Chapter 190
"How about the Matthews family in Spring Valley?" Jack was eager to know. "Were you able to get any news on how they were doing?"
"Agent Hanson is expected to pull through. He'll be spending a few days at the Sharp Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa. The kids and their mother are fine, too. Not sure where the father is at the moment, but I'll keep you updated if you give me a call in a few days."
"How many agents did Harrison take down with him?"
"So far, Conrad and Monahan are the only two men in the agency involved. Conrad was also linked to the recent stabbing of Amy Long. She'll be a key witness when it comes to putting Conrad and Elizabeth Kramer behind bars." He gestured toward Elizabeth. "No telling yet how many people outside of the agency are involved. Monahan and Harrison were both on the disc. As we speak, Harrison is being arrested on federal conspiracy charges, linking him to the killings of two men. He will also be charged with defrauding businesses and individuals by the millions by soliciting donations for AIDS. If convicted, Mr. Harrison could face life in prison."
"What disc?" Kate asked. "Dr. Kramer didn't destroy it?"
"I made copies," Jack said.
"And you didn't tell me?"
"Thanks, lieutenant," Jack said, squeezing Kate's hand. "I appreciate everything you've done."
The lieutenant pointed to an unmarked car at the back of the line. "The director sent a driver to take you two to the Federal Office Building in San Diego where I'm sure you'll spend the next few days filling out papers and answering questions."
Jack nodded, then walked with Kate toward the unmarked car.
"You should have told me," Kate said. "You never tell me anything."
Jack smiled.
"Oh, and one more thing," the lieutenant said.
Jack turned to him.
"I'm a.s.suming that when you fill out all that paperwork, you're going to leave out the part about calling me about a flat tire and a money clip?"
Jack smiled. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE.
Harrison wasn't sure what to think when he exited the department store and saw Henry Gates and his team coming toward him like a flock of geese with wings spread and bodies rigid.
He looked to his left. Rick Harvey nodded to Henry. Until now, Harrison had failed to see through Rick Harvey's subterfuge. Apparently, Harrison realized, he was losing his touch. So, this was it: the last stand. Harrison's first thought was to pull out his gun and force Henry and his men to shoot him down. Death might be the easiest way; checking out and skipping weeks of questioning held a certain appeal. And yet, his hands remained relaxed at his sides, his gun secured in his holster.
He'd f.u.c.ked up for good this time. His chances of winning Donna back had narrowed the moment he walked down the aisle with Sheila. He shook his head at the memory of finding Sheila playing out one of her s.e.xual fantasies. He'd thought about putting a bullet through Sheila's heart. The idea had flashed through his mind just as the idea of shooting himself took root in his subconscious. He always carried a gun. But Sheila wasn't worth killing. He didn't care about Sheila. She'd been nothing more than an ornament, like his Rolex.
Harrison exhaled as Henry Gates left his flock and approached him alone. "You're under arrest, sir, for federal conspiracy charges linking you to the murder of Robert Conrad and Dr. Harold Forstin. I'm going to have to cuff you."
"Was it the disc?"
"I don't know about a disc, sir, but I do know that Dr. Elizabeth Kramer, also known as Lou, was eager to talk. She'll have a few years taken off her sentence in return for full disclosure of all three of her CFAF partners' actions in the past ten years."
That couldn't be. Harrison felt the blood drain from his face. Timid, quiet Elizabeth had been the one giving orders all along? The laughter didn't just pop out of his mouth; it built up, starting at his toes and working its way to his chest, simmering for a bit and finally bubbling in his throat until he couldn't hold back. He held his stomach with both hands as the hilarity of his situation erupted like a geyser. Tears gathered at the corners of his eyes, and he couldn't remember the last time he'd laughed so hard. It felt good. Almost freeing. How ironic.
No, he'd never win Donna back now, likely never see his youngest daughter marry and have children, he thought, as his amus.e.m.e.nt tapered. But he was an FBI agent first, a family man second, and a criminal last, so he straightened, held his head high, raised his arms outward and waited to be cuffed.
Kate stretched her arms toward the ceiling and yawned. She heard the shower running, which surprised her since she hadn't heard Jack climb out of bed. They had arrived at Jack's Los Angeles home late last night, so she hadn't had a chance to see his place yet. His bedroom furniture was masculine...and spa.r.s.e. A dresser and a bed. What more could a guy like Jack need? The closet door had been left open. Perfectly ironed b.u.t.ton-down s.h.i.+rts hung in a nice row above four pair of identical dark, s.h.i.+ny shoes.
Neat. Orderly. Predictable.
She smiled as she leaned over his side of the bed and opened the top drawer of the bedside table. There they were: a variety of condoms in neat little rows. She shut the drawer. A picture next to the lamp caught her eye: Jack and his parents and a little girl in front of a simple green house. Annie. She had to be thirteen or fourteen in the photo,
"You're awake," Jack said from the bathroom door.
"She was beautiful," Kate said.
He came into the room and sat on the edge of the bed. "Yeah, she was."
"Do you think you'll be able to convince your parents to reopen the case?"
"Once they realize how important it is to me, I'm sure they'll come around."
Kate turned on her side and propped her head on her hand. "It's still hard for me to believe Elizabeth is behind bars and it's all over. Four men, great men working on a good cause died because of her greed."
"They died heroes. All of them."
"True. As long as I live, though," Kate said, "I'll never understand what makes some people evil while others spend their lives trying to make a difference."
"Selfishness is the root to all evil," Jack said. "And the scary thing is that selfishness lies within each of us."
"You don't have a selfish bone in your body."
"I wish that was true, but I'm selfish enough to ask you to marry me and spend the rest of your life with me."
She pulled her gaze from his.
"I'll become less predictable," he promised. "I'll start by throwing out every white b.u.t.ton-down s.h.i.+rt I own."
She laughed.
"I'll grow my hair out and let you braid it for me."
"Now you're being ridiculous."
"Maybe, but it's the truth. I'll do whatever it takes to keep you at my side."
"How about we take it one day at a time for now?"
"Okay," he said. "One day at a time."
Jack served as one of six men carrying the bronze and copper casket through a procession of mourners dressed in dark, formal clothing, and finally to the platform that would lower the casket to where Rebecca Josephine Smith would be laid to rest.
Kate sat a few rows behind the gra.s.sy spot where A.J. stood, his legs rigid, one arm in a sling, the other behind his back, head tilted forward. To A.J.'s right stood Becky's mother. Becky's brother was one of the pallbearers.
Today Jack thought not only of Becky, but also of A.J. He knew what it was like to grieve for someone close. To miss not only their presence, but their embrace, their voice, and most of all...what might have been. All of it gone in a flash. Jack also knew firsthand that when loss went unacknowledged, it had the potential to disable a person. He could only hope that A.J. would express his feelings and let out his emotions and sorrow, so he could begin to heal sooner rather than later. Regardless, it was too soon for Jack to offer his friend anything more than a sympathetic word or two.
The sun was out; the sky was clear. There was a brief prayer service before mourners lined up to pay their respects and to place soil or flowers on the casket. Many would be gathering later in the day to share memories and a meal together, but for now Jack stood next to his friend and finally summoned the courage to speak. "I'm sorry. I wish there was something I could say or do..."
A.J. kept his eyes on the procession. "Don't beat yourself up, Jack. I chose to be involved from the start. It's not your fault. I'll be okay."
Something about the emptiness in A.J.'s eyes and the robotic tone of his voice told Jack that his friend was far from fine, but time would be the only answer as to how A.J. would handle his loss.
"After today," A.J. went on, gazing straight ahead, "I'm afraid you won't see much of me."
"What do you mean?"
His eyes on the casket, on Becky, he said, "I quit the agency and enlisted in the United States Navy."
Jack didn't know what to say to that. He'd known A.J. since forever and not once had his friend talked about joining the Navy.
A.J. lifted his good arm and placed a hand on Jack's shoulder. "You take care of yourself."
Jack didn't like the finality in A.J.'s words. As if he wouldn't see him again. "I'm pretty sure the Navy has computers. I'll email you and keep you updated on things around here," Jack said.
"I better get going. It looks like Mrs. Smith is having a tough time of it."
Yeah, Jack thought as he watched A.J. walk away. Mrs. Smith wasn't the only one. Thirty minutes later, Jack sat next to Kate as the casket was lowered into the ground. Kate put a hand on Jack's arm.
A.J. wasn't anywhere to be seen.
CHAPTER THIRTY.
Mid-September in Los Angeles wasn't only heat and smog, Jack noted as he headed down the street toward his house on Fifth Street. September also brought blue flowers called leadwort and hedges thick with green leaves and cl.u.s.ters of orange berries. Two months had pa.s.sed since Jack asked Kate to marry him the first time. He looked at the flowers in his hand and hoped the heady fragrance would do the trick. Kate was still headstrong and stubborn, but she'd come a long way since he'd found her in Haiti months ago. She had grown more patient and was p.r.o.ne to letting her guard down every once in a while. She laughed often.
Last week, Harrison had been indicted, along with all founding members of CFAF. They would all be spending the rest of their lives in prison. Ever since the indictment, Kate had seemed restless. And that worried him. Instinct told him he was running out of time. He used his key to unlock the door. Shutting the door behind him, he turned and had to catch his breath when he saw Kate standing in the hallway. Tendrils of silken blonde hair swept about her rosy cheeks and glossy lips. She was s.e.xy as h.e.l.l, but either she didn't know it yet, or she didn't care, which only added to her appeal.
He was looking at her, he realized, as if he'd never laid eyes on a woman before.
"You like it?" She did a pirouette, making the silky fabric of her dress swirl around her legs above her knees.
"I do."
She smiled as she breezed toward him, planting a generous kiss on his lips before she stepped back. She looked at the gardenias. "You're not supposed to get me flowers on your birthday."
"Too late," he said.
She must have caught the glint in his eye because right away she started chewing on her bottom lip. "Jack," she admonished as if she could read his mind. "You're not going to propose again, are you? Not on your birthday."
"I've got to," he said. "Because one of these days you're going to say yes. Stay here in Los Angeles with me. Marry me," he asked, handing her the sweet smelling gardenias. Last time he proposed, he'd taken her to Lake Tahoe for a week and surprised her with daylilies. The time before that he'd tried an expensive dinner along with two dozen red roses. A ray of hope coursed through his veins when her eyes brightened.
"Jack. Did you smell these?"
"I did."
"A touch of Lyso-lemon juice, a dash of Ribo-Rosemary nucleas or fresh minced tarragon, take your pick. Whisk until emulsified, and then throw in all the usual adjuvants and thimersol along with a cup of vinegar and one spoonful of superfine mustard. Only then do you add a sprig of gardenia. I can't believe it!"
"Neither can I. Is that a yes?"
She laughed as if he were the funniest man on earth. "That's the recipe my father had me memorize on my twelfth birthday. This is the first time I've remembered the whole thing. Gardenias. That's what Dad was looking for when we were sailing the Caribbean."
"He was looking for gardenias?"
She took another whiff of the plant and nodded. "When Adam showed me how to use your computer, we pulled up a site about Haiti. It was right there, something about a rare gardenia that only grows in Haiti."
Kate leaned her nose into the blossoms and inhaled. "It's the-" she snapped her finger. "The seed oil from the flower that he wanted! Do you have any idea what this means?"
"That you're going to marry me?"
She laughed again. "My father was a clever one. I remember Dr. Forstin asking me about my father's recipes. He said my father mentioned that only one other person knew the recipe for the cure for AIDS. Dad planned to share his findings with Dr. Forstin upon his return from the Caribbean. But we never returned."
Jack put his hands on her waist and pulled her closer. "I love you. Marry me."
"I can't, Jack. I need to go back to Haiti and start where my father left off. Those people need me and I need them. I'll use my father's inheritance. After that's gone I'll raise money. I'll set up a lab. Only I'll do things a little differently than my father. I'll share my father's findings with hundreds of other researchers. I can do this, Jack. I can make a difference."
He nuzzled her neck. "I need you."
"You have unfinished business you need to take care of," she reminded him. "You've said as much yourself. I would only get in the way."
"Never."
"I'm sorry, Jack. I have to do this."
He saw that her mind was made up. "I'm not going to let you get away that easily, you know?"
"Is that a threat or a promise?"
"Both."
She smiled. "When you're ready, you'll know where to find me."