Parallel Lies

He had no intention of sharing information with her. At least, not willingly. But thanks to the global positioning device, she would track his every movement. If he got a lead on her sister’s location, Sabrina would head there as soon as he made his move.

And in the meantime, maybe she’d find the location first. Zack was wasting his time going to Sacramento. If there had been any clues at Shelby’s house, Sabrina would have found them already.

They needed to focus on the kidnapper, not her sister. And so Sabrina would study the files using her training and instincts to get inside the kidnapper’s head. Then she’d take her father’s bag of tricks—and her gun—and go hunting.

Dear Reader,

You’re about to read a Silhouette Bombshell novel, one of the most engaging, exciting and riveting books on the shelves today. We’re pleased to bring you fast-paced, compelling reads featuring strong, admirable women who will speak to the Bombshell in you!

In Sophie’s Last Stand by Nancy Bartholomew, Sophie Mazaratti’s trying to start over after her marriage ends very badly—but it seems her slimy ex has left her in a sticky situation involving the mob, the Feds and one darned attractive detective….

Get ready for a thrilling twenty-four hours as military author Cindy Dees continues the powerful Athena Force continuity series with Target, featuring an army intelligence agent on a mission to save the President-elect from being assassinated. To gain his trust, she’ll give the villain someone new to chase—herself….

It’s a jungle out there when a determined virologist races into the Amazon to stop a deadly outbreak—a danger that authorities seem determined to cover up, even at the cost of Dr. Jane Miller’s life. Don’t miss The Amazon Strain by Katherine Garbera!

And a protected witness must come out of hiding after her sister mysteriously disappears, in Kate Donovan’s adventure Parallel Lies. It’s up to Sabrina Sullivan to determine which of two charismatic men is lying—or if they both are—to save her sister’s life.

The stakes are high and the pressure is on! Please send me your comments c/o Silhouette Books, 233 Broadway, Suite 1001, New York, NY 10279

Sincerely,

Natashya Wilson

Associate Senior Editor, Silhouette Bombshell

Parallel Lies

Kate Donovan

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KATE DONOVAN

is the author of more than a dozen novels and novellas, ranging from time travel and paranormal to historical romance, suspense and romantic comedy. An attorney, she draws on her criminal law background to create challenges worthy of her heroines, who crack safes, battle wizards and always get their man. As for Kate, she definitely got her man and is living happily ever after with him and their two children in Elk Grove, California.

This book is dedicated to my parents

for their loving encouragement.

Thanks, Mom and Dad!

Contents

Prologue

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

Prologue

When the cell phone on her nightstand began to ring, twenty-year-old Sabrina Sullivan went from soundly sleeping to fully alert in an instant. The fact that it was 2:00 a.m. only heightened her instinctive response. After all, this particular phone had one purpose and one purpose only—for her father to contact her in case of an emergency. And given “Sully” Sullivan’s dangerous lifestyle, an emergency seemed to lurk around every intrigue-laden corner.

Flipping open the phone, Sabrina said simply, “Dad?”

“Sweetheart, this is Uncle Theo. I’m standing outside the door to your apartment. I didn’t want to knock and scare you, but I need to talk to you.”

The daughter’s heart began to pound. “Is he hurt bad? Is he even alive? Uncle Theo—”

“Come to the door, Breezie.”

“Right.” She jumped to her feet and sprinted from her small bedroom into the study area of the dorm suite she shared with her sister Michelle. Then she yanked open the door, ready to demand a million details.

But the expression on Theo Howell’s face told her everything she needed to know, and it did so with the force of a well-aimed kick to her solar plexus. “Oh, no…”

“Breezie.” He pulled her into a bear hug. “I’m so sorry.”

Tears stung her eyes. “He was here just last week for a visit. He looked so h-healthy. What happened?”

“He was murdered, hon. By Adonis Zenner.”

Sabrina pulled free, shocked by the announcement, and perversely grateful for the rush of white-hot hatred that chased her tears away.

“Zenner?” She practically hissed the name. “How did he get into the country?”

“We don’t know. We don’t know anything yet.”

“This is the thanks Dad gets for tracking that psycho’s father down? We knew Adonis might try to get revenge for Pluto. Didn’t we take precautions?”

“Come and sit with me,” Theo advised, adding over his shoulder, “you men secure the premises.”

Sabrina winced as two middle-aged men dressed in black pants and black shirts strode past her. She hadn’t even noticed the burly pair of strangers. Her father would be so disappointed in her.

Except her father was dead.

“Is this the only window?” one man was asking. “What about in there?”

“My sister’s in there. Sleeping. And of course there’s no window,” she added, insulted at the implication that she’d let Michelle sleep alone in a room with exterior access. Then she bit her lip, realizing for the first time that this nightmare was about to invade her younger sister’s world, as well.

“I should wake her up,” she told her uncle. “Zenner’s trail is getting colder by the second.”

“There’s a decision to be made, Brie. Your father would want you to make it. You’re the oldest.”

“A decision?” She felt her temper flare. “You mean, like funeral stuff? Who cares! We have to go after Adonis before he gets out of the country.”

Theo’s gaze was steady and direct. “We think he’ll come after you and Michelle next.”

“What?”

“When your father killed Pluto, he wiped out Adonis’s whole family. He might want to return the favor.”

Sabrina turned to stare at the closed door to Michelle’s room. Then she sank down onto the sofa next to Theo. “We need to get her to someplace safe. Immediately.”

“We need to get you both someplace safe,” he corrected her. “There are two choices. My home in Monterey. Or a safe house here in Boston, which would be a stopover on your way into a protection program.”

“A protection program?”

“The government offered us two spots in RAP. That’s a relocation assistance program for compromised agents and their families, similar to witness protection.”

“Are you talking about new identities? Isn’t that a little drastic? Just take Shellie to your house while I go after Adonis.”

“Is that what your father would have wanted?”

Sabrina’s eyes stung with the return of her tears, but she wiped them with miserable determination. There would be plenty of time—the rest of her life, in fact—to cry. Right now, she had to concentrate on protecting her sister and avenging her father.

In that order.

Because she knew exactly what her father would want her to do. She could almost hear his voice instructing her, the same way he’d done just one week earlier at the end of his visit.

Take care of your sister. I’m entrusting her safety to you. I know you won’t let me down.

He had charged her with this responsibility since early in their childhood, and she had always taken it as a compliment. Now she knew it for what it was—a curse.

“What’s going on?” a sleepy voice demanded from across the room, and eighteen-year-old Michelle stepped into view, her feet stuffed into fuzzy pink slippers, her lightweight robe belted haphazardly and her arms cradling their new kitten, a black-and-white fur ball known as Zorro. “Uncle Theo? Is everything okay?”

Theo crossed to her, clearly intending to hug her with the same unrestrained affection and sympathy he had bestowed on Sabrina. But Michelle sidestepped him and walked over to her big sister.

“Brie?”

“It’s Dad, Shell. Adonis Zenner killed him.”

The girl’s blue eyes widened. “With a gun? Or a bomb?”

It was another blow to Sabrina’s equilibrium, and she grabbed her sister into an embrace while demanding over her head, “Uncle Theo? It wasn’t a bomb, was it?”

When his gaze fell, she wailed in disbelief. “I’ll strangle him with my bare hands!”

“Me, too,” Michelle insisted, but her voice was hushed and broken by sobs.

“Shh…” Sabrina patted her sister’s blond curls. “There’ll be time to cry later, Shell. We have to get moving. Uncle Theo thinks Zenner might come here next.”

“Bring it on,” Michelle retorted, raising her tear-filled eyes to stare straight into Sabrina’s. “I want him to come here. Then we can kill him for Dad.”

“No. We’re going away. Someplace safe. The CIA will go after Zenner. That’s what Dad would have wanted.”

Michelle took a step backward, then folded her arms across her chest. “I’m not going anywhere but after Zenner. I can’t believe you want to run away.”

“Listen to your sister,” Theo murmured. “The CIA will catch Zenner. And in the meantime, you’re in danger. He’s a ruthless assassin. You’re no match for him. I know, I know, your father trained you to shoot and fight and take care of yourselves. But not against men like Zenner. If you don’t cooperate with our efforts to protect you—to give you a new life where you can be safe—one or both of you could die. Is that what you want?”

“Brie?”

Sabrina banished her own misgivings and said in as authoritative a voice as she could manage, “We’re going into some kind of witness protection program. Once they catch Zenner, we can be ourselves again. Go and pack.”

“No packing,” Theo corrected her. “Just put on jeans and a sweatshirt. Leave everything else behind. We’ll supply what you need at the safe house. But we have to move now.”

Michelle seemed about to argue, then she leaned down and scooped up the kitten instead. “Come on, Zorro. Let’s get dressed.”

“The cat can’t come,” Theo began, but Sabrina waved her hand at him in cool dismissal.

“The cat was a gift from Dad. He comes with us. That’s not negotiable. We’ll leave everything else behind though.”

Theo hesitated, then nodded. “We can bend the rules a little.”

“What about you, Uncle Theo?” Michelle demanded. “Aren’t you worried Zenner will come after you, too?”

“Your father killed Pluto as part of a CIA operation. It wasn’t directly related to his job at Perimeter. In fact, as you know, I disapproved of—Well, none of that matters now.” He touched Michelle’s cheek, then turned to Sabrina. “I won’t see you again after tonight. I hope you’ll always remember that I loved you like daughters.”

“We’ll see you soon,” Sabrina reminded him. “As soon as Dad’s crew and the CIA catch Adonis.”

“Right.” His red-rimmed gaze faltered, but he recovered and agreed more heartily, “Shouldn’t take them too long. Then you’ll come to live with me in Monterey.”

“And we’ll work for Perimeter, just like Dad promised we could,” Michelle said. Then her hands flew to her face and she began to cry again. “He can’t be gone. He was just here.”

Sabrina and Theo hurried to her, murmuring words of comfort mixed with gentle reminders that they had to get moving. Quickly. Before Adonis Zenner had a chance to kill another Sullivan.

Chapter 1

Five years later

“Can I help you, miss?”

Sabrina hesitated, knowing that the next words she uttered would change the course of her life. But she had carefully weighed every alternative before making this decision and, absent new information, wasn’t about to second-guess herself.

Her father had trained her better than that.

Smiling at the young man guarding the entrance to Theo Howell’s Monterey estate, she announced, “I’m Briana York. A friend of Mr. Howell’s. I don’t have an appointment, but I can guarantee you he’ll want to see me.”

“I’m sure he will,” the guard said, returning the smile as he scanned her bare legs. She had dressed in shorts and a tank top for the long, hot drive, not really caring how she looked.

Well at least he can see you’re not armed, she told herself ruefully.

“Just give me a second, Miss York.” Stepping back into his booth, the guard punched a button and an intercom began sputtering static.

Then a female voice from Sabrina’s childhood demanded, “Fred? Is the repairman here?”

“It’s someone to see Theo. Her name’s Briana York. She doesn’t have an appointment.”

“Briana York?”

Until now Sabrina had been so focused on the danger in visiting Theo’s house after all these years, she had failed to anticipate how wonderful it would be to see the place—and its inhabitants—again. Thoroughly charmed, and no longer hesitant about revealing herself, she waved her hand to catch the guard’s attention. “Is that Marietta? The cook? Tell her it’s Sabrina Sullivan. She’ll know who I am.”

“Sullivan?” The guard’s eyes widened. “As in Sully Sullivan?”

“Just tell her.”

The guard nodded, then cleared his throat. “Marietta, the guest says her name is Sabrina Sullivan.”

A delighted squeal emanated from the intercom, then the cook instructed Fred to admit the guest right away.

“Go on up to the house, Miss Sullivan. Stay to the right—”

“I’ve been here before. Thanks.” Sabrina edged her car up to the gate and sped through as soon as it had opened.

He didn’t even ask you for identification, she told herself in amused disbelief. If Dad were here, he’d give that poor guy such a lecture!

It didn’t bode well for the state of affairs at Perimeter Security Incorporated, she decided. Apparently discipline had fallen apart after her father’s death. Hopefully they still knew how to run a background check, which was all she needed from them.

And security aside, she was relieved to see that the estate was as stunning as she remembered it, with the sound of waves crashing in the distance while the wind whistled through the twisted limbs of hauntingly beautiful Monterey cypresses.

The house that Perimeter built, she reminded herself, proud that her father had been part of Theo Howell’s phenomenal success. The story was a classic. Howell had come from modest wealth, eventually inheriting the family business—a burglar alarm company. In a stroke of brilliance, he had invested every dime—including a few borrowed ones—and had transformed the company into a full-scale security provider called Perimeter, utilizing sophisticated computers, state-of-the-art monitoring and highly trained bodyguards. Almost immediately, Perimeter gained global prominence, and in the years that followed, became the preeminent provider of security to corporations, dignitaries, movie stars and other assorted clients.

But not without some growing pains. Despite all the successes, Theo Howell and Perimeter had had three pivotal failures. The first—a bomb smuggled into a peace summit—had been a mixed blessing, leading Howell to recruit the brash young CIA agent who had disarmed the device just seconds before the timer reached zero. That agent, Sully Sullivan, thereafter revamped the company’s procedures, trained its staff and basically took it to even higher heights.

Perimeter’s second disaster, more than twenty years later, had resulted in the assassination of a client in the Canary Islands. Desperate to salvage the company’s reputation, Sully had rejoined forces with the CIA to bring the assassin—Pluto Zenner—to justice. Pluto had been killed resisting arrest, leading to the third and most tragic failure of all—the revenge taken by Pluto’s son, Adonis, against Sully.

For Sabrina, that was where the Perimeter story ended. She had no idea what had happened over the past five years. All she knew for sure was that Adonis Zenner had never been apprehended or punished for her father’s murder.

Coupled with the lax behavior of the guard at the gate, Adonis’s continued existence didn’t speak well for the caliber of Perimeter’s current staff, she decided grimly. But it was too late to turn back. Sabrina still believed she’d made the right choice in coming here, so she parked her red convertible alongside a black one at the curb of the circular driveway in front of the Howell mansion. Then she took the steps two at a time, reaching the front door just as Marietta opened it wide.

“Miss Sabrina!” The servant gave her a hearty hug. “I thought we’d never see you again.”

Sabrina returned the embrace. “It’s so great to see you. Are you in charge of the place these days?”

The dark-haired woman shook her head. “It’s just me and my husband now. Money’s tight for Mr. Howell. But we’re really all he needs. Sebastian does the gardening and driving. And I still do all the cooking, so don’t worry. I’ll put some meat on those skinny bones of yours in no time.” She studied the guest fondly, then asked, “Is it okay to call you Sabrina?”

“Absolutely.”

“What about Miss Michelle? Is she coming, too?”

“She’s on vacation.” Sabrina sighed. “We can visit in a little while, but for now, I’d better go see Uncle Theo. Was he shocked to hear I was back?”

“I didn’t tell him.” Marietta gave her a wide smile. “I can’t wait to see the look on his face.”

Sabrina laughed. “Let’s hope he’s not annoyed. You and that guard really shouldn’t have let me come up without permission.”

“He’ll be too happy to complain. Come on.” The cook headed down the hall toward Theo’s study.

Sabrina surveyed the entrance hall with wistful thoroughness. Nothing had changed. The same sweeping brass and oak staircase, oak flooring and vibrant red carpets. No furniture except for a brass table holding a vase filled with red roses.

She smiled, remembering how many times her sister Shelby—or Michelle, as she’d been called in those days—had knocked that table over as she’d raced down the stairs and around the corner toward the kitchen. They had spent hundreds of hours visiting and playing in this gorgeous home. Then suddenly it had become off limits, a part of a past that could never be revisited.

Until now.

“Miss Sabrina,” Marietta said, hissing slightly and motioning for her coconspirator to join her at the closed double doors at the end of the hall.

When Sabrina had complied, the cook opened one door and poked her head into the study. “Sorry to interrupt, but there’s someone here who needs to speak to you, Mr. Theo.” Without waiting for a response, she stepped aside and swept her hand back in Sabrina’s direction. “A ghost from the past. And more beautiful than ever. Come give your niece a hug.”

Sabrina stepped into the room and had to smile at the stupefied look on Theo Howell’s face. Striding over to him, she opened her arms, murmuring, “Hi, Uncle Theo. Long time no see.”

“My God,” he whispered, yanking her into a bear hug. “Sabrina! After all these years. Is something wrong?”

“No. Not really.” She stepped back and gave an apologetic smile, noting that he was a little grayer around the temples than she remembered—and ten or fifteen pounds heavier. And he had switched from tortoiseshell eyeglass frames to wire rims. But otherwise, he hadn’t changed a bit. “I was probably crazy to come here, but Shelby and I met a guy recently, and I want to run a background check on him, just to be on the safe side. Since I don’t have the kind of connections Perimeter has, I decided to come here for help.”

“A background check?” came an accusatory growl from the shadows. “You’ve got to be kidding.”

Sabrina turned toward the unfamiliar voice. “Pardon?”

The speaker—a dark-haired man in his early thirties—shook his head in apparent disgust. “For five full years we don’t hear a word. Then you just show up? Asking us to run an errand for you? After you practically drove the company into the ground?”

“Zack,” Theo murmured. “Don’t.”

“No. Let him talk,” Sabrina countered, her gaze fixed on the stranger. “How did I hurt Perimeter?”

The young man glared. “You left us with no money. No manpower. No soul. We couldn’t contact you, even when we really needed to. But you can waltz in whenever you please, asking to use our connections? Like we’re your goddamned errand boys?”

Sabrina turned back to Theo and demanded, “Who is this clown?”

Theo gave a nervous chuckle. “Sabrina Sullivan, meet Zack Lansing. Zack took your father’s place at Perimeter.”

“What?” She took a step back, physically repulsed by the suggestion that this unpleasant upstart could ever take Sully Sullivan’s place. It was ridiculous. Her father had been the world’s most positive, inspiring man. This guy was like a dark cloud!

And it wasn’t just the attitude. It was everything. Her father had been a big man—six and a half feet tall—with shoulders a mile wide. This lean young man was barely six feet in height, with scruffy black hair and a five o’clock shadow—in the middle of the afternoon.

And the biggest indictment of all—the truest contrast with Sabrina’s father—was that fact that it had only taken Sully eleven months to track and apprehend Pluto Zenner, arguably the most brilliant assassin ever inflicted upon the world.

Now under this new “leadership,” Perimeter had had five full years to catch Pluto’s son Adonis—by all accounts a less talented man than the elder Zenner. But Adonis was still free. Sabrina knew that for sure, because she had combed the newspaper every morning for those five years, hungry for some mention of the assassin’s arrest or death. And she had checked the FBI’s Web site daily, too, anxious for the day she and her sister could be Sullivans again. The day they could regain their old lives. The day Sabrina could stop hiding and start living, hopefully as an agent of the CIA—her dream since the first moment she’d learned the agency existed.

“Sabrina?” Theo said softly.

“This silence is her way of saying I’m not worthy,” Zack muttered. “Right?”

Sabrina shrugged. “I don’t know you. But so far, I’m unimpressed. Would you mind waiting outside so I can speak to my uncle in private?”

“I’m the errand boy who’ll be running the background check for you, so I need to hear the details. But if this is about some guy who said he’d call you after the first date, then never did, I can probably explain it to you. He ran screaming for the hills.”

“Zack!” Theo glared. “Sabrina’s right. You should wait outside.”

“No,” she murmured, holding up her hand to stop him. “He’s got a point. If he’s the best Perimeter’s got—and that’s a scary thought by the way—he needs to hear this.”