Collared (Going to the Dogs) (28 page)

Shane pulled out his mobile phone and accessed the internet. “Would you be willing to come down to the precinct and talk to an artist?” Caleb asked.

“Yes. Tell me, detective, you single?”

Caleb smiled. She was a pretty girl, and before Harper, he might have been interested.

“He’s way taken,” Shane said with a laugh.

“Oh, that’s too bad.”

“One Flower Power listed in the New York area,” Shane said. He dialed and talked for a few minutes. “They had a jersey go missing. There was one bouquet put together for a customer, but the clerk said the guy was average-looking, so that matches up. He also said he paid in cash, no way to trace it.”

“That’s what I figured. Could you take her down to the precinct and get her set up with the artist? I want to talk to Harper before I head back.”

“Will do.”

As Shane led the woman away, he said, “I’m single.” She giggled.

Caleb shook his head and went up to Harper’s penthouse. After knocking and being admitted by Juliana, he was told she was in the library working on some paperwork.

Caleb was finally getting the floor plan down. When he got to the library, she was sitting at a desk, her head in her hand, working on what looked like a checklist.

He just stood there and took her in, his body reacting to just her presence. He remembered the last time they’d been together, the mind-and body-melting experience. He remembered being inside her, devouring her.

She lifted her head and turned to look at him. Joy streaked across her face, and as their gazes met and fused, her lips parted and her eyes went distant. She was having the same problem. Thank God. Sometimes, she was hard to read.

She pushed back her chair and headed toward him. When she got there, she went right for his mouth, no greeting, no preamble, just heat and moist lips.

He crushed her to him. Her hand went into his hair.

“I was just thinking about you,” she whispered against his mouth. “Are you busy?”

When she looked at his face, she stepped back “What is it?”

“I was in the building questioning one of the tenants about a bouquet delivered the night you were robbed.”

“Oh, does that have something to do with the robbery?” She pulled away from him.

“It does. I also recovered two pieces of your jewelry.”

Her face softened. “Thank you. So much.”

“I’m afraid I can’t return them until after the trial. Right now they’re evidence.”

She nodded. “I understand. What about the other three pieces and Blue’s collar?”

“Nothing yet on those. I’m thinking…” He reached down and pulled the sketch out of his pants pocket. “…this guy fenced them. He’s probably in the wind, but I’ve got facial recognition going on that.”

She gasped and her eyes widened…was that fear? He was sure Harper had never come into contact with someone as tough as this guy. He was a terrifying character. His cop instincts were kicking him really hard. What the hell was going on here?

He grabbed her arm when she leaned back. “Do you know this guy?”

“How would I know this man? He just looks scary.”

“I have no doubt that he is scary. Have you ever seen him?”

She hesitated and he got a kick to his gut this time harder as she studied the photo. She shook her head and handed him back the photo. Were his instincts off because he was too involved with her? Was she in danger? These guys who had targeted her were pros, but why? Why, out of all the easy marks in New York City had they robbed her?

“Are you sure, Harper?”

“Yes, I’m sure. I haven’t seen him before. But I think you should ask Jeffrey.”

“What is it you’re not telling me?”

“Can we sit down?” They settled on the small sofa that was situated between two bookcases and up against the window. She took his hands. “I need to tell you something, but please let me get it all out before you say anything.”

He nodded. His chest tightened more so from the fact that she was confiding in him…trusting him. It was the most amazing feeling in the world.

“Jeffrey’s real name is Michael Dalton. He was one of three men that held me hostage three years ago when I was kidnapped.”

Her hands tightened on his when she took in the hard look he was sure was in his eyes. But she asked him to not interrupt so he kept his mouth shut.

“I was kept blindfolded and they made a ransom demand. The police got involved, but my father was good at convincing the police to keep it quiet so that the press wouldn’t get wind of it. But before the money drop was scheduled, Michael released me and helped me escape. He saved my life. But I was worried he would be implicated and so he changed his name. I made him keep it quiet. He didn’t want to, so please don’t blame him.”

Caleb sighed. “You should have told me this right from the beginning, Harper. Withholding information wasn’t smart.”

“I know, but it’s just a simple robbery and I didn’t want Michael to lose his freedom over it.

She wrapped her arms around him, and he gathered her close. “You can tell me anything, princess. You can trust me.”

“I know I can. I’m trusting you to make this all right.”

“Right now, I’m more concerned about whether Jeff…Michael knows who this guy is. We’ll talk about all the other stuff later.”

She nodded, then his phone rang.

“Shaw,” he said.

“Caleb, we’ve gotten a hit on the facial recognition. Harper’s chauffer isn’t who he says he is.”

“I already know that and I’ll fill you in later. I might have another lead. Give me some time and I’ll give you a call back.”

“All right. I’ll be here.”

They found Michael at the kitchen table eating lunch. He took one look at their faces. “You told him?”

“Yes. He has a sketch to show you.”

He stood and swore as soon as he looked down at the drawing. “Son of a bitch. That’s Evan Miller. Merc. He’s fucking crazy. He and someone else, I don’t know who, kidnapped Harper. He’s a mean, lethal bastard. I was there, too. I accepted the job blind, and when I found out it was a kidnapping, I wanted nothing to do with it. But I knew they’d kill me, and they would for sure kill her. I bided my time, and as soon as I could, we made a break for it. I’m ready to accept the consequences.”

“The name is going to help. Thank you for that.”

“There’s more. Two weeks ago, I saw one of my buddies in the marketplace. He recognized me. I told Harper, but she wouldn’t let me tell you. I should have, but I was worried if I was arrested that would leave her unprotected so I went along. I keep wondering if that friend is the mastermind behind it. He was very interested in her and I got that itchy feeling.”

“I know the one you’re talking about. Is he nondescript with sandy hair and an average face?”

“That sounds like him. Name’s Ducan Martin. Both of them were in Special Forces, so be careful.”

“When I get back to the precinct, I’ll send the sketch to Harper’s phone so you can confirm.” Caleb stuck out his hand and Michael took it. “Thank you for saving her.” He owed this man for making the honorable choice three years ago. Otherwise, he might have never had a chance to know Harper.

Michael nodded. “They demanded, but didn’t get the ten million from Harper’s father they asked for. He’s had me acting as her bodyguard ever since.”

“I knew it.” she said.

He turned to her. “Your father hired me, Harper. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, but he didn’t want you to feel as if you didn’t have any freedom. But everywhere you went, I followed.”

“Including Vegas.”

“Everywhere.”

“I can’t say that it really surprises me. But I never knew you were there.”

“That was the point. Do you think Harper’s in any danger now, detective?”

“I don’t know. I don’t believe in coincidences. It could be he hired people to rob her because he felt he deserved the payback. Miller doesn’t show up on the security tape. We won’t know until I find him. I’m glad you’re here, though. I’m going back to the precinct to chase down this guy. You sit tight here until I get back.”

He turned to Harper and said, “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

She wrapped her arms around him and he held her close. She whispered against his jaw, “Please be careful. I couldn’t bear…”

“I will.”

#

Shane had already looked up the guy, discovered they had an address on file, and put out an APB. He and Shane had agreed to meet at his address to save time. As soon as Caleb got to the building, they went up to the apartment. When there was no answer, they had the super let them in. It was clear someone had been there, but the super said he hadn’t seen the guy for about a week. When asked, the super told them that he drove a dark late model Toyota.

“What now?”

“I’m going home to pick up Quinn and a few things, then back to Harper’s. I’m not leaving her alone until we find this guy. How about you?”

“I think I’m going to follow up on the pool boy in light of this information. I’ll call you if I find anything out, but someone gave out Harper’s code.”

“Take someone with you, even if it’s a uniform.”

“Will do.”

#

Harper sat down at the kitchen table feeling weak. The men who had kidnapped her three years ago had been here in her home. They had drugged her dog and stolen from her. She looked at Michael as a thought occurred to her and her blood went cold.

“What is it?”

“Oh my God. I think they planned to kidnap me again. That’s why they drugged Blue, not because they wanted her collar. They didn’t know I wasn’t here. Poe called and I left for Vegas the same day. It was an unexpected trip. Poe’s pregnancy and whirlwind marriage saved me.”

“I think you should give Caleb this information.”

She nodded, but as she rose to go grab her phone, she remembered that she’d left it in the Roadster. Michael’s phone rang and he answered. His brows furrowed, then he smiled.

“It’s Juliana. She got too much stuff at the market and needs me to help her bring it all up. I’ll be right back.”

“I’ll come down with you. I think I left my phone in the Roadster.”

As soon as they exited the elevator into the parking garage both of them stopped dead. The scary man stood by the limo and he had Juliana by the hair.

“Let her go,” Michael said, lunging forward, but the scary guy—Evan—placed a gun against her temple and Michael stopped again, his fists clenching.

Juliana was crying and pleading at him with her eyes and Harper realized they were in love. How had she missed that?

Another man pushed himself off the limo and walked towards Michael. When he reached him, he punched him hard in the gut. Michael went down to his knees. The guy kneed him in the head; he fell to the pavement and lay still.

He searched Michael and pulled out the keys to the limo. “Put them in the trunk, then get upstairs and get the dog.” he said.

He walked up to Harper, his green eyes smug. “Hello, Ms. Sinclair. Let me introduce myself.”

“Let me guess. You’re the man who masterminded my kidnapping three years ago. What do you want with Blue?”

“Let’s just say she’s collateral. We’re going to your family vault and you’re going to get me all those pretty diamonds you keep in there. I believe it’s ten mil’s worth.”

“How did you know about those?”

“A little bribery gets you a lot of information. This time I’m getting paid.”

#

Caleb was just pulling up to Harper’s building when he saw the limo drive out of the garage and Michael Dalton was not behind the wheel. He pulled away from the curb and followed the limo just as his phone rang.

“It’s Shane. We found the kid and his mother tied up in the basement of their home. The kid told me that two men held them and forced the code out of him by threatening his mother. He never saw their faces because they wore masks. But I’d hazard a guess they’re our two mercs. They’re on their way to the hospital right now. But I found a copy of Harper’s floor plan and plenty of pictures of Harper, her chauffeur and an Hispanic woman.”

“That’s her housekeeper. They were watching them, learning the schedule. They were after Harper again!”

“But you said she was out of town.”

“Yes, but it was an unexpected trip.”

“So they thought she would be there? Sonofabitch!”

“Exactly. They’ve got her right now. I’m following. I’ll put you on speaker and let you know where they end up.”

“Okay, I’m heading out now.”

#

When they pulled up to the bank where Harper and her family kept their valuables, the big guy—Evan—forced her out of the limo and dragged her to the door. They had already given her instructions. Get the diamonds and get back out. If she didn’t, Michael and Julianna and her precious poodle were dead.

Harper didn’t argue. They walked inside, the man’s gun holstered for now. He kept her close to him. When she got to the desk for the safety deposit boxes, the woman smiled at her. It only took a few moments to get to the boxes and get the diamonds out.

Once she came back into the lobby, he was waiting for her. As he grabbed her arm to escort her out, she saw a black and tan body streak across the hard marble floor. Eighty-five pounds of snarling German Shepherd slammed into the big man, his jaws clamping onto his wrist too quickly for him to pull a gun. Harper heard bones crunch. The man cried out in pain. The Shepherd planted his paws as he pulled the man around and away from Harper.

Caleb followed close behind, and used the butt of his gun to knock the man to the floor before setting his weapon against the base of his skull. “Quinn, release. Harper,” he directed Quinn to her, “guard.”

Harper just stared at Caleb as he shoved Evan to the floor roughly with his boot and cuffed him. Quinn came directly to her and took up a protective stance in front of her.

Caleb looked at her “Are you all right?” his eyes blazing, full of fear and anger and…love.

“Yes, but Michael, Juliana and Blue.”

“Shane took care of that. Everyone’s safe. The other bastard’s in custody.”

He waited until two uniforms came inside the bank and took the merc away. Then he strode to her, dragged her against him, swearing a blue streak. What the hell! You scared the
ever
loving
fuck
out of me!”