Page 85 of Operation Heartbeat

It might be one of his teammates.

“Who is this?”

“This is how this works, Sophie. I talk. You listen. You’ve been traded for the shipping agent’s wife.”

“They…rescued her?”

A curt laugh filled her ear and pushed fear through her. “The only reason they have her is because I allowed it.”

Her mind tripped over what he was saying. This was a person who had power. Controlled things, controlled situations. He had to be the person responsible for those cryptograms.

“I’m not worth near as much as the shipping agent’s wife. What can I possibly do for you?”

“You’re the insurance policy that will ensure my bomb reaches the destination.”

Bomb? Her brain wanted to shut down, but she forced it to keep firing.

“What do you want fromme?”

“That man standing in front of you is going to keep you on the phone while I add you to a three-way call.”

“With whom?”

“With your boyfriend.”

Her stomach bottomed out. She felt as if somebody grabbed it and twisted. Con was alive. But he was about to be lured into this horrifying game. She knew him—he’d never stop searching for her once he learned she was kidnapped. His inner hero would storm in here with guns blazing.

It would get him killed.

“I’m putting you on the call now. My man is going to give you a script to read. Stick to the script, Sophie. No deviations.”

She listened hard for any trace of an accent that would place him in a region of the United States, but she couldn’t pick up on one.

“Understand?” His biting tone, coupled with the way the man in the room fisted his hand when she didn’t answer, made her pulse pound.

“I understand.” She darted her tongue over her dry lips.

When the man produced a folded piece of paper and held it in front of her face, new tingles of fear slithered thickly through her. She recognized the writing from the first cryptogram she’d deciphered.

“Who are you?” Her voice wobbled.

“I’m called Cipher.”

She stared blankly at the wall on the opposite side of the room. The man had given himself some kind of villain name. He was also the mastermind behind the cryptograms.

Her stomach gripped. She’d spent too much time in this man’s head. Talking to him felt like she was experiencing evil up close and personal.

“If I read this the way you have it written, he’ll know that I’m being forced to say these things. I need to embellish a little to sound natural.”

“You’re not auditioning for a part. Do as I say!”

She squeezed her hands behind her in an effort to keep them from shaking so badly. “Okay.”

“I’m getting your boyfriend on the line now. If you misbehave, my menwillhurt you.”

She swallowed the bile bubbling in her throat. “I understand.”

The line was silent. Then she heard a click as Cipher connected a third party to the line.

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