Out Of The Past (10 page)

The stubborn look in his eyes confirmed what she’d guessed at the bar. He didn’t like his sex straight up. No, our boy was into the kinky stuff.

He unscrewed the cap and tapped a hit on the meaty part of his left hand. “Help yourself.” He grinned, trying not to sound too demanding. “Don’t you want to get high?”

“I’m not big into snow. That shit did a job on my nose a few years back.”

“If you haven’t had a hit in years, think about all the fun you’ve been missing.”

“In a minute. It’s always better with a drink. She stepped away and walked across the room to the bar. Once there, she poured two glasses of bourbon. She heard him snort the coke, as she emptied the drug into a glass.

Stirring the powder with her finger, she learned was harder than she’d thought. As he approached, she turned. Smiling, she handed him a drink. “If you think I’m going to get stoned with a complete stranger, you’re dumber than I first thought.”

His face reddened, and he tossed the liquor into her face. She closed her eyes before the alcohol could burn them. Wiping at the liquor dripping off her chin, she shouted, “What the fuck is your problem?”

He grabbed her by the throat. “You put something in my drink, bitch? Did someone send you to the club?”

Gritting her teeth, she managed to shove him away. “Man, why are you flipping out? I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.” She set her drink down and opened her hands. “How would I slip drugs in your drink? My hands are empty, my purse is on the other side of the room, and there is nothing down my dress.”

Doubt clouded his face. “I think you’re up to something.”

Walking to the other side of the room, she waited. “Fine with me. You’re some kind of twisted bastard.” She heard the ice cubes rattle in her glass. “Be better for both of us if your driver takes me back to the club.”

He picked up her glass and took a gulp of the bourbon. “Oh, I’m not done with you yet.” He stalked toward her, a wide grin contorting his aging face.

Leveling an angry glare, Zoe backed away slowly, her eyes carefully watching the man who could snap her in two like a neon bracelet with little to no effort. “We both should call it a night.” She looked down the front of her clothes. “You’ve ruined my dress, you prick.”

Another swallow. “That’s not all I’m going to ruin.”

Backed against the wall, with Craig Campbell only inches from her face, threw Zoe’s mind into overdrive as she fought to remain calm. He finished the drink then threw the glass at the empty fireplace.

He pulled out a knife, flipped out the blade, and held it close to her face. “Let’s see what you have under that dress.” He grabbed the front and yanked. Her breasts spilled out, and his eyes grew larger. “Now, that’s what I’m talking about.”

Zoe didn’t move. Controlling her breathing, she stared the creep in the eyes and a slow smile curled her lips. He stumbled back and dropped the knife. She cocked her head. “Looks like you played right into my hand, asshole.”

He dropped to his knees, and she kicked him backwards.

“Now, that’s what
I’m
talking about.”

A
.J. died a hundred times before Zoe opened the door. Shaky hands held her top together. Gritting his teeth and fighting back the urge to kill, he imagined Campbell putting his slimy hands on her, and it royally pissed him off. “You okay?”

“Yes,” she replied before turning and walking away.

He and Brody picked up Campbell and tossed him on the couch. The man was out cold. “How long will this last?”

“Maybe twenty minutes.” Brody nodded toward the door that led to the main elevator. “Zoe, is there a guard at the front door?”

“Yes, I saw him when we came in.”

“Okay, remember to keep your voice down.”

A.J. looked around, while Zoe pilfered through the papers on Campbell’s desk. “Exactly what am I looking for?”

“We don’t know. Read everything carefully.”

Brody moved to the bedroom while A.J. checked out the bookshelves.

Zoe cleared her throat and held up a briefcase. “Jackpot.”

A.J. smiled as he approached. “Brody, come in here.”

“Yeah?”

“Look what Zoe found.”

Brody rubbed his hands together. “Let’s hope it has something in there important.”

Zoe tried the lock. “I can’t open it.”

“Easy.” Brody opened the lid with a flick of his wrist.

Three pairs of curious eyes peeked inside. With a grunt of satisfaction, A.J. started removing papers and folders. They searched everything, but nothing appeared out of the ordinary or suspicious.

A.J. wanted to throw something. They’d gone through so much for nothing. At the moment, they were no closer to the truth than two days ago. He didn’t know where to turn.

Campbell was still out cold. A.J. walked over and propped him back on the sofa and searched the attorney’s pockets. “Fire up his laptop, Brody.”

“Good call. Cell phone?”

“He wouldn’t put anything on his cell phone,” Zoe said then watched as A.J. took a cord from his back pocket and attached Campbell’s phone to the computer.

“A cell phone is a wealth of information.”

They watched as numbers, emails, and text messages scrolled the screen. “It looks like he talked to the Croatian, but it was on a burner. No trace there. The rest is pretty random.”

While A.J. held the phone, it rang. All three jumped. Brody checked the caller ID then shrugged his shoulders and put his fingers to his ear, signaling A.J. to answer the call.

Zoe pointed to the bedroom, so he’d be out of listening distance from the guard outside the door.

He swiped the screen. “Yeah.”

“It’s all set. It’ll look like a heart attack.”

So, they were going directly after Frank. A.J. lowered his voice. “You sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure. I told you I’d do it. On Monday morning, I expect to have five million sent to an offshore account I set up.”

“Okay.”

Silence

“That you, Craig?”

A.J. clenched his teeth as panic set in. “Hell, yes, it’s me.” He started breathing hard. “You picked a bad time to call. I’m in the middle of getting the best blowjob I’ve ever had.”

A weary voice came over the phone. “We’re in the middle of the biggest thing in Gabric’s life and you’re getting your dick sucked?”

“Yeah.”

“Jesus Christ, you always were a pathetic sex maniac.” The unknown person on the other end hung up.

A.J. stared at the phone. “Did I sound convincing?”

“Let’s hope so.”

He quickly called NSA, but they had no luck. Another burner.

***

Z
oe’s heart sank. They still didn’t know what the threat was or when it was supposed to happen. “It sounds like they plan to poison Frank with a drug that would show up as a heart attack in an autopsy.”

A.J. reached for her, but she slid away. Had he forgotten she was still dressed as a hooker?

Brody headed for the back exit. “We need to get out of here before Campbell wakes up. A new guard will probably be coming on duty any minute.” He put the phone back in Campbell’s pocket. “Check and make sure we left everything the way we found it.”

A.J. pointed to her. “Write the jerk a note that he fell asleep on you, and you left his sorry ass.”

“Okay, then I’ll have the driver take me back to the club.”

Brody touched her arm. “We’ll meet you there.”

A.J. looked at her, his face expressionless. “Be careful.”

They left, and Zoe picked up her purse and walked out the front door. She nodded to the guard, as she kept the front of her dress closed. Before he could inquire about Craig or anything else, she stopped in front of him and said, “That asshole fell asleep on me. Tell him I’m really pissed.”

The dark man smiled faintly. “He’s been very busy lately. I’m sure he’s just exhausted.”

She spun and stalked into the elevator. “I’m having the driver take me back to the club.”

Silently, she waited for the door to close and began to descend. All the air left her lungs. Slumping back against the wall, she prayed for the strength to make it back to safety. Her heart thumped so loudly, she didn’t know what to do. What if the driver gave her a hard time?

If Campbell was exhausted, she bordered on being dead because every muscle in her body strained to get out of the high-rise and run to the limo.

The driver immediately stepped from the car and opened the door for her. She slid into the luxury vehicle and told him to take her back to the hotel which was closer than the club. Zoe worried Campbell would wake and call the driver.

They didn’t exchange any words, but Zoe’s mind went fast as a super-sonic train. How on earth could they save Frank when they had no idea where the attack was coming from?

Scarier, was Frank still alive? 

Z
oe had the chauffeur drop her off in front of another hotel two blocks from hers, so he wouldn’t know where she stayed. Then she walked quickly to her hotel, planning to ditch the ruined clothes before meeting A.J. and Brody back at the club. After seeing her torn, stained dress the chauffeur had quickly agreed to do anything she asked, probably because he feared she’d call the police about his boss’s behavior.

Once in the room she shared with A.J., Zoe moved quickly. Tossing the hated dress into the trash, she changed into the outfit she’d bought earlier. With trembling hands, she brushed out her hair and cleaned the makeup off her face.

Wasting no more time, she hailed a cab to meet up with A.J. and Brody as planned, so if asked, the bartender would say she had returned. Of course, she hadn’t expected her dress to be torn and the dumbass to throw a glass of bourbon in her face. Inwardly, she hoped that the drug had long-lasting and terrible aftereffects. Craig Campbell needed to suffer.

At a table in the back of the bar, away from the remaining crowd, A.J. and Brody sat. Their heads together as they spoke in soft voices.

She cleared her throat. “May I join you?”

A.J. jumped up quickly and pulled out a chair. “Of course.” He looked into her eyes. “Are you okay?”

She tossed her hair over her shoulder. “No need to worry about me. I’m fine.”

“You don’t sound fine,” Brody said. “You looked pissed.”

She shrugged. “I’ll get over it.” She ordered a glass of wine. “So, what’s the plan now?”

“We were just thinking of how to get Frank out of that hotel and back with us.”

Taking a sip, she asked, “He isn’t being held against his will, is he?”

“No, but they’re keeping close eyes on him. They don’t want anything to happen.”

She put her glass down. “Have you called to see if he’s still alive?”

“He’s okay. We didn’t say anything for fear his phone was bugged. But, we need to get him out,” A.J. said.

Brody’s eyes searched the club. “That shouldn’t be hard.”

“Depends. I’m not sure what the President has ordered. Right now, the Secret Service is on guard and that means Frank’s in pretty good hands. However, we have to find out how they plan to kill him.”

“I say they’ll poison his food,” Brody said.

Discarding the idea, Zoe shook her head. “That’s way too easy and very hard to hide in an autopsy.”

“What about a toxic gas through the vents while he’s sleeping?”

“That could linger in the carpet or linen,” Brody said.

“Then what?”

A.J. stood and threw several bills on the table. “I don’t know, but we’re going to visit him tonight.”

“Now?” Brody looked at his watch. “At this hour?”

“If we wait, it might be too late for us to stop whatever has been set in motion. They could have something planned for tonight or in the morning.”

“It’s best we get him hidden away.”

“We’ll do that, but I want to know what they’re planning.”

“Let’s get Frank.”

Zoe slipped off the stool and followed them out of the bar. “Should I go to the hotel and reserve a room for Frank?”

“No, you come with us. I’m not taking any chances.” A.J. stopped and took her hand. “Besides, you and I have to talk about us.”

She pulled her hand away. “There is no
us
.”

They grabbed a cab and went to Frank’s hotel. Brody called him from the lobby, and Frank directed them to his suite.

Upon their arrival, they had to wait for their boss to come out and deal with the Secret Service guys

“What are you three doing here?” Frank asked. “Wait, don’t say another word.” He looked around the room then put a finger to his lips.

Stepping into the bathroom, he turned on the water. “Whatever you’re about to say doesn’t need to be heard outside this room.”

The four of them stood in the large bathroom.

A.J. put his arm around Zoe. “You’re right. We need to be careful.”

Frank crossed his arms. “What’s going on?”

A.J. rubbed the back of his neck. “We broke into Campbell’s penthouse, drugged him, and went through his stuff. We didn’t find anything incriminating. But while I was holding his cell phone, it rang. The guy on the opposite end said the plan was to kill you and make it look like a heart attack.”

“I had pizza with the Secret Service this evening, a beer, and I feel fine.”

“We think food would be too obvious.”

Their boss looked up. “The vents?” Frank reached out and hugged Zoe to his chest.

She wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her cheek to his chest. “So what are we looking at?”

A.J. put his hand on her back. “Probably a needle in a haystack. We’re not even sure the poison isn’t already in the room.”

Brody moved next to Frank who held onto Zoe. “We want you to come with us.”

“I’ll have to deal with the Secret Service agents. I’m willing to do that, but I want to know how they intend to kill me and who’s behind it.”

Brody gazed around the room. “Let’s start looking. Perhaps it’s in plain sight. It must be something obvious.”

“That maybe you’d use every day,” A.J. suggested.

Frank opened the door, and they all spilled out, silently searching the room. “Not the sheets, that’s too easy to detect in fabric.”

“Not anything electrical because you just have a TV, cell phone, and your laptop. I had those cleared before you entered the room.”