Hidden Obsession: An Alliance Agency Novel: Book 2

by Kells, India

  Cleo shook it off as best she could and headed to the shower, feeling more optimistic. Mason would fight to keep safe until the team found him, she knew he would and when he got free, she was locking them on a deserted island together for a month.

  Finding some clean underwear, she pulled on the ones Mason had chosen for her in what seemed a lifetime ago but was in fact only days and chose a cream, floral pencil skirt and pale green sleeveless blouse. She slid her feet into nude pumps and straightened her hair, wanting her game face on for this battle.

  She heard the front door open and knew it was Travis. She wondered if he’d been gone all night. She’d slept hard for those few hours. A bomb could have gone off and she probably wouldn’t have heard it. Had he been working with the team to find Mason? More noises came from outside her door. Her belly dipped, not wanting to see him. He would protest her going she knew it. She didn’t want to argue with him or upset him when he was as worried about his friend as she was, but she wasn’t a child to be told what to do either.

  Pushing back her shoulders and taking one last look in the mirror, she walked from the bedroom. Travis was at the kitchen counter making a coffee.

  He looked up, and his eyes trailed down, noting her outfit. “Going somewhere?”

  “Yes, into the office. I can’t just sit around and wait for them to find Mason. I have to help.” She appealed to his can-do need to help too.

  He put down the cup he was holding and walked closer to her. “Um, see, that isn’t going to work for me.”

  He reached out and gently tucked a stray hair behind her ear, and she felt a shiver go through her. Something felt off. She remembered the uneasy feeling she’d had when she’d first seen him, and took a step back, putting on a confident face. She turned to grab her bag when a hand to her shoulder shoved her to her knees. The shock made her startle as she moved to push up, but he was stronger. His touch turning painful.

  “Stupid bitch, did you think I would let you leave?”

  Cleo felt fear crawl over her skin at the change in the man before her. He wasn’t a friend, rather the proverbial wolf in sheep’s clothing. A look of intense hatred rippled from his eyes into her and Cleo knew she was looking into the eyes of the man who would kill her.

  Her breath froze in her lungs as she tried to make sense of everything she was seeing. The handsome, friendly, enigmatic man she had met had turned into a cold, deadly killer filled with hate. Her mind whirred trying to understand what it was that she had done to elicit such a response from him.

  Held on her knees, the hard floor beneath her biting into her skin, she looked up at Travis. “I don’t understand.”

  “Of course, you don’t. You could never understand the connection Mason and I have.”

  Her eyes snapped to him. “Mason? You know where he is?”

  Travis grasped her hair, dragging her to her feet as she gripped his wrist to ease the burn in her scalp. “You don’t speak his name.”

  The growl was low and threatening, and Cleo felt the terror spill through her veins unchecked as he hustled her to the bathroom door. Her heart was in her throat with fear, but she couldn’t stop the need for the questions in her brain to get the answers they craved. “Why are you doing this?”

  Travis looked down at her and cocked his head, his eyes going almost soft for a second. “Because it is the only way he can love me. With you in the way, he’ll never admit what we have, what we can be together if he acknowledges how he feels.”

  The dawning reality was hard to fathom as she looked into the eyes of a man clearly in love. A man in love with Mason! Had this been about Mason all along? But that didn’t make sense with Spears. Travis seemed to shake off the feelings overwhelming him and pushed her into the empty bathtub. Her shoulder hit the edge, jarring her with pain, her face barely missing the taps.

  Not wanting her back to him and knowing this could be her final few moments, Cleo turned and faced him. The gun he now held on her was as steady as she knew his shot would be. Cleo looked down the barrel, hiding the grief that her life would end today. She would never get to tell Mason she loved him again. To hold his hand as they walked on the beach, to play with their children and watch them grow with the man she loved beside her.

  “I wish this could have ended differently, Cleo. That you would end things with Mason on your own accord. I don’t hate you, you seem like a nice person, but I can’t let you take him from me. He’s all I have. If you’d just finished that hot chocolate from last night, we wouldn’t be in this position now.”

  She sat forward in the bath, shocked at his words. “You drugged me last night and now you’re just going to kill me and leave me here?”

  “Yes, your team will believe it’s the stalker, and we will mourn your loss. Eventually Mason and I will rebuild our lives away from here.”

  He lifted the gun, and she held his eyes not willing to die like a coward. If he wanted her dead, he would have to look her in the eye as he did it.

  Cleo waited for the pain and the sound of the gun to fire and nearly puked on herself when a loud banging ricocheted into the small bathroom.

  “Cleo, open up. It’s Nick.”

  Her eyes darted to the door, and she seized her chance opening her mouth and screaming. “Nick, help me.”

  “Bitch!” Travis spat and hit her with the butt of the gun, opening her cheek. Warm blood oozed down her face as he glared at her with hatred.

  With gunfire resonating from the front door, Travis turned and ran for the living room as the banging from the door intensified, loud shouts of concern from Nick. Stumbling from the bath with one shoe off, Cleo ran for the front door. She heard the glass being broken and thought about Travis escaping. How would he do it so far up? He could break his neck for all she cared.

  Gripping the handle, she took two tries to slide the lock open before falling into Nick, who grabbed her. Taking in her appearance in a second, he glanced around his entire body on alert.

  “Travis. He has Mason. You have to stop him.” She pointed to the living room where Travis had gone.

  Nick steadied her and handed her his phone. “Call Shane now.” Then he was gone in pursuit of Travis.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Mason was slick with sweat as he tried to contort his body into inching closer toward the metal covered wall, making the chair he was bound to slide maddeningly slow. Ears on any noise coming from outside the room, praying for Travis to get killed in a road accident so Cleo would be safe. Mason wasn’t delusional, only desperate.

  Feeling the cold sheet of metal against his forearm, he twisted a little so his fingers could sense the seams, checking for any kink or defect that would produce a sharp edge. He needed to be patient and thorough, focus on what he could with his fingertips, which wasn’t much.

  He shuffled again and looked down, following one seam and saw a kink in the metal near the floor.

  There wasn’t any other choice but to get on the floor, and once down, Mason knew he would never be able to get back up unless he cut himself free.

  It took some strength to make the chair move back and forward in a rocking motion, but he used his core muscles to eventually make the chair tip backward. The shock rattled his bones, and his head felt like it was split open when it hit the concrete floor, but he didn’t care and shimmied until the side of his palm touched the wall.

  Unable to look in his current position, Mason knew he had found what he was looking for when the metal started slicing through his skin on the side of his hand.

  It was an awkward movement that cut a lot more flesh than tape, but he could live with that. Ignoring the pain and the trickling blood, his only focus was on the very subtle and restrained movement that cut one fiber at a time, at a frustratingly slow pace.

  Every time he was about to yell in frustration or lose hope, Mason conjured Cleo in his mind, and her image was enough to bolster his courage and made the suffering and fear take a back seat.

  He had to get free from th
is chair and escape. Cleo had to be alive and well, protected by his team. He couldn’t live with any other possibility.

  It took time, or maybe it was the blood making his wrist slick against the tape, but it seemed as if he could move a little more. Mason poured all of his energy into pulling against the tape, hoping sheer muscle strength would tear it. His arm throbbing like a bitch from the effort, Mason ground his teeth as he suppressed a groan of agony.

  “I should have known you would try something like that. After all, you are one of the most intelligent men I know.”

  Travis’ voice reverberated through Mason’s head and he thought he was hallucinating until his former friend’s blond head came into view. “Apart from hurting yourself, there wasn’t a chance you’d free yourself before I came back. You knew I wasn’t going to leave you alone for long.”

  Mason’s heart was in his throat as Travis walked behind him, pulling the chair away from the wall before checking his wrist. If he’s back what does that mean for Cleo?

  “Thank goodness you didn’t cut yourself worse. That was a dumb move, man. I don’t have a first aid kit, but that can’t be helped. I’ll tend to your wound then we’ll be on the move.”

  When the words sank in, Mason got his voice back. “What do you mean, move?”

  Travis walked to the desk and pulled one of the drawers open, lifting the roll of duct tape, an amused smile on his face. “You didn’t think we would live here, did you?”

  Live together? The more Mason let him talk, the more he saw the extent of his mental state.

  “Don’t worry about a thing, Mace. I have everything planned now I’ve tied all the loose ends.” Mason couldn’t think about what he was implying. Travis whistled as he circled his bloody wrist with some more tape. “I think I’ll leave you on the floor like this for the time being, until I’m ready for us to leave.”

  But Mason’s head was reeling. “What loose ends?”

  When Travis locked gazes with him, part adoring, part sad, Mason wondered if he would survive the answer his blond captor was about to give him.

  “You knew sacrifices were necessary.”

  Mason shook his head, lungs burning with tears and despair.

  “In time, you’ll understand everything I’ve done for you and all will become clear.”

  Mason almost didn’t feel Travis touch his hair as if both caressing and replacing each strand, but he needed to hear it. The words had to be said for him to process them. “Travis, what have you done to Cleo?”

  Travis shook his head, a sincere air of regret on his face. “She was a nice woman. But you deserve better than nice, Mace. So much more.”

  Mason couldn’t see or hear him anymore, he felt like he was underwater. Disconnected. Cleo couldn’t be gone, he would sense it in his bones if she was. Or was it the disappearance of the love of his life that made him want to die, his soul felt empty. He had failed Cleo. He was supposed to protect her, and he had let her down. All those images of her, her sweet smile, warm skin, and enticing perfume were now gone from this world because of him.

  Travis moved, but it looked as if everything was in slow motion.

  “I thought it would affect you, but don’t worry, the grief will disappear soon. Fortunately, I thought you would be overwhelmed, so I came prepared.”

  Mason didn’t react when Travis took something out of his pocket. He didn’t care. Nothing was worthwhile anymore, so when Travis injected his arm with a syringe, Mason closed his eyes and hoped this hell would be over soon. Hopefully forever.

  * * *

  Cleo winced but stayed silent as Caitlin finished cleaning the gash on her cheek and applying butterfly bandages. “I hope it doesn’t leave a scar.”

  Cleo looked up at her friend. “I don’t give a damn about that. We need to find Mason before that psycho hurts him.” Tears threatened, but she preferred to hang on to her anger than her fear.

  Caitlin sighed. “Emme and the rest of the team are on their way from Mesa and should be here soon. All available hands are trying to find any sign of Travis leaving the apartment. Nick let everyone know what had happened.”

  Would it be enough? That question circled in her mind like a buzzing bee.

  Still debating what to do, she saw Shane entering the front door, followed by Emme, Mercy, and Wolf… and her grandmother.

  In one swift moment, Cleo’s world narrowed to the older woman, and she found herself running into her arms, the same way she had when she’d escaped Spears’ clutches. And like it was only yesterday, she was once again surrounded with tenderness, warmth, and much-needed strength.

  “My little girl.”

  Those simple three words made Cleo sob. It would have been so easy to let herself go, to fall apart, but Mason’s survival required her to keep it together. Drawing in a deep breath, Cleo stepped back and smiled through contained tears. “You’re safe now, Nana.”

  The older woman, wisps of grey hair awry, her deep brown eyes as steady and deep as ever, looked worried as she took in Cleo. “Me? What about you, my treasured child?” Worry turned to steely determination. “I’m unsinkable. You know that. But you’re hurt. That deranged man did that to you? Your friends were anxious on the plane and on our way here.”

  Cleo gingerly touched her throbbing cheek. “No, Nana. It’s a bit complicated… and…”

  When she opened her mouth to speak, a ball of tears lodged itself in her throat, preventing her from saying another word. The older woman was wise enough to nod, skimming her bruised cheek with a frown.

  “You’re a fighter. Always have been from the moment you drew your first breath until you decided you’d had enough of that nonsense back in Arizona. I can see you are fighting again, and this battle is for the young man your friends told me about, am I right?”

  Cleo looked over her grandmother’s shoulder to see Mercy and Wolf eyeing their feet in the corner as if they were the most fascinating sight in the world, which finally made her smile. Somehow, it loosened up her throat. “Has someone been yapping behind my back?”

  Wolf coughed, but winked at her, his straw cowboy hat partially hiding his eyes.

  Her grandmother followed her look and smiled at the huge man in the corner. “Don’t be too hard on him. I used all my tricks to wrangle information on what was going on.”

  Wolf’s shoulder shook a little when he answered. “Yeah, Cleo, your grandma is brutal, have pity on me.”

  This brief moment of levity steadied her enough to regain control over her emotions. “Having you here, safe, is what I need right now. I’ll explain everything later, but now, we’re running out of time to save Mason.”

  Mrs. Darwin kissed her granddaughter’s brow before nodding. “Dear Emme told me I could go lie down in a room nearby. I have everything I need. Go. Find your young man and then we’ll talk.”

  Wolf appeared by her grandmother’s side, a large bag in his hand and he escorted her out of sight. Emme, Mercy, and Caitlin closed around her in a tight circle, a silent show of support, but before anything could be said, the rest of the team, led by a grim-looking Shane, came in. Her boss nodded at her before signaling everyone to head to the conference room.

  At last, something was moving forward, and Cleo felt energized as hope steadied her. Surrounded by so many experienced and dangerous individuals, Travis didn’t stand a chance. Almost the entire Alliance Agency team sat around the conference table. Shane and Emme were at the helm.

  Shane stepped forward. “Everyone has been updated on what happened at Cleo’s apartment. We’ve all been blindsided and even if we wanted to wallow on the reasons why, our priority is Mason.”

  Everyone around the table nodded as Emme continued. “To cover our six, Kingsley, James, Alex, and Mercy are looking for Spears. He may not be our main target, but there’s no way we can let him and his men go free. It’s a disaster waiting to happen, and even if we need all hands on deck, the only solution is to split for the time being, at least until we know Spears’ whereabouts.�
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  Cleo didn’t want to think about Spears, but she had to agree with her bosses. It would be dumb to dismiss the other threat, but she would have preferred more people trying to find Mason.

  “Cleo, is there anything you can think of, any bit of information he might have given away that will help us find Mason?”

  Shane’s question was one Cleo had asked herself time and time again. “I wish I knew. He didn’t give anything away, and I didn’t think to ask.”

  Malco swiveled closer and touched her arm. “Don’t beat yourself up, Cleo. You were in survival mode. Just the fact you kept a cool head and remembered so much is amazing. I’ve been involved in countless kidnappings and rescues and I’ve seen a definite trend.”

  Nicholas smiled at her. “I agree with him. You were scared, but you fought him and tried to escape.”

  Their encouraging words settled her quivering stomach. “But bottom line, I didn’t get more information and Travis is in the wind.”

  Malco frowned. “I wouldn’t say that. I discussed it with the team as we made our way here. We’ve come up with a theory on what happened.”

  Shane nodded silently, encouraging Malco to go on. Cleo was on the edge of her seat.

  “We can’t know for sure until we get our hands on Vaughn, but I think at some point, we were the one that brought Spears into the mix.”

  Caitlin gasped. “You can’t be serious.”

  “I think it was a one in a million chance and we inadvertently stepped right into it. The usual process when looking for a stalker is to comb a person’s past to see if the threat comes from there. I’m convinced Spears being in Miami was simply a coincidence and if Mason hadn’t confronted him at the hospital, I don’t think he would have even appeared on our radar.”

  Cain leaned forward, nodding. “We shook a hornets’ nest when we could have just sidestepped it? That means Travis has no relationship with Spears either, or worse, he used it to cover his intentions toward Mason.”