“Gave him the slip, huh?” Carson teased.
Jade sobbed softly and timidly crept out of the closet with her arms folded insecurely across her abdomen while clinging to her jacket.
He pushed her toward the door and laughed as he called out. “Hey, I found your girlfriend. Let’s go!”
Chapter Ten
Carson shoved Jade into the living room. She stumbled several feet before catching her balance then turned to face Snyder as tears streaked her face. Rafael stared at the brutalized teenager with a look of horror. He was no longer angry; he was frightened.
“Please, I barely even know this man,” Jade insisted with a quiver in her voice while fighting her tears. “He’s just the guy who married my aunt. I have nothing to do with whatever you want from him.” She cast a look of loathing at him. “He doesn’t even care about me.”
Snyder laughed while looking at Rafael. “Teenage girls can be amazingly devoted, don’t you think?” He looked back at Jade. “Sorry, baby. He’s already expressed his feelings for you, which naturally means we have to hurt you to get what we want from him.”
Snyder eyed Carson and nodded to Jade. Carson returned his semiautomatic to his shoulder holster, grabbed Jade by her already bruised wrists, and pulled her against him. She braced her hands against his chest but seemed to have no fight left in her. Snyder approached Rafael and smiled deviously.
“Are you going to tell us what we want?” Snyder asked then indicated his man with Jade. “Or does this get messy?”
Rafael now appeared horrified while staring at Jade being held against the intruder. “I’ll tell you,” he cried out. “Please, just let her go.”
“See, you can be cooperative,” Snyder announced then eyed Carson. “Do it.”
Carson clutched Jade’s right wrist and grabbed for her pants with his free hand.
Rafael appeared horrified as he struggled against the chair. “No!”
Jade caught the man’s wrist with her free hand, stopping him from grabbing her pants. He looked up with surprise at her fast reflexes and met her gaze. The look in her eyes was cold and emotionless as she locked eyes with the man.
“You shouldn’t touch what isn’t yours,” she hissed in a frightening tone.
Carson’s expression was confused and somewhat startled. She violently twisted his arm, causing him to scream, and then kicked him in the side. As he released her, she kicked him in the abdomen. When he doubled over, she spun into a roundhouse kick and struck him in the face. He dropped to the floor with a thud. Jade threw herself to the floor, snatched the gun from his shoulder holster, and rolled into a crouched position, aiming the gun at Snyder. Despite his surprise, he leaped behind Rafael and held his gun to her uncle’s head.
“Put the gun down, or he dies!”
Jade slowly straightened while keeping the gun trained on Snyder. Her expression didn’t soften. There was no longer any sign of the helpless teenage girl.
“Do you think I care?” she snarled. “This isn’t my fight. I just want to leave.”
Carson slowly moved to his feet not far from Jade. Without even flinching, Jade removed a second gun from the back of her pants, hidden beneath the leather jacket, and aimed it at Carson. He jumped with surprise and stared at the gun pointed at his face. She kept a gun on each man but kept her eyes trained on the man behind Rafael. All three men, including Rafael, stared at the second gun with surprise. Jade noted the question in their eyes then offered a tiny smile while indicating the gun aimed at Carson.
“This?” she asked and snorted a soft laugh. “Oh, I got this off your dead friend upstairs. He got all up in my personal space.” Her look again turned serious. “I’m going to leave now. The first person who so much as flinches as I head out that door will be eating a bullet. Is that understood?”
All three men appeared stunned while staring at her. Jade slowly took a step backward toward the archway with guns trained on both men.
“We understand,” Snyder replied while attempting to act casual, but he was obviously stunned at what he was witnessing. “Of course you’re free to go. No hard feelings, okay?”
Jade slowly turned her head toward Carson, who stood between her and the doorway. The moment her head was turned, Snyder removed his gun from Rafael’s head and aimed it at her. Jade barely even looked at him as she pulled the trigger, shooting him twice in the chest. Carson seized the opportunity and lunged for Jade. She immediately returned her attention to him and squeezed the trigger, shooting him in the upper abdomen. As he dropped to the floor near her feet, Jade slowly straightened and frowned.
“Damn it,” she cursed softly. “My aim sucks!”
Jade placed one of the guns down the back of her pants and hurried to Rafael where he remained tied to the chair with a stunned expression on his face. She removed the duct tape from his wrists and the arm of the chair. They heard sirens in the near distance from her earlier call to the police. Once he was freed, Rafael jumped up from the chair and pulled her into his arms. She tensed with surprise. When he didn’t release her, she uncertainly returned the embrace.
“Don’t get all emotional on me now,” she remarked softly, choking on her words.
Rafael pulled back just far enough to look at her face and gently touched her bleeding mouth. His look was tender yet frightened. “Are you okay?”
Jade laughed softly, mocking her injuries. “You should see the other guy.”
“Did he--?”
There was a moment of silence at the perceived question. It took Jade a moment to realize what he was trying to ask. She eyed Rafael and pulled away from him with a look of horror and disgust.
“Ewe--no!”
“I--I don’t understand. How could you--?” Rafael stared at her and shook his head. “The kicks; the shooting.”
“Maybe if you took time to actually talk to me, you would know I’m a black belt in karate,” she remarked matter-of-factly. “I’ve been taking lessons since I was five. I want to be the best, ass-kicking police officer this town has ever seen.” She shook her head while frowning her disapproval. “It’s hard to believe you’re supposed to be some sort of genius. You haven’t exactly impressed me these last two weeks.”
Rafael appeared stunned then turned docile. “I’m sorry--” He pulled her back into his arms and clung to her as if he’d never let go. “I’m so sorry, Jade. When I thought he’d hurt you--” He held back his sobs. “I could never live with myself if something happened to you. You’re all I have left in the world,” he practically sobbed. “I can’t lose you too.”
Jade uncertainly returned the embrace and smiled gently while fighting her tears. “Yeah, well, maybe I’ll give you another chance.”
Rafael laughed softly and clung to her, almost smothering her. Jade finally pulled away and stared at him.
“Why didn’t you just give them what they wanted instead of letting them beat the crap out of you?” she finally asked.
He groaned softly and ran his fingers through his short hair. “It’s not that easy,” he replied. “I believe they wanted my computer program idea, but it hasn’t been put down on paper yet.” He indicated his head. “It’s still up here.”
She shook her head. “Yeah, you’re a genius all right.”
Chapter Eleven
Ten years later. The area surrounding the building which was formerly Wesson and Wesson Accountants had grown into the business district of the city’s dreams. The entire area had been bought, torn down, and rebuilt into the successful cluster of booming businesses. A taller building not far from the old accounting building seemed to be the mecca of the entire area. Virtual Play Programmers encompassed two floors of the ten-story building in the business district of the small city. The building itself was owned by Virtual Play, Ltd., but many of the suites were rented to other businesses. The programming company utilized the ninth and tenth floors, the tenth floor contained offices for the big shots. The ninth floor was home to computer programmers and executives who made the g
aming company the success it was.
Beyond the modern ninth floor lobby and receptionist desk, the open floor plan contained large cubicles, nicknamed ‘cubicle square’, with over two dozen men and women milling around the main floor. It seemed as if they were socializing, but some of the games were a team effort with much collaborating. A conference room, breakroom, and enclosed offices lined the walls on either side of the cubicles. The overall atmosphere was fun with larger than life icons from their most successful games hanging from the walls as well as some life-sized statues of popular characters.
The receptionist’s large, semi-circular desk contained a large wall behind it to keep those within the lobby from seeing what went on behind the scenes in cubicle square, which generally included a lot of joking and horsing around. With the nature of the company, fun time and employee interaction was encouraged to keep its employees creative. An attractive woman in her late twenties with shoulder-length auburn hair sat behind the receptionist desk and busily worked on her computer. Despite the company’s casual policy, Dani Phillips usually wore dresses and high heels. She wanted to look professional for their important clients’ first impressions. As she busily worked, the phone rang. She picked up the phone without missing a keystroke.
“Virtual Play Programmers,” she announced into the phone and finally stopped typing. “How may I help you?” She listened to the response and remained outwardly cheerful. “Certainly. I’ll connect you with Greg.”
Dani pressed several buttons then hung up. She immediately returned to her computer, typed something, then sat back and smiled. A close-up of her computer screen revealed she was sending instant messages to someone named ‘Boyd’. Two secretaries appeared from cubicle square and approached the receptionist desk within the lobby. Abby and Janice also dressed up for their jobs just because they enjoyed wearing pretty clothes. Their eye-candy appearance was misleading as both women were good at their jobs. Both women were in their late twenties to early thirties. Abby had light blonde hair that went past her shoulders when she wore it down, while Janice was a natural strawberry blonde. She usually wore her hair up, since it was so long, it nearly touched her waist. Despite the women having to strain behind Dani’s desk, they managed to catch a glimpse of her computer screen. Dani shielded her screen from her friends’ prying eyes and smiled politely.
“Is it lunchtime already?” Dani asked.
“If you can tear yourself away from Boyd, you can join us,” Abby knowingly teased.
“I brought lunch today, but thanks anyway.”
Janice casually leaned against the tall front of Dani’s desk and shook her head. “You’ve been talking to this guy for months,” she remarked. “When do you intend to actually meet him?”
“I kind of prefer this to the real relationships I’ve had,” Dani replied while leaning back in her chair then indicated her screen. “This, ladies, is the perfect man. And as long as I never meet him, he’ll stay that way.”
Abby frowned and shook her head. “Wow, Greg really screwed you up, didn’t he?”
“It wasn’t Greg’s fault,” Dani replied with little regard to her past relationship. “I knew it’d never work. Taking up with him was just poor judgment on my part.”
“Come on, come to lunch with us,” Janice practically whined. “We can trash men. It’ll be fun.”
“Not today, but thanks.”
Both women reluctantly left their friend to her ‘work’. Dani eagerly returned to her computer.
Dani IM: “Sorry--friends asked about lunch. Told them I had a date. LOL.”
Boyd IM: “Really? Where are we going?”
Dani laughed softly at Boyd’s boyish charm. Although they’d never met and she had no idea what he even looked like, she enjoyed his witty personality. He’d never asked to see a photo of her and never offered to send one of himself. She’d meant what she said to her friends. An internet relationship was all she could handle at the moment. The sting of the real dating scene was a bit much these days. What she said was true. In her mind, Boyd was perfect, and she preferred to keep him that way for now.
Chapter Twelve
Mostly everyone had left by five o’clock, but the hardcore programmers typically hung around until closer to six o’clock. Creating computer games was an art form, and the programmers were the artists. Artists sacrificed themselves for the sake of their art. It was noble, in a way, but it also kept Dani late almost every evening. She couldn’t exactly complain, at least since she’d been corresponding with Boyd in marketing. She didn’t have a home computer, so she had to limit their conversations to work. As the last of the programmers headed out for the day, with a heavy heart, Dani typed her final message to Boyd.
Dani IM: “Heading out. Chat tomorrow?”
Boyd IM: “See you ‘wink’ tomorrow.”
Dani couldn’t contain her grin. She loved Boyd’s charm and talking with him brightened her mostly dull days. She logged off just as a man in his early thirties approached the desk. Greg Martin was a lanky, well-dressed man who had more charm than actual good looks. It had been months since she and Greg called it quits. It wasn’t as if their relationship had been a lengthy one. She became disenchanted with him only a few weeks into the relationship. He wasn’t nearly as open and honest as he seemed around the office. She always felt he kept a large part of his life hidden. Although she couldn’t be certain, she often wondered if it were alcohol or drug related. Greg looked around and appeared curious.
“Is it just us?”
“Yeah, mostly everyone scattered a little after five today,” she replied.
“Why don’t I walk you out?” he suggested. “That parking garage gets creepy after hours.”
Dani stood and took in an eyeful of him, wondering what she ever saw in him in the first place. “Sure, I’ll protect you,” she teased. “Don’t worry.”
“Aren’t you cute--” Greg smirked without humor. “No wonder we broke up.”
He was obviously still bitter about their breakup. She did end things a bit abruptly after his strange behavior got the best of her. Greg glanced toward the back beyond the cubicles and appeared curious at something he saw.
“Is someone in the copy room?”
“The repairman stopped by, but that was an hour ago,” she replied. “Maybe he left the light on.”
Greg suddenly grinned and suggestively raised his brows. “Maybe it’s someone fooling around after hours,” he teased. “Wait here. I’ll check it out.”
Greg walked past the cubicles and headed toward the back of the main floor. Dani removed her purse from the bottom drawer, opened it, and found her car keys in anticipation of Greg’s return. After a few minutes had passed, she started to worry when Greg didn’t return. She stepped around the partition wall and looked beyond the cubicles. The copy room was now dark, but there was a light on in Greg’s office, which seemed odd. Dani appeared curious then set her purse down on top of the desk and approached his partially open door.
As she paused in the doorway, she saw Greg sprawled out on the floor, face down and motionless. Before she had a chance to check on him, she saw a tall, menacing looking man in his late thirties sitting behind Greg’s desk. He was attempting to gain access to his computer. Trent looked up and saw Dani. She gasped as their eyes briefly met. He had the steel cold gaze of a soldier and the powerful body to match. Dani saw all she needed to see in the man’s evil eyes. She darted from the office and ran past the cubicles toward her desk. She grabbed her purse while sprinting past her desk, not even slowing. Dani had little choice because Trent was right behind her. She didn’t even have time to stop before the elevators directly in front of the lobby. She couldn’t afford to wait.
Dani removed her cell phone from her bag while running along the corridor and carelessly discarded her purse. If she were lucky, perhaps he’d stop for her purse and give up chase. No such luck. The frightening man wasn’t interested in cash or credit cards. Dani bolted through the fire door and ran down the s
tairs. Not surprising, she couldn’t get any reception on her cell phone in the concrete stairwell. Trent was directly behind her, thundering down the stairs making enough noise to frighten her. She paused before the fire door on the eighth floor but couldn’t access it from the stairwell without a card key. She ran down another level to the seventh floor, passed through the fire door without a carded lock and ran along the corridor. Dani tried every office door without barely slowing. They were all locked!
Trent caught up to her, being she was slowed by her attempt to seek refuge in one of the offices, and tackled her to the floor. From their speed and the hard hit, both rolled across the floor. Dani was fortunate enough to end up on top and kneed him in the groin. As he groaned in agony, she scrambled off him, realizing too late that her phone remained on the floor near him. She tried another door and discovered it was unlocked. She darted inside and ran across a gym room of sorts while looking around with panic. She saw a second door on the opposite side and ran across the room for the door. She was halfway to the door when it suddenly opened, alarming her. A security guard appeared in the doorway, forcing her to come to a sliding stop so she wouldn’t crash into him.
“Whoa, where’s the fire?” the guard, Allen, demanded.
“There’s a man chasing me,” she shouted while pointing back the way she came.
Allen looked in the direction she pointed, grabbed his nightstick from his belt holster, and without hesitation hurried for the door on the opposite end. Dani couldn’t force herself to move, knowing this guard was putting himself in danger to protect her and the building. She wrenched her fingers together while watching him.
“Be careful!”
As Allen opened the door, Trent punched him in the face, sending him back several steps. Allen took the hit surprisingly well for a moderately stocky man and attempted to strike him with the nightstick. Trent caught the stick, easily disarmed him, and struck him with his own stick. Allen fell to the floor and lay motionless from the sole hit. Trent cast the nightstick aside and resumed his pursuit for Dani. Dani panicked and bolted through the second set of doors behind her. She ran into the corridor, sprinted down the hallway, and bolted for the back, fire stairs.
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