It All Falls Down: Rose Gardner Investigations #7 (Rose Gardner Investigatons)

by Denise Grover Swank

  I tried to hide my horror.

  “Time and place, please,” he said in a mockingly sweet tone. “Or I might get trigger happy a little early.”

  I took a breath to keep my voice steady. “Sweet Pickle Christian Church. Midnight.”

  “See?” he said. “That wasn’t so hard.” Then he hopped up onto the stage and grabbed a torch. Waving it in the air, he shouted, “Are we gonna sit back and let Malcolm and those outsiders take what’s rightfully ours?”

  The crowd buzzed with excitement. “No!”

  “What are we gonna do about it?” Carmichael called out.

  “Stop ’em!”

  Carmichael’s face lit up with a wicked grin. “Then let’s go.”

  He hopped off the platform and shot me a wink. “I’ll let you say your goodbyes.” Then he strode toward the vehicles.

  I turned to Joe and Jed, who were still being held back by some of Carmichael’s men. What had my hubris gotten them into? I should have come on my own. I shouldn’t have insisted on a trade for the information. But I reassured myself that they would be fine if we got the location right.

  I shoved the man in front of Joe to the side and took his face in my hands. “I need you to trust me, okay?”

  “Why do I not like the sound of that?”

  I pressed a kiss to his lips, then pulled back and forced a smile. “I’m going with Carmichael.”

  Joe’s body shook. “What? No!”

  I put my finger on his lips. “Shh.” I threw my arms around his neck and turned my face into his ear, whispering, “That won’t help anything right now. Listen. Carmichael’s takin’ me as insurance and plans to kill one of you if we were wrong. You two need to escape, okay? Because I don’t trust him not to shoot you anyway.”

  He leaned back and searched my face. “What about you?”

  I frowned. “He has big plans for me. He thinks I’m goin’ to be the Wendy to his Peter Pan.” I hugged him again. “I’m going to try to get away from him first chance I get, but I can’t do that if you two are stuck here. Now, I need you to reach into my jacket and get my gun and hide it under your shirt.”

  “Rose. You need it.”

  “There’s no time to argue, Joe. I have the other one, so just do it. That’s an order.”

  He leaned back to stare down at me, then placed his hands at my waist, inside my jacket, and kissed me.

  I kissed him back, trying to give him enough room to reach into my jacket without calling attention to it.

  But Jed must have sensed that we were up to something because he shoved the guard in front of him. “We came here as a neutral party. What do you think you’re doin’?”

  “There is no neutral party,” the guy said, giving Jed a shove of his own. “You’re either for us or against us.”

  “Fuck you,” Jed spat, then shoved the guy in our direction.

  Joe swung me out of the way, and as the man got to his feet and lunged for Jed, Joe grabbed my gun and tucked into his front waistband under his shirt.

  His eyes darkened. “We’ll get away.”

  “Fair warning,” I said. “Once you have the upper hand, Jed’s liable to beat those assholes to death. Literally.” Then I kissed him again and headed for the trucks.

  I’d give them until we got to the church to get away, and then Denny Carmichael would rue the day he’d ever met me.

  Chapter 31

  Turned out that Denny Carmichael had a brand new Range Rover. He might not spend much of his drug fortune on his house, but he’d spent a chunk on his vehicle.

  He was waiting by the open back door, wearing a smug smile as he motioned for me to climb inside.

  Ignoring him, I got in and slid over to the far side, trying not to cringe as he got in behind me and shut the door. Two men sat in the front, Clyde in the driver’s seat. The other men started piling into trucks.

  Carmichael chuckled. “Get in a sexy goodbye with your boyfriend?”

  The guy in the passenger seat turned around with a leering grin.

  A non-response seemed like my best option, so I turned to stare out the side window, catching a glimpse of two men putting Joe and Jed’s hands behind their backs as the vehicles turned around and pulled away. A chorus of cheers rang out, and I noticed that while most of the torches had been tossed into a pile on the ground, a few men lifted them into the air from the backs of the trucks.

  The SUV drove at a speed that seemed unsafe given the condition of the crumbling asphalt drive. I considered putting on a seat belt, but it would get in the way if I found a chance to escape…although the risk of getting injured in a car accident seemed pretty high given Clyde’s recklessness and the other trucks around us.

  They reached the end of the drive, and the man in the passenger seat rolled down his window and waved a fist of solidarity at the two men standing guard. They shook their fists and let out whoops in response before Clyde whipped the SUV out onto the highway so quickly the back fishtailed.

  The front passenger laughed, and Carmichael shot me a grin as I slid across the seat toward him.

  “If you want to sit on my lap, Lady, you only have to ask,” he said with a leer.

  I considered telling him it would happen if hell froze over, but I didn’t want him to take that as a personal invitation.

  On the outside, I hoped I looked pissed and in control, but on the inside, I was struggling to hold myself together. Surely Jed and Joe could get the upper hand on the two men who’d been left behind. But what if there were more men than I’d seen?

  I reminded myself that when Jed had followed me after I was kidnapped, he’d freed himself from the chair he’d been tied to, then taken three men down with his bare hands.

  They’d get out of it.

  But my nerves were humming. Joe and Jed aside, I had plenty of worries of my own. If I survived the car ride and actually showed up at this meeting as Carmichael’s plus one, I had a good chance of either getting killed or arrested. Despite Carmichael’s Peter Pan speech, I had a feeling I ranked high on the expendable list.

  “You realize we’re gonna be early,” I said.

  He laughed. “I know how to tell time.”

  “There’s a good chance the meetup won’t be takin’ place when we get there, so I’m making sure you don’t get trigger happy if you prematurely decide it’s not happening.”

  A grin spread across his face. “Lady, I don’t do anything prematurely.”

  The two men in front laughed.

  I rolled my eyes. “What are you, thirteen?”

  That just made him laugh more. When he settled down, he turned in his seat to face me. “So what did you find out from Wilson’s girlfriend? Was she the one who told you the location?”

  Narrowing my eyes, I shot him a glare. “I’d rather not give up my sources.”

  He grabbed my arm and squeezed tight, pulling me close enough I could smell his sour beer breath, which was stronger in the car. His fingers pinched my flesh through my lightweight jacket, and it took everything in me not to flinch. I could feel the anger thrumming through him in tight waves.

  “Here’s the thing, Lady,” he said through gritted teeth. “You work for me now. Your sources are mine.”

  I reminded myself that this man was a time bomb. While James and most of the other men I’d dealt with in the criminal world had been somewhat predictable, this man was not. Still, I couldn’t bring myself to cower before him.

  I clenched my jaw. “I didn’t even give Skeeter Malcolm my sources in the beginning. Why would I give them to you?”

  “Let’s make this perfectly clear, Lady. I am not Skeeter Malcolm.”

  “That’s obvious,” I said in disgust.

  I wasn’t surprised when he hit me, but I was surprised it was a slap across my cheek and not a punch.

  “Let’s set the ground rules and get that out of the way,” he snarled, leaning into me. “You can take the way you’ve done things with everyone you’ve worked with in the past and shove them u
p your ass.”

  Everything in me wanted to curl up in a ball and protect myself, but I couldn’t bring myself to give him the satisfaction, so I stared into his cold, dead eyes and shot him a look of challenge. It wasn’t smart, but I couldn’t hold back my fury. “Fuck you.”

  “Do you have a death wish?” he asked through gritted teeth. “Or maybe I should just kill your two men and use your baby as collateral for the meetin’ instead.”

  The mention of Hope breached my steely resolve, and I let out a small gasp.

  A grin slowly spread across his face, proving his threat had gotten exactly the reaction he’d hoped for. He pulled out his phone and placed a call. “Go ahead and take the baby. Let me know when you have it.”

  This disgusting man was sending even more disgusting men to take my child.

  He ended the call and lifted his brow. “You heard of the five love languages?” He held up his hand, showing his extended fingers and thumb. “Well, I’ve got languages of my own. Threats.” He tucked in his thumb. “Extortion.” He folded in his pinky finger. “Murder. Torture.” He lowered his index and ring fingers so his middle finger was standing tall. “There’s always a way to make people talk. You just gotta know which language to speak.”

  My mind was whirling with panic, but I resisted the urge to break down. Hope needed me to keep my wits about me. If he was talking, then maybe I could get him to give me information that I could use later. If I didn’t kill him first. “You couldn’t get Rufus Wilson to talk.”

  He chuckled. “Oh, Wilson squealed all right. He just didn’t know much. The only thing he had of use was that the meeting was happenin’ tonight.”

  “Then what do you need me for?”

  “We didn’t know the location, sweetheart, and I know you specialized in gettin’ information for Skeeter Malcolm. But I confess,” he added nonchalantly, “I’m a little suspicious of your intel. Rufus said the meeting was happenin’ between ten and eleven, and you claimed it was midnight.” He paused. “Seems to me that if you got the easy part wrong, you coulda gotten the location wrong too.” His eyes narrowed. “Which makes me think you’re lyin’.”

  “I’m not,” I said, my mind turning with the news. If he was right, that meant the Feds were going to be up to an hour late. They might get here after everything was said and done. They might be too late.

  This might have all been for nothing.

  “I can’t abide by liars, Lady. If you’re lyin’, there will be consequences. The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in people who are trustworthy. Proverbs 12:22.”

  I stared at him in disbelief. Did he consider himself trustworthy?

  “I gave you the time and place I was given,” I said, suddenly less confident now that Hope’s life was on the line. The thought of Carmichael or his men anywhere near her made me nauseous. And then I realized that Witt and Neely Kate wouldn’t just let his men take her. They’d fight to the death.

  Don’t panic. Don’t panic. Don’t panic.

  How could my whole life have fallen apart in the matter of an hour?

  I told myself that Joe and Jed wouldn’t waste any time getting free and coming after me. But I didn’t need them to come after me. I needed them to go find Hope. Yet they wouldn’t find out she’d been taken until they got to the farm.

  No, I told myself. Neely Kate or Witt will call them.

  Sure, I argued with myself. They will if they’re not dead.

  The thought sent me into a spiral of panic that scattered my thoughts and ability to reason.

  Get it together, Rose. You have to save Hope.

  I took a deep breath and forced the chaos in my head to pause so I could figure out what to do.

  One thing was clear: Every second my baby was with this madman’s henchmen was a second too long. I had to find a way to tell Joe or Jed myself. But how? Then I realized that Carmichael’s ego was so huge he still hadn’t checked me for weapons or taken my phone. I had to figure out how to send Joe a text. The question was how to do it without Carmichael noticing.

  “I’m gonna throw up,” I blurted out.

  “What?” Carmichael demanded, sitting upright.

  It stood to reason he wouldn’t want the smell of vomit to entwine with his new car smell, not to mention what it would do to the tan leather seat.

  “I have to throw up,” I said. It wasn’t hard to conjure up a pukey look. “I get car sick, and after you hit me, I’m dizzy and my head’s poundin’ and—”

  “You’re lyin’,” he snarled.

  “I’m not.” I made a retching sound to help sell it.

  “She might have a concussion,” the guy in the passenger seat said. “That might make her have to throw up.”

  “You’re gonna wait,” Carmichael said. “We’re not pulling over now. And if you throw up in my car, I’ll shoot you in the leg.”

  We were on the county road that led up to Pickle Junction, and I could understand why he didn’t want to stop now. There was enough traffic that I could possibly get the attention of a passerby. Not that I would try. It would likely be a death sentence for them, and I’d already put enough people in danger.

  How far away was the church? Ten minutes? Fifteen? We were bound to get there before Joe and Jed. I had to figure out a way to send him a message. Only…I had no idea where to tell him to go. Did I dare risk a vision of Carmichael? The thought of touching him was equally terrifying and revolting, plus he’d probably shake me off before I could see anything. Or, worse, take it as an invitation to do some touching of his own. Then there was the way I blurted out whatever I saw…I wasn’t sure how he’d deal with that, presuming my new ability to control the visions didn’t kick in.

  But what if Joe and Jed hit a snag and couldn’t escape? I squinched my eyes closed. I couldn’t even let myself consider that possibility. They had the element of surprise on their side. They’d escape unscathed and then they’d save my baby.

  While Carmichael leaned forward to talk to Clyde, discussing which country road to take, I felt my phone buzz in my pocket with a text. I prayed it was Joe telling me they’d gotten free. Thankfully, Carmichael was too busy to notice the sound.

  Did I risk trying to get my phone out so I could read it? Carmichael and Clyde had shifted to discussing their best options for showing up at the church. Their plan was basic—they’d send scouts to watch the building and park far enough away to escape the notice of the various parties involved, then wait for the scouts’ signal. Some of the men would approach on foot, and Carmichael and his men would show up in their vehicles. Carmichael would keep me by his side.

  My despair began to grow. How was I going to save Hope? Getting her away from this lunatic and his men was my top priority. I didn’t trust them with my child for one second, let alone hours.

  Carmichael’s phone rang, and he glanced at the screen before he answered, putting it on speaker. He shot me a dark grin. “You got the kid?”

  “Uhhh,” the guy on the other side stammered. “There’s a problem.”

  My heart leapt into my throat. Please, God, let my baby be okay.

  “What kind of problem?” Carmichael barked.

  “The baby was already gone.”

  What?

  “What do you mean the baby was gone?”

  “When we got there, Carlisle’s wife was a hysterical mess. She said the baby was already gone.”

  I tried not to panic. Where was Hope?

  “You fool,” Carmichael spat. “She was fakin’ to throw you off.”

  “No,” the man said, sounding nervous. “She was hysterical when we pulled up. We could hear her screamin’ in the house. Her cousin had stayed to help guard the baby, and he was in the house tryin’ to calm her down.”

  Carmichael did not look pleased. He grabbed my arm and gave me a hard shake. “Where is it?”

  “I don’t know,” I shouted, jerking my arm away. “But thank God you didn’t get your hands on her.” But if he didn’t have her, who did? For
all I knew, she’d gone from a bad situation to a worse one.

  Carmichael shoved me against the car door and wrapped his meaty hand around my neck, pressing into my windpipe.

  I wrapped my hands around it, trying to pry his fingers off, but he had brute strength on his side.

  “Where’s your kid?” he asked, squeezing tighter.

  “Go to hell,” I wheezed out.

  “We’re gettin’ close,” Clyde said. “Whatdya you want to do?”

  Carmichael looked like he was mad enough to beat me to a bloody pulp, but he gave my neck one last squeeze that had me seeing stars and then released me. “Stick to the goddamn plan!”

  I coughed and wheezed as my airway opened, and I fell forward, nearly passing out.

  “We tried to stick to the plan,” the guy on the phone said in a pleading whine, “but I’m tellin’ you, the woman swears the baby’s gone. She said Wilson’s woman hid in the basement and stole the baby. Keeps sayin’ her car is gone.”

  I looked up at Carmichael in shock, sure I’d heard his man wrong. He was suggesting that Bobby Hanover had hidden in my basement, then snatched my baby when Neely Kate and Witt weren’t looking, and left in her car.

  Why would Bobby Hanover want my baby?

  And then I knew.

  Bobby had taken her for Kate.

  Chapter 32

  A wave of dizziness hit me, and I was sure I was going to pass out this time. Kate was a lunatic who hated me. I didn’t want to believe she’d hurt Hope, but why else would she have taken her? I couldn’t help but worry her hatred for me might supersede her concern for my baby’s safety.

  My need to escape was more pressing than ever. I had no idea where Kate had gone, but I needed to find her. I needed to find my baby, and that meant I needed a car.