by Jade Dean
Shrugging, as if he wasn’t sure why he’d given it to her, Ryan winced at the stab of pain that went through his torn shoulder with the movement. “It reminded me of you,” he said quietly. “Fierce and beautiful.”
Moved by his explanation, Abby was torn. For a moment, she debated about giving it back to him, then decided to keep it. No man had ever given her a gift before and she found she did want a reminder, but of Ryan rather than Brazil itself. “Thank you,” she said then stepped into the bathroom. She wanted to wash his blood off her hands before she touched the necklace.
Lying down, Ryan closed his eyes with the intention of resting for a few moments and instead slid into an exhausted slumber.
Washing then drying her hands, Abby fastened the necklace around her neck. The lioness’s eyes were almost the exact same shade as hers, which was most likely why he’d been drawn to it. It looked expensive and she wondered how much it had cost him and what his girlfriend would think if she knew he’d given a gift to another woman.
Abby felt a strange and unwelcome tenderness sweep through her when she stepped back into the bedroom and saw that Ryan had fallen into a deep asleep. Handsome, masculine and extremely capable, he nevertheless looked like a lost little boy. Moving over to the bed, she gave into temptation and ran her fingers through his hair.
“Miranda?” Stirring from his poignant dream of the past, Ryan murmured the name of his long dead wife before subsiding back into sleep.
Abby drew her hand back when Ryan said another woman’s name. He wasn’t hers and he never would be. It would be best for them both if she just walked away without bothering to say goodbye. They’d shared an experience that had been intense and fraught with danger. They’d momentarily been drawn together in mutual passion that they hadn’t dared to fully consummate. Now that their peril was over, it was time to return to whatever passed for their normal lives.
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Chapter Fourteen
Using the small hotel notepad and pen to leave a note, Abby took one last look at Ryan before leaving. She wanted to lock the sight of his beautiful body and face into her mind forever.
Finally forcing herself into action, she grabbed her purse and left the room. Locking the door, she slid the key beneath the sizable crack so he’d be able to leave once he woke. She took the stairs to the ground floor and ghosted out through the door while the clerk’s back was turned.
Abby took to the streets, walking fast but keeping her eye out for Montoya’s men. She found an old car parked in an alley and checked to make sure no one was around before opening the door. It was a dilapidated piece of junk and the owner hadn’t bothered to lock it. He or she probably thought no one would be desperate enough to steal it. It took her a couple of minutes to hotwire it then the motor roared to life. She took off before the owner woke up and came to investigate the noise.
Debating about returning to her hotel for her belongings or driving straight to the airport, Abby decided it would be a good idea to go to the hotel first. Her flight was due to leave in a few hours and there was a good chance that her tour group was still at the hotel. She’d most likely been declared as missing by them days ago, which could cause complications when tried to board the plane. Her name would have been flagged with the authorities and she didn’t want someone pulling her aside at the airport to question her about her disappearance.
The small, rusty car made the journey through the large city without dying and she parked several blocks away from her hotel. She walked the rest of the way, glad that she’d worn hiking boots. The relieved look on the receptionist’s face told her that word had definitely spread about her kidnapping.
“I’m fine,” she said before the girl could bombard her with questions. “I managed to get away, but it took me a while to find my way back here,” she said by way of explanation. “I’ll be in my room if anyone needs to speak to me.” She had no doubt that the cops would be called. The receptionist was already reaching for the phone as she stepped into the elevator.
Well aware of the types of questions the cops would ask, Abby quickly showered and changed into fresh clothes. She wadded her old clothes up, stepped into the hall and tossed them down the trash chute. Hopefully, they’d land in a pile of garbage and would become too encrusted with filth to tell that they’d been relatively clean when she’d arrived. The story that she’d concocted wouldn’t hold up if they examined her clothing in detail. They weren’t dirty enough for her to have been trudging through the jungle for four days.
It took a full hour before a knock came at her door. Instead of the cops, it was the couple that had tried to stop her from being kidnapped by Ryan. Their names were Gary and Cecelia. Gary was a retired judge and, even though he was elderly, he was still a formidable man.
“We just heard from the receptionist that you’d returned and we had to check on you,” Cecelia said. Her eyes were teary as she looked the younger woman over for any signs of injuries.
“Are you alright?” Gary asked her. His blue eyes were faded with age, but they were still sharp. They barely knew her and their concern was genuine and touching.
Smiling wearily at the pair, she stepped aside to let them enter. Her room was much cleaner and nicer than the one she’d left Ryan in. The carpet was light green to match the wallpaper. The bed was smaller than she was used to, but it was soft and comfortable. Best of all, the bathroom was spacious and clean.
“I’m fine,” she told the pair. It was obvious that they didn’t believe her. “Really, I wasn’t with the banditos long enough to be harmed.”
They took a seat at the small dining table and Gary looked at her with a direct stare that would have made a bad guy squirm on the stand. “You’ve been gone for four days.”
“I know,” she said ruefully. Her explanation was cut short when another, much curter, knock came at the door.
Gary stood, motioned for the two women to remain seated and moved to the door. He looked through the peephole then glanced at Abby. “It’s a police officer,” he said quietly. “I’d like to stay while he questions you.”
Glad to have him on her side, Abby nodded. “I’d like that.” She could act like an exhausted victim who was too tired to go into a long, drawn out explanation of her ordeal. Frankly, it wouldn’t be much of a stretch at the moment.
Gary opened the door and a lone cop entered. Abby knew instantly that he was an honest man rather than a dirty one. The concern on his face was genuine and unforced. “Ms. Parker?” he asked. A nametag pinned to his white button up shirt told her his name was Manuel Rodrigues. He’d rolled the sleeves up in concession to the heat.
“Yes,” she replied.
“I am glad to see you have returned safely. Can you tell me where you have been for the past four days?”
“After I was kidnapped by those men, we drove through the jungle for a few hours. We finally came to a stop in a clearing and I was taken into a building.”
“What did the building look like?” Rodrigues asked.
“It was too dark to make out much,” she said with convincing regret. “It was small, cramped and had only a few rooms inside.”
“How many men were there?”
“I saw twenty or so.” There had been twice that number, but it was pointless to tell him the truth. Montoya wouldn’t stick around long enough to be caught. The compound would be stripped of anything of value before the men shifted to another base.
“Can you describe any of these men?”
Making a helpless gesture with one hand, she shook her head. “They looked like you,” she said. “Dark hair and eyes, black T-shirts and cargo pants. They carried assault rifles, handguns and knives.”
“Did you overhear any names?”
“I heard them mention the name Diego Montenegra, or something like that, a few times.”
His ears perked up at that. “I believe the name is Diego Montoya,” he corrected her. “Did you see this man?”
Shaking her head, she crossed her ar
ms and pretended to shiver. “I didn’t really see anyone, apart from the man who grabbed me. He locked me in a room as soon as we reached their base.”
“Did he assault you?” Rodrigues asked as delicately as possible. His dark eyes were compassionate and reflected his relief when she shook her head. Cecelia gave a small sob of relief as well.
“No. He didn’t get the chance to. I managed to escape shortly after I was locked in the room.”
“How did you escape?”
“The window was barred, but one of the bars was loose,” she lied. “The gap was just wide enough for me to squeeze through. Once I was free, I hid in the jungle until morning then tried to make my way back to the city.”
“Why did it take you four days to find your way back?” he asked.
“I got lost,” she said ruefully. “It took me three days to find a road and I hid every time I heard a car. It took me all night and half of the day to walk back to the hotel.”
“Is there anything you can tell me about where these men took you?” Rodrigues asked. “Did you notice which direction they took?”
“West?” she said uncertainly. They’d actually headed north, not west, but she didn’t want to give him the exact location of the compound just in case Ryan headed back there to search for his quarry.
“Abigail is exhausted from her ordeal,” Gary said to the officer. “I am sure she would just like to return home. Our flight is due to leave in three hours and we should really be on our way.”
Grateful to the former judge for stepping in, Abby nodded her agreement. Almost half of their group would be leaving on the same flight. The rest were due to leave a couple of hours later.
Frowning down at the few notes he’d taken, Rodrigues met her eyes. He knew she was hiding something, but he had no grounds to keep her in Rio. “I sincerely apologize for any harm that you sustained during your visit. If you would like, I can escort you to the airport.”
“We’d like that,” Cecelia said firmly before either Abby or Gary refused the offer. She was still shaken by Abby’s sudden disappearance and she wasn’t about to suffer through another attempted kidnapping.
It only took Abby a few minutes to pack and to join the rest of her group in the lobby. Everyone was ecstatic that she’d returned unharmed, but they didn’t have much time to celebrate before heading for the lineup of taxis. Abby and Cecelia climbed into the back of the first cab while Gary took the front seat. Rodrigues led the procession in his squad car during the trip to the airport. Staying in his car, he waved at the group of Americans as they disappeared inside the building.
Everything ran smoothly right up until they were about to head for the metal detectors. Remembering the knife in her bag, Abby ducked out of the line with a word to Cecelia that she had to go to the bathroom. Standing in the cubicle, she used toilet paper to wipe the blade clean of her prints then flushed and made her way to the basins. Waiting for the only other female in the room to leave, she took the knife out of her purse and dropped it into the bin. She’d left no prints or DNA to tie the weapon to her.
Gary and Cecelia were waiting for her when she returned and took up a place at the back of the line. They were afraid to let her out of their sight for longer than a few minutes. Making their way through the metal detectors, they found their gate and waited for their turn to be called to board.
Abby took her seat in the middle of the plane and was amongst strangers. Gary and Cecelia were in first class and the closest person from her tourist group was several rows away. She was glad not to be pestered with questions about her ordeal. To avoid conversation with her fellow passengers, she pretended to read during the long trip home.
Landing in LA, she only had time to say a brief goodbye to the judge and his wife before she had to rush to catch her flight to Washington. This trip was much shorter and she sank into the back seat of a taxi wearily. She’d only been gone for just over a week, but it had felt much longer than that.
It was late and traffic was light enough that she made it home quickly. Unlocking her door, she pushed it all the way open to make sure no one was hiding behind it out of long habit. At long last, she was back in her spacious yet Spartan apartment. She’d been living here for just under a year now and the place still didn’t really feel like home. Unused to staying in one place for long, she’d never taken up the habit of home decorating. Her job as a special ops agent had her travelling all over the world and assuming dozens of identities over the past decade. Now she was out of the death business and was hiding in the last city her boss would think to look for her, right under his nose.
Her apartment had an open plan with a combined living and dining area. Both had polished wooden floors. The kitchen was only moderately sized, but she didn’t need a lot of room to cook for one. She had three bedrooms, two of which were empty and she hadn’t bothered to fill with beds. Her furniture consisted of a black leather couch, a glass topped coffee table, a long, sleek black entertainment unit for the TV and a small dining table with four chairs. Her bed was large enough for three people, but she’d never shared it with anyone.
Taking a long, hot shower, Abby dressed in a white singlet and panties, her usual bedroom attire. She felt strangely lonely when she lay down to sleep. In just a few short nights, she’d almost gotten used to sharing a bed with another person. She pictured Ryan as soon as she closed her eyes and shivered at the memory of his hands and mouth on her body. Forcing the images away, she wouldn’t let herself pine for a man that she couldn’t have. He was gone and it was time to put the whole experience behind her.
Lying between her breasts, a pair of smoky blue-gray eyes glittered in a shaft of moonlight that fell through a gap in her curtain. The lioness pendant was her only link to Ryan and she wanted to keep it close.
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Chapter Fifteen
Waking suddenly, Ryan blinked at the late afternoon light flooding into the room. It was far too quiet and he knew even without searching the room that Abby was gone. Worried that she’d been taken by Montoya, he sat up. Sweeping his eyes around the area, they landed on a note lying on the bed beside him.
Picking it up, he read it and relief made the tension seep out of his shoulders. The message had been written by Abby. She’d thanked him for rescuing her and for keeping her from harm. She apologized for being a distraction and for causing him to fail in his mission. She’d decided that he’d done enough for her already and had left for the airport shortly after he’d fallen asleep.
Crumpling the note, he wished he had some way of checking to see whether she would make it home safely. He’d slept for eight hours straight and she should be well on her way back to the US by now.
Taking a quick shower, he exchanged the soaked plaster for a new one after checking that it was still free from infection. It was, so he sat on the bed and contemplated his choices. Despite his year-long mission, Diego Montoya was still alive. He’d had one chance at revenge and he’d blown it. Montoya was always on the move and rarely stayed at his secret mansion for more than a few days at a time. It would be nearly impossible to guess where he’d be on any given day. Ryan could try to find the mansion and keep it under surveillance, but it could be weeks or even months before the target returned to his house.
Unwilling to give up so easily, Ryan left the hotel and headed back to the compound. Stopping a mile or so away from the ramshackle building that had been his home for the past year, he hid the jeep on a seldom used road and went the rest of the way on foot.
All was dark and silent when he reached the perimeter of the compound. Everyone had fled after learning that there had been a spy amongst them. Wary of a trap, Ryan checked for trip wires and snipers hidden in the trees before crossing the open area to the building. Another note waited for him. The white paper stood out starkly against the metal door. It had been stuck there with duct tape.
Tearing the note free, he read the message that Montoya had left for him. It was short and to the point: We will meet again o
ne day, Agent Sheldon.
The implied threat didn’t frighten Ryan. He’d already lost everything that was important to him and he had nothing left to lose. Maybe he should make it easy for Montoya to find him so he could put an end to his misery. That had been his plan before Abby had accidentally been drawn into his life. She was gone now, but something told him that she’d be very hard to forget.
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Chapter Sixteen
Abby strolled through the park a couple of blocks away from her home, pretending to be unaware that she was being watched. The hairs on the back of her neck had risen the moment she’d left her apartment a few minutes ago. It was a sure sign that she was under surveillance. The only reason she hadn’t fled from the city immediately was that she didn’t feel threatened yet. Whoever was watching her wasn’t her enemy. After a decade of performing clandestine operations, being followed seemed almost normal rather than dangerous.
Two months had passed since her eventful trip to Brazil. Her life had settled back into its predictable routine. She had the freedom to do whatever she wanted, but she found herself staying close to home. It almost felt like she was waiting for something to happen. Now that it had, she wasn’t surprised.
Stopping at a small pond, she took out her compact and feigned fixing the makeup that she wasn’t wearing. She didn’t spot anyone watching her and her admiration grew. Whoever they were, they were good at blending in and remaining unseen.
