Protection Read online

  Nick steered around taxis and hotel shuttle buses, weaving through the traffic and making sure he was in the right exit lane.

  Nicole skidded into the front passenger seat and then buckled her seatbelt. “Put yours on,” she demanded.

  “Yes, ma’am.” He reached behind him and wormed his arm into the strap, securing it to his right with a hard click. “Thanks for caring.”

  “You’re driving us wherever it is we’re going. Care to tell me?”

  “Far away from these assholes out to get you. And me now, too. I’m sure I’ve put a big red target on my person, as well.”

  He steered away from the I-95 north exit. This time of day, it would be nothing but commuters and trucks for as far as the eye could see. He veered toward I-87 instead. That route would take about fifteen minutes longer. He didn’t care, though, as long as traffic kept moving. Sure, there were tolls, but this car was equipped with an E-Z Pass, so they wouldn’t have to worry about that.

  “So, we’re going… where?”

  “Somewhere safe,” he told her. More than that right now and it would jeopardize his plan. As it was, she was going along with him, and although he didn’t assume she’d turn on him, he couldn’t take any chances.

  Nicole peered behind them at all the cars. “Are we being followed?”

  “Chances are… yes.”

  He cut across two lanes of traffic to the right and merged onto I-678. He took a local exit, wound through some main streets, making one turn after the next. A couple of cars were copying his moves, so he killed the headlights and ducked through a neighborhood. A few more slick turns, and they were joining back up with I-678. If they were being followed now, Nick couldn’t pinpoint exactly which vehicle it was doing so. He knew more than anything, he had to ditch this SUV and get something else to get them where they were going.

  Good thing Nick knew the area. The GPS on the vehicle had been set for the hotel or conference center where M.D. Fargo was staying and had completely given up on its dire requests to turn around, do a U-turn, or to recalculate.

  Once they were in the Bronx, he got on I-95, heading north until the Cross County Parkway, then west to Yonkers.

  “You must have planned this,” Nicole noted.

  “Not for this trip,” he said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Meaning, I do have several plans in place for if I ever need to disappear. This is merely one of the options.”

  “Lucky me,” she said, and then let out a sigh. She was gripping the sissy bar overhead as if her life depended on it. Yeah, it pretty much did.

  When the traffic slowed, Nick glimpsed over at her and assured, “I’ll take care of you, Nicole. Trust me.”

  “I’m trying.”

  A few minutes later, they exited into Yonkers and drove along the main street until Nick pulled an access pass out of his wallet and used it to get into a warehouse garage. The metal door creaked and rolled up exposing a cavernous parking area full of cars, some covered, others not. It was secure, out of the weather, and protected 24/7.

  He drove the SUV over to the back left and parked it in a vacant space. Stepping out, he tossed his cell phone into the driver’s seat and left it there. Pressing a button on the car door, he lifted the back and then went around to retrieve the suitcase. He then made sure he had his duffel and then he closed the vehicle up.

  “Are we switching cars?” she asked.

  “Yep.”

  He whipped the large, black covering off the roof of the car parked in the spot beside them, to reveal a real masterpiece.

  “Holy shit,” she exclaimed.

  “Uh huh,” he agreed. “It’s a 1969 Mach 1 428 Cobra Jet Mustang.”

  She was taken aback. “How the fuck did you score one of these, Nick?”

  He tossed the covering over the SUV and then stashed the bags in the trunk. Then, he motioned for her to get in on the passenger side.

  Her mouth dropped open. “Man… some collector is going to be pissed. Shouldn’t we get something a little less conspicuous?”

  “I want this one,” he said.

  He slipped behind the wheel and cranked the engine to a growling roar thanks to the key already in the ignition.

  “What a dumbass leaving the keys like that,” Nicole said with a harrumph as she climbed in.

  He flashed her a grin. “Not really. I planned it that way.”

  Her eyebrows jumped. “This is your car?”

  “Yep. Was my old man’s before he died. I had it restored and put it here in storage in case I needed it one day.”

  “And, that day is now.” She seemed pleased as she settled in for the next ride.

  Nick buckled up and put the car in drive. He knew there was no turning back now.

  He was invested.

  26

  Nicole

  Somewhere north of New York City

  Nicole swore she’d play along for now, but not forever. Overall, she wasn’t fucking impressed.

  This sexy bastard Nick had double-crossed her once. No matter what, she couldn’t trust him.

  He was still a liar and had conned her into believing he was a nice, normal guy when all along he’d been sent—by whom?—to deal with her. Trust him? Trust had to be earned, buddy. He’d gotten her away from the airport thugs, and for that she was grateful, but she’d be damned if she let her guard down. He’d already cost her all of her possessions, her ID, passport, computer, and the fucking data drive she was trying to protect.

  Thanks to his actions, she’d missed her flight to London and the chance to rendezvous with her father. She didn’t even know how she could get in contact with him and let him know, especially since Nick ditched his phone, as well. For all she knew, even this getaway was a set-up.

  What the fuck was going on?

  “I think I deserve some answers,” she said.

  It was well past sundown, with the last bit of orange disappearing into the night sky as they drove along. Nick kept a careful eye on the road, never venturing to look over at her. Well, if he did, she didn’t see it.

  “I told you to trust me,” he said.

  “Right.” She laughed sadistically. “Trust the guy who steals all my shit, jabs a gun in my back, and fucks me in the plane restroom just to kill time.”

  “You don’t understand, Nicole.” His voice was low and lacking emotion although she felt it emanating from him somehow.

  “Then make me understand.”

  “I’ve put everything on the line for you. I stepped outside my comfort zone, broke my code of ethics, and endangered my own life.”

  “How so? I mean, you were after me to begin with, right? Getting information for someone.”

  “No, I put everything on the line by breaking you out of the airport, by bringing you to my car, and by revealing myself to you. Now, I’m taking you where no one will find you.”

  “You mean, when you bury the body?”

  He sighed hard and even laughed. “You watch too much television.”

  “Then, for what?”

  “For you!”

  “Why?” she begged.

  She watched him grip the wheel hard, not looking at her.

  “When we get to a safe place, I’ll let you in on everything. I’ll tell you what I know, and we can come up with a plan… together.”

  “Okay,” she said in a hushed breath.

  “There’s one thing,” he added.

  She knitted her hands together waiting for the other shoe to drop.

  “It’s a two-way street.”

  “How so?”

  “You need to tell me everything you know. Honesty. That’s what will get us out of this alive.”

  What other choice did she have? She had to put her trust in him. She was so far from home, so far out of her comfort zone, and only had Nick to turn to at this point.

  They’d shared something intimate. Something personal. Something soulful. Surely, he wouldn’t harm her. She had to believe that.

&nbs
p; “I’ll do my best,” she finally said. It was the truth. “Can you at least tell me where we’re headed?”

  “I told you on the plane. My family has some property, a secluded cottage north of Upper Nyack. It’s stocked up with provisions and supplies. We can hunker down for a few days if we have to, and figure this out.”

  She watched the landscape speed by as they continued driving. She wondered what it was like in all of those houses on the hill where people lived normal lives, helping their kids with their homework or worry about filing their income taxes or is the milk still good? They weren’t worried about losing their life because they witnessed something they weren’t supposed to see. They hadn’t fled for their life out of fear and necessity. And, they hadn’t just been taken into custody—or whatever—by a handsome blue-eyed, dark-haired stranger with the promise of protection at all costs.

  She’d been so trusting of Nick before, and then he betrayed her. Why should she trust him now? He said he was invested, that he’d stepped out of the boundaries of what he was tasked to do. What if that was just bullshit on top of bullshit?

  Deep in her heart, though, she wanted to think she was a better judge of character and that although he was initially playing a role, something inside of him wanted to help and protect her more because she’d gotten in. Maybe just a little.

  They continued north, blending in with the commuter traffic crossing the long and busy Tappan Zee Bridge over to Rockland County. Nicole sat up as they were at the peak of the bridge and snagged a distant view of New York City. She could see the Empire State Building and the Freedom Tower both lit for all to see. The city was breathtaking and so full of hopes and dreams for everyone seeking a second chance or a new beginning.

  “I’ve always loved New York,” Nick admitted.

  “I haven’t visited the city since I was twelve,” she said. “My mom took me to the top of the Empire State Building because I had this fear of heights at the time.”

  “Really? But you’re over it now?”

  She felt herself nod as she relived that precious and near final moment with her mother. “She told me not to be afraid of heights… of anything. A few birds flew by right at that moment, soaring around so confidently. She said baby birds were pushed out of the nest and forced to fly right then and there. They didn’t have a chance to be scared or even think twice. They had to do whatever they had to. This was life or death, and the goal was to survive. She said she’d never do that to me, but she knew I’d fly high if I had to, tucking away any hesitation or dread I had about anything. She told me to set my sight above what’s around me.” Nicole paused for a few seconds, remembering the feel of her mom’s hand in hers that day in the fresh breeze and summer sunshine. “I wasn’t afraid. In fact, I felt invincible. And, I sort of have ever since.”

  She hesitated to check for a response in Nick’s face in the shadow of the headlights. An image and sensation surfaced, of her mom’s hand clasped around hers. Then, she shifted her eyes down and saw that Nick had taken her hand in his at some point while she was relaying her story.

  There was no pulling away. There was no returned affection.

  It just… was.

  “Your mom sounds like an amazing, loving woman,” Nick finally said, breaking the silence.

  “She was,” Nicole said. She swallowed the massive lump of emotion in her throat. “Exactly two weeks later, she was dead.”

  Her body was cold and tense. Thoughts of losing her mother always did that to her. So much had attributed to that, though. Things her pre-teen mind hadn’t understood then, and her adult brain couldn’t sort it out much better. She was still working on the idea of forgiveness. Forgetting, though? That was never gonna happen.

  Maybe she should give Nick the chance that she’d given to others in her life.

  “I’m sorry about that,” he said. With a final squeeze, he let go of her hand and turned the car onto 9W North.

  They rode in silence for about twenty minutes as Nick steered the car on the small road between Rockland Lake and the Hook Mountain State Park. He pulled off on a hidden path that was more for horses or farm equipment than a vehicle. He drove slowly through the trail until she saw a charming cottage up ahead. There weren’t any lights shining from the inside, and no other houses anywhere around, either.

  He pulled around the back under a small car port and killed the engine.

  “Boy, you weren’t kidding that it’s secluded. Does it even have running water and electricity?”

  Nick shook his head. “You’ll be safe here, Nicole. There’s everything you need here.”

  “Except my phone and passport and—”

  He breathed out. “Are we really going to go over that again?”

  “Fine. There better be soda.”

  He gathered their things from the car and walked her up the stone path to the front porch. It stretched around three parts of the house with rocking chairs placed at intervals for relaxation. The moon shone brightly over the water to the east, casting not an eerie glow, rather a romantic one.

  “Is that the Hudson?” she asked.

  “Yeah… we’re at the northern tip of the state park. Private land.”

  “You grew up here?” she pressed as she monitored his facial features in the moonlight.

  “No. I grew up in California. In wine country. My adoptive parents had some land in upstate New York. This place was more of a family cottage, a place to getaway, not too far or too close to the city. They gave it to me before I went into the Army and I’ve always considered it as my refuge. My place to recharge, regroup, and plan my next move, whatever it may be at the time.”

  She bit her bottom lip to keep from shivering. “What is that now?”

  “Taking care of you, Nicole,” he said without hesitation.

  Wow. His words touched her deep to her core. To the center of her womb, causing warmth to spread out to all the right places. He really did seem to care about her.

  He glided the key into the lock, reached inside the door, and snapped on a light.

  She followed him into the cottage, marveling that a guy actually lived here and decorated it. She’d expected dead deer heads and grizzly bears mounted to the wall or a talking bass over the mantle. The place was smartly decorated with dark wood furniture, and navy-colored cushions on the couch and chair. Across the room was a stone hearth, not with an animal trophy, but a tri-folded American flag in a frame.

  Nick seemed to understand where her eyes had landed. “It was the flag on my dad’s coffin,” he explained.

  As someone who’d grown up around military personnel her whole life, she’d seen her share of flags folded this way and placed in various memorial locations in houses.

  Nicole crossed the room and inspected the plaque at the bottom:

  In loving memory of Sargent Major Norwood Nicholas Taylor, USA

  Veteran of Vietnam and Desert Storm

  “Taylor? Your last name is Taylor or do you go by your adopted name?”

  “It’s Taylor. Norwood Nicholas Taylor II,” he said proudly.

  Ordinarily, Nicole might poke fun at a name like Norwood, but in this case, it was a noble, proud, hero’s name. Not this time. She smiled. “Nick fits you.”

  “Thanks,” he said. He brushed his hand at what appeared to be dust gathered on the frame. She surmised it must have been a while since he’d been here, not too long, though. It was obvious this place was taken care of and well-stocked. There was a stack of logs next to the fireplace, and in the adjacent kitchen, she could see a shelf filled with cans, jars, and boxes of food.

  “A ‘nick’ off the original, my mom said. Not that I remember either one of them too much,” he added.

  “How old were you when your dad died?”

  “Four. My mom died a month later.”

  Nicole’s hand shot up to her mouth. “God, Nick. That’s horrible. No one should have to go through that. You were just a little boy.”

  He shrugged and continued moving t
hrough the cottage. A small hallway led passed a modern bathroom—complete with indoor plumbing—and down into a master bedroom. There was a king-sized bed with a comfy, thick comforter made from a blue and green plaid, as well as a mound of inviting pillows. The bed faced a set of large double doors leading out to the porch and overlooking the Hudson.

  “You can have the bedroom,” he said to her. “I’ll take the couch.”

  “I can’t put you out,” she said.

  “It’s no trouble really. I probably won’t get much sleep as it is. I rarely do.”

  She bowed her head to stare at her feet. “Sort of the sleep-with-one-eye-open type?”

  “You could say so. Army training. Whenever I’d have to stand post, I could sleep standing up for a full minute and be completely refreshed.”

  Nicole breathed out a throaty laugh. “That’s messed up.”

  “Yeah… well.”

  She sat on the edge of the bed, luxuriating in the soft downiness around her. “Look, Nick. I appreciate what you’re doing for me, but wouldn’t it just be better at this point to go to the authorities and tell them what’s going on?”

  “What authority would that be?”

  She threw her hands up in total frustration. Was he starting to get cocky, or was he just more ironic than usual? “I don’t know. FBI? CIA? Homeland Security? You tell me.”

  He shook his head vehemently. “Absolutely not. You don’t know who has infiltrated what level of what agency.”

  She stood and faced him, annoyed beyond reason. “Like your secret organization that sends you around the world as a paid assassin or to stalk someone, and then kidnaps them?”

  He advanced on her. “Cut the shit, Nicole. You’re hardly a fucking kidnap victim. God!” Ramming his hands into his hair, he paced the room. “There’s no authority that can help. Okay? We have to take our chances on our own until we can figure things out.”

  Going toe to toe the best she could with someone so much taller than her, Nicole got in Nick’s way. “You cut the shit. You said you’d fill me in on what’s going on once we got here. Well, we’re here. Talk.”