Determined: To Win (Determined Trilogy Book 3) (18 page)

“I don’t get it. I thought you had her checked out?” I asked, looking over at David.

“We did.” David sighed, clearly disappointed in himself. “It seems their skill at identity theft wasn’t limited to their work with me.”

“So how did you…”

“I didn’t. Not until you were at the museum. I recognized her when you were with her at the café. I called Agent Williams right away, and she advised me to keep my distance, since you weren’t in any immediate danger. We didn’t want to tip her off. The agents thought that knowing who she was without
her knowing
that we knew could give us a potential advantage.”

My head was swimming. This was all completely overwhelming. Gina was really someone named Karen? And she was dating Brian, the man who was trying to take down KV? I took a deep breath. “Okay, okay,” I said “So you knew my whole job was a sham? And you let me go up there, day after day? What if something happened?”

“Elliot was with you, Samantha. And he was aware of the situation. He installed remote listening devices and was monitoring you the whole time. You were never in any danger.”

“Hang on, I just need a moment.” I glanced down at my shoes, suddenly nervous as I tried to recall the conversations I had had with G-er, Karen in Tiburon. It was selfish, but I hoped I hadn’t said anything too personal. “So, let me get this straight. There was never any job? What about the house?”

Detective Lopez answered. “Short term rental unit. Only good through the end of the month. Did you notice how it wasn’t furnished?”

“I thought she was just moving in…” I trailed off. I was starting to feel really stupid for not questioning everything. My mind flashed back to the standoff. “What about Greg? Was he also stalking me the whole time? He said he was your
dad
,” I said the words, hoping they weren’t true. But I knew. It seemed like everyone I’d befriended lately was plotting against us. I couldn’t believe it. I shuddered as I remembered Greg popping by, playing it off like he had a crush on me. I felt so dumb.

Everyone looked at David so I turned to him. He had a flat look on his face.

“Only biologically,” he said quietly without any trace of emotion.

I furrowed my brow and squinted my eyes as if sharpening my sight would make what he was saying easier to understand. “Didn’t you say your father was dead?”

“It seems my mother lied to me.” His voice was soft and confused, as if he was trying to convince himself of what he was saying. I looked at the detective.

“Can you please explain? That doesn’t make any sense. Shouldn’t David’s father be much older? He can’t be more than what, thirty-five, forty?”

Detective Lopez cleared his throat. “Greg Calvin is forty-six. He was seventeen when he and…”

I turned an even paler shade of pale. Played like a fucking violin. I was such an idiot.

“It seems that when he went to jail for felony assault, David’s mother used it as an opportunity to get away from a bad situation. We’re not sure if they had a history of abuse, but she sure did a good job of running. She told David his dad had died, and since they were never married, court records were never the wiser.”

“Jesus…” David’s family history was even more complicated than I had thought. “What do you mean felony assault?”

“He held up a convenience mart at gunpoint and injured two people.”

Now that … I could believe. I ran my fingers across my temple. My egg-shaped welt was still tender. It seemed that prison hadn’t taught Greg whatever-his-name-was that hitting was wrong.

The detective continued, “Brian had done his research. He enlisted both of them to help because he knew he couldn’t do it alone. Karen, his wife, was loyal, and through his research he found Greg. Being an ex-con, he was easily motivated by money. Brian has invested a significant chunk of change in all the various deceptions.”

I stared straight ahead, still stunned.

“Actually, we only learned about Greg’s role in the plan recently. Elliot mentioned he kept popping up, so it seemed prudent to check him out.”

I looked over at Elliot, who, until now, had been standing silently against the back wall.

“Sorry, Sam.”

“It’s fine,” I said quietly. I don’t know why, but my mind immediately went back to the little ornament that Greg had given me. Man, the plan was intricate. I felt another pang of embarrassment riddle through me.

“What about Kate? Was she part of it?” I asked, mentally going over all the new contacts I had made. I had good reason to be suspicious of everyone now.

The agents put their heads together to confer and then Agent Williams spoke. “Kate Deveraux at the gallery? No. We think Greg started dating her as a way of staying close to you after you said you were moving away. But there’s no reason to believe she was involved.”

I breathed a small sigh of relief. Well, at least my
entire
life hadn’t been comprised of lies.

“So, do you still think they killed Curtis? That I don’t understand—I had almost left the gallery by then.” I looked over at David as I asked the question to the detectives. His countenance was unwavering, and his hand hadn’t left mine.

The detective answered, “I suspect he was victim of circumstance. They were getting ready to make a move, were cleaning up all the evidence connecting you and them. Our guess is that Karen, Greg, or Brian broke into the gallery to try and remove the evidence of Gina Moretti’s purchase. Running into Curtis was most likely just an unfortunate accident.”

Unfortunate accident?
Jesus.
I thought about that answer for a moment. It was possible, sure—and an option that was easy to believe. But another option floated in my head, although I wasn’t going to mention it.

I had done a terrible job of disguising my reaction to Gina’s angry outburst a while ago, and she picked up on it. Part of me couldn’t help but wonder if Gina, sensing my reaction, had killed Curtis, so that I wouldn’t have another job to fall back on. There was no way to know, and the information wouldn’t affect the case, so I didn’t say anything. I fell silent and stared down at my shoes. David misinterpreted my body language and started to rub my back.

“It’s not your fault, Samantha.”

The detective cut in again. “On the contrary. We wouldn’t have been able to capture them if it wasn’t for you Sam.”

“So, this was all planned, right?” I looked over at David. He looked at the agents.

“In short, yes. We’ve all been aware that Brian’s team had been following you for a while, and we sensed a move was imminent. At first we thought David might be the target, so we pulled him away from you and isolated him for a few days.”

I glanced over to David and shot him a look.

“It was for your protection, Samantha. The agents felt like the less you knew, the better.”

I tried not to roll my eyes, and then agent Callaghan continued. “Once Curtis was killed, it became evident that they were focusing their attention on you rather than David. So we decided to give them what they wanted and created an opportunity they couldn’t refuse. The memorial service was perfect. They could blend in with the crowd, and so could we.”

“So you
let
them kidnap me?” I asked flatly.

Detective Lopez and David exchanged glances before the detective answered. “You were never in any real danger Samantha. We had GPS tracking you. Snipers were trained on all three of the suspects. If they had tried anything—”

“Are you serious? What about this?” I pointed to the lump on my head.

“That’s why we went in when we did. I would have preferred to have waited until they provided more evidence, but David insisted we intervene when we did. We were under orders to end it if they touched you.” David squeezed my hand tighter. I looked up at him and then back at the detective. “Sam, I’m sorry, but we had to do it this way. We knew the case would be strongest if we could get them on tape, confessing. After we realized that they still wanted you, we decided to force Brian’s hand. We had David set up some bank accounts in your name. Sent you ring shopping. Tried to make it look like David was getting married. It was the perfect way to put the pressure on.”

I tried to keep my expression steady, but inside my heart dropped. Instead of paying attention to what he was saying, I fixed on one phrase.
Tried to make it look like David was getting married.
I swallowed hard and forced a smile. “I’m sorry?”

“Brian is smart, Samantha. He knew that if another one of David’s fiancés wound up dead, it would make for a solid case against him. That move got them just panicked enough that they changed tactics and decided to try blackmail. When we gave them the option at the memorial service, they pounced on it. I’m sorry for the secrecy, but you were a huge help, Sam.”

My throat ran dry. So now everything was a sham? Not just Gina. Not just Greg. But everything with David, too? I couldn’t tell where reality stopped and the lies began. I took the last sip of cold coffee from my paper cup. “I’m glad I could help,” I said flatly. I turned to David. “Is there anything else? I’m starting to feel pretty tired.”

David looked down at me, concerned and then back at the agents. “I’m sure that’s enough for today. We can reconvene once we’ve all had some time to rest.” Everyone nodded their heads.

I managed to get up, and David wrapped his arm around me as we walked out of the office and down the long hall towards the front of the station. I was still wearing my outfit from the service, and my heels were killing me. Thomas was waiting in the reception area and followed us out the front door. Outside, cold wind whipped at us as we made our way down the stairs to David’s SUV parked nearby. Thomas opened the doors, and we climbed into the back seat, headed home.

We were silent the entire way back, the events of the day providing more than enough fodder for our minds. And I was weary, my body stiff from being tensed for hours. David kept his arm around me, stroking my hair, and I fell into a reluctant slumber.

38

The next morning I woke up annoyed. It started with a throbbing pain on my head where the gun had knocked my skull. The grouchiness built when I turned over, reaching for David. It was Saturday, but he wasn’t in bed. I got up, pulled on a robe and wandered out to the kitchen, checking his office on the way. No David. I helped myself to a piece of ice, wrapping it in a paper towel before touching it to my head. I meandered over to the living room and then checked the foyer. David’s wallet and keys weren’t there. He was gone. I went back to the bedroom and flopped back onto the huge mattress and picked up my phone. It was the weekend, and after yesterday, I would have thought David would be taking the day off. I texted him.

Where are you?

David texted back almost immediately.

Sorry baby. Meeting with London.

How is your head? There is some ibuprofen on the nightstand for you.

I looked over. Sure enough. A small white bottle was next to a glass of water. My phone buzzed again.

Are we still on for Napa tonight?

Shit. Julie’s birthday. I had completely forgotten. I closed my eyes. I was not in the mood for a party. My phone vibrated again.

Be sure to dress up. We’re going out with everyone.

I paused a moment and mulled over my options. To say I was surprised at his demeanor would be an understatement; I certainly wasn’t in any mood to celebrate. Honestly, I had more important things to think about. Like getting a new job. In less than a week, I had lost my two most viable employment options. And a good friend. Why didn’t David understand that? The past few days had left me thinking that maybe we weren’t as in tune with each other as I had originally thought. After all, if we were, he would be here right now, comforting me in the wake of all that’s transpired, instead of tending to mergers and acquisitions half a world away.

I’ll meet you downstairs at six.

I texted him a one word confirmation and then threw the phone down on the bed. I was cranky and irritated. Mostly at myself for wanting to believe that this was all something more than it was. I closed my eyes, and all I could picture was Sara Goldstein. David said she hadn’t mattered. But the reality was that they were engaged. David had taken a step with her that he hadn’t with me. I started to get angry at his carelessness. Didn’t he know that if you took a girl to look at rings, she’d get her hopes up? Sure, we were living together, but -
Shit!
Living together. I was supposed to meet Carrie this morning to pack. I had totally forgotten. I checked my phone. I had exactly forty-five minutes to get to the East Bay. I felt a pang of guilt as I texted Elliot, knowing full well how late he probably went to bed, and then rolled off the mattress and headed for the bathroom.

I turned on the shower as hot it could go, and as steam filled the room, I stripped out of my robe and pajamas, leaving them on the floor. I threw my hair in a bun, and gave myself a quick once over with body wash, emerging a few moments later, anxious but clean.

I hurried to my closet and threw on some jeans and a sweater. I skipped makeup, knowing I’d need to go full-face for the party later tonight.
Besides, it’s not like the workaholic is going to see me,
I thought, sarcastically as I put on some antiperspirant. I pulled on some boots, grabbed my purse and headed out the door to meet Elliot on the street.

“Well if it isn’t the hero of the day!” Elliot greeted me as I climbed into the backseat.

“Ha, ha,” I muttered. I wasn’t in the mood for jokes.

“Seriously, Sam. You handled that so well yesterday. You might want to consider a career in personal security. You know, now that you aren’t working for Gina anymore.”

I scrunched my face up and flashed him a look in the rearview mirror.

“Sorry we couldn’t tell you what the plan was, Sam. But you know I was listening on the radio the whole time. My favorite part was when you called them a bunch of fucking pricks.” He smiled. “I didn’t know you had it in you.”

I sat back in my seat and smiled weakly. I wasn’t in the mood to discuss the ordeal anymore.