J Saint - Collateral Damage

Conrad's mouth watered and his heart hammered.

Edward laughed. "He's always been crude, but good for a laugh or two every now and then. Sort of a Fred Flintstone/Andrew Dice Clay wanna be. This time though, he was as touchy as a live wire after that blond with the jumbo tits dropped him. Shit, we were just joking about him taking Viagra with the Viva Viagra toast. What? You dog! You nailed her in the bathroom while we were at the table? Damn. Just damn. No wonder she dropped Con flat. I'm envious. Hey, I've got Bill's letter in hand. Let me take a piss, I'll read it and call you back. Better not soak up all of the sun while you're out there. Save some for us poor bastards who still have to work for a living. I'm closing a mega-deal tomorrow. Talk to you in a sec."

Edward hung up the phone. With Bill's letter in hand, he turned from the counter. Conrad was waiting for him.

"Fore!" Conrad yelled as he slammed the five-iron against the side of Edward's head. Edward screamed. Bill's letter dropped to the floor, bone cracked, blood splattered, the scent of urine filled the air and Conrad's pent up rage found a sweet release as he stroked a round of golf bar none.

Pizza and chaos Chuck E. Cheese style reigned. Lauren had left Sasha and Sam at Angie's mother's house. Mitch and Matt were wreaking havoc in the play area after scraping the cheese off their pizza and declaring to save the rest for later. Their abandoned cups and plates scattered the table. Their Dale Earnhardt, Jr. cars, which had been practically glued to their hands since Bill sent them, were being raced over every conceivable surface in the restaurant. Angie followed them around like the dedicated, indulgent godmother she was. The boys no longer wore their damp bathing suits and tank tops, but sported sneakers, jeans and different colored T-shirts-so Jack could tell them apart. A trip to Walmart on Jack's dime had provided essentials for everyone for the next few days, plus a computer and ammunition-lots of it. Jack insisted on Lauren not using her credit, debit or ATM cards, concerned that any electronic transaction would pinpoint her location.

Lauren shuddered, finding it surreal to be in the situation she was in while other lives marched normally on.

Jack was another element in that unreal world she found herself struggling to comprehend. She didn't know what to make of him and she didn't know what to make of her reaction to him either. Right now he had his intense gaze focused on her. His sharp question ripped at her, bringing up painful memories. Not that she was still hung up on Bill, but because the past mattered and she found the mistakes she'd made hard to face.

"So you're saying Bill began acting strangely two years ago, after accepting a job with BioLogics, an international company that does what exactly?"

"I can't tell you exactly. All I know is they develop green technology. Bill refused to tell me anything more. His job became a major point of contention between us. He had to travel frequently and wasn't allowed to disclose where he was going due to company policy." She paused, needing a moment to gather herself from the memories. "I wanted to know what about his job required him to keep secrets. He always said that it had to do with the revolutionary, energy saving projects BioLogics was assisting in the development of and no one could know where their research facility was until the product was ready for public scrutiny."

"Odd."

"I thought so. Our marriage deteriorated, maybe it had already been on the rocks, but I was so absorbed in assuring that Matt and Mitch were on the right developmental track that I didn't realize it. They were born very premature and until recently were behind. Anyway, when other women entered the picture months later, I reached the end of the line. I concluded he'd used his job as an excuse to jet-set with bimbos and made up that cloak and dagger scenario to keep his adultery secret."

"He was a fool." Jack's voice was rough with anger and his green eyes flashed unadulterated heat-a mixture of outrage and frank male interest that he didn't try to hide. "You deserve better." He nodded toward the boys. "They deserve better."

Lauren bit her lip as warmth tingled over her nerves and centered in her breast. She knew that truth in her mind, it had been reinforced by close female friends, but to hear it with such forceful conviction a from this man bore a hole right through an underlying layer of what's wrong with me doubt she had to constantly fight.

"What exactly did he do for BioLogics?" Jack asked after clearing his throat.

Lauren set her mind back to facts, leaving behind her roiling emotions. "That's even more puzzling. He was hired to be their PR person. If the company is so secret he couldn't tell me where it is, then why would they need a public relations expert? I asked Bill that."

"What did he say?"

"That the company would be so big once their product hit the market they would need an army of PR people to cover the globe. Bill's job was to put everything in place so it would be smooth sailing when the product was launched."

"Do you know when he left the States this last time?"

Lauren frowned, counting back the days. "The fourteenth of July. It was kind of sudden. He was scheduled to see the boys and canceled."

Jack's eyes narrowed and she could practically see his mind latch onto something significant.

"What?" she asked. "Does that mean something?"

"Maybe. What about his friends, business associates?"

"He has some college pals he goes to Vegas with every year. His office secretary. His accountant. Then there's his current flavor of the month, a Brazilian model." All the events since the boys' birthday party ran through her mind and she pressed her palms to her eyes, almost overwhelmed. "She might be a resource, but when Angie spoke to her the woman didn't know where Bill was. She doesn't know about his death. I've only told Angie. Nobody else. Right now I'm waiting for them to find Jack's body, so I-"

"What? Explain."

Lauren went through her conversations with the embassy in Sao Paulo, watching Jack's expression become more and more taut with irritation and determination, maybe? She didn't know. She had a hard time settling on what emotion fueled his grim look.

Driven to know more, Lauren set her hand over his fist. "Now, tell me what you know."

He twisted his wrist and clasped her hand in his, but none of the heated warmth of his skin and the anchoring strength of his grip helped her absorb what he said next.

"Two weeks ago I saw Bill Collins in Lebanon actively participating in a terrorist act with a radical group. I believe they're behind what is happening to you now."

The blood rushed from Lauren's head and dizziness had her reeling in her seat. An icy chill gripped her from head to toe. "I…oh…my…God. You're saying…a terrorist? Like a 9/11 bomber? When you said radical group, I pictured green-loving environmentalists lying prostrate before bulldozers. But what you're saying is that Bill was involved in…that he committed treason?"

"I'm sorry. Every man is innocent until proven guilty, but-"

"You saw what?" She pulled her hand from Jack's and he let her go, looking as if what he had to say was as painful for him as it was for her. She pressed her fingers to her numb mouth, searching for the words she needed to speak. "What did he do?"

Jack exhaled harshly. "That I can't tell you."

She studied him a moment, once again taking in his capable bearing, his fresh scars and suddenly another piece of the puzzle behind why Jack had come to her fell into place. "He played a part in what happened to you, right? Whatever he was involved in was responsible for putting you in the hospital."

"Indirectly, yes. But that's not important. What I need to find out, what I need to know, is why he was there and who he was involved with. The fact that his body is missing is very significant."