Midnight Shadows (16 page)

Stunned at his outburst, Sabrina watched him stride across the room. He opened the door, cast her one last furious glare and then was gone.

Chapter Fourteen

“You ready?” Marsh asked.

“As ready as I can be, I guess.”

The grim toughness in Marsh’s eyes was a direct contrast to the gentleness of his hands as he carried out his tasks. Using duct tape, he bound her hands behind her back, then her feet. Holding up a long scarf, he said, “I’ll use this instead of the tape. No need to make this any more uncomfortable than it needs to be.”

“I appreciate that. You’re sure this Payne guy won’t mess with me?”

“Very sure. Silva gave strict instructions that you weren’t to be injured or manhandled. That’s one of the reasons he sent me to do this. Payne has gotten in trouble before for one thing or another. Has impulse control issues. Silva believes I have the discipline to get this job done without damaging the merchandise.”

Sabrina scrunched her nose up at being referred to as merchandise but didn’t bother to comment. To Silva that’s exactly what she was. And from what Marsh had described, it was how he thought of all women.

He placed the scarf around her neck, but instead of opening the back of the SUV and bundling her in the back, he hesitated.
 

“What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know if this will work.”

“Do we have a choice?”

“No…at least none that I can come up with.”

The doubt in his eyes mirrored her own thoughts, but second guessing themselves would do no good. The game was in play. Payne had been notified that she had been found and had called his boss with the good news. And as Marsh has predicted, Silva had called him to make the pick-up. Retreating and finding another way was not an option.

There was one slight glitch in their scenario. Silva had instructed Marsh to take Sabrina to a small abandoned airstrip in North Florida. They would be met there and he would be given instructions on what to do next. Which meant they still had no idea where Lauren was being held.

She reached for words to reassure him…and herself. “Lauren knows me…she trusts me. Just get me to her and we’ll figure a way out. I’ve got lots of backup so it’s not like I’m in this alone. Okay?”

Marsh opened the back of the SUV. Since her hands and feet were already tied, she had to rely on him to lift her up and place her inside. Just as he was about to shut the door, she heard a shout.

Twisting her head, she saw Ian sprinting toward them. The anxiety eased inside her. She hadn’t liked how they left things. After he’d left her in bed yesterday morning, he’d barely even looked at her the rest of the day. Last night he hadn’t even come to her room.

“Mind if I have a minute with your captive?”

Marsh issued a curt nod to Ian and moved several yards away, giving them privacy.

Ian looked down at Sabrina. She was lying curled up on her side in the trunk, her hands and feet bound. A scarf was tied around her neck that would soon cover her mouth. When she and Marsh arrived at the designated location, she would look like a kidnap victim.

 
Even though he had never felt less like joking, he winked and gave his best cocky grin. “Comfy?”

“Oh yeah. I’m thinking about traveling like this from now on.”

“I’ll keep that in mind next time we go on vacation.”

“It really will be okay, Ian. I promise.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep.” Leaning down, he softly kissed her forehead and then gave her a warm, thorough kiss on her luscious mouth. “Stay safe, Sabrina Wilde, or I’ll kick your ass.”

She snorted. “You and what army, Ian Mackenzie?”

“I believe I can scrounge up a few people who wouldn’t mind helping me.” Then, even though she wouldn’t want to hear it, he had to say the words, “I love you, Sabrina.”

“Ian…I…” Her smooth forehead furrowed as she shook her head. “Don’t.”

“Too late, baby. You’re it for me. Better get used to it. It’s a permanent thing. Won’t go away…and neither will I.” He dropped one last kiss on her unsmiling mouth. “See you in a few days.”
 

Before she could say anything else, could tell him not to love her or that he wasn’t ‘it’ for her, he pulled the scarf up and covered her mouth. Satisfied that instead of the sadness his words had caused, temper now gleamed in her eyes, Ian walked away.

The ride to the airstrip was short and uneventful. They had agreed to carry the guise of her capture all the way. The instant Marsh had gotten into the driver’s seat, he’d become a different man.

Once he parked, he hauled her out of the back and threw her over his shoulder like he was carrying a bale of hay. She grunted and moaned, none of it fake. By the time she made it to their destination, she would be sore and stiff. Saving Lauren’s life was worth it.

Since she was upside down, she saw nothing of the pilot other than his scruffy looking boots. His mocking voice was slightly accented. “Does her face look as good as her ass?”

Marsh’s reply was mild, without inflection. “That’ll be something you can take up with Silva, Hans. I’m sure the boss would love to talk to you about it.”

“Hey, man, I was only joking.”

The nervous respect she heard in Hans’ voice made her feel better. Marsh had claimed to have a lot of influence with his boss, which hopefully meant any plans Silva had for either Lauren or her would be something he’d mention to Marsh.

Since she needed to maintain her role as unwilling captive, Sabrina did her part. She squirmed and wiggled, kicked her bound legs and felt only a slight amount of guilt when her foot connected with Marsh’s groin.
 

A sharp inhalation of breath and soft curse followed the contact. All guilt feelings disappeared when he slammed his palm against her ass in a stinging slap. “Behave or I’ll knock you out again.”

She mumbled several vehement curses behind her gag but refrained from kicking him again. Incapacitating her only ally was not a good idea, besides the fact that he’d probably smack her again if she tried.

Marsh climbed up a short flight of stairs and entered the small plane. Dumping Sabrina onto a seat, he buckled her seat belt, then barked, “Stay put.”

She glared up at him.

A slimy sounding voice came from the back of the plane. “Well now, that’s what I call a handful.”

Marsh jerked around and gave the man a nod of greeting. “Your intel was good, Payne. I’ll make sure Mr. Silva knows how smooth this went down.”

Sabrina couldn’t see all of Payne, much of him was in the shadows, but what she could see wasn’t reassuring. He appeared to be a behemoth, at least six-six and his bulk put him well over the three hundred pound mark. Payne was definitely not a man she wanted to take on. One swat from him would be certain death.

“Appreciate it, Marsh.”

Minutes later, they were speeding down the runway. The instant they were in the air, Marsh pulled out his cellphone. “We’re in the air, Mr. Silva. Where would you like us to go?”

Sabrina couldn’t hear the other man’s words, but the narrowing of Marsh’s eyes and the tense twisting of his mouth told her whatever he’d said surprised him, and not in a good way.

“Very well, sir. I’ll see you in a couple of days.”

Since she was still gagged, asking him any questions wasn’t possible. And even if she could speak, she wouldn’t have been able to ask in front of Payne. Still, the frown on his face was enough for her to know that something was definitely wrong.

They arrived at night. Where, she had no idea. The trip had taken hours. From the little she had been able to hear, they’d had to go around a thunderstorm. Was that the reason it had taken so long or had they traveled hundreds, maybe thousands of miles?

Other than a couple of trips to the cockpit, Marsh had stayed with her. Thankfully when he did leave, he’d given a telling look to Payne. He hadn’t said the words, but his warning was clear: Don’t touch the merchandise.

She had been allowed two bathroom breaks, as well as a glass of water and a candy bar. She’d scarfed down the candy, unaccountably grateful for the nourishment. She had no idea what she would face when they landed but figured she’d need all the energy she could get.
 

When the outside door opened, Sabrina sprang to her feet. After her last bathroom visit, her legs hadn’t been retied. Hopefully they’d let her walk out under her own steam. Marsh was there before she could take a step. He gave her a dark look of warning and nodded at her seat.
 

Sighing her disgust, she fell back into the chair and watched in silence as he taped her ankles together again. He then hauled her to her feet and deftly secured her arms behind her back. More than aware that Payne was watching a few feet away, she thought about giving a performance of resistance.

 
Before she could come up with something that wouldn’t get her in too much trouble, Marsh picked her up and just like before, threw her over his hard, unyielding shoulder. Wordlessly, he carried her off the plane.

She was beyond exhausted and made only a token protest of squirming about. Even though she knew he needed to maintain his front because of Payne, she noticed that when he dumped her in the car trunk and she cursed, a small smile played around his mouth.

From what she had been able to see from her upside-down viewpoint, this airstrip was old and abandoned, too. Not a soul around to help her if things went sour. How many women had been brought to Silva in just this way?

It was dark and cramped in the trunk. She was thirsty, hungry and had a pounding headache. She was, in a word, miserable. She kept herself occupied by concentrating on seeing Lauren and devising their plan of escape.
 

Marsh would be keeping in touch with Ian and her family, letting them know location and plans, but it was up to Sabrina to create the diversion. She sure as hell hoped that opportunity presented itself immediately upon arrival at their final destination. Otherwise she was going to get decidedly cranky.

At last the car came to a smooth stop and within seconds the trunk popped open. Sabrina pulled in fresh air, grateful to be breathing something besides warm, toxic fumes.
 

His face set hard and expressionless, Marsh pulled her from the trunk and dropped her on her feet. She was thankful he allowed her to stand still for a moment as her legs were almost numb. As she waited for them to wake up, she took in her surroundings.
 

They were at a house. Though it was dark and there was only a small porch light burning, she could see that it was a fairly large structure. Was this it then? The place where Lauren had been brought?

But where exactly was this place? The air was warm and fragrant with some kind of flowery smell, yet she couldn’t place the scent. And was that the ocean? Yes, she could hear the surf in the distance. Were they in Miami? No, that didn’t make sense. Even if they’d had to divert because of a thunderstorm, the flight shouldn’t have taken hours.
 

Surprising her, Marsh reached down and sliced the tape at her ankles with a wicked looking knife. “Let’s go.” He grabbed her upper arm and pushed her forward.

“Where are we?”

“That’s not something you need to know.”

Though she knew Marsh could show no weakness or gentleness, his harsh tone and brutal grip on her arm was disconcerting.

The front door opened and hard hands pushed Sabrina forward. She barely caught herself before she fell. Turning, ready to snarl, she was hauled back up on Marsh’s shoulders.
 

“Dammit, put me down. I can frigging walk.”

“Shut up before I give you that beating you’ve been asking for.”

Upside down once more, Sabrina couldn’t see her surroundings all that well. It appeared to be a large, elegant foyer with marble flooring. The fresh scent of lemons wafted through the air. Was this Silva’s house? Did he live here? Was he here now?

“Take her upstairs, third door on the right,” a gruff, unfamiliar voice said.

Bouncing on Marsh’s shoulders, adding bruises to her bruises, Sabrina gritted her teeth, determined not to make a sound. After what seemed an incredibly long stairway, they were finally headed down a hallway. A lock clicked and then she felt a whoosh of air as the door opened.

Marsh dumped her on the floor and, without another word, walked out. The clicking of the lock was like a final punctuation mark to her captivity.

Her hands still bound, Sabrina struggled to her knees, then to her feet. Hearing a noise behind her, she whirled around and then lost her breath.

“Welcome to your nightmare.”

Silva’s Yacht

Stationed in her bedroom, Lauren looked out the porthole of her suite and imagined a different life. One that didn’t include fearing tomorrow, running from her past, or lying in the present.
 

What she had suffered at Silva’s hands was not a drop in the bucket to what she would endure when he came for her. With Armando dead, the bastard had no reason to let her go or even keep her alive once he tired of her. If she was lucky, perhaps he would kill her quickly, but luck had never been on her side. She’d screwed with fate too many times to expect anything good. He would use her, hurt her, and then that would be it.