She touched her cheek. “I begged him not to hurt me.
He leaned over me, his face coming closer. Then blackness swallowed the light. The last image I saw before succumbing to the darkness was a glint of red laughter shining through obsidian eyes.”
The eyes of the devil.
“Those are the eyes I saw depicted in the sketch of Michelle’s killer. It’s him. He killed Tommy.”
Riley stared at her, unblinking.
“I know it sounds crazy. It is crazy. This whole situation is crazy. What’s worse is that’s all I can remember of that day. They said they found me in the forest with the murder weapon in my hand. But I can’t remember what happened. I don’t know why he let me go. I don’t know why he didn’t kill me, too.” She let out a deep breath, trying to fight back the tears that were threatening to overwhelm her.
“Why have you kept running? Why haven’t you let somebody help you?”
“Who? The police? I can’t take that risk again.”
“What risk?”
“That they’d lock me up.” She clung to shoulders that felt strong enough to hold up the world, but were they strong enough for her and for what the future may hold? “I can’t go through that again,” she insisted. “I can’t have everyone calling me a killer.”
“They won’t.”
“Tommy’s parents believed I killed him, and so did mine. The police just wanted the case solved. They took the easy way. They didn’t care whose life they were ruining or whose dreams they destroyed. Chief Marshall was so certain it was me.”
Riley cringed at her words.
“Please, Riley. Don’t make me go through that again. Let me leave. I’ll be more careful. I won’t let him find me.”
Her eyes pleaded with him and as much as he wanted to help her, he couldn’t stand the idea of her out there on her own with a madman on her heels. “I can’t. I’m sorry.” Tears spilling onto her cheeks broke his heart. “You can’t keep running and hiding,” he said. “You deserve more, you deserve a life.”
“I can’t stay. He almost killed you last night. He’ll be back again.”
“Bah,” he scoffed. “He didn’t even come close.” He pulled her close and breathed deep her vanilla scent. “I want you to stay.”
Her eyes locked on his. “You’re what I’ll miss most about New Orleans.”
“If you want me as much as I want you, if you want your freedom, then take it. Don’t let anyone or anything stop you. Not even your fear.”
“But how? What can I do?”
“Fight back.”
She shook her head. “I’ve never been a fighter. I wouldn’t know where to begin. I’m not that strong.”
Riley stared at her. Was that really what she thought? “Don’t kid yourself, Devra. How many people could have dealt with what you’ve been running from all these years?”
She didn’t answer him, just ran her fingers across his collarbone, studying it as if it held the answers to all life’s secrets.
“Not many,” he continued. “They would have ended up in the loony bin blabbering to the padded walls.”
She dropped her head as another tear escaped out the corner of her eye. “Maybe that’s where I belong,” she said softly, so softly he almost didn’t hear her.
“Maybe,” he challenged.
She looked up at him, afraid and confused.
“There’s only one way to find out.”
“How’s that?” she asked warily.
“Go back to where it all started and do the research the cops never did. You’re a grown woman now, not some kid to be discounted. Find out what really happened to Tommy. Stop running and fight for the truth.”
Her eyes widened at his words. “I couldn’t.”
“Why not?”
“I’m afraid,” she admitted.
“Of what? The killer? Or that you may find out everyone was right, that you killed Tommy.”
Misery chased across her face and he knew his words had hit a sore spot. He knew what he’d just verbalized was exactly what she’d been afraid of all these years. He took her hands into his own and gave them a squeeze. “These hands are connected to a heart, which beats in time to a special soul. Your soul. I know you’re not capable of that kind of evil. You didn’t kill Tommy, Michelle or anyone else. I believe that with everything I am.”
Tears were flowing again, filling big blue eyes full of gratitude. “Please come with me,” she said softly. “I can’t face them alone.”
“Your fears?”
“My parents.”
“Oh.” He nodded understanding, knowing exactly how it felt to face a parent whose disappointment shone through his eyes like beacons in the night. “You’re stronger than you give yourself credit for.”
She shook her head. “I’m not. I can’t do it on my own. I need you.”
No one had ever said those words to him before. The warmth they inspired was totally unexpected. She wrapped her arms around his neck. Her warmth, her softness, her sweet breath on his neck as she clung to him had him considering her request. It would be disastrous for his career and he could lose his job, his reputation. And he knew that what little respect his father had left for him would be gone if they didn’t find the answers they were searching for. But his father would also not forgive him if he let Michelle’s killer go free. Devra—and her past—held the key to that killer. And that past was in Washington.
He’d given Tony his word he’d go to the station. With Devra. “My captain wants to ask me a few questions. Tony found out about Tommy. You should come in and tell the captain the truth. It will sound better coming from you. Trust me.”
She sat back, her eyes widening. “The charges were dropped. There wasn’t enough evidence against me. How did he get his hands on juvenile records?”
“Chief Marshall’s still carrying a grudge. A big one.”
She stared at him for a minute. “Riley, I can’t go anywhere near the station. I just can’t. If I do, they won’t let me leave. I won’t be able to go back and discover the truth.” She grabbed his arm.
“I don’t have a choice, Devra.”
She let go of his arm and walked over to the window. After a moment, she turned back to him. “I know. I guess we’ll just have to take our chances with your captain.”
But Riley knew she had a point. Once she went into the station and told her story, everything would change. If the captain believed her, especially after the incident last night, then she would be put in protective custody. If the captain didn’t believe her, then she would be watched day and night. Either way, Riley was certain he wouldn’t be the one allowed near her. “All right,” he relented. “I’ll go in and see the captain alone.”
She blew out a sigh of relief, then smiled. “I knew I could trust you.”
“Really?” he asked amused. “When did you come to that realization?”
“Just now.”
He pulled her into his arms. “You better.” His lips brushed tenderly across hers, sparking something within him. He held her closer, his mouth moving hungrily over hers. She responded by clinging to him as if this were the last time they’d be together. A twinge of panic tightened his gut. “You’ll be here when I get back?” He pulled back so he could read the truth in her eyes.
She touched her swollen lips, tempting him to pull her into his arms once more, and stared up at him with melting blue eyes. “Yes, I’ll be here,” she said softly.
And he believed her. He didn’t know why, but they seemed to have crossed some line and he believed that
she wouldn’t lie to him, that she’d trust him to help her. He relaxed and gave her a gentle smile. “Good, pack only what you need. No reason to let anyone think you fled town. We’ll take my car.”
She nodded. He left to face the captain, hoping it wouldn’t be for the last time. An hour later, he returned from the station. The captain had been tough, but Riley held his ground and got through their meeting with his job intact, and without bringing up Tommy Marshall. Hopefully, he’d even managed to buy them the few days they needed to uncover whatever secrets were buried in the small town of Rosemont, Washington, before anyone back at the station discovered he’d absconded with their number one suspect.
With Felix tucked in his carry cage and a couple overnight bags stowed in the back, they piled into Riley’s Expedition and drove out of the Garden District. Devra leaned her head against the window and sighed. “I hope I make it back here someday.”
“You will,” Riley assured her. But as New Orleans fell farther and farther behind them, he couldn’t help wondering if he’d made the right decision. Was he following his gut, or was something else driving him? He wasn’t sure, but somewhere along the way he’d begun to care about this lost woman. Worse, he felt a need to protect her. As the sun caught a golden curl, enticing him to touch it, he turned away and hoped he wasn’t making the biggest mistake of his life.
Chapter Eleven
They drove all day and most of the night, each taking turns while the other napped. Around three in the morning, Devra pulled into a rest stop and slept because her vision had become too blurry to continue driving safely. Three hours later, Riley woke and started them on their journey again. By the end of the second day, they couldn’t take the long hours in the car and pulled into a motel parking lot for a much needed night of sleep. As soon as her head hit the pillow, Devra was out.
SHE WAS RUNNING again. Dwarfed by the large trees, she ran, pushing her way through the green leaves, wincing as the branches whipped across her face. Somewhere in the darkness behind her, she could hear his breathing echoing through the trees. Footsteps thumped against the forest floor.
Riley, help me! She turned, looking behind her, searching for the handsome face with the dark brown, smiling eyes. But he wasn’t there. The river loomed ahead of her. Panic squeezed her throat shut and she couldn’t make a sound, couldn’t call for help, couldn’t scream. She pushed harder, afraid to look back. Bony fingertips reached, grasping, pulling.
Riley!
SHE WOKE CHOKING, her eyes flying open, his name still on her lips. She felt the bed move and suddenly he was next to her, staring down at her with those dark brown eyes, and she could hardly breathe.
“Devra? What is it?” Riley asked.
The warm timbre of his voice reached out to stroke her tattered nerves. As she stared at him, the air whooshed into her lungs. She tried to shake herself loose of fear’s grip, but the weight of impending doom lingered. “Nothing. Just another dream.”
“Not of our…” He didn’t complete the sentence, but she knew who he meant.
“No, just a plain old everyday normal nightmare,” she lied, not wanting to discuss it.
He smiled and brushed the hair back from her face. She pushed the last vestiges of her dream away and tried not to think about how they were changing, and how they seemed to come more often. She closed her eyes and let his soft touch soothe away the darkness and wrap her in languid warmth.
“Riley,” she whispered. She opened her eyes and her gaze met his. Something shifted in his eyes, his breathing quickened and suddenly she was aware of strong arms next to her. Her breathing went shallow and she couldn’t help staring at his lips, couldn’t help wondering if he’d kiss her again.
He leaned closer, lying on the bed next to her. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“Promise?” she asked, but the word caught on the lump in her throat and came out a whisper.
He wanted to kiss her. She could read the desire in the dark smoky haze of his gaze, but still he hesitated. She lifted her hand to his cheek and guided his lips to hers. She kissed him, softly, tentatively, gently touching his tongue with hers, caressing back and forth, exploring, tasting. As the kiss deepened, she pulled him down closer to her, entwining her arms around his neck and letting herself fall into him.
She loved feeling this close to him, feeling as though for the first time in her life someone was there for her, someone believed in her. She rested her hand on his chest and ran her fingers lightly across his skin, grazing her nails across his collarbone, as her mouth moved longingly over his.
She moaned softly as his lips moved down her neck to nibble at the base of her throat. “Riley,” she whispered and inhaled his scent—strong, masculine, protective. Would he protect her? Would he see her through this nightmare when the world began to darken? How far would he go?
Riley drew a quick breath as Devra brushed a soft touch across his chest. Her fingertips feathering his skin sent an electric jolt straight through him. She was beautiful with her long golden curls resting against her shoulders, her lips lush and sensuous, curved in a slight smile. He could see her passion, could feel it, and he had to have her.
He pulled her up against him, his lips falling hard across hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her breasts against his chest. He ran the tip of his tongue over the shell of her ear, then drew the little lobe into his mouth. She moaned. His breathing quickened at the deep throaty sound.
She was so sexy and vulnerable and…what? A mystery he couldn’t seem to wrap his mind around, a puzzle he just couldn’t solve. He lifted her hair and ran his tongue down the column of her throat to play in the grooves of her collarbone. She smelled faintly of vanilla with a touch of desire. She was sweet honey heaven and he couldn’t seem to get enough of her.
He lifted her nightshirt. She sat up, her eyes locking on his and helped him pull it over her head. His breath caught in his throat. She was so beautiful. She licked her lips with that sweet little tongue that sent his blood pressure skyrocketing, then moved her hands inside his waistband, undoing whatever control he had left of his senses. If he were making a mistake, it was one more in a long line of them he seemed to be making lately, but he just couldn’t help himself. He had to have her, and damn the consequences.
He yanked off his undershorts then pulled her close, loving the feel of her body, her skin against him. His hands moved freely, exploring every inch of her, loving all the little noises she made in response to his kisses, loving the way her body moved beneath his touch. He moved his hand over her most private place. She took a deep startled breath and clutched his shoulders, her nails scratching his slick skin.