Merchants with Evil Intent (21 page)

      
He grabbed his suitcase from the carousel
and headed towards the car rental area.

      
With a car secured he decided he’d catch
a few winks at a nearby hotel. Afterwards he’d check out Camryn’s e-mails and
with any luck he’d be able to track her.

      
She had no idea what was in store for
her.

*
     
*
     
*

      
Butler ended his shift and went home and
showered. Ordinarily he’d stop at a nearby restaurant and get take out, but not
tonight.

      
He left his apartment with a spring in
his step. His first stop was the florist where he bought four bouquets. One
just happened to be larger than the others. He wondered if she’d notice.

      
When he approached the hospital room that
Diana Miles and Amanda Yates shared he nodded to Graham, the cop on duty, who
waved him in.

      
Joe hoped to be in and out of their room
quickly and didn’t anticipate the small group of people gathered in the tiny
room.

      
Dozens of questions were thrown at him.
Was Orlov found? What about the Russian guy?

      
“Orlov fled the country. We’ve alerted
the proper authorities and now are waiting for feedback. That’s all the
information I’m able to share with you. I can tell you we’re working diligently
to find the individuals responsible,” he replied.

      
An awkward silence filled the room. Joe
made his way to Diana and Amanda and handed them each a bouquet.

      
Before he left their room he announced,
“Your girls are safe and the men who did this won’t come back for them. I’ll
keep in touch and the minute I hear something worth mentioning I’ll let you
know.”

      
Joe walked into the hallway to regain his
composure. Only one had been captured and two scumbags were on the run.

      
A sketch artist drew a picture of Lukov
and the four women agreed on the rendering. It was sent out through the wire
and the airports had been alerted. Everything that could be done had been done.

      
He walked across the hall into Camille
and Samantha’s room. He was disappointed when he saw Camille’s parents there.

      
Camille’s face instantly lit up when he
entered. She rose from the chair and began to hobble towards him.

      
He raised a hand to stop her. “Miss
Mayden didn’t the doctor tell you to keep off your feet?” he gently scolded.

      
“Why yes, Detective Butler, but my
parents also told me not to talk to strangers and I obviously ignored
that
warning,” she murmured.

      
Joe escorted her back to the chair as he
juggled the remaining bouquets.

      
“Are those for me?” Camille grinned.

      
“Only one, but it’s the largest,” Joe
whispered in her ear.

      
Joe said hello to her parents and Mr.
Mayden shook his hand.

      
“Thank you for being so kind to the
girls. You know, you’re the only cop who comes to visit and not ask questions.”

      
Joe blushed. “I’m on the hospitality
committee and it happened to be my turn to do the rounds.”

      
Mr. Mayden shrugged, “I’m just glad
you’re here. Camille, your mom and I are going to get a few hours sleep now
that Detective Butler is here.”

      
The Mayden’s left, leaving Joe and
Camille. Joe pointed his finger at the curtain between the beds. “What’s up
over there? Is she okay?”

      
“She’s fine. She just wanted privacy.”
Camille whispered.

      
Joe took the water decanter from the
bedside table and placed the larger bouquet inside of it before handing it to
Camille.

      
She grinned, “Hospitality committee my
ass. You like me.”

      
He bent so his blue eyes were level with
hers. “Yes, I do.”

*
     
*
     
*

      
“Where am I supposed to go?” Camryn
asked.

      
“Find Declan,” Maggie offered.

      
Camryn’s eyebrows knitted together.
“Declan? How do you know him?”

      
Maggie shrugged, “It doesn’t matter. Go
to him. He’ll protect you.”

      
“I’m not going to him,” Camryn scoffed.

      
“Now’s not the time for haughtiness,
young lady. You need protection and he can give that to you.”

      
Wow,
she’s not even in my life for an hour and she’s already barking out orders,
Camryn thought as she slammed her head
against the pillow.

*
     
*
     
*

      
“Orlov’s landed in Ireland,” warned
McShane as he walked into John’s house.

      
“How did he know where she went?”

      
“I’m
not sure. No one knew except for your family, me and Travers. I asked Travers
if he blabbed and he maintains he’s kept his mouth shut.

      
We’ve notified the authorities out there
and so far they haven’t seen him. In the meantime you need to get a hold of
Camryn so she can prepare herself in the event he finds her before the cops
do.”

      
John reached for the couch and sat
slowly. “What does he want with her?”

      
McShane sat opposite of him in a
well-worn blue armchair. “Orlov was collecting women for a trafficker.
Apparently Camryn was high on the list since she’s a virgin.”

      
John
growled, “I’ll kill the bastard with my own hands!”

*
     
*
     
*

      
“So-o-o, you like me, huh? Is it because
I’m a damsel in distress?” prodded Camille.

      
Joe grinned, “No, it’s how anal retentive
you are with your house. I’ve never seen a house so damn clean!”

      
She playfully hit his arm and smiled.
“Well, I don’t know if this relationship will work if you’re a slob and all.”

      
He inched closer, taking her hand into
his. He ran his fingers gently over the bandages covering her wrists and looked
her in the eyes. “I’m already smitten. It’s your decision if you want to take
things further.”

      
She wasn’t accustomed to men being so
upfront and it took her aback. A short silence filled the room.

      
“I’m an idiot. You’ve just been through
one hell of a traumatic experience and I’m hitting on you,” Joe rasped as he
stood to leave.

      
“Don’t you dare
leave!
”
Camille scolded, hobbling towards him.

      
He grasped her upper arms gently and
pulled her to him. “Are you sure about this?”

      
“Nope,” she whispered as she brought her
lips to his.

*
     
*
     
*

      
The sound of her phone startled Camryn
out of a dream.

      
Her hand fell against the nightstand and
reached for the phone.

      
“Hello?” she asked groggily.

      
“Thank God! Are you okay?”

      
She blew out a hard breath. “John, what
is it with you? I left Chicago for two reasons! To get away from the asshole
stalking me and you! Please leave me be!”

      
“Don’t you hang up me girl! Smirnoff is
in Ireland!” John growled into the phone.

      
Camryn brought the phone back to her ear.
“What?”

      
“He was part of a human trafficking ring.
His job was to snatch the women then later they were sold.”

      
Her stomach roiled. He was a monster. An
evil sick bastard and she
kissed
him.

      
“Did you hear what I said?” cried John
impatiently.

      
“I’m not deaf, ya know. I feel like I’m
going to vomit.”

      
“You’ve no time for that. Pack your bags.
There’s a ticket waiting for you at the airport.”

      
She raised her eyebrow. “I’m not coming
back now. I just got here and I’m sure as hell not getting on a plane for
another eight hour trip. The idea is absurd!”

      
“Camryn, we’ve reason to believe that
he’s coming after you.”

      
She could feel the blood drain from her
face as she remembered her dream. Maggie had said the same thing.

*
     
*
     
*

      
“Camryn?”

      
“I’m here. I’m trying to digest all of
this. Viktor is here, in Ireland, and presumably looking for me.
Got it.”

      
“Are you being
flip
?”
John yelled.

      
“Look, if he’s coming after me then I
need to
skedaddle
the hell out of here.”

      
John breathed a sigh of relief. “Now you’re
making sense. Have Mickey drive you to the airport and I’ll pick you up at
O’Hare.”

      
She shook her head. “I’ll have Mickey
drive me to the coast. Then I’ll have time to think about my next move.”

      
John growled into the phone when a click
sounded in his ear. She hung up on him!

      
Camryn stared at the phone. She heard a
few short beeps when she was talking then silence. Her battery died.

      
Now
that
was a problem. She didn’t have an electrical adaptor to recharge her phone.

      
She smiled as she laid her head back down
on the pillow. No phone meant
no
calls from John.

*
     
*
     
*

      
Joe felt Camille shudder in his arms. He
tore away from their kiss and gazed at her questioningly. “Am I that bad of a
kisser?”

      
“Actually, you’re too good.”

      
“Right answer,” he grinned.

      
“Would you like to carry me to bed?” she
asked.

      
He pulled away from her slightly,
startled.

      
“Get your mind of the gutter Detective
Butler. My feet are sore,” Camille scolded, smiling.

      
He coughed, “I knew that!”

      
“Surrree you did,” she laughed.

*
     
*
     
*

      
When Mickey arrived at the McCann’s
Camryn was ready to go.

      
After they settled into car Mickey asked
her what site she wanted to see first.

      
“I want to go to the coast.”

      
He laughed, “Which one?”

      
“The eastern coast.
But first I need to find a shop that sells electrical adaptors.”

      
“There’s a shop just down the road,”
Mickey replied.

      
“Um, actually I was thinking of a shop a
few hours down the road. I’m in no hurry,” she hedged.

      
“But the shop is right here,” Mickey
muttered, confused.

      
“The east coast, Mickey,” she urged.

      
Camryn twisted uneasily in the seat. She
didn’t want to tell Mickey about Viktor.
 

      
She sighed, gazing out the car window.
Green rolling hills stood out against a gray and dismal sky. Out in the distance
a few stone fences dotting the landscape.

      
Now
this
was the Ireland she expected.

*
     
*
     
*

      
Brower and McShane sat in kitchen of the
station perusing the newspaper. That asshole, Josh Taylor, made the department
sound like a bunch of buffoons. Brower growled to himself. He’d like to ring
the little weasel’s neck. What he wouldn’t give to have Camryn O’Mara back
writing the news pieces.