Charon's Landing

Georgetown

Forty-eight hours earlier, everything had been simple; her life had fit neatly and flowed. One event led naturally to another with hardly a thought. Private school to college, college to grad school. From there into a field she had such a passion for that it didn’t seem like work at all. Jan Voerhoven had come into her life ten months ago, and while he hadn’t formally proposed, it was a foregone conclusion that they would marry. She’d been able to make decisions easily, with little regard to the consequences. Just one month shy of her thirty-second birthday, she was on her way in the life that she’d envisioned for herself: a career, a cause, and a soul mate.

But now everything was different. The choices more difficult, and their aftermath would change her life forever. True responsibility scared Aggie Johnston more than she wanted to admit.

It had all come crashing down when Philip Mercer had walked into her father’s party, his tuxedo accenting his lean, powerful body, his hair so thick it seemed to crackle, and his eyes as seductive as the devil’s own. Mercer’s smile was a challenge no woman could resist.

Aggie got up from the couch and crossed the living room to the glass balcony doors. Her condo looked over the C&O Canal, and the balcony, which cantilevered over the murky water, was one of her favorite spots. Joggers passed on the other side of the waterway in an almost constant parade. She stood there until the afternoon humidity made her uncomfortable in her own skin, her cropped T-shirt clinging to her body. She turned back into the air conditioning, sliding the door closed with a finality she didn’t feel.

The condo was decorated with some of her father’s cast-off furniture, precious woods and oils that she neither liked nor appreciated but kept to make him happy. The only item she really loved was an old easy chair she’d bought from a thrift shop when she was at prep school. She carted it around like a faithful pet. Over the years, the chair had been repaired so many times that little of the original remained. Yet to her it was still the same chair she’d had since those easy days at Westminster. She fell into it gratefully, slouching into its embrace so she almost felt like it was hugging her. Something she needed desperately right now.

She’d known that Mercer was on the guest list of the party; her father had teased her about it from the time he’d sent the invitations. She’d hoped that he wouldn’t show while praying that he would. When his RSVP was not returned, she felt a strange mixture of relief and loss. And then he walked in from the dining room, and her girlhood crush came back with such force that she again felt like the callow coed she’d been when she’d first met him. Her simple life suddenly grew more complex than she could have possibly imagined. New thoughts, new ideas, and new options tumbled in her mind until all she could do was act rudely to him when they finally met.

She didn’t know why she’d gone to his house yesterday; however, either consciously or not, she’d worn her skimpiest lingerie. From the moment she’d walked into Mercer’s brownstone, she hadn’t given Jan the slightest consideration. Her feelings for Mercer could not be denied, and that frustrated her. Such a rush of emotions had never happened to her before, not even when she’d met Jan for the first time.

“Damn it!” she said, launching herself angrily from her chair.

She hunted for her cigarettes, locating them on a cluttered kitchen counter. She lit one quickly, calming herself.

She shouldn’t have gone to him last night, but like an addict she couldn’t refuse herself. She was in love with Jan, was going to be his wife. That was what she wanted. He represented everything that she respected in the world. Why would she throw that away for a man she found reprehensible?

She considered this until there were three fresh cigarette butts in the overflowing ashtray, but she couldn’t find an answer. She didn’t know what this meant to her life. Would she always be unfaithful, giving in to casual affairs every time someone caught her eye? Or was Mercer a special case, a once-in-a-lifetime infatuation? Aggie had never doubted herself until this day. And there was another question plaguing her, one that was undoubtedly more important. Every time she came close to thinking about it, the fear of the answer forced her away. It felt like those times when she missed her period and was more afraid of taking a pregnancy test than of actually being pregnant.

In her confusion, the question finally slipped into her mind. Why had her father sent Burt Manning to kill Mercer last night?

Manning had worked for her father for years. Aggie had known him since her senior year of college. The attack on Mercer’s house had been the most frightening experience of her life, but when she saw Burt dead on the floor, it was too much for her to handle. She fled as fast as she could, immediately understanding why her father had told her not to see Mercer. He knew Burt was going to Mercer’s house to assassinate him.

Tears filled her eyes, spilling onto her chest. She thought she’d cried herself out the night before, but as she reached for a tissue from the box half buried in the junk on the counter, she knew she might never get this out of her system. Her silent tears turned to racking sobs that shook her whole body. She slumped to the tiled floor, pressing herself against the cabinets.

Consequences were catching up to her faster than she could handle. In the past forty-eight hours, everything she’d worked for and dreamed about had been turned upside down. Her fiancé, a man she loved and respected more than anyone else, paled in every comparison to Philip Mercer. And her father, whom she’d never liked but always loved, had turned out to be a monster who employed hit men. She wanted to close her eyes and sleep it all away, to wake up again and find it was all a horrible dream.

When the doorbell chimed, it was just subconscious ringing, far in the distance. But then she heard a key turning the front door lock and struggled up from the floor, steadying herself. She combed her fingers through her hair, thumbing salty tears from under her eyes.

Her father came into the kitchen, his face showing a deep concern. He wore his typical uniform, a perfectly fitted dark suit, a white shirt, and a subtly patterned tie. Even in her pain, Aggie saw that his shoes were like they always were, not exactly scuffed but well worn. He didn’t believe in highly glossed shoes, feeling they were an affectation sported by those more concerned with image than substance.

“I’ve been trying to call you all day, but your line’s been off the hook. I was worried about you,” he said before he noticed the tear tracks on Aggie’s cheeks. “Sweetheart, what’s the matter?”

It didn’t matter now that her father knew she smoked. Aggie lit a cigarette. “I was there last night, Daddy. I know what you tried to do.”

“Aggie,” Max Johnston said tenderly, “what are you talking about?”

“I was at Mercer’s house last night. I was there when Burt Manning tried to kill him.”

“Burt Manning?”

“He broke into Mercer’s house. Him and another man. They were there to kill him. And I know you sent him there. I know you wanted to have Mercer killed.” Despite her anger, Aggie began crying again.

His eyes went wide with shock. “Burt Manning tried to kill Mercer last night? Are you sure?”

“I was there, Daddy. Burt and another man broke into the house. They killed an FBI agent. Burt almost killed me before Mercer shot him. Mercer was shot in the shoulder and a friend of his in the leg, though it was an artificial leg so he was okay.” Aggie knew she was babbling. She’d wanted to be strong when she confronted her father, but it came pouring out of her in a torrent. “I know you sent them. That’s why you didn’t want me to see Mercer again.”

Max took Aggie in his arms, holding her trembling body close to his, stroking her hair, all the while muttering softly in her ear. “It’s okay now, you’re all right.”

A few minutes passed as Aggie recovered, her sobs easing into silence. When she calmed, Max held her at arm’s length so that he could look her in the eye. “You weren’t hurt?” Aggie shook her head, and he hugged her again, relief making him clutch her tightly.

“Aggie, listen to me,” he said at length. “Burt Manning doesn’t work for me anymore. He hasn’t for months. He has his own business as a security specialist. I knew even when he worked for Petromax that he was unbalanced. He was good at his job, but he was too unstable to control. I fired him last spring. I don’t know anything about him trying to kill Mercer, but I can tell you it has nothing to do with me.”

Max smiled, his own eyes glistening with concern and love. “Ever since you were little, you’ve accused me of a lot of things, and some of them were even true. But I draw the line well short of murder. Besides, why would I want to kill Mercer? He’s a good friend of mine.”

“But you told me not to go near him again,” she accused quietly.

“Sweetheart, I did that to protect you. I know you’ve had a crush on him and I just didn’t want you to get hurt. He has quite a reputation with women. A schoolgirl infatuation is one thing, and even though it’s been years since you’ve seen him, he’d surely break your heart. I like Mercer, but I wouldn’t trust him with you. That’s why I warned you away. Oh, my poor little girl.” They hugged again as she wished they’d done more when she was a child, but even now it wasn’t too late.

“Aggie, I know you’re involved with the leader of that organization you work for. I don’t approve of him, but I know he treats you well and makes you happy.” He didn’t know that they were discussing marriage. She’d never had the courage to tell him. “Get Philip Mercer out of your mind. It’s for the best. Okay?”

Aggie nodded slowly, her tears finally drying up.

“How’s this, kiddo? I’ll make you a deal. I won’t say anything about you smoking or ask why you were at Mercer’s house at quarter past ten last night, if you promise to forget about him.”

Aggie smiled up at her father, a frail, hurt smile full of trust. She threw her arms around him again, losing herself in him like she did with her favorite chair. “I love you, Dad.”

“And you are my life, sweetheart. Don’t you ever forget that. Are you going to be all right?”

“I’ll be fine. I think I’ll leave town for a while. I just need to get away.”

“Sure, you do that. Listen, nobody’s using the company house on Hilton Head. A Petromax jet could have you there in an hour. Do you want me to arrange it for you?” Aggie nodded. “Excellent. How’s this? I have to go to London for a couple of days. After I get back, what do you say I join you?”

“That would be great.” She smiled as best she could.

As soon as her father had gone, Aggie dialed US Airways. The ticketing agent came on the line after a few frustrating minutes of voice mail.

“What’s your next available flight out of Reagan Airport?” Aggie demanded sharply.

“What is your destination, miss?”

“Alaska eventually but right now it doesn’t matter, I just need to get out of Washington.” Aggie hadn’t told her father what time she was at Mercer’s house last night, yet he had known.

Oh, God.