Page 67 of Indiscreet

He led me and the others out to the hallway, back toward the grand stairway where Vincent was standing, talking on his phone. I didn’t see any of the men and women who had been there. Had they let them all leave?

“We wiretapped your calls too, but you can keep talking,” Elliott told Vincent.

“You’ll end up the one in trouble,” Vincent said as he scowled.

A high-pitched laugh rang out from the top of the stairs. Angel.

We all turned as she descended with a gun in her hand.

“She’s sick,” I cried out. “Angel, put the gun down. It’s over. We can all leave.”

“Drop the weapon,” one of the officers said, pulling his gun out.

She didn’t. She pointed it at Vincent and fired. Elliott pushed me back. “Get on the ground. Angel!” His cry was loud, but there was nothing we could do to stop what had happened.

Red exploded on the front of her body and she fell, rolling the rest of the way down, her body landing in a twisted heap at the bottom.

Elliott rushed over and pulled her on her back. “Shit. Get me something to help her—towels, something.”

The housekeeper came running over to hand Elliot a cloth and he pressed it to the wound. “Angel, come on, don’t give up now.” His voice shook.

All I could think of was Dane. He’d been so close to getting Angel back, only to have her taken without her knowing that he tried to save her.

The other officer joined him. I looked around and found Vincent far down the hall, away from us. He appeared unharmed, but there was an officer standing guard over him, making sure he didn’t try to leave.

The front door opened and officers and EMTs entered. They took over and loaded Angel on the gurney.

“Mommy, Mommy!” Melinda came running out of one of the closed rooms with the maid close behind her. My heart shattered as she tried to get close to her mother.

“Get her out of here,” Elliott barked, using his body to block the little girl from seeing.

I scrambled to my feet and swept her into my arms. “It’s going to be okay.”

“Mommy okay?” she asked.

They moved her out the door.

“I’ll take her,” Vincent said. “Come on Melinda.”

“Is she your child, Mr. Santiago?” asked the police officer standing next to him.

“I…I…her mother had stopped by,” he stuttered. “I can see that she goes to her father.”

I seethed. Was he angling for some sort of leverage to avoid going to jail or to keep Angel silent by trying to take her child? There was no way he was getting anywhere near their child.

“Back the fuck up,” I said through clenched teeth. “Her father, Dane, should be close by. He will take her.”

Vincent blinked. Now who’s surprised? The Agency must not have told him. Apparently, he wasn’t as high up in their membership as he thought.

“She’s right,” Elliott said. “I’ll get him to meet us at the hospital.”

“Where is everyone?” I asked as Elliott guided Melinda and me out the front door and over to an ambulance.

“I don’t know.” He took out his phone, and Melinda stared at me quizzically.

“That’s your…your Uncle Elliott. He will get you to your mommy,” I said gently.

He pinched his eyes before taking her in his arms. He waited until the emergency staff checked me out and placed me on a gurney for transport.

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