Her heart squeezed painfully in her chest and her arm muscles quivered beneath the weight of the toilet tank lid. She blinked back tears, trying to convince herself that Ryker would survive.
That they would all survive.
“Olivia? Are you in there?” Ryker’s familiar voice made her knees go weak.
Thank You, God!
“Yes, we’re in the bathroom.” She lowered the lid of the toilet tank and moved out from behind the door. After setting the tank cover back in place, she opened the door, grateful beyond belief to see Ryker standing there. “What happened? Is everyone all right?”
“Yeah, but we need to hit the road.” His face was drawn into tight lines, his gaze grim. “Now.”
“They found us?” Silly question, since she knew they must have. “How?”
Ryker slowly shook his head. “They must have followed us. I didn’t see them, but they must have had a line on our vehicle. Get your things together.”
“Okay.” She didn’t need to be told twice. She quickly used the bathroom, then carried Aaron back into the bedroom. Her zebra bag was in the main living space, and she only had the one set of clothes, so there wasn’t anything to grab other than Aaron’s plastic lion and toy plane.
When she stepped into the suite, she stopped abruptly, her gaze landing on the two men dressed in black lying on the floor. One of them was bleeding badly; the other didn’t show any signs of blood.
“Are they dead?” She couldn’t help asking.
“Just one of them.” Ryker’s voice was low and harsh, as if it pained him to know that one of the men had died.
Mike and Duncan were tying the wrists of the guy who wasn’t bleeding. The man let out a low moan and she knew then that he’d only been knocked out.
Not dead. Like the other.
Nausea swirled and she did her best to stave it off. Ryker had the zebra bag over his shoulder, watching as Mike and Duncan hauled the guy up and into a chair.
Ryker leaned close. “Who sent you?”
The man stirred, but didn’t say a word. His eyes remained closed, and she couldn’t tell if he was only pretending or if he was semiconscious.
Ryker gave him a hard shake. “Wake up! Who sent you?”
Still nothing. The man’s eyes remained shut, his head lolling to the side. She felt sick, realizing he likely had a head injury of some sort.
Which wasn’t good, but was better than being dead.
Mike and Duncan stood back, watching, their expressions grim. She shifted Aaron in her arms. “Come on, Ryker. Let’s just go.”
He ignored her. “What does Blake-Moore want with Olivia?” he asked the intruder.
“Nuther.” The word was mumbled in a way that made it difficult for her to understand. The man’s eyes were still closed, but he frowned as if confused about what was happening.
“Nothing? Don’t tell me nothing. Why are you here?” Ryker shook him again. “What do you want with her?”
“Nub...ber...” His voice trailed off again, his jaw hanging slack.
If it was an act, it was a good one. Her stomach swirled again and she had to swallow hard to stop from throwing up.
“Ryker, we need to get out of here.” Duncan stepped forward. “They could have called for additional support from the mercenary group. Or the noise may have drawn attention from the local police. We can’t stick around.”
“Fine.” Ryker left the man on the chair and stood, raking a hand over his hair. “Let’s go.”
Liv headed toward the door, but Ryker stopped her with a hand on her arm. His voice was kind now. “Let me carry Aaron.”
“All right.” She handed her son over. By this time, Aaron was used to being in Ryker’s arms and didn’t protest.
Instead, her little boy snuggled against Ryker’s chest, sucking on his thumb again, as if instinctively knowing he was safer there with Ryker than anywhere else.
Duncan led the way outside. Ryker remained behind Duncan, with Mike covering her back. She wasn’t sure what she’d do if they came upon other men from the Blake-Moore Group. How much more could they take?
She straightened her spine and shook off the overwhelming sense of despair. They were alive, which was the most important thing right now.
She felt humbled to realize Ryker and his friends had risked their lives to keep her and Aaron safe.
Just as he’d promised they would.
“Get in.” Ryker held the passenger door of a black SUV open for her. She glanced in the back, relieved to see Aaron’s car seat was already buckled in.
Moments later, Ryker slid behind the wheel. He gestured for Mike and Duncan to roll out first, in an identical SUV, then followed them.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” She reached out and lightly rested her hand on his forearm. His skin was warm beneath her fingertips. “I heard a lot of noise.”
“I’m fine.” His words were clipped and she realized he was angry. “I should have moved from the motel as soon as we ditched the sedan.”
“If they had followed us from the dealership, they likely would have followed again.”
He let out a heavy sigh. “Thankfully, they must not have realized I had Duncan and Mike with me. I’m sure if they’d known, they would have come with more men.”
More men. She shivered despite the warm June night air. It was horrifying to think that there would be more men coming after them.
Forever, or at least until they’d gotten what they’d wanted.
Whichever came first.
“Why had he said nothing in response to your question?” Olivia’s voice interrupted his dark thoughts. “If he was only partially conscious, you’d think he’d spill the truth.”
“Blake-Moore must have used some heavy-duty training to have them answer that way.” He paused, then added, “Although, I thought he said numbers.”
“Numbers?” She looked at him in horror. “You know I’m an accountant, right?”
No, he hadn’t known that. He glanced at her. “Did you do accounting work for Blake-Moore?”
“No.” She rubbed her hand over her belly and he knew she was troubled by what had gone down at the motel. Duncan had
