Blake couldn’t find the words. “How?” he finally managed.
“I have no idea. There was an explosion and when I came to, she was there.”
I did my best to explain how I felt like I could do nothing wrong and how it seemed she could do nothing but bad. How I could sometimes see what she sees. How she was after Lucas to kill him and stop the case against Calder and Rizzo.
“How did this happen to you?”
In some ways, this part was going to be harder to explain.
“Because I work for them. It was them who tried to kill me because I tried to quit. I got forced into it. They were gonna kill me. That happened almost three years ago. I’ve been on their payroll ever since.”
I let the news sink in, staying as still as the images frozen on screen. Blake nodded slowly to tell me he understood the broad strokes portion of it, if not the entire crazy thing.
“They want the case to go away. Now they have someone willing to do anything to make that happen. I’m sure even Calder and Rizzo didn’t think she would go this nuts with it. But she is. And I have no idea what’s next, only that her next target is Lucas. If I try to find him myself I’d be leading her right to him. If I can see her view, she can see mine. I need a third party. That’s you.”
I wanted to take his hand again, to play my old game. I stopped myself. I don’t think it came from that new this is wrong part of my brain. I’d like to think I stopped myself of my own free will because it was wrong.
“Okay. I find him and then what?”
“We need to bring down Calder and Rizzo.”
“Do they have a case?”
“They’re close. Whatever they don’t have, I can fill in the rest.”
“By implicating yourself.”
“I don’t have a choice.” I stared Blake down with as much intensity as I ever have in my life. “Lucas will hate me after this. I know that. You’ll hate me. I’ll go to jail. But I’m not going to let him die. I couldn’t stop this, but I can stop them from getting to him with your help. He needs to know what’s going on, tell him he needs to gather his case files and tell him I’m coming to break the case wide open.”
I’d like to think it went beyond my new do-good brain, that falling on my sword would be something I’d do anyway. I wasn’t obeying the good part of me, only the me part of me. The one Lucas fell in love with.
Blake turned back to the dual images of me on the monitors. I could see his logical brain trying to deny it, but he looked at nine screens of evidence. And Blake is an evidence man. Atheist, driven to law enforcement, a hardcore innocent-until-proven-guilty guy.
He turned back to me. “Okay. I’ll find him. We need to take these guys down.”
“I knew I could count on you.”
When I leaned over to him I wasn’t being manipulative, in that moment he deserved a hug.
FIRST THINGS FIRST…
Before we left we locked up that floor tight. Like I said, it was a bunker built into a building so when the heavy blast doors were closed, it sealed off the offices from any unwanted attention. Not that other people—agents, security with proper clearance—didn’t have the key. But it would buy us time. Once this got out, and my face along with it, things were going to get more difficult.
We went to the bank. Lucas did a good job of backing up his files and he kept one of his three backup drives in a safe deposit box. Ever since the engagement he’d been anxious to do things that made him feel more like a married man, so he said. I don’t know if he was trying to impress me with what he thought I wanted, like a joint checking account and the time he sat me down all serious to tell me his online passwords. I didn’t really care one way or another. I think if it was up to him we would have flown to Vegas and eloped. Waiting another ten months for the ceremony had been driving him nuts.
So since we opened the joint account, he also put my signature on the safe deposit box. Little did he know his box of secrets lay three rows over and one row down from my box of cash from Calder and Rizzo.
I wanted to get his backup drives and have Blake take them to Lucas.
It felt odd to be in public, walking around an ordinary place like a bank with everything going on. I felt sure people would be looking at me like a weirdo but they didn’t know I had an evil twin like some refugee from a soap opera out there stalking everyone in my life trying to kill them.
Blake relied on his training and remained very calm and looked the part of an average bank customer. I’m sure I looked like a hungover housewife who’d fallen out of a rented limo the night before. Not a single person looked my way. Must not be as bad as I thought.
I signed the card, smiled as the teller checked my photo on his computer screen with my actual face. Enough of the landmarks must have still been visible under the scrapes and scabs because he smiled back and buzzed the door to let me in the vault.
“Wait here,” I said to Blake.
“Okay honey,” he said, playing a part he’d invented in his head. I’d already filled my brain quota of alternate realities for the day so I shot him a good skunk eye as I passed through the door.
The teller handed me the box and then left. I opened it and saw papers. Only papers. Lucas’ will, the deed to his house, his childhood savings bonds. No hard drives. I lifted the papers and looked under them thinking possibly Lucas transferred his files onto a smaller drive like those ones about the size of a stick of chewing gum, but no luck.
She’d been there.
Or, maybe not. Lucas is smart. When I sent him out of the house last night he very well could have made gathering his files a priority. He could have come by early and cleared out the box.
“Back again?” asked a female teller in a navy pantsuit. She looked at me with a half smile, half curious look. I had my answer. Sam had been here.
“Was I here?” I asked.
“Oh, I thought it was you,” the teller said, embarrassed she may have it wrong. “Miss Whelan, right?” She seemed to catch herself and wonder why she needed to explain to me that I’d been in her bank. Wouldn’t I know if I’d been there the same day? “Yes, about a half hour ago.”
“Right. Half hour. Okay, thank you.” God, I desperately wanted to make up a lie to give her something else to think about other than my strange behavior. Not only could I not force one out of my mouth, I couldn’t even make myself think of a lie to not be able to say.
“Quit joking around honey, we’re going to be late.” Blake stood near the door of the bank tapping his watch.
“Excuse me,” I said to the teller. She smiled an obligatory and very fake smile.
Blake held the door open for me and took my arm by the crook of my elbow when I stepped out. I wanted to check the other safe deposit box for my money, but the risk would be too high. If it feels like you oughta get the hell out of a place, Daddy used to say, get out while the gettin’ is good. I bet she didn’t even stop for the money. Not exactly her priority with the payday she had coming.