“I’ve not compromised all the veins and arteries. I can still stop the blood so that you won’t bleed out,” Caleb said. “But you’ll have to give me answers very quickly, or it will be too late.”
Santara was still frantically trying to reach for the knife he’d dropped. Caleb pushed it aside. “You’re very stubborn. You’d rather kill me than live? And you might live if you tell me what I need to know. Then who knows if you’ll get another chance to slit my throat. You said Jane was being delivered to Teresa Romano. Where is Teresa now? She mentioned an airport but we’ve checked out Dubai International. No reservations. No sign of commercial or private rentals of any sort. Where is she? Where did you send Jane MacGuire?”
“Stop this damn blood.” Santara was panting, his eyes wild as he watched the blood begin to pool on the floor. “I’ll kill you if you don’t.”
“You’re not thinking clearly. Killing me isn’t an option right now. Tell me what I need to know.”
“Stop the blood, you freak!”
“Where is she?”
“Stop it and I’ll show you. I’ll take you there. I’m supposed to meet her there anyway. She’ll be expecting me.”
Jane said she thought Santara was crazy, Caleb thought, and the evidence was right here before him. Santara was going to risk bleeding out, and Caleb couldn’t afford to let that happen.
“She’ll kill her, you know,” Santara said. “She’s usually so cool, but she wants Jane MacGuire dead. I think it has something to do with you.” He gasped. “Stop the blood.”
Caleb knew it had everything to do with him. He made the decision. “Shut up. Shallow breaths. Give me a couple minutes.”
“I’m feeling weaker. You’re not doing—”
“Shut up.”
It took more than a couple minutes. Santara had let it go on too long. But the blood finally stopped and Caleb grabbed a hand towel from one of the shelves and wrapped it around Santara’s forearm. “Let’s go.”
“I’m too weak right now.”
“You’ll be weaker if I open those arteries again.” He jerked Santara to his feet. “You’ll take me to Teresa now. You’ll tell me everything I need to know about where she is and what I’ll have to face to get to her. And you’ll do everything I tell you to do to help me get Jane away from her.”
“What if she’s dead?” Santana asked. “That won’t be my fault. Teresa wanted all the ends wrapped up. She even had me kill Gino Romano.”
“Believe me, if Jane is dead, I’ll consider it your fault.” He was pushing him toward the door. “And the fault of anyone else who even touched her or said a foul word to her. Bleeding out will be nothing compared to what you’ll all go through before you die if you don’t get me there in time to help her.”
WEDNESDAY, 11:40 A.M.
“Jane’s being taken to a small private airport in the desert, near Mleiha,” Caleb said as soon as Joe picked up. “That’s the airport where Teresa is taking her flight to Moscow. She had Santara arrange with a few of his drug-running friends to set up a discreet disappearance for her. She’s occupying one of the dealer’s houses, which is in walking distance of the airport, while she’s waiting for the plane.”
“Jane’s alive?” Joe said. “Thank God.”
“And she’s going to stay that way. I’m on my way there now,” Caleb said grimly. “Though we’ve got to move fast. Teresa is going to be tying up loose ends, and one of them is Jane. We may have a little time. She delights in taking time with her cat and mouse games, and I can’t see her not doing that with Jane. But her plane is supposed to arrive to pick her up at one.”
“And Jane won’t be with her when she leaves,” Joe said. “How long is it going to take us to get there?”
“Forty minutes. But Santara says that Teresa had him set up protection for her until she boarded the plane. Six men, including Ganlad, who will be delivering Jane to her. It will be hard to get near her.”
“Shit. Positions?”
“I’ll have them for you by the time you get there. Santara is having trouble remembering. He says it’s my fault because he’s so dizzy. I’ll nudge him a little.” He paused. “But I can’t risk Jane’s still being alone with Teresa when any attack begins. End of game.”
“So what do you do?”
“Insert another piece into the game to keep it going. I’ll call you again when I’m closer to Mleiha,” he replied, and ended the call.
“She’s alive,” Lisa whispered. “I was so scared, Joe.”
“Me, too.” Joe hung up and turned to Palik in the backseat. “Do you know anyone in Mleiha that we can hire on this short notice?”
“Can I work miracles?” Palik asked. “Maybe one or two. But I’ll lose credibility with anyone I bring in to—”
“Do it,” Lisa said fiercely. “I’m the one you don’t want to lose credibility with, Palik.” She met his eyes. “We’re not going to lose her. Do you understand?”
Palik nodded slowly. “I understand that you’re more like your brother than I thought.” He averted his gaze and reached for his phone. “Two. I can’t promise more than two.”
Lisa whirled on Joe. “You’re not going to have enough people. You’re not Superman. What are you going to do? Tie me up in the backseat so that I’m safe and won’t get hurt? Take a chance that Jane will live through what’s going on in that house if one of Santara’s men rush in because we don’t stop him? Well, I won’t take that chance.” Her eyes were blazing in her white face. “Dammit, give me a gun and tell me what to do. How many times do I have to tell you? I can help, Joe.”
He stared at her for a long minute. Then he reached down and took the gun from his leg holster and handed it to her. “Stay close and obey orders,” he said curtly. “I don’t think Jane would forgive me if I got you killed.”
MLEIHA, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
WEDNESDAY, 12:40 P.M.
The first face that Jane saw when she opened her eyes was Teresa Romano’s. She was smiling as she gestured for Ganlad to put Jane down on a low scarlet paisley couch a few yards away. “Ah, now that’s timely. I didn’t want to waste a moment.” She waved a hand at Ganlad. “You may go. I won’t need you.”
“Santara said that there might be extra money in this for me,” Ganlad said.
“Then you can discuss it with him when he gets here. Get out.”
He hesitated and then turned and left the house.
“Fool.” She went to the parquet desk and picked up a sleek pearl-handled gun from the top drawer. “He should know I can take care of the rest myself.” Her smile widened. “Would you like a glass of wine, Jane? I believe that the tradition is a last meal or something like that, but I have no servants here and I—”
“You’re very satisfied with yourself.” Jane lifted her hand and rubbed her neck. It was sore and she was a little dizzy, but she had to function. She was not going to let herself be killed by this bitch. Teresa had taken too much from everyone she had touched over the years. She had to be stopped before she—
Oh dear God. Caleb.
The last thing she remembered was Santara’s leaving her to go after Caleb. Was that why Teresa was being so smug? “Caleb?”
“I’m sure that Santara told you that I’d ordered our mutual friend be taken out.”
She stiffened. “And he did it?”
“I haven’t had a report back yet, but I’m sure Santara—”
“Then he might not have been able to do it.” She had to believe that. Caleb had been warned, and that might be all that was needed. “And you might not ever have a report from Santara again. You were afraid to put him up against Caleb when he had Lisa.”
“Surprise could be everything. It was time for Caleb to go. Sometimes fate takes a hand, and this could be that time. I deserve it.” Her gaze was moving hungrily over Jane’s face, trying to extract every bit of emotion. “You’ll miss your lover? Oh yes, I can see it. But I told you that you’d never be enough for him. And you won’t miss him for long. I promise you’ll join him soon.”
Block the panic and the pain. “Santara didn’t call you.”
Her lips tightened. “He will, or he’ll show up here, as we agreed. He won’t let me get on that plane without my giving him his money for the kill.”
The kill.
Caleb.