My mind runs a mile a minute as my conversation at the coffee shop with Helen pops out. Could it be that Belington is the culprit and that’s why they buried this forensic analysis? She warned me about the people he’s involved with and what dangers are lurking around the corner. But she never mentioned that her fear for my safety or even Mark’s is connected to what happened that night.
“Do you know who did this to us?”
He looks away, straightening the sleeves of his shirt, his posture full of tension as if telling me the truth’s killing something inside of him.
“I only have suspicions, nothing solid.” He sounds so grave it chills me to the bone.
“Tell me,” I demand, already regretting my words, slipping so easy from my lips.
The tormenting silence presses against my temples as he hesitates. I surge to my feet, unable to catch my breath.
“I’m sorry, Cassandra.” He finally looks at me. “Lester worked with the Cades at the time, juggling huge capitals. And then Logan leaves everything and moves to the UK. There are too many coincidences to believe he wasn’t involved. And you know just like I do, he’s capable of horrific things.”
“No,” I whisper to myself, refusing to accept any of this. “This can’t be true.”
“Perhaps Logan wasn’t the only one who wanted to end it. Perhaps Lester felt threatened by what the Cades could do, and that’s why he killed Logan to shut them up.”
“Mark, stop it, enough.” I press my back to the wall, trying to get away from the afflicting thoughts tormenting me.
“Think about it, their son suddenly leaves the States, and just as he exchanges vows with the woman he loves, he dies. It looks to me like a message such a monster as Lester would send.”
Salty tears burst from my eyelids in rivulets, burning my skin. Mark’s hands draw me in his warm embrace, letting me weep.
“I won’t let him hurt you, Lovebird.” He kisses my head, holding my trembling form as if shielding me from the world. And when distress leaves my body, I cave in and tell him what I was keeping from him.
“He was in Istanbul, Mark. I saw him there. He probably saw us together,” I blubber. “He’s planning something huge. Something that will hurt us both.”
“You’re sure it was him?”
A faraway thought flickers into my mind, but I’m too weak to grasp it or make sense of it. “Yeah, I am. Mark?” I lift my head to look at him. “He called me too.” And I tell him everything, afraid this is bigger than we thought it was. If he killed Logan, what is he going to do to us?
“We must be ready for anything,” he whispers into my ear as he rocks me. “Promise me you’ll stay safe?”
“I promise.”
29
Captive
~Cassandra~
After what Mark revealed, I couldn’t stay at work. My mind was way too tattered, and shock still had me in its claws. Robert kicked me out and told me to rest since I was in no way, shape, or form to work. Mark decided to do some research and see what he could find out about the partnership between Lester and Darren. I left him to it. Instead, I spent the rest of the day with my kids, playing, doing school projects, and reading books.
But as I lie in my bed alone and play with the bracelet Helen gave me, I keep asking myself over and over again. Why does she care about my safety if she hates me? What is her game? Why is Darren working with Lester if he knows the truth? Or does he? I’ve never taken Darren for a fool or even a narcissistic man. He’s too family-driven for that. Something doesn’t add up here.
Watching the ceiling dance with shadows, I struggle to silence my mind enough to sleep. It streams with fractured memories, mixing with the information I learned. I wrack my brain for missing links to connect the facts.
My attention snaps to the sound of the monitor beeping on my nightstand. I crane my neck to look at it, and my body chills as the Beast lets out a bark and starts to scratch the door.
Someone just disabled my house alarm system. Strange. My security knows the code. They would have set it back up. For some reason, my chest becomes tight with trepidation, beating like a tribal drum. Maybe because of what was happening lately, my instincts tell me to be cautious.
“Stay here,” I bark at my dog. “Silent,” I order, and for once, he flops on his belly and does precisely that.
Opening the door, I slip out, leaving the Beast inside my bedroom. I tiptoe down the corridor to the stairs to have a peek. The house is so quiet, but yet alarmingly unsettling too. I plaster my back to the wall, hiding in the shadows, and wait.
Every hair on my nape stands on end like needles and fear grips my throat as I catch three black figures moving in the dark. But I force myself to stay still and listen to their almost inaudible exchange. Once they retreat farther into the dining room, I dash to my kids’ bedroom, shaking them awake.
Shuddering from adrenaline, I clasp my hand over Liane’s mouth first. “Don’t make a sound.” I turn my hard gaze on Leon as I speak.
The more they fear, the less they’ll fight me.
“Put on your slippers. Now.” My voice sounds like razor steel, and perhaps that’s why they comply.
“Mommy, what is it?” Liane’s soft voice is so innocent and warmth snakes into my overwhelmed mind. My nostrils flare, and I press my lips tight, needing to keep my nerves under control.
“What’s going on?” Leon asks, and I dash toward him to cover his mouth.
“Shh!” I shake them and thrust their jackets in their arms. “You must listen to me. No talking.” Their mouths gape open, but they stay silent. “Someone just broke into our house. We need to get out.”
Liane lets out a little whimper, and I smother it with my hand.
“Be quiet and do as I say. Liane, do you understand me, baby?” My hard gaze holds my daughter’s green eyes until she yields.
Liane grabs her twin brother’s hand, affected by the urgency in my tone. Leon’s features turn to sharp determination, and I exhale in relief. My pulse quickens, chasing my heart into a frenzy as I haul them both from the bed.
Instead of leaving through the hallway, I lead them toward the shared bathroom connecting this and the next room. It’s supposed to be one of the twin’s bedrooms when they grow old enough.
I crack open the door to see if anyone is in our way. But I hear no one, just more silence. Move! Every second I waste is treacherous.
Liane clutches onto my pajama bottoms, pressing her frame against my side. My heart vibrates as I see the fear in Leon’s gaze, but I breathe through it.
As soon as we slip into the next room, I bolt both doors and unlatch the window lock. It’s only one floor. I could try to get them down. Leif and Aisha live just a few houses away and they know the way. I grab the sheets and the scissors I used to cut the flowers from the drawer. I cut it into long strips to make a rope strong enough to do the job.
“Come here, look at me,” I stare at them, smiling as I work. “I’m so proud of you, you know? You’re so brave, and I love you very much. We’re going to play a game. I’ll get you down with this rope.” I shake the sheet in my hand, and they gape at me, confused. “Like in that ninja movie.”
Since I left my phone to charge downstairs, I have no way to call for help. This is my only chance to save them. Whatever these people want, they’ll get.
“Go to Uncle Leif and Aunt Aisha and shout for help, okay? Their garden door should be unlocked.”
A foul taste of fear in my mouth tastes bitter from the adrenaline pumping through my veins. My instincts are screaming at me, but I put them in the saddle I made from the sheets. It should hold their weight.
I check the knots once more before ordering. “Climb on the chair.” And then I haul them over the window. My shoulder screams in pain from the weight, but when I hear noise, the fear ripples through me with a new wave of urgency.
“It’s okay. I got you,” I reassure them. “You can do this.” We had camping trips together, and they know how to handle climbi
ng and knots.
While they hover, I lock my determined gaze on my son. “Be brave and get to safety. Don’t leave your sister, don’t stop, don’t look back, just go and hide.” My words sound like a command, but my heart’s breaking.
The sheet glides through my fingers, leaving the burning trail as I lower them down to the ground, inch by inch.
My heart lurches in my chest as I hear a noise in the hallway, creeping closer and closer. The Beast is no longer silent. He barks until I hear a painful whine and then it stops. Just before the twins reach the ground, someone starts kicking the door. The bathroom handle rattles.
They’re here!
The sideboard screeches on the hardwood floor as someone pushes it out of the way. I suck in air when Leon and Liane reach the ground. Their forms melt to the wall and disappear from sight.
“Stupid move.”
My heart lurches into my throat as a tall male’s frame presses against me from behind. The sickening dread coils like acid in my guts as his face leans over.
“Call them back!” A hot breath pours into my ear, rendering me speechless. Taking my silence for my defiance, he yanks my hair, bending me backward like a string, exposing my throat just to press a sharp blade into my delicate skin.
I struggle to draw in a breath as fear grips me, but I utter, “No.”
The fist slams into my face and stuns me, and I fall into the furniture. My head swims, pain burrows into my skull, and before I can take a lungful, someone’s hand wraps in my hair and jerks me to meet his face twisted in rage. Sharp features and blazing dark eyes hold me hostage. The stranger’s tall, burly frame like a boulder is pressing against me.
“Make another mistake to disobey, and I will fuck you up so hard you won’t be able to speak for the rest of your pathetic life.” A sadistic smile on his face keeps me from screaming. My eyes water and my chin trembles with aftershocks of pain. He strolls and grabs me by the hair, dragging me up until I hover on my tiptoes.
“Where did they go?” His tone’s threatening and cold, but my resolve is uncanny. “Speak, or I swear you’re going to regret it.”
My scalp burns as he pulls on my hair even tighter with controlled precision until I have to hold back a whimper.
“Kids aren’t here.” Someone from behind reports and he stills, dropping me to the ground, and my legs almost give out from relief.
“They’re somewhere in the garden, go find them.” His hand slips from my scalp and wraps around my forearm. I stagger after him since my feet are unable to move fast enough with his stride. When he stops at the stairs and turns to face me, I realize why. I’m shaking, from fear, but my jaw is locked like shackles.
He leans closer, getting into my face. “They’ll be found, don’t doubt me.”
I tremble at the sadistic promise, but no sound escapes my sealed lips.
Frustrated from my lack of response, he hauls me over his shoulder, carrying me downstairs like a sack of potatoes. At the bottom, he tosses me down to the ground by the entrance. I yelp in pain as I hit a sore spot.
“Look after her. Don’t leave her side,” he commands and moves toward the open sliding door leading straight to the garden.
The man, a little bit taller than me, with scruff and sharp eyes, lights up a cigarette and bends his knees until our gazes align. Caressing me with his intimidating gaze, he blows the pungent smoke into my face. I start to cough as it tickles my throat.
“You’re going to be a good girl, aren’t you?”
I nod. The less he perceives me as a threat, the better chance I have to gain the upper hand. I can manage a few tricks as long as I’m not fighting them all at once.
“Good, because it would be such a waste to kill you.” Then he stands and cocks his gun at me to reinforce his threat. I freeze, but he dismisses me almost instantly and walks away.
I need to do something before they find them and hurt them.
Over my dead body!
While the guard stands by the window smoking, I shift my body, ready to spring to my feet.
The moment he returns to his sentry position at my side, I act. My legs, powered by adrenaline, leap into action. I kick him in the groin and then I grab his head and bring my knee into his face. While he withers in pain, I grab his knife I saw attached to his leg and dash to the door.
Dammit! The code doesn’t work. I jump over his writhing body and run to the kitchen. Where is my phone? Where is it! But it isn’t there.
Lucas’ words echo in my head. The only option you have is to fight and leave as much evidence of struggle as possible for the family to find. He always pushed me through various scenarios as we trained. I hope it won’t come to that. I slip through the gaping sliding door to the garden and then sprint toward the little hidden road that trash trucks use to collect waste.
If the intruders did their homework, they’d know Leif’s living a few houses away. I tremble, afraid I sent them straight into their waiting hands, but I push through it and concentrate on the task at hand.
A pitch-black street makes me beyond apprehensive of these men’s preparation level. Did they know how to cut the power and that I’d be alone at home tonight? It’s like 3:00 a.m. Where are my bodyguards? I don’t have time to ponder because someone leaps from the shadows and tackles me to the ground. I let out a screech, and before I can start screaming, I’m slammed against the concrete. My vision blurs as a sharp blade presses into my throat. It’s the same sadist from the bedroom.
“If I were you, I wouldn’t make a sound. Your kids are in the van, Mrs. Cade. Do you want to go with them or die here like a pig with your throat cut open?” His words are so cold and indifferent it paralyzes me. My hands like icicles fall down and my eyes frost with terror.
I gasp like a fish, trying to tell him not to hurt them. But I can’t. He smiles like a maniac, getting off my terror, and then pulls me to my feet. “Good, it would be such a waste to kill you.”
When a van pulls up, and he tosses me in, I yelp in pain, landing on my wrists at an odd angle. Before I can ask where my kids are, someone grabs me from behind and sticks a sharp needle in my neck so fast, I have no time to grasp what’s happening. My vision blurs, and my movements become sluggish. Even if I try to fight the haze, it takes me under. Thoughts slip through my fingers like sand, and it all goes blank.
~Mark~
The blades of the chopper slice the air, pulling and tugging at the trees and grass as I watch it land. This is it! My heart palpitates, uneasy about how much time we’ve spent, raising funds and negotiating with Lester. How much time he had them alone?
The thought of my beloved woman and her innocent kids being abused or degraded by that fucker is tearing my sanity apart. The sickening dread coils my guts, then I think about them in pain or worse. Fuck, how did I not see this coming? This is all my fault!
I try to focus on the fact I’m going to end this nightmare soon. Otherwise, if I let myself go there . . . I might crumble. Cassandra needs me to keep it together.
Hang in there, Lovebird. I’m coming to get you.
Since we found out they were abducted, all hell broke loose. My men were combing for them everywhere. I almost lost my damn fucking mind. But twenty-four hours later, Darren received a call. All the color drained from his face and then he spoke those three choked up words, “Don’t hurt them.”
I knew he was speaking with the bastard who has them. And it was a no-brainer to figure out who it was.
Darren tried to convince me not to get involved and leave everything to him. But I couldn’t. It felt wrong to just sit there and wait. My guts told me to do something. So, I contacted Lester myself, doubting Darren’s good intentions. I needed to know what the pervert wants. Fucker goaded me at first, but then he told me the deal’s going to cover only the kids, not her. I knew Lester did this on purpose. To get me. And it worked.
Hoping she’ll never have to live through the nightmares like I did, I bargained myself for her freedom. I don’t need it, not i
f the price is her broken soul.
When I realized Darren’s struggling to raise money, I took the initiative to help. I collapsed my businesses, sold my stocks and shares. I would have sold my soul to a monster just to bring them back. But the rescue mission still got delayed.
What the fuck are they waiting for?
Five damn long days!
Dammit! I should have protected them better. I knew what kind of monster Lester is. And he knew that this woman is my ultimate weakness. I won’t be able to live without her.
My bird became more than just obsession. More than the air I need to breathe or a warm body in my bed. Cassandra painted my bleak world with colors, soothed my wounds. And loved me like no one else in this world did. Perhaps she was right about how perilous loving her is. But I don’t regret a single moment with her. I just wish we had more time.
It was easier than I thought to give up my business and money to save her. If I just get a chance to destroy him, I would end his life with my bare hands . . . So he would never touch them again. A wave of dread loosens in my chest and I start to vibrate, realizing I need to kill him. Or all of this is for nothing.
“You should eat something. It’ll be a long trip. You’ll need your strength.”
I pivot around to look at Helen as if she’s a stranger.
How can she be this calm?
Not a single tear or strand of hair to show her worry for her family. Dressed like she’s going on vacation, not to retrieve her grandkids from the monster, not to sacrifice their mother, not to ruin their lives. In pristine white clothes and bright red lipstick, she’s a flawless lie, hiding all the filth behind a perfect façade.
Irritation smolders like coals inside of me, but I hold it in, knowing I might need it to survive our looming downfall. Because I know Lester will try to screw me over.
“Food isn’t on my mind right now,” I tell her coldly and look away.
Tangled IN LIES (Book#3, IN YOU) Page 28