SEALs of Summer: Military Romance Superbundle - Navy SEAL Style

by Sharon Hamilton

  “What?”

  “He’s not going to come after us as long you’re with me. So, we’re leaving together.”

  “I can’t leave my girls alone.”

  “They aren’t here, Devyn. And they’ll be fine. I meant it when I said I really don’t want to hurt you. It goes for your family too. If your husband called, that means he’s on his way. We don’t have time to argue. So, you can move it willingly, and make it easy on yourself by coming along as my guest, or I can drug you, drag you to my car, and things will be much more unpleasant later when you wake up. Your choice.”

  “The girls will be safe?” My voice cracked with emotion.

  “They’ll be fine. We don’t want them.”

  “What do you want?”

  “Questions later. Let’s move.”

  She motioned toward the door, her gun still pointed at me while she pulled out her phone with her free hand. She pressed two numbers with her thumb and held it to her ear. “I need extraction. Fifteen minutes at the agreed alpha location.”

  The door flew open just before I reached it. Jane grabbed me and hauled me back. The cool tip of the barrel pressed against my temple. I froze, afraid to even budge. Jane’s breath against my hair was heavy. “Don’t. Come closer, and I blow her brains all over this lovely carpet.”

  Brody looked like an avenging angel, the light reflecting off his hair in almost a black halo, and his amber eyes lit up like fire. He had a gun in his hands, aimed at us, though I suspected he was trying to get a shot off at Jane. “Let her go.”

  “Isn’t this lovely, Devyn? The shit husband tries to be gallant.” Her chuckle was low, sardonic. The gun pressed harder into my temple. I whimpered, tears forcing their way to the surface. “Get rid of the gun.”

  “Let her go.”

  “The gun, or her head. Which will it be? Which one will you throw away?”

  His struggle was apparent, his eyes narrowing. He was still in uniform, green digital camis. He swallowed and lowered his gun.

  “Good chap. Clear it,” Jane said. “Including the chamber.” He did as she said, the clip slipping from its nestled spot in the gun. A single bullet fell from the chamber when he cleared it.

  “There.” He tossed the gun down. “Now let her go.”

  “And lose my only bargaining chip? Sweetheart, that’s not how this works.” She swung us away from the back door, putting her own back against the wall as Brody walked to the center of the room. “Where’s your backup?”

  “Outside.”

  “Liar.” Jane laughed. “I imagine that you took off as soon as you figured out who I was. I don’t think you waited for backup. But… that doesn’t mean it isn’t on its way.” Her phone chirped. She handed it to me. “Read the message.”

  I took the phone from her and opened up her text messages. “It just says ‘here’.”

  “Good. Tell them to come in.” The gun dug into my head. “No tricks, now.” I typed in the message and sent it.

  A few seconds later, three men, all in black, with masks over their nose and mouths came in through the open door. And every one of them was carrying some kind of rifle, which instantly pointed at Brody. He stood by, his expression stoic as he raised his hands in surrender.

  One walked right up to him and slammed the stock of the rifle into his head. Brody fell to his knees.

  “Brody!” I cried out.

  “Hush.” Jane whispered into my ear.

  “Please… let him go.”

  “It’s okay, Devyn. I’m okay.”

  The man shoved Brody the rest of the way to the floor and dug a knee into his back. “Hands above your head.”

  Brody complied, stretching his muscular arms out. The man pulled out handcuffs and clipped them on Brody’s wrists, and then roughly pulled him to his feet.

  “Take him. Try not to make a big scene. This is still military country, even if it is base housing.” She paused. “And Mr. Battles, no tricks from you either, or I end her right here.”

  The dangerous stare Brody gave Jane as they pulled him away from me made me shiver. It wasn’t fear. It was a promise of retribution. But he didn’t fight them.

  “All right, Devyn. Here’s what’s going to happen. Brody is going to ride with my friends there. You’re going to ride with me. And we’re not to have any shenanigans that will hinder our goals in any way, shape or form. Are we clear?”

  I nodded. She released me. I stepped away and turned to face her. The gun remained pointed at me. I glanced down at it and up at her. “Jane…”

  “Come on, then,” She interrupted. “Time’s ticking.” She motioned toward the door. She slid up close to me so the gun would be obscured if anyone happened to look outside. We walked outside just as a large SUV drove away.

  Brody. Brody was in that truck.

  I stifled another round of tears as one of the men approached us. Apparently, only two of them had left with Brody. This one took the keys from Jane and opened the back door of her BMW. I got in first, and she followed. The man sat down in the front and the car lurched as he drove away from my house.

  I wasn’t sure what was going to happen now. Brody was on his way god only knew where. And me? I was in major trouble.

  *

  I wasn’t even sure what country we were in anymore. A long ride in the car to a private airport, two plane rides, one substantially longer than the other, and a Jeep ride across the jungle left no doubt we’d left the US. The entire time, Jane didn’t speak to either of us. She sat near the front of the plane, while her goons kept Brody and me separate. But at least I could see him. Beyond the bruising on his face, he was in good condition. Me, I was terrified.

  The house we pulled up to was surrounded by a large stone wall, secured by a gate that had barbed wire across the top of it, and a guardhouse, complete with armed guard. Both cars were waved through quickly, but only the one I was in parked at the front of the house. The Jeep that carried Brody continued on around the side.

  “Where are they taking Brody?”

  “To the basement,” Jane replied. “As long as he cooperates, you will remain my guest in the house.”

  “Jane—”

  “It’s Marie, actually.”

  Of course it was. Jane was too plain a name for this woman. I was surprised I hadn’t seen it before now. She’d been a really good actor.

  The driver opened the back door next to Marie, who got out and then motioned for me to follow. I slid across the seat and stood, taking in my surroundings. The courtyard had been cleared of all vegetation except grass, and up against the house, colorful flowers lined the walls. The house itself was three stories, lots of windows and several balconies.

  Marie spoke with a couple of the men who came out of the house. These men were different, dressed in suits and ties, instead of uniforms and masks. She nodded to something they said and walked back to me.

  “Come along, Devyn.” She gripped my upper arm and pulled me toward the house.

  “Where are we?”

  “Safe house that belongs to my brother.” She didn’t elaborate more and I was too terrified to ask.

  Opulence was understating this house’s interior. A crystal chandelier was the centerpiece of the room we entered, with vaulted ceilings surrounding it. Leather couches, two of them faced each other, with two recliners placed at each end of the coffee table the couches surrounded.

  My flip-flops were loud as they echoed through the room. Jane pushed me toward the nearest recliner. “Sit.” I sunk into the chair. She continued walking, slipping through the door across from where we’d entered. The house was silent. There were men at the door where we’d come in, wearing suits like the ones she’d spoken with outside.

  I worried for Brody. Where had they taken him? Where was the basement? What were they going to do him there? I assumed that this had to do with his work, and it terrified me that I’d been talking to someone who was the enemy for over a year. I’d considered Jane—Marie—a friend. A close friend. I’d
confided in her. I’d trusted her.

  I had to survive this. I had to. For Brody. For Riley and Jackie.

  I fought the tears that bubbled forth at the thought of my children. They were safe. They were with Vera. Surely, when we came up missing, and we probably had by now, Brody’s team would check on her and the girls.

  Marie came back into the room and sat down in the chair across from me. She folded her hands together. The gun was out of sight now, but I didn’t dare think that she didn’t carry one. “I’m sure you have a lot of questions, Devyn. I’m sorry this had to involve you.”

  “What am I doing here?”

  “In essence, you are… insurance.”

  “For Brody.”

  “Yes. He has a lot of information we need. Having you here will… loosen his tongue a bit, I believe.”

  “You lied to me. You tricked me.”

  “Brody Battles is one of the few men on his team that is married. It was fortunate that he was so young as well, because he also married someone that is just as young. You’re impressionable, love. You were the easiest way in.”

  “I’m just a mark.”

  “Unfortunately, he tipped his hand too early. The plan was to take him. Not you.”

  “But he called to warn me.”

  “His team wouldn’t have told you he was missing. He would left on another assignment, and you’d have been none the wiser.”

  “Why was I the mark and not say, another wife?” I didn’t know why I kept asking these questions. I didn’t really want to know the answer, but in some perverse way, I had to.

  Marie sighed. “Devyn, love, you’re barely an adult. You’re twenty-three. You’ve been married since you were seventeen to your childhood sweetheart, and you have two very young children. Most women would be easy marks in that situation and I’m very good at what I do.”

  I stood up and walked to the window. I crossed my arms, feeling dirty and betrayed. Her eyes were on me even though I wasn’t looking at her. Beyond us, the green grass stretched for acres. There were patches of yellow here and there, signaling the coming change of season, but for the most part, it was bright and blissful and ignorantly happy. I wanted to be that happy again.

  “Devyn.” I turned. Marie was still sitting in the chair. “You need to prepare yourself. Brody Battles was our target. You will survive this, provided that you behave yourself, and do as you’re told. Eventually, we will release you. But… it’s very likely that you will not see your husband again.”

  The finality of those words crashed down around me. I crossed my arms, hugging my midsection. Every bit of my being was terrified for my life. For Brody’s life. I couldn’t speak. I didn’t want to. If I did, I was going to fall apart, and I would not shame my husband like that by crying in front of his enemies.

  Chapter Seventeen

  ‡

  Brody

  It was cold and damp, wherever I was. I’d been blindfolded as soon as Devyn and I had been separated. The blindfold was gone now, but it was dark. A sliver of sunlight filtered in from the window near the ceiling, just enough for me to make out the room I was in.

  It was like something out of a movie. Rough rope surrounded my wrists, too tight for comfort. I didn’t think my circulation to my fingers was completely cut off, but already they were tingling. The ropes led up to the ceiling where they were suspended from large D-rings. It kept me spread open, my chest and midsection exposed.

  The large wooden door opened, a squeak of the hinges and a deep and loud thud as it hit the wall. Light flooded the room, even more as the man approaching me flipped on the lights. Dark hair fell over his eyes, those dark pools of ebony and malevolence. I knew him on sight, since the team had pictures of all the Giroux offspring.

  Alex Giroux stopped a few feet away. Two men stood behind him, carrying sidearms strapped to their thighs. There were two types of thugs working for Giroux Enterprises. There were the grunts, hired mercenaries and soldiers recruited from military around the world. And there were the suits, who traveled around with the executive levels of Giroux’s organization, but still carried out the dirty work that the family didn’t want to sully their hands with.

  “Hello, Mr. Battles.”

  “Where is my wife?” Normally, I would have played stupid and pretended that whatever female agent was with me wasn’t a big deal, but Marie Giroux had been around Devyn for a year. There was no pretending now. They had me, and they knew it.

  The corner of Alex’s mouth tilted upward in a half-smile. “Upstairs, enjoying our hospitality with Marie.”

  “She’s not part of this. She doesn’t know anything. Please, just… let her go.”

  “Interesting that you start this off with a plea,” Alex replied. He had a French accent, which surprised me. Marie’s accent was definitely British. Perhaps Giroux was so paranoid that he’d separated his children growing up. It fit his profile. “You know what I want. SEAL Team Thirteen. I want to know it all.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I lied, but of course, he knew that. Whatever game he was playing, I didn’t want to play, because Devyn was somewhere nearby, and if I screwed up, it would cost her her life.

  “Come now, Brody, you know that’s not true.” Marie Giroux strode into the room. Her brother and she shared a look. “I think we know more about you than you know about us. After all, I’ve had an entire year to study everything.”

  “Where’s Devyn?”

  “She’s fine.” Marie stepped closer. She was in reach of me kicking the shit out of her, since my legs were still free, but I didn’t want to tip my advantage when I didn’t have a chance in hell of getting free of the room. “She’ll stay that way. I have no wish to harm her.”

  “Then why bring her here?”

  “Insurance, Brody. I know how resourceful you Americans can be. On your own, you could probably find a way to get free. But Devyn’s not like you. She can’t do the things that you will do to free yourself. She’s not a killer. Not like me. Not your teammates. Not like you. She can’t handle what we can dish out, if we choose to. But you won’t leave her here alone, will you?”

  Fury steamed inside of me. There was no point in trying to lie.

  “If you touch her, harm her in any way… There will be nowhere you can hide, Marie.”

  Alex slammed his fist into my jaw. He gripped my chin and yanked my head so I had to look at him. “You will not threaten my sister. I will tear you apart.”

  “You’re an asshole, Giroux.” I grumbled. Alex smiled and released me. My head felt as if it had been shaken to an inch of its life. My jaw throbbed and a small trickle of blood let me know my cheek had been cut.

  “If you’ll excuse me, gentlemen, I have a guest to attend to. The journey here took quite a lot out of her.” Marie smiled, such malevolence I cursed myself for not seeing it sooner, like the first time I’d seen her sitting on my couch. But she’d hidden herself from view. Or had as much as she could. It had been enough. But now, I knew who she was, where I’d seen her before.

  “I’ve seen you before,” I called after her. She stopped in her tracks, and slowly turned to face me. “What was it? A year ago? Two? That raid in Brazil.”

  “Eighteen months.” Her eyes hardened, all amusement gone. “It was eighteen months ago.”

  I nodded. “I thought we killed you.”

  “I don’t die that easy,” she sneered. “Nothing but a flesh wound.”

  “I’ll have to try harder next time.”

  She laughed. “I suggest not. Just remember… Devyn is upstairs. What happens to her is directly related to how cooperative you are. I said I didn’t want to hurt her, not that I wouldn’t.” She turned on her heels and left.

  I remembered Alex’s presence as he popped his knuckles. I glanced at him. He grinned. “So, ready for some fun?”

  “You’re too pretty for this kind of work, Alex.”

  The man burst out laughing. “I’m not going to do the work.” Another man, his che
ekbones and eyes matching Alex’s, walked into the room. “Have you met my brother, Rene, Mr. Battles? No?”

  Alex stepped back as Rene surged forward and slammed a fist into my abdomen. Air left my body in a whoosh. It took a few seconds before I could catch my breath.

  “He’s much better at extracting information than I am.” Alex stepped forward and grabbed my face, forcing me to look at him. “The best part is that you’ll be alive until he says he’s done. You’ll probably be singing your secrets long before then.”

  *

  Devyn

  Time passed really slowly when you were alone with nothing to do. I suppose I should have been glad they didn’t lock me in some closet with my hands and feet tied. I wasn’t tied at all, actually. But the room I was in was locked, and there was very little around to use as a weapon. It was as if it was made for a prisoner.

  There was a small twin bed in the corner, a nightstand to its right, but there was nothing in the drawers. I’d checked. The drawers didn’t even come all the way out. No window. I couldn’t even watch the outside world pass me by. Actually, it reminded me of a walk-in closet. A really large walk-in closet converted into a bedroom.

  I think the waiting was the worst part. I didn’t know what was going to happen. I was sitting in a small room waiting for the powers that be to make a decision as to what to do with me. I had no illusions that they’d let me go. They couldn’t afford for me to tell Brody’s team about them. So it remained that I needed to find my own way out.

  “If you’re thinking of escape, I feel I should warn you, my men are trained to kill with one shot.”

  I shot my head up to the doorway. I had been so lost in my thoughts that I hadn’t even heard the door open. The dark-haired man with the high cheekbones stood there, leaning against the frame. “That was what you were thinking of, yes?”

  I didn’t reply.

  “You look terrified. No one is going to hurt you. At least, not at the moment.” He pushed off the doorway and saw down next to me on the bed. My heart raced, so unsure of what was going to happen. “Let me ask you something, Devyn Battles.” A sly grin slid up his face. “How prepared are you to die?”