Silent Run

Victor said, nothing but confidence in his voice.
    â€œThe police are involved. If something happens to her it won’t be that difficult to trace her back to you -- not me,” Shane added.
    Dark storm clouds gathered in Victor’s eyes. He hated when anyone questioned his actions. Shane should have kept his fucking mouth shut. But it was too late now.
    â€œDo you think I’m stupid?” Victor asked.
    â€œOf course not. The truth is, I don’t know where she is right now,” Shane said hastily, trying to defuse the situation. “They slipped away after the fire."
    Victor stared back at him. “And you’re not smart enough to figure out how to get her out in the open?"
    Before he could answer, Rick said, “The kid, dude, that’s the ticket."
    â€œI don’t know where the kid is."
    â€œYou didn’t know there was a kid,” Victor said angrily. “You should have been more thorough."
    Shane should have known about the kid. He’d traced her to the apartment, but he’d never thought she was living with anyone but herself. “She doesn’t know where the kid is. She has amnesia.” The last thing Shane wanted to do was take out a baby. He’d fallen a long way from the kind of man he thought he’d be, but that was just too damn far. His life was not supposed to go down this way.
    â€œThere are only two people who could have the child,” Victor said. “I now know where both of them live."
    â€œDo you want to tell me?"
    â€œActually, I don’t,” Victor said. “You’re of no use to me anymore. You’ve become a liability. You can’t get the job done, and you know too much."
    Before Shane could move, Rick pulled out his gun.
    â€œWhoa, what are you doing?” Shane asked, putting up his hands. “We’re friends. We’ve been together a long time; I’ve done everything you wanted."
    â€œUntil now,” Victor said.
    â€œLet me try again,” Shane said, acutely aware of the barrel of the gun facing him. “We’re partners. We’re fucking partners. Just give me one more chance.” But even as he said the words, he knew it was too late.
    * * *
    While Jake was gone, Sarah got dressed again and straightened the bed. She suspected that any reminder of what had happened between them would not be a good idea. Once that was done, she went to the window and peeked through the curtain. It was dark, but she could see rain streaming down in the glare of the parking lot lights. Another storm. For some reason the rain set her nerves on edge. The last time it had rained she’d almost lost her life.
    Letting the curtain drop back into place, she paced around the small room, restless, frustrated, confused, and worried. She shouldn’t have let Jake go. She should have found a way to make him stay. If only she hadn’t spoken so quickly. Maybe she could have prolonged the inevitable truth, but in the end it would have come out, and she couldn’t change the facts: She couldn’t remember their history together. That fact brought Jake pain each and every time. And the last thing she wanted to do was keep hurting him.
    Wrapping her arms around her waist, she felt chilled. An hour ago she and Jake had been so close she hadn’t known where she ended and he began, but now they were as far apart as they’d ever been, not just physically but emotionally as well. Why couldn’t she remember him? If it had been as good between them as he’d said, why was her brain trying to protect her from those memories? Her mind had already released a bit of her childhood. Why couldn’t she get to the rest of it? What was she afraid of?
    Weary of asking herself questions she couldn’t answer, she sat down on the bed, knowing she wouldn’t be able to relax until Jake returned safe and sound. She couldn’t bear to think of something happening to him. He’d already dodged death at her apartment building. He could have been shot through the heart when he’d stepped in front of her. But he hadn’t been thinking about himself. His first thought had been to protect her. According to him, keeping her alive was the key to finding Caitlyn, but she’d spent enough time with Jake in the past few days to know that his caring instincts also extended to her. Although she couldn’t see how she deserved his care or his protection.
    Reaching over the side of the