by Anise Eden
She flipped her hair back and planted a hand on her hip. “That’s right. I mean, knowing Don, he probably did snitch, and since he hasn’t been treating me right, his boss said they’d teach him a lesson. I know you probably don’t approve of that kind of thing, but like his boss said, somebody like Don only understands one language.”
I searched for something I could say to make her change her course of action. “I know Don has treated you badly, but I also know that you care about him. You do know that if these friends of Don’s think he talked to the police, they might be planning to kill him?”
She shook her head. “Oh no, it’s not like that. He’s one of their best dealers. His boss promised me they would just rough him up a little.”
“And you trust his boss, why? Do you even know him?”
A cloud of doubt passed over her face. She began to bite one of her fingernails. “Yes. I mean, I’ve talked to him on the phone. I’ve never met him in person because Don always kept me away from everybody he works with. He never even wanted them to know who I was or where I lived.”
“Why not?”
“I think it’s because he’s so possessive and jealous. But he always said he was afraid that if they knew who I was, one day they might use me to get to him, and he didn’t want me to get hurt.” I stood silently as she considered what she was saying. The terror she’d been broadcasting to me all night crept into her features. “But you don’t think that’s what they’re doing, right? I mean, why would they want to hurt me?”
“I’m sure they don’t,” I said, trying to keep us both calm. “But just think for a minute. Don’s not stupid. He probably knows they’re looking for him, and I’m sure he’ll try to defend himself. What if he’s armed? What if his ‘friends’ are? Once they all get here, you can’t control what happens. It could be an explosive situation. You’re not safe here, Elana!”
I could see that she was visualizing the scene that might unfold. “Oh my god, oh my god.” She clutched at my arm. “You’re right; anything could happen. I didn’t think…Oh god, Cate! What am I going to do?”
There was a series of sharp knocks at the door. Before I could stop her, Elana ran to the door and peered through the peephole. “I think it’s Don’s friends!” Her voice squeaked with terror.
“Okay, listen to me. You need to hide!” I grabbed her by the arm and steered her toward the bedroom hallway.
“What? Hide?”
“Yes, hide. I’ll stall them.” Even as I spoke, I wondered from what place in hell that idea was springing. “I’ll tell them they have the wrong apartment. That will get rid of them long enough for us to make a plan.”
She looked like a deer in the headlights. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure. Go in the other room and close the door. And lock it.”
“Okay,” she said, stumbling down the hallway. Once I heard her turn the lock, I went to the front door. There was another series of sharp knocks. “Who is it?” I asked.
A gruff voice answered. “Elana, it’s us. Open up.”
“Nobody by that name lives here.”
“What the—” The handle turned and someone pushed against the door. Fortunately, the deadbolt held. “Quit messin’ around. We can’t stay out here. There’s too many people around.”
“I’m opening up—with the chain.” I secured the chain on the door and unlocked the deadbolt, then opened the door a few inches and peered through the opening. A steely-blue eye stared back at me from an unshaven face marked with scars. A couple of other figures stood behind him in the shadows.
I cleared my throat. “You must have the wrong apartment.”
The eye examined me skeptically. “You’re not Elana,” the gruff voice said.
“That’s what I told you.” My heart pounded into my throat.
The man at the door turned to consult with his colleagues. They collectively examined a photo and a small piece of paper, upon which I guessed Elana’s address was written. Steely Eye came back to the door. “Where does she live?”
A tremor went through me. Was I actually going to get away with this? “I don’t know an Elana. She must be in another building.”
“Shit,” he muttered to himself. He turned to his companions. “Let’s go.” With that, all of the figures turned away and melted into the darkness.
I closed and dead bolted the door and leaned against it, not trusting my legs to hold me up. I heard the click of Elana’s bedroom door unlocking and the creak of floorboards as she crept down the hallway toward me. Her pallid face peeked around the corner of the wall. “Did they go?”
I nodded. She came over to me and embraced me as though she were drowning in the ocean and I was a piece of driftwood. “Oh my god, Cate. Thank you so much!”
“No problem,” I said, trying to smile.
She pulled away and began pacing the rug. “I didn’t really think about what might go wrong, I just figured—oh my god, what about Don? They might run into him out there. Or one of my neighbors will tell them I do live here, and they’ll be back, and oh my god, Cate, they’ll kill us too!” She ran to me and grabbed my wrists. “And I’ve got to call Don! Oh god, where’s my phone?” She rushed into the kitchen and began searching frantically.
I followed after her. “Calm down,” I heard myself saying, although I had absolutely nothing with which to back up that suggestion. “We have to get out of here now. My car’s outside.”
“But what about Don? I have to tell him not to come…oh, it’s in my pocket!” She pulled her phone from her pocket and held it aloft like a victory medal. “Hold on, where did I put my purse—”
“Elana, stop!” I chased her around the kitchen as she searched. “Listen to me. Forget your purse. If they come back here and kill us, it’s not going to matter whether you have your purse!”
Before she could answer, we were both startled by three loud pounds on the door. “I know you’re in there!” It was Don, and he sounded irate.
We both ran toward the door. I managed to wedge myself between her and the handle. “They could be out there with him!” I whispered desperately. “Go back to the bedroom and let me get the door. If he’s alone, I’ll call for you to come out.”
Her widened eyes darted back and forth. “But—”
“Open up!” This time the voice belonged to Steely Eye. There was another loud pound on the door. I heard the wood crack around the dead bolt. They could easily break the door down.
Elana held her hands up. “Okay, okay,” she whispered. “Just get rid of them. Tell Don I went to stay with my friend Tonya. He’ll believe that.”
I nodded and steered her back toward the hallway. When she had disappeared, I returned to the front door. “Okay, I’m opening the door, but I’m keeping the chain on,” I shouted.
The second I unlatched the dead bolt, the chain broke off and the door flew open, slamming into me with such force that I fell backwards onto the floor.
Don was the first one in. He looked down at me with a face like a thunderstorm. “You!” He spat in disgust. “I told you to stay away from her!”
“Get out of here!” I shouted, tapping into some mysterious well of courage. “She’s not even here. She went to stay at Tonya’s!”
The shadows of Don’s colleagues began to gather around the door. He took a step toward me, fist raised. “I warned you, bitch—”
He turned his head at the sounds of a scuffle outside. Don’s colleagues disappeared suddenly. Then I heard a sickening thud, and Don crumpled to the floor like a marionette whose strings had been cut. I made out a tall, thin figure in a black ski mask standing behind him. “You okay?” a muffled voice asked as the masked man tucked a large flashlight into his belt.
Thunderstruck, I nodded. The man turned and walked out the door.
Elana emerged from the bedroom, draping herself over Don’s limp body as we heard more sounds of fighting on the walkway outside—muffled yells and what sounded like some punches being thrown. Elana and I s
at frozen in place. After a few moments, the noise stopped. We slowly got to our feet.
The silence was broken by the sound of heavy boots approaching the open doorway. I wasn’t sure which one of us was more surprised by what we saw. There stood Ben and Pete in full camouflage, their ski masks pushed up so we could see their reddened faces. Elana’s mouth and mine dropped open in perfect unison.
“Good evenin’, ma’am,” Pete said, nodding at Elana.
“Y-y-yes?” Elana replied tremulously.
“We’re with the United States Marine Corps. We were out on urban training maneuvers tonight, and we heard a disturbance at your door,” he gestured toward the walkway. “Do you know these men?”
I followed behind Elana as she took a step outside. To the left, sitting on the ground, gagged and wearing what looked like plastic handcuffs, were three incredibly confused and angry looking men. One of them was Steely Eye.
“Um,” Elana stammered. I could almost see her survival instincts kicking into gear. “No, I don’t know them,” she said.
Pete walked back into the living room. “How about this one?” he asked, kicking the bottom of Don’s shoe. Don moaned softly.
“I used to know him,” she answered carefully, “but not anymore.”
“Well then,” Pete said, “we’ll bring him out here with the others and wait ’til the police come to pick ’em up. They were all carryin’ what look to be illegal firearms.”
“You ladies be safe now,” Ben said. The tension in his voice told me that he wouldn’t be at ease until Don and the others had been taken away. Still, when our eyes met, it was with a cymbal clash of emotions. Our gazes locked for a moment, but a shuffling sound on the walkway drew Ben’s attention. “Hey!” he shouted as he went to deal with their prisoners.
“Elana, why don’t you come back inside,” I said. My focus had to remain on making sure that she was all right. With a look of utter perplexity, Elana turned and walked back into the living room.
I turned back to Pete. “Thank you, sir,” I said, playing along with their story. Then, just to let him know that he was officially forgiven for spying on me earlier, I added, “We certainly feel safer knowing that you’re out there protecting us.”
“No problem, ma’am,” Pete said with a grin. “Have a good night.”
Then he, too, disappeared through the doorway. Elana looked as though she were on the edge of tears. I sat down next to her on the sofa. “Are you okay?”
She shook her head in wonder. “I have no idea what just happened, but I’m so glad those soldiers came.” Tears started to fall from her eyes. “I didn’t really want those guys to hurt Don!” I reached out and embraced her as she cried. It felt like holding a small trembling bird. “I was just so angry and fed up…”
“I know. It’s okay.” We stayed like that for a long while.
After she stopped crying, I fixed her some tea. We talked while we waited for the police to arrive. The events of the night had left Elana feeling very fragile. She decided it would be best to go back into the hospital for a while. I made the call to the staff at Washington Hill. They said they had a bed available and would welcome her back.
When we saw the flashing blue lights outside of her window, I accompanied Elana out to the police cars. Ben and Pete were nowhere to be seen. The police said that they had received an anonymous tip about the men with the illegal firearms. They questioned us briefly. Elana told them that I was her therapist making a house call, that Don was her ex and had broken her door down, and that she’d never seen the other three men before—all of which was true, technically speaking.
The police arrested the men, two of whom were carrying illegal drugs in addition to firearms. As they loaded Don and the others into the backseats of their cruisers, I pulled one of the officers aside and explained Elana’s psychiatric situation. He agreed to take her to the hospital and wait with her until she was admitted. I said a silent prayer of gratitude as they pulled away and Elana waved to me through the car window.
Once all of the police cars had gone, Elana’s curious neighbors returned to their apartments. Thank God it’s over, I thought as a wave of exhaustion swept over me. I was too tired even to think. I started walking back to my car.
As I approached the road, a familiar-looking black Land Rover with tinted windows pulled up to the curb. The back door opened, and Pete smiled out at me. He had taken off the ski mask and put on his cowboy hat. “Hop in.” I let him give me a hand up into the vehicle.
Ben was driving and Kai was in the front seat on the passenger side. “Hi, honey,” Kai called back cheerfully. “Hiya, Cate,” I heard behind me. I turned to see Asa grinning and waving from a third row of seats. I caught Ben’s eye as he looked at me in the rearview mirror, and suddenly I knew: not only was Elana safe, but I was safe, too.
“Hi, guys.” I laid my head back on the headrest and promptly passed out.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Hell Week, Day Six
When consciousness returned, I was lying on my back in a very comfortable bed, more comfortable than my own. I didn’t want to be awake yet. I rolled over onto my stomach and tried to go back to sleep, but my brain bothered me with questions: Where are you? Whose bed is this? Finally I gave in and opened my eyes.
I was lying under a canopy in a room decorated with peacock-blue silk fabrics and painted wooden furniture. There were shelves filled with books and knickknacks. On the bedside table was a framed photograph of a child—a miniature version of Ben—sitting in a wheelbarrow and wearing an impish grin.
So I was somewhere in the MacGregors’ house. I couldn’t remember anything after climbing into the Land Rover. My jeans were folded neatly on a chair with my sneakers tucked beneath. I hoped that I’d undressed myself, at least.
There were two doors in the room. One was ajar and led into a well-appointed guest bathroom stocked with new toothbrushes and other toiletries. As I spotted my purse on the dresser, it occurred to me that I hadn’t taken any of the pills Dr. Nelson had given me for more than a twenty-four hours, but I felt fine. Maybe something about being in the program was working for me.
I ran my mind over the events of the night before. I still didn’t know what Ben and Pete had been doing at Elana’s apartment—or how they got there, or why. At least Elana was safe; that was the most important thing. That, and the fact that Don and those other guys were no doubt in jail.
I threw my hair into a braid, took a deep breath, and opened the bedroom door. Voices drifted up the staircase at the end of the hall. I followed them down into a large, open-plan kitchen and living room. The first person I saw was Ben. He was barefoot in jeans and a rugby shirt, leaning back against the kitchen counter and slathering cream cheese on a bagel.
The second my foot hit the bottom stair, he looked up and our eyes met. Both of us froze, and my heart thumped against my chest. I was reminded of the day we met, and that stunned moment when we’d seen each other for the first time.
Ben put down his bagel and straightened up. His features softened with affection. “Good morning, Cate.”
“Hi,” I said as a shy smile pulled at the corners of my mouth.
Dr. MacGregor turned away from the coffeemaker and looked me up and down. She was wearing a designer suit dress and holding a mug. “Good morning, Cate. Glad to see you’re none the worse for wear.” She gestured toward the coffeepot. “Any for you?”
“That would be great, thank you!” The smell of whatever she was brewing was intoxicating. “And thank you so much for letting me stay here last night. Your home is lovely.”
“Thank you, dear.” She poured both of our cups. “Did you find everything you needed?”
“Yes, it was much appreciated.”
Dr. MacGregor placed my mug on the kitchen island, and Ben brought over cream and sweetener. “Thanks,” I said, trying not to look at him directly for fear of blushing.
“You’re welcome,” he murmured, lingering for a few seconds longer than nece
ssary before returning to his perch.
“So, Cate,” Dr. Macgregor said cheerfully, “Benjamin tells me that he filled you in on our desire to have you come work for us—both the conventional reasons, and the strange ones.”
I bit my lip and looked from Ben to Dr. MacGregor. They both appeared perfectly relaxed, so I guessed it was a safe topic for discussion. “Yes, he did.”
“Hmm.” Dr. MacGregor glanced sideways at Ben. “You know, my son thinks that the Bronze Age origins myth is nonsense—”
“Not nonsense,” he said brusquely, “just irrelevant to our work.”
Dr. MacGregor breezed past his objection. “And Benjamin didn’t listen to his father when he was alive, so he’s certainly not going to listen to him now that he’s dead.”
Ben scowled in silence.
“You have a scientific mind, Cate, so I’m sure that having heard all of this, you must think I’m an eccentric old lady.” She smiled as though the title pleased her.
“No, of course not,” I insisted, but the truth was I didn’t know what to make of her. She was clearly a complex person. It would take time to figure her out.
“Well, regardless,” she said, “we would like nothing more than for you to be a member of our team. I hope you’ll take our offer under serious consideration, if only for the conventional reasons. As for the strange ones, what you’ve learned this week is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. I hope that won’t scare you off, though. As Shakespeare wrote in Hamlet: ‘There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.’ If all of my years in psychiatry and paranormal research have taught me nothing else, they’ve taught me the truth of that quote.”
The MacGregors sure loved their quotes. So she wanted me to keep an open mind. Well, I was working on it. “I’m very grateful for your offer, and I promise to give it serious thought.”
“Good.” She put her coffee cup in the sink. “Unfortunately, I can’t stay and chat. I have some patients this morning.” She blew Ben a kiss. “Glad you’re all right, Cate. I’ll see you soon.”