Chapter 15
Genevieve had just taken a step into the concrete stairwell when she heard Jason's voice behind her, closer than she'd expected.
"You can't run from me! You won't get away!"
She feared that he was right. Even if she made it to the ground floor, she'd still have no way to call for help before he grabbed her again.
But another noise sounded and filled her with desperate hope.
Multiple sets of footsteps pounded rapidly up the stairs. She paused to listen, praying for help. Then she heard a welcome voice. "Genevieve…where are you?"
"Abe! I'm here!" she shouted down the stairwell. "Third floor!"
The footsteps below her accelerated, and she heard Abe talking to someone. Relief flooded through her so intensely that her knees nearly buckled.
Behind her, Jason burst through the stairwell door. His face was streaked with blood and chemical foam, which dripped down to his fancy shoes. His expensive suit was disheveled and torn, his eyes red and streaming tears from the fire suppressant, but they locked on to her with unmistakable intent.
"You're not going anywhere," he said, and lunged for her, grabbing her arm and yanking her toward him. With one arm around her body, he placed a sharp blade against her throat.
Genevieve dared not breathe. She closed her eyes, grateful that Abe's voice was much closer now. She opened her eyes and, in her peripheral vision, saw that Abe was just one flight below.
"NOPD! Stop right there!"
When Abe appeared a few stairs below with his weapon drawn, Jason froze. Another officer was a step behind Abe.
But Genevieve was out of reach. She remained still, terrified of the cold blade touching her neck.
"Let her go, Thornton," Abe said, his voice deadly calm as he took in Jason's appearance and Genevieve's obvious distress. "Drop that box cutter. You'll regret injuring her. It's over."
Sounding disgusted, Jason said, "Over?" His tone was manic, like in the studio. "It's not over. It will never be over. She belongs to me."
*****
Abe assessed the situation with the cold precision of fifteen years in law enforcement. Jason held Genevieve just three stairs up, from where Abe stood.
Jason held the wooden handle of a box cutter, probably a non-retractable model used to open equipment boxes. It made a handy weapon. He held the sharp blade against the delicate skin of Genevieve's neck. One wrong move, one moment of panic or rage, and the blade could open her carotid artery.
The stairwell worked against them. The confined space meant there was no clear shot at Jason, especially with Geneiveve as a shield.
Plus, sudden noise in the metal stairwell might startle Jason into action. Abe looked up. The three stairs separating him from Genevieve felt like a mile. He sensed Denson's tension as he waited one step behind.
"I know you think you love her," Abe said, keeping his tone conversational while his weapon remained trained on Jason's forehead, just inches above the top of Genevieve's head. "But this isn't love, Jason. This is fear."
Jason's laugh was sharp and bitter, echoing off the concrete walls. "Fear? I'm offering her a guaranteed career. I can provide security. What are you offering…a cop's salary? And she doesn't deserve a life of worry each time you walk out the door."
Abe could see the tremor in Jason's hands, the way his eyes darted between the officers. The man was in the grip of desperation, which made him more dangerous.
"I'm offering her a choice," Abe said, taking one cautious step up the stairs. "That's something you haven't done."
"Choice?" Jason spat. "She made her choice when she left my band. When she rejected me, and my generous offer." He jerked his elbow as if preparing for action. "I'll cut her. You know I will."
The threat hung in the air, but Abe assessed Jason's demeanor. The man was rattled, his confidence cracking under the pressure of being cornered.
Abe took another step up. "You won't hurt her, Jason. Because then you'd have nothing left to bargain with."
"Stay back!" Jason pressed the blade tighter to Genevieve's throat, and Abe saw her wince. A thin line of blood appeared on her skin.
Then Jason's foot slipped on the metal stair.
His polished dress shoe, slick with chemical foam from the fire extinguisher, lost purchase on the grooved metal surface. Jason's balance shifted backward, and he flailed a hand at the railing, trying to compensate.
For a split second, the box cutter pulled away from Genevieve's throat as he fought to stay upright. She was suddenly free of his grasp and swiftly ducked under his arm. Then she sprinted up the stairs to the landing.
Abe took the last two stairs in one lunge. In a flash, he grabbed Jason's ankle and yanked his feet out from under him. Without missing a beat, he squeezed Jason's wrist hard to force him to release the box cutter. The blade clattered loudly down the steps.
Abe picked up Jason by his arms then shoved him into the railing against the wall, momentarily stunning him. Amazingly, Jason fought back, kicking and trying to wrench free. Then Abe punched his elbow into the guy's stomach, shutting him up.
Denson had sprinted up the stairs past the action. He stood protectively in front of Genevieve.
"I've got her," Denson said, his weapon now trained on Jason as Abe wrestled the man's arms behind his back.
"Jason Thornton, you're under arrest for kidnapping, assault, and stalking," Abe said, securing Jason's wrists with handcuffs from his duty belt.
After spinning the man around to face him, he continued, "You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. "
Jason had barely regained his breath, but his rage was palpable. "This isn't over. You have no idea what you're dealing with."
"I know exactly what I'm dealing with," Abe said, pushing Jason up the stairs toward the hallway. "A coward who hides behind criminals."
*****
The four of them had just stepped into the hallway when the elevator dinged. The electronic chime seemed unnaturally loud in the sudden quiet, then the doors slid open.
Two men stepped out of the elevator. The first was unmistakably the same muscled man from Jason's office building, the one who had pushed Abe down the stairs as a warning.
His scarred face showed no emotion as he raised a pistol and pointed it directly at them.
Another thug stepped out right behind him, also armed.
"Give it up," the first man said, his gravelly voice carrying the weight of authority. His eyes moved between Abe and Denson with the calculating gaze of someone who had done this before.
Abe's response was immediate and unwavering. "You're under arrest."
The muscled man's laugh was cold and humorless. "I don't think so. You won't live long enough to arrest us." His gaze shifted to Denson, and then to Genevieve standing beside him. "Let her go."
The hallway seemed to contract around them, the air thick with tension. Denson stood in front of Genevieve, making his body a barrier between her and the armed men. He pointed his gun at the intruders.
In the same instant, Abe shoved Jason hard to the ground, causing him to hit the polished floor with a grunt of pain and surprise. The sudden movement caught both thugs off guard and split their attention between multiple targets.
"NOPD! Drop your weapons!" Denson shouted, and advanced on the gunman.
Before the criminal could get off a shot, Abe tackled him, while Denson engaged the second. The hallway erupted in chaos as the men wrestled for control.
Jason had managed to struggle to his feet during the commotion, his cuffed hands making the process awkward and undignified. Since the fight blocked the way to the elevator, he moved swiftly toward the stairwell.
Genevieve would have none of it. She kicked his left knee hard, making him cry out in pain and fall back to the floor. "Not on my watch," she said with satisfaction, all fear gone in the heat of the moment.
Abe disarmed his attacker with brutal efficiency. The man's weapon skittered across the polished floor, coming to rest near the elevator.
Outside the building, sirens began to blare, their wailing cry dying out when they pulled up out front. Noise on the stairs announced the backup's approach.
"Third floor!" Denson shouted into the stairwell. Two more officers burst through the door, their weapons drawn and ready. Denson indicated the two subdued thugs with a nod. "Cuff those two and put them in the patrol car."
The officers moved efficiently, without asking questions. Within minutes, both men were escorted down the stairs.
*****
From the floor, Jason watched as his buddies were escorted away. His expression chilled Genevieve more than his earlier rage.
He was smirking.
"The alarm that went off here was a call to the family," Jason said, his voice carrying confidence that seemed completely at odds with his current situation. "Their guys will be here any time now, and you'll see who's in charge."
Genevieve felt a new wave of fear wash over her. Even defeated and captured, Jason still believed he held the upper hand. The criminal organization backing him was his ace in the hole, his insurance against consequences.
But in the distance, other sirens were heard. These were different from the NOPD vehicles, their tone carrying authority that made Jason's smirk falter slightly.
Abe turned to Jason, with a look as hard as granite. He grabbed the man's arm and yanked him to his feet, ignoring the grunt of pain. "And that …is the FBI. You've committed federal crimes, and as far as I'm concerned, they can have you."
Genevieve moved to stand beside Abe, watching Jason's smug expression disappear. His eyes blazed with fury, as his carefully constructed world collapsed around him.
Denson stepped forward. "Whatever protection the Barraco family provided you has ended. Now that the feds have taken over, your friends won't want anything to do with you…too messy."
"If all they do is sever the relationship," Abe said, "consider yourself lucky."
It clearly dawned on Jason that his criminal backers would cut him loose rather than risk federal attention. His face went pale beneath the streaks of foam and dried blood.
Denson pulled out a set of zip ties to secure Jason's legs and prevent any last-minute escape attempts. "It will give me great satisfaction to turn you over."
The sound of heavy footsteps pounding up the stairs grew louder. Multiple voices coordinated movements and positions as the FBI task force took control of the building.
Abe wrapped his arms around Genevieve, pulling her close against his chest. Tension drained from her body as backup burst out of the stairwell.
"It's over," he murmured into her hair. "You're safe now."
The federal agents appeared in the hallway, tactical gear marking them as an elite task force. The one in charge took control of Jason and removed him from the premises.
Jason Thornton's reign of terror had ended.