His Lovely Ward

Chapter 4

Imagine yourself crossing the street and suddenly a car runs a red light, just missing you by an inch or two. Imagine the rush of wind, your breath being snatched out of your chest, and that gravitational force that pulls you towards the passing car. Imagine that and you’ll know how Angelica felt the moment it happened to her. But in her case, well, the van did not just pass by—it took her with it.

“Who are you? Let me go!” she screamed as she kicked and wailed her arms around. She felt her shoe hit someone’s leg and a cry of pain rang out.

“Shut up, bitch!” a hand slapped her across the face.

Angelica couldn’t see a thing. It was really dark inside the van. She could smell a strong scent of cigarette, sweat and heat. And she could also feel that she was surrounded by not just one, but three or four men.

“Who are you? What do you want?” she asked, her voice getting angry. She knew she should be scared, but she was angrier for being snatched off her feet and being slapped. And no one hurt Angelica Dalton intentionally.

“We want those documents. Where are they?” someone rasped in front of her, too close that she felt and smelled his cigarette breath, and it was just plain horrible.

“What documents? I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she answered strongly, leaning her head away from whoever’s mouth she was facing. “Let me go or I’ll call the police.”

Everyone in the van laughed. “You can’t call the police when you’re dead.”

That was not acceptable for her. With so much fury, she kicked her leg once more and this time, it landed on something softer like a man’s crotch.

“Shit!” A big howl of pain erupted in front of her and she received another big stingy slap across her face, her head turning to once side. Then a hand grabbed her by the arm, pulling her towards whoever owned it. “Do that again and you’ll join your daddy,” another voice whispered harshly.

“Got to hell!” she spat and received another stingy smack on the face. She felt blood drip down her nose but she didn’t care.

Someone tied her hands behind her back and she fought real hard.

“Where’s the device?” a voice asked. This time, it came from someone from the back of the van. She knew the man must be the leader because everyone else became quiet.

“I said I don’t know what you’re talking about!” she screamed. “Let me go at once!”

Well, it might have worked if she gave that order to someone in the hospital or someone who worked for her, but to these people it was not really working. And that only severed her anger. She was used getting her way but right at the moment that seemed impossible.

“We’ll see what you’ll have to say later when we get to where we are going,” the boss said, his voice eerie and just a little scary.

She chose not to demand where they were taking her and focused to what her other senses could tell her. She closed her eyes despite the darkness to concentrate and listen to anything that might give her an idea where they might be. She estimated that they might have been traveling for about three minutes now, running about fifty miles per hour, and she remembered feeling they turned one left and two rights. From that moment on, she’d memorize every turn so that she would know where to go when she got the chance to escape, which she would.

She just needed the right timing.

 *****

Henry cursed himself over and over as he sped through the night traffic of New York, following the black van and trying not to be noticed. He was used to tailing, so that was no problem. At some point, he anticipated the van’s route and took some different turn so that Angelica’s abductors wouldn’t suspect. He would meet the van at one turn, and then lose himself at another.