LuAnn put the car in gear and they started off again. She glanced once or twice at him and then started speaking in a very low voice, as though she were afraid of being overheard. “Mr. Donovan, the person who is looking for you right this very minute is not someone you want to mess around with. He told me he’s going to kill you because you might know too much. And he will. Unless you leave right now, he’ll find you for sure and when he does it won’t be pretty. This person can do anything. Anything.”
Donovan snorted and then his face froze. He slowly turned and looked at her as the answer finally hit him. “Including making a poor woman from Georgia rich?”
Donovan saw LuAnn jerk slightly as he said the words. His eyes widened. “Jesus, that’s it, isn’t it? You said this man can do anything. He made you the lottery winner, didn’t he? A woman barely out of her teens running from the police after believing she committed a murder—”
“Mr. Donovan, please.”
“She stops to buy a lottery ticket and then just happens to travel to New York where the lottery drawing is being held. And what do you know, she wins a hundred million bucks.” Donovan slapped the dashboard with the palm of his hand. “Good God, the national lottery was fixed.”
“Mr. Donovan, you have got to let it drop.”
Donovan’s face flushed crimson. “No way, LuAnn. No way am I letting this drop. Like I said, you couldn’t have eluded the NYPD and the FBI all by yourself. You had help, a lot of help. This elaborate cover story you had in Europe. Your ‘perfect’ money managers. This guy set all of it up. All of it, didn’t he? Didn’t he?” LuAnn didn’t answer. “God, I can’t believe I didn’t see it all before. Sitting here talking to you, it just all fell into place. I’ve been drifting in circles for months and now—” He turned sideways in his seat. “You’re not the only one either, are you? The other eleven nonbankrupts? Maybe more. Am I right?”
LuAnn was shaking her head hard. “Please stop.”
“He didn’t do it for free. He must’ve gotten some of your winnings. But, Christ, how did he fix it? Why? What’s he doing with all that money? It can’t be just one guy.” Donovan fired questions left and right. “Who, what, when, why, how?” He gripped her shoulder. “Okay, I’ll accept your statement that whoever is behind this is one very dangerous individual. But don’t discount the power of the press, LuAnn. It’s toppled crooks bigger than this guy. We can do it, if we work together.” When LuAnn didn’t respond, Donovan let go of her shoulder. “All I’m asking is that you think about it, LuAnn. But we don’t have a lot of time.”
When they returned to his car Donovan got out and then poked his head back in the door. “This number will reach me.” He handed across a card. LuAnn didn’t take it.
“I don’t want to know how to reach you. You’ll be safer that way.” LuAnn suddenly reached across and grabbed his hand. Donovan winced from the pressure of her fingers.
“Will you please take this?” She reached in her purse and took out an envelope. “There’s ten thousand dollars in here. Pack your bags, go to the airport, get on a plane, and get the hell out of here. Call me when you get to wherever you’re going and I’ll send enough money to keep you in hotels and restaurants for as long as you want.”
“I don’t want money, LuAnn. I want the truth.”
LuAnn pushed back the urge to scream. “Dammit I’m trying my best to save your life.”
He dropped the card onto her front seat. “You warned me and I appreciate that. But if you won’t help me, I’ll get it from somewhere else. One way or another, this story is being told.” He looked at her ominously. “If this person is half as dangerous as you say he is, you might want to think about getting the hell out of here. My butt may be in the crosshairs now, but it’s only my butt. You’ve got a kid.” He paused again and right before he turned to leave he said, “I hope we both make it through this, LuAnn. I mean that.”