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“Come, butterfly, let’s dance.”
FIFTEEN
Paul waited outside the apartment for his opportunity to enter. He knew every second counted at this point, but short of using a battering ram, he wasn’t getting through that steel door by force. He’d already pinpointed each security camera along the hall. No doubt Moore already knew he was there. He was surprised no one had come out to apprehend him – neither the bad guys nor the good. The silence was making him edgy. Why hadn’t Moore sent someone out to deal with him? He’d counted on Ethan bringing him inside for a little “discussion.” He knew it was dangerous, but he relished meeting Olivia’s tormentor face to face to exact a little revenge on her behalf. But no one came out, not even Rogerson, to order him away from the scene. Tasha Bennington hadn’t sent one of her men up to drag him back down to the unmarked van parked on the street.
Which meant something was wrong.
Anger and fear rode beneath the surface as he stalked the doorway. He’d been an undercover cop long enough to know he couldn’t ride on his emotions. He needed to do this right or Olivia would get hurt, just as Jodee had.
The door to the apartment suddenly swung open. There was no time to duck around the corner so Paul stood his ground. His wariness turned to curiosity as he watched Rogerson drag a very large unconscious man into the hallway. Rogerson stiffened when he spotted Paul and quickly shut the apartment door behind him.
“Where’s Olivia?” Paul demanded, wasting no time. Rogerson’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. Ethan had enough friends and enemies that Rogerson would be wary of everyone. Too bad Tasha hadn’t arranged a “meet and greet” so the agent would be more willing to help him out.
“Come on, man,” Paul urged impatiently. “We’re on the same side. For the sake of secrecy and too many security cameras, I’m not going to name names. Just get me through that door.”
“You’re Paul Justice?”
“Yeah,” he admitted with a big measure of relief. Maybe Tasha was on his side after all. He needed ten minutes inside to get Olivia out, then the FBI could play around with Ethan Moore as long as they wanted.
“He was dragging her onto the balcony when I left. I couldn’t intervene. He’s flying high on a lot of substances and is very unpredictable. There’s no one else in the flat for you to worry about. This guy was his bodyguard.” Rogerson nudged the big man with his foot. “Don’t blow this case, Justice. We have a lot riding on the evidence.”
Paul didn’t bother with an answer as he pushed the door wide enough to peer into the apartment. All was quiet. He crept inside as Rogerson pulled the unconscious man further down the hall and away from the apartment. At least Rogerson didn’t try to stop him – another gift from Tasha Bennington. Maybe they realized how dicey things were for Olivia, which set Paul even more on edge. He didn’t like coming in empty handed and wished for his service issue firearm. He crept silently through the foyer, taking in a lot of details at once. The place was posh, not surprising for a billionaire criminal. He moved past what looked like a large office to an open living area. The remains of a meal were forgotten on the long dining table. Place settings for two.
He heard voices arguing through the open doorway to the balcony. He stayed as close to the wall and out of sight as possible. As he drew closer he could hear Olivia. He couldn’t make out the words but her voice was filled with panic. Anger surged through him and he wanted to charge out there, but he knew any sudden moves could put her at risk. He had to stay calm, assess, and then take out the bastard.
Keep her safe – don’t fail her.
He stepped into the doorway and froze at what he saw. Ethan Moore stood on the balcony wall, balancing precariously on the narrow ledge forty floors above the street below. Olivia sat on the wall next to his legs; she gripped the ledge tightly. Her face was badly bruised and filled with terror. Ethan had his hand buried in her hair. Paul let out a low, imperceptible growl. She was hu
rt. They’d warned him, but the cuts and bruises coloring her face were still a shock and Paul could barely see through the haze of his rage. Ethan Moore would pay dearly for abusing her.
“Stand up!” Ethan barked. He gave a sharp tug on her scalp, making her cry out.
“No!” she screamed. “I won’t do this. Let me go, Ethan!” Her eyes widened when she spotted Paul in the doorway. “Paul!” she mouthed silently as tears started trekking down her cheeks at the sight of him. When he stepped forward she shook her head almost imperceptibly. “No! Don’t!” her lips formed the silent words.
He didn’t allow her fear to deter him. He wouldn’t let this psychopath murder the woman he loved. Very slowly he eased onto the balcony, keeping to the side. He kept his gaze locked on Olivia’s as he watched Moore in his periphery.
He was less than four feet away when Ethan glanced in his direction and realized they weren’t alone on the balcony. Ethan jerked viciously and Olivia cried out in fear and pain. “Ethan!” she shrieked as he tottered, pulling on her with desperate fierceness. She leaned forward and tried to wrench herself out of his grasp but Ethan’s hold was too strong. He regained his balance with some effort then laughed. With another sharp tug he held Olivia on the wall when she tried to slip free again.
“Welcome to the party, Paul Justice,” he sneered. “Don’t take another step or I’ll knock her off the ledge.” He gave a sudden violent pull on Olivia’s hair. Her entire body shifted and she let out a small scream. Ethan teetered, righted himself, and then laughed again.
The man was insane. Paul held up his hands. “Fine, I won’t come any closer. Just let her down. We can discuss this rationally.”
“Why? So you can put your hands all over her? I was told you were dead. Maybe you’re a ghost standing here, coming to destroy my happiness. But I won’t let you take Olivia away from me. She belongs to me. Not you. Never you. I will kill us all before I let you touch her again. Her body belongs to me. I know what she needs. I’m the only one who can provide for her.”
Paul’s anger grew with every word. How dare this spineless worm of a man think he could control Olivia’s life? How dare he lay a hand on her? Paul wanted to beat him into a bloody pulp and have him cry for mercy, but he knew he couldn’t act on his anger – not yet. He forced himself to remain calm while wearing a mild expression. He wouldn’t let Ethan know how pissed he was.
Time to play good cop. He hated that role. “All right, buddy, take it easy. I know you care for Olivia, but this is no way to treat her. She’s in danger and she’s hurt. Let her down gently so the three of us can talk about this.” Paul held his hands up in a placating way as he took a small step forward. “I can see you’re upset. You’re angry. But this isn’t the way to handle your anger. Let her down nice and easy so we can go inside and talk. Come on, buddy.”
“Don’t take another step!” Ethan yelled. He shook with rage and a tremor ran the length of his body. Paul could see how it affected Olivia and froze in his place.
“Okay, okay. I won’t move. Take it easy.”
“Don’t tell me what to do! I know who you are, Paul Justice!” He pulled Olivia’s hair, making her stretch higher. She winced but didn’t take her gaze off Paul.
Paul held up his hand and forced his voice to remain easy – soothing. He wanted to tackle the guy and knock him off the wall himself but he forced himself to remain still. “I’m only Olivia’s friend. You don’t need to take your anger out on her. Step down and face me, man-to-man. She doesn’t need to be in the middle of this.”
Ethan laughed derisively. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? You think I’m a fool, Paul Justice? No! You turned her into a whore! I should kill you both for what you’ve done. You stole her from me and I will make you suffer more than you ever thought possible. You will wish you died in that car crash – those fools should have killed you as I ordered them to. They told me you were dead.” Ethan’s voice grew softer with each word until he was muttering to himself. Paul took another step closer. He kept a close eye on Ethan as he slowly reached toward Olivia.
