Page 49 of The Devil Wears Orange
“Was she taken?” he says in a hurried tone. If Levan has her, how long will he keep her alive? He had warned Rashid last night that if he doesn’t take care of her, Levan would. Rashid had thought he’d have more time to deal with his Charlotte problem, and give her the one thing Levan wouldn’t – mercy.
“No.” Omar shakes his head profusely. “I reviewed the security video at the hotel. She left on her own volition, but…”
“But what?” says Rashid angrily.
“It could be nothing but there were two men in the lobby who were watching her. They both had baseball hats and sunglasses that obscured their faces. Then security cameras outside picked up a taxi she took. Alone. She could be anywhere.”
Rashid echoes the same thought.Charlotte Milton could be anywhere in Dubai.He dials her number but it automatically transfers to voicemail. His tone is casual as he leaves a message though it doesn’t reflect the anxiety he’s feeling.
“I called her several times, but her phone must be turned off and…” Omar trails off.
“And what?” Rashid says in a clipped tone.
“And I didn’t have time to place that GPS tracker on her phone like you asked.”
Rashid sucks in a breath and tries to control his anger. Baffled that she slipped away, Rashid tries to anticipate places she’d go. He considers when he last spoke with her, and there was nothing to indicate something was amiss. So what exactly is she up to, and was it planned?
Rashid glances at his Rolex for the time. “Have Khalid track her. He’ll know what to do with her. And have that security footage viewed again. If those men stayed at the hotel, I want to know who they are and what their interest is in Ms. Milton.”
Rashid has another meeting in an hour, and while he’d love to cancel, his father will be in attendance, and his absence is the very thing his father will no longer tolerate. Rashid will sit there, his mind elsewhere until Charlotte is located. He’ll have Hamed alert him if she returns to the hotel. No, notif,butwhen. His mind shouldn’t go to dark places, but it’s impossible not to after his conversation with Levan.
Chapter 27
Jetlagged, Jack has beenwaiting at this cafe by the water’s edge for more than an hour now with no word from Charlotte. Connecting the previous evening, they planned to meet so he could retrieve the flash drive. He double-checked the name of the café. He triple-checked the arranged time. There’s no doubt he’s in the right location at the correct time, so where is she? He’d like to call her, but what if she’s not alone, and it somehow gives her away? No, everything’s fine, and Charlotte is merely being Charlotte and has probably become distracted by something.
Jack finishes his second iced hibiscus tea, a variety of berries float in the drink. Crossing his legs like a little boy unable to control his bladder, he contemplates how much longer he can wait before heading to the toilet. He glances at his watch and crosses his legs the other way. This is absurd. He can’t possibly miss Charlotte in the few minutes it will take him. Stepping up to the bar, he asks for directions and finds the bathroom situatedat the end of a paneled corridor. The urinal is right there, and although alone, he can’t bring himself to use it and enters a middle stall. It’s public urination, he’s tried to convince his closest friends, but even they, who have known him all his life, believe him odd when it comes to this.
The bathroom door swooshes open, a lock slides in place, and shoes clank slowly against the tiled floor. Jack tilts his ear to listen, then, persuading himself that he’s paranoid, finishes and zips up, simultaneously flushing. It’s only when he’s about to unlock the stall that he realizes the footsteps have stopped on the other side of his door. Was he followed? But by whom? No one knew about his travel plans except for...Charlotte! Her lateness hasn’t been explained away by a text from her. Were her intuitions correct, and did Rashid suspect her? If Rashid questioned her, did she tell him everything? Jack wouldn’t blame her if they threatened violence. When Charlotte mentioned the man at the races and the bloodied business associate of Rashid’s, Jack should have contacted Favreau straight away, or he should have found a way to extricate her from this dangerous situation.
If someone is on the other side of the stall door, then surely they’re waiting for him to open it to get the jump on him. He’ll be ready for them. Slowly, he turns the lock and waits. The door is thrust open, and without thinking, Jack head butts the person trying to gain entry. A terrible scream follows, and the assailant falls back against the stall, holding the tip of a bloody nose.
“Charlotte?” Jack gasps, pulling her towards him while she tilts her head back.
“I’m getting blood on my pashmina.”
“Sorry, yes, of course,” he says and grabs at a wad of toilet paper. He guides her to the washbasin, pressing the toilet paper to her nose.
Tears well up her eyes. “My nose stings. Oh, this is painful. Why would you head butt me?” she says through a plugged nose.
“I thought I was being followed.”
“You were,” she shouts. “By me. I couldn’t approach you out in public in case someone saw us together. When I saw no one else was in here, I locked the bathroom door behind me.”
“I feel terrible,” says Jack. “Absolutely terrible.”
With her head still tilted back, she looks down at him through slits. She appears to soften. “It was an accident.”
“Is it broken?”
“No.” Charlotte pulls the tissue away from her nose. “Looks like it stopped bleeding.” She turns on the tap to wash the blood from her face. Turning to her purse she had dropped on the floor, she says, “Can you pass me my Judith?”
“Judas?”
“Careful there. I may interpret a Freudian slip. My Judith Leiber. You really don’t know fashion, do you?” Once he hands her the purse, she pulls something out from it. “Here’s the drive. I was incredibly nervous having this on me. There was a moment I thought it had been stolen and I panicked. Turns out it had slipped to the bottom of an inside pouch. I swear, it gave me a heart attack right there in the middle of the street. Then, I caught sight of two men in baseball hats and I recognized one in a Manchester United jersey from my hotel lobby because I practically crashed into him. I had convinced myself they were following me when one hurriedly tapped his friend on the shoulder, and they scurried away. I spent the rest of the afternoon looking over my shoulder, but I never saw them again. I think paranoia is getting the better of us. By the way, I emailed you the photo of the man from the races. I can’t stay long. I’m late meeting Rashid.” She hesitates and stares at him. “Something hasn’t felt right ever since Rashid met with thatman. We’re going on a boat ride tonight, and I’d feel a lot safer knowing you were out there somewhere.”
He nearly broke her nose, andhemakes her feel safe? Life just became progressively more dangerous for Charlotte.
Chapter 28
