by Rebecca Deel
His expression grew thunderous. “Who hurt you?”
“Skinny boy at the door. He used a taser on me and punched me.”
Dean turned, pinned the now pale man with his gaze. “Is this true?”
“She fought like a wildcat. I figured the taser wouldn’t hurt her long term.”
“And the punch?”
Skinny man’s gaze skated to her, hatred burning in their depths.
“Look at me,” Dean snapped. “Why did you hit Sasha when I told you and your partners not to hurt her?”
“She kept squirming while I carried her inside. I was afraid I’d drop her.”
Her brother reached behind his back and grabbed his gun.
“Sassy.”
Sasha dragged her gaze from her brother, and turned toward Cade.
“Come here,” he murmured.
As Dean stalked closer to the skinny man, Sasha leaned toward Cade, pressing her face against his neck. “Cade?”
“No matter what happens, stay there. Eyes closed, Sasha.”
As the man she loved spoke softly in her ear, Sasha tried to block the sound of the man’s pleas for mercy. Why had she said anything? Her brother intended to kill the man for disobeying his orders. She didn’t want to be responsible for the man’s death.
“This is not on you,” Cade said, rubbing his jaw against her temple in an attempt to comfort her. She felt him struggling against his restraints.
Seconds later, a gun discharged and the man’s pleas came to an abrupt halt.
“Stay with me,” Cade whispered.
She shifted closer to him when she heard her brother tell someone to clean up the mess and take out the garbage. She realized how little she knew her brother. This Dean Ingram was cold and ruthless, a man she didn’t want to know.
Over the next few minutes, Sasha focused on Cade. Finally, it was blessedly silent in the room.
“Bring my kit,” Dean said to someone. That person left the room, then returned a moment later. “Thanks. Move Sasha away from Ramsey.”
“Leave her alone, Ingram.” Cade pressed a kiss to her temple. “You’ve hurt her enough.”
Harsh laughter escaped her brother. “I warned her to leave you. She wouldn’t listen.”
“I’m the one you want. Let her go.”
“No, Cade,” Sasha protested. “We’re in this together. I won’t leave you.”
“You won’t have a choice, Sash. Scott, do what I told you. If she wants to be with Ramsey, let her watch. This will be over soon enough.”
Fear formed a ball of ice in her stomach. What was her brother going to do? Cade was helpless, tied to the chair. She lifted her head from his shoulder and kissed him.
Hard hands gripped her arms and dragged her from the chair and away from Cade.
“Dean, don’t do this. This isn’t you.”
Another bark of laughter. “You don’t know me at all, little sis.”
Sasha used what Kat and Dixie had taught her. She broke away from the man who had held her and flew at Dean. With her wrists cinched in front of her, she clasped her hands together and landed a two-handed punch to her brother’s face.
His head snapped back, but he didn’t go down. Dean back-handed her. Sasha flew backward and hit the wall.
“Dean, stop.” Cade fought the bonds holding him to the chair, the zip ties cutting into his skin. “You want to punish someone, come after me, not your sister.”
Sasha’s brother motioned to the man who had let her escape his grasp. “Keep your hands on her this time. If she escapes again, you’re dead.”
The man dragged her up from the floor and clamped his hands on her upper arms in a bruising grip.
“Is that your answer to everything?” Sasha snapped. “Kill those who fail?”
Dean shrugged. “Good motivation to keep the operatives in line. I don’t tolerate failure.” He turned back to Cade. “Your turn to die, Ramsey.”
“You going to shoot me now, too?”
An ugly smile formed on her brother’s face. “I have something much more appropriate in mind for you.” He grabbed a small black zippered case from the chair in the corner of the room.
When he unzipped the case, Sasha saw a rubber tube and a syringe filled with liquid. Her blood ran cold. “What is that?”
“Heroin. Your boyfriend is going to suffer an unfortunate overdose.”
Although Sasha twisted and fought, she couldn’t break free of the hands holding her with a grip of iron. Stall. She needed to stall. “What does Black Dog have to do with this, with you? Why have Black Dog’s people been targeting me?”
Amusement lit Dean’s eyes. “You didn’t know?”
“Know what?”
“Black Dog is my organization. My people are just as well trained as Fortress. When word leaks how my people defeated Maddox’s best teams and killed one of his prized operatives, I’ll have more work than I can handle.”
“Why a fake bank heist and the hostages at the school? What was the point?”
“Testing Fortress’s capabilities. I had to know how they would respond.” He laughed. “I kidnapped your boyfriend right under their noses. No one will find him until it’s too late to save his life.”
“You hate me that much?” Cade asked quietly.
“Emily’s dead because of you. You don’t deserve to live, Ramsey. You took my wife from me. I adored her, but she loved you to the day she died. I vowed to avenge her death. Today I will fulfill that vow.”
Dean motioned to the second man in the room. “Hold him still.”
“No,” Sasha screamed. “Dean, please. Don’t do this.”
Her brother ignored her pleas and stalked toward Cade. The second man wrapped his arm around Cade’s neck in a choke hold, keeping him immobile. “If you fight me, Ramsey, I’ll use the drug on Sasha.”
“Leave her alone. I won’t fight.”
“That’s what I thought you’d say. See there, little sister? He does care about you more than his own worthless hide.”
Tears trickled down her cheeks as her brother tied the tube around Cade’s arm, plunged the needle into his vein, and emptied the syringe.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Horror filled Sasha at the sight of the vile drug disappearing into Cade’s vein. If she called Zane now, would anyone reach them in time to save Cade? How long would it take Zane to track her cell signal? The compound was filled with her brother’s soldiers. She’d lost count of the men she had seen as she was hauled from the van into the building.
Dean removed the needle and stepped back. “Doesn’t seem fair, Ramsey. You’ll go to sleep and never wake up. Sasha will suffer like I did when I lost Emily.” He pulled a big knife from a sheath on his thigh and strode toward Sasha.
She lifted her chin, glaring at her brother. “Will you kill me, too?”
“I should. You’ll suffer from being left behind. I warned you to stay away from him.” He reached for her hands, slid the blade of the knife under the zip tie, and jerked. The plastic fell away. “I’m not totally heartless, unlike your precious Cade. I’ll let you spend the last few minutes of his life with him. Maybe next time you’ll have better taste in men.”
That would never happen. Cade was it for her. “And after he dies?” Her voice broke on the last word.
“I’ll set you free. Black Dog will go underground, and you’ll never hear from me again.” He signaled the man holding Cade in place to cut him loose, then the men cleared out, locked the door, and left her alone with the man she loved.
Sasha raced to Cade’s side and dropped to her knees beside him. “Cade.”
He clumsily wrapped his arms around her. “It’s okay, baby.”
“How can you say that? You have a lethal dose of heroin in your veins. We have to get you to a hospital.” She pressed her lips to his ear. “I still have my phone.”
“Good. Help me to my feet. We need to sit under the camera so they can’t see what we’re doing.”
Sasha used every
ounce of strength she had to assist Cade. The two of them staggered to the far corner of the room and sank to the floor. She grabbed her phone and called Zane.
“Yeah, Murphy.”
“It’s Sasha. We’ve been kidnapped and my brother gave Cade an overdose of heroin. Zane, if you can’t find us fast enough, I’ll lose him.”
“I know where you are. Bravo and Durango are five minutes out. What can you tell me about where you’re being held?”
“It’s a compound of one story cinder-block buildings. Four buildings are arranged around a grassy area with concrete walkways leading to each. Another one sits off to the side. That one is three stories high. There are guards everywhere.”
“Narrow that number down. How many guards did you see?”
“Maybe twenty. There must be more men inside the buildings. One guard is stationed on the roof of each building in the quad. I didn’t see the roof of the three-story structure.”
“You’re doing great, Sasha. Every piece of information will help the teams coming to you. I’m sending them the information as you’re giving it to me. Are you injured?”
“Bumps and bruises. They used a taser on us.”
“Is Cade injured aside from the taser and the drug?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Leave the connection open. Do what you can to help Cade. The teams are three minutes out.”
Sasha laid down the phone and turned to the man she loved. Her breath caught when she saw him list to the left. “Stay with me, Cade.” She wrapped her arms around the operative and pulled him against her, trying to keep him upright.
“Sasha.”
“Bravo and Durango are three minutes out.”
A slight nod. “Love you,” he whispered.
“I love you, too.”
“Whatever happens, I have no regrets in loving you. So blessed to have you in my life. Never dreamed I’d have your love.”
Tears fell like rain from her eyes. “Tell me all that again tomorrow. Live so we can enjoy our life together.”
“Trying.”
She held him tighter and prayed his teammates would arrive in time. Sasha stroked his face. His skin was clammy and pale. She sought a topic that might draw him into conversation. “We haven’t talked much about children. How many do you want?”
No response.
“Cade.”
“Mmm.”
“How many children would you like to have?”
“Four, five. Love kids.”
“Perfect. So do I.” She mentally implored Bravo and Durango to move faster. Cade’s words were starting to slur. “Would you like to get our marriage license this week?”
A slight smile curved his mouth. He drew in a shallow breath. “Oh, yeah.”
At that moment, gunfire erupted in the compound. Sasha heard men cursing and yelling. Others screamed. Some ran. Others fell with a thud. She heard Dean yelling at one man, then another, rallying his men.
The gunfire came closer. The sound of fists hitting flesh and groans of pain escalated. Finally, a shout came down the hall. “Sasha, Cade.”
Matt.
Sasha laid Cade on his side and raced to the door. She pounded with the side of her fist. “We’re here. The door’s locked.”
“Move away from the door.”
She scrambled to the side as the door thudded with the force of Matt’s kick. With another massive kick, the door flew open and Matt rushed inside. He ran to Cade and rolled him to his back.
“How long has it been since he was drugged?” the medic asked as he quickly checked Cade.
“Maybe seven or eight minutes. The syringe was full, Matt.”
He slid his mike bag off his shoulder. “Can you hear me, Cowboy?”
Nothing.
Footsteps pounded down the hallway toward the room.
Matt thrust a hand into his bag and pulled out a bottle and shoved it into Sasha’s hand. He leaped to his feet and placed his body between her and Cade, and whoever was heading for the room. “That’s Narcan, Sasha. Cade will need more than one dose.”
Trusting Matt to deal with the trouble descending on them, Sasha shook the bottle and squirted a dose of the medicine in each nostril.
“Is he responding?” Matt tackled the man who burst inside the room.
“No.”
“Again.” The medic blocked a blow to the head, countered with a fist in the other man’s face. “Hurry, Sasha.”
She repeated the dosages and prayed. “Come on, Cade. Fight. Fight for me.” Still nothing. His breathing was a little better, but nowhere near his normal rate. “Matt.”
The medic used an elbow to strike his opponent in the temple. The other man went limp. Scrambling to his feet, he lunged toward Sasha and Cade. He checked his friend again, scowled. “They gave him enough to drop a bull elephant in his tracks.” Taking the spray from Sasha, he administered more of the counter-active drug.
A moment later, Cade groaned. “Sasha.”
Joy exploded in her heart. She gripped his hand with both of hers. “Welcome back, love.”
Matt activated his ear piece. “Trent, Cade needs a hospital, fast. Narcan brought him back, but it won’t hold for long.” He listened a moment, then said, “Copy that.”
The medic grabbed his mike bag, strapped it onto his body, then picked up Cade and eased him over his shoulder. “We have to go, Sasha. Stay behind me. If I tell you to drop, do it instantly. No one is going to stop me from getting Cade out of here, including your brother. Do you understand?”
“Yes. Go.” She shoved her phone back into her pocket and hurried after the medic. Before they’d reached the end of the corridor, Matt fired his gun. Someone grunted and dropped to the floor. Sasha kept her eyes on the back of Cade’s head.
Near the exit, Josh Cahill appeared and wrapped his arm around Sasha’s shoulders. “Go, Matt,” he ordered. The medic broke into a run.
One of the SUVs from PSI idled with Nate ensconced behind the wheel. Seconds later, Matt climbed into the backseat and eased Cade off his shoulder.
Josh lifted Sasha to the front passenger seat. “Go,” he told his EOD man, then slammed the door and stepped back.
The SUV surged forward. Nate swerved around two of Black Dog’s soldiers who tried to stop them. Once they cleared the compound and skidded onto the blacktop, Nate raced toward town.
He activated his Bluetooth. A moment later, Ethan Blackhawk’s voice filled the SUV’s interior. “Talk to me.”
“I have the packages. We’re en route to the hospital. I need a clear path, Ethan.”
“Injuries?”
“I don’t know about Sasha, but Cade has an overdose of heroin in his system.”
Shots sounded over the connection. Sasha frowned. Was Ethan at the compound?
“I’ll take care of it. Go straight into town. I’ll have my officers block traffic for you. Sasha?”
“Yes, sir?”
“Are you hurt?”
“A close encounter with a taser and one of them slapped me.”
“Who?” The chief’s voice was hard with an edge she’d never heard from him.
“My brother. He’s the leader of Black Dog, the mercenary group that’s been causing me and the town so much trouble.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Ethan, please don’t kill him. His death would devastate my parents.”
He was silent a moment. “That’s up to him.”
After he ended the call, Nate said to Sasha, “Ethan will do his best. Sometimes it’s not enough.”
“I know.” She twisted in her seat. “How is he?” she asked Matt.
“Hanging in there.”
Another groan from the man she loved. “Pull over,” he said, voice raspy. “Sick.”
Nate glanced in the mirror at the medic.
He shook his head. “Drive.” He thrust his hand into the mike bag and brought out a plastic bag.
Over the next few miles, Cade retched over and over as his body tried to r
id itself of the poison. Sasha’s stomach clenched in sympathy.
When they reached town, Nate sailed through the intersections. Finally, the SUV raced up the drive to the hospital and skidded to a stop at the emergency room entrance. A medical team ran out with a gurney. In less than a minute, Matt raced beside the orderlies into the hospital, updating a doctor on Cade’s vital signs. The team disappeared into a treatment room.
When she tried to follow, Nate put his hand on her arm. “Give them room to work.” He led Sasha to a chair close to the room where Cade was being evaluated and treated. “Stay here. I’ll be back as soon as I move the SUV.” Without waiting for her answer, he jogged to the parking lot.
Sasha wrapped her arms around herself, her focus on the man currently fighting for his life. Cade was strong and in the peak of health.
As she sat, the aftermath of the kidnapping, rescue, and mad dash to the hospital swept through her in a deluge of trembling. By the time Nate returned, Sasha’s teeth were chattering.
The operative knelt by her side and draped a warm blanket around her. “This should help,” he murmured. “I know you won’t like it, but I’m asking a doctor to check you.”
Unable to speak because of the chattering, she narrowed her eyes at him.
He snorted. “That’s not going to work on me, sugar.” Humor lit his gaze. “The eye thing only works for Stella.” With that statement, he walked to the desk and talked to a nurse
Within five minutes, Nate was helping Sasha into an examination room. Dr. Anderson walked in.
“Well, my dear, I see you’re back to visit with us. What happened this time?”
Nate folded his arms across his chest. “She and Cade were kidnapped and tasered. Sasha has bumps, bruises, and a hefty case of adrenaline dump.”
“Let’s have a look. Mr. Armstrong, wait in the hall while I check Ms. Ingram.”
Nate caught her eye. “I’ll be outside the door. If you need me, call out.”
Sasha blinked away the tears threatening to overflow and nodded. Minutes later, the doctor declared her to be fit despite the new bruises forming on her skin. Dr. Anderson brought in an ice pack for her cheek, patted her hand, and released her.
