Her Mistletoe Protector(33)

It was a start, but not good enough. "We need to get to Chicago, ASAP. I need you to help me get out of here," he said to McCarthy. "I'll need help since I can barely keep myself upright. We need to get to Rachel before Errol does."

"I don't know if that's a good idea," McCarthy hedged.

"I do. Trust me-I'll take full responsibility for my decision." Last year, Jonah had been in a similar situation, leaving the hospital against doctor's orders. And he'd been fine.

Nick had to believe everything would work out fine this time, too.

Dear Lord, please give me the strength I need to keep Rachel and Joey safe.

* * *

Rachel held on to Joey's hand tightly as they navigated the crowds at the bus depot. Without luggage, it was easy to push her way through the swarming mass of people to the door, and before long they found their way to the taxi stand. Now that they were back in Chicago, she couldn't wait to get home. But first a quick trip to her office building.

Her desperation must have shown as a taxi came barreling to a stop right in front of her. She thought she heard someone call her name but then figured she was imagining things. She urged Joey in first and climbed in after him.

"Where to?" the cabbie asked in a thick Middle Eastern accent.

"Simon Incorporated," she told him, rattling off the address. He nodded and pulled out into traffic, earning a loud protest from the guy behind him.

She almost closed her eyes, because the taxi drivers in Chicago were maniacs behind the wheel, and she always expected to get in a crash. But somehow, miraculously, they always managed to get to their destinations unscathed.

"Are we home yet?" Joey asked plaintively. She knew he was exhausted, and he'd truly taken everything in stride better than she could have expected.

"Almost. We're going to stop by my office first, so I can pay the taxi driver and get our house keys," she said in a hushed voice, hoping the driver didn't understand English very well. She didn't think he'd have agreed to take her anywhere knowing that she didn't have anything more than ten dollars in her pocket, courtesy of Officer McCarthy's donation. She intended to get a check in the mail to him first thing in the morning, thanking him again for helping her out.

Joey sighed heavily but didn't whine or complain.

The traffic worked against them again, and she kept a wary eye on the time, hoping they'd get there before the office building shut down for the day. It was almost five o'clock in the evening and already pitch-black outside, except for the brightly lit buildings and the various Christmas decorations, of course.

She chewed her lower lip nervously. Hopefully, even if everyone was gone, the security guards would let her upstairs. Maybe Gerry hadn't had time to completely take over her company. Just the thought of explaining how Gerry had died was enough to overwhelm her.

It was five-fifteen when the taxi driver pulled up in front of her building. "Keep the meter running...I'll be right back."

"No! You pay first!" he protested.

"Look, I promise you I'll be back. We need to get home. I don't have a car."

He stared at her with eyes black as midnight but then he nodded. "If you not back soon, I come after you."

She breathed a tiny sigh of relief. "I will, I promise." Sliding out from the backseat, she waited for Joey to join her and headed inside.

Carrie, the perky receptionist, left promptly at five, but there was a security guard seated in her spot. Being inside the office building after being gone for so long seemed a little strange yet, at the same time, blessedly familiar. "George, how are you? How are the kids?"

"Great, Ms. Simon, just great. What are you doing here so late?"

"I forgot something up in my office. Would you mind letting me use the master key?" She hoped and prayed that Gerry hadn't told everyone to keep her out of the building.                       
       
           



       

"Sure, no problem." George held out a key. "Just bring it back when you leave."

"I will." She didn't hesitate, but went straight over to the bank of elevators. The doors opened immediately, taking them all the way to the tenth floor without a single stop.

She unlocked the door, noting that the entire office area was completely dark, as if everyone had gone home early. And considering it was nearly Christmas, she understood why. She flipped on lights as she walked down the hall to her office.

Her door stood open, which she thought was a little odd. Edith always kept the door closed and locked when Rachel wasn't there. Then again, the woman had given her notice. For all she knew, Edith hadn't even shown up for work today.

Hovering in the doorway, she reached inside to flip on the lights. She blinked for a moment so that her eyes could adjust before crossing the room to her desk and rummaging for cash and her keys. Joey plopped into her desk chair, spinning from side to side.

She was relieved to find her secret stash of bills was right where she'd left it. She grabbed the money and the spare set of keys.

"I've been waiting for you, Rachel."

The voice came from the hallway, and she swallowed a scream when she jerked her head up to see Karl Errol standing in the shadows. Her heart dropped to her stomach when she realized he'd traded the rifle for a small handgun, which he pointed directly at her. From this distance it would be hard for him to miss.

"Karl!" She faced him in the doorway, making sure to keep Joey behind her, hoping her son would figure out a way to slide down behind the desk. All the while, she kept her eyes locked on the research scientist. She couldn't believe Karl was here. How did he know that she'd stop by on her way home? Or had he planned to wait for her all night, surprising her in the morning? She swallowed hard, wishing she'd asked George to come up with her.

How long did she have to stall here before the cabbie came looking for his money? Or would he simply give up and drive away? She tried not to think the worst. "I'm so glad you're all right. We looked everywhere for you!"

"Yeah, right. You left me there to die, Rachel," he sneered with obvious reproach. "Good thing I still had the distributer cap for the car, hmm?"

"What do you want, Karl?" she asked, fed up with pandering to his ego. "What more could you possibly want from me?"

"I need to finish what I started," he said enigmatically. "I always finish the job."

"Why?" she asked helplessly, tired of the games. "Haven't you caused enough damage? You've ruined my company's reputation, and for what? Love? You don't have the faintest idea what true love is. Josie never would have accepted your love if she knew what you've done."

She couldn't help thinking of Nick. How she'd left him in the hospital without even giving him a chance to explain what he'd gone through. Maybe he had shut her out, believing the worst about the damage to his arm, but sooner or later, he would have come around. If she'd learned anything about faith, it was that leaning on God's strength could help you through the darkest days. She was suddenly ashamed of her actions. She should have stayed. She should have given him a second chance.

Should have told him how she felt.

Now she could only hope and pray she wasn't too late.

"Do you honestly think that Detective Butler won't figure out that you're the one who killed me?" she continued, since Karl hadn't responded. "He's not stupid, Karl. I promise Nick won't rest until he finds you and makes sure that you spend the rest of your life behind bars."

"I have protection. My boss will protect me."

"Protection? From your boss? William Hanson, the CEO of Global? Or the Mafia?"

The way Karl reacted to William Hanson's name let her know she'd nailed it correctly. For once she didn't mind being wrong about the Mafia connection.

"You think William Hanson cares about you? I'm betting that as soon as you kill me, he'll do whatever it takes to get rid of you."

Karl scowled. "He won't kill me-I helped him out. He's already beaten you to market with a new diabetes drug. One that doesn't cause blood clots."                       
       
           



       

The thought of Karl purposefully ruining the new medication she'd put out to market made her seethe with anger. Not just because of her company's reputation, but because of the innocent people he'd hurt.

"So why kill me if Global has the new medication out?"

"My boss doesn't like loose ends. And since Ashton couldn't manage to do my dirty work for me, I have no choice but to finish this on my own."

Her heart leaped into her throat when he lifted the gun. "No matter what you do to me, Nick won't stop searching for you. I've already told the police about you, too. You'll never be safe, Karl."

Karl didn't answer; instead, he simply stared at her as if he hadn't heard a word she'd said. She had no way of knowing if she'd even gotten through to him.

She tried not to panic. Facing a crazy man with a gun was much harder when she didn't have Nick's reassuring presence nearby. But she'd left Nick back at the hospital in Madison.