Authors: Elle Jefferson
“Well,” he said.
Claudia shook her head no first then me.
A million things ran through my head but the only logical reason for us to be here was our fathers. An FBI agent and a lawyer left a list of haters a mile long. What niggled at me was the idea this might have to do with the article Claudia had shown me and the paternity papers I’d seen in my dad’s office.
“I’ve had the face, enhanced, but eh small price to pay for freedom.” He took another puff of his cigar and stared at me like I knew what in the hell he was talking about.
A door opened somewhere behind me.
Footsteps.
A short stocky man, not gimpy, with more hair on his face than head walked between Claudia and me over to the man sitting in the swivel chair. He leaned down, whispered in his ear then handed him a piece of paper before standing up. Boss man was smiling again.
Shit.
Suit leaned forward, the chair squeaking as he did, and rested his elbows on his knees. He let the smoke waft out his mouth as he continued to talk, “The name’s Joey,” his gaze rested on Claudia, “Joey Vargas, you recognize that?”
That name sounded familiar to me. I wracked my brain trying to remember where I’d heard or seen it. He took another couple of puffs from his cigar while his free hand tapped out a rhythm on the desk top. He seemed in no rush to explain his presence or why we should know his name.
Joey continued to smoke, tap and stare, while I continued further down the rabbit hole. A few more puffs and then he set the cigar down on the edge of the desk and leaned forward.
He steepled his hands, “I’m not big on this one-sided conversation thing,” he paused, “if I removed the tape, you two promise not to do anything stupid?”
Claudia nodded first. I followed suit.
“Okay, then,” he said and snapped his fingers.
Stocky short guy stopped between Claudia and me.
“These two have agreed.”
Joey took another puff, while stocky pulled off my duct tape. I didn’t scream but my go to word, “Shit,” rushed to my lips.
Joey laughed.
Beyond us I heard nothing. No cars, planes, voices, traffic, dogs––nothing. I could have screamed for hours and nobody would hear me. Meaning Joey had zero to worry about. It’s funny, all the times I’d thought about how I might die, this scenario never came to mind. Joey got up and started pacing, probably trying to decide which one of us would die first.
Shit.
“Mister Vargas, a word,” came a third voice from behind me.
“Excuse me,” Joey said and walked out of the room followed by the short stocky guy.
Once the door closed, “You okay?” Claudia and I asked at the same time.
“Jinx,” I said.
“No contest, it’s obvious, we both are,” Claudia responded.
The ridiculousness of our situation wasn’t lost on me. What can I say it was too much and I started laughing. I’d cracked.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Claudia asked, “We have to figure a way out of here and fast.”
I laughed harder, twisted my hands to show they were stuck in place. “How,” I said, “do you suggest we do that,” then continued laughing. “There’s only one way in or out. Like literally only one way and going out that way guarantees to get us killed.”
“You’re not helping,” Claudia said her voice cold as ice.
The door opened and Joey’s voice carried in, “Sorry about that …” Claudia faced forward again, “… a man’s work is never done. Let that be a lesson to you,” he said pointing at me. His serious face sobered me and stifled my laughing. He stopped in front of the desk and placed a glass, along with two cell phones down. One was mine the other I assumed was Claudia’s. Joey clapped his hands together and tapped the tips of his fingers together.
“Who’s first? Eenie, meenie, miney––“
“Shit,” I blurted out.
“You,” he finished pointing at me, “you go first … smile,” he said and snapped a picture of me with my phone.
“Now you,” he said and snapped a picture of Claudia. “Perfect. Now the fun begins.”
How did Claudia manage to look so cool and nonplussed, while I was sweating bullets and about two-seconds from total meltdown? Seriously, sweat was running down my back and sides.
Deep breath. “Since you’re planning to kill me anyway can you tell me why at least?”
Joey shook his head as if he thought it a reasonable question. “Simple. Your mother,” he sighed, “my sister.”
And that small statement cleared up everything. Not.
Joey took a long puff. After he finished blowing out the last bit of smoke he said, “You don’t know what I’m talking about do you?”
The way the smoke seeped from his mouth reminded me of the charger. He put his cigar down into an ashtray on the edge of the metal desk. All I kept thinking about was that paternity document I’d seen among my dad’s paperwork. Joey leaned on the edge of the desk, “My sister died because of her poor choice in men. Three, I tell you, three men claimed to love her. The first knocked her up, the second left her out to dry and the third killed her. Neither of the first two did a damn thing either, they just sat on their asses and watched leaving me with a dead sister and awful mess to clean up.”
Joey studied our faces his lip curled in disgust. My mother didn’t have a brother only a sister Aunt Molly and they weren’t close. He had to be talking about Claudia’s mom.
“So what’s next,” Claudia asked breaking the tense silence.
Damn I needed to control my voice like her. Keep it all cool and calm. How did she do it?
“I like your spirit, but don’t try my patience.” Ice clinked as he swished his glass. They stared each other down and I was surprised to see Joey look away first.
The Batman theme started to play and Joey arched a brow, “Interesting.” He looked down at my phone, “Speak of the devil, idolize daddy much?” He rolled his eyes, “Cheaters aren’t to be admired. I assure you your daddy is no hero. If not for him you wouldn’t be in this mess. Keep that in mind,” he said tapping his temple. Claudia’s phone started to vibrate.
Joey clapped his hands together, “Party invitations were received, cheers,” he said and drained his glass. “If you’ll excuse me, you two don’t go anywhere.”
He squeezed my shoulder hard and left the room taking our phones with.
Turning to look at Claudia, I said, “This is the most ridiculous of all ridiculousness ever anywhere.”
“That explains it,” she said back.
Claudia chewed her cheek, “The story about us, the hit and run, it wasn’t an accident … we have to get out of here.”
Again I demonstrated our situation by trying to move my arms and legs, “What do you suggest?”
Claudia sighed, “Fine.” She leaned forward, her mouth covering her wrist and the zip tie.
“What are you doing?”
She stopped and looked at me, “Trying to get the hell out of here.”
To my surprise her arm came free. Within minutes both her arms were free. She stood up lifting the front legs of her chair up and wiggled her feet down and her ankles were free.
She stretched.
“Holy shit, how’d you do that?” I couldn’t keep the awe from my voice. She rummaged through the desk drawers ignoring me and when she turned back towards me she was holding a screwdriver. She came over to me, slid the screwdriver between my wrist and the zip tie and twisted. It dug into my skin and hurt like hell but when it snapped I was free. She moved to the next one silently, while I flexed my arm. Apparently, having an FBI agent for a father taught you a thing or two. I jumped up when my legs were free.
“Seriously, are you like a super ninja, or Wonder Woman or something?”
“Shut-up,” Claudia hissed.
She was back digging through the drawers of the desk. I ran over to the door and put my ear to it.
No voices on the other side. “I don’t hear anyone,” I whispered.
“Good,” she whispered back sliding up behind me and brushing against my back.
I jumped, “Dammit, you need to get a bell or something.”
“Sorry, I forgot,” she handed me the screwdriver.
“What’s this for?”
“It’s better than nothing and you can use it as a knife if you need to, if you can thrust hard enough that is.”
I took the screwdriver, “Who are you?”
She put her ear up to the door for a minute then pulled away. “Now or never.”
We both took a deep breath as she opened the door. I expected to see a bunch of guys with guns on the other side. I also expected it to look like the innards of an old abandoned textile warehouse left to the rats and spiders.
That’s not what I saw. No. On the other side of the door there weren’t any guys or innards but a decadent kitchen. Marble and stainless steel everywhere.
But no windows.
Shit.
Claudia looked as surprised as me. No one was in the kitchen. Claudia rushed out into the kitchen and started going through drawers. I followed suit trying to make as little noise as possible.
“Where do you think we are?”
Claudia shrugged.
“Maybe we could hide somewhere?”
“Where would you suggest? The fridge?” She continued digging around, “Make yourself useful and look for a phone.”
Lets see. Counter. Stove. Fridge. Microwave. Pantry and more counter. No hand sized appliances, and no phone. Near another doorway on the opposite side of the room voices carried, arguing. Somebody screwed up. Two guys were in trouble. Silence.
Damn I wished my heart would shut-up. It was beating so hard and loud it would give me away.
“He’s coming back,” I whispered, turning back around to see Claudia clutching a mallet. I wanted to sit down. Needed to sit down before I fell down.
Claudia clasped my sweaty palm, “It’s okay we’re together and it’s okay.” Her voice was soothing but it didn’t calm me.
“Great, I won’t die alone.”
“Exactly,” she said and gave me a half-hearted smile. Either she didn’t get sarcasm or I didn’t.
“What do we do now?”
“Wait. The next person who comes in here we knockout with this,” she held up the mallet, “and then run.”
I sidled up behind her near the door. “What do you think Joey’s plan is?” I whispered.
“Lure our fathers here then kill them along with us.”
“Awesome.” The silence made me more nervous than noise did. I had to keep the silence away. “Was he talking about your mother?”
Her hand flew to my mouth squeezing my lips between her fingers, “Shh.” She added another shush for good measure before letting go of my mouth.
I slumped back, “Sorry,” I whispered so low I didn’t even hear me.
Footsteps. Getting closer. Shit.
If by some miracle I lived through this I’d …
A guy in this thirties got two steps through the doorway before CLaudia gave him the one-two she’d given me weeks ago. Jackass didn’t even see it coming and crumpled to the floor where she added another kick for good measure. She leaned down and pulled a gun off him.
Crazy ass ninja.
“Drag him into the other room.”
While I dragged fatty, Claudia checked the magazine then locked it and cocked it. She held that gun with the comfort and finesse of a sharpshooter.
“You uh … cool,” I said once I’d closed the door on tubby. Obviously, FBI daddy taught her some shit.
She motioned for me to follow and I stayed right behind her clutching the stupid screwdriver for dear life. Cool. I was totally the chick in this scenario. If I did live through this maybe I would donate my balls since it appeared I didn’t have any or didn’t know how to use them.
We made our way through a room off the kitchen and into a dining room, again no window. Through another door we wound up in a foyer with a staircase.
No voices.
No people.
No furniture.
Nothing.
Where was Joey? It was like a fancy underground bunker.
On the count of three I opened the foyer door. It was a closet. From there we went up to the next level and who knew what waited up there.
Upstairs was as empty as downstairs. There was a bathroom; empty. A bedroom; empty too, and no windows. We continued down the upstairs hall to another room, which was empty but this time there was a window.
Score.
It was still dark outside so details were murky but it looked like we were ground level.
“We can get out through here,” I said to Claudia who closed and locked the door behind us. She hurried over helping me to get the window open and pull the screen loose. As I was slipping the screen to the floor Claudia froze, her eyes scanning the empty room, “Do you hear that?”
I craned my neck. I couldn’t hear … wait … voices. Men. Arguing and then a loud crash. Instinct kicked in and I tackled Claudia to the ground covering her with my body. When silence returned Claudia pushed against my chest.
“Get off me stupid.”
“That was a gunshot,” I said chest heaving.
“It was a car backfiring nowhere near us you dip.”
“Oh.” I put my hands on each side of her on the floor and pushed up. I’ve heard cars backfiring before and that definitely wasn’t the noise. It was a gunshot but I wasn’t going to argue this with Claudia.