A Matter of Trust: A Christian Romance (BlackThorpe Security Book 3)

by Kimberly Rae Jordan

  “That’s a pretty slick operation,” Tyler said. Looking at it with his experience in intelligence, there was no doubt that a lot of money and effort had gone into Jenni’s abduction. “How did they find her?”

  “Well, the kidnappers had an order for twelve girls. They managed to snag them from all over the US. No two girls were taken from the same city or state, so no one tied the kidnappings together. Apparently, the kidnappers had access to a very secure compound not far from New York City. They would bring the girls there as they found them and begin to train them.”

  Tyler swallowed and tried to stop from asking the obvious question. “Train them?”

  Melanie got a faraway look in her eyes before she answered his question. And after she had, Tyler could understand better than he had before why Jenni was struggling to recover. Anger burned in his stomach that there were people out there willing to inflict such horror on young girls. But he knew from his own experience of being in the Middle East and dealing with some of the rebel groups there that money and the absolute devotion to a cause could get people to do almost anything.

  “Were the kidnappers from the Middle East?” Tyler asked.

  Melanie slowly shook her head. “I think that’s one of the reasons Jenni struggles so much. The boy—although it seemed he was more of a man who looked young for his age—was paid to play the part up until he put her in the car after drugging her on their date. He looked just like any other young man on the street. I’m not sure he knew what he was doing. The police never found him.”

  “How did she get free?”

  “They’d gathered the twelve girls over the course of two or three weeks. Jenni had been drugged at times so didn’t know how much time passed before they had all they needed. But then one of the girls committed suicide. Suddenly, they didn’t have twelve anymore and according to what the girls heard, they were supposed to leave within twenty-four hours. I guess the kidnappers decided to take their chances and snatch someone off the street in New York, hoping she would be what they needed.”

  “And that’s where their plans fell apart?”

  Melanie nodded. “They happened to snatch the daughter of a wealthy family who had equipped their daughter with some sort of GPS thing in her jewelry. All she had to do was press it to activate it, and she managed to do that before they knocked her out. The company monitoring was alerted to what was going on and immediately called the police who followed the signal right to the house.”

  “So they were able to free all twelve girls?”

  Melanie nodded. “But not without some bloodshed. Though the girls were safe, all the men involved in the kidnapping were killed in the standoff. The cops weren’t able to discover if there were other rings operating across the country. The person who owned the house said they were paid more than sixty thousand dollars in cash for a month’s use of the home so they didn’t request any sort of identification. It was all a dead end.”

  “That’s got to be difficult for Jenni and the other girls.”

  “Jenni was one of the first girls taken so she suffered more and the damage to her psyche—which wasn’t strong to begin with—was significant. She’s been in and out of psychiatric care ever since.”

  As Tyler mulled over everything Melanie had shared, something niggled at him. He watched as she continued to play with her food, her head bent. “Did any of this make the news?”

  Her head jerked up. “No. Well, not with the specifics of the girls who’d been abducted. The families wanted to keep their names out of the press so that the girls would have a chance to recover without the media hounding them. There were police statements issued warning people of the scam that had been used. But since there were no kidnapper survivors of the raid and the rental information was a dead end, there was no trial.”

  “Jenni’s fortunate to have a friend like you,” Tyler said.

  “She doesn’t think so, but her last few letters were alarming. She’d shaved her head and was refusing to leave her apartment. It’s a cycle for her, but this go-around was taking her much lower than other ones had.”

  They ate in silence for a few minutes. Tyler was glad to see that Melanie was actually putting food into her mouth instead of just playing with her food. He felt a bit bad to have brought up such an emotional subject.

  “How’s your food?”

  A smile flashed across Melanie’s face as she looked up at him. “It’s pretty good. How is yours?”

  Conversation from that point drifted to less intensive topics. At one point, Tyler managed to convince her to share a dessert with him when she balked at eating a whole one by herself. There were several empty tables so Tyler didn’t feel pressured to bring an end to their dinner though it was getting late.

  “Still want to go to a movie?” Tyler asked as he ate the last piece of the dessert. “We could make the late show.”

  Melanie seemed to think about it. “If you’d like to go, I’m up for it.”

  “I’m enjoying just sitting here talking actually,” Tyler said.

  “After this week, so am I.” Melanie relaxed back against the booth. “Thankfully, there were no major fires while I was gone.”

  “So,” Tyler began, “I hope the rumor floating around BlackThorpe didn’t upset you too much. I apologize for putting you in that position.”

  Melanie laughed. “Not your fault. I think people were looking with dollar signs in their eyes given that I’m at the top of that bet they’ve got going. There are far worse rumors that could be circulating. People are going to think what they think, and me trying to convince them it’s not true just brings more attention to it.”

  Tyler was glad she wasn’t bothered by it, but a part of him wished that the rumor was true. Would taking their friendship in the direction of a relationship ruin it? Their friendship had morphed over the years, so there was no reason why it couldn’t continue to grow and pull them closer together. But he kinda figured he was alone in that thinking.

  “Alex and Adrianne thought it was pretty funny,” Melanie said. “But that’s siblings for you.”

  Tyler shrugged. “I’ve never had the pleasure given I’m an only child. Ryan’s kind of become the brother I never had.”

  “And am I the sister you never had?” Melanie asked, a grin on her face.

  “Um…” Tyler regarded her seriously. “Not exactly.”

  Her brown eyes widened briefly at his response then her brows drew together. She tilted her head to the side as she stared at him. “Yeah, I suppose I don’t exactly view you in the same light as Alex.”

  Tyler would have liked to take hope from that, but he had a feeling that she still kept him squarely in the friend-zone.

  In the meantime, he’d keep praying and waiting for the right opportunity even though there was a little voice in his head that just kept saying to go ahead and ask about the possibility. If she said no, well, then he’d know, and hopefully, they could still be friends. But if she said yes… If she really was willing to consider something more than a friendship, then they would only have wasted time if he waited.

  The waitress finally slid the bill onto the table around ten-thirty, and they agreed it was time to call it a night. This time when they approached the Thorpe property, Melanie pulled a device from her purse and soon the gates were swinging open. He steered the car around the bends in the driveway until he came to a stop in front of a large…huge, really…house. Though it was dark, he could see that it had an odd structure to it that he would have liked to explore.

  “Thanks so much for dinner,” Melanie said as she opened her door.

  Tyler got out of the car as well and walked with her up the steps to the house. “You’re welcome. I enjoyed the evening. Definitely what I needed.”

  “Me, too.” She hesitated, then gripped his arm while she went up on her toes to brush a light kiss across his cheek. “See you next week.”

  “You bet.” Tyler watched as she opened the door. “Will I need to do anything to close the g
ate?”

  “Nope. I’ll watch the monitors and close them once you’re gone.”

  After a final goodbye, Tyler waited until she was inside with the door shut before he returned to his car. He resisted the urge to press his hand to his cheek. Did friends kiss each other? He followed the loop in the driveway and headed back to the gate. Okay, well, did female friends kiss their guy friends? He knew that Ryan wouldn’t be kissing him. At most they did a quick guy hug.

  He thought back and realized that Kelly had kissed him when they were still friends, but that was slightly different as they’d both seemed well aware of the direction their relationship was going. And of course, his mom kissed him. But Melanie never had.

  Tyler let out a sigh as he turned onto the ramp leading to the highway to go home. Thirty-one years old and the female species of the race still managed to confound him more often than not.

  ~*~*~

  “You’re free to go in,” the guard at the entrance to the BlackThorpe training compound said as he stepped back from her truck. The security had been upped to include guards at the gate in addition to the hand scan in order to gain access to the compound.

  After parking in the lot, Melanie got out and grabbed her gun case from the back seat along with her purse. She hadn’t been out here to shoot in quite a few weeks. Because her training was more intense than most realized, she usually went to a shooting range/self-defense center in St. Paul. Today, she just wanted to shoot.

  She walked into the main building and greeted the two guards before heading for the door that would lead to the shooting range. As she neared the range, she could hear the muffled shots of others practicing. As long as there was one lane open for her, she’d be happy. When she pulled open the door, her gaze went to the left and the windows there that looked out on the shooting range.

  “Well, imagine seeing you out here.”

  Turning, Melanie saw Justin standing behind the counter where they stored the ear protection among other things. She was a bit surprised to see him since it was a Sunday afternoon and he didn’t live at the compound anymore.

  “I could say the same thing to you. What are you doing out here on the weekend?”

  Justin smiled, something he did more frequently since the gentle Alana had come into his life and captured his heart. “Alana was getting together with some of the ladies so I’m out here to meet with the guys. Than and Trent should be here in a bit.”

  Melanie was surprised at the pang of longing that briefly took up residence in her chest. She was happy that Alana had found some friends in the wives and girlfriends of the men at BlackThorpe. It shouldn’t bother her to not be part of it, but for the first time, it did. However, she had no one to blame but herself for the lack of friends.

  “I’m just out here to do a little shooting.” Melanie looked back at the windows, uncertain what her expression might reveal.

  “Everything okay?”

  Trust Justin to pick up on it. They’ve been friends ever since he’d come to work at the company. It had kind of been like her friendship with Tyler. It had started as acquaintances and gradually worked its way up to friendship. She glanced back at him and smiled. “Yep.”

  Justin crossed his arms over his chest and stared at her with narrowed eyes. “That was only a half-smile. What’s up? Does it have anything to do with the rumor floating around?”

  “Really, Justin?” Melanie intentionally arched an eyebrow at him. “Listening to rumors?”

  If she’d expected him to look abashed, she was in for a disappointment because the dude grinned at her and said, “Sorry, but hearing you linked romantically to someone kinda made me pay attention.”

  “There’s nothing to it,” Melanie retorted. “Never gonna happen.”

  “Never say never, Melanie,” Justin said, the grin still firmly in place on his face. “Look at me. All it takes, if it’s God’s will, is meeting the right person.”

  Well, she could hardly argue that with him. Justin had been a confirmed bachelor if there ever had been one. Seeing him take the plunge headfirst into the pool of love had been somewhat amusing. And the spiritual side of him was yet another change since he’d met Alana. He’d never spoken much about his faith, at least not the way he did now.

  “The best thing you can do is to pray and ask God to prepare your heart for the man He has for you—if it’s His will.”

  “You keep saying that. If it’s His will. Do you believe that sometimes it’s not His will for a person to fall in love and marry?”

  Justin shrugged. “God calls us all to different walks of life. Sometimes it will be alone. Sometimes it will be with a spouse. I wouldn’t presume to know what might be the case in your situation, but don’t deny yourself the possibility of a relationship for any reason other than you feel that it’s not God’s will for you.”

  Her thoughts drifted back to her evening with Tyler and then the time she’d spent at church earlier that day. She hadn’t gone to her parents’ church—the one she usually attended—but she’d gone with Alex to his. There were subtle differences between the churches and she’d felt more receptive to the message the pastor there had brought, but that could have less to do with the church itself and more with where her heart and mind had been lately.

  The pastor had also spoken about finding God’s will for one’s life. He’d talked about how God could see the whole picture while people only see a little bit at a time. How much wiser, the pastor had said, to let the person who sees the whole picture guide you through the decisions in your life.

  Of course, it made sense, but Melanie had no idea how to actually do that. Before she could ask Justin more about it, Than and Trent showed up, exuberant in their greetings and once again bringing up the rumor.

  “I need to get a T-shirt printed that says No, it’s not true,” Melanie grumbled.

  Than laughed. “Or, you could say hey, that Tyler dude is a pretty nice guy. Maybe I should consider something with him.”

  “Oh, I know Tyler’s a pretty nice guy. We’ve been friends for years. It has nothing to do with whether or not he’s nice.”

  “Going from friends to something more can be a scary thing,” Trent said with a gentle smile. “But sometimes you just need to take the plunge and pray for God’s will to prevail.”

  There is was again. “Well, it’s kind of a moot point since Tyler hasn’t shown any interest in that either.”

  Trent shrugged. “Could be he’s as reluctant as you to put a friendship on the line.”

  It struck Melanie once again that unlike Adrianne with her girlfriends, she was getting relationship advice from three guys. Not that she’d asked for it. Besides, where did God’s will fit into the horrific abduction she’d endured? She hadn’t asked for that. In fact, it was her efforts to date a boy who shared the values and morals she’d been taught that had gotten her into trouble.

  “I’ll keep all this in mind,” Melanie said with a smile she hoped didn’t reveal the turmoil within her. Right then she was as confused about her relationship with God as she was about one with Tyler. “And on that note, I’m going to do some serious damage to paper bad guys.”

  Though Justin looked like he might have wanted to continue the conversation, he didn’t say anything more about it while he got her some ear protection.

  “We’re going to the gym to spar and work out,” he said once she was set. “If I don’t see you before you go, enjoy the rest of your weekend.”

  Once she was in a lane ready to shoot, she lifted her weapon, aimed and began to fire. The paper form had a face in her mind. Several different ones, in fact. Each face was indelibly etched in her mind. She even knew what they looked like dead. When she and the other girls had been led from the house after the raid, the cops had tried to shield them from the dead bodies sprawled on the floor, but Melanie had needed to see them. If she didn’t see with her own eyes that they were dead and would never again be able to reach her, she knew they would haunt her dreams.

 
Of course, that didn’t take away the fear that someone else would one day try to insert themselves into her life again. You’d think that the fear of a man coming after her again would have prevented her from being able to be friends with men—would have sent her in the direction of female friendships only. But the men she claimed as friends had come into her life by circumstances that couldn’t be faked or because Alex or Marcus had trusted them.

  Ryan was probably the one person in her life currently that she didn’t know much about. But he wasn’t pursuing her, and he seemed to be a good friend to Tyler, so until he proved otherwise, she would extend limited trust to him.

  Melanie laid her gun down and lowered her ear protection as she waited for the paper target to come toward her. The range had fallen quiet, and she wondered if she was the only one still shooting.

  “You aiming at anyone in particular? You’re amazingly accurate.”

  She jerked in surprise and glanced over her shoulder to see a tall, muscled man with a brush cut standing behind her. He stood like Justin often did with his arms crossed over his chest. Suddenly uneasy and unwilling to give him her back, Melanie turned sideways while she reloaded her gun.

  “I always find it helps to imagine a bad guy. And there is no shortage of those in the world today.”

  “Well, you’d be doing a bang up job if you were shooting them in real life,” the man said, his lips curving up into a wide smile. “Name’s Eli Bennett.”

  The man held out his hand. Melanie hesitated just a moment before she reached out to shake it. Surely if the guy was this deep into the BlackThorpe compound, he’d been cleared to be there. Still, there was something about him that put her on edge. “I’m Melanie. Melanie Thorpe.”

  The man’s eyebrows rose at that. It was a good sign that he apparently hadn’t realized who she was. “Thorpe as in Alex’s sister?”

  Melanie nodded. “One of them anyway.”

  Eli glanced around. “Is Alex here today?”

  “Nope.” Melanie lowered her gun to rest against her thigh, barrel pointed at the floor. “So you know Alex?”