Collide

by Melanie Stanford

  Simon was still for a moment, and then he sat back down. His lips curled up at the corners. “I must have heard you wrong. Because I know you’re not that stupid.”

  My jaw tensed.

  “I will take everything from you. Do you understand me? Your apartment, your salary, your truck.”

  My hands tightened into fists. I’d expected as much. “Fine.”

  “Margaret.”

  I feigned indifference. “What are you talking about?”

  “I know how you feel about her. It was obvious in the car the other day.” He adjusted his tie. “I also know her and Fred are connected. She didn’t borrow from another lender. So, if you don’t work for me, who will stop me from forcing the truth out of her? Who will protect you when the police find out about all the evidence you planted or made disappear?”

  Adrenaline pumped through my body, my vision blurred.

  “And then there’s the charges your foster sister leveled against you.”

  “I’m an adult now, they can’t—”

  “You were accused of abuse. I made those charges disappear. I can make them reappear.”

  I struggled to keep my breathing even. “I didn’t do it.”

  “Of course not.” He smiled but there was no warmth to it. “But I doubt any parent would want you anywhere near their children if they knew the accusation. Doubt that will help your new business.”

  My body went cold. If the story got out, I would never get students. No parent would risk their children with someone who had that on their record, even as a child, especially someone who then ran away from home, from the system.

  For two years I’d lived on the streets of Vegas, begging on the strip and avoiding the cops, hiding out in abandoned warehouses, making friends with the other bums, learning to use my fists to get what I needed, to keep the dealers and perverts away. And then Simon had found me.

  He was staring at me now, hands clasped over his stomach, waiting. Knowing there was nothing I could do to get free of him.

  I dropped into the chair.

  Simon stood and leaned over me. “Look at you, all grown up and trying to leave the nest. Don’t think I’m unsympathetic, son. Tell you what. Find Fred Madsen for me, meet with Arthur, and we’ll discuss it. Maybe I can lighten your workload. I’m sure you could make time for both me and the gym.”

  It would never end. “I want something of my own. Something I can build up that’s just mine. Can’t you understand that?”

  “I do, Jason. It’s the American Dream. But you’re indispensable to me. I’m sure you understand that.”

  Jason. Whenever he used my proper name, it was a reminder of who I’d been when he found me. A reminder of what he’d saved me from. I’d shed Jason from myself long ago, I was no longer that boy, but that’s all Simon saw. Someone who could be used because he needed to be saved.

  Simon put his hand on my shoulder. “Get me Fred Madsen. I’ll set up another meeting with Arthur. Then we’ll talk.”

  I drove away from Simon’s with my stomach a tight ball of anger. Deep down I knew it would go this way, but I’d still hoped for something else. Hoped that my years of loyalty might have meant something to him.

  This second meeting with Andrew Arthur was unavoidable, but maybe I could convince Simon to come with me. Then I’d tip off Hopkins. He could get pictures, or fit me with a wire. I was ready to do anything to get away from Simon for good.

  Chapter 49

  Maggie

  After work, I headed to Eastside Boxing to get in some dance time. I hoped to avoid Jay. I had no desire to see him, not after what Lacey had said. Falling for him? The very idea was laughable. Jay was not my type at all. I didn’t like him, and he didn’t like me. But I couldn’t face him right then. Not with the thought still in my head, not when the memory of our kiss kept invading my thoughts, and those thoughts taking it further and further, until he was shirtless and my hands were discovering every hard and soft spot of his body and…

  No, just no.

  Determined not to think about Jay Thornton’s abs, I leaned against the bus stop post and waited. A black sports car screeched up beside me, almost hitting the sidewalk, and I jumped back. A man got out. It was Alfonso—the big Mexican who’d treated my bullet graze and my sprained ankle.

  “Simon wants to see you,” he said, jerking his head toward the car door.

  Fear tightened my throat. I backed away. “No, thanks.”

  He grabbed me and pulled me toward the car. “Sorry. It’s not a request.”

  “Let me go!” I shrieked. A couple down the street paused. It was dark out, but between the streetlights and my scream, they would know I was in trouble. Wouldn’t they?

  I opened my mouth to scream again and something pressed into my side.

  “I don’t want to hurt you. Do not make me.”

  I swallowed but didn’t budge. He touched the point into my side and I gasped. A knife, just barely piercing my skin. I flinched, but he had me in such a tight grip that I couldn’t go anywhere.

  “Cut me and I will scream,” I said, but it didn’t sound fierce or threatening.

  He walked me to the car, the knife never leaving my side. The group down the street wasn’t even looking our way anymore. I choked out a sob.

  Alfonso opened the driver’s side door and pushed me in. The sports car was only a two-seater, but he climbed right in after me, pushing me into the passenger seat. He tied my hands with a plastic zip tie, so tight that I cried out.

  He gunned the engine and sped away, leaving the only witnesses to my abduction clueless and far behind. He drove fast, weaving in and out of traffic, not stopping for lights. “You try and jump, it will hurt worse than this.” He motioned to the knife resting on his thigh.

  My whole body shuddered. I wanted out of there. If Ting wanted to see me, why hadn’t Jay come? Why send this guy with his knife?

  While he drove, I inched my fingers toward my bag. It was mashed against my side, under the seatbelt. Not that it would do any good. My purse was zipped shut, I would never be able to unzip it or get my bound hands inside unnoticed, let alone grab my phone and dial. I tried anyway.

  “I’m Alfonso,” the big Mexican said. “We met. You remember?”

  Was he crazy? Of course I remembered, but that didn’t mean I’d be all buddy-buddy with a guy who had kidnapped me at knife point.

  When I didn’t answer he looked over. “Stop it.” The knife was pressed flat against my knuckles in an instant. Alfonso still had one hand on the steering wheel, his driving hadn’t slowed. “No tricks.”

  If I could’ve grabbed the knife, I would have—Alfonso wasn’t even looking at it, his eyes were on the road. But I was shaking. My breaths were loud. I was on the brink of tears. Ting had come to get me before, and it had turned out okay, but Jay had been there. I needed Jay.

  I swallowed and choked on my own breath. He was pressing the flat of the knife into my skin, as if to remind me it was still there.

  “Please.” I started to cry.

  Alfonso groaned. “No crying. I can’t stand crying.” He turned on the radio to an oldies station. He began to sing along to a Beach Boys song, loudly and badly, and I was so surprised, I stopped crying. Had he done that to shut me up, or was he trying to make me feel better? He didn’t even look at me, he just kept driving and singing.

  When the car left the city limits, my panic came back full force. Maybe he wasn’t taking me to Ting at all. Maybe he was going to kill me out in the desert and dump my body. Would Officer Ting order him to do that? Maybe not. But Simon Ting totally would.

  We pulled up to a gated mansion. Alfonso keyed in a code and the gate swung open. As soon as we stopped, I would try to run, but I had a sinking feeling that I wouldn’t get very far. Even if I did, where could I go?

  Alfonso stopped. He lifted the knife from my skin but pointed at me. “Stay put.” While he turned off the car, I undid my seatbelt. Alfonso grabbed the keys and got out.

  I fum
bled with the door handle, yanking it open. The seatbelt caught on my purse. I almost fell out of the car. I wriggled free and lurched forward, running.

  He grabbed me around the waist from behind. I struggled, but he’d gotten me in a bear hug.

  “You cause too many problems,” he said, squeezing tight. His grip loosened, but only for a moment. Then the knife was out and resting against my neck. “Easy. You cooperate, everything will be okay. Understand?”

  I swallowed, the cold steel moving with me. Alfonso walked me up the steps to the front door. My mind whirled while I tried to stay grounded in reality. Maybe this wouldn’t be as bad as I feared. Maybe Ting just wanted to talk, like last time, and then he would let me go. Maybe Jay would be there and he’d—

  Who was I kidding? Even if Jay was there, he’d pick Ting over me—his boss, the man who was a father to him. He’d been lying for me, sure, but he wouldn’t cross that line.

  Alfonso herded me through the front door, still holding me awkwardly from behind. We walked through a big front entrance, past a kitchen, and into a living room. It was an open space with glass walls looking out into the vast backyard. A pool glistened out there, an inviting escape from the regular Vegas heat. Inside, three couches sat in a U-shape, one of them facing a giant flat screen TV against the wall. Alfonso pushed me forward. I didn’t want to sit, but he put both hands on my shoulders and shoved me down. He sat on the couch next to me.

  My eyes darted around the room, catching on a phone resting on a corner desk. On the hallway leading to who knew where, on the door leading to freedom. My body was tense, ready to run.

  “I’ll tie your feet too if I have to,” Alfonso said, as if he knew exactly what I was thinking.

  I waited. Beside me, Alfonso spun his knife, the blade a blur in his hands. If he was trying to scare me, it was working. The only way I’d get away from him was if he stabbed himself. Or fell asleep.

  Minutes ticked by but I never relaxed. I couldn’t. “Can we watch TV or something while we’re waiting?” I asked, hoping something would distract the big man next to me. He shook his head.

  When the door slammed, my heart leapt into my throat. Ting was here, and I was screwed.

  “Sorry I took so long, I had a helicopter parent at the gym who was worried about…”

  It was Jay, not Ting. He stopped talking. I looked at him, my heart filling with irrational hope.

  “What’s going on?” he asked.

  “Simon told me to bring her,” Alfonso said. “He’s on his way.”

  Jay’s shoulders tensed. “What for?”

  “He figured out that Fred guy.” Alfonso nodded at the desk. “Take a look.”

  No. If that was true, then I was beyond screwed. Not even Jay would save me now.

  Jay glanced at me, a frown pulling at his eyebrows. He went to the desk and opened a laptop.

  I couldn’t read his expression. What was he looking at? What had Simon found out about Fraze?

  “What is it? Can I see?” I asked.

  “Show her,” Alfonso said.

  Jay brought the laptop over, setting it on my knee.

  The screen was open to a Facebook page. Bronwyn’s. Right in the middle was one of Fraze and Bronwyn amidst a group of people outside in the snow. Fraze was holding a red cup, his hair covered by a beanie, Bronwyn’s was longer, in thin dreads past her shoulders. The status read, “What happens at the annual Williams party, stays at the annual Williams party, right, Fraze?”

  Even though the picture was old, Fraze looked almost the same as he did now. A little less chubby, a little more like a man now, but he had the same smile, the same twinkle in his eyes.

  “Who’s Fraze?” Jay asked, his voice near my ear. He’d gone to stand behind the couch but he was leaning close so he could see the screen.

  “That’s Fred.” Alfonso clicked another tab and another picture popped up. “Surveillance photo. From Pearl of China. Same night Alonso made the loan. Don’t you recognize him?”

  The photo was grainy, but it was obviously Frasier, sitting inside a Chinese restaurant. “What does this prove?” I asked. Only that Bronwyn knew him, not who he actually was.

  “It led Simon to this.” Alfonso clicked on a third tab. It was Frasier’s freshman yearbook photo. Fraze hadn’t sat for school photos after that. He’d been going against “the man” as he liked to say back then. Doing everything opposite of the way most people did things. His name rested below the photo in big, block letters.

  “Frasier Hale,” Jay said behind me.

  Alfonso took the laptop, closed it, then leaned back against the couch. He caressed the handle of his knife. “Maggie’s brother.”

  Chapter 50

  Jay

  He was her brother. The guy she’d hugged on the street that day, who she’d been covering for all this time, was her brother. I went around the couch to look at Maggie, whose face had gone pale.

  Alfonso was playing with his knife. Maggie’s eyes kept darting to it, then away. “Simon’s going to question her when he gets here. Wants to know where ‘Fred’ went.”

  Maggie stared straight ahead, her lips pressed together. It was no wonder she had never said anything to me, never given up his whereabouts. He was family. I thought back to how surprised she’d been when I’d accused her of screwing over Simon in the gym that day. Maybe she really hadn’t known. Maybe it hadn’t been her idea in the first place, but once she found out, once I’d told her what he’d done, she couldn’t say anything without giving him away.

  “Do you really think she knows?” I asked.

  Alfonso put his hand on the back of Maggie’s neck. “We can find out.”

  I froze, while inside my whole body raged.

  “Tell us where he is,” Alfonso said. “Maybe Simon will go easy on you.”

  Maggie looked Alfonso square in the face. “I don’t know where he is.”

  “No point lying.”

  “I’m not.”

  “You don’t tell me, you’ll tell Simon later.”

  I tensed.

  Alfonso began to stroke the back of her neck like he was soothing a wild animal. Maggie looked at me, the question plain on her face. But she didn’t need to ask.

  I lunged at Alfonso.

  I didn’t catch him as off guard as I had hoped. He slashed at me with his knife, but I knew he would. I dodged. Too slow. His knife cut into my side.

  “No!” Maggie shouted. “Stop!” She struggled to get her hands free, but I couldn’t focus on her. Not now.

  Alfonso came at me again. He was off the couch, which was what I wanted. I taught self-defense classes that were all about people like him. He swung the knife. I moved aside and knocked his arm away. I lashed out with a kick, catching him in the jaw. He stumbled back, the knife dropping from his fingers.

  He spotted his knife but before he could reach it, I kicked him in the leg. He folded like a chair, dropping to one knee. He swung wildly at me. I blocked, and punched him in the face. Then throat. He fell back, hitting the couch. His hands clutched his throat as he gasped for breath.

  I leaned over him. “Sorry about this.” I wasn’t sorry. I knocked him out.

  I picked up the knife, then turned to Maggie.

  Chapter 51

  Maggie

  Jay stood in front of me, panting, the knife clutched in his hand.

  “You’re bleeding.” His shirt was torn where Alfonso had cut him; blood had already soaked through the material.

  He ignored me. “Here.” He knelt in front of me and grabbed my wrists. He was so close. I wanted him to look at me, but he wouldn’t. He sliced through the zip tie with the knife.

  I rubbed my wrists. “Thank you.”

  His eyes finally met mine. There was so much to be said, so much that I wanted to know. He’d lied for me, and now he was saving me from Ting. No ‘thank you’ could be enough.

  “We need to go,” he said. “Before Simon gets here.”

  He helped me stand. My legs were shak
y and I grabbed onto his forearms. He smelled of blood, sweat, and vanilla soap. “Jay—” I didn’t know what I wanted to say.

  He turned away. “Later. Let’s go.”

  My eyes snagged on the phone. “We should call the cops.” I hurried toward it but Jay grabbed my arm, stopping me.

  “Are you nuts? Simon is a cop.” Jay hissed. He pressed his hand against the cut in his side.

  “He had me kidnapped! You know he’s not going to stop looking for me. Or my brother.”

  Jay froze. His eyes went unfocused. “Hopkins.”

  “What?”

  “Hopkins. He’s Internal Affairs. He’s been watching Simon. Your testimony… But Simon was never here. I don’t know if it’s enough.”

  “Give me his number. I’ll call him while you bandage yourself up.”

  Jay quickly pulled out his wallet then handed me a card. I dialed. A woman answered. “Las Vegas Metropolitan—”

  “I need to talk to Hopkins.”

  “I’m sorry, but Lieutenant Hopkins isn’t in right now.”

  “Does he have another number? A cell? I need to talk to him right away!”

  “Ma’am, could you calm down please?” I hated being called ma’am.

  Jay looked up from pressing a towel against his side. “Tell them it’s Jay Thornton and it’s urgent.”

  “It’s Jay Thornton. I mean, I’m not Jay Thornton but he’s standing right next to me. Hopkins wants to talk to him.”

  “Can you put this Jay—”

  “We were kidnapped! I was kidnapped! There’s a man with a knife. He’s knocked out but Ting is coming—”

  A movement caught my eye.

  I screamed. Jay tackled me to the ground, just as a knife whizzed over our heads. I dropped the phone.

  Alfonso was on his feet.

  “Stay down,” Jay hissed. He jumped up, pivoting as he did, and slammed into Alfonso.

  Grunts and the sounds of fists hitting flesh filled my ears, but somewhere, in the background, a woman’s voice called out. I opened my eyes and searched for the phone. It was across the tile floor. I scrambled on my hands and knees toward it.