“I’m fine.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck.“I was so afraid for you.”
“I’m fine,” he said gruffly.
She leaned back and studied his face.“You fell on the pavement.”
“It was a strategic decision,” he said.“It’s one thing to shove an upright man into a car, but quite another to lift two hundred and thirty pounds of dead weight.”
“You had me worried,” she said.
“I was worried about you,” he said, his face softening.“Those men had you.Are you all right?Did they hurt you?”
“I’m okay.”She shot a smile toward Chase.“Chase and his friends got me out.”
“Glad they were good for something,” her father snapped.“Help me up, will ya?”
Chase rolled him to his side and sliced through the zip tie holding his wrists together.Then he held out a hand.
Alana’s father stared at it, his eyes narrowed.Finally, he took Chase’s hand and let him draw him to his feet.Once upright, the older man swayed.
Chase grabbed his elbow.
Alana rose and slipped an arm around his waist.Between the two of them, they steadied her father.He tried to shake free of Chase’s grip.
“Give it a minute,” Chase said.
“I don’t need a minute.”The older man swayed a little.A frown creased her father’s brow, but he didn’t move or try to shake free of Chase’s grip again.“How did you know?—"
“We got word from one of our sources that Delgado found out about you and decided to go for big money.He was going to demand ransom for Alana.If that went south, they were going to take you.”
Alana’s father nodded.“Since you recovered Alana, does that mean it went south for Delgado?”
“Yes, sir,” Chase said.“He’s on a plane to California to be turned over to the U.S.Marshals.”
“Good,” the older man said.“I was in the lobby when Delgado’s goons came after me.”
“Why didn’t you stay in the room?”Alana asked.
“I was waiting to hear news about you,” he said.“When they came in, the hotel staff ducked behind the counters.They tazed my bodyguard, tied him up and threatened to shoot him if I didn’t go with them.Then they escorted me out the back, where you found me.”
“Fortunately, we were just pulling into the hotel when we heard Delgado had sent his second in command to take you.”Alana leaned her cheek against her father’s arm.“Thank God we got here when we did.”
Her father nodded and smoothed his over his damaged clothes.“Yes, your timing was impeccable.”He looked over her shoulder.
Chase had taken a step back, giving her father all the room he needed to reunite with his daughter and giving him time to be a father.
Alana’s heart swelled.The man was insightful, honorable and protective.
Her father watchedhim as well.
Hank and Chase checked the two downed cartel members for pulses.Finding both alive, they applied pressure to their wounds until an ambulance could arrive.
Ten minutes later, the Mexican police and two ambulances arrived amid flashing lights and wailing sirens.Four police units pulled in, surrounding the loading dock.
Chase, Trevor, Gina and Hank had grounded their rifles.Hank and Chase waited for the medical technicians to take over before they straightened and joined Gina and Trevor, where they stood with Alana, holding their hands in the air as the police surrounded them.
The hotel manager emerged onto the loading dock and spoke in Spanish to the officer in charge.
