“Maybe she has family, a daughter.”
“I can’t imagine anyone procreating with that. Not because she’s ugly, but flat out mean looking. I’m talking scary.” He wheezed in another breath. “I’m telling you, that face has been at all kinds of disasters. Some of the guys say they saw pics of her at the Holocaust.”
A chill raced up and down Sid’s spine. Goosebumps rose on her arms.
“See?” Russ said, looking at her arms. “You know it’s true. Put your friends on it.”
The van pulled off to the side of the road in front of an old apartment building. It was small—just five stories—and crammed between two business-office juggernauts. Clarence and Jean got out and headed up the steps of a red brick building and vanished.
Sid parked half a block away. “Wait here.”
Russ grabbed her arm. “No wait, are you nuts? Be patient. Wait.”
She bent his thumb backward.
“Ow! Cripes, lady!”
“Don’t do that again,” Sid said. She hopped out, closed the door, and took some strides up the sidewalk.
The streets weren’t too busy in this part of town. Some folks hung out on the staircases she passed. One of them asked her for money.
She moved on. She spied the building from the bottom of the front steps. It was old, maybe a hundred years or more, a testament to a time long forgotten. She took the steps one by one to the top. The entrance door was painted with decades of chipping black enamel. The door groaned open at the hinges as she pulled and slipped inside. A narrow stairwell going up. The hanging lights were dim, and there was a heavy musty smell.
Smells even older than it looks.
Up she went, steps creaking beneath her shoes. She pulled her gun and crept up to the first landing. Two apartment doors were at the top, and everything was quiet. She made her way up the next flight of steps, unable to shake the feeling she might be the only person in the building. Up on the second floor landing, she listened at the doors. Stark silence. It fed her, pumped more adrenaline that mixed with the sweetheart suit and charged her blood. She peered around the corner on the next level of steps. Her nostrils flared.
Tobacco?
She hadn’t noticed either Clarence or Jean smoking. It was probably a tenant passing through with the smell lingering. Up she went to the next level. Two more doors. No more sounds. No scuffles. No breathing came from the other side. There was only her heart pounding inside her ears. Up she went toward the next floor.
Halfway up, the stair underneath her foot made a mechanical sound. Click.
Sid froze. Her instincts fired.
Morning Glory! It’s a trap!
Above, the stairs groaned under heavy footsteps.
Clarence appeared on the landing with a shotgun in his hand and a cigar in his mouth. “Looks like we caught ourselves a little squirrel. Heh.” He came down a couple of steps, his big body filling the stairway. An over/under shotgun was pointed at Sid’s head. “I’d toss that piece you got if I were you.”
She kept the gun barrel pointed at his head. “You’re the one who needs to disarm, not me.”
“Is that so?” He shrugged his shoulders. “Well, I’m not the one standing on a mine now, am I? I suggest you give yourself up unless you want your legs blown to pieces.”
Maybe’s he’s bluffing, and I have the suit on.
Sid fixed her eyes on his.
Clarence’s expression was stone cold. His eyes said, “I dare you.”
Sid hunkered down and set the Glock down behind her. “Now what?”
Clarence let out a short whistle. The doors on the landing behind her opened up, and two well-knit men emerged in black T-shirts. One had a black sun rising on his neck. They seized her arms and bound them up behind her. Clarence popped open a concealed panel on the wall and pressed something downward.
Click.
The pressure plate beneath Sid’s feet seemed to deactivate.
“Smart girl,” Clarence said, hefting the shotgun over his shoulder. “Bring her up. Jean would like a word with her. But not now. Later. Time to take a nap, Miss Shaw.”
Sid lunged forward. She twisted and kicked, but the men held her fast.
One covered her mouth with a rag.
Chloroform!
Life turned blurry and black.
CHAPTER 22
Sid lifted her chin and opened her heavy eyes. She was tied to a chair. Ropes dug into her wrists. Her struggles were in vain. Sitting still, she scanned her surroundings. It was an old apartment room, sparsely furnished, with paint peeling from the walls and ceiling. The glass on the window was painted over. It smelled of smoke and grime.
“Ugh,” a voice said. Russ Davenport was bound to a chair on her left. His face was swollen. Lip bleeding. “Did you get the name of that anvil that hit me?”
“Keep it down,” she said.
A television set was on somewhere. Footsteps approached. A man came in the room and eyed them both. It was the goon in the black shirt who had clocked her in the head. He had an assault rifle strapped over his chest and a hunting knife tucked in his belt. “Say, Clarence, they’re up.”
The floorboards creaked, and Clarence stepped into the room with a smirk on his face. The man seemed even bigger than the last time. He had an unnatural swagger about him. He bent down and held Sidney’s head up by the chin. “We’ve caught quite a fish in you, it seems. Heh. Sidney Shaw. Fallen FBI agent and now a bona fide bounty hunter.” His dark eyes gleamed. He toyed with her hair. “I can see why the Drake wants you, but I’m not so sure about him.”
Sid recoiled. Clarence’s breath was worse than stagnant pond water. She launched a kick into his groin.
He didn’t flinch. His expression darkened. “None of that now!” He backhanded her across the cheek.
Sid teetered onto the floor.
“Clarence,” a female voice squalled. Jean stormed into the room. She looked about half as tall as Clarence, but far meaner. “We’ll have none of that. If you want to slap somebody, slap him. I don’t like the looks of him.”
Clarence backhanded Russ so hard he toppled the heavyset man to the floor.
“Feel better?” Jean said.
Clarence shrugged.
“Well, pick him up!”
Clarence rolled his eyes and pointed to the goon. “Do it.” He walked over to Sid, scooped her up, and set all four legs of the chair back down. “Keep your feet to yourself this time.”
Fast as a cobra, Jean drilled Clarence in the groin with her fist.
The man doubled over. “Oof!”
“That’s for swatting my prize, Clarence—you oversized idiot.”
“I told you he was an idiot,” Russ said. “Anyone that looks like that has to be an idiot.”
“Quiet, reporter man,” Jean said. She rolled up her sleeves, revealing a hard pack of muscle. “Don’t make me sock you too. Now—” She reached over and grabbed a chair, dragged it to her, and sat down. “Let’s have a little discussion, shall we? Tell me, pretty face, why are you following us?”
“As if you don’t know,” Sid said.
“Oh, good answer. Of course I know. You want to know who is behind this assassination attempt on Wilhelm. Sticking up for your friend, aren’t you.” The brute of a woman took a can of Copenhagen from her back jean pocket and put a rub in. “Want some?”
Sid gave her head a gentle shake no.
“It’ll give you the giggles. Hah. I’m a country girl. Old, old country. Picked up the habit from my grandma. Grew our own tobacco back then. Makes you tough.” She flexed her arm. A rising sun was branded on it. “Real tough.”
“You gotta be tough to be as old as you,” Russ said. “You’re at least a hundred and twenty by my account. Maybe a hundred and fifty.”
Jean turned toward the reporter and showed a creepy smile. “Good for you, Nightfall DC. Ha. I read your little pissant paper. Too bad only a handful of weirdos have enough good sense to believe you.” She turned back, pinched Sid’s
face in her hands, and eyed her with cold, dead eyes. “Yes, I’ve seen lots of things. Things that’ll make your worst nightmares seem like an amusement park.”
Sid swallowed.
“And if you don’t cooperate,” Jean said, whisking out a knife hanging from her jeans, “I’ll see to it you experience it all for yourself.” She pressed the blade against Sid’s throat. “Now, tell me, what do you want?”
Not averting her eyes, Sid said, “I want to clear John Smoke.”
“He’s a murderer.” Jean laughed. “Killed a congressman.”
“Allegedly,” Sid said.
“Ha! The entire country saw it with their own eyes. The only freedom for him is death, and that’s coming soon enough, thanks to you.”
“What do you mean?”
“Aw, come on, Sidney. As soon as I made some calls and found out who you were, I got a plan. You see, there is a bounty on your head, but there’s a bigger one on Smoke’s. They want him really bad. A rare breed, that one is. A real hawker.”
“Why?”
“I’m not going to tell you that, but I’ll tell you this. You’re the bait that’s going to bring him in.”
Sid clenched her teeth. Not so long ago, she’d thought she was getting a handle on things, but now she was in over her head. She wriggled at her bonds.
Jean just laughed.
Just play along, Sid. Play along.
“Of course, it might take a few days to flush your friend out. He’ll be careful, but I’m sure he’ll make it here to try and save you. They say he has a real shine for you.” Jean spat on the floor and got up. “I love that kind of leverage. It lets me twist those tender hearts in circles.”
“Where are you going?”
Jean looked over her shoulder. “Aw, miss my company already, do you? No surprise. I do have a special charm. But I’ll be back. In a day or so. Just hope you and big boy don’t starve to death.”
CHAPTER 23
“Wait!” Sid said.
Jean stopped.
“Look,” Sid continued. “Let’s quit beating around the bush and playing these games. Just tell me, who’s behind all this?”
“Oh, I see. You want to take the boss down,” Jean said. She kneaded her dimpled chin. “Well, we don’t talk about the boss. Heck fire, not many even know who he is, but I do.”
At least I know he’s a he now.
“Seeing how the odds are stacked against me,” Sid said, showing a struggle in her bonds, “what does it hurt to tell me? Think of it as a last request.”
“Giving up so soon, are you?” Jean cackled. “Oh, I doubt that. Look, little miss. You don’t meet the boss unless the boss wants to meet you. Hmmm.” She rubbed the back of her neck. “Seeing how it’s going to be a long wait, maybe we should play a little game.”
“What kind of game?”
“I’ll give you a clue if you earn it,” Jean said.
She’ll probably lie about that, but at least it will give me some time.
“What game did you have in mind?”
Jean walked up to Sid and slipped her hunting knife out. It was bloodstained and old crafted. She waggled it in front of Sid’s eyes. “This blade was a gift. A gift from an Indian warrior I killed. Heh heh. A handsome savage too. He wanted to make me his little squaw. I told him he’d have to fight me for it. He laughed. We fought. He died.”
Sid’s fingertips tingled. “That’s a very touching story,” Sid said with a smirk. “Do you share that at Tupperware parties?”
“You’ve got a smart mouth.” Jean toyed with Sid’s hair. “And such a pretty brunette. I’d hate to shave off all that lovely hair.” She leaned in close and whispered in Sid’s ear, “But I have, and I will.”
Damn, she means it.
“You said something about earning a clue?”
“Yes, I did,” Jean said, thumbing the knife’s edge. She eyed Clarence, who was leaning against the wall, biting his nails and spitting them out. “Think you can take him down? If you can, I’ll give you a name. But if you lose, you get shaved.”
Clarence pushed himself off the wall and crossed his hairy forearms over his chest. He was at least six foot six and three hundred pounds.
“Kind of a sadistic game, isn’t it?”
“Pfft! This is nothing. Boy, you have a lot to learn, and besides, you’re the one that wanted a clue. But I’m fair. You don’t have to play if you don’t want to.”
Sid weighed her options. Even if she won, she wasn’t going anywhere. Jean would have guns on her and Russ. She could jeopardize his life. And getting her head shaved by that … woman?
That would be grisly.
“Why don’t you let her shave him if she wins?” Russ said, glaring at Clarence. “Of course, there ain’t much to shave.”
“Heh. So what’s it going to be?” Jean said. “You want to take a shot at some answers or not?”
“Sure, why not?”
Jean’s brows lifted. “I like it.” With the knife, she started severing Sid’s cords. “Don’t try anything stupid. I’ve been around a long time. Know most every trick in the book.”
Sid nodded. Her wrists were free. She rubbed the blood into them. With the sweetheart suit on, she felt like she could do anything. In a few seconds the numbness in her wrists was gone. She faced Clarence.
He had a look on his face that was easy to hate. Arrogant. Crass.
“Kick his ass, Sid,” Russ said.
Cackling, Jean slid her knife back into her sheath and backed away. “Go for it, girlie.”
Leering down at her, Clarence spread his arms wide. “Come on. Give me a kiss.”
Like a cat, Sid sprang. She drove her boot heel into Clarence’s heavy gut.
Unmoved, he laughed. He pounded on his belly. “Go ahead, try that again.”
Sid went in, kicked hard, pulled it back, jumped up high, and socked him right between the eyes.
“Ow!” Clarence said, staggering back into the wall. “That hurt!”
Wincing, Sid shook her hand. Clarence was solid.
“All right,” he said, beckoning with his long arms. “You want to fight, let’s fight then.”
Rushing in, Sid unloaded some punching and kicking combos.
Clarence’s beefy forearms countered with a grace that belied his girth.
Morning Glory, he can fight!
She pressed the attack, jabbing and kicking at his ribs. Her hard blows were muted. His body was like a heavy bag of sand.
What’s this guy made of?
Clarence, no longer playing around, starting throwing heavy punches.
Pinned back in the corner, Sid ducked a thunderous punch that went clean through the wall. Skipping away, Clarence tripped her with his long leg, sending her sprawling to the hardwood floor. His fingers seized her by the ankle. “I gotcha now!”
Sid kicked at him.
He kicked back.
“Oof!” The foot to her gut left Sid breathless.
Jean’s cackling and Clarence’s laughter followed.
“I can’t wait to shave that pretty hair!” Jean taunted.
Sid was jarred from the impact and half stunned.
Clarence dragged her limp frame into the center of the floor.
Her nails dug into the hard wood.
“Get up, Sid! Fight!” Russ yelled.
I’m trying. Damn, I can’t feel anything.
The big man grabbed her in a vice-like grip and kept her pinned to the floor on her stomach. “Too easy,” he said. “How about that kiss now?”
Sid flung an elbow back into his side.
Clarence chuckled. “She’s still got plenty of fight in her. This ought to take care of that.” He shoved her head into the hardwood planks over and over.
Stars exploded in her eyes. Warm blood dripped down her face. Her body went limp.
“First I kiss her, then you shave her,” Clarence said. “I’m not smooching no bald-headed chick.”
CHAPTER 24
Arms dangling by her s
ides, Sid felt herself being lifted up off the floor. Clarence’s iron grip squeezed her neck as he brought her face to face with him. Her nostrils flared.
The stench of his breath was putrid. He squeezed her neck harder. “Now, how about that kiss, baby, though I do prefer a little more fight in them.” He leaned in.
“Aw no, Sid,” Russ said, head down, “aw no.”
Using one free hand, Sid clutched him by the beard. “Kiss this.” With her other free hand, she drove her knuckles into his temple with all of her force.
Clarence’s eyes popped wide, fluttered and closed. His body flopped over onto the floor and lay still.
“Dammit, Clarence!” Jean squalled.
“That was badass,” Russ said, head up and smiling. “Badass.”
Gasping for breath, Sid wiped the blood from her eyes and rose to her feet. “You have a clue for me?”
“Boys!” Jean declared. “Tie her up.” She eyed Sid. “Sure, I’ll tell you. I’m a woman of my word. The man you want is called Kane. But I’m not going to tell you one bit more.”
“Fair enough,” Sid said, taking a seat in her chair just as the first guard approached. One stood in the front, and the other entered the room from the hall. He had a piece of rope. “You think maybe you can stop this blood from running into my eye?” she said about the oozing gash in her forehead.
Jean walked over and eyed the wound. “Gonna need a couple of stitches. Too bad for you my needle-and-thread days are long behind me. Looks like a duct-tape bandage will have to do. Heh. Tie her up good. I’ll be back.”
The first guard, in front of her, watched Jean go.
The second, behind her back, started to bind up her hands.
“Not so tight, please,” she said, sounding nice.
“Huh, you’re the one that’s looking tight,” the second guard said. “Sad to see a fine woman like you go to waste.”
Flirting, Sid said, “Let me go and I’ll make it worth your while. Both of you.”
The Supernatural Bounty Hunter Files Collector's Set: Books 1-10: Urban Fantasy Shifter Series Page 62
