Chapter 11 Rachel
RACHEL
Meanwhile…
The luncheon is going well. We’re almost finished.
I’m working at the stove heating a sauce for the dessert.
It’s nearly time to serve it. The concoction is just beginning to boil.
I stir a little faster to keep it from sticking as it reaches the boiling point.
Rosco has been up my ass all damn day. Not that I’m complaining, he is delicious eye candy, but he’s distracting without meaning to be.
“Hey, Rachel does this look okay?” Cindy calls to me from the far end of the counter.
I turn to look while keeping up the vigorous stirring of the chocolate sauce.
She has a banana cupcake in hand with a swirl of pineapple icing, topped off with a strawberry on top.
It looks delicious. A mini banana split cupcake that will be served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and the chocolate sauce I’m making.
“It looks great!” I reply, as a searing pain hits my abdomen.
“Ow!” I look down to see a streak of chocolate sauce on my abdomen.
I groan in frustration, noting that it has soaked through my apron and dress.
Thankfully, it hasn’t burnt me too badly after passing through the two layers of fabric, but my dress is going to be a mess.
Crap! I need to clean this off so I don’t look like a slob when I meet with the hostess.
Once I’m satisfied with the consistency of the sauce, I move it to the warming pan, until we are ready to serve. “Hey, Cindy, can you make sure everything makes its way out on time. I need to clean up.” I motion to the front of my dress. She gives me a sympathetic look.
“Sure, I’ve got it under control,” she says with a smile. “You’ve already done all the hard stuff. Now it’s just waiting for time to serve.”
“Yes, I’ll be right back,” I tell her. “I just need to find a bathroom where I can use my Tide pen to get this stain out.” She nods turning back to finish the cupcakes.
I grab my bag I keep for just such emergencies and stride out of the kitchen, looking left and right.
There’s a hallway to my right, hopefully I’ll find a guest bathroom down it.
The house staff aren’t around to ask. The first door I come to is a linen closet for the dining room.
Cloth napkins, place mats, and tablecloths line shelves.
I close the door and move on to the next one.
Moving down the hall, I approach and open the door to an office.
A large mahogany desk commands the room.
Dark book shelves line the walls of the room with old looking books and various small art pieces scattered on them.
The smell of pipe tobacco permeates the air reminding me of my stepfather, fear courses through me.
He isn’t here! I remind myself. Turning to leave, I notice an open door on the right wall. It’s a bathroom! I hurry over and step inside and close the door. I open my bag and pull out the Tide pen. The dress comes off. I stand in my bra and panties while I work on the stain.
The stain is coming out better than I’d expected. I use some water from the sink and a cloth from my bag to rinse out the detergent. A small portable fan is another item in my stain fighting arsenal. In a few minutes my dress is practically dry.
I turn off the fan and shove everything back into my bag. Voices are suddenly on the other side of the door. I freeze a second, before quickly throwing the dress on over my head.
Hopefully whoever is out there won’t mind I’m using their bathroom. Just when I’m about to open the door a familiar voice speaks causing my blood to run cold.
“Are you certain it’s her?” a man, who sounds exactly like my stepfather asks.
“See for yourself,” another male answers. “I’ve zoomed in on an image caught on security footage when they arrived.” A long silence follows. I can hardly breathe. How is he here? Is it really him? How did I not know he had left Chicago?
“Well done, Lawrence,” my stepfather coos. “It’s her. She’s older of course, and her hair is a bit darker, but that’s definitely her. I recognize the necklace she’s wearing. My late wife gave it to her when she finished high school.”
Bile rises in my throat. My body trembles so violently I can no longer stand. I manage to slump down onto the floor without making any noise. He’s here, really here, just outside the door. Oh my God!
“Thank you, brother,” the other voice replies. “I can’t take all the credit. My wife recognized Rachel at a charity event recently.”
“Have you seen my sons?”
“No,” the other man answers. “My wife didn’t see the boys either, but the people Rachel works for were talking about them. They have to be nearby.”
“Where is Rachel now? I want her in here. I want my sons!” Oh God, help me!
“I don’t see her on the cameras,” the other man says, slowly. I imagine him checking each one. What if he can see that I came in here?
“All of these are outside!” my stepfather complains. “She’s likely inside the kitchen.”
“The inside cameras are down.”
“What the fuck!” my stepfather roars. “You incompetent bastard!”
“Whoa! Reginald that’s uncalled for!” the other man yells back.
“I found your wayward stepdaughter that you’ve been searching for, for nearly six years.
We had an electrical storm yesterday. Lightening fried the inside server.
I have another coming, but it hasn’t gotten here yet.
She’s here somewhere, and she has to meet with us to get paid.
Just calm the fuck down. We have her where we want her. ”
“I must get my sons back!” Reginald bellows.
“Yes, I have a new family, but they’re much too young.
The boys are coming of age. It’s past time they take their place at my side.
I’ve lost important years I could’ve been training them.
Find me that bitch! She’s going to wish she’d never considered running from me and taking my sons. ”
“Don’t start yelling,” the other man says hesitantly, “but I think you should reconsider taking her today.”
“What? I’ve waited long enough!” Reginald growls.
“I know, but the company she works for is owned by the Robertson brothers. They own Invictus Securities, a well-respected security company. It’ll be bad enough when she disappears, but trying to take her from under their noses, here today? Impossible
“It’ll be a blood bath and draw unwanted attention. I have some of the locals in my debt, but those men have connections all the way to the White House. You won’t want to draw the attention of the feds.”
“Fuck!” Reginald roars. “How did she get tangled up with them?”
“No idea, but we need to play this smart. We’ll trail her when she leaves the restaurant. She’ll lead us to the boys.” No, no, no! I have to get out of here. I have to save the boys!
“Come on,” the other man continues, “I’ll show you around. She won’t be hard to find. I’ll have some of my men follow her.” The two men leave the office. My heart continues to pound as I wonder how the hell I’m going to get out of here without them following me.
Several long minutes pass before I have the nerve to leave the perceived safety of the bathroom. When I reach the office door, I peek out into the hallway finding the coast to be clear. I slip out into the hall and hurry back toward the kitchen, praying I don’t run into anyone along the way.
“What are you doing here?” a deep growling voice demands causing me to shriek and jump with fright. Spinning around, I see a man with a bald head, beefy shoulders, and a stocky body approaching me from behind. My heart is pounding so hard I’m surprised I’m still alive.
“I’m looking for a bathroom,” I answer, my voice surprisingly strong despite the fear raging through me. “I got lost,” I continue, blinking my lashes, trying, but I’m sure failing, to pretend to be a silly female.
“You shouldn’t be in this part of the house!” Baldy grabs my bicep in a painful grip, dragging me back the way I’d come. Nausea turns in my gut. Oh, God! He’s going to kill me or worse hand me over to my stepfather!
“Rachel! There you are!” Rosco’s rich, booming voice echoes down the hall.
Relief washes over me, quickly replaced with fear again.
I know he will protect me, but now, he’s in danger.
These men won’t hesitate to kill anyone who gets in their way.
Baldy stops pulling me along, turning to see who is talking to us.
“What’s going on here?” Rosco questions as he approaches us. His eyes rake over Baldy and me, taking in the grip Baldy has on my arm. His face forms a deeper scowl.
“I got lost looking for the bathroom,” I reply, laying on a damsel in distress tone. “This nice man is helping me find it.” I jerk my head toward Baldy, flashing him a mega-watt smile and flutter my lashes, again.
Facing Rosco again, his eyes narrow, but he doesn’t comment. Baldy loosens his hold on my arm. Maybe we can get out of this, but if this man knows who I am... Rosco and I are in serious trouble.
“You shouldn’t be wandering around the estate,” Baldy states, angrily, “I’ll show you to the guest bathroom.” He turns us fully toward Rosco and begins to drag me toward him.
“I’ll take her,” Rosco insists, taking my arm from Baldy.
“The bathroom is around the corner, second door on the right. Make sure she doesn’t go wandering again,” Baldy instructs.
“Of course,” Rosco drawls, sounding annoyed. “She’s always getting lost. I can’t take her anywhere.” Baldy gives Rosco a look of sympathy as if he understands the frustrations of dealing with a dingbat female.
Rosco pulls me away from Baldy, more forcefully than I expect, causing me to stumble.
He keeps me upright, seeming to understand the importance of selling the bullshit I’ve been serving up.
We round the corner. It’s all I can do to keep my stomach contents inside.
My body is tight with tension. Fear being my primary emotion.
Thankfully this hallway is empty. He doesn’t stop, but continues to the bathroom.
When we reach the door, he pulls it open before shoving me inside.
“I’ll be right here.” His eyes meet mine.
I can tell he knows there is more going on than me getting lost, but he’s playing along.
“Don’t be long.” His tone is hard. Does he know how serious this is? That our lives depend on this charade?
The door closes, slowly. I turn on the sink and splash cool water on my face then pat it dry.
My perfect makeup taking one for the team in an effort to calm me.
I pull out my makeup bag and quickly touch up what I can.
I need to go, but I’m suffering from the adrenaline drop.
My body is trembling so hard I can hardly stay on my feet. A soft knock startles me, and I yelp.
“Rachel?” Rosco calls. “Everything all right in there?” Time to go, my reprieve is over. I blow out a shaky breath, shove everything back into my bag, and open the door. Rosco’s face is an unreadable mask. “Ready?”
I nod, stumbling as I step out into the hall. He places his arm around my waist, supporting my weight. His arm is warm, solid, and comforting in the chaos around me. He doesn’t speak as he leads me back toward the kitchen.
Once we are back around other people, my fear eases, slightly, but I’m still on edge. I keep checking for any sign of my stepfather. Rosco is my constant shadow, but it doesn’t annoy me like it did earlier. I’m grateful to have him at my back.
“We’ve finished serving the dessert,” Cindy informs me.
“Everyone seems to be enjoying it. The hostess popped in. She said she’ll have someone bring you to the library around four.
” I nod my understanding, unable to speak without my voice cracking or the tears I’m holding back from running down my cheeks.
Keep it together a little longer. You can do this.
“Come with me,” Rosco demands in my ear, causing me to jump in fright even knowing he’s been right next to me since we’d left the bathroom. Without protest, I follow him to the large white tent in the back yard. Guests are seated at the tables, seeming to enjoy the dessert.
Fear skitters down my spine. My head on a swivel as I search for my stepfather or anyone who seems to be gunning for us. We step inside the serving tent. Rosco’s head turns side to side, taking in our surroundings. The tent is empty.
“What happened?” he demands, turning to face me. “And don’t lie by saying nothing. You were pale as a ghost and that man had a death grip on you when I found you.”
How do I answer? How do I tell him I’m running from the fucking mob?
Rosco isn’t the kind of man to sit back and do nothing.
If he knows what’s really going on, he’ll be hell bent on keeping me and the boys safe.
Which means I’ll be putting him at risk by telling him the truth.
However I’m going to need all the help I can get if I’m to keep the boys safe and get out of this situation alive.
“It’s complicated.” I sigh heavily, receiving a glare in return. “Th-these people are dangerous. They’ll kill us in a heartbeat, if we give them a reason.” Shock and worry cover his handsome face briefly, which increases my own. I’m shaking so hard I can barely remain on my feet.
Suddenly I’m surrounded by Rosco. His arms pulling me against him, caging me in, making me feel safe.
My trembling slowly fades, the warmth of his body seeping into me.
Sucking in a deep breath, I pull back and gaze up at him.
Questions are swirling in his eyes, but he doesn’t say anything, just stares into my eyes, like he can see into my soul.
“I promise I’ll tell you everything as soon as we are away from here, but right now, we have to keep playing the part.” Rosco’s kissable lips are pressed into a hard, narrow line.
“All right,” he concedes. His arms draped loosely around me. “As soon as we are packed up and out of here, you will tell me everything.” His tone is firm, accepting no argument.
“I will,” I whisper. He pulls me to him, again, and I let him. I hold onto him, soaking up his strength. His hand goes to my head, holding me to him. The other is securely around my waist.
“Everything will be all right, angel. You’re safe with me. I promise.” I bob my head up and down against his broad firm chest. His lips press a kiss to the top of my head, drawing a shiver from me. “Let’s get this done, yeah?”
I pull back, meeting his gaze. This tender side of him is unexpected and more tempting than ever. My heart soaking up his care and concern. I can see the resolve in his eyes. He will protect me from these bad men; of that, I have no doubt. But what is going to protect me from him?