A Hunted Man (The Men of Halfway House) (44 page)

Cam's vision blurred and his skin was slick with sweat. In his daze, gasping for breath, Hunter captured his mouth and fiercely kissed him with a possessive growl. He returned the kiss with equal brutality, one hand digging deeper into Hunter's thigh, the other pulling at his hair. He broke the kiss, gasping for breath.

He didn't have the energy to fight the tremors rippling through his body or hold back the incoherent mumblings each time Hunter hit his gland perfectly.

He willingly dove off that cliff in a blinding white haze as electricity coursed through his body.

Moments later, he finally opened his eyes. Everything was a spinning blur. Warm puffs of air tickled his ear. He felt the full weight of a body on him he instinctively knew was supposed to be with him. He reached up and gripped the hard-muscled, broad back, trying to ground himself.

"What's your name?" he heard in that seductive tone of voice he loved so much.

"Huh?" he mumbled.

"Good."

Hunter sighed as he reviewed the last of the depositions for his case file. It was only eleven in the morning and he was already starting to get cross-eyed after having reviewed so many transcripts. He put his pen down and rubbed his face.

The office was incredibly quiet and the crime stats were dramatically down. He was finally able to get up to date on both his and Mel's lingering cases. Aidan had made great strides with the case and many involved were apprehended or hiding. It seemed as if the local crime world had decided to lay low until the surge of adrenaline coursing through the legal system died out a bit. The news headlines, normally riddled with reports of robberies and shootings, showcased community news usually reserved for the back end of a newspaper. The breaking news last night: a kangaroo had escaped the local zoo and was spotted hopping along the side of the road.

It had never been this peaceful on the streets.

He reached for the next folder on his desk and sighed.

Off the streets was a completely different story. Judges, lawyers, policemen, elected officials, and an endless list of business owners had been arrested. All had clean records and were respected members of the community. They would have gone completely undetected. The network of contacts that had been cultivated for more than a decade, took only a few weeks to break apart. Hunter was disgusted with everything they had uncovered. He had spent years serving his city. Now, he just wanted to walk away.

His cell phone chirped with a new call.

"Hey, what's up?"

"I've got an update," Aidan said.

"Yeah?" Hunter prompted as he rested the phone on his shoulder while he finished handling the files on his desk before his meeting.

"Mackler."

"What about the son of a bitch?"

"Well, the police commissioner and I had a rather lengthy conversation."

"And?"

"We're both in agreement that it's just not fair to give special treatment to some inmates when our prison systems are so overpopulated. Sadly, we've had to put Mackler in with the general population," Aidan said.

An evil grin spread across Hunter's face. Times like these, he was thankful for Aidan's sometimes twisted form of justice. "You do know he won't survive genpop. If Rick's people won't get him, I'm sure one of his prior convictions will."

"Not my problem. He doesn't deserve any favors."

"Agreed." Hunter sighed as a sickening sense of relief filter through his body. He'd taken an entirely different position on justice lately.

"Seems the commissioner has no sympathy for the man. Mackler's managed to tarnish all branches of the judicial system, including his police force. He hasn't taken too kindly to that at all."

"He won't last long once the word gets out. Do you have everything you need and will it stick?"

"Yup. We've got depositions and subsequent depos from others as well confirming everything he's stated. We're good."

"I give it twenty-four to forty-eight hours, tops."

"I'm leaning more toward twenty-four or less."

"That's too quick."

"I may have hinted to Rick during one of my recent interrogations that Mackler was going in, can't remember."

"You never were one for patience," Hunter said, snorting a laugh.

"Nope, that's your department."

"I've got to go, I've got a meeting with the governor in an hour," Hunter finished with a sigh. The governor, police commissioner, and police captain of the local precinct were some of the few who remained committed to ridding the streets of any lingering contacts. He had done things in the past few weeks that didn't follow protocol. He guessed his meeting with the governor in the afternoon would seal his fate.

"He's going to ask you to run for mayor now that Frank's out," Aidan said.

"What?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah, seems the governor and the commissioner are friends. We chatted about it."

"Why the hell didn't you talk him out of it? You know I'm not built for politics. Shit man, I thought he was going to reprimand me or something."

"You know how the commissioner is when he's set on something, and you know how I hate wasting my time. He thinks you'll get a strong public endorsement taking down these guys, and with his support, he seems to think you're a sure thing."

"Well, I won't do it. You should recommend Peter for the job now that he's back. How are the other things coming along?" Hunter said as he finished the last pending file he was working on.

"I got the green light so I'm getting the paperwork finalized. I'm hoping to have everything ready so you and Cam can come by the office this afternoon, tomorrow at the latest."

"That would be great."

"Talk to you later," Aidan said then disconnected the call.

Two hours later, while sitting in the governor's office, arguing his position as to why he would not run for mayor, Hunter's phone chirped.

He stopped the conversation to read the text message from Aidan.

Mackler found beaten and hung in cell.

He paused for a moment then cleared the display and resumed his argument with the governor.

* * * *

Cameron rolled his shoulders as he looked at the wall clock for the hundredth time.

"Why are we here again?" he asked Hunter.

"Aidan wants to talk to you."

"Why here?" Cam looked around the room, shifting again in the chair. The room was immaculately clean and bare. He knew he was in a federal building because of the sign outside, but couldn't see anything beyond the four walls to get any additional information. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. Stop worrying."

Cam straightened in his seat when Aidan arrived.

"Sorry, I saw something on one of the forms that needed updating."

Cam stared at Aidan, willing him to get to the point.

"I'm going to cut to the chase. You've got two options," Aidan began.

Cameron's heart slammed against his chest. He clasped his hands and rested them in his lap.

Hunter reached for him under the table and squeezed his hand.

"Options?" Cam said.

"Option A. Stay here. We're working on getting your record expunged, considering the charges were bullshit. With your sister's statement and your father's confession along with all the info Judge Mackler provided and the supporting testimony coming in on a daily basis from all the red file cases, it shouldn't be a problem. We don't know how extensive the connection is yet regarding the network of contacts. We know it's large, but we're slowly cracking down on them a little bit at a time with each person we interview. The network spreads both in and around the system so we're moving along carefully. We don't know how long you'd be looking over your shoulder, but we figure it's going to be a while until the mess is all cleared up."

"What's the other option?" Cameron asked.

"Option B. Leave. Witness Security Protection."

"Witness protection?"

Aidan nodded. "Clean slate, new identity, new life. No one would know your WITSEC location other than the FBI agent assigned to your case, his boss who leads the protection assignment department, and me. Hunter knows both the FBI agent assigned, Connor Ellis, and his boss, but I've already checked them both out just to be safe. We've got a house ready for you, with big windows on the east side for a great view of the sunrise each morning and a big yard in dire need of landscaping. It was an old estate home so it's got tons of space. You will have one neighbor and he's far enough away to ignore. It's a very private house, sitting on three acres in the country. The only catch is, when you leave, you're gone. No further contact with anyone. Friends, family, no one. We won't run the risk of anyone finding out where you're located."

Cam didn't really know what to say. He heard a hum in his head that seemed to get louder. Only a few select people would know his location. To everyone else, he'd vanish. Hunter wouldn't know his location. He wrapped his arms around his midsection to fight off the sudden chill in his body.

"Cam?" Aidan prompted before his phone chirped. "Think about your answer. I'll be right back," he said before exiting.

"Cam?"

The way Hunter said his name was loaded with tons of emotions. He looked over to him and saw confusion in his piercing silver eyes.

"This is a no brainer," Hunter said, leaning forward.

Cam shrugged. He did want to escape this nightmare and option B held much more promise except for one huge factor…Hunter. He didn't care what he had to go through as long as he had Hunter by his side.

"Cam? I can't imagine you'd want to stay here," Hunter said, frowning.

Cam stood and began pacing the room with his arms crossed, trying to hide how his fingers drummed while his mind raced. He wanted to go but he needed to stay. He finally stopped pacing and turned to Hunter. "I want to stay with you. Looking over my shoulder,
pfft
, I've been doing that for so many years I'm kinda used to it by now."

Hunter crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair. "Doing that for the rest of your life is going to wear you out." He paused for a moment and just stared at Cam. A smile slowly spread across his face. "Besides, I told you, I wasn't going away."

Cam slowly uncrossed his arms and shoved his hands into his back pockets. "You'd come with me?"

Hunter simply nodded.

"But your job—"

"My heart's not in it anymore."

"What if you change your mind? Once you leave, you're gone."

"I'm too stubborn to change my mind. I already had the governor talk to me about running for mayor in the upcoming election and I turned him down. After everything that's happened, I just can't do this anymore."

Cam resumed his pacing. His mind raced with what-if scenarios. "Your dad—"

"I've already spoken to him about it."

Cam thought about Hunter's last minute trip this past weekend and stopped pacing again. "Is this where you went to when you were gone this weekend? To see the house?"

Hunter nodded. "I hated not being with you but I wanted to make sure the house had the sunrise views and the land for your gardening before getting Aidan to push the offer through."

Cam smiled warmly. He'd love to escape and finally have a home with Hunter but his thoughts drifted to Thomas. He deflated at the thought of Hunter's father being alone. "I can't let you abandon your father. I know what that feels like and I can't do it to him," he said sadly as his mind drifted to the morning after the attack when they were at Thomas's house making breakfast.

Hunter stood and reached for Cam's hand, snapping him out of his thoughts. "He already gave me a lecture about life being too short and how I'm a wuss. He finally stopped when I told him I had every intention of going with you."

Cam shook his head. "You're all he's got. I can't hurt him like that."

"Cam, I've already told you. I go where you go. You're not getting rid of me that easily," he said, placing a hand on the side of Cam's neck, pulling him closer. His thumb gently stroked Cam's cheek as he delivered one of those wicked half smiles of his. Hunter's other hand reached under Cam's shirt to his lower back.

Cam closed his eyes, relaxing under the gentle ministrations.

Hunter's warm breath tickled his ear. "Besides, where we're going, you get to see snow."

Cam immediately opened his eyes. "Snow? I've never seen snow."

"I know. Where we're going, you get snow, hot summers, changing leaves, sunrises, and a whole lotta me," he finished with a low rumble chuckle that sent sparks throughout Cam's body.

Cam shook his head and laughed. "I'll go with option B on one condition."

"What's that?"

"Your dad comes with us. Aidan said the house was an old estate home so it should be big enough for us and then some. Right?"

"It's got plenty of bedrooms and part of the house is actually separate so it would work. I'm just not sure I can handle the two of you ganging up on me," Hunter teased.

"Well, that's the deal. Take it or leave it." Cam backed off and crossed his arms in a very poor attempt to appear as if he had the upper hand in this negotiation.