Chapter 48
FORTY-EIGHT
Cane
I blasted Alice in Chains as I made my way home. As I turned into my subdivision, I was too focused on seeing my girl to even be annoyed by the Jack-and-Jillness of the fucking place.
I’m so turning into a pussy.
I smiled as the thought crossed my mind.
Yeah. I’m fucked.
Once I’d pulled up to my house and parked beside Jada, I turned to open my door and noticed something odd.
There were no lights on in the house.
I cocked my head to the side, trying to figure out why she wouldn’t have turned one light on at all.
Would she have gone to bed?
I looked above the garage to the master bathroom, and it was dark, too.
This is just your paranoia from the last few weeks, asshole.
I hopped out of the Denali but entered through the side gate, the neighbor’s dog barking its fucking head off.
The rooms on that side of the house were guest rooms, and I didn’t use them for shit, so I wasn’t surprised when there weren’t any lights on. There would be no reason for Jada to be in there.
I knew I was being irrational, but I couldn’t shake it.
I quietly opened the door to the walkout basement, slipping in and closing it softly behind me.
My senses took over: looking, listening, feeling for anything that seemed off.
I stood still, knowing that the kitchen was right above my head. I listened for any sound of life but was met with quiet.
You’re a fucking paranoid idiot, Alexander. Just go find Jada and make love to your girl.
I shook my head, knowing I was right. I was wasting precious time.
I took a few steps ahead before the floor above me to the right squeaked, the joists giving way to the weight on them.
My brain did a quick assessment.
My office.
Someone was in my fucking office.
My stomach lurched in my throat as a cold chill broke out across my skin.
Something was really fucking wrong.
JADA
My head felt like a bomb had exploded inside it, and my eyes struggled to open against my heavy lids. The pain on the left side of my head was almost unbearable, and I couldn’t figure out why.
What was going on?
I tried to reach up to touch it, but I couldn’t move my hands. When I tried to roll over, my legs wouldn’t work, either.
A wave of panic hit me as I finally forced my lids to lift and saw that I was in a real-life nightmare.
This can’t be happening!
I struggled hard against the restraints holding me tightly to the chair.
My eyes darted around the room, and I recognized it as Cane’s office.
The glow from his computer screen and the light from the security lamp outside were the only light.
My eyes were swollen and hazy, and I had trouble making out much detail.
I fought to breathe around a bandana wrapped around my mouth. With it, I couldn’t make much sound.
What was happening? Trying to see through my swollen eyes made the pain pulsing in my temple worsen, but
I scanned the office, too scared to even cry. I worked my hands back and forth as I tried to yell for help.
This isn’t fucking happening to me.
“You should sit still. You’re only making things worse, bonita.”
Fear and panic mixed in one volatile concoction. I choked back the rising vomit as I scanned the room for the source of the voice.
A large figure dressed all in black stepped from the shadows. As he approached, I could make out a bit of silver coming toward my face.
A gun.
It took every ounce of energy I could dig up not to pass out.
CANE
At the word “bonita,” my first instinct was to race upstairs, burst into the room, and rip his heart out with my bare hands. I wanted to watch his heart beat as I held it while his blood dripped onto the floor.
I forced air into my lungs, knowing I had to stay calm and think fast.
I had to get to her.
The floor creaked above me again, and I moved a few steps to the right, directly beneath the sound.
“Ah, bonita. How are you feeling? Frustrated, yes?”
I clenched my hands at my sides as I listened for some sign from Jada.
Please, baby. Where are you?
The man chuckled, and the floor creaked as he moved across the room toward the back of the house. I stepped in time with him and stopped as the sound stopped. He stopped where I figured was right in front of my bookshelf.
I heard my desk chair roll a few feet and stop directly above me.
“It’s okay. I’m just waiting on your boyfriend to come home and then things will be better for you. I’ll release your bonds to that chair. I know it hurts, bonita. And I am sorry. It wasn’t you I was after. It was him.”
He began to laugh maniacally.
My nostrils flared, my heart almost leaping out of my chest.
Breathe, Alexander. Figure a way out of this.
“I was paid ten grand to deal with Cane. You’re just going to be a sweet bonus.”
My entire body raged with fury, and I had to clap a hand over my mouth before I yelled out in frustration. I paced a circle, pulling on my hair, trying to release some of the energy that was threatening to bound up the stairs.
The joists creaked again as he made his way to the other side of my office and away from Jada.
I was still standing beneath where I thought she was, and I heard a small whimper.
My throat closed tight, nearly suffocating me.
Think, Alexander. Fucking think.
I pulled my phone from my pocket and set it to silent. I found Max’s name in my text box.
Me: Call the police and send them to my house. Can’t answer questions. Now!
JADA
Tears flowed down my cheeks, getting caught in the bandana in my mouth. My hair had escaped my ponytail and was now stuck to the sides of my face, glued to my skin by the tears.
My head was so heavy, the pain so bad that I had to force myself to stay awake. I had to be present.
I had to find a way out of this.
Cane will be home soon.
The thought made me cry harder. I had no way to warn him.
I felt beyond helpless, completely and utterly useless. I couldn’t do anything but be tied to this chair and pray that somehow Cane would not walk into this unknowingly.
The man in front of me was leaning against a wall in the shadows, watching out the window. He was watching the wrong way for traffic to be coming in, but maybe that would benefit Cane somehow.
I gave up trying to openly struggle. I could barely concentrate.
The pain was so bad, my energy so sapped, that I could barely move anyway.
I did work my hands back and forth, side to side, against the restraint.
It was sharp, thin, and really hard. It felt like the zip ties my dad used to hold For Sale signs to posts.
It probably hurt, but everything hurt, so it was hard to tell.
“Bonita, you may as well stop. You won’t be getting away.” His voice was placating. His shadow moved against the floor as he changed positions, staying encased in the shadows.
I tried to move the bandana in my mouth with my tongue, but it was useless. My tongue was swollen and dry somehow, despite the soaked fabric of the gag.
“Your boyfriend will not take me long to sort out. I didn’t get paid to dispose of his body, so I just need to end him, and then you and I”—he laughed—“you and I will have a little fun before I go.”
Vomit surged up my throat, and I began to choke. The acidic taste of the bile made my eyes water again, causing me to panic. It was the one thing I had tried not to do.
I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t see, I couldn’t hear anything but the man’s awful laughter getting closer. He pulled the fabric out of my mouth, and I spat the fluid all over his shoes, my tears now mixing with the vomit dripping down my chin.
I tried to drag air into my lungs as my face hung pathetically forward, the fluids still dripping out of my mouth.
“You little bitch,” he said in a very controlled tone. He took a step back and slapped me across the face, the loud smack against my eardrum causing it to pop and feel wet.
My eyes began to close again, unable to deal with the pain.
I’m going to die tonight …