by Payne, T. L.
With his decision made, Scott reached down and turned the knob of the door to his right. He rushed in, sweeping his rifle from left to right and up and down. He checked the closet and under the bed. The room was empty. With his back to the room, he scanned the hall before exiting. He saw no one. The next door was locked. Scott cursed under his breath. He’d have to kick it open, and that would make a lot of noise and give away his position. He glanced to his left toward the open bathroom door, then back to the locked door.
Scott took two steps back and pressed himself against the wall and advanced toward the bathroom. At the doorway, he stared into the mirror above the sink. The reflection of the empty bathroom eased his mind. The clear glass doors to the shower confirmed that no shooter hid inside. He reached down, turned the lock on the knob, and pulled the door closed. He’d know if someone attempted to hide there now.
There were two more rooms to clear in this hall. One he knew was locked. He chose to try the other. Scott pressed himself flat against the wall between the two rooms and reached out, slowly turning the knob. He quickly pushed the door open and rushed inside, repeating the motion he’d performed in the previous room. The room reeked of body odor. Clothes were thrown all over the floor. An ashtray overflowed with cigarette butts, and beer cans littered the floor beside the bed. One of the cartel members had obviously stayed in that room, but it was unoccupied now. Scott proceeded to the last room.
Drawing in a deep breath, Scott lifted his right leg and kicked the center of the door with the heel of his boot. The door banged open, and Scott rushed inside. Scott’s left hand flew up to cover his mouth and nose as he stared down at the gruesome sight that had awaited him.
Bile rose in his throat. He choked it back but lost the battle. He bent over just as the contents of his stomach exploded all over the carpet. He wanted to look away. He wanted to pretend he hadn’t seen the horrid sight. But he couldn’t. He felt as if someone was yanking his heart out of his chest. How could one human being do that to another? What type of person could do what had been done to these girls? Fighting off the shock, Scott finished scanning the room. When he was confident that no one living occupied the room, Scott walked over and examined the two girls sprawled out on the queen-sized bed. Their faces were nearly unrecognizable. The one closest was a blonde. Not JJ. The girl on the other side of her was larger and her hair was shorter than JJ’s. Scott felt guilt at being relieved that it wasn’t her. These girls likely belong to the Cartwright family. They’d been loved and would be missed, too.
Filled with dread at the prospect of finding JJ in a similar condition to those two, Scott proceeded back through the family room and approached the stairs. The stairwell was empty. To the right of the stairs was a door. Scott decided to check it before proceeding upstairs. This door opened out toward him. He turned the knob and pulled. A second set of stairs descended into a dark space.
A basement.
Scott hugged the wall as he descended the steps, scanning the visible portion of the space as he did. Shelves lined the two walls he could see. They were filled with food items and paper products. It looked like someone had been prepared for the world to end.
At the bottom of the stairs, Scott swept his rifle from left to right, illuminating the space with the light from his scope. More shelves and tons of boxes filled the space from floor to ceiling. Scott hurried to check behind any that might conceal a person. At the back of the space was a steel door with a hasp and lock on it. Scott rushed over and yanked on the lock. To his surprise, it popped open. Whoever had locked it hadn’t made sure it was pushed all the way in. Scott removed the lock and pushed the hasp back before reaching for the knob. He drew in a deep breath and let it out. He swallowed hard, gripped his rifle tighter against his right shoulder, then pushed the door open with his boot. The room was dark, but he immediately knew he’d found her.
“JJ?”
Chapter 28
JJ heard a muffled voice. She tried to shake off the fog in her brain to identify it. Her body felt like it was floating. She felt sleep pulling her down, down, down, and she let it.
Something tugged on her arm. Her head bobbed side to side. She raised her hand to swat it away. Her arm felt heavy. Suddenly, hands gripped her shoulders and shook her hard. She tried to open her swollen eyes. She finally managed to get one to open a crack. Through the tiny slit, she could make out a male figure.
“JJ, let’s go,” the male voice said, pulling her to her feet. Her legs felt like wet noodles. She let her body sag against his.
She recognized the voice but couldn’t at first place it. She was sure it was someone she knew.
“Scott?” she croaked, her throat parched. She tried to swallow, but her mouth was too dry.
“I need you to wake up, JJ. I can’t carry you.”
JJ looked up at him. She studied his blurry face.
“What?”
“We have to go, JJ. There’s no time. Where's your shoes?”
She waved a hand. She had no idea. “Shoes?” she asked.
Scott sat her in a chair in the corner of the room. JJ slumped to the side and rested her head against the wall. She could barely keep herself from sliding off.
A second later, Scott was pushing boots onto her feet. He wrapped a coat around her shoulders.
“Stick your arms in.”
JJ raised her arm and it flopped back into her lap.
Scott took her hand and shoved it into the armhole, then repeated the move with her other hand. Pain shot up her arm.
“Let’s go,” Scott said, lifting her from the chair by her arm. He placed her arm around his neck and slid an arm around her waist. “I’m going to get us out of here, but you have to be quiet, okay?”
Her head bobbed up and down. She tried her best to lift her legs to walk. She wanted to get out of there. Wherever there was. She trusted Scott. He was cute and sweet.
“This is nice,” JJ said, looking up at Scott.
“Shush. You have to be quiet.”
“All right,” she whispered.
Scott propped her against the wall, pressing his hip against her. She felt a warmth run through her. He leaned over and opened the door.
“Okay. It looks clear. You ready?” Scott whispered.
She nodded. The bobbing of her head made her feel nauseated.
“I think I’m going to be sick,” JJ whispered.
“No. There’s not time for that. We have to get away from here and then you can be sick.”
“Okay,” JJ said, taking a deep breath. The tone of his voice indicated urgency. She needed to snap out of this…whatever this was. Was she drunk? Had she been drinking? That was what it felt like, but she had no memory of it.
Scott pulled her forward and through the door to a set of stairs. She tripped on the first one. “You have to lift your feet,” Scott said.
“Okay.” She tried, but they felt like they were filled with lead. Her ears were ringing so loud.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“Home,” he said. They traveled slowly up the stairs to a closed door. Scott leaned her against the wall and slowly opened the door.
“Clear.”
“Where are we?” JJ whispered.
He didn’t answer her.
They stepped out into a brightly-lit room. It was so bright it hurt her eyes. Scott was practically dragging her now. She glanced around. Through the crack between her right eyelids, she could see they were in someone’s living room.
“Who lives here?” JJ asked, trying to focus on the furnishings. She had no memory of coming here. “How did I get here?” Scott wasn’t answering her questions.
They stepped down two steps into an empty garage. It was cold. Very cold. A shiver ran over her. They shuffled over to a man-sized door and stopped. JJ did her best to stand on her own. Scott peeled back the curtain over a small window in the door. He reached down and turned the knob. A loud crash came from inside the house. Scott yanked open the door and pulled JJ th
rough with him.
The frigid air hit her in the face, instantly sobering her up. She gasped and stiffened against the cold.
“Hurry, JJ,” Scott said. “We are going to have to run across the field to the woods. Can you run?”
She could barely stand, but she said, “Yes.”
Scott slid his arm out from around her and took her left hand.
“Ready?”
She wasn’t but what the hell. “Sure.”
As she stepped across the threshold, a loud boom rang out behind her. She jumped and stumbled over Scott’s feet. He caught her and stopped her from falling to the ground. He twisted and raised a rifle.
Pop! Pop!
It was so loud next to her ear. She raised her head to see who he was shooting at. She could see no one. Scott grabbed her around her waist and took off, running across the field. JJ stumbled and nearly fell half a dozen times before getting her legs under her. She felt like she was running in slow motion. Her head felt heavy. The nausea was worsening.
When they reached the tree line, Scott stopped and turned toward the house. JJ dropped to her knees in the snow, her legs no longer able to support her weight. Her heart was racing. She could barely breathe. It had taken every ounce of energy she had to cross the field. She hoped they didn’t have far to go—to wherever Scott was taking them.
“Great job, JJ. We can’t stay here, though. They’ll be right on our heels.”
“They?” she asked, looking up at him. Now that she could focus better, she noticed his face.
“Oh, my God! Scott?” she cried. “What happened?”
“I don’t have time to explain. We have to go. You have to walk, JJ. I’m sorry. I just can’t carry you,” Scott said, reaching out to her.
JJ took his hand, and he lifted her to her feet. She reached out and stroked his battered cheek. She ran her index finger over his swollen eyelid. Scott tugged on her arm, and she followed him down a hill. They walked in the creek for several minutes before climbing a hill and coming out in another field.
Scott stopped and crouched at the edge of the field. He tapped her shoulder, and she squatted. It hurt. Everything hurt now that she was more awake. Scott was still holding her hand. She stared at their entwined fingers. Both their hands were bloody and bruised. She raised her right hand and examined it. Her knuckles were swollen. Had she been in a fight?
Why can’t I remember?
“I don’t see anyone, but I don’t want to take a chance so we’re going to stay in the trees and skirt the field.”
“Can you tell me what’s going on now?” JJ asked as she rose.
“You don’t remember?”
She shook her head. “I have no clue.”
The suspense was killing her. Her imagination was running wild with possibilities. She wished he’d just tell her already.
Scott stepped over a fallen log and held out his hand to help her over.
“You don’t remember the wreck?”
“We wrecked?” she asked. “No. I don’t remember that. What happened?”
“The cartel…”
At the mention of the name, JJ stiffened. Something clawed at the back of her mind. Something terrible. She felt faint. She put her hand out in front to catch her fall. Scott grabbed her by the arm and steadied her.
“They T-boned us and ran us off the road. They brought you to that house we just left.”
“You came for me,” JJ said, her voice low and soft.
“I did.” He paused, then continued, “We have to keep going. We need to make it back to the others.” Scott urged her forward.
“Where are they? They weren’t in the car with us, were they?”
She tried hard to remember. Everything was a fog. Panic rose inside her as she imagined what might have happened to DeAndre, Raine, and the others.
“No. They stayed back at Mrs. Ward’s.”
JJ stopped in her tracks.
“We can’t lead the cartel back to them, Scott. I can’t have a repeat of what happened with Mr. Ward. I won’t,” JJ said. “Little DeAndre, Scott. We can’t.” The image of Mrs. Ward on the ground holding her dead husband’s head in her lap and the sound of her sobbing overwhelmed her. JJ felt like she’d been punched in the stomach. Tears streamed down her face.
Scott turned to face her. He took her hands in his. His eyes widened, and he dropped her hands. Scott shoved her to the ground. JJ fell face-first into the snow, rolled over on her side, and tried to get up.
“Stay down, JJ,” Scott yelled. She couldn’t see him.
“Drop the rifle,” a male voice said. She knew that voice. She clenched her jaw and sat up. She blinked a few times. She tried to think.
“David?” Why was he here? A memory danced away before she could grasp it.
“What are you doing?” JJ asked him.
His mouth formed into something more aggressive than a smirk.
“Your lover boy came to save you,” David mocked.
“What? No. I— Wait. I don’t answer to you. We’re divorced,” JJ spat through gritted teeth. David pressed a pistol into the back of Scott’s skull.
“No!” JJ yelled as she shot to her feet.
“No?” David laughed.
“Run, JJ!” Scott yelled. “Get out of here. Just run.”
The color drained from her face. JJ gulped back tears.
“Don’t do this, David. We aren’t seeing each other. We just met.”
“I don’t really give a damn, Justice. I couldn't care less who you sleep with. I just want my money. You’re going to tell me right now. No more stupid games. You tell me where you put my money and I’ll let your boyfriend here go.”
Memories flooded in. The flash drive. The accident. Stuffing the drive into the seat cushion. She remembered the cartel torturing Scott, trying to get her to tell them where it was. She stared at Scott’s battered face. She’d caused this. She’d caused it all. Why hadn’t she just given him the flash drive? He was stupid enough to think he could still use it to get the money from his offshore accounts.
“Don’t believe him, JJ. He’s not going to let any of us live. That animal kills for fun.” Scott twisted his head around. “I saw those little girls. You’re a sick, twisted man.”
JJ’s mouth opened and closed. Words wouldn’t form. She recalled the screams coming from the room above her. She shuddered at the memory.
“I’ll take you to your money—under one condition,” JJ blurted.
“No, JJ. You can’t go with him. You didn’t see what he did. He won’t let you live.”
David swung the pistol and struck Scott, hitting him in the back of the head at the base of the spine. Scott crumpled to the ground in a heap. JJ started to go to him, but David grabbed her by the arm and hoisted her into the air.
“Take me to my money now, or a lot more people will die because of you. I’ll start with your brother, Aiden, and then…”
“Let my sister go, asshole!”
JJ pivoted. “Aiden?”
David swung the pistol around and pointed it at Aiden. JJ lunged for David. She heard the boom of the gun as the two of them hit the ground. They rolled. JJ struggled to wrench the gun from David’s hand. She got to her knees, still holding on to his right forearm with both hands. He reached up and grabbed a handful of her hair, yanking her head back. JJ reached back and tried to free her hair. She felt the cold steel press against her temple.
“Justice!” her father screamed. Someone grabbed hold of her dad and pulled him backward. “Let me go!” he spat, trying his best to wrestle free of the big man’s bear hug. “You let my daughter go, asshole.”
Chapter 29
Raine heard gunfire as she and Maggie ran across the open field, heading toward the tree line where Buddy, Jim, and Aiden had disappeared.
“Wait, Raine! Wait for me. You can’t enter the woods alone,” Maggie called.
Raine looked back. Maggie couldn’t keep up with her. Raine turned and ran back. She slid her arm around Maggie’
s waist and the two ran toward the sound of their group. James shot past them, followed by Russell and Clive. When Raine and Maggie reached the others, Raine froze at the sight of JJ on her knees in the snow with a gun to her head.
“Oh, my God. Scott,” Raine whispered. Scott lay ten feet from them, his face buried in blood-stained snow.
“Put the gun down. You know you’re not getting out of these woods alive if you hurt her,” James said, pointing his rifle at them. The man was using JJ as a human shield. There was no way James could shoot the man without risking hitting JJ.
Buddy had Jim in a bear hug, and Jim was struggling to get free. Aiden stood next to them, his pistol trained on his sister’s attacker. The man didn’t look like a member of a cartel. He was middle-aged, pudgy, and pale-skinned. Was this JJ’s David? Unlike Raine’s brother, this man looked pure evil. As he continued to press the weapon to JJ’s head, his face was contorted in rage. That scared Raine. Rage made people do stupid things. He had to know this only ended one way for him. He was going to die. He deserved to die for what he’d done. But he was going to take JJ with him, Raine was sure of that. Someone had to do something.
Russell stepped forward. “Okay. Everyone needs to calm down here. This doesn’t have to go like this.” He lowered his voice and took another step toward JJ and David. “Everyone needs to just put their weapons down and let’s work something out. You don’t want to die here today. I know you don’t. So let’s talk.”
David laughed. The deep, guttural laugh of evil incarnate. The scene felt like something out of a late-night horror film, but this was real. The gun pressed to JJ’s head was real. The blood pooling around Scott’s head was all too real.
“Do you think I would actually fall for that? Man, you’ve watched too many cop shows on television,” David said. “I know how this ends. My wife and I are going to die right here in these woods.”
