Legal Heat

by Sarah Castille

  Mark swallowed and looked at the door only two quick strides away. He needed to get out. Warn Katy. “There’s no need for the gun.” He raised his voice on the last word, hoping James would hear through the wire, wherever he was, and come to the rescue.

  “We differ again,” Steele sighed. “The gun is necessary because you know too much. Not only that, you betrayed me. And all because you couldn’t resist a little pussy. Did you think I needed you here tonight just to witness a settlement agreement? You’re here, Mark, to say your goodbyes. To Claire. To your kitty. To me. I can’t have any loose ends or flapping tongues. There is too much at stake.”

  Where. The. Fuck. Is. James?

  The door opened.

  Katy’s angry shriek rang through the office. An oversized security guard dragged her in front of Steele’s desk, pinning her against his chest with a massive arm.

  “Here’s our curious kitty now,” Steele chortled.

  Mark’s heart pounded and he scanned the room, desperate to find a way out.

  Katy squirmed and struggled in the security guard’s grasp. “Let me go. Obviously I can’t run away so there’s no point trying to break my arm.”

  Mark took a step in her direction. Gordon coughed a warning and he froze.

  “I found her outside one of the labs downstairs,” the security guard said. “She told me she’d left her purse in the document room this morning. She had a pass and an appointment with you so I let her through. When I caught her, she told me she’d got herself lost on the way.”

  “I’m surrounded by idiots,” Steele muttered. “Did anyone not notice she’s carrying her purse?” He walked across the room and grabbed Katy’s purse and briefcase out of her hands.

  “A girl can have more than one purse,” Katy snapped.

  Steele slapped her. The crack sliced through Mark’s brain unleashing a tidal wave of rage. He lunged for Steele. Gordon stepped between them and shoved the barrel of his gun into Mark’s stomach.

  “Back off,” he growled.

  Jaw clenched tight, body trembling, Mark raised his hands and took a step away.

  “That’s how you tame a kitty.” Steele stroked a finger over Katy’s bright red cheek. “You let her know right away who’s in charge.”

  Katy narrowed her eyes and growled.

  “She likes it,” Steele chuckled. “Listen to her purr.”

  “Bastard.” Katy hit his hand away.

  Steele barked a cold laugh. “You’re the one who broke into my office. I’m the victim here.”

  “I walked in. I showed my ID. The guards consented to my entry. I just got lost on the way to get my purse.”

  “I think I’ve heard that one before.”

  Mark’s hands balled into fists. “Let her go, Steele.”

  “Not until I get what I want.” Steele opened Katy’s briefcase and pulled out a bundle of notebooks. He flipped through them and his face tightened.

  “Kowalski’s missing lab books! We thought he’d shredded them. Oh, dear kitty. That curious nose has got you in trouble again. And I don’t see a settlement agreement here. Looks like you and Mark will share the same tragic fate. Like Romeo and Juliet.”

  Katy gasped and staggered back.

  “Steele. No.” Mark’s pulse pounded through his veins. If James didn’t get his ass down here quickly, illicit pharmaceuticals would be the least of his worries.

  Steele threw the notebooks on this desk and then grabbed Katy’s chin between his finger and thumb, forcing her head back. “I don’t understand you. It was a simple dismissal case. Why couldn’t you leave it at that?”

  Katy jerked her head, trying to break Steele’s grip. “I’m a sucker for justice and you left too many clues I couldn’t ignore.”

  Steele tightened his grip and Katy hissed in a breath. “Clever kitty. Too clever for your own good. We’ll have to think of a clever way for you to die.”

  Katy’s eyes flicked over Mark, her fear clear to see despite her outward show of bravado. He shook his head, warning her to keep quiet.

  Steele caught their exchange. “Don’t look at him. He would have sold his soul to keep you safe. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough.”

  He released Katy and nodded to the security guard. “Get me some rope and duct tape. We don’t want our kitty to escape again.”

  “Yes, sir.” The guard left, closing the door behind him with a dull thud.

  Steele sighed and settled himself in his chair. “You disappoint me, Gordon. You should have finished her off when you took care of Kowalski.”

  “No pay. No body. You said to scare her, not kill her.”

  “You?” Katy’s eyes opened wide and she stared at Gordon. “You were at the apartment? You killed Andrew McIntyre?”

  “It was touch and go for a while.” Steele shook his head in mock regret. “He did a much better job with Silver. Clean. Quick. Efficient. No evidence. But really, you shouldn’t be so horrified. Silver and McIntyre were dying anyway. Aggressive lymphatic cancer—another unfortunate side effect of the drug. They only had a few weeks to live. Gordon did them a favor.”

  Mark’s mind raced. If the wire was working, James would have more than enough evidence to arrest Steele and Gordon. Something must be wrong. He had to act. He just needed a distraction.

  The door behind them clicked open.

  “Mr. Steele, I’ve got the rope.” The security guard stepped inside. Mark saw his chance. He powered toward the unsuspecting guard, keeping his body low. A bullet whizzed past his shoulder and hit the wall with a loud thud. But Mark kept going. Within seconds he had reached his target. He rammed his shoulder into the guard’s sternum, knocking the wind out of him. The guard doubled over and Mark’s fist connected with his jaw, sending him reeling back into the wall, stunned. Another blow rendered the guard unconscious, and he slid down the wall to the floor.

  A second shot rang out and splinters exploded outward from the door. Mark grabbed Katy and shoved her into the hallway. “Run.”

  “Not without you.”

  “Go,” he shouted. He pulled the door closed and locked it.

  She was safe.

  Now it was time to deal with Steele.

  The front door of the building opened and Lana jerked to attention. Katy barreled out of the building at full tilt.

  What the hell? She fumbled on the seat for her camera as Katy ran to her car. Why the urgency?

  Katy pulled on the door handle, and then slammed her hand on the door and screamed. Quite an overreaction for losing her keys. Maybe she was having a bad day.

  Lana lifted her camera and peered through the lens. Only then did she see the shadow detach itself from the darkness. Not a shadow. A man. Tall, slightly stooped. Lana snapped a few pictures before she even realized the danger. Woman alone. Dark parking lot. Man behind her. Her eyes widened and she reached for the door handle.

  The man must have spoken because Katy turned around. Through the camera lens, she saw him jab a hypodermic needle into Katy’s neck. Katy staggered back against her car. He caught her when she collapsed and scooped her up in his arms. He stepped out of the shadows and Lana saw his face. A familiar face. The man who ate icing and not cake. The ex.

  Oh God. Oh God. What should she do? She opened the door, but even as her foot hit the pavement, she knew she wouldn’t make it. They were too far away. By the time she was out of the car, he had already unlocked Katy’s vehicle and put her in the back seat. Bastard must have kept his set of keys.

  “Help!” She screamed at the top of her lungs, but who would be hanging around a vacant parking lot at night?

  He froze and turned in Lana’s direction. Lana threw herself back in the Jetta and lay trembling on the seat. Thank God she had parked in the shadows. She scrambled to find her phone, remembering, as her fingers touched the plastic, the two beeps she had heard earlier. Dead.

  With one last look in Lana’s direction, the ex jumped in Katy’s Acadia and started the engine. Lana turned her key. Nothing.
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br />   Please, please, oh please, baby, please.

  Tires squealed as the Acadia pulled out of the parking lot and turned onto Broadway Street. Lana tried again.

  A cough. A wheeze. Then the Jetta roared to life. She stomped on the accelerator and peeled out of the parking lot. She could just see the Acadia’s tail lights in the distance ahead of her. She kept her foot down, praying she wouldn’t hit a red light.

  Police. Police. Police. Where were the police when she actually needed them?

  The Jetta wheezed as it raced down the street and Lana tried to remember if her course had covered high-speed chases. Why hadn’t she paid more attention in class? Water dripped onto her arm and she looked up. Leak? No. Tears. She touched her face and realized she was crying.

  Dammit. Pull up your big-girl panties, Lana.

  The Jetta coughed and she looked at the gas gauge. Almost empty. Could the day get any worse? Please don’t leave the city. Please don’t leave the city. The mantra worked. The ex turned up Main Street and then drove a zigzag course through the streets until he pulled up in front of a derelict apartment building. Pulse racing, Lana parked a few spaces down and watched him carry an unconscious Katy into the building.

  When she saw a light on the second floor, she threw herself out of the Jetta and raced down the street to the convenience store they had passed only a block back. Her heart thundered as she pounded the pavement in a performance worthy of an Olympic medal. Gotta finda phone. Wheeze. Gotta finda phone.

  For the first time in his life, Mark felt gratitude for the years he had spent on the streets and the lessons he had learned. He threw himself to the floor just before a bullet embedded itself in the wall above him, then rolled and came up in a crouch. “Steele, call him off,” he yelled. “What the hell are you doing?”

  “I won’t have this launch compromised. It’s worth too much. We’ve invested ten years and millions of dollars to get the drug to market and that damn lab tech almost ruined everything. Gordon has been working day and night trying to clean up the mess. He had to retrieve the samples that deadbeat dealer left with his girlfriend, get rid of the dealer and then contain the damage as your kitty ran amok.”

  Mark looked around. Nowhere to hide. He could play cat and mouse but inevitably Gordon would win.

  Unless he ran out of bullets. Or, by some miracle, the cavalry arrived.

  He would have to stall for time, draw Gordon’s fire.

  Hope.

  “What happened to you, Steele? After you saw what the drug did to those four cleaners, how could you try again and put so many lives at risk?”

  Steele’s face tightened. “I wanted Claire’s death to mean something. I shouldn’t have given her the drug, but she begged and pleaded and I was curious. We’d already had incredible results in the preliminary tests. I wanted to know if it worked on women. I never thought it would kill her.” His voice caught in his throat. “Her drug addiction made it easy to cover up. She trusted me…” His voice trailed off.

  “You killed her.” The world fell out from under him. It wasn’t his fault after all. And the cause of her death was standing in front of him.

  Steele sighed. “I loved her. It was the biggest mistake of my life. I have to live with what happened every day. But so many people will benefit from this drug. It will be her legacy. She died to bring happiness and sexual fulfillment to the masses.”

  Gordon had lowered the gun as he listened to Steele. Mark saw the faintest sliver of hope.

  Keep Steele talking.

  “What about all the other people who will suffer side effects? You’re destroying lives.”

  Steel shrugged. “It happens all the time. A sacrifice for the greater good.”

  Gordon’s gun dropped lower. Mark saw his chance. He threw himself sideways, hitting Gordon side-on and into the wall. Gordon’s head snapped against the plaster. The gun fell to the ground and Gordon slumped to the floor, unconscious.

  Steele lunged for the gun and Mark let loose. Only barely aware of the door crashing open, he pummeled Steele until four police officers pulled him away.

  “It’s over.” James’s voice was firm and steady in his ear.

  “No.” He pushed James’s arm away. “I need to get Katy.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Katy opened her eyes. White surrounded her. Again.

  Hospital? No. Wrong scent. She breathed in deeply. Chinese food? She tried to rub her eyes but her hands didn’t move. Fire seared through her shoulder. She looked up.

  Her arms were chained above her head.

  Fear roared through her like a runaway train and sent her heart into overdrive. She tried to free her hands and the chains rattled loudly with each tug and jerk of her arms. Pain screamed through her injured shoulder.

  “You’re awake.” Steven leaned against the doorframe, holding a take-out carton and a pair of chopsticks, his eyes glittering under the naked bulb overhead.

  Katy tilted her head back, taking in the giant eye bolt in the ceiling, the cuffs on her wrists and the chain attaching them. Her toes barely touched the lino floor. Bare toes. Like the rest of her. Completely. Naked.

  “What the fuck is this? Let me down, Steven. Have you gone absolutely crazy?” She took a deep breath and screamed as loudly as she could, letting out her anger, fear, rage, and…hope.

  “No one will hear you, Kate. This building is vacant. It’s being torn down next week. I got a good deal on a two-day rental.” He took a bite of his chow mien and stared at her while he chewed.

  Sheer terror took her breath away. “What do you want?”

  “You.” He put down his carton and ran a finger along her jaw and down her neck, stopping at the cleft in her breasts. It was the single most intimate gesture he had ever made since she’d known him.

  “But why this?” She struggled to keep calm, focused. Distract him while she figured a way out.

  “This is what you want. I know about the fetish club and what you do there. I found the flyer. After I paid them a visit, your new slutty clothing made sense.” He paused and then gave her a cold smile. “I can give that to you. In fact, it’s what I like best. I never thought I would get to share my kink with you. I thought you were too virtuous. Too conservative. Good for my image, not for my bed.”

  He cupped her breast gently in his palm, rubbing his thumb over her nipple.

  Horror flooded through her. “What are you talking about?”

  “I like pain, Kate. Sadistic Personality Disorder, I believe it’s called. But don’t worry; it’s not a bona fide mental disorder. There are lots of us out there. Unfortunately, it still isn’t acceptable in polite society and especially not with my sweet, lovely wife. So I had to find…alternative sources of enjoyment. Women who shared my kink. Unfortunately none of them shared my intensity and they always ran away. I couldn’t go to the club like you. I have a reputation to protect.”

  She tried to speak, but her throat froze and she could only manage a croak.

  “Imagine my delight when I discovered we shared a common interest. No wonder we were so attracted to each other in the beginning. Subconsciously, we knew we could fulfill each other’s deepest, most hidden needs.”

  “No.” Bile rose in her throat and she fought to keep it down.

  “The children are at Doug’s for the weekend. I told him we were taking a break to reconcile. We can indulge ourselves here for two whole days. I’ve even brought my medical kit. I can patch you up when we’re done, and then we’ll go home. One big, happy family again. I’ve drawn up plans to set up our own special room in the basement. Sound-proofed. We wouldn’t want the children to hear you scream.”

  Her body turned to ice. Blackness rushed in at her and her lungs tightened, making it impossible to breathe.

  She heard the crack of his palm on her cheek before she felt the pain from his slap. “No panic attacks, please. You’ll ruin everything I have planned. I’ve even taken time off work for this.” He cupped her chin and tilted her head b
ack. “Look at me and breathe.”

  She gasped as air rushed into her lungs followed by a rush of adrenaline that made her heart thunder.

  “Good.” He rummaged in a bag on the floor, finally pulling out a long, black leather whip.

  “Steven, please.” Her voice shook as the full horror of the situation finally hit home.

  He smiled and cracked the whip. Her body tensed and her toes touched the cold lino floor. He didn’t tie my feet. She stretched her body further and gained a secure hold on the ground. How could she use the leverage?

  Steven turned to look at her and she carefully lifted her feet, not wanting him to know she could touch the floor fully.

  “I thought we could start with this.” The violent hiss of the whip sent a chill down her spine. “I should really warm you up with a flogger so you can take more and mark less, but I can’t wait. I bought this single-tail especially for you.”

  Katy swallowed past the lump in her throat. “I don’t want this, Steven. Why don’t we go home? I’ll make dinner and we can watch a movie like we used to do.”

  “What we used to do sucked the life out of both of us,” he sneered. “But now we can bring the excitement back into our marriage.”

  The Crazy Frog ring tone broke the silence. Her heart leaped in her chest. Then she remembered. Melissa had changed her ring tone. It was Steven’s phone.

  “Dammit. I’m not on call. Why won’t they leave me alone? I want this time to be special.” He walked behind her and stroked her back. “You’re lucky I’m a doctor. I know what areas to avoid.” He patted along her sides and lower back. “The kidneys for example, are a definite no-no.”

  The Crazy Frog ringtone played again.

  Steven sighed. “I have to answer or they’ll just keep calling and I’ll worry it is something important. I don’t want any distractions. I need to be focused or I might cause you irreparable harm.” He gave her a wink. “I’ll only be a minute. Don’t run away.”