Killer Love (8 page)

“Sure, sweetie. It was my pleasure.”

Jade stood. Her legs felt as if they had no more substance than a drinking straw. She held onto the bed for a moment, and made it to the wheelchair with a little help from Rosalyn.

Once she was settled in the chair, the nurse reached into the closet. She pulled out a hospital bag and placed it on Jade’s lap.

Jade opened the bag and the first thing she noticed was her wedding ring. The two carat pear cut diamond glinted at her from inside a small, plastic zippered baggie. Suddenly, her insides were as cold as the jewel that seemed to hold an almost malevolent energy. She picked up the bag and turned to look up at Rosalyn.

“Here,” she told the woman. “I want you to have this.”

“What?” The look on Rosalyn’s face was the same as if Jade had offered her a live grenade. “No, Dear. Heavens, no. I can’t take that.”

“Yes, please,” Jade said. “I don’t want it. I can’t wear it anymore...can’t look at it. You’ve been so kind to me. Please, it would mean a lot.”

“I think I’d get into trouble.”

Jade shoved it into the woman’s hand. “Hold onto it. Check with your supervisor or whatever you need to do. But I don’t want it back.”

The woman didn’t answer, simply took the ring and nodded, slipping it into her pocket.

Folded neatly beneath where the ring lay, like a scene from a nightmare, was the black clothing Jade had worn the night she broke into Bryce’s office. An item she didn’t recognize was visible beneath her clothes. Reaching in, she pulled it from the bag.

“Oh, my,” Rosalyn exclaimed as she saw the bloodstained article clasped in Jade’s hands. “That shouldn’t have been in there. I know it must be upsetting. Let me get rid of that for you.”

“What the hell?” Agent Conner murmured in disbelief. “That was supposed to be in evidence.”

Jade looked at the agents. They exchanged glances, obviously uncomfortable. The room seemed to close in on her. Her grip tightened on the item that had been used to stop the flow of blood coming from the wound on her neck.

Not a towel, but the blue shirt El Lobo had worn the night he saved her life.

****

Jade shifted restlessly against the seat, wishing she could see outside. The van was windowless in the back, which was probably intentional. The site of the safe house was top secret and the Feds didn’t want her to know its exact location.

The trip had already taken over an hour. She had no idea how much longer it would be before they reached their destination. She was tired and with no one to talk to, she had entirely too much time to think. And thinking was something she didn’t particularly enjoy these days.

Twisting as much as the seatbelt would allow, she reclined into the corner of the seat. She felt drained, her body aching with fatigue. The hum of the engine lulled her and her eyelids began to droop. Without realizing it, she slipped into sleep and didn’t awaken until she felt the van come to a stop. She wasn’t sure how long she’d been out, but she wasn’t feeling particularly rested, so she assumed it had been for a short time.

Agent Miller opened the door and offered her his hand. She took it and let him help her from the van. She stumbled as she climbed out, then immediately righted herself, ashamed of her show of weakness.

“Are you okay?” the agent asked.

“I’m fine, thank you.” She pulled her hand from his and took a deep breath. The aroma of pine trees and burning firewood hung in the night air. Jade stood a moment, letting the scents waft over her, not realizing until now just how claustrophobic she’d felt during the trip. They were in a wooded area. Large evergreen trees loomed above them, almost obscuring the moon that shone in the night sky. Several feet in front of them, a small log cabin sat in a clearing between the trees. A thin line of smoke drifted from the chimney. She was surprised to see lights burning inside.

She turned to Agent Miller. “Is someone here?”

“There are a couple of agents inside. They need to go over some things with you.”

Jade frowned, disconcerted at the thought of dealing with more strangers. Not that she’d exactly bonded with Connor and Miller. Agent Miller reached around her and retrieved her overnight bag from the van and led her into the cabin. They stepped into a living area where an overstuffed plaid sofa and matching recliner were arranged in front of a burning fireplace. A glass topped coffee table sat between the sofa and chair. Other than those items, the room was almost bare. No decorations on the walls, no knick-knacks. A functional, no frills room to conduct functional, no frills business.

Two men stood to greet her. One was a nice-looking light-skinned black man who wore a suit she recognized as Armani. He was large, but graceful in his movements as he stepped over and took her hand. “Mrs. DiMarco, Special Agent Wayne Jackson. I want you to know that we’re very sorry for what you’ve gone through and we’re grateful for your cooperation.” His deep voice was melodious and hypnotizing. Rather than shake her hand, he grasped it between his large ones and smiled, a look of sympathy and respect in his coffee colored eyes.

“Thank you,” she replied. He released her hand and turned to indicate the other man who’d stopped just behind him.

“This is Special Agent Luke Butler.”

The man didn’t take her hand. He simply stood with his arms crossed over his chest. He was tall with dark hair that showed a hint of gray at the temples. He wore a Cincinnati Reds baseball cap, blue jeans and a loose gray sweatshirt with the sleeves pushed up, revealing a black leather band on his left wrist. The eyes beneath the cap were a deep amber color and seemed to glow with an inner light. His nose jutted slightly to the left as if it had been broken at some time. His face wasn’t classically handsome, but it had some quality she couldn’t define...strength, toughness, with just a hint of vulnerability, as if he’d suffered sorrow in his life but held his pain deep inside.

“Mrs. DiMarco,” his voice was low and smooth with a slightly raspy quality like grains of sand softened by an ocean wave. His eyes also held sympathy but the look was tinged with reservation. “Please, have a seat.”

He motioned toward the sofa and Jade gratefully sank into the cushions. Her nap in the van had been way too short. She felt as if she’d just completed a marathon. Connor and Miller stood silently next to the front door like faithful soldiers awaiting their next orders.

Agent Jackson took a seat next to her while Agent Butler sat on the edge of the chair and rested his elbows on his knees. Butler was the first to speak.

“I know what you’re doing can’t be easy and, as I’m sure you’ve been told countless times, the agency is very grateful that you’ve agreed to assist us in putting your husband behind bars. You’ll be here at the safe house for a while. There will be at least four agents with you at all times. You have my word we will do everything in our power to keep you safe.”

“Is all of this really necessary?” Jade was dismayed to feel tears burning her eyes. She wanted to be strong but she was starting to feel overwhelmed.

“Your husband is a very dangerous man with ties to even more dangerous men. There’s no telling what he is capable of and he won’t be happy to find out you’re testifying against him.”

“Yes, but he’s in jail.”

Butler looked down at his hands where they hung loosely between his knees. Jackson was the one to respond. “Not any longer, I’m afraid. He’s fled.”

“Fled?” Her voice lowered, shock and the ache from her injury making it difficult to speak. “How did that happen? He was in custody.”

“Yes. But he was granted bail,” Jackson said.

She shook her head, looking from one agent to the other. “He tried to kill me. He’s been selling young girls into slavery and may have committed murder. How could he be granted bail?”

“Bail is often granted in cases involving an
upstanding
citizen such as DiMarco,” Butler replied bitterly.

“This is unbelievable.”

“Yes, it is. After he was granted bail, we discovered the body of an FBI agent. We’re sure she’s the woman he referred to in the phone conversation you overheard.” He stopped for a moment, a shimmer in his eyes that looked suspiciously like tears. When he continued, the raspy tone of his voice was more pronounced. “We attempted to serve a warrant on him for the murder of Delia Grimes but he was gone when we arrived. We’ve had agents out looking for him since, but so far, we haven’t found him.”

A bolt of anxiety shot through her, tightening in a hard band around her chest. Bryce was free. And very, very angry. “So what happens now? I mean, you obviously can’t bring him to trial until you find him. I have to stay here indefinitely?”

“Actually, Mrs. DiMarco, we want to place you into WITSEC, the Witness Security Program,” Jackson told her.

“Witness Protection? You’re kidding?”

Jackson shook his head. “I’m afraid not. We can’t keep you here forever. It could take a while to apprehend your husband, then to bring him to trial. We’re filing an application with the US Marshals to place you into the program.”

“What does that mean? Exactly what’s involved?”

Butler spoke now. “You’ll be moved to a new location. With a completely new identity, driver’s license, social security card, the works.”

Her scalp tingled as shock and apprehension whirled into a confused white noise in her brain. “A whole new life? In a strange place?”

“Yes. And in the meantime, you’ll be safe here. There’s no way he can find you.”

“How the hell do you know that? You don’t even know where he is.” Jade immediately regretted her words. She knew it wasn’t Agent Butler’s fault that Bryce had escaped. “I’m sorry. It’s just that I thought this might be over soon. That I could testify and send him to prison. Now I find out that Bryce has disappeared. He could be anywhere. And
I’m
the one who’ll really be in prison.”

“I know it seems that way. Unfortunately, right now we don’t have a lot of options.”

“What about El Lobo? Did you find him? Miller and Connor don’t believe the man exists, but I
saw
him. He’s in on this with Bryce.”

The room grew silent, the crackling of logs in the fireplace the only sound. Jackson cleared his throat and said softly. “We know he exists. We’ve been trying for years to discover his true identity...to capture him. He’s an extremely dangerous man and his existence is something the bureau has tried to hide. We were hoping you wouldn’t remember seeing him.”

They didn’t have to tell her he was dangerous...she sensed it in the man’s demeanor...saw it in those eyes....

“Why do you think he saved my life? Why would he do that?”

Jackson flicked a glance at Butler. His partner didn’t seem inclined to respond, so he continued. “We wondered about that, too. All we could figure is that he might have planned to take you as a hostage. Or maybe he wanted to get rid of DiMarco. Apparently, their plan had fallen apart. He may have planned to kill DiMarco and pin it on you. There are a hundred theories but nothing to back any of them up. So, as usual, we’re left with a lot of questions and no answers when it comes to El Lobo.”

“But you are looking for him?” she asked hopefully, relieved they finally acknowledged that she wasn’t crazy.

“Absolutely. He’s top priority, along with DiMarco.”

She nodded and Butler spoke again.

“You’ll be relocated as soon as the paperwork comes through and that shouldn’t take long. I can assure you that your husband won’t find you while you’re here. Even if he did, he would have to go through at least four agents to get to you. We’re not going to let that happen.”

He said it with so much confidence that Jade felt reassured. “Where will I be going? I mean, when they relocate me. Where will I live?”

“I’m afraid we can’t tell you that. Not until you're on your way. The US Marshals will take care of the details. The FBI won’t even know your location.”

“You can’t tell me where I’ll be living?” Jade threw her hands up in frustration. “What about the people I’m leaving behind? How will they know how to reach me?”

“You can’t tell anyone where you are. You have to sever all ties with friends and family,” Agent Butler said flatly.

Her voice thick with unshed tears, she said, “Will I at least be able to tell my friends goodbye?”

He shook his head. “There can be no contact from this point on. For their safety and your own, you will have to simply disappear.”

Jade felt her chest squeeze as if crushed by a huge fist. Even though she’d planned to leave Bryce, start over somewhere new, she’d thought she could do so with her own identity. She thought she could choose where she went, and still keep in touch with her friends and family. Her father had moved to New York with his new wife. He and Jade spoke only a few times a year, but he would wonder what had happened to her.

And what would Melanie think? She couldn’t even tell her best friend what was going on. She’d be worried sick. Jade thought things would settle down soon and she would be able to call and explain everything to Melanie. Now this man was telling her she couldn’t contact anyone. Tears burned at the back of her lids, but she fought to keep them from falling.

“I can’t believe that I’m supposed to uproot my whole life.”

“Better to uproot your life than to lose it,” he stated bluntly. He picked up an envelope from the coffee table and pulled a stack of photos from it. “Maybe these will help you to understand the gravity of the situation.”

He passed her the photographs. Her hands shook as she thumbed through the graphic images. Each scene depicted victims of a range of violent acts. One showed a young woman bound by ropes and covered in so much blood it was difficult to tell exactly where her wounds were. Nausea clutched Jade’s stomach. After viewing only a few of the photos she threw them onto the coffee table. “My husband did all of this?”

“We have reason to believe he and his associates were responsible for these crimes, yes. Do you see now why it would be best if you entered WITSEC?”

Jade nodded slowly. She couldn’t escape the sensation of the earth crumbling beneath her feet. Even though she’d survived Bryce’s attack, he’d still taken her life.