Suspected burglary…
Coroner case…
Over.
Chapter 11
Rowan
Ava is asleep in the sitting room when I find her before sunrise. The laptop is open, and she’s wrapped in my shirt. I pick her up and carry her in my arms back to bed. She stirs, hugging my neck.
She’s crying, and her little whimpers are like knives ripping my stomach to shreds. “What’s wrong, my Ava?”
I lower her to the bed and pull her closer, her face against my chest.
“I had a dream…” she sniffs. “I knew… somehow.”
“Knew what, my love?”
“It’s too late.” She shakes her head and presses her nose into my side.
I can’t tell if she’s still asleep and dreaming. I’m not sure if this is residual emotions from her discovery of the other girl. I hold her slim body, moving my hands up and down her back as she calms.
“Sleep, darling,” I whisper. “We can figure it out in the morning.”
She only wraps her arm around my waist. She holds me, trembling a long time before she relaxes. I’m awake much longer, mentally running through what I know. Freddie is keeping tabs on everything. Nothing has changed as far as I know. I can only assume my beautiful wife had a bad dream.
André and I have researched the specifics of Ava’s situation. It’s extremely unusual. We’ve learned the amount of money Ava stole puts her at risk of grand theft charges in Florida, which could mean she’s facing five to ten years in prison. I remember it had been the leverage Reggie used against Zelda years ago to make her help him.
I’m sure we can get the charges dropped, especially considering she’s my wife, the queen regent of Monagasco. Even if we can’t get them dropped, Monagasco has no extradition agreement with the United States, and I’ll be damned if I let anyone take Ava.
By cruel comparison, any sexual assault charges she might want to file against this Dwayne Vega bastard would fall outside the statute of limitations. Combined with a lack of evidence, we essentially have nothing legal to use against him. He walks away scot-free.
I have no intention of sharing any of this information with my beautiful bride. Still, learning it, combined with the ongoing pressure of implementing this new referendum is what drove me to the track yesterday… with some very unexpected and extremely pleasurable consequences.
Glancing down at my sleeping wife, I smile remembering her sassy, seductive greeting. If it were physically possible for my jaw to hit the floor, it would have happened when I walked in to see her wrapped in only my white dress shirt and an assortment of toys waiting.
At times it is difficult to maintain control around her, and that time, my response had been primal. I’d let go and followed my basic instinct to possess her. Taking her from behind, jerking her ass up and to me with that strap... I’ve never come that hard in my life.
Tomorrow, I have a videoconference with Prince Fayed of Tunis, my sometime racing rival and friend. For now, my queen is safe and sleeping at my side. I’ll do anything to make her happy and help her with this problem. It’s the last thought on my mind as I drift to sleep.
Chapter 12
Ava
I decide to wait on telling Rowan about Grace until I’m sure I’m correct in what I think is happening. Still, I can’t escape the fears crowding my mind. First, Ramona is killed in a robbery. Now Grace. It can’t be a coincidence… Can it?
Could it possibly be some sick twist of fate? Is it possible after all this time, with the two women living oceans apart… Could Dwayne be searching for the money?
The thought is in my mind when our special refugee email account dings. My brow lines, and I foolishly think in the midst of all this chaos, perhaps something good is about to happen.
The email subject is “Family Information”:
My Dear,
I’m so proud of you. After all this time to find you’ve risen to such heights. Queen regent. I can’t say I’m surprised. You were always the most beautiful of the girls.
I’m sure one hundred and fifty thousand dollars isn’t much to a queen regent, but the fact is it’s everything to me. I’ve used a process of elimination to narrow my search to you. Now you have two choices, which I will present to you in person tomorrow.