Page 22 of Too Broken to Love

Hudson backed down the path. “I’ll go up to the boardwalk and look for Tessa. Save me a scone.” Now that he was here, he couldn’t wait another moment to speak to her.

Head down, he stepped onto the boards. There hadn’t been many people on the street, but tournament-goers stood shoulder to shoulder on the pier. He scanned the crowd for Tessa. No sign of auburn curls. Pop’s friends would have been here hours ago to claim their favorite spots well over the water. Walking through the crowd filled him with more apprehension than visiting Chris yesterday.

Stop being a coward.

He squared his shoulders and fortified himself like he did before he went into surgery. As he stepped toward the pier, the line at the Coffee Hut shifted. Long, lean legs he’d already memorized the shape of came into view. He locked his focus on Tessa’s neon pink running shorts as she stepped out of an older woman’s embrace and turned her teary face in his direction.

Sliding behind a pickup truck, he took a photo in case he needed something to share with the authorities—not because she looked more beautiful than the pale light painting the horizon. As he put his phone in his jeans pocket, the woman pointed to the pier.

Tessa shook her head and backed up. With a little wave, she turned and walked away.

He understood Tessa’s retreat to his core.

Careful not to catch anyone’s eye, Hudson followed Tessa for a block. As he opened his mouth to call her name, she broke into a run.

“Fuck.” His ribs flared at the exertion they weren’t healed enough for. Breathing hurt as he wove through a group of people carrying coolers and lawn chairs. He should stop and wait for Tessa to double back, but letting her disappear wasn’t an option.

He held his side as he pumped his legs. He didn’t bother calling her name. She wouldn’t hear it over the wind anyway. But when he caught up to her, he’d get close enough to read every flicker across her face when he asked about Pop’s will.

His phone buzzed. Slowing, he fished it out of his pocket and read a message from the General.

Found nothing more about Tessa McVie other than what you shared. Still looking into Frank McVie. Uncovered this video. It’s legit. The place and time are consistent with events.

Hudson hit play on the attachment. Slowing to a fast walk, he watched the evidence unfold “Son-of-a-fucking-sea-bass.”

As he looked up, a man dressed in head-to-toe black stepped onto the boardwalk and headed straight for the pretty little thief.

Eyes down, Tessa ran.

With each block she cleared, the tournament crowd thinned, leaving her alone for a merciful few minutes until a shadow crossed her path. She veered to avoid whoever cast it without looking up.

“Ms. McVie.”

She stopped short at the snap of her name. A man in black blocked her direct path down the boardwalk. She backed up a step, tensed to flee. “Who are you?”

He flashed an ID. “I’m an agent with a private security company. Your father hired us to take you to him. You’re in danger. Come with me.”

She didn’t try to run. Men who looked like that, with hard eyes and shady stories, used to show up with baseball bats looking for Frank. If he was home, they made sure he paid up. “My father is in Belize.”

“Not any longer. He’s at a nearby marina.” He pulled a photo from his pocket and held it up. “We have a boat waiting to take the two of you to a secure location.”

Tessa eyed the picture. “That’s a fake.”

He shoved the photo in his pants pocket without a flicker of reaction and stepped toward her. “My instructions are to bring you to your father by whatever means necessary.” He shifted his leather vest. A pistol peeked from his waistband. “Let’s go.”

“Pulling out that gun in the middle of the boardwalk would be stupid, don’t you think?”

The fake agent latched onto her wrist. She twisted and stepped past his shoulder, spinning toward the pier. As she whirled to run, her toe caught on a warped board.

He wrenched her arm and spun her back. “Shut up and come with me.”

Ignoring the flare of pain, her heart racing, she pressed closer to him. “I like your voice. Where are you from?”

Surprise loosened his hold for half a second. She jerked her arm, but he tightened his grip and tugged her toward the street. “If you don’t come with me nice and quiet, you and your father will die."

She planted her feet and screamed for help. Crashing waves drowned out her desperate plea. Panic rising, she spotted a lone figure racing toward them.

Hudson. He’s here.