Speak of the Devil (35 page)

Carla walked out onto the deck and stood next to her. “Congratulations on the verdict.”

“Thank you.”

Anna felt ten pounds lighter now that the case was over. DOJ’s Capital Crimes section would consider whether to seek the death penalty for Diablo’s murder of Gato in the courtroom. Anna might be a witness in that case, but she wouldn’t be a lawyer on it.

“This isn’t much of a celebration,” Carla said.

“I’m meeting Jack for dinner in a bit.”

“That sounds better.”

“I just needed some time to decompress before I go.”

“I can tell you’re upset, Anna. Don’t blame yourself for your witness’s death. It’s terrible, but there was nothing you could have done.”

“It makes me sick to my stomach. But thank you.”

“Is anything else bothering you?” Carla asked.

“It’s just been a tough trial.”

“Seeing Jack with Nina must have been difficult.”

Carla met her eyes, and Anna found empathy there. She had avoided talking to her boss about Jack. The whole thing was so awkward. But if there was anyone who would understand the entire situation, it was Carla.

“I love him,” Anna said. “But, I see him with Nina, and . . .” She couldn’t finish the sentence.

“He loves you,” Carla said softly. “It’s very clear.”

“He loves her, too. It’s like a bad episode of
Sister Wives.
”

Carla smiled and looked out at the city. “After Nina ‘died,’ I thought Jack and I would be together. He hadn’t made any promises, but I imagined . . . Anyway, it didn’t happen that way. His feelings for Nina were too strong. And he felt responsible for her murder—like he and
I
were responsible. He wouldn’t talk to me anymore. For a while, I was bitter. He was more devoted to Nina
after
her death than he’d been while she was alive.”

Anna listened with interest. For her, it had been the opposite. Everything was fine when Jack loved his
late
wife—that sort of love didn’t take anything away from his relationship with Anna. But now that Nina was back, it didn’t really work.

“It was hard to compete with a ghost,” Carla said. “But you won’t have that problem.”

“No,” Anna said. “I have to compete with a woman who’s come back from the dead. Which isn’t so easy, either.”

Carla gave her a small, sad smile. “If you ever need someone to talk to, I’m here for you.”

54

The Tabard Inn was just as beautiful tonight as it had been nine months ago, when Anna asked Jack to marry her here. She walked into the ivy-covered courtyard, feeling like that was a very long time ago. Jack sat at a candlelit table. He looked gorgeous. When Anna got to the table, he smiled and stood to greet her with a kiss. She closed her eyes and savored the feel of his mouth on hers. She inhaled his clean, peppermint scent.

“Congratulations, love,” he said.

“Thank you.”

They sat and Jack poured her a glass of champagne from a bottle chilling next to the table. “To justice,” he said.

“To justice.”

They clinked and sipped. The June night was warm and clear, with a light breeze that skimmed across her skin.

“You did a great job at trial,” he said. “I’m proud of you. You’ve really come into your own as a lawyer.”

“Thank you. I learned from the best.”

She drank all her champagne and held her flute out to him. Jack poured her more. Around them, the other diners chatted and ate. The world went on, despite the turmoil in her own life.

“Jack, we have to talk about what happened in court yesterday.”

“I know.” He set down the bottle and looked at her. His face was pained. A breeze made the candle flicker, throwing shadows across his cheeks. “I’m so sorry. When I saw you standing there, looking so shaken, it broke my heart. I should have gone to you before Nina. It’s just—she was terrified, seeing those guys who wanted to kill her, running free in the courtroom.”

When Jack had finally noticed Anna standing in the middle of the courtroom with Gato’s blood on her hands, he left Nina’s side and went over to Anna. He gave her his handkerchief and put an arm around her shoulder. He stood next to her as the CSOs figured things out and sent everyone home for the night. He shepherded her to the house and ran a hot shower for her, then brought her hot tea. But nothing could change the fact that, when things got crazy, the first person he protected and consoled was Nina.

“I understand,” Anna said. “You were reacting on instinct.”

He nodded.

“And that tells me what I need to know. Jack—” She drained the second glass of champagne, set it down, and met his eyes. “I love you. I always will. But I can’t marry you.”

“Anna, no.” He reached for her hand. “Don’t do this.”

“I don’t blame you.” She tried to smile. His hand felt warm and comforting. “You didn’t set out to hurt me. And you can’t help the way you feel. It’s natural. She’s your wife. The mother of your child. You love her, and you need to see if you can make it work this time.”

“I love you, too.”

“It’s not enough.” Her throat was so tight, it was hard to get the words out. “I need someone who loves me more than anyone else.”

He looked down, as she knew he would. Because he couldn’t say it.

“She’s a good woman, Jack. I hope you guys can make a go of it. Olivia would be really happy.”

When he looked up again, his eyes were filled with tears. Anna tried to take a deep breath, but her chest hurt too much. She studied his face one last time. She wanted to remember the details, knowing she would replay this over and over in her head: the last moment they were a couple, rather than two separate pieces. Then she drew her hand from his and pulled off the engagement ring. She set it on the table near his hand. She stood up.

“Tell Nina the red vase is in the basement. I almost threw it out, but that would’ve been wrong.”

She walked out of the courtyard, through the restaurant, and out the front door. She held her tears back until she was out on the sidewalk, striding away from the Tabard Inn. Then she let them stream, unchecked, down her cheeks.

She walked through the city, without a plan for where she was going or what she was doing, driven only by the need to put some distance between herself and Jack so she wouldn’t run back in there and take back everything she’d just said.

She walked for a long time. The tears eventually stopped coming. They left salty tracks on her cheeks.

Anna didn’t know how long she’d been walking when her purse buzzed with an incoming text. She pulled out her cell phone. It was from Sam:

At Sergios. Come over 4 celebratory calamari & drinks. I promise to fend off Tony for you.

Anna put the phone back in her purse. She found a Kleenex and wiped her cheeks.

The night was warm and beautiful. The devil was in jail and she was alive. She had good friends and she could use a stiff drink. She flagged down a cab and climbed in. “To Sergio’s, please.”

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Although this book is a work of fiction, it is based on real cases prosecuted by my former office and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in Maryland and Virginia. I am grateful to the prosecutors and officers with whom I worked and talked—both for their heroic efforts at keeping our community safe, and for their generosity in trusting me with their stories. Anna’s courage in facing MS-13 was drawn directly from how these folks confronted real danger with strength, humor, and grit. Thank you to Det. Steve Schwalm, Det. Bob Freeman, Det. Kenny Carter, Det. Maria Flores, Det. Wanda Fields, Judge Stephanie Gallagher, Lynn Haaland, Michelle Zamarin, Kate Connelly, Keri Barta, Ken Wainstein, Lou Ramos, and Kelly Higashi. A tip of the hat to my colleague across the river, Zachary Terwilliger of the Eastern District of Virginia, who has spent the last several years prosecuting MS-13 gang members, and whose skills at trial I watched with much admiration. Special thanks to law enforcement superheroes Glenn Kirschner, FBI agent Steve Quisenberry, and “Ed,” walking encyclopedias of crim-pro knowledge and generous sharers of jaw-dropping true stories.

Thank you to Georgetown University professor Joseph M. Murphy, author of
Botanicas
, for sharing his unmatched knowledge about the practice of
Santería
in American botanicas. Thanks to Judge Algenon L. Marbley for his extraordinary mentoring, counsel, and support. Thanks to Christy Purington for tutoring me on Spotify. Thanks to Derrick Brent, my co-clerk, friend, and all-around wise man, for insights on Jack’s point of view.

The longer I work in publishing, the more I understand how crucial a good agent is. I am fortunate to have one of the finest. Amy Berkower is wise and warm, and has the remarkable talent of bringing out the best in everyone around her. Amy: thank you for believing in me, fighting for me, and continually teaching me how to excel both as a writer and businesswoman.

My editor, Lauren Spiegel, must possess some kind magic which allows her to give me sharp editorial suggestions while leaving me happy, enlightened, and excited to sit down and write. It helps that she’s a friend. Lauren: thanks for choosing Anna, for sagely guiding her development over three books, and for making the entire process so fun.

I am grateful to the terrific team at Touchstone, who greeted
Speak of the Devil
with such enthusiasm and worked so hard to make it a success. Sincere thanks to Susan Moldow, Stacy Creamer, Michael Selleck, Liz Perl, Sally Kim, David Falk, Shida Carr, Meredith Vilarello, Brian Belfiglio, Marie Florio, Cherlynne Li, Ana Paula De Lima, Mary Nubla, Charlotte Gill, Wendy Sheanin, Paula Amendolara, Colin Shields, Tracy Nelson, Chrissy Festa, Janice Fryer, Emily Remes, Eric Rayman, Paul O’Halloran, Alanna Ramirez, Chris Lynch, Tom Spain, Josh Karpf, Aline Pace, Jim Thiel, Marcia Burch, and Ashley Hewlett. Special thanks to Carolyn Reidy for her support and editorial guidance.

I’m indebted to Sandi Mendelson and Claire Daniels for match-making my blog with the
Huffington Post.

My good friends and beta readers helped my story and helped me remain a sane and happy storyteller. Anna would have been planning a sad little wedding if not for the thoughtful intervention of Jessica Mikuliak. She, Lynn Haaland, Jeff Cook, Jen Wofford, M.R., and Jenny Brosnahan are each high-powered professionals who took time from their own busy practices to assist significantly in improving this book. I’m grateful for their friendship—and that I don’t have to pay their hourly rates.

Unlike Anna, I am blessed with a wonderful family. I owe much to my lovely, incomparable mom, Diane Harnisch, and my dad, Alan Harnisch, whose work as a federal prosecutor inspired me to become one. Much love and thanks go to my awesome sisters, Kerry and Tracey; my sweet stepmother, Laurie; and the entire Harnisch/Reis/Hughes/Fitzgerald/Amsterdam/Levitis/Leotta clan, who make delicious holidays, pretend my absentminded daydreaming is a lovable quirk rather than an annoying character flaw, and never fail to pack any bookstore where I’m signing.

To my two little boys, I love you so much. I’m delighted that you both love books as much as I do. Reading to you at night is the highlight of my day, and it’s so exciting to watch you learn how to read yourselves. I hope that one day, you will read this book and be proud of your mom. Since I don’t want to explain its contents to you anytime soon, I hope that day will be far, far in the future.

And to Mike: my unfailing ally, most trusted critic, brilliant adviser, and indispensable partner. I’m the writer, but you’re the one who always knows exactly what to say. Life is complicated and challenging, but also wondrous and fulfilling; my life wouldn’t be nearly as wondrous and fulfilling without you.

T
OUCHSTONE
R
EADING
G
ROUP
G
UIDE

Speak of the Devil

Introduction

In this gripping thriller, Allison Leotta draws on her experience as a prosecutor to take readers into the back rooms of the US Attorney’s Office, the hidden world of the Witness Protection Program, and the secret rituals of one of America’s most dangerous gangs, the Mara Salvatrucha. The same night that prosecutor Anna Curtis gets engaged, a terrifying man known as Diablo leads a vicious attack on a brothel. Anna is assigned to investigate and bring “the devil” to justice. As the investigation grows larger and Anna begins uncovering the secrets of the Mara Salvatrucha, she must also plan her wedding, become the stepmother to a six-year-old girl, and embrace her new role as one half of a D.C. power couple. As Anna discovers the full extent of Diablo’s depravity, she also discovers long-buried secrets, official lies, and a terrifying danger that comes straight to her doorstep. The facts she unearths in the case not only threaten her plans for a happy marriage, but everything she thought she knew about the past and present, good and evil, and the price of justice.