A SEAL to Save Christmas Read online

  CONTENTS

  Chapter One - The Job

  The Job

  Chapter Two - The Boy Genius

  Chapter Three - The Reporter

  Chapter Four - The Con

  Chapter Five - Death and Resurrection

  About the Author

  A Taster

  CHAPTER ONE

  The Job

  It turned out that private investigation work was not all that it was cracked up to be. It was highly romanticized in movies and fiction. The hardened detective who’s seen too much and keeps a bottle of whiskey stashed in the drawer. The seductive dame that desperately needs his help and is willing to do just about anything for it. The instant attraction. The torrid affair. The realization that the detective will never change followed by the sound heartbreak.

  None of it was true.

  When Jason Leonard left the Seals and began his private protection services, he’d wanted to help people. But he’d be lying if sexy women and interesting cases weren’t on his mind.

  Mostly, the only part that came true was the bottle of whiskey and the heartbreak. His last case with Clare Laud had certainly started out interesting. When they carted baby brother Charlie away for threatening the rich oil tycoon, a promise of something bloomed between them.

  But it fizzled before they had even gotten to the first part. As it turned out, Clare had a knack for doing her own research. And although she’d been attracted to his brooding and bad boy charms, when she found out what he’d done overseas, she decided he was too much of a bad boy for her. When she’d placed the evidence in front of him at dinner, he’d refused to apologize and lost his temper. What right did she have to listen to the rumors swirling about him? She wanted specifics, and he couldn’t give those out. Not only was he under orders to keep quiet, but he also wouldn’t give out that information. Not to anyone.

  She’d stormed out crying and that was the last he’d heard from Clare Laud.

  It was a shame really. She had so much potential.

  Business had slowed down since then. That was an understatement really. Clare had only been his third client. After her, he’d escorted some snotty pre-teen to an uppity private school for a week. His parents thought he was being threatened, but it turned out the kid only wanted to look badass with a bodyguard.

  Leaning forward in his chair, Jason tapped his pencil restlessly against the wood. Part of him was itching to go out and stretch his legs, but he had a strange feeling that he shouldn’t leave.

  Instead, he got up to make another pot of coffee. Sleep had been elusive last night. Well, not so much elusive as filled with screaming.

  So much screaming.

  The nightmares didn’t come as often as they used to. He’d become jaded to the horrors that he’d seen long ago. He didn’t wake up in a cold sweat or yelling. He just woke up. Even he couldn’t sleep through that.

  Jarring him from his thoughts, the phone suddenly rang shrilly. “Leonard Protection Services,” he said as he snagged his phone from the desk.

  “Is your refrigerator running?”

  Jason narrowed his eyes. “I don’t know. Why don’t you come over and check it out for me,” he said in a low voice. There was a shriek on the other end as the kid hung up.

  Almost immediately, the phone rang again. “Listen here,” he snarled. “I will take you apart piece by piece.”

  There was a pause on the other end. “Is this Leonard Transportation Services?” a woman said on the other end.

  What? “Sorry. I’ve been getting some prank calls lately. But you have the wrong number. This is Leonard Protection Services,” he muttered as he ran his hand over his five o‘clock shadow.

  “I was just going through my late husband’s accounts, and I realized that we never settled the bill. If you could please meet me somewhere, I’d be more than happy to pay what I owe you.”

  “Ma’am, I’m not sure you heard me. This isn’t a transportation service. This is a protection service. I do bodyguard duty and the occasional investigation. I’d love to take your money, but believe me, nobody owes me any. You must have made a mistake.”

  “No, I’m sure. It’s right here. Please.” Her voice suddenly went high pitched and shaky. He frowned. She was terrified of something.

  “You must be talking about the transportation job,” he lied smoothly. “It’s been so long that I almost forgot. Sure. You can stop by the office with a check.” He checked the caller ID. It showed up as Unknown. Strange.

  “Oh, I couldn’t possibly drive to that part of town. Perhaps I could meet you at the coffee shop on Main Street?”

  A very public and overly crowded place. This was even more interesting. “I think I could swing that. What time?”

  “I could meet you in an hour if that would be convenient.”

  She was in a hurry. And she was covering her tracks. She’d only be doing that if she were terrified of a bug in her house. “I could do that,” he repeated when she’d given him a time. He hung up the phone and smiled.

  Finally. Something different.

  ***

  He got his coffee and lounged at the table. Just for the kicks, he wrote Leonard’s Transportation Services on a piece of paper and propped it up on the table. A few people gave him some strange looks.

  “Jason Leonard?”

  Looking up, he nearly choked on his coffee. She was hot. There was no other word to describe her. Bleached blonde hair, big blue eyes, large rack, and a tiny waist.

  And she wore fear like a second skin.

  He’d seen that fear far too many times.

  He pointed to the paper. “That’s me. Jason Leonard of Leonard’s Transportations Services. I had no idea that I was going to have a career change, but I’m flexible.”

  The woman burst into tears, and Jason looked up alarmed. “I’m so sorry. Don’t cry. It was just a joke.”

  “It’s not you,” she sobbed as she wiped her tears away. “I’m just really relieved to find someone that can help me.”

  “I haven’t said I can help you yet,” he cautioned. “But I’ll hear you out.”

  “I’m sorry about the ruse. I think my house and my phone are bugged. I used an internet phone service to make a call so whoever was listening would just think that I’m settling up an old debt.”

  “Smart,” he murmured. She didn’t look the type to be crafty. “But the fact that you used the computer would be suspicious, and anyone listening would easily find that Leonard’s Transportation doesn’t exist. And Leonard’s Protection Services does. I’m in the yellow pages and everything. Not that anyone uses the yellow pages anymore.”

  She smiled softly. “I was playing music in the background, so hopefully they didn’t hear anything.”

  Really smart. He sat his coffee down and propped his elbows up on the table. “What’s your name?”

  “Helen Myers.” She looked down at her hands. “My husband just recently passed away and…”

  Startled, Jason held up his hand. “I’m sorry. Myers as in Timothy Myers? You’re his widow?” She nodded. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in any of his pictures.”

  “You wouldn’t. I didn’t have a whole lot to do with his business, even though now I run it. I stayed home and homeschooled our son, and Tim was always really careful when we went out. He didn’t want our privacy compromised.”

  Homeschooled? She looked like a trophy wife. She had to be at least ten years younger than her business mogul husband. Timothy was CEO of Myers Enterprise, and owned three different production companies as well as seven retail stores.

  Helen sighed. “I know what you’re thinking, and no, I’m not a trophy wife. We did meet under strange circumstances, but I loved my husband. I resor
ted to dancing to pay for graduate school, and he started going frequently after he divorced his first wife. We married within a year, and even thought I got pregnant right away, I finished my degree. But none of that is the point. Davis is missing.”

  Leonard was still trying to digest the information. Smart stripper marries wealthy man for love. Based on her clothes, he’d hardly call her a trophy wife. She didn’t sport glittering jewels or fancy clothes. Suddenly, her last statement sunk in. “Davis?”

  “My son. He’s only five. Please.”

  “Ms. Myers, if your son is missing, then you need to call the police. The first forty-eight hours are critical.”

  Tears filled her eyes, and a bad feeling crept into his gut. “He’s been kidnapped. We went to the park yesterday, and I turned my back for five minutes while I answered a phone call. When I turned back around, he was gone. We were the only ones in the park, or so I thought. I looked for him for an hour before I went back to my car. I was getting ready to call the police when I saw the note on my window.”

  With shaky hands, she slid the note across the table. Go to the police and he dies. Wait for instructions.”

  “No ransom request,” he mused. “That’s odd.”

  “I thought so too. I went home and waited for a phone call, but it never came. And then I found this in my living room.” She reached in her purse and pulled out a bag. Inside were the broken bits of an electronic device.

  “A bug. And you smashed it?”

  Helen nodded. “I don’t know how many more there are. My cat kept playing with the lamp, and she knocked it off. When I was cleaning up the pieces, I found it. And I took a hammer to it.” She looked at him anxiously. “I’m not sure that was the smartest move.”

  Jason shrugged. “If there’s one, there’s probably more. And I don’t think they’re going to do anything drastic because you found and destroyed one bug. I think we should probably get you home though, in case they call.”

  “They have to call on my cellphone. I disconnected the landline after Timothy died. So many people kept calling. Reporters. All hours of the night.” She took a deep breath. “I couldn’t take it anymore.”

  Jason looked at the advice. “Ms. Myers, I’m a glorified bodyguard. I don’t usually do detective work.”

  “But Clare said you did such a good job.”

  He looked up sharply. “You know Clare?”

  Nodding, Helen leaned over and grabbed his hand. He tried to jerk it back. Human touch outside the bedroom wasn’t really his thing, but she had a death grip on it. “I don’t care what you’ve done, Mr. Leonard. I want my son found, and I don’t care what you have to do to bring him home. I just lost Tim. I cannot lose Davis. Christmas is just right around the corner. Please. I need him home for Christmas.”

  As he pulled his hand back, he stared at her coldly. She’d practically just admitted that the only reason she’d hired him was because of what Clare told her. That didn’t sit well with him. But the woman obviously wasn’t lying about her son, and Jason couldn’t just back out while a five year old was in danger. “Do you keep a rigid schedule?”

  “What?”

  “Do you go to that park on a regular basis at the same time every day or every week?”

  Helen shook her head. “No, of course not. I want my child to have childhood, not be part of some prison.”

  “It doesn’t matter. They could have been watching you. Okay. Write me a list of everyone you know. Everyone. I’m talking friends, old co-workers, maintenance men, women you gossip with in the salon. Put a star next to them if you’ve had any beef with them. Even if you can’t possibly imagine that they’d be capable of taking your son, list them. You have no idea who the culprit might be.”

  She pulled out a binder and set it down. “I’m already ahead of you, Mr. Leonard.”

  “Jason,” he growled. He flipped through the binder. It was ridiculously organized. “You’ve done your homework.”

  “I watch enough crime shows,” she said as she ducked her head. “Honestly, I can’t think of anyone who would do this, but everyone in this city knows that I control Timothy’s assets.”

  “That’s right. Your husband still isn’t declared formally dead. And yet you’re calling yourself a widow.” Timothy Myers had disappeared during a business trip to the Cayman Islands. There was some blood in the hotel room, but his body was never recovered.

  “The coast guard, the FBI, and the police have all given up on him. I had a ceremony last month for closure. His parents insisted on it. According to everyone, I am his widow. It’s just easier I guess to identify with that.” She took a deep breath. “It’s easier for Davis to not keep holding out hope, but I still do.”

  “Has his company accepted his death?”

  She nodded. “Joshua has been so great through all of this. He’s been helping me figure out the financial situation, but the board members are pressuring me to resign so they can pick another CEO. I guess I still want to keep the seat warm for Tim.”

  “Joshua?”

  “That’s Tim’s business partner. Joshua Mines.”

  Jason frowned. He really wasn’t on the up and up when it came to the business world. “I didn’t know Myers had a business partner. Wouldn’t it be Mines and Myers?”

  “Joshua is more of a silent partner. He invested quite a bit of money in Tim’s business and helped him get started. After he made his money back twice over, Tim offered him half the shares to thank him. Joshua sits on the board of committees. I’d sell everything to him, but Joshua wants me to hold out for just a little longer.” She blinked through the tears. “I guess he’s holding out hope as well. He’s like family to me.”

  Her phone rang, and they both stared at it. “The caller ID is blocked,” she whispered.

  “Could you have been followed?”

  Helen shook her head. “I walked here through the woods and the park. No one could have followed me unless they did it on foot.”

  “Answer it.” He scooted his chair around so he could listen in. “Don’t put it on speaker phone.”

  Once he was close enough to her that their thighs touched, she answered the phone. “Hello,” she whispered.

  “Ms. Myers. We have your son,” an electronic voice came over the phone. “If you ever want to see him again, you will wire five million dollars to an account of our choice. Prepare the money. We’ll be in touch tomorrow.”

  “Wait, let me hear his voice,” she said desperately.

  “Negative. Five million dollars.”

  “But it’s Friday. The money won’t be ready until Monday,” she cried.

  There was a pause. “We understand. We’ll be in touch tomorrow.”

  “I want to hear his voice. Davis!” she exclaimed, but the line went dead.

  Leonard leaned back. “This is good. This is really good. These have got to be the dumbest kidnappers of all time.”

  Helen stared at him. “What? What do you mean?”

  “We have two and a half days to find him. There’s a lot we can do in two and a half days. Come on. We need to do some shopping.” He got up, and she followed shakily.

  “Shopping? My son is missing,” she said in a disgusted voice.

  “Yes. And there are things we need.” He blew out his breath. The wheels in his head were already turning. There were just so many things that didn’t make sense. Like why the kidnappers wouldn’t offer proof of life.

  And why her son hadn’t screamed when strangers took him out of the park.

  CHAPTER TWO

  The Boy Genius

  After dropping Helen off at her house, he cruised around the block a few times to see if anyone was watching her. She lived in a gated community with multi-million dollar homes. There was no way someone was just sitting on the streets and staring at her. And there weren’t any empty houses nearby for him to squat in.

  Or her. It wasn’t unfathomable to think that a woman had kidnapped young Davis Myers.

  As he drove back to the
gate, he parked his car and got out to have a little chat with the security guard. It was a long shot. Helen had said that there were no maintenance men in her home for over a year, but she’d had the wake at her home and a whole host of visitors since then.

  Anyone could have planted that bug, but he needed some kind of break.

  Not wanting to break his cover in case the security guard was in on it (never underestimate anyone), he leaned over the guard window and cocked his head. “My name is Tyler Morgan, and I’m looking into the string of thefts over on the Halbrook Community. We’re concerned that they’re going to hit here next. Any chance I can get a list of the people that have come in and out of here over the past month?”

  The guard looked at his fake detective license and widened his eyes. “Oh gosh, I’ve heard of those. You don’t really think anything like that can happen here, do you?”

  Jason looked at the guy like he was an idiot. “It’s the same kind of neighborhood. Same security systems. Same high profile residents. Why wouldn’t it?”

  The guard nodded his head. “Sure. Sure. But I can’t just give you the list. I’d have to check with the home office first. But I promise you that I haven’t let anyone in here who wasn’t called in personally from a resident or on our pass list.”

  “Pass list?”

  The guard nodded. “Certain companies are allowed in to do routine maintenance. We give our residents a heads up, but it includes power, cable, lawn services, and exterminators. People like that.”

  Jason narrowed his eyes. “Do they have to have a pass?”

  The guard shook his head. “No. We recognize their trucks.”

  So anyone who was familiar with the neighborhood would know that. His suspect list just got bigger.

  “Never mind,” he sighed.

  “Never mind? I can call the office if you’d like?”

  So they could find out that his license was a fake? “Don’t bother. Anyone with a decal on a van could get in here. Thank anyways, pal.”

  The guard smiled. “I’m happy to help. Hey, I gotta ask. Do you meet many women in your line of work? I’d love to go private.”