by Harris, Lisa
“We thought she was being held here with you.”
“Why would she be here? They grabbed me from our house. They didn’t take her.”
“Someone did. Early this morning from outside the hotel where she works. Your mother’s missing, Eduardo.”
“No.” He struggled to keep his balance. Avery caught the hint of panic in his eyes. Or maybe it was guilt. “Where is she?”
“I wouldn’t be asking you if I knew, now would I?”
“If they have her, they’ll kill her.”
“Maybe you should have thought about that before you got involved with the wrong people.” She nodded to Griffin. “Cuff him and take him back to the precinct.”
“Wait.” Eduardo tried to pull away from Griffin’s grip. “You can’t arrest me. I was kidnapped. I’m not the one who’s supposed to go to jail.”
“Really?” Avery caught his gaze, her anger mounting. He might be a kid, but how many lives had his bad choices affected, including his own? His mother. Rafael. Emily. Tess … “The police dogs found drugs hidden under the carpet beneath your bed, and then there’s a little matter of fifty-thousand dollars in cash. If you can find a way to talk your way out of both of those, you might get lucky, but I have a feeling the DA’s not going to be very helpful.”
“It’s not what you think.”
“So you’re not dealing drugs?”
Eduardo looked down.
An officer entered the room. “The rest of the building is clear.”
Avery nodded. They’d take the receptionist in for questioning to see what she knew, but more than likely she was a part of the legitimate front who was purposely kept in the dark.
They headed up the stairs for the front door. One piece of the puzzle was still missing. Mrs. Cerda should have been here.
“Where’s the woman?” Avery asked the guard at the top of the stairs.
The man’s brow wrinkled. “The only person I saw was the boy.”
She shook her head, uninterested in playing games. Until they found Rafael’s mother, Tess was still in danger. Avery took a step forward until she was less than six inches from the man’s face. “Tell me where the woman is.”
“I said, I don’t know.”
“You’re already facing charges of kidnapping for ransom, and now you’re too stupid to cooperate—”
“I swear, it was only the boy.” He made eye contact and kept it. “No one else has been here, and they don’t tell me nothin’.”
Avery backed off. More than likely the man was telling the truth. But why hold Mrs. Cerda at a separate location? It didn’t make sense.
“She has to be here somewhere,” Avery said.
Tory shook her head. “There isn’t any sign that there was anyone here besides Eduardo.”
Avery turned back to the guard. “Tell me who you’re working for.”
“They pay me to sit and guard this room. I don’t ask questions. And like I said. They don’t tell me nothin’.”
“When do you expect them to return?”
“They usually bring food once a day, along with a replacement for me. Not exactly a lot of traffic down here.”
Avery turned to their backup team. She didn’t believe him, but a few rounds in the interrogation room with Carlos would change things. “I want you to keep this building under surveillance. If anyone comes in or goes out, I want them brought in for questioning.”
“Yes ma’am.”
Avery started for the door with Eduardo at her side, in step with Tory and Griffin, as the front door of the funeral home burst open.
One of the officers walking out with them shouted—“Gun!”
A shot echoed across the reception area, shattering a plate of glass behind Avery. She pulled out her weapon, then jerked Eduardo with her behind the receptionist desk.
“How many?” she shouted at Tory.
“Two. One bald, the other with a tattoo across his left forearm.”
If they were out to silence their only witnesses, then Eduardo knew something.
Avery turned to the young man. “What do you know?”
“Nothing.”
“Tell me the truth, Eduardo.”
Two more shots were fired.
She’d had enough surprises for today. Enough bad guys. All she wanted was to snuggle with Tess on the couch and for this to all be over.
She fought to focus. Emotions she’d held on to the past few hours were beginning to unravel. After today, the captain was going to throw her off the case, and for once she’d have to agree that he was correct.
“They’re using your brother to get the money they believe you owe, Eduardo. What are you involved in?”
The boy’s face paled.
“They took your mother as well.” What was it going to take to convince him to talk?
“I’m a seller.”
“How much do you bring in?”
“A couple hundred thousand a year.”
A couple hundred thousand?
“Partly earned … partly stolen.”
“And they want it back.”
Eduardo nodded. “But I don’t have what they want.”
He’d been trying to play the cartel.
“And your mother doesn’t know?”
“She’s too busy.”
“Who do you work for?”
“He’ll kill me.”
“They’re going to kill your brother and mom. Who is it?”
One of the men moved into her line of sight on the far side of the counter. She pulled the trigger. No boom. Just a click. Avery tapped the bottom of the magazine, racked the slide, then flipped the gun to the right, and let the empty shell fall out. The magazine dropped, leaving her defenseless, but he’d seen her. She—and Eduardo—were pinned in. She needed a way to get him out that wasn’t in the line of the gunman. And he was making his way toward her.
The man in a black knit cap rounded the corner … dark hair, scar on his left cheek, gun aimed straight at her. Avery grabbed her backup pistol from her ankle holster.
He fired off two shots, seconds before she did. The first bullet hit Eduardo. The second slammed into her like a baseball bat as it ripped through her thigh. Her breath caught. Adrenaline flooded her system. She waited for the pain, but all she felt was a hot burning sensation and a strange numbness.
The room tilted diagonally as the gunman fell to the ground. Someone had hit him. Tory and Griffin shouted in the background, their words mumbled and garbled. Her mind tried to grasp what was happening as they moved in slow motion toward her. She tried to focus, but all she wanted to do was close her eyes.
The diagonal room tilted further as she dropped to her knees. Blood dripped onto the floor. Red. Sticky. Her blood. If the bullet had hit her femoral artery, she could bleed out in a matter of minutes.
She tried to shout. Tried to think. But all she could focus on was that they had to save Eduardo. He was the only link they had to finding who was behind this. If he was a dealer, he had to know who was behind the kidnappings …
“Eduardo … We can’t lose him.”
Tory knelt in front of her. “Avery, you’re going to be okay. We’re going to get both of you to the hospital. Paramedics are on their way now. Just hang in there.”
She groaned. Memories blurred. She’d been there when her partner Mitch had been shot. He’d died, leaving behind a fiancée who loved him. Parents who hadn’t expected to bury their child. She wasn’t ready to die. Wasn’t ready to say goodbye to Tess and Jackson. Needed to tell them she was sorry. So sorry …
She tried to open her eyes. Tory was pressing against her with something hot. Avery tried to push it away. She needed to get up. If they didn’t find his mother, Rafael would have no reason to let the students go. And Tess …
“Don’t get up, Avery. You need to be still.”
“Have to get up.” Her head swam. “Eduardo—”
“Eduardo was shot. One of the shooters is dead. The other’s in custody.”
> “No. He can’t die. We have to find his mother.”
“We’ll find her, but in the meantime, you’re off the case. You’re going to the hospital.”
Sirens wailed in the background. Tory’s voice drifted away until Avery couldn’t hear her anymore.
15
Mason tapped his foot against the tiled floor while he waited for an update from the captain. Until Avery and her team were able to locate Eduardo and his mother, his only option seemed to be to wait.
He glanced across the room where Emily had knelt down next to one of the desks to talk to a student at eye level. She’d spent the past few minutes making her way from student to student, something she’d apparently been doing since the ordeal had begun. She kept her voice low and soothing as she asked them how they were coping and assured them that this was all going to be over soon.
While Rafael was still refusing to speak to him, he had seemed to accept Emily’s decision to take charge in this small way and hadn’t made any attempts to stop her. Even though she might think his presence helped to take the edge off her panic, in his opinion, she was the calming factor in this room. Even for him.
He was struggling to keep his heart from taking the lead. Although he might have had feelings toward her in the past, what he felt today was something new. But he also knew that when dealing with emotional situations, feelings quickly grew out of proportion. He’d worked enough cases over the past decade to understand the strong emotional link that was often felt by the victim for their rescuers. And sometimes it happened the other way around. Emily was strong, yet vulnerable. He was the hero who’d come to save her. Any positive reaction he’d sensed from her had probably been just an emotional response that would disappear as quickly as it had surfaced. He wasn’t really her hero. And when all of this was over, along with the tension of the day, she’d probably walk away from the situation—and him—without ever looking back.
Because there was also the fact that the rift between him and her family—with the exception of her father—simply ran too deep.
Emily’s phone vibrated again under his leg. He pulled it into his lap, out of view from Rafael, and read the text from the captain.
Get Amie released.
Mason’s mind snapped back to the present as he reread the text. Ten minutes ago, he’d tried to approach Rafael again, but Rafael was still refusing to talk to him.
Rafael’s phone rang. Mason felt his muscles tense. The captain clearly had a plan.
Rafael spoke to the caller for a few moments, frowned, then nodded at Mason. “It’s the captain. He wants to talk … to both of us.”
Mason walked to the front of the room while Rafael switched his cell to speakerphone. He set the phone on the desk, then stepped back, leaving a good three feet between them.
“Mason?”
“I’m here, Captain.”
“We should have the money in about an hour. Rafael, we need to know where to send it.”
Rafael gripped his weapon tighter. “I have an account.”
“Why don’t you give the number to me now?”
Rafael shoved his hand into his front pocket, pulled out a crumpled piece of paper, then tossed it onto the desk.
Mason picked up the paper and glanced over the numbers. He didn’t know a lot about banking—any more than Rafael likely did. Which only served to add to the questions he wanted to ask the boy. Where did he get the account, and the gun? And did he really think he was going to simply walk away from here when this was over?
He read the numbers to the captain, then turned back to Rafael. “What about after the money is transferred?”
“I’ll need to check to ensure a transfer has been made to the proper bank account.”
“And then?”
“Have a car waiting for me at the back east entrance … keys in the ignition. A tank full of gas.” Rafael stared past him, hesitating briefly. “I’ll take Tess with me and won’t hesitate to shoot her … If I see anyone in the hallway, I’ll shoot her. Anyone outside the building, I’ll shoot her … If no one gets in my way, and no one follows me, I’ll drop her off somewhere safe.”
Rafael’s words came out like a rehearsed speech. Any lingering uncertainties over whether or not he was being manipulated began to dissolve. Someone was feeding him the information, and they had to find out who. If they were listening, anything Mason said could put Rafael’s mother’s life in danger. Which meant that for the moment, his hands were tied.
“One last question,” the captain said. “Does anyone in the room need medical attention?”
Get Amie released.
“Amie,” Mason said. “She’s still struggling to breathe. She needs to see a doctor.”
“No—”
“Mason’s right.” Emily stood up, interrupting Rafael’s objections. “Please, just let her go. All of this will be over soon, but she needs to go, and her staying won’t change anything. You’ll still get your money.”
Mason hid his relief as she backed him up. Smart girl.
“We’ve been over this before.” Rafael shook his head. “She’s fine.”
“She’s not, and you know it. Just think about it, Rafael,” Mason continued. “This is all going to be over soon. The money’s almost here. Let her go.”
“What if this is a trap?”
“Do you really believe that?” Mason chose his words carefully. “My job is to keep you safe, along with the lives of everyone in this room. Let her go. The money will be ready to transfer within the hour. You’ll be safe as well. I promise.”
Rafael chewed the side of his lip. “Fine.”
The captain spoke again. “I’m sending someone to the door to escort her out of the classroom. All you have to do is unlock the door and let her walk out as soon as you hear them knock. I’ll call you back as soon as the money transfer has been finalized.”
The captain disconnected the call.
Mason looked up at Rafael. “What happens after you leave here?”
“I make sure Eduardo’s kidnappers get their money. They’ll let my brother go.”
“And your mother? What about her? She’s missing. How is she involved in all of this?”
“I don’t know.”
Rafael avoided his gaze. He knew something. Something he couldn’t or wouldn’t tell him?
“And you think this will really all be over when they get their money?”
“It has to be.”
Someone knocked at the door. Rafael nodded at Emily. “Take her to the door, unlock it, then lock it again once she’s out.”
———
Relief mixed with fear as Emily walked to the back of the room to get Amie. Relief that this was almost over. Fear because so much could still go wrong. Her heart pounded, lungs about to burst, until she realized she was holding her breath. She let out the air slowly as she forced a smile at Amie, who was wheezing again.
She wrapped her arm around Amie’s waist and started for the door. “It’s going to be okay, Amie. You’re almost out of here.”
“Wait.” Rafael signaled for Izzie to move in front of him, then settled the gun against the back of her head. He wasn’t taking any chances.
Emily tightened her arm around Amie as they approached the door.
Please, Jesus, let her get out of here okay—
The moment she unlocked the door, they burst into the room. Someone pulled them into the hallway. Amie screamed.
They were all around her. Running. Shouting orders. Men in black with official logos on their backs and caps, weapons drawn as they swarmed the room behind her. Someone grabbed Amie and hurried her down the hall, assuring her she would be okay.
Emily pressed her back against the wall as her brain tried to register what was happening. Amie’s release had been a setup. The students began to exit the room. Faces ashen. Crying.
Her mind clicked into teacher mode. These were her students and she had to make sure each one got out of the classroom alive … even Rafael. The effect
s of the panic she was feeling would have to be dealt with later.
A uniformed officer stepped in front of her. “Miss Hunt. I need you to come with me.”
“Not yet.” She was counting them as they went by. Six … seven … Mason was still in there … and Rafael. “I need to make sure they all get out okay.”
“Ma’am, we will ensure they all get out—”
“Emily?” Mason exited behind the last two hostages. “Are you okay?”
She pulled away from the officer and ran into Mason’s arms. “What just happened?”
“I don’t know. The situation had to have changed, necessitating their going in there.”
“He could have shot Izzie.”
“But he didn’t.”
The reality of the situation and all the emotions that came with it flooded through her. Relief. Fear. Anger. Her stomach heaved. “Where’s Rafael?”
“The captain will bring him out.” He shoved aside a stray lock of hair that had slipped across her forehead. “All that matters right now is that the students are safe—”
A gun fired.
Emily jerked away from Mason and bolted toward the classroom. If they’d shot Rafael …
One of the officers lunged toward her. “Get her out of here!”
Mason grabbed her waist to hold her back.
She tried to pull away. “You promised he’d be okay.”
The captain emerged from the classroom with another officer. “Mason, take Miss Hunt to the front office to be debriefed, then I want you to report back to me immediately.”
“Who was shot? Where’s Rafael?” Emily pulled away from Mason’s grip and stopped in the middle of the hallway in front of the captain. His hands were covered with blood. “You shot him.”
“I didn’t have a choice.”
She bolted for the open classroom door, but Mason’s grip on her arm stopped her. “You can’t go in there, Emily.”
“He didn’t do this on his own,” she shouted. “I told you someone was using him.”
“He lunged at my officers with his weapon,” the captain said. “I had no choice but to stop him. We tried to revive him … I’m sorry, Miss Hunt, but Rafael is dead.”
