by Jill Shannon
“What’s going on? Kyle said it sounded important.”
Caleb came busting through the door, waving a piece of paper in his hand, walking right up to Cameron. “This is for you, the stakes just got a lot higher.” He shoved the paper at him.
“What the hell does it say?” Dimitri ranted.
There were only the sounds from the instruments in the room, and then Cameron read:
“We have recovered a few of your crew members, they seemed to have jumped ship. (They have now become part of the package.) They will be kept safe provided they cooperate; however, their ultimate salvation relies solely on you, Cameron.
You know what’s at stake, should you decide to be a hero, we will begin taking them apart, one body part at a time. They will, however, be returned (hopefully) in one piece after the final bell.
Oh, and one last thing, win or lose, Sadie will never be yours. She has always been mine, and always will be.”
The Master
“You were absolutely right; the stakes did just get higher.” Cameron turned towards Nicolas. “Get in touch with your men on the ground, Arcola is involved in this some way. Have them watch the water. They’ll have to get them to the Caymans. That’s the route I’d take.”
“I’m on it. If you need me, I’ll keep a line clear.” Nicolas looked at Caleb. “Is there any way you can track their phones? That might be our best shot at pinpointing their location.”
Caleb picked his head up, and looked right at Cameron. “We are going to do everything that we can to make sure all three of them are safe before you have to face that bastard. If, and that’s a big if, we can’t locate them by that time, what are you going to do?”
Cameron’s eyes traveled around the room, looking at each of the men who had become a part of his life, his friends. They were still willing to help him, even after he was an idiot and hadn’t trusted them with this deal.
“There is no, if,” Cameron growled. “I will make sure nothing happens to any of them. They will be back on this ship for the trip home, I swear on my life.”
Dimitri glanced at the captain. “We stay on schedule, and we need to keep it together. Those of us who have things planned; let’s get to it. I want everyone checking in every hour, until we know exactly what’s going on. Nicolas, I want your security team notified of the situation. They are to let you know if they see anything that doesn’t look right. Someone had to have seen something.”
“Caleb, check and see if everyone has returned to the ship. As long as all the other passengers are boarded, we can leave early. I’ll get things ready. You know where to find me. I’m going to check with Melanie, and see if she’s heard anything. I’ll be back.” Captain Joshua left the bridge, leaving Logan in charge.
“I’m going to the computer room, and see if I can ping Isabella’s phone. Then I’m going to see if there’s some video footage that shows what we’re dealing with here.” Caleb headed towards the door but paused. “I was pissed at you when I first saw that message. You put a lot of people in danger. I know you didn’t intend for any of this to happen. But I hope you know you have friends who will stand with you.”
“Caleb, I am sorry. I will make this right.”
“No worries, you have the best team backing you up. They won’t know what hit them. Now, go find Harley; we’ll take care of locating the girls. You need to get your shit together, and have your head in the right place. You get my meaning?”
“Loud and clear, thanks again, Caleb. I owe you.” Cameron started to follow Caleb out the door. He swung around to Dimitri. “I’ll be in the gym with Harley, send me an update when you hear anything.”
Dimitri looked at Logan. “Whoever took Madison, Isabella, and Sadie, better pray Cameron doesn’t find him.” Dimitri paused by the door. “Because I’ve seen what he can do when he’s pissed, and let me tell you it’s not a pretty sight.” Dimitri shook his head. “I’m going to the after-party to see if anyone saw anything unusual while on shore today.”
“We have no idea what kind of a head start they have on us, but with the captain at the helm, he’ll make sure we’re not too far behind them. I’ll let Nick know where you are.”
As Dimitri left the bridge, all his thoughts turned to Madison. What was happening to her? What would happen to her if she had a panic attack? He had to find her; it was his responsibility to keep her safe, and he was failing miserably.
***
Cameron walked into the gym. Harley was already waiting for him. “I need to keep my mind occupied, and I need you to keep me from going overboard. They have to be all right. It will be all my fault if anything happens to them.”
“Look at me, Cameron. There was no way you could have known this was going to happen. But someone on this ship played a role in it.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Sadie is the only sub you have shown any real interest in. Someone saw that, and used it against you. They had to be watching you, waiting for an opening. She was it.”
“How did that bastard get someone on this ship? We handpicked all the passengers for this cruise. They better pray Sadie’s not hurt in any way, because if she is, I’m going to kill the son of a bitch.”
“I’d lay odds that when you check the passenger manifest, at least one other will be missing from it. That’s the Master.”
Cameron stopped in his tracks. “I never thought of that.”
He turned to leave the gym, but Harley stopped him.
“Where the hell do you think you’re going?”
“I’m going to check the manifest.”
“No, you’re going to start working out on the bag. I’ll have Caleb check with Taylor and find out if everyone else is boarded.”
Harley walked over to the phone, while Cameron started pounding the shit out of the heavy bag.
“Caleb, has anyone checked the manifest yet? I think Arcola might have planted someone on the ship to watch Cameron.” Harley hung up the phone.
“What did he say?”
“He’d check it out and let me know. Let’s go for a run, I think the night air will do us some good.”
“Nothing I do will be good till Sadie’s safe.” With that said, Cameron and Harley left the gym.
***
Caleb looked at the clock on the wall of the security room. It was just past 11:00 pm. Everyone had been accounted for, except Isabella, Madison, Sadie, and one other male passenger.
Caleb did a web search on him, just to see what kind of psycho they were dealing with. What he found out was going to blow everyone’s mind.
Caleb called up to the bridge looking for Dimitri. Captain Joshua told him were he could be found. Caleb also suggested the captain start planning their departure, because if he was right, no one else was getting back on board tonight.
Dimitri was at the head of a toga clad dance line trailing behind him when Caleb walked into the after party, tonight’s theme “TOGA”. He disengaged from the line the minute he saw Caleb walk in.
“Did you find something?” Dimitri led Caleb back out onto the deck.
“Harley suggested I check the manifest to see if anyone else was missing besides the girls, and I found a Dr. Ryan Romeo, aka Ryan Romero Arcola. He’s Arcola’s nephew. Ain’t that some shit.”
“How the hell did he get on this ship? We screened everyone,” Dimitri demanded.
“He slipped by my radar. Boss, Tyler Bowman vouched for him. His background check didn’t raise any red flags. In fact, I had to do some pretty impressive hacking to get this information. They set his profile up perfectly. I’ll make it up to Cameron and Sadie when this is all finished.
“I’ll have some making up to do with Isabella too. I feel like the biggest ass for missing this one vital piece of information, and look how many lives I’ve put in danger. I would understand if you want me off your ship.” Caleb hung his head.
“No, Caleb, I don’t want you off the ship, you need to get back down to security and find them. There has to be
some trace of them. Find it! I’m going to find Tyler and ask him how the hell he got mixed up with Arcola. But first, I’m going to get out of this ridiculous toga.”
Caleb wasn’t sure if it was a good time to joke, but he couldn’t help himself. “But, boss, it shows off your toned legs.” The grin on his face had Dimitri punching him on the arm.
“Damn right I got toned legs, I work them out enough. Now, get back to work.” Caleb walked around Dimitri rubbing his shoulder. “Caleb.” He stopped and turned around. “Good job.” Dimitri then proceeded to leave a laughing Caleb behind as he pulled the toga up and mooned him as he walked away.
***
Yvonne had been hearing the talk all night about the three missing crewmembers. Some said they got so drunk they missed the ship. Others said they decided to stay in Jamaica and fly home. A few had heard a rumor that they were kidnapped and being held by a drug lord, and he wanted Cameron and Dimitri to smuggle drugs on the cruise ship.
After re-boarding the ship earlier, Yvonne had avoided Queenie. She had hoped that Queenie would have come banging on her door pleading for forgiveness and pledging to be her Mistress, but that didn’t happen.
Maybe it was time to move on, but there was a reason why Queenie had wanted to trail those three today, and she was going to find out why.
Yvonne knocked on Queenie’s door and waited.
Queenie looked through the in-door viewer and saw Yvonne. She opened the door tentatively, and let Yvonne in.
Yvonne moved into the cabin and sat in the chair by the window. “I’m going to get right to the point. What do you know about the three missing women? What did you get me into now?”
“After you left me today, I ended up in Margaritaville. I remember seeing them get taken in the van, but like now, just like then, I saw no reason to let anyone know. I wanted to, I just couldn’t.”
Yvonne stood from the chair. “Are you telling me, you saw them get taken, and thrown in a van? Did you see where they went?” She nodded her head yes. “And you didn’t tell anyone but me. Why?”
“I have tried since I found out they were missing. As much as I talk a big game, I really didn’t want anything to happen to Sadie. Every time I opened my mouth to tell someone, nothing came out. I could talk, I just couldn’t remember what I wanted to tell them.”
“Then how come you could tell me?” Yvonne’s face looked as confused as Queenie’s.
“I think because you came to me, I didn’t go to you. You get what I’m saying. It’s weird, right? But now that you know, you can tell Cameron what happened.” Queenie approached Yvonne.
“I also thought about what you said, and you were right. I just didn’t realize. I was just so consumed with the thought of having Cameron that I never looked any further. I was willing to surpass what I really am. That’s a Mistress and I haven’t been a good Mistress to you, but I would like the chance to change that.
“I have been very selfish, but I never put you in any danger. I don’t know if you can forgive me, but I’d like the chance to make this right.”
“I still don’t understand why you can’t tell anyone what you saw. But, we are going to get to the bottom of this. Let’s go. You’re coming with me. I need to see this for myself. You’re going to tell Cameron what you know.”
“I swear, I will try.” Queenie followed her out the door in search of Cameron.
They found Cameron at the Master’s Lounge, he was sitting at the bar, a defeated look on his face. They approached him carefully.
“Cameron,” Yvonne said, gaining his attention. “Queenie here has something to tell you.” She turned to Queenie. “You’re up.”
Queenie stepped forward. “What were we talking about? I can’t seem to keep my thoughts straight.”
“You were going to tell Cameron what you saw in Jamaica”
“Oh, it’s a beautiful island. I wished we had more time there,” she paused, a glassy look in her eyes. “I was supposed to tell Cameron something, wasn’t I?” She glanced at Yvonne.
Cameron looked at Yvonne as well. “I really don’t have time for this nonsense. I’m dealing with missing passengers,” Cameron continued under his breath, “and an asshole that won’t go away.”
“We understand that. Queenie told me she saw the women earlier. They were put in a van.”
Cameron got off the barstool and stood in front of Queenie. “Tell me everything you saw.”
“Oh thank God, you finally asked!”
“What the hell does that mean. I had no idea you had any useful information. Hell, I don’t even know who you are. Why would I come looking to ask you anything?” Cameron was starting to lose his temper.
Queenie looked pleadingly at Yvonne before saying, “You’re right. You don’t know me. I think that might be why he chose me.” This got Cameron’s attention.
“I saw four men put rags over the girls faces. A van pulled up, they put the women in and drove off towards the pier. All of them were unconscious when they were put in the van. Sadie did get a shot in on her captor, but the Master put another rag on her face, and then she was out.”
“The Master sent me a note earlier tonight, you must be able to identify him, right? I’ll have Caleb set you up with a computer so you can point him out to us.”
Yvonne hesitantly said to Cameron. “That might be a problem, she doesn’t remember what he looks like.”
“How is that possible? She just said she saw him earlier. That must mean she can pick his picture out.”
“She really might not be able to do that, Cameron.” Dimitri came walking in with Nicolas, Caleb, Tyler, Grayson, and Harley.
Yvonne came forward. “I wonder? She didn’t remember telling me to dye my hair. Could that be related to this situation?”
Spinning back to the bar Cameron demanded, “Dominic, I need a shot right now!”
“Line em’ up, I think I can safely say, we are all due.” Dimitri smacked his hand on Cameron’s shoulder. “Wait till you hear what that mother fucker has been up to.”
Chapter Thirteen
Sadie woke when the women were being transferred onto what looked like a miniature cruise ship. If she didn’t think she was going to die on this boat, she would have found it absolutely gorgeous. She tried to scream for help when she had been removed from the van. But, before the sound left her mouth, she felt pain erupting as the punch hit the side of her face, and she was out again.
Sadie stirred. Pain shot straight to her head. Carefully opening her eyes, she took in the room. She seemed to be lying facedown on a couch. There didn’t seem to be anyone else in the room. She tested her arms, to find them tied, as well as her ankles.
She looked for Madison and Isabella but she didn’t see them, so she closed her eyes again. She focused on the sounds around her, the engine hum, voices in another room, but she didn’t hear either of the girls. She prayed they were all right.
Sadie glanced around the spacious room. Looking straight in front of her, she could see the layout of the deck. Sections separated the space. What looked like a dining area, with a wall separating the kitchen? There was a hole in the middle of the wall between the two rooms for serving. On either side of the sections were walkways going further back with staircases on either side spiraling to both the upper and lower decks.
Sadie closed her eyes. The voices coming from behind her were drawing closer. “Why hasn’t she woken up yet? How hard did Dwayne hit her?” The woman’s voice held a hard tone to it, laced with anger.
“Hard enough to knock her back out, but she should be waking soon. I’m looking forward to seeing how much she has learned. She was always eager to please.”
Sadie’s body reacted to that voice. Now she knew she hadn’t been hallucinating. He was really here. The fear Sadie had once felt flooded her. Her eyes flew open. The woman looked familiar, but the other voice was exactly who Sadie knew it would be.
“Hello, Sadie, it’s been a while. I am so looking forward to getting reacquainted.�
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The color drained from her face. “I’m sure you’ll remember Tia. You will see my uncle again when we get to the island.”
Sadie looked at the olive complexion of the Asian women standing in front of her. Her jet-black hair with pink tips hung to her waist, her deep brown eyes were almond shaped, and her make up gave them a feline effect. Her petite nose fit with her plump lips.
The sundress she wore over what looked like a bikini top barely covered her enormous chest. She smiled at Sadie with white straight teeth. “Hello again.”
Sadie thought back to the night she had been taken to meet the trainers. Could these be the same people? She really hadn’t gotten a good look at the woman from the front, and the man had been wearing a full leather mask.
Sadie tried moving her hands and feet again, the zip ties digging into her skin. He came over and sat her up on the couch.
“The last time we met was just an initiation. We weren’t allowed to touch. This time, however, we are going to get better acquainted.” Tia moved closer to Sadie.
“Shut up, Tia. She is still off limits till Cameron complies with our demands.”
“He really doesn’t matter. We can still play with our new toy. He’ll still do what we want, but for now…” Tia ran her fingernail down the side of Sadie’s face skimming the color of the bruise forming on her face. Sadie jerked her head away. “He doesn’t want to run that company. Why doesn’t he just sell it?” Tia asked.
“Who knows? Something about loyalty to his family.” Looking at Sadie, he said, “He hasn’t shown interest in any one sub for years, until you came along. You will make the perfect pawn in uncle’s game of chess, and then we will all have our reward.” He glanced back at Tia.
“Did you ever have that tight ass when you were together?” Tia was practically drooling.
“No, my uncle moved up my initiation once he saw Sadie,” he said, looking at Tia. “It’s funny how life works, he knew I wouldn’t have been able to walk away from her. Look at her.” They were both staring at her as if she’d just sprouted a third boob.