Tammy nodded earnestly. “I have a plan to get out.”
“You have a plan?”
Tammy looked insulted. “Yes. I have a plan. Lance and Bagheera will create a distraction, and I’m going to climb into in a laundry bag that the laundry guys will just put up into the truck. Mr. Marrec will stop the truck and get me out.”
“The laundry truck comes today.” Shit. He’d thought he’d have time to talk her out of it.
She nodded, blue eyes big. “It’s got to be today. Right now, in fact. You in, Michael?”
Shit. Shit. Shit. Keeping her from her Destiny would drive her crazy. Especially if she had it as bad as she said. The kid would probably try to find her, break in, and Ernie and Edwards or one of the other guys would shoot him.
But no. Drew saw Tammy and the boy in the future, together, on a beach. And Marrec was on the hill above them, watching. And later, or earlier (you could never tell the order Drew’s visions would actually occur), the boy saved Tammy from a fire. Did that mean Michael should help her get together with him? And then there was the fact that under the desert stars, with the family all around her, she appeared to Drew to be dead. Damn. Living with a woman who could tell the future made life even more complicated. But Drew had seen Marrec watching over Tammy on a beach. Tammy’s plan was going to be successful, no matter what Michael did.
Tammy leaned forward and put her hand on his forearm. “I just need a couple of days to see if this is real, and if…if it can work out. The Clan is busy prepping for whatever happens when the comet makes the Pentacle. We’re not their priority. Kemble says so. There’s nothing I can do here to help. Mr. Marrec will get me back home at the first sign of trouble. We’re just going to Catalina. The Clan would never suspect one of us would go there. I promise I’ll bring Thomas back here if he really is the One and he wants to try and make a go of it. We can face Daddy and Kemble, if I’m sure. If he’s sure. Please, Michael.”
She was going to Catalina. On an island. With beaches. Like in Drew’s vision. Damn times two. What could he do? Actually… “Okay. But I’m going with you.”
He was surprised when she seemed to panic. “No, no, no! You have to stay here and reassure the Parents and Jane and everybody that I’m okay. If you go too, if there’s no one to explain…just think how worried they’d be.”
“We’ll call them.”
“Then Kemble will trace the call.”
“Burner phone.”
“You’re just too big, Michael,” she said, bluntly. “Everyone would notice if you got into the laundry truck and didn’t come out. You’re way too big to hide in a bag. And don’t say we can just walk out the front gate, because there would be a huge scene and Kemble and Tris and the security guys would try to stop us, and there’s just no time for all that.”
“Why right now?”
Tammy chewed her lip, deciding. “Because Thomas is close. I just met him at the fence by the cliff. He got a ride over here from one of the P.V. cops, who just happens to know Mr. Edwards. Thomas thinks the cop is going to rat us out, and soon.”
Damn, damn, damn.
Was she right? She might be. Her plan was a decent one. Maybe he’d have to trust Marrec. Of course, he wasn’t going to let Marrec do this alone. But if Michael couldn’t go…
Aw, hell. Wasn’t this just peachy keen? The family would find out she was gone, of course. Probably in a matter of hours. They’d come running for him to Find her. He’d have to lie and say he couldn’t see her, or send them on a wild goose chase to buy her time to get clearly away. He’d be the one holding the bag here. And when he got backed into a corner but refused to say where she was, the shit would hit the fan. He glanced at his watch. Laundry arrived at six. The Breakers was the last stop. It was already five-thirty.
“You have money?” He nodded to the purse.
She nodded vigorously. “Eighteen thousand dollars.”
That surprised him. “Why eighteen?”
“Well, fifteen for Mr. Marrec and three for expenses. I’ll need a change of clothes. I can’t exactly pack a bag, and Thomas didn’t have one. I’ll have to pay for the hotel and food.”
Damned merc. Charging the kid fifteen K. Hmmm. Actually, he could have charged a lot more. That confirmed Michael’s suspicion about his motives. “How did you contact Marrec?”
She fumbled in the purse and produced a card. “He left this on the hall table when he Mom kicked him out the other night.”
Michael took it. “Give me your phone.”
“I don’t have it with me. Mr. Marrec said to leave it behind.”
“Well, bring it to me. If Kemble gets hold of it, he’ll know you called Marrec.” He might have to tell them about Marrec eventually, but he wanted it to be his choice.
She nodded as though she was afraid to say too much or he’d change his mind. Wise kid.
“Then, get down to the laundry room and climb into a bag. I’ll take the cart out to the front and load you in, so no one will notice the bag’s a little hefty. That way we don’t need any animal distractions.”
“Lance will try to come after me.”
“So lock him in your room. I’ll let him out after you’re gone. Go on.”
She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks, Michael. I mean, really. Thanks.”
“Just obey Marrec, will you? If he thinks it’s too dangerous, this whole thing stops and you come home, Destiny or no. Understood?”
She nodded, turned and dashed for the door. At the last second, she turned. “You’d better follow up with Mr. Edwards to make sure the cop doesn’t raise his suspicions about Thomas.”
Then she was gone. When she had pulled the door closed, Michael pulled out his phone and dialed the number on the card.
“Marrec.” The voice had a familiar ring even through the French Canadian accent. Not a shock that he was related to Brian.
“Michael Redmond.”
“Ahh. Me, I told her you would object.”
“I’m going to let her do it, fool that I am. She deserves a chance to be happy.” Not a word about visions of the future. “But you’re a fool if you think you can do this by yourself.”
“I have a few friends who wish to take a few days of vacation.”
“How many?”
“Eight. And there is me also, bien sûr.”
Well, that was better. “Skilled?”
“All men of skills.”
And they weren’t doing this for fifteen thousand. “How much?”
“We will discuss that when I have brought the estimable young lady back safe and sound to the bosom of her family, along with the young man, if you so desire. Or without, if that would be more convenient.”
Blackmail? “First, let’s get this clear. With the boy. In good health. And I’d rather get a price now. May have to raise the money.”
“And who says the price will be money, my friend? I will take care of le petit lapin. That is all you need to know at this time.”
Michael gritted his teeth. But there wasn’t much choice. He didn’t have time to recruit help and he could no more do this by himself than Marrec could.
“I hear the wheels grinding. But she is a determined young lady. If it is not this time, it will be another. And is it not better to protect her than have her escape alone?”
“Yes, God damn it. Crap in a hat.”
“This is one thing I will not do, Redmond. I like my hat.” The voice rumbled a chuckle in his ear. “Now, I must cut this delightful conversation short if I am to be ready as according to the so-intrepid young lady’s plan.”
“I’ll see she gets on the laundry truck,” Michael said through gritted teeth.
“And me, I will take it from there. Call from a burner when they discover she is gone.”
The line clicked off.
Michael was going to regret this. He only hoped his only reason for regret was Drew and her family yelling at him, and not because anything happened to Tammy.
CHAPTER TEN
‡
Tammy wriggled out of the laundry bag in the back of the big van, sucking in air. Michael had heaved her up last but it had still been touch and go on breathing.
Light came in through the small oblong windows in the doors at the back of the van. The place smelled like gym socks. Yuck. She scrambled over heaped laundry bags and peered out the back windows. They were on the way down to San Pedro, probably to the laundry facility. Would Mr. Marrec be able to find her? They were getting farther and farther away from the Admiral Risty and Thomas.
But at the stoplight at Western, the back doors jerked open and Mr. Marrec stood there. She’d almost forgotten how intimidating he looked with those scars on his face and how disconcerting it was to see the family likeness stamped on a stranger’s features. He looked just like Daddy, and Kemble and Lan and Tris for that matter. Dark hair, almost black. Fair skin. Those very blue eyes. If she had to pick out one thing that wasn’t Tremaine to the core, it was his nose. It was slightly more Roman than her family’s features. But she had to admit that it only contributed to his rough attractiveness. He was probably a killer with the ladies. Or just a killer.
He motioned to her and she jumped down. He pushed the doors shut quietly as she scurried to the driverless black SUV with its engine running just behind the van and leaped into the passenger’s side. Mr. Marrec walked calmly to the driver’s side and slid his big frame behind the wheel.
As the van pulled away, Mr. Marrec followed. “Where do we pick up Prince Charming, ma petite?” he asked, in that low growl he had.
“He’s waiting for me at the Admiral Risty. Do you know where that is?” He wasn’t from around here, after all.
He nodded once and did a U-turn right in the middle of the street to go the other way. No hesitation. Several cars going north honked. Wow. This guy was really a man of action.
“Now, where are we going for these three days you want?”
She cleared her throat. He had to know sooner or later. “I was thinking of Catalina Island. Out of the way. Don’t think we’d accidentally run into any Clan members there.”
“How would you know with so many tourists there? Not easy to defend.”
Uh-oh. She’d thought she’d found the perfect solution. He disapproved. Would he back out? “We’ll be lost in the crowds if a cruise ship is in. And I know a little hotel. Out of the way. There isn’t any road. The bellman hauls your luggage up a bunch of stairs for you.”
“Better.” His eyes constantly swept his surroundings as he drove. “Also good, there is but one place for aircraft to land on the island. Then it is difficult to get to the inhabited area.”
She hadn’t thought about planes or helicopters. That frightened her. What else had she overlooked? “I…I heard it’s a really dangerous little airport.”
He nodded. “Unpredictable drafts.”
“That’s good, right? People won’t want to land there.”
He grunted. “Pilots fly in all the time.”
They were just passing the gate to The Breakers. Tammy was practically trembling. But there was no activity to be seen, at least from out here. The sun was setting. Catalina floated in the distance, looking much farther away than the seventeen miles she knew it was. She took a look at her watch. It was getting on towards seven.
“You check the schedule of the ferry for this time of year?”
She gasped. Oh my God.
“I will take that as a ‘no.’” He thinned his lips and flipped open a tablet he dug out from the center console. He tapped a few times as they closed in on the Admiral Risty, glancing between the road and his iPad. “Last ferry from San Pedro is three-thirty.”
Tammy’s heart sank. “How about out of Long Beach?”
He tapped again. “Five-forty-five.”
That was it. What would they do?
“Well, let’s go get lover-boy. We will stay in a hotel near to the ferry terminal then catch the early ferry tomorrow. It’s at…” He checked once more. “Nine.”
They were turning into the parking lot of the little shopping center that held the Admiral Risty. Its wall of windows faced out over the ocean. It was going to be one of those “big-red-ball-sinks-into-steel-blue-sea” sunsets. She couldn’t see the bench behind the makeshift screen of plants on the parking lot side of the restaurant. Thomas was there, though. She could feel him.
Would he agree to go with her when she brought the intimidating Mr. Marrec with her? Maybe he’d gotten cold feet. Hell, maybe she had cold feet. Needing a guy she didn’t even know was nothing short of scary. Seeing things through animal eyes was spooky, yet useless. She’d just left her family for Thomas, who might still be hardened Clan, and a guy named Marrec who was definitely hardened something. She glanced to Mr. Marrec as he pulled into a parking spot. Several older couples entered the restaurant door. The bar catered to the younger set with live music, but the restaurant was strictly red-booth with a view for the older crowd with money.
She took a breath. She was going to go through with this because if she didn’t, her life was pretty much guaranteed to suck. At least this way she had a chance, however slim, of happiness. She was going to grab for the brass ring, win or lose. And she might still get enough information out of Thomas to help her family. She reached for the door latch.
“Wait a minute, ma petite.” Mr. Marrec grabbed her forearm. “Are you not forgetting something?” He raised his brows.
Oh. “Sorry. The money.” She reached for her bag but he took it from her. Would he rob her and leave her here?
After opening it and seeing the contents, he looked up at her with a quirked brow. “You just stuffed fifteen thousand dollars in here?”
She nodded. What else was she supposed to do? Get a cashier’s check? “There’s three thousand extra. That’s for expenses for Thomas and me.”
“I take it Thomas’s pockets are not well-lined.” Mr. Marrec looked like he disapproved.
“That’s beside the point.” She was in charge here, she reminded herself. She had purchased his services. “Now, you can count out what’s yours while I go collect Thomas.”
She got out of the car. A pickup with a tattooed guy in the driver’s seat pulled into a parking space opposite theirs. A young man and a woman were necking in a van three spots down. Wow. PDA in broad daylight. Not exactly Risty’s usual style. She hurried to the bench just outside the Risty’s door.
Three young men with their backs facing her were talking. “Come on, man. You want a good time—you come with us.”
“Yeah. We’ll show you a real good time,” another said.
“I’m waiting for someone.” Thomas.
“Sure you are. Us.”
“He’s waiting for me,” she said.
They all turned. They were late teens, maybe early twenties. Lots of leather, not nearly worn enough to be genuine tough-guy outfits. Her brother Tris would laugh at leather like that. They looked surprised, then sly.
“Well now, what have we here?”
“Tammy,” Thomas exclaimed, relief flooding his face. “I thought you were near. I’m glad to see you.” He stood.
Tammy heard one of the young men say, “A girl. That’s okay. Sharpshooter here likes girls too.”
Part of her said, Sharpshooter? What kind of a nickname is that? But the other part was busy getting lost in Thomas’s blue eyes and wanting to touch his stubbly jaw or run her hands over his muscled forearms. She heard her own breath rasp in and out. The poseur guys faded from her vision. Thomas came toward her, shouldering the guys out of the way as though he was being reeled in on a line.
“Hey, buddy. Watch it.”
“You asking for trouble? You came to the right place,” another said, a little too loudly.
Who says that kind of stuff? But one of them moved to jerk Thomas around. Thomas was obviously stronger than they were, but did he even know how to fight?
“Leave them alone.”
Every one of their awkward little group snapped t
heir heads around at the command. Mr. Marrec loomed just behind Tammy’s shoulder. She blinked at him, coming to herself. He was really pretty intimidating with those scars and those intense blue eyes. His tee shirt and cargo pants and the kind of expensive, heavy boots that laced up instantly made the three guys trying to hit on Thomas look like schoolboys playing dress up. Which they were. One of the schoolboys held up his hands. All three backed up a step.
“Let’s go,” Marrec growled.
Thomas looked mulish. “Leave Tammy alone.”
Oh. “Thomas, this is Luc Marrec. He’s a friend.” Well, she wasn’t sure of that, but she was kinda short on friends right now. Family didn’t count, and all except (she hoped) Michael were not going to support her anyway. So Marrec was as close to a friend as she and Thomas had, even if she’d had to pay for his friendship. But she couldn’t stop staring at Thomas. He stared back. The world fell away.
“Come on, love-birds,” Marrec growled and both Tammy and Thomas jerked back into the present. He pointed to the parking lot. The three schoolboys looked at each other as if someone should know what to do. Mr. Marrec herded Tammy and Thomas ahead of him.
Thomas let himself be persuaded, his suspicion of Marrec apparently lost in the need to be next to Tammy. Tammy got that. She never wanted to be parted from him. Was this what it was like to find your Destiny? Suddenly, she wasn’t sure how this could possibly work out, but she was absolutely sure she wanted to be with this man for the rest of her life.
“You,” Mr. Marrec said, pointing to Thomas, “Back seat. No, wait.” He took a small cell-phone-like device from his pocket and ran it quickly over Thomas’s clothes. Thomas looked curiously at him.
“Just making sure you’re not wired.”
Wow. Mr. Marrec was thorough. She was rather embarrassed that she hadn’t thought of that. Some spy she’d make. She was glad Thomas had passed the test, though. She’d have hated to think he was just a plant and Morgan was hearing everything they said and knew exactly where they were. Tammy noticed as she got into the front seat that the man in the pick-up truck must have left something in the truck because he did a U-turn and returned to the cab. The couple was still necking in the van. Mr. Marrec pulled out and headed north.
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