Free Fall by MJ Eason Read Free Book Online Page B

her license to practice medicine. Margaret Evans.
    With the exception of Roc, Margaret knew me better than anyone did.
    “I’m coming over there right now.” When Margaret heard my voice, she knew something was wrong. She didn’t even give me time to say hello. Half an hour later, she was ringing my doorbell.
    “What it is? Has something happened to Roc?” Margaret rushed inside the apartment, tossed her purse and jacket on the nearest chair, and looked me square in the eyes.
    “No, Roc’s fine.” I went to the bathroom, retrieved the pregnancy tests, and held them out to her.
    “You’re pregnant? That’s great!” My expression must have told a different story. “You don’t want the baby?”
    “I do, I really do, but I don’t know what to do.”
    “Roc,” she said, guessing the truth. “He told you he doesn’t want the baby.”
    “No, I haven’t told him yet.”
    “Rainie, tell him! This could be a great thing for both of you.”
    “No, it won’t be. It’s the worst possible thing that could happen. This is the last thing either of us need right now. I don’t understand. We’re always so careful. I’m on the pill.”
    “It happens, Rainie.” She spoke in a calm voice. “Even to women on the pill. Look, just talk to him. You might be surprised by what he has to say.”
    “Margaret, I can’t, okay? There are things you don’t know.”
    “Ah, you mean spy things.” Margaret was the only one of my friends who fully understood the extent of what I did for a living. She knew all the reasons why I’d joined The Agency. Margaret had been there with me the day I buried my parents. She knew all about my quest to find out the truth behind their deaths.
    The official cause had been listed as an accident. Local authorities believed my dad had simply fallen asleep at the wheel and lost control of the car, plunging through the railing and down an embankment, killing him and my mother.
    I didn’t believe that version for a minute. My dad never took chances. If he were the least bit sleepy he would have pulled over, stopped for coffee—something. He would never put himself or my mother in harm’s way.
    I received the call about their deaths from the local constable assigned the task of notifying the next of kin. The guy was from a small town on the North Carolina border where my parents had been staying at the time of their deaths.
    It wasn’t so much what the constable had to say about the accident, but what he wasn’t saying.
    It took me all of two minutes talking to the uncooperative constable and the equally unfriendly coroner to realize things were not as they seemed. After I read the accident report, I was certain of it.
    The day after Margaret and I buried my parents, I went back to that town and pretty much wore out my welcome. I was told point-blank to leave but not before I understood a little bit more about what I was dealing with—sheer paranoia spread throughout that whole region. No one trusted anyone, especially outsiders. And no one was talking, including the constable and most of the town folk. Something had them spooked. It was a long time before I found out what that something was. After I joined The Agency, I learned the FLA had a stronghold on the town.
    And that was how I first met Roc Branson and learned about his work with The Agency.
    “Look, maybe this is just a mistake. I mean, those tests aren’t always dependable, are they?” I said.
    “Rainie, they’re over ninety percent accurate and you have three positives. You’re pregnant.” When she saw my reaction, she added, “Look, come by the office tomorrow morning and I’ll be able to put your mind at rest. I can confirm if you’re pregnant without a shadow of a doubt. We’ll go over all the options, and then you and Roc can talk to each other. For God’s sake, Rainie, he needs to be in on any decision concerning his child. Tell him the truth.”
    “I will. I promise.” When Margaret looked skeptical, I added,