Chapter 60
1194words
“Did you think you could hide from us? You still haven’t paid us, and you know we don’t like people running from their debts.” Spit flies into my face as I look up at the thug. His face contorts as rage burns bright in his eyes. Three more thugs stand behind him a short distance in the warehouse waiting to take their turn at me.
The stench of smoke and alcohol fills my nose as the thug leans in closer and growls, “But running makes it fun.” A spark shimmers in his eyes, while a cold shiver runs down my back.
I frantically shake my head. “I wasn’t running. I was trying to find my daughter. She will pay my debts. She always does.”
His eyes narrow and the muscle along his jaw twitches. “The same daughter who you said had valuable things in her apartment to apply against the debt?”
I frantically nod again. “Yes. You can take it all and apply it against my outstanding balance. I’m sure there is enough to cut my balance in half. She has a good-paying job.”
Laughter breaks out in the three thugs in the back, while the one in front of me slowly shakes his head as the corners of his mouth curl upwards. “No. We couldn’t find the apartment. If it was in the area you described, she wasn’t there any longer and she took all her stuff with her. Soooo…. There won’t be any reduction in your debt.”
No. Tiffany wouldn’t have moved without telling me. Right?
This can’t be happening. She always pays my debts. This isn’t any different from before.
I lean forward as a wave of panic hits me. “I’ll find her. I’m sure she will take my calls. She always does.”
That is, until very recently, when she has started to ignore all my attempts to contact her, but I’m not going to tell the thugs that.
Another round of hearty laughter spills from them and echoes around the empty warehouse. The dirty cement floor digs into my knees. My pants provide little protection from the tiny pebbles, slicing into my skin.
The man in front of me leans down and glares at me. His greasy black bangs flop forward and hang over his forehead. “You won’t find her or get anything. You know the way this goes. This isn’t new, and you know better. Since you forced us to chase after you, you won’t be leaving this warehouse anytime soon, until you either find a way to cover your outstanding debt or you trade your life for it, making you our personal servant to do as we command.”
He balls up his hand into a fist and punches me hard in the stomach.
Pain shoots through me, but I know this is only the beginning. This is why I need to find Tiffany. She has to save me. She always does.
Another hard punch slams into my stomach and knocks the wind out of me.
I cough, but don’t try to block him. After years of dealing with people like this, I know it is worse if I try to stop them. The best thing for me now is to take the beating. When they are done, I’ll figure out what to do next.
The man stands up straight and lifts his foot.
Fear fills me as his big, heavy boot lands in the middle of my chest. A crack ring outs like a signal to the others. The left side of my chest throbs in pain as the other three thugs chuckle and surround me.
Helplessly, I remain kneeling on the floor while punches and kicks rain down on me from all directions. The only flicker of hope I have is Tiffany. She will help me as soon as she knows I’m in trouble. She always does.
***
Jane POV
Biting back my frustrations, I look around the conference room table at all the company executives. “Are you telling me you want to proceed with the event and risk our actor’s sanity and possibly his life? Did you not hear me when I explained he completely shut down and couldn’t talk after telling him the event was set up by his stalker? The same person who has been trying to track his location so she can get to him. Am I hearing this correctly?”
The executives look at each other and then turn back towards me and nod.
What the heck?
I take a deep breath.
The president/CEO of the agency bobs his head up and down. “I’m sorry to say this, but that is exactly what we are saying. We don’t want to pay the cancellation fees, which are rather hefty. It would cancel out what money we have made in the series signing both Trevor and Tiffany. That is too much money to lose for one event, no matter who it involves.”
Rage rushes through me, but I fight to keep a blank, professional expression. “What are you going to do when Trevor ends up in a mental hospital? The agency has already signed several contracts for upcoming projects. Each of them also has a cancellation fee. Are they less than the cancellation fees for this bogus event? Plus, since I’m sure the law will see it as we are ignoring our actor’s safety, are you going to be comfortable dealing with any charges Trevor may press against us if he makes it through the event? A pain and suffering lawsuit could end up costing the company close to a million dollars or more. But you say that is okay to pay, just not the cancellation fee with the bogus event.”
The executives nervously glance back and forth among each other.
For a group of people supposedly extremely smart, they sure don’t think through everything too well.
The president/CEO swallows and fidgets around in his seat, but after a few moments, he gathers himself and returns to the confident and slightly arrogant man he always is. “Well, of course, a lawsuit from Trevor for pain and suffering would be more, but I don’t think he would do something like that. His condition isn’t that bad.”
My mouth almost hits the floor. What is he talking about? Hasn’t he been paying attention to what I’ve been saying?
I shake my head and growl, “He couldn’t even talk after my last conversation with him about the event. Luckily, he was able to contact his doctor, who could calm him down. For what we have put him through already, he could file a lawsuit against us. After a jury hears your poor excuses for not cancelling the event, I’m sure they would side with Trevor. Shoot, they might feel so sorry for him and might award him a larger than normal amount. What is the cap for a lawsuit like that? 1 million? Or is it something closer to 10 million? Or is there even a cap?”
A wave of uncertainty flows through the executives.
That is exactly what I thought.
With confidence, I stand tall and ask, “So, what do you want to do?”
