The Men With the Golden Cuffs (44 page)

Bridget. They were going to finish off Bridget. Serena tried to kick back, but Doyle had her around the neck. He squeezed, cutting off her air.

“Don’t fight me, Serena. I don’t want to kill you just yet. I have to make this look really good.” Doyle started to drag her toward the car. “We have a special place set up for you. You know all those times you wanted me to be a pervert who hurt you? You’re going to get your wish. I’m going to torture you. I’ve been reading up on it, and I think you were right all along. I’m a bit of a sadist, dear. And you’re still righteously disorganized. Did you know I’m still the beneficiary on your life insurance policy? And I recently learned you haven’t filed another will. I told you I would get what belongs to me. And no one will suspect me. I’m with Mother, you see. We’re having a nice long talk at her place in Tyler. Yes, Mother always hated you, Serena. She’s happy to help.”

He’d shoved that damn ball gag in so far. She struggled to breathe. Panic was threatening to overtake her. He started to pull her toward a car she didn’t recognize. It wasn’t Doyle’s sedan, and Brian drove an SUV. They had obviously been planning this together.

She tried to look around the alley. It backed up to another building, but she didn’t see windows or doors. It was quiet in the alley with only two cars parked there and a large trash container. Once they got her in the car, it would take less than thirty seconds to get to the street. Royal Lane was busy. They would disappear very quickly, and Adam and Jake wouldn’t be able to find her.

How was this happening? Just a few moments before, everything seemed open and bright. Now Lara was dead, and Bridget was dying and all because her ex-husband wanted her money. And she hadn’t thought about her will in years. It had been a small thing. They had signed a form Doyle had printed from a legal site on the internet. A very simple will. But it would probably hold up in court.

And they would make it look like the “stalker” had killed them all.

“You think you write great books, sweetheart, but I always was the truly brilliant one. And your so-called agent is an idiot. She gave us the perfect plan. I even bet your filthy, piece-of-crap books will sell better after you’re dead.” He looked back toward the building. “What the fuck is taking him so long?”

Serena went limp, forcing her every muscle to drag.

She sure as hell wasn’t going to help him.

“Hey.” Doyle stumbled, trying to hold on to her. “Fuck, Serena. Get up. You’re going to get in the car or I will kill you right here.”

Tears clouded her eyes as she made her decision. She wouldn’t get in that car alive. She might end up being his victim, but she wasn’t going to play this his way.

Jake had taught her a few things. God, why had she been so stubborn? The weeks she’d been with Jake and Adam had been the best weeks of her life. Adam had taken care of her, proving to be a true partner, bolstering her where she was weak, and Jake had been a real Dom. A real Dom taught his sub to be strong when she needed to be.

“I said get the fuck up.” Doyle stood over her, that nasty gun pointed right at her head. His feet were planted on either side of her hips, and he stood staring down at her like she was a piece of trash he needed to remove so his life would be lovely again.

Go for the soft spots, Serena. Self-defense doesn’t have to be about strength. It can be about smarts. It can be about using your opponent’s weaknesses against him.

Serena gathered every bit of strength she had. A punch, Jake had told her, shouldn’t stop at the target. A punch should be sent straight through.

“Get the fuck up, bitch. Do you not understand English?”

Serena fisted her right hand and drove up, trying to punch her ex-husband’s balls straight into his gut. She punched with everything she had.

Doyle gasped, his whole body doubling over. Serena pulled the gag out of her mouth and tossed it aside.

Serena took advantage, turning and starting for the street. “Help! Help me!”

She screamed as loud as she could as she ran. If he shot her in the back, then that’s what happened, but she wouldn’t let him take her away. She wouldn’t let him abuse her more than he had. And he wouldn’t get away with it. Jake and Adam would figure it out. They wouldn’t give up. They wouldn’t stop working the case because their client was dead.

They wouldn’t stop because they loved her.

“Help me!”

Serena ran toward the street. She ran with everything she had because she had something to live for beyond the characters in her head. Real life was harder and real love was scary, but it was worth every pain, every piece of heartache, and it was worth fighting for.

She heard the shot that meant the end of Bridget’s life. So much for Brian’s silencer. Pain lashed through her, but she kept running. She couldn’t stop. Her feet were being cut by rocks on the pavement, but she ran.

Almost there.

Almost there.

There was another shot, and Serena felt a sharp pain in her side. She fell, her knees buckling as she hit the pavement. Blood. There was blood at her side and a terrible burning sensation.

Almost there.

She tried to crawl.
Almost there.

Something hard hit her back.

“Not this time, Serena. You don’t get away this time.” Doyle held her ankles and flipped her over, forcing her to look at him. He aimed the gun at her head. “This time I win.”

Serena tried to fight, but she was afraid this time he was right.

She closed her eyes and thought about them. God, she wished she’d told them.

I love you.

Her last words, whispered only in her head.

I love you both so much.

* * * *

Ian caught up to Jake and Adam as Jake hit the door to The Velvet Room. His heart was pounding in his chest, but he forced himself to remain cool. Panic wouldn’t save Serena.

Liam was right behind Ian. “It’s the agent’s husband. And Serena’s ex. After Lara confessed to Ian, Adam hacked her account. I’ve been reading e-mails for days.”

Jake looked around the room. So many fucking people. Where was Serena? Liam kept talking.

“Lara kept the records for the whole company when it came to submissions. Did you know that Doyle Brooks submitted a book to Brian Anderson last year? I took it a step further and hacked into his account. They emailed back and forth, nothing too suspicious, but it got me thinking. I don’t think this is about some crazy person. This has always been about money. Lots of money.”

“Where the hell is she?” Adam asked.

“Save the explanations, Liam. We need to find her.” Jake knew they were right. He felt it in his gut. The cops were questioning the kid who had been hired. A diversion. Brian Anderson had needed a diversion at precisely 5:30. He’d gotten it. All the manpower had been chasing down some dumbass kid.

Sean walked up, a small black box in his hand. “Cell phone jammer. It was in a box of books. Mine’s still struggling. There must be more than one.”

“Where’s Serena? And where’s her agent?” Jake kept his voice low, but he felt like shouting.

“Do a sweep,” Ian ordered, sending Sean and Liam into immediate motion.

Chris Roberts moved from the crowd, a glass of champagne in his hand. The worried look on his face didn’t match his usual laid-back style. “What’s going on?”

“I need to find Serena, and I need you and Bridget to stay away from Brian Anderson.” Jake didn’t need to worry about the man using Serena’s friends as hostages.

The glass dropped from Chris’s hands, and he went a stark white. Without a word, he turned and started for the back of the building.

Adam took off after him.

Something very bad was going on. “Clear the room,” Jake ordered as he jogged past Ian.

Adam tackled Chris before he made the door.

“Stop,” Chris protested. “You have to let me in there. She went with him to go get Lara. God, I watched her do it not three minutes ago. I let her go.”

Jake understood the man’s desperation, but they had to play this smart. “You stay here. Get to Ian. Tell him what’s happening and that I need men to move around to the back of the building. I need every exit blocked, and I need the cops to put an APB out on Brian Anderson and possibly Doyle Brooks. Do you understand? As a precaution, call an ambulance and more cops. We have a potential hostage situation. I need this done as quickly as possible, and I need you to stay calm. Get to Ian. He’s the big guy who’s probably scaring the crap out of everyone right now. Tell him Jake sent you. He’ll listen.”

Chris nodded and allowed Adam to help him up.

“Three minutes is a long time,” Adam said, his jaw clenched.

“And our girl is smart. If this really is about money, they might not kill her here. They need it to look good, and that means getting away.” Jake prayed he was right. “Okay. You take my six.”

“On it.” Adam moved behind him. When they hit the back room, Adam would guard his back.

As quietly as he could, he opened the door and moved through in a firing stance.

“Dumb bitch, do you know how long I’ve wanted to do this?”

A masculine voice chuckled. The back room was littered with shelves and stacks of boxes. He couldn’t see who was talking, but he was almost certain he recognized the voice. Brian Anderson. He pointed to the southwest, where the voice had come from. Moving on silent feet, he stalked through the warehouse-like room toward the voice.

“Fuck you, Anderson. You’re not going to get away with it. Someone will figure it out.”

That wasn’t Serena. Bridget.
Fuck
. How was Bridget involved? She sounded hurt, her voice resonating with pain.

“I’m smarter than you, smarter than my dumbass wife who had to go and fuck up my business. I used to be respected. Now we’re a laughingstock. No longer. I’ll get Lara’s money and Doyle will take Serena’s. Good-bye, Bridget.”

Jake found the right row of boxes. He sent Adam to the other side with a quick nod of his head. They’d worked together most of their adult lives. Jake didn’t even have to look to know Adam was doing what he needed to do. With Adam backing him up, Jake could simply move into place.

Brian Anderson stood over Bridget, a knife in his hand. The knife was a medium-sized kitchen knife, and it looked like he’d already used it on her. He prayed Chris had called that ambulance because they were going to need it. But even as he moved into place, one question pounded through his gut.

Where was Serena? He didn’t see her. Where the hell was she?

If she was dead, he would tear through them all. Brian, Doyle, that motherfucker who had been planning to use her. He wouldn’t stop until they were all buried in the ground.

“Put the knife down.” He didn’t really want Brian Anderson to put the knife down. He wanted to shoot him, but he needed to know where Serena was first.

Anderson gasped and started to turn to run, but Adam had cut him off.

“Jake?” Bridget’s voice was a tortured moan. “You have to save her. I think he took her outside. I couldn’t see. I…please help her.”

Jake never took his eyes off Anderson, who was visibly shaking. At least Bridget thought Serena was alive. “The cops are on their way, Bridget. So is an ambulance. You just hold on. You’re going to be able to testify against this asshole.”

A sad little laugh came out of her mouth. “That would be good research, right?”

“I can’t go to jail.” The knife in Anderson’s hands shook as he looked from Adam to Jake and back again. “I didn’t do it. It was Doyle.”

“We just caught you red-handed, dumbass,” Adam explained. “Now tell us where Serena is and you might get off with attempted murder.”

“He won’t. He killed Lara. He killed his wife. He’ll go down, and thank god we’re in Texas.” Bridget sounded a little drunk. “Death penalty, buddy. Enjoy your rape time before they shove a needle in your arm.”

Jake cursed because he saw the minute Anderson made his decision. He turned to Adam and hefted the knife. He took a single step before Adam pulled the trigger. The knife hit the floor with a clatter just seconds before the agent’s body slumped down.

The door that led inside opened, and Ian stormed in, his Glock at the ready. “Serena?”

“Bridget. And apparently Lara’s here somewhere, but I don’t think she made it. I’m sorry.” Jake started for the back door. Bridget had said they took her out the back.

“I am, too.” Ian knelt by Bridget. “Go find your girl.”

Jake’s blood nearly froze when he heard a muffled scream. “Help me!” a feminine voice was calling. Serena.

Adam kicked the door open, and Jake followed him into the alley. Serena’s shoes had been kicked off in the doorway.

“To the right,” Adam said.

Jake stood beside his partner. Serena was halfway down the alley. She was laying there, her brown hair all that Jake could see of her face.

A man stood over her, his back to Jake, but Jake had been in the military and then private security for far too long to not recognize the stance. Jake couldn’t see the gun, but he knew what was happening. Doyle Brooks was going to win over his wife the only way he possibly could.