Jamie Begley - Tainted

R.J. unlocked the bus and then waited for Sawyer to enter it first. She was up the first step when she knew she had made a terrible mistake leaving the hotel room. The light came on when R.J. flicked a switch.

Sawyer turned to escape, expecting R.J. to do the same. Instead, he blocked her, forcing her up the remaining two steps.

“Hello, Sawyer.”

Rick was sitting in the leather chair by the window with two other men she recognized from when she had been kidnapped. The two security guards were lying on the floor, unconscious with their hands and feet tied.

Rick got to his feet, his fake charm apparent in his sleazy smile. How she had missed it when he had asked her out, she didn’t understand.

He stepped in front of her, sliding his thumb down her cheek.

“You’ve led me a merry chase, Sawyer, but playtime is over. Morgan, bring the car around. We don’t want Kaden showing up accidently.” The man to Rick’s left brushed by her as he went out the door.

Rick pulled out an envelope, tossing it to R.J. as headlights shown from outside, glaring into the bus.

“Let’s move.” Rick took her by the arm and she tried to jerk away.

Rick shook her until her teeth almost rattled. “Do not fuck with me, Sawyer. You have been a pain in my ass for months. If your boyfriend barges in this time, I’ll kill him. Is that what you want?”

“N—n—n—no.”

“Then move your ass.” He threw her down the steps where Morgan caught her before she could fall. He held her tightly until Briggs slid into the backseat, pushing her in after him then sliding in himself, slamming the door closed.

Rick opened the driver’s door, getting in behind the steering wheel. “See, Sawyer, how well things work out when you do as you’re told? It’s a lesson you need to remember.”

Sawyer didn’t look out the window as the bus and R.J. disappeared from view.

R.J. was a snake that had betrayed not only her, but also his friends who’d trusted him. Sawyer wasn’t surprised by his duplicity; however, she feared that as long as R.J. stayed with the band, none of them were going to be safe.

* * *

“I think we’ve said all we need to say, Tatiana.”

“I’ve missed you, Kaden,” Tatiana’s soft voice whispered between them. “Are you sure we can’t start over? I’ve never stopped loving you.”

“Tatiana, I’m with someone else now.” Kaden’s voice didn’t soften

“When has that ever stopped you?” Kaden heard the bitterness in her voice.

“I need to get back to Sawyer. It was good to see you again. I should have called you and cleared the air a long time ago.” Regret glimmered momentarily in his eyes before they hardened once again.

Kaden went to the door, opening it. He left her no choice other than to follow him, immediately going for the other door to show her out of the suite.

“Goodbye, Kaden.” Tatiana paused in the doorway.

“Goodbye, Tatiana,” he said, closing the door behind her. Ax, Sin and D-mon all stared at him, waiting for his reaction.

“Where’s Sawyer?” he asked, searching the room for her.

“She went to the bus twenty minutes ago to get her clothes. R.J. took her,” Ax answered as he poured himself a glass of whiskey.

“Why not Alec?”

“We just assumed he had men outside; he always does,” D-mon answered.

“She should have been back by now,” Kaden said, becoming impatient.

“She’s probably taking a few minutes to herself. She seemed pretty upset,” Ax said, downing the whiskey in one swallow.

Reaching into his pocket, Kaden pulled out his cell phone. It began ringing before he could key in a number. He listened as R.J. yelled into the phone that Rick had been on the bus and taken Sawyer.

“Where’s Alec?” Kaden tried to remain calm.

“In his room.” He disconnected from R.J. quickly as he ran out the door, Sin, D-mon and Ax running out behind him.

“What’s going on?” Sin asked.

“Rick has Sawyer.” The elevator opened, and the men quickly filed in. Impatiently, Kaden pressed the ground floor.

“How the hell did he get her?” Ax asked.

“I don’t know, but I’m going to find out.” Kaden felt his heart in his throat. He hadn’t felt this way since he had heard about the airplane crash. He had to find Sawyer; anything else was not an option.

* * *

It was two hours later before Alec came back onto the bus with information. The band was sitting around the room tensely waiting. The two security guards had been taken to the hospital and treated for concussions.

Alec stood at the front of the bus. “Rick has her. We’re searching for her, but there isn’t a trace of her yet. I notified the FBI and they are doing what they can. It doesn’t look good, Kaden. Whoever Rick works for, they are experienced at making women disappear.”

“What if we offer him more money?” Kaden’s voice was hoarse.

“I don’t think it’s a matter of money. From what I understand, he wants both Sawyer and her friend as leverage against his competition, but I’ll make the call. How much do you want me to offer?”

“Whatever it takes.”

Alec nodded, turning to R.J. “Do you want to make the call or should I?”

“What’s that mean? Why would I want to contact him? He’s not exactly answering my calls since this whole mess started,” R.J.’s sarcastic voice held a tinge of fear.

“Don’t lie, R.J.” Alec pulled out his phone, tossing it to Kaden.

He caught it in his hand, seeing a video that had been recorded. Pressing play, Kaden watched as the two guards were led up the stairs with a gun on them. Rick’s men efficiently knocking them out while he sat and watched. Kaden’s hand tightened on the phone as he watched Sawyer and R.J. enter the bus then him block her escape. When he saw Rick toss the envelope, it was everything he could do to stand and watch the rest of the tape. R.J. watching as Rick shook Sawyer was the final straw; he lost what little reason he had left to remain in control. Lunging for R.J., he struck him with his fist, knocking him to the floor. Not stopping, Kaden kept hitting him until Ax and Sin managed to get him off their tour manager.

“I am going to kill you, R.J.,” Kaden threatened.

Alec helped R.J. to his feet before disgustedly releasing him.

“I had to; Rick was threatening to tell Briana how much debt we were in. Do you know how much money we’ve lost since you left? Do you even care?” R.J. yelled.

“No, I don’t. If Mouth2Mouth couldn’t pay your bills, then you should have moved on to another band, but you couldn’t, could you, R.J.? Everyone in the industry knows you can’t keep from interfering in their lives. The only reason we’ve let it go was because we felt we owed you. After the stunt with the women at the start of the tour, you knew this was your final tour with us. Sin already told you last week. You greedy bastard. You sold Sawyer out. What kind of bastard does that?” D-mon grabbed R.J.’s shirt.

Ax pressed his hand on D-mon’s chest, holding him back from hitting R.J.

“Stop it; this isn’t helping to get Sawyer back.” Kaden wrapped his hand around R.J.’s throat. “You better pray we get her back, because right now, I’m about to kill you. Alec, call Rick and try to negotiate a new deal. If he doesn’t take it, try something else. I don’t give a fuck what you have to say; get her back.”

Kaden loosened his hold enough for R.J. to breathe and then turned to the only person he felt stood a chance of finding Sawyer with his connections. “I want this sack of shit off this bus and out of our lives, but first, I want the tapes he’s held over my head for five years. Can you do that?”

“Yes, Kaden.” Alec motioned two of his men who were waiting by the bus door to take R.J. away. “That I can do.”

* * *

Sawyer saw the familiar scenery passing by, and her heart leapt for a second in joy until she realized there would be no happy reunion between her and Vida. She hadn’t expected them to bring her back to Queen City. Somehow, she had thought that they would have killed her off or passed her along to another client by now.

Driving through town brought tears to her eyes. She would never have believed it possible, but she had been homesick for this city that she had tried for years to escape.

The car pulled into a garage that she was familiar with, yet had never been inside. It was a local recording studio. The car stopped and Morgan got out taking her arm. No one was around as Briggs came to her other side and then both men ushered her inside to an elevator.

As they waited for the elevator, Sawyer looked outside the windows.

“It won’t do you any good. They’re bullet proof and the door is controlled by security. No one gets in or out without being buzzed in.” They had their illegal system down so there wasn’t a chance of escape.

Sawyer stepped into the elevator when it opened, both men by her side. Briggs pushed the button and the elevator moved upwards. When they reached the top floor, they guided her to a private office where Briggs rapped on the door before opening it.

She recognized the man looking out the window as he turned toward the door when it opened. He had become known throughout her neighborhood and the seedier side of Queen City. His name was Digger, and most people in Queen City were afraid of him. The only one in town who had been able to keep Digger under some control was King, although he had been trying to steal King’s power the last couple of years.

“I see that you finally were able to accomplish what you set out to do.” His face was unexpectedly handsome, but there was a cruel twist to his mouth. Sawyer shivered when he looked her over as if she was less than human to him.

“Sawyer, have a seat.” Briggs pushed her toward the chair in front of Digger’s desk. Shakily, she took a seat.

“Now, you’re going to be a smart woman and listen to me before you open your mouth. You have some information I want. You can tell me what I need to know and I’ll see to it that you can walk out that front door. Don’t tell me what I want to know and they’ll carry you out the back.”

Sawyer twisted her hands together in her lap.

“Do you understand what I’m telling you?”

Sawyer knew she couldn’t answer him without stuttering so she nodded her head.

“Good.” Digger took a seat behind the large desk. “How well do you know King?”

“I—I don’t,” Sawyer spoke truthfully. She could tell by the look on his face he didn’t believe her. “I s—s—s—saw him when I w—w—was a kid at my apartment building.” Sawyer sucked in deep breaths, determined to get herself back under control. Relaxing her shoulders, she waited for his next question.

“Then why, when you were kids, did he extend his protection to cover you and Vida?”

“He extended it to Callie, Vida and me.” Sawyer was proud of herself for managing to get out a sentence without stammering.

“Callie?”

“She was another girl from our complex.” Sawyer saw no reason not to tell him. Callie was the only one beyond his reach.

“Why am I just now hearing about her?”

“Probably because she’s dead,” Sawyer said sarcastically. “She died when she was eight.”

“Her mother and father?”

“Her mother died the same day and no one knew who her father was.”

“Could it have been King?”

Sawyer could see that he thought he was getting somewhere. She took perverse pleasure in bursting his bubble. “No.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Brenda was not only a whore, but a slut. You know King; what do you think?”

Everyone in town knew that King didn’t touch whores. He liked to sell their services, but he kept his pleasure away from business. When King played, he liked to pick women who were from upper society that felt they were getting a thrill by fucking someone of King’s caliber. He got exhilarated by dragging them down to his level.

“Why did King extend his protection to you and your friends then?” Digger asked, leaning back in his expensive chair.

“I honestly don’t know. I’ve thought about if off and on for years and couldn’t figure it out.” The ring of truth and confusion sounded in her voice.

“I see.” Digger motioned to Briggs who was standing behind her. His hands circled her throat, squeezing tightly. Her hands went to his, trying to break his hold as she fought, trying to get away.

When she thought she was going to pass out, she heard Digger’s voice through the buzzing in her ears. “That’s enough.”