Addy did as he said, moving to the side of the desk. A few sheets of computer paper and a glass paperweight the size of a large marble were the only items on the desktop.
Her heart thundered in her chest as she watched Martin approach Cassie. If he turned just a little more, she might have a chance.
Martin stopped short of turning his back on Addy. He pulled a handcuff key from his pocket and tossed it at Cassie without taking his eyes off Addy. “Uncuff yourself.”
Yes! They had a much better chance of overpowering Martin together. Cassie was weak, but Addy knew her sister would fight for her life. Knowing her sister, Cassie was probably more than a little pissed off at Martin Raupp.
Cassie fumbled with the key in her nondominant left hand. Martin kept his gun trained on Addy, but his irritated gazed flicked to Cassie. “Hurry up!”
As discreetly as she could while Martin wasn’t looking, Addy reached for the paperweight. It didn’t look like it would do much good as a weapon, but maybe she could use it as a distraction.
It took several more tries, but Cassie finally got the cuff off. She rubbed her bruised, raw wrist.
Martin gestured with the gun. “Head for the hallway. Both of you.”
Cassie stumbled toward Addy. Although she didn’t appear to be hurt physically, she was weak. Addy wrapped her arm around Cassie’s waist and helped her to the door.
“To the right. We’re going to the loading docks,” Martin said.
They walked through the corridor, following Martin’s directions, the overhead security lights illuminating the way.
Two oversize red doors loomed at the end of the hall. A sign affixed to the one on the right declared this the entrance to the factory floor. Another sign on the left cautioned that the area was for authorized personnel only and that protective gear must be worn at all times.
“Go on,” Martin prodded.
Addy held on to Cassie with one hand and pushed the metal bar in the middle of the door with the other.
The space on the other side of the doors was dark.
Martin was obviously familiar with the space. He reached for the wall to their left, the dim light that trickled in from the door he still held open illuminating a panel of light switches on the wall.
Martin flicked each of the switches in turn, but nothing happened. The room remained shrouded in darkness.
It was now or never. Addy launched the paperweight toward the far end of the factory floor. The distraction worked as she’d hoped. Martin turned with the gun toward the sound of the glass breaking. Grabbing Cassie by the shirt, Addy half pulled, half dragged her behind an enormous machine to the right of the door and along an aisle of equipment.
She had no idea where they were going or if there was another exit from the factory floor.
She could hear Martin swearing at her and Cassie and at the lights that he still struggled to get on.
She reached into her purse, wrapping her hand around her gun and unclipping it from its holster.
Addy didn’t know whether to wish for the lights to come on or remain off. As much as the darkness hampered their advance to freedom, it also made it that much more difficult for Martin to find them.
“Are you familiar with the layout of this place?” Addy asked quietly, still half dragging her sister.
“No,” Cassie whispered, wincing. “I’ve never been here before.”
Cassie cradled her arm, and although Addy couldn’t see an injury there, she knew firsthand that didn’t mean there was none. The wound on her torso stretched and stabbed with pain.
They kept moving around large pieces of equipment and turned a corner.
Martin, wherever he was now, had gone ominously quiet.
They’d made it to the far wall of the large space when the harsh fluorescent overhead lights sprang on.
Addy pulled Cassie down behind a nearby machine and peered around it.
She didn’t see Martin or any doors that might lead to safety, but she did spy a red-and-white exit sign hanging from the ceiling. Unfortunately, it was on the opposite side of the factory. To make it to that side, she and Cassie would have to cross an area of the factory that offered no machines to hide behind.
As she considered how they could make it across the open area, Martin stepped into it, blocking the path to the exit.
“This is a waste of time, you know. Better to go quietly, gracefully, than to engage in this battle you cannot win,” Martin shouted.
His eyes roamed over the space. He didn’t know where they were, but that could change at any moment.
Addy looked at Cassie. She’d sunk to the floor, her back to the machine they hid behind, her breathing labored.
Rage tore through Addy. She had no idea what Cassie had been through in the past several days, but she’d survived.
Addy would be damned before they’d give up now.
She helped Cassie to her feet, taking most of her sister’s weight.
If they could just get to that door, maybe even get out of it without Martin noticing...
They picked their way around the machines, using Martin’s increasingly unhinged taunts as a guide to areas to avoid.
They’d made it to the point where they’d have to cross the space that provided no cover when Martin fell ominously quiet.
Addy’s heart rate kicked into warp speed. Was he setting them up? Watching and waiting until they stepped out into the open, giving him a clear shot at them?
Addy reached for the front of her shirt, but several things seemed to happen in that instant.
Cassie’s legs gave out, sending the full weight of her body into Addy. Addy wrapped her free hand around her sister’s waist, keeping her off the floor.
At the same moment, the door to the factory that Martin had used to lead her and Cassie onto the factory floor burst open. Shawn and Ryan swept in. Any relief Addy felt at seeing them was short-lived.
She sensed more than saw Martin step out from behind the machine to their left.
He grabbed Cassie by the hair, yanking her from Addy’s unstable grip with enough force to make Cassie cry out and Addy stumble to the side.
Addy turned and faced the man who now held a gun to her sister’s head. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Shawn and Ryan advancing toward them quickly.
“Back up!” Martin’s gun hand shook. “Back up now, or she’s dead.”
Shawn and Ryan stopped, but their guns remained pointed at Martin.
It might have been fear or adrenaline, but Cassie’s wide eyes were more alert than they’d been since Addy had found her handcuffed to the filing cabinet. Hopefully, that rally would last long enough for all of them to get out of this with their lives.
Martin trained his wild gaze on Shawn and Ryan, giving Addy cover to slip her hand into her open purse unobserved.
“This isn’t going to go your way, Raupp. Drop your weapon,” Shawn said.
They stood in a lopsided triangle of sorts, Shawn and Ryan at one end and Addy at the other. Raupp and Cassie formed the tip at the top of the triangle.
“You’re in no position to give orders. Drop your weapons or this pretty little thing’s brains are going to be all over the floor.”
Cassie flinched as Martin’s grip on her hair tightened.
All the air fled Addy’s lungs. Killing Cassie made no sense, but Raupp had rolled right on past rational a while ago. His scheme was all but over, and he was on his way to prison for a very long time. He had nothing to lose.
Addy kept her eyes locked on Cassie’s face, but out of the side of her eye she saw Shawn and Ryan share a glance.
Do it! Please do it! This could be just the distraction she needed.
As if he’d heard her telepathy, Shawn said, “Okay.”
They both held out their guns and began slowly lowering them to the
ground.
Addy’s gaze never left Cassie’s face. Shawn and Ryan weren’t the only siblings communicating without words. As they slowly lowered their weapons, Cassie nodded slightly and wrenched away from Martin. She threw herself to the side with enough force that Martin was left with a clump of hair in his hand as Cassie fell to the floor.
Addy didn’t hesitate. She pulled her gun from her purse and fired a single shot.
Martin jerked, his face registering a moment of surprise. He looked down at the blood spreading across his chest, letting his gun fall from his hand.
Ryan rushed toward Martin.
All Addy could see was Cassie. “Cassie!” She rushed to her sister’s side, making it there at the same time Shawn did.
“Are you two okay?” Shawn’s eyes never left Addy’s face, though he’d directed the question at both of them.
Addy nodded. “He didn’t hurt me, but we need to get Cassie medical help now.”
Shawn gave her one more long look, assuring himself she knew that she was okay before pulling out his cell phone and stepping away.
“I’m fine,” Cassie said, but the weakness of her voice belied the comment. Tears spilled over Cassie’s cheeks. “I knew you’d find me.”
Addy pulled her sister into an embrace. The sisters held on to each other for several seconds before Cassie spoke again. “Did you kill him?”
Addy looked over her shoulder.
Ryan had ripped off the bottom of Martin’s dress shirt and was pressing it against his wound. Shawn held his cell phone to his ear, requesting police and medical assistance.
“I think he’s still alive,” Addy said, turning back to her sister.
Addy sent up a quick prayer. Even after everything he’d done, she didn’t want Martin dead. Didn’t want any man’s death at her hands.
Shawn returned, crouching beside Addy. “Donovan and medics are on the way.”
Addy raised her palm to his jaw and stroked the stubble blooming there. “Thank you.”
He leaned into her touch. “For what?” Shawn smiled. “Once again your shooting saved the day, sweetheart.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Cassie sat up in the hospital bed, a huge smile on her face. She had a presence. Shawn watched the corners of Gideon’s mouth turn up a fraction, a rare phenomenon. The young woman had to have some kind of magical powers.
Shawn felt a light touch against his arm and looked into Addy’s brown eyes as she came to a stop next to him just inside the hospital room door.
“Dr. Rose says she’ll be fine in a day or two.” Addy frowned. “At least physically. He suggested I find her someone to talk to about the whole ordeal.”
Martin and Teddy hadn’t physically hurt her, but psychological damage had the potential to be even more devastating.
“Therapy might not be such a bad idea. For Cassie or for you,” Shawn said pointedly. Addy had gone through a trauma of her own—nothing close to what Cassie had suffered, but a trauma, nonetheless. He’d held her in the hour after Cassie had been brought into the hospital while she’d cried out the fear she’d been holding inside for nearly two weeks.
“Maybe.” Addy moved her gaze from his face to her sister. “Maybe Cassie and I could go together.”
Shawn put his arm around Addy’s shoulder, pulling her in tightly against his side. Where she should be.
At least as far as he was concerned.
They’d both confessed to having feelings for each other, but they hadn’t exactly had time to discuss what that meant for either of them.
He knew what it meant for him. He wanted a future with Addy, but he knew she wasn’t positive she could achieve her professional goals and maintain a relationship. He didn’t think she needed to choose, but would she come to the same conclusion?
Someone cleared their throat.
Shawn and Addy turned in tandem to find Donovan behind them. “I came to see if Miss Williams is up for giving her statement now.”
Shawn, Addy, Gideon and Ryan had given their statements at the scene, but the EMTs had taken Cassie off to the hospital before she could give Donovan a complete statement. She had made it clear that Martin Raupp and Teddy Arbury had held her hostage for the last twelve days and that she suspected her ex-boyfriend Ben had been in on her kidnapping. Martin had also had her sign the phony resignation letter. She’d still have to flesh out some details for Donovan and testify if there was a trial, but Raupp would likely spend the rest of his life in jail.
Shawn felt Addy’s body tense, and he was sure she was seconds from telling Donovan off. She still hadn’t forgiven the man for taking such a hands-off approach to Cassie going missing.
“I’m fine to give my statement now, Sheriff.” Cassie spoke up.
Addy shot Donovan a dark look but stood aside so he could enter the room and go to Cassie’s bedside.
“If you don’t mind, Miss Williams, it may be easier to do this in private.” Donovan’s eyes roamed over each of the men in the room and Addy before settling back on Cassie.
“I want my sister and Shawn to stay.”
Donovan frowned but nodded his acceptance.
“I’ll be in the waiting room,” Ryan said.
Donovan retrieved a notebook from his breast pocket and flipped to a clean page. “Why don’t you start from the beginning and lay the whole thing out for me in your own time and way.”
Shawn and Addy had been able to deduce some of the pieces regarding what had gone down with Spectrum and the falsified chips, but the details about Cassie’s kidnapping remained fuzzy. Shawn was as interested as Donovan in finding out exactly why and how Cassie had ended up in the middle of a million-dollar fraud.
Cassie let out a deep breath. “I really don’t know where to start, Sheriff. At first, the internship at Spectrum was great. The people were nice. I was learning a ton, just like I’d hoped when I delayed starting school and work.” Cassie looked to Addy, almost in confirmation that this was the goal.
Addy smiled and nodded her agreement.
“As an intern, I did most of the filing. You know, the grunt work no one else wants to do, so they save for the lowest woman on the totem pole.” Cassie grinned.
“I’m familiar with the practice.” Donovan returned Cassie’s grin.
“Anyway, after a while, I noticed some discrepancies between what was on the written inventory forms that came from the factory floor, the number that was in the computer and how many chips appeared to be coming off the assembly lines on the days I worked at the factory.”
Donovan scribbled notes on his pad while Shawn and Addy listened with rapt attention.
“I’d been dating Ben for six weeks or so by this time, so I brought it up to him.” Cassie frowned. “He got really nervous. Said I didn’t know what I was talking about and blew me off.” Her frown deepened. “I was already realizing he was kind of a jerk, and I was ready to break it off with him, anyway. Two days later, he came to my place uninvited. He’d been drinking a lot, from the smell of him. That was the last straw. I broke up with him, and he lost it. He went off on how I thought I was better than him and smarter than everyone, but he was the smart one. He said he was going to be rich soon, and I’d come crawling back.”
“You should have called the sheriff,” Addy said, rage dancing across her face.
Donovan nodded in agreement.
Cassie shook her head, looking down at her hands in her lap. “I thought it was the alcohol talking. I’d have thrown him out, but I didn’t want him driving. He eventually wore himself out, and I told him he could sleep it off on the couch. He tripped over the leg of the coffee table, and a computer chip fell out of his pocket. I knew right away something was wrong. It had an Intellus logo on it. I picked it up before he could get to it, and everything kind of fell into place in my brain, you know.”
Cassie looked from Shawn
to Addy to Donovan.
Donovan blinked several times, his face a blank. “I’m sorry, I don’t know anything about computers, except they don’t like me and I don’t like them. Can you spell it out for me?”
Cassie smiled at Donovan, and Shawn could have sworn he blushed a little. Addy’s little sister was a charmer, even when she wasn’t trying to be.
Then again, no one could be more charming in his book than the eldest Miss Williams.
“Tons of products, from your phone to your watch to any number of everyday household appliances, have at least one kind of computer chip in them,” Cassie said, visibly warming up to the subject. “The manufacturers of these items don’t make the chips themselves. They purchase them from companies like Spectrum and Intellus. Now imagine one in every five or ten or even a hundred products starts consistently failing because of the chip inside? As a manufacturer, that impacts your company reputation, and you’re going to find another chip supplier.”
“Like Spectrum if you’ve found that Intellus’s chips are faulty.” Donovan nodded, his pen tapping the notebook in his hand.
“Chip fraud is the fastest-growing form of fraud in the world right now.” Cassie leaned her head back against the pillows.
“To the tune of billions worldwide.” Shawn jumped into the conversation. “By selling faulty chips with Intellus’s logo, Raupp was not only pocketing a small fortune, he also almost decimated the reputation of his competition.”
“Okay, I think I understand. Let’s go back a bit. What happened after you picked up the chip Ben dropped?” Donovan focused on Cassie again.
Cassie’s forehead scrunched. “I don’t remember exactly. I think I told him I was going to go to you, Sheriff. He must have hit me with something, because I felt a pain in the back of my head, and when I woke up I was in this little room. I didn’t know where at first, but later I realized it was a panic room.”
Donovan nodded. “We found a panic room in the basement of Martin Raupp’s mansion. We’re processing the house now.”
“Mr. Raupp or that guy Teddy brought me food once or twice a day, but otherwise they left me there. I think the food was drugged. I tried to eat as little as possible because I was always so sleepy after eating.”
Missing at Christmas Page 17
