Cops 02 - Love on the Run (23 page)

“Don’t worry.” Dimitryi’s image began to blur and fade away. “You’ll be reunited with Tate and your other friends very soon.”

*

Tony raced past the elevators on his floor and headed straight to the exit. He ran down the four flights of stairs, three and four steps at a time, until he reached the first floor.

Exiting the building, he scanned the block in both directions and found nothing but empty streets and virtually nonexistent traffic at the early, predawn hour.

He turned and ran back up the stairs. Anger and dread fueled each step he took. It flowed through his body and formed a knot in his chest so big he could barely breathe.

Just as he reached his condo, his cell phone rang. “You and your partner have taken away many things that belonged to me,” the caller said when he answered. “And now I have something that belongs to you.” The call disconnected before Tony had a chance to respond.

The display on his phone said “Unavailable,” but Tony didn’t need to see the number to identify the caller.

Dimitryi Ivanov.

Tony wanted to roar as unadulterated fury pulsed through him. So much rage filled him; he ached to rip that son of a bitch apart, piece by piece. As he stormed through the darkened living room, he completely ignored the two dead bodies on the floor. He vowed that before this was over, he’d do just that.

He was about to turn on the light in his bedroom when the faint creaking sound of his front door opening had him spinning around and retracing his steps. He still held the gun he’d taken from one of his attackers in his hand. Tony lifted the weapon in front of him as he cautiously entered the living room.

He caught a glimpse of blonde hair just as he passed his bedroom doorway, and he placed his gun to the back of the intruder’s head.

“You picked the wrong man to fuck with.” His voice sounded lethal and venomous, his words hard as ice: cold, sharp, and dangerous enough to kill.

“Tony, it’s me…Elizabeth.” She slowly turned around with her hands in the air, and Tony found himself staring into the face of his temporary partner.

Tony kept his gun trained on her. “What the fuck are you doing here, Elizabeth?”

Elizabeth looked around the room and back at him. “What in the hell happened here, Tony?”

“I asked you a question, Elizabeth. What are you doing here?” His patience and self-control were vapor-thin, and it wouldn’t take very much to send him right over the edge.

“I’m sorry. I…” Elizabeth’s eyes focused on the gun in his hand. “Ed gave me your address. I know it’s late, but I needed to talk to you right away about Dimitryi.” Tony stared at her for several long seconds as suspicion and doubt warred within him. Slowly, reluctantly, he lowered he gun and walked past Elizabeth until he reached one of the dead men on the floor. Squatting down, he searched through the man’s pockets.

“You couldn’t call me on the phone and tell me?” he demanded. When he didn’t find anything, he moved on to the next body.

“No,” Elizabeth said quietly. “I couldn’t.”

“Really? And why is that?” Tony spoke absently as he pulled a wallet from one of the man’s pockets. Suddenly, he felt a stinging sensation in the back of his neck. He turned to find Elizabeth standing behind him with a syringe in her hand.

“Because Dimitryi wants to see you personally.” She sounded like she was speaking from inside of a cave. Tony tried to lift his gun, but his arm felt like it was weighted down with a thousand pounds of lead.

“You thought you were so tough, didn’t you, Tate? And look at you now. You’re fucking pathetic.” Elizabeth’s distorted image appeared over him. “What made you think you were ever smart enough to take down a man like Dimitryi? You and Parker together didn’t have balls big enough to accomplish something like that.”

Two men soon joined her. “See if you can get him downstairs and into the car without ending up like these two.”

Tony vaguely felt the men lift him off of the floor. “Don’t worry, Reggie,” one of the men assured her. “We’ll take care of him.”

“Bitch…kill you…” Tony’s words came out slurred and barely audible as the impact of the man’s words sank in. He made one last futile attempt to get away, but the drug she’d given him had turned his body into dead weight and made his efforts completely useless. “Just relax, Tate.” She chuckled. “By the time you wake up, you’ll be with your precious little whore again.”

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

“Gracias, Arnando.” Clarke smiled at the waiter as he sat her drink on the table in front of her.

“You’re welcome, señorita.” The man grinned, his eyes glued to Clarke.

“Señora.” Jack practically growled and held up Clarke’s left hand to display the wedding ring on her finger. Out of the corner of his eye, Jack saw Clarke cover her mouth with her other hand, no doubt trying to hide a huge smile.

The man wisely excused himself, and Jack glanced over at Clarke. Her efforts at trying not to laugh at him weren’t very successful.

“I’m glad you found that amusing.” He tried to scowl, but the smile on his face made it difficult, especially when she sat there looking so fucking incredible in that bikini.

Clarke had practically lived outside in the sun since they’d arrived in Mexico almost a week ago. Her golden brown skin now tanned a deep bronze, her skin was a perfect complement to the metallic gold material of the bikini she wore. The sun even kissed her hair, and she now sported golden streaks throughout her naturally curly hair.

Clarke leaned toward him, and Jack watched, mesmerized, as her breasts strained against the delicate material of her bikini top.

“Don’t be jealous, baby.” Her lips brushed across his. “You know I only have eyes for you.”

“Yeah, well, it’s not your eyes that I’m worried about.” Jack wanted to hold on to his indignation, in spite of the fact that his cock was already rock hard in his swimming trunks.

Before either of them could comment further, his ringing cell phone intruded. The expression on Clarke’s face instantly changed from arousal to annoyance. “I

thought we made a deal about the phones, Jackson.”

Shit. She was right, of course. They’d agreed to check their messages only once a day and leave their phones off and in their room at all times. But old habits were hard to break, and he’d put the phone into his pocket instead of in the safe before they left their room.

Jack was still trying to decide if he was going to answer or ignore the call when Clarke made the decision for him. She reached into his pocket, pulled out the phone, and put it to her ear.

“This had better be important,” she snapped. “We are trying to enjoy our honeymoon.”

She grew quiet, and Jack didn’t like the look that suddenly developed in her hazel eyes. She lowered the phone from her ear and covered the receiver with her hand. “It’s your captain.”

She held the phone out to him. “He said it’s an emergency.”

Jack immediately took the phone from her. “Captain, this is Jack. What’s going on?”

“Jack, I’m sorry to interrupt you, but we have a problem.” Jack felt dread settle in his gut as he waited for his captain to continue. “Tony is missing, and so is that reporter friend of your wife.”

“When?” Jack glanced at Clarke; her eyes were wide and anxious as she nervously stared at him.

“All we know was that it was sometime overnight. A neighbor going out for a jog found Tony’s door wide open around five-thirty this morning.” Captain Reyes paused.

“Dimitryi’s involved, Jack. Our guys found obvious signs of a struggle and two dead bodies inside. We made a positive identification on them, and they both have connections to him.”

“We’ll leave for Chicago today.”

“No!” His captain’s urgent response made Jack pause. “We can’t wait that long. We have a confirmation that Dimitryi is in Nevada, and we’re positive that he has Tony and the woman there as well. I can have a car and backup available to meet you at the airport in Vegas by seven o’clock your time.” Jack looked at his watch. That gave him a little over four hours to get there.

“I’ll be there.”

“Your wife is coming with you, isn’t she?”

Not if I can help it. “We’ll see,” he said out loud, knowing that Clarke was hanging on to his every word.

“I know you’re concerned about her safety, but don’t worry. I’m sending enough men to watch over her as well.”

Jack didn’t comment any further, except to make arrangements to meet the captain’s men. Once he ended the call, Jack took a deep breath and met Clarke’s eyes.

“Dimitryi got Tony and Bianca, didn’t he?” Clarke’s voice was matter-of-fact, her words spoken more like a statement than a question. He answered anyway. “Yeah, he did. But I’m going to get them back. I promise.” He stood up from the table and waited for her to rise as well before he started toward their room.

“I’m going with you,” she said from behind him.

Jack glanced over his shoulder at her. “No, you’re not. You’re going back to Chicago, and you’re going to stay with Pops where it’s safe until I get back.”

“The only place I’m going is with you,” she replied hotly.

Jack stopped abruptly and turned to her. “Clarke, baby, I don’t have time to argue with you on this. I need to get to Vegas in the next couple of hours, and the only way I can do that is to fly. We both know you and planes don’t mix well.”

Clarke grabbed his arm and prevented him from walking away. “Let me tell you something, Jackson Davis Parker. Because of that bastard, half of my family is missing. You think I’m just going to sit at home and do nothing? I. Am. Going. End of discussion. And if it means that I have to fly in order to get there, so be it. You can drug me, sedate me, hell, you can knock me over the head if you need to, but you will take me with you. Are we clear?”

Clarke was like a walking storm, her voice booming like thunder, her eyes flashing like lightning. Her stubborn persistence made him pissed and proud all at once. God, he loved this woman.

Jack pulled her into his arms and gave her a quick, hard kiss. “Yeah, baby, we’re clear.”

She nodded. “Good. Now, move your ass. We have a plane to catch.”

*

Las Vegas, Nevada

Bianca looked around the room where she was being held, hoping to find something she could use as a weapon, yet knowing that she probably wouldn’t. Other than a table and a couple of chairs, the space was empty. Four large support beams were the only structures in the room that provided some degree of protection to hide behind.

The sound of the door opening made Bianca tense, and she tried to make herself as small as possible in the corner of the room where she sat on the floor. Two men entered, carrying Tony between them. They carelessly dumped him on the floor, where he lay still and unmoving.

As the men turned to leave, one stopped and looked in her direction. He gave her a slow lecherous smile and started in her direction.

“Kirill!” the other man called out and motioned toward the camera mounted on the wall. The guy sighed and nodded grudgingly before he gave Bianca one more look. “Next time.” He winked and blew her a kiss as he left the room. The door had barely closed before she scooted across the floor as fast as her bound hands and legs would allow. She reached Tony and lay next to him on the floor. She leaned her head against his. “Tony, baby, wake up,” she whispered near his ear. “Don’t leave me, please… I’m so scared. I need you.”

“Right here…not going anywhere. Can’t get rid of me that easy…” Tony’s words were thick and groggy.

Bianca made a sound that was a cross between a laugh and a sob as she kissed him all over his face. Tony blinked his eyes several times, as if to clear his vision, and then he slowly tried to sit up.

“You okay?” His gaze finally settled on her.

“Yes…I am now.” Tony started to reply just as the door suddenly opened. Dimitryi walked in, followed by Reggie and several armed guards. Two of the men immediately grabbed Tony and yanked him to his feet.

“Let him go!” Her cries were ignored as two other guards held her down, and she was forced to watch helplessly as the others took turns hitting Tony. After what seemed like an eternity, Dimitryi spoke.

“Enough!” Dimitryi casually walked up to Tony until he stood directly in front of him.

“Anthony Tate, I must say what a pleasure it is to finally meet you in person. You and your partner have proven to be worthy adversaries over the years.”

“Yeah, well, the pleasure is all yours, motherfucker, so you’d better enjoy it while you’re still breathing, ’cause you won’t be for much longer.” Bianca flinched and bit back a scream when one of the guards struck Tony in the face. He turned his head to the side and spit, his saliva filled with blood.

“I’ve been waiting for this day for a very long time,” Dimitryi continued, as if Tony hadn’t spoken. “In fact, I’m planning a celebration tonight in honor of you and Parker — who will be here very shortly, by the way.” Bianca froze at his words, knowing that if they had Jack, it was certain they had Clarke as well. She glanced at Tony. The muscle pulsing in his jaw was the only acknowledgment she saw him give to Dimitryi’s comment.

Bianca wished she could borrow some of Tony’s courage at the moment, because fear held her in a grip so tight, it was practically strangling her. Her heart raced so fast and beat so hard in her chest, she was convinced it was going to explode at any second.

As if he knew she needed reassurance, Tony’s gaze found hers. She saw nothing but love and strength for her in his eyes. His feelings helped turn what was quickly becoming an unimaginable situation into something a little more bearable.

Just as her fears began to ease slightly, Dimitryi’s next words confirmed her thoughts about Jack and Clarke and turned her stomach at the same time.

“And we’ll let your women provide the entertainment.” A chorus of lewd chuckles echoed around the room. Dimitryi turned and pinned Bianca with a repulsive smile that made her skin crawl. “After all, I did promise Reggie that she could have a little fun, and she’s been so looking forward to spending some quality time with them tonight.”