Free Rock Star: The Deal (Book 3 of a Bad Boy Romance) by Kate Ward

sight and any devices that checked for transmitters.
    The FBI would be able to hear everything that was said and see it all happening in real time. They would be close. Out of sight.
    I was more worried about what would happen to Meghan than I was myself. If the kidnappers spotted the police, she could be dead. I had already heard they had killed a gas station clerk. These were folks who were not playing around. The man on the phone sounded deadly serious. You show up with police, she dies. His voice haunted me.
    The FBI tried to reassure me that it was going to be OK. Meghan would be safe. I would be OK because FBI agents were with me, and the money would be returned. I had to wonder why they didn’t keep money on hand for these kind of occasions. With all the fancy gadgetry that they were able to supply, wouldn’t it have made sense to create some fake money? Money that only the FBI could use. That was worthless to real folk, but looked real enough to fool even the savviest criminal?
    The truth was, I was about to enter a den of lions. Anything could happen, even if they thought this was controlled. Did they really know who they were dealing with? This could have been a well-planned procedure.
    “Don’t worry, we have them completely surrounded. The chances of them getting that money and escaping are zero,” the lead agent had told me.
    As nervous as I was, I knew I wasn’t the only one feeling the tension. After my conversation with Sophie last night, stress was at an all-time high. Spike was blaming me for this. He had said quiet clearly that if she died, he was going to track me down and eliminate me. While I couldn’t take his threats seriously, I knew it was coming from someone who truly cared about Meghan.
    I had been given a Subaru vehicle. Inside ducked down were two FBI agents with 9mm Berettas. It was unnerving to say the least. We were taken by chopper to the nearest town. From there we piled into the vehicle and began the journey which would take all of an hour to get there. They didn’t want to get any closer than that just in case the kidnappers were watching. Agent Wakefield didn’t want to get them spooked. No FBI, just me.
    I had never been to the small town of Cruger. I had played in Mississippi many times but it was always in the big city. As I drove I scanned everywhere, expecting the kidnappers to change their plans and cut me off, pull me out and take me and the money. That wouldn’t have been a bad thing. At least I would have been able to get close to Meghan and help her.
    In the backseat tucked between two agents who were out of sight was a duffel bag with three million dollars in cash. It was a bag that we used for equipment. I thought if I used something that looked like it belonged to me, it would make them believe that the cops were not clued into this.
    On the way there I spoke with the agents about their careers to kill the time. They had said this was just another day for them. They lived for this kind of stuff. Better them than me. To me it was insane. How could you have an ordinary life dealing with criminals day in and day out?
    I wasn’t too worried about the money. I had more than enough, but the idea of them getting away with that wasn’t appealing. But if it meant getting Meghan back then it was worth it.
    “Chase—” Agent Wakefield’s voice came in through the thin earpiece inside my ear. It wasn’t one of those clunky ones that they gave us on stage. It was as thin as my skin. It attached to the inside. Even the color was the same as my skin. Unless you looked real close, you wouldn’t have seen it.
    “Now remember. When you arrive, get out and place the money inside the ice machine. Then get out of there. I don’t want to risk having two people taken.”
    “I thought you said I was safe?”
    “You are. As safe as we can make you. But these things can go south.”
    “Great. Now you tell me.”
    It was strange to know that the FBI was listening to our