“Who is going to exchange them? Huh?” Brent yelled. “Not me. That’s stupid. They’ll just set a trap and we’ll go to prison forever. They aren’t really going to pay us.”
“We’ll get them out of here and it will buy us some time to think of a surefire way to get paid by the NSO to return these three. We’re smarter than those bastards. We just need to get out of here before more arrive.”
“Don’t move or I’ll shoot you!” John T yelled.
“Calm.” Brass’ deep voice barely reached Lauren since he wasn’t shouting. “The NSO will pay for us. Just don’t harm the women.”
“See? I told you they were sappy enough to protect innocents. You move and I slit the receptionist’s throat. She isn’t a part of this and she’s two months pregnant. Fight us and she dies. I can take out Gina too before you reach me.” John B snorted loudly. “The NSO will pay us. We just need to get out of here. Bill, where are more darts? We’ll tranquilize these two, tie up the women, and split.” His voice rose. “More of them could be on the way. These three could be scouts or something. They are hunters, right? Shoot them with darts, we’ll carry them out and figure the rest of this out when we’re safe.”
“Please,” Kim begged. “Let me go.”
“Shut up. I didn’t bring enough darts.” Brent sounded furious. “You told me there was one of them. Not three.”
“He came in alone!” John T yelled. “If I’d known there were more, I would have told you on the damn phone.”
“Don’t move!” John B yelled. “I swear he’ll shoot you both and you won’t get another warning. These women will die too. Do you want their blood on your hands?”
Lauren’s heart pounded and she knew she had to do something. She lifted her hand to call 9-1-1 from the phone on her desk but memory of the phone system stopped her cold. Every phone would show a line in use by flashing red. She couldn’t risk making a phone call but her coworkers were planning on taking Wrath and she couldn’t allow that to happen.
She pushed on her desk to test the weight of it but it didn’t budge. It was the only thing big enough in the room to keep them from breaking down the door if she barricaded it. That plan wouldn’t work though because they could as she had—go around the building, and come in through the window.
“Move,” John T ordered. “In that back office now. Keep your hands above your heads, move real slow. If you even twitch, I’m going to shoot you.”
“Yeah,” Brent said, “do that. We have phone cords. We’ll tie them up, take them out the back and grab the last one after we get them settled in the van.” He paused. “Go get the van.”
“My minivan?” John B gasped. “Everyone will see inside it.”
“The company van, you idiot!” Mel shouted. “It’s bigger. It’s got the cargo area and tinted windows. Just dump the signs out of the back.”
“Fuck,” he shouted. “Move, Gina. You too, Kim. You’re staying close to me. If they attack, you’re both dead.”
“Keep moving,” John T ordered. “Keep your hands up. Mel, go rip out the phone cords. You have three in there. Use the ones to the fax machine too.”
Lauren glanced around her desk, saw no one, and crawled forward until she could peek out the door. Her coworkers weren’t in sight and she leaned out enough to see Mel’s office. John T’s back was to her and he blocked most of the doorway, preventing her from seeing what was going on in Mel’s office. All of them seemed to be in there.
Pure terror gripped her but she moved, shoved up to her feet and grabbed Wrath’s chair by the arms. The back of it dug into her belly as she pulled. As the wheels moved over the carpet his boots dragged, making it tougher on her. She pulled, prayed he wouldn’t slide out of the seat. He would be too heavy to put back if he did.
She paused, listened, and heard her coworkers arguing in Mel’s office. She glanced around the corner again, saw John T’s back was to her, and she frantically pulled. The chair left her office, she bit back a groan, and kept pulling Wrath toward the front. She just needed to make it about ten feet to the reception area. She made it without anyone spotting her. Guilt ate at her over leaving the New Species and her coworkers being held at knifepoint. She couldn’t help them though. Wrath was the only one she could save. She needed to get him to safety first and just prayed the man she’d spoken to on Brian’s phone arrived in time to help them. It would be suicide to rush into Mel’s office to attempt to rescue anyone else.
Her back hit the exterior glass door but it didn’t push open when she pressed against it. She hit it with her ass but the glass just barely moved. She twisted her head, realized someone had locked the door, and fought to turn the deadbolt. The glass door opened and fresh air filled her lungs as she sucked in a deep breath. She pulled, dragging the chair and Wrath out of the building.
No one was on the sidewalk. Gravity helped move the chair since the building was higher than the street. She turned it, pulled frantically, and kept going. Her eyes remained on the building. She expected her coworkers to come out after them at any second when they realized they were missing a New Species but she made it to where she’d left Amanda.
“Open the back door now.” Lauren pulled harder, moving faster.
Amanda saw Wrath, the chair and Lauren. Her mouth dropped open and her eyes widened.
“Open the fucking door,” Lauren snapped at her. “Now! Move it. Back door. Get it the hell open. Now, Amanda. Now!”
Amanda moved. She hit the button to unlock the doors and almost tripped on the curb as she ran around the car to open the back door but she swung it open just as a panting Lauren dragged the chair there.
“Help me get him in.”
“What the hell?” Amanda’s eyes were wide and she looked unusually pale.
“I’ll explain later. Help me. He weighs a ton. We’ve got to get him out of here before someone sees us.” Lauren grabbed the protruding dart from Wrath’s chest and dropped it inside her skirt pocket. “Hurry.”
Amanda grabbed Wrath’s other arm and Lauren positioned the chair facing the backseat of the car. She gripped him firmly and they lifted to maneuver his limp form out of the chair.
“Jesus,” Amanda grunted. “My back is breaking. He’s got to weigh at least two hundred and fifty pounds.”
The two of them managed to dump the unconscious Wrath into the backseat. Lauren bent his legs up to make him fit. Wrath didn’t look comfortable but he was in and his face wasn’t pushed against the seat. She slammed the door and yanked open the passenger one.
“Get in the car,” she panted at Amanda.
Amanda ran around the car and jerked open the driver’s door, collapsing into the seat. The engine started and Lauren’s pounding heart threatened to explode from exhaustion and fear. One glance at her office assured her no one had rushed out yet and she twisted in her seat to duck down in case that changed.
“Drive, damn it. Get us out of here.”
Amanda punched the gas. “Oh my God,” Amanda babbled. “You’re going to get us both arrested. I know I keep complaining about being single but have you lost your mind? You can’t just kidnap a man. He’s really hot but what were you thinking? Are you on drugs? Let’s just call the police and tell them you had a breakdown. We could take him to a hospital and have them admit you for an evaluation.”
“I didn’t kidnap him, damn it. This isn’t what it looks like. We need to go. Drive! I’ll explain it all to you later but he’s in danger.”
“You know how friends tell friends when they’ve lost their mind?” Amanda licked her lips. “This is that time.”
Lauren lifted her head enough to see her friend’s flushed face and glared up at her. She opened her mouth but just closed it. She was too tired to yell at that moment. She decided to just be honest.
“You need to trust me. Please drive, Amanda. This really isn’t as bad as you think.”
“Where do we go?”
“Your place.”
Amanda nodded. “Okay. Oh man, are we in deep shit. You better have a hell of a reason. I can’t believe I’m doing this.”
Lauren wanted to use Amanda’s cell phone to call the police but didn’t dare after being ordered not to. She prayed the team arrived but wasn’t willing to stick around to make sure help came in time. Getting Wrath out of there was the priority, the only thing she could do.
Chapter Ten
Lauren had managed to stop shaking by the time Amanda pulled into her garage. The electronic door sealed them inside and the interior light stayed on. Amanda turned off her engine and stared at her best friend.
“Do you think he’ll press charges? Forget that. Of course he will. You knocked him out somehow and kidnapped him. What were you thinking? We’ll get you help. Let’s go inside and call someone. It’s not too late to fix this, okay? We’ll get you the best attorney. Insanity is a great defense. I never meant for you to do something so drastic to get me a man.”
“Stop that,” Lauren sighed. “It’s not like that.”
Amanda frowned. “Then why did you drug him and bring him to me?”
“I didn’t drug him.” Lauren shook her head, tired, frustrated and wondering if her friend needed some therapy. “It’s a long story. How are we going to get him inside your place? Any ideas?”
Amanda turned in her seat and studied Wrath, frowning. “I don’t know. He’s a big one. Did you have to lose your mind and kidnap the biggest guy you could find? I know I said I was desperate for a date but Jesus, Lauren!”
“Stop it!” Lauren shot her a glare. “He’s not a sex toy that I stole for you. I haven’t lost my mind and I didn’t do this in some misguided attempt to get you a man. His name is Wrath and he’s in danger.”
“I thought you said his last name was Williams.”
“I don’t think he has a last name. His real name is Wrath. It’s a long story.”
“I guess we have time for you to tell me what is going on since we have to think up a way to get him out of the car and up those steps.”
Lauren hesitated. “Did you notice his features?”
“Who cares about his face when he’s got that great body?”
“Look at him, Amanda. Look at his nose and think of your ultimate hero on television, the one you drool over. Here’s a hint. Justice North.”
Amanda turned in her seat so she could get a better view of the man behind her. She stared, tilted her head slightly and the color slowly drained from her face. Her mouth dropped open and she gaped at Lauren.
Lauren nodded. “He’s New Species.”
“Holy shit. What have you gotten me into? He’s like an endangered species, right? They have really strict laws about them. Lauren, what were you thinking? We’re going to get the electric chair if something happens to him. If you kill one of them, even accidentally, it’s the death penalty for a hate crime.”
“I didn’t do this. The people at my work shot him with some kind of drugged dart and it knocked him out cold.”
Amanda blinked. “Why? Did he have bad credit or something? I know your boss is a bitch but that’s even harsh for her.”
“Very funny,” Lauren snorted. “It’s complicated and a mess. I guess I worked with some jerks who used to work for Mercile Industries. They saw him and did this to him. They planned to take him away but I got him out of there first. We need to hide him in your condo until I can get him some help. His team and two of my coworkers who aren’t involved in this mess are back at the office. I could only save him. I didn’t know what else to do.”
“Who are you going to call? The police?”
Lauren shook her head. “No. The people Wrath works with told me not to call 9-1-1 so I guess I’ll have to leave them out of this.” Lauren climbed out the car. “Let’s get him inside.”
Amanda climbed out of the car and frowned at Lauren over the roof. “How? I don’t have a crane handy in here to lift him out of the car and up the steps. He’s heavy.”
Lauren studied the steps leading into Amanda’s condo and had a thought. “Do you still have that twin air mattress you use when your niece comes to visit?”
“The princess one?”
“Yeah. We could inflate it, put him on it, and drag it into the kitchen.”
Amanda sighed. “I’ll go get the electric pump and fill it.” Amanda’s gaze drifted to the backseat as she stared through the window. “I wouldn’t do this if he wasn’t hot. He’ll owe me.” Amanda suddenly grinned. “He really does look hot in those clothes. Once we get him inside it would only be kind to take some of them off him.”
Lauren groaned. “Amanda!”
“What? Just his shirt. Be a friend. I was the getaway car driver and hell, I should get some kind of reward after we drag him into the house. I think I already got a hernia from getting him in the car.”
Lauren shook her head. “I think you would benefit from taking drugs and I worry about you.”
“You should be worried. If I don’t get laid soon I’m going to shrivel up and die.”
“The things I put up with,” Lauren mumbled.
“You? I just helped you dump the body of a hunky New Species guy in the back of my car and I’m harboring an endangered species in my home!”
“Good point. You’re the best friend ever.” Lauren smiled. “Go get the mattress. Don’t you have some tarps in here somewhere from when we painted your bathroom last month?”
Amanda pointed to the corner. “Somewhere over there.”
Lauren turned to search for one while Amanda entered the condo. Lauren found a few of tarps folded under a shelf and opened the back door of the car, checking on Wrath. He remained heavily drugged. She spread out the tarp on the floor next to the open door and was grateful that Amanda had a double car garage with only one car so they had plenty of room to work. Amanda returned, lugging a big pink inflatable mattress she dropped on top of the tarp.