Читать книгу The Girl Who Couldn't Forget - Cassie Miles - Страница 10

The petunias were dead. That was the first thing Brooke Josephson noticed when she parked at the curb. Two months ago when she’d planted the flowers, her intention was to brighten up this dull brick building and make it into a more welcoming place for Franny. Instead, the yard had become a petunia graveyard with the tortured faces of faded purple, yellow and pink blooms staring helplessly. Withered leaves reached out in silent entreaty. All they’d needed was a splash of water. August in Denver could be hot and dry, but this wasn’t the blazing Sahara.

Brooke leaped from her SUV and hurried along the sidewalk. The dead petunias were a bad omen—not enough to push her into a panic attack, but close. She had the symptoms: labored breathing, tremors, accelerated pulse and more. She paused. Slow down. Shake it off. At a more controlled pace, she proceeded toward the front door of her friend’s one-bedroom at the end of a one-story, L-shaped apartment complex.

She never should have expected Franny to take care of the plants. Her friend’s life was a wild, erratic whirl, and she’d never change. Why should she? If she was happy with chaos, so be it. Brooke loved her crazy friend like the little sister she’d never had. They even resembled each other. Of course we look alike. He chose us for our black hair and blue eyes.

It had been twelve years, but she remembered every detail. Her past was inescapable.

As she stepped onto the concrete stoop, she checked her precision quartz wristwatch. Twenty-seven minutes ago, she’d gotten Franny’s call and had responded ASAP. She’d logged off her computer, dashed to her car, checked her GPS and adjusted her route to avoid the traffic slowdown for repairs on Alameda.

And here she stood, worried and scared. But ready to save the day if need be.

She punched the doorbell and called out, “Franny, it’s me. Open up.”

Most likely, this was a lot of fuss about nothing. If so, she’d bite her tongue and wouldn’t scold. Extra caution was better than ignoring potential signs of danger, even though Brooke hated to waste time with unnecessary disruptions. Sometimes she could go a full week without leaving her house. Some people—including FBI Agent George Gimbel and her therapist—thought her behavior was borderline agoraphobic, but they didn’t understand the importance of organization. There was no such thing as being too efficient.

From inside the apartment, she heard her friend chattering in a high-pitched jumble of words. She was answered by a man’s rumbling voice. That wasn’t right! Franny didn’t date. She had no male relatives.

Brooke whipped her phone from the pocket of her khaki shorts and hit the emergency call button. Better safe than sorry. She unzipped her fanny pack and wrapped her fingers around the palm-size canister of pepper spray. “Franny, are you okay?”

She heard someone moving across the hardwood floor inside the apartment with a heavy tread; it must be the man. He was coming toward her. The pepper spray trembled in her hand. I can handle this. She had to. Nobody else would protect her and the people she loved. With the screen door open, she balanced on the balls of her feet—ready for action and glad that she’d worn sneakers instead of sandals. She braced herself. The first move would be hers.

The green-painted door was opened by a tall, dark-haired man in a suit.

Her phone squawked as the 911 operator answered, “Hello, what is your emergency?”

“You called the police,” the man said.

Though law enforcement had failed her many times, Brooke needed backup. She shouted Franny’s address at the phone and added, “We need help. Hurry.”

“That’s not necessary,” he said.

“Where’s my friend? What have you done to Franny?”

“Take it easy.” He slid his hand inside his jacket. “Everything is fine.”

Really? Then why are you reaching for a gun? She sprayed a blast of pepper spray. He dodged and threw up his arm for protection, but she knew that she’d scored a partial hit. While he winced and squinted, she darted into the apartment and positioned herself for another, more devastating blow.

“Brooke, stop!” Franny rushed from the back of the apartment. “What are you doing?”

“Taking care of this creep,” she said.

She fired a karate kick at his knee and missed. Her next attempt aimed at his groin.

Her foot shot toward him. Before it connected, he grabbed her ankle and held on. It was all she could do not to lose her balance.

He held a wallet with his credentials toward her. “FBI.”

“Let go of my leg!”

“Are you going to kick at me again?”

“Not if I don’t need to.” She brandished her pepper spray. “Don’t try anything.”

He dropped her ankle. “I ought to arrest you for assaulting a federal officer.”

“Everybody please settle down,” Franny said as she stepped between them. “Agent Sloan, you’re not going to arrest anybody. Brooke, don’t be a brat.”

Oh, this was rich. The wildly irresponsible Franny Hennessey was telling her not to misbehave. As far as Brooke knew, that badge was a fake. If he was really a fed, he should have showed his credentials the minute he opened the door. Okay, maybe that was what he tried to do. Maybe this was as much her fault as his. Still, she said, “I’m not going to apologize.”

“Don’t care.”

He glared at her through his right eye. The left squeezed shut, though the redness that came in reaction to the spray spread across his throat and stopped at his cheekbone. The blotch looked painful. “If you please,” she said, “I’d like a closer look at that badge.”

Without relinquishing his grasp on his wallet, he held his ID inches away from her nose. The documents appeared to be official. She read his name: Special Agent Justin Sloan.

She didn’t usually make mistakes like this. Assaulting a fed? She placed her hand on her chest and felt the drumming of her heartbeat. Her adrenaline was running high, which wasn’t a bad feeling, but not a good one, either. If she’d been home right now, she’d be opening mail and eating her midafternoon snack of fruit and crackers. Instead, everything was up in the air.

She turned to her friend. “Why is he here?”

“I contacted him.”

“Why?”

She shrugged. “I was trying to get ahold of Agent Gimbel. Remember him? The guy who handled our case?”

“Of course I remember.” He was a kind man who had taken a genuine interest. She hoped nothing bad had happened to him. “Why couldn’t he come?”

“Gimbel retired. The FBI office sent Sloan instead.”

He pointed to Brooke’s phone, which was still connected to an emergency operator asking questions. “Are you going to talk to her?”

This situation just got worse and worse. She’d requested emergency assistance, and she knew from past experience that nothing would divert the officers from coming to her aid. Rather than wasting time with long explanations to the dispatcher, she disconnected the call. Another rule broken.

Sloan asked, “Franny, do you have milk?”

Her ingenuous blue eyes opened wide. “Are you thirsty?”

“He wants milk to counteract the sting of the capsaicin in the pepper spray,” Brooke explained as she snapped the cover onto the small canister and returned it to her fanny pack, where she also kept a supply of medicated wipes to use in case the pepper spray got onto her fingers. She opened the package, took out a wipe and handed it to Sloan before using one on her own hands. “Water is ineffective in washing off the oil-based propylene glycol.”

“About that milk,” Sloan repeated.

“Come with me,” Franny said as she scampered barefoot toward the arched doorway leading to the kitchen. “I always have milk for the cats. Don’t worry, I don’t give them much. It’s not healthy, you know. But they do love it.”

Brooke trailed behind Special Agent Sloan and Franny, whose curly black hair bounced around her elfin face. For some unfathomable reason, she was wearing a purple sequin tiara. In her paisley-patterned yoga shorts and pink T-shirt with a sparkly unicorn on the front, she looked childlike and vulnerable. Actually, she was only four years younger than Brooke, who was twenty-six but felt like she’d already lived three lifetimes. No tiaras for her. She kept her long hair slicked back in a no-nonsense ponytail, which she twisted into a bun.

Her attention shifted to Sloan. He was tall, approximately seven inches over her five and a half feet, and he appeared to be in good physical condition. His gray suit jacket fit neatly across the wide expanse of his shoulders. There was something disturbing about the way he moved. Athletic and masculine, he seemed to exude confidence. Or was it arrogance? Either way, his presence unnerved her.

When she looked away from him, her gaze ricocheted around Franny’s small apartment, where the decor was based on clutter, half-finished projects and more clutter. Brooke counted no fewer than four cats. The table in the dining area was covered with stacks of unopened mail, multicolored scraps of fabric and a sparkling array of beaded jewelry. Beside the table was a wicker basket of unfolded laundry that a fat gray-and-white cat was using as a bed. A teetering tower of books lurked in the corner. Instead of a curtain, Tibetan prayer flags draped across the dining room window, offering an alarmingly clear view of the sidewalk outside. Any passerby could easily see into the house. The security here was even worse than her last place.

In the kitchen, dirty dishes filled one side of the double sink. Half-eaten meals were scattered across the counter. Brooke couldn’t help herself. She started washing the dishes.

“What are you doing?” Franny asked.

They’d had this conversation a hundred times before. “Left-out food attracts mice. I’ll have this cleaned up in a sec.”

“Don’t bother.” Franny laughed and pointed to a black cat and a calico. “My mousers will protect me from varmints.”

“Do any of these cats actually belong to you?”

“I don’t own them, if that’s what you mean.”

As soon as Franny moved into a neighborhood, she made a point of befriending the local feline population. Brooke never knew from whence the cats came or where they went or why they liked to hang out with her friend. Maybe they recognized a kindred spirit.

“If you’re looking for something to do, take care of him.” Franny pointed to Agent Sloan, who had found a carton of milk in the fridge. “You broke him. You should fix him.”

There was a certain amount of logic in what she said. If Franny is making sense, I must be losing my mind. Brooke directed Agent Sloan toward a straight-back chair beside a table where pots, pans and a basket full of green glass baubles took up most of the space. She took the carton from him, searched the cabinets for a clean bowl and poured the milk. While trying to find a fresh dish towel in the drawers, she said, “Take off your jacket, and be careful where you touch. The left sleeve probably has pepper spray on it.”

He removed the holster clipped to his belt and placed his gun on the table next to the baubles. Then he peeled off his jacket and folded it into a neat package, which he stuck into a paper grocery bag that Franny handed him. The striptease didn’t end there. He loosened his necktie. “I should probably take off my shirt, too.”

Her already-speeding pulse jolted into high gear. “By all means, take off the shirt. Your collar might be...compromised.”

Being careful to avoid handling the collar, he removed the short-sleeved cotton shirt. He wasn’t wearing anything underneath. His nicely muscled chest showed off his tan.

Her fingers itched with an unexpected urge to rake though his black chest hair and slide over those taut pecs. Snap out of it! True, it had been a long time since she’d been this close to a half-naked man, but she wasn’t the type to get all hot and bothered. Self-control was her middle name. With the bowl of milk and dish towel in hand, she approached the chair where he had taken a seat.

“Tilt your head up and to the right,” she said.

His gaze connected with hers and...her heart stopped. Held in suspended animation, she couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move. Her ears were ringing. This wasn’t a panic attack; it was something different, something she’d never experienced before. She blinked until her vision was clear and she found herself staring into the most fascinating eyes. They were deep set and gray with glittering facets of silver and green. His angular cheekbones matched a square jaw. His face was saved from severity by an ironic twist of his mouth. He had the kind of lips that were meant for kissing. Not that she was an expert. Her social life was only slightly more interesting than Franny’s.

Her friend spoke up. “I’ll see if I can find something for Sloan to wear.”

“Excellent idea,” Brooke said.

In an uncharacteristically clumsy manner, she swabbed the milk on the red blotches near his left ear. Excess from the dish towel dripped down his chest. She reached out with her bare hand to wipe it away. As soon as her fingers touched his flesh, a jolt of electricity traveled up her hand to her arm, then across her shoulder and down her chest, where it zapped her heart like a cardiovascular defibrillator. She jumped back. The milk spilled.

Breathlessly, she said, “No use crying over that.”

He took the bowl from her. “Maybe I should do this myself.”

“Yes, that would be easier.” Aware that they were alone in the kitchen, she stepped back. This federal agent was a clear and present danger to her mental stability. “Have you spoken to Franny about why she called the FBI?”

“I have.”

“Would you care to share that information?”

“She was trying to contact your mutual friend Layla and couldn’t reach her.” He dabbed at his cheek with the milk. “The text messages to her weren’t answered. The phone calls went straight to voice mail.”

“It’s not unusual for Layla to go off the grid, and it’s hardly a reason to call in the FBI.” Brooke eyed him suspiciously. “You’re not telling me everything, are you?”

“Franny’s fears appear to be connected to what happened twelve years ago.”

She didn’t want to hear about this but had to know. “Tell me.”

“Wait!” Franny dashed into the room with a crocheted poncho that she threw toward Sloan. She turned to Brooke. “Maybe we should forget about this. I’m feeling lots better, and I don’t want you to get all freaked out.”

Too late. Brooke was verging on a full-blown panic attack. She had to get this over with and go home. “You’ve got to tell me.”

“Are you okay? You look kind of feverish.”

“She’s right,” Sloan said. “Maybe you should sit.”

As if she needed advice from a half-naked fed? “Will you excuse us, please?”

Without waiting for an answer, she dragged her friend through the messy front room into the equally cluttered bedroom, where she closed the door. Fearing she might pass out, Brooke lowered herself onto the edge of the unmade bed, trying not to think of this mattress as a breeding ground for bacteria and dust mites. She concentrated on breathing slowly, struggling not to drown in the fierce torrents that churned inside her.

Franny sat beside her. “I was scared about how you might react. That’s why I didn’t call you first. I figured Gimbel could look into stuff and make it all better.”

But Gimbel had retired. Brooke asked, “What kind of stuff?”

“For the past couple of days, maybe a week, I’ve been getting phone calls from a number I didn’t recognize.”

“And?”

“They were weird.”

Extracting information from her was like peeling an artichoke one leaf at a time. Brooke turned her head and focused on the blue of Franny’s eyes—a color that was almost identical to her own. “Why did you think the calls were weird?”

“My voice mail picked up a couple of them. I can play them back.”

“Maybe later.” She didn’t want to spend any more time here than absolutely necessary. Either there was reason for concern or not. “For now, just tell me.”

“His voice was whispery.” Her eyes lowered, and she sucked on her lower lip. “He said that little ladies who didn’t do as they were told would be punished.”

The terrible warning—one she’d heard before—set off a screeching alarm in Brooke’s brain. No, no, no, no, I don’t want to remember. “What else?”

“My finger.” She held up her left hand. The little finger had been severed at the second joint. “He asked if I missed my finger.”

“It wasn’t him,” Brooke said firmly. “Martin Hardy is locked away in prison for life. He can never touch you again.”

“That’s what Sloan said. And he promised to check on the other girls, to make sure they were safe. That’s why I wanted you to come over to meet him.” Though tears swamped her eyes, she forced a wobbly smile. “He’s kind of gorgeous, huh?”

“I hadn’t noticed.”

“Yeah, you did. You were blushing.”

Brooke scowled as she rose from the bed and paced on the small portion of floor that wasn’t covered by a jumble of discarded clothing. Recently, she’d experienced a few odd incidents herself. Twice during the past week her car alarm had gone off, even though it was parked in the attached garage. She’d never found an explanation, but it hadn’t seemed particularly threatening until now. “Was there anything other than phone calls?”

“Should I be scared?”

“I don’t know.”

“Do you think it’s a copycat?” Her voice went high and nervous. “Our case was written up in the newspapers and online. And there’s that movie guy who wants all six of us to get together for a follow-up story.”

“His documentary is never going to happen.” She’d vowed to sue the pants off anybody who tried to take advantage of them. “Until we have some answers, you should stay at my house.”

“Why?”

Not wanting to get Franny riled up with more criticism, Brooke didn’t mention the lack of security in her apartment or the uncurtained windows that were open to public view or the fact that cats could dart in and out at will. This place was unsafe. “If something is truly wrong, we need to stick together.”

The doorbell rang, and she heard Agent Sloan cross the front room. He called out, “I’ll answer it.”

The fact that there was an armed federal agent in the other room reassured her. She pulled Franny to her feet. “Where’s your suitcase?”

“I don’t want to pack. Do I have to?”

“Not a problem. I’ve got everything at my house that you might need.” With a renewed sense of purpose and a laser focus on home, she propelled her friend through the bedroom door. “Grab your keys and let’s get out of here.”

In the front room, Brooke would have preferred to make a beeline for the exit, but Sloan and two uniformed officers blocked the way. With his holster clipped to his belt and Franny’s too-small poncho covering his shoulders, Sloan looked like a deranged outlaw. She wondered how he had explained his outfit to the cops who had arrived in response to her 911 call.

She checked her watch. Thirty-three minutes had elapsed since she’d spoken to the emergency operator. If this had been an attack by a homicidal maniac, they’d all be dead by now. Nonetheless, she thanked the officers for coming and apologized for the false alarm.

To Sloan, she said, “I’m taking Franny to my house. She’ll be safe with me. Do you plan to investigate the phone calls she received?”

“Yes,” he said curtly.

“Please keep me informed.”

Franny popped up beside them holding a black plastic garbage bag filled with the scraps and glitter from the table. Her fears seemed to have disappeared. She was beaming. Brooke envied her friend’s resilience, even though she didn’t completely believe that bubbly smile.

Before they could escape out the door, one of the uniformed officers stepped forward. “I know you,” he said. “Matter of fact, I recognize both of you with the black hair and blue eyes. You’re two of the Hardy Dolls.”

The emotions Brooke had been holding back erupted. Every muscle in her body tensed. Twelve years ago, six girls—all with black hair and sad blue eyes—had been abducted from their foster homes by a psychopath named Martin Hardy. He had held them captive in an isolated house in the mountains where they’d been shackled, drugged, starved and brutalized. He’d done unspeakable things.

“Hardy Dolls,” the cop repeated. “I’m right, aren’t I?”

She despised the demeaning nickname the press had labeled them with. Hardy Dolls sounded like the six of them were a soccer team or a rock group, instead of the cruel truth that nobody wanted to face—they were throwaway foster kids who nobody missed and nobody searched for. They’d had to save themselves.

“We’re not dolls. Not now. Not ever.”

Without another word, she turned on her heel and stormed out the front door. I never should have left my house.