Regardless, I study his appearance, taking note of his height. Gosh, he’s tall—maybe six foot five is my guess. He’s not lanky, though; this guy is beefy and all muscle, and it’s pretty obvious he spends many hours working out. He’s dressed in a black T-shirt and black jeans and both are tight against his thick frame. But it’s the way he carries himself that garners my attention. He moves closer, his dark boots scuffing against the cement floor. His calmness worries me. A lot.
When he stops in front of me, I don’t even feel like a person. The cold way his dark eyes regard me makes me feel like I’m nothing but a thing, there for him to manipulate in the ways that suit him.
He takes the final step to reach me, and my heart leaps into my throat, my wrists and ankles burning against the chair to get away from him. Instead of coming at me, like I think he’s going to, he thrusts his hand into my hair, messing it up. Then he slides his fingers against my wound. I groan in pain as he drags those same fingers across my face, placing my blood on my cheek and neck.
My stomach roils as he takes my chin, turning my head from side to side before he steps back, clearly pleased by his work.
Then, still silent, he moves back to the other man and returns with a piece of paper. He places it onto my knees.
I look down, fighting my blurry vision, and I read the typed words. My back straightens like a steel rod, and I snap my focus back onto my captor. “What is this? Who are you? What do you want?”
The only response I get from him is a dark grin, and the way his lifeless eyes fill with lust makes me stuff all my insecurities and fears into the place where this guy can’t ever reach. Because this, me being afraid, is something he enjoys.
That’s when I realize who I’m looking at. The man who attempted to kill my father. While I doubt this guy is behind wanting my dad to retire, and maybe it’s the other guy who’s responsible, I don’t doubt my instincts, and they are screaming Killer! at me. It’s there in his eyes. He’s got no soul in them.
“I’m not going to read what’s written here,” I tell him very sternly.
He widens his stance, thrusting his hands into his pockets, eyebrows drawn. “I’m going to turn on this camera and you are going to read what’s written there,” he says in a thick Russian accent. “Do you understand?”
I glance down at the paper and again read what’s written out for me to say. Ryder will see this video. Maybe even my father, too. I might be at a disadvantage, but my parents never raised me to crumble under cruelty. “There’s no way—”
There’s a flash of something in my peripheral vision, and then my breath traps in my throat and I flinch, as cool metal presses against my forehead.
His voice is lower now, chillier. “Do. You. Understand?”
It’s not a choice. It’s his way. End of story.
God, I want to refuse him. I hate letting anything have this much control over me. But I realize, as my body begins to tremble, I’m helpless to resist whatever he wants of me because I am powerless against him. And I’m not stupid. I don’t want to die. Not today. Not like this.
Ryder…again brushes across my heart, but he’s not here. No one is. It’s just me. In this dark room. With two hired killers.
“Yes. Yes,” I gasp, statue-still, afraid if I move the trigger on the gun will move, too. “I understand.”
The man doesn’t respond, not that I really expected him to. He moves behind the camera and flicks it on, then waves me on with the gun.
My stomach roils as I glance down and again read what’s written on the page, memorizing the words there. I can do this. I must do this. I need time so that Ryder can get here. He needs to know I’m okay. Scared, yes, but okay, and I’ll be okay (I hope) until he gets here.
After my internal pep talk, I draw in a deep breath and find that source of strength deep inside me. I raise my head and look straight into the camera. “Dad, I’m safe and my life is not currently in danger, but that will change if you don’t announce your retirement. Now you have a good reason. You need time to heal and you’re doing this for your family. There are no more chances. Time has officially run out.”
Off to the side of the camera, I see the man moving to me again, now with a mask over his face, and it takes everything inside me not to cower away from him, as I add, “If the announcement isn’t made by morning…”
The gun presses to my temple and I shut my eyes, wishing Ryder would storm through that door any second and kill the man next to me.
When said man digs the gun’s muzzle into my skull, I reopen my eyes and manage the final line written out for me, “I die.”
Chapter 16
Ryder
The third monitor along the top row goes black, and it’s only then that I can breathe again. I hang my head and press my fingers against the cool metal table I’m standing behind, trying to regain the control slipping out of my reach.
Inhale…The ropes cutting into Hadley’s wrists.
Exhale…The fear in her eyes.
Inhale…The shakiness in her voice.
Exhale…The gun to her head.
The video had come through my email, personally addressed to me. And that final second I have to watch a gun being pressed to Hadley’s head is when I decide the man who held that gun would die, and I’d be the one to do it.
Logical or not, the promise burns across my soul, as does: No one hurts what’s mine.
“Boss?” Alex’s soft voice rips me from my thoughts.
I lift my head, finding the command center silent, my team watching me carefully. They need direction. They need an order. But I’m barely hanging on here. The senator trusted me to keep him and his family safe, and I’ve failed to keep that promise.
I’ve failed Hadley.
Though abducting her is a bold, desperate move that even I hadn’t anticipated from the blackmailer. Which leads me to believe that this has nothing to do with a tax bill, as we had speculated. There’s something more going on here. I just need to find out what it is.
Before my thoughts begin running wild with speculations, first things first. I ask Alex, “Where’s the senator’s wife?”
“I believe at the hospital with the senator.” Alex spins in her swivel chair, facing her computer monitor. Her fingers begin flying over her keyboard. Soon, on the middle monitor in front of me, I’m looking at the senator’s wife sleeping in the chair next to her husband’s hospital bed. “Yep,” Alex reports. “She’s still there.”
“Good,” I say, relieved, especially to also see the senator doing so well after his successful surgery. From the last report we received, the doctor predicted a full recovery, as the bullet blessedly didn’t hit anything vital. Which gives me all the answers I need to know, really. Hadley had arrived at the house just in time to stop the hitman from finishing the job. But in doing so, she forced the blackmailer to change his plans, which is likely why they took her. “How much security is there at the moment?”
“Dozens of cops and a few FBI agents, too,” says Alex, who begins typing on her keyboard again. Then more security footage of the hospital and the cops stationed outside the room and around the hallway begins to flash on the double rows of monitors on the far wall.
While I would prefer to have my team there protecting the senator, the case against the senator’s shooter is out of my hands now. Or at least by appearance, of course. I like to keep a friendly relationship with law enforcement. We get more done when we work together. But our relationship has clear boundaries: I stay out of their way and they stay out of mine.
Knowing that the senator and Mrs. Winters are safe, I let my mind focus on where it wants to go. To Hadley.
I straighten up from the desk and move to stand behind Alex. There, I cross my arms and scan the faces of my team, who all remain statue-still, awaiting my next move. There are a thousand things I want to do. There are a hundred things I want to ask. But no one can answer me. Our leads have run out, and I can tell by the devastation on the expressions around me everyone knows it.
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I’ll never give up on Hadley. I need her back in my arms and safe as much as I need to breathe. I’m not sure when I became so decided about her. When she stopped being the boundary I shouldn’t cross, but she’s mine now. Mine to protect. Mine to cherish. Mine to love. And that woman who’s never let me forget her needs me to stay sharp.
Refocused and energized to find what we’re missing, I turn to Alex. “Do you know where that video came from?” I ask.
She shakes her head, sympathy in her eyes. “Sadly, no. The location is bouncing off towers from here to Dubai. I can keep looking, but—”
“Don’t waste your time.” I wave her off. Done with standing still, I begin to pace in between their computer stations and the monitors on the walls. “We need to stick to leads that are going to get us somewhere.” Once I reach the wall, I turn and address the team. “Did anyone get anything from the video that could help us?”
Silence.
That silence tells me my next steps. As much as it pains me to do so, I wave Alex on. “Show the video again.”
Alex’s nose scrunches. “You sure, boss?”
“Yes, Alex. Play it.”
“All right, it’s your broken heart,” she murmurs, turning back to her monitor and clicking a few buttons.
I tell myself I’m prepared to watch the video again. Though when Hadley’s face pops back onto the screen, it takes every bit of my strength not to turn around and punch the wall next to me. The seconds drag on, slowly and painfully, and I force myself to look away from her. I pay attention to all the little details, looking for anything that could help us. Her captor has clearly done this before. His face, his hands, arms, legs, even neck are all covered. I cannot see anything that would distinguish him, and the thought of Hadley being in a room with a trained killer guts me.
It’s after the tenth time of the video playing on a loop that I can’t possibly watch it again. “Shut it off.” After the screen flickers, returning to the security footage of the senator’s hospital room, I state my frustrations aloud. “I got nothing that will help us here.” I spin on my heels, addressing my team. “Any of you?”
One by one, they all shake their heads.
Always the team member to keep things positive, Alex adds, “Leave it with me. I’ll see if I can pick up anything from the background noise to get us any hint of where she might be.”
“Good” is the only response I can give her. It’s not the best lead, but it’s all we’ve got. Something is better than nothing, because I’m not ready to admit that we have no way to get to Hadley. That I have no way to protect her. “What about the police, where are they at with the assassination attempt against the senator?”
“They’re interviewing members of the senator’s staff,” says Jeff, spinning around to his computer monitor. His fingers move rapidly over his keyboard. “Ah, but that’s all we’ve got on that lead so far. They haven’t updated their logs since the last time I looked.”
“Okay, keep with that, Jeff,” I tell him. “Let’s hope the PD comes up with a couple names that we can run with.” That’s why having hackers on my team is necessary and makes them worth every expensive dollar that I pay them. The cops could put in the legwork while we focus on the tech, and then we’d take their leads and work other angles of a case.
I move in front of the monitor, where the senator and Mrs. Winters are sleeping soundly. Before, I would’ve wanted to get to Hadley for that man lying there. For my duty to him. But now…I ache to find her, and even I can realize that means something. Things have changed. Maybe even I’ve changed, too.
First, find her, Blackwood rushes across my subconscious.
Right when I’m about to form a new plan, Jenny’s telephone rings. She answers the call. Then, after a short pause, her eyes meet mine. “Okay, I’ll let him know.” She hangs up the phone and says, “That was the night clerk. I guess the governor is here and requests a meeting with you.”
Even though Blackwood Security never closes, the call from him comes as a surprise. “The governor?” I repeat. Jenny nods and half shrugs. “Yeah, that’s what Louise said.”
I bristle. It’s rare anyone ever shows up at headquarters, especially during nighttime hours, as most of our work is out in the field. It’s even rarer that one of those people is Tobias Harrington, the governor of California. Mildly curious and a little suspicious of his arrival, I glance at Alex. “You’re with me.”
She nods and gathers up her bag, stuffing her laptop inside, then follows me out of the command center and into the offices at the front of the building. Which to any outsider would look like any other established business. Offices lined the hallways, as did meeting rooms, with a standard break room and receptionist area.
I see Harrington waiting in the first meeting room through the glass windows and I study the man on my approach. He’s staring out the window, looking into the parking lot, and there’s tension across his shoulders and his posture is stiff.
“What do you think this is about?” Alex asks me.
I glance sideways at her. “Your guess is as good as mine.” But I do have my suspicions. His image in the public eye being at the top of the list. Not keeping his politicians safe in his hometown won’t bode well for reelection next year.
When I enter the room, Tobias turns around and offers his hand. “Mr. Blackwood, thank you for seeing me.”
I return the handshake, unable to look away from his challenging stare. I’ve seen it before, and yet again I wait him out until he looks away. Which he also does every time. Tobias reeks of weakness. “What can I do for you, Governor?”
He moves to the meeting room table and takes a seat at the head of the table, resting his hands on top, palms flat. “I’d like to know where you’re at with the senator’s shooting.”
I motion for Alex to take a seat, and after she does, I sit next to her and beside the governor. “I’m afraid you would have better luck asking the police that question.”
Tobias gives a chilly smile. “Let’s not play games, Mr. Blackwood. I’m well aware that you’re currently investigating this on your own.”
I return the smile. “While that might be true, I cannot speak of my findings for fear of hurting the investigation.”
The governor visibly backs down, and the smile on his face is now gone. “Oh, of course, I would not want to interfere with an ongoing investigation, and that’s also the same answer I received from the police chief.” He pauses, glancing at Alex before adding to me, “But I will ask you what I asked him: Do you believe this attack was personal? I have very worried politicians in our beautiful city.”
“Truthfully,” I report, “we have yet to find the motive behind the attack, so I’m afraid I don’t have an answer for you.”
“Troublesome. Very, very troublesome.” The governor leans back in his chair, and it’s then I notice that he’s unshaven and there are dark circles beneath his icy blue eyes. “They need reassurance that there’s not a serial killer out there hunting politicians.”
He’s fishing for more information, but I have no intention of telling Tobias Harrington Hadley’s dirty little secrets. Enough people already know about the video, and the truth of the matter is I don’t work for Harrington. “I’m sure you’ll think of a way to set their minds at ease.”
Again comes his smile, and there’s a threatening edge this time. “Yes, I’m sure I will. As I told the police chief earlier this morning, I would like to be kept in the loop on this case at all times. Anything new that develops needs to come through my office. Are we clear on this?”
“Yes, sir,” I reply, even if he will never get a single thing from me. Men like the governor would use any information I gave him to look better in the public eye. I don’t doubt in the least that he’d spin the tale so somehow he’d come out looking like the hero.
He rises from his chair, and as I join him, he offers me his hand again. “Please let me know if I can be of any assistance.”
When I move to return
his handshake, something catches my eye, and I’m not sure why I didn’t notice before—perhaps I’d been too focused on his challenging stare—but my focus narrows to something on his hand. His appearance suddenly makes a whole lot of sense.
I slowly look back into his eyes. “Thank you. I will be sure to do that.”
Just as I let go of his hand, Alex jumps up from her chair and rushes to the governor’s side, a beaming smile across her face. She holds out her hand to him. “It was so great to meet you in person. I’m sorry for totally fangirling all over you, but I just couldn’t keep it in any longer. I’m such a big fan of yours. The things you do for our city and our state are amazing!”
The governor shakes her hand. “I hope that means I have your vote next year.”
“Oh,” Alex all but purrs, bouncing on the balls of her feet. “You sure do. Don’t worry about that!”
“I appreciate your support.” The governor gives her one of his charming smiles and then turns to me. “You’ll be in touch soon?”
I expect you to be in touch soon is what he said, even if those words never came from his mouth. “Sooner than you’re even expecting” is my carefully worded reply.
“Good enough,” the governor replies.
Alex and I stay silent as the governor exits the office. I move to the doorway and watch him leave the building. Each step seems to take a full minute. My heart is racing, my adrenaline pumping alongside the blood in my veins.
The second the front door shuts, I turn back to Alex; her eyes are huge. “You saw it, right?” she gasps.
“You’re fucking right I did.” The half-moon scar, it’d been there, right on his hand, telling me all I needed to know. Tobias Harrington is our blackmailer. “Please tell me that whole charade of supporting him had a purpose?”
“Well, of course it did; I’m me.” Alex smiles proudly. “He now has a tracker on his coat.”
Chapter 17
Hadley
I don’t know how long has passed since the men left me alone again. Minutes? Hours? It’s impossible to tell. The room is dreary with only the flickering lights above me and the water dripping next to me. Time down here, wherever here is, doesn’t exist. I only know that I’ve been here for a while, and I only know that because of the blue tinge to my hands.
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