BLAKE: Captive to the Dark (29 page)

Chapter 21

Blake

Devastated didn’t even begin to describe the way I felt as I sat outside the empty house for the fifth day in a row. Where was my slave? Where was Harvey? Getting back into Dark Dave’s had been impossible after the first night. No one would speak to me. Melissa had disappeared and all Preston and I had left to rely on was a large, empty house in a rich fucking neighborhood.

We’d scaled the walls. Deactivated the alarm. Look
ed through the mansion from top to bottom. Nothing but expensive artwork, sculptures, and a dungeon full of dark toys stood out in the furnished place. The man didn’t even have a skeleton crew keeping up the cleaning. The dust was thick, but only a few months’ worth. Maybe he’d be back. Maybe I was just grasping at straws.

Smoke billowed out from the car as
Preston exhaled his cigarette. The cool breeze blew through keeping me clear from the smoke and I was thankful. Since we’d started staking out the house, Pretty Boy hadn’t stopped smoking. Said it was a nervous tick. I knew the truth. He couldn’t stand to sit still for long. His devotion to Kaitlyn was the only thing keeping him here with me.

“Coffee,” he groaned. “We’ve been up all night. It’s damn near noon. I’m starving and I can’t keep my eyes open.”

I tossed my bag of powdered donuts in his direction and he sighed and placed them in on the console. A frown came to my face. I knew he wanted real food. Hell, so did I, but I couldn’t miss my chance at Harvey coming home. “You can go if you want, but I’m not leaving. I can’t.”

Preston
tossed the butt of the cigarette out and rubbed his eyes. “We have to get some sleep, Blake. I know you’re afraid you’re going to lose your chance at finding her, but no one’s here. No one is going to be coming back. This is a lost cause. We need to go eat, rest, and come up with a new plan. We’re wasting time here.”

Maybe he was right. I just couldn’t stand the thought of leaving. “
We should chance questioning the neighbors.” I looked down the hill at the houses that rested on both sides of Harvey’s. Even up here felt like too far away, but the height gave us view down the sloped road. 

“And ask them what?”

“When he was last here,” I snapped. “Come on, Preston. We have to do something. He’s still in the city. He has to be.”

“Why don’t you just man up and call the number? You have it, just
hit dial.”

My eyes cut over to him. “
If I did that, it could kill Kaitlyn. He’d know I have personal information. He might do something rash. We can’t afford for that to happen.” I had tried his other number a million times. Nothing. It no longer worked.

Preston
let out a groan and pulled the handle, reclining his seat. “I’m taking a nap. Wake me up if anything happens.” The shades he had sitting on the top of his head, lowered, covering his eyes.  I kept quiet as I watched random cars go up and down the road. None of them turned into Harvey’s or his neighbors.

Hours went by and
Preston snored lightly from the driver’s seat. My eyes rolled as I fought sleep myself. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d gotten more than a few hours at a time. I couldn’t. Not with Kaitlyn missing. Was she even still in this country? I wasn’t so sure.  The thought was downright terrifying.

My head fell back into the headrest
as I tried to stay away. Darkness faded in and out and it took a few seconds for the sight of a limo to force me awake. My hand slapped into Preston’s shoulder as I rubbed one eye and watched it pull into Harvey’s gate.

“What the fuck?”
Preston tried turning in his seat, still half asleep, but the steering wheel stopped the advance.

“Wake up.
Harvey just pulled in.”

Preston
jumped up so fast the glasses fell down his face. He threw them off and leaned forward, staring a few seconds before he turned to me. “What do we do now?” He looked at his watch and I did the same. It was a little after six. The sun would still be up another half hour, at least.

“Now, we
can go get coffee and food. He’s not going anywhere for a while. The moment it gets dark, we’re in.”

A smile came to
Preston’s face. “Now this, sounds like a plan.”

The Maserati came to life around us and I pulled the buckle on. My adrenaline was like a drug, feeding me the ultimate high.
Harvey was home, or at least someone that could tell me where to find him. I’d take it. Anything to get me a step closer to Kaitlyn.

Three blocks away
, Preston pulled into the same café I’d met him at. I looked over, shaking my head. “How are we so close to everything?” My hotel was two blocks the other way. It was too bizarre that I’d chosen the place I had.

“Stop thinking so much. Coffee.”

I nodded, climbing out. I needed caffeine like I needed my girl back. Without it, I wouldn’t have my head in the game. I was too tired. Too worn out.

As we sat down and ordered, I chugged as much as I could. The turkey sandwich and fries disappeared in record time. All I could think about was getting back. I’d come here for what I needed. The sun was starting to set, now I was ready to go.

Preston yawned and took another drink. “I think I’m going to sleep a week after this is over with. I’m seriously getting old. Can’t hang like I used to.”

I laughed. “What are you, like twenty-five?”

He didn’t look amused. “Twenty-nine, and thanks for the compliment. Now, let’s go before we start at each other’s throats again. I’ve had about enough of you as I can handle.”

“That makes two of us,” I said, standing.

And it was the truth. We fought about everything either of us said. Yet, I knew somehow that through the fighting, we’d bonded. Preston was all right in my book. A pain in the ass, but a good guy. The stories he’d told me about Kaitlyn made me look at him in a new light. He’d protected her a lot from sleazebags that were just out to try to get with her because of who she was. Also didn’t mind filling me in on the abusive ex-boyfriend I knew nothing about. That shitbag would be seeing me at some point.

Before I knew it
, we were parked back in our spot on the top of the hill. Minutes flew by while I strapped on my chest holster and put on my duty belt. It held everything I needed from ammo, to my knife, to an extra gun, a flashlight. Even a pair of handcuffs.

Preston
’s eyes got big as he leaned forward and stared at my waist. “Where’s mine?”

“You don’t get one.” I reached in the bag, handing him a ten inch blade and a twin to my Glock. “These are yours. That’s all you get. You do know how to use a gun, right?”

“Of course.”

I nodded and faced forward, focusing on the house. My breaths were coming too fast. I needed to get in the zone and calm. Kaitlyn needed me. Whether she was in there or not,
she was still relying on me to find her. And I would. If it was the last thing I ever did.

The next hour dragged on
endlessly, but I knew when it was the right time. I felt it all the way in my bones. The killer surfaced and hate resonated from every pore. The man who took Kaitlyn was only a short distance away and I’d kill him before the night was over. He’d tell me where my slave was.

“Let’s go.” I opened the door, looking around. Lights lit up some of the houses. Most
of the inhabitants were too lost in their own worlds to recognize anything out of the ordinary. A Maserati blended into their neighborhood just like another carefully pruned shrub sitting in their yard.

My head motioned for
Preston and we crossed the street, keeping close to the gates that guarded the houses. The first was white iron. We headed down the hill and came up to the mansion just before Harvey. The black iron was identical to the previous, but as we approached the rock wall of the blackmailer’s, I’d already gotten to experience the difficulties his provided. The barrier wasn’t just for looks. He was hell bent on keeping someone out and the wall did just that. If it weren’t for Preston, I would have had a hell of a time.

“Absolute silence,” I whispered.  I lowered, bracing my legs and cupping my hands together. With a hard push,
Preston gripped to the top and pulled himself up. I had to admit, he was damn good at this breaking-in thing. I was actually impressed.

As he laid on his stomach and reached his hand down, I took
a good look around. The neighborhood was so quiet. Not even a dog barked in the distance. I reached up and jumped, using my feet to help as I pulled myself up the rest of the way. Movement by the front door had me pausing. From the build of the guy who was smoking, I knew it had to be one of the men who took Kaitlyn. My blood boiled as I sized him up. Six feet. Maybe two inches taller. His shoulders were incredibly thick, but it wouldn’t pose a problem. He’d get his, but we needed to get off this wall, and fast.

The large shrubs aligning the house w
ere our best bet. The only cover we’d get if I wanted to sneak up on him and slice open his fucking throat.

I pointed further down the wall and motioned
for Preston to go. He stayed low as we made our way around to the side of the house. The foot of space we crouched on didn’t give us much room to move. One slip and we’d go crashing to the ground.

“Behind those bushes,” I whispered. “I’ll take
care of the bastard by the front door.”

Preston
nodded. I gripped to the sides of the wall, easing myself down. The extra two feet I dropped was made in silence. Perfect. Preston lowered and I made sure his was just as smooth. From the look he threw me, he didn’t appreciate my help. I could care less. Nothing was ruining my chances of getting inside.

Crossing the driveway and hiding in the shrubs was the worst possible idea there ever was. I was too big. Too thick
ly built to even move, more or less, do it quietly. This wasn’t going to work.

Preston
was completely exposed and I pushed out to join him along the side of the house. “Let’s head to the back. We’ll go in through the back door like last time.” I barely heard the words I spoke, but Pretty Boy nodded. We’d just have to worry about the guy at the door later. I wanted to get to Harvey. To see if he was even here. From his driver’s license picture, I knew what he looked like. It shouldn’t have surprised me that he was the one following us around the store. He had made it sound like he had hired someone to watch her, but it had been him. The motherfucker had been so close and had escaped my grasp.

Again
, the anger flared. Lights flooded the outside of the house and Preston froze. Not me. I grabbed his arm and burst into a full sprint until we reached the back entrance. It was still unlocked which told me the men hadn’t checked the house when they’d arrived. Had they noticed the alarm wasn’t activated? It didn’t seem right. They had to have been too preoccupied, but why?

I shut the door quietly behind m
e. The sound of Harvey’s voice drew me closer through the opened kitchen. I was a walking target with no cover whatsoever, yet I couldn’t stand not being able to see him, or what he was doing.

“It was so cute, really. You all huddled there. Holding to each other while you tried to calm their fears. Let’s start it over, shall we? I want to watch you tell each one of them, again, how you and your precious Blake were going to find them and save them.”

“No.” Kaitlyn’s shaking voice numbed my body with adrenaline. She was here. She was just within my grasp.

“Well, okay, then let
’s watch the part where I pulled them from the room and tortured them.”

“No! No.” Sobbing grew louder and
Preston’s hand jerked me back. My eyes cut to him and his arm slowly let go. The fear that flashed across his face didn’t even register until I realized I had my knife pressing into his chest. I took a deep breath and dropped my hand.

A laugh had me facing the front, to the wall that was obstructing my view.

“You don’t want to watch them beg for their lives? Come on, slave. That’s the best part. Here, watch.” There was a pause. “Look, there they go, walking out so proudly, as if they’re ready to face everything head on. And, here.” He got quiet again. “Then, BAM! I start slicing them to pieces. Look at all the blood, Kaitlyn. I spilt that for you. Don’t you like it?”

“Fuck you. Fuck you! I’ll kill you. I’
ll fucking—” The sound of a fist connecting with flesh had me fighting against Preston’s hold.

“Don’t do it, Blake. You don’t know if there’s anyone with a gun in there. You can’t help her if you’re dead. Now, let’s find cover. We can’t get caught out here.”

He was right and I hated it. I nodded and eased to the entrance of the kitchen we were standing in. Kaitlyn’s screams were more of a growl. I peeked out of the entrance and headed down a hall. The opening ahead led to what I knew was the living room. That’s where they had my girl. If I could glance in for just a moment, I’d know what I was working with. Preston’s hand tapped me and he pointed behind us, to the staircase, then he motioned above. The loft. That’s right. I nodded as we kept low and pushed back.

The sound of a door shutting had us moving up the stairs even faster. Shit.
Preston immediately lowered as we broke into the loft area. I eased my way up beside him and stared between the wooden posts of the banister. From this high, I had perfect view of the scene below. The man who’d been smoking walked further into the room, only to come to a stop at another’s side. Four men total. Harvey, the two bastards who took my slave, and a man wearing a suit who I could only assume was the driver of the limo. What the hell were they all doing? The large big screen on the wall caught my attention and it was paused, displaying a room that was covered in blood. A girl lay on a table and Harvey was smiling, looking off to the side. At someone? Probably. Sick fucks. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on them.