4
The first thing that struck me when I stepped out the car was that it was really, really cold. The, I realized that, being surrounded by trees, it was really, really isolated. I began wondering who would come to my funeral. Lula, Connie, Vinnie, maybe. My mother, my father, my sister, her two kids. Maybe Grandma would be so sad she wouldn't try to peek into my casket. My boyfriend Morelli would come, and I hoped he would remember to bring Rex. He probably would. Morelli is a cop. He remembers stuff like that. I don't.
Which reminds me. I was supposed to meet Morelli for dinner. If I don't show up, he'll get annoyed, then angry, and finally worried. Which is the same thing as angry, really, but he's Italian; he can't help it. He gets a bit protective. Oh, boy, was he going to blow when he found out I got kidnapped. And because I was dressed like a hooker with Ranger.
Hey! Maybe Ranger will actually get here, save me, and I not only get my cake, but I get dinner, too. Two free meals and getting rescued! Sounds good to me…
Speaking of Ranger… Where is he?
Ton-Ton grabs my arm and half-leads, half-drags me into the house. He opens the door – it had been unlocked – and pulled me into the dark interior. Without giving me a chance to examine the house, run away, or scream till my throat was raw, he propelled me to the staircase, up the staircase, and then into a dingy little room with a flimsy bed frame.
"You could redecorate," I point out, my heart thumping. Maybe he'll fix it up after he kills me. So then he can get everything pretty and blood-free at the same time, I think hysterically.
He glances at me strangely. Like, why is she asking this? I don't know. Don't look at me. I'm just a hapless, innocent, victim! I feel tears start to well up, and Ton-Ton backed up. "Bad idea, Steph."
My lower lip wobbled. "I'm supposed to have dinner with my boyfriend in six hours. If I don't go, he's going to kill you!"
He gulped. "Who's your boyfriend?"
"Joe Morelli."
"The guy who wrote the poem on the wall?" He cracked up when I turned bright, bright red. Don't ask. Morelli used to have a bit of a reputation, and after it was my turn to succumb to the legendary Morelli charm, I was graced with some bawdy words written in a public room.
"He's a cop. I don't think he'd like his girlfriend being kidnapped"
He sobered up. "I don't think he'd like his girlfriend dressing up as a slut with a bunch of mysterious guys dressed in black, either."
True.
But, I am above blackmail. "Call him," I say belligerently. "See if I care. Just let me go!" Before Ranger gets here and kicks his as-of-now toned butt and the police get called and I get into even deeper shit with Morelli. Before his little friends hear about this and decide to torture information out of me.
He edges for the door. "I've got connections. I'll call them and ask…"
No, no, no! Bad idea! "Wait!" I say desperately. "You can't trust your connections?"
"Why not?" he says, genuinely puzzled. "They're my friends."
"Drugs!" Hey. I never said I wouldn't crack under pressure. "There's some shady dealing going on, you can't trust them!"
He laughs. "Aw, c'mon, you can't do better than that?" and he shuts the door and locks it. A moment later, I hear him dial some numbers on his cell phone. "Hey. Yeah. Actually, I had some guys trying to break into my house. Some box they were carrying…no, I didn't stop them. But they had some girl with them. I have her here. Yeah, we're alone. Where are you? Oh. It should take out like five minutes to get here. Hurry." A beat of silence. "No… no one knows where we are," he says, sounding puzzled. "Why?"
Oh, man, I'm screwed. So I do what any self-respecting girl would do - I head straight for the rickety old window, take off my shoes, and use one of them to push out the frame. It pops out with a crack.
"What the – " Ton-Ton rushes in, just in time to see me clamber out the window, breathing hard and seams straining. This isn't an escape-out-the-window dress. It's a seduce-your-incredibly-sexy-boyfriend dress that works so well you don't have to worry about sucking in the fat really long because the guy'll have you out of it in ten minutes flat. And now I have to run in it…
I hit the roof of the porch, roll down it with several pinecones to keep me company, and land with a thud on the ground that would have knocked the breath out of me had I not exhaled a moment before to see if I could get some give in the dress.
I wheeze my way to my bare feet, and start running across the lawn when there's the low rumble of an oncoming car. Crap! Those people ton-Ton called must have been closer than he'd thought!
I head straight for the foliage, wincing as I step on sharp objects, and watch as a sleek black car comes into view, just as Ton-Ton rushes out the house, looking around frantically. When he catches sight of the car, he slows down, relief on his face. The car screeches to a halt, and as I watch in shock, the door opens and Ranger gets out, coolly placing a gun against Ton-Ton's temple.
Yes! Saved! I stand up with full intent of rushing across the lawn and getting in that car to get my cake and be on time for dinner, when my arm gets wrenched behind my back and something cold and sharp touches my throat. "You aren't going anywhere," a low voice whispers maliciously in my ear.
That's… not good.