“I don’t believe you. Let him tell me that.”
“My son is still recovering from his injuries. He doesn’t need to see a scorned little girl crying over him. He needs rest, not guilt.”
“I’m not a little girl.”
“I know that and, actually, that’s why I let you in today. I have a job for you, Isa. One that I think will help you get closure. And will also help keep my son safe. That’s what you want most, isn’t it? For the man you love to be safe.”
“Of course I want him to be safe.”
“Then let’s focus on that, not your broken heart. You’re young, someone else will come along. But could you live with my son being a target when you could’ve eliminated the man who would threaten him?”
“You want me to kill Mays.”
“Yes.”
I nod. “I’ll do it.”
Because she’s right. I love Jake enough to want to protect him, even as my heart’s breaking.
* * *
Jake
I can’t remember much about how I got out of that gym. But I know Isa was there. She was wearing a wig, and her eyes were green, but it was her. My mother denies it, but I know what I saw.
I want to call her, but no one will give me a phone. They say I need to rest and recuperate. But it’s been almost two weeks. And if I can talk to the police, I should sure as hell be able to talk to the woman I love. I would get one myself, but my mom’s been keeping me drugged up, and there are guards at my door around the clock. I bribed my day nurse to lessen my meds, though, so it’s game on.
“Jake, you’re up,” my mom says as she enters my room.
“It’s the middle of the afternoon, Mom. Of course I’m up.”
“And in as good a mood as ever, I see.”
“I need a phone.”
“No.”
“You can’t keep me from her.”
“If it protects you, then yes I can.”
“She saved me. I know she was there.”
“You had serious head trauma. And I’ve seen security tapes. There was no one there with her description.”
“I won’t stay here forever. When I get out, I’m going to find her. If you make me wait that long, you won’t get a wedding invitation. I swear it.”
“A wedding? You can’t be serious.”
“About spending the rest of my life with Isa? I’m dead serious. About not inviting you to the wedding, well I can be persuaded to change my mind. If you give me a damn phone.”
“Jake.”
“Mom. Phone. Now.”
“Fine, but I really am trying to protect you.”
“I don’t need your protection,” I say, holding out my hand for the phone.
I dial Isa’s number, but it goes to voicemail. I don’t want to leave a message on there, so I use the browser on the phone to get the number for the Foundation. Alex Griffin answers on the second ring.
“Hi Alex. It’s Jake Mason. I’m trying to get in touch with Isa.”
“Oh my God, Mase. I mean Jake. I mean…whatever your name is. She’s been so worried.”
“You can call me either name. I haven’t had a phone until now so I couldn’t call her. Is she there?”
“No. She…um, well I should let you talk to Reina. Hold on.”
“Sure. I’d love to talk to Reina.”
“Hang up the phone, Jake. Please,” my mom says, and that’s when I know I’m not going to like what I’m about to hear. I shake my head and hold the phone tighter.
It takes less than a minute before Reina’s on the line. “You’re looking for Isa, Mase? Didn’t your mother tell you where she is?”
“No. My mother has kept me from a phone and told me nothing.”
I glare at her, and she shrinks before my eyes. She may control the Armed Forces, but she’s done controlling me. What did she do to Isa?
“Mays got away when the house was raided. He tried to take Grace with him, but she managed to get to us first. The President gave permission for him to be taken down, and your mother…well, she guilted Isa into going after him.”
“My mother sent Isa after Bartlett Mays? How did she make her feel guilty enough to do it?”
“I don’t know the exact details. I wasn’t there. I only know Isa came home and cried for two days straight before she told us what happened.”
“Shit. What do you know about anything else involving Isa and my mother? I need you to tell me everything. And don’t worry about Dear Old Mom. She won’t go after you unless she wants to never see me again. I’m putting you on speakerphone.”
My mom sinks into the chair next to my bed and holds her head in her hands. We’re definitely having a serious talk about boundaries when I get off this phone call. After I know the extent of what she’s done. I told her how much I loved Isa, so it makes whatever she did to her even worse.
“Okay. Here’s what I know. Your mother had already contacted my fiancé and his friends to help you when you were taken. They help her with sensitive missions from time to time apparently. After you saved Tegan, she burst into our offices with a full military escort and demanded they go get you. Isa said she was going to go with them. She didn’t ask, she insisted that she be there to help get you out alive. We all left them alone to talk for a few minutes while we made preparations, and I thought it went well. Isa told our friend Stella that your mom approved of her, and that once she got you back, everything would be great.
“And she did get you back. It was all her, Mase. She took out a guard in the house and then all three who were with you in the gym. By herself. When we got there, she was holding you in her arms. She held onto you as the paramedics took your vitals and got you onto the gurney. And that’s when it all started to go bad.”
“She wasn’t at the hospital when I woke up.”
“No. When we were waiting offsite with local law enforcement, some military men joined us. We thought it was a good thing. Until they physically pried Isa’s hands off of you and held her back while you were loaded onto the ambulance. They made her stay to be questioned, even though the local guys had told me they could find her at the hospital and get her statement. We wanted to fight them, but since they were there on behalf of you mother, and I couldn’t reach POTUS, we had to do what they said.
“When Isa was done, we rushed her to the hospital the paramedics had told us you’d be at. They told us that you were gone already. That you had been moved to a hospital in Virginia.”
“My mother took me from her.” I look at her, and I know she feels my rage like it’s a physical thing. “You fucking took me from Isa after I told you I loved her. After she saved me.”
“Jake, please.”
I ignore her for now. “Sorry for the interruption, Reina. Please continue.”
“I gave Isa the Corrigan jet we had with us, and she flew to you, along with our friend, Jade. They wouldn’t let her see you. There were military men there who told her that your mother had given orders for her to be kept away from you. She wouldn’t leave the city, though. She slept in the closest hotel to the hospital and watched every day until she saw you leave. She…um, she said there was a beautiful brunette with you, holding your hand when you did.”
“Brunette? Oh, you mean Vicki. She must’ve seen Vicki. She’s been my best friend since I was five.”
“And your ex.”
“Well, kind of.”
“Isa said the nurse in I.C.U. called her your girlfriend, and your mother told her you were back together when she went to the house to talk to her.”
“Isa was here? In the house?”
“Yes. Like I said, your mother told her you were back with your old girlfriend and didn’t want to see her. She told her you were caught up in what you were doing, and it made you feel things that weren’t real.” I hear her take a deep breath and watch as my mother’s eyes plead with me. “She told Isa that you realized you never really loved her.”
“No. No. She couldn’t.” I look at her. “You wouldn’t
do that. Please tell me Reina’s wrong.”
“She’s not the one for you.”
“I just told you I want to marry her, so you’re obviously incorrect.”
“But Vicki is much better for you.”
I’m so angry, I can’t even respond.
“In high school, you were the golden couple.”
“We pretended to be that to make you and her parents happy. We weren’t interested in each other romantically. We tried to kiss once, and it was gross for both of us. I felt like I was kissing my sister.”
“She practically flew to your bedside.”
“Because she’s my best friend. Stop getting me off topic. I still need to know about the mission Isa’s on. Sorry again for interrupting, Reina.”
“I understand. So, yeah. All of that happened, and then your mother told Isa something about how if she really loved you, she would make sure Mays could never hurt you again. She came back, cried over her broken heart, and then went after him.”
“You’re in touch with her, right? You can tell her I do love her and that I’m coming to her.”
“That’s just it. She hasn’t called in for the past two days, and she doesn’t answer when we call her. I’m getting worried because she went by herself with another group of guys your mother uses.”
No. She didn’t. She wouldn’t. But I’ve learned that she would.
“Where is she, Mom?”
“I only wanted the best for you.”
“If she’s hurt, I’ll never forgive you.”
“She’s not hurt.”
Yet. I hear that unspoken word. “Stop whatever you have planned and get her back here to me.”
“I’m sorry.”
“I don’t want to hear that right now,” I tell her. I speak to Reina again. “I’m going to have her brought here, Reina. I’ll call you as soon as I know anything else.”
“Thank you. And Liz? You can forget about ever asking Matt, Nate, or Aiden for help. That’s not going to happen. And no one in the Society will take a call from you ever again.”
“Reina, you can’t do that.”
“I just did.”
“I’ll go to Jane.”
“I’ve been on this call from the beginning, Liz. What you have done to Isa is unforgivable. She loves your son and risked her own life to save him. Not to mention that going after one of my girls was the stupidest thing you’ve ever done. It will never be forgiven, and as Reina told you, no help will be given to you ever again. I’ve already discussed this with the President.”
My mom goes pale, and I think she may pass out. Good. I love her, but God help me, I don’t know that I can forgive her for what she’s done. That she did it in the name of her love for me makes it even worse.
“I’m going to get off this phone, so she can call her dogs off and get our girl back here. I’ll talk to you soon.”
I hang up and turn to the woman I used to think hung the moon. “Make the call.”
* * *
Isa
This mission has been weird and stressful. I mean, all missions are stressful, but this one’s different. For one thing, I’m working with strangers who took my phone. And then there’s the fact that I’m doing it with a broken heart, which is not the mindset anyone should be in when conducting a mission. Unless said mission is to kill the person who tortured the man you love. Then it works pretty well.
So well in fact that the target didn’t even see it coming. I got the Secretary of State alone by practically climbing onto his lap in his favorite pub here in Dublin. Once we were in his room, I just had to start stripping before he told his guards—who are actually here with me—to wait outside. A single shot to the head was all it took. I should be on my way back to the States already. But it’s hard to do that when someone’s pointing a gun at you.
I underestimated the lengths Liz Mason would go to in order to make sure I stay away from her son. She already told me he doesn’t love me, so I don’t know why she thinks I’d come around again. But apparently she does because two from this special team of hers pulled guns on me when they came in the room. The third is setting up the scene the way we had planned. Although there will now be two bodies for the local police to find, instead of just one.
If I give in, that is. Which would be so easy to do. But I’ve never been one to take the easy way out. I’m working through all the possible scenarios in my head, when a phone starts to ring. The guy in charge, the one who’s setting the scene, answers while looking at me.
“Everything went as planned. I’m just setting the scene.”
He listens for a moment and then responds.
“No. We’ve got guns on her, but she’s not dead yet.”
I want to hear the other side to this conversation. I wish he would put it on speaker. He doesn’t, of course, but I really wish he would.
“What? Are you sure? You sound like you’re under duress. Is someone making you say this, Ma’am?”
Now I really want to know what’s going on.
“What? Oh hey. How’s it going?”
The smile slips from his face, and his eyes goes wide as he listens.
“Shit. I’ll take care of it. No worries, man. See you soon.”
He hangs up and tells the other guys to lower their guns. “We have a change in plans, guys. The beautiful Isabelle here is Jake’s woman. His mommy didn’t like that, so she was going to have us take her out. After she did the dirty work for her. Which she knows how to do because she’s also a member of the infamous Society. And like a little sister to Matt Corrigan, Aiden Ford, and Nate Anderson.”
“Fuck. Jake, the Society, and the Triple Threat? We’d have no chance at staying alive no matter where we tried to hide,” his friend says.
“That would depend on whether the guys or the girls found you. They guys would probably kick your asses a little, and then kill you. The girls would hurt you bad, but keep you alive. If it helps, though, I’m not Jake’s woman anymore. He’s back with his ex. So he wouldn’t care,” I tell them, trying hard to act nonchalant about this whole situation.
“That’s not what he said on the phone. We’re to get you safely back to Virginia. And I…we…well, we’re sorry about all this. Taking your phone, and, you know, the guns.”
“You were following orders. I get that. Just don’t expect us to be best friends after this.”
“Got it. Although, you’re a pretty cool chick, Isabelle.”
“Thanks.”
They finish up with the room, and then we all head to the airport. They give me a wide berth on the plane, leaving me to my own thoughts. Number one of which is why Jake would say I’m his woman. He didn’t need to do it to save me. The Society and the “Triple Threat” would’ve been enough. I guess I’ll ask him when I see him.
I also think about what’s been going on at home while I was gone. Once I got my phone back, I called Reina to check in and see how everything’s been going. A lot has gone on since I was fully functioning, and I feel bad that my friends had to do it all without me. Reina told me that everyone was happy to help.
After the raid, Tegan got her punch for Kurt in, while I was a little too distracted to care anymore. His father tried to buy him out of jail time, but it didn’t work. He’s being tried as an adult, and bail was denied while he waits for his trial. He sang like a canary while trying to work a plea deal. Working with Al and Cathy from the local PIT team, authorities in all the other cities were able to shut those organizations down.
My friends got Max and Grace into counseling. When the school found out what was going on, they granted Max her scholarship for the next year without question. If they hadn’t, I would’ve just paid her tuition. But it’s the least they can do. Literally. I also asked Reina to use some of our connections to make sure she gets a place at one of her dream schools once she graduates. She assured me that Max is all taken care of in that department.
The high school wanted to kick Grace out, but Ellie intervened so they’re allo
wing her to stay. She’s on strict probation, and from what I was told, she’s okay with that. Her mom was horrified by what happened and has vowed to pay more attention to her daughter.
We saved a lot of girls this time around. I should be dancing and celebrating. But I can’t. So I do the only thing that will make me stop stressing about what’s going to go down once we land. I fall asleep.
Chapter 17
Isa
While I was sleeping, someone placed a blanket over me. I know this because it shifts on top of me as I’m being gently shaken awake. “We just landed,” the guy in charge tells me.
I thank him and stand up. As I’m walking to the cabin door, I hear a string of expletives. When I step outside, I see why. All the girls, as well as the guys, are here to meet me. I run down the stairs and am quickly engulfed in a giant group hug. I’m so glad to see all of them.
Matt’s voice, which sounds like it could cut ice, rings out next to me. “Which of these bastards held a gun on you, Isa?”
“Look, Matt. We were just following orders. You have to understand that. I know you haven’t agreed with every assignment you’ve been sent on.”
“It’s not their fault, Matt,” I tell him.
“Fine, but look at all of these women very closely. And know that if you were to ever hurt one of them, I’d hunt you to the ends of the Earth.”
“We got it. We’ll stay away from them. If you want to know the truth, they scare us more than the three of you do.”
“Smart men,” Reina says with a laugh.
“What now?” I ask after they leave us alone.
“We’re going to go to the house here and get you all prettified so you can go see your man and his evil mommy.”
“I don’t have a man, Stella.”
“Talk to him, Isa,” Reina says.
“Is that an order?”
“If it has to be, then yes.”
I just want to go back to Vegas and hide, but since I can’t do that, I let Stella have her way with me. I must admit that the dress she picked for me is kind of perfect. And she just pulls my hair back into a sleek ponytail. The shoes are black and white with high heels that I can actually walk in. I’m dressed to kill after almost being killed.
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