Feeling his skin itch, Steele exited the car and walked to the back of the parking lot. He was missing something. As he turned the corner, he spotted a white van with the stolen plates almost hidden by a retaining wall. Dashing to the side, he checked inside for occupants and found it empty. The sight of duct tape and rope made his blood boil. Steele took a few precious seconds to slash the back tires. They wouldn’t take her again. Shoving his knife back into his pocket, he pulled his phone out as he took off for the entrance.
“The van is here at the bank headquarters. Ivy’s in trouble.”
“She’s on the third floor, Steele. In a corner office.” Talon reported her location from the tracker Steele had placed in her pocket.
“We’ll be in the parking lot in sixty seconds, Steele,” Kade promised.
As Steele burst through the door, the guard stood up from the reception desk. “Whoa, sir. Do you have an appointment?”
“Call 911,” Steele yelled as he barged past the man to push the button for the elevator.
“Stop right there,” the guard demanded as Steele noticed it was stopped on the fifth floor. He couldn’t wait for it.
“Where are the stairs?” he demanded.
“Sir, I’m calling the police.” The guard stood with his hand on his gun.
“Do it! If I’m right, there are intruders on the third floor.” Turning to look around, Steele spotted the stairwell and took off for the doorway at the end of the hall. The man could shoot him. Nothing was going to keep Steele from protecting his Little girl.
“Sir! Stop!” the guard called after him.
In a flash, Steele was through the door and pounding up the stairs. He heard the door slam shut and knew the guard had not followed him. Hopefully, he was calling the police. Moving at top speed, Steele reached the third floor and burst through the door into the hallway. Without waiting to debate which way to go, he ran down the hallway, looking for the large corner office.
“I’m glad you chose to bring me this information, Ivy. I will take care of it.” Mr. Morton picked up his phone and typed in a brief message. Almost immediately, the doorway into what Ivy had assumed was a private storage area or executive bathroom opened.
Two men walked out. The large bald man smiled, making her blood chill in her veins. Immediately, she stood and backed toward the door into the corridor.
“Mr. Morton…” she started when the door behind her opened. A slender man with brown hair pushed a custodian’s cart inside.
“Take care of her this time,” the board president directed, meeting the latest arrival’s gaze.
Trying to keep from whipping her head from one side to the other, Ivy knew she needed to keep herself from becoming dizzy. She fumbled for her phone and the man closest to her knocked the device from her fingers. Panic flared through her body at the thought of those men getting ahold of her again. She didn’t even need to hear their voices to recognize who they were.
There were too many people in the building for them to get away with this. Ivy opened her mouth and screamed as loud as she could. The large man moved quickly to strike her with one gigantic fist in the middle of her chest, cutting off the sound of her cry for help abruptly. Ivy bent forward, struggling to regain her breath and control the pain while trying to find a safe spot. She heard her name bellowed in outrage and knew Steele was close.
Dropping to her knees, Ivy scrambled under a small table as the men surrounded her. One dragged her out by the hair, and through the tears filling her eyes, she saw Mr. Morton disappear out the side door the two men had entered from. Fury burst through her mind and Ivy reacted.
She thrust an arm toward her attacker, automatically balling her fist as Kade had taught her at dinner. The impact rattled her arm as she struck his eye. When he howled and turned away, Ivy launched herself toward the door. The largest attacker grabbed her arm, wrenching her shoulder as he gathered her hands behind her back. The half-blinded man slapped the tape in his hands over her mouth before she could shout. She struggled to land another blow, kicking when she couldn’t free her arms. They had just pulled a zip tie tight around her wrists when the door burst open.
“Steele!” Ivy screamed against the tape sealing her lips closed. The large man holding her threw Ivy to the side as Steele barreled toward him with rage, twisting his face into a dangerous mask. She watched as Steele dropped the brute to his knees with one well-placed blow before turning to face the second man who rushed him.
“Get safe, Little girl!” Steele ordered in a tone she couldn’t ignore no matter how frightened she was.
Scrambling to get out of the way, Ivy ducked under the table once again. She couldn’t see well and trembled at the sound of blows being exchanged. Please! Let Steele be okay!
“Steele!” Kade’s deep voice rang through the room, and Ivy scooted back farther. Help was here. Steele wasn’t alone.
It was all over in a few minutes. Three men lay stretched out on the carpet with their hands fastened with the zip ties they had brought to secure her.
“You almost lost this one.” Talon’s amused tone made her peek out of her hideaway to see Mr. Morton with his immaculate clothes rumpled and torn, being pushed into the office. “He seemed to think this folder was important.”
Steele’s body appeared before her as he dropped to his knees. “Come out now, Little one. Let me make sure you’re safe.”
As she tried to scramble awkwardly into his arms with her hands secured behind her back, a loud voice filled the room, making Ivy freeze in place.
“Police! Everyone put their hands up.”
Her Daddy slowly raised his arms as he stayed by her side. He refused to move as the police tried to straighten out what had happened here. When the police fished Ivy out, one look at her taped mouth and bound hands convinced them quickly who the bad guys were.
Watching Mr. Morton walked out to a squad car in handcuffs felt amazingly good. Ivy couldn’t believe the man she’d chosen to be the good guy in this mess had actually turned out to be the embezzler.
She rolled her eyes as she realized Mr. Harris hadn’t been behind this. Nevertheless, he had been a royal asshole. She didn’t understand why he’d told everyone she’d been on vacation. Had he done so thinking he was protecting her privacy? She really needed to have words with him, and she would the next time she saw him.
“I saw that guy’s eye. It’s going to be one heck of a shiner,” Kade mentioned as the Shadowridge Guardians stood gathered around her while the police escorted the three thugs who’d attacked Ivy and continued to threaten her from the building.
“I guess I had an excellent teacher?” Ivy whispered, unable to believe she’d remembered the few things the Enforcer had told her.
Steele hugged her close to him. He’d left her side only for a few minutes while giving his statement when the police insisted. The officers’ demeanor changed when they found a record of the previous assault and Mr. Harris arrived to represent the bank. To Ivy’s surprise, he vouched for her.
“Mr. Harris…”
“We will meet in my office at eight a.m. on the day your medical leave expires. I have already been in contact with the vice president of the board and have updated him. The tech department has frozen Mr. Morton’s access and code authorities effective immediately. The board is holding an emergency meeting this afternoon.”
“Do I need to be there?” Ivy asked, clinging to Steele’s cut despite her attempts to look professional in front of her boss.
“No, Ivy. You’ve been placed in a very dangerous position, and the board knows they owe you for protecting the bank’s assets. I’m guessing you met with Mr. Morton to share the evidence that you’d found.”
“Yes,” she admitted. “I’m afraid I thought it was you.”
“I can understand that. I’ll admit you were at the head of my list of suspects as well. It appears that Mr. Morton deceived everyone.” He held out his hand for Ivy’s. “I vote we let bygones be bygones and work together for the benefit of the bank.”
“I’d love to start again,” Ivy confirmed as she shook his hand.
When he excused himself, Ivy looked at Steele in amazement. He simply raised his eyebrows in a silent echo of her disbelief. “Ready to go home, Little girl?”
The view of the van being hauled away by the police made her happy. They wouldn’t have to worry whether anyone was following her now.
She waved a hand at the departing tow truck. “I could go back to my house now, Steele. You don’t have to protect me anymore.”
“We could stay there tonight if you’d like to pick up more clothes,” he agreed. “Daddies don’t let their Little girls stray too far away. After the scare today, I don’t think my heart could stand having you out of my arms tonight.”
“Sir, we need to make sure they did not hurt the young lady,” an ambulance driver requested.
“I’m okay,” Ivy rushed to reassure the paramedic.
“It’s no cost to have us double check your heart rate and make sure you didn’t re-injure yourself, miss. I understand you’re recovering from a head injury.”
She looked at Steele, silently requesting his help to get out of this. She smiled when he assured the paramedic, “We have our own medic. He’ll check her out and make sure she’s okay.”
“You’ll make sure someone with training examines her?”
“Definitely. I’ll be the first to bring her in if there’s a problem.”
When the man nodded and turned to head back to the ambulance, Ivy tugged on Steele’s vest. “Thanks. I’ve had enough for the day.”
“Oh, Doc’s going to check on you. He takes care of everything for us,” Steele assured her.
She grinned at him happily. Anything was better than going back to the hospital or getting in that emergency vehicle.