When Love Intrudes (When the Mission Ends)

by Christi Snow

  A kitchen chair had been placed in the very center of the living room and they quickly zip-tied Toni to it, her arms tied to the spindles of the back and each leg attached to a leg of the chair.

  A warm trickle of moisture dripped down the side of her face. From the way her head throbbed, she’d guess it to be blood. Hanging upside on the guy’s back for the hike hadn’t done good things to the condition of it, but it was just one of a plethora of aches and pains that made up her body right now. As she looked around at the grim faces in the room, it occurred to her that maybe she should just be thankful she could still feel those aches and pains. It didn’t look like that was going to be the case for very long.

  As the front door opened, a man stepped in. He didn’t look anything like the other four men spread throughout the room. For one thing, it didn’t look like he lived under a weight bench eight hours a day. No, this was a normal guy, in his late thirties or early forties and clean-cut, but as she examined him something else occurred to her. He’d be normal if you didn’t count the $5000 custom-made suit he wore. The problem with watching him was that, courtesy of the new bump on her head, there was actually two of him. But even with that, something seemed very familiar about him. Had she met him before? Blinking her eyes, she tried unsuccessfully to clear her faulty vision.

  He stopped four feet away and watched her with a distinct furrow between his brows. “Well, Ms. Vincent, you seem to be as much trouble as the young Mr. Morrow. If you’d just left him alone, this would have been so much better for everyone, but you just couldn’t let it go could you? No one should have taken note when a seventeen year old with no family ran into trouble. In fact, if you’d stayed out of it, it probably would have saved his life, too.” He tsk’ed. “But now, it’s come too far and you all have to die.”

  “Who…” Oh God, it hurt her head to try to talk. “Who are you?”

  One the behemoths standing behind her snickered. The man in front of her shot him a scathing look which shut him up immediately. He gestured to the men standing around the room. “You may leave. Go outside and keep a lookout for the police detective and the kid returning.”

  He turned back to her and tilted his head as if to be puzzled. “I’m surprised you don’t recognize me.” His voice was smooth, cultured, with an air of superiority which sent a tingle of dread down her spine.

  He slid both hands into the pockets of his pants and tipped back on his heels and suddenly she knew exactly how she knew him. He’d been on the cover of People in just that pose a couple of months ago.

  She gasped. “You’re Andrew Berg, the owner of MicroTech.”

  “Very good, my dear.” He grinned at her like she was a small child who finally had solved the puzzle, but this didn’t make any sense.

  This man was one of the richest, if not the richest man in America. What the hell did he want with her?

  Understanding dawned…Nathan and his computer client. He’d said it was a big company, but she had no idea he had been talking about the biggest computer company in America. Oh my God. She’d underestimated his computer skills. No wonder Nathan had been so worried about this client.

  “Why?” she asked. “He’s just a kid? Why would you go after him?”

  His eyes hardened with hatred and then it morphed into an evil condescending smile. “Let me explain how the technology world works. It moves fast. Very fast. As a result, we have to make difficult, billion dollar decisions every day. Your boy didn’t understand the sacrifice we sometimes have to make for that. Many times,” he shook his head as if in remorse, “morals are the sacrifice that must be made. The young Mr. Morrow wouldn’t shut his mouth so I’m going to shut it for him. I’m not going to let some punk kid destroy a company that I’ve spent the last twenty-four years building, longer than he’s even been alive.” His voice had gotten louder and more out of control the whole time he spoke, but now he took a deep breath to gather himself again.

  “Unfortunately for you, his moral compass is going to take you and the detective down with him.” The man put a finger to his lips as he gazed out the windows where snow had begun to fall. “Lucky for me, a storm is moving in. It will be so sad when the three of you lose control of your car and drop off the edge of the mountain. Those classic cars just weren’t meant for slick roads.”

  “How will killing us solve anything?” Her voice quaked with fear and adrenaline. “You’ll still have a faulty product.”

  “That my dear, is where your young friend lacked foresight. By the time it comes out that the product is faulty, I will have finally sold off my company for the trillions it’s worth. Buyer beware.” His voice had taken on a sing-song quality. “And I will be living in my chateau in Europe enjoying an early retirement. The only thing standing in my way is young Mr. Morrow and the two people protecting him. I’m sorry, my dear, that you made a bad choice there.”

  “Did you kill Mark Hunter, too?” she asked.

  “No.” He gritted his teeth. “I wasted a favor having someone else take care of that one for me. The kid found out too much about my little arrangement with his twin to harass Nathan to distract him. Who knew how persistent the young Nathan would be? Lucky for me, the senator had his own beef with the boy and after we discussed it, he agreed that Mark needed to be dealt with appropriately,” Andrew sneered. “What a tangled web we weave.”

  Tangled was right. The blow to her head clouded her brain making it difficult to track who did what and why. The senator. How did he tie to the computer mogul?

  “I don’t leave loose ends.” He stepped up to her and ran a light finger along the side of her head and her cheek where it flamed with pain. “It’s such a waste. You’re feisty. I like that in my women. I bet you’re a hellcat in bed, aren’t you?”

  She swallowed against the bile churning in her stomach and tried not to recoil from his touch. Instead, she worked to put on a flirty smile. “Untie me and you can find out. I do so like powerful men.”

  He laughed, took a step back from her, and gave her a bemused look. “Oh, my dear, you have no idea who you’re playing with, do you? I do billion dollar deals on a daily basis. I sure as hell can spot a lie when I see one.” His voice had hardened and he mimed mock applause.

  It was like dealing with Jekyll and Hyde.

  “But bravo to you for trying,” he said mockingly. “It’s too bad you’ll have to die today. We just have to wait for your boys to show up.”

  Nausea swamped Toni. She didn’t know what to do. The guys should be home at any moment and they had no idea they were walking into a trap.

  * * *

  From up on the ridge, Brian examined the cabin through the binoculars. The snowfall was coming down much thicker than it had been an hour or so before, which was going to make this that much more difficult. He and Jamie were on one side of the ridge. Nathan and Trevor were on the other. All of them trying to figure out what was going on down in the quiet cabin below.

  There were big men, definitely the muscle for the operation, hiding in the shadows around the periphery of the cabin. He had no doubt they were all armed. “I can see three men from here and there’s a reflection from a vehicle hidden in the trees,” he whispered into the walkie talkie. “I’m not sure what kind it is. It looks like it’s black, though.”

  “There are four more out behind the snowmobile shed and another vehicle parked there,” Trevor answered back.

  After Cherise’s bombshell, they’d worked to come up with some semblance of a plan. Snowcroft was such a small town; there was only a single law enforcement officer besides the forest rangers. Unfortunately that one officer and all the other forest rangers besides Trevor were scrambling with lost hikers in the face of the freak autumnal snowstorm moving through the mountains. They’d put in an emergency call to the closest town, but it was located twenty-five miles below in the valley and with the deteriorating weather, that road coming up the mountain would be treacherous. It was up to the four of them to take care of this.

  Ri
ght now, they were looking at seven men on the outside of the cabin and who knows how many inside against the four of them. Those were not good odds. It was closing in on two o’clock. They had to make a move soon. Assuming Toni was still alive, she was expecting them back before dinner. They had to get there before that deadline passed and these men got nervous and killed her.

  If she wasn’t already dead.

  Brian took a deep, shuddering breath. He couldn’t allow himself to even think about that possibility. She was alive and they were going to keep her that way.

  Trevor’s voice sounded out over the walkie talkie. “Okay, we’ve seen all we can see here. Let’s meet back at the trucks and come up with a plan.

  * * *

  The plan wasn’t a good one, but Brian wasn’t willing to wait and risk further injury to Toni while they figured out something better. Jamie had called in some of his construction crews to help. They were civilian with absolutely no training, but Brian hoped they had enough brawn to make up for that. They also knew the mountain and how to negotiate it quickly and quietly. That was a huge advantage, especially with the snowstorm that appeared to be changing quickly into the makings of a blizzard.

  The signal came through the walkie talkie system that they were all in position. Saying a silent prayer that no one got hurt, Brian turned into the gravel drive of the house and stashed the walkie talkie under his seat.

  Nathan had stayed with Jamie and Trevor. The kid wasn’t happy about that, but Toni would have his balls if the kid got hurt and he wouldn’t be too happy about it, either, so that was a non-negotiable point in the plan.

  As he drove along, nothing looked out of place. If he’d been coming back to the cabin unaware, these guys definitely would have gotten the drop on him. They were good. The construction crew and his friends were planning to take care of everyone outside after Brian walked in the door, but then he was going to be on his own with however many men were inside. They were working on the assumption that they only had two vehicles so there couldn’t be that many more people inside. Simple logic said they couldn’t have more men than they could transport. But as Brian prepared to walk into the unknown, that seemed to be awfully flimsy justification. Regardless, his goal was to get Toni out safe. Whatever the cost.

  He stopped the car behind the house where he normally parked and went around to the trunk to grab the cooler full of fish. He climbed the stairs to the back porch, still nothing looked out of place. The men around the periphery had melted into the shadows of the forest and he didn’t even see the glimpses of them.

  The back door handle turned with no problem and he listened momentarily but didn’t hear any noise within the house, as he stepped into the kitchen. “Toni,” he called out. “I’m back with fish, but I don’t know if you’ve looked outside lately. It’s snowing. I’m thinking we’re going to have to cook these on the stovetop tonight.” He stopped momentarily to listen, but still didn’t hear anything, although his neck prickled at the unseen danger. Acting like nothing was amiss, he continued. “Nathan decided to stay in town with Jamie and Trevor until they come out tonight, so it’s just you and me for now.”

  “Not quite.”

  He froze when he heard the menacing voice echoing over the quiet of the room. A huge man stepped out of the shadows of the pantry with a gun pointed at him. He nodded his head at the cooler still in Brian’s arms. “Put it down and don’t make any sudden movements.”

  Brian wasn’t supposed to know anything was going on here, so he asked the obvious question, “Who are you? Where the fuck is Toni?” he growled. “If you’ve hurt one hair on her head, I will kill you.” He tried to act stunned at the invasion.

  “I’m sure your lady friend will be happy to see you in the living room.”

  At least that sounded like she was still alive. A momentary sense of light-headedness hit him. He’d been afraid that she might already be dead.

  Brian gingerly set the cooler down on the kitchen table. He hated to leave it because there was a gun under the fish inside, but he knew before he ever came inside the cabin that getting to that gun would be a long shot. He let go of the cooler and raised his arms in surrender.

  The man outweighed him by at least seventy-five pounds of pure muscle and he stood another six inches taller than Brian. There was no way he could take this guy down in a hand to hand fight, especially not when he had the advantage of the gun, too. Besides, he still didn’t know exactly what condition Toni was in so he wasn’t willing to risk anything yet. He needed more information before he could make a plan on how to proceed.

  The man moved behind him and prodded him toward the living room with the gun. “Just move slowly and keep your hands where I can see them.”

  When they stepped into the living room, Toni looked up to him with terror filling her eyes. Her relief was visible, though, when she looked behind him and saw Nathan wasn’t with him. She was strapped to a chair in the middle of the room.

  His fists clenched in rage as he took in her haggard appearance. Dried blood caked to the side of her head and filth covered from head to toe. Her ghostly pale complexion contrasted heavily against the dark blood on the side of her face.

  What had they done? Roll her down the side of the mountain? She shivered and her teeth chattered. A window at the front of the room had been broken, letting in the icy gusts from outside.

  He gritted his teeth against the frustration that boiled in his gut. “Are you okay?” he asked.

  She nodded and her eyes filled with tears that shredded at him. He had to get her out of here. He refocused on the well-dressed man standing beside her. This had to be the boss. He looked familiar, but Brian couldn’t place who he was. “Who are you? What do you want from us?”

  “The same thing I’ve wanted all along. I want that punk kid shut up, but you didn’t bring him home with you, did you?” The man sneered. “That presents a problem, one that you’re going to have to solve.”

  He nodded to the brute still standing behind Brian. “Call Dmitri and round up the boys. We’re all going for a ride.” He turned his attention back to Brian. “You don’t move, or else this will become a whole lot more painful for the beautiful lady here.” A dangerous-looking knife glinted in his grip and all the moisture disappeared from Brian’s mouth. But the man just sliced her bonds open, before yanking her up out of her chair.

  Toni yelped in pain. Brian didn’t even have a chance to react before there was a cacophonous shattering of glass and a blur of fur. Sam launched himself at the man holding and hurting Toni.

  Brian sped into motion, jerking his arm up to disarm the man holding him while he was distracted with the shock of Sam tearing through his boss’s flesh. Sounds of anguished screams echoed through the room along with Sam’s snarls and growls, as he continued to maul the man who’d hurt Toni.

  After Brian disarmed his assailant, he attached zip ties he’d had shoved in his pockets to the man’s wrists and dropped him to the floor. He left the man on the ground and went to gather Toni in his arms. She shook like a leaf with her gaze riveted on her dog still ripping at the boss.

  “Toni,” he said gently. “You need to call Sam off, sweetheart.”

  “He…He was going t-to kill us. You. Nathan.” Her voice was weak and thready.

  “I know baby, but we’re okay. I need you to call Sam off. He’s not going to hurt us anymore and we can’t let Sam kill him or else they will put Sam down.”

  That pulled her out of her stupor. She pulled herself up. “Sam.” She clapped her hands together twice. “Heel!”

  He immediately stopped, looked at her questioningly and then limped over to her side.

  Blood coated Sam’s fur, but Brian wasn’t sure how much of it was from Sam’s leap through the window and glass and how much of it was from the mess he’d left of the man’s exposed skin. When the dog got to Toni’s side, he collapsed at her feet. She joined him on the ground and gently laid her head to him, murmuring, “Good boy. You’re such a good boy,
Sam. You did good, baby. Thank you.”

  Brian could hear the tears in her voice and when she turned to him, it just about broke his heart. “We need to get him to the vet.”

  “I know, sweetheart, and you need medical attention, too.” He dropped beside her to examine the side of her head where a huge lump rose up under her hairline. She winced as he probed. “I’m sorry,” he told her, hating to cause her any more pain.

  He glanced over at the man the dog had mauled. It didn’t look like he would be moving anytime soon. They needed emergency services here sooner rather than later. “Toni, is there anyone else in the house?”

  “No…no, I don’t think so. They were all outside.”

  “Okay, good.” He assumed that all the men outside had done their jobs. “Trevor,” he hollered, hoping that his voice would carry outdoors. “We’re clear in here.”

  He could hear a smattering of applause from the men outdoors. Obviously, they’d all done their jobs.

  He pulled Toni into his embrace. They were clear and she was alive. That was all that mattered.

  Chapter 9

  Toni awoke to the pressure of someone clinging to her fingers. She needed to open her eyes, but just lying there felt so much easier to do. Every single part of her body hurt, even her eyelids. Finally, curiosity got the better of her about who squeezed her hand and she pried her eyes open.

  At the sight of Nathan’s worried face at the side of her hospital bed, memories from the day before bombarded her. She hadn’t gotten to see him before they’d whisked her into a four-wheel drive vehicle down the side of the mountain to a hospital.

  “Hey, kid,” she whispered. “Are you okay?” He appeared to be whole and safe, but she still had to ask the question.