Savage Redemption

chapter 14



Out on the street, Conlan leapfrogged up the line of traffic, quickly passing four vehicles one at a time, ignoring the chorus of squealing tires and honking horns as he did so. Instead, he kept a wary eye on the surrounding transports, trying to see if anyone was duplicating his maneuvers or consistently making the same turns that he did, even if they did so at a distance.

So far, he hadn’t been able to pick out anyone tailing them, but that didn’t mean much. Those bastards who’d made the aborted attempt to capture Kat hadn’t gone far. Mercs didn’t stay in business long if they failed in their assignments. The only way they would’ve quit was if whoever was funding them had called them off.

Even then, they might be tempted to continue. He had thwarted their efforts in the valley and again at the gate to Rafferty’s estate. If that hadn’t been bad enough, his men had shot out their tires. Hiking their asses out to call for assistance had to have stung their tough-guy egos.

Add in Kat’s success in eluding them that morning, and they had to be really pissed off about the whole mess. They might take another run at capturing Kat, especially if they were looking for a little payback. If their mysterious employer was to let it slip how badly they’d screwed up, the lot of them would be out of work. Of course, if it were up to Conlan, they’d not only be unemployed, they’d be incarcerated—or dead.

Either worked for him.

But he’d let the whole bunch go in exchange for the name of their boss. Once he and Kat had a chance to refuel with some coffee and a hot meal, he planned to set a trap to see if he could get his hands on one of the mercs. He was under no illusions that it would be easy to make one of them roll over on his buddies or whoever was funding their team.

However, he’d leave the prisoner trussed up somewhere for Ambrose to pick up. Between the chancellor and Rafferty, the merc would be singing in no time. Conlan wished that he could be there to watch, if and when it happened.

“I don’t know what you were thinking about right then, Conlan, but you were looking pretty scary.”

He laughed. “I’m thinking about fishing.”

She arched a brow. “Really. Fishing? Here in downtown New Eire? What kind of fish are you planning on catching around here?”

“One of those mercenaries who’ve been dogging our trail. If I can get my hands on one of them, I’m thinking we’ll be a whole lot closer to finding out who’s after you.”

“I’m almost afraid to ask this, but what—or who—are you planning to use for bait?”

His smile dimmed a bit. “Well, that is a problem. Using you as bait to cull one of them from the herd would mean putting you in danger. I won’t do that, not if I can’t guarantee your safety.”

She didn’t look convinced. “Right now we’re chasing ghosts, Conlan. If dangling me on a string means we can get some answers, then I say go for it.”

No way in hell he was going to risk it. “Damn it, Kat, you don’t know what these guys are capable of. They’re trained killers. I’m good, but I can’t defend you effectively unless we get lucky and find one out on his own.”

“But—”

“Let’s not argue until we’ve had a chance to eat something and regroup.”

“Fine, but don’t think I’ve given up on this idea.”

He wisely kept his mouth shut and circled the block one last time. When all appeared clear, he pulled into a parking lot next to a small neighborhood restaurant he used to frequent when he lived in the area.

That was back in his previous life. With luck, the same guy owned it, because he owed Conlan a favor or two. Right now all Conlan needed was the use of one of the private rooms in the back. Dwayne would feel as if he was getting off lucky to make good on a favor so easily.

Although Conlan hadn’t seen any sign of the mercs, that didn’t mean they weren’t out there. The last thing he wanted was to get caught out in public where he couldn’t control the situation. If the mercs tried another snatch, innocent bystanders could get caught up in the fallout.

He scoped out the area carefully. No movement. Good.

“We’ll make plans after we eat, but let’s get inside. I don’t know about you, but sitting out here makes me feel like I’ve got a target taped to my chest.”

They headed for the door, moving quickly but not so fast as to draw unwanted attention to themselves. Inside, he was relieved to see that the same balding, skinny guy was behind the counter. Conlan caught his eye and then jerked his head in the direction of the small rooms down the hallway past the restrooms. When Dwayne acknowledged him, Conlan led Kat to the one that had at least two exits besides the one from the hall. He had no desire to end up cornered.

A few seconds later, the ugly picture in the corner swung away from the wall, and Dwayne stepped through the opening.

His smile was friendly enough, even if the expression in his eyes was understandably cautious. “It’s been a long time, lawman.”

Conlan offered his hand. “You know I’m not a lawman anymore, Dwayne.”

“The fact that you spent time in prison doesn’t change that none.” He accepted Conlan’s handshake with a firm grip.

“Lucius warned me you might be stopping by. He wanted me to be ready. Said for me to give you anything you needed and he’d stand good for it.”

Dwayne shuffled his feet and added, “Besides, I haven’t forgotten I owe you.”

Conlan stared at the guy for several seconds. Dwayne held his gaze long enough to convince Conlan that he was on the level. The man was referring to the time Conlan had broken up a gang that was extorting money from a lot of the small businesses in the area. Dwayne had been on the verge of losing his restaurant, but Conlan had not only taken down the gang, he’d recovered the money.

“Okay, then. We could use a hot meal, and maybe a couple of sandwiches to go. You okay with us being here that long?”

“Not a problem. Have a seat, and I’ll be back in a few with your food.”

On his way back to the picture, he pointed at a small green light up near the ceiling. “If that light starts blinking yellow, something’s going on out front. If it turns red, get the hell out of here any way you can. You remember the other way out, don’t you?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“If things go all to hell, follow the tunnel to the other end. You can lay low there, or if you need to be moving, the keys are under the floor mat.”

“Thanks, Dwayne, and we’re even after this.”

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Kat had made some serious inroads into the heaping plate of food that Dwayne had delivered. She often made do with coffee and maybe some yogurt for breakfast. Today, though, the pile of eggs, hash browns, bacon and toast really hit the spot. Evidently, living in stark fear revved up the appetite.

She studied the man sitting across from her. She’d cost him so much, and yet here he was ready to lay his life on the line for her again. Why? Three years before he’d acted out of duty, at least at first. Now he had every reason to hate her. But when he held her in his arms, it certainly didn’t feel like hate. Even that morning when Conlan had dragged her to the couch and taken her hard and fast, he’d been careful with her. It felt like a claiming, the emotion behind his passion something she was reluctant to name. She should know. That same powerful emotion had taken up residence in her own heart.

Conlan had already cleaned his plate. Right now he was eyeing her last piece of bacon. She laughed and held it out to him.

He hesitated. “You sure?”

“Sure, go ahead, but it’s going to cost you. I’ve got a few questions.”

He obviously wasn’t worried about the price, because he quickly finished it off. “Ask away.”

How best to put this? “You and me, we’ve been through a lot, shared a lot, but I don’t really know anything about you. That doesn’t seem fair, since you’ve had access to everything the Coalition has in my file.”

The jerk actually laughed. “Funny, Kat, after the past few days, I would’ve thought you’d gathered a lot of firsthand knowledge.”

The little burst of heat in his gaze made it clear what he was talking about—like how his kisses tasted and that sexy growl he made when they made love.

Okay, point scored. She was an expert on a few things about him.

“Yes, I know the important stuff, Conlan, or I wouldn’t trust you with my life. It’s the little stuff, you know, like your favorite color.”

“Whatever you call the shade of blue your eyes are.”

She rolled those very same eyes. “Yeah, right. Where are you from?”

“An estate about two hundred miles north of New Eire.”

“Parents?”

“The requisite two.”

“Conlan.” She infused enough temper into that one word to make him hold up his hands in surrender.

“Okay, sorry. They both died in an accident when I was fifteen. No siblings. No clan, not anymore. That affiliation officially ended when they disowned me after I went to prison.”

She gasped, but he was already shaking his head. “Before you feel bad about that, I left the estate when I was eighteen and never looked back. Once my parents were gone, my father’s pureblooded relatives had little use for a grief-stricken teenager, and neither did my mom’s folks.

“Rather than hang around where I wasn’t wanted, I applied for and won a scholarship that got me out of there. If I’d stayed, I would’ve spent my life living on whatever crumbs they tossed my way. To tell you the truth, I was surprised they even went to the trouble to disown me. I didn’t know they were even aware that I was still alive.”

Then he got a funny look on his face. “Rafferty considers me clan. Never saw that one coming. He didn’t even act like Joss nagged him into it. He even told me to get my ass back to the estate where I belonged.”

Somehow she doubted Conlan realized how much he’d revealed with that last bit. It was obvious that before Rafferty said that, the only time Conlan had ever felt he belonged someplace was when he worked for the Coalition. No matter what justification she’d had for her actions three years ago, the end result was that she’d stripped Conlan of everything that had given his life meaning, cutting him adrift. It was a miracle he hadn’t finished off the job the mercs started when he’d realized she was the one lying facedown in the dust.

She still had one question left to ask, one she needed to have answered for purely selfish reasons.

“You and Joss, have you always been, um...” She hesitated, immediately sorry she’d brought it up. “Never mind. Forget I said anything.”

Conlan leaned back in his chair, his eyes smiling at her over the rim of his coffee cup. “No, that’s okay. Have we always been what?”

“Good friends.” Her face flushed hot. “Close friends.”

“Yeah, we have. She was hired on as an investigative chancellor with the Coalition not long after I was, and we partnered for a while.” He stared up at the ceiling, lost in the memory. “Damn, she was amazing. Blew past us mere mortals in no time at all. I’ve always preferred the investigative end of things, but she liked negotiating disputes between the different factions.”

Then he frowned. “That’s how she met Rafferty. They served on the Council together. Boy, when those two debated an issue, the sparks flew. It was amazing to watch. He was engaged to someone else at the time. Seamus’s sister, as a matter of fact. When Rafferty was convicted of murder, Joss cleared his name. They’ve been inseparable ever since.”

Conlan topped off his coffee and did the same for her. “But to answer your real question, Joss and I have never been anything but friends. Neither of us had much in the way of family, so we sort of adopted each other. Adding sex to the mix would’ve only messed that up.” He shrugged. “Besides, once she met Rafferty, she never saw anybody else that way. He’s an egotistical jerk sometimes, but he’s good to her. That’s all that matters.”

He turned the tables on her. “How about you? Is there anyone in your past you’ve got an interest in hunting up when we get your name cleared?”

She supposed turnabout was only fair. “No, no one. I always hoped I’d meet someone special, but it never worked out that way.”

Maybe it was time to roll the dice. “That is, until I met—”

But he wasn’t paying any attention. What had captured his attention? Then she noticed that the light Dwayne had warned them about had turned amber. It wasn’t blinking, so maybe the situation wasn’t too serious. She held her breath for several seconds, waiting and hoping it would turn back to green.

Conlan must have thought there was little chance of that happening, because he was already on his feet, shoving the sandwiches into their packs. He motioned for her to follow him. She didn’t need to be told to stay quiet.

Conlan crossed to the far corner and knelt down to study the floor. What was he doing? She crept closer, not wanting to get in his way, but she knew they’d have to move quickly if that light changed.

Finally, he pressed the opposite corners on one of the floor tiles. His efforts were rewarded with a soft click and a section of the floor slid back, revealing a steep staircase—more of a ladder, really. She leaned over to see where it led, but it disappeared into the shadows below.

Okay, no wonder Dwayne had asked if Conlan remembered the last way out of the room. She’d have never found it in a million years. “Are we out of here?” she whispered.

Conlan nodded. “Give me a second.”

He quickly gathered up all evidence of their meal and dumped it in the trash. “Finish your coffee. If someone checks in here and finds it’s still hot, they’ll know someone was here.”

She guzzled the last bit while he did the same. One more look around the room. Nothing was out of place or shouted that they’d been there. Conlan had found the switch that cast the staircase in dim light. He had his gun in hand when he motioned for her to go first.

She sat down on the edge of the opening and stepped out onto the ladder, holding on with both hands. Before she descended more than a handful of steps, she heard Conlan let out a string of curse words. She looked up to see that the light had turned to red and was pulsing only slightly slower than her heartbeat.

Rather than dwell on what might be happening in the restaurant, she concentrated on hustling down the ladder so that Conlan could join her. It was a long way down, but she made it safely. Conlan paused halfway down to hit another button. As soon as he did, the opening above slowly disappeared. All they could do was wait and wonder if it would close before someone walked in and noticed what was going on.

The room they were standing in wasn’t really cold, but she shivered anyway. Careful not to jostle Conlan’s gun hand, she eased closer to him. He immediately wrapped his free arm around her shoulders and pulled her close.

He whispered, “We’ll wait here for a few minutes. If the danger passes, Dwayne will let us know. Otherwise, we’ll follow the tunnel out of here.”

“Where does it go?”

“It comes out underneath another property Dwayne owns. He’ll catch up with us there when he can. If he can.”

The joists overhead creaked and groaned as someone walked over their heads. Several someones.

“Move into the tunnel.”

Conlan’s words were little more than a breath near her ear. She didn’t want to leave the safe harbor of his embrace, but she’d promised to follow his orders. She swept a cobweb out of her way, ignoring her usual squeamishness when it came to creepy-crawlies. A few spiders were small potatoes compared to the real killers of this world.

Now they could hear the mumble of voices. The discussion above had obviously escalated into a full-blown argument, but it was impossible to make out anything but the tone of the voices.

The footsteps finally moved on, maybe checking out the other rooms off the same hallway. If any of them had secret escape routes, they didn’t lead to this place. Finally, silence settled in above them again. Conlan motioned for her to remain where she was before he began climbing the ladder again. When he got as far as he could without opening the door again, he cocked his head to one side to listen long and hard.

He climbed back down and headed straight for her. “Time to get the hell out of here. Even if those guys have left the building, one of them probably stayed behind to watch it. We’ll pick up Dwayne’s transport and swing back here. If we can spot the watcher, we might get some answers out of him.”

* * *

Cyrus downed a couple of pills, hoping they’d do something about the fire in his stomach. He deliberately kept his assistant waiting. If he had to be miserable and frustrated, he wanted to share the feeling. Finally, he took a seat and stared across the expanse of his desk at the younger man.

“Richie, for your sake, I hope you have good news for me.” The younger man was back to squirming uncomfortably in his seat, so the obvious answer was no. How had he ever thought the fool would make a suitable assistant? Not only was he incompetent, but he lacked the kind of focus and courage it would take to reach their mutual goals.

Right now the only reason Cyrus could think of for letting Richie continue to breathe was that if the situation continued to deteriorate, he might just need a scapegoat. One who could die without being missed. He poured himself a tall glass of his best scotch and a much shorter one for Richie.

Cyrus leaned forward, steepling his fingers, and waited for Richie to come up with an answer.

When the fool finally spoke, the words came pouring out fast and furious. “One of our men almost had Kat Karr in his custody this morning, but she threw scalding coffee in his face. By the time the others joined in the hunt, she’d disappeared. They’re still searching the area, but there’s no sign of either her or Shea.”

“Any idea where they’d been hiding?”

Richie swallowed hard and nodded. “Maybe, but we have no proof at this point. As you suggested, we did a title search in the Coalition records and found out Rafferty O’Day’s wife owns a condo in that neighborhood.”

A flash of defiance flashed through Richie’s eyes so quickly that Cyrus wasn’t sure he’d actually seen it.

“I had dutifully relayed your orders not to risk making the situation worse by attacking the place directly. As a result, our men had no choice but to cruise the streets, hoping to catch sight of either Kat Karr or Conlan Shea.”

He stopped to sip his scotch before continuing. “As soon as they recognized her, they made an attempt to apprehend her.”

“And yet these expensive, top-of-the-line mercenaries you hired couldn’t manage to grab one human woman. Amazing.”

Not to mention infuriating. He would’ve been better off hiring a bunch of children to pick her up. All those expensive weapons and equally costly gear Richie had insisted were necessary were turning out to only be a huge financial drain with no return on his investment. Maybe it was time to call them off and try some other tactic. He wouldn’t hesitate for a second, but unfortunately he’d yet to think of a better plan.

His assistant sat up straighter, his expression insolent. “Perhaps they would’ve had more success if we weren’t tying their hands. It’s difficult for even the best-trained troops to succeed when too many restrictions are placed on how they can do their job.”

Then the young upstart actually held up a hand and started ticking off all of his grievances. “Don’t breach the perimeter of the O’Day estate even though our men were fired upon first. No direct assault on the condo in New Eire because it belongs to Rafferty’s wife. We would’ve had as much luck in picking up the Karr woman by mailing her a polite note.” He snorted. “It’s no wonder the vamps own everything when the human leadership is made up of such gutless wonders!”

“Enough!” Cyrus roared. “You have no idea what you’re dealing with, young man. We cannot afford to bring down the full weight of the vampire clans on our heads at this crucial point in our mission.”

The other man sneered. “They hate each other more than they hate us. They’d just as soon see Rafferty’s estate go up in flames.”

Cyrus slammed his fist down on the desktop. “You don’t get it at all, do you? Yes, the vampires do have their petty squabbles. But I can assure you that nothing will unite them like an attack on one of their own. If we had raided the O’Day estate to remove Kat Karr and her nieces forcibly, we would have every member of the North American vampire clans gunning for us.”

He fought to regain his composure. “I, for one, do not care to end my life as a banquet for an irate vampire. Once we retrieve Kat Karr’s research, we’ll have a weapon that will restore the natural order of things where humans rule and those bloodsucking abominations will slither back into the gutter they crawled out of.”

All right, that was more than he’d meant to say, but he felt better for venting some of his frustration. Time to get focused again.

Richie slumped back in his chair. “I’m sorry, sir. Of course, you’re right.”

“Apology accepted,” Cyrus said, only slightly mollified. “What are your men doing now?”

Before Richie could answer, his phone rang. “Sorry, sir, but this is from the mercs. I should take it.”

He walked out of the office. Why? He had to know he’d just have to repeat everything the man said once the call ended. Not for the first time, he had to wonder where Richie’s true loyalty lay. Only time would tell. For the moment, all Cyrus could do was cross his fingers and hope this whole mess got resolved, and soon.

Richie was already back, a smug smile on his face. Whatever the report had been, it had obviously pleased him.

“My men have Conlan Shea and Kat Karr trapped in a restaurant. They have all exits covered and are preparing to do a room-to-room search to find them. Once they have the two targets in custody, they’ll call back for instructions.”

For the first time in days, something was going right. Cyrus poured another drink of scotch and this time offered Richie the good stuff. Both men sat back in their chairs and waited for the phone to ring again.