When the car comes to a smooth stop and the doors open with a muted whoosh¸ I usher Olivia out and to the left. I open the suite door and let her precede me into the room.
I can tell by her expression she’s never seen accommodations like these before. Despite her shock and fear, she’s still clearly impressed. And the suite they gave us is pretty upscale. It makes me happy I’ve got the money to treat her to something like this, even though the circumstances are less than desirable.
The first thing I notice when I walk through the door is the wall of floor-to-ceiling windows that look out over the impressive Atlanta skyline. They are the backdrop for the living room straight ahead, as well as the dining room to the left. Both rooms are done in a beige color and dark red. The lighting is soft, which has a soothing effect. As a guy, I totally approve. There’s a huge flat screen at one end of the living room and, beyond that, double doors that open to the bedroom.
I walk straight to the leather-bound hotel guide on the coffee table. Opening it to the menu, I hand it to Olivia.
“I’m sure you’re hungry. Why don’t you pick something to order from room service. I’ll wait until they deliver it to leave.”
“Leave? Where are you going?”
“Someone will be calling me back in another forty minutes. I want to be at the club when they do, just in case they can track my GPS. After the call, I’ll get us burner phones to use until I can get this taken care of.”
“Taken care of? Cash, tell me what’s going on.”
I sigh. And I think again, Damn, I hate that I dragged her into all this. If I could’ve just stayed away from her…
“They’ve got Marissa. They want me to bring the books. They’re going to call back one hour from the first call.”
“You can’t take them the books by yourself, Cash. They’ll kill you both! You need to call the police. My uncle is a very influential man. He’ll have people moving heaven and earth to get his daughter back.”
“Which is why he can never know. Until it’s over, that is. It’ll be a greater risk to her if we draw attention to it. They’ll have more reason to clean up their mess. If I can get this done quietly, get Marissa back, I can figure out a new plan.”
“You’re going in there alone? To give them what they want and then expect them to let you go? And take Marissa with you? Cash, I don’t even know these people and I know that’s not what they’ll do. Criminals don’t work like that.”
I want to grin at her. Like she has a lot of experience with criminals. Ha! No doubt, this is all based on some classic mobster movies.
“Olivia, my father knows these people. Better than anyone. I’m not doing anything until I can talk to him. The books are hidden. I’m gonna tell them that they’re in a safety deposit box and that I can’t get to them until Monday when the banks open. I would’ve already told them that, but they just told me they had Marissa, to go get the books and they’d call me in an hour with a place to meet.”
“So, you’re gonna leave Marissa with them until Monday?”
The look in her eye plainly says she thinks that’s something a monster would do.
Flattening the binder up against her chest, I step closer to her and cup her cheek with my palm. “If I had any other choice, I wouldn’t do this. But I don’t. I need time. They won’t do anything to her until they get what they want. And I have to be damn sure I’ve got my ducks in a row before I give them the only leverage I have.”
She searches my eyes. And I let her. I know she has trust issues anyway, thinking I’m the bad boy through and through. The reality of my situation only makes things that much worse. If she can just stick with me a little while longer…
“Can you trust me? Please! I know I’ve not given you many reasons to, but this one time, just go with your heart. I promise you, promise you¸ I won’t let you down.”
Even as I say the words, I know there’s no way I can make a promise like that. But what I can promise is that, if I do, it won’t be because I didn’t do everything in my power to live up to being the kind of guy she deserves. I want to be worth the risk. I want her to finally fall for the right guy.
She says nothing, only nods. I know it’s hard for her, but the fact that she’s willing to try gives me hope. Maybe bringing some familiar things will help ease her mind. I know she dropped her bag just inside the door of her apartment and I didn’t pick it up as we were leaving. I’ll go by and get it on my way back. Maybe that will make her feel better. But, then again, I’m a guy. What the hell do I know?
“Tell me what you want to eat. I’ll order it. When it gets here, you can eat while I’m out. I’ll go by your place and get your bag and some more clothes, and lock up. Is there anything specific you need?”
She pauses to think and then shakes her head. I’m not sure why she’s so quiet, but I don’t want to push her.
“Also, I’ll need your cell phone. I’ll take it to the club and leave it in the back, just in case. Until then, you can use one of the disposable phones I bring back for us. Okay?”
She nods again.
“You can call your dad and Ginger in the morning. Just tell them your phone’s out of commission for a few days and that you’ll be calling to check on them. We’ll throw that phone away after you talk to them and you can use another one to call later in the week.”
Her smile is agreeable but very tight. “It’ll be okay. I’ll make it okay.”
She nods again, but still she doesn’t speak. I refuse to acknowledge the possibility that I may already have screwed things up beyond repair. No, I’ll just have to find a way to make her trust me, to get us out of this. Maybe then…
CHAPTER FIVE
Olivia
I can’t even remember the name of my meal. Something fancy and exotic and foreign that I’ve never heard of. The only thing I care about is that it’s chicken. I like chicken. And this is great chicken. My taste buds are working well enough for me to be sure of that. But I don’t really taste it. Or maybe it’s that I don’t really enjoy it. My mind and my heart are too troubled and heavy to enjoy much of anything.