Killing Lucas (5 page)

Lucas had somehow forgotten Nancy was a hugger, and when her arms wrapped around him he did his best to relax. But he didn’t miss the smirk on Kiloran’s face at his discomfort. Pulling away from her, he went over the advice Tony had given them the night before, the tips to make people believe they were an item again. Then he remembered: redirect the attention. So people remembered that it had been good before and that he still remembered those in her life with fond memories.

Fuck, he really sucked at this people-person stuff. Looking up, he saw Kiloran stand and do a mock run in place and hold up five fingers and the sign for K. He tossed her a grateful smile. “So, Nancy, are you still running all those 5Ks?”

“I am! I can’t believe you remembered that.” Nancy moved over the far end of the trailer and opened a few drawers pulling out some brushes. “Come on, we need to get you ready for hair and makeup.”

Lucas sat back down as Kiloran returned to her seat in the makeup chair letting Nancy work through those gorgeous red locks until they shined. And for the first time, he let himself remember what it had been like to run his fingers through her hair. How he had loved the feel of it when he made love to her, looking down at her, her eyes shut and mouth slightly open, her hands above her head and her fingers intertwined with his…

Fuck!

Looking up, Lucas realized he had said that out loud. The last thing he wanted to do was remember how damned good sex had been with her. “I forgot my flash drive,” he lied. He stood abruptly, waking the puppy at his feet. “I hope I left it in the car.”

Lucas excused himself and was just opening the door when Kiloran called the puppy over. “Come here, Fenway.”

“His name isn’t Fenway,” he said in a near growl.

“Well, until you come up with a better name I’m calling him Fenway.” She looked at Nancy in the mirror, a playful smile forming on her lips. “Which means he will forever be Fenway.”

“Oh, you two. Lord, you would never believe you hadn’t been together for all these years.”

That left Lucas as he walked to the car at least relieved, if not thankful, that if they had fooled the person closest to Kiloran, everyone else would fall into place. But what did that mean for his mental well-being in the end?

With his flash drive in his pocket and knowing he didn’t really want to be back in a trailer that would soon be filled with a bunch of gossiping people, Lucas focused his attentions on the real issue at hand—the stalker. He managed to locate the head of security, who showed the right amount of concern and outrage. Both for the situation and for being left in the dark about it.

“No unusual packages or people hanging around the trailers?”

“It’s a movie shoot. We get new people coming in every day just to get a glimpse at the stars. But nothing has ever been delivered to Ms. O’Connor, at least nothing that’s gone through my department. But if there is, I’ll make sure we open it first to inspect it.”

“And about letting strangers on the lot?”

“We’ll do our best, but we’re surrounded by woods. We can keep the cars out, but not someone determined to get in by foot. I’ll have my men step up the patrol around the trailers and make sure it’s locked tight until she arrives.”

“Thanks, Mr. Benson, I appreciate it.”

Crossing one thing off his mental checklist, Lucas worked on the next item—the one he had been dreading. He picked up his phone and called his mother. No surprise, she picked up on the first ring. “Lucas Sherman, where
are
you?”

“Good morning, Mom.”

“That didn’t answer my question.”

“I am thirty-two years old. I don’t have to tell you where I am.”

“Joseph, this son of yours will be the death of me.” Lucas could picture his mother glaring at his father as he sat at the breakfast table, newspaper in hand, enjoying a cup of coffee. “Are you going to tell me, or do I have to drag it out of your brother?”

“Tony won’t say a word unless I tell him to, Mom. But I will tell you where I am so you can stop your worrying. I’m in the Berkshires.”

“What could you possible—oh my. You’re with that woman, aren’t you?”

“Mom, you have to trust me.”

“That’s exactly what Tony and Hunter said.”

“So did I,” Joseph said somewhere in the background.

His could hear his mother grimace over the phone. “And so did your father.”

“So trust me.”

There was a pause followed by a muffled sound in the distance that could only be his father mumbling about something as he left the kitchen. “It’s not you we don’t trust, Lucas. I don’t want to see you go through that again. It would break my heart. Please—”

“I know what I’m doing.”

“Well, what about your house? Shouldn’t you be dealing with that?”

“Hunter said he would take care of it before they head back to New York. Besides, there isn’t a lot to do; he’s just going to have a team he trusts deal with the insurance company.”

“Do you need anything? What if your father and I—”

“No. Don’t even think about it. Stay there for now. I just need my space.” And of everything, that was the truth. He didn’t want his mother worried about him and it was best for everyone to keep Kiloran and his parents at a good distance. “Look, Mom, I have to go. Love you.”

She tried one more time to change his mind, but for everyone’s safety it was best if they just stayed away.

Chapter Five

“What the hell is wrong?”—Lucas to Kiloran

K
iloran dozed the entire ride home, waking only when she heard the gravel driveway under the car’s tires. Yawning, she looked up at the large house, dark and foreboding in its silence. Why had her agent negotiated such a large place for her? She didn’t need anything this size. She wanted something small and private. But private it was, on a curvy road with only one or two houses around.

“Sorry I slept the whole time,” she said as the she walked beside him to the stone steps to the front door, he placed the puppy on the ground before looking back at her.

“It’s been a long day, and I bet you didn’t sleep much last night either.”

It wasn’t as though she could tell him she hadn’t slept much in years, not with all the feelings churning through her: fear, guilt, terror, loneliness, to name a few. None of which Lucas would understand. He had made it perfectly clear this morning that no matter what she had to say he A) didn’t want to hear it and B) wouldn’t believe her anyway. Ten minutes of his undivided attention and she could fix this mess between them, she knew it. Kiloran didn’t want to
pretend
they were still together. She wanted it to be real.

She wanted so much more than what she had right now. She wanted this man. She still loved him—that would never change. No matter what he thought. She had loved him enough to push him away for his own safety. She loved him so much that even now with all his hatred, she still loved him. She wanted to feel his arms around her, for him to reach for her to touch her the way he used to.

“Earth to Kil. You coming in?”

She blinked and realized he was holding the door open. He must have disarmed the alarm already too. “Sorry; still groggy.”

“Come on, I’ll find out what we have to make for supper, and then we can get you to bed.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t have to thank me. Don’t know how long we will be together like this. I may not like it, but at least we can be civil.”

She let her face drop and was thankful that his back was to her as he walked away into the kitchen. With every word he cut into her. Not that she didn’t believe she deserved it. She knew no matter what her reasons, Lucas’s anger was justified. But it didn’t make it hurt any less. She let herself wonder for a moment
what if
…what if she hadn’t been a famous actress…what if they had just met as normal people? What if…?

“Why don’t you go get a shower? By the time you’re done I’ll have dinner ready,” he suggested, sticking his head around the corner for a second before going back to whatever he was doing in the kitchen.

Bone-weary, she didn’t even bother to answer him. Kiloran headed up the long staircase, counting the steps as she went, hoping that would speed her ascent. Before now, the full schedule and long hours had made her life easier to bear. When she was working, she didn’t think about Lucas, she could be someone else. But when the cameras turned off, Kiloran was left to her own thoughts. Even Nancy’s endless chatter didn’t help anymore. Her voice sounded like an adult character in a kids’ cartoon, all mumbles and nonsense words that made no sense. But then Nancy just talked and talked and never really seemed to ask for much conversation from Kiloran. Just as well, Kiloran honestly had no idea seventy-five percent of the time what was said. Now between her shooting schedule, the stalker, and living with Lucas, Kiloran was close to a mental breakdown.

She toed off her shoes just as she entered the master suite. Afraid if she sat on the bed, she’d never get back up, Kiloran undressed standing. She pulled off her socks, pants, and finally her ratty, old T-shirt, letting them stay where they landed on the plush bedroom carpeting. Her bra was next to go, flung on a nearby chair. Walking into the bathroom, she headed to the state-of-the-art shower, complete with five showerheads. Turning two of them on, she tested the water and waited for cold to turn hot. She faced the mirror, about to take off her panties and find an elastic band to hold up her hair. The breath caught in her throat as panic rose and she let out a piercing scream. She ran blindly, only knowing she needed Lucas now.

Her scream echoed through the large house. Lucas didn’t wait for a second for Kiloran to scream again. He was running full speed nearly tripping over the puppy sleeping in the kitchen door.

He took the stair two at a time and met Kiloran dressed only in a pair of underwear in the hallway coming straight at him. She was pale—and that said something, as she was always pale. Only the splattering of freckles across her nose and cheeks gave her any color. She wrapped herself around him with a death grip.

“What the hell is wrong?”

She buried her face deep into his shirt shaking her head. Good Lord, she was trembling. He forced her back to look at her—a mistake, as now her perfect breasts were staring at him. Coral-colored nipples that he wanted to take into his mouth were perky and erect. He had been too long without sex. Looking back at her face, Lucas leaned down to force her to look in his eyes.

“Tell me.”

“He was here.”

“Where?” Lucas knew damned well who
he
was.

“Bathroom.” She pointed a shaking hand in the direction of her room. He halted when she grabbed his shirt. “Please don’t leave me.”

Lucas pulled her to him and headed to the bedroom. Stopping only long enough to grab the blanket off the foot of the bed, he wrapped it around Kiloran and forced her to sit on the bed’s edge. “I will be right here.”

She nodded, enfolding the blanket around her tighter. Moving into the bathroom, his gaze went to the large mirror along the length of the wall over the two sinks. In big red letters was a message:

“Get rid of Lucas or I will.”

And if the bold letters written in every shade of lipstick they could find wasn’t enough, perhaps it was the twelve exclamation points that followed. Anger filled Lucas. He wanted to shatter the mirror with his bare hands. But instead, he took a deep breath, clicked a photo with his camera phone, and sent it to Agent Vassar and Detective Henry, and copied Tony and Hunter for good measure. He looked out the bathroom door at Kiloran, who sat still as a statue staring off into nothing, her green eyes huge with fear.

Fuck!
Punching nine-one-one on his phone, he gave the operator the information they needed before heading back out to Kiloran. She jumped at his touch. “Honey, we have to get you dressed.”

“You have to leave, Lucas. You can’t stay.”

“This ends now. Do you understand?”

Her hands gripped his arm so tight he started to lose circulation. “He is going to kill you. I just know it. You have to leave, tonight. Right now.”

“He is not going to hurt you anymore.” Pulling her to her feet, Lucas picked up her discarded clothes and helped her into them, minus the bra—he wasn’t that much of a gentleman. “Come on, the police should be here soon. Let’s wait for them in the kitchen.”

“We should leave. He could still be here.”

“No one is here. I disarmed the alarm when we got here.” Keeping his arm firmly wrapped around her waist, he led her down the stairs. He only let go long enough to pick up the puppy, who had managed to make it up the second step of the stairs. Handing him to Kiloran for comfort, Lucas forced her to sit as he went into the other room to get her a shot of bourbon. “Drink this.”

“I don’t drink anymore.”

“Drink. Now. You’re in shock.” His phone rang, playing steel drums. “Tony, I’m fine,” he said, without even bothering to question who it was.

“Just checking.” Tony’s voice sounded doubtful, but he didn’t say anymore.

“I’ll call you back later,” Lucas said, ending the call.

He’d managed to get her to drink the brown liquid and eat half a sandwich when blue-and-red lights illuminated the room through the windows. “Stay right here.”

She nodded and didn’t move.

Lucas threw open the door, taken aback to find a tall, dark man coming up the drive way with the local police officers. “That was quick even for you, Agent.”

“You didn’t really think we would be sending you up here alone, did you?” Agent Vassar said outstretching his hand. “Shame to be seeing you again, Mr. Sherman.”

Introductions took place before Lucas could fill in what he knew—what they’d touched and where they hadn’t checked yet. Two uniformed officers searched the house, while one called the security firm that ran the home alarm and another two searched the outside of the house. Agent Vassar came in to chat with Kiloran, who didn’t say much, simply shaking her head and nodding.

“Should we leave?”

“That’s up to you two. We’ll have someone stationed outside from now on, and I’m sure the alarm company is setting up a new code as we speak. Who knew your alarm code, Ms. O’Connor?”

“Um… The housekeeper, but she’s in her seventies and was hired by the owners, has been with them for years. She sometimes brings a family member when she brings my groceries.”

“Anyone else?”

“No.”

Lucas ran through the list of people she would have let into her house and into her confidence. “What about Nancy?”

“Nancy?”

“Nancy April, her assistant.”

“No, she has the code to my home in LA but as I’m so out of the way here, I haven’t needed her to come and get anything for me, so I haven’t given it to her.”

“Your agent or manager?”

“Murray might know it, but I doubt it. He negotiated the house into my rider with the studio but didn’t have anything to do with the actually picking out the place.”

“What about your director, Daniel Ivan?”

“No, Danny wouldn’t have it either.”

“Ms. O’Connor, is there anyone you can think of who could have done this? Maybe someone you beat out for a role? Perhaps Mr. Sherman has a jilted lover in his past?”

“No to both.”

While a police officer pulled Vassar aside, Lucas refilled Kiloran’s glass for lack of anything else to do. When Vassar turned back to them, his face held no hint of what was going on. “The alarm company said that between the times you both left at six a.m. and set the alarm and the time you got home at eight p.m., the system had been disarmed two other times. Once at nine, which I presume was the housekeeper, and again at quarter to four this evening for about thirty minutes, before it was rearmed. That must be when he came into the house. Somehow he had the code.”

“Can they change it?”

“They’re doing that while we speak. I would ask that you not tell anyone what the code is for the rest of your stay, or at the very least until we catch the unsub. I will have an officer go and speak with the housekeeper in the morning and explain that, for the time being, she doesn’t need to come and clean. To be honest, it’s as much for her safety as it is for our investigation.”

“Please do. I would hate to have her hurt.”

“I have a team coming in and they will go over that bathroom with a fine-tooth comb. We can put you both up in a hotel.”

“No,” Kiloran said, placing her glass down on the end table with a
thump
, “We’re staying put. If we leave, he wins.”

“Very well. I can’t tell you how late they will be working.”

Kiloran looked at the officer and shook her head again. “I don’t have to be at the set tomorrow until late. It doesn’t matter.”

But it did matter. Lucas could see she was barely holding it together. And although they tried not to, the local police were staring, and at any moment one might just be stupid enough to ask for an autograph. Yet when he looked at Kiloran, he could see a vulnerability he had never witnessed before. He wanted nothing more than to whisk her away, but knew they needed to stand their ground. With a sigh he gave up the inner battle and nodded “He’s right. We both need rest and it isn’t going to happen here tonight. You said you could get us a hotel room?”

“Yes, it’s all arranged. There is a little bed and breakfast about fifteen minutes from here. They’re expecting you. They’ll even let you bring the mutt with you.”