Steele christian romanti.., p.1
Steele: Christian Romantic Suspense (Oath of Honor Book 1), page 1
STEELE
A CHRISTIAN ROMANTIC SUSPENSE
LAURA SCOTT
Copyright © 2023 by Laura Iding
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
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CONTENTS
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Epilogue
Dear Reader
Brock
CHAPTER ONE
Harper Crane huddled in her winter coat as she hurried along the snowy sidewalk. She absolutely hated parking in downtown Milwaukee, especially in January, but it couldn’t be helped. Her role as a legal assistant at Gibson and Roberts Law Offices meant showing up at the high-rise building four days a week. Her boss, Trent Gibson, let her work from home every Friday, unless he had depositions scheduled in one of the conference rooms.
Shivering, she increased her pace. The surface parking lot she used charged ten bucks a day. The structures were more than twice that amount, so she ducked her head against the wind and pushed forward. The office building was only five blocks away.
She was so busy watching her feet to make sure she didn’t slip and fall that she didn’t pay attention to the vehicle coming up beside her. Even when it idled in the road, she didn’t think much about it. When the back passenger door opened and a man emerged, her instincts finally kicked in.
Danger!
A hard hand grabbed her arm. No! She tried to tug out of his grip, her stupid office flats slipping on the icy pavement.
She opened her mouth to scream, but he ruthlessly clamped his other hand over her mouth and began dragging her toward the car.
The silent scream lodged in her throat as she struggled against his grip. This couldn’t be happening. She couldn’t allow him to get her into the car!
“Police! Get your hands where I can see them!”
The shout came from her left. The assailant instantly let her go, shoving her backward, then diving into the back seat of the car. The driver hit the gas and careened away from the curb, tires squealing and horns blaring as he rounded the corner and disappeared. A cop chased after the vehicle, but then stopped and turned to jog back toward her.
Harper landed hard on her backside, her arms instinctively curling around her pregnant belly. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t do anything but stare up in horror as the uniformed police officers rushed to her side.
“Ms. Crane? Are you okay?” The fact that the dark-haired cop knew her name wasn’t reassuring. She stared up into his blue eyes, trying to comprehend what had transpired.
“We need to get her up,” the other officer said.
“Okay, easy now.” The cop with dark hair and blue eyes slid his arm behind her shoulders. With the help of both men, she managed to get back on her feet. Her body was sore, especially her tailbone, but she relaxed when she felt her baby moving. Should she go to the hospital to be checked out? She wasn’t sure that was necessary but didn’t want to take any chances with her baby’s life.
“Can you tell us what happened?” Her gaze landed on the dark-haired cop’s name tag. His last name was Delaney. The other officer’s name tag read Greer.
“I—have no idea.” She pushed the words through her tight throat. “Out of nowhere, this guy came out of the car and tried to kidnap me.”
The two cops exchanged a glance. Delaney nodded. “Yes, ma’am, we know that much. Did you recognize the man who grabbed you? Did he say anything?”
“Why would I recognize him?” None of this seemed real, although clearly it was. If not for these two men showing up in the nick of time . . . she swallowed hard. “No, he didn’t look familiar.” She thought back to those tense moments when she’d belatedly realized what the guy’s intent was. “He didn’t say anything. Just grabbed me, clapped his hand over my mouth, and dragged me toward the car . . .” She broke off, shivering.
“Okay, that’s fine. We had to ask.” Officer Delaney spoke in a soothing voice. “Brock, did you get his license plate number?”
“Yeah. Sent it to dispatch to issue a BOLO on the vehicle,” Officer Greer said.
“We’d like you to come down to the precinct to look at some mug shots.” Officer Delaney smiled reassuringly. “I’m sure your boss won’t mind. We can call the law office from the squad, explain that you need some time off.”
Her boss at the law office? Time off? The hairs on the back of her neck rose in alarm. These cops knew her name. They knew where she worked. They probably knew more about her personal life than her boss did.
Realization sank deep. They hadn’t just gotten there so quickly by chance. She narrowed her gaze at Officer Delaney. “You were following me? Watching me and following me? Why?”
Delaney held her gaze for a long moment. “It’s best if you come with us. We can discuss this in more detail at the precinct.”
Somehow, she sensed it would be better for them—not her—to go along with the plan. Yet someone had tried to kidnap her. This—she didn’t understand any of this. Her shoulders slumped, and she slowly shook her head. “This is about Jake, isn’t it?”
“You tell us.” Officer Greer arched his brow.
She scowled. She didn’t like him. Either of them. They’d been watching her. Waiting for something bad to happen. And it had!
With an abrupt move, she twisted away from Officer Delaney, shouldered her purse strap, and walked away. She wasn’t going anywhere with them.
“Ms. Crane,” Delaney called her name as he quickly caught up with her. “You can’t just pretend this didn’t happen. Don’t you realize you’re in danger?”
“Why?” She spun to face him. He was so close that her belly bumped into him. He hastily stepped back as if burned. “I don’t understand. My ex-husband is dead! He can’t testify. There’s no reason for anyone to come after me. To try to kidnap me!”
“Clearly, someone associated with your ex-husband wants something from you.” His placating tone grated on her nerves. “Please, come with us to the precinct. We really need to talk.”
Her baby kicked again, and she put a hand to her abdomen beneath her coat to soothe her unborn child. She was just over seven months pregnant. Stress wasn’t good for either of them.
“Fine.” She turned to face him. “But you better be prepared to share what you know too. I want answers, Officer Delaney, especially if me and my baby are truly in danger.”
The cop’s gaze dropped momentarily to her abdomen before bouncing back up to meet hers. “I understand.”
Did he? She wasn’t convinced. Yet she didn’t have much of a choice but to go along with them. Not if she wanted to understand exactly what was going on.
She reluctantly allowed Delaney to escort her back to where his partner Greer waited, hoping and praying she wouldn’t regret this.
Steele couldn’t believe Jacob Feldman’s pregnant ex-wife had almost been snatched right under their noses. The near miss would earn them a scowl from their bosses, Lieutenant Joe Kingsley and Captain Rhy Finnegan. Both guys were fair and decent men, but they also held high standards.
He would take full responsibility for the incident. He and Brock had been watching her from a distance. He hadn’t anticipated those guys would try to grab her during daylight hours, early in the morning no less.
It was concerning to know Harper was pregnant and in danger. She was right; none of this was her fault.
He was certain the actions of her ex-husband had dragged her into this mess. What Harper didn’t know was that Feldman wasn’t killed in prison the way she’d been told.
No, the weasel had decided to testify against his coconspirators, so his death had been faked. Easy enough to do after he’d gotten beat up in prison bad enough to require a trip to the hospital. He was currently being held in a safe house down in Chicago. The truth would be revealed when they got closer to trial.
Someone else obviously knew Feldman was still alive. Maybe they’d even decided to abduct Harper as leverage against Feldman hoping to get the guy to change his mind about testifying against the big boss, Tommy Grotto.
Either that or someone believed Harper knew more about Feldman’s illegal activities than she’d let on.
Considering the way Harper had filed for divorce exactly twenty-four hours before Jacob Feldman was arrested, he felt certain she had discovered key information related to his illegal activities.
A theory that seemed to have been the motive behind the abduction attempt.
Glancing at her in the rearview mirror, Steele took note of the way she stared out the window without saying a word.
“Did you want us to call your boss?” he asked, breaking the silence.
Her jaw tightened, but she shook her head and pulled her phone from her purse. “I’ll do it.”
He and Brock exchanged a glance as she made the call, explaining to her boss, Attorney Trent Gibson, abou t how she’d been attacked and was being taken to the police station for questioning.
“I promise I’m fine, and so is the baby,” she said. “I don’t know how long this will take, though.”
Another silence as she listened to whatever her boss was saying.
“Okay, thanks, Trent. I appreciate that. I’ll let you know.” She lowered the phone, then asked, “Does my boss know about you two following me?”
“No, we’ve never met him.” He held her gaze in the rearview mirror. “We only know that he’s your boss.”
“Yeah, sure.” Her tone indicated she didn’t believe him.
Brock shrugged and looked away. Steele could tell that his fellow teammate didn’t trust Harper Crane any more than she trusted them.
He pulled into the parking lot of the third district police station, then threw the gearshift into park. He pushed out from behind the wheel, then quickly jumped out to open the back passenger door for Harper, knowing she couldn’t get out of the caged area on her own.
“Be careful,” he warmed, taking her elbow. “It’s slippery.”
She gave a curt nod and allowed him to escort her inside. Brock followed behind, covering her back without being asked.
Whoever had tried to grab Harper could easily try again. A fact he wasn’t sure she really appreciated.
“This way.” He steered her through the maze of cubicles to one of the interview rooms. “Have a seat.”
She did, then crossed her arms over her chest. “How long is this going to take?”
He stifled a sigh, dropping into a chair across from her. “Ms. Crane, we need to understand how much you knew about your husband’s business dealings.”
“Ex-husband.” She held his gaze for a long moment, then added, “I didn’t know anything. I had no idea he was about to be arrested.”
He didn’t believe it. “You’re saying it was just a coincidence that he was arrested twenty-four hours after you filed for divorce?”
A flicker of uncertainty darkened her green eyes, but then she nodded. “Yes. I—he’d changed. He became withdrawn, terse, angry, and verbally abusive.” She dropped her hands to her pregnant belly. “He’d morphed into a completely different person from the man I’d married two years ago.”
Steele swallowed a sigh. He’d hoped she’d be more forthcoming after nearly being kidnapped off the street. “Those guys tried to grab you for a reason, Ms. Crane. Have you considered what might have happened if we hadn’t been there?”
“Yes.” Her voice was a whisper. She closed her eyes for a moment, then lifted her gaze to his. She was stunning with her long blond hair and bright-green eyes. And for a moment, he had to wonder if the abduction was for another, more sinister reason. Sex traffickers didn’t normally target pregnant women, but it was possible they hadn’t known about her condition. If he hadn’t been watching her move around inside her apartment, he might not have noticed either. Her winter coat was big enough to cover her rounded belly.
“I neglected to thank you and Officer Greer for saving me,” she said, as if having come to the realization that arguing with them wasn’t going to work in her favor. She frowned. “Although I have to admit it’s more than a little disconcerting to realize you’ve been watching me, following my movements.”
He wasn’t going to apologize for keeping an eye on her. They’d run out of leads and had decided to keep tabs on Feldman’s ex-wife. He was secretly glad they had. “You know this attempt to grab you must be related to your ex-husband. We need you to tell us everything you know to find the men responsible.” He paused, then added, “Before they try again.”
“Again?” She paled. “You think they will?”
“Ma’am, you need to come clean right now.” Brock’s curt tone betrayed his impatience. “Tell us who grabbed you and why.”
“I don’t know!” Harper’s voice held anguish as she slapped her hands on the metal table. “If I did, I’d tell you! Don’t you think I’d do whatever necessary to protect my baby?”
Steele frowned at Brock, silently warning him to back off.
“Yes, I know you would protect your baby in any way possible,” he hastened to reassure her. “But, Ms. Crane, we need you to think back. There may be something your husband said that may help us now.”
“Ex-husband!” she shouted. Then her face crumpled. “This isn’t my fault. I didn’t do anything illegal.”
“No, you didn’t.” He reached across the table to take her hand. “I’m sorry you’re having to deal with this, but it’s going to be difficult to protect you if we don’t know who is behind this attempted kidnapping.”
She pulled away, swiped at her face, then met his gaze. “I gave the names of my ex-husband’s friends to the police when he was arrested. I barely saw Jake for those two weeks before I moved out. I—he caught me leaving with the last box and forced me to sleep with him.” Her voice hiccuped, and his heart squeezed at hearing what she’d suffered. “Then he got a call and left the house, saying something about how he’d be there right away. I took it as a sign from God and got out of there as quickly as possible.”
“And you don’t know who called him? Or what the call was about?” he gently pressed.
“No. I was pretty upset, as you can imagine.” She blinked tears from her eyes and swiped at her face again. “I thought the call might be from Starkey. Ellis Starkey is one of his closest friends. But I can’t say for sure.”
They knew about Ellis Starkey who had seemingly disappeared off the face of the earth, either hiding or dead, and had been hoping for more. “You didn’t know about the guns he was buying and selling?”
“No.” She held his gaze. “I hate guns, and Jake knew that. He would never have told me he was buying and selling them.” She put a hand on her abdomen again. “If I had known, I would have left him much earlier.”
She was probably thinking that if she had done that, she wouldn’t be pregnant now. He wondered how she felt about that, then decided it was none of his business.
Brock rose to his feet and headed for the door. “I need air,” he muttered.
Steele understood his buddy’s anger and frustration. They were all running low on sleep since the most recent raid on a warehouse in Ravenswood, one coordinated by the ATF with backup from their tactical team that had ended in a major gunfight where too many of the bad guys had managed to escape. Their teammate Flynn had been nicked by a bullet, but thankfully, they had killed three men. Getting one or two alive would have been better, but that hadn’t happened.
The bad news was that Ellis Starkey and Tommy Grotto, along with a third guy by the name of Waylon Brooks, were still in the wind.
And those were only the guys they knew about. He and the rest of the tactical team suspected there were others too.
Having illegal guns flooding the streets had led to dozens of shooting incidents, with more on the horizon. As if being a member of the tactical team wasn’t dangerous enough. They were being called on to participate in more takedowns and tactical situations than ever before.
“Ms. Crane,” he began.
“Please call me Harper,” she interrupted. “Ma’am makes me feel old. And I’m not accustomed to people calling me by my maiden name.” She shook her head. “I was such a fool. I thought Jake was perfect for me, that we’d be married for decades the way my parents were. But I couldn’t have been more wrong.”
“I’m sorry, Harper.” Using her given name made it difficult to remain professional. “But keep in mind Jake created an illusion. You couldn’t have known the truth he kept hidden for so long.”
“I won’t make that mistake again,” she murmured. Then sighed. “I wish there was more I could tell you. Truly. But I swear I don’t know anything.”
He believed her, yet that meant there was likely only one reason they’d attempted to kidnap her. And that was to force Jake into not testifying. Someone within the Grotto organization must realize he wasn’t dead.
He had to keep that thought to himself, though, as he wasn’t cleared to share any details of their investigation with her.
