Flawless Danger (The Spencer & Sione #1) (44 page)

Ben Chang.

The men were shouting at each other and over each other, neither allowing the other a word in edgewise. The voices grew louder, desperate words in a language he’d heard before but wasn’t able to make sense of.

Sione cursed under his breath. Bermudez and Ben were speaking Jamaican patois. He understood Jamaican patois just as well as he understood island pidgin which was not at all. Couldn’t make out a damn word. Couldn’t even pick up the context of their conversation. For all he knew, they could have been discussing the price of tea in China.

Hearing Ben’s voice conjured up a host of emotions. Hatred … because of what happened between Ben and Moana. Jealousy … Ben’s relationship with Richard bothered him in ways he didn’t want to admit. There was an envy Sione was reluctant to acknowledge. Richard was the father Ben had always wanted, but for Sione, Richard was the father who’d failed him.

Sione wondered what life might have been like if he and Ben had stayed close. He and Ben would never be friends again, but they would always be connected. Richard was the tie that bound them together, and the tie was wound so tight, it was almost impossible to sever.

Cursing himself, Sione took a deep breath. What the hell was his problem? Why the hell was he still standing there when he should have been confronting Ben about having Spencer kidnapped, choking the truth from the son of a bitch?

Yanking the bedroom door open wider, Sione crossed the threshold and headed into the hall. He could tell Ben was pissed about something. Bermudez sounded contrite and conciliatory. Anxious to wrap his hands around Ben’s throat, Sione walked around the corner and into the living room.

Abruptly, Sione stopped, confused.

Alone in the living room, Bermudez sat on the couch staring at something on the coffee table in front of him.

Ben was still yelling, still spewing rapid-fire Patois, and yet he wasn’t in the living room. Not physically, Sione realized, his gaze drawn to the small object on the coffee table.

A cell phone.
 

Bermudez was talking to Ben on a cell phone, and obviously had him on ‘Speaker’. His voice barely above a whisper, Bermudez responded to Ben’s terse demands. Unfocused, not sure what to do, Sione listened as Ben wrapped up his tirade. Bermudez stabbed a finger against the screen, ending the call.

Consumed with rage and disappointment, Sione stalked over to Bermudez and grabbed the cell phone. “Call Ben back,” he demanded. “Get him on the phone now!”

Cowering, startled and confused, Bermudez said, “I can’t. I don’t know his number, he don’t—”

Sione slammed the cell phone against Bermudez’s ear. The man screamed, and tried to scramble off the couch, but Sione grabbed him around the throat, squeezing his trachea. Twitching and gasping, Bermudez struggled, digging his heels into the large area rug, trying to claw at Sione’s hand. Sione tightened his hold around Bermudez’s throat, pinning him back against the couch cushion.

“Stop struggling,” Sione said. “You’re only making it worse.”

Bermudez continued to wiggle, trying in vain to move Sione’s hand.

“I’m going to move my hand a bit so you can breathe.” Sione yanked Bermudez forward. “And then you are going to answer my questions, but if you try anything, I will break your neck. Do you understand me?”

Bermudez nodded, and Sione removed his hand. Coughing, Bermudez rubbed his throat, glaring at Sione.

Sione crossed his arms and stared at the sweat-soaked son of a bitch. “What the hell happened to Spencer?”

Bermudez coughed again and then said, “Tommy Fong took her.”

“Who the hell is Tommy Fong?” Sione asked, frustrated.

“Triad enforcer,” Bermudez said. “Bastard got a green snake tattoo on his face. Been beefing with Ben for a long time.”

“So Fong took Spencer because of some beef he has with Ben?” Sione asked.

Dark eyes cold, Bermudez stared at him. “No, he took her because Richard told him to.”

“
Richard
told Fong to take Spencer?” Sione glared at Bermudez. “You’re lying. That’s not true.”

“It is true,” Bermudez said. “Richard told Fong to kidnap Ms. Edwards.”

“Why?” Sione asked, struggling to focus, feeling like he’d been kicked in the head.

“Your father wanted to teach Mr. Chang a lesson.”

“What kind of lesson?”

“Richard don’t like to be disobeyed,” Bermudez said. “There is consequences for disobedience. That’s why Richard told Fong to take Ms. Edwards.”

“How the hell is kidnapping Spencer a consequence for Ben’s disobedience?”

“You know what happens when you disobey Richard,” Bermudez said. “He hurts the people you care about. That way, you learn not to go against him. You learn to do what he tell you to do.”

“Why the hell would Ben care about Spencer?” Sione demanded.

Bermudez glanced up at him. “What makes you think Mr. Chang don’t care about her?”

“He doesn’t even know her,” Sione said.

“You sure about that?”

Sione stared at Bermudez, confused and apprehensive. Spencer had told him she didn’t know Ben was the payday loan business owner who forced her to come to Belize and deliver money and fake passports. Maybe that wasn’t true. Maybe Spencer did know Ben and what he was involved in. Maybe she was an active and willing participant.

The question was, did he really want to know for sure? And if Spencer had lied to him, would he care? Should he care? Bermudez had invoked suspicions Sione didn’t want to deal with, suspicions he didn’t want confirmed. He could live with suspicions, though.

But could he live with truth?

The truth could get in the way of what he wanted, hinder his chance to have something real and lasting with Spencer. But if the truth was that she’d lied to him about knowing Ben Chang, then …

Then …
what?

How could he be angry with Spencer for lying to him when he was lying to her? He hadn’t been honest about his own connection to Ben Chang. How could he be hypocritical and demand full disclosure from her?

Sione glared at Bermudez. “What were you and Ben talking about?”

A wet, sputtering cough escaped Bermudez’s lips, and then he said, “He wanted to know where Ms. Edwards was. I told him Fong took her. He asked me where Fong was, and I told him.”

“You told Ben where to find Spencer?” Sione asked. “Why the hell would you do that? If Ben hurts her, I’m going to kill him, and then I’m going to kill you.”

Flinching, Bermudez shook his head. “He ain’t gonna hurt her.”

“How the hell do you know that?”

“Because Ms. Edwards got something that Mr. Chang wants.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t know what it is,” Bermudez said. “But he sent her here to get it for him.”

“Ben sent her to Belize to deliver money and fake passports to three women,” Sione said. “And all three of those women ended up dead.”

“Mr. Chang ain’t killed them.”

A strange jolt passed through Sione. Bermudez wasn’t lying. Ben Chang hadn’t killed Carla Garcia, Maxine Porter, and Karen Nelson. Moana had fired the fatal bullets. Then Sione had killed Moana—maybe.

“Mr. Chang ain’t gonna kill Ms. Edwards,” Bermudez insisted. “She got something he needs.”

“Well, since you know where Tommy Fong is staying,” Sione said and then grabbed Bermudez by the throat and yanked him off the couch, “you’re going to take me to him.”

Cursing, Bermudez tried to pry Sione’s hand away, gagging and tripping over his feet as Sione forced him toward the door. Sione grabbed the knob with his left hand and opened the door. Sliding his hand to the back of Bermudez’s neck, he forced the man over the threshold, onto the concrete porch, and then down the three steps. Beyond the corrugated awning covering the porch, the sun was bright, harsh, and hot.

Sione guided Bermudez toward the fence, and they walked along the waist-high chain-link separating the yard from the tangle of trees and bushes on the opposite side.
 

They were yards from the paved road in front of the property when an SUV turned into the gravel-and-grass driveway. The vehicle stopped a few feet away. Squinting, Sione shielded his eyes from the glare of sunlight off the windshield of the SUV.

Seconds later, the driver’s door of the SUV opened. D.J. got out and then stalked toward him, scowling, churning up gravel and dust with each long, determined stride.

“What the hell?” D.J. demanded. “What are you doing?”

“A guy named Tommy Fong took Spencer,” Sione said, keeping his hold on Bermudez. “This asshole knows where Fong is staying, and—”

“Why didn’t you call me?” D.J. asked. “When I left you last night, we agreed that—”

Sione said, “I know what we agreed to, but—”

“If I hadn’t decided to call Jared and come over here to see what the hell was going on,” D.J. said, “then you would have gone off without me, on your own, with no backup, or—”

“I don’t have time to argue with you,” Sione said. “I need to get to Spencer.”

The passenger door slammed. Sione glanced toward the SUV. Jared walked around the front of the SUV, toward Sione and D.J. “Somebody want to tell me what the hell is going on?”

“I know where Spencer is, and I need to get to her,” Sione told Jared. “Ben is already on his way there.”

“Ben?” Jared stared at Sione. “Ben Chang? What the hell does he have to do with all this?”

Sione shook his head. “I don’t have time to explain.”

Jared said, “You better make time.”

“After I get Spencer back,” Sione said.

“You can’t go up against Ben by yourself,” D.J. said.

“I’m not afraid of Ben Chang,” Sione said.

“I know you’re not,” D.J. said. “But you’re not thinking straight. And I don’t want you to let these misguided feelings for Ms. Edwards make you do something stupid, like kill Ben Chang.”

“If you insist on running off to rescue Ms. Edwards,” Jared said, “then we’re coming with you.”

San Ignacio, Belize

Location Unknown

“Sweet girl …” The whispered voice terrified Spencer, the sound sinking into her, leaving her confused and unable to move. “Wake up …”

Spencer ignored the light taps against her cheek. She prayed the nightmare would be over soon and her dreams of John would return. John was the only man she wanted. The man she’d always wanted. She just hadn’t known it.

Spencer hadn’t allowed herself to believe she deserved someone like John. A man willing to love her despite her flaws and faults. A man who accepted and understood that she made mistakes but wouldn’t hold them against her or punish her because she wasn’t perfect. Keeping her eyes shut, Spencer prayed that when she opened them John would be there, gazing at her with those beautiful hazel eyes.

She needed John to be there. She wanted to tell him how she felt about him. She needed so badly to tell him—

“Sweet girl!” The voice was forceful, commanding. “You have to get up!”

Angry, her hopes dashed, Spencer opened her eyes. A sob escaped, but she bit her lip and rubbed her eyes, refusing to cry. Ben sat beside her on the edge of the mattress.

“What are you doing here?”

“Doing for you what you refused to do for me, sweet girl.” He pulled her to a sitting position. “I’m saving your life. I’m not leaving you to die.”

“How did you find me?” Spencer asked. “How did you know I was here?”

“That doesn’t matter,” he said and then grabbed her hands and held them up.

“What are you doing?”

Instead of answering her, Ben held up a knife and sliced the rope Fong had tied her with. Seconds later, he slit the rope that held her ankles, and she was free of the restraints.

“Come on.” Ben grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet.

“Why did you trick me?” Spencer yanked her hand from his firm grasp, terror and rage dueling within her, fighting to dominate her emotions. “Why did you make me think you were going to be at that house?”

Ben sighed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, but—”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about!” she said. “You sent me a note telling me to meet you, but when I got to the house, you weren’t there! It was that crazy asshole Tommy Fong!”

“I don’t know anything about some note Fong sent you,” Ben said, dismissive. “Tell me where the envelope is.”

Backing away from him, she said, “The envelope?”

“Sweet girl.” Frowning, Ben took a step toward her. “I need that envelope. You sent me several texts saying that you had found the envelope and you wanted to meet so we could make an exchange.”

“Tommy Fong almost killed me and all you care about is that damn envelope?”

Ben frowned at her. “The envelope is not all I care about. But you were supposed to find that envelope, which you did, so now I—”

“Where have you been?” Spencer stared up at him, confused and furious. “Why didn’t you return any of my texts? I didn’t know what had happened to you. I didn’t know if you were alive or dead!”

“Is that a bit of concern in your tone, sweet girl?” Ben asked, an amused smirk playing at the corner of his mouth. “Were you worried about me?”

Spencer looked away, not sure what to think or say, still groggy and disoriented. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, wishing it wasn’t so damn hot and muggy. Her hair hung around her shoulders, the strands limp and damp. Sweat rolled from her neck, down her back, and between her breasts.

“No, I didn’t think so,” Ben said. “If you were worried about anything, it was getting your hands on that video.”

“I don’t know where the envelope is,” Spencer said, looking away, not in the mood to feel condemned for wanting to avoid prison or guilty about the things she’d done to stay out of jail.

“What do you mean you don’t know?” Ben glared at her. “Your messages said that you found the envelope and—”

“I did find it,” she said, rubbing her eyes, trying to get her bearings. “When I got that fake message from Tommy Fong, I put the envelope in my purse. But I don’t know where my purse is. ”

“Why don’t you know—”

“When I got to the house Fong told me to come to,” Spencer said, “he attacked me, and all I could think was I had to get out of there. I think I accidentally dropped my purse. I wasn’t thinking about anything except getting away from Fong before he killed me.”