by Katie Reus
Declan glanced around the foyer and into one of the living rooms as he followed Odell toward Andre’s office. There were guards posted outside and throughout the house, but the place was quiet.
In the office, Odell nodded at the flat computer screen as a driver’s license picture popped up. “When we picked up Alena I got the license plate of the vehicle she’d been in.”
“Yeah, another stolen plate.” Odell had told him this already.
“Well I noticed that the vehicle for that plate, the one following you, or allegedly following you, and the other two from the kidnapping were all from reportedly stolen vehicles taken in this…” His finger clacked over the keyboard before a map appeared on screen. Red indicator markers lit up the screen almost in a square. “They’re all from the warehouse district.”
Declan stared at the screen. It was interesting. The place had a lot of crime so it made sense.
Before he could say anything, Odell continued. “It was a longshot, but I pulled up that satellite feed again. Check it out,” he said, pulling up another feed on screen.
Multiple vehicles and a semi-truck, similar or the same as the one from the day of the kidnapping, were entering a warehouse. “When was this taken?”
“Yesterday afternoon—after Alena was free.”
Declan felt that buzz at the back of his neck, like things were shifting in their favor now. “Looks like this could be our guys.”
“Definitely worth looking into at least.” He’d head down there himself. “Can you get—”
“I’m not done,” Odell said, his voice completely smug. “That warehouse is owned by the same corporation that just bought the subdivision where Alena Brennan was held.”
Adrenaline shot through him. Oh yeah, this was the lead they’d been waiting for. “Name of owner?”
“Don’t have that yet. Still peeling back the layers. And there are a lot,” he muttered.
“Can you find a list of other holdings by the same corporation? Specifically in Miami or Florida. But this area first. And check out Homestead too.”
“On it. What are you going to do?” Odell asked as Declan headed for the door.
“Set up a team and head down there. This was good work, thanks.” Declan hated the wave of mistrust that surged through him. This was exactly why he didn’t want to get into his men’s heads. Odell might have a gambling problem and he might be involved with the kidnappers. There was also a chance he wasn’t. Sometimes Declan really loathed his gift, but the job was the job. Soon he’d find out if Odell was lying to him or not. He wasn’t telling anyone where he was headed. The team would only find out on the way.
Odell tapped his ear piece without looking up from his screen. “I’ll call you as soon as I get something concrete.”
As Declan hurried up the stairs, he ran into Nika at the top. In jeans and a feminine top with some sort of fluttery material around the hem, she looked good enough to eat. The green color made her eyes pop even more.
Right now they were very expressive. “Hey.”
“Hi.” Tension hummed through him as they faced each other. He wanted to reach out and touch her but wasn’t sure if he should. For the first time since he was a teenager, he felt awkward around a woman.
She smoothed her hands against her jeans in what he’d learned was a nervous habit of hers. “I’m sorry if I acted weird earlier. I guess I got freaked out about my sister walking in on us naked.”
“Don’t worry about it…I’ve got to take care of something but we’ll talk later.” He had a lot more he wanted to say but now just wasn’t the time. They might have a lead on Alena’s kidnappers and he couldn’t waste the opportunity. Not when they could end this thing now.
“Oh, okay.” She nodded, but he saw the flicker of hurt in her gaze, there one moment and gone the next.
“Nika…” He wasn’t sure what he wanted to say. The woman had gotten under his skin in a bad way and he had no clue how to vocalize his feelings. Talking was overrated anyway.
Cupping her cheeks in his hands, he savored the feel of her silky skin as he covered her parted lips with his. She tasted minty and sweet. As his tongue rasped against hers, his entire body reacted in an instant. His hips jolted against hers, as if he had no control over his lower body. He wanted nothing more than to take her back to his room, strip her naked, and stay that way for hours. Hell, days. Months. Maybe longer.
With strength he didn’t know he had, he pulled back on a groan. She sucked in a breath, her lips slightly swollen as she looked up at him.
“Shit, Nika. I’ve got to go, but we’re going to finish this kiss and I’ll explain everything later. I promise,” he murmured against her cheek. Never in his life had he wanted to put something or someone before his job.
Without glancing back, he headed to his room and tried to clear his head. The job was the most important thing right now and if they could find a solid lead, some of the other puzzle pieces might start making sense.
First, he called Clay, who was sleeping in Andre’s guest house, along with his best guys.
“Yeah, boss,” Clay answered on the second ring, sounding slightly tired.
“Get two, four man teams together. We’re rolling out in ten.”
“Where’re we headed?”
“I’ll tell you on the way. Make sure our guys are wearing vests and have extra ammo.”
The men they were after had already proven they had no problem opening fire in the middle of the day. They might have gotten the drop on his men once, but they didn’t have the advantage of surprise today. Declan intended to strike hard and fast with no loss of life.
When they disconnected he called his assistant. It was Sunday but she had a computer at home.
“Hey, boss.” Blair yawned as she answered.
“Sorry if I woke you.”
“No worries. What’s up?”
“You mind working from home today?”
“Nope, but you owe me.”
“I need you to run a search on a girl named Selina Reynolds. She’s either listed as missing or dead. I don’t know how old she is, but I think she was under ten when she disappeared. Call your contact with the FBI if you have any trouble.” He’d wanted to handle this one personally, but right now he didn’t have the time.
“Uh, sure. Anything particular I should be looking for?”
“Information on her parents, where she went missing. Anything and everything you can find. I want to know if the case was ever solved.”
“Okay. Anything else?”
“Yeah. Run Odell’s financial records, phone records, and anything you can think of.”
There was a long pause. “Odell Dunn?”
He scrubbed a hand over his face. Until that stupid dream walk, he’d been so sure Odell was above reproach. “Yeah. And look up a reference to ‘Southern Dancer’. I think it might be a horse.”
“I’ll call you as soon as I’ve got anything.”
“Thanks.”
After gearing up and packing extra ammo, he met his team in front of the house. He’d already notified Andre of what was going down, but other than him, no one else knew. The guys on perimeter security would see them leaving, but they wouldn’t know anything else.
“So where are we headed?” Clay asked as they pulled down the driveway.
“Warehouse district.” His tone and curt answer didn’t invite conversation or questions. Exactly the way he wanted it.
Declan glanced in the rearview mirror at Nathaniel and Kevin Croft, friends he’d recruited straight out of the Marines. With eight years of recon training under their belts, they had more than enough experience to handle an ambush. So did the four men in the SUV behind them. He could have assembled more men, but the chance of taking these guys by surprise would have lessened if they’d waited any longer.
Declan called Rico, another of his men, using Onstar.
“Yeah?” he answered.
“Put me on speaker.”
When the others were
on the line Declan spoke. “We have a lead that the men who kidnapped Alena Brennan might be staying somewhere in the warehouse district. Odell followed up on a hunch and if it pays off, we’ll have these guys.” Or at least some of them. “Stay close because we’re going to park a couple blocks to the south and take them by surprise. Everyone will break down into teams of two. As soon as we disconnect, I’m contacting Odell to send a satellite and ground view of the area to your phones. We’ll know more when we have an actual visual. I know this is last minute and we’ll technically be going in blind.” But he wouldn’t apologize for that. They all had the right training and were prepared for this type of situation. “Does anyone have any questions?”
Clay and the other two shook their heads. There was a light murmur on the other end before Rico answered. “We’re good on this end, boss.”
It was impossible to have everything mapped out until they were on the ground and had a visual, but he wanted to make sure they knew what they were up against.
* * *
Andre stared at his rumpled, empty bed, and berated himself. Alena was free to do what she chose. Still, it irritated him more than he could have imagined that she’d left in the middle of the night. He supposed a lot of men would be happy to have their space, but he didn’t like the way she’d left.
Everything about the woman was a mystery. Even during sex, she held something back from him and it was driving him fucking crazy. She was there, in every physical sense of the word and definitely enthusiastic, but she was keeping something from him.
He stepped out of his room to find one of Declan’s security guys—Ramon something—standing at attention against the wall near Alena’s room. “Is everything all right, Ramon?”
The man’s eyebrows raised slightly, no doubt because Andre knew his first name. “Yes, sir. Mr. Gallagher wants me to watch the women until he returns.”
“Thank you and whatever Declan asked you to do, keep doing it.”
“Of course, sir.” He nodded and kept his gaze straight ahead as Andre knocked once on Alena’s door.
Without waiting for an answer, he opened it. It was rude, he knew that. He just didn’t care. As he entered, Alena was exiting the bathroom wearing a matching black bra and panty set. A jolt of need swept through him as his gaze raked over her toned body.
Her dark eyebrows rose as she wrapped her arms around herself. “Uh…hi.”
He immediately shut the door, not wanting anyone to get a view of her half-dressed. “I knocked and you didn’t answer so…” Suddenly he felt like an asshole. “I’ll leave.”
“No, it’s okay.” She dropped her arms and strode toward him, quickly reverting back to the sex kitten he’d had in his bed last night.
She wasn’t after him for his money. Of that, he was sure. He’d run across more than his share of gold diggers and she didn’t fit the mold. She had enough money of her own and she’d dated richer men than him. Several had proposed to her, including a prince.
“Why’d you leave this morning?” he asked, trying to ignore what her mere presence did to his thought process.
She slid her arms around his waist and tilted her head back to look up at him. “I couldn’t sleep and didn’t want to keep you up with my tossing and turning.”
“You’re sure that’s it?” He tightened his grip around her. She melted right into him, as if she’d been made for him. The thought gave him pause because it was so unlike him.
“Of course.” It was almost imperceptible but her voice rose slightly when she answered and he knew she was lying.
He decided to ignore it for now. It wouldn’t do any good to grill her like some criminal. For all he knew, she just liked her privacy. And she’d been through a hell of a lot the past few days. “Have you had breakfast yet?”
“No, but I’m meeting Nika downstairs in a few minutes. Did you want to join us?”
“I’ll just have coffee for now and I’ll be in my office most of the day if you need me.” Just because he was in Miami didn’t mean his business dealings stopped. He was thankful for the time difference of his west coast and central businesses, though. He actually got some peace in the mornings. Of course, his staff called him later into the night, but it was a fair trade off.
“Well, I can’t exactly go anywhere, but maybe you can take a break around lunch time.” A playful grin spread across her face as she dug her fingers into his backside.
His abdomen tightened as she slid her hands upward and began tugging at his shirt. He wanted her more than he’d wanted anyone, but if they started something now, he knew he wouldn’t stop for a while. He had so much damn work to catch up on. He ran his fingers through her hair and cupped the back of her head as he dropped a kiss on her mouth. “Hold that thought until lunch,” he murmured.
She pouted prettily with her bottom lip and he almost threw his restraint out the window. Somehow, he ordered his legs toward the door, but paused. “Just so you know, Declan might have a lead on your kidnappers. He’s following up right now.”
“Thank God.” Genuine relief crossed her face and some of the tension he’d been feeling earlier dissipated. “Is your father still coming to dinner tonight?”
Her question stopped him cold. It wasn’t the words, but the slight change in tone in her normally seductive voice.
His hand on the brass doorknob, he turned. “Yes. Unless you’ve changed your mind?”
“No.” Something flashed in her gaze, but her toothpaste commercial smile lit up her face and he wondered if he was imagining things. “I’ll see you in a few hours.”
Nodding, he left, but he couldn’t rid himself of the queasiness that settled in his gut. Why would she care about his father? If she did at all? He made a note to have his assistant run her records again. He’d been positive he’d done a thorough job before, but maybe he’d missed something. He might care about her, but he wasn’t going to let her make a fool out of him.
Chapter 22
Declan adjusted the microphone in his ear and crouched against the warehouse wall. “Is everyone in position?” He kept his voice low.
Rico was the first to answer. “The perimeter is clear on this side.”
Nathaniel spoke next. “Me and Kevin got ya covered too.”
The teammates were positioned on two neighboring rooftops, providing extra cover. Considering both men had been Force Recon, Declan knew they’d provide the best backup.
When everyone else gave affirmations that they were in position, he turned to Clay, who was crouched next to him. “I’ll go in first, you cover me.”
After parking a few blocks away, they’d surrounded the target; a seemingly unoccupied and nondescript warehouse. Under better circumstances, they would have been able to stake out the place for a few days and plant listening devices inside. As it was now, this was going to be more or less a straight assault.
Using a wireless snake video camera, Declan and Clay had gotten a visual of four men inside, but there could be more. Declan nodded once at Clay, then eased open one of the side doors. The locks were worn with age and he’d had no problem picking this one. Weapon drawn, Declan swept inside first.
Dark brownish stains covered the expanse of the concrete floor. Using a large metal container as cover, he ducked behind it.
“You’re clear,” he murmured into his mic.
Clay followed seconds later and pulled the hollow steel door shut behind him. Their rubber soled shoes were silent against the concrete floor. The layout of the building was fairly standard for a warehouse; a big square box with offices on one side of it.
With the exception of the random metal containers, the base of the warehouse was relatively empty.
Crouching next to him, Clay made a few quick motions with his hands. Declan nodded. There was a green truck sitting in the middle of the warehouse, but the men they’d seen earlier weren’t with it. They could be using this place as a stash house of sorts. Since they hadn’t seen the men exit, Declan guessed they were in one of the o
ffices.
A low hum of male voices and footsteps grew louder with each passing second. Declan peered around their hiding place, then motioned to Clay to get ready to move.
Two men were loading AK-47s into the back of the vehicle while one man stood guard.
Catching these guys by surprise was their main objective. Weapons drawn, Declan and Clay swiveled around from their hiding place. “Don’t move!” Declan’s voice echoed throughout the building.
The two men with weapons froze, but the third went for his pistol.
“Don’t do it!” Clay took a few steps closer and the guy stopped and lifted his hands in the air.
Keeping his weapon trained on the men, Declan whispered into his mic, “Rico, there’s still one guy missing. You and Travis enter from the back.”
“Affirmative.”
Declan trained his weapon on the man in the middle of the three of them. “Drop your weapons. Now!”
After a short pause, they dropped to the floor with a clatter.
“Now kick them over here.”
One of the men muttered something, but they all did as he ordered. “Everyone on their knees.” When they complied he tucked his weapon into its holster.
He knew Clay would cover him. They’d worked together long enough to have that kind of trust.
He moved to the right, flanking them from the side. He had no doubt he could handle two of them at once, but if they did decide to attack, he wasn’t going to make it easy for them.
Declan nodded at the man closest to him. “Hands behind your back.” When he positioned his hands, Declan quickly snapped the zip ties around his hands, then secured the man’s ankles. Feet and knees could be just as deadly as a fist and he didn’t know what kind of training these guys had.
“Who do you work for?” he asked as he secured the next man’s wrists.
“Go fuck yourself,” the first man snapped.
After he’d secured the third man’s wrists and ankles, he started to speak into his mic when Rico said, “Caught a guy trying to jump out a window. He’s secured. We’re sweeping the offices upstairs. So far they’re clear.”
