Taken: An Everyday Heroes World Novel (The Everyday Heroes World)

by M. A. Lee

  Dawning happened and I knew I needed to call the team. “Can you finish the bacon? I have some calls to make,” I asked, already moving to the living room to get my phone.

  Ally nodded and jumped off the stool. I could hear her working in the kitchen as I opened the glass sliding door that led to my balcony. Outside, car horns and the sounds of the morning traffic greeted me.

  I called Carter, knowing he was probably going to give me an ass chewing for turning off my phone last night.

  The phone only rang twice before he answered with a gruff. “You better have a good fucking excuse for ghosting us last night!” Carter yelled.

  I held the phone out from my ear. Cringing, I answered, “Sorry, man. I grabbed the girl and then got out of there. I talked to Jamie and told him I was going to keep an eye on her and then will bring her to the station today,” I rushed out.

  “I don’t know what the hell happened last night, but our plan went to shit. Marcus and Tommy both got away. Thankfully, no one was injured but that bar will need repairs. It is closed temporarily,” he informed me.

  Shit, Ally was going to be out of work. I knew this wasn’t going to go over well with her.

  “I will be in shortly. Marcus spotted us, that’s all I know,” I said.

  I wasn’t going to tell him that I had fucked up by staring at Ally all night. I was already kicking myself in the ass for my screw-up.

  Carter didn’t say anything more, he just hung up and I knew once I got to work, I was going to have to explain myself.

  Taking a moment to gain my composure, I walked back inside my apartment.

  Ally was placing two plates on the counter with bacon and toast.

  “Hi, I was going to pour you some coffee, but I wasn’t sure what you took in yours. I also hope you don't mind that I made us toast.”

  “No, that’s great. I just take cream in my coffee, it’s in the refrigerator,” I told her, moving to sit down at the island where she placed the food.

  “So, I have some bad news,” I began. “The bar is closed for repairs. No one was hurt last night, but the bar took some damage,” I told her.

  Ally’s eyes widened and I saw her eyes begin to fill with tears. She was trying to fight it, but I could see that she was breaking.

  “What am I going to do? If I don’t work, I won’t be able to pay for food and utilities,” she said, more to herself than to me.

  “Hey, it’s okay. I will help you figure everything out,” I assured her.

  “I need to get to class. Can you drive me?” she asked, worry lacing her features.

  “You need to eat breakfast,” I told her, pointing to her plate.

  “I can’t eat now,” she said, biting her lower lip.

  Damn, that was hot.

  “No, you need to eat. I will drop you off at school on my way to the station, but not until you eat,” I demanded.

  Ally stared at me for a minute, but I could sense she knew I wasn’t bluffing. “Fine, I’ll eat,” she said, falling onto the stool beside me.

  After we ate, I grabbed my gym bag and my outfit for the day, and then we headed to the parking garage. Ally was quiet the entire time and it was driving me crazy.

  As we began to drive toward campus, I had to break the silence. “So, how many times has Marcus been in the bar?” I asked.

  Ally turned and looked at me with sadness in her eyes. “I don’t know, a lot. He is always very nice and yesterday was the first time I have talked to him,” she stated.

  “We will talk more about this later. I will pick you up from school today and drive you to the station. But, I need to know a few things. First, did you know he was following you?”

  “What? None of this makes sense. I am not anyone special. I haven’t done anything, why would he want anything to do with me?” she asked.

  “Don’t talk about yourself like that. Apparently, Marcus goes after beautiful women to lure other men into his organization.” The words rushed out and I knew I needed to be careful.

  “I just want to forget all of this happened,” she said, shaking her head.

  “Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen,” I stated firmly.

  “I need to go to my apartment and get my backpack,” Ally said.

  I followed her directions and parked outside a small apartment building in a less than welcoming part of town. She ran up to her apartment and I sat in the car waiting. I knew I should have gone up with her, but I didn't trust myself right now to not do or say something I would regret later.

  When she returned, I noticed she had exchanged her uniform with a pair of dark jeans and a gray t-shirt. Her hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun and she had on white Converse sneakers. She looked damn sexy.

  When she got back in the car, she sighed. I just drove her to school, not bothering to ask her anymore questions.

  We reached campus and Ally pointed to a side street. “You can just drop me off here. My last class is at two, so if you still want to, you can pick me up here at three,” she said.

  “Okay, please be careful. If anything happens or you feel unsafe, you can call me,” I said, giving her my personal cell number.

  She gave me hers before getting out of the car.

  As I watched her walk to class, I felt a pang in my heart. This was not what I needed right now. I just needed to get to work and get this case over with.

  Chapter 10

  Ally

  How did I get here?

  My life was boring. Even before my parents were killed, I never was one who had exciting things happen to them. I was your everyday girl and now, what was I?

  A target in some drug dealers’ plans?

  A victim of kidnapping by a hunky detective?

  Even now as I thought back over the events of last night, I felt like I was walking through a dream. Like this wasn’t even my reality. Honestly, I hadn’t really had time to come to terms with what really happened.

  I was numb and once it all hit me, I knew I would have an epic meltdown. But for now, I needed to get through the day.

  Suddenly, a hand reached out and grabbed me and I felt myself tense as I swung my fist around to protect myself from an attacker.

  “Whoa, I didn’t mean to scare you,” Ryan said, taking a step back and holding up his hands in defense.

  I felt so silly as I took a breath and dropped my arm. “Ryan, I didn’t mean to hurt you,” I said.

  He chuckled nervously. “I was just wanting to see if you were okay. I heard about the shooting last night at the bar. I tried calling you to see if you were okay, but your phone must be off. It went straight to voice mail,” he added.

  Oh, no! I had turned off my phone when I started my shift last night. I guess it was still off. I dug into my backpack and found it. Turning it on, I saw several missed calls and text messages.

  “Yes, I was there. It was intense,” I stated, shuddering as visions of the night came back to me.

  “Can I walk you to class?” he asked.

  “Sure, I would like that,” I told him.

  We walked through campus and each group of people we passed, I would hear bits and pieces of rumors spreading about last night.

  “I heard it was a gang shooting,” one guy said, as a group of girls hung on his every word.

  “No, I heard it was a mob fight. Two people died,” a girl said, talking to a friend as they passed us.

  Ryan turned to me and offered a sympathetic look. “Don’t listen to them,” he said.

  I nodded my head and kept my gaze focused ahead. When we reached the classroom building, we walked inside. I was glad to have Ryan with me for my first class, but I had two other classes across campus in the Education building and I would have to be alone there. Hopefully, I could manage to ignore the comments.

  Ryan and I entered class and I had never been so grateful for a boring lecture.

  After class, Ryan stopped me as I began to walk toward the exit.

  “Hey, can I walk you home today
? What time is your last class over?” he asked.

  Ryan was so sweet and I was growing to like him.

  “My last class is over around two. I have a ride, but you could walk me to meet them. I will be in the Education building,” I offered.

  Ryan’s smile brightened. “Okay, great. My class is over around one, so I will meet you over there,” he said.

  Waving, we went our separate ways. As I began to make my way across campus, I couldn’t help but feel like I was being watched.

  I knew I was paranoid, especially after what Todd had told me, but still, I couldn’t get the feeling to go away.

  Turning my head, I looked behind me. There were a few guys talking and a girl on her cell phone walking. Nothing suspicious.

  Shaking my head, I hurried my step. I needed to focus on myself and forget everything else that had happened.

  ****

  By the time my last class of the day was over, I had a terrible headache. Between worrying about drug lord killers, someone following me, and the heavy workload I now had, my head was spinning. Not to mention, the fact that I was temporarily out of work.

  Opening the heavy wooden doors of the building, I was thankful for the sunlight of the afternoon. The buildings on campus were old and stuffy, not much sunlight inside and at times, it could feel a bit depressing.

  Ryan’s smiling face greeted me as I walked down the stone steps and onto the paved sidewalk.

  “How was class?” he asked as I approached.

  “Good. I just have a ton of work,” I sighed.

  We chatted about nothing special, but I was happy for the distraction. As we rounded the corner, I spotted Todd’s SUV waiting where he had dropped me off earlier. For some odd reason, my heartbeat began to accelerate with every step that brought me closer to him.

  “So, who is picking you up today?” Ryan asked, his gaze locked on the dark SUV.

  “Um, a friend,” I stated.

  How would I describe Todd? Oh, just the cop who saved me from being shot last night from an apparent drug dealer who wants to kidnap me. Yeah, I didn’t think that would go over very well.

  “Looks like he works for the secret service. You aren’t some celebrity or billionaire’s daughter, are you?” Ryan chuckled.

  “Hardly.” I laughed.

  We stopped beside the SUV and the windows were so dark from the tint, that I couldn’t see inside. “Well, I will see you tomorrow,” I said.

  “Yes, is it okay if I call you later?” Ryan asked.

  “Yes, I would like that,” I said, waving and then opening the passenger side door.

  Ryan watched as I sat inside the vehicle and closed the door.

  When I placed my backpack on the floor, I turned and noticed Todd glaring at Ryan outside of the car.

  “Who was that?” he asked, his teeth clenched and his jaw tight.

  ‘Who? Ryan?” I asked, putting on my seat belt.

  “How do you know him?” Todd asked, backing out of his parking space.

  “He is just a guy from my class. He knew I was spooked from what happened last night, so he offered to walk me to the car. He’s harmless,” I joked, rolling my eyes.

  “You need to be careful, Ally. There are hard core criminals after you,” Todd stated, his tone serious and almost angry.

  My heart leaped into my throat as he spoke.

  “Am I really in danger?” I asked, not sure if I wanted to know the answer to the question.

  “Yes, unfortunately you are. I have spent the entire morning and afternoon working at the station. My team has uncovered some more information, so when we get to the station, I need you to be prepared to answer questions,” Todd told me.

  I sunk back into the seat and closed my eyes. All I wanted was to forget this ever happened and go back to my boring life.

  Chapter 11

  Todd

  I wasn’t this guy.

  The guy who was jealous.

  Watching that kid, Ryan, walk Ally to my car sent anger coursing through my veins. I had never felt a pang of jealousy in my life-- until now.

  As I drove Ally to the station, my conversations from earlier were brought to my mind. Jamie and Parker had brought in one of Marcus’s guys. Apparently, after the shooting, one of the local police officers spotted him running through a back alley. When they brought him in for questioning, they noticed he was one of the guys who had been photographed with Marcus in some of our sting operations. When I got a chance to interrogate him, he told us he worked with Marcus, but wouldn’t give up where Marcus was working. He was arrested for carrying a stolen weapon and he had LSD on him, so we could book him.

  However, I had lost my shit when we showed him a picture of Ally and he confirmed my worst nightmare. That Ally was his latest target in an attempt to kidnap a female to use. Reaching across the table, I pulled the scum bag out of his chair by his neck. It took Carter and two other detectives to get me to back off. That was when I was told to take a breather. Which was perfect timing since I needed to go get Ally.

  “Are you ready?” I asked Ally as we entered the station.

  She looked nervous as she glanced around the area. I knew a police station could be frightening to some, so I offered her a smile as I led her to my office. I didn’t want her to have to sit in an interrogation room. Those were dark and created an ominous mood for some. Ally had been through enough.

  “I guess I am as ready as I will ever be,” Ally said, her voice shaking.

  We walked into my office and I offered her a chair to sit in. She sat down and placed her hands in her lap.

  It took everything in me not to pick her up and hold her. I wanted to promise her everything would be alright, that I would personally kill anyone who came after her.

  But, I used self-restraint as I sat in my desk chair.

  A soft knock came behind Ally and she jumped in her seat. I internally growled, I hated how jumpy she was. These bastards were going to pay for what they had done to her.

  Carter and Jamie slowly entered the room and both greeted Ally with handshakes and introduced themselves.

  Ally was polite, but it was clear she was scared shitless.

  Carter stood behind my desk while Jamie sat in the chair beside Ally.

  “Ally, these guys are part of my team. We will stop at nothing until we bring Marcus and his organization down,” I promised.

  It wasn’t lost on me that both Jamie and Carter gave me knowing looks as I spoke.

  “I just don’t understand why these guys would want anything to do with me. I mean, Todd explained to me earlier that Marcus goes after single girls, but I know nothing about drugs or crime. I had only met him personally once,” Ally rushed out.

  I saw that her leg shook as she talked. I had to grip the sides of my chair to stop me from going to her.

  Turning to her, I saw Jamie’s eyes soften. “Yes, what Detective Lane has told you is correct. You became a target because he was watching for new students moving into the area. Apparently, his crime organization likes to focus on college towns. They have brought several shipments of dangerous drugs down here to manufacture and sell. They lure single women like you into their organization and then pimp them out to bring in buyers,” Jamie told her.

  His tone was even and he was straightforward with the information.

  I saw Ally’s eyes fill with tears. “So, what happened last night? Why did Marcus shoot?” she asked.

  Carter stepped in this time. “We believe Marcus and Tommy were discussing a way to join their organizations. Marcus had plans to kidnap you last night, but he was somehow alerted to the detectives in the bar,” Carter stated, frowning down at me.

  I gulped, knowing he was still pissed at me. Earlier, Carter had gone off on me for being so careless during a sting. He was right and I had apologized profusely.

  “So, what happens now?” Ally asked. “I mean, did you all catch Marcus? Can I go home now?”

  Shaking my head, I fought back the urge to scream. I ha
d messed this all up and now because of me, Ally was still in danger. “No, Marcus managed to get away. We do have one of his informants in custody, but he isn’t talking yet. I don’t think it is safe for you to go home,” I finished.

  “Do you have any friends or family locally that you can stay with until we apprehend Marcus?” Carter asked Ally.

  Shaking her head, Ally looked defeated. “No, I don’t have any family. And my only friend is away at college,” she said, her broken voice pulling at my heartstrings.

  “You will stay with me,” I said.

  All eyes in the room locked on me and I realized I had made another huge mistake.

  “What?” Carter said, looking at me like I had lost my mind.

  “Maybe we should think about this,” Jamie suggested.

  “Seriously, that’s nice, but no way,” Ally said, standing.

  If she left here, I worried I may never see her again. I had this intense need to protect her, a need that surpassed just my job to protect people.

  “Yes. I live in one of the safest buildings in the city. If Marcus is still out there, then he may still be watching your building. You can stay in my guest room. I’ll take you home first so you can get clothes and whatever else you need,” I offered.

  Regardless of what she said, I wasn’t going to take no for an answer.

  “Todd, can I talk to you for a minute?” Carter asked me.

  “Sure,” I said. “Ally, I will be right back.”

  I followed Carter out into the hallway. Once the door was closed behind me, Carter turned on me. “Have you lost your damn mind? What are you doing bringing her to your home?” he lashed out.

  Rubbing my jaw, I took a deep breath. “Listen, I know this isn’t typically how we do things, but this girl has no one to protect her. I feel responsible for her,” I stated.

  Eyeing me carefully, Carter took a step closer to me. “Does this have anything to do with the fact that you have feelings for her?” Carter asked me.