Beautifully Broken (The Broken Series Book 2) (2 page)

Michael
started messing with the phone. He glanced at me as he began texting someone.

I
stared, horrified, at the phone. I stumbled toward my dresser, then knelt on
the floor as I pulled my passport from a small box in the bottom drawer. I walked
back over to Michael and handed him the passport.

“
C’est
bien
. You will play nice won’t you,
ma
chérie
?” Michael
shoved the phone in his pocket. He wrapped his hand around my upper arm as he
pulled me from the bedroom.

My
heart was racing. I could try to run but at what cost? Would he kill all of those
people?

I
froze as we turned the corner into the living room. Mickey, the lease officer
for my apartment complex, was huddled on the floor. Her ankles and wrists were bound
with duct tape. Another piece of duct tape covered her mouth. Mickey was
shaking. Tears streamed down her face.

I
tried to break away from Michael, but he tightened his grip on my arm. “
Mickey!
”
I cried, suddenly terrified.

Michael
pulled me toward the door. “
Viens, mon amour.
It is time to go.” He paused
as he turned to face Mickey. “You remember the message?”

Mickey
nodded.

I
tore my eyes from Mickey and stared at Michael. He appeared totally unaffected
by what he’d done. I dug my heels in as I tried to resist his pull. My eyes
were frantic as I tried to find some way to break his grasp. “Shouldn’t I pack
something? If we need my passport, then surely I need clothes?”

Michael
tightened his hold on my arm and forced me through the door. “
Non.
I
have more than enough money to buy what you need.”

A
sleek black limousine was idling outside my apartment. The driver didn’t say a
word as Michael forced me into the car. Forty minutes later we were at Dulles
International Airport. A feeling of déjà vu washed over me as images from the
night Justin abducted me battered my brain.

I
silently begged the TSA agents to intervene, to take Michael’s phone, to
somehow pick up on the fact that something was wrong, but I couldn’t draw their
attention. Michael kept a firm hold on me. All he had to do was slip his hand
inside the pocket where the phone was stashed to keep me in check. Thirty
minutes later we were seated on a private jet en route to Paris, France.

Michael
wrapped his arm around me when the flight leveled off. “You are not the only
one who knows how to play games,
mon amour. Non
?”

I
removed his arm and turned away in disgust. I was livid with Michael for what
he’d done to Mickey and for threatening Kadyn’s life. I fixed my gaze on the window.
Thick white clouds surrounded us, but I didn’t see a single one. All I could
see was Kadyn’s face… soft brown eyes… a gentle smile… strong jaw… all set on a
canvas of beautiful brown skin.

Fury
faded into fear as my thoughts returned to Michael’s threat.
What if there
really were bombs at the Pentagon?
Pain tore through my chest when I
realized that Kadyn might already be dead. I fought back tears, determined not
to give Michael the satisfaction of seeing me cry.

Kadyn
looked up from his report when an announcement sounded over the speaker system
advising everyone that the building was on lockdown until further notice. Kadyn
frowned. That could only mean one thing. There was some sort of security
breach. He immediately reached for the phone.

“Captain
Hagan.”

“Phil,
it’s Kadyn.”

“Never
a dull moment around here, eh?”

“Got
a few minutes to talk… in person?” Kadyn asked.

“Sure,
buddy, come on down.”

Kadyn
shoved his cell phone in his pocket. He clipped his Blackberry to his belt,
then grabbed his call list in case the building ended up being evacuated. It
took him twenty minutes to walk to the basement corridor where the intelligence
agency was housed.

Phil’s
deep blue eyes took Kadyn in when he entered his office. “What’s up?”

Kadyn
closed the door behind him. “Do you know what’s going on?”

Phil
nodded.  

Kadyn
folded himself into the chair across from Phil’s desk. He looked at Phil expectantly.

Phil
leaned back in his chair. “The dog handlers hit on six cars out in the parking
lot. They’re being quiet about who the cars belong to, and they’re still
searching for more.”

Kadyn’s
eyes widened. “Explosive devices?”

Phil
nodded.

“Have
any threats been discovered by Intel?”

Phil
shook his head. “We haven’t had any threats against the Pentagon come over the
wires. The media has already gotten a hold of this, and no one is claiming
responsibility, yet. This thing doesn’t add up. Any of the major terrorist
organizations would know those cars were parked too far away to impact this
building. We’re either dealing with a much smaller network or something
homegrown.”

Kadyn
nodded. “If this has hit the news, then I should call Kri to let her know I’m
okay. Do you mind if I use your office phone?”

Phil
slid the phone across the desk. “Not at all.”

Kadyn
dialed the number to Kri’s cell phone, then waited. “No answer,” he explained
as he hung up and dialed a second number.

“Senator
Rockefeller’s Office, Patrick speaking.”

“Patrick.
This is Kadyn. Where’s Kri? Why are
you
answering her direct line?” Kadyn’s
eyes locked on Phil’s. The memory of Kri’s abduction was still fresh for both
of them. Phil played a pivotal role in finding her, and Kadyn would never forget
it.

Patrick’s
voice rose by at least three octaves. “I’ve called your cell phone six times. Haven’t
you received any of my messages?”

Kadyn
pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. There were no text messages, and no
voice mail appeared pending. “Patrick, text messages are the only thing that
will come through while I’m in the Pentagon. Your voice mail won’t come through
until I leave the building. What’s going on? Where’s Kri? Why were you calling
me?” Kadyn’s voice grew louder with each question.

Patrick
cleared his throat nervously. “Kri didn’t make it into work this morning. I
tried calling her, but I didn’t get an answer on her cell or her house phone. You
know that’s not like her. She calls in when she’s sick or going to be late.”

Kadyn
exploded out of the chair. “
What the hell?
”

Phil’s
eyes widened in shock. In all the years he’d known Kadyn, he had never seen him
lose his temper.

Kadyn
began pacing across Phil’s office as far as the phone cord would allow. He narrowed
his eyes at Phil. “Why don’t you have a wireless headset?”

Phil
shrugged and switched the phone to speaker, freeing Kadyn to pace across the
entire eight foot office space.

Kadyn
handed Phil the phone and resumed pacing. “Patrick, I left Kri’s apartment at
five o’clock this morning. She was awake when I left, and she was planning to go
into work. Can you get over to her apartment?”

Patrick
sucked in a breath as he steeled himself for another explosion. “Kadyn, I have
to be on the Senate floor with Rockefeller in thirty minutes. There’s no way I
can break away from here… not for a few hours at least.”

Kadyn
groaned. “I cannot believe this. I’m on lockdown over here, Patrick. I can’t
leave.”

“I
know,” Patrick responded. “I’ve seen the news.” Patrick lowered his voice to a
whisper. “You don’t think there’s a connection, do you?”

Kadyn’s
eyes locked on Phil’s as he collapsed into the chair across from Phil’s desk. “Kri
has a stalker with terrorist connections, the Pentagon has been peppered with
bombs, and Kri’s gone missing. Of course there’s a connection.”

I
felt numb by the time the jet landed in Paris. I adjusted my watch at the
flight attendant’s prompting. I couldn’t believe it was already ten-thirty at
night.

Michael
kept a firm arm around me as we exited the plane and made our way through Charles
de Gaulle Airport.

We
were about halfway through the airport when I noticed a flat screen television
suspended on one of the walls. A number of people were gathered around the
television. I couldn’t read the headlines, but there was no mistaking the
building being highlighted in the news story. I stopped and stared at the
images of the Pentagon. Something serious had happened… something serious
enough to garner international attention. My eyes widened in shock. I looked at
Michael. He was standing perfectly still, waiting for my reaction.

Michael
bent his head toward mine. “No one was hurt,
ma chérie,
just
as I promised… but it is good for you to see what could come of your family,
your lover, and friends if you do not listen to me. I have had seventeen months
to prepare for this moment. I know every person by name… where they live, where
they work, and the businesses they frequent. I may be here with you in Paris,
but I have some incredibly talented friends with unlimited resources. As you
can see, it would take only one phone call from me. You best keep that in mind.”

My
heart sank as I processed the long term implications of Michael’s threat. There
would be no escaping Michael… not ever. If I tried to escape, he’d kill Kadyn
and God only knew who else.

Michael
resumed walking with his arm wrapped firmly around me. I glanced around
nervously. My shoulders sank. We looked no different than any of the other intimate
couples walking through the airport. Michael’s possessive behavior blended in
here far better than it had in Montana, where we first met.

I
kept Michael’s words in mind as we made our way through customs. Michael joined
me when the customs officer waved me forward. He then proceeded to answer most
of the questions on the auspice of translating on my behalf. At the end of the
dialogue, Michael made some comment to the customs officer in French that I didn’t
understand.

The
officer’s eyes raked over me. He chuckled and gave Michael an appraising nod
before stamping our passports and waving us through.

Michael
bypassed the baggage claim area and walked directly outside, where yet another
limousine was waiting for us. Michael quickly tucked me into the car while
speaking to the driver in French.

I
gazed out the window of the limousine as we drove past the Eiffel Tower and the
Seine River. I sighed in disappointment at the beautifully lit landmarks.
Michael was not the man I had dreamed of seeing Paris with. Kadyn was. And, yet,
here I was with Michael. The soft rain that was now falling fit my mood perfectly.
Michael’s threat was final. It would ensure that I never saw Kadyn, my friends,
or my family again.

The
irony that I was being abducted for a second time was not lost on me. Throughout
the flight I relived every horrific detail of my first abduction while trying
to reconcile the fact that Michael was taking me to a foreign country where I
would be much more difficult to find. Michael had resources that far exceeded Justin’s.
After seeing the news story, there could be no doubt that Michael was connected
to some terrorist organization. For this reason alone, Michael maintained a
power to control me that Justin had never possessed. I wouldn’t try to escape,
given the implications for my family and friends, and I was praying that Kadyn and
Dan wouldn’t try to pull off a rescue operation. That would only end up getting
them both killed.

I
snuck a sidelong glance at Michael, who was sending text messages on his phone.
If Michael was disappointed in my mood, he certainly didn’t show it. He had
been quiet the entire flight, as if he was simply content to be together again.

Michael
must have felt my gaze as it lingered on him. He stopped texting and draped his
right arm casually across the back of our seat. His left hand played absently with
the hem of my skirt.

My
eyes narrowed irritably. I tried to remove his hand from my leg.

He
locked his hand around mine and held it in place.

I
sighed. I knew I was fighting a losing battle. The guy hadn’t stopped touching
me for more than five minutes, as if he now owned the rights to do so. Either
that or he was trying to prevent me from running, recruiting help, or jumping
out of the car. I was hoping he’d give me some space once we arrived at our
destination. I stared sullenly out the window. Notre Dame loomed directly in
front of us, glowing brightly against the night sky.

Michael
finally broke the silence.
“Cest beau, non?”

“Yes,
it’s breathtaking,” I admitted reluctantly. I couldn’t pull my eyes from the
massive cathedral. It was beautiful but in a very dark and ominous sort of way.

Michael
pulled me closer. “I will take you to see it,
ma chérie
. Paris is unlike
any place you have been before. You will fall in love with this city; and in
time, you will fall in love with me.”

I
didn’t bother responding. I had told Michael countless times that I didn’t love
him. If he hadn’t heard me then, he certainly wasn’t going to listen to me now.
I returned my attention to the view in front of me. The driver had doubled back.
We passed by the Seine and what could only be the Louvre Museum, given the
glass pyramid sitting next to the building.