Crossing Danger: A Shelby Nichols Adventure

  “I can assign a couple of my men to keep tabs on your movements. Once they spot him, they can relay that information directly to you.”

  “You mean they can follow me wherever I go? No. I don’t think so.” Uncle Joey was thinking there was no way he’d ever give an agent permission to follow him. That was like asking to be arrested.

  “Just think about it,” Blake said. “And...as a show of good faith, we think he may have come to your building today as a delivery person with a package. Did you get a package today?”

  “I...don’t know.” He turned to Ramos. “Did we?”

  Ramos remembered how excited Jackie was over a delivery that came late this afternoon. “Yeah...we got a delivery...after you left for your meeting. It was a floral arrangement.”

  “From whom?” Uncle Joey asked.

  “Uh...I think Jackie said it was from you. There might have been a card...but I don’t know.”

  Uncle Joey whipped out his cell phone and called Jackie. “Hi dear...did you get the flowers?” He listened to her response, then closed his eyes. “Good...I’ll be home in a little bit. Could you do me a favor and lock the doors and turn on the security system? I want to make sure it’s working when I get home. Good. I’ll see you soon.”

  Uncle Joey slipped his cell phone into his pocket and glanced at Blake. “You think he might have killed me if I’d been there?”

  Blake lifted a brow. “Maybe, but I doubt it. He might have put some kind of bug on the vase, so he’ll know when you’re in the office and what your schedule is like. It would give him a better opportunity to kill you while no one’s looking.”

  Blake could tell that Uncle Joey still didn’t want his help. “Check the vase...if there’s a bug on it, then you’ll know I’m telling the truth, and you’ll let me help you.”

  “All right, I’ll check it out, along with the investment company,” Uncle Joey agreed.

  “Good. I just have one more request. If you do get a shot at the assassin, I would deem it a great favor if you could take him alive. I’d be happy to take him off your hands.”

  “Is that all?”

  I thought that was a great question and listened closely to Blake’s thoughts. He was thinking not by a long shot, but he smiled agreeably. “For now...yes, but I’m hoping that if our paths cross again in the future, we can become allies if conditions warrant it. You never know when you might need someone like me on your side.” He was thinking, maybe even sooner than you think.

  Uncle Joey raised a brow but knew he couldn’t turn down an offer like that. There were times in the past when he could have used Blake and his connections. Of course he’d be a fool to turn this opportunity down. But he knew he could never trust him again.

  Blake took a card out of his pocket, wrote something on the back, and handed it to Uncle Joey. “Here’s a phone number you can use to reach me...it’s untraceable.”

  He turned to Ramos. “Be sure and take extra precautions for Joe’s safety tonight. I wouldn’t want anything to spoil our agreement.”

  Blake stood and glanced at me, holding out his hand for me to take. Naturally, I placed mine in his, and he raised it to his lips for a quick kiss. “My dear, it has been a pleasure. I hope you’ll warn Joe if you see anything threatening him in the near future.”

  Wow. I couldn’t help being impressed, and a genuine smile came to my lips. He was a master at taking control of a situation, and he had the southern charm to show it. “Thanks Blake, but the only thing I see threatening him right now is you.”

  That startled a laugh out of him, and he let go of my hand and inclined his head. He turned to Uncle Joey. “Joe...maybe when this is over, we can spend some time talking about the good old days. We had some fun times, didn’t we? I’ll never forget that stunt we pulled on Professor Blackwell and his T.A. Remember that?”

  “Of course,” Uncle Joey answered. “It was brilliant, and the best part was that we got away with it.”

  Blake smiled and nodded. “Goodbye old friend. Let’s chat tomorrow.” He walked out of the room, thinking that he didn’t want Joe to die, and he sincerely hoped Joe wouldn’t be hard-headed about taking his offer of help. Then he turned the corner and was gone.

  Uncle Joey glanced at Ramos, who made sure we were alone, then turned to me. “Well? Is he telling the truth?”

  “Yes, believe it or not, he is. He doesn’t want you killed by this assassin. So that part is true. But there’s also something he’s hiding about that company. Unfortunately, I can’t tell what it is...just that he needs your cooperation; and he’s hoping by sharing this, it will enhance his odds of getting it.”

  “So the assassin is real?”

  “Yes. Blake wants him captured in the worst way. The assassin’s killed a lot of innocent people. So...I think you can trust him on that point.”

  “All right,” he said. “Did you pick up anything else?”

  “Well...the only thing that really stood out to me was when he was talking about you needing his help in the future. He was thinking it might be sooner than you think...but I have no idea what that’s about.”

  Uncle Joey’s eyes narrowed. “Hmm...Well, I guess we’ll have to ride this one out and see what happens.”

  “There is one more thing,” I said. “He’s done some research on me. I guess the FBI and maybe even the CIA have files on me, and he’s convinced that I must be a real psychic. He’s hoping to bargain for my services in the future.”

  “Then that might be his ulterior motive.”

  “I don’t think so. I wasn’t on his radar until this morning when Ramos and I talked to him at breakfast. He heard me talking about how I helped the police, and I think that’s what got his attention. So we know that besides you, there’s another reason he’s here in town that probably has to do with that company he mentioned, but since he didn’t think about it, I don’t know what it is.”

  Uncle Joey nodded, thinking that this was one hell of a challenge. Not only did he have the assassin to worry about, there was me and whatever else Blake was hiding. But instead of feeling intimidated, it made him feel young again. It surprised him that he actually looked forward to sparring with Blake. Just like the good old days.

  “That’s totally twisted,” I said. “Blake has ulterior motives we know nothing about. You should stay away from him...uh...once you get the assassin.”

  Uncle Joey glanced at me, not liking that I’d read his mind. His forceful gaze trapped mine with such displeasure that my stomach twisted into knots. Yikes! “Or not,” I added, “totally your call.”

  “Shelby,” he said. “You shouldn’t worry about me. I’ve always been the one to best him, not the other way around.” Except for that one time when Blake so utterly betrayed him. But something like that would never happen again.

  He glanced at me, thinking I’d probably just heard that, but he hoped I had the smarts to keep my mouth shut this time.

  I raised my brows, but that was the only response he got from me. I was proud that I didn’t roll my eyes or ask what the heck Blake had done. I kept it to myself for once...yay me. I hoped maybe someday I’d find out all the juicy details, just so I’d have some leverage against Blake for future references. But now was not the time to ask.

  “All righty then,” I said. “If that’s all you need me for, I guess I should go home.”

  “Wait Shelby...I don’t like to talk about it, but you should probably know what happened with Blake. You need to know what kind of man he is, especially if he ever asks you to help him.”

  “Okay,” I said, a bead of apprehension running down my spine.

  “As you know, we were roommates in college. I had my own money, but he was there on a scholarship. He wasn’t a privileged, spoiled brat like most of my friends, and when they bullied him for it, I stood up to them. It wasn’t long before we became fast friends, and I invited him home for the holidays and other special occasions.

  “My father had expectations of me taking over the business at
some point, but I wasn’t sure that was what I wanted to do. I made the mistake of confiding this to Blake, and he pushed me to stand up to my father and tell him what I really wanted.

  “The only problem with that was I didn’t know what I really wanted. I was good at the business, and I enjoyed it. I was just going through a rebellious stage. Anyway, my confession to Blake got him thinking of how to bring my father down. I guess he didn’t want me to follow in his footsteps.

  “In the end, he used our friendship to spy on me and my family. My father’s number-one guy went down for something Blake told the cops, and he died in prison.”

  Uncle Joey sat back in his chair and inhaled deeply. “Right before it happened, Blake warned me, or it would have been my father in prison. I think Blake must have felt guilty.” He was also thinking that he’d held a gun to Blake’s head when he’d found out, but let him go. To this day he didn’t know if sparing his life had been the right thing. “So you can see why I wanted to know why he was here.”

  “So is he really an undercover agent or something?”

  Uncle Joey nodded. “I think they recruited him in college because we were roommates. I’ve tried to keep track of him, but it’s been a while.” He was thinking that his contact in the FBI had retired a few years back, and the fact that Blake knew about his exploits in Mexico suggested he was still involved.

  “Okay...uh...thanks for telling me.” I wasn’t sure how much to tell Uncle Joey, but I decided to go for it. “Blake was thinking that you and he were a lot alike. The things he’d done were on the side of the law, but he wasn’t sure that made him any different. I don’t know if that helps, but there it is...”

  “Thanks for telling me.”

  “Although I’m totally with you on the not-trusting-him part, I don’t think he means you any harm. But who’s to say...it could change.”

  “No doubt,” Uncle Joey agreed. “Well...let’s get you home.”

  Now that Ramos knew there was a real threat to Uncle Joey’s life, he wasn’t taking any chances. His initial surprise that Uncle Joey had told me that story was eclipsed by his desire to protect him at all costs. He made us wait while he called in his men and coordinated our movements with precision timing.

  A different man drove the car with another riding in the front seat beside him, and Ramos sat in the back with us, watchful and alert. I also picked up a few thoughts that this reminded him of the first time he’d met Uncle Joey, and how he’d saved his life from a killer.

  Wow...that sounded interesting. I hoped someday I’d hear the whole story, but his thoughts had already moved on to getting Uncle Joey home safely, and then how to keep him safe through the night. It was nearly eleven p.m. when we pulled into my driveway, and Uncle Joey thanked me for my help.

  “I’ll be in touch,” he said.

  “Okay...be careful.” The man in the front passenger seat opened my door and walked me to the house. At the door, I thanked him and hurried inside.

  I locked and bolted the door, flipping off the lights Chris had left on, and headed to my bedroom. Everyone was in bed, including Chris. He’d left my bedside lamp on, and I could tell he’d tried to stay awake but had lost the battle. I changed and washed my face, then climbed into bed and turned out the light. Chris stirred and turned toward me.

  “Glad you’re home,” he mumbled. “How did it go?”

  “Good. I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow.”

  “No way...you’re telling me tonight. Even if I am half asleep, I want to hear it.” He was thinking that he didn’t want me to think I could ‘forget’ to tell him things and get away with it. “So start talking.”

  He didn’t interrupt while I gave him the basics, but was sound asleep before I finished, so I quit mid-sentence.

  “You’re not done are you?” he asked, surprising me.

  “Oh...I thought you were asleep.”

  “Not a chance...well maybe a little. Come here.” He pulled me into his arms. “I’m glad you’re home.”

  I rested my head on his shoulder and let out a deep sigh. Feeling safe in his strong arms, the weariness of the day overcame me, and I promptly fell asleep.

  Chapter 10

  The ringtone on my cell phone woke me from a deep sleep, and I felt for it on my nightstand. I found it by the fifth ring and, with my eyes half-shut, managed to say a raspy hello.

  “Shelby? This is Harris. Did I wake you?”

  “Um...yeah. What time is it?”

  “Oh...uh...it’s about six-fifteen. I’m sorry I woke you, but we found Pete, and I thought you should know.”

  “Oh...that’s good. I’d like to talk to him. Should I come down to the station?”

  “Well...that’s just it. You can’t talk to him. He’s dead.”

  “What?” That news jolted me awake, and I sat up. “Did you just say he’s dead?”

  “Yes.”

  I pushed the hair out of my face and blinked the sleep from my eyes. “How? When?”

  “He was shot in the chest, close range. From what we can tell, the Medical Examiner says it happened between midnight and three a.m.”

  “Do you have any suspects?”

  “Not right now, but there’s more. Can you come down to the crime scene? I want you to take a look at something.”

  “Really? Are you sure I can get past the crime scene tape?” I did not want to see another dead body, so I hoped this was a good reason to stay away.

  “Sure. Just wear your ID badge. But don’t take too long, we’re almost done here.”

  “Okay,” I said with a sigh. “I’ll be there soon...wait...where is there?”

  “I’ll send you a text with the address.” He disconnected and, almost immediately, the text came through.

  “Who’s dead?” Chris asked, pushing to sit up next to me.

  “Pete.”

  “Whoa, that was unexpected.”

  “Yeah, and Dimples wants me to meet him at the crime scene, so I’d better get going.”

  Just then Chris’ alarm went off. He groaned before reaching to switch it off. “Want to shower with me?”

  I chuckled and got out of bed. “I wish...but I don’t have time. I’ll just throw something on and go. Can you make sure the kids get off to school?”

  “All right,” he agreed. “But be careful.”

  A few minutes later, I put the address into the GPS in my car and started driving. As I got closer to the scene, something kept niggling at me, but I didn’t know what it was. Then it hit me. I’d seen this address before, but I had no idea where.

  As I followed the directions, worry tightened my stomach. Instead of a house like I was expecting, the road took me back under the freeway into a bad part of town. It wasn’t far from the homeless shelter, and garbage and shopping carts littered the street. Mounds of clothing were heaped up in doorways and, with dawning horror, I realized they were people either asleep or trying to stay warm.

  Further down the road, I caught sight of red and blue flashing lights and sighed with relief. I’d never been to this part of town, although it did remind me of the house where Chloe was taken. What was Pete doing down here? Had he met with someone from the narcotics unit? It had to have something to do with Chloe, but what?

  I parked close to the police cars and hurried over to the group of cops near the huge round pillars beneath the freeway. Two police officers talked near the crime scene tape, but quit when I got close. I held up my ID card, and one of them waved me through.

  About thirty feet away, Dimples stood with several other officers surrounding the body and I hesitated. As far as I was concerned, I was as close to the dead body as I wanted to get. I waited for Dimples to notice me, but he was too involved to look up. Still, I couldn’t seem to get my legs to move any closer.

  “What’s the matter Nichols? Afraid of a little blood?”

  I sucked in my breath to hear Bates’ voice. He’d come up from behind and now stood at my side. I glanced at him and decided to be honest. “Y
es I am. It’s hard for me to see anyone like that. Especially someone I know.”

  He was thinking that it was hard for everyone, but you just had to get over it, otherwise you couldn’t do your job...and... what the hell was I doing there anyway? I shouldn’t be looking at dead bodies. I wasn’t one of them. I shouldn’t be here...seeing this.

  “Dimp...uh...Harris asked me to come,” I explained. Oops...I hoped saying that out loud didn’t seem suspicious.

  Thankfully, Bates didn’t think anything of it, although he couldn’t understand why Harris would do that. “Harris!” he yelled, taking pity on me, and motioning Dimples over. “Shelby’s here.”

  While I marveled that Bates had called me Shelby instead of Nichols, Dimples hurried to my side. “Sorry! I didn’t see you. Thanks for coming.”

  “Sure. What did you want me to see?”

  “The body,” he said. “I need you to take a look and tell me what you think.”

  Damn! I was going to have to go over there after all. Dimples didn’t wait for me, so after taking a deep breath for courage, I followed him over. Bates trailed behind, hoping I wasn’t going to puke, or worse, faint, and wondered what Dimples was up to.

  I kept my gaze down until Dimples stopped in front of me. “Do you see it?” he asked.

  I finally raised my gaze to the body, and my breath caught. “Oh my gosh! He’s sitting there just like Tom...the cold case you gave me.”

  “Exactly,” Dimples said, nodding with grim satisfaction.

  “But...so does this mean he was killed by the same person?”

  “I believe so, yes. They’re too much alike to be a coincidence.” He was thinking that whoever did this got away with it once, and figured he could do it again.

  “I see what you mean,” I said.

  “Uh...yeah.” Dimples didn’t know if I was answering his thoughts or what he’d said, but figured it didn’t matter...as long as it made sense.

  I glanced at him and smiled. He smiled back thinking this was totally cool.

  “I obviously missed something,” Bates said. “Tell me about the cold case.”

  “There’s not much to tell,” Dimples began. “But a man helping at the food kitchen ended up dead right here about a year ago. The remarkable thing is that he was positioned exactly like Pete...against this same pillar. It makes me think that if we can find a link between that man and Pete, we’ll find our killer.”