Panic-stricken, Lori couldn’t move. All the air whooshed from her lungs. A hundred different thoughts buzzed in her mind, but none fell from her lips.
On the monitor, Black Rose lifted her hand above her head and snapped her fingers. The lady holding the dog carrier did an about-face as a man hopped out of the SUV. He carried a briefcase, set flat atop both his hands, and walked up beside Black Rose.
“Dr. Holmes, do you mind if I call you Renee? So much more personal without the formality of titles. Don’t you think?” Her tone was casual, freaking normal.
This couldn’t be happening.
“Ask her name?” Nick said to Renee.
Renee pressed the intercom. “What do I call you?”
“Belladonna.” A plastic grin tugged at her lips. She tapped the top of the briefcase next to her. The man opened it, revealing bundles of cash.
Renee and Lori gasped at the same time. Nick’s hardened expression didn’t waver, a flash of fury in his eyes. The heavy silence in the office seemed to press in on them.
“We can be friendly about this, Renee,” Belladonna said. “Unlock the door, pull up the gate and step aside. Simple. Step aside and take care of those beautiful, innocent creatures. In return, the briefcase and its contents are yours. All I want is the woman.”
What if the FBI was wrong and the cartel was too big to be stopped? What if the US Marshals couldn’t protect her? What if Draper was in on this? What if Nick—
No, no. Lori squashed such thoughts. Fear was poison. She couldn’t let it pollute her mind. Testifying was the right thing to do. She wouldn’t second-guess her decision.
There was no way to turn back the clock, unring that bell, anyway. Her course was set.
Lori had to trust Nick to get her through this alive and she clung to that like a lifeline.
Renee hit the intercom. “The sheriff is on the way. I’ve just phoned her. Any minute, deputies will be here. I suggest you leave.”
Nick clicked his tongue, irritation stretched across his face. “Why would you say that?”
Renee shook her head, her eyes wide with fright, and shrugged. “To make them leave.”
Nick huffed an audible breath in response.
“That’s not true.” Belladonna wagged a manicured finger at the camera and tsked. “Seeing as how I’ve cut your landline and blocked your cellular reception. This friendship isn’t going to work if we lie to each other.”
“What are we going to do?” Lori asked, struggling to filter panic from her voice and failing miserably.
“I’m going to be completely forthright with you, Renee,” Belladonna said. “You owe the two individuals you’re harboring absolutely nothing. You have one of two choices. I’m a fan of option number one, where you open the doors, take the money and turn a blind eye. Or there’s option two.” Belladonna winced. “I set this clinic on fire. Think of all those poor, defenseless dogs inside. I will fry each and every one of them right along with you. If that’s what it will take to see the woman that I want dead.” She raised her palms in the gesture of a minister delivering the gospel. “I’ll give you a minute to talk amongst yourselves.”
The room spun. Lori clutched the counter to keep from falling down. She hauled in a deep breath in an effort to calm the frenzied pounding of her heart.
“You can’t open the doors,” Nick said. “She’ll kill you either way.”
Renee pressed a fist to her mouth and turned away from him. “The two of you have to leave. I have to let her in. I can’t jeopardize the animals in my care. I’m sorry.”
“It’s suicide.” Lori stepped around in front of her. “Those people out there are heartless. Ruthless. You can’t trust them.”
“That’s a chance I have to take. I swore an oath when I became a veterinarian and I meant it. I can’t allow those animals to die. Not when I have the power to stop them from being burned alive by opening that door. If that means trading my life for theirs, then so be it.” Renee rubbed her forehead. “I couldn’t live with myself otherwise. Go. Go now. The back door leads to outdoor space for the dogs. It’s surrounded by a six-foot cinder-block wall. Go over the right side. It’s adjacent to the parking lot of the gas station.”
“That’s where our car is,” Lori said. Nick had thought it best not to park in front of the clinic.
“Come with us,” Nick said. “It’s the only smart play. The three of us get out of here together.”
“I think we both know that’s not going to happen,” Renee said. “If I can stop her from burning down my clinic, from killing...” The words seemed to back up in her throat as she looked out at all the caged animals. “I have to stay.”
Nick nodded. “I did know you’d say that, but I had to try.”
“I’ll stall, buy you a few minutes. As long as I can,” Renee said.
“Is there a back way we can take to the sheriff’s to stay off the state road?”
Renee nodded. She scrawled directions on a notepad, tore it off and handed it to Nick. “Make it there and my mom, Sheila Holmes, will help you.”
“Thank you, for helping us.” Lori hugged her, hating that she’d not only endangered a kind veterinarian, but also defenseless animals. “I’m sorry we brought trouble to your door.”
“I need your decision, Renee,” Belladonna said. “I’m on a tight schedule and can’t afford to wait any longer.”
Renee pulled back from the embrace. “Go.” She shooed them toward the back. “Hurry.”
Nick grabbed the body armor, threw it on Lori, not taking the time to worry about concealing it, and led her to the exit.
Behind them, Lori heard Renee say, “Okay, okay! I don’t want any of the animals hurt. Please.”
“Excellent decision. I’m a dog lover, you know. Nothing against cats. But thank you for sparing me the moniker of The Pet Butcher. I mean, who wants to put that on their résumé?”
“No one, I suppose.”
“Open up, Renee.”
“I will. I swear. Let me grab my keys.” Renee waved Nick and Lori out the back door.
They rushed through the noisy room that housed the dogs and cats, past the exam room, toward the exit. Lori glanced around for something she could use as a weapon. Anything could be waiting for them out back and she’d have to do her part to help Nick. To save herself.
She stopped in front of the fire extinguisher and hefted it off the wall. “I could swing it like a bat, clobber someone with it.”
Nick pulled the safety pin from the extinguisher. “Better to spray someone in the face first.”
Their gazes locked and something passed between them that didn’t need words. A feeling, a jolt of understanding. They nodded to each other. No matter what, they’d get through this together.
They hurried to the back door.
“Do you think Belladonna will kill her?” Lori asked.
“Renee is as good as dead, but I think the animals have a fair shot at making it.”
GUN UP AGAINST his chest, Nick was ready for anything. His heart beat a slow, steady cadence. Adrenaline pumped in his veins, sharpening his focus and reflexes. He turned the key, unlocking the dead bolt, and flung the door open.
Nick crossed the threshold. Sensed movement from the right side before he saw it.
He caught the gun hand of a big man that was taking aim, and the meathead did likewise, seizing Nick’s wrist. A standoff where neither could shoot.
A second man closed in on Lori. She let the fire extinguisher rip, spraying him in the face with a blast of foamy chemicals.
The massive guy in front of Nick turned out to be as slow as he looked. Nick went for one of his knees with his boot heel.
No matter how big or how strong an opponent, take out his knees and he was done.
The connection of the steel boot shank and kneecap made a god-awful sound as the man howled in agony and dropped.
Nick kicked the gun from his hand and threw a powerful knee into the big guy’s skull.
Whirling around, he snatched the fire extinguisher from Lori and throttled her attacker. Without a suppressor, discharging his gun would only broadcast their escape.
Once Lori’s assailant stopped moving, he turned back to the other guy to finish the job. Nick kept swinging the extinguisher—hoisting it up overhead and slamming it down full force—until he was one hundred percent certain that neither man would ever get up again.
He scanned one hundred eighty degrees. All clear.
Nick beckoned to Lori. She took his hand as they crossed the long, narrow run of the grassy play area. It wasn’t until then that he noticed the air reeked of feces and rain.
Fat, dark clouds had moved in and the sky looked on the brink of opening any minute. All they needed was a downpour on top of everything else. As if the progressively worsening situation wasn’t bad enough.
Things kept getting worse and worse as Belladonna somehow stayed on their heels.
If he found out for certain that Draper was behind this, so help him God, there’d be payback. Nick would make it slow and painful, make Draper want to weep and beg for prison, but first he had to make sure that Lori was safe.
Survival was the focus now.
They scrambled to the east wall. Nick holstered his Glock and took a running leap. He snagged the top of the wall, hopped up and glanced over.
No more goons in sight.
Nick straddled the wall and proffered a hand to Lori. “Jump up.”
She did and he caught her arm, then he reached for her other hand. She put her feet on the wall, and he pulled, helping her walk up the slab of cinder blocks.
They hopped down to the ground side by side and duckwalked to the parked vehicle.
Once Lori was inside, he said, “Stay low. I’ll be right back and have you in my sights the entire time.”
She didn’t ask questions and trusted him. “Okay.”
He closed the door quietly and looked around for any signs of approaching danger. There was nothing. Still, his guard was up, and he didn’t dare entertain relief.
Nick slinked around to the far side of the gas station and peeked around the corner at the vet clinic.
The steel security gate was up. A second SUV was parked in front, and one armed guard stood watch.
Belladonna must’ve been inside.
For Renee’s sake, he hoped he was wrong and that she’d make it through this ordeal alive.
“PLEASE, HAVE A SEAT, Renee,” Belladonna said in a tone that was sweet without pouring it on so thick it sounded phony. Even if it was. One caught more flies with honey than vinegar, yada, yada, and all those other pearls of wisdom that were true.
Belladonna gestured to the chair in the back office.
Renee sat, trembling, her gaze darting to the hall where armed men were searching the place. Belladonna had no doubt that her quarry had already fled, and her men would find nothing in the clinic. After all, McKenna was a slippery bastard, but he didn’t realize that even though they were on the move, the noose was tightening around Lori Carpenter’s neck.
Belladonna pulled out a chair and sat opposite Renee, crossing her legs. They’d have a civilized conversation. Woman to woman.
If all went as expected, not a drop of blood would be shed.
“Are you going to kill me?” The vet’s voice cracked as she swallowed a sob.
“You did as I asked and I’m a woman of my word.” Belladonna folded her hands in her lap. “The briefcase is yours, as promised.”
Renee’s face twisted in disgust. “I don’t want your blood money.”
Belladonna chuckled. “Well then, we have a problem. I trust those who can be bribed to stay quiet. The self-righteous, who cling to their principles, not so much.”
In the silence that followed, she let that sink in. Gave the vet a chance to see reason so they could come to a mutually satisfactory end.
Yes, Belladonna had been trained to be ruthless, to kill without discrimination, or hesitation. But time had seasoned her, made her wiser.
A smart assassin lived longer than a brutal one. And sometimes showing mercy wasn’t the same as leaving a loose end. She only had to be prudent enough to distinguish between the two.
“Consider the money a donation to your clinic,” Belladonna said. “And reassurance that you’ll have a faulty memory about today. About what you’ve seen. What you’ve heard. Who you’ve spoken to.”
“Fine.” Renee nodded.
Two rooks entered the room.
“They’re not here,” Smokey said.
As to be expected. Belladonna nodded once in acknowledgment.
“I’ll call housekeeping.” Max took out his phone.
The new rook was an eager beaver, but he was jumping the gun. Did he think she was bluffing about letting the woman live and not torching puppies and kittens?
That kind of thing didn’t even go over well in prison. Those who hurt children and animals had a tough go behind bars. Not that Belladonna was going to see the inside of a jail cell.
She raised her hand, stopping him from making the call.
Renee’s chin lifted. “As you can see, they’re not here. Please, I’m begging you to leave. I won’t say a word to anyone.”
“First, I have some questions.”
Renee shook her head. “I don’t know anything.”
“That’s not entirely true, is it?” Belladonna asked. “Where are they going?”
“Follow them and you’ll find out.” Renee shifted in her seat, gaze darting to the phone on the desk.
The line was back up and in working order. Little did Renee realize. Not that she would’ve gotten the chance to dial 911.
“Believe me, they are being followed.” Once Belladonna had pinpointed their location to the veterinary clinic, she’d posted men at either end of the state road to intercept them in case McKenna and the woman managed to get out.
Then there was the fact that she was tracking McKenna’s electronic fingerprint and eavesdropping on all his cellular calls. As long as she prevented them from meeting up with those SOG operators, Belladonna had this in the bag.
“But I want to know their intended destination,” Belladonna said, “and whether or not the men I have in position will be able to cut them off before they get there.”
“I don’t know where they’re going. The second you showed up, they hightailed it out of here.”
That was almost believable. Almost. “I’m a patient woman. Truly, I am.” Sometimes Belladonna had to lie in wait for hours, days, for the opportune moment to strike a target. She had patience in spades. “But I’m short on time. I should mention that I have a keen sense of smell. I can detect BS from a mile out. So imagine how strong the stench is when you’re sitting two feet away. Where are they going?”
Renee pursed her lips and gripped the edge of her chair.
The doctor knew exactly where they were headed.
“Friends cooperate. And I want us to remain friends,” Belladonna said, annoyance leaking into her voice.
Renee seemed to make a split-second decision and opened her mouth.
Belladonna sensed the fib forming on her tongue and stopped her. “Before you answer, understand that I will view a lie as cause to renegotiate our agreement. This conversation will turn into an interrogation and I’ll be forced to introduce you to a level of pain you’ve never known. In the end, your life will be forfeit. Take a second to process that. Now, where are they going?”
Renee whimpered. “The sheriff’s department. But there’s no point in going there. You can’t bribe or intimidate the sheriff. And it’s not like you can have a shoot-out in the middle of the town. The State Police are only thirty minutes away and they’ll respond to any report of hostile action.”
Hmm. Renee was well informed. But it would only take the State Police ten minutes to pop up due to an inopportune three-car pile-up close by on State Route 18. Four squad cars were already on the scene.
Belladonna didn’t have the luxury of engaging in a lengthy shoot-out with McKenna and the sheriff’s department hunkered down to protect Carpenter.
Any action she took had to either be quiet or quick.
“I bet you thought you were above bribery and intimidation, too, until you weren’t,” Belladonna said.
“The sheriff is different. My mother won’t negotiate with terrorists. Or whatever the hell you are. So you might as well give this up and leave that poor woman alone.”
Mother? The plot thickened to the sublime consistency of pudding. “If only it were that simple.” Belladonna licked her lips and leaned forward, resting her forearms on her thighs. “The marshal and the woman. Did there appear to be anything amorous between them?”
“What?” Renee stiffened in her chair.
McKenna had to have a weakness. Belladonna bet it was Lori Carpenter. Both of them were healthy, young, attractive, single, heterosexual, and they’d been in close quarters every day for a year.
“Oh, you don’t understand the question?” Belladonna snapped her fingers and Smokey left the room.
Nothing more was required. Not a single word needed to be uttered. Her longtime rooks and bishops knew how she operated well enough to intuit what she wanted with the snap of her fingers or the lift of a palm. Smokey was practically her right hand. She was training Max, which was hard to do on the fly.
A moment later Smokey returned, holding a dog in his arms. An adorable poodle. Hypoallergenic, nonshedding; her daughter would love one exactly like it.
Smokey scratched the pooch’s head and showered it with adoration.
Renee reared back with a hand flying to her collarbone. Tears welled in her eyes. “Don’t. You can’t. Please.”
“Let’s try again,” Belladonna said, knowing the threat was sufficient, and that no animals would be harmed during this intimidation tactic. “Did they appear to be intimate, show any signs that their relationship was more than professional?”
“Yes, yes. I walked in on them kissing.”
Interesting. Belladonna had expected to hear details of a hug, a comforting look that had lingered too long, the two of them holding hands. Kissing was better. Concrete.
“Please, don’t hurt Bailey,” Renee said, sniffling.
Belladonna gave a nod, and Smokey handed the dog off to someone in the hall to return to its cage.
“Thank you.” Renee sobbed, looking overwrought from the conversation.
That one had a delicate constitution.
“No. Thank you,” Belladonna said, standing up. The doctor had turned out to be a gold mine of information and would prove even more useful.
Max raised his gun and aimed it at the doctor.
Belladonna knocked his arm down. “What are you doing?”
“The boss doesn’t want any witnesses,” Max said.
Oh, hell no, those words didn’t just leave his mouth.
A cold anger chilled her heated blood. “I need her, you idiot.” She slapped him hard, backhanded, to remind not only him, but also all her people, of their place. “Who is running this mission?”
“You,” he said through clenched teeth.
Dante Vargas, the west coast cartel cell leader, was technically in charge and was Belladonna’s boss. But she called the tactical shots in the field.
“Who is in charge, right here?” she asked.
Max rubbed his red cheek and glared at her, murderous intent gleaming in his eyes.
Fury speared through her at having to ask twice. “Who?”
“You.”
“Too bad you forgot that.” Now she had to make him an example.
Leniency in this situation only invited insubordination. Perhaps even mutiny, where someone might stab her in the back, thinking they’d finish the job themselves, outshine her and earn a promotion.
Like she didn’t have enough to worry about without that crap, too. She nodded to Smokey. He swept up behind Max, quicker than a blink, and slipped a garrote around his throat.
It took a lot longer than a slug to the brainpan to kill someone this way, but it was quieter and less mess.
Renee let out a horrified squeak, jumping out of her chair, and scurried back into a corner.
Good instincts.
Belladonna shifted out of the range of the struggle that ensued—not wanting to catch a stray kick from Max’s steel-toed boots.
Drawing a fortifying breath, she took out her cell and made the call. “I need cleanup.”
Another rook stepped into the office and grabbed Max’s feet to help. The two of them wrangled Max’s body taut and a gurgle came from him as he clutched his throat.
Belladonna smiled, her fury thinning to oblivion. Teamwork makes the dream work.
“Veterinary?” the female voice said over the phone.
“Yes.” Belladonna ran a hand over her hair, ensuring not a single strand had been knocked loose. “One body.”
“On it.”
Smokey removed the wire from around Max’s throat. The two rooks let the lifeless body hit the floor in a heap.
Crisis averted. Good thing she nipped that in the bud.
Belladonna turned to her rooks. “One of you, help the doctor into my trunk.”
“B-b-but, you said you’d let me live.” Renee squeezed into the corner as though trying to disappear into the wall.
“I’m afraid your life is no longer in my hands,” Belladonna said, putting her cell away. “Whether you live or die today will be up to your mother. The sheriff.”