Best Man for the Job. Meredith Fletcher

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СКАЧАТЬ out his wallet. He wasn’t worried about the money. He kept only a little cash in the wallet. The rest was in his pocket and in his hotel room. He knew how to travel in potentially unfriendly environments, spread it out so it wasn’t all seen or lost at one time. Despite the neon welcome mat in Vegas, he knew the city held predators. All metropolitan areas did. Small villages drew hunters as well, but they couldn’t hide as quickly. He’d hunted predators nearly all his adult life.

      He shoved the wallet beyond the reach of his hand. He pressed the left side of his face against the carpet. The smell of cleaning solvent burned his nostrils and almost made him sneeze. He watched, looking for the leader. Units tended to cycle around the guy in charge.

      One of the invaders pulled a dark green plastic garbage bag from a coverall pocket. He handed his weapon to another man, then walked around the room collecting wallets and cash.

      Callan drew a breath. The men were careful, seasoned. They knew how to work a hostile crowd. As the man with the bag made his rounds, another man crossed over to Daniel. The man hooked a big hand in the back of Daniel’s shirt and yanked upward.

      “Get up.”

      Scared, face red with panic, Daniel got up. He looked confused and lost, more like a boy than a man.

      Callan pushed the thought from his mind. The assessment wasn’t fair. He didn’t know his sister’s fiancé, but there was no way Daniel was prepared for what was taking place in the hotel room. Everyone in that room was afraid. Callan knew he was afraid, too, but he was better at working with his fear.

      “What do you want?” Daniel spoke more calmly than Callan would have expected.

      Good job, kid. Keep your head and you’re going to be okay. Callan hoped that was true.

      The man slapped Daniel’s face hard enough to turn his head. Daniel stumbled but the man grabbed his shirt and pulled him up.

      “Don’t talk. Talking will only get you hurt. Do what I say when I say to do it.”

      Blood trickled from the corner of Daniel’s mouth. He grabbed his attacker’s arm and tried to kick the man in the groin.

      Kid’s got guts, but he’s gonna get himself killed. Callan knotted a fist and worked hard to keep himself down. Bruises healed quickly enough.

      The invader intercepted the kick on his thigh, then backhanded Daniel in the mouth. In the next instant, the man thrust the pistol into Daniel’s bruised and battered face. The attacker rolled the hammer with his thumb.

      Callan started to push himself up before he could check the movement. He froze when a gun barrel touched the back of his neck and shoved him down. The man hadn’t shot Daniel. Callan quieted himself and waited.

      The man drew the weapon back almost immediately, his point made. That was professional. Making contact with a prisoner was dangerous.

      “Stay still, soldier boy, and you get to live through this.”

      They knew him. That fact sent an icy spike through Callan’s gut. This wasn’t just a random heist directed at a bachelor party. They knew who was going to be here, and who the guests were. That also meant the men weren’t here just for the cash. He watched helplessly, feeling his captor’s gaze. They’d put a man on just to watch him.

      “You hear me, soldier boy?”

      Controlling his fear and anger and frustration, Callan nodded. “Yeah. I hear you.”

      Before Daniel could recover from the rough treatment he’d received, the man turned him around. A second man joined the first. After the first man thrust his machine pistol under the second man’s arm for safekeeping, he reached into one of the large coverall pockets and took out a roll of gray duct tape. He grabbed Daniel’s arms and wound tape around his wrists.

      Another strip of tape covered Daniel’s bloody mouth. The next one covered his eyes.

      Jenny’s voice played in the back of Callan’s mind. Callan, I know this party isn’t your kind of thing, but do it for me. I just want to make sure Daniel stays safe. Those guys can get kind of crazy, but they’re fun crazy. Not bad guys.

      Callan clenched his hands into fists. Work through it. Learn what you can. They’re a unit. Seven guys that you see, gotta be more working support and extraction. They’re smart, efficient. They knew about the bachelor party. They knew who would be here. They knew about me.

      Knowing about him was the biggest surprise. The work he did was kept off the grid. Not even Jenny knew everything. He’d kept that from her, not wanting his world to touch hers because he wanted her safe.

      But he wasn’t sure how many people Jenny had told about her big brother being a soldier. Daniel and Toby had known. Others at the party probably. The info wasn’t secret, though Callan hadn’t spent much time around his sister.

      “Everybody listen.” One of the invaders stepped into the center of the room. Although Callan couldn’t see the man’s mocking smile under the mask, he heard it in the man’s voice. “Staying alive is really simple. You stay in this room after we leave, you live.”

      Callan’s mind raced. He didn’t want to lose sight of Daniel. Getting Daniel back would be harder if his location was unknown. Callan forced himself not to think that Daniel might not be coming back at all.

      The man standing nearest the dancer gestured to her. “I want to take her.”

      A protective urge spread over Callan as he looked at the woman. She looked frozen, wide-eyed with fear, but she watched everything going on.

      She should be more afraid. Callan seized that and kept hold of the thought, turning it around in his mind. Was she a potential victim? Or a partner getting double-crossed? She didn’t cower at all and watched everything.

      The invader that had addressed the room shook his head. “She stays.”

      “She won’t be a problem.”

      “If we’re talking about her in the middle of this, she’s already a problem.”

      The man cursed vehemently and shifted his attention to the dancer. “Sorry, baby. Gotta take a rain check on that. Woulda been fun.”

      Instantly Callan’s suspicions cemented. The woman was part of the kidnapping. She’d changed places with the other performer and set off the flash-bangs.

      “Let’s move.” The speaker waved toward the door and the exit began. A single man went first, followed by Daniel with two men flanking him. The other four followed in quick succession.

      Callan shoved himself to his feet as soon as the door closed.

      “Hey!” Toby waved at him wildly, never moving from the floor. “Get down! You heard what they said!”

      Knowing fear was riding the man hard, Callan ignored him. The clock was in motion and every tick took Daniel farther away from him. Jenny loved Daniel and Callan didn’t want to see his sister hurt.

      The other guests had cell phones and were placing frantic calls to loved ones and to the police. Fearful conversations swelled and filled the room.

      In four quick strides, Callan СКАЧАТЬ