Alejandro (7 page)

The loud smash of a door hitting a wall and Audrey knew the men were inside. Angel moaned into Audrey’s neck. Mel pulled her weapon, aiming at the entrance to the kitchen.

Mrs. MacGruber continued. “The backyard ends at a dry creek bed. If you go now, you can cross it.”

“What!” Audrey whispered fiercely. “We can’t leave you.”

No one moved a muscle as they heard the men enter the house, speaking in low tones.
Please, Lord, get us out of this!
Audrey eyed the back door — freedom. She turned her head to see Mel, poised to shoot. Mrs. MacGruber cautiously moved to the marshal’s side.
What is that wailing?
Audrey nearly gasped as the distant sounds of sirens grew louder by the second. Were they coming here? They hadn’t had a chance to phone the police. If the cavalry wasn’t for them, she hoped someone would see the broken front door and take a moment to stop.

“¡
La policia! ¡Vamos, ya!
”

Heavy footsteps faded away. Audrey lauded a silent prayer to Heaven. Whoever was speaking had decided to leave, but Audrey held on to her sigh of relief. Mel signaled for them to stay back. She peeked around the corner before disappearing. Mrs. MacGruber took a stance near the corner Mel vacated, her gun positioned to fire.

“Clear to come out!”

Releasing a relieved breath at Mel’s voice, Audrey surged forward with Angel in her arms. Just as she stepped into the living room, officers poured in the front door, immediately taking direction from Mel, who reached into her back jeans pocket and retrieved her cell phone.

“I’ve missed a few calls from Alejandro.” She pointed at Audrey and Angel. “You two stay here.” She exited the house with the cell at her ear.

“Are we safe now, Auntie Audrey?” he whispered in Audrey’s ear. She still had him in a fierce hold.

Relaxing her tensed muscles, she eased the grip of her fingers, rubbing his back. “Yes, sweetie. I think we’re safe now.”

I hope…

****

“Mel, I don’t care. Get them to Safe House One.”

Mel pinched the bridge of her nose and bit back a frustrated response. The second her cell rang Ale’s, he answered immediately, firing a barrage of questions. Did she spot the surveillance? Had the officers arrived? Where were Audrey and the kid? Were they safe? His voice had been absolutely frantic, and after calmly answering his questions, she still couldn’t get him to take a breath. Temporary insanity must have overtaken him, because he ordered her to go against protocol and move Audrey and Angel to Safe House One, a location specifically authorized for Ale’s use during his undercover assignment in case his cover apartment became compromised.

“Ale, I’m not sure you know what you’re asking.”

She could swear she heard his teeth grinding. “Mel, I don’t have time to repeat myself.”

“Audrey didn’t want to stay at a safe house last night. What makes you think she’ll agree to stay in one now?” Mel persisted.

“Because Trujillo’s men are on to her!”

“Okay, okay,” she breathed, hoping her low, steady voice would bring Ale back from the brink of crazy worry. “I’ll
ask
her to come with me, but if she says no, then I won’t force her and it’ll save your hide from the boss, because when he hears about this—”

“I’ll handle the boss. He can’t exactly do anything to me or my cover will be blown.”

“Fine.”

“Good. I’ll see you soon.”

“You’re coming over?”

“Yes, I’m staying there from now on.”

Mel raised her eyes heavenward, letting out a sigh of frustration. “Ale—”

“Mel, let’s not start this again. I just learned Trujillo’s after the boy.”

Mel scanned the crowd of officers and onlookers. When she found Audrey’s nephew, she narrowed her eyes. “Angel? Why him?”

“Trujillo thinks the kid is his.”

Mel sucked in a harsh breath, the dark reality of the situation taking root. “Oh, boy…”

****

Angel’s button nose twitched in his sleep. Audrey’s chest heaved. She put a hand to her mouth to stop the cry; her tired nephew needed to rest.

Reluctantly, she agreed to accompany Mel to the safe house. After their experience at Mrs. MacGruber’s, Audrey couldn’t take a chance with Angel’s safety. Mel wouldn’t disclose specifics, but Audrey guessed what was unsaid. Someone was after them. Whether it had anything to do with the fact they were Penny’s relations, Mel refused to say. When the officers at the scene released Audrey into Mel’s care, they drove all around the city — to identify any tails — and then stopped to pick up some fast food. By the time they arrived at the safe house, it was barely twilight and by then, Angel had already fallen fast asleep.

Mel had been on the phone ever since they’d set foot inside the small, renovated warehouse. The outside seemed as if the place had been abandoned: rusty metal door, dirty bricks, and a sign that hung on one rung instead of two. The perfect front. The inside sported an open floor plan, a kitchen furnished with the latest appliances, a small living room with a television, three sleeping rooms each with their own bathroom, and a rack of weights lined one of the walls of the loft where a punching bag hung from the ceiling above a thick floor mat used for physical training.

“Yes, we’ll need a few of those as well.”

Mel’s voice drifted closer, and then she appeared in the doorway. She raised inquiring brows, and Audrey offered her a small smile. They were okay — for now.

Audrey followed Mel into the living room, who continued to pace around the open area, chatting with someone while Audrey took a seat on the black leather sofa. She ran all ten fingers through her knotted brown hair, her mind aching as it teemed with questions Mel had yet time to answer. How long would she and Angel have to stay here? What was being done about Trujillo? Why would Trujillo be after her and Angel? How did Trujillo know she’d be at Mrs. MacGruber’s, of all places? What had Penny gotten them into?

Mel let out an exasperated sigh, throwing herself into the lazy boy chair near the couch. She crossed long, slender legs hugged by dark stretch jeans. Her smooth, dark features were twisted by a wiry smile. “Look, this place is stocked for Alejandro, so I’ve made arrangements to get some clothes and toiletries for you and Angel.”

Audrey nodded. “Thank you.” Silence settled between them. The longer Audrey waited for Mel to clue her in, the more she thought the marshal would leave her in the dark. Patience worn, Audrey opened her mouth to speak, but Mel’s reluctant voice cut her off.

“Okay, Audrey, I know you have questions, but—”

The loud sound of metal screeching indicated the opening of the sliding front door.

“And the man who’s going to explain it all to you…”

Audrey’s eyes found the darkly handsome Marshal Alejandro Santiago as he strode confidently into the room. Their eyes met and Audrey swallowed at the storm she saw swirling in the black depths. The harsh lines of his jaw impressed upon her the seriousness of what he was about to say.

He stopped a few feet from her, hands on hips. “You all right?”

For a moment, she simply stared at the man. Large and impressive.
Why do I feel so intimidated? Speak!
Her lips refused to move. Instead, she nodded.

“The kid?”

She cleared her throat. “Sleeping.”

Ale and Mel exchanged glances. Shrugging, Mel stood. “You should be expecting a delivery of clothes and a few other things — for Audrey and the boy. I’m assuming you’re in for the night?”

Ale glanced at the watch on his wrist before sighing. “Uh, yeah. I may decide to go to the shop later on tonight. There’s a guy who’s just returned from Guadalajara — haven’t heard about this guy, but apparently he was in the business a few years back. I want to see what he knows about Alba returning to San Antonio.”

Mel moved past them and continued toward the door. “Well, not before the supplies come. I’m on my way back to the office. I’m sure the boss will want me to run down some leads on those two thugs. Oh, by the way,” she said, facing them. Ale turned to acknowledge her. “Any idea
who
those guys were? Did Trujillo mention names?”

A flash of frustration crossed Ale’s bronzed face. “He wouldn’t say. When I go back to the shop tonight, I’ll ask around.”

“Great, thanks.”

“You, too, Mel.”

Once the grinding metal of the door had ceased, Ale and Audrey were alone. She kept her gaze focused on some invisible spot on the rug. Coming to the safe house wasn’t her first choice. Her and Ale alone? Ever since their kiss, electricity hummed between them, and she feared more than a shock. She was afraid of outright electrocution. They hadn’t discussed the kiss, and the more Audrey thought about that heated moment, the more she came to regret it. In school, girls were a dime a dozen to him. How was she any different? The fact that he’d kissed her — a woman he didn’t know — was proof the act meant little to nothing to him.

And it should mean even less to her.

Ale took the seat previously occupied by Mel, his size filling the chair. Dark eyes settled on her, causing an involuntary shiver, followed by a rush of annoyance. Her gaze unwillingly drifted to his full lips, encompassed by a thick goatee. Ale cleared his throat. Audrey’s eyes shot up to meet the twinkle in his own.

He had caught her staring.

“Um, ahem.” She dipped her head to hide the growing warmth in her cheeks. Drawing boldness from she couldn’t guess where, she raised her eyes. “Who were those men at Mrs. MacGruber’s? Why were they after us?”

A stony jaw and grave eyes replaced his earlier look of amusement. “Trujillo’s men.” He paused, his eyes scanning her face. For a moment, she feared he’d say nothing more, and she opened her mouth to press the issue when he continued. “They’re after the boy.”

The boy. “His name is Angel.”

“I know his name.”

“Then use it.”

They began a staring match, neither one breaking line of sight. Audrey couldn’t understand the man’s antipathy to children. He had two younger brothers, and they were all close — or so they’d seemed to be while in school. Alejandro Santiago was an enigma. At times he was gentle, brushing tears from her cheeks — planting a body-melting kiss to her lips — and at other times he was brash, cold, unfeeling. Audrey continued her silent assessment of the man’s personality. He was more than overbearing, he was…
distant
.

“What does Angel have to do with any of this? Is it because he’s Penny’s son?” Her breath hitched at the unthinkable. Ale had convinced Penny to help him in his investigation. “Penny agreed to go undercover for you. Did you force her to use Angel too?”

He jerked forward so fast, she squeaked, convinced he was lunging for her. Yet, he was still in the chair, his massive hands gripping the leather armrests, the sounds of the crumpling material causing her to cringe as if she were hearing nails drawn across a chalkboard. “I would never. I didn’t even know Penny had a son, remember?”

His menacing stare bolstered her confidence. “How did you not know? There are pictures of the boy all over the house!”

“The night we met was the first time I’d even been to her house. I had to assume Miguel was watching her, so we always met here.”

Penny had been to the safe house. Audrey ran a hand over the armrest of the couch, the leather smooth underneath her fingertips. Her sister might have sat in this very spot. Audrey blinked back the rush of tears. She’d give anything to touch her sister again, to hold her baby sister and tell her how much she loved and missed her.
Why didn’t I try harder to reach her? God, forgive me for being so stubborn. I’ll never see her again!

Sniffing, Audrey kept her eyes on the leather armrest, imagining it to be her sister’s warm skin. Audrey gasped for air, the full weight of realization hitting her in the chest. Her sister’s skin was now cold and hard. Decaying.

Warmth encircling her midsection caused her to jump, letting out a cry of shock. Ale was beside her on the couch, pulling her into his embrace. A dam of tears flooded her cheeks and once again, she sunk into the comforting arms of the marshal.

“Shhh.
Tranquila
.” He stroked the length of her hair from the crown of her head to the middle of her back. She felt his lips move over her forehead as he pressed kisses in between the words of comfort, the soft hair of his goatee tickling the warm flesh around his kiss. “Miguel won’t get away with this, I promise.”

Kiss.

“We’ll catch him. He’ll pay for Lana.” His arms tightened around her, wrapping her in comforting heat.

Kiss. Kiss.

Warm breath fanned the lobe of her ear as he whispered. “
Respire
. Breathe.”

Kiss.

She obeyed, drinking in the spicy scent of musk, oil, and man. The potent combination drawing her deeper into the spell that was Alejandro Santiago — and she went willingly — freely into the comfort, the touch of a man she barely knew but who was adeptly capable of making her lose her senses.

Too soon he leaned back, angling her face, meeting her eyes. “Better?” His hopeful tone lightened the mood, and she offered a small smile in response.

“I’ll see her again. Mrs. MacGruber said—” Her sister had returned to their faith. “She’s in Heaven now, with our parents. I’ll see her again.”

Ale’s eyes narrowed a bit, his hold on her tightening. “Audrey? Are you okay?”

She wiggled out of his arms, choosing instead to stand. Not satisfied with the distance between them, she moved behind the chair Ale had been seated in moments before. She inhaled deeply, and slowly exhaled before eyeing him. “I’m not crazy. I just believe in God and Heaven.” She wiped her face of the cold moisture before continuing. “My parents believed, and although Penny had given up on our faith, this afternoon Mrs. MacGruber gave me reason to hope that maybe she’d found peace again with God.”

Ale’s gaze dipped to the floor. “Peace, huh?”

“Yes.”

He shook his head. “I wouldn’t know anything about that.” He exhaled loudly as he, too, stood and walked to the opposite corner of the room. “Being undercover, you don’t have peace.” His eyes latched to hers. “Peace equals complacency, which is death.”