Rachel would be devastated.
The botanical gardens were serene and peaceful this time of morning. Blood surged though his veins when he glimpsed the gazebo where he and Rachel had shared an incredible night of passion. He had to focus to drive the images out of his mind.
"So Pete, who is Mrs. Inez?"
"She’s the director of the shelter."
"How do you know she will back up the story?"
"I saw a note on her desk when I mopped the floors, reminding her to check about getting new locks." He paused and a wide grin spread. "Plus, she left on a two-week cruise a couple of days ago."
Ben stopped in his tracks. "Pete, that was a stroke of genius. You have great instincts. You would make a hell of a security specialist."
"Do you really think so?" Peter asked with awe. "I love solving puzzles and I’ve always wanted to be a detective." He looked away. "But I figured no one would hire me, so I stuck with computers. You can do that all alone."
Aw, hell. What this boy had been through in his young life. "I’d hire you."
Peter’s head whipped up. "You would?"
"In fact, I am hiring you." He had never felt so right about a decision.
Peter’s mouth dropped open. "W-what?"
"How would you like a job as a real detective?" Luke would hire Peter in a heartbeat on his recommendation. His brother talked about finding someone with expert computer skills anyway.
"Do you mean it?"
"Absolutely."
"I’ll take it," Peter gushed enthusiastically. "I can’t believe I’ll be a real detective."
"It’s more than a detective. The company handles all kinds of security concerns. You’ll have to get a license," Ben informed him. "I’ll teach you to use a weapon. And I guess I should mention that the job is based in Indiana."
"I don’t care. Being a detective is a—" Peter stopped abruptly, all traces of happiness evaporating like a drop of water on steaming hot pavement. "I can’t take the job."
"Because of the location?"
"No," he said sadly. "I’d move anywhere, especially for the opportunity to be a real detective. It’s been a dream of mine since I was young."
"Then what’s the problem?" Ben asked, perplexed.
He almost decided Peter wasn’t going to answer when finally, he whispered, "April."
"Ah," Ben replied knowingly. "Do you love her?"
Peter didn’t hesitate. "Yes."
"Then marry her. Take her with you."
The naked emotion on Peter’s face wrenched Ben’s heart.
"She’s so beautiful, she would never marry someone who looked like me. I’m a monster."
"Stop."
The force and intensity of the command startled Peter and his eyes widened. "Stop what?"
He stabbed a finger in Peter’s chest. "You are not a monster, goddammit, and I don’t ever want to hear you say that again. You are an intelligent, caring, incredible human being and any woman would be lucky to have your affection."
"But I-"
"I’m not finished," Ben growled, interrupting him. His eyes narrowed with a thunderous rage.
Peter’s mouth snapped shut.
"I’ve seen the way April looks at you. It isn’t with disgust or disdain, it’s with love. She loves you as much as you love her."
Hope battled fear on Peter’s face. "Do you really think so?"
"I know so," he stated emphatically. He fisted a handful of Peter’s shirt and pulled him closer. "I don’t ever want to hear you put yourself down again because of your scars. I mean it…don’t make me hurt you."
Peter didn’t look completely convinced, but he relented, "Okay."
Ben nodded once and released the shirt. "Good. Now let’s go wrap this up and get on with our lives."
They entered the building through the side entrance and took the stairs two at a time to the second floor. "Get April, we’ll meet in Rachel’s room." Peter took off down the hall.
Ben paused in front of Rachel’s door. He dreaded telling her what they found. She felt guilty enough about Molly’s disappearance. Learning the truth would crush her.
#
Rachel shot straight up in bed, her heart jumping in her chest. Her nerves were stretched tighter than finely tuned piano wire. When she saw Ben, she stifled a shriek of happiness and threw herself into his arms. He staggered back a step.
"I’ve been worried sick," she said in between the kisses she peppered all over his face.
He hugged her tight before setting her on the floor. "Let’s do this right."
His deep velvet voice caressed her as tenderly as the hand that stroked her cheek. Grasping her face between his large palms, he lowered his mouth. A small cry of need escaped. Each kiss was hotter, more intense than the last. She could spend the rest of her life kissing him.
She whimpered when he pulled away.
"If I don’t stop now," he said huskily, his thumb tracing her bottom lip, "I’ll take you right now."
"Yes," she breathed.
He groaned. "Peter and April will be here any minute."
She completely forgot about his investigation. Overwhelming happiness for his safe return chased every other thought from her mind. "What did you learn? Did you find Molly? Who is responsible? Did you see Donelle? What’s going—umph."
He effectively silenced her with another kiss. She could feel his smile against her lips. "Let’s wait for the others Chatty Cathy."
"Can you just tell me if you found Molly?"
His expression grew troubled, distressed. Her smile slipped and a cold knot formed in her stomach. "Ben?"
He clasped her hands. "I didn’t find Molly. But you knew there was a possibility of this turning out badly, right?"
Swallowing hard, she closed her eyes and nodded sadly.
He kissed her affectionately, threading their fingers together as the door creaked open. April entered first dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt, carrying a plastic bag. Peter followed closely behind. Rachel smiled. They, too, were holding hands.
She hoped they each overcame their insecurities. They belonged together. She wondered how to approach Peter about having her uncle, a noted plastic surgeon, operate on his scars without offending him. He was such a nice man, she didn’t want him to have to go through life the recipient of insensitive remarks and stares. Judging from the way he always tried to turn his scarred side away, she knew they bothered him. Maybe she could have Ben do it. Peter clearly idolized him.
Ben spoke first. "I need to make some phone calls right away. Pete, you can fill in the ladies on what we found."
#
Ben punched numbers in his cell as he padded across the room. April took a seat next to Rachel on the bed and grasped her hands. They both watched Peter expectantly.
He fought the overwhelming urge to hide his face.
But Ben’s ardent speech earlier seeped into his soul. It gave him a touch of confidence in himself. Ben believed in him. He would not hide from the world any longer.
For the first time since his parents and brother died in that horrible fire, someone thought he was worthy of affection, thought him special. His gaze strayed to April. Make that two people. Maybe he could believe it himself. He was a good person, a security specialist now…or he would be as soon as he asked April to marry him. And yes, he was going to ask.
"What did you two find out, Peter?"
He focused on Rachel’s eager gaze. She looked him squarely in the eye now without the slightest hint of disgust. He didn’t hold her initial reaction against her—most people flinched when they saw him the first time. April and Ben were the only two that hadn’t so much as blinked at his disfigurement. The people that continued to cringe after they met him were the ones that really upset him.
He knew Rachel dyed her hair black and the dark contacts were props, yet she was still stunning. But he only had eyes for the woman next to her, the most beautiful lady he had ever or would ever meet in his lifetime. April.
"
Peter?"
April’s worried tone snapped him from his thoughts and he fought the blush that he knew would be creeping up the unscarred side of his face. "We followed the passageway for about a mile and came to three doors. One led to a securely locked room with a digital entry. We didn’t have the tools to crack the code so we didn’t try that one.
"Another door opened to a staircase that led to a hidden entrance to the women’s shelter down the street."
"Doesn’t Oscar Bexley run the shelter?" Rachel queried.
"Yes, and we bumped into him."
"What was he doing there this early?" April asked.
"Good question, but he had a pretty decent excuse," he admitted. "A new girl arrived scared and upset. They couldn’t locate the on-call doctor, Kathleen Butler, so the aide on duty called him."
"Okay, could have happened," Rachel supposed. "What about the third door?"
"It led to a walk-in freezer."
"A freezer?" Both sets of brows lifted quizzically.
He paused, knowing the next words out of his mouth would upset the girls as it had him. "There is no way to make this easier to hear, so I’m just going to say it. Inside the freezer we found harvested human organs."
Chapter Twenty-Five
Ben disconnected and watched Rachel intently as Peter informed her of their findings. Both women gasped in unison.
"Oh no, Molly…" Rachel’s voice trailed off as the implication of their findings sunk in, all color draining from her face.
He wanted to go to her, comfort her, but they didn’t have time. He needed to get the women to safety before this thing blew. Local authorities and the FBI were on their way. Officers had been dispatched to pick up both Oscar and Frederick and bring them in cuffs to the Institute. A critical care team from a nearby hospital would be en route to ascertain if the organs stored in the freezer were salvageable.
Rachel didn’t give him a choice. She launched herself into his arms.
Unprepared for impact, he grunted and staggered back a few steps, but wrapped her tightly in his arms. Resting his cheek on the top of her head, he rocked her slowly, wanting to absorb all her pain.
"Are you okay?" she asked softly.
He lifted his head and looked down at her.
Her small palm cupped his cheek. "Donelle," she explained.
Emotion clogged his throat. She just found out that one of her best friends might have been brutally murdered, her body cruelly scavenged, and she worried more about his well-being than her own.
At that moment he knew.
He loved her.
"Ah, babe," he murmured, his hands sliding up to cup her neck. "It’s you I’m worried about."
"I’ve been better," she admitted with a watery smile.
Uncaring of the interested audience a few feet away, he curved his fingers under her chin, leaned down and kissed her.
The first wave of sirens sounded in the distance.
Reluctantly, he pulled back. With an arm around her shoulder, he guided her over to April.
"Before we jump to any conclusions, we don’t know who the organs belong to right now. The authorities are on their way. I need to get down there and direct this thing."
The sirens intensified.
"I need you two to promise you will stay right here until one of us comes to get you. This will be the safest place for you."
"But we can help," Rachel argued.
He pinned her with his sternest look. "No, you can’t."
"But—" she protested.
He cut her off. "Pete." He held out a hand, not taking his eyes off her.
Clearly uncomfortable, Peter placed a key in his hand. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Peter’s sheepish shrug to April. Ben shook his head. The guy was seriously whipped.
Rachel narrowed her eyes, all traces of earlier tears gone. "You wouldn’t dare," she challenged.
Tapping Peter’s shoulder, he jerked his head to the door. "This is for your own good." Just before he exited behind Peter, he turned and said, "One of us will be back to get you as soon as possible."
#
Rachel dove for the handle just as it clicked. She rattled it to no avail. He definitely locked the damn thing. Ben’s victorious chuckle set her off. With a frustrated grunt, she slammed her hands against the door.
"Bastard," she yelled.
She spun around to April, her cheeks flaming, her chest heaving with annoyance. Focusing her anger on Ben helped ease the pain of Molly’s probable fate. "I can’t believe those two jerks locked us in the room while they go save the day."
"Me either," April agreed fiercely, her fists slamming to her boyish hips.
In the midst of her rage, Rachel had to bite back a smile. April looked like a little spike-haired pixie avenger.
April swung around to the bed and lifted the plastic bag. She handed it to Rachel. "I brought clothes and shoes from your suitcase."
"Thank you," she said gratefully. Whipping off the blue scrubs, she tossed them over her head, never to be worn again. She pulled out the faded jeans with holes in the knees and slid them over her legs. After quickly donning the ugly green sweater, she laced up the battered sneakers. Though her entire outfit cost less than ten bucks at Goodwill, she felt one hundred percent better.
Pacing the room, she chewed a thumbnail and plotted a way to escape. She would work on plotting Ben’s revenge later. "We can’t just sit here while they risk their lives," she insisted firmly.
"What do we do? They locked us in," April pointed out unnecessarily.
Marching to the door, she examined the handle, jiggling it again. "Don’t suppose you know how to pick locks?"
"Sadly, no," April admitted forlornly.
She huffed out a frustrated sigh. "There has to be something we can do to help. We are talking about the men we love."
She wasn’t sure when it happened, but there was no doubt. She loved Ben. She started falling for him the first time she saw him, standing so tall and handsome in his uniform. He was so different than any man she had ever dated. Strong, honorable and so darn gorgeous he made her whole body tingle. Even with frizzy dyed hair, muddy contacts and scruffy clothes, he made her feel like the most beautiful woman on earth. Though she hadn’t known him long, she knew enough about him to want to spend the rest of her life with him.
Of course, none of those feelings were based on the last few minutes, but she’d deal with that later. Now she had to make sure he lived to share that life with her.
"What do we do?"
The solution hit her instantly. She smiled. "Jen."
April matched her smile and then frowned in confusion. "How can she help? We can’t get a message to her locked in here."
Rachel grinned like the Cheshire cat and padded to the bed. Lifting the teddy bear April loaned her, she peeled the zipper down, stuck her hand inside and withdrew her cell phone. She wiggled it in the air victoriously.
"Ben brought it to me in case of an emergency. I’d say this is an emergency, wouldn’t you?"
April laughed. "I would."
Flipping the cell open, she punched a button just as the handle jangled and the door burst open. Both women spun around and gasped.
Chapter Twenty-Six
"Knock, knock."
"Jen," Rachel and April exclaimed in unison, rushing forward to embrace their case worker. "We are so happy to see you."
"Aw, I’m happy to see you both, too." Her brows arched and a perplexed smile crossed her face.
Rachel closed the door and tugged her into the room. "Your ears must be burning. We were just about to call you."
"Kellie, April, what’s wrong?"
"We need your help. It’s a matter of life or death."
Jen glanced from Rachel to April and laughed nervously. "You are really starting to scare me. April? I’ve never seen you so…animated."
"You are never going to believe this." Rachel grasped her hand and led her to the bed. "You better sit down."
"The Bexley
s are murdering people and stealing their organs," April blurted out.
Jen jerked back, her mouth dropping open in disbelief. "What are you talking about?" She narrowed her eyes and studied April. With a look of understanding, her voice softened. "You must be taking a different medication."
"It’s true," Rachel insisted. "First of all, my name is Rachel, not Kellie, and I’m not really crazy."
Jen’s look contradicted that statement.
"My friend Molly Miller was a patient here and she disappeared. I’ve been trying to find her ever since."
"Molly?"
She grasped Jen’s hand. "Do you remember her?"
"Of course I remember Molly. I brought her here from the shelter. She was pregnant but didn’t like it here and ran away."
"But that’s just it. She didn’t run away."
"What? How do you know?"
"Because she called me, terrified, begging me to help. Before she could explain, the line went dead."
"If she didn’t explain anything to you," Jen rationalized, "then how do you know she didn’t just decide to go off by herself?"
"Because of what we found in the basement," Rachel said triumphantly.
Jen’s palms covered her cheeks. "This is just too unbelievable. How did you figure this out?"
"April," Rachel exclaimed with a proud smile.
"April?" Jen swung her gaze to the girl. "But she’s…" She didn’t finish her sentence. Staring quizzically at April, she waited for an explanation.
"It wasn’t me, it was Peter.”
“Peter?”
“The janitor."
"Oh, him."
Rachel knew the distasteful grimace that flattened Jen’s lips angered and hurt April because it angered and hurt her and she wasn’t in love with him.
Flustered, April looked away and didn’t speak.
"What did Peter do, April? Jen prompted.
For a minute, Rachel didn’t think April would answer. Finally she spoke. "Peter helped wean me off drugs. I haven’t been taking the prescribed medication for several months," she admitted.
"Even at night?" Jen’s brows tilted. "I thought the nurses were required to administer sleeping medication to you because of your violent nightmares."
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