Chapter 7 - Pippa
I found myself staring at the vacant spot where Abe typically lingered to survey the scene on the casino floor. By then, on a usual day, he would have walked right up to me and picked on something I could have done differently. The uninterrupted workflow reminded me of old times before Abe ever entered my life, and I hated to admit it, but I missed our verbal sparring matches.
From the corner of my eye, I noticed an employee motion at me. I walked over, briskly. His eyes shifted around and he murmured under his breath, “We believe someone tried to tamper with the ATMs.”
I narrowed my eyes at him, feeling a prickle of suspicion run down my spine. "Tamper with the ATMs? Are you sure?" I asked quietly, trying not to attract attention.
The man nodded quickly, glancing over his shoulder nervously. "Yes, we saw someone messing around with the cash dispensers on CCTV. But, the man was wearing a cap and glasses. No way to ID him.”
I found myself at a loss of words. Abe would have known what to do. I sighed and ran a hand through my hair, shaking my head. “Keep eyes on the machines at all times. That’s all we can do for now.”
At the back of my mind, I almost heard Abe’s voice. It felt as though he was right behind me, his breath tickling my ear. Try tracing down the guests who walked by the machines—anyone who saw anything.
The employee was about to walk away, but I stopped him with a light touch on his arm. “And Pete?”
He turned, meeting my gaze. “Trace down the people in the video surveillance. Someone might have seen his face.”
“Good idea.” Pete nodded and walked away.
As I watched Pete hurry off, a sudden wave of loneliness washed over me. I didn’t want to handle this alone, but Abe hadn’t shown up for two days now, and I missed him.
I was hearing Abe in my head, what I believed to be his unwanted advice filtering through my mind. Now, I felt differently about that advice. All those little arguments we had when he interrupted by days made me better.
From the corner of my eye, I saw a tall dark-haired man dressed all slick, with a hint of a tattoo. My heart raced as I turned, eyes glued on him.
When he turned right to walk past me, his brown eyes were nothing on Abe’s. My heart was crushed with disappointment as I felt my racing heart slow to a damning, gut-wrenching pace as though it was crawling into my stomach.
"Get it together, Pippa," I muttered in annoyance, shaking my head and walking back toward the slot machines which I’m to have inspected for maintenance. But my traitorous mind kept wandering back to Abe's steel-blue eyes and the way his tailored suits hugged his muscular frame.
I groaned, burying my face in my hands. "This is ridiculous. You're supposed to be relieved he's not here, not pining like some lovesick teenager."
But as much as I tried to convince myself otherwise, I couldn't shake the memory of our escapade in my office that night. We almost had sex, for crying out loud.
I wanted to. Oh, how terribly I wanted to. I recalled how he looked at me, like he could eat me alive, how desired he made me feel. But then, something changed and he hadn’t shown up since.
Did whatever happen between us cause him such tremendous disappointment that he decided to blow up work? I wanted to tell myself that it wasn’t me, but the timing of it all seemed too dubious to give myself the benefit of the doubt.
I glanced down at my curvy figure, smoothing my pencil skirt over my hips. "As if someone like him would ever be interested in someone like me," I sighed, my insecurities bubbling to the surface.
Yet I couldn't forget the heat in his gaze when he'd caressed me between my legs, one large hand spanning my waist. For a moment, I'd felt beautiful, wanted. But then reality had come crashing back, and he never took it forward.
"It's better this way," I told myself firmly, even as a part of me ached for what might have been. "He's trouble, Pippa. Handsome, infuriating trouble. And besides,” I admitted to myself with a lump in my throat, “all evidence shows he thought he made a mistake with you.”
Why else didn’t I see him around, if not for the fact that he’d been avoiding me?
***
The next afternoon, the weekend beckoned, a rare respite from the endless grind of working tirelessly since Vlad left. But first, I had to finish reconciling these accounts.
"Just a few more hours," I muttered, fingers flying across the keyboard. Then, I get to go on my first weekend away from work since nearly a month.
As the hours ticked by, the usual bustle of the corridor outside faded into the background. I barely noticed the change, too focused on my work. It wasn't until I finally looked up, stretching my aching neck, that I realized how late it had gotten.
"Time to call it a night," I said to myself, saving my work and shutting down the computer. I stood and gathered my things.
For a brief moment, I thought to take my usual route—down the elevator and out through the main casino floor, where I’d wait for the valet to bring me my car. However, I knew that if I did that, I’d be working a few more hours.
After all, there was always something going wrong on the casino floor. After working three weekends in a row now, I thought it best for myself to focus on getting home. Besides, if any true emergency arose, I’d receive a call.
So, I decided to push away my instinct and instead, take the fire escape down to the ground where my car is parked. That way, I’d avoid wasting precious moments getting home. The truth was that I was exhausted and a weekend of rest and relaxation was in order.
I walked down the steel steps, thinking over my plans. Tonight, I’d order in some pizza and have a glass of wine. Tomorrow, I could sleep in late. And gosh, I had all that laundry to do. I groaned, realizing Sunday would involve more work and less kicking back on the couch. And somewhere in between all this, I should definitely find some time to catch up with a friend or two before they forget I existed.
With all that settled, I finally realized I was surrounded by an eerie silence.
Frowning, I cocked my head, straining to hear the usual shouts from the kitchen loading dock down below. But there was nothing. Just an unsettling quiet that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
"What the hell?" I murmured, my heart rate picking up. Is it really that late that the kitchen’s been restocked for tomorrow?
I hesitated at the second-floor landing, just for a brief second. I had worked here too long to know that it was dangerous to be on casino premises all alone. There was always an angry customer who lost it all, always an enemy on the sidelines.
But, going back up was as good as going back home. Perhaps I was just being paranoid.
Taking a deep breath, I continued down with my senses on high alert, my heels echoing ominously in the unnatural silence. I’d rather no one heard me, so I walked softer. In the stillness and silence of the night, I couldn't shake the nagging feeling that something was off.
My mind drifted to Abe, how he would have chided me for taking this route out. God, I wish he had been at the casino today and talked me out of this idea. Just say no, he would have told me, if anyone needs help on the casino floor, there are others they can reach out to. Go tell the valet to get your car. He would have watched me like a hawk until I left the premises. I shook my head, annoyed at myself.
Here I was, thinking of him again when I was pretty certain he hadn’t shown up for four days now so he didn’t even have to lay his eyes on me. A small sadness filled my soul.
Just then, I was pulled away from my thoughts, turning darker when I smelled cigarette smoke. The scent hung heavy in the air, and it meant one thing. Someone was nearby.
As I took one cautious step down and put my back against the wall, I peeked out from the corner of the rounding stairwell. There, partially hidden behind an open door for the first floor, I spotted one of our employees engaged in what looked like a heated discussion with a stranger.
My breath caught in my throat as recognition dawned. It was Tony, one of the dealers known for his shady connections outside of work. He wasn't supposed to be here at this hour, especially not lurking around the fire escape.
“With the Vadims out now, we can finally put our plan in motion,” the stranger said in a frenzy.
“There are always other eyes around,” Tony said. “Don’t get confident.
My brow furrowed. This didn’t look good. What bosses was he talking about? The only bosses that should matter are the Vadims.
Just then, Tony pulled something out of his pocket. I realized with a jolt it was a thick package wrapped in paper. My mind raced, connecting the dots. This wasn't just a heated argument; this was something definitely illegal happening right under our noses.
What was the plan here? Were they stealing right under our noses? What does the package contain? Money? Secrets? Video footage? The memory rushes back from earlier today, of someone tampering with our ATMs. Not on my watch.
I hesitated, knowing that for my safety I should probably turn back around and pretend I didn’t see a thing. But the responsible part of me, the part that took my job seriously, couldn't let it go. With a deep breath, I squared my shoulders and started toward them.
"What's going on here?" I demanded, my voice sharper than I intended.
The pair jumped, startled by my approach. The stranger now looked panic-stricken. Tony glared at me.
My heart was pounding as I realized it was too late to turn back, but I steeled myself. “What’s in the package?” I demanded.
The stranger’s face drained of color. "It's not what you think—"
"Save it," I cut him off, my green eyes narrowing on the employee, Tony. "I know you’re not supposed to be doing whatever it is you are, and it stops now." I turned to the stranger, my chin raised defiantly despite my racing pulse. "You need to leave. Immediately."
Tony’s scowl deepened, his hand disappearing into his jacket. "You should've minded your own business, Sweetheart."
I saw the glint of steel before I fully registered what was happening. A knife. He had a knife.
"Oh God," I thought, fear flooding my system. My legs trembled, threatening to give out. Shit. I needed to act fast, but apart from words, I saw no other way out.
"Put that away, Tony," I said, trying to calm the situation, my voice wavering slightly despite my best efforts. "You don't want to make this worse for yourself."
The stranger looked between us, trying to stop this situation from escalating. "Hey, Tony, this wasn't part of the deal. The bosses will get angry if the plan gets thwarted. Let's just go—"
"Shut up!" Tony snarled, his eyes never leaving mine as he advanced, the knife held threateningly in front of him. “This bitch is in with the Vadims. We have to get rid of her, or there is no plan.”
I took a step back, my mind screaming at me to run, to call for help. But I couldn't move, couldn't look away from the blade that now seemed to fill my entire vision.
"Please," I whispered, hating how small my voice sounded. "You don't have to do this."
But before he could say more, Tony made a sudden move with the knife toward me. My heart leaped into my throat as I realized I might have just walked into something far more dangerous than I'd anticipated.
I needed to fight to get out of here alive. Without thinking, I quickly pushed off the wall and kicked him in the groin. He groaned and reached to clutch between his legs and I shoved past him, past the stranger, running a floor down to reach my car.
It didn’t take long for Tony to give chase. I heard him, felt his rugged breath on my back. I ran faster, faster, faster. I reached the ground, the tarmac stretched beyond. My breaths now came in heavy rasps, and I saw my car in the distance.
His hands came for my waist, lugged at it. I tried to fight him off by kicking back, but it wasn’t enough to make him stop. From the corner of my eye, I saw the glint of the knife.
From the right, I saw a car entering the parking lot.
“Help,” I screamed at the top of my lungs as tears poured down my eyes. Please, I prayed silently as his grip on me won’t loosen. Don’t let me die out here.
He twisted my arm behind my back and I turned to see him just as he lunged forward, his movement so sudden I barely had time to react. I stumbled backward, my heart pounding in my ears, but I wasn't fast enough. A searing pain erupted across my shoulder as the blade grazed my skin.
"Ah!" I cried out, my hand flying to the wound. Warm blood seeped through my fingers, staining my favorite blouse. The pain was sharp, but the fear was worse. This was real. This was happening. He was going to kill me.
"You should've kept your mouth shut," Tony growled, readying for another strike.
I frantically looked around for an escape, for help, for anything. The parking lot, usually so bustling, now seemed eerily empty. Where was security? Where was anyone?
Just as despair began to overwhelm me, the car from before stopped right beside me. The door swung open, and through teary eyes and the glaring headlights, I couldn’t make out the face.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
Abe. My heart leaped at his voice, equal parts relief and confusion flooding through me.
He appeared as if from nowhere, moving with a fluid grace that belied his size. In an instant, he was between me and my attacker, his broad shoulders a protective wall.
"Abe," I breathed, wincing as I pressed harder on my wound. "How did you—"
"Not now, Pippa," he said, his voice low and dangerous. His eyes, usually so playful when fixed on me, were cold as steel as they locked onto the knife-wielding employee. "Drop it. Now."
I watched, mesmerized, as Abe's hands clenched and unclenched at his sides. The air around him seemed to crackle with tension, with barely restrained violence. This was a side of him I'd never seen before, and it terrified me despite the relief of being saved.
Tony hesitated, his eyes darting between Abe's imposing figure and the space behind him. In a split second, he made his decision, lunging forward with the knife.
What happened next was a blur of motion and violence. Abe moved with a speed I'd never imagined possible. His hand shot out, catching the attacker's wrist mid-strike. There was a sickening crack, followed by a howl of pain as the knife clattered to the floor.
"I warned you," Abe growled, his voice barely recognizable.
I watched in horror as Abe's fist connected with Tony’s jaw, sending him sprawling. The brutality of it made my stomach churn.
"Abe, stop!" I cried out, my voice shaking. "He's down, it's over!"
But Abe didn't seem to hear me. He advanced on the fallen attacker, his eyes blazing with a cold fury. I'd never seen anyone look so menacing, so utterly lethal.
"You touched her," Abe snarled, emphasizing each word with a vicious kick. "You. Don't. Ever. Touch. Her."
The sound of fists meeting flesh, of pained grunts and gasps, filled the air. I couldn't look away, couldn't move, couldn't breathe. This was a nightmare, but I was wide awake.
At last, Tony was down on the ground.
“Abe,” I said, pleading now. “You can stop. He’s not moving.”
But Abe wasn’t listening. He grabbed Tony’s head, brutally smashing it against the concrete over and over again. I felt like retching, watching all that blood trail down the crevices of the road, Tony’s face now unrecognizable. I looked away and closed my eyes, but the sickening sounds got worse and worse. I tried to take deep breaths, to stop myself from hurling all over the place.
Finally, mercifully, it ended. I opened my eyes, knowing already that Tony was dead. Abe stood over the motionless form of my attacker, his chest heaving, his knuckles bloody. He turned to me, and for a moment, I saw something wild and unfamiliar in his eyes before they softened with concern.
"Pippa," he said, his voice gentler now. "Are you alright?"
I stared at him, my mind reeling. Relief washed over me—I was safe, the danger had passed. But mixed with that relief was a horror I couldn't shake. The violence I'd just witnessed, the raw brutality of it, left me shaken to my core.
"I… I don't know," I whispered, my eyes darting between Abe and the dead man on the floor. "What… what just happened?"
My gaze locked onto Abe, unable to look away from his intense blue-gray eyes. My heart raced, a cocktail of fear, adrenaline, and a strange relief coursing through my veins.
"You're bleeding," Abe said, his voice low and rough as he approached me.
I glanced down at my shoulder, surprised to see red seeping through my blouse. "Oh," I mumbled, the sting of the cut finally registering. I’d forgotten all about it.
Abe's large hand gently cupped my face, tilting it up to meet his gaze. "Let me take care of that for you, Doll."
The pet name sent an unexpected shiver down my spine. I swallowed hard, trying to gather my thoughts. "I… I can handle it myself.”
What I didn’t say was that I was still afraid of what I saw him do.
His thumb brushed across my lower lip, silencing me mid-sentence. "You’re a woman who just had a knife pulled on her. Let me help, Pippa. Please."
The softness in his voice, so at odds with the violence I'd just witnessed, made my resolve crumble. I nodded, letting out a shaky breath. As Abe led me to his car, his hand warm and steady on the small of my back, I couldn't help but wonder what I'd gotten myself into—and why, despite everything, I didn't want to walk away.