Apprehension (9 page)

Dropping the bag, the black man grabbed her other arm and pulled her closer to him. "Listen, lady, at this moment I don't give a fuck about your family. I've got an appointment on the other side of that shit kick'n town and I don't plan to miss it."

The other man stepped closer to them. "If you play nice then we'll let you go and you can drive to wherever home is, unharmed. If not…," the white man gave her a sadistic smile, then lowered his voice to barely a whisper. "Now, get your pretty little ass in the car before I start thinking of other ways to get you to cooperate."

The black man's barking laughter grated along her nerves as he released his hold and gave her a push toward the car. Silently, she crawled into the back seat and prayed she'd get out of this alive. Both men got into the front and closed their doors, sealing her fate.

* * * *

Thor leaned against the banister on his porch, watching the car lights pull into his driveway. Well over an hour ago, she'd called him and said she was getting ready to leave the children's home. He'd gone out and picked up food so they could have a quiet dinner and talk about their relationship or lack there of.

The ready smile on his face slowly disappeared when he realized it wasn't her, but one of his RACE team members.

"Thor!" Chris Payton called out as he launched himself out of his haphazardly parked car and raced toward him.

62

APPREHENSION

Chuckling, he asked, "Is my house on fire, Chris?"

"It's the drug runners."

Instantly, the muscles in Thor's shoulders tensed, as he turned toward his front door. "I'm on my way, let me grab my gun and leave a note for—"

"They've got Liza."

His knees went weak and almost buckled. The only thing that saved him from hitting the ground was his grip on his front door. Thor looked over his shoulder at his teammate. "How in the hell did that happen? What happened to the fuckin' roadblock plan?" He rushed into his house for his gun.

Following him, Chris answered each question Thor volleyed at him. "They were drivin' her car. So, the block was never activated."

"How'd they get her car?" Thor slammed a full clip into his gun, then placed it into the holster on his thigh.

"We don't know." Chris trailed Thor out the door. "We would've missed them completely, but Dale got curious when he tried to flag her down for a greeting and she didn't stop. Then when he threw on his lights as a joke to get her to stop, her car sped up. That's when he got concerned and started following her.

He called it in when he noticed she was looking out the back window."

Thor opened his new patrol car door. The whole team had started driving home every night awaiting the drug runners'

return. None of them expected them to return like this. "Where are they now?"

"Claremont Wright Country Club in one of the Northern resort condos."

Thor didn't wait to hear anything else. He pulled across his front yard, drove over the sidewalk, and then pressed his pedal to full speed once he hit the street.

* * * *

"I want my daughter out of there now!" A man, who could only be recognized as the general by his mannerisms and dictatorial orders, stared down over half of the Claremont County law enforcement agency as Thor approached.

"How many people are in there with her?" Thor interjected to Chief Dennison and Captain Russell.

63

YVETTE HINES

"Two." Captain Russell spoke first. "Dale saw them drag her out of the car and luckily the guest who stayed here checked out this mornin'."

"You're Thor." Squinting, the general assessed him as if trying to gauge his worth through his eyes. "Liza got help for you when you were injured some weeks back."

"Yes, sir," Thor answered automatically, even though it had not been posed as a question. He was no longer shocked about the small town communication system. "I'm going to get Liza out of there."

"I'm going to hold you to your word." With a quiet authority, the general walked through the crowd of cops who were parting before him.

Thor looked back at the two men in charge. "Do we have a diagram or sketch of this place?"

"Here you go, Thor." Danielle Smith, a petite black woman on the police force, passed him some papers.

"Thanks." He began scanning the diagram and looking for the best way to enter the house. The hairs on the back of his neck began to lift and his heart thumped forcefully in his chest as he slid back into the military training he'd received. This town wasn't prepared for a situation like this.

"Whatcha got, Thor?" Chief Dennison stepped closer to him.

Glancing up, Thor said, "I need two good officers to help me assess the house."

"They told us to stay away or they'd hurt her," Deputy Martin recited, his voice holding a slight tremor.

Thor didn't think for a moment that Deputy Martin wasn't scared, he knew the whole town was nervous about anything happening to Liza; one of their own. Their town's princess. He felt the same way, but he didn't have time to let his emotions set in, he needed to get Liza out of there. "You all have done a fine job of that. Now we need to get in there before those two men start to make rash, stupid mistakes and realize they are not getting out of Claremont. They think they're calling the shots and we're going to let them."

"Take Chris from RACE and—"

"I'll go."

64

APPREHENSION

All eyes focused on Smith in surprise.

"Before you say no, Chief, remember, I'm fast and small. I can get into a lot of places all you big burly men can't."

Sighing, Chief began, "Now, Officer Smith, I know you—"

"I'll take her," Thor said. Within moments, he and the other two officers moved away from the group as Thor articulated his plan. "There are two men. They can't cover the whole house. I want to go around back and get a look into every crack and crevice. First person to find an opening or where everyone is in the house let me know."

When he received a nod from both Chris and Danielle, Thor led them out.

After twenty minutes of low crawling and sliding through the dirt to peep in the windows, Thor was the one to find Liza.

She was sitting on the floor with her arms tied around the base of the toilet and a bandana across her mouth. The bathroom door was closed.

He reminded himself to stay focused. Even though he knew the armed runners were in the living room, arguing and talking with someone on a cell phone, he didn't want to alert Liza just yet. Instead, he moved to the front of the house and let Chris know what he'd discovered and to keep watch of the criminals.

Signaling Danielle on the other side of the house to follow him, he waited until they were below the bathroom window to whisper to her what was going on.

Glancing up at the small window, Danielle smiled. He knew what she was thinking 'There was no way in hell any of the men would have been able to squeeze through the window and cut Liza loose. But she could.

Thor finally got Liza's attention as he used a knife from the Leatherman on his belt and began working quickly against the window's lock. When Liza's gaze met his, he silently tried to communicate to her that everything would be okay.

When the pane slid quietly across the track, he placed his finger over his lips to tell Liza not to make a sound. Stooping down, he laced his fingers together to give Danielle the boost she needed. Like butter, Danielle slipped through the narrow window with ease. Thor held the petite officer's feet as she placed her 65

YVETTE HINES

hands on the floor, then tucked her head and rolled as he released her.

Danielle stood up, grabbed the knife he handed her, then squatted, making quick work of what he soon discovered was duct tape binding Liza's arms. Pulling the bandana from her mouth, Liza wasted no time in stepping into Danielle's braced hands and crawling out of the window into Thor's awaiting arms.

He seized her tightly to his frame for a moment and felt the trembling in her body. Placing a kiss on her forehead, he moved her to the side as he assisted Danielle out. Gazing into Liza's beautiful hazel eyes, he wanted to hold her again, but he knew now was not the time. Grabbing Liza's hand, he placed it into the female officer's, then directed them into the wooded area behind the house and before signaling the other law enforcement personnel to come in.

It was clean up time.

* * * *

"Daddy!" Liza ran into her father's arms and finally allowed the tears to flow that she'd been holding back since the moment the drug men had shoved her into the back seat of her own car.

Once the first tear slid out of her eyes, it was like Niagara Falls.

"Liza, baby, I thought I'd go mad waiting for them to get you out of there." He squeezed her tight and rubbed her back.

"Hey, squirt, I thought you'd grown out of finding trouble."

Stepping out of her father's embrace, she turned and looked at her brother Robert. "I've more than learned my lesson now."

She gave him a watery smile and allowed him to pull her into a hug.

She didn't know how long she stood in the huddle with her father and brother, not wanting to pay attention to action going on at the club condo.

"How can I ever thank you?"

Her father's question and the tingling sensation running down her spine alerted her to who approached them. Turning, she watched Thor move toward them; his gaze swiped her from head to toe, assessing, before glancing at her father.

"Sir, there's no thanks needed," Thor confirmed and shook the hand her father extended to him. "There wasn't any other option for me except getting Liza out of there."

66

APPREHENSION

Her heart accelerated as she listened to his words. She wondered if he saved her because it was his duty or because of his heart.

Thor turned to her again. "Ms. Wright, the drug runners have been taken into custody. We know you're tired, but Chief Dennison would really like you to come in tonight and give your statement while everything is fresh."

"Don't you think tomorrow would be—" her father began.

Laying a hand on her father's arm, she gave him a reassuring smile. "Dad, I'm alright. I'll go tonight, if Officer Zeller doesn't mind taking me in with him." She cut her eyes to Thor."How'll you get home? The police will need your car for evidence," Robert her law conscious brother chimed in.

"I'll make sure she gets there," Thor announced, looking at the men in her family.

Her father's heavy sigh let her know that he wasn't in agreement, but he nodded. She kissed him on the cheek and hugged her brother one more time before walking away with Thor.

67

YVETTE HINES

Chapter Seven

"Are you sure this is where you want to be, Liza?" Thor asked when they walked into his house after leaving the police station.

Strolling into the center of the room, Liza allowed her hand to brush along the furniture in his house. She needed to touch things and feel alive.

Turning, she stared at Thor, who hadn't moved from his place by the closed door. Blonde-haired, blue-eyed, strong and handsome Thor. For hours she had wondered if she'd ever hear his voice again, feel the restrained strength as she glided her hands along his skin.
Thor
. "Yes."

She began to undo the buttons of her blouse. "May I use your shower?"

He intense gaze watched her hands as they worked the fastenings of her shirt, then her slacks.

His eyes lifted and met hers. "Yes. I'll get you a towel."

Leaving his position, he crossed the carpeted floor and pulled her into his arms.

Sliding her hands up his broad back, she enjoyed the sense of safety that only Thor made her feel.

Rising on her toes, she kissed his chin, then stepped away and moved to the bathroom. She removed her clothes, got into the shower, and thoroughly bathed herself. Liza made sure to clean away every place the two men had touched her. She was thankful that she hadn't been raped, but she still felt filthy.

When she exited the bathroom, Thor entered it saying, "I'll be out in a minute. I think I have half of Claremont County's soil on my clothes. I put some sweats and a t-shirt on the bed so you could have something to wear home."

"Thanks." She padded her towel-clad body down the hall to his room.

68

APPREHENSION

* * * *

"What are you doing, Liza?" Thor didn't even attempt to keep the shock out of his voice when he walked into his room, saw Liza standing next to his bed, handcuffed to the post, and bare as the day she was born.

Her hazel eyes were dark with anxiety as they stared at him.

"Thor, I need you."

"Okay, princess, that's all you had to say and I wouldn't have taken you home. You didn't have to bind yourself to my bed." He crossed the room with only the towel around his waist.

"Yes, I did. For three hours of my life I was held prisoner and tied to a toilet not knowing what those two assholes would do to me."

The sadness in her eyes pulled at him.

"Why the cuffs, baby?" Reaching toward her, he caressed her shoulder.

"The shower cleaned the outside but now my soul needs to be renewed and reminded that I'm safe. Free, even with these."

She shook the little chain between her wrists. "I want you to make love to me, Thor."

He didn't try to understand her, he just responded to the desperation he heard in her voice and the need in her eyes.

Stepping up behind her, Thor stroked her shoulders, kneading the tight muscles.

The tension receded from her body and Liza's head bowed forward, allowing him to place kisses along her neck. Soft pecks and light licks, he coaxed her to relax even more. Where they touched, he wasn't sure which one of them was trembling more.

Liza wasn't the only one who needed cleansing. He'd been afraid tonight, something he'd never experience in his military career, but it took everything in him not to freeze under the paralyzing feeling. Everything that could've gone wrong in trying to get her out of that condo had haunted him every minute.

Yeah, this was for them both.

Lowering his hands down her sides, he was amazed and thankful for her small frame. Resting his hand on her waist, barely larger than the span of his hand, he held her and breathed in her scent. Freshly scrubbed, there was no scent of peaches, melons or honeysuckle. This time it was Liza's natural scent. She 69