Page 17 of Defending Love

Chapter Sixteen

Dani

L ike the shattering of crystal, our bubble broke.

The doorbell’s ring reverberated throughout the villa as I tried to make sense of what was happening.

My heartbeat raced as the symbolic crash littered the floor with glass shards.

Undeterred by the possible danger, Eli stood, his massive body a barrier between me and the door. My scrambled thoughts came together.

Someone was outside.

Somebody wanted inside.

Goose bumps prickled my flesh at the newest revelation.

I was naked—completely nude.

Quickly, I searched for my clothes, finding my shorts and panties on the floor and my tank top hanging off the coffee table. As I scrambled to cover myself, Eli buttoned his shirt, tucking it into his pants.

“Go upstairs,” he ordered in a hushed tone.

“I want…” I wasn’t certain what I wanted.

“Fuck.” His green stare searching the room. “My gun.”

“It’s in the kitchen,” I replied as I pulled the sweatshirt over my head and reached for the photo album.

Eli went to the kitchen for his gun as the second ring of the doorbell ricocheted throughout the villa. “Dani, go upstairs now.”

I grabbed the photo album and the stack of journals as I hurried up the steps.

I knew from earlier that at the top of the landing, I’d be hidden from the first floor.

Once I reached that area, I stopped, hugging the meager possessions to my chest as my pulse echoed in my ears.

Straining, I tried to hear what was happening on the first floor.

“Mr. Rhodes,” an unfamiliar male voice said.

“I’m Elijah Rhodes.”

“I’m Special Agent Timmons, and this is Special Agent Wilson with the FBI. We have some questions for you.”

“Do you have a badge?” Eli asked.

“Of course.” Pause. “Sir, my partner and I would like to come inside.”

“Do you have a warrant?”

“No, sir. We have a few questions. May we come inside?”

“Absolutely not. What is this about?”

My hands trembled as I bit my lower lip, and my cyclone of thoughts swirled out of control.

“The murder of Derek Sinclair.”

I covered my lips to mute an audible gasp.

“Do you have new evidence?” Eli asked.

“We’d like to ask you and Dr. Sinclair some questions.” There was a pause. “Is she available?”

“She’s retired for the evening. If you have questions for us, we can meet you tomorrow at your field office.”

“Our closest field office is in Jacksonville. We’d like to clear this up tonight.”

Eli was unflappable. “Dr. Sinclair is unavailable. If you take a step back, I’ll come outside, and you can ask me whatever questions you may have.”

“I’m afraid, Mr. Rhodes, we call the shots here.” The man’s voice deepened. “Wake Dr. Sinclair. Agent Wilson and I will wait.”

“Remain outside,” Eli said.

“You have two minutes.”

Two minutes.

What the hell is happening?

The front door closed. I could only assume Eli engaged the lock. His footsteps on the staircase were too few, as if he was taking them two or three at a time. Coming around the corner, he nearly plowed me over. “Fuck.”

“What’s happening?” There was something unusual in Eli’s expression. Could it be fear? “Eli?”

“They’re claiming they’re FBI, but the badges are fake.”

“Are you sure?”

He nodded, looking down at what I was holding. “They shouldn’t fucking know we’re here.” He ran his long fingers through his hair and met my gaze. “Without a warrant, they can’t come in the villa. But for safety’s sake, hide those things in your suitcase or satchel.”

I’d almost forgotten what I was holding. “Um, okay.”

“We’ll go down together and speak to them on the driveway. Where’s your phone?”

“Plugged in in the bedroom, why?”

“Go get it.”

I didn’t hesitate to follow his instructions, placing the photo album and journals in my suitcase and covering them with clothes. Next, I went to where my phone was on the bedside stand and took it to Eli.

Once I handed the phone to him, Eli entered the passcode and opened the camera.

“Take this to the window in your room, the one that looks down on the driveway. Place it in the window. I have cameras pointed outside, but since I didn’t get a notification upon their arrival, I’m assuming they’re scrambled. ”

“Fake FBI, scrambling signals.” I looked up. “What’s going on?”

His lips curled. “At the sight of your hair, they won’t doubt you were sleeping.”

I smoothed my hair with my hand, convinced that I looked a nearly fucked mess. I asked my question again. “What’s happening?”

“I don’t know. I think we should play along to try to figure out their game plan.”

Play along. I could do that.

I nodded.

Peering around the plantation blinds, I saw a dark SUV parked in the driveway and two men in dark uniforms standing beside it. They were talking to one another, not looking up as I placed my phone in the window.

When I returned, Eli was donning his suit coat over his holster. As his eyes met mine, he said, “Only concealed carry is legal in Florida.”

I took a deep breath as we both walked down the staircase. Eli opened the front door. The two men came toward us as we stepped outside. The sidewalk beneath my bare feet was still warm from the day’s earlier sunshine, yet the air had chilled.

“Dr. Sinclair,” the taller man said. “I’m Special Agent Timmons.”

Crossing my arms over my breasts, I was thankful for the sweatshirt. “Special Agent, what is this about? Do you have a lead in my father’s murder?”

“Ma’am, we have reason to believe someone illegally entered your parents’ home this evening.”

My gaze went to Eli and back to Special Agent Timmons. “What happened?”

“Two individuals were seen carrying a bag away from the house.”

“Was the house entered illegally?” I asked. “Windows broken? Door pushed in?”

“No. However, it’s come to our attention that like many of the residents in your parents’ neighborhood, security codes are often shared.”

I inhaled, hoping that honesty was still the best policy. “We were at my parents’ home this evening. You see, my mother is in a nearby physical-rehab facility, and she asked for a few personal items.”

“What did you take?” he asked.

Eli stepped forward. “Are you looking for something in particular?”

“Doctor,” Special Agent Timmons said, “what did you remove from your parents’ home?”

“Reading glasses, underwear, cosmetics…my mother had a list.”

“Have you taken those things to Mrs. Sinclair?”

“Some of the things,” Eli said. “Once we delivered them, Mrs. Sinclair realized she wanted a few things that weren’t on her list. That’s why we returned to the house. It was late. Our plan is to deliver the other items tomorrow.”

“Did your mother request items from your father’s safe?” Special Agent Timmons asked me.

His safe.

What the actual hell?

My gaze went back to Eli and then to the special agent. “I was in my parents’ bedroom. I didn’t see a safe.”

“You’re unaware of a safe in your father’s office?”

I shrugged. “He mentioned that once, now that you bring it up.”

“We have reason to believe that safe was accessed earlier this evening. Let me cut to the chase. We believe the two of you went illegally into the Sinclair house and stole the contents of the safe.”

My neck straightened as I squared my shoulders. “I have POA for my mother. Entering her home is not illegal.”

Eli stepped forward. “You don’t have a warrant. We’ve answered your questions. Any further questions will need either a warrant or be conducted in Jacksonville.”

“Sir, we could take you both in.”

“You won’t,” Eli said definitively. “If you had evidence, we wouldn’t be having this discussion right now.”

“We have evidence.” Agent Timmons showed a grainy picture on his phone of Eli and me leaving Mom’s villa with the striped bag. “If you could bring us the bag.”

Eli placed his hand in the small of my back. “Good night, Special Agents.”

“Doctor?” the second agent asked.

“We’re done,” Eli said.

“Doctor, it would be in your family’s best interest for us to see what you removed from the safe.”

“My attorney will be in touch.” That was my reply. With that, we turned back toward the villa.

Once inside, Eli shut the door and engaged the locks.

“What the hell?” I asked when his green stare met mine. “Was that a threat?”