Skin Deep by Pamela Clare Read Free Book Online

investigation into the lives of pregnant women in prison. Her work had changed their lives—Marc’s and Emily’s as much as Megan’s.
    Megan had spent the morning sitting in Marc’s office at police headquarters answering questions, while a team of detectives was dispatched to Emily’s preschool. So far they’d found nothing—no sign of forced entry, no one at the daycare who noticed Donny or any other unauthorized people entering or leaving the daycare facility. Nor did they have any leads on the photographs—who had taken them or how someone had managed follow her while she was under police surveillance without the cops noticing anything.
    But Megan thought she knew the answer—or a least part of it.
    Although Marc had reassured her that the men Chief Irving had assigned to watch over her could be trusted, Megan didn’t believe it. She knew more than most people how easy it was for villains to masquerade as heroes, disguising the evil inside them with a uniform.
    Sophie gave her a sympathetic look. “You haven’t been sleeping, have you?”
    Megan shook her head. “Not much.”
    “I know you don’t want the newspaper to do a story on this, but I think—”
    The office door opened and Marc walked in, shutting the door behind him. “Hey, honey. This is a nice surprise.”
    He leaned down and kissed Sophie, who grabbed the front of his shirt and held him down, drawing out the kiss, eliciting a deep “mmm” from her husband.
    Their happiness and love for one another had always touched Megan. After everything he’d been through, her brother deserved someone wonderful in his life. They seemed made for each other.
    And if Megan wished she knew what that kind of love was like…
    She had so much for which she was grateful. She shouldn’t waste time wishing for things that just couldn’t happen.
    Sophie smiled up at Marc. “The judge called for a recess in the trial I’m covering, so I brought Megan and Emily lunch.”
    “That was sweet of you.” Marc turned to Megan. “We have a lead. It turns out the janitor put the envelope in the box. He was wearing cleaning gloves so he didn’t leave prints. He said a man came up to the door early in the morning, said he had something to give you, and drew out a wad of cash, threatening to shoot—”
    Megan shook her head, gave a nod toward Emily.
    “Threatening to S-H-O-O-T the janitor if he mentioned anything about it. I’ve got to give Darcangelo credit. He’s the one who got the man to talk.”
    “So Donny paid the janitor to put it in the cubby?”
    “Not Donny.” Marc leaned back against the wall. “The janitor described the man as heavy-set with dark hair and gold teeth. We’ve got him looking at mug shots now. I’m guessing this guy drives a Lincoln Continental or knows someone who does.”
    “Well, that’s something,” Sophie said, giving Marc’s hand a squeeze.
    “What do I do?” Megan fought to keep the panic out of her voice. “They want a hundred thousand dollars by ten tonight. You saw the note. You know what they’ll try to do if they don’t get it. I guess I need to go to the bank.”
    “Like hell you will.” Marc crossed his arms over his chest. “You’re going to go home with a police escort. You’re going to pack suitcases for yourself and Emily, and I’m going to pick you up after work and take you to my place. You and Emily are going to stay with us until these guys are in custody. We’ll take care of the rest.”
    Megan shook her head. “I have to go to work. It took me so long to find this job. They’re depending on me. If I can’t come in for two weeks or a month, they’ll fire me. He’s going to destroy my life, Marc. Donny is going to destroy everything I’ve worked so hard to build.”
    Marc knelt down in front of her, took her hands, and looked straight into her eyes. “That’s not going to happen, Megan. You call your boss, tell her what’s going on. I’ll give her the damned police report if she wants