Power Reclaimed (D.C. Power Games Book 2)

by Ivy Nelson

  Inside, she pulled out her cell and called Bradley. “I’m leaving in ten minutes.” “Hey great, there’s an event happening today I think we should make an appearance at.

  Some protest Darci is h elping organize.”

  “Is a protest really a good place to make a statement?”

  “I think so. Especially considering the cause.”

  Adara agreed to think about it and headed to the office.

  It was going to be at least a twenty-minute ride and she was alone in the backseat so she

  typed a quick message to Michael. I have a confession.

  His response came quickly.

  Uh Oh. Do I need my hairbrush?

  Her face warmed, and she looked at the guard driving her car. He wasn’t paying attention. I’m not sure. It didn’t occur to me until after that it might get me in trouble.

  His face filled her screen. He was calling her.

  “Hello.”

  “Spit it out, Angel.”

  “I’m not alone. The guards are driving me to work.”

  “Tell me anyway. They’re trained to ignore your private calls.”

  She hesitated.

  “I have a free morning Angel. I can always come to your office and you can tell me in

  person.”

  “I kind of got off in the shower this morning.”

  “Did you now? What were you thinking while you did?”

  “I was reliving last night,” she whispered.

  “Good answer.”

  “Am I in trouble?” she asked hesitantly.

  His laugh was low and sexyand she wasn’t sure if that was good or bad. “No, Angel.

  You’re not in trouble. However, in the future, ask first. That pussy belongs to me now.” Said pussy clenched at his naughty words.

  “Michael!” she exclaimed.

  “Am I wrong, Angel?”

  “No, Sir.” Her voice was trembling.

  “Do you want to get off again? I can stay on the phone until you lock yourself in your

  office where you can play with that smooth, sexy cunt until you moan my name and beg for an orgasm.”

  “Jesus. I wish I could. Now I’m going to be all worked up all day.”

  “Good. I hope you stay horny for me all day, Angel. I plan to fuck your mouth before I take your pussy tonight.”

  She groaned. “Are you trying to make me explode?”

  He laughed. “No. Just getting you all worked up before I tell you no more touching that pussy without permission young lady. I hope you’re dripping wet when I get home tonight.”

  With that, he ended their call, and she laid her head back and closed her eyes.

  The phone rang again. It wasn’t Michael calling to tease her some more, and she was mildly disappointed.

  “Adara Kent.”

  “Hello Miss Kent. It’s good to see your campaign is going well.”

  She recognized the voice instantly and all thoughts of Michael left her. It was James. The man claiming to be her brother. This was the call Homeland said was bound to happen. She hoped they had everything in place to capture the call. She did want to see him caught. At the same time, she really wanted to know more about who she came from. She had him on the phone. Might as well keep him talking right?

  “Why are you calling me?”

  “I still need your help. I think I can convince you.”

  “I’m pretty hard to convince once I’ve made up my mind about something.”

  “I can be pretty convincing.”

  “Is that a threat?”

  “Not at all. I have a degree in communication.” That surprised her. So did she. She had double majored in political science and communications in college. “That surprises you. That we share a field of expertise. We are related you know.”

  “I’m nothing like you.”

  “Don’t be so sure. Let’s have coffee and chat. I’ll answer all your questions about your family history.” Did a terrorist just invite her to coffee?

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she managed to say.

  “Think about it. I’ll be at the little shop off the national mall until two.”

  Surely he had to know this call was being recorded. Would he really be there? Was it going to be this easy to catch him?

  “I’ll think about it, but don’t hold your breath.”

  She ended the call before he could respond. She had to admit, the idea of knowing more of her family history was appealing. But could she trust him? He was a criminal after all.

  Bradley was waiting when they arrived at her office.

  “Hey boss,” he said with a wink. “I’ve got more information on the protest. It’s on the national mall. Always a good photo op there. It starts at one but we could show up early and mingle with the crowd that is already starting to gather.”

  She agreed. But another idea was forming in her mind. The coffee shop her brother wanted to meet at was on the national mall. She could sneak in for a few minutes before the event and have a chat. Homeland would arrest him and then she could be on stage at the protest by one. Couldn’t she? Yes. She could Especially if she called Homeland and told them what she wanted to do.

  Excusing herself, she locked the door to her office to do just that. She was going to make this happen. Michael would be pissed, and she fully expected him to punish her but he would be happy they had caught him right?

  “Agent Miller, It’s Adara Kent. Are you listening to my calls yet? I got a call from my brother and I think I can help you catch him but you’ve only got about two hours to prepare.”

  “I’m listening. We don’t have the manpower to listen to calls in real time. Thanks for the heads up. We’ll take a listen.”

  “Let me give you the short version,” she said before launching into the story of the phone call. “I want to meet with him but I don’t want to wear a wire. My staff and my security detail can’t know what I’m up to.”

  “We can work with this Miss Kent. I’ll call you back shortly with instructions. Stay by your phone.”

  An hour later, they were in the car on the way to the national mall where Darci had apparently gathered quite a crowd. After shaking at least two dozen hands and posting for as many selfies, she made her excuses.

  “I need to step away for a minute. I’m going to the coffee shop over there,” she told several of her staff. Bradley offered to send a volunteer, but she waved him off. “I’ll take security with me. I just need a minute to myself and some coffee before things kick off.”

  He eyed her quizzically. “You sure you’re OK?”

  “I’m fine,” she said waving him off. “I’ll be back before it’s time to go on stage. Next, she had to convince security to wait outside. Since there were two of them, she managed to convince them to each take up a post outside one door. They had no reason to believe a threat was in the coffee shop anyway. Homeland had given her instructions to enter the coffee shop from the side door where they would have a better vantage point.

  Inside, she scanned the crowd looking for the man who had once posed as a volunteer on her campaign. It didn’t take her long to spot him. He waved her over with a huge smile on his face as if he recognized her and they were the best of friends. She reacted in kind, just in case security was watching. They hadn’t gotten a look at him the other day. When she approached, he spoke.

  “I see you brought security. Don’t trust me?”

  She didn’t respond right away. She didn’t trust him that was true. But she only brought security because there were no other options.

  “Ah. They don’t know what you’re doing. Well then, if they ask, we’re two old friends who ran into each other. I hope you don’t mind, I remembered how you like your coffee and took the liberty of ordering you a cup.”

  “How did you know I was coming?”

  “I had a feeling. And I saw your entourage arrive a bit ago.”

  “Well, I’m here now and I don’t have long. Tell me what you want to tell me
.” She took a sip of her coffee. It was indeed made just the way she liked it.

  “I want to appeal to the goodness inside of you Adara. Help our father stay alive.”

  “Why? So he can continue to kill innocent Americans? That hardly seems like something to do.”

  “Have you seen the carnage that America has brought upon our people? They continuously side with Isreal in our plea for a country of our own. A country we have Godgiven rights to. We are simply fighting back.”

  “By blowing up innocent civilians?”

  “Nobody is innocent sister. Surely you realize that, working in politics as you do.”

  “Three-year-olds are innocent. I am not your sister. Just because we share blood does not mean we are family.”

  She had read up on the acts of terror her father had been credited with. It made her sick to her stomach just thinking about it.

  “I do not expect you to understand, since you were raised by Americans.”

  “I think I should go.”

  “Stay. Finish your coffee. I’ll answer your questions.”

  She sighed and took another swallow of her coffee. “How many siblings do we have?”

  “Twelve. Three are dead. Killed by American drones at a wedding.”

  “Where is your father?”

  “Canada.”

  She raised an eyebrow. How had a terrorist as wanted as Faisal Hadawi gotten into Canada?

  He smiled knowingly at her unspoken question. “We are masters of disguise.”

  “How long does he have to live if I don’t help him?”

  “Only God knows the answer to that but the doctors don’t give him long. Perhaps a year or less.”

  Her phone rang. It was Bradley. She hit ignore. Just a few more questions and she would head back soon, letting Homeland take over.

  “I should go soon.” The coffee seemed to be upsetting her stomach. Or perhaps it was this conversation. She stood, and the room started to wobble. “Excuse me,” she said, and turned toward the hall where the bathroom was located. She started to go in, but before she realized what was happening, her brother was behind her.

  “I apologize sister. But I really must insist that you come with me.” Shit. But her security was outside and Homeland was listening. Surely they would be able to stop him. That was her last thought before her world went black.

  ### “All nearby units, kidnapping in progress,” a voice squawked over Michael’s intercom in his SUV. Picking up the mic, he pressed the button to talk. “Detective Silas, I’m two minutes away.”

  He listened as two other units in the area also responded. Then, he flipped on his sirens, made a Uturn and headed in the direction of the call. He’d been planning to surprise Adara at a protest she was attending. This was close by. With any luck, he could still drop by before she left. As he pulled up to the coffee shop he’d been directed to, a ball of fear developed in his gut. Two of Adara’s security detail were talking with police and that damned Homeland security agent was on the scene too. Fuck. Had something happened to Adara? He slammed the vehicle into park and jumped out, flashing his badge at the officer who had cordoned off the area.

  “What the fuck is going on?” he demanded when he approached Agent Miller. “I swear detective, we didn’t talk her into anything. She went on her own.” “Went where? Who?”

  “Adara. Met her brother here, and it appears he kidnapped her.”

  “God damn it. I told you this was a bad idea. There was no way you could account for

  everything.”

  “To be fair, she only gave us a two-hour heads up before the meeting. We did everything

  we could.”

  “TWO HOURS?” he bellowed. “You knew she was fucking meeting this monster and

  didn’t tell me?” It took everything in his power not to reach out and strangle him. “Sorry man. I figured she had told you or didn’t want you to know. Either way, I did my

  job.”

  “No you fucking didn’t. You let the bastard take her.”

  “Calm down detective. We can still find him. We were listening to their conversation so

  we have an idea of where he’s taking her. He needs her alive so we have that going for us.

  We have every airport on the look out. They won’t get out of the country by plane and border

  checkpoints are being alerted as well.”

  “Canada or Mexico?”

  “Canada.”

  Michael ran a hand through his hair. This was a fucking nightmare. What’s more, Adara

  proved that she didn’t trust him and he wasn’t sure he could trust her now either. Bradley

  pulled up to the scene a few minutes later.

  “What the fuck is going on?” he asked when he parked and got out.

  “Adara met with her brother and didn’t tell anyone.”

  “Damn it. I had a weird feeling when she insisted on getting coffee herself instead of

  letting a volunteer do it. I should have stopped her.”

  “She went off on her own. There was no stopping her. Our only hope is that she had the

  good sense to tell Homeland what was going on so they were listening to her conversation.” “We’ll find her. We have to believe that.”

  “Terrorists Bradley. Fucking terrorists have her and she didn’t even have enough faith in

  me to tell me what she was doing.” It was like a knife to his gut that twisted deeper every

  time he thought about it.

  “She just didn’t want to worry you or piss you off. Our women are independent even if

  they are submissive. You know that. Don’t hold this against her. She’s spent years wondering

  about her family. You can’t blame her for the curiosity.”

  Michael knew he was right, but it didn’t make it sting any less. He paced in front of the

  coffee shop.

  “Let’s get to work finding her. Don’t leave it to this Homeland fucker. His mission is

  catching the terrorists, not rescuing Adara.”

  Bradley was right. Michael took a deep breath and put his mask in place. Time to be the

  impartial detective he knew how to be. Badge in hand, he made his way inside the coffee

  shop where Stephen Miller had gone.

  “I’ll be taking the lead on this investigation, Agent. It’s Metro’s jurisdiction.” “He’s an international terrorist. I’m pretty sure it’s mine.”

  “Sure, finding and catching terrorists is your job. It’s my job to make sure a kidnapping

  victim comes home alive. I’m the chief of special investigations. I’m taking lead. Or I can

  call the FBI and we both know they’ll take over for both of us.”

  The agent sighed andheld up his hands signaling defeat. “Fine. You’re right. The scene is

  yours, chief.”

  Michael went to work interviewing witnesses and directing the collection of evidence.

  Based on security footage, he slipped something in her coffee. It turned out there was a back

  entrance that wasn’t covered by her security detail. That must be how he got her out. But he

  would have had to take her through a restricted area. He had some questions to ask. According to the employee’s, it was a busy time and nobody was in the employee only

  storage room. It wasn’t kept locked either. Everyone was at the front counter making coffee

  and serving danishes. It made sense. It was a busy time for a coffee shop in a tourist area.

  There were no security cameras at the back entrance, so they didn’t know what kind of car

  the kidnapper put Adara in. Hopefully she still had her phone and they could track it.

  According to Agent Miller though, they were headed to Canada. He just had to hope they

  could stop them before they got out of the country. It was a hope he had to cling to, or he

  wasn’t going to make it through the day.

  As he was finishing a
witness interview, Agent Miller came rushing up to him. “He’s got

  her at a private airstrip. He’s not using an airport. If they take off before we get there, we’re

  going to lose her while she’s in the air, even if she keeps her phone.”

  Fuck. They were going to lose her.

  Chapter 21

  It felt like someone had hit her on the head with a brick. Adara opened her eyes and blinked several times. Shit. Where was she? She raised her head and looked around. It looked like the interior of a private jet. Damn it. She’d walked right into a trap. What in the hell was she going to do to get out of this one?

  “Welcome back sister.”

  “Where are we?”

  “About to land in Canada.”

  “How are we getting through air traffic control and customs?”

  “Don’t worry about the details sister. We’re going to save our father’s life.” “How do you even know my blood will be a match if none of your other siblings are?” “I don’t. But we must try.”

  “They’re going to catch you and when they do, you’ll vanish into a dark Homeland

  Security hole that there will be no escape from.

  He laughed as if she had just told the funniest joke. He really was that confident in

  himself. She closed her eyes again. When she did, Michael’s face appeared. It took all her

  strength to keep her composure. She hoped he wasn’t too angry with her for not telling him

  what she was doing. She wished like hell she had. Then she probably wouldn’t be in this

  mess.

  The plans landing gear lowered as they approached a runway. This wasn’t an airport, but

  an airstrip in the middle of nowhere. How had they pulled this off? Mid thought, she felt a

  prick on her shoulder. When she looked up, her brother was holding a syringe. “I’m afraid I need you to sleep again sister.”

  When she came to again, she was lying in bed. Her arm was sore at the elbow joint. She

  looked down to see that someone had drawn blood and placed a bandage over the puncture

  spot. On the bedside table was a bottle of water and a variety of snacks.

  The door opened as she was cracking open the water bottle. Her hand froze, still gripping

  the cap. It was the man who was supposedly her father.