His To Protect Read online

  Nobody spoke for a minute, and Tracy looked over her shoulder. Where was the other man who’d gripped her shoulders when she’d struggled? She could still hear him breathing behind her.

  Finally, the one with the flashlight answered her. “My interest in Carrie is my business.”

  “Then why is it that you think I can help you? I don’t even know where she is. If the police know, they certainly aren’t telling me.”

  He seemed to be considering her words. “That so?” he finally said. “But she wants to talk to you. She phoned the night she left with her hero.”

  “I wouldn’t know. I wasn’t there when she called. My baby-sitter took the message.”

  “Well, let’s just say that I want to know if you know. If she calls you again, I’ll be listening.”

  The thought made her shiver. “So you’ve got my phone tapped? Well, so do the police. Why don’t you just talk to each other and leave me out of it.”

  She bit her lower lip. If he hadn’t known the police were listening for his phone calls, he did now. Oh, well, she couldn’t help it. She was losing her control, and the ropes hurt.

  “What are you going to do to me?”

  At last, the man behind her spoke. His tone was tough, as if being a gangster were the only calling he was qualified for. “Maybe a few cuts would help, eh, boss?”

  “No,” said the one with the blinding flashlight. “I think she gets the message. If she knows what’s good for her, she’ll tell her cop boyfriend to lay off poking around where he isn’t wanted. If he keeps his nose clean and minds his own business, he and the lady here can have a nice time with each other.”

  She cringed at his crudeness, but didn’t argue. She just wanted out of here.

  Then the thug behind her made a suggestion so revolting that she had to fight a sudden nausea. But raspy voice told him to shut up, there wasn’t time. Then, just to make sure she understood, he made one final threat.

  “We’ll be aware if you try to report this little incident to the police. And they know better than to come after me.”

  “Who are you?” she said in a low, angry voice.

  He just gave a laugh and flicked off the flashlight, leaving them in utter darkness. She felt her bonds loosen, but neither man said a word. She waited for her eyes to become accustomed to the darkness and strained to get free as soon as her captor moved away. Her feet were still tied, and she nearly fell over trying to get up. She sat back down and rubbed her wrists. They’d left her to undo the cords at her ankles, giving them time to get away.

  Anger and fear turned into tears, but she tried to keep her fingers from shaking so she could untie the knots. When she finally had them free, she raised her head and put out her hands, having to feel her way to the door, which she’d seen them open and shut.

  She had one more moment of panic, fearing they’d locked her in. She held her breath as she felt along the wall to the crack of the door and then down to the cool doorknob. A twist of the knob and she was breathing in moist, earthy air.

  She blinked. She was in a small passage that stopped at one end of the greenhouse. To her right, she could see the rows of flowering plants. So they hadn’t taken her very far. She glanced back at her small prison and pushed the door open farther, gazing in with a shiver. With light spilling from the main room, she could see stacks of potting soil and coils of hose. They had been in a supply room.

  The sting of her wrists and the racing of her heart filled her with terror. She almost couldn’t believe they’d simply walked off and left her in one piece. Then she broke out of her numb shock and ran between the rows of plants, her sandals slapping on the concrete floor. She flew through the door and sped down the walkway toward the roller coaster. Her vision blurred with her hair whipping around her face.

  She took the twisting path, pushing past people who’d just gotten off the ride. Finally, she saw Matt and Jennifer pounding down the path toward her.

  When they met, she scooped Jennifer up in her arms and clutched her tightly.

  “Are you all right?” she breathed into the little girl’s hair. Her greatest fear had been that they had somehow gotten Jennifer away from Matt and kidnapped her.

  She knew her fear communicated itself with widened eyes as she conveyed her terror to Matt, who wrapped his arms around both of them. His hand slid up to her head and then down her shoulders and back as if making sure she was in one piece. The dark frown on his brow and the tinge of anger on the planes of his face threatened violent repercussions if anyone had harmed her.

  “What happened?” he asked. “You were late, and we got concerned.”

  She felt the firm grip of his hand on her shoulder, while his eyes searched the path behind her.

  “Are you all right?” asked Jennifer.

  She drew in deep breaths, trying to calm herself. She remembered the doctor’s words. Emotions didn’t cause asthma, but some strong emotional upsets might trigger an asthma episode. She set Jennifer down and met Matt’s eyes over her head. She didn’t want to frighten Jennifer. When his eyes swept back to hers, she thought from his tightened expression that he understood her dilemma. Tracy knelt beside Jennifer.

  “I’m sorry if you were worried,” she said, stroking Jennifer’s hair. “Everything’s all right now. Some people wanted to talk to me in the greenhouse, and we lost track of the time.” She glanced up at Matt, who watched her intently.

  She stood up, gripping Jennifer’s hand. “Let’s go back to the rides now. I’ll bet Matt will buy us a soft drink.”

  Jennifer seemed to relax. “Gosh, we were scared. We thought maybe you were lost.”

  Tracy squeezed her hand. “I’m not lost now.”

  She managed a smile in Matt’s direction. He seemed to understand the fact that she wasn’t going to tell him what had happened until they were out of Jennifer’s earshot. As they emerged from the white forest of framing for the roller coaster, he swerved his head, looking around. A booth to their right offered some games.

  “Look at that. Would you like to try your luck at winning one of those tigers?” he asked Jennifer.

  She beamed. “Do you think I can do it?”

  His face warmed into a smile and he tousled her hair. “Sure. Come on.”

  They approached the concession, and Matt patiently showed Jennifer how to toss balls at two-handled milk cans. Then, while she was engaged in that activity, he stepped back to where Tracy waited. They were far enough away to be able to see Jennifer, but she couldn’t hear them.

  “What happened?” he said through clenched jaws. He turned his back to the concession so he could watch the path they’d come from.

  She tried to keep from shaking as she recounted it swiftly. “Someone grabbed me in the greenhouse. They put me out with chloroform, then they must have dragged me into a supply room at the back. I didn’t see anything. The man speaking held a flashlight on me. I could only hear his voice.”

  “What did it sound like?”

  She exhaled a breath and tried to remember every detail while it was fresh in her mind. “It was raspy, grating, an odd-sounding voice.”

  A muscle in Matt’s jaw pulsed, and his arm muscles flexed. “Had you ever heard it before?”

  She thought for a moment. When she realized where she’d heard the voice before, a chill of dread flooded her limbs. She grasped her arms to hug herself.

  “I think he’s the one who called me on the phone last night.”

  Chapter Seven

  Matt’s automatic SWAT team reactions were triggered when he’d seen Tracy running for her life away from the greenhouse. Once he’d ascertained she hadn’t needed medical attention, it had been all he could do to stand still while she’d reassured the child. But now he itched to go after the culprits. Knowing they’d be long gone, he still wanted to look for any clues. Whoever had done this would pay.

  Doubting that the attackers would try anything else, having made their point, he still felt uneasy about leaving her alone. But the
longer he waited, the more thoroughly the men would have covered their tracks. He saw his solution when he spied Roland Baker sauntering along with a soft drink in his hand. The tall, self-possessed sniper, dressed in a yellow polo shirt and tan trousers, was exactly what he needed.

  “Excuse me a minute,” he told Tracy. Then he trotted over to Roland.

  “I need a favor,” he said to his friend.

  Roland eyed him. “Something tells me this isn’t about feeding hot dogs to Scott Meyer’s daughter.”

  “Actually, it might be. I need you to stick close to them while I check something out. Some culprits just laid hands on Tracy and passed along a rather nasty threat meant for me.”

  Roland stopped sucking on his straw and narrowed his eyes. When he spotted Tracy, he nodded. “Tell me what you want.”

  “I’m going to see if I can find anything. Stay with them and don’t let them out of your sight.”

  “You going to report this?” Roland asked, his eyes sweeping their surroundings for anything suspicious. He tossed his drink in a waste can, his hands flexing.

  “That depends.”

  After Tracy and Roland had greeted each other, Matt slid a hand around Tracy’s waist, giving her a reassuring squeeze.

  “I’ll just be gone a minute. You two keep Jennifer busy while I try to see where those bastards have gone.”

  He felt Tracy grasp his waist. Her voice was low and intense. “Matt, don’t go.”

  He met her pleading gaze. “Why not? Don’t you want to know who assaulted you?”

  He saw the battle taking place behind her eyes, and her mouth pressed in a determined line. If he’d thought he would impress her by charging after her pursuers like a white knight, he was mistaken.

  “No. They’re gone by now. I don’t want you walking into danger.”

  Danger was his business. But he knew that wasn’t what she wanted to hear. He laid a hand on her shoulder. “They may have left some clue behind. It could be important. I’ll be all right.”

  Still, her jaw stuck out. “Why don’t we just report it to park security? Let them handle it.”

  Matt’s words took on a grim quality. “I’m afraid we’re dealing with something beyond the scope of park security. They would only call in the police. We are the police.”

  Not trying to be melodramatic, he needed to follow up on this without wasting any more time. Tracy might not understand now, but she’d be grateful later. He’d just have to gamble on that.

  “Take care of her, Roland,” he said, and dashed off toward the greenhouse.

  The door was still open, and he slipped in, alert for trouble. Then he spotted an elderly gentleman in an apron watering the plants. Not wanting to draw attention to what he was doing, Matt adopted a casual demeanor, all the while wary that the criminals might still be in the building.

  He whistled absently as he strolled along the rows of plants, his hands in his pockets. “How’s it goin’?” he asked the man with the hose.

  “Fine, fine,” replied the gray-haired gentleman with wire-rimmed spectacles. He didn’t look up, but bent closer to examine the leaves.

  Matt turned to lean against the table and keep the rest of the room in his sight. “You get many visitors in here? I’m surprised the greenhouse is open to the public.”

  The man grunted. “Visitors between noon and three o’clock. Least that’s what it’s supposed to be.”

  “Oh, I didn’t know that. My friends said they’d been in here about a half hour ago. You see anyone?”

  “Not unless you mean that woman running out of here a while ago.” He moved along the row and reached into the plants, examining leaves. “Ya’d think the devil was after her the way she tore out. Must’ve been late somewhere.”

  “Yep. She told me about that. Dropped her keys somewhere. Mind if I look around for them?”

  The man shrugged. “I didn’t see any keys.”

  “Thanks.”

  Matt moved off and looked carefully where he walked. It didn’t take long to spot the storeroom, and he pushed the door in slowly, letting in light from the main room. The gardener was too far at the other end of the greenhouse to see him go in.

  The chair Tracy said she’d been sitting in must have been pushed to the side of the room, and there weren’t any cords in plain view. A tear from a bag of potting soil had allowed some of the dirt to spill out onto the concrete floor, and he thought he saw the outline of a footprint

  He felt along the wall for a light switch, but didn’t find one. Then he spied the chain swinging from a bare light bulb in the middle of the room and started to reach for it.

  He felt a whoosh of air behind him and turned to defend himself. But the solid object struck him on the side of the head before he could land a punch.

  MATT HAD BEEN GONE too long. Roland and Tracy had taken Jennifer on the Rainbow ride, which went up in a half circle and down in a swooping motion. From the top of the ride, they had seen this end of the park, and Matt hadn’t reappeared.

  Now Jennifer was climbing a rope ladder up Pikes Peak, and Tracy and Roland were watching passersby. But the stony expressions on their faces were a dead giveaway that they weren’t having any fun.

  “Where is he?” she hissed in frustration.

  Roland gave a grunt. He turned as Jennifer squealed and fell off the mountain. “I don’t like it. Let’s go.”

  Tracy nodded and reached for Jennifer’s hand. “Let’s go for a walk,” she told Jennifer. “We’re going to find Uncle Matt.”

  She used the name they used to call him when he had been Scott’s partner and had stopped at the house occasionally. Somehow using the familiar appellation drew him in as part of the family.

  The hairs on the back of her neck prickled a warning as she accompanied Roland down the walkway to the greenhouse. She fell back slightly as they got closer. She didn’t want to put Jennifer in any danger, but she dreaded what might have happened to Matt. She increased her grip on Jennifer’s hand, ready to turn and run at the slightest threat.

  Roland took up a position with his back to the door frame and pushed the door inward with his foot. She closed her eyes at the action, recognizing the all too familiar moves of the SWAT team. When nothing happened, Roland slipped inside. Tracy stayed on the path, Jennifer close in front of her.

  “What’s in there?” asked Jennifer. “Why are we staying out here? Is Matt in trouble?”

  Tracy sighed. Jennifer was too smart to make it possible to continue to keep things from her. “I hope not,” she answered honestly. “Roland’s gone to find out.”

  “Is that the greenhouse where you went?”

  “Yes, that’s the greenhouse.”

  “Did something bad happen in there?”

  She sighed. Jennifer would know if she were lying. “Something bad happened, and Matt went to check it out.”

  “Is Roland going to find him?”

  “Yes, Roland’s going to find him.”

  “Shouldn’t we help?”

  Tracy grinned even at the same time as a lead weight seemed to drop in her stomach. Her feeling exactly. Jennifer turned to look up at her with wide gray eyes as if to say What are we waiting for?

  Her heart turned over at the girl’s bravery and readiness to help. But she had to remember who her father was. And perhaps Jennifer had the same streak of daring that Tracy feared would be her undoing.

  She suddenly realized as they stood there in the shade of the long building that she was in the middle of something she didn’t want to be in. Somehow she’d gotten entangled in danger, and she fought back her fright Why would this never leave her alone?

  “Matt might be hurt,” Jennifer’s voice rang out as she broke away from Tracy and ran toward the greenhouse door.

  “Jennifer, wait!”

  But with no time to dwell on whether she liked it or not, she chased after her stepdaughter. “Wait, Jenn. We don’t know what’s going on in there.”

  A twinge of resentment assailed her at
Jennifer’s headlong flight to save Matt. All of them, Scott before he had died, Matt, Roland and even Jennifer, had some kind of valor she didn’t possess. Always putting their own skins on the line for the good fight. Was it worth it?

  Her heart in her throat, they hurried into the greenhouse. A shiver coursed through her as she paused to look to both sides when they came to the junction of the taller bushes with the tables of smaller plants. She heard voices ahead and quickened her pace.

  Immense relief flooded her as they approached the end of the long rows and she saw Matt leaning against the storeroom door frame, rubbing the back of his head. Roland was interrogating him, his mouth turned down in a grim expression.

  She stopped just short of reaching him. “What happened?”

  He glowered. “Someone slugged me. I must have been out for a while.”

  “We’ve got to get you to a doctor,” Tracy said in a stern voice. “Where did they hit you?”

  He turned and pointed to the bump rising at the base of his skull. Tracy winced, but she continued to insist about a doctor.

  “You could have a fracture. You should be X-rayed.”

  Matt grunted. “I don’t have time for paperwork.”

  Tracy felt her body tense with anger. Seeing that an argument was about to ensue, Roland took Jennifer to look at the roses while Tracy talked to Matt.

  “Don’t do this,” she snapped at him.

  “Don’t do what?” He rubbed his neck, moving his head around to assess the soreness.

  “Don’t play hero when you need help.”

  He tried to grin at her, but she could still see the pain in his eyes. “I have all the help I need right here.”

  “Don’t do that, either.”

  “What?” His question was even more demanding.

  “Don’t try to charm me out of this.”

  She’d had it with cops and robbers and decided they all needed some sanity. No matter what games were being played here with all of their lives, it was time to go through regular channels. She straightened her spine and threw her shoulders back. Then she jerked her head toward the door.