“MacGyver?”
“Yeah.”
Wariness was back in her voice and damned if he didn’t despise himself for putting it there. He straightened and glanced toward her, then tensed and turned slowly.
A man with a baseball cap shadowing his face stood behind her, one arm draped over her shoulder, fingers around her throat and the barrel of his gun pressed against the side of her head. “Kellie, I told you to leave your friends out of this, remember? Are the others around here somewhere too?”
MacGyver focused on Kellie briefly, before shifting to study what he could see of the man holding a gun on her. “And…you are?” MacGyver’s instinct and training kept him calm, which was a feat in itself, considering he’d rather tear the coward apart for putting his hands on Kellie.
“Sorry, no time for introductions. I need you to remove your weapon very carefully, slide it across the floor gently and put your hands on your head. One wrong move and your girlfriend suffers for it.”
The stranger had just given him the go-ahead to draw his weapon, but the way the man used Kellie as a shield didn’t afford MacGyver an acceptable opportunity. He gripped his handgun and carefully laid it on the floor, pushing it away with his foot. His subtle glance flicked to her, and he gave a slight nod, hoping to reassure her. He needn’t have bothered.
Standing straight and tall, her face a mask of concentration, Kellie smiled ever so slightly. “His name is Jerry. He works for Tony. I met him at the hotel before I learned Tony planned to kill me and collect on a life insurance policy. He’s also the reason I showed up at Wally’s Tavern. I actually thought Jerry might be one of the good guys—until now.”
MacGyver cocked his head to the side. “You just can’t tell about people nowadays.”
Jerry scowled and pushed Kellie toward the center of the room. “For the record, I am on your side. If you’d given me ten more minutes, I’d have gotten you out of that hotel myself.”
Kellie started to turn, disbelief etched on her face, only to have Jerry push her forward a few more steps.
“And…you’d help her because…?” MacGyver didn’t buy that story for a minute.
Kellie’s expression told him she wasn’t falling for his bullshit either. Clearly he was concocting a fairy tale in the hopes of gaining her trust. No doubt Jerry wouldn’t have any better luck with that than MacGyver had.
“That’s between her and me.” Jerry shoved a zip tie into Kellie’s hand and nudged her forward again, then motioned MacGyver toward one of the kitchen chairs. “Have a seat, cowboy.”
As Kellie moved away from him, Jerry lifted her weapon from her waistband.
“Oh, yeah. You won’t be needing that where we’re going.”
MacGyver kept his eyes on Kellie and hooked his fingers in his pockets, hoping his relaxed attitude would convey the message that they needed to draw this out. Blake and Travis had to be wondering why he and Kellie hadn’t reappeared. If they could keep Jerry talking long enough, perhaps help would arrive.
Kellie glanced toward the window. She was on the same page. Unfortunately, MacGyver’s delay in following instructions and Kellie’s relaxed demeanor seemed to unravel Jerry’s confident façade.
He closed on her back, jamming the gun into her side. “I don’t have time for your stalling tactics. Sit, now, if you want the rest of her life to be pleasant.”
In a blur of motion, Kellie swung around and jammed her elbow into Jerry’s side. His breath whooshed from his lungs as he doubled over with a grunt. Kellie kicked the weapon from his hand, swinging her foot in an arc that caught him smack in the balls. He backed away as quickly as a man could, doubled over, choking on spittle, but it wasn’t quick enough. She grabbed a handful of his hair and jerked her knee into his face.
When she let him go, he dropped like a sack of potatoes. All MacGyver could do was wince and thank his lucky stars he apparently hadn’t pissed her off to that extent…yet. The click of the safety as she leveled the gun at the man writhing on the floor drew his attention, and he hastened to her side.
“Easy, Champ. Why don’t you give me the gun?” He held out his hand.
The back door flew open, bouncing off the interior wall, and Travis filled the doorway with Blake right behind him. Glancing from the man on the floor…to Kellie…to MacGyver, Travis frowned as he lowered his weapon. “Damn it! We missed the whole thing?”
“Don’t worry, Travis. If Jerry doesn’t tell me where Charlie is, I’m going to shatter his kneecaps one at a time.” Kellie’s voice was cold and hard as flint. MacGyver believed her and, apparently, so did Jerry.
“Don’t do anything stupid, Kellie. I’m a US Marshal. My identification is in the inside pocket of my jacket. Check it.”
No one moved except Kellie, who slowly pointed the barrel of the gun at Jerry’s left knee. “I don’t care if you’re the Pope. I want to know where Charlie is, and I want you to explain how you know about Anna.”
“Listen to me, Kellie. Charlie’s safe and not far from here. As for Anna—that’s why I’m here. I know where she is.”
Kellie gasped, and her gun hand dropped to her side. Her face paled as though she’d seen a ghost.
What the…? Who the hell is Anna?
Chapter Ten