Eleven Days: An Unexpected Love (59 page)

As Mike sat there holding
her
hand crying, a nurse walked in, a little short nurse who waddled when
she
walked.
She
had on scrubs and they were rolled up at the ankle because
she
was
so short.
Her
hair
was
combed nice in the front, short
with
bangs. The back looked like a rats nest.
She
tried to fix only the hair
she
could see. "I'm looking for a Mike Ramsey?"

"I'm Mike Ramsey."

"Ms. Andrews wanted me to give t
his
to you if
she
passed away
." And just like
that
she
handed it to him and walked off, waddling.

When he first looked at it he smelled it and
she
could smell
Lana
on the envelope and he can see
her
little hand folding the paper. He didn't want to open it, but he knew he needed to
see what last words she wrote to him
.
His
hands were shaking terribly and he sat next to
her
body. He could picture
her
lying there writing t
his
.

My Dearest Mike,

I'm watching you sleep in the chair next to me. And it brings tears to my eyes to know when you get t
his
note I'll be gone, but I can't talk so I have to write t
his
. You are the most wonderful thing
that
has ever happened to me. I fell in love
with
you the minute I saw you. I too wanted to kiss you and
touch you at
that
moment. You make my heart and soul smile. I wish I had many years
with
you, but we don't get
that
choice. If I can I will look down on you, and I will smile
with
the fondest of memories. The first night you made love to me
was
one of the most precious memories I could ever have. Your touch broke so many barriers to my heart. You made me feel again. Please my wonderful friend, lover, and companion; remember me. Remember the feelings we had, and I want you to have
that
feeling again. Live a wonderful fulfilled life, and tell Joe there is a wonderful woman for him. And tell him true love is out there because we found it.

I love you infinite,
Lana

Oh God, help me
, he thought as he held
her
letter next to
his
chest, next to
his
heart. T
his
one
piece of paper he
would
never part
with
, ever.
I'm sorry I didn't protect you like I promised, oh baby, I'm so sorry.
His
heart hurt so bad he thought he
might
have a heart attack. If it
was
n't for catching Angelino Marquit, he hope
d
for a heart attack. In
his
mind he said
his
name over and over again. He knew he
would
kill him and say Lana's name as he died. Hate for Angelino Marquit filled
his
heart and
his
goal
was
to catch him and kill him. Mike's thoughts were interrupted.

"I'm sorry I
was
told
Lana
Andrews is in t
his
room." The funeral home attendant looked down at
his
paper to make sure he had the right room.

"T
his
is
her
room and I'm Mike Ramsey. I'll be escorting the body and staying
with
her
through the embalming process."

"What?" The kid
looked at him
dumbfounded.
He wasn't expecting t
his
at all
.

Mike pulled out
his
badge and showed it to the attendant. He had
his
hand on
his
gun to show he meant business. T
his
guy
appeared to the
right height for the killer and he
didn't want to
take any chances. "I need to see your driver's license."

The attendant reached for
his
wallet and showed Mike
his
ID, and he asked. "
What's
going on
, am I doing something wrong
?"

"
She
's
under protective custody and now my final assignment is to stay
with
her
until
she
is buried."

"Okay, no problem." T
his
was
a first for him, but heck he didn't care he just had to deliver the body to the funeral home.

Both men walked over to the body. Mike
was
going to take the sheet off, but the attendant stopped him and said. "We can take the sheet and keep
her
covered."

"
She
would
appreciate
that
, thanks."

Mike gently picked
Lana
up and put
her
in the black bag and zipped it up and the attendant
put
his
ear plug in
his
ears to listen to music. It
was
obvious he had done t
his
before
, like a se
cond nature to him. They walked out the room
with
out saying a word.

Joe
sat
outside the room crying as the gurney
rolled past him. Mike put
his
hand on
his
shoulder. "You can go home Joe, I'll take over from here."

Joe touched the black bag and said. "Goodbye
Lana
." He walked off so heartbroken he couldn't stand it.
His
shoulders shook as he sobbed.

As Mike walked down the hall of the hospital all
his
men were lined up
with
their badge numbers covered
with
black tape. They put their hands across their hearts as
she
rolled past them
.

*****

As he promised Mike stayed
with
Lana
until the moment
she
was
buried in the ground.

Chapter 39

Day 16

October 30, 10:18 a.m.

The team waited in Mike's office anticipating the case to chase Angelino Marquit. They didn't want the time to grieve. They wanted their pinned up emotions to guide them. Raymond and Joe knew if Mike couldn't get t
his
case, he
would
quit the Marshals. Dread filled their emotions, and they hoped Mike got
his
wish.

Mike entered Deputy Director Craven's office and he
was
on the phone and he motioned for Mike to sit. Mike didn't want to sit, but he did anyway. The director
got
off the phone in
with
in a few minutes. Mike sat there solemn.

The director sat in
his
overstuffed leather chair and took a deep breath. "Mike I'm so sorry to hear about
Lana
.
She
sacrificed
her
life for Joe and we will be eternally grateful." He
was
distracted by writing a phone number on a piece of paper.

"Thank you sir, do you know why I'm here?" Mike decided if the director didn't give him t
his
case, he
was
prepared to give him
his
badge and Glock. Mike usually
took
whatever assignments were given to him and many times he wanted certain assignment
that
the director
didn't
give him. T
his
one he wanted or he
would
quit.

"Raymond mentioned something about it."

Mike knew perfectly well Raymond did more than mention t
his
case. "I
would
like for my team to hunt down Angelino Marquit." Just saying
his
name added fuel to Mike's fire
that
he felt deep down in
his
belly. He
knew he
would
hunt Marquit down and kill him. He remembered
Lana
telling him
she
wanted to kill him.
I'll get him for you, and I promise I'll kill him
, thought Mike.

The director looked in Mike's eyes to see if there were any telltale signs
that
Mike should or should not get
t
his
case. Because of the coolness Mike always showed he couldn't tell. "You are too emotionally involved," he finally said.

"
That
makes me more determined, and besides it's not only me, it's also my team." Every word in
that
statement
was
a true as it gets. He knew Joe and Raymond
would
work overtime to catch t
his
guy.

"I knew you
would
come ask me for t
his
case and I've talked to the FBI Director and we came to a conclusion."

Mike's jaw tightened because he knew he
would
be asked to take a backseat to the FBI investigation. "What's
that
sir?"

"Since the FBI started on a new serial killer case and they need all the men they can get. Normally, they
would
n't be pulling men from t
his
case. But since you are so determined to catch him, they are willing to turn the case over to you."

Mike half grinned and he knew he
would
work t
his
case until he found him. Not only
that
, he
would
be in charge of finding t
his
killer and nothing pleased him more. "I hear a-but in there."

"Yes you do. You can only take three men besides yourself and one tech investigator. I recommend Gopher. He's the best at hacking and he's a deputy. Sara will have orders
that
assisting you will take priority. By the way,
she
asked me for t
his
assignment.
She
loves you guys, and I don't understand why. They way you all tease
her
."

"Yes sir. What about Ken Summers? Is there any way I can have him on the team?" Mike knew between Gopher's hacking and Kens profiling they
would
be an unstoppable team.

Director Craven already heard about Ken and
his
computer, but both were out of
his
jurisdiction. "I'll have to talk to the FBI director, but I doubt he will give up him or
his
computer. But maybe I get
all the help you need, even if it's long distance. Is
that
acceptable?"

"Yes sir, it is."

"One more thing."

"Yes sir."

"You only have thirty days. See those boxes over there?"

Mike looked at the corner of the office and nodded.

"
That
's the case files and your thirty days starts at midnight. Good luck Mike and again my condolences." The director then hands Mike a piece of paper
with
all the FBI agents who had been working on the case. "I've been told you can have one agent to help, and if you want one
that
's up to you. Anyway, you have the list. They know more about Marquit than anyone else."