“I’m sorry, son.” Albert placed a hand on his shoulder. “He trained you, didn’t he?”

“Yes. I thought it was bad enough it was one of my own men, but Rick? Rick?” Dante ran a hand down his face, rubbing his eyes.

“We still don’t know it’s him for sure.” Bob’s tone was gentle. “They didn’t say a name.”

Rage shot straight out of Dante’s heart, into his arm, coursing its way through his veins. Dante slammed his fist into the steering wheel. Then he did it again, and again. He cursed his way through every terrible word he knew. He turned to look at his uncle, and he knew his anger burned in his eyes as his uncle shrunk back from him.

“Rick is in charge of the entire Witness Inspectors office. He’s the longest serving Marshal here. He’s the only person who has led that training session in seven years. He looks forward to it every year. He talks about it all the time.” Dante’s voice rose in pitch and speed with every other word. “It can’t be anyone else.”

Bob nodded, looking away, out the windshield, into the distance.

“Dante, I know this is a shock for you, but don’t take it out on your uncle. This is a bloody business. If Rick is the mole, then all of the witnesses here are in danger. Laurie’s life will continue to be in danger until both he and Kaimi are put behind bars. I’m afraid you have to put your feelings about this aside. You have to focus on what we came here to do.”

There was something kind in his father’s eyes that made Dante bite back the response that leapt to his tongue. Dante thought about what he said for a few minutes. He turned to sit forward in his seat, just staring at the pavement in front of them.

“I’m sorry.” Dante glanced at his uncle askance.

“Don’t worry about it kid.” His uncle gave him a faint smile, clapping him on the shoulder. “It’s been a hell of a day.”

Dante nodded agreement. With heavy movements, he turned the key in the ignition and drove back to the motel in complete silence. Dante dissected every word that had come out of Kaimi’s mouth. He thought about Rick, and he began to see everything Rick had ever done in a new light. He thought of Laurie, and he began to wish like hell she was there. She knew how to console him; she would know what to say to ease the blow he’d just received. He looked down the road to see the faint lights of the motel in the distance, but his thoughts were thousands of miles away.

***

Laurie

“Pregnant?” Laurie asked.

The doctor nodded. The doctor was in his late forties, and silver hair was beginning to show at his temples. His smile was genuine, lighting up his green eyes, even though he probably delivered this same news to dozens of women a month. Laurie was less than thrilled to be one of those women.

“Pregnant? How? How could this happen? I’ve been using birth control. I’ve been using it every day since I was seventeen!”

“Birth control isn’t one hundred percent effective.” The doctor gave her a knowing smile.

The man seemed very sweet, kind, and gentle, but right now, Laurie wanted to throttle him.

“But how? Oh God. What am I going to do?” She moaned as she covered her eyes, her head in her hands.

“I know this might not have been expected, but a baby is an indescribable joy.” He patted her shoulder in what he obviously assumed was a reassuring gesture.

Laurie just nodded her head, her shocked expression still etched across her face.

“Now, I’m going to go get you some pamphlets and a referral for an OB/GYN. I’ll send in your mother and friend, so you can tell them the good news yourself.” The doctor hummed his way out of the door, leaving Laurie alone.

She sat on the exam table, huddled in the little white gown, holding her nauseous stomach. Dante was going to kill her. He was going to be so angry. She had forced him to flee Hawaii because of a man who wanted her dead. He lost his job because of her, and now she was pregnant. She had ruined his life—his entire life.

Fat tears coursed down Laurie’s cheeks when Emma opened the door to the exam room. Laurie stared at the wall in shock and horror. She let go of the little white gown she had in a death grip.

“Laurie? What is it, honey? What did the doctor say?” Emma asked, as she and Gabriella rushed into the room.

“I’m…” Her eyes glazed over. “I’m pregnant. Dante’s going to hate me.”

Laurie buried her face in her hands. She heard Emma suck in a breath.

“Pregnant? I’m going to have a grandchild?” Emma’s face broke out into a smile, as she hugged Laurie.

“He’s going to hate me.” Laurie grabbed her shoulders and gave her a shake.

“No, no, he won’t, Laurie. My son loves you. He will love this baby too,” Emma crooned into Laurie’s hair.

Laurie doubted that. She looked to Gabriella, who was also beaming at her.

“I know it’s unexpected, but the baby news will make Dante happy.” Gabriella squeezed her shoulder. “You’ll see.”

Laurie took in a deep breath and expelled it slowly. She could only hope they were right. She brushed her tears away. There wasn’t anything she could do now but wait for Dante to come back.

God, how was she going to tell him? How was she going to go back into the Marshals Service’s custody as a pregnant woman? What if she went into labor on the stand? Oh, God. She could feel her blood pressure skyrocketing. She took deep breath, after deep breath, as she climbed off the examining room table and pulled on her clothes. She would just take everything one minute at a time.

CHAPTER TWENTY

Dante

Dante crouched in the closet by the fireplace, hardly able to move or breathe. He had modified the closet yesterday, taking out the shelves and the cleaning supplies. They had returned to the safe house earlier in the week, after having gathered all of the details regarding the meeting between Rick and Kaimi.

Once they returned, they began making preparations for the meeting. They had to return every detail to the way it was before they set foot in the house. Rick knew the safe house almost as well as Dante. They couldn’t risk tipping him off before they had a chance to apprehend him.

Dante modified the closet so he could stand in there. By leaving the door cracked a fraction of an inch, he could see who entered the house.

Albert set up recording devices.

Bob made arrangements so they could make a quick exit that night.

They hid early in the evening, in case Rick showed up early. Bob covered the landing upstairs, and Dante’s father was in the pantry in the kitchen. Dante thought about using the safe room, but he wouldn’t be able to watch Rick enter from a protected vantage point. The door was also too wieldy to allow him to attack quickly. No, they all had to be ready for a fight. If not from Rick, then from Kaimi and his men.

Dante’s heart beat in rapid-fire succession, adrenaline rushing through his veins. For the hundredth time, he checked his gun. He ran through his mental checklist of everything that was ready. Then he thought about the plan of attack. He checked his earpiece, making sure Bob and Albert could still hear him clearly. Dante went back to waiting again. He braced himself for what he had to do. It was almost 8:00 p.m. and Rick hadn’t shown himself for the 9:00 p.m. meeting yet.

“Car,” Bob said in his ear.

Dante sucked in a breath as he saw the faint flash of light dance across the living room wall. He steadied himself in the silent darkness of the closet. A few minutes ticked by before he heard the front door open. The kitchen lights flicked on. He heard footsteps, as the informant entered the living room. He flicked on the lights. The Marshal walked into the center of the room, taking a quick look around. As he sank onto the couch, half-facing Dante’s hiding spot, Dante blinked. His eyes went wide in surprise, and then narrow in anger. Small tremors of shock raced from his head to his feet. Ice water swam through his veins.