Unwritten Rules (Phoenix, Ltd. Book 1) Page 25

  “I may not be the golden boy like you, but I’m holding all the cards, so shut up and listen. You mother will be fine if you do exactly as I say.”

  Carter clenched his teeth.

  “I’m going to stay right here until you’re back in Chicago. Call me when you land, and I’ll tell you what to do next. In the meantime, I don’t want to see anyone nosing around outside this house—no police and no feds.”

  He closed his eyes and pressed his fingers to his temple. “Put my grandmother back on the phone.”

  “No. I think you’ve talked enough for now. Call me when you land.” The line went dead.

  Carter spat out a vicious curse. A hand touched his arm, and he whirled around. Madelyn stood next to him wearing an oversized T-shirt and an expression of deep concern.

  “What’s happened?”

  “That was Chick Avery. He’s holding my mother and grandmother hostage at their house.”

  Her eyes widened, and her fingers pressed deep into his arm. “No! Why? What does he want?”

  “He wants me to go back to Chicago. Beyond that, I don’t know.”

  “Then we’ll give him what he wants.” She reached for her purse on the desk and pulled out her phone. “I’ll call the airline and get us on the next flight. We can stop by the hospital on the way to the airport. If Herman is conscious, we’ll explain that we have to leave. Someone at Normandy Press can cancel the rest of the tour.”

  He nodded. The tour was rock bottom on his priority list. He needed to concentrate, but his thoughts were a disconnected jumble of memories of two of the most important people in his life. How had he managed to put them at risk?

  “I don’t know what to do when we get to Chicago.”

  She took his hand. “We’ll call Chick just like he said. We’ll find out what he wants then decide what to do. We aren’t alone in this. Between your contacts in the CIA and mine at the Bureau, we have resources he can’t match. Trust me.”

  He searched the fathomless depths of her eyes. Trust. He had asked it of her, and she’d agreed. Now it was his turn. “I do.”

  She squeezed his hand before releasing it. “Good. I have some experience with hostage situations. As long as Chick thinks he’s in charge, he has no reason to harm your mother and grandmother. It’s you he’s after.”

  “I wish I knew why he’s doing this, what he wants.”

  “We’ll find out soon enough. Now let’s get busy.”

  ****

  Three hours later they squeezed into the last row of a jet bound for Chicago. They had swung by the hospital and were relieved to learn Herman had survived the first crucial hours after surgery. His condition had been upgraded from critical to serious, and the doctor allowed them to see him for a few minutes.

  A web of tubes drained various fluids in and out of his frail body, and his skin was still ashen, but he’d opened his eyes when Carter spoke and was able to say a few words. Despite his stature, Herman had always been larger than life. It hurt to see the ebullient publicist so diminished, but the doctor assured them he would recover, so they said goodbye and headed to the airport.

  Madelyn hated sitting in the back row of airplanes. The seats didn’t recline, and the roar of the engines made conversation difficult. She leaned close so Carter could hear. “What did Patrick say when you called him?” He had phoned his buddy and her former boss from the departure lounge before they boarded.

  He tapped his fingers on the armrest between their seats in a tuneless rhythm. “Not much. I told him something important had come up and to stand by, that I might need him tonight and I’d call him when we land.”

  “You didn’t fill him in on what’s happened?”

  He shook his head. “There wasn’t time to give him the full background. I can give him the details after we contact Chick. We don’t know what he’s planning or even if he’s in this alone, and I want to make sure when we clean this up, we clean it up for good.”

  She couldn’t agree more. She was through looking over her shoulder, waiting to respond to each new attack, through worrying who would be the next victim. On their home turf they would have a chance to get a step ahead of Chick for the first time. She meant to make the most of it.

  Chapter Twenty

  While Madelyn watched the conveyor belt on the baggage carousel, Carter pulled out his phone, grateful his mother was on speed dial. After five hours in the air with nothing to do but stew, his fear and anger had bubbled close to the boiling point. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and counted to ten. He’d been in plenty of tough situations before and had never had this much trouble keeping his emotions in check. But none of those situations had ever been this personal.

  His grandmother picked up the phone on the third ring.

  “Hello, Gran.”

  “Carter, dear, is that you? Are you coming home?”

  “Yes, Gran. I’m back in Chicago. How’s Mom?”

  Gran hesitated. “I’m getting worried about her.”

  His pulse pounded in his ears. “Why?”

  “She’s still in her room, and the young man won’t let me see her. I don’t think I like him very much.”

  His fingers nearly crushed the phone. “I don’t want you to worry. I’ll be there soon.”

  “That’s good, dear. I’d like him to leave now.”

  “I promise I’ll get him out of there as soon as I can. Can you put him on the phone for me?”

  Chick Avery came on the line. “Are you at O’Hare, Devlin?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good. Now listen. Here’s what you’re going to do.”

  Bile rose in his throat at Chick’s gloating tone. “I’m here. I’ve done what you asked. I want you out of that house. Now.”

  Chick laughed. “What you want doesn’t matter. You’ll do as I say.”

  Carter swallowed his rage. Until his mother and grandmother were safe, he had to play the game by Chick’s rules. “Go ahead.”

  “Come alone to Navy Pier tonight at eleven. This time of year the place will be closed and the tourists long gone. It’ll be perfect for a quiet conversation. And don’t think about calling in reinforcements. We’ll be watching, and if anyone follows you, it will be very unpleasant for these two nice ladies.”

  Carter couldn’t keep the fury from his voice. “So help me, if you hurt either of them, there won’t be a hole deep enough for you to hide in.”

  Chick laughed again.

  “All right, damn it. Where at Navy Pier?”

  “We’ll be watching. We’ll find you.”

  We. So Chick wasn’t in this alone. Of course he couldn’t be in two places at once, watching both the women and the pier. Laura Burns was probably involved. Maybe even Sam.

  “When will my mother and grandmother be released?”

  “When you’re no longer a threat.”

  “How am I a threat?”

  “We never could trust you to play by the rules.”

  “What rules? What are you talking about?”

  “Just be there, and remember what I said.”

  The phone clicked in Carter’s ear. He glared at it, tempted to throw it to the ground and stomp it to bits.

  “What did he say?”

  Madelyn stood beside him with their bags stacked in a neat pile. The size of the pile irritated him. “Why did you do that?”

  She looked confused. “Do what?”

  “Drag those heavy bags off the carousel by yourself.”

  “What was I supposed to do? You were busy.”

  “You were supposed to keep an eye on them and wait for me.”

  She made a rude noise. “Yeah, right. Now what did Chick say?”

  He glanced around. No one appeared to be paying attention to them, but he had no way of knowing if Chick had roped in any other members of Sam’s staff. Sam’s chief of security was more than capable of organizing sophisticated surveillance. At any rate, the baggage claim area was crowded, and he didn’t have time to worry about it. “I�
�ll tell you in the car. I assume the ever-efficient Risa has one waiting outside.”

  “Actually, Zoë is meeting us with a Phoenix car.”

  “Good. After I fill you in, I can call Pat.” He grabbed the handles of their large suitcases, leaving the smaller ones to Madelyn.

  With a bag hanging from each shoulder, she headed toward the door. “Zoë should be right outside.”

  Zoë Hargrove waited at the curb next to an anonymous black Town Car. Madelyn slid into the front seat while Carter loaded the luggage and climbed in back. Then they headed toward the city.

  Once they reached the expressway, Madelyn turned around and leaned her arms on the back of the seat. “Okay. Let’s hear it.”

  “He wants me to go to Navy Pier alone tonight at eleven o’clock.”

  “What about your mother and grandmother?”

  “Someone will stay with them.”

  She nodded. “So he isn’t acting alone.”

  “Apparently not.”

  She glanced at her watch. “We have a few hours to prepare. Why don’t you call Patrick and ask him to meet us somewhere downtown?”

  He placed a call to his friend’s office at the FBI, and Pat answered before the second ring.

  “Lynch.”

  “Pat, it’s me. We’re on I-90. We should be downtown in about twenty minutes if the traffic holds. Okay, listen up...”

  In clipped sentences, he filled Pat in on everything that had happened since they left Chicago three weeks earlier and made arrangements to meet. Then he slid the phone back into his pocket.

  Madelyn was still draped over the back of the front seat, watching him. “What did he say?”

  “He wants us to meet him on the terrace at the Shedd Aquarium.”

  “That’s a good place, with limited access and bordered by the lake on one side.” She settled back in her seat and turned to Zoë. “I want you to come in with us. We might need your help.”

  Zoë smiled. “Sure thing. I’ll drop you at the front door, park the car, and meet you on the terrace.”

  Traffic slowed to a crawl just north of downtown, and Carter clenched his jaws to keep from shouting in frustration. He straightened in his seat and craned his neck, trying to see over the cars to locate the source of the slowdown, but there was nothing unusual—no accident or stalled car—just four solid lanes of bumper-to-bumper vehicles.

  It took fifteen precious minutes to reach the Shedd, a Beaux Arts temple that clung to the shore of Lake Michigan just east of Grant Park. After leaving Zoë, Madelyn and Carter headed straight for the restaurant to meet Pat.

  Carter was glad to see that even though it was late in the season, the doors to the outdoor terrace were unlocked. It was too cool to eat outside, but a few visitors leaned against the rail to watch the passing boats on the lake. A man in a tan raincoat stood with his back to them, facing north, scanning across the deep blue water to Navy Pier with a pair of binoculars. Carter and Madelyn hurried over, and the man turned as they approached.

  Pat Lynch still looked like the defensive end he’d been in high school, a little heavier around the middle, but still fit, strong, and alert. He smiled when he saw Madelyn.

  “Madelyn.” He reached for her hands. “I’m glad to see you.” He glanced at Carter, then back. “Maybe not under these circumstances, but glad anyway.”

  “It’s good to see you, too, Patrick.” She squeezed his hands.

  “Let’s step over here against the building, out of the wind. I’ve been studying the pier, and I’ve got a plan. I can position a team around several of the rides when the park closes—”

  Carter cut him off. “I have to go alone.”

  Pat frowned. “Don’t be an idiot. We’re in charge here, not him.”

  “Pat, it’s my mom and Gran.”

  “And they’d both beat me senseless if I let this slimeball kill you.”

  Carter had to smile. “Probably.”

  “So I’ll take two agents to the pier in a couple of hours and get in position. You show up around ten. I’ve got communication equipment in my car.”

  “But what about Mom and Gran? I’ve got to know they’re all right.”

  “I can help with that.”

  They turned to find Zoë standing behind them.

  Madelyn introduced her to Patrick. “What’s your idea?”

  “I can ring the doorbell dressed as a pizza delivery person and pretend I’ve got the wrong address. I can scope out the situation and report back.”

  Madelyn glanced at Carter and Patrick. “It could work.”

  “What if Chick won’t open the door?” Carter asked.

  “It will be dark by the time I get there. If he won’t open the door, I can look around outside and check the windows.”

  He shook his head. “Chick’s bound to be armed, and he might not be alone. I can’t risk anything happening to you or to Mom and Gran.”

  “Don’t worry. I’m good at being invisible. He’ll never see me. I can do it.” Zoë turned to Madelyn for confirmation.

  She nodded. “I can’t go because Chick knows me. Zoë’s good. She can do this.”

  He considered her offer. Every cell in his body clamored to confront Chick himself, but reason restrained him. That would put his mother and grandmother in even greater danger. He needed upfront intelligence before devising a plan, and Zoë was the perfect person to get it. “Okay.”

  “Good.” Madelyn nodded. “Zoë, you can drop us at the office and call as soon as you’ve made contact.”

  “Will do. I’ll get the car.” She turned on her heel and left.

  While they waited inside the front doors, Madelyn placed a quick call to Risa to set things up. A few minutes later Zoë arrived with the car. They all climbed in, and drove across town to Madelyn’s office building, where they rode the elevator to the seventh floor.

  “I got those pizzas you ordered.” Risa pointed to a stack of boxes when they walked through the door.

  “Good. Give two to Zoë when she comes up. We’ll take the rest.”

  Carter picked up the three remaining pizza boxes, and he and Pat followed Madelyn into her office. When he settled into a chair in front of her desk, a rush of déjà vu struck him. Had it only been three weeks since he’d sat in the same chair next to Herman thinking how much fun it would be to spend time getting to know Madelyn? Talk about irony.

  ****

  “Let’s eat.” Patrick lifted the lid on a sausage, pepperoni, and onion pizza.

  Madelyn munched a slice of veggie white while the men pretended to argue about the Cubs’ chances for next year. She had no interest in baseball but admired Carter’s attempt to compartmentalize his emotions. She knew he was worried sick, but he made a valiant effort to hide it. He and Patrick debated batting averages and off-season trades as if they actually mattered.

  She glanced at the clock on her desk phone. Zoë should be at his mother’s house by now. Her nails beat a rapid rhythm on the hard surface of the desk. She checked the time again. Why didn’t phone ring?

  “Have another slice of pizza.” Carter offered the open box. Worry had painted shadows beneath his eyes.

  “How can you eat that stuff?” she snapped.

  “You ordered it.”

  “I guess I did.” She rolled her chair back and pushed to her feet. “I’m sorry. You know how terrible I am at waiting.”

  “She’s telling the truth.” Patrick pointed with a slice of pepperoni. “You don’t want to go on a stakeout with this woman. Believe me.”

  Carter reached for her hand as she walked past. “I don’t know about that.”

  Patrick’s brows shot up. “Is there something you two want to tell me?”

  She pressed her lips together. All she needed was to give him an excuse to rib her. “No.”

  His laugh was interrupted by a shrill ringing from the phone on her desk, and they sobered instantly. She walked back and picked it up. “Hello.”

  “It’s me.”

  T
he knot in Madelyn’s stomach tightened. She’d known it would be Zoë, but she was almost afraid to hear her report. She pushed the button for speaker phone and set the receiver back in its cradle. “Go ahead.”

  “The elder Mrs. Devlin answered the door, but a short, skinny, dark-haired guy stood right behind her.”

  “That’s Chick Avery. Was he alone?”

  “I only saw the two of them in the living room.”

  Carter leaned forward toward the phone. “How was Gran? Could you see my mom anywhere?”

  “Your grandmother seemed fine, a little confused but otherwise fine. She said she was hungry and took the pizzas.”

  “How about Mom?”

  “I couldn’t see the upstairs windows clearly from the ground, so I’m up on the roof of the neighbor’s garage with binoculars.”

  “She’ll give Mr. Jankowski a heart attack,” Carter muttered.

  “Your mom is in the back bedroom,” Zoë continued. “The door is closed, so I assume it’s locked or barricaded. She’s pacing around and looks mad as a wet cat.”

  Carter slumped back in the chair. “Thank God. Whatever Avery gave her must have worn off.”

  “Do you want me to make contact?”

  “No. Stay where you are until I get there,” Madelyn replied.

  “You’d better hurry. The old guy who lives here keeps offering me pennies. If you wait too long, I might have enough to retire.”

  “I’ll be there in thirty minutes. And Zoë, give the man back his pennies and get off the roof.”

  Zoë gave a soft laugh. “Will do. See you soon.”

  She disconnected the call. “Zoë and I can handle Chick while you two set things up for the meet at the pier. I’ll join you when the situation is secure.”

  “I need to be there. I need to take care of Avery myself.”

  She pinned him with a sharp look. “I understand. You want to pound him into dust, but you need to meet whoever shows up at the pier. You need to make sure no one escapes the net.”

  “I can send a couple of agents to the house,” Patrick suggested.

  “Zoë and I can handle the situation.”

  “I’m sure Chick is armed.” Carter’s frown deepened.