90 Days (Prairie Town Book 2) (26 page)

     “Oh, it’s real.” Mia insisted, unbuttoning the top button of her blouse and grinning.  “All of this has been very real.  The destruction of your property was only one small part of my plan.”

     “You mean you did all of this?” Benji questioned.  “Why?”

     “Because I was trying to ruin everything, you idiot.” She picked up Laney’s phone from the bed, which she took from her after knocking her out, and smiled.  “Ah, looks like we have company coming.”

    
Please be Jeb.  Please be Jeb.  Please be Jeb.

     She felt Benji’s hand squeeze the ones tied behind her back and she immediately buried her face against his shoulder, allowing a few tears to escape. 

     “It’s going to be okay.” He whispered to her, his lips brushing against her forehead.  “I’m here, baby.”

     And she took comfort in his words.  She believed him.  After all she’d been through, after all he’d been through, this wasn’t how things were going to end for them.  They would be all right.

     Somehow.

     Or at least that’s what she thought when she heard heavy footsteps coming down the hallway.

     But upon seeing the newcomer, any hope of being saved suddenly evaporated into thin air.

     “There you are!” Mia squealed excitedly.  “I thought you were going to be here at eight, silly goose.”

     She sprang up from the mattress and launched herself straight into the arms of none other than Devin Rose.

----------

Benji

     As the man entered the room and embraced Mia, he couldn’t help but notice Laney’s quick intake of breath and when he looked at her, he could see the fear in her eyes; the fear of recognition.

    
I wonder if that’s Devin.
  He thought, remembering he heard that name mentioned during conversations between Lydia and, well, everyone.

     It had to be him because he was certain Laney wouldn’t have reacted the way she was otherwise.

     “Look at me.” He gently commanded.  “Laney, look at me, baby.”

     Her eyes moved to his and he put on the bravest smile he could.

     “We’re going to be okay.”

     “Of course you’re going to be okay!” Devin exclaimed, keeping an arm wrapped around Mia as they stepped closer.  “We’re not going to kill you or anything. Well, as long as Jeb ole boy comes through with our demands.”

     “D-demands?” Laney asked fearfully.

     “Duh.” Devin smirked.  “Did you think we were just doing this for shits and giggles, Laney?  That’s adorable.” He crouched down and reached a hand out to touch her cheek.  “Sweetheart, we’re—”

     Benji saw red.  Rage overcame him when Devin touched Laney that he launched at him, tackling him against the floor.  He barely got one good punch in before the bastard slammed a knee into his stomach.  Feeling agonizing pain and having the breath knocked out of him, Benji collapsed on the floor and groaned.

     “I thought you would have been smart enough to tie them both up, Mia. Jesus Christ!” Devin spat angrily, standing from the floor and wiping blood from his mouth.  “Fuck!”

     “I’m so sorry, baby!” She wailed, quickly scrambling around him to stare at Benji in wide-eyed disbelief.  “He’s a guy! How was I supposed to subdue him?”

     “You’ve got a fucking gun, don’t you?” Devin snapped.  “Jesus Christ.  Fucking idiot.”

     Benji grunted when Devin pressed a knee into his back and grabbed his hands, pulling them violently behind his body.  He kept his eyes on Laney. Somehow she made it all better.  Focusing on her made it seem less real.

     “Give me some fucking rope or something.”

     “I-I’m sorry, baby.” Mia sobbed.  “I just…oh, I messed up, didn’t I?  I’m so sorry!”

     “Just give me some goddamn rope, woman.  Are you deaf?”

     Wincing as Devin nearly jerked his arms out of socket, Benji mouthed ‘it’s okay’ to Laney.  She nodded subtly, but he could see the doubt in her gaze.  Maybe he was fooling himself, but he had to believe there was still a chance to get out of this.  Aggie would surely start to wonder if he didn’t return soon, right?

     “There.” Devin finally got off him when the job was done.  “Now you won’t pull that shit again, will you?”

     “No, he won’t.” Laney sniffled.  “Please don’t hurt him anymore.”

     “Hurt
him
?” Devin laughed.  “Really, Laney?  Is he the one with the fucking bloodied lip? I don’t think so.”

     “Baby, I am so sorry.” Mia whined as she clung to his arm.  “Please forgive me?”

     “Forget it, babe.” Devin gripped Benji’s arm and pulled him up, shoving him back beside Laney.  “We’ve still gotta go through with this plan, you hear me?  Get Jeb on the phone and give him our demands.”

     “Yes, baby!” Mia was eager to please him.  She grabbed the cellphone again.

     “What demands, Devin?” Laney asked in a quivering voice.  “You know we don’t have money.  You can’t honestly expect to hold us for ransom here.”

     “That’s where you’re wrong, baby girl.” He smirked, crouching before them again, at a safer distance.  “See, I know all about you now.  I know who ‘Lydia’ is and God, I should have seen it sooner.  I feel like a damn fool for not connecting the pieces sooner.  A cousin visiting from out of town?  Really?”

     “Leave her out of this, Devin.  She’s never done anything to you.”

     “No, no, you’re right.  I know she hasn’t.  But Jeb…” He inhaled deeply and closed his eyes, jawline tightening.  “Your punk ass brother has to pay for everything he’s done to me.  My father basically disowned me over the shit that happened last year.  He’s threatening to write me out of his will, Laney; all because your stupid brother had to pick a fight with me.  Over you.”

     “W-what?”

     Benji silently fumed as he watched Devin stand up again, pacing back and forth as he growled in frustration.

     “That’s right! Jeb and me fought because of you.  And that’s what landed him in jail.  I was happy with pressing charges and getting him put away for a long time.  He would have been out of the picture and we could have gotten back together.  But no… He just couldn’t have that, could he?  So ‘Lydia’,”—he laughed bitterly—“her new shiny boyfriend hired a lawyer and damn her if she didn’t get him out of there.  He’s fucked my life up
so
much!”

     “Callum was only protecting his friend, Devin.” Laney said through clenched teeth.  “And you weren’t fighting Jeb over me—you were fighting him over Lydia.  Get your facts straight, you—”

     “Shut up!” Devin’s palm connected with her cheek and Laney cried out in pain.

     Benji fought against his restraints with all his might, but Devin simply laughed and shoved him backwards with the toe of his boot.

     “Stay where you are, dipshit.” He muttered.  “If you two don’t start behaving, I may just decide to kill you after all.”

     “Baby! Baby! I’ve got Jeb on the phone.” Mia giggled maniacally.  She held the phone out for him to take, and with his eyes on the two of them, he snatched it from her hand and put it to his ear.  “Hello, Jebson.”

     “Oh my god.” Laney whispered beneath her breath.  “He’s going to kill us.”

     “No, he won’t.  That’s murder, babe.  He doesn’t want to go to jail.” Benji replied calmly.  “Just…just sit there and wait for it to blow over.  Jeb won’t let him get away with this.”

     “Yeah, they’re here.” Devin said with a grin.  “You don’t believe me? Well, tell you what.  I’ll snap a picture and call you right back.  Hold on.”

     He hung up the phone and then held it up towards them, closing one eye.  “Apparently your brother doesn’t believe me, Laney.  Imagine that.  So I have to send him some proof.  Just smile pretty.”

     If looks could kill, Benji would have made Devin drop right where he stood.

     “Perfect.” He said when the phone clicked.  “Now, let’s send this over to brother dearest and see if his tune changes.”

     It wasn’t long before Laney’s phone began to ring and Devin answered it, immediately pressing the speaker button.

     “Devin, so help me God, I’m going to fucking kill you.  If you so much as—”

     “Calm down, Jebson.” He cackled, winking at Benji and Laney.  “I’m not going to hurt anybody, so long as you do exactly what I say.  Are you ready to listen to me?”

     Benji heard Jeb’s exasperated sigh and he couldn’t even begin to imagine what was going through his mind.  He was probably worried about Laney. Hell, he would have been, too.

    
But at least I’m with her.
  He thought, releasing a hiss of pain as the gash on his face began to throb.  The adrenaline must have been wearing off.

     “What do you want, Devin?” Jeb finally asked.

     “I know your boy Callum has connections.” Devin smacked his lips together.  “I also know, thanks to the clever research of my partner,”—he winked at Mia—“that he’s loaded.  Tell him if he loves his beloved little tranny bride-to-be so much, then he’ll be willing to part with a cool million to save the lives of her sister and friend.”

     “A million—what?” Jeb yelled over the speaker.  “Are you kidding me?  Callum doesn’t have that kind of money!”

     “I’m not in the mood for lies, Jebson.  I know what I’m talking about.  Callum Reynolds is the grandson of an oil tycoon.  If you don’t believe me, ask him yourself.”

     There was scuffling on the other end of the line and Benji could hear muffled voices, but he couldn’t make out what they were saying.  Suddenly, Callum had possession of the phone and he didn’t sound happy.

     “I’ll give you whatever you want, but you better guarantee the safety of Laney and Benji.”

     “It’s guaranteed.  But now you have to promise me you’re not going to do anything stupid, like call the police or something.  Because if I hear any sirens or see a hint of blue lights, somebody’s going to eat a bullet tonight.”

     Laney sucked in a quick breath and moved closer to Benji.  He could feel her trembling against him and he wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around her.  If only he could.

     “I want you to meet us Gallagher Park at two o’clock tomorrow.  That should give you plenty of time to get the cash.  And like I said,
Callum
.  If you get the cops involved, your precious Lydia won’t get her sister back.  Not alive, at least.”

     “No cops will be involved.” Callum promised.  “Now put Laney on the phone so her brother and sister can talk to her.”

     “That wasn’t part of our deal.” Devin snickered.  “Gallagher Park.  Two o’clock.”

     He hung up and tossed the phone onto the mattress, eyeing them.

     “Baby.” Mia snuggled up against him and batted her eyelashes.  “What do we do with them in the mean time?”

     “Nothing.” He wrapped his arms around her and pressed a kiss to her lips.  “Come with me into the living room.  Let’s celebrate our soon-to-be millionaire status.”

     “Okay!” She squealed excitedly, hopping up into his arms and attacking him with kisses.  “Oh, you sounded so tough on the phone.  It really turned me on.”

     “Did it?” He smirked against her lips.  “Well, let’s go do something about that, huh?”

     Benji felt like he was going to vomit.  Watching two crazy people make out was not appealing in the slightest.  He turned his head and stared at Laney, watching as a tear rolled down her cheek.

     “It’s going to be okay.” He whispered again.

     “You two don’t do anything stupid.” Devin muttered as he held the gun up with his free hand, supporting Mia’s body with his other.  “Don’t think I won’t hesitate to shoot you.”

     The lights went out and the door slammed shut, leaving them in complete darkness.

     Laney’s breathing grew fast and shallow as their footsteps faded and Benji tried to comfort her to the best of his ability.

     “Baby, listen to me. It’s going to be all right.  Callum, he’s smart.  He’ll figure something out.”

     “He’s going to have to pay them a million dollars.” She sobbed.  “I’m not worth a million dollars, Benji.”

     “You’re worth
more
than that, Laney.  Don’t talk like that.  Callum will pay it.  You heard him, didn’t you?”

     “I didn’t even know he had that kind of money.” She laughed weakly.

     “I don’t think Lydia did either, but it makes sense when you think about it.”

     “I can’t believe I got us into this mess.  I’m so sorry, Benji.  I shouldn’t have invited you over.”

     “Are you kidding?” He tried to make light of a bad situation.  “This is the best date I’ve ever been on.”

     “You really consider this a date?”

     “I’m with you, aren’t I?” He leaned over and rested his nose against her cheek, sighing.  “It’ll be all right, Laney.  Just have faith in Callum.  He loves Lydia and Lydia loves you.  You heard Jeb on the phone, right? He’s probably beside himself with grief right now.  They won’t let anything happen to us.”