Emergency Response

by Susan Sleeman

  Gonzalo arrived, breathing hard. A string of Spanish words that sounded like curses flew from his mouth.

  The man who’d tripped her cuffed Gonzalo’s ears. “Idiot. Must I do everything?”

  “Perdón, Chico.”

  Chico slapped Gonzalo again. “English, man. English.” He gestured at Darcie. “Get the traitor up.”

  Traitor? Did he think she betrayed him somehow? Was that what this was all about?

  Gonzalo jerked her to her feet and she came face-to-face with Chico, his face becoming clear in the streetlight. She’d thought Gonzalo was mean-looking, but Chico’s pockmarked face, with several long scars and dark tattoos, gave him a truly frightening appearance. His dark eyes, black as the night sky, narrowed into slits.

  He didn’t speak. He didn’t need to say anything. The message was loud and clear on his face. He was going to kill her himself and his expression said he was looking forward to taking her life.

  * * *

  Noah pulled up to the motorcycle shop. He was acting on a hunch. No facts. Nothing concrete. Nothing that gave him any sense of certainty that he’d find Darcie. But he had to do something. As did the rest of the FRS team. So Noah had called Detective Judson. He’d tailed the men who’d met with the Kerr brothers back to their neighborhood, and was watching them, but there was no sign of Darcie. He recommended that Noah and the FRS check out the motorcycle shops. He gave Noah a list of ten locations and the teams split them up and headed out.

  Noah had chosen this location because Judson had said they believed it to be a central hub for the gang.

  Noah looked up at the three-story building in an older Portland neighborhood. Retail spaces filled the ground floor, with apartments above. The rent was way too pricy for gang members to live there, so he wouldn’t waste time checking out the apartments. He pulled on the shop’s front door and found it locked. Light spilled from under a doorway in the back. He pounded on the door and waited.

  Time ticked by. Second by precious second.

  He pounded again. Harder. Rattled the door.

  Nothing.

  He ran around back.

  Pounded on that door.

  Finally, a short Latino male opened the door and waved a baseball bat at Noah, but didn’t speak.

  Noah held up his badge.

  The guy cursed and lowered his bat. “Quit hassling us. We done nothing wrong.”

  Noah knew the gang task force had been putting pressure on these guys and that he should tread lightly, but he didn’t care. He’d cross the line to find Darcie if he had to. He’d do whatever it took.

  “I’ll just take a look around.” He shoved the guy out of the way and jogged to the back room. He drew his weapon and cautiously moved through the doorway. The space held an old desk with a computer and grimy wooden shelves filled with motorcycle parts. He crossed the room to a dirty bathroom that was also empty.

  The thug stood, his arms crossed, a smug grin on his face. “Don’t know what you were expecting to find, but it ain’t here.”

  “Anyone else here with you?” Noah asked, but he already knew what the man would answer.

  “You see anyone else?” The smirk grew.

  Noah took one more look at the room but saw nothing amiss, so he wasted no more time and ran for the front door. In his car again, he punched into his GPS the address of the next closest shop. Archer was already at that location, but Noah had to do something.

  “She has to be there,” he said as he squealed onto the road. “She just has to.”

  * * *

  No! Don’t go! Darcie’s mind screamed as she watched the surveillance monitor and saw Noah run out of the building. She wanted to cry out to him. To tell him she was inside, hidden behind a wall. To run toward him. To run into the safety of his arms. But her wrists and ankles were bound to the chair.

  Tears welled up, but she blinked them away. He would come back, wouldn’t he? See the ring. He just had to.

  The monitor switched to the outside camera. She saw the lights on his car come alive and he peeled out of the parking lot.

  “He was so close, was he not?” Chico shoved her into a steel chair. His deep laugh made her stomach revolt. He ripped the tape from her mouth.

  “Noah,” she screamed though he’d already driven away.

  Chico punched her upside the head. Stars danced before her eyes.

  “Scream again and the next punch will do serious damage.”

  She still wanted to scream, but with Noah gone there was no point, and as Chico had said, he’d hurt her even more.

  She turned her attention to him. “What’s this all about? Why do you think I’m a traitor? I don’t even know who you people are.”

  “I expected you to deny it.”

  “Deny what?”

  “You have snitched on our leaders and now you must die.”

  “Snitched about what? As I said, I don’t know you or your leaders and I certainly haven’t snitched on any of you.”

  Words rushed from his mouth as he told her some far-fetched tale of money laundering that she and Pilar were supposedly part of and had reported to the police.

  Darcie scoffed. “Pilar wouldn’t be involved in money laundering. She’s far too honorable for that. And I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “When Pilar started, she did not know she was laundering our money.”

  “How does she do it then?”

  He explained a computer scheme that sounded very clever. “We have many mules like Pilar and we track them all very carefully. Your log-in to our network with your iPad was a big red flag.”

  “You’ve got it all wrong. Her computer broke and she borrowed my iPad so she could keep working. I had no idea about her job.”

  “Liar,” he growled as he bent low, his face only inches from hers. “Our leaders are being hunted down by the police because you infiltrated our network. You will find the same fate as Leland and Ramon. Except I will personally deliver your punishment.”

  Fear traveled over her body. “What? No! Please. You’ve got that wrong, too. I don’t even know those men.”

  He grinned. Sick. Twisted. “Didn’t say you did. When we investigated you, we also discovered they’d been skimming money for some time. No one takes money from us. No one. And no one snitches on us, either.” He jerked her to her feet. “And now it’s time for you to join them.”

  NINETEEN

  Noah met Archer in the parking lot and Archer’s face said it all. Darcie wasn’t there. The other team members had phoned in the same report.

  “Now what?” Archer asked, his voice filled with worry. “Where else can we look?”

  Noah replayed everything that had occurred that night. He retraced their steps. Something about the first shop kept pricking at his mind. He ran the conversation with the gang member. Over and over again. Word by word.

  Dawning exploded in his brain.

  “He said us and we.” Noah grabbed Archer’s arm. “Not I, but we.”

  “Who?”

  “The guy I rousted out at the first shop. He said, ‘we done nothing wrong’ and ‘quit hassling us.’ If he was alone he would have said I and me.”

  “Maybe,” Archer said, less than enthusiastically. “He was likely just talking about what’s been going on these last few days.”

  “Maybe.”

  “Did you see anyone with him?”

  “No, but—”

  “But you want to go back there and check.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Then I’m coming with you.”

  Noah nodded and they raced for his car. He ran his lights and they made it to the building in fifteen minutes flat. At the door, Noah noticed someone had turned off the light in the back. “There was a light on in
the back before.”

  “Maybe the guy’s gone home.”

  “Let’s circle around back and see what we find in the alley.” Noah didn’t wait for Archer to agree, but jogged around the building, the area familiar from his last stop.

  “Back door’s cracked open,” Noah said.

  He didn’t need to say anything more. They both drew their weapons and switched from verbal communication to gestures. Noah led the way to the door. Pressed it open. Saw nothing. He signaled for Archer to cover him and he stepped in. He flipped on the light. Nothing had changed since his visit forty-five minutes ago, but using his flashlight, he took a closer look at the desk and shelves. Something glittered in the back. He reached for the object.

  Haley’s ring. The one Darcie would never remove.

  Had the creeps taken it as a souvenir? Was she dead?

  His heart refused to beat. He showed the ring to Archer. His jaw firmed, but he then mouthed clue.

  Yes, right. She could’ve left it as a clue. Noah directed his attention to the shelf. Knocked along the wood. Hollow. His heart jumped, and he kept searching until he found a spot that gave way. The shelf swung out and they both had to jump to get out of the way.

  Noah shoved the ring into his pocket, lifted his weapon, then stepped into a dark hallway. A light was visible in the distance. He followed it into what had to be the suite next door. He remembered the vacant sign out front.

  He kept moving. Foot after foot. Step after step. Listening. Hoping to hear anything. But silence greeted him save for Archer’s muted footsteps.

  Noah finally reached a clearing and found a large room that looked like a studio apartment, minus the bed. Cans of beer sat on the table and ashtrays were filled with cigarette and marijuana butts. The place looked like a party had just ended.

  He touched a can. “Still cold.”

  He went to a door that led into the alley and opened it. He heard movements to his right. Gestured for Archer to follow him. They eased down the alley to a stairway, where he heard voices. They crept up the stairs. The voices grew louder. Finally, he recognized Darcie’s cry of distress.

  She’s alive. Thank You, God.

  His heart soared, but immediately plummeted when he realized they had to free her before these killers ended her life.

  * * *

  Darcie reached out and grasped for anything, like Chico’s shirt or his arm, but she came up holding air as she dangled over the rooftop ledge. He’d decided he needed to hear her admit her role in the gang’s demise so he’d dragged her up there. He claimed that a few minutes hanging over the edge three stories up from the pavement should get her to confess.

  But she couldn’t confess, as she’d done nothing wrong. She had to pretend so he would put her down, and she could try to escape again.

  “Please,” she begged. “Let me up and I’ll tell you everything.”

  “Everything?”

  “Yes, everything I know.”

  He eyed her for a long moment.

  “I promise,” she added.

  He jerked her feet back onto the roof, but her legs were made of rubber, and she couldn’t stand. She crumpled to the deck and gulped in air to still her racing heart.

  “Speak,” he commanded.

  “I need water.” She panted and pretended her throat was too parched to talk.

  “Get her a bottle of water,” he yelled at Gonzalo, who’d accompanied them up to the roof. Felipe had gone to take care of business, which made better odds for her. Now if Gonzalo left, it would be her against Chico. Even better odds.

  Gonzalo trudged to the other side of the roof and disappeared in the stairwell.

  She had to disable Chico, but how? Her mind raced over possibilities. Dismissed them as ludicrous just as fast. Time ticked by. She had to hurry before Gonzalo came back.

  “What’s taking that fool so long?” Chico turned to look at the stairwell.

  She had to act fast. She came to her feet. Rubbery legs seemed like they’d collapse, but a burst of adrenaline kicked in. She lunged at him, hitting him below his midsection and knocking him to the deck. She bolted for the stairway.

  “Hurry, hurry, hurry,” she told herself and prayed she didn’t meet Gonzalo on the way down.

  “Stop or I’ll shoot.” Chico’s voice came from behind as she heard him race across the deck.

  She was almost there. Just a few more feet. She couldn’t stop. Not when he was going to kill her anyway.

  She heard him chamber a bullet in the weapon. She turned, saw him lift it into position. Suddenly strong arms came around her legs and jerked down into the stairwell. A bullet flew overhead and lodged in the wall.

  She smelled his scent, the wonderful musky aftershave and fragrance belonging only to Noah, before she confirmed he was the one who’d taken her down. She flung her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. Her heartbeat refused to return to normal, but she knew she was safe.

  Another shot zinged over the wall. She sensed another person moving and heard the other person fire at Chico.

  “He’s down,” Archer said and Darcie’s heart swelled with gratitude over his help. He stood and looked down on them. “Since you two are so busy, I’ll check on him and call for backup.”

  Darcie looked up at her friend and smiled. “Thank you, Archer.”

  He nodded and climbed over them. That’s when she heard a mumbled noise below and saw Gonzalo gagged and cuffed. Served him right to endure the same fate she’d suffered.

  “Thank You, God, for keeping her safe,” Noah murmured. He pushed her back, his gaze feasting on her face. A crease of worry remained on his forehead. “Don’t ever scare me like that again.”

  She smoothed the wrinkle with her finger. “I’ll try my best never to be abducted.”

  He shook his head and squeezed his eyes closed for a moment. “I thought I’d lost you. And there is so much I want to tell you. To do with you. To be with you. I love you, Darcie.”

  “Me, too. I love you, too,” she managed to get out before his lips crashed down on hers. Warm, soft, they crushed hers. The purest joy flooded her heart. A joy she’d never thought she’d experience again. But God saw fit to bring the two of them together.

  She thought to tell Noah about how she’d managed to say goodbye to Haley and officially move on, but decided the feel of his lips was too good to pass up. There’d be plenty of time to talk later.

  * * *

  Hours later, Darcie held Noah’s free hand and reveled in her newfound joy as he drove her to the firehouse. They didn’t speak. Didn’t need to speak, just enjoyed the peace and freedom that arresting her attacker had brought.

  He pulled up next to Skyler’s car and gestured at the other vehicles in the lot. “Looks like the whole team is here.”

  “They’ll want to rehash everything and it’s been so wonderful riding over here with nothing to worry about.” She squeezed his hand and smiled. “Maybe we shouldn’t go in.”

  “Ha, like I’m going to take their guff if I don’t bring you inside so they can all personally see that you’re okay.”

  “You’re the one who found me, so I think they’ll be appreciative of that and cut you a little slack.”

  “Still, a little slack from these guys might not be enough to keep me safe.” He went to put his keys in his pocket and stopped to dig inside. “I almost forgot. I have Haley’s ring. I thought you’d like to have it back.” He held it out in his palm.

  She stared at the ring for a moment and knew she didn’t want to go back to the cage of her emotions, where she was only half-alive. But she’d love to put the ring in her jewelry box and occasionally take it out to look at it. She took it from him and put it in her pocket.

  His mouth dropped open. “You’re not going to wear it?”

  Sh
e shook her head. “This may not make sense to you, but when I took it off, it felt like I was saving my life in more ways than one. I left it as a clue for you, but I also think God was trying to tell me it’s time for a change. To move beyond my loss and embrace the living.”

  Noah circled his hand around the back of her neck. “I hope I count as one of the living that you want to embrace.”

  “Definitely.” She reached up and stroked his cheek, then kissed him for long, joyous moments.

  He suddenly pulled back and frowned. “About Evan. I...” He shrugged. “Does it bother you that I gave him up? And the way I did it... Man. That has to make you think twice about me.”

  She shook her head. “You were young. You weren’t ready to be a parent and adoption was better for Evan. Look at Isabel, for example. Mayte wasn’t ready for a child—still isn’t ready, in a lot of ways—and Isabel has suffered as a result.”

  “Isabel, right.” He slapped his forehead. “I should have seen that. How did I miss it when it was right in front of me?”

  She slid her fingers into his hair and drew him closer. “Sometimes the things right in front of you are the hardest ones to see.”

  Frowning, he sat back and she wondered what she’d said or done to elicit another frown. “What is it?”

  “Evan. I can’t simply choose to move on. I think he needs me and I want to get to know him.”

  “We’ll figure it out.” She took his hand again. “Together. I’ll be by your side and help you find a way to become part of his life.”

  “You’d do that for me?”

  “Of course I will. I’d give anything to have another moment with Haley so I can fully understand your desire to have Evan in your life. We’ll just keep trying until we find a way.”

  “We. I like the sound of that.” He smiled softly and she finally gave in, pressing her finger into the dimple she’d resisted since forever.

  The firehouse front door opened and the entire FRS team and their significant others stepped outside, all of them carrying work gloves and equipment to clean up from the shooting. Archer was the only one missing as he was still wrapping things up at the crime scene. Darcie suspected that despite it being dark, Jake had wanted to improve morale by cleaning up the house that night instead of waiting until morning.