Free Texas…Now and Forever by Merline Lovelace Page B

court order to have her body exhumed. The medical examiner performed an autopsy and discovered traces of potassium chloride in her body. We think someone slipped the drug into her IV and deliberately caused her heart to fail.”
    â€œFrank,” Haley whispered hoarsely. “Frank must have done it to keep her from talking.”
    â€œActually,” Collins explained, “our guess is that Del Brio killed her because she wouldn’t talk. Word is, he was hot to know the identity of the nun who visited her right before her death. He’s been asking a lot of questions about the Sisters of Good Hope. Questions that led us to theorize Isadora’s daughter might still be alive.”
    Pain splintered through Haley, cutting into her heart like a thousand needle-pointed shards. Her face now as haggard as the judge’s, she stared at the agent through a haze of despair.
    â€œI killed her. My visit. That disguise. I killed my mother.”
    â€œNo, you didn’t!” Snapping out of his near stupor, Carl grasped her arm. “You listen to me, missy. Your visit filled your mama with profound peace. Knowing you’d escaped made up for what she’d had to endure all these years.”
    â€œBut—”
    â€œNo buts!” he said fiercely. “Isadora and Italked for years about taking you kids and leaving Mission Creek. She never forgave Johnny for dragging all of you into the morass with him. But he was her husband, and you and Ricky needed your father and—”
    â€œAnd she was a devout Catholic,” Haley finished for him. “She didn’t believe in divorce.”
    Nodding, he let out a ragged sigh. “God knows, I tried my damnedest to talk her into one. I loved her, Haley. I’ve loved her for as long as I can remember.”
    â€œI know, Judge.”
    She sank back against the taxi fender, her thoughts whirling. Shock and pain gradually sharpened into fear. If Frank Del Brio had grown so suspicious that he was trying to track the nun who’d visited Isadora, he could be closing in on her. That would explain the scratches on her mailbox and sudden spate of hang-ups.
    Nausea rolled around in Haley’s stomach. As sickening as it was, she had to face the truth. She couldn’t run far enough to escape Frank Del Brio. As long as she lived—as long as he lived—she’d never be safe.
    Nor would Lena.
    Agent Collins apparently agreed. “We’re only a few steps ahead of Del Brio, Miss Mercado. We’re just lucky that we were able to convince JudgeBridges to tell us what he knew of Isadora Mercado’s mysterious visitor. He brought us to you because he now realizes the life you’ve so carefully constructed for yourself in London is about to come tumbling down around your ears. We need to get you and your baby away from here and to provide you both with protection.”
    â€œIn exchange for what?” Haley asked, wary of strangers bearing gifts.
    â€œWe’ll talk about that later.”
    â€œNo, we’ll talk about it now. I want to know exactly what you want from me, Mr. Collins.”
    Palming his thick reddish hair, the agent chose his words carefully. “The FBI has been building a case against your uncle Carmine for years. After his health had begun to fail and Frank Del Brio moved up to number two in your uncle’s organization, we’ve shifted a lot of our attention and our assets to him. We thought we had him nailed awhile back on extortion and racketeering charges, but the bastard eliminated both of our key witnesses.”
    â€œSo how do I make up for the loss of those witnesses?”
    His hazel eyes drilled into hers. “We need someone inside, Miss Mercado. Someone who understands the power structure. Someone who wants to take down Frank Del Brio as much as we do.”
    The enormity of what he was asking of her left Haley speechless. Collins used her stunned silence to press home his