The Good, the Bad, and the Naughty (15 page)

Slowly sitting up so as not to wake them, she gazed at her lovers. Both were on either ends of the beds, facing opposing walls.

An urge to lean over and kiss one, then lean on the other side to kiss the other rose in her, but she didn’t dare try it. They needed to sleep, and she needed to get out of there before the other tenants awoke and caught her coming out of their room.

That’s the last thing they needed. If Melvin, the owner, ever found out what they were up to in this room, he’d kick them all out on their ears. Besides that, she needed a bath. Boy, did she need it desperately. Her body was drenched in sweat, and stickiness coated her legs and ass.

Slowly and quietly, she slid to the foot of the bed she lay on with James and slipped out without disturbing him. She then grabbed her things, put them on, and headed to her room to get a change of clothes before heading to the bathroom.

She inserted her key into the lock and twisted it, clicking the door open. As she stepped inside and closed the door behind her, a hand holding a cloth suddenly covered her face. And strong hands surrounded her body. She thrashed, trying to break free of the hold and push the cloth away, but after a minute of futile struggles, darkness enveloped her mind and she lost consciousness.

* * * *

James turned around to hug his sweet Belle, but to his surprise, he embraced Trevor instead. His eyes sprang open as Trevor pushed his hand away. Apparently, James woke him with his movement. He rubbed his eyes and asked, “Where’s Belle?”

James lifted his head and focused on the empty room. “She’s not here.”

“I can see that, partner,” Trevor replied.

James twisted his body to the side and stood up to stretch. “I guess she left early so no one would find out she spent the night with us.” As he walked over to the chair near the door, he noticed a note on the ground. Someone had slipped it through the crack under the door.

Dipping, he said, “This must be from her.”

Picking up the note, he read it. At first the words sat in limbo in his mind, but then as he reread the note, the ricocheting effects haunted him and made his heart hammer in his chest and a lump of panic grow in his throat.

We have your lover. If you want to keep your dear Belle alive, come to Eden’s Paradise in half an hour. And don’t call the sheriff or she’s dead.

He dropped the note and stared at Trevor, frowning.

Trevor walked over to him while asking, “You look like someone just died. What’s on the note?” He bent down to pick it up.

But before he could read it, James ran to the bureau to get clean clothes.

He heard Trevor curse behind him. “Damn. Who the hell left this?”

James shook his head in anger and confusion as he walked over to the door, heading for the bathroom. “I don’t know. But if they touch one hair on Belle’s head, I’ll kill them.”

Time was imperative. They needed to get down to the saloon fast. And when they got there, there’d be hell to pay.

* * * *

Voices came from all around her. Consciousness surfaced in her mind just seconds before, and she tried to open her eyes but couldn’t. Something kept her eyes shut. A blindfold? From the way it covered her entire nose, she figured it was a wide handkerchief someone wrapped around her eyes.

Her dry mouth hurt when she swallowed, and she almost choked thanks to the cloth stuffed deep in her mouth. Breathing became labored at that moment.

Where was she?

Moving her hands, she realized they had bound her to a chair. She rubbed her hands back and forth, trying to free her hand while her mind wandered. The last thing she remembered was heading to her room and entering it. Now it all became clear in her mind as the last remnants of fogginess dissipated in her brain.

Someone had been waiting for her. They used chloroform to knock her out. Why? Who wanted to kidnap her? Was her cover revealed? And did the kidnapper or kidnappers want to silence her forever?

She quietly cursed from the sting of the rough rope restraining her hands as she wiggled her wrists back and forth. She struggled to breathe when she heard the door open. Dragging footsteps followed as well as a man’s voice.

“Stop struggling, will you, and just sit.”

The voice sounded familiar, but she couldn’t quite place it. From the row and muffled sounds, she figured other hostages had been brought into the room. Now her mind rode on a wild spree of wonder. Who were the other hostages, and what the hell did the kidnappers want with all of them?

Her heart beat so frantically in her chest with rage and fear, it hurt. Perspiration began to seep from her pores with her mounting anxiety and discomfort.

Soon the sound of footsteps emerged again. From the two different sounds, she gathered two people left and one of them had a limp because one footstep sounded awkward. When more gagged, urgent sounds drifted her way, she realized two other hostages had been left in there with her and tried to communicate with her. Unfortunately, she couldn’t make heads or tails what their mumbled moans meant.

Grimness hovered over the room so thick, she felt despair. Her situation looked dire. Just as she took a labored exhale, she heard more footsteps approach. The door and the knob jiggled for a second. But it didn’t open.

A split second after that, a raised female voice came through. “Why did you lock the door? I told you I wanted to talk to her now.” It took a few seconds for her mind to recognize the voice, and in awe her mouth opened.

It can’t be.

Then the slightly familiar male voice replied, “Sorry, I forgot.”

“Well, come on, open it now.”

The man walked over and opened it.

Then the lady cursed. “Why the hell are they still gagged?”

“I thought you didn’t want them knowin’ where they were?”

She huffed. “I didn’t want them knowin’ where we were takin’ them, but leavin’ them like this now is cruel. Look at her, she can barely breathe.”

Belle understood she meant her, and, after light footsteps approached, someone took out the cloth in her mouth.

Taking a much needed deep breath, she felt the person untie her blindfold. She opened her eyes and shut them briefly again because of their sensitivity to the light. She reopened them and stared at her. Sure enough, her ears hadn’t played a trick on her.

“Sally,” she uttered in a quivering voice,

Sally laughed, throwing her head back. “From the look on your face, honey, it looks like you just saw the devil.” She glanced behind her to the man standing at the door and then pointed to the gagged and blindfolded men on the other side of the room.

Belle remained motionless from shock as she realized Jesse was the man she had been talking to. His voice was much deeper. No wonder it sounded familiar, but she couldn’t quite place it. And to her continued bewilderment, the gagged and bound men were John and Mat.

Jesse limped over to them and took off the handkerchiefs they had tied around their eyes and mouths. Both John and Mat stared at her, and John nodded slightly but didn’t say a word. She understood his signal and followed their lead of silence, figuring Sally and Jesse didn’t know who they were and that they were in it together.

Belle decided some probing was needed now. She stared at Sally, who stared back at her in silence. “Why did you kidnap me?”

Sally took a deep breath, and Belle noted her regret. “Honey, I wish we didn’t have to, but unfortunately, we need you.”

She pointed with her chin at John and Mat. “The same goes for those guys.”

Sally looked over her shoulder. “No, they were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Though I still haven’t figured out for sure what they were doin’ there or what exactly they wanted.”

“She don’t believe their story.” Jesse sneered at them.

Sally walked to the door. “Well, sweetie, I gotta go. Got a very important date I can’t miss.” Then she addressed all three of them. “Don’t bother screaming. The walls are thick, and no one will hear you. Besides, Tom here will be on you in a second.”

She walked out, but Tom stayed behind, staring at her with hungry eyes. Belle’s stomach turned over in revulsion. She could read his thoughts through his expression, and she didn’t like it one bit. But thank God so could Sally.

She came back in and looked at him sternly. “How many times must I tell you to leave Belle alone? I don’t want you tryin’ anythin’ when I’m gone, either. You hear me? Now come on out.”

“I won’t.” Tom broke his stare and nodded, glaring at Sally.

He left the room and locked the door behind him. Relief cascaded over Belle that instant.

“So can you tell me what the hell is happening?” she whispered, taking a deep breath.

Mat whispered back, “We don’t know much. All we know is when we broke into Trevor Kent and James Sanford’s room, we were ambushed and knocked out. There was someone or more than one person in there already. My guess is they were looking for something.”

“So I guess they don’t know who you are?” She shook her head in bewilderment.

John nodded. “Yes, and we made it seem like we’re thieves who broke in to steal money and jewelry. Whatever we could find.”

“They didn’t seem to believe your story.”

Mat glanced at the door. “I don’t know. But Tom and the other guys don’t appear smart enough to figure things out.” He stared back at her. “So that is the Sally you told us about?”

She nodded. “But apparently, she isn’t just another saloon girl.”

Mat responded this time. “Well, this is the first we saw of her. And from what I see, I think she is the brains behind whatever scheme they have going here.”

 
“Uh-huh, it looks like that. But what I don’t understand is what they want with Trevor and James.”

“We’ve been asking ourselves the same question all this time.” Both John and Mat nodded in agreement.

Belle’s head hurt from the swirling questions bombarding her brain. So much to think through. She hoped Trevor and James were all right. God, her heart longed for them.

After ten minutes of worrying and thinking, she decided the time had come to plan their escape. She needed to find her men and make sure they were safe. Her inner voice screamed she had to locate them soon before it was too late.

Chapter 10

Tumbleweeds rolling over the desert sand farther up the road made James want to scream. The place was deserted as far as he could tell. No one hid in the surrounding buildings up ahead, and Eden’s Paradise was closed. He didn’t like that one bit. He had staked out the place, hoping to get a clue as to where they held Belle and who the hell her kidnappers were. For the life of him, he couldn’t figure out who they could be and what in God’s name they wanted with Belle.

It’s not like he and Trevor were rich, or even Belle. And what did they mean by naming Belle as “their lover”? Obviously, someone had been spying on them up close for quite some time, but who and why, and more importantly, how? How the hell could someone know so much about them without him and James even having an inclination?

He slouched and bowed his head, rubbing his scalp while he waited for Trevor to get back. He had gone to the neighboring buildings behind Eden’s Paradise, scouting them out to see if anyone lay hidden aiming a gun at them, waiting.

He worried about Belle. He envisioned her frightened, crying, scared to death. They probably had her tied up in a dark, cold room. He prayed they hadn’t harmed her in any way. This was all their fault. They never should have gotten involved with her. Because of their selfish, lustful urges to satisfy their sexual desires, they put her life in danger.

And now, as he delved deeper into his conscience, he realized most of the blame should be on his shoulders. He came up with the outrageous idea Belle was Wild Isabelle LaRue. What a stupid, stupid man he had been.

Lifting his head to take an exasperated breath, he saw Trevor approach.

As he walked up to him, he asked, “So?”

He shook his head, frowning. “It’s clear. What time is it?”

“Almost ten. Whoever they are that took Belle should be coming in a minute or two since they certainly aren’t here now.”

And sure enough, the moment he ended his sentence, he heard galloping horses approach. He turned behind him to see three riders, two men and a female.

And when they came close enough for him to see clearer, he lost his breath. Glancing at Trevor, he noted his eyes practically popped out of his head.

“That’s Sally.”

James nodded. “Yes, what the hell is she doing here and with those guys?”

“I don’t know, but one of the guys with her, I recognize from the other night. He was in the back of the inn with a girl that night I took Belle out. He was a real pervert. He ogled Belle while we passed him and the girl he was with. I wanted to punch his face. And now I regret I didn’t,” Trevor responded.