“The ones who followed me after Kevin was murdered.” Anger fired through her eyes. “Well, if you’re one of them, you’ve wasted your time.”
Luke ignored her outburst. “Back up—who are these men?”
“They didn’t exactly introduce themselves to me, but they did try to run me off the road.” Her voice was clipped with anger, and the words came at him like bullets. “There were two of them. Both probably in their early thirties. One had very pale blond hair, and the other had a deep scar on the left side of his face. He wore an eye patch.”
Luke wasn’t sure what to make of that. Just retelling the event seemed to shake her, but then, this was a woman who was very good at telling believable lies. Still…
“What did these guys want?” he asked.
“I don’t know. But I think it had something to do with some computer software that Kevin was modifying for someone he only ever referred to as T. Maybe those men were associated with this T, or maybe they thought I had the modifications or Kevin’s research notes. I didn’t.” She snagged his gaze. “I really don’t know anything about my late fiancé’s criminal activity, okay? But I’ve paid for it. I’ve paid dearly by losing my home, my friends and by having to recreate a life among strangers.”
Luke wasn’t unaffected by the weariness and pain he heard in her voice, but he pushed aside any sympathy he was feeling by reminding himself of what this woman had done.
She’d robbed him of his life.
“What about the illegal adoption?” he asked. Not easily. It was almost impossible to keep the emotion out of it. “Have you paid for that, too?”
She blinked and pulled in her breath. “How did you know about the adoption?”
“I know a lot about you, Laina Marie McLemore. You’re twenty-eight. Born in Bulverde, Texas. A rancher’s daughter, though both your parents are dead. I can tell you the name of your third-grade teacher and what you had for dinner last night. What I’m trying to figure out if you were the mastermind behind Arneson’s illegal ventures, or were you just along for the very lucrative ride?”
“I knew nothing about Kevin’s business dealings or the legality of the adoption.” And she was adamant about it, too.
Luke continued to push. “But you went along with it?”
“Unknowingly went along with it,” she corrected.
When she didn’t say more, he made a circular motion with his hand for her to continue.
She started with a huff. “Kevin was sterile, we wanted a baby, and he didn’t want me to use donor sperm to get pregnant. He’s the one who arranged for the adoption through an attorney in San Antonio. I didn’t know it was illegal, not until months after Kevin was murdered, when I read about the illegal adoption ring in the paper. Even then, I didn’t know that’s how Kevin had gotten Christopher.”
“But you suspected it,” he accused her.
“No, I didn’t. Not until I saw the name of the attorney who’d been arrested. By then, it was too late. I was already in hiding. I’d already established a life here in Crystal Creek. And I knew if I didn’t stay hidden, those men would come after me—”
“Ah, the men again,” he mocked. “They’re getting a lot of playtime in this fantasy world of yours. And it’s because of these men that you fled San Antonio and went into hiding.”
“Yes.” She paused. “You don’t believe me?”
“No, but that’s not important. The important thing is that after a year of digging, I found you.”
“Lucky me,” she grumbled. She turned in the seat so she was facing him. Her loose, well-worn jeans and dark red cotton shirt whispered against the vinyl seat. Her breath whispered, too. There was more weariness in it, but Luke could see her fighting it off. “Now, it’s your turn to answer some questions. Who are you and what do you want?”
“I’m Luke Buchanan.” Since the truth would no doubt speed this along, he added, “I’m a federal agent with the Department of Justice.”
She put her hand over her heart as if to steady it. “Prove it.”
The crisp demand had him doing a double take. For a weary lying woman, she certainly had a lot of resolve left. “Prove what?”
“Show me a badge or some kind of ID.”
Jeez. Why couldn’t she just confess all?
Irked, Luke reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his badge. She took it, stared it and even scraped her thumbnail over the picture. Not just once. But twice.
“It’s real,” he assured her.
She must have agreed because she thrust it back at him. What he wouldn’t tell her, yet, was that while the badge was real, this wasn’t official Justice Department business.
No.
This was as personal as personal could get.
“I suppose you’re here to arrest me for the illegal adoption?” she asked.
“That all depends.”
“On what?” Finally, there was slip in her resolve. Her voice cracked.
“You.” He came to stop in front of the house, turned off the engine and stared at her.
Probably because she hadn’t taken her eyes off him, she hadn’t realized where he’d taken her. She glanced out the window for a second before she snapped her head back in his direction. “This is my babysitter’s house. What are we doing here?”
He turned toward her so he could see every nuance of her reaction. “Why do you think I’m here?”
“Oh, no.” She began to shake her head. “I can’t let you do this. You can’t arrest me. You don’t understand— he’s my son. I’ve raised him since he was three days old. I’m the only mother he’s ever known.”
“Believe me, I know that.”
And that was the only reason he hadn’t had Laina McLemore arrested.
“I won’t let you take him from me,” she insisted.
“You have no choice.” And he was just as adamant.
“But you do.” Her bottom lip began to tremble, and she gripped the sides of his leather jacket. “You can walk away from this. You can pretend you never found me.”
Luke had thought he would be immune to a reaction like that, but he wasn’t. “I can’t do that.”
The grip she had on his jacket melted away, and she touched her fingers to her mouth. Tears sprang to her eyes. “Oh, God. The birth parents know about Christopher, and they want him back.”
“His birth mother is dead.” Luke had to take a deep breath after saying that. And another deep breath before he could continue. “But his birth father does indeed want him back.”
Twin tears spilled down her cheeks. “Then, I need to talk to him. I need to make him understand how much Christopher means to me.”
“You’re already talking to him, and there’s nothing you can say or do to make me change my mind. Christopher is my son.”
Chapter Three
Elaina’s breath vanished. And her heart. God, her heart. It was pounding so fast and hard that she thought her ribs might crack.
This was her nightmare come true. Well, one of them anyway. The only thing worse than this would