Legend_A Rockstar Romance

by Ellie Danes

  The man in the dark suit ignored my question. “Take this time to memorize your new identities. You will be quizzed on it in the morning.”

  The bodyguard shoved us unceremoniously inside the sparse room. Bree spun around but it was too late, the door was shut and locked.

  “Hank? They locked us in,” Bree said. She wrung her hands but stuck to our cover story. “Are you sure this is worth the money?”

  “You should have seen the figure on that slip of paper, baby,” I said.

  I pressed my ear to the door. The bodyguard’s heavy footsteps were moving away.

  Bree rubbed her hands up and down her arms to try to calm herself as I prowled around the bare room. I stopped at a vent opening and leaned down. After a few minutes of listening, I motioned for Bree to join me.

  She knelt and pressed her ear close to the vent. “What do you hear?”

  I shook my head. “You tell me.”

  Bree listened again. Far away voices floated toward us but it was impossible to hear what they were saying. Then there was a very distinctive squeal followed by muffled laughter.

  “Children,” Bree said.

  I caught her hand and pulled us both up to standing. When Bree saw my expression, she popped her mouth closed and said no more.

  We were locked inside a room and most likely being listened to, but there was still hope. The children we had come to save were just down the hallway.

  Chapter Sixty-Eight

  Bree

  I was too nervous to sit down, so I dumped out the entire contents of the manila folder. The rickety card table swayed as I leaned my hands on it. In the pile of paperwork, I found tickets from an arena farther south, insurance cards with our new names, and the registration for the RV.

  “Do you think we’re supposed to practice these signatures?” I asked Nathan.

  He stood at the door, listening intently. “Probably.”

  “Your name’s going to be Tom,” I said.

  Nathan snorted but didn’t say anything else. He pressed his ear to the door again and listened. Barely perceptible nods of his head meant that Nathan was counting.

  Whatever he was doing, he couldn’t tell me anything about it. I believed him completely when he said the room was bugged.

  “I’m Matilda, but you’re going to have to call me Matty because that name is so old-fashioned,” I said.

  He smiled but didn’t respond.

  I held up two wristbands. “Apparently, you’re into deep sea fishing. These prove we were on a boat called the Outcaster.”

  Nathan nodded. “I could get into deep sea fishing.”

  “Hank, please. We’re supposed to be practicing our new identities,” I said.

  Nathan sighed and joined me at the table. “Looks easy enough. Tom and Matilda. He’s got a business card. Tom’s a concrete pourer from Minnesota.”

  “Let me guess, Matilda is a housewife. These cartel guys are chauvinists,” I said.

  The hard rap on the door made us both jump. Then there was the rattle of a key and the door finally swung open. The bodyguard loomed in the doorway and nodded for us to join him in the hallway.

  The man with the laptop was there with two white envelopes. “Your passports and your driver’s licenses. If you have any questions, now’s your chance. He wasn’t kidding when he said you’d be quizzed on your new identities in the morning.”

  Nathan took the envelopes and handed me mine with a significant look. He wanted me to distract the two men while he did something.

  My heart skipped a few beats. What could he be planning? The bodyguard was the size of a mountain and a heavy gun rode in a holster under his arm. The hallway was long and narrow. There was no escape.

  Still, I had to help him. “I have a few questions.”

  I gave the man with the laptop my best smile and sauntered past him to lean against the opposite wall of the hallway. I waved the man over to stand next to me. The bodyguard frowned and shifted to keep an eye on us.

  “I can’t change your name or place of birth,” the man said.

  I laughed and laid my hand on his arm. “No, I don’t care about that. But, this is all really overwhelming. What happens if we get caught?”

  The bodyguard crossed his arms over his chest and frowned down on me. “Don’t get caught.”

  “That’s easy for you to say, you have muscles the size of a Mack truck.” I gave him a flirty smile. “But what am I supposed to do if border security finds all the cocaine?”

  “The boss explained it all already,” the bodyguard said.

  The man with the laptop moved to stand in front of the bodyguard, both their backs to Nathan. He shifted and turned back toward the door to our room.

  “Yeah, I remember him talking about lawyers. But what if we get in a car accident? You can’t tell me that’s never happened. What if I panic and step on the gas instead of the brake?” I asked.

  I didn’t know how much longer I could hold the men’s attention. I lifted my curly hair off my neck and fanned myself.

  The man with the laptop let his gaze drop to my gaping shirt. The bodyguard kept his eyes on me but his expression was stony. “Drive safe,” was all he said.

  I looped my arm through the laptop man’s free arm and pulled him toward me. “Please. I just want to know the best thing to do.”

  The bodyguard stepped forward as we drew away from him. One frown from him had the laptop man extricating himself from my grasp.

  “Come on,” he told his giant companion. “At least tell her about the man who accidentally rammed right into a police car.”

  A flicker of a smile crossed the bodyguard’s lips. “Moron. The air bags deployed in a cloud of cocaine. The driver had to be treated for an overdose.”

  I giggled. “Guess babbling high on coke is one way to avoid a serious interrogation.”

  Nathan left the door and slipped back into our room. I prayed he would be done soon because my heart almost gave out every time the men’s eyes moved.

  The man with the laptop appreciated the little shimmy I added to my giggle. “Probably a good idea if you drive. I’d be distracted with you next to me.”

  Just then the bodyguard snapped to his full height and turned around. Nathan was there, leaning against the doorjamb with a bored but defiant look on his face.

  “You know what I find distracting?” Nathan asked. “Getting locked up overnight.”

  The bodyguard took my arm and flung me back toward Nathan. “Be happy you’re not in separate rooms.”

  “Was that a threat?” Nathan left me and lunged toward the big bodyguard.

  The two men tested each other out with a few hard shoves. Nathan was being purposefully clumsy, and I couldn’t imagine why. I clapped my hands over my mouth and tried not to scream. What was Nathan thinking, provoking the bodyguard?

  “No! Stop! He’s got a gun.” I caught myself just before I called out Nathan’s real name.

  Nathan released what appeared to be an ineffectual hold on the bodyguard. He turned to me with a wink.

  Nathan wound his arm protectively around my waist. “So, we’re supposed to just starve to death?”

  I bounced to get everyone’s attention. “I could cook something. There was a full kitchen in that RV.”

  The bodyguard shook his head and reached into his pocket. “Granola bars. You’ll survive.”

  Nathan snatched the granola bars and strolled back into the room. “I guess you’re right. For the amount of money this job pays, we can handle one night.”

  “Memorize your identities or they might hold you an extra day,” the man with the laptop added helpfully.

  The bodyguard shoved him out of the way and shut the door. We waited until we heard the lock click into place, and then sat down together on one of the low cots.

  In the silence, Nathan unwrapped his granola bar and took a huge bite. He chewed it slowly and then gestured for me to do the same.

  “I’m not hungry,” I said.

  �
��Who knows when we’ll get to eat again? I’m pretty sure the itinerary did not include meal times. They expect us to just drive straight through,” Nathan said.

  I unwrapped my granola bar slowly and nibbled on one corner. “I don’t care. As long as we get out of here.”

  Nathan nodded and leaned back against the wall. “All right, Matilda,” he said with a wink. “Tell me your life story.”

  I scowled at Nathan around my granola bar and stood up. I knew I couldn’t ask him what he had been doing. The room was most definitely monitored. I paced back and forth and reminded myself of the one thing I knew for certain.

  Nathan was the only man I could trust.

  Chapter Sixty-Nine

  Nathan

  Bree couldn’t sit still, even when I forced her to memorize all her new identity numbers.

  “Why would I need to know my driver’s license number? No one knows that. I bet it’ll make me look even more guilty,” Bree said.

  I leaned and tried to catch her attention but she paced by. “Just trying to keep our mind off other things.”

  That made Bree stop. She turned to look at me, finally seeing the message I had been trying to send her. We couldn’t talk plainly in that room, and she had to remember it or risk all our plans.

  The overdramatic eye-roll she gave me was better than an answer. It told me that Bree knew she couldn’t talk without being heard. And she wasn’t too scared to be annoyed with me.

  Bree plopped down on the narrow cot next to me and tried to speak in code. “What time is it? How are we even supposed to know when it’s night?”

  She wanted to know when I was going to put our plan in motion but I shook my head. “Doesn’t matter. We’re here until they let us out.”

  Bree arched an eyebrow at that and glanced over at the door. She remembered my disappearance earlier and wondered what I had done to the lock on our room.

  “Come on, Matilda,” I said, trying to distract her, “let’s work on the story of how we met.”

  Bree whacked me on the shoulder. “Don’t call me Matilda. And border security isn’t going to ask us how we met.”

  “But they will ask me where my office is in Minnesota,” I said.

  She snapped the card out of my hand and held it up. “Fine. I’ll quiz you, but only because this place is too small for pacing.”

  “At least there isn’t a big sagging motel bed to get in the way?” That earned me a jab in the ribs.

  As long as Bree was able to take my teasing and fight back, I knew she’d be okay. I’d been going over the plan in my head, but it all hinged on whether Bree held up. The stress of our situation weighed on her, but there was no way she was beaten down.

  I kissed her cheek.

  “What was that for?” Bree asked.

  I grinned. “Just seeing if Matilda kisses differently than you?”

  Bree laughed and snatched the folder out of my hands only to swat me on the shoulder with it. “All right, Tom, let’s hear your work address.”

  Bree and I made a big show out of quizzing each other on our new identities. I have no idea how much we actually retained, but it was a good way to pass the time.

  Not knowing the time was hard on Bree, but my inner clock told me when it was time to move. I kissed Bree on the cheek again and then stood up. She knotted her hands together as I went and leaned against the door.

  The sounds in the hallway were quiet and muffled. Fear of that mountainous bodyguard kept the other men quiet and focused. They talked in whispers when they passed, mostly sports scores and some trash talk, but it was enough to confirm we had two guards on our door.

  I held up two fingers to Bree. She nodded but her cheeks faded to a pale white.

  I motioned to Bree to lay down on the cot and pull the blanket over her. She shook her head, defiant at any part of the plan that did not directly include her.

  “Please,” I whispered and pressed my hands together.

  Bree scowled at me but finally gave in. It was still a wonder that she trusted me after all I had put her through. I fought the urge to stride over to the cot and kiss her.

  I had to focus.

  I knocked, waited, and rapped a little louder. My knocks were deliberately timed so the guards were just turning around. I heard them meet outside the door and consult about what they heard.

  I knocked again. “Hey! I gotta use the bathroom.”

  Bree and I both heard the guards snickering as they unlocked the door.

  “We’ll get you a bucket,” the first guard said.

  I reached for my belt buckle. “You wanna carry this around, that’s fine with me. I gotta go.”

  The guards exchanged glances. “We can’t let you out.”

  “You don’t have bathrooms here?” I asked. Then I gestured to Bree’s covered form. “And you seriously think I’m going to make a break for it and leave her here? Wait, now that I think about it, bring the bucket. I’m not leaving her alone for a second.”

  The first guard’s nose crinkled up. “The bathrooms just down the hall. He’ll take you.”

  “No way in hell,” the second guard said.

  Their argument switched into their native language and sped up. Bree stirred as their voices rose. Finally, the first guard shoved the second guard. For a moment, I thought they would get into a fist fight and do my work for me, but they only glared at each other.

  “Fine. Bathroom’s to the left. I have a gun,” the second guard said.

  He fumbled the gun out of its holster and waved it. I was glad he at least kept the barrel pointed at the ground, but my body tensed. The last thing I needed was a nervous finger on a trigger following me down the hall.

  Bree sat up at that. “What’s going on?” she asked in a fake sleepy voice.

  “Bathroom break, be right back. This door stays closed and locked, right?” I stepped up to the first guard as I passed through the door.

  He scowled at me. “Hurry up.”

  “Wait,” Bree called. “I have to go, too.”

  I glared at her over the guard’s shoulder. “I’ll let you know what the bathroom’s are like. You might want to hold it. Remember that little bathroom at that run-down resort?”

  Bree narrowed her eyes at me but went along with my story. “Ew, yeah, I remember. Fine. Let me know if the toilet’s green with mold. Don’t catch any diseases.”

  I laughed at her malevolent pout. The second guard never saw my fist coming. The first guard rushed forward and ran right into my switch gut kick. He doubled over and tipped onto the ground.

  The guards struggled to get up, but I shoved one over the other and then collapsed back to the ground in a tangle of grunts and swear words.

  Bree jumped out of bed, but stayed back in the room behind the flimsy card table. I held up one hand to keep her back.

  She smothered a scream as the first guard managed to get up. He wheezed hard for breath but staggered toward me. Down the long hallway, there was a surprised shout. The distant guard would be on me in no time.

  I hesitated. It was only a fraction of a second, but it was enough to worry me. I couldn’t act because I didn’t want Bree to see me in action. I didn’t want her to see me take down the guards and knock out a third.

  Then Bree screamed, “Just do it!”

  I fired a punch at the first guard like a cannonball from my shoulder. He knocked against the opposite wall and crumpled to the ground. The other guard staggered to his feet and tried to run off down the hall. I caught him by the collar of his shirt and swung him hard into the wall. He slumped to the ground, unconscious.

  The other guard stopped partway down the hall, then he saw me beckon with the gun I’d pulled off the other guard.

  He shuffled toward me with his hands up.

  “Are you going to crack him in the head or what?” Bree asked.

  I shook my head, glad that Bree hadn’t fainted at the first spurt of blood. “How about we just let him take a little rest in our room?”

 
Bree slipped out the door. “Sounds good. You going to tell me the rest of the plan yet?”

  I shoved all three guards into the storage room where we’d been locked. Then I held out my hand for the conscious guard’s keys. He shook his head.

  “I’m asking nicely. I don’t have to ask if you’re unconscious like your friends,” I said.

  He tossed the keys to me. I locked him in and told him to count to one thousand.

  “What now?” Bree asked.

  I pulled her down the hallway, “Now we get out of here. All of us.”

  Chapter Seventy

  Bree

  We ran down the narrow hallway. I expected one of the many doors to the warehouse to fly open and armed men to block our way. When I looked back there was no one, just the slumped forms of the men Nathan had ‘taken care of.’

  Icy fear flowed over me as Nathan came to a sudden stop. He held up a hand, and I caught my breath. Now that I had seen exactly what he could do with his bare hands, my nerves rattled at his every gesture.

  At least the three men on the floor were still breathing. I wasn’t sure what would happen if anyone got in our way now.

  Nathan held the gun up and motioned for me to be silent. I followed close behind him, too scared to clutch the back of his shirt. His shoulders were tense, the muscles like rock, as he listened for a hint of where the children were.

  “Whispers,” I said and pointed.

  He nodded and swept over to the door. Pressing an ear hard against it, Nathan listened and then nodded again. Without a word, he gestured for me to step back.

  “Wait. We have the keys,” I said before he could kick down the door.

  So far, we hadn’t raised an alarm, and I prayed he found the right key before anyone walked into the narrow hallway. There were still lights on in the main warehouse and the occasional sound of voices. We were not the only ones awake in the night.

  The children were, too, about a dozen pale faces staring at us as Nathan swung the door open. They scurried back, ducking behind a larger boy, as Nathan stepped in brandishing the gun.