And what a mess it was.
From what Jim understood, his father had gotten mixed up with a secret society whose main goal was to assassinate President Joe Colton. Freaking figured. His dad couldn’t just stick to cheating on his wife, could he? No, he had to involve himself in presidential assassinations. Aim high, that had always been Hank’s motto.
Jim had sat there in disbelief when Hank confessed everything. Apparently, after he learned of the assassination plot, Hank had tried to extricate himself from the situation, but the men he’d joined up with had panicked. Hank Kelley knew too much and, therefore, needed to be eliminated. Everything that had ensued, Lana’s kidnapping, the sabotage on Cole’s ranch, the attack on Hank in town—it was all done to lure Jim’s father out of hiding.
And it had worked. Hank had decided to sacrifice himself for Lana, no matter how foolhardy this plan was. “Hank.”
Jim’s head lifted at the sound of his mother’s quiet but commanding voice. She was still in Martha’s Vineyard being watched like a hawk by the guard Jim assigned to her, but she refused to be kept in the dark, and had demanded to be included in any discussion. She’d been on speakerphone this entire time, and like the others, Sarah sounded increasingly upset by her husband’s decision to handle the exchange alone.
“You can’t do this by yourself.” Sarah’s tone softened. “I know you want to bring Lana home, but you’ll be risking both of your lives if you don’t let the boys or the FBI help you.”
Jim heard a cell phone vibrate, noticing from the corner of his eye as Special Agent Lowe rose from the sofa to take a call.
“I won’t allow anyone else to get hurt,” Hank told his wife. “I’m responsible for everything that’s happened. I need to be the one to fix it.”
“Not at our daughter’s expense,” Sarah shot back. “The FBI is trained to handle kidnappings. You, Hank Kelley, are not.”
Jim only half listened as his parents argued, far more interested in the hushed conversation Agent Lowe was conducting across the room. The man’s broad shoulders had stiffened, his brow furrowed as he listened. Something was up. The agent’s body language convinced Jim of it.
He was right. A few seconds later, Lowe stalked over and rested both hands on the arm of the sofa. “There’s been a development,” Lowe announced, cutting Sarah off in mid sentence.
The room fell quiet.
“A call just came through headquarters’ main switchboard from a man claiming to be with your daughter.” Lowe studied Hank’s face. “His name is Deacon Holt. Are you acquainted with him?”
Hank was quick to shake his head. “Never heard of him.”
“Well, he claims he’s with Lana, and he had a warning for us.” Lowe’s jaw tensed. “He says the exchange is a trap. The kidnappers plan to kill you on sight.”
Hank wheezed out a breath. “And Lana?”
“She’s going to be killed, too.”
This time, the silence that descended on the room was thick with tension.
“Okay.” Hank’s Adam’s apple bobbed fervently as he swallowed. “Okay. What do we do?”
Jim spoke up. “We come up with a new plan. One that doesn’t include arranging a funeral for Lana, or damn it, you. Sound good?”
Hank nodded in resignation.
Chapter 16
When the van came to a stop three hours later, the slam of the brakes nearly sent Lana flying off the bench. She steadied herself and shot a rueful look at Deacon. “This is it.”
He met her gaze. “Yes it is.”
Car doors slammed, followed by the sound of footsteps. A tremor of fear dashed up her spine. Lana lowered her hands to her belly, covering the small bump protectively. Deacon didn’t miss the gesture.
“I won’t let them hurt you,” he said quietly.
She sighed. “I don’t think there’s anything you can do to stop it. Not this time.”
Pure helplessness exploded in his eyes. When he looked at her like that, she almost believed he might love her. That the heartless words he’d hurled her way last night had been nothing but a last-ditch attempt to avoid his true feelings. But she knew better. Deacon wasn’t one to mince words. They’d spent two months together, long enough for her to get to know him, to grasp that he said what he meant, even if it wasn’t something the other person wanted to hear.
He didn’t love her. But at least she got comfort from the knowledge that he would do everything in his power to protect her and their baby.
“When this thing goes down, I want you to stick close to me,” Deacon said. “Don’t move an inch unless I tell you, okay?”
Swallowing, she nodded. “Okay.”
Footsteps approached the doors, which were thrown open. Lana blinked from the sudden flood of light. Kilo’s large body loomed in front of them. His nose was caked with dried blood, and the expression on his face revealed the anger he still felt over Deacon besting him.
“Get out,” he ordered.