NaturesBounty (10 page)

“Negative,” came the reply. “It’s some old, short guy who
needs a bath in something other than booze.”

“Get rid of him. We’re almost ready to leave.”

He turned and headed for the smoldering trash bin. His back
was still turned when the ceiling somehow caved in. Something large and dark
dropped down behind the man guarding Lydia, and he was suddenly pushed to the
floor. She jumped aside, startled and wide-eyed, at the sight of the gun that
appeared beside her. Her hands flew up in automatic surrender, a pose she was
becoming far too used to these days. While the commotion didn’t allow her to
register the voice shouting commands at Andrew, a glance upward along the gun
arm showed her who was pointing it.

“Nate,” she whispered.

This was a very different man, however, from the one who had
handed her balloons or even cuffed her back at the apartment. He had on his
badge, along with a flak vest and a highly focused, determined expression that
left no doubt that he meant deadly business.

Cops burst into the room in a scene similar to the one that
had resulted in broken furniture and a mad dash down a fire escape back in
Venice. Andrew’s hands were on his head as he sank to the paper-littered floor.
Lydia did the same, but she wasn’t the focus of attention. One officer stood
over her, his gun pointed at her head, while the rest dealt with her former
employer.

Nate had used a nylon tie to cuff the man who’d all but
finger-fucked Lydia, and he yanked the guy’s gun from a belt holster before
sticking it away in his own waistband. He never looked her way as he jerked the
man upright and led him out of her line of sight. No doubt he was thoroughly
pissed at her for what she’d done to him. At least it appeared that he was
working with the police, rather than running from them. Maybe that meant he
wasn’t a fugitive anymore. At least one of them would have a life again.
Considering her recent actions, he was the one most deserving of it.

“You lying little bitch,” Andrew said as his hands were
zip-tied behind his back. “I thought you might have been trying to play me for
a fool.” He jerked his head toward the waste bin. “But what you thought you had
on me is gone now. As is your chance to make a deal.”

“I said I made two copies when I left town,” she said.
“Which I did. I just forgot to mention the copies I made on the way back here.”

His nostrils flared as he was hauled to his feet. A cop was
trying to read him Miranda rights, but he wasn’t listening. His eyes stared
daggers at Lydia, who also stood.

“My lawyers will see to it those statements are seen as
frauds you created to cover your ass. You’ve achieved nothing.”

“Except acquiring your confession,” Nate said as he stalked
back into the room. Her eyes shifted to him, but he was staring Andrew down.

“She wasn’t wired.” Andrew gave him a dirty smile. “We made
certain of that quite thoroughly.”

“I was.” Nate pulled a small tape recorder from his vest
pocket, along with a tiny cell phone. “And the PD was listening in on an open
phone line while I was hiding right over your head.”

Only after Andrew and his henchman were led from the room
did Nate finally meet her searching eyes, and when he did, the jolt all but
obliterated the adrenaline still coursing through her system. Even with a hard
edge to his expression, he was still too fucking gorgeous for her not to feel the
stark, chemical effects of it.

“I suppose you tracked me by the cell phone I took,” she
said.

He nodded as he kept staring at her. “Among other tricks. I
told you, I have ways.” He sighed. “You’re not hurt. I’m glad.”

“I was felt up, anally probed, and aggravated beyond belief.
But no, I’m not hurt.” Just the part of her heart that was busy shouting at her
for fucking up a good thing with Nate. Not that he probably thought they ever
had a thing in the first place.

She let her eyes slide over him, down to his badge and back
up to his penetrating green eyes. “And you’re not a fugitive anymore. I’m
glad.”

With a sigh, he reached out with a finger and stroked a
strand of hair away from her face. Her pulse sped up at his gentle touch. “You
still are,” he said. “A recaptured fugitive.”

Her hands were zip-tied behind her back, and she nodded
sadly. “I may have been innocent of embezzling, but I still broke the law. Even
that bastard Andrew knew there was no way around that other than jail.”

“There is one other way.” He stepped closer, searching her
face. “In light of the evidence we just gathered, he’ll be the one charged with
embezzling, along with blackmail and a few other things. But that still leaves
you with some serious legal problems, unless you cooperate like I just did.”

She narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean?”

“There’s one last bad-guy loose end. The DA will drop the
remaining charges against you if you’ll help tie it up. I know that might sound
crazy, but that’s where we’re at.”

A flicker of hope joined in a funny dance with the
butterflies his proximity stirred in her stomach. “I think we’ve established
I’m willing to do some pretty crazy things,” she said. She flicked a deliberate
glance at his crotch, which looked snug and very grabbable in a pair of tight
black jeans. “So count me in. What’s the plan?”

“I’ll explain in the car.” He took her by the arm, and the
look he seared her with sent a flutter of purely sexual interest through her.
“That would be
my
car, by the way. If it’s all the same to you, I’m
taking it—and you—back.”

* * * * *

It was all Nate could do to keep nervous tension from
exploding right through his skin as Lydia disappeared inside A-1 Bail Bonds.
She had been all too eager to do her part of the plan, and he’d been happy
enough about it when he’d talked her through it on the way over. Now he wasn’t
so sure. Not because she hadn’t proven herself capable of keeping her wits in
tense situations, but because he couldn’t go in there with her.

He picked up the two-way radio and said, “She’s inside. I’ve
lost visual.”

“Copy that,” came the reply. “No audio yet.”

“Will you stop drumming that steering wheel?” Benny asked
from beside him. “I swear, you’re worse than an expectant father. She’s got the
spirit, that one. She’ll be fine.”

They were sitting in Benny’s black junker since Nate’s car
was too recognizable. The car smelled just as ripe as its owner, who was still
dressed in his drunken hobo disguise from casing out the office building they’d
tracked Lydia to. Now they were just down the street from Asa’s place. Around
the corner sat an unmarked van full of officers and surveillance equipment. All
were waiting for Lydia to either get what they came for or give the panic
signal to send in the brigade.

“Ace is always packing when he’s in the office,” Nate said.
“He keeps a shotgun beneath the counter.”

“Which you already said ain’t loaded most of the time. It’s
just for show.”

“What if he heard the news already?”

“We haven’t given him a chance. Waller and his crew are too
busy getting booked to tip anyone off, and the cops kept it off the wire.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’ve been monitoring the broadband ever since I contacted
them with your offer to help bring in Andrew Waller in exchange for calling off
the fugitive mark.”

“What if this doesn’t work?” Nate asked, just as her voice
came over the receiver.

“It will. Now shut up and listen.”

The audio wasn’t great, so Benny dialed up the volume. Since
Lydia had a knack for getting her tits ogled or outright searched, the wire she
wore had been hidden lower down, inside the waistband of her jeans. It wasn’t
the optimal location for sound, but the equipment was sensitive enough that he
could still hear the shock in Asa’s voice over seeing her.

“I don’t believe it,” he said. “A lotta people are looking
for you, little lady, and here you come waltzing right in my front door. What’s
in the pretty flowered box?”

The sound that followed made Nate’s blood run cold. “He
racked the gun. He’s got it pointed at her, I’ll bet.”

“Sit tight, cowboy,” Benny whispered.

“There’s no need for the shotgun,” Lydia said. “This is just
my rainy-day hatbox. It’s where I got the money I gave you to make bail. And
there’s more where that came from. I just need your help.”

“I already helped you, and you screwed me. Now you’re going
back to jail.”

“Just listen to me. I know you and Andrew were in on that
little visit his asshole friends paid me.”

“Bullshit. Stop right there and put the box on the floor.
Lift the lid slow and easy and back up, hands in the air.”

“Okay, okay. Let’s everyone just keep our heads cool.”

Nate managed a tiny smirk at the reference from their
encounter back in Venice. There was silence for a moment, except for the
adrenaline-fed pounding of Nate’s heart.

“Don’t bother denying you and Andrew were partners in this,”
she said after a minute. “He told me everything.”

“Right. You, Andrew and Nate Antillean all sat around having
tea and crumpets while you discussed his entire scheme.”

She snorted. “Nate? Don’t make me laugh. I wasn’t sure
whether to be grateful or insulted that you sent that jackass after me.”

Nate glowered at the smirk Benny shot him.

“Yeah? Speaking of which, back away from the door. Keep your
hands up.”

Benny and Nate slumped down in their seats so they couldn’t
be seen in case Asa had gone to check the window.

“And one more thing,” Asa said after a pause. “Lift your
shirt up.”

“I knew it,” Nate said. “I just fucking knew it. She can’t
go five minutes without some guy getting an eyeful of her tits.”

“What are you,” Lydia asked, “some kind of pervert?”

“I’m looking for a wire, sweetheart. Not a hard-on.”

“Fine.”

There was a rustling sound, and then a male wolf whistle.
“Then again, the hard-on wins.”

“Get a life.”

“Okay, so what did happen to Natey boy? Last I heard, he had
you with him.”

“Then you obviously haven’t heard the latest. I slipped my
cuffs and used them on him before helping myself to his car. Here’s a little
tip for you, Asa. Next time you want a felon captured, send someone with a
little more firepower than half a brain.”

Benny straightened up in his seat. “Ouch. She burned you.”

Nate scowled. “I told her to make it sound realistic.”

“A little too realistic.”

Asa was laughing. “Fair enough. I suppose I underestimated
you. But then, I had my reasons.” There was shuffling. “And now I see that your
box might be worth helping you out, depending on the favor. Unmarked bills?”

“Of course. That’s a good part of my life savings, I’ll have
you know. Never trust everything to the bank.”

“Smart cookie. So what’s this favor of yours?”

“After I escaped, I contacted Andrew to work out a deal.
Turns out that was why he had guys after me anyway. Only, he can’t make all of
it go away now since I sort of left town. And on top of that, by now I’ve got a
pissed-off bounty hunter out there wanting my head on a platter for stealing
his car.”

“You could say that. He called me a little while ago,
actually.”

“He did?”

Benny and Nate exchanged glances.

“He was pissed and a half, that’s for sure. Said you gave
him the slip.”

“You just told me you heard I was still with him.”

“I wasn’t sure I believed him. I wanted to hear it from
you.”

“Smart shithole,” Benny whispered.

“Then again, it wasn’t completely unthinkable,” Asa was
saying. “Truth is, you’re right about Nate. He’s been off his game for a while.
Screwed the pooch on his last few bounties. It’s past time he hung it up for
good.”

Nate gritted his teeth. “I’m not through yet, you bastard,”
he muttered.

“I’ll say,” she said. “I’m hardly an expert, and I managed
to get away. Although I suppose I should be grateful he’s so useless.”

Okay, Nate thought. He’d heard just about enough of her
realism.

“So why come to me?” Asa was asking. “What do you want?”

“After hearing Andrew’s story about how you were responsible
for all of this, I knew I had to come to you. I need to make this go away.”

“He told you I was responsible for all of what?”

“This whole thing. He told me it was your idea to frame me
for the theft in the first place.”

“That’s a fucking lie.”

“Don’t be mad. It makes sense. I mean, this way, you got the
fee for posting my bond, plus what he paid you. In exchange, you made sure he
got what he wanted. I’m just saying I want in. I’ll pay you so I get what
I
want.”

Asa’s tone went up three levels’ worth of honked off. “This
is a load of bullshit. I had nothing to do with his plan to keep you quiet.”

“Don’t piss him off too bad,” Nate warned silently.

“Not the way he tells it. And wow, it does seem that you
know all about what he did to me.”

“He came to me, bitch. Offered to sweeten the bond amount if
I helped him grab you before the cops could. He had the manpower, but not a
bloodhound to track your scent. So I sent Nate. His prime might be past, but he
still has his uncanny instincts for finding people.And he won’t use guns or
shit anymore, so I figured it’d be easy for Andrew’s guys to take you off his
hands.”

“So I’m supposed to believe you only helped Andrew after the
fact, without knowing upfront that he was guilty.”

“Of course I knew he was guilty. Innocent people don’t go
around paying off guys like me to work around the system. But that doesn’t mean
I suggested he frame you in the first place. He did that to save his own neck.
I helped him find you so he could offer you the deal. Now he’s trying to turn
it all around on me? Thankless prick.”

“Join the club. He’s good at that.”

“So what is it that you think I’m going to do for you now?”