The Sacrificial Lamb (42 page)

The car jounced along the rutted path, jolting Alex’s stomach, which was already in knots. Appropriately the sky was gunmetal gray, the sun not having yet awoken from its slumber. Alex wasn’t sure why she was so nervous. It was a simple trip to the store to make a phone call to Russell. They would be away from the cabin for a short period of time, with the longest part of the trip being the drive there and back.

They didn’t speak, both consumed with their own thoughts. After making love, they had taken a hasty shower and prepared to leave. With the smallest hint of hesitation, Domenic handed her his thirty-eight. Alex checked to make sure the safety was on and slipped it into her pocket. It would stay there until they arrived at the store, and then she would keep it in the waistband of her shorts, her T-shirt long enough to conceal it.

When they approached the gate, she ran out of the car as discussed beforehand and unlocked it. The Mercedes was further back, out of sight, and she waited until she was certain there were no cars coming before swinging it back and jumping out of the way. Domenic gunned the engine and the car burst out of the entrance, skidding on the shoulder. Pulling the gate behind her, she closed it. He had told her to leave it unhasped so they could make a quick entrance upon their return. Running to the car, she opened the door and jumped in.

The drive to town took approximately twenty minutes. There wasn’t much to it, and this early in the morning the place looked like a ghost town. Domenic pulled up to the general store, turning to face her. His features were drawn, and she wanted nothing more than to pull him into her arms and tell him everything would be okay. Both of them were morose at the thought that Domenic would be making plans to escort her back to her father.

“Okay, so you’re staying in the car and waiting for me, right?”

“I kind of need to buy something in the store.”

“I can get it for you,” Domenic said, frowning.

“Um…no, I don’t think you can. Or I doubt you’d
want
to.” Alex blushed furiously and fiddled with her hands in her lap.

“What do you—oh.”

She glanced up to see comprehension dawn on his face and wished the ground would open up and swallow her whole. No girl wanted to talk about feminine products with her boyfriend. Alex had been doing the math and was expecting her monthly friend at any moment. She would rather be prepared, just in case they didn’t make it back to Chicago in time. The last thing she wanted to be doing on her last day with Domenic was trying to fashion together an effective method of protection. She grimaced at the thought and shook her head.

“Okay, um…just go in and out. No dawdling.”

“I, uh, kind of need some money,” she asked, her mortification growing by the minute.

“Right.”

Domenic reached into his pocket and handed her a folded bill. Alex grabbed it and got out of the car as quickly as possible. Her face was still flaming, and she was chastising herself for being so silly. It was a part of being a woman—no way of getting around it. No need to be embarrassed. Eventually she just took a deep breath and went into the store.

The bell rang as she walked in, and an older lady looked at her, smiling good-naturedly. Alex smiled in return and ducked into one of the aisles, praying they had what she was looking for. As she turned the corner, she almost ran into the woman who had been behind the counter. Gasping, Alex put a hand over her heart and stared at her.

“Oh! Sorry, dear! I didn’t mean to scare you.” The woman gave Alex a close look, which made her nervous for some unknown reason, before continuing to speak. “Can I help you with anything?”

“Uh, no, it’s okay. I’m just looking.” It was bad enough she’d had this discussion with Domenic—she didn’t want to have it with this strange woman as well.

“Okay. Let me know if you need any
help
.”

Alex frowned, wondering why she had stressed the word help. The woman continued to look at her, her eyes wide, hands clasped in front of her nervously.

“No, I’m fine. Thank you.” Alex turned and left her standing in the aisle, throwing a quick backward glance over her shoulder. The lady was still staring at Alex with an apprehensive look on her face until she turned the corner.

For a moment she thought the woman would follow her around the store, but after that brief confrontation, she was left alone. Alex walked up and down the aisles, getting frustrated, unable to find what she was looking for. After searching for a few more minutes, she decided she would have to bite the bullet and ask for help. She walked to the front counter, but no one was there. Looking around, Alex noticed a curtain separating a small room from the store. Heading toward it, she was about to call out, when whispering voices stopped her in her tracks.

“I’m telling you, it’s
her!”

“Mildred, you’ve been reading too many murder mysteries,” an annoyed gravelly voice replied.

“And I’m telling you,
that
is the girl those men from the FBI were looking for! I remember her face clearly!”

“Woman, don’t go doing anything stupid!” the voice whispered fiercely. Alex found herself nodding and agreeing with him.
Yes, Mildred, don’t do anything stupid.

“I called them,” Mildred said in a rush.

“You
what?”

Alex’s stomach dropped to her feet as she waited for the woman to answer.

“I called them! They left me a card saying if I saw the girl, to call them right away.”

“God damn it, Mildred! Why do you—”

Alex didn’t stop to hear what else the man said and rushed out of the store. Domenic had his back to her, gesturing animatedly as he spoke. Running up to him, she grabbed one of his arms and turned him to face her. He looked at her in confusion as she tugged on his arm.

“Russell, hold on. Alex, what the hell is wrong with you?”

“We have to go!” she said with urgency.

“What? Why?”

“They found us!” Domenic’s face grew sharp at once, and he gripped her upper arm. “The FBI was here looking for me. The lady called them! We have to
go!”
She was trying to keep her voice from rising in a panic and alerting the woman that she had overheard her.

“That wasn’t the FBI.”

“How do you know?” she asked faintly, her heart hammering in her chest.

“
Because I know
,” Domenic replied harshly. He put the phone back to his ear and his next words froze her blood. “Russell? The Liseni found us. Send whoever you can,
now
.” He barked out their coordinates and hung up the phone. “We have to get the fuck out of here.”

Domenic and Alex ran back to the car and got in. The lady from the store came out after them as they sped away, the car sending plumes of dust and gravel in their wake. Alex hoped she got pelted with debris, that nasty meddling bitch. The Mercedes’s tires squealed as they hit the asphalt, gripping and propelling them forward. In a haze, she remembered putting on her seatbelt.

They drove for about ten minutes, Domenic issuing a steady stream of curses as her stomach flipped. Alex had the gun in her hand in a white-knuckled grip. “How did they find us?”

“Best guess is Junior was able to trace the land back to my father and they’ve been searching for us for a few days,” Domenic answered tersely.

“Where are we going?”

“Back to the cabin.”

“Are you crazy? They know we’re here! Just drive away. We can run!” she yelled. Domenic glanced at her, lips pressed together. “Stay with me! Fuck what you think you have to do. Fuck it!”

Just as Domenic was about to answer, they turned a bend in the road and a large black sedan was racing in the opposite direction.

“Too late,” Domenic said between clenched teeth. They watched the car’s brake lights flash as it pulled a hasty U-turn. Domenic gunned the engine, increasing the distance between the sedan and them.

“Keep driving!” she screamed.

“They will catch us and run us off the road! The only way you’ll survive this is at the cabin!”

“No!”

“Alex! Listen to me!” Domenic bellowed. “Do exactly what I say, do you understand?”

“No,” she whispered, shaking her head back and forth. This had to be a nightmare. It couldn’t be happening.

“Alex!”

“No!”

Domenic reached over and gripped her leg hard. She let out a yelp and grabbed his wrist, trying to loosen his painful hold. It was as effective as a slap to the face.

“I need you to listen,” he said calmly. “We don’t have much time.”

Tears sprang to her eyes as Alex fought off the waves of panic. Finally his grip slackened once he had her attention. He grabbed the steering wheel once again and glanced back in the rearview mirror. She wasn’t sure how fast he was driving, and she didn’t want to know. She kept looking out the rear window. The black car was gaining on them. They were almost at the gate to the cabin now.

“When we get to the cabin, you go
straight
to the panic room.”

“Domenic,” she moaned in distress.

“Straight!” he said in a loud, stern voice. “I need you to be safe and out of sight. Please.”

“Okay.”

Domenic chanced a look at her and nodded. “I will come get you when everything is over.”

“What if you don’t come back?”

“I’ll come back.”

“But what if you don’t?”

“Russell knows. Help is coming. Do
not
come out unless you hear the safe word. Do you remember what it is?”

“Scrabble,” she whispered, tears marring her vision once more.

“Good girl. Now hold on.”

The gate was coming up fast on their right. Domenic barely slowed down. Alex screamed as he crashed into it with the front of the car. It pushed back immediately as the Mercedes shot through the entrance. Holding on for dear life, she was bounced around mercilessly as they sped up the crude road back to the cabin.

Alex looked back through the window, but didn’t see the sedan. She was certain it was still following them, but it looked like they had some respite for the time being. Domenic came out through the trees. He wrenched the steering wheel with a brutal jerk, causing the car to turn sharply, blocking the entrance. She yanked on the door handle and scampered out as Domenic exited his side of the car. He threw himself over the hood of the Mercedes, landing beside her.

Grabbing her hand, they made a mad dash for the cabin. Domenic pushed her in front of him. He slammed the door behind them and locked it. Alex ran into the bedroom with Domenic hot on her heels. He grabbed the bag she’d discovered with the various guns. Up went the hatch and she started down the ladder, praying she wouldn’t fall. Right before being swallowed whole, Domenic ran toward her and got on his knees, grabbing her face in both hands.

“Just in case,” he whispered, and then he brought his lips to hers. “Go!”

It took everything Alex had to keep going down the ladder, but she did. She had made a promise, and she was going to keep it. Jumping to the floor, she turned on the light and pushed the lever to open the panic room and then shut off the light. She ran in the room, closed the door, and turned all the locks. Breathing hard, she sat on the floor and listened in vain for anything that was happening over her head.

Placing her forehead on her knees, she cried and prayed she would see Domenic again when this was all over.

T
HIS
W
AS
W
HAT
D
OMENIC
was trained for.

After kissing Alex goodbye, he closed the hatch and pulled the rug over it, concealing the seams in the floor. On his way out of the room, he grabbed his duffle bag and closed the door behind him. His forty-five was already jammed in his waistband, but he’d need his arsenal if he was going to make it out of here alive. There were three other guns in his bag—a 9mm Glock, a .40 caliber Ruger, and a .44 Magnum, otherwise known as a hand cannon.

For the last four years, he had studied the two biggest players in the Liseni force, knowing this day may come. Domenic knew how each man thought and had a good idea how this would all play out, which gave him an advantage. There would be four of them—Tony, Sal, and his two henchmen. Frank and Paulie would be sent in first since they were dispensable. Their job would be to get rid of him. If their first line of attack failed, then the two remaining soldiers would come at him from opposite ends, hoping he’d make a fatal error. If they succeeded, then Sal and Tony would be in charge of finding and disposing of Alex.

Domenic ground his teeth together at the thought. “Over my fucking dead body,” he said under his breath, knowing that was a literal statement.

Since they would be on his territory, he had some time. Blocking the entrance to the cabin with the Mercedes meant they couldn’t drive straight up here and use their vehicle as a shield. They would have to approach on foot. Since it would be too much to ask for all of the men to stroll up to the house—he would be able to pick them off one by one that way—Domenic knew they would take to the forest and come in from the sides and back. They would take their time, anticipating that he wouldn’t be ready for an all-out attack.