by Kahlen Aymes
Later the same day, Cole was driving her to Toys “R” Us to pick out some gifts for Jillian’s party, though she wished she could go by herself. She wanted to get a few things at different stores and felt guilty making Cole follow her around all day. Angel glanced at her watch. It was almost 10 AM, which would make it one in the morning in Sydney.
Cole noticed. “When’s the last time you’ve heard from my brother?”
“Last night. He called earlier, but I was in session, then I got voice mail when I tried to call him back. He’s probably sleeping. I hope, anyway.”
Angel was pensive, and it showed in her tone. She felt uneasy, constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop, when Swanson would make his move. Since the call to Alex at the station last Friday, they hadn’t heard a peep from him; unless, you counted the disappearance of Jason Bancroft. Chills ran through her, causing goosebumps to race up her arms, over her back, and down her legs, and she shuddered.
“Are you cold?” Cole leaned forward and flipped on the heat. It was late September, and though the temperature was still fairly moderate, it was getting colder at night, so the mornings were brisk, but Cole had a feeling that wasn’t the reason Angel was shivering.
She nodded and rubbed her hands over her arms, under her blazer. Her hair was pulled back into a chignon, and she was wearing her glasses; still perfect in appearance, but more somber than Cole had become accustomed. “Just a little.” Her face turned away as she looked out the window. She was preoccupied. “Will this fucker ever leave us alone?”
Cole turned a brief glance in her direction, his eyebrow rose at the abruptness of her question. When his eyes were firmly back on the road, he answered, his hand tightening on the wheel until his knuckles were white. “Honestly? I doubt it, Angel. Even if Alex were to acquiesce and hand over the cash, it would just give him bravado to extort from Alex for the rest of his life.”
“Yes,” Angel said softly as Cole said her thoughts out loud. “I’ve thought of that.”
“I’m sure Alex has, too. Swanson has proven he’ll stop at nothing. We don’t expect to find Bancroft alive.”
She nodded sadly, still looking out the window, the street and buildings blurring, because both the car was moving and her eyes weren’t focused. Bancroft’s face flashed in her mind, and her heart sank. “What is he going to do?”
Cole shot her another quick glance. She was looking out the window as if mesmerized, her words coming as if she were in a trance. He knew Angel was asking what Alex’s plans were, not what they expected out of Swanson.
Cole ran a hand down his face to the clean-shaven skin of his jaw. “Um, we’re still figuring it out, Angel. He hasn’t told me exactly what he wants to do, but knowing Alex, it’s not like him to wait around like a sitting duck. My guess would be that we’d try to find Swanson, using every resource at our disposal. Not sure what happens after that.”
“Kenneth will prosecute if we make it to court. He has a strong case with my testimony and the forensics. He’ll win. We finally have enough evidence… if it makes it to court.”
“Big if. The cops haven’t found a goddamned thing.”
More chills ran down her arms, and her eyes filled with frustrated tears. “After everything we did to get that bastard, he is still as slippery as a snake. Alex said he should have killed him when he had the chance.”
“Yes.” Cole’s voice was stoic. “He’s mentioned it to me, too. More than once.”
Angel’s head snapped to her left, to look at Cole’s profile. “Do you think that’s what he’s planning? I don’t want Alex to stoop to that, Cole. He’s too good for something like that.”
Cole shook his head. “I didn’t think he’d ever go that far, Angel. That night in your apartment?” His shoulders lifted in a visible sigh. “Well, I saw a side of my brother I’d never seen before. But overall, Alex is rational. From the start, everything he’s done to take Swanson down has been legal, very calculated and methodical. He would have spent less than the millions he used to ruin that fucker financially just to order a hit on him and be finished with it. If he were going to do that, he would have done it months ago. He doesn’t go off half-cocked, so I don’t expect him to start now.”
Angel’s own logic echoed Cole’s reasoning, and she was relieved. “I know. The last thing I want is anything bad to happen to Alex, or any of you, because of me.
Cole wasn’t ready to let the subject drop. “I expect when Alex gets back all the stops will be pulled out and the coffers opened to find Swanson and haul him back behind bars.”
“Why isn’t he just doing that now? Why wait until he comes back?”
“Our directive while Alex is gone is pretty singular: to keep you safe around the clock. If we divide our ranks to track Swanson, someone isn’t watching you. Besides, he’ll try again as long as Alex doesn’t pay, and we can’t risk something happening to you.”
“I wonder if it really is the money he wants, or if he’s out for blood. Revenge is a dirty thing. He may even lose site of the reason he’s angry and just focus on the goal. That’s when perpetrators get extremely dangerous.”
Cole pulled into the parking lot of the toy store and shut the car off. Without making a move to get out, he looked at Angel. “Yeah, but we got this.” One corner of his mouth lifted in a half-smile. “What are you getting Jillian for her birthday?”
“I’m thinking a doll and an iPod shuffle, but I’ve also enrolled her in dance classes. I know she loves it, and Becca can’t really afford them on her salary. She wouldn’t let me do it just because, so this is a good way for me to get around her pride.”
“You’re a good friend, Angel.”
“I love that little girl to pieces, and dancing is kind of our thing.”
Angel had picked out a doll and clothes, a stroller, and accessories to go with it, and a pink iPod Shuffle. It wasn’t long and they were back at Alex’s estate. Cole ordered pizza for dinner, and Wayne and Sid were waiting at the gate for the delivery boy. Alex’s house was filled with half a dozen agents, and it felt invasive and safe at the same time. She felt claustrophobic despite the huge size of the house. All of them milling around constantly forced her to retreat to Alex’s room more often than not.
After grabbing a piece of pizza and a diet Coke and taking them to the bedroom, she’d flipped on the news and absently munched on the pizza, in between peeling off her clothes. She threw the half-eaten slice back on the plate and padded naked into the bathroom. She showered, changed into a pair of sweat pants and T-shirt, then unpacked all of her packages and laid them out on Alex’s bed. She’d purchased wrapping paper and beautiful organza ribbon to wrap the gifts.
She planned on spending the evening making pretty packages and phone calls to Becca, Ally, and her father. She hadn’t spoken to her father in over two weeks, which was unusual. She’d been reluctant to tell him about the specifics of the Swanson trial and how badly she’d been hurt or that she’d been attacked at all. It was early morning in Australia; too early to call Alex.
Angel flopped down and dialed her father’s number.
“Hey, honey,” he answered. “I’ve been meaning to call you, but I’ve been under the weather.” She could hear the cold in his voice and the stuffiness in his nose.
“Oh, Daddy, I’m sorry.”
He coughed on the other end, but the sound became muffled as he held the phone away from his mouth. It took a good thirty seconds for him to get it under control, and despite the distance, she could hear how deep it was. “Yeah, it’s been pretty crappy.”
“Have you been to the doctor?”
“Nah. I’m a tough old bastard. I’ll get over it.”
Angel shook her head wryly. “You’re not old!”
“Last time I looked, I was sixty.”
“That isn’t old, Dad. When you’re better, do you want to come to visit? Maybe come to Chicago for Christmas? I’d love for you to meet Alex.”
Angel had mentioned Alex once or twice, but thi
ngs were getting more serious between them. Though Angel was a grown woman, her father had been her whole world for most of her life, and her heart still needed his approval.
“I’d love to meet him, baby, but you know I hate to travel. Why don’t you two come down here?” He coughed again. The raspy, nasty kind of cough that sounded, and felt like it ripped the lungs out of the person’s chest.
Angel went back to visit at least once a year, but the only reason was because her father was there. There was absolutely nothing there to bring her home besides him. She still had hope he would move closer. She had an idea.
“Maybe. Dad, would you consider moving here? Alex and I are getting closer, and like you, he is overprotective. He hates my job.”
“I’m sure hate is a strong word, Angel.”
“No, he worries about me, the same as you. He understands how much it means to me, though.”
“He sounds smart. I think I’ll like him.”
Angel leaned back against the pillows near the headboard. “He’s really amazing. You’ll love him. I hope.”
Her father chuckled, but it brought about another cough. “He better be if he’s with my little girl. I’m glad you found someone to take care of you, honey.”
“He tries.” Angel smiled.
“I’m sure you don’t make it easy,” her father teased.
“No. You know me well. It’s just… I’ve never let anyone but you take care of me before. This is different, but it’s getting easier.” She smiled, love for both men overwhelming her.
“It really would mean a lot to me to have the two of you meet. I’ve met his family and they’re great. His little sister has become a good friend, and his older brother is like a brother to me, too.”
“I’m glad, honey. I always regretted I couldn’t give you more. You deserved siblings.”
“Hey, you did great by me! I had Uncle Will, and Ben was like the brother I never had.”
“I think maybe Ben harbored a crush all those years.”
Angel loved Ben, but they were more like brother and sister. “No, Ben and I were cool as friends. I wouldn’t change my life, Dad. Except, I’d like you closer. Alex wants me to move in with him, and I’ll still have my apartment. I’d love it if you’d come and move into it.”
“Sweetheart, you know where I stand. My life is here. Besides, I don’t retire for a few years, and I have to stay with the school system to get my pension.”
“I have enough money, Dad. I want you to enjoy life.”
“I am enjoying life. Will, Ben, and I go fishing every weekend in the summer and hunting in the winter. I like it here. It’s all I know. I wouldn’t know what to do with myself stuck inside a little apartment in the city.”
Angel sighed. She was never able to change his mind. “Okay. Alex is very busy, but I will discuss Christmas with him. Are you sure you’re up to having company? I can have someone come in and clean the house if you want. You need someone to take care of you.”
“Save your money.” He started coughing again.
“Get some soup and go back to bed. I’ll call and check on you tomorrow. If you’re not better, I’ll expect you to go to the doctor.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I love you.”
“Love you, too, kiddo.”
Angel had just started to cut the pretty white and pink paper to wrap the baby doll when her other phone began playing Alex’s ringtone, and her heart leapt in her chest. She dropped the scissors and grabbed the phone.
“Hi!”
“Hey, babe. How was your day?”
“It was good. Cole and I went shopping for Bean’s birthday presents.”
“I wish I could have gone with you. What’d you get her?” His voice sounded tired. It would be early morning in Australia but Angel was sure the time change was hard on him.
“A doll and an iPod.”
“A doll?” he asked sardonically. “I want to get her a tent.”
Angel smiled. “Alex, she’s a little girl. What is she going to do with a tent?”
He huffed. “What do you mean? She likes tents.”
Angel grinned at his teasing. “Yes, she likes tents made out of blankets.”
“Mmmmm. Me, too.” His voice was warm, despite his exhaustion.
“I remember.”
“Yes, that was fun.”
“It was the first time you made me give in.” Angel settled onto the floor and leaned up against the bed.
“It didn’t hurt so much, did it?” Sex oozed from his voice in a deliberately sexy taunt.
“No. It felt amazing.”
“I miss you.”
“I do, too. Let’s both get new careers.” Angel smiled softly, and while she was joking, part of her was serious. She hated the time he spent traveling as much as Alex hated that she worked with all sorts of unstable people.
Alex chuckled. “Okay. I’ll be a concert pianist, and you have your choice of rock and roll goddess or my personal sex slave.”
Angel laughed out loud. “Hmmm. How will I choose?” she asked playfully.
“You don’t have to. You can do both. You’re verrrry talented.”
“Maybe I want you to be my sex slave.”
“No problem.”
The tight bands of fear around Angel’s chest loosened for the first time since Alex left, and he was all she could think about. How sexy he was, how much she loved him, how she missed him. She honestly couldn’t imagine life without him.
“You better not be practicing your skills while you’re away.”
“Who needs practice? I’m gifted.”
They both laughed together. He was gifted and they both knew it.
“I talked to my dad and invited him for Christmas, but he doesn’t like to travel. Maybe we can go to Missouri?”
Satisfaction settled around Alex. Considering they’d only been together a few months, he shouldn’t be impatient about meeting her father, but he was happy it was finally coming up because it solved his problem of asking permission to marry her. “Yes, I’d like that. I was hoping we’d take a couple of weeks away together. Maybe we can spend some time there then go to Greece for New Year’s.”
Angel paused, her hand tugging thoughtfully on a strand of her hair. Hearing Alex speak of the future was exciting, overwhelming, and comforting all at the same time. She drew in a deep breath. “Yes. That sounds nice.”
“Yes, it does. What’s Cole up to?”
“I don’t know. I’m in the bedroom by myself. I think eating pizza with the others.”
“Pepperoni and cream cheese?”
“No!” Angel pouted.
“Stupid bastard,” Alex laughed. “In the bedroom all alone? Sorry, I’m not there to remedy that.”
“Me, too. We should switch to Skype.” She chuckled devilishly.
“I would if I weren’t at the office.”
Her thoughts about how to get naughty and lure Alex into a live chat session despite his location was interrupted when her other phone rang, and she gave a frustrated groan. She picked it up, glancing at the screen. Unknown number flashed as it continued to ring, and the smile fell from her face. Alex heard the ringing, and it put him on alert.
“Who is it?”
“It’s blocked.”
“Answer it, but keep this line open,” Alex’s voice instantly hardened, and Angel could almost hear his muscles coil.
“Okay. Hold on.” Angel answered the ringing phone while still holding Alex’s phone in the other hand. “Hello?” She could hear nothing but wheezy breathing. “Hello?” she said again, more forcefully. He still didn’t answer, and the silence was terrifying. “Listen, you crazy motherfucker, say something!”
“Tsk, tsk, gorgeous, you don’t want to piss me off or that little girl might get a very special present for her birthday.” Mark Swanson’s voice rasped in her ear. Angel’s heart began to pound like a hummingbird’s. It was painful, and she struggled to keep her voice even.
“What do yo
u want?”
“To tell you I’m watching you, Angel. Tell Avery to pay up, or else he won’t like the consequences. He thinks he’s crippled me, but all he’s done is piss me off.”
Angel’s breath caught in her throat. Her mind raced, she should tell him to fuck off, but the fact he knew about Jillian’s party was terrifying, and worse, Bancroft was missing. If there was the slightest chance he was still alive, she couldn’t antagonize him. Angel held the other phone up so Alex could hear the conversation. Maybe she could keep him on the phone longer so the police might be able to track the call. “He won’t pay you.”
“We’ll see. I’m through dicking around. If he doesn’t think I’m serious, I’m about to show him.”
“Where is Bancroft? We know you have him.”
Swanson laughed, the sound wicked, like he’d lost his mind. “Congratulations,” he sneered. “I tried to reason with Avery, but he wouldn’t listen,” he said, as if to himself. “Now he’ll understand.”
“You have Alex’s attention, Mark. And… I—I’ll drop the charges. Just let Jason go!” Angel’s blood pressure rose, and the pulse in her neck and wrists throbbed in time with the painful thudding of her heart.
“Do you think I’m stupid? The DA won’t go for that.”
It had been worth a shot. Criminal matters went to court, regardless of what the victim wanted. “They’ll have no choice if I refuse to testify.” She stammered, trying to find words that would help but knew it was a lie. There was enough physical evidence from the attack to convict Swanson without her testimony.
He ignored her. “Get a piece of paper,” he commanded. “Now!”
“Okay.” She had to set Alex’s phone down, but Angel grabbed a pen from the bedside table and tore a piece of the wrapping paper off to write on.
“Go ahead. I’m ready.” She could hear Alex’s voice coming from the other phone telling her to pick it up, but she threw a pillow over it so Swanson wouldn’t be able to hear it.
“Tell Avery to wire ten million dollars to this account.” He proceeded to rattle off a routing number and account number. Ten million was twice what he’d asked for before. Angel swallowed hard. Her hand trembled so much, she hardly recognized her own writing, but she managed to get it down.