A Forever Masterpiece (The Masterpiece Trilogy Book 3) (23 page)

"Whoa. Okay. No sudden major moves. This damn thing isn't sturdy. I'm going to try the call button again. If we could just get through to someone, they'd at least know we're in here." Jesse hit the button, then pounded on the door. "Hello? Hello? If anyone's out there, please get help! There's two of us in this elevator!"

No response.

The temperatures were to drop way below freezing tonight. How long until they were found?

"A-aren't you going to get cold?" Becca stammered, her teeth still chattering as she slowly warmed up.

"I'll be okay for a bit. If we get out of here soon, it won't get to me." Jesse slid down to the floor beside her. "We'll keep trying the phones and that call button. Hopefully you're right and Hunter will come find you soon. I know he worries."

Becca covered her face with her hands. Hearing Jesse say that only added to the anxiety bubbling up. This man knew so much about them, it seemed, and she barely knew a thing about him.

Help needed to arrive soon.

Hunter couldn't get through to Becca. Her phone went straight to voicemail. He decided to swing by the hospital and see if maybe she stayed longer. A few miles away from the spot was the chaos. Smoke and bright orange flames lit up the night. He had to look away, because it reminded him of the sky after the plane exploded. He hoped like hell this wouldn't send him into a flashback or something. He should have just gone home. He had nothing to worry about, but he needed reassurance by seeing Becca.

Traffic crawled and came to a stop several times. Crazy roads for being after seven, but it was probably due to the diversion from the fire. The hospital was just a few miles out of his way from his airport to home route, and it took him far too long to get there.

"Come on, Bec. Answer your phone." Hunter tried again. Maybe her battery died.

Hunter noticed right away that the far side of the hospital property had no lights. It looked like it only affected parking garages, but it was eerie to see such darkness. In fact, all past that was dark as well- almost a few miles of darkness stretched across at least a few blocks. Half a mile, tops. He wondered if it had to do with the explosion. He still didn't know what happened. Right now, he needed to find Becca. Almost an hour passed since he last spoke to her. As Hunter parked, his phone rang. Becca's number registered. "Bec! There you are!"

"Hunter ... stuck ... darkness ... elevator ..." Her voice broke up numerous times.

"Bec? Hello? Did you say you're stuck in an elevator?" He stared off in the direction of the darkened parking buildings.

"Parking ... explosion ... can't hear ..."

Then the call dropped. He had enough to go on. Was she stuck in one of the elevators in the dark garage? Hunter ran inside the hospital, heading towards the front desk. "You guys have some power outages in the parking garages to the left here. I'm not sure, but I think my fiancée might be stuck in one of them. She just called me, but the reception was horrible."

The woman behind the desk nodded, alarm flashing across her face, but she remained calm. "Some of the older parking garages have lost power, we think because of the explosion nearby. We haven't received anything from the emergency call buttons, but I'll have someone check the elevators out now."

"Thank you. I'm not sure which one she's in." Hunter waited rather impatiently for someone to come by or give him some news.

He decided not to wait around after five minutes. Hunter darted off, at the protests of the woman behind the desk. "I'm going to find her!" he called back.

Halfway to the closest dark parking garage, some people caught up with him. "You need to be careful, sir," someone warned.

"I understand that, but my fiancée is trapped in an elevator. It's cold, it's dark, and when she's traumatized, she loses the ability to talk. I don't know if she's alone. I just need to find her and know she's okay." Adrenaline pumped through him as they checked elevators on several parking garages. They called out a hello. Hunter called Becca's name and banged on each door that led to elevators. Nothing so far. Twenty five minutes later, they reached the last parking garage furthest away from the hospital. Darkness surrounded them, the only lights being from flashlights and Hunter's phone.

She had to be here somewhere.

They checked the first floor first, then the basement. Hunter spotted Becca's car immediately. "It's this one! She has to be here. There's her car."

Stairs and an elevator entry were nearby. Hunter ran to it and banged on the door. "Bec? Can you hear me? Are you in there?" His heart raced, silently begging for an answer.

"Don't try to force the door open yet!" one of the men yelled.

"Hunter! I'm here!" Becca's voice sounded distant. At least she could still talk. "We're stuck between floors I think. The last floor we stopped at was two, but I'm not sure where we're at."

"Someone's in there with you?" Relief slammed him, but he still wanted to hold her in his arms as soon as possible. He blew out a breath.

"Yes!"

"Let's move. I don't know if there's anyone from an emergency response team to spare since they're all working that fire nearby," one of the men said. Flashlight beams faded as they ran up the stairs, Hunter not far behind.

"Bec, keep talking to me. We're trying to figure out which floors you're stuck between." He called out to her as they reached the second floor.

"I-I hear you much clearer." And the same went for her. He could hear her much better.

"Bang on the door from the inside, ma'am," one of the guys instructed.

"Okay." A series of bangs followed.

"She's stuck between one and two," Hunter noted.

"Yep, I hear it. Ma'am? We're going to work on getting the doors open and you out. How many people are in there with you?"

"There's two of us in here!" Becca called back.

"Is anyone hurt?"

"No. We're okay." The male voice made Hunter's insides squirm. He knew that voice.

"We need to get her out of there now," he insisted. "I don't trust the person in there with her." Damn it, he should have kept the thought to himself.

"What do you mean?" one of the guys asked.

"Long story. Please. Get my fiancée out." His tone came out harsh.

"Ma'am? Are you hurt? Is the man in there with you making any kind of threats?"

Great. Way to go. Hunter should have shut up. Now if Jesse did have any plans to hurt her, he had his chance to do so right now.

"I swear I'm not here to do anything to her!" Jesse called out. "Just get us out. Hunter, I'll explain everything. Just know Becca's safe. I would never harm her. I know you won't believe me, but you have my word."

"I need to hear it from Becca!" Hunter called back.

"I'm okay, I promise. It's cold and I fell earlier, so my knee is throbbing, but other than that, I'm fine. I just want out of here," she pleaded.

"We'll get you out, angel." Hunter's mind raced. Jesse, in there with Becca. The faster these doors were open, the better off they'd be. Well, tonight he didn't plan on taking Jed's advice. He wanted answers, and he would find a way to make Jesse talk.

"You need to stand back, sir. We're going to get to work. This could turn out to be a serious situation if the elevator car decides to shift or fall," one of the men advised Hunter. A light flashed in his face.

"I understand. Please hurry." He took a few steps back and swallowed his fear as the men worked on getting the door open. He paced, ran a hand through his hair, and muttered under his breath. Scenarios he didn't like played in his mind.

The time it took to even pry the door open was agonizing. Hunter wanted to push past everyone and reach for Becca right away, but he had to wait. Once the doors were safely propped open, they had to get them out. The bottom of the elevator shaft was less than halfway between floors. They didn't have a lot of space to get out easily. It might have been better to get them out from the floor above them, but they weren't going to spend any more time going up there when they had these doors open.

"Please, let Becca come down first," Hunter begged, moving closer.

"Ma'am? You're going to have to lie on the floor belly first and let your legs dangle over. We won't let you fall," one of the men said calmly.

"O-okay." Becca's shaky voice came out softly.

In the dim light, Hunter watched as she slowly dropped her legs. It was one hell of a creepy thought to see the open area beneath the elevator floor. He held his breath several times, fighting the urge to run past these men and get Becca down himself, but he knew staying back would be for the best.

"It's shaking." Becca's legs dangled over.

"It's okay. Just keep coming down. We won't let you fall," one of the men told her gently.

"I'm holding your hands from up here. I'll help you lower yourself out," Jesse announced.

"I'm right here, angel," Hunter called to her for assurance.

The staff caught her and set her on the ground. Hunter rushed over and gathered Becca in his arms. "You're safe now," he whispered, pressing gentle kisses in her hair. It took less than forty five minutes to get the doors open and Becca out, but to Hunter it felt like an eternity.

"Here's your purse, ma'am. Are you hurt anywhere?" One of the men handed the bag to her.

"My knee, but it's not from the elevator stopping suddenly. I tripped earlier. I'm fine otherwise." Becca pulled away slightly, reaching for her purse. She wore a jacket Hunter didn't recognize as hers.

"Let's get the other one out," one of the men said. "Do the same thing. Lower yourself out slowly."

"How the hell did Jesse end up in the elevator with you?" Hunter whispered, moving Becca away. "He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"I don't know. He said he had an appointment. Hunter, he said-"

"We got him! Everyone's out!" The shouts cut into their conversation.

Hunter and Becca thanked the men. As they closed the doors to avoid anyone else going in or out, they moved on after being assured everyone was okay and that they could get to their vehicles. Hunter then approached Jesse, desperate for answers. "What the hell is the meaning of this? Who are you?" he roared. "Why are you following us?"

"I can explain everything! I already started to with Becca." Jesse flinched, as if expecting Hunter to hit him. Tempting, damn tempting, but since Becca was unharmed, he held back. "We might want to go somewhere other than this pitch black garage."

"What, so you can run off again? I don't think so." Hunter held Becca close to him. Hell no. He wanted to find out something
now
.

"There's a damn good possibility that Becca's my sister, okay?" Jesse shot back angrily. "Happy now? It's a long story, and I really don't think freezing my ass off out here is going to get you what you want to know."

Chapter Nineteen

Hunter didn't take the news very well. He was pretty angry at the deception and the secrecy, and he began to fire question after question at Jesse about the PTSD meetings, the incident in Vermont, and a few other things.

"I'll give you my phone number. I'm not going to run. Hell, I'll get in the car with one of you two, and you can bring me back, if you want to. Let's go find somewhere quiet and warm to talk, and I'll tell you whatever you want to know. Okay?" Jesse flashed his phone light at them.

Hunter grumbled, but took out his own phone and waited for Jesse to recite his number.

"Just name somewhere close by. I'm not too familiar with the city yet."

When Hunter suggested a place and gave him directions, Jesse nodded. "I'm there."

Becca removed his jacket and tried to give it back to him. They'd be in the warm car soon.

"Keep it until we get there," he insisted softly.

She shrugged and slid it back on, relieved for the constant warmth.

Fifteen minutes later, Hunter and Becca made it to the destination they'd given Jesse. They parked next to each other and waited. Becca spotted him in a truck pulling in. She wondered about the longer version of this story. Whether it was true or not, they'd find out eventually.

"Are you ready for this?" Hunter asked quietly. "Your brother. I never even imagined that's who he could be. Whatever his story is, I'm not believing a damn thing until we have concrete proof. Why would he follow us for months and not say anything? It could be a ploy."

Becca shivered and pulled the jacket tighter around her. "You aren't telling me anything I don't already know. I'm still in shock, so I haven't even processed this yet. It's bad enough I was stuck in an elevator with him. I- I thought this would be the end. What a weird night."

"Yeah, when I heard his voice..." Hunter wrapped her up in his arms. "Scared the hell out of me. I'm glad this time that I acted on my impulse. I thought I was overreacting."

Jesse walked up to them. "See? I'm here." He gestured to the building.

"Good. Let's go inside, and you start from the beginning," Hunter snapped, taking Becca's hand.

Drinks and dinner were ordered first. Jesse sat across from Hunter and Becca, very restless. He kept staring in awe at Becca. Finally, he pulled a small photo album from his wallet and slid it across the table. "I don't even know where to start. I didn't think I'd ever see you again." Before Becca took the pictures from him, their eyes met. Jesse's were tormented, much like the day she first saw him outside her apartment door.
If this turns out to be true, no wonder he looked at me with such intensity.
"There's baby photos of you in there. Some are with our mom, and a few with me."

Becca tentatively opened up the plastic photo holder and gasped at the first picture. If she didn't know any better, she'd think she was staring at her own reflection. "That's her? Our- your mom?"

"Yeah. As you can see, you resemble her so much."

Hunter leaned over. "I can't deny the resemblance." His voice came out hoarse. "Why did you bring her to my parents? What happened?"

Jesse glanced around the room, then leaned over the table. "My- our ... Dad happened," He whispered.

Becca glanced up from the pictures to listen. Her heart pitter-pattered in a strange rhythm. The time had come to finally understand.