Kidnap and Ransom by Michelle Gagnon Read Free Book Online

her.”
    “For the record, I didn’t want you coming along, either,” Jake said.
    “Now I’m sorry I did.”
    Kelly reappeared over Syd’s shoulder, and Jake forced a smile. She looked past him. “Oh, there’s my bag.”
    Her limp was more pronounced after the long overnight flight, and she moved clumsily toward her duffel. Jake went to help her, but she stopped him with a sharp look.
    “So, Kelly.” Syd watched her struggle. “All better?”
    Kelly set her jaw. “Absolutely.”
    “Jake probably told you what we’re in for.”
    “I’ve been briefed,” Kelly said.
    She tried to push past, but Syd blocked her. “Just so you know, things are different down here. We won’t be following any rulebook.”
    “Happy to hear it,” Kelly said.
    “Yeah?” Syd raised an eyebrow. “I doubt you’ll feel that way when we’ve got a hostile tied to a chair.”
    “Quit it, Syd,” Jake said, stepping forward.
    She opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by the approach of Michael Maltz, flanked by Jagerson, Fribush and Kane.
    “We ready?” Maltz asked, eyeing the three of them.
    “Yes,” Jake said. “Let’s pull out.”
    Kelly brooded in the rear of the rental car. She had known going into this that Syd would be less than thrilled to have her along. The two women had managed to avoid being in the same room for more than five minutes ever since The Longhorn Group was formed. Kelly hadn’t trusted her from the beginning. Syd Clement embodied the complete lack of moral standards that Kelly associated with CIA agents. Success at any cost. The end justified the means. Never in a million years would Kelly have started a company with someone whose world view was defined by “us versus them.” She’d told Jake as much, but he’d gone ahead and established the partnership anyway.
    Syd would go out of her way to make her life difficult on this mission. On top of everything else, she still had an ax to grind with Kelly for forcing her off a case. Not that she’d actually managed to—Syd had gone ahead and done what she wanted anyway, consequences be damned. And because of her actions, a lot of people in Phoenix had lost their lives. More than once in the past few months, Kelly had toyed with the idea of turning her in for that. She’d only kept her mouth shut for Jake’s sake.
    They’d opted for two cars, ostensibly to have more options if something happened to one. Kelly suspected it was also meant to keep her and Syd separated as much as possible. Jagerson was driving. He was small for a former Delta guy, but sported the same sheared head, thickly muscled arms and boxy jaw as his compatriots. Jake sat in the passenger seat beside him. As if sensing her gaze, he turned and gave her a thin smile.
    Kelly shifted her eyes away and pretended to fiddle with her phone. Under her lashes she took in Michael Maltz. Funny that Syd had been so opposed to her joining the team, yet had insisted on Maltz. He’d nearly been killed in the Phoenix incident, and still looked much the worse for wear. A mottled mass of burnt flesh ran across the left side of his face into his scalp. He’d lost the hearing in the ear on that side, and was missing a finger off his right hand. According to Jake, the rest of his body was largely held together by titanium pins. Kelly couldn’t believe that after all that, he was still willing to work with Syd. Hell, she couldn’t believe he wanted to keep doing this sort of work at all. Of course, under the circumstances she was hardly one to talk.
    Kane, Fribush and Syd were in the other car. They’d offered to gather the equipment and meet them back at the motel. Kelly wondered for a moment what kind of equipment they were getting, and where it was coming from—then decided that if she ever wanted to go back to the Bureau, she was better off not knowing.
    When Jake showed up yesterday he’d nearly caught her digging through a stack of case files her former partner had swiped for her.