by Kari Lemor
“That’d be great.” Stupid wobbly voice. Charlotte pulled out the extra toilet paper she’d snagged earlier and handed it to her. After blowing her nose she took a few deep breaths, thankful her sister wasn’t prying too much into what happened. She deserved to know part of it.
“I think Mom got to him.”
“Damn her. I wish she’d mind her own business. Me flirting with the waiter should have taken all the pressure off you and Scott.”
“She did admit Scott was better than that, but only a tiny bit.”
“What if I say something to Dad?” Charlotte offered. “I think he actually likes Scott.”
“He does. But Char, I want a guy who’ll stand up and fight for me. Who won’t let what others think or say keep him from what he wants. I guess Scott isn’t the one.”
As Charlotte sat next to her, hugging her, her mind drifted to all their times together. Scott certainly felt like the one. The fact was he didn’t want her badly enough. Or perhaps he simply didn’t want her in any way except the physical, and that would never be enough for her. Not now.
* * * *
“What are you doing here today?”
Heather’s voice was shrill but she had hoped not to see Scott in the building. She’d spent the last few days attempting to convince herself she didn’t have strong feelings for him and she wasn’t heartbroken over his actions at the party. Failure had been imminent.
The silence was more than awkward. Scott’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down as he took deep breaths and tried to look anywhere but at her.
“I thought I’d check out what was here and why someone doesn’t want us to know what’s in there.”
“I’m surprised you didn’t come here Sunday or yesterday. It’s not like you were following me around any longer.” Sure, remind him of the fact he’d been chasing after her like a puppy the last few weeks.
“I have a company to run and I’ve been helping Jack with the addition for their house. I could say the same to you.”
“Yeah, well, Charlotte kept me busy Sunday.” Not that she’d tell him her sister had bugged her incessantly about trying to get back together with the gorgeous hunk while she’d cried her eyes out. “And I had a ton of clients that needed my attention and a closing that took far too long.”
Looking around the space cluttered with debris, she flicked the switch on her flashlight. “And I had to find a tool that might work to get the lock off. I couldn’t ask Jack because I figured he’d want to know what it was for and tell you.”
“That’s what you brought?” He indicated the small kitchen hammer in her other hand.
Shrugging she said, “I figured you’d have already broken in and I’d just come see what you found.”
“I can handle this,” Scott said and hefted a large cutting tool. “If you have better things to do with your time.”
“I own half this place and have as much right to be here as you. Plus, it was my house they blew up, in case you’d forgotten.”
“No, I haven’t forgotten. Fine, use this flashlight and shine it over here.” He handed her a much larger, industrial-strength flashlight to use.
The muscles in his arms and back flexed as he worked the large cutting tool. She wouldn’t think about how she’d touched those muscles as they held her and... No, mind on business. It took a few minutes and some grunting but the lock snapped. Manipulating it off, Scott then took a crowbar and shoved it under the trap door. As he pushed, Heather moved closer to see what was under the metal panel.
The cover clanged and shook when Scott dropped it open. A dark hole greeted them, and when she flashed her light inside they saw a set of stairs leading down into a darker space.
“You up for this or do you want me to check it out?” His eyes sparkled with a dare and it was almost like old times.
“You aren’t leaving me up here while you go and have all the fun.”
“Suit yourself. Ladies first.” He swept his hand still holding the crowbar in front of him, indicating the dark hole.
“I’m taking this, though,” she said, indicating the huge flashlight shining in front of her. Damn her bravado and pride. It looked terrifying and someone didn’t want them down there. All she could picture was some scary-ass clown jumping out with an ax or a chainsaw.
The stairs creaked as she pressed her feet onto them. Scott’s presence behind her was the only thing helping her keep her shit together. Everything was black as pitch with the exception of where the beam flashed. A long narrow hallway spread out in front of her and she kept putting one foot in front of the other. It ended at a half wall, the space behind even darker than before and only about four feet wide.
“Do you want a chance to lead now?” Her voice quivered and she cleared her throat. The grin on Scott’s face almost made her take back her offer. But she honestly wasn’t sure she wanted to climb over that wall and into the space by herself.
Being a good half foot taller than her, he easily hopped onto the wall then reached down for the large flashlight. Trading with him, she took the smaller one and shined it behind her and around the area. Nothing but concrete walls all around. Soon he disappeared into the hole, so she hefted herself up onto the wall behind him.
Scooting her legs around, she let them dangle over the edge as she eyed the dim space. The small room was filled with long wooden boxes. Wooden boxes that looked exactly like…
“Shit,” Scott swore, moving closer to one of them. “I was hoping this wasn’t the case.”
Dropping onto the floor, she took a tentative step toward him. “You know what those look like?”
“I’d say coffins, but I really want to be wrong about that. Could be automatic weapons.” He narrowed his eyes, one side of his mouth curling up. “Cause that would be so much better. Only one way to find out,” he said, slipping the end of the crowbar under the wooden top. Shifting his weight, he pushed down, and the wood creaked and lifted. He repeated that a few times then shoved aside the top.
Aah! She jumped back. A skeleton, totally emaciated and picked clean of any flesh, resided inside. Tiny pellets of rodent droppings littered the wooden bottom.
Moving up behind Scott, she shuddered and wrapped her arms around his waist. Right now she didn’t care if they’d broken up. It wasn’t every day you found a dead body in a building you owned.
Scott twisted, kissed her head, and then moved away to examine another one. She backed toward the half wall. As he lifted the crowbar, she said, “Do we have to? I’m gonna take a wild guess and say it’s more of the same.”
Scott cracked open the next one where another dead body rested inside. This one still had a little fabric covering part of it.
“We need to get out of here and tell the police,” Scott said kneeling down near a third box.
Good idea.
“That won’t be happening,” a low voice sounded behind her. Before she could turn, everything went dark.
Chapter 21
Scott’s head pounded as he opened his eyes. It took a few moments for them to adjust to the darkness. As details took shape, he rolled his shoulders, the ache unfamiliar. His arms were above his head and something kept them from moving. Pulling, he heard a metallic rattle. Chains. Pressing the fingers of one hand over the other, he felt a cuff around his wrist. What the fuck?
The voice behind them. That won’t be happening. Who the hell had said it and what had he done to them? He didn’t remember much after Heather’s little moan of pain. He’d turned in her direction then wham. Shit, where was she?
“Heather?” His throat was dry, causing the word to barely come out.
“She’s a little tied up right now, Mr. Holland. So sorry.”
Who? He narrowed his eyes and focused on the dim light coming from the small opening into the chamber. The death chamber, if the number of wooden caskets was anything to go by. The voice
was familiar, though. Where had he heard it?
And hadn’t that area above the half wall been larger before? A face appeared in the opening and in the weak shadows Scott narrowed his eyes to try to make out who it was. He knew that shock of white hair and quickly attached it to the voice.
“Judge Stokinger? What the hell?”
“I’m sorry, Scott,” the judge replied, his voice hardly repentant. “You should have taken the hint and sold the building when you first ran into problems. I had someone handy to scoop it up from you. They would have offered top dollar too.”
“Where’s Heather?” Had he hurt her?
“Oh, she’s in there with you. She’s chained to the wall on your left. I didn’t want you to die alone.”
“What the fuck are you doing? And why?”
“Blocking up this opening if you can’t see well enough.” Light flashed into the chamber and then a clink sounded as something dropped. The beam of a flashlight cut across the space then stopped, shooting light toward a corner.
“In case you’re afraid of the dark.” The man’s vicious laugh floated through the still air.
A groan to his left snapped Scott’s head in that direction. The flashlight had illuminated the small room a fraction. Heather stood to his left, her arms above her head clasped in chains attached to the wall.
“What…Scott? Oh, my God, Scott, my hands are…why are my hands like this?” The panic in her tone cut right to his gut.
“I’m right here, princess. Judge Stokinger was just about to tell me why he’s doing this.”
“I suppose it doesn’t matter if I tell you. Neither one of you will be able to share the information with anyone.”
“What information? Why is that hole smaller?” Her anxious voice rose higher and Scott pulled, testing the chains on his hands. Shit. The cuffs were attached to a bolt in the wall. One that was in tight.
“I’m sealing you in here, my dear. It’s only for a short time really. Once the explosives go off I’m sure much of this new wall will come tumbling down.”
“Explosives?” Scott’s heart thudded in his chest.
“Yes. You see I can’t have any evidence hanging around that leads to me.”
“You mean these bodies?” Heather asked, anger echoing through the fear in her tone. Good girl. Get that warrior going strong. He had a feeling she’d need it.
“Yes, if the authorities were to identify them, they might be able to put two and two together. A few of them had found out about my dealings with certain individuals. Ones who I shouldn’t have been dealing with.”
“Criminals,” Scott said.
“Let’s just say they weren’t up in the same social bracket as Miss Silva here. I couldn’t very well have them tell anyone what they knew. My career would have been over.”
“So you killed them?” Heather asked, her tone disgusted.
“Of course I didn’t. But I had a nice association with Victor Cabrini and he was more than happy to assist me in eliminating the threat. Not that he ever got his hands dirty. No, he had a hit man on his payroll who was quite handy.”
“Cabrini.” Scott hated that name. Had it been the same hit man who’d been hunting Jack for years? Would Jack have ended up in here if Callie hadn’t been able to get the needed information that brought down the mobster?
“Yes, see, I had a nice arrangement with Victor. I’d let him know when certain people had information that might harm him. He’d make sure that information never got out. I was paid well, and often he’d do favors for me.”
“How is it you weren’t on the list that Cabrini had of people who worked for him?” Scott knew Callie had found that list and the FBI had rounded up everyone on it.
“Plain luck. I’d retired a few years ago and was no longer any use to Cabrini.”
A rustle in Heather’s direction told him she was struggling to get free.
“You can’t leave us in here,” Heather shouted at him. Then she screamed.
Stokinger laughed. “I don’t think anyone will hear you doing that. And if any of that sound manages to get up a few flights of stairs and through the concrete walls, I doubt it will be all that effective.”
“Where are the explosives?” Scott asked. Best get as much information now while the judge seemed in a talkative mood.
“Oh, they’re all over. I was an explosives expert in the war, you know. I’ve got quite a bit of C-4 sitting on the coffins and then even more planted on each floor of this building. I want the whole place to come down and I don’t want more than shards of bone to be found. Certainly nothing that can be identified.”
“You can’t just leave us here to get blown up,” Heather argued.
“And why even bother walling up that opening if the place is going to explode anyway?”
“Well, you see that’s the great part of this plan. I’m leaving to go back to Florida this afternoon. The explosives aren’t set to go off until tomorrow morning around four. I won’t be anywhere near here, so I have a perfect alibi. Not that anyone would suspect me. You certainly didn’t. Plus, that early, no one is likely to be around to get hurt. I wouldn’t want to injure any innocent bystanders, you see.”
“But it will kill us,” Heather yelled.
“Yes, I’m very sorry about that, my dear. But you and Mr. Holland aren’t innocent any longer. You are a threat to my retirement and must be removed.”
“We’ll get out of here and stop you.” Oh, yeah, the warrior princess was back. She’d need that strong will.
“This is why I’m bricking the rest of this opening. Even if you somehow manage to get the manacles off, which is doubtful, there won’t be any way to get through this wall.”
A tiny whimper sounded to his left. Scott wanted to try and convince the man to let them go, but it wouldn’t do any good. His mind whirred with ideas and ways to get them out of here. The opening was getting smaller as each brick was cemented into place. Could he get these cuffs off before the cement dried?
“Someone will come looking for us.”
Heather wouldn’t give up. He loved that about her.
“They might,” Stokinger replied. “But they won’t find you down here. And if they look around the building they won’t see the explosives either. I’ve hidden them in the lumber and debris.” One more brick went up and there was only a tiny space left.
“Enjoy your last day with each other. I’m sorry I couldn’t have left you closer together.”
“Nooooo!” Heather wailed as the last brick slid into place, shutting off any light from that avenue. The flashlight on the floor still shone bright, but how long would that last?
The sobs beside him tore at his soul. He should have insisted she stay upstairs while he came below. But would it have made a difference? Would Stokinger have knocked her out up there and dragged her down here? Or would she have heard him enter the basement and been able to hide then get help? Why would she have hidden from the judge, though? There was no reason to suspect him.
“Are you sure you didn’t want to leave me to have all the fun?” he said, repeating the words she’d voiced earlier.
Chains clinked as she struggled and yelled, “Oh, you…are you seriously making jokes now?” A sniff echoed through the small chamber then another sob. “I should have stayed upstairs then I could have rescued you. I’m so stupid. I’m sorry, Scott. Sorry.”
“Hey princess, no beating yourself up. We’ve got some time to figure this out.” Glancing up at his hands, he pressed the button on his watch and the face lit up. It was nine twenty-eight. His mind ran through the math. “We’ve got about eighteen hours and thirty-two minutes before the explosives go off.”
“Do you really think we can get out of here?” Her voice held hope and he couldn’t squash that. He honestly had no idea if they’d be able to even get the manacles off never mind get through the wall
, but he wouldn’t share his fears.
“Sure, if I’m wrong, I’ll do all the construction work on your house for free.”
She snorted in a most unladylike way. “You’re hysterical. You should go into comedy.”
His eyes were starting to adjust to the darker environment and he could make things out a little better. Heather twisted and turned like she was trying to pull the bolt out of the wall. Wrapping his own hands around the metal, he pushed and pulled. Shit, it was in solid. Didn’t mean it wouldn’t eventually get loose, but would it take longer than eighteen hours and twenty-something minutes?
Time passed as they both struggled with their shackles. He didn’t even know what to say to her. How did you apologize for putting someone’s life in danger and getting them killed? Well, they weren’t dead yet, but it seemed like a foregone conclusion if they couldn’t get out of the chains or break through the wall. If his estimates were correct, they were well under the building, so there wasn’t any chance of another way out except the way they came.
“Scott.” Heather’s tiny voice cut through him violently. “I wanted to say I’m sorry.”
“Don’t, princess. This certainly isn’t your fault.”
“I’m not talking about this. I’m sorry about the party. And not letting everyone know how much you meant to me. I’m sorry for being such a spoiled rotten brat and for anything else I did that made you hate me.”
Her tears were apparent and her words made his clog in his throat. Clearing it, he said, “I don’t hate you, princess. Far from it. I want you to be happy more than anything else in the world. I figured you wouldn’t be with me.”
“You do make me happy, Scott. More than I’ve ever been with anyone else. I wish I’d handled things differently that night, and we hadn’t had that fight. I hate that our last thoughts of each other will be of anger.”
“Nah, my last thought will be of how freakin’ hot you look in those painted-on jeans. And that T-shirt seems like it was washed a few too many times.”
