slipped around the SUV, keeping low and making certain not to make so much as a sound. The way she figured it, Celia had three options.
Option one...she could try to break into one of the parked cars and get a ride out of there. She would have to switch cars and temporarily borrow another if she went with the escape-in-a-vehicle option, because her car—with its busted bumper—wasn’t going to get her far.
Option two...her eyes narrowed as she searched the garage’s dim interior. Instead of stealing—um, borrowing—another car, she could rush for the nearest exit and escape on foot. Escaping on foot gave her a maneuverability advantage, but it sure wasn’t the fastest option.
And, finally, she had option three.
She could fight.
Since she was armed with a knife and she had no idea what type of weapon the hunter had, fighting might not be—
“I know you’re out there, Ms. James,” a man’s booming voice called. “So why don’t you just save us both some time? Come out here...and let me put a bullet in your lovely head.”
So he has a gun. Good to know.
“Because I have only one directive. Kill you. And I won’t stop, not until you’re dead.”
That news was just rather unfortunate. Too bad for him, though. The unknown man wasn’t going to achieve his directive any time soon—she had no intention of dying.
Her gaze slid to the red Exit sign she’d just spotted.
Knife versus gun wasn’t such a good fighting option.
So I think I’ll go with my second choice. Time to run...
* * *
“CELIA? CELIA?” SULLIVAN ROARED. But she wasn’t answering him. The line had gone dead.
He shoved the phone back into his pocket, grabbed the white envelope she’d given him and then he rushed out of his office. He was in the elevator before he realized—hell, he had no idea where Celia was. He only knew she was in trouble. That she’d called him—telling him to watch his back.
And she’d screamed.
She could be hurt. And I don’t know where she is. I can’t help her.
The elevator took him to the ground floor. He rushed outside. Looked to the left. To the right. He didn’t see anyone, but he wasn’t going to stand there and keep making himself a target. He hurried to his car. Jumped inside.
“Celia...” Sullivan whispered her name as he cranked the vehicle and pulled away. “Where in the hell are you?”
When he got home, Sullivan locked his door and reset his alarm. He’d driven around the damn city for far too long, searching in dark alleys, looking for any sign of Celia before he’d had to give up and head to his place.
He was sure that she’d been involved in some kind of accident. He’d heard what he thought was the crash and crunch of an impact when they’d been talking, but no accidents had been reported—he’d double-checked that with one of his contacts at the PD.
Celia had seemingly vanished.
Sighing, he turned on the lights. Tomorrow, he’d search for her again. He would find her.
“You’re starting to go soft,” Celia said, her voice calm and clear. “I mean, really, you didn’t even know I was here?”
He spun around and found her sitting on his couch. She was leaning back against the cushions with her legs crossed in front of her, looking as if she didn’t have a care in the world.
She’s been here while I was searching the whole city for her? Frantic? He’d been imagining her broken body tossed away. And she’d been in his home.
“How long have you been here?” Sullivan asked her. Her voice had been calm. His was tight with fury and fear.
Celia pursed her lips and glanced toward the clock near his TV. “About an hour. I was starting to think you must have been out with a hot date.”
He stalked toward her. “I was out looking for you. I was tearing up the damn town because I thought you’d been hurt. I thought someone was after you and—”
“Someone was after me. Or rather, someone is after me.” She didn’t sound particularly worried. Her gaze held his. “A tail followed me from your office. He tried to take me. Or, actually, I think he was more interested in killing me than taking me. But that doesn’t matter.” She shrugged, moving her shoulders lightly against the leather of his couch. “He failed in his attempt.”
Every muscle in his body locked down. “Take you?” Sullivan repeated. “Kill you?”
“Um...you know, the usual in our business. When forcing me off the road didn’t work, he followed me into an old parking garage. I’d slipped inside there, thinking to use the place for shelter.”
“Celia...”
“Like I said, he followed me. Jumped out of his vehicle. Gave me some nice line about how it would be easier if I just came out so he could put a bullet in my head.”
His vision reddened as fury burned in his blood.
“I wasn’t in the mood for that bullet, so I got away.” Her words were said so simply. As if she hadn’t just faced some life-or-death battle when he was far away and couldn’t help her at all.
“How?” Sullivan demanded.
“The parking garage was dark, but it wasn’t empty. Other people approached from the elevator bank, so he had to put up his gun and act not killer-like. When I heard those folks approaching, I slipped away into the shadows and got out of there as fast as I could.”
So the guy was still breathing. “He’s a threat to you.”
She just stared back at him.
“You saw him, though,” Sullivan said, thinking quickly. “You got his description. With your contacts, you can find out who—”
“I didn’t see him. I didn’t stick around to get a full physical description. He had a gun, I had a knife, and with civilians in the area, I didn’t want to risk them.” Her fingers tapped along the arm of his couch. “So I left, without looking back. And as quickly as I could I...came here.”
Her words gave him pause. “You came to me?” Sullivan stood about two feet away from her. He wanted to close that distance, scoop her up and hold her tight. Because he wanted that so badly, he kept his muscles locked and didn’t move another step forward.
“I’m afraid I’ve brought you into this mess as a target. It’s obvious that I went to McGuire Securities tonight, and if the guy after me has done any digging into my past, he’ll know about you.” She rose and came to stand right in front of him. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to shine a bright target
