Love Inspired Suspense June 2014 Bundle 1 of 2: Undercover Marriage\Collateral Damage\Forgotten Past (14 page)

“That's what Burke said.” Josh grabbed her hand. “Come on, let's get closer.”

On the dais, Simms began his speech. “Thank you, good citizens of St. Louis and the great state of Missouri. What a great turnout.”

People clapped. Photographers snapped photos. Energy charged the air. Serena concentrated on the sea of faces, looking for Mr. Munders.

“We gather here today out of love for our state, for our country. We gather here today out of concern for our country.” Simms smiled wide, his bright blue gaze grazing over the audience. “We have an opportunity today to effect some change. Our country is in turmoil. We need new leadership.” A roar of agreement went up from the crowd. After a beat, Simms said, “I am going to be that leader. I'm announcing my bid for the office of president of the United States.”

A cheer erupted.

“Tell the people how you got your funding!” A loud, gravelly voice yelled from somewhere to Serena's right.

Josh froze.

Serena bumped against him. She scanned the crowd.

Catching sight of the lawyer, Serena pointed. “Josh, it's Munders! See him? In the gray suit and the tortoiseshell glasses.”

Josh tugged her forward. They pushed through the crowd. Josh yelled, “Move, U.S. Marshals!”

People scattered. Serena kept her gaze on Munders as he weaved and bobbed, evading capture as officers moved in on him.

Simms quickly grabbed the nearest officer, though the mic picked up his words. “That man is wanted by the U.S. Marshals. He's crazy. You have to stop him.”

“Don't believe him!” Munders shouted. “He's covering up murder and corruption!” He turned and ran for the visitors' center.

Serena and Josh chased after Munders, leaving behind the buzz of reporters and photographers swarming the congressman. Serena knew others would take Simms statement and investigate Munders's allegations.

“The tram!” Serena pointed to a staircase down which Munders had disappeared. The staircase led to the tram that conveyed passengers to the uppermost part of the arch.

They raced down the stairs.

“Move, move!” Josh instructed the throng of people coming and going from the tram.

“Munders, halt!” Josh shouted.

Munders skidded to a stop in front of a tram door for the south leg and whirled around. He held a weapon.

“Gun!” Serena shouted.

Screams echoed in the cavernous arch lobby. People scattered, some crouching to make themselves smaller targets.

The tram doors to the south leg of the arch slid open. A family of four tried to leave the pod. Munders pushed them back in, holding them at gunpoint until the door slid shut. The tram on the north leg had an out-of-service sign taped to the doors.

“I'll take the stairs, you jump in that capsule,” Josh instructed, pointing to the next open pod on the tram.

“Josh, there are over a thousand steps,” Serena said, remembering being impressed by the number when she was a kid. “He'll be back down before you reach the top.”

Gripping her by the elbow, he shoved her into the egg-shaped pod. She ducked to keep from hitting her head. “I'll meet you up there.”

The doors slid shut. Alone inside the small, white capsule, Serena was forced to sit as the tram inched its way up to the highest peak of the arch. The swaying motion of the car made her stomach churn. Every nerve in her body throbbed with anticipation and anxiety.

What would Munders do? Would she and Josh be able to disarm him before he hurt anyone?

When she reached the pinnacle of the arch, the door slid open just as an emergency alarm echoed off the steel walls. The tram doors locked in the open position.

Cautiously, Serena stepped out, her weapon at the ready. She waved startled civilians out of the way.

Having released the family trapped in the pod with him, Fred Munders pushed through the other visitors, clearly looking for an escape in the seven-foot-wide landing. The observation windows were only seven by twenty-seven inches, not large enough to squeeze through and hurl himself, or anyone else, to their death.

He saw Serena and his gaze narrowed. He grabbed the nearest woman, an older lady with short curly hair, dressed in Bermuda shorts and a print blouse. She shrieked as he dragged her in front of him, using her as a shield. He held the gun to the woman's head. “Lay down your weapon!”

The hostage's pale blue eyes pleaded with Serena to protect her. Knowing she had backup on the way, Serena lowered the gun to the ground and then held up her hands. She had to defuse the situation. She couldn't let a civilian get hurt. “You don't want to do this, Mr. Munders. Matilda needs you.”

“She's not involved!” he shouted. “Get this tram going again!”

Knowing she had to talk him down, Serena strove to keep her voice even, nonthreatening. “I can't. There's no way out, Fred. Let me help you.”

He scoffed. “Help me? You want to put me away for things I didn't do.”

Reining in anger and disgust that even now he would deny his culpability, she said, “Then who? Congressman Simms?”

A door at the far end of the observation deck slid open. Josh stepped out, his chest heaving with exertion, but the gun he aimed at Munders was rock steady. Munders swung his weapon toward Josh. “Hold it. Don't make a move or I'll blow your head off.”

Serena's throat constricted. She inched forward. If she could get close enough, she could disarm Munders.

Josh held up his hands in entreaty. “No one wants to get hurt, Fred.”

“You should have left well enough alone,” Fred shouted. “And if your nosy buddy had done the same, he'd still be alive!”

Serena froze. Shock tore through her. She met Josh's startled gaze.

“Who are you talking about?” Josh asked.

Fred dragged his hostage backward until his back was at the wall. He swept the weapon back and forth between Josh and Serena, before coming to a halt at the base of his hostage's head. “Your dead partner, Marshal McCall.”

FOURTEEN

J
osh's heart clawed into his throat. Munders murdered Daniel? How else would Munders know they had been partners? It was too surreal. All this time they'd been trying to bring the man to justice for an entirely different reason, not knowing he was the one who'd killed Serena's brother.

“You killed Daniel?”

The shock and rage in Serena's voice threaded through Josh, wrapping around his heart like packing tape.

Fred shifted slightly to face Serena, the gun in his hand aimed at the woman held captive in his arms. The woman had her eyes squeezed closed and her lips moved with silent words.

“Whoa! I didn't say that!” Fred cried. “You can't pin his murder on me.”

“Then who?” she demanded, stepping forward; the intense blaze in her brown eyes should have burned Munders to ash.

Josh used the distraction Serena provided to edge closer to Munders.

“Not so quick, missy!” Fred shouted, wildly waving the gun in his hand.

Onlookers screamed. Some hit the deck. Josh froze, afraid Munders would shoot an innocent bystander.

“If you want to know who killed your brother,” Fred continued, “then make me a deal.”

Frustration flared in her expression. “You know I don't have the authority to do that. The only way you'll get a deal is if you release the hostage and come with us peacefully.”

Josh inched another foot toward Munders.

“You bring the AG here,” Munders countered. “When I hear him say the words then I'll tell you what you want to know.”

“The attorney general isn't coming up here, Fred,” Serena said. “What about Matilda? Your wife doesn't understand what's happening. She deserves to know why she's going to jail.”

Fred's face crumbled with pain and guilt. “I should have sent her away sooner. But she's lost without me.” His expression hardened. “Don't you hurt her!”

Josh met Serena's gaze. He willed her to keep him distracted.

Serena held up her hands, palms out. “No one wants to hurt Matilda. She's a sweet lady who's been caught up in your mess. You need to do the right thing by your wife. Turn yourself in, face what you have done.”

Josh closed in on the older man's position. Another foot and he'd be close enough to grab him.

Munders must have sensed the movement. He whirled toward Josh, the gun aimed at his heart. “Not another step, Marshal.”

The hostage in Munders's clutches whimpered, and the terror in her wide eyes ripped through Josh's chest.

“Fred!” Serena's sharp, fear-filled voice bounced against the steel walls. “Matilda needs you.”

Keeping his gaze on the weapon aimed at him, Josh said, “Think of your wife, man. If you shoot me, you'll get the death penalty. Then what would happen to her?”

“She loves you, Fred,” Serena said, her voice now soft and coaxing. “If you cooperate, you can see her. Help her to understand what's happening. She's scared and alone. You don't want her to face this by herself, do you?”

Indecision marched across Fred's face. He turned toward Serena, the weapon in his hand now aimed at Serena's heart. Josh's gut clenched. He couldn't let the man hurt Serena. From the moment he stepped out of the stairwell, when he'd seen Munders aiming his weapon at Serena, Josh's blood had run cold. If anything happened to her, he wouldn't be able to go on.

In that instant, a truth he'd been trying to deny slammed into him.

He loved Serena.

Acceptance of that fact slid into place like a puzzle piece that had been missing.

Sending up a silent plea of protection for the woman he loved, Josh launched himself at Munders, slamming him against the wall and knocking the gun out of his hand.

Serena rushed forward to kick the weapon aside.

Munders's head hit the wall. A loud groan escaped. He loosened his hold on the hostage in his arms.

The woman twisted away and ran into Serena's waiting arms. She hustled the woman a few feet away and worked to calm her.

Josh grabbed Munders, spun him around to face the wall and yanked his arms behind his back. He grabbed the zip ties from his pocket. With satisfaction, he secured Munders's wrists together.

Serena hurried over with her phone. “The arch employees are going to get the tram going again.”

Josh stared at her, taking in her pale complexion, her wide brown eyes, and felt his heart expand, nearly exploding from his chest. There had been a moment when he'd thought Munders would hurt her, and everything inside Josh had rebelled. He'd have gladly traded his life for hers.

He reached out to smooth a hand over her cheek. “You're okay?”

She turned her cheek into his palm. “Yes.” Her gaze held his. “I thought he was going to kill you. I couldn't have taken losing you, too.”

Her words shuddered through Josh.

Did he dare hope that she returned his feelings? And if she did, what then?

He forced his heart and his head to stay on task.

Dropping his hand away, he said, “Let's get him out of here.”

* * *

The St. Louis police station buzzed with activity. Serena wove her way through the officers in Josh's wake toward the hall where the interrogation rooms were located. Her heart still pounded in her chest like an over-revved engine. Deep, calming breaths hadn't helped. Nothing would until she knew who had murdered her brother and why.

Josh held Munders in a firm grip, having refused to allow anyone else to take custody of their suspect. Serena appreciated how much Josh wanted answers, too.

He had as much at stake as she did in hearing the details of her brother's death.

She sent up a silent plea that truth would set Josh free of the burden of guilt he unjustly carried. She prayed Josh would realize he wasn't to blame and allow his heart to open to her, to her love.

It had taken seeing him almost get killed for her to admit to herself how deeply her feelings for Josh went. Her love for him was solidly in place. Whatever the risks, or the costs, she wanted a life with him.

“Inside,” Josh commanded Munders as they reached the open door of an interrogation room.

The chief stopped Serena with a hand on her shoulder when she would have followed Josh into the room. Stung, she turned her gaze on her superior. “I need to hear this.”

Harrison nodded. “You can from here.”

He gestured for her to join him and the police captain in a smaller room that had a two-way mirror looking into the interrogation room. The mirror separated her from the man who held the secrets to her brother's death. The police captain hit a switch, allowing them to listen in.

“You said I could see my wife,” Munders complained. He slumped in the metal chair. The guard cut the zip ties before stepping back. Munders rubbed his wrists.

“In due time. First tell me what you know about Marshal Daniel Summers's murder.” Josh loomed over Fred, his expression as hard as granite.

“I told you, I'm not talking until I have a deal.” His arms resting on the table next to the yellow pad and pen, waiting for his confession, Munders glanced up at Josh. “You tell the attorney general that.”

Josh threw a glance at the mirrored wall. Serena felt Josh's impatience all the way through her bones.

“Why isn't the AG here?” she asked Harrison.

“He's here talking to the congressman, hoping to clear up Munders's accusations.”

“Then we need him to talk to Munders,” Serena said, aware her voice had risen but helpless to control the frustration constricting her throat.

“I'll let Mr. Kannon know what's going on,” the police captain said and left the room.

Inside the interrogation room, Josh said, “We have you on the illegal adoptions. Your signature is on the paperwork.” He leaned in, planting his hands on the table. “Do yourself a favor and cooperate. It will go smoother for you and your wife.”

“Where is she?” Munders asked. He swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing, as if he were finding it difficult to hold back his emotions.

“She's here, sitting in a jail cell.” Josh straightened, his voice hardening. “Is that what you want for your wife? For her to rot in jail?”

“She didn't know,” Munders insisted again. “She trusted me. She's sick.” He splayed his hands, palms up, on the table. “Please, she shouldn't be punished for my actions.”

Serena's heart twisted with something akin to empathy. It was obvious the man loved his wife. She tamped down any and all sympathy for the guy. He was a murderer. Though she doubted he'd bloodied his hands literally, he'd ordered the deaths of several witnesses. He knew something about Daniel's death. Her fingers curled into a fist.

She willed Josh to break Fred, to make him talk.

“Look, I want to help you,” Josh said, his voice shifting to a persuading tone Serena had never heard him use. The sound raised gooseflesh of anticipation on her arms. “I want to help your wife. But I can't unless you tell me what you know.”

Munders gave him a sly glance. “I know a lot. But I'm not talking until I have the deal in front of me.”

Josh glanced once again in the direction of the two-way mirror, the intensity in his gaze conveying he clearly wanted some action.

The door to the interrogation room opened and the attorney general entered. Heavyset with the wide shoulders of a linebacker, Carl Kannon exuded a vitality that would have eclipsed most men. But not Josh. Next to Kannon, Josh was the epitome of calm, cool and collected.

To Serena, Josh was the center of the universe. The center of her universe. She prayed he could feel the power of her support through the glass.

“I hear you want a deal,” Kannon intoned in a deep bass voice. “The only deal I'll consider is taking the death penalty off the table.”

Munders sputtered. “I didn't kill the marshal!”

“But you ordered the hit on several others,” Kannon stated, clearly unimpressed with Fred's outburst.

A mulish expression settled on Munders's face. “You've got no proof.”

Kannon smiled, the gesture unpleasant. “The congressman says there is proof.”

Munders's eyes widened with fear. “No way. They are not pinning everything on me. This wasn't my idea. I just went along with it to make some extra cash and to give Matilda a reason to get up every day.”

Serena leaned forward, nearly pressing her nose against the glass. Who were his accomplices? And if he wasn't the mastermind behind the illegal adoption ring, then who was? She knew their focus should be on identifying Mr. Big. If it wasn't Munders, then who?

Come on, Josh,
she silently pleaded.
Find out about Daniel.

“Who's
they?
” Josh asked.

Munders's gaze bounced between the two men. His shoulders slumped. Apparently realizing he was trapped good and well, he said, “No death penalty. And Matilda doesn't do time.”

“No death penalty. And your wife is sent to minium security, where she will get proper medical care,” Kannon said. “Now talk.”

“Start with Daniel,” Josh said.

Anticipation tightened the knot in Serena's chest.

Resignation showed in Munders's face. “I'll admit to being in on the illegal adoptions and the hiring of men to take out witnesses, but I had nothing to do with the marshal's death.”

“You implied you know who killed him,” Josh said through clenched teeth. “Who killed him and why?”

“I can tell you the why, but as to who did the deed, I can only guess.”

Josh's hands bunched into fists at his sides. Serena wanted to reach through the glass and wrap her fingers around Munders's throat for dragging this out.

Just tell us what happened, already,
her mind screamed.

After a tense moment of silence, Munders said, “A year and a half ago a guy who had gotten in too deep with a loan shark in town was offered a way out of his debt if he'd sell his kid, but the guy got cold feet and refused to sell the baby in the end.”

“Delacorte,” Josh breathed out the name.

Munders shrugged. “Yeah, the guy liked the long shots.”

Though Josh couldn't see her, Serena nodded. That made sense. After Joe Delacorte had been murdered, they'd uncovered his secret life of gambling and the high amount of debt he owed. His wife, Angel, had arrived in time to see the killers. Joe had warned her to protect their daughter. In the end, he'd protected his baby girl, but his wife and daughter had had to go into witness protection.

“What does that have to do with Marshal Summers's murder?” Kannon snapped.

“The marshal was onto us,” Munders said. “I can only think Delacorte had spilled to him what we were doing.”

Serena sucked in a breath. Daniel had mentioned a call that he thought was something big. Her heart ached with grief and anger.

“You and the congressman?” Kannon clarified.

Munders nodded. “And his brother, Judge Simon Simms.”

“So the three of you killed Marshal Summers,” Josh said, his voice shaking with rage.

Munders shook his head. “I don't know who actually killed him. He was dead when I arrived.”

“Explain,” Josh barked.

Munders cringed against Josh's wrath. “I was supposed to pick up a baby. When I got there, the marshal was dead. I hightailed it out of there.”

Josh scrubbed a hand over his face. “Who were you supposed to meet?”

“Delacorte was supposed to bring the kid in exchange for some cash. Then I'd take the baby and give it to Matilda to place with a family.”

“Who had the cash?” Kannon asked.

“Simon.”

The name reverberated through Serena. Judge Simon Simms. Was he the one who'd killed her brother?

“Tell me about the leak in the U.S. Marshals Service,” Kannon said.

Munders scrunched up his nose. “I don't know. That was Simon Simms's doing.”