Survival Instinct (Instinct Series)

by Janie Crouch

  Towards Shane. And she couldn’t seem to stop herself.

  The voice behind her ear stopped her. “I hope you got all your writing done, because that might have been the longest three days of my entire life.”

  She tried to wipe the huge smile off her face before turning around to face Shane, but couldn’t manage it. “It was utter shit.”

  “The writing or being away from each other?” His arms slid around her.

  Her tension eased at his touch. So much for pulling back. She wouldn’t know how to even if she could find the strength to do it.

  She eased into his strength, smelled the scent of his body pressed against hers.

  “Both.”

  “In that case, I won’t tell Nadine you owe another dollar for the curse jar.”

  Chloe shook her head against his chest, winding her arms tighter around his waist. “After the last three days, I owe her so much money for that damned jar I’m going to have to get a second mortgage for my house.”

  “That bad, huh?”

  “Yes. Justin got sick so we lost him, and then progress slowed to a crawl. It happens that way sometimes, but it doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

  His hand reached up to stroke her hair. Chloe was afraid she was going to start purring like a cat. “Any problems with Conversation Hearts?”

  She shook her head. “Nothing. So I’m not sure what that means. Maybe he’s gone for good. Who knows?”

  He pulled her closer. “Are you needed here on the set?”

  “Only if the stunt department is looking for someone who can be used to beat the sh…crap out of something. I could definitely use the tension release.”

  “How about,” his fingers slid to the nape of her neck, “if we head back to my house for a few hours and work on that tension release?”

  “You want me to beat the crap out of you instead? That’s pretty kinky, Westman.”

  Shane chuckled. “How about you let me have my best shot at loosening your tension, and if I can’t manage then you can beat the crap out of me? Which I still think is a curse word, by the way.”

  “If it is, it’s only worth a quarter,” she muttered.

  Shane’s hands moved around to cup her face. “You up for a little tension release?” He nipped at her lips.

  There were so many reasons why she should say no. Slow this down. Keep her heart guarded.

  Damned if she could think of a single one of them.

  They began walking towards his car. “Well, I guess if you insist—”

  Chloe broke off as a woman’s petrified scream echoed just a few yards away from them.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Shane thrust Chloe behind his back to keep her out of the path of any danger, and had his weapon raised at the scream.

  Three seconds later Alexandra Adams was running at him and throwing herself bodily into his arms.

  “Oh my God, my trailer!” the woman sobbed, wrapping her arms around him.

  Markus, Alexandra’s head of security, was the first to make it to them. Other security team members weren’t far behind.

  “Miss Adams, what happened?”

  “My trailer, Markus!” Alexandra continued to sob and kept herself tightly wrapped around Shane, even as he was trying to disengage.

  Shane gripped her arms, pulling her away from him. “Alexandra, what happened? Are you hurt?”

  “N—no.” She looked up at him through those green eyes that had made her a household name across the nation. “But I’m so scared.”

  If she wasn’t hurt, he needed to check out the trailer. He reached down to where her arms were clamped around his waist and pulled her away. With her still sobbing, he handed Alexandra off to one of her personal bodyguards. He turned and glanced at Chloe who looked like she was trying to process what was happening over Alexandra’s sobs.

  “You okay?”

  She nodded and Shane turned back to Markus. “Let’s check out the trailer.”

  Weapons raised, they entered the building, covering each other as they searched room by room. Only after they were assured no one was hidden anywhere did they re-holster their guns.

  Someone had completely ransacked Alexandra’s trailer, particularly her bedroom. Had destroyed it from top to bottom, knocking over furniture, ripping through the mattress and pillows, shredding every piece of clothing anywhere in the room.

  And a dozen knives had been thrust into the mattress, a note in the middle of them.

  Evil actresses must die.

  Shane and Markus looked around, touching as little as possible.

  “I have to be honest,” Markus murmured. “I thought we were going to find a dead body in here.”

  Shane nodded. “Yeah, that had occurred to me given all the hysterical sobbing.”

  “Alexandra is an actress. And those knives are pretty jarring.”

  “Yeah. Especially walking in on her own.”

  They backed slowly out of the room. “You better believe I’ll have one of my personal team checking any buildings she’s going into from now on,” Markus said.

  “We have some cameras set up too that I’ve been careful not to mention. I don’t think any are pointed exactly at this trailer, but maybe we can pick out someone who doesn’t belong in this area.”

  “Shane?” Chloe called from the doorway. “What is it? Alexandra’s still pretty shook up. Is someone…?”

  “No, no dead body. That’s what Markus and I were afraid of also.”

  “Okay, okay good.” Relief was evident in her voice. “What happened?”

  “Someone wrecked her bedroom. Destroyed everything. It’s better if you don’t come in, helps keep the crime scene cleaner.”

  “Okay.”

  Shane and Markus exited, touching as little as possible. The three of them stepped outside. Markus left to report back to Alexandra who was still crying, surrounded by her assistants and some of the other actors, but at least wasn’t hysterical any longer.

  “There are probably a dozen knives stabbed into her mattress,” Shane told Chloe. “It’s not hard to see why she was so upset. Especially since tension has run so high recently anyway.”

  Chloe rubbed a hand across her face. “The studio is going to want to add another hundred security guards. If we can even convince Alexandra to stay.”

  Shane looked over at the other woman then back to Chloe. “Maybe I was wrong, and she really is the target. Maybe it’s someone from her past or who has a grudge against her. We’ll look more closely.”

  Chloe nodded and Shane touched her arm. There was nothing he wanted more than to slip away with her like they’d been talking about just a few minutes before. Show her exactly how much he’d been missing her while she’d been holed away writing. He pulled her just the slightest bit towards him, aware there were eyes on them and that Chloe may not want their relationship to be public.

  But she stepped closer. “You’ve got work,” she murmured.

  “I’d rather have you. In my bed. Right now.”

  Her smile was gorgeous. “We’ve got time. Neither of us can slip away now and we both know it.”

  Watchers be damned, Shane trailed a finger down her cheek. She didn’t pull away. “I don’t like it.”

  “I don’t either. Later. Promise.”

  He had every intention of making her keep that promise. But Alexandra started wailing again and Chloe hurried to see if she could help. Shane called Sheriff Linenberger to let him know what had happened and to send a crime scene team.

  Shane spent the entire rest of the afternoon coordinating the efforts to try to find out who had access to Alexandra’s trailer. The CSI processed the scene and would run everything, hopefully providing them with a set of fingerprints to work with. Although Shane wasn’t holding his breath.

  Two members of the security team had been tasked with watching the closed—circuit television footage from the security cameras they had set up. The problem was, going through forty-eight hours of footage, looking for so
meone who was probably around all the time wasn’t very conducive. Unless someone did something overtly suspicious, there wouldn’t be much to see.

  And Shane was already kicking himself for not having a camera directly pointed at Alexandra’s trailer. But he’d truly believed that she wasn’t the target.

  Alexandra herself constantly demanded his attention. For the first few hours he cut her some slack, anyone would be a little traumatized by finding their possessions in that state, not to mention a bed full of knives. But after having her next to him every moment, constantly asking him to explain what was going on and what they would do to make sure she was safe, Shane knew he had to find a way to get rid of her.

  If his Special Forces buddies could hear that. Shane trying to find a way to put physical distance between him and Alexandra Adams. Any of them would pay a great deal of money to be in his place.

  And he’d let them be here for free.

  It was the exact epitome of why Shane tended to avoid any sort of serious relationships. He couldn’t tolerate someone constantly demanding his attention.

  He glanced over at Chloe, who had been quietly working all day, even though she’d spent the last seventy-two hours doing so. Given the fact that she wrote one of the most creative shows on television, Chloe was surprisingly low drama and maintenance. Able to take care of herself and her own problems. Not needing constant attention from anyone.

  Forget America’s sweetheart, Shane would take Chloe over Alexandra any day. For so many reasons.

  She looked up from where she was sitting at a desk across the room, on the phone with some executives in Los Angeles, and smiled softly at him.

  That was just one of the reasons.

  The three days without her hadn’t been enjoyable. Hadn’t been the breath of fresh air he’d been expecting. As a matter fact, it had shifted his thinking about a lot of things.

  Like staying permanently in Black Mountain.

  He could work for Linear Tactical for East Coast based jobs, instead of going to Wyoming.

  Shane wasn’t one to make knee-jerk decisions. He liked to study the options and know his best tactical advantage. But the thought of going anywhere without Chloe just wasn’t acceptable to him.

  He had no idea how she’d come to mean so much to him in such a short period of time, but he wasn’t going to fight it.

  Instead of freezing someone out, Avalanche was going to see where it all led.

  The next morning, they had another all-hands security meeting. Most of the security team had a pretty sleepless night, either on high alert or on the detail trying to figure out how the stalker had gotten into Alexandra’s trailer.

  Nothing.

  Shane had finally crawled into bed with Chloe around five AM. She hadn’t said anything, just pulled him to her and held him as they got whatever sleep they could in the few hours left of the night.

  Chloe was sitting next to him now, her silence and calm a direct opposite to Alexandra’s mania and hysteria.

  “Chloe, I cannot work like this.” Alexandra’s words were punctuated by a slap to the table with each syllable. “It’s not just my physical safety I’m talking about, but my creative synapses are being flattened by the fear. I’m being targeted.”

  Chloe leaned from her chair and put her arms on the conference table. “I understand, Alexandra, and your safety is of primary importance to everyone. We all take that very seriously.”

  Alexandra nodded and then turned to Shane. “I’m not trying to be a bitch, but I’m scared. What if I had been in the trailer when the stalker came in? Would I have a dozen knives in me rather than in my bed?” She shuddered and huddled back in her chair.

  Shane felt for her. Everyone did. It was impossible to look at Alexandra Adams, any woman, huddled in that chair and not want to break the person who was making her feel so helpless and scared. Even if Shane wasn’t interested in her romantically, it didn’t mean he didn’t want to stop whoever was behind this.

  “Nobody thinks you’re a bitch or being unreasonable,” he said. “But we are going to keep you safe. We will make that happen.”

  “Our only other option is to shut down production or move it to an enclosed set,” Chloe said. “Moving would cause a lot of continuity problems and, of course, wouldn’t have the same feel. And shutting down…”

  Chloe didn’t finish, just shrugged. Shane wasn’t well-versed enough in the television filming business practices to know what shutting down meant exactly, but he knew it couldn’t be good.

  Tears rolled slowly down both Alexandra’s cheeks. “I don’t want us to shut down production. I know the schedule is nearly impossible as it is,” she whispered.

  Chloe rubbed her fingers over her eyes. “No matter what, it’s not worth someone’s life.”

  Markus took a step closer to Alexandra. “We will keep someone with you at all times.”

  More tears leaked out of those huge green eyes that had made her famous. “No offense, but that’s just not enough. Not anymore. Every third person is security around here and it’s still not enough.”

  “What would be, Alexandra? What would make you feel secure?” Chloe asked.

  Alexandra blinked her tears away. “Shane. I want Shane.”

  You could hear a grasshopper karate chop a fly.

  “Excuse me?” Chloe finally asked.

  Alexandra unhuddled herself and sat up straighter in her chair. “No offense to Markus or anybody else in my personal protection entourage, but Shane was a real soldier. Knows what true danger looks like and can protect me.”

  Shane shot a glance a Markus, whose face was like stone. Shane knew Markus had military experience in his background too, if Alexandra had bothered to check.

  “Your security team is more than capable of keeping you safe,” Shane responded. “You don’t need me.”

  Surprisingly, Alexandra looked at Chloe, as if Chloe was the one who needed to be convinced. Which actually was pretty damn smart, since there was no way in hell he was going to do it without Chloe giving her blessing. And may not even if she gave it.

  Every eye in the room turned to face Chloe.

  “This isn’t a good idea,” Shane said softly, aware everyone could still hear them. Chloe shrugged, as if she honestly didn’t know what to do.

  Shane turned back to the group. “First of all, I doubt there’s anything I would catch that Markus wouldn’t. He’s more aware of your normal behaviors and patterns and can anticipate your moves.”

  “No offense to Markus,” Alexandra snapped back. “But that can also make him miss things that fresh eyes might see.”

  “I’m not here to be personal security. You have the best money can buy, Alexandra,” Shane said. “I’m here to coordinate. Try to gain tactical advantage.”

  Alexandra looked at Chloe again. “I just can’t do my job if I don’t feel safe. It won’t be my best work, and I refuse to give anything less than that. I would rather pause the shooting of the show.”

  “And having Shane would make you feel better? Safer?” Chloe was studying Alexandra.

  “Something has to.” Fear pulled at Alexandra’s features again. “All those knives, Chloe…” A shudder shook her delicate frame.

  Chloe put her hand on Shane’s arm. “I know you weren’t hired to be anyone’s bodyguard, but Alexandra is right. She needs to be able to concentrate on her work, not on the stalker. If you would be willing to be part of her team, that might be the best thing.”

  Shane could understand the point, but the last thing he really wanted was to spend all his time around Alexandra.

  “It’s not my preference. I might be needed for other things.” Like if Chloe had another Conversation Hearts attack.

  Other people in the room began talking softly to one another to give Shane and Chloe a semblance of privacy. But Shane also knew everyone was listening to what they were saying to each other.

  Chloe scooted closer to him in her chair. “This is not my preference either. Trust me, sendi
ng you to stay with one of America’s most gorgeous women 24/7 is not what I want to do. But there’s nothing more important to me than the show.”

  “Not even your own health? What if you need me?”

  “You won’t be far. We just have to make sure of it.”

  Shane gave a curt nod.

  Chloe turned to Alexandra. “Okay, Shane will help out with your security detail until we have more information about the stalker.” She turned to everyone else in the room. “We need to get these last weeks of shooting finished. Everyone needs to stay focused on what we’re here to do: continue to make Day’s End the best show on television. Let your security team do their job, and we’ll do ours.”

  Shane went over the plan, where they would be focusing their attention and the meeting was ended. He slid a hand to Chloe’s back as they walked towards the door.

  “Shane, I’ll see you in my new trailer in a few minutes?” Alexandra called out. Shane felt Chloe stiffen under his fingers.

  “Yeah, in a few, Alexandra.”

  “Lexi, sugar. If you’re going to be this close, call me Lexi.”

  Chapter Twenty

  The next three days were great in terms of production. Obviously having Shane around to protect her gave Alexandra the confidence she needed to truly focus on her work. And honestly, it was some of the best acting Chloe had seen out of her the whole season.

  Tia Day, the show’s main character, was dear to Chloe’s heart. The woman’s struggles, strength, and perseverance. She was remarkable even under overwhelming odds. Had a survival instinct that made her one of the most beloved characters on television. Chloe loved her too.

  Watching Alexandra embrace the strength of Tia Day, to reach deep and utilize the same grit Tia would, went a long way in helping Chloe not be upset that Alexandra had wanted Shane with her twenty-four hours a day.

  Definitely not all the way, but some of it. Because although things were going much better production-wise, personally, Chloe could admit that it just sucked. Watching Shane around Alexandra, the woman’s light and flirtatious banter that never went over any lines but didn’t seem quite innocent either, hurt something in Chloe.