“Thanks.” Reaching her in three long strides, Boyd captured her by the upper arm. “Shall we leave before they change their minds?”
She considered telling him that Dominic was happy to see her go, but decided that keeping silent would be prudent. She'd never seen Boyd so angry. His hold was like a vice as they followed the pathway around to the front of the house. Reaching her car, he opened the passenger door. “Give me your keys.”
Obeying demurely, she then climbed into the passenger seat. As he slammed the door shut and strode around to the driver's side, she looked back at the house to see Vince watching them from the front window. Bitterness swept through her. Her plan to bring him down had failed. He'd won again.
They were two miles from the estate before Boyd was able to control his emotions enough to trust himself to speak. “What the hell did you think you were doing going to Garduchi's compound? The man's made it clear that he is barely tolerating you.”
The grim set of his jaw told her that his anger was still strong. “I'm sorry if I caused you concern,” she said meekly.
Pulling sharply over to the side of the road, he slammed on the brakes and turned to look at her. “Concern? You scared me half to death. You and I both know Garduchi would like to see you dead.”
She read the love in his eyes. She'd never expected to find anyone who would care so deeply for her. And she had been willing to die for him. But that didn't change anything. Turning away from him, she stared out the front windshield.
“Why did you go there?” he demanded.
“I went to ask for my aunt's body. I thought if I could get it, it might provide evidence as to who the shooter was. Most professionals have some kind of trademark. Then if we could trace the killer, he might be willing to admit Garduchi paid him and then we'd have Garduchi. And since I would have helped get him, maybe your fellow agents and your family would be willing to accept me.”
“You don't need to get yourself killed for my family to accept you,” he growled.
Deciding that arguing with him was useless, Katrina simply sat back in her seat and remained silent.
With a final scowl in her direction, Boyd pulled back onto the road and drove them to her home. As they entered, he said, “Pack a suitcase.”
She looked at him questioningly.
“Pack,” he ordered.
“There's no reason for me to run. I've told Garduchi I'm leaving town and he's satisfied.”
“We're not running away from Garduchi. I'm taking you to meet my family.”
Fear caused her to pale. “I don't think that's such a good idea.”
“I think it's an excellent one. Now pack.”
She considered protesting again but stopped herself. Maybe it was a good idea. He'd see how his family reacted and have to admit she was right.
Chapter 14
W
ith an air of resignation, Katrina climbed into the driver's seat as Boyd put their bags in the trunk. This trip was not going to be fun, but to prove her point, it was necessary.
Boyd was climbing into the passenger's seat when his cellular phone rang.
“Agent Logan, this is Agent Webber from the Kansas City office. They flew some of us in as reinforcements.” The woman on the other end of the line identified herself. “We've had a break in the Garduchi case and we'd like you to be in on it.” Voices sounded in the background. “Hold on a minute,” Agent Webber requested. A moment later, she added, “If Officer Polenari is with you, she might like to come along, too.”
It was about time something went their way, Boyd thought “She is with me and I know she'd like to be included.”
Katrina saw his quirky smile. Whatever was happening was good news.
“Where are you now?” Agent Webber asked.
“Officer Polenari's house.”
Boyd heard Agent Webber telling someone his location. A moment later a man's voice came on line and began giving directions to a farmhouse on the outskirts of a small town several miles north of St. Louis. “Should take you about an hour to get here,” the man finished. “Better get moving. You don't want to miss the fun.”
“Right,” Boyd replied.
“So what's up?” Katrina asked as soon as he pressed the end button.
Boyd's grin broadened. “There's been a break in the case. Let's go. Take 270 to 70 west.”
“What kind of a break?” she asked, backing out of the drive.
“Agent Webber wasn't specific but the implication was that there's a good chance it will put Garduchi behind bars.”
The hope for a future with him was reborn. “I'll keep my fingers crossed.”
As she guided the car down the street, Boyd touched her cheek caressingly. “And you should note that the fact that you were invited along proves you were wrong about my fellow agents not trusting you.”
“Well, maybe some are a little more open-minded than others,” she conceded, her hope nurtured further.
Following the directions Boyd was given, close to an hour later they arrived at a large three-story farmhouse set in the midst of several acres of wooded land. Katrina parked beside the two cars already there.
As they mounted the steps, a slender woman with long, full red hair opened the door and stepped aside to allow them to enter. “Everyone's in the front room,” she said, nodding toward a door to their right.
“You look familiar,” Katrina said, passing the woman, then pausing in the hall for a longer inspection. “Have we met befâ?” Her words died sharply. The hair was wrong. A
wig.
From a distance, it had obscured the woman's features but up close, Katrina recognized their greeter as the maid she'd noticed lingering in the background on her last visit to Vince's estate. She'd been surprised that he'd allowed a lesser employee to be present. Now she realized that this woman wasn't a maid. The ice that suddenly glistened in her dark eyes told Katrina this was one of Vince's enforcers.
Boyd read the abrupt panic on Katrina's face and went for his gun.
“Relax and no one will get hurt,” a man's voice ordered with cold threat, stopping Boyd in midmotion.
Katrina recognized the voice and her blood ran cold. They'd walked into a trap. “I should have suspected something was wrong when I was invited along,” she muttered, looking past Boyd to see Louey approaching from wherever he had been lurking on their arrival.
Boyd moved closer to her, placing a protective arm around her. “In case you've forgotten, Katrina is under Vince's protection,” he reminded their two captors. “Besides, she doesn't have any knowledge that could prove profitable to either of you.”
“Inside,” Louey ordered.
Braced to act on any chance to escape, Katrina and Boyd grudgingly obeyed.
Dominic Ruzito was waiting for them in the front room. He motioned toward two, straight-back wooden chairs placed in the center of the room. “Please, be seated.” His icy tone belied the politeness of his words letting them know this wasn't a request.
“I thought I was to be allowed to leave town.” Katrina said easing herself into the chair. “Or is Vince's word worth nothing these days?”
“Maybe Vince doesn't know about this.” Boyd's gaze leveled on Dominic. “From what I've heard, your father-in-law is as cold-blooded as they come but he prides himself on keeping his word.” Warning entered his voice. “You go against him and you could get burned.”
Dominic continued to eye them both coldly. “His word was given when he believed Katrina was telling him the truth about knowing nothing that could cause him some unpleasantness.”
“I don't know anything,” Katrina spit back. “If I did, he'd already be behind bars.”
Dominic raised an eyebrow skeptically, “If you know nothing that would interest the FBI, then why did Agent Logan come swooping down out of the sky to rescue you?”
“So he's a little overly protective.”
“That is just the point. We were under the impression that you were no longer of any interest to the FBL That Agent Logan is still watching over you causes concern to both Vince and myself. What was stolen has been returned and we have been assured that no copies were made.”
The malicious glimmer in his eyes told Katrina something she had suspected but had not wanted to think about. “Your killer tortured my aunt before she died,” she ancused between clenched teeth. “I hope you, he, Vince...the whole lot of you, burn in Hell.”
“You should be hoping that you don't meet the same fate as your aunt. Besides, the hitter wasn't cruel. Leona never could stand pain. The mere threat of it, caused her to tell him everything. At least that is what we believed.” His gaze bore into her. “What do you know about Vince that makes you continue to be of importance to the FBI?”
Her chin stiffened with defiance. “Nothing. I wish I did, but I don't.”
His expression of disbelief mocked her denial. “If you know nothing, then why is Agent Logan still protecting you?”
The realization that Boyd's love for her had placed his life in danger shook her to the core. She couldn't bear the thought that harm would come to him because of her. “He wants to marry me.”
Dominic looked at Boyd, amusement replacing the ice in his eyes. “You actually want to marry her?”
Boyd met his amusement with cold disdain. “Yes.”
Dominic's amusement vanished as quickly as it had appeared. For a long moment, he regarded Boyd in a stony silence, then said, “I thought the FBI frowned on people using their equipment for personal business.”
“They do. But when I'd found out where she'd gone, I wasn't going to let a few regulations stop me.”
Again Dominic considered Boyd's words in silence, then said, “Sources I have been able to trust in the past have assured me that the FBI has no further interest in Katrina.” After another pause, he added, “I believe you. And you have my sympathy. Katrina is a difficult woman. Myself, I prefer a wife who understands that the husband is the head of the family and should be obeyed. I doubt very much that Katrina believes that.”
“I like strong women,” Boyd returned.
Dominic rewarded this declaration with a patronizing shake of his head. “You are a glutton for punishment. However, since Katrina's love life is of no concern to Vince, I have no reason to kill either of you.” He smiled patronizingly at Katrina. “You see Vince does have a benevolent side. He doesn't like to see people die without purpose.”
With difficulty, Katrina bit back a sarcastic response. She would not risk placing Boyd's life in any more jeopardy than she already had.
Dominic's attention spread to both of them. “I hope you will be prudent and not mention our little visit. If you do, it will only cause embarrassment to you.” He lifted his hands to show that he was wearing gloves. “There will be no evidence that I or any of my associates were ever here and we can all produce witnesses who will place us in St. Louis all day.”
His expression became mockingly innocent “Unfounded accusations from the two of you will only look as if Katrina is seeking revenge for her aunt's death, which she, mistakenly of course, blames on Vince and because she cannot get him, she has gone after me. And you, Agent Logan, will appear to be going along with her because you're in love with her. In the end, you could both find yourselves discredited.”
Katrina. glowered at him. “Someday, you'll make a mistake.”
Dominic turned to Boyd. “I strongly suggest you reconsider your choice of women before you are led to an early grave.” This warning hanging in the air, he strode out of the house.
“Lucky you,” the fake female FBI agent said, holding a gun on them while the others exited. “You'll get to see the sunrise tomorrow.” Then emptying Boyd's gun, she put the bullets in her pocket and keeping her weapon aimed at them, backed out.
Knowing there was nothing they could do, Katrina. and Boyd watched from the window as the woman dropped Boyd's gun in the front seat of Katrina's car, then drove away with the others.
As the cars disappeared from view, Katrina broke the silence between them, “You could have been killed because of me. I am not merely a threat to your reputation and career but to your life.”
Boyd heard the horror in her voice and guessed where this was leading. “The possibility of getting killed is something I face daily in my job,” he countered.
“Well you're not going to face it because of me.”
His hands closed around her upper arms and he looked hard into her face. “I'm not the kind of man who runs at the least little bit of trouble.”
She twisted free, furious that he didn't recognize the dangerousness of the situation. “The least little bit of trouble! You call this the least little bit of trouble?”
“We survived without a scratch.”
Refusing to argue with him, she strode out of the house and climbed in behind the wheel of the car.
Sliding into the passenger seat, Boyd looked at his watch. “We missed our flight.”
“Your
flight,” Katrina corrected, her inner vision filling with the image of him lying dead on the floor of the farmhouse because of her. “I'm going home, calling Captain Drake and quitting my job. Then I'm going to put my house up for sale and leave town just like I promised Vince I would.”
Boyd smiled with purpose. “Good. You'll like Texas.”
Her jaw tensed even more. “I am not going to Texas.”
“Where do you have in mind?”
“I'll throw a dart at the map.”
“Then I guess I'll have to learn to like wherever the dart hits.”
“You aren't invited,” she said curtly.
Boyd leaned back in his seat, his manner that of a man staking a claim. “We Logans are one-woman men. You're my woman. Where you go, I go.”
Frustration swept through her and, hitting the brake, she turned to look at him. “I'm trying to do what's best for you. Can't you understand that?”
“What's best for me is to have you by my side.”
“My aunt drugged you. You were nearly killed by your own partner. You've been held at gunpoint and your life was threatened. Isn't that enough for you?”
“This will give us something to tell our grandchildren.”
Katrina shook her head at his stubbornness and pressed on the gas. For the rest of the ride back to St. Louis she allowed a silence to hang between them. There was no reason to continue their argument. She was determined to push him out of her life before their association caused him harm and nothing he said was going to stop her. When they reached her home, she popped the trunk. “Get your satchel and be on your way.”
Climbing out, he slammed down the lid of the truck. “You're not getting rid of me that easily.”
“I could never live with myself if something happened to you because of me.” Her voice turned harsh with plea. “Take Dominic's advice. Go.” Her head beginning to pound too violently to stand there and argue with him, she reopened the trunk, pulled her bag out and strode into the house. Dropping the bag on the floor of the living room, she phoned Drake.
“I'm sorry about your aunt,” he said, recognizing her voice immediately. “But she was involved with some very nasty people.”
She noticed that he didn't ask when she would be returning to work. “I warned her she should cooperate with the authorities.” Even though she doubted he would believe her, she wanted him to know she'd done all she could to get Leona to testify.