Free Caught in the Act by Samantha Hunter Page A

keeps him locked up on the boat.”
    “Well, Dupree supposedly killed the boy’s mother, and then kidnapped the kid.” Mason noted the horror in her reflection. It was more confirmation that this was new to her.
    “You couldn’t find the pictures because I turned them over to the feds. They made it clear that anyone who knows is in danger from this guy. And it sounds like you know more than you should. So does Tracy.”
    “I can’t believe this. I thought, at worse, that the guy was trying to hide from his wife or something. But kidnapping? His own son? Killing people? What has Tracy gotten herself into?” Gina’s voice rose with each question and she stood.
    “The important part is that we know Dupree knows about the photos now, from Tracy—that changes everything.”
    “Why?”
    “The FBI agent thought we were probably safe as long as Dupree didn’t know—but he does.”
    “Tracy said she had until tomorrow to bring him the pictures.”
    Mason nodded. “Okay. That buys us some time.”
    Gina sagged a little farther and he stepped forward, but then her back straightened, and she pulled herself up.
    “Your brother-in-law and your sister are being investigated, to gather the degree of their involvement with Dupree.”
    “There’s no way Tracy knows about this,” Gina insisted, stepping forward.
    “The special agents I spoke with will want to talk to you. Anything you know, you have to tell them. It could help put Tracy in the clear, and protect her, if she comes clean with them. She was right, she is in grave danger. Rio, too.”
    Brown eyes went wide. “You believe me?”
    He hesitated before answering. “Yes, I do. Your sister has also put you in a great deal of danger.”
    She closed her eyes. “Tracy is…Tracy,” she said with a shrug and a small smile. “She had no idea about Dupree. I’m sure of that. She’s just always been impulsive. She’s always needed attention, to be the focus, in the spotlight.”
    “Even if she had to get in trouble to keep it?”
    “I suppose, though I never thought of it that way. She’s…uninhibited. Adventurous. In many ways, I always admired that about her, because we’re total opposites. We always have been.”
    “That’s probably a good thing.”
    “Cut her a break,” Gina said loyally. “Rio was a lousy husband, and she turned to someone who would give her what she was missing in her marriage.”
    “Dupree.”
    “Yes. She said he was handsome, sexy and he was good to her. Until she told him about the pictures.”
    “Well, she got attention from the wrong guy this time.”
    “Tracy isn’t big on common sense, never has been. Most people find it charming, especially men.”
    Mason quirked a curious eyebrow. “So you make a practice of bailing her out? How is that supposed to help her? She never learns from her mistakes.”
    Gina stiffened defensively. “That might be true, but not this time. Tracy has made some bad decisions, but she doesn’t deserve this.”
    “No, you’re right.”
    Mason found Gina even more attractive when she had that fire in her eyes. Even more so now than he had before, which was strange, considering the circumstances. Mason valued commitment, maybe more than most people because of what he saw day in and day out. The fact that Gina was willing to do anything—almost anything—to help her troubled sister impressed him.
    Who knew what Tracy Alvarez’s motives or methods were, but Gina, at worst, was a sister who cared too much. That had made her an easy target, especially if Tracy was used to Gina cleaning up her messes. Mason believed Gina, but the jury was still out on Tracy as far as he was concerned.
    “You said you agreed to come here for your own reasons. Because you wanted to be with me. Was that true?”
    He couldn’t help it. He needed to hear it again.
    “Yes. I’m sorry,” she looked away, embarrassed. “I…Last night was…unexpected. I’d ordered a ghost costume, figuring I could blend in, and