Reaching into her closet, he tossed her clothes in a bag. “You’re in danger… more than I thought. You are leaving.”
He meant it. He’d try and take her, regardless of the cops in the other room. Chances were, he’d succeed. What should she do? She couldn’t trust him, but he knew how to fight and win. Why didn’t that reassure her? “The cops will shoot you.”
His shrug made him wince as he glanced down at his torso. “I’ve been shot before.”
She edged toward the hallway.
He grabbed her arm, his hold firm. “Josie, I know things are complicated. But three killers just stormed your house. You need protection, and I’m better than the cops.”
Her thoughts slugged through her mind in slow motion. Should she leave with him? What about the police? But he was right—he’d taken care of the threat. What was wrong with her? She didn’t trust him, but she couldn’t walk away. Her lungs compressed. If she didn’t go with him, would she ever see him again? Maybe not, and she couldn’t take that chance. She had to know who he was—whom she’d married. And she wanted to live. For now, he was her best bet. So many conflicting emotions ripped through her that her stomach hurt.
He led her through the hall and into the kitchen.
Malloy met them at the door. “Where do you think you’re going?”
Shane’s nostrils flared. “The hospital. The ambulance is too late, and I’m taking my wife for a checkup.”
Malloy frowned. “I’ll meet you there when we’re finished with the scene.”
Confusion hazed in Josie’s brain, but instinct pushed her to go. Quickly. She stumbled alongside Shane as he led her to the garage and lifted her into the SUV.
“Put on your seat belt.” Quick strides put him behind the vehicle, and he backed out of the garage.
“Why didn’t you tell Malloy about the bug?” She clasped her frozen hands in her lap.
Streetlights played across the dangerous angles of Shane’s face. “The detective isn’t prepared for whatever’s going on here.”
“And you are?” Okay. That did scare her.
“Yep.” He circled the block, scrutinizing the homes stirring to life with the dawn. “In your neighborhood, is there an empty house, one for sale or one with the owners on a long vacation?”
“Why?”
“Because that bug sucked. The device had a radius of a block, max.”
“How do you know the radius just from looking at the bug?”
He stilled. “I don’t know.” The vehicle slowed at the end of the block.
Josie shook her head. He knew stuff he shouldn’t and was beyond trained. Trained to kill anybody in his way. What if she was suddenly in his way? A chill slithered down her spine.
“Josie?”
She stiffened and pointed to a small bungalow. “That house was for sale. I mean, the sign is gone, so maybe they sold it.” She’d known he had training as a soldier, but just what kind of skills had he developed? His hearing must be truly excellent to have detected that bug under her phone. What was he really capable of? Besides hand-to-hand combat that resulted in the other guy being dead.
Shane nodded, drove around the corner, and parked next to the community gazebo. “Why don’t you like hospitals?”
For the love of Pete. She’d known he wouldn’t let it go. “I don’t think this is the time to talk about it.”
“We’re not leaving until we talk about it.” A muscle jumped in his jaw.
She’d told him her entire life story before, and yet he hadn’t told her a thing. For two months they’d shared a home, shared a bed. And she’d had no idea he was a killer. Their marriage had been a lie, one she’d jumped into wholeheartedly. She’d loved somebody that didn’t exist, and the loss of that dream pierced her breastbone with a blade sharper than she would’ve imagined.
A stranger sat next to her.
“Josie. Answer me about the hospital,” he said calmly.
She jumped. The morning pressed in. A sense of urgency had her wiggling on the seat. They couldn’t just sit there, and appeasing him right now seemed wise. “Fine. I grew up in foster care. One of the houses had a drunk who hit. He took me to the hospital, and I associate the smell of the place with, ah, pain.”
Shane’s hands tightened on the wheel, the knuckles turning white. “Have I killed him?”
“No.” Josie coughed. “Though you wanted to.”
“Still do.” Anger and pain bracketed Shane’s mouth.
Yeah. Amnesia or not, Shane was Shane. Unless it was all a trick. “It ended up being a good thing. The doctors made a report, and I went to Arthur and Claire’s to live. They were foster parents, but they planned to adopt me.” Her voice sounded wistful, even to her. When she’d fallen on her bike, she’d even felt safe at the hospital with Arthur carrying her in.