Page 34

“What about Blair?” I asked.

He shook his head. “I’m not sure what’s going on with her. Ms. Houghton sent a different attorney over to assist her.”

When I finally got released, I discovered that I had another problem.

“How am I supposed to access my hotel room?” I asked the female cop. “The other guy wouldn’t let me grab my ID or keycard,” I told her. “The hotel won’t let a shoeless woman into a random hotel room.”

To my surprise she seemed sympathetic, maybe because she understood that they’d been manipulated into arresting me for a crime that never happened. “I’ll drive you back and confirm your identity.”

I thanked Reginald for his help, and he gave me his card, telling me to call him if anything else came up. When we got back to the hotel the officer assisted me in getting a replacement key card, then followed me to our room to make sure everything was okay.

The first thing I noticed when I walked in was that the room was empty. The second thing I noticed was that Blair’s suitcases were gone. I was alone, just like I knew I’d be.

Spying a note on the bed, I rushed over to read it, my stomach filled with dread.

Jenny,

I’m so sorry but I had to go back to Seattle and deal with my parents. Katy will ensure that you get home, give her a call. This was the best week of my life, and I hope it’s not over. I’ll be in touch soon.

Love, Blair

This woman had gotten me arrested and now she was ditching me. Fuck my life. How could I have been so stupid? I wasn’t a fairytale romance person. I was pragmatic. I should have listened to my first instinct, the one that told me that there was no way Blair and I could ever have a future.

Holding the note against my chest, I face-planted on the bed and fell into an exhausted sleep.

Blair

“Stop them,” I screamed. “She’s not even wearing pants or shoes, she can’t go out like that.”

The cop who had my hands twisted behind me didn’t bother to respond. He was too busy cuffing me. Meanwhile, his partner was still on the floor, holding his knee and cussing me out.

“You can’t arrest me,” I protested. “Do you know who I am?”

I’d never said anything like that before in my life. It was ridiculous. Two random cops in Chicago wouldn’t have the slightest idea who I was. Probably most cops in Seattle wouldn’t either.

“You’re about to be in a jail cell is who you are,” the guy I’d kicked said.

He was totally milking his injury, standing half hunched over, his palm pressed against the side of his knee like he was holding his kneecap in place.

Just as I was resigning myself to the idea of being arrested, more law enforcement joined the party, a man and a woman. They were feds, I could tell by the nondescript low-quality suits they wore and the dismissive looks they gave the local cops.

“Miss Melbourne? We’re here to take you back to Seattle.”

“You ain’t takin’ her anywhere,” the injured cop whined. “She’s under arrest for assaulting an officer of the law.”

I rolled my eyes.

“The FBI is taking jurisdiction,” the male agent said. “You guys can stand down now. And get her out of those cuffs. She’s a kidnap victim.”

I wasn’t, but I was smart enough to keep my mouth shut so I could be freed. The cop pulled my arms back way harder than he needed to, scraping the cuffs against the skin on my wrists in irritation. Once my hands were free, I shook them out to restore the circulation.

“These idiots arrested my girlfriend for kidnapping,” I told the feds. “Tell them to release her.”

“Sorry but your girlfriend is none of our concern. We have strict orders to get you back to Seattle immediately.”

“I’m not going back to Seattle,” I protested. “I need to help Jenny.”

“You’ve got two choices, get on a plane with us and go back to Seattle, or stay here and be arrested. Up to you.”