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Stone smiled and patted him on the arm. “I figure this way’s faster.”
3
Across town, the owner of Smiling Eyes Flower Shop tore off the receipt and held it out. “Thank you, Mrs. Novak. I’ll make sure they’re delivered to your house by one p.m. tomorrow.”
“Perfect.” Rebecca Novak glanced at the clock on the wall. It was already a quarter to three. “Is that the right time?”
The clerk looked to see what she was talking about and nodded. “Within a minute or two, I think.”
“I didn’t realize it was so late. Thank you again for your help.” Rebecca returned her wallet to her purse and hurried out the door.
She’d spent more time in the shop than she’d planned and would need to rush to get home in time for the start of the meeting with Centurion Studios.
As she approached her car, she noticed the passenger door of the sedan beside hers was open, blocking her way. A man was leaning into the other vehicle, as if he was getting something out of the glove compartment.
At any other time, she would have patiently waited for him to finish, but she was already running behind. “Excuse me.”
The man didn’t seem to hear her.
“Sir? If you don’t mind, I need to get into my car.”
He looked over his shoulder and then at her car, as if only now realizing he was in her way. “Oh. I am so sorry.”
He closed his door and stepped to the side to clear the path.
Once he was out of the way, she flashed him a smile and moved past him. “Thank you.”
As she reached for the handle of her door, she sensed a sudden presence behind her, then felt something hard jab into her ribs. Startled, she looked down and saw the muzzle of a gun pressing against her.
“If you do anything to call attention to us, I will kill you.”
She stared at him, wide-eyed, then started to pull her purse from her shoulder. “Whatever cash I have, it’s yours.”
He shoved the gun harder against her side. “You only speak when I ask a question. Otherwise, you remain silent. Nod if you understand.”
“What?”
He ground his gun into her again. “Understand?”
She squeezed her lips together and nodded.
“Good. Take a step back and open the door to my car.”
Her eyes widened. But before he could twist the gun into her again, she did as he’d asked.
“Now, get in.”
When she didn’t move right away, he said, “I can either kill you here or take you with me. Either way the message will be sent. The choice is yours.”
She hesitated another second before ducking down and climbing into the seat. The instant she was inside, someone who’d been hiding in the back grabbed her arms. She tried to struggle free, but a wet cloth flopped over her mouth and nose. Rebecca twisted her head back and forth to get out from under it, but a hand held it in place.
Her head began spinning as a wave of vertigo washed over her. She tried to fight it, but with every breath she took she felt her consciousness slipping further away.
Though she heard her captors speaking, their voices were muted by the thick cloud of confusion churning in her head, and it took her a second to realize they weren’tspeaking in English. Yet she still found she understood a word or two here and there.
“Get her key,” one of the voices said.
She felt her purse being tugged from her shoulder, but she could do nothing about it. Around her, the world grew dark as her vision narrowed.
