Dancing with Detective Danger (20 page)

“Ha! You think I’m stupid?” Cummings growled. “Now you stay put until we’re out of sight, or I’ll have to do more than just yank on her arm. You understand, cop?”

Silently, Ben watched as the men shoved Sterling inside the car. She knew the helplessness he felt, as if it were her own. And though the thugs made her see red, gratitude to Ben for rescuing Tyler warmed her heart like a healing salve.
Things could have been so much worse.

“Don’t worry, Sterling. This isn’t over yet,” Ben called as the car drove away.

• • •

“Tyler!” Lacey opened her arms to her son as Ben brought him through the Aegar office door. “Are you all right? Did they hurt you?” she asked, taking him into her mother’s embrace. “I’m fine, Mom. I wasn’t hardly even scared. But those men took Aunt Sterling with them.”

Lacey looked up into Ben’s eyes, searching. “What’s happening, Ben?”

Will it never end? These sisters have been through so much.
“It’s true, Lacey. But I’ll figure something out. Right now, you just take care of your little boy.”

“I can’t thank you enough.” Lacey closed her eyes, hugging her son to her again.

“It wasn’t me, Lacey. Sterling handled the situation just like a pro. She knew what would happen, but she did it for you and Tyler. She’s very brave.”

“Tyler, you go ask Michelle to get you something to eat, okay, sweetie?”

As the little boy obediently wandered out to the secretary, Lacey wrung her hands nervously. “What do we do now?”

“I want you to take your son home. I’ll take care of your sister.”

“But — ”

“It’s what she’d want you to do. No, she’d insist, Lacey. It’s up to me now,” Ben said, placing a reassuring hand to Lacey’s shoulder.

“Okay, Ben. You’re in charge. But you keep me posted, you hear?”

“You can count on it.”

“And Lacey, watch your back. I can’t involve the department. It’s not just about police procedure or my job.”

Lacey paused. Ben understood that he didn’t have to say more.

“Come on, Tyler. Let’s go home.”

“But what about Aunt Sterling? I don’t want her to be with those mean men.”

“I don’t either, sweetie, but Ben will take care of her.”

With the sound of the door closing, Ben eased onto the couch, resting his head in his hands. Sick feelings churned inside his gut. He’d done a pretty poor job of taking care of Sterling up to now.

The look in her eyes before she’d disappeared seared his heart. There’d been no incrimination, no fear. In those brief moments, he’d seen only trust shining from her beautiful eyes. How could that be? It hadn’t felt right from the start to ignore proper police procedure. But that was about training. Now more than ever he had to follow his gut. Trouble was, his gut was in knots.

Ben balled his fists against his brow, willing those last moments to change so he could have her safe in his arms right now. Sterling meant everything. If something happened to her, the universe might as well silence his heart.

Ben crossed the room and peered up into the sky. The sunlight of earlier that morning was hidden behind gathering columns of gray clouds that threatened to soon drench the day. Watching from the window, Ben felt as helpless to control the unfolding events circling Sterling as he did to control the rising storm.

First Ryan, then Jay, now Sterling. It was like a bad, recurring dream. How could he ever turn it around? Would he lose her too? The pain of it all, the existential despair that haunted him nearly made him buckle over. Unacknowledged, it robbed him of his choices, moving him to act in ways that promised him hollow absolution. Achieving high marks on the firing range, proving himself as he rose in the ranks did little to melt the shame of his imperfection, his sins. The shame persisted, as unending as the line of drug dealers, frauds, and abusers he relentlessly put in jail, trying to right the wrongs he’d committed.

But this moment thundered through him through him like nothing else, as he felt the pain. Enduring the bite of the undeserved accusations and blame incited recognition of the truth.

A ray of sunlight bursting through the clouds caught Ben’s attention, drawing him to notice the sun backlighting the gray shapes in luminous splendor.

“It’s not your fault, Ben Kirby. You deserve so much more than a life directed by mistaken guilt.”

Like a warm breeze, Sterling’s words sifted in through Ben’s anguish and turmoil.

She was right. His uncle had ripped out his soul with harsh condemnations and Ben had let those hurtful beliefs ride his back all his life since. He was no more to blame for the accidental death of his cousin than he was to blame for the rain. The time had come to silence his uncle’s deadly words and get on with making peace with himself.

The ache of knowing Sterling, with her gentle kindness and insight, had set him on a right path burned inside him. But more than that, Ben knew all the more keenly how incomplete he was without her.

Thoughts whirred around inside his brain like a carnival ride at the county fair. Where would Cummings have taken her?
Okay, Kirby, collect your thoughts. You know the question: What is happening right now with Sterling? Now, pull in the things you know and answer the question. That’s how you’ll find her.

Ropes wrapped tightly around Sterling’s wrists and ankles bit into her skin as she tried to wrestle free. The cot she was lying on smelled of dust and cigarette smoke. The small room looked to be a storeroom, with boxes piled from floor to ceiling. The cot seemed out of place. She couldn’t stop her brain from trying to imagine the cot’s purpose, wondering how many people had been held here against their will. Or had its occupants been drugged-out stoolies sleeping off their latest fix?
Enough!
she shouted silently to her looping thoughts
. It’s time to stop theorizing and find a way out of this mess.

In the corner of the room stood an industrial sink with one leg missing. Several thick concrete blocks propped up the missing leg side. Alongside the sink stood a broom, mop, and pail. Not much here to work with, she thought to herself. Although she’d lost track of the time, the dusky light filtering in through a small window near the ceiling suggested the sun would be setting soon. Time was not on her side.

I don’t know why they’re keeping me alive. They’ve got what they want.
Lying helplessly on the cot, anger stirred Sterling’s insides.

Cummings had no sooner forced her into the back seat of the sedan when Jerry produced the key and memory card rescued from the road where she’d thrown it.
How could I have been so stupid?
she thought, humiliation washing over her. She’d tried so hard to make her work count and to be the best she could.
And this is how it all ends, with me giving them what they need to keep right on corrupting the world, hurting people.

But at least Tyler was safe, thanks to Ben. Visualizing Lacey reunited with her precious son right now made it all worthwhile. Sterling wanted very much to be a part of the reunion and much, much more.

She and her sister not only worked together, they wanted to weave their lives together. Spring kite flying at the park, summer picnics at the lake, autumn hikes in the mountains, winter evenings of movies and popcorn. These were the moments Sterling cherished.

And Ben. Sterling’s heart clenched as in her mind’s eye she saw how his quirky smile would light up his face, and felt the reality of how the briefest touch of his hand would set her heart skipping. How easily they tracked each other’s thoughts, and how willingly he sought to help her. Sterling’s lungs ached with a silent scream demanding she make things right.

Wriggling to sit up on the cot, Sterling searched anxiously around the room for something to free her from the ropes. Her gaze landed on the concrete blocks. Carefully standing, she hopped to the blocks and sat down against them, frantically rubbing the ropes against the coarse edge.

“C’mon,” she breathed, not knowing how much time she had before someone might come in. Frantically but methodically rubbing the ropes against the roughness, Sterling felt sweat bead on her forehead. Seconds seemed to tick into hours, but finally, she broke free. Nimbly, she loosened the ropes binding her ankles.

Now what, Sterling?
Clearly the window would do her no good, since it was too small to crawl through. Her heartbeat pounded fiercely, as she searched the room for another way out. But footsteps sounding outside the door warned her to lie back down on the cot and hope for a miracle.

The door opened and Cummings regarded her from the doorway. Sterling glared back. “What are you going to do with me?”

Cummings ignored her question, grabbing her arm and pulling her up. “Let’s go. Hey, what’s going on?” His eyes flashed with surprise as he realized the ropes were gone.

Sterling’s anger boiled as the man roughly drew her up close, but she kept silent.

“You were planning on leaving without saying goodbye, Sterling? I don’t think so.”

“Let go of me, Cummings, you pig,” she demanded, trying to squirm free.

Searing pain suddenly exploded inside her head as Cummings’s fist slammed against her skull. Crumpling back onto the cot, Sterling struggled against the darkness blanking out her mind.

“When I’m done with you you’ll leave,” he threatened. “One way or another, I say how and I say when.”

Like peering through a starless, foggy night, Sterling saw Cummings close the door behind him as she sank into the darkness.

• • •

Dressed in a white camisole and sky blue pajama pants dotted with fluffy, white clouds, Lacey walked into her kitchen to find Nicholas sitting at the table munching on a peach. The fresh fragrance of the ripe fruit tantalized her as she pulled up a chair opposite him and watched juice drizzle down his chin. “Mm, that peach smells good.”

Nicholas swiped at his chin. “It is. Have one,” he said, gesturing toward the bowl of fruit sitting on the counter. “I can’t believe you found ripe peaches this early.”

“It takes a bit of hunting and I pay a pretty penny, but it’s an indulgence I grant myself.”

Tyler was home. His incident with the kidnappers had left him shaken, but unharmed. Nicholas hadn’t promised that he could prevent a terrible outcome, but he had been there with their son, giving Tyler the courage he needed. “I’m so grateful you were with Tyler. And I’m so grateful to have you here, home with us. I don’t know how I would have gotten through his abduction without your assurances, your presence. I don’t know how I could feel the peace I’m feeling even though Sterling is in trouble.”

“I’m happy to be helpful. We love the same people,” he said, eyeing the peach.

“Are you another of my indulgences, Nick?”

“I hope so.” Nick winked mischievously.

Lacey’s heart flip-flopped. Nick’s tease felt so familiar, so like the man she’d married and shared a life with. “This moment feels very real. But how can it be real?” Her eyes dipped with the sinking question her heart.

“Don’t tell me we’re back to that same question. Do you want to approach it philosophically, existentially, or mystically?” Nick flashed Lacey a playful smile and poised his chin on his fingertip as though in deep thought.

“You’re still teasing.” Lacey bit at her lower lip, then raised her open hands to the ceiling. “God, I can’t believe I’m having this discussion, much less sitting here in my kitchen with you. In the space of less than a week, my son has been hospitalized and kidnapped. My sister has been shot at and abducted. And my dead husband has suddenly reappeared. For all I know, you’re a stress-induced hallucination. You know the Aegar family, we do flip out.”

Nick’s smile drew serious. “Wait right here,” he said and left the kitchen. Seconds later he returned with a CD he popped into the player. Holding out his hand to her, Nick pulled Lacey into a gentle embrace as strains of a love song softly drifted around them.

Lacey nestled close into the warmth of Nick’s neck, easily shuffling with him around the kitchen floor in time with the music. So close she could hear his breath, so close she could feel his heart steadily beating in his chest, Lacey felt transported away from her fearful reality to a place where things were as they were meant to be.

“Our love is real, Lacey. There’s no need to question. You didn’t just conjure me out of nothingness. You’re not crazy.” Nick’s face nuzzled her hair, and Lacey felt the tremendous and undeniable substance of his love for her. “I’m as real as the sunshine, the rain, your breath. Just let the knowledge of us live inside you without worry or doubt. It will only grow.”

Lacey wanted to believe, and knew parts of her accepted his presence as true. Now she knew her misgivings were founded not in doubt, but in self-protection. She looked up into Nick’s eyes knowing she begged for something she suspected he couldn’t give. “I’ve missed you so much,” she breathed. “When you left, my heart broke. I can’t go through that again.”

As the song ended, a radiant silence enveloped them, punctuated by the rhythmic sing-song of crickets chirping outside the window.

Nicholas drew her face up to his. His eyes looking deeply into her eyes, he paused inches from her lips. “You have to trust me, Lacey. I didn’t come back just to mess you up. Things don’t work like that.”

“But I want you to stay. Say you’ll never leave again.”

“I love you, Lacey, and that love is why I’ll always be with you. As long as you want me here, I’ll be here.”

Her heart beating wildly, Lacey closed her eyes and felt Nick’s lips delicately touch hers. Passion swelled inside her, as his kiss coaxed her into a swirling, mindful bliss. She couldn’t imagine ever wanting him to go, so it was settled.

• • •

“Watch her. I don’t want any more excuses. This thing is already way out of hand.”

As though she heard it from another room, Cummings’s voice penetrated Sterling’s consciousness. Straining to open her eyes, she felt blinding pain throbbing inside her head. It was all but more than she could bear as it nearly drowned out her memory and all her thoughts.