Rafael (The Santiago Brothers Book One) (25 page)

Audrey expected her sister to surprise her at
the airport in San Antonio, but she didn’t show. Fighting tears of
frustration, Audrey hailed a cab and gave him the address to her
sister’s place. Penny hadn’t contacted her in years; both had said
their last good-byes in anger, each too stubborn to yield to the
other’s demands. Audrey, older by two years, obtained legal
guardianship of her sister after their parents died in a car
accident when they were both teenagers. After high school
graduation, Penny floundered, bouncing from job to job with no
plans to attend college or start a career. When she began
socializing with vagrants and dealers — and using drugs — Audrey
gave her an ultimatum: get clean and go to college or move out.

Penny chose the latter.

Audrey did her best to keep the lines of
communication open, but after a couple of years, Penny refused to
let her know where she lived and later changed her cell phone
number. Audrey nearly fainted when the cab pulled in front of the
charming one-story stucco in a secluded cul-de-sac. Her prayers for
Penny had been answered, and she regretted the years of silence
between them.

I’ve got to find that folder.
Audrey glanced at her watch. It was close to ten
p.m. She’d spent all day traveling and had wanted to stop by Mrs.
MacGruber’s house before now, but that visit would have to wait
until tomorrow. Dropping onto the empty sofa cushion, she reached
for the closest stack of papers and leafed through a bunch of
bills, stopping on the envelope marked by a mortgage
company.
Penny owns this house.
Not just a renter but a
homeowner
. Pride for her baby sister surged through
Audrey.

Audrey
reached for her large leather hobo bag for the letter she’d
received from Penny. After retrieving the paper, she scanned the
few lines penned by her sister, but didn’t read anything about
needing money. Audrey placed the mortgage envelope in her purse,
along with Penny’s letter. She’d pay this month’s mortgage as a
peace offering. Resuming her search for the manila envelope, she
spotted the name “Angel” written in black permanent marker on one
of countless folders on the table. Audrey picked it up, her fingers
trembling.
Why are you shaking? You don’t have anything to—

A sound
from the kitchen caused her breath to catch.
Lord, please let that sound be
the house settling or something…

A light step nearly gave her a heart attack.
She reached for her purse and then stopped, remembering she’d left
her cell phone on the mantel above the fireplace. She stood slowly
in an effort to make as little noise as possible. Hoping the
intruder would raid the bedrooms first, Audrey came around the
table and dashed to the fireplace. She snatched her phone and her
eyes rested on the poker. A thought sparked and she eased the poker
from the stand.

Unable to describe the feeling that came over
her the moment she gripped the poker, Audrey placed the cell phone
back on the mantel, her fingers tightening on the weapon. Wetting
her lips, she let out a low, slow breath to calm her racing heart
as adrenaline pumped through her. Never one to back down from a
fight, she quietly edged toward the kitchen.

She stopped at the corner of the wall near
the kitchen and the hall leading down to what she assumed were the
bedrooms. The kitchen’s back door and the bay window encircling the
sitting area were hidden from her view.

Don’t be stupid!

Audrey ignored her inner common sense. She’d
had a long day; her sister was nowhere to be found, and the last
thing she needed was some petty thief breaking into her baby
sister’s lovely house. Her sense of smell noted the faint fragrance
of spice and musk in the air. She stilled. The intruder smelled
good, but his aftershave wouldn’t save him. Audrey stepped into the
hallway near the wall closest to the kitchen. She brought the poker
back and swung it around the corner. Out of her mouth came a yelp
as she felt herself being pulled into the kitchen. Holding fast to
the poker, she pushed it forward, hoping to impale her attacker.
Instead, he ripped the poker from her hand and tossed it aside.

Bad idea, Audrey, bad idea!
She dashed in the direction of the living
room.
Get to
your cell!
Powerful arms
came around her waist and lifted her off the ground, halting her
progress. His hand over her mouth muffled the sound of her scream.
She twisted and turned until her elbow caught flesh and the man
groaned at the impact. His arms loosened enough for her to turn
around and land a solid knee to his groin. He cursed and landed on
his own knees. She swung her right foot back, his head in her
target area.

“Whoa, whoa, US Marshal.” He held up his
hands for her to stop.

She halted, her breath rapid. Realizing her
foot still hung in the air, she brought it down and stepped back.
The man grunted as he eased himself off the floor. Audrey sucked in
a breath when he stood to his full height. A soft wave of light
from the living room behind them flowed over the massively dark
figure, which towered over her by almost a foot. Audrey fought a
smile, knowing she brought this brute to his knees.

“You know, I might have wanted kids in the
future.” He shook a leg to emphasize his point.

“Oh, well, isn’t that just too bad.”

He smirked.

“Who are you?”

“US Marshal,” he said a bit more slowly and
with annoyance.

She crossed her arms over her chest. “I
haven’t seen a badge.” He reached a hand into his jeans. Audrey
sharply turned her head away, one hand covering her eyes, the other
held out for him to stop. “Hey, I don’t want to see you
adjust—”

“My badge?”

Swallowing a nervous chuckle — why did she
think he was going to…? Oh, never mind — she gradually rotated her
line of sight until she saw the badge resting in the palm of his
hand, a silver star gleaming in the soft light. A wicked curve of a
grin shaped one-half of his face. Her cheeks burned. He tucked the
badge back into his jeans, the clip resting on the outside of his
pants.

His smile
disappeared. “Now, who are
you
?”

“I’m Audrey Hughes. I… I have a key to this
place.” She motioned toward the living room, where her purse sat on
the floor. “I didn’t break in and start snooping around in the
dark.”

“I didn’t break in either. I also have a
key.” He held up a small piece of metal and wiggled it
casually.

“
Oh.”
Audrey blinked her surprise. “And, um, you’re entering through the
back of the house?” He shrugged as if it were something he did
every day. “Who gave
you
a
key?”

“Lana.”

“
Lana?
Who’s Lana?”
Penny didn’t mention any other names in her letter other
than Angel and Mrs. MacGruber.

The man crossed his arms over his thick
chest, eyeing her beneath hooded lashes. “Don’t you know? You’re
standing in her house.”

Audrey’s
mouth dropped. “I’m standing in my sister
Penny’s
house.”

“Penny?” His head jerked back. He scanned the
room before walking to the kitchen sink. Grabbing a framed picture
from the window seal above it, he looked at it for a few seconds
and then turned the image toward her. “This woman here? This is
Penny?”

Audrey moved to stand in front of him. Her
fingers lightly brushed his as she took the frame from his hand.
The glowing smile on her sister’s face as she stood beside the
“sold” sign in front of her house warmed Audrey’s heart. She
nodded. “It’s Penny,” she whispered.

“I knew her as Lana.”

Audrey’s eyes came to his, her eyebrows
meshing. “Lana? I don’t understand. Why would she tell you her name
was Lana?”

The man didn’t answer right away. Instead,
his eyes narrowed on her.

Realizing they stood just a few breaths away,
Audrey retreated several steps, hugging her middle.

“When was the last time you saw your
sister?”

“I haven’t seen or spoken to her in years.
We…” She bit her lip, considering how much information to reveal.
“We didn’t part well.”

“Well, I knew Lana, er, Penny and she gave me
an open invitation to come to her place.”

“I see.” Her eyes traveled the length of his
form and then came back up. “You and Penny were close.”

His brows
bunched, nose wrinkling just slightly. “Not
that
close.”

Audrey said a prayer, hoping the shadows
covered the heat in her cheeks… and her neck… and her arms. It was
easy to make assumptions when her sister was involved. Growing up,
they never had to compete for boys — Penny always had them all.

His eyes
assessed her carefully, starting from the top of her head and
ending at her feet. Audrey took another slight step back,
uncomfortable with his appraisal, despite having just done the same
to him.
Why
do I feel so exposed?
She tightened her arms around her waist.

“You don’t look a thing like your
sister.”

For a brief moment, Audrey wished she hadn’t
worn the long, hippie skirt that hung just below her waistline and
the plain, buttoned-up shirt. She dragged a few fingers through her
hair, grateful it still held some waves left over from the curls
she ironed in this morning. Her sister possessed the fashion sense
— short skirts, high heels, flashy tops, her hair and makeup always
done. People praised Audrey’s brains, but they recognized Penny for
her beauty. At fifteen, their mother caught Audrey praying to be
pretty and held her while she cried bitter tears of jealousy over
her sister. Her mother dried her tears, and with a look of love
Audrey would never forget, told her God created good things, and
not only did He give her a sharp mind, but a beauty different from
her sister’s.

Audrey’s eyes dropped to the picture in her
hand. Thick, straight blonde hair framed her sister’s oval face.
She must have visited the dentist because her teeth were straight
and white, even after the drug use. Still, next to her sister,
Audrey always came up short. “Right. She’s the pretty one. I’m the
older, less attractive sister. I got it.”

“I never said that.”

Audrey
expelled a breath.
Calm down
.
Whoever this man was, he didn’t need to know her insecurities. “I’m
a little uncomfortable talking to you here in the dark. Can we move
back to the living room?” She retreated backwards toward the glow
in the next room.

“Sure.” He followed her.

Audrey kept her back away from him, not
really trusting his credentials. He moved like a tiger, his steps
slow and deliberate, eyes never leaving hers. Waves of masculinity
washed over her and she shivered at their warmth. Backing up more
quickly, she didn’t stop until her hands touched the frame around
the fireplace.

When he stepped into the full light of the
room, Audrey did her own assessment of the marshal. A dark shirt
clung tightly to obvious ripped muscles beneath a leather jacket
stretching over wide shoulders and tapering slightly near his
powerful hips. Black jeans completed the stealth look.

“Better?”

He grinned, but she detected the slight
sarcasm. Her eyes came to his face, taking in the thick goatee
flanked by deep dimples. Jet-black hair was pulled back and
fastened into a short, dense ponytail. She forced her gaze to his
eyes, which watched her curiously. But those dimples… something was
so familiar about them.

“
Yes,
thank you, Marshal… Marshal… What
is
your name?”

“Santiago. Alejandro Santiago.”

Santiago!
Her
eyes narrowed. She knew a Rafael Santiago, a police officer who
recently moved from California to Virginia. Her best friend Genie
was going to marry him. Rafael had a couple of brothers, but she
hadn’t seen them in more than a decade — since high school — and
really didn’t know where they were. She remembered the younger one
was named Ricardo, but the name of the oldest brother escaped her.
Was it Alejandro? She searched for the trademark Santiago dimples
but they’d disappeared. “Well, Marshal Santiago, can you please
tell me why you’re here?”

“
I’m
investigating, and as an investigator, I’ll be asking the
questions. Now, Ms. Hughes, can you tell me why
you’re
here?”

Audrey bristled at the sudden shift of
control. “I told you, I have a key to the place.”

“
As do I,
but that hardly tells me
why
you’re here.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m
looking for something.” Officer or not, she still didn’t know who
he was and whether or not she could trust him with her sister’s
wishes.

“Yes, and?”

“And considering my sister gave me a key, I
have a right to be here. Now, you on the other hand,” she said,
pointing at him, the other hand resting on her hip, “I haven’t seen
a warrant or anything. You identified yourself as an officer of the
law, so I assume you’re here in an official capacity?” A lazy smile
stretched a full goatee as he crossed his arms over his chest in a
stance Audrey could only assume as mocking.

“You assume correctly.”

“Well? Are you going to fill me in?”

“I’m here investigating your sister’s
involvement in narcotics trafficking.”

Audrey’s jaw dropped at the blunt admission.
“Drug trafficking? I don’t believe it.” She shook her head. “I know
my sister was troubled, but she wasn’t stupid.”