Chapter Eighteen
Unable to budge the ropes a single inch, Gracie heaved out a soft sigh. The two cousins had yet to leave the shabby and worn-down motel room, and had barely spoken to each other since the phone call to Nick an hour previous. Jesse had chortled when he’d told Cassandra that Nick was following instructions and had left Shiloh Springs in the dust, headed for Austin.
That had been an hour ago, at least she was figuring it was pretty close to that amount of time from the television. It was nothing but inane chatter, with a local San Antonio news channel doing feel-good stories. Gracie had rarely watched it when she lived here, too busy with school and work and studying.
“Ready for part two?” Jesse pointed to his laptop. “Vincent’s about thirty minutes away. You need to call and give him the rest of the instructions along with directions, and then we need to get out of this dump.”
Cassandra smiled and placed her hands on his shoulders, looking past him at the laptop balanced on the edge of the mattress. She’d been uncharacteristically quiet ever since forcing Gracie to talk with Nick, and she hated that she was leading him into a trap. Because it was.
“Time to go, people. Chop, chop. The faster we hit the road, the faster we can deal with Nick and go home. Just think, Gracie, in a few more hours, you’ll be back at your boring little store, selling overpriced coffee drinks, all safe and sound. Unless Jeremy Brewster gets parole and then—well, then you’re on your own.” A look of pure malevolence crossed Cassandra’s face when she mentioned Jeremy’s name, chilling Gracie to the bone.
“Why are you doing this? I can understand family loyalty, but murder? Nick’s a good man.”
Cassandra pulled a long knife from Jesse’s backpack, the wicked edge gleaming in the lamplight, and Gracie’s throat went dry. She flashed the knife back and forth, watching it catch the light.
“If it was strictly up to me, Nick Vincent could walk away. I couldn’t care less. Unfortunately, Uncle Simon is calling the shots, and in his twisted take on life, Nick is the villain of the story. Got poor misunderstood Uncle Simon sent to prison, but not before there was an unfortunate series of events that led to their tussle and Nick managing to come out on top—as usual. Uncle Simon, on the other hand, ended up in a wheelchair.”
“I’m sorry.”
She shrugged. “Can’t say Uncle didn’t deserve it. He had been breaking the law. Unfortunately, he also controlled all the family’s purse strings, and the government seized all his assets. Lucky for us, Uncle is a right wizard with computers, and he was able to stash a big chunk of money where the government can’t find it. We,” she gestured between herself and her cousin, “will get enough to set us up for life once we take care of things. Step one was helping him escape from prison. And as of an hour ago, that’s done. Step two is finding and eliminating Nick Vincent. I have to admit, he’s been a hard man to take out.”
“Which one of you shot Antonio Boudreau?”
“That would be me.” Jesse walked over to stand behind his cousin, grabbed the knife out of her hand, and disappeared behind her chair. Seconds later, she felt the ropes fall off her wrists. He walked around to face her, and slid the knife through the bonds holding her ankles tied. “I’m an excellent shot. Missing him was a fluke; he moved right as I squeezed the trigger, and I hit the other guy by mistake. Trust me, I won’t miss again.”
“I’m the one who slit his tires. Childish, I know, but it made me feel better.”
Gracie stood and almost went down as pins and needles pain sensation stabbed her hands and feet. She needed to keep them talking, find out why Nick had been the target of their attempts on his life. Maybe figure out a way to keep them from finishing their twisted objective. She didn’t want to imagine a world without him in it.
“And the car bomb?”
“A…miscalculation. Jesse found someone who could build one, and it seemed like a way to keep our hands clean and take Nick out from a distance. Except the stupid thing detonated with the remote starter.” Cassandra laughed, the sound bitter and hollow. “Nick’s like a cat with nine lives, but he’s about to use his last one.”
“So this is all about money?”
“Lots and lots of money. Enough we can’t spend it all in one lifetime.” Jesse gripped her by the shoulders and spun her around to face him, his fingers digging into her shoulders hard enough Gracie knew she’d carry the marks. “I’m sick of working a lousy nine to five dead-end job. Uncle Simon had trusts set up for each of us, and the Aussie government stole it all away. How was that fair?”
“I don’t know,” Gracie spoke softly, “but Nick wasn’t the one who took your money.”
“Good old Nick cut off the pipeline, sweetie. When he arrested Uncle Simon, he effectively dammed up all the channels of money flowing into the coffers, and we were left with nothing. Nothing!”
“Enough. Gotta go or Nick will get there before us.” Jesse slid the laptop into his backpack and slung it over one shoulder, then turned to latch onto Gracie’s arm. She tried yanking it out of his grasp, but for a smaller man, he was surprisingly strong. Cassandra took a final look through the motel room, and they all exited the room, and piled into a different SUV than the one they’d arrived in. This one was all white with a beige interior and had that new car smell, like it hadn’t been used before. The SUV they’d arrived in was parked several spaces down and they completely ignored it.
Gracie was pushed into the back seat again, and Cassandra followed closely behind her, and Gracie’s eyes widened when she noted the gun back in Cassandra’s hand. There went any attempt to escape, at least for the moment. She wasn’t giving up. If there was any chance, she’d take it. She knew San Antonio, could find her way through the back alleys and side streets and hide away if she got the chance.
Jesse peeled out of the parking lot, headed toward downtown. That seemed like a strange choice, but it was a good one for her, because she’d be closer to Alvarez. Closer to the courthouse and the district attorney. Farther away from her parents, who lived in the suburbs, but at the moment, keeping them out of the line of fire was preferable than drawing Cassandra and Jesse’s attention to them. She’d protect them at all costs. They’d given their all for her, she could do no less.
Cassandra pulled out the phone, the same one she’d had Gracie call Nick on earlier. Knowing he was on his way, walking into what could only be a trap scared her. On the other hand, knowing he was coming warmed her inside because she knew he’d rescue her. Save her.
“Hello, Nick. Are you following instructions?”
“You know I am. I’m doing exactly what you ordered because you have Gracie. I’m about twenty minutes from downtown San Antonio.”
“Lovely. Head toward the Riverwalk. There’s parking around Bonham and Third. Park there and stay in your car. Do not under any circumstances use your phone or leave the car. You’ll get further instructions once you arrive.”
“Let me talk to Gracie.”
Cassandra looked over at Gracie before answering. “I don’t think so. Not until you’ve arrived and we can make sure you aren’t going to do anything foolish. You’re not going to do anything foolish are you, Nick?”
“You’re holding Gracie hostage to assure my good behavior. I’m not about to give you an excuse to hurt her.”
“Like you hurt Uncle Simon?” There was a wealth of bitterness behind Cassandra’s words, the vehemence with how she spat them out shocking. From the way she’d talked earlier, she hadn’t really cared about her uncle, except for him losing all his money. Which was the real story?
“Simon Norville was a thief who stole hundreds of millions of dollars from corporations who hired him to install security and proprietary software to prevent the exact crimes he was guilty of committing. There was more than enough evidence to convict him ten times over. I was simply one of the agents responsible for the arrest.”
Nick spoke with conviction and Gracie believed him. He was one of the good guys, working to uphold the law, even if it was halfway around the world. It didn’t matter where he lived, he was working to make the world a better place, and she respected him for that. And believed every word he told Cassandra was true.
“Granted, Uncle Simon’s hands were dirty. But the companies he stole from weren’t exactly squeaky clean. Dig a little, and you’ll find a cesspool of corruption and political tampering the likes of which the world only dreams of finding out about. But Australian Intelligence didn’t want that information coming out, did they, Nick? They needed to put a cork in the pipeline before all the dirty little scandals could see the light of day.”
“I wouldn’t know about that, Cassandra. I investigated the missing funds. Your uncle hurt a lot of people, draining retirement accounts, wiping out savings. All to line his own pockets. That doesn’t make him a good man. It makes him a thief.”
“He might have been a thief, but you ruined him! Crippled him for life.” Cassandra stopped talking, and Gracie watched as she drew a deep breathing, regaining her cold fa?ade. “Did you think you could walk away and he wouldn’t want to exact a price for your actions? He’s waited years to see you fail, yet it’s like you’ve got a lucky charm in your pocket. No matter what’s been thrown at you, you pop right back up. Why won’t you die already?”
Gracie’s heart squeezed in her chest at Cassandra’s words. She knew they’d been trying to hurt Nick, and all their attempts failed. They weren’t going to quit, weren’t going to be satisfied until Nick died. Their uncle had set them on a path from which there was no coming back, and the hardest part was knowing they might succeed because they were using her as the bait to pull him in.
Looking out the tinted windows, she tried to figure out where they were. San Antonio’s Riverwalk was famous for its boat ride and restaurants and shops. The world-famous Alamo wasn’t far from there, only a few blocks and an easy walk. But judging from the houses they were bypassing, they were miles away from the crowds and the sights. Were they planning on running Nick around in circles, chasing a ghost? Or had they set a further trap for him someplace else?
“Just following directions, Nick. Gracie is counting on you riding to her rescue. You don’t want to disappoint her.”
Stabbing a manicured finger against the disconnect button, Cassandra banged her head against the headrest several times, cursing in frustration. Gracie had the feeling it wouldn’t take much to push her over the edge.
“Ready to head to the rendezvous?” Jesse’s gaze met Gracie’s in the rearview mirror and she read what looked like regret in their depths, and knew they had no intention of letting her go once Nick showed up. She’d suspected as much, but there’d been a glimmer of hope. The only way she’d walk away from the cousins was to escape.
But how?
“You heard?”
Nick spoke into the burner phone on the seat beside him. Shiloh had tossed it to him as he was leaving the sheriff’s station, with orders to call the number on the screen and leave it on speaker so they could not only listen in, but keep Nick posted about anything they found out while he drove to the rendezvous.
He wanted to call Calvin, find out the status on Simon Norville. It bothered him, the timing of his escape and the kidnapping of Gracie. Cassandra and Jesse had to have been watching him almost twenty-four hours a day in order to know about his connection with Gracie. Connection—ha! He’d finally admitted to himself that he was head over heels, deeply and completely in love with the feisty woman. Finding her now, falling hard and fast, made him vulnerable. He prayed Gracie didn’t pay the price for his past choices.
“We heard. I called Joaquim Alvarez and he’s headed to the parking lot where you’re supposed to meet the cousins. He’s your backup until we get there.” Rafe was following close behind Nick, and Shiloh manned the GPS tracker they’d attached to Nick’s rental. He almost laughed at the thought there were two trackers monitoring him. Made him feel all warm and fuzzy.
But all he could think about was Gracie. How scared she must be at the mercy of people she didn’t know. People who’d dragged her from her own shop at gunpoint, and it was his fault. If she hadn’t met him, hadn’t become important to him, she’d be living her life without the danger of being involved with him.
“You know Gracie’s okay.” Douglas had refused to stay behind in Shiloh Springs. He’d climbed into the back of Rafe’s car amidst protests, simply crossing his arms over his chest. Which made three people besides him, and now Joaquim Alvarez, who were going to save Gracie. There was no try in this equation, there was no fail. They were going to save her. “I can’t see this meeting, hostage exchange, whatever we’re calling it to take place in a public parking lot, do you?”
“Not a chance. Too many potential witnesses. I’ll probably have to go on foot to another location.”
“Listen to me, Nick. You are not, I repeat not, to leave the parking area until we’ve arrived. Don’t even think about heading out without backup. Am I understood?” Antonio had been the fourth party to pile into Rafe’s car, claiming he had a right to be there. He overrode Nick’s objection. “Besides, Rafe’s outside his jurisdiction, he can’t arrest anybody. But I’m FBI, I can.”
“Antonio, they are tracking the car. They’ll know exactly when I arrive. I doubt they’re going to let me sit around and wait for you to back me up. When I get the instructions, I’m following them. I’ll have to leave this burner behind, because they’ll suspect something if I’m carrying two phones.”
“We’re not far behind you, but I don’t want to get too close. If they’ve been surveilling you, which we suspect, they’ll know what we all look like.” Trust Shiloh to state the obvious, Nick thought.
“Gracie has to come first. As long as we’re all on the same page.”
“Nick, getting her back is our top priority, you know that. But you’re just as important. Have you heard anything from your boss about Norville, whether they’ve caught him?”
“I’m going to call him again, Rafe. Hang on.”
Nick knew he was taking a chance calling Grant now, but he still had at least ten or fifteen minutes before he reached his destination and he doubted Cassandra would call back before they knew he’d arrived. Quickly dialing, he counted the rings, his heartbeat speeding up. If he didn’t answer, that meant Grant was still on the hunt. They couldn’t let Norville get out of the hospital. If he managed to make it off RMH property, chances were one hundred percent that he’d disappear.
“Nick,” gave Calvin’s voice after the fifth ring, shuddering and out of breath. He heard the older man gasping for air. “Nick, we got him!”
“How? Where?”
“He was on the roof. His niece, Alexandra Bishop, helped him get out of the room and into the elevator to the roof before the hospital lockdown.” Calvin sucked in another deep breath, huffing and puffing. “She rolled his specialized power standing wheelchair right past everybody. The nurses’ station, the security guard, everybody. You know the one, the custom-built wheelchair with all the state-of-the-art bells and whistles. Even has the ability to climb up and down stairs. How nobody saw that monstrosity and didn’t say a word is beyond me. But she got him strapped in and to the roof.”
Nick rubbed a hand over his face, and glanced at the clock on the dashboard. Less than ten minutes to his destination. He needed to pay attention because he wasn’t familiar with the Riverwalk area of San Antonio, having never been there before.
“How’d she think she was getting him off the roof?”
“Here’s the beauty of the plan. Norville wasn’t really in a coma. Alexandra was allowed in to see him once every hour and she brought a small laptop into his room. He was able to contact an air ambulance company to schedule a pickup, using the hospital’s connectivity and made it look like the hospital had set up the transfer. All they needed was for the helicopter to show up and then force it to land wherever Alexandra told them to. It was a brilliant plan actually. Would probably have worked too, if the winds hadn’t kicked up. Hospital was contacted by the copter pilot, telling them they’d be delayed because of high winds. When the hospital couldn’t find evidence of a scheduled patient transfer, they alerted security. When Norville’s escape was discovered, somebody finally put two and two together, and we got to the roof. The rest as they say is history. This one’s in the books.”
Nick heard soft voices coming from the other phone. He’d forgotten they could hear everything Calvin said. Oh, well, saved him from having to repeat it all again.
“They’re in custody?”
“Yeah. Norville has been transported back to the prison, and he’ll be heading straight back to solitary. Alexandra has been taken into custody and is headed for booking. Let me tell you, she is one ice cold piece of work, she is.”
“Good job, boss. I’ve got to go. I’ll let you know what happens with the cousins as soon as I can.”
“Wait, Nick. How’s your girl, what’s her name, Gracie?”
“Can’t talk, gotta go.” Nick disconnected quickly. He didn’t have time to tell Calvin everything that was happening now; he was almost at the meeting point. Now that Norville and Alexandra were in custody, he needed to get to Gracie. Hopefully Cassandra and Jesse hadn’t heard the news yet that their uncle was back in custody. He wanted to keep that little nugget of information until he could use it to its best advantage.
“That’s good news about Norville. Now let’s get the rest of this thing wrapped up and bring Gracie home.”
“I will, Douglas. I will.”