by Maya Banks
At that, Swanny’s entire team came to attention and crowded around, all business, as they waited for Hancock to continue.
“Well, since you obviously eliminated the threat to her, it doesn’t make a hell of a lot of sense that you’re freaking the fuck out,” Joe drawled, staring pointedly at Hancock to let him know that KGI was well aware of who got to Sanchez.
Hancock swore again. “He wasn’t the threat. He never was.”
“What the fuck are you saying?” Swanny demanded. The dread in his gut intensified. Goddamn it, he knew something wasn’t right, and he damn well should have put his foot down and never agreed to give Eden ten minutes to finish dressing alone.
“Short version,” Hancock clipped out. “Eddie had it all wrong. He thought the mother and daughter were killed when their mission went FUBAR. He assumed it was the son seeking revenge after I took out the father after he killed Eden’s mother. But it never made sense to me. If he was seeking revenge, a wife for a wife, then why wouldn’t he have killed Eden then? Wife for wife, daughter for daughter.”
Swanny’s panic level was reaching epic proportions. He didn’t like where this was going a damn bit.
“Let’s get to her room,” Hancock barked. “I’ll give you the rest on the way up. I want to make damn sure she’s safe because the threat to her has not been eliminated.”
At that, Swanny and his entire team broke into a run, Swanny pounding on the elevator call button.
As they piled into the elevator, Hancock continued.
“The daughter survived. It was only thought she was killed in cross fire. It’s not the goddamn son after Eden. It’s the daughter. It explains how inept the attempts on her life have been. This isn’t some hired assassin after Eden. The daughter is coming after Eden herself.”
“Son of a bitch,” Swanny swore. “Goddamn it, Hancock. Haven’t you ever heard of a fucking phone? Why the hell didn’t you let us know immediately instead of waiting until you got here to spill? You talk about us not doing our job, but if Eden means so goddamn much to you then, why the fuck didn’t you immediately get on the horn and warn us?”
“Because I thought you’d keep doing your goddamn job,” Hancock snapped. “I came straight here after taking out the son and his security. It was there I found correspondence from his sister and him begging her not to go after Eden. To stop the cycle of revenge and retribution. In all of this, it appears the son is the only halfway intelligent one. I didn’t discover this until after I’d taken him out. I fucked up. I admit that. I should have made him talk because he didn’t deserve to die. He tried to talk his sister down, but she’s batshit crazy and is obsessed with making Eden and Eddie suffer and taking Eden out. She wants Eddie to know, to see his daughter suffering, and that may be the only goddamn thing that gives us time to find her before she kills Eden.”
The blood in Swanny’s veins froze. Dread clutched him by the throat and wouldn’t let go. Oh God, please let Eden be in the hotel room where she’s supposed to be. No matter what, he wasn’t leaving her side until the crazed lunatic trying to kill her was taken out for good. He cursed himself for relaxing his guard even for a moment. No matter how prettily Eden had asked for a few minutes to dress and meet them in the lobby, he should have insisted on remaining with her the entire time. He hoped to hell his fuckup didn’t cost Eden her life. He could never live with himself. He could never live without her.
They rushed off the elevator, guns drawn, and when they got to her suite, Swanny went cold with dread.
The door wasn’t completely closed, a maid’s cart partially obstructing the entrance. He shoved it inside, gun up, his team flanking him as he burst into the room.
“Eden!” Swanny bellowed. “Eden, are you here?”
They rushed in, spreading out quickly. Swanny ran into her bedroom only to find it empty. A quick check of the bathroom turned up nothing, and he began to sweat as panic gripped him by the balls.
“She’s not here,” Hancock yelled. “Fan out. We have to search the hotel from top to bottom. Go, go, go!”
Somehow Hancock got paired with Swanny and they hit the stairway, running full tilt down each floor. Nathan, Joe and the others would do a floor-by-floor sweep, but Swanny knew if Eden had been abducted, her kidnapper wouldn’t have stuck around.
They ran to the basement floor and used the access key provided by hotel security to open the door leading to the stairwell. As they rounded the corner where the elevator stood, Hancock let out a vicious curse.
Swanny saw the maid lying on the floor, eyes glassy with death, a bullet hole low on her forehead, directly between the eyes. Blood had already congealed and she was cold, and rigor was starting to set in.
Son of a bitch. The crazy-ass daughter had gotten into Eden’s room by posing as a maid and used the key card from the cleaning lady she’d shot and killed.
Swanny bolted up and ran toward the exit, throwing open the door, ducking out, hoping against hope that he wasn’t too late and could get a bead on the crazy bitch who’d taken Eden from her hotel room.
What bothered him the most and filled him with overwhelming panic was how she got Eden out with no issue.Eden was trained in self-defense. She could handle herself in a bad situation. So the only way someone would get her out of a hotel with no one knowing and without one hell of a fight was if Eden had been drugged.
Thinking back on the hotel room, there was no sign of a struggle. Nothing had been out of place. Just the maid’s cart, and the door had been left ajar. She had to have been drugged. It was the only explanation.
With a maid coming in, Eden being Eden would have been nice and welcoming, never suspecting a maid could be a danger to her. Especially since Swanny had assured her the threat to her had been taken care of.
Stupid fucking idiot.
This was his goddamn fault. He’d never get over his complete idiocy. Never would be able to make it up to her even if he got the chance, and he prayed he’d have that chance. That he’d find her before it was too late. He couldn’t entertain any other option or he’d lose his mind.
“Quit beating yourself up,” Hancock said gruffly. “This is as much my fault as it is yours. There’s nothing to be accomplished by either of us going over the woulda, coulda, shouldas at this point. We have to get it together and find her.”
“We need the video surveillance stat,” Swanny said grimly as he and Hancock completed their sweep of the alley and parking lot.
“Leave that to me,” Hancock said. “I may not be the geek your Donovan is, but I know my way around computers and electronics. You can be the heavy and I’ll pull up what we need.”
They both hurried inside and went straight to the security desk. Confronted by two very large, very pissed-off men, the head of security didn’t even protest. He brought them into the surveillance room and let Hancock take over.
“There was a blip earlier,” the security guy said in impeccable English, his expression grim as he related the information. “It blinked and went out for a few minutes, which is likely when Miss Sinclair was taken. But we have a camera in the alleyway, so if they went out that way, and it’s likely given the location of the murdered maid that they did, you may pick up footage of the vehicle and get a plate at least.”
Hancock typed furiously, skimming through footage before the blackout and then homing in on the alleyway when the cameras had gone back online.
“Son of a bitch,” Hancock breathed.
Swanny leaned forward to see a woman shoving Eden into the back of a maroon Peugeot and then leaning over her for several seconds. When she backed away they could see Eden lying in the back, the shiny glint of handcuffs on her wrists.
The kidnapper’s face was averted from the camera. Longer dark hair hung down her back and her skin was darker toned. She was shorter than Eden but way stockier. Her arms were muscled as if she had a strict exercise regimen. Her shoulders were broad and square and there was no hint of the curve of breasts through the maid uniform she’d appr
opriated from the employee she’d killed.
Then the Peugeot drove away and Hancock zoomed in on the plate. Hancock barked the number to the security guard and instructed him to contact the police to put out an APB for the vehicle with the plate number.
Swanny radioed his team, told them to stand down from their room-to-room search of the hotel and reported what he and Hancock had discovered.
“We need to widen our perimeter and make damn sure we cover the borders, airports, train stations, any public transit and get the word out on the car and plates. We need as many eyes and ears on this as possible,” Swanny said in a grim voice.
“I’ll call Sam. Get the teams this way so we have all our manpower focused on finding her,” Joe responded.
“It’ll be too fucking late for that,” Hancock snapped. “She won’t survive long enough for fucking Rio and Steele to ride into town. We have to find her and find her now.”
“No shit, asshole,” Swanny growled. “If you think I’m waiting on anyone to find her, you can go fuck yourself.”
Hancock went silent and stared long and hard at Swanny. “You’re in love with her,” he said softly.
“My relationship with Eden is none of your goddamn business,” Swanny said icily.
Hancock shoved into Swanny’s face, going nose to nose with him.
“That’s where you’re wrong,” Hancock growled. “Eden’s my sister in every way that counts except blood. Her family is the closest thing I have to family, and I will do whatever it takes to protect her.”
“Then quit fucking around and let’s get moving,” Swanny bit out. “Because we’re not doing her any good bickering like fucking children. She’s my life and I refuse to rest until I have her back.”
“Fair enough,” Hancock said quietly. “Let’s get going.”
CHAPTER 34
TWO hours into the extensive search for Eden, Swanny was in absolute despair. With every passing second, he felt Eden slipping further and further away. He prayed as he hadn’t prayed since he and Nathan and their mates were imprisoned in an Afghani hellhole.
Shea and her sister Grace were angels sent from God. Swanny knew that in his heart. But now he needed another miracle. Like the one he and Nathan had been given when they’d made their escape.
It was also times like these that Swanny wished Shea’s gift of telepathy weren’t random. That she could somehow reach out to Eden and help them find her. Grace would be of more help, but by the time Rio would be able to get her here, it would be too late for Eden.
His stomach was in a permanent knot and even though he refused to even consider the worst-case scenario, that Eden was already dead, he couldn’t help the surge of grief that threatened to buckle his knees.
He couldn’t lose her. His life had been fine before. He wouldn’t consider himself happy, but neither could he have said he was unhappy. His life was well ordered. His absolute focus had been KGI and his team, their missions and the bond he had with the Kelly family.
Marlene Kelly, the matriarch of the Kelly clan, had pulled him into the fold, instantly adopting him as her own, and she mothered him just like she mothered her actual sons. That love and loyalty extended to her daughters-in-law and everyone else who’d been adopted into the Kelly family.
But now? He couldn’t bear the thought of going back to his sterile existence. He couldn’t imagine his life without Eden. She was his own personal ray of sunshine, her warmth enveloping him just by being in the same room.
Mentally he reprimanded himself. Such dire thoughts did no good whatsoever, and he wasn’t giving Eden the credit she deserved. She was a fighter. She would find a way to survive until Swanny reached her.
And he would find her. If he had to turn the whole goddamn world over in his search, he’d find her or die trying.
His secure cell rang and he yanked it up, knowing it was one of his teammates. Hancock paused, slowing the vehicle he and Swanny occupied, and tuned in to the conversation.
“Swanny, it’s Joe. Where are you right now?”
Swanny leaned over to check the street name just a few feet away from where Hancock had pulled over. He related the intersection to Joe and heard Joe’s sigh of relief.
“We’re five minutes out. Stay put. Eddie has heard from Eden’s kidnapper and you need to see this, man. But you’re going to have to keep your cool and keep your head straight. Eden needs you—all of us—and you can’t let emotion cloud your judgment because we’re going to have to go in and hope to hell we aren’t too late.”
“What the fuck?” Swanny roared. “What do you know? What the hell did Eddie say her kidnapper said?”
“It’s not what he said. It’s what he sent me. Just stay put. We’ll be there in three minutes now.”
Swanny swore a vicious blue streak when Joe disconnected with no further explanation. Then he pounded the dash in frustration, his blood pumping wildly through his veins.
“What the fuck did he say?” Hancock demanded. “Joe heard from Eddie? Why the hell wouldn’t he contact me? I’m the one who fucking told him, Raid and Ryker to stand down when they lost their shit after the RPG attack. I told them I’d take care of the matter and they’d just get in my way. They damn well should have sent whatever intel they received to me.”
“I have no fucking clue,” Swanny ground out. “I couldn’t give a shit about the whys and wherefores about who called who and why. Joe said Eddie sent him something and then told me not to lose my shit and remain focused. Now you tell me. Does that sound good to you?”
The heavy sarcasm—and a healthy dose of terror—was registered by Hancock. He lost some of his belligerence and he actually paled.
“Jesus,” he whispered. “What the fuck could it be? God, don’t let it be a picture of her dead body.”
“Shut the fuck up,” Swanny raged, uncaring that he was precariously close to losing all control and simply imploding. “Joe said we had to go in and get her out before it was too late. That means she’s not dead. Yet.”
Hancock fell silent and kept glancing at his watch. A few moments later, Swanny’s team roared up in two vehicles, having split up to cover more ground. Swanny was out and running in Joe’s direction before Joe could even get out.
Hancock was right on Swanny’s heels, ignoring the incessant honking by pissed-off drivers whom Hancock had blocked by parking at the corner of the intersection.
“Show me,” Swanny said bluntly.
Joe hesitated, which made Swanny’s insides twist into one huge ball. He could barely breathe for the dread gripping him.
“Just show us, goddamn it,” Hancock demanded. “We’re wasting fucking time by standing here. Is she alive? Whatever it is, get on with it.”
Joe dragged a hand through his hair and then pulled out his sat phone.
“Eddie called a while ago freaking the fuck out. Eden’s kidnapper sent him a video because she wanted Eddie to see what she was doing to Eden. She taunted him by saying she was drawing out Eden’s death. Told him her revenge would be complete because she was going to kill Eden and she wanted him to watch her die. Which leads us to believe she’s going to send another video.”
“Show it,” Swanny said, his nostrils flaring.
Joe sighed. “This isn’t easy to see, man. But you need to keep it together. Donovan is working on a trace to see if he can track her location. Hopefully he’ll strike gold and be able to give us a specific location, or hell, if he can just get us in the general vicinity, we’ll find her.”
Before Swanny or Hancock could tell him to quit delaying and show the damn video, Joe turned his phone around and hit the play button for the video.
Hancock’s sudden intake of breath was heard over the noise of traffic and the incessant honking.
Swanny felt sucker-punched as he stared at the events unfolding in front of him. He was numb, utterly numb. He’d never felt horror to this degree. Not even when he and Nathan had been tortured and starved for two months in hell.
Eden was bound
to a chair and blood covered her face as her kidnapper made yet another cut to Eden’s face, carving a meticulous line from her cheekbone to underneath her chin.
Eden’s shriek of pain brought hot tears to Swanny’s eyes. He closed them, unable to bear it any longer. He didn’t even bother to wipe the tears away. He was devastated by what he saw Eden having to endure. The woman was systematically torturing her and taunting her with her impending death.
“Focus, goddamn it,” Hancock shouted. “We need to study the video, see if we can see anything that helps us pinpoint her location. Put it away, Swanny. Eden needs us. You can’t help her if you lose your shit now.”
Swanny visibly shook off his grief and rage and refocused his attention on the tear-blurred screen in front of him.
“Start it over,” Swanny choked out. “Hancock’s right. We need to look beyond Eden to see if we can locate anything that helps us. She doesn’t have long. When this crazy bitch grows tired of torturing Eden and taunting both her and Eddie, she’ll kill Eden and the next video we receive will be of her dead body.”
It took everything he had to push aside his emotions and look at this with the detachment he always had on other missions. He couldn’t look at this when his mind was clouded and consumed with fear for Eden. He had to put it away and do the job. At any cost.
Bracing himself and forcing himself to study the video with objectivity, he zeroed in on the surroundings. This time Joe muted it because the only sound was Eden’s scream and Swanny couldn’t bear to hear it again. Knowing she was in agony was hard enough. Listening again would send Swanny right over the edge. And he was precariously close to losing his shit. One push and he’d be gone.
Something caught his eye and his pulse ratcheted up, so much so that he could feel it beating at his temples and in his neck.
“Back that up,” Swanny ordered.
He leaned in, taking the phone from Joe, and then hit play again, bringing the phone closer to his vision.
There. There it was!
Oh God. She had his necklace on!
He thrust the phone at Joe, his movements frantic as he dug out the GPS locator from his pocket. Goddamn it. Why hadn’t he thought of it before? He was so rattled in the hotel room, he hadn’t even thought about looking for the necklace. He’d assumed she’d wear something far more glamorous to the launch party.
“What the hell?” Hancock demanded. “What’s going on? What did you see?”
“The necklace,” Swanny rasped as he yanked out the locator. “I gave her a necklace with a tracking device. I told her to wear it when she wasn’t filming or at an event. I never expected she’d wear it tonight. That must have been the surprise she’d planned for me and why she didn’t want me to see her dressing. Yes, I gave it to her as a gift, something special, but my primary focus was on having a way to make sure she was safe if I wasn’t with her for whatever reason. But she didn’t know it had a chip. I didn’t want her to misinterpret the gesture.”
Everyone pushed forward as Swanny fumbled with the locator, his hands shaking so badly he could barely punch in the commands to get a bead on Eden’s location.
“Come on, come on,” Swanny chanted in frustration. “She can’t have gone too far in this length of time.”
Bingo! Relief crushed him with its weight. There was a blinking dot on the map of Paris. Eden was still in the city!
“Got her!” Swanny shouted. “Let’s roll.”
CHAPTER 35
THEY scrambled into two vehicles, shoving in clips, lifting assault rifles into place and positioning knives and flashbang grenades.
Swanny had given the GPS locator to Joe, who was driving him and Hancock while Nathan, Edge and Skylar brought up the rear.
By using satellite imagery, they were able to pull up a picture of the exact location that gave Eden’s position. It was a house on the outskirts of Paris, just to the south, in a suburb with houses spaced short distances between them.
They had to make damn sure their entry was clean and not have an innocent caught in the cross fire. Swanny prayed the entire way. He prayed that Eden was alive. He prayed her kidnapper hadn’t figured out the necklace was a tracking device and left it in its current position as a decoy. Because if that was the case, they were well and truly fucked. They’d be starting from zero again, and every precious minute counted.
“Drive faster, goddamn it,” Swanny seethed.
“I’ve got it to the floor, man,” Joe replied, his expression grim. “Get yourself together. We can’t afford to let emotion cloud your judgment. We don’t know for certain she’s where the tracking device is, and we don’t want to burst into a civilian’s home and blow them all to hell.”
Swanny ground his teeth together. Bullshit. Let his judgment be clouded by emotion? How the hell could he not be up to his eyeballs in emotion and adrenaline? Not to mention bloody fucking terror. The woman he loved was suffering horribly. He knew only too well what she was enduring, and he’d been trained to withstand torture in the military. Violence hadn’t touched Eden until recently. She wasn’t meant for pain and disfigurement.
Tears gathered and burned in his eyes, but he blinked them away, knowing he needed perfect vision and his senses sharp. They might get only one shot at this. If threatened, the crazy-ass woman would probably take Eden down even knowing she was about to die herself.
Hancock, who’d been studying the close-up map of the neighborhood, lifted his head.
“Looks like there are two entrances. Judging by the background in the video, my bet is the basement level. It was dark with concrete walls and the floor had appeared dusty and damp.”
“So we go in quietly, undetected, and then we take her by surprise with a