Thirteen
Addy pulled into the parking lot and saw Solene’s car there. The daycare had closed early the day before due to some maintenance issues—there seemed to be a lot of bad pipes on the island lately. Solene had not been happy. She’d ripped her handyman a new one. Even Deaconhad felt for the guy, or so he’d continually said.
Addy smiled, loving the fact Solene had met two men she couldn’t wrap around her little finger. Three, including Noel, but he was taken. Deacon and Hammer seemed to see through Solene’s beauty, neither man giving in to the termagant’s demands. They didn’t seem intimidated by her either, which Addy also loved.
Solene had no problemwith Hammer. They seemed to treat each other like tolerable siblings, and spending so much time together, that was a good thing. But Deacon… He and Solene were like oil and water. But Addy had a feeling with a little time, they might actually strike sparks off each other that would explode into flame. Problem was, Deacon wasn’t the settling type, and Solene still hated men in general—just Hammerand Noel a little less.
And then there was that pesky target hanging over the group of them.
She sighed and parked the car. Before exiting, she glanced around. Seeing the lot mostly empty except for locals moving around to neighboring stores and buildings, she felt safe enough to leave the car. She hurried inside, fingering the earrings Noel claimed were his favorite. The danglyloops made her feel pretty, and since he’d actually had an opinion about them, she’d worn them to make him happy.
Once inside the daycare she heard Solene arguing in the back. No one else was in, apparently, because the place appeared spotless and kid-free.
Until that plumbing issue was fixed, it figured the daycare would have to be closed. Addy felt Solene’s pain. That issue withthe bathroom at school had unnerved her. Fortunately, they had a decent maintenance crew and had fixed the problem quickly. The pipe problem had also given her an opportunity to introduce the children to the concept of plumbing. So a win-win, despite the potential mess.
“Solene,” she called out. “It’s just me.”
“I’ll be right out,” Solene growled from the back. “You’re kidding me!I already talked to Ralph, and his estimate…What?” A low murmur answered her.
Addy pitied the handyman. A new guy in town, he’d been highly recommended by the accountant and massage therapists next door. Even Brent had used him once a few months ago.
And speaking of which… Addy waited for Brent to arrive, nervous about letting him down. Though they hadn’t hit it off exactly, they’dalways been friendly. She had a difficult time understanding why he thought they could move beyond being just friends, though. She felt no chemistry with him at all, though he had decent enough looks and personality.
He had never acted super attracted to her either. Not like Noel did.
She flushed, remembering how he’d woken her this morning…right before having to hustle out of bedto deal with a fussy baby.
Addy smiled.
After a while, she didn’t hear anything in the back. Strange.
The door jangled. She looked over her shoulder to see Brent.
He waved. “Hey. Ready to go?”
“Sure. Just let me check on Solene first.”
“No problem.” Brent ran his own business, so precluding any client meetings, he never had any issues with time.
Addy walked into the back and sought the break room, where she expected to find Solene. Except she didn’t. Addy froze.
Tied up and gagged, lying on the ground, were two of Solene’s employees, Marge and Annie. Tears streaked down their faces and they looked beyond scared.
Addy hurried to pull her phone out of her purse and call Noel when a hand knocked it away and someone yanked herby the hair out of the room.
“Ow.Stop it!” She hoped Brent heard her. “Let me go! What are you doing? Where is Solene?” she yelled and gripped her bag tightly.
The grip on her hair ceased, and she turned around. But when she spotted the intruder, she froze. Terror filled her. The man from the restaurant in Seattle, the one Noel hadn’t killed, stared at her with evil glee.
“Well, well, the pretty bitch I never got to play with. Been spreading your legs for Ice, huh? Who knew the prick had it in him?” The man laughed, an ugly, wheezing sound, made uglier by the cruelty in his face. “Your fuckbuddy killed my brother. Now I’m gonna kill his whore.”
Addy couldn’t move. “W-where’s Solene?”
“The blonde piece of ass with the mouth that never quits?” He snorted,and she realized he was wearing the same type of maintenance shirt the handyman had sported. He moved with a severe limp that had to be hurting like the devil. “She’s tied up in the back. We’re saving her for something special.”
We’resaving her. More than just him, then. Addy threw off her panic enough to shout, “Brent, run! They have guns. Call the police!” just as Deacon burst throughthe back door and knocked the man away.
Addy ran down the hallway, needing to find Solene. Instead, she encountered two more maintenance men holding knives, walking toward her. Feeling silly for not remembering it sooner, she dug into her purse, pulled out a Taser, and tagged one of the men.
