He shoved her finger away. “And you withheld vital information. How long have you known you were pregnant?”
In some ways, the past week seemed to stretch forever. In others, it seemed to have been no more than a strange night's dream. She did the mental math. “Almost a week. I suspected last Friday, so I took a test Saturday morning.”
He paced away from her, putting even more space between them. “I understand that you wouldn't want to tell me yet because of the state of our relationship. I get that. But you let me bring you here. You let me put you in danger while you're carrying my child. That earns a punishment.”
While she accepted this part of being the submissive party in a relationship, she didn't like his logic, and she had no intention of accepting the punishment. Crossing her arms over her chest, she narrowed her eyes at him. “So you're okay with putting me in danger as long as I'm not pregnant?” She still wasn't completely convinced Victor presented a danger to her.
The gap between them disappeared. He grabbed her roughly, his fingers digging into her upper arms. “I didn't want you to be part of this at all. I was looking for any excuse to not involve you. From the beginning, Darcy, I tried to do this without you.”
She struggled against his hold, and he released her. “You can't do this without me. Victor doesn't want you; he wants me. He'll take you in order to have me. I need to find out what happened to Scott. That's why I'm here.”
Even though she didn't know where her relationship with Malcolm would end up, she realized Amy had been right. She needed closure. She needed to mourn Scott, say her good-byes, and let him go. Whether the next stage of her life brought love and a child or just motherhood, she needed to move on.
Malcolm shook his head. “It's not worth it. I'm pulling the plug on this entire evening. We're getting you out of here.”
He took her by the arm, gently this time, but she fought him hard. “You don't get to make that decision. I'm here because I want to be here. Do you honestly think I would help the FBI with the case they have against Victor if you didn't have something to point to Scott's involvement? Hell no!”
In two moves, he had both of her arms pinned behind her back and her body once again pressed between his and the back of the sofa. Danger glinted from his eyes, sending shivers of anticipation down her spine to curl her toes. No wonder he'd been so skilled at subduing her. And to think, she'd been afraid of hurting him if she fought back too hard.
“Don't push me on this issue, sweetheart.” He savaged her lips with a punishing kiss that only fueled her desire. “You won't win. I'll never agree to put my child in harm's way. There are other ways to solve Scott's case.”
She shook her head. If there was another way, if there was any evidence at all, then the case would have been closed by now. But before she could defend her position, the door opened. She peeked over Malcolm's shoulder, and she was instantly glad he held her so firmly. All the strength fled from her legs. She would have collapsed.
Victor came in first. Mickey Halter followed at his heels. The two men, one distinguished and one slickly handsome, wore grim expressions. Mickey closed and locked the door. He held a big gun in his hand. Victor pulled one from under his jacket. A sick feeling formed in the pit of her stomach. It made her earlier nausea feel like a small twinge of discomfort.
“Gun?” Malcolm's whisper wasn't much more than a mumble.
She made a girly sound that was almost a squeak, and then she berated herself to get her act together.
“How many?”
With her arms held behind her back, she could flash numbers at him. She held up two fingers.
“You are to leave, Darcy. When you see an opening, leave and don't look back.”
She wasn't going to abandon Malcolm, and she wasn't about to go anywhere until she knew the truth.
Malcolm cleared his throat loudly. He didn't release her wrists, but he loosened his grip a lot. “We're having a private moment here. Can you give us just a few more minutes?”
Victor lifted the gun, and it made a clicking noise she knew indicated he meant business. She wasn't sure if that was the sound of the safety turning off or a bullet loading into the chamber. Either way, it was ominous. She felt her eyes widen.
Victor smiled reassuringly. “Darcy, step away from this man. He's going to try to put you in prison for the rest of your life.”
Seizing the opportunity, she jerked her arms free. To her surprise, Malcolm let her go. He turned to face Victor and Mickey, careful to keep his body in front of her. She debated making a break for it, dashing across the room so she could seem to be on Victor's side.
But that was unlikely to make him confess. So she whispered a prayer to Scott and tried to walk around Malcolm. Victor would never hurt her, so she could use her body to shield Malcolm. But he moved with her, protecting her despite her best effort to turn that table.
She inhaled, breathed through her frustration at his interference, and prepared for Malcolm to get really, really angry with her. “I know who he is, Victor. I brought him here because I know you killed Scott. We needed proof, which Agent Legato found. You're going to spend the rest of your life in prison.”
Malcolm, who had remained calm from the moment danger approached, went stiff, and she knew that fury was directed at her. “Darcy, I'll handle this.”
Victor chuckled and shook his head. “Scott Yataines. I didn't understand what you saw in him, Darcy. Really I didn't. I offered him a job, a huge paycheck, stock options, anything he wanted. In return, I wanted you to be the face of Snyder Corporation, and I wanted him to design and run all the computer-related parts of the business. I offered the two of you everything, and he threw it all in my face.”
He was entirely too patronizing and smug. His statement wasn't a denial, and it clarified his guilt. Scott had been trying to protect her from this monster, and he'd been killed because of it. Darcy saw red, and then she exploded. “You wanted to own us. Scott wouldn't do what you wanted, so you killed him!”
ONE MORE WORD from her mouth, and Malcolm was going to lose it. He couldn't attend to her the way he wanted and keep his eyes on Halter and Snyder. She seemed to be unaware that Halter was moving steadily to his right to close in on them. Reaching back, he did his best to hold her still while safeguarding her with his arm.
“Darcy, shut up. Don't say another word.”
Snyder waved the gun. “Get on your knees.”
If he had been alone, Malcolm would have complied right away. Though he'd turned off his comm, he realized Keith still had eyes and ears through the microphone and camera in Darcy's accessories. He'd forgotten about those when he'd dragged her in here to confront her about being pregnant.
His team knew they were in trouble.
But Darcy escaped from where he'd forced her to stay behind him. She stood next to him with her hands on her hips. “I'm not getting on my knees for you or any man.”
He flashed her a look, and he hoped she understood the message. When they got out of this, he was going to punish her for disobedience. And he was pissed that she'd confirmed his identity. She hadn't given him a chance to talk his way out of the situation. He could have turned it around to get Snyder to trust him with deeper levels of access to his organization.
She'd ruined months of prep work, seven weeks of undercover work, and any chance they had of finding evidence that related Snyder to Yataines. That last part was punishment enough for that transgression. However he still had to address her blatant insubordination.
The look was wasted. She concentrated on Snyder with laserlike precision.
But she'd distracted Malcolm enough to take his eyes from Halter. The man moved in close and pressed the gun against Malcolm's temple.
“On your knees. Now.” Halter growled the command. “Both of you.”
Malcolm put the flat of his hand on her shoulder and shoved her to the ground. If she'd been cooperative, he could have been nicer about it. She looked at the place where Halter's gun met his
temple. Fear was absent from her clear blue eyes. He'd never seen her so furious.
When she'd discovered his identity, she'd lashed out at him. She'd growled and shouted and slapped his face. Now she looked like she'd use a gun if she had one. Cold rage radiated from her pores. Darcy with such iron control of her temper was an eerie thing.
Snyder threw zip ties at them. “Put these on.”
Malcolm hated zip ties. They had no give. Why couldn't Snyder go the old-fashioned route and use rope like a good bad guy? He picked one up from the floor and held it to Darcy.
She stared at the foreign object and shook her head.
He couldn't assure her that everything would be okay, that he was in control of the situation and she was safe with him. She wasn't safe, and she damn well knew that. “Breathe, sweetheart. You can do this.”
She rubbed one wrist and protested with a more insistent head shake.
Halter shoved his gun in the waistband of his pants, took the zip tie, grabbed her wrists, and did the deed. Darcy struggled, but her attempt was pathetically futile. She had more fight in her than that. Malcolm frowned at her game. He made a mental note to keep her out of future operations. She was too much of a wild card.
He put the zip on himself, leaving it as loose as he could without drawing suspicion.
“Victor, is this really necessary?” Darcy lifted her wrists. She came up fast and nailed Halter between the legs with a double fist.
Halter lifted his hand to retaliate. As soon as he saw the man's intention, Malcolm lunged, knocking Darcy to the ground and out of harm's way. The sharp report of a gun firing registered a second before searing pain shot through his side.
He had to give her credit for not screaming. She grabbed for him even as he fell on top of her.
“He shot you.” She said the words incredulously, as if she hadn't believed the guns were real or that they would really use them. “The son of a bitch shot you.”
Malcolm concentrated on breathing through the pain and using his body as a shield to keep her safe from Snyder. It was a little more than a flesh wound, but he still had some time before he lost too much blood.
“Get her. Take her out of here. Then come back and dispose of this one.” Disgust laced Snyder's voice.
Three minutes, Malcolm thought. Just keep it going for three more minutes.
Halter grabbed Darcy by the hair and pulled. Darcy choked back a sob. He could see that she wanted to resist, and he shook his head. Getting her out of the room meant he could overpower Snyder without having to worry about Darcy. Halter wouldn't do anything to her until after they'd eliminated the threat Malcolm posed.
He'd disable Snyder and then go after Darcy. Even if Halter disregarded Snyder's order and tried to kidnap Darcy, the FBI was en route. Halter wouldn't get off the property.
She tried to slide out from beneath him gently. With his hands bound, he couldn't lift up. He rolled to his good side to help her out. As soon as she was clear of him, she kicked at Halter.
“Get your slimy hands off me, you insignificant lackey!”
Maybe the pain in his side got to him. Malcolm snapped. “Damn it, Darcy. Cooperate with him. Don't bait him.”
She looked down at him, fear dilating her pupils, and chewed on her lower lip. She kept looking at his side. He pressed the flat of his arm against the wound to cover it and put pressure on it.
Halter dragged her toward the door and into the hall. She stumbled after him. Malcolm hoped she would continue to cooperate. Keith wasn't too far out, just over two minutes by his estimation.
Snyder came closer, adjusting his aim as the angle changed. Malcolm stayed where he was, playing weak and vulnerable to the best of his ability, and waited for Snyder to come within reach.
“This is very disappointing for me,” Snyder said. “I thought you were the one. So malleable. Eager to please. Handsome enough to catch Darcy's attention. Dominant enough to keep it. I really thought you could be the one.”
A few more steps. Silently Malcolm urged Snyder forward. “What gave me away?”
Snyder smiled through his disappointment. He gestured to his desk. “Top-notch security. I can watch and listen in any room in this house. I keep it as an insurance policy. Mickey thought you two might try to go at it again, so he went to watch. He called me as soon as things got interesting.”
Malcolm filed away that information. Snyder shooting him gave the FBI all the reason they needed to thoroughly search the house. That security footage would come in handy.
Grunting with the effort, he held up a hand. “Don't hurt Darcy. I didn't give her a choice in her part of this.”
Snyder seemed to consider that point. Then he lifted a shoulder. “She's useless to me. And now she knows too much. I don't keep liabilities around.”
It didn't look like Snyder was going to oblige him by taking that final step. Malcolm lunged for Snyder's legs, knocking him to the ground and ruining his aim. They rolled together. Malcolm didn't try for the gun, but he did slam his fist into Snyder's wrist to knock the weapon away.
Snyder went for Malcolm's wounded side. He brought up his knee and jabbed hard. Malcolm saw stars, but he wasn't about to pass out while Darcy was in danger. Through the sheer strength of his will, he managed to grapple with Snyder. They rolled, each struggling for dominance. Malcolm used the momentum to his advantage, and he nailed Snyder hard with his right fist. He cocked his arm for a second blow just as backup burst through the door.
One agent held his gun on Snyder while two others pulled him to his feet. Malcolm rolled onto his back with every intention of getting up and going after Darcy.
Keith pressed down on his shoulder to keep him from sitting up. He lifted Malcolm's shirt to assess the damage. “Ambulance is on the way. You stay put.”
“Get Darcy.”
Keith's green eyes darkened, shuttering in the way they did when he wanted to keep the exact nature of his thoughts to himself. “Not yet. We need Halter's confession.”
“She's pregnant.”
The lack of emotion gave way to a combination of annoyance, vexation, and subtle joy. “You turned off your comm, but the mics in her jewelry were still on. Congratulations. Asshole.”
Keith showed no signs of movement. He listened intently to something in his earpiece. Malcolm wasn't going to leave her to fate, and he didn't understand why his best friend wouldn't rush to save the woman Malcolm loved. He chopped at Keith's forearm, knocking it away from his shoulder, and rolled out of reach.
From somewhere in the house, Darcy screamed. Two of his men jumped on him, holding him down and keeping him quiet with their hands over his mouth. He glared at Keith, but the motherfucker wouldn't look at him.
THAT LAST IMAGE of Malcolm floated before her eyes. Blood seeped through the layers of his clothing low on his left side, leaving a dark, growing stain that scared the hell out of her. His olive skin turned paler by the second. She didn't know how long he could hold on. She couldn't countenance the thought of losing him.
“Come on.” Mickey's iron grip dug into her upper arm. He hauled her down the wide hall. Fifteen minutes ago, the decor had struck her as warm and elegant. Now it seemed cheap and dirty like the man taking her away from Malcolm.
He pushed her toward the stairs to the basement. The wide, curving staircase was carpeted and bright, not like the stairs to her basement.
“Where are you taking me?” She no longer harbored the hope that Victor's apparent affection for her meant he wouldn't let anyone harm her.
In lieu of an answer, he shoved her hard. She lurched, and her ankle rolled painfully. She tripped down five steps and fell with her back against the wall. The curved design saved her from falling down the entire flight.
He pinned her in place with his hip in her stomach and his hand on her throat. “Vic said I could keep you for as long as I want. Did you know this house has a subbasement? It has a great dungeon down there, and I've spent some time building a little enclosure you'll come to love.�
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He lifted the gun to where her skin showed above the plunging neckline of her dress. With the barrel, he caressed a path down to her belly. She swallowed convulsively and gathered her courage. Under no circumstances would she beg for her life. Mickey Halter had to think she accepted her fate.
“Is that what you did with Scott?” She kept her voice soft, and she was careful to hide the edge of disgust and hate.
He shook his head. “There was no need to keep him. He pissed Vic off. Vic is a generous man. Turning down that offer was probably the biggest mistake in your Master's life. Vic got tired of diplomacy and Yataines threatened to go to the police, so Vic shot him. He had no choice, not really. In exchange for the rights to you, I buried him under the foundation of that new pool out back.”
He crushed her lips with his mouth and slobbered his version of a kiss on her face. She shoved hard and brought her knee up sharply. Her docility had lulled him into relaxing his guard, but she hadn't completely taken him unaware. As he teetered on the edge of the step, he grabbed her and pulled her down with him.
Gravity and physics worked together so that they rolled. The steps seemed to go on forever. Half crushed under Halter's weight and unable to maneuver her arms, she hit at awkward angles. The suddenness and the unexpected lack of control knocked away the tremulous calm she thought she held.
She screamed.
A thunder of hooves and the cavalry arrived. A woman's voice identified the FBI and strong hands peeled Halter's weight from on top of her. Winded, she struggled to breathe.
The neutral tans of the paint in the hall mixed with brighter swatches lit by sconces. She recognized Keith's stoic features looming over her.
“Darcy? Where are you hurt?” He cut the zip tie binding her wrists.
Her injuries didn't matter. She could only see the circle of blood spreading on Malcolm's jacket. “Malcolm. Victor shot Malcolm.”
Re/Bound Page 32
