by L. Wilder
As soon as the plane landed in Tennessee, I gave Madison a second tranquilizer, then loaded her into my car. Three hours later, I was back at the cabin. Careful not to jar her, I carried Madison into the guest bedroom, lay her down on the bed, and locked her inside. I’d been waiting hours to talk to her, but now that she was starting to wake up, I wish I had more time to think about what I was going to say. While I was running it over in my head, Nanook started scratching at the front door. I got up and let him out, then went back over to my desk. When I glanced up at the screen, I was surprised to see that Madison was not only up, but she was walking around the room. Her long dark hair looked a bit disheveled, and her eyes were slightly puffy from the tranquilizers, but it didn’t make her look any less beautiful.
Her mouth dropped open in horror as she tried to make sense of her new surroundings. Through the monitor, I could hear her mumbling over and over, “Oh, no. No. No. No. This isn’t right.”
I couldn’t blame Madison for freaking out. Not only had she found herself in a strange place, she also had no idea how she’d gotten there. On top of all that, she was still trying to shake the remaining effects of the tranquilizers, so she was struggling to make sense of things. She brought her hands up to her face and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. “Pull it together, Madison. You’ve gotta think.”
I should’ve said something to try and set her mind at ease, or at least told her she wasn’t in danger, but I didn’t. Instead, I just sat there completely mesmerized by this woman, enamored by the delicate line of her collarbone, the curve of her waist, and the fullness of her lips. I was pulled from my trance when I heard her say, “I’ve got to find a way out of here.”
A look of determination crossed her face as she walked over to the door and tried to turn the knob. When it didn’t open, she tried again, turning it back and forth several times, but it wouldn’t budge. Looking for another way out, she rushed over to the window and pulled back the drapes. The second Madison realized that she was completely surrounded by woods, she gasped, “Oh, my God. This is not Manhattan! Where the hell am I?”
She stumbled back with a startled expression when Nanook meandered into view. “A wolf? Seriously?”
Nanook had spotted her in the window and crouched down and bared his teeth, snarling at her like she was his next meal. “This is bad. Really, really bad. There’s no way I’m getting out of here with that wolf out there.”
I clicked the mic that led into her room and said, “Actually, he’s not a wolf. He’s an Alaskan malamute.”
Madison’s back grew rigid as she turned and slowly looked around the room. Her voice trembled when she asked, “Who are you? Why did you lock me in this room?”
“Who I am isn’t important right now.”
“Maybe not to you!” she snapped, trying to put on a brave front, but I wasn’t buying it. I knew she was terrified. I could see it in her face, hear it in her voice, and I wasn’t making things any easier for her. “You’re not the one who’s been kidnapped!”
“I’m aware of that—”
“What do you want? Is it money?” she interrupted. “My parents will pay any ransom you ask.”
“Humph ... A psychology professor and an elementary school librarian?” I scoffed. “Somehow I doubt they’d have the means to pay much of a ransom.”
“Wait … How do you know that about my parents?”
“I know enough.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” With every word that came out of my mouth, I was making her more and more frightened. I wanted to let her know that I wasn’t going to hurt her, that she was safe with me, but before I got the chance, she started spouting off rapid-fire questions. “Are you a stalker? Have you been watching me? Taking pictures of me? Oh, God … Do you have pictures of me plastered all over your wall?”
“No. You’ve got it wrong,” I answered, but she wasn’t listening.
“Have you been in my apartment?” She began to frantically pace back and forth. “Have you gone through my things, or been watching me sleep?”
“No, not exactly.”
“What are you going to do to me?” With each question she was becoming more and more distraught—to the point that she wasn’t making any sense. “Are you going to rape me? Torture me? Are you one of those sickos who’s going to make me cover myself in lotion so you can use my skin to—?”
“Madison! That’s enough!” My tone was harsher than I intended, but I had to do something. She was completely losing it. “I’ll explain everything, but first I need you to stop.”
With that, Madison took a step back and sat down on the edge of the bed, looking so lost and confused, staring at the backside of the door. After several moments, she lowered her head and muttered, “I just want to go home.”
“I know you do, but right now, that isn’t an option.”
“Why not? I won’t tell anyone. You can just let me go and that will be the end of it,” she promised.
“Unfortunately, it isn’t that simple.”
“But—”
“Madison,” I warned. “I need you to just listen to me for a minute. Can you do that?”
“Yes.”
“First, I’m not holding you for ransom.” I let out a deep breath. “I’m not a stalker, and I’m not going to rape or torture you.”
“Okay. Well, that’s a plus,” she replied with sarcasm.
I didn’t blame her for being frustrated with me, especially under the circumstances. “I didn’t bring you here to hurt you, Madison. It’s quite the opposite. I brought you here to protect you.”
“Protect me from what?”
Even though I knew I was taking a huge risk, I stood up and walked over to the bedroom door. After I unlocked it, I slowly eased the door open and took a step inside the room. Madison recoiled at the intrusion, drawing her shoulders in and tucking her chin as she scooted back on the bed. I kept my voice low and calm. “I meant what I said. I’m not going to hurt you, Madison.”
“Wait”—she lifted her head to get a better look—“I’ve seen you before … You’re that guy who came into the gallery. Nichols something … Jack or Jasper?”
“The name’s Jasper.”
“Yeah, that’s it.” She studied me for a second, then asked, “You were at the restaurant, too, right?”
Until then, I hadn’t realized that she’d seen me. I gave her a slight nod as I answered, “Yes. I was there, too.”
“So, you were stalking me.”
“No. At least, not in the way you’re thinking.” There was no easy way to tell her why I’d basically kidnapped her, so with no filter whatsoever, I blurted out, “Your life is in danger, Madison. Serious danger.”
“What?” she asked, sounding like she thought I’d lost my mind. “No, that’s ridiculous. Why would you think that?”
“I don’t think it. I know it.” I took a step towards her as I continued, “I know this can’t be easy to hear, but someone wants you dead, Madison. And they’re willing to go to great lengths to make it happen.”
“That’s crazy,” she scoffed. “Who in the world would want me dead?”
“I can’t say for sure.”
Her eyes narrowed as she argued, “If you don’t even know who this person is, how do you know for sure that they want me dead?”
“Because they hired me to kill you.”
“You can’t be serious.” A mix of confusion and disgust filled her voice. “So, you’re what … a hitman?”
“Something like that.”
“You get paid to kill people?” she pushed.
“It’s more complicated than that, but yes.”
“And someone paid you”—she pointed her finger in my direction, then hers—“to kill me?”
“Yes.”
“And you don’t know who it was?”
“No, not for certain.”
A deafening silence filled the room as she tried to wrap her head around everything I’d said. It took her some time to d
igest it all, but she finally managed to put the pieces together. After mumbling incoherently to herself for several moments, she looked up at me and said, “But you didn’t do it. You didn’t kill me.”
“No, I didn’t.”
“Why not? Wasn’t that what you were hired to do?”
And just like that, she asked the one question I wasn’t prepared to answer. There was no way I could explain the thoughts that were going through my head when I chose not to kill her—that she was beautiful, innocent, and full of life, and I couldn’t imagine being the man who took her from this earth. Even if I tried to explain it to her, it was doubtful she would understand. “I had my reasons.”
4
Madison
It was hard to believe that someone so unbelievably good-looking could be a hitman. It was even harder to believe that he’d been hired to kill me—the most uninteresting person on the planet. I was nobody. There was nothing special about me or my life. I worked all the time. I had no boyfriend, no roommate, and only a handful of friends. I didn’t want to believe it. I tried to tell myself that Jasper was lying, that he’d just made up the story to brainwash me, but I could tell by the way he looked at me that he was struggling with it just as much as I was. It seemed odd that a man who killed for a living would even care, but that wasn’t the only thing odd about this whole situation. This man who had drugged me, kidnapped me, and locked me away in a room seemed to be telling me the truth. For one reason or another, I actually believed him when he said he was trying to protect me. I just didn’t understand why.
“So, these reasons you mentioned … Are they what made you decide to bring me here?”
“Yeah, you could say that.” Jasper turned his attention to the front door for a moment, then said, “I need to let Nanook back in. He’s liable to scratch a hole in the door if I don’t.”
“You mean the wolf?”
“Yeah, but you don’t have to worry. He’s harmless.”
“Okay.” He turned and headed for the front door. As soon as he opened it, Nanook came barreling inside and raced into the bedroom. With his back arched high, he prowled over to me, then lunged forward, planting his paws on the edge of the bed so he could sniff at me. When I heard him start to growl, I gasped, “I thought you said he was harmless.”
“Nanook,” Jasper warned. “That’s enough. She’s a friend.”
With that, the dog’s tail immediately started wagging, and he gave my foot a lick. I smiled at Nanook as I said, “It’s nice to meet you, too.”
“See? Harmless.”
“Um-hmm.” I looked up at Jasper. “If you say so.”
“You hungry?”
“I don’t know. My nerves are pretty shot,” I admitted.
“Why don’t you take a shower, and I’ll make us some coffee and something to eat?”
“Okay.” I glanced down at my pajamas. “But I’m going to need a change of clothes.”
As he motioned his hand towards the door behind him, he said, “Your things are in the bathroom.”
“My things?”
A guilty look crossed his face. “Yeah. I grabbed some of your clothes and a few other items from your place. Figured you’d want them while you were here.”
“Umm … okay.”
“Come on, Nanook. Let’s give the lady some breathing room.”
At first, he resisted, but eventually Nanook obeyed. Once they were out of the room, Jasper closed the door behind them and went to fix us some food. I didn’t move for several minutes. I needed time for the thoughts in my head to settle in place. When my heart finally slowed to a normal rhythm, I got up and went into the bathroom. Just like he’d promised, two of my duffle-bags were waiting for me on the counter. Thinking he might’ve gotten my phone, I started sifting through everything that he’d packed. While there was no phone, it looked like he’d packed everything I needed from clothes to toiletries. I was picking out something to wear when a disturbing feeling washed over me. Jasper had rummaged through my things, all of my things, and from the looks of it, he’d only packed my best lace bras and panties. He’d invaded my privacy, but under the circumstances, it wasn’t like I could do anything about it. For the time being, I had to try and make the best of the situation.
Praying he wasn’t watching through some secret camera, I turned on the water and got undressed. As soon as I stepped into the shower, the hot water started to ease my tense muscles and I was able to relax—at least for the moment. When the water started to run cold, I got out and dried off. It was a little chilly, so I put on one of my hoodies with a pair of jeans, then quickly blow-dried my hair. I went back into the bedroom and stopped when I got close to the door. I could hear him moving around in the kitchen, and even though I was starving, I was feeling apprehensive about facing him again. I wanted to believe that I could trust him, that my intuition about him had been right, but there was no way I could know for certain. Knowing I couldn’t hide out in the bedroom forever, I took a chance and reached for the doorknob.
When I opened the door, Nanook came rushing over to me with his tail wagging and what looked to be a smile on his face. As I patted him on the head, I asked him, “Did anyone ever tell you that you look like a wolf?”
“Have you ever actually seen a wolf?” Jasper asked from the kitchen.
“Yes.” I answered. “On Games of Thrones.”
“Then you should know that a wolf and an Alaskan malamute are quite different.” Before I could respond, he continued, “Malamutes have similar traits as wolves because they are dogs, and even more so because they are a natural breed.”
“Um-hmm.”
As he continued to tell me about the differences and similarities between a wolf and a malamute, I took a quick glance around. He had all the typical living room furniture—an oversized sofa, coffee table, and a TV mounted on the wall. There weren’t any pictures hanging on the walls and only a few sit-arounds, but with the gorgeous views of the mountains, the room really didn’t need much. I was looking for a picture of his family when he said, “I hope you like grilled cheese sandwiches and vegetable soup.”
“I do. Very much actually.” As I walked over to the stove, the smell of the soup made my stomach growl. “It looks great.”
“You want something to drink?”
“Water would be great. Thanks.”
Once he carried everything over to the table, we sat down and started eating. Neither of us spoke, which was fine at first. We both had a lot on our minds, but the longer we sat there eating in silence, the more awkward it became. I kept expecting him to say something, anything, but he just kept his focus directed at his bowl. We’d almost finished eating when I just couldn’t take it anymore. Hoping to get some insight to the man who sat before me, I looked over to him and asked, “Do you mind if I ask you something?”
Like he could read my mind, he answered, “It wasn’t something I’d planned.” He paused for a moment before he continued, “My other assignments … they were different. They were criminals—drug lords and mob bosses who did unspeakable things, things that would give you nightmares.”
“Then, why weren’t they arrested so they could pay for the crimes they committed?”
“I wish it was that simple, but our judicial system doesn’t always work, especially with men like them.” He let out a deep breath as he continued, “They have the kind of money and power that make them untouchable, so when they slip through the cracks, someone hires me to deal with them.”
“But why you?”
“Because I’m the best.”
I took a minute to mull over everything he said, then asked, “So, these people who hire you … Are they the same people who hired you to kill me?”
“I’m not sure who issued the hit. I have a handler who gives me the assignments.” His expression softened as he answered, “I have to meet with him in a few hours to show proof that I completed the job.”
“But how are you going to do that when I’m still alive.”
; He reached in his pocket for his cellphone, and once he’d pulled up the screen, he turned it towards me. I was shocked to see an image of me sprawled out on the floor next to a pool of blood. It looked disturbingly realistic, so much so that I had to lean in closer to get a better look. Before I had the chance to ask, he said, “I know it must be difficult to see this, but I had to make it look like I’d killed you.”
“I get that, but how did you do all that without me even knowing it?”
“I’d given you a tranquilizer,” he admitted.
“And the blood?”
“It’s just some Karo syrup and food coloring.”
“This is just too much.” I pushed the phone away. “This is crazy. You know that, right?”
“I do, but I was trying to do the right thing.”
“What if this guy you’re going to see doesn’t believe you?”
“He will. He doesn’t have any reason not to.” He shrugged. “This isn’t a permanent fix, Madison. I’m just trying to buy us some time. We have to find out who put the hit on you and why.”
“But how are you planning to do that?”
“I can’t do it alone. I’ll need your help.” He glanced down at his watch and grimaced when he saw the time. As he stood up, he said, “I’ve got to get going.”
“Okay.”
He carried our dishes over to the sink, then grabbed his keys off the kitchen counter. Before he left, he turned to me and said, “I brought you here to protect you, but I won’t force you to stay. You can either remain here with me, and I’ll do whatever I can to make this thing right, or you can take your chances elsewhere. But know this, if you choose to leave while I’m gone, I won’t come after you.”
