Heart of the Woolf (Woolf Series) (11 page)

One thing she knew for sure: She did miss having two cocks in
her.

Thirty minutes later, she was about to leave when the phone
rang. She hesitated at the doorway, wondering if she should pick it up. The
phone continued to ring, the sound taking on an insistent quality.

Adrienne backtracked to her bedroom, cursing all the way. If
that were Jake telling her to get her ass in gear and hurry to the office,
she’d ...

She picked up the phone. “Jake, don’t tell me --”

“I’m not lover-boy, Adrienne.” Evil laughter rolled into her
ear. “That was a very good show you put on yesterday afternoon.”

Goose bumps crawled up her arms. Bile rose in her throat,
burning her mouth like hot acid. “You were watching us?!”

“You’re very good, Adrienne. I came in my pants, just from
watching you suck lover-boy. Seeing your pussy was the final straw, of course.
Yes, I believe I shall have you one of these days.”

“Not on your life!”

“Life is so full of uncertainties, Adrienne. You never know
when it might ... bite you in the arse.” He cackled. “How’d you like last
night’s display? Were you scared?”

“That was your doing?” Anger stirred within her, anger that
someone would stalk her like this, anger that her life would be so disrupted,
her hard-earned peace disappearing like smoke in the wind with each threat.
“What do you want? Why are you disturbing me like this?”

“Are you scared enough, I wonder, to tell me what I want to
know?” His voice turned menacing. “Where is David, Adrienne?”

Shock assailed her. The odious villain finally gave voice to
David’s name. Her hand gripped the phone. “What do you want with him?”

He ignored her question. “Where is he?”

“He -- he’s not in this country.”

“Don’t lie to me, Adrienne. You don’t want to find out what I
do to bad girls who lie. Where is he?” The last three words were said with
heavy emphasis.

“I don’t know!”

“That’s my girl.” There was an almost bizarre admiration in
his voice. “Last warning. I’m giving you until tonight to give me an honest
answer. Meantime, keep these two pictures in mind: a vibrant rose and a dead
puppy.”

Click.
Adrienne listened with disbelief to the dial
tone. As if in a dream, she put down the phone with shaking hands. No, not a
dream. A nightmare. Her apartment, which had given her so much comfort in the
past year or so, had taken on a sinister atmosphere, tainted by the evil voice
she could still hear in her head. She sank down onto the bed, forehead cradled
in her hands.

The moment she had been dreading had arrived. Only, she
hadn’t expected it to come so soon. After so many months, how could her
stepfather still be intent on putting away his son? How had he tracked them
down so quickly? She thought she had covered her tracks pretty well, leaving
all those clues and false trails that led to Canada.

Unless he had spies among her circle of friends.

But she hadn’t revealed her real background to anyone, had
never talked about her family, her education, her country of origin, heck, she
hadn’t even gossiped about her ex-boyfriends. Most importantly, she hadn’t told
anyone about David, her well-guarded secret, who was all alone in the nursing
home. She had told no one about him, from the time she landed in this
country --

Jake.

She stared unseeing at the wall. The awful realization washed
over her. The sick feeling of betrayal pervaded her heart.

She had told him about David yesterday. Though she hadn’t
revealed much, she had confirmed his existence.

Had Jake passed on the information? He had had plenty of time
to do it. Was the man on the phone his co-conspirator? Jake had certainly been
deceptive when it suited his purposes, the cad! He’d kept his being a werewolf
to himself. If last night’s incident hadn’t happened, she might never have
known of Jake’s unusual genetics. Would Jake have eventually told her? Could
someone who had been so intimate with her betray her?

Something else flashed in her memory.

Marcy. She’d been fooling around on Adrienne’s computer that
morning. Could Marcy have been looking for clues to Adrienne’s history? Could
Marcy have seen the scanned photo of Adrienne and David together that Adrienne
had, in a moment of foolish sentimentality, stored in a folder in her hard
disk?

The knife of betrayal twisted deeper.

Who could she trust?

Her logical mind asserted itself. She was jumping to
conclusions based on scant clues and pure speculation. She shivered, suddenly
realizing that the villain had succeeded in dividing her against the people she
trusted, people she considered her friends, her allies, just by sowing a few
seeds of doubt in her mind.

What was she going to do?
Get a grip, Adrienne.
She
didn’t have any solid reason to point a finger at anyone. What she
could
do is to be more careful about what she said to people, especially when it
concerned David. She could also be more observant and take note of anything
suspicious.

Feeling calmer and steadier, she let herself out of her
apartment and drove to the office. She turned onto the highway. At this time of
day, there were few cars around, as most people were already at work.
Hmmm ... maybe she should ask the boss for a flex-time work schedule; that
way, she could save time by not being caught in traffic during rush hour, and
more importantly, she could enjoy being with Jake --

Something bumped into her car from the right side. She
swerved, tires squealing. She screamed.

Adrienne fought to get the car back under control. Her heart
pounded heavily. Her hands tightened on the steering wheel. She glanced to the
right, to see a muddied Toyota with heavily tinted windows deliberately closing
the gap between them.

Her small car jarred from the impact.

“Hey you crazy man! Stop that!”

The Toyota veered away slightly. From this angle, she saw a
man behind the wheel. Good grief! He was coming at her again!

This time, she braced herself, but the impact was no less
harsh. Panic reared its head. Fear thudded in tempo with rising hysteria.

“Oh, God, oh, God, oh, God ...”

He kept his car close to hers. From time to time, their
fenders grated against each other, metal scraping, paint peeling. Sparks of
fire flew where the friction heated up the metal.

She slowed.

He slowed as well.

She sped up.

He kept pace.

She looked around wildly for a way out. She’d moved to the
far left lane. A long stretch of island separated the two sides of the highway.
Up ahead, a bridge loomed into sight.

The Toyota continued pressing her from the right, such that
the left underside of her car scratched against the island. In reaction, she
threw her wheel to the right, deliberately bumping hard against the Toyota. Its
tires screeched and skidded on the black asphalt, driving away from her.

Where are the cops when you need them?

She stepped on the gas, trying to outrun the Toyota. The
speedometer inched up: sixty ... eighty ... one-twenty ...

She dared a glance in the rearview mirror.

Her heart lurched.

The Toyota was racing up behind her with a vengeance, gaining
ground with each second. It crashed into her rear bumper. Her car lurched
forward. The Toyota turned slightly to the right and made a wide “U”, smashing
into her right passenger door. Metal buckled with a sickening crunch. She lost
her grip on the steering wheel. Traveling at great speed and pushed by the
Toyota, her car jumped over the island onto the other side of the highway.

Her eyes widened. Her mouth opened in a silent scream.

She was on track for a head-on collision with another car.

The impact was explosive.

Chapter Nine

The air bag and her seatbelt saved her.

After the horrifying, thundering roar of the crash, the sound
of the hospital’s everyday bustle was comforting.

The doctor aimed a smile at her. “You’re a very lucky young
woman. To be in a car crash of such magnitude and to walk away virtually
unscathed ...” She shook her head, her silky dark hair flowing over her
shoulders. “It’s almost unheard of.” She consulted the chart in her hand. “Your
vital signs are normal. Aside from a few bruises and scratches, you’re fine.”

Adrienne lay on the gurney, shaking with relief. She didn’t
know what would happen to David should anything terrible befall her. She
touched the bandaged wound on her cheek and winced. “What about the other car,
the one I collided with? The driver --?”

“He’ll be fine; don’t worry. Although he suffered more wounds
than you, he’ll live. My colleague is attending to him now.”

Adrienne remembered the dirty Toyota. “Was there ... another
car?”

The doctor gave her a strange look. “Not that I know of. Only
two cars, two accident victims.”

Suddenly, the whole incident came rushing back. Someone had
deliberately tried to run her off the road.
Someone wanted to kill her.
Cold chills ran down her spine. She wanted to tell someone, anyone. Jake. “So,
can I leave now? I still have to get to work.”

The doctor frowned. “Yes, you can leave, after the police
talk to you. They wanted to take your statement. But work? I wouldn’t advise
it. You should go home and rest.” She gestured for Adrienne to follow. “Come,
I’ll take you to see the officers.”

Adrienne picked up her handbag and trailed after the doctor
on shaky legs. “There’s just someone I need to ... to talk with.”

The doctor laughed, her teeth flashing under the cold light
of the corridor. “You don’t need to explain to me. Where are you working, by
the way?”

Adrienne skirted around someone pushing a wheelchair in front
of her. “Creative Minds Advertising.” She was looking back at the man in the
wheelchair and came abruptly to a stop as she bumped into someone.

It was the doctor. She was staring at Adrienne with wide
eyes. “You work at Creative Minds?”

Adrienne wondered what was so unusual about that. “Yes.” She
glanced at the gold nameplate pinned slightly above the doctor’s left breast.
Dr.
Tara Woolf.
No wonder she looked familiar. Was she a werewolf as well? How
can a wolf be a doctor? “You’re related to Jake?”

Tara’s face closed. “His sister.” She turned and walked briskly
away.

Adrienne alternately walked and hopped to keep up with her.
“He never mentioned your name.”

“He wouldn’t. I’ve been estranged from most of my family for
almost five years now.”

Adrienne gasped. “Why?” Perhaps, she shouldn’t wonder. After
all, she’d run away from her own father. Well, stepfather.

“Why? I can’t tell you.”

All right, it was none of her business, but she was still
confused. “He’s only been at the company for two months. So, how did
you --?”

“My mother and I keep in touch, without their knowledge.”

“Please, can you walk slower?” Adrienne gasped, her chest
heaving. “I’m still not feeling so well.”

“Of course.” Tara immediately slowed and laid a compassionate
hand on Adrienne’s arm. “I’m sorry; it’s just that I ...” She was silent
for several long moments. They walked companionably, side by side. “How is
Jake?”

Without being an empath, Adrienne knew that this lovely young
woman missed her family and wanted to know how they were. “He’s the greatest
boss, but don’t tell him I told you so. He may be one of the top management,
but he doesn’t have any airs, and he doesn’t mind getting his hands ‘dirty.’ Do
you know that he created the presentation slides for our latest project for me?
That’s the kind of boss he is -- helpful and very hands-on.” Adrienne gave
an inward chuckle.
Tara just didn’t know exactly how hands-on her brother
was being.

* * * * *

Adrienne took a cab to the office. Her car was mangled beyond
repair, and she’d have to buy a new one. Or not. She remembered the horrifying
incident and shuddered. She’d probably never get behind the wheel again.

She’d wanted to talk to Jake immediately, but his office was
empty. Even Marcy wasn’t around. Then she remembered; it was time for the
monthly meeting of the different division heads, of which Jake was one, with
the directors of Creative Minds.

She reached her office and sank gratefully behind her desk.
She sagged against the chair and closed her eyes. Her body felt as though it
had been battered and beaten many times over. In a way, it had. A massage would
be good tonight ...

Someone was trying to kill her, but who? Her threatening
caller? She shuddered. But why? He wanted to know where David was, right? How
could he get the information if she died?

She didn’t know how long she’d been sitting there with those
thoughts going round and round her head when the phone rang. Maybe she had
drifted off for a few minutes as well. She picked up the receiver and answered
briskly. “Hello?”

The dark voice she had come to associate with her worst nightmares
came over the line. “You aren’t too shaken from the accident, are you?”

“Why are you doing this? Other people could have been hurt!”

Evil laughter reached her ears. “I don’t care about other
people. Tell me what I want to know; where’s David?!”

“I told you, he’s not here! Why won’t you believe me?”

“I’m tired of your lies!” He snarled. “You can bear to be
without your beloved brother? Don’t play that game with me, girl. That’s not
what I was told.”

Told. Someone told him all about me and David.

The menacing voice continued. “This is your last chance!
Where’s David?”

Adrienne was shaking. How should she counter this? What
should she say? However she answered him, she was doomed.

“No answer?” The threatening voice asked.