by Sheila Kell
When they entered the lodging, Declan turned around and looked at her with sorrow in his gaze. Confusion slammed into her.
“I’m sorry, Moira. I really am, but he bribed our guards and got in. He said he’d kill the baby, then Diana.”
Shock hit her at such a deadly scene and belatedly at what he’d said. “What do you mean, you’re sorry?”
“He means”—a tall, thin man approached from the back of the cabin— “in order to get his girlfriend back, he brings us you.”
Declan stepped in front of her. But it seemed kind of late to show a protective gesture as far as she was concerned. “Who are you? Where’s Quinn and where’s Diana?”
“I’m the man who will take you to her.”
Moira didn’t like this one bit. And what did Quinn have to do with Diana being captured? He was supposed to bring her—
Oh nay, she just got it. Quinn wasn’t a good guy at all. Did Cassie know? Of course she didn’t. She’d not have agreed to marry him.
“You, girl,” the man said, “come here. You get tied up until Quinn arrives.”
“Nay,” Declan asserted. “This isn’t how it’s supposed to go. Bring Diana here and we’ll exchange, but until then—”
When Declan’s stance changed, she peeked around him to see what was happening. Her eyes widened. Her mind honed in on two things. Her brother planned to exchange her with someone for Diana. And the man held a weapon on her brother.
Chapter Thirty-Three
“Are you just gonna let her go?” Cowboy asked.
Danny sat on the couch, leaned forward, elbows on knees, head in his hands. She’d left. She hadn’t even said goodbye or given him a chance to ask her to stay. He’d hoped she’d have come to his room after Declan made the announcement. Once again, he’d planned to tell her he loved her and ask her to stay.
No, he hadn’t wanted her to leave and he’d thought she’d wanted to stay. She would want to visit Ireland regularly. But he didn’t think she’d leave, especially like she did.
Not even a goodbye. His heart hurt. She had snuck away with her brother.
He kept racking his brain. What had he done wrong that she’d just slip away? Things had been great until her brother arrived. Until he’d started talking about them being free to return home. That had been assuming Boyle was in custody.
Luckily, he was. Danny had just learned that DEA agents had met Boyle when he’d arrived in the States. The teams were displeased. Not that Boyle was in custody, but because they’d had nothing to do with it. Of course, no one was more disappointed than Danny. He’d hoped they’d make the murder charge stick. His dad had been an agent—one of them—so he imagined they would work hard to get that result.
“Are you?”
Danny had forgotten Cowboy’s question. “I don’t have much of a choice. She made it clear she wanted to leave.”
“Bullshit. Her brother said something to her to make her leave. She wouldn’t have left you without an explanation, if at all. That woman is in love with you. She just hasn’t admitted it.”
That statement gave him a glimmer of hope. Did she really? She couldn’t. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have left.
“I’m telling you that her brother is the reason she left.”
“What could he have said?” What would make her leave? It had been almost as if she was wary of him. Would Declan turn her away from him? But why? She was secure here. So what if Boyle had actually found her? Danny wouldn’t have let him get to her.
“I don’t know, but it would’ve been all lies.”
His phone rang, and he looked at the time. Ten thirty p.m. Who’d be calling at this time of night? A nervousness at the unknown number settled in his gut. “Hello.”
“Danny, it’s Diana,” the weak voice said.
Fear lodged itself in his heart. Moira and Declan couldn’t have arrived this quickly. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
“Quinn didn’t know I had this phone hidden.”
Danny had heard Quinn mentioned again. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. “What’s wrong?”
“He just left to meet Declan and Moira.”
Why was this important? “Start at the beginning and tell me what’s going on.”
“It’s Quinn. He held me hostage while Declan got Moira for him. Declan didn’t want to do it, but Quinn threatened me and the baby. He left me locked up in our flat and took my mobile. He didn’t know we had several burners hidden.”
Danny hadn’t listened to much after Declan got Moira for him. “Are you okay?” He had to think with a logical mind when his was spinning with revenge and getting his woman.
“I’m fine. The baby is restless, though. Then again, at this stage of my pregnancy, that’s pretty much a norm.”
One thing settled. “Tell me who this Quinn is?”
While Diana told him about Quinn Murphy, he jotted the name down on a piece of scrap paper before him and added Moira in trouble, then handed it to Cowboy. His teammate never asked; he just picked up his phone and dialed. Danny knew it was to HQ.
“What happened to your security detail? Why did he leave you and where was he going?”
At this point, Danny was moving through the house, getting his gear together. Since they’d been protecting Moira, it was all handy.
“All I know is that Declan was to bring Moira someplace, and Quinn would meet him and do the exchange. Quinn told me there was a change in plans and he was leaving me to meet them. Declan would be free to drive back for me. Do you think he lied?”
Quite possibly, but he’d worry about Moira’s brother later. Moira was his priority. “I don’t know. We’re going to go after Moira. If Declan’s not with her, we’ll find him. Okay?” He needed to get off the phone so he could call HQ.
“But how will you find her?”
Danny grinned and didn’t care if he was called a stalker. It worked to his benefit tonight. Unless she’d changed clothes, her shoes had a tracker. “Oh, we’ve got ways. I’m going to go for now. Keep this phone and we’ll call you. Let us know if Declan returns.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” He ended the call and reached for Cowboy’s phone since he was on with HQ.
“Are you ready?”
“Hello to you too, Franks,” AJ said. “Devon is already researching Quinn Murphy. Go ahead with the rest.”
“Quinn held Diana captive and threatened her baby unless Declan brought Moira to a specific place.”
“Where?”
“I don’t know.”
“Why wasn’t she there with you and the team?”
“We think her brother told her something to turn her against us. It’s the only reason that makes sense.”
“Okay. How long have they been gone?”
“An hour and a half.”
“She could be anywhere.”
“Actually, we can locate her.”
“Good God, Franks, don’t tell me she’s wearing another tracker. Didn’t you learn when we made you get rid of the other one?”
“Sorry, I have to tell you.”
Danny heard conversation in the background and knew AJ and Devon were discussing him and the tracker. At the same time, he and Cowboy were locking up his house for their trek to headquarters.
Devon came on the call. “Is it one of ours?”
“Yes. From the same lot as the other one.” He waited an excruciating five minutes before Devon spoke again.
“Okay, best I can get is she’s on I-95. But if they’re headed to Boston, they’ll be turning real soon.”
They’d never catch up to them. All he could hope for was that nothing happened to her. They’d be about two hours behind, once they’d had time for the team to regroup at HQ and get their gear. Plus, if they were going into Boston, Old Man surely had to make s
ome calls, so they weren’t arrested for carrying their weapons. And not just handguns.
“Has the team been recalled?” John had followed them, so it was just Jane and Doc unless Stone came in for support. They’d be angry something happened to Moira after she’d walked away. Granted, he didn’t know what was happening to her or what would happen, but if this Quinn threatened to kill an unborn baby, then he was someone to fear.
“Of course. Boss is also coming in.”
Having Boss back for this meant a lot. It wasn’t just that he didn’t have to be in charge, it was because of Moira and his feelings for her. “Good.”
Cowboy blew every speed limit to get to headquarters and the entire team was already there—they’d also have to had blown through the limits. The fact they’d rushed spoke volumes about their commitment, the knowledge giving Danny a weird warm and settled feeling.
Boss approached him and held out his hand. “How you holding up?”
Boss would understand the craziness in his system, his gut, and his heart at the woman he loved being in trouble. Boss had been previously captured with Sugar, and he hadn’t been able to rescue her. “I’m good.”
His team leader assessed him and must’ve felt good about keeping Danny on the op because he just nodded and went back to his locker.
“You’ll never catch them,” AJ said from the doorway to the locker room.
He didn’t have to be reminded they’d be behind them by two hours. He’d never be able to live with himself knowing he could have stopped her from going. He could have told her then that he loved her and wanted her to stay.
“There is one way,” AJ offered.
The helo. They’d make great time if they had the bird to fly. But could he do it? Danny still had a fear of crashing. Was he good enough to keep them in the air? No matter the level of fear he had for going back up, he needed to do it to save his Moira. They couldn’t afford to be two hours behind.
“You just have to—”
Danny interrupted AJ. “I accept.” There, he was now the official pilot for HIS. He was solely responsible for getting the troops from point A to point B safely. It was a burden he’d accept to save his woman.
“Good.” AJ handed him his flight checklist. “Get out there for preflight. It’s already fueled.”
The last of AJ’s words tapered off as he bolted from the locker room out to the landing pad that had been recently added.
Danny didn’t rush his preflight. Experiencing how a component could quickly fail, becoming life threatening to the passengers, the task was too important to think of the need to fly to Moira’s safety.
He’d wondered how he’d balance the safety of his teammates and the necessity to speed to a rescue. That need to prioritize both the agents who were his friends and the woman he loved, wrapped him in knots. All depended upon him. All could die because of a single failure on his part. His worst fear could come to life.
The reality of the situation nearly paralyzed him. In his heart, he knew Moira counted on him to save her. In his teammates’ faces, he saw how they needed him to get them to Moira. Everyone trusted him.
“You doing okay,” Cowboy asked, as he approached the open cockpit door.
Sitting in the pilot seat, Danny looked away from the preflight checklist he knew from heart and hadn’t been focusing on. He’d rather been staring at it while his thoughts swirled in his fear-clogged mind. To prevent Cowboy from seeing the truth in his eyes, Danny quickly refocused on his checklist and went back to inspecting the instrument panel.
“I’m fine,” he responded tersely.
“Ya know,” Cowboy nearly drawled, “I remember when you were in pilot training and you wanted HIS to get their own helo, so we could move faster.”
He had spoken with Cowboy about that. A fantasy of sorts since he’d never expected the Hamilton brothers to actually purchase a helicopter. He’d wanted it for all the reasons his nerves were on edge today. With a helicopter, the teams could improve response times.
Before, Danny relished that he could be the one to get the teams into action, speeding up their chance for rescue or op success. It hadn’t been a power trip. It’d been that he finally offered something valuable to HIS.
He’d never considered something like the situation on his flight evaluation could happen. Sure, he studied and trained on potential emergencies, but he could’ve gotten the two of them killed. If they hadn’t had the clear space, he wouldn’t be here to allow his anxiety to eat at his gut.
Danny didn’t respond, but that didn’t stop his vocal friend.
“You’ve gotta know we trust you.” Cowboy sighed loudly and continued, “What happened to the confident pilot I knew?”
Blood boiling, Danny snapped his gaze to Cowboy’s. “He almost died and took someone else’s life with him. Now I’ve got an entire team depending on me not to kill them. If I do, there’s no telling what’ll happen to Moira.”
“Well, hell, that’s all?”
Danny couldn’t believe he was wasting valuable time with this discussion. He turned away to finish. Just a few more checks before he got the rotors going. Then a few more items on the checklist and they’d be ready to hit the sky.
That thought tightened the coil within his body.
“You survived. So did the FAA guy.”
“But we almost didn’t,” Danny spat out. Didn’t Cowboy get it? And the fact the team trusted him bothered the heck out of him. They didn’t seem to grasp shit could go wrong while in the air and the ground tends to be a long way down.
“Danny, stop for a second and talk to me.”
He automatically stopped. He couldn’t remember Cowboy ever calling him by his first name. Looking down to the landing pad at his friend, Danny nodded. “Go ahead.”
“Let me ask you this. If an airplane pilot had an emergency and successfully landed the plane, would you fly with him or her?”
He nodded. “Sure. It shows they can handle themselves under pressure.” Something began to turn in his mind, but he couldn’t, or wouldn’t, grasp it.
“Okay. If someone had been in a car accident and survived, would you ride with them again?”
“That depends on if they were drunk driving.”
“Good point, but not where I’m going,” Cowboy said.
Danny had a good idea where his friend was going, and he wasn’t sure he could get there.
“Your accident was a mechanical failure. It happens. But you saved both lives on board and even the aircraft. That’s an impressive feat.” Cowboy put his hands in his front pockets. “Look, I know you have an uncle who crashed with your cousin aboard.”
Danny started at that. It wasn’t something he’d ever shared. In fact, he hadn’t been thinking about it. He stiffened his back. Or had he subconsciously been thinking about how his uncle’s helicopter had stalled and there had been no chance of recovery? Now that he considered it, the situation had been eerily similar, except Danny had been closer to the ground and kept the engine from stalling.
“I also know,” Cowboy continued, “that your father flew a lot of hours with no mishap. His memory pushed you to become a pilot. He believed in the pilot he knew you’d become. Be that pilot for us today.” With that, his friend walked away.
Time was ticking, so Danny shelved those words and turned back and began turning on switches to get them in the air.
With everyone onboard, Danny tried not to hurl at the pressure he’d imposed upon himself. After a quick comms check, he took a deep breath and allowed practiced movements to take control. Unexpected exhilaration filled him as the helicopter lifted from the landing pad.
In the air, he pushed the throttle to keep them safe but pushed the line to make up time with cautious speed. Being airborne cleared his head. Not necessarily clear, but it gave him time to think about all Cowboy had said to him. While he understood
where his friend’s statements came from, he couldn’t just turn from fear to confidence. Maybe he could find somewhere in between the two.
He’d completed a thorough preflight. He was prepared to react if something occurred in flight. Knowing those two things did restore his confidence somewhat. He shuddered at the thought of a stall. The chance of that system failure occurring was small—tiny—so he couldn’t allow that fear to drive him.
The feeling when he took off reminded him of how much he loved flying. Not just flying, but being in control. That was the reason he decided to become a pilot and not a passenger.
Allowing some knots to ease within him, Danny decided he’d had enough of his self-loathing on his evaluation flight. He may be a newer pilot, but he knew his job. He couldn’t control the machinery on a bird, but he could prepare for equipment failures through practice in a simulator.
While he couldn’t see himself not worrying about the potential to kill his crew—his uncle had done it as had other nameless pilots—he could be the pilot they needed for each and every op. He straightened his shoulders. Yes, he found the right balance between the confidence in his abilities and the fear of failure.
He’d spent enough of the flight time reckoning his mind with reality. As much as he’d hate to admit it—what guy did?—he’d have to thank Cowboy for getting his mind pointed in the right direction. That would be later. While he focused on flying, HQ kept an eye on the woman he loved.
According to Moira’s tracker, she had stopped moving. Devon had her location uploaded. They were going with the assumption the tracker was still on her. Correlating the distance from Boston and when Quinn had left, the man hadn’t arrived yet. He should arrive around midnight. That gave the team time to get in there and whisk Moira away. They’d grab Declan if he was there, but after Danny gave him a good punch in the nose for putting Moira in danger.
He’d had more than enough opportunity to ask him or even Cowboy for help.
Google Earth was a wonderful tool. They found a large clearing near their target. When Danny said near, he meant half an hour away if they used the road, which they wouldn’t because Quinn would be driving that route. So, the woods it was. Knowing his ability to get lost in the woods, Danny didn’t fight Boss for the lead. He’d hate for the team to get lost and something happen to Moira because they weren’t there in time.
