They’d have to move fast if they wanted to keep Michelle’s eggs alive. From what Heather told him, Michelle didn’t even believe she could have children. These might be her last chance.
Chapter 19
The Karate chop Omar used on Michelle is called a chuto strike, used in Shorin Ryu. It is dangerous. Incorrectly used it can cause temporary or permanent paralysis, or death.
Omar was a master in many forms of the martial arts, and he was careful. He didn’t want to harm Michelle, just put her out temporarily so he could hide her until Rod, Heather and Vincent admitted defeat.
When she collapsed in his arms, he picked her up like a doll and studied her face intently in the light of the dim flickering candle he had dropped. She was breathing fine, just unconscious.
He had a little trouble maneuvering because, although she was slim, she wasn’t a small woman, and he needed to back up on the stairs and then open the door to a patient floor. He’d dropped the candle when he struck Michelle, so he could catch her. The candle guttered out, and the inky blackness of the stairwell made it that much harder to negotiate.
Of course, Lucifer was making a disturbance, biting Omar’s arm and trying to scratch his face. The noises the cat made would alarm the nurses, Omar thought. Lucifer was howling and spitting, between lethal sounding growls.
Omar had a strong impulse to throttle the little animal, but endured the hostility, knowing that the cat would be a life-line for Michelle when he had her totally under his control. He could use the cat as leverage. Threaten to hurt or kill it if she gave him trouble.
He had the trump card with him, as well; the ultimate object to control Michelle. The diamond. When gave it to Michelle on the island of Kauai, he still believed that she would eventually care for him, follow him, and be his chosen mate to help rule over his vast empire. He foresaw that she would be the ultimate Wiccan priestess. Now he knew that in her hands the diamond would give her way too much potential power. If she ever learned to use it, she would be genuinely formidable.
Omar shifted Michelle over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry and finally got the door open. It wasn’t as dark on the patient floor because there were windows in the rooms that bled light into the hallway. He went down the hall, peeking into each room. Finally he found an empty one and rolled Michelle off his shoulder onto the bed, grimacing with relief. She wasn’t exactly light, being almost six feet tall.
Now the cat wasn’t making much noise, Omar noted. Lucifer had jumped on the bed, back hunched, fur standing straight up, and seemed to be guarding her. He was growling and spitting, which Omar found amusing.
Omar decided to hide Michelle in plain sight. He’d take her back to her hospital room once the four who came to save her had left for the night. After all, he was legally her husband. If he told the staff he didn’t want Michelle to have visitors, his word had to be obeyed. He was paying enormous bucks for the medical services. He’d made it clear he expected his wishes to be followed precisely.
He just had to wait until Rod, Heather and Vincent left. It would be a while. They were still climbing in the stairwell.
***
Heather jerked on Rod’s sleeve. He stopped climbing and turned.
She whispered, “The professor is way behind. He needs a break. I’ll say I need to rest for a minute. Give him a little time to recover.”
Rod nodded, although he desperately wanted to get to Michelle as fast as possible, and they both sat down on the stairs.
Vincent puffed up to them.
“I needed to rest from the climb,” Heather told him.
“Whew. Me too,” Vincent said, panting deeply. He gratefully sat down as well.
Since their footsteps were not clanging on the stairway any longer, when they heard angry snarls and yowls, there was no mistaking where it came from. Just a few floors above them. No mistaking what was making the racket: Lucifer.
“I’ll run up and try to catch him,” Rod said.
“Wait!” Heather said. “He may have encountered Omar.”
Rod just shook his head and took off. He was a tall man and he sprinted up the stairs, going up the higher levels quickly. As he did so, he searched for any sign of the little white cat, but he didn’t see Lucifer.
He ran up another flight and almost bumped into Mike on a landing, who was rushing down the stairs.
“Did you see Lucifer?” Rod asked.
Mike shook his head and they both started down together, moving the cell phone lights into the corners to see if he could be hiding somewhere.
“We heard him squalling, but he’s disappeared again,” Rod said.
“I got the eggs,” Mike said, holding up the package triumphantly so Rod could see.
“Excellent.”
“I also trashed Omar’s sperm contribution.”
Rod laughed. “Good riddance to bad rubbish. That’s terrific. Great job!”
Mike told Rod about the alternate exit to the clinic that he’d found on the twelfth floor. “Now we have to get these little eggs to someplace cold fast, or they’ll die.”
Rod nodded. Then he stopped abruptly when he saw the Tenth Floor sign on a doorway as they descended. “I’ve gotta go see her. Make sure she’s all right. You can tell the others I’m on the tenth floor.”
“Man, you shouldn’t go alone,” Mike said. “No doubt that guy, Omar, is dangerous.”
“I have to. Right now,” Rod insisted.
Mike bobbed his head. “Okay. I understand. But the guy throws lightning bolts, man. He probably turned out the lights here in this clinic somehow. The professor thinks he caused the stairwell handrail to become fiercely hot. And just two nights ago I saw a beautiful girl, named Wendy, fall from his apartment. He probably had something to do
