by Serena Zane
“Yes, Conner’s thinks he’s absconded with both the beautiful Hope diamond and a naïve little museum curator for the Metropolitan Museum of Fine Arts.”
Chase grimaced. “You can pull the wool over any man’s eyes, sis. Take care.”
“I will. Here, take my watch. It’s a compass. The team’s just west of here. I’ll see you when I get this job finished.” She slipped the band over his wrist and brushed his cheek again, then quietly headed for the door.
She could feel Chase’s gaze as he followed her progress until she made it safe into the hall. She turned and motioned for him to move on.
She watched as he rubbed his wrists and ankles to get the blood pumping through his limbs. Lucy flinched as her brother weakly swayed as he stood up and grabbed the rail in the hall to work his way up the passageway.
Lucy waited for a moment then turned and called for Conner. She pasted an innocent look on her face as she opened door after door. Lucy knew Chase was trying not to laugh at her antics; she knew it hurt too much. She had Conner fooled with her cover.
“Valerie? What are you doing out here?” Conner blocked the passage with his body.
“I got bored staring at the room, and since there’s no deck of cards handy, I thought I might hit you up for one. You do have a deck of cards, don’t you?” She cocked her head at a flirtatious angle and waited.
Conner grinned. “Of course. They’re in the desk drawer. You can go ahead and pull them out if you want. There’s some business I need to attend to first before I can join you.”
Lucy widened her massive green eyes. “You couldn’t possibly just show me quickly?” She stepped close and brushed a familiar hand along his shirt collar turning her face up to his.
Conner let out a strangled sound and took her hand to lead her to the study for the cards. As they passed by the open door where his business partner waited, she heard the other man call out.
“Mr. Conner. Who’s your lovely companion?” Turning into the room, Lucy noted a smile playing across sensuous lips.
She felt her stomach turn.
Conner stopped. “This lovely woman is Ms. Valerie Beaumont. She’s just retired from her career as a museum curator and took quite an interest in my collection. She’s decided to join me as I travel abroad.”
“Is that so?” The stranger looked her over and stepped in to take her hand. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Beaumont.” He leaned low over her hand and gave her a courtly bow, with black eyes that held a gleam of mischief. “My name is Ignacio Amaras Rivera.” He looked over at Conner. “I am amazed that you would want to keep such a jewel hidden within the confines of your little yacht my friend. A flower like her should be on display for the entire world to view.”
Lucy pretended to be flattered. “Thank you, Mr. Rivera. You certainly know how to make a lady feel beautiful.” She batted her emerald eyes at him as she gave a little laugh. Obviously, she’d charmed Ignacio.
“Mr. Conner, I would like to invite both you and your beautiful companion to join me at my home for a few days. I know this takes you out of your way, but it would please me very much. My plane stands by at the airport. We can leave as soon as you are ready.” Lucy tried not to give away her surprise. This was unexpected, to say the least. She didn’t even know where his home was.
“Where did you say you’re from Mr. Rivera?” Lucy asked with wide eyes.
“I’m sorry, I forgot to mention. My home is in Colombia. It’s very beautiful there. I feel that you and our rain forest would compliment each other. You’re both very beautiful.”
Lucy found it difficult to keep from rolling her eyes. She forced herself to blush and smile shyly up at him. Her mind raced at the thought that Kevin and the rest of the team had no idea where they headed. If lucky, Chase would already be in the boat with the team. For the life of her she couldn’t think of any way to stall long enough for them to make the hit, with too many variables that could go wrong. Since the stolen items were on board, it complicated matters more than ever.
Conner responded to Rivera, “I thank you for the invitation. Val and I would be happy to join you.”
Speak for yourself, she thought as she tried to come up with a way to get out of the sticky situation she’d gotten herself into. If she ended up flying to Colombia with Rivera and Conner, the team would have a heck of a time retrieving both her and the stolen articles.
Shots rang out overhead.
“Stay here!” Rivera ordered Lucy as he and Conner rushed out the door.
Right, Lucy thought. Just like Chase to get caught as he tried to escape. She carefully opened the door and made her way down the passage and up the stairs.
Rivera shouted orders to the men. Lucy saw her brother steer the small motor-craft away from the yacht.
“Stop! The fool will never make it back to shore. We’re too far out.” Rivera threw up his hands and said something unintelligible in Spanish. Lucy held back a laugh as she watched her brother slip away.
Rivera turned to Conner. “Step it up. We’ll make the transfer of money from my yacht. We need to get to the plane. There can be no more mistakes. Bring the woman.” As they started to turn Lucy dashed back down the stairs and into the room where she should be waiting. She paced as Conner entered.
Lucy rushed to him.
“Is everything okay? You’re not hurt are you?” She ran her hands over his body pretending to make sure that he was still intact.
“I’m fine. Just a minor nuisance, dealt with quite rapidly. I’m afraid that we must hurry and get on the other yacht, though. It seems our buyer is a little nervous and would like to make it out of the country before too long.” He took her hands in his. “Thank you for worrying about me.” He gave her a quick peck on the cheek. “Now let us go before he decides to leave us behind.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
“Look! In the water.” Kevin peered over the side of the speedboat and spotted a small raft off to the side.
“Shine a light over there. We need to know who that is.” Cindy turned on her halogen flashlight and illuminated the small craft.
“That looks like Chase,” Killroy stood up. “Direct the boat over there. We need to pick him up. If it’s Chase, he’s a lucky man.” Kevin sped up the boat and pulled up close to the watercraft.
Chase smiled up from his tiny perch. “Hey guys, what took you so long?” Moving to get up, he winced in pain. “I think I may need a bit of help to get up there. My ribs are either broken or cracked, and that man didn’t bother to patch me up.” He gave a little laugh and grabbed his side.
“Halverson, Garrett, help him up,” Killroy ordered. They climbed down into the craft with Chase.
Kevin noted the bruising on his skin as they assisted him up the side of the boat. They tied off the craft and climbed up after him. Chase sat down in the back of the speedboat and waited until they came back to join him. When they’d settled themselves beside him he spoke.
“Lucy made it possible for me to escape. Garrett, you’re right about Conner. He double-crossed me. I figured it out when he and two thugs showed up at my place last Friday night and jumped me. He’s kept me tied up in that yacht now for four days.”
“Wait a minute, four days? How come we found your glasses laying on the floor in the warehouse then?” Kevin asked.
“No idea. I’ve been locked up in the same room ever since they grabbed me. I think they planned on getting rid of their only witness when we went out to sea. Lucy told me she found a room full of the stolen items. I’m not sure what her plan is, but if I don’t miss my guess the other boat with them is the guy behind everything. He comes from somewhere in Columbia,” Chase said and rubbed at his raw, red wrists.
Kevin and Killroy glanced at each other.
The director spoke first, “We need to be careful here. If the goods are onboard, there’s a chance the deal could be going down as we speak.”
“Right,” Kevin agreed. “We can’t take any chances. Lucy could be in danger.�
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Chase laughed and grabbed his side again. “I don’t think there is any chance of that happening, Kevin. From what I saw, she’d wrapped Conner around her little finger. If I weren’t aware of what a female can do to a man at times I would wonder how she pulls it off.”
Kevin’s felt a deep frown crease his features.
“Something going on between you and Luce, Kevin? Or are you just frowning for no reason?” Chase’s sharp eyes gleamed perceptively through the darkness.
Kevin fought to control his emotions. He’d never had this much trouble before. It seemed as though all his training flew out the window.
So, this is why they tell you not to get involved, he thought. Damn it anyway, I need to do my job. He reminded himself that Lucy’d never talked about anything permanent.
“No, your sister and I are just good friends. Nothing serious. We’re getting off the subject.” He needed to direct the conversation somewhere else; he didn’t need his relationship questioned with the director standing there. “How many men aboard ship?”
A mischievous glint entered Chase’s eyes, as he went along with the subject change. “There are nine men aboard. Eight are armed according to Lucy, and her count is correct—I checked as I came off. I’m not sure how many are aboard the other yacht.”
Killroy placed a hand on his chin and rubbed the gray stubble that grew there. “This is not good. We need to get you to a hospital, which won’t leave enough of us to take them out.”
“I’m not sure what their plan is,” Chase admitted. He looked pale as he leaned back against the railing.
“Garrett, Killroy, they’re changing boats.” Kevin rushed up to where Cindy stood with the night vision binoculars trained on the two yachts. He grabbed them from her hands and looked at the ramp adjoining the boats. Sure enough, a small group of people carried crates onto the other yacht. Lucy stood with two men at the railing of the second boat. He focused closer and noticed her watching the crates carried over.
“Looks like Lucy will be taking a little trip. She’s standing on the other yacht with Conner. I don’t recognize the other man.” He handed the binoculars to Chase, who followed him up front.
“I don’t know him. He must be the other end though. Two bosses worked together in order for the operations to function properly. He must be the other one.”
“Where does he come from?” Killroy moved forward to join them.
“Not a clue. I never got that info. Out of Conner.” Chase let out a frustrated sound. “We can’t lose her.”
“Relax; if they take the fake diamond we planted with them, we’ll be able to track them to their destination. It may take some time though. It’ll be easier for us to get her and retrieve the goods safely if they are on solid ground.” Killroy made eye contact with Kevin. “We’re going to need someone to follow with the transmitter device. Can you handle it?”
“No problem. Just get Chase to a doctor. He’s no good to us the way he is.”
Killroy nodded. “We’ll wait until they’re underway. We can follow at a distance until we know where they’re going. Then we’ll leave you and join up later.”
“Sir,” Cindy piped up from the front of the boat again, “looks as though they are through loading. The yacht started to turn back towards New York.” Killroy took the binoculars from Cindy and tracked as the big yacht changed its course.
“We need to make sure we’re not spotted when it comes back this way. Garrett, circle in behind them. Looks like your sister’s doing her undercover work well, Chase. I don’t see either man with her holding a gun.”
Chase’s smile grew and Kevin saw him wince as the cut on his lip stretched and started to bleed. Kevin began to steer their boat in a wide circular course.
“This makes things a little easier,” Killroy said with a grin. “Once we get back to town, Garrett can follow the transmitter and find out where Lucy it’s going while we take Chase to the hospital. Chase, you and I need to come up with a story to tell the people at the hospital. We still don’t want to get the police involved. At this point, they’d botch everything up. How does a fall down a flight of stairs sound to you?”
“Plausible. I’m pretty banged up though. How about you get me sloshed and then I think it might fly.”
Kevin agreed the plan might work. He turned his attention back to the yachts as he looked through the glasses. The second one stayed on its original course. He didn’t have time to wonder where that one headed. Concerned about getting Lucy back in one piece, he didn’t give a damn about the stolen art. Damn, he had it bad.
He focused all his attention on getting their boat on a course parallel to the yacht so they wouldn’t be spotted. He knew that if he thought too much about what Lucy would need to do to keep the attention of the two men onboard with her, he’d probably end up doing something stupid. His grin slid into place when he thought of what he would do to Conner the moment they were alone.
The yacht picked up speed as it headed inland and Kevin kept pace at a reasonable distance. He couldn’t chance getting Lucy into even more trouble. Minutes passed and the sound of a small craft engine could be heard overhead.
Looking up, Kevin saw a pontoon plane come in for a landing. It headed directly toward the yacht. He got an edgy feeling as he watched.
“Something’s happening.” Kevin yelled back to Killroy.
“What is it?” Killroy’s turned and took the binoculars that Kevin handed him.
“It’s a plane. I think they’re going to board.”
“Watch them carefully. If Lucy boards that plane with the two men, we can only follow them for so long. We need to get Chase to the hospital. If they head west, they’ll be headed for South America. We’ll make inquiries of our people down there and find out where the man lives. We’ll find him. It’ll only take a little time.” Killroy began to tap his fingers. “Chase, are you sure he didn’t mention any specifics as to where this guy is from?”
“Yes. At least not that I—no, wait a minute. That first day, Conner said something about warm sun and Colombia, but I thought that was just wishful thinking on my part. His thugs beat me up pretty bad after he handed me over to them,” Chase stated as his concerned gaze met Kevin’s for a moment. “You don’t know how to fly a plane Kevin.”
“No. We need to find a pilot, and fast.”
“Well, if you’re not averse to letting a woman take the wheel, Cindy can handle anything with a steering column. That includes planes.”
Kevin looked over at Cindy as she stood watching the activity on the yacht. She was small, with her long hair tied back in a ponytail and reminded Kevin of a tomboy.
Killroy continued, “She’s been Lucy’s pilot for a long time. They know each other pretty well. They trained in the same class.”
“Really. I don’t remember seeing her in Lucy’s group of recruits.”
“That’s because she made it out in the field before the others finished. We needed someone like her to fly for a special op. She got the job.”
“Sir,” Cindy’s pert voice interrupted, “we’ve got a situation. They’re moving the cargo onto the plane and they already placed Lucy onboard. It appears as though they’re about to take off.”
Killroy took the binoculars from her. “Looks like you’re most definitely going to be taking a flight in your near future, Kevin. Cindy, Garrett is going to need a lift. Is the jet ready to fly?”
“Yes, it’s prepped for any contingency. When do we take off?”
“You and Garrett head directly for the airfield as soon as we hit land. Halverson and I can take Chase to the hospital. I’ll radio our network in Colombia, and tell them that you both are on your way. We’ll see what we can pick up. If this character is known by the Agency down south we’ll find both Lucy and the stolen articles before something else happens. If Lucy has a way, she will contact us and let us know where she’s being taken. Kevin, take the transmitter with you. If you’re within thirty miles of the diamond, you’ll pick up a tr
ansmission signal.”
Everyone turned when the small plane start up, its nose pointed due south and slowly took off. Kevin revved up the engine on the speedboat.
“No point wasting precious time. Take a seat. I’ll get us back to shore and we can begin our search.” The boat picked up speed and they headed back to shore.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Lucy gazed down at the departing waters and smiled to herself. She couldn’t help the sense of satisfaction that threatened to overwhelm her, but a tingling sensation in the pit of her stomach wouldn’t go away. Something she couldn’t quite identify nagged at her subconscious.
Deep blue waves crashed into each other. Lucy, secure in the knowledge her brother was finally safe, relaxed, some. She’d worried about him when she’d seen how banged up he was.
The two men with her spoke in hushed tones on the other side of the plane. Lucy knew they headed for South America, but couldn’t glean much else from the conversation.
Her mind focused on the next part of the plan. With Chase safe, it was time to focus on the case.
Where did Conner fit in the grand scheme of things? She stared across the small compartment at his black head bent over a folder filled with papers. Ignacio logged onto a laptop in the seat directly across from Conner. Both men worked diligently.
Lucy wondered what Kevin thought. If she knew him at all, he would find some way to follow. She leaned back in her seat and settled in for the ride. It wouldn’t do any good to worry too much right now. She’d headed where they wanted, into the lion’s den. Lucy felt distinctly that Rivera played the lion and Conner was a pawn in his game from the way they acted together. In her experience, Conner seemed too submissive to be anything else.
Conner looked up from his papers.
“How are you?” He inquired. “It’s been quite a day.”
Lucy smiled at him reassuringly, “I’m fine. I’ll say, this is the most exciting day I’ve seen in a long time. It’s not every day a girl gets swept away from her life by a mysterious man in a dark coat.”
