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My phone rang, showing that it was my second-in-command calling. “What’s up?” I asked tersely, struggling not to get in my car to go stake out Samantha’s home. “Tell me you’ve got some good news for me for once.”
“Sorry, Boss,” he said. “Aldo Gianni managed to shake us, along with some of his men. We haven’t had eyes on them for an hour and still can’t locate them.”
“Why didn’t I get this information an hour ago, then?” I shouted, not staying on the line long enough to hear his excuse.
How long had it been since Samantha left? Ten, fifteen minutes? Too long.
I raced for the door, shoving my confused dog back into the apartment before heading to the elevator. It had never seemed so slow before, finally spitting me out at the parking garage level. Jumping in my car, I careened out of the garage, blasting the horn as I pulled onto the street.
I no longer cared if I was being paranoid. I had to make sure my baby was safe.
Chapter 9 - Samantha
True to his word, the payment showed up as pending just a few minutes after I got to the bus stop, so I was able to relax on the ride home. At least until someone bashed into us from behind. The fender bender didn’t do anything to the big old city bus, but the car that hit us was folded like an accordion, and the driver was making a huge scene.
All the passengers had to file off and find different ways to their destinations. Since I was only six blocks from home and I didn’t feel sick for the first time in days, I decided to walk. I was starving after feeling like crap for so long and wanted to stop at every bakery and restaurant I passed, but I resolutely ignored the temptation. Until Gran was completely well again, I was determined not to spend money needlessly. We had food at home.
Despite my growling stomach, I was glad for the stroll. It was a lovely day without too much pollution, giving me a chance to think about the future. If I could manage to save even a minuscule amount to give us a safety net, I planned to quit my horrible filing job and use that time to learn medical coding. After having to search for all of Gran’s tests by the codes on the bills, I learned it was an actual career I could do online. It paid well, but I needed time to do the course, and extra time meant less money. I got lost in a daydream about having a nice, stable career one day, which helped distract me from the six different bakeries I had to walk past.
As I turned down an alley that cut through to our street, a gloved hand seemed to come out of nowhere to slap over my mouth. Before I could process what was happening, an arm wrapped around my chest from behind and dragged me back the way I’d come. I dug in my heels, almost losing one of my sneakers, and clawed at the arm that squeezed me like a python and the hand over my mouth. The man who had me in his clutches was at least a foot taller than me, and his arm was as big around as my thigh. He wore a thick leather jacket, so even digging in my fingernails only seemed to annoy him as he jerked me roughly to get me to settle down. I could barely breathe through his heavy glove, let alone scream. No matter how much I struggled, I didn’t stand a chance.
Terror washed over me when he tossed me into the backseat of a car idling at the curb just outside the alley. His hand came away from my mouth long enough for me to get out a scream, but then he yanked a cloth sack over my head and practically sat on me as the car squealed away.
I screamed again and got punched in the side of the head. I’d never been punched in my life or even slapped. Despite being dazed by the hit, my first thought went to the baby, and I lay still. If they thought I was unconscious, there might be a chance to get out and run when the car stopped again. I struggled to breathe evenly and not panic, making it even harder to get air through the rough fabric that threatened to suffocate me.
In all my life, I’d only had my purse snatched once by some jerk on a bike, and he’d only seemed to do it for fun and not any real malice. Even in my shabby neighborhood, I’d never been threatened with violence, and the shock of my current situation hit harder than the blow to the side of my head.
What was going to become of me? And the baby? Every fiber of my being screamed at me to lash out against the great weight on top of me, but I stuck to the plan of tricking them into thinking I was unconscious. I would take it if there was even the slightest opportunity to run when my attacker got off me.
We drove for a while, and I gave up trying to keep track of how far we’d gone or how many turns we took, completely disoriented under the sack. My fear grew when we started going faster, which might have indicated we were leaving the city streets and pulling onto one of the interstate highways. If they took me to someplace in the middle of nowhere, how would I find help?
I didn’t have too much time to worry about that new fear because the car was rammed from behind with such force I rolled into the footwell with a thud. My assailant landed on top of me and nearly crushed me, causing a fresh bout of panic when I couldn’t breathe at all under him.
As suddenly as the car jolted to a stop, the man was just gone, seeming to be lifted off of me. There were a few shouts, then a couple quick, loud pops. Gunshots? Oh God, I was sure I heard gunshots. I curled into a ball, waiting for the next one to end my life and the baby’s.
I needed to get up, run. Anything but accept my fate. But before I could get a full breath, I was once again dragged away against my will. Rattled and shaken up by the crash, I only stumbled blindly ahead as I was pushed into yet another car. This time I was at least sitting upright, and just seconds after the car lurched forward, the person driving ripped the sack from over my head.
We rocketed down a long stretch of deserted road, much too fast to consider jumping out. I turned to the driver, and my mind went blank.
“Leo?” I shrieked. I did a double take, blinking away my shock. It was really him, my boss. But why? I turned to my door, my fingers tightening around the handle. He reached across me and unhooked my grip, then pulled the seatbelt smoothly across my waist and buckled me in. “Are you kidnapping me?” I asked incredulously.
“Kind of,” he said with a wry smile before focusing on his hectic driving.
We raced down side streets, weaving through traffic until we were once again on a more deserted road. I thought we might be heading to New Jersey, but it hardly seemed to matter. All I really wanted to know was what the hell was going on.
Chapter 10 - Leo
I spared Samantha a quick glance to make sure she wasn’t hurt as I swerved away from the grisly scene I left after pulling her from her abductor’s car. She didn’t seem to have any serious injuries but was shaken and shocked to see me.
It had been frustrating, to say the least, following along behind her after she left the disabled bus. I was almost positive that the accident had been orchestrated by the Giannis or someone they’d hired to get her on foot and easier to grab. I called my men with the license plate number and a description of the guy who rammed the bus so they could look into it. I crept along behind her as she walked the rest of the way home, utterly oblivious to her surroundings.
Since she hadn’t been raised the same way I had, I couldn’t expect her to be on high alert, but she was still a New Yorker, for God’s sake. She should have been aware of not just me, clearly tailing her, but the car that slid up and began idling at the curb as soon as she turned down a side alley. It was a good thing I suspected the worst and didn’t go around the block to meet up with her on the other side because she never made it to the other side.
When the big guy dragged her backward to the car, I saw red. The man who had his hands on the mother of my child, clearly terrifying her and putting both her and the baby in danger, had just signed his death warrant.
I got blocked by a delivery truck trying to make an illegal three-point turn in the middle of the road, and by the time he cleared out, the car with Samantha in it was veering down the street. For several heart-stopping miles, I followed, unable to get close enough to do anything, not sure what to do if I did get close enough. When there was finally an expanse with no other drivers, I held my breath and floored it, forcing them off the road, all the while praying she wouldn’t be hurt because of my rescue efforts.
For now, she was safe, though rightfully freaking out. I ignored her outburst and kept driving until I felt like I’d put enough distance between us and what was left of her abductors, then pulled over into an empty parking lot behind an abandoned building. I wasn’t sure where we were, but it was the middle of nowhere. It was fine for the moment, but I had to find somewhere safe to take her.
