Page 27 of Unloaded
“Whoa! Reginald that’s uncalled for!” the other man yells back. “Ifound your wayward stepdaughter that you’ve been searching for, for nearly six years. We had an electrical storm yesterday. Lightening fried the inside server. I have another coming, but it hasn’t gotten here yet. She’s here somewhere, and she has to meet with us to get paid. Just calm the fuck down. We have her where we want her.”
“I must get my sons back!” Reginald bellows. “Yes, I have a new family, but they’re much too young. The boys are coming of age. It’s past time they take their place at my side. I’ve lost important years I could’ve been training them. Find me that bitch! She’s going to wish she’d never considered running from me and taking my sons.”
“Don’t start yelling,” the other man says hesitantly, “but I think you should reconsider taking her today.”
“What? I’ve waited long enough!” Reginald growls.
“I know, but the company she works for is owned by the Robertson brothers. They own Invictus Securities, a well-respected security company. It’ll be bad enough when she disappears, but trying to take her from under their noses, here today? Impossible
“It’ll be a blood bath and draw unwanted attention. I have some of the locals in my debt, but those men have connections all the way to the White House. You won’t want to draw the attention of the feds.”
“Fuck!” Reginald roars. “How did she get tangled up with them?”
“No idea, but we need to play this smart. We’ll trail her when she leaves the restaurant. She’ll lead us to the boys.”No, no, no! I have to get out of here. I have to save the boys!
“Come on,” the other man continues, “I’ll show you around. She won’t be hard to find. I’ll have some of my men follow her.” The two men leave the office. My heart continues to pound as I wonder how the hell I’m going to get out of here without them following me.
Several long minutes pass before I have the nerve to leave the perceived safety of the bathroom. When I reach the office door, I peek out into the hallway finding the coast to be clear. I slip out into the hall and hurry back toward the kitchen, praying I don’t run into anyone along the way.
“What are you doing here?” a deep growling voice demands causing me to shriek and jump with fright. Spinning around, I see a man with a bald head, beefy shoulders, and a stocky body approaching me from behind. My heart is pounding so hard I’m surprised I’m still alive.
“I’m looking for a bathroom,” I answer, my voice surprisingly strong despite the fear raging through me. “I got lost,” I continue, blinking my lashes, trying, but I’m sure failing, to pretend to be a silly female.
“You shouldn’t be in this part of the house!” Baldy grabs my bicep in a painful grip, dragging me back the way I’d come. Nausea turns in my gut.Oh, God! He’s going to kill me or worse hand me over to my stepfather!
“Rachel! There you are!” Rosco’s rich, booming voice echoes down the hall. Relief washes over me, quickly replaced with fear again. I know he will protect me, but now, he’s in danger. These men won’t hesitate to kill anyone who gets in their way. Baldy stops pulling me along, turning to see who is talking to us.
“What’s going on here?” Rosco questions as he approaches us. His eyes rake over Baldy and me, taking in the grip Baldy has on my arm. His face forms a deeper scowl.
“I got lost looking for the bathroom,” I reply, laying on a damsel in distress tone. “This nice man is helping me find it.” I jerk my head toward Baldy, flashing him a mega-watt smile and flutter my lashes, again.
Facing Rosco again, his eyes narrow, but he doesn’t comment. Baldy loosens his hold on my arm. Maybe we can get out of this, but if this man knows who I am... Rosco and I are in serious trouble.
“You shouldn’t be wandering around the estate,” Baldy states, angrily, “I’ll show you to the guest bathroom.” He turns us fully toward Rosco and begins to drag me toward him.
“I’ll take her,” Rosco insists, taking my arm from Baldy.
“The bathroom is around the corner, second door on the right. Make sure she doesn’t go wandering again,” Baldy instructs.
“Of course,” Rosco drawls, sounding annoyed. “She’s always getting lost. I can’t take her anywhere.” Baldy gives Rosco a look of sympathy as if he understands the frustrations of dealing with a dingbat female.
Rosco pulls me away from Baldy, more forcefully than I expect, causing me to stumble. He keeps me upright, seeming to understand the importance of selling the bullshit I’ve been serving up. We round the corner. It’s all I can do to keep my stomach contents inside. My body is tight with tension. Fear being my primary emotion. Thankfully this hallway is empty. He doesn’t stop, but continues to the bathroom.
When we reach the door, he pulls it open before shoving me inside. “I’ll be right here.” His eyes meet mine. I can tell he knows there is more going on than me getting lost, but he’splaying along. “Don’t be long.” His tone is hard.Does he know how serious this is? That our lives depend on this charade?
The door closes, slowly. I turn on the sink and splash cool water on my face then pat it dry. My perfect makeup taking one for the team in an effort to calm me. I pull out my makeup bag and quickly touch up what I can. I need to go, but I’m suffering from the adrenaline drop. My body is trembling so hard I can hardly stay on my feet. A soft knock startles me, and I yelp.
“Rachel?” Rosco calls. “Everything all right in there?” Time to go, my reprieve is over. I blow out a shaky breath, shove everything back into my bag, and open the door. Rosco’s face is an unreadable mask. “Ready?”
I nod, stumbling as I step out into the hall. He places his arm around my waist, supporting my weight. His arm is warm, solid, and comforting in the chaos around me. He doesn’t speak as he leads me back toward the kitchen.
Once we are back around other people, my fear eases, slightly, but I’m still on edge. I keep checking for any sign of my stepfather. Rosco is my constant shadow, but it doesn’t annoy me like it did earlier. I’m grateful to have him at my back.
“We’ve finished serving the dessert,” Cindy informs me. “Everyone seems to be enjoying it. The hostess popped in. She said she’ll have someone bring you to the library around four.” I nod my understanding, unable to speak without my voice cracking or the tears I’m holding back from running down my cheeks.Keep it together a little longer. You can do this.
“Come with me,” Rosco demands in my ear, causing me to jump in fright even knowing he’s been right next to me since we’d left the bathroom. Without protest, I follow him to the large white tent in the back yard. Guests are seated at the tables, seeming to enjoy the dessert.
Fear skitters down my spine. My head on a swivel as I search for my stepfather or anyone who seems to be gunning for us.We step inside the serving tent. Rosco’s head turns side to side, taking in our surroundings. The tent is empty.
