by Brair Lake
“I thought we were going to lunch.”
“We are. I just need a quick word with TJ.”
This is my first visit to ‘Sugar and Spice,’ and as we stroll into the office, I have a good look around. I don’t know what I was expecting, but what greets me is simple elegance. In one part of the office there are two lavish chairs in plush red velvet with walnut frames. In-between the chairs is a walnut coffee table. On the table is a china coffee pot with matching cups. Two other tables occupy the room. The one TJ sits behind is a large matching walnut desk, and on the desk is a flat computer screen and keyboard. Mal sits behind the other smaller, walnut desk. TJ and Mal are not alone, Patch sits at TJ’s desk and from the laughter coming from him. I guess she is flirting with him. Since I moved on to Demon’s Lair, Patch, unless she is working, is never far from TJ’s side. The club know they are fucking, but as long as they continue to bring money into the club, it isn’t an issue. Mal has a headset on and when she spots me, she smiles, removing them as she rises from her chair. “Want a coffee.”
“Sure.” As Mal disappears into another room, I sit in the chair in front of her desk and watch Alex wander around the room, casually strolling over to stand by the window where he taps the glass softly so as not to make a noise.
“When did Delaney get back?” he asks.
TJ glances up. Patch forgotten. “Early this morning. And he wasn’t alone.”
Alex frowns. His lips pinched, “he wasn’t. Did you recognize who was with him?”
TJ shrugs, “I sent his picture to Data. He’s going to check him out.”
Alex nods, “let me know as soon as you hear anything.”
“We’re out of milk. I’ll slip to the store for some.” Mal reaches for her purse and I rise from my chair just as her cell rings and she reaches over to answer it.
“I’ll fetch it,” I said.
“Thanks.” she mouths.
No longer the center of TJ’s attention, Patch stands, “I need some gum. I’ll come with you. If you don’t mind.”
I shrug, “sure.”
As I follow her down the stairs and on to the main street, Patch pulls the hem of her short skirt. “You and Alex seem to be getting on.” I ignore Patch as she pulls her own cell out to text someone. The road is empty, and the small corner store is quiet. I head for the fridge to fetch the milk as Patch raises her head and calls out to the clerk behind the counter. “Is it okay if I use your toilet?” The clerk doesn’t bother to glance up from the magazine he is flickering through as he nods. Patch turns to me. Her blue eyes apprehensive. “I didn’t want to mention this over at Sugar and Spice. Not in front of Mal, anyway.”
I pull a jar of milk out of the fridge and turn to Patch. “Mention what?”
“Look, can you come to the toilet with me. I’ve this rash.”
“I’m no doctor or medical expert.”
“I know. But I’m sure if you think I should see a doctor or something. You would know.”
I shrug as I place the milk on a shelf. There’s no one in the store, and I’m sure it’ll still be there when I return and follow Patch into the back of the shop. There are three doors to my right and one to the left. Patch makes for the door on the left, and I follow her into the tiny room. When Patch reaches the small sink, she turns to face me as a hard object hits me on the head. My knees wobble as they give way.
When I open my eyes, my head pounds, and I squint into the surrounding darkness. My body aches in the cramped space I find myself in. When I try to wiggle my legs, they refuse to obey while my arms remain twisted behind my back. I blink. The coils in my stomach tighten as I realize I am on the move. That my tomb is the trunk of a car. Although my legs and arms are tied, I kick the side of the car. Nothing happens as we continue to drive. I scream. There’s no responding answers. I shuffle, but there is little room for me to move, and I know I am trapped. I don’t know how long we were on the road for, but when the car finally stopped, my ears picked up as I listened to the footsteps on the gravel. The beat of my heart roars in my ears and my stomach twists as nausea rises in my throat. When the lid of the trunk is opened, I blink at the sudden brightness. Because the sun is behind my captor, I’m unable to make out who he is. He’s not gentle as he grips my arm, dragging me from the trunk, causing the skin to flake as he scrapes my knees along the edge of the trunk. My feet hobble as they land on the ground, and I fumble as I find my balance. As I straighten, I glance at my kidnapper. He is unfamiliar to me and I assume he is the man TJ was talking about. His smile is more of a leer as he leans into me. His finger strokes the side of my face and as bile rises into my mouth, I spit at him. “Let me go.”
His laugh mocks me and as I step back, I bump into the edge of the trunk and pull my body up straight. “Now don’t be like that, Mia.” He cups my chin. His brown eyes penetrating into my gaze, and I swallow the saliva as it gathers at the back of my throat. “Once you get to know me.” He leans in closer. “And you will get to know me.” His face close to mine. His tongue at my ear. His breath warm as he torments me. “You’ll like me.” He grips my arm, dragging me as he strides to the house. My feet stumble as I fight and twist in his hold. A dog barks and I glance over towards the noise. I watch in fright as a large, black and dark tan dog comes bounding over towards us. My pace quickens as we approach the steps leading to a large house. The dog continues to run towards us. Jumping up at the man. As he turns to the dog, the stranger releases my arm, and I stumble against one of the steps as I fight to gain my balance while watching the man pet and fuse the dog. When he turned to me, his lips twist into a smile. “See, dogs like me.” As I watch the dog run around his legs, my kidnapper pulls a key from out of his pocket. Once the door is open, he steps to one side, indicating me to go in. Instead of following his silent order, the aroma of magnolia trees heavy in the air, has me glancing around the yard, and I blink at the high brick wall as a moan slips from me. The double black iron gates have a thick chain entwined around them and the large padlock is locked. There is no escape for me. Knowing I have no choice but to follow him, I step into the house. My breath hitches in my throat as I look about me. The hall is large. The walls painted white. There are four doors, one to my right, two to my left and one straight in front of me. “Come on. We can’t stand here all day. I’m sure you would like a drink.”
My kidnapper grabs my arm, dragging me towards the stairs. I dig my feet into the floor as I pull against his grip, but his fingers tightened, pinching my flesh and he jerks me. Pulling me closer to the stairs, and my legs wobble. “Let me go.”
“Can’t do. Now hush.” When we reach the stairs, instead of taking me up them, my kidnapper leads me to the door facing us. When he opens it, there are more stairs which lead to the basement. The man pushes me in to the dark passage. As I stumble over the top step and sway in his grip, the man switches on the light. The dim glow of the bulb offers very little light, and when the stranger pushes me again, I take the stairs slowly, shuddering at the exposed brick walls. When we reach the room below, although it is large, apart from a chair in the middle of the room, it is bare. A chair the man pushes me onto, then straps me to with a rope. When he is finished, he kisses my nose as he rises. “I’ll go get us that drink. We can’t have you too dehydrated when the fun begins, can we.” His smile deepens and my stomach flips. “Not if we want you to remember the fun and tell all to the boyfriend.”
Chapter 31
Alex: Sugar and Spice, Noir Valley
My attention is on Delaney’s office and I watch a man I don’t recognize, come out of it. As he reaches the black sedan parked nearby, he stops, glances at his cell, then glances up and down the street. After slipping the cell back into his jacket packet, he returns to Delaney’s office. As I watch the door close, I recall all the information I gathered on Delaney when I was hired to defend his ex-partner. My frown deepens as his face merges into a familiar image, and I turn my gaze towards the street and watch Mia as she runs across the road. Her hips sw
ay, my cock twitches, and I smile. There is also a slight pull to my heart which has nothing to do with lust. I don’t like having Mia out of my sight. It’s not that I’m possessive or weird. It’s simply while Delaney is in Noir Valley, I want her close by. When she strolls into the store behind Patch, I lose sight of her and turn to TJ. “Mark Gates. That’s who Delaney’s new friend is.” I frown as I go and sit in the chair Patch vacated and glance at Mal, who has replaced her headphones and is tapping away at her computer. I run a hand through my hair. “He’s trouble, TJ. Shit, I thought he was in prison. Or at least that was what I heard.”
TJ passes me a beer he’s pulled from behind his desk and I smile at him. “It’s my secret stash. If she,” he points to Mal with a nod of his head. “If she knew about then it, I would lose it.” TJ takes a swig of his beer. His eyes squint as he studies me. “How bad is this Mark Gates?”
“Delaney has two men he calls on when he wants something done. One does it discreetly. The other does it as a warning.”
“Which one is he.”
I stand, pace to the window then glance at my watch. How long does it take to buy milk? Then I look at the store. It’s hard to see inside and I pull my cell from my pocket.
“Alex. Which one?”
I turn to TJ. “Sorry which one what?”
TJ ambles towards me and Mal stops typing and removes her headphones. “Which one, Alex. The discreet one or the warning one.”
I glance at Delaney’s office. The sedan is missing, and when my call goes unanswered as I ring Mia again, I turn to the door. My stomach twitches. My neck is cold, and my palms are sweaty.
“Alex.”
I glance at TJ, finding him closer than I expected. The laughter in his eye and his usual playful smile missing. “The one you don’t mess about with.” The pit of my stomach feels as though I have drunk a gallon of cement, weighing down my legs as I run down the stairs, taking them three at a time.
“Do you want me to call Mia?”
From the top of the stairs, Mal stares at me and I nod. “Keep calling until she answers.”
Mal nods, her pace slower as she trots behind us. I’m already at the other side of the road when Mal jogs out of the building. As I open the door to the store, the bell rings and the clerk glances in our direction. He is young, around nineteen, twenty. I’ve seen him hanging around the compound, but he’s never been on Demon’s Lair. After dismissing the store clerk, I scan the store. It’s not large and I spot a milk carton on a shelf with beans and frown as I stroll over to the carton, lift it then turn my gaze back to the clerk. TJ is behind me.
“The woman who bought this. Where is she?” I ask the store clerk.
The clerk glances at me, then switches his gaze to TJ. “She went through the back with the other woman.” He points to a door and I follow his gaze. I push the door open. All is silent, and the corridor is empty.
“Mia.” When there is no answer, I shout again.
TJ checks the doors and his “holy fuck,” grabs my attention and I follow him into the room on the left.
Slouching on the floor, rubbing her head, is Patch. She looks at TJ, then glances at me. “Mia’s missing. We came to use the toilet.” She pulls her hand, glances at her fingers and moans at the blood covering them. “Shit. My head hurts. I turned my back because I wanted to show Mia something. When I came to, she was gone.”
“Why didn’t you call?” I ask.
“Shit. What’s happened?” Mal is looking at the blood on Patches’ fingers.
“My head hurts and I’ve only just come too.” Patch rolls her eyes as she pushes herself from the floor, then slides back down. “Otherwise I would have.”
I turn as I face Mal. She has her cell in her hand, and I can hear the other cell ringing. “Mia’s missing.” I glance at her cell. “You still haven’t managed to contact her.
“No.”
“Shush,” I turn to TJ, who has his head tilted. “Ring again, Mal.”
Mal rings Mia’s cell and I hear the faint ring. It is coming from the open window and I run from the bathroom and head towards the back door. On the ground is Mia’s cell. My heart pounds in my ears and a steal vice squeezes my head. I thump the large trash cart. Shaking my fist as pain shoots up my arm. “She’s missing.”
“Should I call Hank?” Mal said.
I glare at the woman. “No. We’ll sort this out.”
Without waiting for Mal, I return inside. TJ is guiding Patch out of the bathroom and I follow him back into the store. The clerk is still behind the counter. His eyes widening when he spots Patch. “Shit, what happened?”
I glower at the boy as my fingers curl into a fist. “You tell me.” I glance up behind him. “That CCTV. Is it filming?”
The clerk looks over his shoulder. “Only inside the store. Where’s the other woman?”
“She’s missing. Did anyone come in the store after them?”
The clerk shrugs. “A couple of people.”
“Any of them have blond hair.”
“I never noticed.”
“Give me the CD.”
The clerk steps back as I approach the counter. His gaze flickers over my shoulder. I know TJ is behind me. While I was talking to the clerk. Mal left the store with Patch and is on her way to the office.
“I don’t know. If something's happened. Shouldn’t we call the cop,” said the clerk.
I lean over the counter, pull the boy towards me until we are nose to nose. “Give me the fucking disk.”
The boy nods as he wiggles out of my grip. His hand shaking as he reaches behind the counter. As he fumbles with the disk, he drops it to the ground, and my teeth grind. As a reward, I scowl at him. “If you remember anything. Call me.” I scribble my number and pass it to him. His trembling doesn’t ease as he hands me disk.
The door slams behind us as we leave the store and I turn towards Delaney’s office. When I reach it, the lights are off, and the door is locked. I shake it and shout, but nothing happens.
“Day says he’ll be here with Kit and Oyster soon.”
I nod at TJ as I kick the door, which springs open with a creak and rebounds against the wall. I glance around the office. My first decent look inside, and I notice how minimal the room is furnished. There are a couple of chairs and a trash bin full of coffee cups. At the rear of the room is another door and I open it. This one has a desk and a chair, but nothing else. “Shit. Did he sit here all day and do nothing?”
“Alex. You need to think.”
I glance over at TJ. “Mia is missing, and you want me to think.”
“Let’s go back to the office. There’s nothing here. Fuck, think, Alex. They can’t be far. Taking Mia was an opportunity. Not planned. They weren’t to know you were coming into Noir Valley. Not today.”
TJ steps outside and I follow him. When we reach the door to Sugar and Spice, the hum of bikes fills the air and I turn my gaze down the street and watch Day and several brothers ride toward us, then pull up beside me. Day nods as he climbs off his Harley and removes his helmet. Kit and Oyster follow. The other three bikers remain seated.
“Have you called Hank?” Day asks
I shake my head at the biker, then follow him up the stairs. Patch sits on the chair she was using earlier while Mal cleans her cut. She is the one to look up and watch us as we stride into the room. Her gray eyes full of curiosity.
“No luck?” Mal asks.
I shake my head and look at Patch. She glances away. Then I look at Mal. Her gaze is steady as she watches me. TJ said this was an opportunity of chance. Both these women had used their cells while I was here. I turn to Patch. I’ve fucked the whore several times before hooking up with Mia. My gaze falls on Mal, I know little about the woman. She isn’t a club woman, and I paid little attention to her. As I watch her, the door to the office opens and Cole strides in.
His hair is wild from him running his hand through it and his lips set straight. The gray of his eyes blaze and as I stare at him, I know
who he is. For months I’ve been denying it because I didn’t want to know the truth. His eyes are the same as Jo-Leighs. His nose and chin belong to Tom, Jo-Leigh’s father. “Is it true Mia’s missing?”
I nod. I have questions, but they will have to wait. “Delaney has her.”
“Are you sure?”
I hold the disk out to him, and Oyster takes it, then strolls round the oversized desk, slipping it in the computer’s drive. He plays it and as we watch, we watch Patch and Mia go through to the back. A couple of customers come in. But none of them are Mark Gates. I look over to Patch. Her gaze is on me, then it flickers away. “Pull up our CCTV footage.” Oyster fiddles about, then we are watching the road outside. Delaney comes out of his office, but there is no Mark Gates and it dawns on me. He used the back door.
“We’re losing time. Oyster get hold of Data. See if he can find out which direction the sedan went.” I turn to Patch and smile. “Patch, Cole will take you back to Demon’s Lair. One of the women there will look after you.”
“I will.”
I nod as I walk over to him. “She knows where Mia is. I’m sure I can trust you.”
Cole’s gray gaze is on me and he nods. “For Jo-Leigh.”
I nod as I slap him on the shoulder.
Chapter 32
Mia: In a Basement Somewhere in Noir Valley
I stare at the stairs. The passage of time has become nothing more than a passing blur. When the stranger left, he switched off the light and every sound echoing in the surrounding air has me wriggling in the chair. When he pushed me into the chair, he unbound my hands, only to bind them to the back of the chair. I wiggle again. My bladder is tight, and my mouth is dry. How long is it since the man said he would get me a drink? I glance in the direction of stairs. The only reason I know where they are, is because the chair is facing them. A key turning has me lifting my gaze to the top of the stairs. My breath stills in my throat as I wait for my tormentor. The light flickers and as dull as it is, I still blink after the complete darkness of the basement. At first, I only see two sets of feet descending the stairs. Then their legs, followed by the whole of their bodies and faces. I recognize Delaney and keep my gaze on him. When he is closer, I spit at him and he pulls a handkerchief from his trouser pocket and wipes the spittle from his shirt.