“But? What happened?”
“He gets calls and won’t tell me who they’re from. I’m not trying to pry, but he’s secretive about it. And he straight stood me up for a coffee date yesterday. You were out saving the world with your boyfriend, and mine was standing me up.”
“That’s not cool.” I didn’t mention it, but it also didn’t sound like Danny. He’d been attentive when we were training at the gym, and I’d noticed a definite change in him after he reconnected with his parents.
“He apologized. Said it was work, and he couldn’t get to the phone to let me know. And okay, I can accept that. But he’s distracted and more brooding than normal.”
“I didn’t think that was possible.”
She gave me a narrow glare, and I shrugged. It was true. His picture should be next to the definition of brood in the dictionary. However, if anyone would know the difference in his brooding level, it would be Carly. She’d been studying him for months, and I had to wonder what would be causing his distraction now.
The server interrupted my thoughts as she brought us to a tiny table in the back. The place was packed, but we managed to get our order in.
“Oysters Bienville.”
“Rockefeller for me.”
“Oh, and a dozen raw.”
“Please.”
“Thank you.”
After getting our food, our conversation turned to the exam we’d just finished, and my morning meeting with Wade and his Grannie.
“So, she gave a reading to Jake and Connor? That is so cool. I wonder if she’ll do one for me?”
“I have a feeling she will.” I smiled at the thought, picturing Carly and Grannie doing a reading, especially after she’d accused them of being fakes when she’d met them.
“Are we ready to do our presentation next week?” Our criminal justice paper was due when we came back from break.
“Yes.” She gave me a questioning look. “We are going to keep the paper the same? Exposing Fraudulent Psychics and Their Effects on Society?”
“Yes.” I agreed. The topic still made me uncomfortable. I was some version of a psychic, and our paper felt like a witch hunt. I knew there were plenty of fraudsters duping people out of their money, but was our report negating the effects of people like myself and Wade?
“I have an idea about it.” She held up her hand. “Now, don’t shoot me. I was thinking we should change it just a little. Maybe add a piece about psychics working for the police department. A sort of counter-argument to our presentation. The benefits of having psychics in our midst.”
“I think you just like to argue.” A smile snuck out, even as I tried to contain it. We’d been friends a long time, and the fact that she was willing to do additional work, because of my hang up with our topic, proved what an incredible friend she was.
“Maybe I do, but I also know that for the dozen frauds we found there was a real one, and he saved lives. Just like you do. And we need to show that. Our world isn’t cut and dry, and true psychics face ridicule and disbelief when they try to help, and that needs to change.”
“You are pretty darn amazing yourself,” I told her as I looked around. “What time is it?” The restaurant had emptied while we were talking, and I had a feeling we were going to be late.
“It’s almost two. We’re gonna be late for class.”
“I can’t believe I didn’t notice.”
We paid the check and dashed out. The parking lot was practically empty as we headed to Carly’s car. I huddled into my jacket, as the wind cut through us. She fished her keys out, the car beeping as the locks disengaged. We were almost there, and in our rush, not paying attention to the area around us.
“Not so fast.” My head jerked back, as someone had yanked on my ponytail. I reacted instinctively, spinning around to hook my attacker’s leg and drop him. He anticipated my move, dodging, and I heard Carly scream. It distracted me as I spun around to see where she was.
The scene in front of me would be one I would never forget, as I watched Danny hold a struggling Carly, his hand over her mouth to stop her scream. The sight froze me for a second too long, giving my attacker the opportunity to knock me out.
I woke up to the taste of blood in my mouth, the pounding in my head matching the rocking motion I felt. The combination made me queasy as I attempted to sit up.
“Addie. Addie. Are you okay?” I started to nod, but the pain the motion caused stopped me. I waited for the dizziness to end before focusing on Carly. She was propped against the wall, her hair tangled around her face, and her hands and feet were tied together.
“I’m okay,” I answered belatedly, noticing my own hands and feet were tied. The rocking led me to believe we were on a boat, but it wasn’t dark, and they hadn’t gagged or blindfolded us, so I wasn’t sure if they were the same people that had taken the other five girls.
A thought niggled at me, something I’d seen, and as I remembered, I gazed at Carly in horror.
“Did you see who took us?”
She nodded frantically, but didn’t look nearly as horrified as I felt, so I thought I must be mistaken. There was no way I’d seen Danny help kidnap us.
“I didn’t recognize the guy who grabbed you. I never saw the guy that had me. He dropped a hood over my head, and they shoved us in a car.” She frowned, her eyes red from suppressed tears. “This is why I hate that stupid parking lot. People can kidnap you.”
Her words made me smile faintly, because even in the midst of a truly horrific situation, Carly could say something to make me smile. I scooted closer to her, the motion making me dizzy, as the throbbing in my head increased with each movement. It took what seemed like hours, but I finally made it to her side.
“Did you hear anything?” I asked, finding myself needing to lean against her and the wall, just to stay upright.
“The guy was ranting. Kept on and on about how you ruined his plans. He needed girls, and if he didn’t have them, they would make him pay. I don’t know why he blames you. The cops rescued the girls. He shouldn’t have known anything about you.”
“Ask me,” I muttered, the throbbing in my head growing worse and forcing me to close my eyes.
“Addie, stay awake.”
I pried my eyes open. “I’m awake. Light hurts my eyes. Ask me.”
“Are you sure? You don’t look so good.”
My face was pasty white, blood trickling from my lip where he’d hit me, and I could see why she thought I wasn’t up to it.
“We have to know. Information is our only advantage, right now.” The dizziness made it easy for me to believe I was wrong about Danny. He couldn’t have been the one to kidnap us, but my thoughts were inescapable. He’d been distant. He worked at the shipyard. He’d hauled the dead kidnapper out of the river. And the most damning of all … I knew he was the one who would hurt Carly.
But as my eyes skimmed over her, there were no marks on her. She hadn’t been physically hurt while I was out cold.
“How did the crazy guy who kidnapped us know you were the one to tip the police?”
“Dirty snitch,” I groaned, picturing the moment I’d told the captain I was the reliable source. There had been officers everywhere, but I hadn’t noticed there’d also been a guy in handcuffs. “Lenny. He was in the station, when the captain demanded to know who the source of the tip was. Are all Lenny’s bad? You ever heard of a good Lenny? Seems like the name of a low down lying little snitch.”
“Good alliteration, but you’re worrying me now.”
“How are we going to get out of here?”
Her question opened the door, the dark void beckoning me with answers … or oblivion. Either was acceptable at the moment, as my head continued to throb, and I doubted our ability to escape.
“Addie!” A sharp elbow to my side caused me to cry out, bringing me back to the moment. “I don’t know what just happened, but no more questions.” The fear on her face kept me from arguing, my own weakness making me wonder if I would be a
ble to survive the darkness if it came back.
We sat there for hours, listening to the rumble of machines and echoing thuds as more containers were loaded in the distance, and we huddled for warmth. We’d been left in a shipping container. It was as cold as Danny said, and there was no point in screaming. They hadn’t gagged us, because no one would hear us. The container must have already been loaded on the ship, and as the other sounds faded, I thought we were done. Once the ship was on the river and moving, it would be difficult, if not impossible, for Jake to find us.
Truthfully, I wasn’t sure how he’d find us now. He would have known something was wrong when I didn’t come out of class, but he thought the case was done. Would he suspect they hadn’t gotten all of the traffickers, or something else? The thoughts drummed in time to the pounding of my head, the pain never abating as we waited.
I must have drifted off, because the screeching of metal on metal jolted my eyes open. The door of our prison slid open with a painful shriek, our captor strutting in as a woman stumbled behind him, crying.
“You have made my life extraordinarily difficult.” He glared at me, so I smiled.
“Anytime.”
“You think this is funny? Oh, no. You won’t for long. Not when you see what I have planned for you.” He kicked the woman crying on the ground. “Shut up!” He turned back to me. “I had a quota to meet, and thanks to you, I’ll be short. But luckily, you will fulfill part of the agreement. They aren’t too picky about looks.”
“Lucky me,” I drawled, forcing myself upright. Leaning showed weakness, and even though I didn’t think I was capable of standing at the moment, much less fighting, I refused to appear as weak as I felt.
“Oh, they’ll enjoy beating the spunk right out of you. Some buyers like to break them.”
“You’re the missing link. I knew you were out there, but I missed it. My bad.” I shook my finger at him, my tied hands meaning I shook my whole hand, but he got the point.
“Dan. Get in here and shut this bitch up.”
“What? Don’t want to do your own dirty work?” I taunted him, already knowing who Dan would be and wanting to spare Carly the sight of him.
He walked in, his face expressionless, his black eyes as dark as the void I feared so much. I heard Carly cry behind me, “No.” I glared at him, hoping against hope, it wasn’t what I thought, that he was here to save us. Anything, but that he was part of this, that I’d known he would hurt her, but wanting to believe my own interpretation of his feelings for Carly, instead of the truth.
Carly lunged forward, managing to get to her knees, even with her feet tied.
“No, no, no. This isn’t you. Dan ….” He walked forward, the blow casual as he backhanded her, slamming her head against the wall, blood streaming from her nose.
“You bastard!” I screamed as the reality of my vision appeared in front of me. He spun around, looking at me now. The absolute lack of emotion on his face made me wonder how I could have been so mistaken, if I’d somehow misjudged my ability, because there was no way the Danny who’d admitted his feelings was the same man in front of me.
The crazy psycho started laughing and clapping his hands, as if he was at the show.
“Ah, I’m feeling better already. You ruined my plans, you stupid meddling bitch. If you weren’t worth more to me alive, I’d kill you now, just for the sheer aggravation you’ve caused me.” He glanced at Danny, “Shut her up. We need to go. We’re short a girl, and I’m not showing up at the meeting without something else to pacify them.”
Danny crouched down in front of me, a smirk forming on his face as I backed up, not wanting any part of me to touch him.
“Hurry up!” The little man hopped up and down, his impatience clear. “We have a meeting to go to.”
“Stay away from me,” I growled, my own pain forgotten as I saw the broken look on Carly’s face as she watched Danny.
“You think I won’t kill you?” he taunted, a smile spreading across his face, at the sight of the horror on mine.
“BASTARD!” I screamed, spitting at him, even as his fist slammed into my face, sending me spinning into the dark void his question had opened.
Chapter Fourteen
I drifted, the dark void which had terrified me, now comforting. There was no pain here. No fear. Worry couldn’t even penetrate the darkness I found myself in. Occasional flickers of light would draw my attention, but they moved so quickly, I couldn’t determine what they were.
“Addie.”
My head turned toward the sound of my name, but it was so faint, and the darkness had become familiar, so I ignored it. Another flicker, this one containing an image, drew me toward it.
“Addie.”
The voice was persistent, but the flickering image had my attention, as I saw myself in it. I drifted closer, my will seeming to slow the image, so I could watch it like a movie playing in front of me.
“Addie, push.” He held my hand, a loving smile on his face.
“I AM.” My body bent forward as a contraction came again.
“Not much more,” the doctor encouraged, and even though the pain felt like it was going to tear me in two, I bore it, knowing why I did it. The bitch retracted her claws, and I collapsed back, panting, wondering why the hell I didn’t go with an epidural.
Oh yeah, my fear of needles.
That was dumb of me.
“You’re doing great.” He wiped my face, and I managed a smile. His eyes were green at the moment; they always were when they were filled with emotion. He was proud of me. That much was clear, from the expression on his face. I arched up again, as the pain came back, feeling like claws were wrapping around my torso and squeezing the shit out of me.
“Push. One good push, and we’ll have a baby.” Those words were enough to make me push harder than I’d ever pushed in my life.
I felt a rush between my legs and the words, “It’s a boy!”
I collapsed back on the bed, tears seeping from the corners of my eyes. Jake gazed down at me, leaning over, and cupping my cheek. “You did good.”
“Daddy, you want to cut the cord?” Jake glanced back at the doctor, and then nodded over at Connor.
“Go ahead.” I smiled at the sight of Connor’s shaking hands as he cut the last physical tie of his son to me. Jake kissed me, whispering, “You never cease to amaze me with your strength.”
As they cleaned up the baby boy, Jules and Connor hovered nearby, watching. Once the nurse had him clean and swaddled, she handed him to Jules.
“Congratulations.” Tears ran down her face as she stared at the tiny baby created by her and Connor, and carried by me. I’d never thought the first baby I carried wouldn’t even be mine, but life had a funny way of working out.
“Addie.” The voice was a little louder now, the desperation in it tugging at me, and the image in front of me disappeared, zooming into the void with the others. The vision I’d seen made me happy though, and I wanted to see more.
I reached out eagerly, slowing another image. It was my graduation from college, a happy smile on my face as I caught my mom’s eyes in the audience. But as I touched the image, it flipped. I was still graduating, but there were no happy smiles, no one waiting in the audience to watch me accept my diploma. My hand drew back, the double sided image spinning away.
The darkness didn’t feel as comforting now.
“Listen.” This time the word was an echo of a memory, but another image caught my eye and I seized it, the sensation of falling overtaking me.
“Momma.”
“Yes?” I replied, ruffling the caramel waves on his head. He was a miniature version of Jake, not one shred of me in him anywhere. I shook my head, smiling at the serious expression on his face. “What has you looking so serious?”
His face became even more upset, and I crouched down to his level. He’d started preschool a few weeks before, and he seemed like he was enjoying it. His cousin, Matthew, had told him all about it, and he’d been eager to
go, but he’d been quiet since I’d picked him up today.
“Maggie had a bruise on her arm today,” he told me, pointing to his forearm. “Right here, and it was big. But you couldn’t see it, cause of her shirt.” I nodded, worried about where this was going, but needing him to tell me. “The teacher asked her where she got the bruise and she told her she fell down.” He peered at me, his hazel eyes green. “She didn’t fall. Her mommy grabbed her arm and shook her. That’s why she had a bruise.”
I ran my hands up and down his arms, comforting him and warming my suddenly cold hands. “Did Maggie tell you that’s how she got her bruise?” I asked him carefully, already suspecting he would see more in my question.
He shook his head. “No, I knowed it. Like you.”
I closed my eyes briefly. The idea that a child of mine could inherit my gift had crossed my mind, but I’d never known for sure if it was genetic, if I’d inherited it from someone.
“It’s not easy, but we can help Maggie, because you can see the truth.” I told him, brushing back the hair that fell into his eyes. “I think you need a haircut.”
“Like Daddy’s?” He wanted his hair to be cut like Jake’s, and I nodded, standing up with the knowledge our son had inherited at least one thing from me.
“Addie, you need to come back. Baby, I love you. Addie.”
The voice was louder, forcing me to listen. I turned back, wanting a last glimpse of our son, but the image was gone.
My thoughts swirled, the images I’d seen reminding me of my life, the darkness becoming oppressive, instead of comforting. The voice calling my name came again, and I pushed toward it, knowing I needed to answer it.
Another image drifted by, this one an image from my past, my curiosity compelling me closer, as I saw my mom holding me as a baby.
My mom was much younger, and talking to a man that was vaguely familiar.
“I’m not a perfect man, but I love you both.”
Hidden Lies (The Hidden Series Book 2) Page 14
