by Naomi West
Cat laughed a little, tossing her hair back. “You want to know about life in prison?” she asked. “I'm sure we can arrange to have you locked up as well.” Her eyes glinted, and I wondered what I had just done. Before I could say anything — and what was I going to say? — she hung up her receiver, stood up, and walked proudly out of the visitation room, without looking back.
I swallowed thickly again and stood up as well, turning to head for the door. My mind was whirling, going through all the possibilities of what she could do to me, of what sort of information she had on me that she could use to get to me.
But there was no way to know for sure what she would do to me. I wouldn't know until it happened.
Chapter Eighteen
Liv
After Rip had caught me with Hollande in the lobby, I knew I should stay put in the room. In fact, I was lucky that Rip had left me alone again, despite the fact that I'd called Hollande the previous day. I might have expected him to tie me up or otherwise ensure that I didn't go anywhere while he was gone this time. But he was surprisingly courteous about it.
I suppose he knew I didn't really have much of a chance to escape. I had no way to get home now, not without Hollande's car to drive me, and anyway, I knew Rip would just find a way to track me down if I tried to run. As much as the thought of that thrilled me, in some ways, I knew better than to try.
But I was going stir-crazy stuck up in the room. Finally, around mid-afternoon, I decided there couldn't be too much risk in my going out to lunch.
There was a dingy little diner not too far away from the hotel, and I chose that as my destination. It was kind of nice to be on my own for the first time in days, relaxing, even. The food wasn't great, but I didn't even really care at that point.
I finished up and glanced at my watch. About time to be getting back to the hotel so I could make sure and beat Rip back there. I had left a note for him on the bedside table so that he would know I had just gone out for food, but I also sort of wanted to beat him back there and maybe not tell him that I'd gone out at all. I didn't think he'd be too happy with me, regardless of how innocent it was for me to go out to eat lunch on my own.
There were a couple people standing around the lobby when I returned to the hotel, but I thought nothing of it. They were probably just waiting to check in. I glanced over and it didn't look like there was anyone at the desk at the moment. I rolled my eyes, hardly able to believe the lack of service at the place. Rip really knew how to pick them…
I was most of the way across the lobby when the gunshot rang out. I didn't really know how I recognized the sound as a gunshot. It could have been a car backfiring or ... well, I didn't really know, but I wasn't the type to watch crime shows or anything like that. (Funny, that that should be what was going through my mind, when there was clearly so much more that I should be thinking about.) Then again, it made sense that my nerves would be on a hair trigger given everything that Rip had told me lately.
Instinctively, I dropped to my belly on the linoleum floor, hands up over my head as though that would do anything. There was nowhere to really duck for cover, though. I didn't even know where the bullet had come from. But when I glanced to the right, I saw where it had landed. One of the security guards was slumped there against the wall, bleeding from a hole in his chest. He was clearly dead.
The clear, clicking sound of someone walking in high heels reverberated throughout the lobby. I rolled over and stared up at the woman striding towards me, a gun held in her outstretched hand, the barrel pointed straight at my heart.
“Olivia Harrell,” the woman said, rolling my name around in her mouth. She grinned a little, cocking her head to the side. “You definitely don't look like the type of woman who would get involved in all of this, but I suppose that's why they're worried about you running to the authorities, isn't it?”
I wanted to respond but found that I couldn't; I could only stare dumbly as the woman crouched down next to me, reaching out to stroke the barrel of her gun down my jawline.
“You seem to have gotten in over your head, my dear, as has Rip, if we're being honest.” She shook her head. “But if Rip doesn't uphold his end of the bargain? Well.” Her eyes flicked over towards the security guard; the meaning of her words was clear.
I shook my head, though. “I can't make Rip deliver the packages,” I said, my voice barely audible. My throat felt dry; my tongue thick and unwieldy.
The other woman laughed. “Well, you'd better see what you can do about that,” she said. “After all, I wouldn't want to have to come after you. You're too pretty for me to kill, and I hate killing innocents.” She paused. “Not that you really qualify as that anymore.” The woman stood up and finally put her gun away. “Make sure Rip delivers the package on the schedule that he agreed to,” she said, her final, unspoken warning hanging in the air between us.
Then, the woman turned and tapped her way out of the lobby.
I took one last look at the security guard before fleeing to the room I was sharing with Rip. I knew I needed to call the police and report what had happened. Someone was bound to find the security guard lying there in the middle of the lobby, and there was bound to be some sort of video surveillance showing what had happened.
Even though I hadn't really been involved in that shooting, I knew there would be questions to answer: why hadn't the woman killed me as well? What was the woman talking about, when she said that Rip had to deliver the packages?
I was honestly a little surprised that the woman, whoever she was, had been so bold—even I could tell that she had just jeopardized the whole package delivery, just for the sake of scaring me.
Unless… Suddenly, I realized with a sinking feeling in my gut that there must be more to the story than what I'd seen. The Gemini Riders were smart, and there was a reason it had been so difficult for the authorities to put Cat Zodiac behind bars in the first place. Either the woman gunman herself or someone she was working with must have compromised whatever video evidence there might have been. They must have dealt with the receptionist. The only living witness to what had happened was the gunman herself and...me.
I swallowed hard, sitting on the edge of the bed as suddenly the world began to get fuzzy around the edges. The thing was, I had known that I was involved in something dangerous, but I had kind of refused to realize just how dangerous things were. But I had become another pawn for the Gemini Riders; they were using me to get to Rip.
And suddenly, I realized that there were other pawns involved in this too. There were ways that they could force me to act, other than by threatening my own life.
They could go after Barry.
For a moment, I thought I was going to be sick. I had my phone out and was dialing his number before I remembered that my phone was dead at the moment. Frustrated tears sprang to my eyes, and I moved over across the room to use the hotel phone, praying that he would still pick up a phone call from an unrecognized number.
The phone rang twice before Barry's voice came on the line. “Hello?”
I practically sobbed with relief. “Barry,” I said, pressing the receiver tightly against my ear. “Barry, listen to me. You have to get out of town, okay? Just for a little while, just until I can make sure everything's okay for you. I just—I've made a big mistake. I wanted to be more adventurous, but this...”
“What's going on?” Barry asked sharply. “Are you okay?”
“I'm okay,” I said, although my voice shook, and I was sure he could guess that I was in tears. “I'm not hurt,” I amended. That was a bit more believable. “But there are some people ... I've got tangled up in this thing with the ... with the Gemini Riders. With Cat Zodiac. You need to leave town for a little bit, so I can make sure—”
Barry interrupted me swearing loudly on the other end of the phone. “You did what?” he asked, his voice incredulous. “Liv, the Gemini Riders are—” He cut off, swearing more. “It's this guy Rip, isn't it?” he growled. “I knew he was bad news. I didn't
want to say anything because you know I was happy to see you with someone other than Hollande, but—”
“Forget about that all for now,” I interrupted. I sobbed, unable to help it. “Barry, you just have to get out of there, okay? I'm afraid they might come after you, and it would kill me if you got hurt because I let myself get mixed up in all of this.”
There was a long pause on the other end. “You need to go to the police, Liv. You know that, right? Just go to the police and—”
“I have to go,” I interrupted as someone swiped a room key. I held my breath as I hung up the hotel phone, staring with wide eyes at the door. What if it was that woman back again? What if they had made the decision to just kill me, because I was too much of a liability? What if...
But it was Rip who stuck his head in the room and then entered slowly. “Liv?” he asked, coming inside and shutting the door behind him. “What the hell happened down in the lobby?”
I got to my feet and flung myself into the man's arms, sobbing uncontrollably. I knew he was the last person I should be turning to for safety, but he was my best option at the moment. I clung to him, shaking in fear.
Chapter Nineteen
Liv
Rip sighed, stroking my back gently. When I had finally recovered myself, he turned my chin up so he could look me in the eyes. “I need you to talk to me,” he said. “Whatever happened—”
“I know,” I interrupted. I took a deep, shuddering breath. “I don't know who she was, that woman. I assume she was one of Cat Zodiac's ... people. One of the Gemini Riders. All I can tell you is that she was blonde, female, impeccably dressed… You would never have guessed that she had a gun.” I paused, trying to think back. But there were no other distinguishing features about the woman, really. She was just a normal woman.
I shrugged. “They must have done something to the receptionist. And the security surveillance systems. I was walking through the lobby when she shot the security guard. One clean shot, and the guy was dead.” I shuddered a little.
“Why were you in the lobby to start with?” Rip asked, and although he was clearly trying to keep his tone neutral, I could still hear that underlying note of anger. I never should have gone off to lunch on my own. I knew there were dangers, now that I was caught up in all of this. Between Rip and Cat Zodiac and Cherri and everyone else…
I swallowed hard. “I went to the diner for lunch,” I admitted, unable to meet his eyes. “I didn't think it was that big of a deal, but they must have had someone follow me, and the moment I got back here.” I swallowed again. It was my fault that security guy had died. Who knew what he had for a family or…
“Liv,” Rip said, shaking me a little, and I realized that he had asked me something, but I couldn't for the life of me remember what. I was too busy thinking about all the things that could have happened that afternoon, if I had... “Liv,” Rip repeated, a little more firmly this time.
I finally managed to focus my eyes on him, feeling the tears standing in them. “I know you're mad—” I started.
“Liv, I'm not mad,” Rip said, shaking his head. “I just need to know that you're okay.”
“I'm okay,” I insisted, even though I wasn't really sure. “I mean, they didn't shoot me or anything...”
Rip pulled me into his arms again, kissing me firmly. “You're okay,” he said as he pulled away. But he ducked back in for another kiss, this one one of the most passionate ones that we'd shared. His hands stayed in a neutral position by my shoulders, but the absolutely filthy way that he delved into my mouth…
I couldn't help but respond to him, though, leaning desperately into the kiss and meeting his tongue in a clash of passion that rivaled anything we had shared yet.
He pulled away first, staring down into my eyes and brushing back my hair, looking surprised. “Liv, I don't want to do anything that you're going to regret,” he told me.
I laughed a little. “Rip, you clearly aren't going to take my virginity,” I reminded him. “And even if I didn't really want to have sex with you right now ... well, it's not like we haven't already...” I blushed a little, but I knew he knew what I was getting at.
That didn't seem to matter to him, though. “Liv,” he said again, his voice sounding sad. “I don't want you to just want this because you're afraid for your life and you think that somehow this will solve it. Or because you're—”
“It's not that,” I interrupted, even though I wasn't entirely sure why I was so desperate to have him make love to me right in that moment. I ducked my head a little, unable to meet his eyes. “I just...” I trembled a little, feeling another little spike of adrenaline. “When I was down there in that lobby, with that gun trained on me, all I could think of was you. I was just so desperate to have you there, so sure that you could make everything okay, and I—”
“I'm the reason you're in this mess,” Rip reminded me, cupping my cheek in his palm. “Gosh, Liv, I couldn't bear it if anything happened to you, but I seem to have signed your death warrant. I went to see Cat Zodiac today at the prison, to tell her that I couldn't carry the packages for her, and she basically warned me that she would get back at me if I didn't carry them. I should have known—”
“So we'll go somewhere,” I interrupted. “I don't know where, or what we'll do about these packages, but there has to be—”
Before I could finish that statement, Rip was pulling me in for another kiss. It was desperate and passionate, a total clash of lips and tongues and teeth. Normally, I wouldn't have been so turned on by such a carnal display of lust, but right now, it was just what I needed.
“Sorry,” he said as he broke away from me, still staring down at my lips.
“Don't be,” I said breathlessly, pulling him back into another kiss. I shook my head. “I need—”
“I know,” Rip said, cutting me off with another soft kiss. This one was more tender, as though he understood that I was scared, upset, afraid of doing the wrong thing. His callused palms stroked my cheeks; his lips were gentle against mine.
“Lie back,” he said quietly, moving all the while to unbutton my shirt. “I know you're scared, but let me let you feel good.” He kissed down the line of my neck, waiting patiently until I gave permission before he moved down below my neckline.
“Please,” I begged in a whimpery voice. “Rip, please...” Perhaps sex was the only way I would feel alive at the moment. Perhaps I needed this. Perhaps he needed this too, because I could feel how he was shivering against me a little, as though my being scared had scared him too.
“I'm so glad that you're okay,” Rip said quietly, kissing my collarbone and jawline as I lay myself back against the pillows. He shook his head, pushing my shirt back off my shoulders, revealing my bra. “If anything happened to you, Liv, I swear—”
I captured his lips in mine before he could utter promises that he could never manage to keep. I was beginning to realize that it was impossible for him to keep me safe from the Gemini Riders. But that was okay; I could keep myself safe.
I lay back, throwing my hands up over my head, giving him an encouraging look. “Rip, I—” I began, but before I could finish, he had caught my left nipple between his teeth, causing me to moan wantonly. “Please,” I begged, even though I didn't really even know what I was begging for. I just needed more of that, of something else; I wasn't even really sure. But I knew that he would know.
He grinned up at me, continuing to lave my nipple with his tongue, until the peak was dark and pert. Then, he moved to the other nipple and repeated his movements, waiting until I was squirming against the sheets before he moved on to the main attraction.
When his hand dropped down between my legs, I couldn't help gasping. It wasn't that it was unexpected or unwanted, but it felt so good that I couldn't help responding to him, spreading my legs wider and beckoning him into the space between my knees.
He smiled against my skin, clearly pleased with my response to his reactions, anyway, so it wasn't as though I was doing something
that he didn't want. He kissed a line up from my knee to the joint between my leg and my hip, moving slowly until I was practically desperate with need.
In fact, I could feel myself rapidly slickening, already prepped for him to slide inside of me. But he was taking his time, nipping at the soft flesh on the inside of my thigh, making it so that I was practically writhing on the sheets beneath him before he moved on.
When he finally lined up his throbbing length against my hole, I practically sobbed with relief. “Please,” I begged again, unable to keep the desperate noise from falling from my lips. “Rip, you don't know how bad I need this...”
Rip thrust into me in one smooth move, filling me utterly, causing me to cry out. “Fuck, yes,” I whimpered, pushing my hands up against the headboard and using that as leverage. “Yes, please—please.”
He set a punishing pace, quickly snapping his hips against mine, barely giving me any time to adjust to the way he was filling me. But at the moment, that was just what I needed. I cried out each time he pushed into me, feeling totally punched out with the way he was filling me right up to my molten core. His grip on my hips was tight enough to leave bruises, and I couldn't get enough of it.