Desperate Measures (An Aspen Falls Novel)

by Melissa Pearl

  “Get. Out,” he gritted out.

  “No!”

  He hauled her out of the car, slamming her onto the pavement. Her knees screamed in protest as the asphalt scraped them raw. The impact against her chest left her gasping for breath.

  “What are you doing?” she managed to rasp out. “I’m a cop, dammit. I work for the Aspen Falls po—”

  Something hard smashed against her skull and everything went black.

  40

  Tuesday, September 11th

  12:00 pm

  “How much farther?”

  Alex glanced at Nate’s phone. “Ten minutes.”

  They were flying up the highway in Nate’s unmarked car, hurtling past acres of cornfields and wild prairie. Apart from the occasional semitruck and RV, the highway heading toward Bentley was mostly empty.

  Alex had never been to Travis’s house, but he had a general idea of where he lived, could probably get them there without the map. But watching the miles tick away, bringing them closer to Cam, calmed him down a little.

  She was there. She had to be.

  Because the alternative was too disturbing to think about.

  He wasn’t being an alarmist when he thought about all of the things that could go wrong if Cam had decided to head into town and start asking questions. And clearly Nate had similar thoughts, because he’d been the one to jump up and insist on coming to Bentley.

  The phone’s screen went black, and then a phone number popped up. Nate glanced over it.

  “Give me that,” he commanded.

  Alex was loath to give it up.

  “It’s Kellan,” Nate said.

  As if that meant anything to Alex.

  “Police chief,” Nate added as he yanked the phone out of Alex’s hand.

  Alex sat in stony silence as Nate filled his chief in on where he was going and what was happening.

  Everything was going off the rails, mostly by his own doing. He’d been the one to go to AFPD, because of his fears surrounding Cam and just what kind of situation she might have put herself in.

  And that was all it took.

  Nate sprang into action. Now he was sharing every last detail with Kellan.

  Alex had no idea if he could trust these guys. None. And yet here he was, riding shotgun with Nate Hartford, putting his trust in him when Alex’s MO had always been to trust no one.

  Well, no one except Cam.

  He tried to take a deep breath but his lungs wouldn’t inflate.

  Fuck.

  Fear gripped him.

  He felt more vulnerable now than he had hiding out at Cam’s.

  Because he was out in the open.

  Helpless.

  Defenseless.

  And, even worse, so was Cam.

  Nate was still on the phone when Alex barked out, “Turn here.”

  Nate complied, and they trundled down the road for a bit until Alex pointed to a doublewide trailer. “There it is.”

  The car hadn’t even stopped before Alex bolted out the door.

  “Hey,” Nate said sharply. He’d just finished his call.

  Alex raced for the front door. He could hear Nate on his heels, his footsteps thudding against the gravel. Alex’s chest hurt so much it was hard to breathe. Not from the lingering effects from his bruised ribs, but from the fear of what he might discover when Travis opened the door.

  His fist connected with the door and he rapped it hard.

  Nate was now standing next to him. Alex stole a glance at him. He looked calm, composed.

  Everything Alex was not.

  The door finally opened, and it took every ounce of control Alex had to not force his way inside.

  “Alex.” Travis couldn’t hide his surprise.

  Nate stepped forward first.

  Alex pushed past him. “Travis.”

  The two of them stared awkwardly at each other for a moment, and then Travis extended his hand. Alex accepted it gratefully and they shook, long and hard. Despite the reasons for Alex being there, he had to admit that it was good to see him.

  Nate cleared his throat. “Done with the niceties?”

  Travis dropped Alex’s hand and leveled his gaze on the man standing next to him. “Who are you?”

  “Detective Hartford.” Nate held out his own hand, which Travis took reluctantly. “I’m with the Aspen Falls police department.”

  Travis arched a brow. “Police?” His eyes flitted to Alex.

  “I’m looking for a woman who stopped by earlier,” Nate continued. “Early thirties, Latina. Long dark hair, slim build.”

  Travis ignored the question. His attention was on Alex. “What are you doing with this guy, man? What’s going on?”

  “It’s a long story,” Alex said. “But we need you to answer the question. Is she here?”

  Travis chewed the inside of his cheek. “She’s a friend of yours, right?”

  Alex nodded.

  “She’s also an officer with AFPD,” Nate added.

  Travis’s eyes widened. “She is?”

  Nate gave a curt nod. “So you can see why your cooperation is needed.”

  “She was here earlier,” Travis offered.

  Alex pounced. “What did you tell her? Where did she go?”

  Nate held up a hand. “Hey, slow down, man.” To Travis, he said, “When was she here?”

  “This morning,” Travis answered. “I don’t know the exact time, but it was early. Definitely before ten.”

  “And you spoke with her?” Nate asked.

  “Yeah, for a little bit. She said she was a friend of yours.” He said this to Alex. His expression hardened. “She didn’t mention anything about being a cop.”

  “What did she tell you?” Alex asked.

  Travis ran a hand across his bald head. “She told me you were missing. Which you’re obviously not.”

  Alex didn’t know what kind of story Cam had floated for Travis, and he didn’t much care. He just wanted answers.

  “This have something to do with the shooting last week?” Travis asked. “Double homicide, right?”

  Alex wasn’t surprised by him saying this. Just because Travis wasn’t a cop anymore didn’t mean he stopped following the news. His statement was a perfect illustration of that.

  “Sort of,” Alex hedged. “What did she ask you? What kind of info did you give her?”

  Travis shrugged. “She said you were missing, that she was an old friend. Made some allusions to the sergeant, how you’d told her I’d gotten a bad rap.” His mouth tightened. “And then she asked about Necco.”

  Necco.

  Alex leaned forward. “What did you tell her?”

  “I gave her a description of the kid. Told her what part of town she might find him in. That was pretty much it. She said she wanted to come back later this afternoon to talk to me about…about the harassment charges.” He scowled. “Anyway, I haven’t heard from her since.”

  Thoughts raced through Alex’s mind. Had Cam found the kid? Was she still in Bentley, hunting down more clues? Or had someone intercepted her?

  “What part of town?” Nate asked.

  “Southside,” Travis told him. “By the old cement plant.”

  Nate was already backing away from the door. “You should stay here,” he said to Alex. “In case she comes back.”

  Alex glared at him. “Not a chance.”

  “You really think you should head into a town where half the people want to kill you?” Nate asked.

  “I don’t care,” he said. “If Cam’s there, I’m going.”

  Nate stared at him for a long moment. “Not a good idea.”

  “Yeah, well staying here isn’t any better,” Alex argued. He looked at Travis. “You have your phone on you?”

  Travis nodded.

  “Let me give you my number. You can call if she shows back up. Keep her here until we get back.”

  Travis pulled his phone out of his pocket.

  “Take my number, too,” Nate said.

/>   He typed in the numbers. “Got ’em.” He looked up at Alex. “I’ll let you know as soon as she gets here.”

  There was no ‘if’ she gets here, and Alex was grateful for that. Travis was ready to assume the best, even when Alex was prepared for the worst.

  “Let’s go,” Nate barked.

  Alex didn’t have to be told twice.

  He was back in Nate’s car seconds later, yanking his seat belt across his shoulder. He pulled his burner phone out and tried Cam’s number one more time. Maybe she’d pick up this time.

  It went straight to voice mail. He let out a sigh of frustration. A sigh of fear.

  “She might be talking to this Necco kid,” Nate said as he peeled out of the driveway. He handed Alex his phone. “Try mine.”

  “It’s going to voice mail.”

  “So she has it turned off,” Nate said. “She’s probably in the middle of something.”

  “Why would she turn her phone off?” Alex asked. “Especially since you called her earlier and she hung up quickly? She’d know you’d be calling back, especially since she didn’t get back in touch with you.” He tapped his phone against his leg, a nervous gesture that became more forceful each time the device hit his thigh. “I think she’s in trouble.”

  Nate wouldn’t look at him.

  And he didn’t answer.

  Alex’s heart felt like a wild horse stampeding. Every bad scenario played on repeat through his mind. He broke into a cold sweat.

  They needed to find Cam.

  Fast.

  Before it was too late.

  41

  Tuesday, September 11th

  5:00 pm

  The room was dark.

  That much, Cam could tell.

  She blinked, wincing as that simple maneuver shot fiery pain through her temple.

  Where was she?

  She forced herself to keep her eyes open and tried to adjust to the dim light in the room. She couldn’t see much: cement walls, cement floor. To one side appeared to be a bank of windows that were papered over with something, barely allowing any light to filter through.

  She shifted, realizing then that she was seated in a chair.

  Seated and bound.

  She flexed her hands, then her arms, but the ropes held tight.

  What the hell?

  The last memory she had was fuzzy, and she tried to focus on it, to remember every last detail.

  She’d been driving. A cop had pulled her over. Forced her out of the car. Hit her with something.

  That was it. Everything else was a blank.

  She had no idea how long she’d been out for. No idea where she was.

  And no idea what would happen next.

  A soft moan sounded from her right and she whipped her head in that direction, a strangled cry coming from her throat as the pain rocketed through her head. There was a chair set a foot or two to her right, but behind her just enough so she couldn’t get a good view. She craned her neck, finally bringing it into view.

  There was someone in the chair. Tied up, just like her.

  She squinted into the darkness. The person was taller than her, thin. Features were indiscernible, but she saw a hat. Even in the dark, she could just make out the name emblazoned on the front.

  Magic.

  She sucked in a ragged breath.

  Whoever had taken her had gotten their hands on Necco, too.

  She stared at the boy. His head hung limply forward, and she sincerely hoped that meant he was just unconscious and not dead. As her eyes adjusted to the dark, she saw something dark running down the side of Necco’s face.

  Blood.

  Cam’s eyes filled with tears. Not of sadness, but of anger. White-hot anger. Who the fuck would hurt a kid? A kid whose only crime had been to talk to Cam?

  She looked away, trying to get her emotions under control. She needed to be calm, needed to figure out a way to get them both out of wherever it was they were.

  Her gaze landed on a shadowy figure standing near what looked to be a door. A man—that was all she could make out. She glared at him even though she wasn’t sure he could see her in the darkness. She struggled once more against the ropes, willing them to shift so she could wiggle free. She wanted nothing more than to launch herself at this man, dropkick him to the floor, and get her and Necco the hell out of there.

  The door opened and a beam of light sliced through the darkness. Cam quickly closed her eyes and dipped her head.

  She didn’t want her captors to know she’d come to.

  “What the fuck is going on?” a man barked.

  Cam stole a quick peek. There were two men standing near the door, and the light coming in provided a much better view of them now. One man, the one she initially saw, was the cop who had pulled her over.

  She gritted her teeth. Bastard.

  The other man was a stranger. Just as tall as the first guy, but beefier. He looked like someone who might work as a bouncer at a club. She couldn’t make out his features but noticed dark hair and what looked to be a beard.

  The cop spoke up. “You…you told me to take care of the problem, Sarge,” he said timidly.

  Cam froze.

  Sarge.

  Any doubts she might have had about who had taken her and Necco—and why—vanished.

  “Alex is the problem,” Sarge snapped. “Not these two.” He scrubbed a hand over his head and started to pace. “We can’t just go around kidnapping people, you idiot. Especially a fucking cop from another city.”

  Cam peeked again.

  The cop looked visibly taken aback. “She’s a cop? I… She said that, but I thought she was just messin’ with me. I…I didn’t know, man.”

  “Ignorance is never an excuse,” Sarge said icily.

  Cam could almost hear the other man swallow. “So what are we gonna do?”

  “The only thing we can do,” Sarge grated out. “Make them disappear.”

  Cam shuddered.

  “Hey.” Sarge’s voice was sharp.

  She didn’t dare look up.

  Footsteps sounded on the cement floor, and she knew he was moving closer. Her heart roared in her ears, but she kept her head hanging as loosely as possible, her eyes squeezed tight.

  A hand yanked her head up by the hair and her eyes flew open.

  “Well, well, well,” Sarge said. His eyes were as black as his hair. Black as the devil himself. “Someone playing at being asleep?”

  She spit, spraying his face.

  He just grinned, her spittle hanging from his lip. “You’re a feisty little bitch, aren’t you?”

  She glared at him. She wasn’t going to look away. She wasn’t going to show any weakness at all. He was the kind of person who would devour that; she could already tell.

  He yanked something from his pocket. A rag. He jammed it into Cam’s mouth and she tried not to gag. It reeked of cigarettes, tasted like vomit. She wondered how often he’d used that same rag to gag other people. She fought the bile rising up her throat.

  “Let’s make sure we keep you quiet, shall we?” he murmured. He brought his face within inches of hers. “And let’s make sure we keep your bodily fluids to yourself.” He wiped at the spittle on his face and transferred it to her cheek, a menacingly soft gesture. “Or maybe we can exchange other bodily fluids. Hmm, pretty lady? Would you like that?”

  Her eyes shot fire at him and she said, “Fuck you.” But the rag muffled the sound and Sarge just smiled, delighted that he’d elicited a response from her.

  He reached into his pocket again, this time withdrawing a switchblade. He flicked it open and held it up, letting the light glint off the metal before bringing it to Cam’s neck. He dug the blade into her skin, just enough to create an uncomfortable amount of pressure. She could feel her pulse beating wildly and she struggled to bring it under control.

  “It’s a shame Alex got you involved.” His voice was a deadly whisper. “Such a pretty thing.” With his free hand, he stroked her hair. The touch w
as too intimate, especially when he tucked a loose strand behind her ear. “And such a good detective.”

  Her eyes widened.

  He noticed. “I did a search on you. Of course I did.” He chuckled to himself. “Such a hard worker, aren’t you? What a shame for your department to lose you.”

  She made a gurgling noise.

  “I know,” he said, his voice dripping with sympathy. “I don’t want to have to hurt you. You or this kid. But you’ve left me with no other choice. You realize that, right?” His expression hardened. “You did this to yourself. Not me. I’m just following this out to its natural conclusion.”

  He was delusional. Even in her panicked state, Cam knew this.

  “Sarge,” the other man began, but the sergeant silenced him with a look. The man took a step back.

  Sarge returned his attention to Cam, looking at her almost tenderly. “I was wrong. This isn’t just your fault.” He jerked a thumb in the direction of the cop. “Dipshit over there had a hand in this, too.” He lowered his voice. “Trust me, he’ll pay.” Louder, he said, “But it doesn’t matter who’s at fault, does it? Not when the end result is the same. I need to wipe the slate clean, Camila. Make sure there are no loose ends to this whole fucked-up mess. Which means I need to take care of the both of you.”

  Cam glanced at Necco. He was still passed out, still oblivious to what was going on.

  Sarge chuckled. “That one is disposable,” he said, waving indifferently at Necco. “No one will care that he’s gone. But you?” He sobered. “I need to think about what to do with you. A staged suicide, perhaps?” He stroked his chin. “But I’ve already done that…”

  Cam stared at him. He’d staged a suicide? A story from a couple of years back popped in her memory. A cop from Bentley who had been found shot in the head in an alley. There was no sign of foul play, no signs of a scuffle. The department had been reluctant to rule it a suicide, but there was no evidence that pointed to anything else. Police officers from around the state had attended the funeral, including some from Aspen Falls.

  He leaned close and adjusted the rag lodged in her mouth, almost as if he were straightening a tie. He smiled at her. “The clock is ticking, I’m afraid,” he murmured. “Which means one thing.”