KILLER DATE (SCANDALS) (28 page)

“You’ll be given new identities and relocated to a different state,” the male marshal spoke up.  “It will be the perfect chance for you to get out of the drug business once and for all
like you’ve been wanting.”

The marshals seemed to have done their homework
.  I was impressed.

“
I don’t have any of my things,” Angie said in dismay.

“We stopped by your house and packed your clothes
, a few personal items and your toiletries for you.  You, of course, have the option to stay in Austin, but we highly recommend that you disappear, at least until the drug wars are more contained.”

“How long would that be?” Jenny asked.

The Marshal shrugged.  “Could be a year…or twenty.  That’s up to your friend.”  She nodded toward Nick.  “And how well he does his job.”

Nick
didn’t comment.  We all knew he couldn’t make any promises.

“I guess we don’t have a choice,” Miguel said to Angie.  “I don’t want you to be in constant danger.”

Angie’s eyes filled with tears.  “And I can’t bear thinking about life without you.”

Miguel turned to the Marshal.  “Can I talk with my father and mother before we go?”

“Yes, we can stop by their house on our way to your location.  But, once you enter the program, you can have no contact with any of your friends or family members.  That’s absolutely vital to the success of the program.  The Veracruz family will stop at nothing to track you down…and kill you.  This is a very serious threat.”

Angie’s eyes widened.  “What about my sister?  She can go with us, can’t she?”

“We assumed she would since you are her only surviving family,” the marshal answered.  “We have also packed her things.”

Jenny blinked.  “But I…”

Angie turned to Jenny with excitement.  She saw it as the perfect solution.  “You have to come with us. It’ll be so much fun.”

Jenny looked at me.  She nibbled on her lower lip and frowned.

Silently, I begged her to stay.  I didn’t have the right to come out and voice my opinion.  I couldn’t promise her a forever…not yet.  I didn’t even have a grasp on what forever meant.

Angie left Miguel and she took Jenny’s hand.  “I couldn’t bear going without you.  You promised you’d always be there for me.  I need you.”

With a sigh, Jenny nodded.  “Of course, I’ll go with you.”

The next few minutes were a blur as they hustled
Angie, Miguel and Jenny outside toward a big black SUV with darkly tinted windows.

“Elvis!
” Angie pulled the huge cat out of the carrier that was in the back of the SUV and gave him a hug.  “I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”

The
female marshal said, “I knew you wouldn’t want to leave him behind.”

Angie reluctantly returned him to his carrier and climbed into the back seat where Miguel was already seated.  Jenny lagged behind.  With every step I hoped she would change her mind.  She stopped with her hand on the open door and looked back at me.

I couldn’t resist touching her, so I pulled her into my arms and squeezed her tight.  We knew everyone was watching us, but that didn’t stop me from giving her a long, deep kiss. 

But neither of us said anything.  She stepped into the car and shut the door.  The two marshals got in and turned the car on.  Jenny rolled down the window
, and I felt a rush of air conditioning pour out.  There were tears in her eyes, turning them to the color of dark jade.  The car started to roll.

Fuck, she was really going to leave.
  “Jenny…Jenny…I…”

The car picked up speed, and I had to step back.  I watched in disbelief as it drove away.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

“
I still don’t understand how so much damage could be done to a vehicle without it actually being wrecked.”  Christopher twirled a beer bottle from his fingers as he reclined on a lounge chair.

“You told us it needed some body work,” Dallas defended.

“Yeah, but I didn’t think you would scratch the hell out of it.  And the interior is ruined.”

“They thought we were
carrying drugs,” Dallas told him.

“With Nick there?
” Tulsa asked.

“I don’t sense there’s a lot of trust between the departments,” Dallas said wryly.

“No shit,” Christopher snorted.

“Have you heard from Nick?” Dallas asked.  “His head looked awful.  With all the dirt and junk he got in it, it’ll be amazing if it doesn’t get infected.”

“What do you think, Reno?” Killeen asked. 

She was clearly trying to pull me into the conversation, but I was more focused on getting shit-faced.

“Nick’s a grown man.  If he doesn’t want to get help, no one should force him,” I mumbled and took another drink from the tequila bottle.  I had given up on taking shots about a half hour ago. The tiny glasses made my quest to pass out take too long.

“I’ll bet Jenny was happy to see her sister,” Liberty commented.

“Fucking ecstatic,” I muttered.

We had already discussed the whole trip as soon as we returned to Austin just after noon…leaving out the part about being rescued.  On t
he trip back, we had agreed to stick to Haney’s advice not to tell all the details.  We would stick to the real story up to the point of ending up in Mexico and having to be airlifted out.  Christopher would probably be pissed, but he had enough to be upset about with the Land Rover and the drone that had turned from a borrow to a buy.

“So, how did the meeting with Piper and Nigel go?” Dallas asked.  “Do we have a plan?”

“We talked to her at length about how Dante made his move.  She’s pretty broken up about it, but I think she finally realizes that he never really cared for her…a harsh lesson for someone so young and sheltered.  So, we’re going to stick to the plan.  We’ve already confirmed that the party is still on for the twenty-sixth.”  Christopher looked at Killeen with an exasperated sigh.  “You and Killeen are going to drop in and see if he takes the bait.”

Dallas eyed Killeen’s long, still slender body.  “He will.  She’s exactly his type.”

“She’s going to be wearing a wire and a camera. We’re going to be outside, listening.”  Christopher narrowed his eyes as he stared at Dallas.  “And you’re going to be right outside the bedroom door in case things get out of hand.”

“I’ll take good care of her,” Dallas promised.

“Yes, you will.”  Christopher left no doubt that failure was not an option.

Well, I had had enough of this conversation.  I stood, but almost fell over.  I gripped the back of the lounge chair.  I should have eaten something before I jumped into this drink-myself-into-a-stupor-so-I-didn’t-have-to-think-about-Jenny plan of action.

“I’m headin’ into town.  Anybody wanna come with me?”  My words sounded strangely slurry, but that must be water in my ears from my earlier swim.  I had tried to wear off some of this restlessness with exercise, but I had succeeded in just making myself tired and waterlogged.  “Where do all the women hang out?” I asked Dallas.  I tried to focus on him, but he kept multiplying.

“Dude, you’re not in any condition to go out,” Christopher stepped up to me, obviously ready to physically stop me if I made a move toward the garage.  “Why don’t you call it a night?  You’ve had a hard week.”

You’re fuckin’ right I did. 
But I didn’t say it out loud.  No one had any idea about Jenny and me or last night.  They all thought it was sweet that she was able to go along with her sister and Miguel into the WITSEC program.  To them it had been a happy ending.  To me, it had been another harsh reality check.

Of course she had left me.  Everyone did.  Why had I expected her to be any different?  I had let my guard do
wn for once, and look what happened.  Same song, next verse. 

I truly thought she would be different.  I had feelings for her that were
more special and deeper than anyone else in my life.  Fool that I was, I had almost told her that I loved her as she was driving away.  What a laugh she would have gotten out of that.

The best medicine would be to get back on the horse.  The sooner I fucked some other girl, the quicker I would be able to forget about Jenny.  I had just been dazzled by the whole virgin thing.  Like she had said, it was no big deal.

“If you guys don’t wanna go, I’ll get Gerald to drive me,” I said.  I actually had a little trouble getting Gerald’s name out.  For some reason it was very difficult to form whole thoughts.  I looked around and saw confusion and disappointment in everyone’s eyes.  Yeah, that’s what I was used to seeing.  I had been confusing and disappointing people for almost twenty-three years.  Why change now?

“Fine…see you later.”  I stumbled forward and fell flat on my face.  “Who put that rock there?”  I rolled over and glared at the smooth fieldstones. There must have been something there because I couldn’t have tripped over nothing.

I felt hands under my arms lifting me.

“Come on, Reno. We’re taking you to bed,” Christopher said as he supported me with his arm around my waist.

“That’s the best offer I’ve had today,” I mumbled.  I could feel my eyes closing, and I knew I was dangerously close to achieving my goal.  I hoped I could make it to my bedroom before I passed out…or threw up…or died.

I thought Killeen was pretty damn brave for agreeing to be bait
.  I was still having trouble thinking of her as my sister, but not because I wanted to jump her bones.  Here it was, more than six weeks after I had first set foot in Austin, and it still felt strange to consider myself as part of this newly minted family.

I was becoming more accustomed to having someone to share meals with and to hang out with after work.  In the three weeks since we had gotten back from our accidental trip to Mexico, we had been busy with the more mundane cases that Christopher had promised us.

I didn’t like the stakeouts or following cheating spouses because it gave me too much time to think…and remember.  I tried really hard not to wonder what Jenny was doing every minute of the day and night…and who she might be with.  Quiet times brought back unwelcome memories of her laugh, her eyes, the way she smelled and the perfect fit of her body against mine.

The alcohol hadn’t helped.  But it had taken my mind off Jenny because I had been too sick to have a coherent thought for a whole day.  Dating other women hadn’t done the trick either.  The guys had set me up a couple of times, but even though they were gorgeous, th
ere had been no spark.  The penis hadn’t so much as wiggled.

I had finally admitted my feeling
s for Jenny to Liberty because she was the most empathetic of all my new siblings. 

“You have to go through the four stages of change,” she told me.  “Denial, anger, negotiate with the one causing the issue and then resolve it internally yourself,” Liberty said.

“Aren’t you the
little Dr. Phil,” I teased.  “You need to cut back on the television.”

“Are you kidding?  I’ve learned more about the world in the last month and a half than I did in my nineteen years on the commune.”

“That’s because you lived the same year nineteen times,” I laughed, then sighed.  “The third stage is impossible because I have no way of contacting her for any type of negotiation.”

Liberty studied me with those same pale blue eyes that were the dominant feature of our
shared DNA.  “Would you contact her if you could?”

I had to think about that for a moment.  On the one hand, she had run off at the first chance she had to leave me.  So what if Angie was her last living relative?  Shouldn’t I have counted for something?  But on the other hand, my heart still ached to hear her voice and feel her touch.  However, b
ack to the first hand, her abandonment hadn’t been totally unexpected.  It was just what people do.  No one stayed forever.

“Probably not.
  I’m not part of her new life.  Clean breaks are always the best way to end relationships,” I finally answered Liberty.  “When it’s over, it’s over.  No sense dragging it out.”

I was actually looking forward to tonight.  I was going to be sitting in the van with Christopher and
Tulsa, monitoring the audio and video.  Killeen’s skin-tight strapless dress had no room for anything larger than a tiny microphone and transmitter, but Dallas was able to replace one of his buttons with a very high-grade camera.

We were hanging out in the kitchen, going through
our final checklist.  It was still an hour before we had to leave for the party.

“Hey, I got some good news today,” Christopher said.  “
Nick dropped by.”

“How is Mr. Nice doing?” I asked.  I had
n’t seen him since we had gotten back, but I heard his head required twelve stitches and he had a concussion bad enough to keep him in the hospital for two days, not to mention the three broken ribs.  He had definitely taken the brunt of the blast from that Stinger missile landing in the opening of the cave.

“He’s back at work. 
He showed me all the pictures from his vacation.”  Christopher looked at me.  I tried really hard not to show any reaction, but I had no idea what to expect.  “He sent you a set.  He thought you’d enjoy them.”  Christopher handed me a packet of photographs.

“Prints?
” I asked.

“Nick’s old school,” Christopher explained.

Dallas leaned over my shoulder, looking as I quickly flipped through one picture after another of a beach, some spectacular sunsets, Nick in swim trunks holding a margarita and several healthy young women with their assets spilling out the tops of their bikinis.

“Wonder where he got these?” Dallas whispered.

“Photoshop?” I suggested, keeping my voice low, too.  I looked up at Christopher and smiled.  “Nice photos.  Looks like he had a great time.”

“He said he did.  And he gave me this.”  Christopher held out a piece of paper.

I took it and breathed out a whistle when I saw the amount was in the low six figures.  “What’s this for?”

“Some sort of reward for capturing s
everal members of the Veracruz cartel.  They caught them running away from their incinerated compound and Nick told his boss that Scandals had flushed them out.”  Christopher was in good spirits.  “It’ll pay for a new Land Rover and keep Jared from suing us over the drone.”

Killeen entered the room and conversation stopped.  She was wearing a strapless red-sequined dress that glittered and shimmered with every movement. 
It was short and showed off her incredibly long, shapely legs.  Her straight blond hair was swept to one side and clipped in the back with a rhinestone barrette and arranged to fall over her left shoulder.  A red hibiscus, with a tiny camera embedded inside was tucked over her right ear.  Tall, athletic but not overly muscular, with skin the color of fresh honey, there was no doubt that any room she entered would draw the attention of everyone there.  I almost felt sorry for Dante.  He didn’t have a chance. But then, he didn’t deserve one.

Christopher’s mood darkened instantly.  He had done all he could to talk her out of this, but she was determined to pull her weight
at Scandals.  She was putting herself in the lion’s den, but she would be surrounded by brothers and sisters who would fiercely protect her.

“Damn woman, you look amazing,” I declared, trying to fill the silence. 

“Hey, watch your mouth,” Christopher retorted.  “You’re talking to a mother.”

“Not until January,” Killeen reminded him and wound her arms around his neck.  “And I promise to take it easy as soon as
we wrap up this case.”  She gave him a mind-numbing kiss that left a smear of red lipstick on his mouth.  “Are we ready to party?”

Forty-five minutes
later we found a parking spot less than a block from the old mansion that housed Dante’s fraternity.  We had good visual, but were partially hidden behind the trunk of an old oak tree so they weren’t likely to notice us.  We had a couple of security vans, but this one looked like an average soccer mom-mobile.  It was white with thin pink stripes along the sides, a “My Kid is an Honor Student” sticker on the bumper and those goofy little family stickers on the window showing there was a dad, a mom, a boy who played baseball, a girl who was a cheerleader, a baby, a dog and cat on the back window.  Inside, it was fully equipped with audio and video monitors and recorders lining the walls.  We set everything up and gave Dallas and Killeen the signal.