Captured (Gowns & Crowns #2)

by Jennifer Chance

  “There’ve been no stories about one dying in a fiery wreck either,” Lauren said, her words staunch.

  “And that is why my hope remains alive,” Dimitri conceded. “Finding evidence of Ari’s death will reopen the wound, yes. But it will be able to heal more cleanly then. And finding evidence of his life…” He spread his hands. “It would change everything.”

  “But how?” Lauren frowned, a new worry suddenly clouding her eyes. “If Ari returns, what happens to Kristos? Does that mean he’s no longer the crown prince?”

  Dimitri grinned. He’d wondered when or if that possibility would hit Lauren, with her tendency to want to stay in control of every life she came into contact with, most especially her friends’. “That is why we have councils and chief advisors, princess,” he said. “All that is important is life and love. Kristos and Emmaline have both. Whether he is the head of the military or the head of the royal family, do you really think she will mind?”

  Lauren’s eyes flared, and Dimitri felt something hard shift in his chest, not a good feeling. “No-oo,” Lauren said at length, and then she smiled one of her practiced smiles. “She wouldn’t.”

  But Dimitri knew the truth. Emmaline wouldn’t, not for a moment. Kristos would be a prince to her whether he was shoveling rocks for the Crown or attending gala parties dressed in his military finest, as long as she could be by his side. But Lauren was a different story. Lauren had spent her entire life categorizing people, judging them, putting them into boxes based upon their parents, the amount of money they had, their position in society. To her, it would matter.

  Which meant he needed to end this farce between them before it became any more awkward for either of them. “Do you have anything back at the villa that you need, should we have to leave quickly?”

  She blinked at him, whether at the sudden shift in his question or in his tone. But she recovered a moment later, the smile carefully even. Once again protecting herself…because she had to. “Not really—I’m happy to go clean up, though—”

  He cut off her words with a lifted hand. “There is no need for that.” He wouldn’t mind his villa filled with small remembrances of the American, for a few days anyway. He didn’t want to consider the reasons why too closely, but then again, he didn’t have to. “I’ll check in with Cyril and see about that boat.”

  As he pulled out his phone, she pushed back her chair. “There are restrooms here, yes?” she asked, her expression grateful as he pointed to the far corner of the restaurant. “Be right back.”

  He watched her go for a moment, memorizing her walk, her grace, the swing of her hips.

  Get a hold of yourself. Growling, he punched the buttons on the phone and turned once more toward the sea.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Lauren pulled her phone out of her purse as she walked through the restaurant, the movement so rote that she allowed her smile to turn from fixed to rueful.

  It didn’t matter now if anyone caught a glimpse of her face. Dimitri had seen right through her back there, regardless of how quickly she’d recovered from the idea of Kristos being supplanted as future king by his brother. A brother who was quite possibly dead anyway, so that made the entire conversation a moot point.

  It wasn’t moot, though. The practical ramifications of Ari’s return had tripped her up, her natural competitiveness and class rules surging forth at the idea that Emmaline might somehow get less than the prince she deserved.

  “What is wrong with you?” she muttered.

  Instead of leading only to a bathroom, the corridor angled sharply, emptying into a small outdoor courtyard open on one side to a cobbled lane. Lauren stepped out into the shadowy space. It was lovely, but only a few diners were out here—the views from the front of the restaurant kept most inside or on the front sidewalk.

  She thumbed on her phone, almost dropping it when it buzzed unexpectedly in her hand.

  Texts. A lot of texts. More than would have been possible in the short while since she’d last checked, and the reality of the situation quickly dawned on her. There’d been some sort of lag between reaching cell phone reception or Wi-Fi access and her phone loading up with the texts that she’d received. And though she’d talked to her sister yesterday, apparently that had been time enough for some new drama to strike.

  Lauren clicked on the text icon, which flipped over to a white screen, the information slowly loading. She moved to the edge of the courtyard and slipped through the gate to the cobbled walk. Dimitri was going to be tied up awhile with his own phone call, and he’d doubtless figure out where she went and come collect her soon enough. And besides, if she was right, this walk would intersect with the main street in a few steps. She could make the full circuit and be back to him before he knew she was gone.

  The last text of seven popped up, and Lauren froze.

  OMG, it’s a diamond necklace!

  There was a picture embedded in the text that made her blood run cold, and she clicked on it, her heart in her throat. The image showed a beautiful white diamond necklace on black velvet, something far more sophisticated than anything a fourteen-year-old girl would normally wear, but it wasn’t the necklace that brought her up short.

  She enlarged the photo to see the package more clearly, the crisp paper folded away—stark and lovely…

  And black-and-white.

  With shaking hands, Lauren went back to Maddie’s first text. She had started texting her, though this wasn’t Lauren’s phone. She was fourteen: she hadn’t cared. And her initial text was bright and breezy, and from all of twenty-four hours ago. Mom and Dad called me three times… Haven’t asked about you again… Boarding school sucks…

  The second and third were more of the same, but the fourth was markedly different. “OMG I have a secret admirer! I bet it’s William. Sent me this!” Lauren didn’t realize she’d stopped in the street again until a flood of concerned Garronois pulled her attention away, and she quickly sidestepped the couple she’d almost knocked off their feet.

  “Excuse me, excuse me—” she murmured, turning away from the restaurant and heading in the opposite direction. The glow of her screen showed a beautiful collection of black-and-white roses. The next text was more happy speculation. William? Joe? Mom & Dad being weird and worried?

  Lauren’s heart thudded painfully. It was almost verbatim what she’d said to her own friends when she was Maddie’s age. That was when the presents from Henry had become more personal, less a kind family friend remembering her on her birthday and at Christmas. That was when the flowers had first shown up, and the jewelry too. She’d kept all of it at the beginning. She hadn’t known for sure they were from Henry, and she’d made up elaborate possibilities of who they could really be from. It had taken her a full two years to actually accept for sure that everything was coming from Henry, a man fifteen years her senior. Which for a teenager was—gross.

  And now he was starting the cycle all over again with her little sister. Only Maddie wouldn’t be prepared for it. She’d been completely sheltered from the world, at Lauren’s insistence. Which meant that now she was completely unprotected.

  “No, no, no…” Lauren moaned as she clicked through the fifth text, then the sixth, where Maddie was sharing the excitement of receiving the message on her phone that a present would be arriving soon. Her personal phone—which was a private number, available only to the family. To Maddie, this was, of course, the coolest thing ever, since the guy had to be smart, some kind of hacker, as well as rich and sweet and…

  Lauren lifted her head and stared into the distance, clutching the phone to her chest. She had to call Maddie now. She had to report Henry and protect her sister. This wasn’t about her anymore, wasn’t something she could manage, something she could explain away or hope would go away on its own. She had to finally get her parents to see what was going on.

  Even as she thought the words, her mind ran through a million scenarios, none of them good. Her parents were wrapped around Henry’s finger—so
was the media, so were the cops. It’d been the same when she’d first tried to explain her misgivings back when she was a teen. Her mom hadn’t believed her, hadn’t wanted to believe her. Henry was a family friend. He only wanted the best for her. Lauren should be flattered, not freaked out. And as to these new gifts for Maddie, she could hear the excuses in her head: Henry probably felt bad—probably wanted Lauren to realize he was a really good guy, a caring guy, to give such a lovely present to the innocent, sweet, perfect Maddie, who was gracious enough to accept beautiful things with a happy, open heart. Unlike Lauren, so ungrateful, unreasonable, un—

  The phone buzzed in her hand.

  Lauren wrenched the phone from her chest, her hands trembling so badly, it took her three times to thumb on the phone. When the text screen flared to life once more, her adrenaline jacked.

  Got you.

  She whirled around, but the street was unchanged. No one was there. The darkness suddenly seemed oppressive, though. And when the phone buzzed again, she knew why.

  I appreciate a good chase as much as the next person, but we both know how this one is going to end.

  All the blood drained out of Lauren’s head, and she swayed a little on her feet. Instantly, automatically, she mapped out her best plan of action. She should go to Dimitri. Intellectually, she knew that. She should go to Dimitri and the authorities and her parents and…

  What? Tell them Henry Smithson had given a lovely spray of roses and a diamond necklace to her little sister and that was wrong somehow? Who would believe her, beyond Dimitri? And what could he do? Knowing Dimitri, he’d make some sort of scene, and that was no good. Right now, Henry had no idea that she knew Dimitri as anything more than a bodyguard. Based on what he’d done to her last boyfriend, if he knew the truth, Henry would probably…

  Her phone buzzed again.

  There is a small fisherman’s port on the south side of Miranos, near the main town, which I assume is where you are. Be there in an hour, or I will happily send the next gift to your sister. She might not enjoy it as much.

  Lauren’s eyes flared wide. She turned back to the water. It was too far to go to on foot. She’d never make it, and she didn’t have time to waste.

  Would he hurt Maddie? Was he actually sending her things? He’d gotten Alexi’s number, after all. Had he somehow gotten hold of Maddie’s as well? Could you fake texts? Probably. But that wasn’t the point. The point was it would be easy for him to start harassing Maddie, as easy as it had been for him to harass her. Her parents wouldn’t stop it, might not even see the problem. In the end, only she could stop it.

  And she would stop it, one way or the other. It was long past time for that.

  She keyed back a response, clear and concise. She did have a way to stop this, of course. And in the end, it was so simple. It’d always been the simplest course. Just not the easiest. But there was nothing she could do about that now.

  She started moving up the street again, her hand shaking as she clutched her phone. Dimitri was making his call, but how long would that last? If he went looking for her, he’d start with the bathroom, then go outside to the courtyard. Only then would he circle around, so if she moved fast…

  The rover was right where they’d left it when they’d bounced into town, both of them so full of possibility, it had made her heart hurt.

  Oh, what a difference a few hours made.

  She got into the rover and turned the key.

  Dimitri leaned back in his chair. The GNSF speedboat was almost at the main marina, and there were no signs of it being followed, according to Cyril. The Smithson yacht was almost to the southern tip of Greece at this point, with no indication of putting in at port anytime soon. They hadn’t confirmed that Henry was aboard his yacht, however, which didn’t sit well with him. There were literally dozens of privately owned yachts in the area, and Smithson could easily have commandeered any one of them, while his yacht sailed merrily along to some other port of call.

  But that wasn’t going to be an issue. The speedboat was heavily armed and boldly marked with the GNSF letters. If it was delayed or attacked in any way, Smithson would have a battle on his hands.

  “Where’s Lauren?” It wasn’t Cyril on the line, but Stefan. “We’ve been monitoring unusual call activity into her phone.”

  “Calls?” Dimitri frowned, his gaze skating to the back of the restaurant, registering how long Lauren had been gone. “Her phone hasn’t rung since we arrived here. She spoke with Nicki, texted her sister, but that was yesterday.” He stood, throwing money down on the table. “What kind of calls?”

  A few quick strides took him to the back of the restaurant, where the bathroom door stood slightly ajar—the room empty inside.

  “The number has been scrambled, that’s why the concern. You say she’s had text communication with her sister?”

  Dimitri opened his mouth to reply, but a different voice sounded on the other end of the phone. The no-nonsense snap of Nicki Clark. “I’m sure she has. What’s wrong?”

  “That was well handled.”

  “Focus on your own American,” Stefan said coolly. “Can you access the phone?”

  Dimitri stepped outside and swept the courtyard with his gaze. Shit. “I can’t access the woman right now.” He turned back into the restaurant as a familiar rumble caught his attention. His attention sprang to the cobblestoned alley that led to the street. Shit!

  “She’s on the move.” He bolted through the courtyard and into the alley, but he knew it was too late. He scanned the street, identifying two dozen people he knew. “What was in those texts? Her sister texted her?”

  “We’re confirming that now. Secure Ms. Grant.”

  “Working on it. Call me when you can say something useful.”

  Dimitri stowed the phone and stalked up to the first table he could spot, men and women he’d known since birth. Not a minute later, he was racing toward their rover. He tossed his phone on the seat and reached in his pocket for another device, a cell phone not unlike Lauren’s but keyed to the same feed as his sat phone. It had only one function.

  A small screen flared to life, a green dot in its center, moving fast. Based on her trajectory, there could really be only one place Lauren was heading. But what was she doing going to the fisherman’s pier?

  The phone beside him buzzed three minutes later. By this point, he’d cleared the town limits, and he had Lauren’s rover in his sight. He also had a pistol and knife on his body, but no other weapons. There was a locked gun case in Lauren’s rover, but only the one weapon, and he didn’t have time to stop at his house. He picked up the phone. “What’s the story?” he snapped.

  “No texts from the sister. She’s on the phone with Nicki, said the last she heard from Lauren was yesterday. No communication since then. Nicki confirms Lauren’s assertion that Maddie’s phone number was private, used by her and the sister alone, but it’s not unreasonable that Smithson discovered and cloned it at some point, as close as he positioned himself to the family. Once Lauren pinged that number, tracking it to back to her on Miranos would have been simple enough.”

  “Son of a bitch.” Dimitri squinted toward the water, following the lights of the beach rovers. Only one was moving at speed, but there were enough machines on the beach that he might not be immediately noticed. He wasn’t sure how well versed Lauren was in evading pursuit, but he didn’t get the impression she cared so much right now. She was moving too quickly, with too much focus. She was meeting someone who was already in place.

  “Where’s Smithson?”

  “Still no sighting.

  “Lauren’s heading somewhere fast, I think to meet him. How far away is the GNSF boat?”

  “Not far. Redivert to where she’s heading?”

  Dimitri considered it. “Where would the bastard be if he’s not aboard his own boat? How many likely options?”

  It took Stefan only a minute to respond. “Three options, one of which hasn’t radioed in the last twenty-four hours. Plea
sure cruiser now anchored close enough to Miranos to be a possible, if they have a speedboat. Getting the data.”

  “Nationality?”

  “Turkish.”

  Dimitri blew out a breath. Better if it was Garronois, but the Turks didn’t take appropriation of their nationals’ property lightly. If Smithson had boarded the boat without the owners’ permission…“Can you get a man on the boat, not official GNSF?”

  “Of course. How much time?”

  “Sooner the better.” Dimitri cut the wheel and headed out onto the sand. He’d let Lauren get far enough ahead now that he knew where he was going. Hopefully, she’d slow down as well, maybe lose her nerve.

  He remembered her talking about her sister. Not likely she’d lose her nerve. “I need those texts.”

  “Working on it.”

  “Ready the speedboat, but don’t move it. I don’t want Smithson spooked, if that’s who’s behind Lauren’s flight, which it almost has to be.”

  Stefan paused. “He could be picking up Ms. Grant as a point of mutual concession. She could want to go with him for some reason.”

  Dimitri grimaced. “That’s what I’m afraid of.”

  He cut the line and roared ahead, cursing Lauren and her stupidity. For once, she’d overthought the problem from all the angles but one. She should have trusted him to at least go with her. Smithson was dangerous, probably even crazy. But Dimitri was a trained professional, used to risking his life for his country.

  And he was more than willing to risk it for her.

  He ditched the rover when he was an eighth of a mile out, and continued on foot to the dock. The place was quiet now, save for a few diehards at the bar. Easy for a boat to sneak into one of the unoccupied slips, especially if they weren’t staying long. Miranos was too small a concern, especially in this secondary port, to be sticklers about short-termers. Sooner or later, everyone needed a place to land.