Mother by Fate

Sara’s frown appeared genuine as she shook her head. “I wasn’t shopping yesterday.”

For a second Michael had to wonder if she was harboring a known criminal. If, in fact, Sara wasn’t Nicole’s counselor, wasn’t being duped, but was, instead, someone from Nicole’s past.

Not a sister. He’d run a check on Sara’s family. One older brother. No sisters. Parents still married. Ungodly rich.

All in LA. Beverly Hills. Ten miles from where Trevor Kramer lived in fear of losing his son.

“You said her.”

“That’s right.”

“Your runner is female.”

“Yes.”

“You have an open warrant?”

“That’s right.”

“You’re sure.”

She’d changed. Become the pursuer.

She knew something.

“A bounty hunter’s first duty is to check the current status of all warrants. We could end up in jail for kidnapping if we cuffed someone and hauled them in without a warrant.”

She seemed to ponder that.

“When was the last time you checked the warrant?”

“This afternoon. I check daily, just to be on the safe side.”

With her lips pursed, she studied him.

Michael felt like scum.

“Look, so maybe the way I went about this wasn’t my brightest moment, but lives are in danger here.”

“Whose lives?”

“A baby’s. His father’s. Others. This woman is dangerous. And armed.”

“I was with an armed woman.”

“That’s right.”

“You saw me.”

“Yes.”

“You’re sure it was me.”

“Yes.”

He was a fish on her hook. And wasn’t sure how they’d exchanged places.

“Look, I’m not in this for the money,” he said, out of water and babbling. “I need you to understand. I’ve got my doctorate degree in psychology. I just put it to use in a different way than most.” Far different. “I only go after dangerous warrant jumpers. They, more than most criminals, are a threat to society because they’re desperate. You know the runner mentality... They’re in survival mode. Every one appears to be an enemy. They’ll do whatever it takes...”

“And you think this woman I was supposedly with is in that mode.”

“I know she is. I’ve talked to the police. I visited her husband. I met her son.”

“Who did you talk to from the police?”

“Detective Miller with the LAPD. He was the arresting officer. He issued the warrant when she jumped bail, too.”

“Did you talk to anyone else?”

She was very clearly squeezing him. If he hadn’t been so good at it himself, he might not have noticed.

She might be playing him, but he needed her. And the answer to her question wouldn’t hurt anything.

“Yes. I’ve spoken with other officers about this case, as well. I know a lot of them. I’ve been at this gig, full-time, for three years.”

“And you’ll do anything to get your man. Or woman.”

“Within the law, yes.”

“Including lie to me.”

He’d already admitted to doing so.

“So how do I know you aren’t lying now?”

“You don’t.”

Sara leaned forward then. “Tell me, Mr. Bounty Hunter, what do you want from me?”

He missed the woman he’d sat with in the hot tub. The one he’d met at the pool. He knew she was the real Sara Havens. And that it was his fault she was no longer present in his company.

The job was more important than he was.

“I guess we both know we’re talking about Nicole Kramer.”

Her face gave away nothing. “If I had a client named Nicole, I wouldn’t be at liberty to speak about her.”

He leaned forward. “This woman doesn’t deserve your protection.”

She didn’t say a word.

“Do you have any idea what she’s done?”

“I don’t have any idea who you’re talking about, but I guess you’re about to tell me what this woman you’re after has done.”

She looked at her phone. For the second time.

She might know. She might not. He couldn’t take the chance. “This warrant is for jumping bail on two counts of attempted kidnapping with a loaded gun. Two armed B and Es. And attempted assault with a deadly weapon. She shot at a man.”

“If she’s as dangerous as you say she is, she’d have shot him, rather than just shooting at him, wouldn’t you think?”

Was she telling him something? Because she knew something? Or was she humoring him?

“Nicole weighs about a hundred pounds,” he said. “She’s a meth addict. She was high when she took the shot.”

“Why didn’t the warrant include use of an illegal substance?”

“She wasn’t tested.”

“So there’s no proof that she was under the influence.”

More statements. More fishing?

“No.”

She nodded.

“Her previous record is pages long,” he blurted. If nothing else, Sara Havens had to see that she was associating with an incredibly dangerous person.

He cared, only because he needed Sara to see the danger so that she’d help him. At least that was what he told himself. He had no jurisdiction over Sara’s private life.

Though, for a few brief minutes, he’d thought he did. Those minutes had made him want things he hadn’t thought about in a long time.

It was possible that if Sara had known Nicole in the past, then maybe the runner had changed a lot. If she’d just met Nicole, he’d give the fugitive marks for her acting skills. His instincts were telling him that Sara Havens was a decent person.

She didn’t deserve to die because some jumper got desperate.

She also wasn’t going to trust anything he had to say at the moment. That much was clear.

Glancing at her phone again, Sara appeared to come to some kind of decision.

“Did you follow me to work?”

“No.”

“Do you know where I work?”

“No.”

But he knew the vicinity. He was certain of that. Someplace behind a huge forest of trees. He’d found a private drive off the road she’d traveled. The drive had been secured with a ten-foot-high iron gate, surveillance cameras and what appeared to be a fingerprint recognition pad, and led back to what appeared to be some kind of plush resort.

“Were you on that street this afternoon? The one you say you saw me on yesterday?”

“Yes.”

She sat back, chewing on her lower lip. Glancing at her phone.

“Will you excuse me for a minute?”

His instincts shouted a resounding “no!”

She was going to alert someone. Nicole?

Was she going to let the other woman know that he was sitting at the pool with her, allowing Nicole the time to jump on a ship and sail away?

“Are you going to call Nicole?”

“No.” Her gaze was straightforward.

She wasn’t the liar here.

“Then take what time you need.”

What choice did he have? Keeping her happy was the only way he’d have a snowball’s chance in hell of getting her to cooperate with him.

He’d made a second error in judgment on this case. Telling Sara the truth hadn’t been enough to win her understanding. Sara Havens was more trusting of a fugitive woman than she was of a licensed bounty hunter who’d lied to her.

* * *

“HI, IT’S SARA.” Standing on the other side of the pool, with the hot-tub jets she’d just turned on rumbling in the background, Sara spoke softly to ensure that she wasn’t overheard.

“I know.”

“I’m sorry to bother you so late, but...” She glanced toward Michael. He waved.

“I wasn’t asleep, as I’m sure you guessed. What’s up?”

It wasn’t all that unusual for her and Lila to have these kinds of midnight conversations. They had difficult jobs that led to isolated lives.

“I’ve only got a couple of seconds,” Sara half whispered. “I’ve got someone waiting for me.”

“Are you okay?” Lila’s tone was suddenly sharp. “Where are you? Home? Should I send someone?”

“No!” Though there was always that possibility that an abuser would make an attempt on the life of the woman perceived to be leading his victim away from him. “I’m fine. But I need to talk to you. I know why Nicole left this afternoon. And I think I know the quickest way to get her back. Safely. I just need your buy-in before I do this.”

“What are you doing? Of course you have my buy-in, whatever it is, but I won’t have you risking your life, Sara. We need you.”

It came down to that sometimes. Most particularly with Lila. She made decisions that affected the entire Lemonade Stand complex, including the two blocks of small businesses the Stand owned and ran. She had to think about all of the women they currently served, had served and would serve in the future. She couldn’t put all of them at risk to save one.

“Someone in the LAPD put a bounty hunter on her,” Sara said now, still watching Michael. He didn’t wave again, but he was watching her, too. Sitting back laconically, his elbows on the arms of the chair, his fingers steepled at his mouth, he wasn’t going anywhere.

And she had to wonder why.

What more did he want from her?

Unless he thought she still had contact with Nicole. Which made her of use to him.

She needed him to think she was of use to him for her plan to work.

“It’s probably from the dismissed warrant.”

“That’s what I thought, too, at first. I asked him the last time he verified his paperwork. It was this afternoon. He was in touch with that Miller cop...”

“The one Nicole said was dirty and working with the Ivory Nation.” The nationally known white-supremacist organization that had named Trevor Kramer president of the California coalition.

“I know Sanchez’s report says that Kramer claims he left all of that behind, but it’s clear he didn’t. It’s also clear to me that this Miller guy is as crooked as Nicole feared he was. He probably issued a second warrant today. You know how Nicole said that anytime she acted contrary to Trevor’s wishes, another warrant was issued.” Anytime Nicole tried to get away from Kramer, or stand up to him, Miller would show up at the door with another warrant for her arrest. The charges were always dropped, but there was a record of them. They were taking away her freedom one doubt at a time.

“I agree. There’s obviously a new warrant.”

“But until the LAPD has a chance to follow up on everything Nicole gave them, he’s free to brutalize her.”

“She should have gone into protective custody like they wanted her to.”

“And risk never seeing her son again? Would you do that?”

The question was superfluous—Lila didn’t have a son. Or any children that Sara knew of. “No, I wouldn’t.”

“I don’t know what this bounty hunter guy thinks I can do for him, but I want to offer to go with him, to help him hunt for Nicole. I’ll tell him that once he finds her, I’ll go in and bring her out. She trusts me.”

“I don’t like it.”

“This guy’s determined, Lila. He’s going to find her. And when he does, she’s as good as dead.”

“Do you think he’s one of them?”

“I don’t know. It’s possible.”

“What’s your gut instinct?”

“I think he’s doing his job and might be caught up in their game. But I’m not clear either way.”

“I don’t like it. You’re usually clear.”

“I know. But this has been one hell of a weird day.” And Lila only knew half of it. “Whether he’s with them or not, my instincts tell me that he won’t hurt me, Lila. And I don’t want this guy finding Nicole without someone on the team there to help her,” she said. “He thinks he can convince me that Nicole’s not what we think she is. I’m going to go along with that.”

“He obviously thinks you can help or he wouldn’t be there.”

“Exactly.”

“I don’t like it,” Lila said again.

“She needs this, Lila. She deserves it.”

“I know.”

“It doesn’t put the Stand at risk.”

“It puts you at risk, and you are a huge part of the Stand.”

“There are other counselors who would be equally as good at coaching victims.”

“You’re part of our family.”

“I have to do this, Lila.” There, she’d said it. “There’s something about Nicole. I...need to do this.”

“I think I knew that.”

“So you’ll give me whatever support you can?”

“I’ll do more than that. I’m alerting the team and I’ll make sure that wherever you are, Sanchez or someone from his department will be right behind you.”

“Thank you.”

Lila took a couple more seconds to issue severe warnings. To extract promises that they both knew Sara might not be able to keep.

And then Sara hung up.

She was sure-footed as she crossed the cool decking on her way back to Michael Edison. She was doing the right thing. The only thing.

Her biggest doubt was the little extra spring she felt in her step at the prospect of having a few more hours with the handsome bounty hunter.

It made no sense. She’d been married to a liar once. It wasn’t a road she was going to travel again.

Ever.

CHAPTER SEVEN

THE WOMAN WALKED with assurance, her shoulders straight and her head held high. She took her seat across from him at the round glass-topped table.

“Sorry about that,” she said.

“No problem.” He didn’t need an apology. He wanted an explanation.

She wasn’t offering one. Her gaze met his and Michael knew he’d met his match.

“Did you take care of whatever it was?”

“Yes.”

“Good.”

It was late. But the air was nice. Balmy. If they listened carefully they might just hear the ocean on the other side of the security wall surrounding the complex.

“Why are you still here?” He liked that she was direct.

“Because I need to know anything you know that can help me find Nicole Kramer. I need to know what she told you.”

“If I knew a Nicole Kramer, I couldn’t tell you anything even if I wanted to.” She repeated what she’d told him earlier, and added, “I’m legally bound by HIPAA laws. And by client-counselor privilege.”

He’d obviously failed to convince her of the seriousness of the situation.

Leaning forward, one arm on the table, he said, “It would be just like Nicole to use a women’s shelter as a hideout. And if she’s doing so, every woman in your care is at risk.”

She assessed him silently.

He made certain that he stood up to the test. His gaze didn’t waver.

“The longer she’s out there, the more chance there is that someone’s going to get hurt,” he said, trying to find even a little of the connection they’d had earlier. He’d been there under false pretenses, but some of those feelings had been real. Her interest had been obvious, and his actions hadn’t been all calculated. All lies.

“You’ve seen her rap sheet?” Sara met him gaze for gaze.

“Yes.”

“You’ve read it yourself?”

“Yes.”

“This isn’t just something you heard about from someone else? A cop, maybe?”

“No.”

She studied him some more. And he wondered if she put her clients under the same microscope.

He wasn’t sure how well that tactic worked with abused women, but was pretty certain her skills would be a huge asset in law enforcement.

“Look, I realize you have no reason to trust me at this point. But I’m asking you to do so anyway. I’ve shown you my credentials. I’m not out to hurt Nicole. Only to get her off the streets until our justice system determines it’s safe for her to be there. I’m after her because she’s a threat to innocent people... And I came clean before allowing you to engage in a personal partnering based on lies.”

Her nod allowed him the first moment of satisfaction he’d had since he’d refused to allow their kiss to turn into something more.

Next to keeping his family safe, he’d wanted that in the worst way.

“So you’ll tell me what you know?”

“I’ll help you on one condition.”

His eyes narrowed. He wasn’t going to like this. Her tone of voice told him so. “What’s that?”

“I come with you.”

“No.”

“You need me.”

So she did know something.

“I work alone.”

“Make an exception.”

What was it with this woman? The question was becoming like a broken record in his mind. “Why?”

“You said you were near the thrift shop this afternoon.”

“Right.”

“And that this Nicole person was there with me yesterday.”

“Yes.”

“But she’s on the run now.”

“Correct.”

“It’s highly likely, then, that she saw you and that you are the reason why she took off.”

She’d made a bit of a jump. He hadn’t said he’d seen Nicole at the thrift shop that day. Only that he’d seen her there the day before. And that he’d been there that day. The day she’d run.

She knew more than she was openly admitting.

But then, he’d already known that. The question was did she purposely just let him know that? Or had she slipped?

“It’s possible that I spooked her” was all he said.

“Chances are if Nicole is associated with me, she trusts me.”

“Chances are.”

“She trusts me, not you. She sees you, she runs. I can’t find her. You can. Simple math here. You take me with you, and once you find her you let me approach her, and you end up with more than the nothing you have now.”

“So you don’t know where she is.”

“I’m not saying I know her at all.”

“But if I agree to take you with me, you’ll suddenly realize you know her. Am I getting my math right on that one?”

“You’re going to have to trust me on that one.”

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