by Aimee Laine
15
As the man from the beach walked into the toy store, he’d looked right at Tripp, but like so many other situations in which Tripp found himself, Robert acted as if Tripp hadn’t existed.
He’d meandered through the room but selected nothing and left.
Tripp followed.
He didn’t know what Robert did to Lexi, but he deserved to be humbled. As he rounded a corner, Tripp tapped him on the shoulder.
Abject terror took hold of Robert’s face as he spun to run.
Tripp caught him by his shirt tail and yanked him back. “Let’s chat, shall we?”
Robert squirmed under Tripp’s unwavering hold.
“Take me where you kept Lexi Shepherd.”
“I don’t—”
“It’s not nice to lie. And I’m really not in the mood to listen to anything but the truth.”
Robert swallowed, a distinct and audible gulp, before he pointed past the toy store. They walked the few blocks with Tripp’s hand at his neck. He didn’t care how obvious it looked.
When they reached the warehouse, Robert braced his arms against the doorframe. “What do you want? I’ll give you money.”
“It’s not what I want … it’s what you took from me. Go in.” Tripp shoved him toward the metal door of the old seafood market. Despite the age, it still wreaked of fish.
“I don’t know—”
“I think you do.”
The aluminum chair—an old one, chosen because it didn’t conduct electricity and could be washed with ease—sat five feet inside the door. Ropes lay around it.
“Sit. We’re going to have a little chat,” Tripp said.
“But—”
Tripp dragged him to the chair, forced him down. “I said sit. I can be nice about this or not. But either way, I’m going to get my answers.” He wrapped the rope around Robert and tied a knot behind him. “You pull on this, it’ll only get tighter.” Tripp shifted to face Robert and bunched his fist. “You see this?” He held it at Robert’s chin. “I box for sport. I’ve broken a few noses and cheekbones with the gloves on. Continue to play this shit with me, and I’ll use it free and clear.”
Robert’s eyes widened.
“You may not care for women, but I do, and you picked the wrong one to mess with.”
• • •
Lexi stood and paced to the door and back. “I haven’t known him long enough to know if he would, but he—”
“Personally, Lex, I don’t see it. He’s got the means to handle himself, but I doubt he’d cross the line. I mean, Ian’s been sharing stories with me all day. The guy’s tough but solid, if he’s anything like his friend.”
“He looked serious enough to kill the guy when we were at the beach, Em, and that was over nothing. Completely able … even willing. I almost ran from him then. Probably should have, but now what? Do I ask? Do I come right out and say it?”
“You’re letting your imagination get ahead of you. Hang on a sec.”
Emma mumbled away from the phone. “Hell, no, I’m not telling her that. Okay, never mind, Ian wasn’t helpful.”
“See? He could do it.” Lexi sighed. Yet another notch in my life’s list of men.
“Let’s get back to you. What happened?”
Lexi dove into the story and, with the recitation, her nerves relaxed as did her body.
“So, physically and mentally, you’re okay?”
“Yeah, but only because I got the impression Robert wasn’t going to kill me, just make my life miserable while he could.” Except for the gun. Maybe he did have other plans. She trembled, running her hands up her arms. “He’s vile and evil, that’s for sure. But he said something odd. He said the pendant’s star gave it some super value. I don’t know what or why, but I’m going to get it back from Tripp, and I want to look it up. I got this weird vibe thing when he talked about it.”
“I remember what it looks like. I’ll dig into it.”
“Thanks, Em.”
“Feel better?”
“Between you and a great cry, yes. I think I’m going to buy myself a teddy bear, too.”
Emma giggled. “Get me one while you’re at it.”
• • •
“She has something that belongs to me.”
Tripp whirled. “What gives you the right to hit her? I could tell, you son of a bitch. I think you’re looking for this, by the way.” He removed the pendant, without its chain, from his pocket.
Robert’s eyes grew wide as he struggled against the bonds in a vain attempt to take it from Tripp. “That’s mine, dammit.” He jerked at the ropes.
“Better not move too much.” Tripp’s warning came with a smile. “I already told you they’ll get tighter, not looser.”
Robert stilled. “That’s mine.” He nodded toward the jewel.
“Bad choice of words, Robert. You see it’s in my possession, right?”
His head bobbed forward and back.
“As the old saying goes, possession is nine-tenths of the law.” Tripp leaned down, putting his face inches from Robert’s. “If you ever mess with Lexi Shepherd again, I will hunt you down.” Tripp slid a foot against the center of the chair. “Then I’ll make sure you can never father children whether you want them or not. Got it?”
Dots of sweat popped up on Robert’s forehead. “I just want—”
“You lost the opportunity when you screwed over your ex-wife, when you came at Lexi with a knife at the beach, and when you brought her here. That’s kidnapping. Loads of jail time. Now, tell me how you found her.” Tripp inched the bottom of his foot closer to Robert.
“I was given a tip.” He tried to scoot backward as he answered.
“By whom?”
“I’m not sure.” He shook his head.
“Male or female?”
“I don’t—”
Tripp pressed his foot against the man’s crotch, indicated with his eyebrows that he wouldn’t hesitate if another question had no answer.
“Woman.”
“Young or old?”
He squinted as if he needed to think about the answer. “Young … ish.”
“What did she tell you?”
“She heard I was looking for the pendant my bitch of a wife gave Lexi. The woman told me Lexi was here. Told me where to go. But, I swear, I never met her or anything.”
Tripp applied pressure. “When was this?”
Robert cringed. “At about four a.m… . this morning. I had to drive fast to get here in case it all blew up in my face. I only just saw Lexi this afternoon in the park.”
Tripp vibrated with a need to pay Robert back with his fists. “And decided to act upon it. In doing so, you hit her?”
“She wouldn’t cooperate!” Sweat poured down Robert’s face. “The woman on the phone said she saw her with it around her neck at some hospital.”
Tripp internalized a groan. Isabelle. “Why did you shoot me?”
Robert jerked back as if Tripp had punched him. “What do you mean? I didn’t shoot you.”
Tripp spun with frustration. Both he and the man had been played, though Robert deserved to be paid back for his transgressions. “I believe you. You’ve been so obedient, I’m thinking about letting you go.” Tripp infused his words with sarcasm.
“I want my jewel.” He pled with a child’s whine.
“She doesn’t have it, you fuck. Now, here’s what we’re going to do.”
As Tripp rattled off the plan, Robert’s entire body began to shake. He squirmed against ropes, which would be growing tighter, until he agreed with every one of the demands. From one of Robert’s pocket, Tripp plucked Lexi’s cell. From the other, he withdrew Robert’s phone and, with it, Tripp dialed the Savannah police department. He held the phone to the side of Robert’s head.
“Um, yes, hello? This is Robert Targus.” His gaze met Tripp’s, who encouraged him with a nod. “I’ve, um, I need to confess to a kidnapping, assault and battery, malicious intent—” His lids closed as his words p
aused.
Tripp assumed the person on the other end posed a question.
“Actually, I can’t come in, but would need someone to come get me, and … um, to send an ambulance.” He rattled off his location, asking them to hurry.
When Robert signaled they were on their way, Tripp leaned down to his face. “You forget anything we talked about today, and we will play by new rules. Got it?”
Robert nodded.
“Good. Now, one more thing.” He kicked the chair’s edge, held it so Robert would understand he’d fall backward without any way to catch himself, and it would be against a solid concrete floor.
His eyes, wide and glassy, reflected terror as he stretched his neck as far forward as possible.
“Don’t ever come near her again.” Tripp let go a little. “If it were just me, I’d let go much farther up. This is for Lexi.”
Robert landed against some old packing materials which cushioned but did not prevent the crack of his head.
• • •
Lexi jumped into Tripp’s arms when he walked into the Toy Heaven office fifteen minutes after he’d left. Even as she took comfort in his arms, her mind played through her conversation with Emma and her worry over the type of man Tripp could have been. The thoughts rekindled a slow river of tears down her cheeks.
Tripp kissed each side with an unexpected gentleness while she breathed in his masculine, rugged scent.
“The police are on their way here. They’re going to need to speak with you.” He kept his arm around her as he moved to sit in the office chair and lowered her onto his lap. The metal groaned under their combined weight.
An ambulance’s siren grew louder before it disappeared altogether. Lexi imagined it passed the shop on its way to a dead or dying Robert. She laid her forehead against Tripp’s.
Emma’s not like you. Just ask him outright.
“You didn’t kill him, did you?”
He shook his head. “Of course not. We had a little chat, and I’m a hundred percent sure he won’t be bothering you again.”
“Did you do anything … illegal?”
He stroked a hand down her cheek. “Less than what he did to you. Some lines, I don’t cross, Lexi, no matter what you think I can do.”
She touched her head to his. “Kiss me.” The two words came out a demand.
He laid his lips against hers, but she pushed it further. He held tight as she poured herself into the embrace. As their lips separated, he released and tucked her against him.
“I’m sorry—”
“This has nothing to do with you.”
She rubbed her head against his chest. “It has everything to do with me. I got involved in something I shouldn’t—”
Tripp held her away so their gazes met. “That’s not what this was about. Well, kinda, but not really.”
She drew back from him. “What do you mean? He was the guy on the beach, the one who wanted his wife’s pendant—”
Tripp chuckled. “You’re right, yes.” His hands rested against her cheeks; she winced as he pressed. “He got you good, didn’t he? Fucking asshole. I don’t care how angry a guy gets, how much he wants what’s yours, it’s never right. Ever. I’m so sorry, Lexi.”
“He’s a prick.” She closed her eyes, biting back a new wave of tears. “I’m imbued with a lot of intuition. I just didn’t use it right on this guy.” She opened her lids again to find Tripp’s gaze intent on hers.
“He’s not going to walk, I promise. Actually, he’s already made a full confession to the police.”
She opened her eyes wide. “But, I heard an ambulance. Please tell me you didn’t hurt him—”
“Did he hurt you?”
Safe in his arms, she let the memories of the ordeal roll away and hoped a next time wouldn’t exist. “It doesn’t—”
“Like hell it doesn’t. I didn’t participate in the eye for an eye program, but he got what he deserved, and I got information.”
“But you didn’t kill him?”
“Are you waiting for me to say ‘yes, I did’, because I can get away with it? Haven’t I already shown you I live within some moral boundaries? Or, rather, not morals, but a line I at least honor.”
She pushed away, out of his hold.
He tugged her back. “When you were a kid, did anyone ever ask you what you’d do if you found a hundred dollars on the street? Did they also say you’d never be caught so you could use it for yourself?”
“Yes, something similar at least.” She held herself stiff.
“I was asked all the fucking time since some people knew I was good at being sneaky. My mother in particular, even though she doesn’t know the whole truth—just what I wanted her to know. Anyway, my answer was always the same: give it back. I play in the gray, Lexi, but I do have a conscience.”
“Okay. I’m sorry. It’s hard learning to trust a guy who’s my opposite. I know what I can do, but you’re so … different than me.”
He leaned toward her, added another soft kiss but separated at a quiet knock.
“Miss Shepherd?” The store clerk peeked around the edge of the door.
Lexi spun at being addressed by name. “Yes?” She looked to Tripp who nodded her forward.
“A police officer is here for you. Can I get either of you some water or coffee from next door?”
Lexi shook her head as a Detective with a shock of red hair walked in.
“I’m Detective Red.” She extended her hand to Lexi who had to hold back the laugh. “I hear you’ve had a very eventful day. Can we take a few minutes to talk about it?”
16
Tripp wrapped an arm around Lexi as they started their walk back. He kept an eye out for his earlier visitors, too, wondering if they’d dare make a more public appearance. The square across from the hotel bustled with activity. Musicians, artisans and performers set up their stages, arranged instruments and chatted with passersby. If he didn’t already want to get out of Savannah, he might have suggested they stroll through and enjoy it together.
“Wait.” Lexi spun away from him as they approached the front doors of the hotel, but she hung on to his hand. “Do you have the pendant?”
He pulled it from his pocket, held it in his palm. “The chain must’ve broken. I told you it protected against evil.” Tripp tried for light in the hopes she’d laugh.
Lexi gave him an ‘are you crazy’ look instead, complete with a roll of her eyes. “You said ‘witches’, and that’s a superstition. I want to get a new chain.”
“Now?”
“Yes. Don’t they say onward and upward or some such nonsense when a traumatic event occurs?”
“I guess.” He leaned toward her, snatched a quick kiss. “But aren’t you taking this awfully … well?”
Lexi gave him a swift shake of her head. “Onward and upward.”
Tripp eyed her for an extra second before deciding not to press the issue. “Is there a jeweler around here?”
“Yes. Sliver, one of the shops I passed. They might be closed now.” Lexi led him back through the park. At the shop, she jiggled the handle but it didn’t open. “Guess we’re too late.”
At a shadow shifting in the rear of the store, Tripp knocked on the outer glass.
A woman, in what he would call a scrap of material shaped like a dress, trotted to the door and opened it but didn’t invite them in. “I’m sorry, but we’ve closed for the day.”
Tripp slid his Visa from his wallet. “A thousand dollars for fifteen minutes.”
The woman’s eyes widened as the slight up-curve of her lips suggested Tripp’s wish would be her pleasure to grant. “Come on in.”
“What’re you doing?” Lexi tugged at his shirt. “I just need a replacement chain. It shouldn’t be more than fifteen bucks.”
He followed the clerk into the store, dragging Lexi along with him.
“What can I help you with?” Her voice held an intense sensuality.
He dug back in his pocket. “Ah, I just need a cha
in for—” The sapphire rested in his hand again.
“Oh, how lovely! You’ll want platinum for this piece.” She moved through the showroom to a glass case.
“I want one with an unbreakable clasp,” Tripp said.
“Eighteen inches? To fit just … here?” Her fingertips slid along her own sternum.
“Sure.” Lexi stood at the counter, her hands on the glass.
Throughout the room, wedding bands mingled with an eclectic array of other jewelry.
“Can I borrow a loupe?” Lexi asked.
The woman brought out the chain, threaded the jewel through it and handed it to Lexi along with the miniature magnifier. “There’s a great mirror in the corner, with lots of light.” She pointed to a vanity with soft white lighting strategically placed in such a way Tripp expected every customer would look fantastic in whatever piece they’d chosen to model.
As Lexi walked toward the mirror, the woman behind the counter turned her attention to Tripp. “You look like you might be a diamond …” Her voice came out a subtle purr. “… with a sapphire on platinum to match?”
“I wouldn’t call you much of a jeweler if I look like that description.”
She chuckled. “Cute. Very cute. I—just happen to get—” She tapped her temple. “—what people need the most, and sapphire … well, that suits her … and you.”
Tripp brought out his Visa again. “Charge twenty-five hundred to this card, and call me at this number when the design is done.”
She pocketed his information and swiped the card with a grin of success on her face.
“Tripp?” Lexi waved him over into the light.
He rested his hand on her lower back as she leaned forward with the small black eyepiece stuck to her face.
“Tell me what you see.” She straightened and handed him the loupe.
A moment later, he gave it back. “Wow.”
“My sentiments exactly.”
• • •
Tripp and Lexi walked through the lobby of the hotel, took the elevator to their room and keyed in. She fingered the jewel tight against her chest.
“How did our star end up engraved on the inside of this sapphire?” Lexi kicked off her shoes, dropping to the bed at the same time.
