by Cate Beauman
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
Chapter Twenty-five
Chapter Twenty-six
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
THE BODYGUARDS OF L.A. COUNTY
Justice For Abby
Copyright © April 2014 by Cate Beauman.
All rights reserved.
Visit Cate at www.catebeauman.com
Follow Cate on Twitter: @CateBeauman
Or visit her Facebook page: www.facebook.com/CateBeauman
Editor: Invisible Ink Editing, Liam Carnahan
Cover: Demonza
Formatting: Rachelle Ayala
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
The characters and events portrayed in this book are a work of fiction or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
DEDICATION
To Dave and Karen. It’s a lucky woman who can say she not only likes but loves her in-laws.
Chapter One
May 2014
“Abby, wake up. We’re stopping in a second.”
Abby stirred as Alexa’s voice floated through her dreams. She blinked several times, yawning huge and stretching in the passenger’s seat as the warm winds blew through her sister’s open window. “Where are we?”
“About sixty miles from Hagerstown.”
“Thank god.” She sat up further, glancing out at lush green trees and the endless stretch of farmland, eager to be home. “It feels like we’ve been in the car for hours.”
Alexa rolled her eyes, chuckling. “Ab, we’ve been driving for less than four, and you’ve slept almost the whole time.”
She smiled. “Some of us require plenty of beauty sleep.”
Scoffing, Alexa slid her a glance. “I’ve gotta make a pit stop. My eyeballs are practically floating. See?” She quickly turned her head, widening her huge, lake-blue eyes, illustrating her point. “Can you wake Livy?”
Abby peered in the back, her heart melting as sweet little Livy slept with her mouth hanging open, clutching her favorite stuffed frog while her blond pigtails danced in the breeze. “Let’s let her sleep. She wore herself out. I’ll stay with her while you do your thing.”
Alexa looked in her rearview mirror and put on her turn signal, preparing to take the exit. “It’s getting dark. There aren’t many cars in the lot.”
Abby studied the mostly empty rest stop and thick tree cover blocking her view of the interstate, unfazed by Alexa’s perceived sense of danger. She was too used to her sister’s overly precautious nature to do more than glance Lex’s way and blurt out, "worry wart alert, worry wart alert,” in her teasing robot voice, grinning when her sister tossed her a baleful look. “Just go pee, Lex. Livy and I’ll wait here with the windows up and doors locked. Nothing’s going to happen in the five minutes you’ll be gone.” She shook her head, rolling her eyes, and reached in her purse, grabbing her phone. “I’ll even punch nine-one-one into my cell. I’ll keep my thumb hovered over ‘send’ the entire time.” She held up her cell phone with her thumb above the button in demonstration as Alexa pulled into a spot close to the bathrooms.
“I’m sorry, did you say you wanted to walk back?” Alexa smiled as she unfastened her seatbelt. “You sure you don’t want to come?”
“Pee already, Lex,” Abby said with an exasperated laugh. Lex was already wound tight, and their mini-vacation was barely over.
“Okay, be right back.” She rolled up her window and secured the locks as she got out, gently shutting the door.
Wincing, Abby glanced at Olivia, making certain the quiet slam didn’t wake her niece, and turned, huffing out a breath as Alexa hesitated, looking toward the car. “Oh, Lex, go.” She made an exaggerated go-ahead motion with her hands. If her big sister wasn’t worrying about something, she wasn’t breathing.
Sighing, she watched Alexa pull open the door to the pretty brick building. Then she turned her focus to her cell phone, her thumbs flying over the keys, adding ‘to-dos’ to her growing list. The week away had been fun, but now she had a million things to take care of before her long-awaited flight to LA. Two more weeks and she was outta here, off to nail down her dream job with Lily Brand. Her college diploma was hot off the press, but she’d been preparing for this interview since she sewed her first stitch with Gran’s old Singer years ago.
Lily Brand wanted her, and she was more than thrilled to work for one of the world’s hottest designers and philanthropists…for the time being, but in three years everyone would be wearing Abby Harris designs. She would be a household name. Now she just needed to convince Lex to put her money pit on the market and move herself and Livy out to Los Angeles so they could all be together. Life would officially be—
Something tapped against the backseat window, interrupting her thoughts.
Frowning, she turned, gasping as she stared at the gun pointing at Livy through the glass. “Oh my god,” she trembled as her phone fell from numb fingers. Her gaze darted from the mean eyes behind the black mask to the weapon.
“…door.”
His mouth moved, yet she heard nothing but the rapid pounding of her heart as she struggled to think. Was this really happening? Yes, of course it was. Livy needed help. They all needed help. The police would—
The muscled man smacked the pistol against the glass, making her jump. “Open the door,” he said in a thick Russian accent.
She was going to refuse, but then she spotted another hulking man skirting around the gray van parked in the next row, coming their way.
The masked stranger at the window struck the glass harder, settling his finger on the trigger.
“Okay. Don’t hurt her,” she shuddered out, groping for the handle, too afraid to take her eyes off the weapon mere inches from Livy’s head. “Don’t hurt her,” she repeated, remembering to release the lock, and opened her door.
“Unfasten your seatbelt slowly. Don’t try anything funny.”
Swallowing, she complied as she darted a look at the keys in the ignition. If she could somehow get in the driver’s seat… But the gun aimed at her niece left her no choice but to comply with his demands.
“Auntie Ab?” Olivia stirred in the backseat.
She didn’t dare look at the groggy angel calling her name. “It’s okay, Livy. Go back to sleep.”
“Where are we, Auntie Ab?”
“Livy, go back to sleep,” she struggled to say over the terror and tears clogging her throat. “Shut your eyes—” Before she could say more the man grabbed her arm, yanking her from her seat. “Let me go!” She fought to free herself from his biting, meaty grip.
“Auntie Ab!” Olivia started to cry. “Auntie Ab, come back!”
Both men took hold, one gripping her shoulders, the other her ankles, whisking her away from Alexa’s car. �
�Help! Help me!” she screamed uselessly, kicking her feet, twisting and turning, trying desperately to free herself.
“Shut up, bitch!”
She ignored the nasty demand and wretched stench of cigarette breath, fighting for her life as the restroom door opened and Alexa stepped from the building.
“Help me, Lex! Help me!”
Alexa stopped dead, blinked, then ran forward. “Stop it! Leave her alone! Abby! Abby, no!”
“Alexa!” She fought harder as the men moved closer to the open doors at the rear of the van. “No! Please, no!” she begged, trying to claw, bite, anything as they stepped up into the vehicle.
The man at her feet dropped her legs with a jarring thud and shut them in the dark, stuffy vehicle, silencing Alexa’s terrified shouts.
“Let me go.” Abby squirmed in her captor’s vise-like grip while the other man hustled to the cabin, driving off with a screech of tires. “Let me go,” she repeated, fighting to breathe as her abductor increased the crushing pressure of his arms around her chest, restricting her movements further.
“Shut up.”
“Who are you? Why are you doing this? Please let me go. I won’t say anything. I’ll pretend this never happened.”
“Shut up!” He squeezed her until she gasped, certain he would crack her ribs. He gave her a violent shake and shoved her to the hard, unforgiving floor.
Heated tingles surged through her elbow, numbing her entire arm. She cried out in unspeakable agony, clutching at the bone, holding her body tense against the pain and a strong bought of nausea. Taking several deep breaths, she gingerly bent the tender joint, finding a glimmer of relief when she realized it wasn’t broken. All of her limbs needed to be in working order if she had any hope of getting away.
She glanced up as the man pulled off his mask, revealing short black hair and clean-shaven olive skin. He might have been handsome before the broken nose and jagged scar along his right cheekbone, but as he stopped his movements and stared at her through glaring brown eyes all she saw was a monster.
“You like what you see?” He sent her a cruel smile.
“Why are you doing this?” she whispered as she scooted further back against the side of the vehicle, wanting to put as much space between herself and the vile stranger as she could. “You have the wrong person,” she struggled to say, fighting to school her rapid breathing in the stuffy confines.
“Don’t talk.”
“What are you going to do to me?”
He reached over and grabbed her jaw, squeezing. “I said shut up.”
She did her best not to whimper as his fingers bit into her skin with punishing pressure.
“You listen to the things I tell you.” He pulled his hand away.
Her face pulsed where he’d undoubtedly left bruises, but she didn’t dare rub at the ache as he studied her in the shadows
The driver said something in Russian and the van slowed. The man at her side answered in his foreign tongue, still staring at her. Seconds later the vehicle bumped down what could only be a dirt road, jostling Abby about. She sat up, glancing at the back double doors, trying to spot the release latch. There had to be one. There had to be a way out of this nightmare.
“You think you will escape?”
Her eyes darted to the vile creature close by.
“You will never get away. You should get used to this.”
She would get away, or die trying. Surely she was dead if she did nothing at all. She looked back to the door as the van slowed, then stopped. A fresh wave of dread sent her heart on another race when the driver got out. What were they going to do to her, rape and kill her? Would they bury her so Alexa never found her body? Her sister’s terrified eyes flashed through her mind, and she resolved right then and there to fight until they robbed her of her last breath.
She scrutinized the door again, finally making out the latch as she devised her plan. If she could just get the door open, she would run for her life. Her five-four frame was trim and compact. She could move if she had to, and she definitely had to.
Her captor at her side turned, reaching into the cabin, and she saw her chance. It was now or never. She scooted toward the doors and reached for the handle just as the back opened.
“Going somewhere?” Dark brown eyes smiled into hers. The driver’s face was handsome but his eyes cruel—just like his partner’s. “Dimitri, I believe we have a flight risk.”
“Nyet. She will behave or she will be punished. She will never get away, because I will always find her.” He bent low as he walked to the doors, eyeing Abby the entire way. He stopped in front of her, and his big hand shot out, slapping her.
The metallic taste of blood filled her mouth as she jerked back, crying out from the shocking sting on her cheek.
Dimitri gripped her face, pulling them nose-to-nose. “Do you understand, little bitch?”
She blinked as tears fell, breathing in stale cigarettes.
He squeezed harder. “I asked if you understand?”
“Yes,” she choked out, sure her jaw would disintegrate if he didn’t release her from his hold.
“Good.” He nodded. “Now get in the car, or I will discipline you again.”
She was afraid he would knock her unconscious if she didn’t obey, so she walked along the rutted road, staring at the roof of a beautiful old farmhouse peeking over the trees less than a quarter mile away. Safety was so close, yet so far away as she moved closer to the black Honda with tinted windows, noting the Maryland plates.
Dimitri opened the back door, giving her a violent shove to her seat as he slid in next to her. She inched her way over to her side and slowly reached for the handle, ready to make her escape.
“It’s locked, but this is a nice try.”
Abby glanced at Dimitri as her hopes of running withered. With nothing else to do, she moved closer to her window, watching the sun vanish along the horizon, wondering if she would be alive when it rose again tomorrow.
“We are late.” The driver got in, started the car, and drove away.
Late for what? Where were they taking her now?
Dimitri said something in Russian, and Abby strained to listen, catching the words ‘Victor’ and ‘Hartwell’ in his rapid speak.
The driver grunted, tossing something over the seat.
“Put this on your head,” Dimitri demanded.
Abby stared at the poorly sewn black fabric he held up. How would she see where they were going? How would she get help, which was exactly the point she supposed.
“You do not listen well. They said you were beautiful and smart, but I’m thinking this might be wrong. Your mind does not seem as good as your looks.”
She didn’t know what he was talking about. Who were ‘they’? “You have the wrong person,” she tried again even though it was useless. She had seen their faces. For that alone she would die.
“You are the right one. Trust me. Now put it on.”
She hesitated, hating the idea of losing her ability to see where they were taking her.
He grabbed a handful of her waist-long black hair, yanking her face to his. “I said put it on.”
She stifled her yelp, took the bag, and covered her head, blinking in the darkness. She gripped her clammy hands in her lap as the pitch black left her more vulnerable than she already was. Goosebumps puckered her skin as she moved closer to her door, not wanting Dimitri’s large frame touching her exposed arms in her tank top or her legs in her denim short shorts. She was suddenly aware of how much of her was uncovered. A rush of panic tightened her throat, making it impossible to swallow in the stifling confines, so she breathed deep, concentrating on the bold, berry scent of her shampoo, finding comfort in the familiar.
“We will work on your listening.” His big hand cuffed the side of her head.
She flinched and held herself rigid, ready, waiting for the next blow she couldn’t see coming while the car remained quiet and time stretched out endlessly. An hour passed, or maybe two, her
mind racing the entire time, trying to comprehend what was happening. Where did these men come from? Were Alexa and Olivia okay? Would she see her family again?
The vehicle slowed, turned right, and came to a stop.
“Keep the bag on your head and do what Victor and I tell you,” Dimitri said close to her ear.
Her heart ramped up to slamming, and her eyes darted about as the driver—Victor, apparently—got out. Seconds later her door opened. “Out.” Victor grabbed her arm and yanked her from her seat, pulling her forward. “Walk.”
Abby tripped several times as she hurried along the uneven surface, listening to the crickets singing and children playing far in the distance. A car wooshed by somewhere beyond. The sounds reminded her of a quiet neighborhood on an early summer evening.
“Go up steps.” Victor yanked on her arm.
She used her free hand to catch herself on the concrete before she fell.
“You idiot. Go up three.”
She counted three steps and was brought inside, catching glimpses of glossy pine floors and gorgeous oriental rugs through the opening at the bottom of her makeshift mask. The soles of her sandals slapped against the solid wood as she kept her free hand out in front of her, afraid she would crash into something as she struggled to keep up with Victor’s pace. Another door opened, and musty air wafted into the bag.
“Go down steps. Twelve.”
She pressed her palm to the cool stone at her left, steadying herself as she was pulled down the stairs, counting as she went.
The black bag was ripped from her head, along with several strands of her hair. Abby blinked against the bold light of the naked bulbs hanging from the low ceiling. She glanced around the dingy space in shock as her gaze traveled from girl to girl—six young teens, dirty, bruised, and malnourished, staring up at her through bland eyes while they sat or lay on filthy mattresses on the dirt floor. “What—”
“In.” Victor shoved Abby into a small, windowless room, slamming the door, locking her in with a rusty scrape of something sliding against the heavy metal barrier.