Chapter 10
CHAPTER TEN
An hour later . . .
“I’m ready.” Lena entered the private space Rafe called the “situation room”. Shifting her duffle bag’s wide nylon strap a bit higher on her shoulder, she walked over to where the sexy Brit stood.
At the table, he zipped his black bag shut and turned to her. “Grab an extra weapon.” He gestured to the open safe across the room. “Or two.” Rafe gave a slight shrug of his broad shoulders.
The bag’s strap slid down her arm as she set it on the floor and headed that way. Lena stopped directly in front of the impressive selection, giving herself a moment to appreciate its beauty.
“Is it wrong that I’m a little turned on right now?”
The man’s deep chuckle made her heart swell.
“You haven’t changed a bit.” Rafe’s accent was as enticing as ever. “Still making jokes at a time when most people would be out of their minds with worry.”
“Worrying’s a waste of time.” She reached for one of the mounted pistols.
Holding the Glock 43, she considered its smaller, single-stack design. The 9mm weapon would be easier to conceal than her Glock 19.
Don’t mind if I do.
Lena checked the chamber and mag before sliding the gun into the back waistband of her pants. Next, she reached for an EK50 Short Clip KA-BAR, securing the five-inch fixed blade and its sheath to her hip.
Grabbing two boxes of Federal Premium HT bullets from a small shelf within the safe, she went back to where she’d left her bag and placed the ammo inside. She pulled the zipper shut, hoisted the strap over her shoulder once more, and stood.
“Okay, now, I’m ready.” Lena looked up at Rafe.
Rafe turned his ruggedly handsome face her way. “You have everything you need?” He glanced at her bag. “Could be a while before we come back.”
With another professional killer on their tails, it was only a matter of time. The brazen jerk would eventually make a real move. Something more than a warning shot or stalkerish picture.
Next time he shoots, it’ll be to kill.
It’s why Rafe devised the next step in their plan.
They’d come back here, making it seem as if they were settling in for the night.
In reality, they would be leaving again soon.
By the time their would-be killer figured out they weren’t home, she and Rafe would be safe and secure at a different location.
Where that was, Lena still had no idea. But she trusted him, so it didn’t really matter.
“I’m good.” She smacked her palm against her slung bag. “Extra clothes, basic toiletries, a few snacks, plenty of weapons, and—”
“A partridge in a pear tree?”
Her lips curved. “Something like that. What about you? You ready to roll?”
“Almost.” Rafe left his bag on the table and turned his attention to the computers lining the wall.
When he started typing, she dropped her bag onto the table and went to where he stood. “What are you doing?”
“Making sure this place is ready in case our guy drops by for a visit.”
“What kind of explosives did you use?”
Hands she’d fantasized about too often froze as his incredulous stare turned her way.
“After all the work I’ve put into my home, you think I would wire it to blow?”
“Why not?” Lena blinked. “Isn’t that S.O.P. for people in our line of work?”
“Remind me not to drop by your house unannounced,” Rafe muttered with a grin.
Lena laughed, motioning to the computer in front of him. “Okay, fine. If not explosives, then what?”
“I had West do a remote work-up of my security system a few days ago. He worked his magic, uploaded a few new upgrades, and I’m just making sure they’re all activated and working properly before we leave.”
“What kind of upgrades?”
“For one, if the alarm goes off, every person on the team will get an alert.”
“And West?”
“Him, too.” Rafe nodded. “That way, if the team is, for whatever reason, otherwise occupied, at least someone on the outside will know there’s trouble.”
“That’s smart.” Lena couldn’t help but be impressed. “Maybe when this blows over, I’ll have Derek take a look at my system, too.”
A few taps later, he stood tall once again. “There. Now we can go.”
She grabbed her bag and headed for the door. “So where is this secret exit you mentioned earlier? Is there a hidden door under the stairs? Or, ooh! I know. I bet there’s a trap door built into the floor.”
“Actually, it’s through here.”
Her feet stopped mid-stride inches from the room’s threshold. When she looked back, shock pulled her jaw to the floor.
Rafe had opened one of the other safes, but rather than a cache of weapons being inside, the back panel had been cut out to frame a giant hole in the basement wall. Lena could hardly believe her eyes when she realized it led to what appeared to be—
“Is that . . . a tunnel?”
The dip of his salt-and-peppered chin confirmed her eyes hadn’t betrayed her. “I told you the exit was well-hidden.”
Lena snorted. “I’ll say.”
He’d filled her in on his plan during the drive back here from Lionel James’ apartment. The steps were simple enough. Get to his place, pack a bag, and then leave again through a secret exit.
Only—
“I didn’t realize ‘well-hidden’ was code for you built a freaking tunnel that ran from your basement wall.”
She went to where he stood, her eyes locking on the stone-walled corridor leading away from the foundation of Rafe’s home. A few yards farther in, the tunnel became swallowed up by pure darkness.
“Never said I built it.” He motioned for her to go first.
Lena took a cautious step toward the opened safe but stopped short of going inside. “Uh . . . thanks.” She warily studied the shadowed entrance. “But I think it’s best if you lead.”
A low chuckle reverberated from deep within his sculpted chest. “Wait here.”
He walked across the room to enter a code into the keypad near the door. After hearing the loud snick of the locks and seeing the light on the keypad turn red, Rafe returned to where she was waiting.
“Come on.” He stepped fully into the crudely arched passageway.
His spicy male scent filled her nostrils as he moved past, pulling a small flashlight from his pocket. He turned it on before shutting the safe’s heavy door behind him. Lena looked away from him, toward the darkness of the unknown.
“Yeah, this isn’t creepy at all,” she quipped dryly.
Rafe’s huff of laughter filled the noticeably cooler air. Like before, he entered a code, the locks engaged, and the tiny green light turned red. One by one, a seemingly endless line of industrial-looking lights lining the center of the tunnel’s ceiling suddenly came to life.
“Follow me.”
With a set of belated steps, she hurriedly caught up with his broad stride.
Several yards in, Lena found herself entranced by the stone walls and ceiling.
She fell back, moving closer to study their structure with a more detailed eye.
Beneath the overhead light, Lena realized the walls and curved ceiling weren’t constructed of stone at all.
It’s brick.
Crude, imperfect, handcrafted bricks. Each painstakingly laid. One by one . . . by one.
Curiosity had her reaching out. Lena’s fingertips brushed lightly across the warped face of one of the blocks. It was smoother than expected, and a bit wavy in its formation.
When she traced a slightly angled, vertical indentation like many others that were easily seen, she realized the marking was an imprint made by someone else’s finger. Left by the hands of the bricks’ creators.
Past American history lectures rushed back to the forefront of her mind. She thought about where they were and why a tunnel like this would have been needed.
Lena recalled reading a book years ago that mentioned how slaves sometimes had to make the very bricks needed to build their own quarters. Those same bricks were also used in the construction of other homes, military forts, and various other structures throughout the South.
Oh, wow.
Emotion left her chest tight as she traced the felt mark once again. “This was part of the Underground Railroad.”
Rafe’s footfalls ceased when he realized she’d stopped. “Did you say something?”
“Was this tunnel part of the Underground Railroad?” Her hand fell away.
“As a matter of fact, it was.”
Wow. “That’s . . . I can’t believe you were able to purchase such a historic property.
” She looked back at him. “The city could have turned this place into an amazing museum. You know, to showcase the strength and determination of not only those who were forced into captivity, but also the people who risked their own freedom and lives to help others escape.”
“The city probably would have made it into a museum . . . if they knew the tunnel was here.”
Lena walked over to where he was waiting. “They don’t?”
“No one does, aside from myself and Alice. And now, you, of course.” He glanced around. “This tunnel isn’t on any schematic or proprietary record I could find. Even Alice came up empty.”
“I’m not surprised you had your genius daughter dig into the property’s history. She probably would have been my first call, too.”
His focus returned to her, his lips curving into a slow smile, and just like that, Lena was thinking about their kiss. The fleeting moment of passion had been permanently seared into her brain, but she had to wonder—
Has he thought about it, too?
Rafe’s entrancing stare held hers a beat longer, but then he blinked, and the spell was instantly broken.
“I stumbled upon the tunnel during the remodel of the situation room.” His attention returned to the underground path.
Lena followed his lead. “But you just said no one except you and Alice knows this is here. Wouldn’t the construction crew—”
“There was no crew.” He spared her a sideways glance. “Not for that room, anyway.”
“Are you saying you did all the remodeling yourself?”
“For that room, yes.” Rafe shrugged. “Given what it was designed for, I thought it best to keep that portion of the basement private.”
“Smart.”
His dark brows dipped a bit in the center. “You know, you keep saying that as if you’re surprised by my ability to make intelligent decisions.”