Bound to fall, p.20
Bound to Fall, page 20
Sasha was clearly reeling, the hurt on her face making Darius’ chest ache. “I thought Maritza really cared about me. I thought we were friends.”
“She cared about winning. Reiter says she knew she was moving beyond her prime and that this might be her last chance at the title. She told him she couldn’t win if you were in the competition. The avatar of the middle finger? That’s hers.”
“Where is Braun now?” Mitch looked like he might want to settle the score with her personally.
“We don’t know. When Reiter was arrested, she took off. She’s in the wind. You don’t have to worry about her coming to Scarlet. We put out an arrest warrant, and TSA knows to be on the lookout. My guess is she’s on her way back to Germany. They won’t extradite their citizens to the US.”
“I think I’m going to be sick.” Sasha lurched to her feet and darted from the room.
Darius hurried after her and held her hair while she threw up, a process that clearly caused her intense pain because of her ribs. Feeling absolutely helpless, he rubbed her back, held her hand, tried to offer her reassurance. “It’s going to be okay, angel.”
Damn it!
Afterward, Darius handed her a cold washcloth, helped her rinse her mouth and brush her teeth. “Come. You need to rest.”
Chapter 21
Sasha awoke to find herself alone, Darius’ side of the bed cold. She slowly sat up, put on leggings and a T-shirt, and made her way downstairs to find him talking on his phone in her office.
His gaze softened when he saw her. “I’ll see you this afternoon in Denver. Thanks for the update, Kelso.”
He was leaving?
Sasha’s heart sank.
She wasn’t ready to say goodbye. They’d never talked about their relationship, never spoken of what would happen when the case was resolved and the bad guys were in custody. She’d never told him how she felt about him.
He ended the call, slipped his phone into his pocket. “Hey. My phone kept buzzing. I didn’t want to wake you, so I came down here. How do you feel?”
Sasha wasn’t sure how to answer that, especially not now that she knew he was going home. “It still doesn’t seem real. You’re going back to Denver today?”
“The feds have taken over the case. My part is done. We’re holding a joint press conference in Denver this afternoon at one. The Slovak police have held off on going public so we can break the news first.”
“That’s good, I guess.”
“It gives us time to prepare for the media onslaught.”
“Oh. Right.” She hadn’t thought about that.
“There’s more.” Darius drew her into his arms. “German police arrested Braun in Munich this morning. The State Department is working with them to question her. At this point, it looks like German authorities will put her on trial and sentence her there.”
“Will I have to testify?”
“I don’t know.” Darius drew back, looked into her eyes. “I’m really sorry that things turned out this way.”
Sasha touched her palm to his cheek. “Don’t be sorry. Everyone thought it was Bren Riggs and Watts. But you stuck to the evidence. Because of you, the person behind all of this is in jail now. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” He kissed her forehead. “You hungry? I thought I could make some omelets.”
“That sounds really good.”
While Darius chopped onions, red peppers, and mushrooms for the omelets, Sasha made coffee and checked her messages. There were a half dozen from Scott, once again asking for her response to Maritza’s harsh comments yesterday.
“Bad news?”
“Just my manager. He’s pushing me to do interviews. Apparently, the climbing world is waiting with bated breath for my response to Maritza.”
“He’s behind the times.” Darius popped four pieces of wheat bread into the toaster, then went back to making omelets. “I’ve got a proposition for you. Why don’t you come to Denver with me?”
“For the press conference?”
“You can give a statement, give the media something to chew on for a while. Then, rather than coming back to Scarlet Springs afterward, you can stay at my place for the week. You can avoid reporters, and we can spend some real time together. I’ve asked Irving for the week off.”
Sasha’s heart lifted. “I would love that.”
Darius flipped the omelets. “That’s the first smile I’ve seen on your face since yesterday.”
Sasha decided to take a risk. “I don’t want us to say goodbye.”
“Who said anything about saying goodbye?”
They ate their breakfast, talking about personal things and not the case—where he’d learned to cook, his condo, how Denver compared to LA.
“When my colleagues in Denver complain about the traffic, I just laugh. Sometimes it took me two hours to drive eight miles.”
Sasha gaped at him. “How could you get anything done?”
His gaze met hers over the top of his coffee mug, a grin on his handsome face. “With a lot of cussing—and, if it’s really urgent, helicopters.”
While he cleaned up, she took a quick shower and worked on her statement, running it by Darius to make sure she didn’t give away anything she shouldn’t.
He nodded as he read it. “You can cut out all the tech details. The feds and I will handle that. But, yeah, this looks good otherwise.”
While he broke down the gear in her office and packed it into his truck, she put a week’s worth of toiletries and clothes into her carry-on and then dressed in something nice and put on a little makeup. Then she canceled the week’s appointments with Esri and texted Megs, Nicole, her parents, and her manager to tell them about the press conference and that she would be going away for a week’s rest.
Darius drove first to the Inn, where he packed the rest of his stuff, giving Sasha a chance to check out the locally famous Matchless Suite.
She glanced around, impressed. “This is beautiful. So elegant.”
“You should try the croissants.”
They went downstairs, where Darius checked out, thanking Bob and Kendra for their hospitality. “I will happily recommend this place.”
Bob shook his hand. “We appreciate that. Thanks for helping Sasha.”
“My pleasure.”
When they went outside, Sasha spotted Rose peering out her front window. “Here comes Rose.”
Rose hurried out the door, down her front steps, and across the street. “You’re leaving town already, Detective Silva? Hi, Sasha.”
Darius put his bag and other gear in the back of the vehicle. “My work on this case is done.”
Rose glanced over at Sasha. “You’re going with him?”
Sasha knew Rose was fishing for gossip. “I’m giving a statement at a press conference in Denver. He’s driving me.”
“Ah.” Seemingly at a loss for words, Rose stood there for a moment.
“He’s less than half your age, Rose!” Bob bellowed from the front door.
Rose glowered at Bob, raised her chin. “Nice to have met you, detective.”
Darius looked like he was fighting not to laugh. “Take care, Rose.”
Then they headed to the sheriff’s substation so that Darius could gather all the case files and other materials from his office there.
Sasha glanced around, took in the meticulous notes on the whiteboard, the neatly stacked files. “This is so you.”
Darius was about to reply when Deputy Marcs appeared in the doorway.
“So, you’re leaving us and heading back to Denver.”
“There’s a press conference at one. Aren’t you going to be there?”
“Are you kidding? Sheriff Pella is handling that himself.”
Sasha didn’t like that. “That’s not fair. You did the work.”
“That’s okay.” Julia shrugged. “The underlings put in the hours, and the bosses get all the credit. I’m used to it.”
Sasha walked over to her, gave a careful hug. “Thank you, Julia. And thanks for saving Darius’ life.”
“Just doing my job.”
Julia followed them out to Darius’ vehicle and held out her hand, a smile on her face. “I learned a lot from you, Silva. You’re right. I let my prejudice and my emotions cloud my judgment. If it had been up to me, we would have arrested Riggs and Watts for the crime and been done with it.”
Darius shook her hand. “Thanks, Marcs. I learned a lot from you, too.”
She stepped back, looking confused. “Like what?”
He chuckled, opened the door for Sasha. “Like when it’s good to break the rules.”
Julia laughed. “Glad I could help. Now, get out of my town.”
“See you around, Deputy Marcs.” Darius climbed into the driver’s seat, Julia watching as they drove away.
Darius waited outside the women’s restroom for Sasha, who’d gone in to check her hair and makeup. It was the first time he’d seen her try to accentuate her appearance, and he understood why. She’d been badly hurt, both physically and emotionally, and she didn’t want it to show.
“Hey, man.” Darcangelo came up behind him. “Congrats on closing this case so quickly.”
“Thanks.” Then Darius got an idea. “Hey, there are a lot of reporters and random bystanders out there. Would you mind playing security for Sasha? She’s been through a rough time. I’d feel better if I knew someone had eyes on the crowd.”
“No problem. Let me see if I can get Hunter to join us.” He pulled out his phone, sent a text message.
“Julian!” Sasha stepped out of the bathroom, smiling when she saw them.
“Hey, there, Sasha.” Darcangelo started to give her a hug, but Darius stopped him.
“Broken ribs.”
“Oh, right.” Darcangelo bumped fists with Sasha instead. “I’m really sorry about what happened. How do you feel?”
“I’m healing, but my ribs still hurt a lot.”
Irving and Pella appeared, heading toward the door, Pella in uniform, Irving in a sports jacket and tie.
Irving saw them, introduced himself to Sasha. “You two ready?”
Darius nodded. “Yes, sir.”
Hunter came around the corner. “I’m here. Hey, Sasha.”
Another bright smile. “Marc!”
“Don’t hug her, Hunter,” Darcangelo warned. “Broken ribs.”
“Right.” Another fist bump. “Glad to see you doing so well.”
They followed Irving and Pella toward the front doors, where they found Kelso waiting for them in a tailored suit and mirrored Ray-Bans.
Kelso introduced himself to Sasha first. “I’m happy we were able to help on this one, Ms. Dillon. We will do our best to see that you get justice.”
Darius could see on Sasha’s face that this touched her.
“Thank you.”
Kelso turned to the rest of them. “This is the order. Sheriff Pella, Chief Irving, Silva, then I’ll speak, and then Ms. Dillon can make her statement.”
“Sounds good.” Darius didn’t miss Darcangelo’s eye roll or the look he exchanged with Hunter. He knew what they were thinking, and it was true. The feds had a way of taking over investigations if there was any chance for publicity. It was inevitable, like gravity. But Kelso deserved props this time.
They walked outside together, Sasha flanked by Darcangelo and Hunter.
Sheriff Pella told reporters about receiving the initial call that Sasha had been hurt and talked a little about her rescue, his deputy’s suspicion that this wasn’t an average hit-and-run, and Marcs’ request for aid from DPD.
Irving kept his remarks brief, talking about Darius’ experience in LA and how important interagency cooperation was before turning the mic over to Darius.
Leaving out Riggs, Darius told reporters how investigators had focused on Kyle Watts until dashcam footage had revealed another unknown suspect. When he reached the point where they had identified Reiter, Kelso took over.
Kelso thanked all of the agencies involved, including the State Department, the Slovak Police Force, and the German Federal Police. Then he talked a bit about the proprietary technology they’d used to find the location of the phone.
Behind him, Darius overheard Darcangelo whisper to Sasha.
“Try not to fall asleep.”
He glanced back, saw Sasha fighting not to laugh.
“Yesterday, the Slovak Police Force took one suspect, an Austrian national, Hans Jakob Reiter, into custody. He was cooperative under questioning by US and Slovak officials. As a result, we were able to issue a second warrant, which led to the arrest in Munich early this morning of Maritza Helena Christine Braun, who was the mastermind of the assault on Ms. Dillon.”
A handful of gasps told Darius that some of the reporters followed sports climbing and knew who Braun was.
Kelso went on. “According to Reiter, the motivation behind the attack was to permanently disable or kill Ms. Dillon so she couldn’t compete in the world championships. In Ms. Dillon’s absence, Braun won the competition.”
Kelso explained a bit about the effort to extradite Reiter and the likelihood that Braun would be tried for her crimes in Germany. “Before I take questions, Ms. Dillon would like to make a statement.”
Sasha’s gaze met Darius’ as she came forward, and he could see she was nervous. But he could also see her strength.
“I’m Sasha Dillon. I’m a competitive sports climber.”
“We love you, Sasha!” someone shouted.
“You’re the greatest!”
Then Sasha started at the beginning, telling the crowd what had happened, sharing the terror of it along with her suffering. “I never could have imagined that the violence of that afternoon was the work of a friend. Maritza and I have climbed together all over the world. We’ve competed against one another, and sometimes she’s performed better than I have. Learning that she conspired to have me disabled or killed…”
Her voice quavered, and her words trailed off. “Learning that my friend conspired to have me disabled or killed hurt far more than any injury. Trophies and gold medals were never my motivation for climbing. But these past two weeks have reminded me that what matters most in life isn’t winning. It’s the friends who are there for you when your world comes crashing down.”
Tears on her cheeks, she thanked Megs, Mitch, Nicole, and the Team. She thanked the doctors and nurses who’d cared for her. She thanked Joe and Rain and the staff at Knockers. Then she thanked the State Department, the FBI, the governments of Slovakia, Austria, and Germany, the Forest County Sheriff’s Department, Deputy Marcs, and, last of all, Darius.
But what she read next wasn’t in the statement Darius had read earlier. “Detective Darius Silva was almost killed trying to bring my attackers to justice. There is no greater sense of duty and no greater love than that. He was prepared to give his life for a stranger, for me. I will always be grateful.”
The crowd exploded with questions as Sasha left the microphone, but Darius barely heard them over the buzzing in his own brain.
No greater love.
It was love.
He was in love with Sasha.
Sasha sat in an empty conference room waiting for Darius, who was in a meeting with Kelso. Ignoring the nonstop buzzing of her phone, she uploaded a copy of her statement to her social media. Then she gave in and checked messages.
She had expected this. The moment she’d stepped away from the microphone, people had started blowing up her phone. Akari and Daryna texted her to tell her how sorry they were and ask if she needed help. Elias, too, had sent a message offering his support. Megs and Nic texted her to tell her how well she’d done. Then Scott, her manager, called, outraged not just by the news, but also by the fact that Sasha hadn’t told him the truth about her accident.
“How am I supposed to represent you when you keep me in the dark?”
“I did what the sheriff and the police asked me to do.”
“I’m sure they didn’t mean you should keep information from me.”
“If I’d told you, would you have been able to keep quiet, or would you have leaked it to friends in the media? I know the answer to that.”
Scott tellingly changed the subject. “This is a completely different situation than missing the world championships because of a bike accident. This is huge. It’s the biggest news in climbing this year. I’ll call your sponsors, set up a slate of interviews—”
“I told you already. I’m taking a week off.”
“You’re … what? You’ve been out of action for more than a week already. This was your first public appearance since—”
“I just found out that someone I considered a close friend tried to kill me just to win a title. I’m still healing physically and emotionally. Do not push me!” Sasha had never raised her voice at Scott before. “I need time.”
A hand came to rest on her shoulder.
She glanced up.
Darius.
Scott conceded. “Okay, you need time.”
“I will be out of touch for a week at least. I’ll check in with you when I’m able.”
“All right.” Scott wasn’t happy. “Time waits for no one, but I understand.”
Clearly, he didn’t, but that was his problem.
“Thanks, Scott.” She ended the call.
“Is everything okay?”
Fighting tears, she stood, slipped into his arms. “Nothing is okay, except this.”
“Maybe you need to turn off your phone for a few days.”
“Good idea.” She sent a quick text to Megs and Nicole, letting them know she was shutting off her mobile. Then she turned it off—something she never did.
The drive to Darius’ condo was short. “I wanted a place close to the office and the highway system that was quiet, so I ended up in East Wash Park.”
