by Casey Hagen
He sat up and dug his fingers into his eyes before scrambling for his jeans. The phone stopped ringing right before he reached it, setting off a stream of swear words that would make a sailor blush. He hit the button and held the phone to his ear.
“Dante? Sorry, took me a minute to get ahold of my phone.”
Jasmine stayed silent and tried to hear the words on the other end of the line, but they were too muffled.
“No, follow him. I’ll call you when I get on the road and meet you there. Call my brothers. Without knowing what we’ll find, I want all the manpower I can get.”
He clicked the phone off, set it on the nightstand, and threw off the covers. “I have to go,” he said, dragging on his jeans.
“I’m going with you,” she said, hopping out of bed and heading for her bag. The hum of satisfaction that thrummed through her evaporated on a wave of tension brought on by the phone call.
“The fuck you are. They spotted some suspicious activity with Will. I don’t know what to expect, but I sure as hell know you won’t be in the middle of it.”
“I’ll stay in the car,” she said, pulling on a pair of black yoga pants.
“No, you won’t,” he said.
“You’re right, I probably won’t, but I’m still going.”
“Fine, but you stay in the car. Got it?” he asked.
She smirked. She had him.
The look on his face told her that he knew as well as she did that if she wanted to get out of that car, she’d do so, and there wasn’t a damn thing he was going to do to stop it.
“Yes, dear,” he said.
Five minutes later they were climbing in his car. He pulled onto the road while she sat in the passenger seat and put her hair in a ponytail.
His phone went off again, and he clicked it on. “Luca here.”
“He’s stopped at the old Warren Hotel. He’s alone, but he’s doing an awful lot of scanning the area around him before he moves. Something’s up,” Dante said.
“Keep an eye on him and hold your position. I can be there in fifteen. What’s the ETA for my brothers?”
“Twenty minutes tops. We’re stopped in the Park and Ride across the street with some of the overnight cars.”
“Okay, hang tight.”
Luca’s muscles bunched and flexed. Tension rolled off him in waves the closer they got to their destination.
“What’s the old Warren Hotel?” she asked.
“A hotel that’s sat abandoned for about twenty-five years. The family that owns it keeps the grounds just kempt enough to avoid fines while they sit in a stalemate on what to do with it. The son wants to sell. The daughter wants to restore,” he said, making a hard left turn that had Jasmine grabbing for the door handle.
She swung her head toward him, her jaw dropping. “They’ve fought over it for that long?”
“Yeah,” he said, the corner of his mouth tilting in an almost smile.
“And in the meantime, the place is costing them money in taxes and upkeep,” she said.
“There’s not that much upkeep going on. I cringe to think about what might be happening there,” he muttered, slamming his hand against the steering wheel.
“It might be nothing,” she said with a shrug. But the sour feeling taking residence told her it wasn’t. Of course, that might be the terror at knowing he was going to walk into God knows what, and there wasn’t a damn thing she could do to help him.
He swung a glance in her direction. “A nineteen-year-old showing up to an abandoned hotel in the middle of the night?”
“Okay, so it’s not nothing,” she said with a heavy sigh.
Jasmine took deep breaths to calm her racing heart as they rolled freely through the quiet streets of Baltimore. She searched the homes looking to see who was still awake at three in the morning and if they were awake, if she could tell what they were doing.
Several lights burned and TVs flickered, but then, it was the weekend. She spotted the occasional occupant reclining in a chair and a few kitchen lights burning, but nothing as interesting as what her imagination came up with.
She abandoned her game when she struggled to maintain interest. Agitation welled inside her despite the things she did to distract herself from the unknown. “Okay, so what happens when we get there?”
“We discussed this. You stay in the car,” he said.
“Yes, but what do you do?”
“My team and I get on our gear, and we go inside.”
“What if there’s nothing there to find?” she asked.
“There’ll be something. It may not be where they have Tyler, but there’s always a discovery to be made. Depending on what it is, we’ll either take control or hold the area secure while we wait for the police.”
“Are you scared?”
“Not for me, but I always worry for kids. The slightest mistake and innocent people are hurt, or worse.”
He pulled into the Park and Ride and slid in next to a black van. He shifted the car into park and turned off the ignition. “Keep these,” he said, dangling the keys in front of her. “And I mean it, Jasmine. That sweet ass of yours better not leave this seat. I can’t afford to be distracted. Understand?”
“Well, now that you’ve guilted me…I’ll stay put. Happy?”
He smiled and kissed her gently. “Yes.” He pressed his forehead to hers. “I love you,” he whispered, before slipping out of the driver’s seat and heading around to the back of the van.
Making his escape before she could say it back was just another way to ensure that she did as she was told.
The jerk.
She watched as he popped open the doors and pulled out what she assumed were bulletproof vests, a case full of guns, and goggles. At least that’s what they looked like. All she really had for a frame of reference was SWAT shows she had seen on TV and movies. Not exactly reliable.
His brothers rolled in, flicking off their headlights before pulling into the empty spaces around them. Jasmine spun in her seat, searching for familiar faces when Lily climbed in to sit with Jasmine.
“How do you do it?” Jasmine asked Lily without taking her eyes off Luca. She had just found him and already she could lose him.
“It’s his job, and I don’t want to get in the way of that. I have to trust him to do it,” Lily said quietly. “And whatever time I get is better than no time at all.”
Jasmine nodded and swallowed the lump in her throat. “I told Luca what we did and what I know,” Jasmine said, watching him hand out gear to his brothers.
“About his sister, too?” Lily said, a note of surprise lacing her voice.
“Yes,” Jasmine admitted.
“Good, because I couldn’t keep my mouth shut. I don’t want to hide things from Mason,” Lily said, laying her palm on the glass as she watched him slide on his vest.
“How did he take it?” Jasmine asked.
“Well, he needs a new TV.”
She winced. “Ouch.”
“Yeah, but he didn’t direct that at me. I didn’t think about how the news would overwhelm them with helplessness,” Lily said.
“Ditto.”
They waited in silence as they watched the brothers and Dante finish prepping to search the hotel. The guys checked all of their clips and slid their guns into the various holders on their bodies.
Mason and Luca turned to give them a hard look before they headed across the road.
They moved like jungle cats, all loose limbs, prowling into the night. Their bodies curled over protectively, their knees bent, with guns drawn and aimed at the building. They communicated with hand signals that seemed to come as naturally to them as girl talk and sharing secrets came to her and Lily.
That man was all hers. She smiled with pride.
She lost track of who was who the farther they got into the darkness. Three light posts shot up into the air out of the abandoned parking lot, but only one worked, making it nearly impossible to see without the benefit of movement which was easier t
o spot. Two of them headed for the front door, while the other two split up and circled around the old brick building to the back.
Single story and super long, the building resembled a modern-day motel, and no matter how great her imagination, Jasmine couldn’t conjure up what it must have looked like in its heyday or what kind of people stayed there. Probably families with young children looking for an inexpensive option without committing themselves to a place that had no qualms about renting by the hour.
“Jasmine?” Lily whispered, her skin sheet white.
“What is it?” Jasmine asked. The men had been inside for a few minutes now.
“There’s someone outside.” Lily pointed to where a silver sedan rolled out of the woods along the far end of the building.
She imagined the sound of the tires crunching over the gravel as it crept into the lot alongside the hotel as if parking near a side entrance they couldn’t see. “We have to warn them.”
“We can’t,” Lily cried. “There’s no way.”
“Then we have to go in,” Jasmine said.
The car stopped, and the only thing Jasmine could make out was a heavy-set man climbing out of the driver’s seat and circling around to the trunk. With a flick of his wrist, the trunk popped open, and the man reached inside.
What he pulled out made Jasmine’s blood run cold.
The familiar feeling slammed into her gut.
It was Tyler.
He tossed the thrashing body over his shoulder and from the way the kid kicked and swung, his hands and ankles were bound.
But he was putting up one hell of a fight even three days after being kidnapped.
“We have to take him by surprise. Play stupid. It’ll buy the guys some time,” Jasmine said.
“And if he turns on us?” Lily asked.
She was right. They were never going to manage to act like they just stumbled upon the place. It’s not like that’s the place anyone would choose to ask for directions.
It was a good place to get murdered.
“When he turns on us,” Jasmine said.
“Oh, God.”
“We’re going to have each other, and we’re going to trust that the guys get to us before anything can go really wrong.” Jasmine held her hand out to Lily.
Lily took Jasmine’s hand and nodded her head in agreement.
Climbing over one another so Jasmine was in the driver’s seat, Jasmine slid the key in the ignition and fired up the engine. Sending up a quick prayer, she looked both ways, and with no cars coming, she hit the gas.
The front end busted through the wood fence separating the lot from the main road. Wood splintered and flew into the night air as the tires squealed. She struggled to keep the wheel straight as the car took off.
The man holding Tyler turned their way and dropped Tyler back in the trunk.
Jasmine slammed her foot to the floor giving it the rest she could and locked her hands on the wheel. Jumping the curb, she tore through the parking lot of the abandoned hotel, ripping through what little landscaping survived the years of neglect.
The headlights bumped and hobbled.
She slammed on the brakes, the car screeching to a stop. She prayed the sound of them leaving half of Luca’s tires on the parking lot was enough to get Luca’s team’s attention.
Slamming forward and snapping back, Lily and Jasmine gasped for breath and braced themselves as the car slid to a stop just ten feet shy of the building facing the last room on the end.
The man shielded his eyes, something about him familiar. He stepped in front of their car and reached into his pocket.
Jasmine squinted into the night, trying to see.
“It’s a gun,” Lily screamed.
Jasmine spotted the shape just as he raised the barrel and aimed it at them through the windshield.
“Hang on!” Jasmine yelled as she slammed the car into drive, heading straight for him.
Shocked eyes met hers right before the front end of the car caught him in the knees and smashed into the brick, pinning him.
He screamed, the sound an agonized cry of unimaginable pain. Blood and spit flew from his mouth, splattering the windshield as he raised his head.
Leo from Leo’s arcade locked eyes with her and raised the gun once more.
“Duck!” Jasmine screamed, pushing Lily to the floor before shots popped, shattering the windshield and tearing up the seats behind them.
Glass rained down on them before the air filled with the sharp staccato of rapid gunfire coming from all angles.
She counted her breaths, trying to focus on anything other than the nightmare unfolding around her.
Men shouted, their voices muffled by the ringing in her ears, and the sound of boots running across the pavement replaced the gunfire.
Jasmine didn’t dare let go of Lily. Afraid to look, she clung to her. If they were going to die, they were going to do so together, and Jasmine would protect her best friend, her sister of the heart, until the very last second.
The door flew open, and big hands shot under her armpits, yanking her out of the car.
She swung her fist, kicked her feet, and screamed, the sound a rival for some of the best scream reels of Hollywood.
“It’s me! Dammit, Jasmine. Easy, just take it easy,” Luca’s voice soothed as his arms banded around her, holding her tight while she came back to herself.
Tears burst from her eyes as she slumped against him. “Tyler?”
“We’ve got him. We’ve got a lot of them,” he said.
“A lot?” she asked.
“Twelve kids chained to old beds in there. They’re getting them out now. The police are on their way.”
“Thank God,” she sighed, hugging him tight. “Where’s Lily?” she asked, trying to crane her neck to see behind her.
He smoothed his hand over her hair, touched her cheeks, and ran his fingers over her shoulders. “Being smothered by Mason. She’s okay. You’re both okay.”
She nodded, burying her face against his chest, swallowing hard.
He cupped her chin and raised her face to his. “I thought we had an agreement?” he said, giving her a hard glare.
She glanced over at the smashed front end and Leo, pinned against the hotel, his upper body sprawled across what was left of the car, blood running out from under him and down the hood.
She winced. “I promised I’d stay in the car.”
“That’s it? That’s all you’re going to say?” he asked her, his eyes wide, his jaw slack.
She bit her lip and glanced away. “I don’t know, I think I did a good job following directions. I improvised.”
He jabbed a finger at her. “I’m going to get you a babysitter.”
She pointed toward Mason. “Lily—”
“She doesn’t count,” he bit out.
“You’re scared,” she said, cupping his cheek.
“Yeah, that’s putting it mildly.”
“I know the feeling.” She kissed his lips, grateful she was still alive to do so.
He kissed her palm and nodded. “I suppose you do.”
“We’re going to have to get used to this worry. There’s more to come,” she murmured. She buried her face in his neck and breathed him in.
“Is that your gut talking?”
“Nah, that’s just life.” She kissed his chin and hugged him tight.
The police rolled in sirens blaring just a few minutes later. Blue, red, and white lights flashed against the brick building as child after child was pulled out wrapped in blankets. Some had bare feet, dirt smudged their faces, and their eyes had a hollowness that came with continued abuse and fear.
Their grief filled the air, but only Lily and Jasmine noticed just how thick the emotion.
Luca held her hand and Mason held Lily’s as they went through the finally empty building. In the front office, with holes in the drywall and graffiti painted on the counter, a member of the Baltimore PD nodded at them.
“One hell of a ring you f
ound here,” he said. He reached out a hand to Jasmine. “Jeff Clare,” he said.
“Jasmine Eckert. Nice to meet you. Wish it were under better circumstances.”
He surveyed the room and glanced down the hall that led to the guest rooms. “I don’t know, no casualties. Well, other than the guy you took out, but we have Will and can question him, and the kids are alive, so I would say it’s a win-win.”
She nodded. “Do you mind if we take a walk through?”
“Why would you want to do that?”
“I don’t know. I guess I just need to see for myself how they were living. I’ll be able to reassure myself that he deserved what I did to him,” Jasmine said, not realizing until that moment how much it bothered her that she had a part in taking a life tonight.
Jeff nodded. “Sure.”
Mason led the way as they walked through room after room littered with stained mattresses, fast food garbage, dead rodents, and feces.
The stench of rot grew as they made their way further into the building.
Jasmine covered her nose with her hand. “Okay, I don’t feel guilty now. How the hell could anyone do this to a human being?”
“He was a sick son of a bitch, and there’s a lot of money in selling kids. Soulless bastard.”
With three rooms left to go, Luca turned to her. “Had enough yet?”
She stumbled and reached for the wall to steady herself as a wave of familiarity fell over her.
She pulled away from Luca and walked past four rooms before arriving at the one on the end. The air hummed with something unfamiliar, as if the energy around them was trying to send her a message.
She ducked into the room and spun in a circle taking in the gray-stained walls and rust-colored carpet. A broken bed frame stood propped against the wall.
Something black and gray lay wedged in the corner.
Taking measured steps, not sure of what it was, not knowing if it was an animal, she took her time. About five feet away she stomped her foot, figuring if it were an animal it would move.
But it remained still.
She reached down, and her fingers sank into the matted, gritty fur of a stuffed animal. She lifted it into the light and gasped.
Luca and Mason froze in the doorway, their shoulders rigid. Lily pushed past them and reached for the toy.
