Chapter Sixteen

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Nash silently cursed every word of profanity that he knew. And he forced the muscles in his body to unclench. He needed to stay level. Needed to think.

Because he didn’t believe Bodie was lying about having Ruby.

On some off chance that he was, Nash used the landline on the desk to try to call his boss. And it went straight to voicemail.

Hell.

Bodie had her all right. With everything going on, Ruby would have answered if she had been able to do it.

Dreading what he would see, he looked at Caroline. She was way too pale and understandably shaking. But he saw some fight in her, too. Some anger.

Good.

Nash might have to tap into that anger to keep her strong for what they were about to face. And what they were about to face would be bad. The stuff of nightmares for Caroline.

“Still there, darlin’?” Bodie asked in a taunt. “Hope the cat didn’t get your tongue.”

“It didn’t,” Caroline snapped, and Nash saw another burst of anger. “Where’s my mother?”

“Right here with me,” Bodie supplied. “And now I’m going to have her say something. A proof of life kind of deal since I figured that’s something you’d press for. What would you like for her to say so I can have her repeat it?”

Caroline looked at Nash, and he jotted down a question. “Where is Bodie holding you?” she read.

Moments later, he heard Ruby’s voice. “Where is Bodie holding you,” she repeated.

There was the sound of some kind of movement, and Nash got the sense that Ruby had been about to add something else, but Bodie had silenced her. He didn’t want to think of how Bodie would have accomplished that. Ruby wasn’t an easy person to intimidate.

Or to capture.

“How did Bodie get to you?” Nash asked.

“Ah, my brother,” Bodie said as if that called for some kind of celebration. “Of course, I knew you were there. Joined at the hip with Caroline, aren’t you? I’m guessing you don’t mind getting my leftovers.”

Shit. That did it. This time it was more than anger that crossed Caroline’s face. It was pure, raging fury.

“You limp dick loser,” Caroline spat out. “You never had me, so I’m not your leftovers.”

Bodie laughed, but, oh, there was a dangerous edge to it. He did not like being dressed down by anyone, not even his obsession.

Nash was glad that Caroline had managed to get in that dig, but this was a lethal game, and at the moment, Bodie had the advantage.

Because he had Ruby.

“So, how do you see this playing out, brother?” Nash snarled because, hey, he was dealing with his own rage for this sonofabitch.

“I see it playing out with Caroline exchanging herself for her mother,” Bodie answered without a heartbeat of hesitation.

There was some more movement on the other end of the line, and Nash wondered if once again, Ruby had tried to get in her own two cents worth. No way would Ruby want Caroline to make an exchange like that. But then, Caroline wouldn’t just stand by and let her mother be killed in her place.

Damn it all to hell.

That meant this was the ultimate rock and a hard place.

Because Nash didn’t intend to let either Caroline or Ruby die.

“Where is this exchange supposed to happen?” Nash asked while he fired off a message to Slade to let him know what was going on. Slade should be able to tap into Spock and listen to the rest of the conversation for himself.

“So very close,” Bodie answered. “I made it convenient for you. All you have to do is come to the security gate. You know the one. You would have driven through it to take Caroline into Slade’s house.”

Yeah, that was close. Damn close. And risky since it was daylight.

Nash went with a deflection ploy. One that wouldn’t work, but he needed time for Slade to respond. “What makes you think we’re at the lake house?”

“Oh, don’t bullshit a bullshitter, Nash. My beautiful but often clueless bride helped with that before I even got out of that hellhole prison where Caroline had me locked away. Weeks ago, Jordana used some of her money to set up little bitty cameras every damn where. If there was a possibility that Caroline would be in or around a place, then it’s got a camera.”

Yeah, Nash could see Jordana doing that if Bodie asked her to do it. Anything for her husband, but she couldn’t have been pleased about her man giving so much attention to another woman.

“Jordana is a good obedient lapdog,” Bodie went on. “And she didn’t skimp on quality for the cameras. She got good ones with crystal clear feed so I could see Caroline’s face wherever she was coming or going. Or running scared. I liked looking at those.”

Nash did more cursing and not just because Bodie was being a prime asshole with all this goading. He cursed because it meant Bodie had been planning this for a while. And apparently, planning it well. Still, it was very risky to try to go after Caroline like this.

And that meant Bodie had likely taken other precautions.

For one thing, Bodie probably wasn’t alone with Ruby right now. Jordana could be nearby. Or maybe one of his thug friends. Nash was betting the one doing the assisting was poised and ready to shoot.

Not at Caroline.

But at him.

Bodie would know he’d be going with her and would want to eliminate the threat. Then, he could try to kill both Caroline and Ruby.

Try.

Because neither woman was going to make this easy for him. Still, Bodie could use them to his advantage. While Ruby and Caroline were trying to save each other, he could strike then. And he might win.

Damn it.

Bodie could maybe make this work.

“Here’s the deal,” Bodie went on. “Caroline has to come right now. I don’t want to give Slade or somebody else time to get here. Be at the gate in five minutes, or I start stabbing holes in Caroline’s mommy.”

With that, the taunting and goading were apparently over because Bodie ended the call.

Caroline practically jumped out of the chair. “We can use some of Slade’s equipment,” she said right off the bat.

Nash was already heading to the supply room, and he handed her a Kevlar vest. “Remember, this doesn’t stop a head shot. This might.”

He handed her a helmet. Not the bulky kind but an experimental model that one of Ruby’s techs had designed. It was lightweight and didn’t cut down on visibility nearly as much as the regular ones.

“You’re wearing one, too,” she insisted. “Of course, Bodie didn’t say you had to come with me…” She stopped when she obviously noticed his quick glare. “But you’re going.” She stopped again. “Thank you for that. But don’t get killed, okay? Just don’t get killed.”

“Right back at you.”

And because he thought they both needed it, he kissed her. Nothing long and deep since those minutes were ticking away. But he made the kiss count.

Then, he hoped it wouldn’t be their last.

“Grab whatever weapon you think you can use,” he instructed when he eased away from her.

She did. Caroline stuffed a Sig Sauer in the back waist of her jeans and took a Glock that she gripped in her hand.

“I have my knife,” she said, tapping the holder on the outside of her boot. “I’m betting Bodie will have one, too.”

Bodie would. No doubts about that. The asshole was going to try to recreate the attack from eighteen years ago.

Nash grabbed another Glock to go with his primary and backup guns, and he shoved both a smoke bomb and a tear gas canister into his pockets. Then, he checked the time.

Three minutes.

They went to his SUV just as Nash’s phone rang. “Slade,” he told her, and he took the call while he drove out of the garage.

“What’s going on?” Slade immediately asked.

“Bodie has Ruby. He’s at the gate of your lake house, and Caroline and I are heading there now.”

“Wait for me,” Slade insisted.

“Can’t,” Nash let him know. “Bodie gave us five minutes, and we have just enough time to make it.”

Which had no doubt been a key component in this plan. Bodie hadn’t wanted them to be able to come up with a way to stop this.

Slade cursed. “I’m on the way. I’ll be there in ten.”

Nash knew that wouldn’t be soon enough. Well, not unless they could stall Bodie. But Bodie would no doubt be anticipating just that and would want to act before help arrived.

He ended the call with Slade and drove to the gate, a trip that seemed to fly by at lightning speed. But it’d eaten up all but ninety seconds of the deadline. Not enough time for him to do much, but he gave Caroline one critical instruction.

“If shots are fired, get down,” he told her.

“You’ll do the same?” she asked.

He considered lying but decided she wouldn’t believe it anyway. “No. I’ll return fire, but I’ll need you to get down so I don’t have to worry about watching you and whoever’s shooting at me.”

Spelling that out was slathering her with guilt. But maybe it would work to keep her alive. Of course, even if she did get down, that wasn’t going to stop him from worrying about her. Down didn’t mean she’d have adequate cover to stop her from being shot.

She sighed but didn’t argue. No time for that either. The moment he stopped, he used the code to open the gate. They got out and started toward a showdown that was eighteen years in the making.

Nash kept slightly ahead of Caroline, and he fired glances around them, looking for a shooter. Looking for Bodie and Ruby, too.

He didn’t see either of them.

He also didn’t hear anything. It wasn’t as quiet as a tomb but close enough, what with no birds chirping, wind blowing or people talking. Then again, it was a Wednesday, and most residents probably didn’t come here until the weekend.

Nash motioned for Caroline to follow him to the side of the gate, where there was a metal box to manually key in codes. The wrought iron fence next to it also had thick pylons that he hoped would prevent Caroline and him from being shot from behind. For that to happen though, the shooter would have had to get inside the neighborhood.

A possibility.

But Nash figured there was an easier hiding place. He put his money on either the eight-foot-high limestone sign for the neighborhood or one of the deep ditches on the sides of the private road. There were some trees, but they weren’t nearly tall or thick enough for a sniper to perch in one and send a hail of bullets their way.

“Time’s up,” he heard Bodie say.

His brother stepped out from behind the limestone sign, and he had Ruby positioned in front of him in a chokehold. Bodie had used duct tape on both her wrists and ankles.

But she was alive.

For now.

However, Bodie had the tip of a skinning knife pressed to her neck, no doubt right on the carotid artery. One jab and Ruby would bleed out long before the EMTs could arrive.

Behind him, Nash felt Caroline move, and for a second he thought she might bolt out to get to her mother. She didn’t. She stayed put, but Nash could hear her now labored breathing.

“Ah, you came dressed up just for me,” Bodie purred. “All that gear. But, you know, darlin’, there are still plenty of places to put a knife.” He laughed. “Then again, you have personal experience with that, don’t you?”

Nash skipped asking Ruby if she was all right. Clearly, she wasn’t. So, he went with another question. “How did Bodie get to you?” And while she answered, Nash would take the time to assess if he had a clean shot to end Bodie’s miserable life.

It wasn’t Ruby who answered though. But rather Bodie.

“In the parking lot of the county sheriff’s office,” Bodie spelled out. “Ruby must not have thought I’d be ballsy enough to hang out there, what with all those badges around. But since being ballsy is my forte, I aimed a gun at her before she could draw hers. Then, I asked her something. Something real important. I said: Are you willing to die to save your baby girl?”

“Hell,” he heard Caroline mutter.

That was very mild profanity compared to what Nash spat out.

“FYI,” Bodie went on. “She told me yes, she’d be willing to die if I left Caroline alone. I swore to her on my own mama’s grave that I would, that it’d be enough for me to have Caroline suffering and grieving over her mother’s death.” He paused. Grinned. “But, of course, I lied. Suffering and grieving aren’t enough.” Bodie licked Ruby’s cheek, causing her to grimace. “Never trust a convicted felon.”

“I didn’t trust you,” Ruby said. “I just hoped Caroline wouldn’t come, that she’d see it for the trap that it was.”

“It’s not a trap unless it works,” Nash countered, and he aimed a hard stare at Bodie. “Are you here to talk us to death? To bore us with your bullshit? Which, by the way, makes you sound like… I’ll borrow a phrase from Caroline. A limp dick loser.”

Maybe that would goad Bodie into moving just enough for that kill shot. Something that at the moment Nash didn’t have.

Bodie glared at him. But didn’t move.

“Sorry to bore you,” Bodie growled. “However, it’s not you that I want dead. I want the suffering and grief for you as a survivor to this payback mission. Same for Ruby, too. The only person who needs to die today is Caroline.” He shifted his attention to her. “So, are you woman enough to take what’s coming to you, or are you going to risk the lives of your lover boy and your mama?”

“I’m woman enough,” Caroline verified with absolutely no hesitation. “By the way, a wise man once told me, ‘Don’t bring a knife to a gunfight.’”

Amused or at least pretending to be anyway, Bodie chuckled. “This isn’t a gunfight.”

“You’re wrong about that,” Caroline said like a challenge.

And she stepped to Nash’s side, causing him to do a whole lot of silent cursing. He was ready to jump in front of her if she tried to take another step. But she didn’t get the chance.

The sound of the approaching car had Bodie quickly ducking back behind the sign.

Obviously, this visitor wasn’t part of his plan, and Nash knew it was way too soon for Slade to arrive.

And he was right.

It wasn’t Slade.

The black Jaguar sped toward them, skidding to a stop. Seconds later, the driver barreled out. He didn’t have a lawyer with him today. No bodyguard driver either. He was alone and clearly spoiling for a fight.

Leland.