“What?” I gasped, clutching at Chris’ arm.
“Don’t worry. It’s okay,” he soothed. “I just told him you worked for Manetto once in a while because of your premonitions. That’s all. He gets it, Shelby. It’s okay.”
I laid my head back down and let out my breath in relief. “Okay. So what happened after that?”
“A few minutes later, Manetto called, saying he was making a deal with someone who knew where you were, and that he’d call as soon as he found you.”
“Did he tell you the judge had me?”
Chris snorted. “Yes. But only after I told him that Harris was with me and we were on our way to question him. He wasn’t too thrilled about that, and next thing I know, he’s telling me that the judge had you and was bringing you here. We all got here at about the same time, but it took some searching before we realized you were in the basement. Harris and I got here first, or I think Ramos would have shot him.”
He was thinking the judge would be dead if Ramos had beat them to it, but maybe this way, they’d at least get some answers. He couldn’t understand why the judge had kidnapped me and tried to kill me. What had I said to him?
Before I could explain, the paramedics came rushing in. Two of them started working on the judge, and the other two came over to my side. By this point I had started shaking and couldn’t seem to stop. My arm was curiously numb and didn’t hurt as much when they took a look at it. One of them was thinking that I was lucky since it looked like the bullet went straight through the flesh without hitting any bone and doing serious damage, but they wouldn’t know for sure until it was x-rayed.
“What?” I asked. “I thought it was just a flesh wound.” He made it sound lots more serious than Ramos had, so I chanced a quick glance at my arm and nearly passed out. Blood and torn flesh sent my heart racing. “Ungh.”
The paramedic glanced at me thinking I was about to freak out. He hated when that happened. “It looks lots worse than it is,” he said. “You’re going to be fine.” He quickly covered it with a bandage and glanced at my husband, imploring him with his eyes to keep me calm while he started an IV and gave me something to help with the shock.
“Shelby,” Chris said. “Don’t worry, you’ll be good as new in no time.” His gaze held mine, and he thought about how much he loved me, and how grateful he was that I was alive.
“Thanks for coming after me,” I said, tears gathering in my eyes. “That was close. When he pointed the gun…”
“Yeah, I know,” he agreed. “I’m just glad Manetto knew where you were.” His brows drew together. “I wonder how that happened. Do you know?”
That brought a smile to my lips. “Yes, I was darn lucky. While I was talking to the judge…”
“Shelby! How you doing?” Dimples asked, crouching at my side.
“I’m all right,” I answered. “Just a flesh wound.” He smiled and those Dimples got huge. Just looking at them get so big when he talked made me feel safe.
“Good to know. I can’t wait to hear what happened.”
I nodded and realized I wasn’t shaking anymore. Whatever the paramedics gave me must have kicked in. “I don’t think I’m going to jail anymore,” I said. “Isn’t that great?”
“Uh-huh,” Dimples said.
“Hey, where’s Billie Jo?” I asked. “I need to tell her something.”
“What is it? You can tell me and I’ll tell her if you want.”
“Okay. Tell her the key goes to the box on Sam’s desk. Only it’s empty, but she should check it out anyway.”
“Okay,” he said, wondering how I had found that out.
Before he could ask me more, the paramedics were ready to load me onto a gurney. I was about to protest that I could walk up the stairs but never got the chance before they were done and I was all strapped in. They even carried me up the stairs without me sliding off, which I thought was pretty amazing. Chris followed the ambulance in his car, and I was soon in the hospital, where they sent me to surgery to stitch my arm back together.
After they were done, the doctor decided to keep me overnight, which I thought was a good idea so I didn’t argue. Getting shot, even if it was just in my arm, had been a shock to my system, and the meds they gave me for the pain helped a lot. Once I got settled in my room, Chris came in with a big bouquet of flowers to cheer me up.
He told me that after I came out of surgery, he went home and talked with the kids to let them know what had happened. He’d told them I was fine and would be home in the morning. He was also thinking about a little surprise they had in mind for me once I got home, but quickly shuttered his thoughts, hoping I was too out of it to pick that up. Being a little loopy made it easy to pretend I hadn’t heard a thing.
“So tell me what happened,” he said.
I shrugged off my grogginess and told him as much as I could, even though my words came out a little slow. “I guess he was out for revenge against Uncle Joey. He gave me a choice. Either I go to prison for Sam’s murder, or I pin it on Uncle Joey. I told him I wouldn’t do it, and he was thinking that if I told Uncle Joey his plan, he was toast. I guess that’s when he decided if I wasn’t going to cooperate, he didn’t need me anymore.”
Chris nodded, but his breath caught and his eyes started to bulge. Why the hell hadn’t I just gone along with him? “So how did Manetto know where you were?”
“The killer,” I said. “She was hiding in the outer office and heard everything. She thought that if she told Uncle Joey, he would help her get out of town.”
“What killer?”
“Oh…well, the judge hired a killer to kill Sam Killpack and Rebecca Morris.”
“Huh?”
This time I remembered to tell him about the judge’s daughter and how Jim was involved in her death, and how it was connected to Uncle Joey because it was his club where she’d been drinking. When I got through, Chris shook his head in amazement, then his eyes lit up with excitement. “That’s it!”
“Huh?”
“It’s the key to getting Jim out of prison and off death row!” Chris explained. “We can declare a mistrial. The judge never should have been allowed to preside over Jim’s trial, not with this conflict of interest. He must have manipulated the system to be the judge.”
“Oh…wow, you’re right. We need to let Billie know right away.”
“Yeah, and we don’t have much time. Will you be all right if I leave?” He was thinking that besides talking to Billie, he needed to go home and get dinner for the kids, then maybe bring them to see me, and after that, take care of that other thing.
“Sure, sure. Go. Don’t worry about bringing the kids to see me tonight. Tell them I’m fine and I’ll see them tomorrow.” I wanted to see them, but I was afraid if I did, I’d just start bawling, and what I really needed was a little time to get over the trauma of getting shot.
He kissed me, saying he’d come back later, and I dozed off. Next time I woke, I felt more like myself, although my arm was pounding with pain. I checked the time and was surprised to find it was after nine p.m. The nurse came in to check my vitals, and I even got up to use the bathroom. Once I was situated back in my bed with more pain meds, I started to feel lonely and decided to call Chris and find out what was going on. Maybe I should have made him bring the kids after all.
As I reached for the phone, a knock came at the door. The flowers appeared first, and I recognized the white hair second. “Wow, those are beautiful,” I said to Uncle Joey. He smiled, but seemed a little ill at ease, and I picked up that he didn’t like hospitals much, but he figured he owed me for what I’d been through. He set them down on the desk.
“So did you get Ginger taken care of?” I asked.
That surprised him, and he chuckled. “Yes. I just wish we could have gotten there sooner… um… before you got shot. How are you doing?”
“I’m good. They’re sending me home in the morning.”
“That’s great. Well, I won’t keep you. I just wanted to tell you
that Ginger told me everything. She mainly wanted me to know that you refused to double-cross me.”
He glanced at me then, and our gazes met. He smiled, but he was thinking that was a wise choice since it never would have worked anyway, but the fact that I stood up to the judge went a long way in his book.
“I also wanted to tell you not to worry about the contents of the judge’s briefcase.” At my puzzled expression, he continued, “The one with all the pictures of us together in it? Ginger told me about that too, and Ramos got it out of his car before the police got involved.”
“Oh wow, that’s great,” I said. “I’d forgotten all about that.”
“She also gave me something else.”
I gasped, hearing it in his mind. “The ledger?”
“Yes. I’ve got it somewhere safe until you get out of here, but it’s yours to help with your case. I imagine if the judge survives, he’ll have quite a story to tell, but the ledger will tell the truth.”
“If he survives?” I suddenly had a bad feeling that maybe he wouldn’t if Uncle Joey had anything to do with it.
He smiled, thinking I had it all wrong. “After thinking about it, I’ve come to the conclusion that it would be good if he survived. That way when all this comes out, he’ll get sent to prison. Just imagine how that could turn out for him being in there with all the people he sent away.”
I nodded and smiled, silently agreeing with Uncle Joey’s thoughts that this was the perfect revenge for what the judge had done to me. “And just think,” I added. “It’s all legal.”
Uncle Joey laughed, thinking he was glad he’d cheered me up. “Goodnight, Shelby.”
“Goodnight.” He left, and for the first time in days, I felt all was right with the world. It didn’t hurt that the pain meds had kicked in and my arm only twinged a little. In fact, I felt so good that I snuggled under the blanket…well, as much as I could with an IV in one arm and a bandage on the other, and promptly fell sound asleep.
***
I got home the next day, feeling surprisingly refreshed and grateful to be alive. Chris had a surprise for me, but of course, I’d picked up enough to know that he was planning a special dinner for me and the kids to celebrate my return. I blamed not blocking his thoughts on the pain meds.
I changed into some sweats, and with my arm in a sling, got settled on the couch just as the doorbell rang. “It’s Harris,” Chris explained. “I told him to come over for your statement.” As Chris let him in, I hoped I could tell him what he needed to know without making my involvement with Uncle Joey an issue.
“Hi Shelby, how’s the arm?” Dimples asked, then sat in the chair across from me.
“Better,” I answered.
He was thinking that was a close call, and if it wasn’t for Manetto, I’d probably be dead. He hated that I helped the guy, but at least he’d come through for me in the end. “So, can you tell me what happened yesterday?”
With Chris by my side, I told him about the phone call from the judge and that he’d wanted to meet with me. “The judge had Sam killed because Sam found out that the judge had orchestrated Rebecca Morris’ murder. The judge had her killed because Jim Porter had killed his daughter and he wanted Jim to suffer like he had.”
Dimples nodded. “Yes, Chris explained that part to me last night, but what I don’t understand is why the judge set you up for Sam’s murder.”
Chris jumped in. “I think he was trying to get back at Manetto by framing Shelby like he framed Jim because it was Manetto’s club where his daughter was killed.”
“Okay,” Dimples said. He was thinking that the judge must have thought Manetto was more attached to me than I was letting on. “So why did he kidnap Shelby and try to kill her?” He was asking Chris, but glanced at me.
“Because I told him he was nuts to think Manetto would ever care about me going to jail,” I improvised. “That’s when he decided to murder me in the basement of Manetto’s club and make it look like Manetto did it.”
“Okay.” Dimples was thinking this story wasn’t the whole truth, but he wasn’t going to push me about it, mostly because they already had Dobson on kidnapping and attempted murder charges. He was pretty sure my explanation was enough to clear me for Sam’s murder, although he wished he had more concrete evidence.
Just then the doorbell rang again, and Chris answered, opening it wide for Billie to come inside. “Shelby!” she exclaimed. “How are you doing?” Careful of my arm, she gave me a quick hug, truly glad to see me looking alive and well. From her thoughts, I also knew it wasn’t a coincidence that she was there at the same time as Dimples. He actually blushed when she walked in.
“Drew already told me about the shooting, but why did the judge kidnap you?” I filled her in with the same story I told Dimples, and after exclaiming that I was lucky to be alive, she turned to Dimples. “At least that clears her for Sam’s murder.”
She was thinking that this story was awesome and she couldn’t wait to publish it. With the ‘story behind the story’ of the judge’s motive for revenge, it had Pulitzer Prize written all over it. “I also wanted to tell you what I found! You were right, the key fit that little box on Sam’s desk and opened up a secret compartment inside the lid. It had a thumb-drive in it. What’s on there will clear Jim for Rebecca’s murder and gives a motive for the judge to get rid of Sam. So it helps you both!”
“That’s great!” I said. “Have you told Jim?”
“Yes. That’s why I’ve got to run. I’m meeting his lawyers to get everything together for his release, but I just wanted to stop by and see you first.” She also wanted to hear my version of the story so she could publish it in the paper tomorrow. She could picture the headline now, “Framed for Revenge – Innocent Man Exonerated.”
At least she was focusing on Jim and not me. “Um…tell Jim “hi” for me,” I said.
“Oh, I’ll tell him more than that. I’ll tell him you solved the case!”
On that happy note, Dimples walked her out and I slouched against the couch, totally drained. “It looks like I’m officially off the hook, right?” I said to Chris.
“Pretty much,” he agreed. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure they drop all charges.”
“Phew! You don’t know how happy that makes me feel.”
He gave me that sexy smile of his and, careful with my arm, pulled me close until I was basically sitting on his lap. “You scared me to death, by the way.” He kissed my lips, then trailed kisses across my face to my neck, sending shivers down my spine. “But I’m not going to ask you to stop doing what you do.”
“You’re not?” That surprised me, and I pulled back to look him in the eye.
He chuckled and then bent over to nuzzle my neck again. “That would be like asking a river to flow backwards. Nope. You are like a force of nature, and there’s nothing to do about that but go with the flow.” His desire washed over me, sending threads of longing straight to my heart, and my body hummed.
“So, you’re really okay with it?” I had to ask.
His kisses stopped, but then started up again. “Yes.” He was thinking about the little talk he’d had with Manetto and how they’d worked things out.
“You talked to Uncle Joey?” I squeaked.
Chris blew out a breath and pulled away. “Yes dear, I did. And I found out that he doesn’t want anything bad to happen to you either.”
“So does that mean he won’t ask me to work for him anymore?” Instead of relief, a sense of loss filled me. How crazy was that?
He chuckled. “Are you kidding? No, but he’s going to be more careful about the assignments he gives you.” Chris was also thinking that as soon as I felt better, he was going to sign me up for Aikido classes with Billie. She’d offered when he’d talked to her last night, and he’d taken her up on it real fast.
“Hmm…” I said. “I think Aikido’s a great idea.”
Chris resumed kissing me, determined that if I was going to listen to his every thought, he’d re
ally give me something exciting to think about. Something that would make me forget everything else but this moment with him. He was right. After that, all thought went right out of my head.
***
Friday afternoon I was on my way to lunch with Holly to celebrate my status as an ‘acquitted of murder’ suspect. Because of my arm she drove, and after parking the car, we started toward the restaurant. The rumbling of a motorcycle brought us to a stop, and there was Ramos, pulling into the parking lot and stopping a few feet away.
He tugged off his helmet, looking incredibly sexy in his black leather jacket, tousled hair, and unshaven face. “Babe,” he said. “How’s the arm?”
“Uh…doing better, thanks.”
“Good. I have a little something for you.” He took a small leather notebook from inside his jacket pocket and handed it to me.
“Oh…the ledger…thanks.” I eagerly took it from him. “Chris will be happy to see this.”
He nodded and, after a quick glance and nod to Holly, said, “Later,” and slipped his helmet back on. Right before he drove away, he gave me a quick wink, and I couldn’t help the smile that widened my lips.
He’d called me earlier about picking up the ledger, and I’d told him about my lunch date with Holly. He was happy to agree to give it to me in the parking lot of the restaurant, especially after I told him about Holly wondering if he was real, or if I’d just made him up. The timing couldn’t have been better.
“Wowza!” Holly said, fanning herself with her hand, her breathing fast. “You weren’t kidding.”
I laughed and tugged her toward the restaurant.
“Wait,” she said, wanting to keep her eye on him as long as she could.
As we watched Ramos drive away, I grinned and let out an appreciative sigh that matched Holly’s. She believed me now and couldn’t wait to hear all the juicy details about my latest adventure.