“They wanted us to go with them, and I said no. That’s when they threatened us with their guns. So we… disabled the threat,” Ben said calmly. Trish was smiling at him proudly.
“Did you know the men?”
Ben’s eyebrows rose. “No! We’ve never seen them before. That one said they worked for Mr. Milonas. Earlier, I ignored a dinner invite from a Darius Milonas.”
Several of the officers looked at Ben nervously, and the two unconscious men were quickly cuffed.
“You will come with us to the station. The captain will want to speak with you.”
Ben looked at Trish wearily. “Yeah, I thought this might happen. Fine. Let’s go.”
Trish preceded Ben as they followed the officer outside and got into the back of the police cruiser. She took Ben’s hand. “You know how to show a lady a good time.”
He looked to her and saw the playful smile. That brought a smile of his own. He lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles.
“Mmmm… hey, you ever do it in the back of a police car?” she chuckled.
“Behave!” he growled quietly but fought to hide his grin.
-=-
When Ben woke the following morning in the plush hotel bed, he felt jet-lagged and more than a little grumpy. He hadn’t slept too well the night before after the police finally released them.
They’d been held for questioning for hours. The police pressed Ben to divulge his connection to Darius Milonas who, it turned out, was suspected of being involved in criminal activities including smuggling, drug trafficking, extortion, and murder. Not a nice man.
Ben maintained that he didn’t know Milonas and when the police began cycling back through their questions a third time Ben finally lost his patience. He insisted they either charge him or release him. He collected Trish, and they went directly back to the hotel to get some sleep. For once, Trish behaved which proved how tired she was as well.
He reached out to her, but her side of the bed was empty. He sat up and listened for the sound of the shower but heard nothing but the soft murmur of the air conditioning. Yawning, he climbed off the bed to stand and stretch his back muscles as the mattress was just a little too plush for his tastes.
Glancing at the clock next to the bed, he saw it was still reasonably early. He might be able to get in some time in the hotel gym before breakfast. That would get work the kinks out of his muscles.
He walked into the gorgeous ensuite bathroom but the lights were off, and Trish wasn’t there. Moving out into the living room, he spotted a note perched on the back of the sofa facing the bedroom door.
“Ben, gone for a run. Back soon. Trish.”
He frowned in annoyance. With no idea of when she left, he had no idea when she’d be back. His back tweaked once more so he walked back into the bedroom and put on his workout clothes.
He updated the note to let Trish know where he was and left the room.
The hotel gym wasn’t empty, but the few guests inside kept to themselves and that suited Ben perfectly. He found a free machine and went through his routine. He didn’t push himself too hard as he was still feeling the drag of the time difference. By the end, his muscles were warm and moving smoothly. Trish hadn’t joined him in the gym, so he wiped down his machine and went back to his room.
When Ben entered, he saw his note was still resting on the sofa facing the front door. That brought another frown and just a hint of worry. He picked up his cell and dialed her number but heard it ringing in the bedroom. She hadn’t taken it with her.
Maybe she got lost running in the core of a strange city? That seemed unlikely.
More trouble from the goons from last night? That was a possibility, but Trish was no easy target, and she’d keep to the main roads.
He couldn’t shake the sense of unease, but standing in the middle of the living room all sweaty from the gym wasn’t helpful. Ben walked into the master bathroom and took a shower, shaved and got dressed.
Trish still hadn’t returned, and he was beginning to worry seriously.
His cell began to buzz which meant a call from a number not on his approved caller list. He picked it up and answered.
“Hello?”
“Am I speaking with Benjamin Shepherd?” The voice had a distinct accent.
“Ben,” he replied. He was picking up a strange vibe from the voice.
“What?”
“Ben, not Benjamin. Who is this?” he asked.
“This is Darius Milonas. We need to speak, Benjamin.”
Ben scowled as he heard the smirk in the man’s tone. “I thought I was pretty clear when I ignored your dinner summons. My response to your sending armed goons to threaten me should have completely clarified my desire to be left alone,” he growled.
“Yes, your unpleasant American manners have left me with no choice but to ensure your willingness to join me for what should be a brief conversation,” Darius sighed.
Ben froze. Trish wasn’t back. “What-”
“Your lady friend would very much like you to join her. I will send two of my men to bring you to her. We will have our conversation. Have I made myself clear, Benjamin?” There was steel in Darius’ tone now.
His gut twisted at the thought of Trish in the hands of this thug sent a shot of fear for her through him. Then his rage threatened to erupt. He took a deep breath to fight that down as well. Threatening Darius while he had Trish was not a smart move.
“When-”
There was a knock at the door of his room. “Go with them now and follow their instructions. Don’t waste any more of my time, Benjamin,” Darius sighed and the line went dead.
Ben hung up and went to the door. He opened it to see two grim looking men in dark suits. One of them was the third goon from the bar last night. He scowled at them.
“Leave the cell here,” Goon number three insisted as he saw Ben holding his phone.
Ben left it on the table by the front door and stepped out into the hall.
“Follow,” the talkative goon said. Ben was grateful they weren’t pointing guns at him at least.
They took the elevator all the way to the underground parking lot where a driver in a silver Mercedes SUV with heavily tinted windows waited for them. Ben was directed to get into the back seat. Goon number three got in the opposite side next to him, and his silent partner climbed in the passenger side up front. They left the lot and joined the early morning commuting traffic.
Ben ignored the other passengers as he looked out the window at the scenery passing by. His mind was trying to connect the dots to determine what Milonas might want from him. His jaw muscles twitched as he thought of Rainor Hahn’s trashed apartment. Was there a connection? Detective Freder seemed to believe Rainor dealt in stolen art. That suggested Rainor might be a criminal, but certainly not in the same league as Milonas, if he went by what the police had told him. The ransacking of the condo made no sense to him. There were too many unanswered questions. He’d have to wait.
His mind took him back to Trish. If Milonas’ hurt her, Ben was going to kill him.
They left the core and passed through some residential areas to reach the outer edge of the city. They drove into an industrial park with lots of new buildings under construction. The SUV passed through a fence guarded by another dark-suited man then approached the front of a tall office tower which was in its early stages of building; ten stories of concrete floors and an external elevator bolted to the face of the tower. Glancing at the nearby towers which were further along in their build, this tower was likely going to be clad in glass and steel as well. For now, though, it was just a stack of ugly grey floors with safety fencing to keep the workers from stepping out into space.
The driver remained with the SUV and Ben’s two escorts led him into the elevator and rode it up to the top floor. Ben stepped off to face two more men, each carrying a nasty little machine gun. He wondered at the elevated level of security Milonas seemed to have surrounding him. Ben had no exposure to the criminal world, so he had to accept this was one of the costs. He scowled as he scanned his eyes over the men and saw them clutching their weapons a little tighter.
Goon number three approached him cautiously. “I must check for weapons.”
Ben had seen enough television to know the pose and stretched his arms out to the side. The man quickly patted him down then stepped back. He nodded and gestured for Ben to continue down the hall to the right, now surrounded by the four men.
After a short distance, they pushed through a curtain of translucent plastic. Beyond this Ben saw a portable table set up with some chairs. His eyes immediately locked on Trish first. She had a dark bruise on her left cheekbone, and he saw the tension in her eyes.
“Ben! I’m ok. Calm. It’s ok.”
He blinked at her as he heard the growl coming from his lips die down. He was also several feet closer to the table. The men circling him were all pointing their weapons at him while glancing nervously at the man seated a short distance ahead.
“You’re ok?” Ben asked roughly.
“I’m ok. Nothing I can’t handle,” Trish said as she held his eyes.
Ben took a few deep, slow breaths then looked across the table.
The man watching him stood slowly with a smile on his face. He looked to Trish. “You spoke the truth. He isn’t intimidated by my men. Foolish.”