Devoted Defender (14 page)

But he needed to be as quiet as possible in his search. Which was a little difficult given all the random debris scattered throughout on the ground. He’d clear the building room by room until he located where she was hiding.

He had to get in and find out what was going on. He entered one of the doors on the side that was open. The building wasn’t fully constructed yet. It appeared that full lighting panels hadn’t been installed throughout the building as it was still a work in progress. But a lamp in the corner provided a little light in the room. Other large pockets were completely dark. He didn’t see any signs of activity. Could it be that Silva’s men had already checked the building and left? Or worse, what if he was too late and they’d taken Gabby.

He had to be careful of his footing because he wasn’t a hundred percent sure that all the flooring was solid. The last thing he needed to do was fall through the building and break a leg. There was too much riding on this.

Quickly he took the staircase by the door he entered to check out the second floor. He didn’t hear a sound as he made his way room to room. “Gabby,” he whispered. No response. And if Silva’s men were present they were hiding and silent which didn’t seem right to him. In fact, everything about this situation felt wrong. It seemed like he was the only living thing in the building. But there was no way he was leaving that building without checking every single room.

By the time he’d cleared all the upstairs rooms, his pulse was racing. Because his gut was telling him that something was terribly wrong.

**

Annie sat on high alert in the SUV. She kept her hands on the wheel and her eyes peeled. But for the past few minutes, there had been nothing. No activity whatsoever. It was like a dead zone. And at this time of night, there wasn’t anyone around. It was so quiet in the car she could hear her own breathing—which only added to her anxiety.

She debated taking the gun out of the console just in case she needed to access it quickly. But then she realized that the last thing in the world she wanted to do was to shoot another human being ever again. While she had no doubt she did the right thing in self defense when she shot Damon, it still weighed heavily on her. Because she had permanently injured another human. And that in and of itself hurt her heart.

She let out a breath and slightly lessened her grip on the wheel. It didn’t appear that there were any threats out there in the night. She sat as patiently as she could watching the minutes tick by. Two, then five, then ten. Still no sign of anyone else or of Caleb. Her mind started rushing to worst case scenarios. What if Gabby was seriously injured?

When she looked at the clock again, she saw that it had only been fifteen minutes since Caleb had left. She needed to be more patient. These things take time and he would’ve been very cautious, especially because of Gabby’s injuries.

Some movement on her left side caught her eye. She turned and looked out the car window down the street. Two men were walking in her direction, but on the opposite side of the street. Just as they were about to walk under one of the street lamps, she gasped. No, it couldn’t be. But with each step she became more certain.

As one of the two faces came into clear view, she recognized it as a face she’d never forget. Damon Vaughn was right there. It had to be him. He was walking with a severe limp. And he was with another man. She squinted as they kept walking past where she was parked and in the direction of the building where Gabby was supposed to be at.

Was the other man Tim Silva? She’d seen a picture of him and it could’ve been him. Regardless, this wasn’t good. The two of them were headed to where Caleb was, and he had no idea they were coming.

What should she do? She knew she wasn’t a trained law enforcement officer. All of this was so out of her element. But she did have a gun. And right now, she couldn’t leave Caleb and Gabby there like sitting ducks for Damon and Silva to take them out.

Lord, please protect Caleb and Gabby. I’ll do all I can to help. Be with me as I try.

She took the gun, opened up the door and headed out into the night.

Caleb was over half way done clearing the building and no sign of anyone. His phone buzzed and he looked down to see a text message from Mac.

Get out of there now. It’s a trap! Gabby’s not there. Abort!

Immediately he feared that the building might blow. He didn’t waste any time as he made his way back through the maze of construction equipment on the first floor, toward the side exit.

But that’s when he heard deep male voices approaching. There’s no way he could get out that door now. He’d backtrack and hunker down.

He strained to listen to the voices as they got closer.

“He has to be here somewhere,” one man said quietly. “Ramsey ensured me that he’d come here looking for her. He’s come through for us so far over the past two years. We have no reason to doubt him now.”

What in the world? Then it hit him. Mike Ramsey—his own deputy police chief was the law enforcement mole. It wasn’t FBI. It was Mike this whole time.

And by going to Mike, he had unwittingly put Gabby in harm’s way. Where was she now? Did Mike hurt her? Anger surged through Caleb, but quickly he had to summon up all of his battlefield discipline and focus on the current threat.

“He’s here somewhere. He wouldn’t leave baby sister behind,” the other man said. “Ramsey made sure that Gabby made the call to her brother to ensure that he would come riding in on his white horse to the rescue. We may have beaten him here. Let’s check things out first to be on the safe side. If it’s all clear, then we’ll just wait for him to arrive and take him out.”

He pulled his phone out and shot a quick text to Mac. Because Mac needed to know about the two men that were in this building now searching for him. At least he had the element of surprise. They didn’t know that he knew they were there.

“Once we’re done with him, then we can take care of Annie once and for all,” one of them said.

No matter what, he couldn’t allow that to happen. He wasn’t concerned for his own safety or for that matter his own life. But he couldn’t allow Annie to be harmed. He was so glad that she was in the safety of the car. He had his gun ready. He’d make a move when he needed to. But first he had to see how they were going to play it.

“You check downstairs and I’ll check upstairs,” the one guy said. “I’m glad we decided to take care of this personally instead of sending any of our guys. We can’t afford any screw-ups this time. We need to deal with this problem once and for all. Then we can get on with our expansion plans. No more pesky roadblocks.”

Ah
, Caleb thought. Could it be that the two men in the building right now weren’t Silva’s hired thugs but were actually Silva and Vaughn? This was the perfect opportunity to arrest them both. He knew Mac was still about fifteen minutes out. Could he hold his ground until backup arrived? That was the best plan. He had to evade these guys but still keep them there so they could be arrested and tried for their crimes. The last thing he needed was a two against one shoot out.

He heard the footsteps above his head as one of the two men was going through the upstairs. He crouched down behind a stack of two by fours in a large closet on the ground floor.

“Well isn’t this a surprise,” the man on the first floor of the building said.

What was he talking about? Caleb leaned in and focused on what was being said.

“I’m not afraid of you, Damon.”

Caleb felt like he was kicked in the gut at the sound of Annie’s voice. Why in the world had she come into the building? This changed everything. He couldn’t hide anymore. He had to go save Annie from this madman. He wouldn’t let him attack her for a second time in her life.

**

Annie was putting on a brave face, but inside she was scared to death as she faced down Damon Vaughn. The man whose violent attack had changed her entire life. One lamp in the corner of the room provided enough light to see exactly who she was facing. Dark brown evil eyes that she would never forget. This was the man who had changed everything for her.

Damon took a step and grimaced. An all too familiar reminder of what she did to him.

“Where’s your cop friend? He can’t be too far away. I can’t imagine that he’d leave you alone with the wolves on the prowl.” He gave her a sinister grin that rocked her to the core.

“I don’t know where he is,” she answered. Although she prayed he would come soon. She had the gun in her right hand, protected by the dark shadows so that he couldn’t see it. She could try to shoot him right now. But he hadn’t done anything yet. And what if she missed? In her head, she started to play out the various scenarios. What was the best course of action?
Lord, please help me.

“The cop doesn’t even matter at this moment. This is even better than I could’ve imagined.”

“What do you mean?” The longer she kept him talking, the better, because she knew that Caleb couldn’t be too far away, could he? What if she’d missed him on the way to the building? What if he had taken a different route? Unlikely. She had to just stay focused on staying alive.

“What’s going on down here?” Silva walked down the stairs and into the dimly lit room.

“You’re just in time,” Damon said. “I’m sorry, Tim.”

“Sorry for what?” Silva asked him as he walked closer.

Damon raised his gun in the air, and pulled the trigger. A loud gunshot pierced through the night as the bullet struck Silva in the head.

She stood stunned as Tim Silva dropped to the ground. Damon had just killed his cousin. But why? She had no idea what he was doing next, but he had just shown that he was capable of murder.

Then Damon turned to her. “You’re next but a clean gunshot to the head is way too nice of a death for you, little Annie.”

A surge of fear shot through her as she remembered how he used to call her that name a decade ago. “What are you going to do to me?”

“Make you pay for what you did to me. Did you think I would forget? I have to live like this every single day because of you.” He motioned toward his right leg. “Imagine how surprised and happy I was when I found out that the thorn in Silva’s side was a woman named Annie Thomas from Florida. It didn’t take much investigating at all to find out that it was you.”

“I had no idea he was your cousin.”

“You have no idea how long I’ve thought about seeing you again. With every step I take, every painful step, I think of the day that I will get my revenge. And it looks like that day is today.”

“Why did you kill Silva?”

“Because it was time for me to be in charge. He had his time. He was being unreasonable about the future plans and it was becoming too cumbersome to deal with him. He was more of a liability than an asset. Just like you. And this now with you here, it provides me with the perfect way to get rid of him. The murder will be pinned on you. But you’ll also be dead so you don’t have to worry about that.”

He took a step toward her and she lifted her gun, which had been obscured by the dark spot she was standing in the room.

“Hey now,” he said. “You’re not going to shoot me again, little Annie.”

“I’d prefer not to, but you’re not giving me much of a choice.”

He sputtered out some foul insults at her. Then he lunged toward her. She hesitated, not wanting to pull the trigger. Not again.

But a gunshot rang out loudly. It wasn’t from her gun, though. Damon staggered a few steps and then stumbled to the ground holding onto his right shoulder.

Caleb walked further into the room with his gun still drawn. “Annie, are you all right?”

“Yes.” She tried to understand what had just happened. She didn’t have the will to pull the trigger again, but she hadn’t needed to because Caleb had been there.

He went over to Damon and pulled out his handcuffs. Then he started reading Damon his rights.

“Is he going to make it?” she couldn’t help but ask.

“Yes. I shot him in the shoulder. Should be clean through and through.”

Damon lay down on the ground moaning in pain. But immobilized by the handcuffs and no longer any threat to her.

Caleb strode over to her. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t act any faster because I needed a clear shot.”

She let out a breath and then flung her arms around him. “I was so afraid.”

“You faced him down like a battle hardened warrior. But why in the world were you even in here?”

“I saw them walking down the street. I knew it was two of them and I wasn’t sure what was going on inside with you and Gabby. So I felt I had to come and warn you.”

“That was so brave of you, Annie. I wish you hadn’t risked your life for mine, but I appreciate your courage.”

“I had to risk my life because you would’ve done the same thing for me.” She took in a deep breath as she tried to steady herself. “But what about Gabby?”

“She’s not here. I got a text from Mac saying it was a trap. So I don’t know what happened to her. Mac should be here any minute.” He paused. “And I found out my deputy Mike Ramsey is the mole. We’ll have to track him down.”

“I’m so sorry.”

She heard voices from the outside. Mac and Gabe rushed into the building with their guns drawn.

“It’s okay,” Caleb said.

Annie stood for a moment by herself as Caleb recounted the events of the night. Gabe took Damon out of the building for medical attention and to place him into FBI custody. They were calling backup to retrieve Silva’s body.

Caleb came back over to her.

“Any word on Gabby?”

“Yes. Mike took her. He was the one that made her make that phone call. But Gabby being Gabby was able to finally convince him that he shouldn’t be working on the dark side. He turned himself in and let Gabby go. She pulled off an amazing feat.”

“Wow. I’m so glad that she’s okay.”

He wrapped his arms around her tightly. “When I heard your voice tonight, and I knew you were walking into the line of fire, I realized that I didn’t know how I’d ever be able to keep living my life if you weren’t in it.”

“What?” she asked, as she felt the tears start to flow.

“I know that you worry that we’re incompatible, that we come from two different worlds. But Annie, if that’s true, then I want to leave my world and step into yours.”

“Caleb, no. You don’t have to leave your world. I don’t want you to change. You’re a special man. I’ve never met anyone as noble, caring, and strong as you are. And even though I tried to convince myself otherwise, I can’t imagine ever being with anyone else.”

“I’ve fallen in love with you, Annie Thomas.”

Her heart felt like it was going to explode hearing those words. But even more than the words, she could feel the love that he had for her. “I love you, too. I thank God that he brought you to me. That you have shown me that no matter what we’ve been through, we can push through it.”

“Together we can.”

**

Caleb took in a deep breath of the Georgia spring air mixed with the smell of the steaks sizzling on the grill. It had only been a week since Vaughn’s arrest, but so much had happened.

And now in his backyard surrounded by his friends and family, it was time to start over in so many ways.

Mac, Gabe, and Kane were all hanging out around the grill with him. Many of his officers were there and some FBI agents that Mac knew. But it still ate at him that his deputy, Mike Ramsey, a man with a lifetime on the force, had betrayed him. Mike had taken Silva’s money and done the dirty work in return. He finally understood exactly how Annie could have trust issues with law enforcement. Because he now felt the sting of betrayal in a very personal way.

“So has the FBI been cleared of the possibility of a mole?” Kane asked the group.

“Yes,” Gabe said. “Every indication we have is that Mike acted alone, and he put out misinformation about the FBI having a mole to throw people off the trail. We were so focused on the FBI angle, we didn’t even think it could be someone that close to us. Mike used his relationship with Mac and Caleb to get information. He also passed on the information about the DEA safe house to Silva.”

“It’s sickening,” Mac said. “And last I heard, he’s trying to craft a plea deal. That dirty cop kidnapped our sister. I think he should rot.”

“What could he trade? Silva is dead and Vaughn is behind bars waiting for trial,” Gabe said.

“He still has intel,” Caleb said. “Information about the rest of the Silva organization, the remaining higher ups. I understand why a plea could be on the table. And even as much as what he did hurts, we will just have to accept a deal if one is struck. But regardless, he’ll see prison time. It’s just a question of how much.”

“Not enough in my book, brother,” Mac said.

“Well, word on the street is that the Silva organization is in complete disarray right now,” Kane said. “With the two top ranking guys out of the picture, either someone will rise up and take over or they’ll all become free agents and latch themselves onto the next big thing. Or one of Silva’s competitors.”

“Today isn’t the day to rehash all of this.” Mac looked at Caleb. “Let’s be thankful for what we have and enjoy this day.”

Mac was saying exactly what Caleb was thinking. Then Caleb noticed that Mac’s eyes diverted over to the backyard gate. And that was because Jen Spencer and her little girl Cindy had just arrived. Jen was carrying a cake plate. Mac had been in love with Jen since high school. “Mac, why don’t you go help Jen. She’s got her hands full.”