Page 36 of Isla by Any Other Name

“Not really,” Isla said, shaking her head. “Just a lot on my mind.” She’d had a dream last night that was so real, it hurt to wake up. She saw herself married to Mitch. Two kids sitting at the kitchen table as she came in from a long shift at the hospital. Would that dream be fulfilled or would she be alone for the rest of her life? She remembered every year before her parents adopted her, wondering if she’d be alone forever. She felt that now, just as strongly.

“Come on,” Mitch said. “We’ll walk and then go to the gym after breakfast and work on a few more defense moves.”

“Okay, let’s go,” said Isla, putting on a smile like she was putting on makeup. “I love the beach in the early morning.”

They spent the next hour on the beach exploring their surroundings. The sun spilled a beautiful array of pinks and purples as it rose over the treetops behind them. Isla thought she might paint it later. She’d packed her art supplies, and she had the time. She thought it was kind of crazy how it had taken a murder trial to get her to slow down enough to do the things she loved—painting and cooking. To take a vacation—even though this was not a real vacation.

Mitch held her hand while they walked. It felt right—their fingers entwined together. He found a piece of purple sea glass and handed it to her with a smile. “Beautiful and rare—like you.”

She took it from his fingers and smiled. It wasn’t a wedding ring, like the one she wore in her dream, but it was real. It was something to hold onto when nothing felt certain. “I’ll keep it for good luck, no matter what happens.”

Mitch pulled her into his arms and kissed her like no man had ever kissed her before. She could get used to having this man in her life forever. She knew then—she knew that she loved him.

They stayed at the safe house longer than Isla had initially expected. An extended vacation, she joked. Each day, Isla and Mitch spent two hours in the gym, dancing around their feelings and calling it self-defense. Being near him without touching him in an intimate way was getting harder each day. It was almost three weeks since they’d been intimate, and she missed his touch. She had never had the experiences she had that one night with Mitch. They would never have that opportunity to be as close as they had been any time soon. They would just have to be grateful for the small amount of alone time they had with each other.

While they were together, they got to know more about each other. Mitch told her about his family, what it was like to grow up in the large family he came from. He was the oldest of six, he had three brothers and two sisters. His brother Mark was married to Jocelyn and they had two children. His sister Jackie was a single mom with a daughter just going into high school. His sister Morgan, the youngest, was in her last year of law school. And his other two brothers worked on the family ranch in Tennessee with their father. His mom was a retired elementary school teacher.

Mitch had graduated high school and gone straight into the Navy. He became a SEAL and spent ten years in the Navy before his last major injury. He’d floated for a year and worked the ranch with his brothers until a buddy called and recruited him into the FBI. And he’d been with them ever since.

“Do you plan on staying with the Bureau?” she asked.

“No reason not to. I think about leaving sometimes, but as of now, I still feel I have a purpose to be here. I’m open to something new. Who knows, maybe I’ll end up working with Curt in Virginia. It’s an option. What about you?”

Isla shrugged. “As a nurse, I can work anywhere. I would just need to get certified in the state I reside in. I could even open my own office. A lot of nurse practitioners do, especially in small towns that don’t have doctors. I’m flexible about my future—I mean, I kind of have to be at this point, right? It’s all a gamble.”

“It’s all about betting on the horse you got,” Mitch said, sounding like a rancher’s son. “Do you ride?”

Isla shook her head. “I’d like to learn though.”

Mitch smiled. “Maybe when this is all over you could come with me to my family’s ranch and I could teach you.”

“I’d love that.” She smiled at him. But not a moment too long. She didn’t want him to know that the only future she’d bet on was theirs.

Chapter twenty

Marcus Hernandez was sitting in the visitor’s room across from his lawyer in Greene Prison. It was maximum security, so this was the only time he could speak to his lawyers without ears on him. He knew all his phone calls were being recorded.

“You better have news I want to hear,” he barked as his lawyer was escorted into the room and the door closed behind him.

Thomas Pacillo placed his briefcase on the table in front of him and sat across from his boss. “Good morning, Mr. Hernandez. How are you?”

“I’ll be a hell of a lot better when I hear what you have to say!”

“It’s not good, sir. Mendez, Rodriguez, and four other men were arrested and charged with attempted murder. One person was shot but is expected to survive.”

“I’m glad he survived,” said Hernandez, curling his lip, “so I can kill him, and everyone on that mission, myself.”

“The informant you had planted at the Bureau decided to confess. The Bureau was able to intercept your men before they even got through the front door. They were in there waiting the whole time.”

“And does anyone know of my involvement?”

“Yes, they do, sir. One of your men laid it all out for them. You’re being charged with the attempted murder of Isla Pierce along with a slew of other charges.”

“Charges I’m sure you’ll make disappear,” said Hernandez menacingly. “I don’t pay you an absurd salary for nothing,” he said as he glared at his attorney.

“I’m not going to lie to you, sir,” said Pacillo. “This case is getting more complex as we go along. You really have to stop searching for Isla Pierce. It’s too late for that. You will be serving a lengthy sentence if you are proven guilty. If you succeed in offing Pierce, they’ll put the death sentence on the table. Is this about your freedom or your pride? I can promise you that killing her won’t give you your freedom.”

“I don’t give a damn,” said Hernandez, feeling hot under his prison-issued jumpsuit collar. “Have Rodriguez take care of it.”