Love Inspired Suspense June 2015 #1 (6 page)

“The same reason for me. You were involved in the Jeffries case. I do have a few connections, working in the White House.”

He clamped his teeth down so hard that a muscle in his cheek twitched. He made a left turn and kept his focus on the road. Silence ruled for the next five minutes, with Nicholas glancing at the rearview mirror every thirty seconds.

Selena tensed, feeling his alertness spike. “What's going on?”

He swerved across a lane of traffic and took a hard right, the tires screeching. “We're being followed.”

FIVE

“W
ho's following us? Where?” Selena twisted around, looking out the rear window.

Nicholas increased his speed and made another turn. “The white car's coming around the corner. Hold on. We're going for a little ride.”

He'd seen that same car when they'd left the prison. Then it disappeared but reappeared a few streets before he stopped at the light.

“Do you think someone followed us to the prison?” Selena kept peering back as Nicholas pushed the speed limit when he finally left a residential area.

“I don't think so. We picked this tail up at the prison.” Which made him wonder how. Why? Maybe Selena was on to something about Littleton. This all started after she first visited the man who was convicted of killing one of Senator Eagleton's interns. Everything led back to Eagleton and Jeffries.

He made a quick decision and swerved left onto a side street, then right and accelerated down an alley. Another right followed by a sharp turn, which brought him back to the original street.

“I don't see the car behind us. I think you lost him.” Selena straightened in her seat.

“Not for long.” Nicholas went down the side street a second time. “We're going hunting. I want to know who is so interested in us.”

“Good. We need answers.”

He chuckled. “We?”

“Yes, you said we would work together on Littleton's case, or do you want me to do it alone? I will if I have to.”

He continued down the side street, searching for the white car. “You drive a hard bargain, which doesn't surprise me. All I can promise is that I'll keep you informed of what I discover concerning Littleton.”

“And Erin?”

“I can't, for obvious reasons.”

“Because you still think I'm helping her. Is that the real reason you're taking such an active role in
protecting
me?”

Was it? Good question. If he were honest, no. There was something about Selena that attracted him. “It's more complicated than that.”

“That's a cop-out.”

He spied the rear of a white car turning up ahead and passed the vehicle in front of him.

Selena leaned forward. “Is that our guy?”

“I think so.” Nicholas took the corner then pressed down on the accelerator, gaining on the car. “Jot down the license-plate numbers.” Suddenly the Dodge shot forward. “I think he knows we're here. Hang on.”

Selena dug into her purse and withdrew the pad she'd used at the prison. “I got the numbers.”

For the next ten minutes, the Dodge weaved through traffic, ran a stop sign and took Nicholas on a merry chase. He closed the distance between the two vehicles when the white car flew through a light when it turned red. Nicholas slammed on his brakes as a school bus pulled into the intersection.

Selena jerked forward, her seat belt halting her.

Heartbeat racing, fed by the flow of adrenaline into his system, Nicholas eased his tight grip on the steering wheel and uncurled his fingers. “Are you okay?”

“Fine.”

“We've probably lost him.”

The light flashed green. Nicholas looked both ways then crossed the intersection, heading in the direction the Dodge had gone.

After a twenty-minute search of the surrounding streets, he pulled over to the curb and called Fiona at headquarters. “I need a favor.”

“Anything for you, if you promise to bring Max by to see me next time y'all are here.”

“I thought you were a cat person.”

“I have cats, but I'm an animal lover.”

“Same here.”

“What do you need? Then I'll give you an update on those videos I've been going through.”

Fiona was also going through the same ones he was. Two sets of eyes were better than one. “I have a Virginia license plate I need you to run down for me.” Nicholas took the sheet Selena handed him and recited the three letters then four numbers.

“Wait. It shouldn't take long. My fingers are dancing across the keys as we speak.” A minute later she said, “I've got it. The owner is Benny Goodwin.” Then she gave him the address associated with the license plate.

“Thanks. Will you do another favor for me?”

“I'm already on it. I'll pull up what I can on Mr. Goodwin and call you back.”

Nicholas disconnected with Fiona. “I'll have something soon on the guy who owns the Dodge. Do you know a Benny Goodwin?”

Selena shook her head.

“Let's grab something to eat. I want to know about this guy before I pay him a visit.”

“Don't you mean we?”

He didn't want to argue with her right now, but he wouldn't put her in danger no matter what she wanted. “Let's check out that café at the end of the block. I forgot to grab lunch before coming to pick you up.”

“I'm not going to let you change the subject,” she said as Nicholas exited his SUV, scoping out the streets with quaint shops.

If he ignored the question, maybe she would get tired of asking. He rounded the hood and waited for her to climb out of the Tahoe. “I'm thinking a nice big piece of pie. I love pie. Not many I won't eat.”

She gave him a frown and marched toward the restaurant ahead of him. Her body language shouted frustration and anger. He didn't care. He wouldn't put her in danger. He would let her help when he thought the situation wasn't risky.

As she entered the café, his cell rang. He noted it was Fiona. “Tell me you have the lowdown on Benny Goodwin.”

“When haven't I given you the info you needed? He's a private investigator with an office in Arlington. Do you want the address?”

“You're the best tech support a team could have.”

Fiona laughed and gave him the information. “He has a thriving business, from what I can gather, mostly divorce cases.”

“Thanks. I won't forget to bring you a chai tea latte and Max next time I come to headquarters.”

Nicholas pocketed his cell and headed into the restaurant, a fifties throwback with a jukebox, red booths and pictures of films from that era. Selena sat in a booth with a
Rebel Without a Cause
poster on the wall nearby. He was beginning to think of her as a rebel
with
a cause.

He slid in across from her, opened the menu and spied the waitress coming toward them. “Let's talk after we order.”

“What would you two like?” The older woman retrieved a pencil from over her left ear.

“What's your specialty?” Nicholas asked, feeling Selena's glare on him.

“Chicken-fried steak and mashed potatoes with gravy. Also the hamburgers.”

“How about pies? We don't have time for dinner.” Selena set the menu on the table. “Which is the best?”

“Blackberry is my favorite, but most of our customers order the cherry pie.”

“How's the chocolate one?” Selena folded her arms over her chest.

“Good. You can't go wrong with any of them.”

“I'll take the cherry pie with vanilla ice cream.” Nicholas placed his menu on top of Selena's. “And a cup of black coffee. It smells delicious.” That scent fused with baking bread and grilling meat. His stomach rumbled.

“How about you, miss?”

“The chocolate pie would be great with a cup of coffee.”

When the waitress left, Selena leaned forward. “I want to go with you to see Benny Goodwin. The name doesn't sound familiar, but I might know him or have seen him around.”

“Here. I've got his driver's-license photo.” He withdrew his cell and clicked on the one Fiona had sent. “Not a good picture. Looks like a mug shot.”

Selena took the phone and studied the screen. “No. He's not familiar. I still want to go with you.”

“You're as persistent as the salmon returning home.”

She pressed her lips together and glared at him.

“I found out from Fiona that he's a private eye, so I don't see why you can't come with me.”

Her eyes brightened. “Really?”

“Yes. After I have my pie. Cherry is my favorite.”

“I like cherry, too, but chocolate fits my mood.”

“It does?”

“I like to eat chocolate when I'm stressed or frustrated. I'm both at the moment.”

“I'm taking you to see Benny Goodwin.”

“I think this little bump in our working relationship is an indication of more to come.”

He leaned forward, lacing his fingers together, his arms on the table. “You are
not
a law-enforcement officer. I won't put you in danger.”

She bent closer to him, their heads inches away. “You are
not
my keeper. I've tolerated your presence in this, but you can't stop me from pursuing my own inquiries. I was doing just fine by myself.”

Nicholas ground his teeth together and lounged back. He wasn't going to be drawn into a battle with Selena. “Ah, I see our pie is coming.”

She huffed and sat stiffly against the cushion. “I'm thinking of having two pieces.”

She was one stubborn lady, but she'd met her match with him.

* * *

“Now I see why you let me come. His office is in a nice area. He obviously must be successful at his job.” Selena let Nicholas open the main door to a three-story renovated redbrick house that had been turned into a commercial building. She noticed several lawyers on the plaque of tenants. Smart move on Mr. Goodwin's part. Attorneys often used private investigators.

Nicholas followed her inside but didn't respond to her statement. In fact, through the stop at the diner and the drive to this place, he'd been silent. He wasn't happy with her. Every part of him screamed that. She didn't care. She was the one who had grown up in a tough, gang-infested area, while he'd lived on an estate in Maryland with all his needs met. He hadn't gone hungry or feared every time he'd left his home that he could be shot. She'd done her research on him in the past couple of days. His grandfather had been a senator and had come from a long line of members of Congress. He'd been influential and wealthy—like her mother's family. So why in the world was he working as a cop, albeit in an elite unit handpicked by a former general?

That question taunted her as they made their way to the second floor where Mr. Goodwin had his office. After the interview, she would ask Nicholas. Otherwise it would bug her until she found out. A nasty habit that had gotten her into trouble occasionally.

She approached the private eye's secretary a few steps ahead of Nicholas and said before he could, “We are here to see Mr. Goodwin.” Nicholas wouldn't have known about Littleton and the possible importance of him to the Jeffries case without her. The motive for Michael Jeffries's murder might very well be due to Michael's work to set Littleton free from prison and find the real killer of Senator Eagleton's aide. She needed Nicholas to realize she was part of the investigation.

“Do you have an appointment?” the young woman, probably no more than twenty, asked while smacking her gum. “He's on the phone right now.”

Nicholas stepped next to Selena. “No, but you might tell him we're the two he was following earlier today and would like a word with him. Now.”

The secretary's eyes grew round, sliding a glance toward her employer's door.

Nicholas showed her his badge. “This is police business.”

The young woman jumped to her feet and hurried into Mr. Goodwin's office. When she came back in half a minute, she said, “He can see you now.”

“Does that badge always do the trick?” Selena whispered as she made her way to the door.

“Not always. Sometimes it sends a person in flight.” Nicholas entered a room with folders and photos stacked on a messy desk.

The older man behind it was hurriedly clearing it off. When he looked up, he said, “I told Betsy to give me five minutes. I was working on a case.” He gestured to the papers and pictures spread out before him.

“Does the case have anything to do with following Miss Barrow and me?” Nicholas flipped open his badge and showed it to Mr. Goodwin.

The man's face paled, and he sank into his chair. “There's nothing illegal about driving on the streets. You can't prove I was following you two.”

Nicholas took a seat in one of the chairs in front of the desk. “There is when you run a stop sign and a red light. You drove recklessly and almost hit a school bus full of children. That wouldn't look too good on the news.”

“You aren't an Arlington police officer. You have no jurisdiction here.”

“But I know the chief of police as well as a number of officers in Arlington, not to mention I work at the White House.”

Selena hadn't thought the man's face could get any paler, but Mr. Goodwin's did.

“What do you want?” The private detective's voice quavered.

“Why were you following us today?” Selena blurted out before Nicholas could say anything.

Mr. Goodwin remained silent for a long moment then finally said, “I can't break confidentiality.”

Nicholas sat forward. “There will be enough evidence to make an arrest once the police review the traffic cam. When I'm finished with you, you might lose your driver's license. How are you going to do your work without one?”

Selena wondered if Nicholas could do that. If she were Mr. Goodwin, she'd believe him because of the hard edge to Nicholas's words and the fierce look on his face.

“This involves the attempted murder of a high-ranking government official.”

Selena marveled at how the impression of “don't mess with me” came across loud and clear from Nicholas. Mr. Goodwin shook.

“I don't want any trouble. I was called because you two went to visit Greg Littleton. I'm notified when someone comes to see him, and I follow them to see who they are and where they go.”

“Who hired you?”

“I can't tell you.”

Nicholas took out his cell phone, rose and leaned over Mr. Goodwin's desk. “I'll give you ten seconds to tell me who hired you. If you don't, I'm calling the police chief.”