Chapter Sixteen
Mike jammed his hands into his pockets and hitched his shoulder against the pristine white hospital wall. The air smelled sterile, antiseptic, and of that other indefinable odor all hospitals reeked of. He hated it, could practically taste it on his tongue. It reminded him of the time he’d spent in the hospital recuperating from his head wound.
Aside from the cracks of thunder outside and a doctor being paged over the hospital intercom, the only sound in the deserted waiting room came from Ginny, where she sat on a yellow vinyl sofa, weeping in Cassie’s arms. The girl’s face was pale and streaked with tears. His gut clenched every time he looked at her. For that matter, his gut clenched every time he looked at Cassie.
Duty dictated he be at the park coordinating things, but he’d nearly passed out right there on the grass. The throbbing from the stitched-up gash on his chest had worsened steadily over the last hour. He’d refused pain medication, wanting to stay sharp, and now it felt like a knife blade twisting into his chest. It was nothing compared to the ache in his heart.
He had to keep Cassie safe until he could get her to the police station and interrogate her about what the hell was going on. He’d keep her there all night if he had to, which was where she ought to be anyway—in protective custody—if some asshole was really trying to kill her. He was only waiting for Rose to get to the hospital so Ginny wouldn’t be alone.
Mike forced himself to look away from Cassie or lose what little was left of his composure. He had a job to do, and the only way he could get it done was to disconnect from her, physically and mentally. If he touched her again, he wouldn’t be able to think straight.
Another wave of dizziness hit, but he shook it off and unclipped his cell phone. No messages. He noted the time and snapped the phone back onto his belt. Eleven p.m. Leo had been in surgery for nearly two hours, having pieces of metal removed from his skull and abdomen. It remained to be seen what kind of internal damage there was to his vital organs. Ginny had gotten off with superficial cuts and scrapes, so Leo must have shielded her with his body when the truck blew.
Someone in blue scrubs pushed through the double doors leading to the surgical ward and they all turned. Not Leo’s surgeon. A nurse.
Mike tipped his chin in Cassie’s direction, indicating he wanted to talk to her away from Ginny. She patted Ginny’s arm and came to where he leaned against the wall. The look on her face was one of resignation.
He dragged his hand down his face. Fury and frustration boiled inside him. “When I realized it was your SUV that exploded, I went crazy thinking you were inside.” He’d wanted to kill someone—the estranged husband or lover, or whoever had done this. “Something spooked you today. Was that what you wanted to talk about?”
“Yes.” She didn’t look at him. “And no.”
“Conflicting answers don’t help. Dammit, Cassie, who is he? I need to get a more specific A.P.B. out on this guy.”
“I told you already, I don’t know his name.” A look of panic came over her.
Mike grabbed her by the arms. “Stop lying.” What he wanted was to drag her soft body against him and tell her how relieved he’d been to see her alive and safe. “You know damn well who he is.”
“I don’t.” Her eyes were pained, as was her tone. “I’d tell you if I knew. Honestly, I would.”
“Honestly?” Mike laughed bitterly. “I don’t think you know the meaning of the word. Since the day you swept into town, you’ve kept your mysterious past a secret. I would have waited for you to tell me on your own terms and in your own time, but the time for that is long gone. People are getting hurt.”
“You’re right,” Cassie whispered.
Watery emerald green eyes tugged on places of Mike’s heart and soul he never knew existed. “Then tell me what you’re involved in.”
She nodded.
Soft cries came from the sofa where Ginny sat alone. Her shoulders shook violently and her sobs got louder. The girl looked on the verge of hysteria.
Mike’s cell phone vibrated. “Shit.” He grabbed his phone and, before answering it, said to Cassie, “We’re not done, so don’t even think of going anywhere.”
With a regretful look, Cassie hurried back to the sofa and sat at Ginny’s side. The girl’s sobs diminished visibly as Cassie comforted her, but no way was Ginny in any shape to be interviewed.
Mike answered the call on his phone and walked down the hall. “Flannery.”
“Chief, it’s John Fukes.” The county explosives expert. “We found a device under the hood wired to the ignition. Small but professional. Whoever this was intended for is supposed to be dead. No doubt about it. The only thing that saved those kids was that they were far enough away when they hit the remote start on the key fob.”
Mike pressed his fingers to his forehead. He’d known this was coming, but hearing the words from Fukes made it official.
“I won’t have the report for a couple of days,” Fukes continued, “but Jimmy said you wanted to know ASAP.”
“Yeah, thanks.” Mike blew out a breath. “Send me the report when it’s final.”
“Sure thing, Chief.”
He ended the call and punched in the speed dial code for Jimmy’s cell number. “Mike,” Jimmy answered. “Fukes give you the news?”
“Yeah.” Radios squawked in the background from all the squad cars securing the park. “Stay there and coordinate with the State Police. This just turned into an attempted murder investigation.”
“Cassie’s a chef, for chrissake. Why would anyone want to kill her?”
“Damned if I know.” Mike massaged the back of his neck, which had begun to ache along with nearly every other square inch of his chest. “But I sure as hell intend to find out.”
“Any news on Leo?”
“Still in surgery.”
“Rose and Sue are on their way to the hospital,” Jimmy said. “Everyone else is asking how Leo’s doing. Call me when you know anything, would ya?”
“Will do.” Mike caught sight of Cassie watching him. Then it hit him. Jesus, he couldn’t believe what he was about to order Jimmy to do. But he had to. “Jimmy, are you near your squad car?”
“About ten feet away. Why?”
He lowered his voice as a nurse walked by pushing a cartload of supplies. “I need you to run a criminal history on Cassie. And if you can still make it out, run the tag on her Trail Blazer.”
“Are you kidding?” Jimmy’s incredulous tone came through loud and clear.
“Do it and get back to me.” Mike hung up and re-clipped the phone to his belt. He closed his eyes and pressed his hand to his forehead. His skin felt hot. More than likely, a low-grade fever had kicked in.
He couldn’t believe it had come to this. Never in a million years would he have imagined he’d be running Cassie’s record. It would have been illegal to run a name through NCIC for personal reasons. But this wasn’t personal anymore.
I’m the fucking chief of police and I have a duty. Cassie might be—no, was—my lover, the woman I thought I might spend the rest of my—
Christ, don’t go there.
Mike opened his eyes and took in the stark pain on Cassie’s face. He curled his hands into fists, relishing the sharp jabbing sensation it created in his upper chest and shoulder. A grim reminder of what happened tonight. He had a lousy feeling the worst was yet to come.
Leo’s surgeon, a short, gray-haired man of about fifty, pushed through the double doors from the surgical wing. Mike reached Dr. Morrison the same time Cassie and Ginny did. Sweat drenched the neckline of the man’s scrubs. The look on the surgeon’s face was hardly optimistic.
Ginny twisted a tissue in her hands. “He’s going to be okay, isn’t he?”
“Why don’t we all have a seat?” Dr. Morrison said in a soothing baritone as he led Ginny back to the yellow sofa.
Mike followed, allowing the doctor and Cassie to sit on either side of Ginny. He stood nearby, listening.
Doc Morrison’s bushy gray brows nearly met as he frowned. “We removed several small shards of metal from Leo’s skull. Those injuries were relatively minor, but his spleen was deeply lacerated by a larger piece of metal. We sewed up the spleen, hoping we wouldn’t have to remove it, but in the end we had to take it out. There was too much organ damage.”
“So now that it’s out, he’s going to be okay, right?” Ginny’s sweet face was hopeful, but Mike didn’t doubt from the surgeon’s somber expression that Leo was anything but all right. He’d seen that look on Doc Morrison’s face too many times right before he delivered bad news.
“The problem is Leo lost a lot of blood and he’s gone into shock.” The surgeon gently rested his hand on Ginny’s arm. “His condition is extremely critical. His kidneys are showing signs of shutting down. He’s on life support. It’s going to be touch and go tonight, and we need to take things hour by hour.”
“Is–is Leo going to die?” Ginny’s voice was so low Mike almost didn’t hear her.
Dr. Morrison didn’t hesitate. “It’s a possibility.”
Ginny’s eyes widened. Cassie’s face turned ghostly white.
“No, I don’t believe you.” Ginny shook her head back and forth. “He can’t die.”
“I’m sorry. Shock can be as devastating to the body as the actual injury that caused it.” The surgeon looked up at Mike. “Has Leo’s family been notified?”
“I called them.” Mike had to clear his throat. “They’re on their way up from Saratoga Springs.” He wasn’t looking forward to having the inevitable conversation with Leo’s parents. They’d never understand how this could happen to their son in a quiet place like Hopewell Springs.
Overwhelming guilt sliced deep. Again, he felt responsible. Six years ago, a woman had been murdered because of his mistake. This time, he should have seen it coming. But how the hell could he have anticipated this?
He’d known Cassie was hiding from something, but he’d been so blinded by his feelings he’d gone against his better judgment and done nothing, content to let her tell him in her own time.
Fuck.
He’d been distracted. Again. This time by Cassie.
“I’m sorry.” Dr. Morrison rose from the sofa. “If there’s any change in Leo’s condition, I’ll let you know.”
“Can I see him?” Ginny whispered.
“As soon as he’s out of post-op, but I have to warn you…” The surgeon’s forehead creased. “Leo will be heavily sedated and won’t know you’re there.”
More tears ran down Ginny’s cheeks. “This can’t be happening. Somebody please tell me this isn’t happening.” She began to shake uncontrollably. “I–I never got to tell him I love him.”
“Ginny, he knows.” Cassie stroked the girl’s cheek. “You have to believe that. I saw how the two of you looked at each other today. He loves you, and he knows how much you love him, even if you didn’t have the chance to say it.”
“Are you—are you s–sure?”
“Positive.” Cassie lifted her eyes to Mike. “Love is something you can’t hide.”
A lump the size of a football rose in Mike’s throat.
Damn. Damn. Damn.
“Chief?” Mike turned to see the surgeon waiting for him. “I’ll tell the nurse’s station to keep you posted as well.”
“Thanks.” He shook Dr. Morrison’s hand and watched him disappear behind the double doors leading to the surgical unit.
Ginny sobbed openly on Cassie’s shoulder. Her pink shirt was damp from Ginny’s tears. And blood. They all had Leo’s blood on them. One way or the other.
Cassie met Mike’s gaze again over Ginny’s head. She bit her lower lip and slowly shook her head back and forth. The grief ripping through Mike was as palpable as the stabbing ache in his shoulder.
Footsteps sounded on the linoleum floor, and he turned to see Rose and Sue coming along the hospital corridor. Rose rushed to Ginny’s side and gave the girl a big hug. “Thank goodness you aren’t seriously hurt. Jimmy didn’t say much, just that you and Leo had been injured in the explosion at the park.”
“How is Leo?” Sue looked first to Cassie, then to Mike.
“Not good,” he answered in a tired voice.
Cassie covered her mouth with her hand and bolted from the sofa to run into the ladies’ room across from the waiting area. Mike stared after her.
“Is she okay?” Rose asked. “For that matter, are you okay?” She took in the dried bloodstain on the front of his shirt.
“Fine,” he lied. He walked to the ladies’ room door and heard the distinct sounds of someone retching. Mike steeled himself for what he had to do next. What he wanted to do was storm in there and help her through this, but what he had to do was question her. She was as much a suspect now as a witness or target.
His cell phone vibrated. A feeling of dread swamped him as he answered the call. “Go ahead.”
“You’re not gonna like this,” Jimmy responded.
Mike’s already sinking heart took a nosedive. He leaned one hand against the wall next to the ladies’ room door. “Let’s have it.” He closed his eyes as Jimmy rattled off Cassie’s criminal history.
“Cassandra Younger, age thirty-four, two felony arrests. One seven months ago for burglary in Brooklyn, one a few months before that for narcotics trafficking and endangering minors. That one’s out of Manhattan. Sentencing for both charges is still pending.”
Mike froze, barely able to process what he’d heard. At this point, he wasn’t surprised Cassie had a record, but he hadn’t expected it to be this bad. It didn’t fit, not with the woman he knew. It was like Jimmy was describing an entirely different person. He let his head fall backward and stared at the ceiling.
She said she’d never done anything illegal. A goddamn lie. Yeah, she did a number on you, Flannery. Played you like the fool you are.
Just when he’d begun to feel… Feel like he…
No, dammit. She betrayed you and everyone in this town, and now someone might die because of her lies.
“Mike…there?” Jimmy’s voice cut out. “…ike…hear me?”
“Yeah, I hear—” The connection was severed. Mike pushed redial twice. Nothing. He clicked his radio, but all he heard was static. “Shit.” The electrical storm was wreaking havoc with communications everywhere, even police radios were working intermittently.
The toilet flushed inside the ladies’ room followed by the sound of running water. A moment later, Cassie burst through the door and flinched when she saw him standing so close.
“Let’s finish this. Now!” He grabbed her arm, intending to pull her into one of the empty rooms down the hall. She twisted out of his grasp.
“No.” She was white as a sheet and visibly shaking. Grim determination etched into her features. “It’s too late, and I have to leave.”
Cassie swiped a tear from her cheek then strode down the hallway. When she picked up speed, Mike followed. As she began to run, he charged after her.
He caught up with her outside the automatic sliding emergency room doors. Rain pelted them in sheets. He spun her to face him, ignoring the pain shooting from his wound as he gripped her upper arms. His chest felt like it was on fire, but he held fast to Cassie’s soft flesh.
Lightning lit the pitch-black sky. Thunder echoed. The air was so charged with energy, he could smell it. In seconds, they were both drenched.
“You’re not going anywhere,” he shouted. “Not before you tell me exactly what you’re involved in. Someone tried to kill you, and Leo took the hit. I have a responsibility to the people in this town. To protect them, even if it means protecting them from you. You owe me—hell, you owe all of us—an explanation. And don’t even think of playing me again.”
“Please,” she cried, “you have to let me go.” She struggled in his grasp. In the intermittent brightness from the lightning, Mike couldn’t tell if the water streaming down her face was rain or tears. From her tormented expression, he’d bet it was both.
“Why, so you can get someone else killed? Or get killed yourself?” Despite the anger at her betrayal, the thought of her lying dead somewhere nearly sent Mike to his knees. “Talk to me, dammit! Who wants you dead?”
She lowered her head, and Mike fought the urge to press his mouth against her damp hair. “Christ, tell me.” He softened his hold on her arms. “I can protect you.”
“No, you can’t.” She leveled him with that same determined look he’d seen on her face outside the ladies’ room. “I should have stayed where I was. It’s my fault Leo is going to die. I don’t know how I’ll ever live with that or the pain I’ve caused. I don’t want anyone else’s blood…” Mike followed Cassie’s gaze to where fresh blood soaked his shirt “…on my hands.” His wound must have reopened. “Oh, God.” She shook her head. “I’m sorry. So, so sorry.”
“Sorry? For what?” Leo would likely die and Cassie had about ripped Mike’s heart out. “Getting people hurt, or having a criminal record? The one you lied about not having.”
“What?” Cassie snapped her head up. “I don’t have a—”
“Stop lying,” he hissed through gritted teeth. The conversation they’d had when he changed her flat tire flashed in his mind. “You told me you’d never do anything to hurt anyone in this town and that you’d never done anything illegal. That was a goddamn lie.”
“No,” she screamed, shaking her head. “It wasn’t.”
“Then how do you explain your felony arrests—burglary, narcotics trafficking, endangering minors?”
“Those records are phony.” Cassie twisted from his grip, and this time he let her go. She stood ramrod straight. Defiant. “That’s what I should have told you a long time ago. I’m a cop, Mike. An undercover cop. Those arrests are fabricated, part of my fictitious background. My real name is Cassandra Yates.”
Mike felt as if he’d been slapped. “No. You can’t be.” That would mean… Not again.
Another crack of lightning rent the black sky, illuminating the seriousness on Cassie’s face and adding credibility to her shocking confession. “I’m telling the truth. This is what I wanted to tell you after the fireworks. I’ve been a cop for over ten years, most of it working undercover in New York City. You were right, I am hiding out. You know as well as I do maintaining your fictitious identity is the single most important thing to an undercover cop.”
Yeah, he knew it well. So did Elaine Bitters. He hadn’t seen it coming then. Or now. The blood in his veins seemed to stop flowing. His past flitted before his eyes in all its emotional gore. It wasn’t possible. This couldn’t be happening to him all over again—worked by an undercover cop. No way could he have been duped again this good.
“If you’re a cop, prove it,” he said through clenched teeth.
“I left my shield at home. You know as well as I do undercovers don’t walk around with their real ID.”
Mike held his arms from his sides. “You expect me to take your word for anything—especially something as absurd as this—after all the lies you’ve told?”
He was shouting now, and a middle-aged couple running out of the rain into the emergency room stared at them as they hustled by.
“No, I don’t,” Cassie yelled back. “Call Detective Dominick Carew at the 1st Precinct. He’ll confirm it. He’ll also confirm there’s a hit man trying to kill me for the last undercover job I did in Manhattan.”
Energy drained from Mike’s body. He was looking at a complete stranger.
Cassie. An undercover cop.
Suddenly all the pieces of her puzzle fell into place.
Why she’d really landed in town out of the blue and how cryptic she was about her past. The unexpectedly professional way she’d handled herself during the armed robbery at the Nest and how panicked she’d been afterward when the Gazette photographer had snapped a shot of her. Now she’d actually given him a name, someone who could corroborate her story.
“Fuck.” He pressed his hand to his forehead. Anger and pain, the likes of which he’d never known, funneled to the surface. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” he shouted. “You could have trusted me. Or were you playing me, seeing if you were good enough to fool another cop with your story?”
“I never played you.” Cassie’s face was a mask of misery. “I was afraid. I didn’t know you at first.”
“You’ve known me pretty darned well since last night and you still didn’t fess up. It took what happened to Leo before you decided it was important enough for me to know.” Mike searched the face of the woman who’d managed to break through the wall he’d erected to keep others out. The same woman he’d spilled his guts to about the most painful time in his life. The tightening in his chest was almost unbearable. He’d trusted her. He’d let her in, and look where it had gotten him. Where it had gotten Leo. “How long did you plan to keep this charade up? How long were you planning on using me?”
“I wasn’t using you. I planned to tell you everything tonight after the fireworks.” She clasped his face in her hands. “I love you.” Her body started to shake. “I love you with everything that I am.”
Mike shook his head. “No. You. Don’t.” He grabbed her wrists and yanked her hands from his face. “It was an act, all part of your undercover act.” The same way it had been part of Elaine’s act when she’d told him she loved him then tape recorded their intimate conversations for a goddamn Internal Affairs investigation.
“It’s not an act,” Cassie cried. “I love you. You have to believe me.”
“I don’t have to do anything.” He leaned to within inches of her nose. “It’s over.”
“Why can’t you understand?” She held her arms from her sides. “You’re a cop, too. You would have done the same thing if you had to.”
“No!” Mike got in her face again. Blood pounded at his temples so loud he could hear it, feel it in every cell of his body. “I would never have done that to you. I don’t use people.”
“I never meant for it to get this far. I never even expected to be here this long.” Cassie took a deep breath and shuddered. “Whether you believe me or not, I have to go. I have to call my people.”
“As much as I want you out of my sight,” Mike said, knowing deep down in his gut that wasn’t exactly true, “I can’t let you leave. You’re at the center of an attempted homicide, and if you’re telling me the truth, you’re still on this guy’s hit list.”
“Then the best thing is for me to go back to the city,” Cassie said. “To a safe house.”
Rain continued to pound the pavement, though less intensely than before. The echoing thunder had become more distant.
Mike clamped his jaw tight. If he didn’t, he’d say something he’d regret. Like don’t go. Not because he still had to interrogate her, but because he didn’t want her to leave. The thought he was so weak he would even think it sickened him.
Duty came first. Not emotion. Not feelings. Nothing personal would get in the way of what he had to do. “You’re going to the police station,” he said as a patrol car pulled to a stop near the emergency room doors. “Even a hired gun won’t try a hit there.”
“Everything all right, Chief?” Officer Mackey shouted from the car’s open window.
“We’re good,” Mike said over Cassie’s head. “Give Cassie a ride to the police station. Make sure she gets inside.” When he looked back her eyes were filled with anguish.
“I’m sorry I lied to you. I’m sorry I lied to the whole town, but especially to you. It’s just that I loved my new life the way it was, and I didn’t want anything to change that.”
She gulped down a sob. Her hair was flattened against her head, dripping with rainwater. Part of him wanted to yank her into his arms and never let her go, but he knew he never would.
He could understand the need for maintaining an undercover identity, particularly if there was a hit man involved. But her lies and deception cut him deeply nonetheless. He couldn’t separate her professional caution from the pain and mistrust it was causing him. His guts might as well be staring up at him from a pile on the ground.
Without another word, Cassie turned and headed for the patrol car. Mike watched her get into the passenger side. The car door slammed shut. He followed the red taillights of the car as it left the hospital parking lot. Then she was gone.
He stared into the darkness. A bolt of lightning lit the lot, and his heart split in two. He willed his feet to move, to go after her. But they wouldn’t. Couldn’t.
Wind whipped at him. Hard-driven rain stung his face. His shirt and pants were soaked, but he felt numb. Watching Cassie disappear into the night was like watching his life slip away. His future. He balled his fists tightly, keeping them that way intentionally until another shaft of pain darted to his chest. Pain was better than the nothingness Cassie had left behind.
Goddamnit.
He’d believed in her, history unknown. And she’d taken that trust and trashed it.