“A man living in the same apartment building. His name is Harvey Matters. The crazy thing is, I don’t even know Harvey except to say hello. He hung out in the gym sometimes when my friends and I were working out. Or in the laundry room when we were doing our laundry. He was always with other men. He didn’t really say much to any of us, and never to me in particular. The odd thing about it is the cops think I have something to do with Harvey as well.”
Javier was silent, but his gaze was intense, piercing even, like twin laser beams. She felt his scrutiny, as if he were analyzing every word of her statement, looking for a lie. She wasn’t lying. She didn’t understand why everyone thought she had a connection to Harvey. She was beginning to think she was going insane. Maybe she didn’t remember her relationship with Harvey, just like she didn’t remember her parents.
“What did he want to know about Harvey?” Javier asked.
“He wanted me to give Harvey a message the next time I saw him. I explained I had no reason to see him. I told him Harvey was wanted by the police. It didn’t seem to matter.”
“What was the message?”
“He didn’t give me a verbal message for Harvey. And you came and interrupted us.”
Again, Javier studied her. “Did you get the feeling he was an associate of Harvey’s?”
She nodded slowly. “Yes, I did. I tried to make it clear I didn’t want anything to do with Harvey or him. It didn’t seem to matterwhat I wanted. He scared me,” she admitted. She wanted to add,Not half as much as you do.
“Did he give you something to give to Harvey?”
She remained silent, looking at him. She would only tell Gideon. She only trusted Gideon.
Javier sighed. “I’m trying to help you. I know it’s difficult to trust anyone, Rory, especially if you’ve been alone for a long time. Gideon’s my brother. I would do anything for him. I’m just trying to help you out while he’s recovering.”
“If you know how hard it is to trust, then you’ll have to let this go. It took a lot to go out with Gideon. I don’t do that sort of thing. You don’t have to believe me, but I don’t. He’s different. And very hard to resist. You may be afraid for him, but I’m terrified that I let down my guard and trusted him. I let him in. If he isn’t the man he says he is, I’ll have no one and nothing. He has all of you. That may not be a big deal to you, but I feel pretty vulnerable. Trust is fragile, Javier, as you should well know.”
Javier leaned toward her. “Gideon is one of the best men I know, Rory, if not the best. He’s a good man. He’s all in with you. All in. One hundred percent. He’d be here instead of me if he wasn’t hurt tonight.”
“Why haven’t those wounds healed properly?”
Javier sat back and for the first time looked upset. “He should have died. He almost did. It was my fault.” He shook his head and shoved both hands through his hair in agitation. “We were on an assignment, and we knew we were going to see some bad shit. It was just that we didn’t know it was going to be like that. I have leftover triggers from childhood. We all do. It isn’t an excuse, although Gideon says it is. In any case, I blacked out. I just went after the people who did that shit to the kids. Hacked them to pieces and left them lying on the ground like garbage.”
Rory heard the raw pain in his voice. She wanted to stop him,knowing he saw the images in his mind. He was probably never going to get them out. Gideon had seen them as well.
“I must have gone right out in the open where a dozen men were firing at me. Gideon threw his body in front of mine. He took me down, protecting me with his own body until the others drove them off.”
Javier’s eyes had gone liquid. His voice rasped as he looked down at his feet. “We barely managed to get Gideon to a safe enough place for the docs to work on him. We were lucky enough to have two surgeons with us; otherwise, he wouldn’t have stood a chance. He’s tough, and we have the best when it comes to doctors.”
He sat up straight, looking as if the past few moments hadn’t occurred. Flashing her a small grin, he shrugged. “Gideon doesn’t like staying put. He’s a man of action. Now that he’s got you, he’ll have a reason to want to be home.”
She wasn’t so sure about Gideon having her, but for one second, she allowed herself to bask in the idea of it. “Thank you for coming to my rescue, Javier. I really appreciate it. Please ask Gideon to let me know when he’s strong enough for visitors, and I’ll come by to see him.”
She stood up, determined to send him on his way. She also rounded the chair. She didn’t want him to pretend he wanted to hug her. At least she knew Javier was human now, but she also knew he wasn’t the hugging type. He was the type to pickpocket though, and she had the envelope she was going to tell Gideon about but wasn’t going to let Javier take from her. If Harvey showed up looking for it and she had to tell him it was stolen from her because she’d told someone about it, he’d probably kill her.
Javier flashed another grin. She noted none of the most recent smiles actually reached his eyes. He was back to being his dangerous self. “I’ll wait down here until you’re inside your room and safe. You can text me when you’re there.”
“I don’t have your number.”
“I’ll give it to you.” He proceeded to do so.
She gave him a little wave and took the elevator. At least she knew Gideon was going to be fine. She had no idea he’d been hurt so bad. He’d downplayed the seriousness of his wounds. She should have known.Gideon.She whispered his name.What am I going to do with you?
Unlocking the door to her apartment, she texted Javier that she was safe and he was off duty.
9
Someone got into my things too,” Janice announced. “While I was at work last night. They trashed my apartment. I called the cops, and they still haven’t shown up. I went to spend the night in Pam’s apartment after taking detailed pictures, but her place had been broken into as well. They hit three of our apartments last night. Rory’s, Pam’s and mine.”
“They got mine too,” Cindy said, her voice stiff. “I spent the night at my parents’. I took the boys to visit with them. It’s a long way, so I always stay over. Everything was destroyed. I found the mess this morning when I came home. I called the police as well.”
“I did too,” Pam said.
