Chapter 27

SAWYER SCOWLED. DIEGOHernandez planned to kill Janie? Over Sawyer’s dead body. No one would harm Janie and live to tell the tale. No one. “Has your contact seen Hernandez’s face? Would he recognize him if we sent the sketch of the missing hostage?”

His teammate shook his head. “I sent the photo. Harry has never seen Hernandez.”

Great. Just great. If they were right and the missing hostage was Diego Hernandez, the danger to Janie wouldn’t stop until the Texas Team had a chat with the gang’s leader.

“How else can I help?” Logan asked.

“If your source is right, Hernandez will be in a Vatos Locos stronghold. I want to know the location of every compound within driving distance.”

“Copy that. Brody sent a message. He’ll be taking the next bodyguard shift.”

Sawyer glanced at his tactical watch. Two more hours. “All right. Need more coffee or a snack?”

“I wouldn’t say no.”

Janie set aside the remote and stood. “Food and coffee coming up.”

Although she tried to sound upbeat, the pitch of her voice sounded off to Sawyer.

“Thanks, Janie.” Logan stared at Sawyer for a beat in a silent command to fix the problem, then headed for the security room.

Right. He followed Janie into the kitchen and poured coffee into a to-go cup. Logan would appreciate the extra caffeine kick to stay alert.

After capping the cup, he turned to see Janie filling a dinner plate with fruit, cheese chunks, and rolled-up luncheon meat. Her hands trembled so hard she barely completed her task.

Enough. Sawyer couldn’t stand by and watch fear overwhelm the bravest woman he knew.

When Janie reached for another slice of meat to roll and place on the plate, Sawyer took her hands in his. “Hey.”

She froze, shaking.

That was more than enough. Logan could wait a few minutes. Sawyer scooped Janie into his arms, carried her to the living room, and set her on the couch where he joined her, tugging the beautiful woman into his arms.

He said nothing as he held her close until the shaking stopped. Shock. Yet something else for which Diego Hernandez had to answer. No one had the right to terrorize the woman he loved.

“Sorry,” she whispered.

“Don’t be. You know what it is.”

“Adrenaline dump.”

“Are you better now?”

She nodded. “I’ll need a nap soon, won’t I?”

“It’s almost time to sleep, anyway.”

“We have an early start tomorrow. I don’t know if I’ll be able to sleep much.”

“Anything is better than staying awake all night.” He kissed her. “Ready to take Logan his snack?”

She huffed out a breath. “He probably thinks I forgot him.”

“Not a chance.” He helped Janie to her feet. “Come on. We’ll take him food and coffee, then I’ll walk you to your room.”

“Walking me home again, Mr. Chapman?”

“You bet, Ms. Moran. It’s standard operating procedure to walk a date to the door and hopefully score a kiss at the end of a date.”

“Some date,” she murmured.

“We had dinner and watched a movie. In my book, that’s a date.”

Janie laughed as she entered the kitchen.

Excellent. Sawyer breathed easier. Crisis averted for the moment. If they found the right information in time, Janie wouldn’t be afraid anymore.

Once they delivered Logan’s snack, Sawyer escorted Janie to her room. He cupped her nape and drew her body against his. “Was our date pleasant enough for me to earn a goodnight kiss?”

She twined her arms around his neck. “I enjoyed it very much, but I’d like a redo. Maybe we can finish the movie one night when all this is over.”

“Deal. I’d love to watch the movie without interruption except for popcorn and soft drink refills.”

“Perfect.” She stood on her tiptoes and kissed Sawyer. “I’ll make a note to stock up on supplies for our date.”

Sawyer settled his mouth on Janie’s for a deep, extended kiss. “I like that plan. Maybe we can do a double feature.”

“Even better.” Janie backed out of Sawyer’s arms and into the doorway of her room. “I love you, Sawyer.”

“I love you, too, sweetheart. Come to me if you can’t sleep. I’ll be close.”

She flashed him a smile, retreated into her room, and closed the door.

Sawyer took a minute to bring his heart rate out of the stratosphere. Holy smoke. Janie Moran just did it for him. When he could think straight and draw in a full breath, he headed downstairs to the kitchen, where he poured himself a mug of coffee and joined Logan in the security room.

“She settled for the night?” Logan asked.

“For a while. I don’t know if she’ll sleep long.” So far, she’d only managed three hours of sleep at a stretch. He had a feeling tonight wouldn’t be any better. “Any progress on the search?”

“Already have one probable location.” Logan held up his hand. “I know. You want it nailed down yesterday. I’ll make more calls, but confirmation takes time.”

Sawyer squeezed his friend’s shoulder. “Keep hunting. I’m going to do more research on Maria Moran and her bodyguards.”

Logan paused with his hands hovering above the keyboard. “Need help? I can multitask.”

“Let me give it a shot first. If I can’t come up with anything, I’ll let you know.”

After a slight nod, the other operative returned to his task.

Sawyer grabbed his laptop, then glanced at his watch again. “Time for another perimeter check.” He started to stand, but Logan waved him back down.

“I’ve got it. I need to stretch my legs.”

“I’ll monitor your progress while I check in with the boss.”

Logan grabbed his empty plate and coffee cup and left. A moment later, he appeared on the security cameras.

Sawyer called Brent, who answered on the first ring.

“Maddox.”

“It’s Sawyer.”

“Sit rep.”

He gave his boss the latest update, including the name of the head of Vatos Locos, who was in Hartman or would be soon.

A sigh. “Not surprised. Every mission is more complicated than we realize at the beginning. What do you need?”

“An army.” Possibly two. How would he pull this off while keeping Janie safe? Janie wasn’t wrong. Sawyer and his teammates must convince Diego Hernandez to call off the hunt and drain the account holding the bounty money. The Vatos Locos leader would want to distance himself from the pay-to-kill order.

“Lucky for you, Durango and Artemis are in town to train together. They’re available to help for the next week.”

Thank God. He’d take those ten people over an army any day. They were skilled and ruthless. Besides, while the gang numbered several thousand members, all of them weren’t in this area. “You don’t know how glad I am to hear that news.”

“I’ll put them on alert. They’ll be ready to assist if you need them. In the meantime, keep a close watch on Janie. Her schedule is too predictable.”

Sawyer stiffened. “You know this how?”

A snort. “Come on, Chapman. My wife and I have been friends with Janie for years. We helped her set up Natural Bliss last year. Rowan stepped in several times when Janie needed more help in the shop or when her employees were out sick. We know her routine. If we know it, anyone who pays attention will know her routine as well. Watch Janie carefully, Sawyer. Rowan doesn’t want to lose her and neither do I.”

“Same.” The thought horrified him. He’d just found her and to lose her this soon? Not happening. The boss was right. Janie’s predictable routine would make her an easy target. He’d have to make sure she was covered. “I’ll take care of her, sir.”

“I’m counting on it.” Brent ended the call.

Logan dropped into the seat beside him. “How’d it go?”

“Brent is worried.”

“He has reason to be concerned. So do you.”

“I’m aware.”

“Then let’s find what we need to protect your woman and extract her from the mess she’s in.”

Logan dove back into his search for probable gang locations as Sawyer resumed his background research on Maria and her bodyguards. After scanning official records, Sawyer pushed back from the computer console and stood. “Time for another perimeter check. Need more coffee?”

“Better switch to water now.”

“I’ll bring water in with me when I return.”

“Thanks.”

After depositing his mug in the dishwasher, Sawyer disabled the alarm and walked outside. While he walked the perimeter, searching for anomalies, he considered his options to keep Janie safe from Hernandez and his cronies. Precious few, he realized. He evaluated and discarded multiple ideas until he settled on the only viable plan. Risky option but necessary.

Circuit completed, Sawyer returned to the house, reset the alarm, snagged four bottles of water, and went to the security room. He gave two bottles to Logan, then resumed his seat and tackled Maria Moran’s social media accounts.

He flinched at the sheer number of posts with photos included. Sawyer could spend hours looking at everything Maria shared with the world.

What about her bodyguards? Both of them were her cousins. Would they be as apt to post their whole lives for the world to see? Probably not since they were members of Vatos Locos. The gang wasn’t interested in using social media as a recruiting tool.

He checked social media accounts for the names of the two men and came up with zip.

Back to Maria’s posts then. He planned to go to the very beginning of her posts, but it made more sense to scan posts beginning a year before she met David Moran.

He scanned photographs, recognizing her bodyguards in several pictures. Sawyer noticed several photos of Maria in the arms of a man with his back to the camera.

Huh. He checked the date the photo was posted. Two months ago. Sawyer studied the shot. The man Maria watched with blinding love in her eyes was not Janie’s brother.

“Find something?” Logan asked.

“Trouble in paradise.” He turned the laptop so his teammate could study the photo.

“That’s not Moran?”

“Nope. His shoulders aren’t that broad. Also, this guy is at least six inches shorter than David.”

Logan grunted. “That’s not a look shared between siblings or cousins.”

“Makes me wonder if this man has something to do with what’s happening to Janie.”

“How?”

“Janie’s Granny Irene left her a lot of money in her will, provided she gave nothing except a bequest to David. The grandmother was well aware of his tendency to blow money at casinos and the racetrack.”

“He’s in financial trouble. Makes sense that Maria might want to solve their money problems the easy way. Think it’s possible Maria is tired of her husband and hoped to get rid of him when Janie wouldn’t bail him out of trouble again?”

“Pretty extreme way to handle things. Why not just divorce David and start fresh with Mystery Man?”

“Perhaps David wouldn’t cooperate, especially now that a baby is on the way.”

Made sense. “Custody would be messy, considering the judicial system of two countries would be involved.” He dragged a hand down his face. “I hate to tell Janie about this.”

“We don’t have proof.”

“In this case, a picture is worth a thousand words. I think we’re right, but I don’t know if it has bearing on what’s happening to Janie.” Or rather, he didn’t want to think Maria Moran was cold-hearted enough to kill an innocent woman and her own husband for Granny Irene’s money. Then again, he’d known people to kill for a lot less than a few million dollars.

“Get rid of the husband and the sister-in-law, and start a new life with your lover and baby with the grandmother’s money.” Logan grimaced. “Cold.”

Sawyer looked at the photo again. Not much to go on except the back of Mystery Man’s head. “Wonder if Janie met him in Chile.”

“Only one way to find out. Ask her when she wakes.”

Brody arrived an hour later. “Sit rep.”

“Found something interesting while scanning Maria Moran’s social media pages.” Sawyer angled his laptop so his team leader could see the photo array he’d downloaded from the social media site. “What do you see?”

The other operative studied the photos for a minute, then said, “A woman in love.”

“That’s not David Moran.”

Brody’s gaze flicked back to the photos. “How long ago were these posted?”

“Two months.”

A soft whistle. “Has Janie seen these?”

“Not yet.”

“I’m curious what she’ll make of the pictures.” He studied Sawyer’s face. “You haven’t slept?”

“No time.”

“Make time. You’ll only get about three hours as it is. Go, Chapman. That’s an order.”

He scowled, but shut down his laptop. Much as he hated to admit it, the short nights of sleep were catching up with him. “Won’t you need help overnight?”

“Jesse will be here in an hour. Logan will stay until Jesse arrives. Go, Sawyer.”

“Yes, sir.”

Sawyer took the stairs two at a time, peered into Janie’s room to make sure she was all right, then got ready for bed. Minutes later, he stretched out on top of the quilt on his bed and dropped into sleep.

An internal alarm woke Sawyer a few minutes before 4:00 and admitted to himself he felt more alert. Hopefully, Janie would be safe soon and the team could rest before Brent sent them out again for another mission.

He splashed cold water on his face and changed clothes. Ready for another day, Sawyer grabbed his laptop and Go bag, and walked into the hall, glancing at Janie’s room. The door was closed, indicating she was awake and preparing for the early morning trek to the shop.

Wishing he could persuade her to avoid the shop wouldn’t change her mind about going. Although Janie had cooperated with his requests to keep her safe, in this one thing, she was immovable. Sawyer didn’t blame her. Natural Bliss was her livelihood, and her staff couldn’t handle everything by themselves long term.

While he admired her work ethic, trouble was coming, and soon. Short of kidnapping Janie and spiriting her away to a deserted island, his only recourse was to hope for the best and prepare for the worst. He prayed the worst wouldn’t have deadly consequences.

Sawyer walked downstairs to the kitchen.

Brody turned and studied him for a moment. He gave a brief nod. “You look better.” He handed Sawyer a mug filled with coffee. “Janie sleep okay?”

“She didn’t leave her room during the night.” If she had, Sawyer would have awakened immediately. “Everything okay overnight?”

“No excitement unless you count a coyote stalking a cat through the neighborhood.”

“Quiet is good.”

“Won’t last. Something’s coming.”

“Yeah.” He booted up his laptop to bring up the picture of Maria with Mystery Man. When the photos loaded, Sawyer studied the photo array he’d cobbled together from images on Maria’s social media pages.

Who was this man? He wasn’t an expert on emotions, but he’d become good at reading people’s expressions while on the job as a cop. Maria Moran wasn’t exchanging pleasantries with a family member or a friend. She loved this man. What did that mean for David?

Nothing good. He wasn’t a fan of Janie’s brother, but he didn’t wish him trouble in his marriage either.

Sawyer left the photos up on the screen and rose to prepare tea for his soon-to-be wife. The thought stole his breath. As soon as Janie was safe, he’d shop for her engagement ring. No way would he deploy again without a ring on her finger, so every man recognized she was taken. He wanted a spectacular engagement ring and wedding band. She deserved the best.

He filled a large mug with water, then searched the tea cabinet for a flavor Janie might enjoy. Sawyer spotted a box of chamomile honey tea. Something soothing and a little sweet to start her day right.

After dumping two bags of tea in the water, he nuked it and found a large travel mug with a lid. When the heating cycle finished, Sawyer set the tea aside to steep. Light footsteps on the stairs heralded Janie’s approach.

She walked into the kitchen and straight into Sawyer’s arms. “Good morning,” she murmured.

“Good morning, beautiful.” He kissed her, mindful of his team leader watching them. “Sleep okay?”

Janie shrugged. “I woke frequently, worrying about David. Have either of you heard how he’s doing?”

“Simone hacked into hospital records an hour ago,” Brody said. “He’s in the security room.”

She eased away from Sawyer and turned toward the hall. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

As soon as she was out of earshot, Brody turned to Sawyer. “What was that?”

“The kiss?”

“Don’t play dumb, Chapman. Are you wanting to be kicked off her security detail?”

“We’re getting married as soon as possible. Whether or not I’m on her detail, I won’t leave her side. End of story.”

“Does the boss know this?”

“He does. If I can’t keep my head in the game, he’ll replace me.” He folded his arms across his chest. “Don’t tell me you would have done anything different. We all saw how protective and territorial you were with Sage. You didn’t give control of her security detail to someone else.”

“I had a history with Sage,” Brody snapped. “We had years to build a relationship. You’ve had days.”

“Janie is mine to protect, Brody. I love her more than I thought possible in such a short time. Don’t ask me to step aside. I won’t do it, even if it means resigning from Fortress.”

His team leader hissed out a breath. “Do not get distracted. You hear me? I don’t want to make a call to your mother and brothers to tell them you’re dead.”

“I’ll stay alert. I have a lifetime of plans with Janie.”

“You have to stay alive to fulfill the plans.”

Janie returned to the kitchen, her expression troubled.

“What did Jesse say?” Sawyer asked.

“They’re seeing signs he’s coming around. But they still don’t have any idea how much damage has been done. Worse, I won’t be allowed to see him. What if he thinks I’ve abandoned him?”

He wrapped his arms around her. “I’m sorry, Janie. Fortress has access to the best medical professionals in the business. As long as David is in the US, he’ll have the best medical care we can provide.”

“He has good insurance.”

“Excellent. Between the insurance and Fortress, he’ll have everything he needs to recover as much as possible. Hopefully, your sister-in-law will change her mind about allowing you to visit soon.”

Sawyer released her and turned to pour her tea into the travel mug. Hopefully, his girl would find the taste soothing.

“Where did you get these pictures?” Janie asked, shock on her face.

He turned to see Janie staring at the computer screen. “I copied them from Maria’s social media posts. Do you recognize Mystery Man?”

She turned to him, her face white. “He’s the missing hostage.”