“I owe it to Colonel Vaughan to look out for you on behalf of every soldier he’s risked his life and career to protect.”
There! A flash across his face before hidden behind the soldier’s eyes. He cared—and she had all the time in the world to find out how much.
“So, what does that mean for us?” she flirted, knowing even before he spoke what his answer would be.
“I’ll keep you safe. I’ll return you to your father and you can live a long and happy life.”
“And until then, I guess we’re living together before we’ve even had the opportunity to date!” she broke the tension with a laugh.
“I hope you like your chilli, hot.”
“As hot as I like my men.”
“Oh, this is going to be torture!” he said, joining her laughter while ladling out a full plate.
“Oh, soldier,” she mocked, “What you call ‘torture,’ I call fun.”
It’s Complicated
ANASTACIA
“Morning Ed, morning Jax.” By the third day, Anastacia could at least hobble out to the loungeroom and pretend that she was part of the living. Not that she could leave the apartment and go for a walk or feel the Australian sun on her face—Ed’s first rule. Or get close to the windows—rule two. Or even ring anyone on the burner phone other than her father or Ed—rule three.
Too weak to do anything around the apartment, she gratefully curled up on the lounge to receive a box of books.
“Children’s books?” she laughed, taking the first couple from the top. “I ask you for something to read and you give me children’s books?”
“I don’t want you using any electronic devices, and since I’m not going to spend half a day in a book shop looking for books that you’ll only turn your nose up at, you might as well read these.”
“Where did you get them?” Anastacia briefly looked up as she flicked through familiar titles, hugging some as old friends.
“My parents gave me a couple of boxes when I first left home. Over the years, this is what remained. I guess I always thought that one day, I’d have a child to read them to.”
“I have almost the same sort of box with some of the same authors. Although, I never read this series,” she held up a cover with seven laughing children.
“Well, enjoy them. I’ve got to go out for a couple of hours but Jax will be here with you until lunch time and Spider will be here this afternoon.”
“What time is the nurse coming?” Anastacia tried to quell the panic of what would happen if she ran out of her pain meds. Even now, the last half an hour before the next dose, she could almost count every bruise and she tried not to breathe too heavily because of the pain.
“She’ll be here around ten, unless you need her to come earlier.”
“That should be fine,” Anastacia counted the minutes until Tilly arrived.
“I think we can remove three bandages today!” the former paramedic smiled. “How’s the pain?”
“It only hurts when I breathe.”
“Bruises on top of old breaks would do that, just make sure that these gorgeous men are looking after you.” Tilly called out, “Who’s looking after the patient?”
Ed’s tech genius, “Spider” came in, his bulk almost filling the room and Anastacia smiled at Tilly’s blush. He’d had the same effect on her when he arrived early for his shift. “Miss Matilda, you wanted me?”
“Our lovely patient is not to get up unless absolutely necessary, so in between watching your beloved monitors and talking to your friends overseas, I’m hoping you can spare a couple of minutes each half hour or so to check on her.”
“I’ll be sure to do whatever Miss Vaughan desires,” he drawled, knowing full well his effect on any and all females. “At least until the good Lieutenant Colonel returns.”
“Where did he go?” Anastacia hadn’t wanted to sound like a nagging wife—but Ed’s strong and silent routine was driving her mad. No one was telling her anything—and sitting around all day with nothing to do allowed her imagination to go to very dark places. When it came to “need to know,” she certainly did.
“Don’t worry about him, he can take care of himself.”
“Is he in danger?”
“No, nothing like that,” Spider assured her. “Look, a half hour meeting with your father takes an hour to get to—making sure he covers his tracks, and even longer to leave and come home. For someone like Lieutenant Colonel, and the Colonel for that matter, it’s routine. Time consuming, but routine.”
“How long am I still supposed to be in hospital?”
Tilly answered, “As far as your records are concerned, you will be waking up today, but the hospital wants to keep you mildly sedated for another twenty-four to forty-eight hours before you can receive visitors.”
“Can’t you all get into trouble?”
“Our job is to keep you alive so you can testify on our behalf,” Spider joked. “Seriously, how about I make you a cup of tea—white with two?”
“I don’t take sugar,” she protested.
“But when Ed makes it …”
“Ed does things his way.”
“And with that, I’m heading to the kitchen!” Spider slapped the side table before escaping.
“How are you really going?” Tilly asked, softly. “I have some friends who are shrinks, but if you need a friendly ear, I’m here.”
Anastacia shrugged, deciding to take Tilly at her word, “I hate being cooped up, I hate the thought of my ex-husband either planning this whole thing or being kidnapped the way I was.”
“You still care about him?”
“Hudson? No, not in that way. I guess, I’ve had too much time to think and none of it is good.”
“I know it’s not easy, but these guys know what they are doing. I’ve served with Spider and Ed and I hear they may be calling in some guys from Townsville. They really are the best in the business.”
“I just want my life back.”
“With or without the sexy Lieutenant Colonel?” Tilly teased, giving her a knowing smile. “Don’t worry, the guys haven’t got a clue—but I’ve seen the way you look at him.”
“Believe me, the feeling isn’t mutual.”
“You think? I get three messages each morning to confirm what time I’ll be here and reminding me to bring your meds, then a call after I leave to find out if there is anything else he needs to get to help your recovery.”
“My father asked him to look out for me. Like you said, they are good at their job and he’s just doing his.”
“He ain’t looking at you like you’re his job—but if he’s keeping it to himself, trust that there’s a reason.”
“Like my father would kill him?”
“There is that.”
By the fifth day, Ed and his team were in full planning mode; as long as there was at least one person monitoring the screens and offering her “protection” in the apartment, the others came and left at will. Even Ed.
“I’ve read all the books – please can I have the internet? Surely, I can use your accounts?” She’d begged each day, not expecting today to get a better response. Ed was getting ready to leave the apartment and Jax was gorgeous to look at but more interested in the camera feeds than conversation.
“Didn’t you ask me the same question yesterday?” Ed gave her his infuriating smirk.
“That isn’t even funny. I’ll be as bored today as I was yesterday.”
“Jax, do you have the surprise ready?” Ed’s blue eyes twinkled as he called out towards the war room. Within a minute, Jax joined them with a black laptop.
“Princess?” She read out the sticker monogram on the lid.
“We couldn’t have one of the guys picking it up, thinking they could use it. It doesn’t have many apps, but I’m assured that you can get access to the internet but please don’t do anything stupid—like log into any of your old accounts.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever been happier to get a gift.”
&
nbsp; “Like I said, don’t even try and contact your father. We are pretty sure his accounts are being monitored, so he’s posting fake updates on your progress. Apparently, you are still in hospital but progressing as well as can be expected.”
“Thank you, I know I’ve been a pain, but thank you both.” If only she could hug Ed, but already, he’d closed back down into soldier mode.
There was still one social media account that Anastacia hadn’t shared with Ed or her father. Only Bella and a handful of friends knew about her “Silver Car” account—named after a private joke from when she and her ex-husband first started dating.
One of his friends asked what sort of car they drove, and Anastacia could only remember the color was black. After that, every time they moved to a different country and got a new car, Anastacia didn’t bother trying to remember make or model—it was a private and ongoing joke that she only recognised their car by the color and where it had been parked. For her last birthday, he’d wrapped a silver Mercedes in a large silver ribbon and expected that she would do more than call it a “silver car.” But with her suspicions already mounting about his finances, she had appreciated the gift and renamed her private account after the car.
He didn’t know about the account, so wouldn’t have appreciated the irony. Luckily, Bella understood and it had become her safe place to vent about her marriage, living half way around the world from her father, and the challenge of maintaining friendships when living a transient life.
Even with Ed’s warnings ringing in her ears, Anastacia didn’t think there would be anything risky about sending Bella a quick message to say that once she got out of hospital, she’d be staying with friends for a couple of weeks.
It only took seconds for her to realize what a stupid, bloody mistake this had been. Message after new message appeared, absolutely flooring Anastacia. The bile rose in her throat, and she closed the lid, as if to erase what she’d seen and done. Two glasses of water later, at least her stomach was no longer threatening to expel its contents but she couldn’t stop shaking with anger, disgust and an overwhelming sense of fear.
No. She must have been mistaken—logged into someone else’s account.
Locking herself in her bedroom to avoid any embarrassing discussions with Ed’s latest security detail, an ex-commando by the name of Kram, Anastacia opened up the file again. One question was now answered—if her ex-husband had ever been kidnapped—the whole thing was staged as a power play to get her back.
Horny Hard on: I love you. Come back and I’ll forgive you.
Seriously? She only knew the handle was Hudson because of the familiar avatar.
Horny Hard on: I love you. To prove how much, let me show you the ways.
He’d attached a video that autoplayed one sex scene after another. Each with her ex in a starring role calling out her name as he fucked a woman wearing her clothes—until he ripped them off, showing a body shape that could have been her and a wig to match.
Not a dream. Not even an alternative reality where she could close the laptop and pretend she had never peeked.
Horny Hard on: Baby, I know I’m not worthy, let me make it up to you.
This video had the same woman, her face still hidden, this time with her ex and two other men. The woman took them in ways Anastacia didn’t think were possible, moans filling the room until Anastacia turned off the volume.
As much as Anastacia looked for a clue, there was nothing that gave even a hint that the woman wasn’t her. The woman was even wearing the engagement ring Anastacia had left behind to prove that she’d never be coming back. Her old ring even starred in a scene giving simultaneous hand jobs.
Anastacia finally understood how something could be so awful that she couldn’t look away. Still, she couldn’t be desensitised to either watching her ex-husband or the woman. Each time, it felt like a personal violation—of her old bedroom, her clothes and her image.
Horny Hard on: Are you enjoying our new, improved sex life as much as I am?
No matter how much he baited her, she refused to give him the satisfaction of a response. Not even when the messages started coming in every hour.
Horny Hard on: I’m so generous – allowing you all the love you deserve.
Anastacia couldn’t watch past the first few seconds. Clearly, her ex-husband was taking the day off from acting and had gotten three other men to take his place. The poor woman, she thought. Unless, of course, she was being paid handsomely for her time.
Horny Hard on: I’m so generous – I want to share your beautiful love with the world. Unless.
Unless, what? Anastacia had no idea what he wanted from her—he couldn’t really want her back. He had all the money and could probably talk or flirt his way into a new job. Still, she refrained from responding.
The next message only had a series of numbers. It could have been a phone number, but without a country or area code, Anastacia wouldn’t know where to begin. It had to be a number—but in dollars, or euros?
Horny Hard on: Crawl back or buy your freedom. Remember, I’m the only one who can protect you.
This time, there was only an hour gap between messages.
Horny Hard on: You have 72 hours before I show the world how much you love me.
He posted a movie trailer with snippets from the most depraved videos—with opening credits featuring one of her publicity photos and real name.
No one would ever believe it wasn’t her. For the rest of her life, she’d never know which strangers thought they’d seen her naked.
“Bella, it’s me,” she risked calling her friend from the burner phone.
“Staci! I’m so glad. I rang this morning and they said you still aren’t having visitors.”
“I’m not in hospital and I don’t have time to explain—I need to see you. Can you get to the eastern suburbs?”
“Text me the address and I’ll be there in twenty minutes. This sounds exciting!”
“I wish it wasn’t, I’ll be waiting outside but you have to leave as soon as I get in the car—and can you bring me a change of clothes and a hat?”
“Are you okay?”
“I don’t know.”
Leaving music on in her room, Anastacia snuck down-stairs by the fire escape. She knew the cameras were only set on people trying to break into the door—Ed’s team had jimmied it to remain locked from the outside. Counting down the minutes, she timed her exit perfectly, reaching the street just as Bella’s car came into sight.
“Drive, please, drive,” she instructed. “Anywhere there is a local coffee shop.” Anastacia found the bag of clothes on the back seat. Within seconds, she’d stripped off her shirt to Bella’s gasps and donned the print dress and hat.
“What happened to you? I mean, all those bruises,” Belle asked. “I was so worried when you didn’t say ‘goodbye’ to me at the ball. I saw you dancing with someone, did he do that?”
“Stuff happened, and I really need your help,” Anastacia cried.
Bella found a small corner store that still made instant coffee but served home-made meat pies.
“I can’t remember the last time I had a real Australian meat pie,” she gushed as the meat gravy oozed out of the pastry and over her fingers. “This tastes so good.”
“Did I just help you escape—should we ring your father? Forget the pies and tell me what I can do to help.”
Anastacia showed Bella the messages, letting the videos speak for themselves.
“I take it, this isn’t you?”
“See, you’ve known me for almost all my life and you weren’t sure.”
“What do you want me to do.”
Anastacia explained the night of the ball, the dancing and kissing Ed and everything she remembered from the attack. “I woke up in hospital and it turns out that the man I kissed had already been asked by my father to protect me.”
“Why?”
“Because daddy got some notes and thought that Hudson or someone was after me. But he didn’t wan
t to worry me, and I wanted to go out and have a good time.”
“Tell me about this Ed, I haven’t seen you look like that when you talk about a man, ever.”
“There’s nothing to say.”
“Really? What’s he like?”
“Amazing, but none of that’s going to matter once he sees the video. He doesn’t know me—he’ll probably think that’s what my marriage was like.
“You have to tell him—and your father. They have the right to know, and maybe it will help them find him.”
“I know, but I can’t be the one to show them. Please, can you go and see my father. Show him the laptop and tell him that I’m so sorry that I broke Ed’s rules about the social media, about leaving his home and even contacting you.”
The shop keeper came over and gave them a slice of chocolate cake, “Don’t worry love, chocolate will fix everything.”
“Thank you,” Bella said before turning back to Anastacia.
“Staci, the longer you are gone, the more they will worry. Let me call your father as a concerned friend and get you home.”
“Can you ask the shop keeper to get me a cab—and can you lend me some money for the fare? I don’t have any cash and I don’t want to leave a trace.”
“Whatever you need. Let me make the call.”
“Colonel, it’s Bella Constance … I know we had an appointment to talk about Staci, but I can’t remember where you asked me to meet you, was it your home or office?”
Anastacia held her breath, would her father understand? “Your place, fine and I can’t wait to meet your new assistant, Ted or whatever his name is. Staci talks so highly of him.”
Bella hung up in under two minutes, “Impossible to trace, but let’s get you safely home.”
“Does he know I’m with you?”
“Hopefully he got the message. More importantly, is there a message for your Lieutenant Colonel?”
“Other than I’m falling in love with him?”
“I suppose you want to be the one to tell him.”
“If he doesn’t kill me for running away like this.”
Defend Her: A military suspense romance (Aussie Military Romance Book 4) Page 8