He opened the door.
She walked out of his life, head high, without looking back.
Behind her, Kade slammed the door shut, swearing. His legs trembled and he felt like he’d run a marathon. Sickness roiled in his gut. He itched to punch something.
Anger pulsed, renewing energy through him. How could he have fallen for her crap? He knew she was a good actress. Knew she’d let mothers and babies die instead of taking them to hospital. He should have guessed she was Miriam Johnson.
But… He hesitated and straightened, staring at the gloss cream-painted door. Why would she admit to it? Why, when she could have pretended, denied knowing the midwife. He wouldn’t have questioned it. If all she wanted was security and someone to protect her, then she had that with him and Torin. Why would she throw it all away by admitting who she was?
Unless…Kade covered his eyes.
What the fuck had he done?
He yanked out his phone. ‘Tor? I think I’ve done something incredibly stupid. Send a full team around.’
‘What? Why? I’m already in the car.’
‘Heather and I argued,’ he said, leaning on the door frame. ‘She left. I’m going after her.’
‘Hang on.’ Tor put him on hold and made another call then returned. ‘Done. I’m sure she won’t go far. Ask in the local coffee shops.’
Kade focussed on the blood-red, and white tiled floor. ‘You don’t understand, Tor. I’ll tell you later. I have to find her, now.’ He hung up, dragged on his shoes and ran along the corridor, swearing at himself.
Unwilling to wait for the slow elevator, he took the stairs four at a time, leaping recklessly over the railing at the switchbacks. He emerged into the secure lobby breathless, hoping he’d beaten the lift.
No luck. Both elevators showed they were travelling to the fourth and fifth floors, so she’d already left. He pushed through the glass front door and staggered in a blast of freezing air. Dammit. He’d left his coat upstairs. Had she taken one?
Night had fallen and the streetlamps illuminated hollow patches of bright emptiness along the suburban street. Most shops were closed, barred and silent. Kade reviewed the open coffee shop next door, holding out hope. Nothing but the young man he’d seen buying flowers earlier, two morose-looking businessmen and a homeless woman cadging coins from them.
He erupted into the street. No point in yelling her name. She wasn’t lost. South led toward the centre of the city. Would she have gone to Torin? That made no sense. She could have waited for him. He looked the other way. Nothing but passing cars with blinding headlights, plus a woman briskly walking her small dogs.
The young man with red roses emerged from the coffee shop. Kade paused, uneasy for no good reason.
A big, black car slid into a taxi zone and beeped.
Tor. Thank God.
Kade ran over and peered in the window. He recoiled. Something stung his arm. He yelled and plucked the dart free. He struck sluggishly at the flower-boy who lurked behind him. The kid threw the roses aside and grabbed Kade, pinning him effortlessly. The dart fell from numb fingers and Kade slumped.
His last thought was that Tor would kill him, if Carleton didn’t, first.
HEATHER
Seething, Heather stopped in the shadows and assessed her options. Anger would only carry her so far before reality imposed. Icy wind whistled down the street and tore at her coat. Her fingers and nose were frozen. She’d left her gloves and hat on the counter in the apartment.
She had hardly any money and no idea where she was. Overhead, the sky was an ugly shade of brown-orange, city lights reflecting off low clouds. A fine mist of freezing rain drifted down and she brushed it—and tears—from her face.
Where should she go?
But her mind wouldn’t focus on the future. How could Kade turn on her? Not listen? Not give her a chance to explain? She thought he was different, but he wasn’t. Judgmental, afraid of what he didn’t understand. Like her father. Like Carleton.
She bit down, holding in an ache that dug a pit deep into her stomach. No. The ache was more than anger. The energy she’d drawn from Kade. The potential backlash. She had to get rid of the sianfath’s power before it burned her from the inside, out.
She glanced around.
Huddled in a darkened doorway, a young man peered at her, lacklustre eyes half-hidden behind a shock of dark, unwashed hair. Maybe sick or on drugs. Certainly homeless, based on the small knapsack and sleeping bag. The city was full of homeless people and she was now one more. Perhaps he could tell her where a shelter was.
She approached cautiously and touched his shoulder. He blinked slowly. She released Kade’s energy into him, clearing the fog of drugs from his blood. The young man shook himself. Awareness bloomed in him and he scowled.
She backed away. He snatched up his things, muttered something, and disappeared around the corner.
Heather slumped against the wall. Just like that, she was alone again. She checked along the street. No sign of Torin’s car. She couldn’t go to him, anyway. He would side with Kade. They were best friends and business partners. Her brother would trust Kade over his own sister. Of course he would, after all these years. Who wouldn’t?
A scrabbling, rustling noise to her right made her jump. Was the young man back? She peered into the shadowed alley, suddenly conscious of her vulnerability.
She wrapped her coat closer.
A shadow leapt and shoved her heavily into the brick wall. Her skull smacked the hard concrete and bright lights glittered behind her eyes. She thrust out her arms to fend off her attacker but missed. Her bag was yanked off her shoulder.
And he disappeared. Nothing but light footsteps and a fleeting glimpse of dark hair and a knapsack as he fled. The boy she’d cured.
Trembling, Heather stood, numb with more than cold. Gone. That bag held everything she owned. Her medical kit. The only identity papers she had. A few dollars. She was an idiot.
‘Shit. Shitshitshitshitshit!’ With fingernails cutting into her palms, she vented a short, guttural scream at the uncaring, rubbish-strewn alley. It wasn’t fair. Darkness consumed her thoughts. She sank into a crouch against the filthy wall. Tears clogged her throat and blurred the world into a bleak canvas of black and grey.
For the first time since she was a child she had family again. And someone she thought she could depend on.
Now, she had nothing, and no-one. And Carleton was still after her. He wouldn’t stop until he’d hunted her down.
Helplessly, she patted at her coat pockets, hoping she’d missed something. The phone Tor had given her! She pulled out the phone, debating. If nothing else, he might lend her some money so she could start over. But he couldn’t know why she was leaving, which would be difficult.
But would he tell Kade he’d seen her? Would he even speak to her if he believed Kade’s story about Amanda’s death?
She sighed and put the phone in her pocket. No point in splitting his loyalties. She’d been alone a long time. This was a setback, but she’d make do. Always did.
Sucking a deep breath, Heather straightened. First things first. She needed to find somewhere to stay the night or she’d freeze to death.
She rubbed at a sudden, sharp sting in her right arm, took a step toward the city and stopped. She tried to keep walking and stopped again, unable to shake the feeling something was very wrong. Changing back increased the feeling. The mugger again? There was no-one on her side of the road, or in the alley.
But across the road, someone yelled. A man. Two men seemed to be wrestling on the pavement. One trying to shove the other into a big, dark car. Three more men appeared from within the vehicle.
The fighting pair emerged into the light of a coffee shop’s windows and Heather froze. She caught herself before screaming Kade’s name. He wasn’t resisting. His head lolled, his limbs hung limp. One of the men holstered a gun. Another of those dart guns?
There was nothing she could do. Nothing. Not with at least four of t
hem, plus the driver. And that damned dart gun. It could only be Carleton’s men. But how? How had he found the safe house?
She huddled into a shadowy nook between two shops, hidden from view. She tightened her dark coat and crouched to reduce her outline. Yanking out the phone, she photographed the car licence plate.
Within seconds, the car door closed and the vehicle accelerated smoothly from the curb. All that remained was a bunch of bright red flowers, bloody against the grey concrete. Heather hid when the headlights swept across her position. The car growled away.
What had she done? If she hadn’t stormed out in a childish fit, Kade would have been safe.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
HEATHER
Tears, brittle in the sub-zero temperature, stung her eyes. After a moment’s hesitation, she produced the phone and dialled Tor’s number. He answered.
‘How far away are you?’ she said.
‘About a block from the apartment. I’ll be there in two minutes. Where are you? What happened?’
‘Shit. That will be too long. I’ll meet you at…’ she squinted down the street ‘… the closed pet store on the west side of the street, a block closer the city.’
‘What about Kade?’
‘Carleton has him.’
Torin swore. ‘They must have tagged him when we were in the square this afternoon. Can’t believe I didn’t think of that. You’re safe, though? They didn’t come for you?’
Heather covered her mouth for a second to hold back a cry of despair. ‘Yes, I’m safe. Why didn’t they tag me instead of him, though?’
‘They would have only had a few seconds. He must have been the easier target. Stay where you are. I’ll be there soon.’
A minute later he pulled alongside and she clambered in, grateful for the warmth of his heated SUV. Her shivering eased.
‘Which way?’ Torin said.
Heather pointed. He drove off without speaking, his jaw grim and fingers white on the wheel. Weaving through the traffic, he headed for the city. He barely missed a Porsche and slipped the SUV through an impossibly-small gap. Heather clung to the armrest.
‘I can’t see the car,’ she said. ‘How do you know where they’re going?’
‘Best guess? To Carleton’s motel.’
‘We can’t go there!’ She gripped his arm, prepared to draw power from him. ‘You wouldn’t turn me over to him?’
Torin frowned. ‘Why the hell would I do that? We’re going to see if they bring Kade in. Then we’ll know what we’re up against and can plan.’
‘Oh.’ Heather released him. Had Kade even told him what had happened? Surely not, or Torin would have said something.
Her brother swore again and narrowly missed a cyclist.
‘There!’ She pointed. ‘That big black car ahead. Same licence plate.’
Torin eased off the accelerator, keeping the car in view. ‘How many in it?’
‘Four that I saw. Plus the driver.’
‘Damn. Too many for me to take without risking Kade’s life. They darted him I’m guessing?’
Heather winced. ‘I’m sorry. It’s my fault. We argued and he was chasing after me.’ She twisted to see behind. ‘Where are the rest of your people? Can they help?’
‘I’ve put them on standby. We can’t risk it. I need time to work out a strategy. If we stop Carleton’s car his men could kill Kade or hold him hostage and that would show that we know where Kade is. At the moment they will think they have the upper hand. Think we don’t know where he is.’ He slapped the wheel. ‘Dammit! What was he thinking? What were you thinking? Why did you leave?’
She examined her hands, thin and pale, in her lap. ‘It doesn’t matter. He lost his temper. I lost mine. We both said stupid things.’ She stared out the front window, sick fear fluttering in her stomach. What would Carleton do to him? ‘We have to get him back, Tor.’
‘We will,’ he said, grimly.
#
They followed the car all the way to The Mandarin Oriental and parked in a loading zone across the street. Carleton’s men hauled Kade’s unconscious body into the opulent foyer. The doorman didn’t even blink, just opened the door and let them in. They vanished into the interior and Torin got his phone out.
‘Luke? How far are you from the Oriental? Good man. Get over here. Observe every exit. Around the clock. Carleton has Kade and I don’t want them getting out. Find out if there’s a helipad. If there is, get onto our contacts at the airport and make sure we know the minute a flight plan is lodged.’ He rubbed at his forehead. ‘And get Cathy for me. Ask her to dig up blueprints of the motel. We need to see if there’s a way in or out we can use that’s not visible to cameras or staff.’ He paused, listening. ‘Good. I’ll take Heather to Michelle White’s apartment in the tower in Time Warner for the night. She’s out of town and it has a view of the Oriental at about the right level. Send a couple of people to stake out. And one of those stealth drones tech is trying out. Yes, I know. Screw the legalities. I’ll pay the fine if they catch us.’
He ended the call and edged the car back into the jostling traffic.
Heather watched the hotel out of sight, fighting tears. No way could this end well, now. Carleton would offer Kade in exchange for her, and she would do it. His life was worth more than hers. Yes, he’d jumped to the wrong conclusion about her, but he’d been carrying that burden of guilt and pain for eight years. Desperate to find someone to shift the blame onto. She should have been more understanding. Hadn’t she learned that anger and judgement was always wrong? She stroked the scar on her temple.
She should have told him the truth. Made him listen.
But he would hate her for it; maybe even think she was lying to cover a medical mistake. So it was a lose-lose situation.
Torin drove into the Time Warner complex’s private parking bays in stoic silence. Heather repressed the urge to ask him to hurry. He greeted the security and swiped a keycard for entry. In the elevator, he asked if she’d eaten. When she admitted she hadn’t, he ordered takeaway she wouldn’t eat. She said nothing, though, only followed him out of the elevator. Once inside the apartment’s opulent living area, he locked the door, waved her at one of the grey-upholstered couches and folded his arms.
‘Give. What’s going on?’
Heather sank onto the couch. ‘It’s my fault. Kade was angry and I got scared.’
‘Kade scared you? That doesn’t sound like him.’
She made a dismissive gesture. ‘He wasn’t going to hurt me, but I thought he was. Only for a second. And I got angry and defensive and walked out.’
‘What was it all about?’
Heather clenched her fingers tight in her lap. How much her hands resembled her mother’s in the months before her death. Thin, blue-veined, shaking.
‘Heather?’ Torin’s tone was gentle and he sat beside her, his expression one of concern now.
‘It doesn’t matter,’ she said in a low voice. She couldn’t tell him the truth, either. It would cause a rift between the men. A secret when they had none and trusted each other.
‘Yes, it does. Kade’s buttons are pretty difficult to push. If it’s something that will affect how we get him free, then I need to know.’
‘It’s not…’ She halted. ‘It’s…personal. Please? Don’t ask me. Ask him, when he’s free and I’m gone.’
‘Gone? What does that mean?’ He knelt before her. ‘You’re my little sister. I’m not letting you go.’
‘You don’t get to tell me what to do, Tor. Once this is done and Carleton is out of my life, I’m gone. I’ll keep in touch. With you. Kade can’t know where I am.’
‘What the…?’ He sighed. ‘No. I get it. You don’t want to say why. Shit.’ He rose and paced, scratching at his scalp. ‘I hate this, Heather.’
‘Me too. I’m sorry.’ She swallowed tears. ‘So what do we do, now? How do we get him from Carleton.’
‘We wait,’ Torin replied, grim. ‘For Luke’s report about the building. For Ca
thy to send through the blueprints.’ He paused. ‘For Carleton to contact us about a hostage exchange.’
‘You think that’s what he’ll do?’ Her stomach sank. She’d expected it, but hoped… Stupid. Of course that was what he wanted.
‘It’s alright,’ Torin said soothingly. ‘We’ll work out a way to get him without exchanging you.’ His phone rang. He answered, his attention still on her. Then he rose abruptly, and paced to stand by the window, listening. His focus sharpened on the light-speckled darkness outside. Directly opposite, stood the Oriental’s sharp-angled tower of glass that mirrored this building.
‘You’re sure?’ he said. ‘Right. Fall back. Get someone onto this roof with the drone and you come here with a telescope. I want eyes on the people in his suite. If he has internal security we can hack then do it. Yes. And I’ll call when Carleton makes contact.’
Heather waited, every muscle tensed. He hung up and swiped at his phone’s screen. Then he sank onto the couch.
‘Right. Luke says the exits are all covered and the rest of the team will be here shortly. There’s also no helipad, so Carleton can’t get out that way.’
‘But?’ Heather snatched a throw cushion and squeezed it to her chest.
‘But Cathy’s sent me the blueprints and it doesn’t seem like there’s any easy way to get into his suite on the 63rd floor, either. Elevators and the fire stairs are monitored. Carleton has guards posted.’ He stared off into middle distance. ‘If this were a movie or a book, we could take out the guards and overpower Carleton and his men. But we can’t risk it. In real life, these things go wrong and either guards die or the hostage dies. Either of which is a bad outcome.’
Heather gulped. ‘Is my skill any use? Can I help?’
‘We’re trying to keep you away from Carleton, remember?’ He patted her leg. ‘Don’t stress. Extractions are my game. You go get some sleep. There are three bedrooms. I’ll set Luke and the others up in one. You take that one.’ He pointed. ‘Leave Kade to me. I’ll think of something.’
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