Unspoken: A Romantic Suspense (The Unspoken Series Book 1)

by Ellie Danes

  “Alright, everyone. It’s been a long day already. Until Mr. Rogers speaks with his lawyer, we’re done here. I’ll let you know what else we hear.” Detective Simmons cleared the room as we watched Dylan, sat at the cold metal table in the interrogation room. It seemed a fitting end, for now.

  Chapter Forty-One

  “Jennifer! Can I talk with you for a minute?”

  “Sure, Dad. What’s up?” Cain continued walking to the car and waited for me, leaving Dad and I alone.

  He touched my shoulder, a move he often used when he was trying express himself. “I wanted you to know that I recognize you have a great talent for what you do. I am glad I got to see you work in person.”

  “Thank you. That means a lot.” I reached up and patted his hand.

  “I am very proud of you, Jennifer. I hope that you stick around and help on other cases, although I think we’ll be mopping up this one for a long time.”

  “Let’s just get through this one, Dad. I love doing what I’m doing, but I want to make sure this will good for me, and us.”

  “Well, keep up the good work.” He started to leave but turned back. “Oh, for the record, I like him.”

  A warming sensation flooded through me and I didn’t know what to say. “Thank you.” My heart was full and I truly meant it. Dad’s acceptance of Cain was important, and it wasn’t until he voiced it out loud that I realized how much I needed it.

  I walked carefully across the gravel parking lot in my high heels to join Cain. My phone dinged and a text message popped up. Three small words. This isn’t over!

  I stared back at the police station, wondering how Dylan could have sent me a text. My heart sank, but I reassured myself it would be fine. I slid the phone in my sweater pocket and slid into Cain’s car.

  Chapter Forty-Two

  I loved the smell of the seats in Cain’s expensive car, and the way the soft leather felt against my body, the way the shape hugged it. I sank deeper into the seat and closed my eyes for a moment.

  “Everything Ok?”

  “Yes!” I lied, grateful I knew how to lie when I needed to.

  “Another step, right, Jennifer?” Cain seemed pleased with the outcome, even if it didn’t tie Dylan to Alice’s murder yet. “Dylan’s behind bars, you’re safe, and now we can focus on us and let the police do their job. Right?”

  Cain was searching for confirmation that I was finally going to stop trying to play detective and fight crime. “Right. Another step in the right direction. I’m sure the police will do their job and get the evidence they need.”

  “I want to do something special tonight. How about you come over at around seven? Pack a few things, Ok? We need a little R and R.” Cain smiled his devilish smile.

  “That sounds great. I’ll see you in a bit.” I glanced down at my watch and realized it was still quite early in the afternoon. I tried to conceal my yawn as Cain pulled up outside my apartment courtyard. I leaned toward him and kissed him. “Should I dress up for dinner?”

  “Yes! You should, so I can undress you later. Oh, and pack a bathing suit!”

  “Sounds perfect, Cain.”

  “Jennifer?”

  “Yes?”

  “Thank you, for everything.” His hand was on mine; his blue eyes looked deeply into my soul. I knew he was sincere.

  “You’re welcome. I’ll see you in a few hours.” I climbed out of the car, feeling joyful.

  I practically skipped up the stairs. For the first time in a while, I walked into my apartment without trepidation. It was a nice feeling. I didn’t waste any time and packed a bag, tossing it on my settee along with my purse. I quickly scanned through my closet and found a dress he hadn’t seen. It was a deep, scarlet red. “Oh yes, that’s the one!”

  I had a few hours to kill and I didn’t want to yawn my way through dinner, so I decided to take a power nap before showering. I crawled on to my bed, wrapping myself in my sweater and pulling the blanket over my feet.

  I hadn’t slept much in the last twenty-four hours and I quickly felt the tiredness taking over my body. No sooner had I gotten comfortable than I passed out. I faded in and out of dreams, some nightmares. I kept waking myself up and dozing back to sleep.

  I opened my eyes briefly, to get my bearings and to remember I was at home in my bed, and was met by a dark figure standing over me. I opened my mouth to scream and attempted to fight, but it was useless. I struggled against the white rag that covered my face until blackness took over.

  I returned to my nightmare and sometime later, I woke in complete darkness, feeling like someone had thrown me down a flight of stairs. My head ached; I could a feel a bump on my forehead.

  Panic washed over me as I heard the thump of the road beneath me. The sound echoed through the small, dark enclosed area. I was in the trunk of a car. My eyes adjusted to the darkness and I quietly listened for any hint as to where I was and who had taken me. Nothing but the sound of the road.

  I rolled to my left to try and make myself as confortable as I could, taking up a defensive position for when the trunk opened again. With the movement came a stabbing pain in my left side; I reached toward it with a tentative hand and felt the blocky shape of my phone, still inside my sweater pocket.

  The brightness of the phone’s screen illuminated the small empty trunk. It was only six o’clock. Cain wouldn’t be looking for me for at least another hour. I began to dial 9-1-1 and realized I couldn’t risk being overheard. I tapped out a text to Cain, Reese and Dad: Help me! I’ve been kidnapped. In a car trunk. Don’t know where I am. Track me! Don’t Call.

  I typed in the username and password to my “LocateMyPhone” account. I hit send and waited.

  Message Not Delivered.

  I hit send again. Nothing. I waited another minute and tried again. Finally, it went through; or at least I thought it did. I heard the car stop and panicked. I quickly hid the phone under the carpet in the trunk and pretended to be passed out. It didn’t matter. My captor smothered me again with a cloth that smelled like almonds.

  I woke up some time later, feeling sick. I was tied to a bed. I could see a shadowy figure in the doorway and I squinted through the drug haze that hung over me. Oh my god! “Dylan?”

  “Surprise, Jennifer.”

  “How are you… I mean… how are you here?”

  “I posted bail. That shouldn’t surprise you; I have plenty of money, as you well know.” I blinked at him. Am I still dreaming?

  “I want you to know that although I am disappointed in you, I know it wasn’t your fault.” He sat on the bed next to me, smoothing my hair away from my face. “It was Cain. I know he put you up to it. We had something, you and I.”

  “What?” I asked confused and disoriented. He tugged on my ties, making sure they were snug. I didn’t squirm for fear he would tighten them more. My left hand felt a little loose; I hoped I could at least get that arm free if I were left alone.

  “Tell me you want me, Jennifer. I need to hear you say it.”

  “Dylan… I…”

  “Don’t toy with me. You made me a promise—now keep it!”

  “What did I promise Dylan? Remind me.”

  “You said you would go away with me, that you’d give me a chance.” The evil exuded from Dylan and a side I had never seen before emerged. He seemed darker and more sinister than ever.

  “Dylan, I think I’m going to be sick…” The drugs he had used to subdue me took a toll on my stomach and I turned my head, vomiting at his feet.

  “I’m so sorry, I didn’t want to have to knock you out like that, but I knew you wouldn’t come with me otherwise. I needed you to understand.” A vague sincerity rang through in his voice. He grabbed a towel from the table and gently wiped my mouth.

  “Why are you doing this, Dylan?” I couldn’t anticipate his next move or his end game. He always seemed willing to talk, even when it was his undoing.

  “So many reasons…how many would you like?” He stroked my face; I pushed back the w
aves of nausea that tried to drown me.

  “Cain Parker isn’t the man you think he is. We used to be friends—more than friends, we were like brothers… but you know all of this, Jennifer. I wanted a taste of what Cain has…what he had. He pushed me away with Rachel. Then he pushed me away with you. He flaunted you in front of me.” Dylan rubbed my arm, trying to soothe me.

  The ties cut into my wrists and I shifted on the bed. “This isn’t the way to get what you want, Dylan. You should know that.”

  “Oh I do, Jennifer. The only way for me to get what I want is to take it. I fix things so they work out for me.” He laughed as he walked across the room, pulling a bottle of water from the mini-fridge. He twisted the top off and took a long swallow. “Thirsty?”

  “Yes, please.” I could taste the water in my mouth. The acid from the vomit burned my throat and I felt my mouth watering. Dylan held the bottle up to my mouth and I took small, gentle sips of the water as he stared at me. He watched my every move in his perverted, seductive way.

  “You see, Jennifer, Cain’s father may have loved me, but he didn’t really love me like a son. I was a thorn in his side. The troublemaker. He wanted me to be the replacement for Jase, but I never lived up to the Parker standards. I got a girl pregnant in college and Cain took the heat for me from his old man.”

  “So Cain stood up for you, covered for you?”

  “So he said, but shortly after that, his dad started becoming distant. Barely spoke to me, and I was replaced by Rachel, his new favorite. I didn’t know about being removed from his will until after he died.”

  “Removed? So he had thought about you? He included you? He loved you. See?”

  “I was replaced by Rachel! And when Rachel died, you know who benefitted? Ashley! All of those greedy people have what is rightfully mine…and so now, I just take what I want. No need to ask any longer.” Dylan slid in close to me on the bed and kissed my neck.

  I whimpered under his touch. His hot stale breath hung in my face. “No, Dylan. Don’t do this. It’s not too late. You can fix this.”

  His hands ran up my thigh and slid across my waist. He slid his hand under my shirt, resting it on my stomach as he kissed my neck again. He whispered in my ear. “I’ll let you rest for a little while. I know it’s been a long day and I want tonight to be one you remember.”

  Chapter Forty-Three

  I opened my eyes and looked around the dimly lit room. I wasn’t sure how long I had been there—wherever there was—or how far we had traveled, but only faint light from the fading sunset provided light from the gap between the musty curtains. I guessed it had to have been at least eight-thirty. I could hear Dylan talking in a hushed whisper to someone on the phone.

  “I have no clue why you want him…Just be warned…I’m taking him down too. She’s waking up, I’ve got to go…good luck with everything…and goodbye.”

  Dylan sat across from me in disgusting green chair, made even uglier with the clash of sunlight hitting it from the window. “Have a nice nap?” Dylan took a swig from his brown beer bottle and stood.

  “No… Water, please?” I croaked. My mouth was dry and arms and shoulders were numb form being suspended above my head in the ties.

  “Sure, and then we need to get going. We have a long trip ahead of us.” Dylan held the water, now room temperature, up to my mouth as I took in as much as I could handle. “Thank you.”

  “Jennifer, we can do this the hard way, or easy way. If you promise to cooperate I’ll cut you loose.” Dylan reached in his pocket and pulled out a small, sharp knife.

  “I promise, please.” My arms tingled and I barely had the strength to move, let alone fight.

  Dylan slashed the tie from my left arm and it crashed to the bed. The blood began to fill my limb again and I whimpered as pins and needles accompanied the slowly returning feeling. The numbness subsided. He straddled my body, his groin just below my breasts, as he reached up to free my right arm. Instinctively I pulled and thrashed and was met with a smack across the face. “You promised, Jennifer, let’s not make this difficult.”

  A tear beaded up in my left eye and I slowly reached up to wipe it away. A flash of pain shot through it and spots moved across my peripheral vision. I looked up at Dylan, still straddling and controlling me, and caught another black spot moving to my left.

  The door came crashing in, slamming into the wall behind it, and six police officers clamored into the room. Dylan jumped from the bed in a defensive stance, but it was too late. Wires from the Taser connected Dylan to the first responding officer, and Dylan fell to the floor twitching. He was quickly cuffed and lifted, groaning, onto the adjacent bed.

  The officer took his utility knife and freed my tied arm. Tears streaked down my face as I was led from the motel room.

  “Come on, let’s get you outside in the fresh air. The medics are on their way.” The officer picked me up and carried me outside. It was cool and dark, but the stars hung heavily in the sky. “Let’s put her here until the ambulance gets here.”

  “Jennifer? Stay with me, okay? You are going to be alright. Hold on, I’ll get you a blanket.” He closed the door and left me in the car, listening to the police radio chatter.

  I sat, shivering, in the back of the police car. My long hair was matted, hanging in strands across my shoulders. The only warm parts of my body were my cheeks, where hot tears slid down my face in an unstoppable stream. The blue lights of the many police cars flashed, washing the motel in a strange and disturbing light. The motel guests gathered around, huddled in doorways, to watch the spectacle unfolding in front of them. Feeling a blur of confusion and anger, I watched as Dylan was pulled, handcuffed, to another waiting police car.

  As I sat there, I experienced an eerie flashback to how it all started, so many years ago. I saw my father walking toward me, his spiky gray hair blowing gently in the breeze. His face looked grim, but not angry as it had once before, long ago. Instead he wore a look of relief. He reached and opened the police car door, helping me out. “Are you alright? Did he hurt you?”

  “No, Dad. I promise I’m Ok. Just a little dizzy.” He patted my hand and stepped away. I started to panic, I didn’t want him to go, but then I saw why he moved.

  Cain’s eyes met mine and he practically ran to me and drew me into a crushing embrace. “Thank God, Jennifer. I didn’t know what to do.”

  “It’s Ok, I’m fine now. It’s really over.” I buried my face in Cain’s chest and just held him, my eyes closed.

  “Ms. Dunning?” The officer approached with his hand extended. “This was smart thinking, here you are.” He handed me my phone and smiled.

  “Thank you.” I glanced down at the phone; the screen glowed with the notification of a new, unread text message from an unknown number. I dropped the phone in my pocket and squeezed Cain harder.

  Chapter Forty-Four

  I snuggled closer to Cain and tried to block out the rising sun coming through the windows of his large master bedroom. The snow that covered the ground outside amplified the glare of the sunlight. I remembered the first time I had awakened in this bed and smiled; I remembered the first time I was in this bed. So many months ago. Cain’s house had always seemed like a retreat, but it had become a second home to me.

  I kissed his neck and rolled away as I placed my feet on the heated marble floors of his amazing home. I grabbed my silk robe from the nearby chair and made my way to the kitchen. Cecilia, the housekeeper, had come in earlier to prepare the house for the party tonight, a celebration. She had made a jump start on coffee and breakfast, as well.

  “Buenas días, Miss Jennifer!” Her always cheerful smile was a welcome way to wake up.

  “Good morning, Cecilia.”

  I sat briefly at the breakfast bar and grabbed The Times, still cold from sitting outside in the snow. The front page brought a smile to my face as looked at the courtroom artist’s sketch of Dylan, sitting at the defense table and Cain in the witness stand, his chiseled good looks diminis
hed to a few scribbles of colored pencil.

  “Does my hair really look that bad?” Cain laughed as he kissed the back of my neck and read the headline over my shoulder, “Rogers Guilty of Bennett Murder.”

  “Only when you wake up.” I laughed.

  My phone rang with a call from Dad and I smiled. “Morning, Dad… Yes, I’m looking at it right now.” Cain massaged my shoulders as he helped himself to a sip of my coffee. “Yes, I’ll be back at the office on Monday. Are you coming to the party tonight?”

  Cain whispered in my other ear. “Tell him, tell him.”

  “Ok, Ok…” I pushed Cain away jokingly. “Oh, Dad? Cain said you should bring Cynthia.”

  Dad paused and finally responded with, “Ok.”

  I hung up the phone and turned to hug Cain. “Are you ready for tonight? Are you excited?” I looked up at his messy hair, which actually did resemble the artist’s sketch.

  “I am. Are you?”

  “I am.” Cain kissed me gently and grabbed my hand. “Cecilia, we’re headed back to bed for a bit, we’ll grab breakfast a bit later.”

  “Ok, Mr. Cain.” Cecilia smiled as she watched us walk back to the bedroom, hand in hand.

  Unseen

  The Unspoken Series, Book 2

  By

  Ellie Danes

  www.EllieDanes.com

  Chapter One

  It was past noon by the time Cain and I awakened for the second time that day. The breakfast tray Cecilia, Cain’s housekeeper, had brought us sat cocked on the floor, on top of my crumpled robe. It was nice to be free of stress, or at least the amount of stress we had been accustomed to over the last six months. Things had changed quite a bit since I started working with my dad’s firm, Dunning, Durst and Chandler.