Whatever It Takes (8 page)

“Yes.”

“And you’re sure she doesn’t know who I am?”

“Yes, but are you sure you know what you’re doing?”

Eli knew he was taking a risk. Seeing him again would bring to mind one of the most painful and traumatic times in her life. Not that it would ever be far from her mind, he was sure. But it was time, in more ways than one.

“I’ve waited as long as I can. And with the most recent events, it’s imperative that it happen now.”

 “Agreed, but…” Amusement entered Justice’s voice. “You do know that she’ll have a gun, don’t you? I’ve seen her use it. Damn impressive.”

“That’s what I’m counting on.” 

His smile grim but determined, Eli ended the call. 

Chapter Eight

Kathleen stood several yards away from the most impressive mansion she’d ever seen. Even while her expert eyes assessed the job, the surroundings, she couldn’t quite quell the shiver of excitement that she’d get to see inside. She’d always been a sucker for castles, and this one, in Dallas, Texas, for heaven’s sake, was incredible. 

Standing at least four stories high, it was a humongous structure of rock and brick, with a classic fairy-tale design complete with turrets and towers. The only things missing were the handsome prince and princess. What kind of family lived in such an extravagant home?  

She’d been getting ready for bed when Grey had called and given her this assignment. Said it had to be done tonight, immediately. Even though she’d done numerous jobs for Justice over the past three months, having a half hour’s notice was unusual, even for him. There hadn’t been time to do more than plug the address into a search engine to discover the homeowner’s name. Not that it mattered for her to be able to do the job, but a little more information would have been nice to have.

She sighed. “Expect the unexpected” should be Grey Justice’s company slogan. 

When she had agreed to work for Grey, she had been an emotional wreck. No matter that he’d promised her access to unparalleled resources to help her exonerate Alice, making a decision of that magnitude without careful study and contemplation had been unheard of for Kathleen. How odd that it had turned out to be one of the best decisions she’d ever made.

Her official title was freelance security operative. Grey had given her carte blanche to reject any assignment she wasn’t comfortable taking. She appreciated the autonomy but so far hadn’t turned down any jobs. The assignments had been as eclectic as they were unusual. One day she was shadowing a known drug dealer to discover his supplier, the next day she might be leaving incriminating evidence on a prosecutor’s desk to help convict a pedophile. Yesterday, she had spent hours flirting with a Swedish businessman thought to be in cahoots with a Spanish crime boss. For three hours she’d giggled and batted her eyelashes just to discover whether or not he’d been in Memphis at the same time a union leader had been assassinated.

She didn’t always know the reason the information was needed. Her first day on the job, Grey had explained that a single thread could unravel the most tightly knitted of alibis. Her job would often require that she find that one single thread.

Grey’s need for secrecy was of utmost importance. The cases his people were involved in were news stories all over the country. In just the few months she had worked with him, she’d seen legal battles won, cases thrown out, innocent people released from jail, and vile, evil criminals arrested, most of them never knowing that a small group of dedicated people had had a hand in securing justice. 

When she’d realized what his secret organization did, she’d been both fascinated and doubtful. Could a small group of justice seekers really make that much of a difference? The answer was an unqualified yes. Okay, some laws were skirted, and a few times she had crossed the line past legal, but when the guilty were locked up and the innocent set free, it was damn hard to quibble with the difference between what was legal and what was right.

At first, her disciplined, too-structured soul had rebelled at the unpredictability of the job. Accustomed to knowing what she would be doing from sunup to sundown had been her way of life for so long, Kathleen hadn’t realized how rigid she had become. 

Now, if anything, she relished the challenge and variety. Staying busy kept her sane. She still grieved for Alice—would grieve till the day she died. But with each day, with its challenges and variety, she could feel herself healing.

Just because she was healing, didn’t mean she had stopped looking for Frank Braden’s killer. Exonerating Alice would be one last gift she could give to her sister.

True to his word, Grey had opened doors that had previously been closed. She had uncovered information about Braden she doubted few people knew. So far nothing she had uncovered led her to the person responsible for his death, but like Grey said, sometimes a single thread was all you needed. So she would keep digging until one of those threads led her to a killer.

In the meantime, she had an estate to break into. And what an estate it was. An iron gate, at least ten feet high, surrounded what had to be at least twenty acres. Lights glowed everywhere, illuminating every damn corner. If a spider crawled by, she had a feeling several different sensors would go off. Why did this guy think he had security problems?

With a mental shrug, she pushed the why aside and concentrated on the how. Staying in the shadows, Kathleen stealthily walked the perimeter, looking for the most vulnerable point. It was a tedious, time-consuming task, especially when there didn’t appear to be a weak spot anywhere. 

Eyes narrowed, concentration keen, she trudged through the wooded area that surrounded what could only be described as an impenetrable fortress. How the hell was she going to—

She stopped so abruptly she almost slammed face first into a tree. A tree whose strong, sturdy branches reached past one of the large brick columns attached to the iron railing. If she climbed the tree and shimmied across the limb, she could step onto the brick column and then drop over to the other side.

Having lost weight that she really couldn’t afford to lose, Kathleen knew the limb would hold her. And climbing the tree would be child’s play. Her biggest problem would come when she dropped onto the other side and lights as bright as a lighthouse’s beacon shone down on her.

Now that she had a plan, she was feeling quite confident as she quickly headed back to the gatehouse. Having already checked out the security guard’s activities, she knew what she would find. Still, she peered into a window and confirmed. The man sat at a desk and, in apparent comfort and enjoyment, consumed a large pepperoni pizza as he watched a Cowboys football game. One more security area she’d point out that needed to change.

Opening the small pouch hanging from her belt loop, she withdrew the necessary tools and then eased open the security panel on the side of the gatehouse. Using a small flashlight, she highlighted what looked to be a maze of switches. It was a good system and happily one she was familiar with. Within seconds, she located the security switches that lighted the sector she planned to breach. She flipped two of the switches and froze. No movement from the gatehouse, which told her the guard wasn’t looking at the control panel behind him. If he were, he would most definitely notice the warning signal. The guard’s lack of attention gave her the opportunity she needed.

She carefully closed the security panel door and took off. In between the noshing of pizza, he might just look behind him and notice the blip. She had no extra time to spare. Reaching the tree again, she jumped for the lowest branch and swung herself up. Within seconds, she was scooting across the branch that hung over the railing. A moment later, she was at the brick column. Bracing herself for impact, she dropped to the ground. Pleased her weak ankle gave no indication it had even felt jarred, she took off into the night.

Evening shadows lengthened into midnight dark, quiet blanketed the house, and night settled in. Eli sat alone in his bedroom and stared at nothing. He thought about and rejected the idea of turning on lights. The darkness fit his mood. Besides, night shadows offered more comfort these days. In daylight, flaws were revealed, armor pierced, blood spilled. In darkness, he could escape the cold light of reality.

His daughters, Violet and Sophia, were tucked in for the night. He hoped they dreamed of magical wizards and beautiful, kindhearted fairies. He hoped they always believed in goodness and light. That they could escape the darkness that permeated their surroundings. 

Someone wanted to hurt him by hurting his daughters. He would die before he let that happen. And he would do whatever it took to make sure they stayed safe.

The first threat had been subtle, almost negligible. So much so that if it had been made against him, he would have dismissed it as an amusing incident. But it hadn’t been made against him…it had been made against his children. No way in hell would he stand for that.

The next ones had been much less subtle but still vague. Today’s had been different. It had come with attachments—photos of his children taken at various times of the day. The bastard wanted him to know they were being watched…stalked.

Adam had denied sending any of the emails. Having the IP address come from the prison, the location of the threat so easily obtained, screamed setup, not guilt. But he trusted his brother’s word as far as he could throw this damn house. So until Eli knew different, Adam would remain his prime suspect.

But if not Adam, then who?

Who the hell was left that hated him enough to do something vile like this? He was an adult, a businessman who dealt with ruthless and conscienceless people. He could handle the heat and any threat made toward him. But to threaten two innocent children? Hell, that was so damn far over the line. 

Sure, there were people who didn’t like him. More than a few were probably not happy with the way he’d ended his father and brother’s business agreements. But he honestly could not name one person he’d pissed off enough to warrant threats against his children.

He wouldn’t wait for something to happen. He was being proactive, setting things in place, getting ready. When and if the devil came calling, Eli intended to be well prepared to send him back to hell.

Out of the darkness, a small click sounded, telling him one more thing he’d needed to know. There was no safe place. His home, the one place he believed his children were the safest, wasn’t. And yet, when he stood and turned, he couldn’t prevent the lift to his heart at the sight before him.

“You’re late,” Eli said.

Her posture went military straight as her eyes flared with temper. For an intruder, she looked highly insulted. “Well, excuse me, but I just got the assignment an hour ago. Besides, burglars have a tendency to arrive at unexpected times. They don’t normally call in advance for an appointment.”

He’d never forgotten that husky, almost musical voice. Had been anticipating hearing it again.

“Sorry for the short notice.” He didn’t add that it was deliberate. If she’d had time to do research, she might not have shown up.

He took in her appearance and fought a smile. Black jeans, long-sleeve black pullover, and black skullcap to cover that glorious hair. She might dress the part of a thief, but she looked delightfully feminine to him. She also looked less stressed than the last time he’d seen her. Though, to his mind, she still had the translucent appearance of someone who’d endured a trauma. 

“So…what now? You want me to get down on the floor? Put my hands behind my head?”

“Hmm.” She seemed to consider it for a few seconds, and then she smiled. “Since I’ve never broken into anyone’s home before, I don’t quite know what the proper etiquette should be.” 

How odd that for as much as he knew about this woman, he had never seen her smile. He hadn’t known about the deep dimple in her left cheek or that those amazing sea-blue eyes could sparkle like diamonds in the ocean. 

“You’re the one with the gun. Guess you call the shots…so to speak.”

She glanced down at the weapon in her hand and grimaced. “Sorry.” She slid the gun into the holster at her waist. “Grey didn’t give me much information, so I didn’t know what to expect.”

“Wise woman.”

“So…really. I didn’t surprise you in the least?”

Her disappointment was obvious. She had expected a stronger reaction. “No. But to be fair, I
was
expecting you.” He paused for a second and then added, “If it makes you feel better, your gun is bigger than I thought it would be.”

She laughed softly. “Well, that’s something.”

Eli stayed in the shadows, not revealing his face yet, wanting to enjoy anonymity for just a few more moments. Once she knew his identity, complications would arise and questions would have to be answered. 

Not a day had gone by since he’d last seen her that he hadn’t thought of her, or regretted that he hadn’t stayed longer. He’d already been driving out of the parking lot when the shooting had taken place. Even though they’d yet to share more than a few words with each other, he felt he should have been there for her. She’d had no one.

Staying away from her these past three months had been difficult, but he hadn’t wanted to intrude. She had needed time to heal, time to become acclimated to her new job, her new life.

Figuring out a way to introduce himself had proven harder than he’d feared. Hiring her to break into his home wasn’t the subtlest of introductions, but it would get the job done, as well as point out the weaknesses in his security.

Her voice broke the quiet, the tone revealing a slight nervousness at his continued silence. “So, umm, now that I’m here, I assume you want to know how I did it…how I broke in?”

“Not particularly.”

Her brow furrowed with a frown. “Then why am I here?”

“Because I wanted to know
if
you could break in.”

“And now that you know?”

“We’re going to make sure no one else can.”

The dimple made another intriguing appearance. “Uh oh, you’re one of those kinds.”