“Don’t they have video feed at the bar? We could find him on video and track his credit cards…”
“He always pays in cash. Logan, we have no other way to track him.”
I was quiet as I thought about it. I didn’t want to put Cece in any danger, but it might be more dangerous to leave this psycho on the loose. Even if he never came after Cece again, she would always wonder if he was watching her, and as long as he was free, he could do the same or worse to other women.
“Alright, I’ll talk to Cece about it, but if she doesn’t want to do it, I’m not going to try to persuade her otherwise.”
“That’s all I’m asking. Let me know what she says. We could go tonight if it works for her.”
“Yeah. I’ll call you later.”
I hung up and then made my way over to the firm where she worked. This was going to suck big time. I hadn’t spoken to her all week and now I was showing up to ask her to help me find her attacker. I was stopped at a new security checkpoint in the lobby and asked where I was headed. Then they called up to Cece to ask if I was allowed to be sent up. I was glad to see the new changes in place. Hopefully it made Cece feel safer here.
I took the elevator up to her floor and walked over to her office. She stood when she saw me coming and had a smile on her face. Shit. She thought I was here to see her in a friendly manner. Not that my visit was unfriendly, but I had a specific purpose in mind. She stepped out from behind her desk and walked over to me.
“Hey, Logan. I was surprised to hear you were downstairs.”
Her tone had changed a lot since her attack. The once ‘always confident’ Cece was barely there anymore. I saw glimpses of her, but right now, she looked uncertain. That killed me. I wondered briefly if I had given in to her that night, would she still have that confidence? Did I help strip that away from her?
“How are you, Cece?”
Her smile faltered a little. Over our brief time together, I had gotten used to calling her sweetheart a lot. Now wasn’t the time to think about that. She pulled herself together and smiled again.
“I’m good. It’s a little strange being here, but it’s gotten easier every day. The new security measures are great.”
“That’s good.”
“So what did you want to see me about?”
“Um, well Sean has an idea and I’m here to see if you want to go along with it.”
Her smile died and she walked back behind her desk and sat down. Shit.
“Okay. Lay it on me.”
“Well, Sean showed the sketch down at the club and the bartender said that your attacker is usually there on Fridays and Saturdays. He thinks we might be able to draw him out if you were there.”
Something crossed her face and I wasn’t sure, but it looked like fear. I didn’t have time to decipher it because she straightened her back and her face went blank a moment later.
“Of course. Anything to catch this guy, right?”
“Cece, you don’t have to do this. This could be dangerous and I don’t want you to do anything that you’re not comfortable with.”
She cut me off, looking up at me with defiance and resignation on her face. “It doesn’t matter whether or not I’m comfortable. If I ever want to feel safe again, this guy needs to be caught. So tell me what the plan is and let’s get on with it.”
“Basically, the plan is for you and I to go to the club and Sean and a few other officers will keep an eye out for him.”
“You’re going to be there?” She looked at me in confusion.
“Of course. I’m not going to let you go there by yourself.”
“But if you’re there, he won’t try to approach me.”
“No. You can go to the club with me, but I’m not leaving you alone where he can get to you. Sean won’t have enough officers to watch the exits and look for him, so we have to be smart about this.”
“I want to talk to Sean about this. It doesn’t make any sense to go there, but not allow him to get close to me. We’ll never catch him that way.”
“If he gets close to you and I’m not there, he could easily grab you without anyone realizing.”
“What are you talking about?” She threw her hands in the air as she tried to keep her calm. “We’ll be in a crowded club with a couple hundred witnesses. He wouldn’t try anything.”
“Are you really that naive? That’s the easiest way for him to get to you. Do you know how little people pay attention when they’re out partying? He could drag you away and nobody would think anything of it. He could spike your drink and then carry you off and people would think you’re drunk and he’s trying to help you. There are so many things that could go wrong and we wouldn’t know it because there won’t be enough police officers at the club to keep eyes on you at all times. We do this my way or I’m telling Sean we’re not doing it.”
I must have put some fear in her because I could swear I saw her lip tremble for a second. I didn’t want her scared, but I needed her to realize how dangerous this could be. She swallowed thickly and then blinked a few times, regaining her composure.
“Tell Sean that I’m good with it. I’ll go home and get dressed up and be ready when you pick me up.” She turned back to the paperwork on her desk, effectively dismissing me. I turned for the door, pissed off that we were actually going through with this. It felt wrong to do this to her, but she agreed and there wasn’t anything I could do about it.
“I’ll be at your place at eight o’clock. We’ll check in with Sean and then head to the club. His team will already be waiting there.”
“See you tonight.” She didn’t look up as she said it. I didn’t know if she was pissed at me or trying to seem indifferent, but I didn’t like her reaction. She was way too calm about the possibility of seeing this guy again. I had some work to finish up at the office, so I headed back there, but honestly, I wasn’t very productive. I kept worrying about how things would go tonight. Ryan came into my office and talked to me for a good five minutes before I realized he was in there. I filled him in on what was going down tonight and he told me to go home. He knew my mind was somewhere else and I would be of no use the rest of the day.
I headed home and got ready for tonight, then headed over to Cece’s. I was a few hours early, but I thought she might need a distraction for tonight. When she answered the door, she looked pale and I seriously questioned whether this was a good idea.
“Are you okay? You don’t look so good.”
“I think I ate something bad, but I’ll be okay.”
“Cece, you don’t have to do this.”
“I’m fine. It’s really…” She took off for the bathroom and moments later was puking in the toilet. I walked in behind her and held her hair as I rubbed her back.
“I think we should call Sean and cancel. This isn’t good for you.”
She wiped her mouth and stood as she flushed the toilet. “No, what’s not good for me is knowing that asshole is out there and probably has a hard on for me. I can handle this. I just need to get my shit together.”
“Would it make you feel better if Vira was with you? Maybe we could have Sean and Vira together as a couple and then there would be an excuse for Sean to be closer all night.”
“I don’t want to put Vira in any danger.”
“Sean would be with her the whole time.
“Only if she’s okay with it. I don’t want to guilt her into anything.”
“Okay, I’ll call Sean and see if that plan works for him. You call Vira and see if she’s available.”
After a fifteen minute call with Sean where he argued against involving Vira, I finally convinced him this was the best way to keep eyes on Cece and keep her comfortable. Sean wasn’t too thrilled that I suggested Vira tag along. In fact, he was quite adamant that it was a stupid idea, but I needed to keep Cece from freaking out and Vira was probably the best thing for her right now.
We had a few hours before we left and I did my best to distract her, but it wasn’t going
so well. She paced around the apartment, not able to focus on doing any one thing. She tried to start some laundry, but forgot to add the clothes. She made dinner, but forgot to set the timer and it burned. She wouldn’t have eaten anyway. She was way too keyed up. When Vira got home, she distracted her with picking out outfits and doing her hair and makeup. It helped a little, but knowing what she was dressing up for was a mood killer.
Sean showed up at the apartment a little early, but when he saw how upset Cece was, he decided that we might as well leave early and see if we could loosen her up a little. She was determined to go through with this, so we headed for the club. Vira and Cece got us in with no problem and we headed straight to the bar. The bartender was aware of what was going on and was being compensated to let us know if our guy was spotted. He was to send us each a vodka tonic as a signal that our guy was around.
Cece almost fell over her feet several times just walking over to the bar and she was anything but relaxed. If her attacker spotted her looking this agitated, he might think something was up and head out. I grabbed her hand and headed to the dance floor. I needed to loosen her up a little.
Play That Funky Music by Wild Cherry was on and I got her to dance a little, but she was stiff. I attempted to swing my hips and make her laugh and it worked. I could dance slow and sensual, but I was not a good dancer in general. She laughed at my crazy moves, but I saw her eyes continually darting around the dance floor looking for anyone that looked familiar. She shook her hips a little, but there was no confidence in her dancing. When Fire by The Pointer Sisters came on, I pulled her against me and did my best to make her forget everyone else around us. I grasped her hands in mine and ran them up her body and over her breasts and up through her hair. When she lifted her hair off her neck, I leaned in and started to suck her delicate skin. Her body shivered in response and I took that as a sign that I was taking her in the right direction. I ground my hips against her ass and lowered my hands to her hips, following her movements. My mouth trailed along her shoulder leaving wet kisses along her smooth skin. Turning her around, I moved her arms around my neck and kissed her hard on the mouth. My tongue slipped in her mouth and my hands trailed her body, my body vibrating with need. She felt so right in my arms and I forgot all about why we were here. A week without her had been torture for me. The more her body moved against mine, the more I knew I couldn’t give her up yet. I needed to fight for every kiss she would give me, for every touch. She was mine and she may not realize it yet, but she would not be walking away from me again.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Cecelia
Looking into Logan’s eyes as he danced with me, I felt my body coming alive again, my spirits lifting. Coming here tonight had been one of the hardest things I’d ever done. My emotions had been all over the place this week. Sometimes I felt like myself, while at other times, I felt like a scared kitten. I couldn’t figure out which way was up and it was exhausting. I hadn’t slept all week. Every noise made me think that my attacker was back to get me. I didn’t think I would ever feel safe again, but Logan changed all that the moment he pulled me into his arms. He knew that I needed some way to find myself and he made it happen.
Then he kissed me and I about cried at the relief that swept through me. I hadn’t realized how much I needed him. This was probably what he was talking about that night, the night I walked away from him. He wanted to help me in a different way and I was hell bent on doing things my own way. It helped, but the relief was only temporary. In the long term, I hurt us both and I didn’t feel any better about myself or feel any safer. If I hadn’t pushed him away, he probably would have been with me the whole week, helping me chase away my demons.
As the music changed throughout the night, I continued to dance with Logan and every dance made me feel more and more like my old self. I caught him glancing around the room from time to time, but most of the time his eyes were on me, trailing the curves of my body.
Vira and Sean were dancing close by, but I never really paid attention to them. Logan assumed that I needed Vira by my side to get through this, but he was wrong. I loved Vira like a sister, but he was the one that made me feel safe. It was closing in on the end of the night and we still hadn’t seen the creep, so we decided that it was time to head out and try again tomorrow. I hadn’t gone to the bathroom all night, so Vira and I headed to the bathroom with Sean and Logan trailing closely behind.
Vira and I were chatting as we entered the ladies room, but as soon as Vira entered, she stopped in her tracks leaving me to run into her from behind.
“What the hell, Vira? A little warning next time.”
I looked up to see none other than my attacker standing off to our left pointing a gun at Vira’s head. He reached behind me and turned the lock on the door, blocking our only escape.
“Brought some friends with you tonight, did ya?”
My body shook as I looked at the man who had assaulted me a week ago. I reached forward to grasp Vira’s hand, hoping that it would bring me a little comfort. Her grip was tight and it helped to ground me when panic threatened to take over.
“I just came here to have fun. What are you doing here?”
“Have fun huh? I saw the cops at the doors and your friend here is dating one. I’ve seen them together several times. Did you think I wouldn’t notice you stepping out on me?”
“What are you talking about?”
Panic was clawing at me and I did my best to hold it together. Maybe I could talk this guy down or at least get him to point the gun away from Vira. If I stalled him long enough, the guys would come looking for us.
“My girl doesn’t get to screw other guys. I saw you here last weekend and you left with two guys, you slut!”
This guy was off his rocker. His girl? I had never met this guy before in my life and he was acting like the disgruntled boyfriend.
“Look, I don’t know..”
“Shut up, you bitch. We’re leaving. Go open that window or I’m gonna put a bullet in your friend.”
As I tried to step away, Vira squeezed my hand. Her eyes pleaded with me not to go, but there was no way I would let her get shot. All that would accomplish is a bullet hole in her and me still at his mercy. I stepped to the window and pushed it open as much as possible. Hopefully, one of the cops would see us making our way out and save me before this asshole took me and cut me up into little bits.
“Crawl out the window and wait for me. If you try anything, I’ll kill your friend.”
“Vira, Cece, let’s go,” Sean called to us as he pounded on the door. I heard him try to push the door open and he cursed when it wouldn’t budge. “What the fuck? Why is the door locked?” There was more pounding and asshole walked over to Vira and whispered in her ear. She paled and then turned her head towards the door.
“We’re almost done. Chill the fuck out.” It had all the attitude that Vira normally spoke with, but I could hear the shaking in her voice. Apparently, so could Logan and Sean because they started slamming into the door, trying to break it down.
The asshole pushed me to climb out the window and when I was out, he quickly followed behind me, stopping on the sill. He pointed the gun at Vira and took a shot before I could do anything. I leapt towards him, pulling on him, hoping I could catch him off guard.
“No! You asshole!” As he fell to the ground, I climbed on top and started punching him. I lost all sense as I thought of my friend lying on the floor dead or bleeding out. Red swarmed in front of my eyes and all I could think about was killing this asshole. My hands hurt from punching him, so I stood to give him a swift kick. He grabbed my ankle and twisted, causing me to fall to the ground. I caught myself, but scraped my hands as I fell to the ground. He grabbed me by the hair and in seconds was hauling me away from the club. We were in an alley away from the exits and there was no one around to witness anything. His gun was pressed in my side as he pulled me to the end of the alley to a dark street. There was an old beater on the side of the road that he
threw me into from the drivers side. I tried to get to the passenger side, but he held the gun against my head.
“Try anything and I’ll put a bullet in you. No bitch of mine gets to fuck me over. You need to learn your place.”
I’d always heard that you did whatever you could to not be taken to a car, but if you did get taken, to fight because there was a smaller chance of being found once they got you to another location. This wasn’t the time. I needed a distraction. He started the car and pulled slowly into traffic, doing his best not to draw attention. We drove through the city for a few miles and so far there was nothing to give any distraction. I was getting anxious to get away from here before I broke down in sobs. I couldn’t break in front of him. I wouldn’t.
His gun was still aimed at my head and we were driving closer and closer to the edge of town. Soon there would be no one around to help. I had to take my chance now or I may never get another. Better to die trying than to never try at all, right?
I flung my left arm up, pushing his gun towards the back seat and thrust the heel of my right hand up into his nose as he turned to me. I was momentarily stunned that it had worked and quickly got my brain back on track. I flung open my door and threw myself into the street, rolling several times. His car was swerving all over the road, so I took my opportunity to make a run for it. It didn’t look like any of the shops on this street were open, so I ran down the closest alley, sticking as close to the buildings as possible. I heard his tires squealing and quickly turned the corner to another street. I had to find someone to help, but it was past one in the morning. No one was out. I didn’t have my purse on me and there were no pay phones anywhere that I could see. I zig zagged through several streets, trying to stay in the shadows and off one street for too long.
I was just coming around the corner to another street when I saw his car creeping down the road looking for me. Turning, I ran until I saw a fire escape and started climbing to the top. Hopefully, he wouldn’t look up and would look only at the street. When I got to the top of the building, I watched from above to see where his car had gone. Luckily, he didn’t seem to have seen me. Just as I thought I was safe, he pulled over and got out of his car, looking around the street. I held my breath as he looked up and down both sides of the street and then walked back to his car, kicking his tire and cursing. I could feel his anger from up here on my perch.
Logan (For The Love Of A Good Woman Book 3) Page 14
