by Miranda Kavi
Then she’d gotten up the next day and did it all over again. She missed him. Missed Andrea. Missed a lot of things. Mainly, she missed being safe.
Over the weekend he’d called Gram’s phone and she’d gotten a chance to talk to him. He sounded like he was at an airport. He’d called her ‘his love’ and told her he’d be home soon, like she was his home.
Conflict raged within her, but she pushed it all down and just focused on getting through each day.
Her cell phone rang, and she knew who it was when the number splashed across her screen: Reggie.
“Hi, Reggie,” she answered her phone.
“Hi. How are you hanging in there? Any problems?” he said in his pleasant way.
“I’m fine. I have security,” she said. It was a bit of a fib, but whatever.
“Good. I’m all ready here. You need to come down to my office so we can go over everything, then you can decide if you want to blow the whistle. There’s a lot to cover.”
“Okay,” she sighed, “I can’t now, but soon. Is there anything you are required to disclose, legally speaking?”
“Well, no. You are my client, so I don’t need to act to prevent you from hurting someone or carrying out a criminal act, but...”
“But what?” she said. She was doodling furiously on her notepad.
“But I think you should do this, even though it will be hard. Once the feds are involved, they can help you stay safe and move on. Trust me on this. I think it will be better when it’s out in the open. Then no one can hold it over your head.”
“I understand,” she whispered.
“I know you do, and we’ll go over everything, including the ramifications of disclosing versus not. And Sophia, I’m sorry this happened to you.”
They hung up and she was left alone to ponder his last statement: I’m sorry this happened to you.
She’d heard it a million times before. After Josh and Landon died, it was a common refrain. How terrible it was that something “bad” had happened to her. The worst. And they were right—it was the worst thing that could’ve happened.
To hear it in this context jarred her to her bones.
Because this mess with Red Bluff didn’t ‘happen’ to her. She’d ignored the rumors at work. She’d gone digging for the information and found it, way too easily, which meant it was in front of her face the entire time. She’d started a relationship with the bad man, probably way worse than any corrupt oil executive.
She’d have to decide what kind of person she was, and soon.
Her work phone rang, pulling her out of her dark thoughts. She snapped it up without looking at the caller ID. “Hello?”
“Sophia, it’s Marsha.”
Sophia stood up. Marsha’s voice sounded like she’d been crying. “Are you okay?”
“Um...yes,” she said. Her voice was wobbly. In her few years at Red Bluff International, Sophia had never seen or heard of her crying at work. She was too professional. “I’m...um...fine.”
Warning bells rang in Sophia’s head. Marsha never spoke like this. Never paused. Never said “um.” She was precise in her speech, precise in her emails, precise with everything. That’s why Sophia had hired her.
“What’s going on?” she said as calmly as she could.
“I really need to talk to you. Could you...um...come here?”
“Oh, I…” She glanced around her office, trying to figure out the logistics of ditching Gram. “Can we meet for coffee or something? Leaving now would be tough.”
“Please,” Marsha said, her voice cracking.
“Okay. Sure. Give me about half an hour.”
They disconnected. Sophia stared at her phone, carrying an odd feeling that something was off. But she’d have to risk it. Marsha needed her help.
She didn’t know where Dmitri’s men were, but she had a feeling that if she called Gram to get a ride to Red Bluff International, she would go nowhere. Hell, she really didn’t want to go, but she wasn’t worried about going there in broad daylight in the middle of a business day. She was more worried about getting herself there.
As if on cue, a yellow cab drove by her window.
Bingo.
She called a local cab company and instructed them to meet her outside ASAP. She tucked her cell phone into her purse and took the elevator to the lobby. She walked through without tossing a glance around. Straight through the big glass doors and she was outside with a cab waiting. Perfect.
She slid in, sure Gram or somebody else was watching, and that was fine. She just needed to get there and make sure Marsha was okay.
The cab made its way down Memorial Drive, the quickest and probably most expensive way to get to the Energy Corridor.
She checked her phone on the way in—no messages or emails.
Poor Marsha. She wondered what they had done to upset her. Perhaps they gave her notice to leave, or questioned her about Sophia’s absence. She should have explained herself before refusing to come back. She should have behaved in a more professional manner. She shouldn’t have left Marsha to clean up her mess.
Damn it.
She was so lost in her dark thoughts, she was surprised to find they’d pulled in front of the Red Bluff campus. “Drop me off here.” She pointed towards the parking garage nearest her building.
She pulled a wad of cash from her wallet and handed it to the cab driver. Not really paying attention to how much she handed him. He thanked her profusely as she slid out of the cab.
By the time she crossed the nearly empty parking garage, she was nervous again. She hadn’t been here in a few weeks, since those men had come for her at her home.
She didn’t know for sure if they were from Red Bluff International or one of Dmitri’s men, or one of his enemies. Or someone else.
She crossed the breezeway into the building, her deep sense of foreboding growing as she entered her old workplace.
All her anger and rage at what they’d done built up. Her dread turned dark, and she was pissed. Ready to blow up at anyone that messed with Marsha.
She found her old badge in her purse and swiped it to get access to her floor. It surprisingly worked. It was after five and almost deserted.
Finally, she slipped back to her office, where Marsha sat at her desk right outside Sophia’s closed door. She was relieved to see her, though she looked miserable. Her auburn hair was in a loose ponytail, unlike her normal neatly styled self. Her face was swollen and red, like she had a cold.
“Hi!” She walked around the desk to give Marsha a hug. Marsha was limp in her arms. “What’s going on?” Sophia asked.
“Where...where have you been?” Marsha said.
“My secondment, you know—”
“But what about this?” Marsha asked. “You left me alone to deal with them.”
“I’m sorry. Do you want to come into my office and we can talk?”
Marsha’s face crumpled. “No, I do not,” she glanced around the open area, “not here.”
“Okay, but I don’t see anyone around.” Sophia straightened her posture and slung her purse over her shoulder. “Shall we go out for coffee or something?”
“No, I can’t. Come with me.” Marsha stood.
Sophia followed her to the elevator bank. Marsha swiped her card with a shaky pale hand.
She wordlessly went into the elevator. Sophia sighed and stepped inside. “Where are we going?”
“To somewhere we won’t be overheard.” She hit the button for the fifteenth floor.
“Fine.” Sophia leaned against the elevator with her arms crossed. She looked down at her sensible black pumps. Always so sensible. Always walking the straight and narrow, until now.
The ding of elevator brought her head up. The door slid open to reveal a very angry Ana Relder.
Waiting.
Chapter 23
Sophia’s heart dropped. She glanced to a shaky Marsha cowering in the elevator. Set up. This is a set up.
“She arrives!” Ana threw her ha
nds up. “And graces us with her presence.” She dropped her arms. “Marsha, you may go.”
Marsha nodded. “I’m so sorry, Sophia. She told me if I didn’t—”
“It’s fine, Marsha,” Sophia cut her off. “It’s okay, really. Just go.”
The elevator door shut, leaving Sophia alone with Ana in the hallway. “What do you want, Ana?” Sophia said.
“We have much to discuss, Sophia,” Ana said.
“Go ahead,” Sophia said. She crossed her arms over her chest
Ana rolled her eyes. “You stupid, over-confident bitch.” Three men stepped out from a nearby room. All with guns. All menacing.
Sophia sprinted away from them towards the staircase, but one of them caught her, grabbed her arm, and slammed her against the wall so hard she saw stars. She kicked and struggled with all her considerable strength, screaming at the top her lungs. The man used a black gloved hand to cover her mouth, cutting off her scream and nearly cutting off her oxygen.
No.
This couldn’t happen. Not in a crowded office building. But it was after five, most people would be leaving. No one would be coming up to this floor.
No.
She kicked and screamed with renewed vigor, but the man just dragged her, pulling her hair, and whatever else he could grab onto to force her compliance. Down the hallways, through a doorway, and down another hallway and into a conference room. She’d never been in this part of the executive floor.
He slammed her down on the ground, and pain ripped through her body. She opened her mouth to scream, to cry, to fight. He shoved a rag into her mouth so far she almost gagged. He clapped his gloved hand over her mouth. “Shut the fuck up!” he said.
She couldn’t answer; she retched against the dirty cloth, but he held it firmly over her mouth. Ana Relder calmly walked in, followed by two more men. Dirty, dangerous, gross, deadly men.
Ana calmly shut the door behind her. “If you want the slightest sliver of a chance of walking out of here alive, you will listen very carefully to me.” She strode over to the table, pulled one of the heavy leather rolling chairs out, and sat down. She crossed her nylon clad legs, flashing the violet sole of her expensive shoes. “I know you stole documents. I know you know some things you shouldn’t know.”
Sophia didn’t say anything, because she couldn’t. Her heart was beating fast and unsteady. Fear poured over her like a cold blanket, but it didn’t overtake her. Someone had to have seen her come in the building. Cameras or something. Someone would know. She couldn’t just disappear in here.
The man pushed her to a seated position and pulled the gag out of her mouth. She retched her lunch onto the floor right in front of her. She tried to get away, but he pulled rope out of his back pocket and tied her hands together, so tight she could feel her pulse straining against them.
The two other men were impassive against the door. Both held guns with long silencers.
They didn’t intend to let her live. They were going to pump her for information, then kill her.
Stall. I need to stall.
Surely Gram followed her here. Maybe Marsha would call for help. Maybe the security guard would notice something. Maybe all was not lost.
“What did you do with the information?” Ana asked. “Your very life depends on it.”
Sophia was silent. She let the silence linger, the air conditioner humming in the background the only noise. Her heart pounded loud in her ears and her shoulders ached at the tight restrains. She felt it all, relishing these last few moments, clinging onto hope that maybe they weren’t.
“Answer me!” Ana yelled. Her composure dropped. “Do something!” she yelled to the man standing next her.
His foot shot out, catching her in the soft flesh of her stomach. Pain blossomed and she doubled over, struggling to get air back in her lungs.
Oh, man. That was hard and precise. He was probably trained in martial arts. She coughed, the panic subsiding as she found oxygen.
“Answer, Sophia. You can walk out of here, or you can go out in a trash bag. Your choice. Talk.”
“Someone will know I came here. My badge recorded me coming. Someone will know if you do this,” she croaked.
“Nope, not really. It will be deleted from the system, and strangely enough, half of our security cameras are down.” She looked at her fingernails. “It’s a shame, really.”
Sophia coughed, purposefully. It gave her a few more seconds of time. “What do you want to know?” she finally said.
“I want to know where the documents are, who you told. Then you can leave.”
Sophia lowered her chin, staring Ana in the eyes. “You aren’t going to let me live.”
Ana smiled. “You never know.”
Sophia stood, on wobbly feet, still unable to stand fully with the horrible pain radiating from her stomach. “It’s too late. I’ve already handed it over to the authorities. It will be made public. Kill me or not, it will be made public. Kill me now, it will probably be made public faster. Your choice.”
Ana’s mouth dropped open. “You wouldn’t.”
“I already did and fuck you. I hope you enjoy life in prison.”
Ana lunged for her, clawing at her face in a fit of absolute rage. Sophia fought back with a headbutt to Ana’s nose.
Ana lunged to her feet, losing her balance with one heel off, one heel on. A thin trail of blood ran from her nose, pooling above her lip. “You fucking cunt!” she screamed. “Kill her! I said fucking kill her!”
The man closest to her smiled and raised his gun.
But then he and Ana were on the ground, and the other two men were in a struggle
The room was suddenly full of people, and she didn’t understand. Her vision swam as she saw the confusion. She leaned against the wall for support. Pain had made her useless. It dawned on her in some vague way that she could possibly have internal bleeding or something.
“Sophia!” One face swam into focus—Dmitri—eyes full of concern, hair wild. “Are you okay?”
She hugged him. “I’m hurt.” She gasped for air. “Ana, she tried to kill me. How did you...”
“I discovered it was her who hired those hit men. There are not many who can pay for men like that, and I knew who their broker was. With the right amount of money, he talked.”
“Oh, my God.” Tears spilled from her eyes.
“I rushed back. Gram had followed you here and called me as I was on my way home from the airport. Marsha told us you were up here.”
“Sir?” Gram interrupted them. “What are we doing with her?”
Sophia blinked rapidly, bringing the whole room back into focus. The gunmen that had taken her from the hallway were dead, with neat round bullet-holes in their foreheads oozing blood. Three of Dmitri’s men plus Gram were there, awaiting orders, one of them holding a very alive Ana. Ana clutched at her right shoulder with her left hand, blood running through her fingers. One of Dmitri’s men had his hand over her mouth. Her eyes were visible above his hand, wild and fearful, darting around. Her breath whistled through his gloved hand.
Dmitri stood and moved away from Sophia. He pointed his gun at Ana’s head, about five inches in front of her eyes. She struggled wildly, her muted screams indiscernible from the hand that covered her mouth. “You are going to die, now,” he said.
He pulled the trigger, and the high pitched whir of the silencer rang out. She slumped forward, blood trickling from her now missing eye. He shot her twice more in the top of her head.
Chapter 24
Ana was dead, her red blood spilling everywhere.
Sophia closed her eyes and leaned her head back to rest on the wall behind her, unable to look at it anymore. Even with her eyes closed, she could see nothing else. So many bodies, so many deaths. How much death could she take and still be alive?
Macabre, self-tortuous images flashed in her mind. Josh’s vacant eyes, the unnatural bend to his neck. The realization that he was gone. She’d crawled out of the car, screaming for
Landon, seeing only the crumpled, still, small body, wearing the white and blue plaid shirt she’d picked out for him that morning on the pavement.
She’d army crawled towards him, the skin of her arms ripping on the glass shattered on the pavement, unable to walk on her broken legs. She’s fought the paramedics as they loaded her into the ambulance. Screamed for Landon and Josh.
She’d screamed and she’d cried and she shattered inside, but they both were still dead.
She saw the same vacant eyes in the dead men in her apartment, and now Ana, as she crumpled to the floor.
It was death and violence and gore and she couldn’t handle it. She broke apart a little more on the inside.
She couldn’t cry, couldn’t think. She might be alive with a pulse, but she was as dead as Ana on the inside. Dead and sick of pretending that she wasn’t.
She finally opened her eyes, remembering that she was alive. That she had been rescued. That she would be okay.
Dmitri was crouched in front of her, watching her carefully as always. His eyes flicked down to her stomach and back up to her. “You are injured, but you are safe, now.”
“Thank you,” she whispered, meeting his eyes.
Gram spoke from behind Dmitri. “Sir? We have to go. Police scanners are requesting multiple dispatches to this address.”
Oh, God.
“Sophia, listen to me.” Dmitri held her chin gently. She looked into his haunted green eyes. “I want you to come with me.”
She stopped breathing, her heart stopped, everything stopped. “What?”
He moved his hand down her face. “If you come with me, we can never come back. You can never talk to your friends or family again. You won’t even be able to use your name ever again, but we will have each other.”
She cleared her throat. “I need to think about this, Dmitri. I—”
He exhaled a long, loud breath. “There is no time. I have to leave the country now, and I cannot come back. I can never come back. You have to decide now.”
“Oh, no,” she whispered. “I can’t do this right now.”
Gram shouted from behind him, “We don’t have time for this! Damn it!” He put his hand on Dmitri’s shoulder and tried to pull him up.
