Her Secret Santa: A Christmas Protector Romance (Perfect Kisses Book 3)

by Miley Maine

  I tried to stand up, but my leg was too painful. I was bleeding profusely. Julie grabbed the first aid kit out of my bag and quickly applied some gauze to the areas I was bleeding tightly, putting pressure on them.

  After a few minutes of her expert first aid care, I was able to hobble to the four-wheeler and we drove back to the house. Once there, my driver Alex drove me to the hospital to get checked out.

  Julie was right by my side every step of the way.

  16

  Julie

  One Month Later

  The house was quiet.

  I hated it when it was this quiet. I should have been used to being alone and just enjoying my own company, and for the most part I was, but not now. Not when there was so much to fear. It had been a few months since I’d left my home and began this journey in fear, this trip away from the vilest human being I’d ever known, away from the man who wanted to hurt me so badly. And it had been hard, but I had started to get used to the struggle.

  Then Tony arrived to save me, to pull me from the deepest waters and carry me to shore. I was in a large mansion now, surrounded by staff and security on the grounds. It was equipped with the highest tech state of the art alarm system that would radio the police instantly. They were friends of Tony’s. They would be here responding within three minutes. Tony paid a portion of them enough that this was really their fulltime job.

  Even with all of this going on, I still didn’t feel safe. That was the nature of trauma. And if you’d never been through it you would never truly understand that everlasting fear. You couldn’t possibly understand the way it worked its way inside of you. You would never know that fear of waking up night after night as safe as could be in a cold sweat terrified to the bone that somehow this person could get to you. They could find you. They would destroy you.

  Tony was gone. He had to go out of town on business. He assured me he would be back soon. I hated that he was gone. I wanted to beg him to stay and just postpone the trip, but I said nothing. I just told him how much I loved him and that I would miss him. He promised to return as soon as possible. He had to fly to New York City to close a deal. It would mean a huge boost in business. It was very important, and I wasn’t about to let my problems stand in the way of his work.

  It was hard to deal with this alone, but I had to go through it. I was stronger than that. I kept getting so pissed at myself for allowing that fear to consume me that way. Saul couldn’t find me. It had been months. And if he was still looking for me (which I was starting to doubt) then he would have found me by now if he could. I was free. I had to know that.

  But I was locked in the prison of my mind. It was a prison that he controlled, and he would always be inside of there, kicking around trying to make me feel like dirt. I couldn’t let him do it anymore. I had to start healing.

  Yet, I knew that the only way I would ever heal would be to kill him or make sure he was put away behind bars for the rest of his days. And neither one of those seemed forthcoming anytime soon. And I wasn’t sure still if I had that in me to kill him. Did I have what it took to kill someone, no matter what they were doing to me? It was a stupid question that I already knew the answer to. But I kept hearing it repeating in my mind.

  I looked out the windows of the living room at the gently falling snow. It was peaceful looking, so serene. I loved it so much better than Los Angeles. It felt like winter. It was winter coming. It was still late September, but the first snowflakes of the year were falling already. I was happy to be there. I wondered about making Alaska my forever home. I didn’t really want to go back to Los Angeles. I didn’t like the traffic, the smog, the lack of seasons, and the fact that it felt like everything you did was put on display by such judgmental assholes. It was all a popularity contest, and I was sick of it.

  But I figured I’d go back one day. That was where the work was for now. But then again, that could be changed.

  I went into the kitchen and fixed a cup of coffee. I was just beginning to sip the hot liquid when my phone rang. It was my mom. “Hi, mom,” I answered.

  “You wish it was mom.”

  The voice. I knew instantly whose voice that was. It was gruff, low, rumbling, and very angry sounding. Saul. He was there. He’d found them.

  “W…what?” I stammered.

  “You know who this is,” he repeated. “And you know why I’m here. So, quit playing little games. I’ve had enough.”

  “If you touch them, I’ll kill you!” I screamed.

  He laughed heartily on the phone. “You and who else? Please, you always did have as much guts as a church mouse. I’m giving the orders here. You will do exactly what I say.”

  “What do you want?” I asked. My voice was trembling. My hands were shaking so badly that I could hardly hold the phone. I put it on speaker and set it down. I stood there trembling wishing that this was a nightmare. But I knew that I was wide awake. This was no dream. I wished Tony were there. He was so much stronger than I was. I had to be there for my parents though. I had to be brave. I could do it. I knew it. I just had to dig deep. I really didn’t have a choice. I kept thinking about everything that Tony had been teaching me. I’d been trained well. I knew that I could handle myself if need be. I didn’t have to be afraid of Saul anymore.

  “I want you,” Saul said. “That’s all I’ve always wanted. We have some unfinished business here. And it’s time to get it done. Now listen to me carefully. I want you to tell me exactly where you are and then you are going to stay put. I will be on my way to collect you promptly. If you don’t do what I say, then your dear mom and dad will be killed. I’m leaving some guys here with them until this is done. So, don’t try to outsmart me. It won’t work.”

  “I have to know they are ok,” I said.

  “Sure.”

  A moment later I heard my mother’s voice. “Baby, it’s ok. We are fine. Don’t you dare tell this piece of shit where you are—!”

  The phone was jerked away from her. I could hear her gasp and then the clicks and clangs of the device being jerked from her. I heard her and my father in the background murmuring.

  “There. Are you satisfied?” Saul asked. “Now. Your address?”

  I took a deep breath. Was I doing the right thing? If I told him where I was, I had no guarantee that my family would not be harmed. But if I didn’t tell him then I could be assured that they would be killed within minutes. I didn’t have a choice. I had to at least try to help them.

  I gave him the address. “Good,” he said. “Now you had better be there when I get there. So, I’ll see you soon. Until then you can dream about me and rest easy that your mom and dad will be just fine. It’s been a long time coming, honey. And you are about to get what you deserve, bitch.”

  He ended the call. The house was silent. I was shaking almost uncontrollably now. What was I going to do? He’d found me. It was happening. It was all happening just as I had feared it would. Oh, shit. Fuck! I was in so much trouble.

  “Stay calm,” I told myself out loud. “Stay calm. Tony did train me for this.”

  I had to call Tony. I dialed his phone. I thought he wasn’t going to answer at first, but he picked up on the fourth ring right before his voicemail did. “Julie? What’s wrong?”

  I could sense the urgency with which I was calling. I tried to keep calm and rational, but I was starting to freak out a bit. “Saul. He found my parents.”

  “What?”

  “He called me from there. He forced me to give him the address here. He is on his way. I don’t know what to do.”

  “Relax,” he said. His voice was so calm and reassuring. “You will be fine. I will alert Billy and his team. They will be on standby and we will wait for him to arrive. We have to pretend that none of this is happening. In fact, this is perfect. We’ve been waiting for something like this.”

  “We have? No! I haven’t!” I yelled.

  “Yes. This is perfect. He will fall right into a trap. We will have him nailed the second he arrives. D
on’t worry about a thing, honey. I’m on my way back. It will be ok. Just stay calm and try to keep your mind on something else. Whatever you do, don’t leave.”

  “What about my parents?”

  “I’ll have some guys take care of it. I’ll alert the cops. We will get a SWAT team in there to get them out safe and sound and without alerting Saul to let him make any change in his plans. He has to think he is succeeding. We can get him to Alaska. Then we will have him by the fucking balls.”

  “I just wish I was as confident as you are about things,” I said. “I’m so scared. I need you here.”

  “I’m on my way. I hope I can get there before he does. It depends on how soon he can get on a plane; I suppose. Or he may drive. So, hopefully I will get there. I’ve got my private jet. I don’t have to adhere to a time schedule.”

  “Ok, be safe,” I said. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  I sat there holding the phone and drinking my coffee. I knew I should have felt better about things, but I didn’t. How did I know that my parents were even home? Saul could have been on the move with them. He might have taken them to some other random location. He was far too crafty to take lightly. I had to remember that. The man was an animal, but a very cunning animal.

  I took my coffee into the living room and sat down. I tried to think of good thoughts, happier thoughts, and I tried to put myself into Tony’s shoes. He was fully confident that this was a good thing. He was fully confident that this was the best thing to happen.

  I just didn’t think I could go through with it. But what would I do? What could I do? Besides just wait.

  I had never been more frightened than I was at that moment. It was just like being back in that world where I was married to Saul and I had to plot my own escape. It had been the fight from hell to escape his clutches and now I was having to go through it all over again. I had to put him away this time. He had kidnapped my parents. That alone was enough to send him to prison for many years. But we’d have to make it all stick.

  I was sure Tony could do that. His reach and influence were unparalleled.

  I turned on the television to keep me company. I just had to get my mind on something else while I waited. I was so tired, but I didn’t want to sleep. I was terrified that somehow Saul would come bursting through the door any second, but it was a long flight from Los Angeles to Anchorage. It was at least six hours if you were super-fast. It would take him a few hours to probably get on a flight.

  I just had to sit tight until then.

  At some point I did doze off. I woke up with the remains of the night slowly fading against the invading light outside. Tony still wasn’t home. It was getting too close. There was no way I could deal with Saul on my own. And I couldn’t bring myself to trust in the system Tony had set up.

  The panic gripped me. It seized me until I was no longer thinking rationally. I was in total survival mode with fear governing every single decision I was making. I had to get out of there.

  I was too wired to sit still anymore. I went upstairs to our bedroom and I put on some sweatpants, and a hoodie. Then I threw on some white socks and my best sneakers. I packed a couple small pistols into my small backpack and then I headed out of the house. I had to get away from there. I was too frightened to stay there alone. I had no idea when Saul would show up, or when Tony would show up. I believed that Tony was going to tell the local cops he had on his payroll to stay put until he gave the orders. He wanted this to be a trap. They most likely wouldn’t come for me. I was on my own until then.

  This was the way Tony wanted it to be. He was done with this. He wanted to end it. So, did I. But I knew Saul. He didn’t. The man could not be contained through ordinary means. Tony had no idea who he was really going up against.

  I left the house and began walking across the field. I figured I would go to one of the duck blinds and hide out there. Tony loved duck hunting and he’d actually turned me onto it a bit. But I was nowhere near as enthusiastic about it as he was. I would hide out there and wait until I knew who was going to be there first.

  The night was dark and cold. I wished I’d bundled up a bit better, but it was too late to turn back now. No. I had to keep moving forward. I kept thinking about my parents. I didn’t even get to say goodbye to them or tell them that I love them. I just had to keep hoping that everything would be ok.

  I moved across the field and into the edge of the woods. I edged into the early morning and took a deep breath as I made my way farther from the house. This might have been stupid, but I wasn’t going to take the chance that Saul got to me faster.

  I just hoped I was doing the right thing.

  17

  Tony

  I was awakened by the stewardess, Abbie. She’d flown on my private jet with me for a few years now. She shook me awake. I’d fallen asleep going over some contracts at my desk in my makeshift office on the plane. I could see that we were actually approaching daylight. It felt good to see the dawn of a new morning.

  “Sir, we are about to enter Anchorage and will be landing in about five minutes,” she said.

  I smiled. “Thanks, Abbie.”

  I roused myself up and stretched my legs as I made my way to my actual seat where I buckled myself into the seatbelt to prepare for landing. As I sat there buckled in, I grabbed my phone. I saw immediately that my tracker was activated. Julie was on the move. I’d placed a tracker in her phone to let me know where she was just in case she was ever abducted. With Saul running around out there you couldn’t be too safe. I had neglected to tell her about it. If she didn’t know about it, then Saul wouldn’t either. That was the thinking behind it anyway.

  Saul… that bastard. He had actually taken her parents hostage. What a piece of work. That was when I saw the notification on my phone. Damn. How long had I been out?

  It was a voicemail. “Mr. Caplan. We have the suspects apprehended. We did not discover the location of Saul. We suspect that he has his own plane, most likely a small, single engine, or he is on the highway Sir. We aren’t sure and these guys are not talking. But the family is safe. No one was harmed. The perpetrators have been handed over to the proper authorities.”

  “Great,” I muttered. “Yes. That is what I like to hear. Now, we just have to get Saul where he fucking belongs.”

  I hoped I’d get there before him. Did the guy have his own plane? If he did, I doubted it was a jet.

  The tracker said that Julie was running towards the woods from the house. I had to zero in on her precise location, but that was what is showed. Where was she going? Was Saul there by some miracle? It didn’t really matter if she was there or not, I supposed. I could trap Saul by myself without really using her as bait.

  But it would work better. We could get him to admit that he was there for her, possibly get his voice on audio recording saying all the things he was going to do to her or had done to her in the past. All of that would be instrumental in getting him a long stay in prison.

  I understood why she was so frightened. I was asking a lot of her, but this situation wasn’t going to go away by being afraid and running from it. We had to meet it head on and eliminate it once and for all. I could only imagine how hard it was for her, but that was why I felt it was kind of necessary to force her hand on this action. I was going to take care of this situation as much of it was possible as I was in a position to do so. This would work. It had all been carefully thought out. Julie just needed to believe me.

  The plane began to make its descent. I saw the sights of the airport coming into view and I watched with wonder as the plane descended down from the sky. I loved flying. I had always loved it, being a part of the wonderful sky and flying high above everything. There was no traffic. There was no congestion, and there was absolutely nothing up there but you and the hand of God reaching out to you. It made me feel so powerful somehow.

  When we finally landed, I left the jet and made my way to the car that was waiting for me. My driver, Douglas, put
my bags in the trunk and then I stepped into the back of the limo. I grabbed my phone and called one of my cop friends, Derek. We had been friends since shortly after I bought the mansion in Anchorage. He was a trustworthy guy. I liked him quite a bit and I hoped that after all of this was over that Julie would end up trusting him as well.

  “Hey, Derek,” I said. “How’s it going? You see anything strange from your end?”

  “Not really, other than Julie ran off into the woods. But she is alone.”

  “Yeah, I think she is just terrified of being there by herself. But you didn’t alert her to your presence, did you? I don’t want her acting too comfortable when this asshole actually shows up.”

  “Right. No, I didn’t. She doesn’t know we’ve been standing by the entire time. Are you sure that’s wise? She seems really freaked out.”

  “Yeah. It’s the best way. I don’t like deceiving her at all, but if she knew everything about the trap it would definitely affect her ability to act normal. This guy Saul is pretty paranoid. He is used to being double crossed. So we have to let him think he is cool as a cucumber. I don’t expect him to just walk up to the door.”

  “Ok,” he said. “How soon are you going to be here?”

  “I’m not,” I said. “I’m thinking I might just hide out somewhere close by until this thing comes to a head.”

  Derek coughed. “Well, I was thinking we’d sneak you into the house and you could hide out there. That way when this guy comes in at least you will be in there. Even with us being this close, it is still going to take a few minutes to actually get to him. If this guy is as crazy as you say, then I don’t think we want to take any chances.”

  “Yeah, you know what? You’re right. That might be better. And I might talk Julie into going back inside.”

  “Right. She will be comforted to know you are actually here, now.”

  I ended the call and dialed Julie. She answered it quickly. “Tony? Where are you?”