Castle Investigations Box Set

by Dee Bridgnorth

  "You're not going to tell me anything?" he asked.

  "There's nothing to tell. Just drop it."

  "I thought we were close, Izz. You used to be able to tell me anything." He moved his big body even closer to her, putting an arm around her shoulders and drawing her to him.

  "Yes, when I was twelve. I told you all about my nail polish colors and my favorite movie stars. Is that what you're looking for?"

  Sully rolled his eyes. "Gosh, no. Fine. Keep your secrets. Just know I'll eventually figure them out."

  Sully's eyes dropped to the counter, where her phone was sitting next to Ethan's. She made a move to extract herself, but Sully kept his arm tightly around her while reaching around his back to take the phone with his other hand.

  "Why was Ethan's phone in your room?"

  "I, um…"

  "I left it there last night when I came by to make sure she was ok. I took it out of my pocket while we were talking and laid it on the bedside table. Forgot all about it when I went to bed," Ethan said as he strolled out of his room, his hair still damp from a shower and a tight black t-shirt and jeans in place.

  "Thanks," he said to Isabel, reaching around to get his cup of coffee that was still on the counter.

  "Sure. Found it this morning."

  "You sleep well?" he asked, the tugging of one side of his mouth into an almost smile the only sign his words meant more than what they said on the surface.

  "Like a baby."

  "No exciting dreams?

  "Hmm, not really. The night was kind of—boring."

  Ethan's eyes darkened. "Boring, huh?"

  "Yep," she said, acting as if nothing were amiss.

  "Oooo-kaaay," Sully said. "You guys are really freaking me out. Which isn't important right now. I just got word from my FBI contact before Izz came out of her room. They're pulling their guys from the warehouse."

  "But—" Isabel protested, outraged that they'd just stand by while these women were sold like cattle at an auction. Sully held up a finger.

  "There's been some action there, vans going in and out. So far, they haven't seen the women getting into the vans, and they don't want the women to be transported without their knowledge. So they're allowing us to go in and rescue. They can't, since their orders are to bring down the entire ring. But we can. Meeting in twenty."

  Sully pushed away from the counter without waiting for their reply. When he'd left, Ethan took his place, standing so close to Isabel that she could feel the heat pouring off him. Isabel started to walk away, but Ethan pulled her back.

  "You ok?" Ethan asked.

  "Yeah. I’m just glad we'll get to rescue those women."

  "Me, too. They don't deserve this."

  "No one does."

  There was a comfortable quiet that settled over them as they pondered the fates of those women. Isabel wondered where they'd come from. Did they have families? Moms, dads, boyfriends, husbands—all waiting for their return?

  Isabel loved this part of their job. Helping those in hopeless situations to be rescued. Saved.

  Ethan's light touch on her hand brought her out of her ruminations.

  "Boring, huh?"

  Isabel shrugged, trying to feign a nonchalance that she didn't feel about his disappearing act that morning.

  "Izz—"

  "I need to get ready for the meeting." Isabel pushed away again, but Ethan's hand shot out, tugging her back.

  "Wait. I left this morning to get paper and a pen to leave you a note. I didn't think it would be a good idea for Sully to find us in bed together when he woke up."

  He let the words hang in the air for a moment. "When I came out here, Sully caught me writing the note. Grilled me on what was going on between us."

  "He did that to me, too," Isabel confessed, relaxing a little at his words.

  "We're going to have to tell him something soon. We can't keep going on like this," Ethan said, pushing his hands into his hair. She knew he hated keeping this from Sully. She did, too. They needed to come clean soon, but she just wasn't ready to tell him.

  "I just don't want to do it while we're sharing a hotel room. I mean, I know we all live together anyway, but it's probably best if we wait until there's more space and plenty of places to escape to."

  "You're probably right. I just hate lying to him. After he caught me writing the note, I went to text you and realized I'd left my phone in your room." Ethan's hand caressed her shoulder, then he tugged her closer to him, nuzzling her neck.

  "Ethan, we can't get caught," she said halfheartedly. What she really wanted to do was pull him back into her room and continue what they'd been doing last night.

  Ethan placed a light kiss on her lips and pulled away, staring into her eyes. "Until tonight, then."

  A shiver spread over her body as thoughts of Ethan's touch filled her mind.

  Until tonight, indeed.

  Chapter 21

  The Castle Investigations team, minus Zach, sat around the conference table, mulling over the details of the plan. The FBI team would remove their guys around noon. That was only a couple of hours away.

  "Gabriel and Lucas will go in this entrance"—Sully pointed to the blueprints of the warehouse that the FBI had sent over—"and Ethan and I will cover this entrance." He pointed to a back door.

  "And where exactly will I be?" Isabel asked, her hand resting on her hip.

  "Behind me and Ethan. I want you there so that the women will feel more comfortable."

  "And because I’m a part of the damn team, trained on all the same weapons you are, and can hold my own in a fight, right?" Isabel demanded.

  Sully turned red. Ethan held back a chuckle. Man, he loved this woman. She was feisty and smart, and she fought so hard for what she believed in.

  Sully's phone buzzed on the table. He picked it up.

  "Castle," he said into the phone. "Yeah…ok…good. Got it…she can stay here. Sure…see you then."

  Hanging up the phone, he looked at Ethan. "That was Zach. Quita's being released this afternoon and will need a place to stay. She'll be under our protection until we've apprehended Bruno. She'll be staying here."

  "Good. She needs a safe place to relax and heal," Ethan replied.

  "That also confirms that Zach won't be able to go with us. He'll need to stay here and keep an eye on Quita."

  The situation was nerve-wracking. They weren't really sure what they'd be walking into. With only blueprints and very little idea as to what was inside the warehouse, not even a detailed layout, they were going in blind. Ethan's skin crawled. He hated being blind.

  "Ok, guys, let's get going. We'll suit up in the van, so we won't call attention to ourselves. I'd like to get there before the FBI presence leaves, so we can scout out the place and get an update on activity. Any questions?"

  When no one had any questions, Sully dismissed them.

  "Meet you at the van."

  * * * *

  The FBI had left the area twenty minutes before. Everything was eerily calm around the warehouse to where Isabel and Ethan had followed the van full of women just a couple of nights ago. The FBI contact had told Sully that everything had been quiet that morning. Too quiet.

  Sully, Ethan, and Isabel were stationed just out of sight, near the back door to the building. Gabriel and Lucas were on the other side, waiting for Sully's command to go in. They were all protected with Kevlar and enough firepower to take down the whole block. Isabel took a little comfort in that.

  "Everyone in place?" Sully said into his comms device.

  "Roger," Gabriel's slightly accented voice responded.

  "On three," Sully whispered. "One, two, three," he said, making the hand signal for let's go, and Ethan and Isabel followed behind him.

  Sully stopped at the back door, motioning with his hands that he'd open the door and go in first. He tried the door handle and looked concerned when it opened on its own. The hair on the back of Isabel's neck stood at attention.

  If the door was open, then
someone was expecting them.

  "Use caution," Sully whispered into his comms device. "Looks like they're expecting company."

  Sully moved inside, and Ethan followed behind him, motioning for Isabel to stay back. Not a chance.

  She quietly crept in behind them. With Zach at the hospital with Quita, they needed all the gun power they could get.

  The deserted warehouse was dusty and smelled of mold and gasoline. It was obvious it hadn't been used in many years. Cobwebs hung from the high ceilings, and motor oil stained the floors. Crates lined the perimeter of the room and stood haphazardly in the center, but there wasn't a soul in sight.

  Isabel scanned the warehouse for rooms where the women might be being held. On the second floor, there appeared to be offices with windows overlooking the main floor. Isabel tapped Ethan on the shoulder and pointed up. He glowered at her at first, no doubt for not following his orders, then followed the direction of her finger. With a nod, he tapped Sully and motioned up as well.

  Across the room, Gabriel and Lucas walked towards the center of the room, guns raised, sweeping the area.

  "Stay," Ethan hissed at her. She stuck her tongue out at him. She couldn't help it. It was childish, but it made her feel better. Ethan rolled his eyes and followed Sully, and they met up with the other guys in the middle. Isabel hovered in the shadows, her eyes continuing to scan the area.

  Sully pointed up, then whispered into his comms device. "Izz, we're going upstairs. Stay down here. If anything smells funny, run."

  As if she'd run away, leaving them behind. When would her brother remember that she was a trained operative, just like him? She went into dangerous situations all the time. Ones he sent her into.

  But for some reason, it was different when he was here. With her. Seeing her in danger. Men!

  The guys split into a V formation, scanning the area for any threats. It seemed like it took forever, but they finally reached the stairs to the upper level.

  At that moment, something in the air changed—a surge of energy, or a prickling sensation up her spine. Isabel turned around, but she was too late. A strong arm wrapped around her neck, and she felt the cold barrel of a gun against her temple.

  Taking the gun from her hand, the man pushed her to the center of the room, her feet scuffling on the floor as she tried to stop him. Isabel knew what he planned to do. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw four other men, two on either side of her. They were dressed in black from the neck down, but it was the masks on their faces that caught her attention.

  If the situation weren't so dire, she'd laugh. The men all wore iconic crooner masks. There was Wayne Newton, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Dean Martin. She had no idea what face the man behind her had on.

  Her tennis shoe scuffed the concrete floor, and the Castle team men spun around, guns raised. She saw the anger on Ethan’s and Sully's faces. The hate and the promise to kill the men who'd thought to use her as a hostage.

  "Throw your weapons on the ground," the man that held her captive said.

  "Not a chance," Ethan answered.

  The man pushed the gun harder against Isabel's temple, and she tried not to wince. She knew nothing good would come of her revealing the pain she was experiencing, but there wasn't much she could do about it. Her face was already bruised as it was. It looked like she was going to have another one to add to her collection.

  "Let her go, and we might consider letting you live," Sully said, his voice calm and controlled.

  The guy behind her laughed. "You're not exactly in a position to bargain. Now, throw the guns down."

  "If we give up our weapons, you're just going to kill us all anyway. Why not try to take a couple of you out first?" Gabriel said to the men, a creepy grin plastered on his face as if the thought of killing them gave him great pleasure.

  The men beside her looked at one another. She guessed that they were trying to figure out what to do. Right now, they were evenly matched—five on five. Well, since her gun had been taken from her, and this guy had his weapon pointed at her head, she guessed she probably wouldn’t be a whole lot of help.

  "Sully," she called out.

  "Shut up, bitch," the guy holding her hissed in her ear. His breath smelled like onions and garlic. She held back a gag.

  "I'm so glad you're my big brother. Thank you for teaching me everything I know. If I'm going down, I at least want you all to know how much I love you."

  Sully infinitesimally shook his head at her, and Ethan's head cocked just a bit to the side. Dawning washed over him. Isabel saw his lips move. Saw Sully's agreement in his eyes. He would give her hell about this later, but at the moment, she couldn't see another way out of this.

  "Bitch! I told you to shut the hell up!" The guy behind her pulled her harder up against his front.

  Isabel counted to three in her mind.

  One…

  "We're not playing games here," the guy said. "Lay down the weapons, and I promise to make your deaths quick. You continue to stand there, and I'll be sure she dies nice and slow." He licked the side of her face. "That is, after I have my way with her."

  She hoped Ethan put a bullet right between his eyes.

  Two…

  The nod from Ethan was three.

  Isabel lifted her foot, bringing it down hard on the guy's instep. Twisting in his arms, she thrust her hand up into his nose, hearing the crunch of bone underneath. As he reached for his face, she followed up with a knee to his groin, then hit the deck.

  The whole move took about six seconds. Just enough time for all hell to break loose.

  Gunshots sounded above her as she crawled on her belly to get behind the nearest stack of crates. She watched from there as bullets flew around the warehouse, the bark of the guns echoing off the walls at an earsplitting volume.

  The guys in masks—she now saw that her captor was wearing an Elvis mask—had ducked behind the crates on one side of the wall. Elvis lay still in the middle of the room, a pool of blood running out from underneath him.

  Her team was still exposed, and firing off shots as quickly as they could, moving steadily back to a stack of crates along the far wall.

  "Go!" she heard Sully shout, as he sank down to one knee to cover for the rest of the team as they ran for the crates.

  Isabel saw it before she heard the sound of the shot. Sully jerking back. Sully grabbing at his chest. Then blood. A bright red spot that bloomed on his upper chest like a rose in springtime.

  "Sully!" she screamed and, forgetting her position behind the crates, raced towards him.

  "Isabel! No!" she heard someone scream, but it was too late. She'd already arrived at his side.

  "Sully," she tried, shaking him gently. "Sully! Sully, talk to me." She lifted his head and saw that his eyes were glassy, and that he appeared to be having a hard time breathing.

  "Take it off," he said.

  "What?" she asked, confused.

  "The vest. Take it off."

  She could still hear the ping of bullets around them. Glancing around, she saw that Ethan had arrived and was shielding them from any harm, firing his weapon in succinct bursts. There didn't seem to be as many bullets flying any more. She hoped that meant that those men were dead or too injured to fire their guns any longer.

  She felt around to unfasten Sully's vest, loosening it so he could breathe.

  Ethan knelt beside her. "Where's he hit?"

  "I don't know. I can't see where it went in. Just the blood."

  "Underneath my collarbone. Shouldn't be a fatal wound. Just need to get out of here," Sully said in pants and grunts.

  Isabel removed the vest completely and saw where the bullet had entered. Turning him slightly, she found an exit wound. Excellent. No surgery should be needed. But they needed to stop the bleeding.

  She started to unfasten her own vest when Ethan put his hands out to stop her.

  "There's still one alive. I don't want you exposed."

  "I have to stop the bleeding. I need
my shirt to do it."

  Ethan debated internally for a moment, then nodded. "Do it quick."

  As quickly as she could, she pulled the vest from her torso and took off the shirt she'd worn over her cami. Once the garment was free, she pressed it to Sully's chest. Ethan touched her hand. "Get your vest back on. I'll do it."

  Isabel shrugged herself back into the vest. Lucas ran over to them. "I chased the guy outside. Looks like you hit him, but he's still alive. The other four are confirmed dead."

  Ethan and Isabel moved out of the way while Lucas worked his magic.

  Gabriel walked over and handed her the gun that the guy had taken from her.

  "Here's your gun." He winked at her.

  She smiled slightly. "Thanks."

  He nodded at Sully. "He going to be ok?"

  "He's a stubborn son of a bitch, so I think so."

  "I heard that," Sully muttered between gritted teeth. Good to know that he still had a little sense of humor in him. That had to be a good sign.

  Suddenly, the two large bay doors slid open. Bruno walked in with ten to fifteen men around him, all heavily armed. The Castle guys all stood, guarding her and Sully with their bodies.

  "So this is how the great Sullivan Castle falls. A bullet wound, eh?" Bruno said, a giant grin on his mutilated face.

  Sully growled from his spot on the ground. Isabel's heart beat faster. How were they going to get out of this?

  "I thought you were smarter than to walk right into my little trap. I'd hoped to do this the easy way, but considering that four of my finest assassins are dead, it looks like I have to take matters into my own hands."

  "What do you want, Bruno?" Ethan asked, his gun still raised.

  Isabel stood, walking slowly up behind him.

  "You're all responsible for my brother's death. An eye for an eye, and all that…" he said with a flick of his hand.

  "Six deaths for one?" Gabriel asked. She could feel the tension rolling off the guys. Gabriel, Ethan, and Lucas were like tightly wound springs.