Page 131 of What Doesn't Kill Her
“All right,” Kellen said.First crisis averted.
Birdie said, “When I arrived, security seemed efficient.”
“Yes. I thought it was. I think it is.”
“But.” Birdie nodded and went into the bathroom, searching for weapons.
Kellen turned to Verona. “Would you call Max?”
“He’s in the kitchen! He won’t hear!” Verona was all exclamation points and panic.
“Let’s give him a try,” Kellen said.
Verona started punching her fingers at her screen and cursing in a low voice.
Kellen retrieved her phone and called the security firm. “Mr. Parliman, this is Miss Adams. You’re familiar with Max Di Luca’s daughter, and mine? Yes. Rae.” She nodded, although the man on the other end of the call couldn’t see her. “Rae has been kidnapped by someone. A man, that’s all I can tell you, probably white, possibly with brown hair.” In the picture anyway. “Can you and your men make sure Rae and her kidnapper don’t leave the property?”
“Of course. We have procedures in place for exactly this kind of emergency. We’ll tighten the perimeter starting now.” Mr. Parliman’s response reassured Kellen, making her believe Rae would be found here, somewhere on the site.
Kellen’s job was to make sure Rae was found alive.
“I need a weapon,” Kellen told Mr. Parliman. “A pistol.”
“Miss Adams, I can’t loan you a pistol.”
“Any kind of firearm. My daughter has been kidnapped, and I know whoever did this is a killer. I need to find her.”
“I’m sorry, Miss Adams, I understand, but we cannot loan our weapons to anyone. I don’t know what your weapons knowledge is—”
“I was in the military.”
His voice was soothing and firm, as if she were nothing but a civilian, and a female civilian at that. “But if you accidentally hurt or killed someone while wielding one of our weapons—”
“I’m Captain Kellen Adams of the United States Army. I survived two campaigns in Afghanistan and a terrorist attack in Kuwait. If I hurt or killed someone with a weapon, it would not be an accident.”
“Miss Adams, your hysteria proves my point.”
For one moment, Kellen was blind with rage.
“Now.” Parliman’s patronizing tone eased. “I have with me two gentleman who claim—”
“Mr. Parliman, don’t let Rae and this man get away, or you’ll be nothing but a head on my wall.” Done wasting time, Kellen hung up. Her child had been kidnapped. Kellen needed to go hunting. She required a firearmnow, and he was worried about legalities.
Verona took Kellen’s arm again. “I called Max on the house phone and on his cell. No answer. He’s in there with the Di Lucas. You know how loud they are.” Verona was getting loud herself.
“All right. It’s all right.” Kellen grasped Verona’s hand.
“Max isn’t hurt, isn’t he?” the anxious mother asked.
“Did you escort him back to the house and see him go into the kitchen?”
“I took himintothe kitchen and delivered him into the hands of the relatives!”
“Then he’s fine. He had no reason to believe we would have a problem.” But Kellen needed help. “Are there any weapons available on this floor?”
“No,” Verona said.
“In this building?”
