THE PERFECT TEN (Boxed Set)

heading toward the helo. He’s stopped. He’s kneeling now, legs crossed at the ankle as instructed. The helo’s door is opening … and the subject is out. He seems to be scanning the roof. Now he’s circling Grayson, inspecting the handcuff job.” A pause. “I think … wait … he seems to be saying something to Grayson. Now the subject has Grayson by the hair, tipping his head back. He’s bending … oh, Jesus. Oh, Christ.”
    “It’s okay,” Delano cut in sharply. “I don’t need a play-by-play of this part. Just tell me when he’s finished.”
    After what seemed like eternity but which probably was no more than a minute, the voice came back.
    “Oh, thank God, he’s done. Grayson is still kneeling there.”
    “Is he bleeding?”
    “Umm … no. Not that I can see, anyway, but I don’t have the best angle.”
    Thank God! Ainsley knew from her own experience that if Janecek had failed to seal the wound, they’d see plenty of spurting blood, no matter what the camera’s angle.
    “Janecek is retreating to the helo. Grayson is getting up now. Whoa!”
    “What’s wrong?”
    “It’s okay. He’s okay. He just stumbled a little, but he’s on his feet now, approaching the door. Opening the door. He’s in!”
    Ainsley rushed to the exit and tore open the door. “Eli?” She heard the tread of several men’s booted feet on the steps, and in a matter of seconds, Eli appeared on the landing, a burly man gripping each of his now uncuffed arms.
    “Oh, God, bring him in!”
    She almost bumped into Delano as she stepped back to clear the doorway. He caught her to save the collision, but instead of releasing her, he pulled her back against him.
    “I’m okay,” Eli said.
    “I doubt that,” said Delano, releasing Ainsley to examine Eli. Ainsley saw him squeeze one of Eli’s fingernails. She saw, also, how slow the capillary refill was. “The sit rep I just got said you stumbled when you got to your feet. Sure you’re not feeling a little woozy?”
    He laughed, a giddy, delighted sound, as one of his men released the cuffs. “I’m feeling extremely woozy, thank you very much. Stupid sonofabitch took lots!”
    Ainsley didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, so she put her nurse face on. “Carry him to the last bedroom at the end of corridor and make him comfortable on the bed. Get that armor off him. As soon as I find the supplies, I’ll be in to start him on whole blood.”
    “I’ll get it,” Delano volunteered. “Everything’s downstairs in the lab. But first, a word for our friend.”
    He crossed to the table and stabbed the mute button. “Goddammit, Radak, do you think you took enough? You gave me your word you wouldn’t harm him.”
    “What?” Janecek’s voice came over the speaker, sounding sated and pleased with himself. “I told you I would leave him ambulatory. Did he not get back inside under his own steam?”
    “No thanks to you.”
    “Yes, well, do tell him thanks. He was every bit as luscious as I knew he would be.”
    “Of course. I’ll just mention that as I’m transfusing him, shall I? I’m sure he’ll be thrilled. Speaking of which, I now have to address getting a transfusion started before I can sit down with Ms. Crawford. I’m going to need better than an hour now. Probably ninety minutes or more.”
    “Then you’d better learn how to multi-task. You have exactly one hour to put Miss Humpty-Dumpty together again, starting right now.”
    Janecek hung up, leaving a dial tone buzzing over the speaker. Delano closed the line, plunging the room into silence.
    Ainsley bit her lip. “Will an hour be long enough for the transfusion reaction to set in?”
    “Let’s hope so. It certainly didn’t take long for Edward Webber, and I doubt Webber imbibed nearly so deeply of his second victim as Janecek did just now.”
    “He drank deeply from Eli, but not from Devon. And she’s so small… Are you sure this will work?”
    A muscle in his jaw leapt. “It has to.”
    Ainsley walked over to him on trembling legs and slid her arms around his waist. He closed him own arms around her and squeezed her once, fiercely enough to crush the breath from her body, then pulled away.
    “I know,” she said, touching his face. “The transfusion. Go fetch what we need and I’ll get him prepped.”
     
    Delano grimaced at the burning in his thigh muscles as he took the last flight of steps in three bounds and shouldered the door to the penthouse open. It was going to take some