by C. D. Hersh
“Are you?”
“That, my dear, is for me to know, and others to puzzle out. So far, however, no one has determined the answer.”
The server came over and took their orders, raising an eyebrow at the amount of lunch Falhman ordered.
“I’m a big girl,” he said, when he noticed the server’s expression. “I have to keep my busty figure for the men. They love a woman with a great front porch.” He gave the slender server the once-over. “You could use a few pounds, honey.”
Fiona nearly lost it. “If you’re going to keep that up, I won’t be able to eat for laughing,” she said as the server walked away.
“How’s our friend over there doing?” Falhman said, jerking his head in George’s direction.
“Loose as a goose, from what I can tell.”
“Then let’s get down to business. Keep smiling while I talk, my dear.”
Fiona didn’t like the sound of that, but she pasted a bright smile on her lips.
“OmniWorld likes your suggestion of spying on Kyle Morrison as a shifter embedded in his company. We’ll keep training.”
“Good,” she said, her smile becoming real. Kyle had escaped their assassination plan, and she didn’t have to marry. Yeah!
“However . . .”
Her smile faded. Howevers were not good.
Falhman’s lips spread in a forced grin, reminding her of the part she had to play. She curled her lips into a counterfeit smile.
“However,” he repeated, “they want a back-up plan. You are to proceed with the marriage to Kyle Morrison.”
“Are they going to kill him so I inherit?” Her cheeks hurt from the phony smile she’d pasted on.
“As long as you can deliver what they want, I don’t believe so. The marriage is an insurance plan in case you can’t get the information they need spying as an employee. The CEO’s wife would be privy to much more. Safe combinations. Her husband’s personal desk as well as his office. Hint at him to give you a few thousand shares as a wedding present. Every bit will help. All the pillow talk you’d be involved in, especially since you both own shipping companies and would have common ground for those discussions, could be invaluable.”
Pillow talk? She hadn’t pillow talked with Mike last night. They’d been too wrapped up in sex to say much. Briefly, she wondered if Kyle would be as good in bed as Mike, then she mentally slapped herself. This whole arrangement was not about sex, although she might have to resort to sexuality in order to get Kyle to propose.
“What if I don’t want to marry him?”
“Fiona, my dear, why do you keep asking the same old question? What you want isn’t important in the big scheme. You agreed to help OmniWorld—”
“Because they blackmailed me.”
“Blackmail is such a harsh word, don’t you think. I prefer to consider it motivated reactions. It would behoove you to think of it in that manner as well, my dear. Attitude can make many unpleasant things more palatable.”
She dropped her smile and leaned close to him. “If I agree to marry him, and give them pillow talk and eventually his company, I want their guarantee they will not harm Kyle or his family. I will find a way to get what they want without physically hurting anyone.”
Falhman gazed at her. His silver eyes probed hers so deeply she became uncomfortable, yet she would not break eye contact.
“There are many ways to hurt a person without resorting to physical injuries.”
“Unfortunately, I will have to do some of those to get what OmniWorld is demanding. I will not be party to the other.” She frowned at him, her expression, she hoped, as hard as her voice.
“I can tell not hurting the Morrisons is important to you, my dear, and because I care about you, I will give you my personal guarantee that if you deliver the company to OmniWorld, as promised, no one will get hurt.”
His personal guarantee? How could he do that? As far as she knew he wanted something from OmniWorld as desperately as she did. He’d said as much the first day they met.
“Trust me, I can deliver what I promise,” he said.
For a second she wondered if she’d voiced her concerns.
“I know people. I have power. If I tell you I will do something, I will follow through.”
His silver eyes darkened, becoming shrouded and secretive. A shiver ran over her as she realized his words held a double meaning. She did not want to see the wrong side of his pledge.
“Very well, I’ll accept your guarantee.”
“A wise decision, my dear.”
Something about the tone of his voice set her on edge. This man who loved her mother, and who had shown such a tender side to her only yesterday, was not to be trifled with.
Their meals came and Falhman tucked into his as if he hadn’t eaten in weeks.
She, however, had lost her appetite. Now that she’d agreed to get Kyle to marry her, she had to figure out the best way to make it happen. And fast. The only thing she could think to lure him into marriage was sex—or a pregnancy. Neither of those were givens in today’s moral standards.
Even worse, how would she explain to Mike, after the passionate night they had shared, that they had to break it off so she could marry someone else?
The thought made her nauseous.
Chapter 23
“I found something,” Mike said when Rhys answered his cell phone.
“Let me put you on speaker so the rest of the group can hear,” Rhys said. He pressed a button. “Okay, go ahead.”
“I was able to hack into one of those shell companies you gave me.”
“Did you find anything about the kids?” Rhys asked.
“Not yet, but I did find a convoluted link to a baby store. I don’t know if it’s anything, but I should probably check it out. If Eli will let me do some leg work.”
“You found the clue. I think you should follow up,” Rhys said, glancing at Eli. The old man nodded and pointed at Mary Kate. “Mary Kate can go along. Although you probably won’t run into rogues at a baby store.”
“What? You don’t get pregnant like normal people?” Mike asked.
Rhys caught the sarcasm in his voice. “No, we lay eggs.”
Mike made a strangled sound, giving Rhys some satisfaction in ribbing the man, which didn’t last long because Alexi punched him in the arm.
“Quit pulling his leg,” she admonished.
“I’m not,” he said, giving her a deadpan stare. “We’re birds. Why couldn’t we?”
“How good is the lead?” Alexi asked, ignoring him.
“A long shot at best. For all we know the purchasers could be hiding a second family or something and using the shell company to buy kids’ stuff. But it’s all we’ve got at the moment. I think we should follow anything we find.”
“I agree,” she said.
“Are you available for a meeting today? We’re meeting a police contact who used to be involved in computer surveillance work at the precinct.”
“Used to be?” Mike asked.
“She got demoted. But as you said, she’s all we’ve got to go on now.”
“What time and where?” Mike asked.
“Noon, at the coffee house around the corner from the Cleveland Police Headquarters. I’ll text you the address. Mike, she doesn’t know about shifters. Watch what you say.”
“Roger that.”
Gladys was waiting for them at the coffee shop when Rhys arrived. She waved at him, her bright smile fading as the remainder of the group trooped in behind him.
Rhys leaned over and kissed Gladys on the cheek, restoring the glitter to her expression.
“Where have you been, sugar?” she drawled. “I’ve been worried sick.” She swung her gaze around his group, giving Alexi a curt nod. “Who
are all these people?”
“These are my associates Eli McCraigen, Mary Kate McCraigen, and Mike Corritore.”
Gladys cast a flirty smile at Eli and Mike. Then she peered at Mary Kate. “I know you. You were the director trailing Alexi around just before she and Rhys disappeared. What happened with the documentary you were making?”
“It got canned,” Mary Kate said.
Gladys giggled. “Canned. As in film cans? That’s funny. Course I don’t suppose they store films in cans anymore, do they?”
Mary Kate shrugged noncommittally. Rhys dragged a chair to the table and the rest followed suit. “Tell us about the precinct. Who’s in charge now?” Rhys asked.
“No one I know. After you and Alexi disappeared the officers started leaving or retiring if they could. Their replacements claimed they were all from out of state departments, but when I did an internet search, I couldn’t find a single man or woman’s name connected with those departments.”
Rhys didn’t like the sound of that. It reeked of rogue shifters and Falhman. Trust him to take over the precinct in their absence. He’d been trying to gain a foothold before they fled, and from what he’d seen of the downtown area, he just might have.
“You mentioned Martin was there,” Alexi said.
“He got promoted, not that he deserved it in my opinion.” Gladys leaned in close to Rhys and whispered, “I can’t prove it, but my gut tells me he’s as dirty as the rest of them. The man jumped two paygrades in six months. Who does that? The bad guys—they come and go as if the jail is their private resort hotel.” She shook her head. “It’s not the department it was when you and her—” She jerked her head toward Alexi. “—and Williams were here.”
She snapped open her purse and slid a key across the table. “I guess you’ll be wanting this now you’re in town.”
“What?” Alexi asked.
“The key to your house. I kept it in order, sugar. You don’t have to worry.”
Alexi looked askance at Rhys. “How did she get the key?” she said under her breath.
Rhys rotated away from Gladys so she couldn’t hear. “I mailed it to her as we left. I didn’t think leaving the house empty was a good idea. I had no idea how long we’d be gone, and she was glad to help us.”
“Help you.” Alexi leaned past Rhys and addressed Gladys. “Thank you. It was kind of you to watch our home.”
“Anything for Rhys, sugar . . . and you, too, of course,” she added.
“Did you notice anyone hanging around after we left?” Rhys asked.
“For a while. But after about three months whoever was watching seemed to give up. I put a ‘For-Sale’ sign in the yard. Later I exchanged it for a Sold sign. I think they thought you were gone for good. Who was after you, sugar? Are you safe now? Is that why you’ve come home?”
Out of the corner of his eye, Rhys saw Alexi’s chin tremble. He placed his arm around her shoulder. “Remember the surprise I mentioned?”
Gladys nodded.
“Well, while we were gone we had a child, and a couple of days ago he was kidnapped. We followed the kidnappers to Cleveland, but we’ve lost the trail. We’d hoped you might be able to help us by tapping into the street cams, but since you lost your access—”
“Someone stole your baby?” Dismay flashed across Gladys’ face as she clapped her hand over her mouth. “How horrible!” She leaned forward and touched Alexi’s arm. “I can’t imagine how you must feel, sugar, but I promise you this: I will do everything in my power to help you all.” She straightened and stared directly at Rhys. “What do you need me to do?”
“Keep our presence in town a secret,” Rhys replied. “I know you’re the office grapevine, but it’s really important no one knows we are here. Can you do that?”
Gladys drew an X over her chest. “Cross my heart. I won’t breathe a word to a soul. What can I do for you?”
“You can help our computer guy get access to the precinct street cams,” Mary Kate said.
At Mary Kate’s instructions, Gladys looked startled and turned to Rhys for confirmation. He nodded. “They’ve probably changed all the passwords, sugar, but I’ll do what I can.”
“You can feed me information that might help decode their passwords,” Mike said.
“I don’t know what I can tell you. None of the women in the office give me the time of day anymore. They’re a snooty lot.”
“Do what you do best,” Alexi suggested. “Snoop.”
Gladys shot her an offended glance.
“Ask about the pictures of the kids or dogs on their desks,” Mike suggested. “Ninety percent of people use pet names and kids’ birthdates for passwords. They’re lazy about changing them. A few well-placed questions might net us what I need. I can do the rest. No one will ever suspect you.”
Rhys slid the key across the table to her. “I think you need to keep living in the house. That’s the first place the people who were after us would check.”
“Now that you mention that I remember seeing a new car in the neighborhood. Could they be looking for you already?”
“That’s possible.”
“Will she be safe there?” Alexi asked.
“Don’t you worry none about me, sugar.” Gladys opened the throat of her purse wide, revealing a firearm. “I’m packing. With the way the precinct has gone downhill, I feel much safer with my pistol in my purse.” She pocketed the house key. “What else do you need?”
“Considering there might be someone watching you or the house, you need to do nothing. We don’t want to put you in danger.” Rhys passed Gladys a slip of paper. “If you feel threatened you can reach us at this number and Mike at the other.”
Gladys tucked the phone numbers in her purse. “Anything for you, sugar.” She rose then stopped. “I’m glad to see you’re okay—both of you.”
“Thanks, Gladys,” Rhys said, “but we won’t be okay until we have our son back.”
He heard Alexi stifle a sniffle.
And he wouldn’t be okay until he made the man responsible for all the pain he caused them pay—for good. Hatred filled his heart for Falhman. He wanted to see the man dead and gone.
But how did you kill your father?
Chapter 24
Mike cut the engine on his motorcycle and kicked down the stand. Mary Kate, seated behind him, hopped off and stood silently, her head swinging side to side as she searched the street.
“I don’t sense any shifters,” she said, taking off her helmet. “It’s safe to proceed.”
Mike shouldered his duffel and stuffed the bike key in his pocket.
“Ye might consider leaving that,” Mary Kate said, pointing to the bag slung on his shoulder.
“Not going to happen.” He patted her waist where he knew she’d holstered her guns. “You’ve got your babies, and I’ve got mine.”
A bell tinkled as Mike opened the door to the boutique, the sound drawing the attention of the pregnant, expensively dressed customers. A smartly dressed clerk spotted them and strode forward with a not-so-pleasant expression on her face. Mike tensed, ready for action.
“Human,” Mary Kate whispered as she eyed the approaching salesperson. Mary Kate flashed a smile at her. The woman gave them the once-over. Then she sidled around them, glancing out the window at the motorbike parked in front of the store.
Mary Kate cut in behind the clerk and tapped a pregnant customer on the shoulder. The woman eyed her, no doubt taking in the casual jeans, tee shirts, and leather boots they wore. She inched sideways away from them.
“Excuse me. I was wondering how ye liked the merchandise in the store. My husband and I are expecting and can’t agree on a designer for the wee one’s nursery.” She turned and batted her eyelashes at Mike, sending a signal for him to play along. He glared at her,
but nodded, wondering where she was going with this approach.
The lady stopped her crablike movement and eyed them. The clerk who’d been staring at Mike’s bike moved toward them.
“You can’t park your bike in front of the store.” She eyed Mary Kate. “If you’re expecting, you probably shouldn’t be riding.”
Mike opened his mouth to give the pushy clerk a piece of his mind, but Mary Kate stopped him.
“We can’t agree on a van, either.”
He snorted. Mary Kate turned to him and laid her hand on his arm. “I know ye can’t abide the thought, dearest, but we’ll have to do it for the babe. I only want the best things for our wee bairn.” She rotated toward the customer, ignoring the clerk. “Money is no object.”
“Then this is the place. They’re expensive. Real expensive.” The customer tipped her head to the side examining them. Then her gaze cut to the front window and the motorbike, the expression on her face clearly showing she thought they didn’t have the money needed to even stand on the sidewalk outside the store, much less shop there.
It took every ounce of restraint for Mike to keep from returning her sneer. If she knew how much his bike had cost, she wouldn’t be looking at him with such disdain.
Mike shoved his hand into his pocket and withdrew a slip of paper. “Do they have Gretta deDeco Royal Iron and Satin Cribs and bassinets in here?”
An audible gasp sounded from the clerk standing behind them. The pregnant customer stared at them with respect shining from her eyes. “Yes, they do.”
“Good. Then that’s what we want.” Mike wrapped his arm around Mary Kate’s waist and ushered her away from the pushy clerk.