Читать книгу Living On The Edge - Сьюзен Мэллери, Susan Mallery - Страница 8

Madison walked back and forth in the small room until her legs and back ached, then she perched on the edge of the bed and stared at the door. Once again, she had no idea of how much time had passed or when Tanner Keane would return. She only knew she was desperately afraid he wouldn’t find whatever he’d gone looking for and that he would return her to Christopher. One thing she’d learned in the past few days was that she wasn’t ready to die.

She rested her elbows on her thighs and dropped her head to her hands. Thoughts swirled—a kaleidoscope of the mistakes she’d made that had brought her to this place. Had it started when she’d fallen for Christopher, or did the roots go deeper than that? Had her first sin been committed when she’d grown up spoiled and selfish, never looking at the world beyond what it could offer her?

A sound caught her attention. She straightened, then stood, only to sink back onto the bed when the room seemed to swim around her. In the time it took to clear her head, the door opened and Tanner stepped inside.

She forced herself to her feet and stared at him. His expression gave nothing away, which shouldn’t surprise her. She wanted to speak, to ask about her fate, but her mouth was too dry. The ever-present fear grew until it pushed the air out of her body.

“I had an interesting talk with your husband,” he said as he leaned against the door frame and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Ex-husband,” she whispered, never taking her gaze from his face.

“Funny how he doesn’t mention that, although I checked on the records, and you’re right. The divorce is final.”

Some small measure of relief battled for space with the fear. Did that mean he would believe her? That she could be safe for a little while longer?

She waited, instinctively knowing it would be better if he spoke rather than her.

“I don’t believe you,” he said flatly.

The blood seemed to rush from her body, leaving her cold and boneless. She sank to the bed as the room spun and a high-pitched sound filled her head.

“But I don’t believe him, either.”

Madison blinked. “W-what?”

“Something’s not right. I think you’re a rich bitch drama queen, but I’m not convinced your ex is telling the truth. There are secrets on both sides, and I want to know what they are.”

He defined her in words designed to wound, but right now she didn’t care what he thought of her.

“You’re not sending me back?” she asked, barely daring to hope.

“Not yet.”

Fear receded, leaving little to support her, and she swayed slightly. Tanner frowned.

“When was the last time you ate or slept?” he asked.

“It’s been a while.”

His face tightened with contempt. “I know it’s stylish to be stick-thin, but starvation isn’t much of a fashion statement.”

She shook her head. “It wasn’t like that. I couldn’t eat there. Or sleep. This isn’t about being on a diet. I just…” She drew in a breath. “Have you ever been kidnapped? It’s not a restful situation.”

He didn’t look convinced. The man didn’t like her, and she found the realization oddly comforting. He didn’t want anything from her except the truth. He was good enough not to be willing to return her to a situation that might be dangerous, but he wasn’t interested in what he could get from her.

But she did have something to offer him.

“I’ll pay you for your protection,” she said. “Double whatever Christopher offered you.”

Tanner’s gaze narrowed and his mouth twisted. “Don’t make me think less of you than I already do,” he said flatly. “I’m not doing this for the money.”

She wanted to ask why he was then. Why didn’t he just let her go and be killed? But she didn’t—there was no point in pushing him.

“I find it interesting that you’ve taken such a dislike to me when you don’t know me at all,” she said instead.

“I know your type.”

“What type is that?”

“Rich. Useless.”

He spoke with a certainty that told her she wasn’t the first wealthy woman to cross his path and that whoever had done it before had scarred him in some way. A lover? A client?

Tanner straightened. “I’m moving you to a safe house. No one will be able to find you there, so you can eat and get some sleep. I’ll keep on investigating Hilliard. If I turn up enough evidence to validate what you’ve told me, we’ll talk about you hiring me to protect you. If you’re lying…”

His voice trailed off. She had no doubt there would be some serious punishment involved. Still, she wondered if he could come up with anything worse than what she’d already endured. He didn’t seem to be the type to use physical force against someone so ill equipped to handle it. She supposed rape was a possibility, but she doubted that was his style. Wasn’t rape supposed to be about power? Tanner was the most powerful man she’d ever met. He would hardly need to prove himself.

Oh, but he would think of something. She was confident. She supposed she should worry about that, but she couldn’t. After all she’d been through in the past ten days, she couldn’t find the strength to be any more afraid.

“I accept your terms.”

One corner of his mouth turned up in an almost smile. “You don’t have a choice.”

“Perhaps not, but I accept them anyway.”

“I’m going to have to blindfold you. The safe house works only as long as no one knows where it is. If the idea of a blindfold freaks you out, I can sedate you.”

The idea of a blindfold terrified her. It was too much like being kidnapped all over again. But the thought of being drugged was worse.

“I prefer the blindfold. I don’t like the idea of losing control.”

“Some people spend their whole lives looking for the perfect way to do just that.”

“Not me.” She stared at him and had the odd thought she very much wanted him to like her. “I’m not what you think.”

He looked instantly bored. “I’ll be right back.”

He walked out of the room, leaving the door open. Madison stared at the narrow concrete hallway and wondered if his actions were a test to see if she could be trusted. It didn’t matter. She had no plans to bolt for freedom. Right now Tanner was all that stood between her and Christopher. She already knew what her ex-husband was capable of. For now she was more than willing to put her fate into the hands of a stranger. With Tanner, the odds were a whole lot better.

If Madison had been asked to guess, she would have said the drive had taken about forty-five minutes. She’d been put in the rear of a van of some kind. There weren’t any seats, but there were plenty of blankets. She’d curled up on them and listened to the sound of the engine and the road. Exhaustion had claimed her a few times and she’d dozed for a second or two.

When the van stopped, she straightened. She heard a garage door opening, then the van moved forward and the garage door closed behind it. There was the click of the lock followed by the creak of metal as the rear of the vehicle opened.

“You can take off the blindfold now,” Tanner said.

For reasons that had made no sense to her, he hadn’t tied her hands. She reached up and pulled off the blindfold, only to find herself in a dark box inside a van. Of course, she thought, knowing that if she’d been less exhausted she would have found the situation humorous. He hadn’t tied her hands because once she was in the van it hadn’t mattered if she’d removed the blindfold. There was nothing for her to see.

Very slick, she thought as she crawled to the end of the van and stepped down.

Lack of food and sleep made her shaky. She stumbled as she tried to stand. He grabbed her by the arm and held her steady.

“You’ve been tough all through this,” he said gruffly. “Don’t faint on me now.”

“I won’t,” she promised, although she wasn’t completely sure of her facts.

“Come on. I’ll give you the quick tour, then you can crash for a few hours.”

Sleep sounded like heaven. Maybe here, with Tanner watching over her, she would feel comfortable enough to relax.

He released her arm and motioned for her to step around him. After closing the back of the van, he led the way into the house.

She wasn’t sure what she’d expected—perhaps some high-tech, modern space done in shades of white. What she found instead was a sprawling single-story ranch-style home with a few modifications.

From the garage they passed through a laundry room and into a hallway that led into a large family room. There was a big-screen television and several electronic components, along with two black leather sofas. The house itself might be forty or fifty years old, but the paint and the furniture looked relatively new.

Madison glanced at the ceiling, looking for cameras or some kind of monitoring device. She didn’t see any. She did notice a strange screening material over the windows and pointed to it.

“No one can see in,” Tanner said. “And you can’t get out. But the windows all open if you feel the need for fresh air.”

She was less worried about that than being trapped. “What if there’s a fire?”

“There won’t be.”

He walked into a large kitchen and pointed out the basic amenities. There was already plenty of food in the refrigerator and pantry. Simple things that were easy to prepare.

“Help yourself,” he told her.

She nodded, knowing she had to eat something eventually, but right now all she wanted was sleep.

Next up was what would have been the formal living and dining room. Instead she saw several desks and shelves, all crammed with electronic equipment. None of it made sense to her. There were screens and keyboards and odd display units.

Tanner stepped inside and grabbed something from a nearly empty desk. She didn’t see what it was until he returned to her side and snapped it on her wrist.

“What on earth?” She stared at the gray metal bracelet. There was no visible catch, no markings of any kind.

“My game, my rules,” he said. “You play by them or I return you to your ex.”

“Why?” she asked, not sure if she was asking why he’d done it or why she didn’t get a say in the rules.

“I don’t trust you,” he said flatly.

Good to know where she stood. “You could just let me go. I’ll be fine on my own.”

“If he’s everything you say, he’ll find you within twenty-four hours. Is that what you want?”

No, but she didn’t want this either, she thought as she rubbed the bracelet. “What does it do?”

“Keeps you safe and keeps you here.” He motioned to the control center of the house.

Madison glanced at him, then back to the bracelet before taking a step forward.

“You have entered an unauthorized area,” a female computerized voice said. “Please return to an authorized area or an alarm will sound.”

She jumped back. “It’s some kind of monitoring system.”

“Exactly. You can go anywhere you want in the house except for in here and within five feet of the front and back door. There’s a patio off the family room. You can go as far as the overhang.”

She tried to make herself feel better by thinking that at least an alarm sounding was better than him blowing off her hand, but she wasn’t all that comforted. Tanner might be her only shot at staying alive, but she’d just exchanged one prison for another.

“My rules,” he repeated.

“I got that.”

She had a choice. She could accept them or she could be returned to Christopher. On second thought, not much of a choice at all.

For the first time since she’d been kidnapped, she had the overwhelming urge to cry. She wanted to slump down on the floor and sob until everything was better. Instead she sucked in a breath and forced herself to stay strong. Tanner was her only hope. She needed him on her side. He seemed to appreciate strength, so that’s what she would show him.

“Anything else?” she asked, feeling her exhaustion down to her bones.

“No. Your room is down here.”

He led her along another hallway before turning into a cheery bedroom. There was a full-size bed, a dresser with a television on it, two nightstands and a small desk. One door led into a closet, the other to a small bathroom, complete with a shower.

Madison had only been allowed to bathe every third day while she’d been kidnapped. She longed for some serious water time. But first, sleep.

He glanced at his watch. “Why don’t you rest for three or four hours. Then you can eat.”

“Fine.”

He walked to the door, then paused and turned back to her. “No phone, no contact with the outside world.”

She wasn’t even surprised. “So you could kill me and no one would ever know where I’d been or where to find the body.”

His dark gaze settled on her face. “That’s right.”

“Good to know.”

That bit of bravado took her last ounce of strength. When he left, she collapsed on the bed and let the tears flow. She wanted to scream that this wasn’t fair—that she hadn’t asked for any of it. But what was the point? She was here, stuck, afraid for her life. There was no going back. Just forward. She would get through this because the alternative was to get dead, and she refused to let Christopher win.

She rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling. She’d been right when she’d said that no one would ever know where she’d been. She’d already been gone for twelve days and apparently no one had alerted the police. No doubt Christopher had come up with a story to cover her absence.

Her father had known the truth, of course, but he would have left all the details to his son-in-law. Even now, with her supposedly free but not there, Christopher would probably say she was resting. Recovering her strength—a euphemism for something she didn’t want to think about.

Her father would believe him because Blaine liked his world simple. Nothing beyond his lab mattered.

She fingered the bracelet on her left wrist. Somehow it transmitted her position in the house. Maybe it did other things. Tanner was certainly thorough.

Who was this man who obviously didn’t like her in the least and yet offered to help her? Why did he care if she lived or died?

Maybe he didn’t, she thought, rolling onto her side and closing her eyes. Maybe she simply wasn’t allowed to get dead on his watch. Unless he decided to kill her himself.

He was a professional, she reminded herself. If he did want to take her out, it would be quick. A small comfort, but in her current situation, nearly the only one she had.

And until that moment, if it ever came, Tanner would keep her safe. She believed that down to her bones. While she was under his protection, nothing bad could happen to her. For the first time in a long time, she felt safe. Funny how a man who obviously despised her without bothering to get to know her could give her such a feeling of comfort.