AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Thank you.”
The “sanctuary” had warm, honey-colored wood floors and was larger than a studio apartment. To add to the impressive furnishings and footprint, floor-to-ceiling windows afforded a bird’s-eye view of Washington.
Next to Ian was a champagne bottle on ice. The coffee table that stretched the length of the couch had two silver trays—one with four flutes and the other with a small stack of paperwork.
The contract, Felicity realized.
Melody hadn’t said a word yet but was smiling warmly.
“Hello, Melody,” Felicity said to her.
“Hello to you. I’d ask how you are but…” Melody laughed. She had a glorious one that usually made Felicity feel lighter every time she heard it. But at this moment, her nerves were edging in again. She’d come here with suspicions, hoping they were baseless.
Her heart was beating wildly, and she flinched when Justine tapped her knee.
“You’re ready for this.” Justine, her champion and cheerleader, smiled at her.
“I am.”
“Let’s not delay this any longer then.” Ian grinned and shuffled forward on the cushion of his chair. He retrieved the paperwork from the tray. As he did so, the cuff of his shirt poked out from the sleeve of his jacket.
Felicity’s breath froze, her eyes fixed on the black onyx stone. Her world collapsed in on itself. Her suspicion wasn’t wrong, after all.
Ian was watching her, his eyes piercing hers. His were dark, his face shadowed.
He knows I know…
She had to get out of there as soon as she could.
EPILOGUE
Present Day
It was two days after Amanda put a bullet into a man, and she still felt no remorse. She’d had time to live with it, jump through the bureaucratic hoops, file the necessary reports, hand in her gun, and get a loaner. Even Chief Buchanan had stopped by her and Trent’s desks and congratulated them on a job well done. Then he and Malone walked off to his office. Amanda had the feeling when they’d interrupted them last week, there was tension there. Likely to do with Malone taking the Kelley case from Hudson and handing it to Amanda. Whatever it had been, the matter now seemed resolved.
Celeste Sweeney had cried joyful tears when they told her they had caught Felicity’s killer. “At least she will rest now.”
But the best friend wasn’t the only one who received closure. Celeste informed her and Trent that Felicity used to date an officer with the PWCPD, and the timeline fit. Amanda tried reaching out to him but was unsuccessful getting through. From what she could tell, he was no longer in law enforcement. At least his lack of judgment didn’t risk him leaking more confidential information to civilians. That didn’t help repair the likely damage that had been done though. It left her with a sickening feeling of the matter being unresolved, but life didn’t always serve up endings wrapped in a neat bow.
But the time was here to get some answers—hopefully. Ian Moss could finally have company. He came through surgery, after his survival had been touch and go.
They walked into his room in a Washington hospital, and he groaned at the sight of her. He even seemed to shrink back. But the man had a right to be afraid of her. She had put a bullet in him.
“We have some questions for you,” she started.
“What do you want now? Haven’t you done enough?”
“I’m just getting started.” She walked to the side of his bed. Numerous lines were going into his veins. One was likely for pain medication. “Let’s start with Chapman. Tell us what happened there.”
Ian flushed and let out a deep sigh. “Naomi was a witch. I deserved that promotion far more than she did, but because she was beautiful and had a powerful and rich daddy, she got the job.”
“She made you feel insignificant,” Amanda empathized.
“Like a piece of crap. But she made me realize one thing, that I’d never get anywhere as long as I looked like I did. So, I took control and made myself over.” He paused there as if he wanted a compliment, but where it counted, the man was ugly as sin.
“Tell us about that night fifteen years ago. You went to Taps and Cocktails to celebrate her promotion,” she said, starting him off.
“Why, I don’t know. It just made me miserable.”
