The Stranger Next Door (18 page)

Glancing to Danny as he stared down at her with a sinister smirk twisting his once handsome features, she did the one thing she was an expert at.

She mouthed off.

“Now what?” she spouted angrily. “You're going to kill me whether I give you the money or not. So why should I tell you where it is?”

Danny glowered down into her face before stepping up to the metal tray. Picking up a surgical scalpel, he held it up to the light then, reaching forward, skimmed the back of the blade across her bottom lip. “The way I see it, you have two choices. Either you can tell me willingly or I’ll take a little piece off every five minutes until you do.”

Chapter Twenty

Jack watched quietly as the black unmarked cop car leading them pulled to the side of the road and rolled to a stop.

Stepping out, Jack could barely retain his frustration as he shoved the passenger door shut and stepped out to meet them as they exited the car.

“Why the hell are we stopping?”

Captain Lewis held a hand up to silence Jack’s questions as he came to stand beside the trunk. “While on the way here, I called in the cavalry. The building will be surrounded when we bust in.”

“So you're certain she’s in there?” Jack asked as Robbie came to stand beside him.

“Roman seems adamant about it, and if there’s one person who knows how things work with this kind of people, it’s Roman,” Captain Lewis said firmly.

Jack was a mass of trembling hysteria. If he didn’t see Tess soon, see that she was safe, alive, and well, he was going to go insane. Thoughts of what the men holding her could be doing to her ripped across his heart like shards of glass.

“There will undoubtedly be a guard located outside the front of the building.”

“What about the rear of the building?” Robbie asked.

“The rear of the building sits along the river’s edge. There’s a boat dock located there, but I doubt there will be a guard, as there’s no other way to get there except through the building,” Roman said. “If anyone goes out the back to the dock … well, let’s hope they don’t get out to the dock.”

Captain Lewis nodded his agreement before continuing. “There will more than likely be only two men guarding the front of the building. They think no one knows they’re there, so security will be minimal.”

“How do you know that? We could be walking to our deaths,” Robbie said.

“We aren’t walking into anything,” Captain Lewis said quickly. “You boys, Roman, and Patrice, will keep your asses in the cars while my boys and I handle this situation.”

“You expect me to just sit idly by while you and your guys rush to the rescue? Are you crazy?” Jack erupted, throwing his hands in the air before coming nose to nose with the captain.”

“You’ll either sit there while we do our job, or I’ll cuff and stuff you until it’s over, which is looking more and more like what I should do,” Captain Lewis retorted hotly. Closing his eyes for a moment, he looked at Jack and frowned. “Look, son, I know you care about Tess. Hell, we all do, but you're a civilian, and I can’t take the chance of letting you, or any of the others, get hurt. We’ll get Tess back. You have my word on it.”

Despite the truth in the captain’s words, Jack had the overwhelming urge to crack the man over the head with a big rock, steal his gun and car, and head straight to Tess’s rescue.

But that would only put Tess in greater danger and land him in prison.

Nodding once, Jack listened to the Captain’s plans as more police cars stopped in a line behind them. Listening intently, Jack made plans of his own.
He’d be damned if he’d let these guys rush in and save the woman he loved.

* * * *

Tess wanted more than anything to scream as the scalpel slid across her back in what felt like a serpentine pattern, but she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of knowing how terribly he was hurting her.

“For someone who always has a sharp remark, you seem extremely quiet,” Danny taunted.

This was only the first slice of the blade since his threat to take off parts. She was now tied to a standing structure that greatly resembled a medieval rack. Her wrists and legs were tied so she was spread-eagled, and while her jeans still covered her lower body, her top and bra had been removed, exposing her breasts to the men torturing her. Fortunately, Sal hadn’t asked, and Danny hadn’t offered, for them to have their way with her … yet.

“I’ll stop. All you have to do is tell me where it is.”

“Go to hell,” she spat through clenched teeth.

Blood slithered warm and sticky down her back to the waist of her jeans. Taking a deep breath, she fought the urge to vomit. The angle and the weight placed on it made her broken arm scream out in protest.

Closing her eyes, she sent up a silent prayer that someone would find her soon. After the one slice across her back and the pain of her broken arm, she wasn’t sure she could hold out much longer. The thought pained her as much as her injuries. She’d always thought of herself as a strong-willed person, but this little bit of torture served as proof she wasn’t as tough as she’d thought. It was definitely time to get out of the line of police work, if she ever got out of the warehouse alive.

“Ah, come on, Tess, it’s only money. Is it worth all this pain just to keep it hidden?” Danny sneered as he came to stand before her. Bile reached her throat as he trailed the back of one finger down her chest over the swell of her breast.

“You’re a strong one,” he crooned. “I thought you’d give up for sure once we hung you up by that broken arm of yours, but you didn’t. Then that slice to your back wasn’t shabby, and yet, you didn’t even scream.” He spoke with concentration as he took the peak of one nipple between his forefinger and thumb and squeezed. “I think I’m going about this all wrong. We didn’t try this with Melanie because she’d fucked half of us already, but you?” He grinned. “You’ve always been a little goody two-shoes. I tried more times than I can count to get between your legs, but you never showed the slightest interest in me.” He slid his hand away from her breast then trailed it down her stomach, then lower to cup her between the legs. “But now I have you right where I want you and where you can do nothing but enjoy the ride.”

Ripping the button free and sliding the zipper of her pants down, he sneered at her.

Her stomach pitched violently as she prepared herself for the worse torture she could imagine. All was about to be lost. There was no one coming for her and no way for her to get free. Closing her eyes, she prayed for this torture to be swift, followed by an equally swift death. Sure, she could tell them where her money was, but that wouldn’t stop them from what they were about to do. A single tear slid down her cheek as she accepted what was about to happen to her.

Suddenly, gunfire erupted.

Jerking his head up, Danny stepped away from her and pulled a gun from the back of his slacks as the large metal door slid open quickly.

Tess didn’t know what was happening as her back faced the door. The sound of men grunting and falling to the cold, hard floor sounded around her. Turning her head to the side, she spotted Sal and Tony lying in a bloody heap, their perfect hair and hideous shoes covered in their blood.

Danny’s voice sounded with cold fury. “I knew I should have killed you when I had the chance.”

Jack’s voice echoed in the now silent building. “Yeah, but you didn’t, did you?”

Tess wished more than anything that she could see what was happening behind her. Was Jack safe? Did Danny hold all the cards? But as much as she twisted and turned, her arm prevented her from doing anything. Fiery hot pain screamed through her, and the urge to give in to the unconsciousness tugging at her was almost unbearable.

Chapter Twenty-One

The sight of Tess hanging on that rack, blood pouring down her back and her obviously broken arm, twisted a white-hot pain in Jack’s stomach. But that was nothing compared to the fury that colored his vision red as he took in the sight of Danny standing before Tess, obviously about to rape her. Only the rapid gunfire surrounding him kept him from running across the room and gutting the man who dared to put his hands on the woman Jack loved.

Now, as he stood mere feet from a man he was completely shocked to see, his feeling had only intensified.

Jack and Robbie had taken it upon themselves to rush to Tess’s rescue while the captain and his men were plotting and planning, and from what Jack had seen as they rushed into the building, it was a good thing. If they’d waited for the captain’s go-ahead, they would have been too late. Fortunately, Captain Lewis had been right when anticipating the number of guards inside and out of the building.

Goosebumps dotted his flesh, and he ached to run to Tess, to release her from her torture and hold her close to him. But he couldn’t. Danny held a gun directly at Tess.

“Drop your gun,” Danny barked. “Or I’ll blow her brains all over the place.”

Dropping his gun, Jack watched as Robbie did the same.

“Now,” Danny sneered, “this little bitch is going to tell me where the money is.”

“Why should I?” Tess said weakly, and Jack felt his heart lurch.

“Because if you don’t, I’ll splatter your little fuck buddy’s brains all over the floor.

Without hesitation, Tess replied, “In the attic. The combination is—”

“Freeze.”

Jack was overwhelmed with relief when the sound of Captain Lewis’s voice met his ears. Looking toward the rear of the building, he spotted the older man and Officer Flynn standing framed in the rear doorway. They were dripping wet and obviously aggravated. Jack knew he was going to have a lot of questions to answer and possible jail time to serve, but he didn’t care. Tess was alive. He knew now wasn’t the time to dwell on their feelings for each other, but it was impossible not to feel his heart fill with love for her. Now, all they needed to do was free her safely before Danny took his vengeance out on her, ripping their future from their grasp.

Turning, Danny faced the captain and Officer Flynn, their guns trained on Danny. Holding his hand out to the side, he dropped his gun to the ground and then held his hands up in the air, but he didn’t move from Tess. He held his ground, less than a foot away.

“Well, you just never know, do you?” Danny said smugly.

“I can’t believe you boys. Grown men, officers of the law, going native and losing yourselves in that life.”

“Would someone shoot his ass and get me down? My shoulder’s killing me.”

“Why’d you kill Melanie?” Jack asked.

“I needed money. I made a deal with the wrong person, and I got a little in over my head. I knew Dean had left Melanie his entire estate and she could give me what I needed, but when I got there, all she had was some jewels and a handful of cash in the safe. She’d been smart, or stupid depending on how you look at it. She didn’t keep a lot of cash in her house.”

“So why did you torture her?” Captain Lewis asked.

“She didn’t have what I wanted, but I knew she would know someone who did and she’d tell me with a little persuasion. And she did. She told me about the life insurance money Dean left Tess. I know Tess’s aversion to banks thanks to her ancient grandmother, so I finished off Melanie and made my move on Tess.”

“That’s why you asked about money the night your goons tried to kidnap her,” Flynn said.

“That’s right,” Danny admitted.

Jack’s mind was filled to the bursting point with information, but what he focused on most was the fact that Captain Lewis knew all along Danny was dirty.

“You knew he was crooked and you did nothing about it?” Jack accused.

“I knew,” Captain Lewis admitted. “I suspected something had gone awry, but I didn’t know what or how bad it actually was. As far as I knew, they hadn’t harmed anyone.”

Jack hurried to Tess’s side, careful to stay out of Danny’s reach. Slipping a knife from the front pocket of his jeans, Jack reached up and cut the rope holding Tess to the rack. She cried out in pain, trembling, as he lowered her from the rack. Holding her injured arm close to her body, she sagged against him as Robbie knelt down and untied her ankles. Ripping his t-shirt over his head, he carefully helped her into it. Her back bled right through the thin material.

“Danny, I have to take you in and get your statement,” the captain said wearily as Jack watched two more cops enter through the front entrance and start to approach Danny.

Tess had been through enough; she didn’t need to see any more. All of this was more than Jack could handle, and he barely knew the people involved. He could only imagine how that was affecting Tess. Holding her against his side, he helped her walk on wobbly legs toward the main door. But before the officers reached Danny with their cuffs, he reached out and snared Tess by the waist then ripped her against his chest while pulling a gun from the inside of his jacket.

A shot ripped through the air.

Everyone froze. Jack felt as though someone had hit the pause button, and he was the only one able to move, to think.

Tess stood frozen as Danny’s look of shock turned blank before he crumbled to the floor.

Danny’s partner, Marty Flynn, stood mere feet from him, his gun still raised.

Danny slid to his knees then, with one final look at his partner, fell to the floor face down.

Jack knelt beside Tess where she slumped on the ground, tears streaming down her cheeks, then picked her up and placed her in his lap while the EMTs rushed inside.

“Tess, I'm sorry. I should never have doubted you,” he said as he wiped the tears from her face. “I should’ve never let you leave that house alone. I knew it was a bad idea the moment it happened, but I just let you go like some idiot.”

Tess smiled softy as she reached up and slid her fingers down his stubbly cheek.

“Don’t apologize. I knew there was a reason for you to be suspicious, even before I talked to Roman. I just kept praying you would find me.”

Jack smoothed her hair back from her face.

“I thought I’d lost you.”

“You almost did.”

She really was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen, and as much as it scared him to admit it, he loved her. He knew this wasn’t the place for it, but he’d almost lost her once, and he wasn’t about to let that happen again. He couldn’t wait a moment longer.

“Tess, I love you. I think I’ve loved you since the moment I laid eyes on you. I know this isn’t the ideal place for something like this, but Tess, will you marry me?”

Tess blinked in surprise and gazed into his eyes for a long moment, so long in fact, he feared she wouldn’t answer. But as the EMTs reached them, she peered into his eyes and grinned. “On one condition.”

“Name it,” he said eagerly as he helped her onto the gurney.

“You love me as much as I love you, forever.”

“You got it.” He smiled and leaned down to kiss her with all the love he felt in his heart.

The End

About the Author

Chastity Bush is the author of several romance novels known for their spicy romance, suspense, and humorous edge. She’s completely addicted to
Dexter
and
True Blood
, and she loves to spend time with her husband and their two daughters. Chastity loves to hear from her readers and personally answers all email she receives.

Send questions or comments to Chastity at: [email protected]@yahoo.com

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