“Here is my ID, I’ll just be a second. I just have to grab my presentation. I’m running late. Please.”
He finally convinced her and she unlocked the door. His stomach fell. He swallowed again. Shit. I can’t do this. Each step toward the bedroom tortured him. He heard her giggle, he heard her beautiful voice. She is Dylan’s. She has always been Dylan’s, he said over and over in his head like a mantra trying to prepare himself for seeing them in bed together.
I can’t do this. He looked back and saw the maid waiting in the hall. Shit! He approached the bedroom and knocked on the door.
“We don’t need maid service,” Dylan called through the door.
“It’s me.” Bradley’s voice cracked as he tried to speak.
“We don’t need maid service.” Dylan repeated.
Bradley knocked again. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he reached for the door knob. He had to tell them, this was for Jess. He had to… I can’t. He began to walk away then stopped and returned to the door. This is for Jess. He knocked again. This time Dylan opened the door wrapped in a towel. Nicole lay on the bed behind him with the covers pulled up around her.
“I said we don’t…Bradley, what the hell are you doing here?” Dylan stepped into the living room of the hotel suite and closed the bedroom door to let Nicole get a robe on.
Bradley took a deep breath in. “It’s Steve, he’s after Jessica. He may have been here, but I think he is going to DC.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Steve has Nicole’s address book, and knows where Jess lives. I found this in my suitcase.” He pulled out the map and showed him the carnation. They had hoped the distance would have kept Steve away from Jessica.
Dylan turned to Brad. “Have you been able to figure out where the Carlisles might be?”
“I did what Chris told me to. I found out that David Carlisle married Marie Anderson back in 1980. They may be using her maiden name. I looked into that name as well and found 17 more addresses we can look at. And I found out Emily is staying in Tennessee. Her dad’s at the Vanderbilt-Ingram, a cancer research and treatment center down there.”
“We have to find Jess, Brad. I’ll talk to my dad. Nicole should stay here. Can you come back in twenty minutes to stay with her so I can go talk to him about helping protect her. She isn’t going to be happy we are leaving her here. But my dad has contacts. He’ll make sure she is safe while we are gone.”
“Yeah, I think she will be safer here. It will just take me ten minutes to get ready to leave. We should leave soon. I don’t know if he put this in my suitcase in Alaska or here. So I don’t know how much time we have. We have to get there before something happens to Jessica.”
“Let me go talk to Nicole. I’ll see you soon.” Dylan opened the bedroom door and entered.
“What was that all about?” Nicole asked brushing her hair.
“It’s Jess. Brad is worried Steve may be after Jess.”
“Let’s go. We have to find her before he does,” Nicole put down the brush and stood in a panic.
Dylan looked at the map. “We do have to go, we have to go today.” He put his arms around her waist. “Baby, you can’t come. If Steve is in DC, you have to stay here.”
“I want to go, too,” Nicole demanded. “She is my daughter. I want to go with you.”
“Baby, we have to keep you safe. We will bring her back or, as soon as it is safe, we will bring you. We’re going to have our hands full, finding your folks and figuring out what Steve is up to. You can stay here. I’ll talk to my dad. He’ll keep you safe.”
“Please don’t leave me here alone. I want to go. Please let me go.” Nicole’s eyes pleaded. “She’s my daughter. Please.”
“Once we find her, you can come. Once we know it is safe, okay?”
Nicole burst out in tears. “What kind of mother am I? I can’t remember. I can’t even remember. What kind of mom doesn’t remember? Don’t tell her. Please don’t tell her. Maybe if I see her. Maybe if I see her I will remember. Please let me come. Please. You said I could come.”
“That was before we knew Steve may be there. I’m not willing to let anything happen to you, baby. We will come right back for you.”
Sobbing, Nicole clutched onto Dylan. “Don’t leave me.”
“Baby it’s going to be okay. We’ll find her, I promise. We won’t let anything happen to her.”
“I want to help.”
“I know you do, and you staying safe is the most important thing right now. Jess needs her mom to be safe. I need you to be safe. I couldn’t handle seeing you in a hospital room again. I’ll be back soon, I promise.”
Chapter 61
*Dylan*
Dylan walked into his dad’s office. Dad, mom told me…Did he dare tell him that he knew? He decided not to say anything about his father’s illness. Dylan knew his dad would deny it and it would just make the conversation weird. He hated that he had to ask his dad for anything, but it was an emergency and he didn’t know who else to trust.
“Dad, I need your help.”
“Dylan, you know what your mom’s decision is.”
“I don’t need any money. I know you don’t understand, but I’m in love with Nicole. I won’t leave her, not for any amount of money. I have never felt like this Dad. I know I have done some stupid things in the past, and I really hate to be here right now asking you for a favor. But I need your help, I don’t know who else to trust.”
Mr. Richardson took a sip of his coffee then put it on the desk and listened.
“Nicole’s daughter is in danger. The man that put Nicole in the hospital is after Jessica, and Brad and I have to go find out where they are. It is too dangerous to bring Nicole.” Dylan breathed in. “Dad, I’m scared to leave her alone. She means everything to me. I can’t let anything happen to her.” Tears formed in Dylan’s eyes, and he quickly wiped them away only to have them replaced by more tears. “You didn’t see her. You didn’t see her connected to all those machines. I know you don’t understand. But she has been through so much. I just need you to watch over her while we are trying to find her daughter.”
Mr. Richardson was taken back. He had never seen his son express any kind of concern for anyone, much less a girl. And he had never seen him cry. He stood and walked around his desk, putting his hand on Dylan’s shoulder. “I’ll have Zack watch over her. That is simple enough.”
“I’ll pay you back, whatever it costs. I sold my house and Chris even offered to have me do a contract with him if money gets tight. I will pay you back, just please keep her safe.”
“Dylan, a contract with Chris? that is dangerous work. Are you sure you want to…?”
Dylan didn’t want to hear how dangerous it was. All he wanted to hear was that his dad was going to keep Nicole safe. “So, Zack will watch over her till we get back?”
“Yes, Son, he will make sure nothing happens to her.”
Dylan extended his hand. “Thank you, Dad. She is staying in Suite 342 at your hotel. Don’t say anything to mom. I don’t know why she hates Nicole so much. I don’t want her saying anything to Nicole to hurt her. I really love her, Dad. If anything happens to her…I need to know you’ll keep her safe.”
“She will be fine. Zack will be her bodyguard till you get back. He is one of my best. She will be fine.”
Chapter 62
*Bradley*
“I brought all the information we have been collecting. I found this yesterday. I had heard Nicole’s ex had beaten her, but didn’t realize how badly. He put her in the hospital several times and finally, she put him in prison. His name is Ronald Phifer. I printed this out. It has his picture on it. Apparently, he is out of prison. Before Steve attacked her, Nicole had told me Ronald tried to kidnap Jess, so I figured it would be good for us to check into him while we
are there.”
“Nicole never really talked to me about him. I can’t believe he hit her.”
“She didn’t like to talk about it. I found out because she was arguing with Emily about it.”
“I can’t believe a guy would abuse a girl. I remember she would sometimes flinch as if I was going to hit her. I would never lay a hand on her. I’d like to teach this ass hole a lesson.”
“I agree. I wanted to kill him when I heard he beat her. I don’t understand it? She has been through so much.”
Brad pulled out some copies from his binder. “I found this, too. This is Steve. His name was Dennis Walters. During the time he lived in Florida, eight girls disappeared. The killings seemed to stop when he moved to Alaska. It looks like he was in the Special Forces prior to this. I tried to find out more info on him but couldn’t. Nothing links him to these murders, but it stopped right after he fled. And they are very similar to the ones in Alaska.”
“It has got to be him. He has to be the sick bitch that is killing all those girls.” Dylan started looking through the weapons he had collected throughout the years. Luckily, they were taking his father’s private plane so they wouldn’t have to go through security.
“I want you to take my Glock. It will drop him if you hit him.” Dylan handed Brad the gun and Brad loaded the clip. Dylan loaded the Raven, laying it down as he pulled out assorted knives, deciding which one he should bring to the hunt. “Finally all those years of karate will pay off.”
Bradley stared at all the different blades.
“Which ones do you want?”
Bradley’s memories flashed back and he saw the dagger and Nicole covered in blood and he cringed. “I can’t, I don’t think I can. Not after…”
“We have to get him, Brad. We have to end this. He has to die. If we don’t catch him, I’m going with Chris to hunt him down. If I do, I need you to stay with Jess and Nicole while I search for the monster.”
“Dylan, I don’t think you should go. You should have seen him. Even now, going to DC we have to be careful. We have to stay in public places. He scared the hell out of me in Anchorage. I don’t know why I am still alive. I don’t know what he is up to but he really hates you Dylan. He blames you for Nicole leaving him.”
“I hate that bastard more. I hope we can get him so I don’t have to leave. Do you think I want to? But she needs to be able to have a normal life. She can’t keep worrying he will attack her again.”
“What if something happens to you, Dylan? What if…”
“I’ll be careful. He will not win! I need you to stay with her Brad, but if you touch her, I will kill you too!” Dylan smacked Brad on the shoulder to lighten up the threat.
“What if I say no? What if I won’t watch over her?”
“I know you will. I know you won’t let anything happen to her. You are the only one I can trust. You have proved it. I know you care about her and even when I pushed her on you, you were still loyal. I don’t deserve a friend like you, but she does. I know you won’t let her down.”
Chapter 63
*Nicole*
Mr. Richardson knocked the door of my suite. “Nicole, I thought I’d take you out to dinner, since Dylan and Brad left last night and you are here alone.”
“That would be wonderful, thank you.” I was in a foreign world and without the comfort of Dylan and Bradley, I felt like an outsider.
Mr. Richardson waited in my hotel suite while I changed. When I came out of the bedroom, he was looking at wax figures lying on the coffee table.
“Dylan mentioned you were an artist.”
Since they had left, I’d spent most of my time in the room fiddling with the wax candles, sculpting forms of Dylan and Brad.
“The truth is, sir, I don’t remember what I am. But I like to fool around with wax. I made these little sculptures today from the candles Dylan brought to the room. I couldn’t sleep last night.” A pile of melted wax sat on some newspapers next to the tiny sculptures.
“I call them my guardian angels. I don’t know what I would have done if it weren’t for the two of them. They have been so good to me. They truly have been my saviors.”
Mr. Richardson took one into his hands. “You made this out of candles? What did you use for tools?”
“My hands mostly, my fingernails and a couple butter knives from the kitchen.”
“Wow, you captured them perfectly. My friend Clark can teach you to make these on a larger scale. At a university you’d be able to use their tools and materials so you can find your favorite medium. Working in wax, you can make bronze or acrylic sculptures, and I am sure you would do a wonderful job with clay. You are quite good, Nicole. I know a little about art. You really shouldn’t doubt yourself.”
I smiled. “That’s what Dylan always tells me. He is so encouraging. Do you know I could barely take one step and he waltzed with me.” I laughed, remembering. “He let me stand on his feet. We waltzed around the living room. You are a lot like your son.”
His voice softened, “Dylan? It seems you have been good for him.” There was an awkward silence and then he spoke again. “The car is ready. Would you like to join me for dinner?”
“I would love to.”
I stared out the window of the limo at the beautiful wide oak trees that lined the street. They looked so powerful. I wished I could take pictures so I could capture the beauty on a canvas when I got home.
Each elegant plantation home we passed in the Garden District made me crave sipping sweet ice tea on the huge porch. It felt like I stepped back in time or stepped inside a story book. We arrived at the turquoise and white Victorian Restaurant. The rooms and settings inside the Commander’s Palace enhanced the lovely outdoor setting—a bright airiness. Walls of glass and trellises were apparently handmade for the Garden Room and paintings accented its color and design.
Everyone knew him at the restaurant--almost as if he was a celebrity. All he had to do was wave and the waiters were at his beck and call. The chef even made a personal appearance to make sure everything was perfect. It was. It must be nice to command that kind of attention, I thought.
I had eaten Creole cooking with Dylan in the Quarter a few days before, and I loved it. He spoke to the waiter in French, and I wondered if I spoke any other languages or traveled throughout the world. I doubted it, but it was fun to imagine.
“So Nicole, I was wondering, what is it that you love about my son? Why do you want to marry him?
“He makes me feel like I can do anything. When I’m around him, it is like there is no one else in the world. He completes me.”
“I want to be honest with you, Nicole. I talked to Mrs. Richardson and I don’t think she is going to back down. If you marry Dylan, it is her intention to keep his accounts frozen. He will lose his money, so you’ll be on your own financially. The truth is, I learned long ago not to argue with her. It makes my life easier that way.”
“Mr. Richardson, that would really be up to Dylan. I love him more than anything and would never ask him to give up anything for me. But to be honest, money isn’t important to me. If he had nothing, I would marry him. I really don’t care about the money. I don’t need fancy things.”
“How will you pay the bills?”
“I want to work. They won’t let me right now because they are afraid something will happen to me. The truth is, since my accident, Dylan and Bradley have been taking care of me. I don’t know what I would do without them. I can’t imagine waking up from amnesia and having no one that knows who you are. But I can’t wait to be back on my feet again. I can’t wait till I can do my part.”
“When did you fall in love with my son?”
“I have little flashbacks to our time together, but a lot is still cloudy. I remember little glimpses and don’t know which incident made me fall in love with him. But wh
en he kissed me the other night, it brought back a memory. I think it was our first kiss. We had been dating for a little while and he knew I was fascinated by marine life. A famous marine artist had an exhibit at a museum and he wanted me to see it. Dylan thought I would love it. For some reason, I had given up art and entering the museum was really difficult for me.”
I smoothed out the napkin on my lap. “I remember being hit by all these emotions and tears coming to my eyes and he just held me until I felt a sense of peace, an overwhelming peace and I remembered how much art had meant to me again. He brought me back into a world I had left behind.”
“An art gallery, that doesn’t sound like Dylan.”
“It is the little things he does, Mr. Richardson. The way he looks at me, the way when I couldn’t even walk he let me stand on his feet so I could dance, the way he covers my lips when I say something bad about myself and tells me I can do anything. The way he is.”
“Are you sure we are talking about the same boy?” He let a laugh.
“To be honest, I do feel like he is too good for me and that I’m dreaming sometimes. No man can be that perfect, can they? I understand you wanting someone more educated for him, someone more refined. But I don’t think you will find someone that loves him more completely than I do.”
“In order for my wife to even consider you as a daughter-in law, she has to feel you don’t love Dylan for his money and you have something to offer to the relationship.”
“I assure you, if he had nothing, I would still be totally in love with him.”
“But you need to be successful as well. I love your sculpture of my son in wax. The details are incredible. I don’t get to see him as often as I like and I would love to have one made of him.
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