“DNA tests,” he said without hesitation. “I got your DNA from the classified database in Quantico and compared it to Leah’s. It’s a match.”
There was so much coming at her that Bree could no longer breathe. Was this all true? Or maybe Kade and this baby story were figments of her drug-induced imagination. One thing was for certain. She needed to contact her boss. Coop was the only one she could trust right now.
And Coop had better tell her this was all some kind of misunderstanding.
“I need to use your cell phone,” she insisted.
“You can use it in the truck.” He took her by the arm. “Something bad obviously happened to you, and we need to find out what. That starts with a visit to the doctor so you have a tox screen.”
Bree didn’t dispute the fact that she might indeed need medical attention, but she had no reason to blindly trust Kade Ryland.
“I want to make that call now,” she demanded.
Kade stared at her, huffed again and reached in his coat pocket. But reaching for his phone was as far as he got. There was a noise just outside the door, and despite the drug haze, it was a sound that Bree immediately recognized.
Footsteps.
Kade drew his gun, and in the same motion, he shoved her behind him.
But it was too late.
Bree heard a swishing sound. One that she also recognized. Someone had a gun rigged with a silencer.
And a bullet came tearing through the thin wooden door.
Chapter Three
Kade threw his weight against Bree to push her out of the line of fire. She landed hard against the wall, and Kade had no choice but to land hard against her.
Another bullet came through the door, splintering out a huge chunk of the already-rickety wood. No one called out for them to surrender. No one bashed in the room to hold them at gunpoint.
And that meant the gunman had one goal: to kill Bree and him.
Later, he would kick himself for coming here without backup, but he’d been in such a hurry to rescue Bree that Kade had put standard procedures aside so he could get to her before she left the motel. Or before she was killed or kidnapped again. Finding her had been critical. But now the challenge was to get her out of there alive.
It was a risk, anything was at this point, but Kade moved from the wall so he could kick the dresser against the door. He gave it another shove to anchor it in place.
“That won’t stop him for long,” Bree mumbled.
No. It wouldn’t. But if the gunman had wanted to get inside, he could have easily knocked down the door before he started shooting. Firing through the door had likely been his way of trying to strike first without risking a direct showdown. If so, he knew Kade was armed. Maybe he even knew that Kade was an agent.
But who was he?
And why attack them?
Kade wanted those answers, and maybe he could get them from this Bozo if he could keep the guy alive. Of course, rescuing Bree was his first priority.
Kade had to do something to keep some space between the danger and Bree, so he fired directly into the door. Unlike the gunman’s shots, the one he fired was a loud thick blast that echoed through the room. He didn’t wait to see if he’d hit the target. He had to get Bree out of there.
Unfortunately, their options sucked.
Kade shoved her into the bathroom, such as it was. Barely five feet across with only a toilet and what was once a shower stall.
The tile was cracked and filthy, but the room had one redeeming feature: a window that faced the back side of the motel. He knew it was there because he’d done a snapshot surveillance of the place before he ever knocked on Bree’s door. The gunman would have to run around the entire length of the building to get to that window. Well, unless he had a partner with him. Kade hoped that wasn’t the case. One gunman was more than enough.
Another shot came into the bedroom.
Kade returned fire, this time a double tap that would hopefully send a message—he would kill to get Bree out of there. He darn sure hadn’t come this far to lose her before he got the answers to his questions.
Bree was still more than a little unsteady on her feet so Kade shoved her deeper in the bathroom, kicked the door shut and locked it. The lock was as rickety as the rest of the place, and it wouldn’t give them much protection if the gunman came blasting in, but it might buy them a few critical seconds, just enough time to get out.
He hurried to the window. It popped right open, and he looked out in the thin alley that separated the motel from an equally seedy-looking bar. Both ends of the alley were open, and there were no signs of a backup gunman, but it would still be a long dangerous run to his truck.
“I’ll go first to make sure it’s safe,” he told Bree. “You follow me. Got that?”
She gave him a look, and for a moment he thought Bree might refuse. For a good reason, too. She didn’t trust him.
And why should she?
Bree was no doubt trying to absorb everything he’d just dumped on her, and Kade knew from personal experience that coming to terms with unexpected parenthood wasn’t something that could happen in five minutes—especially after the trauma Bree had been through. And the trauma wasn’t over.
“You have no choice,” Kade told her. He moved his truck keys from his jeans pocket to his jacket so they’d be easier to reach. “If we stay here, we both die.”
She shook her head as if trying to clear it, or argue with him, but still didn’t move. Not until another bullet bashed through the room.
And more.
Someone was moving the dresser that Kade had used to block the door. That someone was now in the motel room just a few yards away with only a paper-thin wall and equally thin bathroom door between them.
Bree’s eyes widened. She obviously understood what was happening now. She caught his arm and shoved him against the window. Kade grabbed the sill, hoisting himself up and slithered through the narrow opening. He landed on his feet with his gun ready, and he looked up.
No Bree.
For one heart-stopping moment Kade thought she might have decided to take her chances with the gunman, but then he saw her hand on the sill. She was struggling to keep a grip. And Kade cursed himself again. The drugs had made her too weak to lever herself up.
While he tried to keep watch on both sides of the alley, Kade latched onto her wrist and pulled hard. She finally tumbled forward and landed with a jolt right in his arms. He didn’t have time to make sure she was okay or even carry her since he had to keep his shooting hand free. Kade put her on her feet, grabbed her by the shoulder and started running in the direction of his truck.
They were already on borrowed time. By Kade’s calculations, it’d been twenty seconds or longer since the gunman had fired. That meant he could have already made it into the bathroom and have seen that they weren’t there. He could try to kill them by shooting through the window, or else he could be heading around the building straight toward them.
“I should have a gun,” Bree mumbled.
Yeah, she should. That would be a big help right about now because Kade knew for a fact she could shoot. However, since he couldn’t take the time to pull his backup weapon from his ankle holster, he ran as fast as he could with a groggy, dazed woman in tow.
Finally, he spotted his dark blue truck.
But Kade also heard something.
He glanced behind them and saw someone he didn’t want to see. A guy wearing camo pants and jacket came around the far end of the building. He was also armed, and he pointed a handgun directly at Kade and Bree.
There wasn’t time to get to his truck. No time to do much of anything except get out of the line of fire. So Kade shoved Bree to the ground, right against the exterior wall of the hotel, and he followed on top of her. Not a second too soon. The guy pulled the trigger.
The shot slammed into the wall.
Kade turned, took aim and returned fire.
Their attacker dived to the side but not far enough.
Kade could still see him, and he wanted the SOB temporarily out of the picture so he could get Bree safely out of there. Of course, he might have to settle for killing the guy. That would mean no answers, but it was better than the alternative.
Kade sent another shot his way.
And another.
He cursed when the guy moved, causing the bullets to strafe into the ground. But the third was a charm because the gunman finally scrambled back behind the building.
Bree was trembling and as white as paper when Kade came off the ground and yanked her to her feet. She had been under fire before, but probably not while defenseless. Kade kept watch behind them, but he got them running toward the truck again. He also did some praying that a second gunman wasn’t near his vehicle.
Kade fired another shot in the direction of the gunman. Maybe it would keep him pinned down long enough for them to escape.
Maybe.
He let go of Bree so he could take out his keys, and he pressed the button to unlock the doors. Thankfully, Bree ran without his help, and they made a beeline for the truck.
Kade saw the gunman again, but he didn’t stop to fire. Instead, he threw open the truck door. Bree did the same on the passenger’s side, and they both dived in.
“Watch out!” Bree shouted. “He’s coming after us.”
“I see him,” Kade let her know.
He lowered the window, just enough to allow himself room to fire another shot. Just enough to keep the gunman at bay for a few more seconds.
Kade started the engine and slammed his foot on the accelerator. He didn’t exactly make a silent exit out of the parking lot. The tires howled against the asphalt, but Kade figured anyone within a quarter mile had already heard the gunfight and either reported it or run away.
In this neighborhood, he was betting it was the latter.
“Keep watch,” he told Bree.
While he took out his phone, he glanced around to make sure they weren’t being followed. Then, he glanced at Bree.
Man, she was still way too pale, and she was sucking in air so fast she might hyperventilate. In the four days he had spent with her undercover, he’d never seen her like this, and Kade hoped she could hold herself together for just a little while longer until he could get her out of there and to a doctor.
Since he didn’t want to spend a lot of time making all the calls he needed, Kade made the one that he knew would get the ball rolling. He pressed in the number for his brother, Lt. Nate Ryland, at San Antonio police headquarters. Nate answered on the first ring because he was no doubt waiting for news about Bree.
“I found her at the Treetop Motel,” Kade said. That alone would be a bombshell since over the past month they’d had nine false reports of Bree’s location. “But there was a gunman. Caucasian. Brown hair. About six-two. One-seventy. No distinguishing marks.”
Nate cursed and mumbled something about Kade being a stubborn ass for not waiting for backup. “I’ll get a team out there right away,” Nate assured him, and it was the exact assurance Kade needed. “What about you? Where are you taking her?”
“The hospital. Not here in San Antonio. I’m driving her to Silver Creek.” Kade didn’t say that too loud, though Bree no doubt heard it, anyway. “Call me if you find anything at the hotel. I’ll let you know when I have answers.”
“I don’t want to go to a hospital,” Bree said the moment he ended the call. She was trembling, but she had her attention fastened to the side mirror, no doubt checking to see if they were being followed. “I just want to find out what happened to me.”
So did Kade. But first he had to make sure the gunman wasn’t on their tail. Then the hospital whether she wanted to go there or not.
While Bree was being checked out by a doctor, he could start the calls and the paperwork. It wouldn’t be pretty. He would have to explain to his boss and his brothers why he hadn’t waited for backup after receiving that anonymous tip about Bree’s location. It probably wasn’t going to fly if he told them that he had a gut feeling that she was in danger.
And he’d been right.
Still, gut instincts didn’t look good on paper, and he would get his butt chewed out because of it. Kade figured it would be worth it. After all, he’d gotten Bree out of harm’s way.
Well, for now.
“He’s not following us,” Bree concluded. She swallowed hard and looked at him.
Kade looked at her too out of the corner of his eye. She had certainly been through an ordeal. Her dark brown hair had been choppily cut and was mussed well beyond the point of making a fashion statement. And then there was the dress. It hung on her like a sack. There were dark circles under her drug-dazed eyes. Her lips were chapped raw. Still, she managed to look darn attractive.
And yeah, he was stupid enough to notice.
It was also easy to notice that Bree had passed on those cat-green eyes to their daughter.
She opened her mouth, and for a moment Kade thought she might ask about Leah. But she didn’t. She snatched his phone from his hand.
“I’m calling my supervisor,” Bree insisted.
Kade didn’t stop her, though he knew Randy Cooper didn’t have the answers that Bree wanted. That’s because Kade had spent a lot of time with the agent over the past month and a half.
She must have remembered the number because she pressed it in without hesitation and put the call on speaker. “Coop,” she said when the man answered.
“Bree,” he said just as quickly. “Are you all right?”
“No.” With that single word, her breath broke, and tears sprang to her eyes. She tried to blink them back, but more just came.
“The last lead paid off,” Kade informed Coop. “She was at the Treetop Motel here in San Antonio, but so was a gunman. The informant could have set us up to be killed.”
Coop cursed. “Either of you hurt?”
“I’m fine,” Kade assured him. “Not so sure about Bree—”
“Where have I been all these months?” she interrupted.
“I don’t know,” Coop answered. He gave a weary sigh. “But trust me, we’ll find out.”
Yeah. They would. Step one was done. Kade had located Bree, and now that he had her, he could start unraveling this crazy puzzle that had resulted in the birth of their daughter.
“I need to see you ASAP,” Coop told her. “How soon can you get her here, Kade?”
“Not soon,” Kade let him know. “Someone drugged her, and even though it looks as if it’s wearing off, she needs to see a doctor.”
“I can arrange that,” Coop insisted.
Of course Coop could, but if Kade took Bree to FBI headquarters, she’d be sucked into the system. Exams, interviews, paperwork. That had to wait because the FBI wouldn’t put Leah first.
Kade would.
He had to find out if the gunman meant Leah was now in danger, too. Kade had a hard time just stomaching that thought, but it wouldn’t do him any good to bury his head in the sand.
“Is it true, Coop?” Bree asked. “Did I really have a baby?”
Coop took some time answering. “Yes,” was all he said.
Bree groaned, squeezed her eyes shut and the phone dropped into her lap. She buried her face in her hands. She wasn’t hyperventilating yet, but she was about to fall apart.
“Coop, we’ll call you back. In the meantime, my brother Lt. Nate Ryland is on his way to the hotel crime scene and is trying to track down this gunman. We need to find this guy,” Kade emphasized, though Coop already knew that.
Because the gunman could be the key to unraveling this. Well, unless he was just a hired gun. But even then, that was a start since they could find out who’d paid him to kill them.
Coop began to argue with Kade’s refusal of his order to bring Bree in, but Kade took the phone from her lap and ended the call. He also made another turn so he could check to make sure they weren’t being followed. Things looked good in that department but not with Bree. She kept her hands over her face. Clamped her te
eth over her bottom lip. And then she made that sound. Half groan, half sob.
Hell. That did it.
Kade hooked his arm around her and dragged her across the seat toward him. Much to his surprise, she didn’t fight him. She dropped her head on his shoulder.
For a moment, anyway.
Just a moment.
Her head whipped up, and she met his gaze. She blinked. Shook her head and got a strange look in her eyes.
“I have to keep watch,” she insisted. Bree moved back across the seat and glanced at the mirror. Her breathing got faster again. “There’s a black sedan behind us.”
“Yeah.” Kade was fully aware of that. “But I don’t think it’s following us. It just exited onto this road.” To prove his point, he made another turn, and the car didn’t follow.
That didn’t settle Bree’s breathing much. She started to chew on her bottom lip. “You told Coop that your brother was helping us. He’s a cop?”
Kade nodded. “San Antonio PD. All four of my brothers are in law enforcement. We’ve been working to find you ever since someone abandoned Leah at the hospital.”
“Leah,” Bree repeated, and she slid her hand over her stomach. “We didn’t have sex,” she tossed out there.
“No. But someone in the fertility clinic obviously inseminated you.”
“Hector McClendon,” Bree said, and it wasn’t exactly a question.
Kade suspected the man, as well. Hector McClendon had been head of the Fulbright Fertility Clinic and was the main target of their undercover investigation that had started all of this.
“McClendon said he wasn’t aware of the illegal activity going on at his own clinic,” Kade reminded her.
“Right,” she mumbled, sarcasm dripping from her voice. “Stored embryos were being sold without the owners’ permission or knowledge. Illegal immigrants were being used as surrogates and kept in deplorable conditions. Babies were being auctioned to the highest bidder. We were pretty sure McClendon knew what was going on.” Bree looked at Kade. “Please tell me he’s behind bars.”
Kade hated to be the bearer of more bad news. “No. None of the evidence we got from the clinic implicated McClendon in any of the serious crimes.”
Kade Page 3