Nowhere To Run (To Protect And Serve) (12 page)

Somehow, Jordan managed a smile. “
I’m fine really. Besides, we have guests.” She hated the thought of sleeping in the same house as Caesar.

“
They will understand.” His long fingers stroked along her cheek. She turned her head away before he could kiss her lips. The fingers tightened for a moment then released her. “Here, this will help you sleep.” He handed her a sleeping pill and waited. Jordan placed it in her mouth under her tongue. She took a sip of water. He wanted to keep her drugged and unable to ask questions.

Since the news of Jeremy’s death
, she’d lost count of the number of sleeping pills she’d taken. Nighttime was the hardest. She missed Jeremy. Just thinking about the horror of her brother’s final moments made it easier to go along with Caesar’s plans. But no more. She needed to clear her thoughts. Needed to plan.

“Sleep well, my love.”
The coldness in his tone was evident to only her.

Jordan
walked away without answering. She could feel his possessive gaze following her every move.

The weight of having to keep up the pretense of
caring for him had become enormous. She never thought it would be possible for her to hate another human being so much. But she truly despised Caesar Santiago.

Today
of all days – the day of Jeremy’s funeral had been the hardest of them all. Jeremy was too young to die, especially at the hands of someone he loved.

The day had seemed endless, from the short service at the funeral home, the long procession to the cemetery and the final goodbye to the only family she had left. Through the endless
crowd of people offering condolences, she’d spotted Riley. He’d come with his partner. For a moment, their gazes connected. Somehow, even after all the terrible accusations of Caesar, knowing he was there made her feel safer.

Later, after they’d returned to Caesar’s
home and the guests had begun to arrive, Jordan wanted to scream the truth to the world. Reveal Santiago for the monster she now was convinced he was.

B
ut who would believe her?

Caesar
’d perfected his image as the successful ‘legitimate’ businessman and caring fiancé. He was well respected by those in all walks of life. His employees adored him. He’d cultivated connections all the way up to the governor’s office.

Jordan closed the bedroom door
and then slipped out of her shoes. She knew he hated her not sleeping in his bed. He’d made it clear that he wouldn’t tolerate separate rooms much longer. She could only hope he wouldn’t push the issue tonight.

She spit the sleeping pill into her palm and flushed it. The woman facing her in the mirror looked pale. Drawn. She’d aged incredibly over the last few days. She barely recognized herself anymore.

Slowly, she undressed and stood beneath the warmth of the shower until some of the numbness inside of her subsided. She rummaged through her drawer until she found the ugliest flannel pajamas she possessed and put them on as an added precaution. She glanced at her reflection in the mirror and smiled. She looked dreadful. Nothing about her appearance would be attractive to Caesar.

When she retuned to the bedroom, Jordan cracked the door and
peeked out. She searched the crowd and found Caesar. He was speaking quietly with two young men who worked for him. She’d seen them only a handful of times but they both gave her the creeps. Just for a second, Caesar glanced her way. She closed the door before he could spot her. With nothing else left to do, she slipped into bed. But sleep was the last thing she planned to do. Her thoughts swirled in a thousand different directions. She’d started working on her escape the moment she discovered the CDs.

Tomorrow
, she would meet Mariah and tell her everything she knew. If anything were to happen to her before she could get away, at least someone else would know the truth. Once she and Mariah had devised a plan for getting her out of Caesar’s clutches and the CDs into the proper hands, someplace where he couldn’t get to them, then and only then would she start to feel safe again.

Outside the silence of the bedroom, the gathering continued into the evening. Jordan lay listening to bits of conversation while praying for sleep that wouldn’t come.

Not that it mattered. She’d gotten good at faking it for Caesar’s benefit.

Hours later, still lying in dark and pretending sleep, she felt him join her in bed.

“Jordan?” he whispered, leaning over her. She prayed he wouldn’t touch her. “Are you sleeping?” She forced her breathing to remain slow and steady.

After a moment
, she heard him lie next to her and pull her close. She forced her body to remain limp against his strong arms. She could smell the alcohol on his breath. Her stomach heaved from his touch. And from the smell of him that had nothing to do with the liquor. Bitter bile rose to her throat almost choking her. It was a struggle to keep from being sick.

A
fter what felt like hours, she finally heard his steady breathing. Slowly, Jordan untangled herself from his grasp, moved to the far side of the bed and waited for the morning, listening to the sound of the man she now believed responsible for murdering her brother in cold blood sleeping close by.

Chapter Nine

“Thanks for meeting me, Mariah.” Jordan glanced carefully around the seedy coffee shop in the section of Brooklyn she and Mariah had grown up in. This was her old neighborhood. She and Mariah had been two peas in a pod and inseparable back then. Growing up in these streets.

She’d been extremely careful, switching cabs twice and watching for anything out of the ordinary.

She hadn’t been followed. She was positive of that and yet she couldn’t dispel the feeling that time was quickly running out on her luck. It wouldn’t be long before Caesar stopped buying the grieving sister act and demanded answers.

Jordan
might have believed she’d been overreacting to what the detective told her if it hadn’t been for the conversation she’d had with Caesar earlier this morning. It had seemed like a thinly veiled threat she couldn’t get out of her head.

He’d insisted
on driving her to work for her first day back. “You should be more careful, my love. Walking is dangerous. This city has become a wasteland.” He’d kissed her gently, unaware of how close he’d come to mirror the exact words of the man who’d threatened her on the street. Jordan had watched him carefully, but Caesar seemed unaware of his slip.

She’d opened the door and started to leave the car when he caught her wrist. “Don’t talk to the police without
me.” Her gaze locked with his. A muscle in his jaw flexed.

“Why? What are you afraid of?”

Unfazed by the challenge in her words, his eyes narrowed. “You are not to trust them. It’s a force filled with corruption. They’ve been trying to frame me for years. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone on the NYPD wasn’t responsible for Jeremy’s death. From all accounts, the scene appeared staged.”

“What are you talking about?
What accounts?” All thoughts of escaping disappeared. She found herself but repulsed and mesmerized by his words.

His grip tightened on her wrist. He didn’t like that she’d dared to stand up to him.
Challenge his authority. “I have friends on the force. High-ranking, trustworthy officials. They tell me the two detectives assigned to investigate Jeremy’s death have less than a stellar reputation. Your ‘friend’, Donovan in particular.”

Your friend Donovan?
How did he know she’d spoken to the detective?

I have friends on the force...

Did he have officers watching her that she wasn’t aware of? “What about Donovan?” She found herself asking.

Caesar’s gaze raked her. A thin smile curling the corner of his mouth. Her reaction had just confirmed his suspicions.
“I told you. He used to be with the FBI. Until he was forced to leave. According to my sources there, it was because of a scandal with another officer. A woman.”

Jordan couldn’t stand to hear
any more. She’d jerked her hand free and slammed the car door to the sound of Caesar’s satisfied laughter.

She didn’t want to believe his suspicions
, but he’d succeeded in planting a seed of doubt. How well did she really know Riley? Well enough to trust him with her life?

There was only one person she trusted that much. Mariah. She just hoped it wouldn’t end up
costing Mariah Jennings her life.

Mariah was the only one with contacts to the old neighborhood who could get her the documents she needed to escape.

“No problem, kiddo. Although I have to confess, I’m a bit confused by all this cloak and dagger stuff. But I do love a good mystery. Since the ex left, my life has become rather boring.” A tall statuesque blonde, Mariah Jennings could have been a model. Instead, she’d chosen to become a private investigator. But the long hours and endless travel hadn’t set well with her ex-husband Blake Jennings, a fellow detective. Their marriage lasted less than a year before Blake pulled roots and moved to LA.

“Your life is never boring, Mariah
.”

“Yeah. You’re right.” M
ariah squeezed her hand. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am about Jeremy, babe.“

Jordan swallowed back emotions. “
Thanks.” Throughout the long morning where she’d been forced to wait several hours before calling Mariah in case Caesar might be watching the hospital, her grief had turned to anger. Followed by rage.

“I know
you are.” God, where did she start? The less Mariah knew about the situation, the less it could be used against her should Caesar ever discover her identity.

She could only hope that moment never came. If Caesar were willing to kill Jeremy – someone he professed to love, then what would he be capable of doing to Mariah
.

A shiver of apprehension ran through Jordan at the unwelcome image.

“So how are you doing really?” Mariah hadn’t missed Jordan’s uneasiness. “You seem a bit lost.”

Her
gaze dropped to the coffee cup that sat untouched in front of her. She
felt
lost. She missed Jeremy every single second of the day. The only thing keeping her going insane seemed to be the hatred she felt for Caesar. She’d been forced to bury her grief and focus on saving her own life.

J
ordan attempted a smile. “I’m okay.”

“No, you’re not.” When Jordan didn’t respond
, Mariah added, “I take it this has something to do with the very mysterious Caesar Santiago. You said you needed my help. Name it and I’ll do it. You know I loved Jeremy, too.”

Jordan nodded. “I do.”
She took out the large envelope contained the copied CDs and passed them to Mariah who peeked inside.

“What’s this?” Mariah raised one suspicious brow.

“Something I’m hoping will help prove Caesar is responsible for Jeremy’s death.”

Mariah’s
unwavering gaze held hers. “If there’s evidence of a crime on these discs I’m obligated to turn them over to the police.”

Jordan blew out a frustrated sigh and shook her head. “That’s just it. There isn’t. At least not that I can determine. The files are all encoded.”

After a lengthy pause, Mariah asked, “Where’d you get these?”

“From Caesar’s safe he keeps at home.”

“You broke into his safe?” Mariah seemed torn between shock and admiration.

“Sort of.” She took a deep steadying breath and plunged ahead. “Mariah, I need you to find someplace safe to store those. You can’t keep them with you. It’s not safe. There’s always a chance Caesar may find out about are friendship. It was hard enough convincing him you were Jeremy’s friend at the funeral.”

Mariah didn’t hesitate before agreeing. “I’ll overnight them to Blake in California. They’ll be safe there. Blake has a friend with the State Police. Maybe he can figure out what’s one them.”

“Thank you, Mariah.” It was a relief knowing she wasn’t in this alone.

“There’s something else, isn’t there.”

Jordan
looked Mariah in the eye and knew she’d made the right decision. “Yes. I need you to get me a passport and all necessary documents to start a new life.” She saw a dozen different expressions cross Mariah’s pretty face. Before she could let her friend ask a single one of them, Jordan added, “And I need you not to ask questions.”

“
Alright.” Mariah accepted her wishes for the moment. Jordan knew her friend wouldn’t stick to that plan long. Once she was certain Jordan was safe, Mariah would go into full PI mode. Which was fine by her. In fact, she was counting on it. “How soon do you need them?”

“Soon. This week.”

Mariah’s gaze held hers. “It will be difficult but I think I can manage. How do I get in touch with you?”

“You don’t. I’ll call you.”

“Okay.” Jordan knew there were so many things Mariah wanted to ask. She didn’t dare answer a single one of them.

“You should go.
I’m pretty sure no one followed me, but I don’t want to take any unnecessary risks. It’s bad enough that I have to involve you in this at all.”