by Michelle Fox
My heart sank and the doubts rushed in. Had I screwed up? Would she lose her contract because of me?
“It was fabulous, lady. I talked to Stan. He said you’re a natural.” She wagged a finger at me. “I told you, didn’t I?”
I flushed at the praise, pleased she was happy. “Oh thank God. You worried me there for a second.”
“Sorry. It’s the theater in me. I always go for the drama.” She gave me jazz hands with the word theater.
That made me laugh because it was true. “That’s why I love you, Lil.”
“I love you too, Ruby. You’re my sister from another mother.”
“Ditto.”
We smiled at each other for a moment.
“So what happened after the show?” She arched an eyebrow. “Did you finally pull off a magic trick with Blake?”
A blush burned up my cheeks. “How did you know?”
“I have my sources and I’ve watched you moon over him for months.”
“I didn’t think he knew I existed.”
Lilli chuckled. “Oh he knew. He watched you as much as you watched him.”
“What?” How had she noticed?
She tapped the side of one eye. “I see these kinds of things. So, how was Blake?”
“Great, but he’s gone and the police are looking for him.” I filled her in on the rest of the story and her eyes went wide.
Lilli put a hand to her heart. “Goodness, I had no idea he was such a handful.”
“Too much for me to hold onto,” I said, glum.
“Oh, don’t be sad. You’ll never forget him, and if I’m any judge of men, he was worth it.”
“I hope you’re right.” I already felt some regrets about sleeping with him.
Lilli took my hand in hers and leaned over to look deep into my eyes. “Ruby, don’t you dare let the past do anything but push you forward. You save that retrospective shit for when you’re ninety and can’t walk. We’ve got things to do.”
A nurse hustled into the room. “Time for your surgery, Miss Lush. I’m here to take you down to pre-op.”
I squeezed Lilli’s hand. “Good luck, Lil.”
She squeezed back. “Work on some costume sketches for me, will you? Give me something to look forward to when I wake up.”
“Sure. Birds, right?” The last we’d discussed costuming she’d mentioned a bird theme.
“Yes, bright, bold birds. Lots of feathers and a metric ton of sparkle.” She looked at the nurse patiently waiting for us to finish. “Do you know what the recommended daily allowance is for sequins?”
The nurse shook her head.
“All of them.” Lilli giggled.
“Same goes for Swarovski crystals,” I added.
The nurse smiled, friendly but still reserved. “They never covered that in school.”
Lilli tossed her head. “That’s because burlesque dancers are a breed apart.”
The nurse’s lips twitched as she moved to pull up the bed rails. “I’ll make a note of that. Now, we’ve got to get going or you’ll be late.”
I leaned down and gave Lilli a quick hug. “I’ll come see you later.”
“Yeah, bring some food when you do. They haven’t fed me all day and I would kill for pizza.”
I watched the nurse wheel her away and laughed when I overheard Lilli say, “Tell the surgeon to be careful when he cuts me. I’m half glitter.”
Chapter Six
I spent some time bumming around the small downtown after Lilli went into surgery. I ate at the diner there, indulging in a burger, fries and milkshake. Stuffed, I settled into a comfortable chair at the library where I sketched and checked out the fashion magazines. After the hustle and bustle of the last six months, it felt strange to live life at such a slow pace.
Toward dinner time, I spoke to a nurse who said the surgery went well and Lilli was in recovery but still out. I gave her an hour and then ordered a pizza with all her favorite toppings; mushrooms, bacon, sausage, pepperoni, pineapple, peppers and onions. Lilli’s pizza was as extravagant as she was. When I dropped it off later that evening, though, she was out like a light. The nurse on duty said she’d probably sleep most of the night. I left her the pizza and headed back to the trailer.
The lot stood empty save for Lilli’s RV. A lone parking light at the far end cast more shadows than light. I parked the bug next to the trailer, and, just as I stepped out of the car, another vehicle turned into the lot with a grind of gravel.
I watched as it drove toward me, seemingly on purpose. To my surprise, it was a limo. The sleek, black car stopped in front of me and a driver in a trim black suit stepped out.
He took off his hat, revealing short gray hair. With a nod, he asked, “Miss Palmer?”
“Yes,” I said, curious as to why he would want to talk to me.
“I have a message for you.” The driver extended an envelope.
I walked over to him and took it with a frown.
“I’m instructed to stay until you open it, Miss,” he prompted when I didn’t do anything but stare at the envelope.
“Oh, okay. Sorry.” I tore it open and my jaw dropped at the contents. First, there was an air ticket with a final destination of...Morocco? What? The accompanying note simply said:
Come with me. -Blake.
“Blake?” I looked at the driver who just shrugged.
“I’m to drive you to the airport as soon as possible.” He put his driver’s hat back on and opened the passenger door revealing the limo’s expensive leather interior. “Your flight leaves in two hours.”
When I didn’t move or speak, let alone breathe, the driver frowned at me. “Miss?”
“I-I don’t know.” I looked at the note again, my mind racing. I shook my head. “This is crazy. I can’t go.”
“You’re sure?”
I thought of Lilli and nodded. I couldn’t leave her to deal with a post-op knee by herself. Her health had to come first. Besides, the limo and the ticket was just too weird. It didn’t feel right.
“Very well, Miss. Sorry if I bothered you.” He shut the door and then returned to the driver’s seat. With a tip of his hat, he drove off.
I watched him go, unable to decide if I had made a mistake or averted disaster. It doesn’t matter anyway, I told myself, I have to be here for Lilli.
I was just about to enter the RV when the squeal of more tires caused me to turn around. A car screeched into the lot and raced toward me. It wasn’t the limo, but some kind of four door sedan. One of those big ones that old people always drive.
The car pulled alongside Lilli’s car and three men got out. Two of them I recognized as the police officers from earlier in the day. The third slouched in a grungy hoodie that hid his face.
“Ruby Palmer?” called the brash masculine voice of Detective Bowler.
“Yes?”
“You hear from Blake yet?” The two cops crowded around me while the hoodie guy stayed by the car.
I waved the note and the ticket. “Funny you should ask. I just received this.”
They grabbed the papers from me and poured over them.
“Morocco?” The cop who’d spent the morning staring at my breasts frowned at his partner.
Detective Bowler shrugged. “This changes things.” He waved the stranger forward. “You’re coming with us, sweetheart.”
“Am I under arrest?” I backed up, pressing myself into the RV’s door, as they advanced toward me. The hoodie guy darted toward me. Who was he? Some undercover cop or something?
“No, we’re detaining you,” said Detective Bowler.
“I don’t understand. Why?” I fumbled with the key to the RV thinking, if I could just get inside, I could shut out all this madness. What the hell had Blake done and why was I mixed up in it?
Rough hands pulled me back, keeping me from the door. I struggled and kicked, but couldn’t overcome their strength.
“Easy, Miss Ruby. We don’t want to hurt you,” said a soft voice. A voice that gave m
e pause. I watched with rising panic as the third man moved to stand in front of me. I knew that voice, but didn’t believe my ears. He shoved his hood back enough to reveal his face and my stomach sank.
“Clark.” Again. He was persistent, I had to give him that.
His lips split into a broad smile. “Looks like I might get that kiss after all.”
He leaned in and planted the wettest, grossest kiss I’ve ever shared with a man. Frog tongues probably had less slime. I tried to bite him, but he was nimble. In seconds, it was over and he stepped back with a triumphant smirk.
“Mmm, as sweet as I thought you’d be.” He leered at me. “I might have to kiss you again. You’re that good.”
“Fuck you, you sick bastard.” I kicked at him, but he moved, easily evading my foot. Since he was out of reach, I tried to bite the cops holding me back. While I could reach their biceps, I couldn’t make much of a dent through their clothing.
“Jeez, she’s a pistol,” said the ogling cop as he peeled my face off his arm.
“Wait until I shove your gun up your ass,” I snarled. They both just looked at me, momentarily stunned by the venom in my voice. “What? You think because you’re cops, I’ll let you get away with assault? Are you assholes even really cops?” My spidey sense was going nuts. Something was really wrong with these guys and that meant I was in serious trouble. I’d heard the stories of serial killers dressing up like officers to prey on women. With Clark involved, I didn’t think things would end well for me.
I squirmed and tried to kick them again, but they had the advantage. All I hit was air and proved that men really do have more upper body strength than women. Their hands tightened on me with bruising strength, forcing me to hold still.
“Let’s get her tied up,” Detective Bowler said. “Come on, Clark, make it snappy.”
Clark put a hood over my head and someone zip-tied my hands behind my back.
“What’s going on? Why are you doing this to me?” I asked. My mouth tasted of Clark’s sweat and stale cigarettes. His flavor was as vile as his personality. I wanted to spit and then gargle with Listerine for a week straight. The hood didn’t help, it smelled like unwashed jockstrap with an overlay of gasoline.
“Just cooperate. It’ll be better for you,” said Bowler.
They started to lead me somewhere, probably their car. By some miracle I twisted free, desperation lending me strength. I ran, but blind with my hands tied behind my back, I was easy to catch. Someone tackled me down to the pavement, taking the opportunity to grope my breasts when I rolled onto my back. Probably the oogler cop or Clark. I slammed my knee up and scored a glancing blow to my groper’s crotch. Not a direct hit, but close enough they stopped feeling me up. Dirty fucking cops.
They lifted me to my feet, and, when I resisted, a fist caught me on the cheek. I screamed then, but that only earned me another punch.
“Where’s the god damn sedative?” barked the harsh voice of the Detective.
“Here,” said Clark.
Someone hiked up my skirt and jabbed a needle into my thigh. The drug hit me like a drinking binge chased by an overdose of sleeping pills. My bones turned to jelly and the men had to carry me as I quickly lost the ability to walk.
I tried to talk, tried to reason with them, but I sounded as drunk as I felt. My mouth couldn’t do more than slur vowels.
They stuffed me in the trunk of their car and took off at a fast clip, slamming me from one side of the trunk to the other as they went. I wanted to be smart and kick out the tail light, but I couldn’t coordinate my body let alone keep my eyes open. Darkness claimed me as I hurtled toward an unknown fate.
Lilli had called Blake a handful, but, for once, her powers of exaggeration hadn’t even come close. He was beyond a handful. He was dangerous and he just might get me killed.
Chapter Seven
A roaring sound filled my dreams. There was pain too. Throbbing aches that told me my dreams weren’t real.
That made me sad because Blake had come to me in the ether of unconsciousness. I desperately wanted him to be real. If he was real, it meant I was safe. Deep down, though, I knew safety had escaped, running from me and leaving me in the dust.
“I can’t stay, Ruby.” Blake wore his tuxedo, the collar unbuttoned and revealing the tempting hollow of his throat. His dark eyes smoldered, setting me on fire. He held my face between his hands and studied me as if memorizing my face.
My heart broke. “Why not?”
“It’s a risk to be with you. I shouldn’t even be here, but I can’t resist.” His lips claimed mine. I groaned as he fisted a hand in my hair and pulled my head back to deepen our kiss.
When we took a breath, I said, “But we have right now.” I pressed myself into his sleek body, wanting so much more.
He smiled against my lips. “Yes, but only now.”
One last kiss and he was gone.
It hurt just as much as the first time he’d disappeared.
The scene shifted, depositing me in a seat at the Cirque D’Amour. Lilli stood on-stage, glitter twinkling along her skin. She smiled at me with oxblood lips that matched the burlesque costume she wore. The dark red sheath dress was from her heartbreaker routine where she lit her pasties on fire. A man in the shadows flicked a lighter until a single flame sparked in the dark.
Lilli gestured toward me with an elegant sweep of her hand. “The spotlight is on you, Ruby. There’s no place to hide, so put on a good show.”
She blew me a kiss and began to burn.
An earthquake tore me from sleep. I bounced and lurched with the ground. I fought to open my eyes, which were in no hurry to return to reality. They voted I sink back into sleep, but the violent movement of the world around me would not be denied. I had to wake up.
When I did, I decided my eyes had been right; I should’ve buried myself in my dreams. They were a safer place to be. It wasn’t an earthquake that moved me, but a jet landing on a runway. A private jet with snow white leather seats and blue carpet. I sat in one of the chairs, my neck throbbing from the lack of support while I slept.
Outside the window, a landing strip raced by in a gray blur as the plane’s wheels bumped over the runway. From the dim light, I surmised it was either dawn or dusk. I didn’t know where I was, but I had an idea: Morocco.
“Ah, you’re awake,” said a male voice with a Boston accent.
I startled and turned my head to see a short, bald man sitting across from me. He had the baby blue eyes of Sinatra, but the rest of him didn’t match. His figure had the bloat of a man who drank too much and even his fancy pinkie ring couldn’t class up his sausage fingers. The man looked at me, his gaze placid as a blue sky. He didn’t feel guilty about a thing. I found the thought chilling.
Footsteps sounded behind me and another man came into view. One I knew, but didn’t want to see. Clark. Again. Would I ever get rid of this guy?
“Hello, Ruby.” Clark smiled down at me. He’d showered at some point in the recent past and the smell of aftershave wafted into my nose. His clothes had changed, too. Instead of circus road crew rags, he wore a nice pair of khaki slacks and a green polo shirt. He looked halfway handsome with his hazel eyes and neatly trimmed hair. He was nothing like the guy who’d harassed and stalked me all over the Cirque D’Amour. Weird. Maybe Blake hadn’t been the only one doing magic tricks.
I looked at both men. “What the hell is going on? Who are you?” I tried to move my arms as I spoke, but they’d been tied to the arm rests. When I flexed my feet, I discovered I’d been bound at the ankles as well. Well, wasn’t that just peachy keen? I tested my bonds but found no slack that would allow me to escape. I was stuck.
“Allow me to introduce you.” Clark sat in the seat next to the bald guy. “This is Frankie.”
“And?” I prompted. I remembered everything up until I’d passed out: The police, who weren’t police, looking for Blake. They’d kidnapped me, pumped me full of drugs and put me on plane. The name Frankie was not nearl
y enough information to explain any of that.
Ignoring my question, Frankie pointed at me with his chin. “Cut her loose, Clark.”
“She’s a fighter, boss.”
“Boss? You work for Frankie?” I frowned at Clark. Had the crew gig been a front of some kind? What was going on?
He smirked at me. “The crew was just a side job, Blake was always my paycheck.” Holding up a finger, he wagged it at me and said, “I tried to warn you away from him that night. You should’ve listened to me.”
I rolled my eyes, but didn’t say anything. Clark had revised history to the point where it was unrecognizable. He’d been trying to get into my pants, not save me from anything.
“Clark, I’m waiting. Cut the rope already.” Frankie sounded bored.
“You sure?” Clark looked askance at Frankie. “She fought us like a rabid cat when we went to pick her up.”
Frankie gave me a pointed look. “She’s a lady. She’ll act like one, right, Ruby?”
“Yeah, sure, Frankie.” I smiled sweetly at him and pictured ramming my heel into his crotch. If Frankie was smart, he wouldn’t give me a clear shot.
Clark pulled out a knife and sawed through the rope holding me down. Once free, I massaged my wrists.
“Thanks for nothing,” I said, glaring at him. At least he hadn’t copped a feel this time.
Apparently, Clark didn’t care for my tone. He raised his hand as if to hit me, a thunderous look on his face, but Frankie called him off.
“Sit down, Clark. We got business to conduct before we reach our gate.”
Clark slumped into his seat with a sullen frown.
I stretched my arms overhead, releasing all the knots in my back from being trussed up in one position so long. “So is anyone going to tell me what is going on? Where am I?”
“Right where Blake wants you. That plane ticket he sent was a lucky break for us.” Frankie watched me stretch with open interest, his gaze lingering on my chest as I arched my back. “Morocco. Casablanca to be precise.”
I abruptly crossed my arms. “You’re kidding me, right?” Of course, I had suspected as much, but hearing it out loud hit me hard and cold as ice. And what did this guy mean by lucky break? What the hell was going on?