by Amy Deason
“Well, let’s see. Where to start . . . hmmm. Okay, you graduated top in your class, a fact that went all but unnoticed because your parents doted on your younger sister, Rachel. Once your parents divorced, you began to wonder if the only reason they stayed married was for the benefit of you and your sister. And that unanswered question persistently makes you feel guilty even after the shitty way they continue to treat you. When you lost your virginity in college, you steadfastly swore off all relationships. Until you met Mitch Stevens, of course. A short-lived fling in which he was totally selfish in bed. Since that affair ended roughly ten months ago, you rarely leave your apartment, preferring to keep to yourself. Other than your cat. A street rescue, by the way. Milo, is it? Rather boring name for a feline. Oh, and Robert was your only friend and although there was a mutual attraction there, you both agreed that he’d be a better friend than lover,” Seth finished confidently.
Madison shook with both anger and embarrassment. How could he know those things about her? Those private, intimate details? Details that no one else could possibly know? The depth of resources needed for that type of knowledge was overwhelming. Feeling like she was teetering on the edge of a cliff, she closed her eyes, blocking his smug smile from her sight.
“Shall I continue?” Seth asked pleasantly.
Opening her eyes, she saw the smirk of satisfaction on his handsome features. Clenching her fists tightly, Madison wanted to slap him but she didn’t quite dare. At the very least, it would cause him to wreck the car and at the break-neck speeds he was driving, it would probably kill them both.
“No!” she replied vehemently. Trembling slightly, she lifted her chin defiantly. “Fine, you know everything about me. So what? That doesn’t make you responsible for me. I can take care of myself. I don’t need your help.” What a stupid thing to say. Just in the last day and a half, he’d rescued her twice. That didn’t exactly speak volumes for her self-sufficiency.
“Oh, because your doing so well on your own?” His throaty laugh grated on her raw nerves until she wanted to scram. “Forget it. There’s only one way you’re staying safe and that’s with me.
“Why do you care anyway?”
“I don’t. Just call it a professional principle.”
“Oh right,” she said acidly. “I guess my death would leave a black mark on your résumé. How terrible for you.” She turned around in her seat with a huff and stared out the windshield, noticing for the first time that they were not in the city limits anymore. There were tall, straight trees lining the highway and the number of vehicles on the road were dwindling quickly.
Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a shadow of a grin. Bastard! He thought this was so damn funny. Well she didn’t and here she was. Stuck with him. Again. How could she honestly think that she was feeling anything for him but hate? She had to be out of her mind.
“Where are we going?” She didn’t really expect an answer.
“What makes you think I would tell you that?”
Shrugging, she kept her eyes glued straight ahead. “Well, what can it hurt? You’ve already made it perfectly clear there’s no way I can escape. And without a cell phone, I can’t contact anyone. Besides, after Robert . . .” She trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.
Seth was quiet so long, she was sure he wasn’t going to say anything else but then, “Listen, I am sorry about your friend. There’s no way you could have known that you were endangering his life by calling him.” He continued to stare straight ahead so she was unable to read his eyes but his words were gentle and compassionate. Another sign of real emotion underneath that cold, hard exterior.
Looking away, Madison struggled against the lump in her throat. One minute her captor was a total asshole and the next he was being nice, apologetic even. The changes in him were almost enough to give her whiplash. She didn’t know what to make of it, what to trust.
Clearing his throat, Seth continued. “You’re not safe in Manhattan. Vance will only continue to look for you. Especially when he finds out that Andre is dead. If he is nothing else, Vance is a relentless and determined man. He will find you. Unless we can stay one step ahead. And to do that, we have to keep moving. So I’m taking you to another place that we use sometimes.”
Turning back to him, she decided to push forward with her questions, gaining as much as she could while he was being so talkative. “We? What are you? CIA?”
“Something like that.”
“I don’t understand. If you’re working for the government, then why are we running?”
“I never said I was with the government, you did.”
“Okay, fine. But if your agency is so powerful, then why run?”
Seth looked at her for a long moment before turning back to the road. “How can a twenty-nine-year-old woman be so naïve? Just because something is powerful doesn’t mean that it’s invincible.”
“Just because I don’t know everything doesn’t make me naïve,” Madison replied defensively. Cocking her head sideways, she asked, “But if you stay with me, won’t Vance wonder where you are?”
“I’ll take care of that.”
Jerking her gaze away from the long, empty stretch of highway that lay before them, she looked at him. “How?”
“Don’t worry about it. Vance trusts me. He’ll believe whatever I tell him.”
Frowning, Madison said, “Vance didn’t exactly strike me as the trusting type so how did you get him to trust you?”
Her question was met with an uneasy silence and then in a flat, deadpan tone said, “I did what I had to.”
She didn’t even want to know what things he had to do to warrant Vance’s trust. But she did need to know one, very important thing. “Do you regret any of the things you did?”
His eyes left the highway and rested solely on her. For a moment, there was such pain and suffering in those depths. But then, as if wiping a chalkboard, it was gone, leaving them once again icy and empty. “No. Not yet.”
Reeling from the coldness in that gaze, Madison felt all of her hope slip away. She was in serious trouble.
Chapter 12
Vance lay stretched out and completely at ease in the indoor swimming pool, letting the warm water lap around him. Phoenix had done her job extremely well, as always. Her hands were like amazing and her mouth, magic. His insatiable appetite was momentarily quieted, allowing him to again revel in his own brilliance. Everything was falling into place. The drug that had taken him nearly a year and a half to perfect was currently being duplicated onto a much larger scale. It was so well developed that even the most powerful filtration systems would not be able to remove it. Before long the undetectable but highly potent drug would be added to New York’s main water supply, effectively reaching thousands, if not millions of people.
And just when chaos was in sight, he would swoop in with the miracle cure thus saving lives and re-establishing himself as a genius. But maybe just for a stronger affect, he would wait for a few hundred to actually die before he came to the rescue. Not only would that save a lot of questions about the quick creation of the cure but it would also show them what a mistake it had been to doubt his worth. Laughing, he turned, diving under the water with barely a splash and swam to the far end of the pool.
Emerging from underneath the pristine water, he climbed out of the pool and grabbed his ebony robe, wrapping it around his dripping naked body. Such a shame to cover his muscled masculinity. Oh well, soon enough he would have a new companion to play with. As soon as Andre returned with Miss Sinclair, he would break out his new toys he had been saving for just the right opportunity. He planned to take his time with her, finding out exactly what she had seen last night. Not that it mattered. Once she was brought to him, she would never leave this house alive.
The drive from Manhattan to The Catskills had been one of the longest S
eth could remember. Madison kept the questions coming, considering each of his vague answers carefully. She probably would have kept talking if he hadn’t threatened to gag her if she didn’t stop her ceaseless rambling. Now, she sat curled up in the bucket seat asleep, her back to him. The emotional events of the last several hours had finally overcome her curiosity about him, much to his relief. At last he could think without her interrupting him with some intrusive question. He couldn’t see her face, but he didn’t need to. He knew her features well. They were burned deep into his memory. Her long blond hair wound in loose tendrils down her back and he had to stop himself from reaching out and touching it as she slept.
Although it had been almost a year, he knew what a woman’s hair felt like. He didn’t need to feel hers to remind him. But just because he didn’t need to didn’t stop the fact that he wanted to. He wanted to reach his destination before he let his hand trail over Madison’s pale blond hair. Or any other part of her. Shaking his head, he moved his gaze back to the road, stepping on the gas pedal, urging the car to higher speeds. The house he was taking her to was more remote than the last one. And totally secure. Once they were safely inside, she could get cleaned up and eat something, possibly keeping her occupied long enough for him to decide on his next plan of action.
With something similar to regret, Seth realized that despite her accidental involvement, he was going to have to kill her. There really was no other choice. In fact, he could reach over right now and end it. It would be simple, quick, and totally painless for her. She would never know what was happening. Taking one hand from the wheel, he reached over and placed his fingers and thumb against the soft places on either the side of her neck, instantly finding the veins that would stop the flow of blood to her brain. A slight increase in pressure and she would quickly lose all consciousness. And just like that, it would all be over. He paused, feeling her pulse beating strong and vital just underneath his fingertips. It seemed to echo through his hand and through his arm. He began to sense that strange tightness in his chest again. Closing his mind against the feelings of disgust for what he was about to do, he began to squeeze gently.
The phone in his pocket rang loudly, causing Madison to stir in the seat beside him. Continuing to press his fingers into her warm skin, Seth felt her struggle faintly against his hand. He could still finish the job before she even opened her dark-brown eyes. Those warm brown eyes that dug into him, down deep where he didn’t want anyone to see. Oh Lord, he couldn’t do it. With a deep sigh, he withdrew his hand from her neck and pulled the slim PDA from his pocket, flipping it open fluidly. He listened intently to the information Ricki was supplying him, fully aware of Madison’s active movements beside him. Not saying a word, he snapped the phone closed, returning it to his pocket then looked over at Madison.
“Where are we?” Madison asked, her eyes wide and alert, all pretense of sleep gone.
“Somewhere safe,” he replied shortly, making a right turn onto a small, country lane.
“Yeah, I’ve heard that before and looked what happened,” Madison mumbled under her breath, assuring him that she had not lost her smart-ass mouth.
Barely containing a grin, he said, “Well, you would have been safe if you hadn’t had the bright idea of trying to escape. That was your own fault.”
“I’m never going to be safe. If Vance doesn’t catch me and kill me then you will right?” Madison countered in a deadpan voice.
“I’m not going to kill you Maddie. I’m going to get you out of this mess alive. One way or another. So if you will kindly shut up so I can concentrate on where I am going, that would be great.”
He could sense her wanting to question him but thankfully, she kept her mouth shut. At least for the time being. Her silence was something he doubted he could count on. The narrow dirt road was covered in pristine, undisturbed snow. Heavily laden branches reached out greedily, scraping the Porsche’s sides. It was worse than fingernails on a chalkboard and the screeching sound set his teeth on edge. Gritting his teeth, he grasped the steering wheel tightly, resisting the chills running down his spine.
“Son of a bitch,” he muttered vehemently, never taking his eyes from the road as it wound slowly through the unbroken stillness. He should never have driven his Porsche up here. But it was fast and that’s what he’d needed at the time.
Rounding a bend in the road, there was a low-slung structure rising from the deep banks of snow. Surrounded by small, shaggy trees, the simple log cabin appeared undisturbed and peaceful, though slightly unkempt. Its exterior, worn by time and the extremities, looked comfortably used. An immense stretch of lawn lay completely unmarred and pale white smoke curled from the chimney into the cold, winter air.
From his pocket, Seth pulled a tiny square remote and pressing a button, opened the almost invisible garage door, driving quickly inside before shutting it behind them. The garage was relatively empty save for a few scattered shelves, lawn equipment, and a late model rust-colored Explorer parked along the wall. There were no windows inside the garage and the darkness was complete and as silent as a tomb. The only sound was the cooling of the car’s engine and Madison’s sudden rapid breath.
“Seth?” she said, her voice uneasy.
She had every reason to be uneasy and afraid. She was alone in the dark with a person who could kill her before she even heard him move toward her. She would be dead and lifeless before she could even understand what was happening. But of course that was no longer an option for him. He wasn’t sure that it ever really had been.
His own eyes adjusted much quicker to the change in light than hers and he could clearly see the nervous expression on her face. The way she shifted her eyes, searching the darkness for his face, the way her breath took on a raspy tone as she tried unsuccessfully to stay calm. As he studied her, she bit her bottom lip drawing his attention to the softness of her mouth. A mouth that he longed to taste again.
He opened the car door, the interior dome light allowing her to see his expressionless face. “Come on, we’re here.”
Remaining quiet in the passenger seat, Madison felt a wary relief that she would not die at the hands of the man next to her. If he wasn’t lying that was. But it made no sense that he would continue to save her only to kill her in the end. Maybe he was telling the truth. He was going to save her somehow. That was great and all but why in the world couldn’t he have taken her to a Four Seasons or a Ritz-Carlton instead of an isolated cabin in the middle of nowhere? Hell, she would have been happy going to a Holiday Inn or Super 8 Motel.
As Madison followed Seth into the cabin, he turned on the lights as he went. Glancing around quickly, she was surprised how sterile the cabin was. Plain walls and floor, no decorations. A small shelf holding a few books, a long comfortable-looking couch, and a couple of chairs. In fact, there was only the barest of furniture, giving the impression that this place was not intended for living in. Cursing herself for falling asleep, Madison realized she had absolutely no idea where she was. Not that it mattered much. Seth had assured her she wouldn’t have the chance to escape again and she believed him. For better or worse, she was stuck with him. That’s funny. Unusually that line was reserved for marriage, not kidnapping . . .
Now that she was awake and out of immediate danger, she became intensely aware of the deep cuts on her back. They burned as if she were being branded with red-hot pokers. The softness of Seth’s coat only irritated it more and she couldn’t wait to remove it. And she could still feel the other man’s fingers as they climbed higher . . . No! She was not thinking of that now.
They had no sooner entered the room when Seth turned to her. “You need to get out of those clothes.”
“Yes, well, as you can see, I don’t have anything else to wear and if you think for one second that I am going to walk around without any clothes, you can forget it,” she replied heatedly. The thought of being naked with him
started an uncomfortable warmth in her stomach that was slowly climbing into her chest. The idea was as frightening as it was exciting. Oh, there was something seriously wrong with her. After the situation in the alley, she should be repulsed by any thoughts of sex but there they were, filling her head. And about this man, no less.
Seth smiled down at her. “Don’t look so afraid. I have no interest in you.”
She should have been relieved but despite herself, that statement hurt more than she cared to admit. “No interest?” she echoed, thoroughly confused. “But I thought . . .” After the way he kissed her before, what he was saying made no sense. Unless . . . “Are you . . . gay?”
“Do you think that just because a man has no interest in you that makes him gay?”
“No, that’s not what . . .” she stumbled.
“Do I give you that impression?” A soft smile played upon his lips but it didn’t reach his cool eyes.
Her face was on fire but she raised her chin defiantly, not even considering backing down. “Vance certainly seems to think so.”
“I didn’t realize we were talking about Vance. Tell me, Madison, why are you so interested in my sexual orientation anyway?”
Truly horrified by the way the conversation was going, Madison simply replied, “I’m not.”
“If you’re thinking that you can seduce me in another attempt to escape, think again. It won’t work,” Seth replied sternly. “But you’re more than welcome to try. Actually, why don’t you? Might be fun,” he said, stepping toward her, his lips turned up in a wicked grin.
Face flushing with embarrassment, Madison retreated quickly.