over, but had he ever accepted the same from someone else?
He pulled out his phone and sat at the table. Grant didn’t even let it finish the first ring before he picked up. “Yep?”
“Busy?”
“Managed to track down an old associate of Bolton’s, Thea’s father. He had no idea about any stash or where Bolton might have hidden it. Then he pulled a gun on me.” Grant paused. “These are some interesting guys you assigned to be my team. They had him on the ground, disabled, within three seconds.”
Ben smiled to himself. Grant’s “team” were a crew of personal security guys. Men he’d hired to protect his brother under the guise of assisting him in his investigation. Not that Ben didn’t trust his brother to keep himself safe. It was more that Ben took zero chances when it came to family.
“So everything is good?” It had better be; Ben was paying enough money. “No sign of Dante?”
“You worry as much as Mom. Whether Dante wants to come and grab me so that I can get Thea for him or not, he was in Denver. He can’t be two places at once, and that’s a lot of jet fuel to keep darting back and forth across the country.”
“He has friends.”
“Well so do I. Like this team of mine,” Grant’s voice turned sa
rdonic. Ben heard Grant say, “One sec, fellas.” Then a car door shut. “Told me their last job was protecting a diplomat on a tour of Colombia. Fancy that. Made me wonder if they weren’t assigned to do the same with the ‘retired’ former director of the US Marshals.”
“That would be dishonest, doing that and not telling you.”
“You’ve been telling lies your whole life,” Grant said. “You’re good at it.”
“Your girls might be grown, but they still need you.” Ben didn’t add that the rest of them needed him, too. “Just keep an eye out for Dante, okay? He’s going after Thea, and you’re the fastest route to her whereabouts.”
“But not the only one.”
“As far as everyone’s concerned you are.”
Grant huffed. “This is a nasty chess game you’re playing with people’s lives.”
And that was why Ben would never claim to be noble. He saved people, but so often what they needed saving from was themselves. And how did he achieve that? He could put a dent in the evil in the world, but that tide just kept on rolling in. One day it was going to deposit him, battered on some distant beach, to recover while it laid a path of destruction Ben could only watch and do absolutely nothing about.
“Just watch your back, okay?”
**
Grant hung up. He got back in the front passenger seat. “Let’s roll.”
The driver pulled out of the space and set off down the street faster than Grant would have pushed it. They didn’t need to draw a cop’s attention, but Grant wasn’t in the mood for slow.
“Everything okay?”
The blandly spoken question made Grant shrug. “He said to be careful.”
“We always are.”
They pulled up to a red light, and Grant turned to the back seat. Something cold touched his neck. A crackling sound preceded the sensation of lightning that whipped through his body. Grant fought against it, but there was no use. The stun gun sapped him of all strength, and he slumped into the seat on the edge of unconsciousness.
“Call Dante. Tell him we’re certain Grant Mason knows where Thea is.”
Chapter 17
Remy had ducked out for something to eat, so Nadia sat with her brother for a quiet moment. She stared at his pale face, but all she could see was Earnest. Her being shuffled from room to room. Paraded around and pawed at. It wasn’t something she wanted to relive, but she’d have to get it out. She’d have preferred it be with Andra, not her brother—even if he was unconscious.
A light tap sounded on the door. A woman walked in. Nadia half expected it to be a nurse, but it wasn’t.
“Mom?”
A stout man in jeans and a heavy jacket followed her mom into the room. She glanced between them. Her mom had switched the hippy clothes Nadia was used to for a long striped skirt and whatever shirt she wore under that pea coat.
The woman, an almost exact replica of Nadia’s dark hair and dark eyes, gaped. “I didn’t know you were here.” She swallowed. “They told me Shadrach…” Her eyes filled with tears, and Nadia’s vision of her got blurry. “My baby girl. Right here in front of me.”
Nadia rounded the end of the bed and strode to her mom, who opened her arms to embrace her. As Nadia settled into her mother’s embrace a sob worked its way up to her throat. Love between them had never been the problem. The tension came when they tried to communicate or cohabitate. Not helpful for an unruly teenager and her exasperated mother, but Nadia was an adult now. Perhaps things would be different.
“My baby girl,” her mom said again, as she stroked Nadia’s back. Who’d have thought what Nadia needed right then was a hug from her mother.
“It’s been a long time.” Thank You, Lord. He had known and blessed her—yet again—in ways she couldn’t even have fathomed. Nadia pulled back and wiped her cheeks with the back of her fingers. “I can’t believe you’re here. That’s so crazy. I didn’t even know you were coming, but I’m glad.”
“I can’t believe you’re here. For years my baby girl has been hidden away from me. Now here you are, a beautiful woman.”
Nadia nearly choked. She didn’t feel beautiful, not after the last few days. Mothers always saw what they wanted to see in what they had created. What those men the night before would never have seen or even vaguely noticed about her.
“This is Michael. He’s the sheriff in Kentucky, where I live.”
Nadia tried to look like she wasn’t a crazy mess and shook his hand. Refined but strong. Knew how to handle himself and probably took good care of her mom even while he didn’t let her get away with anything. “Nadia Marie.”
“I’ve heard a lot about you. I feel, in a way, as though I already know you.”
Nadia smiled.
“You ladies have a lot of catching up to do, so I’m going to step out and talk to those gentlemen in the hallway.” He planted a soft kiss on Nadia’s mother’s cheek and then left.
Her mom glanced back to her and smiled. “He’s good to me.”
“I’m glad, Mom.”
“They told me Shadrach had been shot.”
Nadia nodded and turned to her brother, lying in the hospital bed hooked up to all those horrible machines and wrapped in so many bandages he looked like a mummy. She pulled the sleeves of her sweater down over her hands. “It cut through his vest and went straight through him, nicked his heart as it tore a hole in his chest. The doctor said he barely made it through surgery.”
“And that dog of his?” Her mom made a face.
“A co-worker is watching him.”
“And you?” The question was tentative. Nadia tried to figure out what she was asking.
She couldn’t tell her mom about Sanctuary. She’d only spilled under the influence of narcotics. The memorandum of understanding she’d signed when she was inducted into the witness protection program was voided if she told anyone the location of Sanctuary or exposed anything about the program—or anyone in it.
Her heart sank in her chest. Would they let her go back now?
“Honey—”
Nadia shook off the thought. “There isn’t a lot I can say about it. But I’ve been happy. I like my life, where I live. I like the people there.” She scratched at the skin of her arm. It felt like something crawled between her sweater and her arm.
“Coming down off something?”
Nadia’s head jerked. “Excuse me?”
“It was a simple question. It’s been years, and I don’t know where you’ve been. Or what you’ve been doing.”
Yeah, it was so simple. “I was kidnapped and injected with something against my will. To get me to talk.”
“Did it have anything to do with Shadrach being shot?”
“The same man was behind both.”
Her mom settled on the edge of Shadrach’s bed. “I guess it was too much to ask that since you’re here that meant you were no longer in danger. I guess some things never change.”
“None of this was about me. We got caught up in Bolton’s thing.”
“One of those men in the hall?”
Nadia nodded.
“Both of them are more dangerous and more deadly than my son. Which is saying something, considering my son is Shadrach Carleigh. Let me guess, you had a part in his being accused of shooting the president, too?”
“No. I had nothing to do with that.” Nadia scratched at her arm again. “Mom—”
“I think I need some space, if you don’t mind.” She shifted on the bed and presented Nadia with her back. “I’d like to be alone with my son.”
She was going to blame Nadia for this, like it was her finger that had pulled the trigger and shot Shadrach? As though Nadia would ever do something to hurt her brother. He’d been her ally. He’d taught her to be smart and to survive. She’d have been dead a hundred times over if it hadn’t been for Shadrach.
Nadia strode to the door and let herself out. She set her hands against the opposite wall of the hall and hung her head.
“Whoa, whoa.” Bo
lton touched her shoulder, and she realized she’d started to cry. “What just happened?”
Nadia cried harder. Her mom’s friend or whatever ceased his conversation with Ben and frowned at her. She turned away from him. She didn’t know him, and she didn’t need to take on whatever he would dish out in defense of her mom.
“Not the happy reunion you were hoping for?” Bolton turned her so she could plant her face against his chest.
The tears turned to a horrible, nervous laughter. Nadia was pretty sure she had lost it, as she half laughed/half cried against his chest.
“Andra would be horrified at this display.”
Nadia laughed harder as she clutched at his chest like a ninny. “I’m not hurting you, am I?” Bolton almost smiled. Shook his head.
Ben’s phone beeped. Or she thought that’s what it was until he lifted his wrist. “Will says turn on the TV.”
They trailed into the room but steered to the side where the tiny TV sat high in a cabinet so the person in the bed, or whoever sat with them, could watch.
Nadia didn’t look at her mom. She’d have seen the objection on her mom’s face. Mom was going to have to get used to Nadia being there through Shadrach’s recovery. And the armed guards Ben had called to watch the door. Whatever the woman had in her head that she couldn’t manage to see a single bit of good in anything Nadia tried to do, she would likely fight when Nadia didn’t leave before Shadrach said it was okay to.
Maybe she’d stay longer on principle.
Ben flipped on the TV. “…with the escape and continued evasion of federal prisoner and former DEA agent Dante Alvarez. This man is suspected of being an accomplice and in collusion with the crooked federal agent who was convicted of crimes too numerous for us to list in this short update. The man’s name is unknown, though his picture is up now on the screen.”
The newscaster disappeared, replaced with a mug shot of Bolton.
“Why are—”
Bolton didn’t let her finish. He turned to Ben. “Dante knows where I am. This has to be Tristan.”
Ben nodded. “He’s trying to get ahead of Dante, to get word when someone finds either of you so he can control the fallout.”
Sanctuary Deceived WITSEC Town Series Book 4 Page 18
