by Grant, Livia
Lukus and Markus spent the next two hours retracing many of Dylan’s steps, experiencing firsthand the key locations of the investigation. As promised, Lukus went to the florist shop where, according to Dylan, Hannah worked during the day. She hadn’t come in for her scheduled shift and her coworkers were surprised since she always called if she was running late. More troubling was when they confirmed that she had been acting like something had been bothering her for the last few weeks, but she hadn’t shared any details with them.
With growing concern that Dylan might have been right to worry about her, they headed to Hannah’s small duplex ranch house in a family neighborhood. It, too, was locked up tight and they got no answer to their ringing of the bell. Lukus briefly contemplated breaking in to check on her but was confronted by a nosy Hispanic neighbor who threatened to call the cops. He decided to move on to look for Hannah in the other locations on their list.
They headed to the warehouse next, hoping to see some women coming or going they could convince to talk with them. Unfortunately, Dylan had been right when he warned them there was usually not much going on there until the evening and overnight. It was buttoned up tight when they arrived. They parked down the street to keep an eye on the entrance while Lukus caught up on his phone calls.
Zach, “Z,” answered on the first ring. “Good timing, boss. I just wrapped things up on this case. I knew if I was patient, I’d catch the asshole with his pants down. We just made a boatload of money on this case. I need a raise.”
Lukus couldn’t care less about the money. He was just relieved to have Z finished so he could jump on a plane from Miami to San Francisco this afternoon. “That’s great, because I was gonna pull you off the case, even if it wasn’t wrapped yet. I need you in San Francisco like yesterday.”
“Are you kidding me? No way. I’ve been on the road for three weeks. I need to go home. Send somebody else,” Z said.
“There is no one else for this one. I’m out here myself already, and I need your help.”
“Holy shit. Bossman got on a plane? Things must be bad.”
“Our new guy got jumped and roughed up bad last night. He’s in the hospital. Worse, this one is personal. I need your A game.”
There was a long silence before Z sighed. “Fine, but I’m at the airport about to board a flight to Chicago. I need to go home and regroup for a few hours; you know, get a little personal attention, if you know what I mean. I’ll head out there tonight.”
“Whatever, but don’t try to convince me you didn’t get some personal attention in Miami. I know better.”
Z chuckled. “I never said I didn’t. I just have some special needs I get fulfilled in Chicago that I find hard to fix in Miami.”
It was Lukus’s turn to chuckle. “You mean you can’t find a pain slut in Miami to let you punish to screaming before you fuck ‘em. Give Trixie a call. She loves it when you’re in town.”
“I bet she does. All right, shoot me an email with details.”
Both men hung up without a goodbye.
Markus cut in. “This sitting here waiting is bullshit. I think we should break into his house to see what we find.”
Lukus agreed. “I’m not gonna sit here and wait either, but now that we’ve involved the police, we can’t break into his place. I have a better idea. Let’s go visit him on his daytime turf and see how he reacts to a visit there. Before we do that, though, we need to call the girls to check in and, more importantly, tell them there’s no way they can go out to that party tonight. Now that Jake knows we’re closing in on him, he’s gonna get desperate. He knows exactly where the girls work and live. We need to tighten things up until this is over.”
Markus looked unsure. “Shit, I hated lying to Brianna last night when I left. How am I gonna explain why she can’t go tonight?”
Lukus didn’t feel sorry for his best friend. “You were an idiot to lie to her. It wasn’t necessary. You should have just said you had to travel. Period. More importantly, who the hell is the head of your household anyway? We make the rules. They follow them.”
For some reason, that sentiment drew a chuckle from his best friend. “Yeah, right. Like Tiff is gonna just say ‘yes sir’ when you tell her she can’t go tonight. You know damn well they’re going to be royally pissed.”
“Pissed I can handle. I’m trying to keep the words dead, beaten, or raped out of our vocabulary here.”
“We both know that, but that isn’t gonna stop them from being angry. Maybe we should tell them the truth.”
Lukus looked to the passenger seat at his friend. “No fucking way. Not yet. It’ll only scare the shit out of them. Tiff’s nightmares are just now slowing down. I want to get the prick behind bars, and then we can tell them so they can breathe easy.”
Markus looked less sure. “I get that, but I want Bri on guard in case he gets to her.”
“Fine. If we think there’s a chance he’ll end up in Chicago, we’ll tell them. Until then, they just need to know we don’t want them to leave their house tonight. In fact, I’ll tell Tiff to go home with Bri. Agreed?”
Markus reluctantly nodded. “Agreed. I hate that we can’t even tell them we’re together, though. I guess we can’t put it off anymore.” He took his phone out to dial his wife’s cell. “It’s already one there. I’m gonna have to make this up to her when I get home.”
Chapter Five
Brianna
It’d been a crazy day at the salon. Fridays were always busy, but between multiple suburban high school proms and being short-staffed, The Beauty Box team had been at it non-stop. Brianna was just dropping into a chair to rest her feet and gobble down a piece of cold pizza when her cell phone rang. She was thrilled to hear her husband’s ringtone.
“What perfect timing! How did you know I’d be free for the first time all day? I miss you. Please tell me you’re coming home tonight?”
Markus paused before answering. “I’m afraid not. Things are still not settled here and I’m gonna have to stay longer. I’m glad to hear your voice. I’ve been missing you.”
“Me too. I didn’t like waking up to an empty bed this morning.”
Bri took a bite of pizza as Tiffany sauntered in, plopped down in the chair opposite Bri’s desk, and reached for her own slice. Bri put her hand over the receiver to whisper, “It’s Markus.” She noticed the look of longing on Tiffany’s face as she pulled out her own phone, wishing Lukus would call her, too.
“I’m not so sure you’re gonna be happy after I tell you why I’m calling,” Markus said.
Brianna swallowed before answering. “Oh, no. Don’t tell me you’re gonna have to stay there all weekend. Where are you, anyway?”
“I honestly don’t know how long I’m going to stay, but I’m calling to tell you that I don’t want you going to the bachelorette party tonight, after all.”
Brianna tried to interrupt him, but he used his Dom tone of voice, which immediately shut her down. “Stop. I didn’t make this decision lightly, but my decision is final, Brianna. I want you to finish up there with your final appointments this afternoon, and then I want you to go straight home. I’ll call you later and explain more if I can, but for now I need you to be a good girl and just say, ‘yes sir,’ and then do as you’re told.”
Her first reaction was to argue, but damn him for going all Dom on her. She was still not used to this side of her husband and had to fight her conflicting emotions with his newest demand.
Markus spoke again. “Are you still there? Did you hear my instructions?”
She tried, unsuccessfully, to keep her disappointment out of her reply. “Yes, Sir. I heard you. I think it’s ridiculous that you don’t trust me. I told you I would never cheat on you ever again.”
“Brianna, this has nothing to do with trust.”
“Then what? It can’t be safety, since you have a limo to drive us.”
She heard him shuffling the phone at the other end as if he were talking to someone nearby. When he was back, he ref
used to budge. “I canceled the limo because you’re staying home. I know it doesn’t make sense to you, but that’s okay. Not only is your Dom giving you instructions, but more importantly, this is your HoH telling you to go home and stay home. Do you hear me?”
Tiffany picked up that something was wrong and looked worried. Bri tried to change his mind. “I haven’t gone out with the girls in months. You know how much I was looking forward to this, don’t you? I don’t understand.” She was on the verge of crying and she hated it.
His voice softened slightly, but he didn’t change his mind. “I am sorry about that. I’ll make it up to you when I get home, but for now, I need to know that you’re home safe and sound. In fact, I’d feel better if you didn’t have to go in to the salon tomorrow.”
Her guard was up. “What’s going on, Markus? Something’s wrong. I can hear it in your voice.”
He steeled his tone. “Nothing is wrong. I just need you to be a good girl, go home as soon as the salon closes, and stay put. I’ll explain everything when I get home. I know you’re busy, so get back to work. I’ll call and check in later. I love you.”
Brianna didn’t get to say goodbye before he hung up.
“Something is up, Tiff,” she said. “I don’t know what it is, but he’s hiding something from me. You heard that he says I can’t go tonight?”
“I was hoping I was hearing it wrong. That sucks so much. I don’t want to go without you. What fun is that going to be?”
Bri didn’t want her best friend to miss out just because her husband was being ultra-secretive about something. “You’ll have fun once you get there. There’s no way you should miss the party just because of me.”
Her sentence was hanging in the air when Tiff’s phone rang. Tiff’s face lit up.
“Hi there! I’m so glad to hear from you. Your call last night was so cryptic, and I missed you. Brianna isn’t going to go to the bachelorette party tonight after all, so I was thinking I’d come down to the loft to see you instead.”
Bri finished choking down the cold pizza. She couldn’t hear what Lukus was saying, but the disappointment on Tiffany’s face told her it wasn’t good news.
“But—” Tiff said. She continued to listen while Lukus talked. She injected small words here and there. “I miss you too.” Thirty seconds later. “Where are you?” Thirty more seconds. “Are you with Markus? He just called Brianna to say the same thing. What’s going on?”
Uh-oh. She’s losing her cool.
Obviously, Lukus noticed too. “No, Sir. I’m not trying to be sassy. I just want you to be honest with me, please.”
This time Tiffany listened for several long minutes, the look on her face becoming more dejected by the minute until a stray tear escaped down her cheek. She swished it away as she answered her Dom. “Fine. I’ll go over to Brianna’s as soon as the salon closes. We’ll order Chinese, and we’ll stay home. But know this, we’re going to talk about this more when you get home. I know you’re keeping something from me, Lukus. I don’t like it.”
She listened, then responded with a sassy retort. “Yes, I did agree to be your sub both in and out of the bedroom. And yes, I did agree to follow your rules and decisions, so I told you, I’ll do what you asked. What I didn’t agree to do is be a doormat and accept lies from you. I’d rather you just tell me the truth. Something is going on that you don’t want to tell me about. I get that. Just say it.”
He must have been repeating the words back to her because she smiled victoriously. “Thank you. I don’t like it, but if Bri isn’t going, I don’t want to go anyway. I know you need to go, but will you call me later when you can talk more, please?” Lukus must have agreed. “Okay, bye. And Lukus? I miss you.”
Tiff closed her eyes, listening to his final words. Then the call seemed to have ended, because she opened her eyes and dropped her phone into her lap. The best friends were intelligent. They also knew their men very well. They both came to the same conclusion at the same time.
Tiff said it first. “There’s something fishy going on. Lukus is hiding something from me.”
Bri concurred. “Markus, too. They’re up to something, and we need to find out what.”
* * *
Markus
“Good afternoon. How may I help you gentlemen?” The attractive receptionist welcomed them as they entered the modern offices of the technology company Jake Davenport hid behind during the day.
Markus stepped up. “We’d like to see Jake Davenport.”
The redhead glanced at a printed schedule in front of her. “That’s odd. Was Mr. Davenport expecting you, gentlemen? I’m afraid he’s out of the office on sales calls today.”
They had known it was a long shot coming here, but after driving around checking out all known locations in which Jake had been hanging out since Dylan started tailing him, and coming up empty, they had to at least try to see if he was here. It was getting late in the day. They wanted to catch up with Davenport so they could tail him tonight.
That would have been too easy.
“That’s too bad,” Markus said aloud. “I had hoped to surprise him. We’re old friends and go back years. When did he leave the office?”
“That’s a shame. He was in earlier today, but he left about an hour ago. He normally tells me which client he’s going to see, but I missed getting that information from him today. With it being Friday, I don’t expect him back in the office until Monday. Would you like me to phone him and let him know you’re here?”
Lukus jumped in. “Oh, no. We’ll be in town for a while. We’d rather surprise him.” Markus detected Lukus turning on the charm. “It’s been some time since we’ve seen our old friend. How’s he been doing?”
The receptionist looked uncomfortable. “Honestly, I wouldn’t know, sir. Mr. Davenport is a very private man. He travels a lot to meet with clients and when he’s in the office, he doesn’t socialize much. I’m sorry, but I know Mr. Davenport wouldn’t like me talking about his private life.”
Lukus looked down at her name-plate. “We appreciate your help, Susan. Thanks for keeping our surprise visit between us. Have a good weekend.”
The men didn’t speak until they were near their car.
Markus was impatient. “That was a bust. Now what?” He was getting settled into the passenger seat when his phone rang. Caller ID told him it was someone he didn’t know. He saw the same look of expectation on Lukus’s face as he accepted the call, putting it on speakerphone.
“Lambert.”
“I just called to say thanks. You’re making this so much fun.”
They may have never spoken, but Markus didn’t need to guess who was calling. Obviously, the receptionist was paid to keep the sales team informed when they were out of the office. “Davenport. So glad you’re having fun these last few days of your freedom. We’re coming for you.”
The hearty laugh at the other end of the phone confirmed Jake wasn’t intimidated. “Bring it on. You’ve got nothing on me. I hate to tell you, but your wife loved every single thing I did to her last time I saw her. In fact, I admit I’m surprised you didn’t kick her to the curb when you realized you were married to a cheating slut.”
“Fuck you, you sadistic asshole. You may get off on terrorizing innocent women, but let’s see how you do going up against someone your own size.”
There was some interference on the call. Markus realized the disruptions were announcements over a loudspeaker. The kind you’d hear at an airport. Lukus appeared to have noticed too, as he looked down at his watch.
“Listen, I’d love to shoot the shit with you two all day, but I’ve got a few more important things to do. I always love Chicago in the spring,” Jake said breezily.
Lukus jumped in. “Nice bluff. Your receptionist said you just left an hour ago.”
“You mean the receptionist who works for me, and tells people what I ask her to say?”
Markus’s phone dinged with an incoming text message. He was set to ignore it until Jake
goaded him.
“Maybe you should take a look at that text message I just sent.”
With dread, Markus flipped to his text messages and found a short clip that looked like it came from a security camera. It had a date/time stamp of a few minutes ago; 4:03 p.m. CDT. It was a grainy picture of Brianna and Tiffany walking to the door, turning off the lights, and locking up The Beauty Box.
Jake filled the silence as the men tried to recover from the kick to the balls that was seeing their women under surveillance by a sadistic predator. “I’ve thought about sending you a thank you note, Mitchell, for installing my company’s security devices in a lot of your clients’ locations, including The Beauty Box. It was so easy to tap into the feed with my little bag of tricks when I was there visiting your wife a few months ago, Lambert. I can’t thank you guys enough for sharing your women with me these last few months. They’ve provided me with many hours of viewing pleasure. I enjoy checking on them a couple of times a day.”
“You’re dead, you fucker. You touch one single hair on either of their heads and you’ll pray for death,” Lukus snapped.
Jake ignored the taunt. “You know, I have to say I’m a bit surprised you’re wasting your time on that O’Sullivan bitch, Mitchell. I’ve done my homework. I have to hand it to you, you have a lot more patience than I do. She may be one hot piece of ass, but she’s a royal bitch. Thanks for getting her training started. I must admit, I’m gonna have fun trying to break her. Gotta go guys, but thanks for leaving them unprotected. You really are making it too easy.”
The call dropped.
The men sat in silence, frozen in fear, until Lukus snapped out of it and placed a call, putting it on speakerphone.
“CJ. Tell me you have eyes on the girls.”
“Well, technically I only have eyes on Tiffany. They left the salon about five minutes ago, but they had separate cars. You didn’t tell me who to sick with so I stayed with Tiffany.”