18
Bailey stopped at the top of the stairs and blinked back tears at the sight of Angel holding Maria. To see the child so happy lifted her heart. And when Angel was with Maria, the haunted look in his eyes disappeared. But the child didn’t change just him—she changed everyone who came into contact with her. Even Danny had succumbed to her charm. Danny. Bailey was seeing a different side of him. Gentler, yet with strength in the gentleness.
Maybe when this was all over, they could . . . do what? Did she dare to hope they might have a future? She’d told Danny last night she loved him. And he loved her. It shouldn’t be complicated. But it was. Even though she’d resolved to release her fear and trust God, that resolve hadn’t been tested.
But that wasn’t the only obstacle. She and Danny didn’t want the same things out of life. She’d been the happiest she’d ever been when she first arrived in Mexico, giving the tea parties and teaching the women in the village. What if Danny didn’t want her to return to Mexico?
Did she even know anymore what she wanted to do with her life? This week had changed everything. She had another two months on her contract. But after that, what? It was something she had to sort out. But right now she needed to focus on the trip to Corning. “Have you heard from Danny?” she asked.
Angel glanced up and waved. “Not yet.”
Footsteps stomped on the porch. “Maybe that’s him now.”
The door opened, and Danny hurried in. He caught her eye as she came down the stairs and smiled, making her heart flutter in her chest.
“You made it,” Angel said. “I’ve already refueled and checked the plane out.”
Danny pulled his gaze away from Bailey. “We haven’t seen anyone lurking about, but if the cartel is here and they know where we’re going, they probably will expect us to use the plane and land in Corning. There’s a small airport in Collegedale, the town just before you get to Corning. I’ll land there, and you can pick us up. I programmed the airport into the Escalade’s GPS.”
“Good thinking. I’ll leave now.”
“We’ll leave in an hour—flight time to Collegedale is twenty-five minutes, so we should arrive at the same time.”
“It’s been three days,” Bailey said. “Is it possible they’ve moved on to another target?”
“They may have,” Danny replied, “but there’s no need to take any chances.”
The front door opened again, and Kate and Solana came in.
“It’s off!” Solana raised her foot that was encased in a purple tennis shoe instead of a cast. “The doctor said it had healed nicely but that I should wear something with support, like these shoes you bought me. And now I can go with you to take Maria to see her grandparents.”
Bailey hugged her. “I’m so glad.”
Danny frowned. “But I thought your appointment wasn’t until later this afternoon.”
Kate patted him on the shoulder. “It looks as though my influence is a little better than yours. I made one phone call and got another doctor to take a look at her foot. They said to bring her right away, and so I did, and now we’re back. Oh, and I made sandwiches for your trip. Let me get them.”
Her mom thought of everything.
In ten minutes, Angel and Solana were ready to leave.
“Watch to see if anyone is following you,” Danny said.
“I will. Do you have your . . .” Angel dropped his gaze to Maria.
Danny nodded. “It’s in my car. I need to get it before you leave.”
“And I’ll borrow Daddy’s .38,” Bailey said.
“Do you know how to use it?” Angel asked.
“She’s passable,” Danny said with a laugh.
Bailey nudged him with her elbow. “I beat you the last time we target practiced.”
“I was kidding.” He eyed Angel. “You don’t want to compete against her.”
Danny walked out with Angel and Solana. When he returned, Bailey was setting out their sandwiches. “Where’s Maria?”
“Upstairs with Mom.” She cocked her head. “Why was your gun in the Escalade?”
“I had it yesterday when I went out to Geoffrey Franks’s house.”
“You went to Geoffrey’s house? By yourself and with a gun?” Her mom had mailed her newspaper clippings of Geoffrey Franks’s arrest last summer. She couldn’t believe Danny had gone to see him.
“No, I took Angel with me. Franks ran us off with a semi-automatic.”
She stared at him. “What were you going to do? Scare him into confessing who his contact in Mexico was? What if he’d shot you? Or what if you’d shot him?”
“Well, he didn’t and I didn’t. And I’ve already caught enough flak from Ian about this, so could you lay off?” He caught her hand. “I’d much rather talk about you, especially since you’re all I’ve thought about this morning.”
“Really?” She tilted her head. “I thought you were negotiating a contract with Edward Montoya.”
“Nah. My heart wasn’t in it.” He pulled her close. “I kept thinking about this.”
“Miss Bailey! Where are you?” Maria’s footsteps tapped toward the kitchen. “I’m hungry.”
Laughing, she pulled away. “Business first, Mr. Maxwell.” She turned toward the door. “We’re in the kitchen, Maria.”
At the last minute, Bailey decided to leave her dad’s revolver behind. She didn’t have a license to have a concealed weapon. When they reached the airport, Danny carried Maria inside the terminal.
“Morning, Sam,” he said, handing her off to Bailey. “Anyone new fly in lately?”
The airport manager scratched his head. “Couple of ladies from South Mississippi flew in yesterday.”
“Anyone from Mexico?” Danny asked.
“No.” Sam raised his eyebrows. “You want me to let you know if anyone arrives from Mexico?”
“I’d appreciate it.”
“If someone followed us here, don’t you think they’d fly commercially?” Bailey said as they walked to Danny’s plane.
He shook his head. “I think they’d come in a small plane and probably land in Memphis, like Edward Montoya. If I were looking for you and Maria and didn’t know where to start, I’d follow Joel and Edward’s trail.”
“What’s Maria’s uncle like?”
“You’ve never met him?”
“No.” He had never come to the school with Joel.
“He seems nice enough.”
“Tio is my favorite uncle,” Maria said.
“More than your uncle Joel?” Bailey asked.
Maria placed her finger against her chin. “Maybe.”
Bailey hugged her. “That wasn’t a fair question. Are you excited about flying again?”
“No, ma’am. I wanted to go with my daddy.”
“Daddy wanted you to fly with us, and this will be much faster. It will be fine, you’ll see.”
Danny climbed up on the wing and took Maria from her. “Why don’t you sit in the backseat with Maria? We can talk through the headsets. I’ll leave hers turned off.”
Bailey climbed into the back and settled Maria in her seat, then adjusted a pair of headsets to fit the child’s head. “If you need anything, I’ll be right beside you.” Bailey gave her a reassuring smile. Once they were in the air, Maria would be fine. At least that’s the way it had worked the last time. As Danny started the engine, Bailey put her headset on and spoke into the mic. “We’re ready.”
Danny gave her a thumbs-up and taxied down the runway. Just as she’d predicted, once they were in the air, Maria relaxed, and before Bailey thought possible, Danny was radioing the small airport in Collegedale. As they came in for the landing, she peered out the window to see if she could see Angel. He and Solana stood just outside the small terminal building. Evidently they’d had no trouble.
Once they’d taxied to the terminal and killed the engine, Angel chocked the wheels, then took Maria from Bailey. “Did you like flying?”
She shook her head. “Can I go back with you?”
“We’ll see. Maybe Danny will let me fly his plane. Would you like to fly with me?”
A grin spread across Maria’s face.
“Any problems?” Danny asked.
“No. As far as I could tell, no one followed us. At least no one exited behind us at Collegedale.”
“Maybe they’re not even around,” Solana said.
Bailey tended to agree with her.
“What if they’re waiting for us to let our guard down?” Danny said grimly.
Joel walked to the refreshment center in the hospital ICU waiting room and poured a cup of coffee. Even though it had just been made, it was bitter. His phone rang, and he almost dropped the Styrofoam cup. He didn’t recognize the number, but it looked similar to the one last night. His finger shook as he pressed Answer. “McDermott.”
“Ah, Mr. McDermott. I looked this morning and did not see a money transfer from you.”
Joel stood and walked to the window. People walked back and forth to the hospital as an ambulance roared into the emergency entrance. Life and death playing out before him. “I’m having trouble accessing the money.”
“I see.”
Silence filled his ear, and he checked to see if the call had been disconnected. No. It was still live.
“Look, I’ll get you the money by tonight.”
“Actually, your debt is no longer important. We have decided to make an example of you for others who do not pay.”
Joel swallowed as his knees turned to water, and he leaned against the window frame. “I’ll do anything, pay twice what I owe. Just give me until tonight.”
“Anything? What if I come up with an alternative way for you to clear your debt?”
Joel caught his breath. He’d do anything short of murder, and maybe even that, to get these people off his back. “How?”
“I want Maria Montoya and Bailey Adams. Their lives for yours. I’ll be in touch.”
His mother touched his arm, and he jumped. “Joel, is everything okay? You’re white as a ghost.”
“Yes.” He managed to get the word out as his heart pounded against his rib cage. He checked his phone to make sure the call had ended. Joel pressed his lips together. If he could just get access to Edward’s offshore account and pay off his debt, he wouldn’t have to do what the caller asked.
“Are you certain Claire’s little girl is coming?”
“What?”
“They aren’t here yet. Are you sure they’re coming?”
He shook his head to clear it. “Yes, Mother. Angel promised he’d bring her. Now go sit down.”
“Come with me.”
His life was falling apart, and his mother wanted him to keep her company? His mind reeled as he walked with her to their seating area.
“Tell me again what happened to your face.”
She was driving him crazy with her questions. He’d answered this same question at least three times already. Maybe he’d inherited from her the memory problems that were causing him so much trouble.
“Joel?”
“I was in a little accident, nothing serious.” He leaned his head against the back of the chair. “I want Maria Montoya and Bailey Adams. Their lives for yours.” The caller’s words echoed in his head.
He couldn’t do it. Somehow, he had to get the necklace back and transfer enough money out of the account to pay off this debt—if he could convince them to take the money. The drug cartel after him was bad enough, but if he was the cause of something happening to Maria and Angel found out . . . he didn’t want to think about that.
He had to get the necklace.
He’d tried unsuccessfully to access the bank account again last night and had even thought about searching Bailey’s room for Maria’s necklace after he learned it had been returned. In the end, he’d feared getting caught and let it go. How could he know his niece would insist on having her mother’s picture in the new one? He’d thought his heart would stop when Bailey opened the locket to take Claire’s photo out.
The elevator dinged, and he looked toward it as the doors opened, and Angel and Solana got off with Maria. Bailey and Danny followed. He zeroed in on the locket around Maria’s neck.
“Uncle Joel!” Maria ran to him, and he swung her up in his arms. His heart skipped a beat when the locket brushed his hand. So close to be so far.
“Thanks for bringing her,” he said to Angel, then turned toward his mother. “Would you like to meet your grandmother?”
Suddenly shy, Maria barely nodded, then ducked her head. Joel set her down. “Mom, this is Maria.”
His mother seemed overcome as well. Tears glistened in her eyes. She knelt down until she was eye level. “I’m so very glad to meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Nana Sue,” Maria said softly.
His mother lifted Maria’s chin. “Oh, Joel she looks like Claire when she was this age.”
“She acts like her sometimes too,” Joel said as Angel stepped forward. “Mom, this is Angel Montoya, Claire’s husband. Angel, my mother, Sue McDermott.”
Angel bowed. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. McDermott.”
She rose with an uncertain smile on her lips. “It’s good to finally meet you. I’m sorry we never met while Claire was alive, but Joseph has been ill for some time. I couldn’t leave him.”
Joel didn’t understand why his mother made excuses for his father. Even if he had been well, he wouldn’t have gone to Mexico. In the three hours Joel had been here, his father had done nothing but complain and gripe and bully everyone who came into the room. Joel couldn’t wait to get away.
But first the necklace. “Are you ready to meet your grandfather?”
“I want to show Nana Sue my necklace.” Maria opened the locket and held it up for his mother to see. “Uncle Joel gave it to me.”
“Why don’t we take it off so she can see it better?” Joel asked. Maybe this was his chance.
“I can see it just fine.” His mother stared at the photo, then patted Maria’s cheek. “You’re such a sweet child. Run see your grandfather, now.”
Joel took her by the hand, and they walked to the double doors, where he pressed the intercom button. He’d already made the necessary arrangements for Maria to accompany him into the ICU, and after he identified himself, the doors clicked open. They were halfway through when he realized Angel was with them. “Only two are allowed in his room.”
“If Maria goes, I go.”
“I’m sorry, but you can’t go in there.” If Angel was in the room, how would he get the locket?
Angel took Maria’s hand. “If you want your father to see her, it has to be with me.”
His brother-in-law wasn’t backing down. Joel clenched his fists, then forced them open.
A nurse sat at a desk between his father’s room and the next patient’s. “He’s sleeping, but go on in. He may wake up.”
Joel stepped inside the room, where a monitor beeped over his father’s bed. Maria stared warily at the bed, then wrapped her arms around Angel’s leg. “Would you like me to hold you?” Joel asked.
She shook her head and clung tighter to Angel. “What’s that noise?” she whispered.
“It’s a machine that counts how many times his heart beats.”
His father opened his eyes, and he stared at Angel, then shifted to Joel. Recognition flashed. “Is she here?”
“Yes, sir,” he replied. He bent down to pick up Maria.
“No,” she said, twisting away from him.
“Let me hold her.” Angel swung her into his arms and whispered something in her ear. Maria nodded, and he stepped closer to the bed.
“Hello, Papa Joe,” she said, her voice quivering.
His father stared at her, then his expression softened. “So this is Claire’s child. You the husband?” he asked, shifting his gaze to Angel.
“Yes. Joel tells me you need an operation.”
“That’s what they say. Wanted to see the kid first, though. Thank you for bringing her.”
Joel almost choked. He’d never heard his father thank anyone. “Maria, can we show Papa Joe your locket?”
She nodded. “It has my mommy’s picture in it.”
Joel moved to unclasp the necklace.
“I’ll do it.” Angel put Maria down and unfastened the chain. He opened the locket. “You want to show it to him, Maria?”
Smiling, Maria took the locket to the bed. A frown crossed her face. “I can’t see you. Can I sit on the bed?”
“I don’t see why not.” He nodded to Angel. “Put her up here.”
His plan was falling apart. Joel gripped the foot of the bed as Maria showed his father Claire’s photo.
The nurse entered the room. “I’m sorry, but your time is up. Mr. McDermott needs rest.”
His father grimaced. “She’s a drill sergeant. I’m afraid you’ll have to leave, but would you bring Maria back to see me?”
“As soon as you’re up to it,” Angel said.
“I hope you get better soon,” Maria said, planting a kiss on her grandfather’s cheek.
His mind numb, Joel walked to the door in a daze, searching for some way to get the necklace away from Maria. “Would you like to leave your locket with Papa Joe until he’s better?”
He held his breath while a struggle played out on her face. Finally she turned around and went back into the room. “Papa Joe, would you like to keep my locket with Mommy’s picture in it?”
“What a sweetheart you are, Maria.” He flashed her a smile. “But you better keep it. I might lose it.”
At that second, Joel had never wanted to kill anyone as bad as he did his father. But he didn’t know why he was surprised. His father had stood in his way any time Joel wanted something. Why should this be any different?