Chapter Seventeen
“Don’t move or I’ll fire.”
Penny stopped at the words. She’d moved away from Jake Dean because she’d caught sight of a big man walking toward the place where Damon and Candice were sitting. He was huge, somewhat incongruous amid the flock of tourists. He stood out and that had caused Penny to stare. He had at least three inches on Damon and likely five or so stone of muscle. She couldn’t tell exactly what the color of his hair was because it was so closely cropped. He looked like someone had taken a massive hunk of rock and carved a man out of it.
He didn’t look anything like Walter Bennett, but he was walking straight to Damon. Fear snaked across her skin. Taggart was outside watching over the entrance. Jake was moving through the crowd toward her. Charlotte was keeping the van warm and running in case they needed to get away, and Simon was in front. Damon had no one close.
She had a gun. She could help him.
She felt the press of something hard against her lower back and her blood started to pound. She wasn’t the only one with a gun.
She had to stay calm. Jake was twenty feet away, but he’d noticed the big guy, too. His attention was on the man as he sat down in the pew directly behind Damon.
“Don’t to be moving.” The man at her back spoke with a heavy accent.
Calm. If she stayed calm, perhaps he would as well. “All right. Are you working for Mr. Champion? Is he here? Perhaps you should take me to him.”
He stood very close to her. He smelled of tobacco and the faintest hint of licorice. Salmiakki. Her grandmother had loved the salty licorice candy. “You to be staying still.”
She switched to Finnish. His accent could be from any of the Nordic countries but the Salmiakki made her think he was from right here in Finland. “I’m not alone here. I don’t know what Mr. Champion told you, but you’re very likely not going to survive this.”
He tensed behind her, replying in Finnish. “You speak my language.”
“Yes. And I’m employed by people who won’t take kindly to you killing me. Are you with The Collective?” It occurred to her that his answer would tell her a great deal.
He wrapped an arm around her waist. She was sure they simply looked like affectionate tourists. He spoke low and close to her ear, his Finnish coming much more surely. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m supposed to hold you here until the boss tells me we’re ready to go. He wants you real bad.”
She was sure he did. “This isn’t a kidnapping. I’m not some wayward girlfriend or some rich man’s daughter he wants to ransom.”
“I don’t care. The man is paying me.” He chuckled lightly. “Maybe he’ll let me have some fun with you before he does whatever he’s going to do to you.”
Kill her at the very least. Likely in some incredibly nasty fashion.
Her small gun was in her jacket pocket. He hadn’t found it yet. He seemed more interested in grinding himself against her backside.
“I’ve been in prison for a while. It’s been so long since I had a woman.”
She just managed to not gag. Perhaps it had been better when they couldn’t communicate.
She saw the minute he walked into the sanctuary. Basil Champion moved like an elegant predator, every muscle streamlined with deadly grace. He wore a hat over his hair, his head down, but from her vantage point she could see the line of his jaw. It was him.
“Don’t try to call out.” The gun pressed hard against her spine.
Baz moved behind the big guy. Damon seemed to be talking to him, but he hadn’t turned around. He and Candice were still staring toward the altar. Jake turned her way, and she watched as his eyes went wide.
She shook her head slightly. He couldn’t come after her now. As calmly as she could, she nodded toward Damon.
Jake turned and started walking toward the front of the church, then turned again, moving toward her. Damn it. No one listened to her. Damon had told Jake to take care of her, and Jake would endanger the operation to help her. She’d seen Damon take Jake aside, and he’d probably given him a serious talk on what would happen if she died.
Why would he take such care of her and then threaten something so nasty? Had she overreacted? Had she allowed her heart to rule her head?
She should be brutally mad at him, but all she wanted was for Jake to leave her behind and back up Damon. Baz would likely keep her alive for a while, but he would kill Damon.
Jake stopped, obviously assessing the situation. Penny didn’t have time. She had to send Damon some help. Baz seemed to be talking to them. He leaned forward and the big guy stiffened as though he’d just realized the threat.
She heard Jake curse and his eyes flared as though to tell her to stay where she was. He turned and started toward Damon.
As if she was going to run away with a gun in her back. He needed to save Damon first and then he could come back for her.
Or she could try to get out of this on her own.
Her would-be kidnapper was watching the scene with a single-minded intensity. It was easy to slip her hand into her coat pocket.
“Stay still,” he said in guttural Finnish just as the big guy and Baz stood up. It looked like Baz was making his play.
Damon finally turned, and his eyes went straight for her. His expression didn’t change at all, but she could practically feel the panic pouring off him. He held a hand out and Jake stopped short of his goal.
Who was the big guy? A representative of Bennett? Baz seemed to want him so he had to be important.
She did her job, which was to stay quiet and show Damon just how f*cked they all were. Except she didn’t think they were. Baz had likely been hiding somewhere in the chapel, but he had to take his hostage out the lobby door. He had to get both him and her out of here in order to get away and keep the upper hand.
A long scream split the air. “Help me!”
And he likely hadn’t counted on Candice causing a bit of chaos.
Her attacker dropped his hand for a moment as the crowd suddenly surged around them, and without a thought, she moved, bringing her foot down on his and firing into his body. Screams seemed to fill the small space and horror overtook her as she realized her attacker had fallen to the ground at her feet.
Blood began to run, pulsing from his thigh, and she watched as his eyes went from pain filled to completely blank. The acrid smell of smoke hit her nostrils. She’d fired through her coat and it was smoldering. She beat at it with her hands, putting it out as the crowd pushed her along.
Someone stumbled over the body and she caught the slightest glimpse of Jake trying to get to her.
“Get Damon!” She started Damon’s way. She needed to get to him. He didn’t have anyone with him. She couldn’t stand the thought that he was alone.
Jake rolled his eyes as he caught her around the middle and easily hefted her up. “Did you not hear him screaming for me to get you?” Jake started for the exits. “Nice shooting, sweetheart, but now we have to get you out of here and fast. The police are on their way and they’ll have surveillance tapes to work from.”
She tried to look around, but she couldn’t see Damon. Jake forced his way through the crowd, dragging her along. She didn’t have more than a second to think about the fact that she’d killed a man. His body was cooling not a hundred feet from her. Yes, he would have killed her. She wasn’t upset that he was dead, but being the instrument of it weighed on her.
Damon. She had to think about Damon. She couldn’t see him. The sun had come out and she had to cover her eyes as they adjusted to the outside light.
“We’re getting you to the van.” Jake nodded at Ian, who leapt down from his perch.
“Damon’s still in there along with our screaming reporter,” Jake said as he hauled her toward the van.
“I heard shots. How many dead?” Taggart asked.
“Just one. Penny got tagged but she showed him her claws,” Jake said. Up ahead, the van door opened.
Taggart grinned down at her. “Nice. I’ll get Knight. Take off if you need to. We’ll meet at the docks.”
He ran off. Even as Jake shoved her in the van, she looked back, desperate to see Damon walking out of that church.
It wasn’t Damon who ran out of the church first. The big guy shoved his way through the crowd. He hit the streets and started running.
Ian and Simon were going after Damon. He would be safe with them.
She couldn’t let their only link to Bennett disappear or it would all have been for nothing.
There was a thud as Candice threw herself in the car. “I can’t believe I panicked like that. Should I stay and talk to the police?”
Jake closed the van door. “Nope. We get back to the boat.”
“No.” Penny moved to the seat next to Charlotte and pointed out the window. “We have to get that man.”
Without even a hesitation, Charlotte gunned the engine and took off, a smile of anticipation on her face. “He’s a hulk. Who is he?”
Candice sniffled but seemed to be recovering. “He said his name was Carter. Brody Carter. Sounded Aussie from his accent. I think he’s Walter’s bodyguard. Walter didn’t show up.”
Charlotte made a sharp swerve to avoid traffic, keeping Carter’s figure in her sights.
“Shit.” Jake moved in between them, getting to his knees. “Why do I get left with the crazy chicks? Should I point out that our orders were to make for the docks and hook up with the rest of the team there?”
“You can certainly point it out all you like, but this is SIS’s mission and you’re a hired contractor, Mr. Dean. As the head of the SIS mission is currently not in contact with me, I believe I’m in charge,” Penny said primly. “Don’t lose him.”
“I’m not the one who’s going to get her ass smacked. And I am outnumbered unless Candy back there wants to help me take you both on.” Jake sighed a little.
Candice shook her head. “I’m pretty much terrified of everyone. But I would like to know where Walter is, and that man up there is the only one who can tell us. I think if we ask him to come with us, he might say no though.”
“I wasn’t intending to ask him.” She reached into her bag and pulled out a covered hypodermic needle. Damon had one as well. They had discussed it earlier and decided that if Bennett didn’t cooperate, they would drug him and bring him on the boat a different way, hence the cruise ship van they had liberated and the big storage box in the back. There was more than one way to get on a ship.
“You can’t kill him,” Candice protested.
“It’s just going to put him to sleep.” She frowned as they slowed down. He was moving uphill now. “I worry a bit it won’t be enough, though. It’s dosed for a smaller man. He’s much larger than Walter.”
“It will work. Shit. I’m probably going to get my ass kicked first though. Why does everyone I fight have to be so f*cking big?” Jake asked.
Charlotte swerved and made a crazy turn. “He’s going down the alley. I think I can get ahead of him.”
She stared at the GPS on the van’s dash. It showed where the small side road led. She made another turn and brought the van to a halt.
Jake hopped out just as Carter sprinted from behind the building line. Jake found a way to avoid a prolonged fight. He simply put a foot out and the big Aussie, who was looking behind him, tripped and hit the ground with a loud thud.
“Bloody hell!”
Penny got out of the van, followed by Charlotte.
Jake jumped on the guy’s back, placing his gun at the base of his neck. “All right now, you massive piece of meat. We’re going to do this nice and easy.”
The Aussie twisted him off with a loud shout and Jake was tossed in the air, hitting the bricks of the building to his left. A groan came out of his mouth, but he was back on his feet in an instant and he never dropped the gun.
“Get the hell out of my way, yank, or use that gun because I’m not going anywhere.” The Aussie was on his feet, bleeding slightly, but shoulders squared and ready to fight. “And get the women out of here. I don’t want to take them down but I will.”
Charlotte stared Penny’s way and nodded.
It was up to her. She palmed the needle, flicking the safety cap off.
Charlotte cleared her throat. “Hey, we just want to talk, Mr. Brody. Candice is in the van.”
She was hiding in the van. Likely crying again.
Carter split his attention between Jake and Charlotte. “I think I’m done jabbering for the day. We’ll find another way.”
She couldn’t let him do that. She steeled herself. She would get one shot.
“We can’t let you go. Please come with us,” Charlotte said.
He turned directly to her and Penny strained to reach him, shoving the needle into the man’s thick neck, pushing the plunger down.
Carter immediately batted his big arm out and Penny went flying the same way Jake had. The air knocked out of her lungs as she brushed the side of the building. She fell to the cobblestones, struggling to breathe.
“Damn it.” Big hands reached down and started to pick her up. She was surprised to open her eyes and find it was Brody Carter and not Jake Dean who tried to help her up even though he had a needle sticking out of his neck.
“Shit-arse job. Hate hurting women.” His eyes glazed and he dropped her hands, hitting the ground with a hard thump.
“You okay?” Jake reached out a hand.
Penny nodded, adrenaline still rushing through her system. She got to her wobbly feet.
“Charlotte, see if you can help me get this guy in the van. We need to get out of here. I can’t imagine Baz isn’t coming this way.”
That was when the first bullet flew down the alley.
Penny looked down the long street and saw Baz there.
“Shit.” Jake returned fire, putting half his body behind a trash bin. “Get him in there or we leave him behind. You’ve got ten seconds before my need to get you to safety takes over and there will be no more discussions or rebellions.”
Gunfire cracked through the air.
Penny wasn’t about to leave the Aussie behind. There had been something about the way he’d tried to help her even after she’d shot him full of tranquilizers that brought out her protective instincts. He hadn’t been like the other one. She couldn’t leave him to die, and that’s what would happen if she let Baz have him. She pulled the needle out of his neck, tossing it away before gripping his wrist. Charlotte took the other one and they started to drag him toward the van.
Sirens began to wail.
“If we all get taken in, who do you think is going to fare better with the cops, Champion?” Jake called out.
There was a frustrated shout and then the beating of shoes against the cobblestones.
Jake left his spot. “Get him in now. We have to go. I have no idea if he’s gone for good or if he’s just picking a better spot. Your men will have my ass if I get you killed.”
Where was Damon? Panic threatened because she couldn’t be sure Baz hadn’t shot him. He’d been perfectly willing to shoot anyone in the church it had seemed. She hefted the Aussie up, helping to roll him into the back of the van.
Charlotte looked down at her phone. “No time for recriminations. Ian wants a pickup. Let’s go. He’s got injured.”
Penny’s heart sank as she hurried to her seat. Candice stared down at the unconscious man and huddled in the back of the van.
Penny tried to hold it together because one way or another, she would need to get through the next few minutes.
* * * *
Damon’s heart pounded in his chest as he burst out of the church. All around him panicked tourists screamed and yelled for loved ones, but he was looking for one woman. Where was Penelope?
He’d attempted to make his way toward her, but by the time he’d muscled to where she’d been last, she was gone.
Was she hurt? Was she lying somewhere bleeding and wondering where the hell he was?
Simon Weston was suddenly beside him. “Let’s go. Penelope’s been taken to the car. Charlotte’s driving. Both of the women are fine. We need to get down the street so we can avoid the police who should be here any moment.”
She was fine. Relief flooded through him at the thought. And he could see Baz forcing his way through the crowd up ahead. They’d slowed him down, the throng forming a wall that made it hard to get through. As he watched, Brody Carter managed to bust through and started to jog down the street, his head turning back to see who was following him.
“We have to get the man Baz is chasing. He knows where Bennett is.” Without another thought, he took off.
He slipped through the crowd, forcing his way where he needed to. He had seconds before Baz would be through the human wall and then Damon had very little chance of catching him. Even as he picked up his pace, he could already feel his lungs burning.
Baz turned, catching sight of him. A look of pure hatred crossed his face and he pulled his big gun, pointing it straight at Damon.
He moved just in time, rolling to his left.
A man beside him fell, the bullet that had been meant for Damon taking his life.
The crowd scattered and Damon was on his feet again. He couldn’t stop, couldn’t consider the man who had fallen. Baz had done that. Not him. It was up to Damon to bring Baz down, but he couldn’t do it from where he was standing. Fredrikinkatu Street was full of terrorized tourists, and the wail of sirens could be heard in the distance. If he took a shot, he might hit one of them. Too much chaos. It aided Baz.
He could see down the long length of the road, tall buildings on either side. He forced himself to move, to ignore the pain in his chest. He ran through the small park, past the tiny store they’d visited earlier. His feet beat against the cobblestones as the uneven ground threatened his every step.
Baz turned again, firing back. Damon whirled, his head spinning as he felt a burning sensation sizzle along his left bicep.
The road was sloping up now. He had to work harder. Run faster. Push himself. He had to.
He couldn’t stop. He had to get that f*cker. Penelope would never be safe as long as Basil Champion was walking the earth. Somewhere in the back of his head he knew she wasn’t the objective. Protecting her wasn’t what he was being paid to do but somehow she’d become his mission. When everything else was stripped away, when he couldn’t allow his own stupid history to hold sway, when all he could hear was the thundering of his faulty heart, he knew what mattered. Penelope.
Pain flared as he stumbled a bit.
He could see Baz had stopped at a side street. In the distance, he heard the flare of guns firing. More than one. Was Penelope fighting?
Run harder. Run faster. Don’t give in to the pain.
“Come on, mate.” Simon was suddenly beside him, the younger man easily catching up.
Damon’s vision was just the slightest bit foggy, clouding on the periphery. He didn’t let up. He focused on one thing and one thing only. Baz.
Except he couldn’t see him anymore.
“It’s going to be all right.” Simon’s voice sounded distant.
Why wasn’t he running? What the bloody hell was that pain in his leg? He forced his eyes to open—he wasn’t aware they’d been closed.
His chest heaved, trying to get oxygen into his lungs.
“You passed out, mate. One minute you were running and the next you were down for the count.” Simon was staring down at him, his face stern. “We have to get you up. The police are already at the church, and they’ll be here any minute. Up you go.”
His stomach turned as Simon got him on his feet.
Everything hurt. What the hell had happened? Simon slung Damon’s arm over his shoulder.
“Come on. We have to move.”
“We have to get Baz. He was right there. I almost had him.” He’d been closing in.
His legs moved, but he had to think about it. They felt useless. It seemed like all of his effort, all his energy, was spent just trying to breathe.
“Come on, Charlotte,” Simon said under his breath as he dragged Damon’s useless body into the nearest alley.
“Have to get Baz.”
“Baz is gone, Knight. He’s long gone, and we’re going to get hauled into Finnish prison if we don’t get ourselves gone, too. I’m sure it’s very clean and polite, but prison is prison.” Simon sighed. “Thank god.”
There was a squeal of tires as the van they had switched to in the garage stopped at the alley. The side door slid open, and Taggart jumped out.
“What the f*ck was that, Knight?”
Simon dragged him along “Not now, boss. He’s in bad shape.”
Damon started to shake his head. He was fine.
Taggart’s boots echoed along the pavement. “Hospital? Did he take fire?”
“No hospital.” He didn’t need a bloody doctor. Nausea threatened to overtake him, but at least he was breathing somewhat normally again. His legs still felt useless.
Taggart leaned over, shoving a big shoulder into his middle and causing Damon to curse. “Let’s go then. We have the package. You owe my wife and your girl big-time, Knight.”
If he vomited all over Tag’s backside, it would be payback.
The van doors opened and Jake Dean was in the back, shifting something to the side to allow Tag to toss Damon’s utterly limp body inside. He was just starting to regain control of his legs as his back hit the floor of the van. The doors clanged closed and in a second, they were off.
He realized what package Charlotte and Penelope had apparently picked up. Brody Carter was unconscious beside him.
Penelope stared down, her hand on his forehead. “It happened again?”
He’d passed out. Like he had in Liverpool station. He’d failed. He closed his eyes and nodded. He kept them closed because he didn’t want to see the pity in her eyes.
“What happened, Penelope? How did you get away?”
“Oh, I shot him.”
His eyes flew open and he twisted, forcing himself to get the hell up. “Penelope?”
Her face was pale, but she seemed steady. “He would have killed me, Damon. When Candice started running, I smashed my foot across the bridge of his and I shot him. I think I killed him. But it was him or me and I don’t think he was likely a very good person.”
“I’m so sorry.” Candice was sitting on the floor, huddled close to the front, her face blotchy from crying.
Penelope had killed her attacker and managed to bring in both of their assets.
He reached out for her. It didn’t matter that she was angry with him. It didn’t mean a thing that she didn’t seem to want him anymore. She needed comfort, and he was damn well going to provide it. She was still wearing his collar. He’d brutally failed to protect her. He could at least offer her this.
If she rejected him, he might die.
She went into his arms the minute he opened them. She was soft and warm and he hadn’t realized how cold he’d been.
“I killed him.” Her body shook as she cried, and he tightened his arms around her.
“It’s all right, love. You did so well.” She’d been more than he could have hoped for. But she was gentle at heart, and it would hurt her that she’d been forced to kill. “You did the only thing you could.”
She simply cried into his shoulder. As they moved deeper into Helsinki, Damon held on and prayed he could be enough for her.