The Big Guns
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Ever since Recovery had lost its government funding and disbanded as a quasi-official agency, it operated even deeper undercover. When Rod Lehman had disappeared—the man who’d handpicked the Recovery members and set the group’s mission—Luke had stepped up to serve as de facto leader.
A serious injury to his shoulder made him a possible vulnerability to his fellow agents in the field. Not that he regretted the move that took away partial use of his arm since it happened while saving his wife, Claire, the love of his life and the person who now bankrolled the Recovery Project.
But the change in financing meant no more fancy downtown Washington, D.C., offices with the fake cover of an antiques salvage operation. No more formal law-enforcement assistance. No more protection if they stepped too close to the line. That was all long gone. Now they had a nondescript beige warehouse by the southwest waterfront. It didn’t look like much but the technology inside rivaled that of any government intelligence agency thanks to Adam’s technical expertise.
Being in command, taking the lead but often staying behind when the bullets started flying, let Luke play a major role without his unwanted disability causing a problem for his team. It also allowed him to focus and make sure the group’s original mission never changed. They specialized in finding missing people, those who were taken against their will and those who disappeared on purpose. Locating Rod, now presumed dead, was their main job and a constant source of frustration. They were experts, could find almost anyone, and they couldn’t find this one man who meant so much.
Since they’d just come off a series of cases uncovering corruption in the Witness Security Program— WitSec—that left several of the program participants dead in a cash-for-information scheme by the very officials charged with protecting them, the Recovery agents were all exhausted. They were supposed to be taking a short break to regroup and figure out what role Trevor Walters, the very rich, very connected and very dirty owner of Orion Industries, played in the WitSec murders. And if he had a partner. Which meant Adam and Zach shouldn’t be handling an operation, and certainly shouldn’t being doing so without Luke’s involvement.
The only reason Luke knew to get there this morning was his emergency alarm went off when the building’s tracking devices started humming. That meant either Adam was working instead of sleeping with his new girlfriend Maddie in the loft above the team’s workspace or someone had broken in. Either way, Luke had to move. He left his house in the capable hands of fellow team member Caleb Mattern, who was also in charge of watching over Claire and Caleb’s new wife, Avery. They were two women determined to help even if it meant danger, which made protecting them an even bigger challenge. But Caleb was up to the task.
Skipping his usual morning coffee and a few extra hours in bed with his pregnant wife made Luke more than a little frustrated. Things would only get worse in a few minutes when the caffeine headache kicked in.
“I’ll ask again. This obviously isn’t a drill since I didn’t schedule one, so what is Zach doing?” This time Luke loomed behind Adam, making sure he couldn’t move his chair without slamming into either the desk in front of him or Luke behind him.
“You sure you want to know?”
“Details.”
When Adam tried to spin around this time, Luke stepped back. Adam’s lack of eye contact told Luke most of what he needed to know.
“Someone grabbed Trevor’s assistant,” Adam said.
“Sela Andrews?”
“That’s the one.”
“Where is she now?”
“With Zach.”
Luke blew out a long breath. “Okay, and where is he?”
Adam glanced over his shoulder at the monitor. “Western Maryland. He hasn’t checked in since he left the car to get her, but his watch is on. I can hear everything.”
“It’s bad?”
“It’s not good, but Zach has it under control.” Adam cleared his throat. “For now.”
“Get out there. I’ll take care of the communications on this end and watch over Maddie.” When Adam didn’t move, Luke motioned for him to get up.
“I might not get there in time,” Adam said.
“Go. Use back roads. Borrow a helicopter if you have to. Move in fast and keep talking so I know where you are.”
Adam went to the weapons cabinet and typed in the security code. He loaded up with three guns, a knife and a bag of small explosives and headed for the door. He turned back right as the metal closure to the attached garage slid open. “Hey, Luke?”
Luke didn’t look up from the monitors and their focus on the darkness around Zach’s car. “Yeah?”
“Sorry we hid this one from you.”
Luke understood. The drive to rescue was ingrained in the men he fought beside. So was the need to find Rod and have an answer, whatever it was.
Other than Rod, the only person known to have information on the WitSec scam—the side job Rod was working on when he disappeared—was Trevor Walters. The one person close to Trevor was Sela. That made her a priority.
Luke nodded. “Later Zach can give us all an explanation of why he was close enough to Sela to watch her get kidnapped.”
“About that—”
“Get the woman out alive and figure out who tried to snatch her and why. We’ll handle the rest once she’s safe.”
“Thanks.”
“Just get there.” Luke made the statement to the silent room, but he knew Adam understood. One second too late and Zach would be a dead man.
Chapter Three
Sela raced into the dense woods off to the right of the cabin, wishing the sun would just rise already and shed some light on her path. Her thin heels dug into mud, her ankles twisting with each step. She ran blind, having no idea of direction or what she would do if she managed to reach anywhere else.
The humid breeze pressed against her face, stealing her last breath. She gasped, her throat grabbing for air as the smell of pine filled her head. Through watery eyes she glanced back at the dilapidated cabin.
Zach Bachman. She had a thick file on him sitting on the corner of her desk. She had one for every member of the Recovery Project. Trevor watched every move they made. He never explained why, but he did make it clear he respected the team’s resources. That didn’t mean he trusted them, and she followed his lead.
Sela didn’t understand the benefit of keeping tabs on Zach and his fellow agents, but she did what she was told. She owed Trevor that much and now it paid off. She could identify one of the men fighting over her. She just hoped she lived long enough to turn Zach’s name over to the police. Let him explain what he was doing with Johnnie. So long as she was safe, she didn’t care.
But stray thoughts kept hitting her even as she made her exit. Having Zach show up tonight made her wonder if he was one of the good guys or if he was with them. She didn’t even know who “them” was or why they wanted her, but she wasn’t stupid. Her employer, Orion Industries, specialized in threat management. They provided intelligence and paramilitary personnel to foreign governments and international corporations. Working for the owner made her a target.
Those awful rumors about her being more than an employee only made things worse. She hadn’t understood that until she got hit in the head and kidnapped.
She couldn’t afford to stick around now and try to put the pieces together. She certainly couldn’t be sure Zach would win this round. At six-foot-something, he had the advantage over the guy Johnnie. The sleek muscles peeking out under Zach’s black T-shirt also tilted the fight in his direction, but she wasn’t taking the chance that his broad chest and lethal reputation guaranteed a win. And she most definitely couldn’t be sure if he did win, he wouldn’t harm her. No, there were too many risks for her to trust anyone in that cabin.
When her ankle twisted, she reached out to catch her balance and scraped her palm against rough bark. Half hiding, half leaning, she pressed her back against a tree and tried to get her bearings. She needed to find her internal compass. Figure out which way was north, or south, or any other direction that led out of there.
A sharp smack echoed through the woods as the cabin door slammed open. A dark figure filled the entrance, but the light behind him plunged his face into shadows.
She didn’t wait for another sign. Her brain flashed a message to her legs to move. She ran toward the dark lump in the distance, hoping it was a car or anything she could hide in. Twigs snagged her already ruined stockings and branches scraped against her forearms as she tried to protect her face.
She ignored everything around her—all the sounds of shifting and moving coming from the dark woods—except the path beneath her feet. She absolutely had to stay on her feet.
As soon as the thought entered her mind her right foot slid out from under her. Her upper body went into free fall. She put out her arms to lessen the impact and landed on all fours on the hard ground. Her kneecap suffered the brunt of the blow.
She heard crunching and harsh breathing behind her and looked up in time to see the branches behind her shift to the side.
“Sela, don’t move!” The harsh whisper echoed around her.
Zach.
She couldn’t see him, but she sensed him. Heard him. Short brown hair and a lean body that proved he had not gone soft since his days in the military. He’d found her.
She tried to climb to her feet, but he grabbed her around the waist and lifted her up as if she weighed little more than a kitchen towel. She kicked out her legs and fought him anyway.
“Stop,” he ordered.
That was never going to happen. The fear pumping through her had her keyed up and ready for battle. She called him every name she could think of.
He coughed when she landed a heel in his shin. “I have parents.”
She stilled. “What?”
“They’re likely sitting on a sofa in Pennsylvania.”
“I don’t—”
“So that particular nickname you just called me doesn’t apply.”
“You’re joking? Now?” Did he think it would calm her down? Because it did and the realization made her furious.
“Do you have a better strategy?” he asked.
“Yeah, we get out of here before Johnnie finds us.” Hope skipped through her. “Unless you killed him.”
“First, keep your voice down.” Zach’s grip loosened but not enough for her to slip away. “Second, he’s very much alive. Bleeding and dumb as a stick, but alive.”
For some reason, that struck her as the wrong answer. “Why?”
Zach pressed a finger against his lips. “Quiet.”
She batted away his hand. “Answer me. Why didn’t you just kill him and be done with it?”
“Bloodthirsty little thing, aren’t you?”
“I have no idea why you showed up when you did, but I’ve got to get out of here.” She lowered her voice when Zach scowled. “You can either help me or not, but I’m going.”
When she started squirming again, he clamped her feet between his legs and trapped her arms by her sides. “You’re going to hurt yourself.”
“I’m going to hurt you.” She clenched her teeth together and strained her neck. She tried to lift her arms but his iron hold settled around her again.
“Probably, but then you won’t have any way out of here. Now, stop.” Zach whispered his harsh command against her ear.
She froze this time. No movement at all.
“Are we leaving?”
“I’m not sure yet.”
Wrong answer. “When will you be?”
“I’m still deciding the best way to proceed, but I can think of better places to spend an evening than with that guy.” Zach’s voice softened, but his grip sure didn’t.
“What are you talking about?”
“In case you didn’t notice, the creature in that cabin wants you dead or, at the very least, plans to take you to someone who does.”
“Do you know who?”
“No. I made up the boss thing to get entrance and buy some time.”
So he wasn’t one of them. She relaxed a bit, until she felt a tug on her skirt. When Zach bent over and tunneled a hand up her hemline, she froze. “If you’re not one of the bad guys, what are you doing?”
“Just a sec.” He kept working, his fingers pulling and twisting. “I have to take care of it now.”
“What is the ‘it’ exactly?” The staccato sound of her breathing filled her ears. She hovered right on the edge of panic. If she could keep her wits, she might be able to land a kick on the side of his head. But she had to stop shaking first.
“This.”
She thought he pointed to her thigh. “You’ve seen a woman’s legs before.”
“Once or twice.” His hand kept moving then he looked up. “Why are you humming?”
The buzzing sound in her ears stopped. “Am I?”
“You did that in the garage, too. Must be a nervous habit.”
Rage swelled in her brain. “You were there and didn’t stop that creature from taking me?”
“There was no time.”
Fury flooded through her, wiping out the shakes and every other feeling except anger. “You could have shot him.”
“I like the way you think.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“Stay still.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a knife. With a click, a blade appeared.
So he was a bad guy, after all.
No way would she be a victim. Not anymore.
She smacked her fists against his shoulders. “I won’t let you hurt me.”
“Not one for the obvious, are you?” Zach kept one arm banded around her waist and his opposite hand held the knife as he ducked his head to fend off her blows.
She punched him harder. “The obvious is you want me dead.”
He grabbed one of her hands. “For the record, I want you very much alive.”
At his words she stopped fighting. “I don’t understand.”
“A branch is caught in your skirt. I’m trying to figure out if it penetrated skin.” He sliced through the hem and held up a sharp stick. “See? Looks like you have a cut but nothing needing stitches.”
“Oh.” She hadn’t even felt it.
All the confusion and pain and terror of the last few hours slammed into her, leaving her bones weary and her mind blank. Men were after her and she didn’t know why. A guy she didn’t trust held her and for some reason his closeness made her feel safe. None of it made sense.
“I was thinking of something more along the lines of ‘Why, thank you, Zach,’ because you know exactly who I am and who I work for, right?” He stood and stared down at her.
“Yes.”
“I’m assuming that’s why you aren’t kicking up an even bigger fuss.”
She let her shoulders slump. “Sort of.”
“Yeah, well, you’re welcome.” He glanced toward the cabin. “Any chance you know Johnnie or who sent him?”
“Of course not.”
“Then I still have to figure out how to get you out of this mess and what’s really happening here.”
She breathed in nice and deep, trying to feed oxygen to her brain. “Call my boss or the police—anyone—and get us help.”
“I’m actually trying to be quiet and not say anything that would accidentally give our location away to Johnnie there. You could take a hint and keep your voice down.” Zach barely made a sound as he spoke.
He put a few inches between them but kept a firm grip on her elbow. The only part of her that didn’t throb in pain.
“Time to go,” he said.
“Where?”
“We’ll figure that out later.” He glanced back at the cabin. “We need to move.”
They took two steps before the sound of gunfire rang through the woods. Air whooshed around her as Zach shoved her behind the nearest tree and covered her body with his.
“Johnnie?” she asked.
Zach’s heated breath grazed her cheek, but his gaze stayed focused on the cabin. “I’d hate to think someone else showed up to the party.”
She pushed against his broad shoulders to get his attention. “What is he shooting at us with?”
Zach frowned at her. “A gun. What do you think?”
She thought about punching him. “Why didn’t you take his weapon?”
Johnnie kept screaming out her name. Every now and then he’d add a threat or switch the words around to be as profane as possible, but the message didn’t change. Johnnie wanted them back.
“I did. But I didn’t think he’d have the brains to hide another weapon in the cabin.” Zach wiped his forehead on his sleeve. “Score one for Johnnie.”
“I thought you were some superspy type.”
“That’s a terrible description and no.” Zach glanced at his watch and clicked a few buttons. “Okay. Change of plans.”
He’d totally lost her. “Which means?”
“We’re going back inside the cabin.”
“Are you kidding?” He put a hand over her mouth as she started to shriek. She mumbled the rest of her question into his palm.
“I almost never kid.”
She shrugged off his hand and tried unsuccessfully to step back but ran right her foot into the tree behind her. “Absolutely not.”
Zach exhaled. “The only way out of here is through Johnnie.”
“You came in a car. We’ll leave in it.” She grabbed Zach’s shirt in an effort to reason with him. Looking into those greenish-blue eyes, she tried to will him to help her.
“We have to know who Johnnie is working for. At the very least, we need to make sure he doesn’t call in reinforcements.”
“You know people.”
“True, and I’ve sent an emergency signal to them. They’re on the way, but I don’t know who Johnnie’s boss is. I only know his name because he was dumb enough to use his own car when he kidnapped you.” Zach hauled her to his side with a gentle tug.
“What does any of that have to do with getting out of here?”
“Right now my biggest worry is the people who will come for you next if we don’t stop Johnnie and get some answers.”
The words sent a new bolt of fear spinning through her. “I’ll go to Trevor.”
“I’m not sure that’s safer.”
“He’s my boss.”
“Maybe, but for now you’re stuck with me.” Zach marched her back to the cabin, balancing her weight against him as her shoes slipped.
She tried to postpone the inevitable but nothing worked. Her so-called rescuer was leading her right back to the beast, dragging her along in big steps and not giving her a choice. A few more feet and he’d hand her off and she’d know for sure just which side Zach was on. And she feared it wasn’t hers.
“Zach, please.”
“Follow my lead.” He gave his order right as he dumped her at the base of the front steps. Right in front of Johnnie.
“You’re a dead man.” The harsh yellow porch light made Johnnie’s pale face look jaundiced.
Sela couldn’t remember ever seeing a person look that color. Not a live one, anyway.
Zach treated Johnnie like a speck of dirt. “Get out of my way.”
“No way, man,” Johnnie snarled, his eyes glazed over and his ripped and bloody clothing hung from his body. “I don’t know who you are, but she stays with me.”
“Who paid you to start thinking, Johnnie?”
Sela closed her eyes as her head began to spin. This couldn’t be happening. The scene reminded her of two rabid dogs fighting over a piece of meat. First time in her life she saw herself as nothing more than food.
“The boss needs some information from her. That means I gotta hurt her bad.”
“If you touch me, I’ll kill you,” she said.
“I got the gun, so I make the rules.” Johnnie thumped the barrel against his chest as he sneered at Zach. “What do you say to that?”
Zach nodded, the movement slow and deliberate. “Okay, Johnnie.”
“Stop talking like we know each other. We don’t.”
“Right. You make the rules.”
A new wave of panic washed over her. “Zach, what are you—”
“It will be fine.” His grip on her arm loosened.
“Don’t you dare give me over to this guy. I will hunt you down and…” Something. She’d do something nasty and violent if Zach abandoned her now.
Her hands clutched at his shirt. She’d pull out every one of his chest hairs and then rip through him if she had to in order to make her point. When Zach stared at her with cold eyes, a bolt of fear crashed through her. Then she heard it. A whisper so low she thought she slipped into a dream. “Trust me.”
Trust me? At Zach’s toneless murmur she wanted to run, to scream for help. To do all the things that would seal her death.
Before she could argue, he set her to the side, steadying her with one hand. He made one last command, this one in a much stronger and louder voice for Johnnie to hear. “Stay. I’m not chasing you around the woods again, woman.”
“That’s right,” Johnnie said.
Zach turned back to Johnnie. “Okay, my arms are free. No weapons. No bullets. You want to see who’s in charge of the lady now?”
Johnnie nodded in Zach’s general direction. “Where’s your gun and the one you took from me? I want that back.”
“Lost mine and yours is still in the cabin.”
She hoped that wasn’t true. In fact, she counted on it being a lie from Zach meant to throw the attacker off. Johnnie was just dumb enough and out of it enough to believe him.
Johnnie’s gaze clouded. “No way, man.”
Or not. She inhaled, hoping Zach had another plan since this one seemed doomed to fail.
“If I had a weapon it would be aimed at you right now,” Zach said.
“I’ve seen you fight with fists. That was bad enough.” Johnnie looked from Zach to her and back again. Sweat formed in the dirty creases on his forehead as desperation sparked behind his cold eyes.
“Thought you wanted to battle man-to-man,” Zach said.
“I have a better idea.” Johnnie pointed the gun at her. “Come here.”
“Never going to happen.” The hours of being bait ended now. She was done being a pawn in this screwed-up game.
Johnnie spit a wad of blood onto the porch. “Now, lady.”
Zach held out an arm and blocked her path. “Stay right where you are.”
“You don’t want to fight me,” Johnnie said.
Zach held up his hands in surrender. “You’re right. So, why don’t you put the gun down?”
If she hadn’t been watching Zach so closely she might not have seen the sharp blade peek out from the edge of his shirtsleeve.
“No deal,” Johnnie said.
“I’m going to put my hands down.”
“Fine, man, but I ain’t dropping the gun.”
“Well, hell, just don’t shoot me by accident.” The hard edge left Zach’s voice, as if he were joking with a friend instead of staring down the barrel of a gun with an idiot attached to the other end. “I don’t know any woman worth being shot for, do you?”
Johnnie hesitated, then let out a cackling laugh. Within seconds the obscene sound turned to a wheezing cough. “Only good for one thing.”
Zach frowned at the other man. “You okay?”
“Let’s hope not,” she mumbled under her breath.
Johnnie tried to suck in air. “I think you broke my rib.”
Zach whistled through clenched teeth. “Man, I start fighting and something takes over.”
“You’re insane when you throw punches.”
“You have no idea.” Zach lowered his hands at the same time Johnnie eased his grip on the gun.
As soon as Johnnie pointed the barrel toward the cracked wooden porch, Zach brought his arm down in an arc and sent the knife slicing through the air. The blade shot in a direct line and lodged with a sickening thud in Johnnie’s shoulder.
He squealed as his gun fell to the hard floor and his body slammed into the porch post. In a flurry of profanity, he slipped to the ground. A crimson stain seeped from around the new wound.
Sela wanted to run, but her legs wouldn’t move. Too much of her energy went to keep from screaming. She didn’t have anything left in that second for an escape.
Zach kicked Johnnie’s gun, sending it sliding off the edge of the porch. In the next breath, Zach snatched his supposedly lost gun from behind his back and aimed it at Johnnie. “Don’t you ever threaten her again.”
Johnnie heaved and coughed. “Whatcha want with her?”
“That’s my business.”