When he doesn’t continue, I wave a hand, prompting him. Shit, does he think I have nothing else to do today but play fucking guessing games? “I don’t need the background right now, Max, just get to the point.”
I swear the bastard looks almost giddy as he asks, “You’ve heard of Lee Jacks?”
Surprised, I say, “Of course, who hasn’t? What’s that got to do with Lia?” At his look, my eyes widen. “Are you saying…?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying. As far as I can tell, Lee Jacks is the father of Lia Adams. Looks like her mother either had a sentimental or mean streak when she named her daughter Lia.”
My head reels as I rub the persistent knot of tension in my neck. Lee Jacks is a real estate developer who owns half of Asheville and its surrounding cities. Hell, I purchased the apartment I call home from his company. I’d met him a few times through the years at various charity events. I figure he’s in his late-forties or early-fifties, so it’s possible he could have a daughter Lia’s age. How in the hell had her mother gotten involved with someone like him, though? “Holy fuck, it just keeps on coming today.” I fill him in briefly on my conversation with Aidan, which in turn causes him to look as shell-shocked as I feel.
“Christ, I can’t believe that. She’s been completely out of it for, what, eight or nine years? Do you want me to check into it?” Max, as my lawyer, handles most of my affairs, including Cassie.
“Let me talk to Aidan again first. Possibly, it was just a one-time thing. Who knows if she actually knew he was there or not. May be just a coincidence.”
Max clears his throat as he moves to the edge of his seat. “Luc, I would guess you’ll hear from Lee Jacks or someone in his employment. There’s no way he’s missed the fact I’ve been asking questions about him; he’s going to want to know why. It won’t take much digging for him to find out I work solely for Quinn Software…and you. I’ll leave it up to you to answer that question.” Unspoken between us is the fact we both know Lee Jacks is well known in the area for more than his real estate holdings. It’s long been rumored he’s well connected on both sides of the law. Undoubtedly, Max is right; a man who rides the gray line as closely as Lee Jacks will almost certainly know when someone unusual is asking personal questions about him.
“Thanks for the warning. I’ll let you know if I hear from him.” Max stands, taking my words for what they are-a polite dismissal, for now. “I’ll call you later after I speak with Aidan.” As he shuts the door behind me, I am already dialing Sam. I need to update him on Lia’s stepfather.
Lia
I set my pencil on my desk, fighting the urge to do a fist pump. My last test of the day is complete, and I know I did well. I had easily known the answers to the majority of the questions, and I am finished well ahead of schedule. I quietly make my way to the front of the classroom, handing the test to my teacher, Miss Riddle. She gives me an absent smile and waves me toward the door. I have almost an hour before Sam is picking me up. I look around the empty halls for a moment before heading toward the courtyard and the coffee shop. I’ll kill some time by having a frappe while I wait. I know he would drop everything and come early, but I don’t want to put him out; he’s already doing enough by driving me everywhere I need to go.
I text Rose when I get settled with my cold drink-hoping she’s finished early, as well-but know when there’s no immediate reply that she’s still in class. As I take the first sip of my drink, I accidently squeeze the cup too hard and the top pops off. “Shit,” I gasp as the cold, icy liquid splatters onto the front of my shirt, making an ugly stain right over my left breast. I dab it with a handful of napkins, but the stain only spreads. Just great. Now I’m stuck sitting here, or worse yet, walking around for forty-five minutes looking like I have a leaking nipple.
My bra is now uncomfortably wet and sticky, and I can’t fathom having to meet Sam looking like this. Suddenly, it hits me. My apartment is only a block away. I need to get some more clothes to take to Lucian’s anyway. He’ll be pissed if he finds out I’ve gone by myself, but if Sam mentions it, I’ll just say I met up with Rose. If I hurry, I’ll be back in plenty of time to meet Sam. Standing, I hold the still-messy cup far away from my body and throw it in the trashcan on the way out the door. I walk through the back gates of the university, skirting the delivery trucks coming and going.
When I reach our apartment building, I feel a touch of nostalgia. I have hardly been here at all the last few weeks. For all intents and purposes, I have unofficially moved in with Lucian. I’m also still cleaning his apartment, despite his various and vocal protests. I thought men liked it when women took care of them? He seems to feel guilty every time I wash a dish or a load of laundry. It’s really nothing new to me; I have always taken care of myself along with being my mother’s slave for years.
I miss the girl-time with Rose, sitting around watching a Lifetime movie while gossiping. I love going to sleep and waking up with Lucian each day, though…and the sex. Oh, my, the sex. Lucian likes it a lot, and he needs very little recovery time between. I feel my face heat just thinking of the way he touches me, possesses me. Just one look from him and I am melting in a puddle at his feet.
My face is stretched into a sappy, goofy grin, and I thinking of nothing but him as I enter our building. I stop by the mailboxes, finding mine is overflowing. As I sift through the pile, pulling out the junk mail, I am surprised more than alarmed when arms come around my body and a hand clamps over my mouth. My first thought is Rose or even Jake, though it is hardly his style to manhandle me. Lucian even runs through my mind. Maybe he’s found out I walked home and is here to give me hell over it.
When the arms tighten and I am bodily-dragged across the floor toward the now-open door that leads to the tenants’ storage lockers, I start to panic. This isn’t right. Lucian, nor any of my friends, would do this. Whoever is holding me is far stronger than Rose and taller than Jake. I am struggling now in earnest, knowing instinctively that something bad is going to happen if I am pulled through that door. My foot stomps down, connecting with the person’s foot that is holding me. I hear a grunt and then curses. “You’ll pay for that, cunt.”
The strength suddenly leaves my body. I sag weakly against my attacker as he pulls me through the door and shuts it behind us. Oh, dear God, I know that voice. Please, oh please, let me be wrong. As I am shoved roughly against a wall, a rag smelling of gas is shoved into my mouth, almost immediately followed by a wide, silver piece of tape over my lips. In my panic, I can’t breathe. I move my hands to claw at the tape, but they are wrenched above my head, restrained tightly together with the same silver tape. Stars dance behind my eyes as I start to hyperventilate. My face is roughly pulled up, forcing me to look directly into the eyes of my captor. Jim Dawson, my stepfather, stares back at me, looking triumphant. “No,” I mumble around the rag in my mouth. The spinning, black void rises to claim me, and I slump limply to the floor, barely registering the pain in my head as it connects with the metal corner of a shelf. Oblivion is what I need now, and I go into it willingly.
Chapter Nineteen
Lucian
“Sam, how long until you pick up Lia?” As soon as Max leaves my office, I pick up the phone to call Sam. He needs to be updated on Lia’s stepfather.
“I’m picking her up at three. I’m here now waiting for her.” I take a quick look at my watch, frowning when I see it’s now ten minutes past that time.
“That was ten minutes ago. Is she in the car or isn’t she?”
“No…she’s not here yet, Luc. I’m out front now, walking around the courtyard. Maybe she got held up in her last class.”
“Fuck,” I hiss; can’t anything go smoothly today? “Listen, Sam, Lia’s stepfather was released from jail earlier. I don’t have any reason to think he’d come for her, but we need to be on our guard. Head to the office and talk to Mrs. Phillips. Tell her I need to know Lia’s schedule today and then track down her last class. I know Mrs. Phillips’ husband, so she?
??ll give you the information. Call me as soon as you have something.” Without waiting for a reply, I end the call. Running a hand through my hair, I kick the side of my desk in frustration. Today has been nothing but one big clusterfuck; nothing has gone as planned from the moment I walked through the doors this morning.
Cindy sticks her head inside my office, probably alarmed by the sound of me blowing off some steam. She knows me well. She gives me a silent look that asks if I need anything from her, I shake my head briefly, and she pulls the door closed behind her. I pick up my cellphone and dial Lia’s number. It goes straight to voicemail without ringing, as if it’s turned off. I try to assure myself it’s just because she’s been in class all day. Of course, she’d have her phone off; she wouldn’t want to get any calls during her exams.
I fire off a text:
Lucian: Baby, where are you? Sam is looking for you.
A long few minutes pass with no reply. I quickly tap out another message.
Lucian: Lia, answer me or I’m coming to find you.
Again, there is no reply. By this time, I’m pacing the floor. When my phone rings, I answer without looking at the caller ID.
“Lia?” Even I can’t miss the quaver in my voice.
“No, Luc, it’s me.” Sam says. “I just left Lia’s last class. Luc, she’s been gone from there for over an hour. The teacher said the test was short, and Lia was one of the first people finished. She turned it in, and the teacher dismissed her.”
“Goddammit!” I roar. “Where the hell is she then? Go back out to the car and see if she’s there now. Maybe she was just sitting somewhere near until it was time for you.”
“Luc…I am outside. It’s pretty much cleared out here now. There are only a few people standing around and none of them are her. How about that friend of hers she lives with? Do you think she’s with her?”
I relax slightly, thinking that’s probably exactly where she is. I don’t have her number though, shit. “Sam, go back inside and have Mrs. Phillips pull Rose’s file and give you her number.”
“And her last name is?”
Damn…“MADDEN! It’s Madden.” Thank fuck I’ve listened when Lia talks about her best friend. Of course, in a school as small as St. Claire’s, Mrs. Phillips could no doubt make the connection without the last name. “I’m heading that way now. If you find her, put her in the car and don’t move. I’ll be there in twenty minutes. Keep me updated.”
I grab my keys off the desk and almost run over Cindy on my way out. “Luc, is everything all right?”
“I have no idea,” I answer truthfully. I continue past her; there is no time to stop and explain. Cindy, no doubt, will know what’s going on very shortly; she seems to have a pipeline to Sam at all times. I check my phone again as I turn the ignition of the Rover. Still no text from Lia. “Oh, baby, where are you?” I ask the quiet phone as if expecting an answer. I pull out into traffic and press the gas pedal to the floor when I hit the open highway. The sense of foreboding I’ve felt on and off all morning has returned in full strength. Much the same way as I’d known something was going on with Aidan, I know something has happened to Lia. The last time she didn’t answer my calls, she was sick. My phone rings again and Sam picks up our conversation in almost the exact place we left off.
“I spoke to Rose. She hasn’t talked to Lia since this morning. She said she had a missed call from her around the time of her last class but was taking her exams and had her phone off. She has been trying to call her, as well. She’s going to their apartment now to make sure she didn’t go there.”
“All right, just stay near the car in case she shows up looking for you. I’ll stop by her apartment to see Rose.” I end the call and break a few more traffic laws before skidding to a halt outside Lia’s apartment. I take the front steps two at a time, running into the lobby just as Rose comes running down the stairs, waving something in her hands.
“Lucian, Lia’s not in the apartment and it doesn’t look like she has been.” Audibly swallowing, she holds out what I now see is mail. “Our neighbor handed these to me when I was leaving. She said they were lying on the floor below the mailboxes.” Her hand is shaking as I take the envelopes and see Lia’s name on them. “Where is she?” Rose asks, looking on the verge of full panic. I put one arm around her shoulders, trying to calm her as I reach for my phone to call Sam. There is a sudden commotion to the right of the lobby. I hear shouts of alarm and cries for help. I take off toward the noise with Rose following closely behind. A tall, thin girl with very short, brown hair comes running through a doorway in the corner, near a bank of mailboxes. Rose grabs her arm as she goes to pass, us asking, “Ashley, what’s going on? Are you all right?”
The girl stops as if she’s seen a ghost. She is breathing heavy and in obvious distress. I look around, still trying to discern the source of her anxiety, but see nothing amiss. “Rose, oh God, Rose…The door was jammed, and I needed my golf clubs.” By this time, she is panting and every word is gasped out. “Lia…Lia…”
I take her arm, shaking her lightly. At the mention of Lia’s name, I feel my own anxiety climbing. Something is badly wrong, and this girl has the answers. “What about Lia? Where is she?” I practically shout. I know it’s not wise to yell at someone so close to the edge, but I need fucking answers. Rose is shaking her, as well, both of us talking at once.
“Lia’s down there…Me and Mr. Leslie found her. I need to go for help. She’s not moving!” I drop Ashley’s arm and run for the doorway she came through. I see nothing for a moment but wall-to-wall lockers. Then I hear a voice yelling from the left and take off in that direction. What I find at the end of the aisle has me staggering unsteadily on my feet.
A pair of bare legs and feet are partially obscured by the elderly man kneeling next to them. I catch a glimpse of blonde hair and stumble, overcome with fear. Rose screams, sobbing Lia’s name. The man on the floor spins around, looking like he’s on the point of a nervous breakdown. “Please, help her,” he yells. “I just found her and she’s not waking up!”
I run the rest of the way to his side…and then I see her. “Oh, my God,” I whisper as I fall to my knees beside her. I barely hear Rose’s screams above the roaring in my ears. Something foreign and unfamiliar drips down my face, and I’m shocked to realize it’s tears. As I stare down at the broken body of my beautiful girl, the fear I’m doomed to lose everyone I love pierces my soul.
To be continued…
Lucian and Lia’s story continues in Winter 2014 with Fractured.
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Jane Dystel, Dystel & Goderich Literary Management, Union Square West, Suite 904, New York, NY 10003, (212)627-9100 ext. 12
About The Author
Sydney Landon lives in Greenville, South Carolina and has spent the last twenty-five years working in accounting. Sydney met her own prince charming in 2000 and received the most romantic proposal on a pier in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, thus creating her eternal love for the city. The fact that her future husband was a fellow computer geek completely sealed the deal for her. She credits him with keeping her calm and rational while also understanding her need for a new pair of shoes every other week. They have two children who keep life interesting and borderline insane, but never boring.
The idea of the Danvers’ Series popped into her head and refused to go away. She started writing the first story never imagining that it would ever be finished. Three months later it turned into her first book, Weekends Required. Within a few months, it had quickly made the best-seller list on Amazon, and went on to make the New York Times Best Seller List. Barely taking a breath between books, Sydney followed up with the second book in the series, Not Planning on You. Within the first month, this book also became a best-seller. The third book in
the series, Fall For Me was released in February 2013 and became a New York Times Best Seller. The fourth book in the series, Fighting For You released in paperback in February 2014. Sydney is currently working on the fifth book in the Danvers’ Series and the second book in the Lucian and Lia Trilogy. When she isn’t writing, Sydney enjoys reading, swimming and being a mini-van driving, soccer mom.
Acknowledgements
Many thanks to Becky with Hot Tree Editing. Also, to Jenny Sims with Editing 4 Indies. It was a real pleasure working you ladies.
Thanks to the wonderfully talented Kimberly Killion with the Killion Group who took my vision and made it into such a beautiful, sexy cover.
To my wonderful friends Lorie Gullian, Amanda Lanclos, Lisa Salvary, Teresa Alverson, Shelly Lazar, Marion Archer and Heather Waterman. Thanks for all of your help!
A special thanks to Allison Quattlander, you rock!
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Also by Sydney Landon
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen