by Leslie North
After an hour went by and Kylie didn’t return, Gage thought that was odd. Not call-in-the-troops weird, but just kind of “huh”. Especially after the night they’d spent together. Then again, maybe she’d needed time to think things through and sort it all out.
He'd certainly needed that. For once, he hadn’t minded getting up before dawn with the twins. He’d taken his time bathing them and getting them dressed then feeding them, all the while running through all the possible scenarios the morning after with Kylie could take.
Last night had been… Well, last night had been pretty damned amazing, truth be told. But he wasn’t the kind of guy to get carried away with his emotions. In fact, just the opposite. The guys on his SEAL team used to tease him all the time about being too cold and robotic. At the time, it hadn’t bothered him. Hell, it got him through the day a lot of times, when the work they did was just too horrific for words. But now, with the twins in his life and under his care, he wanted to be better. He wanted to show them all the love and affection and belonging he’d never felt as a kid.
And in order for things to be the way he wanted—for the twins and for himself—he’d begun to think over the past few days that maybe having help wasn’t such a bad thing. Kylie’s help, specifically.
He wasn’t in love with Kylie, not yet. They hadn’t known each other long enough for that. But there was a definitely something there, a sense that given time and deeper connection he could fall for her in the future. She’d mentioned sticking around for a while to be near the twins and he wondered if he might be included in that scenario now too. He’d really like to get the opportunity to get to know her better. She was kooky and funny and out-there in a way he’d never allowed himself to be before and after spending the time with her in nature, absorbing all that energy she always talked about, he could kind of see it. Didn’t necessary understand it, but he could see it.
Another half hour went by and he got the twins down for a nap, then went to check his phone to see if Kylie had called. Surely if she’d had some kind of problem at the store, she’d have gotten a hold of him, right?
Except there were no missed calls, no messages.
He checked his watch again then poured himself another cup of coffee. Extra caffeine wouldn’t help tone down the adrenaline already surging through his system, but he needed to stay busy. Actually, what he really needed was to talk to Kylie. Find out how she was feeling about their night together.
Dammit. The more he paced the living room of their suite, the more his mind churned out all the doubt demons residing there. She’d certainly seemed into him at the time, but maybe now she wasn’t so sure about sleeping with him. Maybe he’d crossed some line with her last night and had ended up on her definite-no list. Maybe he’d turned her off so bad she’d left the hotel room just to get away from him. A sinking feeling started in his gut. Or maybe she was in trouble again. He didn’t believe in coincidence and two attacks in two days didn’t seem random.
He was on his feet before he stopped himself.
And maybe he was overanalysing and overthinking things just like he always did.
Dammit.
By the time two hours had passed, Gage had finished his coffee and moved beyond restless into worried mode. The drug store she’d mentioned was little more than a half-mile from the hotel. Given speed of walking and time for shopping, she should’ve been back at least thirty minutes ago.
He checked his phone again, then tried calling hers. No answer.
The knots between his shoulder blades tightened. He wanted to run over there now and check on her, but he couldn’t because of the twins. After the mugging, then the break-in, he didn’t want to call the police either. The last thing he needed right now was to get a reputation as the SEAL who cried wolf, but damn. He went back into the bedroom they’d shared and found her bag still there, her stuff still in the bathroom, so she hadn’t bailed on him.
Finally, he called Detective Carlisle, after he’d run out of other options.
“Hey, it’s Gage Winters,” he said, doing his best to keep the growing sense of urgency inside him from exploding into panic. “I’ve got a problem and I’m hoping you can help me with it. In an unofficial capacity, of course.”
Carlisle snorted. “Unofficial, huh? What is it? Parking tickets again?”
“No.” Gage chuckled, though it sounded fake to his own ears. “It’s Kylie. She went shopping a couple hours ago and I can’t get a hold of her. She should’ve been back here by now and I wondered if you could check on her. I’d do it myself, but I’ve got the twins and…”
“And maybe you’re not off base after all.” Carlisle sighed. “Listen, I was going to wait until Monday to tell you this, but we ran a couple prints we found after the break-in at your house. Routine procedure with robberies. Anyway, we got a hit this morning off IAFIS.”
“The international database?” Gage’s instincts went haywire while his analytical brain kicked into overdrive. “What did you find?”
“Seems the guy who broke into your house matched some thug who’s been tied to the Yakuza.”
“The what?” Gage ran a hand through his hair and moved to the farthest corner of the living room away from the twins’ room to avoid waking them. “What the fuck is happening here?”
“Not sure yet, buddy. Hang on.” Carlisle put him on hold then came back on the line. “I just finished talking to Robinson, the officer who took the report from Kylie the day of the park mugging. He managed to get a useable print off the newspaper they found and it matches the ones from your house.”
The Japanese mafia was after Kylie? Jesus. Gage took a deep breath to calm his raging pulse and concentrated on the facts he had. “Kylie said she was working for a wealthy client in Tokyo before she rushed home to see the twins after the accident. Mr. Hirohito, she said the guy’s name was. I don’t know anything else about him.”
“Okay. I’ll get some of my guys here at the station to check him out. In the meantime, tell me where Kylie went and I’ll send over some uniformed officers to her location. Where are you?”
Gage gave him the address. “What about the twins? I can’t leave them alone.”
“We’ll keep them safe, don’t worry. I’m on my way. Sit tight and don’t do anything on your own.”
Gage hung up, feeling like he was in a daze. He’d gone from worrying about whether he and Kylie had a future together to whether they’d have a future at all. He slumped down on the sofa and stared at the wall across from him. Yakuza. He’d never dealt with them before, but he’d sure as hell dealt with their kind in the military. Guys who thought they operated above the law, who thought might meant right. If Kylie had fallen victim to one of those men…
He rested his head back against the cushions and closed his eyes, forcing himself to forget the what-ifs. They weren’t helpful in this scenario. He was a strategist. He needed to think logically in order to solve this puzzle.
There was a gangster after Kylie, but why?
It had to be related to the client she’d had in Tokyo somehow. Ben had said the police would run Mr. Hirohito’s name, but he didn’t have the time or patience to wait for that. He pulled up the browser on his phone and typed in the name. Unfortunately, Hirohito was a fairly common name in Japan. Next, he added wealthy and that narrowed it down some. Then, on a hunch, he typed in scandal and up popped what he was looking for. If this really was Kylie’s client, then he was being investigated for international securities fraud and money laundering. His wife was way younger than him and from Kylie had told him, a bit of a ditz. She’d also said the wife had hired her and the husband had just gone along with it, so it was possible the wife wasn’t involved.
Okay. So, a wealthy client involved in corrupt activities. It was possible he’d had dealings with the Yakuza. Or maybe he was some kind of big shot in their organization. Shit like that happened all the time in America. Lawyers and businessmen with ties to the mafia. But it still didn’t explain why they were after K
ylie. She’d not said anything about finding or seeing something suspicious while working there.
Dammit. He berated himself again. Why hadn’t they talked more, shared more? God. This was always his MO. Not getting it until it was too late. That’s what had cost the lives of his teammates back in Afghanistan. That’s what scared him the most about raising the twins, missing something important with their development or their health until it was too late. It’s what was driving him crazy about Kylie now. If anything happened to her because of his stupid fears and insecurities and trust issues, he’d never forgive himself. Never.
It seemed like a small eternity before a knock sounded on the door and he let Carlisle in. He’d never been so glad to see the guy in his life. There was a woman there too, a uniformed officer he recognized from the night of the break-in. She introduced herself as Cora Mertz.
Carlisle pulled him aside. “I brought her along because she’s great with kids. She’s got two of her own at home. She’ll stay here with the twins while you and I go after Kylie, okay?”
“Okay.” Gage still had reservations about leaving the babies with someone he hadn’t fully vetted personally, but there was no choice now. He’d have to trust Carlisle’s judgment. He watched while Cora went into the room where the twins were fussing now that they’d woken up and was stunned to see her quiet them down with ease. Soon, she had a baby in each arm, clean and dry and dressed in fresh onesies, happy as clams. He was forced to rethink his feelings once again.
“Right. Let me get my shoes and a jacket and we can go. Kylie said she was heading to the drug store near here. It’s maybe half-a-mile walk.” Gage pulled on socks and sneakers then grabbed his windbreaker and headed back out to the living room. After kissing each twin’s head and showing Cora where everything was, he left the suite with Carlisle and they boarded the elevator to the lobby. As the rode down, he noticed the security camera in the ceiling and an idea occurred. “The hotel should have footage of Kylie when she left.”
“Way ahead of you.” Carlisle gave him a curt nod and stepped closer to the back wall when they stopped on the next floor down to let on more people. He leaned closer to Gage and said, “I stopped at the front desk on my way up here and requested the footage. The manager didn’t blink an eye or ask for a subpoena. I’m guessing this isn’t their first rodeo.”
Gage wasn’t sure if he should be happy about that or alarmed. Part of him wanted to run right back upstairs and grab the twins and get the hell out of dodge. But then he remembered Cora and her sidearm and her vow to protect the twins no matter what and he refocused again on Kylie. She was out there without protection, dealing with Japanese gang members and who knew what else. She needed him.
And he damned well intended to be there for her.
They exited the elevator and walked over to the front desk where the manager waved them back into the office. He replayed the security tapes from a few hours earlier and they clearly showed Kylie cutting through the lobby then walking outside and across the parking lot. Alone. The footage cut off as she walked out of the frame.
So, somewhere between the hotel and the drug store most likely their mystery thief had confronted her. He clenched his fists at his sides to keep from punching something. If that asshole so much as hurt one hair on her head, he’d go ballistic.
“Right,” Carlisle said as they walked out of the office. “Ready to find your Kylie?”
“Hell yes,” Gage said, following him outside and across the parking lot, tracing Kylie’s steps. She wasn’t his Kylie yet, but with luck, one day maybe she would be. But first he had to find her.
11
Think. Dammit. Think.
Kylie squeezed her eyes shut and forced herself to concentrate. Mr. Hirohito was a smart guy. If she had somehow inadvertently captured some kind of sensitive footage on him, then there must be a reason behind his fear. Something more than just paranoia. She quickly ran through her time in the Tokyo house, searching for anything suspicious that might have been interpreted as her spying on him. To be honest, she’d only seen him a couple of times while she’d been working. Usually it was his wife. But there had been that one day. She’d been arranging the Zen garden outside. The house had floor to ceiling windows in several rooms, including the office. She’d had her laptop sitting on one of the benches while she worked so she could refer back to the blueprints. During a break, she’d noticed Hirohito was having a meeting. The person with him had been tall, dark, vaguely familiar.
She concentrated on that face now. Where had she seen it before?
It came to her in a rush of adrenaline. He was a banker. He’d been on the news recently, coping a plea deal on an embezzlement case. Her stomach sank to her toes. If Mr. Hirohito had been involved in that somehow, then he’d want to eliminate any witnesses or evidence against him. He must’ve seen her taking photos of the landscaping and assumed she’d been taping him. When she’d quit the job so suddenly and headed back to the US, it had probably confirmed his fears.
“Give me the fucking password,” the thug growled closer to her face.
She thought about complying, handing over her password and letting him see that she didn’t have anything incriminating on his boss after all. But if she did, then what? It hardly seemed likely he’d just let her go at this point. No, the laptop and its files were the only leverage she had. She couldn’t throw that away. Playing along, at least a little longer seemed her only option. Perhaps if she could somehow get him to let her use the laptop, she could get a message to Gage somehow.
“Uh, I don’t have them. The agency makes them up.” He snarled and brought the tip of the knife close to her cheek again. “I swear. Let me try logging in myself.”
“Nice try.” The guy snorted. “You think I’m stupid? You ain’t touching that computer.”
“Seriously. I think typing might help. If they’ve changed the passwords again, I’ll need to get into my account at the agency to get it.” She swallowed hard, her throat dry and scratchy. “I’m the only one who can do that.”
He shook his head then let her neck go only to grab her by the nape and shove her forward, toward a car parked on the other side of the dumpster. “Move.”
Terrified, Kylie dug in her heels. “No. I’m not going anywhere with you.”
“You want to type? The laptop’s in the car.” He wrenched her arm to get her to move forward then forced her to her knees on the pavement next to the rear door of the black sedan. Unfortunately, because of the dumpster and the building, they weren’t any more visible to most people than they’d been before. The thug kept the knife near her face with one hand while he opened the car door with the other and grabbed her computer from the backseat. It landed on the ground near her knees with a resounding thwack. Thank goodness she’d gotten the warranty with it because that sounded screen-crackingly loud. “Type. Now!”
Fingers shaking, she managed to get the laptop open and was surprised to find not only was the screen not broken, the battery still had half a charge. The password box shown in the middle of the screen, the cursor blinking at her as if mocking her.
She winced as the sharp tip of the knife dug into her cheek. “Type!”
Oh God. Okay. She needed more time, but there wasn’t any. All the flaws in her plan were becoming clear—such as the fact that she had no idea how to send a message to Gage. She wasn’t connected to any network out here in the alley. Once she logged in, she wouldn’t be able to access anything other than her locally stored files.
And once this man had access to that data, he’d kill her.
She’d never see Gage again. Never see the twins again. Never get to spend time with them as they grew up. Never get to spend more time with Gage either. Never get to see if the chemistry between them could grow into something more, something lasting, something strong and true and real.
Tears stung her eyes and she didn’t even try to hold them back. They ran down her cheeks and dripped onto the laptop as her fingers hovered over the keybo
ard.
“Type in that goddamned password, bitch, or a swear to fuck I’ll—”
“Police! Put your weapon down and your hands in the air.” The air filled with the sound of guns being cocked and Kylie had never heard a more blessed sound in her life. At least until another voice joined the fray. “Kylie? Baby? Are you okay?”
She looked over to see Gage and Detective Carlisle move in near the uniformed officers. Carlisle had his gun trained on the thug holding her hostage.
“Drop the knife and no one gets hurts,” Carlisle said.
For a moment, the thug hesitated then his weapon clattered to the ground near her knee. Before Kylie knew what was happening, she was in Gage’s arms and Carlisle had the thug’s face smashed into the side of the dumpster while he frisked him and slapped a pair of handcuffs on him. A squad car arrived shortly thereafter, lights and sirens blazing, and a small crowd of onlookers gathered as Kylie sobbed in Gage’s arms and the whole insane nightmare was over at last.
Later that afternoon, after the police had finished interviewing Kylie and Gage and she’d gotten her laptop and a bit more of her lost composure back, they sat in the hotel room once more. Talk about an eventful day. Gage had figured they’d have things to talk about following their night together, but he’d never imagined any of this.
He shook his head and slumped back into his corner of the couch. “Jesus. What a day, huh?”
“What a month,” she said from her spot opposite him, her voice rough from fatigue and the crying earlier. “First the accident, then rushing home, then the mugging and the break in, then this. I’ll take a quiet weekend at home any time now.”
“Me too.” He glanced over to the second bedroom where the twins were napping. Cora had done an amazing job with them and he’d almost been sorry to send her on her way, but he and Kylie had things they needed to discuss privately, no matter how exhausted she looked and he felt. “Listen, about you finding your own place. There’s no rush at all. I’ve got plenty of room at the house and I can clear out the den and make it into a third bedroom, if you want. I never use it anyway, so it’s fine.”