Angel in the Shadows (8 page)

Chapter 10

Maneuvering his Porsche through the busy New York streets quickly and with a skill that was both insane and uncanny, Seth considered the situation. Vance would be busy with Phoenix for the majority of the day, making the most of his time with her. He wondered what Vance would think if he knew that his lovely magician of a masseuse could kill him in the blink of an eye. Vance wouldn’t even see it coming. Pity it wasn’t the right time. This could all be over and behind them. But they still didn’t know enough about what Vance had planned. They had to know that if they took him out, whatever evil he had planned would be stopped.

Right now, he needed to figure out what to do with the photographer he had stashed away. True, she could pose no danger to anyone at the moment but she couldn’t stay in the safe house forever. He’d finally received the information he had been waiting on. Madison Sinclair was nothing more than an ordinary person who had been in the wrong place at the wrong time. He almost wished that she were involved in this shit. It would make it a lot easier for him to kill her just as Charlie had ordered.

There was no question that he could do it. That was a job he was well suited for and could accomplish easily enough if he wanted to. But he didn’t want to. Collateral damage had never appealed to him and until now, he’d been able to avoid it all together. But suddenly, there it was, staring him in the face with huge brown eyes and a soft body and the last thing he wanted to do was act upon it. And if he was going to be honest with himself, it wasn’t just the fact that she was collateral damage. In the short time that she’d been with him, she’d managed to get to him in ways other women hadn’t. He admired her determination and her fire. Hers wasn’t some calculated action due to a mission but rather it was true emotion. Something he had been without for so long. But regardless of the reasons for his hesitation, he knew he couldn’t just let Madison walk away.

She’d seen a murder. And not just any murder. It was one that could be linked to Vance and one that might raise some serious questions. Questions that might lead to him. And he couldn’t have that. She couldn’t be allowed to talk to anyone about what she had seen. There was always the option of drugging her and erasing her memories but he preferred not to go that route unless absolutely necessary. The dangerous substances they used were extremely potent and while it would effectively erase the last several hours, it would also wipe her mind completely. A sort of drug induced lobotomy.

The smartest thing to do,
the best
option, would be to eliminate her before things got further out of hand. In his time with the organization, he had learned to do many unpleasant things and live with himself afterward. He just wasn’t sure that killing Madison was one of them.

He reached the safe house, hidden within the walls of the old, crumbling apartment, in record time. This building had been in place for over eighty years and was in desperate need of repair. It was a wonder that anyone would pay the outrageous rent to stay in such a rat hole. But, everyone had to live somewhere. Entering the apartment cautiously, he was ready to dodge any projectiles that may come flying at his head but there was nothing, not even a sound. His senses kicked into high alert at the unusual stillness.

Cursing himself, he furiously searched the apartment, his movements smooth and quick but ultimately futile. She was gone. The tiny bathroom window was partially open and there was blood on the windowsill. The crazy woman had squirmed out! Knowing it was a lost cause, he stuck his head out and looked around. She wasn’t there but she had been. Mixed in with the dirty snow just below the escape ladder were bright-red drops of blood.

“Damn it!” He felt like a novice, like a fucking wet-behind-the-ears recruit, making stupid mistakes. Ordinarily he wouldn’t have left her alone but his plan had been simple enough. Stash her here while he took care of a few things and go from there. But he had underestimated her. Obviously she had left in a hurry, not bothering with her shoes or her bag. Not even a jacket. She would be frozen in no time, although frostbite was the least of her worries right now. Clearly she didn’t grasp the gravity of her situation. But then again, he hadn’t exactly taken the time to explain it to her, seeing no sense clarifying things to someone fated to die.

Vance obviously knew that Madison had been the one to see Jason. Now, in order to do some damage control, he was sending in Andre Vitalis, a nasty character if there ever was one, to retrieve her and bring her back to him. That man was dangerous and cruel and he had a weakness for women that made him sloppy. If he thought for even one second that Vance would simply kill her, he might just let her go with good riddance. Lord knows, it would make his job easier and a hell of a lot less complicated. But it wouldn’t be that simple. Seth had been witness to some of Vance’s handiwork and the results hadn’t been pretty. Vance would toy with her, making her suffer while steadily increasing the pain and torment to further his own sick libido. And it wouldn’t stop there. He would keep Madison captive, forcing her to endure endless torture until he grew tired of her. Only then, would Vance kill her. And by that time, she would either be begging for death or she would be so broken that she would be completely oblivious of
her impending doom.

Seth had his orders. Charlie wanted Madison out of the picture. For good. And as cold and ruthless as he may be, Seth didn’t want her to go through the pain that Vance would inflict on her before she died. She didn’t deserve it and it made him sick to think of Andre touching her. Of
any
man touching her. Good God, he really needed to get his act together and stop thinking like that. She wasn’t his. It wasn’t in his job description to keep her out of Vance’s sadistic reach. But somewhere along the way, he’d made it his job. Madison Sinclair may have to die but there was no reason she should have to suffer first. Besides, she wasn’t made to withstand the kind of torture Vance would submit her to. There was a good chance she might reveal something destroying his cover. If that happened, it would all be over. And that could not be allowed to happen at
any
cost. Racing out of the apartment, he didn’t even bother to grab her things. He had to find her before Andre
did. He didn’t know how long Madison had been gone but he could only hope that he wasn’t too late.

The heat seeped into her skin melting the ice from her bones. Pins and needles ran through her and though the sensation was painful, it was infinitely better than the numbness that had invaded her. Madison glanced around the small coffee shop, praying that Seth wouldn’t find her here. Probably not the best place to take refuge but she hadn’t been able to make it any further. The few people occupying the shop had glanced at her when she stumbled in, cold, dirty, and bleeding. But they looked away quickly, minding their own business. She knew how she must look to them. A bedraggled woman, no shoes, no coat, the beginning of bruises on her wrists and upper arms, and deep, bloody scratches in her back. No one wanted to get involved in a situation like that. Which was just fine with her. At this point, there was only one person she trusted and he was on his way.

By the time she had reached the payphone outside the coffee shop, she was shaking so badly from the cold, she thought she might fall apart with the force of her spasms. She had no choice but to call Robert collect, since she had nothing with her but the clothes on her back. She listened hollowly as the phone continued to ring, praying that he was home to accept the charges. Finally, on the sixth ring, a young woman answered, her voice husky with sleep. Hesitantly, Madison asked for Robert, half convinced she had the wrong number. She breathed a sigh of relief when after a mumbled response, Robert picked up the phone, his voice just as sleepy as that of his female companion. The drowsiness didn’t last long, disappearing from his voice as soon as he heard the panic in hers. Before he could bombard her with questions she couldn’t even begin to answer, she gave him her location and begged him to come get her. She didn’t have to ask more than once. He would be here in twenty minutes. All she had to do was wait.

Settling at an empty table nearest the window, she tried to figure out what to do next. But her mind seemed to be just as frozen as her body. It was frustrating as hell and she just wanted to scream. Which wouldn’t seem so strange to the customers in the coffee shop. Just another crazy in New York.
Now
she fit in.
Perfect
.

“Would you like to order?”

Startled out of her thoughts, she glanced up at the waitress. Encased in a faded-blue dress, the plump woman looked worn out. Dark circles glared hollowly from under her eyes and her brown hair, the exact shade of mud, fell in disarray around her pasty complexion.

A cup of hot coffee sounded so wonderful but she didn’t have any money so that would just have to wait. Shaking her head, she offered the waitress a tired smile. “No, thank you.”

Shrugging, the middle-aged waitress turned away and moved back behind the battered counter, her interest gone.

Chewing on her thumbnail, Madison tried to assemble her thoughts into some kind of working order. First things first, she needed to get to the police station and report what happened to Stacy. But would they believe her? She wished she still had the memory card. Because without proof, it was just some crazy story. A lowly photographer witnessing the hired murder of a millionaire’s girlfriend, being saved, then kidnapped by a personal assistant who was more than he appeared to be, and now her unlikely escape. An outrageous story. One more likely to be in a book or a movie than in real life. Damn it, why had Seth taken that card? She could kill him! Except of course, she couldn’t. She didn’t stand a chance against him. But maybe it would help to make a list of everything she knew about him so the police could find him.

There wasn’t much. She could guess at his height. But his eye color could be changed too easily. He drove way too fast in the snow and he knew how to drug people. She felt a warm flush creep up her neck as she remembered how easily he’d managed to drug her. And he knew how to kiss—damn him! He was strong and sexy as hell. And although he was nearly impossible to read, she sensed that he wasn’t the emotionless automaton he appeared to be. Oh, her case against him was not sounding good.

Through the streaked glass window, she saw Roberts’ BMW pull up to the curb across the street. She had never felt so relieved in her entire life and she jumped up painfully. Stepping out into the cold again, she limped across the sidewalk toward him. Robert got out of the car and adjusted his jacket, his blond hair gleaming in the sunlight, looking like
GQ
model and then he caught sight of her. Surprise and shock lined his face and instinctively, he started around the car toward her. He only made it two feet in her direction.

In the next few moments, everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Robert staggered backward as if hit by an unseen attacker. Pain fluttered across his face and he grabbed his chest. Madison stopped dead in her tracks, watching as her best friend slumped to his knees before falling facedown into the middle of the street. A dark pool of blood spread beneath him in the white snow, staining it red.

“Robert?” she whispered, not sure what had just happened. She began to hobble over to him at the exact moment a man holding a gun stepped out from the corner of the coffee shop. He started in her direction, closing the distance rapidly. Immediately, she changed direction, heading for the alleyway.

Her ankle was screaming but she ran full tilt down the alley, narrowly dodging a large green dumpster. Thrown off balance, she tripped and fell, hitting the ground hard. Muddy gray snow forced itself into her nose and mouth only seconds before rough hands grabbed her shoulders and dragged her to her feet.

Letting out a strangled scream, she struggled to get away but it was useless. She was spun around, forced to face her captor. Her senses were on high alert, allowing her to take him in quickly and in full detail. The man holding her was tall with a thick build, dressed all in black. His features were wide set and harsh with deep set eyes under an expansive stretch of bone making up his forehead. A long, jagged scar ran from the corner of his right eye to the curve of his chin, the flesh, pink and shiny against the dark stubble sprinkled across his cheeks. Malice shone in his eyes, chilling her to the bone. Frantic, she tried to jerk away but his grip on her arms was like iron.

“Such a pretty thing,” he rasped, the Greek accent heavy in his voice. “No wonder the boss wants you brought back alive.” With one hand, he stroked her face, his wide fingers tracing the sensitive curve of her jaw.

Disgusted, she pulled her head back and spit in his face.

His muddy eyes narrowed with anger. “You bitch.” Quick as a rattlesnake, he struck out, smashing her frozen lips against her teeth, bringing blood.

The coppery taste filled her mouth, making her want to gag. Throwing her against the wall, her head bounced of the brick. Stars danced in front of her eyes. Stars danced in front of her eyes and her vision swam. She bit down on her bleeding lip, welcoming the sting of teeth, trying to resist the blackness closing in. He threw her against the wall again, her head bouncing off the brick. Beefy fingers slowly slid down her shoulder along her collarbone and to her breast. Stifling a cry, she cringed against the assault, closing her eyes, trying to block out what was happening.

His hot, fetid breath drifted across her skin before he pressed his pulpy lips to her neck. Flinching, she tried to pull away but he had her pinned against the rough brick wall with his body and she couldn’t move. He ran his hands over her, slowly, grunting wetly in her ear. The fingers on her breast tightened, pinching her like a vise, making her cry out in pain while his other hand was on her thigh, pushing the hem of her dress higher and higher. The material ripped when he hooked his fingers inside her panties and tore them off. She screamed, begging him to stop and the hot tears burned her eyes as they spilled through her lashes. “No! Please, oh God, please don’t do this! STOP!”

Ignoring her, his thick, dirty fingers touched her, prodding at her and she turned her head away in revulsion. Blood hammered in her ears and she clamped her eyes shut, whimpering softly, praying that it would be over quick.

Over the thudding of her heart, she heard a soft pop and flinched uncontrollably as a splash of warmth covered her face and neck. Her attacker slumped against her, dragging her down to the ground with him as he fell. The fear was so overwhelming, it was impossible for her to breathe. Keeping her eyes tightly closed, Madison sat in the freezing snow, shock and terror holding her temporarily immobile.

After what seemed like an eternity, the crushing weight was lifted. Still refusing to open her eyes, Madison remained perfectly still.

“Get up, Maddie.”