Chapter 10
CHAPTER 10
T he four men rode the elevator to the basement. The only way to get there was with Adam’s palm print.
The doors opened directly into a large room whose walls were covered with racks of guns. AR-15, Uzis, Glock handguns, and several different kinds of long rifles. One wall held other tools of combat. Things like knives, grenades and bayonets for the rifles.
Another wall was full of ammunition for each of the weapons.
Each man picked out a bullet proof vest and then another vest to hold ammo and grenades. They each grabbed the guns they were most familiar with.
Adam picked up two Glocks, a side holster and a rifle. The first gun he holstered on his side and the second pistol he put in the back of his waistband. He placed a knife on his belt and then filled his vest with ammo for the Glocks and the rifle.
The other three men did the same, choosing their favorite weapons.
The men were loaded for bear, and they weren’t looking at taking any prisoners.
When all were done, Adam led them back to the private garage and a waiting black panel van.
Tony slid behind the wheel with Adam in the passenger seat.
The other two men sat in back, one on either side of the van, on the bench seats specially installed there.
This van was not for delivering flowers but for delivering men. Armed men.
Simon would know Adam’s wrath. No one took what belonged to him…without paying the consequences.
Bree waited in the enormous warehouse, empty except for the wooden chair she was tied to and another one directly in front of her. She continued to wait, for she didn’t know what. While she did, she worked on getting her hands loose, but since they were behind her, she wasn’t having much luck.
She had to admit, even to herself, she was scared and wished Adam was there. He would keep the monsters at bay. And he would make whoever did this pay.
A door opened behind her, and she heard the thud of boot steps coming toward her.
“Well, if it isn’t the pretty Mrs. Adam Kincaid.”
Simon Chandler. Why wasn’t she surprised?
He walked around so he faced Bree. “Welcome, Mrs. Kincaid. Or can I call you Bree?”
She lifted her chin. “Mrs. Kincaid, if you please. Only my friends call me Bree and you’re definitely not my friend.”
He came closer and pinched her chin between the thumb and index finger of his right hand, lifting so she would look at him. “Don’t force me to hurt you… Bree .”
She pulled her chin free from his fingers and shook back her hair that had fallen forward. “You’ll do that if you want to. I think you’ll get off on it just like Valerie does. Tell me that’s not why you keep her around? Janie wouldn’t play your games, so you found Valerie. It didn’t matter that Adam fell in love with her, that made it all the sweeter, didn’t it?”
Simon scoffed. “You know a lot for just being Kincaid’s wife.”
While she continued to subtly work on her hands, Bree lifted her chin. “I knew Valerie in college, and I knew you were seeing her before she married Adam. I’d hoped she was in love with Adam, would make him a good wife and would end it with you. I didn’t know, until I saw you together at the Danvers’ party, that she only married him under your orders.”
Simon laughed. “Of course, it was under orders, and it worked…for a while.”
“Yes, until he caught you two together. Why on earth would you do it at their house?”
He shrugged. “Yes, that was stupid on my part. I thought Adam was at work and, believe it or not, I missed her.”
Bree nodded. “Right. You missed her. I don’t believe that for a moment. You thought you’d have one more thing to hold over Adam’s head. One more thing to torture him with.”
Simon moved the other chair, so the back faced Bree. Then he straddled it. He watched her face for hints that she knew what was going on. “You’ll only be here for a short time. I’m sure Adam will pay my price.”
She continued to work the ropes holding her hands together. The rope cut into her wrists, the burn painful, but not enough to stop her. “Adam won’t pay anything for me. Our marriage is one of convenience, not a love match.” At least not for him. He could get another woman to be Lilly’s mother after Bree was dead. She had no doubt that he could find a willing volunteer. He was too kind and too handsome to be a widower for long. Her throat felt full of the lump that formed there as she thought about Adam with another woman.
“Ah, poor Bree, she doesn’t even realize Adam’s in love with her. He’s been in love with you for years. I think even before he divorced Valerie, though I’m not sure he recognized it. He was always there for you. Whenever you needed him, he dropped whatever he was doing and ran to your aid.”
Her heart jumped into her throat and her pulse raced. Could it be true? “That’s not true. He loved Valerie. That’s why he married her.”
He slashed a hand out. “Don’t be na?ve. He thought it was time he married and did so with the woman he was currently dating. That was Valerie. On my orders, of course.”
“How do you know so much about Adam and what he’s feeling? I didn’t know you were close.”
“We used to be. He and I worked together for some time before he started Kincaid Holdings. I thought we’d start it together, but then I made the mistake of going after one of the accounts on my own. He found out and that was the end of our working together.”
“Sounds to me like you weren’t working together at all. How long did you work behind his back?”
Simon laughed. “You’re not only beautiful but smart. Adam’s a lucky man.”
“I think I’m the lucky one in our marriage.”
He waved his hand dismissing her thoughts.
The ropes were loosening, so she kept at it and talked to keep Simon occupied so he didn’t notice her working the ropes. He was too proud of himself. “You’re an evil man, Simon Chandler. Has anyone ever told you that…to your face?”
He threw back his head and roared with laughter. “You are truly a delight. It’s too bad I didn’t see you first.”
“As if there is anything you could offer to make me be with you.”
“You never know. I might just have something, maybe money…”
“I don’t need your money. I didn’t marry Adam for his money. I have more money than I’ll ever spend. I wanted a family, and I got one. I love Lilly more than my life, so there is nothing you can give me that I don’t already have.” She removed her left hand from the rope.
His lips turned up on one side. “Perhaps I should have taken the baby instead of you.”
She launched herself at him, her hands going for his neck. “You stay away from my daughter. You’ll never touch her.” She dug her nails into his flesh.
He was stronger than she was and forced her hands away.
She scratched him deeply on both sides of his neck.
He freed his right hand, formed a fist, and slammed it into her jaw.
The impact was enough to shove her off of him.
Simon threw the chair to his right and scrambled to his feet.
Bree laid on her side, the wind knocked out of her.
He kicked her twice in her ribs. “That will teach you to attack me.”
Knowing he would kick her again; she made herself as small as possible and bent into a fetal position.
The door to the warehouse blasted open, and four masked men swarmed inside.
One of them ran ahead of the others toward Simon.
He wasn’t fast enough to realize what was happening and turned too late to run.
The masked man slammed the butt of his rifle into the side of Simon’s face.
Simon spun halfway around and then fell to the floor.
Rushing toward Bree, the masked man crouched beside her.
She felt his fingers on her neck as he checked for her pulse.
“Bree?” He pulled off his mask.
His face swam into view. “Adam? But how?”
“You’re going to be okay. The ambulance will be here soon.”
Behind him she saw two of the other men pull Simon to his feet. The third man cuffed his wrists behind his back.
“What are you doing here?”
“I came after my wife. No one takes what’s mine.” His voice softened, and he smiled. Then he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I couldn’t let him take Lilly’s mother, now, could I?”
Lilly’s mother. That’s all she was to him. She guessed that was good.
“Hermother. Thank you for coming after me. I don’t know how you did it, but I don’t care. I’m just glad you’re here. Help me up.”
Instead of giving her a hand, he slipped his arms under her back and legs, then lifted her high against his chest. Then he kissed her forehead.
She cried at the tenderness he showed, knowing it was only because she was Lilly’s mother. Bree loved him, and no help was to be had on that front, so she lay in his arms and cried. Let him think it was her body’s injuries and not her soul crying out in pain.
By the time they made it outside, the ambulance was waiting for her.
The police had custody of Simon and were reading him his rights.
Adam carefully placed her on the gurney. “I’ll ride with her, if that’s okay.”
The female paramedic, who had blonde hair in a thick braid falling to her waist, shook her head. “We’d prefer it if you follow in your private vehicle.”
Adam frowned but nodded. Then he took Bree’s hand. “I’ll be right behind you. I won’t leave you alone at the hospital.”
“I’m all right. You should be home with Lilly.”
“Carole has her. I’ll text to let her know what’s going on. Lilly is in good hands.”
Bree tried to smile, but her jaw hurt like Hades, and she grimaced, instead. “Carole loves Lilly almost as much as we do. She’ll take good care of her.”
The paramedics lifted the gurney into the ambulance and pulled away, headed for the hospital without lights and siren, since she wasn’t in danger of dying.
“Where are you taking me?” Bree didn’t open her eyes. The weight of what happened to her was too much and she would cry if they were open.
“The closest hospital is Presbyterian St. Lukes, so you’ll be going there.”
“That’s fine. Can you tell if my husband is following?”
The male paramedic who had brown hair, cut short, with whitewalls around the ears, looked behind them. “If he’s in a big black van, then yes, he’s following.”
“That would probably be him,” said Bree.
The ride to the hospital seemed to take a long time but was probably only twenty minutes or so.
Bree felt every bump, and the railroad tracks nearly killed her. She was fairly certain she had a couple of broken ribs, thanks to Simon Chandler and his misguided need to win. But he would pay. He’d be going to jail for this. Kidnapping was a federal crime, add battery to the charge and he’d be going away for many years. She figured Janie would throw a party and finally divorce him.
When they arrived at the hospital, Bree was wheeled into the Emergency Room.
Adam came in after her, but he only saw her a minute before the doctor threw him out.
Doctor Strauss was a young man, maybe thirty-five or so, with brown hair, blue eyes and a charming smile. He took her hand in his. “How are you feeling? Can you tell me your name?”
“I’m Bree Kincaid. The man you threw out was my husband, Adam Kincaid. He’ll be very angry.” For some inexplicable reason, she wanted to laugh. She managed to get out a chuckle before her ribs screamed again. “It feels like my ribs shift with every breath I take.”
“I would bet you have, at least, cracked several ribs and have possibly broken some. I’m getting X-rays done so we know for sure, although the treatment is the same.”
“Which is what?”
“Nothing. We can’t do anything. We used to wrap them but discovered that can do more damage than good, so we do nothing and let them heal on their own. You’ll probably want to sit up in bed to keep the movement as little as possible. Do you have children?”
Bree smiled when she thought of her precious Lilly. “We have an eight-month-old daughter.”
The doctor took his stethoscope from around his neck and put it in his ears. “I’m going to listen for fluid in your lungs. I want to rule out a punctured lung.”
He listened to her back and then to her chest. “I don’t hear anything, so that is good. You won’t be able to pick up your daughter for about six weeks. I know it will be hard, but you really need to do it. Your ribs should heal in that time. Pain management is crucial for the first few days up to the first week. I’ll be prescribing very strong pain medication, so you’ll probably spend most of the time sleeping, which is good.”
Her ribs hurt when she breathed but she couldn’t help the panic she felt. She was almost in a sitting position on the hospital bed. She figured it was up as far as it would go. The antiseptic smell nearly gagged her. She hated the smell of a hospital. “What about my daughter? How am I supposed to take care of her?”
“I happen to know that your husband can afford a nanny for that time. Everything will be fine. Let’s start with the X-rays.” He patted her hand. “I’ll be back after I get the test results. In the meantime, I’ve ordered you some pain medication.” He looked up as the curtain around her bed opened to allow a nurse entry. He patted Bree’s hand again. “All will be well. You’ll see.”
The doctor left.
The woman was black, with very dark skin and her hair was in mini-braids all over her head. She was quite lovely, with the most expressive dark brown, almond-shaped eyes.
She signed into the computer and then turned to Bree. “Hi, my name is Timony and I’ll be taking care of you until they move you to a room or release you.” She snapped a pair of gloves from the box on the wall and put them on. Then she picked up the needle she’d placed on the rolling silver tray. “This is a shot of morphine, Mrs. Kincaid. It will help you with your pain.” She put the medication directly into the IV line. “You should feel better in a few minutes.”
“Thank you.” Suddenly, tears ran down her cheeks. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what’s the matter with me.”
“You’ve been seriously injured, you’re separated from your husband, and generally feeling sorry for yourself, with reason. You shouldn’t feel shame at shedding a few tears.”
“Thanks, Timony. I needed to hear that.”
The woman waved off the thanks. “Sure, hon. Now, I’ll get your husband and bring him back. Apparently, he’s been somewhat of a bear, pacing and shouting at people. Luckily, we’re professionals and don’t take um…stuff…off of anyone.” She left.
Several minutes later, Adam threw back the curtain. “Bree, sweetheart, are you all right? Are they treating you well? I’ll have a talk?—”
She frowned. Why does he sound like he cares more than usual, and what is with calling me sweetheart? “Adam, shh. I’m going to be fine. The doctor thinks I have a couple of cracked ribs, but he doesn’t believe anything else is wrong. If he’s right and I do, then we’ll need to hire a nanny for the next six to eight weeks?—”
He bent over. “You, shh.” Then he placed his lips against hers.
She suddenly felt like she could take on the world single-handed. Bree lifted her arms to put them around his neck and immediately dropped them back to the bed as her body howled with pain. “Oww, damnit. Forgive me for cussing, but dang that hurts.”
“Knock, knock. Mrs. Kincaid?”
“Yes, I’m Bree Kincaid.”
A pretty red-haired woman entered. She had freckles across the bridge of her nose and was clearly used to garnering attention. She had big blue eyes that she perused Adam with before turning to Bree. “I’m Savannah, and I’ll be taking you to X-ray. You don’t have to do a thing. I’ll get all these wires unhooked, and I’ll take you right on the gurney. How’s that sound?”
“Much better than trying to get up.”
“I thought so.” She turned to Adam. “Are you Mr. Kincaid?”
“Yes.”
“You can have a seat there.” She pointed at the two plastic chairs along one side of the curtains. “We’ll be back in about forty-five minutes.”
“I’ll be here.” He leaned over and kissed Bree again.
Her eyes widened. “Who are you and what have you done with my husband?”
Adam laughed. “We’ll talk later. You go with Savannah now, and I’ll be here when you get back. I promise.”