Chapter 5
5
Sisco's blood boiled with rage, but he hid his fury from the men holding guns behind him and the two precious females he wanted to hold close and protect. His watch had an LSIMT emergency button, but he couldn't risk taking his hand off Lenore and wasn't about to loosen his grip on Evie.
Drawing upon every ounce of training, he composed his face into a blank mask as they ascended the stairs. Bypassing the third-floor door, they made it to the fourth floor. With uncertainty hanging in the air, he gently released Lenore's arm and pressed Evie's cheek against his shoulder, using his free hand to cover her exposed ear.
The tension in the stairwell was palpable. Each step felt like an eternity, every sound amplified in the confined space. Sisco's mind raced as he calculated possible outcomes and strategies. His muscles were taut, ready to spring into action at the slightest provocation.
Lenore's fear radiated off her in waves, but she moved with a determined grace. He admired her strength, even in such a terrifying situation. He tightened his hold on Evie, her small body trembling against his. “It's going to be okay, sweetheart,” he murmured.
Sisco's jaw clenched as he forced himself to remain calm. His goal was to protect Lenore and Evie, no matter the cost. The weight of the responsibility was heavy, but he welcomed it, drawing strength from his determination.
The men behind them barked orders, their voices harsh. “You… woman… open the door and hold it until the big guy and the kid get through. Then you go behind, and we'll follow. Keep your mouths shut and your free hand where we can see it. Remember, you try any heroics, and you're dead.”
Lenore nodded sharply, her hand trembling as she grasped the doorknob and pulled it open. Her eyes darted to Evie before her gaze shot up to Sisco. He maintained his composed exterior, hoping his calm demeanor would bolster her courage. She exhaled softly and then fell in line behind him.
They walked down the hallway, and Sisco looked ahead, spotting a deputy leaning against the last door, his face turned toward the window at the end of the hall. Swallowing his frustration, he willed the deputy to look his way so he could signal about the threat. But the young and obviously inexperienced deputy continued to stare out the window instead of noting the approaching group.
Sisco felt a prod in his back, and the low voice of one of the gunmen reached his ears. “Remember… your woman and your kid won't make it out alive if you don't do exactly what we say.”
He didn't focus on the man calling Lenore and Evie his because, at that moment, they were.
As they neared the door at the end, the deputy finally turned his bored gaze toward them and straightened.
“We're looking for the stairs, buddy,” one of the gunmen said. “We must be turned around.”
“Got stairs right there, but you're not supposed to be here. You'll have to head back toward the elevator,” the young deputy said, puffing out his chest, seemingly pleased to assert his authority.
Sisco noted the gunman in his peripheral vision glance at the clock on the wall while hesitating. Suddenly, the fire alarm sounded. Nurses at the far end of the hall started hurrying into patient rooms, leaving the immediate area deserted. The deputy scrunched his face in obvious confusion and took his gaze off the men behind Sisco. The gunman next to Lenore shifted his weapon. Sisco barely had enough time to lean his head down to cover Evie's face while still pressing her head against his chest and his hand against her ear.
A muffled shot was swallowed by the noise of the alarm but was heard by Sisco, trained to notice even the faintest sound. The deputy dropped backward into the hospital room, now with a hole in his forehead. Lenore's gasp was also drowned out by the fire alarm, and she reached for Evie. The other gunman pushed her into the room before turning toward Sisco and ordering him to follow.
Sisco watched Lenore trip over the lifeless body of the deputy lying on the floor with blood pooling around him. Breathing so rapidly she was growing pale, he said, “Evie, keep your face buried in me, and don't look.” Then he grabbed Lenore by the upper arm and guided her around the body. Shifting Evie in his arms, he reached his watch and unobtrusively pressed the emergency button, sending a locator signal to LSIMT.
Once inside the room, he assessed the situation quickly as his training kicked in. The problem he faced was he'd never had to navigate a dangerous situation with a child in his arms. He knew what needed to be done, and if he didn't have Lenore and Evie, he could have disarmed and disabled the two men in the stairwell. But now, he battled the urge to fight back while knowing he needed to protect them with his life.
A man sat handcuffed to the hospital's bedrail. The deputy was obviously outside for a reason, but Sisco couldn't imagine why no other law enforcement presence was inside the room. Clearly, the fire alarm had been a diversion, and with the hallway now empty, they were alone with the intruders and prisoner.
One gunman whipped out metal cutters, swiftly slicing through the handcuffs binding the prisoner, while the other man kept his weapon trained on Lenore.
Sisco's eyes flickered between the men, taking in their movements. It was hard not to focus on Lenore's wide, terrified eyes as she glanced between the armed men and her daughter. Her fear stoked Sisco's rage, intensifying his resolve.
After the first man cut the prisoner free, he pulled some clothes from a small bag he had worn across his body. Tossing pants and a shirt to the prisoner, the man lifted his weapon at Sisco and Evie while the prisoner pulled on his clothes. Still pressing Evie's face into his chest with his large hand covering her exposed cheek, her whimpers pierced his heart. He didn't break eye contact with the closest man, acknowledging his expression promised retribution.
“Take it easy, big guy,” the gunman said while chuckling. Sisco didn't reply. He wasn't about to get into a pissing contest with Evie and Lenore in danger.
Until now, the prisoner hadn't spoken but seemed in charge once his clothes were on. “Good to see you, bro. Is everything ready?”
“It's perfect. Vehicle is in place. We just need to go out the back way.”
The prisoner shifted his gaze to Sisco, still holding Evie, before he looked at Lenore. A slow grin curved his lips. Sisco felt his body vibrate with the need to take out the man's eyes. “Them?”
“They were on the stairs when we came in.” The gunman continued. “Thought they'd make good hostages.”
The prisoner lifted a brow as he jerked his head toward the gunman. “You're not paid to think.”
“No, Raul. He's got a kid. He's not gonna do anything. We told him we'd take out the woman and the kid.”
Raul shook his head slowly. “You're a fuckin' moron. A man like him? You threaten what's his, and you gotta problem on your hands.”
The sounds from down the hall came closer, and Raul grimaced but didn't go for a weapon. “Let's go. We'll fuckin' deal with them once we get outta here.”
One gunman led with his arm on Lenore, his weapon hidden but trained on her. Sisco followed, still holding a shivering Evie tightly, murmuring words to her. “Don't look, baby. It'll be okay. I'm taking care of you and your mama.” Stepping over the deputy's body, he glanced down, angry at the loss of a young man's life and the law enforcement that assigned him to a duty he clearly wasn't prepared for.
Raul fell in line behind Sisco, and the last gunman brought up the rear. As they hurried down the stairs across the hall, Sisco knew LSIMT would already be on their way. The four levels of stairs were nothing for him, but he could hear Lenore's breathing labor as they rounded the last landing. The man holding Lenore stopped them at the last door. He opened it slowly, then pushed Lenore through and hurried after her. Glancing back, he shouted over the sound of the alarm. “All clear.”
The hall they entered was at the back of the hospital's cafeteria, the walls lined with doors leading to storage. The first gunman, with Lenore still in his grip, hastened to an outer door, then once more, rushing through, he waved for the others to follow.
An ambulance was in the alley, with a driver at the wheel. The prisoner climbed into the back, took one of the weapons, and ordered Lenore to sit in the front with the driver while Sisco and Evie were ordered into the back.
“No, please…” Lenore begged.
“Shut up, bitch,” the gunman holding her arm said as he jerked her to the open passenger door. “You want your man and daughter safe, you'll do as you're told.”
Her gaze shot to Sisco, wide-eyed and desperate. He dipped his chin, his gaze not wavering from hers. She swallowed deeply, then nodded, and climbed into the passenger side. Sisco kept Evie in his arms as he climbed into the back. There was no stretcher, and he moved to the side, waiting to see where the others were positioning themselves. Fire sirens joined the sounds of the hospital alarms. As the back doors closed, the driver looked into the back at Raul and said, “Told them we had a kid we had to get to another hospital. We won't have a problem leaving the area.”
“Good,” Raul said, easing down to sit on the floor. “Get down, big man. You and the kid. Not having you looming over me.”
Sisco eased down, settling Evie on his lap while pressing another button on his phone for recording. “You can't possibly think you won't end up back in jail after breaking out of a secured hospital room and shooting a deputy,” he said.
Raul looked at him, lifted a brow, and grinned while shaking his head.
One of the gunmen cackled. “We did it, didn't we? Perfectly planned and executed.”
“Did you plan on hostages?”
“We got you, don't we, big guy?” he said, still laughing.
Raul glanced to the side and scowled. “Shut up.” Then he turned his gaze back to Sisco. “What do you do?”
“Construction,” Sisco lied easily.
Raul snorted as he nodded. “Makes sense. You're fuckin' huge.” Glancing to the side again, he said, “Why the fuck didn't you just take the woman?”
“I figured they'd be good… you know… more to bargain with.”
“You're a dumbass, Freddy?—”
Raul grimaced while shifting, his words cut off. Sisco wasn't sure if it was from the pain of his injury or from having let another kidnapper's name slip. He wanted to press for more, but he needed to move cautiously with Evie trembling in his lap and Lenore just ahead in the passenger seat.
He glanced out the back window. “You're going west? There's nothing there once you get out of town. I worked on some houses out this way. There's shit out here.”
Freddy grinned, and not for the first time since he'd been in his presence, Sisco wondered if he was high.
“Don't gotta go far?—”
“Shut the fuck up,” Raul growled.
Evie sniffled, and Sisco dipped his chin to check on her, who lifted her gaze to seek his. Silent tears made trails down her cheeks. “Shh, it's okay, sweetheart.”
“I want Mommy.”
“She’s right there, Evie,” he tried to console.
Lenore glanced into the back, her pale face a reflection of her daughter's fear. He held her gaze, hoping to infuse his expression with reassurance, but couldn't tell if he was successful. After fifteen minutes of driving, the vehicle veered off the road. It was hard to ascertain their exact location from where he was sitting, but it appeared to be an empty parking lot. As the vehicle swerved around in a circle, he spied a helicopter. Fuck! He realized they were far more organized than he'd anticipated and cursed the rookie mistake of underestimating the enemy.
“A helicopter?” he muttered for the benefit of the Keepers back at the compound. He recognized the Hummingbird model but said nothing, not wanting to betray his knowledge outside a construction worker. The bird would hold four passengers, and he wondered what Raul's plan was. A pilot, Raul, one of his gunmen, and then a hostage.
Evie's arms tighten around him as she burrowed against his chest, and he prayed they would take him and leave Lenore and Evie. But even as he had that thought, when the vehicle pulled to a stop, he felt sure Raul was smart enough to know that wouldn't be the best course of action for the criminals.
The ambulance's back door swung open, and Freddy jumped out, then turned to assist Raul. The other gunman turned to point his weapon at Sisco, ordering him to climb out and keep the kid in his arms. Freddy had reached the passenger door, calling Lenore out of her seat. She hurried over to Sisco's side, her gaze devouring her daughter, frantically searching for any injury.
“Mommy!” Evie loosened her hold on him and reached out to her mom.
“No way,” Raul said, staring at Lenore. “You're going with us.”
“Come on,” Sisco said, trying to force his voice into a cajoling tone. “You should take me. Wherever you're going, she'll just hold you back.”
Raul chuckled and shook his head, then grimaced as he placed one hand over his stomach, giving evidence as to what part of his body had him in the hospital.
“No fuckin' way. I'm not having somebody that looks like they've had some training waiting for a way to overtake us. Can't take the kid—she really would drag us back. But if we've got your woman, then I know you're gonna behave. And all I need is a little time.”
Freddy put his hand on Lenore's arm and started to drag her away.
“Mommy!” Evie screamed, trying to fight her way out of Sisco's arms to get to her mother.
“Oh, baby. Baby!” Lenore cried, tears streaming down her face, reaching back. Freddy jerked on her arm, and she turned her desperate gaze to Sisco. “Take care of her. Take care of my baby. I can trust you. Please, just take care of my baby.”
“Hold on,” Sisco shouted, trying to wrestle Evie back into his arms so she wouldn't get hurt. “Let us at least say goodbye.” Without waiting for permission, he stepped up to Lenore and wrapped his free arm around her as she held tight to him and Evie. It was hard to speak over Evie's screams and Lenore's sobbing, but he placed his mouth right next to her ear. “Do what they tell you as much as you can. I'll get to you. I promise, and I also promise, I'll take care of your daughter.”
As Lenore lifted her terrified gaze to him once again, he bent to place a kiss on her forehead. The gesture was instinct—just to offer comfort. But as the warmth of her skin met his lips, he wondered which one of them received the most comfort. He shifted Evie again, then jammed his hand into his pocket and pulled out a small tracker to hand to her. But just as he was making the movement, Evie shifted, almost falling from his arms. He grabbed toward her to keep her safe but, in doing so, lost his opportunity.
“Okay, that's enough. We have to get out of here,” Freddy said. He grabbed Lenore's arm again and jerked her backward, causing her to stumble.
As fury warred with regret in his blood, Sisco's glare aimed at Freddy would have melted the coldest Montana ice storm. Sucking in a quick breath, he opened his mouth to say something, but she was jerked away.
Freddy continued to pull Lenore to the helicopter while the gunman kept his weapon directly on Evie and him. Raul, Freddy, and Lenore disappeared into the bird. The nameless gunman hopped into the passenger seat of the vehicle and grinned as he offered a two-fingered salute. You're going to lose those fingers , Sisco silently vowed. Then the vehicle pulled away, leaving Sisco and a sobbing Evie in the middle of a deserted parking lot, miles from anywhere.
The helicopter lifted into the air, and he rubbed Evie's back. “It's going to be okay, sweetheart. I promise it's gonna be.” He'd never broken a promise and prayed today wouldn't be the first time.