CHAPTER
THIRTY-FOUR
____________________
Ella
I snuggled closer to Calder in the back seat of Scott's old Buick and pressed my cheek against his broad chest. The car's interior was dark and silent except for Calder's strong and steady heart beat under my ear as I listened to it through the soft fabric of his thick sweatshirt. I focused on its constant and reassuring rhythm, trying to calm myself. My mind was frantic with worry for my Violet, and it was all I could do not to leap out of the car and go find her this instant. I breathed in deeply and let out a long shaking sigh of impatience. Calder's arms tightened around me.
"Patience, baby," he murmured as he rubbed soft circles on my back with his fingertips. "Scott knows what he's doing. Trust me on that."
I nodded without moving away from his comforting embrace, but said nothing. I did trust him, and by extension Scott who was a P.I. and a security expert, but I was impatient and scared.
A short while ago, Scott had taken off on his own dressed in all black to scope out the building before I went in to see Ray. He left us parked on the other end of the same block as our destination in a narrow alley well-hidden between some sort of warehouse and a line of scrubby trees that ran along a railroad track. It probably hadn't been that long since he took off, but it felt like an eternity. I hadn't seen my little girl in close to twenty-four hours, and I could only imagine what could have happened to her in all that time. Was she okay? Was she scared? Had Ray hurt her? I shuddered at the thought.
I couldn't stop thinking about all those messages Ray sent Violet on her tablet that were filled with manipulations and lies to get her to keep his existence from me for weeks. My poor sweet and trusting little girl believed her father implicitly, and he'd used that against her. She had no idea her father was a monster. I'd made a point of never telling her the truth after I thought he died, wanting to protect her and not make thing worse for her in her grief, but my God, I wish I had now. Maybe then she would have told me the first time he communicated with her. I could have called the police, the FBI, or done something to keep us safe from him.
The jaded cynical part of me told me that was wishful thinking, and that we'd probably never be safe from him, not me, not Violet, and not Calder either since he was on Ray's radar now. I feared I'd never be free from that man. Never. A trapped helpless feeling began to overwhelm me at the thought of seeing Ray again, making my stomach churn and my chest ache. I didn't know if I could do this.
I sat up and met Calder's anxious and haunted eyes. Shit, maybe he couldn't do this either. I couldn't comprehend what it must have been like for him to not have a real home, or what it was like to stay in that awful rundown building. And now he had to go back and relive all those horrible memories? He looked so rattled right now that it made me fear for his sanity and his sobriety.
"Maybe we should just call the police," I blurted out. "Let them deal with this. Surely they can get her back."
He pressed his lips together and breathed out roughly through his nose. "It's The Armpit, Ella," Calder said with bitter-edged conviction. "Do you honestly think they'll believe us and rush out here when we tell them a dead crime lord has his daughter hostage in an abandoned factory, or that Ray doesn't have a backup plan if the cops do show up?" He gripped one of my hands tightly with a grave expression. "Are you willing to bet Violet's life on that?" he added in a softer tone.
"No," I replied in a small and fragile voice. "But I'm scared for Violet, for me," -I reached up to cup his cheek- "for you."
"So am I," he admitted in a whisper as his brow furrowed worriedly. "But that doesn't matter because you need me. Violet needs me. I love that little girl, and I'll do whatever it takes to get her back to you. I promised you that, and I'll do it."
A fierce determination sparked in his eyes, and settled some of my fear. This man had the courage and strength of will to conquer a heroin addiction, to build a successful life out of nothing for himself, and to give me a second chance. What couldn't he do? The fear began to subside to a more manageable level, settling my nerves a bit.
"I love you," I told him softly as I slid my thumb across his lush lips.
"I love you too, baby," he whispered, then leaned in to brush his lips briefly across mine before he pulled me into his arms again.
We were still holding each other a few minutes later when Scott finally returned to the car and slid into the driver's seat. He sighed as he turned to face us and pulled the hood of his sweatshirt down off his head.
"Well, I've got good news, and bad news," he said with a grim expression. "The bad news is that building's in piss poor shape. It's gonna be dicey moving around in there to get to Violet without falling through the goddamn floor or the ceiling coming down on us first." He smirked. "The good news is it looks like the bastard's in there without any backup."
"Ray doesn't trust anyone," I said. "Especially since I'm pretty sure it was one of his own that gave him up to the FBI."
I'd overheard that much while I was being questioned just after Ray's arrest, but wisely kept it to myself. I wondered if Ray figured out who the culprit was for himself after he got out on bail. Knowing how ruthless my husband was, it had probably been one of the people who actually died in that plane crash when he faked his own death.
Scott nodded. "There's a light on up on the third floor, and I'm assuming that's where he's holed up with the kid. I found an open door at the front of the building next to the loading docks, and there's a trail of glow sticks in there that lead further inside that I assume are for Ella to use. I couldn't go very far inside without the risk of revealing myself. I found a couple of other ways in, but none of them looked safe enough to take without the risk of getting hurt."
"There's a back way in that I used to sneak in through," Calder said quietly. "And there's only one intact area on the third floor for them to be in. I think I can get up there, if it's still safe."
"Good," Scott said with a thoughtful expression as he rubbed at his chin with his thumb and forefinger. "Alright, you go in the back way while Ella goes in the front like he expects and keeps him occupied. I'll shadow Ella and stay out of sight nearby in case she needs me. If we're lucky, you can pluck the kid right out from under his nose before he even realizes what's happening. I have my phone in my pocket on the lowest vibration setting, so text me when you have the kid clear, and then I'll get Ella out of there. We're kind of winging it here, but I think it will work. Since Ella says she's never defied him before, he won't see this coming. We have the advantage here."
"No," Calder growled out as he shook his head vehemently. "I won't risk Ella facing him alone like that. What if he just kills her outright as soon as he sees her, or hurts her before you can get her away from him?"
"Cal," I told him in a reasonable tone. "If he wanted me dead he would have done it last night while I was asleep, and heaven only knows what he'd do to Violet if I walked in there with you two." I took his hand in mine. "You know we need to do this to get Violet back." Honestly, I was terrified of facing that man again, but I'd do whatever it took for my daughter, no matter the risk to myself.
A dark scowl crossed Calder's features, and he let out a low growl, the muscles of his cheeks flexing as he ground his teeth together. Scott looked back and forth between us, wisely keeping out of it.
I took a fortifying breath and steeled my will. "Calder, please," I added firmly as I met his eyes. "There's no other way and you know it."
His scowl deepened. "I don't like it," he ground out between his teeth.
I gripped the back of his neck to pull his face closer to mine, and pressed my forehead to his. "I know, and I don't like it either, but we'll figure it out together."
A small smile played across his mouth as I used his own words from the night before. He let out a hard shuddering breath, then spoke a single word in resignation. "Okay."
"If we're going to do this, we need to do it now," Scott finally added to the conversation as he glanced at the smart watch on his wrist. "We're creeping up on midnight here."
Calder reached up to cup my face in his big warm palms. "Let's go get our little girl back," he whispered.
I nodded, his use of the word "our" making tears of happiness prick my eyes. It meant everything to me that he wanted a future with Violet just as much as with me. Before I could say anything, he was opening the car door and pulling me out with him as Scott got out of the vehicle too. I noticed Calder's eyes were glittering with fear and unease in the moonlight. He pressed a quick yet fierce kiss to my lips, then brought his hood up over his head. Scott clapped a reassuring hand on his shoulder for a moment. Calder nodded at his best friend in acknowledgment, then turned and hurried off into the night.
"Will he be okay?" I asked Scott after Calder disappeared.
"I'm not going to lie. It won't be easy for him going back in there," Scott said soberly. "But for the first time he has an incentive that he's never had before."
I cocked my head and gave him a questioning look.
"You, Violet, a chance for a real family," Scott answered with a genuine and easy smile. "It's what he's always wanted, but thought he lost for good." He shook his head. "A bachelor's life was never really for him, even though he wouldn't admit it. I always hoped he'd eventually let you go and find the right woman to take your place someday, but it was you that he loved and needed all along. I know that now." His face turned fierce. "But he's more fragile than he seems, so promise me you won't hurt him again, Ella. Promise me."
"I left Calder once and paid for that mistake for the last twelve years before I found my way back to him," I replied just as fiercely. "I love him, and I'll be damned if I ever hurt that man again, or let anything keep us apart now that I have him back."
Scott met my gaze for a long moment, then nodded once in satisfaction. He reached into his pocket to pull something out, and pressed it into my fingers. "That's pepper spray, in case you need it," he answered before I could ask.
"What about you?" I asked. "Don't you need some too?"
"Oh honey, I got something better than that," he replied with a smirk. He pulled aside his open sweatshirt to reveal a hand gun strapped under his arm in a shoulder holster.
I gasped quietly in surprise as a frisson of fear rippled through me. "Do you...do think that's really necessary?" I asked waveringly.
"Do you think for one second that Voss isn't armed too?"
Oh shit, I didn't even think of that. Ray had always been armed, but I'd learned to ignore it over the years for my own mental well-being. My eyes widened in horror at the thought of one of us getting shot. "Oh God," I muttered under my breath as panic quickened my heart and filled me with dread.
"Relax," Scott said calmly as he touched one of my shoulders comfortingly. He turned back to the car, and leaned in through the still open driver's side door to grab something out of his bag on the passenger seat. He came out with what looked like a large piece of stiff black cloth, and held it out to me. "Here."
"What's that?"
"A Kevlar vest just like mine," he said as he patted his chest. "Calder put one on before we left your house as well, and he's armed too."
"Oh," I said in shocked surprise as I gave him a confused and questioning look. "Okay."
"We didn't want to freak you out with the guns and stuff too soon," he admitted with a grimace.
I glared at him, even if he did have a valid point. I guess I was relieved that I didn't have a chance to fret about it for hours.
"Sorry," he said sheepishly with a shrug.
I sighed and decided to let it go. We had more important things to do than argue a moot point. I waved a dismissive hand in the air at him in acquiescence.
He motioned for me to turn around. Within seconds, he had the vest on me over my T-shirt, its presence equal parts reassuring and terrifying. Then he handed me a black sweatshirt that I slipped on over my head before looking at him for direction on what to do next as my fear started to settle down to a more manageable level.
"Come on," he said firmly as he lifted his hood up.
He started walking away, and I hurried after him as I pulled up the hood of the sweatshirt he'd just given me. I fell in step behind him in the opposite direction Calder had taken, and prayed we'd find my daughter and make it back to each other in one piece when this was over.
I followed Scott down the alley, sticking close to the brush on one side and trying to move quickly yet quietly like he did. Luckily, there was just enough moonlight for me to keep from stumbling along like a complete bumbling idiot. Within minutes, we came to the end of the alley and stopped in the shadows at the corner of a building. I came up behind him to peer out at the sidewalk and street in front of us.
"The building we want is the next one over," Scott explained quietly as he pointed to the right with his thumb. "There's a rusty old gate at the far corner of it. A few yards past that, there's a hole in the fence we can slip through. When we get close to the front entrance, you'll go on ahead and go inside to meet Ray." He put a firm comforting hand on my shoulder. "I'll be close by the whole time in case you need me."
"Okay," I whispered with a nodded.
"We're going to move fast. Just stay next to me, and keep quiet."
"Got it."
Without another word, Scott stepped out of the alley with swift purposeful strides, and I hurried along after him. We fell in step next to each other and quickly reached the abandoned building and hurried along until we came to the rusty old gate Scott had described. Fortunately, the nearby street light was out, so even if anyone had been around to notice us, they wouldn't be able to see much of what we were up to.
We continued along the fence until we came to a small hole in the chain link that looked like it had been cut by someone recently. I suddenly suspected that someone was Scott. It also made me wonder if he was responsible for the broken street light too. He held the fencing aside so I could squeeze through without it catching on my clothes or cutting me, then crawled through himself as I stood to one side and looked up at the decrepit old building.
Even in the moonlight, I could see how run-down the place was with crumbling brick and lots of shattered windows. The place looked like a case of tetanus waiting to happen. I could only imagine what the interior looked like. I shuddered at the thought of my baby being in there. What kind of father brought his little girl into a place like this? A piece of shit bastard like Ray, that's who. He didn't deserve the title. He didn't deserve my Violet. Anger boiled up inside me, bolstering my courage. After today, I'd do everything in my power to make sure that man never came anywhere near her again.
Scott touched my arm, capturing my attention, and we hurried across the open swath of cracked and uneven pavement that stretched out in front of the building. He led me to the side of the structure, and we followed it along until we came to a stop at a corner. I peered around it to see a loading dock of some sort with closed garage doors, and a single door that I could see was hanging partly open with dim light escaping through the narrow gap. Yup, Ray was waiting for me alright. Fear shivered through me as I pressed my back to the rough brick wall. I squeezed my eyes shut and fought the urge to run away in a panic as I gasped in a few breaths.
"Easy," Scott whispered close to my ear. "Keep your eye on the prize."
I nodded jerkily in reply as I fought to calm down. Right. Violet. This was for my little girl.
"I've got your back, Ella." Scott squeezed my hand briefly. "Don't worry."
I nodded again, sucked in one more fortifying breath, then pushed off the wall and hurried around the corner before I could second-guess the wisdom of what we were doing. I moved straight for the door and slowly pushed it open to reveal the eerie light of a white glow stick pooling in a circle on the floor in front of me. I stepped inside and looked over to see several more glow sticks stretching off to the right illuminating a trail further into the interior. The floor tiles were curling up on the edges, and refuse and detritus were scattered all over the place. The small portions of wall that were visible in the low light were covered in graffiti and filth. The place was disgusting and scary as hell. I really didn't want to be here, and just stood there seemingly glued to the floor.
Slight movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention. I glanced over to see a dark shape stealthily slipping into the building, then disappear into the darkness beside me. Scott. I breathed a sigh of relief. His presence helped me to shake off the fear. I had to be the mother my baby needed me to be. I had to save her.
I started picking my way carefully across the filthy floor toward the second glow stick. I followed along past a third, a fourth, and then a fifth, and found myself standing at the bottom of stairwell leading up. I could see another glow stick on the landing above. Well, I guess that was where I had to go, I just hoped I didn't fall through the stairs on the way up.
I took a careful step onto the first tread and found it solid under my foot. I continued upward slowly, tensing every time my full weight came to rest on each step and happy to find they were fairly quiet to walk on too. I made it past the landing and up to the second floor safely, then started up toward another glow stick on the next landing above. I made it there unscathed, and paused to look up toward the third floor. Brighter light was shining in from the open door up there, and flooding into the stairwell. Alright, it looked like I was almost there, almost into the clutches of my bastard husband again. The sudden urge to flee hit me, but I fought it and forced myself to move forward.
Halfway up, I was watching my feet as I carefully picked my way over a broken tread when the light coming down from above abruptly dimmed. I glanced up to see the dark outline of a man standing at the top of the steps above me. I startled with a gasp and barely kept myself from tumbling backwards down the stairs.
"Hello, my darling wife," came Ray's deep rumble, setting my nerves on edge in an instant. "I thought you would never arrive," he added in a sarcastic tone.
I stilled as the familiar fear and tension Ray always made me feel when I was around him immediately came over me. He looked terrifying and larger than life with the featureless silhouette of his tall frame and broad shoulders filling up the stairwell above me. It looked like a scene out of a horror flick.
"Get your ass up here," he demanded in a low growl, then disappeared back through the doorway like he had every expectation that I'd obey. Why wouldn't he? I always had before.
My God, I didn't want to, but I immediately followed him. I had to keep him occupied so Calder stood a chance of getting Violet away from him, but this was the last time I'd ever dance to this man's tune again. I was done, and after today it would be a thing of the past.
I stepped out onto the third floor to find that it wasn't any better than the first. The immediate area was lit up by a circle of battery-powered lanterns with Ray standing in the middle of them. I walked hesitantly toward him as I took a closer look at his appearance. The sight of him made me pause and gape at him. He was dressed in ratty and dirty old clothes, and his beard and mustache were shaggy and unkempt. I must have been too shocked during that video chat last night to notice. He looked like shit, like a homeless person, but considering where we were, I guess that was the point if this was where he was hiding out.
He spread his arms wide. "Welcome to home sweet home," he said with a sneering maniacal grin that made my pulse race and set my nerves on edge.
"Where's Violet?" I asked quaveringly, hating the weakness in my tone even as I knew it would work in my favor.
"Oh, don't you worry about her," he replied stonily as his face hardened into a dark scowl. "My little girl is fine. You'll see her soon enough, but first we need to discuss some things."
Discuss? Yeah, right. More like he'd talk, and I'd only be allowed to listen.
"Okay," I said, my tone and demeanor demure and placating. I needed to keep Ray talking as long as I could, and I'd do and say anything required to keep him going.
"Tonight, you and Violet will be coming with me," he said sternly. "You will do so willingly and without complaint." He eyed me sharply. "And if not, then you will never see her again, and I can't be held responsible for what could happen to you, or your brother and his family. Do you understand?" he asked fiercely, his dark-green eyes glittering menacingly.
Holy fuck. Ray had never threatened my family before. He was insane, certifiably deranged and out of his mind. I'd never been more terrified of this man. I realized now that he was never going to let me go, never. Even if we somehow managed to get away this time, he'd keep coming after me, after Violet. I'd never be free. I stood there paralyzed and speechless by that revelation as the world felt like it was suddenly closing in on me, feeling more trapped and helpless than I ever had before.
The next thing I knew Ray came rushing toward me. He gripped my shoulders in a bruising grip as his fingers dug into my arms. "Do you understand, you stupid fucking whore?!" he snarled out as he shook me so viciously that it rattled my teeth and made my neck hurt. "Answer me, bitch," he growled in my face. "Now."
"I...I..." I stuttered out, my brain blank and misfiring in fear. I knew I should grab the pepper spray out of my pocket and use it, but the message wouldn't reach my body.
My unsatisfactory reply enraged Ray, and he pulled his right hand away and swung it back to slap me. I knew Scott wasn't going to be able to step in fast enough to stop him from hitting me. I cringed and squeezed my eyes shut, anticipating the impact and the pain that was sure to follow.
Suddenly, a loud crash came from somewhere behind Ray, and the blow never landed. Instead, Ray swore as he let me go. I stumbled for balance as I watched him whirl and take off in the direction the sound came from. Shit. No, no, no. It was too soon. Calder needed more time. I had to stop him. Desperate, terrified, and without a thought to my own safety, I hurried after Ray.