Delores Fossen - Undercover Daddy

Would they just try to break in?

Would they storm the place?

Maybe. But with Luke there, she was betting they wouldn’t be successful. For the first time since she’d laid eyes on the man who could destroy her, she was thankful Luke was with her. Protecting Christopher was everything now, and though Elaina had plenty of doubts about Luke Buchanan, she didn’t doubt his ability to keep her baby safe.

But safe from what?

Were these men connected to Kevin, or as Luke had suggested, were they connected to the adoption? If so, had they already murdered Luke’s wife?

That chilled her to the bone. Because if this was linked to the adoption, then they might plan to go after Christopher. Maybe they’d do that to eliminate a connection to a murdered woman. But if that was true, then Luke would be a target, as well.

The men began walking again. Beside her, she was aware that Luke tensed his muscles. But that was only reaction. He aimed his weapon directly at them.

“Move away from the door,” Luke whispered. And even though it was a whisper, it was still an order.

This time, Elaina obeyed, because she knew that bullets could easily go through the wood. Theresa’s fifty-something-year-old home wasn’t designed to block intruders.

Elaina crawled to the side. Not far. She wanted to be near that door if the men tried to break it down.

“There’s my backup,” she heard Luke say.

Elaina scrambled to the window to see what he meant, and she saw the other car approach. But it didn’t just approach . The dark blue SUV came screeching around the corner and came to a jerky stop right behind the men’s vehicle. And that wasn’t all. The agent who got out was armed. He pointed a huge gun right at the men.

“Stay put,” Luke warned her.

Luke barreled out the door, probably to give back up to the backup. Elaina didn’t mind. She wanted those two men arrested and away from Christopher and her.

She couldn’t hear what Luke said to them, but both men lifted their hands into the air. Luke kept his gun trained on them while Luke’s partner, a tall brown-haired man, rushed to handcuff the two men. The agent also searched them. Both men had not just one weapon but two each.

Luke and the agent didn’t waste any time. They ushered the men into the backseat of the agent’s SUV. Elaina sat there, her face glued to the sidelight window, and she watched as Luke said something else to them. The men didn’t respond. A few moments later, the agent drove away with the men.

Elaina got to her feet, though the adrenaline made her jittery. Later, when all of this sank in, she was certain she’d be furious at those imbeciles for putting her through this.

Luke came through the door, and he tucked his gun back into his shoulder holster. “Agent Kaplan is taking them to the local jail. As soon as they’re processed, I’ll go there and assist with the interview.”

“So, they didn’t admit to any guilt when you arrested them?”

He shook his head and blew out a weary breath. “No. But unless they have permits to carry concealed weapons, we can hold them on that for a while.”

For a while didn’t sound nearly long enough.

“Why would those men have killed your wife?” Elaina asked. She shoved the umbrella back into the basket and made sure that Theresa was still in the nursery. She didn’t want the woman overhearing any of this. “You think they did it to get Christopher from her so they could hand him over to the lawyers running the adoption ring?”

Luke adjusted his leather jacket so the weapon wouldn’t be visible. “That’s one theory.”

She snapped toward him. “There’s more than one?”

He nodded. Raked his fingers over his eyebrow. “Right before I went on the deep cover-up last year, I arrested a man named George Devereux. He was slime, into too many different crimes to name. Devereux vowed revenge because I arrested him. I haven’t been able to prove it, but it’s possible that Devereux murdered Taylor shortly after she gave birth. It’s also possible that he or one of his henchmen sold or gave Christopher to the adoption ring.”

Elaina felt as if someone had punched her in the stomach. It took several seconds to regain her breath and some semblance of composure. It took her slightly longer than that to manage to think his theory through. On the one hand, it would make her feel marginally better to put the blame on Luke. But on the other hand, she didn’t want a heavy-duty criminal like Devereux to be involved in this.

“So then, why would Devereux’s men come after me?” she demanded to know. “I certainly can’t link him to Christopher’s adoption or to Taylor’s death.”

“Maybe Devereux didn’t want to stop with Taylor.” Luke paused and met her gaze. “Maybe he’s had time to stew while sitting in prison and wants to continue his revenge.”

“Oh, God.” Elaina dropped back a step. “You mean Christopher?”

“Yeah,” he confirmed.

Elaina groaned and felt the sickening knot form in her stomach. “So, either George Devereux or Kevin might have spawned this?”

“There’s only one way to find out which one. Those two men will provide the answers.”

Yes. The men. With all the talk about Devereux and revenge, she’d nearly forgotten that they might be very close to learning what this was really about. In fact, if the men confessed to trying to kill her, then they’d be off the streets for a long, long time. Their confession and incarceration could give her the safety she’d been praying for and the freedom to resume a normal life.

For all the good it’d do her now.

Luke Buchanan’s arrival had changed everything, and Elaina didn’t think they would agree on what she considered a normal life . Heck, he could still try to have her arrested for the illegal adoption.

Elaina felt sick. That feeling didn’t go away when she heard Theresa call out. “I hope those protestors are gone. Christopher’s up from his nap. Is it okay if I bring him out there?”

She was on the verge of saying no, but the word stuck in her throat. Luke, however, seemed to have no trouble responding. Obviously following the sound of Theresa’s voice, he headed straight for Christopher.

Elaina rushed after him. It was like a train wreck about to happen.

Luke paused in the doorway of the nursery, and since he took up nearly the entire space, Elaina had to stand on her tiptoes to see what had stopped the agent in his tracks.

Christopher was there. He wore the denim overalls and long-sleeved knit blue shirt that she’d dressed him in that morning. He was standing, holding on to the arm of the rocking chair where Theresa was seated.

“The protestors are gone?” Theresa asked.

“They’re gone,” Luke assured her, but his attention was focused solely Christopher.

Luke stepped toward the baby. Elaina’s instincts screamed to stop him. But she couldn’t. She could only stand there and watch as Luke reached down and gently lifted her son into his arms.

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.