by Lara Lacombe
Emma nodded, her tongue darting out across her lips. “Yes. That’s true.” She took a step back, her hands falling from his hair to glide down his arms and stop at his hands, which she gripped tightly. “Take care of her for me. She’s my world.”
He lifted one of her hands to his mouth, kissing the back of it. “You have my word.”
With that, she pulled free, bending to pick up the carrier once more. He watched her walk down the hall and enter the elevator, taking his heart with her. Did she even know she carried it? Or was she oblivious to its presence?
He’d let her know soon enough. For now, he had a job to do.
He walked back into the room and checked on the baby. She had her eyes open and was blinking sleepily up at the ceiling. “Excellent timing, Christina.” He was glad she’d woken up on her own—she was much less likely to be cranky now.
After a quick diaper change, he scooped her into his arms and headed for the door, stopping to grab her diaper bag along the way. After Emma had crawled into bed last night, he’d gone to the nearby big-box store and bought a car seat, which he’d installed in his truck. Matt had no intention of waiting in the hotel room, twiddling his thumbs while Emma walked into danger. It killed him a little bit to let Skip take her to the truck stop, despite knowing his friend was more than capable of handling things. He simply wasn’t used to sitting on the sidelines while an operation went down. But he wasn’t willing to risk Christina, either. So as a compromise, he was going to hunker down in the burger joint next door to the truck stop. If everything went to hell, he’d be close enough to help while still keeping the baby safe.
He dialed Dave after snapping the little one into her seat.
“Yeah?”
“Change of plan,” Matt said shortly. “Take one of your people out of the diner and send them to the burger joint next door.”
“Now why would I want to do that?” Dave asked.
“Because I’ll be waiting there with the baby. If things go south, I need to be able to leave Christina with someone so I can help Emma. Have them bring a gun for me, too.”
Dave sighed. “I should have known you’d pull a stunt like this.”
Matt cranked the engine of the truck and stepped on the gas. The meet was still a few hours away, but he had a bit of a drive ahead of him. “Are you going to help me, or what?”
“You know, I ought to make you charge into battle with a baby strapped to your chest, but I’m not going to do that to Miss Emma. I’ll send someone over.”
“Appreciate it,” Matt said, merging onto the freeway.
“Though you should know, I don’t appreciate your lack of confidence in my skills.” Dave sounded a little piqued, and Matt realized he’d inadvertently stepped on his friend’s toes.
“Sorry, man. It’s got nothing to do with you. Put yourself in my shoes. Pretend it’s your woman going into that diner. Tell me you wouldn’t do the same.”
“You’re right,” Dave allowed. “I’d call an audible like this, too.”
“Everyone in position?” Matt asked.
“Mostly. They’re filing in a few at a time so it doesn’t seem too suspicious.”
“Seen any advance scouts?” The traffickers were cocky, but Matt didn’t think they were stupid. Unless he missed his guess, they were sending people to the diner to check things out before bringing Emma’s mother and brother there.
“A couple,” Dave replied. “They’ve done a few quick drive-bys, but they don’t seem to be paying too much attention to faces.”
“That’s good,” Matt said. If the scouts weren’t focused on the people in the diner, they wouldn’t get suspicious when those same people were still sitting there during the meet.
“We’ve got this covered, LT.”
“I know you do. Need me to pick up anything along the way?”
“I’d run naked down the highway for a hot cup of coffee right now.”
Matt had to laugh at the absurd mental image Dave’s words conjured. “I’m half-tempted to bring you one just to see that. But I don’t want to give away your position.” Dave was stretched out in the overgrown field near the truck stop, ghillie suit in place to help him blend in with the tall grass.
“Fair enough. But I’m definitely getting a cup when this is all over.”
“Buddy, when this is over you won’t have to settle for coffee. I’ll buy you a stiff drink.”
“Whiskey?” Dave suggested, his tone hopeful. “The good stuff, mind, not that cheap swill Skip likes to drink.”
“Whatever you want,” Matt promised.
“I’m going to hold you to that,” Dave said. “Now get to driving. I need to keep this line clear in case Skip needs to get in touch.”
“Roger that,” Matt replied. “See you soon.”
“No,” said Dave. “You won’t. Master of disguise, remember?”
“How could I forget? Stay safe out there.”
“Hooah,” replied Dave, signing off with the army battle cry.
“Hooah,” echoed Matt into the dial tone.
Christina gurgled a reply of her own, legs kicking in her seat. He smiled at her, though she couldn’t see him. “Tell me about it,” he said encouragingly.
She continued to babble as he drove, filling him with a sense of peace. He was still nervous about Emma and the traffickers, but somehow the sound of Christina’s voice soothed his worries and gave him a reason to smile.
“We make a good team, baby girl.”
“Da, da, da,” she said.
His heart skipped a beat, even as he recognized she wasn’t really calling him Da-da. She was simply testing out new syllables and had landed on this one for a change. Still, an odd sensation swirled in his chest—a mixture of pride and gratitude.
And love.
It was time he stopped denying it. He was in love with Emma, and Christina, too, for that matter. He wasn’t sure how they were going to make things work, given the fact that they lived in El Paso and he lived several hours away in Alpine. But he was certain they would figure it out. They had to—he simply couldn’t walk away from the two of them, not after everything they’d been through together. They’d had enough excitement to last three lifetimes; now Matt wanted to experience all the normal, boring moments with Emma and Christina. Doing the laundry, washing the dishes, cooking a big Saturday breakfast; it sounded wonderful to him.
And maybe someday, after they’d become a family together, Christina would call him Daddy for real.
Matt held on to that thought, tucking it safely away in his heart. He’d dwell on his dreams later. Right now, he couldn’t afford to let his hopes for the future cloud the present.
He glanced over at the baby, still kicking away in her seat. He wasn’t going to rest until he had both of his girls in his arms, safe and sound.
“Almost there,” he muttered.
In more ways than one.
* * *
Skip cut the engine and turned to face her. “How are you holding up?”
Emma scanned the parking lot, a stone of worry forming in her stomach when she spotted the semitruck the traffickers had used before. “I’ll manage,” she said. She nodded toward the truck. “They’re here already.”
“Not to worry,” Skip said. “Our people got here first. And you’re not going out there unprotected.” He rapped his knuckle against one of the panels of the bulletproof vest she wore under her jacket. Pessimistically, Emma knew it would offer little protection if the traffickers aimed for her head, but it was better than nothing.
Skip’s voice broke into her thoughts. “Let’s test this thing out one last time.” He turned around, eyeing the car seat in the back with a degree of suspicion. “I can’t believe LT actually put this thing together,” he muttered.
“This thing” was the decoy Matt had created last night while she’d been
in the bath. It was at its heart a motorized dinosaur toy Matt had bought—press a button, the creature walked. Matt had padded the legs and slipped a pair of Christina’s pants over them, making it look more like a baby. He’d ripped the tail off so the overgrown lizard fit in the car seat, and somehow he’d disabled the voice so the creature no longer roared when the remote was used. As a final touch, Matt had draped a blanket over the front of the carrier, leaving only the legs visible. It was a contraption that would make Dr. Frankenstein proud, but Emma had no illusions about its ability to fool anyone for long.
Skip pressed the button on the remote, which was taped to the side of the carrier. The legs kicked in response, making it look like the “baby” was moving. Emma caught Skip’s eye as he turned back around. He shrugged. “Should fool ‘em for a minute, I suppose.”
“If you say so.”
“You remember the plan?”
She nodded, feeling curiously detached. She didn’t dare hope this was going to work. But she had to at least try to save her mother. Her only consolation was that Christina was far away from all this, safe with Matt back in the hotel room.
“All right.” Skip nodded, apparently satisfied with her response. “Remember, we’re with you. It’s all going to be okay.”
She heard his words, but they didn’t give her the warm, fuzzy feeling she got when Matt told her the same thing. She wished he could be here as well—she’d feel so much better knowing he was close—but then again, she was grateful he’d stayed with her baby. There was no one else she trusted to protect her daughter.
Skip dropped his chin and spoke into the collar of his shirt. “Showtime,” he said, apparently communicating with the rest of his team. Then he looked at Emma. “You’re up, ma’am.”
Emma climbed out of the car and started toward the diner, feeling eyes on her as she walked. Sunlight glinted off glass, and she glanced over to see a truck pulling into the parking lot of the burger joint next door. She frowned slightly. That looked like Matt’s truck...but it couldn’t be. Emma shook her head slightly and forced herself to keep going. She wanted him to be here so badly she was practically hallucinating him. Yet another reminder of how attached she’d grown to him over the past few days.
The bell attached to the diner door jingled as she walked inside. Motion caught her eye, and she turned to see a man waving at her from a corner table. She recognized his scar—he was one of the three men who’d chased her before. But the other seats at the table were empty. Where were her mother and brother?
She approached the table but didn’t sit down. “Where’s my mother?”
The man cocked his head to the side. “Where’s Christina?” When she didn’t reply, his expression darkened. “I hope, for your mother’s sake, that you aren’t having second thoughts.”
Emma ground her molars together, hating this man and everything about him. “My baby is in the car. Did you honestly expect me to just hand her over to you without first knowing my mom is alive?”
“Fair enough,” he said. He got to his feet, and Emma took a step back, not wanting to risk touching him. “What happened to the man who was with you earlier? The one you ran away with?”
“He’s in the car with my daughter.”
The man stared at her, his eyes narrowing with displeasure. “We told you to come alone.”
Emma stood her ground. “I can go, if you prefer. I’m sure your boss will understand.” She smiled, driving the insult home.
The look he gave her was pure malice. Emma was certain he would hurt her if he thought he could get away with it. “Get the baby,” he said shortly. “Your friend stays in the car.”
“Not until I see my mother.”
He clenched his jaw so tightly she thought his teeth would break. “You’ll have to come over to the truck to see her.”
“Fine. Let’s go.” She wasn’t going to be a meek, compliant sheep. She was going to make this difficult for them, every step of the way.
She could tell her reaction surprised him. Truth be told, she’d surprised herself. Matt had told her she was strong enough to face these men, but she hadn’t believed him. Now that she was here, though, she was ready to take them on single-handedly to save her mother.
Maybe he had been right after all...
They stepped out into the parking lot and headed for the back corner, where the semitruck was parked. Emma resisted the urge to stare at the nearby field—according to Matt and Skip, she’d never find Dave, no matter how hard she looked. She just had to trust that he was there.
The man pulled a small two-way radio from his belt and brought it to his mouth. “Get ready.” Then he led Emma to the trailer of the semitruck. She stopped as they approached—the truck was parked so that the gate faced the empty field. If she stepped behind it, no one from the diner would be able to see her. He could kill her and shove her body into the trailer with no one but Dave the wiser.
The trafficker gave her a questioning glance, but didn’t try to force her to join him. He walked up to the trailer and knocked three times on the gate. She heard a metallic rumble as the gate was lifted, and a wedge of light cut through the shadow cast by the trailer.
“You’re going to have to get closer if you want to see her.”
Emma gave the man a wide berth, keeping him in front of her as she skirted the edge of the trailer. She craned her neck to see, then froze as she caught a glimpse of the inside.
The interior of the trailer was padded with what looked like soundproofing material. That alone was enough to make her skin crawl, but what nearly sent her over the edge was the fact that it was all draped in heavy plastic. There wasn’t a knife or a chain or a drill to be seen, and yet it was very clear this trailer was used for only one purpose: to torture people.
A small figure sat tied to a wooden chair in the middle of the torture chamber, head bent in defeat. Emma’s heart leaped into her throat—was she still alive?
“Mom?”
At the sound of her voice, the woman lifted her head. “Emma?”
Relief washed over Emma even as her stomach turned at the sight of her mother’s bruised and bloody face. “It’s okay, Mom. I’m here to get you. I’m going to take you away from these men.”
Her mother’s expression of joy turned to one of horror. “No, baby. No. You can’t give them Christina. Just leave me here. Go!” Her voice grew increasingly frantic and she began to strain against her bonds.
A man stepped forward from out of the shadows and stuffed a rag in her mother’s mouth. “Stop it!” Emma yelled. “Leave her alone!”
She was so preoccupied with her mother she didn’t notice that the man from the diner was now by her side. He grabbed her arm, his grip tight to the point of pain. “Shut up,” he hissed, punctuating his words with a little shake. “Behave yourself, or I will make you wish you had.”
Emma closed her mouth, though not out of fear for herself. She didn’t want them to hurt her mom any more.
He pulled her away from the trailer, back out into the parking lot. “So. Now you know she is alive. Time to get the baby.”
She tried to shake him off, but he wouldn’t release her arm. She led him toward Skip’s car, but he pulled her back before they got too close.
“This is not the car you were in before.”
She wrenched her arm free, turning to glare at him. “No, it’s not. We switched vehicles because we didn’t want you to find us.”
Was that a glimmer of respect in his eyes? “Smart.”
“I’m so glad you approve,” she snapped. “Now come on.”
He grabbed her again before she could take a step. She opened her mouth to cry out, but the sound died in her throat as she felt something press into her side. A gun, she realized with a jolt of panic.
“Listen to me,” he said softly. “We only want the baby. If your friend tries to get out of the ca
r, if he tries to help you at all, I’m going to kill you and then shoot him between the eyes. You tell him not to be a hero today.” When she didn’t respond, he shook her again. “Tell him.”
Emma made eye contact with Skip, who was leaning forward over the steering wheel. She made a production of shaking her head, and Skip nodded, relaxing back into his seat.
“Good girl,” the man said. “Now we’ll continue.”
They marched over to the car. Emma opened the back door and retrieved the carrier, being careful to keep the remote hidden by her body.
The man stood by the driver’s-side window and gestured for Skip to roll it down. Skip opened it a crack.
“Drive off,” he said. Skip began to protest, and the man showed him his gun. “Leave, now. Before I shoot you.”
Skip gave her an apologetic look and cranked the engine. The man kept her there until Skip pulled out of the parking spot and turned onto the freeway access road.
Emma watched him go, disbelief and a sense of betrayal swirling in her chest. She knew she wasn’t alone, but she couldn’t believe Skip had up and left her like that, without a backward glance. A kernel of doubt formed in her mind. What if the others were like that, too? Were they still in the diner, or had they left already? And what about Dave? What if he was asleep out there in that field?
Her mind raced as they started to walk back to the trailer. The diner seemed like an awfully long way away, especially now that she was alone with this man, holding a fake baby in a car seat. He had a gun—it wouldn’t take long to shoot her and her mother once he found out he’d been had. What could she do to even the odds?
“Where’s my brother?” she blurted out. It wasn’t much, as far as stalling tactics went, but it was better than nothing.
The man smirked. “I thought you didn’t care about him.”
She mulled that over for a second. “I don’t. But I also don’t want to see him hurt.”
He snorted. “Trust me. He’s not feeling any pain.”
His words hit her like a slap to the face. Joseph was dead.