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“What is it?” My world stops spinning as I imagine something terrible has happened to Dom and he shakes his head sadly. “I’m afraid I must take you to a safe house right away.”
The soldier steps between us and says darkly, “She stays here. This is the safest house for her.”
The detective appears irritated and beckons to the soldier to follow him and, as they huddle in the corner of the room, I don’t miss the confusion on the soldier’s face.
Gretchen slides beside me and whispers, “I don’t like this. I’m going to call Mr. Ortega.”
“You have his number?” I am so grateful as Gretchen winks. “Of course. Believe it or not, I know what to do when unwelcome visitors come calling. Leave it with me. I won’t be long.”
As she heads outside, the two men return, and the detective says pleasantly, “I’ve agreed that Max can accompany you. You will be perfectly safe, but we need to leave now.”
“Now!” I look around me wildly, desperate to know what’s happening.
“Tell me why?” I say roughly and he says in a whisper, “I’m afraid your, um, boyfriend has been arrested for double homicide.”
“DOM!” I cry out and the tears pour from my eyes in disbelief. “Who?”
“Senator Billings and Desdemona Gray.”
“Desdemona, but…” The sob catches me unaware, and I blurt out, “But how? Why? I don’t understand.”
“Neither do we yet, but an eyewitness saw it all. Both murders have been caught on camera and the person responsible appears to be Mr. Ortega.”
“You’re lying!” I yell, knowing this isn’t true, and the detective shakes his head and says with a sigh, “Listen, we don’t have time for this. Apparently, his stepmother has been informed and is on her way to deal with the problem. Mr. Ortega pleaded with me to remove you and take you to a safe house before she gets here.”
“Diana. She’s coming here.” I am almost drowning in fear as I contemplate what that will mean for me and the detective nods, saying urgently, “Please, Miss. Corlietti. I promised to relocate you in return for his cooperation.”
Gretchen returns and shakes her head. “There’s no answer.”
The detective glances between us and says tightly, “We are wasting time. Come.”
He turns to Gretchen. “Mrs. Ortega will be here within the hour. When she arrives, tell her nothing. We weren’t here. OK?”
Gretchen nods miserably. “Yes sir.”
Knowing I have no choice makes me keen to get this over with, so I impulsively hug the housekeeper and whisper, “It will be OK. Dom will be released and then I’ll return. Just don’t tell Diana anything.”
“Take care miss.”
“Flora.” I smile through my tears. “Call me Flora, Gretchen. We’re friends now.”
The troubled look on her face doesn’t make me feel any better but facing my sister with no back up is not a pleasant thought, so I follow the detective out to the waiting car in nothing but the clothes I’m wearing and pray it won’t be long before Dom sorts this mess out.
* * *
The driveto the safe house is a strange one. The detective appears on edge as he glances in his rear-view mirror at every opportunity he gets.
“Is something worrying you, detective?”
I say after ten minutes and he says a little too quickly, “It’s fine. Standard practice when escorting a guest to the safe house. It won’t take long, and we need to make sure we’re not followed.”
“Who would follow us?” I’m quick to ask because as far as I know, Dom is in a cell downtown and Diana is on a flight right now.
He merely laughs softly and injects a lightness into his voice that I can tell is as false as he appears to be.
“Sorry, old habits and all. Anyway, when we get to the safe house, you must trust me. Nobody will find you there. It’s not on any maps or satellite navigation systems. If you like, it’s a ghost house. Not literally, though.”
He laughs, but it sounds forced. “It’s a place we use when we need maximum security away from prying eyes. You’ll be safe with Max.”
