Tragically Flawed Read online

  “Don’t ever mention those words to me again. Whoever told you I was a part of that was grossly mistaken. Do you understand me?”

  “Loud and clear.”

  With his mask back in place, Drexel said, “Now what did you want to know?”

  “How do you stay so calm?”

  Shan wasn’t sure he wanted to know anything about this man.

  “You can learn to do a lot of things when your life depends on it.”

  “I suppose so.”

  “You suppose so? What? Don’t you think Riviera learned to go into a different place in her mind when she was getting the shit beaten out of her? Don’t you know she learned to find that spot deep within her where the pain didn’t break her anymore?”

  Shan stumbled with the force of Drexel’s words. He was sure she did. Partly because she had hinted at such, but mostly because it would’ve been the only way to survive. It brought back to mind a memory he had of her telling him how she would use her murals as a place to hide from Jasper … a place where he couldn’t find her. He got that now.

  “Yeah, I think I get it.”

  “That’s how I did it. When your life and the life of your fellow soldiers is on the line and every single thing you do, small or large, can impact the outcome, you learn to keep your cool. It becomes second nature. And Shan?”

  “Yeah?”

  “I wasn’t kidding about the hotel room thing. If I think you’re going to jeopardize any chance of getting her out alive, I will tie you to a goddamn bed.”

  “Do you think she’s alive?”

  “No idea. But the sooner we find her, the better chance we have. Her picture is on every law enforcement site out there. It’s on every Internet missing persons site too. If he has her, he can’t be parading her around because someone would’ve seen her by now.”

  “I don’t know what I’ll do if she’s not alive. I’d rather die than face that.”

  “Pull your shit together, man. I need your head in the right place. This is why I didn’t want to bring you.”

  “Fuck you, man. Where would your head be if you were in my shoes?”

  “I’m not in your shoes. I’m in my shoes trying to find your girl. And I need your help. So get your shit together or I’ll have the pilot turn this hunk of metal around and we’ll drop your ass off back in Eagle County. Do you get this picture I’m painting for you?”

  Shan let out all his air in a huff, cursed Drexel, but agreed.

  “We do everything my way. You’re used to being the boss, but on this run, you answer to me. Got it?”

  “Yep.”

  “Good. Glad we got that cleared up.”

  “Are you always an asshole?”

  “No, I’m usually a lot worse.”

  That brought a chuckle out of Shan.

  “Glad I could make you laugh.”

  Shan shook his head. “I was just thinking that my employees think I’m an ass. I need to send you in for a day.”

  “Yeah. Trick ’em out a bit, huh?”

  “Uh-huh. Right now, I don’t give a damn about anything. My division of the company could go straight to hell and I could give a fuck. The only thing I want is to look into Riviera’s eyes and see her smile again.”

  “Shan, look at me.”

  Shan looked at Drexel.

  “That’s what I’m trying to do. That’s what you hired me to do and that’s what my goal is. To bring your girl home to you alive.”

  “Fuck, I’m scared, man.”

  “I can find her, Shan.”

  “Yeah, but what shape will she be in when you do?” Shan hung his head and prayed that Riviera was okay.

  *****

  Riviera woke shivering. Curled on her side, her world still shrouded in darkness, she tried to open her eyes, but they were still sealed. When she straightened out her stiff legs, it registered that she was no longer in the trunk of a car. Straining her ears to see if she could discern any familiar sounds, the only thing she heard was the humming of machinery. Her arms pained her, still tied behind her back. When she tried to separate her ankles, she discovered they were also still tied.

  Cold … she was so cold, all she could think of was a way to get warm. Pulling her knees back to her chest, she hoped it would help. It didn’t because her arms were behind her, useless and numb. She shivered uncontrollably, her mind conjuring all sorts of bad images. She tried to figure out what day it was, but the drugs had taken away her concept of time. Not knowing whether it was daylight or nighttime didn’t help, either.

  Not much later, she heard footsteps. It sounded as though someone were walking on a concrete floor from far away. She tuned in her ears and heard them getting closer and closer. Her fear escalated at what lay in store for her.

  When the footsteps stopped, they were right next to her. She flinched when she heard his voice.

  “God, you stink like a skunk. When was the last time you took a bath?” Then he let out a menacing laugh.

  A sickening wave a terror ripped through her. There was no doubt he meant to kill her. Begging wouldn’t help. Nothing would save her now.

  “You thought you’d seen the last of me, didn’t you? You thought you were free when you left me handcuffed to that pole, didn’t you? Well, surprise, surprise.” He bent down low and whispered into her ear. He may as well have been screaming at her for each word that passed through his lips jolted her every nerve ending.

  Fingers settled on her neck and she recoiled in horror. Jasper only chuckled in glee. “You don’t like that, do you?”

  Riviera recoiled at his question.

  “I think I want to look into your eyes for a moment. I want you to see my face while I play with you.”

  He tore the duct tape off her eyes and she screamed. She thought he’d torn her eyelids off with it.

  “Well, hello there. Miss me much?” He shot her an evil grin.

  Riviera knew screaming wouldn’t help, but she let out a strangled cry nevertheless. Her mouth was still taped, but some reactions one simply could not control.

  “Shut up! You know how I hate it when you do that,” he sneered. He belted her across the face and she saw the familiar stars return. In the brief time she’d been away from him, she forgotten how badly it hurt when he hit her.

  Tears surged down her cheeks, not so much from the pain and fear, but for the simple fact that she’d never see Shan again. She thought about how much joy he’d brought to her life and there were so many things she wished she’d told him. The glaring truth was sitting there, mocking her. For all her fears about loving him, it was the one thing she should’ve told him. And now here she was, facing what she truly should have feared, not the love she’d tried to deny. Isn’t it funny how things turn out? But isn’t that how it always went?

  You never seem to find the time until it’s too late. I’m so sorry I didn’t have the courage to tell you, Shan. I’m so sorry I never told you how very much I love you.

  “What the fuck are you mumbling about?” Jasper asked as he squeezed her neck. Tighter and tighter he clenched and when she thought her life would end, he released her. His demonic laugh rang in her ears as she sucked air into her lungs. She couldn’t get as much as she needed because her mouth was covered. She wondered what his game was and how long he would play it before he killed her.

  When she saw the knife in his hand, she knew his game was going to turn extremely ugly. She shook her head back and forth, and he laughed. “You never did like my skills with this, did you?”

  Her guttural screams from behind the duct tape only seemed to spur him on. She tried to calm herself, to force herself to stop, but immense fear had gripped her mind so fiercely, she was unable to control it any longer. There’d been a time when she could separate her mind from her body, but that time had fled long ago.

  “I think it’s time for a little art lesson. I hear that’s your thing nowadays. Isn’t it? Answer me, Riviera!”

  Eyes wide, she bobbed her head.

  “Wh
at shall I draw on you? How about my name? I think my initials would look delightful on your tits. Or maybe your face. What do you think?”

  She stared back at him, frozen with fear.

  “Riviera, you’re not answering me,” he said in a singsong voice.

  She nodded.

  He ripped open her shirt, took the tip of the knife and dragged it across her chest, until it dug deep. “Oh, now, ain’t that pretty? Look at all that bright red blood.”

  Riviera didn’t want to look so she squeezed her eyes shut.

  “I said look at it, whore. Watch me while I carve you up!” he hissed in her ear.

  Her mind reeled with ways to get him off her. If there was some way she could get that knife out of his hands, she could get herself free. But how would she cut the ties off her wrists? Since they were behind her, it would be near impossible to undo them. She had to come up with something ingenious, or she would die down here.

  He started cutting her. The knife burned as it gouged into her skin. Anger replaced her fear as Jasper continued to cut. Unadulterated fury invaded her mind and penetrated her body. Soon she was ablaze with it.

  As Jasper laughed with insane mirth, Riviera bucked her hips so high it threw him off balance. The knife dropped out of his hand, landing next to her. She snapped her legs in the air and kicked at him, making contact wherever she could. She knew this was her only chance to escape. Jasper hollered as her feet hit his face. Riviera didn’t stop. She landed as many hard blows on him as she could, but her goal was the knife. If only her damn hands weren’t tied, she thought, she might have a better chance.

  All of a sudden she felt a hand tighten on one of her ankles and then she felt it snap. She screamed in pain, under her strip of duct tape.

  “You fucking slut. You’re gonna regret that. Man, are you ever gonna regret that.”

  Riviera knew he’d broken her ankle. The piercing agony spiraling up her leg made her want to vomit. But she had another goal in mind, and that was keeping the knife away from Jasper. She rolled on her stomach and covered it with her body.

  “You really shouldn’t have done that.”

  To her horror, she cried as her arms were wrenched up and she thought he was going to rip them out of their sockets. He dragged her to a nearby pole and pulled out a pair of handcuffs. With one end he cuffed her cable ties and the other end he cuffed to the pole. She was now forced to stand on the broken ankle.

  “Whine all you want, you miserable piece of shit. No one can hear you.” Riviera looked at him through eyes blurred with tears and saw the damage she’d inflicted on him. Deep inside, she was pleased to see she’d made her mark on his vile face. His eye would soon be sporting a nice shiner and his lip was split, not to mention his nose. Blood ran freely from it and dripped onto his lips.

  She made an enormous mistake, though. She began to laugh.

  “Why you fucking bitch!” His fist came flying at her so fast and hard, she was sure this time he had dislocated her shoulder. Now her control was thoroughly focused on preventing herself from throwing up. That damn duct tape would be the death of her yet, she thought. Driving the bile back down into her gut, she concentrated on staying alive, using breathing techniques that Dr. Ashworth had taught her. They helped with the nausea, but not with the excruciating pain.

  Perhaps she would pass out because she knew Jasper intended to beat the shit out of her or kill her. It would be one or the other.

  Chapter Twenty Seven

  Gone Hunting

  A black Tahoe met Shan and Drexel, at the municipal airport in the town of DeKalb, due west of Chicago.

  “Everything you asked for is inside. There are only two Muscles in the entire greater Chicago area. The one you want I believe is in Cicero.”

  “Thanks. I’ll call if I need anything. You can expect to hear from me in twenty-four hours. I’ll let you know about our ride back to Eagle/Vail.”

  “Good. Be careful.”

  Drexel narrowed his eyes.

  “Just saying, Drexel. You never know. This dude sounds psycho.”

  “They’re all psycho.”

  “True.”

  Drexel turned to Shan. “Come on.” They headed to the back of the Tahoe. He opened the gate and pulled out a bag. From inside he handed Shan a vest and put one on himself.

  Shan looked at him for a second.

  “It’s Kevlar. I don’t take chances.”

  Shan nodded.

  “They’re heavy and uncomfortable, but you get used to them.”

  Drexel tightened his straps and then made sure Shan’s was on correctly. “Do you know how to use one of these?” he asked as he held up a handgun.

  “Yeah. I own one.”

  “How accurate are you?”

  “Decent. I go to the range occasionally. Used to go more often, but I don’t have much time anymore.”

  “Okay. Put this on.” He handed Shan a shoulder holster. Then he showed him the gun and how to use it. It was a Glock, same brand as Shan’s gun at home. “Excellent,” Drexel responded when Shan told him. “You just made my ‘how to shoot a handgun in five minutes’ lesson that much easier. You do know that when and if you have to fire this, you shoot to kill, right?”

  “You know it. Listen, if Riviera’s life is in jeopardy, there isn’t a chance in hell I won’t kill the motherfucker.”

  “Shan, I’m not just talking about that. I’m talking about your life too.”

  “I got you.”

  “One other thing. If I get to this guy and he’s unwilling to share his information, I’ll know if he’s lying. My methods aren’t pretty. Do you understand me?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Okay, because I’m here for one thing and one thing only. And that is to get Riviera out. I don’t care how we do it and I don’t care if we have to kill him. But remember this. We need him, Shan. We need him to tell us where she is. If he’s dead, he’s no use to us. Clear?”

  “Yeah. Crystal.”

  “Good. Let’s go.”

  Drexel programmed the GPS for Muscles in Cicero and they were off. It was a little over an hour drive.

  They arrived at Muscles around at nine forty-five at night. The lights were on and a few people were working out. The two men parked and got out of the vehicle.

  “Let me do all the talking. Just observe. I want you to see if you notice anything unusual … any strange behavior. Look at photos on the wall. Check for contestant names, Jasper’s specifically.”

  “Got it.” Shan’s fists were opening and closing constantly.

  “You need to stop that, Shan. It’s obvious by your hands that something’s up. Stay calm or your ass is staying in the car. Understood?”

  Shan took a lungful of air and blew it out. “Yeah.”

  “Come on.”

  When they walked in, everyone turned to stare. Shan thought it was probably due to the way they were dressed. Drexel walked up to the first person he came to and asked, “Where can I find an employee?”

  The guy pointed to a glass wall and said, “Back there.”

  The two men followed the arm and looked to see a couple beefy guys staring at them. Drexel headed that way.

  “Evening, gentlemen,” he said.

  “What can I do for you?” one of the beefcakes asked.

  “We’re looking for someone who works out here. Guy by the first name of Jasper.”

  The two men looked at each other and then back at Drexel and Shan.

  “Is there a problem?”

  “We think there may be. Can you tell us anything about him?”

  “Not until you tell us something about yourself.”

  Drexel surprised Shan when he pulled out an ID that looked like an official FBI ID badge. Shan thought perhaps he was with the FBI. He didn’t know anything for sure about Drexel Wolfe.

  “I’m Agent Wolfe with the FBI. We want to question him about a possible kidnapping.”

  “Kidnapping?”

  “Yes. Do you know a Riviera Ben
son?”

  “You mean his old girlfriend?”

  “The same.”

  “Yeah. Well, I don’t know her. He used to talk trash about her all the time until last year when she dumped him. Or left him handcuffed to a pole in their apartment. I think he used to hit her or something. That guy isn’t right, if you know what I mean.”

  The other beefcake looked at Drexel and said, “Yeah, one time he bragged to me about how he cut her up. I told him he was fucked up and he took a swing at me. I felt sorry for the girl.”

  Shan wanted to scream. He didn’t, though. He fisted his hands and kept them at his sides as he stood ramrod stiff, fuming inwardly. If he ever got his hands on Jasper, he would kill him.

  As if reading his mind, Drexel shot Shan a warning look. Then he turned to the two gym rats and asked, “Do you know his last name?”

  “Mossberg. Jasper Mossberg. He lives a couple of blocks from here on West 23rd Place. You can walk from here in five or six minutes.”

  Shan couldn’t help himself from asking, even though he knew Drexel would kill him for it, “Do you know of the diner his girlfriend worked at?”

  “Oh yeah. It’s The Diner. It’s down Cermak a few blocks. She worked there for years. Hey, I hope you guys find her.”

  “Have you seen him lately?”

  “Well, yeah. He was here yesterday, but I didn’t see him today. That’s kind of strange too because he’s always in here.”

  “Thanks, guys. You’ve been real helpful.”

  “No problem, man. Good luck.”

  Drexel and Shan headed back to the car. Drexel dialed a number on his phone and said, “I need an address for a Jasper Mossberg on West 23rd Place in Cicero. STAT. I’ll hold.”

  The men sat in silence while they waited. Drexel noticed how tight Shan’s grip was on the door handle. The outline of his white knuckles could be seen in the glow of the street lights.

  “Got it. Thanks.”

  Drexel looked at Shan. “You ready for this? She may or may not be in there.”

  “I’m ready,” he growled.

  “We need him, Shan.”

  He only nodded in response.

  When they arrived, a light was on inside. Shan wanted to hurl when he saw where Riviera had lived for four horrible years. Then he wanted to tear down the door of that dump and go at Jasper with his bare hands. But he held himself in check.