She sighed. “Guess this means I have to tell my family what’s going on.” Leaning her head against his shoulder, she closed her eyes, letting his warmth envelope her. “It’s gonna be a long night.”
Dealing with the police took longer than he expected, but Dylan noted they did a thorough job. In big cities like New Orleans, often things like a random break in merited barely more than a cursory case filing and then tended to fall through the cracks as more serious crimes moved to center stage. He was impressed with the time and attention to detail the responding officers showed. It was long past midnight before they finished photographing, fingerprinting, checking for anything missing or stolen, and questioning Gabi. She’d held onto his hand throughout most of the aftermath of explaining things to the police, and she’d done a fairly good job of telling them just enough without giving them anything concrete to base an investigation on. Without a doubt, they’d eventually chalk it up to a random burglary. Even the scrawled threat painted on her wall would be presumed teens high and having a good time, not taken seriously. Especially since there wasn’t a history of prior incidents like this one in Gabi’s past. At least, none she’d admit to.
Her icy fingers clasped in his held a grim reminder of what might have happened if she’d walked in on whoever had trashed the place. Pushing back the rage threatening to bubble to the surface, he quashed it down, because now wasn’t the time or the place to unleash it. When he found the person who did this, who put so much fear in Gabi’s eyes, then all bets were off.
He secured the door after the last officer left, making sure the deadbolt lock engaged. Turning back to Gabi, he studied her face. Under the harsh overhead light, her skin appeared almost translucent in its paleness. Though she’d put on a brave front for the police officers, he saw beneath the façade to the terrified young woman, barely holding on by her fingertips. The one with secrets. Secrets big enough one of them might get her killed.
“I called Carpenter while you were talking to the police.” He deliberately kept his voice soft, his tone neutral, despite the roiling anger in his gut. He didn’t understand why he felt so protective of Gabi Boudreau. Forty-eight hours ago, he’d never met the woman, and now he wanted to wrap her in his arms and run, take her back to Costa Rica. Far away from the threats and destructiveness of the last two days.
“What time does he want to meet in the morning?”
Dylan almost laughed aloud at her question and the way she dropped her head forward, her forehead against the tabletop.
“He’s calling your brothers. They’ll be here in about…” He stopped talking at the loud knock on the door. “Make that now.”
“What?” The high squeak in her voice sounded like she’d take a big whiff of helium.
“Relax. Everything will be alright, I promise.”
He swung open the kitchen door to reveal the five men standing there. Carpenter stood at the front, followed by all four Boudreau brothers. Gabi’s family. Although Carpenter wasn’t a blood relative, after speaking with Etienne and Bas, he knew all the Boudreau clan looked at their boss and friend as one of the family.
Carpenter walked straight to Gabi and squatted beside her chair. He gently enfolded her hands between his, and Dylan fought the urge to snatch Gabi against his side, away from the other man. Shaking his head, he leaned against the door frame, arms crossed over his chest, and let the other man comfort her.
“You okay?”
She nodded, her eyes filled with tears. “Yeah. Sorry for dragging you out so late. Things have gotten a little…complicated.”
Carpenter kept a gentle smile on his face, though the rigidness of his shoulders belied his calm demeanor. It was clear the tall blond man cared deeply for Gabi, his affection that of an older brother moreso than a lover from all appearances.
Which was a damned good thing.
“The first time I asked you about those threatening calls, you asked me for some time. Said it was something you could handle yourself. Since then, things have escalated to calling in the cops. Gabi, sweetheart, you know we can handle things better and faster than the police. And you’re family, which means we won’t pull any punches when it comes to your safety.”
Gabi drew in a ragged breath and let it out with a huff. “Have I told you I hate it when you’re always right?”
The sharp edge of tension in the room eased, and the four Boudreau brothers settled into the chairs around the kitchen table, letting Carpenter direct the interrogation. Because Dylan knew it would be an interrogation, no matter that Carpenter might handle Gabi with kid gloves, he’d get the answers they needed to find whoever had threatened her and eliminate the problem—one way or another. If he couldn’t, well then, Dylan didn’t have a problem going rogue and taking care of it himself.
“I have a friend. That’s sounds insipid, doesn’t it? Salem is more like the sister I never had. Guys, you met her over Spring Break my senior year. I brought her home with me.”
“Tall, slender, long dark red hair and brown eyes? Very shy? I remember her.” Ranger shot Gabi a pensive look at her nod. “She went backpacking with you around Europe, right?”
“Yes. We had a great time. We traveled all through the United Kingdom, especially Scotland. With the Outlander craze going on, we had to see all the sites mentioned in the books.” She giggled at the groans from all her brothers, and Dylan quirked a brow at her. “You haven’t heard of the series? Time travel? There’s a television show based on them.”
“Sorry, sweetheart, I actually have a life.”
She rolled her eyes at him and started to say something, but Carpenter squeezed her hand, redirecting her attention back on topic.
“Anyway, we traveled throughout France, Austria, Switzerland, and down into Italy. I got a part-time gig waiting tables at this little ristorante, and Salem spent her time drawing and painting and doing odd jobs on the side. She even sold a couple of her sketches while we were there. The countryside and the village were gorgeous, and there were some old ruins outside the town where the tourists ventured for their old-world charm. It’s where she met Tarik Amir.”
She paused and drank a sip of water from the glass Etienne handed her.
“Tell me about Amir.” Carpenter’s voice remained low, his tone gentle. Dylan knew why the guy did it. He’d talked to enough traumatized victims when he’d been in the Navy, and calmness definitely worked better than demands for answers. But he found it difficult to stand still, not do anything. Hell, he’d shove his fist through the wall if he thought it wouldn’t frighten Gabi. He had to settle for shoving his hands into his pockets—until he could wrap them around this Amir guy’s throat.
“Tarik swept Salem off her feet. All sweet talk. Romantic gestures, gifts. She fell like a ton of bricks. He’s from a wealthy family and he’d been touring Italy, and stayed at the same little town as us once he met her. After barely a week, he said he wanted to marry her, but he needed to do it right and take her to meet his family.”
Dylan had no trouble interpreting the look Carpenter and the Boudreaus shared. He’d seen it too many times amongst his SEAL teammates, heading into a rescue mission. Even with all the media coverage, television, and the internet, people—especially women—remained naïve about the dangers right in front of them. Things got really dicey when dealing with other nations’ customs and religious ideologies.
“You came home alone. I take it she went with him to his country?”
“I tried to talk her out of it, but she was goofy in love with Tarik. She fell like a ton of bricks for the jerk. Nothing I said would dissuade her.”
“Which country is he from?” Dylan asked the question, hoping Gabi’s answer wasn’t the worst- case scenario. If this Salem was being held against her will, he’d still gather a rescue team. Call in Wolf and the rest of the Riverton SEAL team if he could, or bring in a couple of his men from Costa Rica, but he wouldn’t leave a lone woman behind enemy lines.
“The United Arab Emirates, more specificall
y Abu Dhabi. They flew in to the capital city and drove to his family’s estate on the outskirts of the city. According to Salem, everything seemed lovely for the first few weeks. She called almost every day, telling me how beautiful everything was, how welcome his family made her feel. They treated her like a princess.”
She wiped at the tears spilling down her cheeks, and Dylan fought to remain where he stood and not go to her, and pull her into his arms. Her voice spoke the words as though by rote, but the underlying agony was apparent for anybody to hear. The hollow echo of the emotions beneath the surface resonated deep within him.
“Every time I asked when she was coming back, she’d give me some vague answer or change the subject. I got this funny feeling in my gut. You have to know Salem. She might be shy around most people, especially if she doesn’t know you, but after her initial shyness wears away, she’s warm and funny and full of life. A genuine joyfulness at being alive. But that unique spirit seemed to be missing in her later calls. I finally told her if she didn’t come back and let me see her face to face, I’d come there.”
Pulling her hands from Carpenter’s, she stood and faced her brothers. “You know what? I’m sick and tired of letting this jackass dictate how I live my life. For me to tell you everything, it could take all night, so I’m going to give you the Reader’s Digest version.”
“Gabi—”
“Bas, shut it. I’ve been acting like one of those too stupid to live heroines from a really bad horror flick, and it stops right now.” She wagged a finger in his direction, adding, “You raised me better. I’m not some precious flower. I’m a Boudreau. It’s time I started behaving like one.”
“About damned time.” Ranger raised his fist and Gabi fist-bumped him. “I was beginning to wonder if you were being willfully blind or if you’d somehow left your lady balls someplace over in Europe.”
Gabi’s gaze flew to Dylan’s face, pleased to see he smiled at her brother’s teasing remarks.
“Okay, long story short. Tarik kept Salem virtually a prisoner at his family’s home outside Abu Dhabi. Cut off from everybody, not allowing her contact with anyone outside his family. It was subtle at first, but the calls became farther and farther apart, and whenever I tried to get in touch, Salem was always unavailable, or could only talk for a minute, because they were on their way someplace.”
“It’s not an uncommon tactic for a domineering personality type. Isolating someone from everything they are familiar with makes them vulnerable. Dependent on the person they know, the one who supposedly cares for them, and it weakens their ability to fight back.” Dylan’s voice held a low-pitched growl, and it sent a tingle along her spine.
She nodded, acknowledging Dylan’s comment. “That’s pretty much what Tarik did. When I threatened to come there or contact the American authorities, I was told in no uncertain terms I’d be turned away. Not to waste my time, because Salem didn’t want to see me. When I was finally able to speak to Salem, she parroted what Tarik said, and told me she wanted to be with him, and was moving to Abu Dhabi permanently.”
“Have you seen or talked to her since?” Samuel slid onto the chair she’d vacated with an ease she envied. The man moved with the otherworldly grace of a predator on the hunt, ever vigilant and watchful. She’d bet her last dollar he’d followed her every movement, noted every nuance and could repeat verbatim every word she’d spoken from the second he’d arrived. Strangely, Dylan reminded her a lot of Samuel.
Thank goodness he’s on my side.
“I tried. I even contacted the American Embassy, and explained everything to them. They said they’d investigate. When they contacted me, their representative confirmed they’d spoken with Salem and she voluntarily and without coercion, made it plain she was staying with Tarik and had plans to marry him.”
Jean-Luc, her oldest brother, stood and walked to the other side of the kitchen, leaned a hip against the counter for less than a second, then paced across the limited space. Gabi bit back her grin, because she’d wondered which one of her brothers would be the first to start pacing. None of them were the kind of men to sit idle, being too full of life and energy. Their father, Gator, did some of his best investigative thinking while pacing, and all four of his sons learned that particular trait from him.
Thinking about her daddy made her miss him even more. If he’d been around, there wasn’t a chance in hell she’d have been able to hide everything as long as she had. Not from Gator Boudreau. The man had a nose like a bloodhound when it came to ferreting out secrets from friends and strangers alike. When it came to family—nobody could fool him, not for a second. But he’d been in London for the last few months, spending time with his new love, Miss Willie. The fact he’d been able to find somebody to love and spend his life with filled her with joy. He deserved every second of happiness.
“Fast forward, sis. How did Amir get back into your life?”
She closed her eyes, remembering a somber, rainy night when everything in her world changed. “About three months ago, Salem showed up on my doorstep—”
“What?” Now Ranger was on his feet too, taking a step closer and Gabi held up her hand in a stay back motion.
“Yeah, no warning, no call, nothing. It was around two o'clock in the morning. I’m still not sure how she found me, but Salem’s always been resourceful. A master of Google Fu. She can find just about anything online. Anyway, I almost didn’t recognize her at first, she’d changed so much.”
Samuel leaned back in the chair he confiscated from Ranger, his fingertips steepled, his emotions hidden behind a sea of calm. “Gabi, we can talk about the small stuff later. Your friend showed up, obviously on the run from this Amir guy, correct?”
“Yes.”
“You helped her get away from him.”
She nodded again. Trust Samuel to get right to the heart of things. “Yes. I didn’t have a choice. Samuel, if you knew her, had any idea what she’s been through, you’d have done the same.”
“Did he abuse her, Gabi?” Jean-Luc’s intense stare penetrated, caught her in its dark depths, demanding an answering.
“She…she has scars. Dammit, I should have stopped her from ever going. My gut told me something was off about the whole situation. If I’d tried harder, maybe—”
“You said she loved him.” Dylan’s deep voice felt like a fuzzy, weighted security blanket enveloping her, cocooning her. “When you love somebody, right or wrong, nothing and nobody can stop you from wanting to be with them. You can’t blame yourself.”
Damn, he sounds like he’s speaking from personal experience.
Her brothers murmured their agreement. Logically, she knew he was right, but logic doesn’t always win in the face of guilt. She knew she’d never forget the sight of Salem’s face with the vivid scar running from high on her cheek to the corner of her mouth. The one Tarik put there.
“Why’s Amir after you? Does he think you can lead him to Salem?” She met Dylan’s eyes as he spoke, feeling the intense pull she’d felt toward him from the beginning rise. Why now, in the midst of this giant FUBAR, did Dylan have to show up in her life? She didn’t have time to be attracted to a man. Any man. Especially not one who was just like her brothers and her father. And she suspected Dylan Roberts, with his protective instincts and wholly alpha demeanor, was exactly the kind of man she should avoid. She’d had enough of the overly protective, over-the-top Boy Scout types to last a lifetime.
“Tarik can’t find her. His family has hired professionals looking for her, but so far they haven’t got a clue where she is. I’m his only shot at finding her and taking her out of the country.” She drew in a shuddering breath.
“I can’t let him get his hands on her—or her baby.”
8
“This is a stupid idea.”
Dylan shrugged at Gabi’s words. She’d repeated the same sentence at least a half dozen times since they’d left New Orleans before dawn. It took several hours of intense questioning by her brothers and Carpenter, bu
t they now knew everything about Amir and his obsession with Gabi’s best friend, Salem Hudson.
Gritting his teeth, he bit back the urge to remind her of how foolish she’d been. She might be a strong, independent woman, but she’d been willfully blind to think she could take on a powerful man like Amir without any help or backup. With Amir’s family connections and wealth, they could destroy her without breaking a sweat, all from the comfort and protection of their country.
None of her family had guessed the extremes Gabi went through to help her friend stay away from her abusive boyfriend, and once they had all the facts, they’d definitely expressed their displeasure. At great length. Repeatedly. After listening to her four big brothers and Carpenter read her the riot act, he appreciated he was an only child.
“Look, you’ve done your best to help your friend. I get it. But with the way things have escalated in the last couple of weeks, you can’t guarantee her safety anymore. Not alone, anyway.” He glanced to the side, noting her stiff posture, arms crossed over her chest, and the mulish set of her chin. Yep, she was still pissed, believing she could handle everything herself.
“I’ve done just fine. Tarik hasn’t got a clue where Salem is hiding.”
He silently counted to ten before speaking. “You’re right. He doesn’t know where Salem is now. However, there’s no doubt he knows where you are. And his last threat wasn’t subtle. If he gets his hands on you…” He allowed his words to trail off, hoping she got the picture. How could she still be so naïve, with the not-so-veiled threats and intimidation tactics Amir and his goons had been pulling the last few weeks? Amir hadn’t even had to be in the States. He’d hired lowlifes to do his dirty work while he was halfway around the world. Which gave him the perfect alibi, if anybody was smart enough to connect the dots from him to Gabi.
Guarding Gabi - Kathy Ivan Page 5
