It was an unknown number.
With trembling fingers, Nicole succeeding in switching off her phone altogether. Smartphones were useful but they could be too smart. Those scary men who had killed Anna could probably pinpoint her location if she picked up the call.
Nicole rushed into her bedroom and put the baby on the bed. The little boy was sleeping soundly, and she marveled at the peaceful look on his face. He had no idea that his mother was dead and he was in the hands of a woman who could fight like a tiger in court but couldn't change a diaper to save her life.
“Don't worry, little buddy,” she muttered. “I'm a fast learner. I can learn to change a diaper. You might be stuck with me, but you won't be stuck with a dirty diaper.”
Nicole wondered if she should go to the police, but she had heard of people disappearing while in police custody. The Mayor was doing his best to clean up the city and wipe out organized crime, but the mob still had a wide reach. There were dirty cops and high-ranking officials in government departments who were on the take. She wasn't taking any risks. She couldn't risk handing Brendon over to the wrong people.
Who could she trust?
She wanted to call Luke so bad. She could trust him. But she didn't trust her phone.
She was being hunted and she hated feeling so helpless.
“What should I do? Where should I go? I know, I should pack,” Nicole said with grim determination, spinning round and pulling out a backpack from her cupboard. “I don't think we have a choice, Brendon. We've got to run. But I don't know where we're going, yet.”
She found it oddly comforting and calming to talk aloud to the sleeping baby. It made her focus and enabled her to organize her thoughts somewhat.
She changed into jeans and pulled a cap low over her head. “All right, I think I've packed everything we need. All my important papers and cards and identification are in here. Some clothes for me. And for you...my old teddy bear. That's the only toy I have,” she told Brendon. “Mr Brown will keep you company at night.”
She stuffed Mr Brown into her backpack. Mr Brown was a cute fluffy teddy bear dressed in a lawyer's robe and wig. Her mom had presented it to her when she graduated from law school.
“Okay. Let's go, buddy.”
Nicole hoisted her backpack and picked up the baby. She knew without a doubt that she couldn't stay here. Anna had been alive just a few hours ago. But now she was dead and Brendon was an orphan, again. Whoever those men were, they were ruthless and efficient. They would find her, kill her and take the baby.
“I really don't know what you did, kiddo,” she said. “I don't think it's anything your mom did either. She was a good woman. But those are bad men. I won't let them hurt you,” she whispered fiercely as she took one last look around her apartment. “I promised Anna.”
She was about to unlock her door when she heard a step just outside her door.
Nicole froze.
She pressed her ear to the door and held her breath.
She heard it again. A step. Then another. And another.
The footsteps were quick and quiet. There were rustling sounds and low, gruff voices.
Nicole instinctively backed away from the door. She clapped one hand over her mouth and shook her head.
No. No!
They were here.
They were here to kill her and take the baby.
Biting down a panicked cry, Nicole stared round her apartment in terror and desperation.
What could she do? She couldn't hide, but where could she go?
She turned to the windows and cursed silently. There were grills across her living room windows. What was the use of having windows if you couldn't use them to escape?
“Stupid,” she hissed.
She heard scratching sounds at her door as the knob turned slowly. The door was locked but she knew a locked door wouldn't keep those men out.
They would get to her. It was just a matter of time.
She heard the infuriating, ominous ticking of her wall clock.
She was running out of time.
Nicole gulped and stumbled to her bedroom. “What am I doing?” She swore under her breath. “Use your damn brain, Nicole!” Her bedroom was no longer her sanctuary, her refuge. If she didn't think fast enough, it would be her coffin.
Stifling a cry, she tried to quieten her rapid, shallow breathing.
She could hear someone working the locks on the front door.
Click, click, click.
They would be inside her apartment soon.
“Brendon, what should we do?” she rasped hopelessly.
The baby opened one eye and yawned at her.
“Oh right, why didn't I think of that?” Nicole mumbled deliriously and lurched into the study opposite her bedroom.
With some effort, she opened the rusty window of her study and maneuvered herself onto the fire escape. “Ready, kiddo? Off we go!” she said as cheerfully as she could. She sounded deranged to her own ears.
Behind her, her front door slammed open. She heard shouts and rushing steps.
Nicole didn't look back.
She clattered down the fire escape, hunching over the baby so that she shielded him with her body.
A bullet ricocheted off the railing and Nicole almost lost her footing. Great, now they were shooting at her.
“Run,” she ordered herself. “Run!”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Luke hunkered down in his cubicle to write up his report. He heard his teammates grumbling as they stuffed themselves into the dainty office chairs and hammered out their individual reports. Dylan's team had just completed a mission last night. He had been returning home from that successful mission when he ran into Nicole. He thought he would be unwinding alone in front of the telly with a pizza and a few beers. Instead, the best thing in his life happened to him last night.
Dylan made every member of his team submit a report after each mission. It was so they could assess their own performance and mark out any areas of improvement. “The most powerful weapon you have is your brain,” Dylan told them. “I know all of you have super speed and strength, but if you act fast but think slow, you'll find yourself in a lot of trouble.”
They had an hour to finish up their report. Then the team would move out for another job. It was a straightforward surveillance job today, but Luke knew by now that no job was ever really straightforward.
Luke typed quickly, half smiling as his thoughts kept flitting to Nicole. He forced himself to concentrate and finish up his report. He would be seeing her tonight for dinner. He glanced at his watch. It was not even nine o'clock. His fingers twitched over the keyboard as he resisted the urge to pull out his phone and call her. He wondered how Nicole's breakfast meeting with her client went.
As he submitted his report and logged off his computer, his phone beeped once. Luke frowned at his phone. It was a missed call from Nicole. She had called and hung up. Luke called her back right away, but got her voice mail instead.
“She switched off her phone,” he muttered. Why would she do that? Even if she was in a meeting, she could just have muted her phone.
Dylan strolled past and announced to his team members, “Ten minutes, people. Get the report in and get ready. Meet me out front locked and loaded in ten minutes.”
Luke rubbed his chest absently. There was a strange tightness around his heart and his bear was angsty and agitated. It wanted to get to Nicole. Luke glanced down at his arms and saw that tiny pinpricks of black fur were pushing out of his skin. His bear wanted out. It was going to track its mate down if Luke didn't man up and go after her himself.
Luke took a painful breath and jumped up. “Dylan, I...I need to get to Nicole. Something's happened to her. I can feel it. My bear can sense it. It won't let me...”
Dylan gave a curt nod. “Get someone to switch shifts with you. We have a job to do.”
“Yes, sir. Thank you, sir!”
Dylan
put a hand on his shoulder. “And get someone to go with you. Don't go alone. If Nicole really is in danger...”
“I'll go with you, and Trevor can take your place.”
Luke turned to see Baxter and Trevor striding up to them. It was Baxter who had spoken. Trevor was the second-in-command on Baxter's team, and even though they had just returned from an all-night security operation, they both looked fresh as daisies while the rest of their teammates looked like they had been dragged across the fires of hell.
Baxter raised a brow at Luke. “Since Trevor is covering for you this morning, I guess you'll be taking his place and joining my team tomorrow night.”
Luke glanced at his team leader, and saw Dylan roll his eyes at Baxter. “Yeah, yeah. You can have him tomorrow night,” Dylan snapped.
“Trevor Spencer reporting for duty, boss,” Trevor said, grinning as he gave Dylan a smart salute.
“Get yourself suited up with my boys and girls,” Dylan said with a straight face. “We're moving out in five minutes. Let's go, people!”
“Yes, sir!” Dylan's team members leaped out of their chairs and saluted in a perfect synchronized movement. They grinned at Trevor and pounded him on the back. “You're with us today. Don't worry. We'll show you the ropes,” they joked.
Trevor laughed and took their teasing good-naturedly. He was no rookie. He was deadly on the field, but off the field, he was a big softie and a super nice guy.
“I'm off duty now,” Baxter said, throwing his arm casually around Luke. “I'll come with you. I want to be the first to meet your mate.”
Luke opened his mouth then shut it. “Okay.” He didn't want to waste time arguing with Bax.
Luke grabbed his car keys and dialed Nicole's number again as he hurried out of the office. He scowled and clicked off.
“She's not answering?” Baxter asked as he followed Luke to his car.
“She switched off her phone,” Luke said tightly.
“Did you guys have a fight?” Baxter bundled himself into the passenger seat as Luke started the engine.
“No. We planned to have dinner tonight, with Jade and Dylan. I dropped her off this morning at Kit's Kitchen. She was meeting a client there.”
“Did you get a look at the client she was meeting?”
Luke swore at himself. “No I didn't. I should have.”
“Was she upset when she went to meet the client?”
“No, but her client sounded flustered over the phone. I heard bits of their conversation this morning.”
A pause. “What's your girl's name?” Baxter said, his tone light and conversational.
“Nicole.”
“You know where Nicole is right now?”
“She should be at work, but—she isn't.”
Baxter frowned. “How do you know?”
“I don't. But my bear does.”
Baxter nodded and Luke rushed on, “I can feel her, I can't explain it. It's like I can feel she's in trouble and my bear is leading me to her. I don't understand...”
“The mate bond is a powerful thing. Don't ignore it. You can feel your mate's pain and fear, and your bear will always rise to protect her,” Baxter said sagely.
Luke gripped the steering wheel, his claws glinting dangerously.
“Just let your bear drive. I mean, not literally!” Baxter yelled as Luke floored the pedal. “You do the driving, but let your bear lead you. Trust your bear. Nothing keeps a bear from its mate. Channel your inner bear and, hey, hey, hey! Keep your eyes on the road, man!”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The tires squealed as Luke took a sharp turn and gunned his car down the street. He could sense Nicole's sudden spike of terror. His bear was pulsing beneath his skin, angry and anxious. He needed to get to Nicole now. He knew where she lived. She had grabbed his phone last night after their second, or was it third? session of lovemaking to type in her contact details.
He saw her as he turned into her street. She was scrambling down the fire escape with a bundle in her arms and a bulging backpack on her shoulders.
“There! She's there!”
“I see her,” Baxter said.
They both looked up at the same time. Three beefy men in black suits were racing down the fire escape after her. Luke saw a car idling at the side of the road, and he glimpsed a black suit in the driver's seat.
Baxter’s eyes were darting from the car to the building, scanning all the windows and exits. “Bastards are shooting at her,” Baxter spat, drawing his weapon. “Okay, slow down but don't stop the car. I'll throw your girl into the car and you take off. Got it?” Baxter tapped his watch and activated a signal.
“What about you?” Luke yelled.
“I'll stay and play. Don't worry.” Baxter flashed his watch. “I've called for immediate backup. The Black Bears won't want to miss out on the fun.”
Luke slowed his car and Baxter bounded out. He saw Baxter run to Nicole and grab her around the waist. Nicole kicked out but stopped struggling when she caught sight of Luke. Luke beckoned to her through the open window and she nodded.
Baxter opened the car door and flung Nicole into the backseat. “Go!” He pounded the roof.
Luke swerved away from the curb and zoomed down the street. “Get down!” he bellowed to Nicole.
The windscreen shattered as a bullet punched through it. Luke ducked his head but kept driving.
It would take more than a bullet to stop him.
“You okay? Nicole!”
She had thrown herself on the floor and was huddled behind the driver's seat. The baby was wailing at the top of his lungs and Luke was afraid the rest of his windows wouldn't be intact much longer if the kid kept it up.
“How's the baby?” He twisted round to glimpse an angry, red face and flailing fists.
“He's upset, of course! He doesn't like being shot at. Neither do I,” Nicole cried.
Luke concentrated on navigating his way round the cars coming up the street while maintaining his breakneck speed. He wasn't slowing down for anything.
Horns blared and some choice expletives were hurled at him but he didn't care. He was getting Nicole and the kid away from…
“Who are they?” he shouted over his shoulder.
“I don't know!” she screamed back, grabbing the back of his seat to prevent herself from sliding from one end of the car to the other.
“Is that your kid?” he yelled.
“What?”
“The baby. He's yours?”
“He is now.”
“What the hell does that mean? Is he yours or not?” The thought that Nicole had given birth to another man's baby made his heart clench painfully.
“I'm not his mother, if that's what you're asking!”
“Yeah. That's what I'm asking.”
“Sheesh. Men.”
Luke turned to see Nicole rolling her eyes.
“What?” he demanded.
“Nothing! Drive faster!”
“Who is his mother?”
“His mother's dead. She died, just after meeting me. I, ah, I should have saved her. It's my fault. She came to me for help, but I didn't take her seriously. Not at first. I thought she was just, I don't know, depressed or something. I...”
Nicole was babbling and crying. Rather, she was trying not to cry. She kept swiping at her eyes, refusing to let her tears roll down her cheeks as the words tumbled out of her. “I could have saved her, and Brendon wouldn't have lost his mom! I...”
“Hey, it's not your fault,” Luke said, swerving to avoid hurtling up the curb. He glanced in the rear-view mirror and saw that no one was in pursuit. He let out a long breath and drove at a more normal, less insane speed.
“The baby's mother...is she the client you met this morning?” he asked.
“Anna Ward. Yes. I promised her I would protect her son. I heard them torture her,” Nicole said, hiccuping a sob. “She died protecting her son.”
“What
do they want with the boy? He's just a baby.”
“He's a very brave baby,” Nicole said fiercely.
“I'm sure he is. And we'll make sure he's safe.”
“We?”
“Yes. You're not alone,” Luke said grimly.
Luke pulled up right in front of the Black Bears Building. The Black Bears Group owned the low building which housed the Group's offices. It was one of the best investments made by their business-savvy alpha.
Luke saw the Black Bears alpha and beta, Ethan and Caleb standing at the entrance. They were flanked by a few team leaders and all along the street, there were Black Bears standing guard.
Caleb opened the door for Nicole and immediately, four Black Bears crowded around her to shield her with their bodies. Nicole and the baby disappeared into the building.
“I have to go back for Bax!” Luke yelled to his alpha. “He's...”
Ethan put up a hand. “Bax punched in a Code Red and activated the tracking function on his watch. He has enough backup. Two teams reached him in under a minute. They're cleaning up the trash right now.”
Luke nodded and closed his eyes briefly. While his main priority was getting Nicole and the baby to safety, he hated himself for leaving Baxter behind.
The Black Bears never left anyone behind.
“Bax is fine. He can take care of himself,” Ethan said. “Park your car and come to my office, Luke. Now.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Nicole sat down in front of a huge desk, hugging Brendon tightly to her. The tall, imposing man behind the desk had introduced himself as Ethan Flint. She had heard his name before. Ethan Flint was the CEO of the Black Bears Group, and a very astute businessman and investor. She also knew for a fact that he was a bear shifter.
There were many paranormals living in the city. Some flaunted their supernatural powers, but most didn't. The lawyers in Nicole's firm were mostly human. One of the senior partner's secretary was a witch and it was rumored that Mr Morgann himself was a werewolf.
Bear's Match (Bear Heat Book 6) Page 5
