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Risen To The Top CHAPTER 153
Dole didn’t like tattoo parlors, because he didn’t like seeing people violating their paroles. Even with the increased popularity of tattooing, inking their skin was still something the underworld crowd habitually did with their spare change. Some were excising demons, and others were decorating or memorializing their bodies. It was impossible to tell, just from the size, color and subject matter of the tattoos what statement they were aiming for.But now he had a pretty good idea about this frog footprint tattoo. He needed confirmation of his hunch.Monique was quite the stunner, just like Lucas had told him, and side-by-side, Dole probably would have chosen her over Libby. But he could understand why Sean had made his decision. On Dole’s radar, a woman with lots of worldly experience was way more valuable, and probably more able to deal with his personal demons, not that he ever wanted to show them.He knew Monique could pick up
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 154
Sean was on his way to drop Tori off at the Hotel where her family was staying in. Lucas called him during the trip over. Sean had pulled over to the side of the road to listen. Tori could hear Lucas squawking on the other end of the line, telling Sean about a confrontation with someone named Mia, and the visit with Dole. She remembered hearing somewhere that Mia was Lucas’s sister, and that made her feel a little better.Tori stared out idly, leaning against the passenger window. phoenix sat tall in the back seat and observed his humans.“Honestly, Sean, don’t think you have anything to worry about,” Tori could hear Lucas say on the other end of the phone. “But wanted you to know he’d be talking to Monique. The tat was definitely hers. But here’s the thing. The guy had scars on him, like he was a nut job.”Tori froze in place. Nut job? Who was Monique?“Scars?”“Southern Cross.”Tori saw S
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 155
The call came in to Dole just as he was about to suggest he and Monique might be able to retire to the Pink Slipper or some other hotel. She’d had two margaritas, and much as he hated to admit it, even to himself, he liked his women drunk. Besides, it took some of the pressure off if they didn’t remember his performance. Not that he was ashamed, but he wasn’t used to having lots of sex with more than just a couple regulars. He wanted to make sure Monique had a good time, so he could have another.“This better be good.” He had recognized the number from the dispatcher at the precinct.“All good, Ryan.” She insisted on calling him by his first name, even though he had reprimanded her several times for doing so. She did seem to be pleased with herself. “You’re gonna love this news.”“Oh yeah?” he looked at Monique, who had just begun her third margarita.Christ. Hope I’m not going to have to miss anything. He wondered if
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 156
Dr. Hoades clicked the TV on to see if there was any breaking news about the arrest of Dr. Vlad. He was disappointed to find nothing. Then he decided to check for a news update on his computer.Scanning through local live feeds, he still came up short.“Let it ride till morning, Aaron,” his lovely wife said as she walked into the room and stood behind him.“Well, I guess it takes a few hours. I just expected it to be here, since Dole told me Duke had been arrested this afternoon.”“It’ll be there tomorrow,” Rachel said. “Come on, Aaron. Let’s go to bed.”He wiggled his eyebrows at his wife, who had walked backward into the master bedroom and waved to him from the doorway. He was about to close his laptop when he noticed a new email.Something compelled him to take a look at what the email contained. The subject line of the email said, “Thought you might like this.” The sender had some kind
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 157
Sean and Alex wound their way up the street towards the Hoade house. A pickup truck almost scraped the driver’s headlights on Alex’s SUV as it took the angle of the corner too steep, traveling at a high rate of speed. Alex hadn’t had a chance to downshift from high beams, so the lights flashed on the face of a man behind the wheel wearing a Padres baseball cap.The Hoade’s gardener. “That’s strange.”“What?” Alex asked.“The fuckin’ gardener. Tori said his regular day was tomorrow. He’s about as good a driver as he is landscaper,” Sean snorted.“Something wrong about that, Sean,” Alex replied.Sean turned and looked toward the rear of the truck that was smoking, picking up speed as it barreled down the hill to the commercial district. Something was definitely wrong. He started having that feeling like he did sometimes when he was in an unfamiliar neighborhood overseas, when they didn’t know what was arou
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 158
Tori was being hauled from a truck that smelled of gasoline into a chilly, dark covered space, perhaps a garage. As her feet dragged along the floorboards, they snagged a gasoline can and tipped it, sending it crashing to the concrete below. She heard a man’s voice swear. The gasoline smell was almost overpowering.With his arms under her chest, her kidnapper dragged her through a doorway and into a carpeted small space. The room was done up in pink, complete with a set of Barbie Dolls on a French Provincial sideboard that looked like it came out of a little girl’s room.And then it hit her. It did look just like a little girl’s room. A single bed with a hot-pink, fuzzy bedspread, dotted with stuffed animal pillows was in the corner. An overhead chandelier in pink had lit up automatically as they entered the room. The massive arms hoisted her up and onto the bed. She was left in sitting position. She couldn’t feel much of her body below the neck
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 159
Sean and Alex raised their hands, partly to protect their eyes from the disruptive bright light. Sean saw smoke billowing around the massive legs and boots of the giant.“So, what the hell are you guys up to?”Sean put his fingers to his mouth to indicate he wanted silence but the man wasn’t having anything of it.Alex whispered, “He the one?”Sean shook his head, no.The man raised his voice further. “I said, I want some answers, and quick, or I’m calling the cops.”Not a cop? With the boots and the gun, Sean figured he was either a bad guy or a security guard trying to do his job.“They’re already on their way,” Alex said as a test. His voice was commanding but not threatening. Sean hoped they were not within earshot of the man who had Tori. The man with the shotgun didn’t move, so Alex continued. “We’re looking for a guy in a pickup. We think he has kidnapped a girl and bro
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 160
Sean wouldn’t leave Tori’s side. Paramedics came and tried to push him away, but he almost got heavy with the larger one and barked a “no” they would not soon forget. As usual, Alex was making nice with the local authorities, including Dole, who looked rather pissed.“We caught the guy, Karl. I’d have thought you’d be a little more grateful,” Alex said. The two of them walked off into the night to have a private conversation.Sean helped the paramedics remove Tori to the gurney for transport to the hospital.“I’m fine,” she kept on saying. “Really, I’m fine. You guys don’t have to fuss over me.”“Baby, that was so close. I’m never going to leave you alone again.”Tori giggled.God, how I love that sound!“Sean, come here.” She raised her head up and Sean kissed her. He would have climbed on top of the gurney if the paramedics hadn’t objected. They started pulling him away care
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- Risen To The Top
CHAPTER 181
Evelyn came awake slowly. Painfully. A sharp ache pulsed inside her head and made her wince as she tried to open her eyes. What? She was facedown over an animal, no saddle. The animal’s spine dug into her hips and stomach.Her hands were bound. The lack of blood flow and frigid temps meant they were like ice blocks on the ends of her arms. Dammit, what if she had frostbite and was too far gone to even know it? She wriggled her fingers, and the returning blood made her gasp. She kept moving, tried to wriggle her legs but they were also bound. The struggle shifted her center of gravity until she was in danger of toppling upside-down beneath the animal and being trampled. Hell. Who’d done this to her? What did they want?The smell of musty fur was overpowering, making her throat heave as her stomach rebelled.“I’m going to be sick.” The contents of her stomach splashed against the gray talus that the horse was working hard to cross. D
- Risen To The Top
CHAPTER 180
They’d followed the spoor for two hours but ground sign was disappearing as dust swirled in the wind. Duke was torn. Did he keep following the unknown originator of these tracks or go back to base camp and regroup. Base camp was calling his name but he wasn’t sure whether that was because Evelyn had destroyed his objectivity or because it was the smartest thing to do.Hell, right now he was going in circles.“Let’s mark this GPS position and head back,” he said to Sri luc quietly. The sound of horses hooves drumming against solid earth made him glance in the direction of the biologists’ camp. The student—Ivan—came flying into view, coat open and flapping in time to the rhythm of the horse.“What the feck?” They’d all rendezvoused at the snare where the tracks had been spotted, but he’d sent Ivan and the local man back to camp on horseback an hour ago. He hadn’t liked the idea of Evelyn being alone, although she’d managed without hi
- Risen To The Top
CHAPTER 179
He split them into three groups.“Can’t I go with the doc?” Lucas moaned. He might have the reputation of being the ladies’ man of the Mountain Troop, but after what Duke had been thinking five minutes earlier while trying not to kiss Evelyn Cox’s lips, legs, and everything in between, maybe he was a frickin’ ladies’ man too.He wanted her and he’d let his eyes tell her exactly how much he wanted her.What was he thinking? There was a time and a place for that sort of thing and this wasn’t it.“No.” He kept his voice light. None of them were here to get laid. “You’re with Sri luc. Jordan you go with the Great Dane. I’m with the doc.” He gave them a firm smile that told them this wasn’t up for debate. “We’ll get the biologists to give us a demo how to tranq and release the Polar bears before we head out. I want hourly radio checks.” He nodded to the men. “It might be a couple of days until the other guys get here. I’m
- Risen To The Top
CHAPTER 178
When she woke she was staring straight into the startling cobalt eyes of Officer Robert Duke. He looked like he’d wait all day for her to wake up.“I must be dreaming,” she croaked.He held out a mug of black tea.“Definitely dreaming.” She sat up, took it, and sipped. The warm liquid eased her dry throat. “Thanks. What time is it?”“0600.” His voice rolled over her. She blinked groggily. There was enough of a burr in his accent to make his voice very sexy and she figured he was laying on the charm this morning.His face was scrubbed and clean-shaven. She found herself studying his features. The vivid eyes shaded by thick brows, the cheeks scraped smooth, the jaw firm and obstinate, his nose too flat to be conventionally handsome. Yet the combination stirred up her insides like hot coals. She fought the urge run her fingers through his short blond hair. He was tall and lean and he looked really, really g
- Risen To The Top
CHAPTER 177
Evelyn shoved back the yurt flap. Mikado flung up his hands in surprise and gave a nervous laugh. “You’re back. You scared me.”“There’s a lot of that going around.”He smiled at her, brown eyes twinkling. “Ivan was worried when the horse came back without you, but I told him you be okay.”Mikado had more faith in her than she did. He returned to whatever he was doing with the cubs.She strode to the computer and opened her email and read the message. Christ, the Trust really had forbidden her to release the animals. She inhaled deeply and tried to calm the rage that continued to burn inside. They thought she was overreacting and had no proof, and in the next sentence they told her it was too dangerous for her and Ivan to go after a guy with a gun. Ivan came slowly into the tent. She didn’t know if he was scared or angry. He had a right to be both.“Did you reply to this email?” She was vibrating with em
- Risen To The Top
CHAPTER 176
For fuck’s sake. He spat in the dirt. Great. He’d spent his whole life fighting against scumbag terrorists and what happened? He ended up accused of being exactly the same sort of nutcase by someone he was trying to help. It stung. He wasn’t about to let her know that.“That’s right, love. That’s why they pay me the big bucks, so let’s move it.” He maneuvered her in front of him. “Step where the trooper steps if you want to keep your legs.” He let her walk a few paces ahead and spoke into his comms. “Jordan and Lucas, keep a low profile as we head back to the RV. See if this bastard’s hiding somewhere and decides to follow us.”They both acknowledged with radio clicks and he followed Evelyn through the bush and along the rocky path. The old guy must be damn good or damn lucky to have spotted them near that other collar. He must have night vision equipment to move so swiftly at night too. Or he had insider information.Duke moved cl
- Risen To The Top
CHAPTER 175
The midday sun beat harshly on this patch of barren rock, melting the inch of snow that had fallen during the morning. The woman beside him had finally stopped wriggling and fallen asleep a couple of hours ago. His team was in position and they’d been on stag duty while he caught a quick nap. Now he was wide awake and refreshed, but so far, nothing yet.What had made Vladimir jores turn his back on his former homeland? What made him defect to fight on the side of people who got their kicks out of brutalizing innocent civilians?Duke understood terrorists better than anyone this side of a suicide vest. He’d grown up with them, would probably have become one himself if not for the tragic death of his sister. That was the family business, right alongside farming. Being immersed in that indoctrinated shit from a young age meant he understood how people born into it found it hard to break free. It was so ingrained, so fecking normal. Talk about brainwashing. H
- Risen To The Top
CHAPTER 174
How many years had it been since she’d held hands with a guy? A soldier? A shiver brushed over her skin like a ghost from the past.It felt strange. As if she’d been transported back in time. And yet, here she was, relying on the strength of those long, strong, foreign fingers to guide her safely through the night. Adjusting her footing in response to subtle pressure changes, tuning her body to match his. Trusting a man she’d just met. Relying on a man, period.It wasn’t something she did.It wasn’t who she was.She believed in saving things, in using data to make her point, not violence. But data wasn’t going to save her Polar bears from their current predicament. Her fingers tightened involuntarily and he slowed to match her pace. The guy was fit, not even breathing heavily, despite everything they’d been through and how many miles they’d walked. She was fit too, she ran and worked out, but exhaustion was making her
- Risen To The Top
CHAPTER 173
As Evelyn lay down, her mind kept wavering back to years ago when she was still a child.When her grandfather was still the minister of ammunition, their family had been good friends with the Connery family so they always stood by each other.Her grandfather had hated L.j corporation because they and Connery corporation were rivals.They each made weapons for governments and L.j corporation were beginning to outsell Connery corporation.She remembered the old Mr Connery coming to visit her grandfather and the two of them talking in hushtones about the issues.During that period, a heated rivalry had begun and it all came to its peak one cold night, years ago.she remembered it clearly.Her mind went back through the years, reliving the moment.“Come away from there, Evelyn. Quickly now.”Evelyn knew better than to argue with her mother, but sh
