Chapter Forty-five
Jonah paced Gabby’s small living room, waiting for Justice’s call. The fear was there, so real and palpable he could feel its icy fingers clawing at his chest. He knew Gabby was tough and resilient. She had been through so much and had conquered every challenge put before her. She would survive this ordeal, too.
But God help him, he needed to get to her!
The instant his phone buzzed, he barked, “What do you have?”
“We were right. Both Bianchi and Roane were there. Cameras revealed Gabriella was unconscious when Bianchi carried her out the door.”
“Do you know where they are?”
“A little community called Walcott Creek about an hour away from you. Looks like they’ve got her in an old farmhouse. I’m reading the public records as we speak. The house was rented a couple of weeks ago by a woman who claimed she wanted the place to be alone. Said she was writing a horror story.”
His jaw tight, Jonah grabbed his weapons and left the apartment. Figuring the stairs would be faster, he bypassed the elevator and ran down the stairs.
“Send me the address.”
“I will, but—”
“Don’t start with me, Justice. I’m not waiting for Kingston.”
“I didn’t figure you would, but you know this is a trap.”
“Not yet it’s not. They won’t be expecting me. They have no idea I’m in the area.”
“Maybe so, but Kingston is on his way. He’ll be there in a couple of hours. If you—”
“Fine.” Throwing the bag into the passenger seat of the car, Jonah jumped in, started the engine, and slammed on the gas. “Send him on. The more the merrier. I’m not waiting, though.”
“Law enforcement in that rural of an area is scarce, but I can—”
“Gabby has a better chance if I go in alone and surprise them.”
“Dammit, Jonah. Getting killed won’t bring Teri back.”
“This has nothing to do with Teri.”
“The hell it doesn’t. You’re still hung up on not being able to save one woman you love, and you’re going to get yourself killed trying to save another woman you love.”
“Stop the psychobabble and send me the damn address.”
“Already sent. Just…” Justice blew out a harsh breath. “Just remember that Gabriella and a lot of other people need you to stay alive.”
Ending the call, Jonah entered the address Justice had sent into the GPS on the dashboard. Travel time was a little over an hour. Unless he hit a roadblock, he intended to beat that time by half.
***
Gabby didn’t struggle as she was carried upside down over Rudy’s shoulder. Her arm throbbed with an unending ache, but she told herself when the time came she could use it. Every ounce of her strength would be needed to bring down this gorilla.
As she bounced around on Rudy’s shoulder, she heard Ivy in another part of the house. She was no doubt setting her trap for Jonah. She would use the video she’d recorded as a lure. Gabby’s cellphone had Jonah’s number stored under JS. It would be no problem for Ivy to figure that out. She would send the recording, and he would come.
Could she take care of both Rudy and Ivy before Jonah arrived?
She mentally rolled her eyes. One at a time, Gabby.
More than aware that she was doing everything she could not to think about what Rudy was planning to do once he got her to the bedroom, she concentrated on her surroundings. Being upside down made that a little more challenging.
The first room they entered smelled like stale coffee and garbage. The tile floor was old and cracked, as was the wood paneling on the walls. Shag carpeting in another room told her that decorating was not a priority for whoever owned the house.
They started up the stairway. With every creak of the wood, Gabby became more and more tense. She didn’t know if Rudy planned to begin his “fun” as soon as he put her down, but she had to be ready. It didn’t matter that he was almost twice her size. She knew where to hit and how hard.
When he reached the top of the stairs, he had to stop and catch his breath, which further encouraged her. He might look like a muscle-bound wrestler and be stronger than an ox, but he wasn’t fit, nor was he fast. She could definitely work with that.
A door creaked open. The bedroom where he said he needed room for what he had planned. Gabby breathed in a silent, bracing breath, readying herself for battle. He had gotten away with almost killing her before. This time, things would be different.
***
Ivy gazed in the mirror, a slight smile lifting her full lips. While Rudy had his fun, she was preparing for her own. The outfit she’d chosen for this first part was from her favorite designer. The formfitting light peach maxi dress showed only the slightest hint of cleavage but had a long slit up the right side. When she walked, it opened enough to reveal a peek of her long, sleek leg. The dress was classy and sophisticated, but also sexy. Just like the woman who wore it.
She allowed her hair to curl around her shoulders but pulled the strands back just enough to show the lovely diamond earrings dripping from her ears.
She would, of course, change in plenty of time for the final confrontation, but she wanted Jonah to see that she was alive, well, and still incredibly beautiful. He needed to see that his bullet hadn’t caused the damage he had hoped. Ivy Roane was not only alive, she was thriving like never before. The man needed to know how badly he had failed.
He would fail again.
The recording of an unconscious Gabriella was only a few seconds—there was no need for more. The girl was easily identifiable. Besides, this wasn’t about Gabriella at all. She was just a tool to be used. This was all about Ivy and the hatred she had for the Slaters. She would dangle the bait, and when Slater arrived, she’d yank the hook. He wouldn’t know what hit him.
One last lipstick touch-up and she was all set. Turning away from the gorgeous woman in the mirror, she picked up the girl’s iPhone. Really? JS? How incredibly careless. She had originally planned to send an email with an attachment to Eli Slater’s business and make her demands known. This way was so much better, as she could target the person she wanted most.
She clicked open the JS contact and then touched the FaceTime icon. In seconds, Jonah Slater’s ruggedly handsome face appeared.
“Who is this? Where’s Gabby?”
“Sorry, darling. Gabby’s a bit tied up right now. And how very sweet that you have a nickname for our girl.”
“Where is she?”
“Not so fast, Jonah. Please tell me you remember me. My ego just couldn’t take the rejection.”
“Ivy Roane.”
The furious way he whispered her name, blended with the glittering fury in his eyes, caused delightful shivers up her spine. He might be a thousand miles away in Texas, but the man had a potent charisma that she found incredibly exciting. The image of a nude, tied-up Jonah Slater flashed through her mind, and she mentally adjusted her timeline. There was no harm in extending their time together. She had never done that before, but she was willing to make an exception for Jonah Slater. And why shouldn’t she have a bit more fun than usual with a kill? She had certainly earned it.
“Miss me, Jonah?”
“What the hell have you done with Gabby?”
“Do check the text I sent you. The recording isn’t the highest quality, but I think the message will come across loud and clear.”
She waited patiently, knowing he would be checking his text and seeing the lovely, unconscious Gabriella all tied up.
The recording was only nine seconds long. Either he watched it several times, or he couldn’t bring himself to speak. She imagined it was a bit of both.
At last, his face appeared on the screen again. “What do you want?”
A rush of triumph flushed through her. This was what she had lived for, why she had worked so hard to recover. The pain and agony she saw in his eyes were exactly as she had dreamed.
“We have some unfinished business to resolve.”
“Where the hell is Gabby? What have you—”
“Really, Jonah. You do have a one-track mind. While you’re dillydallying, poor Gabriella is becoming reacquainted with an old flame. Would you like to see video feed of that, too? I’m sure Rudy wouldn’t mind.”
“What do you want?”
The fear in his voice made her want to laugh. She had anticipated that Jonah would care for the girl, but this was so much better.
“You’re in love with our dear girl, aren’t you? How absolutely marvelous.” She sighed. “I do love a good rescue story. Will you arrive on your white steed, sword in hand, ready to slay the dragon, and save the day? How very romantic.”
“Damn you, tell me what you want.”
“A trade, of course. You for her.”
“Where and when?”
“Now, now, we’re getting ahead of ourselves once again. Here are the rules. You come alone. If I see even the slightest hint that you’ve brought someone with you, the girl gets a bullet between her lovely eyes. I don’t imagine you would be able to overcome the guilt of that, would you?”
“How do I know you won’t kill her anyway?”
“You don’t. Rest assured, though, she will die if you don’t come. Are you willing to take that chance?”
“Where?”
“I’ll text you the address. Don’t keep me waiting too long. I can already hear our girl screaming.”
She clicked off the call and settled back into her chair. Even taking the Slater private jet, travel time would take a couple of hours. Then he would have to find some transportation. Still, she would take no chances. The Slaters were a sneaky bunch. She didn’t trust that he wouldn’t send someone in his stead.
Time to set up for scene two.
***
Jonah parked a quarter mile from the house and ran the rest of the way. Though his first instinct was to smash through the door, he’d be dead before he took three steps inside. Just because they didn’t know he was coming didn’t mean they wouldn’t be prepared. Ivy Roane was a trained killer—she would expect the unexpected. And since her one goal was to kill Jonah, he couldn’t take the chance of dying. If he died, then so did Gabby.
Rudy Bianchi wasn’t a trained killer, but what he lacked in knowledge and skill, he more than made up for in fucked-up craziness. No way in hell would Jonah underestimate either of them.
He could see why Ivy had chosen this location. Not only did the ramshackle house look as though a mass murder had already occurred here, but there was no place to hide. No trees to stand behind, no bushes either. The place was out in the open. Anyone looking for a threat would see him coming. When he did go in, he’d have to go in hard and fast.
Fortunately, trees surrounded the outer edges of the property. Jonah crashed through the woods, uncaring of the sounds he made. He was far enough away that no one could hear him. When he had a good view of both the front and the back, he stopped. Dropping his weapons bag, he took out the field binoculars and scanned the house. Three entry points, front and back doors, plus a cellar door at the back, which might be his best bet. An SUV was parked in the back. He saw no movement, but the house blazed with lights. Keeping a low profile didn’t worry them, which told him that either they didn’t care if anyone happened by, or they believed they were so isolated that no one would notice. He was betting on the second.
When Ivy called, he’d pulled off onto the side of the road. The last thing he wanted was for her to see or hear something that would get her suspicions up. She needed to believe he was still far away, preferably Dallas. The video had been hard to watch, as she had intended. Seeing Gabby’s pale, unconscious face, the tape across her mouth, the blood on her arm, he had wanted to shout his fury. Why the hell had he let her go? If she had stayed with him, they never would have found her.
The cellphone in his pocket buzzed with Justice’s ring tone. Jonah pushed the regret down where it belonged. Castigating himself for his poor choices would not save Gabby’s life.
He held the phone to his ear as he unzipped his weapons bag. “Yeah?”
“Here’s what we know. Bianchi escaped about a month ago. Had a visitor come in, and they traded places. Idiots had no idea he’d escaped till now. As far as we could tell, Rudolph didn’t know about it either.”
This didn’t surprise him. The most bizarre shit he’d ever seen had been while he was in prison. Overcrowding, lack of training, and carelessness could make for a deadly combination.
“There’s a worldwide BOLO out for him.”
“Doesn’t matter. He won’t survive this encounter.”
“Understood.”
“You have the blueprints?”
“Just texted them. Kingston is less than fifteen minutes away.”
“I’m not waiting. He can come in when he gets here and help with the cleanup. Either way, I’ll call you when it’s over.”
There was silence and then, “I’ll talk to both you and Gabriella soon.”
“Roger that.”
Setting the phone to silent, he pulled up the blueprints and studied them as he dressed, then strapped on his weapons. Since stealth and speed were a necessity, he opted for his SIG P226 and a KA-BAR knife sheathed and strapped to his hip. A Bersa Thunder 380 CC, compact but deadly, went into his ankle holster.
The blueprints confirmed his earlier thoughts. The cellar had a stairway and door that led to the kitchen. It was his best bet to get inside without getting caught.
He grabbed up his binoculars again to take another quick scan. Still no movement. Only one light was on upstairs. A chill zipped up his spine. This was where Bianchi had taken Gabby. He didn’t ask himself how he knew. He knew.
A blood-curdling scream cracked the silence of the night. His heart in his throat, Jonah took off running. Stealth be damned.