Chapter Seven
CHAPTER SEVEN
“W hy did I have to hear from Samuel you were back? You couldn’t pick up your phone, make a simple call and say, ‘Hey, Gabi, I’m back.’” She paused long enough to add, “Hi, Jack,” before walking into the apartment, continuing her tirade. “First you head to Texas to see my family because you’re in trouble. Never once telling me what’s going on until you’re in another state. Salem, you left, knowing the Amirs are coming after you, trying to take Chloe, and you didn’t tell me. I thought I was your best friend.”
“You are, Gabs. Everything kind of went into supersonic speed after you left Shiloh Springs and came home. It’s been like I was swept up in a tornado, so much has happened. But, honestly, I’m glad to see you.” Salem gave her a rueful grin. If it’s any consolation, we only just got here.”
Gabi tossed her bag onto the end table, the long metal handle wrapping around the base of the lamp and flung herself onto the sofa next to Salem. The jolting movement was enough to wake Chloe, who immediately started crying.
“Aw, sweetie, Auntie Gabi didn’t mean to wake you. How’s my little angel?” She reached for Chloe, stretching her arms toward her. Chloe cried, burrowing against Salem’s chest, shaking her head no.
“Shh, it’s okay, baby.”
Gabi stared at her in shock. “What’s wrong? Chloe always comes to me for some snuggles.” She stopped, finally catching sight of the knife on the coffee table. “Is that…is that blood? Why is there a bloody knife sitting on your coffee table? What did I miss?”
“Long story. Can you wait until Remy gets here so we only have to tell it once?”
“Sure.” She turned and grabbed her purse, digging inside before pulling out an envelope. “Aunt Patti called and told me you and Jack got married .” Salem heard the hurt underlying Gabi’s words, and winced, knowing her best friend was upset she hadn’t known about the marriage, and that she hadn’t been there to be her maid of honor, like they’d always talked about. She’d find a way to make it up to her somehow, and she knew Gabi would understand once she knew all the facts. She probably had a good idea of why they’d rushed the whole thing, if she’d talked with Ms. Patti. That woman loved a good wedding, and she loved a good bit of gossip too.
The knock at the front door brought her to her feet, and she tensed, waiting as Jack answered and greeted Remy. Her shoulders slumped when she spotted her boss, Max Lamoreaux, as well as Samuel Carpenter with him. Oh, goody, the whole gang was here. Well, at least she’d only have to tell the story once, as she’d told Gabi.
Officially, Max was her boss, though Remy also worked part-time out of the private investigator’s office. Remy worked homicide and vice for NOLA. Max was also a former cop, who’d moved on to open his own P.I. company when he’d moved back to New Orleans. Between the two of them and Jack, a now former Texas Ranger, there was enough police knowledge in the room that any would-be knife hider should be running scared.
“Hey, Salem. Heard you had a bit of a problem.” Remy strolled into the place like he’d been there a thousand times. He glanced at Gabi, giving her a wink, before adding, “Hey, Squirt.”
Gabi rolled her eyes. Remy had known her bestie since she was little more than a toddler. He and his brother, Max, had known the Boudreaus since they were kids, growing up together. Their posse included Samuel too. From all she’d heard, they’d been a bit of a wild bunch, all four of the Boudreau boys, the two Lamoreauxs, and Samuel. Gabi had been the tagalong when they’d let her.
“Remy, I don’t know if you’ve met Jack.” She paused for a few seconds before adding, “My husband.”
Remy’s eyes widened at her statement, and he spun around. She heard Max’s quick indrawn breath at her announcement. Guess they hadn’t heard.
“Husband, huh.” Max studied Jack intently, his sharp gaze missing nothing. Jack stood silently, allowing the other two men to assess him. Salem knew it wasn’t fair to put him on the spot like that, but she wasn’t sure how her bosses would take the news that she’d gotten hitched while in Texas.
“Hello, Jack. Gotta admit, I’m a little surprised our Salem is married. We didn’t even know she was dating.”
“Max, Remy, Samuel. We’ve got a lot to tell you. Come in, sit down.” Looking down, Salem noted Chloe had finally fallen asleep, and hadn’t awakened when the men got there. “Let me put Chloe in her carrier, and then we’ll talk about what’s happening.”
Fortunately, she’d put the car seat/carrier down beside the kitchen table. It didn’t take long for her to get Chloe snuggled and wrapped up, her little thumb stuck between her lips. Salem caught sight of the bandages on her fingers and fought back the urge to cry. She still couldn’t believe somebody had gotten into her apartment and left a blade in her daughter’s bed. Why there? If the Amirs were determined to take Chloe away, why do something so dangerous? She could have been killed.
By the time she’d finished settling Chloe, everyone had moved into the living room. Max and Remy were on either side of Gabi, talking quietly with her. Samuel sat in one of the two oversized chairs that faced the sofa, leaning back against the upholstery, looking casual and relaxed, though she knew the man’s demeanor was deceptively still. He was an enigma, running a world-renowned security company—one which her new husband was going to work for—and was a billionaire and a philanthropist. A good friend to Gabi and her family, he was helping her find out what the Amirs were up to, and he had the connections to keep tabs on them. She hoped he’d have some answers for her soon, because she wanted this over. Over and done with.
Jack stood beside the other unoccupied chair, and when he saw her looking, he motioned for her to take the empty seat. She sank into its depths, grateful she didn’t have to stand because she was feeling a little shaky.
“Salem, I couldn’t help seeing the knife on the coffee table. Is this the one Jack called about?” Remy pointed toward the bundle in front of him. She nodded.
“We got here not long before we called. Salem had put Chloe down in her crib, after the drive from Shiloh Springs. Salem was getting settled and I was bringing the bags in from the car when we heard a scream and Chloe crying for her mama.” Jack moved to sit on the arm of Salem’s chair, and his presence somehow comforted her, making her feel not-so-alone in the room filled with people. She picked up where he’d left off.
“She had blood on her hands. Jack found the knife in her lap. Somebody put a knife in my baby’s crib.” She watched Remy and Max closely. She wasn’t sure how much of what was going on with her life they knew. All she’d told them when she’d asked for some time off was she was headed for Texas. Had Samuel filled them in while she’d been at the Boudreau ranch, talking with Chance and Ivy, trying to figure out how to get the Amirs out of her life?
“You didn’t notice the knife when you put Chloe in the crib?” Remy’s voice was low and calm, barely reflecting any emotion.
She shook her head. “No, I didn’t see it. I moved her blanket out of the way, laid her in her bed and covered her. It had to be behind her stuffed hippo. She loves that toy, always wants to sleep with it, so I keep it in the bed with her. All I can think was it was hidden behind it.”
“Did you touch it? Handle it in any way.”
“She didn’t. Chloe’s the only one who touched the knife. I lifted it with the edge of the blanket to avoid contaminating it with prints or DNA. You’ll note the blood on the blanket and the blade; they’re both from Chloe.” Jack’s voice had a hard edge, tinged with anger. “There is no evidence of a break-in. I checked all the windows and they’re secured. No tampering with the lock on the front door that I noted. It’s hard to tell with deadbolts on rentals because they can get scratched up from use.”
Samuel leaned forward in his chair and shifted the blanket covering the blade, exposing it completely, and Salem gave a loud gasp when she finally got a good look at the blade. It was probably a coincidence, but it looked exactly like the one Tarik had swung at her when he’d been angry. Her hand automatically went to the scar on her cheek, covering it.
“Salem? What’s wrong?” Gabi started to stand, and Remy’s hand on her arm held her in place on the couch.
“I…it looks like the knife…it can’t be the same one. But it looks like the knife Tarik liked to carry. He wore it in a leather sheath on his belt. Loved to take it out and wave it around when he was talking, to emphasize his authority.”
“It’s more than that. You had an almost visceral reaction to seeing the knife.” Max watched her closely, and she finally nodded. They’d find out anyway, might as well admit it now.
She slowly reached forward, using the blanket to ever so slowly pull the blade closer. Waves of fear rolled through her, and she felt acid rise in the back of her throat. Simply thinking about Tarik and his volatile anger, his fits of rage, made her cringe.
“Oh, crap! Salem, honey, is that the same knife Tarik cut you with?” Gabi’s words sent a shiver down Salem’s spine. Her friend knew her too well; she hadn’t been able to hide anything from her ever. What made her think she could keep this a secret?
She simply nodded, her fingertips pressed against her lips. Jack’s hand on her shoulder anchored her in place, which was good, because she honestly wanted to bolt from the room.
“It looks like the same one. I can’t be sure, not without holding it, but—”
Remy reached into his pocket and pulled out an evidence bag. Using the edge of the blanket, picked up the knife and dropped it inside. He then sealed the bag, pulled out a pen and wrote something on it that Salem couldn’t see.
“It would be awfully bold of the Amirs to plant Tarik’s knife in your apartment. My guess is it’s probably a replica or a fairly common knife, readily available in the U.A.E.” Samuel nodded toward the baby blanket. “I doubt you’re going to find any DNA on it except Chloe’s, Jack’s, and Salem’s. This is too clean, definitely not an amateur. I doubt it was anybody local. My guess? A hired merc who scoped out the place, knew you weren’t home.”
“But why break in? It’s not like I have anything to steal. I didn’t take anything with me when I ran away from Tarik. Pretty much left with the clothes on my back and the little bit of money I’d squirreled away. Money I had from before I met him.”
“Would Tarik’s family think you have something? Maybe something he gave you that belonged to them?”
“Everything Tarik gave me, the jewelry, the clothes, I left it all behind when I ran. I even left the engagement ring he gave me. He said it was a family heirloom.”
“Seems like this was more an attempt to scare her. Intimidate her before having to go to court about Chloe’s custody.”
“Well, it’s working,” Salem huffed.
“I’m going to have a CSI unit come over. Jack’s thorough, but I’ll have them double check, take prints. This is a crime scene, a break-in where the owner, or tenant in your case, wasn’t home. A child was injured. We’ll have to start an official investigation.”
“I bet this will thrill the Amirs. Sayifa loved to get a rise out of me any time she could. I don’t think she’d deliberately hurt Chloe, especially since she’s fighting for custody, but if she thought it would scare me? It would make her happy.”
“Would you feel safer staying in a hotel tonight? I can make arrangements for a place with excellent security.” Samuel made the offer, and Jack looked at her, willing to let her make the choice.
“Thank you, but no. I’m not going to let anybody chase me from my home. I wasn’t looking forward to dealing with them in a custody battle, but if Sayifa and Abdullah want a fight, they’ve got one.”
“And there’s the Salem we all know and love.” Gabi stood, coming over to give Salem a hug. “I’m going to clear out, allow the good old NOLA police to do their job. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, ’kay? We’ve got a lot to talk about.” She winked at Jack before heading to the door.
“Unless you need anything, we’re going to head out too. Salem, you know you can always call me or Theresa, and we’ll be here ASAP. And take however long off work, until you’re ready to come back.”
“Thank you, Max. I appreciate your understanding. I’m not sure how crazy it’s going to get, but I will be back to work soon.”
It took a couple of hours for the cops to gather what evidence they could, and by the end Salem was so tired she could barely keep her eyes open. Chloe had managed to sleep through most of it fortunately, and Salem got her changed and into her pajamas without incident. She debated whether to put her into her crib to sleep or bring her into her bedroom. Common sense told her to put her to bed in her own room, in her own crib, but her heart told her she needed her baby close. How could she protect her if she was in another room? Finally, she decided to put her in the crib. She’d have the baby monitor on and could listen to every sound. And with Jack there, she knew they’d be safe.
“I’m going to bunk down on the sofa for tonight. Do you have extra pillows and blankets?”
“Let me get them.” She felt foolish; she hadn’t even considered where he’d be sleeping with everything that happened. Her brain was a big pile of mush at the moment, but the least she could do was make up the sofa. Luckily, it was a comfortable one. She’d splurged on its purchase when she’d moved into the apartment, so hopefully he’d be able to get a good night’s sleep. Tomorrow they’d figure out more permanent sleeping arrangements.
“Good night, Jack.”
“Night, Salem.” He gave her a rueful smile. “Things will look different tomorrow. We’ll get through this, one day at a time, right?”
“Right.”
Climbing between her sheets, she pondered that thought. One day at a time. Maybe that should be her new mantra.