Free Bad Guys Don't Win (Janet Maple Series Book 4) by Marie Astor

friendships.”
    “I’d hardly call them that,” she
muttered and took a long swallow. She hadn’t eaten anything all day for fear of
throwing up and now she felt the alcohol hitting her stomach. She bit into an
olive—getting drunk with Dennis Walker was a mistake she couldn’t afford to
make.
    “You need to find a different place to
stay,” Dennis said. “Somewhere Anton won’t find you. Going to the FBI is too
risky right now—the Kovars might have someone on the inside—we wouldn’t want
them to get tipped off.”
    “How’s that possible?” Mila asked,
instantly aware of her naiveté—the possibility of corruption had never entered
her mind.
    Dennis shrugged. “You never know where
you’ll find a rotten apple. The Kovars obviously have someone helping them in
law enforcement—someone who organized their escape. It’s too risky to go to the
authorities until we know more.”
    “So what am I supposed to do? Sit around
and wait for Anton to show up on my doorstep?”
    “Do you have family or friends you could
stay with? Someone Anton doesn’t know?”
    Mila thought about her cousin Ania, but
instantly rejected the idea. She and Ania weren’t exactly close. Mila was
pretty sure that given the choice, Ania would rather have her swanky Upper East
Side apartment infested with termites than let Mila stay there. She could stay
with Amy, but Anton knew about her and she didn’t want to subject Amy to
danger. And then there was Philip, but involving him was out of the question.
Mila shook her head. “I’m afraid not.”
    “No one?” Dennis asked in disbelief.
    “I like to keep to myself. Don’t worry.
I can handle it.”
    “I’m sure you can, but I don’t want to
take any chances. You can stay at my place until we figure things out.”
    “No thanks. I’ll take my chances with
the Kovars.”
    Dennis looked squarely at her. “Really?
Are you sure about that? Need I remind you you’re the one who came to me for
help, not the other way around?”
    Mila hung her head. “I guess not.”
    “That’s what I thought. Come on, it’s
not that bad. I promise a change of sheets and even fresh towels,” Dennis
quipped.
    “Ha-ha, very funny.” Mila wondered how
on earth she was going to explain her new address to Philip.
    “We’ll go to your place right now to get
your things—pack only the essentials. After that, we’ll go to my apartment and
get you settled in.”
    Mila sighed. The prospect of sharing
living quarters with Dennis Walker—the man responsible for her testifying
against the Kovars wasn’t exactly appealing to her—but then it wasn’t like she
had many options to choose from.
    “Don’t worry, I’ll be staying with my
fiancée, Janet,” Dennis continued, as if reading Mila’s thoughts. “You remember
her? She worked the Kovars case before.”
    “I remember.” Mila nodded. “She
befriended me under a false identity and tricked me into spilling my guts to
her. Then she used this information against me. How could I forget?”
    Dennis shook his head. “Taking up with
Anton Kovar wasn’t anyone’s fault but yours, Mila. You made the bargain with
the FBI, remember?”
    “Yeah, I remember. And I also remember I
was promised complete anonymity and protection. And look where that’s gotten me?”
    “I promise you that I’ll protect you.
Janet and I will not stop until we figure this out. I’ll be checking in with
you daily and you can reach me on my cell at all times. I’ll give you Janet’s
number also.”
    Mila rolled her eyes. “Anything else?”
    “I’ll need a list of your close friends
and any men you’re seeing—”
    “Men?” Mila exclaimed indignantly. “You
think I’m the kind of girl who sleeps around, don’t you?”
    “Not at all. I only meant if you don’t
have a steady boyfriend, I’d need a list of men you might’ve dated recently—”
    “I do have a boyfriend, thank you very
much,” Mila spat back, realizing her mistake only too