Entangled Pt. 04

She took a little breath then glanced at the guard standing a few feet away. "If I see her I'll let her know."

"Thanks." Blake turned to leave then stopped and turned back to her with a smile. "Are there any coffee places close by? It's been a long morning."

"Just up the street," she said with a little nod.

He gave her a relieved smile then turned and left. He found the little coffee shop a block away and sat down to wait. Jess' supervisor arrived ten minutes later. He got in line behind her as she ordered. She didn't say anything to him until he joined her at the condiment station.

"Jess sent me an email yesterday," she said as she stirred cream into her to go cup. "She quit."

Blake looked at her. "Did she say why?"

"She said she needed to take some time for herself and wasn't sure how long she'd be gone," she answered with a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry."

He snapped a lid onto his cup. "What the hell is she doing?"

"That's all I know." She waved her hand.

"I just don't understand what's going on."

"Neither do I. She's always been so reliable, even throughout everything that happened with her ex." She reached out and gripped his forearm briefly. "I have to get back. I hope she's alright."

"Thank you," he said with a nod. After watching her leave he sat down at a table and pulled out his phone. Eric picked up on the second ring. "You should come home."

"Where is she?"

"I can't find her." Blake ran a hand through his hair. "I just talked to her supervisor. She quit her job yesterday, saying something about needing time for herself."

"What the fuck is going on?"

"No idea. You guys didn't get into a fight before you left?"

"No." Blake could hear Eric moving around. "She wasn't overjoyed that I was leaving but I didn't think she was mad."

"Maybe she felt abandoned? She is a little sensitive."

"With good reason but if she was upset why wouldn't she just have said something?"

"I don't know. Pride?"

"This is a little dramatic for a tiff don't you think?"

"You're right. Sorry man."

"I'll be home as soon as I can."

"I'll let you know if I hear anything."

"Thanks."

Eric disconnected, leaving Blake to figure out what to do next on his own. He called Row.

"Hey Blake," she answered after several rings.

"I hope I didn't catch you at a bad time."

"Everyone is with Sadie this morning. Mommy needed a few hours to herself," she said with a laugh. "What are you up to? Shouldn't you be working?"

"I'm trying to find Jess," he said softly.

"Why? Did she run away from you?" Row laughed.

"We haven't heard from her since the day Eric left for London."

There was silence on Row's end of the line for several heartbeats. "What?" she asked finally.

"We were hoping she'd been in touch with you."

"Not lately. We were talking about getting together for lunch this weekend. She was going to call on Friday—" She took a breath. "What if something happened to her!"

"I just talked to her boss, she quit her job yesterday. It kind of sounds like she was going somewhere."

"Without telling anyone?"

"I know."

"When is Eric supposed to get back?"

"He was supposed to be there till next week but he's coming back as soon as he can."

"That poor guy. Hopefully this is just some misunderstanding."

"You'll call if you hear from her?"

"Of course. Take care hun," she said softly.

He left the coffee shop and headed to his office, thinking that work might a good distraction. It wasn't but he slogged through his day anyway. He fell asleep shortly after he got home only to be woken up at two in the morning when Eric texted him to let him know he'd made it back.

An hour later his phone buzzed with another message from Eric.

There's nothing here.

I know. I'm sorry man.

What the hell did I do? Why would she run?

I don't know. She didn't say anything to Row either.

Eric stood in the library feeling like someone had punched him in the gut. She was gone. He looked around in a daze. It was like she'd never been there. None of her belongings were anywhere.

He went upstairs to his bedroom and changed out of his suit into pajama bottoms but he couldn't make himself get into the bed. He went down the hall to one of the two guest rooms instead. He crawled onto the bed and closed his eyes. After an hour of tossing and turning he sat up and grabbed his phone from the night stand.

The line went straight to voice mail. "Jess, I don't know what's going on, why you left, why you quit your job, or why you won't talk to me—" He took a breath. "You don't' have to explain anything just please— Let me know you're okay." He disconnected and stared at the screen.

Please answer your phone.He typed quickly, hit send, then curled his hand around the phone and settled back onto the pillow.

There was no response from her when he checked at dawn.

Blake let himself into the condo an hour later, while Eric was in the kitchen making coffee. "Did you get any sleep?" Blake asked. He didn't need Eric's head shake to see that he hadn't.

"A couple hours," Eric said.

"I thought so," Blake said as he pulled out a stool at the island and sat down.

Eric brought him a coffee and sat next to him. "What could I possibly have done?"

"Maybe, after everything she's been through she couldn't handle being so happy?"

"Does that really happen?"

"Who knows."

A sharp knock at the door stopped the conversation. Eric hurried to answer it. Blake followed a few steps behind and watched as his brother sort of crumpled after he opened the door. It was Row.

She threw her arms around Eric. "Honey, I'm so sorry. I was hoping she'd come to her senses by now."

"I don't understand what happened," Eric said softly.

Row stepped back and took hold of his arm. "Let's go sit." She led the way to the kitchen and accepted a coffee from Blake after she'd taken a seat. "It's possible there was more going on than any of us knew."

"What do you mean?" Blake asked.

"From what happened in her marriage." She looked from Blake to Eric. "Going through something like that, especially to the degree that she experienced, can traumatize a person."

"To that degree?" Eric asked.

"She didn't tell you everything did she?"

"I know he cheated on her several times," Eric said.

"It was a lot more than a few times," Row said then took a sip of her coffee. "It was somewhere near a hundred women over the entire course of their marriage." She set the mug down. "There probably wasn't one day that went by that he wasn't betraying her somehow."

"Jesus," Blake said under his breath.

"She didn't tell me how bad it was," Eric said as his eyes closed. "Why didn't she tell me."

"Would you want to talk about that with someone new?" Row asked softly.

"She told you," Blake said.

"First of all, I'm a woman, and second, I'm not the one trying to get her to fall in love with me."

"You're saying I scared her?" Eric threw his hands up with the question.

"It's possible," she said with a shrug. "You know that I think you're a good guy and any woman would be lucky to have you but you can be a little much for anyone to take."

"What the hell does that mean?" Eric stood up.

"Do either of you recall how she kept teasing you about being perfect?" Row looked at Eric. "We've all heard her say it. What if she couldn't let go of that fear? And what if that fear drove her away?" She watched Eric pace back to the counter. "Maybe she just needs some time to herself to think?"

"That's what she told her boss." Blake's voice held a hopeful note.

"Give her a couple days to gather her thoughts," Row said. "I'm sure she'll realize that it was all in her head and come back.

"You're right," Eric said with a nod.

"I should run, the kids will be getting up in a little while." Row hopped off her stool and gave Eric another hug. "Call me if you hear anything." He nodded. "Or if you need me."

"Thanks," he said quietly.

Blake walked her to the door. She gave him a quick hug. "Keep an eye on him."

"I will." He closed the door after her and went back to the kitchen.

Eric was standing with his hands braced against the counter. "I think we should go to the police."

"And tell them what?" Blake sat down and dragged his mug of coffee in front of him. "There's no signs of a struggle here or at her place. The reason she quit her job is a little vague but people go off the deep end all the time."

"Something's wrong," Eric said as he looked at him. "I can feel it."

***

A few days turned into a week and there was still no sign of her.

In the end Eric didn't have to go to the police. They showed up while he was sitting in his car watching her house. A concerned neighbour had called them. He handed over his ID, waited while one stone faced officer checked into him, and stood with the other officer explaining why he was there. He barely managed to swallow his frustration as the two men calmly agreed with Blake's assessment. It sounded like she had left on her own. He called Ryan on his way home.

"Can you do anything?" he asked. "I'm going out of my mind."

"Come here," Ryan said quietly. "We're going to make a call."

He got to Ryan and Row's and after giving the kids a few hugs he followed his friend into his home office to pace as Ryan dialed an old friend.

"Ryan," the voice said as soon as the line picked up. "How long has it been?"

"Too long," Ryan answered. "Listen Malcolm, I've got a friend here. You remember Eric McAllister?"

"Hey Malcolm," Eric said as he moved back to the desk.

"Eric," Malcolm paused. "Did your brother do something stupid and need to be rescued from some sandy province?"

"No," Ryan said, "Blake's here at home. It's his girlfriend."

"Blake has a girlfriend? Did he lose a wager?" Malcolm asked with a laugh.

"My girlfriend," Eric said.

"Interesting," Malcolm said. A car door slammed shut. "I didn't peg you as the settling down type."

"I've made some changes," Eric said tightly. "She's missing and I need help."

"The police have any leads?" Malcolm asked.

"They won't get involved," Ryan said. "From the outside it looks like she left on her own but it doesn't track."

"Ahh one of those huh?" A car engine fired up. "Look, Jackson and I need to finish something up but we should be back in the states in a day or so. Ryan send me anything you've got. I'll start looking into it as soon as I can."

"Done, thanks man," Ryan said.

"Hey, for you, anything. Give that wife of yours a kiss for me," Malcolm said with a laugh. "Talk soon." The line disconnected.

Eric looked at Ryan. "Thanks."

"This isn't going to be cheap," Ryan said as he sat in his chair behind the desk.

"I really don't care," Eric said as he turned to leave. "I need to know what happened."

"Eric," Ryan called just as he got to the door. Eric turned back. "You don't think your dad is mixed up in this—"

"Fuck I hope not. You know what he's like."

"The most manipulative son of a bitch to ever walk this earth," Ryan said as he sat back.

"Exactly," Eric said then slipped out into the hallway.

***

Weeks turned into a month all too quickly.

Malcolm's search, though much more in depth than the Blake's had been, was just as fruitless. From all appearances it looked like Jess had just walked away from her life. The only clue left behind was the short email she'd sent to her supervisor. They had traced the IP address but it had pinged in Belgium, suggesting that who ever sent it was using something to shield her location. Tracking her credit cards and back account was a dead end. There were no transactions to follow. She'd just vanished. At Ryan's suggestion Malcolm tried looking into Marcus McAllister but the man's life was hidden behind an impenetrable wall of security. No one could get to him unless he allowed it.

Six weeks after he'd returned from London Eric received a package. He accepted it from the security guard with a ghost of his usual smile tracing his lips. He recognized the return address immediately. The ring designer had finished his project. He carried the little box to the elevator, kept it in his hand as he moved through his condo.

Blake found him sitting at his desk in the library several hours later. The unopened package was sitting in the middle of the desk blotter, next to a crystal high ball glass and an almost empty bottle of bourbon.

"Buddy," Blake said gently. Eric didn't move, just kept staring at the box. "What's in the box?" It didn't have any outward appearances of containing any bloody body parts but who knew how well a kidnapper could pack a piece of loved one.

"It came today," Eric's voice croaked.

"Do you want me to take it out of here?"

"No!" Eric barked the word.

"Do you know what it is?"

Blake drew back as Eric finally turned to look at him. His eyes were red rimmed and filled with pain. "I had it designed for her," Eric whispered.

"What?"

"It's for Jess."

"Jesus." Blake raked a hand through his hair, looked down at his big brother, and sighed. "Why don't you leave it here and some have something to eat? I grabbed Chinese on my way over. When was the last time you ate?"

Eric looked around slowly. "I don't know. What time is it?"

"After six."

"Some time this morning I think?"

"Come on," Blake said as he wheeled the chair away from the desk and reached down to help Eric stand. He stumbled as Eric threw his arms around him awkwardly.

"I just want her back," Eric cried out softly.

Blake hugged him while trying to keep him upright. "I know man, I miss her too."

"You should, she's an amazing woman."

In that moment Blake wanted to hate her a little bit. He was still worried that she had been taken by someone and Eric would receive a ransom not demanding millions for her return. But if that wasn't the case and she had simply run from Eric he wanted to throttle her.

He'd never seen Eric that way. Even when their mother had died Eric had been someone that Blake could lean on for strength. But Jess' disappearance was breaking him bit by bit.

Blake got Eric's arm over his own shoulder, helped him walk out of the library, then up the stairs to his room. After he got him settled on the bed Blake went down to the kitchen to grab him a bottle of water and the bag of take out sitting on the counter.

Eric was out cold by the time he got back so he sat on the other side of the bed to pick at the food and watch over his brother.

"Where the hell are you?" he asked softly as he looked out at the city lights.

***

Two months later.

Blake shaded his eyes against the blazing tropical sun beating down on him as he exited the car. He turned to find the resort owner hurrying out to greet him. Of course Francois would meet him in person rather than send his assistant.

Blake was just the kind of VIP Francois liked. Young, handsome, with deep pockets. If things went well over the next few days he likely could count on Blake's patronage for a long time.

"We'll have your bag brought to your room," Francois said as he waved toward the front entrance to the building. Blake nodded as he started forward, his gaze moving over the buff coloured walls as he entered the gate and walked the short path to the front doors. To the casual eye the resort appeared like any of the others that dotted these islands. Only the staff, exclusive guests, and residents, knew it's true purpose.

After watching the toll Jess' disappearance had taken on his brother Blake needed a break. As much as he loved Eric he couldn't take seeing how he'd become much longer. Even after months of no word Eric refused to give up hope on Jess. He even had Ryan's friends on retainer in case any clues came up. It was gut wrenching to witness. Jess was long gone. Blake had given up on her weeks before his little trip.

Blake could have chosen any number of luxurious playgrounds for a breather but this one had drawn him in a way the others couldn't match. For the five days he was planning on staying he could leave his playboy lifestyle behind and enter a different kind of fantasy. He knew about that resort from conversations he'd overheard between his father and his friends and decided to check it out.

Francois was talking to Blake as they walked through the foyer to the front desk. "Your father didn't mention that you were interested in our little slice of paradise."

Blake stopped and looked at the owner. "He doesn't know I'm here and I'd prefer to keep it that way."

"Of course," Francois murmured. "Anything we can do to make your stay more enjoyable just say the word." He smiled broadly, his perfectly straight white teeth in stark contrast to his ebony skin. "Feel free to take in the grounds at your leisure." He handed Blake the room key. "As I mentioned in your welcome correspondence, the staff as in blue." He waved to his assistant who was waiting near the sweeping staircase. "Evelyn will show you to your room. If you see anyone that piques your interest please let her know and we'll have them brought to you this evening."

"Your email said green means available and red have patrons?"

"That is correct," Francois said, his smile still firmly in place.

Blake gave him a nod and turned to follow Evelyn to the stairs. He let her stay a pace in front of him as they climbed the stairs. They reached the landing before Blake spoke again. "Francois mentioned yellow bracelets as well, for those in training?"

Evelyn nodded, her shoulder length blonde hair swung back as she looked over her shoulder at him with a demure smile. "You're welcome to choose one of those if you'd like. Francois understands that some patrons wish to train their choices directly." She waved toward a hallway then turned down it, keeping her pace sedate. "There will be an open training session tonight after dinner. Perhaps you'd like to attend."

"I'll think about it," he said with a smile.

Evelyn stopped at a door and waved her hand towards it. Blake stepped forward and unlocked the door. "There is a selection of sarongs in the closet should you decide to come." She smiled at his puzzled expression. "It will make it easier if you wish to participate."

"I didn't realize that would be an option."

"You've already submitted the required paperwork so you're free to sample the selections whenever you'd like. If you need anything please let me or one of the other staff know."

"Thank you," he said over his shoulder as he walked to the patio doors. The view was lovely, past the walls he could see part of the island, in the other direction there was a pool surrounded by palm trees, just past that a white sand beach that led down to the ocean. As he watched security guards could be seen along the wall. He turned back to watch the waves for a few minutes, letting the steady rhythm smooth his frayed nerves. For a second he almost wished he'd asked Eric to come with him. It might have helped him to be away from his home and all his memories for a few days. After a minute he turned away to go change out of his jeans.

He knew Eric would have refused. It was going to take a stick of dynamite to get him to let go of Jess.

***

Blake's sandals clapped against the stone tiles as he made his way through the wide hallway leading out to the pool. Several impeccably groomed, graceful, women in swimsuits cast demure smiles his way as he passed by. Most were blonde but there were a couple of brunettes. All were thin and beautiful. He scanned their faces as he strolled, not sure what he was hoping to find and not in a rush to find it anyway.

He walked around the deck of the pool, leaving the women to continue sunning themselves, and stepped onto the sand to go down to the water. His eyes closed behind his sun glasses as he slowed and let the sound of the waves wash over him. The tension that had been twisting his shoulders into knots loosened with each crash of water. He smiled slightly as he opened his eyes and looked down the beach. There was a brunette walking along the edge of the water. She was too far away for Blake to make out her features but she appeared to be like one of the other women though she had more clothes on. A simple yellow cover up shielded her body, from her shoulders to mid thigh, from the hot sun.