returned moments later with a kitchen chair and the large black plastic trash bags. Joe had stopped screaming. His mouth and eyes were clenched shut as he rocked slightly on the floor in a fetal position. Nick motioned Rachel over next to him.
“Go out to the Escalade,” he whispered. “Open the back and bring me the gym bag I put there when we left the house.”
Rachel followed his directions without a word. Nick grinned as Joe stopped moaning and began cursing him. Suzan waited next to the chair she’d brought from the kitchen, hugging herself to control the trembling.
“Spread three of those bags out on the floor, Suzan, and then put the kitchen chair on top of them.”
Suzan did as she was told. Rachel came in from her task with the gym bag and closed the door behind her. Nick pulled Rachel over to him. He positioned the weapon in her hands, keeping it pointed at Joe, who had begun looking around him, just the way he wanted it.
“If good ole Joe here moves when I don’t want him to, you fire another round into his knee,” Nick directed. “We need him, so aim carefully.”
Seeing the grim look on Rachel’s face as she trained the weapon on Joe’s exposed left knee, Joe rolled over with a grunt of pain. Nick dressed hurriedly. He shook his head when Rachel looked at him.
“That’s okay, just shoot him in the ass if he moves,” Nick directed, tying his shoes.
Nick opened the gym bag and took out the roll of duct tape he had placed inside. He tore off eight foot-long strips, hanging them on the kitchen chair. He walked over to Joe, grabbed his belt at the back and dragged the cursing man over in front of the chair.
“You’re going to get into the kitchen chair the easy way or the hard way, Joe.” He made eye contact with the big man. “But in the chair, you most assuredly are going.”
“You son of a bitch! The kids are as good as dead! You hear me?” Joe cried out in rage as Nick propped him up against the kitchen chair and took up a position behind him.
Leaning against the chair back for leverage, he reached over and grabbed Joe under the armpits. With a powerful yank, he pulled Joe up into the seat, eliciting a scream. Nick quickly trapped and duct-taped each of the Joe's struggling wrists to the chair arms. He taped around the chair back and Joe’s waist, following with a wrap at shoulder level to the back of the chair. Taping the ankles and adding extra strips completed the task. Nick put one last small strip over Joe’s mouth. Then he undid Joe’s pants and pulled them down along with his underwear. Nick reached into his gym bag and took out the stun gun he had stored there. He fired off an arc in front of the red-faced Joe, whose eyes widened in abject terror.
“Now then, partner. I know you’re just itchin’ to tell me everything you know. Ladies, leave or stay, but this won’t be pretty. I need to show our friend Joe how important his telling the truth is going to be. That will take a rather painful demonstration just to get him on board.”
Nick paused. Rachel stayed where she was, her fingers curling and uncurling nervously.
“I’ll be upstairs in my bedroom.” Suzan glanced at Joe before nearly running to the stairs.
Nick bent toward Joe, putting a foot on the horizontal brace attached to the two front chair legs. He fired off an arc into the man’s exposed testicles. Rachel looked away as the chair jumped and Joe passed out. Nick went into the kitchen. He returned with a towel and glass of water. Placing the towel over Joe’s groin area, Nick slowly dripped the cold water over the man’s contorted face and head. Joe woke up screaming, a high pitched keening from his throat, muffled by the tape.
“Joe… you see, there are things worse than death. Once you calm down, I’ll take the duct tape off your mouth. Then you’re going to answer some questions, and we’ll start working together to get the children home safe and sound, right?”
Joe’s head bobbed up and down violently in agreement.
“That’s the spirit.” Nick pulled the tape off.
For a moment, Joe mouthed words without sound. Nick held up a hand in a stopping gesture in front of Joe’s face. He allowed Rachel to move closer. He could tell thoughts of Jean in the hands of some guy like Joe were eating her up from the inside out.
“Wait for it, Joe, wait for it. I don’t want you wasting your breath on what you think I might want to know. Tell me how this plan started.”
“Suzan…Suzan recognized…Hunter and her kid. Christ…give me something for the pain!”
“Concentrate, Joe, or you’ll be nostalgic for the pain level you’re at now.”
“Her husband…had the photo. She only knew someone was…looking for them. Carl knew the story already.” Joe closed his eyes, mouth clamping shut, his head rolling in an attempt to control the pain. Nick slapped Joe’s face lightly, bringing him out of it. “When…Suzan told him she saw them at the pool, Carl brought us the photo.”
“You knew about the safety deposit box. Do you know where it is?”
“We…we heard Florida.”
“Give me the plan you guys hatched, short and sweet.”
“Ta…take Hunter down to Florida and get the stuff…sell it to the highest bidder.”
“And the rest of us?”
Joe hesitated, but after a glance into Nick’s eyes, he went on. “Dead…the moment I… had Hunter on the way to Florida.”
“Suzan and her kids too?”
Joe nodded.
“Did you contact anyone else about Rachel or your plan…maybe some investors?”
Joe shook his head in the negative, grimacing as waves of excruciating pain continued to rip through him.
“Good, now what were you to do next with your partner?”
“Tell him when…when I had you two wrapped up…and found out about Carl. He…he was to drive the kids back over in our van…and -”
“Stay here while you and Rachel headed for Florida?”
Joe nodded. “Then he would…drive out in the desert…with the rest of you.”
“Your partner must be a real piece of work. Okay, so you call your partner, tell him we’re all bound up and ready. Have him drive the van into the garage when he gets here, and come in through the kitchen. Rachel, see if you can find a pen and paper.”
Rachel checked the kitchen first. She returned with pen and paper, handing them to Nick.
“Give me the address where your buddy’s holding the kids, Joe.”
Joe gave him the address.
“I…I can hardly talk…he’ll know something’s wrong.”
“I’m going to find something to help you deal with the pain.” Nick grabbed Joe’s ears, his face inches away. “If you mess up, Joe, I’ll still get those kids back, but when I’m done with your partner, I’ll take you out in the desert and keep you alive for four days. When the four days are done, you’ll embrace hell with open arms. Are we clear?”
“I…I’ll do it… Just give me something to take the edge off,” Joe promised fearfully.
“You have chosen wisely. Rachel, go see if Suzan has any heavy duty pain killers.”
Rachel ran to the stairs, hope driving her with energy and purpose. She found Suzan huddled up on the bed, fists pressed against her mouth. When Suzan heard Rachel, she leaped quickly from the bed, her face a mask of misery and concern.
“We need pain killers. Do you have anything that won’t knock somebody out, but might take the edge off the pain?”
Suzan looked at Rachel blankly for a moment, and then hurried into the master bathroom. She pulled a bottle of pills off the top shelf and handed them to Rachel.
“They’re OxyContin. Two will take the edge off, and then it would be guess work.”
“Thanks,” Rachel turned to go. Suzan grabbed her arm.
“I…I’m sorry, Rachel. If I’d had any idea what -”
“Forget it. Joe told us you didn’t know.”
“Is there any chance we can get the kids back?”
