his head. But the moment for risqué storytelling had been lost.
Erin’s expression grew serious. “We should join the guys in the living room. We have a lot to discuss.”
She was right. We had yet to finalize the plan—the plan for rescuing my poor kidnapped father. The respite from the seriousness of the situation we faced was over.
Erin rose and refilled her coffee. I remained seated at the table, and Helena covered my hand with hers. “Are you all right?”
I nodded once. “I guess.”
Erin left, saying she’d be in the living room, waiting with the guys.
I sighed and turned to Helena. “It was just nice to forget about what’s going on for a little bit.”
“I know, Maddy, I know.”
Helena and I rose and refilled our cups and then headed to the living room.
Lighthearted girl-talk time was over. Sadly, we were back to dealing with harsh realities.
Chapter Eight
T he excitement over Helena’s pregnancy and the curiosity as to what kinds of kinky things Stowe was in to would have to wait…at least, for the time being.
Helena and I stepped into the living room and sat down at the end of the sofa, where Nate and Stowe made room for us. Adam and Erin, seated in chairs nearby, waited for us to get settled.
“Okay,” I said after a minute. “How’s this going down?”
Adam shuffled some papers and then began to review the plan that had been devised to rescue my father. The reality and the seriousness of the undertaking splashed over me like a bucket of ice water. My father was in real peril. He could even end up…dead. I guessed I’d been trying not to think about how my dad was being held captive by the remaining members of a ruthless organization, tattered though it was at the moment. But now I had no choice but to face facts—like how Adam was going to put himself in jeopardy to rescue my father. All because he loved me, which was why I piped up at one point and asked if there was possibly another way to save my dad.
I was told no. The plan was set, and everything was final.
It sure was final; the very next day the plan went into motion.
As Erin had mentioned on the car ride back to Harbour Falls, it was imperative that I was seen out and about in town. But not with Adam. That would be way too obvious, arousing suspicion that our return to Harbour Falls was a setup, which it was, of course, but Ruslan didn’t need to know that little fact.
So when I headed over to my father’s house—the stately white-frame structure in which I’d grown up—it was Erin who accompanied me. She was there as a friend but also as protection. I knew somewhere under the smart business pantsuit she was wearing there was a hidden firearm.
I felt safe with Erin, but still, she was only one person. Who knew how many men Ruslan had working for him in Harbour Falls?
“Shouldn’t we have more cover?” I asked Erin as I made an unnecessary turn. I was trying to take the longest route possible to maximize opportunities for me to be seen.
“Look around, Maddy,” Erin replied as she twisted in the passenger seat to face me. “We’re not as alone as you might think.”
“Really?”
I was doubtful until I really began to pay attention to the cars around us. I quickly realized we were being shadowed.
“The car behind us…” I nodded up to the rearview mirror to bring attention to the plain, dark sedan tailing us. “Is that an agent?”
“Yes, Maddy,” Erin assured me. “He’s one of many.”
The extra agents made me feel more secure but also uneasy. It stood to reason that if our people were around—ones I hadn’t even noticed, at first—then Ruslan surely had people tailing us as well.
But that’s what we want , I reminded myself. The plan was for me to be seen. And then Stowe would wait for Ruslan to (hopefully) make contact.
I’d been informed Ruslan was still under the impression Stowe worked for him. He thought my neighbor was only on the Wickingham Way project as a mole of some sort.
Erin’s expression grew serious. “We should join the guys in the living room. We have a lot to discuss.”
She was right. We had yet to finalize the plan—the plan for rescuing my poor kidnapped father. The respite from the seriousness of the situation we faced was over.
Erin rose and refilled her coffee. I remained seated at the table, and Helena covered my hand with hers. “Are you all right?”
I nodded once. “I guess.”
Erin left, saying she’d be in the living room, waiting with the guys.
I sighed and turned to Helena. “It was just nice to forget about what’s going on for a little bit.”
“I know, Maddy, I know.”
Helena and I rose and refilled our cups and then headed to the living room.
Lighthearted girl-talk time was over. Sadly, we were back to dealing with harsh realities.
Chapter Eight
T he excitement over Helena’s pregnancy and the curiosity as to what kinds of kinky things Stowe was in to would have to wait…at least, for the time being.
Helena and I stepped into the living room and sat down at the end of the sofa, where Nate and Stowe made room for us. Adam and Erin, seated in chairs nearby, waited for us to get settled.
“Okay,” I said after a minute. “How’s this going down?”
Adam shuffled some papers and then began to review the plan that had been devised to rescue my father. The reality and the seriousness of the undertaking splashed over me like a bucket of ice water. My father was in real peril. He could even end up…dead. I guessed I’d been trying not to think about how my dad was being held captive by the remaining members of a ruthless organization, tattered though it was at the moment. But now I had no choice but to face facts—like how Adam was going to put himself in jeopardy to rescue my father. All because he loved me, which was why I piped up at one point and asked if there was possibly another way to save my dad.
I was told no. The plan was set, and everything was final.
It sure was final; the very next day the plan went into motion.
As Erin had mentioned on the car ride back to Harbour Falls, it was imperative that I was seen out and about in town. But not with Adam. That would be way too obvious, arousing suspicion that our return to Harbour Falls was a setup, which it was, of course, but Ruslan didn’t need to know that little fact.
So when I headed over to my father’s house—the stately white-frame structure in which I’d grown up—it was Erin who accompanied me. She was there as a friend but also as protection. I knew somewhere under the smart business pantsuit she was wearing there was a hidden firearm.
I felt safe with Erin, but still, she was only one person. Who knew how many men Ruslan had working for him in Harbour Falls?
“Shouldn’t we have more cover?” I asked Erin as I made an unnecessary turn. I was trying to take the longest route possible to maximize opportunities for me to be seen.
“Look around, Maddy,” Erin replied as she twisted in the passenger seat to face me. “We’re not as alone as you might think.”
“Really?”
I was doubtful until I really began to pay attention to the cars around us. I quickly realized we were being shadowed.
“The car behind us…” I nodded up to the rearview mirror to bring attention to the plain, dark sedan tailing us. “Is that an agent?”
“Yes, Maddy,” Erin assured me. “He’s one of many.”
The extra agents made me feel more secure but also uneasy. It stood to reason that if our people were around—ones I hadn’t even noticed, at first—then Ruslan surely had people tailing us as well.
But that’s what we want , I reminded myself. The plan was for me to be seen. And then Stowe would wait for Ruslan to (hopefully) make contact.
I’d been informed Ruslan was still under the impression Stowe worked for him. He thought my neighbor was only on the Wickingham Way project as a mole of some sort.
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