Taken by the Con (22 page)

The metal vase next to her headstone held a bouquet of pink roses. Cash was happy to know someone remembered Britney and her favorite flowers fondly.

Lucia stood a few steps away.

“I didn’t plan to come here,” he said.

“Do you want some privacy?”

“No.” He wanted Lucia with him. He wanted her to understand a part of him that no one else did. He extended his hand to her and she joined him, slipping her arm around his waist and laying her head on his shoulder.

“My marriage to Britney would have ended in divorce. I know that. It makes me feel guilty. She was angry at how I had tried to help our son.”

“What does that mean?” Lucia asked.

Cash hadn’t wanted Lucia to know about Adrian or how screwed up the entire situation was. Talking about the scam that had landed him in prison made him feel worthless and pathetic. It had been the one thing he knew how to do, and when the stakes were highest, he hadn’t been able to do it right. “My son was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. The doctors we consulted told me it was untreatable. I refused to accept that.” He couldn’t let his little boy die. He had done everything he could to prevent that from happening. “I found a doctor who was running an experimental procedure on adults with a similar type of cancer. I convinced him to treat Adrian, but I needed money.”

Lucia inhaled sharply. “So you scammed the senator’s real estate company for the money.”

“Yes.”

“Your son lived,” Lucia said.

“Yes. But Britney refused to trust me after that. I told her I was finished conning people and then I went back into that world.”

“What did she want to do instead for Adrian?” Lucia asked.

Cash rubbed the back of his neck. “She thought we could try other treatments even though the doctors said it would have been useless and would have caused Adrian more pain. Radiation. Chemotherapy. Surgeries. I couldn’t put Adrian through that, through round after round of hell. He was so small. I stole the money and then Adrian and I lived in Europe for six months while he was treated. Afterward, we returned to the United States. The experimental treatment had ravaged his body. I stayed home with Adrian, helping him grow stronger, but the police were unraveling my scam. Britney and I fought all the time and she filed for separation.”

His life had fallen apart quickly after that. He was convicted of fraud and robbery. He’d only been in prison for a week when Britney was killed in a car accident on her way to work after she’d dropped off Adrian at daycare.

“After Britney died, her mother flew in to take custody of Adrian. Helen didn’t want Anderson to have guardianship.” Helen and Anderson hadn’t spoken in years. Britney had been the result of a brief affair they’d had years before and Helen’s hate for Anderson fueled Britney’s anger for her biological father.

“I’m so sorry, Cash,” Lucia said. “After all you did to save your son, you still aren’t together.”

The lost years were killing him, but he wouldn’t give up. “I will find a way to make him part of my life. I can still earn his love. I can still show him that I am a good man.”

Lucia put her arms around Cash’s waist. “You are a good man. You should have told me this sooner.”

“I don’t like talking about it. It didn’t help at my trial.”

“I’m so sorry, Cash.”

For a moment he felt the impulse to push her away. He didn’t want anyone feeling sorry for him. But he met Lucia’s gaze and something clicked. Britney was part of his past and Lucia was his bridge to the future. A future that didn’t include scams or lying or fraud.

But could that future include both Lucia and Adrian?

* * *

Lucia’s stress level was through the roof.

Benjamin was smoothing things over with the police. Having an FBI special agent and a consultant undercover was enough to keep the police from sending out an APB for them. He’d also sent a team of agents to take Audrey somewhere safer. Mitchell had been too interested in Cash’s relationship with her and they didn’t trust that someone in Anderson’s organization wouldn’t come looking for her to confirm Cash’s story.

After leaving the graveyard, Lucia witnessed a change in Cash. Maybe it was the shock of seeing two men killed or perhaps he’d gotten some closure unburdening his soul to her, but Cash seemed freer, which was a strange thing to think about a man in his position.

Lucia had to hold herself back from mounting a full-scale campaign to help Cash find justice. He had broken the law. He’d had a trial. He was serving his time. It still didn’t seem right that he wasn’t with his son. He had done the wrong thing for the right reasons.

When they’d returned to her condo, she’d convinced Cash to lie down with her for a few minutes and he’d fallen asleep. Though whirling thoughts had kept her awake longer, the heat of his body and the comfort in his embrace had lured her to sleep, as well.

Lucia’s eyes popped open when a creak interrupted her sleep. Was someone on her balcony? Lurking in the hallway? Attempting to break in? Or had she dreamed the noise?

Lucia rose from the bed and her leg muscles tightened and twitched. Her gun in hand, she left the lights off to keep the element of surprise. Checking her condo, she found each room empty. She peered out the two sets of French doors that opened to the balcony. The lights atop the cement pillars surrounding the balcony didn’t leave many shadows. Watching for several minutes, she felt content no one was outside. She checked the hallway and then returned her gun to its place inside her bedside table.

Cash’s phone rang and Lucia reached for it, wanting to silence it before it woke him. If their team needed him, it could wait a few minutes. He’d been through a lot that day.

It was a blocked number. Wondering if it could be Adrian, Lucia hesitated and then decided to answer. “Hello?”

“Who’s this?” A male voice.

Lucia was momentarily taken aback by the rude question. Then she realized he could be someone from Anderson’s group. “It’s Lucy. Who’s this?”

“Cash around?”

No answer to her question. She couldn’t be sure, but Lucia had a strong sensation she was speaking to Clifton Anderson.

Chapter 11

C
ash took the phone from Lucia, clearing his head and focusing. Images of Britney and Adrian and Mitchell and Hammer and Lucia spun through his mind.

“This is Cash,” he said.

“Cash, my long-lost son-in-law,” Anderson said. “I saw you at Britney’s grave today.”

Anderson had been at the graveyard. It confirmed the FBI’s hope that Anderson was still in the United States. “It was a bad day.” He hadn’t spoken to Anderson in years. His father-in-law had helped with Britney’s funeral plans. Cash had allowed it, knowing that despite Britney’s feelings toward her father he’d needed closure, too. By then, Cash had been incarcerated and could not attend the funeral.

“You brought your girlfriend,” Anderson said.

“Yes.” If Anderson had seen him, there was no point in denying it. “I tried to stop Hammer.” He wanted to explain to Anderson, who undoubtedly knew about the shooting inside the casino, to make him understand that what had happened to Mitchell wasn’t his fault.

“I know that. I’ve reviewed the security footage,” Anderson said.

“What can I do to help you?” Cash asked.

“Plenty. But I want to ask you a few things. Are you in a place where you can talk?” Anderson said.

“I’m not at work. I can talk.” He and Lucia had been more careful to be sure no one was following them.

“I was surprised that you came to see me,” Anderson said.

Cash heard the unasked question. Why? Why had he returned to Anderson after being in jail? Why return to the life that had cost him his marriage, time with his son and his freedom? “I need the money.”

“Why not finish your time with the FBI and then work something that gives you benefits and a regular paycheck?”

Was this a trick? Was he trying to convince him to walk away? Their relationship was complex. They’d been close while Cash was growing up. After a chance meeting with Britney at her grandfather’s funeral, Cash had fallen for her instantly. Britney had been eleven years older, and wiser, and Cash had been looking for something that had been missing in his life. The strength of his feelings for Britney and her anger for her father had created a wedge in Cash’s relationship with Anderson.

“Life is too short to live paycheck to paycheck.” Or to live in a dump that’s better suited for rats. Or to repeat mistakes.

Anderson made a sound of agreement. “Why don’t we meet for a drink?”

In person? Anderson was willing to meet Cash? Should Cash pretend to know that Anderson was staying underground? “Are you sure it’s safe?” He didn’t want to appear too eager.

“I have a few places left that are safe. You’ll need to black out your tracker. Do you have the device?”

“Of course,” Cash said.

“Bring your new woman. I want to meet her.” Anderson gave him an address and told him to come within the hour.

Lucia was shaking her head as Cash hung up the phone. “Something’s off,” she said.

“Like?”

“Why would someone in hiding invite you to meet him and tell you to bring me?”

“He’s my father-in-law. He’s my son’s grandfather.”

Lucia’s lips slightly parted. “That means nothing.”

“We stole a priceless work of art for him.”

“Unless he’s figured out the Copley is a fake.”

“I tried to stop Hammer from shooting Mitchell. He saw it on the casino’s video surveillance,” Cash said.

“Is that enough to bring you into his circle of trust especially when he suspected you were working against him for the FBI?”

“I was never out of the circle of trust, as you call it. I was in prison. I screwed up by getting caught. I wasn’t disloyal to Anderson.” At least, not that Anderson knew about.

Lucia rubbed her temples. “I don’t like this. My gut tells me something is not right. We’ll go. But we’re bringing backup.”

“He’ll know it.”

Lucia threw up her hands. “Then what’s the play? Show up and walk into his circus and hope he’s not conning you?”

“He’s not conning me.”

“Would you know it if he was?”

“One con man to another, yes, I’d sense it.”

“We’re talking about Clifton Anderson. One of the most skilled liars of this century.”

“I’m a good liar.” She had pointed it out to him many times before.

Lucia balled her fists at her sides. She looked hot when she was angry. “I hate to break this to you, Cash, but you’re one of the good guys now and that means you’re not as good a liar as you think. Besides, you’re off your game. You saw a man gunned down. I know what that can do to someone. Even hardened agents get shaken when someone dies in the field. It’s difficult.”

He wasn’t sure whether to be hurt that she didn’t think he knew the difference or pleased she considered him a good guy. “That’s quite the assessment from a woman who wanted me back in jail.”

“I don’t want you in jail,” she said softly. “When you ran into the casino to speak to Hammer, I almost lost it. I realized something important in that moment.”

He said nothing.

“You. You’re important to me.”

He couldn’t have expressed what that meant to him. Her genuine caring touched him deeply, but fresh wounds reminded him to be cautious. “Important to you or to the case?”

“To me. This case isn’t anywhere near as important as you are.”

Proving herself to the FBI had seemed to drive Lucia, and now she was telling him he ranked above that. He was humbled by her words. “If I don’t solve this case, I’ll be put in jail.”

“Right. That,” Lucia said. She bit her lip. Lucia was holding something back.

“Tell me,” he said. “You know something I don’t.”

Lucia sighed. “I didn’t want this to come from me. I didn’t want your hopes up too high but I called a friend I went through training with at Quantico. He works in a field office in Washington state. I explained the situation and he said if I could get Benjamin on board, he’d take you under his wing for the remainder of your time with the FBI.”

Cash felt dizzy for a moment. It was the outcome he’d been hoping for and while he hadn’t found a way to con Lucia into it, she’d done it just the same. He hadn’t had to lie to her and it made the victory that much sweeter. He swallowed the lump of emotion in his throat.

Winning Adrian over would be so much easier if they were closer. Cash could drive to see him. He could build a better life. Baby steps, but baby steps were miles apart from his current gridlock situation. “Thank you, Lucia. Thank you for doing this. Why? Why would you do that for me?”

Lucia’s eyes watered and she cleared her throat. “I think it’s obvious. We don’t need to say the words.”

She loved him. He knew it. In that instant, the impact of knowing she loved him blew him away. He couldn’t put his arms around the emotion she evoked. “Lucia, I can’t thank you enough—”

She waved her hand and moved away from him. “It’s no guarantee. I wanted you to have a chance at something real with your son. But it’s moot if we don’t catch Anderson. Benjamin doesn’t grant boons easily. He’ll want his man and his glory. He’s been angling for a promotion, and capturing Anderson would be a sweet win to put on his résumé.”

“If you think it’s too dangerous, let me go alone to meet Anderson.”

She snorted. “Please. We’re partners. We have been from the start. Let’s finish this together.”

* * *

“An abandoned private airstrip?” Lucia asked. “I don’t like this. He’s planning to run.” The accounts the FBI were monitoring hadn’t be accessed recently. What was Anderson planning? Cash was not himself. The shooting had shaken him. If it wasn’t for that, he’d see this for what it was: a setup.

Except Lucia had prepared for it. She had her team standing by. She wanted Anderson to come at her. She’d bring him in and prove she was a good agent and had earned her place on Benjamin’s team. The past wouldn’t haunt her. Questions about her time with the violent-crime division would disappear. Cash would be transferred closer to his son. Though she would lose him, she would give him happiness.

Lucia got out of the car and stayed close to Cash.

Anderson met them on the tarmac. “Greetings, Cash. You look well.”

Lucia’s heart fell when she saw Wyatt behind Anderson. How was Cash’s father tied up in this? Would Anderson use him to manipulate Cash?

“Please, come with me. We have much work to be done,” Anderson said.

What work? Lucia stayed close. Benjamin and the rest of the team were monitoring the situation, but they’d needed to stay out of sight. Anderson was leading them off the airstrip toward a small forest where a black van was parked. Behind the van was a small tent.

Was some of the money in that van? In the tent? Lucia stayed alert and braced herself for whatever was to follow.

“First, let me welcome you both. To my godson, thank God you got out of that place,” Anderson said. “It’s been fortuitous for me that you’ve come back to the team. When Hammer killed Mitchell, I lost my money man.”

His money man and Mitchell’s ability to move money, too, Lucia guessed.

“That’s where you can help me,” Anderson said.

“Tell me what you need,” Cash said.

“I need you to move some money from some accounts into others,” Anderson said.

He made it sound simple. By asking Cash to break the law, he would be held responsible as an accomplice. Anderson had a knack for getting the people around him as dirty as possible.

“I can do that,” Cash said. “For a fee.”

“I can offer you something we both want in exchange,” Anderson said.

Cash lifted his chin. “You know what I want. Money. A better life.”

“What about a life with your son?” Anderson asked. “I’ve missed having my grandson in my life.”

Cash didn’t move. “He’s living with Helen and he’s best staying with her. I send money when I can.”

Anderson laughed. “I don’t believe that. I’ve known you since you were a little boy. You can pretend you don’t want Adrian with you, but I see through that lie. I have an offer you’ll love. You move the money for me and we flee with Adrian.”

A muscle worked in Cash’s jaw. He didn’t want Anderson near Adrian. “No.”

“No? You went to jail trying to save your son. Now you don’t want anything to do with him?” Anderson asked.

“I’m not good for him. A life on the run, a life of lying isn’t good for him,” Cash said.

Cash’s father flinched. Perhaps he knew the truth behind Cash’s words.

“He should be with you. With me. Living a life that he could only dream about before now. Everything he could ever want will be his,” Anderson said.

“I never thought about that before. What do you think, Lucy? A fresh start? A new life?”

Anderson
tsked
. “You misunderstand me. It would be the four of us, Adrian, his dad and his grandfathers. No room for girlfriends.”

Anderson withdrew his gun and Lucia reached for hers at the same time, removing it from the thigh harness under her skirt and pointing it at Anderson’s heart.

“I hope that clarifies any doubts you had,” Anderson said over his shoulder to Wyatt.

Cash looked between Lucia and Anderson. “What doubts? What’s going on? Lucy always carries a gun.”

Anderson looked at Cash and frowned. “She carries a gun because she’s an FBI agent.”

Shock registered on Cash’s face. Maybe she had underestimated how good a liar he was. “She isn’t,” he said. “She’s like me. I told Mitchell she is a recovering addict. She’s built a new life for herself, a life she deserves.” If he was striving for blindsided and in denial, he was hitting it right.

“Son, I’m sorry. When Anderson came to me about her, I didn’t believe it either,” Wyatt said.

“There has to be a mistake,” Cash said.

“Tell her, Lucy,” Anderson said.

Boots climbed out of the van and trained his gun on Lucia.

Lucia had to stay calm. She and Cash were in this together. They’d find a way out.

“Tell him,” Anderson said, shooting at her. The shot caught her in the arm and it burned like flames, but Lucia didn’t return fire. If she used her weapon, she’d need to kill Anderson and Boots. If she killed Anderson, the FBI might not recover the money he’d stolen.

Her arm was killing her, but she held steady. “My name is Lucia Huntington and I’m with the FBI. Put your weapon on the ground and put your hands in the air.” Her cover was blown. Was her team hearing this and moving in?

Cash’s reaction could have been an award-winning performance. Anger darkened his face and rage distorted his features. Anderson and Wyatt were watching him.

He called her a word she hadn’t heard him speak before. Then a demand. “Give me your gun,” he said to Lucia.

He glanced at the wound on her arm, and only a trace of worry crossed his face.

“You’re going to kill me with my gun?” Lucia asked. Where was her backup?

Cash appeared unsure. “I’m not sure what I’ll do.”

“Cash, stay calm. I’ll clean this up. I need your help with something. Boots will take care of her and we’ll go,” Anderson said.

“No,” Cash said, rage hot in his voice. “I take care of my messes. I’ll clean this up.” He tore the gun from Lucia’s hand. She let him take it, trusting he had a plan.

“What are you planning to do?” Lucia asked. “Backup will be on their way.”

“Sorry, Special Agent, but you’re sadly mistaken. I’m blocking every network signal in a half-mile radius except the one I need to move my money,” Anderson said.

Cash narrowed his eyes. “Give me thirty minutes with her. I won’t let another woman screw up my life and I won’t let someone else take the fall for my mistakes.”

Anderson gestured to Boots and Cash’s father. “Go with him. Clean it up. Report back here.”

* * *

“I have a plan,” Cash said. Not a good one, but one that would get Lucia away from Anderson. Her arm was bleeding and Cash didn’t like the paleness of her face.

If he could move outside Anderson’s half-mile radius, his GPS tracker would broadcast his location and he could contact Benjamin and get help.

At the car, Cash opened the back door. “I don’t want any blood on the seats. No evidence left behind.” A good reason for why he cared about treating her injury. He removed his belt and wrapped it tight around her arm to slow the bleeding. She winced and Cash put his mouth close to hers as he put her in the back of the car as gently as he could. “I’m sorry, Luc, I’ll get you out of this.”