She's Positive

“Stay behind me,” he warned Danielle.

And by God she’d better listen. She should have stayed in the van and let him talk to Boyd. Not that it likely would have helped. Boyd seemed hell-bent on getting them out of that vehicle and into the open. But he might have been able to convince Boyd to allow anyone other than Danielle to walk into what could essentially be a trap.

“We didn’t have a choice,” she whispered.

Colin cursed because he knew she was right.

He lifted his left hand, a show of surrender, but he kept the cell phone in his right. If necessary, he could get to his backup weapon that he’d moved from his ankle holster to the back waist of his pants, but he might not be able to get to it in time if Boyd starting shooting. If that happened, Danielle and Luke could be hurt. Or worse.

“Boyd, I’m asking you man-to-man to send Dr. Connolly back,” Colin insisted. Danielle and he slowed when they approached the high metal gates. “If you do, it’ll prove to me that you want to work toward a peaceful resolution. You don’t need two more hostages.”

“Well, you won’t exactly be hostages. You’ll just be staying in the guesthouse. Nearby but not underfoot. I’ve got a camera fixed on the place, and I’ll know if you try to leave or if you try to bring in any badges.”

The explanation sounded almost logical, but Colin immediately found the weak spot in Boyd’s argument. “But why risk having us so close at all? You can obviously watch us in the van, too.”

But Colin knew the answer before Boyd even spoke.

“True. I can see the van, if I stand outside. I’d prefer not to do that. Plus, you wouldn’t be in rifle range there, now would you? I want you close by. Because soon, very soon, I’ll have some…chores for you two to do.”

Since the phone was on speaker, Danielle obviously heard that, and her sharp intake of breath caused her lips to tremble. Colin didn’t want to think of what a hit man would consider chores.

The only thing good in all of it was that perhaps this meant there was no mole. Boyd seemed to have found a way around the blind spot by going outside. That still didn’t explain how the man had figured out who Danielle was. She wasn’t exactly a public figure. But maybe Boyd had access to profiler or facial recognition software. If so, he could have spotted her when she arrived and gotten a picture of her to feed through the software. Colin hoped that’s what had happened.

Because the alternative made him damn uneasy.

“This is a waste of time,” Colin tried again. “Just give us your demands, and we can end all of this.”

“Demands can wait,” Boyd said, causing Colin to mentally curse. Colin couldn’t offer up all of Griffin’s bankroll, not on his first try of negotiations anyway, but he needed to get something on the table that he could use to bargain with. Once Danielle and he had some cover, he could do that.

“Luke?” Danielle said, aiming her voice toward the phone. “You doing okay? Are you still thinking about the hippos?”

“No.”

Oh, man. That little voice had a way of cutting to the bone.

“Well, you should think about them,” Danielle continued. “Because Agent Forester and I are here. We’re on the grounds. We’re walking through the gate right now. And we’ll do whatever Mr. Perkins tells us so that he won’t be upset. How does that sound?”

“Okay, I guess. Is Agent For-ster good or bad?”

“Oh, he’s very good. His job is to help little boys like you, and he’s the best.” Her mouth was still trembling, but she said that with a boatload of confidence.

Confidence that Colin wasn’t sure he deserved. He should have gotten her out of this before it even started. He thought of the other woman, the one he hadn’t been able to save. That couldn’t happen again.

It. Couldn’t. Happen.

“Stop right there,” Boyd ordered, his voice slicing through the silence.

They were still a good twenty feet from the guesthouse. Literally with no place to hide or duck for shelter if Boyd started shooting.

“Take off your jackets,” Boyd demanded.

Colin had anticipated the demand, but Danielle obviously hadn’t. She gasped and mumbled something. Colin wasn’t happy with the demand, either, but Boyd wasn’t stupid. This was a weapons check. Colin only hoped it didn’t extend to the gun he was trying to keep hidden.

Danielle slowly unbuttoned her jacket. Like her lips, her hands were shaking now. That only made him curse more because she shouldn’t have to be going through this.

Colin dropped his jacket onto the ground in front of him. Danielle did the same. And she stared down at it, completely dodging his gaze.

“Now take off your shirts,” Boyd added.

This time, Danielle’s gasp was a little louder.

“Rethink that,” Colin insisted, aware it wasn’t his negotiator’s voice. But hey, he wasn’t speaking as an agent now, but a man defending his wife’s, well, whatever. Honor and modesty seemed insignificant compared to the hostage situation, but he didn’t want Danielle to have to strip down in front of a hit man.

Colin unbuttoned his shirt, popping a few buttons in the process, and he threw the garment onto the ground with his jacket.

“Prove to me that neither of you are armed,” Boyd countered.

Colin’s hands went to his hips. “I don’t mind taking off all my clothes, but think of your young hostage.”

“He’s not watching. Strip!”

Hell. Boyd wasn’t going to give them any breaks. “Keep your clothes on,” he mumbled to Danielle, and he passed her the phone so his hands would be free. He needed to do some maneuvering.

Colin pulled off his boots, socks and empty ankle holster, and he put them on the growing heap of clothes. Next came the pants. This was the tricky part. He slipped the snub-nosed .38 into the back pocket and eased off his pants so the gun would stay in place. His wedding ring was in that pocket, too, and he didn’t want either falling out. He dropped the pants onto the heap, as well.

Leaving him to stand there in his boxers.

With Danielle staring at him.

Since he’d been married to her for over three years, she’d obviously seen him buck naked, but for some reason, it felt damn uncomfortable. And even more uncomfortable that she’d probably have to strip, as well.

“Satisfied?” Colin said, turning toward the phone that Danielle still held.

“Yeah. Now, it’s the doc’s turn.”

“She doesn’t even know how to fire a gun,” Colin protested. To diffuse this, he needed to go on the offensive.

Too bad Danielle wasn’t going to like it.

But it was better than a strip-down.

Colin stepped slightly away from her so that he was still partly shielding her, and he met her concerned gaze. Concerned being a massive understatement.

“I’m going to lift your top a little just so he can see you’re not carrying concealed.”

She blinked. “Turn around. I’ll do it.”

Colin blinked, too. “Jeez. I’ve seen everything you have beneath those clothes.”

“Turn around,” she insisted. And she dodged his gaze again.

Great. Was she hiding some kind of body hickey that she’d received from a lover she’d adamantly denied having. He’d gotten a God, no from her when he’d suggested that she had found someone else. Still, it wasn’t his business anymore.

Even if it felt as if it were.

Danielle didn’t budge until he turned his back. Colin faced the direction where he thought Boyd was still standing, and he heard Danielle’s movements behind him. A moment later, her shirt dropped into her clothes pile. Followed by her shoes.

Then, her skirt.

Which meant she was standing there in her bra and panties. He hoped it wasn’t the skimpy underwear she preferred to wear. The woman certainly had stimulating taste in undergarments. His favorite was a devil-red set, with the bra barely covering her nipples and panties that left nothing to the imagination.

Unlike now.

He was imagining.

And cursing himself.

“No gun,” Danielle announced. “And I’m getting dressed now.”

“Take your things into the guesthouse,” Boyd insisted. “Dress there. I’ll call you after you’ve had time to get settled.”

“Get Luke those video games,” Danielle added, but Boyd had already hung up. She scooped up her clothes and held them in front of her like a shield.

She hurried toward the guesthouse, and even though Colin moved to her side after he gathered up his own clothes, he still caught a glimpse of the underwear.

It was the devil-red set.

Thankfully, the door to the guesthouse was unlocked, and she started to dress the moment they got inside. Not slowly, either. She was breaking some kind of speed record. Colin dressed, too, as he looked around to see what potential security hazards the place might have.

Windows for one thing. Two of them faced the estate, which meant Boyd could use them for surveillance. Colin went to them and shut the plantation-style blinds. He also locked both the front and back doors.

He strapped on the ankle holster and put the gun back inside, and after he put on his pants, he checked out the rest of the guesthouse. There wasn’t much to it. The main area had a sofa, two chairs and a small kitchen off to the right. On the left was a large bedroom suite with a bath. The decor was crisp and clean, the kind of place he would expect for the guests of a multi-millionaire like Griffin Vaughn.

“You think he has the place bugged?” Danielle asked.

“Maybe. But I doubt it.” He took the phone from her and made sure the end call button had been pressed so it would save the battery. Colin didn’t want to think what would happen if they lost use of the cell. The guesthouse had phones, but he couldn’t rely on those since Boyd had so far refused to use any of the estate phones.

“Check and see if we have food and water,” he instructed.

She finished buttoning her blouse but not before he caught a glimpse of her breasts. Yeah. That bra really didn’t hide much.

Danielle went to the kitchenette while Colin searched the place for bugs. Not that an eavesdropping device would be easy to find, but he looked in the obvious places. Under the phones. On the lamp bases. Beneath the coffee table and bed. He was just getting up from the floor of the bedroom when Danielle came in.

“There’s plenty of bottled water and canned goods.”

So, they wouldn’t starve. Of course, that was the least of their worries.

Danielle made a sweeping glance around the room, and her eyes landed on the bed. “Uh, how long do you think we’ll have to be here?”

“Your guess is as good as mine.” But he understood her hesitation about the bed. “If we’re still here tonight, I can take the sofa.”

“Oh. Sure.” She didn’t sound relieved, exactly, but he didn’t know what that tone meant. His ex was certainly acting funny. “Maybe when Boyd calls back with his chore list, he’ll give his demands and you can continue with the negotiations.”

Yeah. And Colin was betting that eventually those demands would include lots and lots of money, especially if Boyd didn’t find those millions he was searching for. Griffin Vaughn was probably already gathering together as much cash as he could manage.

He looked at the way Danielle was gripping the door, and he tipped his head toward the sofa. “Why don’t you sit down? It might be hours before Boyd calls back.”

She didn’t argue, but what she did do was stagger a bit when she turned around. Colin went after and caught up with her before she reached the sofa.

“You okay?” he asked. He turned her toward him so he could study her face.

“Sure,” she said in the same tone and speed as God, no.

And that made Colin suspicious. “You and Callie were talking about your secret.” He knew there’d be fallout from this question, but he rationalized that since they were now a team to save Luke, then he had a right to know her mental and physical state. “Are you taking those fertility drugs again?”

“No.” Yet another quick response. But then, she shook her head. “I’m just a little dizzy, that’s all. I saw some crackers in the cabinet, and I think I’ll have one.”

She stepped away from him and walked across the room. Oh, yes. She was unsteady. But maybe it was just nerves. He hoped so because he knew those fertility drugs were hell on wheels when it came to Danielle’s health. They made her raw and jumpy. She didn’t need either with all the other stress.

She opened the pack of crackers and nibbled on one while she rested her back against the countertop. The silence came. Closing in around them. Making the situation more awkward than it already was. They didn’t dare talk about anything important or anything that would help Boyd because even though Colin had looked the place over, it didn’t mean the hit man couldn’t hear their every word.

Danielle finished off the cracker, had another one and then made her way back to the sofa. Toward him. But she didn’t sit. She stopped only a few inches away, came up on her toes, and put her mouth to his ear.

“Did you manage to keep your gun?” she whispered.

He nodded. Tried not to react to her warm breath and the closeness. He failed and reacted anyway.

Colin switched positions and put his mouth to her ear. “The next step is to negotiate you out of here.”

She shook her head. Probably because she didn’t realize it would send his mouth brushing across her cheek. Like a kiss. She stepped back. Continued to shake her head. “I can help,” she mouthed.

“So you’ve said.” Because their eyes were now locked and they were still very close, he debated whether he should just tell her the truth. Or at least part of it. He went for a partial. “You distract me.”

“What?” she said with a little whispered outrage.

“You still have that red underwear.” And he added a smile to ease the tension between them.

The corner of her mouth lifted, too. Almost a smile. Before she waved it off, as well. “Colin, I can’t.”

He didn’t want that clarified, but he had to wonder—was she talking about sex or something else? Since the best part of their marriage had been sex, he figured he had his answer.

The phone rang, and Colin actually welcomed the intrusion. Especially since it was Boyd. “This is Colin,” he answered.

“All settled in?”

“As much as we can be settled in. Now, it’s time for action, from you. We’ve cooperated with everything you’ve asked. I need your cooperation in return. What will it take to get you to release Luke?”

Boyd hesitated so long that Colin wasn’t sure he’d answer. “I want a helicopter when it comes time for me to leave.”

“A helicopter,” Colin repeated. He went to the other side of the room where there was a desk and wrote that down, hoping there’d be more details. “When and where?”

Again, he hesitated. “Noon tomorrow, I guess.”

“Don’t guess. Let’s nail down a time because I’ve got to run this past my boss.” It was a standard ploy not to give in too quickly. Always leave room for negotiation.

“All right, noon. You can have the pilot land in the open space at the back of the garden. No one else other than the pilot will be in the chopper, understand?”

“I understand.” Though the pilot would have some kind of backup. Colin didn’t know whom or what just yet. That was an issue to be worked out with the FBI office.

“I’m not finished,” Boyd let him know. “I also want fifty million dollars wired to an offshore account in the Caymans.”

“Fifty million.” The same amount that was supposedly hidden somewhere in the estate. Did that mean Boyd was giving up his quest to find it and settling for Vaughn’s money instead?

“When I confirm the money’s been transferred and the helicopter’s here,” Boyd continued, “I’ll tell you where and how you can find the kid.”

“I don’t know if Griffin Vaughn has access to that kind of money,” Colin bargained. Though he probably did. Thankfully, the man was rich and was willing to pay to get his son back. Once they had Luke safely out of there, they could work on apprehending Boyd and retrieving the ransom money.

“Then he’d better find access,” Boyd barked.

“I’ll let him know what you said. But before any funds are transferred, I’ll want proof that Luke is all right.”

“Oh, you’ll get proof. And remember, don’t do anything stupid. Because you might not be in that van, but it doesn’t mean I don’t know exactly what you’re doing. Got that?”

Boyd hung up before Colin could even respond.

Danielle checked her watch. “Will the Vaughns be able to come up with that much money so soon?” she whispered.

“Probably.” Heck, they might even have it ready.

And Boyd would have known that.

So, why the delay? Why not request the helicopter and the money immediately? Maybe because he hadn’t given up his search after all.

Because Colin wanted to save the cell battery, he used the house phone to make the next call. He didn’t have Agent Tom Ryan’s number, but he called the Durango office and had them do the transfer.

Tom answered on the first ring. “What happened?”

“Danielle and I are in the guesthouse, on the grounds. Boyd says he has visual, and who knows—he might even be listening. But we finally got some demands. Fifty million in an offshore account and a helicopter. He wants them by tomorrow at noon.”

Tom made a sound to indicate he was thinking about that. Colin understood that sound. Tom was wondering about the delay, as well. “Talk to Griffin Vaughn and work out the details,” Colin suggested. “See if this is even possible and get back to me.”

“I will. Are you and Danielle safe there?”

Colin glanced around, and his attention landed on Danielle. She looked pale and uneasy. “Yes, we’re safe.” But that was for her benefit. He had no idea if that was even true.

Colin hung up and made a note of the time of the call because when this was all said and done, he’d need to do a thorough report.

Danielle stood, her hand gripping the sofa. “I need to go to the bathroom. I won’t be long.”

“Wait. Let me check the place first.” He’d done a cursory, but if she was going in there, he wanted to be as sure as he could be.

Colin stepped in ahead of her. He looked in the medicine cabinet, the linen closet and around the toilet area. The shower was massive, built for two, and he examined the sprayer head and the knobs. Nothing dangerous there. It all looked clean.

Danielle was still in the doorway, but he didn’t miss it when her grip tightened on the frame. He also didn’t miss that she’d gotten even paler.

“What’s wrong?” And by God, this time he would get an answer.

He walked toward her but only made it one step. Before he heard the sound.

A thump.

Colin stopped. Listened. Danielle listened, too, turning in the direction of the sound. It’d come from the living area, and Colin brushed past her to see if he could find the source.

Another thump.

This one, louder than the first.

Even though it was a risk if Boyd had visual access, Colin drew his gun and positioned himself in front of Danielle.

The third thump was more of a bashing sound.

And that’s when Colin knew.

Someone was breaking in.

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