Renegade (3 page)

“Yours.” Summer thought she saw a satisfied light fire Gabriel’s golden gaze. “Where do you live?”

“Cotuit.”

“On Cape Cod?”

He nodded. “I bought a little place there last year.”

The fact that Gabriel had purchased property on the Cape was not in his report. She suspected this information had been excluded because he had been exempt from the DEA’s investigation.

“You drive here from the Cape everyday?”

“It’s only about sixty miles each way. And now that the tourists are gone I usually don’t encounter too many traffic delays.”

Summer knew she had stepped into a trap of her own making. She had just committed to driving more than an hour to meet with Gabriel for their first planning session.

She gave him a lingering look. “Okay. I’ll meet you at your place.”

“May I make a suggestion?”

“Sure,” she said.

“Why don’t I pick you up at your place next Friday morning, drive you to school, then we can ride down together at the end of the day. It will save time and gas if we use one car.”

The shock of his suggestion caused the words to wedge in her throat. “I need to understand something. You’re not going to drive me down to Cotuit just to turn around and bring me back later that night.”

Gabriel stared at Summer, his expression one of faint amusement. He liked driving, but not enough to clock two hundred fifty miles in a single day. “Of course not. I expect you to spend the weekend.”

Her delicate jaw dropped. “The weekend?”

“I’m sure there’s no echo is this room,” he said glibly. “Yes, Summer, the weekend. If you want something as lavish as a musical production spanning several centuries, then it’s going to take weeks of planning. We have to select the music, identify the appropriate instruments, and decide on vocal arrangements. Then you’re going to have to work with Desiree on the set designs. And I don’t have to remind you of auditioning students for the various parts, and then the endless rehearsals. If on the other hand, you feel uncomfortable staying with me, then I can always spend the weekend with you.”

“You can’t spend the weekend with me.”

“Why? Your boyfriend would object?”

“I don’t have a boyfriend,” she retorted quickly. “My place is too small. I have a one bedroom apartment.”

He flashed his winning crooked smile. “I can always sleep on the couch.”

“I don’t have a couch. I have two love seats. And I won’t be held responsible if you wake up with a misaligned spine.”

“You could always give up your bed.”

She gave a delicate snort. “I’d only give up my bed to a sick man.”

Gabriel affected a deep cough that rattled in his throat and chest.

“Stop,” she said, laughing. “Okay you win this time. I’ll spend next weekend with you.”

Gabriel wanted to tell Summer that he would win the next time and the time after that. After all, he was a Cole. And Coles were used to winning. He had won three Grammy awards and an Oscar before he had celebrated his thirtieth birthday.

The seven-twenty bell rang signaling the start of the first class of the day. The door opened and Desiree Leighton rushed into the office, cheeks flushed with excitement. The high color brought out the vividness of her bright blue eyes.

“I can’t believe I’m late. I’m never late for anything.”

Gabriel stood up, gathering his backpack. “Excuse me, ladies, but I have a class.”

Desiree smiled at him, locked her handbag in the desk in the corner before she rushed out behind Gabriel’s departing figure. “I’ll see you later, Summer,” she said over her shoulder, closing the door behind her.

Summer’s first class did not begin until eight-thirty. Gabriel had been assigned to the music department, Desiree to art, and she drama. Weir had applied for and had been awarded a grant of two hundred-fifty thousand dollars to develop a cultural arts program at the high school. The grant’s mission was geared toward reducing truancy, increasing student awareness of the arts, while offering two full college scholarships to qualified students for a degree in music education or fine arts.

Pulling her lower lip between her teeth, Summer replayed Gabriel’s offer that she spend a weekend at his house. She was amenable to developing a musical production with him, but if he thought she was going to
provide him with any other type of entertainment, then she would make him regret he’d ever taken his first breath.

Two

Summer sat across a table in a twenty-four-hour diner, watching Lucas Shelby sprinkle pepper over his eggs. Tendrils clung to her damp forehead from her three-mile jog. It was only the second week in September and cooler early morning temperatures hinted that summer was quickly coming to an end.

“Aren’t you going to order something to eat?” Lucas asked before he shoveled a forkful of eggs into his mouth.

She shook her head. “I’ll eat later.” She usually waited an hour after jogging before eating. Once she returned to her apartment she would prepare a small cup of fresh seasonal fruit, a slice of buttered raisin toast, and a cup of decaffeinated coffee.

Waiting until Lucas had taken a swallow of coffee, she said, “What do you have for me?”

Lowering his mug, he stared at the bare face of the woman he had supervised for the past three years. Her deep gold-brown complexion was flawless, her large soulful-looking eyes entrancing.

“Nothing. How about you?”

She lifted her shoulders under the jacket of her jogging suit while shaking her head. “Nothing. It’s only been three days, but all of the kids at Weir appear to be
normal students doing whatever it is high school kids do. School policy is that they aren’t permitted to linger in the parking lot before or after classes, thereby eliminating the risk of dealing on school property. The bathrooms are monitored every quarter of an hour, and there are random locker checks.”

“What about teachers?”

“Again, I’m drawing a blank. Most drive late model cars that fall within the moderate price range. The only exception is a Porsche GT2 belonging to Gabriel Cole.”

Lucas whistled softly. “That puppy fully loaded will set you back a little under two hundred thousand.”

Her forehead furrowed. “How do you know the sticker price?”

“I took one for a test drive a couple of months ago. It hugged the road like a starving baby latching onto his mama’s tit.” He noted her scowl. “I’m sorry, Summer.”

She had decided to ignore his sexist reference, because within her first two years with the Department she had filed so many grievances for sexual harassment against her male counterparts that none of them wanted her on their team. Physically she could hold her own with any man, but the isolation had taken its toll on her emotionally after she was transferred from field to desk duty. She had joined the DEA to fight the war on drugs, not become a glorified desk clerk.

“Apology accepted.”

Even though Lucas, a confirmed bachelor, was only in his late fifties, she had begun to think of her field supervisor as a dinosaur. His reflexes and reaction time had slowed, and she knew he was internalizing a great deal of resentment because as one of the first employees of the Department he felt he should’ve headed one of the regional divisions.

“Right now I’m subbing for an English instructor. She sprained her wrist after falling down a flight of stairs in her home. I’ve assigned her students the short stories of Edgar Allan Poe.”

He smiled, wiggling his bushy eyebrows. “He’s one of my favorite authors.”

“I’m putting together a schedule for student auditions for a spring concert. This will give me a chance to interact with some of them one-on-one.”

“I know I don’t have to tell you to keep your eyes open.”

She nodded. “I want you to know that I’m not going to be around next weekend.”

He sat up straighter, his blue-green gaze suddenly alert. “Where are you going?”

“Down to the Cape. Gabriel Cole and I will be working together planning the spring concert.”

Lucas’s expression was impassive. “Try not to get caught up with his superstar status, Renegade.”

Summer went completely still. “You forget who I am and why I work for you.”

“I’ll say it again. Stay focused.”

She offered him a false smile. “If we’re finished, then I’d like to get back home and showered.” She stood up. “I’ll meet you here in two weeks.”

She walked out of the diner, swallowing back the curses she wanted to hurl at Lucas. Despite her many successes, he still viewed her as a woman rather than an agent. Even though it was against department policy to become physically and emotionally involved with a target, she knew her superiors would look the other way if it resulted in a successful mission.

Even though Gabriel Cole wasn’t a target, she consciously
did not plan to become involved with him other than on a professional level.

The truth was she hadn’t had a serious liaison with a man in years. The last one had been an attorney she’d met after she had returned to St. Louis for an extended vacation. He wanted marriage, a house in the country, two children, a dog and a cat, while she wanted to continue her personal war against those who had taken the life of her younger brother. Charles Montgomery had died at the hands of drug dealers feuding over turf while he stood on a corner waiting to cross the street on his way from school.

The single encounter seemed to age her parents within seconds. Grief-stricken and disillusioned with American justice when the police failed to identify their son’s murderer, retired Peace Corps Drs. Robert and Mildred Montgomery applied to the World Health Organization for an overseas assignment.

Summer’s rosy world also came crashing down when she abruptly left a Broadway production for which she had earned a Tony nomination to return to St. Louis. She took the test for the St. Louis Police Department and was hired within months of the list being posted because the SLPD were actively recruiting to add female officers to their rolls. Three years later she was accepted by the DEA as a basic agent trainee. She had come to them with prior law enforcement and a graduate degree in Criminal Justice.

She had distinguished herself in the sixteen-week resident training program at Quantico, Virginia, excelling in the rigorous one hundred hour physical fitness and defensive tactics regimen at the facility shared by the DEA and FBI for firearms and tactical vehicle training.

Any reference to her law enforcement experience was
withheld from the Weir faculty booklet, replaced by information fabricated by the DEA’s Boston Division.

A watery sun had broken through the clouds by the time Summer jogged up the steps to the building where she lived. All she wanted to do was shower, wash her hair, and then go back to bed and sleep until hunger forced her to get up again.

She knew she was tired—deep down bone tired of the undercover assignments, aliases, the risk that her cover would be blown, and her fascination with her own violent death. If she was lucky, a bullet in the head would assure a quick dispatch, but there were times when she had nightmares that she would be tortured like several other agents she had known.

Ten minutes later, she stood under the stream of running water; she closed her eyes and turned her face upward. For the first time in her life, she longed for a husband, the house in the country, children, dog and cat. She wanted to be a PTA mom and bake cookies for the holidays.

Summer showered quickly, wrapping one towel around her body and another around her head; she walked out of the bathroom and into her bedroom, falling across her unmade bed while vowing this would be her last assignment. After she identified the drug dealer or dealers at Weir she planned to hand in her badge and firearm and walk away from a lifestyle that once had been as vital to her as breathing.

Summer glanced at her watch as she stood on the sidewalk outside her apartment building. Gabriel had
promised to pick her up at six forty-five, and it was now seven. A heavy fog had blanketed the area, closing Logan Airport and reducing vehicular traffic to a thirty-five mile an hour speed limit.

She peered down the street, squinting through the haze as a low-slung silver sports car eased up along the curb. The driver-side door opened and Gabriel alighted, popping the button on an umbrella.

Smiling, he held the umbrella over her bare head. “Sorry I’m late. Good morning.”

There was something so infectious about his smile that she couldn’t help but return it with a friendly one of her own. “Now, that’s debatable,” she teased.

“You’re right about that. The fog is so thick along the shore that it looks like pea soup.” Gabriel moved closer, inhaling the sensual scent of a perfume surrounding Summer. Not only did she look good, but she also smelled good. Today she had pulled her hair tightly off her face and into a chignon on her long neck. “Don’t you own an umbrella?”

She stared up at him, her gaze widening when she noticed two small gold hoops in each of his pierced lobes. It was the first time she had seen him wear the earrings. A black turtleneck sweater, wool crepe slacks and a pair of slip-ons flattered his tall, slender physique. “I own one, but it wouldn’t help in this weather. My hair frizzes up with the slightest hint of humidity. If I hadn’t put gel in it this morning it would be standing up all over my head like Don King.”

Taking Summer’s overnight bag from her loose grip, Gabriel held the umbrella and bag in one hand as he leaned down and opened the passenger-side door for her. The hem of her raincoat parted and her skirt
inched up her thighs as she sat down, revealing an expanse of long legs in a pair of sheer black hose.

Clenching his teeth, he slammed the door harder than he had intended. There was something about Summer Montgomery that got under his skin. It was an itch he could not get to and scratch. As far as women went he did not have a
type
. He had dated tall ones, short ones, light and dark ones, but none of them had him measuring his every word like Summer. She had a beautiful face, perfect body, and a very quick tongue.

He had chided himself for inviting her to spend the weekend with him once he had rethought his offer. They could’ve easily met at a local Starbucks or public library. However, whatever it was about Summer that annoyed him he prayed he would identify it by the time he drove her back home Sunday.

Pressing a button on a remote device, the trunk opened silently. Gabriel placed her bag in the trunk, closed it, and then walked around the Porsche and slipped in behind the wheel. He put the key in the ignition and the engine turned over in a soft purr as automatic seat belts came down over his chest and that of Summer’s. Glancing at the side mirror, he pulled away from the curb.

It was two weeks into the school year, and he had barely caught a glimpse of Summer or Desiree even though they shared the same office. He had left a note for Summer requesting her address, and she had complied, leaving a note in a sealed envelope in his mailbox in the school’s general office.

“How has it been going?” he asked her.

Turning her head, she stared at his distinctive profile. “More hectic than I thought it would be. I hadn’t planned on substituting for another teacher.”

Gabriel gave her a quick glance. “That’s not a condition of the grant.”

“I know, but I only volunteered for two weeks. Today is my last day.”

“If that’s the case, then we won’t push too hard this weekend.”

A shadow of annoyance crossed her face. “I’m not going to spend the weekend with you just hanging out, Gabriel.”

It was his turn to frown. “I didn’t ask you to come to hang out. We’ll work, but when you get tired we’ll stop. The spring concert is more than six months away, and if you don’t pace yourself you’ll never make it to May.”

She knew he was right. It had been years since she had been in a theater production wherein rehearsals began at dawn and sometime ended more than sixteen hours later. She’d return home completely exhausted with bloodshot eyes, aching feet and a sore throat.

“I want it to be good, Gabriel.”

“It’s going to be beyond good,” he said confidently. “It will be spectacular.”

I hope you’re right
, she mused. In that instant Summer realized she had two agendas: to take down the drug dealers and put on a successful musical production.

Her grandmother said she’d burst forth from her mother’s womb singing rather than crying like most babies. It had been her Gram who had taken her to dancing school, and it was Gram who had encouraged her to pursue a career in the theater. Her parents’ passions were medicine and their son.

Closing her eyes, she pressed her head against the leather headrest, remembering how it felt to be on stage in front of a live audience. The excitement of opening night, the constant flutters in her stomach
until the curtain came up and she said her opening line or sang her first note.

She missed the heat of the spotlights, the gaudy costumes, and the smell of greasepaint. She missed collecting playbills and the articles written by critics either praising or panning a production. She had missed so much, but most of all she missed her brother.

“Summer. Are you all right?” Gabriel had maneuvered into his assigned space in the faculty parking lot.

She opened her eyes, unaware of a single tear that had made its way down her cheek. Brushing away the moisture with her fingertips, she nodded, smiling.

“I’m fine,” she said, knowing it was a lie.

Leaning closer to his right, Gabriel pressed his mouth to her damp hair. “You’re not a very good liar, Summer Montgomery.”

“I know.” And she wasn’t. Not when it involved her private life.

His right hand curved around her neck. “Do you want to talk about it?”

She shook her head and stared out of the side window. “No. I can’t,” she added after a pregnant silence.

Gabriel noticed a look of tired sadness pass over her delicate features, the emotion pulling her lush mouth downward. “If you ever want to talk about it or just have a good cry I’ll lend you my shoulder.”

Pulling back her shoulders, Summer took a deep breath. Within seconds she’d regained control of her emotions. Renegade was back.

“Thank you, Gabriel.”

“Don’t move. I’ll get the door for you.”

She sat, waiting for him, and when he opened the door for her he was wearing a long, black lightweight raincoat and holding the umbrella. He extended his
free hand. She placed her hand trustingly in his, permitting him to pull her to her feet.

Holding the umbrella over their heads, Gabriel led Summer across the parking lot to the faculty entrance. Less than ten feet from the door a flash of light blinded them.