“Fancy,” I said. “But sure. If it’s not too much trouble.”
I watched as the chef created the crepes from scratch. The smell was so delicious as the mixture hit the pan that I almost went to heaven right there and then. And then the chef used a hazelnut chocolate spread and rolled one of the crepes for me. As soon as I put it in my mouth, I almost felt like thanking the universe for allowing me to be kidnapped by a criminal madman.
“This is amazing,” I said to the chef. “Where did you learn to do this?”
“France, where else?” He said cheerfully and went back to making more crepes.
The henchmen joined in when they saw how much I enjoyed the crepes and they had looks of bliss on their faces as well, which was quite something to see. Even Jordan enjoyed the crepes.
“This is great,” Jordan said. “I could get used to this.”
It was the first time that I got to see the human side of Jordan Puccini. Up until now, he was just a killer, a murderer and a ruthless henchman to a criminal.
But now that he showed some of his humanity, even if it was just related to food, which was one of the basic human needs, I started to think that maybe I had a way out of this after all.
If I could get Jordan Puccini to believe in my gift like his boss did, I could use that belief to manipulate him into getting me out of here.
Now the only trouble was getting him to believe in my gift in the first place.
Chapter 16
After breakfast I pretended I was super tired and retired to one of the bedrooms. I looked out the window and saw that there was a henchman there. There was one outside my door as well. I decided since I had no other choice that sleep was preferable to pacing around.
Before falling asleep, I asked the universe for anything that could help me and then I fell right to sleep.
When I woke up, I was no wiser than when I’d gone to sleep. The universe wasn’t being of much help to me, though for some reason it didn’t have a problem giving me visions for Delroy’s benefit. This was one of those things that made me think that the universe wasn’t really so benevolent after all. It probably wasn’t malevolent either. Just neutral. But then why did it want me to save Dax and all the others it gave me visions about? Or maybe it wasn’t interested in Dax at all but he was only a means to an end, to get me to Delroy? Or Jordan perhaps.
It was four o’clock in the afternoon according to the clock on the wall. Whether it was right, I had no idea. Without my cell phone, all sense of time had vanished.
I got out of the room slowly. One of the henchmen led me to Delroy’s office.
He was at his table looking over the notes I made again.
“This is remarkable,” he said. “You really are gifted. Have you had a good rest? Because I have more tasks for you.”
“Of course you do.”
“There’s no need to be snippy. I’ve treated you better than most people would.”
“People who kidnap other people? That’s quite a low bar you’ve set for yourself.”
Delroy got up.
“I’ve left a stack of folders on different stocks I’m thinking of purchasing. Choose the winners and your work will be done for today.”
“Don’t you think that if I knew what the winning stocks were, I’d buy them for myself?”
“According to my mother, it’s always the hardest to read for yourself.”
Amen to that. Mama Delroy sounded like a woman who knew what she was talking about.
“I wonder what tomorrow will bring?”
“Spoilers, Ms. Ranger. Just focus on the task at hand.”
“When can I go home? I promise I won’t tell anyone about this if you let me go now.”
He smiled. “I’m afraid that while certain things are still up in the air, you’ll have to remain here.”
He left me in an empty office with another stack of folders to look through.
I looked out the window just in case, but there were two henchmen there as usual. I looked around for anything that could be used as a weapon. The fire poker was the prime candidate. There was even a letter opener on the desk. Was Delroy being careless or was he that certain he had me under control?
I rolled my eyes and sat down at the desk. Then I decided to go sit on the couch instead. Why not be comfortable if I was going to be helping a criminal anyway?
I laid my hand on the folder and closed my eyes.
“Give me your best,” I said to the universe.
And the universe gave me nothing.
I took the next folder.
Same thing.
I guess even the universe had its limits. Telling a criminal lord where to find the witnesses he needed to “take care of” in order to maintain his freedom wasn’t a problem. But helping me choose a few winning stocks for that same criminal was somehow beneath it.
I went through all the folders and got zero psychic impressions and hits on all of them.
Since my psychic abilities weren’t kicking in, I decided that maybe I should start thinking about an escape plan instead.
I could overpower, at best, one of the henchmen. That still left half a dozen others strewn about the property. Maybe if I could get hold of a gun I could have the upper hand over all of them. But I’d probably get myself killed in the process.
While I tried to think of ways to escape, my mind kept coming back to Jordan Puccini. Was it because he was the one I was most familiar with or was it because I was receiving a hint-hint or nudge-nudge from the universe? It was hard to tell. I didn’t get a throbbing headache, just a knowing feeling in my gut that somehow he was the weak link.
Maybe a glass of water would do the trick.
The thought just entered my head. I went to get that glass of water. Jordan Puccini was right in front of the office door, like expected of course.
“You’re done already?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.
“No, I’m just thirsty. I need a glass of water.”
“I’ll get it, you just go back in the room.”
He locked the door as soon as he closed it behind me.
I rehearsed my next moves carefully in my mind and hoped the universe would provide. If it didn’t, my whole plan might end before it even began.
I heard the door get unlocked. Then he opened it and absentmindedly handed the water to me, as if he had better things to do.
I drank the water and then dropped the glass and fell to the ground holding my head.
Jordan immediately came to my aid, lifting me up. As soon as his hands touched mine, flashes of memories, or thoughts, came into my mind.
A little boy left all alone in a big scary house.
A little boy locked in a dark, claustrophobic closet.
An angry boy beating another kid.
The house burning as the little boy watched with a smile on his face.
And then it stopped.
I was seated on the couch, Jordan looking down on me with a frown on his face.
Several henchmen came and cleaned up the broken glass and spilled water. Delroy came, too.
“What is it?” Delroy asked.
“Nothing,” I was quick to say. “The glass just slipped out of my hand.”
“Sounds more to me like you had a vision. So why aren’t you sharing it with me?” He looked at his henchmen. “We can speak alone if you want to,” Delroy offered.
I could almost smile. He was doing all the work for me. I held my head.
“I’m starting to get a headache. I think I need to rest for a bit and then I’ll continue with the stocks.”
“I trust you’ll write down if you do get any visions,” Delroy said. “You know what’s at stake,” he had to add.
“I know,” I said.
I gave Jordan a knowing look as Delroy and the others left the room.
“What is it?” He asked.
“I did see something,” I whispered.
Jordan headed for the door. “Then Delroy needs to know.”
; “Stop,” I was quick to say. “This vision didn’t concern him, not directly anyway. It was about you. I had the vision when you helped me up.”
“I don’t believe in your visions or premonitions or whatever you want to call them.”
He was almost out of the room.
“You burned your house down when you were a kid. Your parents locked you in a closet. They also left you alone in that house. You were so scared.”
He gave me a scared look. “How…? No one knows about that. It’s not in any file.”
“You should probably close that door,” I whispered. “I don’t want them to overhear what I have to say next.”
“If this is a trick…”
“You know it’s not. How else would I know all those things about you?”
He reluctantly closed the door.
“So what else did you see?” He asked, now looking more curious than ever. He looked like he was hanging on my every word. Which meant that I needed to make every word count.
“I saw your future,” I said carefully.
“Don’t keep me in suspense, girl. Just say it already.”
“I saw Delroy shoot you. He didn’t look happy about it. He even said he was sorry, but you were too hot, whatever that means, to keep on his team. He thanked you for your service and then he just shot you. Then I saw him talking to one of his other men, telling them to ‘make it count.’ It sounds like he’s planning on framing you for everything and getting rid of you in one full sweep. I wish I had something nicer to report, but that’s what I saw.”
“Delroy would never do that.”
“The good thing is that he doesn’t have to. The future is malleable. You can stop this from happening.” I wanted to add that he could stop Delroy, but I had a feeling that would be pushing it. I didn’t want to overplay my hand, especially since it was all lies anyway.
“When exactly is this supposed to take place?” He asked.
We needed urgency it seemed.
“It took place right in this room,” I said. “There were papers strewn all around.”
“I don’t know. I don’t think he’d do that to me. I’ve been loyal to the man since I was a teenager.”
“I don’t think he did it just because. He did it to protect his own skin. Do you really think he wouldn’t put his needs above yours if it came down to it?”
“I don’t know. What if this is just a trick?”
“I’m a psychic. I think I’ve proven that enough, don’t you?”
“That’s not what I mean. What if you’re just making up this vision so that I could help you get out of here?”
“It’s true that I don’t want to be here, but I’m telling you about the vision not for altruistic reasons, but for selfish ones. When I saw in my vision what he was willing to do to one of his most loyal employees, I shuddered to think what he’d end up doing to me.”
“After all these years, and that’s how he’s going to repay me? Well, he’s got another thing coming.” Jordan took his gun out. “There’s only one way to settle this then. Ain’t nobody getting rid of me dirty like that.”
I stepped in front of the door.
“Get out of my way, or you might be getting the bullet that’s meant for someone else.”
“You’re going to get yourself killed. And not to mention me. We have to be smart about this. His men are everywhere.”
“I’m one of his men,” Jordan said with a sad expression.
I wanted to roll my eyes but stopped myself just in time. That would definitely reveal my game. I had Jordan exactly where I wanted him, now all I needed was to steer him in the right direction.
“What about supplies?”
“What about them?”
“Doesn’t one of you have to get them from time to time?”
“This place has already been taken care of. We should be good for at least a week, maybe more. I’m pretty sure Delroy has a bunker in the basement.”
“How are we going to get out here then?” I tried to think, but not much was coming to me.
“Guns blazing?” Jordan offered.
“Yeah, that’s not an option. I’m pretty sure the universe didn’t give me that vision of you so that I could cause your death even sooner. The universe wants you alive, Jordan.”
“Aww, you can be really sweet when you want to,” he said.
“This isn’t a joke,” I whispered. “We have to get out of here.”
“Fine,” he said. “Just follow my lead.”
“I need a little more than that.”
He thought about it.
“Go to the bathroom. There’s a window there. I’ll offer to guard it. I need a smoke anyway.”
“Good. But what about the other cars? Can’t you get their keys? We don’t want them to follow us as soon as we leave.”
“Good thinking. I’ll get right on that.”
I went to the bathroom as planned, as soon as Jordan took guard there. He was even lighting a cigarette and everything.
The sun was setting on the horizon. It would be dark soon enough, but it still wasn’t dark enough.
I turned on the shower.
Then I climbed out of the window and kneeled down.
“What now?” I asked Jordan.
He took three pairs of keys out of his jacket pocket and dangled them in front of my face.
“Let’s go,” he said. “Keep your distance. I’ll distract the guys up front as you sneak behind the cars, all right?”
And that’s exactly what I did. I sneaked behind the two huge SUVs and then made it to Jordan’s car. I listened as Jordan sent one of the guys to guard the bathroom window. He told the other to take a break because he had it under control out here.
After they were gone, he came over to the car and opened the door for me. I got in the back seat. He got in the driver’s seat.
It was now or never. Just before he had a chance to start the car, I held the letter opener against his throat.
“Not so fast. Give me the other keys. And your gun.”
“Oh hell no.”
“Hell yes,” I said pressing the letter opener deeper into his flesh.
“Fine,” he said, throwing the keys to the back seat. He dropped the gun there, too. I got hold of it and held it to the back of his head.
“Get out now and walk toward the house. I’m really sorry about this, Jordan, but I have to get out of here.”
He slowly got out. I climbed over the seat and got to the front.
“Was any of it true?” He asked.
“No. I made that vision up so you’d get me out of there. Sorry.”
“You’ll be sorry when I catch up to you,” he said. “And that’s a promise.”
“Looking forward to it,” I said sarcastically and drove out of there like a bat out of hell.
My whole body was shaking as I tried hard to hold onto the wheel. The adrenaline was rushing through me. It took a couple of minutes for me to calm down. When I came to, I saw that I was driving over a hundred miles per hour. I slowed down, though being stopped by a trooper wouldn’t have been a bad thing.
Now all I needed was a sign of civilization, and maybe only then this nightmare would finally end. The only problem was that I didn’t even know where I was in the first place.
Chapter 17
I drove and drove until finally, I saw a gas station in the distance. I made a quick stop. I was running low on gas but it wasn’t like I had any cash on me. Or did I? I checked the glove department and did, in fact, find a stack of twenties. Maybe it was there for emergencies. Well, this definitely qualified as an emergency.
I asked the cashier where exactly we were once I got inside the station. I got a couple of snacks and a large bottle of water for the road.
He said some town I’d never heard of.
“What state?”
He gave me a strange look. “Kentucky, of course. How long have you been on the road?”
“Longer than I wanted. Do you have a phone
?”
“It’s in the back.”
“Can I use it?”
He nodded. I just hoped that he wasn’t a serial killer because at the moment I was his only customer.
There was only one number I remembered off the top of my head and that was my mother’s number.
She answered after the first ring.
“Where are you? Are you all right? Lily called and told us what happened. We’ve been worried sick.”
“I’m on my way home now,” I said, trying to keep the hysterics to a minimum in front of the cashier. “I managed to get a car and drive away.”
“Why don’t you call the cops?” My mother asked.
“I don’t know just how far his influence reaches. But I called just to warn you that you should get with Brad and keep a low profile.”
“Don’t worry about us. We know the situation. We’re safe. I just hope you are. Don’t you want one of us to come and pick you up?”
“I can’t afford to waste time. But as soon as I get to a location that I’m familiar with, I might just do that.”
After hanging up the phone, I bought a map and asked for directions. I didn’t have my phone with me and Jordan’s car didn’t have a GPS, unfortunately.
I did my best. As someone who hated driving, it was probably worse than being kidnapped.
But I managed to cross into Ohio. As soon as I did, I breathed a sigh of relief, even though I still had at least a few hours of driving before I got to Picking Hill.
The next few hours were spent listening to the radio and looking over my shoulder. Any moment I expected to see a pair of black SUVs behind me. Or police cars. Jordan’s car must have been on some list somewhere, right?
But no police cars stopped me. Not until I finally entered Picking Hill.
Brad was there and gave me a tight hug.
“Where’s mom?”
“She’s at home. Don’t worry. She’s not alone. A few cops, Lily and Dax are there as well.”
“Dax?”
“He came over as soon as he heard you were on your way. He’ll tell you why when you talk.”
I drove back with Brad in the police cruiser as cops drove Jordan’s car into town, presumably for the FBI’s benefit.
Deadly Visions Page 11
