by T L Swan
I turn back to him and narrow my eyes. Was it him? Hate fills my every pore and I pick up the phone and hold it to my ear.
“What did you fucking do?” he sneers.
“What did you fucking do?” I reply. Fuck, I hate this asshole. I punch the glass in front of his face again and he doesn’t flinch.
“Me? Are you kidding? I’m here to find her,” he shakes his head in disgust at me.
I fake a smile. “Convenient you are in the country when she goes missing. Where is she?” I yell.
The guard comes in the door behind me. “What’s going on in here?” he asks. “Keep it down.”
I turn to look at him and shake my head angrily as I try to control myself.
“You make me sick. She didn’t want you so you fucking killed her. You gutless prick!” he sneers.
“I didn’t touch her. I would never hurt her,” I murmur as my eyes fill with tears. I can’t take any more. I’m at my breaking point.
He stays silent as he watches me and he frowns as he processes my words.
My eyes hold his as I hold the phone to my ear and a tear runs down the length of my face and I swipe it angrily away. “She should have stayed with you. She would be still alive now if it wasn’t for me,” I whisper through my hurt.
His face falls as he watches me. “I know,” he replies.
I let her down. I led Natasha into a lifestyle where I knew she would be in danger if she stayed with me and yet I was too selfish to let her go. What have I done? He is right—this is all my fault. I put my head in my hands and start to weep uncontrollably. I don’t want him to see me like this. I stand and go to the back of the room and bang on the door.
“Guard,” I yell hysterically.
The door opens and the guard’s eyes flick between me and my visitor and he frowns in question. “I’m ready to go,” I murmur, almost panicked.
He nods and leads me out of the room.
Adrian
I walk into the jail reception area with Ben and Cameron. We are trailed by three guards. Cameron walks up to the glass window at the office. “I would like to see Joshua Stanton please,” he announces.
“Sure, just a minute,” the receptionist replies flatly. She types and reads something on her computer monitor.
“He has a visitor with him now,” she informs us.
Cameron’s eyes flick back to us. Who would be visiting him? Holy mother, someone after a ransom. “Can I go in?” Cameron mutters as he gestures to the door.
“No, only one visitor at a time. You will have to wait,” she replies in a monotone.
Cameron nods and takes a seat next to us. “Who would be visiting him?” he whispers.
“I don’t know,” Ben whispers furiously.
I sit back in my chair nervously, oh shit. This is like a movie, but worse.
“Do we know what this maniac from Australia looks like?” I whisper to Ben.
Ben looks at the door stone-faced and clenches his jaw. “Off by heart,” he murmurs.
Oh god, perspiration starts to form on my brow. I could never be a cop. I would be hopeless at this stuff. We sit for ten minutes in silence as we wait for someone to walk out.
“Cameron, did you ask her who it was?” I whisper.
He frowns in question. “Did you ask her who the visitor was?” I repeat.
He shakes his head.
“Why don’t you go and ask her,” I whisper.
“Shut the fuck up,” Cameron snaps. “You go ask.”
Oh shit, I look at the door in anticipation. “What happens if it’s him? What do we do?” I whisper to Ben.
“I’m going to shoot him,” he whispers angrily.
I frown and swallow the lump in my throat. “That’s what I thought,” I whisper, horrified, in reply.
Cameron’s eyes meet mine and we wince at each other. This is going to end badly, I just know it. Finally the door opens and the face I am seeing is not the one I ever imagined. It’s Natasha’s friend, the one who Joshua fights with. They hate each other. Cameron and I sit still, dumbfounded.
Ben rises immediately from his chair. “We need to talk,” he snaps at the guy.
“What’s his name again?” I whisper.
“Fuckwit,” Cameron whispers angrily.
“That’s right,” I reply as my eyes stayed glued on him.
The arrogant bastard walks right past us and out the front door, and Ben follows him out.
“Oh god,” I mutter to Cameron as he storms out after them. I stand in the foyer for a moment and watch them through the window. God. Fine—I storm outside to see what’s going on.
“What are you doing here?” Ben snaps.
“Visiting a murderer,” he sneers.
“Fuck you,” Cameron spits. “You’ve got a hide.” He steps forward in anger and I grab his suit jacket from behind. This guy would kill Cameron in one punch.
“What are you doing in America?” Ben snaps.
“I came to try and stop Natasha from marrying this wanker but I was a day too late. The bastard murdered her before I could get to her.”
We all watch him. Is he telling the truth?
He smiles. “How cute of you all to wait outside for him. Too bad his asshole is being tag teamed right now.”
Oh no, pain runs through me. He won’t cope with that, he could never cope with that.
“How would you know?” Cameron snaps,
“I’m a fucking prison guard you imbecile. I know what happens in these places,” he replies.
Ben’s eyes widen as realisation sets in. “That’s right, you worked at the prison where Natasha met Coby Allender, didn’t you?” he asks.
“Yeah, so?” he replies arrogantly.
“They have made a definite link to Coby Allender and the break-ins at Natasha’s apartment. We think he may have done this. The person who broke into Tash’s apartment visited Coby in jail. There is a warrant out for his arrest.”
The guy frowns as he thinks.
“But Allender’s still in jail?” he asks confused.
Ben nods. “Yes, they think this is the accomplice they have been searching for.”
He frowns again. “So why is cockhead in jail then?”
“He’s been set up and things have been planted in his house. He didn’t do anything.”
He shakes his head angrily. “I don’t believe that,” he snaps.
“Can you come back to my office and fill me in on what you know about this Allender?” Ben asks.
“No. Fuck off. Why should I?” he snaps.
“For Natasha, that’s why,” Cameron replies softly. “We need to find her body so we can bury her. She deserves to come home and rest in peace.”
My eyes tear up and I drop my head.
The four of us all stay silent as our thoughts go to our beautiful Natasha.
“Where is your office from here?” he sighs, defeated.
“In LA,” Ben replies. “I will drive you and then drop you back here to get your car.”
He thinks for a moment and hesitates. “I will just follow you. I am staying in LA tonight anyway,” he murmurs.
Ben looks back at us. “You two go and see Joshua and I will go with…” he frowns and his eyes flick back to the man. “What’s your name again?” he asks.
“Jesten,” the guy replies. “Jesten Miller.”
Cameron and I go back inside to see Joshua and go back up to the counter. “Can we go in and see him again now?” Cameron asks.
The receptionist looks up from her computer. “What was the name again?” she asks.
“Joshua Stanton,” Cameron snaps, annoyed that she doesn’t remember.
“Take a seat.” She gestures to the waiting lounge and we both sit down.
Fifteen minutes later we hear her voice. “Excuse me, gentlemen,” she calls. We both stand and immediately go to the desk.
“I’m sorry. He has declined your visit,” she says flatly.
“But I didn’t tell you who we are. I didn’t give you my name.”
Cameron frowns.
“He is not accepting any visitors.”
We both frown at her in horror. What does that mean?
“He doesn’t want any visitors,” she repeats.
“He would want to see me,” Cameron says softly. “He’s not thinking right. I’m worried about his safety in here,” he mutters.
She rolls her eyes. “Sorry.” Her eyes go to the man standing waiting in the line behind us. “Can I help you?” she calls.
The drive back to LA is made in complete silence. Both Cameron and I are filled with fear for Joshua. Why wouldn’t he see us? Has something happened overnight? The weight of our thoughts are apparent but neither of us want to say anything out loud for fear of making it come true. He’s on the edge, we know that. How much can a man take before he hits breaking point? We pull into the undercover carpark of our offices and head up to level 33, the new headquarters for our security team as we try to unravel this conundrum. Who killed Natasha and why has Joshua been framed?
Joshua’s large office now has chairs and tables scattered throughout and there are five whiteboards at the front with notes scribbled on them. Each board is for a different suspect, and each board is filled with evidence. Why can’t we work this out? We walk in to find Ben standing in front of the boards and Jesten, Max, Nicholas and six of the security team seated as they listen to Ben speak. He nods as we enter the room and sit.
“You weren’t long.” Ben frowns.
Cameron’s angry eyes flick to Jesten. “He wouldn’t see us. What did you fucking say to him?” he sneers.
Jesten screws up his face. “Don’t speak to me like that or you will be eating through a straw.”
“Will somebody please explain to me why this fuckwit is sitting in my brother’s office?” Cameron yells, outraged.
Max shakes his head and Ben pulls his hands through his hair in frustration.
“Fine,” Jesten snaps. “I will go.” He stands angrily. “I don’t want to be here anyway.”
“Sit down, “ Nicholas yells. “You are not going anywhere until I question you about Allender. Do not dare start this shit now. All of you!”
The room falls silent and my heart does a double beat. Nicholas is taking charge. Finally someone is taking charge.
Jesten sits down angrily.
“Go on,” Nicholas says calmly to Ben.
“Ok.” Ben nods and pulls himself back into concentration mode. “Here are the suspects that we know of.
Suspect one: Coby Allender. Natasha met him at the prison and he took a liking to her.” He gestures to Jesten. “Hopefully Jesten Miller who was a prison guard at the prison he is in can shed some light on this situation. Allender has an accomplice on the outside and Natasha had her apartment broken into before we left Sydney and some very personal things were taken. Allender told her he had them and it was brushed off as scare tactics, however the items were returned months later and we now know that this man…” He puts a picture from the security vision up on the screen of the dark-haired man leaving Natasha’s apartment. “Has gone to see Allender in jail and a definite link was made for the first time. When police went to arrest him he wasn’t there but they found photographs of Natasha and the other victims strewn all over his apartment. These men raped, tortured and killed twelve young women.” Ben points to the photos of the dead young women along the bottom of the whiteboard; their bodies were mutilated.
My eyes flick to Nicholas as he frowns in horror at this news.
Jesten shakes his head in disgust.
He runs his finger over the photographs of the dead women. “The other women in the photographs have all been murdered along with Natasha but…” He hesitates as he takes a drink of water. “Natasha’s disappearance does not fit the murders of the other young girls and, to be honest, I am having a hard time believing that this murder was carried out by the same men.” He shakes his head. “It was a different country and we know that this particular man is not wealthy and he hasn’t left the country on his own visa. However, he could be travelling under an alias.”
Jesten rubs his hand over his face.
“Natasha’s murder involved drugging, a boat and getting around security guards. I think it was out of their league.”
We all nod.
“Suspect two,” Ben continues. “James Brennan. Joshua recently found out that his father is not his biological father, and that his biological father has been blackmailing his mother and beating her for many years.”
“Bloody hell,” Jesten whispers and I bite my bottom lip to stifle my smile.
“He has extorted millions of dollars from her and Joshua had recently demanded the money back or he was going to the police. This man stands to lose everything and with Joshua in jail for murder, he is a free man. He hasn’t been seen for five weeks by his family as he is on a business trip. He has the money and motive to carry something like this out. We have just this morning traced his visa to London and we have consequently hired intelligence to try and find him over there. They will be trailing him until we find out more.”
We all nod. I think it’s him.
“Suspect three,” Ben continues. “Joshua was mugged in a suspected hit just over twelve months ago.” He plays the security tape from the garage and we all sit and watch it. God, it’s violent. Jesten rearranges himself uncomfortably in his seat as he watches. The three men attack Joshua, he fights back and then one of them pulls a gun but the police siren sounds and they jump in his Aston Martin and speed away. “We don’t know who ordered that hit.”
“How do you know it was a hit?” Jesten asks.
Ben replays the tape and points to the man at the back of the screen. “See, he has a gun.”
Jesten frowns. “He was just pissed that Joshua was whipping their asses. If it was a hit they would have just shot him straight up.”
Nicholas nods as he thinks.
“True,” Ben replies. “But then when Joshua was in hospital four days later they showed up—the same three men showed up there.” He produces photos of the three men in the hospital. “If it was random why were they at the same hospital unless they were looking for him? It could just be a coincidence but we have no way of knowing.”
We all nod.
“Suspect four. Four years ago Joshua’s company developed an app and sold it to a company for millions. Unbeknown to him another man had made a similar program and the company was in talks with him first. They bought Joshua’s instead of his. His name is Julian O’Reilly. He has tried to kill Joshua on three occasions and Adrian on one. This is why bodyguards follow the two of them everywhere they go.”
Nicholas’s horrified eyes meet mine.
“Each time it has been by a shooting in a public area. Adrian was coming out of a restaurant when he was shot at and Joshua the same the other three times. Luckily Julian’s a hopeless shot. He has not been seen for eighteen months and is mentally unstable. He has paranoid schizophrenia and as far as the pharmaceutical records go he is not taking any medication. His estranged wife and children have no idea of his whereabouts.”
“Suspect five,” Ben carries on.
“Oh for fuck’s sake,” Jesten snaps. “You can’t be serious.” He runs his hands over his head. “How many people hate this prick?”
Cameron glares at him and I drop my head to hide my smile.
“Joshua hooked up with a woman in Sydney a few times before he got back with Natasha. She came to his house a few times. Then months later when he was in a relationship with Natasha she contacted him and demanded money. She had filmed them together and was going to take it to the press.”
Jesten laughs. “Dumbcock.”
“It was revealed that she was a high-end prostitute and was blackmailing many men for money. Before it came to a head she was found murdered, hogtied and shot in the back of the head.”
“Bloody hell.” Nicholas sighs. “This is ridiculous.”
I nod and raise my brow. It sure is.
“Why is she a suspe
ct?” Cameron frowns.
Ben shakes his head. “We don’t think that—she’s dead.” He raises an eyebrow at Cameron and the room snickers at Cameron’s stupid comment.
“Oh right,” Cameron answers, embarrassed.
“But we don’t know who murdered her and if someone else is under investigation maybe they are throwing off the scent by setting Joshua up?” He shrugs. “It’s a long shot, but we are clutching at anything.”
“We are also currently screening security footage of one of Adrian’s ex-boyfriends, Ross,” Ben adds.
I frown, huh? What the hell? I didn’t know this.
“Joshua and he hated each other so we are just going through old vision of his house to try and piece together any more information available. He mentioned in passing conversation the attempted hit on Joshua but there was no way he could have known that. I want to know how he does.”
Chapter 24
Natasha
I pace backwards and forwards in my room as I try to work out who has me captive and what the motive is. It’s been twenty-four hours and nothing has been said to me other than don’t make Carl angry or he will hurt me. They gave me a blood transfusion.
Why? Why are they keeping me alive? They must be going to ask for money but according to the television reports Joshua is still in hospital. Maybe Adrian is organising the money? I have seen Cameron on television at the hospital, and he looks frantic. It’s seriously not worth having money to go through this. I hear the key in the door and I stand back in fear over near the bathroom door.
The young man puts his head around the door and gives me a stifled smile and then picks the tray up off the ground and brings it in. “Lunchtime,” he says gently.
I stand still watching him. What the hell is he doing here? He’s a nice guy, I can tell.
“Can I look at your arm please?” he asks.
I swallow my fear and walk over to him and he unwraps the bandage slowly.
“Are you a doctor?” I ask.
He shakes his head. “I’m a student doctor,” he replies.
“Did I have a blood transfusion?” I ask.
He nods with his head down, unable to make eye contact with me, and produces something from his pocket. “I have some antibiotics. You need to take some tablets so that you don’t get an infection.
