by Vivian Gray
She laughed. “OK, OK, I’ll be patient.”
“Cops do this for weeks to get their man,” he added. “If someone’s worth getting, they’re worth the boredom.”
“I suppose you’re right. We need to catch this guy somehow,” Sophie said. “I’d hate for anything to happen to...” she trailed off, scared of sounding soppy.
Stephan grinned. “It’s so damned obvious you like each other, so stop being all coy. It’s cool.”
Her jaw dropped as she turned to him. “I... I just...”
Stephan laughed so hard he had to hold his stomach. When he eventually calmed, he said, “Jesus, Sophie, you’re a human being. You’re allowed to have feelings. You don’t have to hide them all the time. I’d love it if you met someone you wanted to be with. Someone who could look after you... like Zeke. Not that you need looking after, Miss Independent.”
She fell silent, her eyes on the bike. If she was truly honest with herself, she did want to be with him. She hadn’t stopped thinking about that night, a week ago, alone in Tina’s guest house. It was the best sex of her life, and she craved more of it. He’d given her a taste then closed the candy shop. They’d both been so busy at work they hadn’t spoken about it again, let alone got together. And there were no mysterious phone calls to trace or bits of vital information coming through. This surveillance plan was all they could think of.
Stephan’s phone rang. It was Zeke. “Good idea,” Stephan said before shifting into drive and heading off.
“Where are we going?” Sophie asked, watching the bike desperately as they drove past it.
“Zeke thinks we need to be somewhere less public. Maybe if he rides to the building site just outside of town, and leaves his bike there, pretending to go on site for something, he could leave it for longer, and we can watch from a distance?”
“Could work,” she agreed.
Chapter Fifteen
Zeke
With the bike in place, Zeke walked through the metal gates of the builders’ yard, as casually as he could, before running to the edge of the site and climbing up over a brick wall to escape. He waited behind another wall for ten minutes, before darting towards Stephan’s car across the road. They were so far from the bike, Stephan needed binoculars to keep it in clear sight.
Zeke jumped into the back seat, catching his breath. Sophie passed back a can of cola and a bag of chips. He’d been so focused on the plan he’d barely eaten all day. He smiled as he took them.
“Holy shit!” Stephan suddenly called out, “I think someone’s approaching the bike.”
Zeke chucked the food onto the seat next to him and sat bolt upright.
“He’s leaning down to touch the bike, go, go, go.”
Zeke leaped out of the car and ran so fast his limbs were moving like powerful machinery.
As he got closer to the bike, the man in question, who was wearing a black hooded top heard him and looked up, startled, before turning to run.
“I don’t fucking think so!” Zeke called out through sharp, fast breaths as he placed one hand firmly on the guy’s shoulder with such force it knocked him to the ground.
“Who the hell are you?” Zeke demanded, panting as Stephan’s brakes screeched to a halt next to them. He pulled down the man’s hood but didn’t recognize him.
“What were you doing?” he yelled.
The guy blinked and shook but said nothing. He was skinny with a gaunt, pale face. “Who sent you?” Zeke continued through gritted teeth.
Suddenly, the man slipped out of Zeke’s grip and leaped to his feet, but Zeke wasn’t going to give up that easily. He wrapped his strong arms around the guy’s feeble body in an attempt to force him back down again. But before Stephan reached the tangled bodies to help, the young guy produced a can of pepper spray and aimed it into Stephan’s eyes before Zeke smacked it out of his hand and pushed the guy’s face into the concrete.
Sophie jumped out of the car and rushed to Stephan’s side. Through gritted teeth, under red streaming eyes, Stephan reassured her he’d be fine.
“Sophie, open the trunk,” Zeke ordered from his position on top of the guy.
“What?”
“Just do it, now.”
Sophie did as he asked and stood back as Zeke lifted the guy like a sack of potatoes and dumped him in the trunk, kicking and screaming. He slammed it shut.
“Zeke, you can’t do this,” Sophie cried, her voice high with panic. “It’s all getting out of hand. You could get in serious trouble for this.”
“Like I’m not already,” he murmured in a low voice as he headed for the driver’s seat.
Stephan got to his feet and reached out for Sophie’s hand for support. “He’s right. We can’t just give up and let this guy run free. Just trust him, OK?”
Sophie nodded. She couldn’t bring herself to agree out loud, but whatever was in the plan, she knew Zeke had morals. She knew this must be leading somewhere. She glanced at the trunk, which was being violently kicked at from the inside, as she made her way round to the back door and climbed in the car before Zeke sped off to a garage he had keys for nearby.
“This is one of the Frontiers’ lock-ups. We can keep this asshole here until he talks,” Zeke said.
Stephan’s eyes were red raw, and despite blinking all too often, he could see again and was able to help Zeke get the wriggling, tangled body out of the trunk and into a bunch of ropes. They tied him to a metal door frame inside the garage and gagged his mouth with a rag.
Zeke paced in a semi-circle in front of their hostage, like a jaguar eyeing up his prey. “Who sent you?”
The guy mumbled through the cloth frantically. Zeke pulled a pocket knife from his jeans, walked over calmly and cut the fabric loose. “Make any loud noises, and things will get significantly worse for you. I’ll ask you again. Who sent you?”
The guy shook his head. He looked weak now, his eyes wide and his gaunt, thin face at only chest level with Zeke. “I don’t know.”
Zeke laughed. “Nice try. You don’t come after someone without knowing who you’re working for. Who sent you?”
The guy bit his lip repetitively. “Some guy. I don’t know his name. I thought he wanted to buy meth, but he offered me money to do one job.”
“Where did he approach you?” Zeke asked, his thick arms folded across his chest.
Sophie watched from a shadowy corner, her breath short and fast and both arms curled around her body. This wasn’t the Zeke she knew. This was the military version of him, the bodyguard, the one who looked danger square in the eye. Although it frightened her, she couldn’t help swelling with respect for him. He knew how to handle himself.
“On the corner of Madison Avenue,” the sniveling captee said. “I don’t know who he is, where he comes from, or what he wants. I just wanted the money.”
“And after you were supposed to stick a bomb on my bike...”
“Jesus, it wasn’t a bomb,” the guy interrupted. “I may be no angel, but I’m not a goddamn killer.”
“Well, what was it?” Zeke asked, stepping closer and towering over him.
“A tracking device.”
Zeke nodded. “Where is it?”
“In my pocket.”
Zeke signaled to Stephan to come over. Stephan placed one hand on the guy’s chest to stop him being able to move while Zeke bent down and rummaged in the pocket of the guy’s trousers. He found the tiny device, dropped it on the ground and crushed it with his heel.
“We’d better get moving. He might already know where we are. Shit.”
“So, can I go?” the guy asked. “You don’t need me for anything. I didn’t even get paid. I was supposed to go straight back to Madison Avenue with a photo of the device on your bike, and then he’d pay me.”
Zeke paced back and forth for a minute. “How about a deal? I’ll let you go... straight to Madison Avenue.”
“But I don’t have a picture.”
“I’ll give you a damn picture. You get your paym
ent, I get my man. I’ll follow him.”
Zeke picked up the remains of the tracking device and assembled a convincing set-up of them in his exhaust and took a photo on the guy’s phone.
He and Stephan untied him, taking care to keep his arms bent up his back to disable them, and marched him out to the car.
“Sophie, the trunk,” Zeke said in her direction.
“Oh man, not the trunk. I’m not a danger to you,” the guy whined.
“You nearly got me killed,” Zeke barked. “Get in.”
There was silence from the trunk the whole way through town to Madison Avenue. Zeke was careful to take only quieter streets, just in case he decided to make a noise and alert suspicion.
Just around the corner, they parked. Zeke and Stephan exchanged glances as if passing power to each other. Sophie watched from the back seat of the car as they moved around to the trunk and let their prisoner go. He scuttled off like a desperate rat searching for a way back into the sewer. Zeke went one way, and Stephan went another, making their way to the corner of the street so whichever way Troy went, one of them could move on him quickly.
Their dealer stood at the corner, met by some flunkies who patted his back, but he stayed silent, looking around nervously.
Zeke and Stephan waited on opposite sides of the street within view of each other, but no one approached.
Twenty minutes passed, as Sophie watched their figures from a distance from her viewpoint in the car. She sighed.
Just then, a car sped past, and she saw Zeke signal to Stephan, and they ran back to the car.
As Zeke bounced into the driver seat, he said breathlessly, “That was him! That was Troy. He knew something was up so avoided his druggie helper.”
Stephan leaped into the passenger seat, and Zeke started up the car immediately and sped off in the direction they’d seen the dark red Volvo Estate pass. They took a few different turns, desperately searching for signs of the car.
Eventually, Zeke gave up. “Shit,” he said, slamming his hands down on the steering wheel and bowing his head to rest his forehead on it. “Shit, shit, shit.”
He looked at Stephan, who was pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head.
“Our only hope now is Nathan,” Zeke said with a sigh.
Chapter Sixteen
Sophie
One week after the chase, Sophie was a bag of nerves. Sleep wasn’t coming easy, but luckily, she’d been so busy at Stephan’s shop she was exhausted every night, which helped her shake the investigation from her mind... enough to sleep anyway.
She groaned and slapped her hand clumsily on the nightstand until her finger eventually hit the alarm button and silenced the buzzing gadget.
She turned on her back and sighed, staring at the ceiling. They had to solve this nightmare soon. Zeke was picking her up at nine a.m. to head to Nathan’s. She’d had to bite her tongue and not ask too many times why it was all taking so long. Nathan was entitled to his vacation, but Sophie couldn’t help but hold a grudge over the fact that the whole time he was sunning himself in the Florida Keys, Zeke’s life was at risk – and hers and Stephan’s by proxy. Still, he was home now, they could get on with their plans.
She drank an extra strong coffee to try and summon some energy, but it didn’t taste right. Damn, even my taste buds must be stressed, she thought.
She was still drying her hair when Zeke arrived. When she answered the door, her breath caught at the sight of him. His thick, black hair was ruffled on top, his white T-shirt was just tight enough to give a hint of his muscular chest, and his eyes sparkled even more than usual.
“You ready?” he asked, plunging his hands into his pockets.
“Do I look ready?” she asked sarcastically, pointing to her head of half wet hair. “I’ll just be two minutes. Come in. You can grab some coffee while you wait for me.”
She made her way back to the bedroom and began blow-drying her hair again. A minute later she nearly jumped out of her skin when a hand slipped around her waist from behind.
“Jesus,” she shrieked, turning to face Zeke. “Don’t sneak up on me like that.”
“Couldn’t resist,” he said, placing his arms around her waist with a mischievous grin. He planted a kiss on her lips, and her body instantly buzzed in anticipation.
He kissed her lips gently as she stood still on the spot, her head spinning with lust. His sandalwood scent encased her in his masculinity.
“Stop,” she said, letting out a deep breath and placing one hand on his chest. “We’re getting distracted. We need to keep focused for today. We’ve waited ages for this next chance to dig for information. Let’s not mess it up like a pair of horny teens.”
Zeke took a step back, the smile still lingering on his lips. Damn, that look was sexy. His eyes were full of danger – the good kind. Sex and passion. She cursed herself inwardly for turning down the chance of more sex with this amazing guy. But truth be told, she felt far from sexy in her tiredness, and she didn’t want to give him anything less than one hundred percent. Not at this stage anyway. He was so unbelievably hot, she didn’t want him to be disappointed in the cold morning light. For the kind of lust they shared, her apartment at nine a.m. just wasn’t enough. Besides, it was never a bad thing to make a man wait, she thought.
“You’re right,” he said, clasping his hands together. “Let’s get this over with. Plenty of time for... all that jazz after the case is solved.”
“Jazz,” she said, rolling her eyes and laughing. Yet secretly delighted he’d revealed his intentions to keep seeing her after they’d caught their man.
***
The journey was only forty minutes along quiet, leafy roads. It was actually quite pleasant. The breezed danced through Sophie’s hair as she shut her eyes and clicked her passenger seat window down to enjoy the fresh air. When she opened her eyes again, she caught Zeke’s just before he looked back at the road and smiled to herself. Tina was right, this flirtatious uncertainty was fantastic. Getting to know him was more and more fun with each encounter. And when she was with him, the whole bomb scare was less daunting. She even felt safe.
“We’re nearly there,” he said, swallowing hard.
“Are you nervous?” she asked gently, noticing him licking his dry lips.
He smiled at her and sighed. “A bit. I haven’t seen him since I was in hospital. I suppose I’m worried it’ll bring it all back... for him too. It’s hard putting it all behind you, you know? And to have to bring it all to the surface again... it’s not ideal.”
“You’re only doing this because you have to,” she reassured him. “Your life depends on it.”
When they eventually pulled up at Nathan’s house – a large, white wood house with a perfectly cut lawn – Zeke and Sophie looked at each other and nodded. No words were needed. They spoke a silent language of reassurance.
As they made their way up the path, the door opened, and a large man in beige shorts and a mint green short-sleeved shirt opened the door and said, “Zeke Draper. It’s good to see you, son. You look a lot better than when I last saw you.”
Zeke smiled and held out his hand for an enthusiastic shake from Nathan.
“And this must be your wife,” he said turning to Sophie with a huge smile. “Beautiful.”
Sophie laughed. “Definitely not the wife.”
“You asshole, Zeke,” Nathan said, giving him a playful shove on the shoulder. “Get on it. Consider that an order.”
Zeke laughed and rolled his eyes. “Good to see you’re still as full of yourself as ever.”
Nathan turned to Sophie. “This here’s the nicest son of a bitch I ever worked with. Stick with him. He’s a good ‘un. Anyway, come on in, cool off with a soda.”
They followed him into the house. His wife, Tracy, was in the kitchen and greeted them with drinks before disappearing to the summer house to work on a patchwork blanket.
“Should I go with her?” Sophie whispered to Zeke.
He shook hi
s head. “I need you here in case we find out anything important. It’s better than me having to relay it all to you later. You’re as much a part of it as me now.”
They sat at the large kitchen table in front of two huge open windows looking out over the garden.
Nathan took a slow sip of soda and sighed. “So, what really brought you kids out here? You didn’t really just want to see an old fart like me. What’s going on?”
Zeke explained everything, right down to the man he’d pinned to the ground last week. Nathan nodded along calmly, which Sophie found interesting. These guys had been trained to act with dignity in the face of the worst situations. It stayed with them for life. Here they were in this sunny, domestic setting, explaining a bomb attempt and ongoing threats as if it was a discussion about a baseball match. She admired their strength.
