Wet N Wild Navy SEALs

by Tawny Weber

  “She was giving them away?” Cooper said.

  Rosa shrugged. “I do not know for sure. But what else could it be?”

  “Why keep it a secret?” Jessie asked.

  Rosa shook her head. “I do not know.”

  “And you have no idea who she gave them to?” asked Cooper.

  “To children somewhere.”

  “You never saw her take them out of the house or heard her talk about giving them away?”

  Rosa lifted her chin slightly. “I only saw her bring in the new ones.”

  Cooper believed her. He also believed she’d just handed him the key to finding Jessie’s sister, and he suspected Rosa knew it. Standing, he offered her his hand. “Thank you, Rosa. You’ve been a great help.”

  To his surprise, she took his hand. “I hope you find her before . . .”

  “I’ll do my best.” He squeezed her hand and turned to Jessie. “Ready?”

  “Yes.” Jessie stood and smiled warmly at Rosa. “Thank you. I’ll tell my sister what a loyal friend you’ve been.”

  They started toward the door but stopped when Rosa said, “Señor Cooper?”

  He turned back to her. “Yes?”

  “Working for Señor Whitlock. It is a good job.”

  Cooper nodded. “He’ll never know we were here.”

  “Thank you.”

  Jessie followed him outside. Then she said, “She’s afraid of Robert.”

  “She’s afraid of losing her job.” He took Jessie’s arm and led her down the walk. “She gave us personal information about her employer. To someone like Rosa, that’s a betrayal of trust she doesn’t take lightly. But she’s just given us a vital piece of information.”

  “The stuffed animals?” Jessie shook her head. “Wherever Nicole is hiding, it can’t be the same place where she took those animals.”

  “There’s got to be a connection.”

  She stopped on the walk and turned to him. “Why? And how can it help us? Most nuns deal with children. You said yourself that it would take weeks to check out all the religious orders in South Florida.”

  Cooper moved to the car and held the door for her. “We’re not talking about children from stable homes. We’re talking about children who appreciate something as simple as a stuffed toy.”

  “So what are you saying? An orphanage? A hospital?” She walked over to him. “I can’t believe it. Nicole would never put children in danger.”

  “Maybe there are other options.”

  “Like?”

  Suddenly he saw them, halfway down the block. “Don’t turn around, Jess,” he said, cursing himself for not spotting them sooner. “And keep on talking.”

  Confusion, understanding, and then fear flashed across her features, but she kept her voice low and steady. “What is it?”

  “Our friends are back.”

  Chapter 11

  Jessie fought her panic. “Our friends?”

  “In a dark sedan, halfway down the block.”

  Meeting Cooper’s gaze, she clung to the steadiness in his eyes. “What happened to the Camaro?”

  He smiled, a cocky half-smile that she figured was half-real and half for show. “Guess they took notes from yours truly.”

  She forced her own light laugh. “You’re sure they’re the same men?”

  “Sometimes you’ve got to go with your gut.”

  It was a sentiment she understood all too well. “What do you want me to do?”

  “Keep smiling and get in the car as if nothing’s happened.”

  Nodding, she followed his instructions. Cooper closed her door and circled around to the driver’s side.

  “Did they follow us from the condo?” she asked once he’d joined her inside the car.

  “Maybe.” He started the engine “Or they were waiting to pick us up here.” He put the car in gear and pulled away from the curb. “Either way, it means I haven’t been keeping as far ahead of them as I thought.” He glanced at Jessie, and she could almost read his thoughts. He’d been too preoccupied with her. Then, shifting his eyes to the rearview mirror, he said, “Come on, buddy. Let’s see if you can keep up.”

  “You want them to follow us?”

  “I’m not crazy about the idea.” Again he scanned the rearview mirror. “But it’s better than having them hanging around Rosa.”

  Her stomach tightened in fear for the other woman. “They wouldn’t hurt her, would they?”

  “They’re after us, but I’m not taking any chances.” Grabbing his cell, he punched the automatic-dial button. After a few moments, he said, “Alice, put Victoria on.” A couple of minutes later he spoke again. “Victoria, we’ve picked up a tail. They may have made the condo.” He paused. “Yeah, we’re coming in, but we’re going to need a way out and a safe place to stay.” Another pause. “Good. And get someone down here to keep an eye on Rosa Garcia. The address is 2476 Palm Grove Lane.” After a moment, he said, “Thanks,” and broke the connection.

  “Why are we going back to the office?” Jessie asked.

  “I had Alice pick up copies of a Catholic directory that lists all the religious orders in the state. We need to go through the book and look at local orders that work with children, someplace Nicole would feel comfortable hiding.” He glanced at Jessie. “It’s a long shot, but if we find nuns that meet those qualifications, we may just find her.”

  “And the men following us?”

  “We aren’t leading them anywhere they haven’t already been.” He glanced once more in the rearview mirror. “The trick is going to be getting away from them later.”

  Jessie settled back in her seat, realizing for the first time how much she’d come to depend on this man. When she’d first contacted him, she’d put Nicole’s life in his hands because there had been no other choice. Now Jessie knew she would make the same decision again, only this time she’d do it because she trusted him. If it were humanly possible, Sam Cooper would get them all out of this alive.

  When they got back to the office, Victoria had already set things in motion. She had several people going through photocopied pages of the directory, making a list of all the religious orders in South Florida.

  Then she, Jessie, and Cooper scoured the list, looking for likely locations. They ruled out all the orders that focused on teaching and nursing, and those that ran facilities strictly for the care of children—places where Nicole would endanger the children by being there. It seemed to Jessie like a hopeless task, like trying to pick a winner in a horse race when you didn’t know all the players.

  Two hours later, Cooper beat the odds.

  “Our Lady of Sorrows,” he said, reading aloud from the listing. “It’s a small order dedicated to women in crisis.” He paused and looked up. “They operate a battered women’s shelter in Coral Gables.”

  Victoria reached over and took the directory, reading the entry herself. Then she handed it to Jessie and asked Cooper, “You think this is it?”

  “It meets all the criteria,” he answered. “Nuns, children, security . . . Hiding women from men is what they do.”

  Victoria shook her head. “It’s a strong possibility, but it’s still a guess. You can’t be sure that Nicole even knew about this place.”

  “She knew about it,” Jessie said.

  Obviously surprised, both Cooper and Victoria turned to look at her.

  Jessie shook her head. “I can’t believe I didn’t think of it sooner.” She paused, realizing she’d had the final piece all along. “It’s just been so long.”

  “What has?” Victoria asked.

  Jessie met the other woman’s gaze. “For a couple of years, Nicole volunteered at a shelter for battered women. She took care of the children.” Jessie paused, remembering one of the biggest fights she’d ever had with her younger sister. “Until I put a stop to it.”

  Victoria scooted forward in her chair. “Why did you stop her?”

  “She was only sixteen. I didn’t think it was a healthy environment for a teena
ger.” She took a deep breath. She’d been so young herself, too young to be making life choices for her teenage sister. “She was furious.”

  “That’s when you started the day care center,” Cooper said.

  Surprised at his insight, Jessie met his gaze. “I thought as long as she had children to care for she’d be okay.”

  “I’m surprised they let her near the shelter, she was so young,” Victoria said.

  Jessie shifted her attention back to Cooper’s partner. “They probably wouldn’t have, except that Nicole was very close to Ella, the woman who ran the place. We’d met her when we lived with Jacob Anderson and his daughter, Maura, after our parents died. Ella was staying in Jacob’s house as well. He was her attorney and offering her protection from her wealthy husband. The man had abused her, and she was suing him for divorce. Later, after the divorce, Ella opened the shelter.” Jessie handed the directory back to Victoria. “Our Lady of Sorrows is the place. I’m sure of it.”

  Cooper turned to Victoria. “Can you get us out of here?”

  She walked over to her desk, picked up a set of keys, and tossed them to Cooper. “It’s a white van, parked on the bottom level and rented under the name Tom Smith.”

  Cooper pulled out his own keys and gave them to her. “And the safe house?”

  She handed him a slip of paper. “It’s in West Palm. Here’s the address. There’s also a second rental car up there. Now give me about a fifteen-minute start and I’ll get rid of the goons tailing you.”

  Cooper turned to Jessie. “Are you ready to go get your sister?”

  It was nearly dark by the time they made it back to Coral Gables on the south side of Miami.

  Cooper drove past the house once, made a U-turn at the end of the block, and then stopped the car several houses away from their destination. For a moment, neither he nor Jessie spoke. Like the houses nearby, the shelter sat well off the road surrounded by a high wall, this one draped in deep purple bougainvillea. There was nothing to indicate that it was anything other than another old-Florida home, graciously restored.

  “You’ll have to go in alone,” he said. “If they see a man, they’ll shut down tighter than a clam.”

  Jessie nodded, keeping her eyes on the incongruously flowered wall.

  “If she’s in there,” Cooper continued, “they’re not going to admit it. Even to you.”

  “I’ll get in.”

  “Jessie . . .” Cooper touched her arm, and she turned to look at him. “We don’t have much time before they find us. They’ll figure out pretty quick that Victoria’s a decoy. You need to get in and out as quickly as possible. Preferably with Nicole.”

  “I’ll bring her.”

  He lifted his hand to her cheek, and Jessie trembled at the unexpected warmth that spread through her. Then, hitching her purse strap higher on her shoulder, she pulled away and got out of the car.

  The street loomed ahead of her, telescoping, and it seemed to take forever to cross the few hundred yards. She stopped at the front gate and pressed the button near the intercom system.

  A few minutes later a disembodied female voice came over the system. “Yes? Can I help you?”

  Jessie stepped closer to the speaker. “I need to speak to someone.” She heard a whirring sound and looked up to see a surveillance camera slowly scan the area.

  “Are you alone?” the voice asked.

  “Yes.”

  A harsh buzz indicated the unlocking of the door-size opening in the gate, and Jessie pushed at the cold, heavy metal. Behind her the door swung back into place with a heavy thunk.

  She made her way up the long walkway to the front door. Someone took meticulous care of the yard, and brightly colored impatiens lined the walk. They reminded her of Nicole and the flowers she used to love growing.

  On the front porch, Jessie noticed the barred windows and another surveillance camera discreetly placed behind a hanging basket of ivy. She’d come to the right place.

  Nicole was here. She had to be.

  Before she could knock, a small nun opened the door. “I’m Sister Frances. May I help you?”

  “I hope so.” Jessie gripped her hands together around her purse strap. “I’m Jessica Burkett, and I’m looking for my sister, Nicole Whitlock.”

  “I see,” she said, frowning. “I’m afraid I can’t help you.”

  “Please.” Jessie stepped closer to the other woman and lowered her voice. “I know this is a shelter for battered women and that Nicole is here.” Jessie paused, letting her words sink it. “I must speak to her.”

  The other woman didn’t miss a beat. “I’m sorry. We don’t reveal the names of our guests.”

  “Tell her I’m here then. I’ll wait outside.”

  “I’m sorry.” The nun shook her head and started to close the door. “I must ask you to leave.”

  Jessie slipped her foot between the door and its frame, wedging it firmly. “This is a matter of life or death, Sister. I’m a woman and I’m alone. Let me come in.”

  “Step away from the door, or I’ll call the police.”

  “I’m sorry, Sister.” Jessie pushed open the door with surprising strength and propelled herself past the stunned nun. “I need to see Nicole.” Hurrying into the house, she ignored the nun’s attempts to stop her. “Nicole!” she yelled, moving from one room to the next.

  Upstairs, she heard footsteps scrambling and doors slamming shut, while the small nun tagged along behind, trying to stop her.

  “Nicole!” Jessie called again as she headed toward the back of the house, toward the sound of voices.

  Suddenly Nicole stepped into a doorway in front of her, bringing Jessie to an abrupt halt.

  “You’re scaring everyone,” her sister said. “Especially the children.”

  Relief flooded Jessie, and she started to move toward Nicole. Again she stopped, noticing the cluster of small faces in the room behind her. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten anyone. But I had to find you.” She took a small step forward. “I’ve been so worried.”

  “You should have stayed away.”

  Jessie searched Nicole’s face, looking for a clue to what was going on here. “I couldn’t.”

  “Why?”

  Jessie couldn’t believe she had to ask. “You’re my sister and I love you. I know you’re in some kind of trouble, and I want to help.”

  Nicole sighed. “I didn’t want you involved.”

  “Involved?” Jessie took another step toward her sister, wishing she could throw her arms around her, but afraid for some reason that Nicole would back away. “Involved in what?”

  Just then Cooper burst into the room, with several angry women at his heels. “We got to go, Jess,” he said. “Now. We’ve got company.”

  Robert prayed they hadn’t found her.

  Though he feared God had stopped hearing him the day he’d decided to play God himself. The day he’d met the Colonel and joined his organization.

  For the third time in less than a week, Robert sat in the other man’s office, waiting. For once, however, he didn’t have to wait long. The Colonel joined him almost immediately after Robert had been ushered in. The look of self-satisfaction on the other man’s face crushed what little hope Robert still held.

  Hopelessness gave him courage, however. “This had better be important, Colonel. Your man called me out of court.”

  “We’ve found your wife.”

  Robert sank back in his chair, his brief flash of defiance crushed.

  “Actually,” the Colonel continued, obviously unaware or unconcerned with Robert’s distress, “Sam Cooper found her.”

  “Where?”

  “A battered women’s shelter in Coral Gables. Rather appropriate, don’t you think?” He paused and then added, “I’ve decided the P.I.’s talent is in his simplicity of thought.”

  Robert held his tongue, not caring how Cooper had found Nicole.

  “My men spotted him and the Burkett woman about a half hour ago.” He glanced
at his watch. “I suspect by now they’ve already moved in.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “Don’t worry.” The Colonel sat down in his chair, carefully folding his hands on the desk. “They have orders to bring all three of them back alive. That is, unless our talented ex-Fed gives them trouble.”

  It had just been dumb luck that Cooper had spotted them.

  He’d been scanning the area, watching for anything unusual, when he’d suddenly gone on full alert. It had been nothing more than a flare of a match in the near dusk, from a seemingly empty van parked at the end of the block. Suddenly, Cooper would have bet his life that the van held something, or someone, other than the flowers advertised on its side.

  He hadn’t waited to find out for sure.

  He’d slipped out of his car and worked his way around to the side of the shelter. Despite the thorny bougainvillea vines, he’d climbed over the wall easily. Getting into the kitchen past a burly delivery man had been a little tougher. The man would have one hell of a headache when he woke up. Then, pushing his way past several drill sergeants in long black skirts had been the really hard part. Now he stood in the middle of a group of very angry women, and they were all running out of time.

  “Who are you?” Nicole demanded.

  “Men aren’t allowed in here,” one of the nuns said at the same moment. “You’ll have to leave.”

  “It’s okay,” Jessie said, moving over next to him. “He’s with me. He helped me find you.”

  “I don’t care who he’s with,” Sister Frances said. “Men aren’t allowed here under any circumstances.”

  Jessie turned to Cooper. “What kind of company?”

  “Our friends. And they’re right behind me.” To the nun, he said, “We need to use your back door, Sister. And your car.”

  The woman bristled.

  “Sister, please,” Jessie added. “We need to take Nicole and get out of here. The men who are looking for her are dangerous.”

  “How do we know you’re not just as dangerous?”