blonde in the room next door.
Chapter Five
T he next morning, Sarah barely made it out of bed. Despite the renewing run, she hadn’t slept much. Michelle’s disappearance had upset her more than she thought possible. Ever since going undercover, Sarah had seen too much evil come from inside those walls and had been tempted to walk away, but she had a valuable job to perform—that of helping take down Paul Statler and his band of not-so-merry men.
Sarah had set her alarm for a half an hour earlier than usual, hoping there had been a mistake and Michelle had come to work, albeit a few hours late. Sarah slipped out of bed and dressed quietly since Amy would still be asleep. Once she washed up and donned her uniform, Sarah headed to the warehouse, not caring if anyone followed her this time. As long as she wasn’t meeting with Jay or Riley, she didn’t need to be as careful.
She parked in front of the warehouse, swiped her entry card, and went in. Dread filled her at what she might find. Michelle always took good care of Nancy Edmonds on her shift, and even a few hours without someone looking after Nancy might kill her. Statler had commanded Sarah to heal her, and if Michelle had skipped town—possibly with Darnell—she hoped Statler would provide a replacement nurse. Then again, he planned to sell these women in a few days, so he might not bother.
A band tightened around her chest at the thought. Everything about this situation sucked.
When she punched in the code to enter the first of two rooms that housed the women, Sarah hoped Michelle would be there, working her magic. Unfortunately, she was not. All Sarah found was silence inside the dark, windowless room.
Her pulse raced. Something wasn’t right. Sarah flicked on one small bank of lights. Her mind blanked and her heart fluttered. Dear God, help us all. The women appeared to be unconscious, or else were sleeping deeply. If she’d had something in her hand other than her purse, she would have thrown it against the wall.
She stepped over to Nancy and placed a palm on her forehead. The woman was burning up. Shit. Even if Sarah had the skills of a doctor, without medicine, she couldn’t do much for her.
Shouts sounded outside the door and she rushed to see what the ruckus was about. She peeked out and spotted Statler grabbing Russ by the neck. That had to be bad news for him. As much as she wanted to listen, if Statler caught her spying, it might end up badly for her.
Both Riley and Jay would be interested to learn that Statler was now at the warehouse, though for how long was anyone’s guess. What they would do with that knowledge she didn’t know, but she needed to text them anyway. Her email to Jay read: Statler in house. A nurse and guard are missing.
If the men wanted her to do something, they’d respond. Sure enough, Jay’s text came through seconds later. Working on getting medicine. Thanks for the update. Now delete all evidence of our correspondence and stay safe. Jay.
Her stomach cramped. Sarah would be able to administer the medicine only if Nancy woke. Perhaps the reason Michelle was no longer at work was because one of the guards asked her to drug the women and she’d refused. As much as she wanted to figure out what happened to Michelle, she didn’t need to dwell on it.
The women had to be her first concern. Sarah flooded the room with light, hoping to jolt them awake. “Wake up, ladies. Rise and shine!” She clapped her hands, and when no sounds arose, she gently nudged a few mattresses. No response. Shit.
Discouraged, she headed to the second room, hoping she’d meet with more success. When she stepped into that room, the air was stale and all the girls were in the same condition. Well damn.
* * *
Jay paced the small motel room frustrated he wasn’t able to make his move even though Statler was nearby. It was taking all of his control not to confront the man, but to do so would probably end in disaster, and