Maze (The Ballerina Series #2)

by Ursula Sinclair

  I don’t know how long we drove. I lost track of time. Eventually, we came to a stop and I heard the front passenger’s side door open. Then the door near my head opened. Someone grabbed my shoulders and pulled me out of the car. As soon as my feet hit the graveled ground, I stumbled but rough hands held me steady. One muscular arm wrapped around my waist. The other held onto my arm and forced me to walk forward.

  I walked. I had no choice. I went up two steps and then the ground changed. It felt like I walked on a carpeted floor. Then I took a few steps before I was turned, walked some more then pushed. I would have fallen if I didn’t find my balance. I wasn’t a ballerina for nothing. Whoever came in behind me grabbed my arm, pulling me, and then shoved my shoulder against what felt like a wall. He pushed me down until I landed on the floor.

  I scooted backward, away from him. I kept the wall against me until I backed into a corner. I remained blindfolded, my hands still tied behind my back. Really, where was I going? My captors knew that would be nowhere, so I stopped and tried to calm myself. I stuck my legs straight out and rested my head against the wall. I thought perhaps I was in an empty room with only my assailants for company.

  I heard someone else enter the room and he spoke to whoever stood over me in Chinese. Suddenly, the bandanna was yanked from around my eyes. I blinked to adjust to the dim light and tried to get my bearings. The first thing I noticed was there were two men in the room, and another who remained near the door, but he didn’t come into the room. All of the men seemed about the same height. Two were slender, and one appeared a little overweight. They all wore black hooded sweatshirts, the hoods drawn up over their heads. Only one wore a blue denim jacket over the sweatshirt. The same one who’d been in the backseat with me. They also wore bandannas that covered them from the nose down. All I could see were the slants of their dark eyes. Triad. I stifled the cry of fear threatening to emerge.

  “Who…who are you? Why am I here?” Didn’t come out as strong as I wanted.

  The one at the door said something to the others. They stared at me then turned and left the room. The slightly pudgy guy at the door remained behind.

  “Do you need to use the bathroom?” he asked.

  His voice was heavily accented, but I don’t know if it was because that’s the way he spoke or if he did it on purpose. I thought perhaps the latter to cover the sound of his voice. I started to say no, but decided to ask a question instead. Not that my first couple were answered. “Do you plan on keeping me here long?”

  “Do you need to use the bathroom or not?”

  “Yes.”

  He came over to me and placed the bandanna that had been dropped to the floor back around my eyes.

  I whimpered. “Please, don’t do that. I can’t identify you.”

  Again, he ignored me. He merely helped me stand and led me out of the room. We took a left and seemed to head in a different direction from the way we entered. After a few steps we went down another set of stairs, then we came to a stop. I heard a door open and he shoved me through it. He pulled the bandanna off and untied the binding around my wrists.

  As soon as my hands were released, I pulled them in front of me and massaged them. The restraints weren’t really tight but having my hands tied like that was not comfortable. I glanced around. I seemed to be in some sort of commercial establishment. This was not the kind of bathroom you’d find in someone’s home. It wasn’t that big, wide enough for a toilet, a sink, and a paper towel dispenser and trashcan. Not a window in sight.

  “You have five minutes.” Then the man left.

  I’d been hoping there’d be a window, something I could use in there, but unlike the movies there was nothing. No way out or to signal for help. They’d taken my purse with my cell phone in it. I looked at my face in the mirror. I saw my cheek was already turning a nice shade of purple. At least my lip from where I bit it no longer bled. With nothing else to do, I took advantage of the bathroom. When I finished, I washed my hands. My captor must have been standing on the other side of the door listening for the water, because he opened the door just as I reached for something to dry my hands with. He waited for me to finish.

  “Turn around and put your hands behind your back.”

  “Please,” I said. “That’s not very comfortable. Especially if I’m going to be tied up for awhile.”

  “Hold your hands out in front then.”

  I did and he replaced the restraints then retied the bandanna. We repeated in reverse the way we’d come. Once we got back to the room, he removed the eye covering and I took a spot against the wall of the empty place. There was nothing in there but four walls, an air vent above my head, and a low wattage light bulb in the center of the ceiling. The door was the only way in or out. At least I wouldn’t be kept alone in a dark room. “How long do you plan on keeping me here?”

  “That depends. I suggest you sit down and wait.” Then he turned around and walked out the door, shutting it behind him.

  I waited a few minutes to make sure he’d left before going over to the door. I put my ear against the center of it but couldn’t hear anything on the other side. I took a deep breath and grabbed the handle. I turned the knob and tried to push and then pull, but it was locked.

  Sighing in resignation, I moved away from the door and sat down, my back once again to the wall. I stretched my legs straight out and did the only thing I could do. I waited. Knowing in my heart, I was merely bait for Maze. On the one hand, I knew he’d come for me. On the other, I hoped he wouldn’t. I saw the guns all three men carried. While Maze might dodge or deflect a blow or even a sword he couldn’t out maneuver a bullet.

  I must have dozed because the next thing I became aware of was the feel of someone squeezing my breast. I opened my mouth to a live nightmare and screamed.

  The man kneeling beside me slapped me across the face. I tried to scramble away. He grabbed for my foot but I raised my encased foot and kicked him in the face. I struggled to get to my feet, but he grabbed my arm and got me back down on the ground.

  “Bitch!” he roared, blood dripping from his nose. His bandanna had fallen off and I saw his face. He fell on top of me, holding me down. Suffocating me. I screamed. He put his hand over my mouth and then suddenly his weight lifted off me.

  I raised my head. The one in a black hoodie with black jeans that had taken me to the bathroom, stood in the room and spoke sharply to my attacker. Asshole turned to look at me, wiped the blood from his nose with his sleeve and grinned before walking out of the room. My savoir glanced back at me. I curled myself up into a ball on the ground and turned away from him.

  I felt him kneel behind me and when he touched my arm I flinched. “Please. Leave me alone. Let me go.”

  “It will be over soon.”

  “Fuck you,” I said.

  “He will not bother you again.”

  Then he left the room and all I could do was shut my eyes and think of Maze.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Maze

  We circled the area trying to spot all the guards surrounding the house. Will stopped around the block. “I don’t like this, Maze. I don’t like you going in alone.”

  It wasn’t difficult to find out where Liu lived. I just asked Will if he knew, and he made a few calls. Dude had connections. “Will, I can do this. I’ve done stuff like this before and I do it best alone.”

  “All right. I’ll give you five minutes then I’m coming in.”

  “Ten. And in case anyone else shows up, keep them out.” I knew this was what Tsang didn’t want me to do, but it had to be done.

  The yards of the homes on the block were small, even if the houses appeared too big for the size of the lots. A big tree stood between the property on the left and the home I needed to break in to. I guessed which room was Liu’s immediately, the corner one on the second floor. It had a balcony, and lots of windows and seemed to be the largest on this side of the house. His wife and kids were probably home. But I hoped the other rooms were well
away from the larger corner room. I only wanted Liu.

  I got out of the car and climbed over the brick fence of the house next door. Using the drainpipe, I made my way to the roof. There was only one way to get into Liu’s house both unseen and without having to fight my way in. That would be the balcony. From Will and my count, there were two guards outside and at least two more Will and I could see moving around inside. This seemed on the looser side of security to me, but the address wasn’t easy to come by. The bastard was probably over confident as to his safety.

  From the roof of the house next door to Liu’s, I jumped onto the upper branches of the tree. From there, it was easy to make my way to the roof of the house, bypassing the men circling the property on the ground.

  I’d tried to avoid a direct confrontation with Liu but from the time he’d called a hit on Joe, I knew this was inevitable. In spite of everything I would have been willing to walk away. Let Liu keep the fucking Triad and do whatever he wanted to do with it. I told Tsang as much. I cut ties with anything Triad related. The Tong was legitimate 100%. Joe had seen to that, inevitably paying for it in his blood. But it wasn’t good enough for Liu. Bastard wanted it all. The reason he had Ivy. I was not going to let that one go. I’d be spilling blood again tonight, but not my own. And God have mercy on Liu’s soul if he’d hurt Ivy.

  I looked over the side of the roof onto the balcony below. The night was a warm one, so I wasn’t surprised to find the doors open. The curtains covering it flowed gently on the breeze.

  All my senses heightened. I waited for the sentry in the front yard to move to the other side of the house. As soon as he turned to walk in the other direction, I lowered myself from the roof to the balcony. I stayed in the corner, letting the night and my dark clothing cloak me from immediate sight. I strained to listen for any sound of wakefulness from the occupants in the room. Finding none, I took my first step into the room, then another. My eyes had already adjusted to the dim lighting. I saw Liu’s wife lying on the far side of the bed. I approached her first.

  Taking the vial I had in my pocket, I opened it and held it under her nose. She breathed the sleeping potion in, ensuring she would continue to slumber and remain unharmed. Her husband would not be so lucky. I doubted Ivy was in the house with his wife and family but I was taking no chances.

  I locked their bedroom door then made my way around the bed to Liu. I pulled my blade and placed it under the man’s chin at the same time I covered his mouth.

  Liu woke up with a jerk, and the knife pressed into his chin drew a sliver of blood. I watched the older man’s eyes grow wide with fear. I smiled. I saw Liu’s gaze dart to the side toward his wife. “She’s fine and will stay that way until our business is finished. Your family is safe from me even if mine is not from you. Now get the fuck up. Slow.”

  I eased off so Liu could sit up. I didn’t release the knife from below his chin but I moved my hand from his mouth to wrap around his bicep. I pulled him roughly to his feet.

  “Is Ivy here?”

  Liu’s eyebrows rose in surprise, and he slowly shook his head from side to side.

  I wanted a little more privacy for what I needed to do. “Bathroom,” I stated.

  Liu turned, leading the way. I kept pace with him until we got to a closed door. I slowly pushed it open to see a large bathroom. I pushed him over the threshold, and reached my hand on the wall to turn on the light. Then I shut the door. There was another door in the far corner of the bathroom. I shoved Liu over to it. It opened to reveal the toilet closet. Perfect for additional noise reduction and privacy. I nodded toward the small room. “Get the fuck inside.”

  Sweat beaded across Liu’s brow. “What are you going to do?”

  “Get the fuck inside. Don’t make me repeat myself.”

  Liu went into the toilet closet. I stepped in after him and shut this door, also. Liu made the mistake of trying to clip me on the knees and make me drop the knife.

  It didn’t work.

  I read the signs of his body as soon as he thought of the move and I blocked the blow. I delivered one of my own to the man’s chest causing him to ass plant on the closed toilet seat.

  In a chilling voice, I said, “Now we can do this the civilized way or not. Your choice. I’m going to ask you one question and I fucking better get the right answer the first time.”

  Liu ran his hand over his face. “Now you want to talk. I’ve been trying to get to you for awhile now, Maze.”

  “Yeah, I bet. Too bad I put all your boys six feet under.”

  Liu shook his head. “Believe it or not none of them, including Jai, acted under my orders. I know what you think. No love is lost between the two of us but it wasn’t me who killed Joe. I wanted him out. Not necessarily dead.”

  I snorted and crossed my arms over my chest, still holding the blade in a way if he so much as twitched the wrong way he’d regret it. As he watched the knife in my hand, I thought he knew it, too.

  “Bullshit.” My voice was soft but Liu shivered at the one word.

  “Look, my father put a hit on Joe a long time ago but he survived, and Joe and I came to an understanding.”

  “My mother didn’t survive that fucking hit.”

  “Neither did my father. Which is why as far as I was concerned your family lost something and so did mine.”

  “Fucking ancient history, man. Let’s talk current. You killed Joe, tried to kill me, and now you took Ivy. I was willing to walk away but no, you had to be greedy.”

  “I’m telling you I did not put out the order to kill Joe, loose cannons went after you and I did not take Ivy.”

  My hand with the knife flashed out fast and sliced through his shoulder. By the time Liu registered the pain I’d returned to standing in a neutral position.

  “Shit,” he yelled and glanced at the blood seeping through his light blue nightshirt. His hand went up to the cut.

  “The next one will be deeper,” I growled.

  “Maze, I swear to you on the heads of my kids. I did not put the hit on Joe, or you, and I’m not the one who took Ivy.”

  “Then if not you, then fucking who?”

  He bowed his head, then raised it to look me in the eye. “The same person who killed my father.”

  That shocked the shit outta me. “What the fuck?”

  “He and Joe were like brothers. But when your mother was killed Joe seemed to lose the will to lead. I took my father’s place at the Triad table. It’s no secret I wanted to lead. I have no love for the Tong and I did what I could to ensure the Triad controlled it. The only way to do that was to control Joe. And the Triad did until recently. There was a power play all right, but I wasn’t the one behind it. I want you to think about something. How did I know the route Joe was taking from the hospital in advance enough to block the road? That took timing and pre-planning. How the fuck would me or my people know?”

  I didn’t like where the thoughts driven by his words were taking me. “You could have been watching the hospital and followed them the same way you’ve been following me.”

  He shook his head. “I could. But I wasn’t. And even if I was how did I get far enough ahead of them to set the ambush?”

  My body went rigid. The blood traveling through my veins flowed hot. “And Ivy?”

  Again he moved his head. “Why would I take her? You were out. You’d agreed to head the Tong.”

  “And took the money and political influence with me.”

  “Yes. Not lying that’s a setback for us, but still what would taking Ivy get me but dead? There is only one person who benefits from my death. One person who wanted it all more than I did. One person who had his feet deeply embedded in both sides.”

  “No,” I whispered. The fear snaking down my spine almost numbed my mind. It already numbed my soul. Each word out of his mouth confused the shit out of me. My thoughts seemed impossible. My entire life took on another meaning. Something sinister had ingrained itself in Joe’s life and mine, and Joe had died as a result
. Ivy was endangered as a result. “No,” I spoke again. “You’re lying.”

  He had to be.

  “If I am then I’m as good as dead. I’ve had my people watching some of the warehouses Joe owned. I got a text earlier tonight. Check my phone. There’s an address in there. If you look into it you’ll see who owns that warehouse. Joe didn’t own it by himself.”

  I’d gotten a list of all the properties Joe owned. It included a couple of warehouses, but only one had a co-owner. “Where the fuck is your phone?”

  “In the bedroom on my nightstand.”

  “Take off your fucking shirt.”

  “What?”

  “You heard me.” After he did I tied his hands behind his back and opened the bathroom door. Holding onto his arm, I marshaled us back to his room over to the bed. He glanced at his sleeping wife.

  “She’ll be fine,” I said. “She’ll sleep till morning and wake up feeling refreshed. Provided you are truthful.”

  We went around the bed and his cell rested right where he said it would. I picked it up and pressed the home button. It was locked but he gave me the code. I glanced at the last message and sure enough it was an address. One over in Chelsea where I remembered one of the storage places was listed. I scrolled back through the conversation and my heart skipped a beat as I found more proof of what he said was true. From the text when he’d been alerted Ivy had been snatched, to when he’d gotten a report she’d been seen taken into the warehouse.

  I put the phone back down on the nightstand and turned to look at Liu who sat on the bed. I untied his hands.

  “Yeah, I’ve had some of Tsang’s people followed. I was never your enemy, Maze. I was even willing to let Joe leave for a price. That price was you taking the fall in the fight. Which you won, costing me. But even then Joe covered my losses. He made things right.”

  What? I didn’t know that. What the fuck was going on here? Liu kept talking. “Yes. Joe wanted out and he wanted to make sure there’d be no negative repercussions for you. Do you know he called me and I went to see him at the hospital?” Liu sighed when I didn’t respond. “Yeah, didn’t think so. You should have come to see me before this. It would have been almost impossible for me to try to come and see you. As far as I’m concerned the blood spilled between us is even. Stay the fuck outta my business and I’ll stay away from yours.”