laughed. “When you grow up in a family of criminals it would make you a good cop. You know all the ins and outs.”
“Wait a minute. You can’t judge Luke purely based on his upbringing.” After the words were out of her mouth, she realized that she sounded a bit too defensive.
He leaned forward in his seat. She could tell that he was sizing her up.
“I’m sorry if I’m skeptical about Luke. I just find it really hard to believe that his father wouldn’t have killed him by now if he was really an upstanding cop.”
“Luke is still his son. And more importantly, he’s Fern’s baby. From everything I’ve researched, I think Fran has kept Luke off the table.”
“You think even though he’s gone over to the other side and sold out his family, that his mother will still protect him?”
“That’s where you have it wrong, Zach. What has Luke ever done to sell out his family? Nothing.”
“Well, he better be walled off from working this homicide. Because the Hernandez clan is definitely behind the death of Denise Landers.”
“Cut the guy a break. Shouldn’t we applaud him for stepping out of the life of crime and all the comforts that come with it?”
Zach shrugged. “I guess if I truly believed he was clean, that would be one thing.”
This wasn’t going to get them anywhere. “It doesn’t matter. I can tell you right now, I’m not going after Luke Hernandez. I think he’s a solid cop trying to do the best he can. I’d rather keep our focus on the case I’m supposed to be trying against Simon.”
“Agreed. What are you going to do now without Denise to ensure a conviction?”
“That’s the million-dollar question. We do have a videotape of Denise’s deposition testimony. But that’s never as effective as a live witness. Plus the defense will try to exclude the testimony.”
“On what basis?”
“That he lacked the opportunity for a proper cross-examination.”
“How so?”
Jessica remembered that day well. “The defense attorney cooked up a story about a personal family emergency and had to leave before he could finish his questions. He cut the deposition short, and we never rescheduled because Denise committed to being available for trial. That was a big mistake in hindsight.”
“And who is the defense attorney?”
“Mateo Tyson.”
Zach groaned loudly. “That guy is the worst.”
“But he’s a very effective lawyer who has successfully defended the Hernandez family and other criminals for years.” She rubbed her eyes as exhaustion started to set in again.
“It’s getting late. Why don’t we get you home? Once we’re there, we can talk about the threat assessment and the security part of this operation.”
“I live in a one-bedroom apartment. I don’t think that’s exactly conducive to having a bodyguard.” She didn’t like the idea of someone invading her personal space, but there was a tiny part of her that was happy that she wouldn’t be alone tonight. And that Zach would be the one protecting her. Seeing Denise’s lifeless body on that beach today shook her up even though she was desperately trying not to show it.
“I can sleep in the living room. This isn’t about me having luxury accommodations. It’s about keeping you alive. When they sent someone to scare you, that was one thing. But now that they’ve killed a person connected to your case, we have to step it up. We’ll stay at your place tonight and then regroup and talk to Agent Wilson about a safe house and any other security precautions he wants to put into place.”
“I have faith that I’ll be all right.” And she believed that in the deepest fiber of her being.
Zach narrowed his eyes at her. “Faith as in the general concept, or faith as in faith in God?”
“Faith in God.”
He nodded. “I totally understand. My faith has gotten me through some tough times in life, too.”
It was nice to hear that Zach shared the same beliefs. And she also knew he was right. Now wasn’t the time be alone. Not when the threat loomed large. “Let’s get out of here.”
“Great. I’ll drive you and have another agent take your car back to your place. From here on out, you’re not going anywhere solo.”
Jessica was quickly realizing that she was going to have to pick her battles with Zach. And this definitely wasn’t something to argue about.
When she got into his government-issued SUV, she allowed herself to take a few deep breaths and try to decompress. The past twenty-four hours had been crazy.
“Are you from Florida?” he asked.
“Yeah, I am.”
“Does your family still live here?”
The dreaded question that everyone always seemed curious about. Most people assumed it was totally innocent. But it was far from a benign question for her. Jessica figured that since they’d be working together she probably needed to be up front. “I actually don’t have a family.”
“What do you mean?”
“I grew up in the state of Florida foster care system. I was never adopted. So I don’t have any family.”
Silence filled the air for a moment. “I’m sorry—I didn’t know,” he said.
“No need to apologize. I’ve been on my own basically forever, so I’m quite used to it.”
“I feel bad for asking you.”
“Please don’t. I’d like to hear about your family,” she said.
“It’s not exactly an uplifting story, either, although it seems like nothing compared to what you went through. My dad split when I was a baby. I don’t even remember him. It was just me and my mom growing up. She had a tough time, and our relationship is rocky to say the least. We don’t talk very much. It’s a difficult situation.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. I guess we all have our baggage.” And hers just happened to weigh a hefty amount. She was relieved when he let them ride in silence. Thankfully, they weren’t far from her apartment.
Jessica was jerked out of her thoughts as Zach floored it. “What in the world are you doing?” she asked. Was he trying to be some kind of hotshot all of a sudden? That wouldn’t make any sense especially given how cautious his approach had been so far.
“I think we’ve got a tail.” He gripped the wheel tightly.
“Are you serious?” She craned her neck and took a look out the back window. It was still light out, and she could see a dark Escalade approaching them quickly from behind. This was not good.
“Hang
