Chapter 17 Search for Suzie
Search for Suzie
“Niall, a boy delivered this note for you,” Angus said, bursting into his study with barely a pause to knock. Most unAnguslike.
“Thanks, Angus,” Niall said.
Liam and Scott sat across his desk, their expressions holding tension.
Niall ripped open the envelope and read the message before handing it over to the shifters. “Is that Suzie’s handwriting?”
“Yes,” Scott said.
“Will they hurt her?” Liam demanded. “I take it they want your miracle honey.”
“That’s my assumption, but I could give them any old honey and label it with my new packaging. As to hurting her—I don’t know.”
“Will you bring in the cops?” Liam asked. “That’s what we’d do at home, but they’re part of the shifter circle even though our cops are human.”
Niall considered this and nodded. “I think I should contact them and make this official.”
Scott and Liam radiated approval, and Niall appreciated their support.
“We’ll keep searching while you deal with the cops,” Liam said. “They must have Suzie somewhere local. That’s what I’d do.”
“Yeah,” Scott said. “It would make sense that they’d want to monitor you and control the situation.”
Glad to have these two men to run ideas, Niall reached for the phone.
Their presence helped to keep the edge off his panic.
He didn’t care about his honey—not when Suzie was in danger.
He could develop a new product, and that told him everything.
Suzie was the critical part of this equation. Her safety.
“Do you have any idea who would snatch her?” Scott asked.
“Yeah, normally people kidnap to obtain money. Honey seems a strange substitute,” Liam said.
“Not if you knew how much money went into research and development. The health benefits surpass anything I’ve witnessed, and no additives is the most astonishing aspect.”
“Your first suspects are your brothers, right?” Liam asked.
Niall inclined his head.
“Would they want your honey?” Liam asked. “You had a private investigator on them. What made you do that?”
Liam was right. “My brothers wouldn’t understand how valuable my honey was unless someone told them. I haven’t seen my family since leaving Canada. I made no secret of my whereabouts, so locating me wouldn’t have been difficult.”
Scott leaned forward, his gaze intent. “Did you ask them why they came? Why they sought you out?”
“They wanted money.”
“Did they say why?” Liam asked.
“No, but the private investigator uncovered gambling debts. My brothers are enthusiastic but unsuccessful gamblers. They borrowed from a loan shark, and their loan is overdue. I assume they thought I’d give them money because they’re family.”
“Right, that makes more sense than the honey. Who else would want your honey? Have you had any other security problems?” Scott asked.
“Yes,” Niall said, thinking they were right. The honey part didn’t fit neatly. “A break-in occurred at our development premises where we mix and blend different honey. Only my foreman and I work here. Few people are aware of the location. It isn’t even on the map.”
“Security cameras?” Liam asked.
“Someone disabled them. We caught flashes of masked men before they sprayed the cameras with black paint. Nothing else.”
“What did they take?” Liam asked.
“Some honey, but they didn’t get the right one because I always mislabel it and pack it away with pots of common clover or heather honey. We place a special code on the label that no one else would notice during a quick search.”
“What about your notes and things like that?” Scott asked.
“We assume they copied the production notes but nothing else to help them. I lock my private notes away or hide them. Sometimes, I’ll take them home to work in my office there.”
“Who would benefit from stealing your formula or stopping you from selling your honey?” Liam asked. “That is where we should look.”
“I can compile a list of competitors,” Niall said.
“You should do that,” Scott said. “Give it to the cops but mention your brothers and their debts. If the cops can catch your brothers, they might deport them.”
Niall grinned, and it wasn’t a nice, friendly one. He liked the idea of getting his brothers tossed from his adopted country perhaps a little too much. His bear chuffed in agreement.
“There is another possibility,” Scott said, his forehead scrunched in concentration. “What if your brothers were working for one of your competitors? You refused to hand over money, and this might be retaliation. They get their money, plus they get the satisfaction of taking your woman.”
The phone rang.
“Yes,” Niall spoke tersely.
“We’ve located your brothers again,” the private investigator said. “They haven’t moved locations.”
“Thank you,” Niall said. “Can you hold for a couple of secs?” He glanced at Liam and Scott. “Want to join me in searching for Suzie?”
“Hell, yeah,” Scott said.
Niall nodded and returned to his call. “Where are they? I’ll be there in around ten to fifteen minutes.”
The investigator gave Niall directions.
“Right,” Niall said. “Let’s see if Suzie is with them. If she isn’t, I’ll contact the cops.”
Scott checked his watch. “If it isn’t your brothers, we’ll still have time to meet with the kidnappers.”
The two men hopped into a vehicle with Niall and set off to meet the investigator. Judging by the PI’s directions, his brothers were staying on the village outskirts, but he didn’t recognize the street.
He pulled up behind a black SUV and cut the engine. “The investigator suggested we meet here and go on foot,” Niall said.
“Does he know we’re shifters?” Scott asked.
“No.”
“How about you keep him distracted?” Liam asked. “We’ll approach in feline form because we know Suzie’s scent.”
“My brothers will smell you coming,” Niall warned.
“They haven’t noticed the humans keeping watch on them,” Scott pointed out.
Niall brightened because this was true. “They’re probably arrogant enough to think no one can touch them.”
“The shifter scents might be a disadvantage, so we should take care,” Liam said. “Let’s locate Suzie first, then strategize her retrieval.”
Scott flashed a smile. “That makes Suzie sound like a parcel. She won’t like that.”
Niall imagined his Suzie and grinned, his heart lightening at the thought. Scott was right. She would draw herself up and become indignant and stroppy. Her sexy green eyes would flash salvos of wrath. A chuckle emerged.
Scott slapped him over the back. “Braver man than me.”
“We’d better go,” Liam said.
“I’ll distract the investigator.” Niall climbed out of his vehicle and jogged to the driver’s side of the SUV. Suzie had to be all right. If his brothers had hurt her…
The investigator wound down his window, his white cotton shirt crisp despite the heat and his brown eyes bright with intelligence. “It’s the old white bungalow on the left—almost falling down.”
“Thanks,” Niall said.
“What do you intend to do?” the investigator asked. His shrewd brown eyes were the only exceptional thing about him, the rest of him ordinary and unassuming, which made him an excellent detective. He was a man who never panicked.
“I’ll check to see if they have my girlfriend, and if they do, they’ll regret it.
” Niall might’ve been the runt during his early life, but the old man who’d taken him in had helped to build his confidence.
He’d honed his strength and trained in different self-defense methods until it became second nature.
He didn’t fear his brothers. Now, they plain irritated him, and especially their assumption that they still had the upper hand. He’d disabuse them of that soon enough.
“Who are those men with you?” the investigator inquired.
“They’re from New Zealand. Suzie’s friends,” Niall said, amused. Yep, the man missed nothing.
“Do you need help?”
“Thanks, but no. We’ll be fine. Also, my brothers need to take care of Suzie. She’s no wilting flower.”
The older man grinned. “They’re the best sort. My missus is the same. When you find one like that, it’s best to keep them. I’ll put my bill in the mail.”
“Thank you,” Niall said.
The SUV started, and the investigator pulled away with a wave.
Niall waited until the engine’s rumble faded before he strode toward the property.
His original plan was to sneak around and peer through windows, but he decided against it.
He lengthened his stride and bounded up the three steps leading to the front door.
The wood had cracked and—from its looks—warped from water damage.
Red paint peeled from the surface, sending a shower of flecks flying when he pounded his fist on the door.
Niall stopped and waited, cocking his head to better listen for sounds within.
Nothing. His chest grew tight, and an ache sprang to life in his jaw.
Niall forced himself to relax his mouth and take a breath.
When he faced his brothers, he required calmness to help Suzie.
Yep, time to quash his anger, his frustration.
This was not the moment to revert to the bullied young child.
Niall hammered on the door again, and footsteps became audible when he paused. Except they were behind him. He whirled around, his eyes widening. “You!” He took half a step before a blow to the head felled him.