I did as Jenny suggested and it worked! I was able to slip the lower half of my body out easily. We were out of the cave, on another section of the beach.
“I don’t know where we are.”
“Me neither, but let’s try and find a road.”
Running at full speed, we headed toward the bluff. Unfortunately, we were not alone on the beach. The cave opening had led us to the main area where the crates were being unpacked. It was full of people.
Caught by surprise, the men took a second to realize what was going on, but soon they saw us and started running after us.
The first man that reached us tackled me and I fell. The second one grabbed Jenny.
Standing back up, in front of Jenny, I crouched in a defensive position. My black belt training had prepared me for this. When I’d been tested, I had to fight off three attackers using only my hands and legs. There were four men now, but my adrenaline was high.
Jenny screamed, and used her kickboxing maneuvers to get free of the man who’d grabbed her, as I kicked and punched and fought off all four men long enough for Jenny to escape.
“Run, Jenny! Run!”
Thankfully, she listened, and took off running toward the bluff that led to the main road. I then turned and ran as fast as I could to catch up with her. The four captors chased after us, but as soon as we reached the road that led to the retreat, they stopped. There were too many cars.
We didn’t stop running until they came to a street light. Completely out of breath and panting, Jenny fell into my arms.
“Liam. They were going to kill us.” Her entire body was trembling.
“I know. We’re not out of danger yet, though. We need to get someplace safe.” For a moment, I wrapped my arms around her, to let her know that I would protect her.
“But, where? We can’t go back to your bungalow and my room isn’t safe either... Oh my god, Liam. I just realized...”
“Julie. We have to get to Julie.
Chapter Twenty Nine Jenny: Play It Cool
The roads were wet and muddy as Liam and I hurried toward the Main House. It would have been faster for us to take the beach way, but frankly we didn’t want to be alone in the dark in case the men grabbed us again. Even though it was longer, it was safer to take the well-lit road.
Hurrying along the road, we began to formulate a plan.
“Okay, so when we get there, you go and get Julie and I’ll create some kind of diversion.” Liam’s voice sounded husky and deep.
“And then what? It’s the middle of the night. We can’t exactly drag all of our luggage out of the hotel in the middle of the night.”
“No, but you can grab some essentials and slip out. I’ll meet you in the parking lot and we’ll figure something out from there.” We were almost to the Main House.
“Liam. I’m scared. This isn’t my life, getting kidnapped by men with knives and guns and needing to escape.”
“Jenny, I’m scared too. But we can’t let fear in right now. We have to stay focused on the moment. Just one step at a time. Don’t think too far ahead.”
“But what if they already got to Julie?” The thought of anything happening to her was terrifying.
“It’s not likely that they’d have gotten to her already. As far as we know, they’re still behind us or on the beach. But that’s why we need to hurry.”
Our clothes were pretty wet, but it was still raining lightly, so that wasn’t unusual.
Taking my arm, Liam said, “We are just a couple of drunken lovers who just finished making love on the beach. Okay?”
“Okay.”
How I wished that were true...
Pushing open the front doors to the retreat, Liam made a big gesture of stopping right in the middle of the room and kissing me dramatically.
This was no time for my body to start tingling like that, but it happened anyway. Every time this man touches me, I get excited. No matter what.
“Thank you for a wonderful evening,” I said, slurring slightly as if I were drunk.
“No, thank you. Do you want to get a nightcap in the bar?”
“Thank you anyway, but I think I’ll head up and get a shower to wash all this sand off. It’s everywhere if you know what I mean...” I giggled. We could see others in the lobby noticing us.
“Okay, well. Then, I’ll see you tomorrow. Goodnight beautiful.” Liam kissed me again, and I casually walked toward the stairs. Who knew I could act?
“Bye.”
Liam went toward the bar area, and as soon as I was out of sight from anyone, I dropped the pretense and hurried down the hallway to my room. My phone had been lost in the struggle, but fortunately my room key had been stuck deeply into my jeans pocket, and so I had it on me.
Looking both ways before opening the door, I quickly stepped inside and then locked it behind me. I was safe. For the moment anyway.
I took a few moments to compose myself and get my heart to stop pounding. One step at a time, Jenny. Don’t think too far ahead.
Pushing the door open to Julie’s room, I breathed a sigh of relief when I heard the familiar sounds of my sister sleeping. Thank god I got to her first.
Shaking her gently, I said, “Julie. Wake up.”
Chapter Thirty Liam: The Diversion
As soon as I saw Jenny head up the stairs, I headed to the bar. Loudly, I announced, “Hey, Jimmy my man! What’s happenin’?”
Jimmy furrowed his brow a little, as it wasn’t like me to be so loud. We made momentary eye contact, and then I resumed talking. “You know what? I love this place.” I sat down on a bar stool. “Just love it. That Napur Priyanka knew what she was doing when she built this place, I’ll tell ya that.”
Jimmy slid a coaster over to me, and asked, “What can I get you?”
“I want a vodka martini on the rocks, with a lemon and olives. Shaken and stirred, know what I mean, Jimmy?” I exaggerated a wink, and hoped that Jimmy would pick up that I was acting and not just being obnoxious.
“Sure, boss.”
I looked around the room for someone who could help me by being part of the diversion. I did see Kayla and her friend at one end of the bar. I really didn’t want to talk with them, and from the looks on their faces (and the fact that they refused to make eye contact with me), they evidently didn’t want to talk with me either. Good. At least they got the hint.
I didn’t really see anyone suitable in the bar. At one table over in the corner were three older women, toasting the last day of their “girls retreat.” There were a few younger looking “pilates moms” with bleached hair and silicone breasts. A guy with a man bun drinking a kombucha, and two college aged guys who looked like they’d come to the retreat more interested in finding women than in finding inner peace.
I hope things are okay with Jenny and Julie. I need to make enough of a scene here that I attract attention so that they can get out unnoticed.
Jimmy came back with the drink. “Here you go, man. Enjoy.”
Taking a big swig of my favorite beverage, I smacked my lips loudly. “Thank you, Jimster. This is amazing.” Downing the rest of the martini in one gulp, I pushed the glass over to Jimmy. “I’ll take another one, but first I need to use the bathroom.”
I headed toward the door to the bar and looked back at Jimmy and flashed him a quick wink.
“No worries, Mon. I’ll have it for you when you get back.”
Staggering as if I were drunk, I went up to the empty front desk. There was a bell on the desk, and I began ringing it incessantly. Bingbingbingbingbing
The same tall black man with the goatee who’d given me attitude before came out from behind a door. “Can I help you?”
“Yes. I want to report a complaint.” I made sure to sound belligerently drunk.
“What kind of complaint, sir?” The man lowered his voice and said, “And can you keep your voice down a bit? It’s rather late.”
“Oh...” I squinted to see the man’s name on his nametag, “Vincent... I have s
o many complaints about this place, I don’t even know where to begin. First, you guys lose my reservation and then put me out in the boonies so that I have to drive all the way over here anytime I even want to eat...”
Vincent was looking nervously around him, as I was being very loud. “Sir, I’m sure if you just...”
“THEN, when I lose my key, you people charge me an insane replacement fee.” This was going well. People were starting to cross to the other side of the lobby to avoid the confrontation. Vincent was getting really embarrassed. “PLUS, my ROOM was broken into, and no one did anything about it.”
“Sir. Please. Can we just talk about this...” he was gesturing to his office.
I continued complaining loudly and walked toward the bar. Vincent followed me, trying to get me to be quiet and not cause a scene. “I wonder if anyone else is having a problem with SECURITY at this hotel?” Vincent was scurrying along next to me, leaving a clear path from the stairway that led from Jenny’s room to the front door wide open.
“Sir, I’m afraid I am going to have to ask you to return to your room. We can discuss your complaints tomorrow when our Property Manager is back.”
“Oh, I see how it is. You just want to shut me up? Is that right, Vincent?” I kept an eye on the stairs. Come on Jenny. Hurry up. We don’t have much time...
Chapter Thirty One Jenny: Time
“Julie, wake up. We don’t have much time.”
Julie just rolled over and put a pillow over her head. “Mmmgdgsmnn”
“Julie, I mean it. This is serious.” She was sleeping so deeply, I started to wonder if she’d started taking Ambien again.
“Mmmm, can’t we talk about this tomorrow?”
“Julie, I was kidnapped.”
That woke her up. “What?” Julie sat up in bed. “What happened?”
“I’ll tell you while you’re packing. We need to get out of here.” I walked over to the door. “I’ll be right back. I’m going to grab my passport from the safe.”
“Jenny, I’m confused. What is going on?”
“Julie, just trust me. Get a few things together, only what you can carry in your purse, and meet me in the living room. We don’t have much time. I don’t want the guys who grabbed me to get here before we leave.”
Julie got out of bed and sleepily headed toward her closet as I ran to my room. My phone was gone, as it had been lost in the attack. Luckily I hadn’t had my purse with me when I went to Liam’s place. Just my phone and key. So, my ID and wallet and everything was here.
Grabbing my purse, passport, and a sweatshirt to pull over my still damp t-shirt, I headed to Julie’s room. Julie was standing in her closet trying to decide what to take. “I don’t want to just leave all this stuff, Jenny. These are my favorite things.”
“Julie, we have to get out of here. You’re not going to be wearing your favorite clothes if you’re dead. Come on. Get your passport and ID and let’s go!”
Julie grabbed a huge yellow purse and started to put things in it. “Jules. We are trying not to attract attention here. Carrying a Big Bird purse isn’t exactly unobtrusive. Here,” I said, grabbing a beige woven beach bag, “use this.”
Five minutes later, a still-sleepy Julie and I were ready to leave. “Okay, Liam said he would meet us in the parking lot. Let’s hurry downstairs and see if the lobby is clear, and if not, we’ll use a side door.”
“Why not just use that to begin with?”
“Because it’s the long way around the property to get to the parking lot.”
As we opened the door to the hallway, I could hear Liam’s voice echoing from downstairs. “Oh, I see how it is. You just want to shut me up? Is that right, Vincent?”
The lobby looked empty, so I grabbed Julie’s hand and made a run for it. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Liam and that one assistant manager who had his back to us.
I was nervous running into a dark parking lot with just Julie, but I was trying to just focus on one step at a time. Literally.
The rain had turned into a mist, and we went to stand next to a large van right near a lamp post. We were in the dark, but close enough to the light to see the mist gently falling down on the pavement. What a strange end to our trip.
And now we just had to wait.
“So, are you going to tell me what happened, or what?” Julie was standing there, her blonde hair getting wet in the mist.
I sighed, and began to relate the whole story. “Okay, so you know how I was going to take a bike ride and explore the island, right?”
“Yes. Did you go back to that cave? Is that where you were kidnapped?”
“Sort of. You see, I had my lunch and then went to this art gallery and saw an amazing collection of photographs. I started thinking about becoming a photographer and got distracted on my way home, and ended up in this narrow alley. I saw the manager of this retreat receive a packet from some other guy and then I fell off my bike and they saw me. I came back to the hotel to get some bandages...”
“Oh my god, are you okay?”
“Yeah. So I run into Liam. Turns out he’d gone back to the cave and found crates and crates of drugs there. His bungalow had been ransacked and when he went to go report it to the police, they didn’t seem to care.”
“Wow. That’s weird.”
“Yeah, so anyway, we went for a walk on the beach to compare notes and ended up at his bungalow.”
“Was it a mess?”
“No, you couldn’t even tell. But we fell asleep and my phone died and I couldn’t reach you so I left him a note and started to head back to our room. But, I was jumped first.”
“My god, Jenny. I can’t believe this.”
“Right? Anyway, they gave me that smelling stuff that makes you pass out, and when I came to, I was in the cave. Tied up!”
“Whoa. How did you get loose?”
“Remember that movie we saw where the chick rubbed her ropes against a rock? I did that. But they caught me!”
“Shit.”
“But I guess they kidnapped Liam too and we had to escape!”
“Wow. That is completely crazy.”
“They were talking about killing you, too. Making it look like an overdose.”
Julie’s face went white with fear. “You were right. We got out of there just in time.”
“I hope so. We’re not out of the woods yet, though.”
I was looking around the parking lot as I talked. Where are you, Liam?
Chapter Thirty Two Liam: Escape from Paradise
I was standing in the hall next to the bar, facing the stairs, and Vincent was attempting to calm me down. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Jimmy, grinning at him and wiping down the bar counter.
“Sir. I think we’ll all feel calmer in the morning. If you’d like a ride back to your bungalow, I’d be happy to meet with you tomorrow and work out an arrangement for your inconvenience.”
I saw Jenny and Julie come down the stairs and go out the front doors. Good. They made it.
It was time to let Vincent think he’d won. “Okay. Okay, you’re probably right.”
Vincent breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. Okay, let’s go back to my office and I’ll get you a ride back to your bungalow.”
“All right.”
We were walking back to the lobby when we passed Winston, the security guard who’d helped me the other night. “Hey, can he take me back?”
Vincent stopped and looked at Winston. “Sure. Winston, can you take Mr. Kelley back to his bungalow? He’s had a little too much fun this evening.”
“All right?” Winston looked a little confused.
“Excellent.” Vincent patted me on the shoulder. “Come back tomorrow and we’ll talk, okay?”
“Sure.” I waited for Vincent to walk away, and said “Winston, I need your help.”
***
Ten minutes later, I was in the driver’s seat of a black Prius, owned by Winston. I had taken the unassuming security guard aside and explaine
d the situation. After the break-in, Winston was not surprised that things had escalated. He offered to lend me his car to get to the airport, and offered to ship any items that were left in the bungalow. Of course, I said I would make it very worth the man’s effort. There were advantages to having money, that’s for sure.
I started the car and headed toward the guest parking lot, where I saw Jenny and Julie standing against a van next to a parking lot light. Because it was a Prius, the engine was silent as I pulled up next to the women.
I rolled down the window and said, “What’s a nice girl like you doing in a parking lot like this?”
Both women jumped. “Oh my god, you scared me!”
I unlocked the doors and said, “Hurry, get in. Let’s get the hell out of here.”
Jenny got in the front seat and Julie got in the back. Jenny leaned over to give me a kiss. “Thanks for helping us get out of there.”
Looking in the rear view mirror, I asked Julie, “Hey. How are you feeling?”
Julie grinned, “You mean other than almost dying from detox and then finding out that my sister was kidnapped on our vacation, and now we are escaping the bad guys with barely as much as the clothes on our backs? I’m good. And you?”
I laughed and said, “Buckle up, ladies. We need to hurry.”
As we crossed the parking lot toward the one exit, I saw the hotel manager Simon and one of the men from the cave standing and talking. They were pointing toward the bungalow. Despite my best efforts to keep the man from seeing me, he looked over and made eye contact.
“Shit. He saw us.”
The man took off toward a silver Honda that was parked nearby and jumped in it. I sped up as we left the lot, making a left turn toward Nassau. The Prius blended in with the other cars on the road, and I hoped we had lost the guy.
The clock on the car’s dashboard said 12:30 am. I hated to do it, but I needed to make a call. “Julie, do you have your cell phone?”
Provocative Paradise: A Secret Stranger Romance Page 14