by Sandra Owens
“Who’s Robbie?”
“His dead son. That’s how he knows she didn’t leave willingly.”
“Shit.”
“You got that right.” Noah gave himself a few seconds to let the rage burn through him, then he locked it away. Like any mission, he had to have a clear head and a plan for a successful completion. When he found the son of a bitch, he’d free the rage and rain it down on the man.
“You mentioned getting trackers. Did you?”
“Affirmative. One she wears in her bra and one in her purse. And she better have them on her.” Otherwise, he was going to paddle her pretty ass when he found her. He pulled up the app he’d put on his phone. “I also have an app to track her phone.”
“I’m calling Deke.”
“No. He’ll have to report it and then SWAT will get involved since it’s a hostage situation. That could end up being a shitstorm, especially if her ex has a weapon, and I think there’s a good chance of that. There’s no way Peyton would have willingly gone with him.”
He knew the man was getting desperate. Had told Peyton so. This was on him. He never should have left her side.
“Okay, guess it’s you and me.” Jack squeezed his shoulder.
“You’re not invited on this operation, Whiskey. I don’t promise I won’t end up in jail when I’m finished with the asshole. You don’t need to be involved. Nichole would never forgive me if you ended up in the cell next to me.”
Jack snorted. “I’m inviting myself. Besides, I already have a cell with my name on it. It’ll be like old home week.” At Noah’s raised brows, Jack said, “Story for another time. Let’s find your woman.”
“That’s the plan.”
“You seem pretty calm about this.”
“If you think I don’t want to tear the town apart with my bare hands to find her, you’d be dead-ass wrong. Let’s take your truck. You know the area better and that will also free me up to track her.”
“Is there any chance of him hurting her?” Jack asked as he turned the truck onto the highway.
“I don’t think so, and that’s the only thing keeping me calm right now. His only goal is to marry her so he can get access to the brewery. I don’t know how he thinks he can pull that off now that her father has turned on him, but I’m not sure he’s got all his marbles these days.”
“Where to?”
Noah studied the phone screen. “You know where Hendersonville is?”
“Yep. Depending on I-26 traffic, we’re about thirty minutes from there.”
“We need to swing by your house and get—”
“My guns. Already headed there.”
“Look, it would be best if you didn’t come with me.” Jack had a good life going with his girlfriend and the dogs. He didn’t need to risk losing everything if this went south.
“Negative.” He glanced at Noah. “I’ve got your six just like you’d have mine if I needed you.”
True story, so he didn’t try to argue. He’d be wasting his breath. Although he’d understand if Jack opted out of this party, he was glad to have his friend at his back. They were two of the military’s highest trained warriors. The bastard had no clue what was coming for him.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“You’re out of your ever-loving mind. I’m not putting that on.” Peyton stared in horror at the wedding gown...her wedding gown. He’d gone back to the waterfall and fished it out? Had it repaired and cleaned? He was wacked! He had to be on drugs if he thought she was going to put that on and marry him.
Dalton shrugged. “Makes no never mind to me. Thought you’d rather look pretty in your wedding pictures. But if you want to get married in—” he ran a critical gaze over her “—shorts and a T-shirt, you will get married.”
“Get this through your head. I am not marrying you. I’ll refuse.”
“The man marrying us doesn’t give a damn if you refuse, not with the money I’m paying him.”
“It won’t be legal.”
He sighed as if she were trying his patience. “Wrong. He’s totally legit.” He chuckled. “Just easily bought.”
“My father won’t turn over Elk Antler to you, not after this stunt.”
“He will if it means you get to live. After he’s gone, who knows what your future will be, if you even have one.” He walked to the door. “Think about that. Do you want to live, Peyton? I’ll be back. Put the gown on. I want my bride looking pretty for me.”
“Why are you doing this for just a few shares of the business? It doesn’t make sense.”
He paused. “I guess there’s no reason not to tell you. Consider it my wedding gift to you. Two reasons. For one, I’d gotten myself in a bit of a jam money wise and had a few gambling debts hanging over my head.”
“Since when do you gamble?” She’d never seen any sign that he wagered on anything.
“Does it matter?”
“I suppose not. How much do you owe?”
“Enough that there were people you don’t want to mess with demanding payment if I fancied continuing to breathe.”
“Okay, so we’ll figure something out, a way to pay them.” That was an outright lie. She had no intention of helping him in any way, shape, or form, but if he believed her, he’d let her go.
“Such an innocent little thing you are. It’s too late for that. Thomas Guillain has paid the debt.”
“Why would he do that?” Thomas Guillain was a slime ball liquor distributor. There were rumors that he had ties with the mob and that he laundered money through various businesses he had a stake in.
“Because when I own Elk Antler, he’ll be a silent partner.”
“You can’t be serious. You’ve heard the rumors about him. He’ll force you to do illegal things, like launder money through Elk Antler.” The thought of Thomas Guillain getting his hands on her father’s brewery, a business he’d put his lifeblood into, made her sick to her stomach. “I won’t let you do this, Dalton.”
He laughed. “You don’t have any say in the matter. As for the second thing, you were promised to me by your father, and I mean to have you.”
“Why? You don’t love me, so way does it matter?”
“It’s a matter of principle, sweetheart. You’re mine, and I keep what’s mine. Besides, no one will question my ownership of the brewery if you’re my wife.”
“You’re crazy.”
“Put the damn dress on.”
She flinched at the sound of the door slamming behind him. She went to the door and tried to open it. The jerk had locked her in. Fury poured through her that Dalton would let someone like Thomas Guillain get his hands on Elk Antler. Not on her watch. First chance she got, she was going to poke his eyes out, and then she was going to do as much damage as she could to his baby-making parts so there would never be a child with his DNA.
Where was she? Dalton had blindfolded her as soon as she’d gotten in his car. Leaving with him was probably the biggest mistake of her life, but it was hard to argue with a gun. Afraid that if she fought him, it would wake her father, and what if Dalton shot him?
She glanced around. The room was about the size of her walk-in closet. Where was she? She had her tracker on her, but Dalton had made her leave her purse, which had her phone in it, in his car.
Noah would find her, she was sure of it, so she needed to buy time. There were two windows, but they were boarded up from the outside, so no escaping through them. She searched for something to use as a weapon, but other than a faded futon, there was nothing else in the room.
She glared at the gown. She should have burned it instead of just throwing it in the water. What about the coat hanger? It was a wooden one, and she could do some damage with it. He’d notice it was missing, though, if she wasn’t wearing the gown when he returned.
As she saw it, she had two choices that would keep Dalto
n from noticing the hanger was gone. “Nope, not putting you on, stupid dress. Didn’t like you the first time around, hate you now.” Second option then.
The gown wasn’t as easy to rip apart as she would have thought, but she finally had it torn in strips. She stuffed one of the thicker ones in the pocket of her shorts. If she got a chance, she would cheerfully strangle Dalton.
Next, she went to work on the hanger. The metal hook was easy to unscrew, and she stuck that in her other pocket. It would come in handy if she got a chance to poke his eyes out. Pulling apart the hanger was harder, but she managed to break it in two parts. Where to hide it? She needed it on her, where she could get to it. She slid the smaller piece inside her shorts and panties, along the outside of her hip. After a few practice steps, she nodded, satisfied that it would stay in place. Hopefully Dalton wouldn’t notice the slight bulge at her side.
Weaponized, however paltry, she waited for Dalton to return so she could make him sorry for kidnapping her. How could he even think she or her father would go along with his ridiculous scheme?
The door opened, and she backed up to the wall, pressing against it. When should she attack? Not in the room. If he managed to overpower her and take her weapons away, he’d lock her up again. Better to wait until she was where she could escape from the house or whatever this place was.
Dalton entered, carrying a champagne bottle and two flutes. His gaze swept over the floor, taking in the destroyed dress. “Guess that means you’re getting married in your shorts.” He held up the bottle. “I thought you’d like to celebrate our marriage.”
“Not. Marrying. You. You won’t get away with this insanity, Dalton.”
He laughed. “I already have, love. Tonight, after we’re married, we’ll pay a visit to your father. I have the papers transferring the brewery to you and me ready for him to sign.”
She was so tempted to pull out her hanger stick and beat some sense into his brain. Not yet, though. Timing was going to be everything, along with surprise. When she was out of this room and he was distracted, she would strike.
Then there was Noah. She didn’t know if he was aware she was missing yet, but when he did find out, he would come for her. She didn’t doubt that for a minute. Dalton should be shaking in his boots, but she wasn’t going to warn him.
She was positive her father would know something was wrong as soon as he read her note. She’d banked on Dalton not knowing Noah’s name or who Robbie was to her father when she’d written that Robbie had come for her. Dalton hadn’t questioned Robbie’s name, and she’d breathed a sigh of relief.
The one thing she was counting on was that as soon as he read the note, her father would remember that she’d told him about Operation K-9 Brothers, and he’d call there and ask for Noah.
So, while she trusted that her father would understand her message, that he would find and tell Noah, and that Noah would come for her, she wasn’t going to wait around for a rescue that might never happen.
Dalton glanced at the champagne bottle he held. “I guess I get to enjoy this myself.” His gaze lifted to hers. “You know, we really could have had it all, you and me.” He shook his head as if he was disappointed in her. “But you didn’t follow the plan and now it’s too late for you to reap the rewards. I have to go pick up the preacher. Be a good girl until I get back, wife.”
“First chance I get, I’m going to hurt you where your future children live.” That was a promise she made herself as he walked out, trailing laughter behind him.
* * *
Noah frowned. “The tracing device on her is stationary but her phone’s on the move.”
“Which one do we track?” Jack said.
“I don’t know. Has he found the one on her or the app on her phone?” He had a fifty-fifty chance of being right, and he had to get it right. “He might think to check out her phone, but I don’t think it would occur to him to search her for a tracking device.” He hoped to God that was true. “Let’s go to the stationary one.” He entered the location on the truck GPS. “You know if he’s hurt her that I’m going to kill him, right?”
“Let’s see what the situation is before you go off half-cocked. Jail’s not a place you want to end up, trust me on that.”
“More of that story you’re going to tell me someday?”
“Yeah. When you can listen instead of bouncing around in your seat. I’d drive faster, but you don’t want the police, so we don’t want to get stopped. Especially since we’re packing.”
“I keep telling myself that he won’t hurt her, but I think he’s living in La La Land. He’s blown any chance of her father agreeing to anything Dalton wants, so what does he gain by pulling this stunt?”
“Revenge?”
“If it’s that, then he has nothing to lose, and she’s in danger. When we kicked him out of her loft, he’d told her they were going to Vegas to get married.” Did he still think that would get him what he wanted? “It could be revenge, but my gut tells me that he’s still out to get the brewery.” He prayed that was the man’s plan.
“We’ll find out soon.”
“Is where we’re going close to the airport?”
“Closer than Asheville is. Maybe he’s hiding out with her until it’s time to catch a flight.”
“The problem with that plan is that he’d have to drug her to get her on a plane. Otherwise, she’d be kicking and screaming. And carrying a drugged woman through the airport and trying to get her on a plane would invite too many questions.” Unless he’d chartered a private plane, but according to Jack, the GPS location wasn’t at the airport, so all they could do at this point was go to the designated location and pray that Peyton was there.
“We’re about thirty minutes or so away.” Jack glanced at the GPS map. “It looks like a rural area outside of Hendersonville.”
“What the hell? Her phone is moving back toward the location of the tracking device. They’re only a few miles apart now.”
“That’s weird.”
“Yeah.” He considered explanations that would make sense. “I think the stationary tracker is Peyton, and her phone’s in a vehicle. So, who’s driving it? Dalton or someone else? If it’s someone else, why do they have her phone?”
“Either Dalton left and now is coming back, or someone else is joining the party,” Jack said. “My preference is for the first. Another player complicates things.”
“No shit.” But if it was someone else, how did her phone get in the vehicle? All they could do at this point was guess, and he didn’t like not having intel. Going in blind was never good. Too much chance for an operation to go south.
Not that he was worried about dealing with Dalton. He could deal with the man by himself with one hand—hell, both hands even—tied behind him. Considering who he and Jack were, the bastard didn’t stand a chance. But throw another player in the mix, and not know who that was or what he was capable of, could definitely complicate things. Not that he was worried he and Jack couldn’t take down Dalton and anyone else involved, he just didn’t like not knowing.
He especially didn’t like Peyton being in the middle of a shitstorm, and he didn’t want to think of Dalton having his hands on her. Made him want to put a serious hurt on the man.
“What’s the man’s name again, her ex?”
“Dalton. Never asked what his last name was.” He should have paid more attention to the man. There were a lot of things he should have done, like not leave Peyton alone for a minute, or convince her to file a report with the police when Dalton put bruises on her arm, or convince her to get a restraining order.
He’d promised to keep her safe, and he’d failed. Just like he’d failed his team. After he rescued her, made sure that Dalton was arrested...or dead, he’d leave. His medical leave was about up anyway, so time to go. Peyton would get her life back, and it would be even better now that she was back at the brewery
and had repaired her relationship with her father. She wouldn’t need him anymore. That thought was a punch to the gut but true.
“You ever going to tell me the story about those dice?” Jack said, glancing at the pair of dice Noah was rolling in his hand.
“Who says there’s a story?” Jack was the only one of his teammates who’d ever asked why he carried them. He’d always shrugged off the question.
“Are you telling me there isn’t?”
“Not saying that.” He eyed the GPS. “I’ll tell you why when you tell me your jail story. We’re almost there. Her phone and tracker are back in the same location. I think we should find a place to park and walk in. Scope things out before Dalton knows we’re there.”
“Copy that.”
“You will reach your destination in five hundred feet,” the feminine voice from the GPS said. “Your destination is on the right.”
Jack drove slowly past, both of them scoping out the dirt lane. Four mailboxes lined the entrance to the road. There was no way of knowing which was their target house or how soon they would come up on it.
“Find a place to park,” Noah said.
“Here looks good.”
Noah eyed the spot. There was just enough room to get the truck off the road without driving into the ditch. The truck wouldn’t be hidden, but that shouldn’t be a problem. Dalton didn’t know what Jack drove.
After parking, they slipped into the woods that bordered the dirt road. Two children were playing in the yard of the first house they came to. He and Jack stayed hidden as they passed by. An old man was sitting in a recliner that was on the porch of the second house, and a teenage girl was hanging up clothes in the backyard of the third house.
“The last house it is then,” Jack said.
“Let’s just hope she’s actually there.” She’d better be, and she’d better be unhurt.
They halted at the edge of the woods. The house on the other side of the road looked abandoned, but there was a silver Mercedes parked in front. “That’s his car.” Noah blew out a breath, his heart racing in relief that he’d found her.
