An Unlikely Hero (1) (19 page)

“Only two others, captain. I don’t have a clear shot. The pregnant woman is in my line of sight.” A soldier whispered into his mike.

Zoric’s even keeled voice interrupted. “Have Tessa go in for the woman. I don’t think he’d shoot a woman.”

“Negative. I’m not putting another civilian in danger.”

“Too late for that my friend. She’s in over her head anyway.”

Chase looked back at Tessa Scott, crouched down, watching him like he held the keys to heaven and hell. Even from here he could see the fear in those beautiful blue eyes. Country or beautiful woman? Chase heard the pregnant woman begin to cry. If anything unnerved a terrorist bent on getting his way it was a terrified, sobbing female. He reluctantly motioned for Tessa to come closer. After reassuring her that Dr. Haskins had indeed been forced into this act of terrorism, he briefly explained the immediate problem and what he needed her to do. Watching her force a swallow, he nearly changed his mind. When she nodded, Tessa reached for a transparent clipboard atop a file cabinet with some random chart full of formulas and scribbles. The pair of black glasses that rested next to it were placed low on her nose with such care that she once again puzzled Chase as to who she really might be. Was this another one of God’s humorous pranks? Would this woman be the one to finally put him out of his misery?

“Get the woman down and to the left. There’s an office space. See it?” Tessa nodded quietly. “I won’t let anything happen to you, Mrs. Scott.”

“You keep saying that and things keep happening!” she quipped.

Chase grinned. “Don’t be a hero.”

“Never.”

Tessa straightened up and quietly walked to the end of the clear partition, lined with tables and file cabinets. The voices seemed deafening now. Why had she agreed to this suicide stunt? Could she just not say no to the handsome captain or did she crave a reckless scenario so desperately that she was willing to put herself in harm’s way for an adrenaline rush? The last two days had been just that. Never had she felt so alive in a surreal world.

The sound of uncontrollable tears reached her ears. A pregnant young woman; terrorized by armed men would not be good for the baby. She thought of her own sweet babies and how safe the experience had been. Stopping, Tessa said a prayer of thanks for her children being somewhere safe with their father. Turning her head to look over her shoulder she could see the captain’s men follow him to be near her. Tessa squared her shoulders and began humming
The Ants Go Marching One by One.
Her eyes focused on the clipboard as she turned the corner into chaos.

Chapter 13

Her humming continued until an angry voice shouted at her so loud that Tessa dropped her clipboard.

“Stop!” Tessa recognized the voice of the man who had been terrorizing.

Dr. Haskins and the other captives.

“Who are you?”

“What the…” Dr. Haskin’s familiar and gentle voice sounded shocked.

“I’m sorry, Dr. Haskins! I took some cold medicine and fell asleep in my office!” Tessa eyed the frightened doctors. Her eyes came to rest on the woman Dr. Haskins had called Penny. She couldn’t be more that twenty-five; probably a graduate assistant from the University of Tennessee.

Dr. Haskins opened his mouth to speak when the terrorist held up a hand in protest. The man eyed Tessa suspiciously noting her calm with rising alarm. The man’s eyes began to dart around the area for changes. Had the underground vault been breached?

Tessa recognized the look of doubt in the man’s narrowed eyes as his body tensed and his pistol outstretched toward her.

“Oh dear God!” she screamed. “What is going on? My God! My God!” she screamed trying to cover her mouth as she rushed toward Penny who now shook with uncontrollable fear.

As Tessa pushed Penny into the office the terrorist gun exploded through the glass wall, shattering glass over her back. Penny’s scream echoed in Tessa’s ears as she pushed her awkward body to the floor. Just as Tessa turned her head to look back over her shoulder, she saw Captain Chase Hunter’s profile in the doorway of the office. Raising his semiautomatic rifle, he fired off two rounds.

In that moment in time, when the captain turned his head to glance down at Tessa lying on the floor covering the pregnant woman, his eyes took on a dangerous glow that both frightened and thrilled her. He had saved her life yet again. God once again had heard Tessa’s cries and sent this angel of death to protect her. Their eyes locked in some strange new bond of trust and something else that made Tessa’s heart race with anticipation.

Moments before Chase had held his breath as Tessa Scott had disappeared around the file cabinet. His man on the other side of the hostages barely breathed the description of the situation unfolding before them. Zoric managed to slip into position for another shot of the third terrorist. When the captain heard Tessa’s signal words “My God” he rushed forward with his men to take down the leader. The momentary sound of a gunshot breaking glass ignited a fire of revenge deep inside Chase so that when he rounded the corner of the file cabinet he reached the office doorway in two steps. In a split second he’d raised his weapon and put two shots into the leader forcing the weapon from his now bloody hand held against his chest. Later he remembered the sounds of crying, relief and his men taking out the other terrorists.

Just as Chase raised his weapon to fire he had for a split second been transfixed by Tessa Scott lying on the floor, covered in glass, protecting another with her body. His heart had stopped, thinking a bullet had found its mark when the glass shattered seconds before. When the blue eyed housewife of Grass Valley, California had turned to look hopefully at him an unfamiliar wave of relief had washed over him.

“Dr. Haskins,” Chase said offering a hand to pull him up from the floor, “are there any other intruders down here?”

The doctor quickly began assisting the others, some struggling to stand. “No.” He nodded toward the leader who began to moan. Chase had made his shots carefully so as to severely injure, not kill. “He said he would have my wife killed if his man didn’t hear from him in the next ten minutes,” Dr. Haskins said looking nervously at his watch.

Chase nodded. “Your wife is safe. She’ll be waiting for you at the airport.”

“Thank God!” he sighed in heavy relief.

There was God again; getting in Chase’s way of grim reality.

Carelessly Chase rolled the leader over with his foot so he could look up at the man who shot him. “Who are you?” Chase growled as he pointed his weapon down at his heart.

“Help me,” he whispered.

“Just as soon as you help me,” Chase responded coldly.

“Go to hell, infidel,” he groaned.

Chase kneeled down next to the bleeding terrorist. “Ben?” He touched his earpiece to access Benjamin Clark back at headquarters. Chase wanted an ID.

“Not in our data banks, Chase. I don’t recognize him from any of our Intel. He’s new. Not Middle Eastern by the looks of him.”

“Go to hell,” he whispered again.

“Yeah. That’s probably inevitable, but you’ll be there long before me if you don’t start talkin’. And just so you know, my men and I all wipe our ammo with pig fat before loading up. So don’t think you’ll be spending eternity with a bunch of virgins.”

The look of intimidation finally sprang to the wounded man’s eyes. “Okay. I’ll talk. Just don’t let me die,” he begged. Chase nodded at one of his men to take over as Zoric came to stand at his side.

“You better get in there, Chase.” Zoric tilted his head toward the office where he’d left Tessa and the pregnant woman. “There’s another situation.”

Chase slung his weapon and hurried to find Dr. Haskins helping Tessa kick glass away from the center of the floor. His eyes fell on Penny breathing hard with her hand on her stomach, eyes wild with terror. She let out a cry as she doubled in pain. Penny was in labor. “We need an ambulance and medic team now!”

Tessa didn’t know who the captain was talking to; someone in cyber space she guessed. All she knew was that help would not come in time. “Captain, her water broke. She’s having the baby now!”

“What?” Dr. Haskins spoke as if in a fog as he straightened. He began backing out the door, for the first time truly afraid. He didn’t like blood if it weren’t on a lab slide under a microscope. Suddenly Dr. Haskins looked out at the downed leader being attended to and the cuts and bruises that were now evident among his colleagues.

“Get him out of here, Captain Hunter,” Tessa ordered as she grabbed a lab coat hanging on a hook behind the desk. She watched the captain roughly grab the doctor by the front of the shirt and shove him backwards through the door without taking his laser like focus from her hurried activity. She spread the starched white coat on the floor before moving to help Penny.

“Captain, have you ever delivered a baby?” Tessa asked as she began stroking Penny’s head.

Chase propped his weapon in the corner and kneeled down next to the frightened woman. “As a matter of fact, I have,” he smiled with a kind of disarming charm. “Penny, we’re going to have a baby, sweetheart.” He patted her exposed leg, feeling the warm blood meet his fingers.

“My baby!” she cried.

“Your baby will be just fine, Penny.”

Tessa found herself breathing calmly at the silky tone the captain now used with the terrified mother-to-be. He gently positioned her legs so they were bent at the knees and spread apart. Like magic, Zoric appeared with a first aid kit and handed Chase a pair of scissors. “I’m going to remove your panties, Penny,” Chase smiled devilishly. “You can tell your husband about that any way you like when this is all over.”

Penny smiled and began to breathe normally just as another contraction gripped her body.

“Breathe like this, Penny.” Tessa imitated the breathing exercises she’d learned in her own birthing classes. Penny quickly followed and soon was at rest again.

“I think we’re going to have a baby, sweetheart,” Chase coaxed calmly.

“Oh!” she grunted.

“Nothing to worry about, dear. This ain’t my first rodeo,” he chuckled as he stroked her leg. “My parents were medical missionaries in China when I was growing up. I assisted on my first appendectomy when I was ten.” His eyes drifted from Penny’s face to Tessa who openly stared at him in disbelief. “Then I went on to be the medic when I joined the Rangers.”

His comments were telling her something, Tessa knew. Sharing this information could be a clue to what kind of man Captain Chase Hunter really must be. He was a good man cloaked in a dangerous roll of ultimate hero. Those dark eyes reached out to her like a drowning soul. “You’re lucky to have him, Penny.”

“I don’t even know your names,” she said trying to lick her lips. She watched the scary man, who had brought in the first aid kit, come stand behind Tessa. He handed her something. In seconds Tessa had lifted Penny up enough to sip some water from a bottle. “Who are you?”

“I see the baby’s head, Penny. You’re going to have to be a good girl now, and really push.” He watched her nod and she scrunched up her face to push. “Good! Breathe with my friend,” he paused as he looked at Tessa. “Breathe with Agent Melanie. Now push!”

Another agonizing push, a breath and another push. “One more, Penny!” Chase encouraged. “Prettiest baby I ever saw. Come on! Push!”

Chapter 14

Robert watched the children gobble down their burgers and fries followed by ice cream which he immediately regretted, having forgotten that Daniel was lactose intolerant. After his son let out a huge belch and his siblings started laughing with loud gusto, Robert quickly ushered them out of the restaurant under the glare of several sour faced customers.

“Your mother is going to have to work on your manners,” he scolded crossly as he swung Heather up into his arms so they could cross the street to their parked SUV. “Look both ways, boys. Mom would kill me if anything happened to you.”

Sean Patrick sniggered at the thought of his mom getting angry enough to swat a fly off her much less using deadly force on his father. He grabbed Daniel’s arm to pull him along. “Daniel, come on!” Sean Patrick yanked Daniel forward just missing a tourist watching a pretty brunette walking along the sidewalk instead of the road. “Hey! There’s Honey!” Sean Patrick said happily as he waved to the forest ranger dressed in blue jeans and a tight U2 tee shirt.

Robert followed his son’s waving hand and saw the pretty young Honey smile and wave back at his son. Something inside him warned to stay clear of the flirtatious ranger, but before he could unlock the car, both boys ran to her side and started talking about their morning. Robert carried Heather far enough to set her feet on the sidewalk and she too ran to Honey.

“Hi, Robert. I see you’ve been entertaining the troops like the good dad you are,” Honey smiled seductively and she cocked her head at him and winked playfully. “Your wife is a lucky girl. Most men wouldn’t let their wives stay at home for a much needed break. I hope she appreciates you.”

Robert thought there was some implication as to her interest level, but remained confused as to what he should do about it. It wasn’t like he knew many single women. From what one of the attorneys at work had said, women today like to be the aggressor. Even though the attorney was married, he enjoyed straying and being “eaten alive” as he like to say, by anyone other than his wife whenever possible. Robert frowned at betraying a woman like Tessa.

He’d fallen head over heels in love with Tessa the first time he’d seen her in Knoxville, Tennessee. She was playing with two young boys in the park, instructing them on how to hit a baseball. At first he’d thought the children were hers. The next day he’d accidently on purpose ran into her again and offered to help her in the training of the boys. When he discovered she was their nanny, Robert’s heart would not be appeased until he made Tessa fall in love with him.

Intelligent and beautiful, Robert had never thought such a woman could love him. But she did and with her whole heart and soul. Having just passed the bar in California, Robert had been offered a position with a prestigious law firm. When Tessa had accepted his marriage proposal, a wave of relief had washed over him. On the day of his wedding, before God, he’d promised to love and cherish her forever. Now, here he was looking at Honey Lynch like a little boy in a candy store wondering if he was still desirable to someone other than his wife.