Dark Warrior Untamed (32 page)

Harcourt’s face turned ashen as he sputtered, “But Adele is just as likely to kill me. And I’ve already told her that I wouldn’t help her, that she was on her own in this.”

“That’s a real shame, because you really have no choice in the matter. You see, Adele only
might
kill you, but I
definitely
will unless you do exactly as I bloody well tell you. Your choice.”

Harcourt looked toward Sandor. If he hoped to find sympathy there, he was sadly mistaken.

Grey prodded him again with the barrel of his gun. “So what’s it going to be? Are you going to settle for the sure thing and stay in the car or go for the long shot and knock on your daughter’s door?”

“I’ll knock on the door, but this is little better than cold-blooded murder.”

Grey had had enough. “Look at this way—if Adele
isn’t the forgiving type, it will save you standing trial before the Dame and her Consort.”

Sweat was pouring from Harcourt, despite the day’s cool temperature.

Sandor added, “You know Adele and her boyfriend are both crazy for thinking that this has any chance of ending well for them. They might prefer to go out in a blaze of glory together, but somehow I doubt it. Adele is obviously pretty damn driven to succeed, and it’s not likely she’d do anything to interfere with that.”

That was pretty much what Grey had been thinking and said so. “On the other hand, she
is
likely to sacrifice her lover in a heartbeat. If he’s smart enough to realize that, he might have his own opinion of how this should play out.”

If anything, Harcourt looked worse. He twisted around in his seat to face Grey, and for the first time he sounded like a distraught parent. “You know Adele. How did I miss seeing this side of her?”

Grey had a momentary flash of sympathy for the man. He was about to pay a pretty steep price for his elitist attitude and his greed. “She either hid it well or you’ve had your head stuck in the sand.”

Harcourt shrank into himself, clearly beaten down. Even if he survived the Dame’s justice, which was unlikely, his life would never be the same. Status was everything for the aristocrat, and his peers would cut him adrift as soon as the truth came out. And Grey would make damn sure it did to send a warning loud and clear to anyone else who thought to threaten the new Dame.

Grey’s cell rang, interrupting his train of thought.
He checked the number as he flipped the phone open.

“Yeah, Sean, what’s up?”

“A woman named Adele wants you to call her. She said she has something you want.”

“The fuck she does! Unless she’s decided to surrender and face justice.” He fought to keep his temper under control. “Sorry, kid. Give me the number.”

Before calling her, Grey said, “Sandor, drive past the house and circle the block. Evidently Adele wants to
talk
.”

Harcourt straightened up in his seat. “What about? Do you think she’s come to her senses?”

Grey didn’t hesitate to rain on the man’s parade. “Hell no. She says she has something I want.”

Sandor pulled into the parking lot of a small neighborhood park. “Any idea what that could be?”

“None. Right now all I want from her is her surrender.” And death, but he kept that last bit to himself. “There’s not much chance of that happening, though.”

Sandor nodded, his dark eyes filled with bursts of hot energy.

Grey braced himself and punched in the number Adele had given Sean. She answered on the second ring.

“Greyhill Danby, how
are
you doing?”

He stared at his phone for a second before replying. She was smug and sure of herself, definitely riding a high. No way he was going to feed her ego.

“Cut to the chase, Adele. What do you want?”

She actually giggled. “Why, Grey, you sound upset. Did you lose something important?”

Yes, he had, but this wasn’t a discussion he wanted
to have with Piper’s killer. “Get to the point, little girl. I’ve got a job to do, and you’re wasting my time.”

That did it. When she spoke again, all traces of good humor were gone.

“Don’t call me a little girl, Grey. We both know I’m the rightful heir to Judith’s throne. If you’d done your job and rid us of that usurper, none of this would have been necessary.”

“Tell me something, Adele. I get that the letter bomb was just intended to get our attention. No hard feelings for putting me in the hospital. Bygones, and all that.”

He infused his next question with a whole lot of temper. “How was blowing up the Packard with someone sitting in it supposed to help your cause? Someone who’d never lifted a finger to hurt you?”

“Oh, is that what’s got you all in a dither? Well, that god-awful Packard simply had to go. It was in the way of where I plan to park my Jaguar when I take over. Something in a nice silver, you know, like yours. After all, you won’t be needing it.”

Then she laughed. “But you don’t want to hear about that, do you? Seriously, Grey, there must have been some kind of misunderstanding. I didn’t kill your little friend. I kidnapped her.”

Grey’s world stopped turning, his mind and body completely devoid of sensation. Finally, he managed to whisper, “Piper’s alive?”

Sandor whipped around in his seat, his shocked expression reflecting Grey’s.

“Well, of course she’s alive! I wouldn’t waste a
valuable asset for no reason.”

Grey’s profound relief made his hands shake to the point where he almost dropped the phone. Ignoring the roaring in his head, he concentrated on regaining control and reestablishing contact with the world around him. As if sensing his need, Sandor held out his hand, offering Grey a hit off his energy supply. It helped some. Finally, he remembered how to talk.

“Adele, don’t fuck with me. If she’s alive, I want to talk to her.”

“
Tsk, tsk,
Grey. Your lack of breeding is showing again. Hang on a second.”

Adele whispered something on her end not meant for his ears, but she didn’t allow for a Talion’s enhanced hearing. She was telling her friend Wes to take the gag out of Piper’s mouth. He heard a rustling and then the sweetest sound he’d ever known—Piper’s voice as she argued with her captors.

“Why should I do anything you two want?”

Bless the woman, his Piper was alive and feisty. He was damn happy about the first part, but the second might just get her killed for real.

Something sounded like a slap and Piper yelped. Adele’s next words confirmed his worst fear. “Because, bitch, if you don’t do exactly what I say, you won’t live long enough to regret it. Now talk to your loverboy before I kill you both.”

“Grey?”

“Piper, honey, are you all right?” She had to be. The gods couldn’t be so cruel as to give her back to him only to snatch her away again.

“I’ve been better.” Her voice caught when she continued. “I’m so sorry they let you think I was still in the car when it blew up. They made me watch.”

She yelped again. “Quit pulling my hair, you jerk! You wanted me to talk to him. What did you expect me to say?”

Energy, dark and lethal, writhed under Grey’s skin. They were hurting his woman, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Not yet. But, by god, there would be a reckoning—and soon.

“Piper, can you hear me? Do exactly what they say. Don’t fight them, not alone. I need you to promise me that. Please.” Because if she didn’t, she might not survive long enough for him to get her away from those two monsters.

“I will.”

“Good.”

“And please don’t let these two use me as a weapon against Kerry.”

“I promise to keep the Dame safe.”

“Thank you. There’s one more thing. I love you.” She choked on a sob. “I wish I’d told you before, and I was so scared I’d never get the chance.”

“God, honey, I know. I love you, too.” He savored the sweet truth of her admission. Even so, the knowledge scared him down to the core because it was another weapon Adele would use to manipulate him. “Piper, please be careful until I can get there.”

“Now wasn’t that just so sweet.” Adele had taken the phone back. “Here’s how this is going to play out, Grey.”

“Before you say another word, Adele, know this. You hurt her or anyone else, and you’re dead. If I don’t get the job done, Sandor or Ranulf will. You won’t ever be able to stop running. You’re already breathing on borrowed time. Make it easier on everybody and turn yourself in.”

Her laugh had a note of hysteria.

“So I take that as a no, then.” He leaned back in his seat, proud of his new sense of calm. “Okay, little girl, we’ll play this your way. Don’t keep me in suspense. What’s your evil plan?”

And while she told him, he plotted her death.

G
rey slammed his hand down on the coffee table. “This is absolutely insane. You’re not about to abdicate, and Adele knows it. You know it. So there’s no reason to put yourself in danger.”

Ranulf said, “He’s right, Kerry. The whole idea is effing crazy.”

She glared right back at her husband and then at Grey. “Yes, I do know that. If anyone has a viable option that doesn’t result in my sister getting killed, speak up now. I just found her. I won’t risk losing her, not like this.”

The silence was answer enough.

Grey tried again. “Kerry, no one wants to get Piper back more than I do, but my first duty is to keep you safe. Ranulf’s duty is the same.”

He pointed around the room at the group of warriors who surrounded her. “We Talions all swore an oath to protect the Grand Dame of the Kyth, even if it means protecting her from her own folly. Piper will never forgive any of us if we put you in danger to save her.”

Adele had insisted that they convene at the Dame’s house, saying the place was her rightful home. He
pointed out how unwise that would be considering she’d drawn the attention of god knows how many law enforcement agencies by blowing up the Packard in the driveway.

Finally, she’d reluctantly given in, agreeing to meet sometime after sunset to discuss Kerry’s abdication. She’d call back with the location later. Grey hung up satisfied with the confrontation. As long as the woman thought she was running the show, she had no reason to hurt Piper. What she didn’t realize was that he knew exactly where she and Wes were holed up.

The situation was far from perfect, and the element of surprise was the only factor that played in their favor. Wes’s house sat on a fairly big corner lot, but that translated to too many potential witnesses. It didn’t help that Kerry wanted a shot at talking Adele down off the ledge before unleashing the Talions. No one thought that negotiating would work, but their Dame insisted on trying. He wished he knew if it was weakness or compassion that was driving her decision.

Kerry reached out and took Grey’s hand, sending a high-powered jolt of energy up his arm. “I’m going with you, Grey. I know you hate it, but deal with it.”

He gauged her resolve. The woman’s warrior spirit glowed brightly in her eyes. “Yes, Dame Kerry.”

After releasing him, she crossed the room to her husband. “And you hate it most of all, but I won’t be the kind of leader who huddles in the basement while my people are in jeopardy. It would be different if I had no powers of my own, but I’ve already proven myself in battle, if it comes to that.”

Turning back to Grey, she continued. “Make your best plans, but make sure I’m part of them. Now, if you’ll excuse us, I have a feeling my husband has a few things he’d like to say to me in private.”

As the two walked out of the hotel room, Grey smiled. On the whole, he thought the Viking had shown great forbearance by waiting until they were in the other room to start railing at his wife. Grey and the rest of the Talions did their best to hide their smiles as the deep, angry rumble of Ranulf’s voice increased in volume as the seconds ticked by. They all knew he was going to lose the argument—including him—but no one blamed the man for trying.

“Sandor, tell me you’ve learned more about the layout of Adele’s house than the few scraps Harcourt could tell us,” Grey said, getting focused.

The Talion nodded and held out a stack of papers. “Original floor plans.”

Grey nodded his approval. “Nice job. Everybody take one and memorize it. The countdown has started, so we don’t have any time to waste.”

Piper refused to let her captors see how scared she really was. Instead, she concentrated on being mad at herself for letting them manipulate her into becoming a weapon against the one person she needed to protect. No, make that two people. She cared about Sandor and the others, too, but right now she knew that Kerry and Grey were going through an even deeper hell.

Of course, if she’d stayed tucked safely behind
Ranulf’s wards, maybe Adele and her sicko friend would have blown up the Packard with Grey in it. Any number of scenarios could have played out. Hindsight was getting her nowhere.

Right now, she had a few demands of her own. “Hey, you two, I’m getting pretty hungry in here.”

Adele had ignored Piper since she’d hung up with Grey. Right now, she and Wes were across the room whispering. From what Piper could gather, they were busy stripping the Harcourt family holdings of all liquid assets. They’d spent half an hour arguing over which offshore bank offered the best protection.

They sat there, quibbling over interest rates, as if they didn’t have a care in the world. Did they really think they stood a chance against Grey and his men? Wes might have a talent for explosives, but she suspected Talions knew more ways to kill an enemy than Wes could even imagine, and they wouldn’t play by the rules Adele had laid out.

She tried again. “Hey, I said,
I’m hungry!
I doubt I’m the only one. Besides, I think there’s a rule somewhere about the condemned getting a last meal.”

Wes looked up from the mess of wires he’d been working on. “What do you say, Adele? Want to order something in or do a drive-thru thing?”

Piper rolled her eyes. What a wimp! What kind of villain had to ask permission to buy a hamburger and fries? His partner in crime didn’t even look up from her notepad to answer. “I don’t care if she’s hungry.”

The muscles in Wes’s jaw tightened up. “What if I’m hungry?”