In the Shadow of Love (23 page)

In what seemed like an eternity, Maggie agonized through her choices.  She raised the weapon a little more, held it more firmly and fired.  The darkened figure staggered back at the impact of being shot but didn’t fall.

“That wasn’t very smart, Maggie.” His tone was menacing.

Preparing herself, she closed her eyes and said a prayer.  As she opened her eyes, she grasped the weapon hard with both hands and aimed.

Bright light concentrating from her captor’s direction suddenly beamed down on her and she instinctively shielded her eyes with one hand.  In one quick moment, she felt the weapon being pulled from her other hand and the sting of its butt slammed against her head.  It was the last thing she remembered.

Chapter 17

A piercing pain brought Maggie back to consciousness.  Her head throbbed, her vision blurred.  Ropes pinched her skin as she struggled to move.

Muffled talking reached through the walls and she recognized the voice of the man who’d turned her life upside down.  The dirty cop!  Lieutenant Baxter as Morris called him.  She had to get out of here.  Squirming in the chair trying to free herself, the ropes cinched her skin even more.

The voices grew louder and she strained to hear their words.  Her captor’s was loudest, the other one softer, more timid.  It too was familiar but she struggled to connect it to a name.  Blood trickled down the side of her face and she froze at the words she heard next.

“Why do you have to kill her?”  This time she recognized the voice.  Fred!

“I’m not going to kill her.”  Silence punctuated the Lieutenant’s next words.  “You are.”

Her heart nearly stopped.  They were talking about killing her!  A more ominous chill invaded Maggie’s body as she realized Fred was the one stealing money from Owen.  Of course!  He’d have access to everything.  Owen had trusted him explicitly, had given him control right after Helen’s death.  Her heart filled with intense pain for Owen.  He had given Fred everything and now he was being betrayed by someone he should have been able to trust.

She struggled even harder to free herself but was interrupted by the opening of the door.  Lieutenant Baxter loomed before her.

“You won’t escape this time, Maggie.”  His voice held a finality that told her the end was near.

He reached behind her and released her bindings with a quick flick of a knife, its edge scrapping her skin and causing her to wince.

“Oh, did I hurt you?”  Sarcasm laced his voice as he replaced her bindings with handcuffs.

Fred stood in the doorway, a look of fear mixed with remorse on his face.

“Here, make yourself useful.”  The Lieutenant pushed Maggie in Fred’s direction and she fell hard against him.  Fred steadied her, avoiding eye contact.

“Why Fred, why?”  Her voice was a muffled plea meant only for him.

“I’ll tell you why.”  The Lieutenant was still in control.  “He’s got a serious gambling problem and got in over his head with the wrong people.”  Fred finally looked at Maggie and his eyes told her it was true.  “He doesn’t have a choice now.”

“Owen treated you like a son.”  She tried desperately to reach out to him.  “How could you do this to him?”

“Shut her up!”  A roll of duct tape was tossed in their direction.  Maggie’s face began to sting in memory from the last time the tape was used on her.

“Please, Fred.”  Tears streamed down her face as she tried to make him look at her.  “Think about my children, think about Owen.  We can work it out.”

“Shut her up or I’ll kill you both.”

Her hope at reaching Fred faded as he shoved her against the wall, applied duct tape to her mouth, sealing the taste of salt from her tears against her lips, and her fate.

Finding his way to the foreman’s office with less trouble than expected, Morris was quick to note every entrance and exit should he need one.  Avoiding security cameras and search teams, he knew the process was easier to execute on his own.  He hated to leave Maggie behind but knew he would have been distracted worrying about keeping her safe.   He fought off the feeling he had abandoned her.

Glass windows surrounded the foreman’s office.  A beaten old man was tied to a chair in the corner of the room, a sole guard kept watch over him.  Owen Cassidy looked near death.  As Morris was contemplating his next move, the pounding of boots on the linoleum-over-concrete floor echoed through the hallway.  He quickly hid in a storage room as the sound of voices boomed closer and closer.

“Bring her in here.”

Recognizing Baxter’s voice he pushed on the door and peered through its thin opening.  A frightened and bruised Maggie was being dragged towards the foreman’s office.  Her mouth was taped and her hands cuffed behind her.  The sight of blood caked on Maggie’s beautiful face made his blood boil.  His immediate instinct was to burst from his hiding place and rescue her, but he kept it in check.  Baxter would pay for this.  It was a promise that he silently made to himself – and Maggie.  It was a promise he intended to keep.

Shoving Maggie into the office, Baxter showed no mercy.  Morris heard and felt her sense of alarm when she saw Owen’s condition.  It was clear Baxter still intended to use her to get Owen to talk.  He had to act fast.

Only one guard stood outside the foreman’s office.  Morris needed backup now.  It was time to call Geridano.

“Bravo Charlie Six, this is Bravo Charlie Nine, over.”  Morris’ voice crackled from Baxter’s police radio.  Just the sound of Morris’ voice gave Maggie strength.

“Copy Bravo Charlie Nine.”  She didn’t recognize the other voice but she could tell that Baxter did.

“Subject is missing from last known location, need backup.”  Maggie’s strength and hopes began to fade.  Morris didn’t know where she was.  He wouldn’t find her in time.

“Looks like your boyfriend wants to try and save you but doesn’t know how.”  Baxter’s voice was caustic.  “Don’t get your hopes up.”

“Roger that.  ETA your location ten minutes.”

Baxter didn’t look the least bit concerned about being interrupted by Morris or anyone else.  Maggie wanted nothing more than to wipe that condescending smirk off his face.

He walked towards the door and ordered the guard to find Morris and get rid of him –anyway he could.  Turning back towards Maggie he gave her a look that chilled her to the bone.  A surge of pain shot across her face as he unceremoniously ripped the gray tape from her mouth. Maggie winced as her skin burned in response.

“In ten minutes everyone will be dead unless I get some answers and fast.”  His words were punctuated by a loud slap when his hand made contact with Owen’s face.

“Stop it.”  Maggie’s voice echoed in the small and now crowded office.  Owen looked so beaten down.  She didn’t know how much more of this he could take.

“Owen, please!  Tell him what he wants to know.”

“Then he’ll kill us for sure.”  His voice was not much more than a whisper and Maggie had to strain to hear his words.

Breaking free of Fred’s hold, she rushed to Owen’s side unconcerned with Baxter’s reaction, her arms still pinned behind her back.  Kneeling before him she was frightened by how frail he looked.  Steading herself she leaned into him, giving the most reassuring look she could muster.

“How could you!”  Looking over her shoulder at Fred she glared at him with all the contempt she felt building inside.

An impatient Baxter charged towards her raising his hand with his service weapon ready to strike.  Maggie leaned back and nearly fell to the ground but was stopped by the edge of the chair where Owen was bound.  Bracing herself for the pain she knew she’d feel at Baxter’s strike of fury she closed her eyes and turned her face away to try and protect herself from the expected blow.

Holding her breath she felt herself pushed aside as a weak but determined Owen raised himself, chair and all, to intercept Baxter’s assault.  The unexpected sound of the door banging against the windowed walls of the foreman’s office was followed by glass shattering to the ground.  Still shielding herself from the impact of Baxter’s expected strike she didn’t realize that Morris was in the room until he was near her side.

“Are you okay?”  His voice reached out to her like a beacon in the dark.

A raging Baxter recovered from Owen’s block and struck down hard on Morris, knocking him away from Maggie.  She tried desperately to reach Owen who was now on the floor but still bound to the chair that constrained him.  Morris quickly recovered, catching his breath, struggling to reach Maggie and shield her from any more attacks.

Baxter was quicker, grabbing her by the upper arm and pulling her between himself and Morris’ forward assault.  Her wrists strained against the metal bracelets that kept her hands imprisoned behind her.  Her shoulders ached at the unnatural position.

“Come any closer and I’ll kill her.”  Baxter’s words sent fear rippling through her body as he punctuated his intent, placing the cold steel of his gun against her temple.  Maggie felt it dig into the already injured side of her head.

Morris halted his forward movement.  “You don’t want to do that Baxter.”  His voice was menacing yet calm.

“But you know I will.”

And he did.

“You won’t get away with this Baxter, and you’ve been around long enough to know that.”

He pulled Maggie even tighter into his deadly grip.  “I want one thing and one thing only.”  He glanced over at Owen who was still on the floor.  “So you’d better get the old man to talk if you want to keep your girlfriend alive.”

Baxter gestured for Morris to join Owen on the other side of the room.  “Don’t try anything stupid, or everyone is dead.”

“That won’t get you what you want.

“Just get the computer code from the old man.”

Morris pulled Owen off the floor and righted him in the chair.  His face was pale and Morris knew time was running out.  A barely audible moan escaped his parched and swollen lips.

“Hurry up.”

“He’s barely conscious, I doubt he can talk.”  Morris made eye contact with Baxter trying to gauge his body language.  The other man was tense and looked ready to snap if he didn’t get what he wanted.

“Then you’d better find a way, or I’ll have to kill you the same way I killed your partner.”

Morris’ head snapped back at the reference to his partner, feeling his anger surge to nearly uncontrollable levels.  Returning Baxter’s cold stare, he knew he had to act fast.  Where was Geridano!

“That’s right.”  Baxter took great delight in his ownership of Smith’s murder.  “He couldn’t keep his nose out of where it didn’t belong either.”

It was clear that Baxter had no intention of letting any of them live but Morris already knew this.

“Now unless you want to meet the same fate you’d better bring the old man around and get that code.”

“Wait.”  Maggie’s voice interjected, startling them all.  “I think I know how to get it without Owen.”

Baxter tightened his grip on her arm.  “This better not be a trick!”

“It isn’t, I promise.”  Her voice cracked with fear.

“Okay, then.  Out with it.”

Maggie winced aloud as Baxter pulled her arm further behind her back.

“I need access to a computer.”  She shot back.  “And I need my hands free.”

Morris shot Maggie a look of concern.  What was she up to!  He didn’t remember any reference to computer codes in the documents they spent hours reviewing.

“Get over here.”  Baxter barked the words towards Fred cowering against the wall.  Maggie had almost forgotten he was even in the room.

Baxter removed the handcuffs from Maggie and tossed them at Fred.  “Put these on him and make sure they’re on tight.”

Morris didn’t like the direction in which events were unfolding.

“Cuff him to that pipe over there.”  And things just got worse.

Fred cinched the cuffs as tight as he could, pinning Morris against an exposed pipe that was anchored to the wall.  If Baxter didn’t have a gun to Maggie’s head Morris wouldn’t have hesitated to make his move, but Baxter was too trigger happy for Morris to take any chances.

Keeping a tight hold on Maggie, Baxter checked to make sure that the handcuffs were tightly locked.  Reaching into Morris’ front pocket he extracted the handcuff key that every cop was known to carry.

“You won’t be needing this.”  He tossed it across the room and into the garbage.  Morris’ hope of extracting himself from his bindings was now further out of his reach.

Owen was still unconscious and he was fearful the older man was near death.

Baxter led Maggie out of the room with Fred close behind, the trio fading from Morris’ view.   Struggling to pull away from the pipe he was determined to break it in half if necessary and he was close to doing so when Geridano walked into the room.

“Where have you been!”  Morris’ words were harsh and anxious.

“Calm down cowboy.  I’m here now.”

“We don’t have much time.”  Still uncertain how much he could trust the other detective Morris knew it was his only option.  “Get these off of me.”

Extracting his own master key he released Morris from his metal bindings.

“Take care of Owen,” Morris barked the command over his shoulder as he fled from the room in pursuit of Maggie.

Rounding a corner he slammed up against the broad chest of the guard who had been sent to kill him.  He had come too far to let anyone get in his way now.  Struggling with the man almost twice his size Morris’s strength surprised both of them.  Neutralizing the other man he pinned him on the ground, taking the handcuffs that had once constrained him and clasped them on the now unconscious man.

Geridano caught up with him.

“What about Owen.”

Morris didn’t like the look on the older detective’s face.

“He’s unconscious but he’s breathing.  Barely.  Paramedics and backup are on the way.”

Morris shot Geridano a questioning look.  He didn’t remember hearing any request for EMS or backup over the radio.

“Land line. More secure.”

“Right, let’s go!”  Although Morris wasn’t sure exactly where he was going, but his instincts had served him well so far.