by Sarah Bale
“She had a migraine and couldn’t make it. She sent her love though.”
His beautiful face fell a little. “She has never missed one of my fights. Not since she started working for me.” He straightened and said, “At least you are here.”
Mrs. Ingram’s absence worried her but Shannon didn’t voice her thoughts. The housekeeper had been acting odd ever since Dev left. Almost jumpy.
Marco walked up and hugged her. “You’re looking good tonight, Shannon.”
She smiled back. “Thanks. You look good too.”
He wore black slacks and a white, collared shirt that accented his tan skin.
Dev gave a mock sigh of disappointment.
Shannon turned to him. “You look good too, you dork.”
Her compliment was an understatement. He looked breathtaking even though he wore only his fighting shorts. Marco handed Dev a t-shirt and he put it over his head. Sponsor names and logos covered the back and Shannon noticed all the guys in the locker room wore the same shirt.
“All right. Everyone quiet down,” Marco called out.
The room silenced on cue and he went on.
“It’s a pleasure to be here with you all for what will most likely be Dev’s last fight.”
This was news to her but she didn’t say anything. She squeezed Dev’s hand and he squeezed back.
“Working with Dev when no one would touch him with a ten-foot pole has been an honor and a joy.”
Several people chuckled at that.
“And I’m happy to say I will be joining Dev in his next endeavor. With that being said, Dev…are you ready to kick Utah’s ass?”
“Hell yeah I am!”
Dev set his face in determination. For a moment she felt out of place in a room filled with his friends but one look from him assured her she had every right to be there.
“Okay. Let’s roll,” Marco said with a wave of his hands.
The room emptied until only Shannon and Dev remained. Dev pulled her flush against his body and held onto her shoulders. She melted into him, trying not to worry about how to protect him during his fight. She had no idea what Johnny might try.
“I am so glad you’re here with me,” Dev said as he kissed her lightly. “And I can’t wait until we can talk.”
Her throat tightened and she nodded in reply. If she said anything now, she would blurt out everything she’d been keeping from him.
“Be safe, Dev,” she whispered against his lips.
“I will,” he promised.
Behind them at the door, Marco cleared his throat. “Dev, it’s time. Shan, one of the ushers will show you to your seat.”
Shannon nodded and walked out of the locker room. An usher waited to take her into the heart of the arena, to her seat. The man led her down the hallway to the arena floor. He pushed his way through the crowd and took her to her seat. She looked around the sold-out arena.
The energy in the room was high from the three prior bouts the fans had watched. Everything led up to Dev’s fight though.
She took in a sharp breath. She sat so close to the caged ring. Johnny’s words came back to haunt her.
“Don’t wear white. I would hate for your dress to get stained with Dev’s blood…”
She shuddered at the thought of Johnny’s threat. Her seat confirmed that something bad would happen to Dev here, tonight. A man stepped into the middle of the ring and took a microphone from one of the ring girls.
“Ladies and gentlemen, it is time for our main event. Your challenger hails from Salt Lake City, Utah. Give it up for…”
Shannon’s ears roared with blood as the announcer called out Utah’s name. The crowd booed, obviously rooting for Dev. Utah sauntered to the ring. An official checked the man outside of the cage for any weapons and then Utah entered the cage, into the octagon ring.
She felt a moment’s relief knowing he didn’t have a weapon on him. This man wouldn’t deliver whatever Johnny had planned but that meant the threat came from another, as-yet-unidentified source.
“And your defending champion tonight hails from Tyler, Texas. Please give it up for Devlin the bad-boy James!”
The crowd went wild. Everyone jumped to their feet and she did too. A man wearing sunglasses and a hoodie walked to Utah’s corner. Oh sweet Jesus…none of the officials seemed to notice the suspicious man trying to get Utah’s attention.
He mouthed something to Utah, who grinned in return. The hooded man pulled a wad of cash from his pocket and pushed it through a slot in the cage. Her heart pounded. So Johnny would use Utah to hurt Dev and the hooded man provided the weapon. She couldn’t believe no one else was seeing this. The guy in the sweatshirt looked so damn sleazy he practically screamed, “I’m here to hurt someone!”
She glanced around and saw Marco standing near Dev’s corner. She got up and made her way past people, ignoring their glares as she shoved them out of her way.
“Marco,” she said, trying to get his attention.
He turned. “Shannon, you need to sit down. I don’t want Dev to be distracted.”
Her face flamed at the admonishment and she almost listened to him. Dev’s music came on and Marco turned away from her. Her gaze darted back to the shady man and she grabbed onto Marco.
“Listen to me. I think they are going to hurt Dev!”
“What?” he yelled over the music.
“Make sure they check Utah’s gloves,” she yelled back.
Marco stared at her and then nodded his understanding. She made her way back to her seat, biting her lip. She prayed she was wrong—that Dev wasn’t in any danger.
Marco went around to the other side of the ring to the ref and leaned in, saying something in his ear. The hooded man watched and then turned suddenly. Shannon stood, trying to see which way he went when he disappeared into the crowd. The ref went over to Utah’s corner with two other officials in tow.
Utah held up his hands as the ref pointed to his gloves. Two more men joined the ref and Shannon could hear yelling. Utah shoved one of the officials and then all hell broke loose. Fists flew from every direction and Marco held Dev back.
She put her hand over her mouth as Dev twisted from Marco’s grip. She didn’t want him to get hurt! She watched in horror as Dev reached Utah and punched him square in the jaw. His head flopped to the side in an unnatural way and then his body slumped as he passed out.
People pulled Dev away from Utah. Dev didn’t always know when to stop when he was angry, something she discovered when he fought with others in their youth. Marco ran up to Dev and pulled him by the arm, leading him backstage.
Should she follow or should she go back to the house and wait? No, she needed to see him with her own two eyes to make sure he was okay. She began to make her way through the crowd. A large hand wrapped around her wrist, yanking her to a stop.
Johnny glared down at her, his eyes filled with hatred.
“That was some fucking trick you pulled,” he said.
She tried to pull away but his held her tightly.
“Let me go, Johnny!”
He stared at her until she wanted to squirm and then he nodded.
“Fine. Go. Make sure your boy is okay.”
She turned to leave.
“But this isn’t over,” he called after her. “Not by a long shot.”
She tried to remain calm as she walked away. God…when would she finally be free of Johnny Ice?
She reached the backstage curtain and flashed her VIP pass. The two security guards nodded and stepped aside so she could pass between them. There had only been one guard before, she thought absently. She made her way down the corridor and heard yelling before she got to Dev’s locker room.
The door burst open as two men in suits left. They barely glanced at her as they pulled out their cell phones and began barking out orders. She knocked on the door and when no one answered, she walked inside.
Dev sat on one of the benches with his left arm extended. Blood dripped onto the marble flo
or and she gasped.
“What happened?” she asked as she ran to his side.
He looked up at her and anger stared back, but not directed at her for once.
“I punched the fucking wall. That’s what happened.”
“Oh, Dev,” she said with a sigh. “Were they able to catch the second man, the one in the hoodie?”
Dev shook his head. “No. Those two jackasses who just left are trying to figure out where he went. The surveillance footage lost the man outside the auditorium.”
Marco came up carrying an ice pack and tossed it at Dev. He turned to her. “How in the hell did you know something was up?”
Her face flamed. “I saw the hooded man push something through the cage toward Utah. It just didn’t feel right so I found you.”
Dev smiled up at her. “I’m glad you did, babe. What I don’t get is why he tried to sabotage me. Even if he lost, he was going to bank on the fight.”
Her stomach dropped out of guilt but she didn’t say anything. Someone knocked on the door and then a cop in his early forties walked in. He stood as tall as Dev but without his muscular physique. In fact this cop was slightly overweight and wore glasses.
Shannon took a step closer to Dev. Cops made her uneasy.
“Mr. James, I’m Detective Van Huss with the Loveland Police Department. I’m here to ask you a few questions.”
Dev jumped to his feet. “Ask me questions? You should be talking to the asshole who tried to use brass knuckles on me!”
Bile rose in Shannon’s throat. Utah had brass knuckles? They could be deadly, if used correctly.
“Mr. James, please calm down. I need to get both sides of the story so I can file my paperwork. Please don’t make my job any harder.” He flipped through the small notebook in his hand. “The arena security has confirmed there was a second man involved. Do you have any idea who they were or why they would want to hurt you?”
“No.”
The detective turned to her and Marco. “May I have your names as well, for the report?”
“I’m Marco Rains and this is Shannon Bray.”
The detective raised his eyebrow. “Ms. Bray?”
He peered at her over his glasses and she felt like hiding. Fuck! He knew something.
Dev spoke up. “Shannon is my girlfriend.”
Any other time she would have melted in happiness but she couldn’t feel anything but fear with Detective Van Huss looking at her as if he’d just discovered Jack the Ripper’s true identity.
“Ma’am, may I speak to you in the hallway please?” He glanced at Dev and Marco. “In private.”
“Of-of course,” she stammered.
She bent down and kissed Dev on the cheek before following Detective Van Huss into the hallway. With each step she took fear built in her stomach. She didn’t trust this man at all!
Chapter Thirty-Five
In the hall, Detective Van Huss took off his glasses and stared at her.
“Is there something I can help you with, Detective?”
“Ms. Bray, are you aware we received an anonymous tip stating you wanted to hurt Mr. James?”
Her mouth fell open. “What? No! Why would I want to hurt Dev? I love him!”
Saying the words to someone other than Dev made her realize how much she really did love him.
“Ms. Bray, I’m going to need you to come to the station with me for questioning.”
“I…I need to talk to Dev.”
“Ms. Bray, I would recommend contacting an attorney before you say anything to anyone else. Now please come with me.”
She nodded numbly and followed Detective Van Huss down the corridor. Everything became a blur as he led her outside to an unmarked police cruiser. He opened the back door and she balked.
“It’s procedure. I can’t let you ride in the front,” he explained gently, as if sensing her shock.
She climbed into the backseat. As the door closed, she heard Dev yelling her name. She watched in horror as he ran toward the car. She didn’t want Dev to see her, not like this in the back of a police car.
“Detective,” she choked out. “Please go. I don’t want to see him right now.”
He nodded and climbed into the car. They pulled away before Dev reached them. She closed her eyes as the car made its way down the crowded street. Maybe the time had come to stop running. If she told the whole story and told them about Johnny’s involvement, then this would all be over. And most importantly, Dev would be safe.
For the first time in longer than she could remember a relieved breath left her body. This was the right thing to do. She opened her eyes as they passed the police station.
Detective Van Huss’ eyes met hers in the rearview mirror. Her skin began to crawl. Oh fuck… He never showed them his badge. Oh fuck.
* * * * *
Dev walked down an empty hallway as he looked for Marco. He needed his friend’s help. Shannon’s haunted eyes were all he could think about. Why in the hell had the detective taken her? Was she in danger?
John Ice stepped out into the corridor from one of the dressing rooms, forcing Dev to either stop or plow the man over.
“May I talk to you for a moment?” Ice said.
“I’m kind of busy right now.”
“I only need a second of your time. There’s something you need to know about Shannon.”
An uneasy feeling settled in his stomach. John held the door to the dressing room open and Dev stepped inside.
He took in a deep breath and said, “Talk.”
John smiled. “There are some things you need to know about Shannon. Big things.”
“Such as?”
“First of all, I own The Honey Jar in Miami.”
The bar where he had first seen Shannon? His stomach knotted. He had a feeling he wasn’t going to like what this man had to say. Not one bit.
“And Shannon was working there for me…as one of my high-end call girls.”
Dev sat down on the nearest chair.
John sat across from him. “I’m afraid it gets much worse.”
Dev pinched the bridge of his nose. “Spit it out, Ice. I don’t have all night.”
Not when Shannon was gone. And not when he didn’t know how he was going to feel once this man was finished speaking. He took in a deep breath and steeled himself for what he was about to hear.
* * * * *
Ten minutes later Dev stormed from the room and ran right into Marco.
“Where did Shannon go?” Marco asked.
“I don’t know. She left with the detective but I would sure as hell like to talk to her.”
Marco ran his hand through his hair. “Dev, I’m not so sure that was a real detective.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Two men came in after you left the locker room. They had badges and everything.”
Fuck. The detective hadn’t shown any form of identification and Dev didn’t think to ask to see any. He had been too angry to think of anything other than finding Utah and fucking him up.
“They were asking about John Ice,” Marco said. “But they wouldn’t say why.”
Dev’s jaw clenched. “I have an idea. Find Shannon. Now.”
* * * * *
Shannon tried to not freak out. The farther they drove from the arena, the farther she was from Dev and from help.
Detective Van Huss or whoever he truly was, glanced at her in the mirror. “I’m sorry to do this to you.”
His voice now held an accent. New York? New Jersey? He definitely wasn’t from Colorado.
“W-where are you taking me?”
Her heart pounded while she waited for his reply. She prayed he wasn’t going to hurt her and dump her body in a ditch where she wouldn’t be found.
“I was told to drive you around until I received a phone call.”
“Who? Who told you to do this? Are you even a real detective? Why are you doing this to me?” The questions left her lips in a rush.
He shook his hea
d. “I don’t know who hired me. I work through a middleman. I like to keep it that way. It keeps my hands cleaner, if you catch my drift.”
Oh boy…did she ever.
She spoke slowly so there couldn’t be any confusion in her words. “Are you going to hurt me?”
“No. Hurting women isn’t my style. Well most of the time. There’s always the exception but I’d say you’re safe.”
She let out her breath.
They drove around for what felt like an eternity. Finally a ringing phone broke the silence. She jumped in the seat.
“Yes?” Van Huss answered. “Yes, sir. We will be there shortly. Yes I understand.” He met her gaze in the mirror again. “Looks as if it’s time to drop you off.”
“Are you taking me back to the arena?”
“Nope. I’m taking you to your boyfriend’s house. When we get there I’ll unlock the door from the inside and you will need to jump out of the car.”
Her mouth fell open. “You aren’t even going to stop so I can get out?”
“Hell no. I may be a con but I’m not stupid. Tuck and roll, baby. Tuck and roll.”
* * * * *
She had never been so glad to see Dev’s house as they pulled up. She didn’t even question how Van Huss knew the gate code without being told. As the car slowed she heard the door unlock.
She shoved against the door and rolled out before Van Huss could change his mind. The pavement bit into her skin as she rolled toward the curb. The car sped off and she scrambled to her feet.
She ran toward Dev’s front door, looking over her shoulder to make sure no one else was going to grab her. Before she even reached the front steps, the door opened and Dev stood there waiting.
“Oh thank god!” she cried as she threw herself into his arms. “I was so worried. I didn’t know what was going on.”
He held his body stiff and had a hard look in his eyes—a look she had hoped she would never see again.
“Well,” he drawled. “Look who came back.”
His face blended into the shadows of the night. Before she could reply his hand wrapped around her upper arm and he led her into the house.
“Where’s Marco?” she stammered out.
“I told him to stay away until I had the chance to talk to you alone. Don’t worry though. He’ll be back with the police when we’re finished.”