Deadly In Stilettos (27 page)

             
The headlights of a car coming behind him jolted Greg back to reality. The car was swiftly getting closer, and at the last second Greg jumped into the wide ditch alongside the road. He rolled in the mud and then lay motionless on his stomach, feeling the aches and pains throughout his entire body. He heard someone get out of the car, heard footsteps approach. Then he heard Laurel’s voice say, “He’s probably dead. Send some men down there to check. Dispose of the body so that it is never found again. Let’s go!”

             
Greg was even more furious. That bitch had tied him up, starved him, sent men to hurt him, and now had tried to kill him. She would definitely regret that move. Laurel would regret the day she ever met him or Demi for that matter. Greg lay as still as he could until she was gone, then he climbed out of the ditch and started off again, keeping to the side of the road and out of sight. He limped along as fast as he could. He was getting tired. He took out his phone and dialed one of his contacts he’d got from his Dallas precinct. Fortunately, the man answered the phone immediately, as if expecting him to call. “I need someone to come get me,” Greg said in a whisper in fear of being heard. “I’m out by the Cordwright estate. Use my phone to track my location. I also need you to send someone to the Plaza Hotel to warn Demi. She is in great danger.”

             
The person on the other side of the phone did as directed. Within minutes Greg was in an unmarked car with some food and water, on his way to save his woman. It was good, because as the car pulled away and Greg turned to look behind him, he saw half a dozen or so men go down into the ditch to search for him. No doubt, he would be dead at that very moment if his contact had not picked up his phone when he called.

                                 
                ~~~

Demi was shocked when Laurel called her back, inviting her to dinner the following evening, but then called again to see if they could meet later that night instead. She sounded a bit weird, but Demi brushed that off. She was more concerned about Greg now that she had heard from Laurel. Had he left town without telling her? Did something come up with a case? Was he backing out of their relationship? So many horrible thoughts crossed her mind, but then she suddenly regained her confidence in Greg. He would never do anything to hurt her, she was sure of that now. Something must have happened to him instead. And from the sound in Laurel’s voice, she had something to do with Greg’s sudden disappearance.

             
Just as Demi was about to go meet Laurel, someone knocked on the door to her room. She opened the door hoping it was Greg, but a stranger stood there. He told her he was a friend of Greg’s. And that Greg had been held captive by Laurel for the past two days, but he was all right. Greg wanted her to continue with her plans to join Laurel for dinner, but not let on that she knew anything. Demi was outraged. Laurel was in deep trouble for hurting Greg and trying to make her believe he had left her. Why did everyone she cared about constantly try to take advantage of her? Every time she was let down, deceived by their true intentions, now, even her friends were doing the same things. Laurel Cordwright had just double-crossed the line. Her name placed on the list.

             
“Looks like this list will go on forever,” Demi said with a sigh. Under changed circumstances, she needed to wear a different outfit. She walked into the hotel closet, searching for the perfect shoes. Laurel Cordwright would never forget them, because they would truly be the last thing she saw. Demi chose her L.A.M.B. black, green, and yellow stilettos with a crisscross leather ankle T-strap. Black skinny jeans, a yellow blouse with a ruffled front, and a green cardigan were a perfect combination. Not too dressy. Each piece of clothing complemented the other. As Demi touched up her lip gloss, she decided she looked remarkable.

             
Grabbing her oversized black hobo bag, with green stitching, she left her room. Greg’s friend accompanied her to the restaurant, careful to remain out of sight so as not to alarm Laurel. However, Demi needed no protection from anyone, especially one who double-crossed her. She kindly sent the man away, thanking him for his information.

Laurel was already seated when Demi arrived at Justin’s.
Many celebrities were dining at the restaurant that night. For that, Demi was thankful. She did not want too much attention on her and Laurel, especially when they slipped out the back. In order for her plan to work, she needed to stay low-key, keep Laurel thinking she was naïve. The evening Demi planned for Laurel would leave her as fish food at the bottom of the Hudson River. Demi learned that there were many places to dump a body in New York, but she did not want anyone to find the body she would be dumping tonight. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more she knew for certain that tonight would become known as the night Laurel Cordwright disappeared from the face of the earth.

             
As Demi walked to their table, she put on her poker face. Before she got to Laurel, though, her cell phone buzzed. It was Greg. He had sent her a text message letting her know he was okay and would see her later. Demi tried not to smile, but couldn’t help herself. All she wanted to do was turn around and go to her man. She missed him something terrible. The look on Laurel’s face was cool, calm, and collected. “Hello, Diva,” she said as Demi took her seat. They ordered drinks, and Laurel asked how Demi’s trip to Memphis had gone. Funny, she didn’t remember telling Laurel where exactly she was going so how did she know that bit of information. Instead of asking how she knew, Demi assumed Greg must have mentioned it to her.

             
“It was great. I got the client I went to pursue. Things are better than ever now.” She wondered if anyone had found Devin’s corpse yet.
‘
Better than anyone know
s
,’ Demi thought. “Where’s Greg tonight?” Laurel went on. “I would have never guessed that he would let you out of his sight the first night you get back into the city.”

            
 
‘Is she serious?
’
Demi wanted to stab Laurel with her dinner knife. Was this her way of making Demi believe, she knew nothing of Greg’s whereabouts? Some people were really stupid and definitely needed to be taught a lesson or two.

             
“I’ll see him later, I’m sure. But let’s not talk about Greg. Let’s just have some girl time.”

             
After they’d ordered their dinner and their waiters had brought them another round of drinks, Laurel got a phone call and excused herself. While Dem sipped her second mai tai, she picked up her dinner napkin, passed it over Laurel’s drink, and emptied the powder from a powerful sedative into the glass. The effects would not take over Laurel’s body for two hours. That way after they finished dinner, and possibly dessert, Demi could make her move.

             
“Sorry about that,” Laurel said when she returned.

             
“Is everything okay?” Demi asked to see if any signs of something going on would showcase on Laurel’s face.

             
“No, everything’s great. That was a call from the house. Someone broke onto the estate and attacked some of the security people. I think they were looking for me.” Laurel’s voice was shaky. Tears welled up in her eyed, but she forced them away and took a long sip from her drink. Demi made appropriate noises of sympathy, and rubbed the top of her hand for comfort, trying not to look pleased as Laurel took another big gulp of her drink.

             
Dinner was delicious. During the course of it, several people walked over to their table to tell Demi how much they loved her shoes. A few of them asked her if she was a model, which she made clear she was not. Why did everyone in New York have to be a model? Laurel was alternately impressed and annoyed by all the attention Demi garnered. “Well, you certainly are an attention getter. Does this happen to you all the time? I would lose my mind if it happened to me.” Demi did not buy it. She could tell that Laurel was jealous, wanting a little attention of her own. It was always a competition with women, no matter when or where. Demi never cared about status. She just wanted people to treat her like a human being. Even though she dressed like a model and worked hard to get everything she wanted, it really did not matter what others saw her for on the outside. What was on the inside mattered most! Inner beauty was the best compliment anyone could receive. That was why Demi loved Greg so much and Makei. They constantly told her how beautiful she was as a person. Boy she missed Makei.

             
Glancing at her watch, Demi saw they did not have much more time. Laurel seemed a bit light-headed already, so the drug mixed with the drinks was working. She needed to put her plan in motion now.

             
“Are you feeling okay, Laurel? You look a little pale.”

             
“I am feeling kind of funny, Demi. Do you mind if we cut our evening short? I need to get home and lie down.”

             
“Sure, no problem,” Demi replied. “Let me pay the check. I’ll go with you to make sure you get home safely.”

             
Demi suggested they use the back exit so that Laurel was not embarrassed by anyone on the way out. She was now sweating and breathing heavily. A waiter led them out, asking if she wanted him to call an ambulance. Just as Demi was refusing, the manager walked over, along with the owner, a well-known music mogul. In his smooth, melodious voice, he asked if they needed anything, or if her friend was okay. Demi was touched by the gesture and his show of concern, but turned him down. “We’ll be fine,” she politely said. “She had a long day and just needs some rest. Plus, she cannot really hold her liquor,” she said making a drunken gesture with her body. He gave her his business card just in case. The way he looked at her told her he wanted something more from her as well. As he returned back to his table, filled with several big-name entertainers, he complimented her stilettos. “Real nice shoes, Sweetheart, and you are working the hell out of them. Take care of your friend. Call me!”

             
They walked out to the street, and while Demi hailed a cab, Laurel leaned against a wall. “Where to?” the cabbie asked. When Demi told him, he frowned. “What are you going to do way out there this time of night?”

             
“We own a yacht at the marina. We are spending the night there. We set sail for South of France in the morning.”

             
“Must be nice having a yacht,” the cabbie responded. “I hope one day I’m lucky enough to own one for myself.”

             
“Just keep saving and being a great driver,” Demi replied, “and your dream will certainly come true. Hard work and persistence pays off.”

             
The cabdriver took her seriously, and Demi started giving him ideas for creating a proper and successful business plan. By the time they reached the marina, he was thanking her for all of her help and telling her he would never forget her.
‘
Now that could pose as a problem
,
’ Demi thought to herself. She helped Laurel from the car.

Demi gave the cabbie a hefty tip, and winked at him before grabbing Laurel around the waist
and walking off in the direction of the yachts of the rich and famous. Laurel felt hot. The sweat was drenching her clothing. Demi was careful not to get wet too. When she saw Greg later, she did not want to have to explain why her clothes were soaked, or smelled sour.

             
They walked a ways down the dock, and then Demi leaned Laurel against one of the huge wooden beams. The rope and other materials she had hidden days ago were right where she left them. They were intended for Enry, but now Laurel Cordwright would experience a slow, painful, and torturous death instead.

             
Laurel was nearly comatose as Demi tied her up binding her arms and legs so she couldn’t move them. Then she tied big concrete blocks to her body to weigh her down. When or if she was found, she would have been in the water too long to be easily identified.

Slapping Laurel several times to wake her, Demi looked her straight in the eyes. Laurel looked frighten, wondering what was happening. She tried to move, but could not. She was tied up. H
er arms and legs felt heavy. She looked around and saw nothing but the blackness of water. At that moment, she knew Demi was going to kill her.

             
“Next time you try to screw over someone,” Demi said, “make sure you know who you’re dealing with first.”

             
Laurel looked back up at Demi. Her expression was terrifying. Demi went on. “I really trusted you. And you betrayed me by kidnapping Greg and trying to kill him. Why would you do something so cruel? What has Greg done to you?”

             
“I never meant to hurt anyone,” Laurel said. “I was just afraid Greg was working with my parents.”

             
“Liar! If I were you, I would tell the truth, although it really doesn’t matter.” Laurel began crying. “No one will hear you, shut the fuck up! You weren’t crying hours ago when you looked me in my face and lied to me. You weren’t crying when you had Greg, so please do me a favor and save it.”