Was she dead? The pain in her head suggested that she was still very much alive. Then what was wrong with her?
What was happening to her? Her mind was blank. She tried to think back and she remembered going for a walk, then getting into the car with Riley.
Riley.
Memories of what happened came to her in a rush. Riley had poisoned her tea. She’d meant to kill her because of Mark. Mark had been cheating on her with Riley and if the crazy woman was to be believed, he’d been cheating on her right from the beginning.
She felt the pain in her head intensify as she tried to work out exactly where Riley had placed her. She could not see a thing, but she could feel the surface she was laying on. It was hard, but not cold. Probably wood.
It didn’t take her long to discover that both her hands and leg had been tied up. She tried to move her legs and after several attempts, managed to hit something. It sounded like a wooden board. Could she be in a closet?
She had no idea where she was. Her mouth felt dry and she desperately needed something to drink. She’d never felt so weak or helpless in her life.
Janey felt tears trickle down her face and tried to blink them away. What was the point in crying? She was grateful that she wasn’t dead. Yet. But for how much longer would she remain alive? If no one found her in the dark hole where she was, she would slowly starve to death.
She thought of Drew then and this time, she could do nothing about the tears that flowed down her face. Sobs racked her body, and it seemed like it took all her energy just to cry, but she couldn’t stop.
She missed him so much, it was like a physical ache. She would give anything to feel his arms around her. She wished she could go back to that morning…
It occurred to her then that she had no idea what time or day it was. How long had she been in Riley’s house? Was she still in Riley’s house or had the crazy woman moved her somewhere else?
Not knowing was driving her crazy.
If she could change one thing, she would have taken the phone out of Drew’s hand in the greenhouse and led him into the house, straight to her bedroom to finish what they’d started. Why had she not done that? God knows she’d wanted to.
More importantly, why hadn’t he? What was wrong with the man? And why had he not found her already?
Janey soon forgot her tears as she felt anger began to rise inside her. Anger at Drew.
What was the point in having a bodyguard if he could not find her when some crazy woman abducted her? She knew that she probably was not being fair to him, but at that point, she was past caring.
The anger didn’t last long though. The same way it sprouted up, it died down.
She was finding it increasingly difficult to breathe. She tried to drag in more air, but somehow, it did not get to her lungs.
As she got weaker, Janey began to pray. She knew it would take a miracle to save her, but a miracle had kept her alive that long. She closed her eyes and as she labored to breathe, she hoped with everything she had that there was still more of that miracle left.
**
Before they left for Riley’s place, Drew decided to inform Janey’s family. He had no idea how this was going to go and he did not want them hearing about it from anyone else. So he made the trip to her parents’ farm for the second time that day.
As he expected, it was an emotional experience, but to his surprise, they were more concerned about him.
Just before he left, Janey’s mom wrapped him in a big hug. “I know you’ll find her, Drew,” she said drawing back with tears in her eyes. “And don’t worry, she’ll be okay.”
Drew struggled to speak through the tight ball of emotion stuck in his throat. “Why aren’t you mad at me? I was supposed to keep her safe.”
She smiled sadly and patted his cheek. “I saw how you looked at my daughter. I know you’ll do everything in your power to bring her back to us.”
Drew nodded, vowing without words to do just that.
“You go on, dear. I’ll inform the rest of the family. Let us know if …” She let the words trail off, but Drew understood. On impulse he leaned forward and gave her a kiss on her cheek before turning and walking briskly to his car.
It was time to go get Janey. He refused to think of the possibility that something terrible might have happened to her.
He was going to bring her back safely.
On his way there, he got a call from a number he didn’t know. He waited for the Caller ID to flash the name and was surprised to see Mark Sweeny. He hit the answer button.
“Hello.”
“Ah, is that Drew Campbell?”
“Campbell here.”
“Okay, ah, I need to speak with you. It’s about Janey.”
Drew wondered how he got his number, but he could find that out later. Right now he needed anything he could get on Janey.
“Where are you?”
“Can you meet me at the Walmart near Janey’s.”
“Be there in five.” He cut the connection and turned the car towards Iron Horse Ranch Estate.
Seven minutes later he was staring at the man seated in the passenger seat of his vehicle. Drew was so angry, he wanted to strangle him right there.
“You’ve been cheating on Janey for the past year?” He could not keep the disgust out of his voice even if he wanted to do so.
“It’s easy for you to judge me, but Janey does not like sex. She’s frigid as I’m sure you’ve discover—” His voice was choked off by Drew’s hands around his neck. His eyeballs bulged out as he gasped for breath.
Drew realized what he was about to do and pushed the man away. He watched as the man wheezed, trying to draw in air into his lungs. Drew was angry with himself. How had he lost control so badly?
“You will never speak that way again about Janey,” Drew said in a quiet voice that was deadly in its intensity.
Mark nodded, his face beet red.
“Now tell me what you know.”
“I heard from Janey’s brother that she’s gone missing,” he gasped out the words. “I ended my affair with Riley. She was really mad.”
“Let me guess, you told her that you were getting back together with Janey.”
The man had the grace to look shame-faced.
Drew looked away from him. He was a lower form of life and it bothered him no end that Janey had planned to spend the rest of her life with the lowlife. Well, she would never have to look at anyone like Mark Sweeny again. He would make sure of it.
“You’re coming with me to Riley’s place.”
Mark swallowed hard and nodded.
“Punch in the coordinates into the GPS,” he ordered as he pulled out.
As they made their way towards Riley’s apartment, Drew thought about the promise he’d just made to himself. He decided not to look too closely into what it implied. He had enough time after he found Janey to examine his thoughts.
“Who’s he?” Emily asked as soon as Drew arrived with Mark.
“Mark Sweeny, Janey’s ex-fiance.”
“What’s he doing here?”
“Turns out he’s been having an affair with Riley.”
Rusty whistled.
“Charming,” Tamika said dryly.
Ace was the only one of the Silver Shield operators that was missing. Since he was still recovering from bullet wounds as a result of their last mission, he had stayed back with Sierra in Janey’s cottage.
“We’ll use him to gain entrance then,” Emily decided.
They all pulled out their weapons. Seeing them, Mark blanched.
“Who are you people?” he asked in fear.
“Ring the bell, dude,” Rusty said, gently poking him with the muzzle of his handgun.
“Easy man… I’ll ring it,” Mark said, throwing his hands up in the air.
They exchanged amused looks.
Mark rang the bell and the rest of them all faded into the shadows.
Riley opened the door, but kept the chain on.
; “What do you want?” She sounded angry.
“Sweetheart, please let me in.”
“What do you want?” she repeated.
Her voice was hard and sounded nothing like the sweet, young woman Drew had met in Janey’s store.
“Baby, I made a mistake,” Mark said nervously. “I did not mean to end things with you. I was just so confused.”
“I’m pregnant.”
Even from where he was standing in the shadows, Drew saw Mark go pale.
“O..okay. Okay. We can discuss this.” He sounded like he was sweating, which served him right.
“You’re not mad?” She sounded unsure.
“No. No, I’m not. Shocked, but not mad. Can we talk about this inside?”
There was a pause, then they heard the chain slide off. Riley opened the door and Drew was the first one through. He pushed Mark aside and stepped into the house.
“Wha-what’s going on?” she asked, stepping back in fear.
“Where is she?” Drew asked.
The others walked into the apartment after Drew.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“We know she’s here, Riley. So better start talking.”
Her face blanched, but she lifted her chin in defiance. “I already told you that I haven’t seen Janey today.”
Drew looked at Emily and she nodded her head. Silently they disappeared into different parts of the apartment, while Rusty remained behind, guarding the door. He had his weapon trained on Riley, making sure she did not escape.
They searched every inch of the apartment. Drew checked each room. He searched the closets, beneath the beds, the bathrooms. He went over the apartment three times, but there was no sign of Janey. He returned to the living room, confused.
He could not explain it, but he felt inside him that Janey was in that apartment. But where could she be? It was not like a house that had an attic and a basement. It was just a two-bedroom apartment with a kitchen and three bathrooms. Where could anyone hide a grown woman in that such a place?
He exchanged glances with the others, shaking his head lightly.
“I told you she’s not here. How dare you barge into my home like this. I’m going to call the cops!” Riley was yelling at them.
They turned to leave, but Drew hesitated. Janey was in that apartment. He was sure of it.
“Just once more,” he replied to Emily’s silent enquiry.
She nodded.
Drew walked back to the short corridor and stood there.
Where are you, Janey? I know you’re in here somewhere? Please tell me where you are.
Just then his phone buzzed. Drew felt his pulse speed up. He did not want to believe his ears. He pulled out the phone from his pocket and glanced at the screen.
“Hell, yeah!”
The others rushed to where he was.
“What’s up?” Emily asked.
“She’s here. She’s right here.” He could not keep the excitement out of his voice.
Tamika pointed to his phone and dipped her head once.
“It’s the tracking software that Rusty put in my phone. I gave the device to Janey and asked her to press it whenever she was in trouble,” he explained.
Both women peered at his phone.
“It’s coming from there,” Tamika said, pointing to a door.
Drew frowned. He had already checked that door. Behind it was a small laundry room. He pushed it open.
There was a washing machine as well as a laundry basket and an ironing board. The items were squeezed into the room and there didn’t seem to be any space to hide a human being.
He glanced at his phone once more and it was clear that Janey was most certainly in that room.
“Hold on,” Tamika said stepping into the room. She was looking at the washer with a funny expression on her face.
“It’s just a washer,” Drew said.
Tamika looked at Emily and she was also staring at the washer. She lifted her gaze to Tamika and they both nodded. Next they grabbed both sides of the washer and pushed it out of place. Tamika reached out and hit the wall behind the washer. It sounded hollow.
Holy shit!
She placed her hands on the wall and began to press. Drew watched silently. After a while, there was a click and the door sprung open.
Drew moved forward and lifted the washer out of the way, then pulled open the door to what appeared to be a closet.
What he saw caused his heart to stop beating for a nanosecond, then it began to race. Laying there, bound hand and foot was Janey.
Drew let out a string of curses, then went down on his hunches and touched her hair. Her face was pale and she looked like she’d lost consciousness. He saw the tear streaks on her face and his heart broke. He could not begin to imagine what she’d been through. He made short work of the ropes on her limbs and took the tape off her mouth. There were rope burns on her skin. Seeing them there filled him with rage.
Very gently, he lifted her and cradled her in his arms. Something fell from her limp fingers. He looked down and saw that it was her bunch of keys. Attached to it was the device he had given her. He stepped back so Tamika could get it.
By the time he got to the living room with Janey in his arms, the cops were already there, as well as the paramedics. Emily had placed the calls summoning them.
Drew refused to let go of Janey, so they had to check her while she was in his arms. He held on to her during the ambulance ride but had to let go when they go to the hospital.
Chapter Twelve
Drew sat at the hospital waiting room and cradled his head in his hands. The image of Janey’s limp body would be forever ingrained in his mind. His heart hurt in his chest.
Just thinking about all she’d gone through made his eyes hot. He wanted to yell, to hit something, anything. But most of all, he wished he could crawl into the black hole that was beckoning to him. But he could not heed the call. He needed to be strong for Janey. It was the least he could do.
They had arrived several hours ago and Janey had been rushed to the Intensive Care Unit. He had called her family then and they were also in the waiting room. They were waiting for news about Janey. The other members of his team had gone back to Janey’s cottage, but Emily had stayed on with him in the hospital. She was seated beside him.
“Are you the family of Janey Moore?”
Drew’s head snapped up and he got to his feet when he saw the doctor. She looked to be in her fifties and there were signs of strain around her eyes.
The other family members came around as well. “Yes, we are,” Daphne Moore replied.
“Hi, I’m Doctor Quintero and I’ll be handling Miss Moore’s treatment for the time being.”
“How is she?” Janey’s mother asked.
“She ingested some poisonous substances. We’ve found traces of cyanide in her blood.”
There was a gasp from Janey’s sisters-in-law. Drew clenched his hands into a fist.
“We’ve called in a consultant, a specialist in toxicology. In the meantime, we placed her on hydroxocobalamin, which is an antidote to cyanide poisoning. We have also placed her on respiratory and cardiovascular support and we’ll be monitoring her cardiac activity for the next twenty-four hours.”
“Can we see her?” one of Janey’s brothers asked.
“Yes you may, but only two guests at a time may see her.”
Drew wanted desperately to see Janey, but knew he did not have the right. He placed his hands on his waist and looked down, struggling for control.
“You go on, Drew.”
He looked up in surprise. Daphne Moore smiled at him kindly and gently pushed him towards the direction of the doctor.
“Are you the husband?” the doctor asked.
“He’s her partner,” Janey’s mom said.
The doctor nodded. “This way then.”
Drew followed the doctor into the Intensive Care Unit. There were several beds separated by light blue partitioning. B
efore they got to where Janey was lying, the doctor stopped and turned to face Drew.
“As you’re her partner, I thought I should let you know that we did all we could, but we were not able to save the baby.”
Drew felt shock course through his system.
“Baby?”
“Yes. Did you not know about this?”
Drew shook his head. “How far…”
“About fourteen weeks.”
He did the math and felt the blood drain from his face. Janey was pregnant? With his baby? He wanted to howl.
The doctor placed a hand on his shoulder. “Are you okay?”
Drew had no idea if he would ever be okay, but he nodded anyway.
With a nod of her own, the doctor led the way to Janey’s bedside. When she pulled the curtains, Drew’s heart failed him. He sagged when he saw her lying there, deathly pale with so many tubes sticking out of her.
“I’ll give you some time with her.”
Drew did not see the doctor draw the curtains and leave. His entire attention was focused on Janey as she lay there on the bed. Only the faint rise and fall of her chest gave any indication that she was still breathing.
He moved closer and gently caressed her hair.
“Janey, sweetheart, I’m so sorry. I should have been there. I should have kept you safe. I’m so, so sorry…” his voice broke at the end and he felt the tears freely rolling down his face. He reached down and held her hand. It was lifeless.
“Our baby died. Did you know you were pregnant?”
Had she known and hidden the fact from him? His heart constricted with pain at the thought. He quickly dismissed it. If Janey had known for sure that she was expecting their baby, she would have told him. She had integrity like that.
He had only just heard about Janey’s pregnancy minutes before, but it surprised him how much he wanted that baby. He wanted it with a fierceness that shocked him. It made him realize something he’d been trying hard to avoid. He was falling for Janey Moore.
It was terrifying. But it was also wonderful. His heart filled up with emotion and he shut his eyes briefly as he tried to come to terms with his realization. He opened his eyes and looked at her. Her hair was spread out on the pillow and even though she was almost the same color as the sheets, she had never looked more beautiful to him.
Silver Shield Security Box Set Page 33
