Before panic could rise again, she took another breath. Okay, no cell. She was still alive and in an office that would be filled with people on Monday. Even if Russell couldn’t find her, she wouldn’t be here forever.
“I just have to make it until Monday.” The depressing thought brought tears to her eyes.
She was tired, hungry, her head hurt like hell. She was going to beat the shit out of Melissa when she got out of there.
“Think, Ashiya, think,” she mumbled to herself. “Don’t panic. Think.”
Her eyes popped open. She jerked forward, froze to let the nausea and dizziness subside, then felt around the floor again. Her hands brushed over something small and cool, a paper clip. She grinned and quickly straightened out the wire. She’d taught herself how to pick locks after being trapped as a kid. A trick she’d hoped and prayed she’d never have to use.
“Thank goodness my fear of being here again has worked out,” she said dryly into the darkness. A hysterical laugh bubbled up. She let it free. If she didn’t laugh, she’d break down and cry again.
She put the paper clip into the knob and twisted. The dizziness came back full force. The barely-there light under the door darkened. Breathing became harder. She blinked and tried to focus, but her hands shook. Tears spilled from her eyes.
“It’s okay,” she said. “It’s okay. You’re just tired. You can pick it later.” Still she worked on the lock.
She banged on the door. “I’m going to kill you, Melissa!” she half yelled, but her sentence ended on a sob. For all she knew, she’d been there for a day already and Melissa was long gone.
“Get the boat ready.” She hadn’t forgotten those words. Melissa already had an escape plan.
The light under the door flashed brighter. “Ashiya!”
She froze. Her heart beat wildly in her chest, and tears came faster. She banged on the door. “Russell! In here! I’m in here!”
The knob twisted and the door opened. The light from the other side sent shards of pain through her brain. She flinched and raised her hand.
“Thank God!” Russell said in a trembling voice and dropped to his knees.
Ashiya fell forward into the embrace of his arms. The blurred vision of Levi behind him and Legacy Group security filled the room before she passed out again.
* * *
RUSSELL SAT NEXT to Ashiya’s hospital bed and cradled her hand in his. She was going to be alright, but that didn’t stop his heart from squeezing from all the what-if possibilities. Things could have gone so much worse.
She shifted in the bed. Russell sat forward in his seat and gripped her hand more firmly. Ashiya’s eyes blinked open. She stared toward the ceiling; her brows furrowed before she turned her head his way.
“Russell?”
“How are you feeling?”
She blinked again and tried to sit up. She winced and leaned back. “My head hurts.”
He almost smiled at her cute pout and the affront in her voice. Even injured, she was spirited. “You’ve got a concussion. The doctors said you can be released later today.”
“Concussion?” Her frown deepened. Then her eyes widened. “Melissa...she hit me. I mean, she was there when someone hit me.”
Russell nodded. “I know.”
“How did you know? Did you find her? She also was behind the embezzlement.”
Russell patted the back of her hand. “They’re looking for her now. She got on Bryce’s boat. From what we could find out, they are on the way to the Bahamas.”
“No, she can’t get away with this. She knows more about your brother.” Ashiya tried to sit up and scowled.
Russell pressed a hand on her shoulder and gently pushed her back down. “I know that, too.”
“What?”
Russell thought about where to start and decided his meeting with Jeanette was as good a place as any. “I met with Jeanette, and she found another witness from the party. He saw my brother leave the party. No, he saw Melissa and her ex dragging my brother away from the party.”
Ashiya gasped. He hand twisted around until she cupped his in hers. “Oh no, Russell.”
“We went straight to the police after our meeting. She gave them the number to the witness. Thankfully, the detective wants to solve this case. He called the guy and corroborated the story. He was on his way to Melissa’s house to question her, and I went home to tell you.”
“How long was I in that closet?” she asked, her voice wavering.
“Overnight.” His voice hardened at the memory. He’d almost lost his mind not knowing where she was or what happened. “Your phone was off. We didn’t know where you’d gone other than to visit your aunts.”
“How did you eventually find me?”
“A hunch that you would have gone to the office. Your car was there, but there wasn’t any record of you checking into the building.”
“I signed the book. The security guard wasn’t at the desk. I wanted to leave the record and follow the procedures.”
Russell frowned. “There wasn’t anything there. The security guard who was supposed to be on duty wasn’t there either. We called in the rest of the security team to search for both of you in the building. We found you, but not the guard.”
“Do you think he was the one who hit me?”
“I hate to think that the problems of the Legacy Group go that deep, but it looks that way.”
“Melissa is a psychopath,” Ashiya said.
“She’s something. I just hope the police find her.” She could give him answers about his brother. They had her on assaulting Ashiya, and abetting the embezzlement if what Ashiya said was true, but that didn’t mean they could prove she knew the whereabouts of his brother.
Russell brought her hand to his lips. “I was so worried when I couldn’t find you. Are you okay? I mean, the closet...”
Ashiya squeezed his hand. Her fingers trembled. “I was afraid when I woke up. More than afraid. I was petrified. I did panic, but then remembered I had to be in the office. Someone would find me eventually. I wouldn’t be stuck forever.”
“Did that work?” He could only imagine her fear. The way she’d reacted when she’d been locked in the pantry haunted him. He could kill Melissa for locking Ashiya in the darkness like that.
Ashiya tried to smile bravely, but her voice shook. “A little. I tried to pick the lock. I was about to black out again when you found me.”
He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. “I’m so sorry. I wish I could have gotten there sooner.”
“If you’d gotten there sooner then you might not have found me. It wasn’t long after I woke up that you got there. If you had come earlier, I would have been passed out on the floor.”
Her trembles increased. Russell pressed the back of his hand to her cheek. “Shhh...you’re okay now. When I get my hands on her...”
“You don’t have to worry about it,” Ashiya said in a hard voice. “If I ever see her face again, she’s going to wish she’d never laid a damn hand on me.”
He smiled, relieved to have the fight chase the fear from her eyes. “Right now is when I should remind you to let the police handle Melissa.”
She grunted. “The police may need to handle me.” She threaded her fingers through his. “Thank you for looking for me.”
“Why wouldn’t I?” When she shrugged and glanced at their entwined hands, he tugged so she’d look back up at him. “I wouldn’t leave you there. If you ever disappear out of my life without a word, I will come find you. I’m not your parents. I’ll never leave you behind.”
Her eyes glistened with tears. She pulled on his hand, and he leaned forward and kissed her forehead. Ashiya pressed a shaky hand to his cheek when he pulled back.
“I love you so much, Russell.”
The ache in his chest when she’d gone missing had become heavier
when she’d passed out in his arms and almost unbearable when the doctors said she’d been hit with a blunt object and had a concussion. Now the ache eased to bearable proportions. He doubted it would go away until she was out of the hospital, healed, and back to herself again.
He loved her, too. Had fought loving her for too long. The thought of losing her, of something terrible happening to her and never getting the chance to tell her he loved her, had chased away any lingering regrets about being back with her.
“Ashiya, I—”
A knock on the door interrupted them. They both glanced up at the slender white man in his early thirties dressed in a brown suit standing at the door.
“Detective Mitchell.” Russell straightened.
“Sorry for the interruption,” the detective said. “I wanted to give you an update on the case, and the woman at your place said you were still at the hospital.”
“I haven’t left since she was admitted,” he said.
Ashiya’s hand in his tightened. He glanced at her, and she smiled shyly. She seemed surprised by his admission. He didn’t understand why. There was no way he’d leave her here alone.
“We found Melissa and her ex-husband,” Detective Trent said.
Ashiya moved to sit up and hissed. “You did?” she asked in a voice laced with pain.
Russell pressed the button on the side of the bed to lift the head so she wouldn’t have to struggle to sit up again.
“She’s in custody?” Russell asked after Ashiya was settled.
Detective Trent nodded. “She is, but not here. She was picked up in Florida. They pulled in for fuel and were recognized. We put out an APB for her and Bryce up and down the East Coast. They’re both being extradited back to South Carolina.”
Russell let out a long, relieved breath. “Good.”
“What happens when she gets back?” Ashiya asked.
“We’ll question her about the attack on you and the embezzlement, along with the missing persons case.”
“I heard her on the phone,” Ashiya said. “She helped Danny steal the money.”
Detective Trent didn’t seem surprised by Ashiya’s words. Instead, a grim look came over his face. “Once Danny found out Melissa left town and was heading out of the country, he spilled everything. Apparently, the two of them started having an affair a few years ago. That’s when the embezzlement started. It’s also the reason she ended things with Bryce. Except they didn’t really break up. She had both men on the hook to do whatever she needed. Them and the security guard who hit you.”
Russell blinked several times. He hadn’t trusted Melissa, but he’d only guessed her for a liar. Not a triple-timing thief and assailant. “Did you find the security guard?”
Detective Trent nodded. “We did. He was found upstate. When he was questioned, he said the whole thing was Melissa’s idea. He was another guy who thought she was in love with him and would do anything to protect him.”
“How many more?” Ashiya asked.
Detective Mitchell shrugged. “I don’t have a reason to believe there are additional people at the Legacy Group, but we’ll know more when we question her. Now that we’ve got Danny willing to testify to her involvement with the stolen funds along with Levi implicating her in your brother’s case, she may be more likely to cave.”
“I won’t get my hopes up,” Russell said. After the way Melissa feigned concern and almost cried when he pushed her for information on his brother, he wouldn’t be surprised to find out she’d manipulated dozens of other people.
“I’ll get back to you when we have her in custody,” Detective Trent said.
“Thank you,” Russell said.
Detective Trent looked at Ashiya. “If you’re feeling better, then I’d like to ask you a few questions. We need to get your official statement.”
“Do you have to do it now?” Russell asked. “She woke up right before you came in.”
Ashiya rubbed his forearm. “It’s okay. I’m ready to tell him everything I heard and what happened to me.”
Russell didn’t want her to exert herself. He wanted her to rest more, but the determined look in her eyes told him that he wasn’t going to win this argument. There would be time later to make sure she rested and felt better.
“You sure?”
“I’m sure,” she said with a careful nod. “Whatever I can do to get this bitch behind bars, I’m ready to do.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
TWO WEEKS LATER, Russell stood in the gravel driveway leading up to Melissa’s parents’ property at the outskirts of the county. Ashiya stood by his side. Dozens of cops and forensic experts covered the grounds. A bulldozer had knocked down the shed in the middle of the property, and a crew had just finished breaking up the concrete floor and removing the slabs.
Melissa had been extradited to South Carolina. When faced with the fact that not only Danny but also the security guard had snitched, she’d admitted everything. She’d been the first person to notice the glitch in the numbers. Once she realized how easy it was to move money without being noticed, she’d convinced Danny to go along with it. She also seduced and paid off the security guard to let her and Danny in on weekends to handle the paperwork and clean up the trail without signing in or providing a record that they’d been there. It’s how she’d gotten away with things for so long.
She’d still tried to insist she didn’t know anything about Russell’s brother or what happened to him. It was Bryce who’d cracked under that pressure. Rodrick had gone to the party with them. He’d drunk too much during a drinking game. Melissa and Bryce dragged him into the house and left him on his back in a bed. He’d gotten sick, chocked and later died without anyone realizing until it was too late. Instead of calling the police, Melissa and Bryce buried him out of fear. Melissa’s parents helped their daughter cover things up instead of risking their baby girl getting in trouble. Her father built a shed over the makeshift grave that same summer.
Someone at the worksite yelled. “We’ve got something.”
Russell’s heart lurched. He staggered back. Ashiya’s arm slid through his, and she hugged it to her chest. The feel of her, steady and sure beside him, kept him from running away like he wanted.
“Are you going to be okay?” she asked. Her voice was filled with empathy. The look in her eye said she’d drive him far away from here if he said the word.
He didn’t have to be here for this. But after going for over a decade with no word of his brother, he couldn’t stay away. He had to know for sure.
He nodded and used his free arm to rub her shoulder. “Yes. I’ll be okay.”
Activity around the site increased. The buzz of conversation rose. More people rushed over. Officers took notes, pictures, and pointed toward the ground. Several agonizing minutes later, Detective Trent walked over to Russell and Ashiya.
He looked at Ashiya and then at Russell. His grim expression told Russell everything he didn’t want to know.
“We found a body,” Detective Trent said. “We won’t know until we get the remains back to the lab and conduct DNA samples if it’s your brother.”
The rest of the world faded away. Russell tried to breathe as his throat closed up. He didn’t need DNA samples. The agony of waiting and wondering was over. The question of whether one day they’d get what they wanted and find his brother was answered. Except it was answered in the worst way.
His shoulders shook. He pressed his mouth closed and turned away from Detective Trent. He wanted to scream, run, beat something. Anything to channel the hurt and the pain swelling inside him.
Ashiya stood in front of him. She rose up on her toes and wrapped her arms around his neck. The pain drowned him. He buried his head in the crook of her shoulder and sobbed.
* * *
ASHIYA WALKED THROUGH Russell’s parents’ house and made sure the dozens of guests cramming
the place were okay. She picked up discarded cups of half-filled drinks and took them into the kitchen. Cleaned away the stray tissues and plates of uneaten food. Made sure the food put out for guests was replenished but the carrot cake she knew was Russell’s and his mom’s favorite remained hidden in the pantry for them later.
Though his family had legally declared Rodrick dead years before and held a small funeral, she knew Russel and his parents had held out hope for a miracle. Once his remains were found and verified, they’d held a funeral for friends and family to say their final goodbyes. Ashiya was overcome by the outpouring of support Russell and his parents had received.
Things had gone from bad to worse in the weeks since they’d discovered what Melissa had done. Ashiya spent more time at the Legacy Group working with Levi to keep the company stable. Levi had been rocked by Melissa’s betrayal and the extent of the problems she’d caused. They were going back through all the employees and cross-checking anyone who had ties to Melissa. Those people were put on watch, and after the threat of retaliation from Melissa was gone, many had come forward with examples of the ways she’d coerced or bullied people in order to get what she wanted. It was going to take a lot of hard work to undo the damage she’d done.
While they’d dealt with the issues at work, Russell dealt with telling his parents about Rodrick, continuing with the charges pressed against Melissa, her parents and Bryce for hiding his brother’s death, and helping his family plan a funeral.
Ashiya didn’t know where she stood with him, but she knew her promise to be there for him, no games and no manipulation, was still there. That’s why she’d respected the space he needed while his family grieved and tried to be supportive without demanding his time.
She missed him. She wanted to make sure he was okay. She wanted him to know that whatever he needed to get through this, she’d try to help him get it. But she also didn’t want to be another thing he had to worry about.
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