A Dangerous Game

by Heather Graham

  “I’m not sure you understand this neighborhood, or these people. For the most part, they’ve gone to the dark side, some just to survive. They don’t fight fair, Mr. Finnegan,” Wolff said. “They slip through a crowd with knives, guns, needles...you name it. They kill without blinking, without anyone ever knowing who they are.”

  Danny looked at Kieran. “The woman on the street...by your office. She was killed by the King or the Queen?”

  “Or someone ordered by them to kill,” Kieran said.

  “But they don’t just kill random people in a crowd,” Danny said.

  Wolff appeared uncomfortable. He looked at Kieran, and then shrugged.

  She was glad that he didn’t assume Danny to be ignorant of what went on around him.

  Danny groaned. “I get it. Kieran. They know who Kieran is—they know her association with the case. God, that’s horrible. Okay, so—the King and Queen must be caught.” He looked at his sister, his lips pressed tightly together until he opened his mouth to speak. “Or you can’t ever just walk down a street!”

  He didn’t wait for a reply from her. He turned to Wolff. “What were they doing out there—the King and the Queen? And who pushed by me—someone terrified of them? And on top of everything else, I’ve been trying to make her act like a normal human being, so can you find out if Craig is all right? She’ll run out in the street like a pawn ready for a sacrifice to a king or a queen if she doesn’t find out about him soon.”

  Danny sounded hard—but calm. And reasonable.

  Wolff nodded slowly. “Someone who must have been running from them pushed by you. I saw her, too. I have to get back out on the street—I have to try to find her. My assumption is that our new friends—Riley and Tanya—have proven that escape is possible, so someone else is trying to run. We were too close to their operation—at the warehouse that just exploded—and they had to move. Maybe someone slipped out in the confusion. I’ll make a call and find out about Craig. Uh...make yourselves at home. There’s water in the refrigerator, maybe some juice or sodas. I’ll get someone here to get you safely out as soon as possible.”

  “We’re trapped here?” Danny asked flatly.

  “For now.”

  “Just find out about Craig, please,” Kieran urged. “I don’t know what he’s doing. I assume that he’s okay but really busy, but my phone was smashed in the crowd. I can’t call him.”

  Danny pointed a finger at her. “You owe me one. Damn it, you will be careful. You will stay alive! You owe me one.”

  “Oh, Daniel Finnegan, you have your nerve!” Kieran told him. “After the messes you’ve gotten me into, not to mention...”

  She let her voice trail off. Wolff was almost smiling as he watched the two of them.

  To Kieran’s surprise, he shrugged and told Danny, “Hey, I have a sister, too. It’s never easy.”

  Her mouth opened in astonishment. But she didn’t speak. Wolff had already turned away.

  And Danny was grinning.

  “Yep, sisters. Every guy understands the trauma,” he assured her.

  * * *

  Craig had to fight to control himself not to pace or crawl the very walls in his efforts to remain patient.

  Their victim was in critical shape. Critical was surely an understatement for the condition. It was going to be some time—saving a human life came before any other need in a hospital. Craig might well be desperate to hear the man speak again, but he was going to have to wait.

  And nothing could drag him away from the hospital right now.

  This man could hold the elusive key to the entire operation.

  Craig had just been ushered to a private waiting room when he was joined by Detectives Holmes and Beard. They hurried in, looking at him expectantly and hopefully.

  “They said we can wait. Pray, hope, whatever, but his chances aren’t good. He suffered extensive burns,” Beard said, looking at Craig as if he might just give him something a little more optimistic.

  “He’s alive right now,” Craig said.

  “So he could make it,” Holmes put in determinedly.

  “We’ll go on that hope,” Craig told them.

  Before he could get any further, Lance Kendall came hurrying in. Like Holmes and Beard before him, he stared at Craig hopefully. “Anything? Anything?”

  “Something, anyway—he did speak,” Craig said.

  “What? He spoke? Really. He spoke? Then he told you...?” Kendall asked.

  “Lord, help us all! Did we get another name?” Beard asked.

  “No. I’m sorry. I should have used the words murmured fairly incoherently,” Craig said. “He didn’t give me a name. But he did give me an understanding. He wasn’t terrified of dying—he was ready to die. He was terrified of someone knowing that he didn’t die. Whoever the hell he was working for—or under. These people—the King and Queen and the crew beneath them—must be threatening the loved ones of anyone who falls under their power. Now, I don’t know how far their terror extends. I don’t know if they can strike at loved ones only in the States or also back in their homelands—I don’t pretend to know how this group manages their reign of terror. Our victim believes that if these people discover that he’s not dead, someone else—someone he loves—is in danger. I was about to call my supervising director. I want to put a statement out saying that one man was found dead in the rubble. He has to be protected. He may live. He may come to. But if we’re to get any kind of cooperation from him, we’re going to have to help him and his family. I believe that helping him means getting the info out there that he was found dead.”

  “And then we pray he doesn’t die—that he can tell us something,” Holmes said. He swore suddenly, pacing across the room. “He has to live.”

  “Yeah,” David Beard agreed glumly. He looked at Craig. “God, there has to be an end to this. If we lose him...another five years, and God knows how many lives may be lost, as well.”

  Craig’s phone was buzzing. He excused himself to answer it.

  Mike was on the other end. “Craig, Egan is at the scene of the explosion. Apparently, they took Kieran to Finnegan’s.”

  “Okay, so...can you get her and bring her here?”

  “I’m going to go to Finnegan’s right now,” Mike said.

  There was something strange in his tone that alerted Craig to trouble.

  “You’re going there now? Because you’ve spoken to her—and she knows you’re coming to get her?”

  Mike was silent a minute. “She’s not answering her phone. I’m going there because I know she was let out there by one of our people.” He went quiet again.

  “Mike?”

  “Okay, well, apparently, she isn’t there. But one of the waitresses thinks that she saw her with one of her brothers, so she isn’t alone. And I’m going to find her.”

  “Which brother?”

  “Danny.”

  “Great,” Craig said, not entirely honestly.

  Kieran was missing.

  And so, Craig realized, there was something that could drag him away from the hospital.

  “I’ll meet you at Finnegan’s,” Craig said. His heart was pounding; his mouth was dry.

  On the one hand, he was ready to throttle her.

  Why the hell wasn’t she safely at the family pub, surrounded by her brothers and a dozen people who were like family?

  And on the other hand...

  He couldn’t even begin to imagine losing her.

  “Hey, partner, she probably just ran out of battery or something in her phone,” Mike said. “You stay there. I’ll find her.”

  “Kendall, Beard and Holmes are here. And our fellow isn’t going to be able to talk for hours—maybe days—if ever. I’ll meet you at Finnegan’s,” Craig said flatly.

  “Craig, I... We’ll find her.”

  * * *

&
nbsp; “Craig is fine,” Wolff told Kieran. “I’ve just reached Director Egan, who’s going to help get you safely out of here, and he assured me that Craig’s all right. He saw him leave with someone who was injured, but Craig was just fine. Okay?”

  Kieran let out a long breath, relief flooding through her. “Thank you,” she told him.

  “Of course. But you need to remain here until his people are able to come for you,” Wolff told them.

  “How will we know when his people come?” Danny asked. “You know, neither of us is armed if the wrong person comes here.”

  “The wrong person won’t come here,” Wolff assured him. “Egan will send someone you know. You don’t open the door until you hear that the agents are here for you. You all right with that?”

  “Yes, of course,” Kieran said.

  “No. You drag us here, and then leave us,” Danny said.

  “He got us out of a dangerous situation, Danny. And now he has to go back to work,” Kieran said. “We’re fine,” she assured Wolff. “I know Egan. He’ll have people here for us right away.”

  “Hey, I watch television! I’ve seen all the cop shows. You don’t leave witnesses alone,” Danny said.

  “Danny!”

  “If anything happens to you...” Danny said, looking at her. “Well, for one, everyone will blame me.”

  “None of this was your fault. I made you come with me,” Kieran said. “And nothing is going to happen to us.” She turned from her brother to the undercover cop who had brought them to safety. “We’re fine, Jacob. Absolutely. Danny—do you want someone else to die?”

  “Of course not.” Danny frowned, staring at her.

  “I have to see who I can find,” Wolff said softly. “Obviously there is at least one person out there trying to escape in the midst of all this. Possibly more than one if you heard her talking to someone.”

  “Go on. Get out there,” Danny said.

  Wolff smiled. “I’m going out the back. Come and I’ll show you the latch and you can reset it.”

  “Of course,” Danny said. He followed Wolff. Kieran followed Danny—there was no way that she wasn’t going to see exactly what was going on.

  They went through a little hall. It ended at a wall with a box in front of it. Wolff moved the box; there was a small door. He slid a bolt and she saw that the small door led out into a smoky, rat-infested alley that couldn’t have been more than four feet wide. But Wolff headed out into the narrow space.

  “Close it and throw the bolt,” Wolff told them.

  Danny did so. “Done!” he shouted.

  They didn’t hear more from Wolff. After a moment, Kieran turned and headed into the living area of the little place.

  “What are you doing?” Danny asked her.

  “Turning on the TV.”

  “That’s it? You’re just turning on the TV?” Danny asked.

  “Yeah. You have a better idea?”

  “I don’t like this. I don’t like it one bit.”

  “Yes, but...”

  “I get it. I get it, Kieran. I just don’t have to like it. You hang with scary people.”

  “You like Craig.”

  “I love him, like a brother, and I figure he will be my brother-in-law one day. But...”

  “Craig didn’t make this happen, Danny. The woman came and shoved that baby into my arms.”

  “Yeah, I know. I shouldn’t have let you talk me into this this afternoon,” he said. “I should have said, hell, no, if you’re trying to connive with me, something is not right.”

  “We’re in some kind of a safe house, or a crash house, or...whatever. I know this guy—Jacob Wolff. He’s an amazing man. We’re good,” Kieran said. She turned the television on, thinking that she’d click around until she found the news about the explosion.

  She didn’t have to flick channels at all.

  A newsman stood among the smoke and flames, the sound of sirens, of shouts, of people on the street, speaking loudly into his microphone.

  “No one knows as yet what caused the explosion, though we’re assuming—with the amount of law enforcement officials hovering around—that arson is suspected. We’re looking into ownership of the building, though here’s what’s good—it appeared to have been deserted. Sorry to say that one man has been discovered in the building, dead, killed by the blast, but no further details are forthcoming at this moment. Now, if you’ll look behind me, you can see that the New York Fire Department is still struggling to control all the flames...”

  “One man dead,” Danny murmured. He looked at his sister. “So someone was killed in the explosion. But it wasn’t Craig. You know that.”

  Kieran nodded. She could see that Egan was there, on the street in the background. She assumed that he was speaking with other high-ranking officials or officers.

  “Craig is there somewhere working, you know,” Danny said.

  “Yes, of course.”

  “So you shouldn’t really be bothering him. In fact, honestly, and not to be a mean brother or anything, but we probably never should have come out here.”

  “Maybe not,” Kieran agreed. And then she felt like an idiot. “You have your phone!”

  “Of course I have my phone. If you hadn’t had yours out in that insane crowd, you wouldn’t have dropped it and it wouldn’t be smashed mush right now.”

  “Not the point. Can you please call Craig for me?” she asked.

  “Sure. Or here—you can call him.”

  “Why the hell didn’t you say that before?”

  “You never said anything.”

  “My phone was smashed.”

  “Yeah? So you should have thought to ask me.”

  And, of course, she should have.

  “Give it to me now.”

  “Here.” He handed her his phone. She found Craig’s number on it quickly and hit the speed dial for him.

  Craig answered. “Danny? Danny, is Kieran with you? Where the hell is she?”

  She inhaled deeply. He was going to be angry.

  “Craig, it’s me.”

  “Why in God’s name aren’t you answering your phone? Where are you?”

  She didn’t want to tell him her phone had been stomped on in a crowd—he’d know where she’d been. But she did have to tell him where she was, and then, of course, he’d know where she’d been, anyway.

  “I broke my phone,” she said simply. “I’m safe, and I’m with Danny. I...we came to Brooklyn. I was worried about you. We ran into Jacob Wolff in the crowd. He thought we should come with him. We’re in some kind of a hideaway or safe house or whatever you all call it. I’m not sure I know how to give you the address for this place—”

  “I know where it is. Kieran, what the hell were you doing at the scene of the explosion? Mike was trying to find you for me. I was crazed here, not knowing... Damn it—these people are ruthless when it comes to killing!”

  “Yes, and I was worried about you. I’m sorry!” she said. “Anyway, we’re fine. And you didn’t let me know what was going on—I didn’t know that you were okay. Seriously, Craig...” Her voice trailed. Danny was looking at her, shaking his head.

  Craig was trained; she was not. Craig carried a gun; she did not.

  She let out a breath. “Look, I apologize, but we’re safe. Wolff said that Egan was going to send someone for me—”

  “I’ll talk to Egan. Hold tight. I’ll come and get you myself.”

  “Okay. We’ll be here,” she said lamely. Then words rushed from her. “I’m sorry. I saw the news. I know that a man was killed. I know that we’re getting information too late. I know that they even killed a nun. I’m...so sorry.”

  “You’ve got to be careful,” he warned softly. “Anyway, hang tight. Mike and I will be there.”

  “Sounds good,” she murmured. She wondered if sh
e should add an “I love you.”

  People were listening; this was a professional situation.

  Danny was staring at her.

  She was pretty sure that Craig was with Mike.

  “Sounds good,” she repeated, and she clicked the end button and handed the phone to Danny.

  “They’re coming.”

  “What should we do until then?”

  “There’s always the TV.”

  “And the news is just great,” Danny said drily.

  “I’m sure we can find something else.”

  “I don’t think they have a bunch of the premium channels being piped in here,” Danny said, playing with the remote control.

  He paused as another anchor went on and on about the explosion. This man connected it—somehow—to the murder that had taken place in Manhattan the Friday before.

  “Strange happenings, even for this city,” the man was saying. “Last week, a Jane Doe murdered in broad daylight. This week, a building going up in a massive mystery explosion, and another man—unidentified—dead. Melinda,” he went on, talking to the anchorwoman in the studio, “I’m going to say that police have their hands full with this. And, of course, we’re reminded of that poor woman found bleeding to death in Brooklyn five years ago. This is a city of dreams turned into a nightmare for many!”

  “I thought the police were being very closemouthed about the things they learned to protect the women who are in danger,” Danny muttered.

  “They aren’t giving out any information, Danny. I guess reporters are going to know what has happened in the past and they’ll be able to look up anything that was ever told in a police press conference. They’re bound to speculate.”

  “Everyone is speculating.” Danny stared at the television and then turned to her. “Kieran, if they did kill Sister Teresa, they will stop at nothing.”

  A chill seemed to catch in her heart and streak through her veins. She was about to reassure him, to remind him that Craig and Mike were coming. Before she could speak, she heard a thud against the front door.

  Her heart nearly leapt from her throat.

  Danny did leap from the sofa where he had been sitting.

  They stared at one another for a long second, and then ran on tiptoes together to the door.