Slow Hands (17 page)

"I won't stay," he said, taking her keys from her hand. "Just let me check your apartment."

Unlocking the door, he did a quick walk-through. "All clear," he announced. "Can I do anything before I leave?"

She rubbed her forehead. "No. Thanks."

He moved to the door. "We'll talk tomorrow. If you need me, call my cell phone."

"You... you're going out?" While she didn't want him staying with her, she didn't want him anywhere else either.

"I'm going to check the halfway house," he said softly. "I should be back within an hour. I'll come check on you, if you'd like."

Her cheeks flushed. "No. I'll be fine."

Alec stood outside her door until he heard the dead bolt and security chain slide into place.

Stopping momentarily in his apartment, he grabbed a flashlight. He didn't like the thought of leaving Keira, but he had to go check on Griggs.

The halfway house was dark when Alec drove by, only four cars were in the parking lot, including Beau's. No battered black pickups with paint scrapes matching Keira's car.

Still, he circled the property several times before parking and watching from the vacant building, wishing he'd catch Ian Griggs sneaking in or out Or his slimy little friend, Beau.

All remained quiet.

In the morning, Alec would have Ostman check the house records to see if Griggs had indeed been accounted for that night Alec also wanted to know if Griggs had made any other friends, besides Beau, at the house. Anyone who might cover for him. help him.

Convicts didn't make friends, per se, but the criminal honor code did allow favors to be bought and sold. With two million stashed away. Griggs could buy a lot of sordid favors.

And while Alec had a copy of Griggs's work schedule, which days and what hours he was scheduled at the gas station, what he needed was a similar schedule for Beau Watson.

When Alec returned to his apartment a short time later, he was unable to sleep. He moved about in the dark, restless.

The harder he tried not to think about it, the more his mind replayed the officer's description of the accident. That the women hadn't been killed was miraculous.

While Keira might very well have imagined seeing Griggs at the wrestling match earlier, there was no doubt in Alec's mind about who was behind the accident. Ian Griggs had sworn in prison to extract vengeance for his brothers' deaths.

Why didn't the bastard just get his damn money and run? Hell, Alec would help him retrieve it. At least initially...

If Alec could catch Griggs with the money, he'd be busted for possession of stolen property, which would violate his parole and get him back behind bars.

Alec would also do what he could to make sure Griggs got the book thrown at him for every conceivable charge, to make certain he stayed in prison a very long time.

Because as long as Ian Griggs was alive, Keira would be in danger. And Alec wasn't always going to be there, watching over her shoulder.

He frowned at the thought.

When this job was done, he'd go back to Seattle, to another assignment. Typically, he looked forward to a new job. Undercover operations suited his workaholic tendencies, fit well with his single lifestyle.

So why did the thought of
this
job ending seem so ... unsatisfying?

He paced from room to room. Was seeing Keira again what made him feel restless?

Moving to the bedroom window, he climbed onto the fire escape.
He just wanted to check on her.

He tried her window, perturbed to find it unlocked. What would it take to get her to remember to lock these? Maybe he needed to weld the damn things shut.

He shoved the window open and whispered her name so he wouldn't startle her if she was awake.

When she didn't respond he poked his head inside, his eyes seeking her bed.

The slight form didn't move, but she mumbled lightly in her sleep. By the way her sheets were tangled, he guessed that she was having a fitful night.

He sighed and stepped through the window. In moments, he was stripped down to skivvies.

He was already hard. Not that it made a difference. As much as he desired her, he knew he couldn't let himself get involved. It was wrong on so many levels, he didn't even want to contemplate it.

He looked at her small silhouette, his eyes following the full thrust of her breast, the curve of her hip. His groin tightened uncomfortably with need. He welcomed the ache.

In a warped sense, his denial was punishment for past deeds. Holding her and not
having
her was a painful form of self-flagellation.

Climbing into the bed, he touched her shoulder, softly calling her name.

With a cry of confusion, she came up from her dream. She blinked in sleepy recognition, then snuggled up to his side.

She wore a short tank top and panties. Alec moved her onto his chest, slid his hands under her shirt, skimming his palms down her smooth skin. She rubbed her nose, yawning, and fell back into a deep sleep.

Alec kissed her head, hugged her tight, and fell asleep himself.

Chapter Nine

Keira
awoke alone.

Instinctively she knew Alec wasn't in her apartment. No smell of coffee. No scent of male.

She remembered his moving her off his chest, onto the mattress. He'd cuddled and kissed her, whispered something about seeing her later.

As much as she hated to admit it, she had slept better in his arms. She'd been having awful nightmares, claustrophobic dreams of suffocating, of being burned alive. While Griggs laughed.

But as soon as Alec had climbed into her bed, the macabre images vanished. She'd slept peacefully. Maybe her subconscious felt safe enough with him around to shut down.

Too bad her libido hadn't shut down.

Twice during the night, she'd awoken with thoughts of making love to Alec. Hot, steamy fantasies of slow hands, wicked touches. Her body melted at the recollection.

Both times she'd felt his thick shaft heavy against her belly, had ached to touch him. With her hands. And her mouth. To encourage him to touch back—with his hands, his mouth. She'd been wet. On fire. Trembling with the memories of their past.

Alec had been a superb lover. Not that she'd had a lot to compare to back then. He'd been her first. He'd been special. He'd been patient, considerate.
Daring.

Alec had taught her how to seek pleasure, encouraged her to accept it. He'd also let her pleasure him, taught her the magic of receiving joy by giving it. Their lovemaking had been wild and uninhibited.

She shivered in recall.

She knew Alec would renew their physical relationship if she gave the word. Yet something held her back.

A lot actually. At one point in her life—ten years ago—she'd have done anything to have Alec Dempsey.

Now...

Well, now it was a muddy jumble. Did she want him or not?

Not if it would hurt.

And it would hurt eventually. When he left.

With a sigh, she slowly eased out of the bed. Her neck and back were sore reminders of the accident. A hot shower would feel good.

Halfway to the bathroom her phone rang. She crawled across the mattress to grab it.

'This is Martha. I'm at the office."

Keira closed her eyes, ordering her pulse to calm. She'd expected it to be Alec. "What are you doing in?"

"I came by to drop off the work I took home last night. And while I was there, a call came in from the contractor at Hot Springs. Vandals hit the site last night. Wants to know if you can send a crew up."

Keira frowned. Unfortunately this type of thing wasn't uncommon. What surprised her was that vandals usually picked easier targets. The site was fenced and fairly secure.

"Call a couple of the guys. Anybody that wants overtime should be there in thirty minutes."

Keira hung up and called Franny, eager to know her friend suffered no delayed injuries after their accident.

"I've got a bruise from the seat belt. Damn thing worked well," Franny said. "You going car shopping today?"

The last thing Keira wanted to do was look at new cars. She wasn't in the mood to deal with salesmen. Or her insurance company. "For now, I'll use one of the trucks from work."

"Well, be careful! You might not like Alec telling you what to do, but this time I have to agree with him: Keep someone with you."

"That really helped last night."

"I meant a
male.
Someone with a weenie, not someone who acts like one," Franny said. "My money says Griggs is basically a chicken. You and I don't scare him, but he might think twice about showing his ass with some real muscle around."

Alec spent the day following Ian Griggs.

Actually, he spent most of it sitting in his car, doing nothing, because Griggs didn't leave the halfway house until almost ten o'clock. Then he reported to the gas station for work. According to his schedule, he'd be there until four.

Ostman did some checking, and, according to the house records, both Griggs and Beau had been in their quarters Friday night when Keira's accident occurred. The lack of solid leads left Alec frustrated.

When he got no answer at her apartment, he called Keira on her cell phone. He could tell by the background noise she was in her truck. She also wasn't alone.

"Thought you'd sleep in since it was Saturday," Alec said.

"Job site was vandalized. I'm taking a crew up to assess damage."

He frowned. "In Hot Springs? Want me to meet you there?"

"No. I've got Ray, Tommy, and Byron with me."

"Will you call me when you're through?"

Silence greeted him. Then Keira said, "We'll see," and hung up. He knew she resented the intrusion, knew she was still angry over Ostman's deception.

At that moment, the homing device on Beau's car indicated movement.

Beau didn't have as strict a curfew as Griggs did and was allowed some unsupervised time. Alec watched the screen on his laptop. Where was Beau going?

Easing his car into gear, he took off.

Beau spent two hours driving in circles around the county. He stopped once to drive through a fast-food place. And a second time for gas.

While Beau's meanderings seemed aimless, Alec did notice that he passed Culverleaf Park several times. In fact, when Alec checked the route on the map, he noticed Beau had circled the entire park boundary three times. Too much for coincidence.

Was he scoping something out for Griggs? Had Griggs taken on a partner? Alec made a note to get some park topography maps.

When Beau returned to the halfway house, Alec went back to the gas station to check on Griggs. He parked in an alley, behind a large commercial trash container, and climbed out to stretch.

An hour passed, minutes oozing slower than frozen molasses, reminding him why he hated surveillance work. He watched the station and tried not to think about how hot it was.

A short time later, a familiar-looking truck pulled into the gas station.

Alec sat forward, watched as the driver apparently fumbled with something on the seat. He squinted against the glare. That looked like Willis's old red Ford—the same one he'd had for over twenty years.

The truck's door opened. Willis Morgan climbed out, rifle in hand.

"Shit!" Alec started his car, jammed it into
drive
, and sped off toward the station.

By the time he got there, Willis was already inside.

Griggs was behind the counter, his back to the wall, both hands in the air. Griggs had the phone clenched tightly in one hand.

Alec could hear a voice from the phone, but not what was being said.

"You don't want to do this," Alec said calmly.

"The hell I don't. I heard he attacked Keira at the graveyard," Willis said. "And I got twenty bucks says he was behind her car wreck last night."

"You got no proof of either, old man. Ask Dempsey." Griggs nodded toward Alec. "I'm sure Keira told him the sheriff came to see me."

Alec ignored him. "Give me the gun, Willis."

"Bet your granddaughter's behind this," Griggs taunted. "She's out to get me. Wants me bad."

A muscle in Griggs's cheek flinched as Willis drew back the bolt to chamber a round. "Go ahead. Shoot me."

Alec took a step closer to Willis. "I know it's tempting, but you shoot him, you go to jail. And where does that leave Keira?"

Willis blinked, hesitated, which was all the opening Alec needed. "You're all the family she's got. Don't do this."

Seconds ticked by, the air explosive. Finally, Willis lowered the rifle. Griggs dropped his arms.

"Don't make me come back here," Willis said. "Next time you won't be so lucky."

Two sheriff's patrol cars pulled up outside simultaneously, lights flashing. Alec knew whoever Griggs had been talking to on the phone must have called in an alarm.

Griggs grinned and quickly raised his hands. "Help!" he yelled, as the deputies approached.

Willis shook his head in disgust and handed his rifle to the first deputy.

"Afternoon, Bob. Carl. It ain't loaded. Just delivering a message."

Griggs's face turned red as he lowered his hands once again. "Isn't there a law against threatening people like that? How was I supposed to know it wasn't loaded?"

"If I wanted to shoot you, you wouldn't be standing there whining right now," Willis spat.

Carl Winters looked pointedly at Alec, then at the other deputy. "Take 'em down to the station. I'll get the statement there."

Willis pointed to Alec. "The boy didn't do anything."

"He's a witness," Carl said.

Willis ducked out of the door, but not before swapping glances with Griggs. Alec didn't miss the exchange. Griggs had been smiling.

The deputy let Willis drive his truck to the station.

Alec followed and sat patiently while Willis gave his side of the story. Willis recounted the events exactly as Alec had observed.

When questioned about his presence, Alec claimed coincidence. "I drove by and spotted Willis getting out of the truck with the rifle."

Carl Winters came in just then, shaking his head. "Willis, you know better than to pull a fool stunt like that."

Willis sat forward. "Would you have done any different if it were your kin?"

"Much as I'd have wanted to, I can't." Carl pointed to his badge. "This star means I have to uphold the law. Equally. And Griggs wants to press charges."

"Maybe I shouldn't have left my bullets at home," Willis grumbled. "Could have made it worth his time."

Carl sat in a creaking chair and thunked his head with the heel of his hand. "God, you're bullheaded. I have to charge you with something. Public display of a firearm is probably the weakest thing I can come up with."

"I'll post bond," Alec said.

Willis nodded. "I'm good for it." Then he turned back to Carl. "If that's it, can we hurry it up? I'm meeting Lacy at the lodge. Gotta beat the crowd. Tonight's meat loaf."

Alec talked with Carl while the other deputy processed Willis's bond agreement.

"I didn't want to mention this in front of Willis. God knows that old fart is crazy when it comes to his granddaughter—but Griggs accused Keira of putting Willis up to threatening him today," Carl said. "Griggs wanted to file a complaint against her. I told him there was no evidence to support it, but I'm seeing a pattern here. He's out to implicate Keira, get to her any way he can."

Carl grew silent when Willis walked up. Alec exchanged glances with the deputy. Both men understood that Griggs was also trying to make himself look innocent by making Keira look guilty.

Willis frowned as Carl warned him against approaching Griggs again, then walked with Alec to the parking lot.

"I appreciate what you did in there," Willis began. "But it doesn't make up for what you did to my granddaughter ten years ago."

"Nothing does."

Willis climbed into his truck. "And I don't think Keira needs to know about this little incident today."

Alec met Willis's gaze and nodded. "She won't hear about it from me."

He made it back to his surveillance point just in time to see Griggs leave the station. The conversation with Carl replayed in Alec's mind. Griggs's pressing charges of any kind against Keira was especially repulsive since Griggs had never even been charged with his attack on Keira. And certainly, Griggs knew that.

After following him to the halfway house, Alec called Keira.

He was eager to talk with her and see how things had gone at the vandalized job site.

He was surprised to reach her as she was leaving her office. "You're back already? How bad was it?"