“I’ve got to leave now if I’m going to make the appointment,” Rawlins said. He turned, looking for their waitress and flagged her down. When she came over, he asked for the bill. “I’ve got this. I’ll see you all later. Chaney, you do what Rafferty says and be safe.”
“You know I will,” she promised.
After he left, they finished up and headed to the market down the street to buy snacks before going to Rafferty’s car and driving over to the law office. They parked in a nearby parking garage and got out to walk to the building.
Rafferty spotted two men exit a vehicle and come in their direction. He made sure the girls were close to him. But he didn’t notice a third man coming between two parked cars from his left. He did a leg sweep, taking out Rafferty’s bad knee with the quick move, putting him on the ground, flat on his back. His cellphone dropped and the man kicked it aside before running away.
“Rafferty!” Justus yelled.
“What’s going on?” Chaney squealed.
The two men ran to snatched the girls away quickly, covering their mouths with cloths. Justus and Chaney both kicked and fought against their assailants, screaming, but their cries were muffled.
Something sharp pricked Justus on the arm and soon she felt woozy. She slumped against the man who held her by the arms.
Samson laidJustus on the ground near the tail end of the car where they were standing. He joined Oscar who held Chaney, but she dug her heel in his shin and he let her go as he hopped on one foot, cursing.
“She’s getting away, you fool!” Leland grimaced, behind the silicone mask he was wearing so the girls wouldn’t recognize him.
“Damn!” Oscar shrieked, as he and Samson ran, catching her before she got too far away. While Oscar grabbed her again, Samson stuck her with the syringe. Within seconds, she too was out. Not taking pains to be gentle, Oscar threw her over his shoulder and carried her back to the car.
“Toss them in the trunk,” Leland ordered. “They should be out for a while.”
Samson opened the trunk, picked up Justus, and laid her inside. Then Oscar dumped Chaney beside her and they closed the lid.
“What about their protector?” Oscar asked. “Are we just going to leave him there groaning?”
“Sure. He’s not going anywhere. You made sure to destroy his phone, right?”
“I kicked it under a nearby car,” Samson said. “There is no way he can get to it with his knee blown.”
“Good. Let’s get out of here before someone comes looking for them,” Leland said.
The three jumped in the car and left the parking garage.
Rafferty wasin agony as he lay on the cool, hard cement of the parking garage floor. Bile rose in his throat the pain in his knee was so fierce. He rolled to his stomach, resting his head on his forearms for a few moments, before he could look up. He had to find his cellphone. Where had the bastard kicked it? He hadto call for help and let the USADA know what had happened to Justus and Chaney.
How had he been so stupid to let Rawlins leave him alone like this? He should have insisted he at least wait until they got the girls to the law office before he headed to that appointment. If there even was an appointment.
He hoped to heaven there was, and his brother wasn’t finding himself on some wild goose chase. Now wouldn’t that be a kicker? He hated to be cynical, but after what had happened to him, he was starting to question if Rawlins’ phone call was legit or not.
Wiggling from side to side, one hand in front of the other, he slowly slithered, belly-crawling like a lizard when he spotted his phone under the front left tire of a Lincoln SUV. His knee was burning like the devil, but he couldn’t stop, even if the friction of his movement added to its growing heat.
“Lord, please don’t let the phone be destroyed,” he prayed. “Those things were not designed to be dropped and kicked on a concrete floor. “Cause if it ain’t working when I get to it, I’ll be stuck here for hours with no way to call for help until someone drives in here.”
Feeling more and more helpless, he dragged himself toward the car and his phone. Sweat prickled his brow as he stopped to catch his breath and he thought he heard the sound of a car coming up the car park.
Great, that’s all I need. To get run over by some poor unsuspecting driver who won’t see me until it’s too late.
He pushed on at a faster pace, but that made the muscles in his arms begin to knot. He stretched his arms back and forth a few times before rolling his shoulders and tried to roll himself toward the car a time or two, but that caused more pain in his knee than the belly crawl. And it got him slightly off course, so he had to correct himself.
Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath for fortitude, and gritted his teeth before charging forward. Palming the cold parking area until he reached the front left tire and grabbed his phone. He looked at the screen and let out a laugh when he saw it was in mint condition. And then he cried with relief and gratitude. Tears flowed down his cheeks and he lay his head on his arms not believing the torture he’d put himself through believing the worst.
Wiping his face with the back of his hand, he called 9-1-1 and reported the incident, requested an ambulance to his level of the parking garage and asked the dispatch could reach the US Assistant District Attorney and gave her the address along with his phone number, and asked that it be passed to the USADA.
Ending the call, he once again rolled onto his back and stared up. He laid there until he caught his breath and was able to move. He used his hands to try to push himself to a sitting position and scooted on his butt down toward the tail end of the car. That way he could lean against the tire and be more easily spotted when the ambulance arrived.
While he waited he gave Asher Nolte a call, hoping he wasn’t out on assignment and unreachable. He picked up on the first ring.
