The Men with the Golden Cuffs (Masters and Mercenaries #2)(108)

Doyle gasped, his whole body doubling over. Serena pulled the gag out of her mouth and tossed it aside.

Serena took advantage, turning and starting for the street. “Help! Help me!”

She screamed as loud as she could as she ran. If he shot her in the back, then that’s what happened, but she wouldn’t let him take her away. She wouldn’t let him abuse her more than he had. And he wouldn’t get away with it. Jake and Adam would figure it out. They wouldn’t give up. They wouldn’t stop working the case because their client was dead.

They wouldn’t stop because they loved her.

“Help me!”

Serena ran toward the street. She ran with everything she had because she had something to live for beyond the characters in her head. Real life was harder and real love was scary, but it was worth every pain, every piece of heartache, and it was worth fighting for.

She heard the shot that meant the end of Bridget’s life. So much for Brian’s silencer. Pain lashed through her, but she kept running. She couldn’t stop. Her feet were being cut by rocks on the pavement, but she ran.

Almost there.

Almost there.

There was another shot, and Serena felt a sharp pain in her side. She fell, her knees buckling as she hit the pavement. Blood. There was blood at her side and a terrible burning sensation.

Almost there.

She tried to crawl. Almost there.

Something hard hit her back.

“Not this time, Serena. You don’t get away this time.” Doyle held her ankles and flipped her over, forcing her to look at him. He aimed the gun at her head. “This time I win.”

Serena tried to fight, but she was afraid this time he was right.

She closed her eyes and thought about them. God, she wished she’d told them.

I love you.

Her last words, whispered only in her head.

I love you both so much.





Ian caught up to Jake and Adam as Jake hit the door to The Velvet Room. His heart was pounding in his chest, but he forced himself to remain cool. Panic wouldn’t save Serena.

Liam was right behind Ian. “It’s the agent’s husband. And Serena’s ex. After Lara confessed to Ian, Adam hacked her account. I’ve been reading e-mails for days.”

Jake looked around the room. So many f*cking people. Where was Serena? Liam kept talking.

“Lara kept the records for the whole company when it came to submissions. Did you know that Doyle Brooks submitted a book to Brian Anderson last year? I took it a step further and hacked into his account. They emailed back and forth, nothing too suspicious, but it got me thinking. I don’t think this is about some crazy person. This has always been about money. Lots of money.”

“Where the hell is she?” Adam asked.

“Save the explanations, Liam. We need to find her.” Jake knew they were right. He felt it in his gut. The cops were questioning the kid who had been hired. A diversion. Brian Anderson had needed a diversion at precisely 5:30. He’d gotten it. All the manpower had been chasing down some dumbass kid.

Sean walked up, a small black box in his hand. “Cell phone jammer. It was in a box of books. Mine’s still struggling. There must be more than one.”

“Where’s Serena? And where’s her agent?” Jake kept his voice low, but he felt like shouting.

“Do a sweep,” Ian ordered, sending Sean and Liam into immediate motion.

Chris Roberts moved from the crowd, a glass of champagne in his hand. The worried look on his face didn’t match his usual laid-back style. “What’s going on?”

“I need to find Serena, and I need you and Bridget to stay away from Brian Anderson.” Jake didn’t need to worry about the man using Serena’s friends as hostages.

The glass dropped from Chris’s hands, and he went a stark white. Without a word, he turned and started for the back of the building.

Adam took off after him.

Something very bad was going on. “Clear the room,” Jake ordered as he jogged past Ian.

Adam tackled Chris before he made the door.

“Stop,” Chris protested. “You have to let me in there. She went with him to go get Lara. God, I watched her do it not three minutes ago. I let her go.”

Jake understood the man’s desperation, but they had to play this smart. “You stay here. Get to Ian. Tell him what’s happening and that I need men to move around to the back of the building. I need every exit blocked, and I need the cops to put an APB out on Brian Anderson and possibly Doyle Brooks. Do you understand? As a precaution, call an ambulance and more cops. We have a potential hostage situation. I need this done as quickly as possible, and I need you to stay calm. Get to Ian. He’s the big guy who’s probably scaring the crap out of everyone right now. Tell him Jake sent you. He’ll listen.”

Chris nodded and allowed Adam to help him up.

“Three minutes is a long time,” Adam said, his jaw clenched.

“And our girl is smart. If this really is about money, they might not kill her here. They need it to look good, and that means getting away.” Jake prayed he was right. “Okay. You take my six.”

“On it.” Adam moved behind him. When they hit the back room, Adam would guard his back.

As quietly as he could, he opened the door and moved through in a firing stance.