Kade (8 page)

“Yeah.” Kade couldn’t blame the man for wanting to see Bree, but the timing sucked.

“He seems kind of possessive if you ask me,” Mason went on. “You sure he’s just her handler?”

No. Kade wasn’t sure of that. In fact, he didn’t know if Leah had a boyfriend stashed somewhere. The only thing he knew about her was what he’d managed to read in her files. Which wasn’t much. There wasn’t a lot of paperwork and reports on undercover FBI Janes, and sometimes the files were nothing but cover fronts.

“Tell Coop he’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see Bree,” Kade said. “After the doctor finishes the exam, she’ll need some rest.”

That was the next step in his
for starters.
Maybe there wouldn’t be anything that rest and time couldn’t fix. Kade really needed her to recall more details of her captivity.

Mason made a sound of agreement. “Don’t worry. I’ll stall Coop.” He paused. “Hold on a second. I just got a text from Nate. Might be important.”

Kade could only hope this wasn’t more bad news.

“There’s another problem, little brother,” Mason said.
“A big one.”

Chapter Six

Bree woke up to the sound of voices. Voices that she didn’t immediately recognize.

She reached for her gun and phone. Not there. And an uneasy sense of déjà vu slammed through her. She sprang from the bed, her feet ready to start running when they landed on the thickly carpeted floor. Bree stopped cold.

Where the heck was she? And why hadn’t there been a gun on the nightstand?

She glanced around the massive sun-washed bedroom, decorated in varying shades of blue and gray. At the king-size bed. The antique pine furniture. And it took her a moment to remember that she was at the Ryland ranch in Silver Creek.

More specifically, she’d been in Kade’s bed.

She looked around again, first in the bathroom through the open door, then the massive dressing room. No sign of Kade.

So, she’d been in that bed alone.

And was apparently safe and sound since she had slept hard and long. After the ordeal she’d been through, she was thankful for that. Well, maybe. She was thankful
if
she hadn’t missed anything important.

Which was possible.

After all, Leah was in her life now, and Kade and she were in the middle of a full-scale investigation. Yes, the potential for missing something important was sky-high, and she had to find Kade.

After she got dressed, that is.

Bree glanced down at the pink cotton pjs. They weren’t familiar, either, but she did remember the doctor helping her change into them before he insisted that she sleep off the effects of the drugs her kidnapper had given her. She hadn’t had a choice about that sleep, either. The fatigue and drugs had mixed with the adrenaline crash, and Bree hadn’t been able to keep her eyes open at the end of the exam the doctor had given her.

Another glance, this time at the clock on the nightstand.

Oh, sheez.

It was nine, and she doubted that was p.m. because light was peeking through the curtains. It was nine in the morning, and that meant she’d been asleep at the ranch for heaven knows how many hours. Not good. She was certain she had plenty of things to do. But first, she needed to locate some clothes, the source of those voices and then see if she could scrounge up a phone and a strong cup of black coffee to clear the rest of the cobwebs from her head.

She hurried to the bathroom to wash up, but since she couldn’t find a change of clothes, Bree gave up on the notion of getting dressed, and instead, she headed to the sitting room wearing the girlie pink pjs. She prayed nothing was wrong and that’s why Kade had let her sleep so long. Too bad the thoughts of ugly scenarios kept going through her mind.

Bree threw open the door that separated the rooms in the suite and saw Kade. That was one voice. He was holding Leah and talking to someone. The other voice belonged to an attractive brunette that had her arm slung around Kade’s waist.

The pang of jealousy hit Bree before she could see it coming.

“Oh,” the woman said, her voice a classy purr.

Actually, everything about her was classy including her slim rose-colored top and skirt. Her hair was so shiny, so perfect, that Bree raked her hand through her own messy locks before she could stop herself. What was wrong with her? With everything else going on, the last thing she should care about was her appearance.

The woman smiled and walked toward her. “You must be Bree.” Her smile stayed in place even when she eyed the pajamas. “I’m glad they fit.”

“They’re yours?” Bree asked.

The woman nodded.

Of course, they were. This woman was girlie, and she was also everything that Bree wasn’t. Bree could see the love for her in Kade’s eyes.

Another pang of jealousy.

Bree smoothed her hair down again before she could stop herself.

“I’m Darcy Ryland.” The woman extended her hand for Bree to shake.

“Darcy is Nate’s wife,” Kade supplied. “He’s the cop at SAPD who’s helping us with the investigation.”

Kade had a funny expression on his face as if he knew that Bree had been jealous.

Bree tossed him a scowl.

He gave her another funny look.

“I’m also the Silver Creek assistant D.A. and the mother of two toddlers who are waiting for me to bring them their favorite books and toys.” Darcy checked her watch. “And that means I should have already been out of here. Good to meet you, Bree. We’ll chat more when things settle down.”

“Good to meet you, too,” Bree mumbled.

Darcy tipped her head to the plush sofa. “I left you some other clothes—ones that aren’t pink. Toiletries, too. And if you need anything else, just help yourself to my closet. Nate’s and my quarters are in the west wing of the house. Just be careful not to trip over the toys if you go over there.”

Bree added a thanks and felt guilty about the unflattering girlie thoughts and jealousy pangs. So, Kade’s sister-in-law was, well, nice despite her picture-perfect looks.

Darcy walked back to Kade and picked up her purse from the table. In the same motion, she kissed him on the cheek and then kissed Leah. Using her purse, she waved goodbye to Bree and glided out of the room on gray heels that looked like torture devices to Bree.

Bree didn’t waste any time going to Leah. No blanket this morning. The baby was wearing a one-piece green outfit that was nearly the same color as her eyes. She was also wide-awake and had those eyes aimed at Kade. Leah seemed to be studying his every move.

“I slept too long,” Bree commented, and she touched her fingers to Leah’s cheek. The baby automatically turned in her direction. “You should have woken me up sooner.”

Bree wondered if there was a time when that wouldn’t seem like such a huge deal. She hoped not. Because now everything seemed like a miracle, and just looking at her baby washed away all her dark thoughts and mood.

“You needed sleep,” Kade insisted.

When he didn’t continue, Bree looked up at him. And she waited. Clearly, he had something on his mind, and thankfully he didn’t make her wait long to deliver the news.

“The doctor got back your lab results.”

That hung in the air like deadweight. Bree couldn’t speak, couldn’t ask the question that put her breath in a vise—had the drugs permanently harmed Leah or her?

“You had a large amount of Valium in your system. It caused the grogginess and the temporary memory loss.” He paused. “It was temporary, right?”

She nodded and felt relief. Well, partly. “Any chance they gave me Valium when I was pregnant?”

“It’s hard to tell, but Leah is perfectly healthy,” Kade assured her. “I suspect because they wanted to use the baby for leverage that they didn’t do anything that would risk harming her.”

Good. That was something, at least. And with that concern out of the way, Bree could turn her full attention back to Leah.

“The doctor said any gaps in your memory should return,” Kade explained. “So, it’s possible you’ll remember other details about your kidnappers.”

She had a dozen or more questions to ask Kade about the test results and an update on the case, but Bree couldn’t get her attention off Leah. She had to be the most beautiful baby ever born.

Or else Bree’s brain had turned to mush.

“How is she this morning?” Bree asked.

“Fine. She just had her bottle.” He motioned toward the empty one on the table.

She felt a pang of a different kind. Bree wished she’d been awake to feed her, and she cursed the long sleep session that had caused her to miss all these incredible moments.

“How long before she’ll want another bottle?” Bree asked.

“Around one or two.” He paused again. “There’s a problem,” Kade said.

Bree’s gaze flew to his because she thought he was going to say that something was wrong with Leah, after all. She held her breath, praying it wasn’t that.

“Late yesterday, Nate’s detectives at SAPD found the gunman who shot at us,” Kade finished. “He’s dead.”

Bree groaned. So, the problem wasn’t with Leah, but it was still a big one.

“Please tell me he managed to make a confession before he died?” Bree asked.

“Afraid not. His name was Clyde Cummings. We ID’d him from his prints since he had a long rap sheet. In and out of trouble with the law most of his life.” Another pause. “Word on the street is he was a hired gun.”

That didn’t surprise Bree. Whoever had masterminded her kidnapping had no doubt hired this goon. A goon who would have succeeded in killing her if Kade hadn’t arrived in time to save her.

“Cummings didn’t die in a shoot-out with the cops,” Kade continued. “When Nate’s men found him, he was already dead.” Kade paused again. “He died from a single gunshot wound to the back of the head.”

Oh, mercy. An execution-style hit on a hit man. That meant someone didn’t want Cummings talking to the cops, or maybe this had been punishment for allowing Kade and her to get away. It didn’t matter which. The bottom line was this case was far from being over.

Bree looked at Leah and hated that Kade and she had to have a conversation like this in front of her. A baby deserved better, even if Leah was too young to know what they were saying. Still, she might be able to sense the tension in the room. Bree could certainly feel it, and it had her stomach turning and twisting.

“Since we don’t know who hired Cummings,” Kade went on, “my sisters-in-law and the kids are leaving town for a while. Darcy came back to pack some things.”

That gave Bree something else to be frustrated about. The monster after her had now managed to disrupt the entire Ryland family. Now, all of them were in possible danger, and that included Kade’s nephews and niece.

Kade ducked down a little so that they were eye to eye. “I think it’s a good idea if Leah goes with Darcy and the others.”

“No,” flew out of her mouth before Bree could stop it. But she immediately hated her response and hated even more that she might have to take it back.

“I’m just getting to know her,” Bree mumbled, and she kissed Leah’s cheek as she’d seen Kade do. Each kiss, each moment was a gift that she didn’t deserve but would take, anyway.

Bree pulled in a long breath and tried to push away the ache. But no, it was still there. It hurt her to the core to think of her daughter being whisked away when she’d only had a few real moments with her. It hurt even more though to know that Leah was in danger and would continue to be until Kade and she put an end to it.

“Whoever killed Cummings could hire someone else,” Bree said, more to herself than Kade. She had to make her heart understand what her brain and instincts already knew. Her training and experience forced her to see scenarios and outcomes that ripped away at her.

“Just where exactly is this safe place that the others and Leah could go?” she asked.

“My other sister-in-law, Kayla, has a house in San Antonio. It’s an estate with a high wrought-iron fence and security system surrounding the entire grounds and house. SAPD will provide additional protection. Plus, Dade and Nate would be with them.”

It sounded like a fortress. Ideal for keeping her baby safe. But Bree knew that bad guys might still try to get through all those security measures.

“You could go, too,” Kade quietly added.

“No.” And this time, Bree wouldn’t take back her response. Just the opposite. It was the only answer that made sense. “Wherever I go, the danger will follow. I’m the one this person wants dead, and I don’t want Leah anywhere around if and when he hires another hit man to come after me.”

Kade didn’t argue. Because he knew it was the truth. The more distance between her baby and her, the better.

Still, that didn’t ease the ache that was quickly turning into a raw, throbbing pain.

“This is much harder than I thought it would be,” Bree whispered.

Kade only nodded, and she could see the agony in his icy gray eyes. So much emotion that it prompted Bree to touch her fingertips to his arm. She wasn’t big on providing comfort, and her job had required her not to sympathize with anything or anybody, but she and Kade shared this heartbreak.

“When would Leah have to go to Kayla’s house?” she asked.

Kade lifted his shoulder and sank down on the sofa. “Soon. This morning,” he clarified. “But maybe it wouldn’t be for long.”

Maybe.

And maybe it would be far longer than Bree’s heart could handle.

An uncomfortable silence settled between them, and Bree eased down on the sofa right next to him. She waited. Hoping. And it wasn’t long before Kade sighed and placed the baby in her arms.

It was far better than anything else he could have done.

It soothed her. And frightened her. It filled her with a hundred emotions that she didn’t understand. But even that seemed trivial.

She was holding her baby.

And it was breaking her into pieces.

Until this moment she hadn’t realized she could love someone this much. Or hurt this much because she might lose her, even for only a day or two.

“What are we going to do?” Bree said under her breath.

When Kade didn’t answer, she looked at him and saw his jaw muscles set in iron.