Crux (The Aurora Lockette Series) (3 page)

“Let’s go,” Konstantin ordered.

But we were already on our feet, and Gavyn had already thrown a couple hundred bucks on the table to cover the cost of our half-eaten dinners.

I reflexively put my hand on the hardness of the gun in my waistband. I couldn’t pull it out in this crowded of an environment, but it felt good to have it on me. Instead, I quickly reached into my boot on the pretense of straightening my pant leg, and pulled the knife out of its sheath and pushed it up my long sleeve so I could use it instantly.

He had disappeared
onto the crowded casino floor. We stood at the edge and surveyed the huge space.

“
Do not split up. We need to stay together. Let’s see if we can herd him into the parking garage. Kill him if you get a chance to do so quietly. Otherwise, let’s just observe,” Konstantin instructed.

We started in a broad circle around the perimeter of the casino, taking the offered free drinks and smiling in an attempt to blend in. My beer was untouched in my hand, and my eyes roamed across the
crowd of people. I didn’t see the strange figure, but I saw plenty of other interesting things.

“
Apparently, if you come to Vegas you have to dress like a hooker. Why didn’t someone tell me?” I said, my eyes following the figure of a young woman my age wearing a low cut, short, shiny dress that was dancing on the line between sexy and tacky.

“
Focus, dear.” The term of endearment slipped out of Konstantin’s mouth before he could stop it. He flushed deep red and I suppressed a smile. He tried to pretend like he didn’t love me like his own child while on the job, but he just couldn’t help it.

We approached the main entrance to the casino that faced the
Strip. Konstantin peered out of the door, but did not exit. “Where did he go?”

Carmen chimed in.
“He’s got to be around here somewhere. I can still feel him.”

“
Looking for me?” The strange man appeared in front of us. His back was towards the floor of the casino, facing the door where we stood. For a brief moment in time, even with thousands of people around us, we were alone.

Unfortunately, it was
a far too public venue to kill him. The silence after his unanswered question became longer and longer.

“
Well, you are, right?” he enquired.

I watched him carefully. He looked human, but some pieces were still missing
—he did not fidget, did not tuck a stray strand of hair behind his ear, shift his weight, or check his watch—he was perfectly still.

Carmen cleared her throat before speaking
, “What is the meaning of this?” She made a gesture in his direction. “What are you trying to do?”

He chuckled. The staccato of his laughter was perfectly spaced out.
“You stay out of my way, and you will not get hurt, for now anyways. I’m not interested in you.”

He took a few steps, coming within reach of us. It was a bold move, considering there were four of us and one of him.

“We are interested in her.” He stretched out one long white finger at me and smiled.

Gavyn pushed me halfway behind him.
“Back off, asshole,” he snarled.

The strange man laughed, then leaned forward.
“Aurora,” he drawled out the vowels, stretching out my name. For an instant, his face evolved. The mask slipped, and I could see the monster underneath. Swirly unfocused black matter filled the spot where his face was a moment before. As quickly as it flashed, it was gone and the generic features were back. “You,” he said.

“
No,” I said. “Not happening.” Strange figures of death and destruction flitted across my mind. Cold fear tried to find purchase in my body, but I fought it off.

He laughed again, then slipped into the crowd of
casino patrons flowing out the door.

Carmen appeared by my side and slipped an arm around my waist, overlapping it with Gavyn’s. No doubt she sensed the dark direction of my thoughts.

“We’re leaving right now,” Gavyn said.

“
Go outside and get my car or get a cab, whichever is faster. I’m going to get our IDs and money from upstairs. We’re going to the airport tonight.” Konstantin tossed his valet ticket to Carmen. “You three stay here, and stay together.”

“
No, don’t go by yourself.” Carmen disentangled herself from me and hugged Konstantin.

“
They’re not after me. Stay with Aurora.” His eyes traveled around the casino, flicking from corner to corner.

“
I’m fine. I am.” I tried to speak firmly, but my voice was shaky.

“
Stay, please, honey. I’ll be right back.”

Carmen squeezed his hand, then returned to my side.
“Let’s go.” She hooked her arm through mine and led me and Gavyn outside.

“
What the hell was that all about? Was that really one of the dark ones? Why wasn’t it flickering?” Gavyn peppered Carmen with questions as soon as he had handed our ticket to the valet.

Carmen leaned closer.
“Yes, it was. But let’s not discuss it now. Your fiancé is in danger. Let’s focus on getting her out of here.”

Gavyn didn’t respond, but pulled me into a tight bear hug. I waited a few seconds, and then gently pushed on his chest to gain enough space so I could talk.

“Um, I can’t get to my weapons or conduct surveillance like this.” My words were muffled by his shirt.

“
Oh, right.” He stepped away. “Better?”

“
Yeah.”

“
Don’t worry, Aurora, we’ll protect you. You’re safe,” Carmen said.

“
I’m okay now, I promise.” However, my voice caught in my throat, giving away my little lie. I was scared.

The rental car appeared in the wide, semicircular driveway in front of the casino. The driveway was full of taxis and private cars dropping of their passengers and returning to the
Strip.

Gavyn motioned for the valet to move the car to the end of the driveway where we could have a little more space to load the trunk.

Konstantin came out of the front doors of the casino, loaded down with our luggage. “I called Dennis on the way up to the room. They’re going to come back, check us out, and get the rest of our stuff. He can have a private plane on the tarmac in an hour and a half. Carmen and I are making the trip with you and Gavyn.”

“
That sounds good,” I said.

Gavyn stepped closer to Konstantin, releasing his tight clutch on me.
“Who is our pilot? Do I know him? Is he one of you?” he asked, not pausing between questions.

I rolled my eyes. Men always went straight to logistics.

I grabbed a suitcase out Konstantin’s hand, easily lifting it on my own strength. The trunk of our rental was already open. I walked to the back of the car and lifted the suitcase.

It happened so fast that I didn’t have time understand
what was happening.

A black SUV screeched up next to me. Its rear passenger door was already open and strong, steely arms grabbed me and pulled me inside. The SUV never stopped while its occupants performed their criminal task. It peeled out of the long driveway in an instant.

My head was smashed face down into the back seat, my arms twisted behind by two strong, male hands pressing my wrists into the small of my back. I called upon all my inner strength, kicking and thrashing as hard as I could. My gift was useless with the heavy man pinning me down.

He shoved his hands into my pants and began groping around.

No!

I coughed back the
bile that was rising in my throat. I wrenched around, arms and legs flailing with renewed vigor to get away. After a few seconds, he found my Glock and pulled it out of my waistband. I was relieved he wasn’t sexually assaulting me, but panicked that he had taken away one of my weapons.

“
Stay still, or I will break your bones, starting with your ribs.” The man pushed his weight on me, forcing my face into the seat so I couldn’t breathe. He waited a few seconds before he leaned away, giving me a few inches to turn my face to the side. I took jagged, desperate breaths.

“
Fuck you,” I said as soon as I had enough oxygen to speak.

He kept one hand firmly manacled around my wrists
, and the other grabbed a fistful of my hair as leverage to yank my head up before he slammed it into the window. He kept his hand on the back of my head, pushing my face into tinted glass. Lights exploded in my vision. My blood made meandering streams of red down the window.

I still kicked with my legs and pushed with my arms, squirming violently. The blood started to run down into my mouth and down my chin, dripping onto the door handle. It mixed with the brown hair hanging in my face, turning it a weird shade of auburn.

“Be still.” I listened carefully to his voice, detecting a hint of American northeast.
New York? New Jersey?
I still hadn’t seen his face.

He released his hold on me. I raised my arms and placed my palms flat on the glass on either side of my head so I could push myself away from the window. I panted as my hands slid across the wet glass.

He wrapped his arm across my chest from behind me and used the other to press a white towel to my face. I smelled a strong chemical smell, and knew with horrifying certainly that I would be unconscious and defenseless soon. Before I had time to finish the thought, the world went black.

I opened my eyes in a dim, dark space. The edges around my vision were fuzzy and a searing headache focused right between my eyes, but at least I could see. I waited a few seconds for my eyes to adjust.

I was on top of an air mattress covered with a thin blanket shoved in the corner of a small room. A weak outline of light gave away the frame of a window on the wall off to my right. It looked like it was boarded up from the inside.

A big, burly man with brown hair sat on a cheap folding chair in front of the only door in the room. He was reading a magazine with a small light clipped to his shirt. I examined his big hands curled around the corners of his reading material and wondered if he was the one who snatched me
. He didn’t appear to know I was awake yet. Good. I needed the time to think.

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and ordered my muscles to relax. I was on an air mattress. If I moved too much, it would squeak and alert him to my conscious state. A few blinks cleared my vision almost to normalcy.

I peered around the dim room, trying to see if there was a lock on the door behind the scary man; I didn’t look like there was.

I strained my ears, listening for any sounds of cars, airplanes, or any other noise that would indicate I was near civilization
, but I heard nothing.

I dared to lift my head off the mattress so I could get a better view of the room
, and the mattress squeaked.

“
I know you’re awake. Just stay on the mattress and I’ll leave you alone.”

Boston
. That was the accent in his voice, and it was definitely the man who hurt me. I struggled to recall the violence he’d demonstrated in the SUV. The memories were unclear, as if they’d happened years ago. He had definitely drugged me.

I opened my mouth to speak, but it was dry and I couldn’t get my lips to move. I cleared my throat and tried again.

“Who are you?” I croaked.

He turned the book light towards me.
“You sound like you need water. Do you want some?”

I licked my dry lips. I had never been
thirstier in my life. “Who do you work for?”

“
Stubborn bitch.” He reached his hand down near his feet and picked up a water bottle. “If you want this,” he gestured with the bottle in my direction, “you need to keep your damn mouth shut. I don’t want to hear your questions. Do you understand?”

I stared at the bottle of water in his hand, imagining the cool liquid running down my throat. I needed it. I needed to stay healthy. I needed to stay alive.
“Yes.”

“
Good girl.” He tossed the bottle at me and returned to his magazine.

It landed near my feet. I sat up, ignoring the waves of dizziness that ensued from the usually harmless movement. I opened it, breaking the seal and chugged the whole bottle down. I put the lid back on and lay down, waiting for the water to
hydrate my body.

“
Can I have another one?”

He didn’t answer, but he reached down by his feet again and produced another bottle from the darkness
. He threw it at me without looking up from his magazine.

This one I opened, but shoved it behind me after a few sips. Best to save some for later.

I rocked my body forward so I could cross my legs underneath me. I stretched out my arms in front of me and pulled up my sleeves so I could examine my wrists. In the dim light, dark shapes encircled my arms, which the accompanying tenderness told me were bruises. I squeezed the inside of my left arm and felt the hardness of my small switchblade. Did he really not search me while I was out?