Read Online Heart Failure by Richard L. Mabry - Free Book Online Page A

Internet and found it had changed. Like the story of the three bears—not too large, not too small, but just right.”
    “So you essentially slipped away from federal protection? Would they take you back?”
    “I left the program because there were too many ways DeLuca’s people could find me. I don’t see why it would be any safer for me to go back now.”
    “How did you get a job here?” Carrie asked.
    “All it took was a couple of forged references and an obvious good grasp of the practice of law. It’s not hard to be a paralegal when you’re already an attorney.” A faint smile crossed Adam’s face. “Besides, Bruce Hartley got me cheap, and that’s just his style.”
    “What about me—or maybe I should say, what about us? Was that all part of your cover?”
    Adam was shaking his head while she was still talking. “Absolutely not. My first week here, when I slipped into the Jameson Community Church and saw you in the congregation, I knew I had to meet you.”
    “So when we were introduced that Sunday morning after church, it wasn’t an accident?”
    “No. Until I saw you, I never put much stock in that ‘love at first sight’ stuff. You changed my mind, right then and there. And the more I got to know you, the more certain I was thatlove was real.” He took a deep breath, swallowed twice, and said, “Carrie, I loved you then. I still love you.”
    Carrie turned her head and wiped at her eyes. A long moment passed before she finally spoke, and when she did her voice was fragile, as though it was ready to crack. “When John died, I thought I’d never love anyone again. Life had lost its color. But I met you, and it didn’t take long for me to think you’d come into my life to fill the hole that was there. I started to live again.”
    “I wasn’t trying to—”
    Carrie shook her head. “You did exactly what was needed. You let me talk about John. You dried my tears and let me lean on your shoulder. You gave me your love. And the gray turned to a rainbow again.”
    Adam’s heart swelled.
    “You introduced yourself as Adam. Then I found out you’re really Keith. You may even have other names. But that doesn’t matter. I’ve decided that what matters is I’m not ready to lose you. I love you, and I want us to be together.”
    Hope rose in Adam’s chest. “Does that mean our engagement is on?” he asked. “Are you ready to wear the ring again?”
    Carrie rose and moved to the window. She stared into the night for a long time before speaking. “Let’s leave it at ‘I love you’ for now. We can talk about our future when all this is settled.”
    “So where do we go from here?” Adam asked. “You know the choices I have. What do you want me to do?”
    Carrie turned from the window and looked into Adam’s eyes. “I don’t know what to tell you. All I know is that we’re in this together.”
    Adam crossed the room and put his arms around her. They hugged and kissed, this time with the passion that had marked their relationship earlier.
    When Carrie finally pulled away she looked at her watch. “I need to go. Give me your new cell phone number. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
    Carrie entered the number into her phone, then moved toward the door, where she turned to face him. “Should I keep calling you Adam?”
    He nodded. “You have to, in order to keep my identity a secret. Is that going to be a problem?”
    “No. You’re still the man I fell in love with. That’s all that matters.” She kissed him once more. “Good night. Be careful.”

    All through a night marked by tossing, turning, and brief periods of fitful sleep, Carrie pondered her situation and weighed the choices facing her and Adam. Her dreams were filled with flashbacks of John’s death interspersed with vivid scenes of a gunman bursting into the church and shooting Adam dead during their wedding. She woke in a mass of tangled, sweat-soaked bedclothes.
    Over a quick breakfast of coffee and toast, she considered