40
J.D. thought the shocked looks on his sons’ faces when they saw him in that sick kid’s hospital room were priceless. Most of all, he couldn’t believe his luck, finding them alone.
“Dad, is that you? What happened to your face?” A wide-eyed Lucky had looked at his brother and said, “Do you see what I see?”
“He looks sort of like Dad, but his face is…all messed up.” Chance had reached out to touch J.D.’s soiled trousers. “He’s real,” he confirmed to his brother.
“Yes, I am,” J.D. said. “We’re going on a little trip, so come with me.”
To his surprise, the kids hadn’t wanted to come.
“We can’t go with you, Dad,” Lucky said. “We’re supposed to wait here for Mom.”
“Your mother sent me here to get you,” he’d lied.
“Can Ryan come, too?” Chance asked.
Who the hell was Ryan, he wondered. “Ryan?”
“Our friend Jack’s son, Ryan,” Lucky said, pointing to the boy in the bed.
“I’m Ryan,” the boy with the patchy hair said.
Then J.D. realized who the kid was. Ryan McKinley, Jack’s boy.
“Come on, kid, if you’re coming.” When he’d grabbed the kid’s arm, he’d started to scream.
He’d clamped a hand on the kid’s nose and mouth, which shut him up pretty quick. But the twins were yanking on him, and making a shitload of noise, so he ended up having to bargain with the brats to get them the hell out of there.
He thought it was a nice irony that the Texas Ranger’s kid ended up getting kidnapped along with his own. That would put D’Amato’s tail in a twist. The whole damned Texas Department of Public Safety would be after D’Amato for kidnapping a Texas Ranger’s kid. Not to mention the FBI, once Kate told Breed Grayhawk her sons were missing.
D’Amato was a fool. He must think J.D. was an idiot to believe he would go along with D’Amato’s stupid plan to have him kidnap the twins. J.D. was kidnapping the twins, all right. But he wasn’t taking them straight back to D’Amato, who promised he’d exchange the twins for J.D.’s twenty million dollars worth of smack. He was simply going to ask for cash from Wyatt Shaw, since that would save him the trouble of selling the junk.
He’d studied the diagrams of the hospital D’Amato had furnished and figured out a way to leave that took him away from D’Amato’s goons. He’d counted on surprise and awe to shock the boys into going with him, and it had sort of worked.
He hadn’t counted on having the sick kid come along. He hadn’t gone very far before he realized the kid couldn’t keep up. He’d wanted to leave him behind, but the twins had balked.
“You can’t just leave Ryan here,” Lucky said.
“He can’t keep up,” J.D. pointed out.
“Then carry him. That’s what Daddy would do,” Chance said.
“Daddy?” he’d questioned, squinting down at his son through narrowed eyes.
“Wyatt Shaw is our bio—whatever—father,” Lucky said. “We call him Daddy.”
“Yeah, well I ain’t your Daddy, I’m your Dad. And I don’t feel like carrying some kid halfway to hell.” He’d shoved Ryan so he fell onto his knees, and both boys had raced to help him back to his feet.
“Jack’s going to kill you if you hurt Ryan,” Chance warned.
He’d slapped him to shut him up.
“And Daddy’s going to kill you if you hurt us,” Lucky shouted.
That had drawn a lot more attention than he’d wanted. The kid’s threat had also been the end of any thoughts of kindness he had toward the two boys who’d been raised in his home. “Ungrateful little bastards,” he’d snarled at the twins. “You help this kid keep up, or I’m going to strangle him like I did somebody else who threatened to cause me trouble.”
To give them credit, the twins were strong for their size. They kept the kid upright during their escape from the hospital and got him into the old Chevy Impala J.D. stole from the parking garage. He chose a car with the parking ticket left in the window, so he wouldn’t have trouble getting out. He had some money in a pocket within his pants pocket that Roberto hadn’t found to pay the parking fee.
“I want my mommy and daddy,” Ryan said, tears streaming down his face.
“Shut up, kid. Or I’ll shut you up.”
“Shh, Ryan,” Lucky said, putting his arm around the younger boy in the backseat. “Be quiet.”
Once they were on the road, Lucky sat forward in the backseat and asked, “Where are we going?”
“That’s kind of up to you boys,” he’d said.
“I want to go to Shaw’s compound,” Chance said.
“Is that where you hid the box I gave you?”
“What box?” Lucky asked.
“Don’t play dumb with me,” J.D. raged. “I gave you a box before I left for Afghanistan. I told you it was important. I told you not to tell anyone but me where you were putting it, and then I told you to hide it. Now I want to know where that box is, and I want to know right now!”
The twins exchanged glances before Lucky said, “I really don’t remember.”
J.D. held on to his temper. Barely. He met Chance’s eyes in the rearview mirror and said, “How about you? Do you remember what you did with it?”
Chance solemnly shook his head. “No, I don’t.”
J.D. realized he had only himself to blame. He should have known they were too young for this sort of intrigue. Then he saw a look the two boys exchanged and realized they were lying.
He pulled the Chevy to the side of the road, opened the back door and pulled Ryan out and dangled him by one arm. “I’m going to beat this kid within an inch of his life if you don’t tell me where you hid that box.”
He’d already balled his fist when Chance said, “We left it at Shaw’s house. We thought it was important, so we took it with us when we left San Antonio.”
“Shaw’s house?”
“His compound. You know. The one with the high stone walls around it.”
“Son of a bitch,” J.D. said.
“Put Ryan down,” Lucky said.
J.D. threw the kid into the backseat and the twins put their arms protectively around him.
“All right,” J.D. said. “This is what we’re going to do.” When he was done explaining his plan to the twins, he pulled out his cell phone and called his wayward wife.
“Hi, honey, it’s me. You missing something?”
41
“Son of a bitch!” Wyatt muttered. He threw the contract back on his desk. He hadn’t been able to stay at home when Kate and the twins were in Houston, so he’d headed to his office, figuring he might as well get some work done. This was the third time he’d read the same paragraph without having any idea what it said, because the scene in bed with Kate that morning kept replaying in his head. What did he have to do to convince the woman she belonged with him, rather than that damned Texas Ranger?
Did you once tell her how you feel?
If she needed those three little words, she was out of luck. He wasn’t going to admit out loud that he wanted anyone, needed anyone, loved anyone.
You told the twins you love them.
That’s different. They’re my flesh and blood. Of course I love them.
Like D’Amato loves you? Get real. Either you love her, or you don’t. Which is it?
Wyatt tried to swallow a sip of coffee, but it was cold and got caught on the lump in his throat. He felt near to tears and didn’t know why. What was wrong with him?
She’s going to leave you, that’s what’s wrong, you idiot. Unless you confess that you want her and need her and love her.
The solution to his problem sounded simple. Just tell Kate he needed her like the air he breathed. That the mere sight of her filled his heart with joy. That loving her was the greatest pleasure he’d ever known. That he wanted her to be his wife.
But Wyatt hadn’t become the most successful businessman in Houston by showing his underbelly to someone with the power
to rip it out. And nothing in his life previous to this had given him any reason to trust the people who were closest to him.
Maybe he’d been spoiled by the women who’d thrown themselves at him, telling him—before he asked—that they admired and loved him. He’d been appreciative. But he’d never been in love, so he’d never returned those expressions of love.
He was not just in love with Kate Pendleton. He loved her.
She was playing hardball. She wasn’t offering her love when he hadn’t offered his. He had to admire that. He just wished he was more certain that she felt the same way he did.
He was going to have to bite the bullet. He was going to have to take the chance that if he told her how he felt, she wouldn’t kick dirt in his face, metaphorically speaking. In business terms—hell, in any terms—the reward was certainly worth the risk.
Having made up his mind to act, Wyatt couldn’t sit still. He was already on his way to meet up with Kate and the twins at M.D. Anderson when he got her frantic call.
“Wyatt? Thank God I reached you. Our boys have been kidnapped! It was J.D. He—”
“J.D.?” he interrupted. “I thought—”
“He’s alive! He’s threatening to kill the twins—and Ryan, he has Ryan, too—if we don’t do exactly what he says.”
“What does he want?”
“Twenty million dollars.”
“I can get it, but I’m going to have to find a banker—”
“I’m frightened, Wyatt. I need you. How soon can you get here?”
Amazing the power of those three words. I need you. He would have moved mountains for her, if he could. He would do everything and anything he could to bring the twins back home safe. “I came in to work this morning after you left. I’m on my way to the hospital right now. Where are you?”
“Holly McKinley and I are on the ninth floor of the Main Building, in Ryan’s room. She says Ryan’s health is precarious, that he’s still susceptible to infections of all sorts. She’s going crazy, Wyatt. I’ve called Jack, and he’s on his way, but he hasn’t arrived yet. Please hurry.”
“I’ll be there as fast as I can.” Wyatt realized this was one time when having a Texas Ranger around wasn’t going to be a bad thing. Especially since the Ranger’s wife was going to be there, as well.
“See you in ten minutes,” Wyatt said. After he hung up, he called a banker friend and asked him about opening the bank on Saturday to arrange a wire transfer, if that became necessary. He had his driver break the speed limit getting to the hospital and made it to Ryan’s room at the same time as Texas Ranger Jack McKinley, whom he could see coming down the hall from the opposite direction.
“Who told you J.D. was dead?” Jack asked the moment he saw Wyatt.
“D’Amato.”
“We need to talk to him.”
Before Wyatt could say another word, Kate saw him. His arms opened wide as she slammed into him and they closed tightly around her. He could feel her trembling and vowed that J.D. Pendleton would pay for frightening her like this.
Over Kate’s shoulder he could see Jack holding his wife by the shoulders. They were arguing.
“You’re not coming with us,” Jack told his wife.
“I’m not staying here!” she retorted. “I’m the only doctor in this bunch. If our son—or anyone else—needs medical care, I intend to be there.”
“The doctor said you need to stay off your feet. You could go into labor—”
“If I do, we’ll have plenty of time to get to a hospital. I’m going with you, Jack. And that’s final.”
She was nearly frantic by the end of her speech. As Wyatt watched, Jack pulled her into his arms and rocked her to calm her down. He was speaking into his wife’s ear, quiet words that Wyatt couldn’t hear, but they seemed to pacify the pregnant woman.
Wyatt met Jack’s gaze and saw the Texas Ranger was every bit as angry and determined as Wyatt was himself to rid the world of their nemesis.
“Let me call D’Amato,” Wyatt said, as he eased Kate away. “Maybe he can shed some light on what’s going on here.”
Jack approached them with one arm still around his wife’s waist. “This is my wife, Holly,” he said to Wyatt.
“I’m glad to meet you at last. Just sorry about the circumstances,” Wyatt said as he found the listing for his father on his phone and punched the button to dial it. He put the call on speakerphone so the other three interested parties could hear.
“I’ve been expecting your call,” his father said when he answered.
“Where is J.D. taking those three kids?” Wyatt demanded.
“Three? He’s supposed to have the twins. Who else did he pick up?”
“He’s got Jack McKinley’s son, as well,” Wyatt said.
“Shit. That’s a complication I didn’t need. Does McKinley know?”
“I sure as hell do,” Jack replied.
“Good afternoon, Jack. I don’t think I’ll be needing your services any longer. I have the situation well in hand.”
“Where is J.D. going with our kids?” Wyatt demanded.
“The twins have something of mine,” D’Amato said. “J.D. is going to locate it and return it to me.”
Wyatt’s gaze shot to Jack, who shrugged to indicate he had no idea what D’Amato was talking about.
“Don’t worry,” D’Amato said. “I’ve got my eye on J.D. He isn’t going anywhere I can’t follow. You’ll get your boys back when I get what’s mine.”
“Tell us where he’s going,” Wyatt said through clenched teeth. “And we’ll come get the kids.”
“Stay out of this, Wyatt. And you, too, Sergeant McKinley. Leave well enough alone. I’ll take care of J.D. and you’ll all get your children back alive and well, if you just stay out of my way.”
Wyatt swore when D’Amato disconnected the call. He turned to Kate and said, “What could the twins have that belongs to D’Amato?”
“I have no earthly idea,” she replied. “It has to be something J.D. gave them before he left for Afghanistan the last time, because he hasn’t seem them since.”
“So where would the twins hide something J.D. gave them?” Wyatt asked.
“Most likely in our house on Mulberry Street in San Antonio,” Kate guessed. “That’s where the twins last saw their father.”
“Would the boys have taken whatever it is to Twin Magnolias when they came to live with me?” Jack asked.
“Or to my compound when they came to live with me?” Wyatt asked.
“I don’t know!” Kate cried.
“It’s probably the key to a safe-deposit box,” Jack said to Wyatt. “That explains how J.D.’s managed to stay alive this long. He’s got evidence of something your father did that could put him away. D’Amato has to keep him alive until he can get it back.”
“Which is why Roberto disappeared with J.D.,” Wyatt said. “He’s apparently been working on J.D., trying to get him to give up whatever it is he has.”
“And J.D. either escaped from Roberto—” Jack began.
“Or D’Amato let him escape, so he could follow him,” Wyatt finished.
“Maybe it isn’t a key. Maybe it’s something he gave the kids to hide, so he wouldn’t have to go to a bank to retrieve it,” Jack said.
“Why didn’t J.D. just ask the kids where the key, or whatever he gave them, is?” Holly asked.
“Maybe they hid it somewhere that’s hard to describe,” Kate suggested.
“Or maybe they’re refusing to tell him where it is,” Wyatt said.
Wyatt wished he’d kept his mouth shut. He saw the sudden fear in both women’s eyes when they realized J.D. might resort to force to get the information he wanted.
“So we have three locations where he might have headed,” Jack said. “Where do we go?”
Kate grabbed the lapel of Wyatt’s suit and said, “There is a way we may be able to find them.”
“How?”
“The twins are wearing tennis shoes with a GPS tracking de
vice.”
“Really?” Holly said hopefully. “How does that work?”
“Are you kidding?” Wyatt said. “When did you get something like that?” And why? he wondered.
“I bought them on-line, after you moved us to your compound,” she told him. “I thought…”
Wyatt made a disgusted sound in his throat. “You thought I’d steal the kids from you.”
“I wasn’t sure what you’d do,” she retorted. “The point is, I put those shoes on them this morning.”
“So how do we access the GPS tracking?” Jack said.
“That’s the problem,” Kate said. “The GPS device has to be activated by pushing a button on the shoe.”
“Do the boys realize they can be tracked when they’re wearing those shoes? Do they know where the button is?” Wyatt asked.
“I explained about the GPS chip the first time I put the sneakers on them,” Kate said. “But that was three months ago. I don’t know if they remember that they can be tracked with the shoes, or whether they’ll be able to push the button if they do.”
By which Wyatt knew she meant the boys might be restrained, tied up so they wouldn’t make trouble for J.D. until they got to wherever they were going.
“Oh, no,” Kate said.
“What is it now?” Wyatt asked anxiously.
“That GPS runs on batteries that only last a day or so once it’s activated. The kids might have played with it—turned it on sometime in the past—and used up the battery. The GPS might not work.”
“Do you have any idea how to access the GPS, so we can see if they’ve turned it on?” Wyatt asked her.
“If I had a computer—”
Wyatt got out his BlackBerry and said, “What’s the name of the company that monitors the GPS?”
“The shoes came from Quantum Satellite Technology,” Kate said. “But I think I’m paying someone else to do the monitoring.”
Wyatt Googled the company and got a number to access the GPS monitoring service, which he called. Wyatt spoke with the representative and reported to the others, “The GPS is inactive.”
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