Bad Guys Don't Win (Janet Maple Series Book 4) (17 page)

Stomping on the floor, Jess turned off
the lights and shut the door behind her.

“Are you going to be all right?” Dennis
asked.

“I’ll manage,” Mila said dryly. “Anton
will stop by in an hour or so—he’s been checking on me throughout the day. I
think he doesn’t trust her. Either that, or he enjoys seeing me tied up. He’ll
bring me food and will let me use the bathroom in the hallway.”

“So the bucket was just for me?” Dennis
asked.

“Apparently.”

“I’m flattered,” Dennis tried to bring
some levity into the situation. “Did you know that about her?” he asked,
alluding to Jess’s horrifying story. “Almost makes you feel sorry for her.”

“Oh, yeah, we share our life stories
while braiding each other’s hair—it’s something we’ve been doing every night.
Are you kidding me?” she snapped. “Don’t you think I would’ve told you if I
knew?”

“I’m sorry. I just thought maybe you
forgot to mention it. Clearly Jess has been severely traumatized and developed
a fixation on Anton.”

“Thanks for summing that up so neatly,
Mr. Psychologist. Now, how the hell are we going to get out of here? Because
right now I could really use a bit of hope.”

“I’m working on it. I’m working on it,”
Dennis muttered, wishing he had better news.

As if to cheer him up, Baxter ran over
to Dennis and started licking his hands.

“Hey, buddy, I love you too. Wish I
could scratch your ear,” Dennis said. Then he felt Baxter tugging at the
restraints on his wrists. “Hey, buddy, do you think you could chew through
these?”

Baxter merely growled, his teeth busy
grinding the ropes.

“I’m an idiot!” Dennis exclaimed with
elation.

“No offense, but I think it’s already
been established,” Mila shot back.

“Baxter chews all his dog toys to
shreds—rubber, latex, fabric, plastic, you name it, he tears them apart—even
the ones that claim to be indestructible. Janet can never buy them fast enough.
Once we took him to a restaurant,” Dennis paused, smiling at a fond memory, “we
were sitting outside and Janet tied Baxter’s leash to her chair. She wouldn’t
let me give him any of my food—said it was bad for him. But Baxter wasn’t
convinced. He sat under the table quietly until he chewed through his leash.
Then he ran around the place, charming everyone in sight. Before Janet caught
on to him, he’d had his fill—from steak to chicken, he’d sampled the menu from
every table.” Dennis chuckled.

“That is a fascinating story, Dennis,
but I still don’t see how it’s going to help us get out of here,” Mila
complained.

“Don’t you see? Baxter can chew through
the ropes. We’re getting out.”

As if in confirmation, Baxter growled,
his teeth busy grinding. Dennis smiled at the most wonderful sound in the
world—the sound of leather giving way to Baxter’s tenacious teeth.

“Jessy, I thought you’d be gone by now.”
Anton almost collided with Jess as he stepped through the door. It was dark
inside the warehouse and his eyes hadn’t adjusted from the light outside.

“I was just doing the usual rounds. That
Dennis Walker’s got a smart mouth on him, so it took me a little longer than
usual. But it’s all under control,” she said with a smirk, tugging at her hair.

“I see.” Normally Anton would be upset,
but given the task that was awaiting him, he was glad. Jess had a mean streak
in her and he worried about her beating up his prisoners. She could rough up
Dennis Walker all she wanted, but not Mila. Mila was his and his alone and she
was to suffer at his hands only. “Everything all right?” he asked, noticing the
holster on her hip.

“Oh, yeah, totally fine. This is for
just in case,” she added, pointing at the gun. “Walker tried to give me lip,
but I shut him right up. Are you going to check up on them?” she asked in a
tone that made it obvious she really wanted to know if he was there to check up
on Mila.

“Yeah.” Anton rubbed his forehead. Jess
was a rough and tortured soul, but she was loyal to him like a dog and she was
good in the sack. Ever since he got out, she did everything for him. But he
didn’t love her—not the way he loved Mila. He’d never let any woman get that
close to him again, but Jess was the next best thing, and he was glad she was
there now. For what he was about to do made him sick to his stomach. “I need
your help with something,” he said grimly.

“What is it? You know there isn’t
anything I wouldn’t do for you,” she said fiercely.

“Wait till you hear what I have to say.
You might change your mind. You might never want to see my face again.”

“I doubt that,” she said, throwing her
arms around his neck and pulling him in for a kiss. He wasn’t expecting it and
they ended up banging their teeth awkwardly. “Sorry.” She looked embarrassed.

“Don’t be.” He kissed her roughly,
trying to gain strength for what needed to be done. Damn that jackal Pierce and
damn his Uncle Petr who turned out to be nothing but a coward.

***

Janet glanced at her watch—it was ten in
the morning, but she’d already been in the office for four hours and the
fatigue was starting to get to her. She couldn’t get a wink of sleep last
night, her mind busy planning various ways of breaking into Anton Kovar’s
warehouse. But as much as she was aching to do it, Janet knew she couldn’t act
on her impulse. The private contractors Philip had hired knew what they were
doing and she had to sit tight and let them do their job. Philip had promised
to call her as soon as he had any news.

To stop herself from doing anything
stupid, Janet came into the office at the crack of dawn and tried to distract
herself with work. But of course it was useless. All she could think of was how
Dennis and Baxter were faring this very moment. Every few minutes, she checked
her phone—she was waiting for a very important phone call.

There was a knock on her office door.
“Janet?” Ham Kirk’s voice carried through the door. “You in there?”

“Yes.” With a sigh, Janet rose from her
seat and opened the door. She might not agree with him, but Ham Kirk was still
her boss.

“May I sit down?” Ham asked gravely.

“Of course.” Perplexed, Janet motioned
at a chair across from her desk—Ham Kirk didn’t need to ask her permission to
sit down. Janet took a seat in a chair next to Ham’s and waited for him to
speak.

“I’m afraid I’ve failed you, Janet,” Ham
said in a heavy voice, “You and Dennis.”

“Why?” Janet asked, expecting the worst.

“I was just informed that the
investigation into Dennis and Mila’s kidnapping is being put on hold due to
some paperwork irregularity. Agent Lang is off the case and the FBI has given
Marshal Burke complete authority over the case.”

“But how could they do something like
that?”

“Some bureaucratic gibberish about the
office of U.S. Marshals having complete jurisdiction over the investigation.”

“I see.” Janet felt as though she’d been
hit with a sledgehammer. With everything she knew, she shouldn’t have been
blindsided, but it still took her by surprise. Thank goodness she’d spoken to
Philip last night and his private contractors were working on getting Dennis,
Mila, and Baxter out this very second. She just hoped they’d beat their
adversaries to it. “Did they say anything else?”

“No. They are cutting us off completely.
I was told there would be a follow up questioning into our conduct for not
involving the office of U.S. Marshals earlier.” He shook his head in disbelief.
“Their time would be better spent investigating that so called ‘car accident’
during the Kovars’ jail transfer. I failed you, Janet. Both you and Dennis. I
should’ve trusted your judgement, but I didn’t. I just couldn’t believe the FBI
or the office of U.S. Marshals would be corrupt enough to help the Kovars, but
clearly, I was wrong. Shame on me for trusting the authorities.”

Janet remained silent, letting Ham beat
himself up a bit. The way she saw it, he deserved it for being a jerk earlier.
“I didn’t tell them everything, Ham. We still have a leg up,” she said proudly.

“What on earth are you talking about?”

Keeping an eye on her phone, Janet told
Ham everything that had happened since Dennis’s abduction. This time she didn’t
leave out anything. “Philip hired a private contractor agency—it’s all former
FBI guys,” Janet continued. “They are scoping out the warehouse as we speak. As
soon as they have the details they need, they’ll move in and get Dennis, Mila,
and Baxter out.”

“Well, I’ll be damned,” Ham muttered.
“You’re one tough cookie, Janet.”

“I learn from the best.”

“Thanks for the compliment, but I don’t
deserve it.”

“We all make mistakes, Ham.”

“But I’ve made too many. I let myself
get blindsided with the hunt for fame and glory. Running the FBI go-to
intelligence agency got to my head. I forgot the real reason why we’re doing
this—not for money, or fame, or glory, although those are nice, but to get the
bad guys off the street. It may sound naïve, that’s what I’ve spent my whole
career doing and I’m not about to stop now.”

“Ham, I think we should wait ’till
Philip’s guys have more information for us,” Janet said, worried Ham might do
something crazy.

“I’m not going to screw up this time.
Marshal Burke won’t know what hit him when I’m done with him. Once Dennis and
Mila are safe, I’ll make sure their testimonies are heard by the right people
who’ll put the Kovars back behind bars where they belong. I’ll go all the way
to the Attorney General if I have to.”

Janet was about to reply when her phone
rang loudly. “I have to get this,” she said nervously. “Yes?” She heard
Philip’s voice on the other end of the line and nearly jumped. “They got it?
I’ll be right over.”

“What happened?” Ham asked.

“The contractors have the audio on the
warehouse. They’ve set up a stakeout at an abandoned building nearby. I’m going
over there now.”

“Janet, wait—”

“I’ll be careful, Ham. Cover for me in
case Marshal Burke comes back snooping around.”

***

To avoid traffic, Janet took the subway.
Williamsburg was only a few stops from Downtown Manhattan, and thirty minutes
later she was at the address Philip had given her.

“Am I too late?” she asked, as Philip
let her inside.

“No. They are still in the planning
stage. Fred wasn’t too happy about you coming, by the way. I had to talk him
into it,” Philip added. “Come on. I’ll take you over to where all the action
is.”

They walked up a flight of dilapidated
stairs and Philip opened the door leading into a room filled with junk. There
was broken furniture everywhere. The windows looked like they hadn’t been
washed in ages, and there was dust and debris all over the floor.

Fred stood by the window, looking
through a state of the art telescope. He had a radio in his hand. “Anyone see
you come in?” he asked without turning his head.

“No. At least I don’t think so,” Janet
answered.

“Good. We have ten men on the ground,
ready to go. My team has been working on this round the clock. We only just got
audio less than an hour ago. These old buildings are tricky, but we finally
calibrated the equipment to reduce interference. From what we’ve been able to
gather, Dennis, Mila and Baxter are all fine. Roughed up, but fine. Dennis is
planning an escape and we are going to help him. That dog of yours is very
resourceful—he chewed through the restraints. Have a listen.”

Fred turned up the volume and Janet’s
heart jumped in her chest at the sound of Dennis’s voice.

***

“Good boy,” Dennis whispered, as
Baxter’s teeth grinded at the ropes. “Good boy. Keep going. Don’t give up.”

“How much longer?” Mila asked. “Anton
usually comes around this time. He could be here any minute.”

“He’s almost there.” Dennis could feel
the restraints loosening up from the impact of Baxter’s teeth. He pulled his
wrists apart, tugging at the ropes, but they still wouldn’t budge. Baxter
squealed, clearly exhausted. “Come on, buddy. Don’t give up,” Dennis urged, and
Baxter put his teeth back to work.

Several minutes later, Dennis felt the
ropes give way and pulled his arms apart—the ropes fell off and he shook his
hands freely. “Good boy, Baxter!” He exclaimed, lifting Baxter up and kissing
him right on the muzzle. Then he put him back down and rushed toward Mila.

“Now what?” Mila asked. “We don’t have
the keys to get out of here.”

“Anton is going to let us out.”

“I highly doubt that,” she snapped.

“I’m going to loosen your ropes and
we’re going to wait for Anton to come. Then we’ll ambush him when he comes in,
and we’ll walk out of here.”

“Do you really think you can take him
on?”

“I’m pretty sure I can.”

“He’s got a gun,” she warned him.

“Yeah, but he won’t be expecting my
hands to be free, so I got that going for me. Besides, it’s not like we have
lots of options to choose from. It’s either this or nothing. So you’re in? Or
would you rather stay here and continue lovely conversations with Jessy?”

“Quit talking and untie me already,”
Mila grumbled.

Dennis loosened her ropes, but left them
around her wrists. “Keep the rope tight so it still looks like you’re tied up,”
he instructed her.

“Hurry, I think he’s coming,” she
whispered. There was a sound of approaching footsteps behind the door.

Dennis sprang back to his chair and
wrapped the ropes around his wrists. Moments later the door opened and Anton
and Jess walked inside the room.

“Leave the light off,” Anton said
gruffly, as Jess moved for the light switch.

“That’s fine with me, boss.” Jess stood
aside, her legs in a wide stance.

Dennis instantly knew something was off.
Yesterday when Anton had roughed them up, he’d been talkative and full of
swagger. But today he was quiet, looking like a beaten-up dog. He seemed to be
working up a resolve to something that went beyond threats, punches and humiliation.
Dennis could feel it in his gut—something he’d never felt before—a cold,
ominous sensation telling him it was life or death. He tensed up in his chair,
like a coiled up spring, waiting for release.

Anton stood in the middle of the room.
“As much as I enjoyed having you here as my guests, the time has come for us to
say goodbye.” Anton’s hand moved up his chest and Dennis saw a gun holster
there. Now was the time to act.

Dennis sprang to his feet, grabbed his
chair, and threw it at Anton with all his might, knocking him off his feet. As
though in slow motion, Dennis saw Jess pull out her gun, but he was quicker, as
he ducked and used Anton’s body as a shield. There was a gun shot and Dennis
felt Anton’s body shake with the bullet’s impact.

Jess screamed, “Anton, baby! I’m so
sorry.” She aimed her gun squarely at Dennis. “I’ll kill you for what you did
to my Anton. You slime.”

Quick as lightning, Dennis reached for
the holster underneath Anton’s arm. He grabbed the gun and pulled the trigger,
firing right through Anton’s jacket. There was a shot and Jess fell to the
ground.

Mila got out of her chair and ran toward
Jess. Quickly, she grabbed Jess’s gun. “Stay down,” Mila muttered, kicking her
with her foot.

“Tie her hands,” Dennis instructed Mila.
“I’ll take care of Anton,” he added. Dennis took Anton’s gun and put it in his
back pocket. Then he grabbed the ropes and bound Anton’s wrists as tightly as
he could. He looked through Anton’s pockets and found the keys. “I got the
keys. Let’s get out of here before the other Kovars show up.”

Dennis dragged Anton’s body across the
room towards Mila and Jess. Anton’s wound was in the shoulder, but he’d passed
out probably from the pain and the shock. Dennis took a look at Jess’s wound—it
was serious—the bullet had hit her chest. It had missed the heart, but might’ve
hit a lung—he wasn’t sure.