Deadly Game (Fortress Security #5)(75)

Rowan stopped at the darkened door to the bedroom. It was pitch black inside.

“Light’s on the right,” Hard Hands snapped. “Hurry up.”

She glared at him over her shoulder. Rowan shifted Alexa’s weight, not an easy feat since the girl choked her in an effort to stay in Rowan’s arms.

She finally found the switch and scanned the room. A queen-sized bed took up a good portion of the room with a small bathroom to the right. Excellent. More comfortable for her and Alexa.

Hard Hands jabbed her in the back with his gun. “Inside, Ms. Scott.”

Rowan moved into the room and the door slammed shut behind her. A second later, a lock clicked. Phillips and Hard Hands were locked out. For the first time since she’d been carried away from Brent at gunpoint, the muscles in Rowan’s body relaxed a little. Hopefully, she and Alexa would have a chance to rest before the goon returned. She had a feeling rest would be scarce once the plane landed.

Wherever it landed. No point in obsessing. Rowan would handle their future destination. She didn’t have a choice. “He’s gone, Lex. We’re safe for the moment.”

Alexa raised her head and looked around the empty bedroom. “I don’t like him.”

Smart girl. “I don’t, either. Can I put you down now, sweetheart?”

The girl nodded. Rowan almost sagged with relief after Alexa’s feet were on the ground. “The bathroom is right there,” she said, motioning toward the room.

“Oh, good.” Alexa rushed across the room, paused in the doorway. “Don’t go anywhere.”

“I’ll be right here.”

Apparently satisfied, her niece hurried into the bathroom and shut the door.

Rowan sank onto the bed and laid back, grateful to stretch out her back muscles. How long would they be in the air? Where was Phillips taking them? More important than all those questions was one that had been at forefront of her mind. Was Brent still alive?

Her mind replayed the moments in the cemetery after she said a final goodbye to her sister. The walk across the quiet grounds. The search for the right mausoleum. Waiting for a kidnapper to bring Lex. Instead of exchanging her niece for the records, a bullet smashed into Brent and three men took Rowan from his side.

Rowan replayed in slow motion the moment when Brent had flown back and hit the wall and realized what she’d missed in her desperation to reach Brent. No blood. She frowned. Even when she ran to him, there’d been no blood. How was that possible?

Rowan sat up. A vest. One of those bulletproof vests. Her pulse accelerated. Nothing else made sense. No question a bullet slammed into Brent. She’d seen the hole in his shirt, but no blood. Rowan prayed she wasn’t deceiving herself with a hopeful fantasy.

Brent was the best of the best. He and his operatives knew and understood the danger at the cemetery. They’d have taken every precaution to keep themselves safe so they could protect her and Alexa.

The door to the bathroom swung open. Alexa sat beside her. “What do we do now, Aunt Ro?”

“Take a nap.”

Alexa wrinkled her nose. “A nap? I’m not a kid anymore.”

Rowan’s lips curved. “Is that right? I’ll bet you haven’t been sleeping much.” If she’d been in Lex’s shoes, Rowan wouldn’t have slept much, either.

“I was too scared to close my eyes very long.”

Rowan pressed a kiss to Alexa’s forehead. After she took advantage of the facilities herself, she found a blanket and curled up beside her niece. She wrapped her arms around the girl.

“When can we go home?” Alexa wanted to know.

A question she wanted answered for herself. Unfortunately, there was no easy answer. “I’m not sure, Lex. Soon, I hope.”

“Why did the bad men take us?”

“They want information.” Information Alexa’s father had been foolish enough to gather, keep, and had probably used.

Alexa frowned. “How will they get it if you’re here? Do you have it?”

Rowan wished she had Brent’s bug detector, afraid to speak too loud in case the room had listening devices. Leaning close to the girl’s ear, she whispered, “Can you keep a secret?”

A quick nod.

“A friend of mine will find us. He has the information. He’ll take us home, Lex.”

Alexa’s eyes widened. “Who is it?” she whispered back.

“His name is Brent.” Her cheeks burned even as her heart squeezed thinking about him. “My boyfriend.”

“I didn’t know you had one.”

“The relationship is new, Lex. He’s wonderful.”

Her niece was quiet a moment, then, “Do you love him?”

“I do, but he doesn’t know yet so you can’t tell him.”

“I promise not to tell.” A pause. “Are you sure he’ll come?”

“Positive.” No matter who or what he had to go through, Brent Maddox would come for them.

With that last bit of reassurance, Alexa slid into a deep sleep.

Thank goodness. At least she hadn’t been forced to explain about Heather and Jay. Rowan knew the reprieve was short-lived. Her niece was wicked smart. Alexa must know something was wrong if neither of her parents had come for her. Eventually, Lex would ask for the truth.

One crisis at a time. Rowan had to keep them alive long enough for Brent to find them, unless she had an opportunity to escape. Somehow she didn’t think that would happen. Phillips had a lot at stake. Losing his advantage wasn’t in the game plan.