Chapter Twenty

Chase

Panic snaked up my spine and landed in my dry mouth. I didn’t know who had answered Chastity’s phone, or her location, but I knew I had to act fast. As quickly as I could, I dialed up Derrick, an old college buddy of Nolan’s, who now worked for the NYPD as a detective in narcotics. We didn’t talk much, but I saw him at the gym on occasion and around the city in various places.

“Hey, Chase! Man, long time no talk!” Derrick answered the phone, already sounding like he’d gotten a start on happy hour. “How the fuck are you, man?”

“Terrible,” I admitted, wanting to rush forward with my SOS for immediate assistance but not sure how to verbalize it. “My girlfriend is missing. I think something bad has happened to her, and I can’t find her.”

“Shit, you try calling her?”

Are you fucking kidding me?

I could have reached through the phone and strangled him. I groaned – people walking around me on the sidewalk all stared and huffed around me, but I didn’t give a shit. I stayed rooted in place.

“I did,” I hissed through gritted teeth. “And she didn’t answer. Some guy – some random guy – answered her phone when I kept calling and told me that she was tied up.” I sighed and raked a hand through my dark hair. “And then he laughed some weird cackle that sounded like a bad Vincent Price imitator. It isn’t right, man. And I gotta fucking find her, Derrick. This is serious – she’s been dealing with all kinds of creepy shit lately. Stalkers and shit. What if one of them finally got to her?”

Derrick went silent. “Like what kind of stalking?”

“Like… she’s been getting weird phone calls, and some guy’s been chasing her almost every time she goes outside.”

“Has she called the cops?”

“Yeah, some asshole named Darmody who’s ingested the latest delivery of an entire Dunkin Donuts.” I snorted and ran a hand over my face. “And he didn’t do shit. They told her that without more evidence, they couldn’t even open an investigation. Basically told her to fuck off. I know money talks inside the NYPD. Which wheel do I need to grease here?”

“Okay,” Derrick said on a long exhale. “Give me her number. I’m not supposed to do this, but I’ll ping it and see where she pops up.”

I waited in agonizing silence as Derrick put me on hold and checked Chastity’s number, praying that this situation was all a bad dream. Some stupid prank – hell, that she’d even been home when I’d been in her apartment before, with Trina playing guard dog. I’d even agree to never see her again in exchange for her safe return home.

Hell, what was I thinking? Fuck that. I wanted her safe return and her too.

“Chase? You still there, man?”

“Yeah. Did you find her?”

Derrick gave me an unfamiliar address in Bushwick, Brooklyn. “You know that area? Is that where she lives?”

“No,” I said, my voice sounding dark and far away even to my own ears. I was about ready to pound the shit out of someone. The asshole had taken Chastity to Bushwick. That mother fucker was about to meet his maker. “She lives in Crown Heights. I don’t know what she’d be doing in that part of town.”

“Chase, man, you gotta let the pros handle this one,” Derrick said in a rush. “I’ll put out a call and have a cop stop by, just to make sure things are okay.”

“No!” I yelled into the phone. “No, I have to make sure she’s fine. I can’t wait – she could be hurt! Or in danger! My gut is telling me that something is wrong.”

My blood pounded through my veins, and I felt a cold sweat break out over my forehead. I couldn’t explain it, but I knew Chastity was in danger. I could smell it, sense it, and practically taste it. I could tell that she was afraid and alone, and I couldn’t wait for the NYPD.

“Chase, man, listen to yourself!” Derrick sighed. “This is exactly what our job is, bro. I can’t let you go in there and risk hurting yourself. What if it is something serious? We can’t put your life in danger. Did y’all have a fight?”

My stomach dropped as I remembered the photos scattered across the floor of Chastity and Trina’s apartment. “Not exactly,” I mumbled. “But I think she’s angry at me right now.”

“You sure she’s not just hiding out with a friend, having some girl time? Girls are like that, bro,” Derrick said. I wanted to reach through the phone and punch the smugness out of his voice. “That’s how they always are – crazy, right? Then, once they calm down a little, they start talking non-stop, eating ice cream by the pint and drinking wine by the bottle. Maybe the guy you think you heard is just Ben or Jerry.”

“No,” I said, not laughing at his misguided attempt at humor. “It’s not just that. She wouldn’t ignore me like – and she definitely wouldn’t let some random guy answer her phone and lie to me like that. You don’t know Chastity. She’s a value driven person. Someone you can trust. She’s in trouble, Derrick. She could even be in a lot of danger, and I have to do something.”

“Chase, I’m telling you – if you interfere with an investigation, you could be arrested,” Derrick said in a grim tone. “You could be injured or worse. You don’t wanna get caught up, especially if these stalker guys are as dangerous as you’re saying.”

His words struck fear in my heart. Guys? Plural, like more than one? A horrible vision filled my mind – Chastity bound and gagged, surrounded by the most predatory men in New York City.

“Fine,” I lied. “I won’t do a damned thing but sit here and wait for your phone call to let me know she’s okay. But Derrick…?”

“Yeah?”

“You better get someone on this as soon as fucking possible,” I said, hoping I didn’t sound as threatening as I felt. “Or I’m going to sue the NYPD so fast your head’s gonna spin. You got that?”

Derrick laughed in a voice devoid of his usual humor. “You rich guys. You think you can pull all the tricks, don’t you?”

I didn’t reply before hanging up and stashing the phone in my pocket. Oh, yeah, I thought as I stalked down the block, searching for a cab. We rich guys. We sure do have all the tricks, all right. And don’t ever fucking forget it because I can own you.