by Cate Mckoy
He crossed his wrists in the manner he was trained and held his gun in a firm grip and slowly moved the flashlight from side to side, widening his arc as he reached the bottom of the stairs. The basement was huge. It ran the length of the entire house and the outer door was on the west wall. Doing a complete circle, Rick shined his light in the corners of the basement he could reach from his position before making his way to the door. Halfway to the door he saw that it was wide open.
He ran the rest of the way and looked outside. They snow was still coming down. He thought he had spotted movement. He moved outside and took harbor against a large tree. He saw movement again. There. A man moving towards him. Another. And Another. What the fuck? Was that three men headed his way?
Rick stayed low and moved to another tree. He was going to cut one of them off and get some answers. There was no reason for anyone to be here this close to the house. The Racuanelli land went on for acres. He tried to get his bearings when a sharp short whistle rented the night, stabbing through the storm to his ears. He knew that sound. It was one of the secret coded whistles he created with his sisters when they used to play secret agent. The whistle that just sounded was his name. He pursed his lips and answered.
Lara?
Yes.
Bad guys.
Saw them.
Three?
More.
They traded coded whistles, until Rick had her location. Suddenly there was a muzzle flash.
Lara?
Okay.
There were two more shots. Through the hazy snowfall Rick saw the shooter.
On your six.
Stay low.
Okay Bro.
Right flank.
Okay.
Rick and Lara closed in on their prey. They moved until they had him boxed in. Rick took aim and fired close to the man’s head. “Police! Drop your weapon.”
The figure moved, faced Rick and started to move. Lara and Rick both shouted simultaneously.
“Freeze!”
“Don’t fucking move!”
“Wait! Wait! Mr. Racuanelli, please don’t shoot.”
At the use of his name, Rick stood up to his full height. “Who the fuck are you? Why do you know my name?”
“We’re your back up and Ms. Valentines’ protection.”
Rick looked at Lara who was now standing beside him. She shrugged. He looked back at the man sure he had heard wrong. “What?”
“We’re here to help with the stalker situation. Mr. Sterling Valentines hired us.”
***
Chastity groaned in pain. Her head ached something fierce. The burning, tearing pain between her legs was much more pronounced. She was freezing and wet. She tried to open her eyes. Her first attempt failed. She tried again and couldn’t see much through the mere slits she created.
“So, princess, you’re awake.”
Chastity jerked upright and wide-eyed. She was in the front passenger seat of an unfamiliar car. The cold gripped her. She didn’t have a coat in this cold weather. She didn’t even have shoes on. The bottom of her pant leg was soaking wet. She didn’t know from what.
“Toby?” She put a hand against her suddenly spinning head. “Toby Linz, what are you doing?”
“Say my name like that again. It’s so sexy.” His voice was huskier than what she was used to hearing.
They weren’t moving but the engine was running. She looked out the window. She saw nothing but falling snow, snow covered trees for as far as the eyes could see. In the darkness she tried to pinpoint in which direction Rick’s cabin was. She couldn’t tell. It all looked like a winter wonderland. Beautiful but deadly.
She screamed as Toby touched her thigh. “No, don’t touch me!”
Toby leaned towards her. “You didn’t say that to that big apish caveman.” Toby shoved his hand painfully between Chastity’s legs. “In fact, you let him fuck you like an animal.”
Chastity was in excruciating pain as he kept shoving his fist repeatedly against her vagina. She was sore both inside and out of her body. She tried to push his fist away, but he kept on slamming it against her vagina. “You just opened your legs and let that pig do it to you. You put his disgusting caveman dick in your mouth.”
“No, no, please stop it!” Chastity’s voice started to go hoarse.
“Yes, scream. I like that sound you make. Even when I watched through the window as he defiled you, I got hard.” He forced her hand on his penis. “Feel it.”
“No!” Chastity kicked and pulled her hand away from his body.
“You little bitch. I sit in your class watching you make eyes at me with those sexy hands and that mouth. You know you want me.”
“No, no, Toby. I barely noticed you. I-I only hav-“
He hauled off and slapped her hard. Her head hit the dash. His shoving fist against her vagina became a punching one all over.
***
Rick rushed through the house shouting Chastity’s name. He knew without checking that she was gone. He knew she would have shown herself immediately, she would have run to him. He ran back into the living room where he had left the three men of Three D Security; Dirk, Devon, and Dillion. Sterling Valentines had sent them to protect Chastity. Ha, some protection.
“It looks like he took her in here and she fought. There is blood all over this comforter.”
Rick looked on in horror at the blood spotted bedding. His heart thudded erratically. Chastity’s blood.
His sister came in from the hallway. “I don’t think she was taken in the living room. There are signs of struggle out in the hall and look.” Lara held up Chastity’s slippers.
One of the men, Rick thought the one called Dirk, shook his head. “There are signs of a struggle in here and we got blood.”
Lara looked from the bloody comforter to her brother’s face. She said softly. “Rick, you want to tell these gentlemen about the struggle that went on in here?”
Rick shot his sister a look. Of course, she knew. Shaking his head, he simply said. “My sister’s right. Chastity was taken from the hallway.”
“No, way. No way a bloody sheet and signs of a struggle doesn’t trump left behind slippers.” Dirk said with finality.
“I am gonna have to agree with my partner here. She fought, he hurt her, and carried her off. Perhaps her slippers fell off as he carted her off in that direction.” One of Dirk’s partner’s suggested.
Lara and Rick exchanged looks. Rick shook his head. He didn’t have time for this. “Listen, she was taken from the hall. It doesn’t matter where she was taken, only that she was taken. Unless you—”
“I beg to differ. If—” Dirk started aggressively. Rick interrupted.
“Chastity and I made love in here. We were energetic. There was no struggle. My girlfriend was a virgin! She was taken from the hallway. Now can we move the fuck on.”
The men stared in shock at Rick. Dirk suddenly dropped the bloody comforter as though it were on fire.
Lara turned to hide her smile. Dirk looked at them and said. “Moving on.”
“What the hell were you shooting at out there?” Rick annoyed.
“We were shot at first.” Dirk explained. “We saw whoever that was moving towards the house. We tried to surround him.”
“Like you and this woman did us?” Rick looked at the one called Devon. He seemed pissed a woman got a jump on him. Well he could get the fuck over it. Lara was a highly trained deputy sheriff.
“This woman is my sister and a deputy sheriff of this county. She has jurisdiction here. She’s helping me out.” Rick left no doubt as to who was running things.
“Gentlemen, you are more than welcome to join in the search for Ms. Valentines. Or you can stay here.” Lara offered.
Rick turned to leave. “Whatever you decide, don’t get in my way.”
***
Chastity came to on the floor of the front seat. Her body was in a horribly awkward position. She ached everywhere. Toby had beat her with his fist and then grab
bed a handful of her hair and slammed it into the dash. That was all she remembered. Now she moved, stiffly. She looked around. Toby wasn’t at the wheel. She cast her eyes about, looking for him.
A chill overtook her body. Deep shudders weakened her further as she tried to sit on the seat and move over beneath the steering wheel. Just as she was about to reach for the ignition the driver’s door swung open.
“Oh, good. You’re awake. You can help me get us out of this snowbank.”
Even in her poor state, Chastity shrank from Toby’s touch.
Crazily, he used a gentle tone of voice as though he were trying to sooth a baby. “Now, now, princess. We just need to get out of this snowbank, and I will take us away to our castle.”
Chastity tried to think on what she should do as Toby rambled on about the best way they could get out of their current situation.
“I could let you steer and press the gas, but you might get ideas of leaving me here. However, if I take the wheel you might try to run off instead of pushing.”
“I-I’m too weak to push a car.” Chastity tried to make herself sound weaker than she was.
Toby seemed to ponder for a moment. “Okay, you will be the designated driver.” He laughed as though he made a joke. It sounded deranged to Chastity.
“I am going to push from the open-door frame.” He reached out and stroked her face. “You’re not quite trustworthy yet.” Chastity shrank from his touch.
Sneering at her repulsive reaction, he reached over and started the car. Positioning himself in the frame, putting one hand against the door frame and the other on the roof of the car, he instructed, “Steer towards the road and press the gas slowly.”
Chastity tried to think what she could do from her position behind the wheel. She felt shaky and weak, but she’d be damn if she was going to stay in her current situation. At the very first opportunity she was out. She’d cooperate until she didn’t have to.
****
Rick’s fear for Chastity rose with each difficult foot he drove. Visibility was nil, the snow still came down. The temperature had dropped. The wind howled. He inched along in his truck. His sister rode shotgun, looking through the murky veil of the falling flakes.
“So, your girlfriend is a virgin. That alone is a step up from Chelsea.” Lara’s amused voice floated across the darken interior of his truck.
Annoyed and feeling guilty that he hadn’t believed Chastity about her virginity and equally annoyed this was the topic of the first real conversation he had with his baby sister in years, Rick answered more sharply than he intended. “You don’t even know Chelsea that well and you certainly don’t know Chastity, therefore you don’t know what you’re talking about. Mind your business.”
Rick ignored the fact that Lara was right. Chastity was a vast improvement over Chelsea in every way that he could think. Chastity was sweeter, more passionate, more caring, and God knew sexier. Rick had never felt with anyone what he had felt with Chastity. She drove his emotions and his physical needs like no other before her.
His sister chuckled. “Yeah, and besides, she’s no longer a virgin.”
“Shut up Lara.” Rick’s only rebuttal had Lara laughing harder.
Lara sighed and then asked seriously, “What about those idiots searching in their car? Do you trust them?”
The men Chastity’s father had employed were proving to be of little help. They weren’t in Rick’s trustworthy column yet. Valentines wouldn’t have hired incompetents to protect his only daughter. He’d reserve his final opinion until he saw how they handled this situation.
“Your girlfriend is being stalked!”
At the catch in his sister’s voice he took his eyes from the dismal view of the road to look at Lara. She looked young and small to him, despite him knowing she was an accomplished sheriff’s deputy who was steadily climbing the ranks. She still looked like his baby sister. She looked like Lanie too. His heart beat painfully. As he returned his eyes back to the road, he whispered. “Yes. She’s been stalked for over a month. Her stalker is doing some sort of sadistic countdown, leaving little tokens, breaking into her home, bedroom, left a human heart in her underwear drawer.”
“Jesus! You have to protect her.” Lara’s voice was stressed.
“What do you think I am doing, Lara?”
“Seems to me like you’re too busy having sex with her instead of protecting her. Anything could have happened to her and you while you were screwing her. What if this guy had decided to enter the cabin when you were doing your thing with her? A whole lot of good your dick would have done her then?”
Rick’s grip on the steering wheel grew crushing. His jawline went tense as he ground his teeth to prevent the words he wanted to say on reflex. He held his tongue because he knew Lara was right. Because he had been too busy fucking Chastity instead of protecting her, she was now in the hands of her stalker.
***
Chastity’s head snapped backward and forward. She put her hands against her cheek, mouth and under her nose. Her nose was bleeding profusely from Toby’s repeated blows. “You’re doing this on purpose!”
Trembling in fear and shock, Chastity weakly protested. “I’m not. We’re not getting out of this snowbank because you’re pushing from the wrong side.” She took a hand away from her cheek to point. “It’s going to keep going in that direction as long as you’re pushing from the wrong angle. Simple physics.”
She was merely stating a fact that would help them. She wanted to get out of there too. Despite the abuse she’d received thus far at Toby’s hands, Chastity wasn’t expecting the hit that had her forehead bouncing off the steering wheel.
“You’re always so smart mouthed. Just like in your lectures. You’re always talking down to us all.”
Chastity was losing consciousness. She felt herself slipping away. The encroaching darkness edged its way in via her peripheral vision. She was feeling intense pain and then she felt nothing.
***
“Fuck!” Rick slammed his fist against the dash.
“I know you’re scared. But, beating on your truck isn’t going to help Chastity.”
“Damn it, I know, Lara. I’m just so…so…”
“Scared.” Lara provided. “I imagine you haven’t been this scared for some time now. I bet the last time was—”
“When I broke down Lanie’s door.”
Rick felt a slight pressure on his shoulder. He looked to see his sister giving his shoulder a comforting squeeze. “Don’t worry big bro, we will find her.”
Rick gave her a small smile. He was starting to remember how close he had been with Lara. He had been extremely close to both his sisters. They had spoken every day, had dinner together at least three or four times a month. They’d done excursion together, sky diving, zip lining, camping, hiking and even hanging out at one of their places for a movie fest. It had all stopped with Lanie’s murder. Both he and Lara had become obsessed, first with catching Lanie’s killer and then they had been too engrossed in their own grief and guilt to console each other. Rick had found it difficult to see Lara in person because she favored Lanie so closely. He was sure his parents had felt the same.
Now he looked upon his baby sister with a bittersweet nostalgia. He had wonderful memories of both his sisters and his parents. He missed those that had been taken away from him so tragically. He was happy that he still had Lara.
“Thanks baby sis.” He patted the hand that was on his shoulder.
“Dad would sa—”
“Ssh,” Rick held up his hand. “Do you hear that?”
Lara tipped her head in a listening stance and quietly opened her window. It was faint but she could just make out the sound of-
“It’s a horn.” Rick brought his slowly inching truck to a standstill. He pointed behind Lara’s shoulder. “It’s coming from over there.”
Lara slipped out of the truck. Rick shifted the truck in to park and did the same. They both checked their weapons and started in the direction
they heard the horn. Walking would be much faster than trying to navigate the dangerous roads and it gave them the element of surprise.
Rick kept his steps even and slow, listening. He knew in the woods and the snow sound took on an eerie quality, almost funhouse eerie. The sound could be far away or only several feet away and you wouldn’t be able to tell which you were hearing. Trying to remember to employ all his training Rick picked up his pace thinking about how frightened Chastity must be.
***
Toby pulled Chastity off the horn. She had passed out. He brought his face within inches of hers to suss out if she were faking. Convinced she was not, he pushed her over into the passenger seat. He attempted to steer one-handed while pushing against the door frame.
He was focused on what he was doing. Toby was wholly unprepared for the force that gripped him so hard and flung him through the air. Toby hit the snow-covered ground with a much harder impact than he would have thought. His head hit the ground and he saw stars.
While on the ground trying to recover his equilibrium, he heard voices. “Check on Chastity while I secure this scumbag.”
“She’s breathing.” That was all he heard before harsh hands gripped him by his arms. He was held on his feet before a fist came crashing into his jaw, sending him sprawling against the snow-covered ground in excruciating pain. He was pulled up on his feet again. With his head hanging, Toby braced for more pain.
“Rick! Stop! We need to get her inside ASAP.” The woman’s voice shouted before he was struck.
Instead of feeling pain from being hit again, Toby was pulled up onto his toes by the front of his coat. A deep, threatening voice warned, “Consider yourself lucky.”
As he was harshly put into cuffs and shoved into an unsteady walk, Toby was indeed counting his lucky stars.
Chapter 10
Chastity heard sounds long before she was able to open her eyes and see. She felt as though she was being jostled. She was still cold and damp. But she felt a presence that eased her fear rather than evoked it. Instinctively, she knew it was Rick. He had somehow gotten her away from the deranged Toby. Although she still shivered, she was a little warmer than before. She was wrapped in something that held Rick’s scent and gave her some warmth against the harsh storm.