Witness Protection (3 page)

Chapter Three

Nick pulled Sadie into the woods at a dead run. Branches slapped her face and arms, stinging her skin.

Boomer quickened his stride, keeping pace by her side step for step.

They could’ve been banging drums for all the noise they made. No chance they’d slip through the brush unheard. Nick seemed more intent on moving fast. Another reason her pulse kicked up and her anxiety levels roared.

Her thighs hurt. Her lungs burned. She pushed forward, determined not to complain.

He stopped at the edge of a lake. She collapsed to the ground, gasping for air. Her ears were numb, frozen. Every other body part overheated.

Sunlight pushed through the trees, which meant they’d been on the go at least forty-five minutes. Her lungs felt as if they’d explode, whereas Nick hardly seemed affected. Of course he was in shape. His job—his
real
job—would demand excellent physical conditioning. She forced her gaze away from the way his muscles expanded against his jeans when he walked.

The rustle of leaves and bird whistles were the only noise. “Is it safe to take a break?”

He stood, listening. Then he scanned the area. “We can take a minute.”

“What about the racket we made?”

“I made a few shortcuts that made it harder to track us.” He opened his pack and handed her a bottle of water, taking one for himself. “Let me know when you think you can move again.”

She could barely open the lid. Tired and dirty, her stamina waned. The cool liquid was a godsend to her parched mouth. “So what’s the plan?”

“Shelter. But it’s a ways ahead,” he warned. “It isn’t much, but it’ll get us through the night.”

“No. I mean ultimately. Where is all this hiding going? Surely no one expects me to keep this up forever.”

“If you’re tired we can stop.”

“I don’t mean now.”

His face tensed. His glare intensified. His slack jaw became rigid.

“What? No answers?”

“You want the truth? We catch him, figure out who else is involved and why, and get your life back.” He turned to face the lake.

“I doubt that,” she huffed. “What good did it do me to testify? I never got my life back. His men kept searching for me. I’ve had two homes in two years. Now, he’s out. Hunting me. I’m running for my life. Again. Your boss made promises he didn’t keep.”

Nick bent down and poured water on his palm, allowing Boomer a drink. When the dog was hydrated, Nick took a swig of water. “He shouldn’t have done that.”

“It was all well and good when people wanted me to help them.” She pulled her knees into her chest. “I’m sure it didn’t hurt his career to be able to put a man like Grimes away.”

He whirled around on her. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“How much do you trust your boss?” Anger had her bating him into an argument.

“Smith is fine. You’re tired.”

“Is that right?”

“I hope so because if this is your personality, it’s gonna be a long night.”

“You think this is funny? Forgive me if I don’t laugh along with you.”

Nick cleared his throat. “I never said that. I’m not here to hurt you. In case you hadn’t noticed, I’m trying to help.”

“For how long? You can’t watch me the rest of my life. Maybe I should go after him for a change.” What she’d said was the emotional equivalent of raising a red blanket in front of a bull. She had two choices. Fight or cry. She’d rather fight.

“Now you’re being crazy.”

Tears welled, but she’d be damned if they were going to fall. “First I’m tired. Now I’m crazy. Which is it?”

“I get why you’re...freaking out.”

“Do you? You think you already know what’s going on inside my head? Why don’t you tell me, then, because I’m confused.” She shot daggers at him with her glare. Fear pushed away the cold air, replacing it with heat. Her body vibrated from anger, her defense mechanism for not losing it and crying.

She stood and took a step toward him. She expected to see anger or confusion. Instead, he faced her with his whole body. His hands were open at his sides. His relaxed gaze moved smoothly from her eyes to her mouth and back. His lips softened at the corners in a smile. She steeled her breath, but nothing prepared her for the warmth of his big hand on her shoulder.

The fight drained from her.

“We have a long walk ahead. You should save your energy.”

Her chest deflated. She plopped onto the cold ground. Boomer nuzzled his cold wet nose on her neck.

“Give me a minute. I’ll be fine.”

* * *

T
HE
LAST
THING
Sadie looked was fine. If he’d learned one thing from having two sisters, the word
fine
didn’t mean good things. He’d give her a minute to regroup even though he’d feel a lot better if they kept moving. They’d put some distance between them and whoever was following, but for how long? “For what it’s worth, my sisters tell me I’m stubborn. If I were in your situation, I’d be crazy, too.”

She rewarded him with a smile warmer than a campfire. “Smart women.”

“Don’t tell them that.” He bent down on his knee, fighting the urge to provide more comfort than his words.

“Do I detect a case of sibling rivalry?” Her brow arched.

“No. But I do have two younger sisters to keep track of.”

“You must be exhausted.”

“Not really. They can take care of themselves mostly. Both work in law enforcement. They humor me, though.”

She relaxed a little more. “Bet I could learn a thing or two from them.”

“I doubt it. You’re a survivor.”

“How do you know?”

“You’ve made it this far.”

“You never told me where we’re going. Do you have a hunting cabin or something out here?” she asked.

“Guess I didn’t adequately fill you in. I’d apologize but I’ll just do it again. My sisters tell me I tend to get in a zone then information comes out on a need-to-know basis.”

“Does that mean your brain can act and speak at the same time?”

He laughed. “It’s possible. Words are empty, though.” He could hear his grandmother’s voice in the back of his head echoing the same sentiment. “Actions are better.”

She’d also taught him to be grateful for what he had instead of sorrowful for what he’d lost. Some lessons were easier to catch on to than others.

Sadie’s laugh had the same effect as the first spring flower opening. “You’ve been surrounded by a lot of smart women in your life, haven’t you? You’re lucky.”

“Not sure if you would hold on to that thought if you spent more than five minutes with them.”

Her gaze focused on the water and she absently picked at a leaf. “I’m afraid I don’t have a big family to draw experience from. It’s just me. Has always been just me.”

He nodded.

She glanced at him. “Right. You already knew that didn’t you? You probably know everything about me, don’t you?”

“The agency gave me your intel. For what it’s worth—”

“Don’t apologize. You’ll just do it again when you need information about someone.” She half smiled.

“True.”

“I know you were doing your job. I’m not blaming you personally. It’s just surreal to me that there’s some file out there with my life history in it.”

Silence sat between them.

“It’s been me, alone, for so long, I can’t remember what it’s like to have a real family. It was just me and my parents growing up. I never had more than that. They were always working. I wouldn’t know what to do with siblings who watch over me.”

“A big family sounds like heaven in theory. In real life, not so much. Add my mom and grandmother into the mix and I’ve had four women constantly telling me what to do for most of my life.” He chuckled.

“Sounds like the promised land to me right now.”

“Mom had a lot of mouths to feed when my dad disappeared. She’d come home beat, but tried not to show it. I became a handful. My dad leaving didn’t do good things to my head. But then I saw how much pain I added to my mom. She was already devastated. Being the oldest, I got a front-row seat to her pain.”

“From the looks of it, you turned out okay.”

“That’s still up for debate.”

“You’re a U.S. Marshal. You change people’s lives with your work. I’d be dead right now if not for you. I’m sure dozens of other people would say the same thing.”

He tightened his grip on the water bottle as he screwed on the lid. “Think you can walk?”

“I’d like to hear more about your family.” Her voice hitched on the word
family.
Was she thinking about his family, or the husband and kids she should already have with the accounting consultant in Chicago?

A twinge of jealousy heated his chest. He ignored it. “There isn’t much else to tell. I have two brothers.”

She rolled her eyes. “Are you focused again?”

He couldn’t help but smile. “Not intentional. I’m thinking about getting us both through the night.”

She straightened her back and glanced around. “Any chance they gave up and went home?”

“They’ve come this far. They won’t stop looking.”

“You said there’s a place we can stay?”

He nodded.

“That the best idea? I mean, shouldn’t we get out of here altogether? Maybe call for backup?”

“Afraid we’re on our own this time.” A warm sensation surged through him when he thought about the implication of being alone with her in the small cabin all night. One bed.

She turned and his gaze drifted down the curve of her back to her sweet bottom. Another time, different circumstances, he could think of dozens of things he’d like to do with her on that bed. This wasn’t the time for inappropriate sexual fantasies.

“Why are we on our own?”

“Smith made the call. I agree. Can’t risk anyone on the inside knowing your status or whereabouts in case there’s a leak. We have to consider the fact this might be bigger than Charlie.”

“How many people in the agency know about me?”

“Now?”

She nodded.

“As far as we know, me and Smith. We’d like to keep it that way.”

“Then what are you afraid of?”

“If Grimes found a way in with Charlie, I wonder what other connections he made. We think we’re the only two with your intel, but we can’t be sure. Your file was with Charlie. Now it’s missing. Did he tell anyone else about you before he was killed? We have no clue. There’s too much uncertainty.”

“I know what they did to me, but what other crimes are they responsible for?”

“Grimes is well-connected. Has his hands in contract killings, loan sharking, gambling, bribery—to name a few. His channels run from South America to Canada, and straight through Chicago.”

“Sounds big-time.”

“Ever play the game Six Degrees of Separation?” He looked at her.

“Yeah. Sure. Why?”

“He’s the Kevin Bacon of crime.”

She shifted her weight and looked at him. “Or he was...”

“Until you put him away, which started a war. Now that he’s out, we have no idea what to expect.”

“Pandora’s box?”

“Armageddon.”

“Still doesn’t explain what he wants with me. Except good old-fashioned revenge, I guess.” Sadie stood and wiped the dried leaves clinging to the back of her jeans.

“He’s not exactly a nice guy. He’s capable of doing a lot of damage on his own. We can’t underestimate him or his connections.”

“Lucky me.”

Nick closed the water bottles, zipped the pack and shouldered it. The winds had picked up and the air had a cold bite. “We’ll catch him. Or the marshals, or the feds will.”

“You believe that, don’t you?”

“It’s my job. The system isn’t perfect. Sometimes it fails. I see it succeed ninety-nine percent of the time.”

She stared at him incredulously. “You don’t need to tell me about the system. I’m living proof it doesn’t work.”

Nick didn’t offer a defense. Sadie was the exception.

He inclined his chin and powered forward.

The best thing he could do for her was give her a half-decent night of sleep in a comfortable bed. A hot shower and warm bowl of soup would defrost her and revive her energy.

“You good at what you do?”

“The best.”

“Excellent. I wouldn’t want to be stuck out here with an amateur.” She turned and made kissing noises at Boomer, who dutifully followed.

Nick kept a brisk pace until they reached the small cabin before dark, only stopping long enough to eat a Power Bar for lunch. Sadie followed close behind; the crunch of tree branches under her boots and her labored breathing the only indication that she kept going.

The first thing he did when they got inside was to fill a bowl of water for her dog. Boomer trotted over as though they’d become best friends. Maybe they had. They had a common bond. Protecting Sadie. Nick scratched the big red dog behind the ears.

“Shower in the bathroom works. Water’s warm.”

“Sounds like paradise.”

“This place isn’t much, but it’ll get us through the night.”

Her gaze moved around the one-room cabin, stopping on the twin bed. “Rustic, but has everything we need. Is it yours?”

“Belongs to a buddy of mine. Keeps it for when he wants to be alone. There’s nothing and no one around for miles.”

“He knows we’re here?”

“Doesn’t need to.”

“How do you know he won’t come walking through that door any minute? Or, worse, in the middle of the night, and scare us to death?”

“He’s out of the country right now. We met in the military. He’s career.” He walked to the bathroom and back, delivering a dark green towel. “He’d look me up if he was on the continent.”

“Fair enough.”

“This place isn’t exactly the Ritz-Carlton, but it serves our purpose for tonight.”

She tugged the towel from his hand. Her green eyes sparked with her smile as she studied the gold shag carpeting, a relic from the ’70s. “I had no idea the government paid so well. Maybe I should consider enlisting.”

“They can be generous.”

She glanced from the carpet to Nick. “No one can accuse this place of being boring. That’s for sure.”

“And we have the added benefit of being completely off the grid.”

“Right. I almost forgot. The whole part about trying to keep me tucked away and alive.” Her smile faded.