And that was how it was done. Colt really was better at this than her. She’d have probably throat-or dick-punched Barclay by now. “We’ve definitely got him,” she murmured. Next to her, Gage had his laptop open and was ready to start doing whatever sort of voodoo magic he did once he got the name of who’d hired Barclay.
And that was all they needed. A name. Once they had the guy who’d hired this loser, it would just be a matter of time until the threat was neutralized for good. Then Hadley would be safe.
*
Hadley sat at the center island in the kitchen with her dad and Axel—who was holding her hand as they listened to Brooks via speakerphone. Her dad had just woken both her and Axel even though it was three in the morning, so whatever was going on was important.
“Things are looking good,” her brother said. “We just delivered the third man hired to kidnap Hadley to a federal agent. Anonymously. He was wanted on a pretty bad federal warrant. He never saw any of our faces so nothing should ever link to any of us. But Gage will be keeping an eye on him if he’s ever released from prison.”
Hadley squeezed Axel’s hand once. That was definitely good news.
“Tell me you know who hired him,” her dad said as he started the coffee maker.
“A man named Barron Fuller. I already know from Gage that you recently bought his business in a deal.”
Her dad frowned. “Are you sure about that? I more or less bailed him out. He was ready to go bankrupt. I did him a favor—and bought the business at far greater than what it’s valued at. And I only did it out of respect for his deceased father. Barron has a cocaine problem. And I don’t know for certain, I still have accountants poring over the last few years, but I think he was skimming money. Probably to support his addiction. I…actually sat down with him, talked to him about his dad and tried to make sure he wasn’t digging such a huge hole he couldn’t get out of it.”
“Well, Gage is sure. He started digging into the guy as soon as we got the name. Gage and I are headed to the ranch, and Skye and Colt are on their way to Miami as we speak. They’re taking the jet.”
“What are they doing down there?” Hadley asked.
“Taking care of the problem,” Brooks said evasively. “I still want to keep you locked down at the ranch for now, until we know for certain that you’re safe, but I think it’s okay to say that you’re out of the woods.”
Relief flooded her system like a shot of adrenaline. She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Hadley hadn’t even realized the weight that had been sitting on her chest until it no longer existed. The man might not be in jail yet, but her brother and his team knew who the guy was. Which meant they would be able to stop him. “Thank you.”
“You never have to thank me, little sister. Dad, will you take me off speaker? I need to talk to you.”
As her dad picked the phone up, she turned to Axel and wrapped her arms around him as she buried her face against his chest. “I know it’s not completely over, but it sure feels like it. I feel like I can breathe again.”
He hugged her tight, resting his chin on top of her head as she inhaled his spicy scent. “As soon as this is officially over and you’re free to leave, I’m taking you anywhere you want to go.”
Smiling, she pulled back to look up at him. “Actually, the only place I want to go is to a rescue shelter. Even with my school schedule, I still have enough time for it and I really miss having a dog around the house.” C-4 was adorable, but she was Skye’s dog now and Hadley really wanted one of her own.
He laughed lightly. “Then it’s a date.”
She was almost afraid to feel any relief, and knew that things weren’t settled yet but…she had hope. And her future seemed brighter than ever because of the very sexy man in her arms.
Chapter 20
—Whatever doesn’t kill me, better run.—
Skye leaned back in the plush leather seat of Brooks’s private jet as she scanned her tablet. After dropping Barclay off to the DEA, they were making good time on their flight to Miami. “Man, this guy is crazy or stupid. Probably both,” she said to Colt, referring to the man who’d hired contract killers to kidnap Hadley.
Barron Fuller III. A former frat boy with not only a cocaine problem, but a gambling one as well. He’d had everything given to him and amounted to nothing.
“Definitely crazy. Probably because of all the cocaine he’s done,” Colt muttered, scanning his own tablet.
“He should have been thanking Douglas for basically bailing him out. He bought the guy’s company because of the respect he had for his father. Instead this guy took it as some weird slight against his pride. Or I’m guessing that’s what this is. There’s no way he would have been able to sell it for any more. And clearly he couldn’t manage it.”
The guy had been driving his business into the ground, skimming so much off the top that sooner rather than later, the IRS would have caught up with him. So what did the dumbass do? He took out a loan from a vicious, well-known loan shark in Miami. Gage had searched hard on this guy and the info he’d found was pure gold.
“I’m still not sure how we should deal with this guy,” Skye said.
Colt nodded once in agreement.
They’d set Fuller up to meet with Barclay—who was now in custody of Agent Moore. In reality Fuller would be meeting with Colt, who was posing as Barclay. Since the two had never met in person, and Skye was going to be posing as an unconscious Hadley, it would be easy to fool the guy long enough to take him down. But they were also breaking some laws and didn’t want to deal with a trial because there were so many loose ends. Like the fact that two of the hired hitters were dead and their bodies were missing. And the third was now in custody for an outstanding warrant. And there was no way Barclay was going to admit to being involved in this.
“It looks as if he has some outstanding debts with this loan shark,” Colt said.
She let out a low whistle as she saw the number. “This guy really likes his cocaine.”
“He’s likely betting on getting money from Douglas in exchange for Hadley. Even though it seems pretty clear he never planned to turn her over anyway.”
Barclay had admitted as much to them. And he hadn’t cared either. He’d known that he’d be dropping the girl off with Fuller to be raped and tortured before being ransomed. And Barclay said he was pretty certain Fuller never planned to give her back. He was garbage too. She hoped he rotted in prison.
“If the loan shark is looking for him, we can just drop Fuller off on the guy’s doorstep with a bow wrapped around his neck. Let him take care of the problem.” Skye shrugged. It was a tactic they’d used before when they’d been with the CIA—and since starting Redemption Harbor Consulting. That way, they didn’t have to clean up any messes and things basically took care of themselves without any involvement from them.
Her husband lifted a shoulder, his mouth kicking up in a grin. “I kind of like that idea. Then maybe we can spend a couple days in Miami before heading home. I wouldn’t mind a few down days with my very sexy wife.”
She smiled wickedly at him. “That sounds like a plan to me.”
*
Skye was slumped over in the trunk of the car they’d rented, her wig covering most of her face as she feigned being unconscious. She’d done something similar before and though she hated remaining still, she could do anything for an op. And she could do just about anything right now because it would bring down an asshole and keep Hadley safe.
Forcing herself not to focus on the discomfort of lying on top of the spare tire, she listened as Colt talked to Fuller, who’d just arrived at the hangar to meet them. Now they simply needed to confirm that yes, Barron Fuller was behind everything.
It was pretty clear that he was, but before they tossed him to the wolves, they’d make sure.
“Did you hurt her?” A man’s voice trailed closer.
“Nah.” Colt. “Just knocked her out using a sedative. She might have gotten a little banged up in the trunk, but she’s fine.”
“You fuck her?”