Touched by a Phoenix (46 page)

He gently encircled her into his arms, his kisses deep and sensuous. She moaned with pleasure when he softly bit her bottom lip.

“My turn…,” he whispered.

He thought he must have always loved Alexis but something special had occurred this weekend—something deeper than before. Their lives were about to change forever. She would be his wife, his best friend, his lover, and the mother of his children. He thought perhaps he should be nervous but the nerves did not come. If anything, he couldn’t wait for next Saturday to arrive…couldn’t wait to tell the world how much he loved her.

She trembled at his touch as he washed every part of her. She gazed at him with those golden eyes, showing him the deepest part of her…her soul. She reached for him as she whispered against his lips, “I love you so much it scares me. I don’t remember what my life was before you—all I know is that I couldn’t live without you now.”

“My darling, you never have to worry about that because I will never leave you.”

Something unexplainable in his gaze caught her off guard. Her knees went weak—her heart fluttered with love as he dipped his head and kissed her breathless. Her arms entwined around his neck as he engulfed her into his chest, taking her last bit of breath.

“I think we should do the snow sex again one day. Thank you again for the most wonderful weekend.”

They pulled into the parking garage at the office a little after five.

“If you don’t mind, I think I will run in and pickup my laptop,” Brad piped up, flashing his most boyishly charming smile, “I can run a few diagnostics on ACE and work with Rescue One a little tomorrow while we sit by the fire.”

She rolled her eyes at him. “Do I have competition for your attention?” she teased.

“Heavens, no…I just want to be sure everything goes well,” he assured her with a sheepish grin.

“
Hmm,
I’m not so sure about that. You left a snowcapped mountain and my arms for another woman. Perhaps I should be jealous…after all, Rescue One is my equal,” Alexis mused, eyes dancing with mischievousness.

He chuckled, “My sweet, no other woman will ever take your place. Besides, Rescue One is cold and hard…definitely not my type.” He scrunched his nose. Brad then planted the most passionate kiss on her lips, “I like my women soft and hot…much like you.”

“
Mmm,
I like that,” she giggled, “why don’t you stop by and check on the penthouse on your way home. That way we don’t have to go out tomorrow.” She leaned in for another kiss. “I’ll unpack and put something together for dinner.”

“Sounds like a plan. Be home soon.”

She hopped out of the passenger seat and walked around to the driver’s side. “Sweetheart, give Nan a call and check on her while you’re at it.”

She pulled his shirt, bringing his face close enough for one last kiss as she whispered, “I love you.”

“Love you too.” Brad watched Alexis drive away before heading into the building.

Alexis arrived home tired but content. What a wonderful weekend.

She pulled into the garage and began unloading the car. As she started to unpack, the hair on the back of her neck stood up and a little shiver ran down her spine. An eerie feeling made her stop what she was doing. She walked through the house—everything looked okay. She tried to dismiss the ominous chill as she finished unpacking.

Alexis began preparing dinner when that same cold chill ran down her spine…again. Something was wrong. She picked up the phone and dialed Brad’s number.

“Sweetheart, is everything okay?” she asked.

“Yes, I’m fine. Just a creepy feeling—like something’s not quite right,” she responded.

“No, you go ahead and stop by the house and check on Nan. As long as I know you are all right, I’ll be fine.”

“Later, love,” as she ended the call.

She walked to the living room to turn on some music. Perhaps the house was too quiet and empty without Brad. As she turned to head back to the kitchen, she noticed the picture of her parents was slightly off.

Hmm,
she thought as she straightened the photo.

She popped the baking dish in the oven and grabbed items from the fridge to make salads. The same little shiver ran down her spine again. She could not shake the deep sense that something terrible was about to happen, heightening her awareness.

“Alexis, get hold to yourself,” she whispered aloud, “you are just being silly.” But a sudden sense of dread washed over her. Her throat squeezed together until she couldn’t breathe as the dread worked its way down her esophagus and landed like a bomb in the pit of her stomach. It landed with such force that she dropped the bowl as the explosion erupted. She raced to the phone. With trembling hands, she dialed Brad’s number before she even had a solid grip on the phone. It rang until it went to voice mail. She hung up and dialed the house…voice mail. The frustrating silence…the phone hit the floor as she grabbed her keys and headed to the car. Something was wrong—very wrong.

The Saturday evening traffic was heavier than she expected, as people headed into the city for dinner or to party. Alexis took a deep breath, and followed the same route Brad would have taken just in case he had been in an accident. A sense of relief washed over her as she pulled in the garage and saw his parked car. She felt foolish as she leaned her head against the steering wheel…damn that feeling.

She looked up to see that Brad’s car window had been smashed. Her imagination went into overdrive…about something more sinister—something even more tragic.

She jumped out of the car, not bothering to close the door, and headed for the elevator, which wasn’t moving fast enough for her racing heart. Then it hit her, the elevator—the tampering—ransacking Brad’s office. God no, they couldn’t have gotten to him. Panic overwhelmed her. Feeling nauseous from the intensity of the terror building inside her, she took the stairs—two at a time.

She couldn’t breathe by the time she reached the fourteenth floor. As she reached for the doorknob, hot tears hit her hand. She hadn’t even realized she was crying. She stepped out of the stairwell and into the foyer. The door to the penthouse was ajar. Without thinking, she raced through the open door.

Brad lay face down on the floor with his hands tied behind his back. Blood rushed to her head, sending her world careening over the edge as she gasped for air. She stood in stunned silence, taking in the scene for what seemed like forever before her feet would move.

“Oh my God, Brad…,” she cried, racing to his side. Her hands shook as she checked to see if he was still breathing.

No…not again. She groaned when she saw the blood on the back of his head. He was breathing, but unconscious. She bowed her head.

Thank you,
she whispered.

Racing to the kitchen, she found a knife and cut the tie straps that bound his wrist. She rolled him over as gently as she could and he moaned faintly.

“Oh thank God,” she whispered.

“Brad…please wake up, love.”

He winced as he started to move ever so slightly. His fingers twitched before his hand reached up to his head and gingerly touched where he had been hit. He groaned as he opened his eyes, “Alexis, what the hell are you doing here?”

“I couldn’t reach you so I drove over. I thought you’d been in an accident.”

“You need to get out now,” he urged, trying to sit up. He shook his head as if it were throbbing. He grabbed her arms, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, but you’re scaring me…what happened?”

He reached for his head.

Damn—it hurt.
He looked down at his hand to see a smattering of blood. It felt as though a bomb had gone off inside his skull.

“Alexis, call your father…please.”

She rushed to the phone, “Dad, please send John over to Brad’s house right away. Someone was here when he got home.”

“Yes, but he was unconscious when I arrived. I don’t know what they were looking for.”

“His car window was smashed when I arrived.”

That got Brad’s attention.

“What did you say?” as he struggled to get to his feet.

“Hold on, Dad.”

“I said they busted your car window out.”

He felt his side. “They’ve got my blackberry.” He grabbed the phone from her, “Phillip, I’ll meet you at the office.”

“No, have John come to the house. I’ll have Alexis drive.”

“Alexis, let’s go.” Brad was a little unsteady on his feet.

“Brad, we need to get you to the hospital,” she insisted.

“Later, Alexandria,” his tone was urgent.

“Okay but let me help you,” she insisted, putting his arm around her shoulder.

“Leave the door,” as she stopped to pull it shut, “John is on his way.”

As they waited for the elevator to descend, she asked, “Brad, what happened?”

“I’m not exactly sure. I was packing a few items for the demonstration this week. A noise from the kitchen startled me, so I headed that way. The next thing I remember, you were here. How did you know something was wrong?”

She shrugged her shoulder. “I’m not sure. I just kept getting this sick feeling that something was wrong and when I couldn’t reach you…I just…knew.”

They reached the parking garage. Brad stepped up his pace a little, “Damn,” as he looked in the car.

“Brad, what is it?” She was genuinely concerned with his reaction.

“Please just drive.” As they got into the SUV, he said, “I’ll explain on the way.”

Alexis hopped into the vehicle and started it, making sure that both she and Brad were buckled.

As soon as she had pulled out of the garage, Brad spoke in the most chilling tone, “They have my laptop.”

“Brad…can they get to Rescue One?”

“No, but they might be able to gain access to ACE.”

She drove in silence the rest of the way, cutting corners and rushing through lights as if there was no tomorrow. She couldn’t ever remember being so reckless behind the wheel. Being in a car made her nervous. It had since the accident. She had always been extra careful, especially when she learned to drive. Normally she would have taken the long way just to avoid the heaviest traffic, but not this evening–this evening…she made a beeline for the office.

Her mind was in a whirlwind. If they gained access to the technology on Brad’s computer…. God, she hated to think what they would do with it. They would have power…
too much power!

She slowed as she rounded the corner and blew the horn at the guard. He recognized the car but didn’t have time to raise the gate before she broke through heading for the parking deck. She screeched to a halt at the elevator. Alexis grabbed the keys and raced around to help Brad out of the car. They were waiting for the elevator as the guard rounded the corner.

“Good God Miss Saunders, you scared me to death,” he exclaimed, his gun drawn.

Her voice was haughty and cold, “Do not let anyone in other than my father and Mr. Martin. Put security on high alert and have Bill lock this place down…
now,
” she screamed.

“Yes, ma’am,” as he holstered his gun. Jimmy immediately headed back to the entrance, communicating with security as he ran.

The elevator doors opened. She cringed as they stepped into the place where Brad had been hurt. The elevator display panel showed buttons for the basement through sixth floors. She fumbled with her keys for a second so she could initiate the override controls. A secret panel opened, and she placed her right eye in front of the retinal scanner.

“Scan complete, access granted,” the computer-generated voice sounded cold and calculating.

Brad had closed his eyes on the drive to the office. She had assumed it was because he was thinking, but as he tried to open his eyes, she saw the glazed look in his eyes—glassy…he was in pain.

“B3,” Alexis commanded.

The elevator began to move.

The basement was where they stored all critical parts in a climate-controlled facility. Only a hand full of people knew AAS housed two levels of subbasement below the storage level. B3 was a two-story bunker, complete with sleeping facilities and kitchen. They used the bunker when they had drones on-site and were installing new or repairing existing surveillance equipment. It would hold half dozen drones at any given time. Perhaps a little larger than a single hanger at Andrews Air Force Base and was complete with all the latest technology and equipment.