Diamonds and Spurs [The Callens 9] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (21 page)

The man stalked toward her, removed the glass in her hand, and jerked her to a stand. His bruising fingers dug painfully into her arm. “What are you doing?” She jerked a glance at Craig.

“Making sure you keep your promise.”

The prick to the back of her arm shot fire into her veins. Seconds later, her eyes rolled up in her head.

* * * *

A knifelike pain shot into her eye and jackhammers pummeled the back of Mandy’s head. Heat stifled her. Taking a deep breath made her chest hurt.
Christ
. She rolled to her side and tried to sit up, but her hands were tied together, preventing much movement. Using her fingers, she followed the rope to her bound ankles.

“You bastard.” After further investigation, she found the rope was attached to a pole.

The basement was encased in near darkness. Had it not been for the lit streetlight in front of house, she’d have been blind. Craig had her drugged for a reason. If she believed him, he wanted her out of the way while he had his hearing—if there was a hearing. She had no reason to believe anything she’d been told though. The FBI man was a fake, and Craig seemed to have lost touch with reality.

Her mouth was sand-dry and she needed to pee. The basement floor was hard cement. Her ass and hip hurt. Mandy scooted to the pole. Sitting up would help her think. Her eyes began to adjust to the darkness, and faint light bounced off her old white washing machine Craig had promised to give to charity.

There had to be a way to get out. No one used the basement except for storage. Their maid never came down here. Vince and Cam wouldn’t miss her until tomorrow when she didn’t show up.
Damn
.

If she thought it would do any good, she’d scream. Most likely, Craig would send down the fake agent and he’d drug her again. She closed her eyes and pictured the basement in the daytime. There had to be something she could reach to cut these ropes. He would have to use hemp instead of smooth cotton. It sliced her skin with each change in position.

For a second she allowed herself to remember the nice velvet ropes the men had used before they fucked her silly. Her heart ached to think of not seeing them again. Her throat clogged and she swallowed. Self-pity wouldn’t get her out of there.

Aha
.

The rope had to have an end somewhere. If she could reach it, she might be able to untie herself. There were two exits out of the basement. One was through a slanted double door at the top of three steps. Craig kept it bolted from the inside. Unless she had a key, that exit wouldn’t work.

There was a set of stairs that led to the kitchen, but most likely he’d have locked that door, too. The basement had two windows a foot from the ceiling. If she had something to stand on, she might be able to break the glass and climb out.

All of her plans for escape were based on her getting loose. Once more she fidgeted with the rope, trying to understand the configuration. After an hour, she discovered the end of the rope was tied about five feet off the floor. Unless, she suddenly became the world’s greatest contortionist, she’d never reach the end. Her wrists and ankles both sat close to the floor.

Mandy slumped down. For the next few hours, she analyzed and discarded a dozen options. In the end, she decided the only way was to be the best actress she could. After all, she’d fooled Craig for months. If she didn’t vomit first, perhaps she could convince him she wanted to come home and be his wife again.

* * * *

Cam tossed his cell on the coffee table. “Still no answer. I don’t like it.”

Vince jumped up and disappeared into the kitchen. The refrigerator opened and Vince returned with another beer. Nine in the morning was too early even for Vince to drink, but perhaps he needed something to calm him.

Vince waved the bottle. “We need to go to Denver.”

Cam had thought of that, but there were too many obstacles. “Call your FBI man, Mitch Henley. He’ll know if there was a hearing scheduled for Clairbourne yesterday. Maybe the trial was delayed and Mandy had to stay over another day.”

“Shit. Why didn’t I think of that?”

Vince jogged toward his bedroom. He returned a second later with a piece of paper. He called the FBI office. “This is Vince Callen.” Vince explained to Henley about the special agent who came by for Mandy. “Can’t you get a warrant or something? Thank you.”

Vince disconnected and shook his head. “The guy who came here? A fake. Fuck me. I should have called in his credentials.”

“You said his badge looked legit. You had no reason to call.”

“If you’d have been here, you might have questioned the subpoena.”

“Maybe.” If he’d been here, he would have followed her in his car. “What’s done is done.”

“We need to go and pound on that bastard’s door. We know he’s responsible.”

He liked that Vince was so proactive. “What did Henley say about the warrant?”

“It could take a few days. He’s not sure he has enough evidence.”

As much as he wanted to rant, Henley might be right. “It won’t do any good to put blame on the FBI. Let me toss a few things in a case and we can go.”

“Bring some extra things for Mandy. No telling what shape she’s in.”

His gut soured. Hell, it felt like he had a hundred ulcers all rebelling at the same time.

In minutes, they were out the door. Vince drove. It wasn’t hard to find her address. ZabaSearch was a beautiful site.

Vince could be a hothead. They needed to have a plan. “When we get there, you just going to barge in and demand to see Mandy?”

Vince worked his jaw. “Not sure.”

“Maybe we should enlist Candy’s help.” They could go to Indulgent Spa and tell her what happened. She might even have a spare key to the house.

Vince looked over at him. “And have two women on the run?”

He wasn’t thinking straight. “They’ll be expecting us to show up. Clairbourne can’t be that stupid. His goon was in our house. He has to think we were either hiding Mandy or protecting her.”

“All the more reason to be careful. Maybe the neighbors saw something. Like a screaming woman being dragged against her will into her former house.”

He doubted it, but they had to check out the property at any cost. Maybe the place was gated and had security cameras on every corner. A firsthand look was a must.

Finding the home wasn’t hard. It was at the end of a cul-de-sac, which might make it more difficult to sneak around. All the homes were five thousand square feet and up. Lawns were manicured and expensive cars sat in the drives.

Vince slapped the wheel. “That’s the FBI dude’s SUV in the drive.”

More proof Mandy was inside. “We can’t just ring the doorbell and announce we’re here for her.”

“Let’s park a few blocks away and enter via the woods in the back.”

“How about we wait until it’s dark? I say we check out the spa and find Candy. She might be able to help.”

“Worth a try.” Vince drove around the circle and headed out.

Within ten minutes they were at the spa. “Didn’t you get Candy’s number when you went to the investor dinner?”

Vince slowed. “Fuck me. My brain is trash. Yes.” He pulled out his phone and handed it to Cam. “Call her.”

Candy answered. When he told her he was a friend of Vince’s, she told him to hang on. Fifteen seconds later she spoke. “You think Craig kidnapped Mandy?”

“We’re on the way to the spa now. Are you there?”

“No. The FBI shut it down. I’m at home.” She gave him her address.

“We’ll be there in five.”

He disconnected. When they arrived at her house, Candy was pacing.

“That’s her.”

They pulled in front. Vince got out and gave her a hug.

Cam motioned to the car. “Let’s talk in here.” He wouldn’t put it past Craig to bug Candy’s house or her phone.

She nodded and slipped in the back. “How can I help?”

Cam twisted in his seat. “Can you tell us the layout of Craig’s house?”

“Sure.” She mentioned the open concept, the fact the bedrooms were upstairs, how the basement door was off the kitchen, and the den had double doors that led to the lawn in back.

“You don’t have a spare key by any chance, do you?”

She shook her head. “You might look around the planters in front. People often keep a key outside.”

“I know the Clairbourne’s are rich. Is their house alarmed?”

“Yes and no. There is an alarm, but Craig often forgets to set it.”

That didn’t help. “You worked with Craig. Is he the violent type?”

Candy’s glance to the side told him all he needed to know. His nails dug into his palms.

“He hit her. But only once.” She glanced up. “He owns a gun, though. That much I know.”

“Shit.” Cam handed her his card. “Call me if you hear anything.”

Candy grabbed his wrist. “Save her. Please?”

She slipped out and disappeared inside.

Vince put the car in drive. “Now what?”

“We wait.”

* * * *

The sky was clear and the moon half lit. Vince and Cam hid in the marshy preserve behind the Clairbourne home. They’d brought some gear, the most important of which was an infrared scope.

Cam nudged him. “See anything?”

“Not yet.” It was a little past ten at night and mostly black behind the house. The front inside lights were blazing. He held up a hand. “There’s movement.”

“I’m going to check it out.”

During their interminable wait today, they’d purchased earbuds and communication devices, like the kind bodyguards used. When it came to saving Mandy, they weren’t going to leave anything to chance.

Vince saw, but didn’t hear Cam race across the backyard. He plastered his back against the house. Vince looked through the scope. Cam’s presence hadn’t been detected. “All clear.”

Cam turned around and peeked in the window. Just then, Mandy came into view and Vince’s heart jacked. Her lips were pressed tight. Right behind her was Craig. He had a hand on her upper arm as if he was holding her hostage.
Damn
.

While he didn’t see the bodyguard, he had to assume the man was there. He liked the two-on-two odds, but it was too dangerous to barge in with Mandy there.

“What do you want to do?” Cam whispered.

His mind spun. “Retreat.”

While in the surveillance store, they’d bought a glass cutting kit. His new plan was to break into the house in the middle of the night. Cam would escape with Mandy and he’d handle the goon. The only problem with plans was that they never went as one imagined them.

Even though Candy told them the location of the bedrooms, they couldn’t be sure Mandy would be in Craig’s bedroom. Vince prayed she wasn’t. His ribs tightened at the image of her in his arms.

No. She’s ours and only ours
.

They’d left for a few hours and returned at 2:00 a.m. Once more they’d parked down the street and entered via the woods, careful not to make too much noise on the underbrush. All the houselights were off. Going through the den seemed their best option. They both had headlamps with a red filter to cut down alerting any guard who might be near.

Cam split off to cut the electricity to the house in case the alarm had been set, while Vince waited by the den door, ready to cut a hole in the glass. Cam spoke with an electrician friend in Intrigue for instructions, and Cam claimed he could do the job. For Mandy’s sake, Vince prayed he was right.

He waited until Cam returned then gave him a thumbs-up.
Let’s hope this works
.

Vince placed the suction cup on the door close to the lock and cut a glass circle. Carefully, he removed the section and placed it on the ground. He slipped his hand in and undid the lock. The damned thing snapped as loud as a gunshot.
Shit
.

Cam clamped a hand on his arm. They both stilled. When the guard didn’t coming running to investigate, Vince eased open the door as slow as possible.

They’d decided that Cam would go upstairs and search for Mandy. Only if Craig pulled a gun would Cam use his. Vince was the street fighter, and as such, opted to take down Mr. fake FBI man, should he still be here. The car in the drive implied he was. If the man tried to escape, he’d find his disabled car wouldn’t start. Vince had two sets of cuffs with him just in case they got lucky. He gave one set to Cam.

They entered the den with no problem. Vince went in search of the guard while Cam headed upstairs. Candy’s description of the home was invaluable. Cam was halfway to the master bedroom when a light flashed.

“Hey. Stop.”

“Go,” he shouted to Cam. Saving Mandy was their ultimate goal.

Vince tossed off his headlamp. Getting into a fistfight in the dark wouldn’t be smart. Wrestling, however, didn’t need light. Vince ducked his head and charged. As soon as he made contact with the man’s thick torso, he grabbed the bodyguard by the waist and took him down. Not only could Vince hog-tie a calf in eight seconds, he’d wrestled in college.