“You need to keep seeing them, along with your other friends tucked around the nation. I know you’ve got a long list of them, many I haven’t heard about yet. It’s important you keep those friendships, Ann.”
“You’ll hear about them now that we’re married, and meet them too. I won’t keep a friendship from you, even if I might be a bit cautious about when I happen to make the introduction.”
“I’m glad you told me.”
She studied his face and smiled. “I’d like the studio space upstairs, even if I’m just going to paint occasionally. I enjoy it, even if I don’t have much talent, and I need the time alone. I wish I’d understood how tired I would be, so I could have warned you before we were married. I spent most of my working life traveling, in the air, sleeping in different motels, away from home, but I didn’t see this coming, this fatigue that is sitting on me.”
“Time, Ann. You’ll adapt and start resting again. You’ve got all the time you need.” He ran his hand across her back. “Let me go take Black for a walk while you unpack. Tomorrow I’ll show you the nearest bookstore and the best place for Black to stretch his legs, and I’ll introduce you to a few neighbors. We can have lunch at Falcons and try whatever Jackie considers to be her newest favorite dish.”
“That sounds perfect.”
After three days, the sounds in the house at night were beginning to seem familiar, and Ann was no longer surprised to hear the faint noise of traffic at all hours. The bedroom was quiet. She was wide awake as she often was near midnight, and she was accustomed to lying quietly, using the time to think. Paul was drifting to sleep beside her. His arm was firmly anchoring her to his side. “I love you,” she whispered.
“I like hearing it,” he murmured, smiling even as he slid further toward sleep.
She was beginning to form ideas for a new book. She thought again about putting Paul in it, the idea of him, and writing her own love story. She smiled as she thought it and watched him sleep. She’d get up soon and go work for a while. But for now this was the place she most wanted to be, watching her husband and enjoying how much she loved him. She wanted to write their story, and have it for his family, so they would see this man who would be head of the Falcon dynasty like she did. She turned the ring on her finger, not feeling married yet, but getting used to the idea and the fact that she was. She’d made a good decision.
“I can feel you thinking, even with my eyes closed.” He opened them enough to see her and offered a sleepy smile.
“I’m going to go work for a bit.”
“Okay.” He reluctantly moved his arm to let her get up. “I’ll miss you.”
She leaned over to kiss him. “Hold that thought. I’ll be back.”
29
Paul walked into his office, set his briefcase down, and shrugged off his coat. Rita had been kind to him. His desk was clear. “Where do you need me first?” She set coffee on his desk and, as today was his birthday, added a cupcake with a candle. He grinned—she’d gone with purple icing this year.
“The legal task force putting together the murder cases wants you all day tomorrow. It took me five reams of paper just to print the latest iteration of their trial case plans. Sam and I can talk you through them person by person faster than you can do the reading, but you’ll have to get through the binders this week just to say you did.”
“Anything major?”
“Nothing Sam and I couldn’t handle. They want more of a case than we have. But after this amount of time, well, you know, what we’ve got is what is there. Your mail is on my desk, sorted by what I think is high priority first. I’ll bring you the top inch, let you get started on it.”
“Thanks, Rita.” He held up a hand to delay her long enough to be sure he’d seen the particulars of her necklace. “Did Sam finally stop being an idiot?”
She fingered the necklace and the stones as she smiled. “His birthday gift.”
“About time.”
“Yours wasn’t so shabby either. How did you know I was learning to play the guitar?”
“I have a wife who notices things. She spotted the picks and the calluses.”
“I’m hoping weddings are contagious.”
“Sam couldn’t do better. You want me to give him a shove, just let me know.”
“Thanks, boss.”
“I’m going to go walk the conference room and say hello to the troops, stop in to briefly see Arthur, then I’ll get at the mail. Are you ready for that vacation to make up for the last weeks of double duty?”
“I wouldn’t turn it down, but it was a surprisingly light few weeks. Either that or I’m getting better at being bossy and everyone was too terrified to complain.”
Paul laughed. “Whichever it was, I’m glad I left you in charge.”
The work pulled him in, and within an hour of being back at his desk he was catching the rhythm of it again. He’d missed it, the flow of cases.
Rita tapped on his door. “Paul, the VP is on his way. Said it’s urgent. He didn’t give a reason.”
“Meet him in the lobby and bring him straight up. I’ll let Arthur know he’s on the way in. Sam upstairs?”
“Yes.”
Paul made the calls and was just hanging up the phone when the VP arrived. Paul stood to greet him.
“Congratulations, Paul. I’m so pleased for you and Ann.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Paul’s boss walked into the office with Sam behind him. The VP pulled an envelope from his pocket. “This came in this morning’s mail. I wasn’t looking for another correspondence from her. I opened the letter before I realized what it was.” He laid it on the desk.
Paul snapped a picture of it, encoded the image, and passed his phone to Arthur. He read the letter. “Rita.” Paul stepped back to let her take his place, read the letter, and put it into an evidence bag.
Sam read the letter and passed Paul back the phone.
Agent Falcon—
I have one more tape more valuable than all the others combined—I come in, and I get witness protection for the rest of my life with house arrest for the first thirty years at my own expense. If the money runs out, I do the rest of the thirty years in medium security at a federal prison of my choosing under a name of my choosing. If you wish my attorney to know the name on the tape, have him send me a client attorney representation letter for purposes of knowing the name and advocating for the acceptance of my offer.
L.S.
It was the quiet in the room that told Paul more than what they might say. No one knew quite what to make of this. “What do you think, sir?”
The VP shook his head. “She’s got financial means, she’s free, and she’s deciding she wants to come in? I’m not sure what to think. Do I ask her to tell me the name?”
Paul looked at his boss, then at the VP. “Ask her for the name. Sam will go with you. Get it out in the mail today if you can, Sam.”
“Did we miss a murder? Something even higher profile?” Rita asked.
Paul read the letter again. “She’s certainly implying we did. We need to look for someone shot in the head, high enough profile the murder made the national newspapers, from the present back to when she first began to kill in ’89. Someone else might have been convicted of the crime, so we look for the essential fact, the shot to the head from a distance, not the outcome of the case. It’s got to be she didn’t leave a signature, she did the murder and we missed the signature, or she was paid to do it, she has the tape, and she didn’t take the shot—she disappeared instead.”
“I’ll get the guys in the conference room looking,” Rita said. “If everyone takes a different year, we can come up with a list of cases by end of day.”
Paul nodded. “Go.”
He looked at Arthur. “We need to convene decision-makers because this is going to be a Gordian knot.”
“Agreed. Tomorrow, noon. I’ll get the director here. Find the case, Paul.” Arthur headed out.
Paul turned to the VP. “Thank yo
u, sir. For the speed of bringing this in.”
“I wish I had more to give you. We’ll get the request for the name into the mail today.”
Paul spent until six p.m. in the conference room, watching possible cases being added to the board, then marked off as further investigation showed it was not a match for their lady shooter profile. In the past he would have stayed here until midnight, searching for the case the letter implied was out there. He looked at the time. He was married, it was his birthday, his wife likely had something planned, and his family certainly would. He had to go. “Sam, I’m leaving this to you to monitor. Call if something really interesting shows up.”
Sam smiled. “Go, married guy. Rita and I have got this covered.”
The elevator doors opened. The dog wasn’t waiting for him, looking desperate to escape. Nothing smelt burnt, so Ann hadn’t crashed and burned on a birthday meal. Paul relaxed and stepped off the elevator. Now that they were home, she was trying too hard to be a good wife, and he was waiting it out, figuring she’d relax if given enough time. Ann’s flight bag was resting on the floor by the statue, and Black’s leash was draped over the horn of the saddle. That was reassuring. She’d been out today, had taken her book with her. He heard music.
He walked through the kitchen on the way to find her and got them both sodas. Black showed up wagging his tail and looking for his attention. Paul rubbed the dog’s head and scratched behind his ears. The dog was more content in the city than either one of them had figured. He seemed to think the thousands of scents crowding every block were all there just for him.
Paul found Ann hauling around another box of the books she was still unpacking and mixing in with his. He scanned the shelves and smiled. “You’ve made progress.”
Ann leaned into his hug. “Hi, birthday guy.”
He rubbed her back. “I’m feeling old.”
She grinned. “Jackie came through with your birthday cake. White cake, chocolate icing, lots of sprinkles. It’s the box in the fridge. She said this one is just for us. We are to stop by the restaurant for the family-sized one. Your parents are entertaining the grandkids, and the party for the adults isn’t really getting started until the restaurant closes. I told her we’d be there late.”
“Thanks.”
“I bought you a present yesterday.”
“Did you?” He smiled as he brushed her hair back from her face just to have a reason to touch her.
“I even put a bow on it. Would you like your present now or when we get home?”
“I like the anticipation of it. I’ll wait till we’re home.”
“How was the first day back at work?”
“I’ve got something to show you.”
“This can wait.” She pushed aside the box of books. “What do you have?”
He decrypted the photo on his phone and showed her the latest letter from the lady shooter. “She’s really going to come in?” Ann sank down on the couch and patted a place beside her.
Black took the invitation as for him and landed on the couch. Paul laughed and pushed the dog to the far end, not minding his foray onto the couch but not inclined to share Ann. He scanned the letter again. “I don’t see how they can take the deal. We need her testimony to help with the thirty murder cases. But offer her witness protection and house arrest, the defense attorneys attack the sweetheart deal she got, and the political firestorm is intense. The decision-makers are gathering at noon. I’d like you to come.”
“Sure, I’ll come if you want me to. Any ideas on the case she is referencing?”
“We’re looking for a high-profile murder we missed, or a case that sounds like hers but someone else has been wrongly convicted of the crime. Nothing looks like a match so far. The VP is asking her for the name. I’m hopeful he can give us some direction without revealing what she said.”
“She has interesting timing.”
“You noticed that too. The legal task force has dug deep enough into the murder cases that they know her testimony would be helpful. I’m guessing, despite the politics of it, that they’ll be advocating for some kind of deal to be struck. They need her testimony.” Black laid his head on Paul’s knee, and he absently stroked the dog’s back.
“I had accepted the fact she was going to be out there, and we had probably lost the chance to ever catch her. I’m inclined to think I could even live with witness protection and house arrest if only to get her somewhere we can talk with her. If she’s really got something as significant as she describes, we need the tape. I’m worried she’s dead if she stays out there. There are thirty people with resources who want her dead right now. But I’m surprised at her offer to turn herself in. She’s got money, she’s got her freedom. She could stay hidden. Something about this doesn’t make sense.”
“Maybe she doesn’t think she’s as safe and hidden out there as we do. House arrest wouldn’t be a bad alternative if she thought someone who would kill her was close to finding her.”
“Maybe.” He leaned over and kissed her. “What do you say we take a walk before we go to Falcons?”
“Black, want to walk?” The dog hit the floor and headed to the elevator. Ann laughed. “I think that was a definite yes for both of us. Go change into something more comfortable, and we’ll take a wandering walk before we celebrate how much older you’ve become.”
Dawn slid across the bedroom, and Paul could see the dog now, stretched on his back with four feet in the air. As Paul was often up before five o’clock trying not to wake Ann, and the dog loved the bathroom doorway, they had all too often encountered each other with yelps and limps in the dark room.
Ann had her arm flung around a pillow hugging it, facedown, deep asleep. She rarely moved once she finally went down. Her dreams had been quieter the last few days. He traced a hand lightly across her back and softly kissed her hair before sliding out of bed. He could feel the contentment of being married grow stronger with every morning. The dog opened one eye as Paul stepped over him, and Paul obligingly scratched his tummy.
He found his toothbrush and dug around in her basket on the counter to find where she had put the toothpaste. The bathroom down the hall worked for his morning shower, to shave and to later dress for work, but for the next few hours of breakfast and a dog walk and handling family business, he could use the master bath quietly enough to dress casually and not wake Ann.
Ann was good at birthdays. She had bought him a yo-yo and showed him how to properly “walk the dog” with it, and she had bought him a high-speed game station and told him he’d have to connect it without her help, as she was impossible with electronics—the kids had told her what to get. Then she’d cautiously told him they were hosting a houseful of kids the next weekend, all of them under twelve. She had said it solemnly as if she wasn’t quite sure how he’d take the news. He’d instantly grinned. She’d put out word to the family, and the kids had poured in with pleas for the opportunity to come see the cowboy in the entryway and play with Black.
He couldn’t think of better birthday gifts for what it told him about her. He’d set her up with her own account on the family website, and she had settled in with such alacrity it felt like she’d been part of the family forever. The kids loved her. So they were hosting a houseful of kids. If their marriage survived this event, it would be a good milestone. He looked over at Black. He thought he’d better find a second dog to borrow for the weekend so Black didn’t take the full brunt of all the attention.
He put away his toothbrush. “You want to share my bacon for breakfast?”
The dog rolled over, shook his head to wake up, and lumbered to his feet. The dog was much more a morning animal than Ann had realized. Paul found he liked the company for breakfast. They were rapidly settling into a habit of the newspaper and breakfast and a walk.
After breakfast, handling family business, and walking the dog, Paul quietly walked back to the bedroom for a last check. Ann hadn’t moved. He was relieved she looked more rested than she had a couple o
f weeks ago. He slid a note under her phone and softly kissed her, then headed to work.
Paul finished the morning update meeting, along with a review of the cases they had found, considered, and rejected, then returned to his office to get ready to see Arthur and the director about the letter. Ann was sitting in the visitor’s chair in his office, reading a paperback and drinking a root beer. He ran a hand across her shoulder as he passed her, unloaded what he carried onto his desk, and got himself a soda. He leaned against the desk and just enjoyed looking at her.
She put her book down. “You’ve got that amused expression on your face again. Did I get the outfit wrong?”
“If the director has a problem with jeans and teal, he’s an idiot. I love those jeans.”
“I was at Falcons talking with Jackie, and I didn’t have time to get home to change.” She tucked her book into her bag.
“Let’s go flying tonight. You haven’t been in the air much at all for the last two months. We should fix that.”
She looked over, interested. “Have a destination in mind?”
“Wherever a plane needs to go where there’s one to bring us back.”
“I got asked to ferry a bird to St. Louis, if you don’t mind a few hours for a round trip.”
“I’m game. I’d like to watch a sunset with you.”
“I’ll set it up. What’s the plan for upstairs?”
“I don’t have one. I want the tape, and I want her to come in. The deal she wants to make is more than they will be able to accept. So it’s probably three hours of going in circles, trying to figure out an answer that is a no without it being a hard no.”
“Has the VP heard back on a name?”
“Not yet. We know she has his letter requesting it. We still don’t know how or even when she intercepted the letter this time, but it got lifted in transit again.”
“Are Rita and Sam joining us?”
“They asked to wave off so they can stay looking for the case the letter is referring to. So far they haven’t found what looks like a good match.” Paul looked at the time. “We’d better go up.”