Chapter 8

SAWYER’S GUT TWISTEDinto a knot. If Janie could identify the head of the gang, she had a huge target on her back. The gang was notorious for eliminating all loose ends. No exceptions. “Janie, can you think of any reason someone would want to kidnap you?”

Janie shook her head. “I make and sell soap and bath salt for a living. My customers let me know quickly if something isn’t to their liking. They certainly don’t create an elaborate plot to kidnap and kill me because they don’t like the scent of their bath salts.”

“What about in your personal life? Do you have a boyfriend or husband, current or ex, with a grudge against you?” He hated to ask these questions, but they were necessary. As a homicide cop, he’d asked similar questions of spouses, loved ones, and friends. The answers varied. The resentment didn’t. Would Janie resent his probing into her private life?

“Sawyer.” Brent’s voice held an unspoken warning to tread carefully.

He held up a hand to prevent his boss from protesting further. “Janie?”

“Not a boyfriend or husband.”

Sawyer considered Janie’s response, her careful choice of words. “But someone else.” Who had something against her and what caused the division?

“Yes,” she murmured.

“Who?” Brent asked.

Janie remained silent.

“We want to protect you,” he continued. “We can’t do the job properly if we don’t have all the facts.”

Sawyer squeezed her fingers. “My team will protect you regardless, but we’ll do a better job if we know who to look for.”

Her eyes glittered. “He would never hurt me.”

Brent pounced on that. “He? Give us a name, Janie.”

“Why? He’s not to blame for what happened to me or the other passengers on the plane. He was at home with his wife.”

After a moment, Sawyer said, “Your brother?”

Brent scowled. “David threatened you?”

“It’s not what you think.” Janie huddled deeper into the blanket.

“Then why are you afraid?” Sawyer asked. He wrapped his arm around Janie’s shoulders.

To his dismay, she shivered continuously. A reaction to reliving the events from the hijacking, or was it something else? Whatever was causing her response triggered a massive protective reaction in him. What was up with that? He’d literally just met the woman a few hours prior.

Sawyer shoved the consternation behind a steel wall to deal with when he was alone. “Talk to me, sweetheart. Tell me who scares you.”

“My brother.”

Brent shoved up from the couch to pace.

Not a good sign. Sawyer watched his agitated boss. Brent never paced. “Brent?”

“Not yet,” he snapped.

He flinched at the sharp-edged response and turned to Janie. “Talk to me. Help me understand what’s happening here.”

“When our parents died in a plane crash, our grandmother took us in and raised us.” She smiled. “Raising teenagers isn’t for the faint of heart, but Granny Irene loved a challenge. She loved us fiercely.”

Her smile faded. “Then she was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer. Granny Irene was gone in three months. I was a senior in college. David was already working for the engineering firm that employs him now. He was packing his belongings, preparing to move to the Chilean office where he’s located now.”

“What happened?”

“Because he was two years older, David expected to be named as executor of Granny Irene’s estate.” She looked at Brent, who had returned to his seat and now rested his forearms on his thighs. “Granny Irene made me the executor instead.”

“Why?” Sawyer asked. What was she so reluctant to share?

“David is hardworking and great at his job. His employer sings his praise all the time.”

“But?” he prompted.

“He’s not so great at managing money.”

And there it was. The secret Janie hadn’t wanted to share. “He contested the will?”

She nodded. “The court rejected the challenge.”

“David objected to the terms of the will?”

“He wanted control of the money from the estate.”

“Your grandmother left everything to you?”

Another nod. “I was supposed to give David the amount she wanted him to have. Granny Irene gave the rest of the estate to me.”

Brent whistled. “No wonder your brother was angry.”

“Furious is a better description. He needed more money, although he never told me why when he pressured me to sell everything and split the proceeds evenly with him.”

Sawyer and Brent exchanged glances. “Does your brother have addictions, Janie?” Sawyer asked.

She stared. “Addictions?”

“Drugs or alcohol?”

“No, of course not.” Despite her vehement denial, she dropped her gaze.

“Are you sure?” Brent asked softly.

Her cheeks colored. “He left for Chile the day after his challenge was rejected. We talk little and certainly nothing about his habits.”

Sawyer frowned. “Although you’re not close, you visited him in Chile.”

Janie gave a small shrug. “He married a sweet woman three months ago. She’s been begging me to come visit them. I thought David knew she’d invited me. Turns out she didn’t tell him until I was on the doorstep. He wasn’t pleased. My brother spent the two weeks I was there at the office or trying to convince me to do what was right.”

Jerk. “How long has it been since your grandmother passed away?”

“Almost four years.”

“And he still needs money?”

“That’s what he told me.” Janie sighed. “He cranked up the pressure to boiling while I was there. It turns out that Maria, his wife, is pregnant. He says he needs money to prepare for the baby’s arrival.”

Brent hissed out a breath. “So David is using guilt to get you to change your mind about your grandmother’s property. Why didn’t you tell me, sugar? I would have talked to David.”

And forced him to back off, too. Sawyer’s boss didn’t put up with anything from his employees or anyone else. If something was wrong, he called attention to it, and this had warning signs stamped all over it.

“Brent, you have enough problems to deal with daily. This is nothing compared to the life-threatening emergencies you handle. I’ve held firm for the past three years. I’ll do as my grandmother wanted. Besides, David will receive more money in two years.”

“But not as much as he wants or says he deserves,” Sawyer murmured. “Right?”

Janie nodded.

“How much is he asking for?” Brent asked.

“Two million dollars.”

Sawyer’s head whipped toward hers. “Holy smoke, Janie.”

“I know babies are expensive, but no one should need that much money to decorate a room and buy clothes and diapers.” Brent scowled. “So, what does David really want the money for?”

“I don’t know.” She grimaced. “He never told me.”

“You went to Chile to repair the relationship with your brother?”

“And failed in spectacular fashion,” she said, her tone dry. “All he wanted was the money which I can’t give him according to the terms of Granny Irene’s will.”

“Will you go back to Chile?” Sawyer asked.

“I want to see my niece or nephew. This time, though, I’m going to stay in a nearby hotel. I don’t want to be in the way, and I need a place to retreat to when David continues to plead his case.”

He couldn’t help but admire her grit and courage. Most people would have thrown up their hands and walked away. Not Janie, though.

“Let me know when you plan to go back,” Brent said. “One of us will go with you.”

“Oh, but….”

“David’s not as likely to corner you when someone else is with you.”

Janie gave a slight smile. “Thanks, Brent.”

“We could have a problem,” Zane said, his voice grim.

“Sit rep.” Brent turned toward his communications and tech guru.

“I’m picking up chatter on the dark web. The Vatos Locos are stirred up about someone important coming to the states soon.”

His eyes narrowed. “And?”

“The visitor is bringing two heavy hitters with him to take care of a problem.” Zane looked at Janie.