A Colby Christmas Rescue (Colby Agency: The Next Generation #1)

Chapter One

Chapter One

The Colby Agency, 9:00 a.m.

Victoria Colby stood at the window in her office that looked out over the street. This was one of her favorite places in the world and certainly she had traveled broadly. But here, in the Colby Agency offices, this window was her happy place. Watching the snow fall so close to Christmas was just icing on the cake. The winter storm had started two days ago, and the snow hadn’t let up since. But, as Lucas reminded her, the storm wouldn’t get in the way of their plans this year, so why not celebrate the deepening blanket of white?

It was the season after all.

Her heart felt heavy at the idea of not spending the holidays with her family. It was tradition. But that was impossible this year. Of course, she was literally surrounded by her agency family. Victoria and Lucas couldn’t deny having an amazing extended family here at the agency.

And as wonderful as that was, it wasn’t really the same.

The whole truth was that celebrating would be a lot more enjoyable if, for one, she didn’t feel like her family were scattered so far and wide this holiday. And, secondly, she was worried sick about Tasha, her son Jim’s wife. Jim and Tasha were in Sweden and not for a vacation either. Tasha had been diagnosed with a rare type of cancer. Fortunately, Victoria had been able to get her into a cutting-edge research study that was showing very promising results with its participants. Victoria desperately needed this treatment to work. The idea of her son losing his wife—her precious grandchildren losing their mother—was simply unthinkable.

More unnerving at present: the children hadn’t been told about the diagnosis. Tasha and Jim wanted to wait and see how things would go before telling their daughter and son. No point ruining their holidays as well, Jim had insisted. Victoria sighed, her heart heavier still. It wasn’t like her grandbabies were actually children. Jamie was twenty-five now. Victoria still couldn’t believe her granddaughter was so grown-up. She smiled and traced a melting flake of snow down the glass. Jamie had done everything early. Graduated high school and university years before her peers. Every three-letter government agency on the planet had sought her out well before she had that degree in her hand.

But Jamie had done what Jamie always did—exactly what she wanted to do. She had accepted an invitation to be one of only twelve Americans with the brand new International Operations Agency—or the IOA. Practically no one had a handle on exactly what this new multi-country agency was really, but the promise of great things was certainly being bragged about in all the highest places. This agency would extend far and wide, interweaving many allies together in a way never done before.

Victoria was extremely proud of Jamie for choosing a route with global implications, though she had to admit she would have preferred to have Jamie coming on board with the family business. The Colby Agency represented Victoria’s life’s work. She worried that after Jim there would be no one in the family to carry on the important work they did here.

Her grandson Luke, on the other hand, was just preparing to enter the last semester of his final year at university in Nashville, Tennessee. He was far less in a hurry to get on with his life. Another smile tugged at Victoria’s lips. As a child, he had been so like his father. Extremely curious but not quite ready to jump in with both feet. He’d changed his major twice in his freshman year, before finally deciding to go into medicine and transferring to premed at Vanderbilt.

Victoria couldn’t wait to see him spread his wings and come into his own.

With all that was going on in their lives, the kids wouldn’t be coming home for Christmas either. Everyone—the world it seemed—was too busy. This made her far sadder than perhaps it should have, but this would be the first year that no one in the family had stayed in or come to Chicago to celebrate.

Lucas appeared behind her, and Victoria turned to him. “I fear it’s going to be a lonely Christmas.”

He touched her cheek with the backs of his fingers. “It’s never lonely as long as we are together,” he reminded her. “We’re alive and well. We’ll have plenty to celebrate.”

Of course, he was right. She leaned into his strength, and they watched the snowflakes swirl and fall. Whether the family was here or not, it was going to be a beautiful few days. All of Chicago lay under a blanket of perfect, white snow giving the busy and at times troubled city such a peaceful appearance. How could anyone who loved this city not feel the magic of the season? At their ages it was important to enjoy each day all the more.

Victoria should be grateful, and she was. Who could blame her for missing her family?

“Slade mentioned,” Lucas said, “that he and Maggie planned to drop by after dinner at her mother’s house. It will be nice to see them and to spend some time with Cody.”

Another grandchild who was growing up so very fast.

“That would be lovely.” Maggie’s mother had no one else and Victoria certainly wouldn’t selfishly resent the woman for having at least some family for the holiday even if it meant that Victoria and Lucas were alone. She and Lucas were so very lucky to still have each other.

The reminder that they would indeed have some family dropping by for the holidays brightened her spirits. Although they had not known about Slade until he was a grown man, he was as much a member of this family as anyone else. He had been raised by an evil woman who had done all in her power to turn him against Lucas, his biological father. But time and circumstances had changed that painful connection into a good, solid and loving relationship. One for which Victoria was immensely thankful. Lucas had sacrificed a great deal for his country. He deserved all the happiness that came his way.

“We should send everyone home after lunch,” Victoria suggested. It was Friday after all, and the agency would be closed next week. All open cases had been closed by mid-December.

It was something they strove for each year beginning on the first of November. Having the last of the year’s cases basically buttoned up by the holidays wasn’t always possible, but they worked diligently toward that goal. There were some cases that simply couldn’t be wrapped up so neatly in a certain time frame, but all efforts were made. This was good for her investigative team and for the clients they served.

Victoria had to admit that as careers went, she and Lucas had certainly enjoyed unusual ones. She, Lucas and James Colby, her first husband, had begun their young lives together along with their careers working in the government. James and Lucas had been CIA—eventually leading a special black ops group like no other. In time, when Victoria and James had started a family, they had left the more dangerous work serving their government and started a private investigations agency.

But the past had not been ready to let them go and had drawn them deep into a whole other level of danger.

Victoria pushed the painful memories away. They had survived the nightmares and the tragedies and, thankfully, she and Lucas had found their way to each other in time. Although they had tried retirement and moving to a warmer climate, staying away from Chicago and the agency they had built was impossible.

“That is a very good idea, my dear.” He kissed her cheek and then nuzzled it with his own. “Do you have something in mind for this evening?”

Victoria smiled. “I suppose we could be like the typical family and spend the weekend watching Christmas movies and baking cookies.”

Lucas chuckled. “I don’t think anyone would accuse us of being typical.”

Victoria thought of the many, many cases they had investigated. The many times they had barely survived with their lives. “Oh yes, sometimes I forget that we’re not like other couples.”

During their nearly half-century-long careers, they had been kidnapped, shot at, had bombs left for them, had their entire office building burned down and, of course, one or both had been left for dead numerous times. Thankfully, they had always survived. At times by the sheer skin of their teeth.

Funny how even now, looking back at all those horrific situations, each one had been just another day at the office. And now, their granddaughter was following that same path with the IOA. Luke—not so much. Her grandson had chosen Vanderbilt University in Nashville for his premed work, where a great deal of amazing research was happening. And since Luke was a die-hard country music lover, Nashville was the perfect setting for him.

“I was thinking,” Lucas said, “that we might consider a quick trip to Paris. I know how you love that city. A few days there would be a welcome change of pace. We’ll be closer and available to rush to Sweden if Jim and Tasha need us. We can have the kids there in a matter of hours if need be.”

Victoria held back her first response and mulled over the proposal. “You know, that’s actually not a bad idea.” Christmas in Paris. Yes. That would be very nice. “I’ll run it by Ian and Simon to make sure they haven’t made out-of-town plans already.”

To her knowledge, none of the primaries at the agency were planning to travel out of town. She turned to her husband. “This was really a great idea, Lucas.”

He smiled. “I already have reservations at the Shangri-La. I spoke to Jim yesterday and he was in agreement that he would prefer that we enjoy ourselves for the holidays and not wait around to hear news from Tasha’s procedure.”

So her husband and her son had been conspiring together. “Do you have flights already as well?” His smile widened to a grin. Why had she even asked? “This really is quite perfect, Lucas. Thank you.”

Her cell vibrated against her desk. Victoria started for it and Lucas headed for the door. “I’ll inform everyone that I told you about your Christmas present.”

She should have known. “So everyone but me knew about this?”

“Not everyone.” He grinned, then slipped out of her office.

Victoria shook her head. “Probably everyone but the janitor,” she murmured with a laugh.

Luke flashed on the screen of her phone and Victoria’s smile spread wider. “Luke,” she said in greeting, “how wonderful to hear from you.”

Her grandson was always busy, but even still he found a minute here and there to call his grandmother. He had probably heard about Lucas’s surprise as well.

“Grandmother.”

Victoria’s smile faded. The clear and present fear she heard in her grandson’s voice had her heart stumbling. “Luke, are you alright?” Had something happened to Tasha and Jim had already called the children? Dear God, she prayed that was not the case.

Had Luke been in an accident? He was speaking to her, which had to mean he was all right...wasn’t he?

Or what if something had happened to Jamie?

A fresh wave of fear pounded in her veins.

“Listen to me very carefully, Grandmother,” Luke said. “They’re only allowing me a few moments to speak with you.”

Victoria suddenly calmed. Inside, she went completely still and quiet while her instincts—the ones she had honed over nearly half a century—elevated to the highest state of alert. “I’m listening.”

“They want ten million dollars. You have forty-eight hours. But you are not to do anything at all until you receive additional instructions.” A pause. “I love you, Grandmother.”

The call ended.

“Luke!” Victoria’s heart burst into a frantic staccato. “Luke!” She stared at the black screen.

Victoria rushed from her office and paused in the private waiting room just outside the door. She immediately thought of Mildred, her dear assistant of so many years. How she wished she were here now.

Her new assistant gazed up at Victoria with a kind smile. “Is everything all right?”

“Rhea, I need Lucas, Nicole, Ian and Simon in my office now .”

Rhea was fairly new, but she recognized there was trouble. Rather than bother with her phone, she ran from the room to personally gather everyone.

Needing to leave her own cell phone free, Victoria reached for the phone on Rhea’s desk and called Chelsea Grant. Chelsea was their very best at tracing cell phone calls. “I need you in my office. Now please.”

Five minutes later, those closest to Victoria were assembled in her office and she had provided the details of the call from Luke. She struggled to maintain her composure. Memories from when Jim had gone missing at age seven ripped at her insides. This is not the same. Not the same.

“The call came from the Nashville area,” Chelsea confirmed. “But I’m having a difficult time narrowing down an exact location. The call bounced all over the Volunteer State like a football in a final play free-for-all. If another call originates from that phone, it’s possible a drop in signal strength could create a hesitation in the smoke screen they’re using. All I need is a call using that phone which lasts a few minutes and a couple of strength hesitations. The signal will automatically go to where it’s strongest—where it originates.”

“Thank you, Chelsea.” Victoria turned to the others. “Thoughts?”

Ian Michaels and Simon Ruhl had been with Victoria the longest of all her outstanding investigators. Nicole Reed Michaels, Ian’s wife, was another of her most trusted. Between the three of them they had a world of experience and knowledge. More important, they were highly skilled in the art of evading danger and recovering assets.

“I’m hearing nothing from Interpol or our friend in the Mossad,” Ian said. “My impression so far is that we’re dealing with a domestic situation.”

“I agree,” Nicole confirmed. “My contacts in the CIA, the State Department and the NSA have heard no recent chatter related to our agency or anyone close to it.”

Victoria wanted to be relieved at least a little, but she was not. She turned to Lucas. “What are you hearing from Thomas Casey?”

Like Lucas, Thomas Casey had once been a ghost of the highest order. A man who knew all things and who could go in and out of all places—wherever in the world—like smoke undetected. Their contacts and assets were scattered far and wide. But with that level of reach came fierce enemies...fierce competition.

“Ian and Nicole are correct,” Lucas said, “this is not an international situation. This is someone closer to home.”

“My contacts in the FBI—” Simon went next “—have confirmed rumblings in the southeast but nothing necessarily high level. Yet, they are not willing to take a bigger connection off the table.”

Nicole rolled her eyes. “That’s just like the Bureau. Always trying to make a situation bigger than it might be.”

Simon shrugged. “They have agreed to put out feelers at the university and in the neighborhood where Luke lives.”

“In my opinion,” Ian said, “we should be heading in that direction even now.”

“Luke said I was not to do anything until I received further instructions.” The worry and uncertainty had Victoria’s heart pounding again. No matter how many times she had faced life and death, knowing that a member of her family was in danger tore her apart inside.

“We should at least call Jamie,” Lucas offered. He paced from the conference table to where Victoria sat on the edge of her desk, his trademark limp more visible than usual. He too was worried. These sorts of situations were far harder to tolerate at their ages.

And yet, they would die before backing down. She hoped whoever was behind this understood who they were dealing with.

“I don’t want to call her,” Victoria said, “until we have something more to share. At this point we know basically nothing.”

Lucas leaned against Victoria’s desk, putting himself next to her. “You’re right, of course, but I feel as if we’re doing nothing at all to alleviate the situation.”

“The only part that gives me any relief is that Luke sounded somewhat calm despite the fear I heard in his voice,” Victoria offered. “His tone was not as frantic as it could have been.” Whether the rationale should or not, it gave her some sense of peace.

Nicole looked up from her tablet. “I’ve moved the requested ten million to a separate account—the one we generally use for ransom demands.”

“Very good.” Victoria should have already thought of that herself. Perhaps turning seventy-one last year had slowed her cognitively more than she’d realized. No. That wasn’t true. There was absolutely nothing wrong with her brain. This was a problem with her heart.

And she was terrified.

“Luke has numerous friends,” Simon mentioned, scrolling through the notes on his phone. “I’ve cued up a list with contact details in the event we need to start tracking them down. His professors. His class schedule. We have everything we need to begin a thorough search for him.” His gaze settled on Victoria. “Whenever you say the word.”

Her instincts urged her to act, but...the grandmother in her feared not following the directions given.

“We know from our contact at Nashville Metro that his car is at his condo. It hasn’t left his parking space,” Lucas said.

All their vehicles were tagged with state-of-the-art tracking devices. But having Nashville Metro confirm as much was good news indeed. “Which suggests,” Victoria pointed out, “that wherever he is, someone picked him up or that person is at his condo with him.” The latter was not likely since they all had panic buttons in their private homes as well. She felt confident Luke would have found a way to trigger that alarm.

The Colbys had suffered more than their share of losses. They did not take chances.

And yet, this ransom situation had happened just the same. Victoria felt powerless.

His cell phone had been turned off and the battery removed as soon as the call had ended, limiting its use as a tracking device. Victoria suspected his phone had only been used to ensure Victoria understood they did indeed have Luke in custody.

Ian said, “Nashville Metro have reported nothing in the way of hostage situations. There have been no new kidnappings in the past seventy-two hours. This appears to be an isolated event.”

Nicole looked to Victoria once more. “I’ve run the enemy list through the steps and found no new activities.”

Over the course of the past half century, the Colby name had amassed a good many powerful enemies. The activities of those enemies were closely monitored at all times. It was a necessary evil in the world of high-level investigations. The trouble was that new enemies cropped up and old enemies found fresh ways to hide. It was a never-ending cycle of discovery and catch up.

“Then we wait,” Victoria said. There simply was no other choice. Waiting was far more difficult than taking action, but it was, at times, necessary.

Victoria’s cell chimed with an incoming call.

Her heart rushed into her throat.

Jim.

“Don’t tell him anything,” Lucas urged.

As difficult as that would prove, Jim was thousands of miles away and could do nothing about what was happening here. He certainly didn’t need the additional stress.

“How is Tasha?” Victoria decided coming straight out with the question was the best way to prevent herself from blurting the truth. Worry twisted inside her, slicing like barbed wire.

“She came through the preparation for the procedure quite well. The doctors are very hopeful.”

Her son’s voice sounded strained and so very tired. “This is wonderful news,” Victoria said, fighting the sting in her eyes. Jim did not deserve this—whatever the hell it was. He had been through enough. Far more than most people were aware. His body bore the scars from the physical torture he had suffered from the moment he went missing as a child. The mental scars had taken years to put behind him. They would never be forgotten, but he had built a wonderful life and Victoria wanted nothing to tear that sweet life apart.

He had paid far more than his share already.

“She’ll rest today and then the procedure will go as scheduled tomorrow. If it’s successful, we should know by Monday.”

This was far sooner than Victoria had expected. If this did not go their way...no, she couldn’t think that way.

“Is there anything we can do, Jim?” Victoria offered. “We all have you and Tasha in our prayers, of course.”

“That is much appreciated, but we are hanging in there. The staff here is working diligently to make our time as stress free as possible.”

“I’m so glad.” Thank God. Thank you, God.

“I should go and be with Tasha. Please let Luke and Jamie know we’re doing fine.”

“I will,” Victoria promised. “Don’t worry about anything here. We have everything under control.”

“Thanks, Mom. Love you.”

Victoria’s chest tightened. “Love you.” The call ended and for a bit she stared at the dark screen and struggled to hold back her emotions.

Lucas placed his hand over her free one. “You did what you needed to do.”

She nodded. Lowered the phone and looked from one of her dedicated friends to the next. “Whatever else we do, we must—”

Her cell chimed again. She gasped as the name on the screen flashed.

Luke.

“Let it ring once more,” Chelsea said.

The phone chimed again, and Victoria answered. “Luke?”

“Grandmother, you will receive a letter of instruction from a special courier in fifteen minutes,” he explained. “You are to follow the instructions in this letter very carefully. They have explained the first part of the instructions and I am supposed to pass that part along to you now.”

His voice gave the impression of calm, but there was no missing the hum of fear just beneath the surface. The sound of it tore at her soul.

“Whatever we need to do,” Victoria said. “Just name it.”

“Besides the ten million dollars, there is something he needs and there is only one person who can get it for him.”

Him. The person behind this was a man. The information wasn’t surprising and wouldn’t narrow things down much, but it was something—a small piece of the bigger puzzle. “All right. I’m listening.”

There was silence on the line.

“Luke?”

The sound of struggling echoed in Victoria’s ear. She held her breath, fear tightening her throat like a snake coiled around it. “Luke, is everything all right?”

“Yes.” His answer was strained. “I don’t want to tell you but I...” A breath blasted across the line. “I have no choice.”

“It’s all right, Luke. Tell me what you need, and I will make it happen.”

“They want Jamie. She is the only one they will allow to do this. If anyone else tries...they say they will... kill me.”

Panic rushed into Victoria’s chest. “Luke, I—”

“Wait for the courier, Grandmother.”

The call ended.

Terror slammed into Victoria, making her jerk with its impact.

“I’m calling Jamie now,” Lucas said. “As soon as I know where she is I will send the plane for her.”

Dear God. Victoria held tightly to the phone no matter that the connection to Luke was lost, her eyes closing in horror. Now they wanted her other grandchild.