Page 13 of Edinburgh Escape (Brotherhood Protectors International #5)

Maggie clung to Callum’s hand, her breath lodged in her throat.

How had those men found her? She’d been hyper-aware of her surroundings and the people around her since the attack at the train station in Crewe---except when she’d fallen asleep on the train beside Callum.

Knowing he worked for Hank as a Brotherhood Protector, there to see to her safety, she’d trusted that he had been on alert for trouble as well.

She prayed that the wall of stone and metal separating them from the men on the other side of the room would be enough.

She hadn’t been able to detect the button Callum had depressed to open the secret panel.

He’d had to feel for it to locate it. Surely the men wouldn’t think to look behind a wood and stone wall.

The space was tight, giving them just enough room to stand.

Sandwiched between the metal door and the back wall.

All they had to do was wait for the men to leave.

How long would they look around before they vacated the premises?

Another thought followed that one, making her bite her bottom lip.

What if they decided to stay, assuming she and Callum would return for their belongings?

They might be stuck in that tiny space indefinitely.

Did it have ventilation? Would they run out of air?

Her pulse pounded so hard against her eardrum, she could barely hear the movement in the other room.

Callum gently squeezed her hand, bringing it up to his lips again to kiss the backs of her knuckles.

Maggie drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly, letting the words he’d whispered so softly sink in.

You’ll be grand. I’ll make sure of that.

If the men found their hiding place, Callum would come out fighting. And so would she. One man couldn’t take on four.

Maggie’s mother had been adamant about self-defense. She’d driven Maggie to Bozeman once a week for months to have her trained. She’d never wanted her daughter to be at the mercy of any man. She almost laughed.

The first time she’d been attacked, all that training had flown out of her mind. It hadn’t helped that the man had been so very much larger than her and that she’d been caught by surprise. But that was no excuse. She should have been able to break free long enough to get away.

Lesson learned.

She couldn’t let that happen again. Maybe she could use her self-defense training to fight alongside Callum.

These thoughts, along with a multitude of scenarios, ran through her mind like a horror film on fast-forward.

The thumping footsteps reverberating through the wooden floor faded. Silence and stillness stretched on for one minute...two...

After what felt like an hour, the latch on the metal door suddenly clicked.

Callum tensed and released her hand.

As the tall, metal door swung open, Callum sprang out and grabbed the man on the other side in a chokehold.

Maggie came out, ready to kick, punch and bite if necessary. When she saw a man’s bare knees and pleated kilt, she touched Callum’s arm. “Callum, it’s Angus.”

He must have realized who it was at the same moment. He immediately dropped his arm from around his friend’s neck.

Angus staggered forward, his face red, his hands rising to his throat. “I see your reflexes haven’t slowed a bit.” His gaze shifted to Maggie. “For a moment, I was worried they’d gotten to you before you could get to the safe room.”

“Sorry, old man,” Callum said.

“Better to come out fighting.” Angus stepped back, staring around the bedroom.

Maggie gasped.

It has been trashed.

The navy comforter had been ripped into several pieces, the cream sheets were in shreds and the mattress had a long, jagged slash down the center. Ripped from the wall, the lamp that had been on the nightstand lay shattered on the wooden floor. The nightstand drawers had been flung across the room.

“Oh, Angus,” Maggie said. “I’m so sorry.”

“Dinna worry yourself,” Angus said. “These are only things. What’s important is that you two are safe.”

“I thought you wouldn’t be back until later this evening,” Callum said.

“That was my plan until I received a call on my mobile from my neighbor on the second floor asking if I was having a party.” His lips pressed together.

“I figured if there was enough noise in my flat to bother eighty-five-year-old, half-deaf Mr. Campbell, I might need to join the party. I called the police and arrived when they did. Four men exited the building at that exact moment. The police gave chase, and I came up to look for you.”

Callum gripped Angus’s forearm. “I owe you.”

Maggie moved toward the broken lamp, feeling the need to set the place to rights.

Callum’s hand shot out, grabbing her arm. “Don’t get any closer to the broken lamp. You’ll cut your bare feet on the shards.”

“Leave it,” Angus said. “That can wait until later.”

Callum placed a hand at the small of Maggie’s back and guided her toward the bedroom door.

“What concerns me most about this incident and the one at the train station in Crewe is how they found you. I’ve been watching for anyone following us.

I’ve seen no indication that someone has been lurking nearby.

Not in London, not on the train and not on our way from the train station to when we arrived at Angus’s flat. ”

Maggie walked with Callum into the living room, her heart sinking into the pit of her belly.

Here, too, they’d destroyed every piece of furniture.

Every drawer in the kitchen lay in splinters on the floor, the contents scattered.

Across the wall in the living room, words had been painted in blood red.

GO HOME BITCH

Maggie pressed a hand to her mouth, her eyes filling with tears. “I’m so, so sorry,” she whispered.

Angus wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “They’re just things. I have insurance that will set this place to rights.”

Callum disappeared into the guest bedroom and came out carrying Maggie’s backpack. He unzipped the top and dumped the contents on the floor.

Maggie frowned. “What are you doing?” She bent to gather her belongings.

“You said someone bumped into you at the airport,” Callum said. “They might have planted a GPS tracking device on you.” He sifted through her charging cords, makeup kit and her change of clothes, including a lacy black pair of panties.

Maggie snatched the panties from his hand and wadded them into her left hand. With her other hand, she sifted through the items.

When they didn’t find anything that might resemble a GPS tag, Callum unzipped the side pockets and emptied them as well.

A small round piece of metal that looked like a coin rolled across the floor.

“Son of a b—” Maggie muttered.

Callum straightened and stepped toward the device.

“Wait,” Angus said. “Don’t smash it. Let me deal with it.” He bent to retrieve the tag. “I’ll be right back. Might be a minute as I want to speak with the police when they return.”

Angus left the flat. His footsteps rang out on the stairs leading down to the street.

“How did I not know that was in there?” Maggie shook her head.

“Because when that man bumped into you at the airport, he probably slipped it into your backpack. You were rightfully angry about his rudeness and were more focused on the man, not your backpack.”

Maggie shivered and wrapped her arms around her middle.

“And they’ve been following me ever since.

” The chill of the room raised goosebumps on her arms and bare legs.

She dug in her backpack for slacks and a sweater, then ducked into the bathroom to change out of her pajamas and into something more substantial.

After she stuffed her pajamas into her backpack, she brushed her hair and teeth, then left the bathroom.

Suddenly restless and greatly paranoid, she crossed to the window overlooking the street below. “What’s Angus going to do with the disk?”

Callum came to stand behind her. He laid his hands on her shoulders and pulled her back against him and out of view of anyone who might look up and spot her.

The heat of Callum’s body warmed the chill that had crept through her when she realized she’d led the bad guys to her.

Not only could they have kidnapped or killed her, but they could also have hurt Callum in the process.

What if Angus had come home and surprised the four men during their raid on his flat?

He, too, could have been injured or killed for allowing Maggie to stay there temporarily.

As it was, they’d trashed his home. All because she’d dared to come to Scotland to meet her half-brother?

Angus stood on the sidewalk below, glancing in both directions.

A garbage truck rumbled up the street. It stopped, and two men leaped off, grabbed trash bins and emptied them into the back of the truck.

Callum’s friend lifted the lid of a rubbish bin perched on the sidewalk, tossed something, closed the bin and moved back as the garbage truck came toward him.

The guys on the back of the truck jumped out, grabbed the bin, emptied it into the garbage truck and set the empty bin on the curb.

As the truck moved on to the next trash container, two Scottish policemen joined Angus. They bent over, hands on their knees, dragging air into their lungs, winded from chasing the burglars. Since they’d returned on their own, the intruders had obviously gotten away.

Maggie sighed.

For several minutes, Angus spoke to the police, and then he waved toward the entrance.

The two policemen disappeared into the building, followed by Angus. Their footsteps echoed on the wooden steps as they ascended to the third-floor flat.

Maggie spun toward the policemen as they stepped through the door.

“Freeze!” the younger officer shouted, his face fierce and set in hard lines.

Heart pounding against her ribs, Maggie backed away, hands in the air, shocked they’d come in acting like Maggie and Callum were the bad guys.

Callum moved between her and the exuberant policeman, his hands also in the air.