Worst Date Ever (Scandals #3) (22 page)

“We brought food,” Killeen told us.  “John insisted on packing enough food for an army.”

“I hope there’s some salad,” Liberty said cheerfully.

“Salad and veggie lasagna for you, fried chicken for the rest of us,” Killeen confirmed.  “I’ll be right back.  Christopher, would you unlock the car?”

“I’ll help.  That picnic basket is heavy.”  Christopher gave her that intimate little smile that always made us feel like we had suddenly become invisible.  I couldn’t imagine how it would feel to have a man look at me like that…except in my dreams.

Hand-in-hand, Christopher and Killeen returned to his black Mustang convertible and retrieved a large picnic basket and two over-sized canvas bags obviously filled with food.

The fire was out, and the firefighters were rolling up their hoses and re-packing their equipment on the big red and white truck.  Cody waved goodbye and walked across the lot to join us.

I ran through the introductions, and the two men shook hands.  “They brought lunch,” I told Cody.

“We couldn’t risk any of you getting poisoned again,” Christopher explained with a smile.

“Great, let’s go up.”  Cody led the way through the back door and to the elevators.  The lobby had completely cleared out, so we had the elevator to ourselves.  It zipped up the fourteen floors and soon we were standing in front of the door.

Cody tested the handle and appeared relieved that it was still locked.  Of course, we all knew that was probably not a definitive sign our hacker hadn’t somehow found a way inside.  Cody stepped forward and paused for his retinal scan, and the lock clicked open.

“That’s cool,” Christopher couldn’t resist commenting.

I headed straight for the computer, and the first thing I did was disconnect the web cam.  The image on the screen flickered off for a second then reloaded as merely a computer screen.  I could tell it wasn’t Cody’s because there was a screensaver of Paris appearing and dissolving while Cody’s was the standard geometric circles.  He walked up behind me and placed his hands on my shoulders, absently massaging my tense muscles.  “You don’t mind that I shut down your web cam, do you?  You can start it back up as soon as this is over.”

“I’m okay with it being down.  It’s fucking creepy to think that someone can hack into a camera and spy on you.  It looks like they didn’t disable your program.”

A proud smile lifted the corners of my lips.  “It’s a pretty bad-ass program, if I do say so myself.”

“Come and get it,” Killeen called.  She and Liberty had set the table with paper plates and Solo cups.  “We’ve got Coke, Diet Coke, root beer and apple juice.  I know which one you want, Liberty, but what can I get for the rest of you?”

We called out our choices, then found our places around the table.  In the middle of the table was a container full of John’s crispy, golden-brown chicken, another filled with fluffy mashed potatoes, another holding gravy and a fourth with brown sugar-glazed baked beans, along with smaller containers of veggie lasagna and salad.  Hot biscuits were wrapped in a big foil pouch.

“John thought of everything,” Liberty exclaimed.  “I’m starved.”

As we ate, I caught Christopher and Killeen up on what we had discovered so far.  They were impressed with our progress, but just like me, a little impatient to get it wrapped up.  This hacker was a genius, but he was twisted…and dangerous.  I still couldn’t figure out his motive or how Tamara’s murder, my car’s untimely demise, trying to kill us with poisonous snakes and cyanide and selling IDs fit together.

Christopher and Killeen left shortly after we finished the meal and cleaned up.  I was about to settle in my usual chair in front of the computer when my cell phone rang.  I answered, and after a couple of minutes, hung up.

Liberty was in the kitchen, but Cody was sitting right next to me.  He didn’t ask, but I volunteered the information about the call.  “That was the cop who handled my car fire.  They’re sending a tow truck to load the remains of my vehicle and transport it to a warehouse so they can examine it more thoroughly.  They think it was a suspicious fire.”

“No shit,” Cody muttered.

“He wanted me to meet the driver downstairs and sign the paperwork.  Can you watch the computer while I’m gone?”

“I’d rather go with you.”

“I’ll be fine.  There will be cops there,” I reminded him. 

“Okay…what am I looking for?”

“Sooner or later, our hacker is going to get on his machine.  We’ll be able to see every website and read every keystroke he makes just as if we were looking over his shoulder.  Write everything down.  We need some sort of clue to his identity.”

Cody nodded.  “I think I can handle that.”

I stood, and he grabbed my hand.

“Be careful.  I don’t want…”

He didn’t finish the sentence even though I gave him plenty of time.  I really wanted to hear the rest of that thought.

He let my hand drop. 

“I’ll be right back.  If nothing’s happening on the computer, you could look at us from the balcony,” I pointed out.

That seemed to satisfy his protective instincts.

I told Liberty where I was going and left.  A couple floors down, a family got on and rode with me to the parking lot.  They headed toward their car, and I headed toward what was left of mine.

The cop was still there, waiting for me, as was a big, flat-bed tow truck.  The driver was trying to find something strong enough for him to attach a tow chain to so he could pull the bulk of the vehicle onto his flatbed.  I assumed he would then box up the rest of the pieces.  I wasn’t really in the mood to clean up the mess.

“I’ve never had this happen before,” I told the officer, “Am I supposed to come out later and sweep this up?”

“Nah, the driver will take care of that,” the cop answered. “All I need from you is a signature on this consent form.  Come to the station tomorrow, and I’ll give you a copy of this and the report for your insurance company.”

I sighed.  I’d rather dodge a killer than deal with an insurance claim. 

The officer handed me a clipboard with the form on top.  I scrawled my signature at the bottom, and he handed me his business card with the case number on it.  I would add it to my growing collection.  I needed to make some notes on the back so I could keep all the cases separate.  Who knew I’d need a Rolodex to keep up with all my death threats?

Even with the cop and the driver with me, I felt strangely vulnerable in that parking lot.  I was glad when the cop told me that was all he needed so I could get back inside the safety of the building.

I punched the button for the elevator and the doors immediately opened.  I stepped inside, punched “14” and felt better when the doors closed behind me.  This time I was all alone, which pleased me.  I didn’t want to have to stop at a half dozen floors on the way back to Cody.  Cody’s
condo
, I corrected myself.

The elevator streaked upward.  Impatiently, I watched the floors click by on the counter over the door.  We reached the fourteenth floor and stopped.  I tapped my foot, waiting for the door to open.  Ten seconds…twenty seconds…thirty seconds…  I punched the open door button, but the doors remained shut. 

I pushed the emergency call button, but nothing happened.  Wasn’t there supposed to be a siren or an alarm?  I pushed it again for good measure.

Annoyed at the delay, I reached in my pocket for my cell phone and realized I had left it on the desk.  Fuck, fuck, fuck.

I noticed the box holding a phone that was supposed to be a direct line to the fire department.  Surely, this qualified as an emergency, although I hated setting Cody up to be teased for having a friend who couldn’t get out of an elevator…especially just down the hall from his condo.  I was beginning to feel a little claustrophobic which overrode my concern for Cody’s reputation.  I opened the box, took out the phone and waited for a dial tone.

Silence.  For the first time, I realized even the Muzak that was usually playing had been turned off.  It was as quiet as a tomb.  I hit the phone’s hook over and over, trying to get a connection.

Suddenly the elevator shuddered, then dropped like a rock.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

The elevator car was plummeting at an increasing speed, but somehow everything seemed to be in slow motion.  I felt myself floating, almost weightless, and the thought crossed my mind that this is what it must be like in a space shuttle.  I remembered reading somewhere that lying flat on the floor was the position that gave people the best chance of survival in a falling elevator.  But with the lack of gravity, I was having difficulty getting my body to cooperate.  I grabbed the hand rail as an anchor, but I wasn’t strong enough to force myself down.

As abruptly as it started, the elevator stopped.  I was suspended in midair for a split second, then slammed to the floor.  I gasped for breath and waited for the doors to open.  I didn’t care what level I was on.  I was going to get the hell out of this elevator and walk the rest of the way up…just as soon as my legs stopped shaking.

The elevator jerked, then began a rapid ascent.  This time gravity worked against me, pinning me to the floor with its g-force.  I heard a scream, and since there was no music and I was all alone, I knew it had to be me.

Once again, the elevator came to an abrupt stop.  I saw on the digital counter that I was back on the fourteenth floor.  I scrambled to my knees and started clawing at the doors, trying to pry them open. They gave a little, but wouldn’t open.  I pounded on the open door button, then hit every button on the board, hoping that something would trigger a normal response.  With all the floors lit, I sat back and looked up at the ceiling. I had seen movies where spies were trapped in elevators and climbed out through the ceiling tiles.  Unfortunately, that wasn’t going to happen today.

First of all, the ceiling appeared to be solid marble. I didn’t see any kind of trap door or panel that lifted up. Secondly, I was only five feet seven inches tall, and the ceiling was probably nine or ten feet.  Even if I was able to get a foothold on the handrail, I would never physically be able to reach high enough to pull myself up.

I heard a growl of gears and the elevator started moving again…downward…plummeting, even faster than before.  As I floated past, I grabbed the handrail and hooked my foot under it, so at least I was suspended in midair.  I closed my eyes and waited for the crash.

It screeched to an abrupt stop.  The rail was wrenched out of my grasp, and I tumbled to the floor.  This was like an amusement park ride from hell.  I didn’t move.  This fall knocked the breath out of my lungs, and all I could do was just lie there and gulp in air while waiting…hoping…the doors would open.

They didn’t.

When the elevator began moving upward again, I was barely able to reach up, grab the handrail and hold on, bracing myself for another sudden stop.  When it came, I collapsed in a crumpled pile.  I forced myself to sit up, more to see if I was injured than because I thought there was anything for me to do.

The elevator was deadly still.  I waited, listening for that telltale grind.  Instead, there was a ding, and the doors swooshed open.

It took a couple seconds to register before I scrambled to my hands and knees and half-crawled and half-lurched out of the car into the hallway.  A few feet away, I heard an apartment door open and footsteps running toward me.

“Tulsa, what happened?  Are you okay?”

I felt Cody’s strong arms lift me up and I clung to him in desperation.  “The elevator…went crazy.”

He didn’t wait for a better explanation, but hurried inside his condo.  Gently, he sat me on the couch and started a quick and clinical physical examination. “You’re covered in bruises, but I don’t think anything’s broken,” he told me.

Liberty left her post at the computer and hovered behind him, watching me with worried eyes.  “We didn’t know what was taking you so long.  The cop and your car have been gone for a half hour.”

Now that I wasn’t terrified for my life, I started thinking more clearly.  This was no accident.  “Someone tried to…kill me,” I managed to say through chattering teeth.

Liberty ran into the bedroom and came back with a comforter that she wrapped around me.

“What did he do?” Cody asked.

“I’ve been stuck in the elevator.  It fell, and I thought I was going to die.  It came up…all the way up…and then down again.”  Shock was setting in and I was shaking so badly, I could barely talk. I could feel tears flowing down my cheeks.

“I’m going to call for a medic,” Cody said, but when he started to stand, I grabbed him.

“No!  I’m not going to the hospital.”  I wiped my eyes and tried to sit up straighter.  “I’ll be fine.  It just shook me up a little.”

Reluctantly and because I wouldn’t let go, Cody sat back down.  He pulled me into his arms, and I welcomed the solid security of his body.  When he spoke, I could feel his deep voice vibrating in my ear.

He said thoughtfully, “There are a whole series of safeguards, emergency brakes and governors to stop runaway elevators.  It’s practically unheard of for an elevator in a modern building to fall.”

“Can someone hack into an elevator’s controls?” Liberty asked.

“He did it,” Cody growled.  “The fucker has always been able to get into the building’s security system.  Of course, he would be able to hack into the main computer that handles everything…including the elevators.”

“He must have known I was downstairs,” I added.  “He waited until the police left and I was alone in the elevator.”

The hair rose on the back of my neck.  We couldn’t move or speak or do even the simplest things without that stranger lurking out there, spying on us.  I had never felt more vulnerable in my life.

I snuggled closer, burying my face in the soft cotton of Cody’s t-shirt.  If I was going to die tonight, this was where I wanted to be.

I stretched and almost cried out from the pain.  At least I had a comfortable bed beneath my bruised body.  I looked over and saw, with disappointment, that Cody had already left for work.  I reached out and stroked the indention in the pillow where his head had been.

He had wanted to call off today, but I assured him that Liberty and I wouldn’t step outside the door until his shift was over and he was back home.  The citizens of Austin were counting on him, and even though I would have loved to have him hanging around, I wasn’t that selfish.

Cody had taken good care of me last night.  He filled the over-sized jetted tub and I took a long, hot whirlpool bath that helped my sore muscles.  After I dried off and dressed in a clean t-shirt and pair of shorts, he insisted I sleep in his bed.  I was too beat up to argue, but I talked him into sharing it with me.  However, in spite of being that close and him being as sexy as usual, I almost instantly fell asleep in the protective circle of his arms.

I rolled over and closed my eyes for a moment.

“Oh, good you’re awake,” Liberty’s perpetually cheerful voice chirped.  “I’m making breakfast.  What do you want?”

“Over easy…turn me over easy and leave me alone.”

“Ha ha.  Bacon crispy and waffles…okay?”

My stomach growled at the temptation, and I forced myself to sit up.  “Sure, sounds good.”

Liberty returned to the kitchen and I eased out of bed, brushed my teeth and combed my hair.  My arms were too sore for me to do much styling, so my hairdo of the day was more tousled than spiked.  I was still wearing the shorts and shirt from last night, so within minutes, I was in the kitchen, helping Liberty butter the hot waffles.

“Anything change on the screen?  Did our hacker ever come home?” I asked.

“If he was home, he didn’t go on his computer at all,” Liberty told me as she took the bacon out of the frying pan and placed the strips on some paper towels.  “I did get a message from Santa.  It said,
Do you want to continue tracking? Y / N.
  I clicked
Y
and the message went away, so I guess he’s still searching.”

“Always follow the money,” I repeated what Christopher had said.  I breathed in and winced from a sharp pain in my ribs.

“Are you okay?”  Liberty gave me one of her motherly looks of concern.

“It hurts when I breathe…or move, but I’ll heal.”  I managed a weak smile and picked up a plate that she had loaded with food.  “Smells great and wow…looks amazing.  Powdered sugar on the waffle?”

“Always.”

We sat at the bar instead of messing up the table.  Liberty had found a bottle of real maple syrup and placed it and a large cup of steaming coffee in front of me.

I looked at her and smiled again, this time more genuinely.  “Thank you.”

I dug in with enthusiasm.  I hadn’t realized how hungry I was until the first delicious bite practically melted in my mouth.  “Wow, I didn’t know you could cook like this.”

“I used to cook all the time back at The Farm.  But John does such a great job that I would never trespass in his kitchen.”

“You should tell him you’d like to help.  I’m sure he’d love to have you in there with him.  He always seems a little lonely.”

Liberty’s expression brightened.  “Really?  I might do that.”

“Did you get any sleep last night?”

“I dozed a little at the computer.”  She yawned.  “But I’m looking forward to taking a nap.”

“Have you seen your air bed?  I’m afraid it’s ruined.”

“Oh no!” Liberty exclaimed.

We finished breakfast and took our plates to the sink.  “I want to check the screen.  I’ll be right back to clean up.”

I went to the computer, but everything Liberty had said was true.  Nothing had changed on the screen.  I returned to the kitchen and found Liberty with her arms buried in a sink full of soapy water.

“What are you doing?”

“Dishes.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know how to use one of those.”  She nodded toward the dishwasher.  “There are like six different start positions on the dial.  Everything okay?”

“Just like Christmas…waiting for Santa.”  I opened the dishwasher.  “Here, let me show you how this works.  It’s time you discovered the joy of dishwashers.”

My cell phone rang, and I wiped my hands on a towel and answered it.

“Hello.”

“Hey, Tulsa.  It’s Michael.”

“Oh, hi, Michael.  I was going to call you later and give you a report.  We’ve got some excellent action on…”

“Great.  I’d love to hear about it.  But that’s not why I’m calling.”

“Oh?  What’s going on?”

“Do you have any news?”

“Yes, Liberty and I are staying at Cody’s, taking turns watching his computer.  Why?”

“The fire department just called me.  Cody didn’t show up for work today.”

That caught me by surprise.  “Wait, let me ask Liberty if she knows anything.”
I held the phone away from my mouth and asked, “Liberty, did you talk to Cody this morning?”

“Yes, he had a cup of coffee and a bagel before he left,” she answered.

“Did he say he was going to work?”

“He didn’t say that specifically, but he was dressed in his uniform, so I figured he was.”

I brought the phone back to my ear.  “Did you hear that?” I asked Michael.

“Yes.”
He paused. 

“I’ll see what I can find out and get back to you,” I promised.

“Maybe it’s nothing…”

I could tell from his tone that he didn’t believe that and neither did I.  Considering everything that had been happening lately, this seemed to be part of a very dangerous pattern.  “Talk to you later.”

We hung up and I turned to Liberty.  My heart was pounding in my chest.  I didn’t believe in intuition because it defied all logic, but I could feel, deep in my bones, that something was wrong.

“Cody didn’t make it to work.”

The plate felt from her hands and shattered on the wood floor.

“Oh gosh!  Should we call the police?” she asked.  “Or Christopher?”

I didn’t know what to do.  This was way beyond my cyber experience.  I could handle a computer bug or a virus from someone who claimed to be a Nigerian prince that had inherited a million dollars.  What I wasn’t comfortable dealing with was how to help a real live human being.  The fact that I was in love with that human only added to the complexity.