Summer Wish

by Jill Sanders

  “Just get her hands. You can shower off after we have her hog-tied,” the other man said.

  She stilled. Suddenly she knew exactly who was in the room. Her blood grew cold, and she knew that she wasn’t going to make it through the night.

  After she’d emptied her stomach, she fought off the sticky hands that wrapped around her wrists again. No matter what she tried, this time they easily wrapped a rope around her and yanked her arms tightly behind her back. Her ankles were next, and they were jerked up behind her body in a bent fashion until her hands and legs were tied together. They had indeed hog-tied her.

  Then an oily rag was shoved in her mouth. She tried to fight it off, but the man gripped her jaw and squeezed until she cried out in pain. Then he shoved it all the way inside her mouth.

  “That should keep the gook quiet until we come back,” Robbie Dixon said with a chuckle.

  If she hadn’t just lost the entire contents of her stomach, the oily rag would have made her throw up again.

  She was kicked a few times in her stomach and back and then, thankfully, the room grew quiet. She lay there, trying to catch her breath, but with each inhale came sharp pain. She’d seen enough patients come in with broken ribs to understand that one or two of her ribs were broken, and maybe several more were bruised.

  Regulating her breathing, she tried to think of anything that could help her escape. If she didn’t, she knew there was no chance of seeing Brett or her parents again.

  What would they do? How could they go on without her? Would Brett blame himself? It wasn’t his fault. There was no way he could have seen what was coming.

  After all, the last they knew, both Robbie and Larry were in jail. If it was Larry with Robbie. The man didn’t sound familiar, but she would know Robbie’s voice even if she’d been blindfolded. It had been the one constant thing in her nightmares since that first night. That slow southern drawl with his slight speech impediment. The way he rolled his R’s was so unique that there was no mistake it was Robbie.

  Her eyes teared up as she glanced around the dark room. Since her hands and feet were hog-tied behind her, all she could do was twist her head to try and see her surroundings.

  She wondered vaguely if her purse and cell phone were still in Brett’s car. Could he find her that way? Was Robbie even now moving the car? She heard the crunch of tires over gravel and figured they were leaving her there. Where was she? It appeared to be an abandoned building. Maybe under construction?

  The floor was cement. Most of the high-rise or multistory homes along the water were made of cement to withstand hurricane winds.

  Then she noticed a large piece of plastic hanging over a wall. She felt the warm breeze of the summer night, smelled the salt and the water from the Gulf.

  She couldn’t hear anything beyond the soft sway of the plastic and the crickets outside.

  She thought of trying to push the oily rag out of her mouth, but each time she tried to use her tongue or teeth, she gagged at the taste.

  Closing her eyes, she wished for someone to save her. Someone to come. She wished that Brett was there. That her parents wouldn’t have to be told that she’d been murdered. Wished that Robbie and his accomplice would be found, tried, and found guilty of their crimes.

  Clues. Her mind snapped. The only thing she could do now was leave clues.

  Her fingers were sticky with blood. She didn’t know if it was hers or if it was from the man she’d bitten. Either way, she rolled over and began using her fingers to write what she could, twisting herself over the dusty cement floor until her fingers were dry and raw from the coarse cement.

  Still, she was pretty sure she had written Robbie’s name out on the dusty floor.

  When she’d used up all her energy, she basically passed out from lack of strength and from the fear of what was going to come next.

  “The car has stopped again,” he told Aiden.

  “Where?” his friend asked.

  “Pier Park.” He zoomed the screen in. “In the back parking lot.”

  “Why take her someplace there’s bound to be a ton of people around this time of night?” Aiden said. “I still think we should check out the first place they stopped. They could have unloaded Lea there and be dumping your car in a public spot.”

  “I agree,” Brett said. “I’m going to have Carl check out Pier Park. Let’s head to the place they first stopped.”

  “Send him the address of the first stop,” Aiden suggested.

  Brett shot off a text message with both locations and then called Carl.

  “We’re going to check out the first place. Have you got someone close to Pier Park?” he asked.

  “Yeah, we’re about one minute out,” Carl answered, and Brett could hear the sirens through the phone. “I’ll let you know. Pulling into the parking lot now.”

  “Keep an eye out. The car stopped almost two minutes ago. They could be on foot or in another car at this point,” he suggested before hanging up.

  “It says we’re less than a minute out,” he told Aiden, who stepped on the pedal and sped down the narrow dirt road. “Slow down,” Brett suggested. “If someone’s here, we don’t want to spook them into doing something to Lea.”

  “Right.” Aiden slowed the truck down. The narrow dirt lane appeared to have just been carved out of the thick brush.

  “There.” Brett pointed to a massive structure. “Turn off your lights and stop here. There’s still a truck there.”

  “What now?” Aiden asked.

  “Now, I go in.” Brett took out his gun. “You stay in the truck. Call Carl if I’m not back in ten minutes. Move the truck over there.” He pointed just beyond some trees. “Turn it around in case we have to get out of here in a hurry.”

  “Brett.” Aiden laid a hand on his arm.

  “Yeah?” he asked after a moment.

  “Be careful man,” Aiden added. “I know I can’t talk you out of going. If it was Aubrey, I’d be right there. Have been there.”

  “Right,” Brett said. He slid out of the truck quietly.

  He made his way towards the large structure and only when he was a few feet away realized that it was a four-story home under construction. Its thick cement structure was no more than just a skeleton at this point. There were no doors, windows, or walls for that matter.

  The first floor was wide open and looked like it was all garage space. The home had obviously been designed for a flood zone. There was a narrow set of construction stairs on the back of the place leading to the second story.

  He checked the newer model truck that was parked there but knew better than to try the door handle in case there was an alarm. Instead, he started up the stairs, trying to prepare himself for whatever lay ahead.

  He cursed himself and wished for a flashlight when he stepped onto the second floor. As with the first level, the entire space was wide open. No inner walls, windows, or doors. Only large sheets of plastic hung down to keep the rain out.

  It was too dark to see clearly, but he knew instantly that there was no one on this floor. When he heard a footstep and a sound on the next level, he started up the stairs once more. Halfway up the stairs, he could hear deep breathing. He jumped when a cell phone went off.

  Brett listened and held his breath.

  “Damn it, Dad, you scared the shit out of me,” Robbie said as he answered the call. He listened as Robbie listened to whatever his father was telling him. Was his dad in on this? “What do you mean the cops are there? How?” He practically yelled it. “Okay, yeah.” Another pause. “What do I do now?” He was silent again. “Shit, yeah, okay, just get here quickly. We’ve got to teach this bitch a lesson,” Robbie said. He hung up, and Brett felt his blood boil.

  Moving slowly again, he glanced around the corner and saw Robbie sitting on a crate, smoking a cigarette as he looked down at his cell phone.

  He looked around quickly for any sign of Lea. But as with each floor before, this one was wide open, a massive empty space. With the
light from Robbie’s cell phone, Brett could easily see that the room was empty.

  Glancing up the stairs, he wondered if Lea was on the top floor. Deciding to take care of Robbie after he’d found Lea, he quietly slipped past Robbie and made his way up the stairs.

  Again, it was too dark to see clearly, but one entire wall of plastic had come loose, allowing the moonlight inside just enough that he could see the small mound lying on the floor.

  Rushing over to her, he saw the blood around her, clearly saw the name ‘Robbie’ in it, and then felt for a pulse with shaky hands. Her arms and legs were tied behind her back and there was blood coming from her nose and mouth, and a large gash on her cheek and forehead. One of her fingers was twisted at an odd angle and bleeding. The summer dress she’d worn to dinner was torn, exposing her white bra, which was now covered in cement dust and blood. There was a dirty rag shoved in her mouth, and he slowly removed it, hoping she wouldn’t wake up and scream.

  He didn’t want Robbie to know that he was there. Not yet, at any rate.

  Taking out his pocketknife, he cut the bungee cords that held her hands and feet. She stirred slightly when she was free, so he put his mouth up to her ear and whispered.

  “I’m here, it’s Brett. Don’t make a sound. I’m going to get you out of here,” he said softly.

  She didn’t stir until he shifted her to pick her up.

  Then she moaned softly, and he stilled.

  “Shh,” he said. “Honey, just hang on,” he whispered.

  He heard Robbie laugh at something downstairs and relaxed.

  “I’m going to get you out of here,” he said to Lea again.

  “Brett?” she asked.

  “Shh, Robbie’s still downstairs,” he said right next to her ear.

  “My ribs,” she said under her breath. “They’re broken.”

  “Okay, I’ve got you.” He shifted her as easily as he could and started quickly walking towards the stairs, ignoring the pain in his leg. Lea held onto him, her head resting on his shoulder, her breathing erratic.

  He knew she was trying to stay conscious and as quiet as possible.

  His current plan was to get Lea out of the building before coming back in to deal with Robbie and his father. But when his foot hit the last step on the third floor, he realized that the light from Robbie’s phone was gone.

  The entire floor was now in shadows. Shit.

  Shifting Lea, he slid his gun out from his shoulder holster. He didn’t know if Lea was strong enough to stand, so he shifted her weight so that he could hold his weapon. He felt Lea tense and knew that she understood something was wrong.

  By his internal clock, his ten minutes were up, and Aiden should have called Carl already.

  In a flash, he thought about all of the things that could go wrong in the next few seconds, how many different ways he could lose Lea, and he knew that whatever happened next, he would fight until his dying breath to save the woman he loved.

  Chapter 24

  Lea was on the verge of passing out. She felt Brett tense and instantly knew something was off. The little hairs on her arms and neck stood up, and she knew something was about to happen.

  Brett held his gun in one hand and her in the other. She wanted to tell him to put her down, to run and save himself, but she didn’t want to break the silence. Instead, she tapped his shoulder and started sliding down his body until her bare feet touched the cement floor. Only then did she realize that she must have lost her shoes at some point.

  Brett took her hand and slowly started moving in the darkness. A two-by-four flew at them out of nowhere, and he used his body to shield the blow. The force of the hit caused Brett to drop the gun, which went scattering over the floor with a dull sound. Then he shoved them both back towards the stairs until they fell together. He landed on top of her, and she cried out as she felt a few more ribs crack.

  “Run. Aiden’s outside,” Brett said into her ear before he jerked up and threw himself at the dark figure standing over them.

  She would have run. Really. But she wasn’t dumb. She knew there were two of them and there was no way Brett was going to fend the men off in the shape he was in.

  All it would take was one of them kicking or hitting his bad leg and Brett would be helpless. Instead, she crouched down on her hands and knees and felt around in the dark for Brett’s gun.

  She heard the men struggling, saw the two dark shadows rolling around on the floor, and when her fingers touched the cold metal of the gun, a wave of relief washed over her.

  But then she glanced up and saw Robbie standing over Brett, holding his gun. She didn’t know who shot first. The blinding blast from both guns made her scream, as did the power of the gun going off in her hand.

  Then Robbie was falling forward as if in slow motion. His body landed with a thud on the cement floor, a sound she would never be able to get out of her memories.

  Scrambling forward, she pushed Robbie’s body off Brett’s and started feeling around for the bullet wound she knew was there. After all, she’d shot Robbie from more than five feet away, and Robbie had been standing directly over Brett. There was no possible way that he’d missed.

  “Lea, I’m okay,” Brett said, taking her hands in his.

  “No, you’re not. You’re in shock. I have to stop the bleeding.” She sounded hysterical even to her own ears.

  “Lea.” Brett pulled her into his arms. “He missed me. I’m fine.”

  She shook her head as tears rolled down her cheeks. “No, you’re not.”

  “Come on,” Brett started to say. Just then they heard the distinct sounds of rushing footsteps, and Brett took the gun from her hands.

  A beam of light hit them. “Don’t shoot. It’s me, Aiden,” Aiden said quickly.

  Brett sighed and set the gun down. “Bout time you showed up,” he said with a sigh.

  “Jesus, is he… dead?” Aiden asked.

  Lea glanced over to where Aiden’s flashlight beam illuminated Robbie’s body. The man was staring up at the ceiling with glossy eyes. A single red hole in his chest directly where his heart was slowly oozed blood. A dark puddle pooled under the man’s body.

  “Yeah,” Brett said and quickly stood up. She noticed that he winced when he put weight on his left leg, but then he bent down and easily picked her up in his arms.

  She gasped and held onto her sides.

  “She’s got some broken ribs, cuts, and a busted finger,” he told Aiden. “Tell me you called this in before rushing in here.”

  “I’m not stupid,” Aiden said as he moved closer to him. “Carl says he bumped into Rob Dixon Sr. in the parking lot where they found your car. The man was bleeding from an apparent bite on his hand. The man had other fresh cuts and bruises so instead of questioning things, he detained him. I guess I’ll give him a call and tell him… what?”

  “I bit him,” Lea said softly. Her voice sounded like it was floating with the rest of her. “On his hand and wrist.” She motioned to her own hand. “And threw up all over him,” she added as she felt her entire body relax. “Sorry, I’m going to…” She closed her eyes as everything went black.

  She woke in the back of an ambulance with an oxygen mask over her mouth and nose. Her first instinct was to push it away, but her education kicked in before she could move, and she took a couple of shallow breaths instead and looked around.

  “Brett?” she asked the young EMT that sat next to her.

  “Your man?” the woman asked. Lea nodded quickly and then groaned with the pain it caused her. “He’s talking to the cops.”

  “Can he come with?” she asked.

  “I’ll make sure he gets a ride with us,” the EMT assured her.

  Lea closed her eyes and relaxed back. She felt the quick prick as an IV was carefully shoved into her veins, and then the warmth of the saline solution flowing into her along with whatever medicine she’d been given. Her world went a little wonky, and she smiled as the morphine removed every trace of her pain.
r />   Moments or hours later, she couldn’t tell, Brett appeared above her, his perfect features floating in front of her eyes.

  “I love you,” she said, her voice muffled by the drugs and the oxygen mask.

  “She’s probably a little loopy,” the EMT said.

  “I love you too,” Brett said, ignoring the other woman. “I’m right here. I won’t leave your side.”

  She nodded and then closed her eyes once more. The next time they opened, it was her parents standing over her. Worried looks flooded their eyes.

  “There you are,” her mother said as she wiped a tear from her cheek.

  Lea felt her hand being held but knew that the drugs were still coursing through her since everything was still numb.

  “How are you feeling, honey?” her father asked.

  “Drugged,” she said and only then realized that the oxygen mask had been replaced with a nasal cannula. “Brett?” she asked again.

  “He’s here, just in the next room getting checked out,” her mother said.

  Worry flashed quickly. “Is he okay?” She tried to sit up, but a stab of pain had her lying back down.

  “Easy,” her father said. “You’ve got three broken ribs and a few bruised ones.”

  “He’s fine,” her mother assured her. “The doctor is just checking him out because he has a black eye and hit his head pretty hard during the scuffle.”

  She relaxed back. “Robbie? His father?”

  Her parents looked between themselves. “Robbie Dixon Jr. is dead. Rob Dixon Sr. is in custody and is being charged with kidnapping and attempted murder,” her father finally said firmly.

  She sighed. “I shot him. He was going to shoot Brett. I killed Robbie.”

  “He missed. The bullet came within six inches of Brett’s head,” her mother said. “Or so they estimated. It put a hole in the cement where he’d been lying.”

  Lea felt a shiver race through her. She’d come so close to losing the man she loved. All for what? Because he dared to love someone different than him. She closed her eyes. She no longer wanted to talk to her parents. No longer wanted to talk to anyone. Instead, she slept. She slept for so long, that when she woke, the room was engulfed in bright light.