by james
* * * *
Ian took the electric drill gun, he always carried, out of the back of the car and
went to work on the plates. He quickly unscrewed them as John transferred their stuff to
the Audi. Both listened for any sign of traffic on the road.
The night was still and quiet. No one drove down the long lane they were now on.
John walked up. “Can I ask why the hell you never took the GPS out on this bloody car?”
He wiped at a trickle of blood that ran from the cut on his cheek. “Fucking bastards.”
Ian looked at him. “You think I’d ever drive a vehicle that had an active GPS?”
John frowned. “No.”
Ian pulled the lining of the trunk away, ignoring the bullet holes that now pierced
the trunk lid. He’d raised the ‘bottom’ of the trunk when he first purchased the car.
Always paid to plan ahead. He quickly opened the compartment that had been hidden.
Inside he handed the four handguns, ammo and tear gas off to John who only shook his
head. “And to think I thought I could leave this business.”
Next, he grabbed the duffle bag that contained hair color, new passports and
money. He double checked the car, noting they’d taken everything traceable from it. He’d
rubbed the all ID numbers off when he’d installed the compartment in the trunk.
Satisfied, he slung the duffle over his shoulder and walked back to the car. The
woman, Lenora, could, without doubt, handle herself.
Now he needed to talk her into his next plan. Of course that was all on the idea
that the child had no where to go. Either way, he’d need her help and they had plenty of
work to do before dawn.
* * * *
She looked out at the night. Dark, dark was the night. She didn’t like the dark. The
dark held monsters. And monsters were bad. Monsters hurt. They had big hands, claws
and didn’t care when you cried. They stuck you with their claws and then you went to the
fog.
She didn’t like the fog.
But this man didn’t have claws. And he hadn’t poked her arm.
So tired. Where was Zoy? She blinked and sucked her thumb.
Her head hurt.
Zoy?
The monsters.
She shivered again, cold. So cold. She pulled her legs up inside the big, warm
coat. Sucking her thumb, she fingered the ends of her hair.
The monsters were everywhere.
Maybe if she stayed really, really quiet, they’d leave her alone.
DEADLY GAMES Jaycee Clark 59
She closed her eyes. She wanted to be a bird.
A bird that could fly. Away. In the night. To the moon.
She opened her eyes and looked to the sky, but there was no moon. Did the
monsters steal it too?
They took her sister.
No. No.
She shivered.
Where was Zoy?
The man, big, his eyes dark, his mouth mean walked to the car. She shivered in
the blanket. He’d picked her up. Let her out of the room.
Why didn’t they take Zoy too?
Maybe they’d go back and get her sister.
She listened as they talked, but didn’t understand them. He’d spoken to her. Told
her hello and that he’d help her.
But he was big. And big people became monsters.
She closed her eyes and pretended to be a bird. Fly, fly away….
DEADLY GAMES Jaycee Clark 60
CHAPTER EIGHT
Ian drove the car, talking to both John and Lenora as they decided their best bet
was Karlovy Vary, the spa town of the Czechs. It would be dawn in a couple of hours and
there wasn’t much any of them could do about that.
The team called in to clean up his apartments in Prague had checked in. There had
been two casualties, neither of which were Snake and Tanner. The two men Ian had
worked with before. Gar was busy in Paris getting them a passport contact here.
To get into Germany, they needed passports. He had one, John was good, as was
Lenora. The problem was the little girl. Without proper papers they’d never get her out of
the country. And then by the time they could, he’d probably be dead. And so would the
child.
At the edge of town, he pulled into an empty lot and got out.
John slid into the driver’s place and Ian climbed into the back seat picking the
little girl up and moving her between him and Lenora.
“This will never work,” she said.
He tilted his head and slammed his door even as John pulled away. “Why not?”
Her brows rose and she shook her head. “Well, you are…” She motioned to him.
“You.”
“And?” He studied her, waited to see what she would say. For the most part, she’d
been very quiet. He’d heard her from time to time whispering to the little girl, who still
hadn’t uttered a sound. Ian pulled his coat up a bit more around the little girl.
Lenora looked out the window. “Fine. Who am I to say if anyone will ask
questions.”
“Lenora --” he started.
“Rori. I really detest Lenora. So,” she turned back to him, “if we’re going to pull
this off, call me Rori.”
He ran his gaze over that angular face, the softened jaw, straight nose, arched
brows and those, wicked eyes. He nodded. “Fits you, I think.”
She rolled those eyes and turned back to the window.
John muttered something as he drove the car up to the front of the Hotel Dvorak
and parked. The valet came out. They all knew what to do. Ian and Rori stayed in the car
as John climbed out, said something to the valet and nodded to the doorman.
“Do you realize the trouble if anyone asks questions?”
He watched John, at the front desk, as he shook his head, nodded, then produced
something from his pocket. Ian grinned. Poor night clerk.
“No one will ask questions other than perhaps what her name is.” He glanced back
at the little girl between them.
Her eyes were closed, long black lashes threw shadows against her pale cheeks.
Rage hissed through him again, but he ignored it and waited for John.
“Well, I’ve no idea what to call her,” she said, her voice laced with confusion and
DEADLY GAMES Jaycee Clark 61
indifference.
“We’ll just ignore names for her until it’s time to come up with a passport.” If he
didn’t want to answer anyone’s question, then he simply wouldn’t. Period. It had worked
for him thus far, he saw no reason it shouldn’t now.
The child didn’t stir even as he put his arm around her. So damn tiny. Her nose
was still child like, turned up at the end, her chin still stubbed. She had a round face that
looked gaunt with dark circles under her eyes.
He fisted his hand, still studying the child. Who was she? Where the hell did she
come from? Was there anyone searching for her? There better damn well be.
The lightest touch on his knuckles startled him, and he looked over her head to see
Lenora--no Rori--watching him.
“We’ll find them.”
He narrowed his gaze at her. “This is hardly your assignment.”
One brow rose. “Neither is it yours.”
“It is now.”
John knocked on his window. Ian turned even as John opened his door He
gathered the sleeping child to him and climbed from the car. Rori slid out his side and
both she and John gat
hered packs, bags and tossed other cases to the bellhop who had
appeared.W
aiting on Rori, they walked into the hotel, the trees along the River Tepla, bare
of leaves, their branches rattling in the chilling wind. He covered the little girl’s head,
tucking her against him as the warmth of the hotel washed over them all.
Inside, the hotel lobby was empty and silent. Ian walked straight to the bank of
elevators. Rori on his heels as they all made their way up to the suite John had obtained.
The ride up was silent. Ian calculated they had a few hours here at the most.
Someone checking into a hotel this late at night left an impression. But they didn’t have a
choice. They needed a place to stay. He wanted to make certain the little girl was only in
shock. She hadn’t uttered a single sound since they’d carried her from Elianya’s and that
was almost two hours ago. The only noise had been the soft sound of her sucking her
thumb.
At any other time, Ian might have enjoyed a stay in this high class hotel, but as it
was, he couldn’t have cared less.
John and Rori secured the place while Ian laid the little girl on the bed, then ran a
warm bath. She’d need clothes and an identity. They needed to print her and run her
through Interpol to make certain there were no yellow notices on the girl. He knew there
would soon be a black notice on the girl they’d had to leave behind. Well, if her body was
ever discovered there would be.
He shook his head, even as he cooled the water.
“She probably needs a doctor,” John said.
Ian looked at him in the mirror. “Probably.”
“Could just drop her off at the hospital. You need to get out of Europe as soon as
possible.”
“I could, I won’t, and I already know that.”
John tossed the bag onto the counter and walked out, saying over his shoulder,
“Snake and Tanner should be here within the next hour or so and I’ve already got a
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contact for passports.”
Ian frowned. “Snake was a medic wasn’t he?”
John didn’t answer him as he walked into the room and on into the living room.
Ian stood, shut the water off and wondered what the hell to do now. He looked
into the darkened room to see the little girl still lay on her side where he’d put her. Her
eyes weren’t open, but her thumb was still firmly in her mouth, the sight sadly vulnerable.
He strode across the room and felt her pulse. It was more normal, and she seemed a bit
warmer.He walked into the living room, grabbed the digital camera and returned to the
room to snap a quick photo of the little girl. Again he could only stare down at her. And
her image, her softly raising chest lay over and under a more gruesome one he’d seen on a
camera.
He shook his head.
“I’ll admit I know very little about children, but considering, I’ll bathe her,” Rori
said directly behind him. He hadn’t heard her come in.
Ian ran his finger down the little girl’s pale cheek, felt the slight movement as her
jaw shifted with her sucking, wishing he could make things better for her. He set the
camera aside and gently, he eased the coat away. Her eyes shot open and she shoved at
him, bolting.
He raised his hand, speaking softly. Again in Czech, German, Russian, hoping she
understood something.
She sat huddled on the bed, her hands fisted at her chest, her eyes wide and
terrified.
“This is never going to work,” Rori muttered.
He shot her a look over his shoulder.
“Now if we gave her something, easy as pie.”
“Someone already did give her something, unless I’m mistaken, and I’d rather not
be mixing drugs in her system. God only knows what Elianya gave them.”
Ian continued to speak softly to her, showed her the bathroom, laid a towel beside
the tub, grabbed his own bag and walked out of the room, leaving the girl alone with
Rori.
He had no idea what the hell else to do.
* * * *
Rori sat on the windowsill and ignored the child. Ian thought he could put the girl
at ease by talking to her.
She rolled her eyes. What the bloody hell did he know?
There was nothing that could put the child at ease after what she’d been through.
Even if she’d only seen. Seeing left impressions that were often as terrifying as the
experience itself. Fear led to complacentcy.
Rori glanced back over her shoulder, to see the little girl watching her. Rori
smiled slightly and knew the best thing was silence and stillness.
It took another ten minutes, but finally, she heard the rustle of material, saw from
the reflection in the window that the little girl slid off the bed and hurried to the loo The
lock clicked behind her.
She breathed a sigh of relief. Well, at least the child was feeling better. She could
DEADLY GAMES Jaycee Clark 63
move. She could walk, and she understood she could go to the bathroom alone.
Progress often came in small increments.
Rori stood and walked into the lounge.
Ian didn’t turn as he scanned the screen of his laptop. She wondered what he was
looking at, but then saw the camera and knew he’d entered the photo of their mystery kid
and was running it through Interpol.
“Anything?” she asked.
He typed on the keys, then paused. “What are you doing in here?”
She shrugged. “She’s taking a bath. I guess. She locked herself in the bathroom.”
He glared at her and stood. “And you just let her. My God, she’s little more than a
baby. Do you have any idea how many kids drown in the bathtub every year.”
She shook her head. “No, do you?”
He started towards the room. Then paused and raked his hand through his hair.
“No, but that’s beside the point.” He whirled and pointed to her. “You’re supposed to be
watching her.”
Rori strolled over to the table where a platter of water bottles stood. She grabbed
one up and twisted the top off. “What? She’s fine. Trust me. If she didn’t want to go in
there, she wouldn’t have. Give her a few minutes and then I’ll knock on the door.” She
drank deeply. “Do you have any idea what it’s like to have no privacy when you really
want it? To be so terrified that you distrust those who would help?”
His droll expression told her it was a stupid question.
She took another drink and glanced around the room. “Where’s John?”
“Went out for a few things.”
“Like?”
“Clothing. Unless I’m mistaken, you don’t have any, nor does the child.”
She shook her head. “You have inconspicuous down to an art.”
He shrugged, glanced back into the darkened room, then turned back to her, but
paced to the window, then back to the doorway of the room. “We needed a secure place
to stay for a few hours and this was the best we could do under the circumstances. Until
you both have passports, she can’t leave the country. You know as well as I do that if I
left the country with the child alone, that would raise suspicion. And we can hardly take
her photo or drag her through Germany wearing an eyelet nightgown and my coat.”
He stalked to the table, ripped the
zipper back and pulled his bag open. He quickly
flipped through the passports, then grabbed one. She saw several stacks of bills and raised
a brow. Man knew how to travel.
“What else have you got in your bag of transformation?”
He ignored her and sat again behind the computer.
“Aren’t you a jolly conversationalist?” Rori went back to the room and listened at
the door. Splashes and trickles echoed. The little girl was taking a bath. She grinned,
turned and yelped.
Ian stood directly behind her, listening himself. She’d never heard him or felt him
approach. She frowned.
He frowned.
“She’s taking a bath,” she told him.
“I can hear, thank you very much,” he snapped, his arms crossing. A muscle
DEADLY GAMES Jaycee Clark 64
flexed in his jaw. He rubbed a hand over his jaw, then the back of his neck. “What if she
has injuries we’re not even aware of? Was it only her sister they abused? Did they rape
that little girl before she got away? How the hell long was she … was she…”
“Held prisoner?” Rori asked.
He raked a hand through his hair, the long strands sliding back down on either
side of his forehead to hang to his chin.
She noticed as he talked, his voice lowered, softened. Where most would yell, she
could see his rage left a frozen wake. His tone, bladed to a point, could slice even as his
eyes all but burned.
“She’ll be all right,” she heard herself say.
“How would you know?” He looked again at the door.
Rori looked away, walked to the window, and cursed the fact her pulse leapt at his
simple question. No cars moved below. No people strolled along. The only movement
was the black snake of the River Tepla as is meandered through the town.
“Who hired you and why didn’t you kill me?” he asked.
She didn’t turn, like the child earlier, she could see his reflection in the window.
Rori waited, not knowing how exactly to answer him. “The contact was bogus.
I’ve tried running it.”
“You do that to all your … clients?”
She shrugged. “Those who are a bit too secretive, yes. I like to know everything I
can about any job.”
He nodded and paced away from his stance by the bathroom door. “Less
complications that way.”
