Blindsided (11 page)

“Did you get that from the safe?” she asked.

“It’ll make a good spare, and yes, I took it from your collection. I’ll make sure you get it back.”

She shrugged. “Take what you need. I wouldn’t even know how to use it.”

His sharp gaze lifted off the gun and onto her. “Then come here.” Ethan extended his hand for her to take.

His open palm hung before her like a hot coal.

Strange how a moment ago she had offered a hand to Maddie and scoffed at the girl’s timidity in taking it. And now here she was shying away from what could only be a hand out to help her.

Slowly she pushed forward, but taking Ethan’s hand wasn’t necessary. “I can get up myself.” She stood and held out her hand for the gun, but instead of giving it to her, he took her hand and pulled her close. In one move he twirled her around so her back came into contact with his chest, his arm holding her tight.

His warm breath hit her ear as he brought the gun up in front of her. A shiver raced through her that only multiplied when his deep voice spoke low, vibrating across her ear.

“Put your hands on the grip. Leave your finger off the trigger,” he instructed.

She followed his direction, though she wasn’t sure if anything came after the first step. Her own breathing sounded so loud in her head.

“Do you know which eye is your dominant eye?”

“Pardon?” she said, her voice rising a bit.

“Which of your eyes sees the true target? You have one dominant eye and one that is off its mark. Sometimes you only get one shot. You don’t want to miss.”

“I understand.”

“I figured you would. You’re smart like that.”

Roni couldn’t stop her lips from bending. Something about the way Ethan complimented her touched her. Maybe it was because he sounded so sincere. Jared used to sound like that. He would tell her how smart she was and...

Roni let the smile slip from her face.

“...you have to understand the basics of how a handgun operates. With the exception of .22 ammunition, most, if not all, other handgun ammunition is called centerfire rounds...”

Jared had always admired her intelligence. But then she was helping him advance in his career. He would want to encourage her to share all, she realized. So he could take advantage of all she knew.

“...the primer is a small self-contained cap that is shock-sensitive. When you pull the trigger you strike it. It sends a small explosion into the casing and ignites the gunpowder inside the casing...”

Ethan was different, though. He had nothing to gain in telling her she was smart. She could offer him no skills to help him climb the ladder.

“...gunpowder burns and the chemical reaction causes gas expansion, which fires the bullet. Understand so far?”

She nodded, feeling the side of his cheek hit against her neck when she moved. “Sorry.”

“For what?”

“I didn’t mean to bump you with my neck.”

His face so close to hers stilled. “Why would that bother me?”

“Because it’s gross. Even with the scarf on.”

He brought the gun down by his side and spun her around. His arm no longer engulfed her, and she missed it instantly.

Anger scorched her from deep within his eyes. “Take it off,” he demanded.

Her hand went to her neck. “I already told you no.”

“I thought you said you were done with appearances. Lady, you walk around every day flashing the brightest appearance of anyone.”

Roni pressed in, undaunted. “You’re right. I won’t lie. It is an appearance. If people knew the truth—”

“They wouldn’t care.”

“You’re wrong. You haven’t lived with the looks of disgust that flash on people’s faces before they can catch their reactions.”

“Sweetheart, I know all about looks of disgust. I may not have physical scars, but being a dirty kid from the hood had the same effect. There was no covering that stench up. People could smell me from across the room. I know exactly the looks of revulsion you’re talking about. But they aren’t a reflection of you. They’re a reflection of ignorance. People just need to be taught.”

“I want to teach drivers to race, not sit around the campfire giving lessons on etiquette and singing ‘Kumbaya’ with them.”

“It doesn’t start with a lesson on etiquette. It starts with you knowing your worth.”

“He’s right,” Maddie interrupted. “So many girls I see come and go from the Boss’s house. They come already broken. They don’t know their worth. They don’t know Jesus loves them. He wants to help them. He wants to make them beautiful.”

Roni scoffed. “How can you sit there and say Jesus wants to help them when He could take all their pain away in an instant? He could have taken your pain away. So many cry out in pain. They’re a hostage to it. He could free them in the blink of an eye.”

“He already has.” Maddie moved to the edge of the sofa, her hands folded on her knees. “He ransomed us to spend eternity with Him by dying on the cross for our sins. We are free. Free and forgiven.”

Roni sneered. “Being forgiven doesn’t relieve the pain.”

“No, but knowing how valuable you are to God gives you the strength you need to get through it.”

Maddie looked to Ethan. “Agent Ethan, I heard you in car. I can tell you for sure, you are forgiven. God doesn’t see your guilt. He sees His son standing on all sides of you, claiming you as His and choosing you for something great. Something He planned long ago.”

Ethan remained still, and his gaze never left Maddie’s.

“Knowing that gives you strength.
Sí
? Knowing God has plans for you gives you strength. He wants to make you beautiful, but that comes only when you stop hiding and learn your worth. Do you believe you are forgiven, Agent Ethan? Will you let Jesus make you worthy?”

Ethan looked at Roni, his eyes imploring her to agree so he could accept Maddie’s declaration of forgiveness.

Roni couldn’t get on board. “Too many times I cried out to God to take me, and He never answered my prayers.” She waved a hand at Ethan. “Do what you want, but honestly, I think you’re too hard on yourself. And as for God making you more beautiful, I don’t think He’ll have too much work to do in that department. Just saying.”

Ethan flashed her his electrifying grin. “You like what you see, do you?”

“The fire burned my neck, not my eyes. I know beauty when I see it.”

Ethan moved in close to her, his grin sobered into a thin line. “Except beauty comes from here—” He pointed to her head, continuing, “and here.” He pointed to her chest, lifting the tail of her scarf to ripple through his large, masculine fingers. “A piece of silk isn’t it.”

“Roni!” a woman’s voice called and Roni exhaled on a hard breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding.

She stepped away from Ethan to find her maid, Cora Daniels, entering through the doorway with Wade and Lacey and Cora’s sister. Uncle Clay stepped up behind Cora as she rushed at Roni, arms out. “Oh, I can’t believe you’re here. I just can’t believe it.”

Ethan hauled Roni back before Cora made contact. Roni tried to push his arms away, but he held fast.

“Why would it be so hard for you to believe that Roni’s here, Ms. Daniels? Could it be because you paid someone to make sure she never returned?”

TWELVE

“E
than! What do you think you’re doing?” Roni swung around to face him. He ignored her shocked and irate expression to keep his eyes on the woman Roni loved as a mother. A woman who could be the enemy within her walls.

Ethan sized up the petite woman, early sixties, chestnut hair with gray at the temples and pulled back into a bun at the nape of her neck. Her yellow blouse and tan pants were crisp and of high quality. She looked as though she could be the owner of the estate and not the hired help.

“You said you were tired of appearances. That means asking the tough questions to get to the truth. If Ms. Daniels loves you like you think she does, then she won’t mind.”

The maid brought her arms down to her side. “It’s all right, Roni. I’ll answer whatever you want, Agent Gunn.”

Clay rushed forward, stepping in front of the maid. “Oh, this is insane! Cora would never put Veronica in harm’s way. How dare you suggest that she would.”

“Clayton.” Ms. Daniels put her hand on his forearm and let it linger. One might say even held on as a united front. “I have nothing to hide.”

Ethan eyed Roni and saw she, too, watched the friendly hand gesture between the maid and the uncle. There was a closeness between the two that went beyond employer and employee.

“How long has this been going on?” Roni asked. “And don’t lie and tell me I’m wrong. That’s why you were at his house when I called, isn’t it?”

Cora inhaled sharply but quickly regained her regal-like composure. She did remove her hand slowly from Clay’s arm and folded her own at her front.

“I told you why she was there,” Clay Spencer snarled. “You’re crossing the line, missy. What Cora does in her free time is none of your business. You don’t own her.”

“Own her?” Roni recoiled. She looked to Maddie sitting uneasily on the edge of the sofa. “I think I’ve had enough of people owning people. It makes me sick.”

“Then let her make her own choices, even if you don’t agree.”

Roni locked gazes with her maid. “You want to retire. Is that what this is about?”

“I just want to hold you right now. I have been beside myself with fear that I would never see you again. I thank God that you are home and safe. Nothing else matters right now.”

Cora stepped forward for Roni again. Roni moved to meet her and took the older woman gently in her arms. It seemed the two melted into each other.

Ethan took in the faces around the room. Everyone except Clay watched with rapt attention and small smiles of understanding. They all knew of the bond between Roni and Cora and respected it as a mother’s and child’s.

Everyone except Clay Spencer.

Why? Jealousy of their relationship? Did he harbor feelings for Cora all these years and, with Roni in the way, couldn’t act on them? Was that the reason he wanted Roni married and moved on? Did it have nothing to do with staying on as CEO for Spencer Speedway and everything to do with a hidden love he could never act upon with her here?

People would do a lot for love.

Some might even be driven to murder after forty years of being deprived of voicing their feelings.

Clayton Spencer had once befriended the man who killed Bobby and Meredith Spencer. Clay moved in to play the part of guardian for Wade and Roni...but was that only for appearances’ sake?

Ethan firmed up what this whole scene must have looked like. Cora Daniels, maid/mother. Clayton Spencer, uncle/father.

For a while, Clay was as close to his dream as he could possibly get, living under the same roof with the woman he loved, raising two wounded children, biding his time until they were grown and moved on, leaving him and Cora in their empty nest.

But there will always be obstacles thrown into the paths of our dreams. And things didn’t go as Spencer planned. Clay Spencer wasn’t planning on his little Veronica kicking him out when she grew up, instead of leaving herself.

Roni was an expert at avoiding obstacles on the track, but did she know she was her uncle’s biggest obstacle in his life, and he had been trying to get around her this whole time?

The two other women in the room stepped up to Cora and Roni. The first to reach for Roni was a small, but tough-looking young woman in her mid-to-late twenties. Her long brown hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail. When she spoke to welcome Roni home, her deep Southern drawl told Ethan she must be Wade’s wife, Lacey.

The other woman reached for Cora and they cried together. They were similar in age and Ethan judged by their features that they were sisters. They were obviously close, even though Cora’s clothing came from one of those high-class boutiques and the other woman’s didn’t. It dawned on Ethan that Jared Finlay was Cora’s nephew.

Did that make this woman Jared’s mother?

“I will need your names,” he said to the ladies when they had disengaged and were ready to help him find Roni’s enemy. “I’ll need to run checks on everyone in this room. Don’t take it personal.”

The sister stepped up to him, tears streaming down her face, her chin trembling. “You’re a federal agent?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“I’m Tanya Finlay.” Her voice cracked with more tears choking her words. “I think the person you are looking for is my son.”

* * *

Cora held her sister’s hand for support as she told all she knew about her son. Roni knew Cora’s care and love firsthand and wouldn’t impede the younger sister offering it to the other, even if Tanya was Jared’s mother, and her son might be the one trying to kill Roni. She had to figure no mother wanted her child to grow up to become a killer, and Tanya had done her best in raising Jared given her circumstances in life.

Cora and Tanya grew up down in the village, long before the revitalization of Norcastle took place. Their home was like so many during the decline of the economy: a dreary, run-down reflection of late 19th century factory worker housing. The rows of boxed homes were never more than utilitarian roofs over the workers’ heads to begin with, but add years of economic downslide to them, and that was the picture of Cora’s and Tanya’s childhood.

It was Cora who applied as the Spencer family maid forty years ago when Bobby and Meredith Spencer came to town to open a racetrack that would lift the town out of its economic hole. Jobs by the hundreds became available, and slowly new life spread over Norcastle.

But not over Tanya’s household.

While Roni dated Jared, he had shared about his absent father—not much, but enough for her to know Adam Finlay had a gambling problem and was off somewhere looking for his next win. A win he always said would be coming soon.

Roni remembered her uncle Clay kicking him out of the racetrack when she was younger. The Finlay patriarch thought he would provide for his family by running a gambling network at the track and betting on races.

Roni had to admit that was one thing she agreed with Uncle Clay about. Spencer Speedway would not be used as a betting track. People came for the love of the sport, not for losing their shirts. It would be a place that would bring families together, not a place that would break them apart.

“Jared left town three days ago. He hasn’t checked in,” Tanya said.

“We need to call Sylvie.” Roni interrupted Ethan’s questioning. “We know Jared has my car. We know he tried to kill us at the gas station. We know he did kill whoever was in that helicopter.”

“Who’s Sylvie?” Ethan asked.

“She’s the chief of police.”

“I don’t think involving the police is what you want right now. Not until you’re ready to turn yourself in to the FBI. That will set off all kinds of alarms.”

“Sylvie’s a friend from the track. I’ll call her personal line. She has to know what Jared is capable of.”

Tanya turned her head into Cora’s neck and cried quietly. Cora soothed her with a hand to her back and to Roni, she cast scolding eyes. “Consider your words, Roni.”

“I’m sorry, but there’s no way of making this pretty, nor should we. I’m calling Sylvie. At the very least, she should know Norcastle is about to have visitors.”

Roni walked to the end table for the handheld, but before she could pick it up, Ethan beat her to it. “No phone. It’s tapped.”

“And you know this how?” Wade asked.

Ethan’s gaze stayed on her. “Because I tapped it.”

Uncle Clay reached into his pants pocket and removed his cell. “You can use my phone. Unless you found a way to be listening in on my phone calls, too.”

“No, you weren’t the suspect.”

The room grew quiet with all eyes on Roni.

Wade spoke first. “What exactly do you have on my sister that would cause you to tap her phone?”

“Bank records, emails, a trip to Florida that resulted in the smuggling of people into port...and a relationship with Franco Guerra.”

Roni recoiled her hand from Ethan’s where it still held hers on the phone. “I never met Guerra before the night he kidnapped me.”

“They have a picture of you with him in Florida. You’re shaking hands. You have met him before. You may not remember it, but that won’t matter in court. And this will go to court. It will take more than my word to clear you of wrongdoing.”

“I would remember that sleazy man. Where’s the picture? There has to be an explanation.”

“I’m sure there is. Especially if someone wanted to make sure you were locked up for a long time.” Ethan surveyed the faces in the room. “If anyone knows anything that would clear Roni’s name, you have to tell me.”

At the heavy silence and disheartened faces, Roni looked at Tanya. “I’m sorry, but if your son did this to me, he will pay dearly.”

Tanya produced pleading hands toward Roni. “I’m so sorry, Roni. I don’t understand. He loved you.”

“No he didn’t. He loved the thrill. He loved what I did for him. And when I took that away, he sought retaliation. It’s as plain as his driving was before I taught him everything he knows. Without me he’s nothing.”

“Roni!” Cora raised her voice. “I told you to watch what you say. She is hurting just as much as you. Can’t you see that?”

“I don’t trust anything I see anymore. Nothing is as it seems.” Roni reached for her throat, and for the first time her own scarf, giving the biggest false appearance in the room, felt like a burn all over again. She retracted her hand and held it out for Clay’s phone.

“I’m calling Sylvie. She’ll know what to do. She’ll be able to see the truth through all the lies. Even all the lies in this room.”