Nowhere to Run (Stephanie Carovella) (40 page)

“Not just Stephanie’s,” Delucci said, studying the woman in front of her. He had seen a softer side of Gena Evans in the past few days, a side he never thought existed. She’d shown him she loved her friends and was loyal to them. She’d shown him she would protect them no matter the costs. He watched her open her eyes, confusion written on her face. “What do you mean, Frank?” she asked, stopping when he silently handed her a photo album.

Gena took the album he offered her. With trembling hands, she flipped through it. Silently, she studied the photos and the articles, a lump developing within her throat. “My God, these are…”

Delucci took the book from her and tossed it onto the living room table. “Articles on you, yes I know. Stephanie may be his prize, Gena, but you were right all along. You were also in this maniac’s sights. His feelings for Stephanie border on obsession, but his feelings for you aren’t any less.”

“Frank, I wasn’t even at the university at the time of Katrina Andrews’ murder. I didn’t even know her,” Gena protested.

“Maybe not, but somewhere along the line you crossed his path and caught his attention. It could be because you’re Stephanie’s friend or it could be much more. Walker went to university with both of you. Is it possible you came across each other at one time or another and didn’t realize it?”

Gena shook her head, unable to speak. “Frank, I don’t know. University was a long time ago. I took a lot of different classes. I can’t remember everyone in them. I just don’t know,” she said, exasperation evident in her voice.

“Either way, I’m not taking any risks. I’m putting out a warrant for Walker’s arrest tonight. The sooner this son of a bitch is behind bars, the safer you and Stephanie Carovella will be.”

Chapter Forty

Jake Carlisle watched Gena climb out her car, smiling at the confident way she walked. Gena always walked like she was on a mission. She hadn’t changed much since university. Feeling his heart skip a beat, he acknowledged neither had his feelings.

Scowling darkly, he turned his head to see Rafe studying him intently. Meeting his gaze head-on, he arched an eyebrow at the anger flaring in his friend’s eyes before Rafe concealed it. “She still does your head in, doesn’t she?” Rafe said, jerking his head towards Gena.

“Gena’s Gena, she’s not going to change for anyone. I came to the conclusion a long time ago that I was never going to be the centre of her world. Her job has, and always will, come first,” Jake said bitterly.

Rafe nodded, watching the woman approaching the house. He couldn’t see the appeal himself. Gena Evans was too cold. His gaze hardened, recalling all the pain she’d put Jake through. No, Gena Evans was definitely not the type of woman he envisioned himself spending the rest of his life with.

Gena walked up the pathway to Jase’s apartment, stopping at the bottom of the apartment steps when she noticed Jase and Rafe sitting at the top of them. “What are you doing here?” she asked in confusion. “Why aren’t you at Jesse’s keeping an eye on Stephanie?”

“She’s here,” Rafe said, his voice clipped. He grunted in satisfaction at Gena’s surprised look.

“Here? At Jase’s? Why?”

Jake shrugged. “Hell if we know. She took off with Devlin while Rafe and I were doing our hourly run of the perimeter. She left a fucking note again, can you believe it? She’s got a serial killer obsessed with her, and she prances off with Devlin.”

“I’m. Going. To. Kill. Her.” Gena gritted out.

“You might have to get in line. Pretty sure you’re psycho serial killer wants to be first,” Rafe half-joked.

She shot him a filthy look. “I thought Jesse said you two could handle her. So far, you’re doing a stellar job of it.”

“Jesus, Gena, I’ve baby-sat some of the worst war criminals in history, and they’re pussycats compared to Stephanie. You know as well as I do, she will continue to go along her merry way and to hell what everyone thinks. This time’s no different,” Jake snapped.

“Jake, that’s not entirely true. Something freaked her out,” Rafe interrupted.

Gena glanced from Jake to Rafe, waiting patiently for Rafe to continue. “And?” she prodded.

“She said she’s not going back to Jesse’s house. I think Rafe’s right. Stephanie wouldn’t explain her reasons for leaving, but she made Rafe and I pack up all her stuff and bring it over to Jase’s.”

“Great,” Gena groaned, tapping her car keys against her leg. Taking her sunglasses off, she slid them up to rest on her head. Putting her hands on her hips, she muttered, “This is just like Stephanie. She decides she doesn’t like, or want to do, something and to hell with what everyone else thinks. What does she think she’s going to do? Move in here with Jase?”

Jake grinned, knowing Gena was only beginning to wind up. He had the feeling once she realized just how close Jase and Stephanie were, she’d blow a fuse. He knew she’d notice the change in their relationship, just as he had. It wasn’t anything they’d said or done, but the dynamics were different. There was an intimacy between Jase and Stephanie, one which hadn’t been there before.

His grin turned into a grimace. He didn’t want to be around when Jesse and Ben found out. Realizing Gena was waiting expectantly for a response, he cleared his throat.

“Gena, I don’t think Jase will feel like she’s imposing.”

Gena raised an eyebrow questioningly, turning her head to stare through to the apartment’s front window. Her eyes narrowed when she spotted Stephanie sitting on the kitchenette bench talking to Jase, their heads bent closely together. Jase had his hands on both sides of the bench and was leaning into Stephanie’s body. She didn’t miss the way Stephanie looked at Jase beneath swept eyelashes, her lips curved into a smile. Gena’s own lips twisted into a snarl.

“Are you fucking kidding me? Please, don’t tell me they’ve hooked up?” she spat, anger contorting her features. “Surely Jase wouldn’t be that fucking stupid? God damn it, I told him about what she’s done to every guy she’s crossed paths with. She’s got your brother in knots, confessing his love for her - and Ben’s like a pathetic lost puppy trailing after her. She destroyed Dom when she left him. Hell, she’s even got a serial killer with a major hard-on for her.”

Rafe choked back his laughter and Jake grinned, asking her, “Gena, since when has a guy ever thought rationally around Stephanie Carovella?”

“Thanks for stating the obvious, Jake. She’s toxic to men, a real walking disaster. She’s been this way for as far back as I remember. Dom was the only one who settled her down, and even he couldn’t keep her for long. If Jase has fucked her, she can be his problem from now on. After we catch this bastard, I’m done with her drama.”

Jake crossed his arms, standing up to lean against the apartment’s stairway railing. “Before you burst into the apartment all guns blazing, you might want a heads up; Stephanie’s after your blood. I don’t know what you’ve done but if you’re looking for a battle, you better put on your big girl panties because she’s ready to start World War Three with you.”

“What else is new?” Gena spat, rolling her eyes. Glancing at her watch, she craned her neck to look behind her. “Delucci is supposed to be meeting me here. When he arrives, can you tell him to come on up to Jase’s? I need to sort out these two before he shows up. If Delucci finds out they’ve hooked up, all hell will break loose.”

“I’m pretty sure it’s going to anyway, when Stephanie sees you,” Jake murmured.

Gena ignored him, stomping up the stairs. She stiffened her back, when Jake laughed as she brushed past him. Stalking into the house, she slammed the front door behind her. Putting her hands on her hips, she watched Jase lift his mouth from Stephanie’s.

“Gena,” he began, pulling apart from Stephanie.

“Tell me you didn’t sleep with her,” Gena interrupted angrily. “Jase Devlin, tell me you did not fall for her sweet and innocent act.”

Stephanie slid off the kitchenette bench, stalking towards Gena, until they were only inches apart. Jamming her finger into Gena’s chest, she spat, “Who the fuck do you think you are, Gena Evans? How dare you come in here and judge us. How the hell do you dare judge me? I’m sick of this shit. I’m sick of you. You come in here, acting all high and mighty, acting as if you’re better than me. You have always treated me like I’m a piece of crap on your shoe, an irritation. If something goes wrong, blame Stephanie; it’s bound to be her fault.”

Gena stepped closer, her eyes narrowing. “Maybe, that’s because it’s the truth. You’ll excuse me if I don’t want to pick up another one of your victims. You’re just like the serial killer chasing you. You leave victims behind in your path, and you don’t look back to see the chaos or devastation you’ve caused. Hell, are you that selfish you don’t even notice the pain you inflict? Don’t you think Jase has been through enough dealing with Angel’s murder without getting caught up in Hurricane Stephanie? A murder, incidentally, caused by yet another man obsessed with the almighty Stephanie Carovella.”

Stephanie took a step back, almost as if Gena had slapped her. Clenching her fists tightly, she said in a voice filled with barely concealed rage, “Since we’re airing all our dirty laundry, why don’t we discuss your love life…no wait, sorry, you don’t have one. You’re too fucking terrified to get involved with anyone. You sleep with Blaze because he’s a convenience, when he knows as well as everyone else, you won’t ever commit to him. Hell, you even threw Jake Carlisle away. Jake Carlisle, Gena, a man who would die for you. And you call me a man-eater?”

Jase slid between them, forcing Gena to take steps back. “I don’t think this is the time.”

“When will be the time, Jase?” Stephanie said bitterly, turning away from them. She moved to the couch, sitting on it. “This has been a long time coming between us. She’s never understood me and she never will. Even after all the shit I’ve been through, she still can’t wait to find a reason to blame me for anything and everything.”

Dropping her eyes to the floor, to hide her pain, she closed her eyes. “Did you ever think, Gena, for one moment that Jase might make me happy?”

Gena snorted. “You mean like Dom did? Yeah, and that worked out well for him in the end.”

Stephanie’s head snapped up, anger blazing in her eyes. “You want to discuss Dom, let’s do it,” she said, standing up and marching to the kitchen bench. Ripping the lid off the box sitting on the counter, she pulled out the toy car. Walking back to Gena, she shoved it in her hand. “Let’s talk about Dom, shall we? He was my husband. He was the one thing in my shitty life, which made sense. He was everything to me. Everything to me!” she bit out, thrusting her finger at Gena again. “I walked away from him to save his fucking life and he died anyway. I will never be able to live with that. It will haunt me for the rest of my life, knowing he died because
I
loved him. Tell me Gena, do you have a conscience?”

Gena was silent, her eyes glued on the car she held in her hand. Her face paling, the knowledge she was holding a replica of Dom’s car in her hands registering. She lifted her eyes to meet Stephanie’s, completely thrown by the hate she saw there.

“I know, Gena,” Stephanie snarled, refusing to back down. “I know everything. Including what you kept from me. I know.”

“Stephanie,” Gena began.

Stephanie shook her head. “No. I don’t want to hear it. You kept the truth about Dom’s death from me. You knew the truth and you never said one fucking word. I’ll have to live with the fact that loving my husband killed him. But you, Gena, you’ll have to live with the fact you have destroyed any trust, love or feelings of friendship I had for you. I could have lived with the knowledge Dom died because of me. Our friendship could have survived it. I could have worked on it. But to know you knew – you knew what
he
did to Dom, you knew and you didn’t say one word…I will never forgive you for that.”

“Stephanie, let me explain,” Gena tried again, only to be cut off.

“We’re done, Gena. From this moment on, I don’t want you in my life. I don’t need you in my life. You once said you wished I was out of your life for good. Well, you just got your wish.”

“Stephanie, be realistic. We have a serial killer whose main focus is on you. I’m not going anywhere,” Gena said unsteadily.

“He killed my husband, Gena. He killed him and you fucking knew. Tell me when?” Stephanie spat, pain and anger radiating from her.

“When what?” Gena said tiredly.

“When did you know? When did you know this son of a bitch was responsible for Dom’s death?”

“Stephan-” Gena scowled when Stephanie interrupted her.

“And don’t you lie to me. I know you. Just like you always tell me, you know me better than I know myself, I know you just the same. You
knew.
Tell me when.”

“Babe, I think maybe you should calm down,” Jase said, reaching out to touch Stephanie. She shook off his arm, stepping back to avoid his touch.

“Don’t patronize me, Devlin. Just because you’ve fucked me doesn’t mean you have the right to tell me what to do,” she said, her eyes never leaving Gena’s. “Answer me, Gena.”

“I didn’t…” Gena began, stopping and taking a deep breath, before starting again. “I didn’t know at first. Hell, I didn’t even think there was a connection with Dom’s death, at least not until Jase told me why you left Dom. Then I realized. I know I should have…”

“Were you ever going to tell me?” Stephanie cut in icily.

Gena opened her mouth to reply, closing it again when Delucci knocked on the front door. “Am I interrupting anything?” he asked hesitantly, looking from where a stony-faced Stephanie stood to where a silent Gena watched her helplessly.

Stephanie smiled sweetly at Delucci, the smile not reaching her eyes. “Detective Delucci, what an unpleasant surprise. Tell me, are you here to discuss my murdered parents or my soon-to-be psycho ex-husband?”

“It’s always a pleasure, Ms Carovella,” Delucci said politely, looking at Jase. “Did I interrupt a moment?”

“No, you didn’t. Gena and I are finished,” Stephanie said abruptly, her meaning clear to everyone in the room.

Moving to the kitchen, she reached for the bottle of Black Label Johnnie Walker sitting on the top of Jase’s fridge. Unscrewing the cap, she poured it liberally into a glass, before she stuck the glass under the fridge’s ice dispenser. Silently she took a sip, humming in approval, before turning to lean against the bench. “So, are you going to tell me what you want with me this time, or do I have to play guessing games with you Detective Franklin Delucci?” she drawled, taking another deep sip of her drink. “I should warn you, I’m not in the mood for your games or bullshit. Detective Evans has piled enough of it on me to last a lifetime.”