California Schemin' - Kate George [41]
“He’ll find a way. Richard didn’t want to work for him. Told him flat out no. And look where he is now.”
“Why would the senator want someone working for him who didn’t want to be there? Doesn’t make sense.”
“Because Richard’s the best at what he does. He’s an ex-Navy Seal. Got all kinds of awards. Could probably get in the FBI or the CIA if he wanted, but he doesn’t want that. He wants to put all that stuff behind him and be a normal person now.”
Paris seemed too naive to be with a guy like Hammie, but maybe that’s what he wanted, someone who couldn’t imagine or guess what he’d done. Someone who would comfort him when he woke up in a cold sweat but wouldn’t ask questions.
“How did you meet Ham, er, Richard?”
She smiled and stared at the ceiling, stretching her arms up over her head and wiggling into the comforter.
“He’s a friend of my older brother. They were in the Navy together, and when Roger got out he brought Richard home. We’ve been dating ever since. He won’t even sleep with me,” she closed her eyes, “because I’m Roger’s sister. Says I should wait until I’m married. It was really nice until Senator Gets-What-He-Wants got his hooks into Richard. That spoiled everything. I know it’s not your fault he had to sit with you at the concert, but it’s awful that Richard is spending all his time doing stuff for him. It’s not fair.”
“Yeah? Well, life’s not fair. At least that’s what my momma always told me. So what are you going to tell Senator Gets-What-He-Wants about me?”
“Oh, I don’t know. I think I’ll hang out in here a while longer. He won’t bug me while I’m in with you. He kind of gives me the creeps, and he never leaves me alone with Richard anymore. Richard’s noticed it too. He was mad when I wore that red coat. Wallace gave it to me, and Richard said I should give it back. He doesn’t want me to be indebted to Wallace. I like the coat. I’m not giving it back.”
“It’s your decision.”
I turned back to the window and examined how it opened. It was one of those sliding jobbies, the kind that opens by sliding to the side instead of up and down. It wasn’t locked. A ground floor room with a locked door but unlocked windows. A mixture of emotion spread through me. The sane part of my brain was sending out warning signals, the other was planning my escape.
“They locked me in here but didn’t bother to lock the windows.”
“There’s some sort of perimeter alarm. They don’t need to lock the windows or the rear doors because a siren goes off if anyone goes through the back yard. There’s a motion detector on the property line.”
I went back to planning my escape anyway. Maybe if I jumped off the roof I could avoid setting off the alarm. Then I remembered the roof was three stories high.
“Damn!”
Paris jumped up, and I realized I’d spoken out loud.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.” I hadn’t noticed that she’d gone to sleep.
“S’okay.” Paris rubbed her eyes. “I shouldn’t be sleeping now anyway. I’m getting into a bad cycle. I can’t sleep at night, and I end up napping during the day. Then I can’t sleep at night. It’s the awful hours here. They get you all strung out so you’ll be confused and easily manipulated. Richard told me that.”
Smart Richard, I thought. I went back to scanning the back yard and the hills beyond. After all, this place wasn’t built as a fortress, so there had to be ways to get in and out without detection. I heard Paris get up off the bed and turned to see her pulling her clothes back into place.
“I’m going to my room,” she said. “Maybe he won’t find me for a while.”
“Hang on.”
“Yeah?” She turned to look at me, her hand on the doorknob.
“Why are you staying here? Couldn’t you go home if you wanted?”
“I’m not sure if they’d let me go home or not, but if I did leave, I’m pretty sure I’d never see Richard again. It’s up to me to save him.”
Great, another woman who thinks she needs to rescue her man. I shook my head as Paris slid out of the room and waited to hear the lock click back into place. It didn’t. I crossed to the door and tried the handle. It turned. I waited until Paris had plenty of