In the Shadow of Vengeance (22 page)

His features were different; he had a smaller nose, a more defined jawline, and there was a different slant to his eyes. The way he sat, back stiff, tight to the back of the seat, his hands together in his lap, were the same old Spencer. Pompous. Arrogant. Dismissive.

If he'd physically changed his appearance, why didn't he change everything? While Spencer may never be able to change his personality, he could have at least altered himself to the point that even she wouldn't be able to recognize him.

“I've been searching for you, Elizabeth.”

A tremor rumbled through her as his eyes roamed from her face down her body. It wasn't a lustful look but a physical assessment. Spencer prided himself on spotting abnormalities in breathing, an unusual tint of skin color, and other symptoms before laying a hand on a patient. He would already be in tune to her labored breathing, her heightened blood pressure, and would discern her fear.

One question after another coursed through her, but she kept her mouth closed, every sense on alert. She would learn more from silence, and knowledge was her only weapon.

“Don't you want to know where I have been?” His upper lipped curled, turning his expression into a mixture of contempt and scorn.

“I thought you were dead.”

“Liar. You testified against your own husband and then hid behind witness protection. I expected more loyalty from you.”

She almost choked on the bile in her throat. He was chastising her? The two-timing, soulless killer judged her and somehow came to the conclusion she was in the wrong?

“I testified against a group of murderers who killed innocent people for their organs. I went into witness protection to keep our children safe. One of your friends placed a price on my head.”

“That would be me.”

“I don't understand.”

“I placed the hit on your head. The price was higher if you were delivered alive, but at some point, I no longer cared one way or another. I just wanted your lifeless body dropped at my feet.” He wiped the thin layer of sweat off his upper lip with the back of his forefinger and quietly studied her. “But now that you're here, this is much better.”

Keeping her voice steady, she said, “The De Rousse family placed that hit. It was in the millions. You don't have that kind of money.”

“I am De Rousse. With Victor dead, they needed a new golden child, and I became him. It was my idea to place the hit.” He pinned her with a stare. “Someone recently reminded me that vengeance was something to savor. How correct he was. I would have gladly dished out the prize for your death from my personal account.” His eyes again ran the length of her while the rest of him sat like a statue, stock-still, no emotion.

“You sought vengeance on me? That's crazy. You chased me and your infant daughter right into a path of a tornado.”

“I wasn't chasing you. I simply wanted a chance to explain my plan. Instead, you ran off like a scared child. Had you stopped and listened, you would have realized that I planned to work in that specialty for only a short period of time to give us both a comfortable living.”

“You were killing people. How could you ever think I would have been okay with that?”

“I chose nobodies. Migrant workers, illegal immigrants, homeless people who sponged off this country. I was giving them a purpose, a calling.”

His words made her sick to her stomach. He believed what he said. She tried to envision the young, ambitious man she fell in love with, but that person no longer existed. She may have grown up on a farm in the middle of Iowa and went off to college with idealistic naivety, but she wasn't stupid or clueless even at eighteen. Something had drastically changed Spencer. There is no way she would have missed the crazy that lived right below the surface.

“You have been such a disappointment. I chose you so carefully, an innocent I could mold to be by my side, on my arm. You had a purpose, Elizabeth. Your surgical nursing skills were exceptional. You were so in tune to my needs, anticipated what I required before I had to ask. Do you know how rare that is? I trusted you, and we could have been great together. Instead, you have been a thorn in my side and a noose around my neck.”

She let out a harsh laugh. “I've been a disappointment to you?” She raised her hand and let it fly. He caught it right before it struck his cheek. His grip was strong, his fingernails biting into her skin.

“If you can't act like a lady, then I'll be forced to knock you out, understand?”

She took in a gulp of air and let it out in a slow, even flow. “Yes,” she replied, yanking her wrist free and placing it in her lap.

The SUV turned onto a narrow paved road that was partially hidden by overgrown bushes. The sharp twists and turns made Elizabeth grab onto the door for support as the vehicle climbed in elevation. “Where are you taking me?”

“There is a luxury resort in the mountains that people come from all around for their spa treatments. I have acquired the small clinic associated with it.”

“Why?”

“You will fulfill your new purpose.”

“And what would that be?”

“I've decided to return to where this all began. It's not something I have done in years, but it will come back to me.”

He again studied her until she wanted to squirm. His expression was filled with pure contempt.

“You have become useless to me, but what you possess has great value to others. I have a lady in Ohio with your blood type. She is willing to pay through the nose for a new kidney. Of course there are your other organs as well, parts of your lung, liver, pancreas, and intestines. Then once you have served the purpose as a live donor, we have your cornea, skin grafts, blood, and platelets.” His warm palm pressed down on the top of her thigh. “In your favor, you seem to have remained celibate since you deserted me. I will award that behavior by keeping this as painless as possible.”

“I have children ... we have children.”

“They ceased being my children the instant you walked into the FBI. You stole them from me. They are nothing to me now, and I couldn't care less what happens to them.”

She shut her eyes and brought Noah's face into focus. His essence shoved down her panic as a truth engulfed her.

He's coming for me.

The tips of her fingers went to her throat, covering the small golden cross he'd given her. It was the oddest time for their bathroom heart-to-heart to filter back through her mind, but his last words,
Elizabeth, we are not over
took on new meaning.

Was she out of her mind to believe that Noah McNeil actually could be in love with her? Why didn't those words register when she was standing right next to him? He'd begged her not to throw
them
away.

She covered her face with her hands. What a hell of a moment to have an epiphany.

But somehow, that notion cut through the overwhelming fear. The damn man loved her. He never said the words out loud, but he showed her how much he cared in the hours they spent wrapped in each other's arms. There was no way that their lovemaking was normal, everyday. Why else would he be so willing to leave his life behind and follow her into the witness protection program if he wasn't in love with her?

Instead of running from Noah under the illusion of keeping him safe, she should have opened her heart and accepted his love. There was an indelible strength and power in love, and that was what Noah was offering her all along.

On some level she knew that, and it scared her. She loved him enough to walk out on him—as if she were the only one capable of a love deep enough to sacrifice anything for it.

Noah had the right to love her enough to sacrifice everything for her. And she should have had the backbone to open her heart and accept that love with the same intensity. While he couldn't keep away the horrors of her world, she didn't have to go them alone. He'd offered to share that burden with her and keep her happy in the meantime.

Dear God, what had she done? Noah was the best of her father and brothers in one—honorable, dependable, and, as her mother would no doubt point out, so sexy. Just looking at him made her melt. She trusted him, and God in heaven, she loved him with everything in her.

And I cut the poor man off at the knees.
Stupid, so damn stupid.

She didn't have to feel the little indention in the cross to know that Noah was tracking her through the GPS chip. The instant she opened her heart, she could feel him grow close. And she didn't have to worry about Danny and Erin either. He would have seen to their safety before he came after her.

An inner happiness bubbled up from inside, and she bit down to keep the laughter quiet. Spencer needed to believe she was defenseless. That was her edge. All she had to do was stay alive long enough for Noah to get to her.

The SUV slowed and turned into a gravel driveway, coming to a stop in front of what appeared to be a lodge. The momentary joy evaporated into thin air. Elizabeth couldn't prevent her shiver when armed men exited the thick, double oak doors.

Noah, please hurry before this madman takes me apart piece by piece.

Thick, black clouds darkened the sky as rain drenched Noah to the bone. He slipped from behind the tree, knelt under the sill, and peered through the window of the deserted lodge. Elizabeth was inside somewhere with whoever took her. He had no idea what he was up against, but his gut knew Mendoza was part of this.

He clicked on his phone and whispered, “Sarah, do you have the blueprints for the building yet?”

“I just loaded them and sent them to your phone. You have several options: the front entrance, the kitchen opens out onto what looks to be a garden around the south side, and there are stairs to a basement entrance on the northeast corner.”

“Any idea who owns this place?”

“It's no longer associated with the spa. The building was purchased recently by a dummy corporation. I'm being bounced all over the globe. Whoever is behind the purchase doesn't want anyone to know.”

“I'm going in through the basement. Call the local sheriff's department. I'm not waiting for them, but I'm going to need some backup.”

Two heavily armed men stood at the entrance. There had to be someone guarding the back. Noah carried a Glock, a Colt .25 semiautomatic he wore on his left ankle, and a pocket knife. Compared to the weapons the men carried, it was like bringing water pistols to a gunfight. He was going to have to slip in unnoticed, find Elizabeth, and get the hell out of there.

“Noah, you can't go in alone,” Jason said, his voice thick with anger.

“Adam is wandering through the woods looking for Danny and Erin. I can't reach Jared. Get the sheriff's department to send someone to the cabin as well. The only reason Jared would not answer my call is he can't.”

“Give me a chance to get you some help.”

“Elizabeth has been in there for almost a half hour. I can't wait any longer.”

Shutting off his phone, Noah kept in the shadows, inching his way along the side wall toward the outside stairwell. Dried, dead leaves and twigs covered the concrete flooring as spider webs wound between the slits of the iron railings. No one had been down the staircase in a long time.

He took the steps two at a time. He ran his hand over the door frame and found no wires that indicated the entrance was alarmed. Using a couple steel straight picks from his pocket knife, he worked the lock until he heard the familiar click and entered the basement. Giving his eyes a chance to adjust to the darkness, he shifted around the deserted furnishings and boxes. Placing his foot on the first step, he tested his weight. Thankfully, his foot didn't break through the old wooden plank. On the top step, he turned the knob and eased open the door.

The hallway of the ground floor didn't look much better than the basement. The lodge had been boarded up for quite some time. The air held that dust and mold stench that made him want to sneeze.

He could hear voices on the second story. With his back against the stairwell wall, he withdrew his Glock and worked his way to the main room. Clearing the living space, he slipped past the front door. The men were hunched under an eve, trying to stay dry, their backs to the door. When his foot hit the second step, the wood cracked beneath his weight and he froze. The sound seemed to vibrate off the walls, but neither man turned around.

He continued to the second floor, which branched off into three wings. A hint of light spilled out from under the doorway of the first room in the far left wing. The knob didn't budge. Locked. Again, he removed his picks, and within seconds, he slipped into the room just as the door at the end of the wing opened.

“Noah,” Elizabeth gasped in a strained whisper.

He shut the door and held the knob in his hands until he heard the footsteps descending the stairs. Elizabeth was cuffed to a hospital bed. While the fear in her expression was palpable, she appeared unharmed. A ton weight lifted from his shoulders.

“I knew you would miss me,” he said, drawing her against him. “Elizabeth Merlot, you are becoming a huge pain in my ass, you know that?”

She found his mouth, and for an instant, he let himself drown in the taste and feel of her.

Breaking the kiss, he moved his hands over her body. “Where are Danny and Erin?”

“I had them run into the woods when the damn jerks opened fired on us.”

“Good thinking. We found tracks and followed them to the ridge. Are the man-size shoe prints with them belonged to Marshal Ramon?”

“Yes. He was forced to let me go, but he would have gone after them.”

“Adam is following their trail.”

She let out a noisy breath. “I knew you would take care of them.” She raised her cuffed hands. “Do you know how to get these off?”

Noah had her free in seconds and she charged back into his arms.

“I've been waiting for you to open the door.”