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Slade had finished breakfast when his cell phone pinged. He recognized the Countess Borghase’s phone number on his digital display and his heart sank. Something was wrong. He frowned as he answered his phone.
“Countess, what’s happened?” he asked in a terse voice.
“Michaela’s been taken, just a few minutes ago,” Dottie said breathlessly. Slade heard the fear in her voice.
“Taken? What the hell do you mean, taken?” The color drained out of Slade’s face as he slammed his fist on the table and overturned two coffee cups. He was furious. Jack and Stoner watched him with concern as uncertainty consumed them.
“Who the hell took her? How did they get her?” Slade growled as he spat the words from his mouth.
Dottie sighed, “Do you remember the busboy from the restaurant that always had a crush on Michaela? It’s him! His name is Grady Jones. The busboy from Biddy’s. She fired him a few years ago.”
Slade’s fingers clenched the cell phone, his fingertips bloodless. He didn’t remember a star-struck kid in love with Mic. Of course, it didn’t surprise him. “No, no. I don’t know any busboy that wanted Mic,” he said angrily. “Who the hell are you talking about?”
Dottie’s voice seeped with anger. How dare Slade McKane speak to her with such disrespect? He was supposed to understand. She decided to let it pass, took a deep breath, and continued, “When I got to the elevator, Mic had a gun on the man, and Angel was on his chest. Mic called Angel off and the man grabbed her ankle and lower leg and pulled it out from under her. Then he karate-chopped her shin and she fell down on top of him. The gun flew out of her hand and he got it.” Dottie hesitated for a moment to think.
“What, what, then what happened?” Slade asked in a tight voice.
“He slapped her. The guy slapped her hard,” Dottie said as she grimaced at the memory. “The blow stunned her, because he got the best of her. The next thing I saw, he was on top of her with her gun pointed at her face.”
“Then what?” Slade asked in a harsh voice.
“Then nothing. They left in the elevator. He took her and now she’s gone... they’re gone,” she corrected herself.
“This guy took Michaela?” Slade seethed. “I can’t believe some guy came in, hit her, and wrestled her to the floor,” he said angrily. “I’ve never known Mic to lose her gun.”
Dottie was pissed. She’d had enough from the arrogant Cajun cop. But this was about Mic, so Dottie let go of her anger and as patiently as she could possibly be said, “I’m telling you, Slade, the guy karate-chopped her leg, pulled her down to the floor, and slapped her hard. When she fell, she lost her gun. That’s it. That’s how it happened. I saw it.” Dottie gritted her teeth as her heart raced blood through her body.
Slade was quiet as he played the scene out in his mind.
“Say something,” Dottie hollered into the phone.
“I’m thinking, Dottie. Give me a minute,” Slade barked.
“I think she was stunned for a moment,” Dottie said angrily. “You couldn’t have done any better than Michaela did. That I’m sure of,” she added as the reality of her story sank in.
Slade covered his face with his hands and said, “I’m sorry, Dottie. Have they searched for her?”
Dottie’s temper flared. “Hell, yeah, they’re looking, but I shouldn’t have to tell you that we’re almost in Athens and there are few officers and security available to search. Besides, the ship is huge and we haven’t found St. Germaine yet, and we’ve been looking for him for days,” she reminded him in a hostile voice.
Slade hesitated and said, “Tell me again who took her. What does he look like? I’ll put you on speaker phone. Commander Françoise and Travis Stoner with the FBI are with me.”
Jack Françoise grabbed the phone. “Countess, it’s Jack. In your opinion, is this man dangerous?”
Dottie’s eyes rolled nonstop. What is wrong with these people? “Yeah, he’s dangerous. He broke into Mic’s stateroom, cut up her clothes, and took her shoes two nights ago. He also poisoned, perhaps I should say, tried to kill Angel, and drugged Mic for an entire night.” She paused for a moment before continuing. “Yeah, I’d say the motherfucker’s dangerous. Wouldn’t you?” Dottie was shocked by her own language, but let it slide.
Jack cursed under his breath and Stoner locked eyes with Slade.
“Countess Borghase, we’ll be on the ship the second it docks.”
“I’ll be waiting with the ship’s security,” she assured them and hung up. She shook her head. What a trio of morons. Slade and Jack had done nothing to ease her anxiety. She looked down at Angel and said, “It’s up to us, old boy. I guess we’ll have to get her back ourselves.”
Angel looked at her and Dottie was sure he nodded his head in agreement. She rubbed his ears and said, “Yep, we’ll get her.” Dottie stroked Angel’s neck and said, “We’ll get all of those bastards,” she said as Angel watched her carefully.