Page 48 of The Captive
“Youaregood,” she disagreed.“You protected us this whole time.You kept us alive.How can you not see that?”
With methodical motions, he disentangled himself from their embrace and rose from the bed.His nudity brought a spark of desire, which fizzled the second he continued speaking.
“You deserve more than I could ever give you,” he said hoarsely.“And your family will give you everything I can’t.They’ll help you take care of this baby.They’ll make sure nothing bad ever happens to either of you.”
My family can’t be a father to this child,she wanted to argue, but the objection got stuck in her throat.He wouldn’thear it anyway.Deacon Holt had obviously decided what kind of man he was years ago, and nothing she could say was going to sway him.
As he bent down to retrieve his boxers, she stared at the sleek, sculpted lines of his body, the classically handsome planes of his face.She could see it now, his upbringing, his roots.He might deny it, but he’d inherited his mother’s grace, his father’s polish.
And maybe nothing she said would get through to him, she thought, as she watched him get dressed, but perhaps words weren’t the solution here.Perhaps what she really needed to do wasshowhim.Show him that he did indeed have some decency left inside him.Show him that he wasn’t a robot, but a living, breathing human being with a capacity for greatness.
A man strong enough to be a father to their baby.
* * *
Captain Jim Kelley had just hopped into one of the nondescript Town Cars of the security detail when a satellite phone was thrust into his hands.The soldier who handed him the phone wore a blank look, shrugging as if to say,I have no clue what’s up.
Stifling a sigh, Jim signaled for the driver to go and raised the phone to his ear.“Captain Kelley,” he barked.
“Kelley,” came Colonel Keaton’s sharp voice.
Jim’s sigh reached the surface.Damn.This didn’t sound good.He hoped the colonel wasn’t sending Delta Company on a last-second assignment or something.Jim and his crew had just spent the past two weeks providing additional security to the Secretary of Defense, who’d been meeting with various South American leaders to discuss the arms trade.He’d been looking forward to heading back to his Georgetown home, cracking open a cold beer and sitting on the couch for a few days.
The colonel’s next words, however, sent a flicker of surprise through him.“I’ve got your mother on the line.I’m patching her through.”
And then Keaton’s voice faded and was replaced by his mother’s urgent, “Jim, are you there?”
Jim instantly tensed.A few days ago, one of the men in Delta Company had been messing around on the internet and had discovered a weeks-old news article about Jim’s father.About the fact thatsixwomen had come forward claiming to be Senator Kelley’s mistresses.As expected, Jim had been livid, but he hadn’t had a chance to call his mother.Now, hearing her voice, that anger returned full force.
“I’m here.”His voice cracked slightly.“I heard what happened, Mom.I’m so sorry.”
She gasped.“You know about Lana?”
“Lana?”Unease crawled up his spine.“I was referring to Dad.”
“Oh.”
“What areyoutalking about?What’s happened to Lana?”
“She’s gone, Jimmy.”An unmistakable sob ripped through the line.
Jim’s entire body went frozen with shock.His sister wasgone?What the hell did that mean?He listened as his mother cried on the other end, fear rising inside him.
“Mom, what do you mean she’s gone?Where is she?”For a second, he wondered if Lana had done something crazy, like hop a plane to Africa to help children with AIDS.He could totally see her doing that.Lana’s heart was bigger than a small country, and despite her sweet disposition, she did get stubborn and wild every now and then.
But apparently not now, he realized in dismay, as his mother said, “She’s been kidnapped.”
Jim felt lightheaded.“What?”
He could barely keep up with his mother’s panic-driven words, but he got the gist of it.Lana had disappeared in Paris and was being held hostage by Hank Kelley’s enemies.Relief coursed through him when his mother explained that Hank had spoken to Lana several times, but the relief transformed into rage when she described the DVD and photograph that had been delivered to the ranch.
“But she’s alive,” he ground out, sheer fury coating his throat like sulfuric acid.
“We think so,” his mother said with an anguished whimper.“Cole deduced from the video that she might be in D.C., but we’re not sure.And then last night there were reports of gunfire in a neighborhood near Stanton Park.Federal agents searched every inch of the neighborhood and didn’t find a thing.Jimmy, we don’t know where she is.”
His mother’s distress was like a knife to the heart.He’d always done his best to keep his mom happy, especially since his father didn’t seem interested in doing so, but right now, he felt totally and completely helpless.
“There’s more,” his mother added.“The kidnappers called again, and they want to set up an exchange.”
