Evan's Addiction (63 page)

     I nodded because I remembered her story more fully now. “I recall
a little of it. I don’t watch television normally, except for movies, but I’m
on my computer all the time and I remember seeing your picture and story.”  

     “Have they given up looking?” She seemed so very young as she
asked that; hoping the world hadn’t forgotten her.

     “I’m sure they are.” I recalled the girl was part of a very
prominent family. “You know the news moves on pretty quickly to newer stories,
but that doesn’t mean the police aren’t still looking. Your parents are
probably hounding them daily.” I had no idea if they were, but it was probably
something she needed to hear, and people with money always seemed to have more
clout with the police.

     She heaved out a sigh but didn’t say anything.

     “So he feeds you regularly?” She was slim, but she didn’t look
emaciated.

     Elizabeth nodded. “Three meals a day.”

     I looked her over. “What about bathing?” She was also extremely
clean for being here for weeks.

     “There’s a bathroom over there.” She pointed to the door I’d been checking
out earlier. “Every other day he takes me in there to shower.” She looked away
from me. “I refused at first, but when he withheld food I caved.” She looked
back at me and my heart pinched at the shame in her eyes.

     I took her hand and rubbed it. “You have nothing to be ashamed
off. You’re surviving, and part of surviving is eating. I can see that you’re
not a quitter.”

     More tears filled her eyes. “He watches.” My stomach twisted. “The
whole time.” She whispered hugging herself. “It’s so humiliating.”

     I pulled her into another hug. “But he’s never touched you?” 

     She shivered. “Not in that way.” She whispered brokenly, telling
me in other ways he had. “I’m a virgin. My price is higher if I stay that
way.” 

     I closed my eyes. This was another question I didn’t want to ask.
“How did he know?”

     “He searches for his victims through medical files. My file said I
wasn’t sexually active.” She pulled back and looked at me. “You’re not either,
right?”    

     I chuckled darkly. “I’m not a virgin.”

     She frowned. “He told me he only picks virgins.”

     “He messed up with me then.”

     “Do you have a boyfriend?” Her eyes were anxious as she stared at
me.

     I moaned softly at the thought of Evan. “I don’t know.” Evan had
called me his girlfriend but I hadn’t really felt like one. Not that any of
that mattered now. We’d kind of broken up and it looked like I wasn’t going
back. At Elizabeth’s frown I explained. “I’m kind of dating someone, but it’s
new, and I don’t think either of us was expecting it to last…but I really
wanted it to last.” With everything in me I’d wanted it to last.  

     Her eyes darkened with sorrow. “Will your parent’s be okay?”

     She was speaking like she had no hope. After being here for so
long I could see why. “I don’t have any parent’s.”

     “They died?” She inferred.

     I shook my head. “I’ve never had them. They got rid of me when I
was a baby.”

     “I’m sorry.”

     I shrugged. “At least no one is crying for me.” Carrie and David would
though.

     She hugged me this time. Tears fell down my face, and while I was
able to keep the sobs contained shudders raked my body. A form moving out of
the corner of my eye had me jerking in surprise, which in turn set off pains in
my stomach. I turned and went rigid in alarm when I saw a man standing there
watching us.

     He was a mildly attractive male in his thirties with light brown
hair and dull blue eyes. He looked in good shape, but he was shorter and leaner
than Evan.

     He lifted a flap on the box and I saw a fifteen by three inch rectangular
slot. He pushed a tray of food through it. Elizabeth stood up to take it,
handed back an empty one, and came back to sit next to me setting the tray of
food on the end of the bed. It contained and some fruit, scrambled eggs and
toast for two.

     “Hello, Shaw. How are you feeling?” The man asked.

     I glared at him through my terror. “Like shit. Did you kick me in
the stomach?”

     His brows pinched as his gaze roamed over me. “No, I only used
chloroform. I came up behind you and put it over your mouth. Knocked you right
out.”

     The last thing I remembered was getting out of the cab and heading
for my apartment; not someone grabbing me, or drugging me. 

     “Why does my side feel like you kicked me a few times while I was
unconscious?” I gritted.

     His lips tightened. “I don’t damage my merchandise…if I don’t have
to.”

     There was a threat there and I didn’t miss it. “You’re a pretty sick
asshole.” I informed him.

     He pulled his computer chair over so he could sit in front of the
box. “I’m a person with an almost non-existent moral compass but high
intelligence.”

     “Almost?” I sneered.

     “I don’t deal in children. That’s why I didn’t take McKay’s
daughter-in-law. I’d at first planned to but the only times I would have been
able to get to her was when she was with her daughter and I didn’t want to have
to deal with that.”

     I frowned at his mention of Maya and Dan. What did they have to do
with this? Maya was obviously not a virgin because she had a child so why would
he be stalking her? And if he was looking at medical records than he should
know I was on birth control.  

     “If you’ve been watching me you should have realized I’m not
someone you would want to deal with either.” I gritted out as bitchily as I
could through my fear.   

     The smile that spread across his face was creepy. “You have a
smart mouth. The next few weeks with you should be fun.”

    Terror rolled through me. “Fun’s not the word most people use when
my mouth gets smart. You’ll probably regret using it.” I glowered.

     “That’s probably because most people are idiots and can’t
appreciate an intelligent individual. At least that’s been my experience.” He
smirked.

     “How many brain cells does it take to kidnap a girl, put her in a
box, dress her up, video tape her going to the bathroom and sleeping, and then
ship her off special delivery? Sounds pretty damn lazy to me.” I raised my brow
testing him.

     He grinned, not looking at all upset at me questioning his
intelligence. “I really like that mouth.”
Yuck
. Elizabeth squeezed my
hand. “Most of the girls try to make themselves invisible. Honey here…”

     “That’s not my name.” Elizabeth growled.

     He continued like she hadn’t even spoken. “She had some spunk in
the beginning, but lately she likes to ignore me. But you, Shaw, I have a
feeling you just can’t control what comes out of your mouth. I like that, but
whoever buys you might not. You know, when I first decided to kidnap you it
wasn’t to sell you.”

     I frowned but didn’t say anything…a display of my self-control.

     He smirked, but then his features turned hard. “You’re boyfriend
and his boss interfered in a project of mine and I lost a shit-load of money. I
only planned to use you as ransom, force your Mr. Michaels to transfer my money
to me and I would return you, but it would be a waste of your beauty to give
you back.”

     His words swirled around in my head. “Project? What project?”

     He leaned back like he was about to enjoy a story. “I had been
wooing this accountant in their firm for months…”

     Going stiff…which made pain stab through me…I broke in. “Her name
wouldn’t be Carol, would it?”

     He scowled. “Your boyfriend told you about it?” 

     Holy Shit! This was the guy who had conned Carol the accountant into
loading that program to steal from Dan’s company. I so wanted to tell him I was
the one that had found it and stopped it but I wasn’t sure what he would do if
he found out. He seemed upset at not getting that money and I was already in a
deep load of shit.

     “Yes.” I confirmed. “You appear to be a jack of all sick trades;
slaver and con-man. Do you have a room where you design new date-rape drugs
too? You’re the type of asswipe that makes all women wish we had bear traps in
our vaginas.”

     Elizabeth gaped at me.

     The asswipe just shook his head with a small smile. “I hope
whoever buys you likes your tartness, or you might not last long. It’s sad, but
some men like to buy a woman just so they can break her.” He didn’t sound like
he was sad about it at all.

     I swallowed and found myself leaning into Elizabeth; from the pain
in my stomach and the overall situation. “Evan’s not going to steal from Dan in
the hope that you might release me. I’m sure he knows the statistics of ransom
transactions, and we basically broke up today…or yesterday.”

     I probably shouldn’t be telling him there was no way he was going
to get any ransom for me, but I just couldn’t let him think he was going to
win.

     He tilted his head like he was examining me. “And how did that
come about?”

     “His month with me was up. If your smart, which I have my doubts,
and have done any investigation work than you know Evan only goes out with a
woman for about a month before he gets bored with her.” My side cramped and I
winced at the pain. Why was it hurting so badly?

     “I’m a pretty good judge of human nature; it’s part of being a
con-man.” He smiled like he was proud of himself. “And the way he stares at you
tells me he would do just about anything to get you back. I kept your phone for
a couple hours and he was blowing it up looking for you. That doesn’t sound
like a man breaking up with a girl.”

     Was Evan worried about me? He was a good guy; if he thought
something bad had happened to me he would be worried. That was just part of his
character. But Evan wouldn’t steal, and he would know better then to expect a
kidnapper to follow through with a ransom honestly. He was a genius after all.

     “Have you asked him for the ransom yet?” I asked.

     “No, not yet. I wanted to let him sweat a little.” With a grin he
stood up and returned the computer chair back over to the desk. “But I should
probably get the ball rolling. I’ve been waiting for that payout for awhile.”

     “Don’t trip on your self-inflated ego on the way out.” I gritted
and gripped my side as another wave of pain rolled through me. “Forget that,
please do…and then fall on something sharp.”

     He laughed. “If that happened both of you would slowly starve to
death.” His lids slit evilly. “I’m the only person who knows that you’re here,
and starving would be a slow painful death. Elizabeth tried it and couldn’t
hack it.”

     “You’re just not worth starving over.” She snapped.

     He walked forward with a smile. “Shaw, it appears you’ve given
Honey back some of her spirit. Her owner will thank you.” He closed the flap
he’d opened for the food. He started speaking again but it was mumbled. “In
case Honey didn’t tell you, this plastic is nearly soundproof so don’t waste
your time yelling for help.” 

     I watched him walk away with a sinking heart, and unfortunately my
terror didn’t leave with him. Another wave of pain rolled through my belly and
I groaned clutching at it. I raised my shirt to make sure I didn’t have any
bruising on my side, but it was clear.

     “Your stomach really hurts that badly?” Elizabeth asked.

     I nodded. “Yeah, it feels like especially bad cramps, but I’m not
due for my period.”

     She touched my side. “Does it hurt here?” She pressed.

     I groaned, flinching away from her. “Yes…there.”

     Her brows knitted in concern. “Have you had your appendix out?”

     “No.” I frowned.

     She grimaced. “Cruck, I would have liked to eliminate that.”

      
Cruck
? “Why?”

      My stomach cramped more at the acute dismay on her face. “Because
the pain you’re having sounds like appendicitis. My cousin went through it a
couple years ago while she stayed with us and she complained about the same
pains.”

     She didn’t have to tell me any more; I knew what appendicitis led
to if not treated. And I had a feeling our kidnapper wasn’t going to be sending
me to the hospital…for any reason. That was my luck; kidnapped to be a sex
slave but then killed by appendicitis in captivity.   

     Beleaguered, I lay down on the small cot and curled up. Elizabeth took my hand and began rubbing my back. My throat constricted and tears welled at
her comfort.

     “What was with the ‘cruck’?” I sniffed.

     She gave a weary grin. “My parents have an issue with swear words
so I made some of my own up.”  

     “Do your parent’s realize that your using homemade swear words?”

     “Yes, but as long as its not the customary swear words its okay.
It’s more about appearances than the use of the swear word.” She rolled her
eyes.

     They sounded pretentious. “If you were to go home after this would
they still be sticklers about it, do you think?” I asked.

     She stared off into space. “I would like to say no, but in all
likelihood…yes.”

     That wasn’t right. If someone came home after going through something
like this they should be allowed lots and lots of leeway.

     “You’re too nice to be here. Bad things shouldn’t happen to nice
people.” Were the other girls he kidnapped and sold nice girls? Mean girls
didn’t even deserve this. My tears spilled out. “Women should start kidnapping
men and selling them on the black market. They don’t have half the worries we
do. They create their own problems and then dump their shit on us. They just
take, use, and throw away.”

     “Is this something you’ve always felt, or a result of what’s
happening?” Elizabeth stroked my hair.