Deadly Exchange

by Lisa Harris

  She took a step backward and glanced up at Levi, surprised at how thankful she was that he was here. And how safe he made her feel. She might have tried to push him away when he’d attempted to save her all those years ago, but deep down he’d always been that handsome hero she’d looked up to. Always a tower of strength, and over the years, that part of him hadn’t changed. He’d always been the responsible oldest son, the rescuing big brother, there to pick up the pieces.

  But the last thing she needed right now was a distraction, and certainly not with her ex-fiancé’s brother. The countdown wasn’t stopping just because they hadn’t found Mercy.

  “You’re still shaking.”

  “I’m freezing.”

  “We just passed a shop selling hot chocolate.”

  She nodded. It was more than just the weather, but she could use something to take off the chill. A minute later, she took the hot chocolate he handed her then took a sip, burning the tip of her tongue in the process.

  “What are you thinking?” he asked, drinking the coffee he’d bought for himself as they headed toward the tram.

  “I’m worried about what we’re supposed to do if we end up finding Mercy. Even if we find her, we can’t exchange her.”

  “I know, but if she can help us locate the men behind this, we might have a chance.”

  “You have to have some advice.” She blew on her hot chocolate, then took another sip, feeling the warmth of the drink seep through her. “You dealt with hostage situations and negotiated in your line of work when you were in the military.”

  “Yes, but this is different.”

  * * *

  “Different how?”

  Levi tried to analyze her question as he studied the street scene around them. A man wearing a wool hat walked a dozen meters behind them on the other side of the street. He’d seen the man a few minutes earlier but hadn’t been able to determine yet if he was following them. For now, he’d simply have to keep his guard up.

  “For one, we don’t have any tactical backup. And now I’ve seen what they can do, not only to these girls, but to anyone who gets in their way. They’re ruthless and don’t care who they hurt.”

  He drank the rest of his coffee, then dumped his empty cup into a trash can. Or maybe what was different was that Kayla was the one who’d been caught in the cross fire this time. Not that that should matter. Being here was never supposed to be personal, but for some reason it was becoming just that.

  His evaluation of the situation, though, had been correct. They were up against an unknown enemy, and moving ahead without sufficient information. All of which further legitimized Kayla’s concerns. Finding Mercy didn’t guarantee her father’s safety, because an exchange wasn’t an option. A situation that somehow felt all too familiar.

  When he’d been responsible for his team, he’d known that if he made one mistake, one wrong call, he could end up sacrificing all their lives. It was what had gotten him up in the mornings, because he felt that there was significance to what he was doing no matter how hard the assignment. He was doing it for his country. For freedom. Until the day he’d found himself in a situation where even with all the intel he’d processed and the strategies they’d put into place, it hadn’t been enough to stop five soldiers from being caught behind enemy lines.

  He glanced at Kayla, who’d become quiet and focused as they hurried toward the tram, his hand still wrapped around hers. Her job wasn’t much different than his had been. She felt the responsibility of ensuring the safety of these girls she worked with. Not only to bring them out of a difficult situation, but to ensure that they stayed safe. He’d seen the intensity in her eyes and heard the passion in her voice. She wasn’t going to give up on finding her father, but neither would she sacrifice Mercy. And right now, he had no idea how to help her do that.

  She stopped at a red light and blew out a puff of air. “How do we fix this?”

  He wanted to tell her not to worry. That they’d find a way to fix this. But after everything that had happened, he wasn’t sure anymore.

  “What do you think we should do besides interview the girls?” she asked when he didn’t answer.

  He tried to choose his words carefully as they passed a well-lit café. A glance to the right showed no sign of the man in the hat, but he still wasn’t ready to dismiss the fact that someone could be following them.

  “This isn’t a typical hostage situation. There is no one to negotiate with while we gather more intel. I can’t talk to them, or listen to them and find a way to get them to trust me. They don’t work that way.”

  So what was the answer?

  It wasn’t the first time he’d considered bringing in outside help. Since his return, he’d had half a dozen job offers from risk-management companies. The number of international kidnappings continued to rise, particularly in Africa and the Middle East. Both extortion and ransom had become big businesses. But in this situation, he was still debating if hiring an expert was an option they should take.

  “All I know to do is stick with our plan,” he said finally. “We talk to the girls, figure out where Mercy might have run and hopefully find her. And if we can find her, we hope she can help us lead us to where they might have your father.”

  He caught the look of frustration on Kayla’s face as they stepped onto the blue-and-white tram. He studied the handful of passengers, the uneasy feeling he’d had all the way here intensifying. They were too out in the open. Too vulnerable. He never should have let her leave the apartment, and yet doing nothing wasn’t going to help them, either.

  “How many more stops?” he asked.

  “Three,” she said, as he sat down next to her in the back of the tram. “I’ve been wanting to ask about your father.”

  Her question caught him off guard as he forced his mind to momentarily switch gears, his senses still on high alert.

  “Between my father’s health and my brother’s prison sentence, my parents have had a hard couple of years.”

  “What exactly is wrong with your father?”

  “Prostate cancer. He’s doing better after a few major changes to his diet and a list of other things, but it’s never far from our minds.”

  “And he’s the reason you returned to Potterville.”

  He glanced at his leg that still held a piece of shrapnel. “That and an ambush in the Middle East. I didn’t have much of a choice.”

  “You miss it, don’t you? The military?”

  The tram stopped, and he studied the passengers getting on. In any other situation he would be soaking up every moment with Kayla. Enjoying their conversation while getting to know her again after all these years. But today...today all he could think about was keeping her safe.

  “It’s been hard to find my feet as a civilian again,” he said, finally answering her question.

  “Do you ever think about going back?”

  “Well, I don’t see myself sitting behind a desk for the rest of my life. Though for now, my only goal is to keep things running in the company for my father until he’s ready to take over again. After that...I haven’t decided.”

  “My father told me you’re good at what you’re doing right now.”

  “There are things I love about my job. Working with people and knowing that we’re making a difference to the community. But like I said, sitting behind a desk all day or going to meeting after meeting...that isn’t exactly my thing.”

  She wrapped her fingers around his arm. “I’m scared, Levi. Scared of how all of this is going to turn out.”

  He squeezed her hand. “I know.”

  She nodded as the tram started slowing down again. “We can get off here.”

  “How close are we to your office?”

  “Three blocks.”

  They stepped off the tram, then headed down the street. A car turned the corner slowly, coming towa
rd them from behind. They were in a quieter neighborhood now. Someone flew past them on a bike, but beyond that and the car, the street was empty.

  “We need to get out of here,” he said, trying to squelch the uneasiness that had taken over. “We need to be somewhere less isolated.”

  “There’s a row of shops up ahead to our left. Our offices are located just past them.”

  They picked up their pace toward the lighted area, but the car made the same left turn. His stomach clenched as the car slowed behind them. Something was off. This time there was no doubt they were being followed.

  He grabbed her hand and started walking faster.

  “Levi.”

  “I think they found us.”

  “They’ve already got my father. Why would they need us?”

  “I don’t know.”

  Squeezing his fingers tighter around her hand, he started running.

  The car engine roared behind them. He wasn’t imagining things this time.

  “Levi...”

  “Keep running.”

  The street was deserted. He could hear the faint strains of a radio playing from one of the apartments above them, but with the cold, windows were closed and most people were bundled up inside their apartments. And they were still too far away from the lit-up area ahead.

  Houses framed either side of the road. The vehicle screeched to a stop in front of them, blocking off the road. Unless they turned around, there was nowhere to run.

  Two men in black emerged from the car. Levi caught the gleam of a gun in the glow of the streetlight, then moved Kayla behind him as they backed up. She grabbed his arm and screamed.

  “Shut up or I will shoot you.”

  Levi eyed the gun. Getting in the vehicle with them couldn’t be an option. They’d lose any remaining control over the situation. His only choice was to try to fight his way out.

  One of the men approached them from the right. He belted the man with his elbow, then reached for the weapon. But he was no match for two armed men. They grabbed him and Kayla, locked their hands behind them and roughly placed blindfolds over their eyes. Levi felt a stab of pain shoot through his head, and he stumbled forward.

  Then complete darkness surrounded him.

  Six

  Kayla gasped for a breath beneath the confines of the blindfold covering her eyes. Panic set in. She had no idea how long it had been since they had grabbed her and Levi off the street. All she really knew was that darkness felt as if it were closing in like a choking hand. Her hands were tied behind her back, making it difficult—if not impossible—to pull the blindfold off and take in her surroundings.

  She prayed as she tried to loosen the cords securing her hands. Levi had to be here somewhere, and maybe her father as well. She had to find them. In the vehicle they’d been shoved into, she’d tried to figure out where they were being taken, but eventually she’d given up. She couldn’t be sure how much time had passed, or how far they’d driven. There wasn’t even any way to know for sure if Levi had been brought here as well.

  What she did know was that this was no coincidence. Payback, perhaps, because they hadn’t followed the rules? They might not have told the police what was going on, but they had gone to the government morgue. What was she supposed to tell them now? She had no idea where Mercy was, and no idea where to find her.

  The unwanted image of her sister’s body flashed in front of her. She tugged at the bindings around her wrists. Is this what the girls had felt when they’d realized who those men really were? She’d seen the fear in the eyes of the girls she’d worked with, heard the worry in their voices.

  Kayla drew in a deep breath. Panicking over what could happen wasn’t going to get her out of here. She needed to make a plan. Needed to figure out where she was and how to get out. She estimated they’d driven at least forty-five minutes, maybe an hour. Enough time to take them outside the city and into the surrounding countryside. They’d pulled her and Levi out of the vehicle, still blindfolded. He’d held on to her for as long as he could, until someone had pulled them apart. After that...all she knew was that she’d felt so tired and must have eventually fallen asleep.

  Levi had tried to fight back, but she had no idea if he’d been injured...or even if he was still alive, for that matter. She shook off the thought, trying not to think about a worst-case scenario. Because while her connection to Levi’s family might have ended a long time ago, the thought of anything happening to him terrified her. And all she knew for sure was that she wished he was here with her right now. Since his unexpected arrival, he’d somehow become the quiet shelter in the storm. The steady rock holding her in place.

  Not that she had any romantic feelings toward him. Not at all. Levi was nothing more than a familiar face. Someone from back home who had brought with him a pile of memories she wanted to forget. She’d almost become a part of his family once, and it hadn’t ended well. There was no way she was going to fall for the older brother. Their intertwined past was simply too complicated.

  She pushed aside the distracting thoughts, focusing instead on freeing herself from the blindfold. Thirty seconds later it finally slipped from her face, allowing her to see the sunlight streaming in from a window. She closed her eyes for a moment, then let them slowly adjust to the brightness.

  The blindfold off, Kayla moved on to try to release the cords tightly binding her hands while she studied the large room for a clue as to where she was. The walls of the chilly room needed a fresh coat of paint, and there were sheets covering the sparse furniture. She didn’t know much about architecture, but she had visited several stunning country estates outside Amsterdam. And from the surface, this room seemed similar in construction, with its tall ceiling and crown molding. Many of the estates surrounding the city had been built centuries ago as coveted destinations for relaxing in the country with their gardens and stunning architectural details. But this structure felt more like a prison than a place for an afternoon getaway.

  Kayla turned her head as footsteps sounded outside the room. Her heart raced as the door creaked open to her left. She turned her head, and the fear that had been her companion over the last twenty-four hours escalated another notch as a tall figure stepped inside the room, his icy stare slicing right through her.

  “You had to do this the hard way, didn’t you?” he said hovering above her.

  Kayla tried to swallow the fear. “Who are you?”

  “That doesn’t matter. What did you tell them?”

  “Tell who?”

  “The police.” His frown deepened. “Because as I remember, you were told very explicitly not to talk with the police.”

  She shook her head. “I didn’t tell them anything. We went to the morgue. That was all.”

  “Why?”

  “To identify a body.”

  “And you expect me to believe that you or your boyfriend didn’t happen to mention that someone has your father?”

  She wanted to argue that Levi wasn’t her boyfriend, but it didn’t matter. She had a feeling he wasn’t going to believe anything she said. She glanced at the door that was still open a crack, looking for escape, but at the moment there was clearly no way out.

  “I received a call from a contact,” she attempted to explain. “He asked to meet me at the morgue, so I did.”

  “Why?”

  “He thought I might know who the girl was.”

  The man took a step back at her statement. “You thought it was Mercy.”

  She nodded, catching a flash of concern in the man’s eyes.

  He dropped his hands to his sides. “Was it her?”

  “No.”

  Whatever had struck a nerve with the man a moment before had now vanished. A second man stepped into the doorway, then started speaking rapidly in a foreign language and motioned for him to step outside.

  “I’ll be bac
k.”

  She tried to stop the panic as the two men argued about something in the hallway. Something was off. The look she’d caught in his eye when she’d told him why she was at the morgue. That split second of fear. Could he truly be concerned about Mercy? She had to have just imagined any hint of concern. Because something had propelled him to not only take her father, but now her and Levi. Was there something beyond a financial desire to take back his source of income?

  The sound of heavy boots on the scuffed wooden floor pulled her from her thoughts once again. Both men now stood in front of her.

  “I’m assuming you know why you’re here?” the first man asked her, his voice laced with irritation.

  She didn’t answer the question immediately, taking time instead to study the men. From the language they’d been speaking, she guessed they were from Eastern Europe. Both had olive skin, square jaws and high cheekbones, and they looked similar enough to pass as brothers.

  “You gave me twenty-four hours to find Mercy,” she finally answered.

  “Without going to the police.”

  “And I said I didn’t.”

  He leaned in toward her. “You think this is a game?”

  “Hardly. But if that’s true, then tell me what you want with her. You’ve got a dozen girls who will take her place. Why not just leave her alone?”

  “I don’t remember asking your opinion. What I asked you to do is find her. Where is she?”

  “I don’t know. I need more time.”

  “Because your father’s running out of time.”

  “Where is he? And Levi? Please tell me they’re okay.”

  “They’re both fine. For now. And I have some extra insurance if I need it. Levi Sinclair Cummings, CEO of an American manufacturing company, has to be worth a large chunk of cash—at least a couple million.”

  “So now you’re into the kidnapping and ransom business?”