Bodyguard: Ransom (Book 2) (18 page)

‘How convinced are you it was him?’ asked Ling, digging her toes into the soft warm sand.

She and Connor sat a little distance from the bonfire, the wood crackling and sending sparks like fireflies into the night sky. Bathed in the flickering glow of the flames, they kept a careful watch on Chloe and Emily dancing and chatting with the other guests at the beach party. Initially Mr Sterling hadn’t been at all comfortable with the idea of his daughters attending. But Amanda had convinced him otherwise – either in an attempt to win favour with the girls or, as the sisters thought more likely, so she could have extra time alone with her future husband.

Connor shrugged in response to Ling’s question. ‘Fifty per cent. It was more a
gut feeling
.’

‘You know how unlikely this is,’ she said, sipping from a can of Diet Coke she’d got from the bar. ‘I mean, we’re thousands of miles away from Sydney, virtually on the other side of the world.’

‘I realize that,’ Connor replied, beginning to doubt his own eyes. ‘I just wish you’d been there to ID him.’

Ling held up her hands. ‘Hey, I was busy fending off the boys swarming round Chloe.’

‘You weren’t doing too badly yourself,’ Connor remarked, nudging her with his elbow.

Ling narrowed her eyes at him. ‘
He
was talking to me. I was still in Code Yellow. Anyway, have you reported your sighting to Brad or the captain yet?’

‘No,’ Connor admitted. ‘You remember what Bugsy taught us:
Once is happenstance, twice is circumstance. Three times means enemy action
. Unless I see that man again, the sighting means nothing.’

Ling pursed her lips. ‘Well, Chloe seems to be getting into the full swing of the party.’

Over the bar’s speakers Bob Marley’s ‘Could You Be Loved?’ pulsed its summery lilting beat. Chloe was gyrating her hips and dancing with a lad in Bermuda shorts. Although not wanting to intrude on her fun, Connor realized they’d have to keep a close eye on her. They couldn’t have their Principal disappearing with some boy along the beach. Meanwhile, Emily sat by the fire, chatting with two girls and a red-haired boy who was showing a clear interest in her. But Connor didn’t judge him a threat. He was half his size and, by the looks of it, was getting nowhere with Emily.

As Connor surveyed the party, a tall lad with curly sun-bleached hair swaggered over to them.

‘Hey!’ he drawled.

‘Hi, Dave,’ Ling replied, offering a friendly yet reserved smile. Connor recognized him as the boy who’d been speaking with her earlier that afternoon.

‘What you doing over here? The party’s happening over
there
.’ Dave wafted his arm in the general direction of the music.

‘There’s a better view from here,’ replied Ling.

‘Really?’ Dave turned his head and looked for himself.

Ling rolled her eyes at Connor, the lad having no idea what she actually meant by this. From their position outside the party, the two of them occupied the best surveillance point. They could see the beach, the bonfire and the bar. Their two Principals were always under their watchful guard yet had the freedom to enjoy themselves without Connor or Ling constantly at their side. And by not being too close to the fire they kept some of their night vision, meaning people didn’t suddenly materialize out of the darkness.

‘Seems good to me wherever you look,’ said Dave, gazing directly at Ling. ‘Especially this way.’

He flumped down in the sand beside her and offered her an open-topped coconut with a straw sticking out.

‘No thanks,’ said Ling. Even from where Connor was sitting, he caught the sharp whiff of rum. Mr Sterling had made it absolutely clear that, as one of the ground rules for attending the party, alcohol was forbidden. He’d given the two of them specific instructions to ensure his daughters steered clear of it, holding them fully responsible if the girls returned in anything but a sober state.

‘Too young to drink?’ said Dave, taking a slurp and laughing. ‘Me too!’ He jutted his chin towards Connor. ‘He your boyfriend?’

Ling glanced at Connor and smirked. ‘No, I have taste.’

Dave broke into a broad grin. ‘Didn’t think so.’ He bent forward to catch Connor’s eye. ‘No offence, mate.’

‘None taken,’ replied Connor, wondering when the lad would realize he wasn’t welcome.

But Dave persisted in his attempt to hit on Ling by talking about his surfing prowess that day. Tuning out from the conversation, Connor’s eyes swept the party again. Chloe was now jumping up and down to ‘In The Summertime’ by Shaggy. Her sister had joined her and the red-haired boy from the bonfire was dancing alongside them both.

As he observed the dancers, he caught sight of a tattooed arm in the firelight. His alert status went from Code Yellow to Code Orange.
Focused awareness
. His eyes searched among the partygoers for another glimpse. But, outside the glow of the fire, the beach was too dark to make out any individual beyond their silhouettes. The next pool of light was the bar with its glistening oil lamps.

Then Connor saw a flash of a muscled bicep with a roaring lion tattoo.

‘Ling, I think I just saw Todd,’ said Connor, interrupting Dave’s surf monologue.

Ling turned to him, a frown on her face. ‘Todd?’

‘
Yes
, Todd Logan,’ Connor repeated, giving her a pointed look. ‘You remember, the rollerblader.’

‘So, the wave pulled me under. I thought I was gonna be
fish food
 …’ continued Dave, trying desperately to keep Ling’s attention. But she ignored his ramblings as the name’s full significance hit home.

‘Where?’ Ling demanded, her eyes sharp as she hunted the darkness.

‘Over there, by the dancers.’

Ling craned her neck. ‘I can’t see him. Are you sure?’

‘I didn’t see his face,’ admitted Connor, ‘but I recognized his lion tattoo.’

Ling leant over to Connor and whispered, ‘We can’t simply extract the girls from the party just because you saw a tattoo. There’s loads of guys here with tats, even Dave has one.’

Connor glanced over at her new friend, a surfboard inked on his leg with the words
Surf or Die
.

‘But it’s too much of a coincidence to ignore,’ he insisted. ‘We can’t take the risk.’

‘OK,’ relented Ling, getting to her feet. ‘Then we need to eyeball him first. Get confirmation.’

Dave looked up with a slightly forlorn expression. ‘Hey, Ling. Forget Todd. Think Dave!’

‘In another life,’ replied Ling over her shoulder as she and Connor strode towards the main party.

Struggling to stand up, Dave slumped back in the sand with a drunken sigh and called out, ‘See ya later, Ling!’

‘Let’s split up,’ Connor suggested, ‘but stay in comms.’

Ling nodded in agreement and they both inserted their covert earpieces.

‘
Alpha One to Alpha Two. Comms check
,’ whispered Connor.

‘I’m standing right next to you, idiot!’ hissed Ling. ‘But I hear you loud and clear. Now you take left flank and I’ll take right.’

The two of them circled round the mass of people raving on the beach. The music was pumping and in the flame-lit darkness the dancers became a tangle of bare arms and legs, faces shifting in and out of view, making it hard to identify anyone. But, as he worked his way through the party, Connor kept a visual lock on Emily and Chloe’s position.

‘
Have you spotted him yet?
’ came Ling’s voice in his ear.

‘Negative,’ replied Connor.

A pretty girl swayed in front of him, trying to catch his eye. He smiled at her. At any other time, he’d leap at such an opportunity, but there were more important matters at
stake right now. He edged past her, heading in the direction of the bar.

Above the music he suddenly heard Chloe’s voice shout, ‘CONNOR!’

He spun round, his heart in his mouth at the anticipated sight of her being dragged away into the darkness. But she was just bouncing up and down, waving for him to join her in a dance. Breathing once more, Connor pointed in the direction of the toilets. Chloe gave him the thumbs up in understanding and returned to her boogying. On the opposite side of the dancers, Ling continued with her surveillance sweep. She made eye contact with him.

‘
Any sign?
’ she asked.

Connor shook his head.

‘
Maybe you were mistaken
.’

‘No, I’m sure I saw –’ At that moment, Connor noticed movement behind the palm-thatched bar, a figure lurking out of sight from all the other partygoers.

‘I’ve spotted him,’ he whispered. ‘Behind the bar.’

‘
Are you sure?
’ said Ling, altering course towards the building.

Using the palm trees for cover, Connor moved in for a definite confirmation. The man had his back to him. He couldn’t be certain. He crept to within a few metres of his target. Then he saw, in the reflected glow of an oil lamp, the tattoo.

‘It’s Todd!’ whispered Connor into his mic.

‘
Watch out
,’ cried Ling as the figure turned towards Connor’s voice. ‘
He’s got a machete
.’

A gleam of steel flashed in the lamplight, the vicious blade slicing through the air. Connor leapt aside as Ling ran up behind and launched into a flying side-kick. Her foot struck the man’s back, sending him sprawling into the sand. Kicking away his machete, Connor grabbed his arm and twisted it into a lock. Ling seized the other arm, rotating it until the wrist threatened to snap.

‘Ow! Help!’ he cried, writhing on the ground in agony.

‘Don’t struggle or I’ll break your wrist,’ Ling hissed.

‘What the hell is going on here?’ shouted a gruff voice from behind. ‘Leave my barman alone!’

As the bar manager stormed over, Connor and Ling stared at the man they had pinned to the ground. Although tattooed and dark-haired, he was
not
Todd Logan. Only now, up close, could Connor see that the tattoo wasn’t a roaring lion. It was a tiger.

‘Well done, hotshot!’ said Ling, her tone dripping with sarcasm, as the two of them, having made their apologies to the barman, beat a hasty retreat to the party.

‘Sorry, it was dark, I couldn’t see his face,’ Connor replied. ‘And he
did
have a machete.’

‘To cut coconuts with.’

‘But
you
were the one who jumped him,’ argued Connor.

Ling spun on him and jabbed a finger in his chest. ‘Don’t blame me for your mistakes! I’m always having to pick up the slack on this mission.’

‘What do you mean?’

Ling let out a derisive snort and fixed him with a withering look. ‘Well, to start with, on Manly Beach you completely failed to spot that mugger’s approach. And I had to stop him escaping with
your
Principal’s handbag.’

‘That was Jason’s fault,’ explained Connor. ‘If he hadn’t –’

‘Don’t bring Jason into this,’ said Ling, cutting him off. ‘Your reactions were slow and you know it. And what about the other day? I believe it was
me
who noticed
your
Principal floating off on a lilo. I thought you were supposed to be a gold-winged buddyguard. Now you’re seeing threats where there aren’t any!’

Connor held up his hands in surrender. ‘OK, you’re right. I realize I’ve made some mistakes. That’s probably why I’m being so jumpy, but I know what I s–’

‘Hang on,’ Ling interrupted. ‘Where’s Emily?’

For the second time that night, Connor felt his throat tighten in panic. He scanned the crowd for Emily’s face, but everyone kept moving and twirling, the dark and firelight confusing the scene. Then he spotted the red-haired boy dancing with – ‘No, it’s
Chloe
that’s missing,’ corrected Connor.

‘Are you sure?’ said Ling, squinting at the remaining sister.

‘Yes, that boy hasn’t left Emily’s side all night.’

Ling cursed. ‘Chloe could be pretty much
anywhere
,’ she muttered as she hunted the darkness for her Principal.

Connor didn’t like the situation either. Beyond the glow of the bonfire lay a two-kilometre stretch of starlit beach. It would be virtually impossible to find her, especially near the treeline where the darkness was absolute.

They did a sweep of the party, down towards the bonfire. When this didn’t produce a result, Connor checked his watch. Chloe had been missing at least five minutes, long enough to start getting concerned. He approached Emily in the crowd. She greeted him with an unexpected kiss on the cheek.

‘Have you come to save me from this boy?’ she whispered
in his ear, flicking her eyes towards her dancing partner. The boy frowned at Connor, clearly wondering who was moving in on ‘his girl’.

‘Sorry, mate,’ said Connor with an apologetic smile. ‘We have to go.’

Connor led Emily away by the hand, leaving the boy open-mouthed and crestfallen.

‘Thanks,’ said Emily. ‘He was sweet, but a real bore.’

‘Do you know where your sister is?’ Connor asked, getting straight to the point.

Emily shrugged. ‘She said she was going to the toilet.’

Connor relayed this information to Ling.

‘
I’ve already checked. She’s not there
,’ came Ling’s tense reply in his ear.

They regrouped at the edge of the party, Connor keeping Emily close. If her sister was missing, then he couldn’t afford to let Emily out of his sight. There might be a completely innocent explanation for Chloe’s disappearance. However, the longer she was gone, the less chance the outcome would be good. She could have wandered off with a boy, whose intentions may or may not be honourable. She could have gone swimming and been caught in a current, or fallen over in the darkness and hurt herself. Or maybe he
had
seen Todd, as well as his accomplice earlier that day in the forest, and the two men had snatched her. The nightmare scenarios were endless.

‘What shall we do?’ said Ling, a hint of desperation edging her voice.

Connor realized he had to take charge of the situation.
Definitive action was the best solution to such an emergency. ‘First, we call Brad to bring the tender over,’ he said, pulling out his phone. ‘We can’t search the beach and protect Emily at the same time.’

Once he’d spoken with Brad and explained the situation, Emily asked, ‘Do you think my sister’s OK?’

She eyed the darkness fearfully as if invisible hands would reach out and spirit her away too. Connor wore his most reassuring smile. ‘I’m sure she is. But we can’t take any risks. I’m sending you back to the
Orchid
while we look for her.’

‘Hey! I thought you were leaving?’

The three of them turned to see the red-haired boy approaching, an aggrieved expression on his face.

Emily nodded. ‘We are, but we have to find my sister first.’

‘Well, I just saw her.’ The boy pointed up the beach. ‘She’s in the bar with Matt.’

‘
What?
’ exclaimed Ling.
‘I must have walked straight past her.’

The three of them hurried up to the bar, leaving Emily’s admirer behind again.

‘Does that mean you’re staying now?’ the boy called out hopefully, getting no reply.

They found Chloe perched on a stool, chin resting in the palm of her hand as she gazed into the dark eyes of the lad with Bermuda shorts. Matt had broad shoulders, a six-pack and an easy-going smile. A few years older than Chloe, he had clearly charmed her. The barman was serving up two coconuts with fancy cocktail umbrellas and straws.

‘Well, panic over,’ said Emily, sighing with visible relief.

‘I still think it’s time to go,’ Ling said to Connor, nodding at the two drinks. She strode determinedly over to the bar. Breaking up the intimate twosome, Ling gave Chloe the news of their imminent departure.

Chloe’s jaw dropped. ‘But the party isn’t over yet!’

‘Brad’s on his way. Besides, your father said no alcohol.’

‘Oh, don’t be such a killjoy,’ said Chloe, waving her off and reaching for the coconut. ‘You don’t
have
to tell him.’

Ling pulled out the straw before Chloe could take a sip. Chloe looked mortified, her cheeks flushing with a mix of embarrassment and rage.

‘
Just leave us alone
,’ she hissed.

Ling stood her ground. ‘No can do.’

‘Look, if you’re worried about my safety, don’t be. Matt can protect me.’

‘Sure I can,’ he said, resting a hand on Chloe’s knee while offering Ling a winning smile.

Ling remained unmoved by his charm. ‘You don’t get a hungry lion to protect a lamb.’

Matt’s brow knotted in confusion. ‘Say again?’

‘Oh, forget it,’ said Ling, losing patience with him. ‘We have to go.’

Chloe glared at her, refusing to shift from her stool. After several moments of uncomfortable silence, Matt held up his hands. ‘Listen, I can see I’m causing problems.’ He turned to Chloe. ‘I’ll catch you another time.’

‘But we might be sailing to another island tomorrow,’ she protested.

Matt glanced uneasily at the small yet forceful Chinese girl standing beside him. ‘I think it’s for the best if you do go.’

Chloe fumed at Ling. ‘Well,
at least
give me a chance to say goodbye.’

‘Certainly,’ replied Ling, turning on her heel and rejoining Connor and Emily.

She raised her eyebrows at Connor and tutted in exasperation. Connor shrugged sympathetically, although he thought Ling could have handled the situation a little more tactfully.

They waited while Chloe enveloped Matt in a hug and kissed him on both cheeks. When she finally released him, he grinned and winked at her. Chloe then made her way out of the bar.

She threw Ling a scathing look. ‘Thanks for nothing, I was just starting to enjoy myself.’

‘It looked like it,’ replied Ling. ‘But you do realize that the drink could have been spiked.’

‘What? Matt’s not that sort of guy.’

‘How do you know?’ challenged Ling.

Chloe stared at her in disbelief. ‘You don’t trust boys very much, do you?’

‘No,’ replied Ling, leading her towards the jetty. ‘Especially ones I don’t know.’