The Decoy
Candy Store
Deaq and Van entered the Candy Store and walked over to Billie who was looking at her computer screen. As they neared her she spun the screen around so it faced them. Deaq looked at the screen, then at Van, then back at the screen. Van kept his gaze on the screen.
"What's going on Billie?" Van asked.
"Meet Randy Bentz." Billie said nodding toward the screen.
"What's he doing with Van's face?" Deaq asked.
The picture on the screen could have been Van's identical twin. The hair was a little darker and shorter and he wore dark rimmed glasses but other then that it was Van.
"Who is this guy?" Van asked.
"He's a star witness against the Las Vegas mob. He kept their books. We got him and now he wants to make a deal for amnesty if he testifies against his former boss. Needless to say the boss wants him dead, but first they want to find out what he knows, and what he told us so far.
"Sooooo." Van said, he had a feeling he knew where this was heading.
"Van, this assignment is going to be extremely dangerous. The department wants you to impersonate Bentz. They want to keep the mob on your tail so they can get Bentz to Las Vegas to testify before the grand jury.
"Why can't they just surround him with guards and fly him in?" Deaq asked.
"Bentz refuses to fly. He'll only travel by car."
"So in other words, you want my man here to run around with a target on his back while this guy slips quietly into Las Vegas."
"That's about it. We don't think the mob will try to kill Bentz, at least not right away. We think they might try to kidnap him to make him tell them what he knows and how much he's told us. He has all kinds of numbers in his head. Bank accounts, addresses, you name it."
"Oh, that makes me feel better." Deaq said sarcastically. "Instead of killing him they're just going to torture him till he talks."
Billie knew Deaq was worried for his partner's welfare, and she understood his concern.
"Deaq, Van is going to be surrounded by guards, he's going to be well protected."
"Hey don't I get to say something about all this?" Van put up his hand.
"Yeah, tell her no way partner." Deaq said looking at Van.
"I'm going to have to dye my hair and cut it?"
Deaq looked at him in shock.
"That's what you're worried about?! Van these guys know more about how to torture someone then.........."
"Deaq is right, this could get bloody. It's up to you Van, if you say no I'll understand." Billie interrupted Deaq.
Van looked over at Deaq who kept shaking his head no.
"Don't do it Van, don't do it. This is the mob we're talking about."
"Okay Billie I'll do it." He gave Deaq a little shrug. "Hey, it's my job partner."
"Damn it Van!" Deaq spun away shaking his head.
"Be sure about this Van. Something could go wrong and if they get you.........."
"I don't want to know Billie, let's just get it over with."
"Well, right now Bentz is in the L.A. Majestic Hotel with the feds. We're going to disguise you, get you in and up to the room and then get Bentz out."
"What about me?" Deaq wondered where he was going to fit into all this.
"I'm afraid you're going to have to sit this one out Deaq."
"What?!!" No way Billie!"
"We're pretty certain the mob has already seen the faces of the guys who are protecting Bentz, if all of a sudden they see a new face around him they'll get nervous and might suspect something."
"I'm not going to just sit back and do nothing while some hit men go after my partner!"
"You'll be here with me monitoring the situation."
"Monitoring the situation?"
"Yeah, we're going to insert a Global Positioning System chip below Van's hairline. But this isn't just a GPS chip it has a small audio chip attached to it. We'll be able to keep an eye on his location, plus hear everything that's being said."
"You're going to insert a what? How big is this thing?" Van had an aversion to needles and the thought of them inserting something into him was making him nervous.
"Don't worry Van, once it's in you won't feel a thing."
"I'm more worried about how it's going to feel going in."
"I've got a bad feeling about this Billie." Deaq didn't like the idea of not being there to back up his partner. He had heard stories about the mob and knew they didn't play nice.
"There's going to be three federal agents in the car with him and a backup car with four feds in it following them." Billie said trying to calm Deaq's fears. "The odds of the mob going after him are minimal."
"When does all this go down?" Van asked.
"Day after tomorrow. We gotta get the chip inserted and get your hair dyed and cut. We also need you to look at some tapes of Bentz to try to get some of his mannerisms down."
"I don't care about the dye, but the haircut.................I don't know."
"Van it'll grow back!" Billie shook her head smiling and looked at Deaq who didn't return her smile. She knew he didn't like the thought of his partner going off on a potentially dangerous assignment without him, but that was the way it had to be. "Okay then let's get this show on the road."
Later
The rest of the day was spent dyeing Van's hair a darker shade and shortening it slightly. The federal agents came over and inserted the chip under his hairline. Tiny stitches closed the cut. The following day Van spent the day in the Candy Store watching tapes of Randy Bentz to try and get his walk and mannerisms down. The GPS
equipment was checked and doubled checked, everything was going fine. Later that night Van was snuck into the motel room disguised as a tourist and the exchange took place.
Early the next morning
Four men sat in a white van across the street keeping an eye on the motel. They watched as Van was escorted from the motel and put in the back of a black Lincoln, a similar Lincoln with back up agents pulled up behind it. As they drove away the van followed at a safe distance.
Candy StoreDeaq and Billie watched as the GPS screen lit up and started tracking the car Van was in. They also could clearly hear all conversation in the car. Van and the men were casually discussing last night's basketball game. Deaq paced back and forth at first but as the hours passed he began to relax a little. There was nothing from their conversations in the car to indicate any kind of concern. Hopefully all his worrying had been for nothing.
"Well in a couple of hours it will be all over with." Billie said as she picked up a cup of coffee and sipped it.
"It won't be over till my partner's back in L.A. being his usual pain in the ass." Deaq gave Billie a small smile.
An hour later
Suddenly a large explosion could be heard over the receiver.
"What the hell was that?!!" Deaq said jumping up and staring at the GPS screen.
The sound of the agents in the car swearing and shouting next came over the wire. Then they heard Van's voice.
"Billie, it's going down! It's going down!" He shouted hoping Deaq and Billie could hear him. "They blew up the backup car! We need an ambulance out here!"
Billie and Deaq listened in horror as they heard the sound of squealing tires and gunshots. There was the sound of a smaller explosion then something even more terrifying, silence.
"Van! Talk to me partner!" Deaq yelled even though Van had no way to hear him. In the meantime Billie frantically contacted the department to tell them what was happening and to contact the Nevada state police and get help out to the men.
The sound of moaning came over the receiver. The explosion had rocked Van's car and he was dazed as he looked up and saw four gunmen approaching the car. The agents in the car were systematically shot and then the gunmen turned their attention to Van.
"Welcome home Randy." Sonny, one of the gunmen said smiling as he leaned in the car. "Zap him with the stun gun, we want him alive." He said to a man standing beside him.
Billie and Deaq heard Van yelp with pain as he was shot with the stun gun. They looked in fear at the GPS screen, it had gone blank.
"What the hell's going on Billie?!" Deaq said looking at the blank screen.
"I don't know." Billie fiddled frantically with the dials on the set. "When they zapped him they must have shorted out the system."
"Oh that's just great!" Deaq started pacing back and forth. Now they would have no way of knowing where they were taking Van.
"Listen." Billie said putting up her hand.
Even though the GPS chip had ceased to operate they could still hear everything that was happening. The audio chip hadn't suffered the same fate.
"Let's get him out of here." Tony said.
They tossed Van in the back of the van and sped off.
Candy StoreDeaq took a deep breath and shut his eyes briefly. What he feared most had happened.........they had his partner.
"Billie we got to go there. We got to go to the last location we had on the GPS.
They're probably going to be holding him somewhere around there."
"I'm already working on it. I'm getting a plane to fly us in, it's about twenty miles west of Las Vegas. They'll have a car waiting for us when we get there."
"Billie.........you know what they're going to do to him."
Billie could clearly see the concern for his partner written all over his face.
"We got to hurry Deaq." She grabbed a portable receiver and programmed Van's audio chip frequency into it. They could take it with them and at least be able to hear everything that was happening to Van. Hopefully he might be able to give them some idea of where he was being held. Billie was worried. She didn't know how Deaq would react when he heard Van being tortured. In fact, she didn't know if she could stand to listen to it either.
Later on the flight to Las VegasThey immediately boarded a private flight to an airstrip outside of Las Vegas. On the way there, they listened to the sound of Van being beaten.
"What did you tell them?" Sonny asked.
"Nothing." Van answered.
He was rewarded by a rifle butt slammed into his stomach. He grunted in pain and fell to one knee.
"We can do this all day Bentz, now what did you tell the feds?"
"I told them nothing."
This time the rifle connected with the side of Van's face snapping his head back and rendering him unconscious.
"Hey Sonny, lay off of him for a while. We don't want to kill him. Let's tie him up and stick him in the back room till he comes around."
On the planeBillie looked over at Deaq who was trying unsuccessfully to keep his emotions under control. Each time his partner was hit his body visibly jerked in reaction to it.
"We're going to find him, we're going to get him back." She said softly touching his hand.
"We gotta Billie, I'm not leaving Vegas without him."
A half hour laterThey listened as Van began to wake up.
"Where are you guys?" He moaned, speaking to Billie and Deaq, hoping they could hear him, but not knowing that even though they could hear him, they had no idea where he was. "I think they're all dead.........They blew up the back up car.........with some kind of hand rocket launcher.............or something, I don't know. They shot...........the agents in my car. There's four of them..........white Chevy van............didn't get the license. We're in a motel............somewhere in the desert.............I'm not sure how far from the accident scene."
Van stopped talking as the men once more entered his room.
"Untie him Sonny."
Once untied, he lay on the floor wondering what was in store for him.
"Take off your pants and shirt." Tony ordered.
"Go to hell!"
"Take them off or I'll have them take them off of you." He said nodding toward two of the mobsters.
Van still didn't move.
"Mikey, Vinny, get his clothes off, but leave his briefs on." He laughed. "Let's leave him a little dignity."
They struggled with Van and finally got his pants and shirt off.
"Vinny, go turn the air conditioning up all the way." Tony then looked at Van. "Hey Bentz, how well can you breathe under water?"
Tony went into the bathroom and filled the large tub with cold water.
"Bring him in."
"I'm going to ask you again. What did you tell them?"
Van said nothing.
"Put him in the tub."
Van was thrown in the tub and Tony held his face under the water till Van felt like his lungs were going to burst. They released him and he came up coughing and gasping for air. Before he could get a full breath he was once more forced under the water.
On the planeThey could hear the sound of Van struggling in the water and of his attempts to get a breath of air. After listening for a few minutes Deaq reached over to turn the sound off, tears glistened in his eyes. He couldn't listen anymore. Billie put her hand out and stopped him.
"I know it's hard Deaq but we got to listen. They might say something to give us a clue to where they're holding him."
Deaq sat back on his seat and shut his eyes, listening to his partner's torment.
Motel room"He's had enough. You're going to kill him."
"Yeah, if he dies all the information he has dies with him."
They pulled Van out of the tub and dropped him onto the floor. He didn't move.
"Oh that's just great! You've killed him!"
"I told you, you held him under too long, you jerk."
On the planeDeaq's eyes popped open and his breathing quicken as he heard the last transmission.
"Oh God no!" He said as looked over at Billie who sat staring at the receiver her eyes wide with fear.
"Come on partner breathe! Come on buddy you got to breathe! Please come on breathe!" Deaq kept repeating over and over willing Van to take a breath.
Billie turned and looked out the window her eyes glistening up with tears.
Motel room"Don't any of you idiots know CPR?"
They looked at each other but no one volunteered.
"You know the boss is going to be really pissed off when he finds out we killed him."
There was silence for a few moments then Sonny spoke up.
"I know, get the stun gun!"
"Good idea." Tony went out to the other room and returned with the gun. He charged it up, put it near Van's heart, and pressed the trigger. Van's body convulsed on the floor. After the second shock, he began spitting up water, tinged red with blood.
"Why the hell's he spitting up blood?" Vinny asked.
"Who knows, probably busted something in his lungs. Tie him over there by the air conditioner."
"He'll freeze to death." Mikey said.
"He ain't going to freeze to death you jerk. But he'll probably catch one hell of a cold." Tony said laughing.
On the plane"Oh thank God, thank God." Deaq said relieved that his partner wasn't dead. He looked over at Billie. "They said he's coughing up blood. He could be busted up inside."
"Probably broke some blood vessels in his lungs." She looked at Deaq angrily wiping at the tears that threatened to run down her cheek. The pain on his face was hard to look at."I'm so sorry Deaq. I shouldn't have talked Van into accepting this assignment. I never thought................well, I thought he had enough protection, I never thought.........." She turned away from him, she couldn't continue. Her heart ached at the thought that they might not get to Van in time.
"Billie, don't go blaming yourself. You didn't put a gun to his head. Van took the assignment knowing what he might be getting into."
She couldn't look back at him. She didn't want to see the pain in his eyes. They had almost lost Van and they still could.
They listened as Van was tied to a chair, they could hear the air conditioner humming in the background. Then they heard the sound of a door slam and Van throwing up water and moaning, barely conscious. Twenty minutes later he was fully conscious and miserable.
"Where the hhhhhell are you gggguys?" He said shivering, he was freezing. The cold air was blowing on his wet, half naked body. "DDDDeag I need cha mmmman, where are you bbbbuddy."
Deaq closed his eyes as he heard his partner call to him, knowing he had no idea where to start looking for him.
For the next few minutes they listened as Van coughed up more water.
"Hey BBBBBillie, if this is Deaq's wwwway of ggggetting a new ppppartner, I think it sssstinks." He gave a little laugh, but they could hear the pain in his voice.
Finally the plane started to land. As soon as it was down, they climbed in the car they had waiting for them and headed toward the scene of the ambush. Billie drove.
"Hang in their partner, we're coming." Deaq said out loud.
"Hey, you ggggguys can ppppop in anyttttttime nnnow." Van continued talking to them. "I'm nnnnnot having fffffun anymore." Even though he joked over the audio chip he was terrified. He knew Billie and Deaq should have been there by now. He wasn't even sure if they could hear him.
Scene of the ambushAs they drove up to the scene a state trooper stopped them. Billie flashed her badge and told the officer what had happened. She didn't tell him that one of her own men was missing, only that a state witness had been kidnapped and that most likely the suspects were still in the area driving a white Chevy van, probably staying at a motel. She wasn't sure who she could trust and didn't want it to get back to the kidnappers that Van was a decoy and their real target was already in Las Vegas. If they found that out there would be no reason to keep him alive. As Billie talked to the officer Deaq sat in the car listening to his partner talk to him. He would have given anything if he could tell Van not to give up that they were getting closer. They weren't going back to L.A. till he was with them. Tears stung his eyes when he thought of what his partner had gone through, and what he still might have to go through, and there was nothing he could do to help him. When he heard the men reenter Van's room he took a deep breath to try and stay in control, his partner didn't need him freaking out. He called Billie over.
Motel room"You look a little blue Bentz."
Van didn't answer but Billie and Deaq could hear him shivering from the cold over the receiver.
"Sooner or later you're going to talk to us, might as well do it now and save yourself some pain."
"I dddddidn't tell the ffffeds anything."
"Boy, you really are cold aren't you?" Tony said laughing.
In the background you could hear the other men laughing also.
"Mikey, take your belt off and tie it tight around his upper thigh."
"What are you going to do now Tony?" Mikey asked as he did what he was told.
"I sssswear, I ddddidn't tell them anyttttthing." Van knew this was going to get bad.
"Sorry, I don't believe you buddy."
"What the hell are you going to do? Shoot him?" Sonny said as Tony pulled out his gun.
"Yeah, that's why I wanted his leg tied off. I don't want him bleeding to death." Tony said as he put a pillow in front of the gun then aimed it at Van's thigh. "This is going to hurt a little bit." He said as he pulled the trigger.
Van screamed in agony as the bullet tore through his leg.
In the car"Damn it Billie they're going to kill him!" Deaq shouted as he slammed his fist into the dashboard.
Tears filled Billie's eyes as she heard Van's painful scream.
"We have the whole police force looking for the van. We're going to find him Deaq." She said to him trying to convince her self as well as him.
"But will he be alive Billie?!! Those bastards are killing my partner, inch by inch! Van's screwed Billie! If he tells them he's not Bentz, he's dead! If he doesn't tell them something they'll keep torturing him till he does! And he doesn't even know enough about Bentz and what he did to make up some fake information to give them! Van's fucked Billie and you know it!" Deaq's voice cracked with emotion at the thought of losing his partner.
Billie knew Deaq was right. If they didn't find Van soon he probably wouldn't make it. Sooner or later they would end up killing.him.
Motel roomVan groaned in pain. His leg felt like it was on fire. He squeezed his eyes shut and pressed his head back against the chair.
"Damn it Tony what if you hit an artery or something? He could bleed to death." Sonny said.
"That's why I put the belt around his leg stupid. He ain't going to bleed to death, might lose his leg, but he's not going to bleed to death. Now is when the fun begins. Vinny go get the salt."
Vinny went into the other room and came back with an unopened bottle of salt and handed it to Tony who opened it and poured it on Van's wound. Van once more cried out in agony. He couldn't stop the tears of pain from running down his face.
"So that's why we picked up the salt on the way down."
"Hey, I come prepared." Tony said smiling enjoying the pain he was inflicting.
"You've done this before?"
"Many times. Usually they break before now..........but he'll break sooner or later, they all do, then he'll be begging to tell us what he knows."
In the carDeaq sat staring out the side window. Hearing Van's painful screams had turned his whole body numb. His partner was suffering terribly and there was nothing he could do but sit there listening to it.
Billie suddenly slammed on the breaks and pulled over to the shoulder or the road.
"What's the matter?" Deaq looked at her.
"Deaq, we're checking all the motels in the area, looking for a white van........"
"Yeah, what about it?"
"I don't know why neither one of us thought of this before............They're not trying to keep Van quiet. If they were staying at a motel that was open they'd have to keep him quiet right? They'd have to gag him so anyone staying at the motel wouldn't hear him."
"What about the gunshot? They muffled the sound of that."
"A gunshot travels a lot further then a scream. Deaq, Van said they're at a motel, but I think it's closed for some reason, maybe renovations or something. The waters on, because they filled the tub, so we know it isn't closed permanently because the water would have been turned off." She grabbed her phone and notified the police to only check motels that were temporarily closed for some reason. She prayed she was right, she had to be, Van's life depended on it.
Motel room"Damn this boy's tough to break." Sonny said as he looked at Van shaking his head.
"Maybe he likes pain." Tony laughed. "Hey Vinny, get that box that I left outside and bring it in here."
"What are you going to do now?" Sonny asked.
"You'll see. Tie him to the bed."
As Van was untied he tightly clenched his teeth to keep from crying out in pain as he was forced over to the bed. They tied him down, hands to each of the top bedposts, feet to each of the bottom. He lay on the bed shivering, not just from the cold, but also from pain and fear.
Vinny soon came back with the box and handed it to Tony. It was tied shut with a string, which Tony untied smiling.
"What do you got there Tony?" Vinny asked leaning over to look in the box.
"Scorpions!" Vinny said as he jumped back.
"Don't their stings kill you?" Mikey asked as he too stood back.
"Well I guess if you're allergic to them, but usually they just hurt like hell." He smiled down at Van. "Boy, soon you're going to be in a world of pain."
He poured the box over Van's body. Five scorpions fell onto his chest. Van tried not to move as they crawled over him. Tony swatted at one of them causing it to sting Van on the stomach. He hissed with pain, while the men laughed.
"Boy, that looked painful." Vinny said to the group.
"Let's have us a little fun." Tony said as he lifted up the waistband of Van' briefs as a scorpion crawled by. It immediately ran into the darkness. The men once more broke into laughter.
"Man, he's going to be in some serious pain if it stings him down there."
Van shut his eyes as he felt the scorpions crawling all over him. The pain in his leg was becoming unbearable and the sting from the scorpion felt like a white-hot needle had been stuck in his stomach. Where were Deaq and Billie? He could feel his body trembling, he was scared, more scared then he had been in a long time. He felt totally alone and helpless. Only his pride kept him from crying out and begging them to stop.
In the carDeaq kept clenching and unclenching his fists and teeth as he listened to what they were doing to his partner. He tried to get the picture of it out of his head, but couldn't. Sooner or later Van would break and tell them he wasn't Bentz. Then they would have no reason to keep him alive. He glanced over at Billie and knew she was having a tough time holding it together. He could see unshed tears glistening in her eyes. He almost wished they couldn't hear anything. Then at least they wouldn't have to picture what Van was going through. He knew his partner would try to hold out as long as he could, but sooner or later they would break him. Right now he could be bleeding to death from the bullet wound, or have an allergic reaction to the scorpion bite. They had no way of knowing. He blinked back tears and turned his head looking out the window so Billie wouldn't see. He couldn't even imagine not having Van for a partner. He had grown close to Van even though he had tried not to and the thought of losing him was tearing him apart. A tear ran down his face and he wiped at it angrily. Right now all he wanted was his partner back and to make the men who had hurt him pay for what they were doing to him.
Motel room"I'm getting tired of playing games with you Bentz. I want to hit the tables in Vegas, not baby sit you all night." Tony was growing impatient. He reached over and shoved his thumb deep into the wound on Van's thigh. Van threw his head back and cried out.
"Oh GGGod! Oh God please no mmmmore!" He hated himself for crying out but the pain was unbearable.
"Tell me what you told the feds!" Tony said as he pushed his thumb in deeper.
"I ddddidn't ttttell them anyttttthing!" Van painfully screamed out the words.
"Maybe he's telling you the truth Tony." Mikey said. "If he told them anything, he would have told us by now."
In the carBillie knew Deaq was going to lose it at any moment. He stared straight ahead, his face a mask of rage as he listened to Van being tortured. She knew his heart had been ripped in half long ago, like hers, and now all he wanted was revenge. Just then Billie's cell phone rang.
"Yeah."
"We think we got it. The Desert Oasis, just three miles north of the ambush location. It's been under renovation for the last month. The local police spotted a white van parked in the back."
Billie glanced at a map Deaq was holding then spun the car around and headed in the direction.
"We'll be there in a few minutes. Be careful, these men are extremely dangerous. They're holding a very important witness who they will kill if they see you coming. Do you know if there is anything we can use as cover near by?"
"Yeah, there are a lot of large rocks on all sides of the motel. They should provide plenty of cover."
"Good, we got to take them by surprise. We don't want the witness caught in the crossfire. We'll need an ambulance out there also."
They rushed toward the site.
Motel roomI don't know what the hell's going on Bentz but you should be singing like a bird by now." Tony looked over at Sonny. "Get me a knife. He doesn't need to be able to see in order to sing."
Sonny handed Tony the knife.
"Hey, I ain't going to watch you cut someone's eyes out. Fuck that." Mikey said as he left the motel room and stepped outside for a smoke.
"Maybe this will make you talk." Tony said holding the knife in front of Van's eyes.
"No, no don't." Van said weakly.
Outside the motel"Hurry Billie!" Deaq hearing Van knew this was it. If they didn't get in and grab him quickly he would die.
The police gathered amongst the rocks hidden from the motel. Looking at the motel they could see someone standing outside of one of the rooms. As they were discussing their strategy on how best to approach the motel Deaq slipped away. He knew his partner needed him now. Billie seeing him followed.
"Deaq." Billie whispered, she knew the hate he was feeling toward the men might get him killed. She motioned that she would go around the motel and come in from the other side. He nodded. Billie went around and approached behind the man who was standing on the porch.
"Got a light?" Billie asked.
The man spun around a startled expression on his face.
"Who the hell are you and what are you doing here?"
"I was just passing by." She said smiling.
As he walked toward her Deaq snuck up behind him and knocked him out with the butt of his gun. He quietly lowered his body to the ground, then crept over and peeked in the window. He swallowed the lump in his throat. Van lay stretched out, naked except for his briefs, tied to the bed. Deaq could see him shivering through the window. His body covered in bruises and welts from where the scorpions had stung him. Blood ran down his thigh onto the bed. He looked terrible, but at least he was alive. Tony stood over him. He had Van's hair in his hand and was forcing his head back. A knife was held just inches from his eyes. Two other men stood in the room watching. Deaq knew he couldn't wait for back up. He had to act now or Van could lose his sight and maybe his life. He slammed the gun butt against the window shattering it. The cold air from the room rushed out to combine with the hot desert air.
"Police! Freeze!" Deaq shouted as he pointed his gun at Tony. Billie ran up behind him and aimed her gun toward the two other men. "Put down the knife and step away from him!" He yelled at Tony who didn't move but kept the knife just inches from Van's eyes. "Put it down now and step away from him or I swear I'll blow your fucking head off!" Tony finally released Van's hair and stepped back, he tossed the knife on the floor. "Can you cover them Billie?" Deaq asked. All he wanted was to get in that room and take care of his partner.
"Yeah I got them." Billie said as she kept switching the aim of her gun between the three different men.
Deaq hurried to the door and opened it. After entering he carefully disarmed the men and positioned them against the wall. He held them there until Billie came in to watch them. He then hurried to his partner. His eyes welled up when he saw close up the damage done to his partner.
"Hey buddy." He said first flicking the remaining scorpions off of Van then cutting the ropes that were binding Van to the bed.
"What ttttttook you so llllong?" Van said looking at Deaq, his lips tinted blue from the cold. He shivered uncontrollably, his face etched with pain.
"Sorry partner. We sort of lost you there for a while."
Once free Van slowly pulled up his waistband , reached inside, and carefully picked up the scorpion. He threw it across the room. Deaq looked at him questioningly wondering if he had been stung. Van shook his head in answer. He had been very lucky that he hadn't been stung below, apparently the scorpion had become dormant once it was in the darkness. But the other scorpions had done their job. He had large, festering stings over his chest and legs. Deaq sat on the bed with his partner and wrapped him in the bed sheets trying to warm him. Van's body felt like ice. Deaq rubbed Van's arms and legs, careful of the wound on his thigh, trying to get some warmth back in his body.
A little while later the place was swarming with cops. Two paramedics hurried into the room and began to treat Van. After he had warmed up and been treated, he looked over at Billie and gave her a small smile.
"Hey Billie, next time Deaq tries to stop me from taking an assignment........make sure I listen."
Billie smiled.
"Yeah, next time." She was thankful that there would be a next time.
Deaq kept his word, they didn't leave Vegas without Van. Both he and Billie stayed in Vegas until Van was well enough to be transferred to a L.A. Hospital.
EpilogueVan slowly recovered from his ordeal. He needed therapy for his leg for a few weeks but that went well and the slight case of pneumonia that he developed cleared up after treatment. He was soon on his way to a full recovery. Randy Bentz testified to a grand jury about his former boss and was put into the witness protection program. He died a short time later in a car accident. The four men who had held Van were found guilty of kidnapping and assault and each received a thirty-year sentence.
The End