Back there again. It always ended there.
She dialed Lenny. “It’s me,” she said. “I’ll be there at nine. Will that work?”
“Sure,” he drawled. “I’ll rearrange my schedule. By the way, I may need you for another call tomorrow for a different job.”
“Who?”
He laughed. “Right. I’ll see you there.”
Nate had cooled off in the shower, and she was able to read him stories before he fell asleep. For a long moment she held him close, remembering him as a baby. “I love you so much,” she whispered, running a finger over his cheek. He was the reason she kept on pushing, and no matter what her feelings were for Harrison, he was her first priority.
I can’t let Harrison kiss me again.
A tear slipped from her right eye. Why’d her life have to be so screwed up?
I have Nate.
She had to remember that.
Placing a kiss on his head, she pulled her arm out from under him and slipped from the bed. She was ready with a jacket on before Janice tapped on the door. She even had her backpack so it looked like she was going to study. “Thanks, Janice. I’ll try not to be past midnight.”
“Stay as late as you need, dear,” Janice said. “I remember what it was like to be in college, even if it was a million years ago. I’m fine dozing on your couch if I need to.”
Anticipation crawled through Makay as she left the apartment. In a few moments, she’d know for sure about Harrison and his mother. Maybe then she could begin making decisions for her life, instead of allowing Lenny to control her actions.
She was five minutes late getting to Albertsons, driving to the last row in the middle where Lenny claimed the cameras in the parking lot didn’t reach. How he’d discovered that, she had no idea, but at least the place wasn’t so remote or lonely that she felt afraid to meet him there. His Jag was parked there already, but he wasn’t inside.
She spotted Lenny down the sidewalk, his features brightly illuminated by the sun that sat low on the horizon as it peeked through a break in the clouds. At least it was no longer raining.
They weren’t alone. A pale man in red shorts approached Lenny from behind, and two Hispanic women pushed strollers in front of him. Makay pretended to tie her shoes until Lenny neared. “You’re late,” he said as she fell into step beside him. “I’ve walked up and down this street three times already.”
She bit back a sarcastic retort. “Sorry.”
“That’s okay. Let’s go to my car. We can call from there.”
“Where are we calling?” she asked as she took the passenger seat in his Jag.
Lenny looked at her. “This is a local job. Or close enough.”
What was that supposed to mean? Somewhere in Arizona? “So this is from the file you gave me.”
He smiled, his upper lip rising and making him look more like a rat than ever. “Yes.”
“And I’ll be talking to my birth mother.” She had to confirm, though it tore out her heart.
“Yes, but she doesn’t want a relationship. Don’t forget that.” He wrinkled his nose. “Maybe this is a bad idea. Should I get someone else? I thought you’d want closure.”
It was closure in a big way, but Makay had realized that no matter how often or how long her birth mother rejected her, she didn’t want to do this. Still, she could play along for a while. If she got enough on Lenny, she’d be able to make sure all of them could walk away free of him.
“Is that
sympathy
I hear in your voice?” Makay said. “That’s got to be a first.”
“Whatever you think, I care about you.”
Makay barked a laugh. “Right. Tell it to someone who believes in fairies and elves. You only care about yourself.”
“Can you do it?”
“Yes. The usual? It’s her cell, right? No one else will answer?”
“Right.” He took a phone from his pocket. “I sensed a hesitation on her part in the last note I received, so that’s why we’re calling. Just give her the basics. It’ll be enough to let her understand we mean business.”
“I’ll need her name,” Makay said, keeping her voice casual. He’d usually give her at least the first name if it came down to a phone call. A name now would resolve all her questions about Sherry and Harrison. Even if it wasn’t Sherry, a name before the actual pickup might be real information she could track to a physical location and a way to catch Lenny working his scam.
Or was she fooling herself? Perhaps even more than catching Lenny in the act, she just wanted to stare at the place where her mother lived, hoping to catch a glimpse of her in everyday life. Not at a park paying blackmail.
“No way.” Lenny’s jaw jutted forward. “I’m not giving you a name. Once this is all put to bed, I’ll give you everything I have on her, but not until we’re completely finished
. Completely.
” Which meant probably never, since he’d made no secret that he thought they could return for more money. Would he ever be satisfied? She doubted it.
“I’m not a fool,” he added. “I can see this time’s different for you. Until you learn to separate emotion from reality, I can’t trust you.”
“You have never trusted me.”
“I just know how to keep my nose clean and my butt out of the slammer.”
“Fine,” she growled. If Harrison had any idea what she was doing, he would be livid. He might not forgive her. But she had to know. If she backed out now, she’d have no choice but to grab Nate and run as fast and as far away as possible, and she wasn’t ready to do that. Not yet.
Lenny pressed a number into the phone and handed it to Makay. It was already ringing. “Hello?” came a voice. Background sounds of other people came through the phone.
“Hello, Mother.” If it was someone else, Makay would have some covering up to do, but that had only happened once in all these years. Funny thing about people who were being blackmailed. They suddenly became a lot more private and careful with their cell phones—especially around their loved ones.
Silence. Makay could only tell someone was on the line because of the faint breathing. The background sounds were fading.
“Hello?” Makay said again, her mind going a thousand miles a minute. Was it Sherry Matthews? The faint hello could have been anyone. “It’s me, your long lost daughter,” Makay continued. “I have the right person, don’t I?” It was a long shot, hoping the woman would say something to identify herself, but what did Makay have to lose?
Lenny snatched the phone from Makay, covering the speaker with a finger. “Stick to the script.” He started to hand back the phone but then shook his head. “No, forget it. I’ll do it myself. I should have known you couldn’t.”
Makay reached for the phone, a protest on her lips, but Lenny had already brought it up to his mouth and began speaking. “That was your biological daughter. I’m her friend, and I’ll be facilitating the pickup. This call is to encourage you to stop delaying.” Lenny let out a volley of words: the date of birth, the hospital, the adoption agency.
Makay felt sick. Sick that there was a chance they were putting Sherry Matthews through more torture and sicker still that she wanted to grab the phone from Lenny and ask the woman why she didn’t want to see her. That question and so many more.
Lenny was silent a moment, and then said, “She’ll give you blood for a test, if you want, but does it really matter if she’s the real thing? Maybe it’s better that you don’t believe it’s her or learn about the rotten way she’s lived all these years. The only thing she cares about is if you’ll pay to keep your secret.”
Several more seconds of silence that ate at Makay’s heart. In the past, she’d always been a little cocky during these conversations, feeling that people who hid their indiscretions from their families deserved everything she could dish out. She’d never stopped to think of a young girl crying and hugging her swollen stomach. Maybe that was because most of their targets were men, but maybe it was also because she simply hadn’t cared.
I’m so sorry.
A smile broke over Lenny’s face. “A few days is fine. Good. She’ll leave you instructions about the pickup.”
He disconnected, and Makay still had no idea as to the woman’s identity. She was surprised to find hope clinging to life inside her where Harrison was concerned.
“Well, despite your huge failure tonight, we’ve got a deal. This is the big one, I tell you. The big one. We’re moving up in the world. She only asked for three days. I’m surprised it won’t take longer. Cool.”
Cool?
There was nothing cool about it, and Makay fought to keep down the Chinese food that roiled in her stomach. “I’ll be making the pickup?”
“Of course. I know you’ll want to see her.”
“You’ll give me her name then?”
His eyes narrowed. “We already had that discussion. Not this time. I’ve put a lot of footwork into finding her, and I’m not letting you cut me out.”
“What?” Makay rolled her eyes. “I don’t want anything from her. I hate everything about this—and you!” She reached for the door, but his hand shot out to stop her.
“Wait. I have another file for you to study. Looks like a quick job.”
Makay grabbed the manila folder and bolted from the Jag, hurrying to her own car so he wouldn’t see the tears that started down her face. In the Sebring, she sobbed, her arms wrapped around her head.
Think,
she told herself. There was no way she was going to pick up money from the woman who gave her life, no matter who she was or how many times she rejected Makay. She could just imagine Harrison’s face if he met her at a park with the envelope. No matter how ambiguous he felt toward his unknown sister, she didn’t think he’d forgive her if he found out that way.
I’m not his sister. I won’t believe that.
Frantically, she flipped open the new folder Lenny had given her. If it was a woman target, maybe this folder, and not the first one, held Sherry’s information. No. It was a man. Keen disappointment arrowed into her heart, making it hard to breathe.
He said three jobs,
she reminded herself.
There’s still one more folder.
She hadn’t begun to calm down when Lenny started his car and left the parking lot. Harrison said there hadn’t been a note yet, and maybe the reason was because Lenny had planned this phone call, but Lenny would need to give instructions soon. Perhaps even tonight. If he did, Makay would catch him.
Checking to make sure she had her camera, she started her car and followed Lenny. She dropped back until several cars were between her and Lenny in case he was paying attention. Her car wasn’t exactly unobtrusive with the convertible top. She was glad night was quickly approaching because everything looked different in the darkness. The absurdity of the entire situation almost made her turn around and head back to her apartment where she could cuddle up next to Nate and pretend she hadn’t become one of the bad guys, but thinking of her brother made her resolve strengthen. If she didn’t act, nothing would change. There would be no white knight or hero who would miraculously save her. She’d learned a long time ago that when the worst happened, the only person she could always depend on was herself.
Lenny drove to an apartment complex and picked up a woman who had so few clothes on that Makay was cold for her, especially since the rain had cooled everything down considerably. Lenny gave her a kiss and hug, accompanied by a little groping. Makay shook her head in disgust when the woman only pushed herself against him and did her own version of groping. Makay knew her type: warm and savory as hot coffee until the money ran out.
Makay trailed them to a restaurant, where she parked her car under a street light and did math problems. When she finished the assignment, she opened Lenny’s first manila folder and took out the copy of Harrison’s birthday photograph that she’d scanned for herself at Walmart after stopping at Brette’s. The blurry man’s young face stared back at her, forever caught in the act of leaving the picture. Why she’d made a copy, she didn’t really know, except maybe it was something she could use in her own file against Lenny. Now another idea ran through her, something that made her uncomfortable but was worth examining. Strangely it had nothing to do with the photograph, but everything to do with Blaine Cooper, the target from Gilbert, the man she’d first thought was in the picture. Disagreeable as he was, he might be of use.
Later.
Lenny was finally coming out of the restaurant, his date hanging on him in a way that told Makay she’d been drinking a little too much. Lenny was obviously stacking his cards, making sure he got lucky.
They drove back to the woman’s apartment, and when he went inside with her, Makay figured that was it. Still, she’d do more homework under yet another light across the street and wait a while. It wasn’t yet midnight.
Less than fifteen minutes later, Lenny emerged, a satisfied smirk on his pointed face. “Now what?” Makay murmured, shutting her book. She hoped it was somewhere good, because if she had to tail him to more love encounters, she’d really be sick.
Yuck, yuck, yuck.
What did they see in him?
He went this time to the post office where he sat in his car for a long time before going to the drive up and shoving a letter into one of the boxes. Was that another blackmail notice? For out-of-town jobs he probably didn’t put notes on cars, or at least not all of them.
Or maybe it was a letter to his own mother. Makay felt torn between trying to retrieve the letter from the box or following Lenny. Finally, she decided the mailboxes were likely secure from an average assault, and there were probably cameras trained on them anyway since messing with the boxes was a federal crime. Heaving a sigh, she waited until Lenny was almost out of sight before starting her engine.
It was now nearly one in the morning, and she still had no more evidence or solid information regarding the identity of her birth mother. With her luck, he’d go home to bed and leave her with nothing to show for her efforts except a few finished school assignments. She couldn’t find it in her to be grateful. Gratitude was hard to muster when her lips were chaffed from Harrison’s kisses. The fire that had scorched her earlier in his arms filled her again until she wanted to scream with the intensity.
How can he be my brother? There has to be another answer.