No Time to Hide (2 page)

Dominic, or Dom to his friends, had an ironclad alibi. So did his old man, who was supposedly near his death. Without Bonaface’s body, which had never been recovered, the government basically had squat.

Kerry hadn’t heard anything other than the order to kill her father. She claimed to be clueless about what he’d done to earn the wrath of the Giancarlo family. Even the government’s best plants inside the Giancarlo organization hadn’t been able to produce anything more than gut feelings that Bonaface had somehow broken the code of honor that unites crooks. And when one little darling daughter, Kerry, came running to the government with
information
, the government had been all ears, even when her information had turned into squat.

As far as Cutter was concerned, they were feeding the rats to get to the snakes. He bit back a sigh from escaping. He was tired.

He was sick.

He just wanted to forget about all of these things.

And he’d promised himself—and Helen—he would do exactly that. All he had to do was finish this job.

He glanced at his watch again and figured he’d better get busy. Time was short and growing shorter with every passing second. There had been a plan in place for the last few weeks. They hadn’t anticipated putting it into action this soon but the rabbit leaving her hide changed the timetable. He should stop playing nice with her and get down to business, but there had been something about the haunted look on her face when he’d stopped her. Face it, he was a sucker. But they had a little time yet.

As Kerry’s chuckles died, he said, “I hope I’m not keeping you from your shopping or whatever.”

She shook her head. “Nothing important. I just came in here to look around.”

“Ah, a shopaholic, huh? My mother was like that.”

Kerry smiled. “I usually only want to shop when I need something, but today I just wanted to look around.”

“How about some company?”

“I’d like that. A lot.”

Cutter took her arm and they started a slow meander through the mall.

***

Saturday, 10:20 A.M.

“Now look at that,” Cutter said, stopping in front of a gag gift store window displaying items that ran the gamut from slightly offensive T-shirts, cushions that made body function sounds, watches that squirted water, all the way to pet rocks. “I thought that went out with the seventies.”

“You’re right. But according to the sign, this is a genuine, authentic pet rock.”

“Ah, that explains the attraction. It’s a classic.”

She looked sideways at Cutter and wondered if she would be too forward by asking him to join her for dinner. She’d never in her life done that before, but hey, times change and for once in the nearly two years since her nightmare had begun, she was beginning to feel safe again. And he’d already mentioned it himself once before. But she thought he’d only been teasing. If he’d been serious, wouldn’t he have mentioned it again? She leaned a little closer to him. He wasn’t touching her now and she missed it. She was so lame at this being with a strange man thing she didn’t even know if what she was feeling with him was attraction or loneliness. Kerry just knew she didn’t want this time with him to end. She would happily walk this mall from side to side multiple times if he would stay with her.

“Do you know that man in the dark suit?”

Cutter’s soft question dashed her thoughts.

“No? No, don’t turn around. If you look in the display window at about three o’clock, you’ll see him on the other side of the mall. Wait, wait,” Cutter cautioned. “Now look.”

Kerry looked where Cutter had indicated. She didn’t know him, but she knew his type. Her relaxation turned to panic instantly.

“I noticed him while we were having coffee. But I just thought he was doing a little girl watching. He’s been shadowing us ever since we started shopping.”

The panic rose in Kerry and she tried to control the visible shaking of her hands. She had to find a phone, then she had to get safe. Now.

“I have to leave. Thanks for the coffee and, well, thanks for everything. I’ve got to go.”

Cutter took her hand, holding her in place. Her panic rose another notch.

“I know this is probably going to sound crazy. You don’t know me and you certainly have no reason to trust me, but if you’re in trouble, I’d like to help you.”

His gaze searched her face, seeking answers she couldn’t give. For an instant, she wavered. Then the panic overwhelmed her again.

“No, I can’t. Please. Thank you.”

Kerry pulled her hand from his, turned, and dashed away, heading for the ladies’ room as her panic threatened to overwhelm her. Her heart was in her throat. She should have never relaxed, should never have let down her guard. When was she going to learn? This was just like the last time, she told herself as she tried to control her breathing.

Where was it? There had to be a ladies’ room somewhere. She clawed helplessly through her purse for her cell phone. She wasn’t going to wait. She dialed the number as she ran blindly through the surging crowd of laughing, bustling shoppers. How could she be surrounded by so many people and feel so exposed?

Almost there.
Her breath began to back up in her throat.
Just a few seconds more.

The crowd parted magically and the black-suited man stepped into her path. He didn’t speak, not a word. His smile—she would never forget that smile—spoke volumes.

She had nowhere to go, no more places to run. Her time had run out.

“Kerry, darling, you just have to see what I found.” Cutter caught her arm and pulled her back away from the man. “It’s the neatest gadget. I think it’ll be perfect for Joe and Caroline’s wedding.”

Smiling, he wrapped his arm around her and led her steadily away from the man. “That’s it,” he said speaking softly. “Breathe deep. Don’t worry.” In a normal speaking voice, he added, “And then we really should head home. Our guests will be arriving shortly.”

He kept them moving back toward the main entrance of the mall, keeping up the inane chatter all the time. But his gaze was not restful. It looked in the store windows, up at the ceiling, over his shoulder, all the time on guard, as if expecting an attack from any quarter. After what seemed to Kerry to be an eternity, he finally nodded.

“Okay. He’s not following us. I think it’s okay now.”

Kerry couldn’t stop shaking. He took one look at her face and still-trembling hands and said, “I think we really ought to get out of here.”

“I can’t. I can’t.” Her voice trembled as she spoke the words. She was hyperventilating. She couldn’t stop. “They told me to always wait where there are lots of people. I just need to make a call.”

“Okay, okay.” He patted her hand as if she were a small, distraught child. “Calm down. Can you tell me what’s going on? Maybe I can help.”

Kerry looked at him, saw the concern in his eyes, and knew she really had no choice. She didn’t know him, but she knew she had to trust him. He was her only hope. She felt a pang of guilt. He didn’t deserve to be caught up in this. No one did. He was an innocent, just a man trying to help a lady. They wouldn’t care. They would kill him just like they were trying to kill her.

As if he sensed her hesitation, he spoke. “Please. Let me help.”

It was the plea in his eyes to go along with his words that turned the tide. Hating herself for being so weak, for needing his help, Kerry capitulated. “You’re right. I’m in trouble and I don’t think my help can arrive in time.”

Cutter moved quickly. Before she could do more than blink, he was leading her away from the mall and out into the bright summer afternoon. The glare was so bright she felt as if she’d been holed up in a dark room too long. She wanted to close her eyes against it, but when the pictures of her past flashed through her brain, she knew whatever she’d see now was better than those memories.

Cutter led her to a don’t-mess-with-me black SUV parked close to the entrance. Once they were inside and moving steadily with traffic away from the mall, he picked up his phone with one hand and punched in a few numbers.

“Joe, this is Cutter. I need you to check something out for me. We’re heading down the Boulevard toward the Falls. There was a guy following the mark and he attempted to grab her. He picked her up at her apartment and followed her to the mall. His license number is Oscar Tango Zebra 706. I’m pretty sure it’s a rental, but check it anyway. See if we can get an ID. He’s about six-foot-two. I’d say two-hundred-fifty to sixty pounds. He’s wearing a two-thousand-dollar suit and a big attitude. No, no, I think I lost him in the mall, but I’d like to know who he is just in case he’s got a partner. No, don’t call me, I’ll be going dark in about thirty.”

He disconnected and called another number. “Johnson, we’re in big trouble. They made an attempt to grab her at the mall. Yeah, I know, I know. Sugar to shit. I only made one and I lost him for now, but I’ve got a bad feeling about this. Get out of sight at her apartment, but don’t drop the surveillance yet. You might have some company. Keep your head down, buddy.”

Seconds later he was making a third call.

“Shit, he’s out of the office.” He punched a code into the cell and after a second said, “This is Cutter Snead, badge number Apple Charlie Niner Twenty-Seven. My clearance code is Red-One. Patch me through to Denver.”

Finally, Cutter looked over at Kerry.

“Tell me, Agent Snead, when did you decide to tail me?” Moments before, she had sworn nothing could be worse than waiting for her pursuer to catch her alone. Now she knew that wasn’t true. When would she ever learn? Trust and her were like oil and water—they never should be mixed.

Gone were the smiling eyes and friendly nature. Cutter’s eyes flashed blue fire, his tone derisive and cutting.

“Lady, cut the righteous indignation act. That may play for somebody who doesn’t know you, but it doesn’t wash with me. I know who you were and what you did. You played the game and you lost. Now it’s up to us to clean up this mess. Again. You don’t have to like it. Just sit there and be quiet. Let the professionals handle everything.” Cutter laughed. “Boy, I bet you’ve heard that before. By the way, I’m United States Marshal Cutter Snead. I’m not an agent with anybody.”

At a sound from the cell, Cutter went back to the business of being a federal agent. Kerry turned her head away from him and stared unseeingly out the passenger window.

His accusing tone had said it all. Even though she had testified for the government, against her father and her fiancé, she was the one who always felt guilty. She was the one who felt unclean. It didn’t matter which kind of federal agent he was. In her experience, they all treated her like she was dirt.

She put aside that fleeting pain. She had bigger problems facing her now than being treated badly by a government employee.

For the third time in less than a year, her new identity had been blown.

She was weary of being tired.

She was tired of being terrified.

She was terrified of being alone.

Saturday, 10:45 A.M.

Agent Snead drove her down Niagara Falls Boulevard, leaving the sprawling Buffalo suburb of Amherst and heading for Niagara Falls. Gone was the laid-back coach he’d pretended to be. In his place was a government man accustomed to taking charge of a fluid situation. She noticed he kept one eye on his rearview mirror and the other on the road, all while talking to different officials and superiors. This was completely unacceptable. What in the world had she done to deserve this?

Then she answered her own question. She’d ratted on the mob. Honestly, after all she’d been through, she didn’t know which would have been worse. Facing the wrath of Dom and his father after her testimony derailed one of the biggest organizations on the east coast, or living the constant life of terror she faced now.

There was an old saying that a hero only died once, but a coward died a thousand deaths. In her mind, they should have added informant to the quotation.

When Agent Snead finally disconnected his phone for the final time, he looked over at her.

“Okay,” she said, proud of the calmness in her voice. She hoped he wouldn’t notice her trembling hands. “You want to tell me what the plan is?”

“It’s very simple, lady. We’re going to take you to a safe house. Long enough to get you a new identity. You know the drill. This is what, your third move in a year?”

Kerry nodded. “Well, I certainly hope the new identity is better than the last two. I should never have believed you guys when you said you could protect me. That’s the biggest joke of all, isn’t it? I should’ve listened to my father.”

“Right, that would’ve been smart. What was your father’s street name? Oh, I remember, Willie the Whiner. The word was he whined every time he was ordered to make a hit, then, without a qualm, he’d pull out his knife and slit the poor idiot’s throat from ear to ear.” Cutter laughed. Kerry had a good idea it wasn’t with humor. “Yeah, he’d have been a good one to listen to. You’d have been planted six feet under just like him by now.”

Kerry took a shaky breath. She knew Snead was right, but she didn’t have to like it. Just like she didn’t have to like pulling up stakes again. She just had to survive. He pulled his SUV up to a large trash container.

“Should we be stopping? Aren’t they following me?” she asked.

“Yeah, we have to stop. Give me your phone,” Agent Snead said.

“My phone?” her voice wavered.

“Yes. The new one and the one you have in your purse the service gave you,” he replied. “If they found you, they’re probably tracking it.”

She reached blindly in her purse and handed him her old cell and the new one she’d just purchased. He took them, stepped out of the car, leaving it running, and threw her two and his own in the bin. Then they were off again.

She rubbed her hands over her cold arms. She could feel the panic attack rushing on her and tried to remember the steps the web health channel had suggested using to control it with relaxation techniques.

Step One: Breathe deeply.

Kerry took a deep breath and held it in her diaphragm, then counted softly, “One, two, three, four.”

She remembered the website had recommended doing this over and over.

“Remember,” she murmured, “the out breath should be longer than the in breath.”

After doing this exercise a few times, she began to feel a sense of calm coming over her. She wished she’d been able to do more studying on the self-hypnosis technique the website had recommended. She almost pulled out her cell to reread the instructions she’d downloaded but remembered she no longer
had
a phone.

***

Cutter felt an unaccustomed twinge of pity for the woman. There really wasn’t any need for him to be so rough with her. After all, it wasn’t her fault all hell had to break loose on her first day out of her apartment.

Maybe he’d been a little rough with that crack about her father. There was just something about her attitude that drove him crazy, but not with anger, which was what he’d expected. He didn’t like it, but he was worried about her. He shook his head slightly and sighed. He’d always been a sucker for the woman in need. And he’d never in his life seen a woman who needed help more than Kerry did.

The look of panic on her face when she’d realized the mob had found her had touched a part of him he thought long dead. Now he was involved in a way he didn’t need or want. He only had two more weeks on the job before he was giving it all up to teach school. As he looked over at the woman, he had a strong hunch she was going to make those two weeks one big headache, and he wished he’d never answered the text that had called him onto this job. Because his rules of engagement were simple. Until Kerry Bonaface alias Simpson had a new life, she was his responsibility.

He started to apologize when he realized that she was making some kind of noise. Sharpening his attention and focus on her, he almost laughed when he heard her muttering. When she started to rock back-and-forth in the seat, he bit his lip to keep the laugh silent.

What a nut case. She’s doing deep breathing and chanting. Oh, that’ll be a big help if Dom’s pals find her.

As she chanted, he noticed she was chewing on a fingernail. Classic panic attack syndrome.

But when her little white tooth attacked the nail, she looked like a teenager trying to decide what shade of polish to choose for the prom.

Funny, for a short time in the mall, he’d actually forgotten he was on a case. She had been fun and interesting. Right up until the moment she’d become terrified.

If circumstances were different, he wouldn’t mind at all going to dinner—and whatever —with this woman.

He grimaced at the thought. Helen had been dead for nearly two years. Maybe it was time he got on with living if a woman like Kerry Bonaface was attracting him.

He looked over at her again, noticing the chanting and rocking had slowed. She was sitting quietly in the passenger seat, looking out the window. In fact, the only sign of her remaining tension was the nail that went to her mouth every so often.

Cute.

No question about it. When this was all over, he was going to have to start dating again. Maybe he could find a nice, uncomplicated teacher at the school where he would be working this fall. That was just what he needed. Or sign up for one of the online dating sites. He understood women did all the work on them.

Kerry frowned as Cutter pulled off the secondary highway onto a small county trunk road. He could almost read her thoughts. Even though she’d been living fairly modestly in her apartment in Buffalo, it was a long way from roughing it.

He chuckled to himself. Maybe he should tell her the safe house they were going to was nothing more than a shanty. It might be worth a few laughs. In fact, the thought of a daughter of the mob, the fiancée to the reigning mafia prince, roughing it was something that would make a perfect segment on some cable channel sitcom. Too bad he didn’t have the taste for any of it any longer.

After a few more miles, he turned down a smaller road, then onto a narrow gravel driveway. He stopped at a hedge that seemingly ran forever. The only distinguishing mark was a small metal mailbox suspended below the top edge of the branches. He opened the front of the mailbox, revealing a keypad, and tapped a few buttons. The hedge parted and he drove his SUV in. They had barely cleared the obstacle when it started closing behind him.

Infrared technology and nature bonding together to take a bite out of crime
, Cutter thought with a grin.
I’ll miss this kind of stuff when I retire. Maybe I can teach the kids some of the basic high tech stuff.

He shook his head. The reservation school he’d already been hired at as a coach couldn’t even afford uniforms for the baseball team. He’d had to go to a couple of local businesses for contributions and still had to add a couple of hundred himself to get enough balls and bats to have a practice. Computers were definitely not in his future.

Well, I’ll work on that problem once I’m teaching full-time. Now I just have to get through the next few days of this job. Then I’ll be free.

***

Kerry watched the whole procedure with a jaded eye. There wasn’t much wilderness left in western New York, but she knew they’d found some. However, she didn’t put much stock in the high tech toys the government loved. She’d been a witness to how often they failed. Of course, that time could have been caused by human error, not technology. She watched as he keyed in the code, memorizing the numbered sequence immediately. She loved technology. It had been her lifeline. It was still her lifeline. She carried every important document she had with her on flash drives and the cloud. It had been her one constant.

The SUV moved slowly across the uneven track for about a quarter-mile before a small cabin came into view. She knew they were somewhere deep into Erie County, just before it merged with Niagara. She was happy that it was the end of August rather than the middle of winter, because she had a feeling it would take more than a four-wheel drive vehicle to reach this place then. Even though she had never ventured this far from her apartment, she had studied, for hours, all the maps she could find of all the counties of western New York. Seeing it in reality was a little bit of a thrill because the best maps and pictures on the Internet didn’t do it justice.

When Cutter finally stopped the car, she started to reach for the door handle to get out. He stopped her with a touch on her arm. She tried to ignore the tingle spreading over her skin where he held it.

“We’ve got to have some ground rules.”

Kerry started to protest, but as he’d said, she knew how the game was played.

“You have to know everywhere I am. All the time,” she said, showing she did, indeed, know the rules.

“That’s right. The cabin is pretty secure and it’s not on any county records. But I can’t allow you to walk around outside unless I say it’s okay. Understand?”

“Yes. Where will you be staying?”

He gave her a get-real look, then nodded brusquely at the cabin.

“Oh.”

“That’s right. From now on, we’re roomies. Try to think of this as a nice little campout with all the amenities of home.”

“It doesn’t look very big, does it?”

“Hey, it’s got two bedrooms, a bath, and a satellite dish with secure Internet connections. What more do you need?”

“How about something to keep me from going crazy?” Kerry asked under her breath.

Cutter either didn’t hear her or ignored her. Either way was fine with Kerry.

“Okay, then,” he said, instead. “This shouldn’t take too long. Hopefully not more than a couple of days.” Then, in a softer voice, he added, “Please, if there’s any God, not more than a couple of days.”

“Amen to that,” Kerry added, as he got out of the truck and headed to open the cabin’s door. “Amen to that.”

***

Saturday, 11:45 A.M.

Cutter went over to the large, metal, government-issue desk that took up almost half of one side of the cabin. On it sat a computer hooked into the main frame of his downtown office. He brought up his e-mail account. He ignored the first three from the federal personnel office, wishing fleetingly they would stop sending him information about post-resignation investing, wondered what his sister in Florida wanted now in the fourth message, then frowned over the last message listed. He hadn’t heard from Stan Runningbear for months. That wasn’t unusual. Even when things were going good between the two, Cutter and Stan had never been the type to talk every week. And things definitely hadn’t been going good between the two lately.

Hell, ever since Helen, things hadn’t even been cordial between Cutter and Stan. Cutter tapped his finger on the mouse as the pointer hovered over the delete button, then hit open instead. If Stan had made the effort, he could at least see what he had to say.

Brother: Sources inside our tribe say there is much trouble brewing between the casino advocates and the protagonists.

“Yeah, so what else is new?” Cutter muttered. “The only time any native tribe has banded together is when they’re battling city hall. And if they don’t have to fight the white man, they fight among themselves.”

Cutter figured it was just the way of the world. He read on.

I know that doesn’t really surprise you. However, your name has come up from people who shouldn’t know you. It leads me to believe something is not right. Watch your back, brother. There is more at stake than Indians fighting amongst themselves and with the whites.

Cutter sighed. He’d been trying to ease himself farther and farther away from the career that had cost him his best friend, wife, and child. But something always came up. Something like this last case. It should be a simple babysitting job. No emotional ties, no danger. Let the system do its job and then he’d turn the woman over to the agents assigned to take her to her new life.

There was the other problem, the thing that he’d been working on for the last six months, but even that had been going nowhere in a hurry. He’d already decided there was nothing he could do about it. Soon it would be someone else’s problem. He wouldn’t be part of the service anymore. He pushed aside the stray thought that everything he’d learned so far had been leading to corruption on the inside.