Page 19 of Lord of Ruin

I had a feeling when she reached for her purse that she already had a foot out the door.

“Absolutely. I can handle it if and when we get a new client. Just go.” I’d close early today to give myself a break and maybe make a few calls or spend a little time on Facebook trying to draw business in. Maybe I could do a raffle or something. I’d hunker down and think of some creative ideas. I was good at that. But I had to stay for a couple of hours longer. For my frame of mind if nothing else.

She waved goodbye, heading out the door and I sagged against the wall. While I hadn’t prayed since I was a little girl, I did so now, hoping that all my hopes and dreams wouldn’t be dashed. If this was a failure, I wasn’t certain what I could do. Even applying for a position with an existing firm sounded terrifying at this moment.

And I wasn’t ready to pack it in and head back to Missouri, although my dad had offered to fund a business back in my hometown. He’d even called me two days before, trying to lure me back to town, the concern in his voice almost making me question my choices. He was just being overprotective. That’s all it was. However, if I’d agreed, to me it would have felt like crawling home with my tail between my legs. Nope. I wasn’t going to do it.

So I waited.

And continued to wait.

And I waited some more.

Almost two hours later and I was angry and anxious, tired and upset. Fifteen minutes would be my limit. I paced the floor as I’d done a couple of times then walked into one of the examination rooms. Okay, the least I could do was empty the trash. I grabbed the bag, including the bloody rag I’d tossed into the bottom, and headed to the back door leading to the alley. I had two deadbolts installed knowing that if a perpetrator wanted to get inside, they usually tried to do so from the back, especially when it fronted an ugly alley.

And this one was one of the ugliest in the city. Smelly too, since there were two different restaurants located directly across the building on the other side of the alley. The stench of their garbage was strong today, so much so I wrinkled my nose. As I headed for the dumpster, the same creepy crawlies skittered into my system.

I was already standing in front of the dirty steel piece that hadn’t been emptied in a long time when I finally looked over my shoulder. Now, I’d seen crazy movies where there was steam coming from some old pipe from a building or two. The outcome was never a good one. That’s exactly what it seemed like right now. And as occurred in every horror movie, a lone figure was standing in the middle of the steamy film, staring at the soon to be victim.

Fuck. Me.

This was insane.

While the rational side of me said there had to be an explanation, like it was a utility worker or maybe a guy taking a smoke break, I wasn’t going to take the chance. I’d never moved so fast dumping the trash and rushing back to the door, fighting my nerves to get inside. Once I was, I smacked the deadbolts into place with speed.

Then I turned and leaned against the door, taking gasping breaths.

This had to stop, or I’d never be able to handle my business. I folded my arms, heading back to the brightly lit reception area. At least it was the middle of the afternoon on a busy street. No one was going to be that stupid.

A few minutes passed and I’d had enough. I was more than ready to get the hell out of here and drown myself in wine. I headed back to my office to get my things but heard the door being opened. Very cautiously I peered toward the door. The nice-looking older gentleman walking in didn’t have a pet with him, but he could be checking out my services. At least he was dressed very nicely and had a bright smile on his face.

“Can I help you?” I asked more tentatively than I’d meant to do.

“Yes, I noticed you had a new business online and I wanted to see if I could make an appointment for my puppy.” Was that an accent? A Russian accent? Yes, it was. I had to remind myself that New York had boroughs of various nationalities, Russians included.

Now we were talking. Maybe my luck was changing. “Absolutely. Let me get to the computer and we can get you set up.”

I moved around the receptionist desk, a smile finally on my face. Until I heard a clicking sound, one that I’d heard the night before.

My visitor had locked the door.

“What are you doing?” I asked but the moment I noticed the odd glint in his eye and the way he reached into his pocket, I bolted toward the back door. Nothing was going to stop me from getting the hell out of here.

I made it to the door, even managing to yank the two locks free when the bastard snagged my hair, yanking and pitching me back by several feet. I tumbled into one of the chairs, stars immediately floating in front of my eyes. However, there was no way I was going to let his bastard derail my plans or my life.

Using every ounce of strength, I clamored to my feet, now trying to get to the front door. As he’d done before, he jerked me away with ease, only this time he kept his firm grip around my hair, dragging me onto my toes.

I screamed but the wind was knocked out of me the moment the intruder shoved the sharp blade of a knife under my chin.

“I suggest you be quiet.” The man’s accent was much more pronounced, his voice a hell of a lot deeper than before. And dangerous. The threat was real.

“What do you want?” My voice was shaky, my mind spinning from the possibilities as I tried to determine why I had a target on my back.

“In-for-ma-tion.” His words were stilted, the asshole lowering his face to within an inch of mine.

“On what?” I asked sweetly, adding a smile to my face. The bastard narrowed his eyes, twisting the knife but I refused to back down.

“On a friend of yours.”

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