Legal Heat (41 page)

Lana lifted her camera and peered through the lens. Only then did she see the shadow detach itself from the darkness. Not a shadow. A man. Tall, slightly stooped. Lana snapped a few pictures before she even realized the danger. Woman alone. Dark parking lot. Man behind her. Her eyes widened and she reached for the door handle.

The man must have spoken because Katy turned around. Through the camera lens, she saw him jab a hypodermic needle into Katy’s neck. Katy staggered back against her car. He caught her when she collapsed and scooped her up in his arms. He stepped out of the shadows and Lana saw his face. A familiar face. The man who ate icing and not cake. The ex.

Oh God. Oh God
. What should she do? She opened the door, but even as her foot hit the pavement, she knew she wouldn’t make it. They were too far away. By the time she was out of the car, he had already unlocked Katy’s vehicle and put her in the back seat. Bastard must have kept his set of keys.

“Help!” She screamed at the top of her lungs, but who would be hanging around a vacant parking lot at night?

He froze and turned in Lana’s direction. Lana threw herself back in the Jetta and lay trembling on the seat. Thank God she had parked in the shadows. She scrambled to find her phone, remembering, as her fingers touched the plastic, the two beeps she had heard earlier. Dead.

With one last look in Lana’s direction, the ex jumped in Katy’s Acadia and started the engine. Lana turned her key. Nothing.

Please, please, oh please, baby, please
.

Tires squealed as the Acadia pulled out of the parking lot and turned onto Broadway Street. Lana tried again.

A cough. A wheeze. Then the Jetta roared to life. She stomped on the accelerator and peeled out of the parking lot. She could just see the Acadia’s tail lights in the distance ahead of her. She kept her foot down, praying she wouldn’t hit a red light.

Police. Police. Police.
Where were the police when she actually needed them?

The Jetta wheezed as it raced down the street and Lana tried to remember if her course had covered high-speed chases. Why hadn’t she paid more attention in class? Water dripped onto her arm and she looked up. Leak? No. Tears. She touched her face and realized she was crying.

Dammit. Pull up your big-girl panties, Lana.

The Jetta coughed and she looked at the gas gauge. Almost empty. Could the day get any worse?
Please don’t leave the city. Please don’t leave the city
. The mantra worked. The ex turned up Main Street and then drove a zigzag course through the streets until he pulled up in front of a derelict apartment building. Pulse racing, Lana parked a few spaces down and watched him carry an unconscious Katy into the building.

When she saw a light on the second floor, she threw herself out of the Jetta and raced down the street to the convenience store they had passed only a block back. Her heart thundered as she pounded the pavement in a performance worthy of an Olympic medal.
Gotta finda phone.
Wheeze.
Gotta finda phone.

For the first time in his life, Mark felt gratitude for the years he had spent on the streets and the lessons he had learned. He threw himself to the floor just before a bullet embedded itself in the wall above him, then rolled and came up in a crouch. “Steele, call him off,” he yelled. “What the hell are you doing?”

“I won’t have this launch compromised. It’s worth too much. We’ve invested ten years and millions of dollars to get the drug to market and that damn lab tech almost ruined everything. Gordon has been working day and night trying to clean up the mess. He had to retrieve the samples that deadbeat dealer left with his girlfriend, get rid of the dealer and then contain the damage as your kitty ran amok.”

Mark looked around. Nowhere to hide. He could play cat and mouse but inevitably Gordon would win.

Unless he ran out of bullets. Or, by some miracle, the cavalry arrived.

He would have to stall for time, draw Gordon’s fire.

Hope.

“What happened to you, Steele? After you saw what the drug did to those four cleaners, how could you try again and put so many lives at risk?”

Steele’s face tightened. “I wanted Claire’s death to mean something. I shouldn’t have given her the drug, but she begged and pleaded and I was curious. We’d already had incredible results in the preliminary tests. I wanted to know if it worked on women. I never thought it would kill her.” His voice caught in his throat. “Her drug addiction made it easy to cover up. She trusted me…” His voice trailed off.

“You killed her.” The world fell out from under him. It wasn’t his fault after all. And the cause of her death was standing in front of him.

Steele sighed. “I loved her. It was the biggest mistake of my life. I have to live with what happened every day. But so many people will benefit from this drug. It will be her legacy. She died to bring happiness and sexual fulfillment to the masses.”

Gordon had lowered the gun as he listened to Steele. Mark saw the faintest sliver of hope.

Keep Steele talking.

“What about all the other people who will suffer side effects? You’re destroying lives.”

Steel shrugged. “It happens all the time. A sacrifice for the greater good.”

Gordon’s gun dropped lower. Mark saw his chance. He threw himself sideways, hitting Gordon side-on and into the wall. Gordon’s head snapped against the plaster. The gun fell to the ground and Gordon slumped to the floor, unconscious.

Steele lunged for the gun and Mark let loose. Only barely aware of the door crashing open, he pummeled Steele until four police officers pulled him away.

“It’s over.” James’s voice was firm and steady in his ear.

“No.” He pushed James’s arm away. “I need to get Katy.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

Katy opened her eyes. White surrounded her. Again.

Hospital? No. Wrong scent. She breathed in deeply. Chinese food? She tried to rub her eyes but her hands didn’t move. Fire seared through her shoulder. She looked up.

Her arms were chained above her head.

Fear roared through her like a runaway train and sent her heart into overdrive. She tried to free her hands and the chains rattled loudly with each tug and jerk of her arms. Pain screamed through her injured shoulder.

“You’re awake.” Steven leaned against the doorframe, holding a take-out carton and a pair of chopsticks, his eyes glittering under the naked bulb overhead.

Katy tilted her head back, taking in the giant eye bolt in the ceiling, the cuffs on her wrists and the chain attaching them. Her toes barely touched the lino floor. Bare toes. Like the rest of her. Completely. Naked.

“What the fuck is this? Let me down, Steven. Have you gone absolutely crazy?” She took a deep breath and screamed as loudly as she could, letting out her anger, fear, rage, and…hope.

“No one will hear you, Kate. This building is vacant. It’s being torn down next week. I got a good deal on a two-day rental.” He took a bite of his chow mien and stared at her while he chewed.

Sheer terror took her breath away. “What do you want?”

“You.” He put down his carton and ran a finger along her jaw and down her neck, stopping at the cleft in her breasts. It was the single most intimate gesture he had ever made since she’d known him.

“But why this?” She struggled to keep calm, focused. Distract him while she figured a way out.

“This is what you want. I know about the fetish club and what you do there. I found the flyer. After I paid them a visit, your new slutty clothing made sense.” He paused and then gave her a cold smile. “I can give that to you. In fact, it’s what I like best. I never thought I would get to share my kink with you. I thought you were too virtuous. Too conservative. Good for my image, not for my bed.”

He cupped her breast gently in his palm, rubbing his thumb over her nipple.

Horror flooded through her. “What are you talking about?”

“I like pain, Kate.
Sadistic Personality Disorder
, I believe it’s called. But don’t worry; it’s not a bona fide mental disorder. There are lots of us out there. Unfortunately, it still isn’t acceptable in polite society and especially not with my sweet, lovely wife. So I had to find…alternative sources of enjoyment. Women who shared my kink. Unfortunately none of them shared my intensity and they always ran away. I couldn’t go to the club like you. I have a reputation to protect.”

She tried to speak, but her throat froze and she could only manage a croak.

“Imagine my delight when I discovered we shared a common interest. No wonder we were so attracted to each other in the beginning. Subconsciously, we knew we could fulfill each other’s deepest, most hidden needs.”

“No.” Bile rose in her throat and she fought to keep it down.

“The children are at Doug’s for the weekend. I told him we were taking a break to reconcile. We can indulge ourselves here for two whole days. I’ve even brought my medical kit. I can patch you up when we’re done, and then we’ll go home. One big, happy family again. I’ve drawn up plans to set up our own special room in the basement. Sound-proofed. We wouldn’t want the children to hear you scream.”

Her body turned to ice. Blackness rushed in at her and her lungs tightened, making it impossible to breathe.

She heard the crack of his palm on her cheek before she felt the pain from his slap. “No panic attacks, please. You’ll ruin everything I have planned. I’ve even taken time off work for this.” He cupped her chin and tilted her head back. “Look at me and breathe.”

She gasped as air rushed into her lungs followed by a rush of adrenaline that made her heart thunder.

“Good.” He rummaged in a bag on the floor, finally pulling out a long, black leather whip.

“Steven, please.” Her voice shook as the full horror of the situation finally hit home.

He smiled and cracked the whip. Her body tensed and her toes touched the cold lino floor.
He didn’t tie my feet.
She stretched her body further and gained a secure hold on the ground. How could she use the leverage?

Steven turned to look at her and she carefully lifted her feet, not wanting him to know she could touch the floor fully.

“I thought we could start with this.” The violent hiss of the whip sent a chill down her spine. “I should really warm you up with a flogger so you can take more and mark less, but I can’t wait. I bought this single-tail especially for you.”

Katy swallowed past the lump in her throat. “I don’t want this, Steven. Why don’t we go home? I’ll make dinner and we can watch a movie like we used to do.”

“What we used to do sucked the life out of both of us,” he sneered. “But now we can bring the excitement back into our marriage.”

The Crazy Frog ring tone broke the silence. Her heart leaped in her chest. Then she remembered. Melissa had changed her ring tone. It was Steven’s phone.

“Dammit. I’m not on call. Why won’t they leave me alone? I want this time to be special.” He walked behind her and stroked her back. “You’re lucky I’m a doctor. I know what areas to avoid.” He patted along her sides and lower back. “The kidneys for example, are a definite no-no.”

The Crazy Frog ringtone played again.

Steven sighed. “I have to answer or they’ll just keep calling and I’ll worry it is something important. I don’t want any distractions. I need to be focused or I might cause you irreparable harm.” He gave her a wink. “I’ll only be a minute. Don’t run away.”

He stomped over to the bag and grabbed the phone.

“No screaming, please,” he said, looking back over his shoulder as he left the room. “I have a bull whip in the bag and I won’t hesitate to use it for disciplinary purposes.”

Katy waited until she heard his hello and then she screamed.
Nothing to lose.

Steven poked his head around the corner and gave her a cold smile. He stared pointedly at the bag and then stalked into the bathroom and slammed the door.

Violent shudders wracked her body. She breathed slow and deep and tested the restraints. No give. She tightened her stomach and tried to pull up her legs. Her muscles protested fiercely and her legs dropped.
Again
. She pushed off the ground and pulled up her knees. It might be enough. But if it wasn’t, she would have hell to pay.

Steven returned with a crooked smile on his face. “They don’t think they can manage without me, but I told them I have something important to do this weekend that takes priority over work. You, Kate. Do you see how important you are to me?” He stroked her face with a long, elegant finger. A surgeon’s finger.

Katy shuddered and drew back.

Steven frowned. “Is that what you do when he touches you? Richards? I don’t think so. I think the only reason you’re with him is because you didn’t know I can give you what you need. Me. Your husband. But now you know and you won’t be seeing him again. Ever.”

“You don’t understand. I don’t want this. I don’t…consent.”

Steven laughed. “I don’t need explicit consent from my wife.” He stroked the whip. “But we’ve delayed too long and I’m dying to have some fun.”

“Kiss me.” She forced the words out through gritted teeth.

His eyes widened. “What?”