Part 5 (1/2)

Chapter 8.

Charlie sat on the overstuffed sofa in Jack's living room, having been introduced to the nine men Luke worked with. Hating crowds, she fought the urge to pull her legs up under her to seek a less exposed position. Geez, is every Saint huge? Sucking in a deep breath, her eyes raked over them carefully, finding nothing but trust and intelligence in their expressions. Glancing to her side, where Luke sat protectively, she took in the comforting smile he offered.

The dark-bearded boss began, ”Ms. Trivett, Luke's explained you have quite a story to tell. You need to understand that, while we're investigating with the FBI, we are a private investigation company. You are under no obligation to tell us anything.”

”Thank you,” she said, her soft voice strong and sure. ”But I'm tired of running. Tired of hiding. And tired of trying to figure things out on my own.”

With a nod, Jack leaned back in his chair and said, ”Then we'll let you take it from here to explain your connection to Eli Frederick.”

She had told most of the basic tale to Luke last night but knew she needed to be more forthcoming today. With everything. With another deep breath, she began, ”I met Eli my freshman year in college, when he and two others were sort of the last to get chosen for a group project. So the four of us worked together and, to my surprise, found that we got along.” Her face softened as she thought of those early days.

”Tim Kelly had a natural leaders.h.i.+p about him and took over that role. Hai's English was rough, but he was a hard worker and d.a.m.n smart. Eli...Eli was actually funny. He had zero people skills and was an acquired taste, for sure. He was brilliant and had no problem letting others know he was so much smarter than them.” She grinned again at the memory. ”But with our group, he actually became more human.

”Tim couldn't wait to join a big company after graduation. Hai had family in California so I wasn't surprised when he moved there. And Eli? I was stunned when he took a company job and,” she chuckled wryly, ”not stunned when he quit six months later to work freelance.” Shrugging as though in apology for him, she added, ”He hated being in a cubicle world. I'm sure he thought he was much more intelligent than the others and, oh my G.o.d, if he had to work on large, group projects, that would have made him nuts.”

Glancing over to Luke, unable to read his expression, she said, ”I know I make him sound terrible. He wasn't. That was just Eli.”

”Tell us about your continued involvement with him,” Luke prompted.

Nodding, Charlie said, ”By the time I graduated, Eli was making a lot of money working freelance. Companies would hire him to write all or part of a program and he could do it in the ease of his own home. He'd bought an old two-story condo in Baltimore, near the waterfront, and since it was an end unit, he had windows overlooking part of the bay. I visited a couple of times. It wasn't a great place, but it seemed to suit him. Anyway,” she continued, ”he sold me on the idea of working freelance also. He said he had a ton of work he could send my way until I got enough clients coming in on my own.”

”You didn't want to work for someone else? Someone with benefits?” Jude asked.

Looking around at the large group of men who all worked together, Charlie knew it would be hard for them to understand what it is like for someone who hated crowds. ”I...well, Eli didn't like people very much. But for me, I...uh...well, big groups make me nervous. I seem to be okay if people are moving around, but when a lot of people are crowded in a room and I feel as though I can't get to the door, I get nervous...on the inside. Anxiety problems, so I've been told. It just seemed easier to do the same thing that Eli was doing.”

”Are you okay in here, Charlie?” Luke asked, solicitously. He suddenly realized what an overwhelming crowd the Saints could be when piled into one room.

Nodding jerkily, she said, ”Yeah. Um...I can see the door and, well, this room is huge so it feels safe.” Looking at the two-story room with the stone fireplace along an outside wall with floor to ceiling windows overlooking the Blue Ridge Mountains on either side, she had to admit, ”Actually, this room is really fabulous. It feels open and airy.” Blus.h.i.+ng, she said, ”I guess that sounds silly.”

”Not at all,” Jack said, smiling at the description of his beloved home. He looked up as Bethany walked into the room, a tray filled with cold water bottles in her hands. He jumped up to take the heavy tray from her, stealing a quick kiss. Bethany gifted him with a glorious smile as she nodded toward Charlie and then left the room.

Charlie watched the exchange in interest. If only, she sighed. But men like the Saints did not go for computer nerds like her, she was sure. Glancing to the side at Luke, she could not help but wonder what type of woman he went for.

”So, more about Eli?” Cam asked, interrupting her musings.

Jerking back to the conversation she was supposed to be focused on, she blinked several times. What's wrong with me? Maybe I have been alone too long!

Clearing her throat, she continued, ”It worked out well for the past several years. Eli sent some work my way and then I began to build up clients of my own. It was...well, nice for the most part. I worked from home. On my own equipment. And I learned a lot. The money allowed me to pay off my student loans and then afford some expensive computers and programs. My clients included some government agencies where I would create false pasts for persons who would be going into hiding, or witness protection, or even just who needed to get lost.”

At this, the other Saints gazed at her in a mixture of admiration and awe as she continued.

”I lost touch with Hai when he went back to China and Tim married and settled in Boston. But Eli and I would communicate weekly, if not more. I lived only about an hour from him, so it wasn't unusual for me to drive to his place to meet.”

She watched as the men listened intently to her while taking notes on their tablets. How odd to have all my words written down. To have been alone for so long and now to be in a room full of strangers who are delving into my business. But this is for you, Eli, and whatever the h.e.l.l you got yourself into.

”About two years ago, Eli contacted me and asked if I would help him work on some programming. He had a job that was taking a long time and the client was in a hurry. So I agreed. It was for a medical company that was creating databases to match up organ donors with recipients. I worked on part of the programing but Eli worked on most of it. It was actually his client and he got paid and then turned around and paid me from his money. And...” she pinned them with her hard stare, ”that's probably why I'm still alive.”

At this statement, Luke's gaze jumped to hers. He had listened to her story in the middle of the night but she was going into more detail now.

She rubbed her forehead, trying to focus on little sleep and lots of nerves. Feeling a hand on her shoulder, rubbing some of the tension away, she let out a sigh. G.o.d, that feels good. Another time...another place... Giving herself a mental shake, she shot Luke a smile.

”Almost eight months ago, Eli contacted me through a secure network we had established for sending sensitive materials back and forth to each other. He emphatically said he needed to talk to me but couldn't use his phone. We arranged to meet in a small town between Baltimore and where I lived. This was a pretty big deal for Eli, who hated leaving his area. When we met, I couldn't believe the change. Even working from home, Eli shaved, wore clean clothes, and generally had good hygiene. But this time, he looked haggard and I honestly wasn't sure the diner manager was going to serve us. Eli started rambling, peering around us as though someone was going to jump out, but I finally got him to talk to me.”

Letting out a deep breath, Charlie continued, ”He said that the contract we had worked on together was for something wrong. It was hard to understand, but he said that he did some digging into the contractees when he questioned some of the work they wanted him to re-do. They sent some work back to him and when he put my programs together with his, he saw a larger picture than just the part he had worked on himself. And he got suspicious, started digging, and found something...horrible.”

Luke watched as she twisted her hands together in her lap and he instinctively reached over to place his long fingers over hers, giving a comforting squeeze. The gesture was not ignored by the others in the room, but no one said anything.

Looking around at the faces focused on her, she shook her head slightly as her voice trembled. ”All he would say that day was that he uncovered something illegal with the organ donor list. He wouldn't give me any details then, but wanted to know what he should do. Of course, I told him to call the police and he replied it was much bigger than the police. So then I told him to contact the FBI. He left soon after that but later he said he wanted to be sure. He told me about two months later that he had called the FBI, but was afraid to give them his name or any particulars.” Shaking her head, she said, ”He really had no clue what to do and since I didn't know what was going on, I couldn't help him.”

”Did he ever share with you?” Bart asked. The large man gave an air of a laid-back surfer, but Charlie knew that belied his intensity as she noted his fierce blue-eyed gaze pinned on hers.

”Yes...or at least part of it.” Licking her lips nervously, she continued, ”He said that it appeared that someone was...using questionable ways for getting organs for recipients.” The reality of what she was saying what she had known for six months-began cras.h.i.+ng down on her. Throat constricting, she panted as she tried to continue to speak. ”Eli thought they were just taking organs.”

Luke watched as the blood drained from her face and planted his hand on the back of her head, forcing her head down between her knees. ”Breathe, Charlie, breathe slow and deep.”

His voice sounded far away, but calmed her nonetheless. Her vision blurred as she gulped in air. Hearing other sounds around her, she felt a cold cloth on the back of her neck. As she continued to breathe deeply she felt Luke's warm hand smoothing back and forth down her spine. After a few minutes her vision cleared and the sound of Luke's voice as he whispered in her ear was no longer far away. Pus.h.i.+ng against his hand she raised up, embarra.s.sed at having made such a spectacle of herself.

Blaise kneeled in front of her, his fingers on her wrist taking her pulse. After a moment, he released and nodded at Luke.

Charlie heard him say, ”Heart rate is a little elevated,” and she could only wonder about the world she suddenly found herself in. Bethany appeared in front of her, holding out a gla.s.s of orange juice, her hand on Charlie's shoulder. ”Here, drink this. It'll help revive you.”

”I'm so sorry-” Charlie began.

”Don't apologize,” Luke said.” It's all good. We know you've been through something traumatic, so take your time and just tell us what you know as best as you can.”

Almost afraid to look around the room at the faces of the Saints, she took one last fortifying breath and lifted her head. Drinking deeply, she felt the tart juice jolt her system. She was pleasantly surprised to see nothing but concern etched on the faces of the others in the room. With this encouragement she continued her tale.

”When Eli told me what he feared, which was that a client was somehow taking organs from unwilling or unknowing patients, I understood his shock. He wouldn't give me specifics, so I have no idea who he was talking about. I told him that he had to talk to the FBI. He agreed and several days later told me that he had set up a meeting with an agent that he had spoken to there. The meeting was to take place two days after we talked but he called before the meeting to say he was going to send me all of his information just in case he needed a backup. So, using our secure communication network, he sent me some of his work, including what he had been investigating on his own.”

Taking a sip of the juice, she shot Bethany an appreciative glance. ”I knew the day that he was supposed to meet with them he might need moral support. So I decided to drive to Baltimore to be with him when he met with the FBI agent. And that was when I saw it happen.”

”What? What did you see?” Jack queried.

”I saw Eli Fredrick...murdered.”

At her proclamation the Saints sat motionless, the silence in the air hanging thickly over the group. Charlie stole a glance to the side at Luke, knowing he had only heard part of the story the evening before, but wondered what he thought now that he was hearing the whole thing. She did not have to wait long to find out.

”f.u.c.king h.e.l.l, Charlie,” Luke said, his curse joined by the others resounding about the room.

Knowing she needed to continue, Charlie said, ”I drove to his house a couple of hours before he was supposed to meet the agent. When I would visit I would walk around the side to the door that led into his kitchen. So I did the same as I always did. I parked on the street, walked around the side, but before I got to his backdoor I pa.s.sed the first-floor window of the dining room that he used as his office. I normally wouldn't even look in, but I heard voices. Angry voices. Eli never had people over so, realizing he had company, I glanced into the window.”

She shuddered as her mind went back to that day, remembering the details as sharply as if they were occurring in front of her right now. ”He was sitting in a chair,” her shaky voice barely able to be heard. ”There were three people in the room. One man was holding Eli's arms behind him, another man was rummaging through Eli's computers and papers, and the third was a woman who turned around with a gun in her hand.”