Heart of Danger (Special Ops)

by Capri Montgomery

  “What did you just do?”

  Natalia heard the deep timbers of Micah’s voice the moment she disconnected the call. Miriam had called her on her cell; she hadn’t called Miriam. Although maybe she should have called her. She wasn’t sure what the proper etiquette for something like this was, but she knew how much it hurt her to hear from Miriam so she could only imagine it caused Miriam the same pain to hear from her. “They are holding the memorial for Kelly in two days. I told her I would be there. My parents should be in town by then too and I’m sure they’ll want to see me.”

  “Natalia…”

  “She was my best friend and my sister, maybe not by blood or law, but she was my sister by heart and I have to be there.”

  He sighed as he sat down next to her at the dining table. “Okay. I’ll talk with the guys and we’ll make it as safe as possible for you, but this is risky, Natalia.”

  “I have to be there.” It was just as important to her as it was to Miriam. Micah scooted forward in his chair and leaned into her, placing his forehead on her forehead.

  “I will keep you safe.”

  She could hear the need in his words; that uninhibited need to keep her away from danger. “I love you, Micah.” She had said it before and she would say it as many times as she could. If things went badly for her at least he would know that she loved him.

  “I love you too,” he whispered. “But if you think that excuses you to death then you’re crazy. You do not get to die on me.”

  She placed her hand on his cheek, cradling it softly. “Am I always going to have to worry about Diego Valdez coming back for me? I mean, even if we make sure he doesn’t get me this time, is he going to try to come back next year or the year after that? Will I ever truly be safe?”

  He pulled back just enough to look into her eyes. “I doubt that they give day passes in hell, and that’s exactly where he’s going if he comes anywhere near you. You will be safe.”

  She understood the meaning, and the anger, behind his words. She couldn’t tell him not to do what he had already set his mind to doing. Her fear now was that if he couldn’t save her he would blame himself for a lifetime and she didn’t want him to do that. She just wasn’t sure those were the words she could utter to him right now. He was near boiling point and those words might tip him even closer toward it.

  “Micah…” the knock at the door interrupted her words. He held up his hand, removed the weapon he had in his waistband. She hadn’t even realized he was carrying it. He shouldn’t have had to; not in his own home. She was bringing danger to his front door, provided Diego figured out where she was. But how could he? Even if he could find her home he wouldn’t be able to figure out who she was staying with.

  “Hello bright eyes,” Alex strolled into the dining room. “I’m your bodyguard for the afternoon while Micah takes care of some business. I don’t cook, but I do play a mean game of strip twister if you’re interested.”

  Natalia laughed as he dropped the game onto the dining table. Micah was not in a laughing mood apparently, because the look on his face was far from a humor induced mood. “He’s kidding,” she quickly added.

  “No getting naked with my woman, Alex.” Micah folded his arms over his chest.

  “Ah, so the two of you…” he looked between the two of them before giving Natalia a fist to fist connection. “It’s about time he got smarter.”

  “I agree,” she winked at Micah and she noticed how his rigid stance relaxed a little. “Micah, could you pick a black dress up from my place? I don’t have anything appropriate for a funeral with me.”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Alex interjected. “And what’s this about a funeral?”

  “Two days and Miriam will be holding a memorial for Kelly. I’m going to be there.”

  “That’s…”

  She held up her hand to stop Alex from talking. “I’m going to be there. And I need a dress.”

  “I’ll ask Charlie to pick you one up from the mall and drop it at our office. Then one of us will bring it to you.”

  “Micah, that’s ridiculous. I have plenty of dresses in my closet at home. Just go pick one—preferably dark in color, black or blue or something like that will do.”

  “I can’t do that, honey.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because somebody has already breached the parameter at your place,” Alex’s voice was so smooth, as if he wasn’t telling her that the threat had become even more real; that there wasn’t one of Diego’s men who had made it to her home already.

  “He found me,” she closed her eyes, trying to settle her tumultuous emotions.

  “He won’t get to you, but I have to try to keep your location secret. We’ll arrange something for the funeral, getting you there should be easy, but getting you out and back to my place without an unwelcome escort will be the part we need to sort out. I’m thinking a Hail Marry should work.”

  “Oh yeah,” Alex nodded. “That should work. We’ll get the team on it.”

  “Are you all talking football?”

  They both laughed. “Just strategy, honey. Just strategy.” He kissed her, very much like a man in love, and then he excused himself from their company.

  “Why didn’t he tell me?” She heard the door close behind him as he left.

  “Because he’s trying to keep you as safe as possible without worrying you too much. Your knowing that he’s here really doesn’t do anything does it; other than make you worry; right?”

  “I still should have known.”

  “You know now, and what good does that do?”

  She shrugged. He was right. She knew now and it didn’t do any good because she couldn’t do anything about it. “I’m scared, Alex.”

  “You have four military men looking out for you. Two of those men were deep in the trenches on special operations so trust me when I tell you, you will be safe.”

  She nodded. “Use me.”

  “What?”

  “As bait.”

  “Hell no!”

  “He’s coming after me,” she put up her hand to stave off his rant of objections. “He’s coming and you all can either do this on your terms or just wait and hope you’re prepared for whenever he might show up. Make him come to you on your terms. If he knows where I am then he’ll come. You’ll all be positioned and ready and you’ll take him and his men down. But if you don’t do it this way, and he finds out where I am, then Micah is the only man who will be here to fight all of Diego’s men and I don’t want to risk him getting killed because of me.”

  Alex looked at her and shook his head. She could tell that he knew she was right. It would be better if they chose the battleground and had the location set and ready for whatever came their way. “He won’t like it. He’ll never go for it.”

  “Then make him go for it. You know I’m right about this.”

  “Sadly, you are. But if we do this, we’ll do it at my place.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I’m in the mountains of Hill Country and the only way to my place is up the only road in—the front road. The back of the house has a sizable rocky cliff that they’re not going to be able to climb, and if they do we’ll be ready for them. They’re going to have to come up the front, or at least try to sneak in using the wooded areas. I can have everything set up for alerts, traps, my flash bombs…we’ll be better prepared there. There’s less threat of casualties when the bullets start flying.”

  She nodded. His plan made sense too. She was thinking her place, that way nobody would have the threat of getting their home shot up because of her, but Alex’s place was the safer location. One way in also meant one way out, but she knew these guys; they wouldn’t be looking for a way out. They were going to be looking to eradicate Diego Valdez and his men from this world.

  “If we need to make a fast exit ourselves?”

  “I’ll have it worked out. I know my property and I know these men. We’ll get you out if it comes to that.”

/>   “And you’ll come with me, yes?”

  “We finish what we start, but one of us will get you to safety.”

  “Alex, I don’t want to lose any of you.”

  “And you won’t,” he winked at her. “Now, I was serious about strip twister.”

  She threw her head back and laughed. “Not a chance…although you would be the one naked. I have impeccable balance.”

  “I’m pretty good myself,” he countered.

  She had been doing yoga with her mother since she could walk, then she did Pilates; she definitely had balance down to a science. Her lips spread with a devious grin. “Hmm…”

  “Never mind,” he held up his hands in surrender. “You’re actually considering it which means you know you can win. I’ll be in my skivvies and you’ll be fully clothed.”

  “True.”

  “I’ll have to find somebody else to play with.”

  “Your girlfriend perhaps.”

  “We broke up.”

  “When? Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “We broke up the day I got that call about you. I didn’t tell you because you had enough to worry about.”

  “I’m your friend and you know I’m here for you. You cared about her…”

  “But she didn’t care about me. I found her in bed with somebody I thought was my friend. I went to her place to let her know I was going to Australia. I had my key and I let myself into her place. I didn’t expect to see what I saw, but I did. I ended it.”

  “I’m sorry, Alex. You lost your friend and your girlfriend and I wish you had talked to me. I’m always here for you no matter what’s going on in my life.”

  “That’s your problem, Natalia.”

  She sat back in the chair, completely floored by his statement.

  “You always think about everybody else before you think of yourself. My problem is needing to find a new woman at some point; trust me when I say that pales in comparison to your troubles. You need to start putting yourself first for a change.”

  He was right. She always did what everybody else thought was best. On some level it’s why she stopped playing with the orchestra. Her mother could have easily found another youth ensemble to let her play with, but she thought it was such a bad idea that Natalia continue with an orchestra because the next conductor might be the same as the last, that she told Natalia she didn’t want her to play, and so she stopped playing. She hadn’t told Micah sooner how she felt, partly out of fear for how her heart would take it if he didn’t feel the same, but the other part was that she feared what it would do to the office dynamics if she did say something. Would the guys feel a need to walk on eggshells around the two of them, or pick between the two of them. Honestly, had things gone awry she would have been the one who had to leave and Preston would have been the one who had to call her into his office and tell her to go.

  “I think you may be right,” she smiled to let him know she wasn’t angry with him. She saw his shoulders relax. “Have a seat and talk with me.” She patted the chair and watched as he sat down. She had some of the best friends in the world; and she was grateful for that.

  “Did you find her?” Diego felt his temper threatening to break.

  “Not yet,” Forester Michaels wanted that money, Diego was sure of that. “I can’t find where the guy I think she’s with lives. They’re all very secretive on location and my guy watching the office hasn’t seen too much activity there lately. But I have something for you.”

  “What is it?” If it wasn’t going to get him to Natalia he didn’t want it.

  “A funeral.”

  “Yours?” Diego let the threat come through in his tone.

  “Her friend’s,” he said quickly. “Two days from today they’re having a memorial service and I know she’ll be there.”

  “And that helps me how?”

  “You can have one of your men follow her when she leaves the service. Of course you’ll have to do it from a distance. Plant one of them, they’ll follow and let you know where she’s staying.”

  Diego tapped the blade of his knife against the granite counter top. That was a good idea, but he would need to find a way to have her followed without being seen. He couldn’t bring too many more people in on this because the more people he had to pay to work for him, the more likely one of them would get sloppy and tip off the wrong people. “I will wire the money to your account today—only half of the money, Special Agent Michaels. The other half will come to you once you hold up your end of the bargain on safe passage out. I do not want to see any of your feds showing up at the airstrip.”

  “They won’t,” he assured him. “You’ll get out without incident.”

  “Good,” he disconnected the call. This was going to come together, but not as swiftly as he wanted. Two days. He would have to wait two days, but at least he would have her back. He smiled just thinking about all the things he would do once he got her back to Colombia. She was making him work harder than any other woman had made him work. He liked that about her, but she still had to pay, and pay dearly, for her escape.

  “Hell no!” Micah felt so angry he thought he might actually hit his friend. “This is what you called us all here for—to discuss using Natalia as bait!”

  “I know it sounds crazy…”

  “You think!” What was he thinking? How could he even suggest it? There were at least a thousand things that could go wrong. Maybe Alex was willing to risk it, but he wasn’t.

  “It was my idea, Micah. Don’t be angry with Alex. Just please hear him out. I think it’s a good plan, and I trust you all to keep me alive.”

  Micah shoved his fingers through his hair. There was no way. There was just no way he was going to let this happen. He watched as Natalia slowly approached him. “No,” he stepped back because he wouldn’t let her try to sweet talk him into changing his mind.

  “Please listen,” she reached out and caught hold of his hand. He tried to snatch it away from her, but she held on tight. She brought his hand to her chest and held it center. “They are going to come after me.”

  “And I’ll kill them.”

  “And it would be better if when they did you were all prepared, and together. If they ambush you I know you can shoot and fight, but I can’t shoot and my fighting skills are practically zero. There will be too many of them and only one of you, but if you’re all in one location, with all your toys set and ready to use, then maybe we can get them all without any of them actually getting even remotely close to me.”

  He knew she was trying to appeal to his logical side. In all honesty she made sense. Having the enemy come to them and fighting them on their own turf with their own terms set in place was a smart and logical decision. But it meant putting her in harm’s way and he just couldn’t. So many things could go wrong and she could end up dead.

  “I know it’s dangerous, but I trust you; all of you.” She looked to them. He could tell she really meant those words. He just didn’t want to risk it.

  “She makes sense,” Jet interjected his opinion. Micah wasn’t happy about that. Were they all going to out vote him on this.

  “Listen to me, Micah,” she continued to hold onto his hand. “I think this is the best way. I’m not saying I’m not scared, but…I’d rather do this our way than his.”

  He pulled away from her and paced the room angrily. This wasn’t what he wanted. It was a dumb idea and it shouldn’t have ever been on the table. But then he realized, it wasn’t a dumb idea and had it been anybody else he probably would have suggested it himself. “I don’t like this.” He shook his head trying to calm his temper. “If we do this you follow our lead.”

  “Of course,” she looked at him as if he were crazy to even think that she wouldn’t.

  “And you stay where we put you.”

  “I can do that.”

  “And you don’t get yourself captured or killed.”

  “That would definitely be high on my priority list, Micah. I’m not looking to visit Colo
mbia again—ever, and I don’t want to die.”

  He exhaled sharply before growling out his willingness to follow the plan. Preston had already agreed that it was a good plan the moment Alex suggested it. Micah was the last holdout. He couldn’t lose her. That was the one thought in his mind right now that he couldn’t lose her. “So I’ll drive us to the funeral and then Alex will take you back to his place. We all seemingly go our separate ways, but we’ll be in our designated locations by dusk.” He talked it out just to hear the plan once again. He didn’t like the idea of having her out of his sight for even a few minutes. “What if something goes wrong and they ambush you on your way home?”