“Put him on.” Gwen worried her lip.
“Gwenny, Gwenny. It’s been a while since I saw your beautiful face. Covered with bruises, you were still special. But you couldn’t follow orders,” a modulated voice said.
The hair on Gwen's neck stood to attention. “Who are you? What do you want from me?”
“I want the item, and I want you. You were one of my finest carvings.”
“You bastard, who are you?” Gwen gritted her teeth. Her job was to keep this lunatic on the phone as long as possible. “I have no clue what the item is. Tell me, and if I have it, I’ll give it back,” she pleaded.
She waited but received no response. “Look, if you want me, you can at least tell me where I can meet you.”
The mystery caller started to laugh wildly. “Nice try, Gwenny. Haven’t you learned I get what I want? You were quite a survivor. Maybe a day hanging by your wrists and the caress of my whip will awaken your memories. Find the item. Bye, Gwenny.”
The call ended. Gwen thrust the phone off the bed table and shook like a leaf in the wind. “It’s starting again. I can’t go through that again.”
Her father pulled her tightly into his arms. “No one is going to let you get hurt.”
Kip picked up Gwen’s phone and returned it to her. “Your dad is right, Gwen. We will protect you,” he said. “General, I’m doubling Gwen’s security. Then I’m going to our technical analysis department to see if we can identify where this call came from. Gwen, try to rest.” He reached over her and pressed the call bell. “Do not take any redirected phone calls from Communications, and only answer numbers you recognize.”
Eric responded to her call bell. Troy ordered only senior medical staff to treat her. “Hey,” Eric wrapped a BP cuff around her forearm and pumped it up, “tell me what’s going on?”
Kip explained the situation. “It was a toxic phone call.”
He finished taking her BP. “Okay, lie back, and let’s see if your vitals normalize. Nice slow breaths.” Eric took the chair Kip vacated.
* * *
Kip keyedinto the basement lair of technical analysis. The cool, specially lit room accommodated thirty employees and their computers. As soon as he walked in, he felt the room buzzing like a hive. He scanned the area to see Martin Bailey in command mode. “You heard about the call to Gwen?”
“Her too? No, Tim is knocking Troy out for a procedure. I kept his phone. Whoever is targeting Gwen made a concrete threat for 1100. Troy got a call at 0302 to his voicemail. The caller stated he’d be useless to protect Gwen from today forward. Then the call I answered.” Martin’s chest heaved as he played the recording.
Martin: Troy Bremen’s phone, Martin speaking.
Caller: Ah, the boss. Where’s Greece?
Martin: Who is this?
Caller: Answer a question with a question. If he can’t answer his phone, he must be unconscious. Or locked up. He made such a handsome inmate. If he continued to switch hit, he’d be making it big in porn. But going bareback without lube, though quite delightful to see, did too much damage. And no more torture. This way the films can highlight that physique. At 1100, it will be abundantly clear what a great ass he had. Then all that messy blood.
The mystery caller cackled and hung up.
Martin’s eyes met Kip’s. “I notified Ian, Kieran and Mike. Trask is with Troy. I’ll text him. Holland is in the procedure room with him. We will form a tighter security cordon around wherever they need Troy to be. Damn it, he doesn't need this.” Martin paused and focused. “Tell me what went down with Gwen.”
Kip played Martin the call. “Whoever this is, he is calling her office line. I’m going to have tech set up a relay on her voicemail so we get it too. You should have seen the panic. Troy is close to going off the rails as it is.”
“We need to clue Gwen in on the threat to Troy.” Martin pressed his lips together.
“I hate having to tell her anything, given her condition, but I will without too much detail, and I’m assigning Janice to her. They’ve become quick friends. Dan Bishop and 3-Romeo Team are in the building; I’ll brief them. I put Quebec Team and Papa Team on four-hour recall.
* * *
Gwen heldher pillow to her belly. “Kip, what do we do? And what is he going to do to Troy at 1100?”
Kip blew out a harsh breath. “General, I’m going to assume your discretion. Explain the situation to your dad. Gwen, two members of 3-Romeo and Janice will be with you. You need to stay put and follow doctor’s orders.” His expression grew stern. “I’ll keep you posted.”
Gwen’s gut churned. Kip kept the information limited about what Troy’s caller said. But she did know whatever was said was intended to hurt Troy.
The door opened, and Trask pushed a wheelchair bearing Troy inside. “Isn’t she a beauty?”She was treated to a loopy grin.
