Chapter 3-Rick
Bright glare hit him in the face, and Rick had to fight to keep from blinking in its intensity. Half turned away from the door, he squinted and saw the figure of a women jerking away from the group silowetted in the doorway, then flinging herself on her knees in front of him.
To his amazement, he heard "Rick, darling, what have they done to you?" Realizing it was Laurie, he closed his eyes tight, hoping it was only a dream.
Then he felt her wrapping her arms around him, and registered that she slid something sharp up his sleeve.
Bless you, he thought, recognizing the little shiv she carried "just in case". He felt them pull her away, and peeking out of the corner of his eye, saw them drag her to the opposite wall and tie her to a support post.
He heard steps close to his head, then the clipped voice of Madame Kahane, gloating.
"Well, Ms. Scott, this has been most interesting. I hope you will enjoy the few minutes you will have with your fiancee, for soon he will be leaving you to be found by the coroner in the morning. As for you, I believe I will keep you for insurance just in case his brother causes any trouble, or maybe I'll let you disappear, too."
"Good bye for now. Come along, we have guests to take care of".
He heard the door close, then waiting a moment Just in case, he whispered, "Laurie?"
He heard "Rick? Thank God!, her hushed voice in reply. "Hang on, I'll be right there," he then started working the knife edge up and down, slicing through the ropes in a matter of minutes. Once his hands were free, he worked the circulation back into them and untied his ankles.
Crawling along the floor, he reached the opposite wall and felt his way along it until he found Laurie. "I knew we'd find you, are you alright?",
"Just sore, where's A.J., they didn't get him, did they?" He put his arms around her to support her while he untied her wrists, then her legs. "No, he's just outside".
"Rest a moment, sweetheart, then we'll find a way out of here." He felt her nod against his shoulder, then she said "A.J., Rick's alright, he's right here."
He realized that she was talking to his brother on some kind of transmitter, then he saw her pull out an earpiece and hand it to him. Putting it up to his own ear, he heard A.J.'s voice, "Rick, where are you guys? Have Laurie shine her flashlight at a window or something." "There's a window up there", he said, pointing at the wall.
Laurie found her flashlight on the ground and trying it, found it still worked. She flashed it at the spot Rick pointed to, and he heard his brother say, "I see it, hang on, I'll try to open it".
While Laurie listened for noise outside the door, Rick found a chair to stand on and tried to open the window from the inside. Using Laurie's shiv, he managed to pry the rusted latch loose and open the window. Suddenly, Laurie whispered, "I hear voices coming, I'll jam the door, Rick, you hoist yourself up.".
Rick strode over to the door where Laurie was fiddling with the lock, picked her up, saying "ladies first". and pushed her up and through the window. Just then he heard the door being opened, and pulled himself through the opening. A. J and Laurie helped him up, and peering back in the room the threesome saw Madame Kahane yelling, "How did they get out of here?"
A.J. pulled his gun and aiming it at her, said, "They had help, lady, now drop your weapon and down on the floor." The two men with the older woman dropped their guns and lay down on the floor, and not until A.J. cocked the hammer did she comply. Just then Sgt. Williams came running up, "Mr. Simon, did you find them?" "I did, along with their kidnappers. The sargeant pulled his service weapon and said, "Glad to see you're alright, Ms. Scott, Mr. Simon. If you go around to the side, you'll find a rear exit to the basement. I'll cover them until you get there." Rick kissed Laurie and told her firmly, "You stay with Sgt. Williams, we'll be right back."
The Simons headed around the corner, as the sergeant directed the crooks to cross their legs and arms behind them. They found the rear steps and entrance to the basement as the policeman had directed, and just as they entered the room, a familiar voice called, "Ms. Scott, are you all right?" Looking through the window, they saw Captain Howard come up to Laurie. "Captain, I'm fine, thank you. We found Rick and with the Sergeant's help, the kidnappers are coming out now."
"Nice work, Sergeant, you go help the Simons, I'll take care of Ms. Scott." The policeman hesitated, then said "yes, sir". Using the rope that had been used to secure him, Rick tied The wrists of the prisoners, while A.J. covered them. Pulling them to their feet, the brothers had to endure Madame Kahane mouthing obscenities at them and her staff. When Sergeant Williams came in; he took charge of her while A.J. marched the other two in front of him. They had barely reached the ground floor when they heard Laurie cry out "Rick, A.J!"
Rick ran ahead to the side of the building just in time to see Laurie being shoved inside a car by Captain Howard, who then slid in and started the vehicle. "No!", Rick yelled, sprinting toward the curb just as the car pulled away. Behind him he heard Williams call out "We'll take my car!" and handed off the prisoners to a policeman coming out of the front of the mansion.
Piling into the unmarked car, A. J. said, "she's still miked" and tuned up the receiver full volume. They heard the Captain yelling, "I warn you, stay down or I'll dump you in the quicksand." The sergeant screeched away from the curb then said, "He's headed for the woods, down the back drive." Making a quick turn past the manor, they drove across the landscaped gardens toward the trees, stopping only when they saw the abandoned police car and the captain dragging Laurie, wrists handcuffed, through the forest. Rick and A.J. bolted from the car and raced after them as the sergeant radioed for reinforcements.
Just as the Simons reached the warning signs, A.J. tossed Rick his gun, yelling, "Laurie, drop!" Catching the policeman by surprise, she pulled away from his grip and threw herself to the ground.
Furious, Howard reached for her only to have Rick shoot him, dropping him to his knees. Suddenly he began to sink, and they realized he was in the quicksand. Laurie tried to crawl away from him as he started to flail his arms, then screamed as he grabbed her ankle and she slowly slid backwards. Rick raced forward and flung himself on his stomach, "A.J., hold on to my legs", he yelled, and gripped Laurie's wrists. "Look at me, sweetheart, hang on and don't let go." She nodded weakly and dug her knees in to stop sliding toward the almost submerged policeman. Slowly A.J. and Rick pulled her away from the quicksand, until Howard's death grip was broken and they lifted her away from the muck. Laurie started to shake as Rick took her in his arms and held her, unclasping the handcuffs and saying "Sweetheart, it's over, you're safe".
"Oh my god, what a nightmare, he was going to help Madame Kahane dispose of you then use me to get A.J. and kill us both, " she said, fighting back tears.
"He was going to head for the airport until he saw us standing outside the mansion and decided to make sure none of us got to question Madame or her staff. When he offered to have me sit in his car, I noticed a ring like that Madame Kahane wore on his hand, and I realized he must be involved with her organization. When I tried to walk away, he pulled his gun and handcuffed me. He saw you leave the storeroom, so he started to point his gun at where you and A.J. were coming out, so I kicked it out of his hand and that's when he threw me into the car. If you hadn't followed us.."
A.J. grinned, offering his hand and helping both his brother and Laurie up. "Honey, you're the one who told us where you were headed by keeping that mike open". She looked down at the transmitter still attached to her dress, then started to laugh with relief. "I completely forgot it was on!" Rick kissed her away her tears, then threw an arm around his brother, saying," I knew my little brother would replace me someday, I just didn't know he would have the good taste to pick my best girl!"
Just then Williams walked to the edge of the quicksand and stared into its depths, before directing the officers with him to mark the area where Howard had disappeared. He came over and said "I'm glad to see that you're unhurt, Ms. Scott, I just wish we had discovered Captain Howard's involvement with Madame Kahane before." Rick held out his hand, "Sergeant, better late then never I always say!" Williams smiled and shook it. "Speaking of late, it's almost midnight, let me offer you a ride to the hotel."
Despite their protests, A.J. asked the sergeant to stop at the at the hospital emergency room, and insisted Laurie and Rick get checked out, especially for the ugly bruises around his brother's right eye.
Fortunately, an examination showed Laurie was only suffering a sprained wrist and assorted cuts and scratches, while Rick had a cracked right cheekbone and mild concussion.
The doctor on duty prescribed aspirin, ice and a good night's rest for both, so A.J. retrieved his rental car and drove all three back to the hotel. When they entered the lobby, they were met with a relieved Cecilia, Robin and Robert, who burst into cheers and tears at the sight of Rick. Surrounded by hugs and kisses, Rick caught his brother's eye and saw him well up with emotion.
I'll never leave him on a cross word again, Rick vowed, as they moved their reunion to the hotel suite.
As Cecilia bustled about getting ice packs for Laurie and Rick, the kids pestered them with questions about the crooks, the police sergeant who helped them, even the leis they received at the airport. Rick finally got a word in edgewise and told them how he had been tricked into coming back to the Gentlemen's club by the promise of meeting with a girl who knew where Jade was.
Once he had entered the club, he was taken at gunpoint by Madame Kahane to the basement and threatened with being beaten if he didn't call his brother and tell him he was going back to San Diego and for him to join him. "I refused and that's when when they gave me the shiner. When they came in today and told me that my fiancée was in town and they had just "missed" reuniting us, I didn't know what to believe." A.J. shook his head. "It's a good thing Laurie gave them something to think about in the appearance of the hat in the quicksand, they had to put off getting rid of you until we were satisfied."
Finally winding down, Robin and Robert settled down next to Laurie. Robin cleared her throat, then said, "Aunt Laurie, I thought about what you said about changing schools and stuff, if I did go to high school in San Diego, and it didn't work, I could change back to going to school in Arizona, couldn't I?"Laurie looked at her niece, then at Rick. "Sure, honey, at least you would have seen what it was like, maybe meet some new friends and take some new subjects. Rob, do you still want to try High School in San Diego, too?"
Rob nodded, smiling at his sister. "I think it would be great, I could take courses we don't have at home, and we could still spend winter in Arizona!"
Laurie glanced at Rick, "Are you willing to have two high schoolers in your home, dashing in and out, needing help with homework?"
Rick gazed at her for a moment, then slowly replied, "On two conditions: We get married in two months, as we planned, and..,", he grinned "you two don't mind your Aunt and I legally adopting you."
Both teens looked at each other, then started screaming "Yes!", and took turns embracing their aunt and Rick, then A.J. and a tearful Cecilia. Laurie hugged her, then put her arms around Rick and kissed him gently. At that point Cecilia started yawning broadly and A.J. and the kids got the hint and made their good nights.
A.J. stopped in the doorway of their suite, winked and said, "Don't keep him up too late", then dodged a thrown sofa pillow. Cecilia said good night, too, reminding them of the doctor's orders.
Rick gathered Laurie into his arms, as she whispered "Don't ever let me go, I'm afraid I'll wake up and they'll have taken you from me". "Sweetheart, that's never going to happen again. I love you. And no one's ever going to separate us." She gazed at him, then said, "and I promise that all decisions about the kids, discipline, schools, rules, whatever, we're going to make as a team. They need a father and mother to work together on things, not apart." He grinned, then standing up, picked her up and said, "I can handle fatherhood, and you!" Laughing, he kissed her then set her down at her doorway. "Good night, sweetheart, I can hardly wait for the day I can come in." "So can I," she sighed, embracing him and then going inside.
Rick tiptoed to his room, and as he entered, A.J. turned over in bed and grinned. "Everything ok now?"
His older brother smiled back, "Everything is right again, better get your tux ready, we're getting three more Simons!"
Bright glare hit him in the face, and Rick had to fight to keep from blinking in its intensity. Half turned away from the door, he squinted and saw the figure of a women jerking away from the group silowetted in the doorway, then flinging herself on her knees in front of him.
To his amazement, he heard "Rick, darling, what have they done to you?" Realizing it was Laurie, he closed his eyes tight, hoping it was only a dream.
Then he felt her wrapping her arms around him, and registered that she slid something sharp up his sleeve.
Bless you, he thought, recognizing the little shiv she carried "just in case". He felt them pull her away, and peeking out of the corner of his eye, saw them drag her to the opposite wall and tie her to a support post.
He heard steps close to his head, then the clipped voice of Madame Kahane, gloating.
"Well, Ms. Scott, this has been most interesting. I hope you will enjoy the few minutes you will have with your fiancee, for soon he will be leaving you to be found by the coroner in the morning. As for you, I believe I will keep you for insurance just in case his brother causes any trouble, or maybe I'll let you disappear, too."
"Good bye for now. Come along, we have guests to take care of".
He heard the door close, then waiting a moment Just in case, he whispered, "Laurie?"
He heard "Rick? Thank God!, her hushed voice in reply. "Hang on, I'll be right there," he then started working the knife edge up and down, slicing through the ropes in a matter of minutes. Once his hands were free, he worked the circulation back into them and untied his ankles.
Crawling along the floor, he reached the opposite wall and felt his way along it until he found Laurie. "I knew we'd find you, are you alright?",
"Just sore, where's A.J., they didn't get him, did they?" He put his arms around her to support her while he untied her wrists, then her legs. "No, he's just outside".
"Rest a moment, sweetheart, then we'll find a way out of here." He felt her nod against his shoulder, then she said "A.J., Rick's alright, he's right here."
He realized that she was talking to his brother on some kind of transmitter, then he saw her pull out an earpiece and hand it to him. Putting it up to his own ear, he heard A.J.'s voice, "Rick, where are you guys? Have Laurie shine her flashlight at a window or something." "There's a window up there", he said, pointing at the wall.
Laurie found her flashlight on the ground and trying it, found it still worked. She flashed it at the spot Rick pointed to, and he heard his brother say, "I see it, hang on, I'll try to open it".
While Laurie listened for noise outside the door, Rick found a chair to stand on and tried to open the window from the inside. Using Laurie's shiv, he managed to pry the rusted latch loose and open the window. Suddenly, Laurie whispered, "I hear voices coming, I'll jam the door, Rick, you hoist yourself up.".
Rick strode over to the door where Laurie was fiddling with the lock, picked her up, saying "ladies first". and pushed her up and through the window. Just then he heard the door being opened, and pulled himself through the opening. A. J and Laurie helped him up, and peering back in the room the threesome saw Madame Kahane yelling, "How did they get out of here?"
A.J. pulled his gun and aiming it at her, said, "They had help, lady, now drop your weapon and down on the floor." The two men with the older woman dropped their guns and lay down on the floor, and not until A.J. cocked the hammer did she comply. Just then Sgt. Williams came running up, "Mr. Simon, did you find them?" "I did, along with their kidnappers. The sargeant pulled his service weapon and said, "Glad to see you're alright, Ms. Scott, Mr. Simon. If you go around to the side, you'll find a rear exit to the basement. I'll cover them until you get there." Rick kissed Laurie and told her firmly, "You stay with Sgt. Williams, we'll be right back."
The Simons headed around the corner, as the sergeant directed the crooks to cross their legs and arms behind them. They found the rear steps and entrance to the basement as the policeman had directed, and just as they entered the room, a familiar voice called, "Ms. Scott, are you all right?" Looking through the window, they saw Captain Howard come up to Laurie. "Captain, I'm fine, thank you. We found Rick and with the Sergeant's help, the kidnappers are coming out now."
"Nice work, Sergeant, you go help the Simons, I'll take care of Ms. Scott." The policeman hesitated, then said "yes, sir". Using the rope that had been used to secure him, Rick tied The wrists of the prisoners, while A.J. covered them. Pulling them to their feet, the brothers had to endure Madame Kahane mouthing obscenities at them and her staff. When Sergeant Williams came in; he took charge of her while A.J. marched the other two in front of him. They had barely reached the ground floor when they heard Laurie cry out "Rick, A.J!"
Rick ran ahead to the side of the building just in time to see Laurie being shoved inside a car by Captain Howard, who then slid in and started the vehicle. "No!", Rick yelled, sprinting toward the curb just as the car pulled away. Behind him he heard Williams call out "We'll take my car!" and handed off the prisoners to a policeman coming out of the front of the mansion.
Piling into the unmarked car, A. J. said, "she's still miked" and tuned up the receiver full volume. They heard the Captain yelling, "I warn you, stay down or I'll dump you in the quicksand." The sergeant screeched away from the curb then said, "He's headed for the woods, down the back drive." Making a quick turn past the manor, they drove across the landscaped gardens toward the trees, stopping only when they saw the abandoned police car and the captain dragging Laurie, wrists handcuffed, through the forest. Rick and A.J. bolted from the car and raced after them as the sergeant radioed for reinforcements.
Just as the Simons reached the warning signs, A.J. tossed Rick his gun, yelling, "Laurie, drop!" Catching the policeman by surprise, she pulled away from his grip and threw herself to the ground.
Furious, Howard reached for her only to have Rick shoot him, dropping him to his knees. Suddenly he began to sink, and they realized he was in the quicksand. Laurie tried to crawl away from him as he started to flail his arms, then screamed as he grabbed her ankle and she slowly slid backwards. Rick raced forward and flung himself on his stomach, "A.J., hold on to my legs", he yelled, and gripped Laurie's wrists. "Look at me, sweetheart, hang on and don't let go." She nodded weakly and dug her knees in to stop sliding toward the almost submerged policeman. Slowly A.J. and Rick pulled her away from the quicksand, until Howard's death grip was broken and they lifted her away from the muck. Laurie started to shake as Rick took her in his arms and held her, unclasping the handcuffs and saying "Sweetheart, it's over, you're safe".
"Oh my god, what a nightmare, he was going to help Madame Kahane dispose of you then use me to get A.J. and kill us both, " she said, fighting back tears.
"He was going to head for the airport until he saw us standing outside the mansion and decided to make sure none of us got to question Madame or her staff. When he offered to have me sit in his car, I noticed a ring like that Madame Kahane wore on his hand, and I realized he must be involved with her organization. When I tried to walk away, he pulled his gun and handcuffed me. He saw you leave the storeroom, so he started to point his gun at where you and A.J. were coming out, so I kicked it out of his hand and that's when he threw me into the car. If you hadn't followed us.."
A.J. grinned, offering his hand and helping both his brother and Laurie up. "Honey, you're the one who told us where you were headed by keeping that mike open". She looked down at the transmitter still attached to her dress, then started to laugh with relief. "I completely forgot it was on!" Rick kissed her away her tears, then threw an arm around his brother, saying," I knew my little brother would replace me someday, I just didn't know he would have the good taste to pick my best girl!"
Just then Williams walked to the edge of the quicksand and stared into its depths, before directing the officers with him to mark the area where Howard had disappeared. He came over and said "I'm glad to see that you're unhurt, Ms. Scott, I just wish we had discovered Captain Howard's involvement with Madame Kahane before." Rick held out his hand, "Sergeant, better late then never I always say!" Williams smiled and shook it. "Speaking of late, it's almost midnight, let me offer you a ride to the hotel."
Despite their protests, A.J. asked the sergeant to stop at the at the hospital emergency room, and insisted Laurie and Rick get checked out, especially for the ugly bruises around his brother's right eye.
Fortunately, an examination showed Laurie was only suffering a sprained wrist and assorted cuts and scratches, while Rick had a cracked right cheekbone and mild concussion.
The doctor on duty prescribed aspirin, ice and a good night's rest for both, so A.J. retrieved his rental car and drove all three back to the hotel. When they entered the lobby, they were met with a relieved Cecilia, Robin and Robert, who burst into cheers and tears at the sight of Rick. Surrounded by hugs and kisses, Rick caught his brother's eye and saw him well up with emotion.
I'll never leave him on a cross word again, Rick vowed, as they moved their reunion to the hotel suite.
As Cecilia bustled about getting ice packs for Laurie and Rick, the kids pestered them with questions about the crooks, the police sergeant who helped them, even the leis they received at the airport. Rick finally got a word in edgewise and told them how he had been tricked into coming back to the Gentlemen's club by the promise of meeting with a girl who knew where Jade was.
Once he had entered the club, he was taken at gunpoint by Madame Kahane to the basement and threatened with being beaten if he didn't call his brother and tell him he was going back to San Diego and for him to join him. "I refused and that's when when they gave me the shiner. When they came in today and told me that my fiancée was in town and they had just "missed" reuniting us, I didn't know what to believe." A.J. shook his head. "It's a good thing Laurie gave them something to think about in the appearance of the hat in the quicksand, they had to put off getting rid of you until we were satisfied."
Finally winding down, Robin and Robert settled down next to Laurie. Robin cleared her throat, then said, "Aunt Laurie, I thought about what you said about changing schools and stuff, if I did go to high school in San Diego, and it didn't work, I could change back to going to school in Arizona, couldn't I?"Laurie looked at her niece, then at Rick. "Sure, honey, at least you would have seen what it was like, maybe meet some new friends and take some new subjects. Rob, do you still want to try High School in San Diego, too?"
Rob nodded, smiling at his sister. "I think it would be great, I could take courses we don't have at home, and we could still spend winter in Arizona!"
Laurie glanced at Rick, "Are you willing to have two high schoolers in your home, dashing in and out, needing help with homework?"
Rick gazed at her for a moment, then slowly replied, "On two conditions: We get married in two months, as we planned, and..,", he grinned "you two don't mind your Aunt and I legally adopting you."
Both teens looked at each other, then started screaming "Yes!", and took turns embracing their aunt and Rick, then A.J. and a tearful Cecilia. Laurie hugged her, then put her arms around Rick and kissed him gently. At that point Cecilia started yawning broadly and A.J. and the kids got the hint and made their good nights.
A.J. stopped in the doorway of their suite, winked and said, "Don't keep him up too late", then dodged a thrown sofa pillow. Cecilia said good night, too, reminding them of the doctor's orders.
Rick gathered Laurie into his arms, as she whispered "Don't ever let me go, I'm afraid I'll wake up and they'll have taken you from me". "Sweetheart, that's never going to happen again. I love you. And no one's ever going to separate us." She gazed at him, then said, "and I promise that all decisions about the kids, discipline, schools, rules, whatever, we're going to make as a team. They need a father and mother to work together on things, not apart." He grinned, then standing up, picked her up and said, "I can handle fatherhood, and you!" Laughing, he kissed her then set her down at her doorway. "Good night, sweetheart, I can hardly wait for the day I can come in." "So can I," she sighed, embracing him and then going inside.
Rick tiptoed to his room, and as he entered, A.J. turned over in bed and grinned. "Everything ok now?"
His older brother smiled back, "Everything is right again, better get your tux ready, we're getting three more Simons!"