Scent of Gardenia (Scott Tucker Series) (31 page)

Chapter
77

It
seemed like I had been in this cell for days, but as near as I could tell it
was just a day. My bladder was full and my stomach was craving some food. I
needed to talk with Nils to understand what happened in these circumstances.

“Nils?”

He was
slow to respond. “What?”

“I don’t
exactly know how to ask this.”

“You
have to go, huh?”

“Yeah.”

Nils
didn’t immediately respond. He must have been listening for Margaret. “You have
to hold it until she shows up. You don’t want to see her when she has to do
some cleaning. Shush.”

Two
breaths later, there was a loud clang on my cell door. “Talking again are we?
You know there’s a harsh punishment for that.”

I didn’t
reply.

“I said
there’s a harsh punishment for that…didn’t you hear me? I asked you if you were
talking?”

I
answered quickly this time since she had my cell door unlocked. “Yes, I know,
but I have to go to the bathroom.”

“Maybe I
need to go back to the diapers. Would you like that?”

“No, not
really.” She was standing by my bed. I could smell the fragrance of Gardenia. I
thought of Mercedes. Margaret was dolled up, looking like she could be going
someplace. I could even see bra straps under her sundress.

She
stopped asking questions and stopped looking into my eyes. She started to amuse
herself, which was dangerous in my condition. “Well, I guess you do have to go.
Here’s how this works. You can pee into the urinal here,” which she held up for
me to see, “or you can go to the pot at the end of the hall. Which is it?”

I
thought about what I needed to do right away, and what I eventually had to do.
Seconds later she swung the urinal, unfortunately it made a direct connection.

“I asked
you a question, and I expect an answer.”

“I
better use the pot.”

She
looked pissed off. She also looked like she was weighing options. She threw the
urinal against the far wall. She left the cell, coming back dragging new
chains. She started putting the new chains on my ankles, and then on my wrists.
She unlocked my other chains and stepped back. “Go.”

I sat up
on the side of the bed, sliding off to the sandy floor. It was cool on my bare
feet. I wondered if I could walk without falling over.

She was
looking down at my body, smiling. “Just follow that, and the chains will guide
you to your pot…and be careful…it’s a real pot.
Don’t
look into the
other cells.”

She watched
my movement as I left the cell. I passed Holly and Jules’ cells on the way. Out
of the corner of my eye, I realized they were similarly attached to the walls.
It was awkward to say the least, to use what looked like a portable pot, like
the ones used on a boat. I took care of what I came to do and headed back to my
cell. I gave a slight finger wave to Jules as I passed and he nodded. I tried
to respect Holly’s privacy, but could see her watching as I passed.

Margaret
hooked up the old chains, removing the new ones. She dragged them out of my
cell, letting them fall on the floor. She came back in. “Now, my lovely
man…that was much too long. You owe me a favor now because you took so long. I
have to take care of the present you left me. I’ll give you three choices.” She
bent over, whispering in my ear. “Now, which one?”

I
weighed the ugly options.

“My, my
Scott…for a Harvard educated person you certainly don’t learn your lessons
well. Therefore the choice is mine. I will select choice number four. She brought
over the scissors. For the next several minutes she paid attention to what she
was doing. I was very careful not to make any sudden or wrong moves.

When she
fulfilled her objectives, she stood up and gave me a very different French
kiss. She smiled and licked her lips. “I’ve got to leave, so think of me while
I’m gone…I’m certain you will for one reason or another.”

*.*.*

The only
thing that was comforting was that I was not alone in my circumstance.
However,
the notion that she could easily take my life at any instant
was
not
at all reassuring. Knowing she was Melanie, and had killed men in Boston, and now men here, left me wondering how many days, or hours, I had left. The most
important thing I could do—is to do whatever I need to—to stay alive.

I
recited the Lord’s Prayer over and over again. I prayed for my soul if I didn’t
leave this place alive. I thought of Mercedes, what finding her again meant to
me, and what I was going to do if I survived. I thought about
Ralph
,
wondering if it was too late to tell Mercedes I loved her. I thought of my
parents and how crushed they would be if I turned up dead. I was their only child.
I thought of my cousin Jackie, being killed by the strangler and not having a
full life. I prayed for the others here, and also for Mercedes and Mike’s
safety. The emotion of everything got to me, and I started to cry. I wasn’t
ashamed, but it was awful to feel so trapped, and possibly no future to fulfill
some dreams.

If this
is how my life’s going to end…am I just going to accept it, or am I going to go
out fighting for everything I prayed about. I could hear my heavy breathing and
my heart pounding in my ears. I remembered playing hockey and the only fight I
ever had—the other guy didn’t know what hit him. I had taken too much of his
shit, reaching the end of my rope, or in this case my
chain
. I was going
to do everything to live and anything necessary to get rid of her. My mind
immediately started racing on all the ways I could use what I had at hand to do
that.

Chapter
78

Margaret
was excited about her stable. She had everything she ever dreamed about, and
with Holly, something more. She was concerned her ‘other’ hadn’t made an
appearance recently, but maybe the excitement of all of this was keeping her
where she needed to be.

She knew
Mike Miller was planning something, but she didn’t know exactly what. She had
to keep one step ahead of him, and her sister. Her mind was working on how to
intercept Mike and the others. She was successful today, but what was she going
to do about the dive tomorrow?

Twenty
minutes later she pulled into the parking lot of the Pier Restaurant. She was
meeting her friend there, but she recalled picking up Roger Elliot at this very
bar. She missed his tanned body. The others are nice, but there was something
about Roger’s muscular, tanned body that drove her crazy. She couldn’t let
herself get too excited as she had to make important plans for tomorrow.

As she
entered, she could feel heads turn in her direction. She also heard the noise
level diminish.
All that with my clothes on.
She strode over to where he
was seated in the end booth, giving him a kiss on the lips, letting her tongue
touch his. His eyes got wide and she knew he was already putty.

She
seated herself. The waitress immediately came over for her order. While she
ordered she made sure she leaned the right way to give him the best view of two
of her assets.
She wondered why she wore a bra.
Her head turned quickly,
spotting where his eyes were fixed. “Do you like what you see?”

“As a
matter of fact, I do. When are you going to give me the weekend you promised?”

“If
things work out, possibly next weekend.” Her bare foot went up his leg. “You
seem like you’re ready for me, are you?”

He
laughed. “I’ve been
ready
since you promised me the weekend.”

The
waitress brought her drink order. “I’ll drink to that. You have no idea what’s
in store for you, rest up.” She winked, holding her glass for them to touch
glasses. “Here’s to whether you’re a ‘Duracell’ and not just an ‘Eveready.’”

“What’s
up that you have taken the chance of meeting with me?” he asked.

*.*.*

She
liked to get men excited, and she could tell she was doing a good job on him.
“We’ve got to get serious here,” she finally said, already working on her
second rum drink. “The man you spoke to today is Mike Miller. He and two other
people are here to check what’s happened to the missing men. I committed to
taking them on a dive tomorrow. Originally, as you know, they were supposed to
go out on the dive today, which is where you came in. Now, it looks like I need
to take them tomorrow. They’ve consented to a large fee, but that’s not the
issue.”

“Here’s
the problem. I’m only going to share as much as I think you need to know.
Anyway, I’m concerned that they may be after the man you dropped at my house
the other night. If I’m on the boat doing the dive, I can’t be at my house
protecting my property. That’s where you come in. I want you to baby sit my
house while I’m on the dive. That’s in case they have something planned while
I’m away. There’s money in this for you, but there are also rules that you need
to follow.”

“As you
know, I can follow rules,” he acknowledged.

“I know
you can, which is why we’re having this discussion. Once inside my house, you
are not to go down to the lower level. No matter what you hear, you can’t take
your eyes off anyone coming onto my property. Do you understand?”

“I
understand. What if someone does come to your house?”

“If they
come inside the house…do whatever you need so they don’t leave. You took care
of Scott for me, I’m not even sure someone will come, but I need you to be
prepared for it.”

“How
much if nothing happens, and how much if I need to handle any problems?”

“How
does two hundred sound just to sit and watch? How does an extra two sound for
each guest you detain?”

“Sounds
like I’m going to be rich like you. What if one of them is female?”

“Actually,
there’s a possibility that could be the case. If a female shows up, you are not
to kill her, but help yourself otherwise.”

He
studied her to see if she was pulling his leg. “Seriously, you won’t mind? You
said I can’t go downstairs, so what do I do?”

“I can
tell you like this little game…maybe a little too much. Save some for me. To
answer your question, you know where my bedroom is…help yourself, but don’t let
her get away.”

“Rusty,
I’ve seen when you get mad. I want to be sure I understand you correctly. If I
delay multiple people, and one of them is female, I can do whatever I want with
her, and do it in your bedroom, and I’m not to let her get away. Do I understand
that to include tying her up?”

She
moved her bare foot back to his crotch. “Yeah, exciting isn’t it?
Yes
,
and leave her right there that way for both of us.” She moved her foot and he
closed his eyes. “I am going to have a ball with you on that weekend.” She
picked up her glass, taking her time to drink it. She could feel her own
excitement building,
wondering if she needed to take him to her truck, or
would it be much better to join her guests?

The
waitress came over to their table, asking if they wanted another round. “I’ll
take one, but I think he’s almost had enough.”

The
waitress barely looked old enough to serve drinks, and was very pretty. “Is he
okay, or is he sleeping?”

Margaret
was sorry the table cloth was hiding what was going on. “Well, he’s almost okay
and he’s not sleeping yet,” she said with a smile.

The
waitress looked confused, but left to get her drink. She was back minutes later,
looking at him once more. Margaret moved her foot in an agitated manner to
attract her attention.

“Oh shit,
oh shit,”
he cried out.

The
waitress’ eyes got huge as she realized what she had just witnessed. She looked
at Margaret, who just winked at her, taking a large sip of her new drink. The
waitress looked shocked, putting her hand to her mouth, turning on her heels and
rushed away. She moved her foot back into her sandal. Margaret leaned across
the table, just in time to see his eyes finally opening. “Well honey, I presume
the bill is
yours
now.”

She
finished her drink, stood up, straightened her sundress and headed toward the
exit. The waitress was talking with the bartender. Margaret gave them a wave
and a smile as she headed out the door.
One more thing I can check off my
list.

She
hoped she wouldn’t be stopped for speeding on the way home…but now that I think
about that, it might be fun too. She unhooked her bra, slipped her arms out of
it, and pulled it out her sleeve, putting it on the passenger seat. You never
can be too prepared, and then unbuttoned two of her top buttons. That should
work very nicely.

She
rolled the truck window down, starting the truck. Once on the road, she was
already thinking about
who would be first and why?

Chapter
79

The
balance of the day was spent talking about the details for tomorrow. They
arranged for Denny to watch for her boat leaving and to follow it. There should
be enough traffic on a Sunday not to create any suspicions on Margaret’s part.

They
shared with him the potential that Margaret Orion is behind the kidnapping and
recent murders. Denny had seen her around, but had never actually met her. They
were actually competing for the same business, and she had ‘a leg up on him,’
as he put it.

They
discussed how soon Denny could intercept her boat if something unexpected
happened. He was quite proud of his boat, with the twin diesels. He said he
could close the gap within ten minutes. He would try to keep a distance of four
to five miles, which he felt was a safe distance where he would not attract
undo attention, being able to reach her boat should he need to.

Mike kept
Paddy informed of how their investigation was going. When Paddy was told what
they were planning to do tomorrow, he told him he didn’t want them to do that.
It was too risky and although she was just one person, she had the upper hand
under the circumstances. Mike had a significant amount of convincing to do. When
Paddy understood the risk involved with raiding her house, he consented.

*.*.*

All four
of them were back at Ralph’s hotel room going over the plans for tomorrow.
Mercedes finally indicated her concern. “If all three of us leave on Margaret’s
boat for the intended dive, the only way we can rescue Scott and the others is
if we can overpower her. I think too much could go wrong. I think we need to
split up. Some of us go out on the boat, the others get the hostages.”

Mike
immediately replied, “You know Mercedes; I was thinking the same thing. If we
became captured ourselves, we could lose all hope of rescuing them. However,
right now she expects all three of us.”

“She
expects two men and a woman. More specifically she expects
you
Mike, but
does she know who the other two are going to be?” Mercedes offered.

“I see
where you’re going, but it’s risky if she knows who we all are. Can one of us
back out, even at the last moment?” Ralph asked. “Whoever doesn’t go on the
boat can go with Sam to rescue the hostages.”

“How the
hell are we going to pull that off, and prevent her from being suspicious?”
Mike questioned.

They sat
in silence, trying to figure a way to be in two places at the same time. “What
if we wait for her to leave, then we all converge on her house? That would give
us the time it takes for her to make a round trip. Plus how long she would wait
for us before suspecting something and head back home,” Mike suggested.

“That’s
fine if she’s working alone, but what if she has an accomplice?” Mercedes said.

“That
could put the hostages in danger and possibly us,” Ralph commented.

“What
about having the police involved in the raid on the house?” Mercedes offered.

“That
might take care of us, but it might still jeopardize the hostages,” Ralph
retorted.

“The
other thing we need to consider is what amount of effort it will take to get
the hostages freed. What if they are in locked cells, or chained up or both?
Mike said, with a frown. “We also have to think about booby traps.”

Sam
listened to the exchange, finally offering, “You can’t all go out on the boat,
because you need to rescue your friends. So, one or more of you have to stay
behind. I can help whoever that is, but I don think I can do it alone.”

“You’re
right Sam; we shouldn’t put this on your shoulders. So, do we wait for her to
leave and then all raid her house, leave one of us behind to raid the house
with Sam, or what?” Mike asked. “Mercedes, I think given the unknowns at the
house—I think you should go to the boat…now the only question is who goes to
the boat with her?”

Ralph
immediately answered his question, “Mike, you need to go to the boat since you
booked the dive. That leaves Sam and me to go to the house. Sam can drop me on
the way, then drop you two at the boat, and then pick me up after he drops you
off. I don’t think there’s another option.”

“Ralph,
I think you’re right. Now, what do we tell Margaret about the missing person?”
Mercedes asked.

Mike
intervened, “Wait, Ralph you’re the only one that really knows how to dive. Why
don’t you be me, she doesn’t know who I am, and if she does, she will react to
it right away.”

“Yeah
you’re right, and if she reacts—she might do something to the people at the
boat, then head straight to her house.” Ralph batted Mike’s comment back.

“That’s
it. Ralph, you and I will go to the boat, and Mike and Sam will focus on her
house. We’ll have some time to finesse the ability to dive; possibly we can
overpower Margaret during that time. If not, we’ll get a refresher, following
what she does on the dive.” Mercedes summed it up.

“I wish
I had a gun.” Mike said.