and now started walking more quickly as she was suddenly eager to get home. Even if the only things waiting for her were her orange tabby cat, Tiger, and a microwavable meal. As she approached the parking lot, she heard loud footsteps come up behind her.
Instinctively, she gripped her purse and picked up the pace. But the heavy steps hitting the pavement behind her only sped up and got closer. With each long step Jessica tried to take, the person followed her stride for stride and was gaining ground.
She was now on the edge of the parking lot, but her car was located in the middle. Fear gripped her body even as she kept moving. She’d grown up under rough circumstances. Bounced from foster home to foster home. She’d been forced to learn how to defend herself, but it wasn’t something she liked doing or wanted to do right now. She wasn’t a fighter—except by necessity. In fact, she’d freely give up her wallet and the five dollars she had in it.
She hadn’t heard the person behind her come closer, but the next thing she knew, strong hands grabbed on to her shoulders and pushed her hard into the side of the nearest car, a large white SUV. Turning to look at her attacker, Jessica discovered he wore a dark mask.
Immediately she started to struggle against him. He was much stronger and well over six feet tall, but she refused to just sit back and let herself be accosted. Maybe if she put up enough of a fight, he would give up. Why is he coming after me? Was this related to a case? Dear Lord, please give me strength to protect myself. She fought off violent flashbacks from the past and tried to focus on the present.
Taking advantage of her heels, Jessica lifted up her right foot and slammed it down onto the assailant’s foot as hard as she could. He howled in pain but didn’t fully loosen his grip.
“Stop it!” he said, his voice deep and commanding. He reached into his side pocket.
Her breath caught. She could clearly see the knife that he’d pulled out as the parking lot lights reflected off it. He pushed the knife up toward her neck, and immediately she stilled. She could feel the pointed edge jabbing into her tender skin. The hand was poised to use the knife to slice through her throat—one sudden move and she’d be dead.
Jessica tried to slow her breathing and stay calm. She’d been through violent situations before when she was younger and untrained; now she knew better, knew more. She just had to use what she’d learned to try to stay alive.
She made direct eye contact with the man’s menacing brown eyes. The only part of his face that wasn’t covered by the mask. What did he want from her? Was he going to kill her right there in the parking lot?
“Please,” she said. “Don’t hurt me. You can take whatever you want.”
He pressed the edge of the knife into her neck a little bit more, and she feared he’d soon be drawing blood. “I’m not here for your purse.”
“Then what do you want?” Dread poured through her body as she tried to figure out why this man had attacked her. If he didn’t want her cash, credit cards and phone, did that mean he was after her? And what was he going to do?
“This is a warning.” With his left hand he grabbed her neck and squeezed tightly. He held the knife in his right, keeping the edge of the blade against her skin.
“For what?” she croaked, barely able to get air because of his vice grip.
“You’ve messed with the wrong family. We won’t warn you again. We know who you are. We know where you live. We know everything about you. If you want to live, you need to walk away. Just walk away.”
Her vision started to blur from the lack of oxygen. Her mind tried to comprehend what the burly masked man was saying. This had to do with her work. The prosecution of Simon Hernandez. There was no other explanation. As his grip tightened, her world started to fade.
Just as she thought she was about to pass out, he loosened his grip, took a few steps away from her and then ran off into the dark of the night. Jessica stood there, stunned. Touching her neck and trying to figure out if she was actually breathing in and out. After a moment, she knew she had to do something more. But what?
One side of her knew she should call the police, but the last thing she wanted was to get taken off this case. She’d worked too hard on Simon’s prosecution and wanted to see it through.
After taking a few deep breaths and walking the rest of the way to her car, she realized she had no choice. She pulled out her phone and called the police. Because if it came out that she hadn’t followed protocol, that would be a ding on her record she couldn’t afford as a new prosecutor. She’d just have to deal with the consequences.
* * *
FBI Special Agent Zach Taylor walked into the Miami police department at around midnight. He’d gotten called in because a prosecutor believed she’d been attacked by a member of the Hernandez organized crime syndicate. The Miami police must have thought her story credible enough to pick up the phone and call in the FBI.
Fresh out of Quantico, he’d been at the FBI field office in Miami for a month. And he’d been assigned to work the ongoing investigations of the Hernandez family. A family that was involved in more illegal businesses than he could fathom.
Of course he was working under a more seasoned agent, but the grunt work and the day to day was all given to him. It was every rookie’s dream to be a part of a case like this, and he wasn’t the kind of guy to back down from a challenge.
Zach was ushered back and stood outside one of the conference rooms where he would meet the victim. All he knew about her was her name—Jessica Hughes.
Miami PD detective Will Lang walked out of the room and greeted Zach.
“Nice to see you again,” Zach said. He’d met Will once before, right when he’d moved down to Miami.
“If it involves anything related to Hernandez, we always call in the feds right away.”
“Thank you, we appreciate that,” Zach told him.
“I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of each other,” Will said. “There’s always something going on with these guys. They have their hands in every criminal enterprise known to man, including money laundering and drugs. There’s no part of Miami untouched.”
“Yeah, I’m learning that quickly.”
“She’s all yours.” Will opened another door, and Zach walked into the conference room. Seated on the other side of the table was an attractive young woman dressed in a black suit. She had long wavy blond hair and bright green eyes that focused on him like laser beams.
“Ms. Hughes, I’m Special Agent Zach Taylor with the FBI.” He stretched out his hand and greeted her. She gave him a solid handshake. He examined her demeanor as he’d been taught to do at Quantico. She didn’t appear to be under any duress. The only thing he noticed were the slight dark circles under her eyes.
“Agent Taylor, I don’t know what all you’ve been told, but the FBI might be a bit of overkill.”
“Don’t worry about that,” he said. “Are you sure you’re all right? Did you receive medical attention?”
“I’m fine. I don’t need to see a doctor.”
Her toughness impressed him. Most people wouldn’t
