Good Deed Bad Deed, Marcia Morgan [summer beach reads TXT] 📗

across the expanse of dead grass, stopping just feet from the front door.

He turned off the ignition and said, “Here we are. It’s time to get out, ladies.”

Olivia turned to look at Valerie, her expression one of disbelief. Valerie returned the expression and spoke. “Surely this must be the wrong place. I know the place we booked only had two stars, but this is ridiculous.”

“Ladies, I guarantee this is where you’ll be staying.”

Valerie began to assert herself. “This is no guesthouse. Do you see a sign anywhere?” She quickly pulled her mobile phone out of her bag and then dug for the reservation information so she could dial the hotel’s number. She handed the paper to Olivia and told her to read out the number.

“Never mind, you two. You’ll be coming with me. You’ve been provided with alternate accommodations. Now hand me your phones.” They looked up at him and saw that he had turned around and was pointing a gun directly at them.

Olivia covered her mouth to stifle a scream, and Valerie simply said, “Oh my God!”

He began to wave the gun in a way that indicated they should get out of the van. Valerie squeezed Olivia’s hand and nodded to her in a way that urged her to comply. “Just do as he says for now. We have no other choice.”

“But I don’t understand. What could he want with us?” Olivia asked.

Lenny’s voice turned harsh. “Enough talk. Get out and walk to the door. And keep quiet. If you scream or try to run, I won’t think twice about shooting you. And when I shoot someone they don’t get up—ever.”

The women got out of the van and walked slowly, trembling hand in trembling hand, to the door. He held the gun on them while he unlocked the door and then pushed them inside, closing and locking it behind them. “This is your vacation destination. Whether you ever return from this vacation depends on the actions of someone else. We’ll see how important you are to them.”

The women were in shock. They were so frightened they didn’t notice the condition of their surroundings. Lenny immediately noticed the work that had been done by Annunciata. He detected the odors of bleach and chemicals, probably something used to kill the cockroaches. The counters were still cracked and stained, but they had been cleared of droppings and insects and had been wiped down. The mildew around the sink had been bleached away and the refrigerator was no longer smudged. He hoped she had tended to the inside. It had been plugged in, and he could hear the hum of the motor. Dried food had been scrubbed from the table and the trash had been cleared from the newly swept floor.

The women stood with their arms around each other, not making a sound, but finally Olivia said, “What is this place? It’s disgusting. Why did you bring us here?”

Lenny walked over and slapped her hard enough to send her reeling back against the wall. She began to slide down, holding a hand against her cheek. Valerie ran to her, helping to hold her upright as she checked the degree of injury to her face. Her cheek was bright red and she had bitten her lip, which was bleeding slightly. He told the women there was more of the same for each of them if they didn’t cooperate. Valerie fought back her tears and asked for the bathroom. He made some sort of guttural sound and pushed one, then the other, into the tiny bedroom. Taking Valerie by the arm, he walked her into the bathroom. There were no longer any rat droppings in the sink or ants around the drain. The smell of bleach permeated the tiny space, and behind the toilet a box of rat bait was open and ready. He came out, closed the door and held the gun on Olivia while Valerie was inside. When she came out, Olivia was urged to avail herself of the opportunity as well. There was no way they could simultaneously attack him as long as he held a gun on them. They seemed to share that fact in the looks they exchanged.

He ordered each of them to sit on one of the two mattresses. One was on the floor beside a radiator and the other was beside a folding bed made of heavy metal. He proceeded to handcuff the wrist of each woman—one to the radiator, one to the metal bed. He closed the only window in the stuffy room, and pulled the tattered curtain closed. They were advised that screaming would do no good, that the nearest building was at a distance, and that with the window closed no one could hear them anyway. He went back into the main room and pulled something out of a leather backpack that lay on the table. From the doorway he tossed a bottle of water onto each of the mattresses and told them that he was going out, but only for a short time, and that they’d do best to avoid shedding tears that would dehydrate them. He turned and left, the door slamming hard before they heard the key turn in the lock.

Neither could believe the reality of what had just happened. In spite of Lenny’s advice, they began to sob, their chests heaving to the point of breathlessness, but their eyes dry. Olivia was the first to speak, her voice trembling. “You must realize that no one will ever find us. I don’t know anybody who would involve me in something like this, do you?”

“Of course not. And no one knew where we were going other than your boss, right?”

“Well, your travel agent knew. And I told Clive Warren, the man I just started seeing. He asked me when we could see each other gain, so I told him I’d be gone for a while. He asked when I was leaving and offered to take us to the airport. I told him about