It was time to accept that he’d been punished enough and maybe, just maybe, he deserved another chance.
But Anna had been taken…
Shit, he felt sick.
He’d once again let down someone he loved—and he didn’t even bother pretending he didn’t love her with his whole heart, even if she’d probably never feel the same way about him. The last few hours he’d spent in her company, he’d been back to his bitter distant self, because that was how he dealt with things. Because in the past, showing any sort of emotion was a weakness that could get him killed. But he wasn’t in prison anymore—he was supposed to be free, except he was trapped by his past as surely as he’d been by those iron bars.
It was time to give himself a chance, but first he had to find Anna. He started dialing. He called two old “friends,” then got a call back. But it wasn’t from his contacts. It was from Jack Panetti.
“Sorry it took a while to get back to you.”
Christ. Brent closed his eyes. The poor bastard was in the hospital because of the people who were after Anna. They weren’t fucking around.
“But while I was lying around doing nothing, I managed to help prove your boy, Davis Silver, in most likelihood was set up for fraud by a guy called Ed Plantain.”
“What?” Brent lowered himself to a nearby bench, feeling like he’d had his brain smashed in. “Tell me.”
“One of my guys did a search for any other bank accounts that had been set up using the same PC that was used to create the bank accounts Davis supposedly set up nine years ago.” Brent’s brain hurt. “My computer guy went back fifteen months prior and hit the jackpot. He found another cluster of private bank accounts set up in the Cayman Islands, but the only money ever deposited in them was the opening balance.”
“And they were set up in Ed’s name?”
“Correct. He set them up in the April, his wife died in May.”
“And you think what?” Brent’s brain was too screwed up to deal with this information. Anna was missing.
“I think he planned to steal money, either to pay for his wife’s treatment or to get the hell out of Dodge and leave her to it. But she died. I’m just speculating here, but I’m guessing a year later he set Davis up for the fall, although I don’t know his motive.”
The wife, Katherine. She was the motive. “Ed Plantain was there to pick up the pieces when Davis’s wife’s life went to hell.”
“There’s something else…”
Pain clutched at Brent’s chest, but he didn’t have time for a coronary.
“Last Friday, Davis Silver deposited over sixty million dollars into those old accounts of Ed Plantain’s.” Holy fuck. “Trace is tracking the money, but I’m pretty confident the trail is going to lead us back to the Holladay Foundation. Given the setup and the players, I’m thinking some sort of illegal mercenary operation.”
These guys were killers, that was for damn sure.
“So Davis knew it was Ed who’d set him up,” said Brent. When had he found out? Why hadn’t he told someone?
Because he hadn’t wanted to upset the woman he still loved with all his heart.
Christ, love sucked. “I’m going to rip that asshole apart.” Ed Plantain had stolen Davis’s life. Brent could hear sirens and stood up, waving his hand in the air as the cruiser came into view. Holly pulled up with a screech of brakes and a rush of exhaust fumes. Finn climbed out. Holly carried on talking into her radio. The sirens went quiet.
Jack was still talking to him on the cell. “I want these bastards, Brent. Personally I don’t give a shit about Plantain, but I sure as hell give a damn about the guy who shot that cop in front of me and then put a bullet in my back. Whatever is going on, I want them held accountable. You understand me?”
“I understand.” Something ugly tightened in Brent’s gut. “These guys are going down for what they’ve done.”
Finn’s blue eyes pinned him as he waited for him to end the call. “Holly just spoke to the captain of that cruise ship Anna’s mother and stepfather were on. The steward went down to the Plantains’ cabin to check on them at her request, and discovered another woman tied up and locked in the bathroom. She claims Ed Plantain locked her up when they discovered their respective spouses had both been abducted. She wanted to report it and Ed didn’t. He got violent when she told him she was going to do it anyway.”
“Sonofabitch.” All these lives disrupted for sixty million dollars. Hard to believe it was worth it.
“Airline records say Ed Plantain flew back alone and landed back in Victoria early this morning.”
Easy to guess the scenario. The bad guys had had enough of chasing Anna around the country and had instead taken Anna’s mom as leverage to draw her to them instead. And Ed had lied to Anna to make sure she didn’t suspect or back out. Brent couldn’t believe he’d let her meet the weasel alone, but his feathers had been ruffled by the fact he’d fallen for her after telling himself not to. He’d taken his eye off the goal. Fuck. This was all his fault.
“Holly already put out a be-on-the-lookout for Ed and his car, which has GPS tracking. They’re trying to get a trace on those phones, but it can take a few hours to get warrants and the phone companies onboard.”
“Meanwhile, they could be doing anything to Anna.” Christ. He remembered the guy he’d tackled at Anna’s home. The thought of her being abused or killed drove a spike through his heart. “My PI found the money Davis moved. Figures they’re mercs.” Holly heard him and held up her finger to tell him to wait one minute. “The cops need to freeze those funds.” Although that still might not keep Anna safe. Shit.
Finn grabbed his arm and lowered his voice. “I know what you’re going through, Brent. I was there last summer and it feels like someone is ripping your heart out with needles, but I’m here for you.”
Brent hadn’t forgotten, though he’d been numb from losing Gina at the time. He didn’t know what the hell he’d do if he lost Anna too. Finn hugged him hard and Brent closed his eyes before finally wrapping his arms around his brother and squeezing tight. Even after everything he’d done, Finn was still there for him. He’d never fully accepted it before, but he did now.
“Keep reaching out to those contacts of yours that Holly likes to pretend don’t exist. Don’t give up hope.” Finn dug his fingers into his shoulder. “We’ll find her. They need somewhere quiet. Somewhere with computer access. Somewhere they can disappear.”
“Could be anywhere.”
Holly joined them, looking scarily official, armed, and in her uniform. Thank God she was on his side, although he hated having to follow the rules.
Finn’s phone rang and he checked the display with a frown. “It’s Laura Prescott from Bamfield.” His brother’s face turned hard as he listened to whatever Brent’s neighbor had to say. “Laura, I want you to listen to me very carefully. I want you to go to Thomas’s over at the marine lab right now. Get the hell out of there, but make it look like you’re just going to the store. No nosiness, got it? No heroics.”
Finn hung up on her. “Big-ass boat moored at your dock. A couple guys she doesn’t recognize patrolling your grounds.”
Holly went back to her radio. Brent turned ice cold inside. Would they be that bold? Why not? They’d already committed kidnap and murder. “It’s remote and has Internet access. But it could be a diversion or a coincidence.”
“Not likely. It’s a good spot. Last place we’d look as the cops only just finished processing the crime scene in the woods there. And hell, it would be a bonus if you and Anna just showed up unexpectedly.”
Brent shook his head. He couldn’t get his mind around this. “Anna hasn’t had time to reach the cabin yet.”
“Unless they had a helicopter,” Finn said quietly.
Brent was backing away from Finn. Finn watched him with that steady blue gaze.
“I’ve got a police chopper on standby,” Holly shouted through the open window. “And people checking for any unauthorized helicopter ac
tivity in the Alberni Valley area.”
Finn opened the front door of Holly’s police cruiser and motioned for his brother to get in. “I’ll sit in the back for a change.”
Brent stopped moving. Christ, he hadn’t realized how badly the thought of getting in the back of a cop car scared him. But his brother knew. His brother had always known.
“Let’s go,” Holly ordered.
Brent climbed in the front seat and held on as Holly whipped out of the parking lot. Sirens blaring, lights flashing. His heart was pounding but his mind was starting to focus. As long as they didn’t know where there money was, Anna was safe. Of course safe wasn’t the same as unharmed, but he pushed those thoughts aside so he could function. With luck they wouldn’t be too far ahead of them. With luck this wasn’t some giant wild goose chase. But right now they didn’t have anything else to go on.
Anna had been through hell before and survived. That’s all she needed to do—survive—and he’d take care of the rest.
Ed shivered in the corner of the helicopter, clinging to the firm belief that fate was on his side. He hadn’t slept since he’d gotten that phone call to say his wife had been taken. When he’d failed to get in touch with Anna, he’d been ready to walk into RCMP headquarters and beg for help. But she’d finally gotten her head out of her ass long enough to check her e-mail, and by pretending her mother was near death, he’d gotten her on the island before the appointed time. He’d kept his side of the bargain. These bastards better keep theirs.
Anna’s eyes had drifted shut a few minutes ago. How could she sleep? Didn’t she care about the woman who’d given her life? Ungrateful wretch. Saying Malcolm raped her? Maybe he shouldn’t have forced his son to take Anna to the prom, but the boy would never have taken anything that wasn’t freely offered. Girls had fallen over themselves to go out with the former high school football star.
But a guy’s reputation didn’t suffer if he slept around, whereas a girl’s did. Maybe Anna had convinced herself she’d said no just to save face. Ed didn’t think it was necessarily fair, but that was life. And life was not fair.
Katherine. Just the thought of his delicate wife in the hands of these monsters made fury pound through his veins. If they’d so much as touched her…He clenched his teeth around the thought. Harvey Montgomery better keep his hands off her too.
This was all Davis’s fault; maybe it was his way of getting revenge. Setting the guy up had been child’s play, but maybe he should have just had him killed instead. It would have been easier in the long run.
When Eleanor had been sick, he’d set up bank accounts in the Caymans, planning to rescue what remained of their savings before it was all wasted on medical bills. Then he’d sell the house, and build himself a new life in paradise. Eleanor wouldn’t have cared. She’d barely recognized him, she was so pumped full of drugs. Malcolm could have joined him after he finished high school, and Eleanor would have been taken care of in the hospital.
Then one day, when he’d been at his lowest, Katherine had comforted him to her breast and he’d known everything would turn out OK.
So he hadn’t followed through with his plans to leave, and Eleanor had died quickly. A blessing, everyone said, and he certainly hadn’t argued. And he’d been gifted the tools and knowledge of how to get the life he was destined to have with Katherine. Fate. With a little cunning thrown in.
Sure, he’d waited a year to put his plan into action, using the time to sink Davis further and further into the mire, but it had been worth it.
Ed eyed the guard. A man who wanted to rip away the life Ed had worked so diligently to build. He was obviously just a grunt, not the brains of the operation. Ed needed to deal with whoever was calling the shots and convince them he could help, just as long as his wife was safe.
The pilot kept his eyes averted, and Ed had noticed when getting onboard that the identifying numbers on the helicopter were all covered with masking tape. They flew low, avoiding radar. Damn. Up ahead there was a flash of the coast, and a small clearing just visible to the left, among the endless stretch of pines. The chopper banked toward it and the pilot set the machine down as gently as a sleeping baby in a crib. The bald guy got out of the helicopter and pulled Anna down beside him. She stumbled to her knees and he dragged her back to her feet.
Ed rapidly unclipped his belt and scooted after them. “We had a deal. Where’s Katherine?” he shouted over the noise of the rotors. The pilot didn’t wait for them to be clear, he took off and the three of them ducked away from the dangerous tail blade.
“Where’s my wife?” Ed yelled.
The bald guy raised his gun at him. Oh shit. Ed threw himself to the ground. Anna shoved the guard and the shot went wide. Then she took off. What the hell did she think she was doing?
“I just need to talk to your boss,” Ed shouted after the man who gave chase to Anna as she ran through a slim path among the fireweed.
Ed jogged after them both. Part of him wanted to run and hide, but he wasn’t a coward. He’d proved that all those years ago when he’d stood by his dying wife. He’d proved it by fulfilling his side of the bargain with these people.
Up ahead, a man stepped out of the woods and Anna stopped dead. The bald guy grabbed hold of her arm.
“I’ve been looking for you, Anna Silver,” the new man said.
The hairs on the back of Ed’s neck stood up. This was the guy he needed to talk to.
“Where’s my mom?” Anna demanded with enough attitude to make Ed scowl. Did she want her mother dead?
“Feisty,” the new guy said with relish. “I like that in a woman.”
“Let her and Ed go and I’ll tell you everything you want to know,” said Anna.
A bolt of shock ran through Ed that she’d try and save him after he’d sacrificed her this way.
“I kept my part of the bargain,” Ed raised his voice. “You promised me my wife in exchange.”
The new guy seemed amused, and his lips twitched.
“I can help, you know. Whatever it is you do. I’m an accountant. Please, I’ll do anything to help you, just let my wife go.” Ed knew he was begging, but he couldn’t help it.
The scary newcomer looked amused. “We already have an accountant.” He raised his gun and pointed it at Ed’s face.
Anna screamed, “No,” and it echoed around the clearing before the bald guy put a gloved hand over her face and smothered the sound.
The man was bluffing, but Ed felt his bowels turn to water. “You promised…”
“I lied.” And he squeezed the trigger.
CHAPTER 16
Cops crawled over every square inch of the Coast Guard station and right over Brent’s skin. They were staging here, and trying to do it as quietly as possible, but in a town as small Bamfield, even one stranger was conspicuous. Thankfully, the officers had arrived in plainclothes, lugging heavy equipment bags. Now there were twenty hulking, black-clad individuals huddled around a map, which made it look like a terrorist attack was imminent. Holly was arguing with the head of the Emergency Response Team about their next move. Whatever was going down, the guy obviously didn’t give a shit that her father was his boss.
Coast Guard Captain Cyrus Kaine eyed Brent across the upstairs lounge. His expression was a thin veil of contempt, and the feeling was entirely mutual. Kaine was an ex-cop from the big city and thought he knew everything about everything. The world was black and white. No gray allowed. They’d hated each other on sight.
There were so many badges in this room, Brent was starting to feel nauseous from that alone. Grinding his teeth to stubs wasn’t helping much either. He stuffed his hands in his jeans pockets and watched them programming GPS units. Then they pulled out the plans of his house—the house he’d helped build, but did the cops ask for any input from him? No. They fucking didn’t. Which was a shame, because those plans only told half the story.
It was almost full dark outside. The cops had night vision goggles, but he could walk this island blin
dfolded and still find his way home. But he’d discovered he couldn’t say dick without someone telling him to shut the fuck up. They didn’t trust the ex-con. Again—with the exception of Holly and her father—the feeling was mutual.
No doubt these guys were hungry to take down the bad guys. To punish cop killers with as much force as necessary. Which didn’t save Anna. If anything, it put Anna in the line of fire between two sets of people who didn’t give a shit about her except as collateral damage. This wasn’t good. None of this was good. His insides twisted with fear and agitation. Holly checked him every thirty seconds to make sure he hadn’t done anything stupid, and that pissed him off. He hated when people had him figured out.
“What the hell is taking them so long?” he growled under his breath. Finn glanced at him and then stood to go see what the plan was. Brent watched Finn open his mouth to say something, but the commander of the team shut him down. Six years in Special Forces looked about as popular as being an ex-con. Figured.
Anna’s life was at stake here. It wasn’t just some operation to catch bad guys. The bad guys could walk, as far as he was concerned—for now. Anna was all that mattered. He’d finally figured out that, for all he’d been out of prison these last four years, he still hadn’t been free of shackles until he’d made that decision to help a virtual stranger.
Brent stood up and stretched out his back, and wished he hadn’t given up smoking six months ago.
The head of ERT was going at it with Holly in a way that was making his brother bristle, even though he knew better than to interfere with his fiancée’s job. He caught Cyrus Kaine’s dark gaze. For once the guy didn’t look like he wanted to punch him. He looked like he knew exactly what Brent was thinking. Brent froze, and then breathed out again as the guy deliberately turned away and added his voice to the growing argument the cops were having.
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