by Seven Steps
She’d almost forgotten that he’d taken it upon himself to fire her.
Almost.
After the concert, she ran into Dondo leaving the green room, a beautiful blonde on his arm.
“Doc,” he said, his voice raising an octave. “You got back here fast.”
“You too,” she replied. “Leaving early?”
“Yeah, this is Stacey. She and I are gonna hang out tonight.”
Cassie turned to the blonde, held her hand out to her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Stacey.”
Stacey frowned, looked at Dondo.
“She doesn’t speak English.” He smiled.
Cassie nodded.
“Well, we’d better get going.”
Dondo jerked his chin to the door and, his arm around Stacey’s shoulders, walked off.
“Dondo?” Cassie said.
He turned.
“Be careful with her.”
His eyebrows knitted together, in something akin to confusion, before he silently turned around and continued walking toward the parking garage.
Cassie waited until they were outside before taking a deep breath and plunging into action.
She burst through the doors just in time to see a black limo pull up to them. A thin man jumped out and held the door open as they climbed inside.
She waited until the doors closed again before jogging out to her car.
“Going somewhere?”
Noah’s voice sent chills down her spine.
“Does it matter?” she asked threw over her shoulder. “I don’t work for you anymore, remember?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
She arrived at her car, a yellow two-door sedan.
“You had me fired.”
“I paid you up until the end of the summer, gave you a bonus, and free concert tickets. I wouldn’t exactly call that a raw deal.”
She whipped around to face him. “Did it ever occur to you that I liked my job?”
“You liked sitting in a dirty nurse’s office and putting ice on bruises?”
“First of all, I graduated from nursing school. I’m qualified to do this. This is what I was doing before I came here. I like what I do. I like it so much that I want to take it to the next level and be a doctor. So, before you belittle what I do, know that my goal in life is to save lives and yours is to sing songs. Who can make fun of who’s job? Second of all, you didn’t even ask me if I wanted to quit. You just made the decision without consulting me. I am furious with you, Noah!”
A few girls spotted him. With wide grins, they crept over.
“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t think you liked it so much. I’ll give you back your job if that’s what you want.”
“What I want is respect for what I do. I deserve that much!”
“Of course I respect it. I was just trying to give you a break.”
The girls pulled out a phone and took a picture. Noah held his hand up to block the flash.
“Take care of your fans, Noah.”
Cassie yanked open the car door and climbed inside.
“Where are you going?”
“Out.”
“You know, Cas, it would really make me feel better if you went in the limo—”
The car sped off, leaving Noah in the center of a growing crowd of fans, as cameras flickered and flashed.
Chapter 20
She lost the limo.
After an hour of navigating in the winding streets of Germany, Cassie drove back to the hotel. She hoped the girl would be okay, but something told her that she wouldn’t be.
In a moment of desperation, she texted Dondo, asked him if he’d seen Noah.
He texted back a few minutes later.
No.
She then texted Noah, asked if he’d seen Dondo.
He texted back:
Said he was going to a meeting with your father. I’ll check.
Then, a few minutes later:
He’s with your dad.
With my dad? she thought. With the girl? Why?
Another text from Noah.
Are you coming back to the hotel? I’m waiting at your door. Food’s cold.
She squeezed her lips together, guilt creeping into her belly. As she pulled back in front of the hotel, she tried to make sense of it all.
Dondo is with my dad, and, probably, Stacey. How can he kill her with my dad there? Unless he’s not the killer at all.
More confused than ever, she climbed out of the car and took the elevator up. She found Noah sitting in front of her door, bag of food in hand, staring at his phone. He stood when he saw her.
“Hey,” he said, running his hand through his hair. The brown locks ruffled, then fell back into place.
“Hey.”
“So, where’d you go?”
“You don’t want to know.”
“Why? Were you out with another guy or something?”
Her keycard froze midway down the card reader. “What?”
“Just wondering.”
“No, I was not going to see another guy. Why would you even say that?”
“You sped off in the middle of the night,” he said. “I didn’t really know what to think.”
“Middle of the night? It was eleven thirty.”
“Okay, but that’s not the point.”
She let out a huff, opened the door for him to come in, and threw herself on the bed. She wondered if Stacey was okay. She wondered if she would see her pretty face on the news the next morning.
She felt Noah’s weight climb onto the bed. He lay next to her, balancing his head on his palm.
“Are you going to talk to me about it?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“You’d never believe me.”
“Try me.”
“It’s about Dondo.”
“What about Dondo?”
She paused, decided to give it a shot. “You know how he always leaves with girls at the end of the night?”
“Yeah.”
“The girls he’s been leaving with…” She paused. How could she tell him that she thought his best friend was a killer? It didn’t matter now. She had to try. “The girls he’s been leaving with are all dead.”
“What?”
“Every morning I turn on the news, and the girls are all dead. Killed the same way, choked, their bodies crushed, dropped off in a bad neighborhood in a suitcase.”
“All of them?”
“All of them.”
“And what makes you think Dondo’s the one doing it?”
“He’s the one who leaves with the girls. And the killings are all so similar.”
“So you’re assuming?”
She sighed. “Yes, I guess. But I don’t see any other explanation.”
He turned onto his back, looked up at the ceiling.
“You’re wrong. Dondo would never do something like that.”
“How can you be sure?”
“Because I know Dondo. I’ve known him since I was a kid. Sure, he can be a jerk sometimes, but he’s no killer.”
“But how can you be sure?”
“He’s my best friend. He’s not a killer.”
“Noah, I know that this is surprising, but—”
He sat up in the bed, turned away from her.
She sat up on her haunches, put her arms around his shoulders. She had to make him understand.
For Stacey’s sake. For Brenda. For Kelly.
“At least hear me out.”
“What proof do you have?” he asked.
“Just what I said. He leaves with the girls and then they’re dead.”
“That’s not proof. That’s nothing concrete.”
“It’s all I have.”
“So you left here by yourself to follow him?”
“Yes.”
“And what were you planning on doing if he was the killer, huh? Dondo is nearly as big as I am. What would you have done if you caught him in the act?”
“I
would have called the police.”
“And said what? You speak English. This is Germany. By the time you did all that, Dondo would have spotted you and killed you too. Did you even think of that?”
She sat back on the bed. No, she hadn’t thought of that.
“Look, even though I know that Dondo isn’t a killer, promise me that you won’t go on any more wild goose chases by yourself.”
She nodded. “I promise.”
“Good.”
He stood.
“Where are you going?”
“I’m tired.”
Panic rose in her chest.
“Will I see you tomorrow?” she asked, hoping her desperation didn’t show in her voice.
He placed a hand on the knob. “Yeah. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
He closed the door behind him, and Cassie let out a string of colorful swears.
She wished she hadn’t said anything at all.
Chapter 21
Unknown
A knock on the door released the killer’s fingers from Stacey’s throat.
She breathed in deeply, her head abuzz with the sudden intake of oxygen.
Just as quickly, he covered her mouth with one hand.
“Don’t make a sound,” he growled. Slipping off his t-shirt, he ripped a strip from the bottom of it and stuffed it into her mouth.
She gagged, almost vomiting as sweat stained cloth went nearly down her throat.
He ripped off a second strip and hastily wrapped it around her wrist.
The knocking continued.
His rough hands yanked her off the floor. He dragged her to the bathroom and pitched her inside before slamming the door behind her.
Her mind beginning to clear. She searched the bathroom, but there were no windows.
Swearing, she pushed the gag from her mouth with her tongue and used her teeth to undo the knot from around her wrist. Now freed, she tried to pull the toilet seat cover off, but it wouldn’t budge. She turned, wrapped her hands around the shower curtain rod, and leaned back with all of her strength.
It popped off, the curtain shushing as it fell into the tub.
She pushed the dirty white curtain off the rod and maneuvered the rod in front of her. Back hunched, legs bent, teeth set.
When he came again, she’d be ready.
The front door slammed shut.
His footsteps grew closer.
The door opened.
He appeared.
Using the rod as a lance, she rushed forward, slamming it into his chest and pinning him to the bathroom wall.
He screamed in rage before grabbing the end of the rod and pushing.
She fell off balance. The rod clanged to the floor.
He flew across the room, landing on top of her, sending several hard slaps to her face.
She cried out, clawing at his skin, kicking and spitting, swearing in harsh German as she fought for her life.
His fist reared back and rammed into her face.
She was stunned.
He wrapped his hand around her throat, the blood from his wounds dripping onto her pale skin, and he choked the life from her eyes.
Chapter 22
Cassie
A mix-up with the flights had Noah leaving early the next day.
Cassie’s flight wasn’t until early afternoon. She found herself sitting at the airport with Noah’s choreographer. She wondered if Noah hated her or not. After checking her phone a hundred times she finally came to the conclusion that there was no good morning text. She’d accused his friend of being a murderer, and now he wanted nothing to do with her.
And what was worse, there had been another murder last night.
Stacey was gone.
There was no denying it now. Whomever was killing these girls was on this tour.
She boarded the flight around noon, and arrived in Paris an hour later.
A limo drove them to the hotel, where they signed for their rental cars.
She found her father in the lobby, a cell phone pinned to his ear.
“He is a millionaire. Who cares if I burn through the gas. Just pay it!”
He jammed his finger onto the off button, and glared at the phone.
Cassie jogged to the elevator and joined him inside.
“Hey, Walter.” She threw her arms around him. He hugged her back. It was still awkward, but it was getting better.
“Hey.”
She sighed. “Look, I’m sorry about last night. I didn’t mean to say those things to you.”
His eyes turned soft. “I guess things got out of hand,” he said. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt, or pregnant, or—”
“I won’t. I’m leaving here in five days and I’m going back to school. And Noah and I are not sleeping together. Mom taught me better than that. I’ll be fine, and I appreciate your concern.”
She gave him a side hug, looked into his shaking hand.
“Who was that on the phone?”
“Ah, just Aaron, the accountant. Always complaining.”
He stuffed his cell phone into his pants pocket.
“How was your flight?” he asked.
“Great. Short. Yours?”
“Good. I slept through it.”
The elevator doors slid open, revealing the private wing reserved for the rich and famous. Gold outlined every door and window. The egg shell colored walls gave way to intricately designed blue, white, and gold carpeting. Above them, a golden chandelier sparkled, the sunlight throwing rainbows along the walls. The hallway smelled of potpourri. Cassie ran her finger along the gold flower embossments that appeared every ten feet or so.
“Fancy,” she whispered.
“You know Noah. He spares no expense.”
She turned to her father, noticed the fresh scratches that ran along his neck. She touched them gently.
“What happened?” she asked.
He flinched, covering the scratches with one hand. “My eczema is acting up.”
“From the stress?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, don’t worry. Noah LaRock isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. And even if he does, you will always have a place to come home to.”
She watched a tight smile play on his lips. “You mean that?” he asked.
“Absolutely.”
They stopped in front of her door. “I’ll see you at the concert.”
“See you then.”
He left her to open the door to her room.
She gasped.
Rose petals were sprinkled on the bed and along the top of the dresser. They covered the carpet, made a pathway to the bathroom. A hot tub bubbled, the rose petals dancing over the water.
“Oh my!”
On the bathroom counter top was a letter, addressed to her.
She opened it, read it aloud.
“I’m sorry that we missed our five seconds today. I promise to make it up to you. Noah.”
Joy flooded her heart. She swung herself around and ran for the bags that had been deposited in her room before she arrived.
The gurgling hot tub was calling to her and she wouldn’t let the rose scented luxury go to waste.
***
After wrapping herself in the softest towel she’d ever held in her hands, Cassie finally got her mother on the phone.
“Oh, Cassie dear, I’m so sorry I’ve been missing your calls.”
“Where were you, Mother? I was starting to worry.”
“I’ve been out. Pastor Ben took me to dinner last night.”
“And the night before that?”
“The movies.”
“And the night before that?
“The beach.”
“Mother!” Cassie cried.
“I know, I know, don’t lecture me. He’s a nice man, and I’m a lonely old woman.”
“I leave for two months and you find yourself a man.” She smiled.
“A very nice man,” Janice said softly.
“Well, I guess I’d better get t
o know this nice man, then,” Cassie said. “Are you all set to pick me up from the airport?”
“Yes, I will be ready and waiting. I may even bring along a friend.”
“I see. So, tell me about this friend.”
“You already know about Ben.”
“I know he’s widowed and the pastor of the church. Besides that, I don’t know anything about him.”
“Well, he likes jazz music, and he’s a good cook.” Her mother’s voice rose an octave. She could hear the excitement in it. “He has a very nice garden in the back of his house. We worked in it a little last week.”
“Last week?” Cassie asked. “How long has this been going on?”
“Oh, not long. Two months or so.”
“Two months? Were you waiting for me to leave?”
“Now don’t sass your mother. Tell me, how have you been?”
“All right, I guess. We’re in Paris, in a beautiful hotel. Noah filled my room with roses.”
“Noah?” Her mother gasped. “Noah LaRock?”
“Yes.”
“Are you two seeing each other?”
“We’ve been hanging out as friends.”
“Friends don’t buy friends roses.”
“Well, we’re good friends.”
“Now, Cassie, don’t get tied down by this man. You have goals, dreams. You have to finish school. That’s what you want, isn’t it?”
“Yes, Mother.”
“And there will be plenty of time for boys after you have an MD behind your name.”
“I know. I keep telling myself that, but…”
“But?”
Cassie sighed. “No buts.”
“If I don’t see you at that airport, I’m coming to get you, and dragging you back.”
“No, you don’t have to do that. I’ll be there.”
“Good. Now, tell me about these roses.”
Chapter 23
France
Noah and Cassie finally found each other in the green room after the show. She’d deliberately waited until he finished with the backstage pass holders before presenting herself to him.
His eyes devoured her hungrily, raking over her high-waisted shorts and flowered crop top.