33. Gideon

GIDEON

W e entered the house through a secret compartment into the underground office. My heart hasn't stopped beating me to death since I got the news but I was steady as a fucking rock.

According to what I found here someone might very well die in the next five minutes. She had to be okay, I won't accept anything less, I hadn't found her only to lose her like this a scant few months later, life couldn't be that fucking cruel.

Gage motioned to me with a finger to his lips; there was movement beyond the door. I made my way cautiously over to the cameras to see what was going on.

There was no camera feed in the panic room, a stupid oversight on my part; I'd just always thought I'd be on the other side and didn't necessarily want anyone else looking in. That would be first on my agenda.

I heard him before he appeared on screen. "Come out, come out wherever you are. Here little Ashley I have a message from the doc, remember him?" He was feeling around the walls looking for a hidden panel I guess. The man in my hallway did not in any way resemble the dashing debonair senator of the media. He was disheveled and haggard looking. I guess that's what happens when your world is crumbling down around you.

I made a move toward the door but the guys got in my way.

"Steady, steady, we don't know who's out there, we're going in blind the cameras to some parts of the house were deactivated. I can't let you go out there man not until we know for sure."

"Get the fuck out of my way Gage." He might be right but I couldn't stop to think about that now. Somewhere on this very floor not far from me she was scared, that thought alone had me going crazy.

"Where the fuck is she you sure she's here we can't be seen here together?" Another man could be heard through the door, I wasn't quite sure who he was until the senator started talking because his face was hidden.

"Shut the fuck up doc this is all your fault I told you we should've kept a closer eye on her but no you thought that fuck up had it under control, now look at the mess we're in."

"Calm down senator, no use passing blame around we need to find the girl and find out what she told this Thorpe fuck."

"And then what?"

"Then we off them both and get the hell out of here."

"We can't kill the girl I need her...."

"You always were a crazy fuck, it's too late for that."

"Screw you doc."

"You sure Starks said she was here?"

"Yes."

Gideon

I felt my heart drop, Jason? Had Jason betrayed us? But how why? Wait a minute that didn't make any sense. If it had been Jason she never would've made it to the safe room, would she? What the hell was going on here?

"Let's move I need to get to my wife. "

"Okay Gideon we're just making sure that that's it. We still haven't located the security detail in the building and we don't know how we were breeched, if it was an inside job then we need to be careful, we could be walking into a trap."

"Where are they?"

"Don't know yet they're not at their post that much we know other than that I couldn't say and we can't go looking because we'd alert those two and whoever else they have with them that we're here. She's safe in that room boss you have it stocked with everything she needs. We'll have her out in no time."

Yes, again all that's true but my baby will be scared and she's been through so much already in her young life...

"They don't leave here alive." Forget trials and long drawn out bullshit, today was the last those two fucks will ever draw breath.

"That's a given boss."

It felt like forever before Gage gave the all clear. Maurice had gone somewhere and came back with the news that the guards had been knocked out. At least they were still alive.

Apparently the two now crawling through my house baiting my wife had used some sort of sleeping gas. I was still trying to figure out who had told them where to find her.

I know our marriage had been in the papers yes but neither of those men are locals and my address isn't public knowledge. Sanders might've talked before he bought it but he didn't know where I lived either so which Starks had it been? The father or the son?

"How much longer?"

"Soon Gideon, there's a lot to take into consideration here, we have an unknown in the house granted it wasn't the kid that sold us out, which I'm inclined to believe he didn't. If we off these two assholes we have clean up, the team's already on standby by the way; you're gonna want to get to Ashley as soon as possible and I'm thinking you don't want her seeing dead bodies laying around, too many questions."

"So we have to do this right. On top of that, although this place is like a fort it's still surrounded by other high-rise buildings and you have more glass in here than the Corning Ware factory; you get the picture? We need them in the right location to act, then we'll move."

What he said made perfect sense but still all I could think of was her fear. Now I had the added worry of whether or not her friend had betrayed her as well. Knowing her if that proved to be true it would hurt her more than being hunted by her old tormentors would. One thing's for sure, if Jason Starks had betrayed us kid or not he was done.

Ashley

I know Gideon will come and get me, I know Gideon will come and get me. I kept saying it over and over to myself as I rocked back and forth. I wasn't really scared, not really. Gideon had told me all about the room so I knew that no one could get in. I think I'm more worried about Gideon coming home and getting hurt. I hadn't had time to grab my phone when I'd seen them coming on the cameras.

I still don't know what had made me look. I'd been watching a movie and laughing, just biding my time until I could go bother Jace. I'd been about to go get a snack, which seemed to be all I ever did these days. It was then that I'd fooled around with the computer and seen them.

I didn't stop to think, with my heart in my throat I'd sprung into action and had gone flying down the hallway. I knew if they got their hands on me I'd be dead, my baby would be dead and I'd never see my Gideon again. That more than anything had propelled me into action. When panic threatened to over power me I kept his smiling face in my head.

"I'm sure your husband has this place rigged some kinda way so he knows what's going on. I bet you he'll be here any minute with his goon platoon to rescue us."

Jace had been saying funny things like that for the last half hour to keep my mind off of what was going on. I'd stopped looking at the cameras that showed the two men combing the house looking for me. It made me sick to my stomach to watch. Jace had turned off the volume after they'd started taunting me but every once in a while he took a look to see what they were up to. I couldn't bear to look at them, evil.

"Hey Ash how about a game of chess? I saw a board around here somewhere."

I just looked at him, he was trying so hard to keep me from losing it but this couldn't be easy for him either.

"I'm sorry Jace." He threw a cheese doodle at me.

"Don't be stupid you didn't do anything wrong, I just wish I'd been armed so I could've shot those two assholes instead of hiding out in here. Why didn't you let me go get the gun like I wanted to?"

"Now who's being stupid? You can't shoot a United States senator they'd lock you up and throw away the key."

"What do you think Gideon and his guys are gonna do to them, invite them out for a beer?"

" I don't wanna think about it."

"So don't, you want some ice cream?"

"Ice cream, he has ice cream in here?"

"Did you look in the refrigerator? Dude was planning for Armageddon."

"Yeah, but ice cream wouldn't it go bad?"

"Who knows what goes on in the head of the rich and crazy? I'm sure he has it restocked every few months or something."

"I'll thank you not to call my husband crazy thank you very much." He threw another cheese doodle at me.

JACE

I have to keep Ashley calm, for a minute there I thought she was gonna lose it. I had no doubt that Thorpe would be here soon if he wasn't already. The guy didn't strike me as the type to mess around with her safety and knowing what has been going on lately I'm sure he had it under control.

The other reason is my guilt. I'd heard one of the assholes tell the other that Starks had told him she was here, that could only be my father. I should've killed him when I had the chance, should've killed all of them for what they did to her.

Gideon

The doctor checked his watch as he followed the senator down the hall. I could breathe easier now since they'd moved to the second floor, one floor overhead. "I'm going for her."

No one tried to stop me this time as I made my way to the door. With gun drawn I looked both ways before making my way stealthily down the hall to the door camouflaged as a mural. It would be hard for anyone who didn't know that it was there to find the seam as it wasn't obvious to the naked eye.

I used my own code to open the door and step in. The door was hardly closed before she came flying at me. Starks just looked at us and rolled his eyes and I have to admit to breathing a sigh of relief. I'd begun to grow rather fond of the kid, wasn't really looking forward to putting a bullet in him; glad to know I wouldn't have to.

"It's okay love I'm here you can stop crying now." Her poor body shook with the force of her sobs as I held her as close as I possibly could. The way she clutched at me tore at my heart, reinforcing the certainty that I'd been right to tell Gage in the end to save those two for me.

Gage was right, taking them out here would raise too many questions, I hadn't thought of that. Keeping them on ice at a secret location until I could deal with them made way more sense.

I still had to wait for the beep in my pocket to let me know it was clear to leave the room. I didn't want her getting anywhere near those two monsters. I'm sure she'd have a million questions especially when news of their disappearance hit the airwaves in the not too distant future, but I'll deal with that when the time came.

"Look at me Blossom." I lifted her tearstained face and ignored Starks's kissy faces in the background. The kid might not catch a bullet but he just might get a smack to the back of the head.

"You're safe, everything's going to be okay; this worrying can't be good for the little one now can it?" I covered her still flat stomach with my hand, not only to offer her comfort but for me as well. To reaffirm to myself that everything I loved was safe.