Run to Me (35 page)

He turned around as he heard the master return.

“Did you have a nice visit?” the master said.

The golden-haired man said softly, “I’m going to tear your body limb from limb.”

The master looked startled for a second and then smiled. “I’m afraid you won’t have a chance.” He turned away from the bound man and looked at him. “Are you ready to see my woman again?”

He nodded and said, “Yes.”

“Then let’s go.” The master turned back to the golden-haired man. “We’ll have another, even more special reunion when we return.”

As he followed the master out the door, the man on the wall shouted, “No, damn you. Leave Shea alone!”

Gabe straightened in his seat when he spotted Shea coming out of the storage room.
Finally.
He’d begun to think she was going to stay the entire day. Not that he didn’t have sympathy for her, but bodyguards were human, too. Give him a bathroom, a cup of coffee, and maybe a burger, then he’d gladly sit on his ass for another five hours.

She looked like hell. Even from a distance, he could see how upset she was. Poor woman was sheet white and looked as if— He stiffened. Shea was getting into her car, but her hand had given him a subtle but distinct signal. An LCR signal …
Follow me.

Cranking the engine, Gabe waited. She started her car and drove toward the exit. Her head made subtle shifts every few seconds as she checked the rearview mirror as if assuring herself that he was still there. Something was very wrong.

He picked up his phone and pressed a key for Noah. “Something’s up. She just left the storage facility. She looked scared as hell and motioned me to follow her.”

“No one approached her?”

“No, no one’s been near the building.”

“What’s she doing now?”

“We’re heading down Marjorie Street. I’m about two car lengths behind her.”

“Stay on the line. I’m calling in some of our locals.”

“Okay, but instruct them to hang back. Something tells me she thinks she’s being watched.”

“Hold on.”

Gabe switched on the GPS screen at his dashboard. Shea was heading toward the water. Killian Bay. He slowed, extending the distance between them. She knew he was there and he could see her, which was all he needed right now.

Noah came back on the line. “Okay, I’ve got your position. You’re headed to Killian Bay. It’s a large marina, busy place, lots of boats.”

“What my backup ETA?”

“About eight minutes.”

“Too late. She’s already heading into the parking lot. I’ll have to stay with her. Track me on my portable GPS. Tell our guys to follow when they can.”

“Will do. Stay safe and report in when you can.”

Shea parked several yards in front of him. Gabe snagged a parking place, hastily slid the small tracking device into his pant cuff, grabbed his pistol, and eased out of his car.

Shea jumped out of her car. Looking neither left nor right, she headed down a long pier and stopped in front of a red-and-white speedboat.

Gabe lowered his head and pretended to be looking at a dent on the hood as he watched Shea step up onto the boat. The instant her foot touched down, hands grabbed her. She disappeared from his view.

Stealth no longer an option, Gabe started running. The motorboat rumbled to life. If he didn’t get on it soon, Shea would be on her own. Long legs eating up the distance, he took a flying leap and landed on its deck.

Pulling in gasping breaths of air, he flipped over. Two men stood over him with guns. Before he could open his mouth, the butt of a rifle slammed against his head.

Teeth clenched with determination and a pounding rage, Ethan tugged on the bindings at his wrists. He didn’t know how long he had. If he didn’t get out before they came back, they were all screwed. Damned if he’d allow that to happen. Cole was alive. He had to do something. And now Rosemount had threatened him with Shea. Had he found her, or was that a part of his torture? If he’d found her, then how? Wasn’t she still at the clinic?

Cellphone.
Shit, his cellphone had her number. If Rosemount called her, maybe sent her a picture of him or Cole … Hell, she’d do whatever the bastard wanted if she thought she could save their lives. She was that foolish and that heroic. Even after escaping from the hell Rosemount had put her through, she’d come back to it if she thought it would do any good. He had to get out of this room before they got to her.

Ignoring the blood streaming down his arms from the rips in his skin, Ethan twisted, tugged, and wrenched. As he struggled for freedom, his mind went back to that black day when all hell had broken loose and they believed Cole had died.

He and Shea had been in the midst of an argument when Cole’s garbled message came through the radio. All he’d been able to make out were the words “something’s wrong” and “going in.” Ethan had ordered Cole to wait but had received no response.

In that instant, he’d met Shea’s eyes and they’d been out the door. They made it outside just in time to see Cole run into the warehouse. He and Shea had started racing down the gravel road to the building. A few steps ahead of Shea, he’d glanced over his shoulder and shouted at her to go back. And in that instant, the entire building had detonated. He’d flung himself over Shea, covering her. Fiery pieces of wood and metal had rained down on them. Finally able to raise his head, he’d faced a blazing, decimated building. Nothing could have survived.

The fire investigators later determined that the cause of the blast was a combination of TNT and RDX, along with several pounds of magnesium. Since magnesium burns at around four thousand degrees and human bones turn to dust at two thousand degrees or so, no human remains had been found. Rosemount had somehow smelled a setup and been prepared. In the few seconds Cole had been in the building, he’d been captured. And Rosemount had made sure no one doubted Cole’s death.

God, he’d been alive all along. Under the influence of Rosemount’s drugs, completely helpless to think or act for himself. There was no telling what they’d put him through. Though he looked even more muscular than before, lines creased his face, evidence of his suffering. Whatever he’d gone through had caused him great physical and mental anguish.

The door clicked open. Ethan froze.

Rosemount sauntered in, his smug expression alerting Ethan that the man was satisfied with the way things were going. Did that mean he’d gotten to Shea? How the hell could he have done that without LCR knowing? Gabe had sworn he would protect her.

His body practically vibrating with excitement, Rosemount clapped his hands and bounced on his feet like a kid who’d just gotten his dream bike. “This has been the best day ever.”

Ethan glared at the piece of shit before him. He kept his voice soft and deliberate, wanting the man to understand the seriousness of his threat. “You’re going down, Rosemount. Very soon. Don’t doubt that for an instant.”

Ugly brown eyes flaring with fear, Rosemount pulled a gun from his jacket and swung it up toward Ethan’s face. “I can kill you, right here, right now. You think you’re so big, so powerful. Well, look who’s got all the power now. Too bad your muscles didn’t extend to your brain. Once more I’ve proven my theory: superior intelligence wins over brawn every time.”

As if he hadn’t spoken, Ethan let his eyes roam up and down Rosemount’s body as he mused, “And you’re a scrawny little creature, not much bigger than the maggot you resemble. The killing will be easy for me. Your pain will be immense. Your bones will crack like dry, dead wood. Puny little ribs will puncture your shriveled pea-sized heart. I’ll make sure you stay alive until every single fucking bone in your weasel-sized soft little body is snapped.”

Fire-red color shot up Rosemount’s face. Holding the gun with two hands, he stalked over and pointed it up toward the center of Ethan’s head. “I could just—”

A fist pounded on the door.

Rosemount brought the gun down and gathered his composure with a shaky breath. His mouth trembled and stretched into odd contortions. “You almost ruined it for me.” He crossed the room and called to someone outside the door. “Bring her in.”

Everything within Ethan went still and stiff with dread. One of Rosemount’s goons pushed Shea into the room. His heart sank. The beautiful face that had only recently regained the vibrancy and life of the old Shea had disappeared. Emerald eyes, blank and empty, stared through him as if she saw nothing. Just as they had all those months ago.

“Shea,” Ethan groaned.

Her face remained impassive, with no indication that she heard him.

“Shea, look at me, please.”

Rosemount’s evil gurgle of laughter bounced against the concrete walls. “I’m afraid Shea’s no longer with us, Mr. Bishop. My kitten has been returned to me … thanks to you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Simple. I sent her a picture of you. She sacrificed herself to save you. Isn’t that romantic?” He clasped his hands over his heart and sighed. “But I saved the best for last.”

He turned to one of the men who’d brought Shea in. “Spread the plastic under him and several feet from the wall. I want nothing of him remaining when we throw his corpse out.”

Their faces almost as expressionless as Shea’s, the two men unfolded a thick square of plastic. Placing it at Ethan’s feet, they pulled at the plastic until it covered half the room.

Rosemount grabbed Shea’s hand and wrapped her fingers around the handle of a knife. “He can’t be fixed, my dear, so do the honors, will you. Slice his gut open, just below his navel. I want his death to be slow. While he’s bleeding, he can watch us get reacquainted. If you please me, I’ll pickle his heart for you and put it in a jar.”

Shea nodded. Knife in hand, she took slow, deliberate steps toward Ethan.

“Dammit. Don’t do this. Wake up. Shea!” Ethan struggled against his bonds. Dying didn’t terrify him as much as the knowledge that if Shea ever realized what she’d done, she would never recover.

A few feet in front of him, she stopped and stared. Was there anything of Shea inside her? “Shea, please, baby, wake up. Cole’s alive. We can get out of here. Everything will be fine. Just. Wake. Up!”

Was there a tiny flicker of expression? Ethan’s heart stopped. Had he seen a spark of life in her eyes or was it his wishful imagination?

“Go on,” Rosemount urged behind her, “get it over with.”

Taking several steps closer, she raised her arm, the knife grasped securely in her slender hand. Ethan looked into her face. If this was it … if he were to die, then Shea’s beautiful face was the last image he wanted in his mind.

“Go on. Do it!” Rosemount shouted.

The knife glinted as her hand twisted to reposition it for the kill.

“I love you, Shea.”

Her head tilted slightly. Beautiful lips curved up in a smile. She winked. The knife slashed down, slicing his bonds.

He was free!

A shrill scream, like an enraged hog, split the air. Shea whirled around as two men rushed toward her. She waited … waited. At the last second, she pivoted left. One man stumbled past her. The other stopped short and swiped a meaty fist at her face. Shea twisted, whirled, and kicked. Thankful for the wedge-heeled shoes she’d discovered earlier, she smacked the side of her foot into his jaw, hard, cracking it. His expression blank, he thudded to the floor.

A roar came from behind her. Shea turned halfway. The other man was back on his feet. Eyes glinting with unholy coldness, he ran toward her. Legs slightly bent, she prepared for his attack. A strong breeze of air rushed by as Ethan passed, throwing himself at the man. His fist slammed into the side of the man’s head, then his gut. Assured that Ethan was healthy and more than capable of taking care of himself, Shea twisted around. Another man came through the door and ran toward her. Pivoting left, she side-kicked his head, her foot connecting with his nose. A satisfying crunch and then blood spurted. He fell facedown onto the plastic covering.

Panting slightly, she turned to see Ethan retrieving a gun from one of the unconscious men. “Where’s Rosemount?”

Ethan grinned. “Ran out of here like a little girl.”

“Hey, girls are tough, too.”

He pulled her close for a hard hug. “Tell me about it.”

Shea savored his arms for a second and looked up into his beloved battered face. “Were you serious? Cole’s alive?”

“Drugged, but definitely alive.”

“We’d better get out there then. There’s no telling what Rosemount will do.”

While Shea grabbed a gun from one of the fallen men, Ethan went to the largest of them and, with quick efficiency, pulled the man’s pants off and slid into them. “Let’s go.”

Shea opened the door to a dimly lit, long, narrow hallway. Guns at the ready, they headed toward a door at the end. Running beside Ethan, she explained, “Rosemount called me. He sent a picture of you. Gabe followed me, but I don’t know where he is. He probably wasn’t able to get on board.”

Ethan nodded. “I was unconscious when they brought me here. Do you know where we are?”

“Not really. Once I got on the boat, they put me below deck. We traveled about forty-five minutes from Key West. I know it’s an island, but this is the only house I saw.”

“Any idea how many men are here?”

“There were four with me on the boat.”

Ethan grunted. “I had five, but three of them are back there on the floor.”

“Rosemount’s such a chicken, we’d better be prepared for an army.”

In unspoken agreement, they slowed as they approached the single door on the left.

Ethan’s eyes examined her. “How did you avoid getting the drug? I would’ve thought that’d be Rosemount’s first priority.”

“It was.”

“What? Then how … ?”

“The drug Dr. Norton’s people came up with … I had several vials. I took a double dose in the hope that it would counteract what Rosemount gave me. It worked.”

“Dammit, Shea, that could’ve killed you.”

Dismissing the vile headache and nausea she’d fought during the first half hour of overdosing, she shrugged and flashed him a cocky grin. “Saved your ass.”

He returned her grin with one of his own. “You’re right.”