Emily shot him a dirty look, but she must have decided that it would be best to eat because she shook her head at him and walked into the kitchen.
Well, he agreed with her. Food was good. And if her eating habits were still as abysmal as they’d always been, she needed food to soak up the liquor she’d just had. He knew one thing for certain, she would not deliberately let her guard down with him around, and alcohol on an empty stomach always did make her lower her inhibitions just a bit. He followed her into the kitchen.
“Yet, here you are, leading them right back to me.” She pulled out some leftover casserole from the refrigerator and shoved it into the microwave, setting the timer
“I had no one else to turn to.”
At his quietly spoken words, she went still then turned to look at him. He was not surprised by the look of disbelief on her face. He even understood what put it there.
“You don’t need anyone, Wayne,” she said evenly. “You never did.”
Wayne stared at her without saying a word. He felt the old frustration begin to rise. Why the hell would she not try to understand him? He was not even asking her to actually understand him, but she could at least try. He put a nonchalant expression on his face and shrugged.
“I came to you for help, are you seriously turning me away?”
Emily sighed. “What is all this about, Wayne?” she asked.
Just then the microwave timer went off. As she opened the door, a pleasant aroma filled the kitchen and hit his senses, reminding him that he’d had nothing to eat all day. She slipped on a pair of oven mitts and brought out the casserole dish, which she placed on the counter. Next she brought out two plates and handed them to him.
“I can’t tell you everything at the moment,” he said, taking the plates to the cute little breakfast nook.
“Yeah, I figured as much. It was crazy of me to ask…goodness knows what got into me.” She placed the casserole in the center of the table with a bang. Then went back for the cutlery.
“You don’t understand,” Wayne said, pinching his nose.
“You’re right, I don’t.” She brought out a bottle of zinfandel from the fridge and placed it on the table.
He glanced at the wine and looked at her, raising an eyebrow.
“Don’t you dare say it!” she snapped.
“What? I didn’t say anything?” Wayne said, fighting the smile that had his lips twitching in sudden amusement.
“You didn’t say it, but you were thinking it. Don’t lie to me.”
“So you read minds now?”
She sat down and he took the seat opposite hers. He could not remember the last time he’d sat at the same table with Emily, never mind share a meal. Who was he kidding, he could remember. It was seven years, three months, one week and two days ago. Not that he was keeping count. But it was the day she looked at him and said the words, I want a divorce.
“Just say it so I can eat my meal in peace.” She folded her arms on the table and tried to stare him down.
Wayne just shook his head. Without another word, he dished the food unto his plate and began to eat. He knew what she was expecting him to say and it was on the tip of his tongue because seriously, who put red wine in the fridge? Who the hell did that? She was ruining a perfectly good bottle of wine. He wanted to say it, and she knew it. But he was going to disappoint her.
“So, are you going to help me?” he finally asked, putting down his fork.
He watched her as she ate. She was a dainty eater, elegantly taking little bites, just like the debutante that she was. But she never played around with her food, when she remembered to eat. She ate enough so that she was not skinny, even though she did not have an ounce of spare fat anywhere. Matter of fact, she looked really good. But Wayne made up his mind not to notice. He was not going to notice that she’d grown her hair out or how it glistened and seemed to have a life of its own. He was not going to notice that her tee shirt fitted her very well and showed off her alluring curves. Oh no. He was never going to notice that stuff, not anymore.
“What exactly do you want?” she asked.
He could think of a number of things he wanted, but none of them were what she wanted to hear. So he pulled his head back into the conversation.
“I need to stay safe for just a few more days,” he said. The next part was much harder to say, but it had to be done. It was the one card he knew would guarantee Emily’s help. He knew it was a lowdown dirty thing to do, considering how much she’d gone through over the years, but he was left with no choice. “I also need help rescuing somebody.”
“Who do you need to rescue?”
He took a deep breath and let it out, knowing that his next words would change everything. “Our daughter.”
She gave him a blank stare, not comprehending what he’d said. Then her eyes widened in shock and she began to choke.
Wayne jumped to his feet and hurried to her side of the table. He pounded her back until the coughing stopped, then went to the sink and got her a cup of water to drink. After a while, she was fine.
“You know where Kendra is?” she asked.
“Yes, I do.” But the truth was not as simple as that. It was much worse.
“Oh my god. How is that possible?” She placed a hand over her mouth, her shock very evident.
Wayne sighed and leaned against the counter. He met her gaze as he replied, “I have always known.”
Emily stared at him not saying a word. Finally, she got to her feet slowly. “You are telling me, that for the past seven years, you’ve known where our daughter was?”
“Emily—”
“You’ve known, and you stood back and watched me drive myself half-mad, chasing shadows across the country?”
“Emily—”
“You’ve known, yet you did not do a fucking thing to get her back?” Her voice was rising.
“You don’t under—”
“Damn right, I don’t, you asshole! How could you do that to me? How could you keep my daughter away from me all these years?” She was yelling now.
“It’s not like that.”
“Oh my god!” She pulled at her hair in distress, “Oh my god! This is too much. This is just too much!”
Wayne had never seen Emily fall to pieces that way. Well, except when she was brought back home because Kendra had gone missing. She had lost it then. She was having a major meltdown and he didn’t know what to do about it. He moved towards her, aching to take her in his arms.
“Emily…” He said her name helplessly.
“You stay away from me, you bastard!” she yelled. “You knew…you knew and you watched me fall into one rabbit hole after another in search of Kendra. You just watched me…” She was breathing heavily, like she was about to hyperventilate.
“I tried to tell you, Emily.”
“Shut the hell up! You don’t try to tell someone something like that. You fucking tell it!”
She was right. He knew she was right. It had broken his heart to see her following different leads that he’d known were dead ends. He had begged her to stop searching, but he hadn’t told her why.
“I’m so sorry.”
“I hate you. Do you hear me, Wayne Carter? I hate you with every fiber of my being.”
He heard the intense loathing for him in her voice and it was no more than what he felt for himself. He shut his eyes and tried to push down the pain that was always there. Everywhere he went. He had tried drowning himself in work, just to forget the pain, but it was like an open wound that had gone septic. There was nothing he could do to anaesthetize the pain.
“Let me explain.” He was half-pleading, even though he had no idea what to say to her.
“You only need to explain one thing. How we can get Kendra immediately?”
“If they get hold of me now, they will kill her or worse.”
“Wait, is that what he meant by he would ship your precious cargo?”
Wayne went on alert. “What are you talking about?”
“The Chinese man? He told me to tell you that you had seventy-two hours before they shipped your precious cargo.”
“When was this?”
“Yesterday.”
“Shit!” Wayne felt intense pain and anger shoot through him. It fired up his determination.
He shut his eyes and pinched his nose. They were getting desperate and that meant that it was time for him to go on the offensive. No more running away. He needed to get his girl out of their clutches and he had less than two days to do so.
He opened his eyes and focused on the woman standing before him. “We don’t have a lot of time.”
She did not reply. She was busy walking up and down the small space in the kitchen. Her hands were on her head and she looked shell-shocked. Suddenly she changed her direction and walked into the living room. Wayne watched her go, his heart heavy with grief. After a few moments, he followed after her. When he got into the living room, she was on the land line.
“Which one of you bastards have my daughter?” He heard her snap into the phone. “You want me to deliver Wayne in exchange for my daughter? … Yes, I understand perfectly…I’ll be in touch.” She was once again in command and nothing of the shattered woman he’d seen in the kitchen remained.
Would she do it? Emily was one of the most honorable people he knew, but he also knew that she would do anything for their daughter. It did not help that she hated his guts. He watched her, but she seemed lost in her thoughts. The phone rang again.
“Hello? … No, give me a sec…” She walked over to the sofa and picked up the remote control from the coffee table, then turned on the TV.
Wayne watched as the news channel came on. After a couple of minutes, she switched to other news channels and they all had the same breaking news: Billionaire tech tycoon, Wayne Carter, Missing.
He ran a hand through his hair. With the media getting hold of this, it was going to complicate things. If they had a chance of getting their daughter out, they would have to go deep underground. He froze as a picture of his daughter came on the screen. It was taken seven years ago, when she first went missing. He tuned into what the reporter was saying:
Wayne Carter was married to Emily Silver. The couple got divorced seven years ago when their daughter, Kendra Carter, was kidnapped. She was never found, and all leads the police had led to dead ends. Joining us to discuss the recent disappearance of Wayne Carter is psychologist…
Emily lowered the volume of the TV and went back to her phone conversation.
“I’ll tell you everything later tonight. Thanks, Drew.”
She ended the call and turned to him. “They want to cut a deal.”
He’d figured as much. “Are you going to do it?”
She gave him a measured glance, “I’m thinking about it.”
Damn. He pinched the bridge above his nose. She was really mad at him and he deserved it. He should have told her, but he hadn’t been able to do that. He didn’t expect her to understand, he just wished…what the hell did he wish? He had no idea.
Her phone rang again. “Hey Rusty…We’re having a briefing in a few minutes. No, you don’t need to come down.” She paused, “You’re sitting this one out, Russ. Don’t argue. Talk to you in ten.”
She ended the call, walked towards the console where she’d earlier dropped her keys and fished her phone out of the fish bowl. Wayne watched her, not saying a word. She walked past the door that led to the kitchen to another door and paused.
“You coming?”
He picked up his weapon and walked behind her into the part of the mansion that was used for Silver Shield operations.
Chapter Three
Thursday, 10:05 p.m., Silver Shield HQ
Emily watched the faces seated around the table. Every one of her special operators was present, except Drew, who had relocated with his partner to Florida, and Rusty who was still recovering from a gunshot wound. However, they were all participating via video conferencing.
“Thank you all for coming,” she said at last. “We have a situation.” Taking a deep breath, she briefed them about Wayne’s situation, what little she knew about it. “I’ve told you all I know, but Wayne here has the full information about why they’re after him. Wayne?”
She kept her voice even and mild, it didn’t matter that she wanted to tear him apart limb by limb. She could not afford to lose it in front of her people, so she’d called upon all her training in the army to remain in control of her emotions.
“There’s not much I can say.”
“I see.”
Emily wanted to slap him, but she called upon her self-control once more.
“It’s classified,” he said with a shrug.
That was it!
“Guys, I’m sorry for wasting your time. We’re done here.” She rose to her feet.
“Wait.”
She turned to look at Wayne, an eyebrow raised in inquiry.
“I was working on a weapon,” he said after a while. “It’s top secret and not supposed to exist. Word about that weapon leaked out seven years ago. On the black market, it would fetch upward of sixty million US dollars.”
Emily sank back in her seat.
“How long have you been working on this weapon?” Drew asked.
“Twelve years.”
“So the Chinese are after the weapon?” Tamika, the only other female special operator, asked. Tamika was based in New York and engaged to a hotel tycoon, but she’d returned to Chicago for a mission.
“The Chinese, the Russians, and the Israelis, as far as I know.”
“There’s only one reason I can think of that would make these world powers this interested in your weapon,” Rusty said thoughtfully.
“I would rather not discuss it,” Wayne said in a clipped voice.
“You were working on a lethal autonomous weapon.”
Wayne’s features turned hard. “It would be best if you quit asking questions now. If I tell you anything more, you will be assassinated.”
There was complete silence in the room. Emily stared at him through narrow eyes. He did not seem to be bluffing, if anything, he seemed dead serious.
“So we can’t ask what this weapon is supposed to do and who commissioned its building.”
He met her gaze and his were apologetic.
“No,” he said simply.
“If we can so easily be assassinated, why did you come to us? It is apparent that you don’t trust our abilities to handle this.”
“There were compelling reasons.”
“Which you’re not prepared to share with us,” Emily concluded. She raised a hand when he wanted to speak. She was beginning to get the picture. Because her daughter was out there, he knew that she would do whatever it took to keep him safe and get her little girl back. She was the only one with the sort of motivation he needed.
She smiled bitterly. She understood his actions. Hell, she even admired his mojo. But it galled to be used in this way by someone she used to love so much. She straightened her shoulders. All that was water under the bridge. He was free to use her as she was also going to use the hell out of him if it meant that she got her child back at the end of all this.
“So each of these factions want to get their hands on this weapon?” Tamika spoke, drawing their attention.
“That’s about it. I can’t afford to let it fall into the wrong hands. Unfortunately, I can’t trust anyone. I believe that someone in the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of Homeland Defense has sold out. Actually, several people might have sold out and several cops are on the take. I just finished the prototype a few days ago and a day later my secret lab was raided. I got away with the prototype but the two other people in the lab with me were not so fortunate.”
“This was not in the news,” Rusty pointed out.
“Exactly. As soon as I was able to get away, I called Homeland Security. Needless to say, I have been made aware that I am more or less on my own.”
“There
must have been someone on your team who sold you out.” Ryan, the newest addition to the team and also a former Navy SEAL, observed.
Emily had also come to the same conclusion. Someone close to him was a mole. Either that or the people had kept closer track of him than he’d been aware of, which was crazy because security was Wayne’s thing. If they were monitoring his movement, he would have let them see only what he wanted them to see.
Secondly, she agreed with his belief that some cops were on the take. Not that it was anything new; greed was a very strong incentive. But the way they’d tried to hush everything up at the New York Police Department had made her suspicious.
From what Wayne had said and what he didn’t say, she was pretty sure that this had something to do with the authorities. The United States was not supposed to be involved in creating Lethal Autonomous Weapons, or LAWS, as they were called. True, they had been opposed to the proposed ban on such weaponry by the United Nations, but if it went out that they were actively involved in the development of such weaponry, then it could cause a tilt in international circles.
It crossed her mind then that this was probably going to be their toughest mission yet.
“There’s something else,” she said when there was a lull in the conversation. Sure she had everyone’s attention, she went on. “In order to force Wayne to keep working on his weapon, they took our daughter.”
There was shocked silence all around.
“Wait, are you telling me that all this time you knew where your daughter was?” Drew asked.
Emily shook her head, she was barely holding it together as it was, but she knew she could not afford to have a meltdown here. So she took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
“I didn’t… but he did,” she said, using her head to gesture at Wayne who was sitting at her right hand side.
“All this time?” Tamika asked, not able to hide her surprise.
“Yep.”
“Damn, Emily…” Ace said softly.
Emily cleared her throat. She did not need sympathy. Sympathy was the last thing she needed if she did not want to fall apart. “My main concern is to get my daughter back,” she said briskly. Then turning towards Wayne she added, “In the process, we’ll do our best to keep you safe and ensure that the weapon gets to the right hands.”
Silver Shield Security Box Set Page 101
