Rising Bounty (11 page)

Chapter 20

Roxanne was slouched in the passenger side of a car with a seat belt on.
What had happened?
The last thing she remembered was going to the bathroom with Lauren. Then she saw something in the mirror. She lifted her head and panicked when she saw her ex-husband Darryl driving.

“It’s about time you woke up. Tell me where Cici is.”

She shook her head, which was a mistake. The movement caused sharp pain to shoot through the back of her head. “I’m not telling you anything.”

He cursed her and called her all kinds of names. She struggled to sit up but her hands had been tied behind her back. “Where are you taking me?”

“To a private spaceport. I’m taking you with me, off-planet, to Bazin. The authority can’t come after me there. Once I get the information from you on where Cici is, I’ll have one of my guys come back for her. You have a lot to make up for. I have plans that will keep you busy for a while.”

Roxanne imagined the disgusting things he would have her do or would do to her and felt sick to her stomach. She had to get away from him as soon as possible. If they left the planet, she would probably never see her family again because there was no way she would ever divulge where Cici and her mother were. The only comfort she had was knowing that Abe would be looking for her and that he would take care of her mother and daughter if something did happen to her.

She reached for her back pocket, where she had put her phone. It was a struggle, but if she could get to it, she might be able to call for help. Slowly she leaned to the side to give her more room to reach it. Just a little further and she could —
there
. Her fingertips touched it. Arching a little, she got a hold of the side and slowly pulled it out.

Damn, she wished could see it. Oh well, she pushed the button to turn it on and used her memory to select the option to return the last call received. She thought it was either Lexi or Abe who had last called her, but she couldn’t remember. She pushed the button, hoping that it was dialing.

“Is that the private spaceport you were talking about?”

Darryl didn’t look at her. “Yes, I reserved three seats since I was planning to take Cici with us, too. You will tell me where you hid my daughter or I’ll make sure you suffer even more than what I have planned.

“Park Place.” Roxanne saw the name of the spaceport and said it out loud.

“What did you say?

“Nothing,” she lied.

Darryl rolled his eyes at her as he pulled into the parking lot.

She certainly hoped someone was listening. What if she had dialed a number that no one had answered? She would be sitting there talking for no reason. No one would come rescue her. If that was the case, she needed a plan B.

*****

“Did you hear that?” Lexi asked Isaac, who had hacked into her phone line. She had called Victor on the house phone as soon as she realized Roxanne was calling her. Victor had Isaac hack into Lexi’s phone and connect him and Abe. They had been monitoring it ever since.

“We’ve got the address. We’re on our way. Keep listening in case we miss something.”

“Victor, make sure she’s okay”

“I will. Make sure all of you stay inside while we take care of this just in case Hadley gets the address out of Roxanne.”

Lexi clutched her hands together, imagining the worse. Roxanne was as close to a sister as she had, and she didn’t want to lose her. She also didn’t want to lose Victor, the love her life.

“Be careful, baby.”

“I’m always careful.”

She snorted. It was such a Victor thing to say. “Love you.”

“Love you too, honey. Listen to Shy. She’s there to protect you.”

“I will.” She hung up the phone and had to work to make sure her expression didn’t show that anything was wrong. Cici was an intelligent girl and picked up on people’s emotions. After what Roxanne told her Hadley was like, she now understood why the girl was hesitant to be around loud, large men. The exception was Abe. That girl loved Abe something fierce. She prayed that they got Roxanne back safe and sound and that no one except Hadley would get hurt. In her opinion, there was a special kind of hell for any person who hurts a child.

*****

Roxanne watched Darryl as he got out of the car and went inside the building. He thought that since she was tied up, she was no threat. He always underestimated her.

She brought her knees up to her chest and scooted and slid her hands under her ass, then under her thighs, further down until she was able to bring them over her feet. Finally her hands were now in front of her.

Roxanne moved over to the driver’s seat.
Damn.
He had taken the keys, but that wasn’t going to stop her. She had been on the run for years and picked up a thing or two. She reached down to the lower panel and pried it open. These rental cars had a back-up switch that the car rental places could activate to have their cars returned to them when the renters fail to return them. All she had to do was activate it, then—
yes!
The car started up.

She looked at the entrance of the spaceport. Darryl came running out, screaming at her as the car began to move by itself. He jumped in front of the vehicle, causing its sensors, sensing impact with a human, to halt suddenly. It threw her forward and she hit her forehead against the steering wheel. She was dazed and didn’t reach for the door locks until Darryl pulled open the door next to her.

“You’re not getting away from me that easily! All these years, I’ve searched for you, planned out every detail of how I would take my vengeance against you. I won’t be denied!” He was half-pulling and half-dragging her out of the car.

She wasn’t going to be taken without a fight. She dug her feet into the ground, making him come to a stop. She might have been able to get away if it had just been Darryl.

“Take her to the shuttle, Wes!” Darryl threw her toward two other men who each took one of her arms. Darryl walked ahead of them and the two men pulled her behind them toward the space shuttle. If they got her on there, that would be it. Darryl would rather kill her than to ever allow her to escape him.

Darryl glanced back at the two men. “Did you take care of the situation?”

Wes shrugged. “We handled the two federal agents to keep them from showing up, but when you ordered us to kill Agent Ward, he disappeared. Probably skipped town so that he wouldn’t get arrested for his part in all this.”

“He won’t be getting the rest of his money and I’ll put a freeze on the transfer I started. That money will be yours if you stay and finish him off.”

Wes stopped walking, which made her and the other guy stop as well. “That’s a lot of money, but I’m not stupid. The authority is coming after you now. The best thing I can do is get the money you owe me and part ways.”

Roxanne stood there, looking between the Wes guy and her ex. She could tell that Darryl was about to let Wes have it. Maybe this was her chance. She just needed the perfect moment.

“What do you mean part ways? I’m paying you good money to get me to Bazin.” Darryl stepped forward and pushed Wes’s shoulder.

Wes let go of her and moved into Darryl’s face. They began arguing. Now there was just one guy holding on to her. She leaned down, bent at her waist, grabbed the man by the leg and jerked him up. He let go of her as he fell backward. Roxanne didn’t waste any time. She took off running.

“Get her!” Darryl yelled from behind her.

She heard feet running behind her, catching up to her. Then she heard several popping sounds and grunts. She slowed to glance back and saw that Wes and the other crony were on the ground. Darryl was still coming after her. She saw, in her peripheral vision that he was pulling out a gun. Suddenly, she hit a hard wall in front of her that she hadn’t seen. Arms seemed to come out to catch her before she flew backward to the ground.

“I’ve got ye, lass.”

She looked up. The wall she had run into was Abe. She had never seen anything more beautiful than his handsome face. She threw her arms around his neck handcuffs and all.

“Are ye hurt? He hit ye.”

“Darryl — he’s got a gun.” She looked behind her, at the same time putting her body in front of his as though she would protect him somehow.

She sighed in relief when she saw Jagger, Vic, and a couple of authority officers handcuffing Darryl. She sagged, her legs giving out. Everything was rushing to her head. “Is Cici—”

“She’s safe, I promise.”

“Good, I think I’m going to…”

“Roxanne?” Abe’s voice sounded so far away.

She smiled, “Love you.” She thought he said it back to her but it was so hard to hear and it was dark.

“Vic, I need an ambulance!” Abe yelled out. He held her in his arms, close to his heart. When he saw Hadley pull the gun out to shoot her, his heart had almost stopped beating.

Vic came up to his side. “The ambulance will be here in a few minutes. How is she?”

Abe cupped her cheek. “He bruised her face and I think there are raw patches on her wrists. I’m worried about the cut on her forehead.”

Vic knelt down next to him. “She’ll be fine.”

“I can’t lose her, Vic. I just can’t.”

Chapter 21

Two weeks later

Roxanne was ready to scream. The hospital kept her for four days to watch her. She had a concussion, caused by her head hitting the steering wheel. The federal agents visited her while she was in the hospital. They made good on their end by getting the judgment against her overturned. They also offered to help her relocate and start over, but she refused. She wasn’t going anywhere. Her life was here.

Darryl was charged and sentenced to over thirty years with no parole. All his accounts were frozen. Lauren said she would try to get something for her and Cici, but she didn’t want any of Darryl’s ill-begotten money. She had a job and a life she liked.

After she was released from the hospital, Abe kept her on bed rest. She was going crazy from being confined. Cici, her mom, and Lexi spent time with her. Abe held her to him every night but didn’t make love to her. He said he wanted to make sure she was completely healed. She loved him, but she couldn’t take any more of his overprotectiveness.

Today, Lexi and her mother were taking Cici back to school. She had a lot of work to make up for. Abe was downstairs in his office. Roxanne grabbed a towel from the bathroom. She needed to stretch her legs. A swim in the lake would be lovely.

She crept out of the cabin. The bright sun had her blinking and shading her eyes. She paused a few feet away on the sandy shore, closed her eyes, and inhaled. Fresh clean air filled her lungs and the sounds of the birds in the trees were like a song, lulling her into a peaceful state. A crunch of a footstep behind her let her know that her absence had not gone unnoticed.

“Why are ye out here alone?” Abe asked, coming up behind her. He wrapped his arms around her middle.

“I needed the fresh air.” She tilted her head to the side when he nuzzled her neck. “Mmm...I need something else.”

“We should wait—” He started to pull back from her.

She turned around in his arms. “I don’t want to wait anymore. I want to start my life with you and Cici. I love you, and you say you love me. Why should we wait? I want a baby with you.” Maybe she had pushed him too far but she wanted to be completely honest with him. Was he even ready to be a father?

He growled, and then pulled her to him for a hot kiss. She realized he was answering her with his actions. He ripped her t-shirt, exposing her breasts. Then he bent down and took a nipple in his mouth and sucked her. Every tug and pull went straight down to her pussy.

“Yes, I’ve missed you.” She helped him pull her shorts off.

“Yer not wearing panties.” He knelt on his knees and spread her legs apart.

“Someone keeps tearing them off me.”

“Get on yer hands and knees. I can’t wait anymore.”

While he was taking his clothes off, she spread the towels out and got down on her hands and knees. She smiled when she heard him growl with need.

“Yer so beautiful, Roxanne.”

He made her feel that way, wanted and beautiful. Roxanne loved him even more for that. He let her be herself and she knew it would always be enough for him.

He was behind her now, on the ground. His upper thighs rubbed against her bottom. Then she gasped when she felt the tip of his cock as he began to enter her. The feeling of being filled was beyond wonderful. They set a rhythm they both enjoyed, but it had been a little while and she knew she wouldn’t be able to last long.

“Harder, Abe. I need you deeper and harder.”

He stroked inside her, growling out things that would make her blush later when she thought about them. He cupped her breasts, tweaking the nipples into hard peaks. She felt the spasms inside her as she reached the climax and screamed her pleasure. Shortly after, he shouted his own release. He laid them down on the ground, still connected, as they got their breathing under control.

“Do ye want to change yer name back to Roseanne?”

She shook her head. “No, I like who I am now. Do you want me to change it back?”

“I love ye no matter what ye call yerself, so long as I can call ye mine.”

“Always.”