Chapter 7
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He watched Juliet Sullivan with her kids.
Man, she was pretty. He wouldn’t mind a piece of that.
But he wasn’t here for sexual gratification, so he quelled his response.
What to do with her? He’d figure it out.
Two rambunctious boys were prone to ignoring their parents’ orders.
He’d been like that. Maybe if they’d loved him more, kept better track of him, he wouldn’t have met Judkins, his mentor.
He’d learned a lot from the crazy old man before he had to kill him.
* * *
Oliver had put his twin girls to bed and walked into the kitchen when his wife came in through the garage door. “Hello, darling.”
Crossing to her, he picked her up and hugged her. “Hello.” He set her down. “How was work?”
“It went well. Only one surgery. And we had a department meeting. I told you before how much I liked the new chair of the department. Today, she underscored how forward thinking she is on a new interventional technique.”
“No twinges that you didn’t accept the position?”
“Not at all.”
He kissed her cheek.
She leaned against the counter. “How’s everything here?”
“The girls just went to sleep. I’d like to go out for a bit, if that’s all right with you.”
“Sure, where?”
“To see Juliet. I’ve been thinking about her all day. Actually, I’ve got a niggling feeling that something’s wrong.”
“Did you call her?”
“Yes. She said she was fine. They were all at the pool.”
“I think you should follow your gut.”
He squeezed her shoulder. “Thanks, love.”
“You’re welcome.”
He drove fast to Juliet’s house in a suburb of Rockford. When he reached her street, a car came racing toward him. It was going so fast, Oliver had to swerve off to the side of the pavement to avoid getting hit. It whizzed to the intersection where it turned left—never slowing down.
He drove the rest of the way fast, bolted out of the car leaving his door open and hurried around the house to the pool. He stopped at the gate and took a deep breath. Both boys were in the shallow end and Juliet sat on the steps watching them swim. The gate creaked when he opened it.
“Hey there.” He tried to calm his heart rate but it wasn’t easy.
When she got a good look at his face, she stood and crossed to him. She was wearing a pretty aqua bathing suit and a canvas hat. “What’s wrong?”
“I, um…” He raked a hand through his hair “Like I said on the phone, I had a bad feeling about you.”
“Do you want to tell me specifics?”
“That something was wrong. Or maybe that you were in danger.”
“You can see I’m fine. Why don’t we sit?” She called out to the boys. “Tommy, Billy, Uncle Oliver’s here to talk to me. We’re going to sit in the shade.”
“Hi, Uncle Oliver,” they said together.
“Hey, guys.”
He and Juliet sat. “Talk to me.”
“I was with the twins when I got a sinking feeling in my gut. I knew inherently it was about you.”
“Again, I’m fine.”
“Yeah, but on the way down your street some guy in a black sedan was going so fast toward me, I had to pull off the road. He whipped by me and turned at the intersection.”
“Oh, dear. I wonder if the girl down the street has a new boyfriend. Her choice in guys isn’t very judicious.”
“I guess it could be that.”
She stared out at the water.
“Do you think we should call Marshall?”
“I suppose we should. He was miffed that Juliet and Scarlet didn’t contact him about the medallion guy. But let’s ask him not to call all the others.”
He took his phone. “I’ll do it.”
Clicking into his cell, he phoned the number Jeff had given them. “Captain Jeff Marshall. Leave a message or call the central line if it’s an emergency.”
“Hi, Jeff. It’s Oliver Ricardi. Could you get back to me as soon as possible?” He disconnected.
Juliet sighed deeply. “I guess we wait.”
Oliver grasped her hand. “I didn’t mean to frighten you. I’m staying until we talk to Jeff.”
“I want you to.” She stood, grabbed a vibrant print cover up off the chair and slid it over her suit. “I’ll go inside and get us some water. Then you can tell me all about the twins.”
He grinned. “I’ll go close the door to my car. I um, was in a hurry to get back here.”
“You’re a good guy, Oliver.”
* * *
Jeff Marshall pulled into Juliet’s driveway at 5 p.m. He left his car next to Oliver’s and when he heard noise in the yard, he hurried around to the back. “Hello,” he said coming in through the gate; he latched it out of habit. Jeff locked everything.
Oliver stood and held out his hand. “Thanks for coming so quickly.”
Juliet stood, too, and shook his hand. “I hope we didn’t overreact.”
“I told you to call if anything odd happened.”
“This might be nothing.”
He glanced around. “Where are your boys?”
“They’re inside watching television.”
“They shouldn’t hear this but at some point you’re going to have to warn them about strangers and being extra careful wherever they go.”
“I already did that, Jeff.”
“I should have known.” He pulled over a chair and they all sat. “Tell me what happened.”
Oliver related the story because it was his to tell. He ended with, “I wouldn’t have called you but I had the bad feeling about Juliet this morning so I came over here. And the car was racing.” He shrugged. “I thought you should know.”
“You were right to call.”
Juliet shook her head. “It’s all been so elusive, it’s been frustrating as hell. Even with the FBI on it. What real progress have we actually made, Jeff?”
“Mostly that we think there has to be more than one perpetrator of the incidents and another person organizing them all. And the FBI is infiltrating the Dark Web to see if they can catch a whiff of anything. Also, they’re still looking into the extent of the medallion guy’s involvement.”
Juliet stared out at her pool. “I know.”
Jeff stood. “I’m going back to the office. I’ll let you know when something else comes up.”
“Thanks, again.”
He couldn’t resist. He leaned over and squeezed Juliet’s hand. “Try not to worry.”
“I’ll try.”
Jeff left them. He admitted he was forming an attachment to Juliet and that was not a positive thing.
* * *
Joe sank back against the pillow, breathing hard. Next to him, Scarlet was also trying to catch her breath. He laughed out loud. “That was cataclysmic.”
“I fully agree.”
It had been two days since Evangelina showed up at his barn and Joe still hadn’t heard back from her. Sick of waiting, he invited Scarlet to come to his place after Seth left for school.
“I don’t like to have to schedule sex around Seth being gone.”
She nosed into him. “It is what it is, Joe.”
He hesitated, then said what was in his heart. “It doesn’t have to be.”
She braced her arms on his chest. Her pretty brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”
“I have an appointment this afternoon to see my lawyer about the divorce papers Evangelina brought. Seth wants to see her, but it’ll have to be under my conditions. I want to be a free man and I have to protect my boy.”
“I fully agree.”
“Now, for the best part.”
“What?”
Reaching over to the nightstand, he fished out a small box.
He opened it to the ring he’d had made for her. Its band was gold, with a big diamond-shaped jade stone.
Her eyes widened.
“I want to marry you. As soon as my divorce is final. We’ll be able to live together, then.”
“I—I wasn’t expecting this.”
His eyes narrowed. “Did I read our situation wrong?”
She cupped his cheek. “No, no, you didn’t. I love you more than I’ve ever loved anyone. But what about yours and Seth’s safety? We aren’t even supposed to be seeing each other.”
He blew out a heavy breath. “Whew! For a minute there I thought you didn’t want to marry me. I’ve been thinking about this for a while. Finn’s married. Oliver’s married. Why not us? We can be guarded together.”
“I’m flabbergasted.”
A cocky grin. “Don’t be. I’m sick of not having what I want. The FBI is not on the brink of solving who’s after the collective. How long do we wait, Scarlet?”
“Until they arrest somebody?”
“And how long is that?”
“I don’t know.”
“So you’re going to stay away from us for you don’t know how long? And let me remind you that separation from each other hasn’t worked out so far.”
“I want to be with you. And Seth.”
“Then while I go to the lawyer, think about being my wife and Seth’s mother.”
Her eyes were moistened. “I don’t have to think about it. Yes, I’ll marry you. I know in my heart I want you both.”
“Then take the ring.”
“It’s beautiful, Joe.”
“Fitting for a beauty like you.”
* * *
The collective parking lot was full of cars. Scarlet arrived with Oliver and Finn and they walked in together. The mid-September wind blew from behind them messing up Scarlet’s hair.
“This is getting old,” Oliver said as they approached the front.
“It is,” both Scarlet and Finn said together.
As they reached Scarlet’s studio she stopped in front of it. “Do you guys have a minute before your sessions? I want to ask you something.”
They exchanged looks. “Everything okay?”
“Yes. But I need some…reassurance, I guess.”
They walked into her studio and dropped down on chairs in her spacious office. “So, kiddo, what’s going on?” Oliver asked.
“You know I’ve been seeing Joe Larson.”
“Yeah, we all do.” Finn’s eyes danced. “You’re sweet on him.”
“I’m in love with him.” She held out her hand.
Oliver took her hand. “What a lovely piece of jewelry.”
“What kind of ring is it?” Finn asked bluntly.
“An engagement ring. He said the jade matched my eyes.”
Oliver grinned. “Congratulations, sweetie.” He was the sentimental one.
“Thanks. But I have some concerns that you two have experience dealing with. How did you justify getting married with the collective being under siege?”
Finn jumped right in. “For one thing, Elise was pregnant. But mostly we wanted to be together badly so we did it regardless of the circumstances. We figured we could be guarded together.”
“Anabelle and I said, fuck it. Nobody’s going to keep us apart.”
“I knew I liked those women. But I worry about Seth, who’s a little boy.”
Oliver held her hand. “Will you stop worrying if you cut off ties with them?”
“No, of course not. But won’t they be in more danger because they’d be with me?”
“If this perpetrator is as omnipresent as the FBI thinks, he or she already knows you’re close to them. Better have them at your house with the two guards and police patrols.”
“I guess. I worry, though.”
“We all do,” Finn said. “But we can’t stop living.”
“No,” she said. “We can’t do that.”
* * *
After Scarlet left, Joe showered and dressed for an appointment with his lawyer. He was looking for his keys when the front bell rang. He walked into the foyer and opened the door.
Evangelina stood on the porch, looking different from the last time he’d seen her. She wore a light pink hoodie with pants to match. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and her makeup gone. “Hi, Joe.”
His heart started to beat fast at the notion of what new trouble she’d cause today. “Evangelina.”
“Can I come in?”
He let her into the foyer and they moved to the living room to sit down.
“I didn’t expect to see you so soon.”
“I want to talk. Gayle told me I handled all this wrong and I should come back here and apologize for my behavior.”
That’d be a first. But he didn’t voice the thought.
She looked around. “This place is nice. I didn’t even notice my surroundings when I was here. Is Seth home?”
“No, he’s in school.”
“Third grade, right?”
“Yes.” He stared hard at her. Something besides her appearance was different. “So, why are you here?”
“I don’t want anything from you except a divorce and to see Seth.”
He knew he had to let her, so he asked her questions he needed answers to. “Where do you live now?”
“We have houses in Paris and New York City.”
Just the kind of lifestyle she’d always wanted.
“But it’s not enough. I want to get married—I do love Gayle—and be with my son.”
“How would that work? I won’t let him fly all over the world with you.”
“Gayle’s looking into buying a cottage on one of the Finger Lakes. It’s not too far away. I think Seth might like it there.”
“He might. But I won’t give you joint custody.”
“Gayle said we could fight for it, but he didn’t think the animosity of that would be good for Seth. So I’m asking for visitation rights.”
“Hmm. I’d only agree with that if he wants to see you. And the first few visits have to be here, with my supervision.”
Fear filled her eyes. “Did he say he didn’t want to see me?”
Decency made him be honest. “No, the opposite. He told Scarlet he wanted to.”
“You’re involved with Scarlet, aren’t you?”
“We’re engaged.” It felt great to say that.
“Congratulations.”
“If you get visitation rights, I’ll have to meet with all of us together first.”
“Agreed.”
He got up, went to his den and retrieved the divorce papers she’d left him with. “Let’s start with these. I was about to go to my lawyer’s office now.”
“Can I come? It might be easiest for me to be there today. Just so we file for divorce and I get to see Seth.”
“Don’t you want your lawyer there?”
“Promise me you’ll be fair. You’re a man who keeps his word. So I trust you.”
This felt better. It would also avoid months of haranguing and court hearings. “You can come with me. How did you get here?”
“I have a driver. We can go with him.”
“Then let’s get this settled.”