by Jamie Begley
“We won’t make it in time, especially if they’re switching planes. Refueling will take a few minutes, and that still wouldn’t give us enough time to stop them from taking off,” Train told him.
Reaper moved out of earshot from the group of men and motioned for Silas to join him. “Are you capable of doing more than tracking someone or lifting a leaf?”
Silas wasn’t offended by the way Reaper bluntly asked if his gift could be used for more than lifting a leaf or using the wind as a transmitter. The secrecy of his gifts could be used to their advantage, if Silas was willing to expose the entirety of what he was capable of doing.
Based on his answer, Silas’s concern was only for Ginny. “What do you need?”
“If the wind’s speed is too fast, they won’t be able to take off until it slows down.”
“I’ve never tried something from so far away, but yes, I can.”
Reaper nodded, moving back to Train, who was now talking on his phone.
Train lifted his head in question.
“We’ll make it. Go.”
“Get me that info pronto,” Train said into his phone, taking off at a run to his motorcycle.
“It won’t matter if you reach the plane in time or not.” Jonas moved around the others. “The FBI won’t let you get near her. Even if you convince them to get close to Ginny, they won’t let you board the plane to Clindale Island with her.”
Jonas was right. Fuck.
Reaper raked his hands through the sides of his long hair. Then a thought occurred to him. It was crazy as fuck, but if it worked, the island’s owner would be hard-pressed to deny him entry.
“The FBI will agree … if we’re married.”
Everyone looked at him like he was crazy.
“But you’re not,” Viper stated the obvious.
“Not yet, and the FBI and the owner of the island won’t know we aren’t.”
“How are you going to accomplish that? The FBI will want proof.”
“I’ll have proof. It will be legal,” he stated determinedly. He wasn’t going to let Ginny go into danger without him.
“How …?” Viper started to ask.
“A judge in Ohio isn’t above using his power when his wife needs a new car. Let’s find out what a brand-new Porsche can get out of him.”
Chapter Three
A car pulled into the driveway as Gavin gave Knox the name of the officer who had pulled him and Ginny over on their way back to Treepoint.
“Ask him the name of the judge he was talking about, then get the judge’s cooperation.”
“You’re wanting me to bribe an officer of a court?” Knox asked.
“Yes. If you have a problem, then—”
“I don’t have a fucking problem with it.” Knox stared at him in anger. “I just want to know how high to go if the Porsche isn’t enough.”
“Just get it done. I don’t give a fuck about the cost. I want the marriage certificate in my hands before Train and I take off. Make sure it’s backdated to the day the officer pulled me over.”
“It’s going to take some time. Do you know how many people we’re talking about—”
“I don’t care how it gets fucking done.” Reaper gave Knox an icy glare to get him moving as Viper and Rider shifted closer to him. When he gave an order, Reaper only gave it once. The brothers knew what would happen if Reaper had to repeat it a second time. Knox took off, passing the occupants from the car walking toward him as well as the Last Riders.
“This is all your fault.”
Reaper flinched at T.A.’s emotionless voice. The tears and fear she’d shown at the courthouse were gone, now replaced with an eerie calm he knew wasn’t normal. Reaper became even more worried for Ginny. T.A. was in shock, as if fear had overtaken her, and her mind was blanketing her from the terror she was experiencing.
“Matthew, get T.A. a chair,” Reaper directed, concerned for the visibly shaken woman. “Silas, get her something hot to drink.”
The Last Riders remained at a distance while making an aisle between them for T.A. to walk through. Dalton, however, stopped her within six feet of him.
Sex Piston, close by T.A.’s side, drilled him in place with her accusing and furious eyes. While T.A. looked numb, Sex Piston looked like a volcano ready to erupt.
“I know I’m responsible,” Reaper said before Sex Piston could let her anger loose. “Ginny must have come to an arrangement with the FBI and got them to rescind their offer of witness protection to Slate and to remove the roadblock for PharmFYOU to start testing. Arin and I have been trying to get their help to find her technician…not one fucking word from them until today. Reaper let out an angry huff of air. “Ginny fucking did this for me. By her taking off to Clindale and the FBI excusing the Last Riders of any wrongdoing, she is sacrificing herself in exchange. What I don’t fucking understand is how she knew what shit was going down.”
“I told her,” T.A. confessed. “She wanted to know how you were doing when you went back to the club house.”
T.A. burrowed her head in Dalton’s shoulder, her whole body shaking. Matthew brought back a wooden chair for her sit on, while Silas was still inside the house presumably getting her something to drink.
Reaper felt helpless watching Dalton help T.A.; he whispered in her ear, “I know you hate me, but I swear to you, I will get Ginny back.”
T.A. shook her head at him. “You don’t even know who you’re dealing with.”
Reaper ran a hand through his thick hair in frustration. “To tell you the fucking truth, you’re not the only one who’s in shock. I have no fucking clue of any of this shit, but we’re no help to her if we don’t hold it together.” Reaper wasn’t going to blow smoke up her ass. “I’m behind the eight ball here, and I really hate to sound like a dick, but T.A., I need you to quit thinking like Ginny is already dead and tell me exactly why the FBI was willing to make a deal with her.”
T.A. gave a shuddering breath, taking the mug that Silas handed to her before he moved out of sight.
Reaper recognized Silas’ behavior and wanted to ask what he was doing, but right now, he had to focus on T.A. and the information she knew. There was little time, but going into a mission blind could be deadly for Ginny.
“My parents used to work for various charities to develop clean water systems and build schools in underdeveloped countries.” T.A’s gaze looked as though she had gone back to another place and time.
“When I was eight, I met Gabriel. He wanted my parents to come work for his charity. They were in awe of him. My mother was gung-ho, but Dad kept refusing to sign on even after several offers. Dad wanted to work with populations most in need, and if he signed on to Allerton’s organization they would be the ones dictating who would benefit from his skills. He had earned respect from many countries for his work; there’d even been a documentary on one of the projects he’d done.
“But Dad refused to be swayed, despite Mom and Gabriel trying to change his mind. Gabriel wasn’t about to take no for an answer; he’d wined and dined my parents—until the fighting started.
“Mom didn’t stop pressuring Dad. She’d invited other members of the charity over for dinner. They were good. They sucked my mom into the Goody-Two-shoes spiel that even had me begging my dad to go. They were good … so good.” Self-loathing filled her voice, betraying the blame she held for the past. “I have to give them credit. When they visited, they would bring me toys and they showered me with attention. What little kid wouldn’t want to be around them?
“‘Daddy, don’t you want to help the children? I can help Mom read to them …’ That’s what I said to him.” T.A. looked sick as she stared down at her stomach, replaying the memories for them. Then she took a sip of her drink before beginning again. “Finally Dad gave in to both Mom and me. And when we arrived on Clindale, we all fell in love with the island and the people. Clindale was just as beautiful as we were told. Every day was a new adventure. I thought the fighting between my parents would stop,
but it didn’t. Then, one day, my parents told me that mom was pregnant, that I was going to have the brother or sister I had been begging for.
“I was excited, and even though I loved Clindale, I thought we’d go back to the States and Mom and Dad would change back into how they were before we got to the island. But, we were still there when Mom went into early labor. There wasn’t even time to get her to the hospital on Sherguevil Island. Two women came running from the village to help her when they heard she was in labor. Mom kept shouting at us to take her to the hospital, that she had been labor with me for two days.” T.A. laughed, shaking her head at the memory. “Evangeline arrived less than five minutes later. She never did what she was supposed to do … even then.” T.A.’s voice hitched at the beauty of her recollecting Evangeline’s birth.
“From the moment I saw her, I knew she was special. She barely cried. Evangeline was too busy looking around at us. She gurgled and smiled when anyone came near her. Not only did she wrap me around her finger, but she had everyone else on the island wrapped around her fingers as well.” A tear slid down T.A.’s cheek as talked.
“She started walking when she was eight months old, driving our parents nuts. Evangeline was fascinated with the ocean and constantly tried to get into the water, despite our parents taking her out to the ocean several times a day. Dad joked that she was like a little mermaid, trying to go home. Mom and Dad thought it was cute, until a couple of times when she got away from them. Luckily there was always someone around, so Evangeline wasn’t able to get too far.”
“Dad was busy directing the workers to build the water system, while Mom taught the children and adults who wanted to learn to read and write in English. Then one day Mom put Evangeline down for a nap, and all four of us fell asleep. I was sound asleep when a young man came to our cabin carrying a wet Evangeline in his arms. His name was Manny, he was one of young men whom Mom had been teaching. After nearly losing her that day, I was sure my parents were going to take us back to the States, but we stayed. It would have been an idyllic life if only my parents hadn’t continued to fight.” T.A.’s expression became tortured.
“Evangeline began escaping more often when Mom was busy working with her students and Dad was gone building the water systems, so they trusted Manny to babysit her; he’d become like a big brother to Evangeline. Our father had taught her the basics of swimming, but Manny had taught her to swim like a little seal and he took her exploring the island. What time they didn’t spend in the water or running through the jungle, they spent with his family in the village. “It was the best and worst mistake our parents could have made. Mom and Dad spent less time with us, and I was always hanging out with another family who had children more my age. Mom said it would help me learn the language faster. I grew close with that family, while the whole island fell in love with Evangeline.
“I kid you not, when you saw Evangeline laughing and playing—actually, from the moment she was born—it was weird … there was an aura about her. She seemed to sparkle with happiness. It was like one of those filters on your cell phone.” T.A. closed her eyes tightly, as if to shut out the memories.
“What the island children did, she wanted to do, and Manny took advantage of the trust our parents had given him and taught her a skill he’d taught the children in the village.”
Giving a bitter laugh, T.A. opened her eyes to stare at him. “We thought it was cute when Manny taught her to sing the island songs; first in their language then in English. That was before we found out he was teaching her to keep other secrets from us.”
Reaper wanted to tell her to hurry. He needed to be on the chopper, yet he remained silent, captivated by Ginny’s childhood. Every detail T.A. was sharing could be useful when dealing with the man who wanted to kill her.
“Manny might have taught Evangeline to sing out of the goodness of his heart, but he wasn’t above using it for his gain. I can’t blame him; he didn’t know the man who controlled the island was so dangerous. None of us did—until it was too late.”
“Who was he?”
“Gabriel Allerton.” T.A. gave him a wry smile. “You’ve heard of him?”
Reaper was shocked by the information. Gabriel Allerton was always in the news. He was known as the man with the Midas touch. Whatever business he invested in or developed turned to gold. Twenty-eight years ago, he sold his business with the intention of retiring, but then founded and headed a worldwide charity.
“Who hasn’t? He’s one of the richest men in the world. You said he was the one who convinced your parents to move to Clindale? I wasn’t aware he owned the island. How could he own and control Clindale Island if there are native islanders living there?” That he owned an island had never made the news, as far as he knew.
“He doesn’t own Clindale; he owns Sherguevil Island, which is the sister island. If you think they are taking Evangeline to Clindale, you’re mistaken. No one gets near Clindale without Allerton’s permission. You are taken to Sherguevil Island first, then to Clindale by a boat operated by his men, and unless you have permission, you won’t be allowed within ten miles of Sherguevil or Clindale Island.”
“He doesn’t own the ocean,” Viper interrupted.
T.A. shook her head, as if she was dealing with a child. “The government does, and Allerton has them in his pocket. Don’t you watch the news?”
Allerton’s charity included high profile, wealthy men and women from around the world.
“He’s been photographed shaking the hands of the last four presidents of the US, and he’s just as chummy with high-ranked officials in governments and regimes from around the world. The officials might not be endorsed members of the charity, but they do his bidding. They use huge amounts of money donated to Allerton’s charity for aid, as well as grease the wheels of the foreign governments where their ‘donors’ want to build their companies. The governments look the other way when regulations are loosened. The charity might spend a few million to pay the officials, but in return, they’re raking in billions in illegal builds and destroying natural habitats and resources. Whatever wealth they are giving away isn’t a quarter of what they are getting in return. Evangeline will only be allowed on Clindale Island if and when Allerton lets her.”
“Give me a second, T.A.” Reaper stopped her from going further, reaching for his cell phone. “Train, the plane Ginny is on will be charted for Sherguevil Island, not Clindale.”
“Got you,” Train said before abruptly ending the call.
Reaper replaced his phone in his pocket. “What else did Manny teach Ginny?” Trying to speed up the gathering of information, he wanted her to get to the point when their idyllic life changed.
“Not only had Manny taught Evangeline to sing, but he had also taught her how to steal. The islanders from Clindale were allowed to take boats over to Sherguevil Island during the day to sell their fresh food and crafts at the market square.
“Manny’s father, Gyi, would take a load of fresh fish over to the Sherguevil, and he brought Manny and some of the island children along for the ride. Allerton didn’t care, and the visitors were charmed by the children and would usually give them money, which they’d take home to give to their parents. In turn, they’d use those funds to purchase supplies from boats docked at Sherguevil. It kept everyone happy on Clindale Island since there was no other source of income, other than bartering with each other. Allerton never hired the villagers to work on his island, and his staff were not allowed to visit Clindale.”
“What if an emergency happened or they wanted to leave the island?” Reaper asked.
“Sherguevil has its own hospital with state-of-the-art equipment and doctors and nurses, all of whom are staffed by Allerton. And no, they never left the island, ever.”
“Who would want to work there and never be allowed to leave?” Viper asked. “I could see the islanders being content to stay on Clindale, but if you were an outsider, why would you give up your freedom and never leave Sherguevil?”
&n
bsp; T.A. sadly stared down at her cup. “People who have no hope of creating a better life for themselves; people who want more for their families. Allerton gives them the money to send home to their families. And even though they will never get to see them again, they’re allowing the ones they love better lives. Allerton doesn’t only want people willing to sell their souls to work for him, if that’s what you’re thinking. He hires employees who are willing to sell their souls so they will never betray him, and none of them ever have… or Evangeline wouldn’t have spent years running from him.”
“Why did she have to run?” Reaper spoke, turning T.A.’s attention back to him.
“She wasn’t given a choice.” T.A. face twisted in pain. “Sadly, a great deal of Evangeline’s life has been spent trying to outrun the perils she found herself in from those she loves. Most of what I’m about to tell you are things we found out after the fact, and the bits and pieces of what Evangeline remembers.”
T.A. took a deep breath and Reaper had a bad feeling this story was going to be long. “When Evangeline was three, Manny started sneaking her aboard Gyi’s boat; his father only ever allowed the island children. Gyi would never have allowed Evangeline to go.
“Manny had her sing in front of the visitors, who would throw money in the collection box, but what he was really doing was using her to distract them while the other children pickpocketed the guests. The children then gave the loot to Manny, who took his profit, then divided up some for the kids to take home to their parents.”
“What went wrong?” Reaper urged her to go faster.
“Evangeline went wrong. She picked up on what the children were doing and wouldn’t stop bugging Manny until he taught her how to be a pickpocket too. By then, I think Manny had no choice but to give into her, knowing she’d tell our parents—and Gyi—if he didn’t explain it away like a game. So that’s what he did. Manny told her all the children were saving to buy a big boat like the ones docked at Sherguevil Island. They’d all be able to play on it while their fathers fished.