Rescuing Samantha

by Nicole Flockton

  “Fuck it all. You know if I had that news a little earlier things may have been different.”

  “I wasn’t going to give you information that I couldn’t validate. I don’t work that way.”

  Beck ran a hand down his face, the last thing he needed was to upset everyone. He couldn’t blame Cass for doing the right thing. “Sorry.”

  “As you should be.” Cass admonished. He could hear her fingers flying over the keyboard. “I’ll see if I can ping Sam’s phone and get a location for you. I’ll contact Ox and get him to meet you. I assume you’re heading back to the studio?”

  “Yeah we are.”

  “I’m on it and I’ll let Irish know too. We’ll find them Beck.”

  “I hope so,” he muttered as he slid into the car. He had the engine started, and pulled away from the curb, wheels squealing on the road, before Ghost had even closed his door after settling Billy into his car seat.

  “Cass’s confirmed what we thought. Leigh is Sam’s stalker.”

  “Fuck.”

  “Yeah. Who were you talking to while I was on the phone to Pascal?” Beck asked as he whipped around a slow moving car.

  “Tex. And slow the fuck down, my son is in the back.”

  “Shit, sorry.” Beck eased off the accelerator. “Why’d you call Tex?”

  “Because he has a way of zeroing on Rayne’s location. He didn’t pick up so I had to leave a message.”

  “Cass is on it too. She said she’ll ping Sam’s phone and see if she can get a location.”

  “She needn’t bother. Trust me, Tex’s information will be more accurate than Cass’s. When he calls back he’ll know where precisely where she is. He’ll give us co-ordinates and the quickest route to get to them.”

  “How the hell can he do that?”

  “All our women and children have trackers so Tex can locate them whenever we need to. Case in point today.”

  Beck whistled low. “That’s a bit stalkerish isn’t it?”

  Ghost snorted. “If you knew what our women have gone through, then no not stalkerish at all. We want to keep the women and children we love safe. They want it too.”

  Beck didn’t know what to make of this information. If it helped them find Sam and Rayne all well and good, but he still wasn’t entirely comfortable with it.

  Fifteen minutes later he screeched into the studio’s parking lot. He spied Ox talking to Irish. Ox must have been close by for him to beat Beck and Ghost.

  Beck pulled into the nearest bay and turned the engine off. He climbed out and checked his phone in the vain hope that Sam had called or texted him to tell him she was okay. Of course, he would’ve heard the call or text while he was driving so he was just giving himself a fool's hope.

  Ghost met him at the front of the car. “Shit, is that Ox? And what the fuck is Irish doing with him?”

  “You know them both?” Beck asked as they made their way to where the two other men stood.

  “Our team did a couple of ops with Ox’s team before he left the Navy. And Irish, his reputation precedes him. I don’t know why he’s here but he’s not good news. The guy is a fuck up. A few good men got hurt and he fucking snuck away and left them to die. No way do I fucking trust him getting my woman.”

  While he wanted to ask Ghost more about what Irish had done, now wasn’t the time nor the place. But it was interesting to him that Ox had a different thought process about Irish. Time would tell if Ox was correct or wrong. “At the moment it’s us and those two, plus Cass and Tex doing their computer stuff. I’m just glad we’ve got some extra hands. This is where I miss having my team.”

  They reached the other two men, and Ghost gave Ox a chin lift, but blatantly refused to acknowledge Irish. Billy chose that moment to grumble and Ghost excused himself to deal with his son. How effective was he going to be with a baby on his back? Probably extremely effective, Ghost could probably take down an insurgent while keeping the baby safe. He looked that capable.

  “What have you got for me, Beck?” Ox asked.

  “Not much, except I know who’s been threatening Sam. And they’ve got her.”

  “Who is it?” Irish asked, his voice low and gravelly, like he didn’t speak much. Beck studied him and noticed the scar along his hairline on the left hand side of his face. It went from his cheek to just above his eyebrow.

  “Leigh Hernandez, Pascal Hernandez’s wife.” Beck ground the words out.

  “No fucking way,” Ox exclaimed.

  “Yep. She came into Sam’s dressing room today and told her she was taking her and Rayne on a shopping spree and Pascal had okayed it. Only I got a phone call from the director wanting to know where Sam was. Cass confirmed with me on my way over that Leigh was involved, she found evidence which tied Leigh to the doll delivery. She also said she was going to try and locate Sam using pings from her cell phone.”

  “Leigh fucking Hernandez, that’s unbelievable.”

  Beck turned to Irish. “Have you noticed anything out of the ordinary with Leigh at all?”

  “Nah, the gossip has been more on you and Samantha and whether you two were hooking up. Leigh hasn’t been around often. I caught a glimpse of her and the girls getting into a limo earlier. I was going to follow them, but some fucker ran into my bike and it’s fucked. I went looking for you but your car was gone so I assumed you’d followed them. I’m guessing we’re not dealing with an amateur here.”

  Beck didn’t like to hear that. Why the hell did Leigh want Samantha? Had they had some sort of connection in the past?

  Ghost came striding up to them. “I’ve spoken to Tex, he’s got a fix on Rayne, but it looks like they’re still moving. He’s given me the direction they’re heading. We need to get moving, now.”

  “Thank fuck,” Beck breathed out. Maybe there was something to the trackers after all. “I suggest we go in and speak to Pascal, maybe he can answer a few questions.”

  “How did Tex find Rayne?” asked Ox as they walked into the building.

  “I’ll explain later. Let’s find out why that bitch has taken my wife.” The baby cried again and Ghost bounced him up and down a little.

  “You want me to get Cass to come over and take care of your son?” Ox asked.

  Indecision crept over Ghost’s face, the first time Beck had seen a hint of vulnerability from the tough Delta. It disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared. “That would be great. But Rayne is going to want to see him the moment she’s rescued. Make sure Cass follows us but stays at a safe distance.”

  “Got it,” Ox replied as his fingers flew over his phone screen.

  The three men and baby made their way to Pascal, who was barking orders at people on set. “About time you showed up. Where’s my actress and wife?”

  Beck clenched his fists to stop himself from knocking the guy out. As far as the other man knew his wife was missing as well.

  “And my wife, too, asshole,” Ghost growled and the director took a step back. No way could he let Ghost hit the other man, so he laid a hand on Ghost’s arm.

  “I’ve got this,” he said out of the corner of his mouth. “That’s actually what we want to ask you. Your wife has kidnapped Samantha and Rayne and we want to know why.”

  “What are you talking about? Leigh hasn’t kidnapped anyone.” The more Pascal spoke, the more his Spanish accent came out. “Leigh wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

  Beck widened his stance and crossed his arms over his chest. “Well, that’s where you’re wrong. You said yourself that Leigh didn’t come to you to arrange for Sam to have the rest of the day off. But that’s exactly what she told us in Sam’s dressing room. Leigh offered to take Sam and Rayne on a shopping trip. Now they’re missing.”

  “How do you know they’re missing?” The director countered. “Maybe they’re shopping right now.”

  Ghost’s phone rang, but Beck kept his attention on the director, looking for any indication that perhaps Pascal and Leigh were working together. That, for some reason, he wanted Sam ki
dnapped. None of that made sense, though. The guy was a decorated director, no way would he risk his career like that.

  “Do you really think that? Don’t you think it’s strange your wife assured us you approved Sam having the rest of the day off. And yet you know nothing about it? Everything points to your wife taking Sam and Rayne. Not only that, she’s spent months and months sending threatening texts to Sam. Threatening Sam’s sister and brother. Scaring Sam so much that she deliberately stayed away from her family.” With every word Beck said, he closed the distance between him and Pascal, until he was right in his face. “And we want to know why.”

  Pascal looked at him, then looked over to where Ghost stood, still holding his son while talking on the phone, but his focus and face was on the director. Ox and Irish stood just behind Ghost. “I don’t know. Where is your proof that Leigh is involved in any of this? I really don’t see her doing this at all.”

  “Yeah well seems like your wife was hiding a whole lot of shit from you.” Beck turned to look at his friends. “I don’t think we’re going to get anything out of him.”

  Part of Beck had sympathy for the man. It had to be a shock to find out some hard truths about the woman he loved.

  Ghost came to stand next to Pascal. “That was Tex. He’s got a lock on Sam and Rayne.” He looked at Pascal. “And your wife.”

  “Is she okay?” Pascal asked.

  “Do you think we care?” countered Ghost.

  “Can we stop fucking around here and get on with it? The longer we stay here the more danger your women are in.”

  “Shut up, Irish. I still don’t know why your ass is here,” Ghost growled.

  “Okay, let’s all settle down here. We’ve got a mission and we need to work together. Sam and Rayne will be counting on us. So how about we keep it together?” Ox interjected and Beck could understand why Storm and Ash had him as the head of their office.

  “Ox and Irish are right, Ghost, let’s go.” Beck started walking away from the stunned director. “I’m also going to call Fort, see if my old team are in town. We need all the help we can get.”

  11

  “How can you be so calm?” Sam asked her sister. They were stuck in a dirty, dusty, cabin in the middle of nowhere and Rayne looked as if she was out for Sunday brunch. Sam was panicking. She’d been pulling at the ties around her hands for ages and all she’d succeeded in doing, was tightening them until she could feel a trickle of blood seeping down her hands.

  “I’m calm because I know Ghost will find me. I’m sure he’s working with Beck right now on a plan to rescue us. You need to stop fidgeting, Sam, you’re only going to hurt yourself even more.”

  “Look, I know phones can be tracked but you do remember Leigh took ours and smashed them with her heels before she threw them out the window. Plus, it’s been hours since we left the studio.”

  “Yes, I know what she did. Ghost and Beck are coming. They’re special forces men, they’ll have planned what they’re going to do down to the nth degree. It takes time, but they’re coming.”

  Worry gnawed at Sam worse than the cuts from the bindings. Had Rayne gone into a state of shock? Was she having some sort of PTSD attack to be so calm and imagine Ghost and Beck would know where they were. If anything happened to Rayne’s mental health because of this kidnapping she would never forgive herself.

  Sam gazed around the cabin, trying to see if there was anything that they could use to free themselves. Leigh and her chauffeur had tied them up and then disappeared out the door, not before she spied them sharing a passionate kiss. How cliché was that? The rich housewife sleeping with the chauffeur. Pascal didn’t deserve any of this. In her mind she had no doubts that the director didn’t know anything about what his wife had been up to.

  The door slammed opened and Leigh stood in the doorway. Her blouse was half tucked into her trousers. Her hair was mussed and she had the smile of a well-sexed woman on her face.

  Anger bubbled up inside of Sam at how blasé she was being. The other woman went and fucked her boy toy while she and Rayne were stuck in here. She still hadn’t given any explanation as to why she’d been harassing Sam to get to Rayne. Or what Rayne had done to deserve her wrath.

  “Okay, Leigh, what the hell is going on? You brought us here. Tied us up and obviously went and had sex in the woods. Is Pascal in on this? Did he make you do this?” Sam asked. As much as she believed he wasn’t involved, the question still needed to be asked. It made sense now why Leigh had told her not to bother checking with the director, he had no idea what his wife was up to. And the way she’d believed Leigh’s security would be with them. What a fool she’d been. For all her bravado and reassurances to Beck, she was as bad as the leading ladies in the horror movies she always made fun of.

  “Bah! All Pascal cares about is his stupid movies. He sleeps with all his leading ladies. The only reason he hasn’t tried with you is because of that lump of meat who is always beside you.” She stalked over to where they sat and got right in Sam’s face. “I’m betting you want that piece of meat here right now. You want him to come rescue you and save the day like a real life fairy tale.”

  The more she spoke the more Sam was convinced Leigh had lost her mind. “I’m sure he and Ghost are doing everything they can to find me and Rayne. You’ll be sorry you ever took us.”

  “I don’t think so. By the time they find you, you’ll be so far gone that you won’t be recognizable.” Leigh stalked around to where Rayne sat. “Now your husband can know what it feels like to lose someone he loves. To know that he was outsmarted by a woman.”

  “I wouldn’t be too sure about that,” Rayne said simply. “I’d be worried if I were you. Ghost will be here soon. I know it.”

  “Oh that’s so sweet. Such faith in a man who is a cold blooded killer. Who goes to places and kills innocent people. He killed my brother and now he has to pay.” Her voice shook, and sweat beaded on her upper lip. The confident woman of a few moments ago had disappeared.

  Sam bit back a gasp at Leigh’s revelation. As an actress she’d always read up on what was happening in the world of directors, other actors, and celebrities. Not once had she read anything about Leigh’s brother being killed. That was a story that would’ve definitely headlined all the internet gossip sites.

  “How do you know Ghost killed your brother?” Sam asked.

  “Because I was there. I was in the house when a group of men dressed in all black stormed through the door and grabbed my brother by the throat and slit his neck. Riccardo and I had a good business going. It was profitable.” She started to laugh, a maniacal out of control laugh. The woman was unhinged. Her polished façade she showed the world was tarnished and Sam was seeing the real Leigh Hernandez.

  “What sort of business?” asked Rayne. Her outward semblance of calm had cracked a bit.

  “Oh the usual, drugs, selling women to men who wanted a sex slave. Do you know how many gullible women there are in Hollywood? So many wannabe models and actresses. It was so easy to lure them with talk of fabulous jobs and excellent money to be made. I’m sure all the girls I helped over the years are living the high life.”

  Sam swallowed down the bile burning the back of her throat. Leigh, who’d been a top model, a woman little girls had looked up to, had a black soul. How had she managed to fool so many people? Pascal included.

  “You do realize that you sentenced those girls to a life that they’ll never recover from? That they’re probably dead. I’m glad my brother-in-law and his team killed your brother,” Sam ground out. She never hated a woman more than she did Leigh right now.

  “I have to ask.” Rayne’s voice wobbled a bit but she still seemed calm. “When Ghost and his team raided your brother’s house, how did you get away? How come you weren’t caught.”

  Leigh laughed again. “Oh, it was so easy. I’m married to a director. I’ve learned a few things over the years. There was only one other girl in the house at the time. She’d been there a couple of months, I t
hink she was Riccardo’s favorite, so he kept her instead of selling her off. I have to say my brother had good taste in women. I had a little fun with her as well.”

  Her eyes took on a faraway look as if she was remembering everything she and her brother had done to the poor girl. Sam’s stomach somersaulted at just how sick this woman standing in front of them was. “Anyway I’m sure she’s the only reason that your husband’s team was there. She was probably a Senator’s or billionaire’s daughter, I guess. I don’t really care who they are. If they’re thirsty and hungry for a job, they’ll do almost anything. It was so easy to act like I was a victim too. They took me with them. Of course, when I got back, I made sure the girl wasn’t able to identify me. Poor thing took her own life because she couldn’t live with what she’d done.”

  Everything in Sam wanted to reach out and hit Leigh at her callous attitude. If she wasn’t bound the other woman wouldn’t know what happened to her. “I can’t believe you! When we get out of here you’re going to wish you’d died with your brother. How can you stand there and talk so casually about a woman whose life you destroyed? Not to mention the untold grief you caused her family.”

  Leigh came over and slapped Sam hard, her head jolted to the left and for a few seconds Sam was sure she saw stars. “Easy, bitch. You’d do anything for the person you love and I loved Riccardo so much. He was my everything. And I was his everything. We were a team, and—” Leigh turned her attention to Rayne and slapped her hard too. “—This bitch’s husband took him from me. So now I’m going to take something from him.”

  Leigh paused, before flicking her hair over her shoulder. “Pascal, he would do anything for me, that’s why you’re in this film. I found out Samantha Rayse was actually Samantha Jackson, older sister to Rayne. I told him he should give you a chance and showed him your films. He liked what he saw, but I knew Pascal wouldn’t just give you the part, luckily you’re a good actress. I have to say, you were doing a good job with the film. It’ll be a shame for Pascal to lose his actress, but he can afford the hit. The bonus with all of this is, now your Beck is going to know the pain of losing someone he cares about, too. It couldn’t have worked out any better.” She clapped her hands like a child delighted to see a roomful of gifts. “This is going to be so good.”