SEAL's RESOLVE - Rebecca Deel Page 0,100
Rafe had remained in the SUV. “I followed your directions to the letter. Where is my father?”
“Not so fast.” Hale tossed the bag aside and lumbered closer. “There’s the matter of $10 million to deal with before you see your old man.”
“Stall,” Rafe whispered in her ear. “Men in the woods.”
Hale motioned toward the laptop set up on the coffee table with the barrel of his big black gun. “Transfer the money or I’ll put a bullet in you.”
“You’re not getting another penny until I see my father.”
Eyes narrowed, he aimed the weapon at her. “Don’t kid yourself, lady. I’ll shoot you without regret and be done with you. You and your old man stole something from me that I’ll never get back.”
A soft growl came through her ear piece. Rafe.
“Focus,” Eli hissed.
“You could shoot me,” Kristi said to Hale. “You won’t.”
“Oh, yeah? Why not?”
“You’re not the one in charge of this operation.” Her former bodyguard might have the desire for revenge, but he hadn’t put together this plan.
He stiffened. “What makes you say that?”
“You’ll score some cash, but someone else is pulling the strings, letting you take all the risks while he’ll walk away a millionaire.” She turned toward the man who walked into the room, dressed in jeans, hiking boots, and a black t-shirt. “Welcome to the party, Hugh. Where is my father?”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
“Point that gun somewhere else,” Hugh snapped at Hale. “Kristi can’t transfer the money if she’s dead.”
Nice to know he cared enough to keep her alive for the moment. Kristi glared at her former friend. “What have you done, Hugh?”
“What I had to do.” He frowned at her. “This is all your fault. If you had followed the plan, everything would have been fine.”
“For you.” Kristi suspected she wouldn’t have survived long as Hugh’s wife. That $2 million life insurance policy might have been too tempting for Hugh to resist.
A scowl. “I would have divorced you in a year or two. No harm done, and no hard feelings. We would have simply grown apart and gone our separate ways.”
“After you cleaned out my bank accounts and my trust fund. Did you plan to cash the $2 million life insurance policy you took out on me last month?”
“How did you….?” A muscle in Hugh’s jaw twitched. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter now.”
“Actually, I think it does. You haven’t canceled the insurance policy. Why stop at $10 million when you can have $12 million, minus the payments to your small army of thugs?”
Hale and Fleming exchanged glances, then turned to Hugh. “You promised us $25,000 each,” Hale said, fury in his eyes. “The rest of the guys only get $10,000 a piece. We’re taking all the risks, and you’re walking away with enough money to retire on an island and live like a king.”
Kristi laughed. “The way he spends money, he won’t live like a king for long. He’d have to come up with a new source of money to feed his gambling habit.”
“Shut your mouth, Kristi,” Hugh snapped. He rounded on Hale, Fleming, and Lookout. “I planned to give you bonuses. I didn’t know how much money Kristi had left in her accounts. I just used $10 million as a starting point.”
“A bonus.” Fleming scowled. “You expect us to believe that?”
“It’s the truth. Look, if you want, I’ll give you three the bonuses and keep the other guys at the same payout. You’ll walk away with $100,000 each. Once Kristi transfers the money, I’ll redirect the bonuses to your accounts. The other men will never know.”
Hale gave a slow nod. “All right. You’ve got yourself a deal.” He aimed his gun at Hugh. “If you don’t transfer the money, I’ll shoot various body parts until you comply. Believe me, you’ll be begging to transfer that money.”
Kristi smiled. “Looks like you hired someone smarter than you are, Hugh.”
“I told you to keep you mouth shut.” Eyes glittering with fury, Hugh slapped Kristi’s face hard enough to knock her to the floor.
Stunned, she stayed where she fell, her face burning where Hugh’s hand struck her.
“I’m almost there, baby,” Rafe whispered. “Hang on.”
“Get up.” Hugh kicked her ribs with his booted foot.
Pain exploded in her side. She couldn’t hold back the groan. Hugh just had to kick the ribs that were already sore from tangling with her kidnappers.
“On your feet, or I’ll break your ribs next time.”
She sucked in a shallow breath. “I’m pretty sure you did this time. If I can’t function, you don’t get a dime from