The Whole Truth (A. Shaw 1)

Katie was taken aback for a moment. “Well, I guess I only had his word for it. It wasn’t like I had the opportunity to ask everyone for official IDs.”

Anna rose and paced the room, making precise ninety-degree turns as she did so. “It could very well be that Shaw is not who I thought he was.”

“He saved my life, Anna. And he let me go.”

As though she’d just used up all her energy, Anna slumped down in her chair, put a hand to her face, and quietly sobbed.

Katie rose and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Is there something else?”

Anna took a deep breath and wiped her face with a tissue. “Shaw went to see my parents, in Germany. He did so at my request. To ask for my hand in marriage from my father.” She glanced up at Katie. “I know, it’s silly. But I just wanted…”

“To see if he’d do it?” Anna nodded. “And what happened?”

“My father happily gave his consent.”

“So what’s the problem?”

“After Shaw left another man came. He told them things about Shaw. Very disturbing things. Then the night you called me, a man came to see me. He was with an international agency I’ve never heard of. He said Shaw worked for them.”

“So he is a good guy!” Katie exclaimed.

But Anna shook her head. “He said that Shaw was forced to work for them.”

“Forced to? How?”

“To avoid going to prison for serious crimes. This man told me Shaw shot him in the head

. Almost killed him.”

“If he did that why wouldn’t they just put him in prison? Why cut him a deal like that?”

“I asked that same question. And this man – he said his name was Frank Wells – he said that Shaw was very good at doing what they needed done. He was brave with strong nerves. That he could walk into dangerous situations and come out alive like no one else.”

“From what I saw I can believe that. So he is working for the good guys.”

“Wells said that Shaw kills people.”

“When they’re trying to kill him.”

“Why are you defending him so?” Anna asked in a sudden fierce tone. “You do not know him. You met him, by your own admission, one time.”

“That’s true, but it was a helluva one time. You learn a lot about someone in a situation like that. There’s no opportunity to put on a false front. He saved my life and he let me go, Anna. So, I feel like I owe him. But it doesn’t matter what I think. What counts is what you believe.”

“I thought I knew Shaw.” She paused. “My father has revoked his consent.”

“You’re a big girl, you don’t need your father’s permission to marry.”

“Would you marry a man under such conditions?”

“I’d talk to him about it before I made any decisions.”

“I’m… I’m afraid,” she admitted.

“Anna, if he were going to hurt you, he would’ve done it by now.”

“I’m not afraid of him hurting me physically. But what if he did commit these crimes the man spoke of? What if he tells me so? I cannot live with that. I don’t want to know.”

“But then he doesn’t get to tell you his side of things. That’s not fair to him.”