Chapter 19
19
Zeke did not belong in the room where decisions were made. He wasn’t in charge, he didn’t have any advanced education, he was just Montgomery’s best friend and Nina’s protector. His opinion wasn’t important.
So he stood against the wall and kept his mouth shut tight. No one asked him questions. They talked. They all talked. Where was Gwendolyn? How were they going to find her? Everything they’d tried had failed, for years, and they needed a new idea.
“She’s a step ahead of us,” Adam growled. “How in the fuck is she always ahead of us?”
“We closed all the loops in the department,” Marcus said.
When the news broke about local cops being involved, doing anything from killing witnesses in custody to handing over confidential information to getting rid of evidence, the local cops were vilified in the news and in public. As police captain, Marcus took the brunt of that. He got rid of cops, did investigations into all of them, and hand selected the few he brought into the secret task force Zeke and the others had been asked to join.
It wasn’t the first time Rose Protection Agency had been involved with the investigation, but it was the first time Zeke and Montgomery were specifically called. And the first time they were all together.
The group included law enforcement, civilians, and the women who called themselves the Curvy Vigilantes. As soon as Zeke, Montgomery, and Nina walked into Dawn Patterson’s mansion, Nina was wrapped up by Frannie and the other women. Nina sat on a couch across the huge living room, where Zeke could watch her, between Frannie and Raina London.
The whole thing was insane to Zeke. It violated every law he knew about how investigations could work, but the knowledge in the room trumped any laws, apparently. Each person had a unique interest in finding Gwendolyn Lennox. Personal, in most cases.
“How is she finding out what we’re doing? Could she have bugs somewhere?” Braden Wright asked. The firefighter’s girlfriend was framed for murder and nearly ended up a victim herself. “In our phones or something?”
Lorelei shook her head. “We don’t think so. My phone and Adam’s have top level security and are checked constantly for any spyware or unapproved software and hardware. I imagined the police is the same.”
Marcus nodded. “Especially ours.” He jerked his chin toward the other cops in the room. Pryce Murphy and Drake Foster both nodded in agreement.
“Everyone else could be a risk, but we’re not all together before every operation.” Lorelei looked as defeated as the others.
“How did she know about the raid on her house?” Adam asked, turning to Nina.
Nina shook her head and swallowed roughly, taking in all the attention on her. “She didn’t. Not as far as I know. We were in the house when it started.”
“You were?” Marcus blurted.
Nina looked at him and nodded. “Her primary guard came in and told her we had to go.”
“And she took you with her?” Pryce asked.
“I was her favorite. She would call me her sister. Said she wanted to keep me safe,” Nina told him. The flush rising on her cheeks said she knew what the others were thinking.
Marcus and Adam clearing their throats said they knew what the others were thinking, too.
“Nina is on our side,” Adam said definitively. “She’s done nothing but help us since she got away from Gwendolyn. We all have full trust in her, so any of those thoughts need to go away right now.”
“Thank you,” Nina whispered, straining for a smile at Adam as Raina took Nina’s hand.
Zeke stared at Nina, willing her to look up at him. When she finally did, he winked at her and smiled, hoping it would help her relax and remember she belonged in that room, stopping the woman who destroyed the last twelve years of her life.
Nina smiled back and marginally relaxed.
“Did anything Robert say remind you of something? Anything you didn’t think to tell us before?” Lorelei asked.
Nina thought for a minute, then shook her head. “No. I…” She paused to control herself before continuing. “I’ve told you everything I’ve thought of. I want her gone as much as everyone else.”
“More,” Frannie said, wrapping her arm around Nina’s shoulders. “Nina has been through the worst hell of all of us because of Gwennie. She spent twelve years with her. Nina came to us right away to tell her story. She’s been trying to help since day one.”
Nina smiled up at Frannie, but it wasn’t a confident smile. It was one that said the attention made her anxious.
Zeke wanted to say something, to take the attention from Nina, but he had nothing to add. He caught Mont’s eye and tried to convey his thoughts, thankful when Montgomery stepped forward.
“We still don’t have a plan. Gwendolyn is out there. She’s scared. She’s trapped. She has to have a place to hide. Somewhere we don’t know about. What would you do if this was any other suspect?” Montgomery asked.
Lorelei and Adam exchanged a look. They were the ones in charge of the investigation and the team.
“We’d ask the public for help,” Adam said. “We would put her face everywhere and offer a reward for any information leading to her capture.”
“Then why don’t we do that?” Montgomery asked.
“We don’t know what she looks like. Any photos we have are from years ago, and they’re not clear. We can’t go to the public unless we can tell them who we’re looking for,” Lorelei said.
“I know what she looks like,” Nina whispered. “I can describe every detail of her. And the others who are probably with her.”
All heads turned to Nina as she spoke, as if they just realized what she was saying. Zeke wondered why none of them thought to ask her to describe Gwendolyn before, but he was so damn proud of Nina for offering.
“Do you have a sketch artist I can work with? Someone you trust?” Nina asked.
Marcus and Adam smiled at each other.
“Yeah, we know someone,” Marcus said.
Adam left the room, his phone already to his ear.
The others looked at Marcus in question.
“His cousin is an owner at F-BOMB, and their office manager is an artist. Kyra was a witness to a bank robbery a few years back and drew the sketch of the crew and was instrumental in capturing all of them,” Marcus explained.
Adam walked back into the room and pocketed his phone. “They’ll be here in ten minutes.”
“Sounds like we have time for coffee. Anyone need a cup?” Dawn asked. She stood and led the way to the serving table set up on one side of the room, most people following her.
Zeke headed for Nina, catching her elbow before she was able to trail after the others.
She turned quickly, gasping in shock.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you,” Zeke said.
She shook her head. “It’s okay. I guess I’m just on edge.”
Zeke pulled her into his arms, closing out the world around them and protecting her from everyone else. “You are so fucking brave.”
She held onto him, her body trembling. “No, I’m not. I’m hiding.”
“You’re helping find the woman who tried to break you. You’re fighting back.”
Nina exhaled. “It doesn’t feel like I’m doing enough. I know her. I’ve been with her for years. I should know where she is.”
“If you knew everything, this would be a totally different situation.”
“I thought I knew. I should know.”
Zeke pulled back and tucked a strand of Nina’s red hair behind her ear. “You are amazing. She lied to you, manipulated you, and hid a lot from you. She didn’t trust anyone.”
Nina swallowed. “It’s like that Stockholm Syndrome. There are moments when I struggle with the woman they all know and hate so much. She was good to me sometimes. She treated me like a sister at first. Gave me a place to live. I thought when I turned eighteen I could leave. That was my plan. Figure out what I wanted my life to look like and go out on my own. Back then, she really was like a sister. We would talk about my future, about the dreams I had and the things I wanted to do with my life.”
“And she used all of that against you.”
Nina sniffed. She swallowed. Her lips lifted into a sad smile. “She did. God, I was so stupid.”
“No, you weren’t. You’d never met anyone like her. You didn’t understand how she operated.”
Nina shrugged. “My dad was like that.”
“No,” Zeke breathed. “Your dad was an asshole. He was horrible. He was cruel and mean, but Gwendolyn is a whole other level. She makes your dad look halfway decent by comparison, and we both know he wasn’t.”
“Yeah,” Nina whispered.
“Come here,” Zeke said, drawing her back into his arms. He ached to kiss her, to whisk her away and never come back. To hide out and let the others figure it all out.
He hated the thought, but the worse thought was having someone hurt Nina. Letting Gwendolyn get her hands on Nina again. It wasn’t in his DNA to run and hide, not when he could help, but everything inside him needed Nina to be okay. Needed her to be safe.
She’d already chosen to meet with Gwendolyn, and even though Gwendolyn didn’t show up, standing in the way of Nina doing anything else to help wouldn’t go over well.
He had no choice but to accept that she was the same as him. She needed to run toward the fight, too. Which meant if he wanted her safe, he could never leave her side.
Nina drew strength from Zeke and absorbed it in. She wanted to stay there forever, to pull from him until she felt like she could do anything, but someone rang the bell and the tentative levity of the moment ended.
Dawn and Adam left the room to answer the door. Everyone else stayed put, watching the hallway and listening for the voices to draw closer again. Dawn and Adam returned with a man and woman. The man and Adam talked together, easy laughter flowing between them. The woman was a little more tentative but spoke with Dawn and seemed comfortable enough. The woman carried a sketchbook and had a searching gaze that stopped when she found Nina.
Frannie walked her over and reached for Nina’s hand, bringing her to Dawn and the woman. “Nina, this is Kyra O’Keefe. Kyra, this is Nina Rose.”
“Nice to meet you,” Kyra said warmly, offering her hand.
Nina shook it and smiled, feeling more at ease than she expected. “You, too. Thank you for coming so quickly.”
“Liam said you guys needed some help.” She nodded to the man who was talking to Adam. Both men approached.
“Nina, this is my cousin, Liam. Liam, this is Nina Rose.” Adam nodded heavily at Liam, passing on a message Nina was pretty sure meant Liam knew who she was.
“Nice to meet you, Nina. We’ve done some work with your brother’s agency. We were all happy to hear you were home and safe.” Liam smiled, his friendly demeanor further relaxing Nina.
“Thank you.” Nina wasn’t sure how to take that she was borderline infamous, but she figured it was a good thing so many people who spent their lives protecting and helping others were out there.
“Kyra, where do you want to go?” Frannie asked.
Kyra looked at Nina. “Wherever you’re comfortable. I just need a place to sit, maybe somewhere to put my sketchbook, but that’s not required.”
Nina looked back at Dawn. Nina didn’t know the massive home well enough to know what their options were.
“You are welcome wherever you feel comfortable,” Dawn said. “This room is busy, but the dining room is a little quieter. I have a library you can use, another sitting room that’s smaller. If you’d like more privacy, you can go upstairs to a bedroom.” Dawn clasped her hands together in front of her.
“Oh, I don’t want to invade your private space,” Nina said. She looked around the room and jumped when someone on the other side of the room laughed loudly. “Um, maybe somewhere quieter.”
“Let’s go to the library,” Dawn said.
Nina followed Dawn, Frannie, and Kyra, but Zeke lingered behind. “Are you coming?”
“Do you want me to?” Zeke asked.
Monty appeared next to Zeke. “What’s going on?”
“Sketch artist,” Zeke answered.
Nina stopped and looked between Kyra, Dawn, and Frannie and Zeke and Monty. She turned to the women. “Can they come with me?”
“Of course,” the women said at the same time.
Nina looked at the men, feeling better knowing they would be there with her. Always with her.
Frannie stood outside the library to let the others move inside. The space was cozy and large, but it would work. Kyra sat in an armchair near the window, with Nina in a chair opposite. Frannie took a seat closer to the door, but still close. Monty sat next to Nina, and Zeke stood just inside the door.
“Are we okay? Does anyone need anything?” Dawn asked, a gracious hostess.
Kyra nodded and looked at Nina.
Nina shook her head. “We’re good.”
“Okay, I’m going to let you do your thing. If you need something, one of these men can come get me.” Dawn squeezed Zeke’s arm and nodded to Monty.
“Yes, ma’am,” they both said.
Dawn chuckled and left the room, leaving the door open since Zeke was standing in front of it.
“Nina, I’m going to ask you to close your eyes and describe what you remember. Liam said it’s a female?” Kyra asked as she flipped open her sketchbook.
“Gwendolyn Lennox,” Nina said.
Kyra gasped. “Oh. Um, I didn’t realize that. Okay. Is she the only one?”
Nina shook her head. “There is a man who is with her all the time. There are others, but only one I know for sure is with her. But the others could help lead to her, I guess.”
“Let’s do anyone you remember clearly, and we’ll let Marcus and Adam decide what they want to use. Is that okay?” Kyra asked.
“Yeah, that sounds good. Thank you.”
“You’re so welcome. I know this isn’t easy. So first, close your eyes.”
Nina did, her other senses firing. She immediately opened her eyes.
“What’s wrong?” Monty asked.
Nina looked around the room. “Sorry. It’s…”
“She doesn’t like the dark,” Zeke answered for her. “Is closing your eyes hard, too?”
Nina nodded.
“You can try with your eyes open,” Kyra said. “Usually it’s better to close your eyes and block out everything else.”
“Hold her hand,” Zeke said.
Monty looked up at him, then reached for Nina.
She put her hand in her brother’s and drew a breath. She closed her eyes again and took a deep breath. “I’m safe,” she whispered.
“Yes, you are. Zeke and I are right here. He’s at the door, and no one’s going to get in.” Monty’s words were soothing.
Nina nodded. “Gwendolyn is a little taller than me. Dark blonde hair. It’s a little wavy at the ends, but straighter on top. The longest parts go to the tops of her breasts with the shortest closer to her collarbones. She wears suits, sometimes without a shirt underneath. She likes that she has power. Short nails, no polish.”
Nina swallowed at a long ago memory. The night before Nina turned eighteen, Gwendolyn surprised her with a night of pampering. Massages and mani/pedis. A facial. The technician who painted Nina’s nails gave her a fun, flirty pink polish. Nina talked Gwendolyn into the same color, said they should match.
Gwendolyn agreed, but the next day, her nails were clean and free of any color. When Nina asked why, Gwendolyn scolded Nina and said she couldn’t risk anything that stood out and that she wasn’t a child.
Those were the first harsh words Gwendolyn ever spoke to Nina, and the first time Nina realized the perfect life she thought she ran to wasn’t so perfect.
“Did you think of something else?” Kyra asked.
“No.” Nina shook her head and refocused to the last time she saw Gwendolyn. “She has brown eyes, pouty lips. She has a sharp chin, thin I guess. No jewelry, nothing flashy.”
“That’s all good, Nina. I’m going to ask you some questions to help narrow down everything and get a good picture of her. Is that okay?”
Nina nodded. “Yeah.”
Kyra was gentle with her questioning, giving Nina time to think about an answer. When she asked Nina to look at what she’d drawn so far, Nina gasped.
“My God that’s her.” Nina shook in her seat, the cold, dead eyes of Gwendolyn seeming to stare back at her. Nina pulled her legs up onto the seat and hugged herself, panic and fear winding around her body.
“Move,” Zeke growled, stomping into the room. He picked Nina up and held her against his chest, returning to the chair with her in his lap. “You’re safe, angel. I got you. She’s not here. She can’t touch you. Never again. You’re okay.”
Nina nodded and listened to Zeke’s voice, the calming tone soothing her and bringing her heartbeat back down to something normal.
“Are you okay, angel?” Zeke asked.
Nina nodded. “Thank you.”
“Always. Are you done?”
Nina shook her head.
“Nina,” Monty said.
“No. I can’t let them get away with it. I can’t. I have to help. I have to do this and make sure they don’t hurt anyone else ever again.”
“I’m so proud of you, angel,” Zeke whispered against her hair. “So fucking proud.”
Nina inhaled, her body shaky. It was the right thing. It was the only thing. She would stop Gwendolyn.
Kyra went through the same exercise with Nina for Fernando and the others Nina could remember. They were less painful, but Zeke didn’t move, holding her in his arms the entire time.
Nina felt her brother watching them, but she couldn’t bring herself to care what Monty thought about Zeke holding her. She needed him, his strength, and she wasn’t giving that up for anyone, including her brother.
When Kyra was finished with the six drawings, she thanked Nina and left the room. Frannie was right behind her, talking quietly as they left.
“Are you okay?” Zeke whispered.
Nina nodded. “I’m better now. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Monty got up first, reaching a hand to Nina and helping her off Zeke’s lap. He shot Zeke a look, but Zeke didn’t seem to notice it.
Nina asked her brother to stay with her when they went back to the other room. Zeke stayed close, but Nina knew coming between the two most important men in her world was not what she wanted.
“We’ll get these sketches onto the news by tomorrow,” Marcus said. “This is great work. Thank you, Nina.”
“It was all Kyra,” Nina said.
Kyra shook her head. “Not even a little. I just drew what you told me. Thank you for being willing to do this.”
Nina nodded, knowing everyone in the city knew what Gwendolyn was capable of, what she’d done. At least some of it.
“Thanks, Kyra. We really appreciate your help,” Adam said. “We know this will help.”
“Happy to do whatever I can. It looks like we’re heading back to work. See you all soon.” Kyra waved and followed Liam to the door and out.
“Now, we get the public involved, and we put an end to all of this,” Adam said.
Nina closed her eyes and said a prayer he was right.