Diana jumped to her feet and downed the rest of her coffee.
“Just a sec,” she said as she quickly washed her cup. “I need to get my bag from the conference room.”
“We’ll be waiting for you at the elevator.”
Diana made a beeline for the conference room where she’d left her laptop and bag. She gathered up all her things. She would head straight home after this, so she would follow Peter in her car.
She rushed to the elevator, where Scott and Peter were waiting for her. “Nik not back yet?” she asked.
Scott shook his head. “Stuck in traffic. But he has Amanda, so everything’s okay,” he said with a smile. The elevator dinged, and the doors opened. They stepped back to allow people off the elevator and got on. There was only the three of them.
Peter hit the button for the second parking level. “I’m on level one,” she said. At Peter’s quizzical glance, she explained. “I’ll be heading straight home after this, and I’d rather avoid another detour, so I’ll follow you in my car.”
Peter pressed the button for Parking Level 1. “I can come with you, if you want. Show you where to go,” Scott offered.
Diana opened her mouth, but before she could say a word, Peter interfered. “I’m sure she can manage driving just fine on her own,” he snapped.
“Yeah, but it’s no fun being alone,” Scott grinned. “Anyway, this way I can protect her.”
Diana was about to tell him she didn’t need protection when Peter intervened. Again. “From what? Traffic? What are you going to do? Shoot anyone in your path?”
Scott rolled his eyes. “What crawled up your ass and died?” he grumbled.
“Excuse me?”
Diana decided enough was enough. While this display of testosterone was certainly entertaining, it was becoming tedious. And Peter was being irritating again. Did he really think she couldn’t make a decision for herself?
“While I can handle driving on my own and certainly don’t need any protection, I wouldn’t mind the company at all, so you’re welcome to join me, Scott.”
The man grinned triumphantly at Peter who turned to glower at her. Tough. She liked Scott.
Thankfully, both men kept quiet for a few moments. “Diana?” Scott said.
“Yes?”
“How did you know that Krantz’ daughter had been threatened?”
She turned to look at him. “I didn’t,” she replied with a shrug.
“You didn’t?”
She shook her head. “No, I made an educated guess based on the information we had on him. He was clearly a man who values his status, and since he’s pretty much squeaky clean, they had to have swayed him somehow. Money definitely wasn’t the reason because he would have been cockier. His entire body language screamed “terrified” but not of us. So, the logical assumption was that someone in his family had been threatened. His tone softened, and he got this faraway look in his eyes when he spoke of his daughter, so I surmised she was the target.”
“But what if you had been wrong?” Peter asked.
She shrugged. “I wasn’t. He clearly showed me that his daughter was very important to him—“
“But isn’t that the case with any father?” Scott asked, interrupting her.
Diana snorted. “You’d be surprised at how ruthless some fathers can be or at least appear to be, even if they are bluffing or otherwise caught in a double bind. Anyway, once I knew for a fact that Amanda was important to him, I decided to use her. Even if she hadn’t been threatened, I would still have used the strong relationship he had with her to our advantage.
“How?” Peter asked.
“It doesn’t matter. We got what we needed, and Amanda will be okay.” Her tone was curt and didn’t invite further conversation on the topic.
A few moments later, the elevator doors opened. She stepped out and headed toward her car, Scott following closely behind her.
“You drive a Prius?” Scott asked, looking surprised.
“Yes. What of it?”
“I’m just surprised, that’s all. I expected you’d drive something bigger. Like a tank,” he said with a grin.
Diana laughed. “I don’t feel the need to compensate for anything,” she said sweetly.
Scott went beet red. “Hey, not everyone drives big cars to compensate for inadequacies,” he huffed.
She chuckled. “You drive a truck, don’t you?”
“At least I don’t drive an egg,” he mumbled.
She rolled her eyes. “I’ll have you know that I like the design of my Prius. And I’m helping the environment while I’m at it, so don’t insult my car.”
“But it does look like an egg. Get two of them and you can make an omelet. “
“You know, you could always walk,” Diana said sweetly, as she opened the back door and put her bag and laptop inside.
“No, no, this is cool,” Scott said as he quickly opened the door and got in.
“Worried I was going to follow through?” she asked as she settled into the driver’s seat.
Scott glanced at her. “I decided not to tempt fate. I’ve seen what you can do.”
“Good choice,” she replied with a wink and started the engine.
CHAPTER 8
HALF AN HOUR later, they pulled up in front of a fence surrounding the warehouse Krantz had mentioned, a fair distance from the building. They turned off their headlights. Darkness had fallen and there were no street lamps to illuminate them. Peter got out of his car and walked over to Diana’s. She opened her window.
“I think we’d best leave the cars here. The last thing we want is to alert them,” Peter said.
“What’s your plan?”
“We don’t have a warrant,” Peter was leaning casually on the roof of Diana’s car and speaking down to her through the window, “so let’s scout around and get a look inside through the windows. That way, if we see anything untoward, we’ll have probable cause for a warrant and can come back tomorrow.”
“If they haven’t cleared out by then,” Diana said.
“We’ll have to take that chance,” Peter replied.
“Wouldn’t it be better if we just came back when we had a warrant?” Scott asked.
“We won’t reach a judge before tomorrow morning, and we can hardly get him or her,” Peter added with a quick look at Diana, “to sign off on a warrant based on hearsay.”
“Your life is really complicated, isn’t it?” Diana said.
Peter shrugged. “It’s the way things are. Now, are we going to hang around here talking or get on with it?”
Diana and Scott got out of the car. “Okay, let’s scout around. Look for cameras, just in case they have surveillance, and… try to look less…” she waved her hand in the air, encompassing them both.
“Less what?” Scott asked, suddenly looking affronted.
“Less like cops,” she said with a grimace. “If he’s got surveillance, we want to avoid tipping him off as much as possible. I’m hoping that we find something outside—” she broke off and looked back at the warehouse, an idea forming.
She looked down at herself. She took off her blazer and undid a few buttons until her cleavage was clearly visible.
“What are you doing?” Peter said. She looked up. Scott had his eyes trained on her chest.
“Scott!” Diana snapped her fingers at eye level and grinned when he apologized, stammering. She leaned into the car and got out her phone. She turned off all its alarms. “Now, wait here.”
“Huh?” Peter asked. Before he could work out what she was up to, Diana was off like a shot toward the warehouse. He watched her, powerless to follow. The impotence he felt in the face of this woman’s recklessness made him furious.
Diana came to a stop just before the warehouse door that was most worn and faded. She strolled casually up to it and leaned in. She could clearly hear the noise of activity inside the building. She banged on the door and waited, shivering in the cold. No one came. She waited for a few moments and
tried again.
After what seemed like an eternity, she heard someone coming. The door flew open. “Who the hell are you, and what do you want?” Standing in front of her stood a very large, thickset man. He was a few years older than her. He was rasping. Diana looked down and saw an inhaler inside the man’s large, meaty palm. A sheen of oily sweat formed a shiny mask over his features.
Diana donned her best helpless, “damsel in distress” look. “I’m so sorry to bother you but my car broke down, and my phone died, and I can’t call for help, and I’m stuck out here, and I have no idea where I am,” she babbled quickly, injecting fear into her voice. “Could you help me, please?”
The guy seemed to soften slightly when he studied her, his gaze stopping and faltering on her cleavage, just as she had intended. “Look, miss, there’s nothing I can do to help you. We’re not a car repair shop.”
Diana’s entire body shivered, and she brought her arms up to hug herself for added effect. “Please, at least let me make a phone call. I can get my sister to pick me up and come back for my car tomorrow. It’s so dark out, and I’m afraid.” Her lip quivered, and she looked at him beseechingly. “Please,” she whispered again, her voice wavering.
He looked her over once more, leaned his head out of the doorway, and looked around. Seeing nothing, he sighed. “Fine, come in. You can use my phone and wait here until your sister arrives.” He ducked his head so that it was close to hers, “But no poking around anywhere, got it?”
She nodded quickly and gave him a beaming smile. “Thank you so much! You literally saved my life!” It was incredible what a little cleavage and a woman in difficulty could accomplish.
She walked into a dark hallway and followed him up a set of stairs into another dark corridor. He opened a door, and she squinted as the bright lights dazzled her. They were on a suspended walkway that crossed over a large space below. It was a space full of gleaming, sophisticated machinery. Workers wearing masks attended to the equipment in silence. Carefully, trailing the guy slightly, Diana pulled her phone out of her waistband and held it low, aiming so she could shoot some video of the activity beneath her. She needed enough to get that warrant. The guy ahead of her kept on walking.
Looking around nonchalantly as she walked, she saw something that almost made her freeze. Off toward the back of the large open space, there were at least twenty industrial-sized pallets with canisters stacked four feet high. Doing a quick calculation in her head, she figured there were between five and six hundred canisters on each pallet. That was a lot of scopolamine. There was no doubt in her mind that that’s exactly what they were doing here: aerosolizing scopolamine.
A few moments later, Diana’s knight in shining armor led her into a large, windowless office. “Use that phone. You can wait for your sister here,” he said, pointing to a landline.
He looked at her suspiciously, but she smiled at him. She grabbed his hand gently, walking into his personal space. Extreme gratitude was printed on her features. “Thank you so much,” she said softly. “You are a true gentleman. Not many of those around.”
As expected, the guy flushed. “It’s nothing,” he said quickly. “Glad I could help.”
“My name’s Diana,” she said with a flirty smile.
“I’m Ricky,” he replied with a small, toothy grin.
She walked over to the phone and picked it up, dialing Peter’s number. “Hopkinson,” he barked into the phone.
“Rose?” she said.
A moment’s hesitation. “Diana?”
“Oh, hi Jim. Yeah, look, I got into a spot of trouble and my car broke down. Could you come get me, please?” she asked.
“Diana Hunter, I am going to kill you.”
“Where am I? Well, actually I have no idea,” she said with a grimace. She gave Ricky a pleading look.
He rattled off an address, and she relayed it to Peter, who was silent on the other end. Then,
“If you aren’t out of that place in fifteen minutes, I’m coming to get you,” he said sharply.
“Okay, Jim, fifteen minutes it is. Thanks a lot.” She put the phone down. She had got some time before Peter came barging in, waving his gun around, and shouting. That would screw the case up completely.
She turned to Ricky. “My brother-in-law is coming. He said he’d be here in fifteen minutes. I really don’t know how to thank you,” she gushed.
The guy grunted “Stay here. I’ll be back before then to show you outside.”
“Thank you again, Ricky. I really appreciate it.”
He blushed again, turned on his heel and left, closing and locking the door behind him. Ricky was something of a contradiction. She shook her head. He wasn’t very bright either. He had locked the door so she couldn’t go poking around, but he had locked her in the office. There was a lovely, shiny laptop sitting on the desk top just asking to be rifled.
Diana waited for a few moments to make sure Ricky was gone and then took a seat. She spent the next ten minutes going through the computer, trying to find anything that could help. Nothing looked particularly useful but she pulled a thumb drive out of her pocket and backed up the entire list of files for later. Some CSIS habits never died.
She turned to the email client. Most of the emails were sent to a single address. She memorized it. Another CSIS habit.
Suddenly, she heard voices. She quickly closed all the files and shut the laptop, taking a seat on the couch. She heard Ricky’s voice and that of another male.
“What the hell is wrong with you, Ricky?”
“She seemed really nice, Carl. And she was in trouble. I couldn’t just turn her away,” Ricky whined.
The other man groaned. “Get rid of her. I don’t care, how. Shoot her if you have to. Just get her out of here.”
“Yes, Carl. Sure thing. I’ll get rid of her now.”
The doorknob rattled and Diana sat up straighter. “Hi,” she smiled shyly at Ricky.
“You have to leave,” he replied.
Diana jumped to her feet. “It’s okay, Ricky. You’ve been an angel. I don’t want to cause you any trouble.”
Diana followed the big man onto the walkway and quickly looked around. She couldn’t see anyone except the workers below. “Carl” had disappeared. Damn it! She wasn’t going to get the visual she wanted. As she and Ricky made their way back to the outside door, Diana tripped, and as she righted herself, surreptitiously took a couple more photos, hiding her phone as best she could. She crossed her fingers hoping she would have enough evidence for a warrant.
They reached the exit, and Ricky, no doubt rattled by his conversation with Carl, quickly dismissed her. She left at a brisk pace. She turned the corner and saw Peter. He was staring at her. Hard.
Peter’s heart was racing. He couldn’t remember the last time he had been so scared. Actually, he could. It was the last time Diana had gone off without telling anyone. That time, he had found her unconscious and strapped to a table, waiting for her organs to be removed.
When Diana had raced away, he had wanted to go off after her but Scott had grabbed his arm and swiftly body-checked him against the fence.
“Leave her. She knows what she’s doing.”
“You know that, do you? She’s unarmed.”
“Chasing after her will put her in more danger.”
Peter took a deep breath and shrugged himself out of Scott’s grip.
“She can take care of herself,” Scott repeated, while Peter paced back and forth, glancing at the warehouse every few seconds. He had been calculating how to get in. It wouldn’t be hard. The place didn’t seem especially secure. It looked abandoned.
Peter had checked his watch every thirty seconds, waiting for her to come out. And then she called. Her car had broken down? She needed a lift? He’d show her a lift. Running off half-cocked, without a plan. When he had said he would come in after her, he wasn’t kidding. He was fully prepared to storm the place, no matter how many thugs were in there.
Then, out of nowhere,
she came around the corner, cool as you like, and the world had righted itself. His fear dissipated, but left behind was unadulterated fury. Especially when he saw the big grin on her face.
“I’m pretty sure we have enough for a warrant now,” she said, waggling her phone.
“You got pictures?” Scott asked excitedly.
“Nope. Even better. I got footage,” she said gleefully.
Scott grabbed her and hugged her. Peter just grit his teeth. Diana laughed. “You are a genius,” Scott exclaimed, “Let’s get out of here.”
Peter kept silent. If he opened his mouth, nothing pretty would come out. “The guy who’s running this operation was there. His name is Carl.”
“You really are incredible,” Scott breathed.
Diana grinned. “Nothing to say, Peter?”
Peter glared. “Just send me the footage so I can get a warrant.”
“I’ll come back to the precinct with you. We need to figure out who this Carl is.”
Peter snorted. “Fine. Do what you want. You always seem to.” He got in his car and slammed the door. If he stayed any longer, he would have turned into a raging beast. He was so angry with her.
“Don’t worry, Diana. You did great. He’s just being a jerk,” Peter heard Scott tell her. Really? He was the jerk? Why? Because he was worried about her? Because he didn’t want her putting herself in danger? Because his heart had nearly stopped when he realized what she was up to? Yeah, then he was a damn jerk alright.
The knot of tension that had formed in his gut over the past twenty minutes started to ease. He shook his head and fired up the engine. He would have a serious discussion with her as soon as they got back to the precinct. But he needed to cool down, first. He wanted to avoid another shouting match.
When he and Diana were together, it was like a match and kindling with a big dose of accelerant thrown in. And he was sure this time would be no different. But he would lay down the law with her, and she would listen to him. Or he would lock her up.
Diana threw herself down on her couch with a groan. It had been a long day. A really long day. She glanced at her watch. It was past midnight. She groaned again. Poor Max. He was sitting quietly, watching her. She felt like dead weight, but she had to get up and take him out. He was being so very patient.
Stolen (A Diana Hunter Mystery Book 3) Page 10