Hunted

by Lourdes Skye

  Jace blushed.

  The waiter brought over their food.

  The rest of the cruise was spent eating, drinking and some slow dancing. By the time they returned to the condo, both were so tired. They showered and curled up to sleep in each other’s arms.

  11

  Monday morning Jace woke up to an empty bed and a letter. Apparently Barney came and picked Cobra up for work. The letter also stated that Barney brought breakfast. Much like a kid on Christmas day, Jace hurried from the bed, washed and all but ran to the kitchen. Ever since the other morning, Jace has been craving for a Mama Maria’s hazelnut coffee and loaded breakfast bagel. Sitting out on the deck, he drank his coffee and looked out over the city’s skyline. It was certainly a beautiful morning. He inhaled the aroma of the city’s life and felt completely free. Barney had left the name and number for the lawyer. He’d call in a few minutes. At this moment, he knew that Octorian was served with the order of protection. He could only imagine what a fit he must’ve had. Especially with no one to take his anger out on. He must be festering with the need to cause pain. Yesterday, Cobra asked him what he’d do once the divorce was final. Would he return to modeling? He’d been living in a world of fear and pain for so long, he never thought he would see the stage again. Now he was renewed with hope. Just perhaps with the ugly O years behind him, maybe he could have a life of normalcy. After he drank his coffee and ate, he returned inside the comforts of the condo and made his call.

  Hey, I know cobras are like badass snakes, right. They have some kind of poison they shoot out. So my question is, does the snake kill the dinosaur or does the dinosaur eat the snake?” Officer Lewis laughed at his own joke.

  “Don’t quit your day job,” Cobra returned drily.

  “That shit was stupid. Not funny at all,” Barney shook his head as he took his seat at his desk.

  “Maybe we can give him an A for effort.”

  “Mm, more like an EF for Epic Failure,” Barney returned.

  Cobra laughed, “Damn Barn, why so snarky this morning?”

  He sighed. “I don’t understand chicks. Get this, after nearly fucking my brains out, Diana says we have to quit. She claims the job is too much for her. The hours I keep are too long and she wants children. I said, children, hell first you gotta get married. And I’m nowhere near ready to take that walk.”

  “Barn, come on, you’re 27 now. Maybe you should—.”

  “Stop, don’t even finish that sentence. You’re the same age as me partner and I don’t see you handing out rings.”

  “I didn’t have anyone to hand a ring to. And you can’t count Jace, we’re just starting. You and Diana have been together what, 9 months now? Maybe she’s ready for a little Barney Jr.” Cobra tried to keep the laughter inside. Barney was looking green around the gills. He knew from experience. Once a chick started talking babies and marriage, Barney was ghost.

  “Man, she was talking twins last night. I was ready to push her off me and add another condom on, just to be sure.”

  That did it. Cobra couldn’t hold it back, he erupted in a full-out fit of laughter.

  Chief Wiseman stood in the doorway of his office. “Nice to see you two laughing. Could you come in my office? Hopefully we can laugh up some arrest tickets.”

  “Ew,” Barney groaned.

  Both sat down in front of the chief’s desk.

  “Well?” the middle-aged guy prompted. “The mayor is crawling all over my ass. Right now if I take a shit, he’s wiping it. Tell me something good about this case.”

  “Chief, we’re working on a lead.”

  “And uh, where do you expect this lead to take you because I recall you telling me last week you had a lead and still I’ve seen nothing.”

  “I’ve made contact with the lead. He’s actually offered me a job in his faction, which I will be accepting this week.”

  The semi-grey haired man looked back and forward between Barney and Cobra. “Is this lead from a reliable source? I don’t need y’all taking crazy chances and wind up missing as well as these girls.”

  “The source is reliable. He’s well affiliated with the streets. It was his tip that led us to Spike, who could very well be the front man for this trafficking ring.”

  Wiseman nodded. “When are you going to make contact?”

  “Tomorrow. I’ll have to play this just right. I don’t want to come across like some starving hooker. Like I’m hard up for a job. With these type of guys you gotta be cool. Play it just right or they’ll be on to you.”

  “Alright but I want you fitted for a pair of wired jeans before you leave here today.”

  Cobra nodded.

  By the time they got back to their desks, Barney noticed he’d looked at his watch several times. “What’s up, you thinking about a certain bartender?’

  “Yeah, with everything he’s told me about that bastard husband of his, I just don’t want to take any chances. You know how those crazy folks who have money are.”

  “True. The ole mighty dollar can stretch far in getting some shit done.”

  They looked up and their eyes met as they said in union, “Murder for hire.”

  “What time did he say he was going in?”

  “Three o’ clock.”

  “If we can’t get there, do you have a car picked out to give an escort?”

  “I spoke with Travis and Jonah. They said they’d do it.”

  “Good, they’re trustworthy.”

  “Wow, you actually gave a compliment.”

  “Yeah, I guess getting dumped has mellowed me.”

  “Barn, you’re the only guy I know who gets dumped and still be all cheery and shit.”

  “Hey, I’m too young to stress. I read somewhere that when you stress real bad, your hair come out and you experience erection dysfunction. I’m too young for my hammer to be broke.”

  Cobra laughed again. “Un-fucking-believable.”

  Barney shrugged.

  What ever happened to the top half of the morning, was a mystery. Afternoon rolled around so fast, Jace was fresh out of the shower when his phone rang. Normally he would’ve jumped out of his skin, thinking Octorian had found him and was calling. But since meeting Cobra, his fears had calmed.

  “Hey.”

  “Hey cutie, I’m two blocks away.”

  “I was just getting dressed.”

  “How was your morning? Did you enjoy the breakfast?”

  “Tell Barney he’s got me addicted.”

  Cobra laughed.

  “See you in a minute babe.”

  Prynce strode in the Bullet like he was a regular patron. It was now a little after three. Taking a seat in the far right corner of the room, Prynce’s eyes settled on the bar. Bingo! Dude’s blonde hair was like a beacon on a dark night.

  “Hi welcome to the Bullet, what can I get you?” Lydia smiled brightly at him.

  His eyes lingered on her breasts for a full moment before lifting up to her face. “Sorry sugar, those are not on the menu.”

  “A beer will do just fine, anything on draft.”

  “Coming right up,” she handed him a menu. All the way back to the bar, she could feel his eyes watching her. One thing this place was good for, was an ego booster. The men who came here were so lustful that they’d make the unattractive feel beautiful. Leaning against the bar smiling, she said, “Hard up on table 12 wants a beer. Anything on draft.”

  Jace’s eyes scanned the bar to the table she spoke of. The guy looked ordinary. A white male, maybe thirty years old, slender build. He was no Brad Pitt but he wasn’t ugly either. “He looks harmless.”

  “Mm, the way he was staring at my breasts was as if he wanted me to pop one of these babies out and feed him.”

  Jace laughed. “If you did that, we’d have to add it to the menu. An order of breast feeding under the appetizers.”

  Both of them laughed as he handed her the mug.

  “Here’s your beer. Have you decided what you’d like to eat?”

&
nbsp; He took a swallow then ran off a list of food. Her eyes nearly bulged at what all he wanted, cheeseburger with fries, meatloaf with baked potato, a side order of mac and cheese.

  “I’ll have it out as soon as possible.”

  As she went to the kitchen to put the order in, Prynce looked over at the bar. Taking his phone out, he captured a few pictures of Jace: which he sent to Octorian via text message. This was the easiest money he ever made. Thank god he went with his guts and decided to start his search in New York City.

  A few minutes after sending the message he got a response saying, I’m on my way. Putting his phone down, he turned his attention back to the bar. Not that he was into guys but, this Jace was certainly pleasant on the eyes. He could see the model still in him. As time was idle, he found himself taking in the décor of the place. This was a small dive, nothing fancy. Jace couldn’t be making much more than minimum wage. Normally when he was hired to do a job, he did it and moved on. The what and why’s were none of his concern. Just the job and the pay. But he couldn’t help but to think; this guy was living a life of luxury. Why would he run away and subject himself to unnecessary hardships? This part of New York wasn’t the Ritz. Shit happened in the lower parts of the city, detrimental shit. He watched the young man interact with the customers. He seemed lively and well liked. He wondered, why did he leave Vanderhuff.

  A few minutes later his plates of food were delivered. He sat back slowly picking through the entrees as he watched the bar. It should take Vanderhuff roughly about an hour and a half to get here. He planned on waiting.

  Octorian boarded the private Cessna plane. He’d called Rock and told him he’d be in the city in about two hours. After securing his room at the Waldorf, he packed and met his pilot at Hartfield Jackson. He couldn’t wait to lay eyes on Jace. The little bitch was in for some real pain. Embarrassing him like this, he’d be lucky he doesn’t snap his neck the moment he sees him.

  As the small craft ascended, he stared out of the window grinding his teeth.

  Around 4:47pm, the call came in from Public School 256 on W. 93rd Street. A white male, Dakar Cole, age 12 was taken at the corner of W. 93RD and Amsterdam Ave. Kids reported that he was walking to the bus stop when a black van suddenly pulled over, the side door opened and someone with a Michael Myers mask, snatched him inside. The van then sped off. License plates numbers were unable to be retrieved. Cobra and Barney raced to the scene. Three squad cars, two teachers and a group of kids were all huddled at the kidnapped scene. Cobra walked up to the first lady. “Hello, I’m Detective Stallone. Can you tell me what happened here?”

  The lady grasp his hand and shook it hard. “I’m Bella Stevens. I was with the children in the after school care program when Timmy Wells came running in screaming that Dakar was taken. Naturally I ran out of the building and made my way to the bus stop but by the time I arrived, there was no van and no Dakar. The other children who were waiting with Dakar, were crying and saying the same thing. A black van took him away.”

  Just then a Lincoln pulled up to the sidewalk and a very distinguished looking man with salt and pepper hair jumped out. A nice looking blonde was with him.

  “I demand to speak with whomever is in charge. I want my son found and I want it done now!”

  “Mr. Cole I am so sorry about Dakar—,” Ms. Stevens began.

  Leaning down in her face he roared, “You should be. I’m going to talk to the board first thing in the morning and have you and whoever else removed. You shouldn’t be allowed to teach or be responsible for children if you can’t protect them!”

  Tears shined in Ms. Stevens eyes as she moved back from the irate man.

  “Sir, Cobra interjected, saving the woman any more verbal abuse; I’m Detective Stallone and this is my partner Barney Goldman. Can you tell us a few things about your son? First, how long as he been a student at this school? How long has he been taking the bus home?”

  “He’s gone to this school ever since he was in first grade. This is the first year that we allowed him to take the bus. He said he wanted to be like the other children.”

  “Sir, would you happen to have a recent picture of him on you?”

  The man pulled out his wallet, retrieved the picture and handed it to Cobra.

  “May we keep this?”

  “Yes.”

  Barney walked over to them at that moment. “The parents of the children are on their way to pick them up. The teachers have given a report.”

  Cobra looked at Mr. Cole. “Can you follow us back to the precinct? We’d like to take a full report and get as much information on your son as possible.”

  He grumbled something about incompetence and stalked over to his car.

  “I know his son is missing but does he have to be an asshole,” Barney said as they climbed in the car.

  “Barn, you know what this means right?”

  “What?”

  “I’ll have to contact Spike today. If this kid is tangled up in this trafficked ring, we need access before something dire befalls him.”

  Cobra looked at his watch.

  “You want to call him, don’t you?”

  “Yeah. I don’t want to hover but the things that he told me about his husband, disturbs the fuck out of me. I don’t trust him.”

  “I’m still reeling over the green thread thing. That’s like beyond crazy. When we get to the station, call him. I’ll start with the Coles.”

  “Thanks man.”

  No sooner they reached the precinct, Cobra deviated to the bathroom. The way he figured, he’d better make those two calls now. This case may take precedence for the rest of the day. Something inside him warmed when Jace’s sweet voice answered. “Hey.”

  “Hey cutie. You okay?”

  “Yes, it’s just busy.”

  “Did you get a chance to speak to that lawyer?”

  “Yes. I’m waiting on his call. After I explained everything, he said that he had to check into something and would get back to me. He said to stay near the phone. It sound really important.”

  “I’m not sure what it could be but I do know that Kevin Kosugi is one of the best family lawyers in New York. He doesn’t make the big bucks for nothing.”

  “That’s another thing. He told me not to worry about a retainer fee and to tell Barney to drop by the house sometime soon. That Heather is still single.”

  Cobra laughed at that. Two chicks talking marriage in one week, Barney was going to have a coronary. “Listen, I have to go. A case just came up and it looks like it’s going to take some time. Travis and Jonah will escort you back to the house if we’re not there. I may be really late.”

  “It’s okay. Do what you have to do. I’ll see you later.”

  “You sure will, cutie.”

  Jace blushed on the other end as he disconnected.

  Cobra’s next call was to Spike.

  “Hey man, I’ve been expecting your call.”

  “Well with the police and all hanging around the streets, my pockets are kinda low.”

  Spike chuckled, “I understand. Meet me tomorrow at Battery Park at noon.”

  “See you then.”

  Putting his phone away, Cobra journeyed to the room where Barney had escorted the Coles. Mr. Cole was standing up delivering all manners of hell. If the expression on Barney’s face was anything to go by, he arrived just in time.

  Can you believe that guy is still here?” Lydia whispered to Jace as she leaned on the bar.

  Jace laughed, “What I can’t believe is the amount of food he’s already eaten and the fact that he just ordered more.”

  Lydia turned and looked towards the man. “He seems to be waiting for someone.”

  “Hopefully they’ll get here before he clears the kitchen.”

  Jace’s phone rang again.

  “Oh wow, aren’t we famous today,” Lydia grinned.

  “Could you watch the bar, I have to take this.”

  “Sure.”

  He stepped into the male r
estroom. “Hello.”

  “Hello Jace, this is Kevin Kosugi.”

  “Yes, Mr. Kosugi.”

  “Are you relaxed?”

  “Uh as much as I can be at the moment.”

  “Well son, as of 4:57 today, you are legally a free man. I spoke with Supreme Court Judge Randolph Clemens and explained your case in its entirety. He then granted you a divorce on the grounds of Life Threatening Circumstances by Spouse. He also made your order of protection, indefinite. A copy of both orders have been faxed over to Atlanta P.D and Octorian Vanderhuff should be served within the hour. You are now legally Jace Reynolds once more.”

  A sob erupted from Jace’s throat as he slid down the wall onto the floor. Tears of absolute joy were streaming down his cheeks. All he could utter were the words, “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

  “None needed son. Monsters such as Vanderhuff don’t deserve to marry. You be good to yourself.”

  “Thank you again Mr. Kosugi.” Standing, Jace made his way over to the mirror. There, he laughed and cried at his reflection. Never had he thought this would happen. He truly imagined he’d have to fight to the death with Octorian to be rid of him. It felt good to be free. Turning the water on, Jace washed his face, patted it dry with a paper towel, then exited the bathroom.

  “Wow, did you win the lotto or something? You’re practically glowing.”

  “Nope, I just got some really great news.”

  “That’s good.” She nudged him in the side. “Looks like Hard Up’s company just arrived.”

  Jace looked over to the table. The newcomer was tall, 6 feet or so. He had a build pretty much like Octorian’s. Whereas Octorian had neatly cut jet black hair, this guy’s was brown and hung in curly locks down to his shoulder. And he had a mustache.

  Lydia walked off to get the guy’s order.

  “Hi I’m Lydia, your waitress this evening. What can I start you off with?”

  “Let me have a shot of Patron. And just leave the menu.”