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And that was the most dangerous position to be in of all.
Chapter Three
“I need to use the bathroom. Please,” Elise tacked on. The one who’d manhandled her into the van, which she’d decided to dub Manhandler, for obvious reasons, seemed to respond well to politeness.
Only silence followed, but Elise knew that she wasn’t alone in the room. She could hear the subtle shift of clothing from time to time, the wheeze of a nostril over the crackling hearth. They were just ignoring her.
“Excuse me,” she said more forcefully. “I need to use the bathroom.”
“Hold on,” Driver grunted. Shifting sounds reached her ears then something small and hard hit her knee before falling to the floor with several clatters. Metal. “There’s a quarter. Call someone who cares.” Driver laughed at his own lame and outdated sense of humor.
Elise wasn’t in a laughing mood. Apparently, neither was Manhandler.
“For fuck’s sake. Would it kill you to have some decency?”
“She’s a prisoner.”
“You plan on getting friendly with a bucket and mop tonight? Even puppies piss themselves if you don’t take them outside every now and then. So why don’t you step up and take the lady to the bathroom.”
Elise was mentally shaking her head. The way these two were arguing, they were going to end up killing each other. And Driver’s pettiness didn’t inspire much confidence in how he’d treat her when his partner wasn’t looking. He’d already hit her once, and his disdain for her wasn’t masked. She’d bet money he liked to hurt things. It was just a matter of time before his pride and ego were bruised enough to lash out. The question was, who would he take it out on?
“Why don’t you stop acting like I’m your little lapdog and do it yourself.” Driver was angry, his tone seething. Elise could picture the foam on his lips. She half-expected things to get even more heated between them, but once again, Manhandler diffused the situation without much effort.
“You’re a pain in my ass,” he told his partner as, from the sound of movement, he got up and crossed the room. His hand above her elbow was firm but gentle, applying just enough pressure to give instruction. “Let’s go.”
She went. Each step was an exercise in trust. When they reached the bathroom, she paused, wondering what to do next. She couldn’t see a damn thing. And she sure as hell wasn’t letting him into the bathroom with her. She’d rather wet herself than allow that to happen.
“You have two minutes. Lights stay off. When I close the door, you can remove the blindfold. When your time is up, I’ll knock twice and you make sure it’s back on before I open that door. There’s no escaping in there. No weapons. Don’t try anything stupid, and you won’t have to find out what happens to those who cross me. Got it?”
Crystal clear. The last thing Elise wanted to do was find out where they hid the bodies. Namely, hers. So she nodded once, sharply, before being shoved into the bathroom.
As soon as the door clicked shut, she ripped the cloth from her eyes and got down to business. She counted the seconds as she relieved herself. Continued as she scoured the bathroom for anything she could use as a weapon, despite him already telling her there was nothing. As if she’d believe him? But everything—the shower stall, medicine, and sink cabinets were stripped bare. The only thing that could be useful was a bar of generic white soap that had cracked and split from age and use. Somehow, she doubted they’d give her time to lather up herself or the floors to create a slippery mess.
Drat.
Keenly aware that she had run out of time, Elise reached over and flushed the toilet to announce that she was finishing up. She hadn’t even dried her hands when she heard the double tap on the door.
The temptation to turn around and wait, to catch a look at her captor’s face was almost too much. Standing in front of the mirror, she stared at the door’s reflection, waiting, anticipating. But at the last second, as the doorknob clicked and a sliver of light from the hallway shone through, she yanked the blindfold back into place.
Well, aren’t you the dutiful prisoner?No self-preservation at all, Elise thought with self-directed disgust.
“You listened. I’m impressed.” A heavy hand closed around her elbow. “Saves me the trouble of doling out punishment.”
“I would have thought you’d be disappointed by that.”
“Maybe I am.”
The gruff delivery sent a shiver of fear dancing down Elise’s spine. Yet, behind her veil of darkness, Elise was led back to her seat with more care than she would expect from a kidnapper. Despite the open threat, Elise was coming to believe at least one of the men had a heart, and it wasn’t hard to pinpoint which one it was. How big it was, however, remained to be seen.
“I’ll be back.”
“Where?” Manhandler barked at his partner.
“To get food. All that’s in that kitchen is cobwebs, and I’m starving. You got a problem with that?”
“We haven’t been here that long. Can’t you wait?”
“No, I can’t.”
