Red Rain: Lightning Strikes: Red Rain Series #2 Read Free Page A

top one, he paused. She heard it and knew why.
    He saw the television’s glow and could probably hear the low murmur it still made. If he saw those things then he knew she was waiting up, and out of everything that happened today, perhaps that was the worst for Alan. Everything at work was part of the mission—but her waiting up meant problems not involved with the mission. His mission.
    He entered the doorway and Marie’s heart broke as she laid eyes on him. He didn’t see what she did, wouldn’t even if she pointed it out in a mirror. Weariness dripped off his face the same as wax from a candle. Maybe the TV’s lighting caused it, or more probably, the hours he worked, but the lines across his forehead looked deeper.
    “Hey,” he said, still standing at the doorway.
    “Hey,” Marie said. She patted his side of the bed. “Come sit down.”
    He walked over and lay down, his legs halfway off and his head not quite reaching the pillow.
    “Hungry?” she said.
    Alan shook his head. “I’m sure you’re not waiting up to feed me.”
    “No, I’m not, but I figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask.”
    Alan swallowed before speaking. “So why are you up?”
    “I’m not going to give you any speeches, Alan.”
    “You rarely do. Maybe that’s the worst part. No speeches means I can do whatever I want, huh?” he said.
    “Up to a point.”
    “Have we reached that point yet?”
    She looked at him as he stared up at the ceiling. Had they? The point where she said enough was enough—and would she tell him something like that right now, given this mission he created for himself?
    “No,” she said. “We haven’t. But we will, soon. I’m not going to give you a speech, but what I’m going to say is non-negotiable. You can either agree to it or not. I’ll love you forever, no matter what, but I can’t stay with you if you don’t agree.”
    He nodded and closed his eyes. “What is it?”
    “When you finish this case, I want you to quit. The police department.”
    He didn’t open his eyes, but he did smile—the grin he always wore when he thought she wasn’t making sense. “And do what? What other skills do I have?”
    “You can work for any private firm in America, especially given your time in the military. You’ll find work, but this isn’t a debate.”
    He was silent for a long time, neither of them touching. He finally spoke. “Okay. After this one.”

    * * *
    D ays had passed since Alicia watched her brother commit adultery.
    She could barely stomach it; certainly time wasn’t making it any easier. John had been calling the past few days, but she didn’t answer. Rather, she sent him to voicemail, unable to listen to anything he had to say.
    Until today.
    Alicia decided she couldn’t go on living like this, knowing what she knew and avoiding her brother. She had to put it out in the open and he needed to answer for himself. Perhaps she would answer some things as well, why—for instance—she followed him. Alicia could handle those questions though, especially if it meant she understood what she saw the other night.
    What everyone had been experiencing the past couple weeks.
    She didn’t bother hiding in her car this time, but rather parked in his work’s garage, got out, and walked to his car. She leaned against the driver’s side door and waited.
    “What are you doing?” John said, walking up from behind her.
    She turned around, her eyes glancing behind him to make sure no one else was going to their car. She was angry, disgusted, but wouldn’t cause a scene that might impact his work.
    “Waiting on you.”
    “Did your phone break or something? I’ve called like a hundred times. You could have just called rather than showing up.” He placed his bag down next to the car, standing on the rear driver’s side.
    The seedling of anger Alicia planted when she first saw him pull into that nice neighborhood now threatened to shoot up to a full grown forest in a single second. She wanted to slap