“She climbed out the window,” Cyndi whispered.
“That’s impossible! That woman wasn’t going anywhere.”
Cyndi spun in a circle, examining the small space. She stopped when she saw the dressing table mirror where she usually sat to put on makeup.
“Oh no,” she whispered.
“What’s wrong?” the surveillance officer demanded.
“There’s a message.”
“Message?”
“Yeah, on my mirror. Lipstick, I think.”
“Hap! Tell Mills to get back to that dressing room!” Cyndi stood frozen, listening to the officer in her ear mic bark out orders.
“What does the message say?” a voice she hadn’t heard yet asked.
“It—it says—next.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“What do you think it means? Someone is coming after me next!”
Before she had time to fully process what was happening, Jason burst into the room with Rafael hot on his heels.
“What the hell do you think you are doing?” Rafael yelled as he jumped Jason from behind. Jason sidestepped and the bouncer flew past him, stumbling into the chair Roxy had been sitting in a few minutes earlier.
“Who the hell are you? I ought to bring you in for assaulting a police officer!”
“I don’t care who you think you are. Get out before I throw your ass out!” Rafael clenched his fists. He wanted to beat the crap out of Jason. Cyndi had seen him like that before. She had to do something.
“I heard a woman scream back here!” Jason turned to her, no sign of recognition in his blue eyes. “Was it you? Did you just scream?”
“Um…no. Everything is fine back here.” Cyndi looked around and held her hands up questioningly. “Nothing going on here that I can see.”
Rafael grabbed for Jason again, but he side-stepped the attempt, sending the other man a steely glare. “I’m telling you someone screamed, and I am not leaving here until I find out who and why.”
“Tell your husband to shut up, Mrs. Mills! He’s blowing his cover!” Cyndi heard the echo of the voice, but the words in her ear didn’t make any sense. Nothing made any sense. Roxy, the window, Jason…
The room around her was starting to dissolve into liquid colors. Her knees felt weak.
“It’s okay, Raf…he’s…” Reaching for something, anything, to hold onto, Cyndi hit the floor in a crumpled heap.
Something cold touched her face. Forcing her eyes open, she peered up into the worried eyes of Johnny. A bar cloth filled with ice lay across her forehead.
“Hey, Liberty.” He smiled. “What happened? That guy hurt you when he came barreling back here like that?” Cyndi shook her head. She glanced around. Oh man, they’d laid her on the nasty sofa. She shuddered in revulsion, and bile rose in her throat. She squeezed her eyes shut and choked back the vomit. When she moved to sit up, a wave of dizziness washed over her, dropping her back on the filthy fabric. She did notice that Roxy’s yellow boa still hung across the windowsill, blowing in the night breeze.
“Don’t give your husband up, Mrs. Mills,” a fuzzy voice whispered into her ear. “We got him out of there before he could totally blow his cover. Right now the club employees still think Jason heard someone scream and he ran to check it out. You know, a good Samaritan.”
Her head was cloudy. The voice barely penetrated the fog as she closed her eyes once again.
“Cyndi? Come on, girl, you gotta sit up. I don’t want you fallin’ back to sleep. You hit your head when you went down?”
Eyes still closed, she reached up and felt around through her hair with her fingertips. No noticeable lumps or bumps or cuts. “I don’t think so. Did they find Roxy?”
“What do you mean?” Johnny looked confused.
“I went out back for some air.” Cyndi pushed the icy cloth away and tried to sit up on the couch as she spoke. “I heard a scream and came running in. Roxy was out of it. Something was wrong.”
“She screamed?”
Cyndi nodded, ignoring the dizzy feeling that still assaulted her. “She was mumbling about how ‘she told him no’ and some other stuff. When I ran to let you all know I called 9-1-1, she disappeared through the window.” She waved her hand toward the yellow boa. “See? She left her feathers behind.”
“So, Roxy Feathers has flown the coop,” Johnny stated before busting out in laughter.
“That’s not funny!” Cyndi barked.
“Yes, it is,” the voice in her ear echoed Johnny’s laughter.
“We need to call the police and report it. She’s been kidnapped!”
“You sure you didn’t hit your head, Lady Liberty?” Johnny studied her with concern.
“I’m sure!”
“What makes you think she was kidnapped, then? Roxy is a free spirit. This wouldn’t be the first time she disappeared over the years, you know. Last time we didn’t see her for a month. I’m sure she is fine.” Johnny patted Cyndi’s arm in much the same way she would reassure Harper after a scraped knee.
“Don’t patronize me, Johnny. I saw something move. There was someone in here. I know there was!”
“Mrs. Mills, don’t say anything to the bartender, but we found some boot prints under the window. Someone probably helped her out of there. When the club closes, we will have the crime scene techs out there to process the area.”
She stood up. The room moved a little but settled down quickly. “I need to go do my second set.”
Johnny headed toward the door in front of her. “No need. You missed your opening, so I sent the new girl out there to get in some practice. You should go on home and rest.”
Smoothing her hair and straightening her costume, she stepped toward the door. “I’m fine, Johnny. I want to finish out the night.”
“I said go home, Cyndi. You are done for the night. Maggie will cover for you.” Johnny turned and disappeared into the club. His tone left no room for argument.
There was nothing more she could say, so she grabbed her bag, pulled on a sweatshirt over her costume, and left through the back door.
“It’s all right, Mrs. Mills,” the voice in her ear said. “It’s a good time to call it a night anyway.”
“I’m sorry guys. I blew it. Now we will never know what happened to Jade or Lola.”
“Cyndi,” a voice hissed from the shadows as an arm reached out and pulled her over by the dumpster. A second hand stifled the scream that teetered on her lips. “It’s me.”
“Jason? What are you doing out here?”
“Shhh! Even though you screwed up, I am still undercover here.”
“That’s not fair!” she snapped. “It’s not my fault Roxy had…well, whatever Roxy had done.”
“Perhaps you want to go inside and screw some other guy? See if he is guilty.”
“Jason Jonathan Mills! How dare you!” She put her hands on her hips. It took all her self-control not to smack the snot out of her husband.
“I saw you on that guy’s lap. It only makes sense you must give private shows as well.” Jason’s grin was almost cruel, and his usually clear blue eyes were dark with anger. Cyndi had never seen him like that. What had her little game done to her marriage? She just had to stick her nose in, run her little investigation, and now she might have ruined her relationship with her husband. Still, he had no reason to accuse her of…well, what he was accusing her of.
“I have never done that before, and I don’t intend to ever do it again. I was trying to find out what happened to my friends. You go undercover on prostitution stings, should I automatically assume you double as a real john on your days off?”
“You know that’s not true, Cyndi!”
“Well, I don’t have sex for money.”
“It’s hard to believe the woman who has been lying to me for weeks.”
“I’m sorry about that, truly I am, and we will have a long talk about it later. But if you didn’t try to lock me away behind alarms and locks and security lights al
l the time, I might not have been so desperate to get out!”
“So, this is my fault? Excuse me for trying to protect my wife. You have no idea—”
“Blah…blah…blah…I have no idea how horrible the human race is. How many men live to violate women and blah…blah…blah…I still need a life, Jason!”
“You have a life. Me and Harper.” His voice lost its anger and was now cold and steely.
“I wanted something else. Besides, it was fun to be appreciated.”
“You call creepy men jacking off under dirty table cloths in a smelly sex club appreciation?”
“Go to hell, Jason Mills!”
She turned and started to stomp away but Jason grabbed her arm. “Where are you going?”
“Home. Where do you think?” she snapped, angry blood rushing through her veins.
He let go of her. “I may or may not see you there later. I am not sure how I can share a bed with my wife when she was rubbing her goods all over some dirty old pervert.”
“It’s not like you’ve been sleeping with me at all anyway! How would tonight be any different?”
“Now I have a visual. A dirty image of my wife humping against some filthy pig.”
“I was doing my job, that’s it!”
“Your job! I don’t remember the CI paperwork saying anything about lap dances.”
She fumed but bit her tongue. The only things she wanted to say would probably completely end her marriage right then and there. Instead, she whispered, “Whatever.” She heard Jason mumble something into his radio, and then she knew she was alone outside.
Cyndi pulled out the key fob that unlocked her car and slid in behind the steering wheel, still grumbling about Johnny. She was pissed that she hadn’t accomplished what she had set out to do. She never once remembered to check the back seat, nor did she notice the car hadn’t actually been locked when she hit the button on the key fob.
How many times had Jason told her to check the vehicle before getting into it?
Obviously one time not enough. The cold steel that was pressed up against the back of her head was the only reminder she needed.
“Put the key in the ignition and drive.”
Chapter Twenty
Cyndi froze. There was no mistaking that cigarette smoking, vodka-on-the-rocks tainted voice.
“Roxy? What the hell?”
“Shut up and drive.” The cold steel of the gun barrel pressed up hard against her skull.
“Where are we going?” Hands shaking, she managed to work the key into the ignition on her third attempt. She turned the key and switched on her lights. Ignoring the pulse throbbing in her ears, Cyndi pulled the car away from the curb and slowly drove past the surveillance van. The surveillance van.
Were the guys still listening in? No way. They thought she was going home. Jason and the other undercover officers would be their focus. Still, with one hand on the wheel, she adjusted the neck of her sweatshirt with the other one, exposing the mic.
“I said to drive,” Roxy’s gravelly voice commanded, but the pressure against the back of her head lessened slightly. Cyndi’s heart raced, and her breathing came in short gasps.
“Stop trying to make yourself faint!” Roxy demanded.
“Where are we going?”
“It doesn’t matter. You’ll know when we get there.”
She followed Atlantic Avenue until it curved around and met with Shore Drive. The traffic light turned red. Cyndi tried to turn around and look at her captor, but the gun pressed up against her head once again.
“Don’t turn around. I ain’t changed since the last time you saw me.”
“What are you doing, Roxy?”
“Just tryin’ to survive, Liberty.”
“By kidnapping me?”
“It’s the price I’m going to have to pay.”
“For what, Roxy?”
“The light’s green. Drive.”
Cyndi slowly pulled forward. Her windshield had begun to fog, so she flipped on the air conditioner. The instant assault of icy cold air shocked her already tense body, causing a ripple of shivers to wash over her. She flipped the AC off again and opened her window.
“Turn left,” Roxy commanded.
Cyndi whipped the car in that direction and pulled into the state park, which was often frequented by joggers in the early morning hours. “Where are we going, Roxy?”
“You will know when you get there.”
On the off chance the wire techs were listening or recording, Cyndi started talking. There were no lights in her rearview, but if she was lucky, the team was far better at undercover work than she apparently was. “Why are we at First Landing State Park? The park closed at sunset.”
Roxy grunted in response.
“Come on, Roxy, you got to give me something. One minute, you are sprawled on the floor, having a seizure, and the next you have a gun pointed at my head. I think I should get to know why, don’t you?”
“You will find out soon enough. Thank you, by the way.”
“For what?”
“For caring enough to try and get help for me.”
“I just did what anyone would have done.”
“No, you didn’t. The people I know would have let me die or whatever. Turn right in about ten feet.”
“You thank me by kidnapping me at gun point?”
“I’m just doin’ what I have to. Turn there!” Roxy motioned in the rearview mirror with the gun. As best as Cyndi could tell, it was a .45. Bigger and heavier than most women would have chosen, but Roxy always did march to the beat of her own drum. It made her wish she had grabbed her own little Colt 9mm before heading off to the club earlier in the night.
“You want me to turn at the sign for the camping area?” Cyndi asked through clenched teeth.
“Isn’t that what I said?” Roxy snapped, pressing the gun against Cyndi’s skull again.
A narrow path opened up, and Cyndi whipped the wheel to the right, sending the rear end of the car into a violent fishtail, dirt and gravel flying everywhere. It jerked so hard to the left that Roxy went flying across the back seat. The gun hit the floor of the car with a loud thunk. Two of the tires lifted off the ground, but the car didn’t roll. The wheels hit the ground and found traction as she shot forward into the shadowy, tree covered area.
A dark figure appeared in the beam of her headlights. Cyndi slammed on the brakes, sending the car into a spin. Roxy hit the floorboard with a yelp. The back end of the car slid off the main road and dropped into the storm ravine. The vehicle rested on the shoulder of the road, teetering up and down.
“What the hell happened?” Roxy yelled from the floorboards.
“Some…someone was in the road,” Cyndi answered, desperately searching for the latch on her seatbelt. If she was going to get away, this was her chance. Kicking off her stilettos at the same time her hand found the button on the seatbelt, Cyndi flung the belt off and grabbed for the door handle.
“Where do you think you are going?” Roxy growled from the back seat as she struggled to get off the floor. The car rocked backward as Cyndi pushed the door open. The front end of her car lifted high in the air, stopping with a groan as the back bumper rested against the bottom of the ravine. Without answering Roxy, Cyndi jumped from the car. She hit the gravel on her hands and knees. She ignored the searing pain from her scraped skin, managing to get up and run for all she was worth with Roxy yelling behind her. The gravel cut into her bare feet, but Cyndi kept running.
“Hello!” she called into the microphone attached to her chest as she ran. “Is anyone there? I need help! I’m in First Landing State Park! Help me!”
“Just who are you expecting to hear you?” a voice growled in the dark as a solid form stepped in front of her. She ran full force into a hard chest. Vice-like arms spun her around and wrapped themselves across her body, pinning her arms to her sides.
“Help! Help me!” Cyndi screamed so loudly her throat went raw.
“Scream all you
want. It’s off-season, no one’s here.” There was something slightly familiar about the harsh whisper in her ear.
“What do you want with me?” Cyndi demanded, struggling against her captor, but he didn’t respond. In the dark, she could hear the crunching of gravel.
“Roxy! You have to help me!” she called into the dark.
The older woman stepped close, the gun extended out in front of her. “I don’t think so. You just tried to kill me.”
“I did not!”
Roxy shrugged. “Whatever.”
The arms tightened around her as they lifted her up off the ground. “Put me down, you son of a bitch!”
“Bring her to the campsite, Mario, and then double back and make sure we weren’t followed.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Mario grunted as he carried Cyndi through the trees and brush.
Cyndi kicked her feet, trying to make contact with anything that would hurt enough to get her captor to drop her, but her efforts were to no avail.
“Let me go! Come on, Roxy! Make him let me go. What are you all doing? You know my husband is a cop!”
“Real good looking guy too. I saw him all over you behind the club.”
Roxy knew Jason was at the club. Oh, that couldn’t be good.
“I don’t know what you are talking about.” They left the road, stepping into a densely vegetated area. Her captor had to have arms of steel.
“Between the two of you, it’s easy to see where your little girl got her good looks from.”
The words, whispered hot and harsh in her ear, boiled her blood. Cyndi struggled against her captor. A prickly vine snapped against her face. The hot, wet sting of torn flesh caused a fresh wave of anger.
“What the hell do you know about my daughter? You stay away from her!”
“So sweet. So trusting. Just like her momma. Believes everything anyone tells her. It was so easy to get her to open her window.”
“I don’t even know you! You don’t know anything about me! If you go near my daughter again, I’ll kill you! Do you hear me?”
Undercover in Six Inch Stilettos Page 17