Somehow in the month she’d been gone, they hadn’t managed to do anything with her apartment.They’d even paid the rent to put off having to go through her things.It was so heartbreaking she couldn’t even let herself think about it, except to be grateful she wouldn’t have to start from scratch.
Finally, a few minutes ago, after a takeout dinner that everyone had picked at with little enthusiasm, she’d convinced them to return to their safe house with the guards from their security team.
She rubbed at her tired eyes.Whoever had taken Erik hadn’t been in touch since the note to Emma on Wednesday.So much could’ve happened in the last four days.Too much.
Natalie itched with the need to do something.What was the motherfucker who’d taken her brother waiting for?He had to know she was back on US soil by now.Despite the private flight home—a decadent way to travel that she wouldn’t mind repeating—her itinerary hadn’t been a secret.Why hadn’t she heard from the kidnappers?
Her nerves had frayed like a cheap sweater and she didn’t know how to distract herself.She wouldn’t go off half-cocked, but she needed todosomething, find some way to bring her brother home safe.Preferably without taking a bullet herself—again.The impatient part of her urged drastic action to get her enemy’s attention.To end this nightmare.
As if worried she’d do just that, Ford had been sticking close since they landed, smothering her almost as much as her guilt.Grateful as she was for his calming presence and his protection, if he didn’t ease up she might have to kick him out.
Maybe if she took him to bed soon he’d relax a little.Heaven knew she could use the distraction, and she preferred when he looked at her like dessert instead of a potential flight risk.
A knock on the door at back her startled her upright.
“You okay?”Ford asked through the door, his voice low and serious.
Pressing a hand to her chest to calm her racing heart, she had to laugh at herself so she wouldn’t cry.“I’mfine.Don’t worry, there’s no window in here.”
“Nat, I didn’t think—”
“Kidding!”She splashed some water on her face.“I’ll be right out.”
A minute later, she opened the door and straightened her shoulders.You’re fine.At the far end of the room, beyond the velvety green couch Nat had bought only a month before the Lucerne trip, Emma stood in the dining room, clutching a mug, secure beneath the protective drape of Jason’s arm.The pair chatted with Ford in low tones.
Natalie had escaped to the bathroom to get away from the depressingly somber vibe, but now she felt irrationally left out, excluded from her own homecoming, and laden with guilt for her role in Erik’s disappearance.In Marseille she’d been able to block it out somewhat because there’d been nothing she could do for her brother.Being back home, though, made the situation impossible to ignore.
Emma looked up and caught Natalie watching.Her dark hair skimmed her shoulders playfully as she disengaged from Jason’s hold and crossed the living room.The toll of the last few weeks showed in her gaunt cheeks and the faint shadows under her eyes, but she alsoglowed.“Hey.”She rested a palm on Nat’s good shoulder.“I probably sound like a broken record right now, but it’s so good to see you.How are you holding up?”
Before Nat could respond, Emma frowned and pulled a cell phone from her back pocket.Her brow furrowed and she tugged Natalie into the corner near the front door.Dropping her voice to a whisper, she said, “It’s from them.”
Natalie’s pulse pounded in her ears.“Another email?”
Emma shook her head.“Text.”Face somber, she turned her back to the room and held the screen so Nat could read it.
Redondo Pier.Tables on the northwest corner.1 hour.Alone.We’re watching.
“I have to go.”
Emma shook her head.“When Price grabbed me, he admitted that his team attacked us in Lucerne.But he’s out of the picture, so if someone’s been after you this whole time, that means he wasn’t working alone.”She scoffed and shook her head.“He called himself Saber.Like he was part of some ridiculous club with secret code names and everything.Clearly there are more of them.If this is Wallace or someone else, either way, they’re dangerous.You can’t just run off without a plan.Or at least a little recon.”
“I didn’t mean I’d walk out the door in the next two seconds.”Nat couldn’t hide her disappointment.For once it’d be nice if someonedidn’tthink she was too impulsive.Yes, she often acted quickly, but she was also good at sizing up and adapting to the situation on the fly.She operated on instinct and it usually served her well.“But, also, I only have—” she glanced at her watch “—fifty-eight minutes to get to Redondo Beach.I haven’t been there in ages, but I’m pretty sure it’ll take me nearly that long to drive there, park, and walk out onto the pier.”
“You rushing off unprepared is clearly the goal.”
“I get that.”Nat opened the map app on her new phone.Instead of the standard I-shaped structure, Redondo’s pier was more like a large triangle with its tip pointing west into the water and a smaller triangle resting on its southern slope.That meant two ways in—and out—but also two exits for her and any backup to cover.Plus, the extra triangle created a third direction to run, even if it linked back up with one of the main paths eventually.There were also shops and restaurants, and even a police substation.
Honestly, an odd choice for a meetup, though parking was easy and—she looked it up—the pier stayed open overnight.
“You have a whole team here who can help,” Emma said.“Five minutes is worth decreasing your chance of getting hurt.AndErik’s.They want something from you.If you’re a few minutes late, they’ll wait.They’re trying to rush you to keep the advantage.”
Nat balked at risking the kidnapper’s wrath, but couldn’t fault her friend’s logic.She sighed and waved a hand impatiently, jittery with the need to get moving.“I agree.So let’s hurry the fuck up and make a plan.”
Ford’s neck started prickling when Emma held out her phone to Nat, whose body turned rigid.Forgetting whatever he and Jason were talking about, he stood and skirted the sofa to slide an arm around Nat’s waist.“What’s up?”
Emma held up the phone for him and Jason—who’d followed him over—to read the message.
Dammit.Ford’s entire body tightened.There would be no talking her out of this, but he had to try.“Would you consider letting someone else go in your place?”
