Page 40 of Fearless Encounter

As she rummaged through papers in Meg’s home office, one sheet caught her eye. She studied it. “Oh my God.”

Gabriel watched her.

“Of course,” Brooke said. “If Meg had any warning, she would have left a clue. And she’s smart. If she was being watched, she’d leave something in her house, something that bad guys wouldn’t spot.” She held up the sheet of paper.

“The code,” Gabriel said, understanding.

“Yes, it is,” Brooke said. “It looks like a child’s game, just a grid, like I told you. And Meg would know that if she got in trouble I would know. And I’d be the one to see that this code was important. It’s her way of telling me how to help.”

Brooke studied the grid code, spelling out the word. “It’s a Russian name—Yakov Petrov.”

Gabriel took the sheet. “I think our friend Daniel made a big mistake here. It appears he shared the name of his contact.”

“Bragging, maybe?”

Gabriel smiled. “And Meg is a clever one.” He called Abe over to fill him in.

“I’ll hold this as evidence,” Abe said. “We have enough to suspect Daniel Fontenot. But we’ll need concrete evidence to link him to Petrov.”

“Who is Petrov?” Brooke said.

“He’s a businessman with ties to the underworld. He built his fortune by acquiring formerly state-owned enterprises for next to nothing,” Abe said. “He controls an empire spanning oil, gas, mining, and banking.”

“I assume he would buy an uncrackable algorithm,” Gabriel said. “All the better to conduct transactions in privacy, legal or not.”

Brooke figured out the guy she’d witnessed at the scene and the one who spotted her at the restaurant had to be the accomplices. That was frightening. It meant that Daniel wasn’t acting alone, and maybe wasn’t even calling the shots. Meg’s predicament hinged on a Russian billionaire, a criminal one at that. This seemed to get worse and worse.

Before leaving, Gabriel coordinated with Abe to set up surveillance. He’d use a reliable service provider, and Abe would get the phone taps started. It was agreed to be discreet until more was known. The goal was to gain enough documentation of Daniel’s crimes to nail him. Substantiating links to the Russian would be tricker. A lifetime criminal like Petrov was good at covering his tracks.

Gabriel took Brooke back to the office with him, unwilling to have her out of his sight. While he made arrangements to have Daniel followed, he sent Brooke to call Lisle to let her know she was fine. He cautioned her not to reveal any details over thephone. “If we can monitor phone calls, the Russians can too,” Gabriel said. “Just assure Lisle that you are safe, and you’ll tell her more later.”

It paid to be careful. Gabriel was under no delusion that catching Daniel would be simple. The new information about his connections was alarming. It would take the feds to deal with Petrov. But that wouldn’t happen yet. Meg’s wellbeing depended on Gabriel and Abe doing their jobs, and doing them well. Once she was found and rescued, all hell would break loose. But Brooke would be out of it. And Meg would be protected—if she was found before serious harm came to her.

Brooke sat in a chair next to his desk. “I assured Lisle that I’m well, and you’re still by my side. She will let Jasper know that I won’t be in for a few more days.” She sighed. “For Meg’s sake, itbetterbe only a few days.”

Chapter 13

Before leaving the office, Gabriel had done what he could to set things in motion. Brooke was right—it better not be much longer. And he intended to do all he could to ensure that was the case. It was a team effort, but even so, progress needed to speed up.

He couldn’t tolerate leaving Meg in jeopardy, and he didn’t want Brooke wrapped up in all this. The only thing to do was solve the crime and save Meg’s life—but that wouldn’t be simple. Daniel had a heavy hitter behind him, and that changed the odds.

On the way home, Gabriel thought things through. The Russian might need to kill Meg to avoid having her identify him and reveal the plot. But before he did that, he may need her expertise to utilize the new software, and that was what he was counting on. Each day that rolled by put her life in greater danger.

Criminals couldn’t be trusted to make sane decisions. Emotion ran high in such circles, as Gabriel had found out more than once. Waiting was a dangerous game, each hour increasing danger. Surveillance was key. He had to know what Daniel was doing and if he was meeting with anyone. If the guy was smart, he’d be discreet, but Gabriel was counting on the opposite. Feeling confident about his achievements and his powerful connections, Daniel might falter. And Gabriel would be there when he did.

When he glanced at Brooke, she turned toward him. “I hate this. I feel so helpless.”

“I know, honey. It’s difficult to stand back and watch. But I need you safe,” Gabriel said. “I can’t worry about you and Meg at the same time.” He squeezed her knee. “Promise you’ll stay away from the action.”

“I can’t promise anything right now,” Brooke said. “I’m distressed, and everything seems to go soslow.”

Gabriel couldn’t argue, but he didn’t want to sit at home and let Brooke’s anxiety ratchet up. That wouldn’t help. By morning, the team would be in action. Through the evening, it was likely Weston would continue his research using all his resources. “Let’s go someplace where we can talk.”

He knew that talking would help Brooke process all that was going on. She wasn’t used to situations like this, so couldn’t know what to expect. It would be good to talk it over and fill in the blanks for her, as much as he could. There was a restaurant and bar that was nearby that was usually quiet.

Gabriel drove to the bar and parked, then he went around to open the door for Brooke. The look on her face wrenched his heart. His feelings for her were strong, and he wanted to hold her close to tell her that everything would be okay—but he refused to. There was no guarantee. Although hewoulddo everything in his power to make sure no harm came to her—or her friend.

With his arm around her, Gabriel guided her to the lounge. There was a table in the back corner, a good place for him to keep eyes on the place. He admired Brooke. She had inner strength, more than she gave herself credit for. And she was so damn beautiful. He could sit and just look at her. It would nearly be enough for him just to be near her. Yet he wanted more. He craved holding her and loving her like he had. Once wasn’t enough, and only served to ignite desire, not satisfy it.