His Son. Her Secret.

Chapter 3

All she had was the element of surprise, and it was ticking down fast. His grunt of pain cut off, body jerking in surprise. Beth tightened her hold, using all her weight to make this work, cutting off air, cutting off movement. He struggled, of course. Hands clawed at her covered arms, but she held firm, teeth clenched, muscles burning.

A sharp elbow drove back into her side. Pain flared, but she didn’t loosen her grip. Beth had no doubt she was dead if she let him get away. Lucky for her, this wasn’t her first scuffle. Growing up in a rough neighborhood with an abusive father had taught her how to hold her own. Or at least try to until she could get away, which wasn’t an option now, though.

The next few seconds stretched like molasses. Beth got another elbow jab, and he tried to throw her off his body, but his movements were more sluggish until he eventually stopped. Breathing hard, Beth held on for another ten seconds. She didn’t want to kill the man, but she couldn’t have him waking up while she was still there.

Then she let him drop. Her chest rose and fell quickly as she stepped back, eyes darting to the door. No movement. No alarm. Good. For now.

The baby chose that moment to whimper. Beth turned and finally set her eyes on the child. She blinked. The child wasn’t as small as she’d expected. Standing in a box sitting on top of a table, his small fists gripped the edge as he stared at her with large, wet eyes. The boy had to be at least two.

Not wise but not wanting to scare the child, she lifted her ski mask to expose her face. Then, slowly, Beth approached the table. Up close, the sight was harder to take in. With a curly mop of black hair and large brown eyes that looked at her pleadingly, Beth couldn’t imagine someone had been willing to hurt this child.

The boy was beautiful, and even though his green romper with tiny colorful cars was covered in smudges of dirt and he smelled pretty ripe, she could tell he belonged to someone who cared for him and kept him healthy.

“Hey,” Beth breathed, voice softening without permission. “Hey, it’s okay.”

A beat passed. Then Beth chuckled softly because the boy didn’t seem to care for speeches. He lifted his arms in a clear indication that he wanted her to pick him up. Maybe the kid had the right idea. Beth reminded herself that the man behind her wouldn’t be unconscious forever, and the second man could come back any time.

It was in both their best interest if they went there when either of those possibilities happened.

Carefully, Beth reached out and lifted the child, who immediately held on to her as though she was a lifeline, which she supposed she was. Her chest tightened immediately as though something shifted within her. It gave her pause.

“Beth!” Avi’s voice snapped from the earpiece dangling from her neck.

Wincing, Beth adjusted the child so she held him with one arm and then used her free hand to plug the gadget back in place, even as she started for the stairs.

“I’m here.”

“Seriously!” Avi practically screamed, making Beth grimace. “What the hell is happening?!”

Beth bit the corner of her lip. Oh. This wasn’t going to go well.

***

“Santiago, you need to calm down.”

Those words were like a spark to a fuel-drenched log. Calm down? Was that a joke? Instead of voicing that thought, though, he sent his fist into the wall. The sound cracked through the office, sharp and violent, rattling the ornaments displayed on the wall-mounted shelves a foot away.

For a second, Santiago just stared at the perfectly intact wall as though it had personally betrayed him by not crumbling under his rage. Then there was pain and blood. It shot up his arm like a flaming snake until he swore he felt it radiate heat throughout his body, but he welcomed it. It was something solid. Something real to remind him he was still breathing and not dying.

The thought made him pause for a beat. He guessed there were lessons that couldn’t be scraped from the brain, no matter how many years passed. Movement at the door grabbed his attention, which was just as well. Santiago didn’t want to think about that. Especially not right now.

“They called?” his brother, Derrick, asked, stepping into the office. He shot a wary eye at Santiago and then turned to their cousin, Oliver, obviously deciding he was the safer option for a calm response.

Santiago saw it. He laughed. It wasn’t humor. Not even close. “Would I be standing here trying to punch a hole in the wall if they’d called?” he said, voice rough, pacing now. “But that’s how this works, right? They take something, they call, they make demands.” He dragged a hand through his hair, tugging hard enough to sting. The pain joined the one in his knuckles, and he probably smeared blood into his hair. “So why aren’t they bloody calling? That’s the part I’m waiting for.”

He just wanted the call. Regardless of how much the kidnappers asked for, Santiago was willing to pay to get his son back. He didn’t even care if the kidnappers got caught. Okay, that was a lie. Santiago more than cared. He wanted the people responsible to burn for this. If only the call would come.

Derrick and Oliver exchanged a look. Santiago caught it, and it set something ugly loose inside him. He had a bad feeling that he knew what they were thinking, and he wanted to tell them not to even consider it; instead, his lips said the opposite.

“Say it,” he snapped, turning on them. “Go on. I can see it on your faces. Spit it out!”

Oliver raked his nails through his barely there hair, a grimace twisting his facial features as though the words physically hurt him to voice aloud. “Maybe you shouldn’t have called the police. They probably know you did, and that’s why they’re not calling with the ransom.”

“In what world was I supposed to not call the police when my son was kidn*pped in the middle of the night? Was I supposed to pour myself a glass of bourbon and just relax?”

“That’s not what we are suggesting, and you know it,” Derrick cut in, stepping forward, “But you know there was a better option. You may not want to acknowledge it, but the best way to deal with such a crisis is to call on resources that have no limitations.”

“I’m not calling him,” Santiago gritted out through clenched teeth.

“Not even to get your son back?”

Silence stretched. Derrick’s challenge hung heavily in the air, making it almost uncomfortable to breathe.

Finally, Derrick exhaled slowly, like he was choosing every word before letting it out. “What I’m saying is…You could still make the call. Time is ticking, and the police are practically useless. Don’t let your pride get in the way of getting your son back, Santiago.”

“Pride,” Santiago repeated. The word tasted bitter on his tongue.

His gaze flicked to the window, to the darkness outside illuminated by security lights. Several armed men walked in the shadows. Security. It was three times the number he’d kept before all this happened. He didn’t trust any of them.

“They got past everything,” he said quietly. “Cameras. Guards. Locks.” His jaw tightened. “Do you know what that means?”

Neither Oliver nor Derrick answered. They didn’t need to.

“They knew what they were doing.” Santiago turned then and looked at his brother as he went on. “What if the very man you want me to call for help was behind this?”

“No,” Oliver said, voice steady. “He would never.”

Santiago turned sharply and arched a brow that said it all.

Derrick shook his head. “Oliver’s right. Kaleth is family. Blood. You know he would never harm blood.”

Santiago wasn’t convinced in the least. “I’ll burn everything to the ground if I learn he had a hand in this.” The words came out low. Deadly. Not a threat thrown in anger. A promise.

Derrick’s expression hardened. “And what happens to Kaleth while you’re doing that?”

That hit. Hard. Santiago stilled. For a second, something flickered in his eyes, something dangerously close to breaking, but it was gone just as fast, buried under layers of fury and control.

“I will protect my son, and anyone who tries to harm him will pay for it. I will find whoever has him and make them pay for every agonizing second he has been away from me.”