Lucky Charm

by Valerie Douglas

  She didn’t dare show him how frightened she was. Think. Keep thinking. she reminded herself.

  “My, my,” she said, as evenly as she could. “All this for me?”

  Lovell smiled, looking at her with fascinated speculation. The hunter surprised that the rabbit fought back.

  “Not you, Ms. O’Donnell. May I call you Ariel?” he said. “No, not you, sweet Ariel. Your boyfriend. He’s a dangerous man. Whatever worries we had about you will end today.”

  That dispassionate discussion of her death was chilling. They were going to kill her, today, and he wanted her to know it, although he wouldn’t say as much out loud. To anticipate it.

  No premeditation here, should it ever come to that. He was a careful man, Mr. Lovell.

  They would kill Matt, too, if they could find him. If they could surprise him.

  “We thought at first merely to keep you unsettled. You would be less likely, perhaps, to notice any…irregularities. You didn’t rattle. That was surprising. So I asked Mr. Genardi to send you that little discouragement.”

  He glared up at Genardi and the stooges.

  “They were distracted, perhaps. You are a pretty little morsel, much stronger than we anticipated.”

  He studied her with a disturbing fascination that sent a queasy thread of alarm through her.

  “Mr. Morrison, however… We underestimated him, his persistence and skills,” he said. “Our lines of communication were tangled. We worked at cross purposes. Like the death of Mr. Parkhurst, something that could have and should have been handled much more effectively by Mr. Genardi here. If it had been handled correctly Matthew Morrison would not be a problem. It was not. We should have done more checking on him. If that had been done we would have dealt with him, too, more effectively and permanently. Our superiors are not happy. Now we’ve been forced to take more direct action. Mr. Morrison really should have taken the offer.”

  Lovell had not been happy about that. It was a serious miscalculation on Maxwell’s part, sending a Marathon helicopter out here, such a public thing if it came down to it. The offer, and the amount of it, also revealed how desperate and concerned the man was. But that was on Maxwell, if it ever came to trial.

  It was Lovell’s job to clean up the mess Maxwell had made and to keep the last from happening. Not just for Maxwell anymore, but for himself as well.

  He liked being wealthy.

  “Now, Ariel – such a pretty name – tell me where he is and when he’ll be back.”

  Ariel shook her head. She hadn’t missed the admission, however oblique, that Genardi was responsible for Bill’s death. Now she knew. Lovell wasn’t afraid to tell her, though, since he’d already as much as told her they were going to kill her.

  She wasn’t going to give him Matt, too.

  “I can make her talk, Mr. Lovell,” one of the stooges said and smiled tightly, “she owes me for a kick.”

  She remembered his hands on her and had no doubt what he had in mind.

  Looking at Lovell, she stared him straight in the eye, “If he touches me you learn nothing. I’ll have no reason to talk. No reason to say anything.”

  He smiled. “Oh, you’ll talk but I do believe you mean it about this gentleman here. He’s not the one you should be afraid of, however.”

  There was something in his eyes, a flatness in his tone.

  “I am.”

  That speculative look was back, a fascination.

  “Mr. Genardi, please hold her. Just how strong are you, Ariel?”

  Genardi took her shoulders, curling a hand around her chin to press the back of her head against his abdomen.

  He was smiling in anticipation.

  “I’ll tell you,” she said, desperate.

  They would use her to get to Matt but Matt wouldn’t want this. If she could talk to him, there was a way to warn him but he wouldn’t want this. Neither did she. She was terrified. She tried desperately not to show it.

  Lovell looked at her with ophidian-like interest and a little exhilaration in his cold black eyes.

  “I think you’ll lie and of course you will. We want the truth. No games, no tricks. Such a strong-willed woman. You must be convinced.”

  The look in his eyes sent a chill through her.

  With that nearly emotionless curiosity, Lovell smiled in anticipation.

  He took her hand, his fingers pressing into the back of it, seeking the nexus of nerves there. Pressure points, nerve endings, the places on a human body that caused pain if touched the wrong way. Pain lanced up her arm and she fought not to struggle as his free hand slid up her arm to her shoulder, digging in to her collarbone.

  “That’s enough,” Lovell said, pulling up one pant leg a little to keep the crease in his slacks as he leaned forward. “No marks, no bleeding, you see. Pain is all that’s needed. I learned that little trick and a few others courtesy of the CIA. You’re convinced, Ariel, aren’t you?”

  “Yes,” she gasped.

  Lovell studied her with satisfaction.

  “Where is he?” he asked, pleasantly.

  Biting her lip, she said, “At his office in town.”

  Lovell considered it. That was too open.

  Morrison Investigations was on a well-traveled road. Nor would it be an easy extradition. Too public and with assistance nearby. It was doubtful that his coworkers would stand by. That wouldn’t do. If he had more time he could have set up something a little more aggressive, but he didn’t.

  It was time for more direct measures. He picked up her phone and handed it to her.

  “Call him. You’ll ask to speak to him, nothing more,” he said.

  Thinking quickly, Ariel hit speed dial.

  “Morrison Investigations.”

  Darrin’s deep mellifluous voice came through and he’d used the speaker phone. She could hear the hollowness, the echo. Her eyes closed in relief.

  “It’s Ariel, Darrin, may I speak to Matthew, please,” she said, making an effort to speak normally, trying to keep her voice steady and not let the fear show.

  That was real enough and it ran coldly through her veins. She loved him, them, both Matt and Darrin. She wouldn’t get them killed. She’d already buried one man she’d loved, she wasn’t burying another. Not this one. Not Matthew.

  “Sure,” Darrin said and heard him call, “Hey, Matt. Ariel’s on the phone.”

  Matt’s voice, distant at first, was confused, questioning. “Why is she calling on your line?”

  That’s what she had hoped for, to alert him. He’d programmed the phone himself. She hoped he was wondering, and maybe a little alarmed.

  For a minute Lovell went still, anger flaring in his eyes.

  “I hit the wrong number,” she whispered and it wasn’t hard to sound afraid. She just hoped that the phone caught it, and Matthew did, too.

  “Tell him to pick up,” Lovell hissed.

  The mistake, or whatever it was, had forced his hand. He didn’t like that. Ariel O’Donnell was too smart by half. All he could do was mitigate the disaster. If he could get Morrison here alone there was still a chance of saving them.

  Then Matt spoke, his voice wary. “Ariel?”

  “Could you pick up, Matthew?”

  Both Matt and Darrin had heard the whispered comment. Something in Ariel’s voice had Matt instantly alert. Her voice was a little too high and she hadn’t called him Matthew since she’d said she loved him.

  Then another voice spoke.

  “I have the enchanting Miss O’Donnell.”

  Memories ran through Matt’s mind like water. Lovely Ariel, with her beautiful blue eyes and that rosy mouth, her ivory skin, the taste of her and the sound of her laughter ringing in his ears. That first morning when she’d smiled and lifted her hips to take him. He knew he’d started to fall in love with her the morning after she took a bat to a man to save his life. That curious mix of courage and fear, strength and fragility. Her joyful inventiveness in bed and out of it, her pleasure in him.

  �
��What do you want?” Matt asked.

  “Matt?” Darrin said, keeping his voice low, his concern for both he and Ariel in his voice.

  There was a calm, a surety in Darrin’s face and voice. A steadiness that Matt had always relied on, and knew he could rely on it now.

  Lovell spoke. “You need to come home.”

  The connection ended.

  A chill spread through Matt’s guts. “Lovell has Ariel”

  Darrin looked at him, his face grim. “Marathon and Genesis raising the stakes?”

  “Probably.”

  “Sonovabitch,” Darrin said with feeling.

  I know you believe I’m not a killer, love, but if they hurt you I will kill them, he thought. You would understand why.

  She was alone with them.

  “That’s one helluva gutsy lady you have there,” Darrin said.

  Matt smiled bleakly. “If she lives through this I’m going to marry her.”

  “Sounds like a plan. All your guns are at your house,” Darrin said, “so it looks like we’ll have to use mine.”

  Matt looked at his step-father gratefully, although he’d never had any doubt of Darrin’s help.

  Ariel was depending on them.

  As if reading his mind, Darrin dropped a hand on his shoulder. “We’ll get her back, Matt.”

  Neither considered calling the police. Lovell had police and CIA background, his people were all ex-service. If the police showed up, whoever was there would kill Ariel at the first sign of them and then there’d be a firefight. People would get hurt.

  Both of them knew the property intimately. Both of them had the same skills and training, but not the constrictions the police had. If anyone was going to get Ariel out safely, it would be them.

  “There isn’t much time, but the A.G. is expecting us,” Darrin said, his eyes level on Matt’s. “If we don’t get the information to him, then whatever happens next will be for nothing.”

  “I know,” Matt said.

  Lovell would be expecting him, but there was still time…with the possibility of traffic, they’d have a little leeway. Certainly they wouldn’t kill their hostage until they were certain Matt was in the trap.

  It didn’t help to think of Ariel in their hands.

  Curled in the chair beneath the umbrella, Ariel watched. Even Lovell had seen the sense of getting her fair skin out of the sun. Heatstroke and a massive sunburn wouldn’t help them. Since the table and the umbrella didn’t offer much shade, Lovell and Genardi had retreated to the veranda, leaving the stooges to find what cover they could. The heat and the thirst were making them quarrelsome and irritable. She was thirsty, too.

  Larry, as she and Matt had dubbed him, was suffering the most. She was glad. He kept staring at the sliding glass doors.

  Suddenly, he picked up a chair and marched toward them.

  “Food and drink are in there,” he said, “I’m going to get some.”

  “No!” Ariel cried.

  “Why?” Lovell demanded.

  “There’s a security system. If he breaks the window the police will come.”

  “Marcus,” Lovell shouted. “Break that glass and you’ll be back in prison.”

  He turned back to her and his tone was amused. “Why Ariel, don’t you want the police to come?”

  If the police came they’d have to kill her and she knew it. Looking in his eyes, she saw that truth reflected there.

  He smiled but it was nothing more than a baring of teeth.

  “How did you come by this information?” the A.G. asked, paging through the printouts. He looked up at them, his dark eyes grim, his mouth tight.

  Antonio Morales had reputation as a no-nonsense, tough Attorney General. He’d fought a tough battle getting elected.

  Looking at him, Matt said, “An old friend of mine, Bill Parkhurst was the first source. I believe he was murdered to keep him from talking. In the course of my investigation into Bill’s death, I met a woman by the name of Ariel O’Donnell. She was doing computer work for Marathon. Looking at their data raised some questions. She showed that data to me.”

  “Will she testify to this?” Morales asked, lifting his gaze to meet Matt’s.

  Matt looked at him. Fear for her was a constant. He hoped so. That wasn’t what he said.

  “She will.” If she survived.

  In light of the information regarding the other two states – and the ups and downs lately of generally more stable products as Darrin pointed out – Morales considered it might be wise to order a thorough audit of Marathon and Genesis offices throughout the state.

  He summoned his secretary. “I need Thompkins and Marsh. Then get me the Attorneys General of Louisiana and Texas in whatever order they’re available. Put in a call to the SEC and that new Consumer Bureau. I’ll want some of their people here ASAP.

  She hurried out.

  The ball had begun to roll.

  Whatever else at least Marathon and Genesis weren’t going to get away with it.

  Ariel was buying them time. He just hoped the price wasn’t too high. His heart wrenched. God, he loved her. The fear of losing her was terrible. What was happening out there? Had they hurt her? Or was she already dead, now that she’d made the call for them? Were they keeping her alive as insurance? He hoped so.

  In the only scrap of dependable shade, Ariel watched the men without appearing to watch. Sweat dampened the hair at her temples and the nape of her neck. Heat baked off the tiles around the pool and light glittered from the water in the pool. It shimmered off the sandy soil in waves.

  All the stooges were hot and tired, some of them vying with one another for a scrap of shade or taking turns retreating to the air-conditioned comfort of their cars. Lovell had vetoed the suggestion that someone go for cold drinks, in case Matt arrived to see a strange car pulling out of his road. They had all day, they were in no hurry.

  None of them thought to check the barn and the water for the horses. They were city people. Ariel wasn’t going to mention it. If they were hot, tired and thirsty they would make mistakes. Mistakes that might benefit Matt.

  Both Genardi and Lovell had taken off their suit coats, loosened their ties and rolled up their shirt sleeves, Lovell fastidiously and precisely.

  The sun was going down. It wouldn’t be much longer. She hoped Matt would come soon.

  Lovell stood up.

  “What’s taking so long?” he asked, irritably, echoing her thoughts. He narrowed his eyes. “Even so, he should be coming any time now. It can’t be too much longer. Get ready. Jackson, go keep watch out front. The rest of you spread out and find some cover.”

  With that wolfish smile on his face, he turned to Ariel.

  “You had best pray that he hasn’t done something foolish.”

  Darrin had a pretty good stock of weapons he’d collected over the years. Both were now armed, Darrin not just with his Smith and Weston but his hunting rifle as well. They drove his old jeep cross-country to the house, getting close enough so they could see it but not so close that the engine noise would be heard clearly by anyone in or around the house. Now they hoofed it, making their way through the moonlit desert night. Matt had expected the house to be ablaze with lights and feared what might be going on inside, but it wasn’t. An ambush?

  They did a reconnoiter in the lowering, uncertain light.

  Astonished, Matt looked at Darrin. Eight of them by his count, all out by the patio. Some of them he recognized. Both sets of stooges, Genardi and another man he only knew from a photograph. They’d pulled out all the stops and called in the big boys.

  “Genesis is here, too,” Darrin said, quietly. “That’s Lovell, VP for Security.”

  Giving him a look, Matt nodded. He remembered the photo. And what they’d learned.

  “I see him.”

  They hadn’t gotten into the house. The pool lights reflected off the windows and glimmered eerily over those standing around it. All of them looked hot, sweaty, tired and rumpled.

  All
but Lovell, who still looked somewhat crisp with his neatly rolled sleeves.

  “Ariel closed the door to set the alarm,” Matt said. “They’ve been out here on the patio all day in the heat.”

  She had been, too.

  “Damn,” Darrin whispered, seeing it. “That was good thinking.”

  Nodding, Matt said, smiling grimly, “Damn straight.”

  Where was Ariel? He couldn’t see her. He feared for her, feared for himself. Don’t break my heart, Ariel. I couldn’t bear to lose you now that I’ve found you.

  Then he spotted her in the shadows, sitting in one of the chairs beneath the patio umbrella.

  “Plan?” Darrin said.

  “I’m going to kill the pool lights,” Matt said, “then take whoever’s closest. More than one if I can. Try to whittle the odds down a little. Try to get to Ariel so they can’t use her as a hostage. If they’re armed…”

  “Which they’re likely to be,” Darrin said. “You’ll need a sharpshooter. I’ll find a good spot and watch your back.”

  With the odds so high, it was the best option.

  Matt looked at him. “Thanks, Darrin.”

  “Anytime, son.”

  “Be my best man?”

  “Honored.”

  Like smoke in the darkness, Matt moved away.

  Silently, he slipped to the breaker box in the stable that controlled the lights. This would be the hardest moment. When the lights went they would know he was there and react accordingly. Threats first, hopefully. They would keep Ariel alive as long as she was useful.

  Matt mentally marked the location of the man that was closest.

  Darkness fell over the patio as the pool lights abruptly went out, leaving only the light of the crescent moon. Ariel’s heart leaped. Matt was here.

  Lovell stiffened, then moved quickly, wrenching and twisting her arm around so that she was a shield in front of his body.