The Cinderella Mission (Family Secrets #1)(58)
Author: Catherine Mann

Her breath huffed heavier, faster into the mike. Ethan’s joined pace. Only now did he realize how their breathing had become one over the past two hours since they’d left the house. “Kelly? What the hell’s going on? Where are you?”

Kelly gasped. “It would be easier to walk if you’d take your hand off my eyes and the gun out of my side.”

A gun on Kelly. Ethan’s gut twisted, burned. Only minutes ago he’d been reeling with relief over keeping Kelly alive. Even if she did walk away from him, at least he didn’t have her blood on his soul. Now his worst nightmare exploded in front of him and all he could think about was the time he’d wasted arguing with her.

“Davidson, do you copy that? Kelly’s been taken.” Ethan flung through the door into the hall while ARIES affirmed his transmission. “Keep talking, Kelly.”

“Ow!” she squawked. “It would sure be nice if you didn’t bump me into walls. This hall has too many corners.”

Fear grabbed Ethan in a stranglehold as he listened to her voice. “The hall. Got it, Kelly. Davidson, give the order. Have security fan out. I’m looking, Kelly. Hang tough. We’re looking.”

Kelly panted, the sound of running feet pounding through the mike. “You won’t get away with this, Peter. Why are we going upstairs instead of leaving?”

Peter. She’d found Peter Miller. “Good, Kelly. Keep it coming.” Ethan forced his voice to stay even, hell-bent determined to keep her calm, reassured even as his feet double-timed toward the service elevator. “Davidson, did you get that? Peter Miller is here and he has Kelly.”

“Roger that,” Davidson barked from headquarters. “We’re trying to track you, Kelly. Keep talking.”

A door squeaked and clicked.

“Peter, stop. You don’t want to do this.” Kelly’s voice rose for the first time.

The hair on the back of Ethan’s neck prickled.

“Get in the room and shut up.”

What the hell was the man thinking? Peter Miller was in a load of trouble in a place crawling with agents of every kind. The guy shouldn’t have a second to spare…

Unless he’d lost hope and planned a standoff—with a hostage.

In a room. A hotel room. Alone with Kelly.

No. No. And hell no! Fury fired through Ethan while fear iced his spine. He didn’t want to hear what he was almost certain would come next.

“Take off your dress.”

Ethan’s world exploded into a red haze. Not Kelly. Not that.

“No!”

Chapter 16

“No!” Ethan’s shout reverberated in Kelly’s brain.

She slapped a hand to ear. Her eyes teared up from Ethan’s shout. Not just from the physical torture to her eardrum, but from the anguish in his voice.

Thank God her captor hadn’t heard.

“Take it off,” the wiry masseur ordered again from his position in front of the door to the cleaning service supply room. He bore little resemblance to the gentle, new-age masseur who’d taken time to mix ylang ylang bath oils for her.

Kelly stumbled away from him, reaching behind her for anything—a mop, a jug of cleaner. Some weapon.

She wouldn’t allow this to turn into the nightmare of her experience with the college professor. Kelly scrambled to think of something to say that would reassure Ethan while still figuring out a way to get out of this hell.

Why would Peter waste time on this?

Unless he had nothing left to lose.

She wouldn’t, absolutely wouldn’t let this happen to her. And she wouldn’t be separated from the tiny microphone inside her dress button. Peter hadn’t said anything to lead her to believe her cover had been blown. She needed to hold on to that.

“Whatever part you had in what went down tonight, you don’t want to make it worse.” Her grappling hand closed around an iron. “Ethan will be looking for me any minute. Give—”

Peter backhanded her.

Kelly reeled, slammed against a shelf. Towels and brooms rained around her, the iron thudding to the ground. Pain exploded through her head for a second time, but she held back her own scream for Ethan’s sake even though the smack must have transmitted.

Ethan’s growl rumbled in her ear. “He’s a dead man.”

His cold vow chilled her soul.

She wanted to let Ethan know she would make Peter pay big-time. Once she found her opening. Let Peter think she was weak now. She’d kick his ass soon enough, regardless of how strong the wiry man was from years of giving massages.

Thank you, Ethan, for giving her the tools to do it.

She’d learned. She would make it.

She hoped.

Peter snagged a housekeeping uniform off a hook. “Here. Take this.”

Kelly sagged with relief. He just wanted her to change. She needed to let Ethan know before he lost it and barged through in some reckless dash. “Oh, you want me to—”

“Shut up.” He leveled the gun at her temple.

Fair enough.

Kelly inched her zipper down. Revulsion swelled into nausea. Twice Peter had touched her while giving her a massage, looked at her, and she’d never known.

Swallowing down bile, she distanced herself. Besides, she wore a bra and slip beneath her gown. She was still covered, her 9mm out of sight.

She wasn’t the helpless student from all those years ago. She was a government agent, with training. She could keep herself focused, protect her gun in the white garter-belt holster until she could button that housekeeping smock.

“Kelly!” Ethan barked through her earpiece. “Damn it, Kelly, find a way to talk to me. Now. Give us your twenty.”

The gun never wavered. She couldn’t risk talking yet and feared he wouldn’t be able to hear her anyway, not with the growing space between her and her button microphone.

Kelly wrestled into the khaki jumper, fumbled as slowly as she dared with the buttons. Done. She straightened in time to see Peter pitch her gown into a cart of dirty sheets. He yanked her toward the door.

“Kelly!” Ethan demanded. “Kelly, damn it, say something.”

The edge to his voice worried her more than the gun, and she was seconds away from leaving her mike. She gathered her thoughts and gave one last shot at communicating with Ethan. “Peter, why am I changing—”

He dragged her into the hall and kicked the door closed.

“Kelly?” Ethan’s call echoed. “Talk. Let me know you’re all right.”

He couldn’t hear her.

Peter wrenched her arm. “I hate the delay, but it was necessary. I had to make sure my hostage wasn’t wearing a wire and or one of those listening devices. But then I guess it was ridiculous of me to think you might be some kind of undercover cop.”