Traffic passed behind him and people walked by. The sound of her catching her breath, the look of passion in her amber eyes, her moist lips. It all wrapped around him. He wanted to bury himself in her femininity. Have it surround him while he made love to her.
She smiled, her lips inching up knowingly, sweetly, a secret she shared with him, this intimacy.
He let her go. Nothing could have prepared him for the way it felt to kiss her. He knew it would be good, but…damn!
She took the handle of her luggage and walked toward the hotel, her gait carefree. Halfway to the door, she looked back, still smiling. He almost started to go after her. A will of iron kept his feet from moving.
Then he noticed a figure leaning against the concrete wall beside the front entrance of the hotel. Farren turned forward and he saw the man watch her enter the hotel. Not a tall man, he was dark-haired and wore tan trousers with a short-sleeved, collared blue shirt. Pretending not to notice, Elam turned and got back into the car.
The man looked from the car to Farren.
“Pull out into the street and park just past the hotel,” Elam told the driver.
The driver complied. Elam saw the man outside the hotel push off the wall and follow Farren inside.
What was this all about?
Elam paid the driver and climbed out, jogging to the hotel entrance. Inside, he spotted Farren checking in at the counter and the dark-haired man holding a newspaper thirty feet away. Elam stopped near a plant. The man hadn’t noticed him. He was too busy watching Farren over the top edge of the newspaper.
What the hell?
Elam undid one of his shirt buttons and flipped the safety off his silenced pistol. He heard a bellman say he’d bring Farren’s luggage to her room in a few minutes. When she started toward the stairs, the dark-haired man followed.
A familiar adrenaline rush triggered his pulse into readiness. He strode purposefully toward the dark-haired man’s back. Farren turned to look toward the front door of the hotel, as if hoping to catch one last glimpse of him. An impish smile softened her profile. He was glad she was still distracted by that kiss. He needed her to keep walking, to get them away from so many people.
She began to climb the curving white marble stairs. The man followed but kept glancing around. A couple coming down the stairs passed her and the man.
Elam climbed the stairs behind a tall, fat man, staying out of sight in case either she or the man following her turned. On the second level, the fat man went a different way than Farren. She made her way down a hall.
Slipping his hand inside his shirt, Elam gripped his gun. She stopped at a room door.
The man who’d followed her turned to look behind him. Elam pulled his gun from its holster. Farren saw him and her mouth fell open. Her gaze went to his gun, then flashed to the man, who bolted into a run down the hall.
“Go into your room and wait for me,” Elam growled as he went after the man.
He chased him to the ground level and out a back door. The man sprinted down an alley. Elam let him go. He didn’t want to leave Farren alone.
He went back into the hotel and jogged up the stairs. Making his way to Farren’s room door, he knocked. “It’s me. Open the door.”
She did, looking pale as she backed into the room to give him space to enter.
He shut the door. “Who was that?”
She shook her head.
“You don’t know?”
“How would I? I’ve never been here before.”
He angled his head as he studied her. She knew something and had kept it from him. Her eyes grew wary as he stepped closer.
“Why did he come after you?”
Her eyes blinked, revealing her uncertainty.
“Why did Ameen Al-Jabbar board your yacht?” he demanded.
The way she stared at him he couldn’t tell if she knew the name. She turned and wandered to the balcony door, where she stopped and crossed her arms. He followed, stopping behind her, trying not to be affected by the slope of her neck and the bare skin her halter dress exposed.
He put his hand on her upper arm and guided her to face him. Her gaze searched his.
“I know you were the reason he boarded your yacht,” he said. “And now another man came after you. Tell me why.”
Still, she hesitated. “I shouldn’t have come here.”
He took in her slender form in a pretty white dress, the pink fingernail polish and the smooth skin of her delicate hands resting on slim biceps.
“I couldn’t agree more,” he said.
“I know I wasn’t followed to the airport. I made sure of it. How would anyone have known I was in Bodrum?”
“Why did you think you’d be followed?”
She let out a tight breath. “A man threatened to kill me if I didn’t pay him three million dollars. He claimed my mother’s husband owed it to him, but he refused to say why. He knows where I live. He delivered a bloody scarf of my neighbor’s to my door. It scared me. He was serious.”
“Yeah. I’d say three million makes it pretty serious.” He took in her worried frown. “So you come to Turkey to what? Chase him down?” He tried to keep the sarcasm out of his voice but couldn’t.
“Ameen must have worked for him.”
“Ameen is working for someone?” His mind began to race.
“The caller was in the United States and knew a lot about me. How close I am to my neighbor. Where I live…”
Elam barely paid attention. The idea of Ameen answering to someone meant the terror cell was more complicated than his current intelligence revealed. Osman hadn’t dug deep enough. This was mushrooming into something bigger than Cullen had known.
“Why did you come to Bodrum, Farren?”
Now her eyes focused on him. “I didn’t know what else to do. I can’t just hand over that kind of money to a stranger. And I was afraid to go to the police. The caller warned me not to. What if the police couldn’t do anything to help me?”
“Why did you come to Turkey? Why Bodrum?”
“My mother chartered a yacht here. I wanted to know why. I think she was going to meet someone in Marmaris.”
“Marmaris.”
“There’s a yacht festival there.”
Had Ameen planned to go there as well? Elam had seen him go into a yacht charter office the day before he’d followed him to Farren. He’d wondered why but hadn’t thought any more on it. “What can you tell me about your mother’s husband?”
“He was wealthy and hated children.”
“What did he do for a living?”
“He owned a shipping business. I don’t remember the name of it.”
That could be important. He tucked the information away for now.
“I don’t know very much about him,” Farren added.
He believed her. “Ameen is a terrorist, Farren,” he said and watched her eyes widen.
“What?”
“Whatever business your stepfather was involved in, it may have been with terrorists.”
She looked across the room, dazed and frightened. Abruptly, she went to her purse and dug out her cell phone. “I have to get out of here.” She sounded breathless. “I should have never come in the first place. Terrorists. My God. If I’d known that I never would have flown here.”
“It doesn’t matter where you go now. They’ll find you. It’s clear enough that whoever threatened you will go to any length to get you. And your coming here only shows him you aren’t going to give him the money.”
“That’s right. I’m going home and I’m calling the police.”
He grunted. Did she actually think that would do any good? “You’ll be lucky to make it to the airport, sweetheart.”
She froze in the act of pressing a number. Then fiery amber eyes rolled to glare at him. “Don’t call me that.”
He sighed. He hadn’t meant to. It was just her effect on him. Her femininity made him too protective. “You can’t go home. It’s too late for that.”
She stared at him in disbelief.
“What makes you think your mother planned to meet someone at the yacht festival?”
She plopped her butt onto the bed, looking down at the cell phone still in her hands. He listened as she explained about the notes her mother wrote. “I thought it was strange she chartered a yacht in Bodrum and was going to go to the festival all by herself.”
“How did you know it was related to the threats?”
“I didn’t.”
“You didn’t.” Why the hell had she risked coming here then?
“I didn’t know what else to do.”
“You’re lucky you ran into me.”
She eyed him reproachfully. “You’re awfully sure of yourself.”
“If you hadn’t, you’d have been kidnapped and by now forced to…what?”
“Wire transfer the money to a numbered account. He gave me wire instructions.” Resignation seeped into her tone.
“And once you performed it, whoever’s behind this would have killed you.” He paused to make sure she heard what he said next. “After having some fun with you first. There’s nothing a terrorist loves more than an opportunity to torture an American woman.”
She seemed numb now, but at least he got his point through. He didn’t want her going off on her own. She needed him whether she liked it or not.
“What are we going to do now?” she asked.
“We need information. First we’ll go to Osman. It was his contact that led me to Ameen. I need a name.”
Chapter 4
“I can’t remember the name of the movie, but that scene was so fake.” The taxi jostled Farren as she talked. Elam looked at her. He hadn’t stopped looking at her since they’d left the hotel. “I mean, the hospital was empty. How many hospitals have you been to that were empty? Sure, it was late at night, but come on, people don’t get sick or hurt on schedule.” She didn’t know what made her think of this particular horror movie. Maybe it was seeing Elam coming down the hotel hall with his gun drawn. “And why did the villain go into an operating room and start whacking people? It didn’t make any sense. What motive did he have for doing it? Going into a hospital and killing anyone and everyone. It was done just for horror appeal, you know?”
He just kept staring at her. She hadn’t stopped talking since they’d left the hotel. She couldn’t help it. She was still punchy from seeing Elam chase a man who’d obviously followed her and would have done God-only-knew-what to her. And, of course, there was that kiss.
Farren was far too aware of Elam sitting next to her in the backseat of the taxi, oozing sex appeal. His shirt was still partially unbuttoned, making for easy access to his gun. Knees parted, he appeared as relaxed as could be, but she knew better. He was ready for anything.
The taxi stopped and she finally had to look away. Elam said something to the driver as he paid for the fare. Climbing out of the taxi with him, she walked beside him toward a white mortar villa in the hills north of the marina. He put his hand on her lower back as they approached the front door. She almost flinched with the touch.
She wasn’t supposed to see him again. That farewell kiss was just supposed to be a nice memory. Now here they were, together. What if he kissed her again? Would it lead to more? How long was she going to have to be with him?
He rang the doorbell and searched their surroundings, making it seem that his hand on her back was out of protectiveness rather than intimacy. She ought to be glad. She didn’t know him very well, but she doubted a sniper was the man of her dreams.
Osman opened the door with a questioning frown. Elam told him what happened at the hotel as they entered the villa. The interior was open and surprisingly modern. Farren didn’t know what she expected a home in Turkey to look like, but it wasn’t this. A spacious sitting area with wicker furniture and a red mosaic rug blended with a dining table and kitchen that had up-to-date appliances and tile flooring.
“Who could have followed you to the hotel?” Osman asked when Elam finished talking.
“That’s why we’re here.”
A woman emerged from a stairway. She had graying hair and dark eyes and wore a long-sleeved blouse with tan slacks.
“Elam,” the woman greeted him.
“Hello, Meryem.” He gestured to Farren. “This is Farren Gage.”
“Ah, yes, Osman told me about your rescue. How frightening it must have been to be stranded at sea!” Meryem walked over to Farren and took her hand in a brief grasp. “But you couldn’t have been in more capable hands. Welcome.”
“Thank you,” Farren said, smiling.
“Come, I will take you to the terrace,” Osman said. “It is a fine day. We will talk there.”
“I’ll bring some apple tea,” Meryem said, going into the kitchen.
Elam touched Farren’s back again, guiding her to walk ahead of him and behind Osman as they climbed the stairs. On the rooftop terrace, she was momentarily swept away by the view. She went to stand near a Turkish corner bench with red and blue and yellow pillows. Rolling mandarin groves stretched down the hill. The town center and the marina were in the distance. Red shingled rooftops dotted the landscape and the Castle of St. Peter was visible.
Osman sat with Elam on the bench. “What brings you to see me?” he asked. “I am sorry to hear someone is after Ms. Gage, but how is this related to me or any information I have given you?”
“I need the name of your contact, Osman. The one who told you about Ameen.”
Osman’s expression grew guarded. “I do not reveal the identities of my contacts. You know this.”
“I’m asking you to make an exception.”
“I do not understand. Are you afraid whoever followed you and Farren to the hotel is linked to Ameen? How?”
“Ameen was working with someone else. Someone I’m afraid has more dangerous connections and may be planning something in Marmaris.”
“How do you know this?” Elam glanced at Farren, and she knew he’d drawn this conclusion because of what she’d told him about her mother. Terrorists had threatened her for money…but why did he think they’d planned something in Marmaris?
“I saw Ameen go into a yacht charter company before he went after Farren.”
“And did he charter a yacht to Marmaris?”
“I don’t know, but I will after I go to the charter company.”
Did the terrorists know her mother was going to go there and meet someone? Was it that someone the terrorists were after? Then why not just go there and kill the person? Why follow her mother’s itinerary? Or was it the other way around…had her mother known about the terrorists’ itinerary?
“Do you think Ameen was trying to stop me from going to Marmaris?” she asked Elam.
He turned to her. “It’s possible.”
“How did they know we’d come back to the marina after you killed Ameen?” Ameen’s body probably wouldn’t turn up for days.
“They might not have been sure. When Ameen didn’t show up wherever he was supposed to take you, someone must have sent another man to watch the marina. There was time, since we were stranded at sea for a while.”
As she thought about that, Elam faced their host.
“I need to talk to your contact, Osman.”
Worry put a line above his nose. “If my contact knew more, he would have told me. He would not have kept anything from me.”
“Whoever Ameen was working with wants money from Farren and doesn’t want anyone knowing why. If your contact learned more about Ameen after he delivered his initial information and Ameen’s friends found out…”
Farren watched Osman begin to waver.
“Please, Osman. You could save his life if you tell me who he is and where I can find him.”
“You truly think his life is in danger?”
“Yes.”
“Then I will go to him myself. If he knows more of Ameen’s affairs, I will pass the information along as I have always done.”
“No. I don’t want you invo
lved anymore. This is getting too dangerous. Tell me his name and where I can find him. I’ll make sure he’s all right.”
Osman took several moments before he finally replied. “Asil is his name.” He told Elam where to find him in Bodrum.
Meryem appeared on the terrace, smiling as she carried four cups of tea on a tray. She put the tray on the low table before the bench seat and brought a cup over to Farren.
Farren took it. “Thank you.” She looked over at Elam, wondering what they’d uncover when they found Osman’s contact. She wasn’t sure she wanted to go with him, but, of course, he wouldn’t have it any other way now. What if Asil was already dead?
“Sometimes I wish my Osman would stop his cavorting with Elam and that company he works for,” Meryem surprised her by saying.
Farren looked at her. “He and Osman work together?”
“When the occasion warrants it.” Meryem’s tone and eyes said she didn’t like it.
“How long have they known each other?”
“Just two years. When Elam came to work for Cullen.”
“Cullen?”
“That is who pays my Osman for his work. He is not a direct employee like Elam, but the money comes from the same place.”
“What’s the name of the company that employs them?”
“As I have said, Osman does not work directly for the company. TES, he calls it, but what it does, what its purpose is, I do not know. I am not sure I want to know. Osman cannot talk of the things he does, but I know he would never do anything immoral. He is working for the good of this world. That is enough for me.”
What kind of company hired snipers? One that fought terrorism? She resisted the appeal of that. Elam had told her he was a consultant after admitting he was a sniper. “Doesn’t it bother you that he keeps secrets?”
Heiress Under Fire Page 5