Crazy for Her (21 page)

Dani refused to look at or speak to any of the three men in the small plane. Keeping her gaze glued to the window, she tried to guess what state they were flying over, but everything appeared the same from this height. They were headed west, and she thought it a pretty sure bet they were going to Arkansas. Well, she’d never been to the Ozarks, so something new.

“Everything will be all right, Danielle, you’ll see,” Eli said, and put his hand on her knee.

With great effort, she didn’t shudder. Any sympathy she’d felt toward him had vanished the minute he’d dragged her at gunpoint out of Dr. Gordon’s office. Was Regan safe? Logan would see to it. That she knew as sure as she knew the sun would rise in the morning. He would take her daughter to Jared and Scott, and then he would come for her. Believing in him was the only thing that kept her from falling apart.

Eli scared her mainly because of his misguided belief that somehow he and Evan were one and that she belonged to them. The man obviously needed a good head doc. But it was the two in the front seats of the Cessna that had her quaking in her boots. The one flying the plane had the meanest eyes she’d ever seen, and the other one kept glancing over his shoulder at her and smirking as if he knew something she didn’t, maybe even something Eli didn’t know. She pretended not to notice the attention he paid her.

Nor did the gun resting on his leg do anything to settle her nerves.

Both of them had looked her up and down when Eli had pulled her out of the car and pushed her to the plane. “Blessed Son’s not gonna be disappointed,” Mean Eyes had drawled.

“Kinda wish I was him right now,” Smirk Face said.

What did that mean? The hand Eli pressed to her back tensed. She’d wanted to ask who Blessed Son was and why he wouldn’t be disappointed, but wouldn’t give them the satisfaction—nor was she sure she wanted to know.

“Get in the plane and shut up,” Eli growled.

“Watch who you tell to shut up, boy.” This from Mean Eyes.

Just one big, happy family. How sweet. A sinking feeling almost brought her to her knees. She’d tried to jump out of the car, but Eli had grabbed her arm and not let go until they arrived at the little airport. She feared a broken leg would have been easy peasy compared to what awaited her.

Dani glanced at her watch. How long did it take to fly to the Ozarks? They’d been in the air for a little over an hour, and as far as she was concerned, they could stay up in the fluffy clouds for eternity. She had no wish to land.

But they did. An older man stood at the end of the grass-strip runway, six men flanking him. “Blessed Son,” Smirk Face said with reverence in his voice to the gray-haired man when the four of them piled out of the Cessna and stood in front of him.

Blessed Son? No introduction was needed to know this was Herbert Ballard, the man who’d separated Evan’s family. Dani hated him on sight.

Bugs crawled under her skin when his gaze raked over her. Her stomach churned when he reached out and took her hand. His fingernails were longer than any man’s should be, his palm damp. His face and the skin on his arms and hands were so pasty, she wondered if he ever allowed sunlight to touch him. Eerily pale blue eyes tried to hold hers captive, but she focused on his chest.

She had landed in hell.
Logan, where are you?

“Welcome, dearest one.”

“I want to go home,” she said before she could zip her lips.

“You are home, little one,” he replied, the sound of his voice almost hypnotizing.

Was this how he had stolen Ruth, with that soft, gentle sound that implied he understood everything about her? She wouldn’t listen to him, wouldn’t hear a word he said. Lowering her gaze to her feet, she repeated herself. “I want to go home. This isn’t it.”

“You do not wish it, you only think so, little dove. You are meant for great things and only I can show you. You have been chosen by God to stand at my side.”

Dani threw up on his shoes.

Eli moved in front of her when Blessed Son raised his hand. She was sure BS meant to hit her.

“The plane ride upset her stomach, Papa Herbert. She didn’t mean to do it and she’s sorry.”

No, she wasn’t, but she kept that thought to herself. The world around her swayed, colors fading to gray. She leaned toward the one she trusted the most—though that wasn’t saying much—and crumbled against him.

A cool cloth brushed over her forehead. “Logan?” She reached for him. He would keep her safe.

Silence.

Dani opened her eyes to see Eli sitting in a chair, staring at her with a hurt expression. Where was Logan? She wanted him. Her gaze darted around the room, the bars on the one window confirming she wasn’t safe at home. She lay on a small bed, a thin blanket over her. When she was little, if she got scared, she would pull her covers over her head. The urge to do so now was strong.

“What happened? Why am I here?”

“You fainted.”

Something else she’d never done before, but between her nerves and BS creeping her out, it didn’t come as a big surprise. Oh God, had she really barfed on BS? Grabbing the edge of the blanket, she held it tight under her chin.

“Please,” she begged her husband’s twin. “Please take me home. Evan wouldn’t want you to do this.”

“He didn’t like you calling out another man’s name.”

Not only was it weird he spoke of Evan as if he were alive, but there was no good answer to his declaration. It was highly doubtful Eli would take it well if she told him the truth. There was no one more than Logan that Evan would have chosen for her if something ever happened to him. He would be happy to know she loved his closest friend and SEAL brother.

Whoa,
love?
Crap. Now the realization hits? Why couldn’t she have had this insight the night before instead of just thinking she should give them a chance? She didn’t give a damn what Logan did for a living. Today had proven that even she, a stay-at-home mom and writer, had no guarantees all was safe in her little world. She desperately wanted to live through this so she could tell him how stupid she’d been.

Time to find out what was going on. “What do you people want from me?”

The hurt look returned. “I thought you would be pleased, Danielle. Didn’t you miss him at all? Aren’t you happy to be back with him, or has the soldier corrupted you?”

Soldier? He had to mean Logan. Probably not a good idea to talk about him. “Evan died. I wish to God he hadn’t, but he did. He’s not here, Eli. That is who you are, right?”

Exploding from the chair, he strode to the end of the bed and then came back, standing over her. “Evan’s a part of me,” he said, pounding on his chest. “Papa Herbert said so, and he knows things like that.”

Definitely time to pull the covers over her head. But it wouldn’t make all this go away. Feeling vulnerable flat on her back, she pushed the blanket aside and stood on the opposite side from Eli. Until Logan came for her, she was alone and had no one to depend on but herself.

She needed to get Eli to talk, maybe get his sympathy. “Of course he’s a part of you. He’s your brother, shares a birthday with you, shared a womb with you.”

“And when he died, his spirit came to live inside of me. Now he is me and I am him and you are ours.”

All righty then, she’d fallen into the rabbit hole, and a damned scary one at that. There was something odd, though. It sounded as if he were repeating a mantra, words he’d been told. She was a writer and good with words herself, so using the only weapon at her disposal, she set about befriending him. She had a strong, uneasy feeling that she might need him to stand between her and BS.

“I wish Evan had known about you, Eli. He would’ve loved knowing he had a twin brother, but his father never told him. Somewhere deep inside him, I think the memory was there. Sometimes he dreamed about another little boy. The dreams were always the same. He and the boy were playing with a brown dog, a boxer, he thought.”

“Thumper,” Eli said through a rush of breath.

Hell if she knew. Evan had never said the dog had a name. “Yes, Thumper. He didn’t know about you, Eli. If he had, he would have searched for you.”

“Didn’t he see my face in the dreams? Didn’t he see I looked just like him?”

Lord, between Logan and Eli, she really should have majored in psychology. The man who had Evan’s face had his eyes trained on her, his expression heartbreakingly and boyishly hopeful. Although she knew nothing about him, she thought it possible someone had done a superb job of stunting his mental growth. If she had to point an accusing finger, she would aim it right at Mr. BS.

Steeling herself, calling up her courage, she walked to him and put her hand on his arm. “I’m sorry, but when he woke up, he could never remember what the other boy looked like. Maybe it was a safeguard kind of thing, maybe he couldn’t comprehend he had a twin brother and someone had been cruel enough to separate you.”

“But I always remembered him.”

“Are you sure? Was it more like you were told about him?”

“Papa Herbert used to tell me about the good little boy that got left behind. When I was bad, he would wish he’d picked Evan instead. I tried really hard not to be bad. Mother said I didn’t have it in me to be good, but Papa Herbert said she was wrong, that I only had to try harder.”

Man, she was so far out of her depth she might as well be having a conversation with a kangaroo. “Eli—”

The door opened and BS walked in, dressed in a flowing white robe, his only adornment a heavy gold chain with a cross hanging from it. She caught a glimpse of Mean Eyes and Smirk Face standing outside like sentries.

Had they been there all along, and more troubling, had they heard the conversation between her and Eli and guessed what she was up to? BS gave her a benevolent smile, one that said she was a misbehaving child and he the understanding parent.

“Danielle, it is my honor to welcome you to The Temple of God’s Divine Children,” he purred in his soft, musical voice. “I am Blessed Son of Supreme Lightness, but you don’t have to tangle your tongue with all that. Blessed Son will do, or just Blessed if you prefer. Are you comfortable, my dear? You are my guest, soon to be my . . . well, we’ll get to that later. Is there anything you need?”

Was he implying that he was the Son of God? Dani backed away, putting the bed between them. If he thought she was stupid enough to fall for his bullshit, he was in for a big surprise. But that didn’t mean he didn’t scare the daylights out of her. He was like a cobra, swaying prettily in front of her, trying to draw her in until she forgot he was a deadly son of a bitch.

“There’s only one thing I need and that’s for you to let me go home.”

The bastard tsked. “You are home, Danielle. I know you don’t understand anything yet, but very soon now, you’ll thank me.”

Seriously, he thought she would thank him? Why hadn’t anyone told her pigs had finally sprouted wings? “You can’t just jerk me out of my life. My daughter needs me.” She hated how desperate she sounded.

“Ah, sweet Regan. Such a delightful child. Put your fears to rest, Danielle. She’s being well cared for as long as you behave like the good girl I know you are.”

Dani’s knees gave out and she sank to the floor.
Oh God, I beg you, please don’t let it be true.
He was lying, he had to be. Logan would have gotten to Regan before anyone else could have, and he wouldn’t let anyone steal her away. He wouldn’t. Her daughter was safe, she knew it in her heart because she didn’t doubt she could depend on Logan. The knowledge calmed her.

As she knelt with her head near her legs, she forced her breathing to return to normal and considered how to go on. BS was counting on her cooperation by using Regan as leverage. Only, he was lying, lying, lying. What would Logan tell her to do? His voice, almost as if he were standing next to her, whispered into her ear.
Buy time, Dani. I’m coming for you.

Pushing herself up, she squared her shoulders and looked at the creep. He had fish eyes, bulging and weirdly incandescent. Crazy eyes. She would not cower before this self-important blowfish.

“Well then, that relieves my mind. Now I’d like you to leave. I’m tired from all the excitement and would love a nap.”

BS gave himself away when his eyes widened in surprise.

Didn’t expect that, did you, you freaking asshole?

“Have her bathed and ready to join me for dinner,” BS said, his gaze hard on her. “Her wedding dress is in the closet.” He turned and strode out of the room.

Dani turned to Eli. Her wedding dress?

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

L
ogan s
tood on a hill under the branches of a giant pine tree and surveyed the perimeter of the compound through high-powered binoculars. Inside the fence, women garbed in old-fashioned
dresses covering them from neck to shoes worked in a large vegetable garden. Men roamed around, seemingly not doing much of anything.

Off to the left was a grass landing strip, an older-model Cessna 182 sitting out in the open. It didn’t look well maintained. It would be best not to think about Dani flying in that piece of junk.

Where the hell was she? He swept the binoculars across the camp, stopping when he saw a man dressed in all white enter a small building. An introduction wasn’t needed to know he was looking at Herbert Ballard. Two men stood guard outside the door.

Logan took in the details of the building, noting there was one window with bars on the side he could see. That had to be where they were holding her. He kept his sight trained on the door, waiting for Ballard to come out.

Closing his mind to the sounds around him, he tried to sense Dani. If only he could somehow let her know he was there. The air around him grew heavy, his breathing slowed, and something strange happened. For a moment in time, Evan stood next to him and they were with Dani. “Buy time and stay safe,” Logan whispered.

“What?”

What the hell had just happened? He lowered the binoculars and blinked at Buchanan. “I didn’t say anything.”

“Did, too.”

Had he? It had seemed so real that maybe he had. “Are the dogs going to be a problem?”

“Decourdeau says not to worry.”

“What’s his plan, do you know?”

“He’s got a tranquilizer gun. Said there’s just four Dobermans and they’re only half-ass trained, so no big deal. He’s been creeping up to the fence at night, cooing to them in Doberish. Man’s wonky, if you ask me. Rubs raw meat all over his clothes and then goes a’visiting his doggies.”

Logan raised a brow. “And they don’t bark?”

“Surprised me, too. Now if you or me tried to sneak up on them, different story altogether. Swear to God, dude’s got some kind of voodoo shit going on.”

“Whatever works,” Logan said. “Stupid of these idiots not to have anyone doing night patrol with the dogs. Not that I’m complaining.”

“Yeah, there’s only the guard at the gate on duty at night.”

Ballard came out and Logan brought the binoculars back up. The man said a few words to the guards and then walked off. Logan tracked him, noting he entered the only building that looked like a house. Besides the house, there were several structures that appeared to be dormitories, along with the kennels and the small building where they were keeping Dani. The big question was, would she still be there at 0300? He unrolled his site map and circled Dani’s location and the house.

“Call Turner and tell him to send one of his men here. I want him watching that building from now until we drop in on them. If they move Dani, I want to be notified immediately.”

“Hey, boss, look.”

Through the binoculars, he saw Evan’s twin up close for the first time. Except for the shaved head, Logan would’ve sworn he was seeing his friend. Eli said something to one of the guards, the man walked away, and then Eli went back inside with Dani. Rage turned Logan’s gut sour. He stepped forward, intending to tear the place apart with his bare hands to get to her.

Buchanan grabbed his arm. “Easy, Iceman.”

The name grounded him, and Logan stilled, letting the Iceman cool his blood. He’d already made one mistake too many—another was unacceptable. The Iceman didn’t screw up. Logan did, and so he was banished until Dani was safe in his arms.

“Meeting at eighteen hundred. I want everyone there except the man assigned to this post. He’s not to move an inch until I say otherwise.”

Deep in the woods, Logan sat next to Barbie and spread out the satellite photo in the middle of the circle of men. She’d participated in one previous mission on American soil, acting as their operations coordinator. Her goal was to join one of the teams, but she had no combat experience and would have to prove herself to the men. So far, she was doing an excellent job of winning their respect.

He went over the plan, and then went over it again. They didn’t have the luxury of their warehouse, where they could build a facsimile of the compound and train for a week or two, but each soul on the mission knew what was at stake and they would do or die. Logan had been on many missions with some of these men, some he hadn’t, but they were all ex-SEALs and the most skilled in the world at what they did.

The plan was the best they could come up with under the circumstances, the one least likely to get anyone killed on either side. If the Iceman had to, however, he would metamorphose into Superman and take a hundred bullets, because nothing and no one would stop him from rescuing Dani.

After reviewing the upcoming night a third time, it was time for a pep talk. “Andre’s bewitched the dogs, so you don’t have to worry about Doberman teeth sinking into your ass.” Logan looked at Decourdeau and shuddered. “You’re a scary man, but I can live with that as long as you don’t ever turn your voodoo shit my way.”

“No problem,
mon ami
,
long as you don’t go and piss me off.”

As Logan had intended, the men laughed quietly. “And you, Romeo, no flirting with the ladies.”

Buchanan grinned. “That I can’t promise, even if they are wearing more clothes than a nun at Sunday services.”

More low chuckles. Logan put his arm around Barbie’s shoulders and kissed her cheek. “And you, doll baby, when we get Dani out, throw her in the van and don’t look back. Turner,” he said, “your only job is to sit outside the gate, engine running. When our girls scramble inside, you don’t stop until you get to Asheville. Anyone suspicious comes near you, you shoot to kill. Got that?”

Turner nodded.

“Anything else?” When they all remained silent, he spoke the first words of the SEAL pledge.

“
To find us
—
”

“You must be good,
” the rest chimed in.

“To catch us,

“You must be quick . . .

“To defeat us,

“You must be . . .

“JOKING!”

Curled fists piled one on top of the other. “God be with us,” he said.

“God be with us,” the others echoed.

Dani looked for a lock on the bathroom door, but there wasn’t one. The room was small, the shower, sink, and toilet crowded so close, she could barely turn around. She turned the shower on, hoping that Eli thought she was doing as told. There was no way on God’s earth she was taking her clothes off if she couldn’t lock herself in. Who in their right mind would get all smelly-good for BS, anyway?

She stared at the white dress hanging on the back of the door. It seemed ominous, like if she put it on, bad things would start happening. Did Eli really think she would willingly marry him? If so, he was as cracked as BS.

They’d taken her purse and cell phone, so there wasn’t any way to contact Logan. The only window in the cabin was barred, giving her no means of escape unless she could barrel past Eli, the two men standing guard outside, and who knew how many others. The odds of success were probably on level with winning the lottery.

She turned on the sink faucet and splashed cool water on her face.
Think, Dani. You have to think your way out of this. Buy time, stay calm.

The first place Logan would look for her would be the cult’s compound. Until he arrived, she would somehow have to manage on her own. She turned the faucet and shower off and left the dress hanging on the door. Eli stood at the window, staring out. He turned, his gaze sliding over her.

“You have to get ready, Danielle.”

“What did he mean by ‘wedding dress’?”

“Papa Herbert will explain everything at dinner. Please, you don’t want to anger him; you have to wear the dress.”

Dani sensed he spoke from experience, but she didn’t feel particularly obedient at the moment. “I’ll take my chances.”

Fear flashed in his eyes. “He’ll blame me.”

Why Eli didn’t scare her the way BS did, she wasn’t sure. He seemed more like an oversized boy eager to please the adults in his life. And he looked like Evan. Her husband might have been lethal in battle, but where she was concerned, there hadn’t been a mean bone in his body. It was impossible to look at his twin and believe he was evil. Misguided and ill used, yes. A bad man, no.

“Eli, you can’t just go and steal someone out of their life. Please, take me home.”

“Don’t you want to be with me and Evan? I thought you would be happy here with us.”

The door opened and Smirk Face entered, saving her from having to respond. He handed Eli a brown bag and a bottle of water.

“Blessed Son said seven sharp.” He walked out whistling the wedding march.

Dani didn’t much like the sound of that, and how they could call the man Blessed Son and keep a straight face was beyond her.

Eli thrust the bag and water into her hand. “I thought you might be hungry since you missed lunch.”

She looked in the bag. She was hungry, but it was entirely possible they’d drugged the sandwich. “Thanks, but I’m not, actually.” It would be best not to eat anything they gave her. She could last until Logan came. Holding the bottle up to see it was unopened, she twisted the cap off and drank.

“I’m going to leave you alone so you’ll have privacy to dress.”

Suddenly she didn’t want him to leave. What if one or both of the guards decided to have a little fun with her? “No, please stay.”

This seemed to please him and he sat down in the chair. “I’ll wait here. You can change in the bathroom.”

They were going to have to hold her down and put that dress on her if they were that determined she wear it. “I have a better idea,” she said, and sat on the edge of the bed. “Suppose I tell you about Evan?”

He glanced away, his desire to learn about his brother obviously at war with his orders from BS. Dani remained quiet, letting him battle it out. Evan would win out, she was certain. If she played this right, maybe, just maybe, she could turn Eli against BS.

His gaze finally settled back on her. “Did he look like me?”

Victorious, she grinned. “Exactly like you, with only one exception. He had hair.”

He swept a hand over his head. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. Between deployments, he kept it short, but when it neared time to ship out, he let it grow.” Within ten minutes, he had moved to the edge of the chair and seemed to be hanging on to her every word as she told him stories of his brother. All she could think was, poor Eli, and how sad Evan never knew about him. Sad for Eli, too, because Evan would have moved heaven and earth to save his twin if he’d only known.

“He was your brother, Eli, your twin, and in his dreams he knew you, loved you. He loved me, too, and it would hurt him to know someone meant me harm and that you were a part of it. Please believe that, because I would never lie to you. He would only ask one thing of you,” she said when she noticed the sun setting, a reminder it was almost time to enter the viper’s nest.