Mercy: Second Chance Military Romance (19 page)

“Well?” Dad asked.

I smiled.

“This will work.”

“You go get your story,” he said. “Don’t be like me. I failed your mother, and…”

“Stop it, Dad!” I interrupted. “Seriously. You’re the best man I know, the only one who could pull off being a mother and father for me growing up.”

He frowned. I put my hand on his arm, rubbing it gently.

“Dad, I’m serious. I love you.”

“I love you too, dear. Now go before you get emotional and smear your mascara.”

“Makeup tips from my salesman father. Gotta love it.”

He smiled meekly then walked away. I heard the garage door slam and knew he’d snuck off to have a cigarette. I mean, Jennifer was an idiot thinking he was a spy. Not my dad.

* * *

Lucky me
, I thought as I nodded my head at the doorman, not saying a word. He winked but said nothing. Did he know? Would he let me go upstairs then rat me out to the feds?

Calm down
, I told myself
. How could he even know they’re looking into you
? When I made it to the elevator, I hit the button, pacing back and forth impatiently while waiting for it.

The second it arrived, I dashed inside and pressed the button for his penthouse suite. I remembered the federal agents busting us right after fucking, but I didn’t care. With his help, I would be able to run my story and at least make our story public. If I pulled that off, we’d have more protection.

At the top floor, I got out and knocked on the door in the private foyer. He answered, eyes opening wide as soon as he saw me.

“What are you doing here? Come inside.”

“I couldn’t wait to talk to you. I’ve found out some stuff on Jeffries you need to hear. My story is almost done.”

“Are you crazy?” he asked, killing my mood.

“What do you mean?”

“You can’t run this story. It’s too dangerous.”

“Think about it,” I said, putting my hand on his thick arm. “If we go public, they can’t disappear us. At least not as easily.”

He shook his head.

“I don’t like it.”

“Well, to be honest, I don’t really need your information or to even source you in the story.”

“Other journalists will look into it and see I was at FOB Rushmore during the same time period. Are you willing to ruin my life like that?”

“Ruin your life? What about me? Are you not interested in a life for both of us?”

He took a deep breath, taking a few steps away before stopping and turning. “No.”

“No, what?” I asked, following him.

“I’m not helping you with this. I’ll go to the feds and tell them it was all me.”

“Don’t be an idiot.”

“Name calling? Really? Are you like twelve or something?”

“You can be such an asshole sometimes. You know that?”

“And you can be a…”

He grimaced, not finishing the thought.

“Fuck you, Tyler. I came all the way over here to share the good news with you, and you’re not interested in anything other than controlling what I do.”

“Come on, Mercy. Don’t be like that.”

“Like what? Someone who stands up for myself? Maybe I should hook you up with Jennifer.”

“I love you,” he said, putting a strong hand on my waist.

We made eye contact.

“Prove it.”

He sighed, removed his hand, and looked away.

“You should go,” he said. “We don’t want them to catch you here. They probably followed you.”

“I don’t have my phone on me, and I took some evasive measures.”

“Yeah, I noticed the wig.”

I pouted.

“Why do we have to do this to ourselves?”

“I don’t know,” he said then repeated, “You should go.”

“Fine. I’ll talk to you when I talk to you, I guess.”

As I rode the elevator downstairs, anger boiled up inside me, ready to burst. The poor doorman must have thought I was such a bitch as I left the building in a rage.

Fuck men, and especially fuck Tyler
.

He might have been fuckable, but he was not worth the trouble.

THIRTY-FIVE

Tyler

I went to see an attorney the next day. The prick had the nerve to ask what I’d been smoking before I came in. His eyebrows came together in confusion as he realized I wasn’t kidding.

“If you’re being investigated under the Patriot Act, I’m not sure I want anything to do with you. Why didn’t you work with the feds?”

“We were. They came after us a few hours later. The only thing I can think is that someone higher up told them to go after us and not the ones still doing the shit.”

He shook his head.

“I’m afraid my hourly rates…”

“Fuck your hourly rates,” I said, cutting him off. “Can you help me or not?”

“If you have the money, I can help you.”

“I have the fucking money.”

“Good, good,” he said, actually rubbing his hands together.

Can I trust this guy to keep Mercy and I safe?

After I told him the rest of the details concerning Mercy, his expression changed to fear and loathing once again.

“Do not, under any circumstances, go anywhere near that story on the record or off.”

“That’s what I told her, but now I’m not so sure.”

“Don’t think with your dick.”

“Excuse me?”

“Calm down. I’m keeping it real because you’re paying so much.”

“What are your rates, again?”

“Two…” He studied my reaction. “Fifty per hour.”

“Fine. You’re the only one who didn’t kick me out of their office today.”

“I bet. For now, I recommend you go home and lie low. If you’re not working, that shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

“Right.”

I stood, looking down at him as he sat behind his expensive Mahogany desk.

“I’ll call you when I learn something new.”

“See my receptionist out front to put down a retainer.”

“Ten grand work?”

His eyes widened.

“Wait. I thought you said you weren’t involved in this smuggling operation.”

“I was in the past, but I’m not anymore. Don’t you even listen? This is my life we’re talking about here.”

“You have to admit that it’s a bit confusing,” he said, rubbing his moustache.

I headed to the door of his office, ready to pay and go prepare for whatever awaited me next. Between the feds, Roger, Mercy, and everyone else, there was no telling what it would be, but I wanted to be ready.

After swiping my Visa Black Card in the lobby of his office in a rubdown strip mall, I headed to catch the Staten Island Ferry back to the city.

THIRTY-SIX

Tyler

I headed to her apartment when I returned, intent on talking her out of doing the story. If the feds tried to stop me, they could talk to my attorney.

As I took the subway then walked toward her building, my thoughts on the matter shifted. Where I had once thought it best for her not to do the story, I came to understand her point of view.

Once I admitted to myself she was right, it all made sense. The story being in the public eye would give us some level of protection and keep us from disappearing into a holding cell in some bunker.

By the time I reached her building, I had my mind made up. The feds could fuck themselves for all I cared. I had served my country, and I deserved to be allowed totell the truth.

Doing so would likely end up with me prosecuted or perhaps losing my military pension, but as long as I had Mercy by my side, nothing else mattered.

I walked straight up to the front door of her building and pressed the buzzer for her apartment.

“Yes?”

“It’s me,” I said.

“What are you doing here?”

The door buzzed and clicked. I opened it and went inside. On the way up to her floor in the elevator, I thought again about my decision to be honest with her and the world about what I’d been a part of in Afghanistan when I served.

My mind and my heart battled the whole way up. When I stepped out of the elevator, doubts hit me hard. Was I making yet another mistake?

I pushed the self-doubt aside and made my way to her apartment. She stood in the doorway, waiting as I approached. I saw a look of worry and concern on her face.

“What are you doing here?” she hissed, stepping back into her apartment.

“We’ve got to talk. I don’t like the way our last conversation ended,” I said, walking in and closing her door.

“Me either.”

“Wow, you’ve really been working,” I said, glancing at all the papers scattered around her living room.

“You don’t even know. It’s been crazy, but it’s all coming together.”

I took a deep breath.

“I’ve given it a lot of thought, and I’ll allow you to use me as a named source.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.” I put a hand on her waist. “If we’re serious about our relationship moving forward, we need to work together.”

“You’re sure, you’re sure?”

I nodded.

“What do you need me to do?”

“Answer some questions and let me connect the dots. You need to read what I’ve written so far.”

She pointed to her laptop on coffee table in her living room. I walked over and sat down. After scrolling up – quite a bit – I read what she’d written so far.

The words on the screen moved me emotionally, something I wasn’t accustomed to happening. As I read, she sat down on the couch next to me, our legs touching.

“Damn…” I muttered.

“It gets worse. I told you it went high up.”

“They made tens of billions of dollars.”

“You can kind of see why they’ve kept the war going for over ten years now, huh?”

I shook my head, furious at myself for having been involved at the lower levels.

“How could I have been involved in this? The money was okay, but we’re talking a couple hundred thousand for risking my life over there…and these guys walk away with billions?”

I felt her hand rubbing my back. It helped console me, a little.

“That day I saved you in Afghanistan…”

She moved her hand away.

“Yeah?”

“It wasn’t just me who saved you.”

I frowned as the truth got ready to surface.

“What do you mean?”

“There was this old Afghan guy who helped me.”

“Go on.”

“He hid me and you while the Taliban searched for us. If it wasn’t for him, neither of us would have walked out that day. I didn’t tell you because I really wanted to fuck you.”

I stared into her eyes, searching for forgiveness.

“Yeah, I could tell you had one thing on your mind, but I’m an adult. I made a decision…the right one. I think I know the old man you’re talking about. Before they dragged me away, he offered to help, but I didn’t trust him.”

“I should have gotten his name.”

“You and me both,” she said then sighed. “I need to get back to work.”

Over the next two hours, she questioned me about the smuggling operation, including all the people I knew were involved. She got into the zone afterwards, typing away at the laptop.

I went into her bedroom to lie down and rest my eyes. Minutes later, I had fallen asleep.

THIRTY-SEVEN

Mercy

With the story posted online at DC News Heroes, the only website that was willing to work with me, I crawled into bed, exhausted. I fell asleep the moment I closed my eyes.

My phone rang, waking me up. Confused, I reached for my phone and answered.

“Hello,” a heavily accented male voice said.

“Hello? Who is this?”

I sat up, rubbing my eyes with the back of my left hand while I held my phone in the other.

“This is Abdul-lateef,” he said cheerily.

“Who? How did you get this number?”

“Please go slower. Once question at a time.”

“Who are you?”

I stood up and walked over to my laptop on the small desk in my bedroom. Tyler continued snoring from the bed, oblivious to the world.