Bodyguard Rescue

by Donna Young

  “How does it feel, Cerberus?” Threader continued, un aware. “To know that these last months of agony you’ve been living through were for a woman who sold you and your country out for cold, hard cash?”

  It felt like hell. As if Amanda’s treachery had ripped out his soul. But he couldn’t feed the anger, not yet, not until Kate was safe. Pushing the thought away, he carefully maintained an even expression. “And the woman in the courtyard?”

  “The one you killed, you mean?” Threader chuckled. “I enjoyed that act of heroism very much, by the way.” Then he waved his hand. “She was nothing more than a whore from Mexico City who happened to look like Phoenix.”

  Roman stiffened, letting his gaze drop to the gun in his hand. It didn’t matter who it was, she was an innocent who died because of him.

  Kate touched his arm but he didn’t dare look at her. He didn’t dare face the compassion he would see in those clear, gray eyes.

  There was one piece of information still missing. Slowly he lifted his gaze. “Why?” he asked, a hint of steel underplayed the importance of the question. “Why the game of cat and mouse?”

  Threader scrutinized the end of the cigar. “‘If it feed nothing, it will feed my revenge,’” he quoted Shakespeare quietly. Then he crushed the still-lit cigar in his fist and threw it against the window. Only then did he look up at Roman, the intellectual facade gone, replaced by demented fury.

  Suddenly an explosion shook the ceiling. Threader’s eyes narrowed briefly on the threesome before he stepped away from the window to the monitors. Roman glanced at Quamar and moved forward, his machine gun raised.

  “Threader!” Roman yelled the name as he and Quamar opened fire on the observation room window. Bullets ripped through electronics and steel, shredding everything in their path. He barely noted the surprised scream from Kate. She’d covered her ears, but he didn’t stop as he turned his Uzi on the surveillance cameras surrounding them. As the bullets poured from the gun, so did Roman’s rage.

  Within a few minutes the gunfire ceased just as abruptly as it began. He threw down the empty weapon and grabbed his pistol before pulling Kate behind him. Crouched to the ground, the three of them made their way to an exit at the far end of the lab.

  “Once the system shuts down, the doors unlock.” Roman’s gaze pinned Quamar. “Then get her the hell out of here.”

  Kate felt the cold steel panels through her clothes as she sat huddled by a bank of equipment. She watched while Roman, balanced on the balls of his feet, squatted beside her and checked the ammunition clip in his pistol.

  Kate didn’t have to ask him what he planned to do. “You didn’t know, Roman,” she said as she took in his rage with concerned eyes. “You thought it was her, they made sure of that. No one knew.”

  “I should have. If I’d realized sooner that Amanda was a double agent I could’ve stopped Threader months ago.”

  A tsking sound pierced the air. “And the fact remains, Katherine, a woman is dead and the great Cerberus failed in his duty to protect. Just as he’s failed you.” Threader laughed, the low-pitched tone sounded Vincent Price–like over the speakers. “Your weapons barely scratched the bulletproof glass, Cerberus. An amazing piece of equipment, is it not? Quite effective. It stops bullets as well as Halon stops fires.”

  Halon? Halon extinguished fires by reducing the oxygen that the flames fed on. Kate’s eyes followed Roman’s as they glanced over the ceiling. Spouts. Then with a jab of his finger, he indicated his discovery to Quamar.

  “In several minutes you will begin to feel the effects.” Threader was saying as the sound of hissing air filled the room. “Pity. I would have preferred our working together rather than watching your demise, Katherine.”

  Kate looked around the room, doing swift calculations in her mind. Threader hadn’t lied. It would take a few minutes for the gas to reach them. The problem was she didn’t think the system would crash before they suffocated. Even if it was close, she wasn’t sure they could live on the difference.

  Kate twisted around to face both men. “I need you to trust me, Roman.” Her hands were icy as they grabbed his, but they were steady. Then her gazed locked on Quamar, silently pleading for help. The giant’s expression flickered in response. She looked back at Roman. “And promise me that once you’re free, you’ll rescue me.”

  “What the hell are you talking—”

  “Threader!” Before Roman could stop her, Kate sprang from their hiding place and ran toward the observation room. She heard Roman’s bellow of rage but didn’t dare glance back, understanding Quamar would keep him from coming after her. The giant knew as well as she did this was their only chance.

  “As you know I’ve developed a process that slows matter-antimatter reaction,” she shouted, then skidded to a stop in the center of the laboratory, placing herself in full view of the observation room windows.

  There was a long pause. Long enough for Kate to think Threader was going to ignore her. Then the loudspeaker clicked on.

  “Go on, Doctor.”

  “Marcus Boyd came to you because he discovered a se cret I’ve kept hidden from everyone. Including the government.” She drew another deep breath. “My experiments are further advanced than anyone believes. As of a month ago, I was able to maintain annihilation indefinitely.”

  Silence met her words, a long enough silence to allow her a short litany of prayers.

  “If I promise to give you the formula, will you stop the Halon?” she prodded after a few moments.

  “Oh, you will give me much more than that, Doctor. Understand?”

  The greed in his voice coated the words like warm honey. She had him. “I understand.” Relief made her slightly dizzy. Or maybe it was Halon, she couldn’t be sure. “Stop the gas.”

  Threader studied her for a moment through the window. She met him stare for stare.

  “You trust me to keep my word?”

  No, she thought. “You trust me to give you the right formula?”

  “Oh, yes, I can guarantee it, Doctor.” With a nod, he walked away. Soon the hissing stopped and he reappeared by the windows. “Take the elevator directly in front of you. It opens into this room.”

  Time was precious and Kate needed to make every second count. As slowly as possible, she walked to the doors. She counted thirty seconds, and then punched the button. As she’d hoped, the elevator’s descent to her level took several moments, giving her the opportunity to scan the room, wanting reassurance that the men were safe.

  Suddenly Roman appeared not ten feet away from her side—out of Threader’s view. His warrior’s body poised and powerful, his eyes unblinkingly cold. Her gaze dropped to the gun in his hand, hanging at his side. Only the clenching of his jaw revealed the internal battle he waged. Instinctively, Kate understood he fought the urge to go with her, even knowing the surveillance camera in the elevator would give them away.

  Fear, sharp and poignant, shot through her as the steel doors slid open. She caught the edge of one with a trembling hand. Roman didn’t move as she stepped on the elevator. Again she waited a few precious seconds before hitting the button—it wasn’t until after she’d dared to glance back at him. He hadn’t moved, his face tempered steel, his eyes fierce. Only when the doors closed again did she lean back against the wall and curl her hand around the railing in desperation. Please, let this work.

  When the steel doors parted again, Threader was waiting for her, a gun pointed at her chest. “Hands behind your head,” he ordered, all pleasantness gone. Slowly Kate complied.

  He patted her down. “You disappoint me, Katherine. I’d really thought that you’d started to care for me,” he sneered as he straightened, apparently satisfied she was unarmed.

  She glanced at the weapon now prodding her stomach. “I can see how devastated you are, Threader.”

  “My dear, you haven’t really tasted true devastation. That will come when Cerberus dies.”

  “No!” Kate didn’t have to fake her cry of ala
rm even though she’d expected Threader’s betrayal. He grasped her hair and dragged her to a control panel hidden beside the monitors, then with a quiet deliberation, he flipped the fire protection switch.

  Unable to stop herself, Kate watched the monitors for a sign of the two men below, hoping she’d given the system enough time to crash before Roman and Quamar succumbed.

  “You won’t get the formula.” She spoke the words qui etly, vehemently. The gas had stopped for three minutes, possibly four. But was it enough?

  Threader turned to her and slid the muzzle of the gun down her cheek. “I’ll take pleasure in proving you wrong.”

  Just then another round of explosions sounded. Kate’s eyes darted to the TV screens just in time to see Cain dash across the compound.

  Threader’s gaze followed hers. “It looks like your brother is keeping busy. I imagine he’s called for reinforcements.”

  “Brothers,” Kate corrected, feeling unusually calm as she watched Ian follow Cain.

  “No matter,” Threader said angrily, then shoved her through the door and down the hallway. “By the time my guards finish with them, we’ll be gone.” Once again he gripped her hair, using the long tresses to drag her along and throw her into an elevator. Kate winced as her head slammed against the railing. She slid to the floor and shook her head, trying to stop the ringing in her ears. “You can’t get away with this.”

  He hit the button with his fist. “I’ve already gotten away with it, my dear.”

  When the doors slid open to his study, he grabbed her arm and dragged her across the room before thrusting her into his throne chair. She cried out as her hip struck the desk, knocking a stone statue to the floor.

  “Given the correct command, my system is designed to send all significant data to various satellite offices,” he smirked, carefully keeping her pinned with the weapon.

  Kate watched the computer with apprehension. Unnoticed, the virus would transfer with any data, infecting Threader’s other computers.

  Hurry, damn it. She bit her lip in frustration as Threader blocked the screen. The system should’ve started crashing by now.

  “What the hell is this?” He leaned toward the computer, then twisted back toward her. “What did you do?” He screamed before leveling his pistol at her forehead. She could feel the cool steel digging into her skin. He clicked the hammer back. “Tell me!”

  A gunshot exploded and Kate screamed. Thinking Threader fired, it took a moment for her to realize she was still breathing.

  She opened her eyes to see Threader staring at his white silk shirt. A crimson stain spread rapidly across his chest. He swung his arm but was too slow. Another shot caught him in the shoulder, jerking him back. He coughed, then blinked, trying to focus as he looked across the room.

  A woman stood in the doorway of the study. Her streaked hair was coiffed smoothly in a severe bun that emphasized the tight black leather pantsuit covering her from neck to ankle. In her hand she held a large handgun pointed directly at the arms dealer.

  “I underestimated your greed, Phoenix.” He coughed again, and this time Kate saw the bubbles of blood on his bottom lip as he tried to raise his pistol. “I won’t again.”

  The weapon tilted and for a second Kate thought he would fire. Then Threader’s grip slackened and the pistol dipped, hanging from his fingertips. She watched the gun balance for a moment, then drop to the floor as he clutched the edge of the desktop for support.

  “Even dying, your ego has no boundaries, Threader,” came the dry reply as Threader collapsed behind the desk.

  Kate swung her head toward Phoenix, whose garish red lips curved with pleasure.

  “I enjoyed that much more than I thought I would.”

  Gunfire sprayed the mansion’s exterior. Phoenix crossed to the desk window and parted the heavy velvet drapes. Kate sank deeper into the chair and stared uneasily at the huge pistol trained on her heart.

  “It appears he underestimated more than just me,” Phoenix observed. Her eyes flickered over Kate before she peered out the window. “That’s the sound of Threader’s men dying out there. You’ll be glad to know that Prometheus is kicking their butt.”

  “I am.”

  She studied Kate’s defiant expression. “I’ll bet you are, doll. Well, I’m not going to be around when he gets here.” She let her hand fall from the curtain. “And neither are you.”

  Phoenix kicked Threader’s body aside, the movement sending Threader’s gun under his desk and out of Kate’s reach. She braced herself to run. The risk of being a hostage outweighed her fear of being shot. Kate shifted her feet slightly, intent on planting them solidly in front of her, when her toe hit the small statue.

  “I always wondered how Cerberus could fall for a mousy scientist.”

  Kate stopped, her full attention on Phoenix. “I don’t know what you mean.”

  The other woman let out a deep, sultry laugh. “Then you aren’t as smart as everyone thinks you are. He never talked about your relationship, but it was obvious he’d changed. Then Prometheus lost his girlfriend to a car bomb and Cerberus walked away from you. After, he’d lost the edge that forged his reputation.”

  Kate forced herself to breathe evenly. If what Phoenix said was true, then Roman had left to protect her. The last four days with him flooded her mind, but quickly she pushed them away. Now wasn’t the time to think about what his actions implied.

  Phoenix typed a few commands on the keyboard. “You are clever, aren’t you? Not as clever as me, of course, but some.”

  Kate nudged the statue with her heel. “Roman knows you’re the mole.”

  Phoenix glanced up, seemingly unimpressed with the information before a beep drew her attention back to the computer. “I expected him to figure it out sooner or later. If he hadn’t been distracted with you, it would have been sooner. I guess I should thank you for that.” Frowning, she typed in one more command. “Of course it would have helped if you’d managed to complete Nigel’s research. Then I could’ve taken it from there.”

  With another small nudge, Kate felt the figurine tap the front leg of her chair.

  “Damn it.” Phoenix slammed her fist against the keyboard, startling Kate. “Congratulations, your virus did its job,” she said as her finger tightened on the trigger. Kate froze. “Threader’s business records, the research—everything—gone. But I’m sure you knew that, Doctor,” Pheonix snarled. With her free hand, she shoved the computer off the desk.

  Hope flared through Kate. If the files were gone, the security systems and power grid were next. Kate used the distraction to snag the statue.

  “I don’t like to lose.” Phoenix’s eyes narrowed. “So it seems we have a change of plans.” She hauled Kate up, her face only centimeters away. “You’ve just become my insurance policy, doll.”

  Steel jabbed at her ribs and Kate tightened her hand on the statue. She wasn’t helpless—she could fight. But if she hit Phoenix now, the gun could go off.

  Suddenly the room went black. Phoenix jerked in surprise and stepped back. “What the hell?”

  Kate twisted away from the gun, grabbing at it with her free hand, and swung the statue at Phoenix’s head.

  Phoenix’s reflexes were lightning swift. She blocked the swing with a brutal hit to Kate’s forearm. With a cry of pain, Kate dropped the statue but didn’t release the gun, a reaction that probably saved her life. Using both hands, Kate pushed away the gun and plowed her shoulder into Phoenix, slamming her against edge of the desk. The gun fired, shattering the window behind Kate.

  “You stupid—” Phoenix smashed her head against the side of Kate’s face, but Kate still held on to the gun, wrenching it sideways as she tried to regain her balance. Another shot fired, ricocheting somewhere off the ceiling.

  Desperately she tried to regain control as Phoenix’s grip became more secure. She twisted Kate’s wrist, and excruciating pain jabbed at Kate’s arm. Phoenix wrenched the gun away.

  “You lose, doll.” Moonlight s
hadows danced across Phoenix’s profile, revealing the pure evil underneath as she took aim at Kate’s chest.

  “Amanda!”

  Kate heard Roman’s scream and watched in numb horror as Phoenix switched targets, pointing the gun across the room. “No!” Kate cried and launched herself at the other woman, sending them both through the open window.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Roman watched in horror as the silhouettes of both women tumbled through the window. The draperies jerked, then ripped partially off their heavy rods.

  “Kate!”

  He slid across the desk, registering Threader’s bloody body on the floor as he landed on the other side, and threw his upper body over the windowsill. In the darkness, he could barely make out a figure lying on the ground three stories below.

  “Kate!”

  “Down here.”

  The desperate whisper floated up from under the window’s ledge, filling him with such relief his body trembled with it. He wasn’t too late. With a curse, Roman tucked his gun into the back waistband of his pants. There was no time to call for help. He leaned farther out, ignoring the shards of glass that scraped his stomach, and balanced his weight with his good arm.

  Kate lay flattened against the side of the mansion wall, her hands clasping the hem of the drapery, her back to the wall.

  “Hurry, Roman. I can’t hold on much longer. My hands—they’re slipping.”

  “Kate, listen to me. If I pull you up by the drapes, you might lose your grip.”

  Roman shifted his body farther out of the window. She heard his belt buckle scrape against the ledge, then saw his face appear, the shadows obscuring his expression.

  “I should be able to reach you.” He clasped the windowsill with one hand. “When I tell you, let go and grab on to my wrist.”

  “I can’t. I’ll fall—” Her arms cramped, their muscles burning from the strain.

  “Don’t look down!” Fear infused the order as her head started to drop. “Look at me. Concentrate on me.”

  Kate whimpered, but her face remained tilted up, her head wedged between her arms. She could see his hand, coming within a couple of inches of her fingers.