It was still early, and the sun was just making its way up the horizon. The bursts of colors across the lake were mystifying as they drove into the company area. Raleigh pulled into the parking lot and stopped. Maddie jumped out and ran to the front door, with Sam close behind, her bottle of water tucked under her arm as reveille sounded. Both women stopped, and Raleigh jumped out of his truck, all rendering a salute as the flag was raised. Once the music stopped, Raleigh jumped back into his truck while the ladies went inside the building. Raleigh sat and watched as the sun rose higher. His thoughts grew stronger, as did the feelings he was having for Sam. Get it together, man. What is it about this woman that has me turned inside out?
Raleigh thought back to the pub, the events there, and how amazing Sam looked in that dress. She was so open to him, in ways no other woman had ever been. She was a woman who knew what she wanted, and he was the man to give it to her. His thoughts raced back to the moment he saw her lying in a pool of her own blood and how helpless he felt. And for the first time in a long time, he felt scared. He was scared of losing her; he had just met her and he feared that he would lose her.
Sam’s voice broke the silence and solitude of the truck as she yelled from the front door of the building. “Are you coming in, Chief?” she yelled with a smirk, waving her hands in the air.
Well, he knew for sure that now was not the time nor the place to be thinking about Sam, let alone thinking about how absolutely stunningly beautiful she was. But at that moment, watching her fling her arms in the air, she was the most beautiful creature he had ever set eyes on.
“Yes, just give me a minute. I am gonna grab all these papers so we can go thru them.” Raleigh shuffled the papers evenly and grabbed the stack. He opened the truck door and made his way to where Sam stood with her arms perched on her hips. She snapped him a quick salute as Raleigh made his way past her, his arm brushing hers. Instant fireworks exploded, their eyes met, and both smiled.
“Just can’t seem to keep your hands off me, huh?” Sam teased as she turned toward her office, Raleigh following closely behind.
He shot back, “Maybe, but I don’t mind what’s in front of me right now either.”
“Maddie is in the office finishing up the roster, then she will be leaving. Looks like it will just be you and me in the office today. Think you can handle working with me in this great big office all alone?” Sam said. She could sense Raleigh’s mood had changed; the look on his face was lustful yet devilish.
“Oh yes, Ms. Sam. I think I can handle that.”
“Well, I am outta here,” Maddie said as she got up from the desk chair, handed Raleigh the roster and headed out the door. “If you need me, just give me a call. I am going to get some shut eye, and I will be back tomorrow. Let me know if you come up with anything interesting.”
“All right, lady, but that means sleep, not chasing after the cute doctor or texting the petty officer. That means SLEEP, because we will need you fresh tomorrow.”
“All right, all right. I will sleep, but you take the fun out of everything, Sam.” She snorted as she left the building.
Sam yelled back, laughing just as the front door was closing, “You will be ok for one day, Maddie.”
Raleigh and Sam were alone for the first time since they had been interrupted by Maddie the day before at her apartment. They both stared at each other for a moment, then both looked down as if shyness had engulfed the two and they were just meeting, like two kids on the playground looking at the ground and kicking the sand. One thing they knew for sure is they needed to keep it strictly professional at the office, because they never knew when someone could unexpectedly come into work. The front door had a buzzer and rang when the door opened, but if they were out of uniform it would put them both in a very compromising position neither one of them could afford to be in. The sexual tension between them would have to take a back seat.
Sam spoke first and the silence was cut short. “Chief, do you have those papers that Maddie brought? We can go through them piece by piece and see what we find.”
“Ya, they’re right here.” As he motioned to the pile he had stuffed in his arms, he laid the papers on the desk and divided it in half. “Half for you and half for me, sound ok to you?” he asked as he sat down behind the desk.
“Sounds great.”
Sifting through the pile would not be as easy. They had no idea what they were looking for but knew that everything was in question. As Sam skimmed through papers, she thought about how this all started. This was supposed to be an easy inventory. The division would come check and make sure she was doing everything correctly; they wanted to ensure if she found some of the missing equipment, it would be picked back up on the company property books and that would be that. But this was on a whole new level of creepy, and the twinge in her stomach wasn’t helping her feel any more relaxed. It seemed the more they dug for information, the more complicated the whole thing got. How big was it going to be? Right now, they had no idea what was ahead of them. Sam sat behind her desk, rolling her head in a circle with her eyes closed for a moment. Raleigh looked up and observed her.
“You ok?” he asked.
“Ya, I’m okay. Just stretching my neck. Looking at all these papers is giving me a crook in my neck, and with my head still pounding it doesn’t make it easy to concentrate. How’s the progress on your pile?” she asked.
Raleigh paused before he answered. “It’s a damn shame we can’t trust our fellow soldiers to do the right thing anymore. I am doing fine going through all this, but I keep racking my brain trying to figure out what motivated a soldier who was just months from retirement to throw it all away. Why would you risk jail and your career to make a profit? Who knows where this stuff might have gone, and who knows how much is already out there? Materials and equipment of ours in the hands of our enemies. Our fellow soldiers are fighting against our own weaponry…Do you need a break, Sam? We’ve been at this a few hours. We can go have lunch if you would like? I will buy.” He grinned as he held his hand out to hers. “Come on, let’s go. There is a Subway just down the road. We can sit down and eat.”
“I suppose we could both use the break. Besides, I’m still feeling a bit dizzy, and well, my head feels like a dozen mortars are exploding inside my brain.” Sam relied on Raleigh’s strength to help her up from the chair. “I could really use a nap.” Raleigh could feel Sam’s legs grow a little weak under her own weight, so he pulled her close and walked her to the truck.
“You sure you want to go in and sit down? We can go to your place and you can lie down. I can go back in and grab all the paperwork and work out of your apartment, if you don’t mind me being there with you alone.” Raleigh hoped she would agree. He held his breath as he waited for her to answer.
“Sure, why not?”
“Let’s get you in the truck. I will go back, grab the paperwork, we’ll grab lunch, work and eat at your apartment, and you can lie down. Sound like a plan?
“Ya, sounds like a perfect afternoon, Raleigh.”
Raleigh looked at Sam, and with a curve of his lips said, “And I promise to be good and keep my hands to myself. Strictly professional ’til the sun goes down.”
“Ok, deal. But I don’t think you will be able to do it.”
“Is that a challenge?” He snorted. “I am always up for a challenge, and you, my dear, are one hell of a challenge.”
“Oh yes, it’s a challenge.” She smirked. “Now go grab the paperwork so we can get outta here. I am starving.”
Raleigh ran inside, gathered up the paperwork, and ran back to the truck almost tripping on a dip in the sidewalk. Sam laughed so hard Raleigh looked up at her, raised his hands and said, “Well, shit happens. At least I caught myself before I lost it all and face planted.” Sam continued laughing as Raleigh wedged into the driver’s seat. He grabbed Sam’s thigh and gave it a squeeze. “Now be nice.” They both laughed and headed to grab the sandwiches then traveled to her apartment.
As Sam unlocked the door to her apartment the smell of vanilla and lilacs filled the room. It remained her favorite smell and always seemed to relax her, and well, get her in the mood. Second thought, maybe that isn’t the scent I should have in my apartment with him around. As she sat her bag on the chair, Raleigh came in with his hands full of papers and sandwiches.
“Here let me help you.” Sam grabbed the sandwiches and placed them on the coffee table in front of her couch then pushed the button on the remote control. CNN popped on the screen; she pressed the mute button. “I like to have the TV on but not always have to listen to it. Makes me feel like someone else is in the room with me.”
“Oh, I know the feeling. I do the same thing at my apartment, but right now you’re not alone.” Raleigh reached for Sam’s hand. “I am here with you, and I promised to behave.” Raleigh dropped her hand and grabbed a sandwich. “Sit down and let’s eat so you can lie down. We have plenty of time for fun, but right now I need to take care of you.”
Raleigh gently pulled Sam down to sit next to him on the couch. The heat between them was almost unbearable to her. The warmth of his touch and the feel of his skin on hers would surely send her over the edge. “I promise I won’t bite. I only nibble and I only nibble in all the right places. So, sit down and eat, baby. Let me take care of you.”
Sam turned the volume up on the TV so they could watch and eat their sandwiches together. She prayed she wouldn’t jump him. Sam had never in her life been so attracted and so infuriated by a man. What is it about this man that makes me want him and want to kill him at the same time? Just eat the damn sandwich, Sam, and stop staring at his chest. He sure can fill out a uniform. I know he wears it small so everyone can see the curvature of his chest. It’s clear that he’s in love with himself and could never love anyone like me. So, get it out of your mind and eat your damn sandwich.
“What are you thinking about Sam?” Raleigh’s voice was muffled as he wiped mayo from his lip.
“Oh, nothing. I guess it is the meds taking effect on me. I am feeling a little loo loo.”
“Well, let me help you up so you can lie down in your room, take a nap, and I will continue rummaging through all this paperwork.”
Raleigh helped Sam to her feet and walked her to her room. Sam sat down on the bed and Raleigh knelt down to help her with her boots. Sam had never had a man help her take her boots off before, so it was a whole new experience. It felt good to have a man want to take care of her rather than treat her like she had experienced in the past. Raleigh had a gentleness about him that Sam just couldn’t figure out, but she had decided this much—she wanted to know more about this man. What made him who he is? She couldn’t help but think there might be more to him than what he wanted everyone else to see.
Raleigh grabbed her boots and placed them in her closet as Sam lay down on her bed. He took the throw blanket draped over her chair in her room and covered her. Sam closed her eyes and Raleigh leaned in, hoping he wasn’t being too forward, softly kissed her on the forehead and said, “Try and sleep a little, baby. I will be here when you wake up. I am not going anywhere.”
Sam smiled and watched under her partially closed eyes as Raleigh quietly closed the door and walked into the other room. As Sam drifted off to sleep, her last thoughts were of how gently he had kissed her forehead. The last person to ever kiss her forehead was her mother, and her mother had long since passed away. She missed her but tried to always put that grief away. Compartmentalizing was what she did best, and she had a lot of experience doing it. She had to make sure she kept herself on track and kept her feelings separate. They had a mission and that came first. She didn’t have time for a relationship anyway, and he didn’t seem like he would want something long term. He seemed more like a short term “hit it and escape” kind of guy. Which right now for Sam was perfect. Despite what her heart was telling her, her head said Stop it.
***
Raleigh sat on the couch rummaging through the pile of papers he had spread out on the floor of Sam’s apartment, divided by dates, locations, and names. As he examined the documents, there was a name that jumped out at him and took him by surprise. Jared Thompson? Can’t be the same Jared Thompson. Not my Jared Thompson. Not the guy I’ve known for thirty plus years and served with as part of the 9th Special Forces at Bragg. No, can’t be. Next to the name was a phone number. Raleigh grabbed his phone and pulled up Jared’s number. His heart sank when he realized it was the same. This can’t be right. Why would Jared’s name and number be mixed up in this mess? Think Raleigh, don’t make any rash judgments. He could be undercover. Raleigh set the document to the side and continued to go over the documents. Names and numbers popped off the paper at him. Some names he recognized, others he knew were phone numbers from the Fayetteville, North Carolina area. Before he made any conclusions, he would need to make phone calls to some of his buddies at Bragg to decide how to proceed with the investigation.
His phone rang and Raleigh quickly picked it up. He didn’t want to wake Sam. She hadn’t been sleeping for long and he wanted her to sleep as peacefully as possible. It was a number he didn’t recognize, but answered it anyway.
“This is Chief Fitzgerald. Can I help you?”
“Chief, this is Doctor Isaac. I am the Chief Forensic Pathologist with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. We’re performing the autopsy on Staff Sergeant Wilson. I wanted to let you know we found evidence you might want to see, and I have a time of death. If you can make it over here to base tomorrow morning, I can give you the details.”
“Yes, Doctor, I can be there. Is nine am good for you?”
“Yes, that will be fine, Chief. I will see you then.”
Raleigh drew his attention back to the pile of papers stacked neatly on the floor. He picked up the stack that contained names, addresses, and phone numbers and flipped through the pages. As he flipped through his thumb landed on the page with Jared’s information on it. It bugged him that a friend of his, a longtime friend and trusted fellow soldier, could be wrapped up in all this.
How did he fit in? Who were these other soldiers? Were they soldiers or civilians? How did they fit into this whole plan? He would need to get on the phone tomorrow and make some calls to Bragg. He couldn’t just call Jared. He had to go through the chain just in case Jared was undercover. Raleigh couldn’t risk losing him; he was the only one left from their team. The pain of that day still played over and over in Raleigh’s head every waking moment of every day. From that day forward, Raleigh questioned every decision he made, and his choices became more reckless.