Red Handed(83)

He gave her a grin reminding her why they’d been such good friends all these years. “I’ll make you a deal. I’ll go out and get you the jelly beans if you promise to keep an open mind when you finally do talk to DeMarco. Because the man you’ve told me about—the man you fell in love with—would do anything to keep you safe, even if it cost him everything. If you’re honest with yourself, you’d know that.”

Her eyes burned as she held back the tears. She wished she could believe that. “I promise. Now go get me my candy, and if you’re lucky, I’ll share them with you.”

He ruffled her hair. “You’re my best friend, Danielle. I’m glad my marriage proposal didn’t mess that up.”

“Nothing ever would.” She squeezed his shoulder. “But Roman, why did you propose?”

“My mom put it in my head that because you and I were already such good friends, we’d also work romantically.”

“Tasha said that?” Her stepmother probably worried if she didn’t marry Roman, she’d spend the rest of her life living with her. She patted her belly. “I’m sure once she learns about the baby, she’ll forget all about the idea.”

“I think she forgot the idea about ten seconds after she spoke it out loud to me.” He laughed as he walked out Danielle’s bedroom door, but she knew a lifetime of his mother’s indifference still hurt him. It hadn’t taken Tasha long after her kidnapping to forget all about her ordeal and go back to raising money for her charities.

She wiped her eyes, a ball of sorrow, anxiety, and resentment lodged in her throat.

How would she tell Cole he was going to be a father in less than eight months? She couldn’t imagine picking up the phone or sending a letter. It had to be done in person. She supposed she could wait until her belly was round with his child and waddle into Benediction. Then she wouldn’t need to say a word. But it wouldn’t be right to wait that long. He deserved to know now. Their lives would forever be connected through their baby. But as much as she wanted Cole in her life, she didn’t want him by default. She wanted him to choose her and their child. Otherwise, he’d never completely belong to them.

She wandered aimlessly around her room, dragging her fingers across her dresser, stopping at her mother’s silver box. “Mom, I wish you were here to tell me what to do.” She picked it up and sat on the edge of the bed, holding it in her hands as if it would give her the answers through osmosis.

Sighing, she raised the lid. She pressed her palm to her belly again. Someday, she’d give this box to her daughter. She knew in her gut she was carrying a girl. There was nothing she wouldn’t do to keep her safe, even if it meant having a stranger guarding her twenty-four/seven.

The box slid off her lap onto the carpet. When she picked it up, she noticed the fabric lining on the inside bottom had shifted, and it looked like there was something below it. She dug her fingers underneath and felt a rectangular-shaped object. She pulled it out and laid it flat in her hand.

A flash drive.

It was longer than the ones presently sold.

Her mother had died before flash drives were invented. Had this belonged to her father? Had he hidden this in the box for Danielle to find?

A sense of unease banded around her chest, constricting her lungs. She held the flash drive as if it was a deadly snake ready to strike if she made a sudden move. She didn’t want to know what was on this harmless piece of plastic, because she knew whatever it was had gotten her father killed and set the wheels into motion that had resulted in Tasha’s kidnapping.

She and her baby were in danger.

She had to find out what was on this drive. She needed a computer.

For a moment, she hesitated and considered waiting for Roman to return, unnerved by the idea of doing this alone. But she couldn’t wait. She had to know the truth. With the drive in her hand, she raced to the den down the hall, where she and Tasha shared a computer.

The house was quiet except for the sound of her bare feet brushing along the carpet. She entered the den and, sitting down at the desk, woke the computer from its hibernation.

She stuck the flash drive into the USB port and clicked on the drive to open the files.

She held her breath, her heart speeding like a freight train, and waited. One file titled “Important” and dated from eight years ago popped up on the screen, and she opened it.

It was gibberish, a bunch of odd-looking symbols, letters, and numbers filling the computer screen. She studied it, wracking her brain for some way to decipher it. Was it a corrupted file? Or was she missing something?

“Danielle? What do you have there?”