My stomach dropped as I remembered Shannon’s beast that wanted to claw our faces off and eat them for breakfast. If Janet were to be caught, hopefully an actual person would be the one to do it.
“What happens if she’s caught?” I asked.
Gregson shrugged. “Depends on who catches her. But best to not worry your pretty little self about that right now. How’s your head?”
I yawned. “Fuzzy. And I’m kind of starting to feel sleepy.”
Gregson began to back slowly out of the room. “I’ll send someone to check on you in a few hours. Make sure you’re still breathing.”
“That’s kind of you.”
“Dead bodies begin to smell like rot quickly. Wouldn’t want to be responsible for causing all that.”
“Don’t forget to lock the door,” I mumbled, drifting away.
Gregson chuckled. “Oh, I don’t think you’ll be going anywhere.”
Soon after Gregson stepped out, I passed out. If I was going to die in this hellhole, it would hopefully be in my sleep, which seemed like a rather peaceful way to go in the midst of such a violent storm.
When I awoke — who knew how long later — I felt as if I were in a fog. I didn’t dare try to shake myself out of it but did notice a substantial reduction in the amount of pain I’d felt earlier. Slowly, carefully, I sat up and experienced no waves of nausea. Taking this as a good sign, I swiveled my head left and right. It appeared that the door to my room was closed. Locked, too, no doubt.
Janet was nowhere to be seen. I hoped that this meant she was well and quite far away, as opposed to lying facedown in some puddle surrounded by giant dogs.
Near the door sat a small tray with what looked to be toast and a glass of questionable looking water. I stood shakily and made my way over to it. Sniffing the water, I wrinkled my nose. It had a metallic quality to it and was rather cloudy. I debated for only a few seconds before pinching my nose and taking a quick gulp, cotton mouth winning out. Next, I went for the toast, which was cold and dry. God only knew how long that had been sitting there. Still, it was food. My stomach rumbled with hunger. Munching thoughtfully, I tried to piece together the last few hours.
Unfortunately, things weren’t making a whole lot of sense. Sweet old Greg Gregson was a cold-blooded, drug-wheeling killer. Addison’s “inside guy” was actually a mole in the PD, working for The Man. Most confusing of all, Janet had managed to escape through sheer stupidity of the very people who had kidnapped us to begin with. An escape which had been prompted by Gregson, though seemingly accidentally. He’d admitted as much and I was clueless as to why. If someone came in and offered me release simply by letting them know how Janet had managed to escape, I’d sing like a canary.
Even though Janet and I hadn’t found Riley, I had a sinking suspicion that she was close by. Gregson seemed to be the one thread that she, her mother and I had in common. Janet, I was sure, had been nothing more than collateral damage. Somewhere in the twisted web of reality was the truth, and it seemed as though I had nothing better to do than to sit down and try to figure it all out. Settling onto the floor, I leaned against the wall. My arms became riddled with goosebumps. The room was absolutely freezing, which I hadn’t noticed until now.
Suddenly, the light above me began to flicker. I watched it warily, daring it to go out completely. It did. My prison was plunged into blackness. “Well this is just perfect,” I muttered. “Perfect.” I sighed, and laid my head against the wall, closing my eyes.
After a few moments, my heartbeat quickened as I realized that I was completely alone. Save for the giant spiders that were probably everywhere. I involuntarily squealed, scrunching myself into as small of a ball as possible. I hated spiders.
Taking a page from Addison’s book of stress relief, I sucked in a huge shuddery breath and began to release it in a series of hoo’s and ha’s. Addison. Tears sprang to my eyes. I missed her. I missed my family. I missed James and Mika. Did they know that Janet and I were missing yet? Did Addison know that Richard was actually on the inside of this whole screwed up operation? If she didn’t, would she find out before she became a victim, too? Was John okay? Had he been made aware of Rachel’s involvement yet? Would Frank and my dad be able to work together with James and Mika to save us? And Rory. Was he still in Milwaukee? Had Carly shared the photos James had sent her? Was the entire nation on the lookout for Riley, Janet and I?
Just then, I heard the click of a key being entered into the door. When it opened, a sliver of light from the hall appeared. It disappeared almost as quickly when a silhouette stepped into the doorway. It was the thug with the eyeliner that had hauled Rachel in and out earlier. “We’re going to play a little game,” he said quietly. I narrowed my eyes. Who did he think he was? I wasn’t playing anything.
My eyes wandered, taking in the cracks of light from the hall that danced around his bulging frame. I’d hoped to be able to squeeze past somehow and escape. Slide under his legs. Crawl over his bulk. That’s when I noticed the large gun pointed at my liver. If he didn’t manage to grab me as I scurried past, I had no doubt he’d shoot me.
“Since when do they give the help weapons?” I asked snidely.
Eyeliner ignored my question. “I haven’t picked a name for our game just yet,” he continued, “but it’s going to go a little something like this. You tell me what you know and in return, I don’t shoot you.”
“Why do you need to know anything?” I bit back. “You’re. The. Help.” I wasn’t sure why I was suddenly so emboldened but it was too late to call the words back. Besides, I didn’t really want to.
“Gregson imagined that I could be a bit more…persuasive.” He grinned, his eyes filling with a black emptiness that cut me down to my soul. Gregson might just use a gun to scare people, but this guy got off on murdering smart-asses like me.
“That doesn’t sound like any fun,” I responded, trying to keep my voice angry and level. “You get information for Gregson and what do I get out of the deal?”
“You don’t get shot, dummy,” he answered matter-of-factly.
“Well, surely there’s something more enticing than that.” I laughed, but it sounded strained — like a dying cat. “For all I know, you’re just going to let me die in here, anyway. Shooting me is probably faster than starving to death, so I think I’ll just keep my mouth shut.” As if on cue, my stomach rumbled and I reached down to pat it. “Speaking of, I could really use a candy bar. My energy level is so low right now that I’m really not sure I could recall those details that you’re wanting so badly.”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake!” I heard Gregson exclaim from the hallway. “Bruce, get out of my way.”
“But, boss-” Eyeliner began. As he stepped aside, Gregson squeezed through the doorway.
“Nice to see you again,” I smiled, relieved.
“You’re feeling bold, Ms. Moyer,” he responded with a snarl. “I was just sure that Bruce would be the key to your undoing.”
I shrugged. “He’s intimidating enough, I guess, but I kind of got the feeling he’d just kill me at the end of it all, anyway.”
“Ah, so no motivation to really talk?” Gregson asked, nodding. I shrugged again, noncommittally. “Good, good,” he nodded. Then turning to Bruce, he barked, “You can go now.”
“But boss, I-”
“And give me your gun,” Gregson added. Bruce sucked in a breath. He reminded me of a petulant child being told “no.” “Now, Bruce,” Gregson said, holding out his hand for the weapon.
“Fine,” Bruce mumbled, slapping the gun into Gregson’s hand. “Happy?”
“Quite,” Gregson said with a smile. “You may go now, Bruce.”
Bruce stalked out into the hallway. I couldn’t help it. I began to giggle. It turned into laughter and eventually, tears were streaming down my face. Gregson stood amused, eventually asking, “What’s so funny?”
When I had a handle on myself, I wiped the mirth from my cheeks. “This whole situation,” I told him, fina
lly.
Gregson nodded thoughtfully. “It is all quite the mess from in here,” he said. “But I promise that for HIM, it’s no laughing matter. HE will shoot you just as soon as he’ll look at you. Most of them will. I need answers from you. Now. It’s for your own good, really.”
“I want answers, too,” I shot back, no longer caring what danger I was putting myself in. I needed to know that everyone else I cared for would be safe. “I’d never have pegged you for a mid-level drug pusher,” I started. “Or a mobster. Truth be told, you seemed to be way too nice for this line of business. At least, you were at some point. The Gregson that I knew was. Was that Grace’s requirement? Bring home the bacon but just don’t shoot anyone? Least of all, your neighbor?”
“Don’t you dare say her name,” Gregson snapped, pointing the gun towards my head. He shook his own head violently. “You know nothing,” he hissed. With that, he pushed the door wide open and shoved me further into the dark room with one strong, bony arm.
I eyed Gregson’s gun warily. I’d pushed the wrong button. Maybe he would kill me, after all. Or at the very least, shoot me. “How do I even know that the gun is loaded?” I asked.
Gregson looked down the hall to see if anyone was coming, then swiftly pointed the gun into it and fired off a shot. He turned back to me and raised an eyebrow as if to say “satisfied?”
“Works for me,” I said with a nod.
“Excellent,” Gregson said, stepping into the room. His face was cast into darkness. “Quit sassing me. You’re not off-limits just because we know one another. I have a job. If I don’t do it, it’s my life. And frankly, given the option between my own life and yours, I’ll always pick mine,” he growled.
“But you’re so old-” I started.
“Shut up!” he screamed, causing my heart to skip a beat. I’d never heard him sound like that before. It was a mixture of terror and anger. “Now I start asking the questions,” he fumed. “How did you figure all of this out?”
“Well, that’s the thing,” I answered. “I don’t really have any of this figured out.”
“What do you know?” His voice was dark. Dripping with maliciousness.
“I honestly have no idea,” I countered.
“Stop it!” he cried, wagging the gun in my face, its shadow bouncing off the walls. “I want answers!”
“I really don’t have any,” I said with a shrug. “Really.” I was terrified, but I refused to show it. “I’m honestly just as confused as you are right now.” I paused. “Well, you’re probably less confused because you don’t have controlled substances of unknown origin in your system.”
“You have no idea what I take,” Gregson sneered. “I have to have one of those weekly pill box counters for all the crap the doctors put into my system. High blood pressure. Heart medication. Fish oil. Vitamins.”
“Sounds rough.”
“It’s terrible,” he moaned. “Getting old ain’t for sissies, girl.”
“I believe you,” I promised, pulling out the sympathy card. Maybe he’d stop pointing the gun at me if I sounded weak. Maybe then I could wriggle my way out of here.
Gregson wasn’t having it. “Well, if you can’t start there, let’s backtrack. Just tell me how you came to be in this room.”
“You know how I-”
“Quit sassing me. I said that I want your story from the beginning!” he roared.
“Okay, okay, geez,” I said, crossing my arms. “Janet and I stumbled into your used bookstore in-”
“No!” Gregson yelled. “Don’t you understand English? From the beginning. How did you get involved in all of this in the first place? Why did you even come to visit me? Was it that stupid sister-in-law of yours? Did she tell you-”
“She didn’t say anything,” I cut him off. “You kidnapped my niece,” I felt the words slip out involuntarily. It was a gamble because I actually had no real evidence that he had taken Riley. She could still be in danger somewhere totally outside of this hellhole and I could do nothing to save her. Still, if I could get him to admit she was nearby, I might be able to add another piece to the puzzle I was trying to piece together before Gregson could. His bushy eyebrows shot up in surprise but he masked his emotion quickly. “I know she’s here,” I went on.
“Do you?” he asked slowly.
I nodded. “And I’ll just bet that you were the one who wrote up those ransom notes,” I continued. This was also just a guess. Gregson glared at me but didn’t speak, so I continued. “The ransom amount you requested was pretty random. Is that some rough estimate of your lifetime rent over at the assisted living- er- retirement facility that you need?”
Gregson sneered. I swallowed hard. I’d overstepped the boundary somewhere. Probably by mistakenly referring to his new home as assisted living. Suddenly, through the thick fog still enveloping my brain, it came to me. Rachel had all but refused to give us specifics related to Riley’s kidnapping. Hell, she hadn’t even been willing to tell us directly that Gregson was involved. He’d incriminated himself all on his own. Rachel had probably been threatened to keep her mouth shut about the whole operation. My stomach rolled with contempt. How had she even gotten involved with these idiots in the first place?
Gregson continued to stare at me, gun raised, unblinking. He was waiting for me to continue. Suddenly, it occurred to me. He was trying to figure out how much I knew of his plot. Which told me that there was an endgame, even if we didn’t know what it was. He was wondering if I was still useful.
This whole thing was probably never about kidnapping Riley. But for whatever reason, someone, somewhere, had deviated from the real plan and thrown a wrench into everything. A wrench Gregson was trying hard to rip free before he got tossed in jail.
The plan was salvageable. I wasn’t sure if it involved killing those of us that knew about it, but Gregson didn’t seem to have cold-blooded murder on his agenda, assuming he could avoid it. Whoever “he” was could, but perhaps, if I was honest with Gregson, I’d gain an ally and he’d let us live. It was the only chance I really had right now.
“How is Don?” Gregson asked suddenly.
“My dad?” I asked. “Fine,” I responded warily. “Why?”
Gregson chuckled. “Just making conversation. You do look so much like him when you’re weighing things in your mind, Marian. I hope you take that as a compliment. Anyway, please go on with what you know.”
I figured that it couldn’t hurt to share everything. Perhaps by sharing everything that I knew, Gregson would inadvertently offer me a few clues that could help me make sense of some things.
I started from the beginning. The call from my parents, driving to see them, the ransom that made us think it was a debt owed, possibly for something illegal, the hidden bank accounts that we’d found, the search for my niece, Gregson’s lead that led us to the bookstore, Ernie’s idiocy, the car accident, “And you know the rest better than I do,” I finished.
“Interesting,” Gregson mused. He seemed to take his sweet time, drinking in my story slowly like you would a good scotch. He let it consume him, fill him. He closed his eyes, pleasured by the taste of it.
“It’s a weird world,” I admitted. “But you can see that I’m missing quite a few bits and pieces of the story.”
“You seem to know enough to pin things together if you tried,” he told me, opening one eye. “In fact, I should just shoot you right now before you have the opportunity.” I swallowed, recalling the time that Barry had cornered me in my apartment with a gun. He’d said something eerily similar. Funny how I kept getting myself into these messes.
Gregson grinned and looked lovingly at the gun before dropping it down to his side. “But I think I’ll just leave you before I do something stupid.”
“Well, wait,” I urged, emboldened by my stroke of luck. “I’ve upheld my end of the bargain. I’ve told you everything that I know.”
“I suppose that means that you want a few answers yourself now, right?” Gregson asked. I weighed my
opportunity to run. He’d already proven that the gun held bullets. It was probably best to stay put. Instead, I waited for him to continue. Perhaps he’d say something I could use. He eyed me long and hard, like a hawk studying a field mouse. Despite the medicinal fog that lingered around my brain, I felt as though he was up to something. I simply wasn’t sure as to what. “You’ve already figured out that none of this is about Riley,” he went on.
My heart began to hammer and I could feel my breath becoming slightly more rapid. I’d been right. Riley was a pawn. But now that they had her, what would they do with her? “So what was it about?” I asked him. “Why me? Why Marian Moyer?”
Gregson softened. When he looked at me, I knew that a million memories from my childhood were running through his mind. Almost as quickly, he snapped, raising the gun again and pointing it directly at my face. He couldn’t afford to be soft in his line of business and he was onto my game. I raised my hands in an act of defense, even though I knew it wouldn’t do me any good if he decided to shoot.
Gregson was close to 80. Maybe he didn’t have as great of a shot as he’d had in his younger years when he first got into the business, but I wasn’t going to be the one to test that theory with some stupid escape attempt. “Don’t do that,” he said angrily, shaking the gun. “Don’t you do that to me right now.”
“But I didn’t-” I started.
“Shut up,” he said lowly.
I took a deep breath. “Fine,” I said, lowering my hand. “Fine, I understand that you can’t be my friend in here. What can you give me, then?” I asked, leaning towards him curiously.
Gregson seemed to relax a bit. “I can’t really give you anything, Marian,” he responded. “But I need you to use your brain. That brain that I know you have.” I stared at him, confused. What the hell did all of that mean? “Is the ransom amount really so random?” he asked, continuing on quietly. “Think, Marian. Think really hard.”
“It’s rather difficult to do right now,” I muttered. “My head is in a bit of a fog.”
Allison Janda - Marian Moyer 02 - Seduction, Deceit & a Slice of Apple Pie Page 14