Danger in Paradise (17 page)

* * * * *

Hope automatically glanced at her watch when Sonja looked at her own. It was half past eleven. They’d been at the restaurant since a little before eleven. Luke sat three tables away. Far enough away to give them privacy, but close enough to see them at all times. “Is she normally late?”

Sonja glanced around the Italian restaurant and frowned. “No. In fact, she’s normally fifteen minutes early. I’m usually the late one.”

“Has she answered her cell phone?” she asked the question even though she already knew the answer.

“No. It’s turned off.” Worry was evident in Sonja’s voice and it shredded Hope’s heart.

Hope glanced around, too. The restaurant was small and cozy. A few families talked and laughed, but there was no mistake. Maria wasn’t there. She couldn’t temper down her growing anxiety.

She waved Luke over. As soon as he slid into the seat across from her she asked, “Have you called Marcus?”

He nodded. “Yeah, her car is still parked outside the Pink Flamingo. She probably just got caught up with the developer.”

Hope chewed her bottom lip. The Pink Flamingo was where Maria had gone to meet her partner. A new high-rise was being built and there had been some sort of emergency. Something to do with a leak on the top floor.

“Will you call him again and ask him to go inside and look for her?”

Luke nodded and pulled out his phone. Sonja tapped her finger on the table, obviously as worried as Hope was. A waiter approached their table, but Sonja shooed him away with a flick of her wrist. Hope knew he was annoyed with them for not ordering, but she didn’t care. When everything turned out fine, she’d over tip him for taking up his table for so long.

She stood and Luke cast her a sharp look. “I’m going to the restroom,” she whispered to both of them. She certainly didn’t need his protection in the ladies room.

Sonja nodded distractedly and Luke just frowned as he listened to Marcus.

Once she was in the privacy of the restroom, she splashed cold water on her face and patted it dry. Maria being late had to be more than a coincidence. She didn’t care what Luke thought, they had to go look for Maria themselves. Pulling out lip gloss from her purse, she smoothed some on, trying to calm her nerves. She started to leave when the ring of her phone echoed through the small room.

The number was unfamiliar, but on the off chance it was her sister, she answered. “Hello?”

“If you want to see your sister again, I suggest you do exactly as I say.”

Bile rose in her throat. She recognized that voice. He certainly wasn’t trying to hide who he was now. Not a good sign. “I want to hear her voice first.”

He paused and she worried he wouldn’t comply. “Fine.” Seconds later Maria’s voice was on the line. “Don’t do what he says! Don’t listen to the son of a—”

A loud smacking sound vibrated in her ear. It was followed by a sharp cry from Maria.

Her heart rate tripled, but she somehow found her voice. “I’ll do whatever you say. Just don’t hurt her.”

“Meet me at the Miami Beach Marina in twenty minutes. Do you know where that is?”

“Yes.” She didn’t, but figured a taxi driver would.

“I’ll call you in twenty minutes with further directions. Come alone and don’t be late. If I see anyone with you, she’s dead.”

Before she could argue, he’d disconnected. Wiping sweaty palms on her jeans, Hope tried to think of a plan. She couldn’t tell Luke what was going on. She knew how serious Patrick Taylor was. Instinctively, she rubbed the scar on her shoulder. Phantom pain shot through her. If he even thought he saw someone with her, he wouldn’t hesitate to kill Maria. She couldn’t lose the sister she’d just found.

She slipped her phone into her back pocket, then peeked out the door. The restrooms were separated from the dining area by a long hallway. There was an emergency exit at one end, but she didn’t want to alert anyone that she’d left. She took a deep breath and rushed down the hall. Around the corner Luke was still deep in conversation on his phone and Sonja was looking at the main entrance.

Before she could change her mind, she hurried out of the hallway and pushed through the swinging doors to the kitchen.

“You can’t be in here,” a woman with a long white apron looked at her disapprovingly from a work station where she diced tomatoes.

“My ex-husband just walked in. Where’s the exit?” Maybe playing the sympathy card might work.

The woman rolled her eyes and pointed around a rolling stack of bread trays. “Around there, past the dishwashers. You can’t miss it.”

“Thank you.” She didn’t need to tell Hope twice. Seconds later the bright sun hit her face. The smell of garbage and rotting food accosted her, but she didn’t have time to think. She needed transportation. And fast.

An open parking lot sat right behind the restaurant. Across the lot, the street over, she spied two yellow taxis.

“There is a God,” she murmured as she began sprinting.

* * * * *

Luke snapped his phone shut and fought the acid hole burning in his gut. With the exception of Maria’s vehicle, Marcus hadn’t been able to find signs of Maria or her partner, David. Marcus had scoured the building, but it was empty except for a couple construction workers. They hadn’t seen either of them.

“Anything?” Sonja asked.

“No…where’s Hope?” He glanced toward the hallway she’d disappeared down.

Sonja glanced at her watch. “Hmm. I’ll go check on her.”

Moments later she was back, her face pale and drawn. “She’s not in there.”

He flagged down their waiter. “Have you seen the young woman who was at this table?”

The guy shrugged and pointed to the kitchen. “She ran out the back.”

That’s all Luke needed to hear. Instead of using the kitchen, he ran out the front door and circled around the back. From his position, he saw her across the parking lot and the adjoining street. He shouted her name, but she was too far away to hear him.

For a few seconds, she talked to a man with dreadlocks, then got into a bright yellow taxi. Panic set in. There wasn’t enough time to follow them.

Sonja came up behind him. “What’s going on?”

“I don’t know, but there’s only one reason Hope would have left without telling us.” He fished his keys out of his pocket as they hurried to the car. Once they slid inside, he flipped open his cell phone and called Anthony, one of the best men who worked for him, and a computer genius.

As soon as Anthony picked up, Luke said, “Activate the tracking devices.”

“Shit,” Anthony mumbled. “Which ones?”

“All of them. I don’t know what shoes she’s wearing. I think she’s got her cell phone with her, but she might get rid of it.”

“Give me a sec. I’ve gotta fire up my laptop.”

Luke tapped his finger against the steering wheel, hating the feeling of being out of control. He’d put tracking devices in all of Hope’s shoes. She didn’t wear much jewelry, and there was always a chance she’d take a piece of jewelry off even if she did. So, he’d done the next best thing.

“Okay. Only one of the signals is moving. It’s going about forty miles per hour toward the coast.”

Luke put the truck in gear and veered out into traffic. He handed the phone to Sonja. “Put him on speaker.”

A second later they were both hearing the same thing. “Okay, now she’s on Fifth Street heading east…she’s slowing down…Okay, she made a right on Alton Road…shit, she’s heading to the Miami Beach Marina.”

“Damn it!” He pounded the steering wheel when they hit a red light.

“David Dubois owns a boat there,” Sonja interjected.

“You’re right. Anthony, look up his info, see what you can find.” Something had happened to Maria. In his gut, he knew that’s what was going on. He risked a glance at Sonja, wishing he could ease some of her pain. She had to know both of her daughters were in danger. The thought of losing both of them—no, Luke refused to go down that road.

“Looks like he owns a sailboat named Stargazer. Pier C, slip 20. That’s on—”

“Yeah, I know what side of the marina that’s on. Is she moving?” Gunning the engine, Luke raced through a yellow light.

He heard Anthony clicking on the computer. “Yeah, but she’s slowing down. Now she’s moving about two miles per hour so she must be walking.”

Luke took a sharp left and sped up. He was almost there. That bastard Patrick Taylor had to have taken Maria. And probably her partner by the look of things. Maria wouldn’t have disappeared without a reason and he knew Hope wouldn’t have just left without saying goodbye. She might be stubborn, but she wasn’t stupid.

As they pulled into the gravel parking lot, he shot a look at Sonja. “Stay in the car.”

Sonja nodded, but for some reason he didn’t quite believe her.

“I’m serious, I can’t find her if I’m worrying about you.”

“I promise I’ll stay here.” She clutched her cell phone in her lap, and something told Luke she was planning something, but there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it. Hope and Maria were his priorities.

He kicked the truck into park, but left the keys in the ignition. “Anthony you still there?”

“I’m here buddy.”

“Good. Hold on a sec…Sonja, call the police if I’m not back in thirty minutes.”

He wasn’t sure what she’d tell them, but if he couldn’t find Hope, he wanted the entire marina ripped apart.

Phone still in hand, Luke jumped out of the truck. “What’s she doing now?”

“According to the map on the marina website, and the info I have on Dubois, it looks like she’s nearing his slip. I think you’re right. That’s where she’s going. Do you need backup?”

“Yes, send Rico now. If we don’t have to involve the police until after we have them back I’d prefer it.”

“You’re not bringing this guy in alive, are you?”

“What do you think?” He didn’t answer outright because one never knew who was listening, but bringing Patrick Taylor in alive had never been part of the plan. Not after what he’d done to Hope.

Hope stared at the face of the man who’d caused her so many nightmares and years of therapy. It was weird, but he didn’t seem as terrifying as she remembered. Of course, she’d been a scared fifteen-year-old girl back then. His face made her want to vomit, but the pain she’d dealt with for so long wasn’t there. It didn’t sit leaden in her gut anymore. Talk about shock therapy.

“Take a seat over there with your sister,” he said the last word as a sneer. He pointed in the direction with his gun.

As if she didn’t know where he meant. Maria sat next to a man Hope didn’t recognize on the wooden settee in the kitchen area of the sailboat.

Patrick rubbed his forehead, gun still in hand. He mumbled to himself and Hope guessed he hadn’t gotten much sleep in the past few days. Bags hung heavy under his red eyes, and his whole body trembled. Maybe he hadn’t been eating either. That was a very good thing.

If she could take him off guard and just get the gun away, she had no doubt she could take him down. Twelve years of training would finally pay off.

When she sat she noticed her sister’s ripped top. Her bra was exposed, but other than that, she didn’t look harmed. The other man however hadn’t fared as well. His face was covered in garish plum-colored bruises and one of his eyes was swelling shut. “Did he touch you?” she murmured to her sister.

Maria shook her head, but Hope didn’t miss the raw fear and sheen of tears in her eyes. Something
had
happened. Hope’s gut dropped and rage took over. Deep-seated rage she hadn’t known existed inside her. She wanted to claw and tear and rip his face apart for bringing any sort of pain to her sister.

She glanced over at Patrick. He wasn’t even paying attention to them. With his head turned, he stared at the entrance. Probably looking to see if she’d brought backup. Talk about stupid. Well, she wasn’t going to waste the only chance they might ever get.

“You son of a bitch.” She lunged at him, taking him off guard. He turned, and their gazes collided before her body slammed into his. The gun flew out of his hand, but she didn’t try to find it.

Through a haze she saw his eyes widen, but all she could focus on was his face. Her fist connected with his jaw, then it was all knees and fists. She pummeled him with whatever she could. He got in a few punches, but nothing fazed her. She felt absolutely invincible. Vague awareness of her head hitting something registered, but she latched onto his throat with her hands and wouldn’t let go. Couldn’t let go. Her nails dug in and—

“Stop it!” Maria’s screams brought her back out of her fuzzy, violent reality.

She froze as she saw her sister. Hope’s grip loosened and she stood. The man she’d feared for so long coughed and gasped from the floor. His tried to scoot away.

At first she thought he was scared of her, but when she heard the action of the slide chambering a round, she swiveled. Maria held the gun and she was pointing it right at Patrick. By her grip and stance, she obviously knew how to use it.

“Give me the gun, Maria. You don’t want to do this.” She went to stand by her sister.

Hope might not know much about her own flesh and blood, but something in her gut told her if Maria killed someone, she couldn’t live with herself.

“No.” Maria’s hand wavered.

“Come on. You don’t want to do this.” She put a light hand on Maria’s shoulder.

Maria didn’t glance her way, but her voice shook and a few tears slipped down her cheeks. “He told me what he did to you…what he was going to do to both of us. He…he wanted you to watch.”

Acid swirled in Hope’s stomach. Maybe she should just let Maria kill him, but she couldn’t. “This is my battle. Not yours. Now give me the gun.”

Maria’s hand wavered again. Hope let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding when Maria handed it to her. Without a pause, she trained the gun on him where he still lay on the ground. His red-rimmed eyes shifted back and forth between the two of them, nearly bulging out of their sockets. He looked like some sort of maniacal cartoon character.

Hope wanted to shoot him. Something deep inside her wanted it so bad she was almost overcome with the urge to empty the entire chamber into his chest, but she couldn’t. “Is your friend okay?”

Out of the corner of her eye, Hope watched Maria bend and check on the other man. “He’s unconscious, but his breathing is steady.”

“Good. Take my cell phone out of my pocket and call Luke.”

Suddenly the boat shifted and they both glanced at each other. It could just be a shift of the water caused by boats coming into and leaving the marina. Hope wasn’t taking the chance though. She pointed her gun toward the stairs leading up to the small entrance.

Her heart pounded erratically when she heard someone undo the latch to the entrance of the interior cabin. When familiar legs descended, she let her breath out, but not her guard down.

Luke swept the room, his gun drawn, before training it on Patrick’s head. “Are you two okay?” His gaze switched between Hope and Maria.

Hope tucked the gun in the back of her jeans and nodded. Talking to Luke or getting a lecture on her rash behavior was more than she could deal with right now.

“Come on,” she said to Maria. “We’re going outside.”  She turned to Luke.  “Can you stay with him?” She didn’t wait for his response before taking Maria’s hand. They brushed past Luke and up the small set of stairs.  Let him deal with the monster in the cabin. Sirens sounded in the distance, and Maria clutched Hope’s hand tighter. Silently, they half-sat, half-leaned against the inside of the boat deck.

Maria finally broke the silence. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

She spread her hands wide, and her voice cracked. “For all this.”

Hope shook her head. “You didn’t do this. He did.”

“But if it wasn’t for me—”

“No, if it wasn’t for
me
, you wouldn’t have been involved in the first place.” Guilt, relief and terror churned in her gut. The only blame lie at the feet of the monster in that cabin.

Maria didn’t respond. She laid her head on Hope’s shoulder and it took a few moments for Hope to realize the wetness on her arm was Maria’s tears. Hope knew they were the same age, but in that instant she felt a thousand years older. Wrapping her arm around her sister’s shoulders, she held her close.

What would happen now? She knew there would be hours of questioning at the police station and she didn’t know how much she was willing to talk about. Not to mention there might be a trial of some sort. The Feds would be happy to have that monster in custody. Of that she was sure. Even if they couldn’t get any of their charges to stick, at least they’d be able to get him on kidnapping.

Hope nudged Maria when she saw three men running down the dock toward them. Two were wearing police uniforms, but one was in plainclothes. All three jumped onto the boat, weapons drawn.

“In there.” Hope pointed.

Two of the men nodded and entered the companionway. The man not in uniform sheathed his weapon and pulled out a notepad. Immediately he started firing questions at them, wanting to know why a man being pursued by the Feds had kidnapped them.

Hope was surprised by how fast they were working. Talk about interagency support. She was also surprised when Maria sat up, tears gone, and answered, “I have no idea, but we want medical attention for our friend,” she pointed toward the cabin, “and to see our mother before we answer any questions. We’re the victims here.”

The man’s eyes widened and he cleared his throat. “Of course, ma’am. The medic is on the way, but the Feds are gonna want to talk to you.”

About four boats down, Sonja and Mac were struggling to get through a throng of policemen. Over a dozen men in uniform milled around the area, sectioning off everyone and refusing to let anyone in or out of the taped off area. Hope could see them, but didn’t have the energy to wave. They’d be here soon enough, anyway. She wasn’t sure what Mac was doing there so quickly though. She guessed Sonja had called him, but maybe she’d never know. Their recent bond was unsettling on too many levels, so Hope pushed the thoughts away.

The boat shifted again as two uniformed officers, Luke, and Patrick Taylor ascended the interior stairs. Patrick cast them a brief, venomous look, before one of the officers shoved him and ordered him to keep moving. At the same time, two paramedics hurried on to the boat.

“That way.” Luke pointed to the newcomers.

The two men disappeared below deck and Luke immediately came to talk to Hope and Maria. “We’re all going to have to head downtown and answer questions, but they agreed to let me drive us. They’re giving us an escort, but you don’t have to drive with them.” He directed everything toward Hope.

“How did you find us so quickly?” she asked.

“I put tracking devices in all your shoes.”

His words were said simply and with no apology. Spoken as if he’d just told her the time of day.

“You really are a piece of work,” she muttered.

Maria tried to talk. “Hope, he—”

“Stop, please, just stop.” Hope cut her sister off by waving a hand in the air. She didn’t want any excuses. She didn’t care about what he’d done. She cared that he didn’t trust her enough to be straight with her. For the tiniest moment the night before, she’d thought they might be able to have some kind of relationship. She snorted at the thought, earning a strange look from her sister.

“Let’s get out of here.” Luke held out a hand for Hope.

She ignored it and linked arms with her sister instead. Maria raised her eyebrows at Luke, but didn’t make another comment.

The flash of pain in his eyes almost made Hope feel guilty, but she shoved it away. Right now, her body needed to decompress. Years of wondering and suffering were finally over. And she had no clue how to handle her internal emotions. Add that to the fact that the man she was pretty sure she loved kept lying to her and her brain was about to go into overdrive.

Two men in uniform helped them up from the sailboat and stood on either side of her and Maria as they walked down the dock.

“We’ll be escorting you to the station,” the man next to her said.

She opened her mouth to respond, when a loud boom erupted. Like a bus backfire, except that it echoed across the water. Before she could think of what to do, Luke’s heavy body covered both her and Maria, forcing them to the ground.

Her knees stung from the sudden impact against the wood, but she didn’t care. She guessed what they’d just heard was gunfire. Shouting ensued from all directions, but Luke kept his hands over their heads and his body in place. Like a shield. She was also aware of the two policemen covering their position with their bodies, but she kept her head down.

There wasn’t any more gunfire. That could mean any number of things.

“What’s going on?” Maria shouted over the chaos.

“That was a gunshot.” Luke’s answer confirmed Hope’s fears.

After a minute, one of the officers jostled the three of them, forcing them to raise their heads. He spoke into his radio, then spoke to them. “Someone shot the man we had in custody. Whoever it is, it doesn’t look like they’re after anyone else, but we need to get the hell out of here,
now
.”

They all stood and sprinted for the parking lot. The time to ask questions would be later. In the ensuing mess, Hope didn’t see Sonja or Mac. She just prayed Mac had nothing to do with any of this.

When they made it to Luke’s truck, no one was waiting for them. Hope knew she’d seen her mother with Mac earlier. Where were they? Panic threatened to well up again. What if something had happened to them?

“Where’s Sonja? I thought she’d be with you.”

Luke shook his head and fired up the engine. “She sent me a text. She and Mac couldn’t get through the police line so they’re meeting us down at the station. They’re probably already there.”

Hope didn’t respond. Instead she looked out the window. Police cars flanked every side of them. The blaring sirens should have drowned out her thoughts, but nothing could do that.

She gnawed on her bottom lip. If Mac had done something stupid, she prayed he didn’t get caught. Because if he had killed Patrick Taylor, she sure as hell wasn’t sorry the monster was dead. The only thing she couldn’t live with was if Mac went to jail in an effort to protect her.