by V. Vaughn
“He’s a good man.” Jen ran her finger along the table top, focusing on the feel of the wood grain as she kept it together. “We’re so lucky to have him in our lives.”
“You are. Now, you sound as if you need some rest so I’ll let you go. When Jack and Cody are back, come over for dinner. We’ve missed them, too.”
“We will, Mom. I’ll speak to you soon.”
“And when you speak to them, tell them Nan and Granddad love them.”
“I will, Mom. The very next time I speak to them. Love to you and Dad.” She blew kisses over the phone and then ended the call. A well of emotion rose up in her throat. Unable to stop it, she sobbed, her fingers gripping the edge of the table as she let out all her anger and anguish.
If Kelvin had anything to do with this, she’d chop his balls off with a blunt knife. As for Sally-Ann, a long term in prison was exactly what she needed. Or maybe she should be fed to the lions.
One particular lion at least.
6
Will
Will arrived outside Jen’s house a little after six thirty. He got out of the car, his eyes on the house, which was all in darkness. Jen had texted him as she got home from work, and hadn’t mentioned she was going out again. If she’d run to the store, she would have left a light on.
He looked down at the gift-wrapped box in his hand and decided to leave it in the car. He could run back out for it later.
A sense of foreboding covered him as he walked up the path to the front door. Something was wrong.
Will shook his head. He was likely overreacting. Everything between him and Jen had been going so well, he couldn’t help worrying there was going to be a hiccup somewhere along the way. But why should there be?
A quick knock on the door and Will stood back, waiting for Jen to answer. He waited and raised his fist to knock again, this time louder, when he heard her walking to the door. Perhaps he should have brought the gift with him. Jen would be expecting her surprise, and he was empty-handed.
A smile worked its way across his face as the door opened into a dark hallway, perhaps she had a surprise of her own for him.
“Will.” Her voice sounded hoarse as she reached out and grabbed hold of his hand and pulled him inside.
“Jen, what’s wrong?”
She didn’t answer but pulled him toward the kitchen, leaving the house in darkness. “It’s the boys.” Jen let go of his hand and wiped her face.
“What happened? An accident?” Will’s heart rate rocketed and his pulse quickened.
Jen shook her head and pulled out a chair, sliding into it as if her legs would give out. “Sally-Ann’s kidnapped them.”
Will took a step back as if he’s been punched in the gut. “Kidnapped.” His brain couldn’t process the information, and so he simply stood staring at her while she nodded.
“Jack called. He said Kelvin had been called back to England because of work. The boys stayed with Sally-Ann.” Jen took a shuddering breath. “She said she wants a million in used bills.”
Will pulled out the chair next to Jen and sat down, his arms encircling her body as he cradled her close. “I can get the money.”
She rested against his chest. “What if she doesn’t give them back?”
“She will.” He smoothed her hair back from her face and kissed her wet cheeks. “Did she give any kind of directions?”
Jen shook her head. “She said she’d call again. That the boys have no idea, and it’ll stay that way if we don’t tell the police and she gets the money.”
“You’re certain Kelvin isn’t involved?” Will hated to ask, he struggled to hide his feelings toward a man who could abandon his wife and children, leaving them penniless while he set up house with his girlfriend.
“I don’t think even Kelvin would stoop this low.” She picked up her phone. “One way to find out.”
“Wait. Before you call him, let’s think this through.” Will put his hand over hers.
“What do you mean, think it through?” Jen asked.
“Instead of asking him outright, ask him for the name of the place they are staying in. Then we can check where the phone call from Jack originated from.”
“We can do that?” Jen asked.
“I know a man who can,” Will replied cryptically.
Jen dragged a hand through her hair and wiped her tears. “Let’s do this.” Her fear was gone, replaced by anger and determination. “Do you want me to let Kelvin know anything at all?”
Will thought for a moment. “No. Put him on speakerphone. I’ll try to pick up any trace that he’s lying. We’ll keep it to ourselves for now. Less risk of him messing things up.”
“Okay. Ready?” With a nod from Will, she dialed Kelvin’s number. His phone rang and rang, until eventually, he answered.
“Hello, what do you want, Jen?” He sounded harassed.
“I wanted to know what was going on. Jack said you left them with Sally-Ann to travel back to England.” Jen put just the right amount of accusation in her voice to annoy Kelvin.
“Sally-Ann is more than capable of taking care of two boys,” Kelvin said sharply.
“Do you intend to go back to them?” Jen asked.
“If I can.”
“What’s happened at work, Kelvin, that made you leave them? I thought you’d arranged a week off. They are your sons, you know.”
“I know.” He took a deep breath. “I don’t know, there’s a large discrepancy in one of my spreadsheets.”
“Sounds serious.” Jen looked at Will and arched an eyebrow. “I’m sure you’ll get it figured out, Kelvin. Can you let me have the name of the cabin they’re staying in? Just in case.”
“Just in case of what?” Kelvin’s voice took on a whining tone.
“Of anything. You know how I worry,” Jen pleaded.
“I’ll text it to you.” He huffed out a breath. “I have to go.” The call ended abruptly.
“What do you think?” Jen asked.
“He’s either a good actor, or he doesn’t know.” Will looked at his watch. “I’ll call his office and check if he’s there.”
“Good thinking. Have you done this kind of thing before?” Jen asked.
“I’ve been around businessmen long enough to know a few tricks.” He got up from the table and left the kitchen. “We both could do with some coffee.”
“Sure.” She got up from the kitchen table, and he watched her making a fresh pot of coffee while he made some calls. By the time he sat back down, coffee cup in hand, he was a little more hopeful they could trace the boys. He’d pay the ransom if he needed to, but if Will could end this without that witch of a woman getting rich from kidnapping and extortion, he would.
“Kelvin was called back to work. He’s in serious trouble there.” He watched Jen’s reaction closely.
“I’ve been thinking about that.” She held her mug of coffee in two hands. “He doesn’t know about Sally-Ann’s ransom demands. So is it possible she set him up, too? They work closely together in the same department.”
Will gave a slow nod. “That was my thought.”
“My guess is she knows his login details and altered something.” Jen sat down at the table. “Which means she’s been planning this for a while.”
“I have the coordinates of where the call originated.” He sat down next to her. “Did Kelvin send you the address of the cabin?”
“Yes.” She slid her phone across to him.
“They match. To within a mile or so.” He got up again, hating being still. He should be out there hunting down his cubs. “I’m going to get on a plane and go and get them back.”
Jen got up and stood before him. “No, we’re going to get on a plane.”
“I don’t want you to get hurt,” Will told her.
“I’m already hurt,” she replied, her voice catching in her throat. “Let’s tell my family this was your surprise.”
He brushed her cheek with his thumb as a stray tear rolled down her skin. “I though
t you’d forgotten.”
She leaned forward and kissed his lips. “No. But can we wait until this is over? I don’t want to spoil it for either of us.”
“Of course.” He held her tight, wishing he could put this right for her.
“I’ll pack an overnight bag.” Jen put her coffee down on the table and ran upstairs. While she packed, Will called the airfield and arranged for his private jet to be ready to take off in an hour. His flight plan was logged, they would land a half-hour’s drive from the cabin where Sally-Ann held the boys. With any luck, this would be over by morning.
7
Jen
“I’ve never been on a private jet before,” Jen told Will as they climbed aboard.
“I use it for business. At least up until now. But we could use it for pleasure.” He smiled gently. “I mean, I’d like to take all three of you on vacation somewhere warm and sunny. Once this is over.”
“If we get them back.” What if this went wrong and she lost the boys? Jen couldn’t get that nightmare scenario out of her head.
“Hey, we will get them back.” Will’s voice was almost like a roar. Jen could see the lion in him, waiting to pounce, to rip the heart out of anyone who threatened his family.
“Thank you.” She kissed his cheek and then sat down in her seat while their luggage was stowed away, and the plane prepared to take off.
Will sat across from Jen while she stared out the window. As the plane climbed higher in the night sky, the lights below became small dots, almost like stars in the sky. The world was upside down. Jen tried to focus on the positive, her boys weren’t aware of any of this. Jack and Cody still believed they were on a vacation. She held on to that thought as the plane leveled out and they flew toward their destination.
“We’re half an hour away from the landing strip,” Will told her, looking at his watch.
“So soon.” Her teeth chattered with nerves. “Is there a car waiting?”
“Yes.” He glanced at her with concern. “We should drive to a hotel and get some sleep and something to eat.”
“No, I want to get this over with,” Jen insisted.
“Bursting in at night will frighten the boys,” Will said. “If we wait until tomorrow, we might be able to lure the boys away from the cabin. Get them to safety and call the authorities.”
Jen nodded. It all made perfect sense. But as the mother of two kidnapped children, it made no sense at all. “It’s my word against hers.”
Will looked up sharply. “We’ll deal with that later.”
She smiled, her lips a thin line as tears threatened once more. “She’ll get away with it, won’t she?”
Will sighed. “We have no proof. There is a good chance you are going to sound like a neurotic mother who didn’t like her sons being on vacation alone with the woman who stole your husband.”
She gave a hollow laugh and looked out of the window, her fingers drumming lightly on her lips as she thought it over. “When you say it like that, even I don’t believe me.”
“But I do.” Will leaned forward and took her hand. “But those are the facts. If she’s in the cabin, and the children are unharmed and happy, it will be difficult to prove the case. There is no evidence.”
“What if we could prove she messed up the data for Kelvin?” Jen was clutching at anything that might incriminate Sally-Ann.
“That’s where we start. I will get my best lawyers and a PI on this. We’ll find something on her.” He sat back in his leather chair. “Seatbelts on, we’re going into land.”
Jen fastened her seatbelt and clasped her hands in her lap. Sally-Ann had played the perfect game. If they rescued the boys today there would be no proof, no evidence. Jack had made the call from his own phone, and neither of the boys heard Sally-Ann’s threat to Jen. Kelvin had no clue. Or if he did, he was not giving anything away. Jen swore she would make Sally-Ann pay for this. One way or another, she would ruin the woman. Wasn’t breaking up Jen and Kelvin’s marriage enough? Now she wanted more. How could Jen not take this personally?
It was as if Sally-Ann had a personal vendetta against Jen.
When the plane touched down and Will ushered her toward the waiting car, Jen said, “You’re right. If we go rushing in there tonight, I really am going to look neurotic. It’ll kill me, but let’s wait until morning.” At least she was in the same country as her sons. They weren’t too far away.
Will spoke to the driver who had brought the car to the small airstrip where the private jet had landed. The conversation, in French, meant nothing to Jen, except the word hotel.
Will thanked the driver and opened the car door for her. “There’s a hotel a ten-minute drive away. It’s close to the cabins. The driver knows the area well. He offered us his assistance if we need it.”
She nodded and got in the car, too numb to speak. Jen wanted to hold her boys in her arms, to breathe in their scent and know they were safe. What if Sally-Ann was lying and the boys did know? What if she’d hurt them?
Jen screwed up her eyes to block out those horrid thoughts.
“It’s in Sally-Ann’s interest to keep the boys safe and happy,” Will’s words sliced through her horror.
“What do you mean?” Jen asked, wiping her eyes.
“The very reason it will come down to your word against hers is because no one else knows. The moment the boys realize something is wrong, they become witnesses. The same for Kelvin.”
Will’s words made perfect sense. But they didn’t ease the ache in her heart. “Do you have any idea how much I wish I was a lion, too? I want to dig my claws into that woman and…”
“No, you don’t. If you touch her, you get into trouble. This is all about you and your sons being together. And I’ll make sure that happens. We deal with Sally-Ann afterward. And by the book.” The tension in his voice told Jen how much it cost him to say those words. They were a pep talk, not just for Jen, but for his lion, too.
“You’re right. Calm. We need to do this right.” Jen breathed deeply and let out her anger. She needed a clear head, not one fogged up by a red mist of hatred.
“Here’s the hotel.” Will turned off the road and parked the car in front of a small hotel that looked as if it had seen better days. Will looked out of the window. “The driver said it looked shabby but the rooms were clean and the food was good. A hidden gem.”
“I think I could sleep anywhere,” Jen said as she got out of the car and helped get the luggage from the trunk. “I’m exhausted.”
“When you heard the news, your body pumped adrenaline into your bloodstream. Now, it’s gone, leaving you drained. Food and a couple hours of sleep will put you back on your feet.” He reached out for her small suitcase, but she shook her head.
“I can manage.” He cornered her, his big broad chest blocking her path. But when he spoke, his voice was gentle. “I know you can manage. But right now, this is all I can do for you.”
She handed him the suitcase. “Thank you.”
“You don’t have to keep thanking me. Those boys are like family to me. You know that I’d do anything for them.” Will shouldered the door open and they entered the hotel. The driver was right, the place might appear shabby, but it was clean, and the smell of something wonderful wafted in from the dining room.
“Will.” She took hold of his sweater and turned him toward her. “I want you to promise me one thing.”
“Which is?” he asked, his deep amber eyes fixed on hers.
“That you take your own advice. I want you in my life, in my bed, not in jail.”
“I can handle myself. And my lion.” He kissed her cheek and then strode over to the reception desk where he spoke in fluent French to the elderly lady who studied them both carefully, before replying. Jen turned around and strolled around the reception lobby. Once, this hotel would have been an amazing place, the fabrics bright, the paintwork fresh, not the dull lackluster ensemble before her.
“Jen,” Will called gently. “Let’s get settled and or
der room service.”
Jen nodded politely to the woman behind the reception desk. “Thank you.”
She received a curt nod in return, and then went back to reading her book. Will headed for the elevator, which looked as neglected as the rest of the hotel. He pressed the button and they waited together as a grinding noise heralded movement from within, like an ancient monster woken from its slumber.
“One room. That is okay, isn’t it?” Will asked when they were riding the elevator up to the fourth floor.
“Yes. We’ve spent enough nights together. I didn’t think you would have to ask.” She held on to a metal rail as the elevator shuddered and groaned during its ascent.
“I didn’t want to be presumptuous.” Will watched her intently. “It will be okay.”
“What? The children, or this elevator?” Jen asked as they shuddered to a halt and the doors opened on to a deserted corridor.
“Both.” He looked at the number on the key and led them down the hallway to room 407. “This is the one.” Will inserted the key and turned it, surprisingly the lock was smooth and the hinges didn’t creek as he opened the door to reveal a double bed and a closet. There was an adjoining bathroom, which Jen inspected, pleased to find it was clean.
“The bedding is fresh,” Will said, and placed the suitcases on the floor. “I don’t think we need to unpack.”
“I agree.” Jen sat on the bed. “It’s very comfortable.”
“Before you fall asleep, let’s order dinner.” He handed her a menu.
“It’s in French.”
“It is.” He scanned it quickly. “Why don’t we order the beef and the chicken? We can share each other’s.”
“Whatever you say.” Jen lay down and looked at the ceiling. “I want to go to sleep so I can wake up and get this over with.”
Will called down with their order, adding a bottle of chilled wine. “It’ll help you sleep.”
Jen reached out for him and he settled down beside her. “I always thought it would be romantic to come to France. Now all I want to do is get home to England with you and the boys.”
