Chapter 11

I agreed with Oscar to meet up at the office in an hour because I really did need to shower and change my clothes. Falling from that fire escape had wrecked my jeans. Once in my bathroom I was stood looking at my reflection, looking at the blossoming mark on my cheek. By tomorrow it would be black and blue but hopefully was low enough not to have my eye changing color as well. As I showered, I was surprised that I didn't have more bruises from the fall, yeah, I'd been lucky, but I'd managed to get Denby and that in itself brought a feeling of satisfaction.

Dressed in the usual black I was soon stepping off the elevator and seeing Oscar and Jex sat at the table deep in conversation. Hopefully Oscar was filling Jex in on the highlights of what we'd found out and not on the details. I sat down next to Jex listening to what was being said.

"I'll take a look at the calls on Carisa's phone, but it'll probably be the same as Lisa's. A burn phone that's no longer active, probably destroyed"

I'd heard that before, but it still had me feeling deflated.

"Okay, so maybe we should pay a visit to that club"

"No"

Came in unison as I was shouted at by both men. What the hell. Why were they so quick to shut my idea down. They must have seen how annoyed I looked because both of them began to talk at the same time. Not hearing what either of them were saying I stood up, pushing my chair back, and went over to the coffee machine. At least it gave me time to calm down and at least the two men had stopped shouting. Turning with my coffee I leant against the counter and waited.

"It may have nothing to do with the club, Annie. It may just be a coincidence or it's an ideal place where women could be spotted and then targeted"

Maybe and going on what we knew, Jex could be right. That night when I'd been there with Kiera came back to me in full color video. Even if the club wasn't involved there was something hinkey going on there. God, how I wish that Lula was here now. She would be up for going to that club and taking a look around. Hell, she'd probably be able to spot a creep who was after chatting her up a mile away. Only she didn't fit the profile that seemed apparent from the photographs. Don't get me wrong, Lula was, as she phrased it, a luscious black woman, if you appreciated large breasts, swaying hips and outrageous clothes. From her high heels to her sequined and sparkly accessorized clothes and hair. Nah, it would have been the farce that it always had been when we were trying to catch FTAs and I was trying to better myself, to move on. I had to concede that the two men were right.

"I know Annie, but we just don't have the man power to cover all of the taxis that congregate there"

"I know. It just feels as though every time we take a step forward, we then take two steps back. I'd still like to run a search on the club though"

The two of them looked at each other and I could swear that they both let out a sigh of relief.

"I'll see what cameras I can hook up into"

Came from Jex while Oscar volunteered to go talk to Jonas for an update from the FBI. Though what they would share seemed trivial to what we'd found out. That had me remembering that I hadn't seen or heard from Kiera. I wasn't even sure if she was back from visiting her family so would have to ask Jonas in the morning. Now though it was back to sitting in front of a computer.

I spent an age chasing around in circles for who owned that night club. Kiera had been right, it hadn't long been open which meant that there were no tax returns to find. The names of the three people who supposedly were in partnership didn't seem to exist, which I found surprising and curious. It was as I was about to type in the old name of the club that my phone began to ring. Huh, I wasn't expecting anyone to call me so was vague as I answered it.

"Hello"

"Well, hello to you too"

I smiled as I recognized Kiera's voice pleased that she was calling.

"I need a favor. Can you pick me up from the station?"

"Of course. Are you already there?"

It was no problem to take time out and go pick up Kiera. I needed a break anyway and it would give me the perfect opportunity to ask her how she was doing with the journals. Saving my work, I closed down my laptop and tidied away my papers. As I passed Jex I decided to let him know where I was going. Go me, I was taking on board what Oscar had told me.

"I'm popping out to pick Kiera up from the station"

Hearing a grunt from Jex let me know that at least he'd heard me. I was soon driving through the streets to the station. I had no idea where Kiera had been, but she'd said that she would wait by the station exit. Parking my car on the ground floor of the parking lot I was looking across to the station but not seeing any sign of Kiera. Opening my door, I quickly got out and closed the door as a minivan swung in next to me. A blonde woman with big sunglasses on smiled at me as she came to a halt. Even before I could fob my car shut, I was hearing the sliding door of the van open not giving it a second thought. The van was similar to the one that Val had for transporting her kids, only a lot newer.

An arm came around my waist and a hand over my mouth before I was literally toppled inside the van, with whoever had grabbed me still underneath me. Instinct told me to try and fight back and maybe I managed a few elbow shots to his gut. Yeah, the grunt that sounded was definitely male.

"Use the syringe"

Was shouted from the woman in the front. No, no, no. I wasn't going to let him do that, not if I could help it. I squirmed and I tried kicking but the van must have been in motion because I was suddenly flat on my stomach being held down. From the corner of my eye, I spied a syringe moving toward my arm and at the last minute managed to pull my arm away. A trickle of something cold running down my arm assured me that some of the contents had missed their mark, until I felt the sharp prick of the needle. Everything went hazy after that. My eyes didn't want to focus, and my arms and legs wouldn't cooperate.

"The doc said she should be out for at least three hours. Plenty of time for you to get her to the Siadbiza"

I think my last thought was where the hell was that.

I became aware of being jostled and wondered what the hell was going on. That I was being rolled from side to side had me remembering what had happened in the parking lot at the train station. At least Kiera would know that something was wrong, especially if she found my empty car parked up. Surprisingly my arms were fastened in front of me which gave me a chance to rub my eyes. Wake up Stephanie because I was sure that I was miles away from Boston by now but hopefully not close to our destination. Taking a peek to my side I was surprised that I was laid out across the back seat of what seemed like a car. Not the minivan, which meant that I'd been moved when they swapped out their vehicle.

So who was with me and how the hell was I going to get out of this mess. Looking again I was sure that I was seeing the backs of two men. The driver was a little taller and was intent on watching the road, which to be honest was a good job as he took the corners a little faster than appreciated. The passenger seemed to have ear buds in and had his head resting back on the head rest, hopefully totally absorbed in whatever it was that he was listening to. So now what. I really didn't want to end up at the place that the woman had mentioned. A look through the window by my feet didn't show me much other than clouds in a pale blue sky. So maybe I hadn't been out of it for as long as she thought I would be. Maybe some of the tranquiller had missed its target and run down my arm as I thought.

The longer that I lay there I knew that I had to do something. The problem was the speed of the car. Could I open the door and tumble out without killing myself? Probably not but maybe I could distract the men. If they knew that I was awake, then maybe they'd stop the car and that would give me a chance to try and get away from them. I groaned loudly, well it sounded like a groan to me and watched as the driver's eyes went to the rearview mirror to look at me. Then he was elbowing the man next to him.

"The bitch is waking up"

Ear buds came out but so did a gun. Who the hell did he think he was going to shoot?

"Sort her out"

Was the driver's order. I watched as the man in the passenger seat turned to look at me between the seats and how the arm with his gun was now pointing at me. Would he shoot me? Things happened fast after that, and I acted without thinking. The car swerved to go around a corner, probably, but it had the passenger suddenly jolting closer toward me. I grabbed his wrist that was holding the gun and pushed it up and away from me. The sound of the gun being fired within the confines of the car was deafening but the sound of the horn was equally loud. The driver was slumped forward onto the steering wheel with a mass of blood covering the back of his head. Then the car just seemed to take flight. Seemed we never did make it round that corner.

Reach for the gun or get out of the car went through my head, that is until there was an almighty crashing sound and the horrendous banging that had my teeth rattling. Get out of the car became my immediate focus as I realized that car was hurtling out of control downhill. I pulled at the handle but suddenly the car tilted throwing me to the other side of the seat. It rolled over with me hitting the window that was now on the ground, but it didn't stop there. The next roll had me against the roof until suddenly I was flying through the opened door.

I know that I was screaming, and I know that I could hear the crashing of the metalwork as it rolled against the rocks. What I didn't know was when I came to a stop. My head was killing me as I began to open my eyes and I was seeing stars, literally. The sky was so dark and the stars so bright, brighter than I had ever seen them before. Which meant that it was night time. I tried to move but when a pain shot through my shoulder I stayed as I was. Memories of the car coming off the road made me realize just how lucky I had been but then I was worried in case that other man might be looking for me. Did I want to find that car and check it out? No definitely not. I wanted to get myself to somewhere safe.

What I couldn't understand was why someone had grabbed me. Anything that I knew had been shared with the team. Or did I know something but hadn't realized that it was important? I had no ideas on that one. I remained on my back because moving hurt. It was pitch black around me so there was no point in trying to work out where I was or where to go when I couldn't see anything. I'd stay where I was until the sun came up.

It was the feel of my eyes crunching up that woke me, a bright light responsible. Turning my head, I opened my eyes to be looking at a craggy area with the occasional tree. Gees, how was it that I'd fallen asleep and slept for so long. Had I still had some of that tranquilizer in my system? Maybe, then again, I think that I'd probably given my head a few bangs so that could also be responsible. Surprisingly it didn't feel that bad now, though it would feel even better with a couple of Advil. Slowly I sat up and realized that the rope was still around my wrists but fortunately the fall must have loosened the knots. Even as I moved I ended up with my hand holding my shoulder. That shoulder really hurt. A look at my cargos showed a lot of mud, grit and several rips so no doubt I'd be covered in bruises.

From the position that I was in I was looking across a vast area of forest with no sign of civilization. The ground which seemed very rocky looked to disappear ahead of me which of course meant that I had to go and take a look. I winced as I made it to my feet, I had aches everywhere and was struggling to put one foot in front of the other. I found that the more I moved the easier it became, and I didn't have far to go before I was stood at the edge of small cliff. Nestled at the bottom almost hidden by the branches of the trees was a blue car. I knew that the driver was dead before we came off the road, but the sight of a man laid with his face looking up at me took my breath away. Turning I wished that I could unsee those lifeless eyes staring up at me.

As I started the arduous task of walking away from the edge, I was seeing the tree line ahead of me. I needed to focus on getting away from here and finding some help. It was a hard climb back up to the road and I was totally exhausted. That feeling of euphoria for managing to haul myself back up to the road disappeared in a flash. It was a narrow road with no evidence of being used regularly. What if I was on the road to that place that woman mentioned, what if someone from there saw me just sat on the roadside?

Crossing the road, I wound between the trees until I found somewhere to sit down and rest. I had no idea what to do next. Would anyone even know where to start looking for me? Kiera should have alerted Oscar or Jonas that I hadn't turned up to pick her up so maybe they would check on the security cameras in the parking lot and find my abandoned car. What then. I'd obviously been moved to a different car. The minivan, well it could have been stolen or had false plates on it. Those vehicles were everywhere. So what did I do now? The view that I'd seen earlier didn't bode well for finding help. Maybe I could follow the road and even discover why and who had decided to kidnap me. Why not?

I stayed at the edge of the road, taking advantage of the shade from the overhanging branches. I found it relaxing, listening to the sway of the trees and hearing the birdsong that occasionally interrupted my thoughts. My thoughts, they'd veered back to my past life. The trouble that I'd find myself in. Everyone told me that it was because of my job. My mother, father and Joe which was why I had no regrets in moving to somewhere new. Seems it wasn't the job was it, it was me. For some reason I seem to attract crazy people like bees to honey, only now I didn't have the hope of being rescued. Yeah, I missed Ranger. Walking on my own and remembering seeing him at the airport had tears coming to my eyes. I was tired, that was it, that was why I felt so unhappy.

I'm not sure how far I walked, probably not that far. As the light began to wane, I knew that I needed to find somewhere to rest. I was tired and hungry and so very thirsty. Surely this road would lead me to somewhere, a farm house or even a village. A girl could dream. I found a place between the roots of what looked like a very old tree. Clearing any stones from the ground, I curled up on my side and closed my eyes.

I woke suddenly from a light sleep looking out through the trees. Engines so quiet that I would normally have missed them were coming closer. Lights flashing through the trees had me ducking down, even though I knew no one could see me. I figured there were two cars but had no idea what type they were or even if they were vans. As soon as they had passed, I was on my feet, okay, the shoulder was really beginning to piss me off with how much pain it was causing. I crept to the edge of the road and watched as the lights faded into the distance but the red of brake lights had me cowering back down. They didn't come to a squealing stop so maybe they'd rounded a sharp bend or had turned off onto another road. That was somewhere to explore when it got lighter.

It's amazing what I ate as the sun came up. Berries that I hoped wouldn't poison me. I was pretty sure that they were blackberries growing from the brambles. I was soon following the road again and as I'd hoped there was a turning to my right. As before I kept to the edge of the road ever aware of the idea that a car might suddenly appear. As I came to the next bend, I was standing looking down at the scene in front of me. Four stone columns standing high. Not what I was expecting. Instead of following the road I cut through the trees intrigued with what I had seen. As I approached there were stone walls and what looked like ruined buildings. Old and deserted. Certainly not a place to find help from. I'd been distracted so continued walking always keeping to the shadows. I wasn't sure how long I'd last for. As the sun began its slow descent that was when lights appeared on the horizon. To me it signified that there was someone close.

I was nervous as I walked toward a small building, but my energy was depleted. I was at the stage where I didn't care if I walked straight into my captors arms. I couldn't go on any more.

"Lassie, are you alright?"

Turning I was seeing an elderly woman holding up a lantern above her head so that it cast the light further. I sank to my knees as I heard and then saw her, aware of her coming over toward me.

"Please, can you help me"

Came out as a whisper. My mouth was dry, and I didn't realize just how weak I was. She never did reply to my plea, but she quickly put her arm around my waist and helped me to stand. Within a few minutes she had led me into what looked like a small barn, full of hay.

"Lay down in the corner. I'll go fetch you food and water"

I must have fallen asleep because the next thing that I knew she was back, raising me so that I was sat up and placing a blanket around me.

"Here, it's not much but you look as though you need it"

A warm mug was placed into my hands, the steam and smell rising into my face. I didn't care what it was because it smelt delicious. I drank the broth and then accepted the bread feeling so much better.

"Are you one of those girls from that big house?"

Shaking my head, I looked at her confused with what she was asking. I wasn't aware that there was even a big house close by. Did the girls who lived there often get lost in the woods?

"I don't like what I see and hear over there. You have to stay out of sight. My husband, well he works for them, tending the gardens"

Now I was curious as to what she might be implying.

"What's going on at the house that you don't like?"

Having trouble trying to work out what the hell she was saying. Did the family abuse their children?

"They pretend to us that they take care of pregnant women. You know, give them a home until the baby is born. That can't be right because I know of two women that have been pregnant twice"

Finishing my broth, I was trying to figure out what the woman was trying to tell me. Okay, I'd heard of places where pregnant women could go until their baby was born but that was when single women were ashamed of their condition or had parents who wanted to cover up the pregnancy. Grandma had said that it had happened to girls in the Burg. Hell, after that sordid episode with Joe in the Tasty Pastry grandma had assured me that if I was pregnant then she knew of a place that I could go where they would help me. Fortunately for me my period had come, even though it was late. Would I have done what she had suggested or faced my mother and her wrath only to be forced into marrying Joe. I had no idea what I would have done but had been through a time when I thought that I might be pregnant, and it scared the shit out of me. I went back to what she had said.

To be pregnant twice meant that they'd conceived a child in that very house. That couldn't be right.

"So you're saying the women don't want to be there?"

I got no answer, instead she was taking the mug from me and standing up.

"I have to go. Stay here, you'll be safe enough. I'll come see you in the morning"

I had so many questions to ask her, so many requests of her. I needed a phone so that I could call someone to come find me. I wanted to know why she was hiding me here amongst the hay and why she seemed so nervous. That wasn't going to happen now, as she disappeared from sight, so I had to tamp down my frustration. I suppose that I'd had something to eat, was warm and comfortable and safe for the moment. With that thought I allowed myself to fall asleep.