Chapter 11 #2
Usually, he would have called it in to the police and reported someone being mugged, but he needed to make sure Dr. Torres wasn’t killed first. Luca hit the brakes and put the truck in Park, threw his door open, and raced over. “Hey!”
The guy with the knife broke away from Torres and started to run.
Hammer said, “I’ve got him!” and raced after the fleeing man.
Luca pulled his weapon but kept it at a low angle. “Hands up. Drop your weapons.”
“You some kind of cop?”
The guy hadn’t run, but he might at any moment. Or he might try for the same bold tactics and go after Luca before he raced away.
Dr. Torres didn’t move, his back still to the wall and his face pale.
“I’m not a cop.” Luca shook his head. The guy flung a knife through the air and narrowly missed Luca’s shoulder. He brought his gun up. “Hands.”
The guy rushed Luca, tackling him to the ground. As soon as his back landed on the asphalt, Luca swung with his gun and slammed the butt into the man’s head. He rolled them both, then levered up enough to pull the guy’s hands behind his back.
He holstered his weapon, one knee holding the man down, and pulled out some plastic ties, which he used to secure the man’s hands behind his back. When he looked over at Dr. Torres, the man had vacated his position. He wasn’t anywhere around that Luca could see.
Hammer raced toward him from the other end of the alley, breathing hard. “He got away. Where’s the doc?”
“He must’ve run off.”
“At least we still have this guy.” Hammer motioned to the man under Luca.
“I guess he’s the one who’s going to give us some answers.”
Kira lifted the hem of her long silver gown just enough that she didn’t trip on it, walking up the steps to the stately house set back in the mountains on the west side of the city.
A place that could be rented for events like this gala, or weddings.
Something she definitely hadn’t contemplated before.
Much. Debating, probably as most women did, between a big wedding and the kind of small, intimate gathering she might prefer.
The whole place was lit up, bustling with people. A valet took her keys and gave her a ticket, which she slipped into the tiny clutch.
The party didn’t start for another half an hour, but she wanted to have a few minutes with Destiny just to check in with her.
Kira showed her invitation to the young woman behind the table, who was wearing a white button-down shirt and black waistcoat, her hair tied behind her head and slicked down with gel. “I have a plus-one, but he will be here shortly.” She gave Luca’s name, and the woman indicated it on her paper.
“Enjoy the party.”
“Thank you very much.” Kira scanned the lobby of the event center, checking all their faces for Destiny Rousseau. Waitstaff wandered around with small trays of finger foods or glasses half filled with champagne.
Kira asked for a soda water and located Destiny in the corner, chatting with an older woman wearing a long green gown.
Destiny wore a floor-length black velvet dress, her hair pinned on top of her head.
Despite the attention to her appearance, Destiny had dark circles under her eyes and the edge of grief in her expression.
Kira had left her hair long and curled it, since that was a style Luca hadn’t seen on her before. Not that she had dressed up for him. But the fact she knew he was coming shortly had her making doubly sure that her curls would stay in place for the whole evening.
Destiny glanced her way as she approached, smiling at Kira. “I’m so glad you came.” She gave Kira a kiss on the cheek.
“I am as well.” Kira held the other woman’s hands. “How are you doing with everything? I’m surprised you didn’t cancel the event after everything that has happened this week.”
“There’s nothing I can do for Ralph tonight. And he would be so disappointed if he found out I canceled the event.”
The woman had been sitting at her husband’s bedside for days now, holding vigil, hoping that he would wake up.
Destiny was right that there wasn’t much she could do.
Taking a break from the hospital might be a good thing, if this was the kind of event that was planned to the level that there wasn’t much left to do except show up.
Destiny squeezed her hands, then let go. “The show must go on and all that.”
“Did the police have any idea who it might’ve been that tried to hurt Ralph?” She didn’t want to mention attempted murder or shadowy crime syndicates, just in case someone overheard. Plus, she wanted to know what Destiny knew—or was willing to admit she knew.
Destiny shook her head. “I’m so grateful that you figured out what he’d been given. You might have saved his life.”
Such as it was. “I do regret that I didn’t manage to do that before he lapsed into a coma.” They had no idea when, or if, Ralph would wake up. “I’ll be praying for him to make a full recovery.”
Destiny’s brow crinkled. “I’m not really the praying kind.”
“Then it’s good that you have someone like me in your life to do that for you.”
However Destiny felt about prayer or faith in a loving God, Kira could ask for favor in the situation. For God to heal Ralph and for Destiny’s heart to be softened toward the Lord.
When there wasn’t much else for her to do that would help in this situation, she could at least do that.
“If there’s anything you need tonight, please don’t hesitate to ask.”
Destiny smiled. “Does that mean you’re agreeing to come on the board of the foundation?”
“I’m still making my decision. I have a busy schedule at the hospital, and I want to ensure I have the time it requires to devote to it. But I’m here to help if you need it.”
“You’re so sweet.” Destiny’s attention snagged on something over Kira’s shoulder. “I have to go check on something with the staff. If you’ll excuse me?”
“Of course.” Kira nodded.
Destiny wandered off, and the server brought Kira’s soda water to her. She watched the other woman chat with people. Exchanging pleasantries as she made her way to the young woman in the gray suit, holding a tablet, an earpiece in her ear.
As the two talked, Kira decided it was silly to investigate at this point.
After everything that had happened this week, and the fact someone had tried to murder Ralph twice, it was obvious that they weren’t the ones in charge of the Shadow Syndicate.
Otherwise, they would be far too powerful for people to come after them.
Anyone in charge of the criminal organization was going to take steps to protect themselves. Destiny and Ralph just seemed far too vulnerable.
What Kira should be doing was encouraging Luca to figure out who was trying to kill Ralph.
More likely that person was the head of the Shadow Syndicate.
Trying to take out a threat to their business: Ralph.
And maybe Jenkins also. For whatever reason, whoever was in charge of the Shadow Syndicate wanted them both silenced—permanently.
After all, pointing the finger at Ralph and setting him up as the one behind the land grab and then murdering both men wrote a specific narrative. If they were implicated and dead, then in the end, no one would ever learn the truth. The people behind the Shadow Syndicate would remain anonymous.
“Kira?” The voice was low and rough.
She knew that voice.
She glanced over her shoulder, then turned to Luca. And yes, she made sure that the move looked good.
His eyes flared.
She caught a glance of his suit and the way it fit him. Definitely a custom fit. Something Italian for sure. Her cheeks heated, and she was pretty certain her eyes flared as well. “You were right about the suit.”
She hadn’t imagined anyone could be this handsome. The guy was gorgeous, with his dark hair tied back neatly and his beard trim. He could be a movie star. But Luca chose instead to live a humble life, not drawing attention to himself. Working to make the world safer for the people he loved.
She stepped toward him, and he closed the distance between them.
“You look beautiful.”
She wanted to make a crack about the dress being some old rag she found in her closet, but the words stuck in her throat.
He held out his hand, and she placed hers in it.
He kissed her knuckles. “Thank you for inviting me. It was worth it just to see you in this dress.”
“And here I thought this was just a work thing.”
“Too bad I just forgot what I do for living. It’s gone,” he said. “Completely slipped my mind. What’s my name again?”
She laughed softly, and he touched her waist.
“I just need to check something.” He was closer now, close enough he could kiss her. His hand slid to the small of her back, where he touched her bare skin.
She touched the lapel of his suit jacket. “Careful now.”
He winked at her, and his hand slid back to her waist. “What was I saying?”
“I have no idea.” She smiled at him.
He shifted and held out his elbow. “I think that means it’s time for us to dance.”
“You know how to dance?” She slid her arm through his, glancing back but not seeing Destiny.
“I believe I have some skill. How about you?”
“It depends if the goal is to draw attention to us or fade into the crowd. While I happen to know how to tango, this isn’t one of those operations where we show off in front of everyone so that they all see—and remember—our faces.”
“Good to know.” He glanced at her, a smile lighting his eyes.
They crossed the threshold between the expansive lobby and the main ballroom, which had been decorated with candlelight.
A band played quietly in one corner, giving the room some background noise so that people could still talk to each other.
A stage had been set up beside them with a podium and microphone.
All around the room were huge posterboards and banners with images of children from overseas who had received treatment thanks to the foundation.
Illnesses that could easily be cured with modern medicine often went untreated in places where people lived in poverty, with little access to sanitation and medical supplies.
Luca led her around the exterior of the room while they danced so they could look at some of the posters, and she realized he had done so because he’d seen her notice them.
They lingered in front of a poster of several children from the Sudan.
“Do you miss it?” he asked her.
“Sometimes.” She leaned against Luca, just a little.
“People here don’t realize how good they have it.
When you live in a place where war is a daily reality and poverty is the only thing you know, it’s hard to imagine any other way to be.
Those are the people who need help. Because there’s no one to pull them out of it and show them that they can find peace. ”
“Do you want to go back?”
“I don’t have any plans to leave Renegade anytime soon.” Just in case he needed to hear that. “Being there for so long, working in the refugee camps, it sucked me under. Then I was the one who had to be reminded that I can find peace.”
“That’s why we only deploy for a predetermined period of time, so that we can come back stateside and recoup. No one can work for years on end and not end up crushed under the weight of it. You have to take a break at some point.”
“I tried to keep going,” she said. “I thought I could do it in my own strength, but I had to remember that God is the one who sustains me. I just didn’t until it was too late.
I had to let Him give me this sabbatical, but it’s been a few years, and I don’t know if I want to go back.
Those places will always have a huge part of my heart.
But unless He leads me back there, I’m going to stay here. ”
“You can do valuable things here as well. I already know you are.”
She squeezed his arm, about to respond, when the band quieted down their music.
Destiny stepped up to the podium. “Ladies and gentlemen, the Healing Hearts Foundation is so very glad you are here tonight to celebrate with us the work that we do across the world. Around the room, you can see love in action. The donations that you so generously offer to us save lives every single day.”
Luca led Kira to a table and pulled out a chair for her.
Destiny continued, “Here with me tonight is my son Roger, who we adopted from Guatemala. He will be sharing later about his experience and the journey that brought him to us. In this trying time, the best thing for us to do is remember the good things we have in our lives.”
Kira leaned over and whispered in Luca’s ear. “Did you know Destiny and Ralph have a son?”
He shook his head.
“She never said anything about him to me.”
“Maybe it’s a new thing. Or an old thing, so it’s not news.”
Kira frowned, not sure what to make of it. Maybe Roger had been gone when they met, on a long trip or away for a while. Or Destiny was embarrassed by him. Kira had no idea.
“The auction is about to begin. This is your last chance to get bids in for our array of amazing experiences and items you don’t want to miss.” She leaned toward the microphone. “Thank you all for coming.”
“Is it just me,” Kira said to Luca, “or is this whole thing really weird?”
He nodded. “Something isn’t right here.”