same state would be diving headlong into the memories that became nightmares the moment she lay her head on the pillow at night.
Anna sucked in a deep breath. Lord, I can’t go back. I’m not strong enough to face those memories. Just setting foot back in the United States will bring it all back and I don’t want to remember!
Chewing her lip, she pondered the fact that Rocking Wave Beach was a pretty big city. Surely, with a population of a couple hundred thousand, she wouldn’t run into the killer that stalked her dreams; the one she’d allowed to nose-dive her career and almost cause her to have a nervous breakdown. For a long time, she’d hidden, bogged down by depression, despair dogging her every waking moment. It had taken a long time for her to stop wishing the bullet that had pierced her uterus and left her barren had been about a foot higher to go right through her heart.
But God had allowed her to live. By trusting Him to be faithful, to get her through that awful time, she’d beaten the depression and He’d led her to the children at the orphanage in Brazil. Children who had no mother, no father and no one to tell them they were beautiful and loved. But she’d done that and slowly she’d healed…at least she thought she had.
Until she’d been asked to return to the city that haunted her dreams.
The thought brought into clarity the image of the man she’d helped put away.
Shawn de Chastelain with the military crew cut, strong jaw, bright white teeth outlined by firm, full lips that stretched into the smile that often graced the lifestyle section of the Rocking Wave Beach newspaper. His muscular shoulders had looked like they could support the world’s burdens. He also had a heart of evil, the soul of a killer.
Only he’d never been convicted of the murder she’d witnessed. The FBI had gotten him on tax evasion but not murder. Yet. She shuddered, pressed a hand to her abdomen and prayed for the strength to do this. Prayed for the courage to face her fear and defeat it.
Turning off her thoughts, she finally left the car and entered the front door to the orphanage. Instead of stopping by her office, she went straight for her small suite of rooms located just down the hall. Stepping inside, she paused and looked around. Nothing out of place, everything organized just so. She grabbed a can of soda from the minifridge.
Booting up her computer, she was relieved to see the Internet connection giving off a strong signal. With all the storms out here, the connection was intermittent at best. A few clicks brought up her homepage which was the Rocking Wave Beach News. She straightened. More news about de Chastelain. He was being released…soon. No exact date yet.
Anna took another sip and gripped the can so hard she crunched it. The crackling noise and cold liquid running down her fingers jerked her from her memories. Breathing hard, she set the can down, wiping her hand on her jeans, ignoring the stickiness.
What had happened to that evidence she’d found? She’d lost track of how many times she’d silently asked herself that question. Her colleague Justin didn’t have an answer, either. The FBI agents who’d come in behind her should have found that memory card with no trouble. The sting operation had gone off like clockwork…at least up to the point where she’d been shot and they’d realized someone had slipped through the cracks. So, who had messed up? Justin didn’t know, and she was going to drive herself insane running it over and over in her mind.
Gritting her teeth, she shut down the computer. It didn’t matter. She’d done her job, paid the price for doing it. She was in a different line of work now, didn’t have to worry about men who killed, didn’t have to wonder when she stepped outside whether a bullet would pierce her flesh. She definitely didn’t miss the stress and tension of the job…or the adrenaline high, the satisfaction of a job well done, the knowledge she’d made a difference in keeping someone safe for one more day. She didn’t miss it at all.
Much. Terribly much. Well, maybe a little. If she could get over her fear…
She was going back for Paulo. Just Paulo. Because she would need to be there to sign papers and offer him love and support. And that was it. Period.
“How’s he doing?” Anna asked as she settled onto the love seat beside Lucas, two glasses of lemonade fresh from the fridge clutched in each hand. She ignored the pitter-patter her heart made whenever she was close to him or thought about him or pictured them together at some point in the future or…Someday, maybe…Uh-uh. Don’t go there, Anna.
Ella, one of the orphanage staff who’d volunteered to go along as an extra pair of hands, snoozed on the pullout sofa off to the side. The plane cruised smoothly through the clouds at thirty-five thousand feet, due to land at Rocking Wave Beach Airport in approximately one hour. They’d flown all night, the two pilots taking turns sleeping and flying. She’d just had a nap in the queen-size bed at the back of the plane and felt refreshed in spite of what lay ahead.
Lucas looked up and took the glass of lemonade. “Thanks. He’s sleeping right now.”
“He’s such a special kid. He’s been a real trouper. I just hope…” She bit her lip, looking down at the plush carpet.
“Yeah, me, too.” Lucas set the glass on the end table, rising to check Paulo’s vitals one more time. “An ambulance will be waiting at the airport for us. I’ll get him loaded on then get a rental car while you and Ella ride with him to the hospital. I’ll meet you all there.”
“Don’t you want to ride with him? I don’t mind getting the car.”
“No, I have something I need to take care of. He’ll be in good care. My friend Mark Priestly is the heart surgeon on this case. He’s going to be in the ambulance waiting on us.”
Anna looked curious about what he needed to take care of, but didn’t ask, just nodded.
Slightly less than an hour later, they were on the ground, and rolling Paulo into the ambulance. Lucas greeted Mark warmly. “Hey buddy, how are you? I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you doing this.”
The tall, slenderly built doctor had a head of shaggy blond curls and smiling hazel eyes. He looked more like a surfer than the top-notch, highly in demand surgeon that he was. He grabbed Lucas in a bear hug. “Man, it’s been forever.” Concern touched his eyes. “You back for good?”
Lucas shrugged, ignoring the meaning behind the question. “We’ll see.”
“Yeah, and we’ll talk, too.”
Lucas motioned to Anna. “This is the lady I was telling you about. Anna Freeman, this is Mark Priestly.”
Mark turned his smile to Anna, holding out a hand graced with slender yet strong fingers. “Nice to meet you. You’re as beautiful as Lucas said.”
Anna blushed, which Lucas found extremely charming. He shot his buddy a glance that said watch it, then introduced Ella, who smiled shyly and shook the doctor’s hand.
Anna, Mark and Ella climbed into the ambulance and Mark turned professional in the blink of an eye, checking Paulo’s vitals, reading through his chart and asking a dozen questions. Once he was satisfied he waved Lucas on. “We’ll see you there.” Lucas watched the ambulance pull away.
Sighing, he shivered, tugging his leather jacket tighter around himself. Gripping his cell phone, he wondered if he should even bother checking in with his family. After all, it had been close to three years since he’d even spoken to his father. Three
