Unknown Enemy (Love Inspired Suspense) Page 5

  “Secret Service is technically law enforcement, highly specialized in protective measures. That’s how I know how to operate, and I will react without hesitation when needed.”

  “I see.” But she didn’t, not really. She’d have to trust that he knew what he was talking about. “What about my meeting?”

  Colin punched at his phone while motioning for her to gather up her things. “I’m coming with you, but we need to make a stop first.”

  “I don’t think—”

  “You’ve been attacked twice, Professor. Stay close and hopefully there won’t be a third time. I’ll watch the security footage and brainstorm about this letter drop while you have your meeting. You won’t even know I’m there.”

  Ginny saw the wisdom in his plan, but that didn’t mean she had to like it. She waited in silence with Colin as he talked his way into obtaining a digital file of the afternoon’s footage outside the Daviau Center from the security office. After they’d picked up a laptop from his office in the Criminology Department, she noticed something odd. Every time she took more than a few steps in front or behind Colin, he cleared his throat. “What are you doing?”

  “Remember, I need you within arm’s reach,” he said, holding open the door to the library. Ginny watched him visually scan the area behind them, then proceeded with him to the meeting room. It was located on the library’s main floor only a few steps from the busy circulation desk. Ginny couldn’t imagine being accosted here. In the light of day, her memory of last night’s grenade attack in this very building felt like the remnants of a dream.

  “Do you have to come inside?” Nervousness crept up the back of her throat. She already felt low on confidence at the thought of working with someone else who could likely match or surpass her knowledge of Amaran history. A quick peek into the meeting room showed Dr. Hilden already waiting inside reading a journal article, despite her efforts to arrive fifteen minutes early to set up.

  In response, Colin stalked across the floor and returned dragging a small table and chair, which he set up outside the meeting room door. “I’ll watch the footage right here. You go in and have your meeting. How long will you be?”

  Ginny sighed. She couldn’t deny the sense of safety that came over her at having him around, but this babysitter business was already wearing thin. “I don’t know. An hour or two?”

  He nodded. “Finish before four if you can. I have a feeling that whoever wrote that letter may start getting anxious, and I don’t want to be cornered in here if that happens.”

  Ginny started to retort that even the letter writer had said the attempted abduction this morning had been a mistake—but the words died on her lips when she saw the sincerity in his eyes. Eyes that suddenly seemed just as dangerous as their unknown enemy. A woman could drown in those eyes.

  She shook herself out of it and headed inside the room, acutely aware of Colin’s presence right outside the door. She could still see his profile as he set up his laptop and began watching the security footage. How on earth had she ended up in this mess?

  “Professor Anderson,” Dr. Hilden boomed, standing to shake her hand with his firm grip. He placed the journal article on the table and tapped on the top paragraph. “Intriguing assertion you’ve made here regarding the palace coordinates, I must say. Fascinating preliminary work.”

  Ginny swallowed her nerves. She was smart, capable. She could do this. “Thank you, but like I said in the thesis, it’s only preliminary. Hopefully these tablets will fix that, however.”

  “Of course, of course.” He placed a briefcase on the table and opened it up, pulling additional papers from inside. “My own notes, of course. I’d be honored to read yours as well, as I assume you have plenty more work conducted by now in this area. Perhaps a few responses to the criticisms? Curator Wehbe implied as much.”

  Ginny steeled her resolve, thinking of the letter and its demands for her to abandon this project and pass off—or destroy—her research. Could it have been the product of a jealous colleague, eager to learn her research to publish it as his or her own? Stranger things had happened in academia. “There’s not much, but we can work through what I have. You’re the consultant, after all.”

  For the next two hours, Ginny walked Dr. Hilden through her theories, explaining her current ideas and responding to his criticisms while trying to ignore Colin’s occasional glances into the room. Together, she and Dr. Hilden were able to map several preliminary translations of two small tablets, and Ginny was elated to discover that one of them contained a subtle reference to a royal building.

  As she packed the tablets back up, her heart pounded double time. The royal building reference had been written using a specific ancient Amaran hieroglyph that she’d been theorizing for a while might refer to the king’s summer palace. If that was the case, she’d already come one step closer to confirming the palace’s location. To have found anything this soon after beginning work on the tablets went far beyond her wildest expectations.

  “Great work this afternoon, Professor Anderson,” Dr. Hilden said, inclining his head as he withdrew from the room. “You’re quite persistent in your research. I have no doubt you’ll find what you’re looking for in due time.”

  “I sure hope so,” she murmured. A glance at the clock in the corner of the room made her heart lurch into her throat—it was five minutes to four. The time had passed quickly. Had Colin learned anything useful from the security footage? Bag packed, she stepped out of the room to find Colin also packed up, shaking Dr. Hilden’s hand and making introductions.

  “Former Secret Service?” Dr. Hilden was saying, looking mildly perturbed. “I see. How unexpected to meet someone of your trained caliber here. If you’ll excuse me, I have a scheduled conference call. Good day.”

  As Dr. Hilden walked away, Colin turned to Ginny and shrugged. “I get all kinds of reactions,” he explained. “Sometimes it makes people nervous. I’m used to it by now. We should get going.”

  The library had quieted at this time of day, with most students still in class or heading to the cafeteria to eat before evening classes began. A student behind the circulation desk waved at her and Ginny waved back, recognizing the student from one of her classes.

  “You okay, Professor?”

  Had the whole school heard about what happened? “I’m fine, Shelby. It’s Donna I’m most concerned about.”

  Shelby grimaced and bit the corner of her lip. “I heard about that this morning. Some of the library staff are going to head down and visit her at the hospital tonight.”

  “I’m sure she’ll appreciate that.” Ginny glanced at the clock, feeling the urge to keep moving. “Give her a hug from me, all right?”

  Shelby nodded as a slow grin spread across her face. “I will, but you can come too and give it to her yourself, if you want. Plus, Roger left another note for her last night. He must have come in to clean up after the explosion and heard about what happened. Awfully sweet, don’t you think? I just wish we could set them up for real.”

  Ginny smiled at the memory of her last conversation with Donna. “You and me both, Shelby.”

  “We should move,” Colin said, touching the small of her back. She jumped away at his touch, then felt her cheeks grow warm. He’d only tried to direct her away from the circulation desk and toward the front door. “I realize this might sound counterintuitive, but we should head to the quad. You’ll need to tell me where it is, though. I’m not fully familiar with the campus yet.”

  Go to the place the letter writer wanted them? “Won’t we be walking into a trap?”

  “Trust me, please. Location?”

  Ginny felt like hoisting her bag and running in the exact opposite direction. Could she really trust him? He had been kicked out of the Secret Service, after all. Maybe he wasn’t as good as he claimed. But what other option did she have? “It’s like a square
courtyard in the center of the main college buildings. Quadrilateral, so it has four main paths at the edges leading from the different buildings around it. You probably walk through it every day, several times. There’s a bench, a bulletin board for student announcements, some light posts and a trash can...”

  “Got it. It’s a high-traffic area, so that’s an interesting choice. Do you have an envelope in your bag? Something similar to what you were instructed to use for the drop?”

  Ginny stopped midstride. “Colin, what’s going on? What are you going to do?”

  He faced her, jaw set in grim determination. “I’m going to make certain that the letter you received wasn’t an opportunist’s prank, and try to create some evidence for the police.”

  He couldn’t be serious. “I don’t understand. Did you find something on the security tape?”

  Colin shook his head and Ginny saw, for a split second, a sliver of uncertainty. “Teachers, students, support staff. Nothing obvious. And the footage is grainy. The equipment here is long overdue for an upgrade.”

  “Which means?”

  He locked eyes with her, unwavering. “We’re going to try to draw this person out and finish it. Right now.”

  * * *

  Colin knew he’d be taking a risk. It might be a terrible idea or the best idea he’d had so far. Either way, he wanted to expose the individual behind these strikes at Ginny before the person could try again.

  Experience and training had taught him that people who made demands and threats liked to stick around to see their plans carried through. Whoever sent the letter would be watching her right now, and probably watching the drop point, too. During Ginny’s meeting, he’d spoken with the police about the letter over the phone and determined several contingency plans, so there should be several officers stationed around the campus, watching for anything amiss. He’d hand off the letter to them for fingerprint analysis once the four o’clock deadline passed.

  But now, Ginny stared at him as though he’d told her they were about to drive a car off a cliff.

  “Are you crazy?” She winced and then lowered her voice. “How do you propose to do that? Didn’t the letter come from the same person who tried to have me kidnapped?”

  It was the first true outburst of emotion he’d seen from her so far, and as much as he tried to suppress it, he was jolted by the realization that she looked quite lovely when fired up. He shook it off, though—such an observation was not relevant to the job at hand.

  He chose his words carefully, trying not to cause undue fear at his plan. “We need to try to get ahead of this letter writer. The letter’s tone was stern but not violently aggressive.” He didn’t remind her of the implicit, veiled threat in the final line. “The danger here, according to the sender, is if you don’t follow through. I’m no psychologist, but it sounds like this person expects you to follow their orders. So that’s what we’re going to do.”

  He reached into his waistband to double-check the security of the SIG Sauer pistol he’d slipped there during their quick visit to his office a few hours ago. He might not technically be Secret Service, but he still had the arsenal and training to take anyone down with a single long-range shot if necessary.

  Ginny hoisted her bag to her chest and backed away. “I’m not giving up my research.”

  Colin sighed and stepped back within arm’s reach, lowering his voice. “That’s what the false envelope is for. There’s a blonde police officer who’ll borrow your sweater and purse to make the drop—”

  “Uh, that won’t work.”

  Did she have to interrupt him before he’d even finished explaining? “Of course it will. All she needs to do is slip the envelope into the trash bin and leave.”

  Ginny gestured to her clothes. “And we’re changing clothes where? Does she have something in my size? And a fake leather satchel? And does she wear her hair across her face like this?”

  Colin didn’t miss the pain that rippled across her features with the final question. “We have to work with what we’ve got.”

  “But Colin, if the letter writer is really watching, and based on what you’ve been saying and what’s been happening, it seems like whoever is doing this knows what I look like and where I’ll be. They’ve had eyes on me one way or another most of this time. You think a police officer in a disguise is going to fool them? They’ll know about the leather satchel with the tablets, and you know I absolutely cannot give them up.”

  She was right. Colin hated that he couldn’t win this one and that it came down to a satchel full of tablets with international regulations. He gritted his teeth, swallowing down the frustration. “What are you suggesting?”

  “I’ll do it.” Ginny held her head high, straightening her posture. “I’ll make the drop.”

  “No. Absolutely not. We don’t know what to expect. I can’t let you do that.”

  “We have to work with what we’ve got,” she said, echoing his words. “And besides, you said it yourself. The real danger here seems to be a threat if I don’t follow through.”

  He had to admit, it made sense. All it required was for her to make a single drop. Maybe twenty feet into the quad and then directly out again. He’d have her covered with the SIG Sauer, and there should be at least four other plainclothes policemen here by now to cover the remaining angles.

  He could protect her. But he didn’t like it. There was always a “what if?” to consider.

  “I’m doing it,” she said, before he could protest further. “I trust that you can protect me.”

  Her words jolted him into action. She trusted him? Maybe not completely—he could still see uncertainty in her eyes—but he wouldn’t let her down today, and they were running out of time to make a move. “I’ll have you in sight the entire time, but I’ll be in cover. There are other officers watching you from other locations. I don’t think our perp will make an appearance until after the drop, but the info you’re leaving has to be collected one way or another. I’m going to wait them out.”

  Ginny blanched, though her expression remained resolute. “I’ll walk right back to you.”

  He lifted the hem of his shirt half an inch so she could see the concealed weapon. “I’ll have your back. As long as I can see you, I can protect you. My counter-assault training for the Service means I can accurately hit a target with a handgun at fifty yards. We’re going to end this, Ginny, so you can get on with your life.”

  Her slow nod told him she understood. If anything, this maneuver came out of a need Colin saw to fake out and capture either the letter sender or the person sent to pick up her materials before whichever one realized the package was a fake. He had every confidence that the letter sender was actually after her research—not Ginny specifically—and doubted he’d have to discharge his weapon today.

  Ginny drew the false envelope from her bag as Colin gave her specific instructions on where to walk and how to get back to him without making it obvious. A quick phone call to his police contact confirmed the new plan. At thirty seconds to four, Colin slipped into cover in a small walkway between two campus buildings, crouching behind a bush in its lengthened afternoon shadow. Ginny strode forward with purpose, head held high.

  Colin wished he could have done more to reassure her, but that wouldn’t be appropriate under the circumstances. She was his protectee, his priority. And besides, every time he accidentally touched her, she flinched as though burned.

  He tensed as she approached the trash bin, grateful for the police assistance to keep any wandering students and visitors out of the area—but he did worry that they might not have been discreet enough about it. What would happen if the person they were trying to catch figured out a trap had been set?

  In front of the bin, Ginny hesitated. She glanced around, behind and then over at Colin. Then she dropped the envelope in the trash bin. Colin held his breat
h. Nothing else moved in the quad, save the rustling tree leaves above. He exhaled, mentally urging Ginny back to him. She jogged three steps away from the trash bin before Colin spotted something shiny flying through the air toward the center of the quad, streaks of orange flickering through the air as it made its arc. A homemade explosive!

  “Get back!” Colin shouted as he burst from his hiding place. The object hit the pavement and exploded, sending shards of glass, cement and burning debris flying through the air. Everything stank like gasoline.

  Ginny tumbled forward and hit the earth hard. Colin raced toward her, drawing on instinct and shoving away the terror for Ginny’s safety and his sudden, overwhelming sense of failure. He reached her seconds before two of the policemen did, guns drawn.

  “You two, watch our backs,” he shouted. “Radio the others to get security scouring the area for whoever threw that thing.” He crouched to check on Ginny. She’d risen up on her forearms, face down toward the pavement. He didn’t see any obvious wounds, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t hurt. “Ginny. Miss Anderson. Talk to me.”

  Ginny groaned and pushed herself up farther. She placed a hand to her face and it came away red and sticky. “Oh, no. No, no, no.”

  “Let me see.” Despite her protests, Colin took her chin and checked the extent of the damage. She’d received nasty scrapes on her nose, the apple of her unscarred cheek and her palms. “These will heal up quickly. Surface wounds. I’m more concerned about what that fall did. Can you stand?”

  Ginny’s eyes had filled with tears and Colin released her chin in surprise. She shook her head, then looked around in alarm. “My bags. The tablets!”

  “Right here.” Colin reached across to her other side, where they’d fallen. A tiny tongue of fire flickered on the corner of the satchel where a drop of ignited gasoline had landed. Colin smothered it with the edge of his shirt. “They’re safe with you. Again, I need you to try standing. We can’t stay out here.”

  With a tearful nod, she allowed him to offer his arm and help her stand. He picked up her bags and she took them from him, despite the wobbliness of her steps. Colin noticed she kept touching the scrape on her cheek, the side she didn’t usually hide. “Don’t touch that. You’ll risk infection.”