Harlequin Intrigue, Box Set 1 of 2 (35 page)

She laughed. “They're reptiles, not amphibians. And trust me. By the time you see them out here in the 'Glades, it's usually too late. The water is
full
of them. And they can hide in the mud so well you might never see them. Don't even think about going in the water.”

He glanced nervously at the muddy bank around them, then back at the water. “I'm not sure we have any other options.”

“Did you see the movie
Jaws
?”

“Sure. Killer shark. Eats everything in sight.”

“No one saw it until it was too late. Picture that waterway full of killer sharks. Do you still want to go for a swim?”

“Okay, okay. We aren't going into the water.”

“Maybe I can try reasoning with Calvin. He can't really intend to hurt me. He loves me. Maybe he's just...confused.”

“Yeah, shooting Quinn was probably an accident. He
accidentally
pretended to be tied to the tree and
accidentally
shot Quinn in the head. I'm sure he feels awful about it and will be happy to sit and talk with you.”

She shot him a glare. “You have a better idea?”

“Plan B.”

“Which is?”

“
You
hide and
I
take out the bad guys.”

“They have guns. How are you going to take them out without getting shot? Even if you could sneak up within fifty yards of them, that golden tan of yours will make you a gleaming target. And how am I supposed to hide with this?” She flicked her bright green skirts, which swirled in the warm breeze.

“Good point. I don't suppose you'd consider going naked?”

She gave him a droll look.

He grinned. “Didn't think so.” He turned around and looked down at the rich, dark mud. Her earlier reference to the movie
Jaws
had other ideas swirling through his head. “Ever see that movie
Predator
, with Arnold Schwarzenegger?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“Plan C.”

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Faye reluctantly handed Jake the veils she'd cut from her skirt. Without the veils, she was left with the lining, which resembled a short, black miniskirt of sorts, barely coming to the tops of her thighs. Thankfully she hadn't gone commando today or Jake would be catching glimpses of a lot more than just her legs while she sat on the muddy bank beside the water.

“You owe me a new skirt,” she grumbled. “I still don't know what you want to do with the veils. Or why we're sitting here in the mud.”

In answer, he tied the ends of two of the veils together and tugged them tight. “Homemade rope, just in case I get lucky and sneak up on one of those gunmen before he sees me.”

She swallowed at his reference to the gunmen, only too aware that they were closing in on them. “And the reason we're in the mud?”

He shoved the veils in his pockets before reaching down and scooping up two large handfuls of the black goo. “You gave me the idea earlier. You said gators can hide in the mud. We're going to cover our bodies with this and blend in with our surroundings, just like in the
Predator
movie.” He leaned toward her and slapped the mud on her calves just above her boots.

She stiffened in surprise, but that surprise quickly turned to heat at the feel of his hands sliding over her skin to the sensitive spots behind her knees. When her calves and knees were covered, he grabbed more of the mud, this time dabbing it on more gently and massaging it into her thighs. She should have made him stop. She could certainly put the mud on without his help, but God help her, she couldn't have asked him to stop if a whole posse of gunmen were on their trail. His fingers on her skin felt too good, reminding her of their first meeting, when he'd pinned her to the forest floor. She'd been shocked at her body's answering response to the stranger that night, and had later wondered if she'd imagined the jolt of attraction that had zinged through her core.

Nope. She hadn't imagined it.

The teasing amusement on his face gave way to a taut tension as he continued to rub her legs. His fingers slid higher, higher. She closed her eyes, reveling in the feel of him, waiting, wondering just how high he would go. Wondering just how high she'd
let
him go.

His hands suddenly left her. She barely refrained from voicing her disappointment. He came back with more mud, for her arms this time, and then he moved behind her.

“We can stuff your braid under your shirt, but the gold color still catches the sunlight.”

“Go ahead,” she said, dreading this part. “You might as wall blot it with mud, too.”

He leaned close to her ear. “Sorry about this.”

“Me, too.”

He rubbed the mud into the blond strands, turning them dark. Then he slid his hands down the back of her neck, and around to the front, stroking her throat. His breath came in short gasps near her ear, and she realized he was just as affected as her.

His hands stilled, and then he was in front of her again. “There, you're effectively camouflaged,” he said, his voice tight, husky. “You should put some on your face. I don't want to risk getting it in your eyes.”

His Adam's apple bobbed in his throat as she leaned down, purposely allowing her shirt to gap as she scooped up some of the mud. But instead of using it on her face, she dropped to her knees and plopped it onto his bare chest.

He sucked in a breath. “What are you doing?”

“Covering that gorgeous gold skin of yours. If you're going looking for bad guys, you need to blend in with your surroundings, too.”

He gave her a tight smile as she slid her hands across his chest, his shoulders. When she trailed her fingers down his abdomen, he sucked in another breath, then coughed as if to cover it up. She moved to his back, only then allowing her smile to escape. She was enjoying this way too much, especially since time was running out. But then again, if this was her last moment on earth, wasn't this the best way to spend it? Enjoying the feel of a warm, sexy man beneath her fingertips?

Yes, that's exactly how she wanted to spend her last moments. She wanted far more than that, but she'd have to settle for what she had time for. She quickly finished his back and his arms, then moved to the front again. She studied him up and down.

“I missed a few spots,” she announced. She grabbed two more handfuls of mud then faced him on her knees just inches from his body. She stared up into his eyes as she rested her hands against the golden skin right above the front of his waistband.

His pupils dilated and his gaze dropped right where she wanted it, her lips. She slid her fingers up over the planes of his chest, over his shoulders, to the back of his neck. Then she licked her lips.

That was all the invitation he needed. He dragged her to her feet and then his mouth crashed down on hers, ravishing her, devouring her as one hand cupped the back of her head and the other slid down over the curve of her bottom, pulling her against his hardening length. His tongue swept inside her mouth, teasing, tasting, setting her nerve endings on fire.

He moaned deep in his throat as his fingers slid down, down, kneading her bottom, approaching the very core of her, but stopping just short, with the material of the skirt between his wicked fingers and where she wanted him most.

He suddenly tore his mouth from her and grabbed her shoulders with both hands.

“Don't stop,” she breathed.

He shuddered and pressed an achingly quick kiss against her lips. Then he was slapping more mud in her hands.

“This is insane,” he said. “We don't have time for this. Hurry up and put the mud on your face. You have to cover all of your skin.” He grabbed a handful of mud for himself and scrubbed it onto his face as he ran to the top of the small swell of land, apparently to look for the gunmen.

The sensual haze Faye had been in died a quick death as she stared down at the no-longer-quite-so-appealing mud in her hands. She squeezed the goo through her fingertips in frustration, then closed her eyes and rubbed the mud across her face.

* * *

J
AKE
QUIETLY
EDGED
through the trees and bushes, careful not to step on any of the dead wood that might snap and announce his presence to one of the gunmen. He still couldn't believe he'd kissed Faye with three gunmen after them. Kissed? Hell. He'd practically consumed her. He'd been one heartbeat away from tearing that erotically tiny miniskirt off her and devouring her right there in the mud. He should have known from experience that the moment he touched her silky legs he would be lost. He should have stopped right then, but his desire to keep touching her was fanned into a wildfire when he felt her pulse leaping beneath his fingertips and knew she was just as turned on as he was. He shook his head, disgusted at himself for losing control when their lives were on the line.

Something snapped in the bushes about twenty feet away. He ducked down, peering through some low-hanging branches and using a tree for cover. He waited and watched, carefully controlling his breathing to make as little noise as possible.

Another snap followed. Leaves crunched beneath someone's foot as the person moved toward him. Branches clacked against each other and leaves lifted as a small branch was shoved out of the way. One of the men who'd been with Calvin stepped into view, his gun in front of him as he scanned the area.

Where was Calvin? And the other man? Had they split up? That would make things easier for Jake, but more dangerous for Faye if the others were out searching for her. He had left her concealed in a hollowed-out tree, bushes tucked in and around her. He'd stood a foot away and tried to see her and couldn't because of how well the mud made her blend in. But what if she made some kind of noise? A cough? A sneeze?

Worry squeezed his chest, but he forced it away. He had to focus on the most immediate threat, the man right in front of him. Twelve feet. Eleven. Ten. Jake timed the man's footfalls, tensing, waiting. The man drew even with the tree where Jake was hiding.

Now!

He jumped up and slammed his foot against the man's knee and chopped at his Adam's apple at the same time.

The man's scream of pain died in a painful wheeze. He dropped to the ground and clutched his throat. His gun went skittering across the ground, but Jake didn't have to worry that his prey would fight him for it. The man was too busy fighting to breathe through his bruised trachea.

Jake grabbed the gun and checked the loading before sliding it into his holster. Relief surged through him at having a weapon again. He yanked out a length of the green veils from Faye's skirt and dropped down beside the gasping man.

“Stop fighting it,” Jake whispered. “You'll be okay if you relax. Hold your breath, then start breathing again, slowly.”

The man's eyes widened with alarm when Jake rolled him over and tied his wrists together behind his back. When he was satisfied the man wouldn't be able to break free, he rolled him back over, grabbed the back of the man's shirt, and dragged him to the nearest log.

“Relax, relax, in, out, in, out,” Jake coached, hoping he hadn't hit the man harder than he'd planned. He didn't want to kill the guy, even if he deserved it. He secured the man's wrists to one of the thick branches on the log and knelt down in front of him with another wad of cloth from Faye's skirt.

“I'm not going to kill you, all right? Look at me,” Jake ordered, keeping his voice low so if the other men were nearby they wouldn't hear him. When the man finally focused on him, Jake nodded. “There you go. You're breathing better. Just relax and the pressure will ease and let more air in.” He waited, watching.

The air rattled out of the man's mouth in one last wheeze and settled into a more normal pattern. The panic left his face. Jake waited, holding the wad of cloth. The man suddenly opened his mouth as if to scream. Jake jammed the cloth between his teeth and whipped another veil around the man's mouth, tying it behind his head to keep the gag in.

The man fought the gag, his face turning red. But other than a guttural moan against the cloth, he couldn't scream. His breaths were coming in and out just fine now.

“I'll come back for you, once it's safe.” He leaned in close. “Stay alert. I don't think there are any gators in this far from the water, but who knows.”

The man's eyes widened and he looked around, as if a gator was about to lunge at him.

Jake grinned and melted back into the trees. He hadn't been able to resist baiting the man. It was either that or shoot him, and Jake wasn't in the habit of killing unarmed men, no matter how much they deserved it.

He crept through the trees, his gun in front of him as he searched for signs of the other two men.

A gunshot shattered the quiet, sending birds screeching and flying into the sky.

Oh God, no. Faye!

He took off in a sprint, his arms and legs pumping as fast as he could go.

He broke through the trees near where he'd hidden her, pistol drawn.

Half a dozen uniformed Collier County deputies drew on him.

He skidded to a halt, raising his hands in the air.

“Hold your fire!” someone yelled. “That's Young, one of the good guys.”

Deputy Holder had yelled that order. The deputies stood down, holstering their weapons. Jake holstered his pistol and ran to Holder, who was supervising another officer handcuffing Calvin's other henchman. Dex had come through after all. He'd sent in the cavalry.

Jake turned in a fast circle, taking inventory. “Where's Gillette? And Miss Star? Did you already take them back to town?”

Holder frowned. “This guy was the only one here when we arrived. We haven't seen Miss Star.”

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

A scream sounded from somewhere behind them, followed by a huge splash.

Oh God, no.

Jake took off running toward the sounds.

“Wait,” Holder yelled. “Remember police procedure, Young. Don't go running in without assessing the situation!”

Jake didn't stop, even when he heard more shouts and people running after him. Holder didn't know what Jake knew. He didn't know about the canal. And the alligators.

Please let me get to her in time. Please.

He burst from the trees, onto the muddy bank of the canal, drawing his pistol as he ran. As if in slow motion, his mind's eye saw everything at once—Calvin ripping off Faye's necklace with its gold, red and purple pouches and throwing it into the water; Faye's golden curls flying up as he shoved her under the surface; two alligators sliding into the canal with barely a ripple, headed straight for Faye and Calvin.

“Let her go,” Jake yelled. He aimed his pistol, his finger tensing on the trigger.

Calvin yanked Faye up in front of him, holding her as a shield. Water streamed off her hair like a waterfall. She sputtered and coughed, grabbing Calvin's arm that pressed against her throat.

“Let her go,” Jake repeated, entering the water. He kept his pistol in his hand, but pointed it away from Faye. He didn't have a clear shot at Calvin.

“Get out of the water,” Holder yelled behind them. “There are two gators coming up fast behind you.”

Calvin turned his head, but kept Faye shielding him from Jake's and the officers' guns. “Shoot them,” he yelled, his voice sounding panicked. “Shoot them or I swear I'll feed her to them.”

“No,” Jake yelled. “Holder, don't. You'll hit her. I've got this.” He ran farther into the water, off to one side, and shot at the ripples where he thought the gators had gone under. One of them surfaced and hissed but turned back to shore.

“I don't know where the other one is. Calvin, for God's sake, get out of there.”

“I'm not going to prison,” he yelled, jerking back and forth, looking for the gator, holding Faye clasped to him in spite of her struggles. “Tell the deputies to back off.”

Jake looked at the shore. Five deputies stood on the bank, pointing their pistols at Calvin. Holder stood in the water, not far from Jake, his own pistol down by his side as he watched what was happening.

Something splashed. Jake whirled around. Calvin screamed. A massive alligator broke the surface beside him, its jaws snapping, narrowly missing him. He stumbled backward, pulling Faye between him and the gator.

Jake dived into the water. He surfaced next to Faye. He grabbed Calvin's hand and twisted, hard. A sickening popping noise sounded. Calvin screamed and let Faye go. She dropped into the water. Jake grabbed her and jerked her back just as the gator turned and snapped at her.

She threw her arms around his neck, her eyes wide with terror. Jake ran with her back toward shore, as fast as he could move through the water. Holder met him halfway.

“Take her.” Jake thrust her into Holder's arms. He turned and rushed back to shore.

Calvin screamed behind him. Jake turned around and swam toward him as fast as he could go. The gator almost seemed to be playing with Calvin. It circled him, without touching. Then disappeared underwater again.

Calvin sobbed and started swimming toward shore. Jake headed straight for him.

Back on the bank, Faye screamed. “Jake! Look out!”

He dived to the side just as the gator surfaced right where he'd been standing. For the space of a breath, Jake stared right into the cold eyes of the monster. Then it was gone, and Calvin was swimming past him toward shore.

He screamed and went under. Jake treaded the water, shocked at what had just happened. One second Calvin was swimming. The next he was...gone. He shook himself and took a huge lungful of air then submerged beneath the murky surface.

* * *

F
AYE
STOOD
BESIDE
H
OLDER
, watching with horror as Jake disappeared. She took off toward the water, or tried to. Holder grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back.

“Don't,” he ordered. “He risked his life to save you. Don't throw that away.”

“Someone has to help him.”

He didn't say anything but he refused to let her go.

She stood there, feeling completely helpless, searching the water's surface, frantically looking for bubbles, something to let her know Jake and Calvin were still alive. What was happening out there under the water?

Suddenly the alligator broke the surface of the water with an enormous splash. Jake was glued to the gator's back, his arms wrapped around its head.

“Oh my God, no!” Faye clapped her hands to her mouth.

Jake clawed at one of the gator's eyes and slammed his fist on the gator's nose. It hissed and rolled onto its back, diving beneath the water again with Jake still hanging on. Bubbles broke the surface. Then...blood.

Faye sank to her knees, horrified sobs escaping from her. “Jake, no, Jake!”

Another splash, a shout. Calvin bobbed to the surface, spitting up water, flailing to keep afloat. And then Jake broke the surface beside him. He grabbed Calvin and turned him on his back, then started for shore.

Faye stared in disbelief. “Where's the gator? Where's the gator?”

Holder pointed. “There, look!”

On the other side of the bank, a gator crawled out of the water, hissing as it headed into the grasses.

Everyone seemed to move at once. They all ran to the water, toward Jake and Calvin, who were in the shallows now. One of the deputies shot his gun into the water behind them, scaring off another hungry reptile, turning it toward the other bank.

Two of the deputies grabbed Calvin and pulled him to shore. His left leg was severely bitten, hemorrhaging blood.

“Get a trauma chopper out here,” Holder barked. “Put pressure on that wound.”

Faye barely glanced at her brother. She ran straight to Jake and threw her arms around him. “Thank God, thank God, thank God.”

He crushed her to him and buried his face against her neck.

* * *

J
AKE
AND
D
EPUTY
H
OLDER
ducked beneath the MedFlight helicopter's blades and ran to Holder's squad car parked a short distance away in the middle of Mystic Glades's main street. Faye waved from the chopper window as it lifted off, carrying Calvin to Lee Memorial Trauma Center in Fort Myers. The downdraft buffeted the nearby treetops, sending down a rain of oak leaves and pine needles.

When the chopper was just a spec in the sky, Holder motioned to his car. “It's a long drive to the hospital. I wouldn't mind the company. And I'm a good listener. I can have a deputy follow us in your car.”

Jake gave him a rueful look. “Is that cop-speak for I'm about to be interrogated and I don't have a choice?”

“Pretty much.”

He laughed. “Then I accept your generous offer. Just as long as we stop somewhere along the way so I can get a shirt.”

Holder wrinkled his nose. “Trust me. That's the first stop we'll make.”

* * *

F
AYE
CLUTCHED
HER
hands together as she sat in the emergency room waiting area. Calvin had been in surgery for almost an hour. So far, no one had come out to give her any updates. And her only companion was the Collier County deputy standing on the other side of the room who'd accompanied her on the helicopter. She didn't know if he was here to act as Calvin's guard, or hers. Probably both.

Every time the ER doors swooshed open, she looked up, expecting to see Jake. And every time, she was disappointed. Where was he? Shouldn't he have been here by now? He'd said he'd meet her here when Calvin was being loaded onto the MedFlight. There wasn't enough room in the chopper for him to go with her. But he'd had plenty of time to drive here. So why wasn't he here?

The doors opened again. But instead of Jake walking inside, there were two more Collier County deputies. And they were looking right at her. From the grim looks on their faces as they stopped to talk to the deputy who'd been her shadow for the past couple of hours, she knew she was in trouble.

She turned to the woman next to her, a young, frazzled-looking mother trying to keep her toddler occupied while playing the waiting game.

“Excuse me,” Faye said. “I need to call a friend.” She pointed to the woman's cell phone sitting on the table between their two chairs. “Would you mind if I borrowed yours? It will just take a minute.”

The woman waved toward the table. “No problem, take all the time you need.” A delighted squeal had her turning back the other way. “Jimmy, good grief. Get that out of your mouth.” She jumped up and ran after her giggling boy, who was now running down the hallway.

Faye picked up the phone and punched in a number. The deputies finished their conversation and the two who'd just arrived moments ago started toward her. Faye clutched the phone.
Hurry up. Pick up, pick up.

“Swamp Buggy Outfitters,” the friendly voice on the line answered.

“Buddy, it's Faye. I need your help. I think I'm about to be arrested.”

* * *

T
URNED
OUT
, D
EPUTY
H
OLDER
had no interest in driving all the way to the hospital. Not after grilling Jake with dozens of questions and deciding he had a whole lot more. He took a detour to the police station and had Jake sit with him in his office to go over everything they'd talked about, again, and to provide a written statement.

“So you don't know for sure whether Quinn or Gillette killed Eddie Stevens?” Holder asked.

“No. He was dead when we got there.”

“You and Miss Star arrived separately, though, correct?”

“Yes, and before you go there, she wasn't involved in Eddie's murder. I saw her go into the house and come back out in less than thirty seconds. She didn't have the time, much less motive, to kill him. Besides, the blood was already starting to coagulate when I checked the body.”

“Fair enough. Let's circle back to the Genovese murder, in Tuscaloosa. I've been on the phone with the lead detective who worked that case. He confirmed neither Mr. Gillette nor Miss Star...or Decker I suppose...were suspects. There were witnesses who saw both of them at the time of the murder and corroborated their alibis. But he didn't know anything about the journal you told me about.”

Jake shrugged. “I would assume that journal was Genovese's secret. It's not likely he would have told anyone about it.”

“True. And you told me both Quinn and Gillette were after Miss Star because of the journal. Is that the
only
reason they were after her?”

Jake shifted in his seat. He'd been trying to answer Holder's questions without implicating Faye in the theft of the money. But there was no way he could avoid a direct question without lying. And lying to a fellow police officer wasn't something he was going to do. He let out a deep breath. “No. That's not the only reason.”

He filled in the details about the money, about Quinn's claims that there was two hundred thousand in the safe and Calvin's accusations that Faye had taken the money.

“I'm not really sure what to think,” Jake said. “Calvin wasn't exactly in his right mind when he said that. He was under some kind of stress and seemed pretty desperate.”

“But you said Miss Star told him she didn't have the money anymore. That sounds like she was corroborating his claim that she took it in the first place.”

Jake shook his head. “She was trying to placate a man who was shooting at her. Maybe she was worried he'd be even more out of control if she argued that she'd never had the money in the first place.”

Holder leaned back in his seat. “Since you're being forthcoming and not lying, I'll go ahead and share what I've learned and try to clear up the confusion over the money for you. Unfortunately for both Miss Star and Mr. Decker, that two hundred grand in Genovese's safe was one of his eccentricities. His financial adviser said Genovese always kept that much in his safe as his emergency fund. When the money wasn't listed in the estate's assets during probate, the lawyer notified the police. They listed it as stolen.”

A sick feeling settled in the bottom of Jake's stomach. “You don't have any proof that Faye ended up with any of that money.”

“I don't have to prove it. I just have to provide a jury with reasonable doubt. And trust me. That's not going to be hard at all. Did you know that Miss Star had over sixty thousand dollars of student loans after she graduated from the University of Alabama? And that she paid them off a couple of months after Genovese's death? Tell me, Jake. Where do you think she got that money?”

That sick feeling in his gut became a fiery inferno in his chest. “I have no idea.”

“She also started that store, The Moon and Star, not long after Genovese died. Any idea where she got the money for the inventory?”

Jake slowly shook his head. “No.”

A knock on Holder's open door had him glancing up in question at the police officer standing there.

“They're ready for you, sir.”

“Thanks.” Holder shoved his chair back from his desk. “Looks like we're about to get our answers. You're welcome to watch with me if you want.”

Jake stood. “Watch what?”

“Miss Star's interview on the closed-circuit monitor. They just brought her in. Detective Davey is interviewing her right now.”

By the time the interview was over, Jake felt raw, as if someone had ripped his heart out through his throat and stomped on it. Faye had looked so innocent. She'd sounded so convincing—her tone at least. But her excuses sounded anything but convincing.