Geek Squad 02 - Operation Foxtrot Read online

  I searched the room until my eyes fell on my manager, and then I weaved my way through the room, making a beeline for the man. I was going home, and if anyone tried to stop me, they’d find my Prada boot up their ass.

  I was done.

  I was also going to give Maxwell Crammer a piece of my mind. I was tired of these stupid cocktail parties he kept insisting I attend, and there seemed to be more and more of them lately. I didn’t want to mingle with all the pretty people. I didn’t care if it helped my career.

  I’d stop modeling before I attended another one.

  “Max.”

  The man’s over-bright smile almost blinded me when he turned in my direction. He needed to lay off the teeth-whitening strips.

  “Andrew, darling.”

  God, I hated it when he got all syrupy like that.

  And was not his “darling” anything.

  I grit my teeth so I wouldn’t bite the man. “I’m going home.”

  Max glanced down at his watch, frowning. “It’s not even ten, Andrew.”

  “I’m tired, Max.”

  Tired didn’t even begin to describe the bone-weary feeling threading through my body. I wasn’t just tired. I was exhausted. I knew a lot of it had come from the numerous sleepless nights I had suffered through in the last two weeks.

  Ever since I kicked Cooper out of my apartment.

  I knew there was something too that, but damned if I knew what it was. Maybe it was my lingering heartache and anger.

  “I’m going home.” I hated repeating myself, but apparently, Max wasn’t getting it.

  “Wait, before you go, I have someone I want you to meet.”

  “Max.”

  “It’ll just take a minute.”

  No, it wouldn’t.

  I groaned when Max grabbed my arm and started pulling me through the crowd. Okay, fine, one introduction and then I was out of there.

  When we stopped in front of a well-dressed man, all the air left my lungs.

  “Andrew,” Max started, “I’d like you to meet—”

  “Mr. Cavetti,” I finished, because I knew who I was looking at.

  I also knew who he was looking for when he glanced around.

  “Where is your—”

  “We had a fight,” I supplied to the man’s curious question. “We’re taking a little break from each other.”

  I wasn’t about to admit I would probably never see Cooper again in this lifetime.

  “I see,” Cavetti replied. “I was hoping to see him tonight.”

  I pulled out my cell phone. “You want me to call him?”

  It was a total bluff, and I was pretty sure Cavetti knew it, but for some reason, he didn’t call me on it. That alone should have warned me that something was up.

  Again, I was tired.

  “No, that’s quite all right. I have my own ways of getting in touch with him.”

  I slid my cell phone back into my pocket.

  “Can I offer you a drink, Mr. Moore?”

  Why did I have the sudden feeling that he was hosting this party? And if he was, how in the hell had I gotten invited?

  I plastered one of my award-winning model smiles on my face. “No, thank you. I was just getting ready to head home. I’ve had a really long day.”

  “Well.” The man smiled as if he thought he was being chivalrous. “Allow me to provide you with a ride home.”

  Oh damn.

  “Oh, don’t worry about it. I’ll just catch a cab downstairs.”

  “Please, I must insist.”

  Double damn.

  “It’s really not necessary, Mr. Cavetti.”

  “Nonsense.” The man snapped his fingers, and one of his no-neck goons stepped forward. “Please see to it that Mr. Moore is given a ride to his destination.”

  “Of course, sir,” the goon replied.

  Wow, he could talk.

  When the goon started walking away, I knew I had to follow him. One, I didn’t want to get on Mr. Cavetti’s bad side. I’d just as soon not be on any side. I’d be thrilled if he forgot I even existed, but until that happened, I needed to play nice.

  Two, I simply wanted to go home. I was done with pleasantries. I was done with smiling. I was done with pretending I was having a good time.

  I was just done.

  “I’ll see you, Max.” I glanced shot him a little glare before turning to the thug king. “Mr. Cavetti.”

  “Mr. Moore.”

  It was all I could do not to run out of the room. The hairs on the nape of my neck were standing up so firmly, they ached. I was being watched as I walked out of the room. I just wasn’t sure who was doing the watching. It felt as if I was surrounded on every side.

  The creature that lived inside of me was anxious, pacing. And if it was anxious, I was too. I was still trying to get a handle on this whole shape-shifting thing.

  It was a losing battle.

  When we reached the parking garage, I was escorted to a long, black limousine with tinted windows. That was kind of nice. I should have been more impressed.

  I wasn’t.

  I’d been inside my share of limousines. I’d also vacationed on yachts in different ports around the world, stayed in five-star hotels, and spent more than one weekend at a luxurious villa. I’d flown on private jets, rubbed elbows with the rich and famous, and ate in exclusive restaurants.

  Give me a guy who wanted to cuddle on the couch during a rain storm and I’d be impressed. Show me someone who took out their own garbage or folded their own laundry.

  That would impress me.

  Money had its place, but it wasn’t the be all end all of the world. There were way too many people who didn’t understand that. Yes, I had money. I had invested well. I had done it with one main goal in mind, to be able to take care of myself when I decided to get out of the modeling business.

  I also wanted to pay for my sweater collection. I was on the hunt for the perfect cable-knit sweater. I had come close a few times, and they currently resided in my closet. But I had yet to find the perfect one…a soft cream-colored sweater, with a sleek fit, intricate knot design, and warm enough to ward off a windy winter breeze.

  I didn’t need money to make my life, but it sure made it easier.

  I don’t know how far we had gotten when I started to get that creepy feeling again, as if someone was watching me. I glanced toward the front of the vehicle. The driver glanced away from the rear-view mirror, but not before I saw him staring at me.

  Creepy.

  It also made me think. Why would this guy be watching me so intently? The last person to stare at me like that was Leonard Lake, and I was pretty sure this guy didn’t work for him.

  I could be wrong.

  How the hell was I supposed to know what crazy rich people did?

  When we turned down a street heading in the opposite direction from my apartment, I grew concerned. Granted, traffic was bad and it was a one-way street, but the driver could have gone a couple of more blocks and gone the other way, the direction my place was in.

  Unless he wasn’t taking me home.

  I watched for a few more minutes, growing more positive that we were not headed home. I pulled out my cell phone and tried to dial 911.

  No cell phone service.

  I was in the middle of the freaking city. How did that happen?

  Maybe I needed to try another tactic. I reached for the door handle, determined to jump out the second we slowed down or stopped at a light.

  No freaking door handle.

  Okay, now I was positive something was up. I was dim sometimes, but never this dim. I should have noticed the missing door handle when I climbed into the car.

  I’m sure the driver was confused over the smile that crossed my lips. What he didn’t understand was that I was more than a pretty face.

  I was also a shape-shifter.

  Granted, there was some taboo about shifting in public, but I was sure that rule didn’t apply when I was basically being kidnapped. I
flicked out my claws and scooted up behind the driver, holding one pointed tip against his carotid artery.

  “I don’t know what you are up to, and frankly, I don’t care. So, here’s what’s going to happen. You are going to pull this vehicle over and let me out, or I will sit back here and watch you slowly bleed to death.” I pressed my nail into his skin just hard enough to cut him and create a trickle of blood. “Do we understand each other?”

  The driver nodded, but just barely. I’m sure he didn’t want to move his head any more than he needed to.

  “Pull over,” I growled. “Now.”

  I kept my claw against the driver’s throat as the limo slowed and then pulled to the side of the road. I wasn’t taking any chances.

  “Get out,” I said once the car pulled to a stop.

  The second the driver slid out of the car, I climbed over the seat and took his place behind the wheel. I hit the lock button, locking me in and him out.

  The idiot forgot to take the keys.

  When I glanced out the window, the guy was standing on the sidewalk, talking on his phone. I had no doubt he was calling his boss. As much as I didn’t want to be on Mr. Cavetti’s bad side, I knew stealing his car was going to put me there. I couldn’t feel too guilty about that, not when he tried to have me kidnapped.

  I sent the driver one of my patented model smiles and flipped him off. I had just enough time to see his eyes narrow before I drove off in his limo. I didn’t drive far, just a couple of blocks down, then turned the corner and turned into the first parking lot I could find.

  It was paid parking.

  I hopped out and tossed the keys to the valet. “Mr. Cavetti should be along to pick it up soon, so park it somewhere easy to access.”

  As I walked away, I pulled out my cell phone and dialed my manager.

  “Andrew, you—”

  “Tell Mr. Cavetti his limousine is parked at the East Side Parking Garage on Sierra Street. And tell him the next time he wants to spend more time in my company, he could just ask instead of have his driver try to kidnap me.”

  I snapped my phone closed before Max could reply. I was definitely replacing him.

  I hurried down the sidewalk just in case the driver was looking for me. When I spotted the steps leading down to the subway half a block up, I was pretty sure my guardian angel was looking after me.

  I didn’t like being crammed into the subway car like a sardine, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. With the heavy traffic on the streets, the subway was the quickest way back to my place.

  I had to switch subways twice to get to the one that stopped at the subway platform two blocks from my apartment, another reason I liked living where I did. Getting around the city was a lot easier with mass transportation so close to my place.

  The walk back to my apartment was a bit chilly. I wasn’t exactly dressed for the cooler weather. I had been at a party after all. I was dressed in my “cute” clothes.

  Not even a sweater.

  I rounded the corner on my block and then froze for a second before hurrying back around the side of the building. I wasn’t positive the black limo sitting in front of my apartment building belonged to Mr. Cavetti, but what were the odds it belonged to someone else?

  Granted, it would be strange if the man had retrieved his vehicle and made it to my apartment before I did, but he could have more than one limo.

  Yeah, it was a long shot, but it wasn’t like I knew that many people with limousines.

  I peeked back around the corner and watched the dark-colored vehicle for several moments, praying it belonged to someone inside the Cuban place beneath my apartment. When Mr. Cavetti walked down the front steps followed by two no-neck goons, I knew I was fooling myself.

  I whipped back around the corner and started walking in the other direction at a fast clip. Just what was this guy’s problem? How had I been lucky enough to garner his attention?

  And how did I get rid of it?

  I pulled my cell phone out and dialed Hank. The man would be pissed that I was calling so late, but this constituted an emergency in my book.

  He could deal.

  “Hello?” Hank’s voice was all sleepy like.

  “Hank.”

  “Andy?”

  I rolled my eyes at the astonishment in the man’s voice.

  What? You’d think he wanted to sleep or something.

  “Yeah, it’s me.”

  “Do you know what time it is?”

  “Late.” I shrugged, even though my cousin couldn’t see it. “Or early, depending on how you see it.”

  “I was sleeping, Andy.”

  “And I’m in trouble.”

  Hank’s voice was a lot less sleepy and a whole lot more concerned when he spoke again. “What sort of trouble?”

  “I’m not sure yet.” I wish I was. “I think I got on someone’s bad side.”

  “Did you bite someone?”

  “No.”

  But that was an honest question.

  “Get a run in your nylons?”

  “Hank!”

  I was going to bite him.

  “Someone tried to kidnap me.”

  “What?” Hank’s voice was deadly serious.

  “I went to this party a couple of weeks ago. Cooper was there.”

  “Is that when he pissed you off?”

  “Yes.” That was also when I made the biggest mistake of my life, but Hank didn’t need to know about that. Some things needed to be private. “There was this guy there named Cavetti. Cooper was in trouble with him, and I kind of got him out of it.”

  “What sort of trouble?”

  “That’s not important, Hank.” Because I still wasn’t sure. “Cavetti was at this party I attended tonight. He offered me a ride home. I tried to refuse, but he wouldn’t take no for an answer. On the way home, I realized we weren’t heading for my apartment. I made the driver stop and let me out.”

  I winced, not really wanting to admit this next part. Hank was a Marine. He frowned on breaking the law. “I stole the limo, drove it a couple of blocks away, and parked it before heading to the subway.”

  “You stole his limo?” Pure amusement laced Hank’s voice.

  “There were no door handles on the inside, and the driver had locked me in. Hell, yeah, I stole it.”

  “Okay, go on.”

  “When I got back to my apartment, Cavetti was waiting for me.”

  “Shit.”

  My thoughts exactly.

  Chapter Four

  “Where are you now?” Hank asked.

  “Getting the hell away from my apartment.” Just as fast as my feet would carry me. “I don’t know what Cavetti wants, but I don’t think it’s good.”

  “I would suspect not,” Hank replied.

  “So, I need some help.”

  “Get somewhere safe. I’ll make some phone calls.”

  Somewhere safe. I almost snorted.

  “I’ll see what I can do.”

  “I’ll call you back just as soon as I have something.”

  “I’d appreciate it, Hank.” I really didn’t want to walk the streets for the rest of the night. Not only was it not safe, but I was cold and tired. I just wanted my bed.

  I loved my bed. I’d bought an extra-large down comforter to keep me warm even in the harshest of weather. Add in the eight-hundred-count Egyptian cotton sheets and king-sized pillows, and I was in heaven every time I lay down.

  There were just some things a person should splurge on. Sweaters were first, bedding came next, food was a distant third…maybe fourth.

  Sweaters were really important.

  “Call me if this guy shows up again,” Hank instructed.

  “I will.” After Hank hung up, I slid my cell phone back into my pocket and started scanning the street in front of me for a place to hide. As late as it was, a surprising amount of businesses were still open.

  I should be in pure panic mode. I knew that. Anyone with an ounce of intelligence would be losing their
minds right about now.

  I wasn’t.

  Maybe that made me crazier than them.

  I chalked it up to being tired and cold.

  I was always so cold. I knew it stemmed from my childhood, but I could never seem to get warm enough. I blamed it on my sweater obsession. Sweaters warmed me up. They didn’t totally take the chill away—nothing did—but they helped.

  I wished I had one right now.

  I wrapped my arms around myself to help ward off the chill in the night air and started searching for a place to hide. I spotted a couple of bars, but figured that would be the first place Cavetti would look for me.

  I really needed to figure out why this guy was after me.

  I needed to talk to Cooper, and I so didn’t want to. I could probably go the rest of my life without seeing the man again.

  Well, to be honest, I desperately wanted to see him again. I ached to see him. Just thinking about him made my cock harden, and that was a road I was not prepared to go down…again.

  I didn’t think I’d survive it.

  Oh, I wasn’t ready to throw myself off of a bridge or anything, but I didn’t share the real me with many people. Most saw what I wanted them to see. Very few were allowed into my world.

  For a moment, a breath in time, I had allowed Cooper in.

  I was still reeling from that mistake.

  I jerked around when a horn honked behind me. My breath caught in my throat when I saw a long black limo turn the corner and start down the street I was on. I quickly turned and scanned the street in front of me.

  I spotted the alley and took off running for it. It was probably the stupidest place I could find to hide, but it was dark and more than likely deserted.

  I also had an ace up my sleeve.

  I turned down the alley and ran as fast as my legs would pump. When I reached the end, I frantically searched for an open door or window, anyplace where I could escape.

  There was nothing.

  Every door I tried was locked. I pounded on a few, but no one answered.

  I was trapped.

  My gaze went upward. If I couldn’t go through a door, maybe I could go up and over. The distance from the bottom of the fire escape and the ground was greater than I could jump. I was small and compact, not huge and annoying.

  I hurried over to the dumpster and squatted down behind it. After a quick peek around the edge to make sure I was alone in the alley, I concentrated on having four legs and fur instead of two legs and skin.