Phaze Fantasies Volume 4

by Vivien Dean

  Beth watched Rick in confusion. What did the track have to do with Rick's marketing research? Were they going to use it in an ad campaign? She'd have speak to the Grand Central Partnership first, she wasn't sure this was something they wanted tourists flocking there to see. It was not only in an off-limits area, it was probably pretty dangerous and not even near up to today's codes for public use.

  She was about to tell Rick all this, but he never gave her a chance. Instead, he stepped forward and placed a hand on Robby's arm. “Robby. You need to take me to this secret underground elevator you found.” He turned back to Beth and Lyssa. “You two need to go back to your office and stay there. Do not call anyone. Do not tell anyone about what you've found. Wait for us to get back. Got it?"

  Beth shook her head. This was all too strange. “No. I don't ‘got it'. Rick, what is going on?"

  He sighed and turned back to her. Placing both hands on her arms, his eyes softened. He took in a deep breath. “Please, Beth. You have to just trust me."

  "I will, as soon as you explain yourself and your interest in these tunnels because I have to tell you, it isn't normal if you are who you say you are. So are you? Are you really here doing marketing research?"

  His hands squeezed her arms more tightly. “Not exactly."

  As the tears threatened to fill her eyes, she wiggled to free her arms from his grasp. When she couldn't, she said, “Let me go.” She noticed Robby protectively take a single step forward and felt a little better that she wasn't alone with this man who she had thought she knew but obviously did not, not one little bit. Her common sense screamed in the back of her brain that this situation was exactly the reason she did not date much. And she had done a heck of a lot more than “date” Rick last night. Her face colored again as she remembered all she had done with him, without hesitation, with complete trust. This time her eyes did fill with unshed tears.

  Seeing her face, Rick let out a vile curse and pulled her away from Robby and Lyssa. Robby took another step forward, saying, “Beth?"

  "It's fine, Robby. Stay there.” They were still in sight and could run for help should she need it. She shot a hurt-filled look up at Rick's intense face. “What do you want from me?"

  Looking torn, Rick glanced up at the ceiling. “This isn't one of those places where they can hear me whispering from over there, is it?"

  She shook her head and scowled, remembering what she had whispered to him the night before. She was so stupid. “No, it's not."

  He let out a huff of breath. “Okay. I am going to tell you something that could at best end my career and at worst get me killed. I am telling it to you because I want you to know. The only reason I lied to you is because it was absolutely necessary."

  She looked away in disgust. “There is never a good reason to lie."

  He gripped her shoulders and shook her lightly until she looked up at him. “Yes, there is. That is what I am trying to tell you."

  She let out a huff of her own. “Fine, tell me then."

  "You can not repeat this to anyone, not the two kids over there, not your boss or whoever, no one. Understand?"

  Beth rolled her eyes. She would not repeat it because whatever came out of his mouth next would probably be as big a lie as everything else he had told her. And she had let him ... she could not even think of what she had let him do to her. The fact that she had enjoyed it was even more embarrassing.

  "Beth!"

  "Okay. I swear I will never repeat what you tell me.” She forced herself to look up at him.

  "I've been deep undercover for the NYPD for two years trying to track the origin of huge shipments of drugs that are somehow mysteriously appearing in circulation on the city streets."

  Well, this was a doozy. This guy had quite the imagination.

  He continued. “It didn't seem to be coming in by boat through the harbor, we couldn't catch anything crossing the borders by road or even by private plane. I mean I'm not talking small amounts here, Beth. I am talking truckloads full of drugs ... or trainloads."

  Her eyes opened wide, starting to believe him for the first time. “The private track?"

  He nodded. “Exactly what I'm thinking."

  It still sounded a bit like a late night movie to her. “Can I see some identification?"

  Rick laughed out loud. “Beth. Deep undercover means just that. I am not in any way identified with the department. I have one single point of contact by secure cell phone only. That is it. Otherwise, I am on my own. I show up dead in the street one night and I will be listed as just another John Doe."

  She frowned, torn. “If you can't be affiliated, how are you paid by the department then?"

  He laughed again. “Look, we get through today, I crack this case and stop those drugs from coming into my city and onto the streets, and I will sit down and tell you everything you want to know. Right down to my pension benefits. But right now, there isn't time."

  Dropping her eyes, she had to ask one more question. “So you and I ... it was all for your cover?” His cover. She felt like she sounded ridiculous using his spy lingo.

  He lifted her chin with one hand and lowered his head to speak close and right up in her face. “No. Don't ever think that. I had my eye on you from the first moment I saw you yesterday morning, wandering around like a tourist and staring up at the ceiling. The fact you worked here was a coincidence and yeah, I'll admit, convenient that I suddenly had access to a Grand Central expert. But you and I last night was just that ... you and I. That was not work. That was me, a man wanting a woman he found ... finds ... very attractive and wants to know better."

  She had never felt more confused in her entire life, and that must have shown all over her face.

  "Beth. There will be plenty of time to doubt me later. If I'm lying you can take the story to the police or the damn New York Times if you want. But right now, what would it hurt to simply trust me?"

  Pulling in a deep, shaky breath, Beth nodded. Raising her voice, she called out, “Robby, take him down there. Do whatever he says but be careful. Lyssa, you come back to the office with me.” Then she looked back at Rick's relieved face. “If you are lying, and if you get Robby hurt in any way, I will track you down myself. My father was a cop before he died. I know my way around a gun."

  Unexpectedly, Rick smiled. “You are full of surprises, aren't you? And you can shoot. I knew there was a reason I was first attracted to you. I can't wait to find out more later, and to repeat last night.” He grabbed her face and planted a big kiss directly on her lips. “Hold that thought."

  Then he and Robby disappeared down the dimly lit hallway, and Beth was left to worry. Two thoughts dominated her mind. One, she hoped Rick had told her the truth. Two, if he had and was correct about the massive amounts of drugs coming through here literally beneath her nose, and he and Robby were about to stumble directly into the middle of the whole operation, she really hoped he was carrying a gun, a big one.

  Soon after Lyssa and Beth had arrived back at the office, Robby hurled through the door, alone and flushed. “What the hell is going on and who is that guy, Beth?"

  Beth stood so fast, she sent her wheeled desk chair flying behind her where it crashed into the metal filing cabinet with a loud bang that did nothing to soothe her already jangling nerves. “Why? What happened?"

  "We got down to the elevator. He took one look at it, dragged me back down the passageway, made me swear to come right back here to you and not talk to a soul or he'd do all sorts of bodily harm to me, then he disappeared."

  Beth sighed. So now Rick was down there alone, possibly with these drug runners. Should she call someone? If only he had given her the name and number of his contact at the NYPD. What if he needed help and his cell phone didn't work down there? Her heart pounded. He could be killed and no one would ever know. Or worse, he could wrap up this case and disappear into his undercover network never to be heard from again. Or even worse than that, what if the entire thing was one big lie? Either way, truth or
lie, what if she never saw him again? Suddenly, this all mattered to her ... a lot.

  "What do we do now?” Lyssa asked, looking relieved at Robby's reappearance as she walked over to give him a big hug. If only Beth could do the same with Rick.

  The wheels squeaked across the tile floor as Beth pulled her chair closer to the desk and plunked her weary body heavily into it. With a sigh she answered, “We wait and don't tell a soul, just like he asked."

  "What is going on here, Beth?” Robby asked again.

  "Honestly, I don't really know, Robby. I wish I did.” And that was the absolute truth.

  The rest of the day passed in agonizing slow motion as the three kept busy, Beth in particular in an attempt to keep her mind off of what could possibly be going on right beneath their feet. They re-measured the cracked Guastavino ceiling tile in the Whispering Gallery and reset the motion detector. She delved into the stack of paperwork on her desk she had been avoiding. Mostly, she watched the clock and jumped each time the phone rang or someone knocked on the door but none of the calls or visitors was the one she wanted.

  Finally, she went home for the day, holding tightly to the hope that she would find Rick waiting in the hall outside her door. Or maybe even inside her apartment. If he really were a cop, he could get in no problem, she supposed. It was all just so far-fetched and confusing. It would be even if she weren't sleep deprived from spending most of last night in the throes of passion with the man in question.

  She arrived home seeing neither hide nor hair of Rick. She ate some leftovers in the fridge, but still nothing from him. She got ready for bed while keeping an eye and ear on the local nightly news on television hoping to pick up some clue that the police had been alerted to what he suspected. Nothing again.

  Beth fell into a fitful sleep full of dreams about sex and guns, trains and drugs, and woke up possibly feeling more exhausted than she had before going to bed.

  Chapter Six

  "Hey Beth. Are you taking the tour today?"

  She sighed. “Is it Wednesday again already?"

  Robby laughed. “Yes. It is."

  Beth groaned. She had dreaded Wednesdays and those lunchtime tours for weeks now. They only reminded her of Rick and the day they had met, and the night that followed, and the fact she hadn't heard from him in a month. Nor had she heard one word on the news about any drug ring busts, leading her to believe the whole story had been one big lie, which meant Rick was one big liar.

  She glanced up when Robby began talking again. “Since you don't look all that enthused about it, do you think I can give the tour?"

  She frowned. “You really want to?"

  Robby nodded. “Yeah, sure. Classes end soon and graduation isn't far away. I guess I'm feeling a bit nostalgic, leaving you and this job and all."

  Beth smiled. “I'll miss you and Lyssa, too. You better come back and visit, though."

  "Oh, we will. And don't be surprised if you see my resume and job application cross your desk, as soon as we get back from our trip across Europe. We're taking the Eurorail."

  She laughed. “Haven't you had enough of trains after this internship?"

  He shook his head. “No way! I'm just getting started. Hey, it's getting late. I'm gonna head upstairs now for the tour."

  Beth nodded. At least one of them was on the ball. “Thanks, Robby."

  Alone again in the office, she leaned her elbows on the desk, rubbed her face hard with both hands, and groaned when her cell phone rang in her bag. About two weeks ago she had stopped jumping each time her phone rang, that had been about the time she had given up on Rick.

  She located it in her oversized bag now and glanced at the caller ID. It said Private which was not that odd since a few of her colleagues had unlisted numbers. “Hello."

  "Hi."

  Her hand holding the phone began to shake as Beth's heart pumped harder. “Rick?"

  She could hear the smile in his voice when he said, “You remember me. That's a good sign."

  She struggled to control the shaking in her voice. “It's been a month."

  "I know."

  "Where have you been all this time?"

  "Doing my job."

  "Why should I believe you? I haven't seen anything about what you told me in the paper or on the news."

  "Ah. I guess you haven't seen the noon edition of the paper yet today."

  Beth's eyes opened wide. She grabbed her wallet from her bag and rose from her desk. She could probably make it to the newsstand and back without losing cell signal. Flinging open her office door, she stopped dead, face to face with a copy of that day's paper lying on the ground in front of her door. She had no doubt who had placed it here for her and, since it had not been there when Robby left moments before, that person had to be somewhere close.

  She said into the phone unsteadily, “Where are you?"

  While he answered, she picked up the paper and glanced at the front page. “Nearby. You can read the whole thing later, but it basically says the NYPD has had this station under surveillance for the past month in an attempt to find the source of the drugs passing through here. It wasn't enough to just get the people transporting it, we needed the source, too, to dry up the supply."

  She looked at the article incredulously and said into the phone. “And did you get them?"

  "We did. You did good, Beth. You and your two college kids not only gave me the lead that cracked this case, you also kept your mouths shut and allowed us the time we needed to finish it. I'm really proud of all of you."

  "I'm glad of that, that you got them, I mean.” But cracking a drug ring still did not make her feel any better about things between the two of them.

  "Hey, you know what. There is something I have been dying to ask you since the day we met."

  The sound of her own pulse in her head was now so loud she could barely hear his answer when she asked him, “What is that?"

  "Why do the constellations look funny in the Sky Ceiling?” Rick asked. “I missed that part of your tour the day we met."

  Her heart fell and she repeated by rote the line from the tour. “The Zodiac is reversed. The artist was inspired by a medieval manuscript that showed the heavens as seen from the outside of a celestial sphere."

  "Ah. That's it.” She heard him laugh. “You are very sexy when you talk shop, you know."

  "I am?"

  "Yeah, you are. In fact, I was hoping now that this case is wrapped up we could get together and talk shop again real soon. Maybe tonight, even."

  Beth swallowed hard and hesitated. She glanced down at the paper again. His name wouldn't be in there if he actually were undercover. In fact, he was probably using a fake name to begin with, but she wanted to believe him so badly. Somehow, even without definitive proof, she did believe him.

  "Come on, Beth. I know you've thought about me, about us, this past month. I also would bet a million bucks you haven't been bad with anyone else since that night."

  She felt her face grow hot and heard him laugh.

  "I would also bet a good amount of money that you are blushing right now. Am I right?"

  The fact he knew her so well, inside and out, literally and figuratively, was a big turn on. She hated to admit it, but it was. “Yes. You're right."

  "So what do you say, baby?"

  What the hell kind of boyfriend would an uncover cop who disappeared for a month at a time make? She answered her own question. She did not care what kind of boyfriend he would make or if they had a future past the immediate one. She'd lived for too many years, thirty to be exact, worrying and over thinking everything in her life. Now for once, all she wanted to do was live. The decision was suddenly clear in her mind and the absolute relief of having made it, and feeling completely sure that it was the right one, made her laugh with sheer abandon.

  "I say I want to be bad. Meet me on the platform for my subway line in ten minutes. I'm taking the rest of the day off. Maybe the rest of the week."

  She heard his low, sexy, satis
fied laugh through the phone and she knew it was going to be quite a day ... the first day of many in the rest of her life.

  About the Authors

  Vivien was born in a house very familiar with the written word. The daughter of an author and sportswriter, she fell in love early on with the stories that played inside her head, transcribing the first of those at the age of five. She moved on to explore other formats, including acting and film production, but always came back to her storytelling roots.

  Currently, Vivien resides in northern California with her British husband and two beautiful children. She's thrilled to be back to her romantic roots, and looks forward to sharing with you some of the voices that have been living inside her head.

  www.viviendean.com

  * * * *

  Always an artist, Eva Gale started writing to keep her sanity and instead found her life's passion. She loves thinking up characters and can get happily lost in endless hours of research. Along with other erotic romance stories, she is currently working on a full-length historical romance and paranormal romance. She enjoys reading, hunting for the perfect antique, art shows and gardening. Eva lives in the northeast with her husband and home teaches her 7 children.

  * * * *

  Philippa Grey-Gerou, or Grey, was born the eldest daughter of a Protestant minister in New England and was raised in various small towns throughout the Northeast and Midwest, where there was little to do but live in her imagination. She was a voracious reader, and started writing at an early age, settling on that as her life's work before higher education led her astray. After attending state and Ivy League universities to earn degrees in History, Anthropology and Folklife Studies, she settled in suburban Pennsylvania to start her own family. There she rediscovered her love of the written word, and has been writing ever since. She's been in love four times, had her heart broken twice, broke another's heart once, and is currently working on her happily ever after.