The Angel and the Outlaw Read online

  He caught her hands, brushed a kiss across each palm, then twined his fingers with hers and pressed their joined hands to the pillow beside her head. “I haven’t been a monk, Hayley, but it’s been a while since I slept with a woman. And in case you’re wondering, I’ve never had a woman in this bed before you.”

  “What?”

  He stretched her arms toward the headboard and lowered himself until his chest touched her breasts. “You’re the first woman who has been in this loft.”

  “Why?”

  “Running the bar takes most of my time. Everything else comes second.”

  “There must be more to it than that, Cooper. What’s the real reason?”

  Her question made him think. It took him a minute to figure out the answer. “I guess this place is like the Long Shot. It’s a chance to change the way things used to be for me.”

  “It’s your first permanent home.”

  “Yeah. Aside from the three years I spent inside, this is the longest I’ve stayed in one place. I wanted it to be different. Decent.” He gave her a gentle kiss. “When I was a kid, I remember how Donny used to bring his girlfriends home all the time, even before my mother finally split. I’m not judging him or anything, he was what he was, but I didn’t want to be like him.”

  She smiled, her eyes glowing with an echo of the way she’d looked at him the night before. “And yet you brought me here.”

  “I didn’t have much choice the first time.”

  She laughed softly. “Neither did I. You tossed me over your shoulder and carried me.”

  “That’s how it started.” He slipped his knee between her legs, easing them apart. “But I already told you the main reason I brought you home.”

  “I remember you said something about my pants.” She rubbed the sole of her foot along his calf. “I hope you remember what I said.”

  He shifted his other knee to the inside of her thighs, spreading her legs wider as he settled his weight on top of her. Damn, he shouldn’t have started to talk. It was simpler when they didn’t talk. He had told her he wanted to sleep with her, but she had seen through that already.

  And she’d been right. If sex was all that he’d wanted from Hayley, he hadn’t needed to wait this long.

  He knew that he cared about her, he’d told her that almost a week ago. The hard part was accepting just how much he wanted her to care about him.

  He needed more than her body, he needed to see that look in her eyes, hear the trust in her voice and feel the honesty in her touch. It scared him, how much he wanted from her and how little he could offer in return.

  He tightened his grip on her fingers. “Hayley, I don’t want to hurt you.”

  Her gaze was steady on his, as if she realized he wasn’t only talking about the physical pain he might cause. “I know you don’t, Cooper.”

  “But if I can’t feel you around me in the next second…”

  She smiled and hooked her ankle behind him, lifted her hips and drew him into her warmth.

  The knock on the door made Hayley start. She blinked, realizing she had been staring at the same page on the computer screen for the past five minutes. Her mind wasn’t on the financial performance of Sproule’s money-laundering outboard-motor company, it was still reeling from what Cooper had done before he’d left this morning.

  And it wasn’t only her mind that was feeling the aftereffects. She was tender in the most intimate places. Each time she moved, tingles stole through her body, setting off echoes of pleasure.

  She pushed away from Cooper’s desk and pressed the back of her hand to her cheek. She could feel it burning merely at the thought of him. “Yes?” she called.

  Pete opened the door and stuck his head inside. “Have you got a minute? There’s someone here who wants to talk to you.”

  “Sure.” She glanced at the window. The spot where Cooper usually parked his truck was still empty. He was following up on his agreement with Nathan by driving to the Sproule estate to scout out the best way to ease up on the surveillance.

  “Coop isn’t back yet,” Pete said. “Besides, if he was, he wouldn’t send me and he wouldn’t knock.”

  She returned her gaze to his. “I know. I—” She paused when she noticed Pete’s teasing grin.

  It was ridiculous to feel her blush deepen. She was certain Cooper wouldn’t have told anyone what had happened the night before, but it must have been obvious to his friends that something had changed.

  And yet, other than their sleeping arrangements, everything else was still the same, wasn’t it? “Who is it?” she asked.

  “A girl Cooper threw out of the place last week.”

  Hayley got out of the chair, automatically smoothing her skirt as she moved around the desk, but the casual flowered cotton garment didn’t show many wrinkles. The clothes she had acquired to replace her lost wardrobe not only fit better, they were more comfortable. “He threw her out? What did she do?”

  Pete stepped back as she approached the doorway. “Chose the wrong friend. Her name’s Nina. She’s just a kid, so she’s probably skipping school to be here.”

  “Did she say why she wants to see me?”

  “She says it’s about Sproule.”

  The girl was standing just inside the front entrance of the bar. From a distance, she didn’t look like a child—her snug T-shirt and hip-hugger jeans revealed the generous figure of a grown woman. Yet as soon as Hayley was close enough to see her face, the illusion of maturity faded. The girl’s features were smooth and baby-soft. She couldn’t be past her midteens.

  Although Hayley had never seen her before, she had a sudden urge to give her a hug. The girl seemed to be trying her best to act grown up, but her dark eyes held a spark of guilty panic. “Nina?” Hayley asked. “I’m Hayley Tavistock. Pete said you wanted to talk to me.”

  Nina looped the strap of a tiny purse across her shoulder and glanced around the barroom. Chair legs scraped against the hardwood as Pete pulled the chairs off the tables and set them on the floor. “Can we go someplace else?” she asked.

  Hayley slipped her arm around Nina’s shoulder and ushered her to the back hall. “We can talk in the office. Would you like a soda?”

  Nina shook her head. She didn’t speak again until Hayley had closed the door of Cooper’s office behind them. “I heard what you’re doing here and I want to help.” The words came out in a rush. “I didn’t say anything before because I wasn’t supposed to be there. I told my parents I was at the library just like I did when that big guy drove me home and I knew I would get grounded if I said anything.”

  Hayley led her to the couch and sat beside her. “Take your time, Nina. I’m not going anywhere.”

  The girl brought her purse to her lap and clasped her hands on top of it. “It’s the only way I can get out of the house. My parents are okay, but they treat me like a kid all the time. Ever since last week they don’t even want to let me out except to go to school. It’s not as if I’m going to see Izzy again. He’s a creep.”

  Izzy? The man who worked for Sproule and had brought heroin to the Long Shot? Perhaps this girl knew something about the drug shipment. Hayley leaned closer. “Nina, what happened last week?”

  Nina made an erasing motion with her hand. “Izzy tried to buy me a drink but Cooper wouldn’t serve me. He made that hulk who works for him take me home. My parents went ballistic.”

  It wasn’t that difficult to put the picture together. Cooper must have realized that Nina was underage and he’d had Pete see that she got safely home. Oh, he was a good man. He couldn’t help showing it in everything he did. Hayley smiled. “Your parents want what’s best for you, Nina. People like Izzy will only lead to trouble.”

  The girl rolled her eyes. The expression made her look even younger. “I know that. I told you, he’s a creep. He told me to keep quiet about this, but I’m not listening to him anymore.”

  “Pete told me you know something about Oliver Sproule,” Hayley prompted. “Did you learn some
thing about him from Izzy?”

  “Well, sort of, but what I’m talking about happened before I met him. It was last year. Like I said, I wasn’t supposed to be there, so I was afraid to say anything. I only told Izzy because I wanted to impress him.”

  “When last year, Nina?”

  “October.”

  Hayley’s heart gave a sudden thump. Adam had been killed in October. “Maybe it would be easier if you started at the beginning.”

  Nina chewed at a ragged thumbnail. “It was a school night, so my parents thought I was at the library, but I wanted to go to this place downtown that my friends had told me about. There were three of us. We were waiting for it to get busy so we could slip inside, when this tall blond man walked out. He bumped into me, so I remember his face. He was really nice about it, even though he looked kind of ticked, like he’d been stood up.”

  Hayley stared at her. “A tall, blond man,” she said.

  “There was nothing we could do. I’m sorry. The car didn’t even slow down. He tried to jump out of the way but it steered right into him. It was in front of a streetlight so we knew it was on purpose. We couldn’t believe it. It was like it was happening on TV or something except the noise was so awful, like a crunch—” She broke off. She looked at Hayley, her dark eyes brimming with tears.

  “You’re talking about my brother.” Hayley tried to keep her voice controlled, despite the emotions that were surging over her. The girl was describing Adam’s murder. The horror and grief that Hayley had thought she’d gotten past were once again flooding her mind. “That was who you saw get killed, isn’t it? Adam Tavistock.”

  She nodded. “I saw his picture in the paper after. We wouldn’t have guessed he was a cop. We all swore to each other we wouldn’t tell because we knew we’d be grounded for life and he was dead anyway so—”

  “And you never said anything because you were afraid of being grounded? My God. You witnessed a murder. You—” Hayley clenched her jaw and fought to rein in her temper. She reminded herself this was just a child, with a child’s self-centered viewpoint. It wouldn’t do any good for Hayley to vent her frustration on her. “I’m sorry, Nina. I didn’t mean to shout at you. I loved my brother very much and it’s upsetting to hear about his death.”

  “I was going to call 911, really I was. I had my cell out and everything.” Nina wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, then gripped her purse again. “But when we found out who the guy in the car was, we got really scared. Everyone knows about Oliver Sproule.”

  “I can understand that. You must have seen his picture in the paper, too.”

  “No, we saw him there. He backed up and got out of his car to look at the man he hit. We thought he was going to help him. He didn’t. He—” She gave a sharp sob. “He kicked him. I barfed on my phone. We ran up the alley before he could see us.”

  Hayley breathed hard through her nose, striving for control. Oliver had kicked him? Wasn’t it enough that he had run Adam down in cold blood? Oh, God. No wonder the girls were so terrified. This was worse than the scene that she had imagined.

  Her mind snapped back on track so fast, she had to suck in a breath. “Nina, are you positive about all of this?”

  “I know what I saw. I’ll never forget it.”

  “You said there were three of you. You and two friends.”

  “Uh-huh, but I’m the only one left here. Sherry and Jessica went to Springfield after Christmas when their dad got a job at a post office there.”

  Three girls who were in the wrong place at the wrong time and scared out of their heads.

  Three eye witnesses to Adam’s murder.

  Hayley laid her hand over Nina’s. She wanted to clutch her arm and drag her down to the courthouse right now and make her tell her story to Judge Mercer, the man who had presided at Sproule’s trial, but she realized she had to use caution. The girl looked as if she was ready to bolt. “Nina, you did a very courageous thing by coming forward now. It must have been difficult for you, but you’re not going to get in trouble. I promise you. Your parents will be very proud that you’ve told the truth.”

  “I haven’t told them yet. I never told anyone except Izzy. The longer it went on, the harder it got, you know?”

  Hayley felt a lump in her throat. She had given up on the idea of seeing Sproule sent to prison for murder. Now it looked as if it could actually happen.

  It seemed too good to be true. It was definitely too much to take in.

  She could get what she wanted, she could give her father closure and make him proud of her. And Cooper could pay back Tony and keep the Long Shot. She couldn’t wait to see his face when he found out this ordeal was almost over.

  Almost over.

  Her eyes began to sting. This was what she wanted, wasn’t it?

  “Uh, Hayley?”

  She blinked to clear her vision and looked at Nina. “Thank you. Thank you so much. You have no idea how—” Her voice broke. She tried to smile, but her chin was trembling too hard.

  “I’m sorry. Really I am.”

  Would the FBI handle this? Maybe she should contact the state’s Attorney General. As insurance against another cover-up, it might be wise to call as many law enforcement agencies as possible.

  The first thing to do was to get Nina and her friends to make statements. She wasn’t sure how to go about that, but she would start by approaching their parents. One way or another, the entire truth would come out. Nothing was going to stop it now. Finally, justice was going to be done.

  And yet…she didn’t want everything to end. She had only just begun to get close to Cooper. What was going to happen to them when this was over?

  They hadn’t had the chance to talk about afterward. She hadn’t wanted to think about it, but she had better start now.

  “You seem like such a nice person. Izzy must have lied about your brother.”

  She glanced at Nina. “What?”

  The girl hesitated. “Maybe I shouldn’t say anything.”

  At Nina’s tone, Hayley had a swift jab of foreboding. She wasn’t sure why. Things were going better than she could have imagined, weren’t they? “Nina, if you know something else, you have to tell me. Please. What did you hear about Adam?”

  “Izzy said your brother was on the take.”

  Chapter 13

  Hayley felt oddly detached as she moved toward the glass doors at the front of the Latchford Savings and Loan. It was as if shock had disconnected her mind from her body, allowing her to put one foot in front of another with a semblance of control despite the turmoil that careened through her thoughts.

  Phil McCormick, the manager of the bank and an old family friend, rested his fingertips on her elbow as he walked beside her. He smelled of clove-scented aftershave and mothballs, just as he had whenever he’d come for dinner when she’d been a child. He had been deeply upset by Adam’s death, and he had been nothing but solicitous when he’d helped the family’s lawyer deal with Adam’s estate, yet he hadn’t supported Hayley’s stand against Sproule during the trial.

  His lack of support had puzzled her, but she had assumed Phil had been afraid of Oliver Sproule, just like everyone else in town. That much was true, he had been afraid, yet that hadn’t been the only reason he had tried to discourage her from her pursuit of Sproule.

  “Is there anything else I can help you with, Hayley?”

  “No, thank you, Phil.”

  He cleared his throat and lowered his voice. “You must understand, I had no obligation to come forward with this. The records were never subpoenaed.”

  “Yes. I understand.” The lack of a thorough investigation had all been part of the coverup that had resulted in Sproule’s acquittal, except, until now, Hayley hadn’t realized the extent of what had been covered up. She took shallow breaths, focusing on the sunshine that came through the door. Only six more steps and she would be outside.

  “Because your brother’s will has been probated and the accounts have been closed, we’ll be trans
ferring the records to our archives. It is very unlikely that anyone will have cause to access them again. I only agreed to your request so that you’ll know why you have to drop this.”

  Four more steps. She could feel her stomach rebel at Phil’s scent of cloves and mothballs. She clenched her jaw and nodded.

  “Hayley.” Phil squeezed her arm and dropped his hand. “The trial’s over. For Ernie’s sake, let your brother rest in peace. Stirring this up now won’t do any good. It won’t bring Adam back.”

  She took her sunglasses from her purse and fitted them over her eyes. She didn’t have a reply. It was going to take longer than a few hours for her brain to process this.

  At first she had refused to believe what Nina had said about Adam. Her brother couldn’t have been crooked. He had been killed because he had been too good a cop and he had been getting too close to arresting Oliver Sproule. That Izzy character must have lied to stir up trouble, that’s all. The larger-than-life big brother Hayley had adored couldn’t possibly have been dirty.

  No. She knew right from wrong. She knew the good guys from the bad ones.

  Everything that I thought was so black and white has a million shades of gray.

  Yet the records Phil had shown her today were black and white, weren’t they? Numbers didn’t lie. She had seen for herself the five-figure deposits into Adam’s account over the last three years, as regular as clockwork on the final business day of every quarter. According to the transfer slips she had coerced Phil into digging out, the money had come from a shell company that Hayley recognized from her research was directly connected to Latchford Marine.

  There hadn’t been a deposit in September, though. The last one had been in June. That’s why Hayley hadn’t seen anything suspicious on the final statement the bank had sent when the account had been closed.

  The change in the deposit pattern had to have some bearing on why Adam had been killed. Had he been demanding his next payment? Or had he been trying to quit?

  She slapped her palm against the brass plate on the door and pushed it open. After Adam’s death, she had been so immersed in her father’s medical crisis and in her quest for justice that she hadn’t thought to scrutinize her brother’s old financial records. Instead, she had entrusted that to the family lawyer who was administering the will. Like Phil, the lawyer was an old friend of Ernie’s. He must have sat on this information, too.