Inescapable

by Saskia Walker

  “Now you’re talking.”

  “I thought you’d approve.”

  A secret smile lit her expression, and it was right then that Seth finally admitted to himself that it didn’t matter that she was here because of Adrian. That was then, this was now. She wanted him as well. She’d wanted him when she’d come onto him outside Adrian’s office, and it hadn’t gone away. For all her prickly attitude towards him and the flippant remarks about enjoying the moment, he could read the signals. God knows he’d had enough time in close quarters with people. He learnt to read how they really felt, no matter what words came out of their mouth. Desire was there in her expression, in the things she didn’t say and the way she acted, everything about her told her what he needed to know.

  I shouldn’t care, he told himself. But he couldn’t help it.

  She rose to her feet and walked to the curtains, peeking out between them. She was looking longingly at the patio and the landscaped garden beyond. It was a look he’d seen many times before, the familiar look of a caged creature, begging to be free. Why did it bother him that she looked so caged? He’d protected witnesses so many times before, and almost every time he’d seen people start to look this way when their confinement became a burden and they wanted to be free, but this time he was thinking about in a different way. He felt her pain, her longing, and it was because they were involved.

  It had been an incredibly intense time, the three of them living a fantasy many owned but never fulfilled. Four great days, days he’d never forget, but he shouldn’t have done it, because he couldn’t help himself, not when it came to Lily. It had to end, soon.

  “It looks so beautiful out there this morning. Not as sunny as it was, but the sky is roaring. It’s such a beautiful spot. I’d love to explore. Another time, of course.”

  The fact she liked his childhood home made him smile, he couldn’t help it. Then she turned around and the look of yearning on her face made him feel so bloody bad.

  Shit. I could do without this.

  The sense of responsibility he felt towards her, a woman he’d got involved with—the only woman he’d got involved with under these circumstances—was different, definitely. He felt he owed her more, which is why he shouldn’t have got involved in the first place. If he started making concessions to security for her, as he was tempted to do, weak points would be opened up. Even so, he nodded. “I could turn the alarms off, if you want to go outside for a few quick breaths of air.”

  Fool, if a local is walking in the fields beyond the gardens and saw that someone is staying here, when it should be closed up and empty, they’ll investigate, or report it to the police, which would open up a line for Lavonne.

  Her eyes lit up. “You’d do that?”

  Surely they couldn’t be that unlucky, to be spotted inside a minute? “Just for one minute, and only if you stay on the patio, close to the house.”

  She masked her disappointment, but not before he caught it. She wandered over. “I’d really appreciate it, just to breathe that crisp air and get some natural light.”

  He went to the hall to switch off the alarms at the main box, ad she followed, clinging to his arm as if it was Christmas and he was giving her the best present in the world. While he flicked the alarm switches off, he dealt out the rules. “I need to be able to see you at all times, and I want you to stay close to the doors so that you’re not visible to anyone who might be walking on the land beyond the gardens. There’s a public footpath there, and occasionally people pass through.”

  “We are safe here, aren’t we?” She stared at the alarm box, as if he’d put the doubt in her mind.

  It was no bad thing, but still…he hated to see the worried expression of face. “Yes, very safe, as safe as we can be right now. I just have to remain vigilant. It’s my job.”

  “Thanks Seth, I appreciate this.” She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him quickly. It was like a promise. Her kisses always felt like promises.

  When they walked back to the patio doors, he paused and stroked her hair back from her face. “I’m sorry it can’t be more than a minute.”

  She nodded. He opened the door and she wandered out.

  He stood in the doorway watching as she walked up and down the patio a mere three feet away from where he was in the doorway. She was following his rules. Shielding her eyes, she looked first at the landscape beyond, and then she looked at the border shrubs that ran along the patio. If Gareth, his stepfather, had been here, he’d be out there with her telling her the names of the various plants. He always did that when a guest showed interest. They’d like Lily, his parents. She was warm and vivacious. He rubbed the back of his neck with one hand, wondering at the way his thoughts had wandered. It was Lily; she got him so easily distracted. That was not a good thing.

  She wrapped her arms close around herself, and he knew that she was cold. It was pretty obvious that she didn’t care. She was dressed so inappropriately for a winter morning, he noticed, with that short skirt and the high heels.

  It’s because she is dressed for a date, a sexy date in London, with Adrian.

  I just got lucky and got in on the act.

  He cursed himself under his breath. It just wasn’t right, any of it. The most important rules of his job were to always remain vigilant, and never get emotionally involved. What was wrong with him? He was failing to concentrate. Perhaps he was too old for the job. It happened. Whatever it was, the niggling doubts he had faded as he watched Lily. She was coming back to the house.

  “My minute is up, thank you.” A smile hovered around her mouth. Once he stood back, she stepped outside the door and looked at him. “I need to ask you for something.”

  That sounded heavy. “Go ahead.”

  Her cheeks turned pink. “I need some underwear.”

  He frowned. “Underwear?”

  “I only had the one pair of knickers, obviously.” She flashed him a glance that showed she really didn’t want to have to ask him about this. “I’ve been washing them and drying them on the radiator overnight, but you tore them, yesterday.”

  “Right.” Staring at her, he felt stupid. He should have thought of it. Normally his witnesses in protection were prepared, at least with an overnight bag. Not this one. With Adrian it was easy; he’d passed on some of his own gear. He hadn’t even thought about Lily, except how good she looked in what she was wearing. Then again, when he was thinking about her underwear, he was mostly thinking about taking it off.

  He shook his head. Yep, he was well and truly a lost cause over this woman. “Come on, I’m sure we can find you something, upstairs.”

  Lily cocked her head on one side as she looked up at him, but didn’t comment. He locked the patio doors and took her hand, leading her into the hallway.

  “Hold on.” He walked over to the control panel and flicked the alarms back on. Lily watched, and nodded. She followed him up the staircase, looking around with curiosity. There were several more rooms on the first floor that she hadn’t seen before. Seth led her to another staircase, at the top of which was the door he’d checked was locked at the outset. She stared at the ’private‘ sign on the door. Seth unlocked the door and ushered her in, watching as she walked into the private space.

  “Oh, wow, what a fantastic view.” She walked across the sitting area to the picture window, which was directly above the patio she’d been on earlier. Gareth, his step dad, plotted and planed all his planting from up here. His aerial view, as he called it.

  Seth shut the door and walked in, glancing around. He’d been here just a few weeks before, at Christmas, but he was seeing it through her eyes.

  “Oh, my God, this is you.” She’d lifted a framed photo from the sideboard.

  Shit. He strode over and snatched it out of her hand, but she wrestled him for it, grasping it in both hands and holding it up next his face, chucking as she did so. “What were you, eighteen?”

  Seth could have kicked himself, he hadn’t thought this through. “Thereabouts.
”

  She looked at it from under her lashes, and that knowing look that women got appeared on her face. “I bet you had lots of female attention. I certainly would’ve been interested.”

  Seth reached for the photograph when she was off guard, putting it back in its position on the sideboard.

  Her expression grew more serious, and he knew the penny had dropped. “This isn’t a safe house at all, is it? This is your family home.”

  Seth gritted his teeth.

  “But that’s not your name on the licence by the door. Your name is Jones, isn’t it?”

  She was good. “My mum remarried.”

  She looked at him thoughtfully and then her eyes rounded and she stared at him as if horrified. “If this isn’t the safe house…and you brought us here.” She slowed, truly freaked. “You’re not…you’re not working for this man, Carlisle, are you?” She didn’t exactly back away, but she looked as if she was about to.

  Seth grasped her around the shoulders, hating to see the mistrust that had risen in her expression. “No. There was a reason why I couldn’t take Adrian to the designated safe house.”

  “What reason?”

  Shit. He’d have to tell her, because she wouldn’t feel safe with him. If he didn’t tell her she would keep asking and then Adrian would find out. “I’ll explain why, if you promise to keep it to yourself. Adrian has got enough on his mind; I don’t want to add to his worries. Promise me you won’t tell him what I’m about to tell you?”

  “Yes, if you feel that’s the right thing to do.”

  Was she starting to accept his authority? He thought she’d just mellowed, but she really was playing along. He was glad of that. “That man you saw in the corridor, the one who took a shot at Adrian.”

  “Yes?”

  “I also saw him, from the fire escape. And I recognised him. He’s a fellow officer.”

  Her eyes rounded. “You mean…”

  “My guess is he’s on Eric Carlisle’s payroll. Once I knew that, I couldn’t risk taking Adrian to the safe house. A policeman in the same department as me can access that information on the system. This seemed like the best alternative option. ” He glanced around the familiar room. “My parents run this place; it’s where I grew up. They have an eight-week break in Spain every year, January and February.”

  “Right. So why don’t you report him to the police, to your guys?”

  “It’s knowing who to trust.”

  “I see.” She stared at him with a heavy expression. “I understand that, believe me. The reason I left nursing, it was partly to do with a senior member of staff who I didn’t think was acting appropriately with a patient’s care. I took it into my own hands. It was the right move, but my senior got annoyed and said I couldn’t accept authority, that I’d acted without her agreement. The hospital backed her up. I handled it the wrong way, and I left, but deep down I know I did the right thing for the patient.”

  For several moments, they stared into each other’s eyes, acknowledging the common ground. Then he found himself scooping her in against him to hold her. With her hands wrapped around his back, it felt natural, it felt good.

  He didn’t want to have to tell her, tell either of them, but when he held her in his arms that sense of loneliness that he always nursed evaporated for a few moments. “I need to make contact with my boss, but I’m not going to use a phone or e-mail or anything that can pinpoint a location to anyone in the office.”

  “It all makes sense now.” She looked up at him. “Any other ideas?”

  “I’m working on it.”

  “Can you send your boss an e-mail from an anonymous Hotmail account?”

  “IP addresses can be traced.” As he said it he noticed his step dad’s computer on a small desk in the corner of the room, and an idea started to form. It was the mention of the Hotmail account. He had one that he rarely used. “Wait, hold that thought. You might have something there.”

  The PC was old, and ran on a slow modem. His step dad only used it to run a simple web site advertising the hotel, and his mother occasionally sent Seth family photos to his Hotmail account. Seth walked over and switched the thing on.

  “You’ve had an idea?” Lily was beside him as he took up the seat at the desk.

  “Maybe.” He did, but by the time he’d got online and opened his account, doubt had slowed him up. He paused, thinking carefully through the idea. It was dangerous, everything was dangerous, but it was the least dangerous thing he’d thought of so far.

  Scrolling through messages, he saw the one he was looking for, a party invitation from Colleen Ward. He opened it. A JPEG filled the screen, an image of a clown holding a bunch of balloons.

  “Colleen Ward?” Lily had one hand on his back as she looked over his shoulder at the screen.

  Seth briefly thought about sending her away, but she would be so curious that it was likely to cause more problems, because she already knew too much. He hit reply and began to type.

  Colleen, thank you for inviting me to your birthday party last month. I had a great time, even though I ate too much of your mummy’s lovely cake. Please tell your dad that Uncle Seth says next time we have to play whack-a-mole, instead of musical chairs. Hugs and kisses from Uncle Seth

  “Uncle Seth?” she looked amused.

  “Yes, she’s my chief’s daughter, so what?”

  She shrugged. “Just learning. Very clever,” she added nodding at the screen. “Whack-a-mole.” She chuckled. “Do you think it will work? I mean, will she tell him?”

  “She’s an extremely bright kid, and apparently she checks her email every day. Gets excited about receiving mail, so she will mention it. In fact she will bug him so much we’ll have to play the game next time I get to visit.” He chuckled.

  Lily’s hand tightened on his shoulder.

  “And, most importantly, her dad will know there’s a leak at work, because I’ve gone via an outside route.” He reread the message, thought through the implications, and hit send. Before he could start brooding on his decision, he closed down the computer connection. She was still looking at him with a curious expression on her face and a half smile. “Hopefully our shooter will be behind bars, and soon.”

  He stood up and slapped her playfully on the bottom. “Let’s see if we can find you some underwear.”

  “Do you have a sister?”

  “Unfortunately not,” Seth replied as he led her towards his parent’s bedroom. Frowning, he wondered what the hell he was doing bringing her up here to his mother’s room looking for clothes. Because I can’t have her knickers hanging off driving me insane, that’s why. He gestured into the bedroom and then at the chest of drawers is on the far side. “See if you can find something in there.”

  Moments later he heard her giggle softly. “I don’t think your mum and I are the same size.” She turned to face him, holding up a rather large pair of pink knickers.

  “This was a bad idea,” he mumbled vaguely. Size and colour were not the problem. He’d realised that he had no inclination to see Lily in his mother’s underwear. Lily had returned her attention to the drawers, bending down as she did so. Her skirt rode up and he got a flash of her bare bottom.

  She wasn’t wearing any underwear, torn or not.

  His cock immediately hardened at the sight of her pussy and bottom, bent over like that, wiggling. “Forget it,” he said. “I’ll take you to a shop.”

  “Are you sure it will be safe,” she queried, still bent over the drawers.

  Staring at her exposed pussy, Seth shook his head. None of them were safe with her walking around like that. His barriers were dropping all over the place, but he had to get her arse covered up and soon, or he’d lose focus altogether.

  Chapter Twelve

  When Adrian had brooded and sulked long enough to make him feel ashamed of himself, he emerged from his room and walked into the kitchen, which he found empty. In the hallway, he heard creaking floorboards that sounded as if it was on the stairs above,
so he wandered to the residents’ lounge. His knee was feeling much stronger, which was a relief, but he didn’t want to undo that by tackling the stairs.

  In the lounge, the curtains at the window where open a few inches, which was unusual. Curious, he crossed the room and peered out. He looked out at the scene beyond, reflecting on how his world had shrunk from everything that it once was, to what was inside these walls. Just a few days before, he couldn’t even stand the thought of going into witness protection, being locked up and away from everything that he knew, and at times it now seemed as if the whole world had vanished off the face the earth and there was only three of them left. Three of them here in this isolated the old manor house with its quaint well-stocked bar, and its creaky floorboards.

  Shoving his hands into the pockets of the rather baggy jeans that Seth had given him to wear, he wondered vaguely who they belonged to. He’d asked Seth if they were his, and he’d said something non-committal about finding them somewhere in the house. That seemed like a good enough answer, given the circumstances.

  It was uncanny, the way he’d adapted to this strange life inside a couple of days. He was in a strange house in place he didn’t know, wearing another man’s clothing, and yet he was okay with it. It was Lily who’d made that happen, she’d made this time positive—exceptional, even. He had no doubt it would have been a completely different story had she not been forced to join them. It was quite possible that he was simply burying his head in the sand about Carlisle and the trial—not to mention the fact that someone with a gun would rather he was dead and buried.

  Which came first, the attachment to Lily, or the need to escape the oncoming trial? The trial was something he hadn’t allowed himself to dwell on too much, he knew that, but a voice in his head kept shouting that it was Lily; it was because she’d proved to be everything he wanted and more. Second-guessing himself meant doubts were being thrown up all the time. He was still kicking himself about taking on the Carlisle account at all, and that messed with his head.