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“Missing”
“Choice is an illusion created by those with power and those without.” – Matrix the Movie.
I pulled up outsideof The Lighthouse looking for any clue that she had been there. My quick search led to nowhere. After talking to Floyd in the store, he confirmed that Quella had indeed come in to pick up Jewel’s groceries. After a few minutes of flirting, I was able to convince Floyd to let me look at the store’s security footage.
“Floyd, sweetheart, have you been working out?”
His face blushed a cool shade of pink. When I followed my words up with a slight touch on his arm, combined with a hair flip, his coloring deepened to a hot red.
“I have been increasing my reps lately. Thanks for noticing.”
“How can I not, suga. These biceps are popping through your shirt.”
I gave them a little squeeze for emphasis. I thought the man was going to pass out, the way his knees dipped. He righted himself and leaned on the counter for stability.
“Listen, Quella has gone missing, and I know a good man like you would want to help, right?”
Floyd nodded his head with my help. I took hold of his chin and slightly assisted him in nodding. I flashed him a sexy grin and moved a bit further into his personal space.
“Sure, Obsession. I would do anything to help you.”
“Thank you, baby. What I need right now is for you to...” I trailed my finger down his chest stopping mere inches above his belt. “show me the surveillance footage so I can find my girl.”
I knew Baby and Matrix would be upset that I flirted with Floyd, but it was all I knew how to do. I hadn’t gotten used to being a claimed woman yet and I did what came naturally. Flirting was a way of life for me. It had gotten me out of situations all of my life. It also proved to be a great tool to use if I needed something. I never had to do too much and barely had to touch the man who was on my radar. It didn’t matter though; those men gave me exactly what I asked for, and when I walked away, they were happy being left wanting.
Floyd allowed me access to his security room and helped me find Quella in the footage. Just as he described, she had entered the store, gone straight to the counter and requested Jewel’s order. What she hadn’t noticed was the man who followed her at a safe distance. He hovered around the outside door, looking like he was waiting for someone. He paced back and forth on the sidewalk but kept looking at a van that was parked at one of the gas pumps.
As Quella exited the store, bags in hand, she walked across the parking lot. It looked as if she was aware of the man because she turned to look over her shoulder. When she did that, another man jumped from inside of the van, threw a hood over her head and tossed her struggling form into the sliding door, before taking off. The whole ordeal took less than ten seconds. If you hadn’t been watching Quella, you would have missed the entire thing.
As I was placing a call to Matrix to let him know what I had found, I heard rustling outside of the door. Alarmed I reached for my gun, but realized it was in my saddle bag still on Maverick. Fuck! I slowly cracked the door open and heard two men talking in the hallway. One of the voices belonged to Floyd. That motherfucker!
“She came in here asking questions about that girl. I pretended that I was going to help her and put her in the security room. You have got to take care of this, man. I can’t go to jail for sex trafficking. I have a wife and kids to take care of.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of that bitch. She won’t be telling anyone about what she’s seen.”
“You’d better take care of it. She’s not just some dumb bitch. She’s a member of The Predators. Those fuckers may be on the right side of the law, but I’ve heard tales of their idea of revenge. Nobody fucks with their members and gets away. I don’t need this to come back on me.”
I closed the door as quietly as I could, locked it and facetimed Matrix.
“Hey, darlin’. How’s your day going?”
“Not so good. Listen, I need you to come get me. I am at The Lighthouse corner store, following a lead on Quella. I saw the footage where she was abducted, but now I know that the store owner is involved. There is another man in the hall that is blocking my exit. He is here to take care of me. I need you and the boys to ride out as fast as you can. He is going to take me.”
“Hold on darlin’. We’re coming for you! I swear to god I will kill any man who touches you.”
I could hear the anxiety building in his voice. Then I heard Baby and Ace’s voices in the background as he explained what was going on. The roar of pipes filtered throughout the room as I forgot to place the phone on mute. That caused the man in the hall to try to gain access to the room. Unfortunately, for me the room had no windows, and the only door had a dangerous man on the other side.
“Matrix, the man is going to take me, but I think that is a good thing. He more than likely will bring me to the same place he took Quella. If that’s the case, we can rescue her, too. They will probably take my phone. Is there another way to track my location?”
“I’m working on it, darlin’. I need you to keep the phone on as long as possible. You can end this call and hide the phone somewhere on your body. Is there any tape in the room? Use that to secure it to you. As long as it is on, I will find you.”
I rushed around the room and found a roll of that tape that had a gorilla on the label. I knew if I used it, the damn phone would not come off. Reluctantly, I taped the phone on the inside of the waistline of my pants just above my right butt cheek. If they patted me down, it was less likely they would find it there. Well, that’s what the man in my self-defense class said. Who knew if he was full of shit or not. In the desk drawer where I found the tape, there was a prepaid cell phone. I snagged it with the hopes that if the man asked for my phone, I could give him that one, and I could keep my real one. No sooner than I closed the drawer did the office door burst open. Three men rushed at me, and before I could swing good, there was a hood over my head, and I was being carried out of the room.
I screamed, kicked, and fought the man who was carrying me. He would definitely have some bruises when he woke up the next day. If he woke up. When Matrix and Baby find me, he would be a dead motherfucker.
“Let me go! Help! Help! I am being kidnapped. These men are taking me against my will. Somebody, call the police!”
“Jake, shut that bitch up! I am tired of hearing her scream. If you have to stick a dick in her mouth, do it. I don’t care, as long as she’s quiet.”
That was enough to clamp my mouth shut. I froze in mid rant. There was no way in hell that I wanted to be violated. I would do what they said until I could find a way to escape. My mission was to find Quella at all costs. My body went flying in the air for a few seconds and then I landed on something hard. Ouch! Fuck that hurt. I think I hurt my wrist.
I must have been tossed into a van or something because I heard the engine turn over and doors slamming. I also heard the distinct sound of a sliding door closing. I was living out one of my worst nightmares. Since I was a kid, I had always avoided those creepy white vans that always seem to be sitting in your path, when you are walking in a parking lot. I had nightmares about being abducted by some oily haired man with glasses and bad breath who nobody talked to. The kind of man who only got laid by force.
Goosebumps rose on my skin, though the interior of the van was smoldering. It didn’t help that the nasty man who had been carrying me was sweating profusely, and it had gotten on me. He smelled of garlic and ass. A lethal combination. I was having trouble breathing with that hood over my head, but I didn’t complain. At least it served to diminish the man’s rancid scent. I closed my eyes and tried to listen to everything that was going on around me, like they tell you in the movies. Well, that shit didn’t work. Let me tell you. I was stressed to the max. The only thing I heard was my heart about to beat out of my chest, and my labored breathing.
We must have driven for about half an hour, and then I felt the van stop. Whoever was driving cut the engine and the doors opened, bringing in more hot air. At least there was a warm breeze that met me, letting in much needed fresh air. I was snatched up from what I assumed was the floor of the van, and forced to walk. I always thought if I was in this situation, I would drag my feet or refuse to walk, but when it really happens to you, things are a little different. I was tired and sore. I did not want to be hit or raped, so I cooperated with my captors, for now.
I could feel the sun burning the skin on my arms and smell the ocean. The loud horn of a ship made me jump before my abductor tightened his hold on my arm. I felt like I was being death marched to my final resting place. Either they were going to kill me and dump my body in the ocean, or they were doing some sick sort of reverse slave trade, sending my ass overseas to be a sex slave. Neither appealed to me.
I refused to give up without a fight, though. I had these bracelets that Mouse gave me when we were girls. She made them for me out of these beads we found on a road trip her father had taken us on. She called them sister bands and we were never to take them off. They were strung using an elastic cord, so it stretched as we grew. Those bracelets meant the world to me, even when Mouse and I were at odds. Well, my hands were not tied as of yet, so I pulled and tugged at the bands until each one broke. Dropping the beads on the ground, I left a trail for my men to find me. I hoped they came for me soon because there was no telling what was waiting for me.
