Mistress of the Game
A garbage can broke her fall, but Lexi still landed hard, bruising her elbow and hip on the hard ground of the alleyway. She cried out in pain.
“Quiet.”
Someone scooped her up off the ground like a rag doll. Bundling her into the back of a car, he took off at full speed. Lexi lay on the floor of the backseat, her heart pounding. Memories of her childhood kidnapping came flooding back to her. Only this time she knew where she was going.
After ten minutes, and numerous sharp turns, the car began to slow down. Lexi felt the bumps as they turned off the road. At last, the engine stopped.
“You okay?” Robbie’s voice sounded shaky.
“I’m fine. Thanks. I didn’t know if you’d make it.”
Overwhelmed with relief, Lexi burst out laughing.
“I wouldn’t celebrate just yet if I were you,” said Robbie. “That was the easy part. Now we have to get you off the island.”
“US Air flight twenty-eight to Providenciales, you may board the aircraft at this time.”
Gabe and Greta were in the first-class departure lounge at Bangor International Airport. Maxine lay sleeping like a black-haired cherub in her nanny’s arms. Two floors below, at the gate, an army of paparazzi was waiting, hoping for a picture of Lexi en route to her honeymoon. Baby Max would be an added bonus.
“You ready to go?”
“Yes, sir. Ready as I’ll ever be.”
“Good.”
Gabe looked at his watch.
Come on, Lexi.
Lieutenant John Carey waited for five minutes. Then ten.
Should I go out there and get her?
What with Lexi being so unexpectedly forthcoming, he didn’t want to look insensitive. He remembered his ex-wife when she was pregnant. Hormones out of control, like an angry hippo. You could tick a pregnant woman off just by breathing. I need that confession.
Fifteen minutes. This is getting ridiculous. Maybe I should bring her a glass of water or something? Yeah. That’s a good idea. Act like I’m concerned for her health.
Three minutes later, Lieutenant Carey walked outside with a paper cup full of water. When the duty sergeant heard his boss’s scream, he thought he was having a heart attack. He rushed outside.
“Don’t just stand there!” Lieutenant Carey was apoplectic. “Put a call out to all units. The suspect has absconded. I want roadblocks. I want guys at the airport, the docks. I want helicopters.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And get me Sanchez and Shaw.”
“Yes, sir. Should I call anyone else, sir?”
“Like who?”
“I don’t know, sir. I thought maybe…the FBI?”
Lieutenant John Carey closed his eyes and watched his retirement condo on Kaanapali Beach crumble into dust. He glared at his sergeant.
“No. This stays within the department. Understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
“She must still be on the island.”
I’m gonna find that conniving little bitch if it’s the last thing I do.
The flight attendant smiled at Gabe.
“I’ll show you to your seat, sir. Right this way. My name’s Catherine.”
“Thanks, Catherine.” He followed her to the front of the plane. Max had woken up a few minutes earlier and was now gurgling contentedly in his arms. The flight attendant thought: How cute to see such a hands-on dad. Most fathers would give the baby to the nanny for the whole flight and open a newspaper.
“Congratulations by the way, sir.”
Gabe looked blank.
“It was today, wasn’t it?”
“Oh! Yes. Thank you.” The wedding. It felt like a lifetime ago already.
“Mrs. McGregor’s not flying with us today?”
“No.” He didn’t elaborate. The flight attendant hoped she hadn’t inadvertently put her foot in it.
“Well, anyway. I hope you’ll both be very happy.”
Gabe didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
So do I, Catherine. So do I.
It was so dark Lexi could barely see her hand in front of her face. She heard the lapping of the waves. Holding her brother’s hand tightly, she inched along the dirt track toward the water.
“Danny!” Robbie hissed through the blackness. “You there?”
“Right here.”
Illuminated by a handheld gas lamp, a familiar face jumped out of the gloom. “Hey, Lex. Long time.”
“Oh my God. Danny French?” Lexi hugged him. “I don’t believe it.”
Lexi had known Daniel French since she was a little girl. They used to play together during summer vacations at Dark Harbor. Once, when Lexi was thirteen, they’d even kissed under the nets of his dad’s trawler. She hadn’t seen him in decades.
“Robbie told you?”
“He told me you were in trouble. That’s good enough for me. Hop aboard.”
Taking Lexi’s arm, Danny walked her to the rotting jetty at the end of the track and helped her onto a small fishing boat. There was a makeshift hiding place beneath some nets and tarpaulin. It reeked of fish. Lexi couldn’t have been more grateful if Danny had been showing her to her suite at the Ritz.
“Thank you.” Her voice was choked with emotion. She’d never done anything for Danny French to deserve this kind of loyalty. Danny should have been at my wedding, not a bunch of stupid senators. When will I learn?
“You’re welcome. I figured if anyone can work her way out of a jam, it’s Lexi. When this is all over and you’re stinking rich again, you can pay off my mortgage. Deal?”
Lexi grinned. “Deal.”
Danny started the boat’s engine.