Shadow of My Heart (Shadow-Walker Tribe Series) by Caryn Moya Block Page B

it’s a special night. You want to look good, right? Do you have another dress like that slinky red one you wore to the awards banquet?”
    “Well, I did go shopping last week.”
    “What did you buy? Come on, spill.”
    Cara smiled conspiratorially. “I’ll guess you’ll just have to wait and see.”
     
    §
     
    Raven walked out of Shadow and into his office, rubbing his arms to help warm up. He had forgotten his coat at Cara’s. Joe was already in the office, waiting for him with a cup of coffee in his hand.
    “Here,” he said, pushing the mug into Raven’s hands. “I figured you would need to warm up some.”
    “What is this about Fred being killed?” Raven asked, in a hurry to get back to Cara and his proposal.
    “His body was found in the park next to Amanda’s apartment. He was shot in the heart at point-blank range.”
    “Amanda Patterson’s apartment? Was she there at the time?”
    “No, Amanda had been picked up by the local police about an hour before the shooting, giving her a sound alibi. But it could have been one of Adar’s group, probably cleaning up loose ends. David Lear was found dead in his apartment this evening. Our best guess is that one of the terrorists saw Fred at Amanda’s apartment, and when they couldn’t find her, they followed him into the park and killed him.”
    “Such a waste,” Raven said, shaking his head. “Why was Fred at Amanda’s apartment? Did you send him to pick something up?” Raven could tell that Joe was deeply upset. He kept running his hand over his shorn head. Was Joe blaming himself over Fred’s death?
    “No. I’m not sure why Fred would have gone over there,” Joe said. “Maybe he wanted to talk to her before the police arrived to arrest her. I know he felt bad about her going to jail. Blamed himself about not stepping in and stopping her before she sold the picture of Cara. Fred was like that, trying to save everyone, even from themselves. The police want us to come over and make a statement. Let’s go, so you can get back to Cara.”
    “Don’t blame yourself, Joe. You can’t save everybody. Cara knows I had to come.”
    “Fred was a good man. He deserved better than this.”
    “Did he have family?” Didn’t Derek mention a sister?
    “It was just him and his little sister. He wanted to bring her out to New Mexico for an interview. He talked about her all the time, wanted to get her out of the security business. He said she was a whiz with the computer. I told him to have her interview with Isanti, Inc. He was going to talk to her about it when he went back to New York for a visit. Now, he’ll be going back in a box.” Joe did blame himself. He really liked Fred. Raven motioned toward the door and followed Joe into the hallway.
    “Has his sister been told? Raven said, hitting the elevator call button. “Check up on the girl. See if there is anything we can do. I hate to think Fred’s job here at Isanti got him killed.”
    “The police should have already informed her of his death,” Joe said as the elevator bell dinged, signaling its arrival. “Fred would tell you it was part of being in security. His father and uncle were both on the New York City police force. Both killed while on duty.”
    As the door opened, Raven followed Joe inside and hit the button for the parking garage.
     
    §
     
    Cara was in the bathroom, just finishing the final step in getting ready, a mist of her favorite fragrance, when there was a knock at the door.
    “Can you get that, Derek? I’ll be right out.”
    Cara hurried into the front room to find Derek fighting with one man, while four others were rushing into the room.
    Cara stood there a moment frozen and unsure what to do. Where was her cell phone? She had left it on the kitchen table while getting ready. Knowing she needed to call for help, Cara turned to run over to the table. She reached the phone just as one of the men grabbed her. The phone slipped from her fingers and fell to the floor. She