Pro Bono Romance

by Shirley Holder Platt

  “Is Rainy over there?” Sophie’s voice reminded him that he needed to thank her for cleaning his house while he was in the hospital.

  “No, haven’t seen her since she came to the hospital that day. Not even sure what day that was. Hey, thanks for the clean house. It looks great.”

  “You live like a pig,” Sophie said in her straight-forward manner.

  “I know. So, why are you asking about Rainy?” He took a bite of the sandwich and made a face. The thing was disgusting, but he was hungry and there was nothing else in the house.

  “She wasn’t at the café when Leon got in this morning, and the place was trashed. It was just like her house after Martin threw his fit. No one has heard from her. Her purse, cell phone, and keys were in the cubby she uses, and it looked like there was a scuffle from the shoe prints in the mess on the floor.”

  “Martin. They shouldn’t have let him out on bail. The man’s a menace. If he hurts her…”

  “The police think they’ve got some good prints.”

  “Good. They’ve got Martin’s to match now. They move slowly. We need to do something.” Gabe wanted to get in his car immediately. Apparently, Martin had become fully deranged. There was no telling what the man might do to Rainy.

  “I know. I’ve got Zeke out looking. He’s going to go by the house where y’all found Delilah the other day.”

  “Tell him to be careful. If Martin was willing to shoot me in a public place, he won’t hesitate to shoot Zeke if he sets foot on the property.” Gabe tried another bite of his sandwich, but couldn’t make himself eat it. He slammed it down on the plate. He needed to do something to help find Rainy before it was too late.

  “I told him the exact same thing. I’m worried, though. You know how hot-headed your brother is.”

  “I’ll head over and meet him,” Gabe said. He threw the nasty sandwich in the trash and picked up his car keys. He wondered who had driven it home from the gym.

  “You’ll do no such thing. You were told to rest.”

  “You’re not my mother, Sophie. I am a grown man.”

  He searched for his wallet. Found it in the bag he’d brought home from the hospital, along with his dirty socks, sweatpants, underwear, trainers, but no shirt. They must have cut it off at the hospital. He had no recollection of losing it.

  “I haven’t taken pain meds for over twenty-four hours now. There’s no reason I can’t drive.”

  “Yeah? Well, what about the doctor’s orders? Let Zeke check the house out before you go blundering in and get yourself shot again.”

  “OK. I’ll wait, but call me at the first word from Zeke.” He told her what she wanted to hear, but had no intention of staying home while Rainy was in trouble. As soon as Sophie disconnected, he locked his house up and got in the car. Luckily, his left arm was in the sling, and he was right-handed. As he was backing out of his driveway, a car pulled in and blocked him. It was Nat. Gabe got out, yelling, “Get out of my way.”

  “Where do you think you’re going?” Nat yelled back.

  “Rainy’s in trouble. Do you think I’m going to sit on my thumb?” They were leaning into each other’s face. Gabe pushed Nat. Nat stepped back, off balance. He came back at his brother with fists raised.

  “Go ahead. I always could beat you with one hand behind my back,” Gabe said.

  “Nat feinted a right hook. Gabe lost his balance and stumbled into the side of his car.”

  “Fat lot of good you’d do her,” Nat said.

  “Move your vehicle.” Gabe’s nostrils flared and he lowered his voice to a growl. This usually worked on his little brother, but this time Nat stood his ground.

  “No.” He crossed his arms and flared his nostrils back at Gabe.

  “Drive me then,” Gabe said in frustration.

  “Now you’re talking. Why do you think I came over here?” Nat broke into a smile and patted Gabe on the back.

  “Oh.”

  “Just get in.” Nat jerked the passenger door open and slammed it when Gabe was seated. He shook his head and rolled his eyes as he rounded the car and got into the driver’s seat.

  “Where to?” he asked.

  “Drive through a Whataburger first. I’m starved.” Gabe was glad he’d thrown the sandwich away. A good hot burger and a cold chocolate shake was just what the doctor ordered.

  “I can do that,” Nat said. “Can’t be a white knight on an empty stomach.”

  “As if you would know.”

  “Don’t hassle the driver,” Nat said. It was what their mother said anytime they were in the car with her during their childhood.

  Nat gave their order to the voice box three times before the person inside got it right. Gabe drummed the fingers of his right hand on the dashboard continually.

  “How hard is it to understand two cheeseburgers with everything and two shakes?” Nat said as he inched forward. There were several cars ahead of them. Gabe’s stomach rumbled loudly. As they sat in the drive-through line, Gabe’s phone rang.

  “Yo,” he said when Zeke’s picture came up. “Did you find her?”

  Chapter Fifteen – Rainy

  Martin pushed Rainy into a bedroom and shut the door. She pulled the door open, but Toni was standing guard. Rainy got into her boxing stance and threw a left hook at her captor. Unfortunately, Toni saw the jab coming, and the hit didn’t knock her out. It did serve to make the angry woman more aggressive. She kicked Rainy in the shin and pushed her back into the room. When Rainy tried to get out again, Toni was holding the knob from the outside. Martin came back, yelling at Toni to step away. Rainy thought this might be her chance, but Martin was already nailing the door shut.

  “You can’t lock me in,” Rainy yelled through the door. “What if there’s a fire?”

  “The house ain’t gonna burn down. Just shut up,” Toni said. “I’ve about had it with you.”

  Rainy was starting to really hate that blonde bimbo. She heard them clomping away after the hammering stopped. She slid down with her back against the door.

  The room reeked of cigarette smoke and stale beer. The walls were probably once a bright shade of white, but were now nicotine brown. The carpet was stained, there were no curtains, sheets or pillows, the bare mattress looked lethal, and the bathroom needed a day’s worth of scrubbing to make it livable. She had one wash cloth, a hand towel, and a small bar of soap that was from a Marriott hotel. At least she could stay clean and use the bathroom. The window was painted shut, and if she could have opened it, it would do no good, since there were burglar bars. She tried prying the bathroom door that led to the next room open, but it wouldn’t budge. There was no shower curtain or rod, so she couldn’t use the metal for anything that might help her get out or as a weapon next time the door opened and Martin or Toni stuck a head inside. There was no mirror to break. Rock and roll music blared through the house, and she could hear Martin and the hateful woman in the other room arguing loud enough to wake the dead. The smell of marijuana was strong. She’d always thought that pot made people mellow, but it didn’t seem to have that effect on her kidnappers.

  She’d broken every fingernail trying to get the window open. She gave up and instead slipped her shirt off and wrapped it around her hand, like she’d seen the woman do when she broke into her back door. When the music was blaring a guitar solo, she knocked a pane of glass out. Her idea was to stick her arm out and wave until someone drove by and spotted her. Of course, with her luck, the window faced a back yard that no one could see. She waved until she thought her arm would fall off. She’d given up and laid down on the nasty bed when the door opened, and Martin came in through the bathroom with a bottle of water.

  “You need to let me go.”

  “I don’t think so. Not until you figure out how to get me your purse. You have another hour. After that, you don’t want to know what I’m going to do to you.” He slurred his words and his eyes were blood shot.

  “Martin, listen to me. You’re stoned out of your mind. You can�
�t think this is a good idea. People will be looking for me.”

  “Let ‘em look.” He tossed the bottle across the room and it rolled toward the window. Rainy held her breath. If he saw that she’d broken the pane out, he’d be upset. Luckily, he didn’t notice, because Toni calling for him took his attention away from the bottle. He walked out, and Rainy rushed the door, but he locked it before she could stick her foot in the opening. She banged on it out of frustration and could hear Martin snickering on the other side. This house had solid wood doors. Where was a flimsy door when you needed it?

  “One hour,” he said. Then she heard his boots clomping down the hallway. She slumped back onto the bed and let some frustration out through gritted teeth. When she was calmer, she went through her memories of movies with prison breaks. The only one she thought might help was Shanghai Noon with Jackie Chan, where he peed on material and used it to bend iron bars to break out of an old western jail. The guys on Mythbusters had tried the same thing and proven it to be viable. Unfortunately, she had no sheets; the hand towel wasn’t big enough.

  “My jeans,” she said to herself and started taking them off. She ran to the faucet in the little bathroom and soaked them down. She broke another pane out of the window and tied the jeans legs around two of the bars. Then she started twisting. It wasn’t as easy as it looked in the movies, but she was determined to get out. The bars started to bend and her hopes soared. She was so focused, she failed to notice the door opening. Martin flew into the room in a rage and jerked her pony tail so hard she fell backwards and sprawled on the dirty carpet.

  “You bitch,” he screamed. He untied the jeans and picked up the shirt she’d left in the floor. A shard of glass cut his finger, and he stuck it into his mouth. If looks could kill, she would already be dead. He kicked her in the ribs one time and left her in the floor holding her side. She was really stuck now, and all she had on was her bra and panties. If she got out of this mess, she would surely make a scene that would bring help. At least she’d be hard to ignore running down the street in her underwear. She searched around for any broken glass she could use as a weapon. The next time that door opened, somebody was going to bleed.

  She had no way of telling time, except for the movement of the sun, and it was a cloudy day, but she thought it had been about an hour of unrelenting acid rock. She sat on the bed and tried to think of anything else that she could do. She heard Martin cursing outside, so she ran to the window. He had a piece of plywood. He was going to close her in. She had to get out before he did that. Claustrophobia would set in if she couldn’t see outside.

  “Please, don’t do this, Martin,” she pleaded through the window, but he didn’t look up. He slid the wood between the window and the bars and started hammering. She begged to no avail. She lost it. Sobs burst out and bent her double. She had believed she could bargain her way out, or break out, but all hope flew out the window just before the last nail was driven in.

  “Shut up in there,” Toni yelled from the other room. “No one wants to hear your whining.” Then she started laughing. It sounded like a fairy tale witch cackling.

  Rainy sunk to a new low. If only she’d had rocks or breadcrumbs, maybe someone would have been able to follow her tracks. She had to believe that people were looking for her. She berated herself for not having gone with Zeke and Gabe to find Delilah when Martin first started this crazy behavior. Then, at least she would know if she was being held in the same house. If she was, there was a slim ray of hope that the guys would look for her there. If not, how would they ever locate her?

  The thought crossed her mind that they may not be looking. She’d told Gabe off and shoved him out of her door after that scorching kiss and subsequent rejection. Then she told him she only visited him the hospital out of guilt. Why would he want to find her? He was probably still laid up in a hospital bed anyway.

  She got up and pounded on the door with her fists until they hurt so bad that she couldn’t pound anymore. No one answered. The music still blared, but she hadn’t heard any voices in quite some time.

  “Hello?” She waited, but no one answered. “Hello? Anybody? I need something to eat.”

  Nothing. They were gone. This could be her only chance to escape.

  She couldn’t tell if it was night or day. It probably hadn’t been that long, but time had slowed to a crawl. She pulled the bed over to the window where she’d started bending the bars and climbed up. With all her strength, she pushed against the board that Martin had nailed in. It didn’t move. She tried again, holding onto the bars and pushing with her right foot. The nails screeched and the board moved slightly. Her strength doubled with that little bit of success, so she tried again. Sunlight peeked through the side. A dog barked.

  “Hello! Help! Is anybody there? I need help!” She screamed and screamed and the dog barked and barked. Her throat ached, but she couldn’t stop. Someone would surely hear her if she could just scream loud enough.

  Chapter Sixteen – Gabe

  “Stop at the café,” Gabe said after swallowing a big bite of cheeseburger. “Let’s see if they’ve heard anything new.” They were within two blocks, so Nat pulled into the parking lot in minutes. He jumped out and told Gabe to stay put.

  “No way,” Gabe said. He followed Nat, but the place was locked up tight. Nat banged on the door and peered inside.

  “I see Olivia and Leon,” he said. “She’s coming to the door.” Nat’s cheeks flamed red when Olivia opened the door.

  “Any news?” he asked.

  “Nothing. I don’t know what to do. The cops came and went, so Leon and I cleaned up. Should I open? What would Rainy want me to do?” She bit her bottom lip, and her hands were fisted at her sides. “You don’t think she’s hurt?”

  Nat put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her in for a hug. She let him for a moment. She even laid her head against his neck and sighed, but then seemed to remember where she was and drew away from him.

  “We’re going looking. Got any ideas where Martin might take her?” Gabe said to fill the awkward gap that followed.

  “No. I wish I did. I don’t guess he’d go back to her house?” Olivia chewed her lip. Leon walked up with a bar rag in his hand.

  “Made a helluva mess in there,” he said as he pointed his thumb over his shoulder. “Must be crazy to do that. He can’t think he’ll get away with this. Everyone in town knows he did it.” The big man’s concern showed in his eyes.

  “I think Rainy would want you to keep things going.”

  “That’s what I told Olivia,” Leon said.

  “OK. We’ll open up, but if that crazy man comes in here, I’m out the back door. No offense, Gabe, but one shooting is enough for me.”

  “None taken. None would have been better, as far as I’m concerned,” Gabe said. “And you’ve got a kid to look after.”

  Olivia’s eyes softened at the mention of her child. Gabe noticed that she’d added a purple streak in her hair.

  “We’ll keep you guys posted. Let us know if you hear anything,” Nat said.

  “Don’t get hurt.” Olivia put her hand on his arm as he turned to open the door and leave.

  “I don’t plan to,” Nat said. The two looked into each other’s eyes longer than necessary, until Gabe cleared his throat and moved his head in the direction of the parking lot.

  “Yeah, well, see you later?” Nat said as his face heated again. Olivia nodded and walked to the door behind him. She turned the sign to open as Gabe and Nat got into Nat’s car and drove away.

  “She’s pretty,” Gabe said. Nat would know he was fishing for information, but he had to try.

  “Yep. Now where are we headed?”

  “Go to her house first. I think Zeke might be there.” They finished their hamburgers and shakes on the way over. Little was said, because Gabe was worried and didn’t feel much like giving his brother a hard time about Olivia. The back door was open with a glass pane knocked out. Delilah was in the back yard barking her head off.
Gabe picked her up. She was shaking all over.

  “What happened, girl?” he asked in a soothing voice. “Where’s Rainy?” The dog kept shaking, but had no answers for him. “Let’s look around.” He went in and found most everything in order until he got to Rainy’s bedroom. The drawers were pulled out of the dresser and clothes had been tossed everywhere. A little safe in the bottom of her closet was open and some documents were scattered in front of it. Nat called from the next room.

  “This room looks like that one. What a mess. Can you tell if anything important is missing?” He came into the bedroom with his hands at the back of his head. Gabe shook his head and sat back on his heels.

  “We should probably call the cops and tell them what we found, but I’d rather go looking for her. What’s your take?” Gabe asked.

  “I don’t want to wait around for police procedures and lots of questions about why we’re here.”

  “Me either. Let’s go.”

  “Where?” Nat turned in a circle with an exasperated look.

  “I got a text from Zeke. He’s going by the house where we found Martin holding the dog. Let’s call him.” Gabe was already punching his brother’s number into speed dial.

  “Where are you?” he asked when Zeke engaged.

  “I just pulled into Martin’s neighborhood. Coming up on the house.”

  “Nat and I are on our way. Don’t do anything stupid before we get there.”

  “OK. I’ll wait and do my stupid routine when you can watch. I thought you were supposed to be resting.”

  “Like I could.”

  “I hear ya. See you soon.” Zeke hung up, and Gabe gave Nat directions.

  “Hurry.”