Thirty-eight and dead tired, Lindsey Delaware closed her eyes and leaned back, sinking wearily into the soft gray leather of the limo’s sleek interior. Absently, she reached out to the seat beside her, then choked back a sob as her hand closed on nothingness. “You should be here, Brian,” she murmured, “and you, Jules.” Thoughts of them tore at her heart as brutally as the raking talons of a bird of prey. And she knew with a sad certainty that their absence was fully her doing. This is beyond insanity, she thought. I can’t walk down the street without being surrounded by well-wishers, and yet I’ve never been so alone.
January’s cold sun glistened on the white exterior of the highly polished, heavily armored limo. As it drew to a smooth stop, Special Agent Kris Andrews exited hurriedly and, after a careful scan of their surroundings, opened Lindsey’s door. Extending his hand, he helped her from the vehicle and in what was for him an unprecedented move, dropped playfully to one knee and kissed her hand as if he were her knight in shining armor. “Welcome to your castle, my lady,” he said with exaggerated politeness, letting Lindsey know how pleased and excited he was for her.
Shaking off her reverie, Lindsey forced herself to join his antics. Tapping him lightly atop his thick crop of neatly trimmed, sandy hair, she responded with a smile, “You may rise, Oh Faithful One.” At the precise moment he regained his footing Lindsey heard a slick, soft whine, followed by a sickening thud. Instantly, the young agent sank back to his knees, then fell face forward at her feet—leaving her fully exposed to the sniper’s next shot.
Twenty Years Earlier: Lindsey was deeply engrossed in a thick textbook dealing with the history of criminal law, while munching on a slab of pizza dripping with extra sauce and cheese.
Julie, Lindsey’s Harvard roommate, helped herself to a third slice from the box as she eyed Lindsey across their small dorm room. “It’s not fair, you know.” Lindsey looked at her questioningly. “Not fair that someone so damn smart is so disgustingly gorgeous!”
“So you’d prefer me to be dumb and ugly?”
“Maybe,” Julie replied with a teasing smile.
“Julie Trent—I think you’re half serious!”
“Well, think about it, Lins. What chance do I have with any of these handsome hunks on campus once they get a good look at my sexy roommate?” The two women were well into their first year at Harvard and had never had a serious disagreement, but at this moment Julie wanted to kick herself when she saw the look of hurt on Lindsey’s face. “Hey, I was only teasing, Lins,” she said, and felt absolutely miserable as she watched unbidden tears fill Lindsey’s eyes. “Seriously, I love having you for a roommate, and it’s okay that you ace all your exams and look like a movie star.”
Lindsey snuffed back her tears and shook her head. “We have to talk, Jules. I should have told you sooner, I guess, but it’s something I don’t like to get into if I don’t have to.”
“Good grief! What is it, Lins? I can’t imagine you having any deep, dark secrets.”
“Well, it is deep and pretty dark, at least for me.” She hesitated. “I’m sure you heard about the accident a couple of years ago . . . the one that took my mother’s life?”
Julie nodded. “I guess everyone at Dover High knew about it, Lindsey, and how terrible it was for you and your dad.”
With an effort, Lindsey pushed away the painful memory, then took both of Julie’s hands in her own. “What few people know, Julie, and what I seldom talk about is how bad my injuries were when that drunken idiot slammed his car into Mom and me. There was nothing the doctors could do to help my mother. And they—they had to perform radical surgery on me to stop the bleeding. They saved my life . . . but I’ll never be able to have children.”
Julie drew back in shock. “Oh God, Lins,” she gasped. “I’m so sorry.”
“Yah, me too.” Lindsey’s tears were flowing freely now and Julie wrapped her in a comforting hug, sharing in her sadness. “I know a lot of women are happy with their careers, Jules, and don’t ever want kids—but I’m not one of them. Maybe it’s because I was cheated out of the chance to be a mom, and because I see how much it hurts Dad. Jeez, it’s so unfair, you know? He’d have been a wonderful grandfather.” Lindsey pulled away and tried to collect herself. “And that, dear friend, is why I won’t be competing with you in the dating scene. That deep, dark secret is one of the first things I have to get into if a guy starts to get halfway serious.”
Lindsey went on to tell Julie that the man responsible for the senseless travesty had been driving under a suspended license and had seven previous convictions for drunk driving. Through the efforts of a well-paid, zealous attorney and a too-lenient judge, the man had never been jailed for more than a few weeks after each DUI—until he’d blown through a red light and struck Lindsey and her mom as they crossed a busy intersection. Too late, he was convicted of vehicular homicide and given a twenty-year sentence for ripping away the life of Lindsey’s mother and the lives of Lindsey’s unborn children.
“I don’t know how you can handle that, Lins, without going ballistic. “I’d have wanted to kill the guy.”
It’s hard, but now I just focus on my dream to become a lawyer, and serve as a public defender . . .although Dad insists I’d go much further as a prosecutor.”
”No way, Lins. I know you. Prosecution just isn’t part of your nature—despite the unfair hand you were dealt.”