by Cindy Stark
Her only chance would be if the thugs dispersed to other areas of the building looking for her, and she could make a run for it.
"Come out, honey. We're not going to hurt you." The voices were distant, but clear.
Like hell. Did they really think she'd buy that after they'd just shot Max?
Down below her, footsteps on the concrete grew closer and she froze.
"I didn't really see the girl. You sure there was one?" The voice was very near now.
"Yeah, she was there," a deeper voice responded. "Tommy thinks maybe she has the evidence, or at least she knows where it is."
"Any idea what's on that recording? I heard it was something big," the first man said.
"It's none of our fucking business, John-John. You know that."
"I know. I know. It's just—"
"Shut the fuck up, already, and find the girl."
"Yeah," he whispered, before raising his voice. "Come on, honey. We just want to talk."
Allie inched forward, trying to place some distance between her and her hunters. She moved onto the next box, but wasn't prepared for it to wobble.
Someone hadn't stacked the boxes properly, leaving her in a precarious position. She reached out a hand to the next box, steadying the mountain she was on. She hurried forward.
"Did you hear something?" The man with the deep voice sounded closer than she'd imagined. "Like a rustling?"
"I don't know. Maybe."
She held still, praying they weren't looking upward.
"Do you think she might be up there somewhere?" the deep voice asked.
Allie's heart stopped.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Jase burst through the front door of Brad's Bowling Alley and was met by an old man with a startled expression. "I'm looking for a woman. She's barely taller than my shoulders, short brown hair, beautiful green eyes."
The door opened again, and Jase glanced over his shoulder to see Cates walk up behind him. The moment Cates had parked in front of the bowling alley, Jase hadn't wasted any time making his dash for the door.
"Chicago Police Department." Cates flashed his badge. "We're hoping you can help us. We're looking for a woman named Alexandra Fox or Allie Jordan."
"Uh, uh..." The wiry old man stuttered. "Allie was here." He glanced back and forth between his two visitors. "Is she in some kind of trouble?"
"Was she alone?" Jase didn't bother to answer the man's question.
"No. There was a guy with her. Um, he had blond hair and a baseball cap."
"Was she okay? Did she seem hurt or scared?" If Max had touched a hair on Allie's head, he was dead.
"No." The old man shook his head. "No. She came to collect her friend's bowling ball. After they opened the locker, the guy disappeared out the front door. Allie barely said goodbye before she followed him." The man scratched his weathered cheek with a bony hand. "They did seem like they were in a bit of a hurry."
"So, the man wasn't forcing Allie to go with him?" Cates asked.
"Didn't seem so."
"Good. How long ago did they leave? And did you hear where they might be headed?"
The old man shrugged. "Five, ten minutes ago, and I don't know nothing about where they might be going from here. I just thought she finally came back for Joey's ball." He eyed Jase. "Is she going to be okay?"
"I sure as hell hope so. Thanks." Jase didn't wait to hear what Cates said to the man. A thought had taken hold in his mind, something that might help him find Allie, and he needed to make a call.
Jase sat in the police car and pulled out his phone. He dialed while he watched Cates walk back to the car. His heart felt like it might explode. The phone rang twice before someone in his warehouse picked it up.
"Lenny. It's Jase. I need you to get on my computer in the office." His tension eased the slightest bit when Lenny indicated he was already there. "Good. Log on under my name. Password's Allie12."
The police cruiser dipped as Cates climbed in. Jase eyed him, but didn't say anything. Cates started the car, but was obviously willing to wait for direction from Jase on where to go from there.
"Good, you're in," Jase said to Lenny. "Click on the icon labeled Allie—just do what I ask. When it comes up, I need to know the last location it logged." He paused for a tense moment, waiting for Lenny to give him a lifeline. When Lenny responded with his precious information, Jase allowed himself a glimmer of hope. "Thanks, Lenny. Now logout of my computer, lock the office and don't let anyone else in there today."
Jase clicked off his phone and grinned at Cates. "We've got her."
Cates' gray brows knitted together in a frown. "What? You've got some kind of tracking device on her?"
"GPS on her Blackberry. Get us down to the Trasatti main warehouse by the docks, now."
Cates turned on his lights and siren, calling for backup as he screeched away.
It took them another ten minutes to get there, and Jase didn't feel like they had any time to waste. Cates killed the siren several blocks from the warehouse and then cruised slowly to the Trasatti building.
There was no sign of foul play from the outside. No sign of the backup unit, either. Cates parked the car out of sight from the main windows, and together he and Jase made their way toward the front entrance.
"I don't suppose you have an extra gun I can use, do you?" Jase whispered as they neared the door.
Cates flicked a glance at him. "Now's not the time to joke."
"I wasn't joking." If he'd have had a weapon with him, he would have gone in bullets flying, questions later. He would only let Cates take the lead because he was the one with the firepower.
"Actually, I'm going to have to ask you to remain outside while I go in. I can't put a citizen's life in danger."
No way. "That ain't going to happen."
Cates looked at him as they reached the door that would give them access into the Trasatti lair. "I'm leaving you here. What you do after that is your business." He eyed him a minute longer, and Jase understood. It was Cates' job to warn him. It was Jase's choice if he followed the cop.
Cates turned the silver knob on the metal door, and Jase was surprised it opened. Poor security. Cates didn't hesitate. Gun drawn, he entered the building with Jase right behind him.
They stopped just inside the door and surveyed the scene, both prepared for a hostile reaction. But no one seemed to notice their entrance. Men were scattered throughout the building, walking the aisles with guns in their hands, but not seeming particularly threatened.
Max's black Porsche was parked inside, not too far from the front office, but there was no sign of Max or Allie. Where the hell was she? Everything Jase had done to keep her safe had been in vain. The thought made him sick. Now the Trasatti organization had her, and who knew what they would do, or God forbid, what they had already done to her. The not-knowing was going to kill him.
He crept along behind Cates as he shadowed the side of the building, heading toward the office. Jase's gaze jumped from person to rack to person, looking for some sign of Allie.
His heart thundered when Bones Trasatti walked out of the office and froze. Bastard. A look of panic crossed Trasatti's face as he registered who they were, and his gaze darted about the warehouse as though trying to gauge the scene from their point of view.
"Mr. Trasatti," Cates called toward the office. "You're under arrest for the disappearance of Allie Jordan."
Before anyone could move, a shot rang out from the back of the warehouse. Everyone scrambled. Bones dashed for a nearby aisle as Cates and Jase took cover behind Max's car.
"What the hell was that?" Jase checked their surroundings as best he could from behind the Porsche. The men had disappeared.
"I'm not sure what happened." Cates pulled out his radio and called again for backup. "It came from the rear of the warehouse," he said when he'd finished.
The cement building sat eerily silent for a moment.
Jase scanned the racks of cardboard boxes, occasionally catching
a glimpse of movement. "What now?"
"We wait for backup." Cates continually glanced around the massive building, his gun ready to fire.
"What about Allie?" Just as the words left his lips, he spied blood on the trunk of Max's car. Oh, God. "Cates." Jase nudged the cop. "There's blood here." He pointed at the smudge on the vehicle and realized the trunk wasn't shut tight. Jase held his breath and lifted it open. The thick smell of blood greeted them, but it wasn't Allie's.
Jase hated to admit it, but seeing Max's body lying crumpled in a pool of blood instead of Allie brought him great relief. "It's Max." From his crouching position, Jase reached in to feel for a pulse. Nothing. "He's dead."
"I could have told you that." Cates went back to surveying the scene.
Smart ass even now, Jase thought. He started to remove his hand, but stopped when he noticed Max's gun lying off to the side. Someone must have tossed it in after the body. Jase picked it up, wiping the blood on Max's jeans.
Jase sat back on his heels and checked to see how many rounds were left.
Cates glanced at him. "Where the hell did you get that?"
"Compliments of Max." The gun might be a little bloody, but it worked. "And don't tell me to put it away. If the shooting starts again, you'll be glad I have it."
Cates grunted. The radio on his shoulder crackled, notifying him backup was two minutes out. Jase hoped they had that long.
For a moment, no one moved. Then from his peripheral vision, Jase saw one of Trasatti's men slink along the edge of the racks and come into view. Quickly, he disappeared again. A few long seconds ticked by, and then from somewhere in the back of the warehouse, a woman's scream pierced the air.
Jase's blood turned to ice. "Allie." He had to get to her. Now. "Cover me." Before Cates could object, Jase darted from behind the car and made a dash for the closest rack.
Pandemonium ensued. Shots rang out from every direction, some coming from the office to his left, others being returned from the racks at the right. Bullets rushed past as he zigzagged across several hundred feet of exposed cement, but thankfully, none caught him.
* * *
Allie swallowed the bile rising in her throat. Her scream had given her away. The sound of a stray gunshot a few moments earlier had put her on edge, but it was the unexpected sight of someone's hand coming up over the side of her box that had startled her.
As a second hand reached up and took hold of the metal rack, she shrank back. Her heart thumped a deafening beat.
Where could she go now?
Before she had a chance to act, the face belonging to the hands peeked up and another barrage of shots echoed through the building. Their gazes connected. A strange, unnerving feeling glazed over her, one that any hunted animal would feel. Her instincts kicked in. Without thinking, she shoved the heavy television box with both hands.
The weight pushed against the man, but he didn't fall. He glared at her, grabbing for a metal bar above him. No. Another dose of adrenaline kicked in, and Allie heaved the box with all her might, sending the TV and the man backward into the air.
"Bitch," he yelled as he fell.
She cringed as several boxes hit the ground with a shattering thud amidst the sounds of continuing gunfire. A second later, a bullet pinged off the steel rack near her. Then another.
She had to get off that damn rack. Now. She scrambled across the tops of the boxes until she reached the opposite edge. She took a quick look down. No one was in this aisle.
Without hesitating, she scrambled down the side of the boxes and dropped to the floor below. Shots rang out from every direction, but for the moment, no one had her in his sights.
She hurried to the far end of the aisle, checked for assailants and slipped around the corner. At the next corner, she glanced down the aisle. A pile of obliterated TVs lay amidst the remnants of cardboard boxes and an unmoving body. There was no one else around. The other shooter had disappeared.
She cautiously hurried toward the young, dark-haired man partially buried by the ruble, praying she'd find a weapon. The mobster was unconscious, but still breathing. She rolled him to the side and then said a silent prayer of thanks. A handgun sat tucked inside his waistband. Thank God. She grabbed it, checked the magazine for bullets to make sure it was loaded and crept toward the only way out of the warehouse. Her odds weren't good, either way, but she preferred to go down fighting rather than hiding in a corner.
With her weapon out and ready, she made it to the end of the aisle. She peeked at the intersection, and her heart nearly choked her. Bones Trasatti had his weapon trained on the back of Jase's neck, forcing him to walk forward.
Jase spotted her before Bones did and jerked. Bones caught his reaction and spied Allie. A cruel smile spread across his face. "Miss Jordan. We meet again."
Allie swallowed.
"Run, Allie," Jase said, his eyes pleading for her to save herself.
"I wouldn't do that." Bones shoved the gun harder against Jase's skull. "Not unless you want him dead."
Bones was right. She couldn't leave Jase to die. Allie raised her weapon. "Let him go, and I'll let you live."
Bones laughed. "Oh, come on now. What are you going to do, shoot me? You'll miss and end up hitting your lover." He laughed again.
"No, Allie. Just leave." Jase's voice was frantic.
Her heart beat wildly, but her hands were steady. "Don't make me pull the trigger. Put your weapon on the floor and step away."
That set off Bones. "You're fucking crazy." His gaze turned maniacal. "You're going to give me that recorder right now or he dies."
She raised her weapon higher, putting Bones in her sights. She'd have one shot to take him down. If she missed or only wounded him, he'd probably kill Jase. She swallowed a healthy dose of fear. She was an expert marksman and this was her chance to end it.
Bones narrowed his eyes. "I'm not going to ask again."
Allie squeezed the trigger.
Adrenaline flooded her veins as the shot rang out. Bones stumbled back from Jase and fell.
Jase's jaw dropped open. He blinked. He looked down at the mobster's slumped form and then back at Allie as though he couldn't believe she'd killed Bones Trasatti. The small trickle of blood coming from Bones' forehead grew larger. Jase bent over and retrieved the mobster's gun.
Allie looked away from the carnage she'd created. She'd just killed a man. A wave of nausea swept over her, but she managed to keep herself together.
Jase hurried toward her and crushed her in a quick embrace. "That was stupid." He gripped her arm and pulled her to the end of the aisle where she could see Cates crouching behind the back of Max's car. She couldn't see any other Trasatti men.
Cates indicated with a nod that he'd located their position.
"Come on, get down, out of sight. Cates will cover that side of us."
Allie did as she was told. She wasn't sure she had any fight left in her.
Jase kept his gun trained down the aisle, watching for would-be assailants. None came.
A minute later, the warehouse flooded with cops, and shortly after that, the Trasatti men surrendered.
Just like that, it was over.
"You shouldn't have risked your life for me," Jase said as he helped her to her feet. He searched her eyes, his gaze filled with concern as he ran his fingers over her cheek. "I didn't know you were that good of a shot."
She couldn't believe they'd both made it out alive. "I told you I could take care of myself." Her voice echoed with a hollow note. "And you, too."
Jase didn't give her a chance to say anything else. He wrapped his arms around her as his lips found hers. His kiss was desperate, frantic. He covered her face with kisses and then held her until an officer approached. The cop moved passed them to where the dead mobster lay, and he kneeled down, checking for a pulse.
"God, Allie." Jase pulled back, his face pale, his expression shaken. "You scared the hell out of me. What were you thinking, coming here with Max?"
"I d
idn't want to. Max forced me." She inhaled a shaky, but calmer breath. "You left and didn't come back." She touched his face, grateful to be in his arms again. "Why?"
"Cates. He had me brought in for questioning."
She shook her head. Did Cates realize the problems he'd caused? "He promised he'd hold off."
Jase snorted. "He didn't. But we figured out what had happened, and we came here together."
Allie's bottom lip trembled. "I'm sorry I didn't wait for you."
"No." Jase cupped her chin. "I'm sorry I left you alone." He kissed her again, long and hard.
Allie pulled back, remembering. "Jase. The recording." The one thing everyone wanted.
He shook his head. "I don’t know where it is, and I don't care. You're safe. I just want to take you home." He tried to pull her close, but she wouldn't let him.
"No, you don't understand." She reached into her bra and pulled out the evidence that would hopefully put her and Jase's unsettled pasts to rest. "I have it."
A mask of disbelief fell over Jase's face. "You found it?" he whispered.
"I did." She tried to smile, happy she could give him that gift.
"Allie. Do you know what this means?"
She nodded, tears of relief rushing to the surface. "It means the Trasatti family will finally pay." And she and Jase would be free from the violence that tainted their worlds.
He nodded, taking the recorder from her. He glanced to where an EMT bent over Tommy Trasatti's dead body. "Let's see Franco Trasatti try to get out of this one."
He stopped and looked at her. "But I meant what I said. I'm done with this." He gestured toward the recorder. "I hope whatever's on here smothers them, but if it doesn't—" He shrugged. "Doesn't matter. I'm done."
She nodded and smiled through her tears.
As they neared the front of the building, Allie saw an older man sitting in a chair, handcuffed.
"Franco Trasatti." Jase answered her question.
He looked so old and pitiful to Allie, but she knew he'd brought a lot of pain into this world and she had no sympathy.
