Silver Shield Security Box Set Page 15

  He had his affairs, but he covered his tracks too well. Too bad he had lost his long time faithful mistress.

  He frowned and sat up. Thinking about Diane brought back the rage he felt when he had watched the footage from the surveillance camera. He had really liked her and he’d had great plans for her. Then she had stabbed him in the back. Just like that, without a second thought.

  James placed his hands on the table and stared into space. If there was one thing he could not, would not tolerate, it was betrayal. He demanded utmost loyalty from those around him and those who failed to understand that met with an accident. Like that damned journalist, Newman.

  The fool had been happy to go along with James’ request, reporting only what James asked him to report, until he discovered that his own damn son had fallen victim. Then he’d fancied himself some avenging angel. Much like that idiot daughter of his. She would be taught that no one messed around with James Hugh Coleman, Senator of the United States, and got away with it.

  He’d wondered briefly why Diane had done what she did, then he’d dismissed the thought. Everyone had a price after all. Which was why he trusted no one.

  He looked around the large room. The walls were painted in ghost white with deep ochre accents. His desk alone would have taken up more than half of a mid-sized office. He glanced at the conference table, also in another shade of white, and the sitting areas made up of a white sofa and armchairs. Everything was impeccable and screamed class.

  It gave James intense pleasure to see that there was practically nothing left of his upbringing. Not that he denied where he came from. Being the son of a construction worker and a school teacher was very useful in helping him win elections. The voters saw him as someone like them. Never mind that his rare visits to his parents were more like PR exercises. It looked good when the pictures were leaked to the press.

  James was still congratulating himself on how good his life was when there was a brief tap on the door. One of his security details walked in. He was one of those he had sent to take care of Diane.

  “Yes?” James was bored and was already mentally arranging a visit to Sara, Diane’s delectable replacement. Just thinking of the stuff that she could do with her mouth had him getting hard.

  “Sir, there’s a problem.” He waited for the senator to give him his full attention. “We did not find the thumb drive.”

  It took a moment for the news to sink in, lost as he was by the wonders of Sara’s mouth. When it did, he let out a string of curses. “What!”

  “It wasn’t on her.”

  “Her office?”

  “Not there either.”

  “No.” This was not happening. James’ mind was working rapidly. The information that she copied could really cause damage. Hell, it could destroy him.

  James Hugh Coleman had his eyes on the highest seat of the country and he was not going to let anything or anyone stand in his way. He fixed his piercing eyes on the man standing in front of him.

  “I don’t care how, find it,” he snapped. “Find out exactly where she went when she left here. Who she saw. Anything.”

  After the man left, James paced in front of his desk. He had his entire life planned out. Sure, he took risks, but each one was carefully calculated. Everyone around him was vetted. Because she was so close to him, he made Diane end contact with anyone who could have been an unwitting threat to him. How could this have happened?

  In a fit of rage, he sent everything on his table crashing to the floor, except the computer. As he stood there glaring at the mess on his floor, he vowed that nothing would stand in his way. Certainly not a missing thumb drive.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  13 hours, 28 minutes after Sierra’s disappearance

  “She’s not with the Abrantes,” Kinsella said.

  They were back at the command center; this time the entire team was in place. Drew had come back for this. Everyone was surprised to see him, but in typical Drew fashion, he had waved away all the questions.

  Captain Kinsella was also with them in the command center, so was Ryan.

  “How do you know this?” Emily asked.

  The cop hesitated briefly. “I have my man in there. He’s undercover. The only people who know this are myself and my direct superior.”

  They understood completely. The Abrantes Dukes had infiltrated practically every sector, including the police service. They had their people everywhere and it was not always easy knowing who to trust.

  “There are only two places she can be.”

  The attention focused on Ace. He had been turning this in his mind since they discovered Sierra gone. From the way the Abrantes operated, they did not take prisoners. They dealt with their problems in a decisive and final manner. If it had been the Abrantes who had her, they would have found her corpse, if not in the van itself, then somewhere in the woods.

  But they had seen no sign of Sierra or her captors, even though they had searched every single road in that area. They had searched until the sun came up, but it was almost as though she’d vanished.

  Ace had his own theory about who had kidnapped Sierra, and he suspected that it was not the work of the criminal organization.

  “What are you thinking, Ace?” Emily’s gaze on him was intent.

  “Two words: Senator Coleman.”

  It made perfect sense and looking at each of the faces around the table, they agreed with him.

  “Where would he keep her?” Rusty asked.

  “Where he can keep a close watch on her,” Drew answered thoughtfully.

  Rusty tapped his tablet. “He has three residences with one in Chicago.”

  “Where is he now?” Emily wanted to know.

  “He’s in D.C. … Oh wait. He just left for Chicago.”

  Kinsella looked at Rusty. “How do you know that?”

  “I hacked into the FAA database. His pilot filed a flight plan a couple of hours ago.”

  Kinsella raised his hands. “I didn’t hear that.”

  That meant Sierra was in Chicago. Ace met Ryan’s gaze and he saw the same awareness in the other man’s eyes.

  “Give me the exact coordinates of the house.”

  Rusty reeled them off. Both Ace and Ryan got up at the same time.

  “Hold it right there!” Ace paused. Emily got to her feet. “Just where the hell do you two think you’re going?”

  Was it not fucking obvious? “To get Sierra.”

  “You can’t just barge in there.”

  He did not care. “I’m going to get her.” Just in case he was not clear the first time.

  “We are going to plan this carefully and you are going to comply.”

  “Not going to happen.”

  Emily stared him down. “You’re not authorized.”

  Was she fucking kidding him? He had to wait till she authorized him to go get Sierra? Usually, Ace had the highest respect for Emily’s decision. She was a damn good strategist, but this time she was mistaken.

  “Look, Emily—” But she cut him off.

  “You are under orders, sailor. I repeat, you are not authorized.”

  Ace gazed into the steel in her eyes and knew he’d lost the battle. He ran his hand through his head and swore softly.

  “I’m not under your orders.”

  They all turned to see Ryan standing by the door.

  Emily folded her hands and leveled a look at him. “Go ahead then, commando. Get her killed while you’re at it.”

  Ryan did not flinch, but Ace saw the slightest hesitation in his eyes and that was all Emily needed to go in for the kill.

  “And you do not use our equipment without authorization either.”

  Ryan glared at her.

  Ace knew the other man was also defeated. He probably had a handgun and maybe a blade and he could complete the mission with just those weapons, but not without intel. And that was the crux.

  After a while, he looked away and swore.

  “Now, I need to know we are on the
same page.” Emily turned her attention to him. “Ace?”

  Ace knew that he needed to trust Emily. It was not easy, but he admitted that she was right. They couldn’t just storm the senator’s home like that. So he nodded. “Yeah.”

  “Good.” She turned to Ryan. “And you? Are you with us?”

  Ryan did not say anything for some moments, then his lips quirked in a brief smile. “You have me by the balls.”

  Emily smiled as well. “As long as you remember that.” She turned to Rusty. “We need to know if Sierra is there. What can you get for us?”

  “I’ll see if I can get into their security system. Might be able to get some footage.”

  “How long will that take?”

  “Forty-five, maybe less.”

  Emily nodded. “Can you get a warrant for the senator’s house?” she asked Kinsella.

  “Well, it’s not going to be easy, but I can pull some strings.” He stood up. “I’ll see myself out.”

  After he left, Emily turned to Ace. “In my office. Now.”

  He watched her stride out of the command center and wondered briefly if he would still have a job when she was done with him. The fact was that he needed the job. It grounded him and helped him to feel less lost.

  “Better not keep her waiting,” Drew said, giving him a pat as he walked past.

  Taking a deep breath, Ace went to find out what his fate was. He found Emily pacing in her office, which was unusual because Emily was always in control.

  “What the hell just happened back there?” She rounded on him as soon as he stepped through the threshold.

  “Emily…” He did not know what to say to her.

  “You were having a pissing match with me in front of all the others. If you had a problem, why the hell could you not talk to me about it?”

  Emily was angry, but Ace could see that she was also hurt. And she was right. He should not have challenged her like that.

  “I’m sorry, Emily.”

  “I’m your boss, but I’m also your damn friend.” She marched up to him, her eyes flashing. She pointed to the door. “What happened there? That’s okay when it’s just us. But never go at me like that again in the presence of strangers. We maintain order and show a united front at all times. Do I make myself clear?”

  Damn. The woman was formidable. Then again, she had made a fearsome drill sergeant.

  “I’m sorry, Emily,” he said again, truly meaning it.

  She gave him a level stare then turned abruptly and walked to her table. Sitting lightly on the edge, she regarded him without saying a word. After a few minutes of silence, Ace began to get nervous.

  “Are you messing with me?” he asked her.

  She raised an eyebrow. “What do you think?”

  “You’re scary,” he said with a sigh.

  “Good. Remember that.” She walked back to where he was standing. “What’s the matter, Ace?” Her voice had gentled.

  “I’m worried.”

  “About Sierra?”

  “Yeah.”

  “You really care about her, don’t you?”

  He gave a half laugh. “I’m crazy about her, Em. If I can save her…”

  He could not go on, but he knew Emily understood what he was trying to say. He had lost a lot of people in his life and most of them, he had been unable to save. Out on the warfront, his buddies had been killed and he was still there, alive. That sucked. He did not want to be dead, but he kept replaying the scene, wondering if there had been a chance to save them and he’d missed it. If he missed the chance to save Sierra somehow and she ended up dead, he would never be able to forgive himself.

  “Don’t worry, we’ll get her back. I promise.” She reached out and gave him a hug.

  Ace hugged her back, drawing strength from her. Emily always kept her promises. But he was afraid that this was one promise she might be unable to keep.

  Chapter Thirty

  Sierra sat on the chair, stripped to just her underwear. Her hands and feet were bound and black duct tape was placed over her mouth. She had no idea how long she’d been there. Was it just a few hours or had a couple of days passed? She wasn’t sure which was worse: being tied up in the same position for so long, or the bone chilling cold that was seeping into her very soul.

  She looked around the room. It was a small room with very high windows so she could not see outside. The room was stark, with nothing but the chair she was sitting on. The walls were painted a muddy brown all through. If she never saw that color again for the rest of her life, it would be too soon. She flexed her hand, trying to see if she could get loose and gasped at the sharp pain.

  Why do I keep doing this? She had tried it so many times without any results. Instead the ropes were eating into her flesh and the pain was excruciating. At least it drove out the cold, somewhat.

  She still didn’t know where she was or who had kidnapped her, although she had a pretty good idea.

  Are they going to kill me?

  Sierra had never felt so helpless in her life. Just sitting there, unable to move or do anything, she’d had a lot of time to think. It hurt that there was practically nobody to mourn her. Apart from Alicia, no one would really miss her. The thought brought tears to her eyes, but she forced them back. She was not going to cry. She hadn’t cried when that goon had pointed the gun to her face inside the van and then forced her to walk several miles through the woods. She hadn’t cried when they’d heard the howling of a pack of coyotes. Scared out of her wits, yes.

  Something the man had said suddenly came back to mind. He’d mentioned something about her bodyguard. What was it he’d said? Not even that bodyguard you hired can save you from us.

  But there was something else. Yes. He had said that if she screamed the others would take out her bodyguard and the other dude that had come for her.

  Suddenly the implication of what he’d said hit her. Ace had come for her. Ace had come for her?

  Sierra couldn’t believe it. Even after she had told him that she wanted nothing to do with him, he’d still gone after her. She felt a warm glow light her body and for a second, she forgot her surroundings. Nobody had ever come after her before. Everyone just assumed that she was capable and could handle things on her own. She’d never had anyone fight her battles for her. Silver Shield was no longer on her payroll, they did not owe her anything. So if Ace was there, it was because he wanted to be there.

  There and then she made up her mind that she was getting out of this alive. She had no idea what her captors had planned, but whatever it was, she would survive it because she knew now that Ace would come for her. He would do his damndest to rescue her, so she had to stay alive.

  Just then she heard the lock turn and the door opened.

  **

  Broken Arrow, Oklahoma

  Janey Moore stared at the package that had come via overnight delivery. She turned it over in her hands and saw that it had a return address for Arlington, Virginia, even though it had been posted out of D.C. She gazed at the writing and paused. She knew that writing. She placed a hand over her mouth in shocked disbelief.

  She called to her assistant, “Riley, I’ll be in the back.”

  In the tiny office of the small flower shop she ran, Janey placed the package on the table and sat staring at it. It was not exactly a large parcel, just the size of a palm really. But she knew that whatever was in there would be life changing or at the very least, life disrupting.

  Even without opening it, she knew who had sent the package. What would make her sister send her something by overnight delivery? She knew she should open it and find out, but a strange premonition had her hesitating. She reached out for it and drew her hand back.

  This is silly, Janey. It was just a package, she needed to open it already.

  But she knew that it was not just a package. She had not heard from Diane in more than five years, after she, Janey, decided that she could no longer shoulder the burden of keeping their relationship alive. For years,
she had always been the one calling, writing, sending emails… She had finally had enough and had stopped, expecting her big sister to get in touch. Except, she never did. Even now, thinking about it, the gnawing pain was almost unbearable. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then let it out slowly.

  She had no idea what had gone wrong with Diane. They were not just sisters, they had also been best friends and even though her sister had left home to go to college, they had still remained really close. They were always on the phone, texting and chatting. Things had started to change when she got that job at Senator Coleman’s office. Her usually bubbly, outgoing sister had begun to retreat into herself. The last time Diane had come home, Janey had been deeply troubled by what she had seen. Diane had become quiet, too quiet. She always seemed lost in some faraway place. Mom had cornered Janey to ask if Diane was on drugs. It had been painful to watch.

  And now she’s sending a package out of the blue? Could she be in trouble?

  That thought galvanized her into action. She reached for the package and tore it open. A small black thumb drive fell out as well as a ring. Janey recognized the ring immediately. It was a simple jade ring set in beaten silver, but it was so beautiful that it had caught Janey’s eyes the first time she’d seen it.

  She remembered trying to get it off Diane the last time they’d been together, during Liam’s wedding. Diane had merely given her a funny look, then she had said it was a lover’s gift and so she couldn’t give it away. Janey smiled, remembering that day. It was almost ten years ago, if not more, and it was also the last time she’d seen Diane.

  “I probably should go visit,” she murmured absentmindedly.

  She spread the parcel open and discovered that there was a note tucked into the folds. She opened it with trembling fingers. Why was she trembling? And read: