Love, Lies & The D.A. (42 page)

“You
would have preferred if it ended on a pleasant note?”

“Yeah…”
he whispers. “We usually ended our conversations with I love you. And that
day…”

His
mind drifts. I can tell he’s remembering.

“That
day, I thought he was treating me like a child. I told him that I was old
enough and smart enough to make my own decisions, and I got off the phone. There
was no ‘I love you’… and no goodbye. I regret that.”

“I
understand, but he knew. And just because you had words that day, your father
would have never thought that you loved him any less.”

“I
guess if I’m being realistic, I know that, but if I had known that within hours
he’d be dead, things would have ended differently.”

“I get
that, but I’d hate to see that last conversation be the one that you choose to
epitomize the entire relationship you had with your dad. I know you loved him,
and he loved you. You just need to focus on that. Every time he spoke to me
about you, he always had so much pride and admiration in his voice. He loved
you all so much. I remember admiring the way he’d go on and on about his kids.”

“Thank
you,” he murmurs, caressing my hand.

“For
what?”

“Helping
me put things in perspective. It’s been bothering me.”

“I
know. I’ve been waiting for the right time to say something.”

“Enough
about me. What about you? Are you going to return to work once you feel a
hundred percent?”

“I
suppose. I never really stopped working. I just did it from home via conference
calls. Maybe… I’ve been afraid that my issues outside of work will affect my
business. That’s why I’ve stayed away this long. It was my intention to slowly
ease my way back into the office, but we know how that ended.”

“I’m
sorry.”

“No
need to apologize,” I reply as our food arrives. “I guess I’ll always question
if I should return now or wait till this is all over. Of late, I’ve been
feeling very unsettled. I need my life to return to some sort of normalcy.”

“Do
you have any other friends besides Koto?”

“I’d
call them acquaintances. I have a few close friends, but they don’t live in the
state. I could count on both hands the people I confide in, and two are out of
my life. The other is my brother, then my friend Chelsea who’s back home, and
then there was your dad, and now you.”

“Who
were all these people invited to your wedding?”

“Mostly
Richard’s friends and acquaintances. Out of all the people invited to my wedding,
maybe fifteen to twenty were my family or friends. Everyone else was his.”

As we
talk about Richard, I feel like we’re talking about some stranger. All these
months later, this is still very surreal.

“What
about you? Every time I saw you in Tahoe, you always seemed to be surrounded by
lots of people.”

“I
have a few close friends, many acquaintances, none that I see on a regular
basis. I guess I spend most of my time with my family, and work. When you saw
me at Lake Tahoe, I was with a good friend who was visiting from high school,
his wife, and her siblings. There are a few I socialize with, but that’s about
it. You’ve met most of the important people in my life.”

“You
too. Maybe one day, when this is all over and I can leave this great state of
California, I can take you back home and you can meet the rest of them.”

“I
look forward to that.”

After
dinner, we go for a stroll along the boardwalk. It’s a beautiful night, and the
air is crisp and clean. Not too many people are out, but in the distance are
the sounds of a jazz band. We cuddle on one of the benches and take in the
views. My arms surround him, and my legs drape over his. I lay my head on his
chest below his chin. I feel so much closer to him as he rakes his fingers
through my hair.

“Thank
you for being here… in my life,” I whisper.

“Thank
you for allowing me in. I know it wasn’t easy.”

I kiss
him gently on his cheek. I want him. I want to make love to him, the best way I
can with a less than stellar body.

“Can
we go home? I want you in bed.”

“Someone’s
libido is back,” he says, kissing me on my cheek.

He
stands then pulls me to my feet.

I lean
towards him and kiss him lightly on his lips.

“Can
you be gentle?”

“If
that’s the way you want it.”

“I
think that’s the only way my body can handle it.”

He
chuckles and holds my hand as we walk to the car. We approach the vehicle, but
something is off.

“It
looks like we might have a flat tire,” he says.

We get
closer to the car. Upon closer inspection, all four tires are slashed, and
there is an icepick still in one of the tires, but
p
ieces of paper are stuck to
it. He is about to touch it, but he stops himself. He holds my hand and walks
me back into the restaurant. I’m nervous and very uncomfortable. After some
words with the manager, she escorts us to a private office where he calls
Phillip. After a brief conversation, he ends the call.

“They’re
on their way. Douglas is going to take you home while I sort things out with
Phillip.”

“I don’t
want to leave you alone.”

“I’m
going to be fine,” he says, looking into my eyes then he holds me in his arms.
“It’s not safe for you to be here. You’ll be safer at the penthouse.”

“What
about you?”

“Babe,
I’m going to be okay. As soon as I’m done here, I’ll go to pick up the Land
Rover then I’ll come right over.”

“Promise
me you’ll be careful. Please.”

His
phone rings. Phillip’s arrived.

After
thanking the manager, we leave. Two black SUVs with heavily tinted windows await
us. A team of agents accompanies Phillip and Douglas, all wearing plain clothes
and gloves as they inspect the vehicle. A small scene is starting to develop.
Douglas and Jonathan walk me over to one of the SUVs.

“Please,
be careful,” I whisper. I’m scared, and I hate leaving him here.

“I’ll
be okay. Douglas is going to check the condo before he leaves. When he does,
lock the foyer doors.”

“Please
hurry back.”

“I
will.”

He
kisses me tenderly on my lips.

“Don’t
worry. Everything will be okay.”

He
closes the door and Douglas drives away. As we’re leaving, a flatbed wrecker
approaches. I look in the mirror, and it occupies the space in front of
Jonathan’s car. Soon, everything is out of view.

*     *     *

Before
the car is uploaded onto the wrecker, it is photographed and covered. The
icepick and papers are removed and sealed in separate bags for evidence. An
agent hands Phillip several bags. He looks at it and hands it over to me. There
are numerous pictures, most with Jada alone and a few with me, including one
taken tonight.

“Someone’s
after her.”

“That
might be true, but there’s no evidence to prove that they’re not after you
too,” Phillip responds.

“This
photo was taken from inside the restaurant. They were within feet of us. They
may still be nearby.”

“Hopefully,
there are surveillance cameras. We can pick up some more information from them.
They might have even been stupid enough to buy a drink or something and paid
with a credit card.”

“I
wouldn’t bet on it. We need to find who is doing this. Soon. I won’t be
responsible for what I do if they come near her.”

“Johnny,
I know you’re frustrated, but keep your cool. We’re working round the clock on
this. Right now, we technically have two separate cases that we’re working on,
and of the two, we’re not certain who is responsible for this or which case
this is linked to. The car will be processed, and hopefully, we’ll be able to
pick up some more evidence from that. In the meantime, let me give you a ride
home.”

“Take
me to my place, please. I need to pick up my SUV.”

A
while later, we arrive at the house. The guest bedroom light is on—a light I
didn’t leave on.

Someone’s
inside,” I say. “The only light that I leave on is the one in the foyer.”

“You
have your firearm?”

“No.
It’s locked in the safe in the house. I was going to get it.”

“Let
me go in first.”

“Why
didn’t the alarm go off?”

“I don’t
know. I’ll go in through the front. Do you have a back entrance?”

“Several.
Four upstairs and four downstairs.”

“That’s
a lot to cover. Let me call for backup first.”

 As
Phillip says that, the light goes off, and I see a shadow in the foyer light.

“It
looks like they’re trying to leave.”

“I’m
going in. Wait here.”

He
carefully approaches the house. While he does, I call Douglas. Within minutes
of making an entrance, I hear glass shatter. I run out of the vehicle,
cautiously venturing towards the house. Through the glass windows, I see
Phillip chasing a figure through the shattered glass kitchen door. I carefully
go to my room to get my weapon out of the safe. I don’t want to assume that
this person is alone. After loading the gun, I carefully check the house. It
appears that no one else is here.

Four
black SUVs are outside the house shortly after. Agents scatter throughout and
around the house. Would Chris Hostin really go this far? Or is this somehow
related to Jada? I should call her to make sure she’s all right.

“Hi.
How come you’re not here yet?” she asks.

I hear
the anxiety in her voice.

“I had
to pick up some extra things at the house. I was checking to make sure you’re
okay?”

“I’m
fine. It’s you I’m worried about.”

“Babe,
I’m okay. Why don’t you go to bed? Try to get some rest. I’ll be home soon.”

“What’s
going on? What’s taking so long?”

I don’t
want her to worry or be scared. I’ll tell her when I return.

“It’s
nothing. They’re making sure everything is processed properly.”

“Hurry
back. I’m waiting up for you. Besides, now that the foyer doors are locked, you
won’t be able to get in.”

“I’ll
be there as soon as I can.”

“Please
be careful.”

“I
will, Sweetheart. See you soon.”

I end
the call and the agents all return. Phillip is bleeding on his shoulder.

“What
happened?” I grab a clean towel from the bathroom and hand it to him.

“They
fired a shot at me.”

“Shit.
We need to get you to a hospital.”

“No. I’m
fine. It grazed my shoulder.”

“I
looked around a bit. I’m not sure why they were here or what they’re looking
for.”

“It’s
possible they were waiting here to harm you.”

“Then
why turn on the light like they’re searching for something?”

“I don’t
know, but there was a silencer on that gun they were carrying. We’ll look
around and see if we spot anything.”

“I don’t
understand why the alarm didn’t sound. I’m going to call the security company.”

“We’ll
get to work over here. Let us check your vehicle before you leave.”

“Sure.”

“If I
were you, I’d get rid of any opened food in here. You don’t want to take any
chances; they might have tainted something.”

I end
the call with the security company. It appears the alarm was deactivated on
Friday morning, and Floria forgot to reactivate it when she left for the day. I
call her and she apologizes profusely. I’m pissed, but she rarely ever screws
up, so I let her go with a warning. My phone rings. Jada is calling. It looks
like I’m going to have to tell her what’s going on, because the FBI is far from
finished here.

“Hey,
Babe.”

“There’s
something you’re not telling me. What is it?”

“Don’t
worry, I’m fine. I wanted to tell you when I got home, but I’ll be a while.
Someone was in the house when I got here. They ran out before Phillip could get
to them.”

“Why
were they there? Was anything stolen?”

“It
doesn’t look so, but I can’t be certain.”

“How
did they get through the alarm?”

“Floria
forgot to activate it before she left on Friday.”

“Shoot.
Why is this happening?”

“I don’t
know. But I intend to find out.”

“How
much longer do you think you’ll be?”

“I don’t
know. Turn the ringer up on your phone and go to bed. I’ll call you when I’m on
my way up.”

“I don’t
think I’ll be able to sleep until you’re here. Please, be careful.”

*     *     *

It’s
close to one in the morning when my phone rings. I’m thankful Jonathan’s
arrived. When we finally see each other, he holds me in his arms forever and a
day… or a night in this case.

“Can I
get you anything? Maybe some tea?”

“No
thanks. First things first, I need a shower. How are you?” he says.

“Better
now that you’re here. It’s been a crazy night.”

“It
has.”

We go
into the bedroom, and after he lays a garment bag down, he takes his gun and an
extra magazine out from a duffle bag and places it in the bedside drawer.

He
heads into the bathroom, and I go into the kitchen and make us each a cup of
tea. It doesn’t matter if he drinks it. I need to keep busy before I go to bed.

Fifteen
minutes later, he’s out of the bath.

“I
know you said you didn’t want any, but I made us some lavender tea.”

“Thanks,
Babe.”

“You
want to tell me what really happened tonight?”

He
sighs.

My
stomach turns by the look on his face.

“They
weren’t able to find the trespasser. Phillip was slightly injured. The
perpetrator fired a shot at him that grazed his shoulder.”

“Oh my
God. Did he go to the hospital?”

“No.
The paramedics came by and they treated him.”

“Was
anything missing from the house?”

“Not
that I noticed. There were two tracking devices on the SUV, though. Phillip
also advised me to throw out all the opened food. The safe was not tampered
with… anything important was in there. I’m not even sure they went into my
bedroom.”

“Maybe
they didn’t have the time to get to it.”

“Perhaps.
Let’s go to bed. I’m drained.”

I don’t
know why, but I sense there’s something more.

“What
else?”

“What
do you mean?”

“There’s
something else you’re not telling me.”

“Baby,
let’s talk about it tomorrow.”

“Why?
So that I will hopefully forget to ask. What is it?”

“Jada,
we have to be very careful. The papers in the icepick on the car tire… They
were pictures mostly of you, but some of us together. One was taken inside the
restaurant tonight.”

“So
this person was near us? Are you sure Chris Hostin would do this? Do you think
he’d go this far?”

“I don’t
know any more. Tomorrow we need to put some measures in place for our safety,
and our family’s. At this point, I don’t know who or what is off limits.”

“You
think they’re after me?”

“I can’t
be certain. This may be related to you or me. Until we find out, we need to be
careful.”

Tonight
went anything but as planned. The longer this drags on, the more convoluted
this mess gets. The romantic evening we had hoped for squashed by unknown
characters with an agenda, Jonathan pulls me in his arms. With that said, in
the early hours of the morning, we wake, and slowly and gently, he makes love
to me.

When I
wake
the next morning, Jonathan is gone. I’ve overslept. I quickly get ready for my
physiotherapy session that is due to begin in fifteen minutes.

Every
session I’ve had leaves me feeling better than the last. It’s too bad this type
of technology doesn’t exist to fix a broken wrist. After the therapist leaves,
I settle in my office to get some work done. Before I get started, I give
Jonathan a call. He takes my call, but he’s busy in a staff meeting, so I
quickly let him go.

Later,
after a long conference call with Ian, it appears that things are getting back
on track with the rebuild of the kitchen. I check in with Patrick and Allan to
follow up on the progress, then with Phillip to make sure he’s doing well.

“You
don’t need to worry about me. I’ve been through much worse.”

“Still.
I wanted to make sure… Have there been any new developments?”

“We
got some blood samples from the broken glass door at Johnny’s place last
night.”

“A
door broke?”

“He
didn’t tell you?”

“No. I
suspect he tried to tell me as little as possible and left out details.”

“When
this person tried to escape, they ran straight through the glass doors in the
kitchen. They were at least slightly injured because there was blood on some of
the glass fragments.”

“So
what happens now?”

“We’re
hoping there is enough of a sample to get some DNA evidence. If there is, we’ll
run it against our database. Hopefully, we’ll come up with a match. If not, we’ll
have something to compare it to, should we have a suspect.”

“I’ll
keep my fingers crossed then. What about the car? Were you able to pick up
anything off the street or restaurant cameras?”

“That’s
still being analyzed. We may not know for a few days. Getting the photos is one
thing. Most times, they need to be enhanced further to help make
identification.”

“Okay.
If I ask you a question, will you give me an honest answer?”

“I’ll
sure try.”

“Is
this person after me or Johnny?”

“Honestly.
We have a major problem. At this point, we’re not sure if we’re looking at one
or two separate cases. We’re trying hard to find out, but right now, we simply
don’t know.”

“Just great.
I guess I better let you get back to work.”

“The
moment we find out anything concrete, I’ll be in touch.”

“Thanks
Phillip.”

I am
surprised
when, by nine o’clock that night, I haven’t heard from
Jonathan. I try calling him, but the phone goes straight to voice mail. These
days, the slightest thing worries me. I don’t want to overreact. I preoccupy
myself with a rare trip to the gym where I practice the exercises my therapist
has recommended. I return to the penthouse after half an hour.

When I
enter the foyer, I hear his voice.

“Jada?”

“Hi.
You had me wo—”

“God,
Jada,” he says, hugging me. “Forget it, Phillip… It looks like she came in from
the gym… I know. Thanks.”

“What’s
going on?”

“I was
worried. I thought something had happened to you. I didn’t know where you
were.”

“I
went to the gym. I left you a message on the bedside table.”

“I
didn’t see it.”

“Where
have you been? I’ve been trying to call you on our private line. I went to the
gym to keep busy.”

He pulls
the phone from his pocket.

“Shoot.
I’m sorry, Babe. I never noticed the battery had died. I was at my parents’
house. I had to let my family know what was going on. I hired extra security
for them today.”

“How
did they take the news?”

“Well,
they’re not happy about it. Megan and Mom welcome the security, though. Pierce
and Daniel don’t think they need it. Either way, they all needed to know. They
need to be vigilant.”

“Are
they upset with me?”

“Of
course not. Jada, this is not your fault.”

“I can’t
help feel my presence is causing this.”

“Did
it ever occur to you that it might be the reverse? Right now, we just don’t
know for sure; that’s why we have to ensure that everyone is covered.”

“Bobby
will be so upset with me for not telling him about this.”

“He
knows. I spoke to him this afternoon.”

“Wow.
You two have become best friends pretty quick.”

“We
have a woman in common.” He laughs then kisses me lightly on the lips.

“Are
you hungry?”

“No.
Mom wouldn’t let me leave unless I ate. She also gave me a plate for you.”

“Tell
her I said thank you. I’ll have it for lunch tomorrow.”

Later
that night,
I follow up on some urgent work—documents that
Ian sent me that require my signature. I sign them then I look through my
paperwork pile on my desk. I need to return some papers to the office as well.