“Get up right fucking now,” she said, holding the gun with both hands. “If you don’t…”
I didn’t want to think about what she might’ve been capable of.
“Easy, Amy,” I tried to soothe. “I’ll come with you. Just don’t do anything rash.”
“Smart girl,” she said with a smirk. “Too bad it took this to get you to make the right decision. Now get up – we’re moving.”
I did as she asked. Amy moved behind me, pointing the gun at my back and staying close. We left the apartment, and I looked around for anyone who might help. But the parking lot was bare.
“My car’s down there,” she said, gesturing to an expensive, black luxury car. “Come on.”
She pushed me to the stairs and across the parking lot, eventually arriving at the car.
“Now,” she said. “Get in.” I reached for the door, but she stopped me. “Not there.” With a click of her fob, she opened the trunk. “Get in.”
“Are you serious?”
“Do I look like I’m joking?” she asked. “I’ll say it one more time. Get in.”
I stared at her, terrified. I walked to the trunk, opened it the rest of the way, and climbed in. Amy loomed over me as I lay inside, a small smile of satisfaction on her face.
“Get comfortable.”
She shut the trunk. As blackness enveloped me, all I could think about was Wyatt. He’d come for me. He had to. As illogical as it was, I had to hope he’d somehow know I needed him.
The man was my only hope.
Chapter 21
WYATT
It’d been a day, and Jess hadn’t been in touch with me since the text last night. I didn’t like it one damn bit.
Leaning against the kitchen counter, I dialed her number again. I’d left her a dozen or so voicemails since the beginning of the day, and she hadn’t responded to a single one of them. The phone rang and rang, exactly like it had before. But this time, the message at the end was different.
“The voice mailbox of the customer you’re trying to reach is full. Please try again later.”
The cold, professional voice of the recording on the other end was the exact opposite of how I felt at that moment. I wanted to rage, to throw the damn phone against the wall. Not out of anger toward Jess, but at how helpless I felt.
“No word?” Chance came into the kitchen, his clothes dirty from a day of work.
“No word.” I scowled at my phone as if it were the cause of my angst. “Startin’ to get a bad feelin’ about the whole thing.”
Chance stepped over to the coffee maker and poured himself a cup. He had his usual easy way about him, his brow knitted as he thought the matter over. I’d told him earlier about Jess leaving on her own, and he hadn’t liked the idea, same as me.
“You thinkin’ there’s some kind of trouble?” His voice was steady, his usual calm infecting it.
“Don’t know about any trouble, but Jess and I agreed to keep in touch. Now she’s dropped off the damn map.”
“She could…I dunno, be all wrapped up in gettin’ her business sorted out, y’know?”
“Maybe she is,” I agreed. “But that doesn’t mean she couldn’t send a damn text lettin’ me know she was fine.” I clenched my hands into tight fists before letting them loose. “I need to do somethin’.”
“What’re you thinkin’, bro? Drive all the way there and find her?” His expression after he spoke made it clear he’d realized that was exactly what was on my mind. “Nah, not a good idea.”
“How’s it not a good idea? As far as I’m fuckin’ concerned, she’s a missin’ person.”
“Then it’s a matter for the police,” Chance argued. “Call them and tell them what’s goin’ on. You don’t wanna storm in there lookin’ like an overbearing lug.”
I shook my head. “I’ve watched enough of them damn procedural shows to know they’re not gonna consider her missin’ until she’s been gone for forty-eight hours. Not a chance in hell I’m waiting that long.”
“Maybe they can drive by her place, check to see if somethin’s up. Worth a shot.” Chance placed his hand on my shoulder. “It’s gonna be alright, Wyatt. Bet you’ve got yourself worried over nothin’.”
Chance was trying to ease my mind, and I appreciated it. But my gut was telling me in no uncertain terms that something bad was going on. I sure as shit was going to find out what it was.
“Alright,” I said. “I’ll try the cops. But if they don’t do any good, I’m headin’ there myself.”
“Couldn’t imagine you doin’ anything less. Keep me in the loop, y’hear?”
“I will.”
Chance gave my shoulder one more squeeze before leaving the kitchen. Once he was gone, I pulled up the Houston police and prepared to call. Before I had a chance, a call from Amy interrupted. Frowning, I wondered what the hell could she possibly want? As far as I was concerned, the last conversation we’d had covered all that needed to be said. She was taking me to court, and I was ready to fight her every step of the way.
I could picture the smile on her face. And it wasn’t a smile I wanted to see – it was the scheming kind, the pleased-with-herself kind. After checking to make sure no one was around, I answered. “Amy. What the hell do you want?”
“Just wanted to see what you were up to.”
“What the hell’s goin’ on, Amy? Why are you callin’ me?”
“Okay,” she said, as if preparing to tell me a secret she couldn’t keep to herself any longer. “You want to know what’s going on? Let’s talk about your little girlfriend.”
My blood ran cold. “What about her?”
I imagined a heartless smile on her face. “She’s in Houston, as I’m sure you know. And she and I had a very productive little meeting.”
I was confused as all hell. “You had a meeting? Why on Earth are you two meeting?”
Amy chuckled, the sound malicious. “You still don’t get it, do you, Wyatt? Even after finding out what Jess was, what kind of work she did. You really don’t get that she was never on your side?”
“Speak straight, Amy. Cut the bullshit and tell me what you’re gettin’ at.”
“It’s really simple, Wyatt,” she said, speaking as if I was a moron. “Jess was on my side the whole time. I hired her as a private investigator, sure, but she let me know that she had other ways of getting information from targets. Ways I was more than happy to pay her extra for.”
“How many times am I gonna have to tell you to cut the bullshit, Amy? What the hell’s goin’ on with Jess?”
“You can be smart when you want to be, Wyatt. But you’re so, so stubborn. It’s like you’re trying to blind yourself to the most obvious truths, even when they’re right in front of your face.”
“Cut. The. Bullshit, Amy.”
“Fine, fine. I’ll lay it out for you nice and simple-like,” she said, her voice almost gleeful. “Jess has been working with me the whole time, like I said. I’m serious as a damn heart attack about getting what I want, and I was willing to go to whatever length it took. So when Jess told me she’d be willing to do anything, and I mean anything to get close to you, I was all over it.”
“Go on.”
“The accident, the memory loss, the needing to stay at your place until she came back to her senses –that was all part of the plan. And if you haven’t figured it out by now, everything else was part of it, too.”
Whatever was going on, it was clear Amy had figured out that Jess and I were involved. “You’re telling me that, what, Jess got me to fall for her as part of her job? That’s what you’re sayin’ to me?”
“That’s right,” she said smugly. “And now that she knows exactly how much you’re worth, she’s gonna help me get my hands on what you should have given me from the get-go.”
I said nothing for a long moment, trying to wrap my mind around what Amy was telling me. Jess was some kind of plant? She’d made the whole damn story up about losing her memory. A big, barking laugh came out of
me. I couldn’t help it. The whole thing was too damn ridiculous. And more than that, I didn’t believe a single word Amy had told me.
“What?” Amy asked, anger in her voice. “What the hell are you laughing at?”
I let the laugh run its course, and when it was dying, I wiped a tear from my eye before speaking. “You’re so fuckin’ full of shit, Amy. I know you’ve got a lyin’ streak in you, but this really takes the cake.”
A chilly silence came from the other end. “You fucking prick!”
Just as I’d suspected, I’d seen right through her nonsense. However, there was still the issue of Jess – Amy bringing her up like this was a good reason for me to think she knew something of her whereabouts.
“Call me whatever you want,” I said. “But I know you know where Jess is. And unless you want this situation to go all kinds of sideways, you’d better start talkin’. No more lies, Amy.”
A long silence followed, as if she was trying to weigh her options. “I know where she is, alright. And if you want that choice information, there’s only one way it’s going to happen.”
“And what’s that?”
“The settlement. You sign it. Give me everything I want. I tell you where Jess is, and you never see me again.”
“Simple as that, huh?”
“Simple as that.”
“How about this – you tell me where I can find Jess before I call the fuckin’ cops. That sounds pretty simple from where I’m standin’.”
“You want to bring the police into this? Fine. I’ll make sure they know exactly what kind of man you are. Won’t take much for me to get them on my side once I tell them my vicious, abusive ex is threatening me.” She snorted, an ugly sound. “A few self-inflicted bruises in the right places, and you’re fucked.”
Amy had always been willing to play dirty, but this was a new low even for her. And she was right about the cops. They’d make this whole mess even messier. I didn’t want to give her what she wanted, but if it meant Jess and our baby were safe…Hell, there wasn’t a price I wouldn’t pay.
“I give you what you want and that’s it? You tell me where Jess is, and I never see your damn face ever again?”
“Sounds like a deal to me.”
“Then we’ll do it.”
“See, Wyatt? Things can be so simple when you get your ego out of the way.”
I wasn’t in the mood for any more bullshit. “I’m comin’ now. Be there in an hour.”
“No, you’re not. First of all, I’m not telling you where I am right now. We’ll meet in a public place, and we’re going to do it on my time. Let’s say tomorrow at six in the evening. I’ll let you know the exact place. Sound good?”
I spoke through gritted teeth. “Sounds good.”
“Until then, Wyatt. And let me just say how happy I am that you’re finally seeing reason. You’re going to be so happy at how smoothly this whole process is going to go now that you’re doing the right thing. Talk to you soon.”
The line went dead, and as I put my phone back into my pocket it took all the restraint I had not to slam the fucking thing down on the counter.
But I had a plan. Amy thought she was going to play me, but that wasn’t what I had in mind, not at all.
I returned to my cabin as cool winds whipped around me. Once inside, I hurried to my filing cabinet and took out one of the folders where I’d been putting documents about the divorce. After dumping the contents on the kitchen table, I went through them, trying to find the exact piece of information I was looking for.
Amy had moved since the divorce proceedings had started, likely in an attempt to keep me as far from her as possible. And she hadn’t told me the address. After sifting through a plethora of papers, I spotted it. Her new place was in downtown Houston, likely in some fancy-ass condo she’d been planning on buying with my money.
I checked the time, seeing that if I left right then, I’d be able to make it to Houston before the sun went down. I was fixing to pay Amy a little surprise visit. If she thought she had this all wrapped up with a neat bow, she was about to find out how wrong she was.
I needed to make sure Jess and the baby were safe.
Nothing else really mattered.
Chapter 22
JESS
It was all about waiting for the right time. Tied to the chair in the bedroom of Amy’s luxurious condo, I stared at the room, memorizing it.
Her place was expensive down to the last detail. Marble floors, antique furniture, and a view that looked out over the city at night. In the corner of the room, on a small column, was an ornate vase. It reminded me of the story the Walker family had told me about the vase Amy had stolen on her way out. I wondered if it might be the same one. Sure looked big enough.
But I wasn’t concerned about the finer points of her decorating skills. What I was looking for was a way out.
I couldn’t believe I’d managed to get myself in a situation like that. Kidnapped by a psycho ex-wife, held hostage as a bargaining chip for her to fleece the Walker family out of their fortune. I was mad as hell, ready to make my move and turn the tables.
But the timing. I didn’t think Amy was a killer, but she was armed, and she was desperate. Whatever schemes she’d been trying to run on Wyatt hadn’t worked. Kidnapping was her last-ditch effort, and not at all planned. When people got desperate, they did stupid things.
The bedroom door opened, and Amy stepped through. She’d changed into some casual but pricey clothes. Why she wanted even more money, I couldn’t tell. Amy already seemed to be very comfortable. I guessed part of greed was not knowing when to say when.
“How are you, Jess?” she asked, sitting down on the side of her massive bed.
“Do you care?”
She cocked her head to the side, almost appearing hurt by my comment. “Do I care? Of course I care. What kind of monster do you think I am?”
“The kind who’d kidnap someone and hold them hostage.”
“Fair point, I suppose.” She smirked at me, shrugging.
I leaned forward and spoke. “Amy, I don’t know what you’ve got planned, but I’m guessing whatever you did before we met didn’t involve committing a felony.”
Amy said nothing. She only stared at me as if I were an interesting specimen in a zoo.
“This is insane, you have to admit it.” I tried reasoning with her. “But you haven’t gone too far. It’s not too late to let me go and put all this behind you.”
She scoffed. “Please. You think I’m going to let you out of here so you can go to the police and tell them what I did?”
“No,” I said. “I want to put this behind me too, and so does Wyatt. You let me go and I’ll make sure that you get whatever you want. And I promise I won’t go to the police.”
“Easy to say,” she commented. “But I don’t trust you for a second.”
“Please, Amy. You have to see how bad this is.”
She stood up, stepping closer to me. “Oh, honey, you haven’t seen bad. Bad is what happens to traitorous little bitches who stand in the way of getting I want.”
“I’m sorry I ruined your plans,” I said, trying hard to keep my voice even rather than sarcastic. “But this doesn’t have to go any further.”
Her eyes were furious slits. “Your apology means absolutely nothing to me. You fucked up, Jessica. And if you being tied up in my bedroom for a little while is the worst thing that happens to you, consider yourself lucky.” Then she smiled, as if pushing the anger aside. “Besides,” she continued, “I already spoke to Wyatt. He’s finally, finally ready to play ball.”
“What do you mean play ball?”
Another pleased smile. “He’s coming to see me tomorrow. And he’s finally agreed to give me what I want. All I have to do is tell him where you are, and I become the richest bitch in Texas. Pretty simple, huh?”
“Pretty simple, if threats and kidnapping are what you consider reasonable.”
She scoffed, waving a hand dismissively. “You
want to talk about reasonable? How about me giving Wyatt opportunity after opportunity to handle this like adults, and him stonewalling me every time.”
“Nothing reasonable to me about trying to fleece the Walker family for their entire fortune.”
She rolled her eyes. “Not their entire fortune. More like half of it. And as far as I’m concerned, that money is owed to me. Wyatt and I were married, and half of what he’s got is pretty standard. At least that’s what my very expensive lawyers had to say.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I sneered at her. “You’re a spoiled, entitled woman, and in my opinion, what you deserve is less than nothing.” The words came out of my mouth dripping with venom.
Amy didn’t seem too bothered by my words. She shrugged blithely, as if I’d told her I wasn’t a fan of the curtains. “Whatever. There’s nothing you can say to me that I haven’t heard before. Trust me – Wyatt’s made it abundantly clear that he thinks I’m out of line. And that’s fine. All the more motivation to resort to drastic measures to get what I’m owed.”
“You think you’re going to get away with this? You think you can just kidnap someone and hold them for ransom and everything’s going to work out fine?”
“Of course I do!” she exclaimed. “I’ll meet with Wyatt tomorrow, I’ll get my money, and…”
“And what?” I asked, wanting to hear the rest of her delusional plan.
She smiled a strange, almost sweet smile. “I don’t know what you think is happening with you and Wyatt. But let me tell you that it’s nothing. Nothing at all.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I may have been a touch dishonest with Wyatt when we first started seeing one another. But all’s fair when it comes to love and war, right?”
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