“I won’t get that past my superiors.” Malloy winced as he moved his leg.
“You’ll have to,” Denver said simply. “Say the sellers know my face and they’ll only exchange the baby for me.”
Malloy studied him. “Do they?”
“They might,” Denver said. “Since I’ve been having issues with them for days, they won’t be surprised to see my face. My bidding to get the baby will make sense to them. They won’t care as long as I have the cash.” He reached for the briefcase that the Montana boys had sent and flipped it open.
Malloy whistled. “Wow. How much is that?”
Denver quickly inventoried it. “Three hundred thousand.” If he put paper in the bottom, he could make it look like more. “The bidding is at four hundred thousand right now.” By the time the gang counted the money, he’d have the baby.
Malloy shook his head. “You know how dangerous this is, right? They might take one look at the money and then just shoot you.”
Denver nodded. “We’d better come up with a good plan, then.” His gut hurt, and his temples pounded. What if the gang had contacts in the police department? What if the gang saw cops? At some point they’d cut their losses and lose the baby. Would they really kill a baby? Some people were evil enough to do just that, and he knew it.
Noni cleared her throat. “They wouldn’t hurt a baby, would they?”
Denver couldn’t lie to her. The clock was counting down, and this had to go perfectly.
Malloy coughed. “I don’t like the wildcard element here.” He wiped his brow. “Shit. I should clarify which wildcard I mean.” Tension sizzled off him.
“Madison and Cobb,” Denver said, on the same page. “I know. The Kingdom Boys’ motivation is clear and their trajectory foreseeable. But Madison’s soldiers? They know who you are, who Tina is, and they know we’re in town. We have to lie low until it’s time for the exchange.” Even so, he had no clue how much Madison had figured out about his plans. There was a chance she knew about the baby. Tracing Noni’s movements and ultimately her motivations wouldn’t have been too difficult.
“If Cobb and Madison figured out why you’re here and what you’re doing, they could outbid you in the gang auction,” Malloy said quietly.
Denver could feel the walls pressing in. His two ops might’ve just combined into one big one, but he had no way of knowing anything right now. “One threat at a time. It’s a live bid, so I’ll keep upping it.” He glanced at the clock, which seemed to be speeding up. They had several hours until the bidding closed. “How much time do you need to get a plan in place?”
Malloy breathed out, his wide chest shuddering. “From the moment we have a location? I’d like a couple of hours.”
“You’re probably not going to get it,” Denver said, the itch between his shoulder blades intensifying. Telling the cop everything might’ve been the biggest mistake he’d ever made. What had he done?
Malloy sighed. “I’m aware.” He looked over at Tina. “You ready to take this bullet out or what?”
* * *
Noni finished cleaning the blood from the table as Malloy rested on the sofa with Tina next to him. The bullet removal had been surprisingly quick, but the cleanup was taking time. “Are you sure he hasn’t lost too much blood?” she called out.
Tina glanced over the back of the sofa at her. “He’ll survive.” She rubbed her hand down his jaw. “He’d better.”
Noni tossed the paper towels in the trash and tried to keep from freaking out. A clock on the mantel ticked ominously. How had she not noticed it yesterday? Today it seemed to tick away her chances of finding Talia. Her knees shook, so she locked her legs.
Denver was in the chair next to the sofa, his concentration absolute on his laptop. “Three minutes to go,” he muttered.
“You ahead?” Malloy asked.
“Bid is at five hundred K,” Denver said, his fingers poised over the keys. “Two serious bidders left.”
Tina extended her long legs onto the coffee table. “I don’t understand why the police can’t track this.”
“Anybody on the dark web can track it, but only online. There’s no way to follow the participants into the real world. No way to find them,” Denver said grimly.
Noni moved up behind him to see another picture of Talia, this one with today’s newspaper next to her. At only three months, she was bright eyed and smiling with a purple bow in her hair. The image almost dropped Noni to her knees. “She’s okay,” she breathed.
“Yes.” Denver didn’t turn around.
He’d been cranky all day since everyone had refused to board the helicopter. In fact, he’d barely looked at her. She fought a rising irritation and tried to focus on the baby. Soon she’d be back in safety. Noni had to believe that. She had to.
Denver stiffened. “Damn it. Three new bidders.” He started typing faster.
The entire room seemed to hold its breath.
Flashes of color showed across the screen.
“Fuck,” Denver said, typing even faster. Then the entire screen went black.
Noni stopped breathing. “What happened?” She leaned over his shoulder to see just a blank screen. “Denver?” Her voice trembled. Had they lost? Was Talia gone? Oh God. She gripped his shoulders.
Malloy grabbed his phone. “I’ll call for help.”
Denver held up a hand. “Wait. Not yet.”
Noni swallowed rapidly as bile rose in her throat. What was happening? She blinked.
A three-dimensional box suddenly spun into existence on the screen. Denver clicked on it. Words exploded:
You have three minutes to send a picture of your final bid.
Then a clock appeared on the screen, already counting down.
“Shit.” Denver set the laptop down and ran for the briefcase. “Malloy. Phone.” He somehow snagged the phone out of the air without even looking when Malloy threw it. Then he yanked open the briefcase and snapped several pictures before taking the micro SD card out of the phone. He hustled back to the laptop and inserted it, bringing up the pictures.
As Noni watched, he manipulated two of them to change the briefcases, the angle of the money, and even the denominations so they all looked different. So it appeared as if they had three times the money they really did. Wow.
The clock counted down, now at twenty-two seconds. Twenty-one. Twenty.
She pressed a hand to her mouth to keep from screaming. If they didn’t win, she might never see Talia again.
Eighteen seconds. Seventeen. Sixteen.
Then Denver typed some weird code, the pictures blinked, and then fizzled.
Noni’s eyes filled with hot tears. Talia. The people bidding might want to hurt her. Use her. God.
Seven seconds. Six. Five. Denver typed some more.
Finally, with two seconds to go, he pressed the ENTER button.
Noni grabbed the back of his chair to keep herself standing upright. Her entire body hurt. “Denver?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know.”
Malloy leaned forward. “If they asked everyone for pictures, they might be playing a con. Getting money from everybody and then running.”
“I know,” Denver said, his voice grim. “We’ll have to play it out.”
Nothing. The screen went black again. Silence. It was as if the entire Internet paused.
Then a blue goblin came on the screen. “What the hell?” Malloy said, leaning toward Denver.
The goblin opened its mouth, and words poured out:
Congratulations. You are the high bidder. Be at this address at exactly 4:00 a.m. tomorrow. Only one person may come. Wear a red shirt.
An address scrolled across the screen next. “Where is that?” Noni breathed.
Malloy leaned in farther. “That’s the old abandoned Louis gas station at the edge of town. Good place for an exchange.”
Denver shook his head. “That’ll probably only be the first stop. Whoever is running this thing is pretty smart. They’ll already
have surveillance in place.”
Malloy breathed out. “Agreed. We’ll have to suit up and be prepared to move in as soon as it’s safe. We’ll need a tracker on you.”
Denver turned toward him, his body tense. “We have to prepare here. The gang or Madison or both will be watching the police station and the FBI for any movement. You know it. This thing is put together too well.”
Malloy wiped a hand across his eyes. “I get that.” He reached for his phone. “Then we’ll mobilize under the radar. How’s the cloud cover?”
Denver shook his head. “Still too thick. Satellite won’t be useful.”
“Ah, but traffic cameras will.” Malloy sat up, wincing and then rolling his shoulder. “We’d better get to work.”
Chapter
19
Denver finished scouting the area outside the cabin for threats, finding nothing. Darkness had fallen along with even more snow. Christmas lights twinkled again across the lake, their merriment in direct opposition to his mood. As he reached the front door, he took several deep breaths. In a few too many hours, he’d know the fate of that innocent baby. There was a chance—a good one—that the gang wouldn’t hand her over. There was also a chance that Madison and Cobb had found him, which put Noni and Talia in danger.
Either way, he had to get his priorities straight. Squiring Noni and the baby to safety was the only thing that mattered. It was that simple.
For the first time he was willing to put something else in front of his need to take out his past. Somebody else. Noni and the baby had to come first. No matter what. He hadn’t been given a chance at a good childhood and his adulthood was questionable, considering he knew how to torture and kill. And had. He was who and what he was because of his past. He wouldn’t let anybody force Talia into an existence she had to wonder about. She would be saved. Period.
He pushed open the cabin door and stomped the snow off his boots.
Noni was waiting for him, seated in front of the fire, her eyes pools of concern. Of course she was scared. His chest thumped. He left his jacket on a hook and moved into the warm living room.
“Your brothers called on Malloy’s phone,” she said quietly.
Denver looked over to the table where Malloy and Tina were going over the maps he’d downloaded of the area around the deserted gas station. “Did you tell them the plan?”
Malloy nodded absently, his gaze not moving. “They didn’t like it.”
Figured. Denver rolled his aching neck. The tension there had dug in and spread until his shoulders felt like rocks. “Here’s the deal. Noni and Tina, you’re staying here tomorrow.” He’d leave them with enough firepower to protect a small village.
“No,” Noni said, her chin lifting. Fire lit her dark eyes, and pure stubbornness firmed her jaw.
His entire body heated to a slow burn. He’d sacrifice anything but her. Saving her was within his control, and he had to do it. “Yes.”
She stood then, crossing her arms and moving around the sofa toward him. “Not a chance. This is my fight, and I’m getting that baby.”
His temper uncoiled like a live wire. Too much uncertainty and danger slammed into him, releasing the tight hold he’d had on his control. No more. “You don’t want to push me any more today,” he said, giving fair warning.
Malloy cleared his throat. “On that note, Tina and I are going to get a couple of hours shut-eye.” The cop sounded exhausted, but he shoved to his feet and lurched toward the hallway. “Which bedroom?”
“On the left,” Denver said evenly, his gaze not leaving Noni’s. The woman should’ve gotten on the helicopter like he’d told her to do. If she was safely in Montana, he could fully concentrate on the job, or jobs, he had to do. There was almost a zero chance somebody wouldn’t die in the morning. But Noni had to be safe. “Noni.”
She faced him squarely as Tina quietly shut the door to the bedroom behind her and Malloy. “You can’t seriously be arguing about this,” she said, sweeping her hands out. “I’ve been in car chases. Shot at. Nearly kidnapped. For goodness’ sake. This baby is mine. I’m not leaving her and hiding somewhere.”
Hers. Yeah. Of course he got it. She already viewed the baby as her daughter. She’d stated that intent. Of course she’d fight to the last breath to protect Talia. But how could he protect Noni at the same time? “They said to come alone,” he said lowly, shaking out his hands to prevent him from curling them into fists. The pressure on him, from every direction, upped in power.
She breathed in, her chin down. “I know what they said, and we’ll follow the plan. But I’ll be right alongside Malloy so I can hold my baby the second we have her. That’s nonnegotiable.”
Her defiance was having the untenable effect of waking the beast inside him. The one that still railed against the unfairness of the world. The one he kept so carefully in check. Even the air around them tasted of danger. Of the myriad of precise blades and guns even now being prepared. He could feel them. Could sense their intent. Heat unbanked inside him as fear and fury combined. How could she not see the danger? “You don’t understand what’s happening.”
She flung her arms out wide. “How could I?” Her voice rose. “Everything that is happening is crazy. I’m stalking a gang to take back a baby who became my daughter in a split second. You’re a super-secret genetic experiment being chased by the people who created you. I have my aunt and her wife driving who knows where to meet who knows whom.”
In fury, she was glorious.
She slapped her hands against her hips. “We just watched a veterinarian dig a bullet out of a cop on a kitchen table. Then we bid on my baby against monsters on the dark web—whatever that really is. There’s no way to understand this world.” She rubbed her forearm. “I’ve been shot, Denver.” Her voice wavered on the last.
Ah hell. He reached her in two strides and wrapped his arms around her. “I know, baby.” Shoving his emotions aside, he held her close and placed a kiss on the top of her head. “You’ve been through enough.” Now she had to see his point of view.
She lifted her head, and tears glimmered on her long dark lashes, her tone broken. “We’ve all been through enough. But we have further to go.”
Those words dug deep. He’d lived his entire life thinking them. “You can stay safe,” he whispered. The woman had no idea how much he needed her to stay safe. No clue. Perhaps he hadn’t, either. But now he did. Everything good in him he’d already given to her. “Trust me.”
“I do.” She placed her hands on his chest. “But I’m coming tomorrow, and there’s no way to stop me.”
He blinked. Her defiance just pissed him off. Right or wrong, his temper took over. “You’ll do what I tell you to do.”
She tried to step back and he didn’t allow it. “Listen, Denver—”
“No. You listen.” Emotions ripped through him so quickly he couldn’t grasp just one. “This is an op involving gangs and cops and probably soldiers who want me taken.” He hated talking. This is why he didn’t do it. “You’d be just collateral damage to them.” When she was everything to him. He’d known it from the first time he’d kissed her. Sinking into a bottle hadn’t helped even ease his pain at leaving her. How could she not understand that one simple fact?
She opened her mouth to argue, no doubt. So he went on instinct and stopped her, his lips covering hers. She stiffened, her hands still against his chest. Then she made a helpless sound in the back of her throat, and those fingers curled into his shirt with a little bite of pain. Her body softened, leaning into him. He took the kiss deeper until she opened her mouth, letting him in. Her mouth was hot and tasted of the wine from dinner and of something else, something sweet, something that was just Noni.
His girl.
He was tired of pretending otherwise. Tired of pushing her away and trying to be a good guy. Tired of being alone.
God, she tasted like heaven. Oh, he’d probably never get there, but this was close enough. This was perfect. He explored her, his hand flatteni
ng across her lower back, bending her into him. She slid her hands up over his shoulders, pressing her breasts to his chest. His cock jumped and nestled into the sweet warmth between her thighs.
Too damn perfect. The lust always present when she was around, the hard-edged desire she brought out in him, ignited into a demanding ache. Sharp and intense.
They had to stop this. His control had snapped, and he’d felt that release deep inside. She wasn’t safe with him, and that knowledge cut deeper than any scalpel ever could. Nobody was safe near him at the moment. So he leaned back, releasing her mouth, panting.
Her eyelids opened to reveal those stunning black orbs. They slowly cleared. Need shimmered there along with a dark defiance. “That all you got?” Her voice was husky and taunting.
The animal inside him, the one that tracked and hunted, leaped alive with a hunger so sharp it craved. His chains released. “No. I’ve got more.” Awareness finally crossed her face, but it was too late.
Way too late.
* * *
Noni realized just a second too late that she’d gone too far. Oh, she’d felt it in his kiss. The barely restrained hunger, the snapping of his control. She’d wanted all of him, or she thought she had.
One of his hands still spanned her lower back, holding her easily in place. Her lungs compressed as if breathing was too much effort with the tension clogging the air. Slowly, deliberately, he ran a knuckle down the side of her face. Just one soft touch…but the look in his eyes. Feral and determined. A wild bolt of elemental fire burned right down her spine.
Everything inside her knew she’d pushed him too far. Yet…every nerve inside her sparked from the lightning she’d just unleashed. Intrigue, the most dangerous kind, kept her hands on his shoulders. She wanted this.
A voice of reason tried to interfere with her desire as the wildness between them grew in force.
“One chance,” he ground out, his voice not sounding remotely like him. “Go to bed.”