Christmas Conspiracy (3 page)

Kat forced her eyes open, blinking painfully as light speared into her skull. A quick glance revealed an IV pole hanging beside her, hooked to her arm. Panic hit. Was she in a hospital? She couldn’t afford one. How long had she been out? Where were her children?

She struggled to a seated position and tried to make sense of the room spinning around her. This looked more like a hotel than a hospital.

What was going on?

She couldn’t think clearly. Something important. She had to remember. Her thoughts scattered. She felt drugged. Whatever medication was in that IV had to go. She pulled at the bandages until she freed herself from the tube and the needle.

A voice filtered in from the next room.

“Rafe, I want you and Hunter on this one. I need people who know the players and the stakes.”

It couldn’t be. The voice from three years ago. A voice that made her shiver with longing—and hurt. She’d thought never again to see the man who’d nearly stolen her heart. Logan Carmichael.

His velvet tones had whispered in her ear in the dark. She’d shuddered under his touch, then she’d run, overwhelmed by what she’d felt for him. When she’d finally tried to reach him, she’d been turned away. Life, she’d learned all too well, gave no second chances.

“You still have surveillance on the king and his entourage?” Logan listened, then let out a low curse. “The fool. I’ll be ready.”

Logan’s voice was so cold, so deadly. Kat shook her head to clear it, then groaned. Why was she here in a hotel? She’d been at her weekend job. She’d been dreaming about Logan. Crazy dreams. Dangerous dreams about horses…and fire.

Memories flashed. The fire! She gasped for air. “Logan!”

She struggled to her feet and the room swirled around her.

Someone had locked them in the barn.

Someone had tried to kill them.

Logan dashed into the room, catching her as she fell against the nearby bureau. “What are you doing out of bed?”

She clung to him, hating the way the room spun in crazy circles. “I don’t know what we’re doing here, but I have to leave. Now. Oh, God, how long have I been out?”

“A couple hours. You’ve been sedated.”

“I have to go home.”
The twins
. They’d be upset. It had to be at least noon. And Paulina, the babysitter. Kat was so late. She tried to push past Logan. “I have responsibilities.”

Logan placed her back on the bed, and pressed her shoulders into the down pillow. He hovered over her. “You were severely dehydrated, suffering from exhaustion, thrashing and crying out in your sleep. I couldn’t take a chance that you’d hurt yourself.”

She stared into his face, struggling to keep it in focus, stunned he wasn’t a dream. She’d had enough over the past three years to wonder. She blinked. He was real. He’d changed. Oh, his brown hair was still cut short, a tad longer than a military cut, and he’d lost some weight, but more than that. His hazel eyes were stressed and tired in his lean face, but she also saw something in them she didn’t expect. Concern? Worry? For her?

Feeling woozy, unable to help herself, she let her hand hover over the scar marring his cheek, a scar that hadn’t been there three years ago. She wanted to touch him, but she couldn’t let herself. She had more than her own wishes to think about now. “I need to go home. You have to take me there.”

He clasped her hand in his. “Kat, it’s going to have to wait.”

“Not happening, Logan. I need to leave and there’s something I have to tell you on the way. You’re not going to li—”

The bedroom door slammed open.

“What do you think you’re doing, Carmichael? You will not touch her.”

A distinguished man, his salt-and-pepper hair perfectly styled, and dressed in a suit that must have cost two years’ salary, strode in. He acted as if he owned the world, and two hulking figures trailed behind him like mindless minions.

Logan turned, shielding her from view. Kat shoved at him to move aside but he planted his feet and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Are you
trying
to get her killed?” Logan’s soft voice dripped ice from every word. “I told you not to come here. What if you were followed?”

One of the burly bodyguards pushed to the fore. “You will not speak to His Majesty in that tone.”

Without moving, Logan stared the man down. “Back off, Sergei. I’m in no mood to play protocol games. I said I’d arrange the meet.”

“And no one commands the King of Bellevaux,” the ruler snapped, his accent deepening. “My business cannot wait. I have less than two weeks to ensure my daughter doesn’t embarrass me or her country.”

Kat leaned against the bed, the king’s words swirling in her mind. Okay, the sedative might still be wreaking havoc in her system, but the royal invasion had been doing a fine job of clearing her head until that bizarre comment. Who was this guy’s daughter?

Logan’s voice turned lower and deadlier. “And I’m responsible for making sure Kat stays alive, which you don’t seem to care about since you kept her true identity from me until it was almost too late.”

The king’s face reddened. “You found her. I’m here to claim her. Now step away from my daughter!”

“Excuse me? I’m
not
an object, and I am definitely
not
your daughter.” Kat peered around Logan and tumbled over the side of the bed, landing in a heap. He knelt to help her, but she shoved him aside and stood, fighting the dizziness. “Logan, what’s going on? Who is this joker?” she asked, praying her head would stop pounding.

Her ex-lover turned, and she gasped at the tension in his jaw making his scar stand out in relief. Logan let out a stream of air. “He’s your father. King Leopold of Bellevaux. You are Princess Katherine, his only heir.”

No. This couldn’t be happening.

“
That’s
why you showed up out of nowhere this morning? For
him?
”

The truth flickered in Logan’s guilty gaze.

A fledgling hope that he’d come for her after all this time went up in flames as hot and deadly as the barn fire. More and more of the sedative’s effect faded. She turned away from Logan to stare at the stranger who was supposedly her father.
King
Leopold. Impossible. She felt no bond with him.

The man, wearing Armani, looked her up and down as if he were studying a filly to purchase. “Good cheekbones. Passable figure. Maybe we can gloss over the cowgirl foolishness. I think we can make something of her. Bring her,” he said to the man at his side and turned his back. “We’ll begin her training on the plane.”

“Now hold on a minute—”

Sergei started toward her and Kat stepped back, looking for an escape. “I’m not going anywhere, and you can’t make me.”

“I can do exactly that,” the monarch said, his expression dangerous. “I am your father. And your king.”

Kat’s knees quaked, but somehow she remained upright. “No. My father is dead. Mom told me—”

“Your mother lied.” King Leopold raised his chin and narrowed his gaze, looking down on her. “You will come with me now and fulfill your duty. You will be announced as my successor in two weeks. As the future Queen of Bellevaux, there are naturally security concerns, so it’s best we get you to the palace immediately.”

Kat could barely breathe. “Security concerns?” Her mind whirled as the morning’s events became clearer in her mind. “Like people coming after me, trying to kill me because I might be a stupid princess?”

Logan’s words finally made sense. Kat turned on the king. “We were locked in that burning barn because of
you?
”

“You will be the next queen.”

“No way. I gave up tiaras for cowboy boots when I was six. Find someone else to play dress up.” Kat shoved Logan aside and stalked to her scuffed boots, propped against an elegant mahogany dresser. “I’m not putting my children’s lives in danger for anyone.”

“Children?” Both Logan and the king shouted at her.

Kat whirled around. “Yes.
My
children. And I need to get to them now. If a killer came after me, he could go after them, too.”

Kat grabbed her Ropers and stuffed one foot in, then the other. She ignored her shaking hands. She had to get to Lanie and Hayden. She needed to see her kids, hug them, hold them, make sure they were okay. They were her family. Her
only
family.

Her eyes stung. She didn’t need some father who didn’t bother coming around until she was full grown, bringing danger into her life. She didn’t need anyone.

She chanced a glance at Logan. His expression had turned stone still. She wouldn’t have been able to recognize how badly her words had shocked him if she hadn’t watched his index finger scratching against his thumb. She recognized the sign. She’d seen it the last time while she’d hidden from him. He’d come to her house right after she’d run. He’d cursed the empty building, then left. Kat had wanted to move, but she couldn’t. She couldn’t let herself hope.

A few months later she’d learned the hard way that she’d been right. Logan didn’t really want her.

The king interrupted her thoughts.

“Your offspring. Do you have a son?” A small smile tilted his lips.

She didn’t like the predatory gleam in his eye. “What does it matter? This facade is over. Go back where you came from, and leave me and mine alone.”

She stalked to the door, grateful the sedative had worn off so she didn’t resemble a drunk on a Friday night bar crawl.

“Stop her,” the king ordered his flunky.

Sergei lunged at Kat. She stumbled away from him.

Logan stepped between them, cutting the man off. “I don’t think so.”

“You dare—”

“I dare a lot,” Logan said. “Move away. Now.”

Sergei didn’t stop coming. Kat braced herself. She’d fight. For her kids. With a single swipe Logan laid the man on the ground with a Taekwondo move. Logan pressed his arm against the man’s windpipe. “Don’t think about crossing me. You won’t win.”

Sergei’s eyes bugged out. He coughed and nodded his head.

Kat had never seen Logan this way. He was swift and deadly. She had no doubt he could maim or kill Sergei if he wanted to. The muscles in Logan’s arms tensed as he pressed against Sergei’s neck once more, then let him go with a warning glare.

“You’ve made your point,” the king announced. “Which is why I didn’t fire you when my son was murdered on your watch.”

Kat gasped.

“Yes, young woman. Both of your half brothers were assassinated. Now do you see why you need protection?”

Kat’s body went numb. “Logan?” She looked toward him, wanting nothing more than reassurance, but seeing none in his gaze.

“I’m sorry. You
do
need protection. This morning proves it.”

She couldn’t listen any longer. “We have to get my kids now.”

“As my heir, you are coming with me,” King Leopold commanded, his face and voice stubborn. “Logan, retrieve the children and meet me at the plane. We’ll leave for Bellevaux at the earliest opportunity.”

“No!” She’d fought too hard to take control of her life—for her and her children. She raced across the suite, yanked the door open and bolted down the hall.

“Kat!” Logan bolted after her, jamming the door to the suite. A spew of curses rose as Sergei and his men slammed against the wood. She didn’t know how long it would hold.

Kat threw open the door to the stairwell. She had to get away. She’d go home, grab the twins and disappear. Someway, somehow. She’d never let her children around the man who
claimed
to be her father.

Heavy footsteps pounded after her, getting closer and closer. Within two flights Logan caught her by the arm and pulled her against him.

She shoved at his chest. “Let me go.”

He pressed her to the wall. “Calm down. I just want to talk for one second. We need a quick plan.”

She stilled. “We?”

“Yeah,” he said, touching her cheek. “We.”

“I’m not going with the king.”

“We’ll work something out, but you need to listen to me.”

She gritted her teeth. “Why should I trust you? You drugged me.”

“I didn’t know about your children. If I had, I would have done things differently. I would have taken you to get them first.” Logan dropped his forehead against hers. “Please, Kat. I won’t let anything happen to you or them. I promise.”

She took a deep breath. “You’ll get me out of here?”

Logan lifted his head and met her gaze. “I’ll find a safe place for you and your kids.”

The truth of his words hung in the air between them.

She finally nodded. She needed help.

He kept his Glock ready. “Let’s go. We have to keep moving.”

They raced down the stairs. “If the king finds us, you won’t just hand over my kids?”

Logan stiffened beside her. “How could you ask me that?”

“I knew you for one week three years ago and you said you were a rancher, but you work for a king now.”

“I
am
a rancher. One who’s done some jobs for King Leopold over the years,” Logan conceded. At the next level, he checked the small window to the hallway, before moving on. “I own a private investigation and security firm.”

Kat’s breaths came harder, but a flicker of hope glimmered. “Can you take us where I don’t have to worry about him coming after us?” She grabbed his wool sweater. “I won’t take any chances. Not with my children.”

“I understand needing to protect your family, Kat.” He helped her round the next level. “We’ll have to make preparations. How old are your kids?”

Kat hesitated. She’d never thought to face this moment. Not after he’d had his ranch hands turn her away. “They’re two and a half,” she whispered softly, not wanting to meet his gaze, but knowing she had no choice.

Comprehension flashed across his face, and he tightened his grip on her arm. “They’re mine?”

“I tried to tell—”

Above them, a door slammed open, and he cursed. “Save it. We need to get you out of here.”

He grabbed her hand and pulled her down the stairs before she could argue. She’d tried to tell him when she’d found out.
He
was the one who hadn’t wanted
her
.