Then a bang sounded, startling him, followed by a scuffle and a sound of surprise.
“Hey, Eric.” It was Everly. But her voice was chilly. Knowing. Confident bordering on arrogant. And distant, which meant Bella was holding the phone.
“Don’t move, bitch.” Equal parts fear and bravado filled Eric’s tone. “Where’s the kid?”
“What kid?”
A second later, Eric grunted, then howled. More movement brushed the microphone, obscuring what sounded like a fight in the background. Bella whimpered, and the sound stabbed his heart.
Metal clicked on tile—the gun hitting the floor and skittering away.
“Don’t do it,” Everly told him. Her voice took on a darker, don’t-be-an-idiot tone. “You still have one good kidney. But if you move, you’re dead.”
The words chilled Austin’s gut.
A second passed, then more of Eric’s screams scraped over the line. The pain and shock in the man’s voice ripped at Austin, even though it was over. Even though he would have done the same thing in Everly’s position.
A lightbulb went on in Austin’s brain. He cut a look at Everly, but she was still gazing outside, her mind lost in the darkness.
The screams were followed by the crack of bone, presumably Eric hitting the floor. Moan
ing filtered over the line, and Austin wiped his damp forehead. Knowing Bella heard all this in the moment made Austin’s stomach roll. He felt the blood drain from his face.
More groaning was punctuated by Bella’s whimpers and sniffles. Then a door squeaked open.
“It’s okay, baby.” The Everly he knew was back, her voice soft, sweet, reassuring, and getting louder as she neared the phone. Bella must have been covering the display, because she asked, “Did you talk to your daddy?”
“N-no.”
“Okay.” Everly sounded breathless now, hurried and worried. “Let’s try again in a minute. Right now, we have to go.”
“You owie?” Bella asked.
“No, honey, I’m fine.” More rustling noises came over the line. Then Everly’s voice was right in Austin’s ear. “Look at me. I want you to squeeze your eyes tight, and put your head on my shoulder. Don’t open them until I tell you, okay?”
A muffled, teary “Okay” came from Bella.
The creak of the door sounded again, followed by a distant male voice calling, “Ramon. Eric.”
Then Everly’s “Shit” and “Plug your ears, baby,” followed by a crash so loud, Austin pulled the phone from his ear and Everly turned to look at him.
Nerves floated in her eyes. “What’s that?”
She’d been telling the truth. She’d risked her life to keep Bella safe. And she’d escaped two trained security guards with ingenuity.
Who in the hell was this woman? Every instinct Austin had screamed military, but the idea was absurd. Then his mind branched out to CIA operative. But that was even more ludicrous. Seaver wanted Bella, no doubt. And she had the contacts, definitely. But sending a spy into his home? No. Seaver would take a more conventional and immediate route—like infiltrating the local security team he’d hired.
“Austin?”
He refocused and found her questioning gaze on him. It was the first time she’d ever called him by his first name, and it pulled at something inside him. Interesting timing—while he was trying to decide whether or not to trust her.
“Do you ever stop?” she asked.
“Stop what?”
“Suspecting people?”
No. He hadn’t stopped since Seaver had tried to take Bella.