In the Shadow of Vengeance Book 5

  In the Shadow of Vengeance

  Shadows and Light Book 5

  Nancy C. Weeks

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Note from the Author

  Books by Nancy C. Weeks

  Excerpt from The Eyewitness

  Copyright Page

  This book is dedicated to my sisters, both in family and life. You encouraged my dreams and have never allowed me to forget who I am or what I’m made of. I’m so blessed to walk this journey with such amazing women. I thank God for you daily.

  One

  This can’t be happening again. It’s too soon.

  Elizabeth Williams caressed her lower abdomen. It was a simple fact of life. Women could get pregnant within weeks of giving birth.

  On the upside, at least she didn’t have to worry about stomach crunches for another nine months. But even that positive thought didn’t erase the anxiety churning through her. The demands of the coveted nursing program would not ease because she juggled the care of two infants. And then there was her dream to travel the globe with Spencer, providing medical aid to areas that need it most. They could have managed with one child, but two would place that opportunity on the back burner for years.

  She shifted her position in the driver's seat and glanced at the entrance to the hospital as she dug the plastic pregnancy stick from her back pocket. All she had to do was get out of the car, walk across the parking lot, and find her husband. They would talk it out together and enjoy their growing family while keeping their dreams alive. At this hour, he was most likely in his office. He didn’t have surgeries scheduled on Saturday, but he went in to make his rounds. That afternoon, they planned to drive to her parents’ farm three hours east of Omaha for her father’s birthday. Once Spencer learned about the baby, and they both had time to process, the heaviness in her stomach will convert to pure joy.

  Erin wasn’t planned, but she brought such joy into their lives. And although Elizabeth and Spencer’s relationship seemed a little strained lately, that was probably just stress. Every couple went through trying periods.

  Elizabeth’s sister called him selfish, but she didn’t understand him. Spencer dedicated himself completely to his patients, and they loved him for the time he gave to them. There wasn’t a more compassionate surgeon than her husband.

  Easing her grip on the steering wheel, she smiled at her beautiful daughter in the infant mirror above her dashboard. Erin was so tiny, only fourteen pounds, but right at her target weight for a four-month-old. “Your daddy loves you, sweet girl, and he’s going to love your brother or sister, too. This is going to be a good thing.”

  Opening the door, she released her seatbelt and got out. The warmth of the midday sun brushed over her face, and a sense of calm settled her nerves. It would all work out because it had to. They were a family. Her parents must have had rough patches in their thirty years of marriage. That was all this was, a rough patch.

  Lifting the sleeping infant out of the car carrier, she cradled her against her heart. The soft baby scent drove away any apprehension. “Well, Erin, my girl,” Elizabeth whispered, glancing at her wrist watch, “Let’s find your father and tell him the good news together. Seeing your sweet face will make it all okay.”

  At that moment, the automatic doors to the hospital entrance whooshed open and her husband raced out. She called out to him, but he must not have heard her. He didn’t even pause at the crosswalk between the entrance and the parking lot. A stunning, dark-skinned woman Elizabeth had never seen before met him at his car only two rows away. He unlocked the passenger door of his Jaguar and moved aside so she could drop into the seat. He then ran around and got in the driver’s seat. The familiar sound of the engine roared to life, and he drove out of the lot, never once looking back.

  Numbness settled deep into Elizabeth’s bones as her heart struggled to catch up with her mind. A huge part of her wanted to ignore what she had seen and take her daughter home.

  As she secured Erin in the infant carrier, she kept an eye on Spencer’s red Jaguar. Instead of turning right toward home or the clinic at the stop sign, he took a left. Elizabeth dropped behind the wheel of her Chevy SS and followed him, keeping several cars back. Midday traffic was heavy, making it easier to keep up with him.

  As her mind came up with one excuse after another for why he left the hospital in such a rush, one stood out, taking on a life of its own.

  Who was she?

  The question repeated itself over again as her heart pounded against her ribcage. That was the reason he was so distant with her. Except for a brief moment of passion when they’d conceived the baby, it had been weeks since they made love.

  When she caught up to him, it would not be a pleasant reunion. She believed every person had a nasty side, and hers was in high gear. Was Spencer cheating on her? If he wasn’t, she would owe him a hell of an apology. At minimum, it would open communication between them.

  A quick glance at Erin, and Elizabeth said a silent prayer that her daughter slept through what was slowly turning from a moment of madness into full-blown bat-crazy. As much as she wanted to turn around and leave, she was propelled onward.

  Of course, this was sheer madness. They had been in love for three years, almost inseparable—until she got pregnant with Erin. They’d met during her first week of nursing school at the University of Nebraska. After a whirlwind romance that lasted half the year, he asked her to move in with him. Since her parents would have had a conniption fit at the thought of their daughter living with a boyfriend, they married. And for the most part, they were happy together. What made her jump down this rabbit hole?

  Spencer’s schedule.

  Everything in his life was planned out in advance, and no one messed with that plan. He should be in his office, checking on lab results, going through the mountain of paperwork. She could set her clock by Spencer’s schedule.

  After several blocks, Spencer zigzagged through an unfamiliar area of Omaha. This was the stupidest thing she’d ever done, and she needed to go home. She hit her turn signal at the next light when the Jaguar shifted lanes and turned into an office complex. Elizabeth eased off the accelerator and followed him through several turns until he parked in front of a two-story stucco building.

  Shady Grove Outpatient Surgery Center. And to think she had expected a hotel.

  Elizabeth pulled into the spot where she could see the entrance of the center and Spencer’s Jaguar. He opened the passenger door and she stood, placing a hand at his elbow as if he was hers to claim.

  “The bitch,” she whispered through clenched teeth.

  They rushed up the sidewalk. Spencer drew her against him and kissed her neck as she tried to unlock the door. Elizabeth shut her eyes tight and took in a shaky breath.

  “Bastard! That low-life, cheating bastard.” When she opened her eyes, they were gone. She choked down the shock and slammed her fist into the steering wheel.

  Time stopped and her ears and eyes seemed to block out everything
but the soft breathing of her child. She unclipped her belt and got out of the car. Gently unlatching Erin from the car seat, she hugged her to her chest. Bringing her daughter to confront her cheating husband had to be the lowest on any list. But she couldn’t very well knock on the babysitter’s door and ask her to keep an eye on her daughter while she followed her rat-bastard husband either.

  She followed him here, and that had to be the plan forward. Placing one foot in front of the other, she headed toward the double glass entrance door as a thick heaviness settled over her. The large oak tree at the corner of the lot that separated parking between the Outpatient Surgery Center and the Shady Grove Imaging Center next door stood completely still. She searched the sky and spotted thick storm clouds south of the city. It was as if her mood was affecting the weather.

  With a shaky hand, she grabbed the door handle and it turned. Easing across the foyer into the plush, cool reception area, she took in a deep breath, held Erin just a little closer to her heart and silently made her way toward the rear of the building. That her sweet baby could sleep through one of the worst moments in Elizabeth’s life was a true blessing.

  Should she call out to the cheating pair before they got naked and personal? Or was it better to sneak around like an idiot and catch them in the act? How was this game played? There should be a rulebook on how to discover your spouse committing adultery. He was breaking every damn promise he’d ever made to her.

  A hum of voices caught her attention, and she moved to the end of the long hallway. The voices grew angry. Especially her husband’s.

  “Why did you bring him here? I told you I couldn’t do this today.”

  “Even with a rush transport, we may still not make it in time. I didn’t have a choice.”

  “There are always choices, Victor. One of them is to follow my orders to the letter.”

  She had never heard that tone of voice from Spencer, nor did she recognize the other man speaking. One thing was obvious, the chill that sliced through her wasn’t the result of seeing her husband with another woman. He might be having an affair, but that wasn’t all that was going on here.

  Well, crap, now what? Standing right outside the door, Elizabeth had two choices: walk away or make herself known. Her mother’s famous saying slid across her mind. If you’re going to step in cow manure, better make it worth your while.

  Placing her hand on the door, she pushed it open midway. It took a moment for her mind to focus.

  God, oh God.

  She couldn’t pull away from the gruesome scene in front of her. She had seen surgery performed before. This wasn’t it. This was — blood. The migrant worker they treated at the clinic, unconscious. The ventilator. Spencer’s surgical assistant with his hands covered in blood. The kicker, the one thing that slammed Elizabeth’s heart into her gut, was the familiar white container with the international symbol for live organ donor plastered on all sides.

  Spencer was harvesting this man’s organs.

  Her arms went around Erin as she backed out of the room. Spencer’s muffled, angry voice called out to the others in the room, but all she could hear was her heart drumming between her ears.

  Nothing in Elizabeth’s world made sense. If Spencer was capable of—whatever the hell this was, she had to protect Erin and the new baby.

  Keeping an arm over Erin, she sprinted out the entrance and around the side of the building to her car. In record time, she had the infant in her car seat and was backing out of the space as Spencer, still in his surgical garb, raced from the building. The man with him pulled out a handgun and aimed it at her car. Spencer shoved his elbow into the man’s gut before running to his own Jaguar.

  Elizabeth didn’t wait around for what happened next, but sped from the lot onto the service road. Erin squirmed. Any minute, she would let loose how she felt about being jarred awake from her nap, making this nightmare even more difficult. Since there was too much traffic coming toward her to return the way she came, she turned south, pressed hard on the accelerator, and drove.

  Humming a tune that usually relaxed her daughter, she glared into the rearview mirror as Spencer’s Jaguar pulled behind her. Not waiting for the light to change to green, she spun right again onto a four-lane road. While she did not know where she was going, her strategy was to place as much distance between her and her husband until she could figure out plan B.

  The car’s movement rocked Erin asleep. Thank God for small miracles. The four-lane road turned into two lanes at the outskirts of town and they headed out of Omaha. Elizabeth couldn’t decide if she should take the next turnoff and return the way she came or keep driving. Her focus, the man’s body on the table, and her child in the back seat. She treated him for a sprained wrist just days before, his vitals, strong, and the stories of his wife and son, endearing. He worked the farms in the area, saving money to send back to his family. He couldn’t be over twenty-five years old.

  She wiped her palm across her eyes, clearing away the moisture so she could see. Shit, what was Spencer involved in? The sight of the man she loved churned with the white organ donor case and the man with the gun.

  The young immigrant worker’s name, lost in the blood. If they were harvesting his organs, that meant Spencer—the man she fell in love with, had two children with—was a monster.

  She choked down a sob as she searched Erin’s diaper bag in the seat next to her for her cell phone. Her father would know what to do.

  The last couple of cars turned off and Spencer pulled right behind her again. Bone-deep fear chilled her to the bone as she searched through the front window. Any hope of losing him failed. All signs of the city disappeared as the landscape turned to rolling hills and farmland. Neat rows of corn seemed to go on for miles. While their stalk height obstructed her view from signs of a town in the distance, she couldn’t miss the low, threatening storm clouds right in front of her.

  Spencer increased his speed until he was right on her rear bumper. He signaled with his hand for her to pull over. When she ignored him, he tapped her bumper with his car, jerking her forward.

  She shot him a glare and shook her head. “Not just no, you sick bastard, but no way in hell am I going to get stuck in the boonies alone with you and your hit man.”

  The expression on the face of the man who sat next to Spencer wasn’t hard to read, even at the speed she was driving. If he had his way, she would have never left the parking lot of the outpatient surgery center.

  She dug deeper into the bag, but still couldn’t feel her phone. A vivid list of cuss words slid across her tongue. Not knowing what else to do, she pressed the accelerator and hugged the middle of the road. If she couldn’t hide from him, or outrun him, she could keep him from passing and cutting her off.

  As she searched above the corn stalks for signs of another town, the sky turned a grayish black, casting deep shadows over the landscape as a hard gust of wind whipped around her. She clutched the steering wheel with both hands. Jagged lightning bolts stroked the road yards from her. A bulky stalk of corn slammed into her windshield, flying over the hood seconds later. Elizabeth almost lost her breakfast.

  “Crap! Now what?”

  The sky ripped open and hail pounded her roof.

  Spencer blasted his horn at her several times. Her eyes scanned the horizon for the funnel cloud. Living in Tornado Alley all her life, she didn’t ignore the signs.

  The wind became so unyielding, she slowed her car and pulled over to the side of the road. With a possible madman behind her and a funnel cloud somewhere above, she had no place to run. But the one thing her father had drilled into his children was to never try to outrun a tornado or find shelter in a car. Both options were death traps.

  She swung Erin’s diaper bag over her shoulder and got out of the car. Spencer pulled behind her. Covering her head with one arm to protect against the golf ball-sized hail, she opened the back door and reached for the infant sling, putting it on like a backpack with the pouch in front.

  Spe
ncer stepped out of his car. “Elizabeth, what the hell are you—”

  The roar of the wind took the rest of the sentence. He ducked down as stalks of corn struck him. She settled Erin in the front pouch and removed the thickest blanket from her bag. Wrapping it around her baby’s head, she raced toward a low-lying ditch across the road.

  A new calm settled over her the instant she held her daughter against her. It didn’t matter what Spencer had done or who the man with the gun was. All that mattered at that moment was protecting Erin from the storm that raged overhead. There was only one safety net, and Elizabeth had to find it fast. If this field was anything like her father’s, there would be a narrow dirt road. And where that dirt road intersected the paved road, there should be a storm drain.

  As if her very thoughts summoned it to her, her hand landed on a raised mound. She quickly turned and searched the road for Spencer, but the sky opened the floodgates and sheets of rain pounded on top of her. She couldn’t have seen her own hand in front of her face, and the howl of the wind was deafening. With one hand shielding Erin’s head, she felt for the cemented half-circle opening, and crawled into the dark, wet drain. Settling her spine against the side, she removed the soaked blanket and tried to calm her screaming infant.

  She didn’t have a clue how long she hid in the storm drain, but one minute, the heavens were raining terror down on her, and the next, everything was completely calm. The wind died down, and the rain turned to a drizzle. She hugged her daughter and slowly eased out of the drain.