Wrong Number (15 page)

“I know. But it’s more complicated than I could ever have imagined.” Jason’s voice was even and restrained. “It’s not everyday the secretary of defense gets assassinated.”

“But can’t I stay with my mom? You could set up surveillance there.”

“Aubree, every time I turn around, I’ve got one of my cover agents telling me about some new piece of scum looking for you. They know you have a baby; they know stuff about you I didn’t even know. We think they’ve got your mom under surveillance.”

Aubree exhaled slowly. “Is my mom safe?”

“Yes, but I’m sorry. You won’t be able to talk to her for awhile. We’re doing the best we can.”

Aubree didn’t say anything. She thought about how every three weeks, Jason called her to see how she was doing. Twice he’d given her a number to call her mom, and Madeline had driven to a secure location for the phone call and waited for Aubree to contact her. Talking to her was really the only thing she had to look forward to. She even kept notes between their chats of the things Scarlett did so she would remember to report every detail. She swallowed and spoke into the phone again, “Thanks, Jason.”

He cleared his throat, and she anticipated the next question with a clenched jaw.

“Are you still having nightmares?”

“Sometimes.”

“I still think there’s something we’ve missed in all of this. Maybe we should try hypnosis again.”

“I’ve tried to be cooperative. I was hypnotized when I first moved out here, and I don’t think it’ll do any good to try again.” She pushed a hand through her black hair. “I think I’ve recalled all the details of the conversation that matter.”

“I know. It doesn’t add up, though, and we’ve had the entire administration breathing down our necks. People don’t kill the secretary of defense and get away with it. It’s more than just a chance you’ll recognize a voice. Someone thinks you know something that can hurt them. When I feel like you’re safe, you’ll be on the first flight home.”

“Okay.” She hung her head and whispered good-bye before ending the call.

The familiar stillness settled in the house with no one to talk to except Scarlett. Aubree tried to push down the lonely feeling rising from the pit of her stomach. At first the neighbors had come around to introduce themselves, but when Jolynn Dobson had acted standoffish, they hadn’t tried to pursue a friendship. That was exactly how Aubree wanted it, and she filled her days with caring for Scarlett and watching her grow and change week by week. She’d developed a schedule of safe activities that she and Scarlett could do, one of which included cleaning the house. Even with a schedule, it was hard to fight the loneliness.

She walked toward the sounds of Scarlett playing in the family room. She didn’t ever feel completely secure, but at times like these when Scarlett played quietly with a toy, she could almost forget the strangeness of her circumstances.

“How’s my sweet little girl?” she said and tickled Scarlett’s feet. It was hard to believe Scarlett was already eight months old and crawling after baby toys. Her hair wasn’t quite as dark as it was at birth, but it still held plenty of ringlets. Her eyes had turned to a beautiful crystal blue, and with Aubree’s hair still dyed dark most people commented that Scarlett was her spitting image. But when Aubree looked at her, all she could see was Devin.

Although the ache was still there, time had dulled the sharpness of her pain. Scarlett babbled and shook a flower-shaped rattle. The TV was
on, but Aubree wasn’t concentrating on it. She flipped through her cookbook; there was a new chicken casserole she wanted to try for supper tonight. Maybe she could mash some up to feed Scarlett.

The news anchor was reporting on the economic progress the state of Nebraska was making. “We’re taking great strides in agriculture thanks to the new ethanol programs. The governor has been involved in the new green legislation since before he was elected. Now we’ll go live to the corn belt’s number one supporter, Governor Ferrin,” the news anchor said.

When someone else began speaking, Aubree heard a voice that sent chills down her arms. It was like she was in a dream. The room began to spin, and she squinted at the TV, taking several ragged breaths. A man was speaking to a group of people.

“The state of Nebraska has a green future. Our corn belt and the new ethanol plants will breathe life into our economy and help struggling farmers.”

It was hard for Aubree to focus on the man’s face as her body shivered with the memory of the voice on Devin’s cell phone. She closed her eyes and tried to clear her mind so she could compare the voice of her memory to the one she was hearing now on TV.

“With the endorsement of the federal government, the new green program will bolster our state with increased tax revenue and income for the working class. I think green is my new favorite color.”

Her eyes snapped open. The speaker had chuckled, and it had been the same gruff cackle she remembered, but then she saw the identifying text line below the speaker. She shook her head to try to keep from remembering, but the conversation came anyway.
“Tidmore did the job, and the body is hidden in the manhole . . .”

“No!” Aubree said. Scarlett jumped and dropped her toy with a whimper. Aubree bent down and scooped the baby into her arms. She closed her eyes again, but the voice was still there. She cradled Scarlett for a moment until the baby started reaching for her toy. Then Aubree arranged the blanket and sat her in front of the TV.

The governor of Nebraska ended his speech to a smattering of applause. Governor Brent Ferrin had the same speaking voice that had penetrated Aubree’s worst nightmares for almost a year now. She reached for her cell phone and dialed Jason.

When he answered, Aubree’s throat was so tight with tension that she could barely speak. “This is Jolynn. I need to speak with Jaybird.” She said the code words that meant he needed to get to a private area to speak with her ASAP.

“I’m at the office, so we’re good. What’s up?” Jason said.

Aubree pinched the bridge of her nose and struggled to think how she could explain the thoughts racing through her mind. “I heard the voice. The one from the cell phone. It was Governor Ferrin, the governor of Nebraska.” The words came in a rush, and she wasn’t even sure how clearly she spoke.

“Wait a minute. Are you saying you think you heard the guy who called your cell phone? What was that about the governor?” Jason’s voice was alert.

“The voice I heard sounds exactly the same as the governor’s voice,” Aubree repeated.

She heard papers rustling and Jason mumbling, and then he asked, “Where did you hear his voice?”

“It was on TV just now. He was giving a speech on some kind of farming legislation he’s trying to pass.” Aubree could hardly believe what she was saying. Jason would probably think she was delusional.

Jason hesitated. “The governor? I can look into this, but before I do, how sure are you about this?”

It was a question she had anticipated. Her palms were sweating, and her throat felt thick as she swallowed. “When I heard his voice, it was like—” She paused and took a breath. “It was like I was back in my car again, answering Devin’s cell phone. His laugh even sounded the same.”

Jason swore, and she heard him click his tongue. “I’m going to run some searches and get a recording of his voice. We’ll do some checking and see if we can find anything linking him to the leads we’ve been investigating.”

“What if you don’t find anything?”

“If there’s something to be found, we’ll find it,” Jason assured her. “I don’t want you to worry. Just keep doing what you’re doing and take care of yourself.”

“Okay.” Aubree tried to keep her voice from trembling.

“I’ll contact you when I have more information,” Jason said.

She closed her phone and slumped back against the couch. At best,
her information would sound far-fetched, but at least Jason appeared to be taking her seriously—unless he was just trying to calm her down. She hoped for the best and wondered what the rest of the FBI would think when they were told to find dirt on Nebraska’s governor.

Aubree knelt on the floor next to Scarlett, who gave her a toothless smile.

“Should we make some dinner?” Aubree asked and scooped up her chubby baby. At least she could pretend everything was normal, for now.

F
OURTEEN

A
WEEK HAD PASSED SINCE
Aubree had contacted Jason, and she’d been jumpy ever since. She’d only left the house once and had watched every suspicious-looking vehicle closely in her rearview mirror. The past three nights, she’d reviewed all the training she’d received and reminded herself what to watch for. Even though she hadn’t noticed anything different, she felt on edge.

Yesterday, she’d checked and rechecked the emergency bags she’d packed and stowed away in the SUV in case Jaybird ever told her to leave the nest. She smiled when she thought of the funny phrasing Jason would use if he ever felt her situation was too dangerous to stay in the house.

Adding a few more items to the emergency arsenal gave her something to do, but it didn’t ease her mind. If the code was ever called, she would have to leave and head to a safe house where she would be re-routed again. She prayed the case would be solved before it ever came to that.

Aubree gave Scarlett one last bite of pureed squash, and the baby giggled and smeared the food across her face. Before Aubree could get her cleaned up, her cell phone rang. She jumped up and grabbed it. Her pulse raced when she read Jaybird on her caller ID. “Hello, this is Jolynn.”

“Jaybird here with some information.” Jason’s voice was brisk, and Aubree sank back into her chair.

“Did you find anything?”

“Governor Ferrin is squeaky clean. I’m sorry, but we haven’t found a trace of anything that would link him to this case. We’re trying to tread carefully, though, and we’re checking out all connections.”

Aubree leaned her head into her hand and sighed. She watched Scarlett playing with the orange squash splatters on her tray. “So, I guess everything stays the same for now?”

“Yes,” Jason said. “But we may come up with something yet.”

“I guess that’s why they call you guys the FBI,” Aubree said.

“We’ll keep trying to live up to our title,” he said. “We’re being very thorough. We’ll be double-checking to see if there are any known criminals the governor has come in contact with. I’ll call you next week and let you know what we find.”

“Thanks,” Aubree said and closed her cell phone. She felt restless as she digested the news Jason had given her. “Let’s go to the store and get our groceries, Scarlett. I guess we’re safe after all.”

Scarlett smiled and waved her hands in the air. Aubree cleaned her up, grabbed the list off the fridge, and headed for the door. Maybe a quick shopping trip would relax her nerves.

As she pulled out of her driveway, Aubree noticed a pile of thorny sticks she had pruned from her rosebushes and frowned. She kept forgetting to get them disposed of even though they had sat there for over a month.

When the snow had finally retreated, and spring was near, she’d spent quite a bit of time working in the yard. The roses near the driveway were overgrown and hadn’t been pruned for some time. It had taken a thick pair of leather gloves and a long-sleeved shirt to tackle the job. The thorns even made their way through her gloves at times. But with the help of the June sunshine, the roses had exploded into all kinds of beautiful blossoms. Now that it was almost July, Aubree made a mental note to get the pile of sticks by her front door taken care of today; the thorns could hurt someone if they tripped along her sidewalk.

“I’ll have to cut some of those roses for our table,” she said to Scarlett as they drove. Scarlett was happy to ride in the grocery cart, and the shopping trip was uneventful, but that’s how Aubree preferred it. After checking off everything on her list, the back of the SUV was full of groceries and supplies she needed for the rest of the month. At least she didn’t have to worry about money.

Jason had made it clear that all of her needs, within a reasonable amount, would be met by the program for the first year. Money was deposited into her account each month disguised as a paycheck. Her dear
husband overseas took good care of them. At least that’s what everyone in her neighborhood thought.

Glancing behind her, she noticed that Scarlett had fallen asleep. She pulled into the garage and waited for the noisy door to close before she got out of the car. She popped the hatch of the SUV; she could unload the car while Scarlett slept. She grabbed her purse and unlocked the door.

When she crossed the threshold, the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. She stepped softly into the kitchen and looked around. Something wasn’t right, but what was it? She hurriedly punched in the code on her alarm, noting that it hadn’t been disarmed.

Turning slowly, she listened for a sound that didn’t belong. There was a slight rustle coming from the living room. Aubree’s heart hammered in her chest as she walked around the corner. Part of her wanted to turn around and run, but then she remembered how jumpy she’d been the last week about every strange noise. She took another tentative step forward and peered into the living room. Nothing seemed out of place, but then her breath caught in her throat when a light breeze wafted through the open window.