Pieces of the Past (Witness Security Book 1) (17 page)

Backing out of the room, the guard closed the door.

Larry directed his smile at her. “Alone at last. Well, as alone as we’re going to be.” His gaze flickered to the large mirror then back.

He knows we’re being observed.
She was comforted having Doug and the others watching, but could guess how Larry felt about it. He was observed every minute of every day.

“You really do look good, Chris. Tan and fit. You’re living someplace warm now? Florida? Arizona?”

Before she could speak he went on, “Never mind, I know you can’t answer that.” Another glance toward the mirror, then his gaze settled back on her. “Did they mention I wrote to you? Every week. When I first got here it was more often than that.”

Stunned, she shook her head. “I never received any letters.”

“I know. They’re probably sitting in some Witsec bin, somewhere. Or the district attorney’s office. He probably opened them to see if I spilled anything juicy to you.”

Christine shrugged. “No idea, but I never got them. What would you have to ‘spill’, Larry? The last time we talked, you told me this was all a big misunderstanding. And that if you confide
d everything you knew about Martin Newsome, you’d probably be released when his trial was over.”

He smiled again. “That’s the plan. One more week, give or take a few days for the trial. Isn’t that amazing?”

“Incredible.” She forced a smile, but it felt plastic, even to her.
Does he really think he’ll be released, or is that a story for my benefit?

Even though McGuire had told her not to jump right to Ethan, the stress was agonizing. She had to bring him
up.  “Larry, there’s something more that you’re not telling.”

“What more could there possibly be?” His eyes glazed with lust and he licked his lips. “Oh, my beautiful Chris. I sure wish this was one of those conjugal visits I’ve heard about. It’s been way too long since I’ve seen your beautiful body, and touched your soft skin. If they’d give me just one hour—aw, hell, who am I kidding?” He chuckled. “It wouldn’t take an hour. Like I said, it’s been waaay too long.”

Her stomach rolled. Prison had changed him, if he could speak to her that way when he knew federal agents and marshals were watching. It’d changed him in other ways, too. He was delusional if he thought they could ever get back together. Maybe she was the one who’d changed. Perhaps he’d always been delusional.

“
This is important, Larry.” Her tone was sharper than she’d intended. “It’s about Ethan.”

His grin widened. “How is that littler scamp? Still rooting for the Cubbies? They’re doing okay this year. I guess he’s not allowed to do that. What team does he cheer for these days, Chris? The Florida Marlins?
St. Louis Cardinals?”

The last one cut a little too close for comfort, but she didn’t let him see that. “Of course not. He’ll always love the Cubs, thanks to his daddy. Thanks to you.” She leaned forward. “He loves you so much, Larry. Both kids do. They miss you every day.”

His face showed no emotion. “What about you? Miss me, baby?”

He never called me baby.
It occurred to her that his show of bravado was probably for the people watching, and not really for her. She swallowed the unpleasant taste in her mouth and tried to smile. “Of course. We were together a long time.”

“We were good together, too. You gotta admit that.” He licked his upper lip.

Christine’s stomach rolled, but she kept Ethan foremost in her mind. “Sure.” She tried to soften her forced smile.  “But honey, listen. We have a problem. Someone’s taken Ethan.”

His jaw slackened. “What?”

“Kidnapped. For ransom. The note said you’d know where to get the money.”

His shock quickly turned to anger and he lunged forward, rattling his cuffs and shaking the table.

Christine jumped back, startled. Relieved to see the table was secured to the floor and that his handcuffs were tight, she forced herself to relax. “What are they talking about, Larry? Where would you get the money?”

“What the fuck are
you
talking about?” he roared, enraged. “You come in here all friendly and lovey dovey, then drop the bomb that someone’s kidnapped
my son?”

“I couldn’t—I didn’t want to—
upset you
by just laying it on you. I was trying to break the news gently.”

He froze and stared at her. “You didn’t want to
upset me?
Are you fucking crazy?” He took some deep breaths and tried to regain composure. When he spoke again, his voice was steely. “Or maybe you’re working with the cops to get information. Why don’t you seem very upset Chris? You’re much too calm. The woman I knew would fucking
lose it
if her son had really been taken.”

Fear and anger bubbled up from inside her. She slammed her palm on the table as tears rushed out. “Don’t
even
tell me how I should be feeling. My son was snatched from our so-called safe house by a man who was supposed to be a United States Marshal. You think I don’t feel like shit about that? I had one job when all this started—one job. To protect my children.”

“You screwed that up royally, didn’t you?
Peyton ran off and E got snatched. You’re a stupid bitch and a lousy mother. When I get out of here, I should sue you for custody.”

She thought her head might explode. “Excuse me? Five minutes ago you wanted to make love with me, now you’re calling me a stupid bitch? I’m smart enough to know that orange isn’t an attractive color.”

He lunged for her again and she back pedaled. A loud knock sounded on the window then the door opened. The female guard had returned. “Mrs. Stewart, would you step out please?”

Shaking, she rose and headed for the door.

“Come back here!” Larry yelled. “God damn it, come back here you crazy bitch!”

Christine kept walking. The door
closed behind her, and she was in the room with all the men. She sought out Doug and looked up at him. “Oh my God!”

He grinned. “That was amazing.”

She did a double-take. “Huh? What show were you watching? God, that was horrible!”

He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped her eyes. “Forget about him. He’s an asswipe who’s obviously
been hardened by prison.”

“Did you hear what he said to me?” Her heart felt like it might burst.

Doug palmed the hanky and held her face in his hands. “Yeah, like I said, forget about him. Did
you
hear what he said? Peyton ran off and E got snatched.”

“I know they did!” she sobbed.

“Christi…look at me.” He caught her eye and spoke slowly. “He said Peyton ran off. How did he know that?”

Understanding dawned on her, and she grabbed the hanky to wipe her own face. “Yeah. How
did
he know that?”

McGuire stepped forward. “He’s obviously connected in there.
His true colors are showing. I want you to collect yourself, then go back in and push some more buttons. What else we can get him to admit? Don’t mention his mistake, just give him a little rope and we’ll see if he hangs himself.”

Nodding, she dried her eyes and firmed up her resolve.

Doug spoke quietly. “You think you can do this?”

Christine set her jaw. “I know I can. He thought he could play me for a fool. We’ll see who the real fool is.”

“That’s my girl.” He squeezed her hand.

She stared at him for a moment as he realized what he’d said. A faint pink blush rose to his cheeks.

“I, uh, didn’t mean…well, crap.” He gave up trying to explain.

A genuine smile creased her lips. “I hope you did mean it.
That’s the thought I’m carrying with me when I go back in there.”

He smiled. “Go get him.”

She glanced over her shoulder at the window. Larry was still yelling, fuming about being ignored, and practically foaming at the mouth. “Him?” She shook her head. “He’s an asswipe.”

Calm and collected, she felt like a new person when she returned to Larry.

His face was red and he sweated profusely. “What’s really going on here, Chris? Exactly what are you doing?” Spittle flew from his mouth.

She folded her arms across her chest. “If you’ll settle down, I’ll see if they’ll free one of your hands and bring you a soda. Would you like a Dr. Pepper?”

“They don’t have that here,” he snarled.

“Maybe not on your end, but there’s a machine
for visitors out in the hall. Want one?”

He slowed his heavy breathing and looked at her. “Yeah.”

She turned to the woman. “Could you do that, please? And unlock a hand so he can drink it?”

“If you’re sure.” She left.

Christine sat. “It’s time to be honest here, Larry. A man claiming to be a Witsec Marshal took Ethan last night and said they’d be right back. That’s the last I’ve seen or heard from our son. The Chicago office got a message that he’s being ransomed, and you’d know what to do. Hell yes I’m upset, but I’ve had a bit more time to process this than you have. I have to keep going, and do whatever I can to get E back.”

She paused as the guard returned with a Styrofoam cup filled with ice and soda. The woman set it down in front of Larry, then reached for his handcuffs. Before unlocking them she said, “See that mirror right there?”

He nodded.

“On the other side of it are four men with guns, and it’s not bullet-proof glass. You make one wrong move toward her and it’ll surely be your last. Got that?”

Larry appeared defeated. “Yeah.”

“You right or left handed?”

“Right.”

She unlocked his left hand, and reconnected the other to the table. As she slipped out she added, “Behave yourself. I mean it.”

He reached for the drink and took a sip, savoring it.

Christine remembered how much he enjoyed Dr. Pepper
, something they took for granted back in the day. “Feel better?”

Setting the cup down, he scrubbed a hand over his face, wicking away the sweat. “Yes. Thank you.”

“So I need to know, why do the kidnappers think you have the ransom money? We didn’t have squat by the time the feds got through with their investigation. We lost the house, the cars, everything.”

He gazed at her evenly. “How do I know any of this is the truth? What if the cops are just using you to try and get information from me?”

“Why would they do that? The kids and I were building a new life far away from here. I never thought we’d see Chicago again. Then someone found us, and started giving Ethan Cubs gifts. Peyton got a college brochure from UIC. And I received yellow roses on August 22.” She stared at him.

Larry raised his eyebrows. “What the hell? Who would have done that?”

“We assumed it was you, since you always sent me roses on our anniversary.”

He chuckled, but there was no mirth in it. “Are you serious? You sit there in decent clothes, telling me about your new life in a different town. And here I am, with two orange jumpsuits to my name.
You talk about losing stuff.
I’ve lost everything.
I barely have a pot to piss in. You think I still have a credit card tucked away, and if I did, I’d use it to order you flowers?”

Embarrassment oozed through her. It did sound ridiculous. “Who would have done it, then? And why? All I know is that suddenly we were no longer safe, and had to go on the run. Think about it, Larry. Is that what you had in mind when you started laundering drug money for Valcor? Did you want us to live in fear from one moment to the next, because you’ve accomplished that.”

“Of course not!” he scoffed. “I wanted a better life for us. Something where we didn’t have to work so hard for every scrap we got. Something better for the kids.”

“There’s nothing wrong with hard work, and we had a lot more than scraps, Larry. When did you lose sight of that?”

He shook his head. “We’re way off topic, here. Ethan was taken last night? When was the note received? How do we know he’s still alive?”

“I won’t let myself go there. I have to believe he’s alive and okay, or I’d collapse and wouldn’t be able to function.”

“Like you did when Rusty died.”

Her chest ached. “You say that like it’s a bad thing. Yes, I grieved for our son. He was an innocent child, he didn’t deserve what happened to him. But his illness was nobody’s fault. The situation Ethan is in is totally different. It
is
someone’s fault.”

He took another drink and drew a piece of ice into his mouth to chew on. “I had nothing to do with it. I’m in solitary confinement, for Christ’s sake!”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re totally innocent in all this. I hear you. I just don’t believe you. Did you take some money, Larry? Apparently, whoever you took it from wants it back.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

She leaned forward. “You’re already in prison, nothing more is going to happen to you. Tell me where the money is, so we can get our son back.”