Tough Justice Box Set
Page 62
The man stripped off his clothes and changed into Toby’s. The fit wasn’t perfect, but neither was the jumpsuit at his feet. He would be glad when he’d be able to feel material that wasn’t consistent with sandpaper against his skin. His own clothes, his own food, his own life.
But first he had things to do.
“Thank you, Toby, for your assistance,” the man said when he was sure everything was right. “You’ll receive your payment as soon as you’ve made it home.”
Relief seemed to visibly move through him, just as his drug of choice would if he did everything according to plan.
“Now, this is going to hurt.”
Toby nodded, moved a foot inside of the door and squared his shoulders. The man applauded his willingness to obey but had to remind himself that even Toby had had a price. His assistance hadn’t been free. Although Toby respected the man he was helping, he didn’t fear him as much as he should. That was the cost of using junkies. Sometimes their addictions ruled them more than any threat of violence or death.
Toby took the man’s nastiest right hook and fell limp next to what was referred to—but he had his serious doubts—the bed. The noise of his dropping body didn’t alarm either man left standing. They both knew no one could hear them in solitary confinement.
Anthony helped him haul the body atop the concrete slab, taking care to turn his face away from the cubbyhole in the door. Unless someone opened the door wide, they wouldn’t care to look close enough to see if the man they’d locked up was the man inside.
“Time to move,” the man said to Anthony as they closed the door back. Once again the older man wasn’t amused. His eyes were slits, his nostrils flared. The man knew that look and the emotion attached. Anger wasn’t inherently bad, but mix in intensity, then it became passion. And passion, to him, was the most dangerous of them all. Unlike anger or hate, lust, love and everything in-between could move mountains.
As well as crumble them.
His thoughts moved to a woman’s face, soft and warm and strong. Anger followed on the image’s tail. It burned beneath his skin. Lies. Betrayals. She was filthy with them now.
Marco was a burly man with dark, dark skin and a smile filled with jagged teeth. Whereas Toby loved cocaine and Anthony loved his wife, Marco loved money.
“Buzz us through,” Anthony said when they came up to the gate. His levels of perspiration had risen considerably during their short walk. He wiped at his brow with the back of his sleeve more than once.
“You aren’t having fun, Anthony?” the man said over the loud buzz.
The guard clenched his jaw and didn’t answer. He opened the gate, and they continued through, Marco locking it and walking around them to get in front. He stayed a few feet ahead while his large body blocked the man from anyone who might come their way. It hadn’t been a part of the plan, but it was a detail he didn’t overlook and definitely appreciated. He’d make sure Marco’s money wasn’t delayed.
The chow hall gate was opened with a key and not a buzz. They moved through it with fluidity and almost grace. If anyone spotted them, they wouldn’t raise suspicion with their movements. They belonged there, walking the halls with belts with keys and uniforms with badges. And if anyone tried to say otherwise...well then, the plan would change, and things would get a lot more violent.
“The loading dock is clear,” Marco whispered when they crossed the expanse of scuffed tile floor and walked around to another much smaller door. “Ben cut the feed from all cameras in these common areas and back in solitary confinement at the end of last rotation. A tech is in there now, but he isn’t worth two shits. It won’t be up and running for at least a few hours, and even then he won’t be able to recover the footage. Ben is with the front gate guard and will make sure you both get out no problem.” Marco turned to face the man fully and outstretched his hand. “It was a pleasure meeting you, sir. I hope everything works out for you.”
The man shook his hand and said thank you. He definitely would make sure Marco was reimbursed for his trouble.
“Come on,” Anthony said as they broke apart. “My shift ended twenty minutes ago. If they see me hanging around, they’ll ask questions.” Marco gave him a look that wasn’t completely kind and went on his way.
Anthony led the man back into the kitchen and through its small maze before arriving at a back metal door. He produced his keys and unlocked it with shaking hands.
“Still not having fun, then?” the man asked, a smirk across his face.
“This isn’t a game,” Anthony retorted with more fire than the man had seen him exhibit since he had been hired three months before. “This is my life you’re fucking with.”
He wiped his brow once more and opened the door for them to go through.
Darkness met them, only a few beacons of light spotting the immediate area. The man took a deep breath and smiled. The air smelled sweeter already.
“There’s my car.” Anthony hurried, pointing out a beige four-door equally as average as its owner. He popped the trunk and looked back at the man expectantly. As an answer the man instead opened the back door and lay across the backseat. “But—” the guard started.
“Get in the car, Anthony.”
He let out a frustrated sound and did as he was told.
Marco had been right. Ben, whose love was also of money, could be seen in the gatehouse talking with a fellow guard. He kept his attention away from Anthony and his ordinary car and got the man to let them through without a hitch.
“I can’t believe this worked,” Anthony admitted after a few minutes of driving. “I can’t believe I helped you escape.”
“Do you have everything I asked for?” he asked, eyes glued to the stars out of the window.
“In the trunk.”
“Good, then pull over. I’d like to go ahead and change.”
Anthony listened and soon the two were parked at the side of the road. The man had changed his borrowed uniform to an outfit not akin to material made from sandpaper. It still wasn’t his, but it would do. He moved the contents around in the bag until he found another item he’d sorely missed.
“I’ll only take you as far as the next gas station,” Anthony said, standing just outside of the driver’s side door. “That was the agreement, and then you let her go,” he added, a slight tremor in his tone. “You promised, Moretti.”
Andrew shut the trunk and let out a cold laugh. “You know, you were right, Anthony,” he said, moving to face the guard who had driven him to freedom. “This isn’t fun anymore.”
Moretti cocked his gun and held it up. Even in the light that bounced back from the headlights, he could see the color drain from Anthony’s face.
“But—but what about my wife?” he stammered. “You said if I helped, you’d let her—”
“Oh, Anthony, she’s already dead.”
He pulled the trigger.
“It’s time to go get my daughter.”
* * * * *
Justice is worth every sacrifice.
A brand-new 8-part reading experience starting January 12, 2016!
FBI agent Lara Grant has finally put her life as an undercover operative behind her and started a new assignment in New York City. But her past and present collide and become ever more twisted as a spate of murders sends a message that is cruelly, chillingly personal...
Tough Justice: Exposed (Part 1 of 8) by New York Times bestselling author Carla Cassidy
Tough Justice: Watched (Part 2 of 8) by Tyler Anne Snell
Tough Justice: Burned (Part 3 of 8) by Carol Ericson
Tough Justice: Trapped (Part 4 of 8) by Gail Barrett
Tough Justice: Twisted (Part 5 of 8) by Gail Barrett
Tough Justice: Ambushed (Part 6 of 8) by Carol Ericson
Tough Justice: Betrayed (Part 7 of 8) by Tyler Anne Snell
Tough Justice: Hunted (Part 8 of 8) by New York Times bestselling author Carla Cassidy
Available January 12, 2016
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Collect all 8!
Tough Justice: Exposed (Part 1 of 8) by New York Times bestselling author Carla Cassidy
Tough Justice: Watched (Part 2 of 8) by Tyler Anne Snell
Tough Justice: Burned (Part 3 of 8) by Carol Ericson
Tough Justice: Trapped (Part 4 of 8) by Gail Barrett
Tough Justice: Twisted (Part 5 of 8) by Gail Barrett
Tough Justice: Ambushed (Part 6 of 8) by Carol Ericson
Tough Justice: Betrayed (Part 7 of 8) by Tyler Anne Snell
Tough Justice: Hunted (Part 8 of 8) by New York Times bestselling author Carla Cassidy
ISBN-13: 9781460393680
Tough Justice: Betrayed (Part 7 of 8)
Copyright © 2016 by Harlequin Books S.A.
Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to Tyler Anne Snell for her contribution to the Tough Justice series.
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Live or die. Her or Moretti. The time is now.
The worst has happened: her mark is on the run. But Special Agent Lara Grant has no clues. No destination. Just fear for those she loves and bone-deep belief that he’s coming straight for her. But she knows Moretti—just as he knows her. And when the final clue clicks into place, the hunt is on.
Lara will do anything it takes to catch this evil man who has caused the deaths of countless innocent people. With emotions on a knife edge, Lara is running on instinct, on the desperation of unconditional love. With adrenaline pumping, this is it for Lara—flight is not an option; all she can do is fight to the end...
Part 8 of 8 in the chilling, high-octane FBI thriller TOUGH JUSTICE from New York Times bestselling author Carla Cassidy and authors Tyler Anne Snell, Carol Ericson and Gail Barrett.
On Carla Cassidy:
“Cassidy delivers with a one-two punch of intriguing suspense and tantalizing romance.”
—RT Book Reviews on Scene of the Crime: Baton Rouge
HUNTED
Carla Cassidy
Carla Cassidy is an award-winning New York Times bestselling author who has written more than one hundred and twenty novels for Harlequin Books. In 1995, she won Best Silhouette Romance from RT Book Reviews for Anything for Danny. In 1998, she also won a Career Achievement Award for Best Innovative Series from RT Book Reviews. Carla believes the only thing better than curling up with a good book to read is sitting down at the computer with a good story to write.
Books by Carla Cassidy
Harlequin Intrigue
Scene of the Crime: Killer Cove
Scene of the Crime: The Deputy’s Proof
Harlequin Romantic Suspense
A Real Cowboy
Cowboy of Interest
The Colton Bodyguard
To the Tough Justice team,
who worked overtime to make this happen!
CONTENTS
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Epilogue
EPISODE EIGHT
Hunted
The Grand Finale is finally here, a moment Moretti has been thinking about since he learned of Lara’s betrayal. Moretti has escaped from prison and his only goal is to go after Lara’s daughter—his daughter. He knows Lara will do anything to save her child. He’s counting on that. Lara has been a worthy adversary, always playing to win. This is it: hunter vs. hunted...
CHAPTER ONE
He knocked on the front door with the confidence of a man befitting his authority. The sun had just peeked a tiny sliver of light over the horizon, and the neighborhood was silent. When there was no immediate response in the house, he knocked again, this time with more force.
“Yes? Who is it?” a deep male voice asked.
“US Marshal Adam Kincaid. I’m Peter Linden’s partner. I need you to open the door right now. As you know, we have a Code Red situation.”
“Can I see some identification?”
“Of course.” He pulled out the slim black wallet that held a badge and the ID and held it up to the half-moon-shaped window in the door.
A rush of adrenaline filled him as he heard the sound of locks being turned and the alarm being disarmed. The door opened to reveal a man in a navy T-shirt and a pair of light blue pajama bottoms, worry etching deep lines in his face.
A woman in a red robe appeared just behind the man, her features radiating a simmering panic. “What’s happening?”
“We can’t keep this location secure. We need to move the child. Her father escaped from prison earlier this morning, and we have reason to believe he might be coming here to do harm to her. This has become a Level Ten. We have to move fast.”
The man shot a glance toward the street where an official-looking car awaited. “Where’s Marshal Linden? He’s our caseworker.”
“He’s setting up the new safe house. I need to move the baby now.”
“We need to get dressed...”
“We need to keep you separate, in case we’re followed. Peter wants to remove the child first. The two of you will follow when we get the all-clear. I’ll be texting you directions. Be ready.” He stepped into the foyer. The gun beneath his jacket was a heady reminder that he was the one in control.
Tears sprang to the woman’s eyes. “I’ll... I’ll go get her.” She disappeared down a hallway.
The woman returned with the dark-haired sleeping seven-month-old in her arms. The tears that had gleamed in her eyes moments before now coursed down her cheeks. The little girl was clad in a mint-green sleeper and wrapped in a pink blanket.
“You’ll call us soon?” she asked.
He gave a curt nod. “We have to move now.” He walked to the woman, and with a small sob she handed him the baby. Immediately she began to cry in earnest, and her husband quickly placed an arm around her shoulder.
He didn’t wait to see anything else. He had what he wanted, and the two frightened people meant nothing to him. If they hadn’t complied, then he would have shot them without a second thought.
He turned on his heels and left the house. It wasn’t until they were in the car and pulling away from the curb that he allowed the full flush of his success to sweep through him. He leaned back against the seat and closed his eyes.
Brilliant. He was absolutely brilliant. People were so stupid, so incredibly easy to manipulate for a man like him.
He smiled as he thought of the people he’d just left. The Minnows. That name had suited them...they were little bait fish, and he was the shark that had e
aten them whole.
He hadn’t needed to demand that they give him the child. He hadn’t even had to show a weapon. The stupid cows had willingly relinquished her to him. Most parents are willing to do anything to protect their child.
He cracked an eyelid open and slid a glance to the man in the driver seat. Big and burly, Joseph Fowler, aka Big Joe, had been the perfect connection to tap into for help.
Big Joe had been a low-level operative in the syndicate who had skated under the FBI radar. He was an ex-felon who worshipped Andrew.
A smile curved his lips once again. He was a freaking genius. Nobody else could have pulled off what he’d done. The smile fell away. There was only one person who might just be his match.
FBI Special Agent Lara Grant...his Eve.
His guts clenched tight and then relaxed. She might have gotten the upper hand on him once, but that was his past. He turned and glanced into the backseat where her child...his child slept in a newly purchased car seat.
He was back in power.
* * *
He’s out.
Lara sat on the side of the bed, momentarily unable to think at all as an internal screaming inside her head began. She stared at the cell phone in her hand and tried to swallow against the horror that made her nauseous.
Somehow Moretti had managed to escape from prison, and now the entire world had turned upside down.