Rising Bounty

by K. D. Jones

  Cici had already changed into her pajamas so Roxanne just pulled the bed sheets down. Cici climbed in and Roxanne tucked her in. She kissed her forehead. “Good night, angel, I love you.”

  “Good night, Momma, love you too.”

  Abe sat down on the edge of the bed. “Good night, my wee lass.”

  “Good night, Abe, I love you.”

  Abe looked surprised, then he smiled and kissed her forehead. “I love ye too, angel.”

  They walked to the door and Roxanne turned off the lights and partially shut the door. When she turned around, she found Abe standing there with his hand over his heart.

  “Are you okay?”

  He looked up and his eyes were glistening. “I couldn’t take it if anything happened to any of ye.”

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. He was the sweetest man ever. “We’re your family and you want to protect us.”

  He squeezed her in a tight hug. “Exactly.”

  “For the first time Abe, I feel like there’s a chance to end this chaos that Darryl started. Then we can move forward and be together as a couple. We’ll have date nights, and do things as a real family, like go on vacations. You know, I remember taking vacations a few times growing up when my dad was alive. I don’t think my mom has taken a vacation since he passed away.”

  He took her hand as they came down the stairs together. “Where was yer favorite vacation spot growing up?”

  “The mountains. My father used to rent a cabin up in the mountains close to a lake. We would go fishing every day and talk about stuff. I think that’s why I fell in love with your place the moment I laid eyes on it. It reminded me of the good times with my parents.”

  “After this is all over, I will take all of ye to the mountains. Vic rents a place up there sometimes so I can get a good deal.”

  “Sounds wonderful. I can’t wait.”

  He lifted her up in his arms, surprising her. “Now, didn’t I have something important that I needed to take care of?”

  She smiled and nibbled on his chin. “Yes — yes, you do.”

  Chapter 19

  The next morning

  Roxanne was nervous as she waited inside the SUV with Abe, Vic, and Jagger. Two bounty hunters, a brother and sister, were inside guarding Lauren. Their friend Isaac was in a van close by overlooking the security cameras. She knew they wore weapons and it scared her. She had never been around guns or knives and it was scary to think things might come down to violence.

  “Are ye okay?” Abe reached for her hand.

  “I’m scared,” she whispered, eyeing the gun tucked inside the waist of his leather pants. She missed his kilt.

  “The weapons are a last resort.”

  “I—” She was interrupted by Vic.

  “Let’s go.”

  She waited in the SUV like Abe told her to while they got out and checked their surroundings. A few seconds later, Abe opened the door for her and took her hand to help her get out. Vic walked in front and she stayed between Abe and Jagger as they approached the steel building.

  “What is this place?”

  “We chose to meet at a library. It’s not busy at this time of morning.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “I used to—know someone who worked here.”

  She narrowed her eyes as she glanced up at him. “You mean you used to date someone who worked here. A librarian, maybe?”

  “I refuse to answer any further questions in case it convicts me.”

  Jagger snorted when Roxanne emitted something that sounded like a growl. Vic entered the building first, and then motioned them forward. As soon as they were inside the lobby, she spotted Lauren with the brother and sister bounty hunters. Lauren approached them, looking worried.

  “We have a problem,” Lauren said in a low voice.

  “What is it?” Abe looked around and spotted the trouble right away. “What’s he doing here and where are agents Fitzgerald and Carlysle?”

  “Agent Ward did something to pull rank on the other two agents. They’re not here, but he is. He says he’ll take Roxanne into protective custody.”

  “He’s not taking her anywhere. Who is he on the phone with?” Abe motioned toward Ward.

  Vic got on his earpiece. “Isaac, find out who Agent Ward is talking to on the phone.”

  “He dialed a number to a disposable phone. It will take me a little longer to find out who purchased the phone.”

  “Can you tap into it?”

  “It’s starting to storm out here which is going to interfere with my surveillance signal.”

  “Try.” Vic turned back to Abe.

  “Your call, man. We can leave now or see what this weasel has to say.”

  Abe looked over at Roxanne. He wanted nothing more than to take her home. “What do ye want to do?”

  She took a deep breath. “Let’s hear what he has to say, but first, I need to go to the bathroom.”

  “I’ll take ye.”

  “I’ll go with her,” Lauren offered.

  She walked with Lauren to the other side of the lobby to go down the hallway to the bathroom. They entered the bathroom. It had three sinks, three stalls, and a large window.

  Lauren stood by the door. “So you and Abe are an item, huh?”

  Roxanne entered the stall. “I love him.”

  “Good. He’s a good man, one of the best working for Vic and Jagger.”

  “Have you worked for them long?” she asked. She heard a thump. “Lauren?”

  She finished up and came out. Lauren wasn’t there. Maybe she had gone out into the hallway. She went to the sink and washed her hands. She looked up at herself in the mirror and froze in place. Standing behind her was her nightmare.

  “Hello, Roseanne. I like what you’ve done with your hair.”

  God, no. “Darryl.” Her last thought before everything went black was that she wished she had told Abe one more time that she loved him.

  *****

  “It shouldn’t take them this long.” Abe paced back and forth.

  Vic hit his earpiece. “Isaac, did you find out who the agent called?”

  “The phone was purchased with cash.”

  “Vic! Jagger!” Lauren came stumbling out of the bathroom, holding her hand over a bloody head wound.

  Abe caught Lauren before she fell and handed her over to Jagger. “Where’s Roxanne?”

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t see the guy until it was too late and he about bashed my brains in.”

  Abe ran into the bathroom. The window was open and there were bloody handprints visible on the ledge. He checked the stalls. Roxanne was gone. How did this happen?

  Vic came in. “Ward has run out the back of the library. I’m having Isaac tap into the traffic light cameras to look for vehicles that have left this area recently. We’ll track where he went. We’ll find her.”

  Abe punched the wall. He couldn’t imagine his life without Roxanne in it. She was everything to him.

  Chapter 20

  Roxanne was slouched in the passenger side of a car with a seat belt on. What had happened? The last thing she remembered was going to the bathroom with Lauren. Then she saw something in the mirror. She lifted her head and panicked when she saw her ex-husband Darryl driving.

  “It’s about time you woke up. Tell me where Cici is.”

  She shook her head, which was a mistake. The movement caused sharp pain to shoot through the back of her head. “I’m not telling you anything.”

  He cursed her and called her all kinds of names. She struggled to sit up but her hands had been tied behind her back. “Where are you taking me?”

  “To a private spaceport. I’m taking you with me, off-planet, to Bazin. The authority can’t come after me there. Once I get the information from you on where Cici is, I’ll have one of my guys come back for her. You have a lot to make up for. I have plans that will keep you busy for a while.”

  Roxanne imagined the disgusting things he would have her
do or would do to her and felt sick to her stomach. She had to get away from him as soon as possible. If they left the planet, she would probably never see her family again because there was no way she would ever divulge where Cici and her mother were. The only comfort she had was knowing that Abe would be looking for her and that he would take care of her mother and daughter if something did happen to her.

  She reached for her back pocket, where she had put her phone. It was a struggle, but if she could get to it, she might be able to call for help. Slowly she leaned to the side to give her more room to reach it. Just a little further and she could — there. Her fingertips touched it. Arching a little, she got a hold of the side and slowly pulled it out.

  Damn, she wished could see it. Oh well, she pushed the button to turn it on and used her memory to select the option to return the last call received. She thought it was either Lexi or Abe who had last called her, but she couldn’t remember. She pushed the button, hoping that it was dialing.

  “Is that the private spaceport you were talking about?”

  Darryl didn’t look at her. “Yes, I reserved three seats since I was planning to take Cici with us, too. You will tell me where you hid my daughter or I’ll make sure you suffer even more than what I have planned.

  “Park Place.” Roxanne saw the name of the spaceport and said it out loud.

  “What did you say?

  “Nothing,” she lied.

  Darryl rolled his eyes at her as he pulled into the parking lot.

  She certainly hoped someone was listening. What if she had dialed a number that no one had answered? She would be sitting there talking for no reason. No one would come rescue her. If that was the case, she needed a plan B.

  *****

  “Did you hear that?” Lexi asked Isaac, who had hacked into her phone line. She had called Victor on the house phone as soon as she realized Roxanne was calling her. Victor had Isaac hack into Lexi’s phone and connect him and Abe. They had been monitoring it ever since.

  “We’ve got the address. We’re on our way. Keep listening in case we miss something.”

  “Victor, make sure she’s okay”

  “I will. Make sure all of you stay inside while we take care of this just in case Hadley gets the address out of Roxanne.”

  Lexi clutched her hands together, imagining the worse. Roxanne was as close to a sister as she had, and she didn’t want to lose her. She also didn’t want to lose Victor, the love her life.

  “Be careful, baby.”

  “I’m always careful.”

  She snorted. It was such a Victor thing to say. “Love you.”

  “Love you too, honey. Listen to Shy. She’s there to protect you.”

  “I will.” She hung up the phone and had to work to make sure her expression didn’t show that anything was wrong. Cici was an intelligent girl and picked up on people’s emotions. After what Roxanne told her Hadley was like, she now understood why the girl was hesitant to be around loud, large men. The exception was Abe. That girl loved Abe something fierce. She prayed that they got Roxanne back safe and sound and that no one except Hadley would get hurt. In her opinion, there was a special kind of hell for any person who hurts a child.

  *****

  Roxanne watched Darryl as he got out of the car and went inside the building. He thought that since she was tied up, she was no threat. He always underestimated her.

  She brought her knees up to her chest and scooted and slid her hands under her ass, then under her thighs, further down until she was able to bring them over her feet. Finally her hands were now in front of her.

  Roxanne moved over to the driver’s seat. Damn. He had taken the keys, but that wasn’t going to stop her. She had been on the run for years and picked up a thing or two. She reached down to the lower panel and pried it open. These rental cars had a back-up switch that the car rental places could activate to have their cars returned to them when the renters fail to return them. All she had to do was activate it, then—yes! The car started up.

  She looked at the entrance of the spaceport. Darryl came running out, screaming at her as the car began to move by itself. He jumped in front of the vehicle, causing its sensors, sensing impact with a human, to halt suddenly. It threw her forward and she hit her forehead against the steering wheel. She was dazed and didn’t reach for the door locks until Darryl pulled open the door next to her.

  “You’re not getting away from me that easily! All these years, I’ve searched for you, planned out every detail of how I would take my vengeance against you. I won’t be denied!” He was half-pulling and half-dragging her out of the car.

  She wasn’t going to be taken without a fight. She dug her feet into the ground, making him come to a stop. She might have been able to get away if it had just been Darryl.

  “Take her to the shuttle, Wes!” Darryl threw her toward two other men who each took one of her arms. Darryl walked ahead of them and the two men pulled her behind them toward the space shuttle. If they got her on there, that would be it. Darryl would rather kill her than to ever allow her to escape him.

  Darryl glanced back at the two men. “Did you take care of the situation?”

  Wes shrugged. “We handled the two federal agents to keep them from showing up, but when you ordered us to kill Agent Ward, he disappeared. Probably skipped town so that he wouldn’t get arrested for his part in all this.”

  “He won’t be getting the rest of his money and I’ll put a freeze on the transfer I started. That money will be yours if you stay and finish him off.”

  Wes stopped walking, which made her and the other guy stop as well. “That’s a lot of money, but I’m not stupid. The authority is coming after you now. The best thing I can do is get the money you owe me and part ways.”

  Roxanne stood there, looking between the Wes guy and her ex. She could tell that Darryl was about to let Wes have it. Maybe this was her chance. She just needed the perfect moment.

  “What do you mean part ways? I’m paying you good money to get me to Bazin.” Darryl stepped forward and pushed Wes’s shoulder.

  Wes let go of her and moved into Darryl’s face. They began arguing. Now there was just one guy holding on to her. She leaned down, bent at her waist, grabbed the man by the leg and jerked him up. He let go of her as he fell backward. Roxanne didn’t waste any time. She took off running.

  “Get her!” Darryl yelled from behind her.

  She heard feet running behind her, catching up to her. Then she heard several popping sounds and grunts. She slowed to glance back and saw that Wes and the other crony were on the ground. Darryl was still coming after her. She saw, in her peripheral vision that he was pulling out a gun. Suddenly, she hit a hard wall in front of her that she hadn’t seen. Arms seemed to come out to catch her before she flew backward to the ground.

  “I’ve got ye, lass.”

  She looked up. The wall she had run into was Abe. She had never seen anything more beautiful than his handsome face. She threw her arms around his neck handcuffs and all.

  “Are ye hurt? He hit ye.”

  “Darryl — he’s got a gun.” She looked behind her, at the same time putting her body in front of his as though she would protect him somehow.

  She sighed in relief when she saw Jagger, Vic, and a couple of authority officers handcuffing Darryl. She sagged, her legs giving out. Everything was rushing to her head. “Is Cici—”

  “She’s safe, I promise.”

  “Good, I think I’m going to…”

  “Roxanne?” Abe’s voice sounded so far away.

  She smiled, “Love you.” She thought he said it back to her but it was so hard to hear and it was dark.

  “Vic, I need an ambulance!” Abe yelled out. He held her in his arms, close to his heart. When he saw Hadley pull the gun out to shoot her, his heart had almost stopped beating.

  Vic came up to his side. “The ambulance will be here in a few minutes. How is she?”

  Abe cupped her cheek. “He bruised her face and I
think there are raw patches on her wrists. I’m worried about the cut on her forehead.”

  Vic knelt down next to him. “She’ll be fine.”

  “I can’t lose her, Vic. I just can’t.”

  Chapter 21

  Two weeks later

  Roxanne was ready to scream. The hospital kept her for four days to watch her. She had a concussion, caused by her head hitting the steering wheel. The federal agents visited her while she was in the hospital. They made good on their end by getting the judgment against her overturned. They also offered to help her relocate and start over, but she refused. She wasn’t going anywhere. Her life was here.

  Darryl was charged and sentenced to over thirty years with no parole. All his accounts were frozen. Lauren said she would try to get something for her and Cici, but she didn’t want any of Darryl’s ill-begotten money. She had a job and a life she liked.

  After she was released from the hospital, Abe kept her on bed rest. She was going crazy from being confined. Cici, her mom, and Lexi spent time with her. Abe held her to him every night but didn’t make love to her. He said he wanted to make sure she was completely healed. She loved him, but she couldn’t take any more of his overprotectiveness.

  Today, Lexi and her mother were taking Cici back to school. She had a lot of work to make up for. Abe was downstairs in his office. Roxanne grabbed a towel from the bathroom. She needed to stretch her legs. A swim in the lake would be lovely.

  She crept out of the cabin. The bright sun had her blinking and shading her eyes. She paused a few feet away on the sandy shore, closed her eyes, and inhaled. Fresh clean air filled her lungs and the sounds of the birds in the trees were like a song, lulling her into a peaceful state. A crunch of a footstep behind her let her know that her absence had not gone unnoticed.

  “Why are ye out here alone?” Abe asked, coming up behind her. He wrapped his arms around her middle.

  “I needed the fresh air.” She tilted her head to the side when he nuzzled her neck. “Mmm...I need something else.”