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He caressed her cheek. “I’ll be okay. I can take care of myself. We’ve got to think of Emma’s safety now. My only desire is to ensure she’s back with you by the end of all this.”
“Thank you.” She lowered her voice, not wanting Daniel to overhear. “But I’m so scared to lose you now I’ve only just found you.”
“Hey, sweetheart, I’m not going anywhere. Not now I’ve finally found something to live for.”
Her eyes welled with tears as she pressed herself against him. “Please don’t let anything happen to you.”
He wrapped his arms around her. “Astrid, darling, I’ve already been shot twice and survived. Someone up there’s looking out for me. And I can assure you, it won’t be third time lucky – I’m not ready to die yet.”
She buried her face in his strong chest. “Just don’t do anything stupid.”
“I’ll get your sister back. And then we’ve got the rest of our lives to worry about each other. Okay?”
Daniel cleared his throat. “Shouldn’t we be getting on with this?”
Astrid stepped back and composed herself. “Yeah.”
Jake gazed at her. Somehow she seemed braver; stronger. He was so proud of how far she’d come in the last few days – facing danger and facing her own inner demons. And she’d helped him face his too. But right now, he needed to harden his heart and keep his mind focused on the job.
“The kidnapper doesn’t know who I am,” Jake said. “Presumably not anyway. So I should be able to go in there and take a look around without raising too much suspicion.”
“All right,” Astrid said, steeling herself. “We’ll monitor you from back here.”
Her demeanor hardened as she stood tall and called on her inner-marine. She grabbed a couple of two-way radio mics and earpieces from Daniel’s car. “Here, Jake, you take one of these. We’ll stay in contact with you at all times and keep on an eye on things from back here.”
Impressed with how she was suddenly taking the lead, Jake took the earpiece and mic and put it on. The earpiece fitted snugly into his ear, and the mic clipped onto his shirt, which hopefully wouldn’t look too conspicuous if and when he confronted Graves… or Simon… or whoever was controlling this whole thing. Whoever it was, Jake was ready to fight them for Emma’s safe return.
Daniel took the other earpiece and mic and fitted them to his person, then he gazed directly into Jake’s eyes, as if to assure him he could be trusted. Somehow, Jake would’ve preferred to stay in communication with Astrid, but he figured Daniel was a cop with a lot of training – surely he wouldn’t allow his personal vendettas get in the way of justice. No disrespect to Astrid, but perhaps Daniel would be more useful in a surveillance situation than a health-and-safety officer. Especially one related to the victim.
He grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze. “I’ll be right back. See you on the other side.”
She smiled. “Just get my sister for me.”
“I will.”
“And don’t let anything happen to you.”
He kissed her on the lips, no longer caring about their audience. “Not while I’ve got you out here waiting for me.”
“Come on, Astrid,” Daniel said, getting into position. “We can monitor him from back here.”
Jake strode away from them, driven by his desire to rescue Emma then get back to Astrid as soon as possible. He crept down the long gravel driveway toward the house, and halted on the doorstep, resting his hand on his gun for reassurance. He gazed at the gothic front door, wondering how best to break in quietly and subtly, but then he realized the door was ajar, so he pushed it. It creaked open slowly. Wary tingles prickled the back of his neck. Why the hell was the front door unlocked? No one was expecting him... Were they?
He shook away his doubts and stepped inside. The front door led directly to the main reception room, which was eerily quiet, dimly lit, and clearly not lived in. Or if it was lived in, it appeared to be occupied by Count Dracula. The old oil paintings on the dusty stone walls seemed to be watching him. The couch and furnishings were antique, heavy, and gothic, and the ancient hunting trophies gave him the creeps.
His earpiece crackled. “You there, Jake?” Daniel asked.
“Yeah,” he whispered. “I’m inside…”
He gripped his gun and walked further in, stepping on a creaky floorboard and trying to remain as quiet as possible. He glanced around for any clues, then spotted a cell phone, which looked out of place on the mahogany writing desk. He crept over to it, wondering whether this was the phone the kidnapper had been using to communicate with Astrid. He reached out to pick it up, and jumped with surprise as it rang. A ringing phone would draw attention to anyone else here – and he knew he should just end the call. But something in his gut told him to answer it… perhaps whoever this was might give him a clue…
He spoke quietly, so as not to draw attention. “Hello?”
“Hello, Jake.”
His muscles tensed – someone knew he was here. “Who’s this?”
His voice was gravelly – disguised. “I’m with Emma. I knew you’d trace my calls back to here. I wasn’t sure if you’d fall into my trap… but here you are.”
