Bewitching the Reclusive Billionaire Cowboy (13 page)

Dan led this time, manipulating a back lock. Graham grabbed his hand before he could open it. He pointed to a tiny button high up and to the far right of the doorway. Graham got a chair and checked it out. It was a new type of alarm. Dan handed Graham a small phone-like device. “Push the three buttons on the side, one after another. It should release the alarm mechanism.”

He heard a faint hum. Graham got down and tried the door. Silence. They were in. These guys were arrogant and didn’t expect to be found, or they’d have had a much more sophisticated security system. Graham was thankful for small favors.

Dan went past him, and Graham brought up the rear. They heard voices off to the left. In the kitchen, three men sat around a table playing cards.

“Guess old Marko is having some fun upstairs. Hope he doesn’t kill her before we get our turn,” one of the men said.

“Yeah, he’s a rough bastard,” another man commented.

Graham and Dan nodded at each other. They each fired, and two of the men fell over on the table dead. Their silencers kept them from alerting others. The third man, looking shocked, held up his hands in defeat. Dan had him lie on the floor and tied his hands and feet then bound a small cloth around his mouth.

Dan led the way farther into the house. They found no one else downstairs. Graham lightly started up the steps.

Dan waited until he was at the top before heading up himself.

One door was shut. Graham leaned against it to listen and heard a shot, then two. He and Dan broke down the door. Marko lay covered in vomit, bleeding from his chest and a bullet wound in his forehead. The man was definitely dead.

Sylvia stood over him holding the gun still pointed at him. Graham pulled her tight fingers off the trigger and removed the semiautomatic from her hand.

Dan checked outside the room. “I don’t hear anyone.”

“In the underground floor, there may be more there,” Sylvia said. She stumbled into the bathroom, holding her wrist. Graham stayed by her side as she looked ready to faint. She was naked, and there were marks all over her body, and her face was damaged. Her breasts were red and had bite marks, and her wrist was swollen to twice its normal size.

When he thought she was stable and wouldn’t fall, he went back in the bedroom and gathered her clothes. He dropped them on the side of the tub.

“Get dressed. We need to check the room you mentioned and then get out of here before someone else comes. I’ll come back for you.”

She nodded. She’d found a clean toothbrush and was scrubbing her teeth with her good hand. Tears ran down her face.

Graham led the way and found the door to the hidden area easily. They crept along the narrow stone hallway and heard voices before they saw the men.

Dan took one more step forward and triggered an alarm. “Damn.” He raised his gun, but a three-hundred-pound man slammed into him.

Graham shot the other man in the shoulder before the man ducked behind a table. Then Graham put his gun near the mammoth man’s head. He was beating mercilessly on Dan’s body.

“Let him go, and move away, or it’ll be my pleasure to shoot you.” The giant whirled and reached his hands toward Graham. Graham aimed and shot him in the heart. The big man hit the floor with a loud thump. Meanwhile the other one had raced out from behind the table and held his gun again.

“Drop your weapons, or I’ll kill you like you did my friend,” the man warned Graham. Dan lay motionless. “Put the gun on the floor.”

Graham heard a slight rustle behind him. It distracted the guy in front of him for just a second, long enough for Graham to shoot him in the arm. The gun dropped to the floor, and Graham kicked it across the room. The wounded man slumped down. Blood ran from his arm and shoulder wound.

Sylvia walked around Graham and stood over the wounded captor. “Not so arrogant and proud without your gun and buddies. I wanted the last face you saw to be mine.” She held Marko’s gun in her good hand.

“Don’t, Sylvia,” Graham yelled.

“Why not? He’d have killed you and me. He beat me and tortured me. Why let him live?”

“If you kill him, he wins. He will have taken your humanity from you. Don’t let him be the winner.”

He saw her struggle, her tense muscles, her hate and fear of the man lying at her feet. At one point, he saw her finger move slightly. Finally, she handed the gun to Graham.

Dan stirred, and Graham went to his side. “Stay still, I’m calling the authorities. I’ll tie this last one up, and Sylvia and I will get out of here. You can take all the glory.” He touched Dan’s shoulder. “Don’t mention me to anyone. I don’t work for you all, remember, never, ever again.”

Dan nodded. His eyes were swollen almost shut, and his lips were cut. One arm hung limp by his side.

“I understand,” he gasped. “Have a happy life.”

Graham flipped open his phone to call the police. “When are you getting out of this crazy business?” he asked Dan.

Dan shrugged. “Some of us are addicted.” He took the phone from Graham and spoke to the police then snapped it shut and gave it back. “They’re on the way.”

Sylvia had watched for others while Graham tied up the last guy. Then she and Graham hurried out the way he and Dan had come in. They hid in the shrubbery as a police car flew by and then walked the last block to the car.

“I promised Gina I’d have you at the hotel for breakfast,” Graham said to Sylvia. “But I think we’d better stop by the hospital first.”

“No, they’d have too many questions. We need to get out of Italy. I’ll see the doctor stateside.”

“You may be hurt internally.”

“If I were, I’d be dead by now. For once”—she paused to take a breath—“do as I say.” She tried to smile.

* * * *

Early that morning they ran across the empty foyer and took the elevator to the fourth floor. “We’re lucky we didn’t meet anyone,” Sylvia said. “You’d be arrested for battery.”

“You do look like hell. Your sister is going to be shocked.”

A faint smile curved her mouth. “I told you we’d make good partners.”

“We wouldn’t. I’m not doing this again. I wouldn’t have this time except for the fact you’re Gina’s sister.”

“‘Gina,’ is it? I see a light in your eyes. Has my baby sister broken through your tough persona?”

The elevator door opened. “None of your business,” he said as he crossed the corridor and unlocked the door. He kept to the side so the first person Gina saw was Sylvia.

Gina screamed in joy and ran to envelop Sylvia in her arms. “You’re safe.” Tears ran down her cheeks. “I was so worried about you and Graham.” She pulled him to her side, holding them both close. When she stepped back, she gasped, seeing how beat up Sylvia was, but in her excitement at first she’d barely noticed

“I’m a sight,” Sylvia said. “They ruined my appearance for good.”

“It doesn’t matter. You’re alive, and the wounds and bruises will heal.”

“Maybe.” Sylvia stared at the floor. “Can I borrow some of your clothes?”

“But you’re injured. You have to see a doctor.”

“No. I’ll change while Graham contacts the agency we work for. They’ll arrange our reservations for us to go home.”

“I don’t know that anything I have will fit you. That dress you have on is torn. You can’t wear it.”

“No problem. I’ll go check with my contacts at the agency, check on Dan’s condition, and make sure they all know, including you, Sylvia, that this is my last job. No more pleads to help. It’s over. Understand?” He stared hard at Sylvia.

“Yes. Thank you for saving me, but I do respect your wish for this to be the end of this particular career.”

“Good. While I’m out I’ll find clothes for you. What size?”

“Get eights and some pins in case I need to fasten them around my waist. And I wear size seven shoes.”

“Be ready to leave in the next two hours. I’ll get the reservations. That’s one last thing the agency can do for us. You can cover your head and face with a scarf. The sooner we’re stateside the happier I’ll be.” He locked the door after him.

* * * *

As he’d expected they got reservations on the first flight out. Dan was on the mend, which lifted a weight off Graham. Graham’s mental makeup didn’t work well with this dangerous undercover work. He didn’t worry about himself but the others involved. In the first store, he bought jeans, a shirt, and sneakers for Sylvia. He saw silky scarves on a rack and bought a white one with a small blue design. At a drugstore he found ACE bandages to bind her wrist. Then he went back to the hotel.

Gina greeted him at the door. Once inside, after he’d unloaded his packages, she put her arms around his neck.

“Thank you for saving Sylvia. She’s traumatized by all of this.”

He glanced around. “Where is she?”

“I just left her in the bathtub. She’s been soaking. She said she didn’t know if she’d ever get clean.”

Seeing Gina’s sad eyes, Graham held her tight against his body.

After a few minutes, she pushed away. “I have to get back to her. She hates being alone. Whatever they did, she’s not the same sister I knew.”

“Here.” He handed her the packages. “Wrap her wrist, help her dress, and redress her facial bandage. We need to leave for the airport soon.”

“The bags are packed. We’ll hurry.”

* * * *

The airport was crowded. Good, it’d be harder for someone to notice them. Graham kept a constant surveillance. They stopped at the airline desk to get their tickets checked then headed for the plane. It had landed ten minutes ago and was starting to load passengers. They had first-class seats. Fewer people to stare at Sylvia.

Her jeans were loose. She’d tucked in the shirt so it didn’t look too bad, and at least her shoes fit. She and Gina had arranged the scarf artfully around Sylvia’s head and across her lower face. Still, some of the crowd took a second look at her.

Graham took a deep breath of relief when they were boarded and the plane taxied down the runway to take off. He wouldn’t fully relax until he got them to his home. Rand could take care of Sylvia, and Graham would contact Dan to see if the danger was over.

Three flights later they landed at the airport he and Gina departed from. He’d contacted Rand, and he and an ambulance met them. Few people had flown on the late-night flight, and it was early morning, so thankfully the airport was fairly empty.

Gina got in the ambulance with her sister. “Will I see you at the hospital?” she asked Graham.

“I’ll be right behind you.”

Rand got in his car to go to the hospital, and Graham went around to get in the other side. “What do you think?”

“Can’t tell much until I do a complete exam. You did a good job of hiding the worst. My guess is she’ll recover, but I need to get our best orthopedic surgeon to examine her wrist. Psychologically, she’s going to be a mess for quite a while. Especially if her face isn’t repairable. I’ll see what we can do for her.”

“Thanks.”

“Was she important to you at one time?”

“Not in the way you mean.” He swatted the side of Rand’s head.

Rand chuckled. “Just checking.” He drove off toward the hospital.

Graham stared out the window. It was good to be home and with family. He took a deep breath of the fresh air blowing in the window and thought about Gina and Sylvia.

Two sisters, so different. I’ve been attracted to both at different times. But I’d stayed away from Sylvia. She was tempting, like wanting to cuddle with a wild tiger, if someone wanted to take on the challenge. Gina, the opposite, soft and caring, has wiggled her way into my heart. But could I be a good husband? I’d have to give up my privacy and the enjoyment of being alone, all innate parts of me. Unless she is pregnant, I’m not ready to make that decision.

Gina sat by her sleeping sister’s bedside, holding her hand. Sylvia had been checked all over, her wrist set in surgery, and they had her on a diet to gain weight.

Her recovery was slow. They’d been back ten days. Gina spent all her waking hours at the hospital. Graham had withdrawn and become aloof. He said he was finishing up the edit to get his book off.

Five days ago, Gina had gotten her period. She’d been surprised how sad it had made her to realize there wouldn’t be a baby. Still, she didn’t want Graham to marry her because he had to. She’d told him. He’d nodded, said “Good,” and gone into his man cave.

“You look unhappy,” Sylvia said. She’d opened her eyes and stared at Gina.

“I’m fine. Don’t worry about me. Graham said your cohorts got the rest of the gang. Your mission was a success.”

“For them, maybe, not for me. The orthopedic doctor said my wrist will never be quite as strong or flexible. They won’t want me back.”

“I thought maybe you wouldn’t want to go back.”

Sylvia stared out the side window in her room. “Blue skies and fluffy clouds. I’ve never taken the time to enjoy the world around me. Maybe I’ll stay here in Frontier City for a while. Mrs. Brodie said I could come to her house when they release me tomorrow. You look surprised.”