Controlled (Gretel Koch Jewel Thief Book 2) Page 7

  “You’re right what you said about dark and light, Gretel. One of the coolest things about the story is the reference to the light side and the dark side, and The Force.”

  “Yes, well. I said, don’t start with it, and here you are starting with it. And, let’s not talk about The Force. Sounds too Godlike for my tastes.”

  “The Force is essentially the energy of life, and people can choose to either tap into good or bad energy.”

  Gretel groaned, regretting that she’d ever asked him about Star Wars.

  He continued unfazed, “Jedi are beings that are more sensitive to the light side of the force—peace, love, selflessness etc., which gives them heightened senses and other abilities. The Sith are essentially the same thing but wield their powers from the dark side of the force—greed, anger, selfishness, which often leads to an evil path.”

  Gretel thought about that for a moment. Was she like The Sith, greedy? Was that why she couldn’t resist stealing things? “Okay. No need to go on. I get it.”

  “You do? So does that mean you’ll come and see the next movie on the big screen with me?”

  “Don’t you have some buddies you can go with? Some other Star Wars fan cronies?”

  “I wouldn’t call them cronies, but yeah, I do. I’m not just going to see it once though. I thought you and I could go when I see it for the third or the fourth time.”

  Gretel swallowed hard. She couldn’t think of anything worse. “We’ll see,” she said. That’s what her mother always said to her as a child when it meant no. Her mind went back to the Sith. Although she couldn’t swallow all the good and bad references, she didn’t want to be like The Sith and she wasn’t sure why it made her uncomfortable.

  Maybe it brought back the childhood memories that she had to repent, turn to God, or be cast into the fires of hell. It didn’t make sense. If God was real why wouldn’t he love the dark as much as he loved the light? Didn’t He create it all?

  “I’ll let you know as soon as it comes out,” Kent said, jogging her mind from her deep thoughts.

  “Sure, do that.”

  “Keep in touch and call me as soon as you find out anything.”

  “I will.” Gretel ended the call. She exchanged that cell phone for her regular one, and then called for her regular Chinese take-out.

  She was in no mood to cook.

  Chapter Eleven

  Thirty minutes later, the new doorman, Frank, buzzed her to tell her the food was there.

  She pushed her feet into her shoes and headed down in the elevator. She’d schooled him that she never allowed anyone up to her apartment unless it was her sister or Jack. When she got to the foyer, he was talking to some folks outside the front door, he turned, gave her a little nod to let her know that was her food in the large paper bag.

  After she waved back, she grabbed the bag and headed back to the elevator. She pushed the button for her floor, breathing in the aroma of the fried rice, the black bean steak and the honey chicken, wondering how she would eat it all by herself.

  Just as the door was about to close, a large hand grabbed one edge of the door. Then another hand appeared on the other side and slowly the doors were prised apart until she saw the face of one of the horrible men who’d kidnapped her.

  A chill ran down her spine and she took hold of the bag in both hands and thrust it into his face. As he was wiping hot black bean sauce off his face, she pushed him to one side running between him and the left side of the elevator doorway.

  She couldn't head out the door because she would have to explain herself, and for some reason, at that moment, she didn't want to have to explain anything to anyone.

  This was something she could handle herself. She’d been in dangerous situations before. She flung open the door of the fire escape and ran up taking the steps two by two. It was for moments like these she’d tried to keep her fitness levels up, but since she’d been out of prison, it’d all fallen by the wayside.

  She looked over her shoulder to see that he was gaining on her. She kept going and saw someone was walking down the stairs. She had no choice but to keep running. She came face-to-face with a man she knew lived in her building, she grabbed him and pushed him onto the man who was chasing her. They both toppled backward, and she kept going.

  Monica’s gun.

  Monica’s gun was hidden in her apartment, and if she had to, she’d use it. First, she had to get there.

  Just as she had her hand on the door of her apartment, she was pulled back by her hair and thrown against the wall.

  The ugly bald man stared into her face. He smelled like the contents of a dumpster and needed a shave. “I'm not going to hurt you. I'm just here to deliver a message.”

  “What is it?”

  “Keep your mind on the job.”

  “I won't be intimidated. I already said I’d do it.”

  “That’s not what I heard. We have an insurance policy to keep you on the right track.”

  He pulled out his phone from his pocket and showed her the screen. Her sister, Hazel, sat tied up with her legs in front of her and her hands behind her back.

  Gretel was sick to her stomach. Her sister—they had Hazel.

  “We’ve got your sister.”

  “I don’t believe it’s her. I just spoke to her recently.”

  “It’s her all right. Hazel Koch.”

  “How do I even know she's alive and you haven't killed her already?”

  “She's alive.”

  “I don't believe you. I want to speak with her.”

  “No.”

  “Yes. I won’t do anything if you’ve killed her or if you’ve harmed her. Prove it.”

  He swallowed hard and then made a call. “She wants to speak with her sister.” He put the phone on speaker and then she heard loud crying. It certainly sounded like Hazel.

  “Hazel, is that you?”

  The blindfolded Hazel looked around. “Gretel? Where are you? I can hear you. Get me out of here.”

  “Yes it's me, and I will.”

  “They’re going to kill me, Gretel. I don't want to die."

  "You won't die. It's going to be okay. I'll handle it.”

  “Gretel, do whatever they say.”

  “I will, of course I will. Stay strong.”

  The man ended the call. “Just do what we said.”

  Gretel nodded. “You didn’t have to do this.”

  “We gotta do what we gotta do. We’ve been told you’re tricky and not to trust you. No one trusts you one little bit.”

  He headed to the elevator and she slid to her knees and sobbed.

  A minute later, the neighbor she’d pushed down the stairs found her. He had a gash on his head.

  “Are you okay?” he asked.

  “I'm fine. I'm so sorry about what happened. I had to get away from him.”

  “Did he hurt you?”

  “No, I think he thought I was someone else. Someone who had owed him money or something. He kept calling me Penelope. I showed him my ID that I had in my pocket for the delivery people for my Chinese food, and, and,…”

  “It's all right. I’ll help you back to your apartment.” He helped her to her feet. “Which one is yours again?”

  “It’s okay. It’s this one just here. Your head. It’s a deep cut.”

  “It's okay, the wife will see to it. Is that your Chinese food all over the floor of the foyer?”

  “Oh no, I'll be sure to hear all about that at the owner’s corporation meeting.”

  “I never go to those things,” he said.

  “Neither do I, but I'm sure if I did go, I'd hear about it.”

  He laughed. “Most likely.”

  “I'm Gretel by the way.”

  “Nice to meet you. I'm Doug.”

  “I've seen you a few times over the last month or so. It's funny how you see people every day and you never know their name.”

  “Well you know it now. My wife and I live directly one floor under.”

  “
Oh that's nice you must have a lovely view.”

  “Probably not as nice as yours.”

  She moved closer to her door. “Thanks for checking on me. I’ll have to own up to the mess downstairs. I’ll do that in a minute when I calm down.”

  “Okay. I’ll get this cut seen to.”

  “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  “I’m fine. Don't worry about me, just worry about yourself.” He laughed. “Bye, Gretel.”

  She closed the door thinking what a nice man he was, especially since she’d pushed him down the stairs.

  She called the doorman and told him what had happened. He promised it would never happen again, that he'd keep a better eye on who he allowed in, and then he informed her the mess was already cleaned up. He told her to order another take-out meal, and he’d bring it up to her. Then he finished by saying, “I've called the police.”

  “There was no need. He just thought I was someone else.”

  “I'm sorry, but Doug said a man was chasing you up the stairs. I thought the worst.”

  “No, it's fine. Can you call them and cancel?”

  “Are you sure you're all right?”

  “I'm fine, I'm fine, I just don't want the police to waste their time here. They're so busy these days with crime and whatnot.”

  “Okay. I'll bring the food up to you when it arrives.”

  “Thank you. And just be careful who you let into the building.”

  “Yes, we're going to have to go back over the CCTV footage to see how he got in. I don’t remember seeing him.”

  “Yes, please do, and do let me know what you find out. I'll be very interested to know how he got in.”

  “Sure, Gretel, sure.”

  She hung up the receiver of her intercom and then hurried to call Jack. She told him she had to see him urgently.

  He wasted no time and was there in twenty minutes.

  She stood looking out the window and as soon as she saw him, she headed to the door and waited to let him in.

  “They’ve got Hazel.”

  “Who has?”

  “The people who kidnapped me?”

  He stared at her. “What?”

  “I was kidnapped and now they say I’ll get her back when I give them the diamond. The Purple Promise.”

  “You were kidnapped?”

  Chapter Twelve

  “Wait a minute. What happened?” Jack asked.

  “First off, when you were getting those diamonds checked and you couldn't find me and you were driving around, remember that?”

  He nodded.

  “They put me into a white SUV and took me somewhere, blindfolded, and they put chloroform over my face and I passed out. When I woke up there were about five men around me and they said I had to steal Purple Promise for them. I didn't even know it was our job to guard that until you told me later that day.”

  “So they want you to find the Purple Promise and to steal it for them?”

  “Yes. To steal it for them. And I don't know if they knew I would be part of the team.”

  “So that's why you asked me how many people knew?”

  “Yes.”

  “Gretel, why didn't you tell me this at the start?”

  “I don't know, I didn't think they were serious.”

  “But still, you should've told me especially if there were threats involved.”

  “There were. They said they would kill my whole family. And tonight I just walked down to get my Chinese take-out and then one of them tried to threaten me again. That's when they told me that they've got Hazel. I talked to her on the phone; she's tied up. I saw her. They've kidnapped her. And I've got to steal the diamond. What will I do?”

  “You'll make sure I know everything you can remember about them and what they said.”

  “Oh no. They’ll be watching me and have probably seen you coming to the building. Now they might kill her.”

  “I don't think so. They know that we work together.”

  “Maybe.”

  “They wouldn't think that you would tell me if your sister's life is in danger.”

  She held her head. “Oh no, that's right. No it’s wrong. I’ve done the wrong thing.”

  “I’ll tell you what. We need a cover. I was just on my way to visit Monica in the hospital when you called.”

  “How’s that a cover?”

  “It is if you come with me. If they’re keeping an eye on you they might think it was previously arranged that I come and collect you.” He lifted the Chinese food. “Seems like there’s enough here for two.”

  “Yes, help yourself. I’m not hungry.”

  “Neither am I. I’m just trying to work out a likely scenario for them. They’ll think I came here for a meal and then we went to see Monica.”

  “Okay, yes. Good thinking.”

  “Don’t panic. We’ve got to think this through.”

  “No, not me. I can’t be responsible. I know nothing about kidnapping or these kinds of criminals—the blue-collar ones.”

  He walked over and put the bag on the countertop in the kitchen. “Are you ready to go?”

  “To the hospital?”

  “Yes."

  "I’ll just need to get ready. Do you mind putting that food in the fridge for me?” She took a couple of steps toward her bedroom. “I don’t actually have to see her, do I?”

  He smiled. “It would be better if you didn’t.”

  “That’s what I thought.” She turned and headed to get changed.

  “Gretel.”

  She walked back out.

  “The day you were abducted, that was the day before Monica was shot.”

  Gretel nodded.

  “She was wearing your hat and your scarf when she was shot. I thought it was odd at the time and wondered if they were after you.”

  “I think they were trying to kill me. I told them that day that I wouldn’t do it.”

  He shook his head. “Why didn’t you tell me? If you had it might’ve saved Tosh’s life. I would’ve helped you out of this mess.”

  She sighed. “I didn’t know it would end up with someone dead, someone in the hospital and my sister held hostage. If I’d known I would’ve …”

  “It’s okay. We’ll figure it out.”

  “They gave me a cell phone that they said they’d contact me on.”

  “Did they call you?”

  “Yes, the morning of the shooting. They said they’d show me it wasn’t a joke.”

  “Show me the phone.”

  She walked over to the coffee table and got the phone out of her bag that was sitting on top. He closed the distance between them and took the phone from her.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “I’ve just called Jack. I had to tell him. They were here and threatened me. Anyway, he’s waiting for me now.” She'd quietly called Kent as soon as she'd closed herself in her bedroom.

  “You’ve done the right thing, Gretel.”

  “I hope so.”

  “I found out that the auction house has had too many problems with false alarms. They’ve installed a system to reduce these and I think that’s our ticket.”

  “I can’t talk now. I’ll call you later.”

  “False alarms, Gretel. Make them have so many false alarms that when you take the diamond, have them think it’s a false alarm. The police won’t be called.”

  “Let me think about it. Keep an eye on their system. Better still, get into it and see what kind of things triggered a false alarm.”

  “I’m on it.” He ended the call.

  Gretel closed her eyes and for the first time in years, she said a prayer for her sister. She wouldn’t pray for herself, but it was what her sister believed. Maybe it would help, it certainly wouldn’t hurt.

  Now, she had to go back to that awful hospital.

  When the ringing woke her up the next morning Gretel grabbed the phone thinking it was going to be someone with news of her sister. Then she saw it was her burner phone. It had to be Kent or Marty
because they were the only ones who had that number.

  “Hello?”

  “It's me.” It was Kent. “I found out some things about Monica Blaze.”

  “Don't worry about her. Did you find out anything else?”

  “Not yet. I'm still working on it. I've been up half the night.”

  “Keep working on it and call me when you've got something.” She ended the call and looked at the time to see it was six. Time to get up. What she needed to do was overcome her fears of being out in the open and go for a run. Her fitness levels had dropped and she couldn't have that.

  She could tell when she had been chased up the stairs.

  After Gretel changed into her workout gear, she slipped out the back of the building and headed down some side roads until she came to the park. She could’ve gone out the front of the building and straight across the road, but after last night’s experience, she was wary of being watched or followed.

  As she ran along the tree line path, she thought about what Kent said regarding having some information about Monica. It couldn't have been very much because FBI agents were the most heavily scrutinized people in the world. If she had any skeletons in the closet, she wouldn't have got the job in the first place. Still, she’d have to ask him.

  Gretel was enjoying the run, the first time she’d run in the park since she’d gotten out of prison.

  She did her best to ignore the guilt coursing through her body. Her sister wouldn't be in this position if she hadn't chosen to live a life of crime. It was her reputation that brought those men to her; therefore it was her fault if any of her family was harmed.

  Still, she had to keep a focused mind and she always felt better mentally if she was fit physically. Because she hadn't run for a while, she decided to do the four-mile-loop run. She ran at a slow pace and didn't mind when joggers ran past her, not when she was already feeling her muscles. Half a mile along, she realized she left her earphones at home. Loud music would've drowned out her thoughts. She did her best to keep pushing them away, concentrating on the beauty that surrounded her.