Mr. Buff: A Flaming Romance

by Milly Taiden

  This guy was smooth and fast. She replied, “I just got serious with someone I recently met. He’s a nice guy.”

  “I’m a nice guy, too. I’m sorry we didn’t meet earlier.” His eyes roamed her breasts, shirt clinging from being wet.

  She let the towel drape in front of her, her stomach revolting from his harassing gaze. “There’s a reason for everything,” she answered. She needed to get control of this conversation to get the confession and get the hell out.

  “So, Ted, you weren’t angry at Jen for leaving?” His probing eyes returned to her face, his smile slipping. Not subtle enough? Talk about grabbing the tiger by the balls. Or was it tail?

  “I was at first,” he said, then gulped his drink. She followed suit, the fizzy liquid stinging her tongue. “But I realized with her gone, we didn’t fight any longer and it was better for everyone this way.” The light in his eyes had disappeared. Their dark depths frightened her. Which was silly. He was just a man.

  “Plus,” he continued, “it was hard to sneak women into the basement when she kept refusing to take her medicine.”

  Alex smiled at his joke, but he wasn’t. Smiling or joking. “What medicine?” she asked. “Was Jen sick?” Speaking of sick, her stomach churned, and her head felt as if to float away. What the hell was wrong with her?

  “Not sick,” he replied. “She just wouldn’t drink what I gave her to make her sleep.”

  “Oh, she had sleeping problems.” Her vision started to spin.

  “No. I wanted her to sleep so I could have my fun without her knowing. It wouldn’t be good if she saw me carrying around bodies.” He smiled.

  Alex’s mouth dropped open. Was he for real? He had to be joking. Normal people didn’t drug their spouses. Then again, Jen was a bit wacky, or was it Ted who made her that way? Enough talking about bodies. Heat flashed through her system. She needed to go before she passed out.

  “Ted, maybe I should come back another time.” She tried to stand, but her legs gave out.

  He was out of his chair and helping her immediately. “Alexandra, are you okay?”

  She tried to straighten, but that caused her vision to tunnel. “I don’t think so. Something is wrong.”

  “I’d say so,” he answered. “You should never take an open drink from a stranger.”

  What? She looked at him, wondering what he was saying. As she blacked out, she understood. He had drugged her soda.

  34

  Andrew flew out of the courthouse toward the Mercedes sitting in the designated attorney spots close to the front. For once in his life, he was glad for government privileges.

  He jumped into the luxurious seat and pushed the button to start the car. Putting the car in gear, they were moving before his attorney had the passenger door closed.

  Grabbing his seat belt, Turner asked, “What danger is she in?”

  “Apparently, she’s been searching for clues to this murder and thinks Jen’s husband killed her.” Andrew glanced down at his phone’s directions to her location. “How can she do something so stupid?”

  “Because she loves you,” his attorney said.

  A fleeting joy surrounded his heart. He loved her, too. He was waiting until the verdict of this case was given before he asked her to marry him. He didn’t want to tie her down if he spent the rest of his life in prison.

  Rounding Smith Street, he screeched tires, trying to stay in his lane. Every second counted. He hoped to get to her before the sex creep touched her.

  He tossed his phone to Turner. “Here, tell me where to turn next.” His lawyer led him around traffic and through different parts of town to get to the home.

  Turning onto the street the house was on, he heard “Your destination is the third house on the left.”

  Andrew drove by slowly in the rain, not seeing anything. Her car wasn’t in the driveway. Was this the right place? He drove down a few more houses to see if he’d spot her car. His phone’s app insisted she was in the third house.

  Not willing to wait any longer, he parked at the home and told Turner to call the police if he wasn’t back in fifteen minutes. He really hoped that Hudson had called men in, but seeing that no police had arrived yet, he wasn’t holding his breath.

  In the rain, he rang the doorbell. After a few seconds, he pushed the button again. With still no answer, he stepped into the flowerbed that had more weeds than flowers and peeked through the window and partially opened curtains. There was no one in the room, but he saw Alexandra’s purse sitting on the coffee table.

  Panic bubbled up. If this Ted or Frederick wasn’t coming to the door, that probably meant he was busy—with Alexandra.

  Andrew pounded and kicked the front door, but it was too solid for hands and feet. Hoping for another entrance, he headed around the side of the house. In the back, he found a kitchen door and put a moldy garden gnome through the window.

  He unlocked the door, yelling her name as he entered.

  35

  Alex felt like shit. Her head throbbed, her stomach was upset, and her body felt like a thousand pounds. She couldn’t lift an arm or a leg. Wanting to roll over from lying on her back, she tried to move and realized she wasn’t in her bed. In fact, what she lay on was damn hard and cold.

  Popping her eyes open, she looked around the dimly lit area. First off, she noted there were no windows and the air was cold and dank like air in a cave or basement. As her eyes adjusted, terror grew inside her.

  From hooks bolted into the ceiling hung chains and ropes and other restraining devices. Whips, shafts with feathers on the end, and was that a plug-in vibrator? Holy shit. Where was Andrew? They could play in here for a long time.

  “Ah, you’re awake,” a familiar voice said—not Andrew’s. “Good.”

  Alex craned her neck diagonally to see who was talking. The voice she remembered as Ted, but the vision she saw shocked her into speechlessness.

  A man—Ted?—stood knotting ropes dangling from hooks. The disturbing part was he wore a black Speedo that revealed he had no package. No junk in that trunk. The scrawny, vampire-white legs were a nice touch.

  Every few moments, he glanced at an image on a TV. The screen showed a naked woman bound in hanging ropes, spread eagle in the air. It looked like he had a porn movie on pause. She compared what he was tying to the image and realized that she was to become the naked woman.

  She tried to get up, but like earlier, she couldn’t move. Glancing down, she saw her wrists and ankles tied to the table. At least she was still dressed.

  A snippet of their earlier conversation came back to her from the bar. Ted saying that he bought sex paraphernalia for Jen, but Jen left before he could use anything on her. Alex thought Jen got out just in time. Her husband was completely off his rocker. Or a huge sex deviant.

  Her mind was made up. Jen probably started out a normal person, then after so much abuse, began to lose more and more chicken nuggets from her Happy Meal. And with the body cremated, there were no remains to be examined to check for abuse.

  Ted seemed to know what he was doing all along. Renting a truck to stalk Jen, smooth talking then drugging women, getting rid of a body to hide evidence. She had a feeling this wasn’t his first rodeo.

  “So, Ted,” she coughed, her throat feeling dry and scratchy, “did you run Jen off the road and kill her?”

  He sighed and put a hand on his hip, turning to her. “Alexandra, love, some things are unavoidable.”

  She raised the side of her butt the phone was on. “Is that a yes or no, Ted?”

  He harrumphed. “Yes, Alexandra, I ran her off the road, but the explosion killed her, so I didn’t have to get my hands dirty. Which I appreciated. I didn’t want to get out and risk a wild animal sniffing me.”

  “Why, Ted? Jen was a nice person.”

  Ted froze for a moment, dropping the rope he held. He reached toward a chrome tray and picked up a scalpel. Next to the knife lay several more surgical steel supplies, including tongs and clamps.

&
nbsp; Her heart raced in her chest. What did he have in mind for instruments like that? She was sure he wasn’t into carving pumpkins. Fear running through her, she pulled and yanked at the binds holding her to the table. Her eyes followed his movement toward her, focused on the cutter in his hand.

  He looked down on her, sadness in his expression. “Jen was not a nice person, Alexandra. She cheated on me with her asshole boss. He stole her from me.”

  “I’m not sure, but I don’t think he liked her,” Alex said, defending Andrew.

  “No, I saw them at lunch together. Saw how she looked at him. She looked at me once like that. Then after work, she goes to that club where he always was. I know what goes on in those back rooms.”

  “He owns the lounge,” she said. “He had to be there. Are you sure Jen even talked to him?”

  “I don’t need to see it to know,” he replied, a smile creeping onto his face. “And the fact that bastard is under arrest for her murder is delightful. I couldn’t have planned it better if I tried.”

  “Wait, you planned to kill Jen?” She hoped he’d elaborate for the court.

  “It didn’t take much. It was just like the others. I just had to watch and wait. Women are so predictable. But imagine my surprise when she drove up to the state park. I wondered what was going on until I saw her in a parking lot kissing her boss. He was laying it on her thick. I’m surprised they didn’t fuck on the ground then and there.”

  Alex thought back to the night that seemed years ago. Andrew had kissed Jen, but it was to trick get the gun from her. It worked. If Ted had seen that, then why didn’t he recognize her? She was there with Nina.

  “Did anyone see you? Was anyone else around?” she asked. Alex did her best not to stare at the overly hairy chest with a stomach that dunlapped over the Speedos.

  “There were some girls, but they weren’t important. Just the stealing bastard.”

  “What happened when Jen left her boss in the parking lot? Wasn’t she going back to you?”

  Ted laughed. “I don’t know what they said, but it didn’t matter. The bitch is gone and if her boss gets out of jail, I’ll kill him, too.” He lifted the scalpel to his throat. “Just a quick—” he slid the blade from ear to ear, “and that will take care of him.”

  He ran his palm over her breast and down her stomach. “And now, my beautiful lady, it is time to take care of you. Let’s have some fun.”

  Alex thrashed on the table to no avail. Her restraints were solid. He patiently waited for her to stop, her breaths coming in pants. “What are you going to do to me?” As soon as the last word left her mouth, she decided she didn’t want to know.

  Then from upstairs, the doorbell rang. Her instincts had her screaming for help before she realized she was. Again, Ted patiently stared down at her.

  “No use in wasting your voice, baby girl. The basement is sound-proofed. Nobody upstairs will hear you. Save your screams for later.” He licked his lips.

  She’d take her chances and continued to scream. The knife in Ted’s hand began to shake, his face wasn’t as serene as it was a minute ago. Alex sucked in a breath and closed her mouth. He was losing it.

  Ted ran his gloved hand through his hair and schlepped back to the rope. He pushed the cord aside and rolled out the tray holding the surgical tools. Stopping next her, he patted her stomach.

  “We should get started, darling,” Ted said. “You never know when the neighbors may come knocking.” He lifted a straight razor and held it over her head. Casually, he stepped down the side of the table, his arm extended, holding the knife above her. If the dick was into terrorizing, he was damn good at it.

  The man stood at her feet and glanced up her prone form. He lowered the razor and cocked his head. “Do you know you have a hole in your shoe?”

  Something upstairs crashed, and Alex screamed for her life.

  36

  “Alexandra!” Andrew hurried through the house, opening doors as he went. Outside the kitchen, he found the garage door and her car parked inside. That explained a lot.

  He hollered her name again. Why wasn’t she responding? Did the bastard have her tied up and gagged? His heart stalled thinking about what the bastard could’ve done to her. If one hair on her head was hurt, he’d take a page from the Games of Thrones book and peel the skin from the bastard’s body and amputate his limbs one by one till he died of agony.

  He stopped with that line of thought. That was rather gruesome even for himself.

  At the last doorway in the house, he threw it open and looked around. It was a bedroom with dozens of photos scattered across the floor, the bed, dressers, everywhere. Picking up one, he saw a man standing next to a female whose face had been ground down to the paper backing.

  He grabbed another photo. Same thing. The guy and the female with her head stabbed so many times, the face was gone. Was the woman in the pictures Jen? He gazed around the area, looking for a non-mutilated image he could verify. They were all destroyed. A sick feeling rolled through him.

  He called out for Alexandra again. This time he thought he heard something. He turned toward the open closet doors. It came from there. Inspecting the small space, he moved hangers around and tapped on the wall.

  When the solid sound of wood rang hollow, he stopped. Had he found a secret entrance?

  Rubbing his hands along the wall, Andrew searched for a switch or latch or anything that could function as a door release. Not finding anything, his impatience got the best of him and he beat against the wall. The same sound came again. It sounded like his name.

  It was Alexandra. Had to be.

  Kicking and throwing his shoulder against the wall was doing little. He needed a running start. He’d see how well a door handled 190 pounds slammed into it.

  Careful to duck his head under the clothes-hanging bar, he ran and launched toward the wall, his body turning slightly for his arm to make first contact.

  The fake drywall and 2x4s gave way to his weight. Instead of falling to the floor as he prepared for, he fell into darkness, crashed onto steps and rolled to the bottom. Fuck that hurt.

  He remained quiet, holding his breath.

  “Andrew?” Alexandra’s voice sent a rush of adrenaline and joy through him.

  “I’m here—”

  “Get out of here now!” she yelled at him. “It’s a trap.”

  “I’m not leaving without—”

  “No, Andrew. He’s got a knife and is hiding.” He followed her voice in the absolute darkness, arms extended. Tears stung his eyes when he felt warm skin under his fingers. “Andrew, run! Get the police.” He worked the knot at her wrist, unraveling it.

  “Not without you.”

  A sting cut through his upper bicep. He flinched away, not able to see anything. Then he heard a swoop in front of him as if someone had slashed their arm through the air.

  The bastard had cut him in the arm, trying to reach his neck. Andrew dove forward, arms wide to tackle the son of a bitch. His head hit a soft place and his hands wrapped around a body. Down they went, crashing into something that sounded like a tray with stuff on it.

  Alexandra screamed nearby.

  “Andrew!” Alex screamed into total darkness.

  When Ted turned the lights off, she didn’t know what the hell he was thinking. Then she realized he lay in wait for whomever it was to enter. Which gave her time to tell the person to get help and not to come down.

  Instead of the door opening at the top of the steps, it sounded like somebody crashed through and fell down the stairs. Her love had somehow found her, and completely ignored her telling him to stay upstairs and call for help. Noooo. He had to play macho and save her like the damsel in distress she was.

  Now, Andrew and Ted wrestled on the floor, Ted with a knife. With Andrew freeing her one hand, she worked to get the other knots undone. Another crash close by caused the table she lay on to tip over. Pulling her foot from the bindings, she reached out blindly, trying to catch herself with her hands. He
r knee bashed against the concrete. Her hand covered her mouth to keep the scream in. Not feeling much pain anymore from the adrenaline flowing through her, she headed for the light spilling through the broken entrance.

  Fists beat on flesh and quick yells dotted the area. Almost to the stairs, her path had been free of obstacles. Then a grunt sounded behind her and her body fell toward the floor. Trying to catch herself again, her head smashed against something rock hard.

  Pain like she’d never known zipped through her brain. She lay on the floor, feeling herself slipping into unconsciousness. No. She had to get up. If she passed out, Andrew could die from a slash to any artery.

  Get up, Alexandra, she told herself. Get up or lose Andrew forever. Determination joined adrenaline coursing through her bloodstream.

  Grabbing anything within reach, she pulled herself to her feet. Tilting her head up, the darkness spun, and she convulsed with a dry heave. Ending up on her knees, she decided to stay down and crawl.

  She had to find a light switch. Andrew would be able to take down Ted if he could see the madman with the blade. Usually the switch was close to the door, which was where she wanted to go anyway.

  Her hand landed on a slick, warm liquid. Oh god. Did Ted pee his pants? Carefully, she lifted her hand and sniffed. Not urine. Blood.

  “Andrew!” she screamed. “You’re bleeding.” He didn’t reply, and the room became deathly silent.

  Light switch, she had to get to one. Stay focused. Ignore pain. Probably concussion. Find switch. Keep crawling. Hurry the hell up.

  Finally she was at the bottom tread and pulled herself up the first couple steps. Before she could climb any farther, a hand grabbed the back of her shirt. A growl erupted next to her ear and the hand was torn away.

  “Go, Alexandra!” Andrew hollered. “Get to the car.”

  No, not yet. He wouldn’t leave her, and she wasn’t leaving him. Fighting nausea, her hand gripped the simple wood railing. A few more steps were all she needed. She saw the switch exactly where it should be. Lifting her head, the room spun and she fell sideways, but her grasp of the balustrade kept her from diving head first over the side.