Sinner Realized Read online

  For her.

  This could be very helpful.

  Digging through her other files, there wasn’t even a search on her history. This adversary was going to be competition.

  Closing it up, the laptop was taken from the table as a tool that might come in handy. Suddenly, a ringing sound filled the silence of the room. Tracing it to the hall, her cell phone sat there. Staring down at the caller ID, it was someone she worked with calling.

  Yeah, Maura Gaines wasn’t home. She had left the building.

  Pocketing the phone, there was sardonic laughter.

  Oh, she’d be coming back.

  Only, Maura wouldn’t be alive. There was no way that she could live.

  She’d seen too much.

  It was time to end this game. The major was destined to have an untimely accident.

  One way or another.

  * * * C a r t e r C h r o n i c l e s * * *

  Three Hours Later

  Newberg

  Something was fishy.

  Nate Carter sat outside his partner’s condo and could see his Hummer parked there. While the man called to say he wasn’t feeling well and was bailing on hitting the gym to head to the doctor, it was apparent that was a lie.

  The brisk morning air had left a kiss of frost on the windshield and hood, and it was still there.

  The man never left his place.

  Which brought up the next concern-- why the lies?

  Nate knew Luke wasn’t doing well when he left the night before, but he didn't think he would intentionally lie to avoid him. Obviously, he was far worse off than he believed.

  This called for an intervention of sorts. Someone needed to step in and do something soon. Picking up his phone, Nate called his partner for what seemed like the hundredth time.

  Once more, it went directly to voicemail.

  Now, he was either avoiding him, or still asleep.

  Glancing down at the clock, he didn't think the latter was possible. The man didn't have more than two beers last night and couldn’t possibly be hung over.

  So, once more this led him to his initial suspicion.

  Luke was having a damn hard time.

  As his buddy and boss, it was his job to fix this. There was only one way to do that. He needed to get through to the man inside.

  Just as he was about to get out of his vehicle, a black Denali pulled into the parking lot. It was familiar, matching the one he was sitting in.

  Then, he saw the plates.

  It was another Fed vehicle.

  Okay, what the hell was going on?

  Leaning back, he watched the passenger door cautiously open. When his brother-in-law got out, Nate got that sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.

  What would Quinn be doing here?

  Then, his sister rounded the side of the car and went to her husband. Okay, this was definitely wrong.

  They should be miles away at home.

  Giving the horn a light tap, he watched as Quinn jumped, his hand going to his hip where his gun sat. At the same time, he protectively placed his body in front of his wife.

  Yeah, not only were they hours away from home, but the big guy was edgy as hell.

  Bad shit was definitely brewing.

  Flashing his lights, they warily headed toward him. When he rolled his window down, they didn't look surprised to see him sitting there.

  That lack of shock confirmed that Luke had lied and was neglecting to tell him something.

  Nate knew he needed to get to the bottom of this, and fast.

  Once hearing the honk of horn, Quinn nearly had a heart attack. When he turned and saw the front plate of the governmental vehicle, he eased up a little. Since the vehicle screamed Fed, he had a sneaking suspicion who would be inside.

  Or at least he hoped.

  Leading Callie over, he kept her behind him just in case. At the open window, he was relieved to see his brother-in-law.

  “What are you two doing here?” Nate asked, leaning out the window.

  “We got a call from Luke early this morning. My sister’s in there and in trouble.”

  He was confused. “Maura?” he asked.

  “Yeah. She’s holed up here with him.”

  That was really odd. “I just saw Luke last night. We just came off a serial killer assignment and had dinner. He didn't mention Maura or anything else to me.”

  Yeah, this stunk to high heaven.

  “Has he been okay?” Callie asked, beginning to worry about her friend. They had been close for years, working together in the FBI, but as of late, he was distant.

  “No. In fact, it’s all over a woman.”

  Quinn glanced over at his wife, knowing the secret he carried for Luke. The man confided in him that he was in love with Callie. After that one talk, they never brought it up again. Hopefully, the man wasn’t pining away over her.

  It wasn’t ever going to happen. Family or not, there were lines drawn in the sand.

  “How does Maura fit into this?” Quinn asked.

  “I didn't think he really knew her,” stated Nate. “I know he met her at your wedding, but he never mentioned anything about her after that night.”

  “Well, he obviously knows her,” Quinn stated. “Something bad has to be going on if he’s going to call me to come here, and my baby sister is hiding out.”

  Callie could hear the angst in his voice. She needed to be the calm head in all of this. “I’m sure there is some logical explanation. We just need to get in there and find out.”

  “He doesn’t know I’m here,” Nate confided.

  “You’re sitting outside your partner’s place, stalking him?” Quinn asked, lifting a brow.

  “Hey! I’m concerned about him. Luke is like our brother. I can tell that he’s been off his game for a while, and him calling you out here, confirms it.”

  Yeah, he had a point.

  Getting out of his vehicle, he hugged his sister. Despite all this, it was damn good to see her. “Are you doing well, Callie?” he asked, dropping a kiss to her forehead.

  She took in the man in front of her. Nathaniel Carter wasn’t a push over. The man was sturdy, tough, and good at his job. As she stared into eyes that matched her own icy blue ones, she saw his concern.

  “We’re good, Nate,” she offered.

  He hugged Quinn next. “I’m glad. If he wasn’t taking care of you, I’d kick his ass.”

  Quinton Gaines snorted. “Yeah, I’m so scared, pretty boy. Maybe we should hit the gym.”

  Nate smiled, patting him on the back. “Maybe that can be arranged for Susie’s birthday. For now, let’s go shake Luke’s tree and see what falls out. He’s been keeping secrets, and as his family, that has to stop.”

  They agreed.

  Heading to the door, they braced for the bad news they knew was coming. After knocking, they waited until they heard his footsteps. When the door slowly unlocked and was pulled open, they all waited in anticipation.

  “Hey, hurry in,” he stated, stepping back.

  No one missed that he was holding his gun. It spoke volumes of the tension he was feeling.

  Callie took that chance and moved toward him. When he didn't hesitate to hug her, she marginally relaxed. Apparently, he wasn’t upset with them.

  “I’m glad you came,” he said, holding onto her a little longer. Everything he knew had him completely shaken up, and Callie was always someone who could help him refocus and offer calm.

  They all needed that right about now.

  “Of course we would,” she reassured, letting him hold onto her a little longer.

  Glancing up, he stared at his partner. “I wish you wouldn’t have come here,” he stated, knowing that with Nate’s arrival, one more person had just been pulled into this mess. “You should head out of here right now.”

  He loved the man and had wanted to keep him free of all this. After all, he was a director at an FBI satellite office.

  “What’s going on, Luke? First, you’re off your ga
me, and now you’re telling me to get out of your place? What’s going on with you? I have to say, I was worried about you last night, twisted up about some woman, but now I’m pretty freaked out.”

  He didn't know what to say, especially since his partner just shared something he shouldn’t have.

  The woman in question was around the corner. Now, he was more than twisted up. He was tied in big, ugly knots.

  “Nate, I,” he began, trying to find the words to share with him, but they were locked away inside his gut.

  “This isn't like you,” Nate said.

  Then, they heard her voice.

  Stepping around the corner, Maura faced the people she was very familiar with. She had overheard what they had said, and now it felt like she was eavesdropping on them. There was an overwhelming need to protect Luke and his feelings.

  “I got him into this,” she stated, owning up to it all. He shouldn’t have to suffer because of her.

  That had their attention.

  Quinn heard his sister’s voice and turned his head. What waited for him shocked and pissed him off all at once. There stood Maura, wearing some man’s dress shirt. Her legs were bare, and her face was all scratched up.

  Immediately, his mind went there. His sister was half-naked and in trouble. Being a man, that signified only one thing.

  He was going to kill Luke.

  The man was dead.

  Rushing the Fed, he slammed him against the wall as fury filled him.

  Callie gasped, shocked at her husband. Generally, Quinn had a temper, but never toward his family. This situation was about to get far worse if he was out of control.

  “Exactly what kind of trouble is my sister in?” he hissed, glaring at the man he had trapped against the wall.

  Luke said nothing and didn't put up a fight. He knew what was going through Quinn’s mind, and it broke his heart. Honestly, he wished Maura was his, and that was their biggest issue. In fact, he’d sell his soul to know she was carrying his child.

  It was just so far from his reach that it almost made him want to laugh.

  “I’m not pregnant, Quinn,” Maura said, rushing forward to rescue Luke. Pushing between them, she placed her body protectively in front of his.

  “No? Then what the hell is going on?” he raged.

  “Someone’s trying to kill me. Luke is keeping me safe.”

  Silence befell the room.

  “What?” Quinn asked, horror filling his face as dread squeezed his heart.

  “Someone wants me dead, Quinn.”

  That was all she had to say.

  That one sentence shocked them all, and it didn't clear anything up.

  In fact, it only confused them all the more.

  Chapter Three

  T empers were definitely running hot. Quinn was still worked up over what the hell was going on. It was bad enough when he assumed that she was pregnant, but someone was trying to killer her?

  He was torn up inside. Why had his baby sister not come to him over all this? Why would she race to a man who wasn’t her flesh and blood?

  It made the anger that much more difficult to swallow. He wanted to understand.

  Leading them into his living room, Luke offered them a seat. He waited for Maura to sit in an overstuffed chair before he perched on the arm beside her.

  No one missed that he was standing guard, except maybe the woman beside him. It was clear that Lucas Mars was acting as her protector during their conversation.

  It spoke volumes as to what was coming, as did the serious look on his face.

  “Why are you dressed like that?” Quinn asked, immediately needing to know. He wasn’t quite sure that he could handle knowing the two people in front of him were shacked up.

  “It’s a long story,” she said, grateful that Luke was by her side. Right now, she wanted to toss her cookies.

  Instinctually, Luke took her chilly fingers in his as he tried to offer her a bit of warmth.

  “I think you better start spilling it,” Quinn demanded. Here was his baby sister, and he was feeling extra cranky at the moment.

  “She’s had a rough night. Cut her a break,” Luke stated, his voice leaving nothing to the imagination. There were two big dogs in the room, and both of them were willing to fight over the Marine.

  Quinn stared at the man, measuring his options.

  Before either could continue on, Callie opted to play peacemaker. She was accustomed to testosterone fueled pissing matches. “How about you start at the beginning, and then go from there?” she offered, rubbing her hand up and down her husband’s back. She needed him to stay calm, so they could figure out what the heck was going on there.

  “I’m dressed like this because when I showed up here, my shirt had blood on it. Luke was nice enough to fix up my arm and lend me his shirt to sleep in.”

  Okay, that calmed and riled Quinn all at once. “What happened to your arm, Maura?”

  She touched it with her fingers. “Someone shot me.”

  Well, if she wanted to have everyone in the room to stop breathing that was the way to do it. No one there could think past what she just said.

  “When I arrived home from dinner, Maura was waiting here. I patched her up and hid her out,” Luke stated. “I didn't know what was going on until I found her. I would have called you last night, but I was worried about calming her down. She was my priority.”

  Quinn was dumbfounded. He was obviously missing a very large part of this story.

  “Why did you show up here? You could have called me if you were hurt, Maura! I would have driven here and got you!”

  She shook her head. “Coming here, I already risked Luke. I couldn’t throw you two into this also. The fewer people involved, the better.”

  Nate needed answers. The last thing he liked was going into something blind, especially if guns were involved. “Again, like Callie suggested, why don’t you start at the beginning? This is making everyone anxious. We need details.”

  She took a deep breath. When Luke placed his hand on her shoulder in support, she was able to get the words out. Maura feared what was coming.

  “I lied to you, Quinn.”

  He stared at her.

  Even Callie glanced up. Her husband hated one thing in life, and it was lying. It was the cop in him. Once you lost his trust, he didn't hand it to you ever again.

  “In fact, I’ve lied to the whole family for a very long time, and now I’m in danger because of it.”

  Leaning forward, his serious face said it all. “Then, you need to come clean. I can’t help you if you keep secrets, Maura. You know that.”

  Maura reached into the shirt pocket and pulled out an ID badge. On it was the truth. She slid it across the coffee table toward her brother.

  Picking it up, he read the name. “I don’t get it. You’re not a major in the Marines. You’re a sergeant. That’s one hell of a job promotion.”

  “That’s the first part of the lie. While I’m at work, they know me as Major Maura Gaines. Out in the field, I’m known as Bravo Ghost One.”

  He stared at her. While he didn't do time in the military, he had plenty of friends who had. “Out in the field? You’re a drill sergeant. What the hell are you doing out in the field? You work on a Marine base where you spend your time training recruits.”

  “That’s lie number two.” She glanced over at Nate and Callie. “You both have government clearance, right?”

  They nodded at the same time.

  “I’m level nine.”

  Nate whistled. “Holy shit.”

  Quinn glanced over at his wife. “I don’t get it. What is she talking about?”

  Callie rubbed his arm. “I’m level four, and Nate is five. In fact, his bosses are only eights. The higher the number is, then the greater the clearance.”

  “Okay, so she’s got some clearance.”

  Nate picked up for his sister. “Anything over seven is top-secret. They get the details on all the workings behind the scenes. My boss
es have worked for the FBI and run the second biggest hub and are only eights. There’s nothing above nine.”

  Maura shook her head. “Yes, there is. The President of the United States is level ten. He’s the only one who has total access to everything.”

  Quinn was up out of his seat and began pacing. “Okay, so you’re not a drill sergeant, you’ve got higher clearance than most people, and someone wants to kill you. I still have no freaking clue what the hell is going on here.”

  Luke glanced down at Maura. “Go ahead, honey. You can do this.”

  No one missed the term of endearment, including the woman it was directed to. Deep in her belly, it fluttered and then flipped at the way he was intently staring at her. It was with such tenderness.

  Maura wasn’t accustomed to that.

  Not at all.

  “I don’t stay on a base, Quinn. I have a team of men who work under me, and our job is to transport and protect. The Marines have two teams who do this kind of work. Bravo Ghost and Alpha Phantom. When someone, or something, top-secret needs to be moved, we do it.”

  He stared at her. “Okay, keep going.”

  “My team is the best of the best. We take the most insane jobs, and we do it well. I organize and structure our plan. It’s my job to get my team in, get the subject or item transported, and to keep us quiet about it. We’re invisible.”

  Nate wanted to dig online in the worst way.

  “No one is invisible, Maura,” her brother stated.

  “They call us ghosts and phantoms because we hide in plain sight and blend in. No one sees me coming. My job is to outthink, out work, and unblock obstacles that interfere with my team, no matter what the cost.”

  He stared at her. “And that means?”

  “What it sounds like, Quinn. At any cost.”

  Luke was having a hard time with all of this. “Sorry, but a beautiful woman like you is going to stand out. I find that part hard to believe.”

  She got all warm at his words. “We move a lot under the cover of darkness, and once I’m in full gear, I blend. Recently, we’ve moved the same subject over and over again. I’m on leave for two weeks, and then we transport her once more.”