In deference to the rainy morning, Gavin had changed from black leather to a waterproof gray jacket from the go-bag he always kept in the back of his SUV. A Seattle Mariners baseball cap covered his head. From one of the female detectives, he’d arranged to borrow a clean shirt and a bright blue rain jacket for Piper. She’d pulled the hood up when they’d moved away from the covered hotel entrance.
Though three plainclothes officers acted as bodyguards and the surrounding area had been searched, Gavin didn’t feel completely secure. Taking Piper and Izzy for a walk held a certain amount of risk, but he needed to grab a few minutes alone with her, partly to reassure her and partly because he appreciated how helpful she’d been in creating the sketch of Taimar Drako. Gavin wanted Piper to be on his side instead of building barriers every time he got close.
His right hand rested on the butt of his Beretta, ready to pull the gun in case of threat. He maintained a brisk pace along the sidewalk. His plan: go out, clear the air between them, and move on to the next order of business. Simple.
He glanced over at her. “Do you want an umbrella?”
“I don’t mind the rain.” When she tilted her face toward his, droplets spattered her rosy cheeks and caught in her thick, dark eyelashes. Her blue eyes shimmered.
“After lunch, we’re going to see Marco at the hospital.”
“I thought you said a hospital visit was dangerous.” She jogged a few steps to keep up with his longer strides. “Somebody could ambush us.”
“You’re right. I said that. And I meant it. The threat is still there, and I don’t want you to forget that. Not for one minute. Danger is everywhere.”
“Are you being a tiny bit overdramatic?”
He gestured toward the rushing waters of Johnston Creek behind the hotel. “An assassin could be hiding down there in the weeds and bog plants.” He pointed in the opposite direction across the four-lane divided road. “A sniper might take a position on that far hillside with the pines and larches.”
She followed his gaze and shuddered. “Point taken.”
“But I don’t think anybody knows we’re staying here. Plus, we’ve had outstanding cooperation and protection from local law enforcement. And we’re taking precautions. You’re wearing your bulletproof vest, right?”
“Right.” She thumped the Kevlar with her free hand. “And I appreciate the effort. Ever since Winston finished that sketch, I can’t stop thinking about Taimar Drako.”
Taimar, the grandson, didn’t worry Gavin nearly as much as Ivanov, the escaped convict who was headed to the West Coast. According to Marshal Esposito, Ivanov had been seen at an airfield in Colorado where he’d tried to steal a Cessna Citation. FBI computer chatter from reliable sources had hinted at the possibility of a terrorist action using an airplane. With Ivanov in play, that scenario became more likely. The pilot’s skill with a wide variety of aircraft was well-deserved. And he’d grown up in the United States, speaking English without an accent and looking like a friendly, middle-aged guy with brown hair and brown eyes. No tats. No scars. No distinguishing features.
Gavin gestured to a sidewalk that skirted the edge of a vacant lot beside the hotel. “We’ll circle that area and get back to the rooms.”
“Thanks for bringing me outside,” she said. “I love Sofia dearly and she has a lovely voice, but I need my quiet time. I miss my cabin.”
Her voice held a note of longing and he wished he could satisfy her needs. “I’d like to visit your little hideaway.”
“It’s quiet and pristine. On rainy days like this, the mist twines through the moss-covered trees, making everything mysterious. And when the sun shines, the Yamhill forest is an incredible little ecosystem, endlessly fascinating.”
“Not like corporate life in Atlanta?”
“That’s an ecosystem all its own. With a food chain and predators and prey. Survival of the most ambitious.” She stopped while Izzy moved off the sidewalk into the wild grass and stuck her nose into a golden dogwood shrub. “When can I go home?”
“I’m not sure.” He stopped beside her and looked over her head at the forested hillside across the road. “I’m going to level with you, Piper. I appreciate your insights, and I think you can assist the investigation. We can work together, you and me.”
“How do I know I can trust you?”
“You don’t.” He shrugged.
“Okay. I’m listening.”
“I suspect that Sofia told you about the Dragons, the troika and Marco’s Russian roots.”
“How do you know that?”
“When I mentioned Sofia’s mother, I saw your empathy. You know the story of that tragedy. And you fidget when I talk about Drako. Also—just now—you admitted that my assumption was correct.”
Piper stuck out her chin. “I’m sure Sofia didn’t say anything she wasn’t supposed to.”
Because this teenager never rebelled against the rules? “I respect you for keeping her secret, but you’ve got to realize that it’s not altogether accurate. Sofia gave you recollections from when she was ten years old. You need to hear the grown-up version.”
“I thought this was supposed to be hush-hush.”
“You’re already up to your knees in supposedly secret information, might as well take the plunge. Are you ready to help? You and Izzy?”
“Yes.”
Not standard procedure, but she already knew more than half of the story and was a witness to a related assault. Izzy finished her sniffing, and Gavin stepped up the pace. “Yuri Drako—an immigrant in his nineties—ran several domestic terrorist groups called the Dragons. His primary group, the troika, operated out of Jersey. They planned to hijack a plane from Liberty International Airport in Newark then use the passengers in a hostage exchange to free several of their comrades in prison.”
“Marco’s testimony stopped them,” she said. “Standing up to the Dragons was a brave thing to do.”
“Heroic,” he agreed. “Thanks to Marco, the FBI shut down the hijacking, scooped up hundreds of illegal weapons and enough explosives to level the entire Newark terminal. Hundreds could have been killed. The feds also derailed other plots in other parts of the country. Drako, Ivanov and two less important members of the Dragons were tried, convicted and sentenced to many years in federal prisons.”
“Do the Dragons still exist?”
“They remain an ongoing threat, mostly involved in white-collar crimes like money laundering and extortion. They’re extremely well financed.” They paused while Izzy did her business. “During the hijacking scheme, the pilot of the plane they planned to commandeer was murdered in cold blood. And we lost a rookie marshal. Her name was Dawn Wainwright, and she was twenty-eight. Her name is on the Honor Roll at USMS headquarters in Arlington.”
“I’m so sorry to hear of her death.” Piper cleaned up after Izzy and they headed back toward the hotel entrance. “It sounds like the Dragons have their fingers in a lot of different pies. Why won’t they leave Marco and Sofia alone?”
“Remember that old proverb. Revenge is a dish best served cold.”
“I’ve heard it.”
“For six years, Ivanov, Drako and two others have been in federal penitentiaries. I doubt that a single day passed when they didn’t curse Marco Barbieri, aka Maxim Lombardi, and his daughter. They’ve had a long time to plan.”
“Oh my God.” She stamped along the sidewalk, splashing through puddles. “When I think of those monsters watching Sofia sing ‘Let it Go’ on social media and plotting ways to harm her, it makes me sick. Is Drako still running the show?”
“Yuri Drako is ninety-six years old and terminally ill. His very expensive team of lawyers managed to get him a compassionate transfer to the penitentiary in Sheridan.”
“That’s less than an hour from where I live,” she said.
“His only family—a son and grandson—have a house on the coast and visit him in jail from time to time. From what I hear, the old man has a private room with all the medical equipment he needs and a team of hot nurses.”
“But he’s a prisoner.”
“Drako pays their salaries.”
Her lip curled in disgust. “Are you going to interrogate him?”
“Not my assignment.” Gavin’s responsibility was keeping his WITSEC people—Marco and Sofia—safe. And watching out for Piper, who seemed a likely candidate for protective custody. “DJ is investigating the shooting. This morning, he went to the Offenbach commune with local police. They arrested Dmitri and his buddies when they identified Tai from the mug shot.”
“But they didn’t know where to find Tai Drako?”
When she looked to him for a response, her forehead tensed and her lips flattened. The fear and anger she’d held at bay had almost caught up with her. He wished he could offer comfort, but the danger was too real. “Tai might be headed to his father’s home near Devil’s Lake. Sorry I don’t have better news.”
With her free hand, she brushed a strand of dark auburn hair off her forehead. “I appreciate hearing the truth. These Dragons aren’t just petty criminals, and their medieval devotion to cold revenge is horrific. Now I understand why you hover over us.”
He wanted to tell her that everything would be all right. The bad guys would be locked up, and the good guys would be able to return to their normal lives. It might happen. But probably not. Slowly, he exhaled and offered a final bit of information. “DJ will speak to Yuri Drako in prison, either through a computer hookup or in person, probably this afternoon.”
Under her breath, she muttered, “I have a few choice comments I’d like to make to that old dragon.”
“But you won’t. You’ve got to keep everything we’ve talked about to yourself, Piper. You don’t have to lie, but we’re not going to do group discussions of the crimes. And whatever you do...” He paused for emphasis. “Don’t tell Sofia.”
About fifty yards from the front entrance, Izzy came to a screeching halt. She arched her back and stuck her sensitive nose into the air. She sniffed to the left and then to the right, then twirled in a circle. Facing the forested hillside on the other side of the divided road, Izzy lowered her front paws and stuck her tail in the air. She’d made a sighting.
“What is it?” Piper asked. “Something on that hill?”
“No way,” he said. “She can’t smell across four lanes of traffic. That’s got to be three or four hundred yards away.”
Piper moved closer to the dog and asked again. “Izzy, what is it?”
When the mutt gave a low growl, Gavin had the distinct impression that Izzy didn’t like what she’d located. He stared through the rain into the thickets of trees and shrubs. At the moment he thought he spotted a black, metal cylinder, he heard a harsh pop, like the noise a car makes when it backfires. But he knew the bang hadn’t come from a car.
He heard a second gunshot. And a third.
He reached for Piper, but she slipped away from him and dove to the sidewalk. Her arms wrapped around Izzy, pulling her down. Piper protected the dog with her own body.
Gavin motioned to the plainclothes police who were acting as bodyguards. “Over here,” he directed. “Take her and the dog inside.”
Using his two-way radio communication, he alerted the other officers in the area that they had an active shooter on the hillside opposite the hotel. As soon as he ducked into the lobby, Piper threw her arms around his neck. Her hood fell back and her long hair spilled over her shoulders. He held her tightly. This was his fault. He’d taken a risk and was damn lucky his carelessness hadn’t resulted in disaster.
Izzy had done a better job of protecting. Reaching down to pat her forehead, Gavin marveled at the dog’s ability to scent danger from such a distance. Had the shooter been aiming at them or at Izzy?
IN THE HOTEL BEDROOM, Piper stood at the window with the drapes still closed and tried to peek around the edge of the window frame. Several officers were searching the forested hillside across the road, but she could barely see them. Continuing rain limited her visibility, and the autumn foliage got in the way. If Gavin hadn’t poked his head into the room a few minutes ago and informed them that spent shell casings for a .22-caliber pistol had been found, she might have dismissed the whole incident as something she’d imagined. And she would have been wrong. The shell casings were proof. Someone had fired shots at her and Izzy.
Sofia sat yoga-style in the middle of her bed, staring obsessively at the blank computer tablet that had shown Marco in his hospital bed. The nurses had requested that she turn off the feed while they took her father for tests, but he’d been awake and able to talk for a few minutes.
“He told me the pain wasn’t too bad.” Her tone of voice was soft and miserable. “He made a joke about losing weight and needing pasta.”
Piper went to her own bed, nearly tripping over Izzy. Since the shooting incident, the dog had been glued to her side. “We’ll be able to see your dad in person soon.”
“Do you think I should tell him about me and Logan?”
“Might be best if he concentrates on getting better.” Piper had a whole new respect for Marco’s bravery and the risk he’d taken when he’d stood up to the Dragons. He was a good man who’d tried to do the right thing, but Piper couldn’t predict how a protective father would react to his daughter’s dating relationship. “I’m not sure what you’re going to say. When you mentioned Logan before, you didn’t even want to call him your boyfriend.”
“Then all this stuff happened.” Sofia slid her slender body off the bed to the floor and cuddled Izzy. “We might have to move to another city, and I don’t want to break things off with Logan.”
“I’m sure Marshal McQueen can work something out.”
“Ha!” Sofia tossed her head. This morning, she’d parted her hair in the middle and made two long braids. “After getting shot at, he’s going to be super protective. Make us wear suits of armor or layers of bubble wrapping. I’m totally amazed that he’s still okay with a hospital visit.”
After her truthful talk with Gavin, Piper had a different opinion of the man. Yes, he was intensely protective. But that was his job. And he had good reason to be wary of the Dragons and their devotion to cold revenge.
Still, she knew better than to waste her breath trying to change Sofia’s mind. In spite of the braids and the purple eyeshadow that matched her long ombré sweatshirt, this young lady was neither flighty nor silly. She knew what she wanted and didn’t hesitate to go after it.
“Tell me about Logan. How did you meet?”
A sweet smile curved Sofia’s lips. Eyelashes fluttered, and her green eyes went dreamy when she talked about her tall, lean, handsome, blond boyfriend. Her experiences with him sounded like typical examples of girl-meets-boy. If Piper hadn’t witnessed their passionate kiss when they’d fled from the Offenbach commune, she wouldn’t have thought there was much of a physical relationship. Probing for more information on that topic, she asked, “Is he a good kisser?”
“I don’t have much experience, but yeah. He’s really gentle, and when he glides his tongue into my mouth, it makes me...” She shivered. “You know what I’m talking about. You were married.”
Memories of her disaster of a marriage bore no resemblance to Sofia’s romantic ideals. “Nothing better than a good kiss, it’s almost as good as...the other stuff.”
“Is Marshal McQueen a good kisser?”
“What?” Her jaw dropped and she gaped. “Why would you ask that?”
“I’ve seen how he looks at you. If you haven’t already kissed, it’s coming, and I think it’s coming real soon.”
“You’re wrong.”
Before they could delve more deeply, Gavin knocked at the door and stepped inside. “The investigators found tire tracks for a small motorcycle, a match for those we found outside Marco’s house. Same guy. Same shooter.”
Piper averted her gaze, avoiding direct confrontation with this good-looking man who’d broken all the rules to tell her the truth. Do I want him to kiss me? “He got away.”
“Not surprising. It took the police several minutes to get across the road, especially since they were pursuing an armed suspect and needed to use caution.” He paused. “The real question is, why he did he bother to fire a .22-caliber handgun from that distance? Either he knows nothing about guns or he just wasn’t thinking straight.”
“Actually, the real question,” she said quietly, “is how did he know where we were staying?”
“I don’t see how it’s possible, but he must have followed us.”
“On his little motorcycle? Wouldn’t we have noticed?”
“Oh, wait. I’ve got an idea,” Sofia said eagerly as she climbed off the floor onto the bed. “Dmitri and the guys from the commune could have used a bunch of cars and trucks to track us.”
“Doubtful,” Gavin said. “They’ve already been arrested and said nothing.”
“Arrested.” She frowned. “Logan will hate that.”
“How do you know what Logan thinks?”
Suspicion wove through Gavin’s voice, and Piper felt the same way. She and Sofia had surrendered their phones, the hotel landline had been removed, and the tablet with Marco’s face only had that one channel.
Sofia shook her shoulders. “Omigod, you guys. I’m just guessing. Logan lives at the commune. Of course, he’d hate arrests in his own backyard.”
“We’ll talk about this later,” Gavin said. “For now, you need to pack up your things and get ready to go. When we leave for the hospital, we won’t be coming back to this hotel.”
Sofia groaned. “But I like this place.”
“Our location has been compromised,” he said. “Obviously.”
Piper dared to glance up at his face. His jaw was set. His deep-set brown eyes glistened with hidden meaning, and his lips formed a silent word. Sorry.
She nodded forgiveness.
Sofia flopped backward on the bed and groaned. “Omigod, you two. If we weren’t already in a hotel, I’d tell you to get a room.”