Chapter 18
Vanessa stopped in front of one of the jets. This didn't look like the right one. Dammit! She frowned down at the piece of paper in her hand. Lazare's right hand man was an idiot. Instead of providing her with an escort to the jet, he scribbled the directions down and expected her to find it herself. What a little weasel. She would have to call Lazare once she boarded his jet and let him know just what kind of man his subordinate was. She almost felt bad about deceiving him. He thought he was loaning it to her for a shopping trip to Thailand. She needed it to escape Chris.
Stamp had called to let her know that he was on his way to France, and that there would be major repercussions for letting Leo get out of hand. She was sick to death of being under his thumb. She needed to disappear once and for all. What neither Chris nor Leo knew was that she had been accumulating a great deal of money from her many liaisons with powerful men in the underworld. She didn't have quite as much as she would like, but it would have to do. Procuring Lazare's jet was the last key to her plan. Much as she hated to part from Leo, he made his own bed when he staged his resurrection.
For a time she had considered confiding in Lazare. She rather liked him – they were very similar in a lot of ways. Because they were of like minds, she knew how he would react if she told him that her job had been to spy on him. Confessing her sins would not have garnered any sympathy with him. He would have had her killed. Once she got to Thailand, she would send the jet back to Paris with a note to Lazare, telling him a shortened version of the truth – the US government was after her, and she needed to go to ground. She'd leave out the part about working for them. He would understand and not want to get involved, lest any scrutiny fall on him.
Sighing, she turned to go in another direction. She stopped short when she saw two men staring at her. Her heart seized up when she realized that one of them was Ryan Lavery. She tried to calm down. After all, she looked completely different. He could have no idea who she was. But if that was the case, why was he looking at her as if he did know? She studied the man Ryan was with, and realized that she knew him too. Zach Slater, the casino owner who helped her and Leo establish their new identities. What the hell was he doing with Ryan Lavery? He couldn't have been the one to tell Ryan who she was because he didn't know her real identity himself.
She stood, frozen in place, as Lavery and Slater approached her. She glanced around and saw that the area they were in was fairly deserted. She clutched her purse in front of her, inching her hand inside to the cold steel hidden there. The two men stopped in front of her. Zach Slater cocked his head. "Sophie?"
She gave him a cool smile. "Do we know each other? Oh yes… of course. I was a customer at your casino once. How are you… Mr. Slater, isn't it?"
Ryan stared at her with that smug expression she loathed so much. "Cut the crap, Vanessa. It's over. I know you and Leo have been alive all this time, and that my father orchestrated the whole thing. Tell me, how much convincing did it take you to get Leo to go along with playing dead?"
Her fingers curled around the handle of the gun. She gazed at him imperiously. "Who I am and what I do with my life is none of your concern, young man."
She moved to sweep around them, but Ryan's arm shot out and clasped her arm in a firm grip. "Did you have anything to do with Greenlee's disappearance?"
She raised her chin. "Take your hands off me! I don't know anything about a person named Greenlee."
He yanked her closer. "I can't count the number of times you tried to get rid of her because you didn't want her around your son. Now she's disappeared and we find you skulking around the place where she was last seen. I want answers right now!"
Vanessa took one more glance around the immediate area, adopting an expression of deep embarrassment. The place was deserted. She pulled the gun from the purse, and pressed it against Ryan's side. "I repeat, take your hands off me. I will put a bullet right through you and claim it was self-defense. I'm sure the bruises on my arm would bear out my story." Ryan slowly released her arm and backed away to stand next to Slater. Vanessa glared at them both, her eyes burning with fury. "You stupid fools. I was so close to disappearing for good this time. I had nothing to do with Greenlee's vanishing act! If you had just left me alone, you could be off searching for her right now. But you just had to expose me. Now I need to figure out what to do with you two clowns."
She knew that taking them aboard Lazare's jet was out of the question – the two men would likely signal somebody for help. She couldn't kill them here – the bodies would be discovered too quickly and she probably wouldn't escape fast enough. The only choice was to take them to her car and drive somewhere remote where she could kill them there. "Here's what we're going to do. We'll go out to the parking lot, and get in my car. I'll drop you off in some deserted location. While you're trying to get back to civilization, I'll return here and board my jet as originally planned before you two fucked things up. If you make one move to escape, I will not hesitate to shoot a hole in you. You won't be able to save Greenlee if you're bleeding to death."
She waved her gun to indicate the direction they should walk. At that moment, she heard a noise like a cell phone ringing. It was coming from Ryan's blazer pocket. "Take the cell phone out and throw it to the ground. It damn well better continue ringing so I know you didn't answer it."
Sighing, he pulled out the tiny phone and set it on the ground. It continued to chirp a little tune. After the fourth ring it stopped. Vanessa nodded to Slater. "I know you have one too. Get rid of it." She tightened the grip on her gun, trying not to be intimidated by the stony glare he directed towards her as he pulled his cell phone from his pocket and tossed it. She knew he could be a very dangerous man when crossed. Well, soon enough he would be a dead man and she would no longer need to be concerned with what he could do to her. "Good job. Now let's get this show on the road, shall we?"
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Kendall stood outside the little shop, staring at her cell phone. "Come on, you stupid hunk of wires and plastic! Why can't we get a signal? I want to talk to Zach. Is that too much to ask? I want my husband!" Catching herself from tossing it into the shrubbery, she instead started to pace. When she left him the voice mail, did she say the name of the town where they'd be going? She didn't think so. Kendall groaned. Why did she let Leo and Bianca persuade her to leave the airport without Zach? She should have known that the French countryside would have spotty reception.
Kendall glanced at the entrance to the little shop. She wondered if they were having any luck. So far, they've struck out in all the places where they've made inquiries. Either these people genuinely didn't know Dr. Madden (which could be because his staff made trips to town, not him), or they didn't want to give out information to strangers. The last place they went, Kendall was convinced the shopkeeper was lying. She'd gotten in his face and started screaming at him. Which was why Leo told her to wait outside this time around. She sat down on a nearby bench, trying to hold back her tears. She felt like they were getting close. She could sense her baby was around here, somewhere.
An old woman shuffled over to the bench and sat down on the opposite end. Kendall looked at her inquiringly, but she stared straight ahead. In a trembling voice, the woman said, "You are seeking Doctor Madden?"
Kendall felt her heart starting to pound. "Yes, yes I am. Do you know him?"
The old woman plucked at her skirt. "Why do you wish to see him? To obtain his services?"
Kendall narrowed her eyes. She had a feeling that the woman would not help her if she gave the wrong answer. She would probably see right through Kendall if she lied, so she decided to be straight with her. She nervously licked her lips. "No. I've already obtained his services. To my deepest regret."
The woman's mouth tightened. "So you know what kind of man he really is." Kendall's eyes filled with tears. She nodded wordlessly. The woman closed her eyes and sighed. "You poor dear," she said in a low voice. "I used to work for the doctor. The entire staff was very loyal to him. I was too, for awhile. I began to see certain things that I could not…could not justify. But I was afraid of his power. I eventually retired - an excuse to escape that house. But he still visits me from time to time. The caring and attentive former employer, who is clearly checking up on me." She turned to Kendall. "I should not tell you where he is. It is far too dangerous."
Kendall clasped her hands together. "It will be okay. There are three of us, and more are on the way." God, she hoped more were on the way. "Please…he has my baby. He has my mother. He may have my best friend who is pregnant."
The old woman's eyes widened in shock. "He's finally giving into the madness! He would never have taken such a chance before." With a slightly shaking hand, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. She looked around to see if anyone was watching, then handed it to Kendall. "The location of the chalet." She struggled to her feet.
Kendall stood up to help her, but the old woman waved her aside. "Thank…thank you so much!"
The old woman clenched her hands together. "I am going now to say a prayer for you and your friends. God help you."
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Greenlee slid down into a corner of the kitchen, exhausted from the trip down the stairs. She hoped she could regain her strength soon. She desperately needed it. She held her baby close to her, and watched as Erica barricaded the door. She grabbed a broom and stuck it through the handles. She found a couple of doorstops and wedged them underneath. When she struggled to push a hutch in front of the door, Greenlee realized she'd need some help.
Greenlee wearily got to her feet and began to look through some drawers. She found one that was filled with some kitchen towels. She tenderly placed her son into the cushioned interior, then went over and helped Erica move the hutch. It was very heavy, but they managed to push it into place. Gasping for breath, Greenlee looked at Erica. "Now what?"
With a look of grim determination, Erica began pulling open drawers. "Now we look for weapons." Methodically, they searched the various places that knives or other sharp objects might be stored. Eventually, Erica came to a cabinet that turned out to be locked. She rattled the knob, then slapped her hand against the door in frustration. "No! I don't believe this. He knew we might try this, so he keeps them locked so we can't get to them." She rested her forehead on her hand. "This was my last hope!"
Greenlee softly spoke her name. "Erica." She turned and looked at her. Greenlee held up a cast iron skillet. "We may not be able to gut him like a fish, but we can flatten the side of his head." Erica smiled and came over to squeeze Greenlee's arm. They looked down at the tiny child snoozing quietly in the linen drawer. Greenlee noted the pained look on Erica's face. "You wish Spike were in here, too."
Erica closed her eyes briefly. "There will be time to get my grandson after we've taken care of Madden. I know that he will be safe – Greg would never hurt him. You and your child were the first priority, because you two were in the most danger."
Greenlee murmured, "Jackson." Erica gave her a puzzled look. "I've named him Jackson. After his grandfather." Erica smiled, but it soon turned to a grimace and tears fell onto her cheeks. Greenlee held out her arms and pulled Erica to her. The two women cried together.