by Rebecca Deel
“I’d put my money on Jon any time. In the meantime, would you like coffee or maybe a shower?”
A sheepish smile curved her lips. “Coffee first. Besides, I don’t have anything to change into yet.”
“Ah, never let it be said that Wolfe Investigations doesn’t take care of its clients. I called Cal and asked him to drop off your luggage and laptop. He should arrive in the next few minutes.” He poured a mug of coffee and handed it to her. “Cream or sugar?”
Brenna sighed. “No, thanks. I need straight up and strong today.”
Eli noted the dark circles under her eyes. They matched the circles under his. “Maybe you can catch a nap later.”
“I’ll sleep after we find Dana.”
“Brenna, you have to take care of yourself. You can’t help Dana if you collapse from exhaustion.”
“What about you? Did you sleep?”
He sipped his coffee, eyed her over the mug’s rim. “I’ve been on the phone and put out feelers for information in the intelligence community and Fortress’s network. I’ll sleep later when Jon’s here to keep watch. I also slept four hours before Cal called about you. You, on the other hand, worked until Hoodie broke into Dana’s place. Jon and I are trained to work on little to no sleep. You aren’t.”
Brenna yawned, her jaws popping. “Okay, you made your point. I might try to sleep later, but I doubt it will work. I keep thinking about Dana, wondering what’s happened to her, trying to figure out why someone took her. It doesn’t make sense, Eli. I don’t have much money. I would sell everything I own in a heartbeat to get her back, but no one’s asked for money, only a recording I know nothing about and can’t find.”
Eli squeezed her shoulder. “We won’t stop looking until we find her.”
“Promise?”
“No matter how long it takes or how far they take her.” He just hoped they found her before it was too late.
Dana stumbled into the room, shaded her eyes against the bright lights.
“Sit here, Ms. Cole.”
A cold hand clamped on her arm and moved her to an examination table. Dana sat as far away as she could from the man wearing a white lab coat and surveyed the room. Scattered medical equipment and supplies lined the walls and countertops. “Who are you?”
“I’m a doctor. My name doesn’t matter.” He pulled on a pair of rubber gloves. “Hold out your arm, please.”
“Why?” Her eyes widened at the sight of tray he dragged closer, one laden with test tubes and hypodermic needles. “No more drugs.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Ms. Cole.” He frowned at her. “I’m simply taking a blood sample.”
Dana’s pulse raced. Why did he need a blood sample?
Ape man stepped inside the examining room, his expression hard. “Got a problem here, Doc?”
“She’s not very cooperative, Reggie. I need a blood sample.”
Faster than Dana believed possible for such a large guy, Ape man crossed the room, grabbed her throat with one hand and shoved her against the wall. “Stick out your arm.” He increased the pressure, leaning forward until his mouth brushed against her ear. “If you want your sister to remain free and healthy, you’ll give the doc what he needs. Your choice. You or your sister.” His tongue caressed her ear. “Does she taste as sweet as you, Dana?”
Dana shuddered, revulsion growing stronger by the second. She couldn’t let these thugs hurt Brenna. “Leave her alone.” Gritting her teeth, she extended her arm. Ape man released her and stepped back though he remained close enough to ensure her cooperation. The doctor tightened the rubber tourniquet around her arm, swiped the skin with alcohol and drew the sample.
He capped the tube and labeled it. “Remove your clothes, Ms. Cole.”
She froze. “Excuse me?”
The doctor scowled. “I need to do an examination, make sure you’re healthy. Remove your clothes now. I’m due at the office in a few minutes.”
Why did he need to determine her health status? Maybe the kidnappers had contacted Brenna for money or something and she’d demanded proof of life or health. She hoped they hadn’t asked for money. Brenna didn’t have much. Contrary to popular opinion, most contracted authors didn’t make enough money to quit a day job. Brenna had been able to stop reporting, but she didn’t live an extravagant lifestyle. And her sister still supported her financially because Dana’s salary was so small at Sartelli Construction. She liked her job enough that Brenna had encouraged her to stay and apply for higher positions as they came available if they interested her. Dana’s gaze darted to the grinning hulk by the door. “Not with him in the room.”
Ape man’s eyes glittered. “Want me to help, Doc? It would be my pleasure.”
“Step outside for now, Reggie.”
The door closed behind Ape man with a quiet snick. Dana’s hands moved to the buttons of her shirt. “Why are you doing this for them?”
“I am paid well for my services and forgetful memory.”
“But they threatened to hurt my sister. Don’t you care?”
“About your family? No, my dear, I don’t. Remove the trousers, too, please.” He motioned Dana back to the examination table and slipped the ends of the stethoscope into his ears. He listened to her heart and lungs before checking her reflexes. “Excellent.” The doctor hurried to the counter at the far end of the room and picked up a camera. He opened a drawer, grabbed a gallon-sized storage bag with red material inside, and tossed it onto the table behind her. “We’re almost finished. Now, take off the rest of your clothes and put that on, Ms. Cole.”
Red. No. Oh, no. Couldn’t be. Dana began shaking. “But why? This isn’t necessary.”
“Oh, but it is. We must have proof that you are in top physical condition. You’ll bring a much higher price.”
So this was about money. Where would Brenna get money to buy her freedom? How was she ever going to earn enough to pay back her sister for ransoming her? She opened the bag and dumped the contents. Hands trembling, Dana unfolded the material. A red bikini. Blood drained from her face. Nausea swelled in her stomach until she rushed to the nearby sink and threw up.
Brenna unbuckled the seatbelt and stepped into the sweltering heat. “It’s not even noon yet. How can it be this hot already?”
Eli shut the car door and hit the lock button on his remote. “August is worse. This is only a hint at the weather to come in a few weeks.”
“Why are we here?” Brenna stared at the Sartelli Construction headquarters, a three-story black glass and steel structure which gleamed in the summer sun. Heat waves radiated from the sidewalk as she stepped into the humid air from the air-conditioned comfort of Eli’s car. “Sartelli wasn’t a fountain of information in our last encounter.”
“While Jon’s searching for Dana’s car, we’re tracing her movements the day she disappeared. We know she started her day here at 8:00 that morning and it ended with Sartelli. Let’s fill in the blanks about what happened between those hours. Maybe we’ll get lucky.”
Seemed like a colossal waste of time to Brenna. She knew deep in her gut that Sartelli was involved in Dana’s disappearance somehow. “Do you think this is going to help? We have to find her, Eli. Why are we wasting time on this?”
Eli opened the building door and ushered her inside. Although the handsome PI had warned Brenna he would once again resume the role of her besotted boyfriend, she still jumped when his arm slid around her waist.
“Easy, sugar,” he murmured, his arm tightening.
“Sorry,” Brenna whispered.
Eli eased her closer to his side with a low intimate chuckle that made her cheeks burn even though she knew he played a role for the Sartelli workers and security cameras. “Pretend I’m that lucky guy waiting for you back home.”
Brenna snorted. The guy waiting for her lived in the pages of her next book. “No guy.”
He kissed her on the ear. “Too bad for the Virginia boys. Great for me.”
She eyed him. “You’re into long dis
tance romances?”
“In the short run, sugar. No relationship will thrive under those circumstances, although I might be real tempted to try if I stood a chance to win your heart. You would be worth every bit of expense and trouble.”
Brenna’s brows rose. The women in Nashville must be nuts to pass up this guy. Handsome and a sweet talker as well. “You expect me to believe some beautiful woman isn’t waiting until your back is turned to scratch my eyes out?”
Eli grinned. “Other than you, the women in my life are related to me and they haven’t taken out a girlfriend yet.”
She hoped they didn’t start now. Brenna’s cheeks heated, astonished that she forgot this whole boyfriend/girlfriend act was just that—an act. She needed to guard her heart. It would be too easy to let Eli Wolfe slide right through her defenses. And that would net her a heartbreak, an ailment her health insurance couldn’t fix.
“May I help you?”
Eli winked at Brenna and turned to answer the blond receptionist watching their approach with curiosity. “I’m looking into the disappearance of Dana Cole. I need to talk to her co-workers. Can you help me with that?” He slid his card across the receptionist’s desk.
“I heard about Dana. It’s so hard to believe she’s missing. You never expect that kind of thing to happen to someone you know. We all thought she was having a great time on some cruise to the Bahamas. I hope you can find her.”
“You can count on it. I won’t stop looking until I bring her home. That’s why it’s so important for me to talk to her friends and co-workers. Time’s working against us.”
“Take the elevator on your left to the third floor. First office on your right. Dana’s friend, Grace Peters, is filling in for her. If anyone can give you information that might help, it’s Grace.”
“Thanks for your help.”
An elevator ride later, Brenna and Eli opened the door to Dana’s office. The woman sitting behind the desk glanced up. Her eyes widened. “Eli. Brenna. Have you heard from Dana?”
She shook her head. “How are you, Grace?”
Tears filled Grace’s eyes. “I’ve been so worried since Mr. Sartelli told me you believed Dana was missing. I thought she was on an unexpected vacation with a man she’d met and didn’t want to tell anyone details. She’s really private about stuff like that. In fact, I don’t think I’ve heard her mention any man she was dating. What do you think happened to her?”
“That’s what we’re going to find out,” Eli said. “Would you be willing to help?”
“Yes, anything.”
Eli leaned close to Grace. “Where’s Sartelli?” he asked, voice soft.
“In Mt. Juliet at a construction site. He’s doing an inspection.”
“Great. How about going to lunch with me and Brenna? My treat.”
“Take me to Qdoba and you’ve got a deal.” Grace yanked open a desk drawer and lifted her Coach bag.
A shaft of pain speared Brenna at going to Dana’s favorite restaurant without her sister. She swallowed hard against the sudden lump forming in her throat.
Eli’s arm shifted to Brenna’s shoulders and squeezed. She glanced up and found him watching her. One eyebrow quirked upward, as though he were asking if she could handle it. Brenna’s vision blurred, but she nodded. She could do this.
“We’ll meet you at the restaurant,” Eli said. “That way you’ll have your car so you can return to work on time. Wouldn’t want your boss to be angry because you’re late.” He urged Brenna back to the elevator.
The doors closed as the first tears fell. Brenna covered her face with her hands and sobbed. Eli’s strong arms closed around her.
“Hold on, Brenna,” he murmured in her ear. “I promise you, we’ll find her.”
Eli carried the trays to the table, sat and breathed in the pungent aroma of grilled onions and green peppers with a hint of black beans, all scents guaranteed to make his mouth water. His breakfast donuts were a distant memory. He waited for Brenna to fill the drink cups and sit beside him before he began questioning Grace. “Anything unusual happening since Dana’s disappearance?”
Grace’s brow furrowed. “Mr. Sartelli’s been grumpy, yelling at everybody.” She scowled. “Especially me.”
Eli smiled. “Yeah? What’s so unusual about that? Sartelli is about as charming as a snake on good days.”
Grace laughed. “You’re right. I guess his behavior isn’t out of the ordinary.”
“What was Dana working on?” Brenna asked. “Any special project for Sartelli?”
She rolled her eyes, sipping her soda. “Dana has her hands on almost every project at the company and a few more on the side. Filling in for her is driving me insane. I don’t know how she kept up with it all.”
Nothing significant yet. Maybe Brenna was right. This might be a huge waste of time, time Dana didn’t have. Eli pushed back the frustration eroding his patience. “What projects? Do you remember them?”
“A new strip mall in Mt. Juliet for one, an office building in Hermitage, another in Madison, and the campus for a private high school up in Gallatin.”
“You said Dana was working on outside projects, too. Do you know anything about those?”
“Helping with preparations for Maria Sartelli’s wedding and a charity event to be hosted at the Vanderbilt Plaza Hotel next month. Mr. Sartelli volunteered Dana to work with his wife, Elena.”
Eli whistled. “Bet that was an aggravating assignment.” Never an easy person to be around, Elena Sartelli turned into a tyrant when dealing with charities or her family. Public perception of her as a doting mother or a community benefactress trumped any other priorities. Old Marcos ranked a distant third.
“Not half as irritating as all those phone calls for Dana. Same woman with the same message. She sounds pretty desperate to talk to her.”
“Did she say what she wanted?” Brenna asked.
Grace shrugged. “Sorry.”
“Do you remember the name?” Eli pulled out a small notebook and pen.
“Helen. Can’t remember the last name on the messages I wrote down. She calls at least a couple times a day.”
“It might help if we had her number. Could you get that for me?” Eli waited, wondered if Dana’s friend considered the information confidential. He’d prefer Grace volunteered the number, but if she didn’t cooperate, Eli wasn’t averse to a little night reconnaissance mission to retrieve the information. Jon was better at breaking and entering than he was. He suspected his partner would insist on tagging along if it meant a possible clue to Dana’s whereabouts.
Grace sipped her drink, a thoughtful expression on her face. “Well, I suppose it’s all right since this isn’t connected to Sartelli Construction. I don’t want to put my job in jeopardy.”
“We understand, Grace,” Brenna said. “We don’t want you to do anything that might cause problems with Mr. Sartelli. Do you remember the number or should we follow you back to the office?”
“I think I might have one of the messages in my purse.” Grace pulled the purse onto her lap and dug for a minute. “Here it is.” She handed Eli a crumpled pink note. “Helen called again just before I left the office to come here. I stuffed it in my purse instead of filing it with all the others. Didn’t figure it mattered whether there was one more of the same message in that pile.”
Eli scanned the standard phone message form. Helen’s last name was Lynch. Phone number was local, too. He folded the note and slipped it into his pocket. “Thanks, Grace.”
“You think this woman will help you find Dana?” Grace sounded skeptical.
“We have to run down every possibility. A lot of my work entails chasing leads, even ones that wind up as dead ends.”
“Whatever. It’s your time to waste.” Grace stood, slinging her purse over her shoulder. “Let me know if I can answer more questions.”
“One more thing,” Eli said. “Did Dana leave work before quitting time for any reason that last day?”
She tilted he
r head, frowning. “Now that you mention it, Dana delivered some papers to Mr. Sartelli at lunch. He’d forgotten them on his desk. Maybe some invoices for the school campus he’s building.” Grace paused. “Oh, yeah, Dana also stopped by the Sartelli place after that.”
Eli’s brows rose. “And you remember all this two weeks later? That’s some memory, Grace.”
The woman flushed and shrugged. “Dana picked up lunch for me that day. To be honest, I was kind of angry with her because she returned to the office at three o’clock. I was about to starve to death. Sounds really trivial, now, doesn’t it? It seems petty in light of Dana’s disappearance.” Grace sighed. “I have to go. Let me know if I can help with anything else.”
She waved and hurried across the parking lot to her late-model Lexus. Nice car. Eli wouldn’t mind driving one like that himself. Had to admit, he still preferred speed over luxury.
Eli’s cell phone vibrated and drew his attention away from Dana’s friend. He checked the cell phone’s two-word message. Excitement bloomed in his gut.
“What?” Brenna asked. “Is it something to do with Dana?”
He stood and gathered their trash. “Jon found Dana’s car.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Brenna scrambled out of the Camaro and hurried to Dana’s maroon four-door Mazda. There had to be something here to help them find her sister. Eli’s warning on the drive to the airport not to get her hopes up echoed in her mind. She reached for the door handle only to have a strong hand grab hold of her arm.
“Don’t touch the car, Brenna.”
She fought to get free. “Let me go. There might be a clue, some hint as to what happened to her. I have to know. Please.”
“Not this way, sugar. We can’t leave our prints behind or smudge prints the kidnapper might have left.” Eli slid his around her waist and jerked her back against his chest. “Calm down or security will cart us off and call the cops. We’ll get the answers, no matter what it takes.”
She froze. His arm felt like a steel band across her stomach. Brenna turned her head and noted the telling expression on his face. His implacable resolve penetrated the near desperation more than anything he said. She believed he wouldn’t quit until he brought Dana home to her. Panic receded, left her shaky and holding onto her composure by sheer force of will. She couldn’t lose it now. Dana needed her to be calm so she could think. Brenna knew her sister better than anyone else. She must be able to think in order help her sister.